Chapter 260: The Royal Guard Corps
Joseph remembered that historically, the Duke of Orléans was sent to the guillotine by the Jacobins. It felt strange now to see a major figure of the Jacobin movement helping the Duke's son with a legal case.
Desmoulins admired, "You... you've really made a name for yourself in the legal world, getting picked for such a big case."
Robespierre had an impressive record of winning cases, especially his successful defense of Mr. Visser, who was sued for installing a lightning rod. That victory overturned several previous rulings, earning Robespierre fame across France. Historically, this case even helped him get elected as a representative in the Estates-General.
Robespierre smiled modestly, "I'm just one of the lawyers representing the Duke of Chartres."
Joseph thought for a moment and then asked, "Mr. Robespierre, do you think the Duke of Chartres deserves to inherit the Duke of Orléans' estate?"
"Yes, Your Highness," Robespierre nodded. "The Duke of Orléans died in the riots, so his lawful heir should inherit his estate."
"Have you not heard that he was accused of treason?"
Robespierre replied solemnly, "Your Highness, you know that Versailles is often filled with political rumors. I believe the Duke of Orléans wouldn't..."
Joseph smiled and signaled to Eymar, "Please return to the High Court."
"Yes, Your Highness."
An hour later, in the archives of the High Court, Robespierre was flipping through thick dossiers. His face turned pale, and his teeth clenched tightly.
As an experienced lawyer, it was easy for him to see that the evidence wasn't fabricated. The Crown Prince had mentioned that there was even more evidence in the evidence room, but Robespierre felt it was unnecessary to see it.
It wasn't just that the Duke of Orléans had conspired with the British, funneling large sums from the French bank into British industries, or that he incited nobles to refuse loans to the government. The final piece of evidence—that he had ordered the Malet brothers to commit murder, forcing the Interior Minister to misallocate reserve grain, leading to widespread food shortages and riots across much of France—was enough to damn him.
Robespierre felt dizzy. He had been deceived by a schemer for years, and now he was supposed to help the man's son claim his inheritance?
When he emerged from the High Court, his face was full of despair. Seeing the Crown Prince still waiting for him, Robespierre spoke in a low, firm voice, "Your Highness, I know what I have to do."
"Oh?" Joseph replied. "You should join the Bureau of Public Justice and help root out people like the Duke of Orléans as early as possible."
Desmoulins nodded eagerly beside him, "I... I hope you'll join the Bureau too."
"Thank you for your trust. I'll seriously consider it." Robespierre, still shaken, bowed and prepared to leave.
Joseph suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, did you review any documents from the Duke of Chartres' side?"
After all, to handle a case about inheriting an estate, the lawyer would need to know what the estate included.
Robespierre nodded, "Yes, Your Highness, I've seen them."
"Can you tell me the total value of the inheritance involved?"
Robespierre hesitated for a moment before quietly saying, "Excluding villas and real estate, it's about 60 million livres."
Joseph's eyes lit up. This was a fortune!
Even after covering the costs of police reforms, there would still be 50 million livres left. And considering the Duke's extensive real estate holdings, that would also provide ample funding for tax reforms and kick-starting industrial development.
Robespierre added, "Your Highness, I won't let someone who persecuted the poor succeed."
With that, he took his leave.
Desmoulins noticed his friend's troubled expression and quickly bowed to Joseph before hurrying after him.
Joseph climbed back into his carriage and continued to Paris Police Academy.
An hour and a half later, the carriage stopped in front of the academy's administrative building. Joseph didn't disturb the cadets who were in training but instead attended a tactical command class and then held a meeting with generals Berthier, Friant, and others.
"I'm sure you've all heard by now," Joseph began, addressing the officers seated around the long table. "According to the military reform plan, we will establish a General Staff.
"Once the General Staff is operational, it will take over the overall planning and deployment of military operations. The Minister of War will only be responsible for final approval."
The officers were surprised. They had assumed that the General Staff would simply assist the Minister of War in decision-making, not that it would become the main command body for military operations.
Joseph continued, "General Berthier has already compiled the duties and requirements of the General Staff into a booklet. He will now explain them in detail. I urge you all to study the new operational model under the General Staff's command."
While Berthier had compiled the booklet, the core framework had been provided by Joseph. Berthier, who historically was instrumental in developing the concept of the General Staff, had helped bring it to life six years earlier than planned, and in a much more refined form.
Berthier nodded to Joseph and signaled an orderly to distribute copies of the booklet titled "Functions and Requirements of the General Staff" to the officers present. "The General Staff will be primarily responsible for studying all aspects of warfare and developing plans for troop movements and operations.
"This will also include mobilization and campaign implementation plans.
"As per the Crown Prince's instructions, the General Staff will also handle logistics, map planning, daily training, and exercises."
In this era, the outcome of wars often depended heavily on the personal experience, or even intuition, of commanders. This led to significant uncertainty. Even military geniuses like Frederick II had their moments of error. A commander's mistake could result in heavy casualties or even the failure of an entire campaign.
The General Staff system was designed to mitigate such risks by using the collective expertise of a team of staff officers to develop battle plans, minimizing the chances of human error. This was a highly advanced command model that surpassed the norms of the time.
This system, first introduced by Berthier, would later be fully realized during the Franco-Prussian War, where it demonstrated its formidable power. It could be said that the Prussian victory over France was largely due to the brilliance of their Chief of Staff, Moltke.
After Berthier's presentation, Joseph addressed the group again, "The cabinet meeting will soon approve the proposal to establish the General Staff.
"General Berthier will temporarily serve as the Deputy Chief of Staff."
Historically, Berthier had been Napoleon's Chief of Staff. He was better suited to this role than to commanding troops in the field. However, since he was currently only a brigadier general, he would initially serve as Deputy Chief of Staff. But with no Chief of Staff in place, he would effectively be in charge of the General Staff.
Joseph continued, "Additionally, the Queen has agreed that General Berthier's corps will officially be named the 'Royal Guard First Corps,' and the police cadets will form the 'Royal Guard Second Corps.'"
(End of Chapter)
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