Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 29 The troublesome reform plan

The news that the Royal Military Academy had started recruiting students was reported by Carlo's Spanish Sun and other newspapers, and became big news around Madrid.

Thanks to such publicity, more than a hundred people signed up for the military academy in just a few days.

Although only more than 60 people were admitted after layers of screening, it was still a big improvement compared to previous military academies.

While actively recruiting new students, Carlo also ordered the Royal Military Academy to learn the systems and processes for training officers in Prussia and France and to reform the military academy.

The old Spanish officer training system is not very suitable for the current era. Does learning those outdated line infantry tactics mean that Spanish soldiers will be lined up to be shot?
The good news is that the Austro-Prussian War and the Franco-Prussian War that broke out in recent years can be used as subjects of study in Spanish military academies. Prussia, Austria and France involved in this war are some of the most powerful land forces in the world today.

Speaking of the Franco-Prussian War, this war, which was fought a year earlier, was obviously more intense than in history.

In history, the Second French Empire lasted less than two months before Emperor Napoleon III formally surrendered to the Prussian army.

France in this world was not much better. Although it had held out longer, the war situation was firmly controlled by the Prussian army.

There are a large number of line infantry regiments in the French army, and this tactic of shooting in a line has lost its effectiveness as the range of rifles has gradually increased.

The French army had more problems than just this one. There was no adequate preparation before the war, and after the war broke out, Napoleon III was still struggling over whether to attack or defend.

In addition, the French army does not usually have army and division levels. The armies and divisions hastily organized during the war find it difficult to exert their due coordination and combat effectiveness.

Facing the well-equipped and experienced Prussian army that had just experienced the Austro-Prussian War, the French army was clearly at a disadvantage from the very beginning.

The only suspense now is when Prussia will end the war and whether a revolution will break out in France after Napoleon III surrenders.

This is the focus of Carlo and the Spanish government. After all, the situation in France can also affect Spain.

With Carlo's suggestion and Primo's tacit approval, the Spanish government also came up with a plan for the construction of the university.

It is expected that in the next five years, Spain will build at least five universities, increasing the total number of universities to more than double digits.

At the same time, most of these universities will focus on the development of science and engineering majors, and mathematics, physics and chemistry will be the key projects of Spanish universities.

Literature, art and other less important majors will be integrated into two or three universities. After all, Spain does not need so many artistic talents.

In order to encourage Spaniards to apply to university, Carlo plans to establish a scholarship system among college students.

Doing so will not only allow more children from the common people to enter university, but also allow them to receive the favor of the royal family. It will not only cultivate talents for Spain, but also enhance the reputation of the royal family. It can be said to be a win-win situation.

Amid the busyness, 1869 quickly came to an end.

The year 1870 arrived punctually.

If 1869 was just a test of Primo's reform, 1870 would mark the beginning of Primo's real reform phase.

In order to make Spain stronger, Primo came up with a "Comprehensive Reform Plan" at the end of 1869, which stunned Carlo.

In this reform plan, Primo mentioned the necessity of implementing compulsory primary education like Prussia, and declared that he would promote comprehensive literacy education in Spain. Because the goal covers more than 1600 million Spaniards, Primo also put the implementation period of comprehensive literacy education within five years.

Education is just the first step.

The second goal of Primo's reform is to effectively raise the income level of the Spanish people. Not to surpass the powerful countries like Britain, France and Prussia, but to surpass neighboring countries like Portugal and reach a level not much worse than Italy.

How to achieve this goal?

Primo proposed three plans.

First, promote the implementation of Spanish labor laws to effectively protect the wages and salary payments of Spanish workers and other employees of enterprises.

Secondly, by reducing agricultural taxes and increasing food output, the income of the agricultural population can be effectively increased. Primo also proposed that the government set up a grain price regulatory agency to ensure that grain buyers can guarantee farmers' income and control grain prices in the Spanish market.

Third, reduce the various miscellaneous taxes left over from Queen Isabel's time and streamline the tax items for the Spanish people. In order to reduce the pressure on the government's finances, taxes on enterprises and factories should be appropriately increased to achieve a balance between the Spanish government's revenue and expenditure.

Carlo got a headache just looking at these two targets.

Although these two goals are indeed for reform, they can also effectively increase the income level of Spaniards.

But the problem is that doing so will also offend two deep-rooted forces in Spain, namely religious forces and the bourgeoisie.

Education in Spain is currently largely in the hands of religious forces, namely the Catholic Church in Spain.

The reason why there are more than 70% illiterate people is that the schools founded by the church not only have high teaching fees, but also have very high thresholds. Most ordinary people cannot afford to attend church schools.

Not to mention the big bourgeoisie. The greed of the capitalists will make them continue to exploit the Spanish people. If Primo wants to protect the income of Spanish workers, he will inevitably offend the big bourgeoisie behind the factory owners and business owners.

If you add in the republicans who are waiting to see the monarchy make a fool of itself, and the Carlists who are hiding in the dark, Carlo's head is going to explode.

Such a small country as Spain actually had so many troubles. No wonder Amadeo only stayed in Spain for three years before he decisively chose to flee to Italy.

"Prime Minister Primo, is your reform plan a bit radical?" In the Royal Palace of Madrid, Carlo asked with some headache while holding Primo's plan.

"But Spain can no longer wait that long, Your Majesty," Primo explained.

"This plan directly pushes the church and capitalists to the opposite side of us. Do you have the confidence to solve these two problems?" Carlo looked at Prime Minister Primo and asked very seriously.

This reform would naturally be beneficial to Spain if it could solve the troubles from the church and capital.

But if these two troubles cannot be solved, the hidden Carlists and the Republicans who oppose the monarchy will take the opportunity to cause trouble, and the situation in Spain may be worse than expected.

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(End of this chapter)