Equity & Justice: An Imperial Mexico Timeline

[Aluma]

Just noticed you posted this tl, ima slow gurl
I know next to nothing about México, which is why I was delaying looking into KingSweden's TL too, but I guess after reading this I should check his as well...
Needless to say I had fun, seeing how this impact Imperial France and the confederate shenanigans got me hooked and I'm very interested on where you take this, Imperial Brasil surviving being the icyng on the cake for me~
Keep up the good work oh man of a thousand timelines!

 

[Aluma]

Came back here to say...

Holy shit his timeline has over a thousand threadmarks
Wish me luck, I hope I survive

But aside from that, will you touch on the pop culture side in this TL? I for one highly recommend to both you and @KingSweden24 the shows Chapulin Colorado & El Chavo because they're pretty good and not only popular on Mexico itself but also the most popular series in Brazil as well, I'd dare say Chespirito is the most loved TV writter on Latin America
And of course there's always the mexican & brazilian soap operas, the former being well known in the US and the later very popular in eastern europe(in particular Russia, they even got the word "Fazenda" from it)
Of course I completely understand if you feel like just focusing on the political side of it, it's already a lot to take in specially with you NOT wanting to ignore the rest of the Americas(thank you for that) and already being busy with exams & other TLs, plus these shows being kinda hard to get into as a foreigner, but still hope you like the suggestion

 

[KingSweden24]

Came back here to say...

Holy shit his timeline has over a thousand threadmarks
Wish me luck, I hope I survive

But aside from that, will you touch on the pop culture side in this TL? I for one highly recommend to both you and @KingSweden24 the shows Chapulin Colorado & El Chavo because they're pretty good and not only popular on Mexico itself but also the most popular series in Brazil as well, I'd dare say Chespirito is the most loved TV writter on Latin America
And of course there's always the mexican & brazilian soap operas, the former being well known in the US and the later very popular in eastern europe(in particular Russia, they even got the word "Fazenda" from it)
Of course I completely understand if you feel like just focusing on the political side of it, it's already a lot to take in specially with you NOT wanting to ignore the rest of the Americas(thank you for that) and already being busy with exams & other TLs, plus these shows being kinda hard to get into as a foreigner, but still hope you like the suggestion

I’m not going to discuss my own TL with a similar premise on another writer’s thread at too much length beyond to say that I haven’t quite reached that point in the narrative where such pop culture becomes relevant; that said, I’m always open to ideas on how to weave such things into what I’ve come up with, and my DMs are always open

 

[Aluma]

Dats fine, dont wanna push you or Sarthaka into anything, just wanted to make the suggestion for you two so I thought making it here would be better to draw attention to his new one since yours already got quite a following and I get it & respect you for not wanting to talk about it here since its his TL

 

[The Gunslinger]

Going off of Joan Haslip's book, I thought she implied that Max's gaze was headed straight for Guatemala. And that he thought he had a very good chance of getting another Hapsburg on the Brazilian throne.

 

[Wendell]

Your use of the Fifth of August makes me think of a movement in another country during a different century.

 

[Sarthak]

Of course I completely understand if you feel like just focusing on the political side of it, it's already a lot to take in specially with you NOT wanting to ignore the rest of the Americas(thank you for that) and already being busy with exams & other TLs, plus these shows being kinda hard to get into as a foreigner, but still hope you like the suggestion

Dont worry, i do intend to the cultural side of things, especially in severely impacted parts of the tl - like Mexico, Brazil, America, UK, France, Austria etc.

 

[Sarthak]

Going off of Joan Haslip's book, I thought she implied that Max's gaze was headed straight for Guatemala. And that he thought he had a very good chance of getting another Hapsburg on the Brazilian throne.

He did have his eye on Guatemala, but to what extent is rather unknown to us

 

[Sarthak]

Your use of the Fifth of August makes me think of a movement in another country during a different century.

Oh, which one?

 

[Aluma]

Dont worry, i do intend to the cultural side of things, especially in severely impacted parts of the tl - like Mexico, Brazil, America, UK, France, Austria etc.

Thaaaank yoooou
Sending a virtual hug! <^-^>

 

[Wendell]

Oh, which one?

It's Fourth of August, not Fifth. Sorry about that.

 

[Héctorcccc]

It would be an excellent day for Maximiliano after bringing stability from Mexico to help the Central American countries with an example to Nicaragua that at that time it was intended to impose slavery and make it parts United states by William Walker, Mexico could send aid and overthrow William and together with the other Central American countries and thus win the favor of both Salvador, Honduras and Costa Rica and, therefore, perhaps a future later unite all of Central America and formed the old Mexican empire.

 

[Noblesse Oblige]

It would be an excellent day for Maximiliano after bringing stability from Mexico to help the Central American countries with an example to Nicaragua that at that time it was intended to impose slavery and make it parts United states by William Walker, Mexico could send aid and overthrow William and together with the other Central American countries and thus win the favor of both Salvador, Honduras and Costa Rica and, therefore, perhaps a future later unite all of Central America and formed the old Mexican empire.

Problem is William Walker's Nicaragua not only collapsed before the PoD, but Walker himself was executed by the Honduran government four years before the PoD. Maximiliano will need to find alternative means to court the Central American nations.

 

[Sarthak]

Chapter 4: The First Election

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Excerpt: Imperial Mexico: A Geo-Economic History

“…. As the new year dawned, the Second Mexican Empire was a nation filled with rather large amounts of economic problems. Which was to be expected, considering that Mexico had been in one conflict after another ever since 1846 and had rarely established a permanent peace in the preceding two decades. The new government of the Second Mexican Empire wished to make sure that they could exploit all of the economic opportunities of Mexico to revitalize the nation, and make the Mexican economy a powerful and stable one at that.

The Mexican Minister of the Interior, Jose Salazar Ilarregui, in particular believed that Mexico was destined for economic greatness, and that it was Mexico’s internal instability that had hindered the nation’s economic progress. Illaregui’s greatest achievement in the few months that remained in his term of office was the establishment of the Veracruz-Mexico City Railway Line. One of the largest problems facing Mexico was the utter lack of infrastructure in the entirety of the country to connect different parts of the nation. The idea of creating a railway line between Veracruz and Mexico City had been floated ever since the invention of the railway, however despite rights and concessions been given to British and American companies since 1838, none of the projects bore any fruits. In 1857, Don Antonio Escandon, a prominent Mexican industrialist gained governmental permission to build a railway line between the two important cities. The Reform War and the French Invasion temporarily halted progress and construction of the railway, and nearly made Escandon bankrupt, which would have stopped the construction. However, in 1864, Maximiliano I secured a loan of 30,000 pesos and handed it over to Escandon who continued with his construction project after the monetary relief given to him by the new Mexican Emperor. A further subsidy of 120,000 Francs given to the Railway by the French furthered the construction process and the French army guarding the railway tracks prevented bandits and Republican guerillas from stifling progress across the railway. Maximiliano I also established the Imperial Mexican Railway Company (CLFIM) as the national railway commission and Escandon was made the President of the CLFIM, who was ecstatic to be the leader of the budding railway industry in Mexico.

The Veracruz-Mexico City Railway​

Illaregui went beyond just these, and managed to bring out a loan of 25,000 pounds from the Bank of England, which proved to be the final monetary requirement for the railway tracks. As greed for money improved the morale of the construction workers, the rate of construction grew exponentially. Important Engineers from America and Britain, William Elliot and Martin Lyons respectively also headed the construction process so that by April 27, 1866, the entire railway was ready and brand new. The ecstatic Maximiliano I traveled to Veracruz on horseback and began to prepare for a grand opening of the Veracruz-Mexico City Railway. In honor of the Interior Minister who had committed so much for the project, the Mexican Emperor named the Veracruz station to be the Illaregui Railway Station. However, underneath the veneer of enthusiasm and happiness for the project ending, tensions had already started to rise. Austrian, Belgian, Spanish, and European Volunteer troops had already left from Veracruz in late 1865 after the end of the Mexican Civil War, however, Marshal Banzaine remained in Veracruz with 12,000 French troops, who seemed to be intent on permanently occupying the important port city.

Maximiliano I was thankful for the French for their aid in installing him as Emperor, and as such, was hesitant in making any high demands of the French leaving, and politely asked the French contingent to instead to remain within their own quarters of the city. Carlotta, on the other hand, had no such restraints, and bluntly demanded that the French army withdraw now that the conflict was over and the Imperial Mexican Army was standing on its own two feet. Banzaine met Carlotta’s blunt demands with his own blunt statement. He refused to leave Veracruz with his troops without orders from Paris. A telegram was sent to Paris regarding this matter from Mexico City, however Napoleon III, who was intent on making Mexico his puppet in all but name, politely ignored the request.

In particular, Napoleon III was trying to milk the success of the Mexican Adventure in France for all that it was worth. During the 1863 French Legislative Elections, 19.5% of the French electorate had supported Opposition Candidates against the French Empire, and the presence of opposition candidates for the first time in the 2nd Empire’s history was frightening to the French Imperial Government. Prominent Republicans such as Ollivier, Darimon, Favre, Picard, Simon, Carnot, Gueroult, Garnier-Pages, Pelletan, Thiers had been elected to the Chamber of Deputies, and had dealt the Napoleonic Regime a huge blow in prestige and self-confidence. These Republicans had been the fiercest domestic opponents of the French invasion of Mexico. The success of said invasion discredited the Imperial opposition and restored a great deal of self-confidence in Napoleon III. In particular, pro-Napoleonic politicians levelled heavy amounts of slurs and arguments against the temporarily discredited Republicans. Napoleon III used this opportunity to garner support from Maximiliano I to give preferences to French companies in Mexico and lowered tariff rates for French goods in Mexico in addition to paying off the Mexican debt owed to France. Economically it was a huge win for the French Emperor.

As such, with tensions between the Imperial Mexicans and French boiling underneath the surface – in particular, Maximiliano I was miffed that his dear wife had been ignored by the Parisian court – the Veracruz-Mexico City Railway was inaugurated by Maximiliano I on May 12, 1866. The Mexican people cheered, yet they looked at the French contingent with unhidden anger and growing ferocity. Maximiliano I knew that he would have to divert attention from the French and make sure that the Mexicans were focused somewhere else. Maximiliano I then boisterously claimed that he was going to initiate a National Railway Plan in coordination with the CLFIM to build a national network of railways throughout the Empire of Mexico, to promote connectivity, to develop infrastructure and to elevate the economic status of Mexico. In particular, the National Railway Plan promised the creation of a railway line through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, which promised to be a grand economic endeavor with great results. The optimistic note of the National Railway Plan did distract most Mexicans from the French, fortunately for Maximiliano I.

Maximiliano I and the Imperial Mexican government began to court other European nations to offset the overwhelming and overbearing French influence in the government. Carlotta’s influence saw Belgian money flow into the National Railway Plan, whilst Maximiliano I also sent overtures to Isabella II of Spain. Spain, was receptive of the offers coming from Mexico. They had just finished fighting in the War of Hispaniola Restoration (1863 – 1866) and had accepted the surrender of General Gaspar Polanco Borbon on January 1866, which had ended with Captaincy General of Santo Domingo being reconquered by Spain, much to the chagrin of America and Britain. [1] Despite the victory, as a measure of making sure future rebellions did not happen, the newly restored Captaincy gained a lot of autonomy from the Spanish mainland government. Nevertheless, Isabella II was also sure that if she could get Mexico to intervene in the Chincha War, then the war could be won by Spain. Maximiliano I politely refused the offer of entering the Chincha War, which remained a stalemate between Peru, Ecuador, Chile & Spain. Mexico had just finished two decades worth of fighting and had no appetite for more for the time being.

Leopoldo O'Donnell
Prime Minister of Spain (1864 - 1871)
Founder of the O'Donnell Doctrine​

Though Isabella II was disappointed with the rebuff, Leopoldo O’Donnell, the Prime Minister of Spain (of Irish heritage like his name suggests) decided that the Mexican rebuff was well within their rights. Instead, O’Donnell created what has been coined as the O’Donnell Doctrine. The O’Donnell Doctrine was Spain’s doctrine of reasserting Spain’s economic power in the previous colonies of Spain in Latin America. O’Donnell believed that meddling too much in former Spanish America would gain the ire of America and Britain and was instead turning his eyes towards Africa, now that his imperial tendencies were satisfied with Dominica. He had already started making overtures of settling the Chincha dispute with Peru, which were being debated in the Peruvian Congress. O’Donnell’s Doctrine created a large amount of Spanish money being thrown at Mexico. O’Donnell and Spain didn’t care what the money was being used for, but if it increased the economic influence of Spain in Mexico, then they were willing to invest more and more money into the Mexican Empire. Maximiliano I, who wanted to offset French influence, was more than happy to allow extra investment in the form of Spanish gold to enter the Mexican economy.

Of course, being an Austrian by birth, Austria in particular was well involved in Imperial Mexico’s economic plans as well. Franz Joseph I gave the Streyr Armory a concession to start a regional armory in Veracruz, which was one of the more noteworthy economic implants that Austria conducted in Mexico. Furthermore, Franz Joseph I also sent Feldmarshall-Leutnant Wilhelm von Ramming to Mexico as a military instructor for the Imperial Mexican Army. With von Ramming, a group of 12 Austrian officer cadets were sent to Mexico as an experiment to see if the rough training terrain in Mexico would make the Austrian Army better at irregular warfare, which was something that Austria was extremely lacking in. The victory of Maximiliano I also had implications for the Austrian Army. Franco-Austrian cooperation grew with one another and France gave up blueprints of the Chassepot Rifle to the Austrian Army for a tidy sum of 20,000 Krones. The Austrians, who were ecstatic about having a breechloading rifle that was within the scope of their budget, began to produce it, and by the start of the Brother’s War, the Imperial Austrian Army was equipped with ~48,000 Chassepot Rifles.

All of these foreign advancements in Mexico was accompanied by the talk of immigration and setting up Mexico as an immigration hub. Maximiliano I had made it clear ever since 1864 that he intended to uplift Mexico by attracting immigrants from throughout the entire European world. Even the Ottoman and North African World was open for Maximiliano I, as he had favorable opinions of the Ottoman Empire. [2]. Mexico was already undergoing a rather large boom in immigration as Confederates and Confederate Sympathizers fled the United States of America into Imperial Mexico, where they were received with cordial tones. Despite Maximiliano I’s iron will regarding slavery, as long as the institution was not reinstated in Mexico, he was willing to play along as a friend of the Confederate exiles. Already by the end of 1866, Mexico had around ~12,000 Confederate Exiles, and with Reconstruction progressing in America, more Confederate Exiles leaving America in favor of Mexico seemed likely.

On the personal initiation of Maximiliano, I, the Mexican Immigration Office (OMI) was established as a commission to properly coordinate immigration into Mexico. Through the OMI and through his Imperial connections with Vienna, 543 German families from Austria and Southern Germany were settled in Mexico from 1864-1866, and around 189 families of Italian descent (mostly from Austrian Venetia) settled in Mexico as well. In addition to these immigrants from the Austrian Empire, the Ottoman Empire finally agreed to Maximiliano I’s 1864 offer of settling the immigrant Ottoman Turkino (Ottoman Jews) in Mexico, and allowed 41 families to immigrate to the region. Basques and Catalans, both of whom were discriminated by Spain’s increasing Castile-focused government, also found themselves immigrating to Mexico due to Maximiliano I’s lax immigration requirements.

Breton Immigrants in Veracruz c. 1870​

Although Italians, Turkinos and Germans remained the major highlight of immigrants to Mexico from Europe, a smaller amount of other European peoples also started immigration trends to Mexico. Irishmen, always wanting a safe Catholic haven began to look at the Mexican nation with speculative glances, and Bretons and Corsicans, blanching under the stifling Parisian government of France were also weighing their options in the form of immigration caucus’s and meetings. This set the tone for European immigration into Mexico. Germans and Italians formed the largest immigrant groups, whilst Turkinos, Irishmen, Bretons, Corsicans, Basques and Catalans formed the nexus of other smaller immigrant group in the country. Thus the stage for the famous (or infamous depending on a certain perspective) polygot empire of Maximiliano I was set…..”

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Excerpt: Maximiliano’s Chancellors: The Illustrious Political History of the Golden Age of Mexico

“……As soon as the announcement was made that the first General Elections in Imperial Mexico were going to be held on the 1st of June, 1866, the political race between several political factions in the Mexican Empire began. One of the most important events in this proverbial race was the foundation of the Frente Nacional de Mexico or the National Front of Mexico. Santiago Vidaurri was the founder of the National Front on the 2nd of January, 1866. The National Front created by Vidaurri was made to be a Big Tent & Third Way political party, intended to unite the Conservatives and Liberals of the Mexican nation under the banner of Monarchism, Mexican Nationalism and Pro-Economic Development views. Vidaurri was of the opinion that if the previous polarization between the conservatives and liberals was allowed to continue, then it would tear the Mexican nation apart once more and bring about the fall of the Second Mexican Empire.

Santiago Vidaurri​

Vidaurri found supporters on both sides of the political spectrum, true to his idea of a Big Tent political party. Ignacio Vallarta, Sosthenes Rocha, Porfirio Diaz, Jose Salazar Illaregui, Faustino Chimalpopoca, Manuel Gonzalez Flores were all supporters of the National Front and later joined the party. These were not small names. Ignacio Vallarta was a prominent Mexican Jurist who was also the Deputy Leader of the Mexican Supreme Court. He had been a prominent supporter of Juarez who had decided to side with Maximiliano I after anarchy gripped the Mexican Republicans after Juarez’s death. Sosthenes Rocha was a caudillo of the north, having fought under the banner of both the Liberals and Conservatives before, and his military skill was unquestionable. Porifiro Diaz was of course one of the victors of Cinco de Agosto and a powerful military figure in Mexico in his own right. Illaregui was the Minister of the Interior and directly responsible for the full establishment of the Veracruz-Mexico City Railway, whilst Chimalpopoca was the Minister of Culture and a powerful Nuhuatl politician from the Yucatan. Flores was an important military leader in Oaxaca and a key friend and ally of Diaz as well. The influence that these men commanded, both in the political right and political left spectrums of Mexico were extremely considerable, especially as Vidaurri was positioning his party to become the middle way for the Mexican people, a message that was extremely tempting for many Mexicans.

In response, other political parties began to move as well.

Having returned from Europe on January 14, 1866, Miguel Miramon took the helms of the Mexican Conservative Party to steer it in time for the Mexican General Elections. However, the Conservative Party suffered from a lack of unity among one another. Miramon’s command was stifling to many, and Tomas Mejia rose up in opposition, deeming himself as the proper leader of the Conservative Party. The cunning and shrewd Felix Maria Zuloaga continued to meddle in the party leadership, aiming for the top himself. The Liberals under Lacunza tried to make their presence known, however, the destruction of Juarez and the Republicans had depleted the political force of the Liberals in the general populace, and Lacunza and neither of any of the Liberal politicians had the strong personalities of Mejia and Miramon to aid them politically in the public. Lacunza did try to offset this with the general wealth that the Liberals had with them, though the success of the over-spending that Lacunza became involved in had mixed results.

Foreign elements within the country also had destabilizing effects in the infighting between the Mexican political factions. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna now proclaimed himself as the Imperial Patriot in his exile in Columbia, and sent a letter to Maximiliano I asking for a general amnesty for himself. Maximiliano I, who could read the country of Mexico well, decided not to grant this amnesty, knowing that the people of Mexico still disliked Santa Anna for his rather ill-advised governments which saw Texas declare independence, America invade, and America gain Gasden for only a measly $250,000. Instead, Maximiliano I granted Santa Anna a pension of 6300 pesos a month as long as he remained outside of the country. It was a comfortable pension granted by the magnanimous Mexican Emperor, but it was not enough for Santa Anna, who wanted to return to Mexico as it’s proverbial savior.

With this political situation, the greatest political and national topics of the nation needed to be tackled during and after the general elections. The topic of expanding the suffrage was the greatest problem. Juarez had taken with him the governmental rolls of people eligible to vote, and had promptly lost it [3] much to the despair of the Imperial government, as they now had to make new lists for the people eligible to vote. Maximiliano I was personally in favor of using the suffrage requirements issued in Europe as a compromise between the Conservatives and Liberals, with the Conservatives arguing for a limited franchise limited to the ‘intellectuals’ of the empire, which was basically a codeword of the era for the political elite and the Liberals arguing for a wider franchise.

Bitter debate over the national issue of suffrage continued, and during this time, led by the Mexican youths, such as Rita Cetina Gutierrez and Cristina Farfan began to protest in Yucatan asking for voting privileges for women as well, thus expanding the entire debate of suffrage to include arguments for both genders, much to the headache of everyone in Mexico City as the Chamber of Deputies exploded in a fury of debate.

Much like every nation with electoral proceedings in the 19th century, Mexico had an undercurrent of pro-universal suffrage leanings. Radical reformists in the Chamber proposed Universal Male Suffrage to the Chamber on the 28th of January, which was fought down by everyone else much to the displeasure of many in Mexico. To many, the so called ‘Liberal Emperor of Mexico’ was not fulfilling his role as a Liberal Emperor. Maximiliano I was not supportive of full suffrage, not at that point anyway, however he said nothing for or against the bill, staying true to his promise of being a true semi-constitutional monarch. Despite this, everyone in the Chamber of Deputies, Conservatives, Nationalists (name for the members of the National Front) and Liberals all agreed that the franchise issue needed to be settled and quickly, so that the growing franchise debate in Mexico could be laid to rest. In the end it was Vidaurri himself who proposed a compromise solution to the suffrage debate.

The Chamber of Deputies in bitter debate over suffrage​

He proposed the 1866 Bill, which gave the right to vote to all Males with over 50 pesos a month salary that paid the national tax and over the age of 20. This was in effect, ~85% of the national adult population. The age limits and monetary requirements were added to appease the Conservatives. To appease the Liberals, who were supportive of the Female campaigners in Yucatan, women who were the leader of their own households, passed an 80 peso per month monetary requirement, and owned personal property were allowed to vote in the national elections. This was modeled after the 1861 Austrian Crownland Reforms, which basically allowed women who were leaders of their own household, passed a 48 Krone monetary requirement and passed property qualifications to vote in the Austrian Imperial elections. For Mexico, this effectively meant that ~2.5% of Mexico’s female population was eligible for the vote. [4] To most, it was the perfect compromise, and with pro-compromise candidates voting in favor of the bill, Vidaurri’s proposition became law on February 26, 1866 and the national electoral registers began to tally the national population based on the 1866 Mexican Electoral Law. In effect, from a country whose adult population was ~6.8 million, ~2.75 million people gained the right to vote in Imperial Mexico. It was more conservative than the Liberal’s plan of around 4 million voters, and it was more liberal than the Conservative plan of 1.8 million voters. It was in effect, the perfect compromise for many.

Other political issues were also brought up. Mexico owed what was essentially 66% of her economy in debt to France, a staggering total of around 28 million pesos, the legacy of a misspent money from the Santa Anna and Reform War. Maximiliano I more than anyone else knew that trying to default on said debt would see France invade once again. The Mexican political scene was dominated by pro-bond (Liberals), pro-spending cuts (Conservatives) and pro-fiscal policy reform (Nationalists), who all had their own ideas about reducing the debt. The Liberals argued for issuing bonds to creditors domestically and internationally, however many people were put off by the fact that bonds tended to accumulate interest and debt on their own, whilst the Conservatives argued for spending cuts, which did not sit well with the Mexican people who wanted to increase the development of the nation. The National Front’s platform of fiscal policy reform to generate more money to pay off the national debt seemed more likeable to many.

In this situation, the era of national campaigns started for the first time in Mexican history. Conservatives began scouring the nation, bringing the local elites and conservatives into their fold. Liberals travelled throughout the nation, giving speeches and handing out campaign promises. The Nationalists did the same as well. It was the beginning of a new era, and the end of an old one. For the most part, the most robust campaign for the elections came from the Nationalists, both due to the fact that as a new political force, they needed to ‘bond’ with the people more and because of the fact that Vidaurri believed that reconciling differing political factions in the country was the better way to go. The Conservatives and Liberals both used rather traditional methods of trying to campaign, leaving most campaign proposals and activities to local party authorities, and allowing them to have considerable political autonomy in their own right.

The infobox of the elections (left) and electoral map of the elections (right)​

Much to the surprise of the Conservatives and Liberals, the 1866 Imperial Mexican Elections ended in a landslide victory for the National Front, even if they didn’t gain a majority in the unicameral Chamber of Deputies. Winning 236 seats versus the Conservative’s 138 and the Liberal’s 121, the National Front had exceeded the expectations of even Vidaurri himself during the elections. The party’s lack of majority was a concern, however Maximiliano I upon receiving the results on the 11th of June, offered the Chancellorship of Mexico to Vidaurri, who accepted the offer and formed a national minority government.

Viduarri’s cabinet was a popular cabinet, as famous figures entered the national government.

Chancellor: Santiago Vidaurri (National Front)​

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Minister of the Interior: Jose Salazar Illaregui (National Front)​

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Minister of Foreign Affairs: Ignacio Vallarta (National Front)​

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Minister of Financial and Economic Affairs: Don Antonio Escandon (Non-Partisan)​

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Minister of War: Porfirio Diaz (National Front)​

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Minister of the Navy: Ramon Corona (National Front)​

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Minister of Transportation: San Miguel de Gonzalez (Non-Partisan)​

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Minister of Culture and Tradition: Faustino Chimalpopoca (National Front)​

With the first elections in Imperial Mexican history complete, the Mexican nation began to settle down. The issue of debt, development and Maximiliano I’s own personal dreams for a grand Mexican Navy were all going to collide in the future as the Golden Age of Mexican Parliamentarianism began….”

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Excerpt: For God and the Emperor: The Rise of the Modern Austrian Federation

“…. The situation in Austria at the beginning of 1866 was one that was filled with cautious optimism. Franz Joseph’s brother, Archduke Maximilian was successful in his endeavor to become the Mexican Emperor, and economic cooperation with the French had made it possible for the Austrian military to have a proper breech loading rifle, and economic investments in Latin America were paying dividends. The better position consequently elevated Minister-President Richard Graf von Balcredi to an enviable position, as he enjoyed the confidence of the Emperor and the general population as well.

Richard von Balcredi
The Czech Founder of Modern Austria​

The biggest problem that Balcredi faced was the Hungarian Question. Ever since the defeat of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848-49 the Hungarians had started a passive resistance against the Habsburg State, and had instead left many Austrian noses out of joint. It was obvious to most that reform was required. Two proposals began to form in the Austrian government. The first was the proposal of a ‘Dual Monarchy’ which would divide Austria into two halves – The Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary which would have been equal halves united under a united ministry and the same monarch. This plan drew the most amount of support from the German elite and the Hungarian population. The second proposal was the ‘Crownland Proposal’, which was more favored by Balcredi. The Crownland Proposal would instead turn Austria into a federal nation with each already pre-existing crownland of the Austrian Empire gaining significant democratic autonomous powers, thereby becoming a true centralized yet federal nation. This proposal had more support in virtually every other ethnicity of the empire, and had its fair share of supporters within Austrian Germany and Hungary as well.

Balcredi had all the impetus he need to move forward with the Crownland Solution, however a singular major hurdle was left in his path. The Empress Elisabeth still favored the Austro-Hungarian proposal and was starting to lean on Emperor Franz Joseph to try and appoint Friedrich Ferdinand von Beust as the Minister-President of Austria. Balcredi went to the Emperor, with whom he had a solid relationship, and asked him to exclude the Empress from the government of Austria temporarily so that the Crownland proposal could go ahead. Of course, this was told in a polite tone, as Balcredi could not afford to alienate the Emperor. Franz Joseph, who was troubled by nationalism in the empire, and more than slightly irritated at the political scheming of his wife, acquiesced, and Elisabeth was sent to the Habsburg castles of Bucovina for four months as a retreat alongside Franz Joseph’s children.

Balcredi soon approached his government, and laid out a fleshed idea of a unified federal Austrian Empire. Finding support from most in his cabinet, Balcredi went to the Reichstrat and presented his proposal. His proposal was large, long and definitive. The 1866 Bill of Settlement proposed:-

• The government of the Austrian Empire to be changed from a unitary government into a Federal government.
• Each Crownland in the Austrian Empire to become the federal ‘units’ of the Empire.
• Each Crownland would have their own unicamerial legislative body, led by a Crownland Cabinet and a Crownland Premier, with autonomous Crownland elections taking place for the determination of the composition of the legislative assembly of the Crownland.
• The separation of elections under the previous constitution to be abolished, and fully common elections throughout the empire, known as federal elections, to take place for the House of Deputies.
• Each Crownland would be able to legislate in their own local languages alongside German.
• So as long as the National Laws were not contradicted, each Crownland would have the authority to prescribe policies on commerce, taxation, healthcare, education, suffrage, transportation, culture, and municipal governments. [5]

It was a definitive reform which would change the entire face of the Austrian Empire, and consequently, Central Europe. The Imperial Council of Austria voted 279-235 in favor of the proposal on February 12, 1866 [6] and the bill went to Franz Joseph for final review and acceptance. Franz Joseph was wary of federalization, however, willing to experiment and in high optimism after he received a new letter from his brother in Mexico, Franz Joseph signed the bill two weeks later on the 27th, and on the 28th, it officially became law.

Austrian Imperial Council passing the 1866 Great Federal Reform​

For the next month, Franz Joseph and Balcredi became involved in appointing the first Premiers of each Crownland, by the end of which, both Emperor and Minister-President were feeling proud of themselves, for they had managed to mute regionalist and nationalist sentiments with the implementation of the new federal system.

Crownland	Premier	Political Affiliation
Inner Austria	Baron Franz von John	Non-Partisan
Tyrol	Karl Franz Joseph Hofer Edler von Passeyr	Non-Partisan
Further Austria	Johann Hofer Edler von Passeyr	Non-Partisan
Bohemia	Egbert Belcredi	Federalist Party
Moravia	Frantisek Palacky	Old Czech Party
Silesia	Friedrich von Freudenthal	Non-Partisan
Bukovina	Karl von Auersperg	Non-Partisan
Carinthia	Josip Stritar	Non-Partisan
Carniola	Markus Pernhart	Non-Partisan
Dalmatia	Mihovil Pavlinovic	People’s Party
Galicia Lodomeria	Agenor Goluchowski	Non-Partisan
Austrian Silesia	Armand Graf Kuenberg	Non-Partisan
Austrian Littoral	Eduard von Bach	Non-Partisan
Hungary	Ferenc Deak	Deak Party
Croatia-Slavonia	Josip Sokcevic	Non-Partisan
Fiume	Bartol Benedikt Zmajic	Non-Partisan
Venetia	Georg Otto von Toggenburg-Sargans	Non-Partisan

The First Premiers of Federal Austria © Vienna Archives

But while internally, the Austrian Empire had managed to stabilize with the aid of Balcredi’s Reform, foreign actors were moving against Austria. Bismarck was alarmed by the stability of the ‘Great Federal Reform’ as it was called, and moved against the Austrians by finalizing his alliance with the Italians, and went ahead trying to provoke war with Austria. On the 17th of June, 1866, Prussia moved ahead and provided the Frankfurt Parliament of a federal plan which outlined that a new ‘German Federation’ would consist of all the member states barring Austria, Luxembourg and Limburg. Viewing Balcredi’s courting of Duke Friedrich VIII Of Schleswig-Holstein to be in violation of the Gastein Convention, the contents of the 17 June Plan were purposefully made provocative to Austria.

Prussians Invade Holstein​

Austria rejected the plan soundly and on the 21st which prompted Bismarck to send Prussian troops into the Austrian administered Holstein on the 25th of June, 1866. Receiving news of this, Austria asked the German Confederation to prepare for war against Prussia, which the Bundestag approved. This was taken by Prussia to be a formal declaration of war and on the 28th of June, 1866, both Austria and Prussia declared war on one another, thus starting the Brother’s War – a stalemate that would change the face of Europe, and consequently, the entire world….” [7]

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Footnotes:-

[1] – Due to perceived weakness with the Americans doing nothing with Imperial Mexico, the Spanish stay in Dominica, and continue their winning streak and re-establish the colony.

[2] – Maximiliano I offered to make an Ottoman quarter to Mexico City OTL. The Ottomans withheld an official answer until the entire situation in Mexico calmed down.

[3] – True Fact.

[4] – Maximilian, Vidaurri, Diaz were supportive of such measures otl.

[5] – This is the OTL Proposal.

[6] – OTL Votes tally. Was vetoed by Elisabeth otl.

[7] – As you can see, the butterflies have hit well and true!

 

[Sarthak]

And the butterflies flap. Thoughts?

 

[Deleted member 147978]

Minister of War: Porfirio Diaz (National Front)

Wasn't Diaz a businessman first and foremost?

 

[Sarthak]

Isn't Diaz a businessman first and foremost?

Partially. He was chosen to keep a closer eye on him and due to his war experience.

 

[Deleted member 147978]

Partially. He was chosen to keep a closer eye on him and due to his war experience.

I see.

 

[Sarthak]

Problem is William Walker's Nicaragua not only collapsed before the PoD, but Walker himself was executed by the Honduran government four years before the PoD. Maximiliano will need to find alternative means to court the Central American nations.

Indeed, Walker is behind the PoD for any change.

 

[Sarthak]

I see.

Pretty much yeah.