82 – Episode 82 The loser is miserable
France’s surrender shook not only the Entente countries but also the neutral countries. Now Germany has proven itself to be an order that cannot be resisted on the European continent. Neutral countries also realized that the environment had become one where existing neutrality could not work.
Immediately, the neutral countries adjacent to Germany changed their attitudes.
“I don’t know what the situation will be, but right now Germany is the trend.”
“We have to keep an eye on the Kaiser. Let’s send an envoy congratulating him on the victory.”
Immediately after France bowed to Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Greece, and Spain sent ambassadors to congratulate the ‘German Empire’ on its victory.
All of the ambassadors were pro-Germans who advocated an alliance against Germany within their country.
They tried to win our favor by saying that they would adopt neutrality friendly to the alliance.
The Eastern princely states were not much different.
Countries that were in turmoil due to civil war suddenly became quiet. This is because all the people who said they would turn the country over and turn it into a Soviet state or return to Russia hit Run.
Now that you think the German army is coming back, you must be thinking about your life.
This is why diplomacy was easy when you became overwhelmingly powerful.
Because we don’t look at what others think, but because others look at what we think.
“Have all the negotiating forces retreated?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. “There is not a single Negotiator soldier in France.”
When Britain withdrew its troops, Thai and Japanese troops also began withdrawing their troops.
It was February 1st when all enemies left Europe.
Of course, the negotiating forces did not completely withdraw from the European continent. Commonwealth forces on the southern Italian front were still holding on to occupied territory.
Strategically, it meant not giving up leadership in the Mediterranean.
However, that did not affect our hegemony.
I declared the ‘victory of the empire’ through the newspaper.
“We won. They won on the plains of Russia, in the mountains of Macedonia, and in the vineyards of France, and flew the imperial flag. The mighty armies of the Russian Empire and the French Republic disappeared from the map.
Japan, Britain, and a few other enemies are holding out, but they are powerless to steal our victory. What will deprive us of victory?
Now there is only one thing our enemies can do. All we can do is bow our heads at our feet and ask for mercy.
I boldly declare this.
From Noble mtl dot com
The empire was victorious and became the order of Europe.
Teutons, arise! Praise the victory over Germany. “Today we have truly become the greatest Germany!”
“Sieg Heil!”
The voices of the crowd shouting for victory could be heard everywhere in Berlin.
I raised the ranks of the generals who led the victory and gave them awards.
Now it was time to start selling rice cakes.
Hindenburg, a traitor who had a hard time leading a military advisory group in Bulgaria, decided to send him to Finland.
“Your Majesty!”
He seemed so touched that I even patted him on the shoulder.
As the ranks of the generals were raised, several marshals were created.
There are generals whose status has risen within the military, so even if the traitor duo makes a comeback, it will not be easy for them to gain a say.
It felt as good to beat France as it did to beat them.
The victory celebration banquet was attended by all monarchs and their families.
It is a ball where noble ladies and young officers exchange glances.
The view was plausible.
It would have been nice to have time to enjoy a glass of champagne while watching the fresh young ladies, but there was a lot to do to enjoy such romance.
After exchanging greetings with the allied envoys gathered in the secret room, a plan was made to distribute the loot.
Now that Paris had declared unconditional surrender, it was no exaggeration to say that the disposition of France would be decided at this point.
I explained to the customers how to cut the cake called France.
First, from mainland France, the largest and most desirable.
In the Treaty of Versailles, West Prussia and Posen from Germany were cut off to create a ‘Polish Corridor’, and South Schleswig, Malmediofen, Lower Silesia, Alsace-Lothringen, and Memel were torn off.
As if that wasn’t enough, they even made Saar and Danzig into international protectorates, occupied the Rhineland as a demilitarized zone, and occupied the Ruhr under the pretext of war reparations.
Ah, if the ‘Generous Versailles’ Treaty did that much, we should go further.
After discussions with the envoys, I decided to dismantle mainland France in this way.
It was decided that southeastern France, east of the Rhone River and including Nice and Savoy, would become Italian territory, and the island of Corsica would be placed under de facto Italian supervision under the name of an ‘international protectorate.’
Bretagne, Basque Country, and Burgundy became independent satellite states of the German Empire, and Lotringen, east of the Vosges Mountains, was completely annexed as German territory. Ah, natural borders must be protected.
The rest of French territory was also torn apart.
The French metropolitan area, Ile-de-France, and the new German-French border were made into a ‘demilitarized zone’, and Normandy was made into an international protectorate under German sovereignty.
And the Roman Flanders region, including Pas-de-Calais, was handed over to Belgium as a gift. Just as Germany made Poland feel vengeful, it was a device to make Belgium gnash its teeth.
The compensation amount was also astronomical.
“5 Billion francs was too little. Isn’t that right?”
If the compensation during the Franco-Prussian War had been only 50 billion francs, France would not have even had the will to fight Germany.
Of course, if such a demand had been made, France would have shouted ‘That money!’ And attacked until all its citizens were killed.
So now that France is behind, it has been decided to pay a lot of compensation.
“132 Billion marks would be good.”
“Your Majesty, does that amount have any special meaning?”
This is the total amount of compensation paid to Germany during the Treaty of Versailles.
“I just thought it was the amount that France should pay.”
Territory division and heavy compensation.
Of course, this was not the end.
Colonies and fleets also remained.
We, Germany, will share half of the French Navy’s capital ships that are still alive, and the remaining main ships and auxiliary ships will be shared among our allies.
Anyway, Germany wasn’t that desperate for assistance.
It was decided to cut off all French colonies, leaving nothing behind.
First, Tunisia and French Somaliland were given to Italy.
We took care of Equatorial Africa, which we promised to the German princes.
“I will cede French North Africa to Austria.”
At first, I thought about making the place independent, but this was the best decision.
‘Austria has to be so full that it can’t handle it, and it will collapse on its own.’
To create a Greater Germany, it was necessary to tear up the French Empire.
Austria wants overseas colonies and Hungary is committed to inland expansion. As the gap widens, the division of the empire will become easier.
Indochina was out of our reach anyway, and the same was true for China and the Pacific.
It would have been better to just put up signs for our sphere of influence in those areas and target them when advancing in the future.
The discussion on division behind closed doors ended in 8 hours.
Once the plentiful loot was distributed, everyone shook hands with smiles.
When the conversation was about to end with a joke about thinking about how to divide the British colonies next, the Italian envoy asked to speak.
“Please speak, Minister.”
“There are still negotiation forces left on the continent. Since it is difficult to do anything with the British at sea, why not deal with them first?”
Would you like us to get rid of the British and Commonwealth troops that entered our country?
It’s enough to show sincerity once, do you want to do it again?
I had no intention of doing that at all.
In this war, the German Army recorded 1.9 Million casualties, including 650,000 killed. Although it was a very small loss compared to the 2 million dead and 1 million starving deaths recorded in actual history, even this level of loss was a damage that could not be ignored in terms of demographics.
At least it was bearable because the German Empire had the second largest population in Europe. If it had been as large as France, it would have been screaming.
“We can provide weapons, but troops are difficult. “We are also in a situation where we have to temporarily reduce our troops, so I hope the special envoy will understand.”
In terms of managing public sentiment, reducing the number of troops was unavoidable in order to give vacation time to mobilized soldiers.
For the time being, the plan was to maintain troops at around 2 million, so there was no thought of sending an additional expeditionary force to Italy.
“Hmm.”
The Italian envoy expressed discomfort, but it didn’t seem to matter. Now, Germany no longer had to worry about the opinions of subordinates such as ‘allies’.
I felt light and relieved.
Of course, there were still mountains to overcome for Germany’s hegemony, but it was clear that a major ridge had been crossed.
Europe, then the Atlantic Ocean.
I proposed a toast to the envoys.
*
The owner of 10 Downing Street has changed again.
Count Arthur Balfour took office in the place of Prime Minister Bonner Law, who took responsibility for the defeat in France. Belfour, who filled the leadership vacuum after serving as foreign minister, responded to a question from the House of Commons asking about future strategy:
“The British Empire neither submits nor begs.”
It was indeed a strong statement.
However, behind the scenes, Britain was also in contact with Germany on behalf of the negotiating powers.
It was a contact at the level of the working-level staff, but the fact that the conversation was taking place was important.
“If the British Empire intends to strengthen, it would be appropriate to show sincerity.
First, recognize the spoils acquired by Germany and its allies.
Second, disband all exile governments in London.
Third, cut off all support for Germany’s hostile forces.
Fourth, stop the maritime blockade.
Fifth, pay an appropriate amount of compensation.”
It was a condition that the British could not accept.
“First of all, compensation is absolutely unacceptable. “Our British Empire is not a defeated country.”
“Didn’t you start the war by attacking the Ottomans first? “But there is no compensation.”
Both sides were unwilling to take a single step back in order to obtain even the slightest advantageous conditions.
As a result, the negotiations repeatedly broke down, and the talks did not progress enough for high-ranking officials to step forward.
Prime Minister Balfour was briefed on the results of the negotiations and was inclined to ‘continue the war.’
‘If the Germanic guys come out like that, it would be crazy to go in with a bow. Let’s strangle them for about two years. If we go then, they will also offer good conditions.’
The British government decided to continue the war and launched propaganda to inspire the public’s will to fight.