Arthur, Alexandre Dumas and Thomas Campbell sat around the coffee table, and the three of them sipped tea and talked about what they knew about Poland.

Since intercepting information about the turmoil in Poland from the Tsarist embassy last year, Arthur has been able to read some news about the Polish uprising from the London newspapers from time to time, but it is mostly some general and general news, and even if Arthur wants to know more about the inside story and specific developments, his London Police Intelligence Bureau does not have the manpower and energy.

He could only occasionally pick up a few bits and pieces of detail from Fiona, who worked at the Russian embassy, and all in all, the Polish rebels did not seem to have been going well except for their initial success since the outbreak of a large-scale uprising in Warsaw last November.

And at this moment, from the mouth of Thomas Campbell, the picture scroll in Arthur's mind finally became clear.

Just like the impact of the French Revolution in 1789 on the European continent, since the outbreak of the July Revolution in France last year, many parts of Europe have been inspired by the victory of the July Revolution and have broken out large-scale armed uprisings one after another.

This was the most important reason why Austrian Prime Minister Metternich, Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, and King Frederick William III of Prussia wanted to prevent the independence of Belgium.

And the facts proved this, and even before Tsarist Russia could make concessions on the Belgian question, a large-scale armed uprising had already begun in the Kingdom of Poland under its control. This led to the eventual reluctance of Tsarist Russia to relent, agreeing to Prince Leopold, the uncle of the British Crown Prince Victoria, as King of Belgium.

In the peace talks between the Polish Provisional Government and the Tsarist Russian Government held in St. Petersburg on December 10 last year, Nicholas I categorically rejected the petition submitted by the Polish delegation, refused to respect the Polish constitution established in 1815, and refused to return the land expropriated by Poland, and said that he refused to negotiate on the issue of the uprising or make concessions that could calm Polish public opinion, and the Poles had only two choices- Either lay down your arms and declare your unconditional surrender, or Warsaw will wait to be flattened by the Russian army!

When the Tsar's reply was transmitted back to Poland, it unsurprisingly aroused the indignation of the Polish public, and the Polish Supreme National Assembly publicly rebuked the head of the negotiating delegation, Yezilski, who had previously taken a concessional stance against Russia, and the other Polish government leader, Xavari Lubetsky, was even more frightened to stay in Russia and not dare to return home.

On January 25, 1831, a mass demonstration broke out in Warsaw, and the university students of Warsaw gathered on Warsaw's landmark Castle Square holding placards bearing the names of the five revolutionaries of the Russian Decembrist uprising, and Polish Field Marshal Ostrovsky gave a speech on war mobilization under the flags of Poland and Russia side by side and the slogan "For your freedom and mine".

At the same time, Polish peasants began to refuse to serve, put down their hoes, picked up guns, and spontaneously joined the rebel army.

On the same day, Poland issued a diplomatic notice to the European ambassadors to Poland that the Kingdom of Poland had officially declared its independence from the Russian Empire due to the encroachment of Tsar Alexander and Nikolai on Polish sovereignty, and that the new government would be headed by the former Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian Empire, Foreign Minister, and Prince of Poland Czartorysky.

Nicholas I's response to Polish independence did not go back on it, Poland declared independence on January 25, and on February 5 Russia's 120,000 counterinsurgency troops entered the Kingdom of Poland under the leadership of Russian Field Marshal Zabarkanski.

However, the Russian army did not complete the reconquest of Poland as quickly and forcefully as expected, Zabarkanski suffered a blow in the suburbs of Warsaw, they were defeated by the outnumbered Polish rebels in the Battle of Graukhov, and were driven all the way to the line of the Bug River by the rebels, and in April, there was a large-scale outbreak of cholera and typhoid fever in the Russian army, and the combat effectiveness was seriously damaged.

It was not until June that the Russian army finally relented, and they won their first operational victory over Poland at Ostrowinka.

But Tsar Nicholas I's patience with the slow-moving Marshal Zabarkansky had apparently reached its limit, and after another thwarted attack on Warsaw, the enraged tsar finally couldn't help but lash out: "In any case, the battle force is 120,000 against 60,000, and the advantage is mine." Niang Xipi! Zabalkansky is incompetent, it seems that I must go out of the mountain myself! ”

However, just as Nicholas I was gearing up for his own expedition, there was a loud bang in the sky of St. Petersburg, and the stars shone brightly.

"Your Majesty, slow down, and see me make a little trick to discipline the Pole to surrender!"

The people who spoke were: the famous Russian generals who grew up in the artillery of the Napoleonic Wars, the triumphant man who invaded Paris, the Ottoman Turkish nemesis who performed many miraculous feats in the Seventh and Eighth Russo-Turkish Wars, the king of the Middle East who beat the head of the Persian Qajar dynasty, the conqueror of the Caucasus, the old brother who fought side by side with the former Emperor Alexander I, the great brother who won the trust of Tsar Nicholas I, Marshal Ivan Fedorovich Paskevich, Count of Yerevan.

After receiving strong assurances from Marshal Paskevich, Nicholas I quickly dismissed Marshal Zabarkansky from his post and replaced Paskeevich with the post of commander-in-chief of the counterinsurgency.

As soon as Paskeewicz took office, he changed Zabarkanski's brutal frontal approach, and he cunningly ordered the Russian army to cross the Vistula River from a position close to the Prussian border, bypassing the frontal defense line laid by the Poles and attacking Warsaw directly from the west.

At this time, the Polish rebels were still fighting for the previous defeat, and the Polish generals who had been defeated at the Battle of Lesobiki were all arrested and imprisoned for treason.

After the court acquitted the generals, the agitated citizens of Warsaw rushed directly into the prison and lynched them and hanged them one by one. The leader of the uprising, Krukowiecki, who was fighting on the front lines, had to rush back to Warsaw overnight to calm the citizens and order the arrest of the riot leaders.

After two days of fierce fighting, Paskeewicz was finally able to send a message to St. Petersburg with satisfaction: Your Majesty, I am honored to inform you that Warsaw is now back at your feet.

After listening to Thomas Campbell's introduction, the fat French man held tea in his hand with his mouth half open, and after a long time, he couldn't help but shake his head and said: "The fight outside is lively, and the fight inside is even more lively, and there have been four governments in just a few months, so how can we make a good revolution?" ”

When Arthur heard this, he glanced at him and said, "It shouldn't be the turn of the French to say this, right?" The Constitutional Monarchists, the Girondins, the Jacobins, the Thermidorian Directory, the Ebels, the Feuillants, the Wrath, the Plains, the Mountains, the Trousers and the Royalists, the painters' palette was not as rich as the political factions of the French Revolution, was Paris not more lively than Warsaw? ”

If it had been a year ago, Alexandre Dumas would have been in a fight with Arthur a long time ago, but now the fat man's mentality has calmed down a lot.

Alexandre Dumas took a sip of his teaglass: "That's better than London, except that the Tories are the Whigs, just two plates of turnips, the Britons have eaten them for hundreds of years, haven't they been tired of it?" ”

Arthur turned his head to look at Campbell: "So, Mr. Campbell, are the members of the Literary Association of the Friends of Poland you are talking about political figures who went into exile in London after the defeat of the Polish uprising?" ”

Campbell smiled and shook his head: "Not all, but it is more or less related to the uprising, Poland's land neighbors are more hostile to the insurgents, so after the failure of the uprising, they can only choose to evacuate by boat from the sea." You should know that after the uprising, Prussia provided engineering and supply assistance to the Russians, and at the same time closed the border to prohibit Polish aid personnel and weapons from entering Poland. ”

Alexandre Dumas, who has always been keen on politics, couldn't help but laugh when he heard this: "Austria's Metternich probably wanted to use Poland to bleed Russia at the beginning, right?" But he probably didn't expect Russia to be like this, and if Poland really got a republic, then he would be able to get away with it. But then again, if the Poles can seize the good situation in the early stage to defeat the Russian army in one go, it is not impossible to break away from Russian jurisdiction. It's a pity that they want to talk and fight at the same time, and by the time they understand that they have no way out, it's already too late. ”

Arthur put down his teacup and said, "So, who are the people of the Polish Friends Literary Association you initiated who need to contribute to "The British"? ”

Campbell said: "I am not alone in this literary society, the other initiator of the association is Prince Chartorysky, the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Empire, who is the president of the Polish Provisional Government, and he has a book of Diplomatic Essays that he is close to being completed. Bruham's euphemistic refusal to allow me to publish an article in the Edinburgh Review for the Literary Society was largely due to this manuscript.

After all, the Whigs are now the ruling party in Britain, so the views in the Edinburgh Review, the organ of the Whigs, largely represent the official diplomatic position of the British government. Our relations with Russia are still harmonious, at least on the surface, and the Whigs are probably not willing to offend the powerful Russian Tsar for the sake of an exiled former Polish president, right? ”

Arthur asked tentatively, "Can you give me a rough introduction to the contents of the Diplomatic Essay?" ”

Campbell did not deliberately hide Arthur, he replied frankly: "Prince Czartorysky was a very far-sighted statesman, and he wanted to find a place in Europe for Poland. He wanted Western Europe to be concerned about the plight of a country that no longer existed, but which was still an essential part of the European order.

In addition, he argues that Poland's efforts for independence are closely linked to the independence movements of other extinct states in Europe from the Caucasus to the east. Russia's domination is expanding westward and southward, and with its inexhaustible natural resources from the east and north, Russia is becoming an eternal source of threat to Europe.

By the way, it is also interesting to think that Prussia was also a growing threat to the peaceful order, and if he could, he thought that East Prussia could be annexed to a rebuilt Poland and used it as a means to dismantle it. ”

When Arthur heard this, he couldn't help but lean back on the sofa chair with his teacup: "If Your Excellency the Prince is not resentful of Prussia's blockade of Poland, then his opinion is too far-sighted. ”

"What? Do you think so? ”

Campbell laughed and said, "Every time he told others what he knew about Prussia, they only smiled politely, but judging by their expressions, most of them were unconvinced. But I didn't expect him to find a confidant in "British", and he was a young man in his early twenties. ”

Speaking of this, Campbell also joked: "Although I don't know why Prince Czartorysky sees Prussia as a great threat, but his experience and experience are there after all, Arthur, you can see a little bit like his hero at a young age, maybe you should go to the Foreign Office instead of staying in Scotland Yard in the future." ”

When Arthur heard this, he also joked: "Come on, Mr. Campbell, don't compliment me." My international vision is only enough to see the slums of London's East End from Whitehall Street, and at most all the West India Docks. But I now understand why Lord Broughham asked you to come to The British, and his views on Russia are not very appropriate in the Edinburgh Review, but if it is an ordinary folk magazine, it is very appropriate, after all, sometimes the foreshadowing from the people is also very important. It just so happens that we are going to publish a supplement in the next issue, called The Economist, and I think that His Excellency the Prince's "Diplomatic Essays" can be published on it, and it is very appropriate and very appropriate. ”

"The Economist?" Campbell was stunned: "But the prince's draft is not an economic point of view, but a political one!" ”

"That's right! Political economy! ”

Arthur took a sip of tea: "If you don't talk about politics, what else do you do The Economist?" For the economics stuff, we already have a manuscript by Mr. John Mill, and you don't have to worry about it at all. As for the rest of the pages, it's all left to politics. To tell the truth, in the first issue of The Economist, we are also going to publish an article "Napoleonic Thought", and if it is combined with Prince Czartoryski's "Diplomatic Essays", this sales will definitely go up gradually. With the sales volume, we can give more manuscript fees, more achievements, more shares, more funds for the Polish Friends Literary Association, the circulation of conscience, let's not turn around?

By the way, Mr. Campbell, do you have any other well-known authors there to recommend? Truth be told, our main magazine, The British, is also short of manuscripts at the moment. Since half a year ago, when two of our main writers went to sea with the Royal Navy ship, we have two large columns vacant. Today, although a candidate has been found to fill the vacancy, there is still another column that is missing. If there is a suitable one in the association, I think it is entirely possible to give this column directly to the Literary Association of the Friends of Poland. That way, you and I have peace of mind. ”

Campbell was overjoyed when he heard this and said, "This ...... Arthur, are you telling the truth? ”

"Of course." Arthur nodded: "Whether it is for the sake of the Polish people or for the sake of the friendship of the University of London, I have a duty to help within the scope of my ability." ”

Speaking of this, Arthur also turned his head to Dumas, the pillar of "The British", and asked, "Alexander, do you agree?" ”

Alexandre Dumas put one hand on the sofa chair and nibbled on an apple: "You don't know me, I like republicans, whether French or Polish." ”

"Except for British?"

Alexandre Dumas raised an eyebrow and said, "Even British." ”

Campbell didn't blame Alexandre Dumas when he heard this, the famous English poet was in a good mood right now, and didn't mind a few jokes: "When it comes to the right person, I have one here." His resume as a former exile from Tsarist Russia speaks volumes about his heroic republican, his friendship with the Russian Decembrists, and his close friend of Pushkin and a big fan of Byron. Fortunately, he did not get a gun during his return from Rome to participate in the uprising, otherwise the world poetry would have suffered a huge loss. ”

When Dumas heard this, he couldn't help but put down the apple and nodded, "Sounds like a man who can be friends, Mr. Campbell, who is that person you are talking about?" ”

Campbell smiled, "Allow me to introduce you to one of Poland's most talented contemporary poets, Mr. Adam Mickiewicz." Trust me, you won't be disappointed by handing him the column. ”

Three thousand six left, a little later.

(End of chapter)