In fact, this was true not only of the British Empire—even to the royal families of most European monarchies, Queen Victoria was the benchmark of a constitutional monarch.
Queen Victoria, known as the grandmother of Europe, had certainly earned the name. The royal families of several countries were closely related to Queen Victoria by blood. Even Kaiser Wilhelm II, emperor of one of the great powers, the German Empire, was Queen Victoria's grandson through her daughter.
In the original history, when Queen Victoria died on the Isle of Wight, many of her descendants had gathered around her, including Crown Prince Edward and Kaiser Wilhelm II.
For Kaiser Wilhelm II to be able to remain constantly at Queen Victoria's side showed just how exalted Queen Victoria's position was in the eyes of Europe's royal families.
As expected, Queen Victoria's idea met with opposition from the overwhelming majority. No one was willing to let Queen Victoria, already over eighty years old, undertake such a grueling journey merely to travel more than ten thousand kilometers to the Isle of Wight.
Though many people understood Queen Victoria's longing for her deceased relative, neither the British Empire nor the European Royal Family could accept the blow that losing Queen Victoria would bring.
However, once Queen Victoria had made up her mind, no one could stop her—not even Prime Minister Robert or Crown Prince Edward.
The only fortunate thing was that Queen Victoria had not decided to depart immediately. Instead, she would wait until Arthur had taken care of everything, then travel to Australia with him.
Although Duke Arthur had been assassinated at a young age, he had left Arthur a vast fortune and enormous assets.
Leaving aside the two duchies and one earldom that had already been exchanged for territory in Australia, the several castles, two Munitions Factories, one Steel Mill, and one shipyard originally under Duke Arthur's control were alone worth at least a hundred million pounds.
Duke Arthur had also left behind shares in a large number of industrial and other factories and companies, with an estimated value of at least ten million pounds.
Now that Arthur was going to Australia, most of these assets would have to be relocated or liquidated entirely in order to fulfill their greatest potential.
As far as Arthur was concerned, all the shares he controlled needed to be liquidated. Although those shares might appreciate over the coming years, Arthur, who was about to leave for Australia, clearly did not have much time to wait for their value to rise.
It would be better to turn them all into pounds and contribute the money to Australia's development.
As for the shipyards, Steel Mills, and Munitions Factories, if possible, it would be better to relocate them all to Australia.
These factories were extremely scarce in Australia. They would not only fill the industrial void that had existed there for so long but also accelerate Australia's industrial and technological development.
As for the several castles Duke Arthur had left behind, Arthur would most likely never return to the British Empire. There was therefore no need to keep them.
All of these castles were ancient fortresses with histories spanning more than a century. They occupied vast tracts of land, possessed highly complete supporting facilities, and all had gardens, multiple restaurants, and large collections of precious artworks.
The value of these few ancient castles alone might have exceeded sixty million pounds—fully a quarter of the British Empire's total annual tax revenue.
The good news was that Butler Hunter had previously been solely responsible for managing Duke Arthur's assets, so he was extremely familiar with every one of them.
After learning that Arthur intended to sell off all his assets and travel to Australia, Butler Hunter did not object. He simply helped Arthur sell the assets he himself had painstakingly built up.
Perhaps because the British Empire was currently flourishing and its developed economy had created so many wealthy people, the liquidation of Duke Arthur's assets proceeded smoothly. In just one month, the vast majority of the shares and castles had been sold.
The castles in particular were extremely popular among the nobles. Not only were they all sold, but together they also brought Arthur as much as seventy million pounds.
Adding in the proceeds from the sale of his shares, the cash currently in Arthur's hands had reached the terrifying sum of eighty-seven million pounds.
March 3, Buckingham Palace.
This was Arthur's last day in the British Empire, and likewise the day before Queen Victoria was due to depart.
The British Government was exceptionally busy that day. It had to handle not only its ordinary affairs but also once again confirm the preparations for Queen Victoria's journey the following day.
As the queen of the British Empire, Queen Victoria's traveling retinue could hardly be modest.
On this journey, Queen Victoria would not only bring a force of two thousand Royal Guards, but also the escort of a fleet including two battleships and five cruisers.
The party included members of the Royal Family—Princess Beatrice, Arthur, Princess Louise, Marguerite, and Patricia—as well as Royal Butler Harvey and Deputy Prime Minister Jon.
To make it easier to attend to Queen Victoria's meals and daily life, the journey would also include twelve servants, three maids, five chefs, and two pastry chefs.
After all the final preparations had been completed, Queen Victoria began making her last farewells to the government officials and Crown Prince Edward.
The farewell between Crown Prince Edward and Queen Victoria was stiff, perhaps because both of them had matters weighing on their minds.
But Crown Prince Edward had ultimately achieved his wish, and he now appeared relaxed and cheerful. Smiling, he admonished Arthur, who stood beside Queen Victoria, "Arthur, once you reach your own territory, remember not to act recklessly. Your people are the foundation of your territory. Only a popular ruler can govern a country for a long time. Learn more from your grandmother and strive to become a competent ruler."
"Yes, Uncle." Although he did not understand why Crown Prince Edward seemed so unusually animated, Arthur simply took it as his uncle's advice before his departure.
"Edward, Arthur is about to leave. As his uncle, don't you have anything to give him?" Queen Victoria suddenly spoke up, having remained silent until then. Her gaze, carrying a hint of deeper meaning, fixed on Edward.
"Oh, damn it, how could I have forgotten something so important?" Crown Prince Edward immediately broke into a cold sweat before hurriedly saying, "Arthur, I promised before that I would give you a gift when you left for your territory. Now it's time to make good on that promise. I heard that you've been selling off all your assets recently, and there isn't much I can do to help you. How about this? I'll give you twenty million pounds in my personal capacity, and then have the Bank of London lend you another thirty million pounds interest-free. Consider it your belated birthday present. The circumstances were unusual before, so I couldn't celebrate your birthday properly, but I still have to wish you a happy seventeenth birthday."
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