Bismarck slowly walked up to Favre, his face devoid of emotion, and said word by word,
"France initiated this war—the responsibility lies squarely with the French government.
Prussia has paid a heavy price; no amount of money can heal the wounds inflicted on the hearts of our soldiers and citizens.
If your government is unwilling to cede territory or pay reparations, very well—we can continue this discussion in Paris."
Favre knew full well the hidden threat in Bismarck's words. Saying it nicely was to discuss it further in Paris; saying it bluntly meant that if the French government refused to cede territory, the Prussian army would continue its advance on Paris.
Once the French capital fell, it would not be so easy for the French government to refuse territorial concessions and reparations.
Seeing that Bismarck was completely unmoved by the tough approach, Favre could only change his strategy.
"Prime Minister Bismarck, ceding land will cause discontent among tens of millions of French citizens and bring endless trouble to the French government.
Please, for the sake of tens of millions of French citizens, do not make us cede land. We are willing to meet any demand from your government regarding reparations and will do our utmost to repay all of it."
Facing Favre's shift from a tough to a soft strategy, Bismarck remained completely unfazed, smiling as he said, "Mr. Favre, what do the French people have to do with me?
Please don't forget, that I am the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Prussia, and I only care about the thoughts of Prussians.
If your country is still unwilling to cede territory, I would be very happy to go to Paris and negotiate with your government personally."
Seeing that all his plans were ineffective against Bismarck, Favre could only resort to his last move: stalling for time.
He handed Bismarck a thick document written in French and said very sincerely, "Please look at these documents first, and then give us 15 days to consider. We will give you a response after 15 days, please believe in our sincerity."
Bismarck shook his head, also picked up a document written in German, handed it to Favre, and said, "No need for such trouble, Mr. Favre. This is our document, and it is also our answer."
The surprise and unease in Favre's eyes were plain to see.
Submitting diplomatic documents in German was highly irregular by European standards. For centuries, France had enjoyed its role as the hegemon of Europe, and as a result, French had become the default language of diplomacy.
It was the language of courts and nobility, spoken fluently by aristocrats across the continent—including Carlo, who had studied French and could converse effortlessly in it.
By deliberately breaking with this tradition, Bismarck was sending a clear message: France's era of dominance in European affairs had come to an end.
After Prussia defeated France, it naturally became the new hegemon of the European continent, and it was no longer strange to use German for diplomatic documents.
This stumped Favre. Although he was a diplomat sent by the French government, he wasn't entirely professional in diplomacy.
More importantly, because all previous diplomatic exchanges had used French, Favre's German was actually not that good.
Facing a document written entirely in German, a question popped into Favre's mind: What in the world is this?
Seeing Favre's bewildered expression, Bismarck completely lost patience, waved his hand, and said, "Alright, Mr. Favre, go back.
I hope you can take this document back to Paris. Before our army arrives in Paris, I hope your government will have an answer that satisfies us."
The peace negotiation ultimately broke down, and Favre could only return to Paris dejectedly.
On Bismarck's side, once the fruitless peace negotiations had ended, he promptly ordered the Prussian army to resume its advance toward Paris, determined to compel the French government to sign a treaty on his terms.
With Napoleon III's army already surrendered, nothing stood in Bismarck's way.
Yet in Paris, the French government still clung to a faint hope—they could not believe the Prussians would be reckless enough to bombard the capital itself.
After all, Paris was not only one of Europe's largest cities but also home to millions of French citizens and numerous foreign nationals.
As France's capital, it hosted diplomats and envoys from across the continent. To shell such a city, the French believed, would be to invite the ire of all Europe. Surely, they reasoned, Prussia wouldn't dare take such a risk.
It was precisely with this mindset that, even as the Prussian army closed in on Paris, the French government refused to capitulate. Instead, they sent Bismarck a letter—a calculated provocation wrapped in diplomatic courtesy.
It read: "Your Excellency, may we inquire when you plan to begin the bombardment of Paris? Should such plans exist, we kindly ask that you inform us in advance so we may arrange for the evacuation of foreign ambassadors."
Thinly veiled beneath this request was a warning: Bismarck ought to consider the broader European reaction. Prussia might have the power to strike Paris, but would the rest of Europe tolerate a rising power that could so easily humiliate France, the continent's former hegemon?
While the logic held some weight, French politicians gravely misjudged Bismarck's resolve.
His reply came swiftly and without ceremony: "The matter your government refers to is a top military secret of the Kingdom of Prussia and cannot be disclosed at this time. If there is concern for the safety of foreign ambassadors, your government may begin evacuation procedures immediately."
It was a cold, calculated response—one that made it clear Bismarck would not be swayed by diplomatic theater.
If this letter were only sent to the French government, it would just be another meaningless threat.
The astute Bismarck, naturally would not overlook the delicate situation within Paris.
This letter was not only sent directly to the French government but was also made public by Bismarck and sent to several newspapers in Paris.
This immediately sparked heated discussion among the citizens of Paris.
So, the new National Defense Government's discussions with Prussia for so many days only led to the outcome of Paris being bombarded? Wasn't this betraying the former glory of France?
Infuriated Parisian citizens once again staged an uprising, intending to overthrow the capitalist-controlled National Defense Government and establish a French government with the courage to resist the Germans.
This uprising was a spontaneous resistance against the government by some radical nationalists. Because of the lack of widespread support, it was quickly suppressed by the National Defense Government.
But at the same time, the fierce opposition from the people within Paris also caused panic within the French National Defense Government.
The French government knew that the peace talks could not be delayed any longer; a result had to be reached as soon as possible so that they could free up their hands to stabilize the situation in Paris.
On April 5, 1870, the French National Defense Government signed the surrender treaty. On April 7, the French government and Bismarck jointly signed the armistice treaty, and France finally welcomed a brief period of peace.
Perhaps the people of Paris did not expect that their pressure on the government would instead cause the French government to concede even more to Prussia.
The armistice agreement, which should have been debated for a long time, was signed just like that, and the French government forgot the bottom line of not ceding territory that it had maintained just a few days earlier.
According to the treaty signed by both parties, the French government had to hand over most of the fortifications and ammunition of the Paris fortress to the Prussian army and pay 200 million francs in reparations.
Bismarck also added an extra clause: the German army could enter Paris in triumph and pass through the Arc de Triomphe in the center of Paris.
Speaking of the history of the Arc de Triomphe, it dates back to the Napoleonic era in the early 19th century. Napoleon ordered the construction of a structure that returning soldiers could pass through to celebrate his victory over the Austro-Russian coalition, and thus the Arc de Triomphe was born.
However, because Napoleon had previously overturned the construction plan for the Arc de Triomphe in the middle, the Arc de Triomphe was not completed until 1836.
Why did Bismarck want the Prussian army to pass through the Arc de Triomphe victoriously?
Because decades ago, among Napoleon's glorious conquests of Europe, he had defeated Prussia many times, which was also why France looked down on Prussia before the war.
As the Prime Minister of Prussia, Bismarck naturally wanted to wash away Prussia's humiliation through this method and return the same humiliation to France and the French people.
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