Chapter 61 Heading to Germany

"I have never thought about asking the British government to help us immigrate." Arthur nodded and said with a smile: "For us, if the immigration plan is not obstructed and opposed by the British government, it is a success for us. "

Although Australia currently cannot prevent the majority of immigrants from going to the United States, it can also attract some immigrants to Australia by relying on its own development and friendly relations with the United Kingdom and Germany.

As long as it can attract about one-tenth of the total number of European immigrants, up to 70,000 to 80,000 Europeans will go to Australia every year.

Is one-tenth a huge proportion? actually not. In its original history, Australia liberalized its immigration policy and began to attract immigrants on a large scale since the establishment of the federal government.

This also caused Australia's population to surge from the original population of more than 3.7 million to more than 19.4 million in the 100 years from the beginning of the 20th century to the beginning of the 21st century, an increase of nearly six times.

During this century, an average of more than 100,000 people immigrated to Australia every year and became permanent residents and official citizens of Australia.

Among them, European immigrants account for a large part, with at least 50,000 to 60,000 Europeans going to Australia every year.

This is all based on what Australia has achieved without any help. Now, with the help of Arthur, Australia has sufficient development funds, as well as assistance from the United Kingdom and Germany, and its sphere of influence has expanded to New Zealand and British New Guinea ahead of schedule.

Under the premise of having neither foreign enemies nor internal troubles, it has a golden period of development. Such Australia's attractiveness in the eyes of Europeans can also be improved, which may not exceed the extent to which Australia has attracted immigrants in history.

The three ministers nodded unconsciously, expressing their agreement with Arthur's point of view.

As long as the British government does not interfere with Australia's policy of attracting immigrants, relying on Arthur's favorability in the hearts of the British, it is still very promising to slightly increase the proportion of British immigrants going to Australia.

What's more, Arthur still has many trump cards that he has not yet used, and Australia's development has just begun.

On December 11, 1900, witnessed by many media and a large number of British people, the British Empire government and the Australian government signed a treaty on assistance to Australia, which came into effect on the first day after the signing of the treaty and lasted for a full ten years. .

Because it had the signatures of both monarchs, Edward VII and Arthur, the treaty officially became legally binding.

In order to commemorate Queen Victoria's contribution to this treaty, under Arthur's proposal, this treaty was officially named: "Treaties of the British Empire in aid of Australia based on the will of Queen Victoria on the Isle of Wight", referred to as "British Empire" Australia's Treaty of the Isle of Wight.

Because this treaty does not have any diplomatic or military conditions, it only stipulates and declares Britain's financial, resource, and equipment assistance to Australia. Therefore, this treaty did not receive the attention of various countries, but only looked at the British Empire's assistance to related countries within its sphere of influence.

The reason why it is proposed to add the names of the Isle of Wight and Queen Victoria to the treaty is because this is indeed a treaty signed in Queen Victoria's will. Without Queen Victoria's instructions, Britain would not agree to this treaty.

Furthermore, it is to use the prestige of Queen Victoria that has not dissipated to give this treaty authority.

I believe that even if the UK changes its monarch, this treaty will still be implemented meticulously.

The reason why Edward VII agreed to such a naming naturally had his own selfish motives.

Mentioning Queen Victoria's will again also tells all the British people that their new king, Edward VII, has implemented the previous queen's last will very well, and can also win over a wave of public support.

The two monarchs, who had their own thoughts, reached a brief unity in the naming of the treaty. Although the purposes were different, at least their interests were consistent.

After the signing of the treaty, the mission of the diplomatic mission in the UK was basically a complete success, and there was no need to continue to stay in the UK.

Therefore, Arthur led the Australian diplomatic delegation and resolutely headed for the new destination, the German Empire, under the "reluctance and sincerity" of Edward VII to persuade him to stay.

The British people were still slightly moved by the media's praise, thinking that although Arthur was reluctant to leave, he had to leave his beloved hometown because of busy national affairs.

Although there are no practical benefits, it does slightly increase the British people's favorability towards Arthur, and many people are even more sympathetic to Arthur's situation.

This is also the benefit of controlling public opinion. Although there are only a few British small newspapers, they can also play an important role in some cases.

Because Berlin, the capital of Germany, is located inland in Central Europe, after the fleet docked at the German port of Hamburg, it still needed to travel overland to reach Hamburg.

Because William II had already been informed, after the Australian fleet arrived at the port of Hamburg, a welcoming team from Germany was already seen.

To say it's a team is actually not that exaggerated. Because Australia currently does not have much prestige in the world, it would be inappropriate to send senior German government officials to welcome him.

In order to show the importance he attached to Australia, William II specially sent his son, Crown Prince William, to greet him.

As the heir to the German Empire, Crown Prince Wilhelm is certainly qualified in terms of identity and status.

At the same time, because he was similar in age to Arthur, William II naturally believed that Crown Prince William would be more comfortable talking to Arthur.

At this time, Crown Prince Wilhelm had received military education in Potsdam and was regarded by Wilhelm II as a satisfactory heir.

When Arthur led the diplomatic delegation to the port of Hamburg, Crown Prince William walked up with a smile, without any pretense as a crown prince: "Your Highness Arthur, welcome to Germany!"

In fact, in terms of seniority, Arthur is Crown Prince William's cousin. But because of Crown Prince William's relatively noble status, it is impossible for him to call him uncle in such a public place. His Highness is a good choice. It not only reflects the respect and respect for Arthur, but also does not cause Crown Prince William to lose face in such a public occasion.

"Thank you, Your Highness, Crown Prince." Arthur nodded politely and responded with a smile.

"I originally planned to take His Highness to visit Hamburg for a few days and then go to Berlin. But because my father is pressing me hard, I can only take Your Highness to Berlin first. After everything is settled, I will take Your Highness to Berlin. You have a taste of Germany." Crown Prince William explained apologetically.

Both William II and Arthur wanted to advance the time for negotiation and signing of the treaty as much as possible.

This also resulted in Arthur and the visiting delegation having to rush to Berlin non-stop after arriving in Hamburg.

Only in this way can we arrive in Berlin within the expected time and officially start negotiations with Germany.

"It doesn't matter, Your Highness the Crown Prince. What's more, it's my idea to go to Berlin as soon as possible." Arthur said with a smile and shook his head.

The first update is here, thank you all for your support!