In accordance with the instructions of the Emperor, the diplomatic personnel accompanying the Emperor made contact with the Italian diplomats and expressed their desire to order warships from the Kingdom of Italy. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

This would have been a great thing for the Kingdom of Italy, because their industrial capacity is currently second only to Britain and France in Europe, and even above Germany, but their reputation has not been very large, if they can enhance the reputation of Italian industry through such a large transaction as selling warships, it will not only be conducive to the development of their own military industry, but also drive the overall growth of other industries!

However, the next day, the Emperor received an unequivocal refusal from the Kingdom of Italy.

"It seems that the attitude of the European countries should be similar to that of the Kingdom of Italy, and when they see that His Majesty has completely turned against England, they will adopt a cold attitude towards us." Princess Katrina Kafu asked worriedly.

President Meng licked his lips, the Kingdom of Italy refused his request for military purchases, and he refused directly before he even reached the bargaining stage, and he didn't plan to do business with Huaguo at all, which the Emperor did not expect.

Is it really that hard? Is it true that the British have so much influence?

Hua Huang even began to doubt his previous judgment, "If you can't do business with the Kingdom of Italy and buy warships, you can only count on Germany, even if Germany will agree, the price must be ridiculously high!" ”

Princess Katrina Kaaf nodded and said: "Yes, the best situation is that we send out outsourcing invitations to the United Kingdom, France, the Kingdom of Italy and Germany at the same time, so that the four of them will fight for the blood, which is the most conducive to keeping the price down, but it may not work now, I didn't expect that the influence of the British is really so great, Your Majesty, what should I do now?" ”

Hua Huang stood up with a solemn expression, he didn't have to be tense all the time, now he is indeed in trouble, and it is useless to pretend to be calm, but Hua Huang still maintains his demeanor, if it is a sling before rebirth, where can he still keep this calm when he encounters such a thorny problem.

"Forget it, if you don't do business with us, don't do business with us, go to the Kingdom of Spain and complete this diplomatic trip according to the scheduled itinerary." Hua Huang said word by word.

Princess Katrina Kaaf hummed softly, "I'll arrange it right away." ”

She knew that His Majesty had no choice now, and this was the first time that Princess Katrina Kave had seen the Emperor so anxious. I can't help but feel uncomfortable secretly, but there is no way at all, the only way is not to ask for help, let Hua Guo become strong, and the Hua Emperor will not have to suffer this humiliation, but how is this possible?

President Meng clenched his fists after Princess Katrina Kafu left, what the hell, can't you send money? I can't figure out that the German-Austrian countries are so afraid of the British!

Although the Chinese army is now enough to protect itself, the weakness of the Chinese navy has brought the biggest obstacle to the diplomacy of the Chinese emperor!

If China's navy can enter the ranks of the second most powerful countries, not to mention that compared with Britain, France, Tsarist Russia, and Germany, it will be able to reach the level of Spain, the Netherlands, and the United States, and it will not be so despised!

The Emperor knew that in the 18th century, France was inseparable from the British.

Britain and France maintained a period of détente for nearly 20 years, which ensured the general balance of political, military, and economic power in Europe.

The previous battle of the Augsburg League, as well as the confrontation between the British and French forces between 1702 and 1711, had exhausted each other, and the decision-makers put an end to the war for the time being.

As a result of the war, France suffered a great deal of damage in foreign trade, and its national debt grew so much that the amount of interest paid on the debt alone was equivalent to the country's annual income.

For this reason, France urgently needs to obtain a relatively stable external environment in order to respite.

At the same time, the question of succession plagued the monarchies of London and Paris, who were extremely unhappy with any attempt to change the status quo, and gradually found that on many issues it was better for the two countries to work together in each other's development.

In 1719, Britain and France jointly used force to prevent Spain from advancing its policy of expansion in Italy.

In the thirties of the eighteenth century, the détente began to falter.

The French were more desperate to regain their predominance in Europe, and the succession question was over, and the Parisian monarchy was eager to compete for supremacy, and nearly 20 years of peace had boosted France's prosperity and steadily increased its overseas trade.

While France, under the leadership of its prime minister, Fleury, rapidly improved its relations with Spain and extended its diplomatic activities to Eastern Europe, Britain was trying to stay out of continental Europe under the leadership of Walpole, a cautious isolationist.

When France invaded Austria Lorraine and Milan in 1733 and entered the Rhineland, the British authorities showed a detached attitude.

Unable to receive any assistance from Walpole, who pursued a policy of isolation, Vienna was forced to negotiate with Paris, with which a compromise peace treaty was signed in 1738.

With military and diplomatic victories in Western Europe, the support of the Franco-Spanish Alliance, the fear of France in the United Provinces, and the obedience of Sweden and even Austria to France, France's prestige reached its zenith since the early years of Louis XIV.

The following year, France's prestige was even more preserved when the French diplomatic authorities negotiated the end of the Russo-Austrian war against the Ottoman Empire (1735-1739), which resulted in the return of the territories seized by the two eastern monarchies to Turkey.

The British government under Walpole was at first able to remain calm and ignore the many changes in continental Europe, but business interests and political opponents became increasingly concerned about Britain's lucrative colonial trade in the Western Hemisphere and the expansion of conflicting colonists, which set the stage for a dispute.

In October 1739, Walpole's cabinet finally sat still and reluctantly agreed to go to war with Spain, and the resulting Anglo-Spanish War would have been one of a series of regional wars fought between England and Spain in the 18th century had not been for France's decision to give Spain all forms of aid, especially in the Caribbean "beyond the borders".

Compared with the War of the Spanish Succession of 1702-1713, the position of the Bourbon regime in the maritime competition with Britain was greatly improved, especially because the British army and navy were so poorly equipped that they could not conquer the Spanish colonies as many domestic authorities had hoped.

When Frederick the Great seized Silesia in the winter of 1740-1741, taking advantage of Teresa's succession to the Holy Roman Empire; When the French politicians on the other side of the Channel are plotting step by step; When the situation in Europe had changed dramatically, Britain could no longer turn a blind eye, and their attention was once again turned to their continental rivals.

At this time, the anti-Austrian bloc in France fully supported Prussia and Bavaria in seizing the Habsburg legacy, leading to a realignment between Britain and Austria.

The embattled Maria Theresa was overjoyed.

The British provided aid to the Austrians, temporarily withdrew Prussia and Saxony from the war through mediation, and relieved Austria through military operations in Dejängen in 1743, protected Hanover, and eliminated French influence in Germany.

In 1744, the Anglo-French confrontation turned into a full-fledged war, and the conflict became even more intense.

The French army marched north, through the border fortress of the Austrian Netherlands, and headed straight for the Netherlands, which was much worse and more helpless than it had been.

At sea, the Royal Navy, having not encountered a frontal challenge from the Bourbon fleet, imposed an increasingly severe blockade of French trade.

With the exception of super-large countries such as China and the United States, there are few countries that are not afraid of blockade, including the Tsarist Empire in the 19th century.

Overseas, in the West Indies, up the St. Lawrence River, around Madras, along the trade route to the Livant, there were successive attacks and counter-offensives.

In 1743, Prussia resumed its war against Austria, but two years later was persuaded by Britain to withdraw from the war again.

British money could be used to maintain order in Austria, to buy mercenaries to defend Hanover, and even to hire a Russian army to defend the Netherlands.

By 18th-century standards, it was too expensive to fight, and many Britons complained about growing taxes and a tripled national debt.

Gradually, however, the war forced France, which was even more exhausted than England, to seek a compromise peace.

The double balance of geographical and financial factors finally forced the British and French governments to sign the Peace of Aachen (1748) to settle their differences.

By the time the peace agreement was concluded, the Netherlands was under the iron heel of France, but this did not compensate for the loss of France's overseas trade, which was increasingly controlled by the British, or the loss of France's main colonies.

As far as Britain was concerned, if the French conquered the Low Countries, the British capture of Louisbourg on the St. Lawrence and the naval victories at Anson and Hawkes would be unpleasant.

As a result, diplomatic negotiations led to a full restoration of the status quo ante, with the exception of Frederick's conquest of Silesia.

The Peace of Aachen was essentially an armistice agreement rather than a lasting peace treaty. It made Maria Theresa anxious to take revenge on Prussia, made France consider how to win on land and at sea at the same time, and made England bent on defeating its rivals not only at sea and in the colonies but also in the continental war.

France and the Habsburgs put aside their old rivalry and joined the Austrian and Russian camps against Prussia, while Berlin replaced Vienna as London's allied power on the mainland.

At first glance, the Franco-Austro-Russian alliance seems to have the upper hand.

Militarily speaking, they had a decisive advantage over their opponents, and by 1757 Frederick had lost all the territory he had previously seized, and the Anglo-German forces under the command of the Duke of Cumberland had surrendered, leaving Hanover, as well as Prussia itself, in a precarious position.

Minorca had fallen to the French, and the French and their local allies had been victorious on the more distant battlefields.

The tearing up of the Peace of Utrecht, for Austria, was the tearing up of the Peace of Aachen, and now it seems that it is within reach.

The reason why this did not happen is that the Anglo-Prussian alliance has an advantage in three important areas: leadership, financial support, and the strategy and tactics of the army and navy.

Frederick's statecraft and military prowess are beyond doubt. He succeeded in concentrating all the forces of the whole country of Prussia on the goal of military victory, and he gave full play to his military command skills on the battlefield.

William Pitt is not a dictator, but a statesman, who had to deal with sensitive, jealous colleagues, the changing public and a new king, while at the same time carrying out and implementing an effective grand strategy.

His achievements cannot be measured simply by the seizure of a few sugar-producing islands by the British or the overthrow of a few princely princely states supported by the French, because if the British enemies occupied Hanover and eliminated Prussia, all of this would only be temporary.

Pitt came to realize that the road to final victory lay in compensating for the much-loved "maritime" strategy with a "continental" strategy, conditional on the massive financing of Frederick's army and the payment of a sizable "vigilance army" in Germany to protect Hanover and contain France.

Such a policy necessarily depends on the adequacy of the State's funds to survive the wars that drain manpower and resources year after year.