shadow of britain

Chapter 727 The Duchess's Unwelcome Request

The Duchess of Kent seemed to be very familiar with Arthur: "I have heard more than one person praise Sir Arthur's achievements in natural philosophy. The female scholars of the Blue Stocking Society, Mrs. Somerville, Mrs. Milbanke and Mrs. Codrington all spoke highly of him. And I found that Royal Navy officers like you also recognized Sir Arthur. I remember General Codrington seemed to have mentioned privately that he had planned to hire Sir Arthur as his scientific secretary, but the Ministry of the Interior insisted on not letting him go, and the Admiralty did not cooperate with the personnel transfer, so in the end it could only be left unresolved."

Cochran laughed when he heard this and said, "Come on, what on earth is General Codrington thinking? The position of scientific secretary is not suitable for Arthur. He clearly saw Arthur kill more than a dozen Barbary pirates in a boarding battle. It would be a waste not to enlist such a talent in the Marine Corps."

The Duchess of Kent was just being polite, but from what Cochrane meant, she realized that these Royal Navy generals' admiration for Arthur was more than just politeness.

This is a strange thing, because traditionally, the Royal Navy's position has always been Whig, while the Army's position has been Tory. Although Scotland Yard does not belong to the Army system, their personnel composition really makes it difficult for outsiders not to identify Scotland Yard as a government department of the Army system.

Of course, the different positions of the Army and the Royal Navy do not mean that the two sides are necessarily incompatible, but if you want to gain the recognition of the other side, you have to show some solid results.

Nelson of the Royal Navy was equally respected in the Army, and the Duke of Wellington of the Army was still regarded as a national hero in the Royal Navy.

The Duchess of Kent suddenly thought of Arthur's most well-known nickname in the police system. Even if the status of this "Wellington of Scotland Yard" in the police system could not reach that of the Duke of Wellington in the army, it should not be far behind.

And in terms of personal experience, he does have some similarities with both Wellington and Nelson.

As we all know, the Duke of Wellington lived to defeat Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, while Lord Nelson died on the eve of his victory at Trafalgar.

And as for Sir Arthur Hastings?
He completed the stability maintenance work on the eve of parliamentary reform in a half-hearted manner.

Half Nelson, half Wellington, it seems not difficult to understand why such a person is respected.

Moreover, apart from these army and navy officers, Sir Arthur also had a very high reputation in the ladies' social circles.

The ladies of the Blue Stockings supported him for his achievements in natural philosophy, and the ladies of the Allmark Club had a favorable opinion of the pianist and conductor of the Third Orchestra of the London Philharmonic Society.

Those ladies who love reading care more about Mr. Arthur Sigmar's literary reputation, and they firmly believe in the praise of Arthur in the works of famous writers such as Heine, Dickens, and Dumas.

If you don't know what to read for tea time, pick up a copy of Arthur Sigmar. This is not just an empty statement made by ladies.

Even two days ago, the Duchess of Kent heard in her daughter's mathematics class that the mathematics teacher, Mr. Thomas Stewart, praised Arthur for his use of statistical methods during the investigation of cholera in Liverpool.

You know, this mathematics teacher from Westminster School is always serious and rarely talks except for teaching. However, even such a person has to mention Arthur Hastings when talking about statistical problems. What does this show?
I have no idea what the Duchess of Kent thinks of this phenomenon.

However, some people believe that this shows that in addition to teaching in Westminster, Mr. Stewart should also be a member of the Westminster Constituency Association, and Sir Arthur Hastings may have invited him to dinner or had a chat with him recently.

Of course, all of the above speculations are unfounded, and I have not found any credible sources in the relevant materials.

Therefore, this may just be a malicious attack launched by a small group of people who have bad intentions towards Sir Arthur Hastings out of jealousy, hatred and other negative emotions. Or, this group of people may have received special funds from the Foreign Office that are not visible to the public from Palmerston.

As the saying goes, a man of integrity fears no slander. No matter how others slander him, Arthur's good reputation in London's social circles cannot be changed.

Thinking of this, the Duchess of Kent habitually wanted to introduce her daughter to this celebrity.

In the more than ten years since her husband's death, the long-term neglect of parliament and the hostility from within the royal family have fueled the insecurity of the Princess of Saxe-Coburg. She always wanted to expose her daughter to as many influential people in society as possible and try to impress them.

Sometimes these prominent figures were not necessarily great nobles, nor did they necessarily hold high positions of power. Wilberforce, the leader of the abolition movement, O'Connell, the leader of the Irish Home Rule movement, and Elder Carter's predecessor, the "King of Historical Novels" Sir Walter Scott, were all targets for wooing.

Even in the Duchess of Kent's plan, such people are even more important than the great nobles, because although they do not have much power, the public opinion they create is stronger than that of the great nobles.

For a moment the Duchess felt a little annoyed.

A man like Arthur deserved more than a few small talk at a ball; he should at least have received a formal invitation to visit Kensington Palace, and it had to be a full afternoon with dinner.

If Victoria could get the clear support of this soul figure of Scotland Yard, cultural and artistic celebrity, European leader in electromagnetism, and direct disciple of Lord Brougham, it would definitely affect many groups' first impression of the future queen.

The Duchess of Kent tried her best to impress Arthur, but she didn't have to work so hard.

Because no matter what she said, Sir Arthur, who was known for his "virtue", would agree. Both parties had demands on each other, so business would naturally be easy to do.

After much thought, the Duchess decided to pick a topic that Arthur might be interested in and gradually lead the conversation to her daughter.

She deliberately did not use German or French, but spoke English that sounded half-baked: "I heard that you are currently setting up an education agency, the new Dean of the University of London? Lord Brougham is really good at picking you right away."

Arthur was adept at handling educational topics, and if he were not so young, he could even give himself the title of educator.

He served as Dean of Academic Affairs at the University of London, as a special national representative at the University of Göttingen, and delivered an academic report at Moscow University that was unanimously approved by hundreds of professors.

Britain, Germany, Russia, which of these countries' famous universities has Arthur not visited?

Faraday, Gauss, Ohm, Ampere, Poisson... Arthur chatted and laughed with them.

If there is no theorem or scientific unit named after you, how can you have the nerve to call yourself a natural philosophy researcher, and how can you have the nerve to speak in front of the knight?
The Duchess of Kent passed on the message comfortably, and Arthur took it smoothly.

"I have no way to repay Lord Brougham's trust. He believes that I can manage the University of London well, so I can only do my job conscientiously and responsibly."

Arthur replied casually, "However, I believe that Lord Brougham's choice was not based solely on my past experience and scientific achievements, but also on my good relationship with my colleagues in the field of natural philosophy. After all, education is a collective work, and it is definitely not enough to rely on one person alone. Although I regret that I was unable to invite Mr. Faraday to join the University of London, fortunately Mr. Whetstone accepted our invitation. With his help, I believe that the University of London will soon build a first-class electromagnetic laboratory in Europe."

The Duchess of Kent was slightly surprised when she heard this and said, "Wasn't the electromagnetic laboratory of the University of London assigned to you to lead? In the field of electromagnetism, aren't you the second best in the UK after Mr. Faraday?"

Arthur smiled and shook his head. "Your Highness, you probably believed the rumors. I know that many natural philosophy enthusiasts prefer me, so I am given the title of Britain's second. But in fact, there are many outstanding electromagnetic scholars in Britain, and Mr. Charles Wheatstone is one of them. I think it is obviously a better choice for him to lead the laboratory."

The Duchess of Kent did not believe Arthur's words because Faraday had once praised Arthur's outstanding talent in front of her.

She clearly remembered the words of the scientific leader of the Royal Society: "I have no doubt that if he is willing to focus his main energy on research, it will only be a matter of time before he surpasses me. Arthur's biggest flaw is the same as his teacher Lord Brougham, that is, he is not focused enough and does not have the determination to continue to study in a certain field, but it is undeniable that they are both equally talented."

"You are so modest. No wonder so many people like you." The Duchess of Kent praised her half sincerely and half flatteringly. "For most people, it is not easy to shine in a certain field. However, your name spans so many fields. What is even more commendable is that you have been so successful in all the fields you are involved in."

Hearing this, the loudmouthed General Cochrane seemed to have thought of something and suddenly spoke up, "By the way, Your Highness, weren't you worried about the examination before? His Majesty the King has no objection to the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of London being the examiners in grammar and religion. Miss Taglioni will examine dance, and St. James's Palace has no doubts. There should be no problem in passing the candidates in art and music, but the only problem is in natural philosophy and history..."

Conroy, who was standing by, also woke up from his dream when he heard this. He turned to the Duchess and asked, "Your Highness, I think General Cochrane's idea is indeed worth considering. What do you think?"

Arthur was confused by them: "Assessment? What are you talking about?"

The Duchess of Kent looked at Conroy for advice, and when he nodded slightly, she began to explain.

"You must know that I have been doing my best to train Victoria over the years, hoping that she will become a competent queen in the future?"

“Of course, everyone thinks you’re a great educator.”

"Thank you for your recognition. However, whether my education is outstanding or not, whether Victoria has learned well or not, cannot be determined by words, but by exams. Therefore, in order to let the citizens of London and the people of Britain know whether their future queen is competent, and to let His Majesty the King have full confidence in his heir. I hope that the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of London can serve as the chief examiners to organize a special examination of Victoria's studies and report her various results to His Majesty the King. If necessary, I also hope to take the transcript to the Royal Meeting and let the Privy Council advisers circulate it for supervision."

Arthur guessed that given the Duchess of Kent's strict attitude towards the Crown Prince's education, there would most likely be quantifiable standards such as exams involved.

But what he didn't expect was that the crown prince's education not only included quizzes in class, but even the final examination results had to be submitted to the royal court.

For Princess Victoria, this is naturally stressful, but for the teachers, the pressure may not be much less than that for the candidates.

Conroy added: "Kensington Palace submitted an application to His Majesty the King a week ago, but the palace has not yet approved it. Sometimes it is because of the examiner's schedule conflict, sometimes it is because the examination subjects are not comprehensive, and now it is believed that the level of some examiners cannot match the high standard of education of the British Crown Prince..."

Conroy didn't explain it clearly, but that didn't prevent us from understanding it.

The bottom line is that King William IV was unwilling to conduct a public assessment in a high-profile manner.

If Victoria did well in the exam, it would not only steal his limelight, but would also encourage her mother's arrogance and enhance the Duchess of Kent's reputation.

If Victoria did not do well in the exam, although the Duchess of Kent would be embarrassed, but if the Crown Prince did not perform well, how decent could he be as a king?
Especially since the UK has just completed parliamentary reform, there are still some voices in the country calling for the abolition of the monarchy and the establishment of a republican government. If news comes out that the crown prince is incompetent, it will give people more reason to criticize.

Moreover, there is controversy over the specific selection of examiners.

From the beginning to the end, the examiners appointed by Kensington Palace were all appointed by themselves. William IV hated this behavior of contempt for his king's power and preventing him from interfering in the education of the crown prince.

Therefore, regardless of whether he would take the exam in the end, whether it was public or private, he would delay it for a while and take the opportunity to disgust Kensington Palace.

But even though William IV resorted to delaying tactics, Kensington Palace's enthusiasm for holding the exam did not diminish in the slightest. The Duchess of Kent had insisted on accompanying her daughter to study for ten years, so she was very confident about her daughter's education.

Will Victoria fail the exam?

This was never an option for her.

Since she was determined to take the exam, in order to convince William IV, she was willing to make concessions to the king on the issue of the selection of examiners.

Of course, in order to prevent William IV from deliberately sending some difficult examiners, they also planned to keep some options.

The result of her discussion with Conroy was to select several candidates from among social figures with excellent reputation and connection with Kensington Palace, expand the list of examiners available, no longer strictly specify examiners for each subject, and leave the final decision to William IV.

Kensington Palace took a step back, which would give William IV some leeway and at least prevent the sailor king from losing his temper at St. James's Palace.

(End of this chapter)