Chapter 373

The Anglo-Austrian war in South Africa was a joke to all the European countries. In order to make the war last longer, the French also supported the "Boer Republic" with practical actions.

In this Anglo-Austrian war, nearly one-fifth of the strategic materials were contributed by the French. The French also opened the door for the transportation of materials from Austria to the front line in South Africa through Egypt.

The Anglo-Austrian war was not so much a game between Austria and England, but it was more like the Fao and the French working together to make trouble for the British. Although Austria eventually occupied South Africa, the French did not lose money on their investment.

It was better to divert the British's energy in South Africa than to let the British put this energy into the European continent.

The anti-French alliance was only on paper and did not become a reality. This "Anglo-Austrian war" also played an important role.

Logically speaking, the current confrontation between Austria and England was very favorable to the French. The establishment of the Great French Empire was unstoppable, so Napoleon Iii should be happy.

However, the external threat was gone, and internal trouble appeared.

The first to jump out was the Pope. The Italian states, unwilling to accept their defeat, tried to fight him by supporting the Pope.

As a Catholic country, the Roman Curia was still very influential. Now that the Emperor and the Pope were in the same country, it was a headache to see who was more powerful.

Now Napoleon Iii was a little regretful. If he had known it would be so troublesome, he would have kicked the Papal States out.

The Pope had become a political enemy, and that was no laughing matter. It was not like he did not have a foundation. The churches all over the country were supporters of the Pope, at least in name.

At a recent meeting, the Pope directly occupied the main seat, and Napoleon Iii was so angry that he was absent.

The theocracy and the imperial power collided again, and all of France was caught in a storm. If it was not handled well, this new great empire would collapse again.

Whether it was Napoleon Iii or Pope Pius IX, they could not give in now. They not only represented their own interests, but also the interest groups behind them.

The bourgeoisie, who were originally dissatisfied with Napoleon Iii, were now almost declaring their support for the Pope. In politics, Napoleon Iii no longer had an overwhelming advantage.

These people supported Pius IX not because of how devout their faith was, nor did they really want the Church to grow again. Their main purpose was to provoke disputes and create opportunities for seizing power.

The Emperor and the Pope fought for power, which would definitely cause the dissatisfaction of the people. When the people's anger reached its peak, it would be time for the Parliament to take over the country.

It could be said that the establishment of Greater France ignited the internal conflicts of France. Everyone wanted to take advantage of this reshuffling of power to further reap more benefits.

In the Palace of Versailles, Napoleon III's trusted Minister of Police, Anzoucci, suggested, "Your Majesty, since Pius IX doesn't know what's good for him, we might as well …"

Ansoci stopped abruptly as he made a throat-slitting gesture, as if to say that he would kill Pius IX and end it all.

Napoleon III glared at him and said sternly, "No, this kind of thing must not happen.

To Pope Pope in Curses, we of Pi Pope America, we Kingdom to. to.

If Pope were to Pope, the Pope, we Church, Pope God Should Pope, the Pope, the Pope, Empire, would would be to Pope, Pope Pope America.

Besides, even if the Pope is replaced, the situation will not change. No matter who becomes the Pope, they are standing against us.

Those people will not give up. Without them stirring up trouble, Pope Pius IX will not jump out to be our enemy. "

Assassination was the most taboo in political struggles. Now that Napoleon Iii had washed his name clean, this method could not be used at all.

If the news leaked, a civil war might break out in France. At least the Revolutionary Party would definitely take the opportunity to launch a rebellion, and there might even be a coup within the government.

The Regions of Italy were not stable. Now they were suppressed by force. Even a spark could ignite the conflict, let alone the assassination of the Pope.

At this time, Napoleon Iii's mind was still very clear. He knew that his enemy was not the Pope on the surface, but the interest groups that supported the Pope.

Chief Advisor Pelisi suggested, "Your Majesty, why don't we continue to promote religious reform. Find an excuse to abolish the Papal State and set up provinces under the direct jurisdiction of the central government. Let religion be religion, and the secular be secular. "

This was a drastic measure. Promoting religious reform to abolish the Papal State was equivalent to cutting off the foundation of the Pope's involvement in politics. From then on, the Pope would be separated from politics and only exist as a religious leader.

Napoleon Iii's eyes lit up. If he could kick the Pope out, things would be easy to handle later. Without this banner figure, the opposition became fragmented.

"This is a good idea. It's best to limit the Pope's power so that he doesn't cause us trouble in the future.

Pelisi, I'll leave this matter to you. Find a way to discredit the Vatican and don't give them a chance to turn things around. "

As he said this, there was a hint of resentment in Napoleon Iii's eyes. The grievances between the Bonaparte Family and the Vatican were not new. The relationship between the two had always been bad.

Napoleon I was not recognized by the Vatican at first. Later, he fought his way to Italy by force and snatched the crown from the Pope when he was crowned emperor.

When it was Napoleon Iii's turn, the situation was not much better. The Catholic Church had always supported orthodoxy, and Napoleon Iii had nothing to do with orthodoxy.

After launching a coup and seizing power, Napoleon Iii wanted to be crowned emperor, but the Vatican did not give him any face. They invited Pius IX to come and be crowned, but they did not buy it at all.

There were only two choices left for Napoleon Iii. He could either go to Rome to be crowned, or he could become emperor first and think of a way to be crowned in the future.

These were the two choices for the European emperors after they could not be recognized by the Vatican. Of course, going to Rome to be crowned would definitely not be so harmonious. Usually, they would send troops to attack and force the Pope to be crowned.

Napoleon Iii, who had an unstable foundation, endured it. In order to get on the good side of the Pope, he did many unrewarding things. He could be called a "filial son of the Catholic Church."

He was a true "filial son of the Catholic Church," different from the previous French monarchs who only did things that harmed the interests of the Vatican.

After doing so many things, he did not get what he wanted, so he naturally had resentment in his heart. If it was not for the annexation of Italy, he did not know if he could be crowned by the Pope in his lifetime and become a legitimate emperor.

Now that he was on the opposite side again because of interests, Napoleon Iii also wanted to follow the example of his ancestors and continue the story of the "filial son of the Catholic Church."

Filial son of the Catholic Church was not a good word, and the things that the French did had nothing to do with "filial son," such as: the prisoners of Avignon, the Blasphemy Alliance, joining the Protestant Alliance during the Thirty Years War, killing the Knights Templar …

In short, the French made outstanding contributions to the decline of Catholicism, more than the contributions of Protestantism.

Of course, Napoleon Iii was not so extreme. With the great achievements of his ancestors, he was not ready to surpass them. However, it was necessary to give the declining Vatican a final blow.

The battle between imperial power and divine power could not be compromised. Even if both sides were declining, there must be a winner and a loser.

On this issue, Napoleon Iii did not have to worry about not having supporters. The monarchs of Europe were his potential supporters.

…

With Napoleon Iii's order, the dark history of the Vatican suddenly increased. Not only were the old debts dug up, but the current clergy were also often dragged out by the newspapers to be whipped.

They were all real people and incidents, without any exaggeration. It was a real case that happened around everyone, and it was difficult to turn it white. It was as if overnight, the reputation of the Vatican became unbearably bad.

The telegraph sped up the spread of the news, and the scandals of the Vatican in France and Italy spread to the European continent in the shortest time possible.

In this era, the Vatican no longer had the power to suppress Europe. The endless dark history of the Vatican in the newspapers was enough to explain a lot of problems.

In this era of ideological explosion, the people began to doubt the existence of God, and their faith was no longer as devout.

After the impact, there were anti-Catholic movements in many places, and in some areas it even developed to the point where people stormed the churches.

At this time, Napoleon Iii realized that he had gone too far, but the situation was no longer under his control.

Using this opportunity, he successfully killed his political opponents, but caused a crisis of faith in Europe, and caused the country to fall into ideological chaos.

It was not only France that was affected, but Austria was also not spared. After the outbreak of the religious crisis, the Austrian clergy were not able to escape the disaster.

Many of the clergy with improper private lives and poor moral cultivation were exposed in the newspapers.

Real people and incidents, and the evidence was conclusive. One could imagine the ideological impact this kind of news had on the people. Even Austria, the stronghold of the conservatives, also had a crisis of faith.

There was also a heated discussion among the people, and the idea of atheism began to spread rapidly. All kinds of experts and scholars appeared, using the newspapers as the battlefield, and began to fight. For a time, it was a chaotic dance of demons.

Franz couldn't sit still as he watched the increasingly intense battle in the ideological world. If this continued, who knew how many weird ideas would be born in the end?

"Prime Minister, how is the cabinet going to calm this storm?"

As a successful leader, Franz had always fully believed in the ability of his subordinates. If something happened, it was always right to ask the cabinet first.

After a moment of contemplation, Prime Minister Felix replied, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid you will have to personally appease the people on this matter.

The consequences of the collapse of faith are very serious. If it is not dealt with in time, some messy ideas will spread, and the consequences will be serious. "

Yes, he was going to stand up for Catholicism. This crisis of faith was targeted at the Roman Curia from the beginning, and Catholicism was naturally the hardest hit.

After hesitating for a moment, Franz said, "Well, the fall of the clergy is because their faith is not pious enough, and also because the Curia's supervision is not in place.

We can help in this regard. The government can legislate to regulate the behavior of the clergy and punish these sinners on behalf of God. "

There was no problem in appeasing the people, but suppressing the Church must be done. Since the French had rushed to the front, Franz naturally did not mind hitting them when they were down.

The Church could not supervise the clergy, so the government could do it for them. It would be better if institutions like the Inquisition did not exist.