Chapter 240: The London Treaty
The statement from the Portuguese Republican Party caused a huge uproar in Portugal and quickly spread throughout much of Europe, becoming one of the most discussed topics among European citizens in recent times.
Of course, this was also beneficial for Australasia, as it helped quickly absolve them of any suspicion regarding the assassination of King Carlos I of Portugal, and allowed them to gain more goodwill from the European public. After all, Australasia and Portugal were at war, and the Portuguese people had begun to oppose King Carlos I's rule, even developing a degree of favor toward the enemy nation, Australasia.
In comparison to King Carlos I, Australasia and Arthur appeared to be the more righteous side. As the saying goes, "No comparison, no harm." In an attempt to maintain his autocratic rule, King Carlos I had used the conflict with Australasia's fishermen to create an image of a ruler who cared for his people and was unafraid of strong enemies. However, he ignored the true sentiment of the Portuguese people and continued to insist on a war that brought no benefit to Portugal—only serving to uphold the image he had built for himself.
Moreover, the Portuguese government was increasingly offending the three great powers of Britain, Germany, and Russia. The trade between Portugal and these countries had gradually decreased, which caused major losses for many Portuguese factories and private businesses. This left the Portuguese people even more disappointed with King Carlos I. After all, Australasia had ample evidence and photographs proving their fishermen had suffered severe injuries, and their catches and properties were even seized. Meanwhile, Portugal's statement regarding the fishermen's conflict was vague, relying solely on the fishermen's one-sided account without any evidence.
If the government continued to offend Britain and Germany, Portugal would lose its position in Europe. Britain and Germany represented the two major blocs—the Allied and Central Powers—respectively, and Britain had a strong alliance with France, which also had a pact with Russia. Meanwhile, Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary formed the Central Powers, meaning Britain and Germany were connected with nearly all the great powers of Europe.
Portugal had managed to alienate all the great powers of Europe, which was a grave misstep. Thanks to the constitutional monarchy system Portugal had implemented for decades before King Carlos I's reign, Portugal had numerous political parties and supporters of republicanism and democracy. These groups, opposing the autocratic monarchy, were naturally within the scope of Carlos I's oppressive measures.
King Carlos I's failure to control the situation provided a golden opportunity for the Republicans and supporters of democracy, encouraging them to step out, even at the risk of being purged by the government. The Republican Party's influence in Portugal was not limited to this; if there had been proper polling institutions at the time, a shocking conclusion would have emerged—public support for the Portuguese government had dropped dramatically, with approval falling to less than 40% in a short time.
Though this may seem exaggerated, considering that Portugal's monarchy had collapsed just two years after its establishment, the decline was more understandable. King Carlos I had established a system of high-pressure authoritarianism without delivering significant benefits to the people. A ruler who prioritized his own power and position inevitably faced opposition, and it was no surprise when that opposition gained ground.
While King Carlos I had earned some support from the common people for his firm stance in defending fishermen earlier, after this incident, the public gradually woke up. This explained the significant drop in support for the Portuguese government.
Upon hearing reports about multiple nationwide protests, King Carlos I was furious, yet powerless. But this was not the only bad news. After several hours of efforts to save him, the hospital treating Prince Louis finally declared that they could do nothing, and Prince Louis passed away. This was another blow to King Carlos I, and he appeared to have aged by more than a decade in an instant.
By the time King Carlos I arrived at the government building again, the high-ranking officials of the Portuguese government were shocked to see that his hair had turned gray. Portugal was now in a state of both internal and external turmoil, with the external pressure from the peace talks with Australasia and the internal discontent from democratic and liberal factions overwhelming the government.
In order to preserve his rule, King Carlos I reluctantly decided to compromise with Australasia, focusing all his efforts on resolving the internal issues and securing the monarchy's position.
On October 18th, 1907, the London peace talks, which had been unexpectedly suspended for five days, resumed. This time, the Portuguese ambassador, Herbert Simon, was noticeably more positive and officially acknowledged Portugal's defeat in the war.
Seeing that the Portuguese government was finally becoming realistic, the representatives of Britain, Germany, and Russia nodded in approval.
After several days of negotiations, and with the representatives of Britain, Germany, and Russia witnessing the process, David, the representative of Australasia, and Herbert Simon, the representative of Portugal, signed the "Treaty of London" in London, officially known as the "Australasia-Portuguese Treaty on the Settlement of the Fishermen's Conflict and the War Compensation Terms."
According to the terms of the London Treaty, Portuguese Timor would be ceded to Australasia as compensation for the war. Portugal also recognized Australasia's sovereignty over it. Furthermore, Australasia was granted port access in Portuguese East Asia, allowing both military and civilian ships to freely enter and exit these ports.
Additionally, Portugal agreed to compensate the affected Australasian fishermen for the damages caused by the conflict and the war. Portugal would pay 15 Australian dollars per fisherman affected by the conflict. The fisherman who had been hurt in the initial fishermen's conflict would receive 100,000 Australian dollars in compensation, along with a public apology from Portugal.
As for war indemnity, the Portuguese government would pay Australasia 5 million pounds, to be settled within three years. If the payment was not made within the three years, an interest rate of 20% would be applied to the unpaid amount each year, meaning that after three years, the annual interest would amount to one million pounds—a considerable sum.
Such a financial burden could potentially push the Portuguese government to the brink of bankruptcy. After all, the accumulated interest over two years would be enough to buy a dreadnought battleship, so Arthur was in no rush for Portugal to make the payments.
With Britain, Germany, and Russia overseeing the treaty, Arthur was not worried about Portugal defaulting on the payment. These three nations were well-established powers, and there were very few countries that would dare to defy them.
Of course, the three powers' involvement in the peace talks was largely due to Arthur's influence. The good relations between Australasia and Britain, Germany, and Russia played a key role. With their backing, signing a fair treaty with Portugal was made possible.
While Australasia was not afraid of Portugal's military, Portugal's navy was still a significant issue. The key to maintaining strong relations was with Germany and Russia. Although the British navy was the most powerful in the world, and their shipbuilding technology was world-class, as long as Edward was King of England, Australasia could never have a too-close relationship with the British Empire.
That being said, given Arthur's strong connections with Queen Victoria and his favorable standing in Britain, there was little concern over hostility from Britain unless Arthur continually opposed them.
The success of the airships in Australasia had sparked a wave of airship research across Europe, and Arthur happily supported this by gifting an AU-2 airship to both Britain and Germany. Given their technological capabilities, it was not difficult for them to master the AU-2.
Russia, however, was a different story. Arthur decided to gift Russia a batch of weapons and ammunition originally intended for the war, given Russia's limited research capacity compared to Britain and Germany. These supplies would strengthen Russia's Far Eastern military, which had previously been struggling, preparing them for future conflicts.
(End of Chapter)
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