Chapter 204: The Kingdom of Australasia
Two major events happened at the end of 1905. First, Norway became an independent country and chose the then Danish Prince Carl as the king, King Haakon VII of Norway.
This also means that the Swedish-Norwegian Union was officially dissolved, and a second-power country in the north of the European continent officially became two third-rate countries.
The second event happened on October 2 at the Portsmouth Naval Dockyard in the UK.
On this day, the famous battleship HMS Dreadnought was officially started, and it took only four months to successfully launch and start testing.
Although the subsequent testing phase lasted for more than a year, it cannot be denied that this battleship, which was built in just four months, had an impact on the future world naval structure and warship system.
At the end of 1905, the Australian and New Zealand federal governments held a summary meeting to report to Arthur on the achievements and actions of the federal government over the past year.
First of all, the population of the federation. After the merger of Australia and New Zealand, the total population of the federation at that time had exceeded more than five million, very close to six million.
At the end of 1905, the total population of Australia and New Zealand had exceeded 6.2 million, of which Australia had a total population of 5.03 million, New Zealand had a total population of about 1.14 million, and the total population of the New Guinea colony was just over 30,000.
In terms of industry, the industrial development of Australia and New Zealand was also very rapid, and the total steel production even exceeded 1.5 million tons.
Among them, the steel production of the Federation officially exceeded 500,000 tons, reaching a gratifying 513,200 tons.
The iron production was also nearly 1 million tons, which was enough to meet the various steel needs within the Australian and New Zealand Federations, and even exported a small amount to Southeast Asia.
It is worth mentioning that Australia's plan to introduce indigenous populations in the Dutch East Indies and the plan to force indigenous people to work across the country were very successful.
This was also due to the widespread racism of European immigrants. The White Australia policy and ideas formed in Europe made all federal citizens support the oppression of these indigenous people, and no one expressed cruelty to the oppression of indigenous people.
Of course, Australians would never say that. The development of a country often gives rise to some more dangerous jobs. In Australia, these jobs are basically completed by indigenous people, which greatly reduces the casualties of Australian workers.
Australians are now able to have a better and better life. Isn't it created by these indigenous people who sacrificed their lives?
So far, the Australian National University has successfully graduated three classes of students, creating nearly two thousand outstanding college students for Australia.
The value of university education in this era is naturally beyond doubt. These two thousand people will also become the backbone of the development of various industries in Australia, and may even become the top force.
Australia's transportation industry has also made rapid progress in the past few years. First of all, the roads needed for daily transportation. Australia has completed the connection between all cities, and the roads have been led to smaller villages and facilities.
In terms of railways, after two years of development, Australia has completed the single-line railway connection from Perth, the capital of Western Australia, to Adelaide, the capital of South Australia.
This also means that the industrial railway across Australia has completed the construction of a single line. Australians can travel from Perth, the capital of Western Australia, to any capital of the five states and capital territories on the Australian mainland, such as Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle and Brisbane.
Although Tasmania cannot enjoy railway treatment, its road system is the most developed among all Australian states.
In order to take care of the emotions of the newly joined New Zealand, the federal government also planned a railway in the South Island and North Island of New Zealand respectively.
However, New Zealand's previous railways were very developed. These two railways are said to be built, but in fact they are more repaired and reactivated.
Another thing that has developed rapidly is the per capita income of Australia and the New Zealand Federation. By the end of 1905, the per capita annual income of Australia and the New Zealand Federation was about 39 Australian dollars, equivalent to 19.5 pounds.
This income level has more than doubled compared to Australia five years ago, which is enough to show how rapidly Australia has developed in the past five years.
At this meeting, Arthur also proposed the idea of forming a new kingdom to observe the attitudes of cabinet members.
Judging from the reactions of the cabinet members, Arthur was very satisfied. All cabinet members supported the establishment of a unified kingdom to better unite Australia and New Zealand.
In fact, the establishment of a new kingdom has also won the support of the German Empire and the Russian Empire, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as a staunch ally of the German Empire, will definitely not object.
Under the premise that Arthur has the handle, Edward VII will definitely not object, but will make a decision based on the reaction of the international community.
France is not a monarchy, and Arthur does not care about their attitude. Most of the other monarchies in Europe are on good terms with Britain, Germany and Russia. If these three most powerful monarchies do not stand up to oppose, the monarchies in Europe will not oppose.
Since the problems have been solved, Arthur decided not to hesitate and officially started the discussion on the establishment of a new kingdom.
Western countries attach the most importance to legal principles. Even Napoleon, who was once invincible, had to say that he became the emperor of the French when he proclaimed himself emperor.
There are only two orthodox thrones in Europe, namely the Holy Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire, which inherited from the Western Roman Empire.
But since the decline of the two empires, there are also many European monarchs who have used various titles to claim to be emperors.
For example, Queen Victoria, who is known as the Emperor of India, the Tsar who claims to have inherited the legal principles of the Eastern Roman Empire, the Austrian Empire created from the former Holy Roman Emperor, and the German Empire that stepped on the French to rise to power.
It can be seen that for the current European system, legal principles are important, but strength can also override legal principles.
However, despite this, there should be some statements. After all, the establishment of a new kingdom must be announced to the outside world, and there must be a statement that seems more reasonable.
First of all, the establishment of a unified kingdom must have a legal basis to include all regions.
In fact, the name Australia has a certain legal basis, because New Zealand used to be an Australian colony, and it seems reasonable to establish an Australian Kingdom to rule the current Australia and New Zealand.
But it cannot be denied that New Zealand has been independent for decades, and New Zealanders have gradually revealed their differences from Australians.
At this time, it is a bit difficult to integrate New Zealanders into Australians and make them Australians again.
However, there is a solution to the problem. As early as 1756, French scholar Brosse published a book called "Histoire des navigations aux terres australes", which divided Australia, New Zealand and the neighboring Pacific Islands in Oceania into one region, named Australasia.
In terms of topography, Australasia includes the Australian continent, Tasmania, New Zealand and Melanesia, and even New Guinea and neighboring islands in northeastern Australia.
The scope of Australasia perfectly includes Australia's current ruling scope, and there are basically no countries in this range that conflict with the legal system of Australasia.
This also means that it is legal and reasonable to establish an Australasia Kingdom to rule all areas within the scope of Australasia.
Coincidentally, a new name can also avoid disputes between Australia and New Zealand, allowing Australians and New Zealanders to integrate into the new country and mix into a new nation, the Australasians.
In fact, after Australia and New Zealand became independent in history, they also used the name of Australasia for a period of time.
For example, in the tennis competition from 1905 to 1913, Australia and New Zealand once merged and used the name of Australasia to compete together, including the two Olympic Games in 1908 and 1912.
From this point, we can also see the attitude of the people of Australia and New Zealand towards the union with each other.
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Because the ethnic composition is similar, they are basically immigrants from Britain and Europe, and the gap between ethnic groups is not that big.
In addition, Arthur’s high support and great reputation in Australia and New Zealand now make it not a fantasy that the newly established country is widely supported.
The meeting lasted until the evening, and the cabinet members were still discussing fiercely.
In fact, this is normal. After the establishment of the new kingdom, it means that the federal government that was originally maintained for a short time will also be replaced, thus forming a unified kingdom government.
This also has to take into account the retention of the governments of the Principality of Australia and the Principality of New Zealand, as well as the system of the future kingdom government.
These are closely related to the interests of these officials, and are also the reason why they can discuss until the evening without any results.
But there are still many more important things to be determined, such as the name of the newly established kingdom is Australasia, the capital of the kingdom is still Sydney in the capital territory, and the current administrative regions of Australia will not experience much change.
If a unified kingdom government is established, the stay or departure of the governments of the Principality of Australia and the Principality of New Zealand is also a serious problem.
In the end, it was Arthur who made the decision to abolish the governments of the Principality of Australia and the Principality of New Zealand after the establishment of the Kingdom of Australasia.
In the future, the six states of Australia, the capital territory, and the two states of North New Zealand and South New Zealand will all be directly under the unified management of the kingdom government.
The original federal House of Representatives and the Royal House will also be renamed the House of Representatives and the Royal House of the Kingdom of Australasia.
Doing so will greatly strengthen the union between Australia and New Zealand, and completely turn Australia and New Zealand into a unified kingdom.
The reason why Arthur dared to do this is precisely because he controlled the governments of the Principality of Australia and the Principality of New Zealand, and had a good reputation and support in both countries.
As long as the Australians and New Zealanders do not object, even if some officials have objections to this, it will definitely not cause any trouble.
In the next few days, Arthur convened cabinet officials of the Principality of Australia and important officials of the Principality of New Zealand to discuss the issue of retaining officials of the two principalities after the establishment of the kingdom.
Australia is the base of the new kingdom, and the current cabinet government of Australia will also become the first cabinet government of the kingdom.
The current problem is the stay or departure of the government officials of the Principality of New Zealand. Some of them will be transferred to the state governments of the two states of New Zealand, and the other officials will be employed by the royal government.
It just so happens that the cabinet ministers often complain that the departments are short of staff, so this is a good opportunity to expand the number of people in each department and enhance the administrative efficiency of the government.
As government officials discussed the future royal government, time quickly came to 1906.
January 10, 1906, Australia and New Zealand Federation, Capital Territory, Sydney, in front of Sydney Palace.
Although the main body of Sydney Palace behind has not been completed, the garden and square in front can be put into use.
As the largest square in Australia, Arthur immediately decided to hold the National Day activities of the new year in this square.
The square in front of the government building before could only accommodate less than 20,000 people, and the number of people that can be accommodated in the Sydney Palace Square now has more than tripled.
As early as a few weeks ago, there were rumors that something big was going to happen on this National Day, which made many people outside the capital determined to come to participate in this National Day event.
Although the venue is much larger than before, people are still crowded around, and it is even difficult to move.
This newly built square has already supported the maximum capacity it can accommodate for the first time to host an important national event, and even more.
Fortunately, the construction of Sydney Palace is a key plan of Australia, and various supervision and regulation are also very strict, so naturally there will be no shoddy projects.
Even the various building materials needed for the construction of Sydney Palace are carefully selected, and even purchased from major countries and regions around the world. The sturdiness is also trustworthy.
At around eight o'clock in the morning, Arthur's motorcade slowly came under the protection of a group of guards, and then stopped in front of the reviewing stand.
Arthur got out of the car, followed by important officials from the cabinet government and the two principalities.
He walked steadily onto the reviewing stand, and the normal national flag-raising and speech did not begin.
Arthur walked to the loudspeaker, first looked around at everyone in the audience, then slowly spoke, "All my Australians and New Zealanders, I am very happy to meet you at such a solemn moment."
"The union of Australians and New Zealanders has lasted for more than a year, and our federation has also made good progress. I believe that all Australians and New Zealanders can see this, and everyone's life has become better."
At this point, cheers and applause had already sounded in the audience, indicating that what Arthur said was true.
After waiting for a while, Arthur continued, "Now, I have decided that it is time to make our union even closer! Australians and New Zealanders will be indistinguishable from each other, and we will live together in a new country."
As he spoke, Arthur also looked at the reaction of the crowd below the stage, and then he continued, "I have decided to merge Australia and New Zealand to form a new kingdom called Australasia! From now on, we are all citizens of Australasia, and we are all great Australians. Long live Australasia!"
"Long live Australasia!"
"Long live His Royal Highness!"
The crowd followed and shouted for a long time, and then some people gradually reacted to what Arthur said.
If the kingdom has been established, then Arthur will not change from His Royal Highness to His Majesty the King?
So, the cheers and shouts on the field gradually turned into "Long live Australasia!" "Long live His Majesty the King!"
Although people were a little surprised at the establishment of the kingdom at first, it soon turned into joy and excitement.
The cheers lasted for a long time, and even affected the progress of the next activities.
But no one cares about this, not even Arthur and government officials.
After the square gradually quieted down, Arthur continued: "As your king, I will continue to uphold my original intention and protect all my people, that is, all Australians and New Zealanders, who make up the Australasians. It is the dream of the country, the government, the royal family and all Australasians to let the country rise and prosper and let all Australasians reach the top of the world. I hope that all Australians and New Zealanders can unite together, work hard for our new kingdom, for our new country, and realize our great dream of common rise and prosperity. Long live Australasia!"
In order to make the newly established kingdom more stable, it is very necessary to bring all Australians and New Zealanders into the scope of the new Australasians.
This is why Arthur repeatedly stated the concept of Australasians at this time. The concept of Australasians, after Arthur's mouth, is also more easily accepted by Australians and New Zealanders.
Amid the cheers and shouts of the crowd, the following National Day activities were also successfully carried out.
Because the flag of the kingdom has not yet been determined, the flags of the Commonwealth of Australia and New Zealand, as well as the flag of the royal family, are currently flying above the square.
I believe that after the government launches a national flag solicitation campaign to the public, the design of the flag of the Kingdom of Australasia will soon be decided.
The Victorian newspaper and the Australian Daily News also acted quickly. Shortly after the National Day event ended, the two newspapers published all of Arthur's speeches on National Day, and also attached a notice on the establishment of the Kingdom of Australasia.
Of course, Arthur's actions were far more than that. On the international front, Arthur officially notified all countries and invited major powers and important countries to send diplomatic ambassadors to each other.
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