Empire Rising: Spain

From the moment Carlo assembled people to discuss the modification of the Spanish flag until the Spanish House of Representatives voted to pass the flag modification proposal, the entire process actually took less than 40 days.

The process of modifying the flag was quite smooth, after all, there were not many changes to the flag itself.

The newly modified flag received unanimous praise in the parliament. After all, the new flag reflects the five important regions that make up Spain—Castile, Leon, Navarre, Aragon, and Granada—in the coat of arms, while also highlighting the rule of the Spanish Royal Family, the Savoy Family.

For the officials, the difference between the new flag and the original flag was only in the coat of arms. Since the flag was not greatly different, naturally there was no need to risk offending the King by vetoing such a proposal.

After all, the proposal to amend the flag was put forth by a member of the Conservative Party, and the Conservative Party would naturally not amend the flag for no reason, which also implies that the instigator behind it was likely Carlo.

The first new Spanish flag was unveiled on October 15, 1875. It was from this day that the Spanish government, parliament, and Royal Palace all replaced their Spanish flags with the new flag, and announced the change of the flag to all of Spain through government announcements and the press.

Since the new flag differed from the old one only in the coat of arms, Spaniards quickly accepted the new flag, and there were not many opposing opinions.

Moreover, due to the addition of elements from regions like Granada, Aragon, and Navarre, it was welcomed by the people from these areas.

When the new flag was being introduced, the government announcements and news reports clearly indicated the meanings represented by the different parts of the new flag’s coat of arms.

What made Spaniards delighted was that the Spanish government emphasized its authority over the two sides of the Gibraltar Strait through the two Hercules Pillars on the coat of arms, an act that was strongly supported by the Spaniards.

As a former Sun Never Sets Empire, the Spanish people have a strong sense of pride and identity with Spain, and the Spaniards are willing to fight for their country.

The past weakness of Spain was not much related to the ordinary people, but more due to the chaos of the high levels of government and the selfishness of the Royal Family.

Just as the famous philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset wrote in 1921: “From the Monarch to the Church, the rulers of Spain have always been selfish. Whether it be the Monarch of this country or the Church here, when has their heart truly beat for Spain? As far as we know, never. Their actions have been contrary. To ensure their private interests, they schemed and pretended that such goals were beneficial to the nation.”

Under Carlo’s rule, the Spaniards once again demonstrated their patriotic side. Carlo didn’t even need to rely on advantageous propaganda, as Spaniards would instinctively support any government action.

Even when the government previously announced military expansion, a large number of Spaniards enthusiastically signed up. Although part of this was due to the relatively high income of soldiers, if one truly did not wish to enlist, who would change their mind for only a slightly higher income?

Beautiful things are often only fleeting.

Just a few days after the replacement of the Spanish flag, bad news came from France to the north. Former Queen Isabella II of Spain publicly declared that her son Alfonso was the rightful heir to the Spanish throne and the true King of Spain, and that Carlo of the Savoy was an usurper.

If it were just the lone howling of a dethroned queen, it would be one thing, but according to the intelligence from the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau, a small portion of the Spanish noble system has already begun secretly contacting Queen Isabella, and their intentions are already perfectly clear.

Nobles rebelling against their king is quite rare in normal circumstances.

But if one considers Spain’s development over the past decade and the impact of various government policies on the actual income of the nobles, such occurrences seem less surprising.

The Bourbon Dynasty ruled Spain for over a century, and Carlo has been in Spain for just over six years at most.

Some nobles are unwilling to accept the decrease in income under Carlo’s rule; they preferred the period under Queen Isabella where they were unrestrained and could recklessly exploit commoners while living luxurious lives.

Since learning of this news, Carlo’s expression has never been pleasant.

To think that even after the Bourbon family fled north to France, they continued to plague Spain. However, this is indeed a good opportunity to completely resolve the long-standing influence of the Bourbon family on Spain, and to clear away some of Spain’s troubles.

As previously mentioned, the primary reason for Spain’s weakness falls on the Spanish government, Royal Family, and the Church, rather than the common people.

Although the Habsburg Dynasty also bears some responsibility for Spain’s decline, the primary blame still lies with the Bourbon family, specifically Queen Isabella and her father Ferdinand VII.

October 27, Madrid Royal Palace.

The director of the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau, Kadir, walked into the Royal Palace with a serious expression. When he saw Carlo, he first paid a very respectful salute, and then reported: “Your Majesty, it has been clarified.”