Chapter 20 Arrival in Madrid

On August 17, 1869, Carlo took three of his confidants, Giotti, Carmen Esposito, and Drew Rosso, as well as dozens of servants, cooks, tailors and doctors personally selected by his father Vittorio Emanuele II, including a palace guard of about 500 people, and boarded a ship to Spain.

Carlo was very satisfied with the palace guards his father had given him. At Carlo's strong request, most of the soldiers in this palace guard had participated in the Italian Unification War, and many soldiers came from Garibaldi's command.

The combat effectiveness of these soldiers is worth guaranteeing, and with the commander-in-chief of Garibaldi's second son Giotti, there is no need to worry about their loyalty.

Moreover, the families of these soldiers will also follow Carlo to Spain, which is another means to ensure their loyalty.

In short, from now on, these soldiers will all be controlled by Carlo. Carlo also needs to provide them with military expenses and weapons and equipment in exchange for their absolute loyalty.

With this 500-man base, it will be much easier for Carlo to expand his guards in the future. After all, if you want to form an army, in addition to the commander who needs to be carefully selected, you also need some grassroots officers who have truly experienced war to speed up the establishment of the army and shape the soul of an elite army.

On the largest ship in the fleet, Carman Esposito and Andrew Rosso were looking at the vast Mediterranean with excitement, and they were particularly excited.

When they learned that Carlo was an Italian prince, they were very excited. They originally thought that Carlo was just a nobleman, but they didn't expect Carlo's status to be higher than they imagined.

And a few days ago, when they learned from Carlo that he was about to go to Spain to be crowned king, the shock of the two was unparalleled.

This also led to Carlo's invitation to Spain, and both of them expressed their agreement very excitedly.

After all, their civilian status in Italy does not have a good way to be promoted, and it is very difficult to get promoted.

There are also many outstanding graduates like them, and Italy does not have much space for them to exercise freely.

But it would be completely different if they went to Spain. Carlo didn't have many available people under his command. They were the confidants of the confidants, and naturally they would get enough training.

Although he was only the deputy captain of Carlo's palace guard at the beginning, Carlo also promised that the palace guard would soon expand to a brigade.

Whether it was Carman Esposito or Andrew Rosso, they could serve as the head of the expanded Guard Brigade. This was much better than their future in Italy, after all, their lieutenant rank could only serve as the commander of the company level.

At this time, the two of them were devoted to Carlo, and they persuaded their families to go to Spain with them.

The two guys, one fat and one thin, were not stupid. They knew what they had to do to express their loyalty in order to be reused by Carlo.

Of course, Carlo saw their efforts. If the two guys were really capable, Carlo would not mind letting them grow into independent figures in the Spanish army.

If their abilities are more mediocre, they will also become a model of Carlo's spending a fortune to buy horses, and enter important positions in the Ministry of Defense or the General Staff.

After a few days of sailing, the fleet finally approached Barcelona in Catalonia.

The port of Barcelona looked crowded with people, surrounded by people, as if welcoming Carlo's arrival.

"Your Majesty, Regent Serrano is already waiting for you at the port." Seeing that Carlo was a little confused, Primo came up and said to Carlo with a smile.

Hearing Primo say this, Carlo immediately understood that these people were prepared by Serrano in advance, in order to make Carlo's arrival in Spain less embarrassing.

If Carlo came to Spain and no one welcomed him, and even the people had no attitude towards it, then the only embarrassment would be Carlo and the government that chose Carlo as king.

Carlo nodded, and the smile on his face did not change: "Where is Mr. Serrano?"

Following Primo's instructions, Carlo and his party slowly walked to the port under the escort of the guards and went to where the Spanish government was located.

As soon as Carlo stepped onto the port, the band that had been prepared at the port played the Spanish national anthem "Royal March".

This song is very good here. It not only shows the importance of welcoming the new king, but also emphasizes the monarchy of Spain and gives Carlo enough face.

"Your Highness!" The Spanish government officials saluted Carlo.

Because Carlo has not yet sworn in the constitution and crowned as the King of Spain, his identity is still the Duke of Italy at this time.

However, the oath can be taken at any time, which is different from the coronation ceremony, so everyone is not slack in front of Carlo.

Primo and Serrano smiled and introduced the officials of the Spanish government to Carlo, and Carlo also entered Barcelona under the welcome of many officials.

This is just a place to rest. After a short rest, Carlo will embark on the journey back to Madrid with the officials.

The good news is that although Spain has a small number of railway kilometers, it also has a railway mileage of nearly 5,000 kilometers. Barcelona, ​​as a big city on the east coast, naturally has a railway connecting Madrid.

But the bad news is that the railways of this era were extremely slow, and the riding experience was far inferior to that of later generations.

For Carlo, the journey from Barcelona to Madrid might be worse than the bumpy days on the Mediterranean.

But the good news is that once he returns to Madrid, Carlo can live in the huge Madrid Royal Palace.

This is known as the third largest palace in Europe, second only to the Palace of Versailles and the luxurious palace of Schönbrunn Palace. This aspect also reflects the luxury of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty. At least in terms of the royal family's food, clothing and daily expenses, the Spanish kings of the Bourbon dynasty have never been stingy.

On August 23, 1869, Carlo finally arrived in Madrid, and Primo returned to the political center of Spain again after many days.

Although Carlo wanted to visit Madrid in 1869, after several days of traveling, Carlo had no energy to think about anything else.

The officials and soldiers who were traveling with him had the same idea.

On the first day of arriving in Madrid, Carlo only took his confidants and servants to the Royal Palace of Madrid, and slept comfortably in the clean king's bedroom that had been prepared long ago.

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