Chapter Summaries

President Lincoln gambled on covertly sending European revolutionary exiles home to stir unrest and delay foreign intervention. On the voyage, Stephen used the Hungarian Independence Organization’s dire situation to avoid helping Gaboli, while privately revealing that his group had become a comfortable, bluffing exile organization with little desire for revolution.

• President Lincoln arranged for revolutionary exiles to return secretly to Europe in late 1864, hoping unrest would weaken the intervention alliance.
• Stephen told Gaboli that the Hungarian Independence Organization could not help him outside Venetia because it could not mobilize enough people to tie down Austria.
• Stephen explained that Hungary’s weak national identity and Austria’s suppression had left his organization with few members and little influence.
• Gaboli apologized after believing Stephen’s account of the organization’s losses, and Stephen avoided committing his group to the Italian cause.
• Stephen reflected that the organization’s leaders had mostly abandoned revolution and used their reputation for bravado to protect their comfortable lives in the United States.

Stephen and Gaboli separated after returning to Europe, while Stephen’s group cautiously entered Hungary to revive the independence movement. As Prussia prepared for war with Russia, William I chose an offensive gamble in Russian Poland and sought Austria’s neutrality; Franz, meanwhile, advised Maximilian on securing his throne in Mexico.

• Stephen and Gaboli went their separate ways, and Stephen’s group landed in Montenegro before sending unfamiliar young men into Hungary to gather intelligence.
• On December 28, 1864, the Tsarist Government ordered Prussia to leave Denmark within twenty-four hours, forcing William I and his ministers to confront the prospect of war with Russia.
• Roon reported that Prussia had mobilized 427,000 troops, while Moltke proposed evacuating border civilians and raising more troops; William I rejected the scorched-earth plan.
• Frank urged William I to fight in Russian Poland and seek supporters, and William I approved the gamble and ordered negotiations with Austria.
• Franz considered Maximilian’s request for help and advised him to win over Mexican constitutionalists and seek French loans backed by public revenues and resources.

Franz dismissed the threat posed by returning revolutionary groups, while leaders of the Hungarian Independence Organization argued over how to escape their failing cause and American obligations. Mariut proposed a ruthless way out, leaving the group to face the prospect of sacrificing its rank-and-file members.

• Franz ordered the Police Ministry to deal with the revolutionary groups returning to Europe, dismissing them as insignificant.
• Stephen and the Hungarian Independence Organization’s leaders discussed how Hungary’s shrinking Magyar population and Austrian integration policies had made an uprising there nearly impossible.
• Mariut proposed shifting operations to Sardinia, staging minor attacks and injuries, and using fabricated evidence to convince American funders that the organization had suffered devastating losses.
• Stephen refused Mariut’s attempt to retire and demanded to know how the organization could withdraw without provoking the Americans.
• Mariut said they would need to be ruthless, and the leaders realized that the rank-and-file members might be sacrificed.

Franz weighed Austria’s response to the war between Prussia and Russia, aiming to hinder Russian reforms without letting Prussia grow too powerful. With both countries’ finances in danger, Austria limited support for Russia to secured loans and material aid, while Britain struggled to raise funds for Prussia.

• Wessenberg reported that Russia and Prussia had both offered Austria Silesia in exchange for its support or neutrality.
• Felix argued that Austria should let Prussia and Russia weaken each other, but Franz rejected the risky plan and chose to use Prussia to disrupt Russian reforms while preventing Prussian expansion.
• Karl warned Franz that Russia faced possible bankruptcy, so Franz ordered tighter lending and required collateral for large loans to Russia.
• Agawar told John Russell that only 1.869 million pounds of Prussian war bonds had sold, far below the 15 million pound target, as investors doubted Prussia could win.
• John Russell learned that Britain had advanced Prussia 5 million pounds but had failed to raise even one-fifth of its promised support after two months.

France debated whether to keep financing Prussia’s war against Russia, and Napoleon III chose a loan secured by Prussian sovereignty over the Rhineland. In Berlin, William I faced delayed foreign aid and Switzerland’s withdrawal from its mutual defense treaty, while his government remained confident that Britain and France would eventually provide funds.

• French Finance Minister Allen argued that Prussia could not withstand Russia and urged France to stop funding it, while Foreign Minister Abraham urged continued support to weaken Russia through a prolonged war.
• Napoleon III decided to lend Prussia money in exchange for the Rhineland as collateral, hoping France would benefit whether Prussia won or lost.
• Foreign Minister McKet told William I that Switzerland was dissolving its mutual defense treaty with Prussia and would announce the decision publicly.
• William I set aside the Swiss withdrawal and ordered his Foreign Ministry to press Britain and France to deliver their promised financial aid.
• McKet assured William I that Britain and France would provide funds as long as Prussia held its ground, citing Russia’s struggle to suppress the Polish uprising.

Gaboli persuaded Drekes to join a Sicilian uprising, and the Redshirts launched the revolution in January 1865 before a Spanish revolt followed. Meanwhile, Stephen and the Hungarian Independence Organization prepared a staged uprising in Venetia and Lombardy to implicate Italian nationalists and secure their own escape.

• Gaboli convinced Drekes that Sicily's revolutionaries should join the coordinated uprisings, though Drekes could offer only a little over a hundred people.
• On January 5, 1865, Gaboli's Italian National Salvation Army began the uprising in Corleone as the Redshirts, and the Spanish Revolutionary Party revolted in Elda three days later.
• Stephen and the Hungarian Independence Organization used colonial companies as cover to recruit and train thousands of Italians while contacting nationalists in Lombardy and Venetia.
• Stephen told his associates that they would use the Austrian intelligence-provided list to draw Italian nationalists into a rebellion and help the organization escape Austria.
• Stephen scheduled the staged armed uprising for 4:30 a.m. on February 15, 1865, intending for leaked plans and fabricated letters to serve as evidence against the rebels.

Napoleon III ordered a crackdown on the organizers behind France’s frequent demonstrations as revolutionary unrest spread across Europe. In Austria, Atisa received Stephen’s invitation to join a rebellion, burned the letter, and concealed it, unknowingly implicating himself in a government trap.

• Napoleon III told Police Minister Adair to uncover who was organizing the demonstrations, while Foreign Minister Abraham warned that revolutions were spreading across Europe.
• Napoleon III ordered regional police to heighten their vigilance and arranged for the Paris City Guard to rotate with the Seventh Division in the Nantes region.
• Atisa received a letter from Stephen inviting him to join a revolutionary meeting and worried that the message might have been seen by others.
• Atisa judged the rebellion doomed, burned Stephen’s letter, and told Butler Nair to keep their connection secret.
• Atisa did not report the letter to the authorities, leaving himself vulnerable to prosecution for concealing knowledge of the plot.

Tereos abandoned his plans to cooperate with Stephen after realizing that the mercenaries could make war threaten his factories, and he rushed to City Hall. In Hungary, Brooks learned that the uprising was planned for February 15, recognized his friends’ warning to flee, and decided to use Domici to deliver letters that could expose the conspirators and protect himself.

• Tereos saw that Stephen’s Italian mercenaries were cheap enough for colonial work, but a letter made him fear that their revolutionary activity could spark a war that would ruin his businesses.
• Tereos ordered Martin to prepare a carriage so he could go to City Hall and avoid another upheaval.
• Domici delivered the Hungarian Independence Organization’s letter to Brooks, who questioned why the uprising was scheduled for February 15.
• Domici revealed that the organization planned to join a broader wave of revolutions and believed its uprising would succeed with mercenaries and local support.
• Brooks understood that messages from Paul and Solam used old signals to warn him to flee, and he urged Domici to finish his task and leave for Russia.
• Brooks decided to protect himself by having Domici deliver letters that would draw his own enemies into the affair.

Franz and his ministers weighed Europe’s revolutions and the civil war in America, deciding to prioritize dividing America before events made the Intervention Coalition unstable. In Saint Petersburg, Alexander II demanded that Russian forces take the war into Prussia quickly, despite their setbacks and severe financial and supply shortages.

• Wessenberg told the Austrian ministers that American-backed revolutions were disrupting Europe and limiting the powers’ ability to intervene in the American Civil War.
• Felix warned that unrest at home was also tying down Austria, while Franz ordered the Foreign Ministry to coordinate the Intervention Coalition and make dividing America its priority.
• Alexander II confronted his ministers over the Russian army’s failure to advance and heard Nicholas-Ketch explain that Polish insurgents and supply problems had forced Fitzroy to withdraw from Warsaw.
• Alexander II ordered Fitzroy to bring the fighting into Prussia as soon as possible, using small units to damage enemy war potential if the main force could not break through.
• The chapter revealed that Russia’s war effort was constrained by low funds and disrupted logistics, while Alexander II had suspended further reforms to raise money for the conflict.

The Hungarian Independence Organization’s leaders planned to flee after using uprisings in Venice and Milan as a diversion, while Otko’s rebel force prepared to launch the poorly armed Venice revolt. Otko explained that the uprising was meant to create chaos and draw Austrian attention, not to win, leaving Taft to recognize that the Italians were being treated as expendable.

• Stephen described the leaders’ escape route from Venice through the Balkans, the Ottoman Empire, Asia, Japan, and onward to the United States.
• Paul warned that the Americans might surrender revolutionary exiles to European powers if the Union lost the Civil War, and Stephen reassured the leaders that their wanted status would protect their property.
• Otko prepared to command several thousand rebels despite having only ten guns and explained that capturing police stations was necessary to obtain ammunition.
• Taft objected that Venice was a poor place for an uprising because the rebels lacked weapons, faced the Austrian Navy, and could not rely on the Italian mercenaries.
• Otko said the revolt would create enough unrest to support the Hungarian uprising, and that the organization did not care whether the Italians were defeated or killed.

The Hungarian Independence Organization’s uprising in Venice and Milan collapsed after the authorities, alerted by informants, were ready for the rebels. Paul and Stephen remained at Venice Port, unwilling to flee before the failure became known.

• On February 15, 1865, Otko and Taft led the rebels’ attack on the Venetian police station, where armed police repelled them.
• Otko ordered the insurgents to scatter, but water police, armed residents, and rooftop sharpshooters blocked their escape.
• Taft was shot in the knee and urged his men to flee, while Babatev surrendered and handed over a Hungarian Independence Organization leader.
• In Milan, city guards surrounded the rebels and prepared to suppress them.
• At Venice Port, Paul urged Stephen to leave, but Stephen refused to go before the outcome was clear.

After the failed uprising, Chief Pativat questioned Atisa over his contacts with Stephen and suspected him of helping rebels and supporting Lombardy-Venetia independence. Atisa denied the accusations, but Pativat detained him and barred him from contacting the outside world for a week.

• The Vienna Government launched an investigation into the uprising, and police summoned people who had been in contact with the Hungarian Independence Organization.
• Chief Pativat questioned Atisa about meeting Stephen at a banquet and receiving a secret letter from him.
• Atisa claimed he had discussed colonial ventures with Stephen and hired Italian mercenaries because they were cheap, but Pativat remained suspicious.
• Pativat confronted Atisa with reports that his youth arts and culture training class promoted Lombardy-Venetia independence, which Atisa denied.
• Chief Pativat detained Atisa on suspicion of conspiring to rebel and splitting the country, and prohibited him from contacting anyone for a week.

After Austria suppressed rebellions in Milan and Venice, Franz and Prime Minister Felix reviewed the arrests and the government’s handling of suspected rebels. The chapter ended with Franz ordering the remaining cases investigated and prosecuted according to law.

• Austria arrested more than 150,000 people in a crackdown, and Franz halted its expansion to protect economic development.
• Prime Minister Felix reported that hundreds of rebels had been killed and thousands captured in Milan and Venice, while the ringleaders remained at large.
• Franz ordered captured rebels convicted and sent to the railway road-building army to address labor shortages.
• Felix explained that most other detainees were still under investigation and that relatively few people outside the Italian regions were suspected of rebellion.
• Franz ordered officials to continue investigating the remaining suspects and handle their cases according to law.

Exhausted by the costly war and worried that the European powers would soon turn their attention back to America, Lincoln decided to begin negotiations with the Southern Government. Secret talks began as both sides struggled to continue fighting.

• Lincoln said the Northern Government could no longer sustain the war and ordered negotiations with the Southern Government to begin.
• Safar questioned the timing, but Lincoln showed him intelligence that Europe’s revolutionary movements had failed to cause enough disruption.
• Lincoln concluded that Britain, France, and Austria would soon resolve their internal troubles and could then retaliate against the Northern Government.
• The Northern and Southern Governments, both burdened by heavy casualties and military costs, began secret negotiations.

Major General Popov led a Russo-American fleet to attack pirates on San Clemente Island, unaware that British Royal Navy officers were disguised among them. A British ambush shattered the joint fleet, and the Moscow sank as the survivors surrendered or fled.

• Major General Popov agreed to attack the pirates on San Clemente Island alongside Colonel Magill’s American ships.
• Major Gurney ordered his disguised Royal Navy crew and the other captains to prepare an ambush under the cover of the Pirate Alliance.
• Popov ordered the joint fleet to pursue the fleeing pirates around the island, where British ships opened fire from hiding.
• The American warships fled as the fleet fell into disarray, and Popov ordered a retreat.
• The Moscow took five hits and sank while its crew abandoned ship in lifeboats, raising white flags.

The British Government agreed with Austria to intervene in the American Civil War before the Prusso-Russian War ended, aiming to divide the United States and protect British interests. The four powers pressured North and South to negotiate, leaving Lincoln worried that the intervention would force the Federal Government into concessions over Maryland.

• Foreign Secretary Reslin argued that Britain should prioritize the European balance while moving quickly to divide the United States and end its civil war.
• John Russell approved ending the American Civil War and retaliating for American support of the Irish Independence Organization.
• On March 7, 1865, United Kingdom, France, Austria, and Spain agreed to intervene, and Mark Oliver represented them in negotiations with both sides.
• On March 8, the four powers held joint naval exercises off the American coasts, prompting Lincoln to suspect that the secret negotiations had been exposed.
• Secretary of State Safar told Lincoln that the intervention likely stemmed from events in Europe, but Lincoln feared it would leave the Federal Government unable to secure Maryland or preserve its authority.

The great powers mediated between the Northern and Southern Governments as news broke that pirates had nearly destroyed the Russo-American fleet in the Channel Islands. Alexander II blamed the British but chose to leave retaliation to the Americans, recognizing that Russia had little influence in the Americas.

• The United Kingdom, France, Austria, and Spain joined negotiations between the North and South, while Indian representatives attended only as observers.
• News reached the talks that pirates had nearly wiped out the Russo-American fleet, prompting President Lincoln to send an East Coast fleet to the Channel Islands and notify Russia and European governments.
• Franz dismissed the Russian naval defeat as predictable and considered, then abandoned, suggesting that Alexander II use the navy to raid Prussian shores.
• Alexander II demanded an explanation from Minister Lawrence Lovsky, who accused the British of disguising warships as pirate vessels and promised a Russian expedition.
• Foreign Minister Clarence urged Alexander II to avoid sending a fleet and pursue diplomatic remedies, and Alexander chose to have the Americans handle the pirates.
• The defeat shook Alexander II’s ambitions to join the North-South negotiations and reminded him that Russia had little leverage across the ocean.

Franz’s government discussed how to protect Austria’s cotton textile industry and West African cotton plantations as American production recovered and British competition threatened Austrian markets. Franz called for public and economic assessments of lowering trade taxes between the mainland and colonies, leaving colonial integration under consideration.

• Economic Minister Andrew proposed protecting Austrian cotton textiles through domestic and Russian markets, with subsidies and tax rebates if British and French competitors challenged Austrian manufacturers in Central Europe.
• Agriculture Minister Christian recommended reducing or abolishing trade taxes between West African colonies and the mainland to strengthen West African cotton.
• Franz asked the government to gauge domestic reactions and commission economists to assess the effects of lowering colonial trade taxes, given its implications for integrating the colonies with the mainland.
• Franz considered how future chemical fertilizers could increase grain production, depress agricultural prices, and harm Austria’s farming interests.

Franz considered the New Holy Roman Empire’s constitutional structure, colonial integration, and Vienna’s deindustrialization as ways to preserve stability and strengthen imperial authority. He left colonial integration undecided, with its future political form still requiring study.

• Franz judged that public debate over integrating the colonies and homeland made the proposal likely to pass through the Imperial Parliament.
• Franz relied on the Imperial Parliament to approve major decisions and bear responsibility, while member states retained broad autonomy under the constitution.
• Franz argued that the Empire’s shared investment and need for naval protection made its colonies imperial possessions, though their eventual political status remained open.
• Franz preferred colonies to become constituent states, which would let him hold more royal titles and reinforce the imperial bond.
• Franz kept industry out of Vienna and encouraged its growth in smaller Austrian cities, maintaining the capital’s prosperity and reducing the risk of unrest.

Dockworker Arnaud watched Baron Fikeni’s ship arrive in Venice, while Fikeni returned to Austria to lobby for the African colonies to be incorporated into the homeland. The chapter ended with nobles and colonial capitalists hoping to gain land and status through incorporation, a prospect Franz supported to give them a path upward.

• Arnaud recalled how Austria’s strict citizenship rules kept him from becoming a citizen despite living in Venice for more than ten years.
• Facer asked Arnaud about the banner on an arriving ship, and Arnaud identified it as a noble family’s coat of arms.
• Baron Fikeni ordered Manar to unload the ship’s cargo and send it to the railway station, then told Will he would visit Viscount Obila before returning to Vienna in three days.
• Fikeni planned to lobby for the African colonies’ incorporation into the homeland so he could make his farms and plantations into a family fief.
• Nobles and colonial capitalists sought incorporation as a way to secure land, status, and opportunities, while Franz supported it as a path for them to advance.