Chapter 11: Returning home

January 20, 1889, at Warnemunde's port:

Frederick patiently waited for his parents to disembark, a few days ago a letter was delivered to him with the date and approximate time of his parent's arrival in Berlin, and he decided to wait for them at the pier.

A few minutes later, Carol I and Elisabeth I of Romania were within a few meters from Frederick, Elisabeth almost trotted and quickly reached to Frederick giving him a kiss and a hug, and also talked about how handsome he had grown up while living in Berlin.

"My dear son, thanks to god almighty you have grown up healthy and so tall since the last time we saw each other, your letters were so few that always worried if something bad happened to you so far away from his," said Elisabeth with tears on her eyes

Frederick ashamed said that he had been busy and stressed due to the academy.

Carol I gave him a condescending glare but said nothing except to give his blessings.

After a few hours, the family finally arrived at the private mansion of the royal family of Romania, Carol I and Frederick are chatting near the chimney.

"It seems you had learned how to lie to your mother in Berlin too, my dear son" said Carol I reproachfully.

"Dear father, it's not like I wanted to lie to my mother but you know what I did in Berlin, thanks to god I achieved success and overcame every obstacle but did you think what would be her reaction after telling her all the troubles I've been through? Said Frederick feeling bad for lying to his mother.

"I understand you but that's no excuse for not replying to her letters, at least you should have written one per month than the 5 letters you wrote since arriving in Berlin, She daily mailed letters asking for your well-being!" said Carol I feeling angrier as the more he continues recalling his wife worried face.

Frederick bowed his head and murmured an apology.

"You must apologize to your mother instead of me, you know very well how she's when is about your well-being.

"On the other hand, I'm proud of how you managed your troubles. My father told me everything and I'm very proud of your achievements, you've shown great capabilities in leadership and being courageous" said Carol I smiling at his son.

"Thanks Dad, I've learned a lot more here than I'd ever learned in Romania, my startups are big companies renowned around Europe even America! I am sure that the learned knowledge and the fortune I made could be of great help to our Kingdom" said Frederick feeling proud of himself.

"Oh, It's a relief that you're already thinking about the kingdom. Recently I've been trying to industrialize Romania but it has been nearly impossible. The big landowners and related interest groups that profit from the current backward economy have been blocking all the bills related to land reclamation or favorable tax exemptions to innovations, I can't do anything about it since the parliament is with them and the people aren't far-sighted enough to realize that these policieswill help the economy and the kingdom as a whole" said Carol I angrily.

Frederick was surprised by his father's sudden rant and remembered the report he read about the situation in Romania. After a chat, Carol I went to find his wife to rest after a long trip.

Frederick worried went to his grandpa's mansion to his bedroom, opened the drawer, and pulled out a thick document.

Since Romania gained its independence and became a constitutional monarchy: there were attempts to lay a foundation for industrialization and education of Romanian people. Also in terms of domestic policy, Carol I tried to strike a balance between various factors, favoring a climate of discipline and rigor, a very Prussian-style way of ruling.

King Carol I gave his support for all economic structures to become modern, in a country whose political structures were still very much backward. The capital city Bucharest itself resembled a countryside town. Yet Carol's disciplined mind is a feature typical of all Germanic monarchs. The King succeeded in having both liberal and conservative governments come to power so that none of the two sides could have the possibility to undermine his authority, an achievement worth recognition.

But that's all, balance and having managed to pass the bill for basic education.

Frederick after reading the report understood the situation of the kingdom.

'These big landowners, interest groups, and corrupted politicians are the problem. The King is busy balancing all the parties, and compromises have been made in order to continue a functional government.

'It can be resolved by introducing more capital to Romania and increasing jobs for peasants, opportunities for freshly graduated students, and controlling key industries in Romania to strengthen the royal family's power over the parliament and the people. We also need to grasp the control of the army, if we do as I plan, even if the parliament, big landowners, and vested interest groups don't agree, we can just flip the chessboard and directly change everything with the popular support, the army support and the royal family might.'

January 27th of 1889, Prince Karl Anton Head of the Sigmaringen family died unexpectedly.

A year later,

In March 1890, Kaiser Wilhelm II dismissed Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck and assumed direct control over the empire's policies, embarking on a bellicose "New Course" to cement Germany's status as a leading world power. 

The near insolvency of Barings Bank in London. Barings, led by Edward Baring, 1st Baron Revelstoke, faced bankruptcy in November 1890 due mainly to excessive risk-taking on poor investments in Argentina.

An international consortium assembled by William Lidderdale, governor of the Bank of England, including Rothschilds and most of the other major London banks, created a fund to guarantee Barings' debts, thereby averting a larger depression.

The international financial distrust generated by this crisis burst the bubble in the Brazilian economy, which had been inflating since the previous decade, bringing forward its expected end and seeing a Brazilian financial crisis, which in turn along with Argentine and Uruguayan crises slashed repatriations and short-term investment by European immigrants from Latin America to their countries of origin

Crown Prince Frederick amassed a great fortune of 88 million pounds thanks to his visionary investments around the world. With this huge amount of capital, he quickly bought cheap stocks in the US and European countries affected by the economic crisis and resold them 6 months later.

He also brought ex-employees from Barings Bank who were laid-off to Germany and established the Sigmaringen Bank.

Frederick graduated from Prussia Military Academy and studied briefly under Otto Von Bismarck as his political mentor.

January 5, 1892, the fortune of the crown prince ascended to 351 million pounds, and managed a little over 73 million pounds of funds from Sigmaringen Bank. Frederick prepares himself for a possible Railroad crisis in the United States. He investigated European countries' railroad companies back in 1887, and the US is by far the worst overbuilt, lack of supervision from the government and corruption is on every company, it needs a little push to create a domino effect and Frederick will help them out.

February 10th, 1892. New York's workers, businessmen politicians, and investors in the stock market saw a detailed report in multiple newspapers this morning "warning" honest American people of a possible economic crisis and denounced fraudulent accounts of over 10 railroad companies.

February 12th, the New York stock market plummeted, and the oversupply of silver forced the Senate to repeal the bill of Sherman Silver Purchase Act.

People rushed to withdraw their money from banks which caused bank runs. The credit crunch rippled through the economy. A financial panic in London combined with a drop in continental European trade caused foreign investors to sell American stocks to obtain American funds backed by gold.

By the end of 1893, the Crown Prince returned to Romania, and Frederick went abroad for 6 years. He's now 21 years old and returned with a lot of capital from his investments and with new knowledge.

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Author note: Please let me know of any grammar mistakes or if you find the interaction awkward.

Important Data:

British pound:

1 Pound = 20 shillings

1 Shillings= 12 pennies

American dollar:

1 Dollar= 100 cents

The exchange ratio of:

1 pound= 5 dollars (I simplified the exchange ratio, 1=4.88 historical data)

Why do I use pounds instead of dollars? It's for the ambience but if you readers want I can use dollars.

Why no use of Leu(Romanian currency), gold marks, or francs? Because it will make it more complicated. I use pound 'cause British pounds are accepted everywhere in the world.