On the basis that they could not let insects destroy British foreign policy, Lord Russell and Lord Palmerston forged a fragile but strong political alliance.
As for why it is fragile yet strong! That is because the two people have the same goal of overthrowing the Aberdeen cabinet, but there is only one position of prime minister.
No matter which one of them becomes prime minister, the other will definitely not appear in the cabinet.
Probably because the two of them understand each other too well, when one gains power, the other will inevitably try their best to bring down the other.
Even if the United Front factors continue to recruit the other party into the cabinet, the fight between them will not stop.
The most effective way is to directly send the other party to the House of Lords to serve as a member of a noble committee, or to serve as Speaker of the House of Commons.
Only in this way can the other party's influence be reduced and the other party should not appear in the eyes of London citizens as much as possible, thereby achieving the purpose of "silencing".
"Minister Russell, since it was you who proposed the alliance, you must have a strategy to pull Aberdeen down!" Palmerston asked Russell bluntly.
"I do have some ideas!" Minister Russell showed a sly smile and replied calmly: "However, it is not the time yet! In the meantime, with Palmerston, you will continue to act as an opponent in the cabinet.
group!"
"Minister Russell, I can agree to your conditions, but you must tell me what you are planning to do! Otherwise, how can I cooperate with your actions!" Palmerston spread his hands and deliberately put his posture
Low.
"Minister Palmerston, if we want to overthrow a person, we must magnify the person's mistakes infinitely and guide the person into a trap designed in advance. The same should be done to Lord Aberdeen and his colleagues.
In this way. If you want to remove the Aberdeen cabinet, you must overthrow Lord Aberdeen's current political views, magnify his faults, and turn public opinion towards us." Minister Russell showed a look of wisdom and spoke profoundly.
Unpredictable words.
Palmerston, who had gained much political experience, immediately understood what Minister Russell meant. It seemed that Minister Russell wanted to make a fuss about the Russian Empire.
How Russell should make a fuss, Palmerston has not yet thought of.
However, Palmerston was convinced that the fox would eventually show his flaws, and he would be the ultimate victor.
"In that case, I'll take my leave!" Palmerston, who put the last cigar in the ashtray, stood up and said goodbye to Minister Russell.
Minister Russell quickly got up and escorted Palmerston out of the back room and to the door of the minister's office.
"Minister Palmerston, I wish you good luck!" Minister Russell shook hands with his temporary ally.
"You too!" Palmerston let go of Minister Russell's hand and left.
On December 21, the United Kingdom Cabinet Meeting begins.
Before the meeting started, Canning came to Russell's office door and knocked on the door of Russell's office.
"The door is unlocked! Please come in!" Minister Russell's loud voice reached Canning's ears.
Canning hurriedly opened the door and entered the minister's office. At this time, Prime Minister Russell was sorting out diplomacy-related documents. He would report to Lord Aberdeen on the recent diplomatic situation of the British Kingdom to Lord Aberdeen after the cabinet meeting began. By the way, some people who were on the "front line"
The ambassador's report was given to Lord Aberdeen so that he could make a decision as soon as possible.
The only thing missing from the current Minister Russell's foreign policy is Canning's foreign policy.
"Where are they?" Canning asked, pointing to the vacant seats of permanent secretaries and full-time secretaries.
"They! They are also in a meeting now!" Minister Russell said in a brisk tone: "We are the conference, and they are the small conference! I know without guessing that they must be thinking about how to treat us!"
"It looks quite harmonious!" Canning also said to Minister Russell with a smile.
"Harmony? Mr. Canning, this is not harmonious at all!" Minister Russell pretended to be annoyed and responded to Canning.
"Mr. Russell, this is my report!" Canning handed the compiled documents to Minister Russell.
After receiving the report, Minister Russell flipped through the pages of the report in Canning's hand. The report was entirely aimed at the Russian Empire and claimed that "the Russian Empire is the destroyer of peace in Europe!" Reading between the lines, it seemed that Canning was indeed convinced.
He is a pro-Austrian (Ottoman) and anti-Russian person.
Perhaps because he was stationed in Constantinople for many years, Canning's argument was completely biased towards the Ottoman Empire.
Such an argument gave Prime Minister Russell, who was suffering from no "weapons", an opportunity to "anti-Russia". A smile appeared on his face and he said seductively: "Minister Canning, I wonder if you are interested in going further!"
Go further!
Canning's old heart couldn't help but beat fast. Canning, who was born in 1786, had witnessed the rise and fall of Napoleon, and also witnessed the awakening of nationalism.
At the age of 66, he thought he had downplayed the fame and fortune of the incident, but he still could not escape the pursuit of power.
What Minister Russell means is that he will soon become one of the cabinet ministers, and the ambassador plenipotentiary in Constantinople will probably take a further job like parliamentary secretary.
Although the job of Parliamentary Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is far inferior to that of the Minister of Foreign Affairs once held by his brother George Canning (deceased), it is an improvement compared to the current position.
"I'm 66 years old, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to go further!" In his heart, he wanted to tell Minister Russell that he also dreamed of entering the cabinet, but he still gave in on his face.
"Who said you can't continue to serve the United Kingdom at the age of 66! The level of ability has nothing to do with age!" Minister Russell told Canning, "Duke Wellington is still serving the Kingdom at the age of 66.
Serve!"
"I..." Canning licked his slightly dry lips. Minister Russell's statement did make Canning a little moved. His inner desire to resign was gradually diluted by Minister Russell's deception.
Canning, who is heartbroken and has matured into a mature man, naturally understands that there is no such thing as "love" for no reason in the world. The purpose of Minister Russell's actions is probably to overthrow the real cabinet organization.
How can the existing cabinet structure be overthrown? Only by bringing Lord Aberdeen's political ideas to a complete deadlock.
In the past, Russell did not have much chance, but now it is not necessarily the case. The Russian Empire is very likely to take action against the Ottoman Empire. Then all it takes is...
"Minister Russell, what do you want me to do?" Canning asked Minister Russell pretending to be confused.
"I need you to remain ambassador to the Ottoman Empire!" Ambassador Russell replied to Canning.
"I am already old! This position should be reserved for others! We cannot allow an old man like me to occupy a really important position for a long time!" Canning said modestly.
"Only you can accomplish it!" Minister Russell said to Canning with a serious expression.
"Your Excellency Russell, you don't want me to provoke conflicts, do you?" Canning asked Minister Russell.
"No! You just need to safeguard the interests of the Ottoman Empire as much as possible!" Minister Russell explained to Canning.
According to Russell's understanding of the Russian Empire, once the Russian Empire takes action, it will definitely get something from the Ottomans.
As long as Canning protects the interests of the Ottoman Empire as much as possible, it will inevitably lead to a conflict between the Russian Empire and the British Kingdom.
When the pro-Russian Aberdeen is unable to deal with this contradiction, only he, the foreign minister, can solve the problem.
At that time, he will be able to return to the position of Prime Minister again.
Palmerston just needs to be a flag-waving guy.
"I understand!" Canning nodded in response to Minister Russell.
"Okay! It's getting late. It's time for me to go to Downing Street to attend the ministerial meeting!" Minister Russell took out his pocket watch and looked at the time, and then apologized to Canning.
Canning and Russell left Carlton Park together, Russell went to Downing Street, and Canning took a carriage secretly to Windsor Castle in the suburbs after parting with Russell.
After the carriage entered Windsor Castle, it met Albert under the leadership of John Brown.
After the two chatted for a while, they quickly got into the topic.
"You said Russell asked you to safeguard the interests of the Ottoman Empire?" Albert asked Canning.
"Yes! Minister Russell said so!" Canning nodded and said to Albert.
"It seems that Minister Russell is very knowledgeable about the situation in the Russian Empire!" Albert shook his head and said with a smile.
"Your Highness, what should I do?" Canning asked the question to Albert.
"Follow Lord Russell's orders!" Albert sighed and said to Canning.
"If this is the case, it is likely to lead to the Russian Empire..." Canning is somewhat worried that "excessive" maintenance of the integrity of the Ottoman Empire will bring Britain to the brink of war.
"The Russian Empire has already eaten more land!" Albert sneered: "If they ask for more, don't blame Britain for taking action against them!"
Albert had already expressed his attitude, and Canning quickly replied: "Understood!"
"Okay! You don't need to be under too much pressure! If things really get to the point of irreversibility, it's not a bad idea to resort to war!" Albert, who was afraid that Canning would be under some psychological pressure, quickly comforted him: "Besides,
We still have a helper on the mainland! If Britain is willing to fight with them, the Russian Empire will not be our opponent at all."
"Your Highness, are you talking about the French Empire?" Canning asked Albert.
"That's right!" Albert nodded and added to Canning: "They have long been eager to teach the Russian Empire a lesson! And after you return to Constantinople, you must communicate more with Palmerston!"