Chapter 952
At the end of 1898, as the relocation of the capital progressed, it was finally the turn of the royal family to move inland.
"Rhine City now has 60,000 citizens, and the infrastructure is basically complete. When the central government and the royal family move there, we can guarantee that there will be no major mistakes."
"However, there are some details that need special attention. First, this relocation may have a certain impact on the railway system in a short period of time. Secondly, after the relocation of the capital, all government departments and people across the country must adapt to it." The subordinate reported to Ernst.
Ernst said: "In this case, we must first confirm with governments at all levels, government departments and people across the country that Rhine City has officially become the new capital of East Africa, and confirm this matter through newspapers, radio broadcasts, etc."
In fact, the news that East Africa was going to move its capital had already been revealed before, but this news was only circulated within the government. This time, the accurate news that East Africa was going to move its capital was completely confirmed, making it convenient for East African citizens to know that the capital has become Rhine City.
"As for the relocation of the royal family and the central government, it should be arranged reasonably. It is best for the royal family and the main government officials to go to Rhine City before Christmas to facilitate the work next year."
As the royal family members set off for Rhine City, the relocation of the capital in East Africa officially came to an end. On December 7, Constantine took the lead in going to Rhine City.
Two days later, other major royal family members, including Ernst, also officially boarded a special train to head towards Rhine City.
On the train, in the eyes of Ernst's family, everything on both sides of the railway quickly retreated to the rear, and the First Town City gradually began to blur. This city, which has served as the political center of East Africa for more than a decade, has officially been deprived of the title of the capital of East Africa.
Today, the First Town City is as lonely as its identity change. With the construction of Rhine City, many of the first batch of Rhine City citizens came from the First Town, and this population migration will continue for a period of time until most people go to Rhine City.
Therefore, the First Town City now looks a bit depressed, and the population in the city center is much less than before. Without the blessing of the capital, the First Town City is just an inconspicuous small city on the central railway line.
"Dad, are we going to leave the First Town City completely?" Princess Lina asked Ernst.
"Yes! We are going to live in a new city, where the climate conditions are better than the First Town City, and it is located in the heart of our country." Ernst followed his daughter's words.
"Is it the heart of the big lion?"
"Yes, it is the heart of the big lion."
The "lion" mentioned by the father and daughter is actually an answer to the official East African shape of the East African territory, just like the "autumn leaf begonia" of the Far East Empire and the "rooster" in the future.
As for how to link the East African territory with the "lion", it has to be said that there is really a certain way. After 1890, the expansion of the East African native territory was basically completed.
The lion on the East African flag is the standing lion image that is common on European flags, and the outline of the East African territory is three points similar to it. In addition, the lion is the most representative animal in East Africa, so the concept of "lion" is in line with the image of East Africa.
According to the East African government's explanation of the East African map, the Ethiopian Plateau at the northern end of the East African territory is the lion's crown. After all, the traditional European lion image is wearing a crown.
The Congo River, the largest river in East Africa, is the forward arm of the East African "lion". The head is the East African Plateau, and the main body is also the central plateau (Zimbabwe, Zambia and other regions). The legs are the central plateau in southwest Africa and the South African plateau in the southeast, and Madagascar Island happens to be the lion's tail.
In general, the East African territory is a relatively abstract pattern, and it is a bit forced to be related to the lion. However, it is barely acceptable to substitute the East African government's setting, especially the East African territory on Madagascar Island, which plays the role of "finishing touch". Without Madagascar Island, it is really difficult to find the lion's tail.
If the official setting of the East African government is not substituted, ordinary people simply cannot associate the East African territory with lions.
In fact, among the great powers, England in the United Kingdom also uses the lion as a totem. The animals in the British national emblem are three lions representing England and a unicorn representing Scotland. Northern Ireland is more special. It is not an animal but a harp, and there are other representative elements.
Compared with the United Kingdom, East Africa has always used the lion as the East African totem, and the elements are relatively simple. In addition to East Africa and the United Kingdom, Germany, Russia, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the United States are all represented by the "eagle", among which Germany, Austria and Russia are all double-headed eagles.
In fact, the French national emblem also had the "eagle" element before, but now the government's totem has been replaced by an axe.
Of course, many countries do not have a clear legal "national emblem", such as the United States and France, and the national emblems of several other powers are actually evolved from the royal (royal) emblem.
The "lion" of East Africa is more convincing than other countries, at least from the map. The territory of Russia in the past was in line with the setting of a double-headed eagle, but the territory of the current Tsarist Russia is much larger than that of Russia, and the image of the territory does not look like two "eagle heads", let alone the other countries.
…
Three days later, the Ernst family and the East African Central Government officially arrived at the new city of Rhine City. At this time, the western part of Rhine City was still under construction, but this did not hinder the East African government from handling government affairs.
The unfinished areas are mainly the residential and industrial areas in the southwest, and the administrative areas have been completed long ago.
Moreover, with the current population of Rhine City, it is impossible to effectively fill the built-up area of Rhine City. The built-up area alone is enough to accommodate 300,000 people. Even if the population of the first town is moved here, it can only account for half of it.
Of course, as the new political center of East Africa, it is still very simple to meet the population needs of Rhine City. After all, even if Rhine City achieves a scale of 500,000 people in the early stage, it will only rank third among East African cities, smaller than Dar es Salaam and Mombasa.
In fact, if it were not for the development of the inland and the relatively balanced development of other regions, Dar es Salaam and Mombasa would be fully capable of becoming large cities with a population of one million that are not inferior to Europe and the United States.
Of course, other coastal cities in East Africa are also developing well. Cities such as Luanda, Cabinda, Beira, and New Hamburg Port have already gained certain competitiveness.
Inland, there are already mature cities such as Mbeya, Harare, and New Frankfurt. If East Africa turns to a "free market" economy at this time, it will not cause a large loss of population in the central and western regions in the short term.
However, the development of cities in East Africa is relatively balanced, but the regional gap is still quite large, especially in the western region. Except for a few cities, it is far from competing with the central and eastern regions.
After the train arrived at the station, Ernst and his family could finally observe the new residence directly. This was Ernst's first time to come to Rhine City, and Constantine, who arrived earlier, was already waiting for Ernst and his party at the station.
"Ernst, the climate inland is more comfortable than the coastal area. I feel refreshed after coming to Rhine City." Constantine said.
It is summer in the southern hemisphere, so the first town on the coast is still relatively hot, with daytime temperatures reaching more than 30 degrees, while Rhine City is located on a plateau, where the daytime temperature is only in the early 20s, which is indeed more comfortable than the coast.
