Chapter 706 - 327: 1886 (Part 2)

It’s worth mentioning that in the proposal to rename Agadir, there was no proposal to name it after Carlo.

Although this may seem a bit strange, it’s actually quite normal.

Because Carlo’s name in Spanish is Carlos, this actually represents that the proposal for San Carlos can also be said to be named after Carlo.

Actually, according to the naming traditions of the King of Spain, since Carlo’s name is Carlos in Spain, then Carlo should be the fifth King of Spain named Carlos, i.e., Carlos V.

However, due to the Bourbon Dynasty’s Carlos Faction first supporting the pretenders "Carlos V" and "Carlos VI," Carlo chose to be distinctive, declaring himself as Carlos I of Spain, rather than Carlos V.

At that time, as the focus of Spain from top to bottom was on the formation of the new government and legal reforms, they weren’t very concerned about the ordinal number of an elected king.

The then most influential Prime Minister Prim expressed support for Carlo claiming himself as Carlo I due to Carlo’s non-competitive and independent nature, which cemented the notion of Carlo I.

Up until now, because Carlo has gradually been regarded as a great monarch, Spaniards are not so picky about whether it should be Carlo I or Carlos V.

Of course, this is also related to the previous Spanish king named Carlos, Carlos IV. Due to a series of major wrong decisions by Carlos IV, Spain faced a series of crises in the early 19th century.

During Carlos IV’s reign, Spain first mistakenly got involved in the war against France, becoming a pawn for France against the United Kingdom.

This decision resulted in the Spanish Navy being annihilated by the Royal Navy in 1805, and the Spanish Government suffering significant losses due to the confrontation with the United Kingdom.

This wasn’t the end; just two years after fighting with the British, Napoleon invaded Spain. The war with France aggravated Spain’s predicament. It can be said that it was the disastrous reign of Carlos IV, his son, and granddaughter that led Spain into a dark hundred years from the early 19th century.

With these predecessors named Carlos creating jewels, Spain is not so resistant to their king being named Carlos.

After all, the most important thing for Spaniards is whether their monarch is wise, and whether under his rule their living environment and quality of life can be improved.

In reality, Carlo is not particularly concerned about the naming of Agadir. Because such a matter is not very important, Carlo could accept whatever name Agadir will have in the future.

Of course, the naming of the city should try to rid itself of the influence of the Bourbon Dynasty. If named after a king of the Habsburg Dynasty, or named after a place in Spain, Carlo has no objections at all.

Apart from Agadir, many colonial cities in Spain will undergo renaming in the future. Some colonies are entirely named according to local culture, while others are named by former possessors.

Since they already belong to Spain, naturally they should be renamed with Spanish-style names.

Spain launched a war against the Sokoto Caliphate in July 1885 and ended the war at the end of September, with the entire war lasting about two and a half months.

The following two months were used to stabilize the situation in Sokoto. Because Spain’s colonial merger plan had been successfully completed, there would basically be no colonial wars in Africa in the future.

Spain’s sole remaining target is Morocco, needing to wait for an opportune moment for Spain to ensure its war against Morocco won’t be interfered with by England and France.

The war against the Sokoto Caliphate was the last major event Spain experienced in 1885, and subsequently, over the next two months, Spain’s situation remained peaceful, leading unhurriedly to 1886.

For Carlo, nothing proves his increasing age more than the ages of his children.

Carlo’s eldest son, Prince Juan Fernando, was born in 1875. Calculating by 1886 time, Prince Juan Fernando’s age was nearly 11.

Carlo is quite satisfied with this nearly 11-year-old lad. As the first heir to the throne, Prince Juan Fernando possesses not only a noble status but also immense responsibility.

As he grows older, the young fellow is gradually becoming mature. He understands the responsibilities he should bear, and for the relatively strict aristocratic education arranged by Carlo, Prince Juan Fernando not only shows no resistance but eagerly absorbs a variety of knowledge.

Carlo has found for him the best teachers throughout Spain, even the most outstanding professors and experts from various European countries.

These individuals have repeatedly expressed to Carlo the sensibility of Prince Juan Fernando. Although only in his teens, Prince Juan Fernando has already shown enough intelligence; he has even already completed the primary school curriculum tailored for him by the professors and experts ahead of schedule and is currently advancing to middle school studies.

In later generations, undertaking middle school studies ahead of schedule at the age of eleven is already quite extraordinary. It’s important to know that the education Carlo arranged for Prince Juan Fernando is an elite aristocratic education, and naturally what the little fellow has to learn is more than the little bit primary school teaches in later generations.

Given such circumstances, Prince Juan Fernando can complete his primary studies ahead of schedule, which is indeed a kind of talent.

After entering middle school stage of study, Prince Juan Fernando will have more to learn. Besides foundational cultural knowledge, he must also understand and learn history, science, physics and chemistry, and psychological knowledge and even undergo aristocratic education, such as noble etiquette, equestrian, basic medical knowledge, etc.

These many subjects are enough to drive a high school student in later generations crazy, but for Prince Juan Fernando, this is just within his normal learning range.

It can be anticipated that once Prince Juan Fernando completes the tailor-made education by Carlo, he will undoubtedly grow into a monarch above the competent line.

By then, after experiencing certain training in the army and government, even if he can’t become a trailblazing great monarch, he can at least grow to be a competent preserving monarch.

Although very much valuing the education of Prince Juan Fernando, Carlo does not neglect the education of his other children.

Apart from Prince Juan Fernando, Carlo has two sons and two daughters: Sophie, Martin, Alexander, and Christina, respectively.

The eldest, Sophie, was born in 1876, and currently, she’s fully ten years old.

The youngest, Christina, was born in 1885, and not yet a year old.

For these youngsters of varying ages, Carlo also expresses his care for them. Although as King, national affairs are highly demanding, Carlo still finds time to accompany them during their childhood.

Except for Prince Juan Fernando, who, as heir to the throne, has been educated early on and cannot enjoy Carlo’s companionship, other princes and princesses have Carlo’s company.

Even Sophie, who is already ten years old, occasionally clings to her father, requesting him to take her to play in the gardens of the Royal Palace.

Whenever this happens, Carlo never refuses his daughter’s requests.

The good news is that as one of the largest palaces in Europe, the Madrid Royal Palace possesses a sufficiently large garden, which is also one of the places where the little fellows often team up to play.

Under Carlo’s favorable management and cultivation, the feelings among the little fellows are quite warm and intimate.

This is the best news for the Spanish Royal Family and Carlo. No one wants to see intense competition among their children, nor do they want their children to feel hostility, or even hatred.

Carlo currently performs quite well in this aspect, as the youngsters clearly fond of Carlo, they occasionally cling to their father.

In moments when affairs of state are not busy, Carlo relishes such leisure moments. Anyway, Carlo already has wealth to spare, so taking appropriate breaks and enjoying life is very important to him.