Empire Rise: Spain

Chapter 189: Southern Tour Of Southern Morocco

“Your Majesty, are you really decided on doing this?” Inside the Madrid Royal Palace, Prime Minister Primó, whose face was usually calm and undisturbed, showed a surprised expression and looked incredulously at Carlo.

“If we don’t do this, those rats hiding in dark corners won’t come out at all.” Carlo had a faint smile on his face, as if he had no worries at all about his earlier proposal: “

I don’t want to let any rat escape. This will be a great opportunity to catch them all in one net.”

“But doing this is a bit too dangerous.” Prime Minister Primó was still somewhat worried, after all, Carlo’s proposal was quite bold: “

What if the enemy launches an assassination against you in South Morocco Colony? If anything happens to you, it can still disrupt Spain’s current situation.

Your Majesty, you should stay in Madrid. The army will handle any threats for you and will never let the enemy approach the outskirts of Madrid.”

The proposal that surprised Prime Minister Primó, which Carlo put forward, was to head south to inspect South Morocco Colony at this moment when dark clouds loomed.

It had been over five years since the establishment of the South Morocco Colony, and the colony’s construction had already achieved considerable results.

At that time, Carlo and Prime Minister Primó engaged in a political interest exchange. Prime Minister Primó proposed the candidate for the first South Morocco Colonial Governor, and Cánovas thereby ascended to the high position of Minister of Agriculture.

Now that five years had passed, the South Morocco Colony welcomed its second governor, Count Antony, a seemingly very ordinary Spanish noble. After five years of development in the South Morocco Colony, the number of indigenous Moroccans inside had sharply decreased. When Spain had just occupied this land, over a million Moroccans still lived on it.

But now, according to estimates by the South Morocco Colonial Government, the number of Moroccans in the South Morocco region does not exceed 800,

Agadir is the largest city in the South Morocco Colony and the location of the colonial capital. The reason Carlo chose to inspect the South Morocco Colony at this time, besides wanting to lure the snake out of its hole, was also that the development of the South Morocco Colony indeed needed inspection.

The development of Agadir port had been quite rapid since the establishment of South Morocco Colony. The vast majority of materials produced by the colony gathered at Agadir port and were transported to the Spanish Mainland via sea transport.

In these five years, more than a thousand Moroccans had cumulatively chosen to join the embrace of Spain and become honorable Spaniards.

However, these people were ultimately only a very small portion. Most Moroccans could only serve as cheap labor in Spanish plantations or earn a tiny, negligible reward by serving Spanish colonizers.

Although these Moroccans were also white people, their treatment was only slightly better than that of indigenous people in other Spanish colonies.

Unless they willingly joined Spanish nationality and voluntarily converted to Catholicism, they and their descendants would always be Spain’s cheap labor.

There were only two ways to join Spanish nationality. One was to marry Spanish soldiers stationed locally and become their wives, after which they could join Spanish nationality.

The second was to make great contributions to the colonial government and be nominated as Moroccan immigrants to join Spanish nationality as immigrants.

But no matter which way, on average, no more than 200 Moroccans joined Spain each year, and every one of them had to undergo quite strict political review.

Those more extreme Muslims basically had no chance of joining Spain. Spain was, after all, a Catholic country, and too many heretics would cause destruction to the country’s stability.

Returning to Carlo’s proposal, although Prime Minister Primó did not want Carlo to risk going to the South Morocco Colony, Carlo clearly did not want to wait like this.

Only by luring the snake out of its hole and successfully sweeping away these rebellious nobles and other forces could Spain’s future political environment gain long-term stability.

Although going to South Morocco carried certain risks, Carlo was not going alone. Not only would a Royal Guard of over a thousand men accompany and protect him, but the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau would also arrange a large number of intelligence officers dispersed along the entire route to ensure Carlo encountered no danger.

For the safety of Carlo’s itinerary, there would be no leaks about the inspection route along the way, and the Spanish Navy fleet would also accompany for protection to ensure the entire journey was foolproof.

After confirming that he could no longer persuade Carlo to change his mind, Prime Minister Primó finally nodded and instructed: “Your Majesty, I have nothing more to say. May God bless you, may your journey go smoothly.

I will hold down Madrid for you. Whether it is Queen Isabella or the Carlist faction, they will ultimately be swept into the dustbin of history and become fertilizer for Spain’s development.

Spain will only continue to advance under your leadership, Your Majesty. Be sure to return safely.”

Carlo nodded, his eyes full of solemnity: “Rest assured, Prime Minister Primó. I’m still waiting to witness the day of Spain’s great revival together with you.

Before Spain reaches the pinnacle of the world, I will not break my promise. Moreover, with the protection of the Royal Guard, even if the enemy has thousands of troops, what can they do to me?”

After this meeting ended, Carlo’s plan to lure the snake out of its hole was smoothly formulated.

For the safety of Queen Sophie and Prince Juan Fernando, the Guard would continue to be stationed in the Madrid Outskirts, protecting Spain’s political center.

The Royal Palace of Madrid would also strengthen its defense forces. With internal and external coordination with the Guard, even regular troops could not threaten the safety of the Royal Palace of Madrid.

After arranging all the defense forces of the palace, under Prime Minister Primó’s farewell gaze, amid the complex looks from many government officials, and with the cheers of the Spanish people, Carlo led a massive entourage of over a thousand people onto the fleet majestically, beginning his journey to tour the South Morocco Colony.

To make this southern tour not seem so abrupt, the South Morocco Colony had released news half a month earlier that a large gold mine had been discovered in the colony.

Whether the news of the gold mine was true no longer mattered. Carlo had already left the Royal Palace of Madrid for the South Morocco Colony, which was the most important thing for Queen Isabella and the Carlist faction rebels.

The stability of Spain’s situation depended on the efforts of three people, who were also the current political triangle of Spain: Prime Minister Primó, Grand Duke Serrano, and Carlo.

After Carlo left Madrid, only Prime Minister Primó and Grand Duke Serrano, the two old men, remained to guard Madrid.

Although overthrowing the current Spanish Government was extremely difficult, for Queen Isabella and the Carlist faction, this might be the best opportunity.

Even if Prime Minister Primó and Grand Duke Serrano joined forces to control Spain’s politics, they could not control every corner of the Spanish political arena.

Although the overall direction of the Spanish Government was under Prime Minister Primó’s leadership, some officials were still dissatisfied with the current government system.

The previously introduced Official Performance Appraisal System was a fatal blow to some lax officials. If they received a poor evaluation in the performance appraisal, not only would reappointment to their current position become very difficult, but further advancement would be out of the question.

The Spanish people also attached great importance to the government’s published official assessment scores. Basically, officials who received poor scores would no longer gain the public’s trust and support.

Since the promulgation of the performance appraisal system, most Spanish officials had absolutely been trembling with fear in completing their tasks.

This feeling of having their destiny in others’ hands was, for these officials, like having a Sword of Damocles hanging over their heads—one misstep and it would cost them their lives.

After everyone boarded the fleet, the fleet began heading south along the Mediterranean Sea, entering the vast Atlantic Ocean after passing the Strait of Gibraltar.

Although they could follow the eastern shore of the Atlantic Ocean directly south to the South Morocco Colony, Carlo was not in a hurry to go to South Morocco so early.

Carlo first ordered the fleet to head west into the vast Atlantic Ocean, then had the fleet aim at a hypothetical target and fire concentrated salvos to test the warships’ responsiveness and combat effectiveness.

After everything was completed, Carlo then ordered the fleet to head south to South Morocco.

Although Carlo’s arrival at Agadir port in South Morocco was several hours later than expected, Colonial Governor Count Antony did not dare show any dissatisfaction and respectfully led colonial officials and garrison officers to welcome Carlo’s arrival at Agadir port.

After the fleet approached the port, first, over a thousand soldiers wearing Royal Guard uniforms disembarked grandly from the transport ships. After lining up neatly at the port, Carlo and his group then disembarked from the warships in the fleet.

The officer leading this small-scale Guard unit was Alexandro Levvalan, an excellent graduate of the first batch from the Royal Military Academy. On the day of graduation, he was awarded the rank of captain and was later selected in the Guard’s officer selection.

Due to his excellent performance in the Guard and the Guard’s expansion, Alexandro Levvalan, originally a company commander, was first promoted to deputy battalion commander of the 7th Infantry Battalion of the 2nd Guard Infantry Regiment of the Guard Division, and then exceptionally promoted to battalion commander of the 14th Infantry Battalion of the 4th Infantry Regiment of the Guard Division.

Among the over a thousand Guard soldiers responsible for protecting Carlo’s safety this time, the main force was composed of Alexandro Levvalan’s 14th Infantry Battalion.

The main reason Alexandro Levvalan could rise rapidly in the Guard was his excellent ability combined with his identity as a Spaniard.

At the beginning of Carlo’s ascension as King of Spain, since it was uncertain who could be used, he mainly relied on his subordinates brought from Italy.

But now, Carlo had cultivated some Spanish confidants through various means and naturally had to promote these Spanish subordinates.

This was Spain, after all. A small number of Italians could rise meteorically through Carlo’s favor, but most of those heavily promoted by Carlo had to be Spaniards.

As Carlo stepped onto the land of South Morocco, South Morocco Colonial Governor Count Antony led a group of officials and colonial garrison officers quickly forward, saying respectfully to Carlo: “Your Majesty, Count Antony, on behalf of the colonial officials and colonial garrison officers of South Morocco Colony, greets you!”

Carlo nodded and looked at the colonial governor before him.

Under the investigation of the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau, Count Antony’s family background and recent activities were clear at a glance.

Although Count Antony’s abilities were not very strong, his loyalty could at least be guaranteed. His family had not been heavily promoted during Queen Isabella’s rule; after all, they were just an ordinary member of Spain’s vast noble system.

Before being appointed as South Morocco Colonial Governor, Count Antony had stayed obediently in his castle, with no major stains except for keeping a few mistresses.

This was nothing in this era. After all, some nobles had dozens or even hundreds of mistresses, too many to count.

As long as it was not forced prostitution, Carlo did not care how many mistresses his nobles and officials had.

After Count Antony, a group of colonial officials and garrison officers respectfully saluted Carlo.

The number of people saluting was actually not large, totaling less than ten. Although there were many colonial officials and garrison officers, only a few among them were qualified to meet Carlo in person and salute.

Led by Count Antony, Carlo and the group headed grandly to the Colonial Governor’s mansion to first learn about the current development status of the South Morocco Colony.

For transportation to the Governor’s mansion, Carlo chose the luxurious carriage he brought from Spain.

Yes, Carlo had also brought his custom luxurious carriage.

There were several reasons. First, Carlo was accustomed to sitting in this luxurious carriage. This carriage was a full size larger than a normal carriage, not only with more space but also quite luxurious decorations.

Just this one carriage had cost funds amounting to several thousand pesetas, equivalent to more than a full kilogram of gold.

Such a larger carriage required at least six sturdy steeds to pull. Carlo had brought eight white horses raised in the royal palace from Spain, enough to ensure this massive carriage could smoothly travel on the land of South Morocco.

Although the exterior of the carriage looked wooden, the interior was embedded with thick steel plates that could withstand rifle fire.

The carriage base was protected by several centimeters thick steel plates, ensuring that people inside could survive safely even if hit by a bomb blast.

Sitting in such a carriage, Carlo had no need to worry about his safety at all. Carlo would not foolishly stick his head out, giving possible assassins space to assassinate him.

In history, many high officials and nobles who were assassinated rode in open carriages without tight security, parading openly in public view.

Being assassinated in such a situation was almost inevitable. Carlo would not put himself in such a dangerous position. This time coming to South Morocco, Carlo would of course appear in public occasions.

But such public occasions would be searched in advance, and no one would be allowed near Carlo.

After five years of construction, Agadir port had transformed from a Moroccan-style city into a city with a mixed style.

Especially this street near the Governor’s mansion, where all buildings were in Spanish style, next to which was the barracks of the Spanish colonial army.

A Colonial Defense Regiment was stationed here, which could maximally ensure the safety of the Colonial Governor’s mansion. Not far from the Colonial Governor’s mansion was the location of the Colonial Government, making the surroundings of this street almost the entire political center of the South Morocco Colony, with basically no Moroccans in sight.

Before coming to South Morocco, Carlo had heard something: that colonial officials took pride in owning a Moroccan maid.

But after arriving in Morocco, perhaps because the colonial officials knew Carlo was coming, Carlo did not find any so-called Moroccan maids.

The group grandly arrived at the Colonial Governor’s mansion, and the Guard quickly took over the security of the Governor’s mansion.

For Carlo’s safety, the Guard would take over security at wherever Carlo was located. Whether the Colonial Governor’s mansion or the Colonial Government, they were naturally within this scope.

Led by Count Antony, Carlo and several colonial officials and officers entered the conference room of the Governor’s mansion for a brief meeting.

Count Antony first took out the already prepared information and reported to Carlo on the development status of the South Morocco Colony to date.

Although the colony’s population had sharply decreased by 200,000 within the five years since the establishment of the South Morocco Colony, many of these 200,000 were more extreme Muslims. Due to their difficulty in ruling, they were either sent to mines and plantations to be worked to death as slaves or directly driven southward to the Sahara Desert with tough measures.

Under the sacrifice of these 200,000 people, the development of the South Morocco Colony had also been very rapid.

Currently, the colony had built a factory-shaped railway line from Agadir to Tata and from Agadir to Tantan, with a total length exceeding 500 kilometers, the colony’s most important transportation route.

It was precisely the existence of this railway that allowed Spanish troops to easily reach any location in the South Morocco Colony.

No matter where a large-scale Moroccan rebellion broke out, Spanish troops could arrive in the shortest time and complete the suppression of the rebellion.

Since the establishment of the South Morocco Colony, the Moroccans had engaged in quite a few rebellious actions. But these resistances were mostly small in scale, with the largest involving less than 10,000 participants, quickly suppressed by the Spanish colonial army.

The number of Spaniards in the South Morocco Colony had also grown from a handful at the beginning to over a thousand, with the numbers still continuously increasing.