The Shadow of Great Britain

On the European Continent, ministers of government do not need to answer to Parliament for their actions, which often means they delegate more details of affairs to undersecretaries and the secretariat. Thus, all routine official duties are typically handled by these subordinate personnel. This practice has long been widespread; unless facing highly significant occasions, the foreign secretaries of France, Austria, Prussia, and Russia rarely write official documents themselves.

Your Majesty, such a system will inevitably grant great power to subordinate personnel in government departments to steer the direction of government decisions. Because the value, tendency, and consequences of a measure often depend on the intentions and spirit behind its creation as much as on the specific methods of execution. Another factor also increases the power of these subordinate officials, which is the long-term stability of their positions.

In Britain, once significant political changes cause the replacement of department heads, most deputy officials also leave. Therefore, except for two or three exceptions, deputy officials usually advance and retreat along with their superiors. The experience of these deputies may not be richer than that of their superiors, and few can overturn the opinions or influence the decisions of their higher-ups based on their own insights.

Whereas on the European Continent, the replacement of ministers is more due to personal factors rather than party alternation. Thus, when department heads leave office, deputy officials often remain. This results in senior officials within government institutions who have devoted most of their lives to their departments, relying on accumulated experience, familiarity with historical conventions, and mastery of efficient ways to handle current affairs. This phenomenon further reinforces the dependency department heads have on their subordinates, effectively expanding the influence of these subordinates.

This group of subordinates wielding real power has been named ”bureaucracy” in contemporary popular terminology. The term is constructed similarly to ”aristocratic” and ”democratic,” all using ”cratic” derived from the Greek ”kratos” (power), with prefixes indicating the social power class referenced.

Upon consideration, Lord Russell believes that the recent behavioral motivations of this Prussian bureaucratic circle are: they aspire to see the major policies of their nation become more nationalistic and independent than before. To this end, they are eager to push the government to take a hard stance on certain issues against foreign powers. They might consider diplomatic issues quite tricky, as the King of Prussia may oppose them on such matters; therefore, they chose religious issues, as they know the King will support them in those matters.

Thus, they guide the government into a dispute with the Roman Curia and the German Catholic faction (the Austrian faction within the German Confederation). Their main goal is to establish Prussia’s independent national status, vying for leadership over the German nation against Austria, rather than having much concern about the specific contentious issues themselves.

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Arthur, upon first seeing the letter discussing bureaucracy, thought Palmerston was tattling on him behind his back.

But seeing the subsequent text, he realized it was actually about Prussian religious issues.

Speaking of Prussia, it indeed seems rather unsettled there lately.

As Palmerston said, the Prussian government is currently forcibly promoting the establishment of the ”United Church of Prussia”.

However, this issue, seemingly a religious topic on the surface, is actually strengthening centralization, aiming to achieve absolute government control over the Church.

Although there hasn’t been a large-scale armed uprising within Prussia, resistance activities have continued non-stop. The Prussian government’s response is straightforward and unequivocal; they have deployed troops to enforce compliance among the stubborn factions, confiscated many churches, and sentenced defiant priests to imprisonment and exile. Many Prussians who are unwilling to join the United Church have emigrated to Australia, Canada, and the United States.

Additionally, Prussia’s suppression activities have triggered dissatisfaction among multiple governments, increasing diplomatic tensions. Suppressing Eastern Orthodox believers would displease the Russians; suppressing Catholics would provoke protests from the Roman Curia and Austria; and suppressing Calvinism, a denomination prevalent across much of Europe, would incite anger among believers in Britain, the Netherlands, and various German small states.

However, regardless, after three or four years of efforts toward the United Church, Prussia finally achieved a result this year. Frederick William III of Prussia has become the Chief Bishop of the United Church of Prussia, successfully emulating the British National Church.

Nonetheless, Arthur isn’t particularly concerned about the Prussian religious issue; his primary concern is his student, Otto von Bismarck.

Since leaving Gottingen at the end of 1833, several years have passed in the blink of an eye, and there’s little knowledge of how that Junker has been doing lately.

Arthur inquired about Bismarck and Siemens specifically when writing to Gottingen previously.

Siemens diligently completed his courses at the University of Gottingen, but Bismarck transferred to Berlin shortly after Arthur left the University of Gottingen.

The school mentioned that it was likely orchestrated by Bismarck’s mother, as the old Mrs. Bismarck was still uneasy about having her son far from home, worrying he might learn undesirable things while away. Compared to Gottingen, Berlin is about 100 kilometers from Bismarck’s hometown, Shenhaosen. If the old lady wants to see her son, it would take at most a day and a half.

Nevertheless, since Bismarck transferred to Berlin, Arthur has lost contact with him.

Although Arthur had left his correspondence address in London with Bismarck, that fellow hasn’t written him a single letter since. It’s unclear whether he failed to pass the Prussian civil service exams and thus feels embarrassed to write, or if he truly went to the banks of the Ganges River in India to become a poet.

Yet Arthur suspects the most likely scenario is that he joined the military.

It’s not that he looks down on Bismarck; even if this fellow might become the Iron Chancellor of Germany one day, it doesn’t change the fact that Bismarck’s academic performance was abysmal. And following the traditional arrangements for Junker families in Prussia, for such idlers, there’s usually no other path but to join the military.

Thinking about this, Arthur couldn’t help but want to write a letter to Shenhaosen. Although he doesn’t know Bismarck’s specific home address, who knows—perhaps the magical Royal Post could somehow help deliver the letter to Bismarck’s mailbox?

With these thoughts, Arthur’s gaze involuntarily drifted to another unfinished letter on his desk.

”Victoria to Uncle Leopold”

My dearest uncle,

I sincerely hope you won’t mind my delayed reply.

After receiving your kind letter last week, I should have promptly expressed my gratitude, but I was truly overwhelmed. Since honesty is the best policy, I’ll frankly admit: every day I must ride three hours on horseback, which invigorates me, but upon returning to the palace, I have to tirelessly meet officials, review documents, and handle correspondence, among other things. You often jokingly call your poor niece the ”Little Queen,” which is not far from the truth. But I can assure you that the emotions stirring in this petite body are not inferior to anyone’s.

I regret that you couldn’t attend my coronation due to some reason. But I can assure you that Prince Lini, whom you appointed as the envoy, will be given a thorough reception. Even without introductions, given his title, and more importantly as your subject, he naturally should receive my gracious hospitality.

There’s another matter I’ve been thinking of discussing with you. I hope you can consult Baron Stockma about Albert’s completion of studies, who best understands my views and expectations on this matter...

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Arthur was lost in thought staring at that unfinished sentence when a subtle sound of footsteps emerged from outside the study.

Soon followed by an attendant’s deliberately quiet announcement from outside the door: ”Her Majesty the Queen.”