Empire Rise: Spain

Chapter 60: Enfeoffment And Military Parade

The enfeoffment ceremony arrived as scheduled.

Serrano advanced further from the honorable duke, becoming Spain’s truly scarce grand duke.

Primó was also promoted from marquis to duke, with his nobility title at least matching his status in the army and government.

Because he had successively pacified the Carlist faction rebellion and the Cuban Rebellion, Carlo, in a greatly pleased mood, was not stingy at all with the awarding of nobility titles.

In addition to one grand duke and one duke, this ceremony also added two counts, seven viscounts, and more than ten barons. Andrew and Camann were also on the list.

Although both were the lowest rank of baron, they had at least entered the ranks of Spanish nobles, with their identity elevated far beyond before.

The promotion of the two was not only reflected in noble titles. Due to their military merit in combat against the Cuban rebels, their military ranks had also been exceptionally promoted from initial lieutenant to major, and they held the position of battalion commander.

With Carlo’s trust and their merit, next, as long as there were no accidents, they could climb to the level of regimental commander in a few years.

If not for their Italian identity holding them back, after pacifying the Cuban Rebellion, their military ranks should have been promoted to lieutenant colonel or above, and becoming a regimental commander would not have been impossible.

After all, compared to the Italians who suddenly appeared above them, the soldiers were more willing to accept their immediate superiors being Spaniards. To win the trust of the soldiers, Andrew and Camann had to spend more energy than Spanish officers.

But this was also a good thing. After they experienced the test of the soldiers and climbed step by step to the upper levels of the army, their control over the army would also be more stable.

The army they mastered would become Carlo’s boost, which was equivalent to the military power in Carlo’s hands.

The reason Carlo could so safely develop his own forces was the ages of Serrano and Primó.

Serrano was born in 1810 and was already 60 years old this year. Primó was born in 1814 and was also 56 years old this year.

The two old men around 60 years old would not mind Carlo’s forces developing slowly, because they absolutely would not live to see the day when Carlo’s forces took shape.

According to Europe’s life expectancy, the two being nearly 60 was already quite advanced age. Primó’s plan was also very simple, which was to promote Spain’s revolution within his lifetime and complete as much of the revolution as possible.

Salé was not so enthusiastic about the revolution, and his desire for power was not that great either. What Salé truly cared about was his status, and being enfeoffed as grand duke made Salé very satisfied.

Precisely because Serrano, Primó, and Carlo did not form any overt power conflict for various reasons, the current Spanish Government could maintain a fairly stable state.

This was something all three were willing to see, after all, with their main needs satisfied, who would want to fight to the death with a powerful enemy?

Carlo was also happy to see Primó’s reforms and Serrano’s control over power. With these two, Carlo’s throne would become very secure.

By the time they retired or died of old age, Carlo’s forces would have been cultivated almost ready, and that would be the time for Carlo to gradually take control of power.

What made Carlo quite relieved was that although Queen Isabella made no contribution to Spain, she at least agreed to award nobility titles to Primó and Serrano.

Especially Serrano. If Serrano were pushed to the Republican faction side, Spain after Queen Isabella would probably become a republic, and restoring the monarchy would not be so easy.

The reason Alfonso XII in history could still achieve restoration was that the republic government at the time lost popular support, plus Primó was assassinated early, and Spain’s situation was even more chaotic than during Queen Isabella’s reign.

If Primó were a Republican faction member and had not been assassinated, Spain might have become a thorough republic afterward.

It could only be said that Primó, who supported the monarchy, was a quite huge boost for Carlo. Before Primó’s reforms were completed, Carlo’s stance was firmly supporting Primó.

After the enfeoffment ceremony, Carlo also attended a small-scale military parade ceremony.

The number of troops participating in the military parade was not large, totaling just over two thousand.

But it had to be admitted that the shock of more than two thousand troops marching grandly past was unparalleled.

Looking at the grand army marching past and then at the surrounding crowds of spectators, Carlo could not help but feel elated.

This was his army, these were his subjects. No matter how Spain developed in history, at this time, in this world, he was Spain’s king, Spain’s sole ruler.

As expected, after all activities of the day ended, the enfeoffment ceremony and military parade ceremony became Madrid’s hottest news.

To commend the soldiers’ merit, the related news would also be published across Spain, letting all Spaniards know which nobles were enfeoffed this time and the contributions the nobles made to Spain.

This was also Carlo’s purpose. At least, he wanted Spaniards to understand that nobles were nobles because they made huge contributions to Spain.

Even if the public’s attitude toward nobles would not change greatly, some small changes were what Carlo was willing to see.

After all, the king and nobles were one. If the nobles’ reputation completely stank, how good could the reputation of the king, as the greatest noble, be?

On the other hand, Carlo also hoped to arouse the soldiers’ and public’s desire for awarding titles for military merit.

Only by letting soldiers see the benefits obtained after establishing military merit would they truly work hard for the country and government.

Only by letting the public see the huge changes brought by awarding titles for military merit could the public not reject enlisting and even actively enlist enthusiastically.

Although this seemed to have little effect, it was quite effective for boosting army morale.

After the enfeoffment ceremony ended, Primó became even busier.

Because he had to invest all his energy into government work. Reform and national development were top priorities, and in his spare time, he still had to investigate the mastermind behind the assassination.

Fortunately, after Salé returned from Cuba, he could help Primó handle some political affairs. After all, Salé had served as prime minister of the Spanish Provisional Government before the parliamentary election, so while not excellent in handling political affairs, he was absolutely proficient and above.

Under the joint efforts of Serrano and Primó, Spain would also usher in a period of stable development. Carlo was also looking forward to Spain’s subsequent development speed, to see if this once dayless empire could find new life amid long-term decline.

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