Chapter 368 Britain's Diplomatic Decision

85 Downing Street, Westminster, London, Foreign Office of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

The exquisite carvings on the exterior walls, the magnificent columns and the majestic gates, in terms of architecture, its appearance alone is enough to illustrate its splendor. But in fact, this is just the tip of the iceberg. The truly breathtaking exquisite design and magnificent style are hidden under its already extraordinary appearance, just like the two words that British gentlemen like to talk about the most - low-key and luxurious.

Exquisite murals, gilded ceilings and floors paved with pure marble from the coasts of Greece and Sicily.

The sun shines directly on the black-edged handrails of the State Staircase through the hollow dome, and the slightly dry palms on the handrails seem to emit brilliant brilliance along with the aquamarine on the ring.

Viscount Palmerston is accompanied by a luxurious gentleman who is a few years older than him, wearing a crimson deerskin cloak and riding boots.

Judging from the little brown clay on the old gentleman's boots, he should have just had a pleasant country hunting this morning.

Although Viscount Palmerston has always been arrogant and his attitude towards his subordinates can even be described as harsh, the Viscount's attitude towards the old gentleman around him today can be described as polite.

The reasons for his doing so are mainly due to the following points.

First of all, the old gentleman was born into an aristocratic family. His father and uncle were both famous generals in the British Army. Not only that, his uncle even served as the Governor of Virginia and British North America before the independence of the United States.

Such unique conditions naturally won the old gentleman some innate advantages in British politics. But what is more commendable is that he made full use of these advantages.

Although he is not as passionate about military affairs as the elders in the family, he has shown superhuman talent in communication.

At the beginning of his political career, the old gentleman served as a palace attendant for nine years, and was deeply trusted by the royal family because he handled the affairs of the inner court in an orderly manner.

As a close friend of the royal family, the British court liked to send him to deal with many unresolved matters.

For example, when the Napoleonic Wars were in full swing, he was sent to serve as the ambassador to Naples to deal with Napoleon's brother-in-law, King Murat of Naples.

Or he was selected as an advisor to the Privy Council, the highest authority in the UK.

Of course, the most talked-about story is his visit to the Qing Dynasty as an ambassador special and plenipotentiary in 1816.

Although the result of that visit was not good, it earned the old gentleman the title of an expert on Oriental issues in British politics. Therefore, after the Marquis of Hastings, the Governor-General of India, was recalled to the country for trial due to a corruption scandal, the old gentleman who was deeply trusted by the royal family was naturally sent to India to rectify the government.

During his tenure as the Governor-General of India, although the colonial government did not perform well in the Anglo-Burmese War, it took a full 13 million pounds of military expenses and more than 10,000 casualties to capture this small Southeast Asian state.

But generally speaking, India did not have any major problems during his term, and he also helped Britain further consolidate its rule in northern India. Therefore, after he ended his term as governor-general, he was officially named the first Earl of Amherst.

However, although Earl of Amherst is now semi-retired and his health is not very good, he has long maintained a strong friendship with Tory dignitaries such as the Duke of Wellington and Sir Peel.

In addition, he is a senior diplomat and still holds the title of chamberlain, so he has a very close relationship with the royal family. Therefore, Viscount Palmerston should at least give this senior enough face in terms of etiquette.

Not to mention, the reason why Earl of Amherst came to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs today was because Palmerston took the initiative to invite him.

Palmerston accompanied Amherst, slightly bent his neck and asked softly.

"Since you left the post of Governor-General of India in 1828, this position has been taken over by Lord William Bentinck. Judging from the various documents, reports and statistics currently fed back from India, Lord Bentinck has completed his task very well, and our commercial profits in India have also risen with the good governance level there.

However, I just learned from the Colonial Affairs Department recently that Lord Bentinck seems to have recently carried out his reform experiment in India in a big way. Although abolishing the barbaric customs of widows burning themselves to death is indeed a civilized and progressive move.

However, thinking of the fact that Lord Bentinck banned Indian soldiers from growing beards and wearing turbans when he was the Governor of Madras in India in his early years, which almost caused a mutiny, I still feel a little worried. When If it weren't for his father, the old Duke of Portland, who was serving as prime minister and recalled him to the country in time to give him a cold shoulder, Lord Bentinck's political career would have almost been ruined.

Although so many years have passed, Lord Bentinck's energy has obviously not changed. Now it seems that his thoughts have been poisoned by utilitarians like Bentham, which is obviously more profound than we expected. "

Hearing this, Earl Amherst poked the floor with his cane a little harder, and said lightly without turning his head: "Perhaps you should talk to our honorable Lord Chief Justice Brougham about this. When it comes to Bentham's supporters, I'm afraid there are not many who hold more power than him. "

Viscount Palmerston also heard the gunpowder in the other party's words, and he smiled and comforted him.

"Of course, Bentham's ideas are not all bad. For example, the individual should enjoy his inherent financial rights, free trade, freedom of speech and press, etc., and many of these ideas have also been accepted by the government.

However, in my opinion, many of Bentham's initiatives still seem too extreme, such as the direct abolition of slavery, the prohibition of corporal punishment in the military, the separation of state religions, and the legalization of homosexuality, etc. However, overall, I still respect him very much.

Although he was a supporter of the French Revolution, he was also awarded the status of an honorary citizen of France. But there is no doubt that he does want to think about the world and British society, but there is a slight deviation in the way he thinks. "

Count Amherst chuckled: "It seems that we still have some rare commonalities. I also admire Mr. Bentham very much, but the difference between us is that I don't appreciate Bentham's views. I just appreciate him." His personality. Bentham was naive in his words and deeds, but he lived a magnanimous life. Both his views and actions were consistent and traceable.

Correspondingly, I hate those characters like George Canning who regard betrayal and betrayal as a habit. Although I don't want to criticize this kind of behavior, such examples were extremely rare in the past. However, in recent decades, it seems to have become an unwritten rule. Even a student who is still studying will randomly change His face was gone. "

Others may not understand this, but Palmerston understands the meaning of the old earl's words very well.

As a follower of former Prime Minister George Canning, Viscount Palmerston first entered Parliament that year, and one of his first jobs was as a low-level official under the Admiralty. According to Canning's wishes, Viscount Palmerston took risks and formulated plans for the bombardment of Copenhagen and A battle plan to destroy the Danish Navy.

And if you carefully analyze Palmerston's political career, you can also find that he is full of the shadow of Canning who led the way.

They also jumped between the Tory Party and the Whig Party. When Canning was a student, he became friends with several leaders of the Whig Party under the introduction of his uncle. However, after graduation, he chose to join the powerful Tory Party. .

As for Palmerston, he has always shown his firm royalist views in the past, and insisted on dealing with absolutely iron-blooded toughness both internally and externally. However, when he was gradually marginalized in the Tory party, he transformed into a Whig who supported parliamentary reform.

Moreover, both of them were very romantic in their private lives. Three of the seven most respected ladies in the Allmark Club were very fond of Palmerston's humor.

Canning's game was even bigger. He once had an ambiguous personal relationship with George IV's queen, Princess Caroline from Brunswick.

He is also good at debates and speeches, and likes to use an aggressive and oppressive attitude to force his opponents to admit defeat, and often offends people because of this.

Even, they are very similar in blood.

Viscount Palmerston was an authentic Irish nobleman, and Canning's parents were also Irish.

It is precisely because they are so similar that friends' descriptions of Canning and Palmerston can be used interchangeably in many situations.

- He regards politics as child's play and has no regard for principles if they interfere with his goal of gaining power.

Viscount Palmerston knew very well what a bad influence his betrayal of the Tories had on the hearts of those honest old Tories.

However, he always has a reason to defend himself.

"Your Excellency, if you must take Lord Canning as an example. Yes, I am a liberal idealist who passionately believes in the historical mission of Great Britain to spread democratic values ​​throughout the world. If necessary, I will not rule out The possibility of using force. Just like Sir Canning's famous saying - I will create a new world to change the balance of power in the old world."

It is a pity that Earl Amherst did not accept Palmerston's method.

"Really? If that's the case, you should have gone to Liverpool, not Sergeant Hastings, who was shot. You should have stood on the deck of the battleship in the old dock of Liverpool, pointing the muzzle at that Help the businessmen who made their fortune from the slave trade and force them to spit out the bloody money. And if you are really a liberal idealist, you should not criticize Lord Bentinck's work in India, Bentham. Don’t they quite approve of his reforms in India? I read the previous issues of the Westminster Review, and they sang praises for Bentinck.”

Palmerston said sternly: "Of course, Your Excellency, I have made it clear from the beginning that I very much recognize Lord Bentinck's work. However, on some specific details, I still want to consult with you, the official Opinions from experts with rich management experience in India.”

Earl Amherst did not intend to defeat Palmerston on his own territory. The old Earl took out the handkerchief in his breast pocket and blew his nose: "I guess what you are saying is that he plans to cancel the horse race." Do the Governors of Dras and Bombay have the right to issue laws independently?”

Palmerston smiled and nodded: "Actually, it's not just that, there is also the matter of him allowing Indians to be promoted to senior colonial officials."

Count Amherst raised his white eyebrows: "Then it is not important that he improves the salary and status of Indian judges and promotes English reforms in courts and colleges and universities?"

"Of course this is important, but..."

Palmerston smiled and replied: "At this point, I think he has done a good job. As I said before, I think Britain's mission is to spread advanced civilization to the wilderness. If he intends to I have absolutely no problem with replicating the advanced British system in India."

Earl Amherst nodded slightly and said: "It seems that not all of our foreign minister's views are flexible. However, at this point, I must remind you that India is not Britain. There are people there that are several times the size of Britain. land and population, so not all systems can be copied in full.

Of all Bentinck's reforms, only the removal of the power of the two provincial governors of Madras and Bombay to issue laws independently was the most necessary. India needs a strong central government to be better managed, and enacting four or five independent sets of laws in India that do not govern each other is detrimental to our business interests. "

When Palmerston heard this, he just smiled and complimented: "It seems that you and I have more than just one thing in common. I actually agree with this. However, it is obvious that some colleagues in the Whig Party are not the same as others." I have different views. But in my capacity, I am not in a good position to point this out to them face to face. If you are willing to take the time to have a good talk with the three noble Lords of the Indian Governing Council, I believe things will definitely progress. ”

After chatting for a long time, Palmerston revealed his true intentions, which somewhat made Count Amherst a little unhappy.

He said: "Actually, even if you don't take the initiative to mention this matter, I will go to the committee and the Privy Council to talk about this issue, because I have always been consistent and I am not likely to change my views at will."

Having said this, Earl Amherst also patted Viscount Palmerston's arm gently: "Henry, I sometimes think that if you were the one who went to China as ambassador, then the matter would definitely be settled. You know Why? Because you will definitely agree to kneel down to the Chinese Emperor."

Viscount Palmerston's expression changed instantly when he heard this.

Today, because of the affairs in India, he invited Amesh to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to entertain him with smoke and tea, and he also said a lot of good things.

However, this semi-retired veteran Tory cadre stands out as a person who has no desires and desires, does whatever he wants, does whatever he wants, and talks how he wants.

Seeing Palmerston's change of expression, Amherst burst into laughter and said, "Henry, don't be angry. I'm not insulting you, but complimenting you. In fact, when I came back from China, I also stopped by to visit Napoleon. St. Helena Island, the place of exile. After Napoleon heard me talk about his experience as an ambassador, he told me that if he were me, he would definitely kneel down and kowtow to the Chinese emperor, because this is Do as the Romans do. He's flexible, just like you and Canning."

After saying this, Count Amherst did not give Palmerston a chance to speak, and hummed a cheerful ditty and led his attendants out of the hall of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Looking at the old man's brisk legs and feet, it seems that the severe rheumatism he contracted in India has suddenly improved a lot.

Viscount Palmerston stared at the old man's retreating back for a long time. After taking several deep breaths, his clenched fists slowly relaxed.

When the affairs officers in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs saw the minister's appearance, they all fell silent. They walked past him quickly with their heads lowered like chickens pecking at rice, for fear that making any noise would make him angry.

In the silent hall, one could only hear Palmerston's angry low voice: "If it weren't for your age, I would definitely challenge you to a duel!"

The old affairs officers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs looked at each other, and everyone could read the familiarity in each other's eyes.

The ministerial duel can be regarded as a traditional repertoire of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the last cabinet minister to duel...

Oh, maybe the last one is not accurate. To be more precise, the ministers who dueled in the last duel were Viscount Castlereagh, who formulated the principles of European coordination, and Lord Canning, who succeeded Viscount Castlereagh as foreign secretary.

Seeing the minister's appearance, everyone couldn't help but worry about whether they could get off work on time today.

Just as they were thinking about how to get Palmerston to extinguish the fire in time, an old face suddenly walked into the hall - Mr. Schneider, the Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who had met Arthur in Liverpool.

Schneider obviously did not notice the subtle changes in the air. He walked towards Viscount Palmerston with a smile on his face.

Just when everyone thought that this boy was going to be in bad luck today, Viscount Palmerston suddenly had a look of surprise and a smile on his face.

"Oh? My sweetheart is here?"

When Schneider heard this, he just coughed awkwardly and politely: "Your Excellency, at least today you'd better not call Mrs. Leven that. After all, the Russian Ambassador Count Leven also visited the official residence with her."