My British Empire

  Chapter 465 Kill two birds with one stone

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   "Dengdengdeng—" As a guard in the palace and one of the few noble children in Spain, Butchaca has always kept etiquette in mind, and it has been engraved in his bones.

  However, when he got the news, he still couldn't help showing a look of shock in his heart, and his steps became a little unsteady.

  His face was pale, his footsteps were a little floating, and he looked a little overindulgent. When he entered the lawn and disturbed His Majesty the King and the ministers, the noble children like him couldn't help laughing.

   But Chaka couldn't care so much, and went straight to His Majesty the King, bent down, and saluted.

   "Your Majesty, please forgive my impoliteness, but the current situation makes people forget about etiquette!"

  As an excellent king, Philip II didn't care about Chabuka's disrespectful behavior. He only cared about what news made him, a noble guard who abides by etiquette, lose his sense of proportion.

   Philip II stared at the respectful guards in front of him, frowned slightly, and asked eagerly:

   "I forgive your behavior, but, my guard, please tell me, what happened?"

  Hearing Philip II's question, Buchak immediately raised his head and calmed down, and then said:

   "Your Majesty, a mob has rebelled in the Netherlands. At present, Amsterdam has been captured."

  Hearing this, Philip II was taken aback. He was not surprised by the riots of the Dutch, but was surprised that the Dutch had the strength to capture Amsterdam, which is the central city of the North Netherlands.

  The Netherlands region includes present-day northeastern France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Belgium. In the sixteenth century, it was the economic center of the entire Europe and was also known as the Low Countries.

There are more than 300 cities in the small Netherlands, with a population of more than 3 million. The land is fertile and the business is developed. The annual tax paid to the Kingdom of Spain has reached 6 million Duters, accounting for more than half of the Kingdom of Spain. taxation.

  At this time, England has several times the land and the population is comparable to the Netherlands.

  With the addition of Scotland, Ireland and other places, the tax contribution of the entire United Kingdom is not as much as one-tenth of the Netherlands.

  The Netherlands is the center of the handicraft industry in the whole of Europe. Even the woolens made in England are sent to the Netherlands for printing, dyeing and coloring.

  This is why Britain's international status is not high at this time.

  As the pillar of the empire's economy, after Philip II inherited the empire of Charles V, he never let it go.

   "Is the Duchess of Parma doing anything?" Philip II was shocked, then asked with a cold face.

   "Before I got the news, I didn't know the Governor's move!"

  Buchak replied softly.

  The Duchess of Parma is the illegitimate daughter of Charles V and the sister of Philip II, who has won the trust of Philip II.

  In the eyes of the king, his elder sister is the most suitable subordinate, because she will execute her orders meticulously, stabilize the Netherlands, and contribute a steady stream of taxes to the kingdom.

   Hearing that his sister did not take any action or take any effective measures, Philip II shook his head in disappointment:

   Sure enough, when a woman encounters any major event, she will be at a loss.

   At this time, the Minister of Finance, Roy Gomez De Heil, was also shocked. As the king's important minister, he certainly understood what losing the Netherlands meant to the kingdom.

   "Your Majesty, the Netherlands is very important to the kingdom. Huge taxation is the pillar supporting the dignity of the kingdom. The current situation in the Netherlands is confusing, and peace talks are still the main focus. The economy of the Netherlands cannot be damaged in the slightest!"

When the power of the elderly palace minister was gradually emptied, the Minister of Finance Roy Gomez de Hier and the Duke of Avar, Fernando Alvarez de Toledo, became the most trusted nobles of Philip II Minister.

  The finance minister, who has always been prudent and prudent, sees very clearly that in the face of France and the Ottoman Empire, the Netherlands, which supports the kingdom's huge expenditures, is of great importance.

   "Please consider carefully, a war-torn Netherlands has no effect on the kingdom! At present, it is more important to deal with the Huguenots in France!"

   As he spoke, the Chancellor of the Exchequer looked at the king expectantly, threw out the French war in distress, and changed the king's mind.

   "Your Majesty, those conspiring rebels should have been hanged a long time ago. We can't treat them too leniently. As long as these leaders die, the Netherlands will naturally settle down!"

  The Duke of Avar glanced at the Minister of Finance who tried his best to persuade him, his old enemy, he glanced at him dismissively, and said fiercely.

   In this regard, the Minister of Finance was so angry that his neck was thick. After mocking each other with Duke Avar for a while, he pushed the problem to Philip II.

  At this time, the King of Spain was thinking about the importance of the Netherlands and France.

  If you attack France, the entire south of France will be Huguenot believers. If you eat it, you will have a little indigestion.

  The Netherlands was lost, and the entire empire collapsed. He was unwilling to face this scene.

  So, there is only one option at present, to make the Netherlands become the kingdom's purse again.

   "Stop talking, Duke Avar, I authorize you to be the new governor of the Netherlands, and you must stabilize the Netherlands!"

  Philip II announced loudly in front of several ministers and palace ministers.

  The Minister of Finance and the Minister of the Palace turned pale when they heard the words, but the Duke of Avar agreed with high spirits, with indescribable pride on his face.

   Resisting the irritability in his heart, Philip II once again looked up in the direction of France and sighed:

  Frenchman, let you escape again!

  The uprising broke out in the Netherlands, of course it was not a coincidence, but the young king of the United Kingdom of Great Britain personally ordered the intelligence department to act.

  In fact, three years later, that is to say, in 1556, a revolution will still break out in the history of the Netherlands region, and an uprising against the Spaniards will be carried out, which will last for more than 40 years, and the blood of Spain will be shed.

  Of course, the British just lit a spark lightly in advance. The real factor is the Spaniards, who built the Netherland powder kegs themselves.

  During the time of Charles V, the number of Protestants executed by the Inquisition in the Netherlands reached more than 50,000.

  In the period of Philip II, economic warfare was used to force the Netherlands to submit.

Philip II did not allow the Netherlands to trade with the Spanish colonies, but he made the English cheaper in vain; he increased the purchase price of Spanish wool, forcing a large number of handicraft factories to go bankrupt; The Dutch bankers suffered heavy losses.

  His actions did not force the Dutch to submit, but instead aroused opposition from all social classes in the Netherlands.

  At this time, the Netherlands has become a veritable powder keg, and it will explode at one point, and the English are nothing but a spark.

   Soon, the news that the Spaniards were preparing to go to the Netherlands reached France, which annoyed the Catholic League and surprised the Huguenots.

  As for London, England, the young His Majesty the King couldn't help being very proud of his handwriting.

  Igniting the Netherlands in advance will not only allow the United Kingdom to swallow part of the French territory to reduce resistance, but also allow the United Kingdom to weaken the strength of its economic rival, the Netherlands.

   Kill two birds with one stone.

  (end of this chapter)