Chapter 217: Ernst's Little Plan
December 3, 1869
First Town, Central District of East Africa – Sweitte Palace
"Heh heh, East Africa really is a treasure," Prince Constantin said, looking at the detailed data in his hand. "Ernst, what's your next step?"
On the other end of the phone, Ernst responded, "Father, all East Africa's affairs can continue as usual for now. But there's one thing we should speed up a bit, or it might cause trouble in the future."
"What is it?"
"It concerns the Gerredi Sultanate in the Somalia region."
"You're planning to move against them?"
"The Gerredi Sultanate doesn't have many people, but its 'location' is quite important – especially since its residents are mostly Black, which is a potential threat."
By "location," Ernst meant East Africa's racial policy, not geography. Prince Constantin hadn't seen the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, when African birthrates became enormous, so he didn't share Ernst's sense of urgency. In actual history, Somalia's population went from 2.94 million in 1961 to 17.06 million in 2021. As for the Gerredi Sultanate in southern Somalia right now, it only has maybe tens of thousands of people. So defeating it isn't difficult. Historically, even the Sultanate of Zanzibar beat the Gerredi Sultanate and turned it into a vassal. So East Africa might as well just go straight in and conquer them.
Somalia is like Ethiopia, a region of mixed Black and white ancestry. The difference is that, in Somalia, many see themselves as part of the Arab world, bonding through Arab culture instead of focusing on bloodline. In that sense, it's a bit like how East Africa fosters German-language culture to fuse different peoples.
(Map: Dark blue areas show where mixed Black-white African groups live)
"Ernst, you're making too big a fuss about it. The Gerredi Sultanate only has some tens of thousands of people. It's no threat to East Africa. But, yes, its location is decent. If you want to gobble them up, just say so – no need to hide your true motive from me."
"Father, I'm just looking ahead for East Africa's security. The Gerredi Sultanate doesn't really have any resources I value. Its only worthwhile spot might be Mogadishu, though East Africa itself has ports like Dar es Salaam and Mombasa. And with the Suez Canal open, Mogadishu matters even less. It's not truly on the Horn of Africa, so it can't control the route from the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean. Plus, it has lots of desert. Conquering it wouldn't bring much profit."
(Map: Gerredi Sultanate's location)
"Fine, whether it's valuable or not, we might as well take it. After all, it doesn't have many people, and seizing it shouldn't be too hard," Prince Constantin said.
"Right. Then we'll just bring in settlers to replace all the Black population there. That way the entire northern border of the East African colony will have almost no purely Black forces left," Ernst said.
Prince Constantin found this overcautious. He thought Ernst was acting as if "Blacks" were some terrible monsters. But if removing the Gerredi Sultanate helped East Africa, so be it. In an ordinary father-and-son chat, they casually decided the fate of yet another African kingdom.
"Father, this year is crucial. By May next year, we need East Africa's foundation to be more solid. That way, when East Africa becomes a kingdom, we'll have a good public image," Ernst explained.
The moment the topic of founding a kingdom arose, Prince Constantin's interest soared. Ernst had hinted before that East Africa was meant to become a real country. But this was the first time Prince Constantin heard him say plainly that East Africa should become a 'kingdom,' not a principality, a margraviate, or an archduchy. For Prince Constantin, that prospect was deeply appealing.
"Ernst, are you sure you can pull that off?" he asked, trying to contain his excitement. Even his voice trembled slightly.
"Father, East Africa's conditions speak for themselves. Becoming a kingdom is perfectly reasonable. Honestly, if we only wanted to amuse ourselves, we could even call it an African 'empire.'" Ernst spoke half-jokingly. East Africa's geography meant it didn't need to follow Europe's legal procedures. But Ernst didn't want to be a genuine "African chief." Tying himself to Europe was still better.
In Europe, from beginning to end, there was only one emperor—Rome's Caesar. Currently, three rulers call themselves emperor: Austria's Franz, France's Napoleon III, and Russia's Alexander II. Franz's title is rarely disputed because he claims the Holy Roman lineage. Napoleon III is arguable, while Russia is excluded by much of Europe. Even if the Eastern Roman Empire still existed, Western Europe would call them "Byzantine."
"So how do you plan to do it?" Prince Constantin asked, eager to know. Gaining acceptance from Europe is the main challenge. Otherwise, they could just call themselves "the Universe's Supreme Kingdom" and become a laughingstock.
"It's straightforward. We first set up the East African Kingdom. Its legal basis comes from the African land itself – that's also why I want to subdue the Gerredi Sultanate. Then, Uncle Franz steps in. He formally recognizes the kingdom's legitimacy. That naturally means Austria-Hungary's official recognition. Then we get Prussia, Romania, the German states, and Sweden's recognition – that shouldn't be hard, since all are connected by family ties. Lastly, we focus on Russia and Spain. Russia is okay, since we've cooperated before. Spain… Don't worry about that. In total, I'd say we have at least a 60% chance. For Austria-Hungary, it's 100%. Prussia, Romania, and Sweden are also 100%. Although they're slightly less influential than Austria-Hungary, the southern German states mostly support us, and the North German Federation is Prussia's mouthpiece. In short, once we have these countries, we essentially control international opinion. Even if Britain and France object, they'll have to hold their noses and accept it," Ernst explained.
His plan was sneaky: forcibly linking East Africa with Europe. An African country recognized by Europe gains a protective shield. The main point is that East Africa's legal claims stem from Africa, not Europe. But in Africa, "law" is whatever East Africa says it is. So it's not contradictory.
Franz basically becomes Ernst's "tool." Under European rules, to become a kingdom, one needed an emperor's approval. Neighboring Württemberg was promoted from a grand duchy to a kingdom by Napoleon. By contrast, Ernst's plan is for East Africa to proclaim itself a kingdom first instead of having an emperor do it. Later, they let Emperor Franz endorse it. That way East Africa keeps the power to interpret everything. Meanwhile, Europe might assume East Africa is a vassal of Austria-Hungary. That's yet another shield.
Why Austria-Hungary, not Prussia? Because after the Franco-Prussian War, Prussia became a top European power, shocking all. If East Africa clearly joined Prussia's side, Britain and France might go mad. Austria-Hungary remained strong but clearly living on past glory, so other nations wouldn't be as worried. Yet they also wouldn't dare look down on it completely.
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