Chapter Summaries

Franz considered the economic and political consequences of choosing a railway gauge and decided Austria should propose a common standard for the Holy Roman Alliance. He then weighed possible colonial ventures in South Africa and the Suez Canal, leaving the details of cooperation with other powers unresolved.

• Metternich proposed that the Holy Roman Alliance establish a common railway gauge, and Stein said construction could accommodate a decision within a year.
• Franz ordered the Railway Ministry to select Austria’s preferred proposal and seek agreement across the alliance, while Stein favored the 1676 mm gauge.
• Franz considered whether Austria could establish colonial footholds in South Africa before Britain expanded inland, but recognized the risks and need for careful timing.
• Franz concluded that Austria should push ahead with the Suez Canal and considered bringing France into a joint effort to secure a stake.
• Franz weighed Austria’s alliances and recognized that it would have to choose one great power rather than try to remain neutral between rivals.

Franz’s government promoted agricultural processing and manufacturing as Austria’s economy expanded, but a Russian ultimatum threatened Prussia’s campaign over Schleswig-Holstein. Expecting Prussia to yield, Franz planned to use the return of wartime donations to buy time and conceal the Royal Bank’s financial shortfall.

• In August 1849, the Austrian Government cut taxes for agricultural processors, raised tariffs on raw agricultural exports, and offered tax breaks to new enterprises, prompting 221 new businesses.
• Austria’s food prices fell and industrial capacity rose by 15 percent compared with 1847, as cheaper living costs and the opening of the Hungarian market boosted consumption and production.
• Metternich told Franz that Russia had mobilized along the Prussian border and delivered a seventy-two-hour ultimatum after Prussia announced nationwide mobilization.
• German states and cities voiced support for Schleswig-Holstein, but Austrian officials’ enlistment lists discouraged demonstrators from volunteering to fight.
• Franz concluded Prussia would likely compromise with Russia and decided to demand that it repay more than four million guilders in donations.
• Franz told Metternich to coordinate with the German states and encourage the public to demand their donations back from Prussia after it abandoned the duchies.

Prussia accepted Russia’s ultimatum and moved to end the Prusso-Danish War, provoking anger across the German Confederation and leaving the Federal Assembly to address Schleswig and Holstein. In Vienna, Franz prepared to refund unused donations and turn his diversion of the money into a documented commercial loan.

• In Berlin, Joseph von Radowitz and Alpha argued over whether Prussia should resist Russia, while Finance Minister Holder warned that the treasury and supplies could not sustain a war.
• Frederick William IV ordered Prussia to accept Russian mediation, reopen negotiations with Denmark, lift nationwide mobilization, and explain the government’s predicament to the public.
• On December 23, Prussia accepted Russia’s proposal and began withdrawing from Jutland; Austria announced a federal conference and urged Prussia to hold Schleswig and Holstein.
• Franz canceled Austrian Christmas festivities in protest at Prussia’s retreat and reflected on how quickly the Prussian government had ended the conflict.
• John Stewa warned Franz that the Royal Bank needed to prepare to return donations, and Franz ordered a press conference, proportional refunds of unused funds, and the deposit of royal income into the bank.
• Franz told John Stewa to complete the commercial loan paperwork so that his use of the donation funds would be recorded as a legitimate loan.

Franz approved Austria’s 1850 budget, including a special fund for unforeseen expenses, while considering the country’s debts and uncertain revenues. After Prussian troops withdrew from Danish territory under Russian pressure, Franz chose to avoid confronting Russia and instead ordered a public campaign against Prussia.

• Prime Minister Felix presented the 1850 budget, and Franz approved it with a special fund of twenty million shields for unforeseen circumstances.
• Franz reviewed Austria’s spending, revenue, and debts, noting that the government’s fiscal balance depended on uncertain conditions.
• On January 6, 1850, Prussian troops withdrew from Danish territory, including Schleswig-Holstein, under pressure from Karl-Wesselrode.
• Franz and Metternich decided against involving the German Confederation in the dispute to avoid provoking Russia.
• Franz ordered a public campaign demanding repayment from Prussia and condemning its attempt to divert domestic attention through war.

Franz’s government responded to the Holy Land crisis by avoiding direct Austrian involvement and encouraging France to take the lead while Austria shaped public opinion in South Germany. As Russia prepared for war against the Ottoman Empire, Austrian leaders argued over Balkan expansion versus unifying the South German states, but the chapter ended with the realization that rival powers could not easily agree on how to divide the spoils.

• The Archbishop of Kentenia asked Franz to respond to the Holy Land crisis, but Franz postponed a decision until he could consult the Cabinet.
• Metternich urged Franz to let Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte lead intervention, and Franz ordered propaganda efforts to strengthen Austrian influence in South Germany.
• Metternich warned that Russia was preparing for war and that Austria might soon have to choose between expanding into the Balkans and unifying South Germany.
• Prince Windisch-Grätz argued that Austria should prioritize Balkan expansion because Britain and France would focus on Russia, while Felix warned that absorbing more ethnic minorities would hinder integration.
• Felix proposed unifying South Germany first and offering Prussia, France, and Russia territorial concessions to secure their cooperation, but the discussion concluded that competing interests and fear of Russian expansion made such a plan difficult to carry out.

Franz postponed Austria’s choice between westward and southward expansion, arguing that international developments made a decision premature. He turned the cabinet’s attention to purging ineffective officials through a merit evaluation system, while leaving corruption investigations as a possible consequence.

• Metternich argued that Austria’s expansion plans depended on whether Britain and France entered a possible war between Russia and the Ottoman Empire.
• Franz considered how the Russo-Austrian Alliance could change the course of a conflict and concluded that Austria should wait before choosing a direction for expansion.
• Franz urged the government to address its lack of execution and remove officials who were unable or unwilling to do their jobs.
• Prime Minister Felix agreed and prepared to introduce a merit evaluation system to identify disobedient and incompetent officials.
• Franz planned to use performance reviews and appropriate corruption investigations to discipline bureaucrats without provoking powerful interest groups.

The Prusso-Danish Treaty of Berlin damaged Prussia’s standing in the German states, while Bavaria’s shifting alignment complicated Austria’s plans for German unification. Felix’s cabinet discussion veered into Austria’s expansion strategy before returning to the original subject of reforming the official ranks.

• The Prussian Government signed the Prusso-Danish Treaty of Berlin, and the German Confederation delegation refused to sign it, leaving Prussia to bear the blame.
• Crowds surrounded Prussian embassies to demand their donation money back, forcing German governments to send troops to protect them.
• Bavaria shifted its diplomatic stance as it tried to preserve a balance between Austria and Prussia, while Felix considered how Austria might eventually dissolve its alliance with Bavaria.
• Felix argued that Austria’s main risks in unifying South Germany were diplomatic, and Metternich assessed possible French support or neutrality.
• Finance Minister Karl objected to expansion while Austria’s domestic affairs and finances remained unsettled, and Felix returned the meeting to its original discussion of rectifying the official ranks.

Metternich and Felix agreed to tie Austrian officials’ promotions to merit and political loyalty, accepting personal flaws when officials proved capable. The reforms reflected Franz’s reliance on the nobility and the government’s preparations for German unification, while incompetent and corrupt officials remained the clearest targets for punishment.

• Metternich proposed promoting officials solely according to their political achievements and ability, regardless of status or bloodline.
• Felix agreed to merit-based promotions but required officials to meet basic standards of political loyalty.
• The Cabinet established practical evaluations that favored effective officials, tolerated some corruption when officials delivered results, and punished those who were both incompetent and corrupt.
• Franz’s system preserved noble privileges while allowing exceptional common-born talents to enter the nobility through service to the state.
• Prince Windisch-Grätz enforced rigorous military training for noble officers and soldiers, punishing those who tried to evade it.

Austria intensified its government and military purges while preparing for military reform. Franz approved removing underage officers from the army, including members of the royal family, and the reform plan moved forward with the Milk Bottle Officer Corps set to be disbanded.

• The Austrian Government punished corrupt and disobedient officials, while the War Ministry dismissed generals and officers and tightened military training.
• Noble officers Kasamen and Gernia discussed the brutal special training, including Sarkes’s beating and Alta’s injury and desertion trial.
• Prince Windisch-Grätz presented Franz with the War Ministry’s revised military reform plan at Schönbrunn Palace.
• Franz questioned a proposal to remove overage officers, and Windisch-Grätz clarified that it targeted officers under sixteen who had not served.
• Franz ordered all underage officers stripped of their ranks, with no exceptions for the royal family, and Windisch-Grätz agreed.

Franz continued Austria’s military reforms, expanding logistics and medical support while abandoning plans to profit from penicillin after its production proved too difficult. In Saint Petersburg, Nicholas I pressed his finance minister to raise funds for the war, but noble taxes and the tax-farming system delayed preparations.

• Franz suppressed his three younger brothers’ protests over the military reforms and set aside plans for a military academy because Austria could not afford it.
• Franz expanded the army’s logistics system and established medical units, though the field hospitals lacked enough doctors and would take years to become effective.
• Franz’s attempt to produce penicillin remained unsuccessful, so he abandoned plans to make money from selling medicine.
• Nicholas I demanded to know when the war funds would be ready, and Finance Minister Arestanli said the sum would take until the second half of the following year to gather.
• Arestanli explained that nobles had not paid the war tax and that tax-farming contracts made collecting taxes early too costly, so Nicholas I ordered the Ministry of Finance to keep raising military funds without forcing advance payments.

Maximilian I committed Bavaria to an alliance with Prussia, fearing Austria’s growing influence over the German states. After Bavaria and Prussia proposed a responsible cabinet, Austrian officials considered countering them with a broader cabinet and a German imperial election to gauge public support for unification.

• Maximilian I defended his alliance with Prussia against Prime Minister Mu'ersi’s warnings that it would provoke Austria and alienate Bavarians.
• On July 21, 1850, Prussia, Bavaria, Hanover, Brunswick, and other states proposed forming a responsible cabinet before the German Confederation Federal Assembly.
• In Vienna, Metternich recommended that Austria win over the smaller German states and form a cabinet encompassing all the states.
• Prime Minister Felix doubted that a responsible cabinet could govern the German lands, while Karl proposed calling for an imperial election as a way to disrupt Prussia’s plans.
• Karl explained that the proposed election would test how willing the German people were to accept Austria and inform future policy.

Franz approved a covert campaign to win support for Austrian-led German unification as the great powers maneuvered to prevent the German states from uniting. Britain resolved to oppose even a nominal unified German government, while Palmerston noted that other powers shared its goal.

• Franz ordered Austria to increase its infiltration of Bavaria, and Felix proposed establishing an independent German Unification Committee to win over supporters and undermine opposition.
• Franz approved the committee, which would publicly have no connection to Austria and would focus on persuading people in the German states.
• In Paris, President Napoleon favored a German arrangement led by Bavaria but avoided taking the lead while France faced domestic problems and European suspicion.
• In London, John Russell and his ministers discussed the threat posed by a responsible cabinet and the possibility of Austria, Prussia, and Bavaria forming an alliance.
• John Russell ordered Palmerston to prevent any unified German government from emerging, and Palmerston assured him that other powers also wanted to keep the German lands divided.

Austria’s railway shares debuted in Vienna and surged, attracting foreign capital and helping fuel rapid economic growth. Franz welcomed the investment but left the boom unchecked for now, despite worrying that it could eventually lead to overcapacity and a crisis.

• On June 11, 1850, the Austrian Federal Railway Operations Group issued three million shares at ten florins each on the Vienna Securities Exchange.
• By the afternoon close, the stock had risen 56 percent to 15.6 florins per share, and John Stwa reported the result to Franz at Schönbrunn Palace.
• Franz praised Stwa’s work and said the Royal Bank’s employees would receive bonuses according to established rules.
• Foreign capital flowed into Austrian railways and other government-supported industries as the economy accelerated through the second half of 1850.
• Franz worried that uncontrolled expansion could cause overcapacity but decided to wait before intervening.

Bavaria’s railway companies proposed a trunk line connecting Baden in the west to Austria at Salzburg, and Maximilian I supported the project for its economic and political benefits. Franz agreed to cooperate, recognizing that the railway would advance Austria’s influence across South Germany.

• Bavarian economists and investors promoted a railway trunk line, and the Royal Bavarian Railway Company decided to seek construction rights and prepare plans.
• The Royal Bavarian Railway Company and the Bavarian Watson Railway Company submitted railway proposals to Maximilian I.
• Maximilian I asked about diplomatic obstacles, and his Foreign Minister explained how member states could coordinate construction and operation under the Holy Roman Alliance.
• Franz approved Bavaria’s proposal and offered Austrian cooperation and access to the Vienna stock market if funding was needed.
• Franz welcomed Bavaria taking responsibility for the railway and anticipated that it would help Austria extend its influence across South Germany.

Austria’s attempt to shape the German Confederation faltered amid opposition from Prussia, Bavaria, and the great powers, while Franz’s government debated expanding the empire’s reserves to two million. The ministers agreed the reserve plan was feasible, leaving its funding and practical implementation unresolved.

• Austria proposed a joint cabinet for the German Confederation, but Prussia, Bavaria, Britain, France, and Russia opposed it, and Austria dropped its proposal to elect an emperor.
• Britain proposed dissolving the Confederation assembly and forming a new country under Bavaria with the small German states, but Austria and Prussia joined forces to reject the plan.
• Prince Windisch-Grätz urged the Austrian Government to raise the number of reservists to two million, citing threats from France, Prussia, and Russia.
• Finance Minister Karl supported the goal but resisted its cost, arguing that the War Ministry could build the reserve gradually and keep spending low.
• Franz redirected the ministers from their budget dispute to consider whether the reserve plan was workable, and Prime Minister Felix and the others supported it.
• Prince Windisch-Grätz proposed expanding the officer corps and assigning two deputies to frontline officers so Austria could mobilize a million men quickly in wartime.

Franz secured approval for an independent General Staff led by Field Marshal Radetzky, advancing Austria’s colonial strategy while preserving checks on military authority. Meanwhile, Bavaria’s bid to unite German states faltered, and Prussia rejected a British loan condition that required it to leave the German Confederation, turning to Austria for support.

• Franz established a General Staff under Field Marshal Radetzky after Prince Windisch-Grätz objected, and the proposal passed.
• Maximilian I learned that Württemberg had rejected Bavaria’s overtures to unite the German states.
• German nationalists planned a demonstration against Bavaria’s rumored desire for independence, while Austrians quietly supported them.
• Frederick William IV learned that Britain would lend Prussia money only if it permanently withdrew from the German Confederation.
• Joseph von Radowitz advised Frederick William IV to leak the British condition to Austria rather than rush into an alliance, preserving Prussia’s initiative.

Franz and the Austrian Government considered how to answer British pressure on Prussia and debated whether to divide the German lands with the Prussian Government. Austria chose to make secret contact and offer Prussia a share, while Franz remained wary of relying on Russia; Prussia was already willing to cooperate after its defeat and domestic unrest.

• The Austrian Government suspected Britain was pressuring Prussia to prevent German unification, and Franz assessed the danger of a European coalition opposing Austria.
• Metternich urged Austria to help Prussia resist Britain, while Prime Minister Felix and Metternich discussed whether Prussia would agree to divide the German lands.
• Franz ordered secret contact with the Prussian Government and argued that Austria should offer it North Germany rather than risk making it an enemy.
• Archduke Louis suggested using British pressure to isolate Prussia and let Austria take the German lands alone, but Franz rejected the plan because Russia might not reliably restrain Prussia.
• The Prussian Government accepted Austria’s approach because its defeat in the Prusso-Danish War and a suppressed revolutionary uprising had weakened its confidence in unifying Germany.

Austria and Prussia signed a treaty against foreign interference, while Franz refused to help Prussia financially. Bavaria sought to repair relations with Austria through a marriage alliance, but Franz rejected the proposal for the time being and left the matter postponed.

• Austria and Prussia signed the German Treaty in Vienna, and Franz refused Metternich’s request to approve a Prussian loan.
• Maximilian I asked how Bavaria could escape its diplomatic predicament, and his prime minister proposed marrying Princess Helen to Franz.
• Empress Dowager Sophie welcomed the Bavarian proposal, but Franz told her Austria should not form a marriage alliance with Bavaria amid the countries’ conflict.
• Franz explained that Bavaria had betrayed its alliance with Austria by siding with Prussia, and Sophie agreed to set the marriage proposal aside for a few years.

Franz reviewed Austria’s network of secret treaties and its plans to secure colonial supply routes, then challenged the Admiralty’s conservative shipbuilding program. He rejected a fleet built mainly of sailing warships and left the story with Austria’s naval modernization still to be advanced discreetly.

• Austria’s secret treaties included agreements with France, Britain, Russia, Prussia, and Spain, while negotiations with the Netherlands and Portugal continued.
• The Admiralty requested fifty million shield to build a fleet within five years, but Franz questioned its plan to build sailing warships instead of adopting steam propulsion.
• Filkos said Austria could theoretically build steam-powered warships but argued that their cost and maintenance made them risky.
• Franz ordered the navy to apply new technology rather than let its ships become targets for more modern fleets.
• Franz decided not to publicly propose ironclads and planned to promote naval innovation behind the scenes.

Austria and other European powers expanded their militaries as Russia prepared for war, while France’s army buildup intensified fears of intervention. Franz weighed the risks of escalating Austria’s arms race against the chance to unify South Germany, and the chapter left him ready to act on that gamble.

• The Austrian Empire raised its 1851 military budget and began expanding its reserves as its leaders anticipated a Russo-Turkish war.
• Prime Minister Felix warned Franz that France had added 50,000 soldiers, prompting the Austrian cabinet to discuss how to counter French intervention.
• Marshal Radetzky and Prince Windisch-Grätz debated whether Austria could defeat France in Germany or Italy, while Metternich argued that Prussia would help block the French.
• Franz concluded that the European arms race could weaken Prussia and create an opening for Austria to unify South Germany.
• Chancellor Felix and Marshal Radetzky urged Franz to escalate military spending, accepting the risk in exchange for the chance to gain South Germany or turn toward the Balkans.