Empire Rising: Spain

Chapter 134: Chapter 119: The Royal Family’s Industrial Development

Carlo’s current power within the Spanish Government is not substantial, as the administrative, legislative, and military powers of Spain are primarily concentrated within the Government and Parliament.

This has its pros and cons for Carlo as a monarch. The downside is evident. Carlo won’t have much power, nor can he develop Spain as per his own desires.

However, there are also advantages. Firstly, Carlo can remain independent from the Government and Parliament, avoiding being unexpectedly implicated.

Whether it’s a reform or a victorious war, Carlo, as King, can claim some credit. But if a reform or war fails, the main responsibility naturally falls on the Government and Parliament, having little to do with Carlo and the Royal Family.

Even if the Royal Family makes gestures appropriately, those unforeseen events will hardly affect the Royal Family’s status, and the public naturally won’t blame the powerless Royal Family that doesn’t influence the Government.

For monarchs who prefer stability and lack great ambitions, having no power is indeed quite favorable.

But for a highly ambitious monarch like Carlo, such a situation might not be good.

More importantly, the current development of the Spanish Government is somewhat deformed.

During Queen Isabel’s era, although power was concentrated in the Prime Minister’s hands, the King had the power to appoint or dismiss the Prime Minister, greatly limiting his power.

However, in the present Spanish Government, although it seems like the Cabinet Government and Parliament hold dual powers, in reality, Parliament cannot supervise or restrict the Cabinet Government effectively.

The party that gains the majority of seats in Parliament has the power to form the Spanish Cabinet Government, which results in Prime Minister Prim controlling both the entire Cabinet Government and the majority of seats in the Spanish Parliament.

It is no exaggeration to say that the current Spanish Government is entirely controlled by Prime Minister Prim. Any policy decided by the Cabinet Government encounters little opposition in Parliament, and the laws made by Parliament are quickly implemented by the Cabinet Government.

If it weren’t for Minister of Defense Serrano controlling Spain’s military forces, Serrano might achieve the rare feat of holding both military and political power.

This is also why Prime Minister Prim’s reforms have progressed so smoothly so far. The Cabinet Government is composed of Reform Faction members promoted by Prime Minister Prim, and most of them belong to the Progressive Party of which Prim is a member.

Within Parliament, the Progressive Party also holds the majority seats, and the Liberal Party strongly supports the reforms. Although the Conservative Party opposes the reforms, the problem is that they are not in power, and with Carlo’s public support for reforms, there are no obstacles to reform within the Government and Parliament.

However, such a situation is bound to change eventually. Prime Minister Prim is capable and loyal to the Royal Family.

His rise to power was primarily to promote Spain’s reforms. But such a vast amount of power is not fit to be bestowed upon every Spanish Prime Minister.

Carlo is keen to see the reforms succeed, and that’s why he’s allowed Prime Minister Prim to hold such great power.

No successor to Prime Minister Prim can possibly wield such great power, and even after the reforms succeed, Prime Minister Prim will have to relinquish some of his power.

Prime Minister Prim is, of course, aware of his situation, and the saying “achieve great accomplishments at the cost of overshadowing the master” is not just a mere saying. Although Carlo, by publicly supporting the reforms, can gain some credit and public goodwill after reform success, it still pales compared to the immense prestige that Prime Minister Prim will gain for actually driving the reforms.

If a successful reform-driving Prime Minister Prim were to retain significant power, even if Carlo could remain composed, the Royalist Party members would likely not.

However, successful reforms are still quite distant for Spain. Through this honeymoon trip, Carlo has witnessed the changes across various parts of Spain with his own eyes, and although things are generally improving, there’s still a substantial gap compared to other European Powers.

One of the main goals of this trip is the Seville Industrial Base, established by the Spanish Government earlier.

Although the importance of the Seville Industrial Base currently ranks lower than the Barcelona Industrial Base, it remains one of the few medium-to-large industrial bases in Spain to date.

More importantly, the Seville Industrial Base is the first industrial base officially launched and built under Carlo’s reign, and it holds commemorative significance for him.

Of course, besides inspecting the construction and production of the industrial base, another purpose of visiting the Seville Industrial Base is to check on the construction situation of the Royal Family’s steel mill and other factories within the industrial base.

Speaking of the Royal Family’s industries, the initial person in charge was only Steward Loren. But up to now, Steward Loren has several talents under him responsible for managing the Royal Family’s properties, holding various industries and assets, which collectively form the total wealth of the Royal Family.

It would be difficult for Carlo to directly state the total wealth of the Royal Family, as even within just two or three years of arriving in Spain, the development of the Royal Family’s assets can no longer be described as anything less than rapid.

The Royal United Bank alone is enough to place the Spanish Royal Family among the top five wealthiest families in Spain, not to mention having a 45% stake in the National Bank established a year ago.

These two banks have ensured that the development of Royal Family industries is never short of funds and can easily borrow sufficient funds from both banks for development.

The two super large official banks have also directly revamped the banking industry in Spain. While they haven’t directly targeted those smaller banks for suppression, these smaller banks simply cannot withstand the expansion of the two large banks.

Currently, the Royal United Bank has established a total of 26 branches across 15 domestic regions in Spain, with total depositors exceeding 310,000 at the beginning of the year and total savings of over 85 million.

Of course, with the expansion of the banks and the continuous increase in users, the average deposit per user is bound to decrease significantly.

Currently, the average deposit in the Royal Bank is only about 270 pesetas, while the government-calculated average annual income in 1872 has exceeded 107 pesetas, with the average deposit being roughly equivalent to two and a half years of average annual income.

These figures indicate two things: first, Spain’s per capita annual income is continually growing. Policies like agricultural tax reduction and the abolition of tithes are certainly important reasons, and the increase in income for the farmers, who make up the majority of Spain’s population, is truly good news for Spain.

Moreover, with the subsequent construction of industrial bases, national factories, and civilian factories, the number of workers and their income will also rise.

This will also drive the growth of Spain’s per capita income and, at the same time, serve as a booster for Spain’s economic growth.

As long as Spain’s infrastructure and other industrial constructions do not cease, its corresponding per capita annual income and economic growth will similarly not halt.

Though it cannot catch up with the footsteps of other European Powers in the short term, compared to a few years ago, Spain has already significantly improved.

Before the revolution, Spain’s per capita income was less than 87 pesetas, and there was a large low-income population not accounted for in this figure, making the actual situation even lower.

Now, the per capita income has exceeded 107 pesetas, whereas it has only been four years since 1868, but the per capita income has risen by at least 23%.

The growth rate remains relatively slow, primarily driven by the increase in farmers’ incomes in boosting per capita income.

Next, the rise in workers’ incomes is the greater driving force behind the increase in per capita income, and the changes it can bring are even more apparent.

Based on the Spanish Government’s estimation, by around 1875, Spain’s per capita income is expected to rise to at least 145 pesetas. By 1880, it should exceed 160 pesetas, which is roughly double that of 1868.

By around 1880, the various reforms propelled by the Spanish Government are also essentially complete, enabling Spain to proudly claim the title of the foremost nation below the European Powers, in other words, the gatekeeper of the Powers.

Those stronger than Spain naturally have the qualifications to ascend among the Powers. Those weaker than Spain naturally are not worthy of being called a Power.

The good news is that Carlo has already started planning for the African colonies, indicating that Spain will seize the golden opportunity to partition Africa post-reform completion, preventing delays due to slow reform progress.

African colonies are indeed crucial. Not only can the large indigenous population serve as free labor, but the vast resources in the colonies can also be utilized by Spain.

Apart from the larger issue of most Africans being black, the African colonies virtually bring all benefits.

After all, the African indigenous people remain very backward, and most African tribes are unable to resist the colonization of European Powers at all.

Italy’s colonization of the Abyssinian Empire is ultimately an exception, and they did indeed succeed in the end. As for other regions in Africa, those tribes can only helplessly tremble before the European Powers’ guns and cannons.

Carlo’s arrival caused a sensation in the entire Seville Industrial Base. Over one-third of the factories in this industrial base were established by the Royal Family, and naturally, the factories would publicize events related to Carlo.

The workers in the Royal Family’s factories enjoy a more relaxed workload than other factories and receive higher pay, naturally earning these workers’ gratitude towards their actual master, Carlo.

While working hours in other factories generally exceed 14 hours, the working hours in the Royal Family’s factories usually remain around 12 hours, with one fixed day off per month—dreamlike working conditions for other workers outside.

As for Carlo, who provides such a working environment, the workers naturally have no other thoughts but endless gratitude and curiosity towards this young King.