The Shadow of Great Britain

Chapter 1591: Chapter 19: King’s College? Turns Out They’re Just Little Nobodies!_3

Arthur chuckled and said, ”You need not be troubled, I have no intention of forcing you, but even if you are not willing to leave the Royal Society, if you are willing to move the annual Christmas lecture to the newly built auditorium at the University of London, we would definitely welcome you. It is certainly more spacious than the lecture hall at Gresham College, and I assure you, we won’t charge even a penny for tickets or venue fees.”

When Faraday heard the suggestion of ”moving the Christmas lecture to the University of London,” his hand, which had been playing with the envelope, suddenly paused. His eyes, always calculating wire lengths and voltage currents, looked up at Arthur. He stared at him for several seconds, as if to confirm that the new Dean of Academic Affairs wasn’t joking about tradition.

”You mean, moving my Christmas lecture from the Royal Society to the University of London?”

”If you’re willing,” Arthur’s face was full of a harmless smile. ”The Royal Society, though steeped in history, isn’t what gives the Christmas lecture its true significance. Its value lies not in which street or house it’s delivered, but in who delivers it, to whom it is delivered, and what is delivered. As long as you’re there, even if it’s under London Bridge, the children will come to listen.”

Faraday blinked: ”Can you really waive the ticket fee? I recall your school’s budget has always been tight?”

”For a school that charges only 31 pounds 6 shillings in tuition, a budget shortfall is inevitable. But for the sake of education, even if we have to mortgage our teaching charter at the bank, we’ll make it work,” Arthur said earnestly. ”If you’re willing to hold the lecture, I wouldn’t mind paying out of my own pocket to provide snacks for the children. Of course, nothing too lavish, lest they mistake it for some noblewoman hosting a banquet.”

Faraday finally laughed. He slowly laid down the envelope in his hand, a gleam in his eyes reminiscent of his first ”Light and Color” lecture at the 1825 Christmas lecture: ”Indeed... it’s been ages since anyone discussed the Christmas lecture with me like this. You’re right, as long as it’s about science, where it’s delivered doesn’t matter.”

He stood up, brushed off the dust on his clothes, as if marking a ceremonial decision: ”Then let’s give it a try, this Christmas, I’ll speak at the University of London.”

Arthur half-jokingly said, ”So does this mean I can get a front-row seat? Back then, I didn’t even dare to linger on the high stools in the laboratory.”

”You’re the Dean of Academic Affairs now, sitting in the front row isn’t unusual. And at your current level, you could even take over hosting the Christmas lecture,” Faraday said with a shake of his head, then his tone shifted: ”But if you truly want to invigorate the laboratory, it’s more than just a Christmas lecture.”

He turned, walked to the bookshelf in the corner, pulled out a roughly bound experiment log from a stack, flipped through a few pages as if confirming something, and casually said, ”If you’re looking for a lab director, I happen to have a suitable candidate.”

Arthur had thought that convincing Faraday to move the Christmas lecture to the University of London was already a major victory. Who knew this perfect scientist would have an add-on service up his sleeve?

He promptly asked, ”Who?”

Without lifting his head, Faraday casually replied, ”Charles Wheatstone.”

”Wheatstone?” Arthur paused for a moment, then his expression turned peculiar: ”Are you serious? I don’t mean to undermine Charles, but you know, that guy struggles to speak coherently when on stage, his calves cramping.”

”No.” Faraday shook his head, growing serious: ”If choosing an orator, he indeed isn’t qualified, but I’m selecting the backbone of the laboratory. Charles may not excel at speeches, but he understands electricity, understands instruments, and knows how to turn abstract theory into sparks on a wooden table. He’s reclusive, doesn’t compete or grab, but give him a room, a budget, and a few students, and within six months, he’ll transform that room into London’s most advanced electrical laboratory.”

Arthur’s expression gradually became solemn, not because he doubted Faraday’s judgment, but from a habitual inclination to think two steps ahead, especially when this name relates to the University of London’s development for the next few years.

Seeing Arthur’s hesitation, Faraday added, ”Arthur, I must remind you, swift actions get results. You know King’s College recently established a professorship in experimental physics, don’t you?”

”King’s College?” The mention of this institution immediately put Arthur on alert.

Although students of the University of London have always likened their alma mater to Cambridge and Oxford, in practical terms, the main rival was King’s College, which was established nearly simultaneously and was also located in London.

Both the University of London and King’s College were heavily politically colored.

The founders of the University of London, like Lord Brougham and the Earl of Dalmo, were Whig Radicals, while King’s College was specifically established by the Tory Party to counter the Radical Liberal University of London.

As Eld frequently remarked: ”King’s College? Oh, it’s merely a footnote by the Duke of Wellington to rebut our University of London’s main text.”

Unlike the early struggles of the University of London, King’s College received strong support from King George IV upon its founding, spearheaded by then Prime Minister the Duke of Wellington, with Tory stalwarts like Sir Robert Peel and the Duke of Newcastle making substantial donations to the school.

In its 1829 founding charter, King’s College stipulated that students must swear to uphold the National Church’s ”Thirty-Nine Articles,” effectively excluding non-National Church members.

Conversely, since its founding in 1826, the University of London emphasized ”nonsectarian education,” openly declaring: Regardless of your faith, origin, or title, if you’re willing to study, the University of London offers you a desk.

Thus, the two schools have long been at odds.

Whenever they meet, students from both schools often clash, sometimes physically, sometimes verbally.

The two institutions even commanded their own territories.

For example, the Lamb Tavern in Holborn had long been under the University of London’s control, where lackeys in ceremonial robes, royal cronies, and self-righteous classical speakers were all unwelcome.

The Temple Knight Tavern on Strand Street was the stronghold of King’s College, barring atheists, Jews, and revolutionaries fluent in Latin from entry.

From this perspective, even if Arthur thought Wheatstone might not be the best leader for the University of London’s physics lab, it didn’t mean he was willing to watch his friend fall into King’s College’s pit.

Arthur sneered: ”At the University of London, boiling water is science, but at King’s College, it’s a miracle. Do they still need Charles as a professor? That school’s students receive diplomas after reading the Book of Job, so inviting Charles seems like it would disrupt their education system, wouldn’t it?”