NOVPUBVienna Palace, ever since the British took the lead in breaking the rules, Franz’s desk was frequently beset with requests for engagement reports.
Do not misunderstand, they did not wish to fight the British. The Austrian military was not so foolhardy; the British Royal Navy still possessed a formidable deterrent force.
The targets of these requests for combat were naturally the unclaimed lands that had yet to be partitioned. Since it was a matter of seizing with fists, the Austrian military did not want to be left behind.
Franz casually said, "The military’s plans for operations are all here, basically all of the unclaimed lands are included in these plans.
If there is anything missing, then it’s beyond our capabilities and unobtainable. Now you may choose one from among them!"
The bustling movement to divide up colonies seemed almost like child’s play here, and Franz did not appear to take it seriously in the slightest.
Colonial Minister Stephen: "Firstly, we can rule out Persia. The British have been established there for a long time and they also have India as a base. It would be difficult for us as latecomers to compete with them.
Secondly, the Indochina Peninsula can also be excluded. British, French and Prussian powers are clustered there, making the situation extremely complex.
Moreover, according to the intelligence we have received, the competition between England and France is fierce, and the Prussians are about to be squeezed out. If we were to join in, we would likely suffer the same fate.
At present, the only suitable areas for expansion are East Africa and South America.
The nations of South America have already become independent and have been recognized by the European world. Taking action against them could easily panic the minor European countries, which would greatly damage our international image.
By comparison, expanding into East Africa is much easier. While the British aim to act against Ethiopia, we could also get a share, such as by occupying the Horn of Africa (Somalia Peninsula)."
Upon hearing "Horn of Africa," Franz’s first reaction was that it was "of marginal use."
What does the Somalia Peninsula have?
Answer: pirates!
This was the impression Somalia had left on Franz; incorrect, and also "poor." There might be resources and minerals, but certainly not many, otherwise Franz would not have been completely uninformed.
The only value probably lay in its "significant" strategic importance, which also depended on the circumstances. For instance, right now, the strategic value of the Somalia Peninsula could not be fully realized.
It seemed to be on the obligatory route to the Suez Canal, but the British were blocking the way.
Austria already possessed the Arabian Peninsula, and with the navy unable to contend with the Royal Navy, the strategic value of the Somalia Peninsula was much diminished in the hands of the Vienna Government.
Foreign Minister Weisenberg: "Based on past international situations, the East African region is the most suitable for our colonization. Besides England and France, there are no other competitors.
The French aim for the Sudan area, and their power has not yet extended here, so they will not compete with us for the Somalia Peninsula.
The London Government, although they attach importance to the East African region, has limited strength to invest in the African Continent; embarking on a war with Ethiopia, they would already be powerless to dispute with us over the Somalia Peninsula.
The only pity is that the economic value of the Somalia Peninsula is too low, and the benefits it can bring us are very limited."
In the East African region, the powers of England, France, and Austria crisscrossed, evidently making it the private domain of the three great nations, naturally no country would be foolish enough to come hustling into our territory.
With fewer participants, competition naturally diminishes. Unfortunately, so do the benefits. If not for the opening of the Suez Canal, the British likely would not have given Ethiopia a second glance.
Franz nodded, "Then let’s settle on the Somalia Peninsula. Even if it has no economic value, being able to suppress British expansion is strategically beneficial enough to recoup the costs."
With low expectations from the start, there was, naturally, no disappointment to speak of. The world had already been almost entirely carved up, and what remained were just the remnants; not making a loss was already quite good.
…
As Austria made its move, other countries were not idle either. New alliances and strategies began to unfold, and as for the Paris conference, it had become a joke.
Perhaps after the last round of colonial division, Paris might be able to achieve some results. That the conference had not been announced as prematurely ended was all thanks to the good work of British diplomacy.
The London Government wanted to save face; the Paris conference had been convened under British initiative, and if it had ended because of their breach of protocol, Britain’s face would have been completely lost.
Despite the self-deception, the fig leaf had to be maintained. However, governments no longer paid it any heed, and the delegations returned home, leaving only the permanent diplomatic staff in Paris to continue negotiations.
…
Vienna University City, Austria’s largest education base. Home to over thirty institutions of higher learning, it boasts the world’s most advanced educational system.
Today, the influence of Austrian universities is no longer confined to domestic soil. With students from across the globe, the area is endowed with a cosmopolitan flair.
In this age, studying in Austria is not a simple matter. Not only must one have excellent academic achievements, but also pay hefty tuition fees and contend with restricted enrollment quotas.
The Ministry of Education has clear regulations: the number of foreign students a university enrolls may not exceed four percent of the total admissions.
Austrian universities generally admit between 500 to 1,000 students each year, and to ensure the quality of education, even the institutions with the highest enrollment do not exceed 1,500 students.
This means that each institution will not accept more than 60 foreign students annually, which seems quite a lot at first—the country has over a hundred universities after all.
In practice, though, these are idealistic numbers; a large portion of the slots for foreign students are occupied by students from the German Federation and the Kingdom of Prussia.
These two account for 43% and 29% of the total number, respectively, followed by the Swiss Confederation, taking up 5%, with the rest divided among other countries.
The disparity in these proportions is not because these three countries have educational systems of outstanding quality, but rather due to cultural similarities, the ease of obtaining student visas, and the educational loans provided by the Vienna Government to these students.
In this era, all countries pursue an elitist educational system; universities are simply not within reach for ordinary people.
Foreign students are even further out of the question, as domestic educational resources are scarcely sufficient, let alone for foreigners.
Almost all foreign students must pay high tuition fees. For example, at Vienna University, overseas students must pay an annual tuition fee ranging from 2,000 to 3,000 divine shields depending on the program.
This is no small sum; considering that the average annual income in Austria is less than 70 divine shields, the income of an ordinary person in a lifetime would not even cover a year’s tuition at the university.
Of course, this only applies to outsiders. Domestic tuition fees are much more affordable, typically between 50 and 500 divine shields, and there are educational loans available as well.
Once accepted into a university, the cost is not a problem at all. For certain scarce specialties, the government even covers the tuition.
Not only is Austria restrictive in admitting foreign students, but other countries do the same. Even when they do admit foreign students, it is mostly European students, with very few from overseas.
People of later generations may think that there were many overseas students in this era, but in fact, that’s an illusion. It’s true that so-called overseas students went abroad to study, but whether they learned anything is highly questionable.
Schools are ranked at different levels of quality, and top-tier universities enroll only a small number of overseas students. However, the third-rate universities have no such limits on enrollment.
There are even "universities" specifically aimed at recruiting overseas students, bringing in a few obscure "well-known scholars" as teachers, and filling students’ heads with all sorts of jumbled knowledge.
It’s no problem if you fail an exam. The school has special package deals for underachievers, guaranteeing a diploma so long as you can pay.
If you want to gain real knowledge, better stop dreaming. Do not be deceived by the fancy packaging of these schools’ teachers; the overwhelming majority of them have never attended university themselves.
Austria, of course, also had these "for-profit universities." Apart from their degrees not being recognized by the Vienna Government, on the surface, they seemed not so different from regular universities, and were good enough to cheat incoming overseas students.
Take, for example, the "Austrian Maritime High Command Academy," a classic example of a third-rate university, riding on the coattails of both the Austrian Army Command College and the Austrian Navy Command College.
A slight difference in name, yet a world apart in quality. Anyone with a bit of common sense knows that the army and navy are two separate systems, and their training is naturally conducted separately.
It’s not impossible to train commanders for both army and navy at the same time, just extremely difficult to excel in both.
Just like individuals, schools have limited energy. Franz had no interest in cultivating generalists; Austrian universities place a particular emphasis on training specialized professionals.
This can be seen from the Austrian university entrance exams. Those who score high overall can attend university, but those with outstanding specialized scores are also directly admitted.
The latter group actually comprises a larger number, as there are more people who specialize in one subject than those who develop their skills in all areas.
This approach is not without its limits: those who specialize in one subject can only apply for very few majors, essentially having almost no choice.
After graduation, it’s difficult for them to change careers across disciplines because they lack basic knowledge in other areas.
Most of these individuals are suited to technical work, and after graduation, most become engineers in their fields of expertise, with a minority excelling and entering research institutions.
Students who are well-rounded have much broader career prospects and are found in all walks of life, but such generalists are much too rare.
In the short term, the Austrian educational model is a success. In the face of limited educational resources, specialized training maximizes cost-efficiency and increases the rate of success in producing skilled professionals.
…
Morse was a victim of a third-rate university. He fought his way out of a highly competitive field with excellent results, finally obtaining the chance to study abroad in Austria.
In the end, to save on tuition fees, he entered the impressive-sounding "Austrian Maritime High Command Academy" to study military science.
Compared to other European countries, Austria’s third-rate universities weren’t too scammy—at least their basic military training met the standards.
Thanks to the conscription system, the teachers in these schools had legitimately served in the military, retaining some professional skills.
Their command abilities might not be strong, but these teachers could cheat their way through. Armed with theoretical textbooks, they could prattle on for hours nonstop.
This helped make the third-rate universities seem more legitimate. Morse was quickly taken in by their chicanery, disregarding any external criticisms of the school.
However, over time, doubts began to creep in. He noticed the school was almost entirely made up of overseas students, with only a very few local Austrian students.
The limited number of local students often skipped the most important strategy classes, which frustrated Morse greatly.
This was seriously problematic, for if the higher officers trained were of such caliber, the Austrian Army might as well align with the warlord troops of Mexico.
In fact, this was not the case, as Morse had actually visited an Austrian camp. He was deeply impressed by both their training and their equipment.
As a Mexican who had come to Austria to study, this was directly linked to Morse’s heritage.
His ancestors were immigrants from the Germany Region, and Austria was the most powerful country within the German cultural circle, which made him choose Austria due to a sense of local attachment.
In the Europe of that era, the status of international students was not high, and many faced discrimination. Thanks to his German descent, he quickly integrated into the community.
Just two hours earlier, he received startling news. After inviting some classmates for drinks in a tavern, a local student revealed the truth to him post-intoxication.
He believed that the prestigious Austrian Maritime High Command Academy, was in reality, a mere shell, not officially recognized by the Austrian Government.
Of course, it wasn’t entirely unrecognized, at least graduates here could obtain a credential equivalent to high vocational college education.
They weren’t trained to be high-ranking officers but competent soldiers, and those with excellent performance could qualify for low-level officer positions.
This was evident in many ways, as most of the day was spent on military training with command courses limited to theoretical knowledge.
The teachers were eloquent when discussing small group combat, but when it came to discussing large campaign cases, it was pure fantasy.
There was no helping it, since these teachers had only ever served as basic officers. Naturally, they spoke authoritatively on subjects they had experienced firsthand, and about those they were unfamiliar with, they could only boast.
The local students attending here mostly did not pay tuition fees due to connections. They ended up here because their grades were not good enough for regular military schools.
Although standards here might be slightly lower, there was still some useful knowledge. Receiving some military knowledge in advance before serving could help them stand out faster once they joined the army.
This was also why Morse noticed many local students slacking off—not because they were lazy, but they still tried hard when teachers taught specialized knowledge.
The so-called strategy classes were known to be nonsensical talks, so naturally, no one took them seriously.
To say that the Austrian Maritime High Command Academy was a military school was not wrong; the military training conducted was genuine, and each year it indeed provided the Austrian army with a number of qualified soldiers, half of whom could become junior officers.
In the words of a classmate, it was no problem for the academy’s outstanding graduates to become company or platoon level officers in the Austrian army. With some luck, and if they distinguished themselves in war, they could climb a few ranks further.
As for higher-level commanders, further education was needed. The Austrian officer training system was very comprehensive—so long as one was exceptional, they could continue their studies.
While no "commoner marshals" had emerged, there were indeed several "commoner generals." These were the targets for ordinary soldiers to strive toward; though the chances were slim, they were still chances.
For Morse, this was undeniably a disaster. The Mexican army had no such training system, so what use was the military acumen limited to company and platoon command that he learned here?
He came here to study military knowledge with the aim of building a powerful Mexico, not to become a low-level officer.
However, the path was one he had chosen himself. Despite being able to enter a regular military school, he had, for the sake of saving money, fallen into a huge pit.
