War reparations of 6.26 billion gold francs!
France cedes the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine to Germany!
France cedes the Annan colony to the Chinese!
The land delivery must be completed within six months, and the settlement of war reparations lasts for three years, including principal and interest!
While all reparations have not been paid off, Germany will permanently station a 100,000-strong army in France, while the Chinese will station a 300-strong military observation group.
In other words, if we can’t pay back the money, don’t ask us to withdraw our troops!
Such harsh conditions horrified the whole of Europe. There had never been such a contract before. Not only did the land cede not count, but the compensation actually amounted to an astronomical figure!
Sixty-two billion gold francs! Does this mean that an entire generation in France will be unable to stand up?
The Queen, who was in Buckingham Palace, knew the details of the treaty immediately. She immediately secretly summoned former Prime Minister Benjamin to consult with him, a veteran diplomat, for his opinion.
"Bismarck and Xiao Letian are too cruel. They are trying to make France unable to hold its head high in the next thirty years!"
"Nowadays, the world situation is in turmoil. Various new trends of thought are spreading around the world. There are signs of revolution in all ethnic groups. Moreover, the science and technology that Europe is proud of is accelerating its spread around the world..."
"Countries around the world have entered a stage of accelerating racing. Let alone thirty years, even a ten-year gap in national fortunes will be an insurmountable gap..."
"Your Majesty, it is impossible for the French to repay this huge sum of money in three years. I think it will take at least ten years!"
"In other words, the French must pinch their noses and let the Germans occupy them for ten years. In these ten years, the national strength of both sides has waxed and waned. From now on, I am afraid that France will never be able to surpass Germany!"
"What a serious worry, Germany has become a serious worry for us! Our diplomatic strategy must be adjusted!"
Adjustment? It's easy to say. How to adjust? You, Benjamin, are no longer the Prime Minister, and the Queen is even less likely to interfere in government affairs for your sake!
Queen Victoria didn't say anything, but asked Benjamin to step aside. Three hours later, Gladstone, his son, and all the powerful officials in the cabinet came to see her!
Gladstone's judgment was roughly the same as Benjamin's, but Gladstone was even more pessimistic about France. He believed that France would be occupied by Germany for twenty years!
"Dear Her Majesty the Queen! That's 6.2 billion gold francs. How can the French take it all at once? Even our British Empire can't take out 250 million francs in one go!"
"France is finished, they will be completely crushed by this astronomical figure!"
There was no expression on Queen Victoria's face but her tone was already a bit unkind. "What about your previous judgment? What about the situation where both sides suffer? The strategy to contain the two powers was formulated by you, but now it has become a waste of a wolf and the creation of a tiger. !”
"Who will bear this responsibility?"
Gladstone's face turned pale. "I apologize, Your Majesty, I apologize to you. If the Parliament wants to impeach me, I will not cling to power. I will give up the position of Prime Minister!"
"I didn't mean that. I didn't want to interfere with the parliament's decision..." Queen Victoria waved her hand. "What I want is a solution, a strategy for the future..."
The faces of all the officials present turned pale. Gladstone was actually the one who took the blame, and his judgment on the battle situation was actually a common judgment among the entire British upper class!
So many nobles, so many capitalists, so many politicians... No one realized that the situation would undergo such a dramatic reversal, and everyone was waiting to see a lose-lose scenario!
But reality slapped the entire British elite in the face, and Gladstone became the last one to take the blame!
In fact, the Queen also knew that Gladstone was wronged, and that the reform of British internal affairs was inseparable from him, so she decided to let him go!
"The key to the problem now is how this treaty will not harm the interests of the British Empire!"
"I only make two suggestions... Please remember, I am not interfering in internal affairs, I am just making suggestions in my personal capacity!"
"France is ruined. We cannot add insult to injury. Instead, we must change our strategy to actively support France's economy, or use France to contain Germany!"
"Germany and the Chinese have won, so their attitude towards us is very critical. Will they become our enemies in the future? We need to pay attention to two aspects..."
"Germany has received five billion francs. It depends on whether they will prepare a strong navy. If their naval strategy is defensive and non-threatening, then we can regard it as harmless..."
"The Chinese have received 1.2 billion francs, and we have to see where they will store the money, especially gold!"
"These two countries must accept my British maritime dominance and financial dominance. These two rules of the game cannot be challenged! As long as they keep these two bottom lines, I will allow them to enter the world's big stage and eat some scraps!"
Ok, the Queen finally determined the British strategy. She is indeed a queen with real power who has been in politics all her life. Her analysis of the problem is so sharp!
The Treaty of Frankfurt was a very powerful deterrent to the European powers. After the Emperor of Austria-Hungary learned the details of the treaty, he remained silent for a long time.
On the table next to him were various secret documents sent by the Intelligence Bureau. The most top-secret one was the record of his wife's affair with Xiao Letian.
Although it is not 100%, more than 80% of the time and location of private meetings have been recorded by the intelligence personnel of the Austro-Hungarian Empire!
Although Europe does not pay attention to chastity memorials, it is also very shameful for your queen to stay away from home for a long time and hang out with wild men!
But today, the emperor no longer had the strength to be angry when he looked at that piece of information. He picked up the report and lit it with a lighter. He couldn't help but sigh as he watched the densely packed text turn into ashes.
"Sissi, you are really discerning. What you have chosen is an extremely powerful man..."
Franz Joseph I finally gave up the idea of revenge, corrected the cuckold on his head, and decided to wear it for the rest of his life!
At the same time, far in the far north in Moscow, Alexander II in the Kremlin actually lit a fireplace in the summer, and pine logs burned in the fireplace, exuding a unique scent of pine oil.
The Tsar was curled up in the flames, and documents were scattered on the floor!
"It's over...it's all over...there's nothing we can do to save it!"
"God, how could this happen? Even France is no match for him. Am I going to lose the Far East forever?"
"Do I still need to build my Far Eastern Railway? Will the Empire never have a warm water port?"
"What to do with the prisoners? The empire's finances are already stretched thin. Where can I have the money to redeem those prisoners of war!"
"But if we don't redeem it, what will happen to the domestic protests? What will happen to those revolutionary parties?"
