Leaving Archduke Charles's residence, Franz wore a satisfied smile. The two had clearly enjoyed a pleasant conversation, and Franz had become the archduke's new student.
Archduke Charles had already been intent on deepening the reform of the Austrian army, but he lacked a powerful supporter in the central government. Franz's arrival solved that problem perfectly.
As the future heir to the empire, Franz approved of his military ideas. Supporting his reforms was only natural.
Austria's current emperor, Ferdinand I, was mentally unfit and simply couldn't handle state affairs. Once Crown Prince Franz came of age, he would be able to rule as regent.
That wouldn't be long now. There were already too many people dissatisfied with Prime Minister Meneer, including Archduke Charles, and they all wanted him gone.
Franz had appeared at just the right time. There was no better option than supporting the crown prince as regent. With the military behind him, Franz could take power early, so long as he wasn't too stupid.
During their conversation, Franz had also slipped in some of his own ideas, such as Prussia's general staff system, training armies for the new age, and tactical command.
Many of his refreshing proposals had piqued Archduke Charles's interest. How many of them he would incorporate into his new military doctrine remained to be seen.
In the end, Franz had asked Archduke Charles to draw up a military reform plan for the Austrian army.
Franz would never admit that his uniform had earned him extra points. Otherwise, the conversation wouldn't have gone so smoothly.
Did Archduke Charles really find his proposals so astonishing that he'd fallen for Franz's imperial aura and would now give him his all-out support?
Dream on. That was impossible!
The main reason the two had hit it off was that their ideas were similar. Franz was also the empire's heir, and had always thought of himself as a soldier.
Archduke Charles had deliberately guided his understanding of military affairs, and Franz had played along very well, giving the archduke the impression that Franz was one of his admirers.
To see his ideas put into practice, Archduke Charles didn't mind taking a future emperor on as another student. The two were simply allies with shared political interests.
Perhaps the young Franz was still a novice in politics, but by now Archduke Charles was already an old fox. He had long since guessed most of Franz's reasons for coming.
As Archduke Charles saw it, Franz wanted his influence in the army. In exchange, Franz would have to support his military reforms in the future.
In his eyes, Franz's attempts to slip in his own ideas were just a child trying to save face and get his attention. Who knew which hired pen had cooked up those military theories?
If they proved useful, he'd use them. If not, he'd let them go. They were mere details and wouldn't affect the political cooperation between them.
European succession laws were very well established. It was no great matter for an heir like Franz to openly join forces politically with a military strongman like him.
Franz even got along very well with the current prime minister, Metternich. Historically, they'd been both mentor and friend to each other, and no one had thought that strange.
Franz had originally been second in line, yet he had still become crown prince. That was because the man ahead of him was his father, Franz Karl, who was mentally unfit. After the lessons of his uncle Ferdinand I, no one dared put another imbecile on the throne.
The Austrian Empire had its pride to consider. Franz's father had publicly renounced his claim to the throne several times. Whether he meant it or not was anyone's guess; what mattered was that he had said it.
Now Franz was openly building alliances. No, this was just part of his education. How could Austria's heir fail to study military affairs?
In the days that followed, Franz kept dropping by Archduke Charles's place every few days to pass the time, all under the pretext of studying military affairs.
Nineteenth-century Austria was still a world ruled by nobles. There, Franz met many important figures in the army, such as Josip Jelačić, Windisch-Grätz, and Radetzky.
(Note: The three great heroes who saved the Austrian Empire: Radetzky crushed the Italian Revolution; Windisch-Grätz suppressed the Prague Uprising; Josip Jelačić put down the Hungarian Revolution.)
Franz wasn't yet capable of bringing these men under his command. At least they had become familiar with one another, and perhaps they might prove useful someday.
Everyone was happy to see this. No one could refuse the chance to become friends with the future emperor.
This was also part of Franz's established strategy: to draw close to the army. Only with the military's support could he put down rebellions in the shortest possible time when turmoil came.
"Franz, there's a military meeting tomorrow. Would you be interested in attending?" Albrecht Friedrich Rudolf asked.
(Note: The eldest son of Archduke Charles and the last great general of the Austrian Empire, he held the title of field marshal in Austria, Germany, and Russia.)
"Albrecht, I'll pass. Your meetings are too boring. I don't want to listen to a bunch of old men bicker!" Franz replied casually.
At first, he had been very interested in attending such military meetings. After going a few times, he was disappointed.
There were a great many nobles in the Austrian army. Some were talented, but most were just there to coast along and make up the numbers.
If he wanted to coast through the army, he could become a general in less than ten years—and he might not even need to report for duty.
Apart from the field marshals, whose titles carried real weight, Austria had generals everywhere. With so many people coasting along, military meetings weren't all that formal either.
The real problems were never brought up for discussion at these meetings. They were held only because tradition demanded it.
"All right, if you're not interested, I'll be off, then," Albrecht said indifferently.
Franz smiled faintly. He wouldn't dare underestimate Albrecht. Historically, Albrecht had been a key figure in the March Revolution, directly forcing Ferdinand I to abdicate.
How could there have been no backroom deals involved? After all, as one of the people directly responsible for the March Revolution, he had been exiled from Vienna, only to return to the center of power not long afterward.
Franz didn't mind continuing that kind of deal. He would be the one to benefit in the end, after all. If his uncle hadn't abdicated early, who knew when Franz might have inherited the throne?
The Austrian Empire still had a solid foundation. If the Vienna Government hadn't run into trouble, the empire wouldn't have declined so quickly.
At this point, the Austrian Empire was still counted among Europe's five great powers alongside Britain, France, Russia, and Spain. Prussia had yet to emerge; it was only a potential great power.
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