8 Grand Duchy of Venezuela
Felipe looked at the papers in front of him. He was getting a headache; during the three months that such rebellion had happened, they had mismanaged everything.
Not that he could blame them. They were trying to run a country with just military knowledge and no real democracy.
The taxes are all a mess. They were trying to fund their war by taxing heavily. 'Well, this is good.'
The Venezuelan government has existed for a while, yet they have taxed their people heavily. He can very well spin that to make himself look like a hero.
All the cruelty and violence that happened when he stormed the town hall will be erased from history, or at least the context of it will be justified. After all, the winners wrote history, and the losers got forgotten.
He was no longer staying at the Town Hall, which was being cleaned… there was too much blood and corpses. So the thing was taking out the bodies and taking them out of the city to be thrown into a common grave, a shallow one for retrieval in the future.
The heads were the same. The Pala got most of the planning before the people returned to the Plaza for their things later that day. They were all curious as well. After all, it was a mini civil strive with many sounds.
He was now at a house of a Junta member that he had killed. Quite a lavish mansion with a lot of stuff. He got a wife and a daughter.
They were still in the house, a good house host to the crown prince with a few soldiers around him almost constantly. They didn't dare to do anything.
All people charged with high treason got their property commissioned, and the money was the first to enter his hands. He got a mid-size fortune which they were filthy rich in the context of the Empire.
——
Felipe then spent most of the next day in the printing house. He has to ensure that everyone in the region knows what happened here and what other way was best than making a newspaper.
Newspapers are one page long with a naturally large, thick leaf of paper. It was meant to be put for anyone to read it. It was more of a publicity stunt than an actual newspaper. He needs that, the deed.
He might have taken Caracas, and he might have taken most of the Empire's rebel army, but he has yet to capture the hearts of people. He has to make concessions and administer the new lands. He can not do that if he constantly deals with revolts and protests across Venezuela's massive territory.
There is a reason why they decided to become independent because they could, they are big enough to do so, but that is just in the back. Now the ruling class of traitors has been beheaded.
He looked at the final product.
[The Times.
The Junta of Venezuela has been dismantled. The members of the Junta and its commanders have been charged with high treason and sentenced to death. Henceforward, the Republic of Venezuela is no more.
All the members of the Paez Army are presumed to be dead, including General Paez. The army sent to Bogota will most likely see the same fate as the Imperial Troops Leadered by General Simon Bolivar have come back to take
Henceforth, the Departments of Venezuela, Orinoco, Apure and Zuila, will be merged into a Gran Duchy. The Grand Duchy of Venezuela. Part of the Colombian Empire—A semi-Autonomous state.
A parliament in Caracas will elect a governor of the grand duchy. He will manage the counties created under the Crown Prince's supervision. The counties will receive semi-autonomy under the laws made by the Imperial Senate. Large cities will obtain unique imperial territorial representation aside from the states and the Grand Duchy.
The Grand Duchy will not have a representation in the international plateau as it is not a country. Yet, it is not just a province/Dukedom.
The Grand Duchy must abide by the laws implemented by the imperial Senate. The Grand Duchy will not be able to create a military under the name of the duchy. The only army permitted will be the Imperial Military. Any other armed group will be labelled treasonous and charged with high treason. The minimum sentencing is life in prison.
Under the state of Emergency, Crown Prince Felipe Antonio Arboleda De Aragon Toro will act as de facto dictator until further Notice.]
"Great, start mass producing them. I want them from Maracaibo to the border with the Guyanas." Felipe said as he was thinking about what should happen next. He is playing to be king right now.
His father told him he could give that much independence to the Venezuelans; his father was one of the most politically intelligent people he knew. He agreed with him to all the demands he asked of the region, so he is now responsible for all the successes and all the failures.
The Empire is still very young. They alone are still trying to redraw the Dukedoms, the Counties and the regions that were put in place by the Spaniards. Plus, the civil war that ended in tragedy has made them question every border as Felipe was taking sweeping action by becoming a dictator.
--
Five days later.
The news has been distributed to almost every corner of the new Gran Duchy of Canada as express delivery. Meaning that Felipe made it so the ones responsible for the correspondence go beyond their duty and put the effort to deliver the newspapers across the region.
From a country with approximately 840 thousand people before the war of independence, now of around 790 thousand, only a few thousand could read. And most that was able to read were in the war.
--
Valencia, Venezuela.
A large village/city that might not be the Capital but surely could be. It faces lake Valencia, thus its name. The news of the Empire defeating the Republicans was heard by everyone.
People would get together and circle a person able to read, and they would hear attentively.
"This means… this means we are a country?"
"Are you stupid? We are half independent state in the Empire." The man who could read said quite angrily as he felt his friend was not paying attention to him.
"Ay, but you don't have to hit me. Just say you are wrong. There is no need to hit me."
The man with the paper in his hand shook his head as he felt helpless when looking at his friend from childhood, from repeating himself to just straight stupid.
"Then what does this mean?" A stranger who has come to hear what was all the fuss about.
"This means that nothing changes, only the ones that try to go against the empire end up dead." The man said as he put down the newspaper. "This strengthens the divine right of the Emperor of Colombia."
"Well, that happens when you try to be without a king or an emperor, only death." A lady with her basket full of vegetables said. "God will punish anyone that goes against his divine plan."
"Indeed."
Most of them nodded as they were all god-fearing Christians. The king/Emperor is the person God put on earth to govern on his behalf. Such a thing as republicanism is a sin.
Most of Venezuela is inhabited by ordinary people. They are always far from politics, so some didn't even know they were at war with themselves. Some understood, but deep inside them, they were opposing, but no matter what the majority of the people think when the people with power are the ones that own the muskets and the soldiers? There is no real democracy. There is only the strongest.
The man who had just read the letter looked at the people around him and shook his head internally; as an educated man, he understood the brutal reality of life under a tyrant, life under the Spanish Empire. And even though the Colombian Empire was not an absolute monarchy, the tyrant stopped being the emperor himself but the Government of Bogota, dictating laws and taxes. Despite the Imperial Senate being composed chiefly of Venezuelans, they still felt a huge disconnection between the Empire and themselves.
The Empire has given Venezuela a longer leash than they were used to. They might feel free, but they are still leashed.
The man thought about it and realized that the title of Grand Duchy was just a fancy way to shut up all the separatists, but nothing had changed. Everything the Empire dictates, the Grand Duchy must follow all the laws and regulations. Looking at most people around him, very happy that the crown prince took back Caracas to the Empire, he realized it didn't matter. As long as the townspeople are so dumb, the ambience of revolution will not wake them up.
His romantic thoughts of a republic and the separation of Venezuela quickly died down.
