**Chapter 94 (94/180)**
**The Mexican-French War (9)**
If the first defeat had delivered a blow to French society like a punch to the back of the head, the second defeat brought about a despair that felt like the worst nightmare they had been trying to ignore had become reality.
Unlike the first battle, this time, no one thought they wouldn't lose. However, the king, the media, and people from all walks of society had been confident of victory, and even though the citizens were trying to convince themselves that they would win, they were waiting with a sense of anxiety deep down, wondering, "What if we lose?"
Even the newspapers changed their tone.
- Another Defeat! God, save France!
- What will become of France!
They didn't blame the government. The fear of defeat had arrived in France.
“Still, those Mexicans won't be able to land on French soil, right?”
“Of course! Our French army is the real deal!”
There were those who comforted each other like this, but everyone knew. Everything would change if they lost the sea.
Before the war, they had secured many colonies based on their second-largest naval power in the world. They had even hoped that if they created as many colonies as those British bastards, they could eventually compete for dominance again.
It was true that workers' dissatisfaction had been accumulating during Louis-Philippe's reign, but it was also true that France had been enjoying political and economic stability and growing for the first time in a long time. All of that was ruined by this war.
“You are responsible! Louis-Philippe!”
“Take responsibility! Take responsibility!”
The citizens, who had been in despair, soon blamed the king and the government for everything.
Most citizens had supported the war, but wasn't that all just the king and the privileged class instigating them to turn their internal dissatisfaction outwards?
Protests began nationwide, and countless Parisians took to the streets. The city center and streets were filled with protesters.
From Place de la Bastille, the symbolic place of the French Revolution, to Place de la Concorde and Avenue des Champs-Élysées.
Louis Blanc and his socialist comrades, who had opposed the war from the beginning, were at the forefront of the protesters.
The king, and the privileged class who were in cahoots with him, must be held accountable. That was Louis Blanc's thought.
“People! Do you know why Louis-Philippe started this war? He was trying to embezzle the debt sent by Mexico and use it as his personal property! Here! This is a translation of a Mexican newspaper! Look!”
Louis Blanc, standing on a makeshift platform, shouted until his throat was hoarse, and a man, as if entranced, took the document.
“Can you read it?”
He was suddenly reading the document in front of the protesters, but the man read it without hesitation.
“The government strongly refuted France's demand for 20 million pesos in debt, calling it an unfair extortion.
The spokesperson for the Mexican Treasury Department stated in an official statement that "the debt France is demanding is being raised even though the principal and interest have been fully repaid." The spokesperson further pointed out that "Mexico claims that France actually received only 800,000 pesos when they sent 1 million pesos in silver coins to France, but there is no clear explanation for the whereabouts of the remaining 200,000 pesos."
This statement came amid heightened financial tensions with France, and Mexico emphasized that such problems had not arisen in its dealings with the United States and Britain.
The spokesperson added that "this behavior by France is something even a rogue loan shark wouldn't do," and called for international attention to this issue.
This controversy is a serious matter that could affect the long-term diplomatic relations between the two countries, and further discussions between the two governments are expected.”
The protesters were shocked by the content of the Mexican news article. It was truly a shocking revelation.
“What? Is this true?”
“They stole 20%?”
The protesters started to boil, and the man who read the article shouted.
“Wait! Don't we know if this article is true?”
It was a valid point.
“I'll confirm that for you.”
Someone climbed onto the platform.
“It's a parliamentarian!”
“A parliamentarian? Is a parliamentarian participating in the protest?”
It was Etienne Morot, a parliamentarian.
“According to my official confirmation with Britain and the United States, the Mexican Empire's debts have all been settled. The main creditors of Mexico were Britain, France, and the United States, and the debts to all countries except France have been repaid. Isn't it strange that the debt to Britain was repaid, even though it was larger than ours, and the debt to the United States, which is weaker than us, was also repaid, but only France wasn't repaid? Also, it is true that Mexico had been continuously sending silver coins to France up to a certain point. Would Mexico, who had been doing that, have concocted such a conspiracy, risking war, because they didn't want to repay their debt?”
While there was no clear evidence, the arguments presented by Morot were quite reasonable.
To be objective, the evidence was insufficient to confirm the facts, but for the protesters who already considered the king to be the culprit, this was enough.
“That bastard Louis-Philippe started a war to extort money from Mexico and put it in his own pocket.”
“He's going to ruin the country for that measly amount of money?”
The anger of the protesters, who learned the truth about the war, began to escalate uncontrollably.
“Once again, Révolution!”
“Join the revolution!”
Louis Blanc and his comrades led the revolution.
“Revolutionary comrades! Take your weapons here!”
It was unclear where they got them from, but no one bothered to ask.
The ‘protesters’ soon began to shout ‘revolution,’ and their first target was the weapons depot.
The Parisians were adept at carrying out revolutions. This was their third revolution, following the French Revolution of 1789 and the revolution of 1831.
“Stop!”
“Open the armory!”
Click!
The protesters pointed their weapons. The police had weapons too, but the protesters outnumbered them.
The police raised their hands and shouted urgently.
“No, wait! Don't shoot! We surrender! No, we'll join the revolution!”
“···Welcome!”
The police, who were supposed to suppress the revolution, weren't being rewarded with anything great enough to risk their lives to defend the king, and they were French citizens too.
As the fighting was about to begin in earnest, they joined the protesters, as if it were natural.
The revolution occurred just a week after the news of the second defeat, and in the second week, the protesters grew into a military force.
The king, and the privileged class who were in cahoots with him, began preparing their army without a word of explanation, but not all the privileged class remained by the king's side.
On the contrary, most of the privileged class, who had been clinging to the king and receiving various benefits, turned their backs on him as if nothing had happened and joined the protesters.
“Ahem. We didn't start the war···.”
“It's true that the king provided us with convenience, but it was just a business relationship, we weren't close enough to risk our lives for him.”
“Right. The king instigated the war, and if he lost, it's natural for him to take responsibility. We have nothing to do with it.”
The only ones who didn't betray him were the nobles, officials, and bourgeois who were infamous enough that they would be condemned by the citizens even if they betrayed him now.
They wanted to stop the revolution because it would be disadvantageous to the privileged class if it succeeded, but it was an issue they couldn't possibly stop.
It wasn't just a situation where workers were venting their dissatisfaction. They had started a war and lost miserably. The fact that the reason for starting the war was personal greed was also revealed.
“The king must pay for his crimes!”
“The king, what! Louis-Philippe! If you're a man, come out instead of hiding!”
The protesters didn't attempt a clumsy breakthrough to cause bloodshed. They already knew how to do it from their previous experiences.
The protesters, who had occupied the four sides of the Tuileries Palace, didn't cross the line guarded by the army. Instead, they just shouted loudly.
“If Louis-Philippe doesn't come out on his own, we will attack in four days from now!”
Even though it couldn't be heard inside the palace, it was a shout that could be heard perfectly by the soldiers guarding the palace.
On the first day, everyone was just watching.
There were a few deserters, but weren't there always deserters? There were just more of them today.
The problem was from the next day onwards.
Soldiers started disappearing in earnest from the second day.
“Sergeant, Cesar is missing!”
“Joseph is missing too!”
Reports from the soldiers didn't stop.
Bang-
“Sergeant! I told you to report your troops by 8 o'clock, what are you doing···”
The sergeant is missing.
He might have gone somewhere for a moment, but that thought didn't cross my mind.
“Even the officers are deserting···.”
Soldiers, not to mention officers, were starting to desert, even though they hadn't suffered any battle losses.
The reasons were varied. Like most Parisians, some were angry at the king, some felt guilty or scared about fighting the protesters, and some just ran away because all the members of their squad had run away.
The captain, who had an idea, hurriedly checked the armory of that squad, but his bad premonition was confirmed.
“Damn it! They even stole the weapons?”
This would make the situation even worse. The deserters didn't run away quietly to their homes, they joined the protesters, no, the rebels.
It wouldn't be just our company that this was happening to. The tide had already turned, but there was still a possibility of fighting, but now even that was gone.
The captain fell into contemplation.
The day the protesters had announced their attack arrived. Less than half of the soldiers guarding the Tuileries Palace remained.
“Louis-Philippe! You cowardly bastard! Are you going to send all these soldiers to their deaths for your own safety!”
Louis Blanc shouted from the front of the protesters, and the protesters booed.
“Boo!”
“You piece of trash. You're making even the last bit of sympathy disappear.”
“Prepare the guillotine!”
The protesters were about to explode.
“Wait! Not yet! I'll give you one more chance! Soldiers! This is not your fight. It's a fight between Louis-Philippe, who exploited you, French people, and started a war for his own greed, and the French people! I know your loyalty, but justice is on our side! There's no need to fight a fight that has no justice or chance of winning, so deliver our final proposal to Louis-Philippe.”
Louis-Philippe is deep inside the Tuileries Palace, so even if we shout here, he won't hear us. Louis Blanc delivered a letter to the soldiers to avoid bloodshed as much as possible.
Fortunately, the soldier accepted the letter and didn't tear it up.
An hour later, Louis-Philippe, with a pale face, walked out in front of the protesters.
“Boo!”
“Tyrant!”
Amid the protesters' jeers, Louis-Philippe calmly spoke to Louis Blanc, who was at the front.
“···Keep your promise.”
“I will.”
He couldn't escape the death penalty for his crimes, but formality had to be observed.
Thump- thump- thump.
The judge sentenced Louis-Philippe to death.
“Do you have any last words?”
“No. Just keep your promise.”
“···Execute!”
The blade of the guillotine, which had been taken out of storage for the first time in a long time, fell towards Louis-Philippe's neck.
His family couldn't bear to watch the scene.
The officials of the protesters, who had already declared a ‘Provisional Government,’ didn't even give the royal family time to recover.
“Take only what you can fit in here. We won't allow items of historical value, such as the crown.”
The protesters offered Louis-Philippe's family asylum, and Louis-Philippe accepted.
The royal family's property was confiscated by the Provisional Government. They could only take the clothes they were wearing and a small bag into exile.
The bag was very small, a reticule, a small bag designed for women to carry their belongings.
“Isn't this the famous jewel, the royal family's jewel? Leave it behind.”
“···Yes.”
The king's neck had been chopped off. The royals obediently followed the Provisional Government's orders.
“Now, sign here.”
The document the Provisional Government presented was a pledge to renounce all rights to France upon exile.
The Provisional Government, after carefully receiving the pledge from everyone in the royal family, quickly pushed for their exile.
The government had been overthrown, but the war with Mexico wasn't over. They could come back with their fleet at any time.
Fortunately, Britain immediately granted asylum, and they left that day.
“We got rid of the baggage quickly. Good job.”
“It's dangerous to leave them in France in many ways.”
“Yes. Some people want to kill them, and there are still some strange people who follow them.”
The Provisional Government quickly got rid of the royal family and started their next plan.
“Wait! This is different from the promise!”
“Yes! You said that if the king sacrificed himself, the rest would be spared!”
They started arresting the capitalists, nobles, and officials who had been clinging to the royal family.
“I said I would spare their families, not that I would spare you!”
“What!”
Louis-Philippe had lied. Louis-Philippe had told his close associates in the Tuileries Palace that only ‘he’ would sacrifice himself, and the ‘rest,’ not ‘his family,’ would be spared. It was probably because he knew they would object if he said family.
“Kill them! Kill them!”
The protesters were shouting to kill them.
“Execute!”
The necks of the wicked bourgeois, corrupt officials, and sycophants who had monopolized government positions and flattered the king were chopped off.
Only then did Louis Blanc declare.
“The revolution! Is successful!”
“Hooray!”
The Provisional Government was composed of various figures from French society, but the most influential were Louis Blanc and his comrades.
“In six months! We will hold a formal election after settling the chaos!”
This was the birth of the Second Republic (Deuxième République) of France. However, the hopes of the French citizens, who hoped that things would change a lot after the revolution succeeded, were shattered just three days later.
“The Mexican fleet has arrived!”
June 14, 1840.
It took a month and a half for the revolution to happen and end after the news of the defeat was announced.
The war, which they had momentarily forgotten in the heat of the revolution, had come to the doorstep of France.
“The Mexican fleet is attacking Brest harbor!”
Thanks to the desperate efforts of Admiral Lusin and the naval officers and soldiers, they were able to save 2/3 of the fleet. However, most of the ships were damaged to varying degrees, the result of their efforts to share the shells.
The fleet was being repaired, half in Brest, the main harbor in northern France, and half in Toulon, the main harbor in the south.
The Mexican Empire fleet had suddenly appeared at the shipyard in Brest, where repair work was in full swing.
“Stop! Please stop the attack! Yes, peace negotiations! Let's try peace negotiations!”
“The Mexican side has refused.”
The liaison ship, which they had sent at great risk, was not harmed, but they were rejected without even a minute's delay.
The members of the Provisional Government were panicking.
Etienne Morot, the only one with political experience, came up with a plan.
“Let's ask Britain to mediate.”
“Britain? They'll be happy if we go down, won't they?”
“That's true, but those pirates are also confused by the current war situation. They won't be happy if Mexico wins completely and gets a huge profit!”
“Okay. Let's try it!”
The decision was quick.
A French diplomat ran to the British embassy.
Thank you so much for this chapter🤩
ReplyDelete