Chapter 755 753 [The British Royal Family in Exile]
Chapter 755 753 [The British Royal Family in Exile]
Madrid, Spain.
King Charles I of England was beheaded by Cromwell, and his wife and children all went into exile.
Middle school history textbooks tell the story of the Restoration of the Stuart Dynasty. The protagonist of that restoration, Charles II, was enjoying himself in the manor, drinking until he was drunk in broad daylight.
"Charles, you can't do this, you should cheer up." His mother Maria persuaded him hard.
Since he is still an exiled prince, he cannot be called Charles II. His real name is Charles James Stuart.
Charles, who was only in his early twenties, said with a drunken smile: "Mother, I know that I will take back the throne. But this does not affect my drinking. When I wake up tomorrow, I will practice riding."
This guy went into exile when he was 12 years old, worked as a beggar, and lived on the streets. He also learned a craft and worked as a craftsman, with a lot of messy skills.
Over the years, he has become precocious, cynical and dissolute.
Once you get money, you must enjoy it to your heart's content. Anyway, spend it all first.
Mother, son, brother and sister first sought support from France. His mother, Maria, was the aunt of the French king.
However, King Louis XIV of France had not yet taken over the throne, and the relationship between the French Queen Mother and Maria was not good, so the French government refused to help them restore.
So they went to the Netherlands again, because the sister of Charles II was the wife of the Prince of Orange. Unfortunately, the Prince of Orange was still wearing crotchless pants at this time, and was deposed from the position of ruling the Netherlands, so he was unable to provide effective help at all.
In desperation, the family came to Spain for help.
Halfway through, Charles II's younger brother James chose to separate from his family and resolutely joined the French army (that's James II).
Maria said in a serious tone: "Spain refuses to provide support, so we have to go to Italy again. You are not allowed to squander the remaining money, otherwise we will not even have enough travel expenses."
Noble relatives gave money along the way. Charles II enjoyed the money when he had it, and continued in exile when the money was spent.
The quality of life of this family is either a noble or a beggar.
Charles smiled sinisterly and said: "Mom, don't have any illusions. The Medici family and the Duke of Savoy are unlikely to give us any support. Of course, we can get money. The most important thing they need is money."
Maria's sister, married to the Duke of Savoy.
Maria's mother was from the Medici family.
"Mom, brother!"
The exiled princess Elizabeth suddenly rushed in and said in surprise: "I heard from the nobles in the city that the Chinese envoys are in Portugal and have brought many Chinese noble knights. If we can get help from China, maybe we can restore our country!"
Maria's eyes lit up: "Legend has it that the Chinese emperor was once an exiled prince, and he had the same experience as us! Those who come to Europe are just Chinese envoys, and I'm afraid they don't dare to make their own decisions. But we can go to China and convince China
Emperor, let him send an army to defeat the rebel Cromwell!"
Drunk Charles also became excited: "China should be fun, and it will definitely be interesting along the way. Maybe we can also explore primitive islands."
Maria was very speechless and heartless towards her son, and did not care about the restoration at all.
In fact, even when Charles became Charles II, he was still so heartless.
He has superb political skills, can always resolve crises easily, is humorous and tolerant and kind. But as long as it doesn't disturb his enjoyment of life, he doesn't care about anything.
As a king, his wife was infertile and he was too lazy to divorce and remarry. Instead, he had more than ten sons with his mistress. The legitimacy of the illegitimate son was too low and he would definitely not be able to succeed. He didn't care about it. Anyway, he would enjoy himself until death.
Later, he asked his younger brother to return to his country and become the king.
The family soon left Spain by boat and went to Portugal to see the Chinese envoy.
Maria went to seek help, but Charles simply wanted to travel to China. The prince, who had been in exile since the age of 12, was used to the ups and downs of the world. He had no hope for anyone. His philosophy in life was to enjoy life to the fullest.
…
Lisbon.
The Chinese mission has stayed for more than half a month, attending banquets every three days and taking time to conduct consultations and negotiations.
Zhang Ruifeng, on behalf of the Chinese court, signed the Treaty of Lisbon with King John IV:
First, China recognizes Portugal as an independent country and recognizes João IV as the King of Portugal.
Second, Portugal recognizes that Macau is Chinese territory, and the two countries no longer have any disputes over Macau.
Third, Chinese and Portuguese ports, including overseas ports, are open to each other and provide each other with tariff preferences.
The treaty is short, but absolutely fair.
China became the first country in the world to recognize Portugal's independence. King John IV was overjoyed. On the day the treaty was signed, he sent diplomats to various European countries.
He wants to announce this news and let the whole of Europe know!
"Excuse me, Mr. Envoy, has the Chinese prince married a wife?" Joao IV inquired expectantly.
Marriage is very important in Europe, and John IV had a headache because European royal families disdained marriage with Portugal.
His eldest son could only marry the daughter of a noble in the country.
His eldest daughter and second daughter are twins. The eldest daughter has died and the second daughter is not yet married.
The three daughters have also reached the age of marriage, and there is also no interest from the European royal family - Princess Catalina later married Charles II of England. At that time, Charles II, who had just been restored, was not recognized by European countries.
Make a couple with the unwanted Portuguese princess.
Zhang Ruifeng was noncommittal and politely declined: "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of our country has already made an engagement."
John IV persevered and asked: "Where are the other princes? As long as they are Chinese princes, my two daughters have reached the marriageable age."
Zhang Ruifeng said: "This... I need to return to the country to report to Your Majesty."
"There is no rush," Joao IV said with a smile. "My youngest daughter Caterina is not yet fifteen years old. She has time to wait for news from the Chinese royal family. When Mr. Envoy returns to China, I will send diplomats to follow him for special discussions.
The matter of marriage between the two countries."
Now that the diplomatic treaty has been signed, Portugal has nothing to miss, so Zhang Ruifeng formally bid farewell.
However, King John IV said: "It is exciting that the two countries have established diplomatic relations. Please stay a few more days, Mr. Messenger, and I will hold a grand banquet!"
Zhang Ruifeng wanted to roll his eyes when he heard this. Over the past half month, the mission had figured out the situation in Portugal. Overseas colonies were lost one after another, domestic commerce was controlled by the Netherlands, the local population continued to lose, and many rural areas were already sparsely populated. In this case, the king still
Are you in the mood to have a party every three days?
If it were not possible to suck blood in the colonies, Portugal would have collapsed long ago!
John IV felt that a grand banquet must be held.
He has been working hard diplomatically for many years, but has been unable to make progress. Now that a major country finally recognizes Portugal's independence, how can he not celebrate it?
"Your Majesty, the British royal family in exile would like to see you." The palace minister hurried over.
King John IV wondered: "The British royal family? Who are they?"
The palace minister replied: "Queen Maria, Prince Charles, Princess Elizabeth, Prince Henry, and Princess Anne. They... want to meet with the Chinese envoy."
King John IV understood instantly and said with a smile: "Arrange for them to meet with the Chinese envoy."
John IV was eager to establish diplomatic relations with Britain, but Cromwell took the opportunity to blackmail him and force him to sign unequal treaties in all aspects including economy, military, politics, religion...
Seeing the contents of the treaty, John IV's lungs almost exploded with anger.
Now is the right time for the Chinese to get in touch with the British royal family. If the British royal family can be restored, Portugal will take the opportunity to establish diplomatic relations with Britain. If it cannot be restored, it will not lose anything to Portugal, and it can make Cromwell sick a few times.
The two parties met at the Royal Palace of Portugal.
Prince Henry and Princess Anne were just little kids at this time. The only ones who really came forward were Queen Maria, Prince Charles and Princess Elijah.
Maria, accompanied by her two children, pulled up her skirt and saluted the Chinese envoy: "It is a great honor to meet with Her Royal Highness the Chinese Princess, Mr. Chinese Envoy. I am Queen Maria of the United Kingdom, and this is my son Charles, and
My daughter Elizabeth."
Since the British side is a queen, Nalu Tianxiang is just suitable to receive her. She smiled and said: "It's a pleasure to meet you. I already know what you are going through and I sympathize deeply with it."
Maria did not ask for help directly, but flattered her and said: "I have always heard that Chinese nobles are elegant and beautiful. Today, when I met Her Royal Highness, I realized that it is true. Your Highness's beauty can no longer be described in words, and only His Majesty, the Emperor of China, can
, to marry such a perfect wife.”
Lu Tianxiang smiled faintly. She still had a scar on her face, which was left from fighting with the Arabs. Although the scar was very shallow, it could be seen at a close distance, which somewhat affected her appearance.
This exiled queen doesn't even know how to flatter her.
Lu Tianxiang asked: "I heard that Madam used to be a French princess?"
Maria replied: "King Louis XIV of France is my nephew."
Lu Tianxiang asked again: "The ruler of Holland is the grandson of Madam?"
Maria replied: "The contemporary Prince of Orange is indeed my grandson, but he was illegally deprived of the honor of ruling the Netherlands by damned Dutch businessmen."
Lu Tianxiang asked again: "Madame comes from the famous Medici family?"
Maria replied: "My mother's surname is indeed Medici."
Lu Tianxiang looked towards Zhang Ruifeng, who already understood.
They have been in Portugal for more than half a month. In addition to attending banquets and negotiations, they are also frantically inquiring about things in Europe.
The British exiled queen in front of me can be taken in and used in many places.
Lu Tianxiang stopped talking, and Zhang Ruifeng said: "Her Majesty the Queen, we are going to visit various countries. If it is convenient, can Her Majesty the Queen accompany us?"