Bulgarian Empire

Chapter 14: Bulgaria Coup d'état

The trip to London went better than Ferdinand expected. He not only created a gold mine but also deepened his relationship with the British royal family. It will be of great help in the future.

Edward, who was in a financial crisis, was much keener on gold than Ferdinand. The two men formed a mining company as quickly as possible.

When Edward was excited, he planned to go to Australia himself, but Ferdinand stopped him. 19th century Australia was not a good place to go. It was a remote place, a brutal place, and Ferdinand valued his life.

It was only in June of the next year, the first batch of Australian gold arrived in London. Ferdinand could drop his worries.

The first batch of gold was small, only a mere eight hundred kilograms. It was worth only a hundred thousand pounds, but Ferdinand and Edward were happy.

A pile of gold gives a much stronger impact than a check. Even Victoria attended the celebration of the two men. In the 19th century, when the gold standard was in force, the weight of gold was much greater than later.

He was able to earn hundreds of thousands of pounds a year. It was no surprise that the mining company was on the right track. Ferdinand was able to return to Vienna.

Unlike when he first arrived, Ferdinand landed in France on his return trip. He took the overland route instead, touring the country and visiting places of interest along the way.

In France, he has made his mark on the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame, and the Panthon.

In Germany, Ferdinand has been seen at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, the Neuschwanstein Castle, Lake Constance, Cologne Cathedral, and the Danube River.

It was not until the end of 1885 that Ferdinand made his way back to Vienna. Along the way, Ferdinand gained many benefits from seeing three of the most powerful nations of his time: England, France, and Germany. From cultural, historical, and geographical aspects to industrial development, he gained a clear picture of them all.

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Now the three countries are thriving. However, Ferdinand clearly felt that France is falling behind. A large amount of capital has converged on the financial market. The investment in the industry has been greatly reduced.

The opposite was true in Germany. Probably due to the influence of German customs. The capitalists were not interested in virtual finance, but they focused on a much stronger industry.

After exploring the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Ferdinand found that this rotten empire, which was still running in good health, did not show any signs of collapse.

The economy is growing rapidly. Although it is no match for Britain, France, and Germany, the growth potential is not much worse. The internal tensions are now kept to a minimum. The most vocal Hungary is now only fighting for power and has no hint of independence.

Look at the current British Empire. No one could have imagined that it would fall into decline and become a second-rate country after just a few decades.

Of course, it was none of Ferdinand's business. He was now concerned about the coup in Bulgaria. The Russian government had become ever more upset: Alexander Battenberg's anti-Russian bias and a coup were in the works.

Battenberg, who had always been a man of great antipathy and hatred of Russia, cleverly concealed his hatred of Russia not to provoke Russian resentment.

But he never concealed his opposition views and openly sided with the Conservatives from the very start. He organized a Conservative government, knowing that the Liberals dominated the parliament.

The Conservative Party came to power and blatantly trampled on the constitution from the start. The Liberals, through public opinion, held protests, and the struggle between the two parties was fierce.

Then for the next few years, it was a tussle between the Knyaz and the Liberals. The Russian presence made a mess of the country.

When the political crisis deepened in 1886, the Russians intended to depose Battenberg and replace him with a pro-Russian. However, Western powers such as Britain and Austria-Hungary chose to support Battenberg to weaken Russia's influence in the Balkans.

The emerging Bulgarian capitalists were also divided into pro-Russian and anti-Russian factions, which were at each others' throats.

The pro-Russian faction turned to Russia for help. On August 21, 1886, a part of Bulgarian officers who relied on Russian support deposed Knyaz Alexander.

The move led to national unrest in Bulgaria. Some military and political figures launched a counter-coup and urged Knyaz Alexander to return.

On September 7, Knyaz Alexander was forced to abandon his throne and leave the country.

A sharp political crisis broke out. The Great Powers fought again for the candidacy of the Knyaz of Bulgaria.

The Russian side took the stand that the National Assembly would be convened. The Knyaz of Bulgaria would be elected as long as the power was in the hands of the pro-Russians. However, because the Russians were too brutal in their methods, they caused resentment among Bulgarians.

Despite the disapproval of the Russians, Stambolov forced a national assembly to elect Prince Valdemar of Denmark as Knyaz of Bulgaria. However, under pressure from the Tsar, Prince Valdemar refused to take the throne.

The conflict continued to intensify to the point that Russia broke off diplomatic relations with Bulgaria for a time. As the two factions in the country could not reach a compromise, the pro-Russian faction launched an uprising in February 1887. However, they quickly suppressed it, and the leader was sentenced to death.

In order to put an end to this crisis, the Bulgarian government, with the support of Austria-Hungary and without the consent of Russia, convened the National Assembly to elect the Knyaz of Bulgaria.

In order to gain more support, Austria-Hungary nominated Ferdinand. Ferdinand was elected as the successor of Knyaz by the Bulgarian National Assembly on June 25, 1887.

The Russian government protested against this. They demanded that the Turkish government reject Ferdinand's accession to office per the Treaty of Berlin. However, under the pressure of the Western powers, Turkey refused Russia's demand and supported Ferdinand's succession.

Right now, the coup in Bulgaria is still in the process, and Ferdinand did not interfere. He was afraid that it would cause a butterfly effect.

After all, Bulgaria in history has run all over Europe in search of Knyaz. There is a long list of candidates.

Although in the end, they chose Ferdinand for no other reason than to obtain the support of the Western powers. It does not mean that there is no one else to replace him.

Ferdinand waited anxiously while strengthening the intelligence work. Historically, his own new arrival in Bulgaria was not a good day. The power was in the hands of the Liberals.

As time passed, the coup d'tat started as scheduled in the summer of 1886. Battenberg was forced to abdicate and was then deported.

The ensuing brawl around Bulgaria left Ferdinand dumbfounded. Russia, which had the upper hand, gradually lost it in a series of missteps.

The Bulgarian crisis worsened in 1887. After obtaining Ferdinand's consent, in February, Stambolov held a forced National Assembly and formally elected Ferdinand as Knyaz of Bulgaria.