Duchy of Liège.

Although it was not for a long time, it was clear that the local residents were quick to adapt to the new identity of "Austrians", after all, they were very experienced, so there was no resistance.

On the contrary, they were ecstatic to be able to join the wider market of the German Confederation.

Even if the locals usually communicate in French, it doesn't stop them from wanting to learn another language. Soon, Austrian language schools (German) sprung up in Liège and Namur.

Of course, knowing French is not a bad thing. At that time, almost everyone among the German nobility could communicate in French, which was very comfortable in some business situations.

Although the French had decreed restrictions on the trade of the local population with the Principality of Belgium, there were always more detours than difficulties.

Moreover, according to information from Vienna, Austria was preparing to start construction of a railway in the Duchy of Liège to connect the important cities in the territory to each other.

Most of the principality officials appointed were natives, and were largely responsible for taxation rather than politics.

The whole Duchy of Liège was very satisfied with this. However, Austria seems to have no interest in sending troops there, and seems to be intent on appointing Prussia to continue to assume the responsibility of defending the territory.

This move was immediately unacceptable to the Duchy of Liège. After all, the troops under the command of the Archduke Albrecht were fairly disciplined, but the rest of the German Confederation's army was inferior to the French.

A bunch of wine bags and rice bags that can't do anything, and at the same time, they are also a group of robbers who "do it yourself, have enough food and clothing".

In order to ensure their own security, the nobles and merchants of the Liège region immediately decided to fund the formation of their own militia. In fact, similar groups were not uncommon at the time, but an enclave with its own army was unacceptable to the officials of Vienna.

"Won't they become a nation within a state if they do their own money and troops?" Count Latour was clearly insinuating, and how could he, who could not stand the behavior and attitude of the Magyars, be indifferent to this?

"That's easy, we can send a team of officers there to take charge of them." One of the ministers said casually.

But as soon as he exited, he was reprimanded by Count Korollov.

"You damn idiot, do you think you can control the scene with a few officers? Those soldiers eat and use whom, they know better than you. ”

"Everyone, please calm down and listen to me. I think it's imperative to send troops there as soon as possible. Metternich said indifferently.

He naturally understood the meaning of his old opponent's words. And the word militia has always associated Metternich with the French Revolution.

Therefore, he felt that the militia group formed by the Lièges was not reliable, and that in order to stabilize the situation, it was necessary to first send troops from the country.

Historically, the Habsburgs had always done this, recruiting a group of soldiers from within and then recruiting a group of mercenaries locally. At the same time, he won over the merchants and the aristocracy, and stood on the same side as himself.

"So according to your suggestion, how much is appropriate? Hundreds? Thousands? Or tens of thousands? ”

A new problem has emerged, that is, if there are fewer soldiers, it will be impossible to hold on, and if there are too many soldiers, it will lead to making ends meet.

Franz, who was not present, did not think that the situation was too difficult to deal with, and that it was enough to maintain a small and capable army. The salaries of the militia had to be paid by the Empire, and the officers were selected and appointed by the state.

Citizens of the region have the opportunity to become an officer, but they have to go through a process of further study in Austria.

At the same time, the empire encouraged merchants and nobles to donate to the garrison in exchange, promising that those who fulfilled their promises would receive official positions and nobility, but would not be allowed to hold local official positions.

The reason is that the Duchy of Liège is close to France, and although its terrain is easy to defend and difficult to attack, it is obviously impossible to block a strong country with only one fortress.

And with the development of railways, the speed of troop transportation has greatly accelerated. As long as the local troops can withstand for a few days, they can receive a large number of reinforcements and replenishment.

At the same time, compared with the defense of the garrison, strengthening the work of intelligence infiltration is the only way to solve the local defense situation. If the enemy's offensive intentions can be known in advance, the empire can make strategic decisions one step ahead.

Therefore, the construction of railways is more important than the garrison.

From a global perspective, the possible invasion of the Duchy of Liège came from the four bordering countries, namely the French Benelux (the Duchy of Belgium was considered a vassal).

If the opponent was France, then Austria could have used the forces of the German Confederation and the railway lines to send troops to the front line frantically, and at the same time attack the French mainland from Italy and Baden.

However, considering that the current contradiction between Austria and France is not large, on the contrary, both countries have to deal with the suppression of the British, and to a certain extent, it can even be said that they sympathize with each other.

In the future, even if war broke out, the battlefield would be in Italy, otherwise the French would face more than the wrath of Austria.

If the opponent was replaced by Prussia, then it would be equivalent to a full-scale civil war in the German Confederation. In this case, the strategic importance of the Duchy of Liège is irrelevant, since the decisive battlefield will be fought in the area between Austria and Prussia.

This is the most likely, since it is inevitable that Prussia and Austria will clash over the leadership of the German region.

Again, the Netherlands, compared to the first two heavyweights, the Dutch could barely threaten the Duchy of Liège; But it has no reason to go down this path, because it is a kind of suicide that kills a hundred enemies and loses ten thousand.

Luxembourg is the same as the Dutch, and even since Albrecht led the Austrians to liberate the region not long ago, the locals may not be able to accept this whimsical approach.

Franz's suggestion was to have his father, who had recently kept a seal pet, do it on his behalf. His proposal was a good idea for the royal family.

In short, as long as you can collect more taxes and spend less, the empire does not lack a so-called enclave. Of course, he is not interested in enclaves, but politics is not something that can be determined by someone's preference.

If Austria had not gained any real profit or fame after the war, the people and the aristocracy would not have agreed to it.

Most people don't care about so-called fame or political gain, they focus more on cost-effective benefits. For example, the acquisition of new territories by the empire can immerse the populace in joyful joy, which is a simple patriotic fervor.

Although they didn't understand the real meaning behind it, everyone had a happy smile on their faces.

Franz understands that the time is not the right time to preach, and that it is right to celebrate.

Therefore, under his operation, all the products of the royal family are promoted within a month, but this method is still beyond the scope of their understanding for people in this era.

They don't understand that this is a commercial method, but instead they create chaos in the city. Since the royal family took the lead, other merchants had to follow suit.

Consumption in Austria has skyrocketed during this time, and even citizens from some neighboring countries have heard about it, after all, it is common to humans to love good quality and cheap goods, and it seems that it is not easy for Austrians to win the war.

Eventually, the people felt the benefits, and the merchants made money.

The Empire also weakened the influence of Britain's trade dumping on the European continent to a certain extent, and its own taxes and revenues became very good.

It is worth mentioning that the former is also the only country that has stood strong in this mini-economic crisis. This gave hope to many people at home and abroad, and more people from Germany were willing to live in Austria.

It is human nature to be strong, and a prosperous and powerful country is even more desirable.

(End of chapter)