Chapter 8 : Here I come, Australia!

On April 2, 1900, after a brief three-day rest, the fleet set sail once again, this time heading toward Arthur's final destination: Australia.

Speaking of Australia, up until now, Australia was merely a regional name. In reality, Australia was composed of six colonies: Western Australia, South Australia, Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales, and Tasmania.

Although these six colonies were located on the Australian continent, they formed a complete and culturally homogeneous region.

However, due to various historical issues and colonial strategies of Britain, all of Australia was divided into six colonies, each governed independently without interfering with one another.

Since modern times, the different colonies of Australia have faced some common problems, including tariffs, transportation, postal services, defense, and restrictions on Asian immigration, which forced the six colonies to consider convening a colonial conference to discuss unified standards.

In November 1880, the Melbourne Colonial Conference agreed to establish a Federal Council, and the Federal Council Bill was drafted by the largest and most developed colony, New South Wales. This was also a sign of Australia's unification and union.

The Federal Council was established in 1883, and a year later, the colonies began urging the British government to support the Federal Council Bills.

In 1891, Australia's first political party, the Labor Party, was founded. The development of the labor movement broke down the old boundaries between the colonies, and calls for free trade and the beginning of unification among the colonies grew stronger.

In 1893, the Federal Council convened a meeting of representatives from the Federal League in Corowa, urging and recommending that the colonies begin taking steps to prepare for the establishment of a federation.

Even by 1898, the Australian Federal Council had started preparing a referendum on the establishment of a federation, but due to a lack of coordination among the colonies, the referendum did not progress well.

It was only some time later, when Queen Victoria announced that Australia would be Arthur's new territory and decided to unify the six colonies into a complete Principality of Australia, that the calls for unification among the colonies began to subside, and people started eagerly anticipating the new Principality of Australia.

On April 27, after more than half a month of sailing, the fleet arrived in Sydney, the capital of New South Wales.

New South Wales is the oldest British colony in Australia and is currently the most populous and economically developed Australian colony.

As Australia's federalization progressed, New South Wales was the colony with the most involvement and was responsible for drafting the Federal Council Bill.

Judging by the situation in Australia, as long as New South Wales was under control, the situation in Australia would be largely under control.

Sydney Harbor was already filled with welcoming crowds. At the front of the crowd were the premiers and officials of several colonies, standing in a dense line, creating a very lively atmosphere.

Alongside the welcoming crowd, a team of soldiers eagerly awaited. The armies of their respective colonies received direct orders from the Ministry of Defense and Queen Victoria.

After the fleet slowly approached the shore, the welcoming crowd immediately erupted into loud cheers. Following the sound of ceremonial music, Arthur supported Queen Victoria and slowly disembarked onto Australian soil.

"Long live Her Majesty the Queen! Long live His Royal Highness the Duke!" The crowd burst into spontaneous cheers, loudly welcoming the arrival of the two rulers.

Unlike what happened in the Suez Canal and India, Queen Victoria did not step forward but instead signaled with her eyes for Arthur to proceed.

Arthur immediately understood, stepped forward lightly, looked at the excited crowd, and finally stopped in front of the six premiers.

"Your Highness, welcome home!" the six premiers said in unison.

Arthur was momentarily stunned, then suddenly realized. Australia is his only territory, and Arthur's future home will also be in Australia.

Unless something special happens, he will basically not return to the United Kingdom.

"You must be the premiers of the various colonies, correct? How has Australia been lately?" Arthur asked with a smile.

"Yes, Your Highness. Allow me to introduce the premiers of each colony," the leader spoke with a smile and a hint of flattery.

"Go ahead," Arthur gestured for him to continue.

"Your Highness, I am Evan H. Parks, the Premier of New South Wales," the man continued, "These are the Premier of Victoria, Walter Black; the Premier of Queensland, Andrew King Porter; the Premier of Tasmania, Richard Noble Chapman; the Premier of Western Australia, Pierre Silvio Berlusconi; and the Premier of South Australia, Tomas Cech. Upon learning of your arrival, they immediately rushed here from their respective regions to greet you and Her Majesty the Queen as soon as possible."

"So, you called these people here?" Arthur asked curiously, looking at the excited crowd surrounding him.

"Not exactly, Your Highness. You may not know that Australia, divided into six colonies, is no longer suitable for the current situation. The different systems between the colonies greatly hinder trade and mutual exchanges, causing significant problems for the colonies and their residents. People have long been waiting for the federalization of Australia. It is thanks to you that Australia has the opportunity to unify this time. Thank you, Your Highness!" Premier Evan H. Parks said, bowing to Arthur with a hint of gratitude.

"It's nothing, Premier Evan. From now on, I will be part of Australia. Isn't it the responsibility of all Australians to maintain the unity of Australia?" Arthur smiled and helped Premier Evan to his feet.

"Alright, Premier Evan, take Her Majesty and me to rest for a bit first. The long sea journey is quite exhausting. By the way, let these people return as well. We can't let their work and lives be delayed because of welcoming me," Arthur said with a smile.

"Yes, Your Highness, please follow me. I have had the upper floor of the government building cleaned. The conditions are not great, so you and Her Majesty the Queen will have to stay there temporarily," Premier Evan explained with a small apology as he guided the way.

Before the creation of the federation, Australia's economy had always relied on the sale of minerals, agriculture, and fishing. Although this improved the situation in the early days of the colonies, when it was necessary to import food from Britain, it was barely possible to get enough food and clothing.

Moreover, the colonies were not connected to each other, resulting in an overall underdeveloped economy in Australia, with very backward industry and tight finances in each colony.

Although the wealthiest in New South Wales were better off, it was still a fantasy to want to build a palace worthy of the status of Arthur and Queen Victoria.