Chapter 311: A Historic Trade Agreement
As for the military plan, Marshal Lacy and other high-ranking military officials had long since discussed it, and now presented it directly.
Austria would conscript 80,000 troops nationwide—a force at its limit due to the reforms of Joseph II—to be led by Marshal Lacy and secretly deployed to Silesia.
Meanwhile, only 5,000 troops would remain in the Luxembourg region to keep an eye on the Brabant rebels, while the main force, led by General Wurmser, would return to Austria, and after a brief rest, also deploy to Silesia.
On Bavaria's side, efforts would be made to persuade Karl Theodor to dispatch between 10,000 and 20,000 troops, with the Southern Netherlands territory exchange naturally serving as the bargaining chip.
France, in turn, would need to commit over 50,000 troops.
With the potential troop contributions from the South German states, the Austrian Coalition Forces could potentially amass 150,000 to 170,000 soldiers in Silesia.
Currently, Prussia could conscript no more than 120,000 troops, and Saxony was almost certain to join the war, fielding around 30,000.
This meant that the Austrian Coalition Forces would possess a distinct advantage in overall troop numbers.
Furthermore, neither the Austrian nor the French armies would be inferior to Prussia in combat strength, and both would be far superior to Saxony.
If France could deploy even more troops, they might even overwhelm Prussia entirely.
The imperial conference at Schönbrunn Palace finally concluded for the day as dusk descended.
Of course, Leopold II had long since taken over as the meeting's chairman. After confirming the deployment to Silesia, His Imperial Majesty had retired to another room to rest.
After the meeting dispersed, Leopold II appeared preoccupied. He knew there was one crucial factor remaining for the Silesian campaign: Russia's stance.
Russia and Prussia shared highly aligned interests in Poland, and if the Prussian war effort faltered, Catherine II was very likely to intervene militarily.
Although Russia was still at war with Sweden, with its formidable military strength, merely detaching a few corps could significantly alter the course of the war.
So, how could Russia be kept out of it?
Leopold II rubbed his temples, suddenly recalling the significant common interests France and Russia recently shared in dealing with the Ottomans and in Mediterranean trade. He mused aloud, 'It seems I'll need my dear sister to intercede on my behalf. But what could I offer in return...'
Bavaria.
Munich Palace.
The Scene of the Seine-Rhine Trade Agreement Negotiations.
"Regarding tariffs on wood products, I still hope to raise them further," Count Wintzingerode of Württemberg said, looking at Bailly. "At least 45% should be acceptable..."
Baron Thugut, Austria's Foreign Minister, shook his head, interrupting him. "You constantly get bogged down in these trivial matters.
"If we continue to delay like this, we likely won't reach a trade agreement by year-end.
"And that would mean a loss of nearly six months of trade revenue for all our nations.
"I believe you should focus on the overall direction. We shouldn't all be delayed because of one party."
Count Wintzingerode looked at him, somewhat puzzled. Since the week before last, the Austrian representative had been persistently urging for an agreement.
As a major power with significant influence over South Germany, Austria's stance was something the smaller South German states absolutely could not ignore.
Baden's representative chimed in, "Baron Thugut is absolutely right; we are also awaiting the agreement's implementation.
"Merchants within Baden, upon hearing news of the trade negotiations, have piled their goods at the docks, just waiting to ship them to France and Austria for sale.
"If we drag our feet for too long here, they'll likely go mad with impatience."
Augsburg's representative nodded in agreement, "I believe the current terms are entirely acceptable. Furthermore, the draft states that detailed clauses will be renegotiated every three years in the future.
"Many matters can be carefully examined then."
Unsurprisingly, both men were also 'results' of Talleyrand's bribery, secured with minimal expense—each receiving just 30,000 livres to be completely 'won over.'
Of course, the agreement's terms genuinely presented no disadvantages for Baden and Augsburg, so they were happy to take the money—simply for expediting the signing, with virtually no risk to themselves.
As for Bavaria, they received the most favorable terms in the agreement, and with Grand Duke Karl Theodor still dreaming of 'relocating' to the Southern Netherlands, they were quite amenable to Austria's opinions.
Thus, the negotiation scene saw France, Austria, Bavaria, and two smaller states firmly pushing for the agreement's signing, while Württemberg and Hesse remained somewhat hesitant.
However, after Hesse was secretly threatened by Austria with exclusion from a premature signing of the agreement by the other nations, Hesse quickly compromised—the vast market of South Germany combined with France and Austria meant that missing out could lead to significant trade losses and a rapid decline in national power.
The smaller states merely wished to secure more benefits, but absolutely did not want to become 'outsiders.'
Under Austria's forceful mediation, a preliminary agreement was reached by all parties after just over half a month of trade negotiations. And Count Wintzingerode, finding himself isolated and having secured a French promise to import at least 800,000 piques of coal annually at market price, finally relented.
A pique was a standard-sized basket, with one pique of coal weighing roughly 20 kilograms. 800,000 piques amounted to 16,000 metric tons. While a negligible figure in later eras, in the 18th century, when coal was primarily used for heating, this quantity nearly equaled the total annual output of all Württemberg's coal mines.
For Württemberg, this was an absolutely massive order.
On July 1, 1789, the "Seine-Rhine Trade Agreement," poised to significantly impact the European trade landscape, was officially signed. The signatory nations included France, Austria, Bavaria, Salzburg, Württemberg, Augsburg, Hesse-Darmstadt, and Baden.
Signed alongside the agreement were supplementary clauses: shipping vessels from signatory nations within the Seine and Rhine river basins could directly enter other countries. While they could not dock themselves and had to hire local labor for unloading, this represented an enormous convenience for fostering free trade.
...
Paris.
Versailles Palace.
Queen Marie laid down the war plan jointly submitted by Archbishop Brienne and Duke Broglie, the Minister of War, looking at them with some surprise. "Are you certain France should participate in the war in the German region? Does this truly serve France's interests?"
The two cabinet ministers nodded in unison.
Naturally, this was at the Crown Prince's behest, and they had simply drafted the document as requested to present to Her Majesty the Queen.
Queen Marie then cautiously inquired, "So, is France truly prepared for war?"
Archbishop Brienne and Duke Broglie were not entirely clear on the specifics, but they nodded firmly. "Yes, Your Majesty. The battlefield is distant from France, and the stakes are substantial enough. We merely need to send some troops to Silesia. There's even no need to worry about victory or defeat."
Only Talleyrand, standing to the side and fully privy to the inside information, hunched his shoulders, muttering to himself, 'She's still worrying about preparations... The Crown Prince and the Austrians settled everything long ago; the Austrian army might already be fully mobilized.'
Comments