Empire Rise: Spain

Chapter 177: Cooperative Colonization

“The government is planning new colonial action on New Guinea. If your country is interested, perhaps we can cooperate in the New Guinea colony.” Carlo said with a smile.

Cooperative colonization of New Guinea was the goodwill Carlo released, and it was also the condition for Portugal to synchronize the railway track with Spain.

Carlo knew that for countries like Spain and Portugal, which had already gained sufficient benefits from colonialism, colonizing new colonies was a huge temptation.

Pulling the Portuguese along to colonize New Guinea was also a plan Carlo had formulated after careful consideration.

As one of the former colonial empires, the Portuguese also had a lot of experience in colonialism. More importantly, Portugal had a small colony in Southeast Asia, possessing the conditions to colonize New Guinea.

Pulling Portugal along to colonize New Guinea, first, only the united strength of Portugal and Spain could cope with the colonial competition of the great powers and accelerate the progress of colonization.

Second, Spain alone could not develop this vast territory of New Guinea, while the Portuguese, lacking colonies, could just contribute their efforts.

If the relationship between Spain and Portugal continued to be maintained, that would be fine, but if the two countries engaged in fierce competition or even broke out into war, it would be hard to say who would have the final say over this colony.

The Portuguese and Spaniards did have differences, but compared to other populations, they were the best to assimilate.

Especially these Portuguese who had already immigrated; to a certain extent, they would not reject Spanish rule. Under the premise that the Spanish colonial government respected their interests, they would not cause conflict with the colonial government overhead for the sake of the homeland they had already left. Hearing Carlo’s words, Louis I was clearly stunned.

He never expected that the price Spain paid was actually inviting Portugal to develop the New Guinea colony together.

Developing a colony—which good person could resist such temptation? For Portugal, which had once been a colonial empire, this was indeed very attractive.

Louis I was stunned for a while before asking, “New Guinea colony? Do you mean that Spain is willing to develop the New Guinea colony together with Portugal?”

Portugal certainly knew about New Guinea, after all, Portugal’s colony East Timor faced New Guinea across the sea.

Speaking of Timor Island, the first colonists to arrive on this land were the Portuguese. But as the Dutch established the East India Colony, Portugal’s colonial forces were crazily squeezed out, almost driven off Timor Island.

Ultimately, through a contract signed with the Dutch more than a decade ago, the Portuguese finally obtained the land in eastern Timor Island and some nearby small islands, barely establishing their own colony in Southeast Asia.

This history was quite humiliating for Portugal, after all, the first to arrive on Timor Island were the Portuguese, and the ones almost driven out were also the Portuguese.

When hearing Carlo invite Portugal to colonize New Guinea together, Louis I was indeed moved, but also somewhat hesitant.

The main reason was still the Dutch existing in this region, and the British behind the Dutch.

Of course, if comparing comprehensive national strength, Portugal was far inferior to the Netherlands.

Spain had at least once been the European hegemon, but Portugal had never become the European hegemon, only establishing its colonial empire by colonizing America.

After Brazil’s independence, Portugal’s colonial empire fell apart.

Although the Dutch were not large in size, the Netherlands had once been one of Europe’s hegemons, with the title of sea coachman.

The Low Countries had always been one of the more developed regions in Europe, and shipbuilding industry and shipping were still one of the economic pillars of the Low Countries, especially the Netherlands, to this day.

If purely comparing comprehensive national strength, the Portuguese really could not match the Dutch. It was just that the Netherlands was situated between the three great powers of Britain, France, and Germany, and none of the three countries allowed the Netherlands to become too powerful.

Louis I’s worry mainly came from the Dutch. The British would not directly act against Portugal, after all, the British did not want to see Portugal lean towards Spain.

But the problem was that the Dutch were not polite at all in terms of colonialism. Even a small Timor Island could attract Dutch colonial competition; if the battlefield was placed on the larger New Guinea, wouldn’t it trigger a larger-scale colonial conflict?

Although the temptation was great, the risks were equally great. If the colony painstakingly established by the Portuguese was invaded by the Dutch or Spaniards, wouldn’t it mean that the Portuguese’s many years of effort would instantly go up in smoke?

Seeming to see the hesitation in Louis I’s heart, Carlo smiled and continued to add, “Your Majesty Louis, you must also be clear about the vastness of the New Guinea colony. Not only the Dutch, but the British, Germans, and French all have colonial action on this land.

For these countries, Spain is also a small country. The colonial cooperation between Portugal and Spain can solve this problem; at least we can unite to claim a piece of land in New Guinea.

We can also establish an alliance treaty between the two colonies; at least in terms of the two colonies, we can reach a certain mutual defense alliance agreement.”

What Louis I was worried about was that the Portuguese might not be able to hold the colony, just like what happened before on Timor Island.

But if Portugal chose to cooperate with Spain, the combined power of the two Iberian countries would still be very strong, even enough to challenge the great power countries.

Unless they planned to tear faces apart, even great power countries like Britain, France, and Germany, facing the huddled colonial action of Portugal and Spain, could only choose a relatively mild competition.

After all, it was just competition over colonies, with no need to escalate to the level of homeland competition. Apart from Britain, France, and Germany, the remaining Dutch were not a concern at all.

Not to mention the union of the two Iberian countries; even Spain alone would not fear the Netherlands, which was not a powerful medium-sized country at all.

Spain’s power was relative, and the Dutch’s power was even more relative. Although Spain had weakened a lot, for the Netherlands, a country with a very small territory area and not much population, Spain’s comprehensive strength could still crush it.

After all, the Netherlands was just a country with a population of over 4 million; its size was ultimately limited. Even if its industry and economy were more developed compared to the Iberian countries, it was obviously insufficient to make up for the population gap with Spain.

Hearing Carlo say this, Louis I nodded, and the hesitation in his eyes had already diminished a lot.

Out of consideration for Portugal’s strength, Louis I always had too many thoughts when making decisions, weighing the pros and cons for Portugal.

At present, cooperating with Spain to colonize New Guinea was also beneficial for Portugal. If it really went as Carlo said, Portugal did have hope of claiming a piece of land on New Guinea as a new colony.

Although it was impossible to obtain too much land, it was at least a certain harvest. For King Louis, if he could acquire a colony for Portugal during his reign, regardless of the colony’s size and economic value, it would always be a certain political achievement that could be propagated.

Politicians needed political achievements to promote themselves, and kings were the same. A king who opened up territory was always better than a mediocre king who just maintained the status quo, and a mediocre king who maintained the status quo was better than an incompetent and foolish king.

If possible, which king did not want to open up territory and lay down a greater foundation for his kingdom?

Although it was just a colony, Portugal’s most promising expansion at present was also in colonies. After all, Portugal had only one land neighbor, which was Spain; there was still a strength gap between the two Iberian countries, and it was much more difficult for Portugal to expand on land than to expand colonies.

“I have to admit, Your Majesty Carlo, what you said is indeed very attractive. But as you said, national affairs are not something we can decide with a word; they still need to be discussed by that group of politicians in the government before a decision can be made.

But I personally very much agree with your proposal; if there are no accidents, I believe we will see cooperation between Portugal and Spain on New Guinea.” Louis I smiled and gave his answer.

Although he personally leaned more towards cooperating with Spain on colonialism, the specific cooperation matters still needed to be discussed by government officials.

It was not that Louis I could not decide for the government; it was that some interests needed to be fought for by government officials, not the king personally stepping in.

Two kings quarreling and debating over certain interests would really be too undignified. Since the general direction of cooperation had been settled, the small details and various clauses would naturally be negotiated by government officials.

Of course, since he agreed to cooperate with Spain on colonizing New Guinea, Portugal would definitely have to make certain concessions on the railway track.

The good news was that the gap between Portugal’s railway track width and Spain’s was only 9 millimeters, which was relatively simple to adjust.

Moreover, Portugal’s total railway mileage was not much; if they really wanted to adjust all railway track widths, it could be effectively completed in a short time without too much cost.

But for Louis I, would he so dutifully adjust all railway tracks in Portugal to the same width as Spain’s?

Of course not. Even if agreeing to Spain, Portugal could have some reasons to delay. Synchronizing the track width was definitely going to happen, after all, going back on one’s word was not good for Portugal either.

Not only would it make Spain more hostile towards Portugal, but it would also plummet Portugal’s diplomatic reputation.

Portugal had only this one neighboring country; although defense was necessary, it did not mean Portugal was willing to engage in more intense struggle with Spain.

The discussions on political matters soon ended, and the real main topic of the two royal families’ meeting was uninterrupted banquets and outings.

After all, they were his own sister and brother-in-law, so Carlo was quite generous in terms of expenses. Not only did he invite the Louis I couple to visit his private winery, but he also organized a grand hunt, letting Louis I use the Vitali M1872 rifle in Spanish service to have a good time.

Portugal was currently still in the transition period between muzzle-loading rifles and breech-loading rifles, and had not fully equipped advanced breech-loading rifles.

There were many reasons for this, besides Portugal’s small population not paying much attention to the army, Portugal’s military technology was not developed, and it lagged a step behind in the research and development of breech-loading rifles.

Although the current breech-loading rifle technology was not yet mature, Spain’s Vitali M1872 rifle was obtained by making a second improvement on the rifle that Italy had already improved, much better than the most primitive breech-loading rifles.

Compared to muzzle-loading rifles, breech-loading rifles had very obvious advantages, which also made Louis I very tempted by the rifle in his hand.

“Carlo, is this your latest Vitali M1872 rifle?” Louis I asked with some interest.

As Spain’s neighboring country, Portugal was certainly aware of the standard weapons being equipped by the Spanish Army.

But at that time, the relationship between Spain and Portugal was not good, and coupled with no strong demand for rifle replacement in Portugal, the Portuguese Army still had not fully adopted the latest breech-loading rifles to this day.

“Of course.” Carlo nodded, as if he had already seen the royal arsenal receiving an order: “This is the latest model after secondary improvements based on Italy’s Vitali rifle. How about it? Feels good, right?”

“Really good, feels great.” Louis I nodded, very fond of the rifle in his hand: “What is the cost of this rifle?”

Louis I did not ask Carlo about the advantages and disadvantages of this rifle, after all, who asks a merchant if their goods are good?

In terms of Louis I’s personal experience, he thought this was a good rifle; compared to the rifles used by European countries, even if it was not the best, it was absolutely first-class.

If he could take this opportunity to purchase a batch of rifles to equip the Portuguese army, it could effectively improve the combat effectiveness of the Portuguese army.

In an era where machine guns had not yet been born, countries’ firepower means were originally quite scarce. Apart from rifles used by infantry, the army’s mainstream firepower output was cannons.

As the saying goes, when the cannon fires, ten thousand taels of gold are spent. Not all countries could equip cannons on a large scale like France and Germany; Portugal was naturally included.

Since there were not enough cannons as firepower output, the Portuguese army could only rely on rifles to inflict damage on the enemy.

But since the Franco-Prussian War, wars between European countries were no longer the era of line infantry volleys. Countries were increasingly emphasizing rifle range, rate of fire, and power; equipping a rifle with a faster rate of fire meant that troops would have stronger firepower in frontal engagements.

“Before the royal arsenal expanded production, the cost of the Vitali M1872 rifle was quite expensive. But now, with the royal arsenal’s expansion, the cost of this rifle has dropped by more than half. If your country wants to procure Vitali M1872 rifles, I can take it upon myself to have the royal arsenal provide your country with the internal price; after all, we are close partners, aren’t we?” Carlo said with a smile.

This was truly a case of the early bird gets the worm. After the royal arsenal expanded production, the weapon production volume had more than doubled in a short time.

According to the current trend, the Spanish Army’s full replacement with Vitali M1872 rifles had hope of completion within a year.

After completing this order, the royal arsenal would have no other orders in the short term, which was inevitably a problem.

Although Portugal’s army was not large, it still had a certain scale. If Portugal decided to procure Vitali M1872 rifles, the royal arsenal’s hard-expanded production line could continue to operate.

Louis I nodded; although somewhat tempted, he did not rush to decide.

Although Louis I was willing to compromise in certain aspects, this did not mean Portugal had to fully align with Spain.

Spain was ultimately not as powerful as the United Kingdom; what Portugal needed to do was maintain a balance between the United Kingdom and Spain, ensuring its own safety and development.

Only if Spain recaptured Gibraltar and occupied Morocco under the United Kingdom’s obstruction would Louis I consider leaning towards Spain.

But before that, Spain was ultimately a beast trapped in a cage; not to mention unable to protect itself, at least its actions were restricted.

Portugal could make certain compromises for its own stability, but would not give up too many interests.

Although agreeing to synchronize the railway track width with Spain, the biggest reason was still that Louis I believed the British would not allow Spain’s influence over Portugal.

Leaning a little towards Spain also had benefits; at least it could let the British understand that sometimes Portugal’s opinion could not be excessively ignored, after all, Portugal was an important link in the British containment of Spain.

If Portugal could not hold firm, it would not be a problem for Spain to exert greater influence over Portugal or even dominate this country.

After Spain obtained dominance over the two Iberian countries, could Gibraltar continue to be safe and sound?

Seeing Louis I beating around the bush, Carlo understood that Louis I had other plans in mind.

Although he could not pull in an order for the royal arsenal, it did not matter much in the end, and Carlo did not mind.

Carlo had long anticipated that Portugal would not fully lean towards Spain, after all, that would mean handing over all initiative to Spain.

Smart people would definitely choose to waver between the British and Spaniards, ensuring their own interests.

Completely relying on one side would easily lead to being ignored. After all, what is obtained is the least valued; appropriately giving a bit of sense of crisis could also make oneself more cherished.

During the week that the Louis I couple came to Spain, they toured many Spanish regions including Madrid, and even watched the construction site of the Revival-class ironclad Revival.

Regarding Spain resuming ironclad ship construction, Louis I’s eyes could only be filled with envy. Compared to Spain, Portugal’s size was still too small; an ironclad ship costing 500,000 pound sterling was tempting, but they simply did not have the ability to possess it.

A single ironclad ship might not be expensive, but what role could one ironclad ship play? The purpose of building ironclad ships was to have a powerful navy, which also meant having to match it with many other warships to form a comprehensive fleet.

Unable to bear the expenditure of a powerful fleet—this was the root of Louis I’s envy of Carlo.

Although both were kings, Carlo was younger, ruling a country like Spain, which although weakened still had some foundation.

Portugal’s degree of weakness was not as exaggerated as Spain’s, but Portugal itself was not a powerful country. After losing Brazil, Portugal’s presence in Europe had already been very low.

Ruling such a not-so-powerful country left the ambitious Louis I helpless, while shedding tears of envy.

5200 words two-in-one chapter, seeking support!