Napoleon in 1812
Chapter 78:

13. Golden War – 2

Inthe end, this wasonly a trick of politicians to blame the sluggishnessofthe war andthe failureofthe battle only on the Commander.

Then theyshould givehim enough authoritytoaccompany his responsibilities, or give him enoughsupport andassistance to continue thewar!

Even if Britain is a‘maritime empire’, shouldn’t it actively support the Army if it’sparticipating in a war on thecontinent?

British officers in theAllied forces were expressingwidespread discontent overtheircountry’s behavior thatwas onlyemphasizingthe responsibility for defeatwithout thinking about what had been neglected.

“When we defeated Marmont’s Corps at Salamanca, all themediainthe kingdompraised theCommander as if he werea legendaryhero. Weall remember thatWestminsterministers and lawmakerswere scrambling to lurehim intotheirparty. But now? Thissituation in which he’spushed and criticized as if he werethe source of allthesefailuresand defeatsisridiculous. Now no one remembershow dangerous theIberian Peninsulawas before he came, andhow muchthe troops here weredesperate againstthe French.”

Major General RowlandHill expressedthe above lamentation at adrinkingpartywith some coalition officers. Sincethe death of MarshalJohn Moore, tricolorflagshad beencoveringthe IberianPeninsula.

The SpanishProvisionalGovernment hadbeen barelyhanging on, crouching on aland of thesize of a palm, Portugal was desperately tryingprotecting itsterritory, andthe BritishRoyalCouncil hadbeen seriouslyconsideringabandoning theIberian Peninsula.

ArthurWellesley’sname wasindispensable when talkingaboutwhat hadbrought thewar on the peninsulatothe currentsituation whenithad beenalmost completelydefeated.

“The postwarreports that the staff officers anduswrotecarefully clearlyreveal our calling for thebattle of Burgos. Ifthey have abraintothink, theywill know thatthe judgments we made in the battleatthat time werethe bestdecision. If it weren’tfor the Commander, all ourtroops would havebeen trapped in Nabot’scamp, sitting on a coldfloorwaiting fortheirrelease. I have never seenanythingmore pathetic than themusingthe Commander andour troops as consumables fortheirpolitical interests andprovocativenews.”

ArthurWellesley had been anew hopefor Iberia, whichhad onlybeen considering thetiming to raise awhiteflag, and had even broughtthe opportunity to turnthe situation around.

Rowland Hillwas the first to feel sympathy for hissteely superior, whose creditwas far from being recognized.

“Asfar as I know, MajorGeneral Hill was notoriginally very close to the Marquis. Butafterhearing your words today, I think you’ve changed yourmind?”

Rowland Hillsuddenlyglanced at thebrigadier generalwho asked arandom question and burst into laughter.

“I was wondering whosaid this. TheBrigadier General, who hasbeen in Lisbonfor two years, may wellthinkso. You’re right. When theCommander was entrustedwith general commandofthe entire peninsula, he received manycomplaints fora year.”

Arthur Wellesleywas personallya very difficult mantoget close to. He wasknowntobevery aristocratic, authoritativeand to havea cold-heartedpersonality.

Notonly Rowland Hillbut alsootherofficersunderhis commandhad beenuncomfortable aroundhim. Butthat mood had completely changedina year.

They sawhis competenceinthe field, determination, leadership across many units, andhis abilitytowin the most important victory.

When he began to advance north againsta Frencharmy, that hadneverbeen defeated by Marshal JohnMoore, his personality wasnolonger aproblem.

“ButI do believe thatnoone willcarelessly bring my words to theCommander’sears.”

“Ha… Haha, ofcourse, Major General.”

RowlandHill pouredthe strong ruminto histhroat.

“I’m ignorant of thepolitical situation andpublic opinioninBritain, but… as you said, it’s apity if theCommander is in suchtrouble. Inthat sense, our country’s situationisa littlebetter. At least we don’t have to be waryofanyone.”

He was Lieutenant GeneralJoãoMeldihortz, ChiefofStaffofBrigadier GeneralFrancisco Pinto, Count of Amarante[1]. Atfirstglance, hiswordsmay sound likePortugalwas better than England, but those whogatheredhere knew thatitwas not.

The Portuguese royal family, including Queen Maria I and Regent João VI[2], quickly packedtheirbags andfled to their colony, Brazil, assoon as Napoleon Bonaparteinvaded theIberian Peninsulaand advanced toward Portugal.

The same was true for theofficials of the main cabinetofthe government. A physicaldistanceofthousands of miles was created betweenthe administration and themilitary.

“That’s why ourPortuguese army’sstrategies or operations werenot interrupted. There’s no one to criticizeorblameusfor winningorlosing.”

It was notuntilthe royal family andmembers of thegovernment disappeared that the Portuguese military could choose a strategy solely forvictory.

Coincidentally, only thendid the Portuguese begin to see results. Lieutenant GeneralMeldihortz complained about this.

“Uh… The hound thathas lostits owner is better at fighting… There’s areason why Nabot is flyingaround likethat. InFrance, he’s at the top, so he doesn’thave anything to worry about.”

Rowland Hilllooked at the stars outside the barracks with remorsefuleyes. Nomatter how many complaintsthey had, theyhad to obeyorders becausethey were soldiers.

The oppressioncoming fromthe country’s leaders and their resultingangerwere soothed by alcohol. Thatway, they could go backtothe battlefield withtheiruniformsand officers’ caps. Theofficers’ night was getting intense.

===

“The stock marketinLondon is currently like the weather in Cambridge. It’s so gloomyand we don’t knowwhen therain cloudswill disappear. Unless you’redenying thesituation and have enough gold to fillthe Thames, investing now would be waytoo risky.”

An old mansaid in an interviewwith London’s Economic Journal, Isle of Dogs. If he had been justanordinaryold man whoenjoyed hisgrandchildren’s pranks, noone would havepaid attentionand would havecome to cover thematter in an economic journal. But theold man’s namewas PatrickStuart, a man known as a financier legendinLondon.

Stuart began to gainfame when he bought a large amount of bonds from corporations that wereonthe southern coast thatwere circling at a bargainpriceinthe marketsinthe midst of awar betweenBritain andFrance.

Everyonethought he wascrazy. A stupid retirementofficialmocked him forspillinghis old agefundsinthe Strait of Dover. But exactlyfive monthslater, the warendedwith thesigning of theTreaty of Amiens[3]between Britainand France.

As aresult of the treaty, Britainoccupiedpartsofthe island of SriLankathat were previouslycontrolled by theDutchEast India Company.

The price of the bonds of corporationsthat were on the southern coast soaredmadlyand PatrickStuart became oneofthe richestpeople in London’s financial district.

A man called thelegend of investmentwas now advising peoplearound the world through an economic magazine by saying ‘this is notthe timetoinvest’. The weight of hiswordswas definitelynot light.

“Then, Stuart, Sir, when do you think therighttime to investwill come? As youhad expected the TreatyofAmiens to be signed, I think we canlook forward to yourprediction this timeaswell.”

“I’m not a prophet, unfortunately. EvenWestminster, who wasleading thewar and negotiations, didn’t expectthe gap between the twocountries to narrow so quickly, so howcouldI know that? However… atthat time, I thoughtthat bonds of southern corporationshad alowermarket value compared to others. What greater opportunity thantobuy a3-pound thing for8 ounces(0.5 pounds)? That’swhy I was abletospendmoneywithout hesitation.”

Witha gentlesmile, PatrickStuart continued.

“There is only one thing I wanttosay throughthis. This is certainlynot the right time for investment. However, we sometimesmeet winners who break through the odds and achieve tremendoussuccess. I’m ashamedtosay thatI’m one of them. What I did at the time wasn’t so grand. I just bought andwaited for thingsthat were undervalued compared to the marketvalue. After all, the mostimportant thing in investing is to develop the right eyefor value, andnot justlook at theflow of themarket. If yourememberand put into practice whatI am saying, you will be abletoachieve your desiredresults.”

“Thankyou for your goodwordstoday. Thiswas an interview with PatrickStuart, whoruns StuartBank of London.”

===

Britain, withEurope’smost advanced financial, securitiesand bondsystems, had about 10 financial autonomous districts in London.

Theamount of money theymanaged andoperatedwas at least hundreds of thousands of poundseach. Itwas ahuge ‘economy’ initself, exceedingthe annual revenue of mostsmalland medium-sized countriesinEurope.

London’sfinancial district, where allofEurope’sgold wasgathered, deserved to be called thehub among hubs.

There wasa reasonwhy thissmallspecial borough, which wasonly about a square mile, wascalled the heart of Europe, or evenofthe world, beyondEngland.

Financial andsecurities firms hadnochoice but to establishcorporations within financialautonomous districtsthat hadcorporate and incometaxesreduction.

Therefore, many companies andbusinesses that received financial investment fromthem also established their headquarters near them, and, naturally, organizations of high-levelexperts, including patent offices, lawfirms, and accountants, also settled nearby.

The ‘City of London’ was theoldest financial autonomous municipality in theUnited Kingdom, withthe London Stock Exchange andthe BankofEngland flyingUnionJacksinits center.

The City of London, the cityofgold andfinance, was fullofyoungpeople searching forsuccess.

A secure income, a stablejob, or an individual’sdream, adesire to succeed… Most of them experiencepainful failures andtalent limitations and fell and disappeared.

Those who survived, however, couldbereborn as hands controlling the entireBritish economy.

Asthe place where the most ‘goldentrade’ tookplaceinEurope, it wasalso a place where all kinds of humanscouldbeseen andheard.

“It’s like the grasslands of Africa or thejungles of theAmazon River. It’s aplacewhereyou pickupthings thatfell aroundand eat them, because if you don’t grow as big as youcan you’ll be eaten.”

HowardBuck wasexplaining theCity of London’s ‘rules’ to anew recruit. Gordon Banks wasone of the tenlargest financialcorporations in the City of London. And Howard Buck was theleader of Gordon Banks’ team.

“What’sthe mostimportant thing whendecidingoninvestment in stocksand bonds?”

“Yousaid information.”

“Yes, information. Thereare certainly peopleinthis erawho achievelegendary returnsbasedoninformationthat othersdon’tknow, and who have collected enormous gold. Financialfirmsare all aware of thepoweroffast andaccurateinformation.”

“…”

“In that sense, ourteam’s roleistoget information about whatGordon Banks can investin. Of course, this includes allthe sordid anddirtyinformationhidden fromthe restofthe world, as well as the media taboos.”

Buck flaunted histeam by lifting his wild beard. Thesecurities firm in London allran their own intelligenceteams, as did Buck’sGordon Banks.

Inaddition, numerous spies wereplanted in thekingdom’s parliament, cabinet, and military, and theywere collecting rumors andnews that could makemoney.

“Sowe…”

Buck, whowas helpingthe new recruit overa glass of beer, hadtostop talking, staring elsewhere at some point.

Naturally, thenewcomer’s face turned to thesame side. They bothlooked at agroupofmen.

They paced outside for a moment beforecoming intothe pub. The three men with black top hats werewearing very luxurious clothes and attire, and attractedthe attention of allthe people in thepub.

“W-what about them…?”

“…These arethe humans I justtold youabout. Theyused information that others didn’tknow andquickly becamerich.”

Or they wereluckyenough to be loved by God. The envyand jealousy in Buck’s expression seemed to never be able to go away.

Thenew recruitexaminedtheirappearance closely. Soon after, he found uniqueinitialswritten on thefrontoftheirtop hats.

‘L.V.C.’

Sinceits comet-likeappearance at theend of September last year, it was an emerging financialcompany that had grown explosively, succeeding in every field andbreakingrecords.

After feelingthe envyand jealousy of all thefinanciers in theCity of London, the three mentook a quick lookinside the pub, drank aglassofmead andleft. The short laugh theyleft beforeleaving thepub seemed to laugh at thewholecrowdinside.

“Damnit, I feel like crap.”

Buck gulpeddown hisbeer. The new recruit alsolooked around andcontinued to drink his beer.

TL notes

[1]Francisco Pinto, Count of Amarante

[2]MariaI of Portugal,João VI

[3]TheTreaty of Amienswas one of thetreatiesthat ended theWar of the SecondCoalition, in which a coalition made of the UnitedKingdom, Russia, Austria, theHoly Roman Empire, Turkey, Sweden, Portugal andthe OttomanEmpire fought andlost against France, its sister republicsand Spain.

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