Colonel Autumn
Banned
Part I: King Leopold von Hohenzollern of Spain
Entry from the journal of Juan Prim, written in December of 1869:
"It has been a hard task placed upon my shoulders. Not one I take very lightly.
Sometimes I think that I may have helped start the revolution if I knew of the migraines I would receive from the aftermath. Being placed as regent is a very daunting task. If I screw up or choose a bad egg for a candidate, the entirety of the Spanish state will pay for my foolishness. Sometimes I jest with Francisco that I may just tell the others to abolish the Monarchy entirely! That of course, is just that though: a joke. Even if some of them would prefer a Republic, that is not in the cards for the future of Spain. We have always been led by a King - the very union that created our country was due to the Monarchy. We are not the French, we will not so quickly destroy our culture and tradition! However, it is still an annoying task, even if it is an important one. Choosing which of Europe's finest princes to sponsor is not a task I would wish upon anyone else. "Europe's finest princes" are just an ensemble of second sons, disgraced uncles, and distant cousins of actual royalty. Some even wish that I myself take the crown, although they must know that is an empty hope - I am not a King, I am a soldier. The Italians, the Bavarians, and even the Portuguese had all have offered up their share of nobodies. Prince Leopold, a Prussian, stands out the most. I have corresponded with him much over the past few weeks, and he seems eager to fulfill the role of King. I've also written to King Wilhelm and Chancellor Bismarck, both of whom seem to be up for the idea.
However, despite the potential of young Leopold, it scares me to my very bones that the French will make a move against us. Spain is on it's last legs as it is, and we do not have much of a chance in fighting them off. I can only imagine the harm it will do to our dear nation if the French devils manage to win a war against us; not only will they topple the Kingdom, but they will rig our politics and turn us into their vassal, as they did long ago during the War of Succession. I cannot sleep at night, as I am kept up in fear of a French invasion. I've decided to visit a doctor and see if there is a way to stop it - but that is just a hope.
Indeed, I wonder if I have made the right choice."
The Changing World:
In the later years of the nineteenth century, wheels were quickly turning. The Napoleonic Wars that kicked off the century had left an impact that still had not diminished. While the Congress of Vienna attempted to recreate the world before, it had failed to reach a perfect status quo, with many smaller nations being erased from the map in order to please the winners of the wars. The wars had also left a bigger mark on Europe: nationalism. And as much as the Great Powers tried to keep nationalism down, they could not. In 1848 the Springtime of Nations occurred, with the everyday citizens of many nations revolting in order to force a liberalization in their nation. They wanted rights, and were tired of being bullied by their autocratic lords. At the same time, the political landscape was heavily changed. The formerly feuding Italian states had come together under the heel of the House of Savoy. The people of France witnessed a dozen changes in regime; from Monarchy to Republic to Empire, then back to Monarchy once more - only for that Monarchy to be replaced by another. That wasn't the end, of course, as after that yet another Republic replaced that Monarchy, although the Republic had barely breathed before another Empire replaced it. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the usual top dog in Europe, had turned from the continent in order to focus on colonial affairs; they were currently enjoying their period of 'splendid isolation'. And to top it all off, the Austrian Empire, the nominal ruler of the German states since the turn of the millennium, had been knocked down from their pedestal by the Kingdom of Prussia.
In 1869, General Juan Prim, the regent of Spain, nominated one Leopold von Hohenzollern as a candidate for the throne. Many feared this decision, as they assumed the French would not like to be surrounded by their enemies. And later on they would be proved to be right. After Leopold was voted on to be King with a 85% majority, Napoleon III, Emperor of France, declared war on Spain. This played right into Chancellor Otto von Bismarck's hands; the Prussian chancellor had hoped that by making France the aggressor of a war, it would scare the smaller German states, mostly those of the south, into joining up with Prussia in a unification. However, what he did not realize is that it would not work as intended. After Prussia declared war on France, he expected the southern German states to help - instead, they stayed neutral. The rulers of Southern Germany had decided that they were just fine how they were, and that with Spain added to Prussia's arsenal, they weren't needed. Instead of fearing the French war machine, they feared the Prussians, and cuddled up with Austria in the south. The Spanish armies were not as skilled as that of the German armies, and therefore the outcome of the Second War of the Spanish Succession would be vastly different from the outcome of the Franco-Prussian war.
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