Rise of Empires: Spain

Chapter 14: The War Triggered by the Selection of a King

The revolution in Spain and the establishment of a provisional government attracted the attention of many European countries.

After the Spanish parliament announced that it would not abolish the monarchy and would search for a new king, many countries adopted a wait-and-see attitude, while also wondering which lucky person would become the new king of Spain.

But soon, the French government's smiles faded.

According to reports from Spain, among the many candidates for the Spanish king, Prince Leopoldo of the Hohenzollern family is at the forefront and is very likely to become the next king of Spain.

(There were several Princes of Leopold in Germany, also known as Leopolds. The candidate for the throne here is Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern, not the one from Bavaria. Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern was the father of King Ferdinand I of Romania.)

This was fatal for the French. Prussia alone posed a huge threat to France. Especially after defeating Austria, the threat Prussia posed to France was unprecedented.

If the Hohenzollern family were to obtain the Spanish crown, France would face a situation of being attacked from both Prussia and Spain.

Although Spain is not a powerful country, and can only be considered a second-rate nation in Europe, it is located in southern France and has the Pyrenees Mountains as a natural defensive line.

Prussia only needed to amass fewer than 100,000 troops in Spain to cause great trouble for the French and threaten many cities in southern France.

On June 21, 1869, an enraged French government expressed strong opposition to the Spanish and German governments, stating that the coronation of Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern as King of Spain would be the time for France to declare war on Prussia and Spain.

The threat from the European hegemon was quite effective. King William I of Prussia hesitated somewhat under such a threat and even publicly expressed his disapproval of his cousin, Prince Leopold, inheriting the Spanish throne.

The Spanish government was also starting to panic. If their choice of king led to a war with France, it would undoubtedly be a losing proposition.

William I's concession pleased the French government, and they relaxed their vigilance against Prussia, which had just defeated Austria.

The French ambassador to Prussia even sought an audience with William I in early July, conveying Emperor Napoleon III's hope that William I would guarantee that he would not demand the relinquishment of his candidacy in the future.

Such a demand was absolutely rude, which made William I, who had originally intended to back down, somewhat dissatisfied.

The French would never have imagined that, with Wilhelm I leading the retreat, there were even more stubborn individuals in Germany who were already preparing for war with France.

William I was somewhat annoyed by the French ambassador's rudeness. That same day, he sent an urgent telegram to his prime minister, Bismarck, hoping that Bismarck could come up with a reasonable solution to the crisis facing Prussia.

But William I did not expect that Bismarck's solution to the crisis was to defeat France through war, which was the solution itself.

Upon receiving Wilhelm I's telegram, Bismarck showed no panic; in fact, a slight smile appeared on his face.

After asking Chief of the General Staff Moltke whether he was confident of victory in the war against France and receiving an affirmative answer, Bismarck decided not to wait any longer.

He drastically revised the contents of William I's telegram, deleting all the words about taking a long-term view and making tactful concessions, and adding some provocative words to the end of the telegram to the French government and officials: "Due to your country's unreasonable demands and attitude, His Majesty King William I has decided to refuse to approach the French ambassador from now on, and conveys to your country only through this telegram that there is nothing more to discuss between our two countries."

Although the telegram intended to provoke the French government was not sent directly to the French government's radio stations, it was published in major Prussian newspapers and disseminated throughout Europe through all Prussian missions abroad.

The Prussians' firm stance caused an uproar in the French government, which infuriated the previously smug French government.

Carlo probably never imagined that his slightest action would directly affect the world and bring the Franco-Prussian War forward by a year.

On July 11, 1869, an enraged French government, after several days of preparation, expelled the Prussian ambassador to France and, without expression, announced war between the two countries to the Prussian ambassador.

But the French did not see the expected panic and tension on the Prussian ambassador's face. They could only watch as the Prussian ambassador walked out of the embassy with a relaxed expression and boarded the train back to Prussia.

Even more bewildered than the French was King William I of Prussia. Although William I was furious at the French's rudeness, he truly hadn't considered going to war with them at such a time.

But things had come to this point, and Wilhelm I could not stop the war. On July 12, Wilhelm I announced a general mobilization in the North German Confederation and called on all the states within the Confederation to fight for Germany.

Prussia called this war the Franco-German War, attempting to unite Germany to demand military and logistical support from the various states.

The French also called this war the Franco-German War, and the animosity between the French and the German regions had been going on for quite some time.

This war, which was larger in scale than the Austro-Prussian War, broke out with lightning speed, which was somewhat unexpected for the Spanish government, which was theoretically the direct cause of the Franco-Prussian War.

However, given this situation, regardless of who won the Franco-Prussian War, Prince Leopold of Prussia was no longer suitable to be King of Spain.

In addition, Prince Leopold himself publicly stated that he would not inherit the Spanish throne. Although William I opposed it more, it was still Prince Leopold who gave up the throne.

After these events, only two princes from the House of Savoy of Italy remained out of the original five candidates for the Spanish throne.

Whether Amadeus or Carlos becomes King of Spain, Savoy will be the ultimate victor.

Aside from the Savoy dynasty, which both share, Amadeo's advantage lies in his age, making him more mature and stable. Carlo's advantage is his potentially more widely accepted reputation for friendliness among Spaniards, and his greater likelihood of supporting reforms.

From a reformist standpoint, Primo would undoubtedly have been more supportive of Carlos becoming King of Spain. After all, while Primo supported the monarchy, he was a thorough reformer.

Serrano, on the other hand, is more of a neutral figure between the reformists and conservatives, and can also be classified as a royalist within the aristocratic faction.

Both men were undecided about whether to choose Amadeo or Carlo. For the sake of the stability of the Kingdom of Spain, Primo decided to personally travel to Italy to assess the two princes and, during this trip, determine the final choice for King of Spain.

Serrano agreed to Primo's proposal and said he would support either Amadeo or Carlo to become King of Spain, and was willing to pledge allegiance to the new king.