When the news of the defeat of the French army in Egypt reached the European continent, it immediately caused an uproar. Many people's first reaction after reading the newspaper was – is today April Fool's Day?
In the original timeline, Italy was defeated in Africa, and they were laughed at by the European world for hundreds of years. Now the French also enjoyed the same treatment.
Because of the high level of hatred, the French attracted more firepower than the Italians in the original timeline.
As the official media of the Government of Austria, the Vienna Daily published the news of the defeat of the French army with a very exaggerated title – France of the Empire's Decline.
This was a series of reports that could be traced back to the Roman Empire, and all the influential countries in European history were on the list.
In order to enhance the credibility of the report, even the House of Habsburg was on the list, along with an awesome name – the Empire of the Unsetting Sun.
Of course, the history of one's country couldn't be sloppy. A certain degree of artistic manipulation was inevitable. In summary, the French were too despicable to collude with the pagans.
This was also the biggest black history of France, and it couldn't be washed away.
As a Catholic country, it was fine to join the Protestant Alliance shamelessly. After all, everyone believed in God, so it was barely acceptable.
However, it was intolerable to collude with the public enemy of Europe, the Osman. The final result was, of course, the decline of the Hapsburg dynasty.
As the winner, the French didn't feel proud for long, and they were isolated by everyone in Europe.
The Catholic countries saw them as traitors, and the Protestant countries didn't want to accept them as "heretics." It wasn't until religion fell behind that the situation gradually improved.
If this was the old hatred, then the new hatred was the war against France.
Napoleon the Great used the countries of Europe as a stepping stone to forge his unparalleled prestige, and as his descendant he was to inherit this hatred.
Especially after Napoleon Iii annexed the Regions of Italy, the hatred went through the roof again, and they fell into a state of isolation.
This wasn't the worst, at least Napoleon Iii signed an alliance with England and Austria.
Although it wasn't very reliable, and there was no military alliance obligation in Europe, an unreliable ally was better than nothing.
When it came to Napoleon Iv, the situation changed. After the three-nation alliance expired, the contract was not renewed. Without the restraints of the alliance, England and Austria did not hold back when they stirred up trouble.
What happened in Egypt was one of the real cases. Without the support of Britain and Austria, the rebels would have been finished long ago. How could they have the ambition to liberate Egypt?
It should be noted that the Revolutionary Army's program of rebellion was all handled by the skilled British. This time, Aswan's defeat was also John's fault.
Austria's dark hand was still brewing and hadn't had the time to explode.
…
No matter how impartial the media was, it would still be biased. Their own dark history was published, and as the background, France was naturally blackened.
Of course, these were all Empire series produced after the revival of the House of Habsburg. Otherwise, Franz would not have the confidence to face this period of history.
Under such circumstances, the "declining France of the Empire" naturally wouldn't have anything good to say. To put it bluntly, France's army was the best in the world was just a subjective judgment.
In addition to the French army's excellent military quality, it was more of a psychological factor.
In order to eliminate their own army's fear of the French, it was also politically correct to blacken the French army's combat effectiveness.
The small setback in Annam was nothing. After all, the French army's casualties were not high. At most, they were ridiculed by the European media, and after the treaty was signed, everyone tacitly shut up.
This time, the war in Egypt was different. The 40,000 French army couldn't even win against the African natives. It was shameful.
There was no problem. After rounding it up, the colonial troops were also considered the main force of the French army.
The European people only needed to know that the French lost the war in Egypt. The details were not important at all.
First, the financial crisis, the economic crisis, the Great Depression, and with the Paris Revolution, the domestic economy was in a mess.
Before they could catch their breath, there was a big defeat in Egypt. Franz almost believed that France had declined.
Today was different from the past. The current Austria no longer needed France to stand in front and attract the British's attention.
Blackening France was the next important policy of the Government of Vienna.
There was no need for all European people to believe it. As long as the Germans and Italians believed it, it was enough.
It was not only Austria that caused trouble for the Government of France. Almost all European countries were adding fuel to the fire, but mainly by ridiculing them.
Watching the French make a fool of themselves was something that the European people loved to see. As the planner of the Aswan War, Lieutenant General Jarrett also became famous after the war.
It was worth mentioning that this was the name that the French newspapers promoted for Lieutenant General Jarrett.
It was not that the French were willing to publicize for the enemy, but they were forced to do so. Losing to the British was more acceptable than losing to the African natives.
Not only was the news of the British supporting the rebels revealed, but even Austria did not hide it. The Government of Vienna also received a letter of protest from the Government of France.
The famous writer Victor Hugo also wrote an article exposing the shameless behavior of the British and Austrians — "The Conspiracy of Two Clowns."
…
In Paris, the angry French people had already taken to the streets to protest against the government. As the governor of Egypt, Adolf had now become synonymous with idiots and trash.
In the face of the people's anger, Napoleon Iv also had a headache. No matter how the government explained, the protesting crowd refused to disperse.
Even if the British and Austrians were dragged out, the French people still stubbornly believed that it was the government's mistake in hiring people. Many people were questioning the Government of France's talent selection system.
As the person involved, Adolf pulled out eight generations of his ancestors and finally came to a conclusion — aristocratic family = incompetent trash.
If it were not out of reach, Napoleon Iv would have wanted to capture Adolf back to appease the people's anger.
Of course, this kind of thing could only be thought of. Everything had to follow the rules, and the emperor could not act recklessly.
Even if they lost the war, to pursue Adolf's responsibility, they would first have to go to the military court.
The protests of the people were just child's play. Anyway, Napoleon Iv had seen it many times, and he was used to it.
Not long ago, there was also a defeat in Annan. When the treaty was sent back, all the problems were solved.
The top priority now was to suppress the rebellion. As long as the rebels were wiped out, this matter would soon fade away.
Napoleon Iv asked, "You know the situation in the country. When can the Ministry of War send troops?"
Minister of War Lucinia Hafiz replied, "Your Majesty, there is too much preparation for the expedition. It will take at least a week.
After arriving in Egypt, there will be at least a week of rest before the troops can enter the battlefield.
Including the time it takes for the troops to march, it will be at least a month before they attack the rebels. "
In a sense, Napoleon Iv's urging was also one of the reasons for Adolf's defeat. If not for the emperor's urging, he would not have rushed to fight the rebels.
However, this kind of thing naturally could not be the emperor's responsibility, so Adolf could only blame it on his bad luck.
With the previous example, Lucinia Hafiz was much more cautious. This time, it was the people chosen by the Ministry of War. If there was another defeat, as the Minister of War, he would not be able to escape the blame.
Napoleon Iv frowned. "The situation in Egypt is critical, and there is so much pressure from public opinion in the country. Can't the Ministry of War hurry up?"
Minister of War Lucinia Hafiz said, "Your Majesty, this is already the fastest speed. To reinforce Egypt, we need to march by sea. We must first screen out the soldiers who are seasick.
After arriving at the place, we also have to consider the problem of not acclimatizing to the climate. Generally speaking, this kind of cross-sea battle usually takes half a year, or even longer, to prepare. "
This was not nonsense. If they sent troops blindly, even if the Mediterranean Sea was calm, the number of non-combat casualties would be very shocking.
Especially after arriving at the place, if they did not do the necessary rest and just threw themselves into the battle, no matter how powerful the troops were, they would become soft shrimps.
In the face of the stubborn Minister of War, Napoleon Iv was also helpless.
In any case, he was also a military school graduate. How could he not know this kind of basic common sense?
However, the internal and external pressure was too great, and he panicked for a moment. He had an unrealistic fantasy of quickly quelling the rebellion.
After sighing, Napoleon Iv waved his hand and said, "Forget it, proceed according to your plan.
But we still have to hurry up and quell this rebellion as soon as possible to reduce our losses. "
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Lucinia Hafiz replied.
After staring at the map on the wall for a long time, he seemed to have thought of something.
Suddenly, Napoleon Iv slammed the table and said fiercely, "Britain and Austria have created trouble for us again and again. Now we must fight back."
As soon as the word "fight back" appeared, everyone fell into a state of confusion.
The Government of France had long wanted to fight back against the big moves of Britain and Austria, but they did not know where to start.
Counterattack the financial system of Britain and Austria?
This was something they could just think about. Britain and Austria did not lack gold reserves. The value of the pound and the Aegis were as stable as Mount Tai.
Support the revolutionary party and national separatist forces?
The Government of Paris had already done this, but the outcome was very touching. Other than the Irish Independence Organization, which made a few waves, the other organizations only invested and did not make any moves.
There was even a fraud group that pretended to be the Hungarian Independence Organization and swindled a huge sum of 5 million francs from the Government of France.
Blood for blood, causing trouble in the other's colonies?
The Government of France had always been doing this, but the results were very little. The British ruled by proxy, and the rebellion was first of all the local people killing each other.
Although Austria was directly governed, its control over the colonies was obviously too strong.
Especially the neighboring Austrian Africa, who wanted to plan a colonial rebellion, they did not know who to look for.
Although there were local forces, they had already become Austrian aristocrats. As vested interests, there was no reason for them to rebel.
These strategies did not work, and they could not cause trouble for the two countries diplomatically, right?
The Government of France still had self-awareness. It was not that their diplomatic ability was rubbish, but mainly that France was too hated in the European continent and was rejected by the European countries.
Playing a diplomatic game with Britain and Austria was completely asking for humiliation. It was better to directly send troops to the door, and the success rate might be higher.
After studying and studying, the Government of France finally came to a helpless conclusion: to retaliate against Britain and Austria, they must have the right time, the right place, and the right people. There was no future in foolishly rushing up.
The Foreign Affairs Minister Terence Burkin advised, "Your Majesty, Britain and Austria are in cahoots. If we act rashly, I am afraid it will cause more trouble. We must act carefully."
"Cahoots" must be fake. Other than the last time they worked together to short the French franc, Britain and Austria really did not work together to target France.
However, there was no need to delve into these inside stories. The French government also wanted to save face. If they did not exaggerate the enemy's strength, it would seem too incompetent.
Anyway, on the surface, Britain and Austria were supporting the Egyptian rebels. It was not too much of an exaggeration to say that the two countries were working together to suppress France.
