Anti-Qing: Starting from the Jintian Uprising

Chapter 174 Crusades?
Stanley and Palmerston got out of the car one after another, and after being informed by the palace attendants, the two entered Buckingham Palace.

They were soon taken to a study, where they were received in person by the Queen's husband, Prince Albert.

"Mr. Prime Minister, Viscount Palmerston, why are you both here at the palace today?"

Prince Albert asked in a very friendly manner.

As the Queen's husband, Prince Albert often assists the Queen in handling some government affairs.

That was why Stanley and Palmerston were brought to see him first.

Prince Albert plays an important role in British politics today.

Not to mention anything else, his influence on the Queen alone is enough to affect most of the policy making in British politics!
Before Stanley could speak, Palmerston rushed in to speak.

"Your Excellency, Your Excellency."

"We just received the latest news from the Far East. Something happened in Hong Kong."

"After the Qing rebels captured Guangzhou, they sent troops to attack Hong Kong and brutally killed Sir John Wenham, the British ambassador to the Qing and the Governor of Hong Kong."

"Your Excellency, what the rebels have done is not only a great provocation to the majesty of our British Empire, but also an invasion of our British territory."

"I think the British Empire cannot sit back and watch a tragedy like this happen without responding."

"It is necessary for the Empire to launch another expedition to the Far East to maintain the majesty of the British Empire!"

Stanley on the side just nodded and said.

"Your Excellency, I second the motion."

Prince Albert couldn't help but look shocked when he heard this and asked.

"Murdering the British ambassador?"

"Oh my God, how dare the rebels do such a crazy thing!"

"This is so crazy!"

"What do the rebels think of Dae-yeong? A soft persimmon that anyone can pick on?"

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister, I would like to know the attitude of the Cabinet and the House of Representatives."

Stanley heard this and spoke.

"Your Excellency, the minister has been killed, and it is imperative for Britain to launch a war in retaliation. I think neither the Cabinet nor the House of Representatives will object."

Albert thought for a while, then continued to ask.

"What's the specific plan?"

interposed Palmerston.

"Your Excellency, my opinion is that Great Britain can organize a coalition force and join forces with France, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and other countries to launch an expedition to punish the Qing rebels militarily."

Albert continued to ask.

"France, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, are they willing to get involved?"

Palmerston continued.

"Your Excellency, France is now actively moving closer to Britain. Napoleon III will definitely not refuse Britain's request."

"And from what I've heard, the rebels are now banning opium in the areas under their control, and both the Netherlands and Spain are suffering losses."

"Portugal was also deprived of its colony of Macau, so it certainly wouldn't accept that."

"As long as Britain is willing to take the lead, forming a coalition should not be a problem."

Albert nodded and continued to ask.

"Then what's the reason for going to war?"

"With the ambassador being killed, it is only natural for Britain to go to war with the rebels."

"But if we want to organize a coalition expedition, this reason is not convincing enough."

After all, the person who was killed was the British envoy. What does it have to do with France?

Although European countries are a group of colonizers, they still have to save face.

If they can't find a convincing reason, they won't be able to send troops directly to fight.

Palmerston continued.

"Your Excellency, as far as I know, the rebels are now suppressing the activities of missionaries in the areas under their control, and even prohibiting missionary work."

"We can use the excuse of fighting for God to organize a coalition expedition and fight against the rebels."

The main reason why the Tang Dynasty banned missionary activities and even prohibited missionary work was not because Li Yi disliked the foreign religions.

It’s because the missionaries of this era were like spies per capita.

When preaching, they would always wander around the military restricted areas of the Tang Dynasty.

It will definitely not work if we don’t ban them!
When Albert heard this, a word involuntarily emerged in his mind.

Crusades!
I never thought that this antique from the Middle Ages could still be useful today.

After thinking for a while, Prince Albert said to Stanley and Palmerston.

"You two wait here for a moment. I will go and ask Her Majesty the Queen for instructions."

Although Prince Albert could help the Queen deal with some matters, major events such as launching an expedition to the Far East still had to be decided by the Queen herself.

Stanley and Palmerston continued to wait in the study. Not long after, Prince Albert went to invite the Queen over.

Victoria walked in from the study, supported by Prince Albert.

Stanley and Palmerston rose hastily and saluted.

Queen Victoria just nodded and said, "Sit down!"

Then she sat down as well and asked.

"Albert has already briefly explained the situation to me. Now I have only one question: what should we do about the situation in Crimea?"

"Louis is now directing French diplomats to fan the flames in Crimea. It won't be long before the Russian Empire, whose brains have been frozen by the Siberian cold wind, starts the ninth Russo-Turkish War."

"At this time, if Britain withdraws troops to fight in the Far East, will it affect the situation in Crimea?"

It is a consensus among almost all European countries that a war is about to break out in Crimea.

The reason why Tsarist Russia dared to complain about Britain and France was certainly not because Nicholas I was an idiot.

It was because of the existence of the Holy Alliance that he believed that Prussia and Austria would stand on his side.

But the result is well known to everyone!
Austria's betrayal and Prussia's inaction completely ruined Tsarist Russia's expansion plan in Crimea.

Palmerston heard this and spoke.

"Your Majesty, the British are organizing a coalition to carry out the expedition this time, rather than going on an expedition alone. In fact, the British mainland does not need to mobilize too many troops."

"At most one division of the army, plus an expeditionary fleet is enough!"

"It will not affect the overall situation of the local war preparations!"

"Besides, Crimea has not officially opened fire yet. As long as France does not continue to add fuel to the fire, Tsarist Russia will not act rashly. The tense situation in Crimea will soon cool down."

Victoria frowned.

"Tell me in detail!"

Palmerston continued.

"Britain can dispatch a division from its homeland to join the war. France can do the same. There will be no problem in dispatching a division as well."

"And if the Netherlands, Spain, and Portugal combined mobilize a division of troops, that can definitely be done."

"This adds up to a coalition force of nearly 20,000 people!"

"In addition, the Netherlands and Spain have a considerable number of garrisons and fleets in Batavia and Manila."

"Add to that the troops that Britain can mobilize from its Indian colonies, and it will be easy to put together a coalition force of tens of thousands of people."

"And it will not affect Crimea's war preparations."

It would indeed be difficult for Britain to send an army of tens of thousands of people alone to carry out an expedition to the East.

But if all countries form a coalition to carry out an expedition, then there will be no big problem.

Britain had to grit its teeth before sending out an army of tens of thousands of people.

But if it's a few thousand people, then it doesn't matter.

The great empire on which the sun never sets would not be so helpless.

More importantly, the several countries that Britain is preparing to bring together this time are all traditional naval powers.

The Netherlands, Spain and Portugal were once the maritime hegemons for a period of time.

The strength of the French navy is second only to that of the British navy.

Once these countries unite to launch a cross-sea expedition, the power that can be unleashed will surely be astonishing.

Victoria heard this and looked thoughtful, then spoke.

"Since we are organizing an expedition, we might as well make it bigger and involve Austria, Prussia, the Kingdom of Sardinia, the United States and other countries."

"Integrate the power of the whole of Europe and launch another Crusade."

"After dealing with the rebels, we will try to completely defeat the ancient Eastern Empire and open up its market to Europe."

The reason why Victoria did this was not only to demonstrate Britain's status as an arbitrator in Europe and even the world by organizing a coalition.

It was more about taking advantage of this expedition and the Eastern interests that could be obtained after the expedition to pull the two Holy Alliance countries, Prussia and Austria, onto his warships.

This was used to make Prussia and Austria stand on the side of Britain in the Crimean War and fight against Tsarist Russia together.

Treat this expedition to the East as a prelude to the official outbreak of war in Crimea!

At present, Prussia and Austria, the two Holy Alliance countries, have not yet expressed their views on the situation in Crimea.

Britain was also afraid that they would choose to stand on the side of Tsarist Russia, which would lead to complications in the Crimea situation.

The Kingdom of Sardinia is also one of the main targets that Britain is currently trying to win over.

America, on the other hand, is just a simple father who plans to take his son out for fun and give him some living expenses.

Well, at that time, the relationship between Britain and the United States had not been reversed, the rebellious United States had not yet usurped the throne, and Britain was still the biological father of the United States.

Upon hearing this, Stanley and Palmerston bowed down immediately.

"Your Majesty is wise!"

With the Queen's final decision.

The news that the British ambassador was killed and that Hong Kong, Britain's pearl in the Far East, was taken away by a rebel army from the East began to spread.

London, Manchester, Liverpool, Cambridge, Portsmouth...

This news began to appear in newspapers everywhere.

Britain began to use newspapers to incite public opinion and lay the groundwork for Britain's expedition to the East.

Amid the public outcry, some people even took to the streets spontaneously, demanding that the House of Representatives and the Cabinet take a serious response, organize an army to expedition to the East, impose military punishment on the rebels in the Far East, and enhance the prestige of Great Britain.

As time passed, after several discussions in the House of Representatives, it was finally decided to organize an army to expedition to the East.

(End of this chapter)