Chapter 50 Australian New Guinea
After Arthur's announcement, the entire crowd erupted in celebration. Even the cabinet officials, despite their high-ranking positions, were all smiles.
For a country to expand its territory peacefully is a rare and welcome event—especially when it involves regions like British New Guinea and New Zealand, which are geographically close to Australia.
British New Guinea lay just to the north of Australia, with a population of around 700,000.
While the land's immediate value was not high, and its population not dense, it could serve as a key northern gateway for Australia—and as a stepping stone toward Southeast Asia.
To the west and northwest of British New Guinea lay the Dutch East Indies.
The Dutch East Indies held enormous potential: with a total land area nearing two million square kilometers and a population exceeding 20 million, it was a significant colonial power in the region.
More importantly, the population of the Dutch East Indies consisted largely of so-called "natives"—viewed by the West as expendable labor.
Securing even one island from the Dutch East Indies would provide Australia with a massive pool of free labor, serving as the fuel for Australia's growing industrial ambitions.
From Arthur's perspective, those who could not integrate into Australia's multicultural identity—those who could never become "true Australians"—had only one real value: to give their lives in service to Australia's development.
New Zealand, meanwhile, required little explanation. Though it didn't possess mineral wealth on par with Australia's, it had an excellent livestock sector and could help compensate for Australia's lack of arable land.
If Australia could fully integrate British New Guinea and New Zealand, the new unified nation could easily sustain a population of over 100 million.
Queen Victoria, even in her final moments, had given Arthur and Australia a massive advantage—providing the foundation for Australia's rise and its potential to become a superpower.
But for Britain, the queen's passing was nothing short of a loss. As a monarch who ruled for more than sixty years, Victoria commanded unmatched authority. Her influence as a sovereign could not be replicated by her successor, Edward.
Victoria could appoint or dismiss prime ministers at will without fear of backlash. If Edward tried such a thing, the next day's newspapers would be filled with outrage, and anti-tyranny protests would erupt across the Empire.
Despite being a constitutional monarchy, Britain's monarch still wielded significant symbolic power. But that power was rooted in personal prestige—something Queen Victoria had built over decades. It would not be automatically passed to her successor.
Edward now faced two immediate headaches: organizing a funeral that satisfied both the royal families of Europe and the British people who revered Queen Victoria, and navigating government relations—since unlike his mother, he might not be able to keep ministers in line.
Arthur, of course, had no interest in Edward's troubles. After settling in the guards and attendants gifted by the late queen, he called a cabinet meeting the next day to discuss the management of British New Guinea and New Zealand.
According to his agreement with Edward, once Australian troops arrived, all British forces and institutions would withdraw from British New Guinea, officially transferring control to Australia.
Whether it would become a new Australian state or remain a colony was a question the cabinet now had to decide.
This urgency was precisely why Arthur wanted to move quickly. With Queen Victoria's lingering influence still fresh, asserting control over British New Guinea would be easier.
If they waited until after the funeral or much later—when Victoria's memory began to fade—public sentiment in British New Guinea might shift, making governance far more difficult.
In the now-familiar top-floor conference room of the government building, Arthur, seated at the head of the table, smiled as he posed the day's challenge:
"Gentlemen, according to Her Majesty's final will, British New Guinea is now under our control, and I am to serve as Governor of New Zealand for twenty years. It's time to discuss how we will manage these two regions. I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts."
British New Guinea was essentially a done deal. It was Australia's for the taking.
But New Zealand was a different story. Arthur was only granted a twenty-year term as governor. If Australia's policies toward New Zealand were unpopular, they could lose it in two decades.
"Your Highness, why don't we rename British New Guinea to the State of New Guinea—making it our seventh state?" proposed Minister of Agriculture Henris. "It's very close to Australia and has excellent ports. There's no problem incorporating it directly, just like we did with previous colonies."
"Hmm, not a bad suggestion. Anyone else?" Arthur replied, expressionless, scanning the rest of the cabinet.
"Your Highness," said Prime Minister Evan, stepping forward with a differing opinion, "I don't believe we should immediately turn New Guinea into a state. We should first govern it as a colony."
"British New Guinea is very different from our existing states. Though it has a population of more than 700,000, only about 30,000 are British or European settlers—the rest are indigenous people. If we make it a state and treat those indigenous people as full citizens, would that be fair to the rest of Australia?"
Evan's meaning was clear: turning British New Guinea into a state would raise complicated questions about the status of the native population.
But if it remained a colony, few would care what happened to its indigenous residents.
"Your Highness, my recommendation is to govern New Guinea as a colony for now. What we need at this stage is the Colony of Australian New Guinea—not the State of New Guinea," Evan said solemnly, looking directly at Arthur.
(End of Chapter)
Friends, if you enjoyed the novel, you can subscribe to my Patreon channel.
Until November 30st, get 40% off both your subscription and the purchase of your novel. Thank you for your support.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Kira1997