After some research and discussion, Franz finally came up with an unexpected answer – the British couldn't hold on any longer.
This "couldn't hold on" didn't mean that the British were about to be finished. In fact, the British Empire was at its peak, and no one could threaten their world empire.
However, the nature of colonial empires was to make money. There were too many international conflicts, and countries stabbed each other in the back, which greatly increased the cost of colonial maintenance.
The investment was getting bigger, but the benefits didn't grow at the same time. Sometimes, it was reduced because of turmoil. In this context, it was not surprising that the Government of London wanted to stop this unnecessary struggle and reduce colonial costs.
There was also a colonial conference in the original world (Berlin Conference), but it was created by the Belgians. Leopold II took advantage of the conflict between the great powers and successfully obtained the Congo region.
Now that the Congo region had fallen into the hands of Austria, and the African continent was almost divided up, Leopold II naturally wouldn't do useless work.
The Berlin Conference was no longer going to happen. The major colonial empires still lacked an opportunity for in-depth communication and mediation.
Although the three countries, Fao, and Germany, had formed an alliance, they had only reached an agreement on the core issues. As for the details of each colony, no one had the time to discuss it.
Don't think that the three countries could do whatever they wanted just because they had an advantage in the colonial division. In fact, the major colonial empires weren't easy to deal with.
Perhaps their military strength wasn't as strong as the three countries, but they could still stab each other in the back, such as spreading nationalism and supporting colonial independence movements.
In recent years, the colony's turbulent development was the best proof. If someone did statistics, they would find that the number of colonial uprisings was increasing year by year.
If this situation continued, no one would be able to make money happily. Especially the British, who had the most colonies, they had to pay the highest cost of ruling.
The Government of Vienna didn't feel it that clearly. It was caused by Austria's colonial policy and the special geographical environment.
Although the Austrian colonies weren't small, the indigenous population wasn't large. There weren't many people, so how chaotic could it be?
A rebellion that could be suppressed by the police was not worth mentioning. In contrast, the British were tragic. Not only did they have the largest territory, but they also had the largest population.
Nearly half of the colonial uprisings in recent years occurred in the British colonies. It would be strange if the Government of London wasn't anxious.
This was the result of the British attracting hatred everywhere. No one dared to do anything to them on the surface, but there was no pressure to stab them in the back.
Putting everything else aside, Austria would invest millions of AOD every year to export all kinds of ideologies and ideologies to the outside world, most of which were targeted at the British.
It was not that the London government did not fight back. The problem was that they could not find a suitable chess piece. Otherwise, the British would not have put in so much effort to protect the Ottoman Empire.
The British suffered the most and offended the most during the colonial movement. Now, not only was with Austria, but all the colonial empires were also with Europe.
For this kind of thing, as long as there was no evidence, other than secretly retaliating, there was nothing the London government could do.
Even if they wanted to find an excuse to exert diplomatic pressure on the small countries, France and Austria would jump out to smooth things over so that they would have nowhere to vent.
This was the disadvantage of having too many people. The total population of the British colonies was as high as four to five hundred million, the total population of the French colonies was only forty to fifty million, and the total population of the Austrian colonies was less than thirty million. They were on completely different levels.
The British colony had a population of four to five hundred million, the French colony had a population of only forty to fifty million, and the Austrian colony had a population of less than thirty million.
The British gained the most in the colonial movement, but they also paid the highest cost of ruling. Only by making use of the population could they create wealth.
There was no doubt that the British couldn't make use of so many people in the colony. Otherwise, not to mention the Fao and the French, even the European countries combined wouldn't be a match for them.
In the colonial development, Austria made the most use of labor. This wasn't because Franz cheated, nor was it because the Government of Vienna managed it well. It was completely determined by the quality of the population.
The Austrian colony didn't have a large population, but the European immigrants and their descendants made up more than half of the population.
This number couldn't be compared to England and France. The population base determined that they couldn't provide so many immigrants. Without enough immigrants, the local indigenous productivity was very backward, and the wealth created was naturally limited.
The French should feel this the most. Purely from the perspective of colonial revenue, the French colonies had been losing money for many years.
There was nothing strange about this. France wasn't the only one who experienced losing money. Almost all the colonial empires experienced it.
However, it was usually at the beginning of the colonial development, and after a certain degree of development, the losses would turn into profits. Colonies that consistently lost money were rare.
Austria was one of them. At its peak, it lost tens of millions of BD every year. Even now, there were still many places losing money. Overall, it only achieved a balance of payments.
Of course, this was purely calculating the direct revenue of the colonial government. If the colonial bonus to the domestic economy was calculated, then the situation changed.
The English are hated, and that is because they occupy the most fertile land. Even if they used the most backward way of governance, they could directly make profits and earn more than anyone else.
In contrast, the French were tragic. Compared to the same period in history, they carried out the "desert empire" more thoroughly.
Since it was a desert empire, naturally, they didn't expect the land to be fertile. Before the natural resources underground were developed, French Africa was a concentration camp for rotten land.
If Napoleon Iii hadn't immigrated from the The Balkans and the Regions of Italy back then and carried out a certain degree of development in North Africa, the losses would probably be even worse now.
Of course, there were benefits to having more deserts. At least in terms of the cost of governance, the French didn't spend much.
The rebels in other areas could run around and drill into the mountains, but in the desert, as long as they stayed away from the oasis, they would die. Therefore, the French rule in North Africa was still quite stable.
After straightening out his thoughts, Franz was very clear: resolving international disputes through negotiations and reducing international conflicts was already the general trend.
Driven by interests, almost all colonial empires had the desire to reduce the cost of colonial governance. If he stopped it in this context, he would be standing on the opposite side of everyone.
Franz didn't like to be a mantis trying to stop a chariot. Since it was everyone's common desire, he would participate.
Austria was also a member of the colonial empires. Reducing some disputes would also be beneficial, but not as much as the British.
Franz: "Easing international conflicts and reducing the cost of colonial maintenance is good for everyone. We don't need to be the bad guys.
Now, let's think about which areas we can get this time. "
Could the cost of colonial maintenance really be reduced?
Franz didn't believe it deep down!
Perhaps it could be reduced in a short period of time, but it was destined to increase in the long run. Especially in densely populated areas, the cost of governance in the future would inevitably increase significantly.
Everything else was easy to deal with, but things like ideas and ideologies were uncontrollable. Once they were passed on, they couldn't be taken back.
The seeds had been sown, and no one knew when they would take root, sprout, and then blossom and bear fruit.
Prime Minister Felix: "Your Majesty, we have actually become spectators in this partition meeting. There are too few places that are suitable for us and can get our hands on.
The only areas left for colonization are the Osman Empire, Persia, the Far East, parts of Indo-China, and parts of East Africa.
South America barely counts, but they are already independent. Out of consideration of the cost of governance, these areas are only suitable as economic colonies.
The most suitable for us is the Osman Empire. The other areas are either too strong or too far away. We can't reach them, and it won't be worth it even if we get them.
Britain and France won't let us annex the Osman Empire, so it will be difficult for us to get anything out of this partition feast. "
"Economic colonies" was a new concept proposed by European scholars after the rising cost of colonial rule.
Simply put, the cost of direct governance was too high, so it was changed to support agents to rule and seize wealth through unequal trade agreements.
There were still many supporters of this concept. In everyone's understanding, the purpose of a colony was to make money. As long as they could make money, it didn't matter how they ruled.
Prime Minister Felix proposed large colonies. In addition, there were a lot of leftovers, but because the area was too small, or because the economic value was too low, it wasn't worth paying attention to.
Among these areas that needed to be divided, the richest was undoubtedly the Far East, but the situation here was the most complicated, with powerful forces gathering.
Austria had no local roots and had missed the opportunity to participate. Moreover, the distance was too far, beyond the limit of Austria's strength.
Persia was regarded as a possession by the British, and in the area near India, it was closely watched by John Bull, and anyone who touched it would fall out.
The Kingdom of Prussia in Indochina occupied a corner, the British joined in, and the French were desperately fighting for it. At this time, if Austria joined in, it would definitely be squeezed out.
For Austria, the East African region was already of little value. The economic value was limited, and it would lose money for a long time. The strategic location was taken by the British first, and it was almost impossible to get it.
Although the South American countries were suitable as economic colonies, because of the distance, Britain and France had more influence in the local area, and Austria's influence was only in Colombia, which was close to the Central American colony.
Franz nodded helplessly. In the last colonial feast, Austria was no longer the protagonist. If they rashly joined in, they would be jointly excluded.
"I was too greedy. Austria has already gotten enough benefits, and it's already very hateful. Now it's time to digest it.
In this partition feast, it's enough for us to keep our current interests. It's a pleasant surprise to have gains, but don't be sad if you don't get any gains. It's not worth getting angry over some leftovers. "
After adjusting his mentality in time, Franz's whole person was a lot more relaxed. Greed was the original sin of human beings. If greed couldn't be controlled, sooner or later, it would be a road of no return.
There were quite a few countries participating in this loot-sharing feast. It seemed that the remaining benefits were not small, but in fact, there wasn't much when it was distributed to a specific country.
