By the time the capitalists wanted to pull out, it was already too late. Franz had returned to Vienna with a great army.
"Albrecht, the rest is up to you!"
Franz knew his own limitations. He was all right at things like devising strategies, but when it came to commanding troops in battle, he had no idea what he was doing.
With barely two months of experience leading troops, he probably wasn't capable of commanding this army. To be safe, Franz decisively let Albrecht take charge.
After all, Albrecht had been a famous Austrian general in history. During the Austro-Prussian War, he had defeated Italy despite being outnumbered, defending Austria's standing as a great power.
Albrecht smiled faintly and said with great confidence, "Don't worry, Franz! They're just a rabble. It won't be hard to defeat them!"
Franz nodded. He had made so many preparations, and his intelligence network had even infiltrated the rebel ranks ahead of time to sow discord among the enemy. If they still couldn't win, they might as well disband the City Defense Force.
Albrecht was in charge of military matters, while Franz had no choice but to handle the political issues himself. No one else could shoulder that responsibility.
"Have the Third Regiment lead the attack!"
At Albrecht's command, the suppression of the rebellion began.
At this time, Vienna could be summed up in one word: chaos!
The countless rebel bands were all independent, each fighting its own war. Even after the City Defense Force had attacked, many rebels still had no idea the enemy was upon them.
They were busy looting. At first, they had only targeted nobles and capitalists, but by now even ordinary citizens were no longer safe.
Whether out of jealousy or for personal gain, discipline had completely collapsed. Even the commanders were powerless to control their troops.
Once humanity's long-suppressed beastliness had been unleashed, everything changed. The destruction that erupted at such times was often staggering.
Lacking any close-knit organization or mutual restraint, the rebels were quickly led astray once hoodlums and thugs joined their ranks. They became a band of murderers, arsonists, and looters, stopping at nothing.
The citizens of Vienna who had once sympathized with the revolution were now left with nothing but regret. It wasn't only them—even the University of Vienna, hailed as the cradle of revolutionary thought, was not spared.
To protect themselves from harassment by the rebels, the university had no choice but to organize a student militia to defend the campus. As for the revolutionary cause?
There were far more conservative students than revolutionaries. Seeing the horrors outside, everyone was reminded of the Great French Revolution of 1789, when more than thirty thousand people in Paris alone had been sent to the guillotine.
Before this, everyone had thought those stories were government fabrications. Once the Vienna Revolution broke out, they finally understood that revolutions demanded blood.
Franz was still preparing to deal with the aftermath. He had no idea what kind of devil he had unleashed or how much damage he had brought upon Vienna.
Of course, even if he had known, he would still have made the same choice. The Austrian Empire was already rotten to the core. Without breaking it down to build it anew, it would slowly die.
Without this rebellion, abolishing serfdom would have taken at least ten years, and they would have had to contend constantly with the nobles' counterattacks. More likely, it would have turned into the sort of half-hearted reform seen in Russian history.
But things were different now. The Vienna Revolution was only the beginning; revolutions in the provinces would come rolling in one after another. To protect their lives and property, the nobles would have no choice but to swallow their pride and accept the changes.
Franz was already waiting for rebellions to break out in Lombardy, Venice, and Hungary. As soon as they did, he would divide up the land and strike down the local tyrants, solving the problem once and for all.
He wasn't planning to spare the nobles and capitalists involved in the Vienna rebellion, either. If he didn't confiscate their estates, where would Franz get the money to develop the country?
Did Austria really have no money? That was a complete fallacy.
From the establishment of the Vienna System to 1848, Austria's economy had, overall, developed quite well over those thirty-odd years. Its total output had doubled.
Naturally, society had created plenty of wealth under these conditions. Unfortunately, ordinary people had seen little of the benefits of economic growth; the wealth had flowed into the hands of a small minority.
As a member of the privileged class, Franz obviously couldn't afford to move against them too radically. But the revolution offered him a chance to eliminate some traitors.
Hofburg Palace, Vienna
Ever since they received the capitalists' terms for negotiations, the archdukes had collectively breathed a sigh of relief. At this point, staying alive mattered most. If the rebels broke in, it would all be over.
They were accustomed to lives of comfort and luxury. They hadn't had their fill of wine, women, and song, and they didn't want to end up at the guillotine just yet.
Ferdinand I was unable to take charge. Prime Minister Metternich knew trouble was coming and had fled early. Count Kolowrat's whereabouts were unknown. The only members of the Regency Council still here were Archduke Louis and Archduke Franz Karl.
Without a doubt, all the heavy burdens had now fallen on Archduke Louis. Archduke Franz Karl was of no use at all.
Archduke Louis said with a pale face, "The capitalists have made their demands. If we agree to dismiss the cabinet, establish constitutional government, introduce universal suffrage, abolish serfdom, and confiscate the nobles' lands to distribute them among the peasants...
"They'll help us suppress the rebellion. They've even drafted a constitution already. Here's a copy; take a look!"
He truly didn't dare accept these demands. If they agreed to everything, it wouldn't be the capitalists rebelling next—it would be the nobles rising up as one.
Not just in Austria; in any country in the world, if the nobles' land were seized without cause and given to the peasants, wouldn't they rise up in revolt?
Austria's army was in the hands of the nobles. The great nobles each owned vast tracts of land. Those who had already freed their serfs might be all right, but wouldn't those who hadn't lose all their land?
Would they leave the nobles any way to live?
If they lost their land, how were they supposed to get by in the future?
Were they all supposed to become capitalists?
This was clearly a reform to turn the nobility into capitalists. They could even exploit their head start to reduce the nobles to abject poverty.
Beyond their economic interests, political reform was out of the question, too. Under the constitution drafted by the capitalists, the nobles would have fewer political rights than ordinary people.
No rights whatsoever; they couldn't enlist in the army, enter government, or become legislators. These demands were complete nonsense.
Of course, this was a negotiation: you started by asking the moon, then haggled down to a deal. The initial offer was only meant to test the waters. Even so, it had turned everyone against the capitalists.
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