Chapter 141: Chapter 28, The Headache-Inducing Strategy

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Translator: 549690339

Franz’s dilemma wasn’t considered a problem to the people of his era.

When analyzed in terms of construction costs, the largest gap between these four standards was no more than 1.2%, meaning that the cost of railway construction wasn’t the main factor influencing the decision.

Thinking about it, it makes sense since the gauge of railways in this era was generally quite wide; Russia’s first railway gauge was 1829mm, and later, for the sake of profiteering, bureaucrats took the suggestions of American engineers to change it to 1524mm.

How much cost was saved by reducing the gauge from six feet to five feet?

It saved 3% on the budget, but of course, given the style of Tsarist bureaucrats, it was certain that not much money would end up being saved.

The standard gauge was something the British promoted to the entire world. Starting from 1846, John Bull enacted laws that established the 1435mm system as the standard gauge for both the United Kingdom and its colonies.

However, India soon became an exception, as the standard gauge couldn’t meet their transportation requirements. The British, being pragmatic, simply scaled it up; hence, most of India’s railways adopted the 1676mm standard, and naturally, there were also plenty of other hodgepodge gauge railways.

After nearly a century of British effort, it wasn’t until the mid-20th century that the 1435mm system became the international standard gauge. The initial goal of John Bull was to promote the British technical system.

Whether there was also an intention to limit the freight capacity of continental countries is unknown; anyhow, Franz didn’t believe John Bull was that benevolent.

With the technology of the mid-19th century, wide-gauge railways could handle more freight than narrow-gauge ones, and they were much safer and faster, a stark contrast to the 21st century.

Later generations solved the problem of train stability with technology, which improved the freight capacity and speed of narrow gauge railways – something that couldn’t be done in this era.

Railway maintenance costs were, in reality, much the same. Once a railway was built, the construction was completely identical; the only difference lay in the length of the sleepers. The argument that narrow gauge railways were simpler to maintain is unfounded.

As for land occupation, that argument is completely nonsensical. Who doesn’t leave a buffer zone on either side of their railways? Are they planning to make use of the land beneath the trains?

…(Let’s not digress; this has almost turned into a lecture.)

“Your Majesty, since we are going to unify the standard, why not have the Holy Roman Alliance unify the standard as well? It might be better to gather everyone and set a common standard,” Metternich suggested.

“Is there enough time, considering our railway construction has already begun?” Prime Minister Felix asked with concern.

“No problem, railway construction has just started. Making a decision within a year won’t affect the work,” Railway Minister Stein replied.

Railway construction in this era was really slow. Now they’ve just started with the demolitions, then comes the digging and filling – it takes at least a couple of years to get to the track bed construction.

“Then let’s get everyone involved; the Railway Department will be responsible for selecting the optimal solution as our suggestion and try our best to persuade everyone to adopt it.

If there’s incessant debate, then present these various standards for everyone to vote on. Anyway, these solutions are all suitable for Austria,” Franz said indifferently.

“Then let’s go with 1676mm. This standard already meets our requirements and ensures safety,” Stein quickly gave his answer.

As for an international railway standard, did such a thing even exist in this era? Who would recognize it?

It’s worth noting that when the British were constructing the Western Railway, they discovered their standard system couldn’t ensure safety due to technical reasons and switched to a wider gauge. Only by the end of the 19th century, when technology was adequate, did they rebuild with their standard gauge.

Once the Holy Roman Alliance established a new standard, then perhaps there would be two sets of future international railway gauge standards.

Not to mention anything else, if the railways of the South German States unified their standard, would Prussia follow suit or not?

If they didn’t follow, the economies of both sides would become segmented; if they did, Central Europe and Southern Europe would unify their standard systems, which would undoubtedly create a significant influence.

As an emperor, many issues had to be considered from political and military perspectives. For example, now, if the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Russians unified their railway standards, Franz would immediately hesitate.

The reason is well known; any country neighboring Russia must be cautious. Even if allies, precautions are still necessary.

In this period, the major European powers were all somewhat hollow despite their outward strength, and Austria was no exception. Social reforms had just begun and had not yet transformed into national power.

The British empire had not yet reached its peak; India had not been fully conquered, Australia and New Zealand still had indigenous forces resistant to them, and in South Africa, they had just established some footholds along the coasts. Colonization was ongoing in Southeast Asia, Egypt was still dominated by the French, and thus the great Colonial Empire had not finished its puzzle.

The French were busy with internal conflicts, while the internal contradictions in Russia were merely suppressed, waiting to be detonated by external forces.

The Kingdom of Prussia still relied on foreign wars to divert social conflicts, and internal reforms had only just begun. Although their military strength was seemingly formidable, their domestic economy was lackluster.

Spain continued its decline without initiating social reforms; across the ocean, the United States, at this time, was merely an agricultural country with a population just over twenty million, its main economic income from exporting cotton. The conflict between the North and the South had already emerged.

At this thought, Franz suddenly had an idea. Should he seize the opportunity to meddle in South Africa?

South Africa was vast, and the British had only established colonial rule along the coast. The interior was still no man’s land, and aside from the Cape of Good Hope, the British hardly paid any attention to other regions.

The British were too busy to care about more areas in Africa. With so many points of entry, getting involved now might secure a piece of the action.

If all else failed, he could start with Namibia and then occupy Botswana, skirting the fringes; or start with Tanzania, take over Zambia and Zimbabwe, and infiltrate South Africa from the inland.

Theoretically, all these options sounded good, but practically, they seemed unreliable. The African Continent at this time was not at all endearing—disease, venomous insects, and fierce animals abound, requiring one to prepare for an exceedingly high mortality rate if planning to colonize.

Theoretically, it wasn’t that high. With caution, keeping the mortality rate below ten percent was probably manageable.

While this might sound feasible in theory, in practice, one would realize that people were not that brave; who would willingly risk their lives when living comfortably?

That would change with the lure of profits, such as the discovery of the gold mines in South Africa, which would make everyone suddenly brave enough to face diseases, venomous creatures, and wild beasts.

Regrettably, by the time the gold was discovered, it would be too late for Austria to claim a stake unless it occupied the territory beforehand and then allied with the Boer people; otherwise, they had no chance against the British.

Despite being sensible, once the idea came to Franz, he couldn’t shake it off.

There was still plenty of time before gold was discovered in South Africa. If nothing else, he could support the internal African colonial faction and have them establish a foothold first.

By the time the Anglo-Boer war broke out, Austria would have risen, and having a foothold would be crucial whether to support the Boer people in their struggle against John Bull or to join in and take a share for themselves.

The timing of any action had to be chosen carefully, ideally when the British were preoccupied and unable to respond to a sudden advance creating a fait accompli.

Under the international laws of the era, no man’s land belonged to whoever occupied it first, provided they could hold onto it.

There was no need to rush. Franz wasn’t a man of impulsive actions. For now, it seemed necessary to push for the construction of the Suez Canal.

Monopolizing this canal was beyond Austria’s capability, but stirring up some action to turn it into an internationally managed canal was within the realm of possibility.

When the Suez Canal was being dug, the British Government was fully opposed, believing that it would threaten their naval supremacy.

The British public thought the canal wouldn’t accommodate large vessels and the Canal Company’s shares were virtually ignored in the United Kingdom.

On the contrary, sales were good in France. The Canal Company even encountered financial difficulties mid-way, halting construction and nearly resulting in an abandoned project, before the Rothschild family intervened for its completion.

Historically, the canal wasn’t operational until 1869. By that time, Austria’s navy should have gained some significance.

No guarantees for other outcomes, but becoming a shareholder of the canal was achievable.

Historically, France couldn’t withstand British pressure and faced financial issues, forcing them to give up; but if it turned into a Franco-Austrian venture leading the Suez Canal, the outcome would be different.

As for how to proceed, Franz was troubled. The relations among the great powers were extremely complex, with collaboration and back-stabbing happening simultaneously.

One day allies on one issue, the next day they’d be at each other’s throats elsewhere.

To reduce conflicts, only agreements like the Russian-Austrian secret treaty, where each gets what they need by setting out spheres of influence in advance, seemed to work.

But merely imagining such scenarios was impossible. Austria could make concessions to Russia because their core strategic interests did not clash.

Franz also knew that the moment Russia’s strategy was initiated, it would suffer a thrashing from the alliance of England, France, and the Ottoman Empire. The Russians didn’t have the resources to sustain long-term warfare, and failure was inevitable.

Austria would only be drawn into the conflict through alliance obligations if England and France initiated an invasion. But a glance at the map made it clear that unless Russia led the way, an English or French invasion would be difficult.

Obviously, such an event couldn’t happen again. Austria had to choose a major power as an ally  waffling opportunists were liable to be crushed easily.