Chapter 1 -- 1836 to 1844
On the first day of being king, Rinaldo discovered that his father left Two Sicilies in a bit of a mess: the royal coffers were barely filled with any gold, industry of any sort was non existent, Sicilian prestige was low and the military was weak compared to neighbors.
What God sees of Two Sicilies...nothing much.
First order of business was to examine the budget of the nation. Taxes among all the strata of society were at 50%, rather high for Rinaldo's taste. But nevertheless, there was a budget surplus of well over 60 ducats a day. So Rinaldo saw it was fit to increase the salaries of the clergy and of the bureaucrats in Two Sicilies. The new daily surplus was around 45 ducats a day.
Pictured -- serious cash flow
Next order of business was to examine what new technologies were being research. He saw that strides in all fields of science have been made by his predecessors. But Rinaldo didn't feel that this was enough. He knew that nations, such as Great Britain, have entered a new age of humanities: The Romantic Age. Lured by increases to Sicilian prestige, Rinaldo decided it was worth to research new, aesthetically pleasing art, literature, and music.
"He went like one that hath been stunned, and is of sense forlorn: a sadder and a wiser man he rose the morrow morn."
Politics in Two Sicilies were dominated by the
Moderati, who controlled a whopping 85% of the Upper House. The
Ristorazionista, although the royally appointed ruling party, controlled only 15% of the Upper House. There were few political freedoms in the Kingdom: voting was illegal, so were unions, and all political parties were banned.
Using what funds he could find in the royal treasury, Rinaldo wanted to use those funds to construct one of those newfangled 'factories.' But what exactly would it produce? He called a conference with his court and advisers to decide.
"What kind of factory should we construct?" said the king.
"Our factories can be used to produce anything you want to, sir!" said the royal treasurer.
"First on my list of favorite things is pizza; can we build a pizza factory?"
"Uh, if you don't mind, our financiers have deemed any sort of pizza factory doomed to fail. Our people simply crave hand-made pizzas!"
"I agree...how about number two on my list--women? ... Oh wait. Nevermind. Moving on to number three--wine?"
"Excellent choice, your highness! Wine is one of the most desired commodities in Europe right now, according to our traders abroad. Building a winery in Naples would definitely bring money our way. But, unfortunately, building the new winery in Naples will cost about 1600 ducats; most of our treasury."
"Hmm...that is quite unfortunate...but we must industrialize or be left in the dust!"
On the day, construction on the
Cantina Reale began in Naples.
With everything settled, Rinaldo decided to unpause time, and let the nation go.
Very early on, intellectuals were questioning the rule of the king. Rinaldo's advisers informed him that Europe was entering an "Age of Liberalism".
Liberalism? More like, Shmliberalism.
After two short years, the
Cantina Reale was completed in Naples. Soon, thousands of workers flocked to the factory to seek jobs. Ranks of workers began to work in the state-owned factory. However, the factory was actually draining the coffers of the state; the factory was unprofitable.
"What the hell is this?! You guys said that we would be swimming in money!!!" exclaimed the king.
"Be patient, your highness, these loses are just from hiring so many workers and furnishing the factory," calmly said an adviser.
"Very well..."
A rocky start to industry in Two Sicilies.
But soon, the factory began to become profitable. Rinaldo jumped for joy and ordered two new factories: a cement factory in Sicilian Sicily, and a glass factory in Puglia.
During the third year of Rinaldo's reign, the court informed the king of the advent of Romanticism. The king, emboldened by increases in industry, told the court to look into the idea of "railroads."
"I've been told by wanderers that these iron roads exist in France and in the United Kingdom. They look pretty cool and I want them."
'Researching at the speed of a carriage!' will be soon obselete
One month later, the court informed Rinaldo that Sicilian musicians have achieved renown for their 'Romantic music', earning the kingdom considerable prestige. As a celebration of this more-than-doubling of prestige, Rinaldo created The Royal Order of Francis I, earning the kingdom
more prestige.
Advances in music, as well as industry, have made Two Sicilies one of the most frequent queries in the libraries of Europe. Historians and politicians both have agreed that Two Sicilies is now a "world power," only four years into Rinaldo's reign.
"One of the perks of being a world power is the ability to use our diplomats to influence other nations! Once we have achieved enough influence, we can claim these nations as our spheres of influence!" explained an adviser to Rinaldo.
"Very well," spoke the king, "I think that it would be best if we united all the nations of the peninsula, into one all-powerful state, to combat the pesky French and Austrians."
As a result, diplomats were sent to Lucca, Tuscany, Sardinia-Piedmont, the Papal States, Modena and Parma.
Two Sicilies is the new nation on the block in terms of power
In January 1841, Experimental Railroads finished being researched by Sicilian scientists. Soon, Rinaldo summoned the philosophers of Two Sicilies to inquire "Idealism".
In March 1841, Sicilian Romantic writers received acclaim by lesser writers, bolstering prestige.
By September 1841, railroads were being constructed all over the nation.
With more and more of the Upper House turning their backs on the old order and turning to liberalism, Rinaldo decided to cool tensions between the liberal
Reformisti and the
Moderati and
Restorazionista by allowing trade unions to appear. After a few years, all trade unions became legal in Two Sicilies.
In January 1843, Sicilian painters are invited to an art exhibition. They won fourth place.
March 1843 was a great time for Two Sicilies--Modena became part of the sphere of the kingdom.
With tensions between the
Reformisti and the
Restorazionista at an all time high in the beginning of 1844, Rinaldo decided to appoint a new ruling party, the
Moderati, to serve a intermediary between the two fringe parties.
Soon thereafter, Sicilian philosophers learned the ways of idealism. Rinaldo called on economists to research "market structure".
No matter what Rinaldo did, the
Reformisti, and liberals at large, were extremely disappointed with
status quo. Beginning in October 1844, large riots occurred in Sicilian cities everywhere. Bombings and other acts of terrorism exploded. Newspapers began to publish increasingly radical articles. It seemed to Rinaldo that this would be a battle to the death between the old guard, and the hip, new ideology. He didn't know which won would, let alone
should, win this battle.
"The Revolutions of 1844-1845 -- 'The Springtime of Nations'"
. Most of the rest of Italy has been unaffected by industrialization). Also note that my industrial score is now a whopping 220!
