The Rise of Australasia

Chapter 861: Chapter 644: Trip to London, The Godfather, Monetary System

After securing the functioning of the radar, the next important task was to install these radars on warships.

Whether it was the previous battleships or aircraft carriers, or even medium and small warships, as long as the size and space allowed, such radars would be installed.

Fortunately, radars did not take up too much space. Except for the small vessels of a few hundred tons, warships of over a thousand tons generally had space for such radar installation.

Even the construction of Hercules-class and Hurricane-class aircraft carriers had to consider the design of radar installation spaces.

The radar was crucial for enhancing a warship’s combat capability; warships equipped with radar were significantly more powerful than their counterparts of the same classification.

While the Ministry of Defense became busy with radar experiments, the Palace of Nations at Saint Arthur Castle also suddenly bustled with activity.

It wasn’t due to any special holiday. In fact, it was Queen Mary and several youngsters preparing for William’s first official diplomatic visit representing the country.

William, born in 1909, had already turned 16 and was about to complete his high school studies and join the military.

As Arthur’s eldest son, according to the country’s succession law, William was the first in line for the throne of Australasia.

For this reason, Arthur had been training William in the capabilities of national governance, to have a qualified or even an outstanding successor.

Although Arthur had many children and could choose the most competent to inherit the throne, the principle of primogeniture was deeply ingrained. As long as William wasn’t inadequate, Arthur had no intention of revoking his right to the throne.

After all, it was already the 20th century, and the struggle for the throne did not need to be so brutal. While the throne represented power, power also came with responsibilities.

Arthur hoped that the youngsters would work together to maintain the royal family’s rule and take the nation of Australasia to new heights.

Since it was William’s first formal diplomatic visit, the destination was none other than London, currently the most prosperous city.

The British-Australian relationship was a primary basis for Australasia’s development, and choosing London for the first stop also demonstrated the strength of their relationship.

This made sense, after all, the two countries’ royal families were essentially one and the same. William’s visit to the United Kingdom was not only on behalf of Australasia for diplomatic reasons but also as a member of the British Royal Family to establish ties between the next generations.

Due to just over twenty years passing, the relationship between Arthur and the British Royal Family was still relatively close.

King George V was Arthur’s first cousin, making him William’s great-uncle, which is considered close kin within three generations.

Even now, Arthur and William both had succession rights to the British throne, but they were placed behind the children of King George V and those of Edward VII, ranked well beyond the tenth in line.

Speaking of London, it was unquestionably one of the most prosperous and vast cities in the world. Only New York could rival London, but even New York still lagged slightly behind.

This was no exaggeration: London’s population had surpassed 7 million a few years ago and was now maintaining over 7.5 million, more than the populations of some second- and third-tier European countries, attesting to the staggering numbers of London’s population.

On the other hand, New York’s population was just over 7 million. Due to Australasia’s influence, the United States received fewer immigrants than in our history.

While cities with populations in the tens of millions are common in later generations, a hundred years ago, urban cities with a million residents were considered enormous, and those with ten million were unheard of.

It is important to note that a city’s population is not solely beneficial by being large. An increasing population signifies fiercer competition for jobs, and challenges the city’s law enforcement, medical environment, and education with stringent demands.

Moreover, a large population makes transportation systems highly congested, reducing internal transport efficiency within the city.

Judging by the current population growth rate of London and New York, the notion of a city with ten million residents is no longer a dream and could possibly be realized within the next two to three decades.

Besides these two colossal cities, other famous cities, be it Paris, Vienna, Rome, Berlin, Saint Petersburg, or Sydney, could not compete with London and New York in terms of population and size.

In 1925, some Australasian media outlets voted on the top ten cities in the world, and this ranking received a lot of positive feedback. London and New York were respectively ranked first and second.

The exact ranking of the world’s top ten cities is as follows:

First Place, London, with a total population of 7.56 million people.

Second Place, New York, with a total population of 7.11 million people.

Third Place, Sydney, with a total population of 3.71 million people.

Fourth Place, Tokyo, with a total population of 3.32 million people.

Fifth Place, Chicago, with a total population of 3.27 million people.

Sixth Place, Paris, with a total population of 3.03 million people.

Seventh Place, Philadelphia, with a total population of 2.94 million people.

Eighth Place, Melbourne, with a total population of 2.27 million people.

Ninth Place, Osaka, with a total population of 2.11 million people.

Tenth Place, Vienna, with a total population of 1.97 million people.

From this ranking of the top ten cities, a characteristic can be observed: apart from the special case of Island Nation with its massive area and large population, the only countries with two top ten cities are the United States and Australasia.

These two countries share a common feature: both are immigrant nations. In immigrant nations, large urban cities tend to have high populations, but many areas remain undeveloped or scarcely developed wilderness.

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