45 Chapter 45: Conversation

The conversation with William II went smoothly, which lifted Arthur's spirits despite Queen Victoria's ailing health.

With Queen Victoria's imminent passing, Arthur, despite his deep affection for her, had to consider the future of Australia.

Losing Queen Victoria's protection and support would essentially mean losing support from Britain as well.

Although Prince Edward had a good relationship with Arthur on the surface, he would not go out of his way to help Arthur and Australia rise.

Arthur certainly had leverage over Prince Edward, but if this leverage were made public, not only would Prince Edward's status and reputation suffer greatly, but the status of the British monarchy and nobility, as well as monarchies around the world, would also be severely impacted.

As a member of the British royal family, to some extent, Arthur's success was tied to the success of the British royal family. If the British royal family's status were severely impacted, Arthur's legal status in Australia could also be affected.

After all, although monarchy still dominated many European countries, democracy and liberalism had already dealt a massive blow to the monarchy.

Compared to publicly revealing this evidence and leverage, it was more appropriate to use it to gain enough benefits from Prince Edward.

However, in exchange for obtaining enough benefits, Arthur would naturally become opposed to Prince Edward. Although it would not result in a complete break from the British Empire, it would be impossible for Australia to have a close partnership with the British Empire during Prince Edward's reign.

After both achieving their respective satisfactory goals, William II and Arthur were in good spirits. Thus, the already beautiful scenery of White Island appeared even more outstanding in their eyes.

"Arthur, how do you see the current European situation? The European standoff is already clear. Do you think our Triple Alliance or the so-called St. Petersburg Military Agreement between France and Russia has the upper hand?" On the way back to the manor, William II suddenly asked Arthur.

"What's the situation in Europe?" Arthur was taken aback, but still continued to answer: "Judging from the current confrontation, I believe the strength of the two major military blocs is almost balanced. France and Russia have a large amount of land area and population, while Germany has a powerful army and advanced industry. I think if a short war breaks out, the advantage will be with Germany. But if the war lasts for a long time, the advantage will gradually shift to France and Russia."

This is actually the answer from history. Although Germany was fierce in the early stages of the war, it was completely inferior to the three countries of Britain, France, and Russia in terms of resources as the war turned into a war of attrition. Especially when sea transportation lines were cut off, Germany, despite having a huge industry, would be stagnant due to the lack of raw materials.

"Hahaha, Arthur, you underestimate one thing, which is the strength of the great Junker nobility and the German army. Even if France and Russia have a larger land area, they will definitely not be able to withstand the crazy attack of the German army. Once the war breaks out, all German troops have the confidence to quickly capture Paris, just like the Franco-Prussian War, and end this war quickly." Kaiser Wilhelm II laughed and directly overturned Arthur's view.

The war mentioned by Kaiser Wilhelm II is the founding war of the German Empire, the famous Franco-Prussian War. The war began with France's initiative, and in less than two months, Napoleon III led his army to surrender.

Even if France continued to resist Prussia after the revolution broke out, it still fell under the successive attacks of the Prussian army, captured Paris, and forced the then French government to sign a humiliating peace treaty.

This war directly shattered the Second French Empire, leading to a revolution in France and the establishment of the Third French Republic.

It recaptured the Alsace-Lorraine region, which was rich in coal resources and had been occupied by France, and forced France to pay a large amount of compensation, leading to France falling behind other great powers during the Second Industrial Revolution and losing its dominant position in Central and Western Europe, being overtaken comprehensively by Germany.

Alsace-Lorraine was originally part of Germany and was taken by France during a period of internal strife in Germany. Even though France had colonized the area for a couple of hundred years, during the Franco-Prussian War, most of the residents there were still Germanic people who spoke German.

This was also the reason for Wilhelm II's confidence. The German army had conquered Paris decades earlier, and now that Germany was even more powerful, what was stopping them from achieving this great feat again?

It can be said that Wilhelm II's physical defects from an early age led to his insecure and arrogant personality.

In addition, by kicking the Iron Chancellor Bismarck out of German politics, Wilhelm II gained great influence in German politics.

All Germans were imagining a short-term defeat of France after the war was launched. Who could have predicted that this war would last for several years and directly crush the invincible German Empire?

"William cousin, perhaps you are right. But France and Russia are both great powers that dominate their respective regions. Among the Allies, only Germany and Austria-Hungary's strength can barely match up. I'm not very optimistic about Italy's performance. Italy has direct conflicts with Austria-Hungary in the region, which are overshadowed by the bigger conflict with France. But who can guarantee that France will not back down in exchange for Italy's defection?" Arthur said with a smile.

"Reminding William II is not to indicate that Arthur wants to support the Allied powers, a more intense Europe at war would also be beneficial for Australia. The true situation of World War I only became clear after the US decided to join the war. Before that, the two military blocs had their own victories and losses, making the war relatively balanced.

So why can't Australia be the one to disrupt the situation? Give Australia ten years of development time, and Arthur is confident in building a decent industrial system, even with the ability to directly influence World War I.

The status of a neutral country and a victorious country after the war is vastly different, especially since there are still many money-making plans in World War I. These old colonial powers have been sucking blood from their colonies for hundreds of years. Why can't Australia suck blood for a while?

"Perhaps, Arthur. But we're not expecting anything from Italy. They just need to remain neutral in the war, not leaning towards the side of France and Russia, and Germany has the confidence to defeat France in a short time and end the war completely."

For an extremely arrogant and self-confident fanatic like William II, it's not easy to be persuaded by Arthur.

Of course, Arthur didn't intend to persuade William II of anything. What's more important for Arthur and Australia now is how to gain benefits from the two military blocs and make Australia develop rapidly."

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