[Henry VIII] Tudor Crown

The Duke of Richmond is well aware of his father's good intentions, but it is impossible for him to completely dispel his guard against Guillaume with just a few words.

How could William III fail to see clearly the careful thoughts of his elder son? You must know that he was the final victor who survived to ascend the throne safely in the treacherous court of Henry VIII and brought down many political opponents.Therefore, the Duke of Richmond, who had been surrounded by stars since he was a child, had almost no major setbacks except for facing an unfamiliar younger brother, could not hide it from his old father.

Of course, William III didn't expect his son's psychological syndrome to be solved by his mouth, so he continued: "Whether you like it or not, the existence of Guillaume is necessary, and you will always use him." that day."

The Duke of Richmond's brow and lips tightened like tightened screws.

William III didn't know what he thought of again, but the latter's expression quickly became discouraged, and he said listlessly: "You are right, Guillaume's existence is necessary."

If the Duke of Richmond and Mary Stuart have no sons, the unified empire that Henry VIII and William III have worked so hard to achieve will fall apart, so the best way is to let the Duke of Richmond and Mary Stuart Daughter of Arte, married to Guillaume or Guillaume's son, to ensure the integrity of the country to the third generation.

Even though William III knew the dangers of inbreeding, but at that moment, many things could only be forced into an unsatisfactory compromise.

The Avis dynasty in Portugal is the best example.

Even if Joao III did not want to pass the throne to his younger brother, for the continuation of the dynasty, he had to compromise with all parties like Louis XII once did.

After all, not everyone has the pious heart of "Edward the Confessor".

"If you really want to do something to Guillaume, then I only have a few requirements for you." William III raised a few fingers at the Duke of Richmond, interrupting the other party's thoughts: "First, don't let me find out , otherwise I won’t be merciful to you because you are my heir. Second, it’s done once and for all. If you can’t suppress people in one go, there will be endless troubles. Third, don’t hurt Guillaume’s life. Guillaume was the reserve of our family before you were unsure whether you could carry on the Tudor blood. Whether you like it or not, that is the truth."

"I know." The Duke of Richmond reluctantly decided to try to accept Guillaume in his later life.

At this moment, William III changed his voice and said, "Not long ago, your aunt Marie wrote to say that she wanted Casey to marry Guillaume."

"Princess Lorraine?" The Duke of Richmond was taken aback for a moment, and then agreed: "That's a good thing!"

If Guillaume married Princess Lorraine, it would undoubtedly be more beneficial to the Duke of Richmond.Because the Principality of Lorraine is far away from England, and its military strength is not high.Therefore, Guillaume, who married the Princess of Lorraine, could not get favorable support from the marriage, but his wallet was a little richer.

Moreover, his wife is the second son of a Catholic, and it is difficult to get strong support from the upper echelons of England.

Even though William III did not deny the existence of Catholicism on the surface, the main ruling personnel are still Protestants.

However, William III broke the beautiful fantasy of the Duke of Richmond: "I will not let Guillaume marry Casey."

"Why is this again?"

"Because of your aunt Marie." William III sighed and said, "Guillaume and Casey are too close in blood. I don't want their offspring to die like the Portuguese royal family."

"Then Guillaume..." The Duke of Richmond did not want his younger brother to marry a Duke's daughter in the country.

Why did Edward IV and his father, Duke Charles, dare to yell at Henry VI?In addition to the mental problems of the former, they also united the richest Neville family in the country.

If Guillaume married the daughter of a great nobleman, then the Duke of Richmond would have to consider whether his power would be emptied by his younger brother.

"Don't worry, I won't let Guillaume marry a daughter of a great nobleman from England or the Netherlands." William III knew what the Duke of Richmond was worried about without thinking about it, so he assured him: "No By accident, Guillaume will have a French wife."

"Why?" The Duke of Richmond didn't understand the operation that his father was about to marry France after beating France on the front foot.

"Because it is impossible for us to be enemies with France forever." Taking advantage of this opportunity, William III also intentionally educated his son: "There are no permanent friends or permanent enemies in this world. We may fight to the death with France today." , but tomorrow we have to join forces with France to resist Spain."

"And in terms of geographical location, there is also a dilemma to be reconciled." William III said here, and also signaled the Duke of Richmond to take the map book he carried with him, and then turned to the page of the large map of Europe, Pointing to Spain, he continued: "From the perspective of geographical location, long-distance and close-attack are the safest. Because even if Spain swallows England's territory, it will be difficult to defend it."

William III's fingers wandered in the territory of the Habsburg family, but soon turned to France: "But this does not mean that the best national policy is to make long distance and close attack. Because the door of the house is not neat, Spain will take advantage of it." enter."

"However, Spain's entry is only to take advantage of the trade, and it should not invade the territory of England." The Duke of Richmond asked: "Even if the naval army is used, there will always be a moment when the artillery runs out. It should not annex the whole of England."

William III knew that the Duke of Richmond would say this, so his tone became helpless: "You still have the eyes of a child, so you don't understand the deeper crisis."

If it wasn't for cultural differences, William III would like to tell the Duke of Richmond the truth: "If France is really gone, then England and Spain will be at the end of each other. If there are three powerful countries on one continent, then the total There will be two parties that will hold each other back, because in the game of great powers, the power of those small countries in the middle tends to be zero, not only will they not cause great harm, but they will be annexed by the other party because they stand in line too quickly."

"Let me ask you, if the Habsburgs and England really fight, are you confident that you can win against them?"

The Duke of Richmond could not answer.

And William III continued: "Besides, even if Spain can't hold on to the English land it won, wouldn't he think of a way to exchange land for land?"

"..." The Duke of Richmond seemed to have opened the door to a new world.

"So I'm talking about you! It's still too shallow." William III concluded: "If you have a chance, you can look through England's diplomatic records. I believe you will have a deeper understanding."

"Yes." Being able to look through diplomatic records was undoubtedly the first step for the Duke of Richmond to start his political studies. He was very excited about this, and even wanted to rush back to Whitehall Palace immediately, and then spend a day in the records warehouse.

When the king's family arrived at the gallery where Michelangelo was, the latter hadn't recovered from his creation. It wasn't until William III stepped into the gallery that the latter left the workshop in a panic, and didn't even have time to change. Painted clothes.

"His Majesty."

I don't know if it was an illusion of William III, but he always felt that Michelangelo looked much younger.

Although the latter's gray beard remained unchanged, his spirit was completely different from when he first arrived.

"Have all the things I ordered been completed?" William III did not forget that Michelangelo was a famous overtime maniac, so he was sure that in the past few years, he was enough to get Queen Juana to hold the Duke of Richmond Statues of The Colossus, paintings and statues of Giants, and enthronement plans of William III.

It is even guessed that Michelangelo still has time to pick up odd orders.

Although Michelangelo did not have the problem of insufficient money after being invited to England by William III - after all, he, like Tintoretto, had no material desires other than artistic creation.

Besides, William III was also a very responsible protector, and he directly took care of their living requirements, so Michelangelo and Tintoretto were not so much doing odd jobs after work, as they were spending their time. time.

After hearing William III's words, Michelangelo personally took the king's family to the warehouse where the works were kept, and then carefully lifted the white cloth covering the statue.

"Wow..." Guillaume, who was following behind his parents, opened his eyes wide, looking at Michelangelo's eyes, wishing he could learn from him on the spot.

"This is Gao Kangda in "The Legend of Giants." William III was very satisfied with Michelangelo's sculpture results, and appreciated his bold innovation on the original work: "You didn't carve out all the postures of Gao Kangda, But through the characterization of the details, it is fully displayed."

Michelangelo's Gao Kangda is not a majestic giant, but a newborn leaning on the mountains and jungles.

Even though the sculpture has a face that does not look like a baby, you will think it is a baby when you see him at first sight.

"What do you think?" Michelangelo said with some trepidation: "I have made some otherworldly innovations that will definitely become legendary. And this Mr. Rabelais is really great, this kind of absurd story , is a whole other art."

"If there is a chance, I will introduce Mr. Rabelais to you." William III does not remember how many years Rabelais died, but he can let the two become pen pals: "I think your creation is great, absurd The story should have the appearance of contradictions, otherwise it would not have such a moving effect."

William III had watched Michelangelo's documentaries and knew that he liked to take a diametrically opposed posture in the statues of Greek mythology.

For example, shaping Cupid into a sleeping child instead of a toddler, or giving Dionysus a woman-like belly.

For Michelangelo, the creation of art must be interesting, otherwise it will lose its impressive effect.

William III felt that this high-profile statue would definitely become a peerless work, and it might even be on an equal footing with the other two of the Louvre's three treasures.

At this moment, Guillaume pulled Michelangelo's clothes and said timidly, "Can I move in and live with you?"