I Became The Crown Prince Of The Mexican Empire - Chapter 73
Only Noblemtl
Conquest of the Comanche (7)
October 1835.
Half of the Comanche tribe decided to leave north, while the rest surrendered to the Mexican Empire.
There was no way to stop the Comanche tribe from moving north if they did not surrender.
‘Still, there’s more left than I thought.’
It is greedy to expect a nomadic people of a belligerent disposition to surrender after one defeat.
They mistakenly believe that we have mobilized a much larger army than we actually have, and that we have powerful weapons and tactics to deal with them, so they believe that there is no way to win.
In this situation, half of them stayed because they were afraid that the situation would be similar if they went to the United States.
Even though they collect information through trade activities, they cannot know the detailed circumstances of each country, so they think that the United States, which appears to be of similar weight class, has similar power.
“Create a settlement on the northern border and relocate the electric telegraph upstream. Those who left must not return to pillage again.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
With the Comancheria, the Comanche territory, gone, the telegraph equipment and wires that had been laid to cover the territory were no longer useful. But these precious devices could not be left idle.
‘After redeployment, we need to extend it further so that it can cover the entire border.’
The current 2,000 km of telegraph lines are not enough to cover the entire border. The northern border is a whopping 3,900 km long. I will use 2,000 km of the ones I have built and brought in with my own money, and the rest can be brought in with government money.
‘It could also be useful for espionage activities.’
By now, the military intelligence unit’s anti-American intelligence operation would have been in place for several months.
While he was thinking that way, the court in Chihuahua City handed down its verdict on the surrendered warriors.
“This court has carefully considered the serious harm caused by the repeated depredations of the Comanche warriors on several Mexican villages over several decades and the armed response of the Mexican government to the peaceful surrender offer. Accordingly, it is held that the Comanche warriors have committed the crimes of rebellion and depredation and that these serious crimes require appropriate punishment.
This court makes its judgment based on the relevant laws and social justice. Accordingly, the Comanche warriors are sentenced to a total of 40 years of hard labor for each of the crimes of rebellion and plunder. This judgment recognizes the legal responsibility of the Comanche tribe and seeks to provide justice to the victims.”
It would be right to sentence someone to death for a crime of this magnitude, but isn’t it unnecessary to simply kill those who can be used as human resources? In some ways, this could be a harsher punishment than the death penalty.
‘If you think about the Mexicans they killed, there’s no need to feel sorry for them.’
The civilian population of the Comanche tribe is not expected to be treated with the same consideration as the Chumash or other natives. Aren’t all those who did not directly participate in the raids the ones who have benefited from them?
They will not be able to live with their own tribe, nor will they be able to live in their hometown. They will be given immigrant benefits, but they will be separated into families, and they will be sent to pioneer villages or cities all over the country to live.
“Was the name Puhiwikwasuu···?”
“yes.”
The former war chief who now kneels before me, bound, will be given a special mission. But before that, there is something I need to investigate.
“Where did this French pistol come from?”
“I bought it from a French merchant. With them ···.”
He was sweating profusely, probably not expecting to meet the crown prince face to face. He answered my questions in detail, and to summarize, it was this.
‘The French merchants who had been trading with the Comanche tribe since before France sold Louisiana have recently started selling them weapons as well. ···People’s thinking is all the same.’
The relationship between our Mexican Empire and France is, to put it mildly, a cold one. France had intervened in New Spain during the colonial period before independence. After independence, relations completely soured after the war with Spain.
This was because they had been heavily exploiting Spain, which was under French influence, and had followed the British line to prevent France from intervening. It didn’t matter that Spain attacked first.
The French wanted to use the Comanche tribe to harm our Mexican Empire.
‘Well, I wouldn’t say it’s petty, since I tried to do something similar to the US, but I’ll have to get revenge someday.’
The Comanche tribe’s departure to Kansas would be a considerable nuisance to the United States, and it would be even more so if our Mexican Empire, though not as openly as France, were to trade secretly with them and strengthen their power.
“I have something to tell your compatriots who have gone to America, so I need you to act as their messenger.”
“···Yes, what should I say?”
“I strongly warn you that if you attempt to raid across the Mexican Empire’s borders again, the lives of the Comanche tribesmen remaining in the Mexican Empire will be at risk. You’d better convince them well. Your lives and those of your families are at stake.”
At my words, Puhiwikwasuu’s face turned pale. He answered trembling.
“Well, I will definitely warn you.”
I have no intention of actually doing this, but it’s a warning to keep them from coming back.
“Tell them that I will trade with them if they promise not to return to Mexico and to do well there.”
“Yes, I understand.”
He answered, lying face down.
I sent him and a few warriors off right away.
The work of deploying other warriors and Comanche tribesmen also began, and unlike other tribes, a very intensive policy of assimilation was enforced.
Because the tribe was so large, if they were allowed to live together, they would likely maintain their identity and avoid being assimilated into the Mexican Empire.
Warriors sentenced to hard labor were deployed to industrial sites throughout the country, while civilian tribesmen were dispersed to settlements and cities throughout the country.
‘We must make sure that there is no room for resentment against the Mexican Empire. If we do not learn Spanish as soon as possible, it will be difficult to survive.’
Work also began to subjugate the remaining Native American tribes in New Mexico, a policy similar to that in California and Texas.
“This time I won’t have to leave you behind.”
Diego’s face lit up at my words.
“Yes, Your Majesty. The immigration officials have gained experience and come to understand Your Majesty’s intentions, and I have also written detailed guidelines, so things will proceed smoothly.”
“okay.”
It is not possible to clear out the vast northern territory immediately, but there is now no force capable of inflicting any significant damage on our Mexican Empire.
Finally, the entire northern territory was subdued.
***
In the months preceding our fight against the Comanche, further progress had been made on the railroad, linking California and southern Texas. By rail we could quickly return to Mexico City.
We had already announced in advance that we would be returning with the military, but an unexpected event was waiting for us.
“Wow!”
“Your Highness the Crown Prince!”
As if they knew the arrival date, people started flocking from the Mexico City train station.
“This time, you have completely conquered that vast northern territory!”
“Wow!”
‘I’ve won many battles, but this is a first.’
I don’t know where the information came from, but thanks to it, I had to parade to the palace on horseback, acting like a majestic crown prince.
Still, I didn’t feel bad seeing people cheering and throwing flower petals.
Whenever something like this happens, the medal award ceremony that is always a must is also held.
There was no reason to blow this opportunity, as it was good for publicizing achievements and the promotion of the imperialist officers in the central army would ultimately strengthen the emperor’s power.
All officers who participated received medals, and some who had made particularly distinguished contributions were promoted one rank; these were the people I had suggested.
“The first-class medal and a monetary reward are awarded to Agustín Jerónimo de Iturbide, commander of the expeditionary force.”
I also received a generous reward.
“Good job again, Heronimo. That was an impressive tactic. I’m glad I sent you to the military academy.”
My father said that as he gave me the medal.
“Thank you, Father.”
Although I did utilize future knowledge, it is true that what I learned at the military academy was helpful.
As soon as the medal award ceremony was over, I headed to the palace.
Fortunately, Cecilia gave birth safely while I was away on the battlefield.
He was a son. His name was decided to be Carlos de Iturbide.
It is one of the common names in Spanish culture and was used as the name of several monarchs, including the King of Spain. It was a name that the father insisted on even before birth.
When I returned to the palace, I hugged Cecilia again and asked her.
“Is our son sleeping well?”
“Yes, honey.”
I have a son.
I saw it a lot right after I got back, but the more I looked at it, the more amazing it became.
I just watched quietly because I didn’t want to wake up the baby that I had put to sleep with difficulty, but I felt happy.
***
After about a week of resting after the medal ceremony, my father called me.
“Did you rest well?”
“Yes, I had a good rest.”
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but France is being unreasonable again.”
It’s a story about debt.
Our Mexican Empire is gradually paying off the interest and principal of its debts. The remaining debt is 24 million pesos, 10 million pesos each to England and France, and 4 million pesos to the United States.
In just 13 years after independence, a whopping 21 million pesos were repaid. Of this, 11.5 million pesos from Britain were transferred to Spain, and 4 million pesos from the United States were forgiven under the Native American Relocation Agreement, but even excluding these, the principal was steadily repaid.
It was a remarkable feat to repay the debts of the great powers at that time at such a high interest rate that even moneylenders looked cute.
“···Did you mess with the ledger again this time?”
Britain and the United States both do unreasonable things, but since the war with Spain, France has been increasingly crossing the line.
“Yeah. They cut it by 20% compared to our account.”
Our side’s ledger is clear.
Our currency, the peso, is a silver coin with the same content as the Spanish thaler and the US dollar.
We load up these silver coins on ships and send them to pay off our debts. Of course, we check thoroughly how much we send, but the French keep making ridiculous claims that we received less than we sent.
Britain and the US don’t do this dirty thing to us either. They may do it to other countries, but at least they don’t do it to us.
“This is blatant extortion.”
“Yes. That must be why they built the shipyard in such a hurry.”
“Yes, I did.”
The reason France could commit such an outrageous act of tyranny was because it judged that Britain, a fellow creditor, would not intervene in this matter.
If Britain did not intervene, the Mexican Empire, which had only a fleet ripped off from Spain, could easily be destroyed. That would be the thinking.
In fact, Britain knew the situation but did not intervene.
“As soon as the shipyard was completed, we started building warships with the navy budget, but the amount of money that will be spent in the future is no joke.”
“I guess so. They said it would cost about 300,000 pesos per warship. And steamships would cost even more.”
It would cost nearly a million pesos to build just three battleships.
The Veracruz shipyard has three large, four medium, and five small docks, so it would cost an astronomical amount of money just to fill this one shipyard.
This is an amount that makes us feel the grandeur of the British Empire, which has a huge fleet. It is an unimaginable amount of money, but the construction of the fleet must proceed quickly.
To pay off the 10 million pesos debt owed to France, even 20 million pesos would not be enough.
We cannot just hand over that huge sum of money to France.
“Father, as we discussed before, we will proceed immediately with the establishment of a central bank and the issuance of naval bonds.”
“okay.”
‘Since it has come to this, I have no choice but to pay it back.’