Chapter 170: Establishing a Foothold in Kalimantan

Under Gao Da's orders, a beverage company under the brand name Coca-Cola was officially established, and discussions regarding the production, packaging, and transportation of Coca-Cola began immediately.

For this carbonated beverage, the most important aspects are production and transportation. If even a little bit of the gas in the drink leaks out, the taste of the beverage could differ drastically.

The establishment of the Coca-Cola Company was merely a minor episode; after all, Gao Da's business empire is vast. Even if it could generate huge profits in the future, its importance is completely disproportionate when compared to military industrial enterprises and real-sector businesses like automobiles.

Gao Da's vacation had just ended, and over in the East Indies, the colonial war that had been meticulously planned for so long finally yielded results.

This colonial war, which was not large in scale, ended in a total victory for the Spanish East Indies colony.

First was the Philippines region; whether it was the loose indigenous tribes or the more organized Maguindanao Sultanate, none had the ability to resist the steel guns and cannons of the Spanish army.

These indigenous people had never seen an army with such powerful firepower; even the armies of the Dutch colonies did not possess such strength.

Facing the heavy bombardment of the Spanish army, these indigenous forces quickly laid down their arms and surrendered. One should not overestimate their hostility toward the Spanish colonial army; after all, fear of death is a human instinct.

Compared to the relatively smooth conquest of the Maguindanao Sultanate, the conquest of the Sulu Sultanate proved to be a bit more convoluted.

However, the overall result was good. The British did indeed express dissatisfaction with Spain's forceful occupation of the Sulu Sultanate, but by then, Spain had basically achieved its strategic objectives, and no matter how dissatisfied the British were, they could not possibly threaten Spain with war.

At the end of the day, colonial competition exists between all nations. If one were to escalate to confrontation or even total war between nations over a single instance of colonial competition, it would be somewhat unnecessary.

Although Britain's losses in this economic crisis were not as severe as those of Germany and the United States, this does not mean Britain could rest easy.

Compared to a small Sulu Sultanate, the British were more concerned with competition against other powerful great powers in other regions.

After the Spanish army occupied most of the territory of the Sulu Sultanate, they finally met with opposition from the British.

Or rather, opposition from the British colonial forces in Borneo. But such opposition was not intense, because the British had to report layer by layer to the British government before a final decision could be made regarding their attitude toward Spain's colonial actions.

In the end, the British government chose to concede, tacitly allowing Spain's competition for the Sulu Sultanate on the condition that Spain promised not to interfere with British actions in the Brunei Empire.

Not interfering with British colonial actions in the Brunei Empire was, in effect, a promise not to continue colonizing westward. As can be seen from the current situation map of Borneo, if Spain does not continue westward, it can only choose to move southward.

Crossing the Bulungan Sultanate to the south leads to the Dutch sphere of colonization. The British objective was also very clear: to provoke colonial competition between the Dutch and the Spanish, and then, in the capacity of a mediator, control the situation in Borneo so that neither the Dutch nor the Spanish could completely dominate the island.

Such tactics are actually the standard methods of the British government, aimed at muddying the waters of a region so that they can remain independent of the situation while still controlling it.

If Spain were to break out into colonial competition with the Dutch, the British would join the Dutch side without a second thought. After all, the Dutch are the relatively weaker party, while Spain's comprehensive strength can definitely be called a great power, albeit a relatively weak one.

The reason the British conceded so quickly, besides the fact that colonial competition in Borneo was not that important and their desire to provoke competition between Spain and the Dutch, was another factor regarding India.

For the British, it was not bad news, because the British were preparing to establish the Indian Empire and have Queen Victoria crowned as Empress of India.

This matter is quite complex to explain, but it has a great deal to do with the establishment of the German Empire.

Before the establishment of the German Empire, there were three major empires on the European continent: Napoleon III's French Second Empire, Franz I's Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Alexander II's Russian Empire.

The legitimacy of the French Second Empire came from the Napoleonic Empire, the legitimacy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was inherited from the Holy Roman Empire, and the Russian Empire claimed its legitimacy from the Eastern Roman Empire; all were considered reasonable.

The establishment of the German Empire broke this balance, but that was not the most important thing. More importantly, as the most powerful country in Europe and even the world, Britain was merely a kingdom.

Looking closely at Britain's competitors in Europe, France was once an empire, and Germany, Russia, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire are currently all empires; only Italy and Spain remain kingdoms.

But Italy had just unified, and Spain had long been in decline; it was only natural for them to be kingdoms, and they had no qualifications to establish themselves as empires.

Excluding Italy and Spain, who were unworthy, all of Britain's other major competitors in Europe were empires, or had once been empires.

This made the British feel rather awkward. Should they follow suit and establish their own British Empire, or just continue to maintain the status of a kingdom?

Although in Europe, kings and emperors are both the supreme rulers of independent countries, and there is no great difference in status.

But it cannot be denied that in the hearts of most people, the status of an emperor is always a notch higher than that of a king. A kingdom might be a powerful country, but an empire is definitely a powerful country.

On this point, the attitudes of the British government and Queen Victoria became consistent.

Although she was a female monarch, Queen Victoria was very special in British history and was absolutely one of Britain's greatest sovereigns.

The famous Victorian era was created by Queen Victoria, and during the Victorian period, Queen Victoria enjoyed supreme influence and prestige within the British government, capable of exerting a huge impact on the constitutional monarchy of the British government.

This is also the most special point of the British constitutional monarchy system: the king's power is not restricted too rigidly.

A capable king can still grasp a certain amount of discourse power through their own various efforts and the support of the people, and can even influence the government at a deeper level.

Especially after Britain's decline, the king became even more important. Why does Britain remain a constitutional monarchy in later generations? The biggest reason is that the British government wants to maintain its rule over the Scotland region and the Northern Ireland region, and of course, Wales as well.

On this issue, Britain faced the same problem as Spain.

The United Kingdom looks powerful, but the word "United" is its fatal weak point. It is indeed powerful when united, but it depends on whether the other countries are willing to be united.

The United Kingdom is composed of four major regions: the Kingdom of England, the Kingdom of Wales, the Kingdom of Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

Of course, if it were now, Northern Ireland should be replaced by Ireland, as Ireland had not yet become independent from British rule.

But the fact that Ireland could become independent from the rule of the once-mighty British Empire already reveals Britain's own problems: that the non-English people, led by the Scots and the Irish, were actually not that satisfied with English rule.

When the British Empire was strong, these opinions naturally had to be suppressed even if they were dissatisfied. But with the decline of the British Empire, the disintegration of the kingdom was only a matter of time.

Under such circumstances, the king became very important. Once the kingdom's government ceases to exist, the legitimacy of the United Kingdom also ceases to exist.

The reason why Britain and Spain in later generations are kingdoms is precisely for this reason. Because only when a king exists does the legitimacy that keeps the country united exist. If the country were to become a republic, the only reason for national unity would vanish into thin air.

Queen Victoria was very supportive of the establishment of the Indian Empire, because doing so was also beneficial to her.

Although the prestige of an Empress of India was not that high, she was at least called an Empress. Moreover, the imperial throne of India could strengthen British rule over India, which was the most important thing for Britain.

After all, it is the jewel in the crown; if the jewel is gone, the crown is actually tarnished.

It is precisely because of Britain's emphasis on India during this period that the minor episode in Borneo was not taken to heart by the British.

Unless Spain and the Dutch officially went to war over the colonization of Borneo, or Spain had already occupied most of Borneo, these were all minor matters, at least until the Indian Empire was established.

In any case, the British did not cause trouble, which was a good thing for Spain.

After fully controlling the Maguindanao Sultanate and the Sulu Sultanate, the colonial government of the East Indies also began its next steps.

First was to build a T-shaped railway on Mindanao Island, connecting the east, west, north, and south of the island to strengthen rule over Mindanao.

Second was on Borneo. The land controlled by the Sulu Sultanate was indeed not large, at least relative to Borneo.

But the problem is, the area of Borneo is not small. Even if the Sulu Sultanate only controlled a small part of it, the total area still added up to tens of thousands of square kilometers.

More importantly, after Spain gained a firm foothold on this land, there was still hope to continue expanding southward and reach into the Bulungan Sultanate in the south.

Although the Dutch were also active in the Bulungan Sultanate, the Dutch's comprehensive strength was not as good as Spain's, and the East Indies colonial government did not have much concern about this.

Therefore, the railway construction on Borneo did not adopt an east-west route, but chose to build a north-south railway so that it could subsequently connect to the Bulungan Sultanate.

What the Dutch think is not something the East Indies colonial government should consider. Anyway, the Dutch did not have the guts to engage in a colonial war with Spain; at most, it would just be a colonial competition over the issue of the Bulungan Sultanate. Would Spain be afraid? Of course not.

When the news that the colonial war in the East Indies had ended in total victory reached Spain, Prime Minister Primo and Gao Da both breathed a sigh of relief.

The improvement this war brought to Spain was immense, and the importance of the East Indies colony to Spain increased infinitely.

It is worth mentioning that after this war, the Sulu Sea also became an inland sea of the East Indies, which also made the connection between the East Indies and Borneo much tighter.

Gao Da had previously considered abandoning the East Indies early, but now Gao Da had changed his mind.

After the future automobile era arrives, the rubber industry in Southeast Asia will definitely be one of the most profitable industries; giving up the East Indies now would definitely be a loss.

Furthermore, the East Indies had already formed a scale among Spain's colonies; for the African colonies to be developed like the East Indies, it would take at least decades.

The current Spain does not have that much time to waste. Moreover, the East Indies can also serve as a nail inserted into Southeast Asia, winning more Asian interests for Spain.

The actions in the East Indies were very smooth, and the actions here in Africa were not much different.

The main thing was that they kept it from the Portuguese, thereby not alerting the British and the French.

Although only two and a half months had passed, Spain still had major movements in Africa.

First was the deeper connection established between the Guinea People's Government and the Baka people, although it was achieved through military means.

The railway in Guinea penetrated deep into the hinterland of the Baka people, providing strong support for the army's logistics and supplies.

After obtaining a batch of transport livestock and carriages from the Guinea colony, the army could also safely station itself in the upper reaches of the Congo River, ensuring the safety of the colonial strongholds in that plain.

Although only two and a half months had passed, the number of colonial strongholds Spain had established here had increased from over 20 to over 30, and the scale of the colonial strongholds was also growing steadily.

If nothing unexpected happens, Spain has hope of declaring the establishment of the Congo territory before the railway construction is completed, completely incorporating this land into Spanish rule.

But colonization is not all smooth sailing; in the process of Spain increasing its colonial investment, it also aroused the resistance of the local indigenous people.

The most intense resistance came from the Bantu and the Baka people. Spain's colonial actions invaded their territory and threatened their survival.

Although there were no organized indigenous states in these regions, there were still many scattered indigenous tribes.

Among them, some large tribes united together and managed to gather several thousand people, which was quite a large scale.

But clearly, they underestimated the lethality of the Spanish army, and also underestimated the cruelty of European colonists toward African indigenous people.

Or rather, not just African indigenous people, but all indigenous populations in all colonies.

British colonists and the later Americans could carry out massacres against the Indians on the American continent; at this time, Spain could of course carry out massacres against the African indigenous people in the Congo River basin.

It is just that Spain considered more, and combined with the situation of insufficient weapons and ammunition, they did not carry out overly cruel retaliation against the local indigenous people; they just treated a few indigenous tribes that participated in the resistance as the "chicken to warn the monkey," and used a few days to make them disappear from this land.

Facts have proven that friendly communication is far less effective than military means.

If Spanish colonists maintained a friendly attitude and communicated with them kindly, it would instead arouse their suspicion and hostility.

But if they spoke to them forcibly with steel guns and cannons, they would not only listen with fear and trepidation, but they would also listen very well, hearing every single word without missing anything.

As for those who were not very willing to listen, they had long since fallen asleep beneath this land along with the actions of the Spanish army.

After dealing with the local indigenous people, they had to be buried in time; this was also an order the army received before arriving in Africa.

The reason is also very simple: to prevent the spread of plague. The temperature in this land of Africa is still very dry and hot, and coupled with the lush vegetation in the Congo River basin, all kinds of unimaginable viruses exist in the dense forests.

If one were careless and let the army be infected with a plague, it would not only greatly affect the colonial development of the Congo River basin, but might even attract the attention of the Portuguese and the British and French.

After all, a large-scale infection of the army with a plague is not a small matter, and the Spanish government could not just stand by and watch them die. Transporting large quantities of medicine to Africa would inevitably arouse the suspicion of other countries, which is very unfavorable to the colonial development of the Congo River basin.

So from the beginning, Gao Da repeatedly emphasized the importance of preventing plague. In this land, one must not only guard against local poisonous insects and creatures, but also guard against the birth of all possible viruses.

Indigenous people who died normally were buried in time; if they encountered indigenous people who died abnormally, the method of disposal was to burn the entire tribe to the ground.

Although treating indigenous people this way might be a bit cruel, for the safety of the Spanish army and for the smooth progress of the colonial development of the Congo River basin, some sacrifices are very necessary.

With the Spanish government attaching such importance to the colonial development of the Congo River basin, the progress of the colonial development of the entire Congo River basin was very rapid.

Of course, this is also inseparable from the sacrifices of the Guinea colony.

As a not-so-large colony, the population of Guinea is actually not large. But for the development of the land in the Congo River basin, the Guinea colony had already selected hundreds of trusted Spanish immigrants to follow in the footsteps of the army and enter the upper reaches of the Congo River basin first.

The arrival of these people greatly strengthened the scale and number of colonial strongholds, and also made Spain's rule in this region more stable.

Even if the Portuguese and the British and French discovered this place, they would be unable to declare their sovereignty over this land.

Because the Spanish had already settled in this land on a large scale, and the number of colonial strongholds proved this point.

As long as the development of the Gangguohe basin continues to proceed smoothly, the establishment of the King's direct territory may be in the not-too-distant future.

A five-thousand-character two-in-one chapter, please support!

I have seen that the additional update thread has reached 200 posts; I will complete an additional update of no less than three thousand characters in a single chapter within three days. Additionally, the maps for the two colonies are being produced and will be posted in the book review section tonight.

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(End of chapter)