Empire Rising: Spain

Collaborating with the government to colonize the Congo was a decision Carlo made after much consideration.

There were many reasons, primarily that the land in the Congo had attracted the attention of many powerful nations, and relying solely on the strength of the Royal Family made it difficult to fully acquire this territory.

Historically, Belgium indeed picked up the pieces, but at that time, Belgium’s power was not even ranked in Europe, which was why the major powers were at ease.

Spain, however, was different. Spain’s comprehensive strength was more like a gatekeeper of the great powers. Those stronger than Spain were the great powers, and those weaker than Spain were not.

In such a situation, even if the land was taken in the name of the Royal Family, it might face opposition from many powerful countries, with the British being the primary concern.

Furthermore, the Congo was an extremely vast land. At present, the Congo had no distinction between gold and cloth. The expedition led by Menotti explored the entire Congo River Basin, which encompassed a vast area of millions of square kilometers.

The current sparsely populated state was merely due to the lack of understanding of the Congo River Basin by various countries. Historically, the gradual exploration of the Congo River took place during this period.

Relying solely on the strength of the Royal Family, it would be challenging to effectively occupy and establish Spain’s colonial power within a few years. However, if relying on the strength of the Spanish Government, a vast array of colonial outposts could be established within a few years, which could then expand into large-scale colonies.

Of course, collaborating with the government was not that simple. The exploration of the Congo River Basin was funded by the Royal Family, so it was impossible to distribute the interests to the government for free.

Carlo’s bottom line was that the colonies in the Congo River Basin must be established as the domain of the Royal Family, with the Royal Family being the true owner of the territory.

The government could collaborate with the Royal Family to develop the land in the Congo River Basin and exploit its resources, distributing the gains according to the shareholding proportion of various enterprises.

Although the government did not have sovereignty over the Congo Colony, it could still receive a significant portion of the profits, and the government was unlikely to refuse.

At the emergency Cabinet meeting, Carlo entered the meeting room with detailed information on African colonial exploration and drawn maps, handing these documents to Prime Minister Prim, and subsequently explaining the reason for this emergency meeting:

“Ladies and gentlemen, according to the latest reports from the African expedition team, they have successfully explored the inner lands of the Congo River Basin and have identified that upstream on the Congo River, there is at least one vast plain encompassing hundreds of thousands of square kilometers.

The expedition team has established over 22 colonial outposts during this time and made contact with hundreds of local indigenous tribes.

But this is far from enough to establish an official colony. I hope the government can assist the Royal Family in promoting the establishment of the colony. In return, the government can receive half of the profits from the Congo River Basin colony.”

Upon hearing Carlo’s words, even Prime Minister Prim was very surprised. If it weren’t for these documents and drawn maps that did not appear to be counterfeit, Prime Minister Prim would have questioned their authenticity.

Even Prime Minister Prim showed surprise, let alone the other ministers in the Cabinet. Upon learning that the Royal Family had dispatched an expedition team years ago and had achieved great success, the expressions of the Cabinet members varied, but there was a hint of surprise on everyone’s face.

“Your Majesty, is this information true?” Minister of Defense Serrano was the first to lose composure, asking with a smile on his face.

As the once third largest colonial empire, there were naturally many in Spain who maintained a strong enthusiasm for colonization. However, the Americas had already been carved up, and the American Colonies established by Portugal and Spain had mostly achieved independence.

Recently, aside from some gains in the Morocco region, Spain had made no colonial progress elsewhere.

Now, hearing suddenly that Spain had the opportunity to acquire a plain of at least hundreds of thousands of square kilometers, Duke Serrano was naturally very pleased.

As for whether this land belonged to the government or the Royal Family, Duke Serrano was not concerned. After all, regardless of ownership, this land had little to do with him.

Carlo smiled and nodded, saying, “The news from the expedition team is true, and this is certain. In a few days, the expedition team’s officer, Medino, will return to Spain. If you have any questions, you can ask them in detail then.”

Carlo carefully reviewed the maps and specific information reported by the expedition team, finding nothing suspicious.

Although the drawn maps had some discrepancies, they were generally very similar to Carlo’s impression of the Congo River Basin.

Moreover, even without the expedition team’s reports, Carlo was aware of the plains and abundant mineral resource reserves in the Congo River Basin.

Nevertheless, colonizing the Congo required a suitable reason to persuade the government to agree, which was why Carlo had sent an expedition team to explore the Congo River Basin in advance.

When actual action was taken, the original expedition team could also serve as guides and mediators to help the Spanish colonial team better communicate and interact with the local indigenous people.

“Your Majesty, how should the plain discovered in the Congo River be handled?” After reviewing all the information, Prime Minister Prim first handed the documents to Duke Serrano and then asked a question of his own concern.

Since the plains of the Congo River Basin were discovered by the Royal Family’s expedition team, this land was most likely to belong to the Royal Family.