Ireland's Founding Ceremony (3)

In the days that followed, representatives from other countries also arrived at Carroll Port. Not only France's allies, but also the Northern Italian Republic, the Dutch Republic, the Confederation of the Rhine, the Kingdom of Spain, the Kingdom of Prussia, the Austrian Empire, and the Ottoman Empire sent representatives. On Holy See other hand, His Pope Pius VII also came to Ireland to attend the founding ceremony of Ireland.

For the Pope, Ireland independence meant that Catholicism had expanded its territory in Europe. This was the first expansion of Catholicism territory in many years. Although the Pope had basically no credit for this, he wanted to gain some benefit from it.

In addition, the Russia, who had previously remained neutral, sent observers and began contacting the Ireland to discuss the possibility of establishing diplomatic relations.

The various receptions and preparations kept the Ireland Federation extremely busy. After all, they were not yet a fully-fledged government, nor did they have a sufficient reserve of diplomatic talent. The sudden arrival of representatives from so many friendly countries, and even some heads of state coming over, made the reception task a real headache for Russell.

Today, almost everyone in the Federation who has traveled abroad and speaks a foreign language has been mobilized as foreign affairs reception personnel. However, there is still a shortage of manpower, so many times, those involved in the reception do not even know the foreign language. Moreover, their English is so heavily influenced by Ireland accents that some English-speaking foreign guests have difficulty understanding them, leading to quite a few humorous situations.

However, all the participating countries expressed their understanding. Of course, some people, while outwardly understanding, immediately went back to their rooms and started mocking the Ireland, saying that they truly lived up to their reputation as potato growers.

On March 3, 1813, the day of Ireland's founding ceremony finally arrived. The sun shone brightly and the sky was cloudless. Our comrades from Class 1, Grade 3 of primary school—oh, I mean our Society of United Irishmen— led by our president, Comrade Russell, came to the stage.

The platform was set up in an open area near Battery No. 2. The site was originally a rangefinder station attached to Battery No. 2. At this time, only some minor adjustments were made to the location. The rangefinder instruments were removed, and a row of tables and chairs were placed on top, along with a banner. That was it.

Compared to other countries' venues for major ceremonies, such as the Peace Palace in France, this platform is naturally quite simple. However, President Russell believes that Ireland is still a poor country, and the Ireland people's money is hard-earned, so they should be as frugal as possible.

As a result, Ireland's founding ceremony was relatively simple. In Carroll's words, it was comparable to the election of a village head in the France countryside.

Joseph was naturally invited to the podium and sat with Pope Pius VII.

"Ah, Dean Joseph, hello!" Upon seeing Joseph, Pope Pius VII's plump face beamed with joy. "It's wonderful to meet you here. This is truly a blessing from God."

This was Pope Pius VII's first meeting with Joseph, but he was very clear about Joseph's true position within the Bonaparte Family. This was not because of what devout believers said during their confessions in church, but because the Holy See now had very many economic ties with the Bonaparte Family.

Over the centuries, the Holy See has accumulated astonishing wealth. This wealth couldn't simply sit idle, could it? The best way to make this wealth operate efficiently would naturally be through banking. However, Catholicism precepts prohibit making money through lending. Therefore, the Holy See itself cannot operate a bank.

But rules are rules, people are flexible. Just like the Knights Templar, a Catholicism organization, they still created the world's first multinational bank. Of course, the Knights Templar became heretical, but the charges against them included everything from homosexuality and devil worship to blasphemy, but not lending.

Theoretically speaking, the Knights Templar did not lend money; they merely collected rent. For example, they might rent you a sum of money or a property and collect rent—is there a problem with that? Absolutely not. Even Christ wouldn't dare say that collecting rent was wrong. If he had, and his disciples had insisted on remembering it, Christianity would never have gained recognition from Rome, let alone become Rome state religion. At most, it would have remained a specter, a specter haunting Europe.

After the Knights Templar's demise, the Holy See did not deny the legitimate and legal means of wealth creation through renting out property. Subsequently, several major banks that emerged in Italy, especially those owned by the Medici Family, all bore the Holy See's influence.

After the rise of the Roman Bank, it also had many dealings with the Holy See. The Holy See entrusted a lot of money and property to the Roman Bank for management, and the Roman Bank paid the corresponding rent according to the agreement between the two parties, or acted as an agent for the property and distributed dividends to the church on time every year.

Because of the extensive economic ties between the Church and the Roman Bank, the Holy See knows a great deal about the inner workings of the Bonaparte family. They know that although this man rarely appears in public and his presence is far less noticeable than that of the second and third sons, this quiet Caesar is the true helmsman of the family.

"Your Majesty, it is my honor to meet you. To be honest, I am quite surprised that you would travel so far to come here in person. You must know that this is still a war zone, and there may be some dangers involved," Joseph said.

"Ah, if Caesar of the Roman Empire can come here, why can't I, an old priest, come?" Pope Pius VII laughed. "The Ireland diocese has been occupied for a long time. Since the start of the War of Independence, the Holy See has always stood with the Ireland people who are pursuing freedom, and has even sent priests to help Ireland. Now that the Britain heretics have been expelled, the diocese should be re-established, so how can I not come and see?"

The Ireland are Catholicism. But now, there are several denominations within Catholicism. For example, the Catholicism Church in France is heretical, and the Holy See doesn't dare call them heretics. It's really... However, the France Church is relatively honest and doesn't spread their teachings much outside. But now there's an even more terrifying heresy operating under the guise of Catholicism — Revolutionary Theology!

Of course, most of those Revolutionary Theology have gone to Americas to build an earthly kingdom. But they haven't completely disappeared from Europe. Their ideas are very inflammatory, and if they go to Ireland and cause some trouble, it would be a real problem for the Holy See... So the Pope must send over authentic Catholicism as soon as possible.

Besides, according to information the Pope had gathered, the French and Irish were preparing a reconstruction plan for Ireland. A moment's thought reveals countless opportunities to make money. Of course, the Vatican doesn't love money, but wouldn't more money be beneficial for spreading the Gospel? For one thing, during Mass, if more of the blood and flesh of Jesus Christ were prepared for the Lord's Supper (in the Lord's Supper, the broken bread represents Jesus' flesh, and the wine represents Jesus' blood), more people would be willing to attend Mass and receive blessings. However, the Church can't perform the miracle of five fish and two loaves, so naturally, it can only be "small money, but truly sweet."

Therefore, it was wonderful for the Pope to meet Joseph here. In fact, a major reason why His Holiness the Pope traveled so far was to discuss some important issues with Joseph.

Of course, this was not the time to discuss such matters. So Joseph asked the Pope, "Your Majesty, what ship did you travel by? Did you suffer from seasickness on the way?"

The Pope immediately understood Joseph's meaning and replied with a smile, "I came on a ship from Hurd Shipping. I shouldn't be too picky, but the ship really isn't very comfortable, especially for an old man like me."

Joseph replied, "Your Majesty, after things are settled here, why don't you ride on my ship and we return together?"