Eight hundred and fortieth chapters of their respective plans
According to the agreement reached between Duke Alexander and France and Austria, the peace conference should be held in Paris in late February 1855.
However, due to some problems with the Russian delegation's itinerary, the final date was postponed to March 5.
That day, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the Quai d'Orsay in Paris was already packed with people before delegations from various countries arrived. From the Pont de la Concorde to the Rue de Jena, the crowds of onlookers were so crowded that the French had to dispatch cavalry and gendarmes to maintain order, otherwise
The carriages of foreign envoys are not allowed to approach the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building.
Foreign delegations gradually arrived at around 1:00 p.m., and whenever they stepped out of their carriages and entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building, the crowd automatically burst into cheers of "Long live peace!" and "Long live the Emperor!"
The representatives gathered in gorgeous attire in the luxurious ambassador's hall. In this hall was a large round table covered with green velvet, with twelve armchairs beside the table. All displayed around were the second-largest French diplomats.
Imperial decorative art, scarlet satin curtains hang from the wall, and life-size portraits of Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie are placed in the center of the hall. It seems that the two are always watching the representatives, as if to remind them that France has already
became great again and became the arbiter of European political affairs.
In addition, there is a marble bust of Napoleon I placed on a stand next to the fireplace. You must know that for more than forty years he had been the most unpopular person in European diplomatic circles.
Napoleon III deliberately placed his uncle's head here to remind the representatives of the participating countries that the Napoleon family is once again at the pinnacle of European power. They are back!
For the French, the peace talks being held in Paris greatly enhanced their national pride and once again gained France the respect of the entire Europe. However, there is actually quite a lot of water here, because Russia and
Austria was initially more willing to hold a peace conference in Vienna, but the British strongly opposed it, because the British had been doubtful about the real purpose of the Austrian diplomatic efforts since the outbreak of the Russo-Turkish War, so the British strongly opposed making Vienna once again the center of Europe.
Focus.
Moreover, it is not a bad thing for the British to satisfy the self-esteem of the French a little bit. Let the proud French eat some honey, and then they will naturally be satisfied and will not oppose them in the negotiations.
In a sense, the peace conference held in Paris was more symbolic than practical. Most of the issues in the negotiations had actually been resolved before, leaving only a few sensitive issues that needed to be resolved.
It can be said that convening a peace conference in Paris was more like a political show of Napoleon III. After all, the Paris World Expo was about to be held in the second half of 1855. Paris became the focus of Europe twice in just one year. This was very important to Napoleon III.
It is so important and beautiful.
So many British people say that the only person who gained a lot from this war was Napoleon III. The war promoted him to a very high position, while other countries, especially the United Kingdom, got nothing!
The British had reason to be unhappy and dissatisfied, because even if the Paris Peace Conference was convened, they would still be the biggest obstacle to ending the war, besides Alexander II.
The British have always maintained a tough stance against Russia, and are not at all eager to end the war. After all, they have failed to win any battles in the past year or two, and they have no way to satisfy their sense of honor or to be proud of the huge
Account for sacrifices and economic costs.
Inspired by bellicose sentiments, Palmerston has always insisted on tough conditions towards Russia and directly threatened that if Russia does not accept these conditions, Britain will continue to fight until Russia is completely defeated. He also threatened to launch an attack in the direction of the Baltic Sea.
It's just that, although Palmerston talked tough and seemed like he wanted to cut Russia into eight pieces, in fact his toughness kept swinging back and forth. By January, he basically gave up on liberating Wallachia.
The reason for Moldavia's request was that the French were strongly opposed to it. After all, once Wallachia and Moldavia were separated from Russian control, it would obviously only be easier for the Austrians.
France and Austria have always refused to deal with each other, especially as France gradually supported the Sardinian Dynasty in causing trouble in the Apennine Peninsula. They needed to restrict Austria rather than allowing Austria to take advantage of the opportunity to expand.
Not long after, Palmerston began to realize that it was unrealistic to use a peace treaty to disarm Russia in the Black Sea region, such as completely abolishing the Black Sea Fleet. Instead, he demanded that the size of the Black Sea Fleet be limited in the form of a contract.
, to prevent Russia from continuing to dominate the Black Sea.
He wrote to Clarendon at the end of February, emphasizing that Russia was not qualified to negotiate terms with the allies led by Britain and France. It was an "unbridled" offense for Russia to dare to oppose Britain's peace conditions. The British condition was that Russian warships and weapons were completely
Withdraw from the Black Sea area, and at the same time, Russian troops must "leave from all occupied Turkish territories." He also vowed to emphasize: "This is not intended to humiliate Russia... It is just used to show Russia and swear that it has sincerely given up its aggressive intentions."
Palmerston also specifically reminded Clarendon to be wary of Count Orlov, the leader of the Russian delegation to the Paris Peace Conference, and his words were not ordinary explicit:
"I know Orlov very well. He is civilized and polite on the outside, but inside he is full of Russian rudeness, arrogance and pride. He will bully others, but try his best not to show any trace... As long as he feels there is a chance of success, he will definitely
He is a cunning, semi-civilized, semi-savage person who knows how to spend every penny he has!"
However, Palmerston's jumping up and down to make trouble was not particularly effective. The French were extremely disgusted with his behavior. Count Walewski simply described him as a "crazy animal".
Peace is a top priority for the French, and as Walewski got in-depth contact with Duke Alexander, he began to realize that if France and Russia could enter, they could greatly contain Britain and Austria without even forming an alliance.
For the French, they need to reconcile with Russia as soon as possible, and then they can make arrangements for Italy's future according to Napoleon III's plan. He believes that it can help Piedmont regain the Lombardy-Venecia region from Austria, and it is best to bring Harbin
The power of the Busburg family was expelled from the Apennine Peninsula.
In exchange, France can regain Savoy and Nice from Piedmont. If this goal is achieved, France will basically return to the territory of the Napoleon I era, which will be a new great achievement for Napoleon III.