Rebirth of the Spanish Empire

On June 20, 1908, Spain and the four South American countries of Chile, Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador formally announced the signing of an Economic Security Alliance in Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, a Spanish overseas territory. The five countries announced that the four South American countries would directly transfer their respective The peseta exchange rate follows that of Spain. According to the covenant, the four other countries will receive the same treatment as Portugal, that is, they will obtain zero-tariff access to the Spanish market. Correspondingly, Spanish industrial products will also receive duty-free entry. Markets in Shikoku.

The five countries officially implemented the zero-tariff policy, and at the same time announced that in order to effectively protect these four allies of Spain, Spain and the four countries had serious consultations and finally confirmed that Spain had purchased the Colon Islands in Ecuador at one time. Pay off 2 million pesetas (1 U.S. dollar equals 1 pesetas), and rent the southern port of Ecuador, Guayaquil, for 100 years to pay 2 million pesetas in one lump sum.

At the same time, the other three countries are the port of Callao in Peru, the land city of La Paz in Bolivia close to Peru and Chile, the ports of Arica and Concepcion in Chile, and the southern end of Punta Arenas in the Strait of Magellan. , all of these five places were rented by Spain for 100 years at an average rent of 2 million pesetas. In other words, in order to open a gap in South America this time, the Spanish Imperial Army decided to spend a total of 14 million pesetas, which is 14 million US dollars. Some people are in favor of this deal, while others are disparaging it.

"In 1803, the United States purchased the state of Louisiana from France for US$15 million, which covered an area of ​​more than 130,000 square kilometers. If this is still a long time ago, then to say the least, in 1876, the United States spent 720 For 10,000 US dollars, we bought Alaska and the Aleutian Islands. You must know that the total area is more than 1.7 million square kilometers. Looking at these places now, it can be seen that Spain’s transaction this time pales in comparison to the United States. ""Voice of Tsarist Russia" has some sour reports. "However, what Spain has chosen this time are strategic points, such as the Colon Islands, which are located at the Pacific exit of the Panama Canal, which is now controlled by the United States. If you look carefully, you can also find that Guayaquil and the Colon Islands are about 30 kilometers away from Panama. The distance between the canals is equal, and they play a role in echoing each other. Perhaps the existence of these two ports is to specifically guard the Panama Canal.

The Peruvian port of Callao in the south is a supply station and can effectively serve as the terminal point between the north and the south. As for Barras in Bolivia and Arica at the mouth of the sea, their existence is naturally the most point in South America that can echo each other. From Concepción to the south, you can see Punta Arenas and Arica as well as Wellington in New Zealand. Needless to say, Punta Arenas in the south naturally exists to connect the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The more I talk about it, the more I feel that although the Spanish transaction is small in area and mainly for rent, if you look closely, you still find that the strategic significance is very important, and it also indirectly shows that Spain has begun to intervene in South America. , and the United States, which has always regarded America as its own backyard, what can you do now? "

Different from the attitude of "Voice of Tsarist Russia", the British view is broader, and it also makes Spain's intentions clearer. The pro-government newspaper "The Times" also began to make a strong voice.

"Needless to say, the major ports in the transaction. Their strategic position is more important to a country with a strong navy than more land. Spain connects the ports of these countries in a line from south to north. , effectively grasping the rhythm of the east and south Pacific of South America. This in turn affects the security situation of that American continent. If we liquidate the Spanish territories, we will see a very interesting thing. It’s that South America is connected together. Let’s talk about a travel topic in my imagination.…

A ship full of passengers departed from the Spanish mainland A Coruña and headed south to its ally Portugal's Azores. Then it headed south to Punta Arenas, the southernmost tip of Chile. When it got on the boat again, it crossed directly. The Strait of Magellan between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, then crosses thousands of miles of ocean to Wellington, New Zealand, and then drives west to The Pass, Western Australia. If you are tired of the life of taking a boat, you can take a rest on it. If that is not enough, you can also take a ride. Start from Perth and head to Port Hedland in the north, then pass through the Sunda Strait and Java Sea in Indonesia controlled by the Netherlands, reach the South China Sea, and then come to their Spanish territory of Palawan Island, where you can enjoy the beautiful scenery. After getting tired of seeing sea turtles and birds, we again crossed the Sulawesi Sea and the East Philippine Sea to the island of Palau in the Micronian Islands, where we looked at the active volcano, and then we went to Guam again to look at the Spanish military port there. Condolences to the Spanish soldiers there.

After that, we went straight south to the Cook Islands in New Zealand. After a big circle, we returned to Wellington and then back to The Pas. If you feel the urge to go home at this time, don’t hesitate and take a boat directly to the west. The southwest Indian Ocean goes straight to Mozambique, a colony of Portugal, a Spanish ally. If the British government agrees, it can also go directly through Zambia and cross the African continent from the Indian Ocean to Luanda, the port of Angola and the seat of the Governor-General's Palace on the other side, which is also a Portuguese colony. At this time, the boat was already ready, so after getting on it, it set off again. The next destination was Equatorial Guinea, a Spanish territory, followed by Guinea-Bissau, a Portuguese territory, and then back to the Spanish Sahara, which the Spaniards considered to be their base camp. ,, the Canary Islands, the Spanish territory of Septei in Morocco, and then the mainland Serbia. A perfect journey ends here! This is the game of connecting Spanish overseas colonies. I wonder if it is feasible militarily? "

"France's territory in the Pacific is so close to Spain. Perhaps Spain is the one the Republic should contact and cooperate with." "Le Figaro" of the French Republic wrote, "Can Spain cooperate with France?" 'Spain occupies an increasing share in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, especially the island possessions on the ocean, which have even surpassed France and come close to the British presence. If France can cooperate with the Spanish Empire in dealing with overseas affairs like Britain does, In the case of bilateral territorial issues, the risk of disputes between the two countries in their overseas territories will be minimized, and cooperation can even bring a lot of benefits to both countries. For example, port supply, etc., reducing potential threats of disputes between each other, etc. , but will the Spanish and French governments agree to such cooperation? It’s really exciting!”

"Is Spain making a strategic plan?"

"Deutsche Zeitung" began with this sentence to describe Spain, "The Spaniards have left Europe more and more, and now they have transferred their interests to offshore, or they are willing to minimize risks. This is a worthwhile Something to be alarmed about. Could it be that Spain is already preparing for pessimism? Now the atmosphere in Europe is getting more and more solemn, and it feels very suffocating. However, Spain now feels more and more elegant, and it is more and more concerned about European affairs. The less worried he is, His Majesty Alfonso has been accompanying Queen Patricia to take care of the unborn prince all day since he returned from England. State affairs are handled by Prime Minister Eugene, who is the current leader of the Spanish liberals. , and this can only explain one problem, that is, His Majesty Alfonso has considerable trust in the current attitude of the liberals in power, and the liberals are based on innovation and expansion, so I believe that during the remaining two years of liberals’ governance, Within the country, Spain believes that it will continue to implement expansionary movements under the leadership of liberals. However, will Spain's expansionary policy really continue to be popular? Will the Americans and other powers continue to allow Spain to continue such blatant actions? ?". ….

"Is Spain attacking us?". This is the title of the New York Times, a very eye-catching title that makes people think of it.

“From Spain’s expansion over the past few years, we have found that Spain seems to be increasingly targeting the United States, especially the current move to join the five-nation economic security alliance formed by the four South American countries, which is of great provocation. , as we all know, the United States has always adhered to the policy of not forming alliances and confrontation, and the United States has not carried out any aggressive war in South America. On the contrary, Spain has had such an experience before, and has almost put South America under their control. Among them. South America has become their back garden. Now South America gives people the feeling of inviting a wolf into the house. Have they forgotten that Simon Bolivar, San Martin, O'Higgins and others colonized South America from Spain? Is this a great man who sacrificed his blood to liberate independence? Is South America like this still the independent paradise it used to be to prevent it from becoming a hegemonic country? Please the people of South America continue to stand up against colonial rule. You are an independent country, and please remain the same as us. The American continent is protected from foreign invasion?”

"With the aggression of outsiders, if there are no checks and balances from outsiders, do you still want the entire South America to be under the rule of the United States? If there are no checks and balances from outsiders, are you, the United States, willing to help each other on an equal footing with South American countries? If not Supervision by outsiders, are you Americans and American capitalist consortium willing to kindly help people in South America improve their lives without making a penny?"

On June 22, 1908, in the famous newspaper "International Connection" in neutral Switzerland, Spanish Foreign Minister Trini attacked the report of the American "New York Times".

"You are openly challenging the whole of Europe. You are..."

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