Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

Historically, after the Modena Duchy was left without a successor, Austria immediately sent Franz II’s cousin, Francesco, to Modena to succeed as the Duke.

This Francesco’s mother is the daughter of Ercole III, the current Duke of Modena, who married Ferdinand Karl, the brother of Leopold II.

Austria relied on this bit of bloodline to bring Modena into the Habsburg era.

This operation actually violated the “Salic Law”—a set of inheritance laws that stipulate that daughters have no rights to inherit.

However, due to the absence of other claimants to the throne, Francesco IV ultimately became the new Duke of Modena.

And now, Joseph aims to establish a powerful contender for the throne in Modena!

Once Ercole III dies, his French wife will naturally control the political situation in Modena.

Francesco, who had scarcely set foot in Modena before, will certainly be unable to compete against her.

Afterwards, whether the nobles collectively elect a new Duke or directly implement a parliamentary system in Modena, either situation is acceptable to France, as long as it doesn’t fall into the hands of the Habsburg family.

It is even possible that Modena, as a whole, will unanimously demand to join France.

Of course, whether France would accept this enclave would depend on the international situation at that time and France’s own national strength.

The Modena Foreign Minister bowed without hesitation and said, “It is an unparalleled honor for Modena to be able to join in marriage with the great France!

“I will report this matter to His Majesty immediately. I believe His Majesty will be very delighted.”

As he said this, he glanced at Ludovico who was dancing with Princess Therese, feeling relieved. Isn’t this just about gaining a vast territory through marriage? Modena can do it too!

Yes, Bologna is even larger than Ferrara, almost doubling the territory of Modena.

Seeing that both Parma and Modena have returned with great achievements, and that the Ferrara area has also been distributed, Giuseppe, the President of Milan, hurried forward to bow and salute:

“Crown Prince, your loyal Milan…”

Indeed, in last week’s concluded Milan Congress elections, Giuseppe, who had France’s endorsement and was in Paris at the time, was elected as the first President of the Milan Republic with high votes. Hence, the Lombardy region formally bid farewell to Austria. Even if, in the future, the Austrians were exceptionally militaristic and managed to reoccupy Lombardy, they would face endless uprisings from the Milan people.

Joseph interrupted his complaints with a smile, “After the Mantua campaign ends, Lake Garda will become the inland lake of the Milan Republic, as well as all the areas west of the Adige River.”

Giuseppe was stunned, immediately showing a pained expression: “Your Highness, but those are provinces of Venice…”

Joseph shook his head, “Venice was originally just a few port cities, with an area not even as large as Genoa’s.

“The majority of their territory now was usurped from the Verona Duchy through unscrupulous means.

“And when the Holy See handed Verona over to Venice, it clearly lacked legal justification.”

Joseph, in recent times, had done extensive homework for the political situation in Northern Italy. And he found that the interests of various families in this area intertwined intricately, providing many angles for maneuvering.

For instance, the Verona Duchy served as the backdrop for the story of “Romeo and Juliet,” stretching back to the Roman Era. Over two hundred years ago, the Venetians used the large amounts of gold coins at their disposal to economically infiltrate this country, and finally seized Verona through bribing the Holy See.

He continued, “In reality, the Visconti Duke is the legitimate ruler of Verona.”

The Visconti he spoke of was a historical ruler of the Duchy of Milan, who had contested with Venice for Verona and once occupied it, but was ultimately forced to withdraw due to intervention by the Holy See.

In fact, Verona originally belonged to the Scaliger family, with both Milan and Venice being intruders.

However, what’s known as historical basis works this way—whatever benefits France will be claimed as such.

Giuseppe, though thrilled by the Crown Prince’s proposal, still expressed his difficulty: “Your Highness, but our country has no capability to reclaim its homeland…”

Joseph firmly patted his shoulder and said solemnly:

“You see, General Napoleon leads tens of thousands of French soldiers fighting valiantly in Mantua, intended to clear the path north to Venice.”

Giuseppe was immediately overjoyed.

Venice might be a formidable opponent to Milan, but it’s nothing significant in the face of the French Army.

As long as France continues with northern ambitions, Milan merely needs to tag along to gain the vast territories promised by the Crown Prince.

This might be Milan’s only opportunity for territorial expansion!

He hastily bowed and said, “Thank the great France for standing with justice for our country.

“Our military strength is weak, but we can contribute to logistics and supplies!”

He gritted his teeth and said, “I assure you, half of General Napoleon’s logistical consumption in Mantua will be supplied by the Milan Council!”

Napoleon currently commands an army of over 60,000 men and is engaged in intense conflict, resulting in significant consumption.

Even for Milan, the wealthiest place in Northern Italy, it will require full effort to support half of such a large logistical supply.

Joseph nodded in satisfaction.

Venice, though a republic, is a directly administered territory of Austria, providing Austria with substantial tax revenue.

Therefore, attacking Venice is a crucial step in defeating Austria.

Also, it’s essential to pass through Venice to head from Northern Italy to Austria.

The collaboration with Milan and France now will significantly reduce France’s military expenditure.

Moreover, Sardinia was already enlisted before this.

In the future, Parma and Modena would certainly join the war—the sizeable piece of cake that is Venice, who doesn’t want a share?

This is the correct way to utilize the Northern Italian states.

Compared to England, Prussia, and Austria’s Allied Forces, the Mediterranean Security Organization is evidently far more effective.

Firstly, the Security Organization has a clear core—France. Unity of command, with no shirking of responsibilities. The French Army is responsible for the main attack, while other countries engage in auxiliary roles and provide logistics.

Meanwhile, the Anti-French Alliance fights individually, with internal conflicts arising easily, leading to being breached separately.

Moreover, the Security Organization members have extremely consistent interests.

The states in Northern Italy are eager to fight alongside France, refusing their participation would cause dissatisfaction.

Looking at the Anti-French Alliance, Prussia has already withdrawn from the war, and Austria’s losses in Italy find no sympathetic ally to support them.

Before the ball ended, Giuseppe began drafting orders for fundraising by the Milan Council in the lounge of the hall and then instructed his attendants to send them back home overnight through the Sharp Signal Tower.

Indeed, the Sharp Signal Tower is on standby 24/7. Also, since the lights are more visible at night, the efficiency of information transmission is higher.

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