"Mr. Cavour, the Kingdom of Britain will never help the Kingdom of Sardinia in any war of aggression!"
Prince Albert's categorical remarks made Cavour feel a little disappointed.
However, fortunately, all this was within Cavour's expectation.
After all, the Kingdom of Britain is now the most powerful country in Europe and even the entire world.
Recklessly participating in a European war that does not belong to Britain will only shake the dominance of the British Kingdom.
At this stage, no country can truly threaten the maritime hegemony on which the British Kingdom depends for its survival, not even the French Empire's navy. They can only rely on their first-mover advantage to be slightly superior to the British Kingdom in technology.
In terms of the number of naval fleets, the French Empire's current fleet simply cannot reach all sea areas, and all it can influence is the Mediterranean region.
If the French Empire's navy wants to achieve the achievement of radiating the whole world, then the French Empire must spend a lot of money to invest no less than the British Kingdom's funds.
However, the French Empire simply could not make such a determination. Their geographical location determined that the French Empire's center of gravity must be the army, and the purpose of the navy was only to protect its rights in the Mediterranean region.
Therefore, although the British Kingdom is wary of the strength of the French Imperial Navy, it will not rashly exacerbate conflicts throughout Europe because of this.
The forces in the Apennine Peninsula are complex, and if you are not careful, you will fall deeply into the quagmire.
Only by maintaining a relative balance on the European continent can the fundamental interests of the British Kingdom be truly protected.
Although the prospect promised by Cavour was very wonderful, the price required to realize it was something that the British Kingdom was not willing to bear.
"Your Majesty, I naturally understand your country's determination to maintain peace in Europe!" Cavour said to Prince Albert with a sincere expression, "But the current peace in Europe is not based on the principle of continental balance, but on the emperor of the French Empire.
Decide by your mood!
The current French Empire's sphere of influence has exceeded the scope agreed in the Vienna Agreement.
Württemberg, Baden, and Bavaria do not need to rely on the French Empire. Belgium and the Netherlands, which should be the vanguard against France, also have to cooperate with the French Empire.
The current Third Majesty Napoleon has extended the power of France to the period of Emperor Napoleon, and his methods are more slick than his uncle.
I'm worried that if the French Empire is not restricted, the Kingdom of Britain will..."
At this point, Cavour suddenly closed his mouth. He understood that there were some words that he could not say from his own mouth and that Prince Albert had to think for himself.
Prince Albert naturally understood the meaning of the second half of Cavour's sentence.
After the Crimean War, the French Empire, which had returned to its dominant position on the European continent, changed its aggressive attitude during the Napoleonic Empire and instead used monarchical friendship, economic support, military cooperation and other methods to increase exchanges with European countries.
This made the members of the southern German princely states (mainly the Kingdom of Württemberg and the second fifth of Germany, Bavaria), the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of the Netherlands eager to cooperate in depth with the French Empire.
During the cooperation between the two parties, the French Empire did tell them with practical actions that there were indeed benefits to following the French Empire.
For example, when the Kingdom of Württemberg and the Kingdom of Bavaria wanted to issue railway bonds, the enthusiastic Perel brothers took over the task originally belonging to the Frankfurt Bank to provide guarantees for the two countries to issue railway bonds on the Paris Stock Exchange.
During the military operations of the Kingdom of Spain and the French Empire against Morocco, it was also Jérôme Bonaparte who advocated the allocation of the northern region of Morocco to the Kingdom of Spain.
The establishment of a coal and iron alliance with the Kingdom of Belgium has won unanimous praise from the mine owners in the Kingdom of Belgium.
…
The French Empire has used practical actions to show the outside world its responsibility.
Compared with the British Kingdom, which chose to stay out of trouble whenever it encountered problems, the French Empire can indeed be regarded as a relatively qualified European leader.
As long as the French Empire does not choose to engage in large-scale wars in Europe like it did during the Napoleonic period, it will be difficult for the British Kingdom to win the favor of middle-level countries more than the French Empire.
Thinking of this, Prince Albert felt a little resentful of the original Palmerston.
If Palmerston had not insisted on completely weakening the Russian Empire, the current diplomatic space of the British Kingdom would be more flexible.
Now, neither Poland, which gained independence from the Russian Empire, nor Austria, which obtained the Danube Marquis from Russia, nor Sweden, which obtained Norway from Russia, are willing to see the Russian Empire rise again, and a defense line has been vaguely formed between them.
paramilitary alliance of the russian empire
If the Kingdom of Britain chooses to unite with the Russian Empire to contain the French Empire, these three countries will inevitably choose to side with the French Empire under military pressure.
It is even more impossible to expect the Kingdom of Prussia in Central Europe to resist the French Empire.
The brief conflict that occurred in the German region a few years ago had allowed the British Kingdom to "clearly see" the military strength of the Prussian Kingdom.
Except for Jérôme Bonaparte, no country believed that the Kingdom of Prussia had the same power as Britain, France and Austria.
Taking into account the fact that the countries in Central and Western Europe were gradually leaning towards the French Empire, Prince Albert's attitude was not as decisive as it was at the beginning.
"Mr. Cavour, I admit that there is some truth in what you just said!" Prince Albert nodded and acknowledged Cavour,
Then he changed the subject, spread his hands and said to Cavour, "But it is impossible for me to convince the British people to let them confront the Austrian Empire for the benefit of the Kingdom of Sardinia!
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My attitude has not changed at all. The Kingdom of Britain is willing to guarantee the security of the Kingdom of Sardinia as long as it does not actively invade other countries!"
Having said this, Prince Albert paused and said with a meaningful smile, "That is to say, as long as the Kingdom of Sardinia does not officially take any action to disrupt the Italian peninsula, then the Kingdom of Britain is still willing to help Sardinia."
Guarantee the security of the Kingdom of Dinnia!”
Prince Albert's additional explanation does not seem to be much different from the beginning at first glance.
But for a smart man like Cavour, Prince Albert's hint was enough to represent the British Kingdom's loosening of attitude.
"Your Majesty, I am very grateful to the Kingdom of Britain for its selfless help to the Kingdom of Sardinia!" Cavour stood up excitedly and bowed to Prince Albert.
"Mr. Cavour, what are you talking about!" Albert asked Cavour deliberately pretending to be confused, and then emphasized, "I didn't say anything!"
"Your Majesty, please rest assured!" Cavour assured Albert again, "The Kingdom of Sardinia will definitely not cause any trouble to the Kingdom of Britain!"
At this moment, Victor Umberto, who was sitting aside, still didn't understand what conditions Prince Albert promised Cavour that made Cavour so happy.
However, now was not the time to ask about Cavour. Victor Umberto could only wait patiently and wait to ask after leaving Windsor Castle.
After discussing important issues, Cavour changed the subject.
Cavour began to chat about Prince Albert's interests, and unknowingly the two of them talked about literature, which made Prince Albert, who already had a literary heart, smile from the bottom of his heart.
As Cavour and Albert completely changed the topic to the field of literature, Victor Umberto, who had been silent until now, also couldn't help but make a few comments, which surprised Prince Albert.
"At your age, few royals are willing to devote their energy to literature!" Prince Albert couldn't help but praise Victor Umberto.
Victor Umberto responded shyly, "Your Majesty, you are exaggerating!"
Later, Albert asked Victor Umberto some literary questions, and Victor Umberto responded to Prince Albert one by one.
Such a harmonious scene made Cavour suddenly think of a strategy in his mind, and he decided to test it with Prince Albert.
After the question and answer between Prince Albert and Victor Umberto came to an end, Cavour asked tactfully, "Your Majesty, I heard that your second daughter has not yet been engaged. Is this true?"
After hearing Cavour's inquiry, Prince Albert immediately understood Cavour's subtext, and he subconsciously glanced at Victor Umberto with scrutiny.
Victor Umberto straightened his body slightly and accepted Prince Albert's review
It has to be said that Victor Umberto does meet the standards of Prince Albert in appearance, but the marriage between royal families is not simply a matter of pleasing to the eye. It must be done carefully and carefully.
Especially for an ambitious country like the Kingdom of Sardinia, after the British royal family marries it, it is difficult not to be affected by the Kingdom of Sardinia.
Of course, the advantage is that the Kingdom of Sardinia can quickly change from pro-French to pro-British, thereby destroying France's hegemony in the Mediterranean.
After thinking briefly for a moment, Prince Albert decided not to reply for the time being. The matter must be discussed with the cabinet before making a decision.
Otherwise, the cabinet will think that the royal family is bent on leading Britain into conflict.
"Mr. Cavour, Alice (Victoria's second daughter) is indeed not engaged yet, and we are also considering Alice's marriage!" Prince Albert replied to Cavour.
"If you don't mind, could you put our prince on the list of candidates?" Cavour asked Elbert bluntly.
"This... the royal family and the cabinet will consider your suggestions!"