Shadow of great britain

Arthur and Elder were walking along the street smoking cigarettes while chatting about the past experiences of today's banquet visitors.

It didn't take long for Arthur to take all the past experiences of the guests from Elder's mouth.

Among the three lower-status colonels, Sir George Elliot is considered the second in command. His father is Gilbert Elliot, Earl of Minto, who served as the Governor-General of India.

Relying on this strong family background, Sir Elliot's naval career progressed smoothly. He had just joined the Royal Navy and followed two famous Royal Navy generals, Thomas Frey and Hyde Bagga, on the first-class battleship St. Served on the George.

After just being promoted to captain, he was assigned to the San Jose and became the second officer of Charles Ball, who had just been promoted to marshal of the Royal Navy in July this year.

Later, Sir Elliot became a subordinate of Horatio Nelson, the soul of the Royal Navy, and followed him to participate in the Copenhagen Raid and the Battle of the Nile Estuary.

With these military exploits, Sir Elliot was quickly promoted to the Maidstone and participated in the blockade of Toulon and Cadiz.

After that, he was transferred to the East Indies by the Admiralty and captured the French frigate Jena in the Bay of Bengal. He participated in the invasion of Java and assisted the restoration of the Sultan of Palembang.

It is precisely because of his outstanding performance that Sir Elliott was transferred back to the mainland by the Admiralty three years ago and was promoted to captain of the first-class battleship HMS Victory, which is of special significance to the Royal Navy. Not long ago, the newly enthroned King William IV awarded him the honor of the King's Naval Attaché.

It can be said that if Sir Elliot continues to maintain this proud momentum, his promotion to admiral in the future is almost certain.

As the 'Victory' is the flagship of the Commander of the Portsmouth Naval Base, General Codrington, who may take over as commander in the future, must also want to have a good relationship with this subordinate who is in his prime and has a promising future.

The relationship between Franklin and General Codrington is even clearer.

During the Battle of Trafalgar, Colonel Franklin was serving as a cadet on board the 74-gun third-class battleship Bellerophon, while General Codrington was the commander of the Third Squadron participating in the war. Both of them were also We are old acquaintances.

Speaking of the Bellerophon, its captain at the time was Captain John Cook. Perhaps John Cook was not well-known, but if we talk about his grandfather James Cook, he could be regarded as one of the most famous in Britain. A household name.

Because James Cook, commissioned by the Admiralty and the Royal Society, explored the Pacific three times and successfully discovered Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii and other regions. In addition, he also discovered ways to prevent scurvy by improving his diet.

But as is destiny for explorers, James Cook eventually died while searching for the Northwest Passage.

In the Battle of Trafalgar, Captain John Cook also suffered the same misfortune as his grandfather. Because of his officer uniform, he became a priority target of French sailors and was shot through the chest by a bullet.

When his subordinates asked him to take off his officer's uniform and epaulettes, he just said, "It's too late to take them off." I understand my situation, but I will die like a man' and closed my eyes.

However, what is interesting is that although John Cook died on the Bellerophon, the adventurous spirit of the Cook family was preserved by the sailors and officers who served on the ship.

The Bellerophon not only contributed to Britain such outstanding explorers as Colonel John Franklin, who was dedicated to finding the Northwest Passage, but also contributed to Colonel Matthew Flinders, the man who first completed the circumnavigation of Australia and drew a detailed map of Australia. .

What’s even more interesting is that nine years after the Battle of Trafalgar, the sailors of the Bellerophon also took on the task of exiling France’s first prisoner, Napoleon, to St. Helena. To a certain extent, This can be regarded as revenge for its old commander John Cook.

When Arthur had a basic understanding of the experiences of the three colonels, he immediately understood the reason why General Codrington invited them to the banquet.

That is, in addition to being familiar with General Codrington, these three colonels are also very interested in scientific research. Fitzroy and Franklin are expedition captains commissioned by the Royal Navy, and Elliott participated in that expedition. The highly technological Battle of Copenhagen.

Regarding the Battle of Copenhagen, it is actually simple to say.

All in all, it was to prevent the wavering Denmark from falling to Napoleon and to hand over their maritime power to the French.

Therefore, after internal discussions, the British Foreign Office believes that if Denmark's loyalty to the United Kingdom is not absolute, it is tantamount to absolute disloyalty.

Therefore, after Denmark once again refused to hand over its fleet to Britain, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately issued a declaration of war, and Foreign Secretary Sir George Canning ordered the Baltic Fleet to immediately use thunderous means to fundamentally destroy the Danish navy.

As for how to fundamentally destroy the Danish navy, which is huddled in the port and unable to escape the war, there are many disputes within the Admiralty. For example, the uneasy General Cochran once again proposed using ships filled with explosives to attack Copenhagen. Carrying out suicide attacks.

Of course, in response to General Cochran's enthusiastic suggestion, the Admiralty only responded with "agree in principle" after careful consideration.

General Sidney Smith, on the other hand, was much more prudent. He suggested from a high position that the Navy should try the Congreve rocket. He had used it before and it worked very well.

Therefore, under the strong support of General Smith, the Admiralty approved 25,000 Congreve rockets for the Copenhagen Expedition Fleet led by Hyde Bagga and Horatio Nelson.

You won’t know the result until you try it, and you’ll be shocked once you try it. The Navy's first experience with Congreve rockets was outstanding!

Copenhagen's shore artillery could only stare at the British warships standing outside their range and raining fire on the sky. This new rocket with a range of two to three kilometers suddenly turned Copenhagen into a flaming hell.

Since then, this rocket has become one of the regular weapons of the Royal Navy.

From this incident, we can also see what kind of military science madmen Thomas Cochran and Sidney Smith, today's two general guests, are.

In addition to Congreve rockets and explosive suicide boats, the innovative suggestions put forward by the two generals to the Admiralty also include but are not limited to:

Develop torpedoes and mines that are still under conception to destroy the French Toulon fleet,

Promote the large-scale popularization of steamships in the Royal Navy at full speed,

I went to Faraday and asked if chlorine gas could be used in combat. As a result, Mr. Faraday scolded me and he could only leave in anger.

We strongly supported Robert Fulton, the inventor of the submarine, and tried to use a submarine to sail down the Seine River to Paris. The French fleet couldn't retreat, so we went in on our own. Our Royal Navy simply moved from the rear to the front and stabbed Napoleon. Go to your buttocks,

Of course, most of the suggestions they made to the Admiralty were not adopted, except for the Congreve rocket.

This is not entirely because their suggestions are unreasonable, but these two guys are basically disliked in the military and political circles. If they were not really capable and capable of winning battles, they would have been thrown out of the Royal Navy long ago.

Facts have also verified this. Both Sidney Smith and Thomas Cochran were ordered to retire by the Navy. Compared with them, even Codrington, who was sitting on the bench in the Channel Fleet, was considered Trusted deeply.

Perhaps it was precisely because of this that Codrington, the Vice Admiral who had made a 'little mistake', brought the two of them together to keep each other warm?

Arthur was thinking about these things. When he came back to his senses, he found that he and Elder had circled back to Codrington's mansion.

At this time, an elegant white carriage was parked outside the black iron carved gate of the mansion.

As soon as the carriage stopped, the valet sitting in the passenger seat quickly took out the small wooden stool beside him and placed it next to the carriage. Then, he saw the door open and a man wearing black gauze gloves stretched out from inside. Hand with pigeon blood ruby ​​ring.

Immediately afterwards, what caught her eye was an indigo gold-rimmed dress that was not particularly wide, but the front-to-back ratio was exactly two to one, highlighting the curves of her hips and exposing the fair skin on her back. On top of her head was a lavender hat. A wide-brimmed hat decorated with a Baflite sash and three white feathers.

However, Arthur's first reaction when he saw this scene was to quickly tell Elder beside him. He lowered his voice and said: "Calm down."

But this time, he obviously underestimated Elder's self-control.

Although just standing next to him, you can feel the hot air like the heat wave of the Sahara Desert, but even so, Elder still did not forget to salute. He took off his hat and covered his chest without losing etiquette, and greeted the lady. Bowed slightly.

"Good evening, Mrs. Cowper. I didn't expect that you are also today's guest. I really don't know what an honor it is to be in the same room with you."

Mrs Cowper?

Arthur quickly caught the keyword.

He remembered that this woman seemed to be one of the seven female patrons of the Allmark Club.

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Cowper turned to look at Elder, as if she was slightly surprised, but soon she adjusted her expression. She put her hand on the brim of her hat and nodded slightly: "Good evening, Mr. Carter."

Elder was fine at first, but when he heard this, he couldn't hold on to his emotions: "You...you still remember me? I thought that someone like me, who only had a relationship with you, would be You forget quickly."

Mrs. Cowper smiled and said: "Mr. Carter, don't you know? Women's memory has always been better than men's, especially in remembering each other's appearance and name, and I am the best among women in this regard. Not to mention, You left a very deep memory on me when we first met, and I will never forget you."

"I...I...伱...uh..." Elder's face turned red, and his head, which had taken off his hat, was filled with steam.

Seeing this, Arthur quickly reminded in a low voice: "Elder, calm down! Damn it, damn you, if others see you like this, they will definitely think that the locomotive that killed Mr. Huskisson was you!"

When the red devil saw this scene, he couldn't help fanning the flames and said: "Arthur, the train is about to derail, step on his brakes!"

Upon hearing this, Arthur hurriedly stepped on Elder's shoe without hesitation. Elder felt pain for a moment. With a few deep breaths, he finally regained his ability to organize language.

"Madam, I... uh, I wonder if you could remind me what impressed you about me when we first met? Although I am usually quite confident, but I remember that day It seems that I was just introduced to you by others and simply said hello to you."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Cowper used her black gauze gloves to gently cover her gorgeous red lips: "Mr. Carter, this is not the first time I saw you."

"Ah?" Elder was a little confused: "Could it be... wasn't it the first time we met last time?"

"Of course not." Mrs. Cowper denied flatly: "When I first met you, you were still in swaddling clothes. Your mother asked me to hug you and told me that sooner or later I would have such a day. I originally I also wanted to experience the feeling of being a mother in advance, but I didn’t expect that this little thing like you peed directly in my arms and even stained my new skirt.”

When Elder heard this, he felt as if God poured cold water on his head.

He took a deep breath, his face turned red and he couldn't say a word for a long time: "I...you..."

Seeing this, Arthur quickly took off his hat and helped him out: "Madam, I think you'd better go in first. Mrs. Codrington and the others are waiting for you inside."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Cowper just blinked at Elder and comforted playfully: "Mr. Carter, don't worry, I know you didn't mean it that time. I promise, I will keep this secret in my heart, absolutely. I won’t say it in front of all the ladies and it won’t affect your social reputation.”

Hearing this, Elder let out a sigh of relief as if he had been forgiven. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, bowed slightly and said, "Thank God, thank you for your kindness. You are really the angel sent by God to rescue me."

Mrs. Cowper pursed her lips slightly and said goodbye: "Mr. Carter, there are a lot of angels tonight, but it depends on you whether you can grasp them. Your mother and aunt have complained to me before, saying You have only been in the Royal Navy for half a year, and you have already acquired bad habits. If you really want to find a suitable partner, you'd better change your oral habits."

When Elder heard this, his face, which was as red as an apple just now, instantly turned pale.

He watched Mrs. Cowper enter the mansion with the help of the valet, and the look in her eyes had completely changed.

Elder muttered and cursed: "Damn it! Why does my mother say everything to the outside world! How can I still hang out in London if she reveals my old background like this?"

After saying this, Elder just felt that something was wrong all over his body. He took out his pocket, thinking of smoking some cigarettes to relieve his boredom. However, after taking it out for a long time, his expression suddenly changed and he yelled: "Fuck!"

Arthur turned to look at him: "What's wrong?"

Elder's eyes widened and he said, "I lost my wallet!"

"Huh? Isn't it?" Arthur heard this and quickly touched his pocket.

Fortunately, his wallet was still there, but at the same time, he also touched a small note.

There is a crooked line written on the small piece of paper - Those who give me gifts, I wish you to avoid bad luck. Those who give nothing will have their own retribution.

Seeing this, Arthur finally understood whose hands Elder's wallet fell into.

He said helplessly: "Elder, tell me about you. If you don't want others to give you change, you probably won't have so many things to do."

Elder's face turned pale: "I...damn it! Losing the money is secondary. The key...the key point is that I still have the ration receipt for the next sea training in my wallet! If that thing is gone, Fei Colonel Tsroy will probably have to skin me, and the brothers on the ship will probably have to throw me into the sea. Arthur, Arthur! Aren't you a policeman? You quickly think of a way to find that thing for me. return!"

When Arthur heard this, he couldn't help but patted his chest with the back of his hand: "Elder, tell me... Oh, that's it, let's go in first and find the wallet. I'll think of something for you later. .”

The recent progress of the plot has indeed been a bit slow, but it is impossible not to introduce some things, because after all, it is British history, and the relationship between the characters in the story in real history is also relatively complicated. Readers may also be unfamiliar with many places. It's not easy to develop. I will try my best to update as much as possible in the past few days, and try to get this wave of recklessness over, otherwise it will not only be uncomfortable for you to watch, but I will also be almost numb from checking the information. This chapter is 4,000, and there should be at least another 4,000 chapter after tonight. If I’m not tired after finishing writing, there will be another chapter.