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Chapter 20: The Budget

Castries' face paled. He gaped, exclaiming, "Your Highness, how can you say that? The fleet is France's sharpest spear, we absolutely cannot..."

Joseph calmly regarded him. "Marquis de Castries, tell me, for every warship we build, how many can the British construct?"

"Well," Castries hesitated, "roughly one and a half..."

Seeing the Crown Prince merely smile without speaking, Castries, a hint of annoyance in his voice, declared, "Two. The British launch new ships incredibly quickly, perhaps even more than two!"

Joseph nodded. "That means, no matter how desperately we build ships, we can't possibly outmatch the British Navy."

He uttered a truth everyone present knew but dared not voice, and a heavy silence immediately fell.

Joseph continued, "If that's the case, why waste vast resources on shipbuilding? Our current fleet is sufficient for escorting merchant ships."

He naturally understood the fleet's importance and certainly wouldn't oppose naval expansion. What he opposed was the continued squandering of funds on large, obsolete sailing warships.

Britain held an immense advantage in shipbuilding, boasting numerous shipyards, skilled craftsmen, and ample funds. Furthermore, being an island nation, Britain could divert army resources to its navy, a luxury France did not possess.

If it were a simple contest of shipbuilding numbers, France was destined to lose. The Battle of Trafalgar, over a decade later, would prove this: even with France pouring all its efforts into producing warships and uniting with the Spanish and Dutch fleets, they would still be crushed utterly by the British Navy.

After that defeat, France's maritime trade routes would be completely blockaded by the British, leading to Emperor Napoleon's gradual decline, while Britain would ultimately become the dominant global power.

Therefore, there was only one path forward: abandon the currently popular multi-deck sailing warships, leverage the advanced technology in his mind, and move directly to ironclads, equipped with steam engines and more powerful cannons, to launch a Dimensional Strike against British warships.

However, he couldn't reveal these plans in a cabinet meeting. That scoundrel Orléans, at the very least, would likely leak the information.

"But..." Castries knew full well the Crown Prince was being sophistical, yet for a moment, he couldn't find a retort. He only worried that Queen Marie would actually listen to him and scrap all the new ships.

Archbishop Brienne cast an approving glance at Joseph. 'This young man knows how to bargain! And he's only just taken office, yet he already knows to support my fiscal reduction plan. Perhaps he really will be a good assistant.'

He cleared his throat, then feigning seriousness, he stated, "Your Highness, although our finances are somewhat strained, we absolutely cannot abandon naval development. Cutting one battleship is the absolute limit."

Monnot also offered his advice. "Our overseas colonies need warships for oversight, otherwise the unruly populace there will stir up trouble every other day."

Finally, Queen Marie concluded decisively, "Joseph, we cannot be too radical with expenditure cuts. Marquis de Castries, for now, we will follow Archbishop Brienne's proposal: cut one battleship and two second-rate ships. However, for the construction of other new vessels, I expect you to review them carefully and eliminate waste."

Castries' new ships had been almost completely wiped out. Feeling as if he'd narrowly escaped disaster, he powerlessly nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty."

He sighed inwardly, 'The Crown Prince is still too young. He doesn't understand the navy's significance to the nation, only concerned with reducing expenditure. I must communicate with him more in the future and change his perspective.'

Archbishop Brienne, having successfully dealt with the most difficult issue of the navy, felt much lighter. He then proceeded to read the next part of the reduction plan: "I'm sure everyone has heard about the situation in Holland. The Patriot Party resisted for less than a month before being utterly routed by the Prussians. Given this, I believe we can discontinue aid to the Dutch Patriot Party, saving the national treasury 250,000 Livres each month."

Joseph frowned slightly, recalling information about the Dutch Patriot Party movement.

This was an uprising initiated by new Dutch capitalists and citizens, aimed at overthrowing William V. With French funding, they had successfully driven Stadtholder William V out of Holland and established the States General.

Later, orchestrated by William V's wife, Prussian Princess Wilhelmina, Prussia intervened militarily. The Patriot Party was defeated, William V was restored to power, and all of France's initial investment had gone to waste.

The cabinet ministers unanimously agreed to abandon the Dutch insurgents. After all, twenty thousand Prussian regular troops had already marched into Holland; the Patriot Party's meager forces were no match. They should cut their losses as soon as possible.

Queen Marie scanned the room. "Are there any other opinions?"

"I believe..." Joseph stood up.

War Minister Saint-Priest had originally intended to make one last effort, having invested considerable resources in Holland. Seeing the Crown Prince speak up, his heart immediately sank. Judging by Joseph's earlier move to scrap all new naval vessels, he likely belonged to the anti-war faction. And since the Queen favored him greatly, aid to the Dutch would surely be lost.

Joseph declared clearly, "Your Majesty, I believe we must not only continue aid to the Patriot Party, but increase our efforts, and even adopt a stance of military intervention against Prussia. We absolutely cannot allow the Patriot Party to collapse!"

"Oh?" The Queen was quite astonished. "Tell me your reasons."

"Firstly, Holland is the estuary of the Rhine River navigation channel. If we can keep it firmly in our grasp, it will create an effective deterrent against Prussia."

"Secondly, Holland is commercially developed. Integrating it into our sphere of influence will allow us to recoup the aid through trade alone."

"Finally, in the future, we are bound to fight a war with Prussia. Holland can tie down a significant portion of Prussian forces in the west."

"But if we allow Prussia to control Holland, all of this will become a boon for Prussia!"

Joseph, in fact, had two additional points he didn't mention.

First, Holland possesses significant coal and iron reserves. The starting gun of the Industrial Revolution has already fired, and whoever holds more coal and iron resources will have a greater advantage in the future.

Second, the Patriot Party is adept at inciting unrest. After being driven out of Holland by Prussia, they would flock to France. Historically, they caused considerable trouble in France during the French Revolution.

No sooner had he finished speaking than the expressions of all the cabinet ministers shifted uncomfortably.

What the Crown Prince said was indeed very logical, but on one hand, he had strongly opposed building warships, yet here he was, supporting aid to the Dutch. Especially that line, 'we are bound to fight a war with Prussia,' could it be that...

They all lowered their heads, trying hard not to consider the worst possible scenario.

Archbishop Brienne was the first to speak. "Your Highness, our financial situation no longer permits giving the Dutch more money."

Joseph replied, "Didn't we just save a sum of money from battleship construction? Let's allocate some to them."

Marquis de Castries, the Minister of the Navy, nearly burst into tears. 'Thank you so much, Your Highness.'

The War Minister, however, wept with joy. 'Thank you ever so much, Your Highness.'

"This..." Archbishop Brienne began to feel fortunate once again that the authority over financial decisions still rested in his hands.

Queen Marie came to his rescue. "Joseph, your reasons are compelling. However, even if we give the Patriot Party more aid, they probably won't be able to withstand the Prussian army."