The Shadow of Great Britain

86: Chapter 46: Cabinet Meeting (Please Subscribe!) 86: Chapter 46: Cabinet Meeting (Please Subscribe!) In the meeting room at Number 10 Downing Street, an emergency cabinet meeting was being held.

The gentlemen lined up in front of the meeting table, each capable of astonishing the whole of Britain and receiving the highest courtesy in any European country,

were usually only seen on the newspapers, but at this moment, they sat around the meeting table as silent as cicadas in winter, not uttering a word.

Each of them had a stack of thick documents by their side, and the thickest stack sat in front of the Duke of Wellington.

The Duke of Wellington tossed the documents on the table, rubbed his sore eyes, and began to speak.

“The events in France, I’m sure you’ve all heard, so I won’t elaborate further here.

What I want to know now is what exactly they intend to do.

Based on the intelligence we currently have, whether this revolution in France will bring us any uncertain risks.

Of course, I must also know what attitude Austria and Russia hold towards this revolution.”

Having said that, Wellington suddenly turned his head to look at the middle-aged gentleman sitting to the left of Sir Robert Peel, dressed in a black woolen coat.

Wellington asked, “George, has the Foreign Office received any new messages?”

George Gordon, Earl of Aberdeen and the Foreign Secretary, acknowledged his name with a bitter smile.

“Prime Minister, all the information the Foreign Office has received has already been delivered to your case.

This revolution in France has unfolded quite swiftly.

On July 25th, Charles X issued his edicts, banning publications, restricting press freedom, dissolving the newly elected Parliament, and reducing the electoral scale.

As a result, by that afternoon, French newspapers began to publish protest writings and stir up revolution.

On the 26th, small-scale riots broke out in Paris, and by the 27th, it escalated into a massive riot with thousands of workers clashing with the police.

By dawn on the 28th, thousands of barricades were erected, with workers, students, and businessmen all taking to the streets to join the rioting.

The City Hall of Paris had fallen by nightfall.

At the time, some moderates were still trying to negotiate with Charles X to resolve the issue, but Charles X and Prime Minister Polignac refused all negotiation requests.

Once word got out, by the 29th, all of Paris was in the insurgents’ hands.

What we can be sure of at the moment is that Charles X is still alive for the time being, but we cannot be certain whether the new government will kill him or not.

Right now, no one can predict what France’s next move will be; perhaps not even the French themselves understand, let alone us outsiders.

My suggestion is to continue observing for a while longer and wait for the latest news.”

With a furrowed brow, the Duke of Wellington asked, “How could it come to this in just a few days?

What exactly is going on?

Are there revolutionary collaborators within the French army?”

Viscount Henry Harding, the Army Minister, began to speak, “According to the information I’ve gathered, the rapid progress of this revolution in France is mainly because when Charles X issued his edicts, he wanted to quickly resolve the chaos with a harsh solution, thus everything was kept highly secret.

This indeed proved true, as his secrecy was well maintained.

Consequently, when the edicts were suddenly announced, not only were the French public surprised and enraged, but even the French army and police were caught off guard; they were not prepared for the riots.

And most importantly, the French army’s main forces are currently in Algeria.

They had just completed the conquest of that region last month, so they can’t be redeployed to suppress the rebellion domestically in a short time.

Therefore, from a military standpoint, the swift fall of Paris should be understandable.”

Holding his forehead, the Duke of Wellington said, “This Charles X really has problems with his head!

Does he think he’s still popular?

Look at the Prime Minister he appointed!

How on earth did he come up with the idea to elevate Polignac to that position?

Doesn’t he know there have always been rumors that Polignac had an affair with Mary Antoinette, the Queen to Louis XVI?”

This practice is nothing short of provoking the domestic opposition to their faces.

How has France, for more than a hundred years, always had monarchs who are mediocre in ability but exceptionally confident?

Is it because France had a Napoleon that God decided it was unfair to other countries, and so He merely balanced things out?”

Sir Robert Peel, the Home Secretary, spoke, “No matter how you look at it, revolution in France is never good news for Great Britain.

The French Revolution caused upheaval within our own nation, producing countless individuals eager to emulate a madman like Robespierre.

Moreover, due to the Catholic Emancipation Act as well as issues with corrupt electoral districts, public sentiment against the government is already at a high.

We must do our best to temper these overly agitated feelings and handle diplomatic matters involving France with caution.”

“Alas…”

The Duke of Wellington sighed deeply, “Robert, this is my concern as well.

We had just managed to suppress public opinion temporarily with His Majesty the King’s death, but now France has stirred up another revolution.

Doesn’t this mean that His Majesty has died in vain?

After all the difficulty he had in his life to do something good, we can’t let his efforts go to waste.”

Having said this, he then turned to the Earl of Aberdeen, the Foreign Secretary, and commanded, “George, later on, send someone to the London Financial City to find Nathan and tell him to come to Downing Street to see me immediately.

Their postal service is the best in Europe, no one has more current news than they do.

If I remember correctly, it takes only three days for information from Paris to reach his hands.

In times like this, we need their messengers’ assistance.”

“As you command, Your Grace.”

As the discussion continued, the Duke of Wellington turned his gaze back to Sir Robert Peel, “Robert, how goes your liaison with Hesketh?

We need his support as well.”

Sir Robert Peel smiled, “William said he would attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Manchester to Liverpool railway, but on whether he will declare support for you, he has not yet made up his mind.

However, he frankly admitted that the courage you showed in advancing the Catholic Emancipation Act took him by surprise and has somewhat changed his view of you as a conservative, and therefore he is quite willing to discuss other reforms with you.

If you can come to an agreement, he does not mind leading the more than thirty MPs of the Hesketh faction back into the fold of the Tory Party.”

The Duke of Wellington nodded slightly, “I trust we will have a good start.”

“By the way,” Sir Robert Peel added, “about the security work for the day of the ribbon-cutting ceremony, I’ve already made arrangements.

The safety on-site will be entrusted to Police Superintendent Hastings from Scotland Yard, you shouldn’t have any objections, right?”

“Of course not, he’s a fine young man, leaving it to him is definitely not a problem.”

The Duke of Wellington pondered for a moment, then suddenly said.

“Right, the body snatching case was resolved so excellently, it’s also time to fulfill our promise of a pay raise for Scotland Yard.

After all, it’s a sensitive period now, and it’s time to soothe our respectable officers.

They don’t have it easy; I’ve heard that there are over a dozen large gatherings for public speeches in London every day, and the police are running around, monitoring and maintaining order at the venues.

It would truly be a shame not to give them a raise.”

Upon hearing this, Sir Robert Peel, smiled and said, “Since you’ve brought this up, I also want to report a new development in police affairs to you.

Given the notorious reputation of the French police, the public in Great Britain has held a profound prejudice against the newly established Scotland Yard.

This prejudice and antagonism are particularly fierce at the venues for speeches.

In recent days, I’ve received multiple reports of police officers being beaten near these venues.

Therefore, to address the increasingly chaotic situation, I plan to temporarily authorize some police officers to perform plainclothes duties when necessary.

This way, we can not only ensure the safety of the officers on duty but also collect the necessary intelligence.

What do you think of this decision?”

On hearing this, Wellington’s eyes lit up immediately.

“Robert, you mean, undercover work?”