Empire Rising: Spain

Chapter 33: Chapter 32: Carlos Faction Rebellion

The rebellion incited by the capitalists ended rather anticlimactically.

Although the entire process seemed unexpected, upon reflection it feels quite inevitable.

Such events even occur frequently in later times. A protest seemingly composed entirely of workers might not necessarily have been initiated voluntarily by them; it could have been the factory owners banding together to oppress, brainwash, and threaten the workers.

Capitalists are a minority group in any country and can only rely on the majority groups like workers and farmers to achieve their goals.

But in present-day Spain, it’s not so easy for capitalists to incite large numbers of workers and farmers.

Farmers are the staunchest supporters of autocracy and monarchy, anywhere, because farmers have low needs; as long as they are fed and not hungry, they’ll be satisfied with their current life.

Spain’s reduction in agricultural taxes is the best strategy for winning over farmers. Farmers naturally inclined towards supporting monarchy are certainly willing to follow Carlo and the Spanish Government’s commands.

Compared to farmers, the makeup of factory workers is much more complex. Worker protests are a key method for capitalists to achieve their objectives, and naturally, capitalists won’t miss the chance to oppress and brainwash workers.

This is why a considerable portion of the rebel forces were workers; not everyone can see clearly the domestic situation, nor can everyone ignore the capitalist’s sugar-coated bullets and intimidation tactics.

However, this scale of protest and rebellion poses no threat to Carlo or the Spanish Government. For Carlo, the biggest threat within Spain isn’t the uninfluential capitalists, but rather the independence forces of Catalonia and the Basque, and the Carlos Faction that received support from Catalonia independence activists.

Though the protest and rebellion were easily quelled, the military under the Spanish Government’s control remains stationed around Madrid, awaiting news from Catalonia and the Basque Region.

For Carlo, he actually hopes the Carlos Faction and those regional independence groups will seize this chance to cause some ruckus.

Only if they step forward actively does Carlo have the opportunity to resolve them once and for all.

Otherwise, if these opposition factions continue to develop silently in Catalonia and the Basque Region, it will only intensify the sense of division between the two regions and Spain.

This is why, in later times, both Catalonia and the Basque Region have constantly sought independence.

The Catalonia parliament even held an independence referendum and, based on the voting results, declared independence from Spain. If not for the Spanish Government asserting that Catalonia’s regional referendum violated the constitution and suppressing it strongly, perhaps the world map would have gained another country.

The Basque Region isn’t far behind. Although it didn’t escalate to the point of directly announcing independence through a referendum, its independence fervor is even more aggressive than Catalonia’s.

After the death of Spain’s dictator Franco, a terrorist organization named ETA emerged in the Basque Region, even attempting multiple assassinations against the King of Spain.

If this issue of the two regions seeking independence can’t be resolved once and for all, Spain is destined never to be stable, and more opposition parties will emerge to challenge the Spanish Government by supporting Catalonia and Basque independence.

Fortunately, at this time, the populations of Catalonia and the Basque are not yet large enough to threaten Spain.

Spain’s population is approximately 16.6 million, with the primary ethnic group, Spaniards, making up the majority. The population of Catalonia is only around 1.3 million, and the Basque Region’s population is barely over 300,000.

Together, the two regions total only 1.6 million people, less than a tenth of Spain’s total population, which is why Carlo is confident in resolving the independence issue once and for all.

The Carlos Faction ultimately did not disappoint Carlo.

On January 25, 1870, the self-proclaimed brilliant “Carlos VII” decided to take action while the Madrid government was still in chaos.

The Carlos Faction published numerous articles in Barcelona’s newspapers, claiming that Carlos VII is the legitimate King of Spain and that the current government’s policies would severely undermine Barcelona’s economy, setting it back at least 20 years.

The Carlos Faction exaggerated the impacts of labor laws on factories and enterprises in the Catalonia Region, even suggesting that it would cause Spain to lose all its industries and factories, leaving all workers in the Catalonia Region unemployed.

Under the influence of widespread news, many Catalans took it as true and expressed their willingness to join Carlos VII’s legitimate government, resisting the rule of the Spanish Government.

After organizing an army of tens of thousands in just a few days, Carlos VII publicly gave a speech in Barcelona, declaring his intention to oust King Carlo and resume the Bourbon Dynasty’s rule.

Amidst the chaos, a new Carlist War officially erupted.

Although the participants have shifted from Queen Isabel to Carlo, the Carlos Faction’s aim remains the same—to place their ruler Carlos VII on Spain’s throne.

Hearing the news of war breaking out, Carlo in Madrid actually exhaled a sigh of relief.

Upon hearing that the Catalonia Region had organized an army of tens of thousands, Carlo didn’t panic in the slightest; instead, he held even greater disdain for the so-called Carlos VII.

Why was that?

Though the Catalonia independence issue has consistently been one of Spain’s most vexing problems, at least for now, the majority of Catalans still hold Spain in high regard.

Moreover, importantly, the current Prime Minister Prim is Catalan; the last revolution was ignited by Prime Minister Prim in the Catalonia Region.

There are many Catalan soldiers in the current Spanish Army; given this, the ability of Carlos VII to organize an army of tens of thousands seems highly improbable.

Considering Catalonia as one of Spain’s economically and industrially most developed regions, housing a large number of workers.

Perhaps the Carlos Faction and Catalonia independents recruited those brainwashed and threatened workers to establish this so-called army of tens of thousands.

Carlo’s amusement stems precisely from this. The Carlos Faction repeatedly claimed that Prim’s reforms had cost Catalonia’s workers their jobs, but isn’t their current action also costing these workers their jobs?

Excluding these workers, the Carlos Faction’s army numbers at most slightly over 10,000. Expecting an army of just 10,000 to storm Madrid—are they mistaking Carlo for Queen Isabel from two years ago?