By the end of the nineteenth century, the colonial frenzy had also reached its final stage. The lands around the world suitable for colonization had already been carved up, leaving only scraps and hard bones.
As colonial expansion pushed ever deeper, the buffers between nations vanished, and international conflicts grew increasingly frequent.
The struggle for the remaining lands, in particular, had become white-hot. This continued until the Anglo-Boer War, when the United Kingdom and Austria had a real showdown in South Africa. Only after witnessing war's terror did everyone gradually cool down.
The essence of European colonialism was making money, not so-called territorial expansion. While competing for colonies, every nation first had to consider the question of investment and returns.
The United Kingdom, the French Empire, and Austria were all great winners of the colonial age. Even the French Empire, which had the fewest colonies among them, started with tens of millions of square kilometers.
As vested interests, the United Kingdom, France, and Austria had all eaten their fill. They were no longer so fanatical in their pursuit of colonies. The most fertile regions had already been divided up, and the leftover scraps were no longer worth continued confrontation among the three nations.
The British had taken the initiative to propose a three-nation alliance. Apart from driving a wedge into the Franco-Austrian Alliance, they also meant to ease their conflicts with France and Austria.
One only had to open a map to see that the United Kingdom, France, and Austria already occupied half the globe. So long as nothing went wrong within the three nations, their hegemony simply could not be shaken.
For vested interests, stability was the best choice. They were all wearing shoes now; they could no longer risk their lives as they had when barefoot.
A tripartite