I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 323

The year 1861 was increasingly becoming a nightmare for the United States.

While no one alive remembered the intensity of the War of Independence, the 19th-century United States had developed a widespread consensus on war, spanning from the elderly to the young.

The War of 1812 with Britain.

And the battles with the Native Americans, often termed wars but essentially massacres.

Including the subsequent war with Mexico, a significant portion of U.S. citizens readily resorted to firearms.

However, the war with Britain was so distant that even the young soldiers who participated were now mostly old men.

Excluding the war with Britain, the United States had virtually never fought a country stronger than itself.

They had consistently won by overwhelming their opponents with superior size and national power, and the Civil War initially seemed to be no exception.

An overwhelming difference in population and a clear advantage in industrial capacity.

Added to this was the recently improved food production in the North.

By all accounts, the North had no reason to lose to the South, which is why they were so taken aback by the South’s initial strong counterattacks.

Still, the North, with its system already established through multiple wars and actual combat experience, did not falter.

But just as they were reorganizing their army, setting realistic strategic goals, and restructuring the front lines, what happened?

This time, the Spanish, for some reason, were openly supporting the South.

“Didn’t Britain already hint that Spain was very interested in the American continent? We should have struck Spain immediately when the war with Mexico ended.”

“How could we have done that when we were so exhausted from the battles with Mexico?”

“Let’s put the past behind us since we can’t change it. But from now on, we must never let Spain get away with anything.”

“I agree. Once this war is over, those Spanish sons of bitches will have to pay for this outrage.”

No matter how this war ends, they would crush Spain.

Even the military, congressmen, and cabinet ministers unanimously agreed, and even Lincoln did not object to this sentiment.

Still, most people thought that ‘it wouldn’t affect the big picture’.

Spain was just an annoying factor that prolonged the war.

What the Union feared was the growing discontent among citizens with voting rights, who questioned why they had to risk their lives for Black people.

But France’s participation was a disaster that no one had ever anticipated.

“What on earth was the ambassador in Paris doing!”

“Isn’t this proof that the State Department isn’t functioning properly? Explain yourselves!”

“How can we fight France when we’re already pointing guns at the South!”

Not only the generals but also the people in the War Department condemned the State Department, but Lincoln remained composed.

Although he didn’t show it, he was considering the possibility that Britain and France might join forces to attack the Union in the worst-case scenario.

Things were getting complicated, but the more this happened, the more calmly he had to assess the situation.

“Secretary Seward, is it only France that has declared war on us for now?”

“···Spain says they will act together with France.”

“Those bastards are really going all the way now.”

“Still, the level of troops that Spain can mobilize is obvious. The problem is France······.”

“No. The most important thing is Britain. What is Britain’s attitude?”

Looking back at the recent world situation, Britain had always been using France to confront countries that bothered them.

Russia was a prime example, and they also used France to suppress the large-scale riots in Qing [referring to the Qing Dynasty in China].

So, the first thing to do would be to figure out whether Britain was behind this incident.

“I already told Ambassador Francis to check the atmosphere on the British side first. Fortunately, the British side seems to be very embarrassed.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. The ruling and opposition parties immediately held an emergency meeting, and the departments of the cabinet have also become very busy. It seems certain that France did not coordinate with them in advance.”

“So, it seems that only France is participating for now.”

Of course, it was not reassuring to have only France, as the burden of the name France was enormous.

The generals had a heated debate about what to do if France actually participated, and some were prepared for it to be difficult.

Most of them had pessimistic opinions, but Lincoln had a sudden realization.

France’s participation was certainly a serious blow, but it might not be enough to warrant despair.

Rather, if he played his cards right, he might be able to overcome the North’s chronic weaknesses.

“I will make a speech condemning France, so please prepare everything.”

“Yes, Mr. President.”

“Defending our homeland. The South isn’t the only one who can say that. Let’s use it too.”

Just by hearing these words, the ministers could tell what Lincoln was trying to do.

And surprisingly, the effect was beyond imagination.

“About 86 years ago, our ancestors rose up for the independence of this country, for true freedom. Now, we are fighting to prove that this country, which inherited the will of these ancestors, was founded on the spirit of freedom and the banner of equality.

We are not fighting for a specific race or a specific person. We are fighting to protect the true values of this country that our ancestors built and passed down. Even at this moment, our brave brothers, parents, and children are dedicating themselves to accomplish this noble task.

However, there are forces that do not like our great mission and the noble sacrifices of our patriotic ancestors.

Just a few days ago, France and Spain declared war on us. They are packaging their legitimacy with all sorts of rhetoric, but the reality is that they are just greedy powers who want to expand their territory and influence.

Respected citizens, we are now at a crossroads once again. Whether we will rise up with all our body and mind for freedom and equality, as the great ancestors who first founded this country did. Or whether we will succumb to the tyranny of Europe and taste the humiliation of the colonial era once again.

So, I will make it clear here. We will never succumb to their threats! As the representative of this country, I declare that we will dedicate everything to the great mission that this country has been given by God!”

“Lincoln! Lincoln! Lincoln!”

“Let’s fight! Let’s defend our homeland!”

“Let’s kill all the French and Spanish bastards!”

The sentiment that there was no reason to shed blood for Black people vanished without a trace.

With Lincoln’s speech, the nature of this war changed from a simple civil war to a war of resistance against European powers, which were once again extending their reach into America.

“I will enlist!”

“Please let me defend my homeland!”

“I will not let any of the French set foot on our homeland!”

Until now, most of the enlistment applicants were Black people and immigrants, but that was now a thing of the past.

An enormous number of volunteers lined up across the North, to the point where the administrative power was overwhelmed.

The fight between the North and the South, and the Spanish-French allied forces.

Looking at the names alone, the outcome seemed obvious to anyone, but the war situation was becoming more and more chaotic.

* * *

As France began to participate in earnest and actually dispatched troops, naturally the attention of the whole world began to focus on the United States.

[A great reversal in the North, which was having difficulties in recruiting troops for the Union Army. How long will the continuous volunteer enlistment last?]

[President Lincoln: “The North has enough capacity to mobilize a total of 2 million troops. If France and Spain actually come in, they will taste hell.”]

[Southern President Jefferson: “We welcome the participation of France and Spain. The very fact that the three countries have united as one is proof of which side justice is on.”]

A feast of endless breaking news.

Now that it had expanded into an international war rather than a civil war, even those who had not paid much attention to it until now began to pay attention to the outcome of this war.

If France or Spain loses here, it would be a laughing stock in itself.

By now, Spain might be looking at the scale of troops mobilized by the North and thinking that something was going wrong.

Frankly speaking, it doesn’t seem like France is any different.

But that doesn’t mean they can just pull out their troops, saying, ‘Oh, we were wrong. We’ll go back, so you two fight again. Good luck.’

In the first place, France is likely to believe that no matter how many there are, they, who once dominated all of Europe, cannot lose.

It’s not like they don’t have anything to rely on since the South is fighting with them.

But while everyone was paying attention to which side had more blood flowing in this vortex of crazy madness.

I was busy driving stakes wherever there was a smell of gold.

How could I resist the fact that money was being made just by bringing weapons and selling them?

First of all, I had finalized contracts with Spain and the South, and France had also been negotiating discreetly to see if they could procure this side’s new guns.

It seems like they thought it was easy and jumped in, but now they’re scared because the North is showing signs of launching a crazy barrage of supplies.

Anyway, the virtuous British Empire supports free trade, so its motto is to supply where there is demand.

If you pay, I’ll sell it to you, so bring your money.

If you don’t have money, you can hand over the rights instead, so as long as you pay, I’ll hand over the weapons as much as you want.

Even in the midst of this, I did not forget my original purpose and diligently educated Edward as my successor, showing him all these processes.

At first, he seemed hesitant, but as expected, people are adaptable, and he seems to be getting used to it quite quickly now.

And as the time came to leave only the last step of the grand finale, I decided to test the knowledge I had taught so far and have Edward take the lead in the negotiations instead.

Anyway, this side is the boss in the current situation, so if Edward makes a mistake, I can just take over instead.

“Nice to meet you, Your Highness Crown Prince Edward. I am Charles Francis Adams Sr., the plenipotentiary ambassador who has been entrusted with the authority to conclude this agreement.”

“Nice to meet you. This time, I will be in charge of these negotiations as the acting Duke of Canada. I hope this will be a place where we can both achieve satisfactory results.”

Francis glanced at me, who was watching silently from behind, and then turned his gaze back to Edward.

He seemed to think that this kind of meeting was prepared as part of successor education.

Still, it would be easier for him to deal with Edward, who was younger than me, so he didn’t seem to be too uncomfortable.

About thirty minutes passed as they exchanged greetings and made small talk.

When a cup of coffee was almost empty, Edward naturally brought up the main content of the negotiation.

“Our British Empire is deeply concerned about the increasingly widespread nature of the war, which is not calming down. We must not let the sparks fly to Canada.”

“I can confidently say that such a thing will not happen. The Union is currently waging an all-out war against the enemy, so they will be able to drive them out in the near future.”

“I know that too. I didn’t expect them to be able to mobilize so many troops, but I realized once again that the power of the United States is truly great.”

“Thank you for recognizing that. The power of the United States will never be shaken by such a thing.”

“But I heard that appropriate supplies are not being supplied in time due to the sudden formation of so many troops. Soldiers who have enlisted with the determination to defend their homeland have the right to be provided with armaments commensurate with that. Coincidentally, we are trying to increase the production line this time······.”

Um, um, very good flow.

As the North, which already knows that this side’s new guns are superior to their own weapons, cannot be happy about these guns flowing into the South.

They will want to reduce the amount of weapons going to that side at all costs.

“Could we possibly import even the existing quantity from your side?”

“Unfortunately, we have a contract with Spain, so we have to send as much as we have already signed.”

“Hmm······.”

“But this time, as Spain is officially participating in the war, they asked us to sell them the weapons they will use. France has also made a similar proposal. But personally, I do not agree with the South’s policy of advocating slavery. So, I am putting off the answer for now and making a proposal to the North first.”

A pure young man who is still too young to be contaminated by real politics.

Seeing Edward, who was exuding such an atmosphere and sparkling his eyes, Ambassador Francis quickly nodded his head.

“We are just grateful that you think so, as we are fighting a difficult battle.”

“Then, how about ordering not only weapons but also warships? With France joining, it seems essential to organize additional warships in order to maintain your country’s strategy of gaining naval superiority, and I would like to sell them to your country.”

Perhaps this was unexpected, Francis stopped talking for a moment and began to calculate fiercely in his head.

Wow, he’s trying to sell not only weapons but also ships here?

The words that he definitely wants to sell to that side are no different from saying that if you don’t buy it now, he can’t guarantee which side it will go to.

Seeing him applying what he learned right away, I naturally felt rewarded for teaching him.

As expected, you are my son.

Um, um, I’m proud of you.