shadow of britain

Chapter 490 Illegitimate Son

"Is there anything special about this Arthur Hastings?"

"Um……"

Emily took the outdated business card and glanced at the dazzling titles on it. She couldn't tell what she felt in her heart.

Assistant Commissioner of Police of the Greater London Police, Principal of the London Police School, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the London District Prosecution Office, Executive Commissioner of the British Book Publishing Committee, Conductor of the Second Orchestra of the London Philharmonic Society, Secretary of the London University Alumni Association...

Arthur had indeed not lied to her, and the elegant gentleman from England had indeed worked for the police department for a long time.

But according to the superficial understanding Emily gained from The Hastings Mysteries, the British police obviously did not have the same lofty status as the French police.

Compared to the French police, which has a long tradition, the British police not only have much less power, but their senior positions do not seem to be held by prominent figures in the political arena.

During the Republic and Empire periods, the French police department was once managed by a full-time Minister of Police or Minister of Police.

Those who could hold this position were all the most capable and shrewd people or the most trusted people by the rulers of France at that time.

For example, Joseph Fouché, who was a rival of Talleyrand and personally built a spy network in France.

After Fouché plotted to overthrow Napoleon, Fouché was succeeded as Minister of Police by Savary, a loyal man who was deeply trusted by Napoleon.

After the Bourbon Restoration, Louis XVIII appointed Heri de Coigne and Charles X appointed Jules de Polignac.

These people are not only aristocrats, but also extremely powerful figures. More importantly, their relationship with the king is often closer than that of the Prime Minister.

Therefore, the French police have never been a subordinate of any department, but have been on the same level as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and other departments, and they even have more power than several other departments.

Compared with its French counterparts, Scotland Yard, established in 1829, obviously had a much more difficult life.

First of all, they are a subordinate administrative agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and are lower in administrative level.

The highest officers of Scotland Yard, Commissioner Charles Rowan and Deputy Commissioner Richard Maine, are both retired colonels from the Army. This level of pomp and ceremony obviously cannot be compared with the high-level treatment that the French Minister of Police receives, who is often a duke or prince.

Not to mention actual power.

In "The Hastings Mysteries", it takes a lot of effort to capture a member of parliament, and this level of achievement would at most be ranked last on the French police's "Roll of Honor".

Would British aristocrats allow their children to become police officers?

Emily felt that it would be difficult for a decent family to make such a decision regarding the future of their children and grandchildren.

But the content on the card obviously conflicted with her inner suspicion. She asked hesitantly, "Is he a commoner? My dear uncle, his behavior at the banquet was undoubtedly noble in my opinion."

"Oh, the party..."

Just one word made the old uncle understand what was going on. The old man laughed and said, "My dear Emily, who doesn't behave noble at a banquet? Even if you put a swineherd in a well-fitting suit and sit there, and surround him with gentlemen and beautiful ladies, he can look like a prince."

"No, great uncle." Emily replied firmly, "Not everyone has the appearance and manners that upper-class people develop in social occasions. He seems to frequent similar places. His words are very decent and his conversation is very cultivated. I bet you that he must be a nobleman."

The old uncle teased his niece: "Maybe it's because you didn't have enough time to observe him carefully."

Emily retorted: "You weren't there. I talked to him for quite a while, and we ended up riding home together."

"Oh, let's go home together?"

Emily blushed. Her uncle embarrassed her for several minutes before she spoke with a smile.

"Emily, you know I love you as if you were my own child, because you are the only one in our Dreiser family who has the proud temperament that comes with a noble birth. God knows! My niece, how did you grow up to be such a princess-like person. Well, since you are so interested in Mr. Hastings, why not let me be your advisor. To be honest, I do know some interesting stories about him in London."

"What do you know?" Emily's gray-blue eyes lit up.

"Sir Arthur Hastings is indeed a trendsetting figure in London, and everyone talks about his experience with relish. It's not because he comes from an ancient family or has a noble bloodline, but because his background is as clean and soft as a blank sheet of paper. Just like Paris, Londoners are not interested in those big names of aristocratic origin, but rather like this kind of story of rising from the middle class."

The old uncle recounted several things that Arthur had done in London over the years, and Emily felt distressed and excited. She held the edge of her skirt tightly, almost wrinkling the luxurious dress that had just been ordered. But at the end, Emily couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, with a little regret and disappointment in her eyes: "He is indeed an outstanding person. He is not from an aristocratic family, but he has done many things that aristocratic people can't do. But..."

When the old uncle heard what his niece's granddaughter said, he just held up his wine glass and leaned back on the sofa: "My dear, he is indeed not a noble, but he has the title of knight through his own efforts. But the lack of a noble coat of arms does not mean that he does not have blue blood flowing in his veins."

"This..." Emily asked, "Do you mean he will be knighted in the future?"

The old uncle shook his head, put down his glass and held Emily's hand.

"Silly boy, I know that there are many legends about poor boys becoming rich overnight in the streets and alleys of London and Paris. Some of them can't even be considered legends, but some processed true stories. For example, our Draisaitl family, we were just some ordinary citizens, doing the most ordinary and menial jobs, but we encountered an opportunity and were lucky enough to seize it, and then we transformed ourselves into wealthy people with a small fortune.

Although we can't say that there are many people like our Draisaitl family, they are not rare in France or Britain. The most typical representatives are the Baring family and the Rothschild family in London. Two or three generations ago, one was a middleman who resold cotton and linen products between Germany and Britain, and the other was a mobile vendor who dealt in medieval antiques.

However, although there are many civilian families who have made their fortunes in the business world, it is extremely rare for them to truly start from scratch and become successful in politics in one or two generations. In the UK, there are indeed civilians who have become MPs through their own efforts, and the typical example is Robert Peel and his son.

But it is worth noting that Robert Peel Sr. was already a large textile factory owner with 2,000 employees before he entered politics. After the preparation of Robert Peel Sr.'s generation, coupled with the fact that Sir Robert Peel Jr. was indeed a brilliant man, he was able to become a cabinet minister and deputy to the Duke of Wellington, and his position was very important in the Tory Party.

Do you see the connection, my dear? In British politics, wealth and family background are indispensable. If you have one of these two, you can enter this circle. If you want to occupy a core position in the circle, you must have both, otherwise you will always be an outsider. "

"What do you mean?"

The uncle said openly: "In fact, the suspicion about Arthur Hastings's background did not start with me. There was a group of people in London who had been suspicious about his family background. And he still had the surname Hastings. It was really hard not to suspect whether this young man was the illegitimate son of the Hastings family."

"The Hastings?"

The old uncle said: "This family is a marquisate family. Although their history of inheriting the title of marquisate is not particularly long, the first generation of Marquis of Hastings has a very important influence in British politics."

"Why is this?"

"Why? My dear, it's because he was the first Governor-General of India when the colonial plan was adjusted in 1813!"

As a well-known figure in the City of London, my uncle knew all these British aristocrats by heart: "I once met this gentleman in my early years. He is a typical product of British aristocratic education. He graduated from Harrow School and was a top student at Balliol College, Oxford University. When I first met him, he was still a major general in the army and had just returned from serving in the American War of Independence.

Everyone has a very high opinion of his performance in the war. Before he went to North America, he was just a second lieutenant in the 15th Infantry Regiment "Gnawer". However, he performed exceptionally well in the Battle of Bunker Hill, the Battle of Long Island and the Battle of White Plains, and later won a great victory in the Battle of Hobbs Hill with a small force.

In addition, he had a good relationship with George IV, who was still a prince at the time, and the Duke of York. Therefore, with these achievements, he was not only successfully promoted to major general of the army, but also became the director of ordnance. When the Colonial Affairs Department adjusted the division of India, he was naturally appointed as the first Governor-General of India as a confidant of the Regent George IV. "

Emily blinked and asked, "Is he doing well there?"

"It's more than just good, he did an outstanding job!"

The uncle said: "He conquered Nepal and recruited the locals, establishing an infantry regiment composed of Nepalese Gurkhas. Later, he conquered the Malay Islands and led the acquisition of Singapore."

Emily was puzzled and said, "From what you said, the Hastings family seems to be no worse than other ancient British nobles. But why can't we hear their voices in British politics recently? When you open a British newspaper, all you see are the Marlborough family, the Wellington family, the Newcastle family, or the Russell family."

"Cough cough..."

The old uncle took out a handkerchief and wiped his mouth. "This is because the Marquis of Hastings had bad luck later on. He served as the Governor-General in India for nearly 10 years. Of course, he would be jealous of others for always holding such a good position. So he was later involved in a corruption case of the East India Company. The Parliament investigated him back and forth for several years. During his later years, he had to go to court to defend himself almost every once in a while. Until his death, the case was not completely concluded. Although the corruption case was eventually dropped, the people of the Hastings family should also know that they were too popular, so they acted much more low-key than before."

"If that's the case, why do those people think that Sir Hastings is from the Hastings family?" Emily was puzzled and said, "From what you just said, it seems that Sir Hastings has been quite popular in London."

The old uncle showed a sly smile: "Oh, my dear little Emily, there are many things you don't understand. I forgot to tell you that the Marquis of Hastings was born in Ireland, and Arthur Hastings is a Catholic. He came to power in Scotland Yard because of the Catholic Emancipation Act to appease Ireland.

If your memory is not bad, you should still remember that I just said that the Marquis of Hastings had a good relationship with the Duke of York, and the official introduction of Arthur Hastings said that he was born in York. So, if we use reasonable logic to infer, a real York farmhand cannot climb to such a position.

If he had climbed up, he would have to have some noble blood, or at least a prominent father, but this guy didn't have that. If he didn't have it on the surface, then he had it in secret, which means he must be a bastard. As for whose bastard he is, I think the bastard of the Hastings family is the most reasonable one at the moment.

They can't make too much moves in public now, in case their political enemies find them vulnerable. In this case, it is quite reasonable to send an illegitimate child who seems to have little connection with them to serve in a marginal police department. Scotland Yard is composed of retired army officers, and the first Marquis of Hastings is a major general in the army. Their family is definitely capable of doing this."

Emily was stunned when she heard this, and then she pondered for a long time. She felt that her heart was about to jump out: "The Marquis's illegitimate son?"

The old uncle smiled and took her arm: "My dear! I see that you are not without interest in this man. But we must find out first. Hush! If we fly the wrong flag, our family will laugh at us. You certainly understand what uncle means. So let me help you, my good niece. We will keep it a secret between the two of us. I promise you that if he is in Paris, I can bring him to our living room and let us observe him more closely."

(End of this chapter)