War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

The aftermath of the death of Francis II is still spreading, and the small states that had previously fought fiercely with Austria are like eggplants beaten by frost.

Many state governments had lost confidence in Austria, after all their ambassadors came to the same conclusion after meeting the new emperor and his chief advisor.

Emperor Ferdinand I was a good man, but he probably couldn't control this huge empire.

And the chief advisor, Mr. Carl von Sloot, is a complete idiot.

The new emperor and his empire will continue to face various challenges and pressures in the days to come.

If we side with Austria, we will have to face challenges and pressure with them, which is not in the interests of our country.

Austria has completed 20% of the 1,400-kilometer railway construction plan. The railway between Vienna and Moravia has been completed, and the construction of the Semmering Railway, a century project, has also begun.

The cost of the Semmering Railway is expected to be more than three times that of ordinary railways, but it is also of great significance. It will not only strengthen the connection between the seaside area and Vienna, but also communicate with Northern Italy, thus revitalizing the overall situation.

The Prussians frantically built two hundred kilometers of railways, but they were not on their soil.

Prussia's new economic adviser proposed a new railway standard for the countries that joined the North German Customs Union.

The gauge of this railway is different from that of the Austrian railway. Wider means it can carry more goods.

Friedrich List's real purpose was to help Prussia control Austria's influence in southern Germany.

To be honest, Franz admired this economist from the bottom of his heart for actually thinking of using this method to exclude Austria.

In fact, Austria also had countermeasures at this time, which was to change the track gauge, or to force members of the German Customs Union to build railways in accordance with Austrian standards.

But either choice will affect Austria's reputation in the German Zolls Union, and more importantly, it requires a stable and strong government.

The Regency Council greatly reduced the efficiency of the Austrian government. Even Count Korolaf and Prince Metternich did not realize the sinister intentions of Friedrich List.

But this is no wonder, because both Count Korolaf and Prince Metternich have very limited understanding of railways.

When Franz saw this, the overall situation was basically decided, and there was little point in making amends now.

Friedrich List's strategy allowed Franz to see a new possibility for Austria in the future.

At this time, Britain had built more than 1,000 kilometers of railways, and France had nearly 300 kilometers of railways.

In Russia, Franz Gerstner, an Austrian engineer obsessed with railways, wrote a letter to Nicholas I.

The letter described an ambitious plan to build a railway connecting St. Petersburg and Kazan to strengthen the tsar's control over Western Siberia.

The total length of this railway was more than 1,000 kilometers. It was an incredible plan for people at the time.

However, this aroused great interest in Tsar Nicholas I, who felt that the railway was a gift from God to Russia.

Tsar Nicholas I had an even bolder idea. He wanted to connect the entire Great Slavic Empire with railways.

Constantinople - St. Petersburg - Kazan - Yakutsk (a city in the Russian Far East) - Alaska

In order to realize his lofty ideals, Tsar Nicholas I established a road casting committee.

The result was, of course, fierce opposition from the ministers. The dignitaries did not agree with the emperor's opinion and openly opposed the construction of any railway in the country.

The most dissident among them was Count Conklin, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who stated in a report to the Tsar that not a penny of the Treasury was reserved for the railways.

Russian experts also jumped out to support Count Conklin.

They argued that the freight capacity of the train was too small and not as large as that of 300 horses. The Russian Empire had 5 million mules and horses, which could cope with any situation.

In addition, Russia lacked coal, and forests had to be cut down to power trains, leaving Russian civilians without wood for fires.

Russia's pig iron production is seriously insufficient. If such a long railway is to be cast, a large amount of pig iron must be imported from abroad, which will bring Russia's metallurgical industry into a cold winter.

Nicholas I's most trusted subordinate, Duke Lyubai, even suggested that this was most likely an Austrian conspiracy to use the railway to weaken Russia's national power so as to gain an advantage in the carving up of the Ottoman Empire.

In the end, Nicholas I had to give up his grand plan, but he was not discouraged.

Russia still has no railways.

The railways built by the Americans in one year were longer than the total length of French railways at this time, 400 kilometers.

Cotton prices fell as U.S. cotton production exceeded expectations.

But at this time, wheat in the United Kingdom and the United States experienced a super bumper harvest. After wheat farmers experienced losses, they switched to cotton.

Although cotton prices have dropped, they are still generally popular, and at least they will not lose money.

The revenue from land sales by the U.S. government this year can fully repay the debt owed by the U.S. government, and it is expected that there will be a large fiscal surplus next year.

Saxony purchased another 500 steam looms from Austria. Austria's entry and the establishment of the German Customs Union almost doubled Saxony's fiscal revenue.

This is not only because Saxony is the textile center of Germany, but also because it is the largest second-tier dealer in the German Customs Union.

There were constant frictions between Prussia and Austria, and Saxony, sandwiched between Prussia and Austria, became the biggest beneficiary.

After all, businessmen will not struggle with money. Friction between the two countries cannot prevent businessmen from the two countries from doing business.

Although Austria's machinery manufacturing industry has received many orders, it is still in a state of limbo. This is mainly due to competition from the British, because at this time the United Kingdom has allowed the export of machinery.

British machinery manufacturing started much earlier than Austria, and the level of craftsmanship is naturally much higher.

If it were not for the protection of the German Customs Union and Hanover's refusal to join the German Customs Union, Austria's machinery manufacturing industry would have gone further and further in the direction of agricultural technology as it did historically.

Due to internal chaos, Austria increased military expenditures, but reduced the number of Austrian army troops, which are now 440,000.

For its own security reasons, France added another 20,000 soldiers and gendarmes, as well as several indigenous troops, bringing the total strength to 530,000.

Prussia still had 200,000 troops, and Russia launched a war against domestic nomads, with its troop strength remaining at 600,000.

This year both France and Austria began to update their weapons and equipment with new, more stable front-loading percussion guns.

France developed a new field gun, a lighter and more accurate 4-pounder.

Austria has developed a famous suicide artifact in history. This artillery has a range and power that far exceeds the range and power of artillery of the same caliber at the same time.

However, due to the casting technology and the lack of better casting materials, the probability of the gun's chamber exploding is as high as 20%, which is more exciting than the later Russian turntables.

The Austrian Navy has welcomed its fourth naval marshal in ten years. This marshal is still not a professional soldier, but a businessman who operates inland shipping-Varus Tafe.

Austria's fiscal revenue was 158 million florins, which was higher than the 132 million florins in the same period in history.