Chapter 316: Inspection

Counting the Balearic and Canary archipelagos, Spain has a total of 14 province-level administrative districts, which also happens to lay a stronger foundation for the establishment of the Barcelona Special Municipality.

It is well known that the number 13 is a taboo in the Western world.

The earliest explanation comes from Christian tradition. According to the Bible, Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples before his passion. The 13th participant at the dinner was Judas, who betrayed Jesus; the date of this dinner is also considered by Christianity to be the 13th, causing the number 13 to be closely associated with betrayal and suffering.

The famous painter Leonardo da Vinci's work, "The Last Supper," further spread this biblical story and reinforced the negative meaning brought by the number 13.

Although the influence of religion on European countries has gradually weakened, whether it is the common people or the high-level government officials of various countries, they will avoid the number 13 as much as possible.

A more common practice is that high-rise buildings, theaters, and other public places will avoid numbers like the 13th floor or the 13th row.

When holding banquets in Europe, they also avoid having 13 people dining at the same table; each table will have either only 12 seats, or 14 or more.

Even famous figures like Napoleon and Bismarck would refuse to launch wars or sign government documents on the 13th, which clearly shows that this taboo of 13 has taken deep root in Europe and even the Western world.

If Barcelona were not established as a special municipality, Spain would only have 13 remaining province-level administrative divisions, which clearly violates the taboo.

If the number 13 can be avoided, it is naturally best to avoid it as much as possible.

After establishing Barcelona as a special municipality, Spain's administrative divisions on the Iberian Peninsula became 12 (excluding the two archipelagos), which is also a quite lucky number.

To dispel the concerns of the Spanish people regarding the establishment of the Barcelona Special Municipality, Carlos had the newspapers controlled by the royal family report extensively on news related to the number 13, so that the public would support the parliament's decision.

In any era, the public is blind. Under the propaganda of a large number of newspaper reports, the Spanish people soon believed that only by establishing Barcelona as a special municipality could the occurrence of the number 13 be avoided, and only then could it bring luck to all of Spain.

As for those who still supported keeping Barcelona in Catalonia, the thoughts of those people would bring disaster and misfortune to Spain, and they were the 13th person—that is, the betrayers of Spain.

Believe it or not, because it is closely related to the biblical story, this argument was accepted by many Spaniards.

Except for the Catalans who still had some slight objections, other Spaniards had no objections to the establishment of the Barcelona Special Municipality, and some even had the idea of applauding it.

Once the commoners did not object, the subsequent matters were easy to handle.

As for the remaining people who still insisted on opposing the parliament's decision, they were no different from betrayers like Judas.

In any case, with the support of the public, Carlos was fearless.

Spain's security departments acted very quickly, arresting a large number of opponents every day and interrogating them, which implicated even more traitors.

Although Spain lacks population, it does not mean it wants just anyone. For those who have no sense of belonging to the concept of the nation of Spain, Carlos had only one opinion: to exile them.

Spain now has many choices, and the destinations for these people will also be varied.

A portion of the more radical opponents will be exiled to the Philippines; since they want to cause trouble, let them go and cause trouble with the local indigenous people of the Philippines.

The remaining people who are not so radical will be exiled to several colonies in Africa. If they perform well in the future, they will still have a chance to return to Spain.

Of course, those exiled to the Philippines need not think about it. For such extreme nationalists, Carlos will absolutely never trust them.

Spain only accepts citizens who identify with this country; for any behavior that seeks to engage in independence or separatism on Spanish soil, Carlos has only one opinion: to strike with a heavy fist, and not let a single one go.

Within just one month of the announcement of the administrative division reform plan, Spain had emigrated nearly 10, 00 people abroad through various means.

Undoubtedly, these people were all confirmed to have no sense of belonging to Spain and were radical reactionaries attempting to seek national autonomy or even independence.

Most of these people were transported to the West African colonies, the Congo territory, and Guinea; they will fill the population of the African colonies and engage in the more arduous work of developing the African colonies.

The remaining approximately one-third were more extreme opponents, and they were sent directly to the Philippines.

It is worth mentioning that the places they went to were not the several large islands of the Philippines, but several small islands where Spanish control is not strong.

The Philippine government will provide them with rifles and living supplies; their task is to survive locally, establish larger Spanish colonial strongholds, and strengthen Spanish rule in the region.

Do not look at these islands as being smaller in area; because Spaniards rarely set foot there, the local indigenous people are more wild and their offensive power is also very strong.

If they can survive and successfully manage the islands they are on, Carlos would not be opposed to considering letting them establish a country under Spanish control in the future.

But if they cannot even survive and need to rely on the Philippine colony to live, then naturally no one will pay attention to them, and whether they can survive will only depend on their own efforts.

After dealing with those who opposed the political reform plan with thunderous means, Spain's reforms were able to proceed rapidly.

Barcelona and Madrid both had new names, and their names were both Special Municipality. Other large regions were also renamed to provinces; after the parliament and the cabinet government issued the relevant decrees, the major regions issued announcements within a few days and changed the names of the regional governments and regional parliaments.

At this time, inside the Madrid Royal Palace, Carlos looked at the Spanish administrative map hanging in his office, and for a moment, he could not help but feel heroic.

Although Spain's land area is not large, it is a major power with an area of over 500, 00 square kilometers and a population of 22 million.

Right now, the burden of development for the 12 provinces and 2 special municipalities of the Spanish mainland rests entirely on Carlos's shoulders; this is a supreme power, and it is also a responsibility as heavy as a mountain.

Carlos's gaze first glanced at Spain's administrative divisions, then looked at the Principality of Andorra in northern Spain, then shifted his gaze to Portugal in western Spain, and finally to Morocco in the south.

With the shifting of his gaze, a trace of ambition was revealed in Carlos's eyes—an ambition to completely unify the Iberian Peninsula and make Spain a super-nation spanning the two continents of Europe and Africa.

As for Gibraltar, which lies between the two continents of Europe and Africa, it was the place Carlos stared at for the longest time.

If unifying the Iberian Peninsula could make Carlos one of the greatest monarchs of Spain, then recovering Gibraltar could make Carlos the greatest monarch of Spain.

Carlos even had hope of becoming deified through this; by recovering Gibraltar, he could make himself the greatest ruler in the hearts of all Spaniards and possess the title of Great Emperor.

In April 1885, Carlos officially launched his national inspection tour to visit every province.

In addition to urging the reforms in each province, this inspection was also to stabilize the hearts of the people in each province, so that Spain's reforms could continue stably and eventually achieve complete success.

The first stop of Carlos's inspection tour was placed in Spain's newly added administrative division, the Barcelona Special Municipality.

For Spain, the importance of Barcelona is no less than that of Madrid.

Madrid is Spain's political center, cultural center, and railway transport center, and it is also the city with the largest population in Spain. And Barcelona is Spain's industrial center, economic center, and maritime transport center; Barcelona, along with Catalonia, is hailed as the most developed region in Spain.

After the establishment of the Barcelona Special Municipality, the capital of Catalonia was moved from Barcelona to Tarragona further south.

But clearly, Tarragona cannot replace Barcelona.

From Spain's railway construction, it can also be seen that Madrid is the center of all railways, and Madrid connects the three most populous provinces: Galicia, Andalusia, and Catalonia.

And Barcelona is the center of the Catalan railway, connecting to Zaragoza in the Aragon province to the west, and connecting to Valencia in the Valencia province to the south; it is an extremely important transportation hub.

Although Tarragona is also a seaport city with a good geographical location, compared to Barcelona, which is located in the heart of Catalonia, Tarragona cannot become a transportation hub and can only be an ordinary seaport city on the railway line.

Losing Barcelona is a heavy loss for Catalonia, which will certainly affect Catalonia's economy.

However, considering the support that Barcelona can receive from the Spanish government after becoming a special municipality, Catalonia's sacrifice is worth it.

For this inspection tour, Carlos decided to use his special train and travel by rail to one of Spain's brilliant twin-star cities.

However, unlike the previous trip to Barcelona via Zaragoza, Carlos chose to head east to Valencia first this time, and then head north from Valencia to Barcelona for inspection.

The scenery of Spain in the spring is quite beautiful, at least it is around Madrid.

Once out of Madrid and into the mountainous areas, the scenery is not so beautiful. Carlos appreciated Spain's unique scenery while arranging the things that needed to be done after arriving in Barcelona.

This trip carried sufficient security forces, also to prevent a counterattack by the Catalans.

Although on the surface, the radicals among the Catalans and Basques had all been cleaned up, who could guarantee that no one would remain in hiding, secretly plotting assassinations against the King and other high-ranking government officials?

Carlos still attached great importance to his own life safety.

Accompanying the special train to Barcelona this time, in addition to some servants and government officials, were hundreds of guards and Imperial Guard soldiers.

A security force of this scale was enough to ensure Carlos's safety in any region of Spain. Even if there were truly radicals in Catalonia creating chaos, Carlos's safety could still be guaranteed.

Time passed quickly; Carlos and his party arrived in Valencia by train, and then headed north from Valencia, passing through Zaragoza before arriving in Barcelona.

At the Barcelona train station, the Mayor of Barcelona, along with a group of officials and councilors from the municipal government and the city council, were already waiting respectfully.

Although the establishment of the Barcelona Special Municipality was a heavy loss for Catalonia, for Barcelona itself, the benefits actually outweighed the disadvantages.

Take the Mayor of Barcelona, for example; his administrative rank was only that of a mayor. Although Barcelona is Spain's second-largest city and possesses Spain's largest industrial zone, it could not change the administrative rank and status of the Mayor of Barcelona.

But after the establishment of the Barcelona Special Municipality, the Mayor of Barcelona leaped from an ordinary mayor to a new favorite in Spanish politics.

That is correct; compared to other provinces, Barcelona's land area and population are smaller.

However, Barcelona is more superior in terms of economy and industry, which also means that the Mayor of Barcelona has more opportunities to establish political achievements.

Standing beside the Mayor of Barcelona were either important officials of the municipal government or the speaker of the city council and some councilors.

One person had a rather special status; he stood behind the Mayor of Barcelona, looking every bit like the second-in-command of the Barcelona municipal government.

That person's appearance was still very familiar, and the first time Carlos saw him, he recognized him: it was the down-and-out nobleman whom Carlos had once thought highly of, Baron Angelo Orcajo.

Come to think of it, Baron Angelo Orcajo had served as the head of the Barcelona Industrial Zone for several years. Spain's industrial development was so rapid that it could not be separated from the high-speed development of the Barcelona Industrial Zone.

And the high-speed development of the Barcelona Industrial Zone also benefited from the excellent leadership of Baron Angelo Orcajo. Facts proved that Carlos's eye for talent was still quite good.

Although he was only a down-and-out nobleman, Baron Angelo Orcajo's ability was quite excellent; during his tenure in the relatively important position of head of the industrial zone, he successfully exerted his abilities and created the industrial heart of Spain.

With the establishment of the Barcelona Special Municipality this time, Baron Angelo Orcajo also had high hopes of raising his administrative rank.

There were rumors within Barcelona that when the next election for mayor takes place, Baron Angelo Orcajo would very likely be elected as the new Mayor of Barcelona.

One must know that Baron Angelo Orcajo is not even 40 years old yet. Being elected at this age as the Mayor of Barcelona, whose rank is equivalent to that of a provincial governor, means that he still has great hope to continue moving upward.

In other words, Baron Angelo Orcajo is definitely a new favorite in the political arena, and the kind of new favorite with great potential.

(End of chapter)