The Shadow of Great Britain-Chapter 669 - 327 Impending Mountain Rain_2

In July of the same year, having won with fewer troops, he defeated the French Marshal Auguste Marmont in the Battle of Salamanca, and after capturing the Spanish capital of Madrid, he was promoted to General and awarded the title of Marquis of Wellington.

In 1813, with a swift attack over a great distance, he annihilated the fifty-thousand-strong French army led by Louis’s uncle, Spanish King Joseph Bonaparte, in the Battle of Vitoria, completely driving the French out of the Iberian Peninsula, and penetrated into French territory. With such brilliant military achievements, the King and the Parliament naturally bestowed upon him the highest level of commendation—promoting him to Army Marshal, awarding him the title of Duke of Wellington, and granting him Britain’s highest honor, the ’Knight of the Garter’ medal.

Of course, these were still far from all of the Duke of Wellington’s honors.

As a senior medal collector, Arthur saw in the honor cabinet of his residence at No.1 Apsley House in London medals that included but were not limited to:

The highest honor of the Kingdom of Portugal—the Grand Cross of the Order of the Tower and Sword.

The highest honor of the Kingdom of Spain—the Order of the Golden Fleece.

The highest honor of the Kingdom of Sweden—the First Class Grand Cross of the Order of the Sword.

The highest honor of the Austrian Empire—the Maria Theresa Military Order.

The highest honor of the Russian Empire—the Order of Saint Andrew.

The highest honor of the Kingdom of Prussia—the Order of the Black Eagle.

The highest honor of the Kingdom of Sardinia—the Annunciation Order.

The highest honor of the Two Sicilies Kingdom—the Order of Saint Ferdinand and of Merit.

In addition, there were many highest orders from small German states, as well as medals that Arthur could not even recognize.

Of course, the epitome was His Grace’s eight Marshal’s batons.

It could be said that the Duke of Wellington was just one Legion of Honour away from a complete collection of European medals.

But the fact that he didn’t receive this medal could only be blamed on himself; after all, who made Napoleon abdicate at Waterloo?

Due to Napoleon’s abdication, the award went temporarily out of edition, denying everyone the chance to receive it. If Arthur wanted to catch a glimpse of what that medal looked like, he had to apply through Talleyrand, which was indeed a monstrous crime.

Despite the Duke of Wellington’s peerless and dazzling glory, this does not mean every younger son of the nobility could be as successful as him.

Many in the House of Commons had nothing but a purchased Baronet title or a lower-ranking Knight medal obtained by pulling strings and using backdoors.

Of course, there were also those without even a Baronet or a lower-ranking Knight medal, such as Sir Benjamin Disraeli, who was being attacked in the center stage by a host of Whig Party Representatives.

Mr. Hunter from the Westminster Consortium was relentlessly pounding the table, his face flushed with anger, barraging Disraeli with accusations.

"Between 1721 and 1832, of the 22 Prime Ministers, 13 were from the House of Lords, six were sons of the Nobility, and one was the grandson of the Nobility. Some important positions such as the High Chancellor, Lord Privy Seal, and Lord Chamberlain are also held by the Nobility, and most of Britain’s important diplomats are dominated by the great Nobility!

From 1734 to 1832, three quarters of the members were landowners or their close kin, the rest being either their friends or wealthy merchants and professionals nominated by them. As for the army, that is even more the domain of the Nobility. Our Parliament even explicitly stipulated: Officers should come from families with property! So the army is largely composed of the Land Nobility and landholders.

In the Parliament, I conducted a background check on 558 long-serving members of the House of Commons. The investigation revealed that among them, 107 were sons of the Nobility, 68 were siblings or nephews of the Nobility, 129 were Baronets or their close relatives, meaning that 55% of the House of Commons members have more or less a touch of the Nobility.

With the Parliament and the army controlled by the Nobility and local judicial and administrative powers in the hands of the reputable gentry, Britain’s vast workers, farmers, and small craftsmen were excluded from national power. Britain’s current government is not one that represents merchants, nor farmers, it represents the Nobility who make up less than one in ten thousand of the national population!

This is a typical oligarchic nobility, with power concentrated in the hands of a few. If Parliament cannot represent all of Britain’s people, Disraeli, how can you continuously shamelessly claim that you are the representative of the people? How can you shamelessly say that reform of the Parliament is unnecessary!"

Upon hearing Hunter’s interrogation, Disraeli merely wrinkled his nose and hummed softly, "Mr. Hunter, I have never said that I am firmly against the reform of the Parliament. However, I believe that reform should be progressive, a gentle change. If you insist that we must immediately implement universal suffrage, well, then you must first persuade those Whig Party colleagues who stand with you in the same gutter. This is Parliament, not a bazaar for haggling. If you can’t first get your own act together, any discussion here is superfluous..."

Arthur, leaning on the railing of the second floor, couldn’t help but comment while listening to Disraeli’s speech at the central podium of the Parliament, "It seems Benjamin has quickly gotten accustomed to his new duties."

Great Dumas, who was nearby, heard Disraeli’s remarks and couldn’t help shaking his head, "Benjamin, the young man sure knows how to keep his cards close to the chest. But it beats me, how a Jewish lad could end up as a Conservative? Isn’t parliamentary reform in the interest of the Jews? I really can’t fathom how his butt ended up on the Tory side."