Empire Rising: Spain

Chapter 127: Chapter 114: Military Turmoil

Of course, the diplomatic scheming among the foreign representatives at the banquet was something Carlo could not see. As the main character of this wedding, Carlo had already left in a hurry halfway through the banquet, leaving Duke Prim and Grand Duke Serrano to entertain the foreign guests.

As for Carlo, he naturally went to enjoy a moment of spring romance. The meticulously dressed Grand Duchess Sophie looked even more beautiful and captivating. Now that she had become his wife, Carlo naturally wouldn’t hold back.

For a qualified king, the most important thing is to expand the royal family’s lineage. Other matters, including the development of the country, can be placed second; only the propagation of offspring is the most critical.

Why is that? Because the royal family needs someone to inherit. If the royal line becomes extinct and the throne falls into the hands of others, no matter how great an empire is built, it’s ultimately all in vain.

As the king of Spain, Carlo naturally wouldn’t consider using any contraceptive measures. First, things like sheepskin are uncomfortable to use, and secondly, the royal family is currently in need of more offspring.

After a long night, Carlo didn’t wake up until early the next morning. With the assistance of the maids, he washed and dressed. After instructing the maids to take care of Grand Duchess Sophie, he walked out of the room himself.

Of course, Grand Duchess Sophie now also has another official identity, that of the mistress of the Madrid Royal Palace, Carlo’s Queen.

Basking in the warm sunlight outside the room, Carlo’s mood became extremely pleasant. There’s nothing more comfortable than sleeping in, not to mention having a beautiful and cooperative queen by his side.

“What is the schedule for today?” Carlo turned his gaze to Steward Loren beside him, asking with a smile.

“Prime Minister Prim needs to report on diplomatic issues of the government at 2 p.m. after lunch. In the afternoon, there’s a farewell banquet for foreign guests and nobles. These are the only two things for now.” Upon hearing Carlo’s inquiry, Steward Loren immediately responded.

As the palace steward, Steward Loren is quite busy. Besides managing some of the royal family’s assets, he also needs to interact with officials on Carlo’s behalf to plan Carlo’s schedule.

But generally speaking, there are relatively few things Carlo does in a day, mostly banquets and meetings. Besides that, he occasionally goes out for hunting or sightseeing as leisure activities.

This cannot be blamed on Carlo for being idle all day. The majority of the government affairs are handled solely by Prime Minister Prim. Whether it’s reform or national development, Carlo does not need to worry much.

Currently, the progress of reform and national development is very smooth, and Carlo naturally would not interfere.

For Carlo, the most important thing at present is to infiltrate his influence into the Spanish military. Only by gradually controlling the military power of Spain can he continuously solidify his power and exert influence on the government.

Regarding the diplomatic matters that Prime Minister Prim wants to report, it actually concerns discussions about forming an alliance with Austria-Hungary.

The royal families of the two countries have already intermarried, creating a precondition for the alliance between the two countries. Austria-Hungary is currently in urgent need of several allies to bluff, and apart from the Germans they’ve been in contact with, Spain seems the most hopeful to ally with Austria-Hungary.

“How are the graduates from the Royal Military Academy doing now?” Carlo seemed to recall something and quickly asked.

The first batch of graduates from the Royal Military Academy graduated successfully more than half a year ago, and theoretically, they should have gone to the military and started their real military careers.

However, aside from the few military academy graduates who went to the Guard Army, Carlo was not very aware of the current situation of others.

After all, the busy preparations for the wedding and some government meetings had kept him so occupied that he had forgotten about this matter.

“It’s going relatively smoothly at the moment, Your Majesty,” Steward Loren replied, “Out of more than 400 graduates from the Royal Military Academy, except for a few who went to the Guard Army, the rest have all joined the Royal Army, dispersed among various units.

But because the current Royal Army doesn’t have that many officer positions, many of them are holding positions like deputy platoon leaders temporarily, and it will likely take a long time for them to become recognized officers.”

Upon hearing Steward Loren’s response, Carlo was first stunned, then thought about the current state of the Spanish military, and nodded.

The Spanish military has always been small in size, consistently maintaining around 100,000 troops. If only the troops stationed domestically are counted, the number is just 70,000 to 80,000.

The military ranks of these military academy graduates are mostly at the level of lieutenants, theoretically qualifying them for lower-level officer roles such as platoon leaders or vice company leaders.

But the current Spanish military does not have so many officer vacancies for them to take up positions. Creating some virtual roles like deputy platoon leaders is already a fairly good outcome.

It should be noted that the service term for soldiers during this era is far different from later generations. In later generations, conscripts typically serve for only two years, but soldiers of this era commonly serve for over ten years.

But the problem arises again: the current Spanish Army is still fundamentally that revolutionary force, and the military level of the officers is not that high.

If changes are not made to the current state of the army, Carlo’s deployments at the Royal Military Academy will be rendered ineffective, and the comprehensive combat strength of the Spanish Army will not change in any way.

Ultimately, the Spanish Army also needs a reform. This reform should eliminate soldiers and officers who do not meet general standards, streamline part of the army, and hand over the vacated officer positions to outstanding graduates from formal military academies.

Thinking of this, Carlo nodded and instructed Steward Loren: “It seems this issue still needs to be discussed with Prime Minister Prim.

Let’s move it to lunch time; inform Prime Minister Prim that I am waiting for his arrival at the Royal Palace.”

Time passed quickly, and Prime Minister Prim arrived punctually at the Royal Palace, respectfully waiting in the small dining room where lunch was already prepared.

While enjoying a delicious lunch, Carlo casually brought up the current situation of the military academy graduates and asked Prime Minister Prim’s opinion.

How could Prime Minister Prim not be aware of the situation of these military academy graduates? In fact, appointing these academy graduates to temporary positions like deputy platoon leaders was also suggested by Prime Minister Prim.

There was no choice; they couldn’t have these graduates serve as ordinary soldiers. But if they were to become officers, there weren’t enough officer vacancies, so this was the best solution.

“Your Majesty, what do you mean?” Prime Minister Prim posed his question, waiting for Carlo to express his thoughts.

In fact, Prime Minister Prim also had the idea of reforming the army. However, reforming the army is a serious matter and could even affect the stability of the government.

After all, most of this army had participated in the last revolution, and it was precisely because of the support from these people within the army that Prim and Serrano could become the two main pillars of the Spanish Government.

If they rashly acted on the army, it might lose the support of these soldiers, causing Prim’s biggest reliance for pushing reform to vanish into thin air.

But the issue with the army is apparent now, and ignoring it does not align with Prime Minister Prim’s style.

Firstly, there is the problem of the low level of officers within the army, which greatly affects the combat strength of the Spanish Army. Such an army, composed of revolutionary forces and the Kingdom Government forces that surrendered to the revolutionary army, is too chaotic in both structure and internal forces.

“Prime Minister Prim, I think we must push for a reform to enhance the combat ability of the Spanish Army.” The combat power of the army is extremely important, and Spain’s strength also depends on the army’s strength.

Therefore, for Carlo, army reform is a must and the sooner it happens, the better.

Upon hearing Carlo’s words, Prime Minister Prim did not rush to express his stance, displaying a thoughtful expression on his face.

Although reform is indeed crucial, they must consider the pros and cons. If they push for army reform, the biggest beneficiary would be Carlo.

After all, Carlo controls the Madrid Military Academy and the Saragossa Military Academy. Just the fact that there are over 400 military academy graduates each year ensures that Carlo could dominate most of the lower-level officers in the Spanish Army.

If these lower-level officers are allowed to climb step by step, perhaps in ten years, the middle and lower levels of the army would all be under Carlo’s control.

And for an army, the most important part is actually these middle and lower-level officers. Orders from high-level officers must also be executed by the mid-level units, and the combat power of the army is determined by these lower-level units.

That is also a consideration for Prime Minister Prim. If he pushes for reform, it will undoubtedly accelerate Carlo’s control.

Although Prime Minister Prim does not entirely mind this, would doing so affect Spain’s reforms? And the potential issues after military reform also made Prime Minister Prim contemplate deeply.

Carlo naturally understood what Prime Minister Prim was hesitating about. To Prime Minister Prim, reforming the army at this moment is akin to performing surgery on himself.

If the surgery succeeds, recuperating would not affect much. But if the surgery fails, it could lead to infection and inflammation at best, or be fatal at worst.

“Prime Minister Prim, our army’s combat strength is already lagging far behind the first-class countries in Europe, such as Germany, France, and Austria. If our goal is to compete with these nations, I think this military reform is very necessary.

Only with comprehensive reform can Spain hope to restore the glory of the Sun Never Sets Empire. And as the promoter of reform, you are destined to be remembered in Spanish history, becoming a hero for all Spaniards.” Carlo reiterated his support for reform and hinted that he would portray Prime Minister Prim as a hero in advancing Spain’s reform, attempting to gain his support for the army’s reform.