Empire Rising: Spain

At the very moment the army from Toledo arrived in Madrid, Duke Serrano, who had stayed secluded in the barracks, finally made a public appearance, bringing new orders from King Carlo, declaring martial law nationwide.

Due to Prime Minister Prim being gravely injured and unconscious, and the mistaken decisions by Deputy Prime Minister Ruiz leading to a massive clash between police and the marching workers, Carlo, as the King of Spain, announced under the constitution the dissolution of the Spanish Parliament, the abolition of the Spanish Cabinet Government, and the establishment of an interim military government of Spain. Marshal Serrano was appointed as the supreme commander of the interim military government, and Minister of Industry Canovas was appointed as the Governor of Madrid for the interim military government.

At the moment the orders were issued, the Spanish Army entered the city in grand force, brutally suppressing the rebels besieging the parliament building and the government offices.

Reaching this stage, it was certain that the marching workers would suffer unnecessary casualties. But there was no choice, as some unfortunate sacrifices were inevitable to fully root out the rebellious nobles.

However, Carlo would not hold these marching workers accountable, as they were, after all, coerced by the rebellious nobles. Although their demonstrations caused tremendous losses to the Spanish Government, they also facilitated Carlo’s consolidation of power.

With Prime Minister Prim gravely injured and unconscious, and the reputation of Ruiz, the second person in the Progressive Party, severely damaged, Carlo’s power had now grown immensely.

In fact, as long as he could control the army, Carlo could at any moment establish an autocratic monarchy, turning the entire Kingdom of Spain into a domain dictated by his word alone.

But being too autocratic is not a good thing. Even if Carlo could steer Spain in the right direction with historical experiences and lessons, he could only ensure no issues arise during his reign.

However, if any heirs to the throne made the wrong choices, the absolute monarchy could very well push the Savoy Family’s rule in Spain into the abyss.

Among the monarchies of European countries, Carlo was more inclined to emulate the constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom.

Although the British King typically wields little power, by steadily building reputation and maintaining a long reign, a King could still gain substantial power in the mid to later stages.

This system ensures a competent King gains the power they deserve, while an incompetent one can still serve as a symbolic figurehead, at least ensuring the throne remains intact under their tenure.

Of course, this system needs to be pushed gradually. In the early stages of Carlo’s reign, he wouldn’t relinquish all his power to the government and parliament.

At the moment of announcing the final roundup, Carlo had already departed from the South Morocco Colony, leading his entourage back to Madrid in great form.

This inspection of the South Morocco Colony was originally intended to lure out enemies; since the initial objective was completed, the visit to the South Morocco Colony had naturally come to an end.

The entire “fishing” process went fairly smoothly, though there were some unexpected incidents along the way. Prime Minister Prim’s severe injury and unconsciousness was something Carlo hadn’t anticipated. Before this, Carlo had repeatedly advised Prime Minister Prim to strengthen his security measures, but still, the enemies found an opening.

The good news was that although Prime Minister Prim was gravely injured and unconscious, at least his life was not in danger. However, the timeline of when he would wake and the extent of his physical damage remained uncertain.

Perhaps Prime Minister Prim’s retirement would be brought forward due to this assassination attempt, which might be a favorable outcome for Carlo, as no one could impede his consolidation of power. The only threat, Ruiz, also came into the open during this operation, digging his own grave.

Under the suppression by the military, the noble rebellion was swiftly quelled, and the government regained control of the government and parliament buildings.

The workers’ demonstrations that threatened Madrid for several days were also resolved with the personal assurance of Duke Serrano.

After all, the workers’ initial goal was merely to safeguard their interests; they hadn’t aimed to oppose the government, merely echoing anti-capitalist sentiments.

Although Duke Serrano’s popularity among the Spanish populace was not as high as Prime Minister Prim’s, he represented King Carlo of Spain.

With promises from the King and the personal appearance of Duke Serrano, combined with the elimination of the rebellious nobles, the worker demonstrations were easily resolved.

By the time Carlo returned to Spain, it was already the evening of the next day.

As soon as he arrived back at the Madrid Royal Palace, Duke Serrano and Canovas brought lists of the nobles involved in the rebellion and some officials who had secretly pledged allegiance to the Bourbon family.

It was indeed quite shocking that the nobles and high-ranking officials associated with the Bourbon family numbered in the hundreds, including 14 dukes, 4 marquises, 32 earls, and over 50 barons.

The number of rebellious nobles alone was nearly a hundred, with the lands owned by the combined 14 dukes and 4 marquises being several times the land held by the Spanish Royal Family.

“What an eye-opener!” Carlo looked at the list of rebellious nobles in his hand, the coldness in his eyes even made Duke Serrano a bit apprehensive.

Compared to these aristocrats, officials related to the rebellion are rather unimportant. Besides a small number of parliamentarians, the remaining officials are not very high-ranking and do not qualify to stand alongside the nobility.

“Bring Kadir over here.” Carlo’s voice was extremely cold, devoid of any emotion as he spoke.

The Director of the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau, Kadir, walked over with his head held high, eyes full of loyalty and fanaticism, respectfully saluting Carlo and then quietly listening to his orders.

This was Carlo’s first time revealing his trump card in front of others; the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau had never been publicly disclosed before, and even Prime Minister Prim only knew that Carlo had such an organization.

“Investigate these people thoroughly; leave no stone unturned.” Carlo sneered, already having sentenced these people to death: “Investigate their families, investigate their friends.

Anyone connected to the Bourbon remnants must be captured and thrown into the prison of the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau. Also, I hope this kind of incident does not happen again. As for the culprit in France, I trust you know what to do.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Kadir nodded, fully aware of Carlo’s intentions.

Since the Bourbon family planned the assassination of Prime Minister Prim, retaliatory assassinations from Spain are only justified.

Even though the Bourbon family was once royal in Spain, that does not mean they have the right to meddle in the affairs of Carlo’s rule over Spain.

If they have the courage to meddle in Spanish internal affairs and the audacity to plot a rebellion against the Spanish government, they should also have the courage to bear all consequences.

Carlo is far from being indecisive. Since the Bourbon family has become his enemy, the best solution is to eliminate the Bourbon family.

Upon hearing the naked implication in Carlo’s words, Duke Serrano swallowed saliva, not daring to offer any refutation.

Canovas, on the other hand, dared not show any expression, silently listening to Carlo’s further instructions.

After seeing Kadir off, Carlo then turned his gaze to Duke Serrano and Canovas, who were quietly waiting nearby, continued with a smile:

“Though the situation in Madrid has stabilized, Prime Minister Prim remains critically injured. May God bless Prime Minister Prim for a speedy recovery, but currently, the most crucial issue for us is to get the Spanish government back to work, ending the recent chaos.

The acting Prime Minister elected by Parliament handled this crisis terribly, so I abolished the Spanish Parliament. To ensure smooth government operations, I’ve decided to reorganize the temporary military government into a temporary cabinet, with Duke Serrano as the temporary cabinet Prime Minister, and Canovas as the temporary cabinet Deputy Prime Minister. What do you think?”

Duke Serrano never expected the position of Prime Minister to return to him after so many years, naturally, he had no objections.

And although Canovas was appointed to the newly established position of Deputy Prime Minister, being associated with the Prime Minister was surely a promotion compared to his previous role as Minister of Industry.

Seeing neither of them oppose, Carlo was satisfied and nodded, then instructed: “In that case, continue the work of running the government.

Parliament has been dissolved; your appointments just need to be announced in the name of the government. Once Prime Minister Prim has recovered, further discussions about forming parliament and cabinet elections can take place.”

Appointing Duke Serrano as the temporary cabinet Prime Minister was a decision Carlo made after careful consideration. While he might directly promote Canovas to be the temporary cabinet Prime Minister, doing so would be too deliberate, and Canovas lacked the prestige to stabilize the post-chaos government and army.

Having Duke Serrano act as the transitional figure in the power exchange is the best choice. He holds enough prestige and status to maintain government and military stability, yet due to his advanced age, he won’t affect subsequent power transitions.

If Prime Minister Prim, born in 1814, is nearing retirement age, then Duke Serrano, four years older than Prim, is already 65 years old now.

This is actually why Carlo felt secure in letting Duke Serrano become the temporary cabinet Prime Minister, after all, this is not the modern era, and 65 is already quite elderly.

On the morning of November 7, 1875, the Spanish Government officially made public Carlo’s order, indicating that Spain would reorganize the temporary military government into a temporary cabinet government, with Duke Serrano as the cabinet Prime Minister, and Canovas as the cabinet Deputy Prime Minister, which is also the role of Minister of State.

Besides the newly added position of Minister of State as Deputy Prime Minister, the positions in the temporary cabinet experienced no other changes.

Defense, finance, industry, agriculture, public welfare, transportation, law and order, health, education, diplomatic ten departments remain unchanged; additionally, three new positions were introduced: Minister of Royal Affairs, Minister of Colonial Affairs, and Minister of Justice.

Including the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, the Spanish cabinet comprises 15 important positions. However, generally the Deputy Prime Minister would also serve as a Minister of a department, so cabinet members usually total 14.