[Henry VIII] Tudor Crown

Michelangelo originally wanted to bribe William III with his work, but considering the size of his work and the difficulty of moving it, Michelangelo simply gave up the idea of ​​buckling the dome of the church. Here, I dug out a work that was still readable and sent it over.

We must know that although the famous Michelangelo had a bad temper and basically offended the rich and powerful in Italy, under the golden signboard of his reputation and craftsmanship, there were still many fledgling artists who came to learn or send paintings.

Among them, the most famous one is the good old Raphael.

Although the last three masters of the Renaissance all served Pope Julius II, Raphael is undoubtedly the one who got along best with him-because he is not like Da Vinci, whose procrastination is so severe that it cannot be saved medicine; nor is it like Michelangelo, who has a bad temper like heaven and earth.Therefore, the popes and bishops who were exhausted by the previous two artists all loved the gentle and popular Raphael very much, and even gave him the cardinal's hat as an exception.

Of course, in the eyes of Michelangelo, who is a perfectionist and the leader of Da Vinci's black fans, although this young man is out of the category of mediocrity, but since his vision is really a bit problematic, Michelangelo is very concerned about the meeting. Raphael always put on a look of indifference, and even shelved the other party's paintings, together with those mediocre works.

However, when Michelangelo heard the news of Raphael's untimely death, he still had pity for the fallen genius, so that he brought Raphael's works to England instead of staying in his old house in Italy .

Had it not been for Michelangelo's drunken madness in the dining room of Whitehall Palace, he would not have sent Raphael's works to make amends.

Fortunately, William III, who received a bribe, did not send someone to warn Michelangelo, but hung "The Madonna of Ansidi" in the drawing room of St. James Palace, which can be regarded as making the best use of it.

"If you really want to collect art, you'd better build a palace for collecting art." Queen Juana casually suggested when arranging the tour schedule with William III: "Art is very delicate, you still have to pay attention to it." You have to hire a professional to maintain all this for you. I remember that my uncle had a team that snapped up Italian art for him, and bought a batch of art treasures that were black market at a low price in Rome, and many of them were Private collection of the Medicis."

"It turns out that the Gorgon also missed the day. It seems that the statue of Perseus can't protect their property." Although William III was not short of money, considering that the coronation ceremony between him and Queen Juana cost a lot of money. A huge amount of money, and this parade will definitely require an additional batch of supplies for rewards, so William III is still considering whether to spend a sum of money to build the palace.

"I think it's better to keep a spare fund in the treasury." William III said carefully: "I don't want to be a rogue who goes bankrupt as soon as I run out of money. This approach will only deepen the resentment of the people and accelerate the destruction of the country. .”

"England has a lot of palaces. You can find a palace with a good environment that is not commonly used as a collection of art." Queen Juana suggested: "The Peerless Palace built by your father is a good choice. After all, the palaces we often use are also Only Whitehall Palace, St James's Palace, Windsor Castle, Richmond Palace, Hampton Court Palace, and Pembroke Castle in Wales."

"Although the Peerless Palace is gorgeous enough, it can't compare to the above palaces in terms of function. You can completely repair it and use it as a palace of art." Queen Juana didn't want to spend 30 pounds to build a new palace, after all She had seen France and Spain heavily in debt.

Although England confiscated the property of the church during the Reformation, it also paid off Henry VIII's debts in the Pavia War.However, compared with the treasury assets at the time of Henry VII's death, the personal property that William III and Queen Juana could use was only 60 pounds, and half of it was real estate, and 15 pounds were unrealized by Enrique II dowry.

In other words, William III and Queen Juana had only £15 in liquidity on hand.

Although there is still a balance of nearly 150 million pounds in the treasury and royal property, the cash in it is only 90 pounds, and William III, who knows risk control well, has to set aside a sum that can support a medium-sized war and a catastrophe money, and the dowries of the Countesses of Surrey and Nottingham.

"I remember that the Lord Seal and Sir John Dudley suggested that you increase taxes, but Sir Cecil and Richard Cromwell strongly opposed this." Although Queen Juana accepted the trendy Calvin Thoughts, but the eyes still stay on the old-school business model.

Kings throughout the ages would increase taxes and extort Jewish businessmen to ease their financial difficulties.

Now the most typical is Charles V.

However, England had a population of only 300 million when Henry VII took over, less than one-fifth of France and one-half of Spain.

For this reason, the pioneer of the Tudor dynasty insisted on the political line of "not competing for European hegemony but seeking to expand trade interests", and this principle was also inherited by his sons and granddaughters.

If it weren't for Henry VIII's being too violent, and France, Spain, and the Ottoman Empire were torn apart, the family would almost be wiped out.

Nor would there be a tripartite balance in Europe at the end of Henry VIII's reign.

In fact, for William III, if Henry VIII does not fight France, his current start will automatically add a "rich" buff.

However, Henry VIII fought France, and he fought more than once, so William III could only rely on the taxes from Calais, and the trade of the Netherlands and the Schmalkar Union to slowly recover blood, and by the way, go to Spain or France Bankrupt again.

As for tax hikes...

"Do you think I should increase taxes?" William III looked at Queen Juana and asked, "If I increase taxes, it will not only be a matter of public grievances, but even the strongholds of Wales and Ireland will cause greater dissatisfaction.

"Besides, when I was crowned, I made the tax cut decree. Isn't the tax increase now a public slap in the face?"

The next words of William III made Queen Juana unable to refute: "The reason why we can win the love of the people is because of the benevolent government we have implemented in Ireland and Wales, and because we have safeguarded the interests of the people at the bottom on the surface."

"Those people who only care about one-third of an acre don't care who we are against and whom we are friends with. They only care about which king makes them rich. They only care about which king makes the Welsh and the Irish a year." Can the king who has been rich for a year make them rich too."

William III thought of the legacy of regional economy and class division in the lighthouse country of later generations, as well as the route of encircling the city from the countryside in socialism, and gave Queen Juana an inappropriate example: "The emergence of William Wallace , and the riots on the pilgrimage of grace, the essence is not all ethnic antagonism or religious conflict, but the king violated the interests of the people, which made them unbearable."

"And the love I get now is because I relieve the pressure on the people and let them have an upward contrast with their past lives." William III said the key point, and drank saliva to moisten his throat: " As long as I can ensure that this generation lives better than the previous generation, and the next generation lives better than the French or Spaniards of the next generation, then no one can shake my rule."

"..." It took a long time for the confused Queen Juana to barely digest William III's words. At the same time, she also questioned: "What I am most worried about now is your preferential treatment of the Jews."

Queen Juana knew that after the Inquisition was implemented in Spain and France, the Netherlands became a paradise for the Jews.

Although Queen Juana had no real contact with the Jews, Christians' prejudice against the Jews was still deeply rooted: "I am very worried that those Jews will shake our rule, and you also know that their goal is not to survive in a certain place, but... …”

"It's Jianguo." William III accepted Queen Juana's hard-to-say words, and explained: "This is one of the reasons why I don't loosen restrictions on Jews on the surface. As for Jianguo..."

William III said indifferently: "As long as they don't establish a country in my territory and yours, how can they affect us?"

"Anyway, it's better for you to pay attention." Queen Juana knew that William III still used some Jews, but she always felt uncomfortable.

If it were the princess of Habsburg, it is estimated that the Jews in the country would have been expelled long ago, but Queen Juana would not let her faith affect her judgment on the country's situation.

And just a few days later, the Erkins family of Scotland sent an envoy of marriage proposals, as well as a portrait of the Earl of Morley.

"Your Majesty, Lady Mary of the Erkins family, and the Earl of Murray of the Stuart family send you greetings." The messenger was dressed in his best clothes, but in the luxurious Whitehall Palace, he still looked very reserved.

Although Henry VIII made the marriage between the Earl of Morley and the Countess of Surrey before his death, it is well known that the Countess of Surrey's biological mother was at odds with William III's mother.

Even though William III never expressed his dissatisfaction with the Countess of Surrey, and even Queen Juana treated her husband's half-sister favorably, the messenger was still not sure whether this marriage was a favorable alliance.

Lady Mary Erkins wanted her son to have the support of the King of England and thus the Regency of Scotland.

And before the marriage of Mary Stuart to the Duke of Richmond, was there a more reliable option than the marriage union of the Earl of Morley and the Countess of Surrey?

"Sir, I welcome you on behalf of England. But the Countess of Surrey is my ward, and even more my precious sister, so regarding her marriage, Queen Juana and I have to discuss with her. Only after the Countess of Lane confirms her dowry can I give you an answer." William III asked Richard Cromwell to place the emissary in the guest room of the Whitehall Palace, and then invited Miss Elizabeth.