The Sun Rises Yet Again
Chapter 4: The Flame Is Kindled
December 8, 1924
Today, all across Britain, many anti-VU rallies are being staged and future ones are in the works, the political tension remains. Mosley cares little however, he has an important meeting before he convenes with his cabinet in an unofficial meeting. He gets in his car with his chauffeur and drives to Camberley Staff College to meet with J. F. C. Fuller. Mosley had noted the rise of this man, he was a war hero, this combined with his revolutionary theories on warfare had been more than enough to captivate him, however he had naught an opportunity due to all the time taken by politicking and campaigning. Now he finally had time and he was going to have a talk with this promising candidate for the Chief of Imperial General Staff. He reaches the college and asks to speak with Fuller in private, soon he is face to face with him. They are guided to a room where they can talk in private, they enter, the door closes and they sit in chairs apart each other. Fuller speaks first, the eagerness apparent in his voice, like a fanatic meeting his idol.
J. F. C. Fuller
"Hello Your Excellency Oswald Mosley. I must tell you, I am an ardent supporter and am proud to call myself a Vickie. Now not to be rude, but why have you called me?"
Oswald Mosley
"Firstly, I thank you sincerely for your support and am glad to have someone such as you on my side. And now to your question, I have requested your audience today as I have wished to do so for months now but have been unable to, now that you're here I would like to propose an offer."
J. F. C. Fuller
"What is it?"
Oswald Mosley
"I would like for you to be my Chief of Imperial General Staff. I have read your history of combat in the Second Boer War and in the Great War as well as your book, "Tanks in the great war". I know that you've earned the nickname, "The English Hammer", for your victory against the Germans at Tours in 1914. I also know you've been championing for a new theory on how war is fought. I've read extensively on your Nineteen Principles, the Organisation of Force and the Unity of the Principles of War. I've thought and discussed your calls for mass mechanisation of the army and a shift away from static trench warfare to fluid and fast moving front lines. I'm impressed by it all. You are the perfect man for the job. If you accept, I shall back you on most anything and provide whatever assistance I may in helping you push these reforms and achieve this modern army you envision. So, what do you say Mr. Fuller?"
J. F. C. Fuller
"Why Your Excellency, I would be honored to accept such a position! When would I take command of the office?"
Oswald Mosley
"Immediately. There is much work to be done and not much time to do it in. We must waste nary a minute."
J. F. C. Fuller
"I see, I shall begin packing my belongings at my residence and pen my resignation to the headmaster. I suspect this shall take some time but I shall be in London before Christmas."
Oswald Mosley
"Be careful Fuller, the last time it was said that something would be done by Christmas, the Empire was undone."
J. F. C. Fuller
"Ha ha! It is good to know you have an equally black and cynical sense of humour. Life would be so much harder without it."
Oswald Mosley
"Good day Mr. Fuller, I am anticipating seeing you in London very soon"
Mosley leaves the college and heads back to London, he must meet with his cabinet in a meeting to discuss how they will move forward. He arrives at 10 Downing Street. Mosley reaches the meeting room and enters, everyone is waiting. He sits down and begins to speak
Oswald Mosley
"Hello gentlemen, welcome to the first meeting, official or unofficial, of our cabinet. I'm sorry I am late, but I had to make time for a visit to secure our future Chief of Imperial General Staff."
Arthur Kitson
"Who is it?"
Oswald Mosley
"None other than 'the English Charles Martel' himself."
William Joyce
"J. F. C. Fuller? Quite the catch, if I must say so myself."
Oswald Mosley
"Indeed, but enough of small talk, let us begin our discussion on what our course of action is. Who wishes to go first?"
Arthur Kitson
"I would like to. As we all know, we've been in a depression for some time now, if we can end it our popularity would skyrocket even further. It will also allow us to pursue our more ambitious goals. To do this we have to start by passing some tariffs, regulations and other protectionist measures. For far too long the economy has suffered underneath the laissez-faire measures the previous governments pursued. We also need a serious revamping on how the economy and the state function in tandem with another. Obviously, we need to take it slowly so we don't get overruled early on. I suggest we start by pushing through some tariffs to get things started. Maybe you can send Joyce to Canada to improve relations?"
William Joyce
"Why Canada? At the moment their economy is doing worse than ours."
Arthur Kitson
"It's a diplomatic move, not an economic one, at least in the most immediate sense. It's to show the Americans we won't be coming across the Pond to take anything else, show that apart from whatever we still hold in the Caribbean and Atlantic, the New World is their's. The last thing we want is hostile or even cold relations with the Americans."
Oswald Mosley
"Very well. Who is next"
Ronald Ross
"I would like to. Disease and hunger are massive problems, especially in the cities. Our farmers are struggling to even keep themselves afloat as prices have fallen through the roof. In response, they've started destroying their crops and tossing food away to artificially inflate the price. This is wasteful and I have an idea that could help their economic problems somewhat and combat the malnutrition and hunger plaguing the poor. We would ask farmers to give us whatever food they were going to toss and give it to the poorest members of society. This is a win-win as it increases demand for food as there is less supply and the people we are giving it to wouldn't have been able to buy it anyway. It would also help us gain some approval ratings across the board."
Oswald Mosley
"It sounds like a good idea, I shall have someone look over the logistics to see if this pans out the way you say it will. If so, it goes through. Anyone else?"
George Makgill
"I would like to bring up the matter of the more than two dozen anti-Victorian protests and rallies staged for the next few months. A few, even several of these are nothing to fret over, but almost two dozen and rising fast and now it becomes a major issue. I would like for MI5 to be given some extra-judicial powers when dealing with these matters as well as increased funding. Who knows how many madmen have put a target on your head."
Oswald Mosley
"Very well. Vincent, can you get this through the courts?"
Vincent Chambers
"It won't be easy, but I think I can do it. I will need a list of what powers Makgill wants granted to MI5."
George Makgill
"I'll draft a list and have it at your desk by tomorrow."
Oswald Mosley
"I feel we are reaching the end of this meeting. Does anyone else have anything they want to say?"
Anderson Barlow
"If I may, I would like to ask you to create a royal commission, chaired by me, into the urban concentration of people and industry. I feel that decentralisation of the populace and industry is something we all agree on however we don't know where to start. This commission could help us find out which areas are most affected and give us a skeletal framework around which to plan further development. It would take some time, most likely a year or two but it could drag on to three if things don't go right but I feel it is worth it to investigate this."
Ronald Ross
"I agree. The density of people in these cities means they are breeding grounds for diseases to spread like a wildfire. This could be a step to reducing it."
Oswald Mosley
"Very well, this commission will be created, but it shall take me some time as I am very busy"
Anderson Barlow
"I understand."
Oswald Mosley
"Good. And with that, I think we are done for today. Gentlemen, you are dismissed."
They quickly bid each other a farewell and leave. They are all swamped with work and have much more coming their way. Mosley heads to his office to begin to dismantle the mountain of work that stands before him. He is not bothered however, for the work is as hard as it is rewarding for he is progressing towards his goal with every paper written or read and every word said. He is content, for the flame of the future is kindled.
In Wales, Workers Striking in Protest of Low Wages, 1921
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Unemployed Workers Looking For a Job After the Factory Called in Strikerbreakers, 1922
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Rare Photograph From the Trenches During the Battle of Tours, 1914
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British Troops Surrounding a Captured German Tank After the Battle of Lyon in 1917, Just 5 Months Later, All British Troops Withdrew Out of France
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