1608 Spring
Catholic League, led by the Lioness, literally crashed the Protestant Union at a battle in Hamburg. At this battle, the Catholic League's 36,000 armies defeated the Protestant Union's 34,000 troops, losing only 3,000 while the enemy lost 17,000 - which was half of their forces.
With this single battle, the Protestant Union became the underdog.
"What the hell...Then I have no other choice but..."
So that's why I secretly sent a letter to the King of France - Louis XIII - the eldest son of the Lioness and my grandson, who've just turned 14.
The message was simple.
'Don't you want to reclaim your throne, young king?'
Since Louis XIII is 14 now, he must have reached his adolescent period. So, he would be sick and tired of his mother, who's acting like de-facto-queen of France, ignoring the true king - him.
And I've hit the bull's eye.
My grandson's reply was
'France doesn't want a queen, your majesty.'
“Hahahahaha! So, you're thinking that your mother and my daughter, the Regent Elizabeth, is your rival for the throne of France? Good boy!"
Meanwhile, the East India Company submitted a bill that relocates Joseon(Korean Dynasty at that time) people who've converted to Catholic to Tsushima Island. Since it's almost impossible to rule the Tsushima Island with few settlers from the United Kingdom and staff of the East India Company, it's a divide and rule strategy. That is, immigrating Joseon people(Koreans for short from now) who've become Catholic to the island and putting them as a mid-level supervisor between the United Kingdom's people and local Japanese.
It's to make local Japanese and Catholic Koreans who've immigrated to the island to fight like cats and dogs, stabilizing the East India Company's rule - just like Great Britain in original history did to India and Southeast Asian colonies.
Anyway, the Parliament thought it was a good idea and approve it and so did I.
Also, the Joseon king and aristocrats were more than enthusiastic to send the Catholic Koreans to Tsushima Island - they've not only agreed to East India Company's proposal but also kicked out the Catholic Koreans, just like the Romans kicking out the Israelites from Jerusalem. Why? Because Joseon culture was a mixture of local Shamanism, Buddhism and Confucianism, not Catholic, which was introduced only 12 years ago - in 1596 - when the United Kingdom intervened in the Imjin War.
1608 Winter
At Christmas, in Paris, a coup-de-tat occurred by Louis XIII and his few followers.
"I'm of an age now! So, I hereby swear to abolish the regent, and rule France by myself!"
"Yeah! Long live the King!"
"Long live Louis XIII, the one and only legitimate King of France!"
"Death to Lioness!"
And that was good news to me.
"Finally! France is free from the petticoat!"
And I've sent him a message, congratulating him and suggesting
'My youngest daughter, Jane is of age now. I would be very delighted if you take her as your wife, young king!'
Okay. It's a marriage of aunt and nephew, but who cares? It's the middle age now, and a closely related marriage is common among the European aristocrats. Even my first wife Maria was my first cousin twice removed.
So, it was no wonder that Louis XIII replied
'I'll gladly accept your hospitality, your majesty.'
And their wedding date was set as his 16th birthday.
Also, the French feudal lords cheered. They thought it was a once in a lifetime chance to retake their privileges, which were confiscated by the Lioness. If not, they were sick and tired of the endless war, which gained almost nothing.
The only opponents of Louis XIII's coup were the citizens of Paris. They were an only pro-Elizabeth party since she was eager to listen to their voice from the start, and they were not happy with the Louis XIII declaring that he'll start his rule.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Of course, Elizabeth, who've been thrown out of power by her son while she was absent, went bananas. She immediately returned from the Holy Roman Empire to Paris with her army.
And I've sent 20,000 troops with the excuse of helping princess Jane's fiance. So, at the outskirts of Paris, 60,000 troops - the allied forces of French feudal lords' private army and Louis XIII's royal army reserve and United Kingdom's troops - versus 6,000 armies of the Lioness clashed.
The result? Elizabeth's victory, again. From 60,000 troops of the allied forces, 9,000 were dead and 17,000 were captured as prisoners, the rest who've barely survived ran for their lives, losing morale. And Louis XIII had only 8,000 followers left, escaping from Paris.
But he was more fortunate than the most French feudal lords. They've boasted to stand in the front lines at the start of the battle, claiming they would see the doom of the tyrant regent queen mother of France. And at this single battle, theirs, their families' and their closest aides' heads were all beheaded. 6 noble families of French aristocrats - who were at least barons - had their family lines broken and dozens of aristocrat families had to bring a new head from the collateral family since their direct descendants were all wiped out.
However, at this battle, the Lioness also lost 3,000 soldiers and since she failed to capture her son, she had to make a compromise with Louis XIII, after she has entered the empty Paris.
The condition was simple. She would continue to have the military power and diplomatic power, but Louis XIII will have the rest.
"She's not a human being...She's an Amazon warrior."
That's what Louis XIII muttered after receiving Elizabeth's suggestion.
1609 Spring
After settling the negotiation, Louis XIII returned to Paris. Although France continued to take Catholic League's side, interfering with the civil war of the Holy Roman Empire, Lioness didn't dare to leave Paris, out of fear that her son might betray her again. So, France just sent military supplies to the Catholic League, with its influence being drastically reduced.
Luckily, the United Kingdom's soldiers have mostly deserted their troops, not died from the battle. So, it wasn't that hard to regather 20,000 army reserves right after the battle. Also, it was good news that the Protestant Union had the upper hand in the German Civil war, with the France de-facto stepping out from the war.
Meanwhile, at the North American colonies, the Native American serfs were vaccinated the Tudor vaccine(*smallpox vaccine in the original history.) Although there was some fuss at the start - out of Native Americans' misunderstanding that this vaccination was an attempt from the white to poison them to death, making a disturbance before being crushed by the local militias - the death rate of Native Americans were drastically reduced. So, the West India Company was able to further exploit the Native American serfs' labor.
1609 Fall
At the battle of Bremen, the Protest Union was victorious, with the Union holding the upper hand in the war. It was all thanks to the merchant ships of the United Kingdom, which rebuilt the Northen German ports that the Royal Navy and the privateers of the East & West India Company blasted into ashes at the War of Iberian Succession and supplied military supplies to the Protestant Union.
In short, the Protestant cities of Hanseatic League and Protestant feudal lords of Northen Germany became a puppet of the Protestant Dutch and English merchants of the United Kingdom.
Of course, the Protestant Union would have been aware of it as well. Nonetheless, since it was almost certain if they win this war the next Kaiser would become a Protestant, they didn't care for that petty little thing. Or maybe, they would be thinking they can exploit the Catholic Feudal lords of South Germany and give that to their creditors.
Whatever the reason was, the Protestant Union fervently borrowed military supplies and money from the United Kingdom and focused on the religious civil war. While the Catholic League, which became underdog after France's de-facto withdrawing from the war, became uneasy.
And that was the final straw for the Austrian Habsburg family. By adding insult to injury as the war continues, they might lose the title of the "Kaiser of the Holy Roman Empire" to the Palatine or Brandenburg family. So, the Austrian Habsburg family decided to kick out the incompetent current Kaiser - Rudolf II - and crown his younger brother, Archduke Matthias, as the next Kaiser. And the Catholic League also agreed to ditch the unfit ruler Rudolf II, who was only interested in alchemy and astronomy.
1609 Winter
Kaiser, Rudolf II has been impeached, and the Catholic League proclaimed his younger brother, Archduke Matthias as a new Kaiser of the Holy Roman Empire.
At first, Rudolf II tried to exile to Bohemia, but they've refused to accept him. With the Austrian Habsburg family putting pressure on them - out of fear they might lose the title "Kaiser of the Holy Roman Empire" - Bohemian aristocrats feared that if they receive Rudolf II, troops of Austria and Hungary might crush them.
So, he tried to flee to Italy and ask Felipe III - the King of the Union of Aragon and Two Sicilies and my younger brother - for help, but Felipe III refused him too. To Felipe III - who have lost Portugal and Castile, and had to give away privileges to the wealthy merchant families of Italian city-states - Rudolf II was nothing but a nuisance.
In the end, Rudolf II went to the Protestant Union and asked them to help him reclaim his throne. At the start, the Protestant Union also tried to throw him away, but they've changed their minds. With Rudolf II as their puppet, they claimed that the Catholic League was a rebel who stole Rudolf II's rightful crown and them - Protest Union - was a loyal subject of the Holy Roman Empire and the rightful Kaiser.
In short, a religious civil war between the Catholic and the Protestant changed into a civil war between the Austrian Habsburg families, and the war escalated.
"Reduce the support of the Protestant Union. Since they've also got the upper hand in the motive as well, their chance of winning has drastically increased."
"Yes, your majesty. The longer the Germans continue their civil war, the wealthier our merchants and the United Kingdom will be!"
Meanwhile, the first famine happened in Great Britain Isles. Needless to say, it was due to an increase in food demand, which occurred from the reduction of infant and under-five mortality rates with the advance of medical science, and the lack of food supplies which failed to catch up with the demands.
With people dying of starvation, and food distribution lines set up in several cities - including London - the public sentiment got worse, and the congressmen fought cats and dogs, blaming each other for this disaster.
"Silence! It's nobody's fault. From now on, I'll limit the West India Company's viceroyalty into Africa only, and will directly rule all colonies of North America!"
"Your majesty, if you reduce the West India Company's viceroyalty so suddenly, many merchants will go bankrupt. Please, reconsider."
"I'll reimburse those merchants from royal assets. We can't depend on our food supplies solely to foreign countries any longer. From next year, I'll drastically increase the number of emigrants to North America, and let them plant wheat, barley, and potatoes there. North America shall be our granary."
So, I've decided to send the surplus population to North America and make North America into the United Kingdom's granary. Of course, the 1st Parliament in London - with many congressmen from both the House of Lord and the House of Commons received bribes or has shares of/from the West India Company - strongly opposed, but this time, without any log-rolling and give and take, I've pushed my will.
For now, it's just a shortage of food which resulted in a few hoodlum's starvations and many citizens hunger. But, if the food production level serious lags behind the increase of population, it would be a national disaster, much worse than the Napoleon War period or WWII period in the original history, which Great Britain was blocked from the European continent.
So, before England's population - not Great Britain, but England alone - reaches 10 million, I need to disperse the United Kingdom's population more evenly in my realm.
1610 Spring
An emigration fleet of vessels, which loaded 1,000 emigrants went to North America. But that was just a start. Almost every week, about 1,000 settlers emigrated to North American colonies to find new life and get their land, boosting up the North American Colonies' expansion.
And to support them. I've sent 5,000 troops from the home country - United Kingdom - to crush the Native Americans. Of course, the Natives, who had enough on their plates even with the militias made up of settlers, had no chance of winning against the troops from the hegemonic power of the European Continent. I've forced the captured Native Americans to convert into Catholic, and made them as serfs, expanding the farmlands in North America.
Meanwhile, the West India Company, which has lost the North American colonies from their hands, fervently focused on the southernmost African Colony - Capetown. I too felt a guilty conscience of forfeiting them the North American Colony and supplied them doctors, medicines and medical devices to support their South African Colonization. And the West India Company paid back with African slaves.