Empire Rising: Spain

After seeing the birth encouragement policies formulated by the Andalusia Region, Carlo immediately decided to have other regional governments emulate them, in order to maximize the population growth rate of Spain.

The policies formulated by the various regions do not conflict with the policies set by the Spanish Government, and the public can even enjoy double subsidies.

Doing so can also strengthen people’s willingness to have children. If having children is beneficial, I believe most people would be willing to have them.

Carlo was quite satisfied with the policies formulated by the Andalusia Region, and additionally, he was also very pleased with the work of the Andalusia Regional Government.

Naturally, the district governor of the Andalusia Region and some government officials received excellent evaluations in their performance assessments, making it easier for them to gain opportunities for promotion. The Spanish press would also widely publicize their achievements to garner more support from the populace for them.

Carlo does not expect much from regions with populations of less than a million for the time being, but for regions with populations exceeding a million, emulating the birth encouragement policies of the Andalusia Region is indeed necessary.

The total population of these regions with over a million people accounts for more than half of Spain’s population. If their birth rates can all be maintained at about 4%—5%, Spain’s annual new births could exceed 400,000.

Coupled with the continuous influx of foreign immigrants and indigenous people acquiring Spanish nationality, it’s feasible for Spain’s net annual population growth to be close to 500,000.

At this rate of population growth, Spain hopes to reach a population of 30 million before the arrival of 1900, enabling it to have sufficient influence in World War I.

Meanwhile, there’s no worry about other countries imitating Spain’s population encouragement policy, as other countries do not place such a strong emphasis on population, nor are they willing to spend too much money solely on population growth.

While the governments of Spain’s various regions are continuously formulating birth encouragement policies and subsidies to execute Carlo’s orders, a conflict is underway on the distant island of Borneo.

As the third largest island in the world, the situation on Borneo is rather chaotic and complex. Not only are there conflicts among the colonizers on the island, but also among the island’s indigenous peoples.

Since receiving support from Spain, the Lanfang Republic has developed remarkably quickly and its strength soon surpassed that of the northern Sarawak Kingdom and the eastern Kutai Sultanate.

The strength and prosperity of the Lanfang Republic made the Dutch incredibly envious. Without Spain’s strong intervention, the vast lands of South Kalimantan should have belonged to the Netherlands long ago.

The most fertile land on Borneo is the territory of the Lanfang Republic, and thanks to the industrious Chinese settlers, the food production here is several times that of the surrounding indigenous countries, making the Lanfang Republic a well-known food production site in the vicinity.

Unfortunately, this food-producing area is now controlled by Spain, with large amounts of grain being transported annually from Borneo to the Philippines to supply Spanish colonizers and the local indigenous population.

The Dutch-held Java also has considerable food production, but with so many indigenous people there, even the food on Java is inadequate for them.

For the Netherlands to accelerate its colonization of the East Indies, it must have sufficient food production to support its colonial armies and immigrants.

After much consideration, the Netherlands eventually set its sights on the Lanfang Republic. Of course, they dared not openly invade the Lanfang Republic backed by Spain, choosing instead another approach: encouraging the indigenous people to invade the Lanfang Republic and to test Spain’s reaction.

The Dutch were also aware of the Lanfang Republic’s efforts to train new troops. To enhance the Indigenous combat power, the Dutch amassed over ten thousand firearms through various means and handed them over to the Kutai Sultanate and Sarawak Kingdom.

With a large indigenous population and more than ten thousand firearms, these two indigenous nations have a fair chance of threatening the Lanfang Republic.

If Spain doesn’t support the Lanfang Republic, the Dutch could naturally take the opportunity to step in and regain control over the Lanfang Republic.

If Spain chooses to support the Lanfang Republic, that’s fine too, as Spain’s military support to the Lanfang Republic would likely reduce its investment in New Guinea.

By doing so, the Netherlands can gain an advantage in colonizing New Guinea and be the first to establish its own colony there.

No matter what the Spaniards choose, the Dutch, in any case, would not be at a loss. As long as the Dutch do not actively join this conflict, Spain has no reason to declare war on the Netherlands.

If Spain were to forcibly invade Dutch colonies, the British would not remain indifferent. This is precisely why the Dutch dare to conspire against the Lanfang Republic, even though they are well aware that the powerful country backing the Lanfang Republic is Spain.

Unbeknownst to many, the Spanish military advisory group has already been in the Lanfang Republic for five years.

During these five years, the Lanfang Republic has developed quite rapidly, with its population even surpassing 4.3 million.

Of course, this population number includes the local indigenous people, Chinese, and all other immigrants. If counting only the Chinese, who are the main ethnic group of the Lanfang Republic, the population is actually less than 600,000.