I Am Louis XIV

  Chapter 512 God's Will (Part 1)

   The three-and-a-half-year-old chief of the Knights of Santiago ran happily in the courtyard of the Grand Palace.

Although the position of the great leader of the Knights of Santiago has been passed down along with the Spanish throne, it is generally not until the king reaches adulthood that the ceremony of conferring the emblem takes place. The emblem ceremony will also be held in Toledo - so it's the first time that a kid less than knee-high has become the chief of the Knights of San Diego.

   But it was not from the will of Carlos III himself, and it had nothing to do with the Thirteen Knights of the Knights of Santiago. The one who made this decision and put it into practice was the Sun King of France, His Royal Highness Louis XIV. He did this in order to further consolidate the throne of his second son-although Charles was already Carlos III, this title and title were bestowed by King Louis XIV of France based on the law of succession and canon law, and he was still in Spain. Toledo and Madrid held two grand ceremonies, the coronation ceremony and the celebration respectively, and this matter can be counted as the dust settles. The official title of "Count Dolphin", the Prince of France, is the ladder for the lord of a country before he officially ascends to the throne.

In addition, you can also think of this emblem ceremony as the triumph of Louis XIV. After all, after the king of France officially declared war on the Spanish "rebels", the French army was in Catalonia, the Golden Coast. , the coast of citrus blossoms and the Castile region are in full swing, defeating the Spanish anti-French troops with lightning speed - otherwise, how did the thirteen knights of the Knights of Santiago, Louis XIV, gather? Only a few of them leaned toward France, and most of them were determined to defend the interests of the Habsburgs and the Roman Church in Spain—and their own (no prince or nobleman would not be afraid of Louis XIV, who took the crown entirely in his own hands) , bent on fighting the French to the death.

   But we all saw the result.

Juan Patinho strode in from the door. Due to the generosity of the King of France, all the parlors left for the chief priest's suite were not small. Eight or nine knights were surrounding the chief priest. At first they all faced in the direction of the terrace, but as soon as they heard that Patinho was coming, they turned around in unison, as if they were not interested in the little king who knew nothing but mischief.

Patinho didn't want to reveal their disguise either. Those who could be in this room were all moderates in the Knights. That is to say, although they fought with the French, they didn't go crazy if it backfired. To the point of unscrupulous, desperate. So, why should Pattinho embarrass and embarrass his colleagues who have served the king together in the past and maybe in the future?

The priest    had mixed feelings: "I thought you made a big mistake, Juan."

Patinho walked up to him and shook hands with him wordlessly: "We just took two different paths, but our destination is the same. Zamora." They are friends who can call each other by their real names. , On the issue of whether Carlos III of Bourbon or Philip V of Habsburg should be the king of Spain, although they have differences, in the final analysis, their differences are rooted in love for Spain.

   "For Spain," said the chief priest, the Count of Zamora. He sighed deeply, "I'm your captive now."

Patinho didn't argue that it was better to be captured by a Spaniard than a Frenchman, but Zamora said so, and a knight leaning against the window couldn't help sneering: "Don't cover up like that," he said. Said: "We all know that we were beaten by the French."

The people in the room were suddenly a little embarrassed. Apart from Patinho and others who were exiled to the coast of citrus flowers and were finally rescued by the French fleet, as well as the priest and several knights who surrendered in Leon, there are about three others. All five knights were captured during the French war against Castile.

   "But we have to admit, it was to be expected," Patinho said calmly: "And they gave us the treatment we deserved. We were not humiliated and persecuted."

   "Moreover, according to the law of succession and canon law," said another older knight, "the throne of Carlos III is perfectly legitimate."

  "Then what will we welcome?" Another knight whispered: "Gentlemen, France has no nobles now, only kings."

The title of France has always followed the territory. Although Louis XIV had a standing army of hundreds of thousands, and was committed to concentrating his royal power, he did not degenerate to the point where he attacked the princes and lords without reason, and deprived them of their property and territory. Anyone with eyes and ears can see and hear. As the Sun King's brilliance grows day by day, more and more nobles hope to have a place in Paris or Versailles, in the king's workshop. Get a share, or occupy a bond cabinet in the king's bank... Young people are even more eager to come to the king's side, in the army, in the government, in the court, to throw away their youth and wisdom, and It is not that it is not left in the land of the ancestors and gradually decays like a tree that has lost its vitality.

It's not that no one saw through the king's strategy and stubbornly did not move, but first of all, as long as a human being, he will one day grow old, and no matter how good his property and territory are, he will also pass it on to his sons and grandsons; secondly , After Louis XIV revised the provisions on "refugees" in the law, the movement of the population is no longer as difficult as it used to be. The passes issued by the king (officials) are valid throughout the country. If the people in their territories are dissatisfied, they will They can try to move to other cities or villages; if they want to keep their people, they must obey the laws of the king, cooperate with the king's officials, garrison generals, and even scholars and craftsmen, then ... and others who are willing to hand over the land to What is the difference between the nobles managed by the royal family?

Spain is not old. Although the rulers of the Iberian Peninsula have been asking for the possibility of unification, when it comes to a king, it is after Charles V. It has been less than 100 years ago, but France has been unified for nearly 1,000 years. Even Brittany, which finally became part of France, has lost its independence for two hundred years.

After Charles V, although the throne of Spain has always been held by Habsburg, after this king, there has never been a king worth looking forward to. , which means that the power of the church and the princes will increase. It is always very difficult for those who have been "kings" in the territory to give up their privileges.

   "That's why France is the winner today," Patinho said.

   "If you give us time...give us a healthy and wise king!"

"The same." There was a sarcastic smile on Patinho's lips: "We often laugh at Philip IV's incompetence and hate Carlos II's madness, but before them, Philip II, Philip Isn't King III a monarch worthy of respect and admiration? But when they want to hold power tightly in their hands like Charles V once did, aren't the opponents louder than anyone else? They are even willing to collude with the Portuguese Together, even though they know that the Portuguese have always wanted one thing - independence, independence from Spain!"

"You curse the king," Patinho went on, "but I never thought it was all Philip IV's fault, and if we have to blame, should we blame those who even knew that Portugal's independence would give Spain a boost The person who is seriously injured, but still accepts bribes because of their own interests?" His sharp eyes swept across the crowd, and some people avoided their gazes uncontrollably: "It's not as serious as this, but it's not much better. I still know a lot about where to go, but I'm not going to talk about it here, folks, that's a real shame."

"so you…"

"If you want to say my word, Zamora, I will say that I am not only a traitor of the Spanish-Habsburgs, but also to you." Patinho calmly cast a thunder: "I have I have decided to ask the royal family to take over my territory."

   Zamora almost jumped out of the chair, he clenched the armrest of the chair, "How can you?"

"I can."

"So you have come here to persuade us to do the same?" asked one of the knights. "I say you don't need to do that at all," he said sarcastically: "We are French prisoners, and they want to deal with it. We can do anything."

"But our king still needs ministers and generals." Patinho said: "You can choose, as a prisoner, after paying the ransom, return to the territory alone, with no glory, or as a servant of the king, follow along with the king back to Madrid or Toledo."

   "Louis XIV was too greedy," Zamora said. "He took our property, but also our body and soul."

   "There are countless people who are willing to sell their souls to this hero."

   "What about the French?" asked another knight: "Don't they want a place in the court of Toledo?"

   "They prefer to be around the king's father." Patinho said: "I volunteered and tried my best to convince you that it is the hope that the court of Toledo is still Spanish and not French."

   "Will Louis XIV agree?"

   "That His Majesty has always looked at things and not people."

   "That is, the laws of France are still to be enforced on Spanish soil."

   "The laws of France made a great and mighty kingdom," Patinho said, his words silenced the room. Zamora looked out the window again, but the courtyard was empty. The young Carlos II was tired of playing and went back to the room, but the energetic little shadow still seemed to be reflected in his eyes.

   "I want to discuss it with everyone," he said.

   "I'll wait," Patinho said.

  —————

The titular leader of the Knights of Santiago, Carlos II, has passed away. Patinho, who was the inspector general, was closer to France. Now, of course, the only one the knights can trust is Count Zamora, the chief priest, who will all the knights. , including the two who were only willing to stay in the room before, they all summoned their room.

Before they were forced to agree to grant the badge of the great leader of Carlos III, they also negotiated and traded, and all they expect now is to return to their own territory as soon as possible - but the news brought by Patinho is undoubtedly that. Louis XIV's progress... As Zamora said, the French king is really greedy; but as long as you think about it calmly, being able to stay by the young Carlos III's side is of course better than returning to the territory in embarrassment, It's good to live an infamous life in obscurity like this.

Even... No one can predict how fate will arrange the next few decades. Once the Sun King falls, even if Carlos III is a Bourbon, after all, he and his brother, the future Louis XV, will be two people, as long as they can avoid it. The union of the two countries - or, as long as they can avoid Spain being annexed by France... Thinking about it, if they can stay by Carlos III's side, it will definitely benefit Spain and themselves rather than being abandoned in the countryside.

   Although this feeling of being at the mercy of others and unable to break free is really bad.

   "Why can't Philip IV or Carlos II have a healthy child!?" a knight could not help complaining.

   The chief priest recalled Carlos II in his memory, and Carlos III, whom they gradually became familiar with: "Maybe this is the will of God."

  ——

After receiving the response conveyed by the chief priest, Patinho was not surprised. Those who can become members of the Knights of Santiago will not be ordinary people. They may be disgusted and rejected by the centralized kingship, and worry about the future of their descendants. But to have them stay away from the palace, the government, and the power in their prime, and spend their life as an unknown person, is more painful than killing them.

Louis XIV did not want to put countless natives around Carlos III as the English did to the former William III of Orange, of course he could do so, but it turns out that if a king is not "Spain" The king of France, but the puppet of the king of France, the Spaniards can overthrow him, kill him, and then France will not add a rich colony, or a reliable ally, but only add a mortal enemy.

   Or look at Poland, Brittany or Catalonia.

   To eliminate the threat of war, there is not necessarily only one way to destroy. Moreover, more often, true destruction does not exist.

   The first shot of the vaccine is over. The nurse's gestures are very good, fast and light, and there is no major discomfort. Thank you for the hard work of the medical staff.

   (end of this chapter)