Make France Great Again-Chapter 920 - 911: Plan for the Partition of the East India Company
With the backing of the Royal Family, Palmerston hurriedly approached Prince Albert, confident in his ability to persuade both Houses to agree to the proposal to increase troops to India.
"That’s good!" Prince Albert nodded slightly, responding with a calm expression, then continued with another question, "By the way, how many troops does the Cabinet plan to send to India to suppress the rebellion?"
"Well..." Palmerston hesitated for a moment, then replied, "The issue of military strength is still in the discussion stage and will require some time.
However, the Minister of War, the Duke of Newcastle, privately informed me!
To thoroughly quell the Indian rebellion, at least 100,000 troops are necessary!"
"100,000?" Prince Albert furrowed his brow slightly and responded to Palmerston, "Even if we combine all the domestic troops, we won’t have 100,000!
Are we going to repeat what we did during the Crimean War?"
What Prince Albert referred to as "what was done during the Crimean War" was the British Government’s indiscriminate action during that period, directly recruiting homeless people off the streets into military service.
This matter drew countless criticisms from the British Newspaper at the time.
"Your Highness, we don’t need to do that!" Palmerston shook his head and explained: "We only need to deploy 30,000 troops from the home front, combined with 5,000 from Cape of Good Hope, 20,000 from Persia, and 10,000 heading to Great Cyan Fruit, along with still loyal Indian Prince forces, to form a massive force to suppress the rebels."
"I see!" Prince Albert revealed an understanding expression, then raised his concern: "Are those Indian Princes really willing to remain loyal to the Kingdom of Britain?"
"Your Highness, as long as we slightly modify our policy towards Indian Princes, many will continue to choose to pledge allegiance to us!" Prime Minister Palmerston stated with confidence.
"What policy?" Prince Albert inquired Palmerston again.
"Your Highness, we only need to announce in the name of Her Majesty the Queen: respect the hereditary rights of the Princes on Indian lands, and cease annexation!
Those Kingdoms will naturally be willing to stand with us!" Palmerston patiently explained to Prince Albert.
"In that case, won’t the East India Company face bankruptcy?" Prince Albert said to Palmerston.
The reason the East India Company hasn’t fallen into financial trouble, and its bond prices continue to rise, is entirely because of the Company’s rampant annexation of Indian territories in recent years.
In fact, as early as nine years ago, the East India Company’s financial situation had already fallen into distress.
At that time, the Indian Governor Da He X (1848—1856) had just taken office, and to prevent the Company from failing during his tenure, he issued the "Doctrine of Escheat" in the name of the Governor’s Mansion, adopting the "territorial confiscation doctrine," and stipulated that when states lacked direct heirs, the Duchies must be handed over to the East India Company for management, while rejecting ancient laws that allowed adopted sons as legal heirs.
Following Da He X’s policies, the East India Company successively annexed Satala, Gpur, Jansi, and other states, and some Princes’ titles were canceled by the Governor’s Mansion, their tributes reduced, and even payments stopped.
During Da He X’s era, nearly one-third of the Princely states were directly managed by the East India Company, losing the middleman profits from the Princes, thus increasing exploitation of farmers, and the feudal class, military, and merchants, having lost their service targets, were also on the brink of bankruptcy.
The annexation executed during Da He X’s time, although beneficial to India’s unification in the long term, these benefits were not enjoyed by the English, but rather by the later Indians, while the English were suffering from the adverse effects of "cutting off the feudal lords."
This is akin to the Xiongnu helping Emperor Jing to physically cut off the Seven Kingdoms, and then the Seven Kingdoms colluding to attack the Xiongnu.
Of course, Britain, this "Xiongnu," was indeed too strong.
In any case, the East India Company was able to develop rapidly only under the conditions of continuing to annex one-third of the land.
In Albert’s view, if Britain announced respect for the interests of feudal lords, then the East India Company would be completely doomed.
"Your Highness, the East India Company isn’t facing bankruptcy, they’ve already gone bankrupt!" Palmerston responded to Prince Albert.
"When did this happen?" Prince Albert was stunned for a few seconds, then asked Palmerston.
"Just now, as I was coming over!" Palmerston replied to Prince Albert.
"How could they learn about events in India so quickly?" Prince Albert asked in confusion.
"Your Highness, with a government like ours, if we have the will, we can find out anything!" Palmerston quipped.
Prince Albert also displayed a bitter smile, nodding in agreement.
In Britain, as long as a newspaper wants to know something, as long as they diligently search, they can always find it.
Even news from the Cabinet is no exception!
"So, we have no choice but to take over a bankrupt East India Company!" Prince Albert then said to Palmerston.
"Your Highness, although the East India Company has gone bankrupt, they still have many high-quality assets under their control!
As long as our government entrusts these quality assets to competent entrepreneurs, they can once again become potential-filled stocks!" Palmerston responded tactfully to Prince Albert.
Of course, Prince Albert understood what Palmerston meant. He simply wanted the British Government to fully take over the bankrupt East India Company and then select valuable assets to sell cheaply.
And the buyers would be the financial backers behind Palmerston’s party.
As for the remaining assets, of course, the entire nation would bear the responsibility together.
Since Palmerston wanted to carve up the carcass of the East India Company, Prince Albert naturally did not want to be left behind either.
Although the Royal Family already had plenty of money, who would ever refuse more?
Prince Albert also tactfully informed Palmerston that Victoria was very fond of Indian artifacts and hoped for an opportunity to be "immersed" in them.
How could Palmerston not understand what Prince Albert meant? He immediately promised to find authentic Indian artifacts for Her Majesty the Queen.
Palmerston and Prince Albert ended their conversation with laughter and cheer.
Afterward, Palmerston took a carriage and left Windsor Castle, the carriage continued for quite some time before entering London City.
On the road to 10 Downing Street, Palmerston contemplated who should be sent to the Lower House (while he himself would go to the Upper House), and after much thought, Palmerston thought of his Minister of Finance, Benjamin Disraeli.
Although Benjamin Disraeli and he were not from the same party, and in terms of ideology, they were even somewhat adversarial (Benjamin Disraeli believed that the land aristocracy should unite with the workers to collectively oppose the rising influence of the middle class and entrepreneurs), Palmerston still admired Benjamin Disraeli’s capabilities regarding the Empire’s finances, and Benjamin Disraeli’s eloquence was also equal to Palmerston’s.
Of course, these were not the most important reasons for Palmerston to choose Benjamin Disraeli.
The reason Palmerston chose Benjamin Disraeli was precisely because Benjamin Disraeli agreed with him on dissolving the East India Company.
Sending Benjamin Disraeli to the Lower House was indeed the most appropriate choice.
No sooner said than done, when the carriage arrived at 10 Downing Street, Palmerston went straight into the Prime Minister’s Residence, first finding the Cabinet Secretary, ordering him to immediately inform Minister of Finance Benjamin Disraeli to come see him, and then directly entered his office to handle unfinished documents.
About half an hour later, Benjamin Disraeli appeared in Palmerston’s office.
"Mr. Prime Minister!" Benjamin Disraeli said to Palmerston without arrogance or servility.
"Disraeli, please sit!" Palmerston gestured for Benjamin Disraeli to sit opposite him.
After Benjamin Disraeli sat down, Palmerston said to Benjamin Disraeli, "Mr. Disraeli, I hope you can represent me in organizing a debate in the Lower House!"
Benjamin Disraeli responded to Prime Minister Palmerston without hesitation, "I can!"
Immediately, Benjamin Disraeli inquired again of Palmerston whether he might address the issue of the East India Company in a query to the Lower House!
"Of course!" Palmerston smiled at Benjamin Disraeli and said: "The reason I chose you is to make the Lower House understand that the indirect governance method of the East India Company has failed, and we must choose direct governance of India!"
"Mr. Prime Minister, I think so too!" Benjamin Disraeli responded to Palmerston with some excitement.
In early July, British Minister of Finance Benjamin Disraeli arrived at the Lower House and delivered a three-hour, passionless speech there.
The members of the Lower House (excluding the backbenchers, as they essentially had no power, so attending the Lower House was just a formality) could be said to have been tormented, yet they had to carefully listen to every word Benjamin Disraeli said.
Because hidden beneath Benjamin Disraeli’s dull speech was a sharp blade, particularly when he linked the recent rebellion in India, former British Governor Da He X’s policies in India, and the East India Company’s mergers in India, and then proposed dissolving the East India Company, which shook the entire Lower House of the Kingdom of Britain.
