Chapter 310: Talleyrand's Art
Thus, Talleyrand's agents either directly contacted Austrian high-ranking officials or spread rumors, making the news of an "Austrian-French Coalition to retake Silesia" widely circulated.
No one would bother to fault the French for "stirring the pot," because reclaiming Silesia and washing away decades of humiliation was the current political imperative for all Austrians.
Anyone who dared to say the French were wrong could expect to be beaten by the Austrians beside them.
Schönbrunn Palace.
Joseph II's bedroom.
As His Imperial Majesty's health had steadily declined, privy council meetings had been held there for the past year.
The central topic of this meeting was, naturally, the war with Prussia, so apart from a dozen or so high-ranking ministers, almost all military high command were present.
"Crown Prince" Leopold II first briefly explained the situation to everyone, then turned and bowed to Joseph II, saying, "Your Majesty, that is the general gist. The French proposal is for the Coalition Forces to advance directly on Silesia, forcing the Prussians to withdraw from the Southern Netherlands."
Joseph II, sitting on his bed, forced himself to appear energetic as he surveyed the officers and ministers in the room. "What are your thoughts on this matter?"
Joseph II looked at the old marshal, whose health was not much better than his own, and quickly gestured for him not to get too agitated, then soothed him, "Your experience and courage are precious assets to Austria. Let the younger generation handle matters on the front lines."
Marshal Lacy and several other high-ranking officers immediately stepped forward. Not only had they been in contact with French diplomatic personnel recently, but they had also coordinated among themselves multiple times, having already reached a consensus on sending troops to Silesia.
"Your Majesty, with France as a strong ally this time, it's a great opportunity for us to reclaim Silesia!"
"Your Majesty, I also believe there's a strong chance of victory in this battle!"
"Your Majesty, Prussia's attention is currently focused on the Southern Netherlands. We must deploy troops quickly to take them by surprise..."
"I also advocate for a swift deployment of troops..."
Count Kaunitz, the Minister of State and a leading figure among Austria's pro-French faction, stepped forward excitedly. "Your Majesty, if Austria and France unite closely this time, perhaps we can do more than just reclaim Silesia. We could leverage this momentum to defeat Saxony and even advance on Brunswick!
"If we achieve this, Your Majesty's prestige will shake all of Germany, and the re-establishment of the Holy Roman Empire's glory will be within reach!"
As soon as he spoke, everyone present, regardless of their private thoughts, immediately echoed his cry: "Restore the glory of the Holy Roman Empire!"
However, as the cheers gradually faded, Count Volatair, the Minister of the Interior, suddenly frowned. "I suspect the French want more than just their claims over Piedmont. After all, they will be drawn into a very brutal war, and such a small gain seems too meager. They must have other intentions..."
'If Joseph had heard his words, he would have surely praised him with, 'You are absolutely right.' But the brutality would be yours, Austria and Prussia. My France is so far away; how much I get involved depends entirely on my mood. And with public opinion in Vienna already strongly in favor of attacking Silesia, who would care what the French were thinking?'
Kaunitz immediately smiled and looked at the Minister of the Interior. "Count Volatair, you probably don't realize how much importance France places on trade agreements.
"I frequently visit Paris and am well acquainted with the situation there. The French government has converted a large amount of banking debt into an 'Industrial Development Fund,' potentially amounting to hundreds of millions of florins.
"This means that for the next few decades, France must ensure robust product sales for the fund to be profitable, which in turn safeguards the French treasury from collapse.
"To do this, they must expand their markets, and lacking colonies, they can only try to sell their goods to the Rhine River region. This is where they need our help to enter the South German market."'
Immediately, two ministers expressed agreement with Kaunitz's statement and provided further elaboration.
In reality, these two were "his people" whom Talleyrand had cultivated. More than half a month prior, he had channeled benefits to them through his subordinates, spending over a hundred thousand livres in total.
Joseph knew that Archbishop Talleyrand was a master of bribery, and though the XYZ Affair had gone awry historically, that was entirely due to the Americans being uncooperative. Thus, he entrusted this crucial task to him [Note 1].
Of course, agents from the Intelligence Bureau were also secretly keeping an eye on Talleyrand at all times, to ensure that these funds were indeed spent where needed.
It turned out that the "lame one's" bribery skills, including his ability to select suitable targets, were completely reliable. The two Austrian high officials who had accepted the money began to advocate for France according to the French "script."
"Count Volatair, in fact, France's stance on weakening Prussia is very much aligned with ours. Prussia is Britain's representative of interests on the European continent, and you must have heard about what the British did to France in North Africa."
"Furthermore, France and Prussia are in fierce competition regarding influence over the Netherlands. Especially this time, the Dutch disregarded France's position entirely during the Brabant rebellion and sided with the Prussians, which greatly infuriated the French..."
As the two passionately laid out the stakes, the skeptics, including Count Volatair, finally fell silent.
Joseph II, however, remained remarkably calm. He turned to Leopold II and murmured, "Do you believe sacrificing our interests in western Italy is worth it?"
As the Grand Duke of Tuscany, the latter was most familiar with the situation in Italy. If France's claims over Piedmont were recognized, then Austria's territories in Lombardy and Tuscany would directly confront France, and even Venice might not be safe.
He replied without hesitation, "Your Majesty, if it secures Silesia, it is an acceptable trade-off.
"After all, if the French become too overbearing in Italy, we can always bring in British forces to act as a deterrent."'
Joseph II remained silent for a long time again, then once more surveyed the resolute ministers before him, finally nodding gravely. "Very well, let us proceed to discuss troop deployments and the specific battle plans."
[Note 1] The XYZ Affair: In the late 18th century, to make money, the Americans resumed diplomatic relations with the British and expressed opposition to the French Revolution. France then decided to retaliate against the Americans, extensively seizing and plundering American merchant ships, causing severe losses for the United States.
At that time, US President Adams dispatched a delegation to France to negotiate, hoping to appease France's anger. Talleyrand, then the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, took the opportunity to instruct three of his subordinates to demand enormous bribes from the Americans. Outraged, the Americans declared war on France.
The names of the three men who initially solicited the bribes were referred to as X, Y, and Z in diplomatic documents, which is how the incident got its name.
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