Chapter 384: Marriage

The diplomatic delegation led by the Danish royal family soon arrived in Spain, and Gao Da also approached Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark to discuss the specific details regarding the marriage between Prince Juan Fernando and Princess Louise Caroline Josephine Sophie Thyra Olga.

Because both sides had the intention to bring the two together, and coupled with the fact that Prince Juan Fernando and Princess Louise had mutual affection for each other, this marriage was quickly confirmed.

The engagement ceremony will be held at the end of this year, and the wedding ceremony has been set for next summer.

The scale of their engagement ceremony can be smaller, but the wedding ceremony is very important and requires long-term, meticulous preparation by the governments and royal families of both countries.

As Gao Da's eldest son and the country's crown prince, the scale of Prince Juan Fernando's wedding will be immense, and the cost of the wedding is destined to be significant.

Fortunately, the wealth of the Spanish royal family is already countless; taking out several million pesetas to host a grand wedding is merely a drop in the bucket for the Spanish royal family.

After the marriage between the two sides was confirmed, Crown Prince Frederik stayed in Spain for a few more days with Princess Louise and several members of the royal family.

Compared to Denmark further north, the climate in Spain is clearly much warmer. Coupled with the vast land and abundant resources, Crown Prince Frederik felt very curious about Spain.

Led by the reception staff of the Spanish government and Prince Juan Fernando, the crown prince and his party visited the once-famous "City That Never Sleeps" of Madrid, which was, in reality, a bustling street installed with a large number of streetlights.

Crown Prince Frederik also watched a Spanish bullfighting match. Today, bullfighting has become an indispensable part of Spanish culture; whether in large cities or small, any bullfighting match can attract thousands of spectators.

Those star performers who excel in bullfighting matches are often sought after by a large number of Spaniards. The final winner who triumphs in the annual bullfighting matches can become a warrior famous throughout Spain overnight.

Although bullfighting matches have brought about a large number of casualties. Since Gao Da decided to promote bullfighting extensively in Spain, up to now, the number of bullfighters who have died or been seriously injured in bullfighting matches has reached hundreds.

If one counts those who suffered minor injuries, the total number of accidents occurring in bullfighting matches has already reached several hundred.

But clearly, the high accident rate cannot stop bullfighters from bravely and fearlessly challenging the bulls, nor can it stop the audience from enthusiastically watching the bullfighting matches.

Crown Prince Frederik was full of praise for the Spanish bullfighting matches. Although such matches seem somewhat dangerous, there were not many entertainment options in this era, and if they could watch such a match from time to time, it must be something most European citizens would be happy to do.

During the few days of traveling in Spain, what surprised Crown Prince Frederik the most was not the current development and prosperity of Spain, but the heartfelt love and support the Spanish people had for Gao Da.

Gao Da's prestige within Spain is extremely high. Especially after the annexation of Morocco, Gao Da's prestige reached its peak, and he thus obtained supreme power.

As long as the order came from the Madrid Royal Palace, the people would support it without hesitation. This also meant that Gao Da had the hope of achieving absolute monarchy in the true sense, becoming the sole ruler of this country whose word is law.

The higher Gao Da's prestige and the greater his power, the better it is for the Danish royal family. After confirming the marriage between the two royal families, the Spanish royal family became an ally of the Danish royal family.

Starting from his own interests, Crown Prince Frederik naturally hoped that the Spanish royal family would have greater power, so that they could help the Danish royal family in more aspects.

In order to express the sincerity of the Danish side, during the few days the Danish royal family visited, the government officials sent by Denmark had already negotiated the content of their respective cooperation with the Spanish side.

Although it belongs to the small countries of Europe along with the Netherlands, Denmark's status today is clearly not as good as the Netherlands. The Netherlands still possesses the vast colony of the Dutch East Indies, which can provide a large amount of fiscal revenue for the Netherlands every year.

While Denmark's main colonies are only two left, whether it is Iceland or Greenland, neither can create substantial income for Denmark.

The only reason Denmark has been able to hold onto these two colonies until now is because the value of these two pieces of land is really not high.

The areas of Iceland and Greenland are not small, but because they are too close to the Arctic Circle, most of the land is unsuitable for habitation.

Coupled with the fact that these two colonies are islands, far away from the European and American continents, they are naturally even more sparsely populated.

Stronger countries do not look down upon these two colonies, and weaker countries cannot defeat Denmark; this is also the reason why Denmark has always held these two colonies.

The cooperation reached between Denmark and Spain mainly includes grain import and export trade, the purchase of warships, and the import of weapons and equipment, etc.

Speaking of which, compared to other small European countries, Denmark is actually quite special.

The Danish mainland is composed of several large islands and peninsulas, with the top three being the Jutland Peninsula, Zealand, and Funen.

Don't look at the fact that Denmark's land is all peninsulas and islands; in terms of agricultural products, Denmark has achieved basic self-sufficiency.

The total area of these islands and peninsulas reaches 43, 00 square kilometers, but Denmark's population is a pitiful 2. 8 million.

You must know that the Netherlands, Belgium, and Portugal, which are regarded as small European countries along with Denmark, basically have populations of 5 million or more.

Even countries like Switzerland and Greece have long since exceeded 3 million people. Denmark's population is only 2. 8 million; such a population is considered relatively small among small and medium-sized European countries.

The reason why Denmark can achieve grain self-sufficiency, besides the small population, is that there are fewer mountains and more plains in the country.

Denmark's animal husbandry is relatively developed, with high production of dairy products and meat, and it even exports a large amount of dairy products and meat every year.

For Spain, the grain import and export trade with the Danish side allows Spain to obtain dairy products and meat from Denmark.

Originally, Spain was not short of these, but because of the continuous growth of the population, although grain production barely kept up, the production of dairy products and meat clearly could not keep up with the growth rate of the Spanish population.

Spain can obtain dairy products and meat from Denmark, and Denmark can also obtain vegetables and fruits from Spain.

In terms of vegetables and fruits, Spain can confidently claim to be number one in Europe.

After the West African colonies took on the task of growing grain, much of the land in Spain proper was converted to the production of vegetables and fruits.

It is precisely because of this that Spain's vegetable and fruit production has continuously increased; on the premise of supplying the consumption of more than 30 million people domestically, it still exports a large amount of vegetables and fruits every year, earning considerable foreign exchange income.

Compared to the Netherlands, Denmark's shipbuilding industry is not that developed. Denmark also does not need to maintain a large navy; after all, they do not have many overseas colonies, and they are not too far from the mainland.

After sending off the Danish diplomatic delegation, the focus of all departments of the Spanish government was placed on the year-end wrap-up work.

As mentioned before, next year, which is 1897, Spain will hold elections for a new cabinet government.

This also means that in the remaining few months, the ministers of each department must make their final efforts to add to their achievements for this five-year term.

Only if their report cards are beautiful will they be qualified to seek re-election or further advancement.

If their political achievements are a mess, re-election is naturally impossible, and the members of parliament cannot support someone with little ability to continue to hold the high position of cabinet minister.

As early as the beginning of this year, Gao Da had already communicated with Prime Minister Evan Bradley.

Prime Minister Evan Bradley is no longer young, and he is considering retiring officially after the end of this cabinet prime minister term to enjoy his few remaining years of life.

Gao Da naturally would not stop Prime Minister Evan Bradley; the constant replacement of Spanish cabinet prime ministers is actually a good thing for Gao Da.

Of course, such a replacement must be a normal one. If a cabinet prime minister is impeached and steps down before their term is up, it will only cause turmoil in the Spanish political situation.

In the nearly 30 years that Gao Da has been the King of Spain, Spain has actually only experienced four cabinet prime ministers, with each prime minister's term averaging over 7 years; such a prime minister term is quite healthy.

It can ensure the long-term implementation of government policies without allowing the prime minister to obtain power sufficient to threaten the monarchy.

Since it has been confirmed that Prime Minister Evan Bradley will retire after the end of this cabinet prime minister term, for Gao Da, the most important thing is to find a successor for Prime Minister Evan Bradley.

The choice of cabinet prime minister is still very important; it concerns the stability of the Spanish political situation and the development of Spain for the next five years. The first more suitable candidate is the current Deputy Prime Minister Hovillar Soler. As the number two figure of the Conservative Party during the time of Prime Minister Canovas, after a five-year term as Deputy Prime Minister, Gao Da does not have to worry that his political prestige is insufficient to serve as prime minister.

Hovillar Soler's political stance is somewhat similar to Prime Minister Canovas, and he is considered one of the more suitable candidates for prime minister.

The second more suitable candidate is the current Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ewald Bartel. Compared to Hovillar Soler, Ewald Bartel has more seniority; he served in important positions such as Minister of Finance during the time of Prime Minister Primo and was an absolute confidant of Prime Minister Primo.

Because he was deeply trusted by Prime Minister Primo, Ewald Bartel became the Minister of Finance of Spain in 1869 and did not leave this position until 1882, serving as Minister of Finance for a total of 13 years.

He successfully returned to the cabinet during the administration of Prime Minister Evan Bradley, becoming the Speaker of the Spanish House of Representatives. This also made him the only cabinet minister in Spain to have served through the terms of four prime ministers, so his seniority and political prestige naturally go without saying.

However, compared to Hovillar Soler, Ewald Bartel has a fairly obvious shortcoming, which is that he is already very old.

Ewald Bartel was born in 1834 and is 62 years old this year. If he serves as cabinet prime minister for another five years, by the time he retires, he will be 67 years old.

Whether he can become a qualified cabinet prime minister for the five years from 62 to 67 is a question worth Gao Da's consideration.

It is undeniable that the average life expectancy in this era is very short. Being in one's 60s is already an elderly group, and neither physical condition nor the energy to handle government affairs can be compared to younger people.

Compared to the elderly Ewald Bartel, Hovillar Soler is younger, but not by much.

Hovillar Soler was born in 1839 and is just 57 years old this year. If he were to serve as cabinet prime minister for five years, by the time he retired, he would be exactly the age Ewald Bartel is now, 62.

Compared to these two older prime minister candidates, Gao Da actually favors the current Minister of Industry, Angelo Orcajo.

Baron Angelo Orcajo, born in 1847, is only 49 years old now; both his physical condition and his energy for handling affairs are clearly much better than the two old guys above.

More importantly, Baron Angelo Orcajo is one of his own in the true sense, a confidant of Gao Da.

His ability in industrial development is also beyond doubt; having come all the way from the position of head of the Barcelona Industrial Zone, he has successively served as head of the Barcelona Industrial Zone, Mayor of the Special City of Barcelona, Mayor of the Special City of Madrid, and Minister of Industry of the Spanish Cabinet, which is enough to show how excellent his ability is.

In fact, during the cabinet prime minister election in 1892, Gao Da had considered letting Baron Orcajo serve as prime minister.

But at that time, Baron Orcajo was only the Mayor of Madrid, and wanting to reach the sky in one step to become prime minister without having entered the cabinet was undoubtedly very difficult.

At that time, Hovillar Soler, Ewald Bartel, and the leaders of other parties were all competitors; competing with these people, Baron Orcajo's own advantages were not enough to support his election.

It is precisely for this reason that Gao Da let Evan Bradley, who came from a military background, serve as prime minister, to fight for a five-year opportunity for Baron Angelo Orcajo to build up his credentials and prestige.

Looking at it now, Baron Orcajo has done quite well in the position of Minister of Industry. Spain's industry has experienced good development over these five years, and even once had the trend of securing the throne of the world's fourth-largest industrial power.

In this situation, it seems not strange to reuse Baron Orcajo.

If Hovillar Soler or Ewald Bartel were to serve as Spain's prime minister, they would at most only be able to serve one term as cabinet prime minister.

After all, one has to consider the age issue; even if their abilities are excellent, Gao Da cannot let an old man approaching 70 continue to serve as Spain's prime minister.

On one hand, it is considering the prime minister's physical condition; someone in their 70s is very likely to die of illness during their term as prime minister.

On the other hand, it is also considering Spain's own development. As a great power, Spain still has to face various affairs and situations.

A prime minister approaching 70 simply does not have enough energy to handle these affairs, which will to a certain extent affect Spain's own development, which is something Gao Da cannot accept.

If Baron Angelo Orcajo were to serve as Spain's prime minister, there would be no restriction of only being able to serve one term as prime minister.

Because Baron Orcajo is only 49 years old, as long as his health does not have any accidents, he can serve as cabinet prime minister for at least two consecutive terms in the future.

And in the ten years he serves as cabinet prime minister, the Spanish political situation can become more stable, and industrial and economic development can also achieve significant progress.

Just considering this point, Gao Da's choice for prime minister is more biased towards Baron Angelo Orcajo.

Unless there is any accident in these few months that affects Gao Da's judgment, otherwise, in the cabinet prime minister election early next year, the one likely to win will be Baron Orcajo.

Although Gao Da already has a preliminary candidate for prime minister, on the surface, the competition for the next cabinet prime minister is still quite fierce.

In addition to the three cabinet prime minister candidates mentioned, the Progressive Party, the Conservative Party, and the Workers' Party also have their own candidates.

Theoretically speaking, as long as one is a member of the Spanish House of Representatives, one is qualified to run for the position of prime minister.

It's just that there are certain restrictions for each political party. Each party can only recommend one candidate to participate in the prime minister election, and this candidate also represents their own party.

If one cannot obtain the qualification to run for prime minister through the party recommendation method, one can only run as an independent.

Running as an independent has a great disadvantage. The prime minister election itself relies on the votes obtained by oneself, and being an independent means almost no help from others.

In addition to party recommendation and independent self-nomination, one can also become a prime minister candidate through the King's personal nomination.

The prime minister election is divided into three rounds; the first round is a competition among all independent candidates. The two winners can participate in the second round of competition with the recommendees of other parties, finally deciding on three prime minister candidates to participate in the final round of competition.

If the King does not personally nominate a prime minister candidate, then the final round of competition is a competition among these three candidates. If the King personally nominates a prime minister candidate, the final round of competition is conducted among four people.

The one with the highest final vote count will become the Prime Minister of Spain, and others can only take a step back and seek the position of cabinet minister.

Such an election process is clearly much more improved compared to the time of Prime Minister Primo. As the King of Spain, Gao Da also has more say in the prime minister election stage.

If Gao Da does not want a certain person recommended by a certain party to become a prime minister candidate, he can also reject the party's prime minister candidate recommendation and require the party to resubmit another candidate as the prime minister candidate.

Doing this can ensure that the final few prime minister candidates are ones Gao Da is willing to see, and there will be no such ambitious prime minister who monopolizes power reappearing on the historical stage of Spain.

Doing this is also to avoid the Spanish monarchy being hollowed out. The King can choose not to be a dictator, but the power in his hands must absolutely not be hollowed out.

Even if these powers are not used, holding them in one's hands is a tremendous deterrent. These powers are the trump cards for the future King of Spain to secure his throne.

Even if voices opposing the monarchy arise within Spain in the future, the King of Spain can still use the power in his hands to try his best to prevent those extreme republicans from becoming high-level officials in the Spanish government.

This is about all that Yu Kaluo can do. Yu Kaluo can only ensure that the throne is not lost in the hands of his son and grandson; as for things further down the line, that is not something Yu Kaluo can control.

Even if Yu Kaluo could successfully annex Portugal, recover Gibraltar, and become one of the greatest monarchs in the hearts of the Spanish people, he still could not make the Spanish throne circulate in the hands of the House of Savoy for hundreds of years.

To hold onto the Spanish throne, the efforts of every future King of Spain are still required. Only by gaining the trust of the people does the Spanish monarchy have the possibility of being passed down.

If the day truly comes when the Spanish throne must be lost, it would not necessarily be the end of the world for the Spanish royal family.

After all, Yu Kaluo has already established immense wealth for his descendants; relying on this wealth alone would be enough to make the future Spanish royal family top-tier capitalists.

The monarchy cannot make the Spanish royal family the masters of the country, but this vast wealth can. By then, even if they lose their noble titles, relying solely on the wealth in their hands would be enough to remain in the upper echelons of the country.

(End of this chapter)