Empire Rising: Spain

This also led to this land not being occupied for a long time, and the British just reached here without establishing even decent colonial bases.

The map also shows that, compared to the vast desert of the Truce States and Oman, the British prefer Bahrain and Qatar with better geographical conditions.

Although the areas of Bahrain and Qatar are not large, they at least hold certain development value compared to the Truce States.

Exactly because European Powers, including the United Kingdom, did not pay much attention to the Truce States, Spain’s colonial invasion and occupation of this land was barely newsworthy in Europe.

The majority of Europeans do not even know the term "Truce States," nor do they know where it is located, naturally they wouldn’t pay attention to such news.

Even the Spaniards are not very interested in the government’s new colony. Initially, some Spaniards were curious about where the government expanded this land, but after learning that it was all desert, those considering immigration quickly dispelled their thoughts.

After all, people go to colonies with dreams of gold and profit. If someone immigrates to a desert, making money aside, surviving would be challenging.

No one pays attention to Spain’s actions in the Middle East, which is good news for Carlo.

Sitting on so much wealth without worrying about being targeted, this feeling made Carlo secretly happy for quite some time.

Although no other country has their eyes on the Truce States, necessary defensive forces must still be deployed.

Carlo instructed the Governor of the Oman Colony to build a railway centered on the capital Muscat, extending west to the northmost region of the Truce States and east to the easternmost region of Oman within the next two years to strengthen control over the Oman Colony.

The Oman Colony consisted of the former Oman Sultanate and the Truce States, with a total population of merely over a million.

Most of this population resides in Oman’s northernmost region. This railway can reach the northmost areas of Oman and the Truce States, basically ensuring Spanish control over the local natives.

Once the railway is completed, regardless of what happens in the Oman Colony in the future, the Spanish Army can quickly reach the most populated areas.

Because of the low population in the Oman Colony, the number of Defense Corps stationed there is also small, with only two corps totaling 4,000 soldiers.

Besides these two Defense Corps, Muscat, the capital city of Oman Colony, will station a small colonial fleet to facilitate obtaining resources from other regions.

After all, the majority of this land is desert, relying solely on local resources is insufficient to sustain a population of over a million along with the Spanish military and immigrants.

Only through continuous maritime transport to obtain resources from external sources can the colony’s material supply be ensured.

Of course, the various construction plans for the colony, including railway and port constructions, also require external material supplies.

Additionally, due to its location as a midpoint for the route from Spain to the Philippines, it perfectly serves as a transit point for the Spanish Fleet and civilian ships.

Wanting to travel from Spain to the Philippine Colony, the direct line distance is about 12,000 kilometers. Because it needs to pass through the Suez Canal and Malacca Strait, this route is actually meandering and much longer than the 12,000 km direct distance.

If there are no Spanish-controlled transit points in between, it would be bad news for the Spanish fleet and civilian ships.

This means that Spanish fleets and civilian ships wishing to get supplies midway must rely on ports from other countries.

The places available for supply along this route include British India, British Somalia, British Egypt, and Italy.

If a large transit port is not built in Oman, the maritime connection between Spain and the Philippines would have to rely on the help of the British.

Although establishing a port in Oman might not change this reality, it can alleviate some of the supply pressure faced by the Spanish fleet.

This transit station is still strategically significant, especially if the relationship between Spain and the United Kingdom breaks down in the future, even though one transit station cannot ensure the unbreakable connection between Spain and the Philippine Colony.

Of course, because of the limited scale of the Oman Colony, the colonial fleet stationed here is very small, at best could be considered a coastal defense fleet.

Don’t even mention Ironclads, which are the most powerful warships; even smaller Cruisers are unlikely to appear in the Oman Colony.

The colonial warships here are mostly small-scale, retired ships from the Spanish Navy, with tonnage generally around or below 1,000 tons.

As time moves to June 1885, the Royal Military Factory sent approx the last batch of weapons and ammunition towards Asia.

Why the last batch? According to information from the Spanish Ambassador in Asia, the war with France is essentially nearing its end.

Actually, even before the outbreak of the war, Carlo already understood that the only winner of this war could be the French.