In the Royal Palace of Rio de Janeiro, the lively and glorious scenes of the past were replaced by silence and emptiness.
In the main hall, Pedro II is sitting at the top, with Garcia and Duke Forbert standing below.
"You all know the statements made by Peru and Bolivia. Tell us your opinions and what measures we should take to respond to them."
Pedro II spoke first.
"Your Majesty, Peru and Bolivia are not strong enough. As long as we dispatch 10,000 troops to reinforce the western border areas, we can ensure that the Acre area is not lost."
Garcia originally did not want to express his views on the issues of Peru and Bolivia. Due to the failure of the Paraguay War, Garcia has been dismissed from his position in the army as a military commander. At the same time, he has been prosecuted by a military court and may enter a prison cell at any time to receive punishment.
The loss of Brazil's main force and the accusations from domestic public opinion made Garcia unintentional to pay attention to the affairs of the Brazilian army. However, Pedro II specially sent someone to find him from the inspection room of the military court and raised military issues. Garcia could not
Pretend not to hear.
"Peru and Bolivia are clowns who want to take advantage of the empire's opportunity and chaos, but they underestimate the strength of the empire.
Duke Forrobert notified the Army Headquarters to dispatch 5,000 men from the Campinas Military District and the Ribeiroreto Military District to reinforce the Acre area."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Duke Florentine bowed slightly. He turned around and called the officers on duty at the palace gate. After giving Pedro II's order, he returned to the palace.
"General Garcia, there is no problem with your military command ability. The defeat in the Paraguay War was an accident. I hope you will face up to the impact of the Paraguay War and continue to contribute to the development of the Brazilian Empire."
"The main force of the imperial army has been completely lost. As the supreme commander on the battlefield, I bear an unshirkable responsibility. My subordinates are willing to accept the trial and punishment of the military court and will not evade their responsibilities."
Pedro II comforted himself, and Garcia heard his intention to shirk responsibility for the Paraguay war, but as a pure soldier, he disdained to use this method to exonerate himself.
"General, the main responsibility for the Paraguay War will be decided by the Military Court and the Imperial Parliament. As a senior general of the Imperial Army, I hope that you will show the qualities of an excellent general and stand up bravely when the Empire needs you.
Not like a coward defeated by a single defeat in the war."
Pedro II looked cautious and spoke in a serious tone: "You two, you should have seen the situation within the empire. Externally, Chinese forces have occupied Rio Grande do Sul, and tens of thousands of the empire's people have been expelled from the land where they have lived for generations.
Undaunted, Paraguay sent troops to attack Mato Grosso, Peru, and Bolivia issued a statement asking the empire to abandon the Acre region. It was confirmed that Peru and Bolivia were conducting military mobilization. If the empire did not agree to their conditions, a new
War will be inevitable."
After Pedro II talked about the external situation facing Brazil, seeing that the two people below did not express their opinions, he said in a serious tone: "External threats seem serious. In fact, as long as the empire is stable, they are not a big threat. However, the empire is now
Is it stable and peaceful?
Various political parties within the Imperial Parliament are extremely active. Representatives of local autonomy forces demand local regional autonomy. Representatives of large farmers and factory owners hope to carry out thorough political reforms, limit the rights of the monarch, and improve their political status. Liberal and Republican forces
Then a new bill was initiated in the Imperial Parliament to hold me accountable for initiating the Paraguay War without authorization and to abolish the monarchy.
You two, the domestic situation in the empire has developed to the point where it is no longer time to hold those responsible for the failure of the war accountable. Their goal has become a political incident against me. They hope to use the impact of the failure of the war to prevent the economic and political reforms of the empire, or even overthrow the empire.
Monarchy.
Pedro II paused for a moment, and then said in a slower tone: At this time, I hope you can stand firmly with me, crush the conspiracy of careerists and separatists within the empire, and lead the empire out of trouble."
Pedro II's attitude was sincere and serious, but his words had a different feeling in the ears of the two people below.
The Forbert family is a well-established old force in Brazil. They represent the large landowners and large farmers who support the monarchy. The landlord class has always been the most powerful supporter of the monarchy. The Forbert family and a group of aristocratic landowners are composed of
The Conservative Party, known as the Royalist Party by other parties in parliament, specifically fought against the Liberal Party and Republican forces to ensure the stability of Pedro II's imperial power.
However, the full support of the royalists did not receive reciprocal rewards from Pedro II.
In the Imperial Parliament, Pedro II only used the Conservative Party as a pawn to check and balance the opposition forces. When necessary, he let the Conservative Party come forward to fight against the Liberal Party and the Republican elements, and then Pedro II acted as the final arbiter to mediate.
The contradiction between the two factions, to put it bluntly, Pedro II was trying to reconcile the royalists and the republicans, and did not resolve the fundamental contradiction between the two factions.
Moreover, Pedro II, who was deeply influenced by the political systems of Britain and France, hoped to transform Brazil into a civilized and democratic country like Britain and France, implement a British-style constitutional monarchy, pursue superficial democracy and freedom, and would not be cruel to the political forces that oppose him.
The result of eradication is that the Brazilian upper class imitates the life of Britain and France. The various political parties in the Imperial Parliament argue non-stop every day but mostly serve the forces they represent and rarely care about the national interests.
It is said that it is a good idea to learn from the political systems of Britain and France, but Brazil is not a traditional European country. The indigenous white people in Brazil come from various regions such as Portugal, Spain, and Germany.
There are also complex contradictions in China. Implementing a democratic system in such a country will undoubtedly lead to chronic suicide.
Pedro II is called a noble monarch by European countries, but he is not a suitable monarch for Brazil. The core of the Brazilian monarchy is the large landowners and planters represented by the Portuguese aristocracy. It is precisely because of their support that Pedro II
Only Luo II could suppress the separatist and separatist forces in the country.
Politically, large landowners and planters formed the Conservative Party to protect the monarchy.
In terms of economy, the landlord class with sufficient funds invested money in industrial construction, promoting the development of Brazil's domestic industry.
In terms of military affairs, a group of members of large landowning families represented by Garcia joined the army to suppress local separatist forces and rebel forces.
The fundamental reason why the large landowners and large plantation classes supported Pedro's rule was for the security of their land and the protection of profits from the land. However, Pedro II, who was good at conciliation, faced the influence of the abolitionist movement in European countries and the United States. First, he
He freed all slaves belonging to the Brazilian royal family, and then not long ago announced a ban on the purchase of African slaves. Pedro II has repeatedly expressed his attitude towards the complete abolition of slavery in public, deliberately catering to the opinions of republicans and liberals.
Pedro II's seemingly shrewd but dangerous behavior is like walking on a tightrope. If he is not careful, he will fall to pieces.
On the original historical track, the Paraguay War was victorious, and Pedro II relied on the prestige of territorial expansion to extend the life of the Brazilian Empire for another 21 years. However, now the Paraguay War has completely failed, and various domestic forces opposed to Pedro II have joined forces.
If there is no unexpected situation, the Brazilian Empire will never survive twenty years later.
The ongoing conflicts in Brazil are gradually accumulating. All it takes is one flashpoint, and the huge Brazilian empire is likely to be wiped out in a short period of time.
Pedro II was in a dangerous situation and did not know it, but Roberto felt the severity of the situation directly. Within the aristocracy and the big landowner class, the recovery of the funds invested in industry was far away. The Paraguay War failed, and more than 40,000 Brazilian soldiers or
Most of the more than 40,000 people were members of the landlord class who wanted to obtain land through meritorious service on the battlefield. Their death and capture were a heavy blow to the landlord class in Brazil, and it also intensified their hatred of Pede.
Luo II's dissatisfaction.
After Garcia led the remnant army back to Rio de Janeiro, many landowners and plantation families came to Forbot's residence every day to inquire about the situation. However, Forbot's own son Canudut was in the hands of the Chinese Independence Army and did not come back. How could he
Is there any way to help others.
Speaking of Canudut, the Chinese Independence Army did not treat him badly. They did not let him do manual labor like ordinary prisoners. Instead, they arranged him in the city of Porto Alegre, where he was guaranteed to eat and live every day. As for knowing that he
The more than two hundred people who sent the message were all executed after the war. Li Mingyuan fulfilled his original promise to Canudut and only waited to send him back after coordinating with Brazil.
When Robert received news of his son's safety a week ago, he was a little wary of the Chinese Independence Army's intention to hold his son hostage, but mostly he felt relieved.
Although the Chinese Independence Army has strong combat effectiveness, its small number and isolation are inherent disadvantages. He does not believe that the Chinese Independence Army can threaten Brazil's survival, so he is not so worried about Canudut's leverage in the hands of the Chinese Independence Army.
Roberto was also dissatisfied with the way Pedro II dealt with the mud, but he had no good way to make Pedro II change his mind and could only nod to express his support.
Garcia was different. His straightforwardness as a soldier made him less worried than Roberto, and he directly suggested: "Your Majesty, the empire's domestic military strength is seriously insufficient. I beg your Majesty to take back the command of the local army and increase the strength of the army."
The Paraguay War has been going on for three years, and not only the central army has suffered losses, but also the local troops affiliated with the states have suffered heavy losses. It is undoubtedly a good opportunity to take advantage of the declarations of Peru and Bolivia to take back the command of the local troops.
The opportunity was a good one, but Pedro II could not make up his mind: "Before the outbreak of the Paraguay War, I formally reached an agreement with the Imperial Congress. Local troops were under the independent jurisdiction of the respective states. Without the Imperial Congress and the national states to vote on resolutions, the emperor had no power.
The local military establishment has been abolished, and the agreement has been incorporated into the imperial constitution. I cannot take the lead in violating the constitution."
"Your Majesty, the main force of the Imperial Guards is still there. Together with the security forces defending the capital, the strength of the army directly under the central government has completely suppressed the local troops. With the central troops in hand, the local troops dare not disobey the central orders. I implore your majesty to seize the opportunity and fight in one fell swoop.
Solve the stubborn problem of local armies forming their own factions."
"We will discuss the issue of local armies later. I have reached a consensus with the Imperial Congress. The land that originally belonged to the church was redistributed to the church. All the black slaves who participated in logistics transportation during the war were given free status. As for General Garcia, as a result of the failure of the Paraguay War,
As a punishment, you will lose the rank of general and be subject to a certain financial penalty. After the court pronounces the verdict, I will transfer you to the Guards as a consultant to help manage the affairs of the Guards."
Pedro II politely rejected Garcia's proposal, but in order to keep Garcia and temporarily appease domestic opposition forces, he had to make a lot of concessions. First, he expanded the scope of slave pardon from participating in military combat to
As long as slaves are engaged in military-related logistics and transportation, etc., they can be pardoned. In this way, more than 200,000 black slaves will be pardoned, and the biggest losses will naturally be the slave owners, those big landowners and large estate owners.
, Secondly, returning the land that originally belonged to the church and increasing the autonomy of local states are contrary to the reform plan originally implemented by Pedro II.
In order to resolve the adverse effects of Paraguay's defeat as soon as possible, Pedro II chose to make concessions, hoping to overcome the current difficulties through compromise and peace.
Pedro has made up his mind, Garcia's persuasion is useless, but Forrobert's face becomes ugly, step by step he limits the scope of slavery, and uses various methods to continuously free slaves. Pedro II challenges the Brazilian Congress little by little.
The bottom line of the landlord class.
The Civil War broke out between the north and the south in the United States because of labor issues. Will Brazil also have a civil war because of slavery?
A cruel image of the civil war emerged in Forbert's mind.