Empire Rising: Spain

"Is there any news from the British?" Carlo asked with a smile, looking at Prime Minister Canovas, who hurriedly approached.

After releasing relevant news through the newspaper, the Spanish Government had been closely watching the movements of the British Government.

The best result would be for the British to voluntarily propose an exchange for the Cuban Colony, allowing Spain to avoid a passive situation while securing more benefits for itself.

The worst result would be if the British remained silent, forcing Spain to take the initiative to propose an exchange for the Cuban Colony to the British Government, but that would lead to a passive situation where the British would undeniably drive down the price, as the value of the Cuban Colony is not low, and for the British to exchange at the same price, they would have to offer several colonies.

"There is news, Your Majesty," Prime Minister Canovas said with a smile, clearly bringing good news: "Prime Minister Gladstone has already proposed an exchange for the Cuban Colony in a Cabinet meeting, and the British Government might soon contact us proactively."

Carlo nodded, feeling a sense of relief.

The push for exchanging the Cuban Colony was driven by Carlo, but there were inherent risks, as the British Government was unlikely to follow the plan devised by Carlo.

In this era, the British Government was quite greedy in its colonial expansion policies, being the most powerful nation in the world. No country could rely on its own strength to stop the British Empire’s expansion.

Do not be misguided by Russia posing a threat to Britain in Central and West Asia; the reason is that Britain had not dedicated too much effort in those areas.

The British colonies spanned the globe, with their expansion plans almost everywhere. Africa and Asia need no mention, and even America has seen the footprints of the British.

From this perspective, it is apparent that Britain harbors considerable ambition for Cuba. Historically, even if the United States had not acted aggressively, Spain might not have been able to hold onto Cuba.

However, the Spain of this world is undoubtedly stronger. Both Britain and the United States have lost the opportunity to seize Cuba by force.

But if they could acquire Cuba, a substantial colony, through peaceful means, the British Government would surely be pleased.

This is where Carlo’s confidence resides. As long as the British are willing to trade for the Cuban Colony, the Spanish Government’s scheme will not fail.

If the British harbor no ambition for Cuba, Spain will have to exchange with other European Countries or directly sell Cuba to the United States.

Carlo still has considerable confidence in the value of the Cuban Colony.

Historically, during Spain’s period of extreme weakness, the United States once proposed to purchase the Cuban Colony for 1.5 billion US Dollars to avoid a war with Spain.

Before World War I, currency exchange rates had not fluctuated much, and 1.5 billion US Dollars were equivalent to 30 million Pounds or 780 million Pessetas, undoubtedly not a small sum.

Moreover, by that time, the global sugar market had already undergone significant changes. With the strong rise of the rubber industry, the value of the Southeast Asian colonies had emerged, rendering the Cuban Colony less important.

Even under such circumstances, the Cuban Colony still held a value of at least 1.5 billion US Dollars, implying that the current Cuban Colony’s price could at least double.

If it were not worth so much, the historical Spanish Government would not have invested over 700 million Pessetas in military spending during the Cuban War of Independence.

Long before the colonial exchange proposal was initiated, the Spanish Government had internally discussed the value of the Cuban Colony.

If exchanging colonies with the British, Spain’s terms would include the British Colonies of Gambia, the British Colony of Sierra Leone, the British Gold Coast, in addition to Spain’s colonial rights over the Truce States, Muscat, and the Oman Sultanate, along with part of the mining rights in Western Australia and cash to balance the value.

Although it seems Spain would gain a lot in terms of land, terms, and cash, in reality, these lands collectively do not hold much value.

The three British colonial territories in West Africa need no elaboration, characterized by their small size, low population, and minimal economic value.

Even if the Truce States and Oman were acquired, these lands are mostly desert and sparsely populated.

More importantly, these lands are close to Britain’s Indian Colony, making it unlikely for the British to cede them. Although these lands are not theirs, to the British, this territory on the Arabian Peninsula has already fallen within their sphere of influence and will eventually be incorporated into the British Empire’s territory.

As for the mining rights in Western Australia, they are even less significant for Spain. Western Australia is too far from Spain’s mainland, and relying solely on Western Australia’s mineral supplies for the industrial development of Spain’s mainland is completely unrealistic.

The industrial development of Spain’s mainland will rely more on coal and iron ore from Africa, and, of course, the minerals from Brazil on the other side of the ocean.

Although Brazil’s iron ore has a lower iron content than Australia’s, Brazil is also among the top three countries in the world in iron ore reserves. Furthermore, thanks to its proximity to Spain’s mainland, Brazil is more likely to become a partner in Spain’s mineral imports.

Another important reason is that Brazil is an independent country that can independently determine its trade partners.