The Near East War was suddenly suspended, instantly awakening many people in the Austrian government. There was no good surprise. The great powers were not fools and would not let the unified German Empire come out to compete with them for food.

This was different from the historical existence empire, which was expected by Franz. Austria now looks much stronger.

When shocking European countries, they are naturally afraid of everyone. At this time, diplomatic methods are very important, and blindly doing things is not something that wise people do.

Berlin

Metternich proposed to the Prussian government to divide the German region. There is no doubt that the Prussians are not stupid and it is difficult for both sides to reach an agreement.

It is easy for Austria to annex the Southern Germany region, but it is very troublesome to annex the Northern Germany region. This is a problem of soft power.

Prussia, which is powerful in its military strength, is culturally despised by most German states.

This is also the reason why the Kingdom of Prussia is prone to invasion. They have no right to speak in the cultural circle and are not recognized by everyone in culture.

Of course, they can also learn from the same history and use force to force everyone to agree. But the current Frederick William IV government is scared and dare not take this step.

When countries jointly stopped the unification of Germany, Austria encountered unprecedented diplomatic difficulties. If Prussia jumped out at this time, Austria's pressure would be reduced and they would be in trouble.

The North German region is different from the South German region. Most of the South German countries are Austrian brothers and have been influenced by Austria for a long time. This is also the reason why Franz advocates the use of political means to unify.

There are also British people in North Germany. If Prussia wants to annex these areas, Hannover is a hurdle that cannot be overcome.

After experiencing a Danish incident, the Berlin government knew that the great powers were not easy to mess with. Even if the British would not directly approach the city like the Russians, it would be terrible for the navy to come out to block the door.

Metternich said calmly: "Your Majesty, the North German region is the most prosperous region in Germany. Although the territory is slightly small, their economic strength is not weak at all."

The economic strength of North Germany is indeed not weak, with a total volume exceeding half of the Prussian Kingdom, which is what Frederick William IV dreamed of.

Frederick William IV shook his head and said, "Prime Minister, although the economy in North Germany is good, it is still not as good as that in South Germany. There is a huge gap in both population base and territory.

Given the complex situation in the North Germany, it is very unfair that the Kingdom of Prussia will find it difficult to annex these states, and Prussia needs to obtain Saxony as compensation."

Obviously, the Prussian government has recognized the importance of population during this period.

Metternier replied coldly: "Your Majesty, strength determines power. Once you exceed this boundary, it means disaster!"

How is fair? Austria paid such a great price and finally allowed the Kingdom of Prussia to gain the same benefits. Is it really a fool to think that the Vienna government is stupid?

...

The Prussian government did not dare to provoke the British, but hoped to obtain compensation in the Sino-Germany region, which was obviously not acceptable to Austria. The last negotiation between Pu'Austrian naturally ended in a bad mood.

Metternich's goal has been achieved, and the Prussians were moved and wanted to divide a piece of meat at the moment of division in the German region, which means that they could not work closely with Britain and France.

If the German region was divided into three parts according to the proposal of Britain and France, and the states except Cape Prussia and Austria were merged into one country, what are the benefits of the Prussians?

It is impossible to deprive Prussia of its own martial arts in order to limit Austria, right? Once this country is established, the Prussian Kingdom will suffer great losses.

Without the Southern Germany, Austria was still a continental power; without the Northern Germany, the current status of the Prussian Kingdom could not be preserved.

The complete industrial system is gone, and the German Customs Alliance, which is related to the lifeline of the Prussian economy, no longer exists.

One thousand three and four people gathered together because of their interests, and there are common topics between the mainland countries, the Fa and the Ao.

There is nothing that cannot be solved by interests. If interests cannot be solved, it must be that interests are not big enough.

Napoleon III was not a saint without desires, so he had great expectations for Metternich's arrival, which meant profit.

Metternich said straight to the point: "Your Majesty, on the European continent, France and Austria can cooperate with each other and achieve their needs.

‘Two countries confrontation’ is what the British mainland balance policy requires, and it is not in the interests of our two countries.

This time I visited Paris, I wanted to communicate in depth with your country and resolve the disputes between the two countries at the moment."

"What do you need us to do and what can we get?" Napoleon III asked frankly

In fact, the higher the level of negotiation, the easier it is. Everyone is very busy and doesn’t have so much time to argue.

Usually, high-level meetings are short and results need to be achieved in a limited time, so it is easier to reach a consensus by directly discussing interests.

Metternik directly stated the conditions: "Your Majesty, Austria hopes to obtain the recognition of the new Holy Roman Empire in your country, and in return Austria will support your country's expansion in the Kingdom of Sardinia and Central Europe."

Napoleon III thought for a while and said, "It seems that unification of the German region is just a cover. Your real purpose is just to annex the Southern German region. Now your goal has been achieved?"

Metternier replied seriously: "Yes, your majesty! It's too difficult to unify the German region. No one wants us to succeed. Austria has no plan to challenge the world."

Napoleon III fell into contemplation. The call for unification of the German region was very high. Austria had already eaten in the Southern German region, so obviously he would not vomit it easily.

From France's standpoint, he naturally did not want Austria to continue to grow, but it was very difficult to intervene now.

Don’t look at the temporary truce of the Near East War. Napoleon III was very clear that the contradiction between Britain, France and Russia has not eased. As long as the Russians do not give in, they cannot give in.

Relying on diplomatic pressure to make Austria retreat? Napoleon III can say with certainty, don’t dream. In this era, everyone speaks based on their strength. Austria has shown its muscles and has not overwhelmed their strength, so don’t expect them to compromise.

He had to admit that Austria chose a good opportunity to take advantage of the fierce battle between Britain, France and Russia, and won the South Germany region in one fell swoop, creating a certain fact.

Napoleon III said cautiously: "Your country wants to ced the land west of the Rhine to France, and your country must also withdraw from Italy.

The sphere of influence of the new Holy Roman Empire was limited to the current franchise countries and was not allowed to continue to expand into the German region.

In the Near East War, your country must not continue to support the Russians. If your country can do this, we can recognize the legitimacy of the new Holy Roman Empire."

How could this be possible if you agree to Napoleon III's request? At such a great price, you will gain a Southern Germany. Austria is not in vain.

Metternich shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, your appetite is too big, this has exceeded Austria's bottom line.

Except for the new Holy Roman Empire that did not continue to expand in the German region, we cannot accept any other conditions.

First of all, there is an alliance between Russia and Austria, and we cannot betray allies, so there is no need to discuss this issue.

Secondly, it is impossible to withdraw from the Italian region. At most, we can promise not to continue expanding in the Italian region.

The German land west of the Rhine River can be negotiated, but it is not possible now. We must consider the feelings of the people.

In fact, we don’t have much territory west of the Rhine and the value is not very high. It may be better for your country to make up for it from other places."

After Metternich personally admitted that there was a covenant between Russia and Austria, Napoleon III's heart sank to the bottom, which meant that interference was no longer possible.

Don’t watch all European countries join in the fun. In fact, most countries are just trying to make their presence internationally. If they really want to send troops, one or two will give up.

As long as the Russians support Austria, the coalition forces will not be organized. Unless the Near East War is stopped immediately and Britain and France will withdraw the troops from the front line, they will have the strength to interfere in Austria.

The British were willing to do it, and Napoleon III didn't know that he could never do it anyway. After paying such a big price, the battle was defeated to this point. Without a big victory, he would not be able to end.

This is related to his own political life. Napoleon III could not have bet on his own throne in order to interfere in Austria. It is not worth it.

Since there is a deal between Russia and Austria, Metternich has appeared in Paris secretly, what about London? If the Austrians convinced the British, it doesn't matter whether there is France's recognition.

Thinking of this, Napoleon III had no choice but to find that at this time he had no choice. Unless France does not expand in the future, it is the best choice to exchange interests now.

France has insufficient mineral resources, and the mineral resources in the German Rhine region have always been the coveted by France, especially the rich local coal resources.

Most of these areas are currently under the control of the Prussian Kingdom, which is also one of the causes of the Franco-Prussian War in history. The Prussians did not fulfill their prior promises, and Napoleon III provoked the war.

...

Maximizing interests is the essence of any politician, and Napoleon III is no exception. Now he needs to gain a benefit in Austria to consolidate his unstable territory.

After some bargaining, on August 6, 1853, Metternich and Napoleon III signed the "Outline of the Handling of the French-Austrian Italian Issues", "French-Austrian Treaty on the Division of the Scope of Influence of China-Europe, and "French-Austrian Mutual Assistance Contracting the Secret Agreement" at the Palace of Versailles.

The first two treaties only stipulate that many possible disputes can be stipulated in treaties outside the sphere of influence of the two countries.

The secret agreement behind is the core of this negotiation. According to the agreement: France supports the establishment of the new Holy Roman Empire, and Austria will support the French to obtain parts of Italy west of the Rhine River (including Sicily, the Kingdom of Sardinia, the Rhineland, Luxembourg, Belgium)

When making others generous, Franz was always generous. If the French dared to ask for it, even if they included the Netherlands North Germany, Metternich would not refuse.

Anyway, the support for this promise is only verbal and does not require actual benefits.

Didn't Napoleon III know? It was obviously impossible, but he was confident in France's strength and believed that there was no problem in taking these areas.

As long as the Austrians can fulfill their agreement, support them verbally, and do not interfere with other countries, they will have great success.

Ideals always need to be found, what if they are realized?

Make an agreement in advance and if you want to take action in the future, you will also eliminate an opponent in advance.

Of course, Napoleon III was not stupid, and he would not really believe in the promises of the Austrian government. Even if they had to take action, they would not be able to leap into it.

The road has to be taken step by step, and the meat has to be eaten at a bite. As long as you are not greedy for merit, these goals are still very likely to be achieved by the French.

In short, everything depends on strength. As long as France is strong enough, these small goals can be achieved. On the contrary, if the strength is insufficient, even if the Austrians fulfill their promises, they will not have the appetite to eat.
Chapter completed!