Empire Rising: Spain

Chapter 165: Chapter 137: The Morocco Agreement (2-in-1)_3

Why are countries like the United Kingdom, France, and Germany so powerful? In addition to their immense industries and economies, their population of tens of millions is also a major factor in their strength.

In the current ranking of European countries’ populations, apart from the unique case of Russia, the most populous is Germany, with nearly 42 million people.

France and Austria-Hungary both have populations over 36 million, placing them as the closest to Germany in terms of population.

The reason Germany’s population is so large is because Germany integrated most of the German Region. Bavaria, the largest state in Southern Germany, was once a medium-sized country and is now part of the German Empire, demonstrating how vast this integrated empire has become.

Excluding the overly populated Russia, Germany stands alone in the first tier in terms of population, France and Austria-Hungary are in the second tier, followed by the United Kingdom and Italy in the third tier.

However, because the United Kingdom spearheaded the First Industrial Revolution, it leads in industry and economy compared to other countries.

But from the above data, you can also see the problem for the British. The British mainland, in terms of land area and population, falls short compared to other countries.

The advantage gained from the First Industrial Revolution is constantly being chased by other countries, with the impact of the Second Industrial Revolution becoming increasingly formidable.

The reason the British Empire is so powerful is because they maintain a navy large enough to crush other countries.

But the powerful Royal Fleet is supported by the Sun Never Sets Empire’s entire colonial system, which would collapse at the moment the colonial system does, and all the British Empire’s glory would instantly vanish.

This is also why Morocco is so important to Spain. Morocco and Spain are separated by only a strait which can essentially be localized.

Once Morocco is localized, Spain would become a country spanning the Euro-African continent, with a total land area exceeding 770,000 square kilometers.

If the Western Sahara Region in southern Morocco is included, the land area could even exceed 960,000 square kilometers, not far from a million square kilometers.

Although Morocco’s land environment is also not very good, it can accommodate tens of millions of people. The combined population capacity of Spain and Morocco will approach 100 million people, which is the biggest hope for Spain’s future revival.

Before technology can fully replace human labor, population is the most important factor for a country. Although a country’s strength cannot be entirely represented by population, countries with more people definitely have more development potential.

Of course, if one must mention it, Spain also has another target for annexation, which is its Iberian neighbor, Portugal.

Portugal’s land area exceeds 90,000 square kilometers, and being on the Iberian Peninsula, it is the best target for Spanish expansion.

However, the Portuguese have better relations with the British, and the British would not agree to Spain annexing Morocco, let alone Portugal.

Although both Iberian Peninsula countries, Portugal is located in the southwestern corner of Iberia, with a much better land environment than Spain.

If one has an Iberian terrain map, it is apparent that the most fertile lands on the Iberian Peninsula are distributed around the peninsula, with the densest area being the southwestern corner where Portugal is located.

It can be said that the most fertile lands in Iberia are in Portugal, while most of Spain’s land is desert and mountainous, with soil fertility far inferior to Portugal’s land.

Portugal’s land area is only 92,000 square kilometers, but the food production from this 92,000 square kilometers exceeds that of Spain’s 200,000 square kilometers.

Of course, this is compared with the less fertile land areas. If you only compare the plains with more fertile land, the difference is not significant.

However, the 500,000 square kilometer area of Spain’s plains is still less than Portugal’s, clearly highlighting the geographical differences between Portugal and Spain.

But Portugal’s land is not without flaws. Due to facing directly toward the Atlantic Ocean and being in the westerlies, Portugal experiences strong winds and small diurnal temperature differences, which is not suitable for crop growth.

Additionally, due to soil salinization, Portugal’s food production in later years is less than one-twentieth of Spain’s, despite having more plains than Spain.

However, if Portugal is taken, the Iberian Peninsula will form an integrated whole. If Gibraltar is also taken, connecting the Iberian Peninsula with Morocco in northwestern Africa, Spain will have the potential to become a top-tier power and the dominant force in the western Mediterranean.

The integrated Iberian Peninsula is absolutely easy to defend and hard to attack. The only northern area connected to the European Continent is blocked by the Pyrenees Mountains, with only two gaps on the east and west being easily passable.

Spain only needs to build military fortresses at these two gaps to easily fend off armies from the direction of northern France.

But accomplishing this strategic goal is very difficult. Morocco and Portugal are under British protection, making it difficult for Spain to annex these two countries.

Gibraltar has already become British land, and taking Gibraltar would mean a friendship war with the British.

But it is precisely because such a goal is difficult that it piques Carlo’s interest. If achieved, Carlo would become the greatest monarch in Spanish history, bringing this long-declined Sun Never Sets Empire back to glory.

Even without annexing Portugal, simply reclaiming Gibraltar and colonizing Morocco would greatly enhance the Spanish public’s goodwill, making Carlo a candidate for the greatest monarch in the hearts of the Spanish people.

President Thiers departed Madrid at a farewell ceremony organized by Prime Minister Prim, heading back to Paris.

He left with a smile, clearly having achieved the purpose of his visit.

Prime Minister Prim also wore a smile. The talks with President Thiers only benefited Spain.

The financial loans and aid in industry and other areas provided by the French can effectively help build Spain’s industry and economy.

The loan amount is more than Spain’s total fiscal income for the entire previous year, and the effect of investing all these funds into Spain’s development is naturally evident.

One cannot help but admire the economic prowess of the French. Being known as a high-interest empire in later years proves the strength of the French economic power in this era.

Needless to say, if the Spanish government were to scrape together 500 million francs, they would indeed have to sell everything.

Even if it takes five years to gather this amount, it would pose a huge threat to Spain’s finances.

This also allows Prime Minister Prim and Carlo to see the benefits of working with the French; at least the French are genuinely wealthy and can truly provide financial assistance to Spain.

Of course, the French are not doing charity work either. Eventually, they will receive 100 million francs in interest from this funding, and with the minimal fluctuation in currency exchange rates among countries, French private capital entities are essentially guaranteed to profit.

While the earnings might be small, such interstate lending rarely leads to bad debts. After all, countries capable of lending are powerful, and having bad debts would not only offend the private capital of the lending country but also the lending nation itself.

Therefore, unless in a truly desperate situation, these international state loans are relatively stable.