The invention of the telegraph accelerated the spread of news. Word that the Prussian Government intended to sell the Rhineland soon spread across the European Continent.
At Berlin Palace, William I wiped away a bead of sweat. "Send someone to ask the Chancellor. Didn't I have him send people out to explain? Why hasn't the crowd outside dispersed yet?"
This was a hallmark of the age of nationalism: people had begun to value territory. Land deals that monarchs had once been free to decide on now had to take public reaction into account.
Though the Rhineland was rich in resources, it was not actually core territory of the Kingdom of Prussia. Threatened by the French as well, it held an even lower place in the government's eyes.
In the original timeline, Bismarck had dared to promise the Rhineland to the French because he had prepared for the worst. For example, if the French had taken advantage of the chaos during the Austro-Prussian War, Prussia would have had no choice but to painfully give it up.
Fortunately, they had won their gamble. The French chose to wait and see rather than strike while the iron was hot. Otherwise, all of subsequent European history would have had to be rewritten.
Having obtained the benefits they wanted, Napoleon III had no drive to launch a war. With one side waxing while the other waned, the Kingdom of Prussia's odds of victory became even slimmer.
Besides, with an extra stretch of land serving as a buffer, even if the Kingdom of Prussia dared to take the risk, the French would have more time to prepare and could mobilize greater forces. If Prussia wanted to win, it could only pray for God's blessing.
Bismarck had dared to use the Rhineland as a gamble, but if