Chapter 723 - 335: 1889

The development of events disappointed Carlo. Although the French in this negotiation directed their offense towards the British controlling the Suez Canal, the relationship between England and France did not deteriorate rapidly, nor was there any possibility of war.

This also meant that Carlo’s plan to annex Morocco during an England-France war fell through. As long as there was no conflict or war between England and France, Spain could not annex Morocco.

Since nothing happened, Spain could only pretend to have done nothing and quietly wait for the final outcome of this meeting.

After negotiating for several months, the participating countries finally came up with a relatively clear treaty content regarding the free navigation of the Suez Canal and agreed to sign this treaty in Constantinople.

On October 29, 1888, led by France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria-Hungary, Netherlands, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire formally signed the "Constantinople Convention" in Constantinople, announcing that the Suez Canal was an international canal for free navigation by all countries and should not be controlled by any single country.

The United Kingdom was quite angry with the French-led signing of the "Constantinople Convention," but they were helpless.

If the British expressed any opposition or attitude at this moment, it would confirm that the British ownership of the Suez Canal had already stood against those signatory countries.

It should be noted that all European Powers except the United Kingdom signed the "Constantinople Convention," which also meant that as long as the British dared to oppose this treaty, they would stand against the whole of Europe.

The British Government was very clever; after the countries announced the signing of this treaty, they had no response.

The British Government adopted a stance of no concern, no response, and no existence, pretending that nothing happened at this meeting, so the signatory countries had no reason to interfere with Britain’s control over the canal.

If they wanted to gain control of the canal from Britain, they could only do so through war. Despite how straightforwardly these countries signed the treaty, it’s likely that few would be willing to participate if it came to war with the British.

Unless superpowers like Germany, France, and Russia were willing to step forward, only then might other European countries consider fighting Britain.

It was quite clear that since the treaty was led by the French, if anyone were to step forward, it would surely have to be the French.

There were indeed irreconcilable contradictions between Britain and France. Under normal circumstances, the French might step forward and engage in war with Britain to seize control of the canal.

But it was clear that the current France was not the France at its hegemonic stage before the Franco-Prussian War. At that time, because France was a monarchy, Emperor Napoleon III could easily push France into war, mobilizing the nation’s resources and the entire army.

But currently, being a republic, neither the President nor the Prime Minister could so easily launch a war.

Moreover, engaging in a war against the strongest power like the United Kingdom required deep consideration for any era of France.

After some time of reflection, the French Government finally decided not to plan any conflicts with the British.

This also led to the "Constantinople Convention," which initially had great benefits for European countries, becoming somewhat of an empty talk, with many of its provisions lacking substantial enforcement.

Of course, due to the large number of signatory countries, Britain also dared not blatantly violate the contents of the "Constantinople Convention."

Since England and France did not take any action after the treaty’s signing, Carlo could only return his focus to Spain’s domestic development.

Notably, after the completion of Spain’s political plan reforms, the annual work reports submitted by the local and municipal governments to the Cabinet Government and Parliament became much thicker.

Since the Cabinet Government and Parliament could decide the fates of government officials at all levels, it led to a more active work attitude among government officials.

Most prominently, Spain’s growth data in population, industry, and economy improved considerably, indicating that a significant number of officials achieved notable political achievements.

Most apparent were Spain’s twin cities, Madrid and Barcelona, which both experienced population growth.

As the capital and the most populous city of Spain, in early 1889, Madrid officially announced its population exceeded one million, becoming Spain’s first city to surpass a million residents.

This was an absolute milestone worthy of historical remembrance and an unprecedented achievement in Spanish history.

Early in 1889, Carlo personally met the mayor of Madrid, not only praising his achievements in recent years but also promising not to neglect the meritorious of the nation.

Although Barcelona’s population scale was slightly smaller than Madrid’s, its growth rate was not inferior.

According to the Barcelona City Government’s report at the end of 1888, the population of Barcelona was as high as 884,900, nearly reaching the one million mark.

It is foreseeable that Barcelona would become Spain’s second city to have over a million in population within the next two years, and the gap in population and industrial economy size between the twin cities and Spain’s other cities would continue to widen.