Chapter 229 Declaration of War
On July 31, 1907, the Kingdom of Portugal officially gave its response, that is, it decided not to hand over any Portuguese fishermen, and insisted that the Portuguese fishermen had no responsibility in this conflict.
This decision of the Portuguese government also caused an uproar among European people.
Europeans couldn't believe that the Portuguese, despite all the witnesses and material evidence, refused to admit the responsibility of the Portuguese fishermen in the conflict, and even arbitrarily protected the criminals.
Even Arthur did not expect that the Portuguese would be so tough. They resolutely insisted on their position under the premise that European public opinion was obviously not favorable to them.
This is all a good thing for Australasia, though. If the Portuguese government compromises quickly, then Australasia will have no excuse to extend its hands into Portuguese Timor.
Now the Portuguese government's tough words just give Australasia an excuse to intervene in Portuguese Timor. This may also become an opportunity for Australasia to expand again.
Arthur originally thought that the opportunity for Australasian expansion would be in the Dutch East Indies, but he did not expect that the Portuguese could not sit still.
On August 1, 1907, Arthur expressed his shock at the attitude of the Portuguese government in a public interview, and at the same time firmly declared that the Australasian army will seek justice for the citizens of Australasia and that no country or force will Able to tower over Australasians.
On August 3, 1907, the Australasian government gave the Kingdom of Portugal an ultimatum, requiring the Kingdom of Portugal to immediately accept Australasia's compensation demands and apologize to the Australasian fishermen who were attacked.
The Australasian government also claimed that if Portugal firmly believes that their fishermen are doing the right thing, it will provide the necessary evidence instead of saying nothing in the newspaper.
This Australasian demand once again won the recognition of the European people.
Even after the initial request was rejected, Australasia still only asked the Portuguese government to apologize to the fishermen who were attacked and to compensate all affected fishermen.
In the eyes of most European people, this is a very reasonable request and condition.
Referring to the completely different attitudes of Australasia and the Kingdom of Portugal after this conflict, many European people even believed that such conditions would cause Australasia to suffer.
To the surprise of the European people, the Portuguese government, or the autocratic monarch Carlos I, once again rejected Australasia's request.
In fact, Carlos I soon felt the great prestige that tough protection of the people brought to the royal family and himself.
Although among European people, Portugal's prestige and reputation have been reduced repeatedly. However, in Portugal, the prestige of King Carlos I has actually increased. Many media and individuals have spontaneously spoken out to express their support for King Carlos I's decision.
You know, since Carlos I implemented high-pressure policies, many opposition parties and media have not had good comments.
Being able to publicly support Carlos I this time is enough to show how huge the response Carlos I's decision caused in Portugal.
When things have reached the current stage, even if the purpose is just to maintain his rule, Carlos I has to stick to his decision, which is to be tough and protect his people at all costs.
This conflict also attracted the attention of many European countries, including Germany and Russia, which have close ties with Australasia.
The British attitude is very ambiguous. Although it expresses concern about the situation, it does not clearly support which side.
After the Kingdom of Portugal once again rejected the request of the Australasian government, William II was surprised and publicly spoke out, expressing his dissatisfaction with the arrogant attitude of the Portuguese government and his support for Australasia.
The Russians acted even more decisively. Not only did they bluntly criticize the Kingdom of Portugal, but they also mocked Carlos I as a coward who dared not admit that he had done something wrong.
The teams and dissatisfaction of the two major European powers also made Carlos I a little frightened.
Fortunately, the British Empire quickly contacted Carlos I secretly, expressed its concern about this matter, and declared that the British Empire would work with France to peacefully resolve this conflict.
In this way, Carlos I gradually became relieved. As long as it has the protection of Britain and France, Australasia will not have much impact on the Kingdom of Portugal.
On the contrary, he himself can use this conflict to accumulate a lot of reputation in Portugal.
When the time is almost ripe, at worst, the fishermen at that time will be used as scapegoats, and he will be packaged as a king who was deceived by the fishermen and has nothing but love for the people. He will be able to escape from this incident perfectly and still retain the large amount of accumulated wealth. prestige.
But is it really that simple? In other words, Carlos I underestimated the ambitions of the Australasians and also underestimated Arthur's ambitions.
On August 5, 1907, after the last 48-hour notice issued by the Australasian government to the Government of the Kingdom of Portugal, the Australasian government held a public meeting. The then Prime Minister Walter announced with great regret: "Between The Royal Government of Portugal showed a very arrogant and unreasonable behavior. It showed no mercy to the injured Australasian fishermen. Instead, it spread rumors and caused trouble in an attempt to discredit the injured fishermen and the Australasian government. After study and decision by the Australasian government, the peace agreement was cut off. The diplomatic relations of the Kingdom of Portugal and the declaration of a state of war readiness throughout Australasia."
Although Prime Minister Walter did not formally declare war on the Kingdom of Portugal, the fact that Australasia entered a state of war readiness has explained everything. Australasians are ready Well war.
After entering a state of war, the public sentiment in Australasia was furious, all temporary recruitment offices were full, and a large number of Australasians were looking for various ways to donate funds to the government. The whole country is united. At this moment, all Australasians have only one enemy, and that is the Kingdom of Portugal, which has hurt the feelings of Australasia.
After being severed from diplomatic relations by the Australasian government, Carlos I became a little panicked.
But Carlos I's solution to the problem was not to compromise with Australasia, but to seek support from the British Empire and France, which had previously promised assistance.
The British did provide assistance, specifically assistance in resolving the events of the conflict.
To be precise, after the British made their decision in Australasia, they clearly expressed their attitude: admonishing both parties to remain calm during this conflict, and being willing to provide a professional team to find solutions to the conflict for both parties. the truth.
In fact, this is normal. Judging from the British mess-up character, it is understandable to make such a decision.
More importantly, Arthur has good support and favorability in the UK, coupled with the special relationship between Australasia and the UK, which makes the British closer to Australasia.
What's more, the victim of this conflict is Australasia. Whether he is a helper or a helper, doesn't this clearly support Australasia?
With the attitude of the British people, if the British government makes a decision that runs counter to the British people, you can imagine the turmoil it will cause among the British people.
Even Edward VII, who was extremely dissatisfied with Arthur, would not stand out at this time, let alone a British politician who had no grudges against Arthur.
Being able to express a neutral attitude already risks offending the British people. If Edward VII's attitude was not very subtle, I am afraid that British politicians would have already announced their support for Australasia.
After all, their official career depends on the support of parliamentarians and the public. A government that offends the British people is destined to not go far.
The attitude of the French is almost the same as that of the British. They just said indifferently that they hope both sides will remain calm and restrained, and are willing to participate as a neutral party in investigating the cause and process of this conflict and peacefully resolving this dispute.
If such words could resolve regional crises, there would be fewer wars in world history.
Unfortunately, such words are just a pretense after all. It cannot avoid war and cannot save any losses.
On August 8, 1907, Prime Minister Walter once again appeared in public and announced the final decision of the Australasian government and Arthur's instructions: the Australasian government declared an immediate state of war with the Kingdom of Portugal and dispatched Army, mandatory to achieve Australasian requirements.
Prime Minister Walter smiled and said that the purpose of the Australasian government was only to fulfill its previous request, that is, to hand over the culprit of this conflict. The Kingdom of Portugal apologized to the injured fishermen and expressed its condolences to all Australasian people affected by the conflict. Compensation for fishermen.
Judging from the duration of the conflict and the number of fishermen affected, the Kingdom of Portugal should pay at least one million Australian dollars in compensation to tens of thousands of fishermen in Australasia, and at least one million Australian dollars in compensation to injured fishermen.
Although the total amount of compensation was only two million Australian dollars, Carlos I knew that at this stage, Portugal's national sentiment had been fully mobilized.
If the government agrees to this compensation at this time, even if it is only 10,000 Australian dollars, the Portuguese people will be very disappointed with the government.
The one who was most seriously affected was naturally Carlos I, who successfully established his image of loving the people and not fearing power during this conflict.
If they surrender without fighting, the Portuguese's anger may be passed on to Carlos I.
Therefore, after Australasia declared war, the Portuguese government responded very decisively: Portugal and Australasia were in a state of declared war.
The Kingdom of Portugal is separated from Australasia by thousands of miles. The area most vulnerable to this war is Portugal's Asian colonies.
In order to express his attitude, Carlos I decisively announced that 40,000 troops would be dispatched from Portugal's European mainland to East Asia. These soldiers will arrive in East Asia's colonies in batches within three months.
And to one side, Australasia.
From the beginning of the conflict, Australasia had been preparing for war.
Although there was not enough time to prepare, fortunately there were not many troops in Australasia, so there was enough time to assemble.
On the day the government declared war, more than 10,000 troops had already assembled at Sydney Port, preparing to board transport ships and, under the protection of the fleet, head to Portuguese Timor to capture Portugal's important strongholds in Asia.
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(End of chapter)