Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 565 Imperial Schemes
After the end of World War I, the formation of the League of Nations became a hot topic of discussion among people in Europe and around the world.

Even in South America, most people in the country are familiar with the names of the four major powers of the League of Nations.

Furthermore, since Britain and France were the top-tier superpowers among the four major powers, these three countries were known as the three giants of the League of Nations.

No one would question the prestige of these three superpowers. Britain's strength is self-evident; with its important colonies like India intact and the main force of the Royal Navy still intact, Britain was a true world hegemon, and its overall strength was definitely in the top tier.

France was a traditional colonial empire, and having just won a world war against Germany, which was once the world's second-largest economy, its achievements were undoubtedly significant.

Although Spain was a latecomer, the Spanish army performed exceptionally well in the World War, with both its army and navy making remarkable contributions.

In terms of colonization, Spain was also firmly the third largest colonial empire after Britain and France, and with an extremely glorious history, it could naturally sit firmly on the throne of the three giants.

Even countries like Russia and the United States do not question the status of the three superpowers in the slightest.

What they question is why they can't be among the top three giants, and why the top three giants can become the top four or five giants?

The most indignant of them all was US President Thomas Woodrow Wilson. Although the United States' contribution to the World War was not significant, it did make a considerable contribution to the formation of the League of Nations.

However, the United States was unable to become a permanent member of the League of Nations, and was even unable to join the League of Nations due to the veto by the US Senate.

President Wilson found this ridiculous, believing that the United States had relinquished its chance to become a superpower, which could delay America's rise for decades.

For the United States, waiting a few decades is not a big deal. After all, only 139 years have passed since the United States gained independence.

A country that has only been established for 139 years can not only stand on the throne of great powers, but even has the hope of becoming a superpower, on the same level as traditional powers such as Britain and France. This is something that other countries could not even imagine before the rise of the United States.

The United States can wait for decades, but President Wilson cannot.

As an ambitious politician, President Wilson originally planned to lead the United States out of its policy of splendid isolation, take advantage of the World War to ascend to the throne of a superpower, and then expand America's influence through the League of Nations.

Even if it cannot compete with Britain for the throne of world hegemony, it can still extend its reach around the world and compete for control of some colonies and canals.

President Wilson's eagerness to break free from splendid isolationism stemmed not only from his desire to reclaim colonies for the United States, but primarily from his covetousness for control of the Panama Canal.

Despite the fact that the United States boasts the world's largest industrial and economic sector, it doesn't even rank among the top five in terms of military strength.

In the eyes of many European countries, the United States has mostly played the role of a nouveau riche. Everyone is happy to do business with the United States and likes to invest there.

However, this does not mean that everyone values ​​the status and position of the United States. The United States' influence in Europe is not as great as that of Italy, and it is only a minor power in the world.

This can be seen from the ownership of the Panama Canal. The Panama Canal is not important to European countries, but it is like a throat for the United States.

The United States was unable to control the Panama Canal, which was located very close to the mainland; instead, control of the canal was divided among Britain, France, and Spain.

This situation severely limited America's development and was a disgrace to the country. It was similar to the British occupation of Gibraltar in Spain; President Wilson dreamed of acquiring a stake in the Panama Canal, thereby giving the United States complete control over it.

This is also why President Wilson was determined to participate in the World War and to proactively declare war on Britain at all costs.

Unfortunately, President Wilson ultimately lost his gamble. The United States entered the World War too late, and the British government acted decisively, withdrawing from the war before the situation in the Americas had changed significantly, leaving the United States in an awkward position.

The United States is now in a lose-lose situation whether it continues to fight or engages in peace negotiations.

President Wilson felt the trip to Paris was a complete disaster. None of the initial objectives had been achieved, and the United States was now in the embarrassing position of fighting Britain alone.

More importantly, before he even returned to the United States, news of the naval defeat had already arrived from the front lines.

The United States' military strength relied entirely on its navy, and with the navy already defeated, President Wilson had no idea how to win the war.

After the Paris Peace Conference, President Wilson did not rush to leave Paris, but instead began preparations for peace talks with Britain.

He knew perfectly well that returning to the United States now would be useless and would not bring victory to the country.

It would be better to take advantage of the meeting of Spanish and British diplomatic representatives in Paris to conduct peace negotiations and end the war at the lowest possible cost.

Compared to President Wilson's troubles, other European countries did not have as many worries.

For most of the Allied Powers, the peace negotiations were very successful in achieving their respective objectives.

Spain likely benefited the most. Although Spain didn't acquire much land on the surface, it gained the most in other ways besides land.

Firstly, you can prioritize selecting production equipment, production materials, and skilled workers from German factories and companies.

By thoroughly sifting through and exploiting all of Germany's major factories and enterprises, Spain's industry will experience a significant boost in a short period of time.

Secondly, Spain received a large portion of Germany's war reparations. It's important to note that Spain's economy was not significantly affected by the World War; in fact, it experienced rapid growth during the war.

With the addition of war reparations, the Spanish government's finances can be considered quite abundant. Whether used to build up the army, continue investing in military technology research, or carry out infrastructure construction, it will have a very good effect.

Beyond these obvious benefits, the biggest gain for Spain is the enhancement of its international influence and status.

As one of the three giants of the League of Nations, Spain's status and influence in Europe and the world have risen considerably. Before the World War, Spain's presence in Europe was not strong. Even though it attracted some attention through expositions on electricity and airships, Spain remained a relatively unknown country in Europe.

There's nothing we can do about it; after all, compared to Spain, Britain, France, Germany, and Russia are significantly more well-known.

Britain possessed the world's strongest navy and was the dominant world power at the time. Germany, on the other hand, had the world's strongest army, and its industrial and economic development was the fastest in Europe.

Although France is not number one, it is second in the world in the navy, army and colonial affairs. Being number two all the time is a very prestigious title.

Russia, needless to say, has earned the title of "European bulldozer" by trading its vast territory and population, and its military strength is something that all European countries fear.

Compared to these countries, Spain's profile is indeed not very high. Even after several rounds of reforms and a significant increase in its overall strength, Spain's international status and influence are still only on par with the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Now that the world war is over, Spain's international influence and status, if not entirely equivalent to Britain's, is at least second in the world, above France and below Britain.

Although France won the World War and defeated its arch-enemy Germany, which had previously been ranked second in the world, all nations knew that France's losses in the war were far too great, and that it would require a long time to recover.

If Britain hadn't suffered relatively few losses in the World Wars, Spain might have been able to compete for the title of world hegemon. This is why European countries generally value Spain and have worked together to enhance its international influence.

Spain now has many supporters in Europe, and Belgium and Spain have formed a close alliance.

With the support of the Spanish government, Belgium gained a large amount of territory at the Paris Peace Conference, which will significantly boost its industry, population, and economy.

Although the land area Belgium acquired is far less than that of France, Belgium is still a small country, and the land area it acquired is still considerable relative to its own size.

If Belgium were to acquire a large tract of land, given Germany's relatively dense population, Belgium might not be able to absorb it all.

This can be seen from the current situation of the United Kingdom of Spain and Portugal.

Spain had already united Portugal before the outbreak of World War II. However, Spain's annexation of Portugal was a long process, and with some minor maneuvers during the World War II, the annexation of Portugal has only now been initially completed.

It must be said that this world war was indeed a very opportune time. Spain conscripted large numbers of soldiers in Portugal and, under the pretext of a labor shortage in Portugal, sent a large number of immigrants to the country.

While the four Portuguese cantons appear largely unchanged on the surface, they are now predominantly inhabited by Spanish people.

Before World War II, the population of Portugal was approximately 550 million, and after World War II, the population of Portugal rose to 670 million.

Although the population growth was only about 120 million on the surface, it is important to know that Spain transported a large number of Portuguese people out of the country during this period and conscripted nearly 30 soldiers in the area.

Although the army will be gradually phased out, these Portuguese soldiers will be gradually resettled in Spain. There's no need to worry about them being dissatisfied, because the Spanish government will arrange high-paying jobs for them, definitely higher than their earnings during their military service.

Under these circumstances, most people are likely quite satisfied with the government's arrangements. After all, Europeans are already accustomed to immigration, and given the similarities in language and customs, living in Spain and Portugal is not significantly different for these Portuguese people.

Even living in Spain, their income and standard of living would improve significantly.

Although Spain and Portugal have been effectively integrated into one country, there is still a significant gap in per capita income between the two regions.

Spain's industry and economy developed well during the World War, and per capita income naturally continued to rise.

Although Portugal has been integrated into Spain, its original economic foundation was so poor that, to this day, Portugal's per capita income has not caught up with that of Spain.

Of course, this is also a tactic employed by the Spanish government. The average income in Portugal is lower than in Spain, so Portuguese residents naturally want to work in Spain.

After all, Spain and Portugal are not too far apart, and the higher income available to work in Spain is still very attractive to most people.

A small number of people who were unwilling to leave their homeland could only stay in Portugal. Fortunately, Spanish capital had built a large number of factories in Portugal, and these factories were also hiring, although the income was a little lower than working in Spain.

Of course, these factories offer higher salaries compared to the original income of the Portuguese.

This is also why Spain's annexation of Portugal proceeded so smoothly, without too many unexpected events along the way.

Although there are still some people who do not want Portugal to be annexed by Spain, these people are always a minority.

Although the concept of nationalism existed in this era, it was only in its early stages. More radical and extreme forms of nationalism were even rarer, and if such individuals were discovered, simply sending them to Spain's various colonies would suffice to resolve the problem.

According to statistics from the governments of the four Portuguese cantons, by 1915, of Portugal's original population of 550 million, approximately 180 million had been sent to Spain and approximately 140 million to various colonies, totaling 320 million, which accounted for more than half of the original Portuguese population.

Spain transported nearly 440 million immigrants to Portugal. Apart from a small number of immigrants from its colonies such as Morocco, the majority of the immigrants came from Spain itself.

This also resulted in a larger Spanish population in Portugal, meaning that even if Portugal wanted to declare independence, it would be impossible for it to affect the stability of the entire Spanish continent.

Because the Spanish living in Portugal would never agree to Portugal becoming independent, under the current circumstances, Portugal is only a matter of time before it is completely annexed by Spain.

The good news is that the Spanish government is already preparing for this final nominal appointment.

To completely annex Portugal, a reason acceptable to all Portuguese people must be presented. Simply incorporating Portugal into the Kingdom of Spain would obviously provoke opposition from some Portuguese.

However, if the reason for completely integrating Portugal into Spain is to form a new empire, and then Spain forms a new empire, such a reason would obviously be more convincing to more people.

(End of this chapter)