shadow of britain

Chapter 693: Taking Hastings and Breaking the Kensington System
1, London, Duke of Wellington's residence.

The charcoal fire burned in the fireplace, making a slight crackling sound and casting a calm, warm light on the heavy oak furniture in the study.

Outside the window, the city fog along the Thames River has not yet dissipated, and the early spring morning chill seeps in through the window cracks.

The Duke of Wellington, with pure white sideburns, stood by the fireplace, holding a crystal glass of brandy in his hand, staring sharply at the military map on the wall.

Sitting on the sofa on the other side was Arthur's old boss, Sir Robert Peel.

He sat firmly in his chair, holding a document between his fingers. He thought for a moment, then raised his head and said, "Your Majesty's patience is almost exhausted?"

The Duke of Wellington put down his cup upon hearing this, turned around and looked at Peel and said, "His Majesty really cannot tolerate his sister-in-law, and the Duchess of Kent also hates him in return. There is no smoothness or tolerance in their relationship, so it is inevitable that they are in a state of confrontation and cause resentment. Of course, you and I both know that although His Majesty often speaks harshly and inappropriately, he is actually a rare good-tempered nobleman who does not harbor malicious intent. But then again, if you can't handle it well, then you have to be careful of the storm that may come at any time, and the Duchess of Kent is currently in this situation."

Sir Peel quite agreed with the Duke of Wellington's ideas, or rather, he disliked the Duchess of Kent as much as the king did.

This was not only due to their incompatibility of tempers, but also because as the leader of the Tory Party, Sir Peel really hated the Duchess of Kent for placing her beloved daughter, the future Queen of England, in a completely Whig education environment, and for looking down on Britain's traditional virtues, lifestyle and Tories.

The Duchess of Kent has been married to Britain from Germany for 16 years. She should have learned English long ago, but as of last week, the princess from the House of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld still insisted on speaking German and French in social occasions.

If she really had no talent in languages, perhaps people would not be so angry, but the Duke of Wellington and others had long heard from her best friend, Mrs. Leven, that the Duchess of Kent not only spoke English, but also spoke it very fluently and elegantly.

The Tories were thus left with no choice but to define her actions as an intentional embarrassment to themselves, a group of traditional gentlemen who admired old England.

If she was just an ordinary noble lady, the Tories would have tolerated her out of courtesy to ladies.

But what they couldn't accept was that this lady was the mother of the Crown Prince!

What's worse is that according to the Regency Act of 1831 passed by the Whig Party, if Princess Victoria is not yet an adult when she succeeds to the throne in the future, then the Duchess of Kent, who will be the Queen Mother, will take over the king's power as regent!

A regent with such a Whig ideology was undoubtedly a devastating blow to the Tory Party. Especially after the passage of parliamentary reform, the Tory Party was struggling. They could not accept this situation of being attacked from all sides as an established fact.

The only good news amidst all the bad news is that His Majesty King William IV also hates that woman. After the turmoil of the Parliamentary Reform, William IV, who has supported the Whig Party since his youth, is now switching sides to the Tory Party.

Sir Peel commented: "That woman is so reckless!"

The Duke of Wellington nodded in agreement. "She is only thinking about her own position, her own responsibilities, her obligations, and her daughter. She only knows that she is the mother of the heir to the British throne. Therefore, the government must quickly place her in an appropriate position so that she can have the priority of the Princess of Wales and allocate a large annuity to her from the inner treasury. But she has not considered at all what this request will look like in the eyes of His Majesty the King. His Majesty the King does not have a legitimate heir, but he has not completely given up this idea. But looking at the Duchess of Kent's behavior, it seems that the throne is already in her daughter's pocket."

Sir Peel felt troubled when he thought about it. "If the unfortunate thing happens and Britain really needs a regent, I would rather support Queen Adelaide. She is kind, thrifty, and family-loving. She is even willing to accept the illegitimate children of His Majesty the King and Lady Jordan before marriage as family members. She showed such precious qualities long before His Majesty the King ascended the throne, and her behavior has never changed after she became queen. May the merciful God bless her to give birth to a legitimate heir to Britain as soon as possible. I can't imagine how terrible it would be to see the Duchess of Kent giving orders at the Privy Council meeting."

The Duke of Wellington waved his hand to signal the servant to pour a glass of wine for Sir Peel, and then he said, "As an adult, it is very difficult to change her ideas. As for the regent, His Majesty the King said to me in a huff at St. James' Palace a few days ago that he must live until the day when Princess Victoria comes of age, even if he hangs on for life. In this way, the Duchess of Kent will not become the regent."

Sir Peel laughed dumbly: "Your Majesty is angry about the parade, right?"

"That's right." The Duke of Wellington also thought it was nonsense. "I admit that as the heir to the British throne, Princess Victoria should see various parts of the UK. Therefore, she traveled to the West, the Midlands, and Wales for three consecutive summers to broaden her horizons. This is completely understandable. However, openly publishing the princess's itinerary in the newspapers has attracted the attention of enthusiastic people, and the local people have held welcome ceremonies. Loyal citizens have given welcome speeches everywhere, just like the king's tour. This is..."

Sir Peel added: "I heard that when the Princess's cruise passed through the Solent this year, the Duchess of Kent insisted that all the ships and batteries in the Isle of Wight naval harbour should fire a royal salute when the cruise arrived. Was that resolved?"

The Duke of Wellington replied, "You mean that incident? At that time, the Isle of Wight garrison immediately consulted Grey (Prime Minister) and Graham (Secretary of the Navy). After they learned about it, they hurriedly wrote to the Duchess of Kent privately, begging her to give up this right. But she was not the kind of person who would listen to advice, and with Conroy (the Duchess of Kent's private secretary and auditor general) instigating her, she naturally refused to give in. As a result, the matter reached the ears of His Majesty the King, who was so angry that he directly signed a special order, from now on, strictly prohibiting the Royal Navy from firing royal salutes to any ship unless the ship carried the reigning monarch or queen."

"Conroy, John Conroy again!" Sir Peel almost wanted to overturn the table when he heard the name: "That ignorant, pretentious Irishman! He shouldn't think that others don't understand what's in his mind!"

It is not easy to make a man like Sir Peel, who is known for his gentleness and cultivation, lose his temper. The reason why he dislikes Conroy so much is closely related to the "Kensington System" that Conroy has been helping the Duchess of Kent to build over the past 10 years.

In Conroy's view, the Kensington system was designed to make Princess Victoria "the hope of the nation" by controlling and protecting her physical health and public image.

However, insiders working at Kensington Palace believe that the principle of the Kensington system is to enhance the political influence of the Duchess of Kent. Only in this way, when necessary, will the government and Parliament agree to let her be regent.

Otherwise, if William IV died before Victoria came of age, the regency would be held by one of the royal dukes, such as the Duke of Cumberland or the Duke of Sussex.

However, no matter how tight the system is, it is impossible to be airtight. Even if the Duchess of Kent and Conroy hope to make Kensington Palace an iron barrel, in fact, there are three complex forces around Princess Victoria. Although they may not always be hostile on different issues, it does not mean that they are of one mind.

Apart from the Duchess' influence, her brother, King Leopold I of Belgium, also had a say in his niece's education.

Leopold I's ex-wife was Princess Charlotte, the former British Crown Princess, who died in childbirth. Before he became King of Belgium in 1831, this prince of a small German state had been a widower in England for more than ten years.

Before Princess Victoria was officially confirmed as the first in line to the throne, Parliament only allocated an annual pension of 7,000 pounds to the Duke of Kent's family.

Although this amount of money was an astronomical figure that the working people could not even imagine, it was still not enough for the royal family members who had to maintain the dignity of the nobility. The Duke of Kent even had to sell his real estate and land for 51300 pounds to maintain his basic life.

After the Duke of Kent died of illness, the life of the widowed Duchess of Kent became even more difficult, not only because the family had lost its breadwinner, but also because their annual income was reduced by Parliament to 6000 pounds a year.

Fortunately, her younger brother Leopold was once the husband of Princess Charlotte, the heir to the British throne. In addition, he had a very likable personality and was generally well-liked by the people. Therefore, even after Princess Charlotte's death, Parliament did not cut Leopold's annual pension of 50000 pounds.

Seeing how hard life was for his sister, Leopold took the initiative to cover the daily expenses of his sister's family, especially the education expenses of Princess Victoria. This subsidy was around 10,000 pounds per year, and after Leopold became the King of Belgium, he generously covered the annual travel expenses of his sister's family.

Not only Princess Victoria herself loved her generous and kind uncle Leopold, but the servants and attendants at Kensington Palace also loved this generous prince very much and were sincerely happy that he had obtained the Belgian throne.

As for Leopold, he paid so much money and controlled most of the financial resources of his sister's family, so naturally he had a very important say in household affairs.

The Belgian king had long been dissatisfied with his sister's obedience to his private secretary John Conroy, and could not tolerate this guy's control over almost all affairs of Kensington Palace. So he tried his best to persuade his sister to accept a Hanoverian governess named Letzen to teach his niece and thereby weaken Conroy's influence.

In addition to the influence of her uncle Leopold, the Duchess of Kent's maid, Baroness Spath, Victoria's nanny, Mrs. Brock, and Mrs. Louise all followed the Duke and Duchess of Kent when they were newly married.

Although these ladies did not have obvious preferences, it was obvious that they all disliked Conroy. Moreover, the leader, Baroness Spath, had a close relationship with the Duke of Wellington. Almost all the secrets of Kensington Palace that the Duke knew were revealed to him by this lady.

The latest news that the Duke of Wellington learned was that Mrs. Letzen, the female governess who represented Uncle Leopold, had always encouraged Victoria not to give up. This aroused the anger of the Duchess of Kent, who had just accused Letzen of being disloyal to the Kensington system and believed that she must pack up and leave. This also caused Princess Victoria, who was close to Mrs. Letzen, to stop talking to her mother out of anger. However, such behavior would only have a counterproductive effect, and it made the Duchess of Kent more determined to fire Letzen.

The Duke of Wellington recounts the series of changes taking place inside Kensington Palace.

The more Sir Peel listened, the more he felt that this was an opportunity. He asked, "Could it be that His Majesty the King..."

The Duke of Wellington nodded slightly. "If Leizen is fired, they will have to find a new person to fill the vacancy. His Majesty is now worried about how to select a suitable candidate and send him to Kensington without making a fuss."

Sir Peel leaned back on the sofa with a glass of wine in his hand, which was spinning slowly between his fingers. "We must admit that the Duchess of Kent is not an easy woman to deal with. Her arrogance, her stubbornness, and especially her desire for power, make her hostile to any external influence. We want to insert a candidate, and we must first ensure that this person will not immediately arouse her disgust. He cannot be the kind of guy who can be seen at first glance to be deeply influenced by the Tories. It would even be better if he looked more like a guy with Whig liberal tendencies..."

The Duke of Wellington closed his eyes and nodded slightly, tapping his fingers on the table: "Continue..."

Sir Peel put down his glass, put his hands behind his back, and walked slowly, saying, "More importantly, this person must be smart and skillful enough to be able to navigate the complex environment of Kensington Palace with ease. He must not only be able to gain the princess's trust, but also be able to deal with Conroy, and even pass on key intelligence to the king and us when necessary..."

At this point, Pierre stopped talking. He was silent for a while, then smiled bitterly and said, "I'm sorry, sir, I have to admit that it's very difficult to find someone who meets these two requirements. It can almost be said that there is no candidate."

The Duke of Wellington opened his eyes, raised his white eyebrows and drank a glass of wine: "I do have a candidate, but most people may not dare to use him."

"You mean?"

"Arthur Hastings." The Duke of Wellington chuckled. "If he could use half of his ability to build files on the MPs in Kensington Palace, and if he could use all his ruthlessness, I think Conroy would probably be no match for our Officer Arthur."

"Yes!" Sir Peel joked, "If things don't work out, he can still order the shooting. I hope that guy can be smart this time. If he lies in the coffin and plays some 'resurrection' again, the Archbishop of Canterbury will be crazy."

The Duke of Wellington asked, "Robert, I am not kidding you. I am really considering him seriously. What do you think of this candidate?"

"Arthur Hastings..." Sir Peel repeated the name over and over again. "Hastings has served in Scotland Yard for many years. Although I was the one who promoted him from patrolman to inspector, he was lucky. However, his rapid rise to the position of assistant inspector does show his excellent personal qualities. He knows how to read people's expressions and gain advantages in complex situations. At the same time, he also has a good reputation in the fields of natural philosophy and culture and art. He is not just a bureaucrat or scholar, but a person who has worked his way up through the mud with his own abilities."

The Duke of Wellington echoed: "Although his iron-fisted suppression of riots during the parliamentary reforms has earned him a bad reputation in the public opinion circle, it is what we need. He is not a weak, fussy gentleman, but a capable and practical young man."

Sir Peel expressed his concern: "But because of this, he is probably an unpopular person among those guys who like to write editorials in Fleet Street. The Duchess of Kent and Conroy will take this into consideration. I think they are unlikely to allow a person with such negative public opinion to get close to Princess Victoria and implicate her."

"Negative public opinion? That was in the past!" The Duke of Wellington pushed a newspaper on the table in front of Sir Peel. "Look at what this is! This guy, together with David Urquhart, caused a big mess in the Caucasus. Although I don't like his reckless actions, I have to say that his public opinion image in Fleet Street is about to turn around. He supports the Circassians who resist the Tsarist rule spiritually and materially. Look at the headlines and disgusting flattery of him in the Times! This kid is about to become the embodiment of liberalism!"

Pierre took the newspaper and took a look at it, and his jaw almost dropped in shock: "This... Isn't he a diplomat in Russia now? If he does this..."

The Duke of Wellington waved his hand and said, "Not anymore. He just submitted his resignation yesterday and has even returned to London. This guy did it on purpose. He created a mess for Palmerston and almost ruined Daramore."

Sir Peel took a deep breath. "If that's the case, considering his reputation in the academic world, his good relationship with Faraday and others, and his work with Gauss and others at the University of Göttingen, the Duchess of Kent might take this into consideration..."

The Duke of Wellington reminded him, "And Leopold may not object to this guy becoming a tutor. Don't forget that he also played a role in Leopold's becoming the King of Belgium at the London Conference. For this, I even gave that kid a bottle of Château d'Yquem."

"As for the Duchess of Kent..." Sir Peel paused, then suddenly smiled and said, "If we can recommend him in the name of Lord Brougham, the Duchess may not refuse immediately."

Upon hearing this, the Duke of Wellington couldn't help but laugh: "You have thought it through."

Sir Peel smiled and sat down. "Then let's see if our capable officer, Officer Arthur, is willing to accept this mission."

Upon hearing this, the Duke of Wellington smiled slyly: "Believe me, he will be willing."

"Are you so sure?"

"Of course!"

The old duke stood up and walked to the window. Within his sight, a carriage slowly stopped on the side of the street and a familiar figure walked out of the carriage.

"He'd better volunteer." The Duke of Wellington sipped the brandy in his glass. "Otherwise, don't expect me to wipe the Caucasian's ass for him."

(End of this chapter)