Mary Su Stuart

In February 1571, the first English Parliament under the new queen officially closed.

As a common ethnicity of ancient oriental civilization, the initial impression of the parliament on Mary is that it is closely related to the so-called "ideal of a democratic republic" along with "universal suffrage".But since she overlooked the operation of the state machinery as the supreme ruler, she has a deeper understanding of the existence of this institution.

The origin of the parliament, similar to the Magna Carta, was not a good organization that took care of all the people; it was a tool for an aristocratic group (later extended to a wider, property-owning class) to fight against the royal power.

When the House of Representatives convenes a parliament, it is not simply to chat, complain, or make suggestions with the monarch.They need to discuss the distribution of benefits in real terms, and determine each other's obligations and wealth shares.

There may not be any lofty ideals, most of them are primitive desires; desires.

The concept of separation of powers and checks and balances in political culture has not yet formed a clear theoretical system in this era.But in actual operation, it has been put into use either explicitly or secretly.Parliament provided a platform for peaceful consultation, formulation of policies, and coordination to solve problems—the House of Lords was involved in legislation and justice, and the House of Commons intervened in finances. During this period, England had begun to take shape.Members of Parliament constrain the government, prompting the latter to be as prudent and thoughtful as possible when making administrative decisions, taking into account the interests of more classes or groups.

This is the greatest significance of the parliament.

A suitable production relationship system can promote the development of productive forces, which is conducive to the prosperity of the country and the prosperity of the people, and the stability and progress of the society.Although there has never been a perfect system—only a system that is not too bad, only a system that meets the needs of a certain stage, productivity progress and cultural development, and only a good system that meets the ideal design of people in a certain period—but from the perspective of future generations, There is no doubt that Parliament has advanced the course of civilization in most of the countries of Western Europe.

The first counterexample, King Charles I of England in history.He was domineering and conceited, refused to make concessions under the financial crisis, and forcibly dissolved the parliament; he was finally defeated by the leader of the parliamentary army, Cromwell, and was executed for treason.

The second counterexample is the Kingdom of France.To be precise, they don't call it Congress, they call it a three-level conference.Originally, France has a tradition of discussing national policies through three-level conferences and all levels of society to overcome crises together.However, during the 1614 years from 1789 to 175, the top dignitaries of the government only played their own power games and no longer held three-level meetings.So, after experiencing the militarism of Louis XIII and Louis XIV, the arrogance and corruption of Louis XV, and the mediocrity and incompetence of Louis XVI, the government was hard-won, nearly bankrupt, and discredited—finally, at the third-level meeting in 1789, public resentment broke out , the Great Revolution drove Wang Zheng to a dead end.

Here, another major benefit of parliament is involved—the power game in parliament can certainly make policies meet the interests of more people; as a government, making good use of parliament can win over supporters and appease the hearts of the people.

Such views were put forward in "The Old System and the Great Revolution": due to the "disappearance" of the three-level conference and even the local council, the people who accepted the top-down independence; There is no channel for improvement, opposition, or legal resistance; therefore, they accumulate grievances, and even blame the current government for irrelevant natural disasters; and after the revolution; .

Of course, the "parliament" in the guise of a democratic republic can sometimes become a cruel tyrant itself—it was they who voted to poison Socrates, and they were also the ones who killed Louis XVI and his queen.The later Frenchman Le Pen stated in "The Crowd" that the intelligence and efficiency of a large group as a "decision-making collective" are not optimistic.

But Mary firmly believes that parliament, an institution that is energetic, motivated, daring to speak out for its own interests, and able to fight against authoritarian government, can prevent the worst from happening in many cases.

The national road that can make the parliament compromise and accept may not be the best, the most convenient, the fastest, and the brightest; but at least, to a large extent, it is moderate, and the damage is relatively limited.

For example, Elizabeth I in real history and the think tanks around her are not as wise and powerful as rumored.Therefore, the attitude of the council is: in the early stage they supported her with full of admiration, in the middle stage they were reluctant to obey her, and in the later stage they could not bear to oppose her.In short, before the worst happens, the Queen of England is forced to make a moderate concession.

Mary had been to Parliament several times and knew that MPs—especially hereditary ones—would have no qualms about throwing their claws at the government if necessary.And this time, perhaps because she has been officially crowned the country's monarch, the negative comments about her were softer than usual.

For example, a professor of theology at Cambridge University once sternly cursed Catholic "magic sticks" in front of her, and criticized national policies for allowing "those devil's masses"... Now, the dean of Trinity College, Cambridge, publicly condemned that A subordinate "lost his mind through religious fanaticism" and announced that he had dismissed him from his teaching position. 【Note [-]】

Well, even though Mary had never expected the council to be so docile, she would not be flattered if she was flattered; but she did feel a little lighter.

Then, she talked about the national policy with Cecil and Gresham who stayed behind, and the smile on her face became even stronger when she felt that everything was going well and safe.

"The new "Usury Act" separates general interest from usury and allows ten percent interest." The Minister of Finance is full of praise. "In this way, the legalization and standardization of lending and financing will be of great benefit to the market." [Note [-]]

Mary said happily: "It can be seen that the power of merchants in the common people's court is increasing, which is a good thing."

Cecil was a little surprised.First of all, Catholics were originally forbidden to lend at interest, but Her Majesty the Queen is not sticking to one pattern; secondly, most of the merchants in England are the backbone of Protestantism, and she is actually happy for their rise...

Forget it, she has always made a clear distinction between the secular and the religious, "Give to Christ what is Christ's, and what is to Caesar to Caesar."As long as she thinks it is beneficial to the country and the government, she will actively implement it regardless of ideology.

The Minister of State did not want to disrupt the harmonious atmosphere, carefully avoided religious topics, and only talked about practical matters. "Since Captain Hawkins brought back tobacco leaves in 1565, smoking has grown in popularity, but only among the upper classes of London. You proposed a Tobacco Act on this, did you—"

Mary pouted. "It's not a big deal at all. Tobacco is the devil's creation. When the French ambassador to Portugal introduced it to the French court in 1560, Queen Catherine praised it. After all, it's 'fragrant' refreshing and addictive. If this thing is popularized and popularized, the profit will be considerable."

You know, in her previous life, her motherland relied on the income from tobacco monopoly to prop up a huge national defense force.

Mary smiled wryly and said, "God beckons... Tobacco has no beauty and health benefits that are advertised or boasted at all; on the contrary, it has some toxicity and will damage the health of the body. Addictive pursuit, whether I ban it or not, it will sweep the world."

"Tobacco is poisoned gold. It is best to lay out in advance, try to reduce its harm, and make it usable. First of all, there is already a circle of smoking friends in the Earl of Pembroke's house, and there are quite a few in the Valois court. A few enthusiasts... as long as you give some advice to merchants and navigators, profit seekers will naturally flock to you. Taxation or monopoly can be discussed in the Privy Council.”

Mary glanced at Gresham, then at Cecil. "I will partly reward the Duke of Norfolk for the success of this project."

The two looked at each other, both of them understood.The Duke of Norfolk and others are Her Majesty's most staunch supporters. Although the queen trusts their government affairs capabilities more, she obviously intends to do her best to take care of the "loyal ministers" behind her.

"Secondly, the new bill must give reminders about the hazards of tobacco combustion products. Aristocrats can enjoy themselves, but the government cannot actively promote smoking. It should be reminded, or even enforced: public places, preferably all places with roofs, should No smoking."

Cecil was a little troubled. "This seems to be a lot of contradictions... I am afraid that this business will be difficult to carry out..."

Mary smiled. "Don't underestimate the magic of tobacco. Even if the government bans it, they can invade the world. It's like not stopping people's excessive pursuit of luxury goods. I also heard a congressman say yesterday that a new law should be enacted to eradicate 'young people'. The waste and idleness of gentlemen'. How ridiculous. He said that those below the earl were not allowed to wear silk, and they could still wear ermine; if jewelry was not allowed, they could still put gold leaf; Go to more places in continental Europe to show off your wealth."

Gresham nodded. "That's why people always yearn for freedom."

Mary stared at Cecil with trust in her eyes. "My dear Secretary of State, so be it. I am sure you will work out and perfect the Tobacco Act."

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After instructing secretary Li Qiao to sort out the materials for tomorrow, Mary left the office and went back to the nursery to see her daughter.

Speaking of it, as a queen, without having to worry about ancestors and traditions, it is quite easy to raise children.Strong full-time nursing mothers, caring nannies who naturally respect the royal family, and abundant material resources... Mary only fed piecemeal and dispensable milk for two months, and then she recovered as if she had never given birth.

What needs to be more worried is the medical and health forces in this era.Fortunately, so far, due to proper care, her daughter has been very healthy.

The fire in the house was burning brightly.Mary washed her hands, changed into a soft cotton robe, hugged her soft and fragrant daughter, and began to instruct the nanny how to feed the precious princess—of course she only needs to move her mouth.Beef liver, wheat paste, egg yolks, fresh vegetables... someone cooked them rottenly, and fed them to the little ancestor's mouth, coaxing her to swallow them.

The daughter ate deliciously.But Mary stared at it for too long, and couldn't help but start to lose her mind: England is developing steadily, and Scotland is not bad.Over the years, Boswell, the real and nameless regent, has cooperated well with Maitland; not only did he make no mistakes, he also developed industry, agriculture, fishery and animal husbandry step by step, promoted vaccinia, and suppressed the superstition of witches.It's a pity that some feudal lords in Scotland—including but not limited to the Countess of Lennox, Lord Darnley's mother and son, and the Hamilton family—are always incessant, and recently they have also clamored for the establishment of a parliament. How should we deal with it?

According to the original history, the Scottish Parliament should have been formed as early as ten years ago-in 1560, John Knox established the Presbyterian Church in Scotland, which won the support of most of the greedy lords; they forced the Queen to recognize the Protestant Reformation, incidentally A parliament was also formed, further weakening the central kingship.

Today, Mary, who owns both the Scottish and English crowns, is looking forward to the early unification of Britain.A thought flashed through her mind: Since the establishment of a "local assembly" in Scotland may tear apart the unity; otherwise, simply skip this stage and let the Scottish dignitaries and local representatives directly join the English Parliament now.

Boldly designed, carefully executed—it just might work!

"Uh, uh, uh..."

Mary's imagination was interrupted by a series of noises, or a smell.Cough cough, I'm so sorry, her precious princess, while eating, she was doing something...

Being watched by Her Majesty the Queen, the nannies were a little embarrassed, but they were still well-trained to clean up the scene.Mary hugged the cleaned daughter on her lap, pinched her tender face, and said, "Who are you, who do you look like?"

As she spoke, she felt a sense of anticipation: the child's father has been back to France for four months... It's spring, so it's time to come to London, right?

The author has something to say: Mary: Both spiritual civilization construction and material construction make me happy→_→

Daughter: Isn't it fun to have a baby?

Mary: It's also fun to play once in a while.

Daughter: You mother... Forget it, I won't criticize the traditions of this era.

By the way, the daughter's name is——

[Note [-]] Refer to "The Biography of Elizabeth"

[Note [-]] Refer to Du Niang Encyclopedia.