Chapter 3
November, 1849 - November, 1851
November, 1849:
After what seemed like an eternity, news finally reached Charles. As he ran into the king's bedroom, after months of brooding, royal pageantry had gone out the window, he hoped that he finally had the news necessary to turn the king's mood around. Once again, the king sat, staring into the fire as if it would spew forth some magical answer. How much wood has he wasted, Charles wondered. How many peasents are freezing right now?
"Your majesty!" Charles ghasped "The Russians! They want to renew the alliance!" Of course, Charles would never tell Joshua that he had acted without royal authority.
Joshua slowly turned from the fire, all of the tension and madness slowly mealting from his face.
"There is one catch, though."
"Yes?" Joshua inqured.
"We must declare war on Switzerland once more."
Josh sat motionless for all of five seconds. "OK. OK, we can do that. The Germans are finally turning the tide. This looks like a war they can win. Besides, we won't commit any troops anyway. It's not like any Swedish blood will be spilled from this conflict. Wonderful! Send word immediately that we accept!"
"Certainly, sire" Charles responded, knowing that it was a journey that would never have to be taken.
"And send word to the Swiss that we consider ourselves to be in a state of war."
"Yes, your majesty."
The king rose from his chair, the blanket that was drapped across him fell to the floor along with all of the months of unnecessary worry.
"Send word to everyone in the palace. We shall have a feast tonight! This is certainly a day for celebration."
"Yes, sire," Charles said, turning towards the door.
"And Charles?"
"Yes, sire?"
"Have the cooks prepare some extra food. Certainly there are some hungry peasents nearby in need of nourishment . . . and give them several chords of wood. It's cold outside"
"Of course, your majesty" replied a shocked Charles. He had never seen the king so generous. It was in that moment that he knew that he had done the right thing. Because of his defiance, no Swedes or Russians would die in a battle caused by the evil demons lurking in the dark recesses of a king's mind. Because of his defiance, several hungry families would have the best meals of their lives tonight. Because of his defiance, no one would freeze to death in Stockholm on this evening.
The situation in Switzerland:
September, 1851:
These last few months have certainly been better, thought Charles. After declaring war on Switzerland, the king was able to obtain a white peace by December 15. Even the Russians didn't complain. After all, the Swedes had honored their alliance by declaring war on the Swiss in the first place.
Perhaps that's why no one complained with the king again increased the defense budget and converted thousands of Finns into soldiers. Of course, the official story was that the king was preparing for any possible revolts, but Charles couldn't shake the feeling that there was some other motivation behind the king's actions. Thankfully, though, he hadn't fallen back into the state of depression and near-coma that he had in late 1849. That was scary for everyone. Not just for Charles because he would have to clean up the king's mess, but for the average Swede as well. After all, the king had absolute power and, if he gave the order, the average Swede was the one that would have to die. It didn't matter if he was sane or not, a king's order is still a king's order. Oh well, Charle's thought, there's no reason to worry about that now. That's all in the past and everything worked out well. Sweden is at peace and its economy has never been better.
As if on cue, a messenger boy arrived with a letter for Charles. After peeling back the wax seal and unrolling the scroll, Charles's jaw dropped. He must see the king immediately!
Moments later, in the palace
Charles through the double doors open as he burst into the dining hall. The king, in the middle of dinner, was furious at Charles for bursting in as he had. His anger only grew more as shardes of glass fell from one of the door's glass panes. In such an emotional state, Charles forgot just how fragile these French doors can be.
"Your majesty! I have news from Prussia! They're asking for a declaration of war against Poland!"
Rather than dismiss his guests as he probably should have, the king decided to use this opportunity to show off his genius.
"And what is the problem," he replied.
"It's war, your majesty!"
"War with Poland, yes. They are a landlocked nation surrounded by Prussia, Russia, Austria, and Ukraine. They present no danger to us militarily. We will have to send no troops. We have been given an opportunity to show our loyalty to our allies and test the strength of our alliances. However, if we do nothing, these dangerous liberal ideas could infect the Norwegians and the Finns. Is that a suitable situation at all?"
It was in this moment that Charles could see the king's guests, even the women, laughing at him under their breath. The king had played this moment perfectly.
"No, sire. I suppose it isn't. But what did you mean test the stren--"
"Send a message to Russia immediately. Ask them for a declaration of war against Poland. We shall see just how loyal these Slavs are to us."
"Of course, your majesty."
"And Charles?"
"Yes, your majesty?"
"You're dismissed."
With cheeks red from embarassment and anger, Charles turned to exit the dining hall. As he left, though, he could hear Robert, an emissary from Great Britain, ask "Is he always so childi--"
November 11, 1851:
The sunrise is always so beautiful in Sweden, Charles thought. He and the king walked through the snow covered mountains, fresh snow crunching beneath their feet, as they discussed what to do next. Though the king would always bring him on vacation, he seemed to be paying extra attention to Charles recently. Perhaps he realized how angry Charles was at the way the king treated him in front of his dinner guests a few months ago.
Regardless, Charles couldn't help but wonder what the king had planned. He knew that Joshua wanted more land from Russia. The establishment of a Scandanavian kingdom had become his obsession. Unfortunately, most of that land would have to be gained at the expense of Russia. Charles's only worry about this was that nations will only give up so much before they come into conflict with each other. How much would Russia give up?
Since September the king had ordered diplomatic missions, one after another, to improve Sweden's relations with China. He told Charles that, in doing so, he was ensuring Swedish expansion in Finland. How, though? Was the king planning blackmail? Was he planning war? Even though Russia was currently engaged in a war with China, they certainly had plenty of divisions to turn and crush Sweden as well. Even with the increased military budget the king had only been able to muster an army of approximately 30,000. And the ships! Oh, the ships. They had suffered the worst, rotting in port. Certainly the admirals were enra--
"I sent a mission to China myself recently." Joshua interrupted Charles's thoughts once again.
What? Charles thought. He sent a mission without telling me? As king this is certainly his right, but it severly hurts the chain of command!
"I received word today that it was successful."
"That is wonderful, your majesty. And what did Sweden gain from this mission?"
"I gained claims on North Sakhalin and Taldyqorghan."
Sakhalin and Taldyquorghan?
"Your majesty? May I ask what you would want with such claims? Russia surrounds Taldyquorghan and we lack the ability to colonise South Sakhalin. Even if we did, there aren't any resources there we need and the locals would be more trouble than they're worth!"
"You answered your own question, Charles. Russia
does surrouns Taldyquorghan. In fact, it is the only claim that they need to take the entire region. And as far as Sakhalin, well it's no secret that the Tsar has envied that island for quite some time. I couldn't tell you why, though. Filled with bloody savages in a worthless part of the world."
The king drifted off, lost in thought. Charles didn't dare interrupt him.
"Charles, I'm sending you on a mission to Saint Petersburg."
Highly unusual, Charles thought. Shouldn't I be here in case of emergeny?
"I want you to go personally and offer these claims to the Tsar." Joshua stopped, turning to face Charles.
"I want you to personally study his face as he hears that we own these claims. I know that he believed that he would be able to take them by force in his current war with China. I want you to study his face and report his every expression to me. I want to know how he feels when he learns that I outmaneuvered him. Additionally, I want you to get as much land from him as possible. Though you are
NOT authorized to offer him any more technology in exchange for land. We've helped them out enough. The time has come to completely unify Scandanivia and I believe that we may be able to do it."
"Yes, your majesty" replied Charles as he set off to make preparations for his journey.
Charles would come to learn, though, that the king couldn't be more wrong. Not only was the Tsar not angry about Joshua obtaining these claims before him, he was quite relieved. Now he wouldn't have to send his ships to the area. Now he wouldn't have to divert soldiers to a little, insignificant trading post to capture it. For the Tsar, this was simply another affirmation of the friendship that existed between Russia and Sweden. Joshua had helped the king in his quest, the Tsar would help Joshua in his. Charles was delighted to report to the king that he had obtained Helsinki, Kotka, Riga, Tampere, and Turku in exchange for the two claims. Though the joy in these acquisitions was quite plain on the king's face, Charles couldn't help but see a little bit of anger there as well. Was the king really so mad that he hadn't caused the Tsar any pain?
The deal that expands Sweden:
Sweden after the trade. The expansion into the Baltic states has begun: