The January Revolution

Chapter 22: The January Revolution

The sudden economic crisis caught the Austrian government off guard. It was their first time experiencing such a phenomenon, and no one had any relevant experience.

A standard economic crisis would have been one thing, but the problem was that this crisis had been triggered by an industrial collapse, rendering traditional countermeasures entirely inappropriate.

Should the government fund a bailout?

That was clearly impossible. Metternich would have to be out of his mind to even consider how to save these capitalists.

Of course, certain essential measures were taken. For instance, the tariffs the government had lowered due to soaring prices were immediately restored to their normal levels.

However, the domestic crisis remained unresolved. Those who had sought to harm others had only harmed themselves; the capitalists and nobles who had hoarded massive quantities of goods had now lost everything, down to their very shirts.

Take daily necessities as an example: the retail price in the Vienna market was now only 66 percent of what it had been in the first half of 1847, and less than one-third of the peak retail prices seen in December.

Falling prices were only one aspect; the real crux of the matter was the decline in purchasing power. Even at these current prices, the common people had no money to buy anything.

It was a tragedy.

Under normal circumstances, the wholesale price of daily necessities would be 30 to 40 percent lower than the retail price. If retail prices fell, capitalists could at least cut their losses and exit the market—a loss most could bear.

The problem now was that there was a market for goods, but no buyers. Piles of merchandise sat gathering dust with no one to purchase them.

The well-capitalized capitalists could hold on, but those with insufficient strength had already seen their capital chains snap, leaving them to flee under a mountain of debt to the banks.

Austria's financial institutions were hit hard as a result. A financial crisis erupted, and a vicious cycle began to ferment.

The era of the Great Depression had arrived. It was not just Austria; across the entire European Continent, with the exception of Russia, no one could remain unscathed.

Undoubtedly, the implementation of the Labor Protection Act issued by the Vienna government was suspended. When there were no jobs to be had, what was the point of discussing benefits?

The bourgeoisie had achieved their goal. The Vienna government had indeed made concessions by suspending the Labor Protection Act, but this was not what they had truly wanted.

The sudden economic crisis had left the bourgeoisie severely weakened. As market competition turned brutal, the internal conflicts among the capitalists intensified.

Prime Minister Metternich became the biggest winner, yet also the biggest loser. He had successfully thwarted the conspiracy of the bourgeoisie, but he was still left to clean up the mess in the aftermath of his victory.

Franz, the bystander, was stunned. He had not expected such an ending; the bourgeoisie, the nobles, and the government were all losers in this political struggle.

If there was a winner, it was Ferdinand I, who had done absolutely nothing in the imperial palace—though, unfortunately, he was incapable of feeling it.

As for the working class, their gains and losses were about equal. Austria's economic crisis was more severe than it had been in history, and their lives were even harder. Their only harvest was a Labor Protection Act that no one knew when—or if—would ever be honored.

In short, the future was bright, but reality was cruel.

"Your Highness, a revolution broke out in Sicily last night!"

Tyrone, the intelligence chief, rushed in to deliver this shocking news to Franz.

Franz was truly dumbfounded. Had the European Revolution of 1848 not started in France in February? Where had this Sicilian revolution come from?

Well, Franz admitted that his knowledge of Sicily was limited to the "Cinema Paradiso" legend. The land was fertile, suitable for grain production, and its location in the center of the Mediterranean made it strategically vital.

And that was it. After a careful recollection, Franz remembered a line from a history book mentioning that before the February Revolution in France, a January Revolution had broken out in Italy.

The original text had simply referred to the "Italian January Revolution" as the prelude to the European Revolution of 1848. It had been a passing mention with no further explanation, and Franz had never paid it any mind.

What a massive trap! Italy had not yet been unified, and the current Sicily was the independent Kingdom of Sicily. What on earth did it have to do with Italy?

For this very reason, he had specifically sent people to keep an eye on the Kingdom of Sardinia—who else but them would eventually unify Italy?

Franz quickly regained his composure. He was not a professional historian; it was normal not to be familiar with minor events that were overlooked in history books.

"Is the scale of this revolution large? Have they overthrown the Kingdom of Sicily?"

He didn't need to ask why the revolution had broken out; he could guess. The economic crisis had erupted, and the people of the Kingdom of Sicily could no longer endure their lives!

"Your Highness, that is not yet clear. We have too few intelligence agents in the Kingdom of Sicily, so we have no way to ascertain the situation in such a short time!"

Tyrone explained with difficulty. It really wasn't for a lack of effort; intelligence work simply could not be completed overnight. It was already impressive that they had received the news in such a short time.

In this era, the wireless telegraph had not yet been invented. Only large cities had wired telegraphs, and news of what happened in Sicily had to pass through a series of relays before it could reach Vienna.

If they had waited for the news to spread naturally, it would not have been strange for the report to be delayed by three to five days, or even a week or two.

"Very well, then. Let us focus our efforts on Vienna, Milan, Venice, and Budapest. The revolution in the Kingdom of Sicily might trigger a chain reaction," Franz said after some thought.

He had already made up his mind: he could not control what happened abroad, so he would first stabilize the domestic situation. If nothing else, he had to ensure he received news before a revolution broke out so he could be prepared.

"Yes, Your Highness!"

Seeing that Franz did not blame him, Tyrone breathed a sigh of relief. The combat effectiveness of the intelligence organization had declined significantly compared to the past, and as the person in charge, he bore an inescapable responsibility.

Well, he didn't know how low Franz's expectations for them actually were. As the saying went, cheap goods were never good, and good goods were never cheap.

Over 95 percent of the personnel in the intelligence organization were volunteers who received no pay. What more could Franz ask for?

These were the fruits of the Habsburg Family's years of cultivation. Conquering Europe with their lower bodies was no joke; their network of relationships had long since spread across the European Continent.

Using these connections to exchange information was fine, but Franz did not believe he possessed the kind of overwhelming imperial charisma required to order those people to do his bidding.

As for Tyrone, he was undoubtedly a temporary substitute. Once the intelligence organization Franz was building himself was complete, these people would be placed in the open to attract the attention of the outside world.

The revolution in Sicily had broken out, and Franz began his preparations. He dared not entrust his life to anyone else.

Using this as an excuse, Franz conducted a reorganization of the Imperial Guard, separating those who were merely making up the numbers into their own units.