Chapter 985: Chapter 738: The Portuguese Civil War
William’s engagement ceremony added a touch of color to the world, but the excitement quickly died down.
People marveled at the lavish scale and grandeur of the royal engagement, but life had to go on, and no one believed the royal family should be denied such enjoyment.
Yet in November 1929, the global situation became turbulent again.
The outbreak of unrest was in Portugal, and it was caused by the country’s brutal dictatorship.
It must be said that Arthur had a hand in and influence on this matter. Besides showcasing the prestige of the Australasian royal family, William’s engagement ceremony also displayed the grandeur and splendor of the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Family.
The royal families of both the United Kingdom and Australia are descended from this family, which has been heralded as the greatest family of the early 20th century.
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Such a title naturally had an impact on Portugal, swaying some of its more neutral forces.
On one side was the family recently called the greatest, while on the other, a dictator widely resented by the public, causing a clear division within Portugal.
One side consisted of the current dictators with vested interests, while the other side consisted of those seeking to overthrow the dictatorship.
Within this second faction, the Monarchist Party, unquestionably the most powerful, sought to reestablish monarchy and restore the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Portugal.
When it came to his own power, Antonio Salazar was naturally unwilling to back down easily.
d to support Portugal. It took all of King George V’s effort to persuade the government to support Manuel II during the civil war.
Of course, for this reason, King George V also had to relinquish many interests, effectively making a trade with the government.
Backed by the support of two major Powers, Britain and Australasia, Manuel II was swiftly able to ascend to the throne of Portugal.
On December 21st, 1929, more than a decade later, Manuel proudly proclaimed the restoration, re-establishing the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Dynasty in Portugal and immediately declaring the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom Government of Portugal and both Britain and Australasia.
In exchange for this benefit, the Kingdom Government of Portugal announced that it would lease the islands of São Tomé and Príncipe to Australasia for a period of twenty years.
Any shrewd observer knew this was an exchange of interests between the two countries, but no nation could object to such a swap of benefits.
After all, this was considered normal in the global context, with each party getting what they needed and the outcome being favorable to both countries.
Having resolved the matters in Portugal, Arthur could finally rest easy, at least for the moment.
The increasing number of Monarchical countries was also beneficial for the stability of Australasia’s future monarchy.
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Although Arthur’s prestige and status in Australasia reached unprecedented heights, Queen Victoria once held an exalted position and authority within the United Kingdom as well.
After several generations of succession, hadn’t King George V’s power also been significantly reduced? If George V hadn’t decisively abandoned the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha surname during World War I, it might have been questionable whether the British Royal Family could have remained stable.
This also represents a simple truth, that while the throne can be inherited, respect and reputation cannot.
To ensure the continuance of the monarchy in Australasia, it was essential to maintain the monarchical systems of other countries, so that Australasia wouldn’t become a unique case on a global scale.
Turning his attention back to domestic affairs, Arthur began to inspect projects that had been initiated under the eight-year construction plan.
First and foremost, the Lake Eyre Canal project, which related to the ecological environment of central Australia, was of paramount importance to Arthur.
This was a bold decision by Arthur, an unprecedented endeavor. If successful, the Great Basin would be reinvigorated, and Australasia would gain millions of square kilometers of fertile land.
However, if it failed, such a project that consumed the labor of over 150,000 people and considerable capital would also be a blow to Arthur’s reputation.
Although the setback wouldn’t be devastating, it would still have a significant impact on Arthur’s subsequent strategies.
The Lake Eyre Canal project had been underway since February this year, and ten months had already passed.
As part of the canal plan connecting North Lake Eyre to south, the canal was less than ten kilometers long and had been essentially completed within these ten months.
However, because the other two sections of the canal were much longer, construction was expected to take at least five years, even with the mobilization of additional labor and resources on a full-scale effort.
Arthur paid close attention to this project, personally supervising it. Once the canal between the two lakes was completed, Arthur personally arrived at the site to inspect the work, making sure everything was proceeding according to plan before he could ease his mind.
The good news was that there was no lack of labor for the Lake Eyre Canal construction plan.
As the project was strongly advocated by Arthur and because people understood that the purpose of the canal was to restore the ecological environment of central Australia, a large number of volunteers eagerly participated in the construction of the Lake Eyre Canal. The recruitment sites were almost overflowing every day, with many individuals willing to join the canal construction plan, even for a lower wage.
Originally, the Lake Eyre Canal construction plan intended to employ only 150,000 workers, mostly recruited from the United States.
aircraft were not destined for long service lives; during wars, these relatively fragile high-tech products were hugely susceptible to damage.
Rather than focusing on the safety of military aircraft, it was more important to consider whether they could carry more supplies and evade enemy fire.