Chapter 15
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Chapter 15: Regent King of the People
The story takes place at the end of January in 1839, during the peak of the Liberal Revolution in Prussia.
On every street and alley, there were protest groups. Almost no one was working, factories stopped operating, schools closed, shops shut down. People took to the streets for various reasons, and many politicians who were not elected to parliament were giving speeches.
The police department could no longer maintain normal social order, they lost control.
On the 26th, a protest group of over ten thousand people stormed Berlin City Parliament because the city council had not yet held new elections, and all the councilors were conservatives or from the old guard.
On the 27th, students, workers, and citizens united to occupy the Berlin outskirts National Guard armory and took more than four thousand antique flintlock rifles.
On the 28th, over forty thousand people gathered on Unter den Linden Street, one-third of Berlin City’s population. The Brandenburg Gate was slightly damaged, and after a day of gathering, Unter den Linden Street was littered with garbage.
On the 29th, a liberal protest group attempted to storm the Berlin City Palace, where the Prussian Parliament and Cabinet Office were located.
Major General Hans, commander of the First Army of the National Guard, arrived to maintain order and stopped the protesters from damaging the Berlin City Palace.
Hans stood on the steps and addressed the crowd, urging them to stay calm and not resort to violence. Because he had strong support from the people, the protesters did calm down.
Major General Hans, a member of the Prussian General Staff Department and the only senior officer in the Prussian military who came from a civilian background, was also a commander in the National Guard. People naturally thought Hans was on the people’s side.
The leaders at the gathering crowded to the front and suggested that Hans lead the national army to join the protest, to force the feudal powers to surrender.
The powerful Liberal Revolution group, if they could get the support of the first army of the national army, it would really create a chaos that could not be controlled.
Hans refused the proposal to switch sides. Although he was born a commoner, he was a loyal royalist. He owed a lifelong debt of gratitude to Your Highness the Regent. Without the prince regent’s favor, Hans, a commoner, could never become a general in his lifetime. His military talent could never be showcased in the army of Prussia, where the Junkers and nobles held power.
Serving the king with loyalty is my honor. This belief was deeply engraved in his mind.
He refused to switch sides to help the protest, causing a small chaos. Suddenly, someone fired a gun, and it was from the crowd in the gathering, who had looted the armory yesterday and were causing trouble today.
The sudden gunshot made the whole scene quiet down. The leaders of the gathering explained repeatedly that they did not mean to riot, it was an accident, and they were very sorry, looking extremely scared.
Hans also instructed his subordinates to stay calm, telling everyone not to act recklessly, and let’s discuss the issue properly.
The people were still recovering from the bloodshed during the reign of the late king, and the recent chaos of the Liberal Revolution, though fierce, had not yet dared to riot.
Following the instructions of Your Highness the Regent, Hans refrained from shedding blood in the protest group. Due to a misunderstanding, both sides suddenly found themselves in a very harmonious and restrained situation.
The leader of the meeting asked, "Why isn’t the Prince Regent coming to solve the problem for everyone? Isn’t the Regent always following a policy of kindness? Where has the Regent King of the People gone at this time?"
"Oh, this question has an answer in the newspapers, you just haven’t been paying attention recently."
Hans began to explain earnestly to the crowd.
The war in southern Germany is of crucial strategic importance to Prussia. In this battle, Prussia cannot afford to lose. In order to boost morale, the Prince Regent personally led the troops into battle and bravely fought the enemy.
Last week, the Prince Regent led the Prussian army to capture the strategic town of Ingelfingen. Prior to this, the Prussian army had been in fierce battles with a powerful enemy for several days. Both sides fought fiercely, and it was only when the Prince Regent arrived that the situation turned in our favor. His personal leadership in war is an essential element.
Currently, the Prince Regent is leading the army towards the crucial village of Hochhausen.
Hans, "Therefore, His Highness is currently fighting at the frontlines. Let’s hope everyone can be patient, and when the kind Prince Regent returns, he will surely address everyone’s needs."
After listening to Hans, the crowd felt bewildered. Both Ingelfingen and Hochhausen were unheard of to them. Even those who had been to southern Germany had no recollection of these places.
However, there was a spy within the demonstration group. A "protester" who had been bribed claimed to have served in the military in the past, stating that during the Napoleonic Wars, these were places where the French and Austrian armies had fierce battles with high strategic significance, and went on to praise the hard work of the Prince Regent.
The people didn’t really understand, but when they heard someone say so, they believed it.
The leader of the meeting asked Hans, since the Prince Regent is fighting on the front lines, who is in charge at home?
"Of course it’s the Parliament. When the Prince Regent is not around, the proposals of the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers can only be reviewed and voted on by the members of Parliament."
The leader asked again, but the newspapers say that Bismarck of the Cabinet is an evil schemer who deceived the Prince Regent to seize power.
Hans explained to the people that Mrs. Bismarck is just a small secretary, a civil servant, how could she have the ability to manipulate government affairs, the head of the Ministry of Finance is of course the Minister of Finance, and the head of the Foreign Ministry is of course the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Ministers are the heads of departments, like legal representatives in the business field, they are the representatives of an organization.
A secretary is just a secretary, even if she is the Chief Secretary, she is just a subordinate of the Minister, recent newspaper reports are biased and maliciously attacking Mrs. Bismarck.
Hans said, "The idea that the Chief Secretary Mrs. Bismarck controls government affairs in finance and diplomacy is simply ridiculous, it doesn’t exist at all, the Cabinet Ministers and Parliament are the ones who manage this country."
It wasn’t until four o’clock in the afternoon that the standoff between the First Army of the National Guard and the demonstrators ended, calm was restored around the City Palace in Berlin, and the riot crisis that could have threatened the Parliament and Cabinet Office was averted.
During the day, the people who were involved in the protest returned home, had dinner and read the newspaper. They were looking for some fun news to enjoy with their meal, but instead, they discovered a shocking revelation.
The Minister of Finance, Count Walton, proposed to abolish the "Worker Rights Protection Law," and the proposal received a high number of votes in today’s afternoon session of the parliament.
If Your Highness the Regent signs the decree, the proposal will officially be put into effect on March 1, 1839, making the Prussian Worker Rights Protection Law void.
People were so upset that they couldn’t even finish their dinner. They took to the streets waving newspapers. Their faces turned red with anger. Later that evening, they gathered again for a larger demonstration, which escalated from a peaceful liberal movement to an armed uprising.
The night in Berlin was illuminated by countless torches, but the people’s anger burned brighter than the torches. The Minister of Finance was seen as a cruel person, and the liberal members of parliament who were elected by the people betrayed them by letting such an outrageous proposal pass.
Minister of Finance Count Walton: ???
The liberal members of parliament: ???
The Minister of Finance and the parliament members felt unjustly accused. They did not propose or pass this proposal.
The crowd rushed to the Prime Minister’s residence to ask if this was true.
The Prime Minister said, "Yes, it’s true. The selected details of the proposal will be published in the newspaper tomorrow. But don’t worry yet. The Regent has not signed it, so the policy will not be official."
Count Walton and the liberal members of parliament were confused because they had no idea about this. They tried hard to explain that this must be a plot by Bismarck to frame them.
The angry people didn’t want to hear any explanations. They just wanted the Minister of Finance to resign, all the parliament members to leave, and to be punished, maybe even exiled!
On Unter den Linden Street, in front of the Brandenburg Gate at night, Major General Hans of the National Army stood before the people once again.
He said, "Appointing or dismissing ministers, dissolving the parliament, these powers belong only to the Regent. I will make sure the Regent returns to Berlin immediately. The proposal this afternoon completely betrays the people. Please trust that the Regent will uphold justice for the people."
