KEO.PLUS

After giving instructions to the officials of New Zealand, Arthur turned his attention back to the parade.

Although Australia’s army has just over ten thousand troops, this parade is quite substantial, with four infantry and cavalry squares and two heavy weapons inspection teams.

The four infantry and cavalry squares were composed of the Guards’ and the National Defence Army’s infantry and cavalry squares.

Meanwhile, the two heavy weapons inspection teams were transporting the Australian Army’s two most abundant heavy weapons, the CA-1 machine gun and the MA-96 Maxim machine gun, on carriages.

In order to maintain the solemnity of the parade, the horses used to transport these weapons and equipment were carefully selected Australian wild horses. The pure white military horses, slowly pulling the weapons along the street, brought a shock to the Australian people no less than the previous infantry squares.

These two types of heavy weapons, along with the M1897 type cannon under research, will become the most reliable source of firepower for the Australian Army.

Such a large-scale parade was not without purpose. It was meant not only to strengthen the Australians’ sense of nationhood but also to make them believe they have a powerful army to protect the nation and their safety.

It was also intended to increase the enthusiasm of some Australian youth for joining the military. The number of Australian troops is still too small, not even enough to form a complete division.

Moreover, Australia also has overseas colonies like New Guinea, so expanding the size of the military is necessary.

Under Arthur’s preliminary estimate, Australia would launch a recruitment plan in the new year. This would not only be to expand the army but also to prepare for the expansion of the navy.

On the naval side, there is hope to master the technology of the Brunswick- class battleship within one year.

Up to now, Australian and German experts have been working together on this battleship for more than half a year.

Thanks to the German experts’ teachings, Arthur’s shipyard and Australian experts have been able to learn the technology quite quickly.

There is hope that by the end of 1902, they would have mastered the building technology of the Brunswick-class battleship, allowing Australia to have the ability to build battleships independently.

Although Arthur has no plans to build main battleships at present, some cruisers and escort ships can still be built.

Establishing a navy is not something that can be done just by having warships; naval soldiers’ training may take even longer than the construction of warships.

In the future, when dreadnoughts are born, Australia will inevitably need to build its own dreadnought.

Although this may take some time, it does not prevent the initiation of naval training programs now.

In Arthur’s psychological expectation, by the time of World War I, Australia will have established an army of at least fifty thousand men and a sizable navy with five main battleships and dozens of medium-sized and small warships.

Of course, it is a rather ambitious plan. It requires not only a large amount of funds, but also mastering many technologies that Australia has never possessed.

But Australia’s goal is definitely not just Oceania. Whether it is the Dutch East Indies to the north, New Zealand to the east, or the Indian Ocean to the west, all will be the next land area for Australia’s plans.

After the parade was over, the cheering and shouting of the crowd did not stop. Had it not been for Arthur stepping forward and standing by the microphone, the noise in the square would probably continue.

After waiting for the crowd to completely quiet down, Arthur began to speak: “My fellow citizens, today is a day to celebrate. I declare that, from January 10th to January 16th every year for seven days is Australia’s National Day Week. National Day Week is a statutory holiday in Australia, and under normal circumstances, all businesses and factories should take time off. If there are major situations requiring overtime, it should be paid at twice the regular rate.”

Arthur’s words did have a significant impact among the crowd. In the era when factories generally implemented a 12-hour work system, it was not easy to have statutory holidays with overtime double pay.

Having an extra week each year to rest or earn seven more days of money was, of course, gladly accepted by these Australians.

Naturally, this all depends on the policies issued by their beloved Duke, His Highness.

“In addition, in honor of the great Queen Victoria’s contribution to the establishment of the Australian Principality, and in recognition of the future contributions of all citizens to Australia, the royal family and government will establish three types of medals, namely the Victoria Memorial Medal, the Royal Knight Medal, and the Australian National Medal. The specific awarding rules for these three medals will be announced by the government and serve as rewards for those who have made outstanding contributions to the Australian government and the royal family. Each medal has different reward policies, but what they all have in common is that the recipients of each medal can receive ten times the average annual income of Australians as a bonus each year. This payment can continue to be claimed, even if the medal winner is no longer with us, by their designated relatives and family members, up to the third generation of relatives. If no relatives have been designated to claim it, the money will be divided equally among all direct relatives.” Arthur said solemnly.

For a monarchial country, medals are also a means of rewarding meritorious officials. The Victoria Medal created by Queen Victoria is also an extremely valuable medal even in later generations.

The Victoria Memorial Medal mentioned by Arthur actually has a similar meaning to the Victoria Medal.

While commemorating Queen Victoria, it also recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the royal family and the country, even saving the country.

This also means that it will become very difficult to receive the Victoria Memorial Medal. As an important means for the royal family to reward citizens, Arthur does not intend to make the medals too cheap, at least not the Victoria Memorial Medal.

Hearing Arthur’s words and the subsequent introduction of the three medals and rewards, most Australians were noticeably moved.

Not to mention other things, but just obtaining any of these three medals would allow one to receive 10 times the average Australian income every year, and that could continue to be claimed by up to the third generation of relatives. What a crazy policy!

Just by obtaining any one of these medals, one can directly lie at home without working and still get paid. Even these payments would not only support the recipient himself, but also all his family members.

Almost every person cannot help but think of an idea in their minds: What if they could obtain this medal?

Everyone has certain beautiful fantasies about their future, imagining themselves as the luckiest ones.

Many Australians are already eagerly waiting for the government’ s latest information on these three medals after the National Day activities.

As long as any one of the medals is easy to obtain, it can be believed that many people will take practical action.