Austria's colonial strategy had not begun only recently. Years ago, the Vienna Government had already been funding expeditions to conduct surveys across the African Continent.
Setting aside the interior for now, they at least had a grasp of the basic situation along the coast. Now that they were ready to act, they would not be groping about in the dark.
It was not just the African Continent. The Austrian Government had gathered intelligence on many regions around the world. Some had been collected by agents it sent out itself, while some had been bought from middlemen.
In this era, exploration was also a business. Many private expeditions sold the intelligence they gathered to colonial governments in exchange for handsome rewards.
Selling it once was selling it; selling it twice was naturally still selling it. So long as the price was right, everything was negotiable. Risking one's life on an expedition naturally required sufficient returns.
For the sake of caution, Franz had prepared three infantry divisions. They would only seize the coastal regions and would not push deep into the interior, so these troops would be enough.
Guinea was not large, so it would be swallowed by Austria before long. The Congo region was another matter. The Congo of this era included both the later Democratic Republic of the Congo and Republic of the Congo.
Its area was anything but small, several times that of Austria itself. Clearly, it was impossible to occupy it with such a small force.
Like every colonial power, they would prioritize the coastal regions. The African interior was not yet ready for development.
First, they would send this group of refugees over. With immigrants, they could establish port cities and then slowly develop these lands.
As for how to colonially govern these regions, they would worry