Chapter 274 First Contact
The Kingdom of Italy was troubled by the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and France was not far behind. However, compared with the Italian government, the actions of the newly established French Third Republic were shameful.
The French defense government attempted to collude with Prussia to prevent the revolutionary movement from continuing to develop, and had begun to hold secret negotiations with Bismarck. At this time, frightened by the pressure of the French people, it was forced to take measures to strengthen the defense of Paris, although it took a long time. However, the German army approached Paris advanced as if in no man's land.
…
Southeastern Botswana.
"The other side of the river is the territory of the Boers!" Jacob said looking at the gently flowing Limpopo River.
The Limpopo River is the destination of this southern expedition. It originates near Johannesburg in South Africa, then goes northwest in a large circle in Botswana, and then bends eastward to flow into the Indian Ocean.
The entire river is divided into three sections. The upper tributaries have small water volume and are mostly intermittent rivers. The middle reaches cut through the mountains on the edge of the South African plateau and are filled with waterfalls, rapids and shoals. The lower reaches are plain rivers.
Mozambique in the lower reaches is not the target of the East African Kingdom. The East African Expeditionary Force drinks horses along the middle and upper reaches of the river, and the Limpopo River can be used as a natural geographical dividing line.
In fact, it was the East African Kingdom that separated Botswana and Zimbabwe from the Boer forces in their previous lives along the Limpopo River.
"Yes, although most of the Boer farms are wasteland, they divided the area into a large area. If the Limpopo River had not blocked their expansion path, it would not have been our turn to occupy it." Staff officer Boer replied .
"It's not that they can't cross the river, but it's not necessary. The population of these Boers is too small, and the more drought and barren they go to the west. Coupled with the threat of the British, it's not easy for them to disperse their forces, so the population is mainly concentrated. In the east.”
"The country established by the Boers opposite is called the Transvaal Republic. It was merged with several small countries established by the Boers in 1849. There is also the Orange Free State Republic in the south, which is also a Boer country. The two countries are named after the Val River (the largest northern tributary of the Orange River)."
"Although the Boers are mainly Dutch Hou Yi, there are also many German immigrants, but most of them are old Germans."
The so-called old Germans refer specifically to the Germans who immigrated from the German region to all over the world before 1865, because the time when the East African colonial team landed in Dar es Salaam happened to be 1865.
Beginning in 1865, immigration from the German region slowly tilted towards East Africa, so that now, more than 80% of German immigrants every year have become East Africans.
The main reason why such a distinction is made is that East Africa is a country where German culture is the mainstream, and the overseas countries that the Germans who immigrated overseas before 1865 went to were all non-German countries, excluding colonies.
This was the case for the Germans in the Transvaal Republic, but this also made it easier for the East African Kingdom to obtain the intelligence it wanted in the two Boer republics.
The main language of the Boers is Dutch, which is also their only written language. Although Dutch is relatively similar to German and similar to local dialects, in East Africa, unless you are an immigrant from the North German region, it is still very difficult to understand Dutch because The official language of East Africa is the South German dialect, which is somewhat different from the North German dialect. Generally speaking, East African languages are the most similar to Bavarian, and the same is true for Austria.
Therefore, East African intelligence personnel in the Transvaal Republic and the Orange Free State Republic mainly obtain information from fellow Germans.
The Boers were not aware of this. If the Boers operated in the opposite direction, it would not be impossible to obtain intelligence about East Africa. However, they could only obtain limited information at the two free ports of Dar es Salaam and Mombasa. The worst thing is, Neither of the two Boer republics had access to the sea.
Just as Jacob and Boer were talking, a group of people suddenly appeared on the other side of the river.
"The people on the other side are Germans, are you sure?" Vincent asked his men.
"Yes, their uniforms are very similar to those of the Prussian Army, but their hats are different. I served in the Prussian Army back then, so I can tell at a glance." Barkhausen replied.
"This is impossible! You can't say that the Prussian Army appeared in Africa or in our western inland areas. Did they fly here?"
As an authentic Boer, Vincent has lived in South Africa since he was a child. Most of his understanding of Europe comes from the stories of his fathers or the news brought by new immigrants.
Barkhausen was a Prussian immigrant who came from the German region to make a living on Vincent's father's old farm.
So Barkhausen is what East Africans recognize as an old German. He came to South Africa ten years ago. Not to mention the East African Kingdom, even the current achievements of Prussia's invasion of France are not very clear.
"Although this is true, the clothes cannot be deceived. It is impossible for an Englishman to show up here wearing this." Barkhausen said.
"It's better to go over and ask. Since it's possible that he's German, I'll leave it to you." Vincent said to Barkhausen.
"No problem," Barkhausen replied.
soon.
Barkhausen drove the horses to the river, and began to cross the river under the watchful eyes of the East African soldiers. Because Vincent had only a few people in his group, and Barkhausen did not bring weapons, he was allowed to cross.
Precipitation in Botswana is not abundant, and it is the dry season, so the water in the upper reaches of the Limpopo River is very shallow, so Buckhausen could easily cross the river with one person and one horse.
"Where are you from?" Barkhausen asked in German.
"East African Kingdom Army, 15th Division, 23rd Regiment, 3rd Cavalry Company, I am Staff Officer Bol."
"I have never heard of the East African Kingdom, but judging from your attire and your accent, you should be from the German region! Do you have anything to do with Prussia?" Barkhausen asked,
"The Kingdom of East Africa, like Prussia, is an independent country. We are not Prussians, but we all belong to the German country."
Barkhausen was relieved when he heard about Germany. He dismounted and walked forward, saying: "Hello, I am also a German, from Prussia, but I came to South Africa in 1851, so I am not familiar with Europe now. I don’t know much about the situation, can you tell me specifically about the situation in the East African Kingdom?”
Barkhausen really couldn't think of anything that the Kingdom of East Africa had to do with Germany. However, it was not impossible for new countries to emerge due to the fragmentation of Germany. He just didn't know why they appeared in South Africa and East Africa since they were German countries. This name obviously refers to East Africa and has nothing to do with Germany. Buckhausen's heart is full of question marks.
"Are you Prussian? Very good. I used to come from the Kingdom of Württemberg. My name is Jacob and I am the company commander of this team."
"It turns out we are really fellow villagers. That's great. Chief Jacob, I wonder how you ended up here?"
At this time, Bol asked: "You should be from the Transvaal Republic across the way!"
"Yes, if we count by location, our boss's ranch is across the river. We were hunting here today and saw you, so he asked me to come over and ask."
"Well, that's easy. When you go back, you can tell your boss that this side of the river will belong to the Kingdom of East Africa from now on. You'd better spread the word to your acquaintances on the other side so that there won't be any misunderstandings in the future. good."
"Ah!" Buckhausen was completely confused. Isn't this a land of no one? Once he crossed the river, he became the territory of the so-called East African Kingdom!
"The Kingdom of East Africa is the literal meaning you understand. It is just because of geography that our country uses this name. And when you go back, tell the people of the Transvaal Republic not to be clever. We have arranged it along the Limpopo River. An army of tens of thousands, of course, the Kingdom of East Africa means no offense to the Republic of Transvaal, you can just treat us as a border guard force." Jacob explained.
"But, this is South Africa!" Barkhausen already understood that this was a new country and it was probably a colony established by the Germans, but how did East Africa get connected with this place.
"Haha, when you heard about the East African Kingdom, you should know that we expanded here from East Africa thousands of miles away. As for South Africa, if it is incorporated into the territory of East Africa, it will naturally belong to East Africa." Jacob said.
"That's it!" Barkhausen said. In fact, he was even more confused because he didn't know where East Africa was. Although he had received compulsory education and had seen a world map when he was a child, East Africa was not on the world map at that time. This country, of course, did not have a Transvaal Republic.
…
Backhausen returned to the other side of the river with a confused look on his face, and Vincent quickly asked: "Are you clear?"
"Yes, boss, but I'm not too sure."
"What's the meaning?"
"There are indeed Germans on the other side, but they say they are the Army of the Kingdom of East Africa."
"East African Kingdom?"
"Yes, I don't know how to explain to you. This should be a new country. Just now they told me that the other side of the river is already their country's territory!"
"Hmm! Why?" Vincent asked. Because he had few manpower, he did not develop to the west. In fact, he acquiesced that the land west of the Limpopo River also belonged to him.
"They said that the East African Kingdom deployed tens of thousands of so-called East African Army troops along the river," Barkhausen said.
"Tens of thousands of people? Impossible!"
"It's impossible not to be clear, but boss, the hundreds of cavalrymen on the other side of the river are not fake, so it's better not to be impulsive!"
