In order to get the Prussians to intervene in the war between him and Karl, Alexander also made a promise, that is, when William was crowned with the crown of the Holy Roman Empire, Alexander would personally go to Frankfurt to express his blessing.
And now, even though Wagram was captured by Karl, Alexander's original promise to Prussia was naturally not taken seriously. After all, when Alexander made the promise, the Prussians targeted Alexander who could represent the Habsburg family and Austria.
identity.
But with Alexander's defeat at Wagram, only Karl could now represent Habsburg and Austria.
Under such circumstances, it makes sense that the Prussians, through Anna, hoped that Karl could go to Frankfurt in person to attend William's coronation.
After all, if William is really crowned with the crown of the Holy Roman Empire, then in order to show his domestic orthodoxy and the surrender of the princes in the empire, as Austria, second only to Prussia in the empire, if the national leader can come forward in person, then it will undoubtedly be another
It couldn't be better.
And behind Anna's letter, Anna also hopes that Karl can serve as a coordinator to communicate with the Holy See.
Although the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire was crowned in Frankfurt, the coronated emperor also needed to go to Rome to receive the Pope's blessing to demonstrate his lofty status.
At present, it is also a question whether William's status as a Protestant believer will allow the Roman Pope to bless him willingly. After all, the Roman Pope has always been the leader of the Catholic world. For Protestantism, although the relationship between the two sects has been in a certain state,
The degree has eased a lot, but the confrontation still exists.
In this case, it is undoubtedly a better choice to let the Habsburg family, which has always had a good relationship with Rome, mediate.
Of course, Karl was not busy with his help. As long as Karl could help Prussia accomplish these two things, Prussia would immediately agree that Karl should replace Alexander as the leader of Austria.
In exchange, once William ascends the throne, William will upgrade the Principality of Austria to the Kingdom of Austria as emperor. And Karl does not need to be like Alexander, William will directly canonize him as the King of Austria.
For Karl, the sacrifices and rewards were acceptable, but watching the Holy Roman Empire's crown made him feel a twinge of pain in his heart.
Three days have passed, and George III's condition is still improving. According to the news revealed by a chamberlain serving His Majesty the King, once His Majesty the King actually shouted for help while sleeping at night, and even shouted at the palace.
There were Prussian assassins.
The British Parliament was also in chaos because of George III's illness.
Initially, in 1788, the "Regency Bill", which had been thrown out by the Whigs once, was once again submitted to Parliament, and for this draft, Pitt naturally used all his strength to organize it.
For little Pitt, once the regency draft is passed, it is foreseeable that his political life will not last long. After all, everyone knows that Crown Prince Augustus has always preferred Fox to be the British governor.
Prime Minister of the Government.
Under this circumstance, the Tories led by Pitt the Younger and the Whigs who supported Augustus once again set off a new round of party disputes at the top of the British hierarchy.
Regarding the changes that occurred in the UK, Prussian intelligence officers placed at the top of the UK quickly sent the news to Brandenburg.
For the Prussians, George III's illness could be seen as God's favor for the Prussians, and the top brass of the Prussian government headed by Rocks were convinced of this.
You must know that before this, it was no secret that the British high-level officials were plotting to take action against Prussia. At least from the Prussian side, they had already received the news that the British would take some measures to limit the development of Prussian power, and the British would even pass
Various means were used to support countries around Prussia to counter Prussia's European hegemony.
But now, the illness of George III directly caused the British government to be leaderless, and more importantly, the illness of George III directly caused the conflict between the two parties that had been suppressed at the top of the British government to break out again.
Therefore, when he saw the news, Rocks, who had always been serious, also had a smile on his face.
At this moment, when the British government was quarreling with each other, William and Maximilian finally made a decision after a day of meetings. That night, countless messengers rushed out of Frankfurt and headed for the Holy Roman Empire.
The major princely territories and Brandenburg.
February 10, 1794
William returned to Brandenburg City. At the same time, the major princes in the Holy Roman Empire and most countries in Europe received invitations from Prussia. The Holy Roman Empire government invited all countries on the European continent to attend the March 17th meeting in 1794.
Come to Frankfurt on the 10th to attend the coronation ceremony of the new emperor of the empire.
When seeing this formal invitation letter, all the national leaders sighed in their hearts. With the strongman of Prussia ascending to the throne of the imperial emperor, it is foreseeable that the next countries in the European continent will definitely be
Live your life relying on others.
The reason why William returned to Brandenburg was that before the coronation, Brandenburg had some matters that he had to deal with personally, and the other reason was that William had to return to Brandenburg to organize a large team and then go there.
The coronation was held in Frankfurt, which was also an inevitable ceremony for all imperial emperors.
In the Brandenburg Palace, except for the New Year's Christmas party, such a grand scene rarely occurs once a year in the palace. All the nobles who can be counted in Brandenburg appeared today.
In the palace.
According to William's plan, he will officially depart from Brandenburg for Frankfurt on February 20th, and when he goes to Frankfurt, a large number of dignitaries from Brandenburg will also follow him to Frankfurt.
Just when William was hiding in his study and didn't know what he was thinking, Anna walked into the study holding Eric.
"William, why did you say a few words briefly and then hide in the study? There are so many people outside looking for you?"
Today, Anna has gone through a meticulous make-up, which makes her look bright and beautiful. In addition, William's coronation as the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire is also special good news for her. Therefore, Anna seems quite excited.
Anna is not only excited about William ascending the throne of the Holy Roman Emperor. You must know that Anna's son, Eric Jr., is the Crown Prince of Prussia. Once William ascends the throne of the Emperor, it is obvious that with the strength of Prussia and Eric
With Rick's status, if nothing happens, Eric will definitely become the next emperor of the empire. Thinking of this, how can Anna not be excited?
Looking at Anna, William said with a smile:
"It's nothing, I just thought of something. By the way, Anna, your cousin is Vivian. I will let her serve as a female official in the palace in Frankfurt."
Hearing what William said, Anna was stunned, and then an unnatural smile appeared on Anna's face and she said:
"This is a good thing. My sister and I haven't seen each other for several years. I heard that she has turned into a complete beauty. In comparison, my sister is really far behind!
"
Hearing the hint in Anna's words, William's face suddenly felt a little embarrassed. But fortunately, William's face had already been tempered into steel.
Although Anna did not know everything about the romantic affair between William and Vivian, she had heard about it. Under this situation, even though Vivian was Anna's cousin, Anna felt deeply in her heart.
How could I be happy about this news?
Among the Prussian kings in the past, William was not the most sentimental, but he was definitely not single-minded. Anna had already been psychologically prepared for this in the years of right and wrong.
For Anna, as long as William can guarantee her and little Eric's status, she can turn a blind eye to William's external affairs.
A grand coronation ceremony was held in the Frankfurt Palace. Under the attention of envoys from all countries on the European continent and most of the princes in the empire, William ascended the supreme throne.
From this moment on, William was no longer just the King of Prussia, he also became the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. At this moment, the history of the European continent opened a new chapter!
William issued the first edict of the new emperor on the day after he ascended the throne and was coronated.
As Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, William announced that all vassal states within the Holy Roman Empire would unify tariffs, and at the same time announced that the Prussian mark would become the unified currency within the empire!
Because of the existence of many states in the Holy Roman Empire, tariffs have always been set by each princely state. This not only damages the authority of the central government, but also has a very bad consequence for the commercial flow within the empire.
William announced the abolition of all tariffs among the states of the Holy Roman Empire starting in 1795. In terms of foreign trade, he favored free trade, but levied protective tariffs on cotton fabrics and woolen goods imported from Britain.
In the original history, in order to fight against Austria and compete for hegemony in Central Europe, Prussia recruited 38 imperial states to establish the Prussian Customs Union in 1834. But now with William's coronation, the timetable for unifying tariffs has greatly increased.
It's ahead of schedule.
Moreover, in the historical customs union, only the states of North Germany participated. The states of South Germany and northern Italy, including Austria, did not participate in this customs union.
But now for William, unified tariffs have become the key to whether Prussia can truly build the Holy Roman Empire into a centralized empire.
Despite the opposition of some princes, including Hesse and the northern Italian states, this policy was still in the empire due to William's strength and the fact that the number of princes in favor far exceeded the number of princes who opposed it.
was passed within.
Of course, Hesse and the northern Italian city-states were unable to prevent the passage of this tariff edict due to quantitative reasons, but for them, it was still possible to make some small moves in private.
But for William, now that the emperor's edict has been promulgated, if anyone dares to confront this matter, William will definitely burn three fires on these people's heads!
The tariff rate was set by the central government of the Holy Roman Empire, in other words, by William and the Prussian government. There is no doubt that the unified tariff harmed the interests of other states to some extent and subsidized Prussia. It also strengthened Prussia's
Proportion in the political territory of the empire.
The imposition of protective tariffs on British goods can also be seen as William's precaution against the British. After all, Britain and Prussia now regard each other as their main rivals.
When the news that William unified the tariffs of the Holy Roman Empire and imposed protective tariffs on British goods reached London, the British high-level officials were in an uproar. For the British government, the Prussian actions were already a "chiluo" act of naked hostility.
"Your Highness the Regent, I think it is very necessary for us to take measures against the Prussians. The Prussians must be allowed to withdraw their discrimination against the British in tariffs!"
Fox stood in front of Augustus and said with a serious face.
Now Augustus has become the Regent of the Kingdom of Great Britain. Although the Tories led by Prime Minister Peter Jr. tried to stop it, George III still did not improve his condition for two weeks.
Augustus became regent of England but it was also the general trend.
Just after Augustus became the British Regent, the Tory cabinet headed by Pitt was immediately forcibly dissolved by Augustus on the pretext of "inaction", and Augustus would serve as the ambassador to Prussia.
Ambassador Fox recalled to London to serve as Prime Minister of the new British government cabinet. Fox reorganized the cabinet.
The tragic resignation of Peter the Younger caused the Tories to lose all power at the top of the British hierarchy. There is no doubt that as Whigs such as Fox came to power, they became even more hostile to Prussia.
Previously, although senior British officials were wary of the possibility that William would take hostile measures against the British government after he was crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, no one expected that William would take action so quickly.
Imposing protective tariffs on the UK? Then why not impose protective tariffs on France, Sicily, Sweden and Russia? Targeting the UK, this is a complete slap in the face of the Kingdom of Great Britain.
In fact, Fox was right. The reason why he only levied protective tariffs on Britain was because William laid the groundwork to win over the European countries to fight against Britain.
William knew that even though he had ascended to the throne of the Holy Roman Empire and Prussia had become the largest power in continental Europe, it was still very difficult for Prussia to fight against the British on its own, at least not in trade.
.
It was precisely because of this situation that William decided to impose protective tariffs on Britain alone.
Although Prussia also has many overseas colonies, it is undeniable that Prussia is still no match for Britain in the production of various resources. Britain, which has colonies all over the world, has rich products, and most of these products are dumped on the European continent.
Under this circumstance, in order to fight against the British, the imposition of protective tariffs became an important means for Prussia to protect itself.
At the same time, the tariff unification policy can also help Prussia unify the national sentiment of the German nation. And making the mark the only legal currency in the empire can give Prussia a large amount of financial resources.
"That's right, Your Highness the Regent, we must put pressure on the Prussians. From the time the emperor issued the edict, the interests of our merchants have been greatly damaged. According to the latest information we have obtained, British goods are in
Prices in various parts of the Holy Roman Empire have risen by almost two percentage points following the issuance of that edict. As a result, our country's goods will not be competitive with goods from other countries.
And if that damn tariff unification edict is officially implemented next year, then our country’s fiscal revenue will be extremely seriously damaged!”
Just after Fox finished speaking, Sir Lord North, the new British government cabinet finance minister, immediately spoke.
After Fox reorganized the cabinet, most of the previous Tories were purged from the British cabinet, and Lord North Jr., who had made contributions in the previous diplomatic negotiations with Spain, was regarded as a rising star of the Whig Party. Under this situation
, Fox naturally entrusted Sir North with important tasks.
For the British government, trade has always accounted for 80% of the British annual fiscal revenue, and trade with the European continent accounts for half of the national fiscal revenue.
Although William only announced an increase in tariffs on British goods within the Holy Roman Empire, it is conceivable that as the Holy Roman Empire's voice in the European continent increases, Britain's commercial activities with the European continent will be greatly affected.
of damage.
According to statistics from the British Treasury, if the British government does not take measures, the UK will lose more than half of its market in continental Europe when this edict is officially implemented, which means that the UK's commercial tax revenue will drop by at least 20% in the coming year.
.
"Your Majesty, the situation is quite serious and we must take immediate measures!"
Fox said loudly to Augustus who was sitting at the top.
Augustus, who had been listening to Fox's conversation with a furrowed brow, spoke after Fox finished speaking:
"It is necessary to take measures against the Prussians, but does the government have a unified opinion on what measures to take?"