While deceiving the Government of Paris, the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs naturally would not forget the Government of London. The British Empire was still very powerful in this era.
As the only industrial country in the world, it was the time for them to be arrogant. Fortunately, the British territory was small and limited the growth of the population. Otherwise, there would be nothing for the latecomers.
The revolution of 1848 was also not avoided by the British, but compared to France, Austria, and other countries, they were child's play.
The revolutionaries with great ambition but little talent were suppressed by the police before they could erupt. In the end, there were a few strikes and it ended hastily.
Franz knew that the war with Austria was actually planned by the British. Long before the Kingdom of Sardinia sent troops, the British Foreign Minister Palmerston had begun to lobby King Charles Albert.
Under such circumstances, Austria's diplomatic activities in London were naturally impossible to achieve any results.
Moreover, the credibility of the British was really not reassuring. As long as the interests required, they could change their position at any time.
Fortunately, Franz did not expect to get the support of the British. The purpose of the British ambassador, Hummerauer, was very simple. It was to lobby pro-Austrian members of parliament to prevent the Government of London from providing substantial support to the Kingdom of Sardinia.
Downing Street
Prime Minister John Russell was thinking about the current world situation. First was the problem of France. The newly established interim government had already expressed goodwill to the British Empire in diplomacy. He was still hesitating whether to accept it or not.
The Vienna system had collapsed. How would the future political structure of Europe be established?
Although the British were very good at diplomacy, John Russell did not feel anything before the collapse of the Vienna system. But now that it had really collapsed, he felt a headache.
Under the Vienna system, the European countries maintained a balance, and the British could boldly expand overseas with confidence.
"Prime Minister, according to the current situation, we can continue the previous strategic plan to establish a unified Italian dynasty, weaken the power of Austria, and at the same time stop the French from expanding into Italy!" The Foreign Minister Palmerston suggested.
John Russell frowned and said, "Mr. Palmerston, this is the ideal situation. In fact, for the balance of power in Europe, we still need the existence of Austria.
Now that Austria is full of internal contradictions, it might disintegrate. Without restrictions, the House of Habsburg will return to the German Region.
Now that the German Region is very popular, with the reputation of the House of Habsburg, it is very likely that the German Region will be unified. "
In Europe, John Russell's worries were not groundless. Once Austria disintegrated, the remaining Austrian states would return to Germany would be inevitable.
In this case, the House of Habsburg could really unite Germany. Conquering the world with the lower body was not a joke.
Even if it wasn't the Hapsburgs who unified Germany, the Prussians would have done the same, right? The emergence of a unified German Empire was not a good thing for the British.
Franz also considered whether he should give up Hungary and Italy and go back to establish the German Empire. However, after careful analysis, he decisively gave up on this temptation.
It was easy to unify Germany, but what about internal conflicts? The German had of Germany had Empire in Empire of Empire had Had Germany in. had Germans had never had Had been able to solve in. had.
Germany had never been able to solve this problem. The Second Reich had been full of contradictions since its establishment.
It was only a small Germany. If Germany was established, the contradictions would be even more terrifying. North and South Germany were evenly matched, and the internal friction could make people collapse.
Looking at the map, the German Region was strategically located, and there was no way to defend it.
No matter how confident Franz was, he didn't think he could defeat France, Russia, and England with constant internal friction.
Unifying the German Region without giving up the Austrian Empire? Franz thought it was a dream. He could refer to the case of Napoleon challenging the major European powers.
Otherwise, there would be no need to wait for him. After the war against France, it would be the best time for Austria to unify Germany.
Without a doubt, Franz was not the only smart person. Metternich resisted the temptation and established the Vienna System instead of uniting Germany.
A bird in the hand was worth a thousand birds in the bush.
Unifying the current Austrian Empire would actually be about the same as unifying the German Region. Then, they would slowly work hard to develop and wait for the right time.
If they advanced, they would fight for the European continent and rebuild the Holy Roman Empire. If they retreated, they would roam Southern Europe and become a major power.
"The situation in Austria might not be as serious as we thought. The revolution in Vienna has been suppressed. Although other places are unstable, there is no major chaos.
In order to prevent the revolution in Europe from affecting Russia, the Tsarist government must support Austria. With our support, even if the rebellion in Hungary breaks out, it will be quickly suppressed!
Moreover, we don't need the Kingdom of Sardinia to completely defeat Austria. If necessary, we can mediate. As long as the French don't send troops to support the Kingdom of Sardinia, the situation will be under our control, "Palmerston said after some thought.
John Russell asked, "It's not difficult to mediate the war between Austria and Russia. How are you going to answer the Austrians? If they can't get support from us, they will ask the Russians for help.
The Russians won't give up this opportunity. Once Russia and Austria reach an agreement, no one in the Near East will be able to keep them in check. "
The main conflict in the world today was between Britain and Russia. The Russian Empire had become the biggest enemy of the British with its powerful strength.
Austria was the biggest power in the Near East to keep Russia in check. If the Austrians were to help the Russians now, it would be inevitable that they would give up a part of their interests in the Balkans.
The British didn't want the Russians to enter the Mediterranean Sea. In history, the Crimean War broke out because of this. The British and French joined forces to stop the Russians.
"It doesn't matter. We don't need to reply to the Austrians directly. We just need to give them some ambiguous hints and let them think that we are supporting Austria.
If the Kingdom of Sardinia wants to unify Italy, they still have to work hard. We are only providing limited support. It would be best if they succeed, but if they fail, we won't be implicated.
Letting the Fao and Russia keep each other in check is also a good choice. The diplomacy of the British Empire can't be tied to one tree! "Palmerston said with a cold smile.
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