Chapter 99: Chapter 99: The Shock of New Zealanders (Please Subscribe!)

Translator: 549690339

Young men often have an impulse to join the military, to protect their families and defend their country.

Influenced by the soldiers of the cavalry battalion of the Guards, many Australians have embraced this idea.

Without saying anything else, just looking at these uniformed and well- equipped Guards on horseback, marching in perfect unison towards oneself, the visual impact is enough to change a person’s deep-rooted ideas.

The cheers and applause of the crowd filled the square, but they could not cover up the shouts of the Guards as they passed the reviewing stand.

The Guards are troops loyal to Arthur, and in their eyes, the glory of Arthur and the royal family is above all else.

This is why they would shout for the glory of Your Highness, rather than Australia’s glory.

This is a private army belonging to Arthur, and they are his most effective guarantee of power.

Following the Guards’ cavalry battalion’s performance, it was time for the trained cavalry troops to appear.

They rode Australian wild horses produced in Australia, with weapons and equipment identical to those of the Guards’ soldiers. Except for the uniforms of British regular soldiers, they looked no different from the Guards’ cavalry soldiers.

But this was an army composed of Australians. All the soldiers and commanders were made up of Australians, with even the commander being one of the best talents trained temporarily.

Compared to the Royal Guards, who are highly regarded in the hearts of all people in the British Empire, these soldiers are undoubtedly closer to ordinary people.

They were all trained after joining the military as ordinary civilians, which also means that everyone had the hope of becoming one of them.

“For the glory of Your Highness and Australia!” When this unit came to the reviewing stand, they shouted just like the others, only the content of the shouts was slightly different.

As the regular national defense force of Australia, they are also responsible for protecting and maintaining the glory of Australia.

While both are loyal to Arthur, this is the main difference between the Australian Army and the Guards.

Of course, during the training, Arthur has already blended a lot of ideological education so that these soldiers can ensure their loyalty to the royal family and Arthur.

To secure his position in the military, Arthur even purposely established political instructors in these units, and in the future, there will also be instructors in the reorganized military units. They will serve as advisers to the unit commanders while carrying out patriotic education on behalf of Arthur in the military.

Only by firmly grasping the ideology of the military and ensuring that the military is always loyal to himself can Arthur’s power be fully guaranteed.

Just as the Australian Army has caused a great sensation among Australians, it has also attracted the attention and surprise of New Zealanders.

New Zealand also has a 3,000-strong garrison, with soldiers like those of the Australian Army, all from New Zealand.

Except for the commander of the army assigned by Britain, most of the lower and middle officers of the army are also made up of New Zealanders.

However, such an army does not have strong fighting capabilities and can only maintain the order of the New Zealand colony.

If faced with foreign aggression, whether the New Zealand garrison can defend the peace of New Zealand is a very serious problem.

Luckily, the fleet of the British Empire is very strong, and the prestige of Britain as the number one superpower is enough to ensure that the territory of the British Empire will not be invaded or provoked during peacetime.

“Your Grace, I think it is necessary to train and strengthen the garrison in New Zealand as well. New Zealand needs such a powerful force to protect and maintain order,” a New Zealand official tentatively said to Arthur.

As the governor of New Zealand, Arthur’s title of nobility naturally has precedence over the officials, so they chose to address him as the more distinguished Duke.

“Shouldn’t this matter be discussed with General Pierce Antony, commander of New Zealand? Although I am the Governor of New Zealand, I do not seem to have the authority to order Commander Pierce,” Arthur responded without surprise, directly asking instead.

“Your Highness, with your status as a duke and as the Governor of New Zealand, convincing Commander Pierce should not be difficult, right? If you could enhance the training of the New Zealand Army, all New Zealanders would be grateful to Your Highness,” the New Zealand official continued to entice.

In fact, it would not be difficult for Arthur to persuade Commander Pierce to agree to strengthen the training of the New Zealand Army – it would even be very easy.

But Arthur knew the thoughts of the New Zealand officials quite well – they harbored ambitions like Australia’s, hoping that in the future, after New Zealand gains independence, they would have a well-trained army for free.

It should be noted that once independence is achieved, Britain will withdraw most of its forces and army commanders.

This means that the army will lose its fighting capabilities for a short time until new commanders are trained to replace them.

If the New Zealanders were to handle this themselves, it would likely take at least one or two years to train truly capable commanders.

But if they could train these soldiers in advance, select and train capable talents as officers, they would be able to smoothly take over the army when the British commanders leave.

This window of time would be enough for the army to stabilize New Zealand’s order, which is essential for a newly independent country.

But these New Zealanders seemed to forget one thing – Arthur is the Governor of New Zealand. At least during his twenty-year tenure, Arthur does not want to see New Zealand fully independent.

Or rather, Arthur does not want to see New Zealand break away from Australia’s control and become independent.

Within these twenty years, there is only one way for New Zealand to become independent – it must join in Australia’s ruling sphere, perhaps as a semi- autonomous nation in the Australian Federation.

Seeing Arthur’s refusal, the New Zealand official could only reluctantly close his mouth.

Although Arthur doesn’t pay much attention to New Zealand affairs, he is still the Governor, and with his status as the Duke of Australia, he is not someone a mere colonial official can afford to offend.

“I believe that New Zealand should be granted certain rights. I will personally visit New Zealand in due course to investigate the well-being and public sentiment there. In the meantime, I hope that New Zealand can remain stable and avoid causing trouble,” Arthur said flatly, looking at all the New Zealanders.

“Yes, Your Highness,” they all nodded in agreement.

Arthur’s orders were not something they could refuse, whether it was based on his identity or the army behind him.