IBTCPOTME Novel - Chapter 168
**Chapter 168**
< Secularization (5) >
I was in my military uniform, listening to reports and directing operations from dawn until now.
The results of the punitive operation, which had been ongoing since dawn, began to be reported in encrypted form via electric telegraphy.
“Report from the Durango region, all missions completed successfully.”
One of the staff removed the red flags from the Durango region on the giant map on the table and placed green flags. Another state had turned green.
“Report from the Sonora region, all missions completed successfully.”
“Sinaloa…”
8:00 AM.
It was the time when the arrests of the key landowners, clergy, and officers in the eight states and other regions that had been identified beforehand were completed.
Knock-knock- Bang-
“Hmm?”
The temporary operations headquarters set up in the Imperial Palace.
Many people in the room looked at the door. They were surprised that the door to the room where I, the Emperor, was present, had been slammed open.
In front of many generals, staff officers, and telegraph operators, the messenger urgently reported.
“Your, Your Majesty! Rebellion! A rebellion has broken out in Veracruz!”
“Veracruz?”
“Veracruz!”
Confused voices echoed from various parts of the operations headquarters.
I calmly said.
“Calm down and tell me more.”
“General Santa Anna has captured Veracruz! He says he will enthrone Leandro de Iturbide!”
“What in the world is this crazy talk?”
My head felt numb.
Antonio López de Santa Anna.
In the original timeline, he was a man with a strong lust for power, so much so that he betrayed his father and became President of Mexico nine times. But in this world, he was one of the most prominent Imperialist generals, so close to his father that they even exchanged personal letters.
‘I didn’t think he was truly close to his father, but I thought he was a man who knew right from wrong.’
I hadn’t completely relaxed either. Knowing his lust for power, I had prevented him from gaining military merit by making him defend Veracruz.
My father had liked him, but I argued that those who had participated in the war should be promoted first. It was only natural, and it was also to delay Santa Anna’s promotion as much as possible.
In my plan, he was supposed to retire after spending his entire life defending Veracruz, never returning to the central army.
“I apologize. It’s my fault. I’ll accept any punishment you give me.”
My silence dragged on, and Ricardo, the Director, apologized to me.
The Intelligence Agency couldn’t monitor everyone in the empire. How could they anticipate the sudden betrayal of an Imperialist general who boasted of his personal friendship with my father?
“That can wait. We need to handle the situation first. Santa Anna, that’s fine, but he says he’ll enthrone Leandro? So, Leandro, that guy, is he saying he’ll be Emperor?”
Leandro de Iturbide was the son of Mariano de Iturbide, my uncle, my father’s brother.
He was younger than me, but still in his mid-thirties. He was not a young man in his twenties, he was old enough, so why was he doing this ridiculous thing?
“…”
“Leandro and his family went to Veracruz last week to go on a trip abroad.”
No one could answer Leandro’s absurd actions. Only Ricardo, the Director, reported on Leandro and his family’s movements.
“Let’s send troops to Morelia. Let them temporarily ‘protect’ the royal family until this situation is over. Not just the Iturbide family, but the Huarte family as well.”
“Yes! I will obey your orders!”
The room became busy for a moment at my command. Protect them. It was practically saying to confine them. Not in prison, but in their huge mansion where they lived.
The entire royal family couldn’t have all participated in this crazy act. Especially the maternal side. They had no rights to the imperial throne at all.
But we had to cut off any variables. If they did something unnecessary, the situation could worsen.
“Veracruz and Morelia. These two places, which I had considered the safest after the capital, are where this is happening.”
The Iturbide family, my paternal side, and the Huarte family, my maternal side, were based in Morelia and owned vast lands. It was practically the royal family’s territory.
My father hadn’t given them any power, but he had given them immense wealth. He had built the subway there first and built a comprehensive university.
It was also one of the axes of the Las Truchas-Morelia-Mexico City-Veracruz line, which could be called the core industrial region of the Mexican Empire. These four regions were the most important in the entire Mexican Empire.
He even built the dam and irrigation facilities there first, so wouldn’t that be enough benefits for the royal family? Especially the maternal side, they even received financial support from their son-in-law, but the paternal side got nothing.
I felt my head getting hot.
I thought it was the first time I had been so angry since I was possessed.
“…”
The soldiers in the room were working to continue the operation and carry out my new orders, but I could feel them watching me.
They were whispering now, unlike before when they were actively conveying information and exchanging opinions in loud voices. Even the generals were doing so.
This would be the first time they had seen me get so angry, even my face was red.
‘I wasn’t this angry even in much bigger wars…’
I was angry at myself for letting my guard down about Santa Anna and Leandro Iturbide.
Especially since my father had warned me to be careful of my family just before his coronation. I had instructed the Intelligence Agency to track the royal family’s movements, but it was too lenient.
I tried to control my emotions. It had already happened. I didn’t have the power to turn back time, so I had to solve it.
I calmed myself down and asked in a calm voice.
“So, what’s the justification for enthroning Leandro, that guy who’s far down in the line of succession?”
“He wrote a document.”
The messenger knelt before me and respectfully presented the document.
‘Plan de Veracruz (Veracruz Plan)’
It was a name I had seen somewhere.
In the original timeline, Santa Anna had signed the ‘Plan de Casa Mata (Casa Mata Plan)’ to overthrow Agustín I, and later the ‘Plan de Veracruz (Veracruz Plan)’ to remove the President.
Both were ultimately for his own power, and the same thing was happening in this world.
The content was obvious.
————————————
Plan de Veracruz (Veracruz Declaration)
We hereby express our grave concerns regarding the radical and reckless secularization policies of the current Emperor, Herónimo Iturbide.
The Emperor’s policies are not only a direct challenge to the Catholic Church and traditional values, which are the foundation of our society, but also a serious threat to Mexico’s international standing and interests.
We must remember that the Church has long played a central role in Mexican society. The Church has been not only a moral pillar but also a major contributor to education, healthcare, and social welfare, such as charity. However, the Emperor’s policies ignore these contributions of the Church and are attempting to forcibly confiscate Church property and neutralize its influence.
Furthermore, the Emperor’s secularization policies are provoking strong opposition from the Holy See and the Catholic world, especially the Austrian Empire. Even the Protestant nation of the British Empire is expressing concerns about the confiscation of Church property and religious persecution. This is a major crisis that could lead to Mexico’s diplomatic isolation and economic sanctions.
.
.
.
Therefore, we, in order to restore Mexico’s legitimacy and honor, wish to enthrone His Highness Leandro de Iturbide as the new Emperor. His Highness, a member of the royal family who has bravely opposed the Emperor’s tyranny, embodies the true spirit of a leader who can lead a nation in crisis.
Brothers and sisters of Mexico. Now is the time to protect our faith and traditions. According to God’s will and the wisdom of our ancestors, we must take action. It is our sacred duty to pass on to our descendants a great Mexico based on Catholic spirit and tradition. Join our righteous cause. God and our country will be with us!
Signed: Antonio López de Santa Anna
————————————
“I thought he had come up with some ingenious justification.”
It was more like an excuse to justify his rebellion.
In the original timeline, he had claimed to be a protector of republicanism when overthrowing Agustín, but here, he was claiming to be a protector of faith and tradition. It meant that all of this was just a pretext for him.
“He probably didn’t think anyone would get caught without even trying to rebel, except for himself.”
It would have been a pretty annoying rebellion if he had just let it happen, but since everything failed except for Veracruz, his fate was sealed.
***
The rebellion began with a flourish.
Santa Anna’s army was the size of a single division, but they were considered elite.
The army he had trained for a long time moved like his own limbs, and even though they were provincial troops, they were classified as Imperialists, so they received generous support.
While the Emperor’s army, which had been carrying out operations across the country, was returning to Mexico City, Santa Anna’s army quickly captured Veracruz state.
Some Imperialist landowners and those with strong loyalty resisted, but it was a meaningless resistance against a full-fledged army.
The fact that General Santa Anna had a very strong influence in the region due to his long stay in Veracruz state also helped in the capture.
The problem was what came next.
“General! What in the world is this? It’s not what you said before.”
“…”
“Didn’t you say at least eight states would join? So, you’re saying they all failed? That’s why you’ve been silent all this time? Say something!”
Leandro Iturbide, relying solely on his royal bloodline, pressed General Santa Anna. Santa Anna, already annoyed, was about to explode at his nagging.
‘This stupid bastard still doesn’t know his place. That’s why I chose him, though.’
He wanted to slap him, but he held back the urge, and Leandro Iturbide, who felt like he was talking to a wall, left the room.
Bang!
Santa Anna swept the objects on his desk and kicked the chair.
“These bastards! They’re incompetent! How could they not succeed in a single place!”
He thought they had a good chance of success.
That’s why he refused to compromise with the Church, saying that they shouldn’t touch the Emperor.
After all, no matter how you packaged it, wasn’t it a rebellion? You’re rebelling, but you’re just going to neutralize the secularization bill and that’s it?
Santa Anna thought it was tantamount to saying he wanted to be punished and killed later. Antonio, the large landowner, agreed with this opinion.
If they were going to rebel, they had to do it right. That way, even those landowners who weren’t participating now would join if the situation looked favorable. The sooner they joined, the more crumbs they could pick up.
In his opinion, they would have had a chance if they had succeeded in just four of the eight states originally planned.
They just had to hold out against the central army’s attack once, and then all the conservatives across the country and the Catholic Church fanatics would flock to them. They planned to receive supplies, weapons, and ammunition from the British Empire and the Austrian Empire through the port of Veracruz.
But all eight states, which were promised, had failed, and he was left rebelling alone. On top of that, Leandro, who was brought in to be a straw man, was acting up without knowing his place, and Santa Anna was going crazy.
“No, no. I’ve been waiting for this for so long, I can’t just crumble like this.”
Santa Anna muttered to himself.
The Emperor, even when he was Crown Prince, had been trying to check him, so he had been stuck here in the provincial army, never given a chance to participate in the war.
From the beginning of independence until now, he had endured the humiliation of his juniors, who had participated in the war, being promoted ahead of him, all for this opportunity, for right now.
He couldn’t give up now, not after he had already started.
Santa Anna took a deep breath.
He straightened his clothes, left the room, and told his subordinates.
“Tell the British Empire. We will never surrender, so give us supplies.”