Lord M'reng
The Honourable Dr Trjuk Krjên-magh MP, MPhD, OA | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 筑柬寞 |
| Born | December 30, 1812 |
| Died | May 2, 1881 (aged 68) Kien-k'ang, Themiclesia |
| Buried | c. 3 km south of Tubh Railway Station, Tubh County, Inner Region |
| Allegiance | Themiclesia |
| Service/ | Militia of Mhje′ and Marines |
| Years of service | 1855 – 1858, 1863 – 1881 |
| Rank | MP & Second Class (rural election) Colonel-in-Chief (1855 – 1858) Colonel (1863 – 1870) Colonel-General (1870 – 1881) |
| Commands held | Marshal of Mhje′ 2nd Regiment of Marines Captain-General of Marines |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Liang-la |
| Awards | Order of Authors (posthumously, 1901) Doctor of Mathematics (posthumously, Academia Shinasthana, 1905) |
The Hon. Dr. Trjuk Krjên-magh MP, PhD, OA (Shinasthana: 筑柬寞, Dec. 30, 1812 – May 2, 1881) was a Themiclesian mathematician, legislator, civil servant, and military officer. He was born to a gentle family in 1812 in the Inner Region and was a member of parliament between 1847 and 1854 in Tubh, for the Conservative Party. The Conservatives in opposition, he lost his seat in 1854 without having entered the ministry. He became the Director of Education of Mhjeh the following year then moved to the Marshal of Mhjeh. A staunch Conservative, he entered a prolonged feud with the Liberal Secretary of State for War over budget and was dismissed in 1858. He became a doctor of mathematics in 1860, working on discrete calculus. Through his connections in the Navy, he became the colonel of the 2nd Regiment of Marines, thereas surrendering to the Camians in the Battle of Liang-la. Shortly after a public inquiry, he was promoted to Captain-General, where he entered another feud with the Admiralty and the future prime minister the Lord of Krungh, and there he remained until his death in 1881.
Military career
Marshal of Mhje′
Marines
Trjuk returned to the University of the Pond in 1860 to pursue a doctorate in mathematics, working on his long-beloved field of discrete calculus. He became a doctor of mathematics from that institution in 1862. Having tried and failed to secure a tenure in that institution, he again appealed to the Ministry of Administration for a public office, but his prolonged disagreement with the Lord of Krungh, who was by this time a leading figure in the Conservative Party, prevented a rapid appointment. Eventually, Krungh told the Executive Committee he planned to "get rid of him" (from the social scene in Kien-k'ang) by arranging his appointment as colonel of the 2nd Regiment of Marines, which was stationed on the Isle of Liang. On the one hand, Trjuk wanted an appointment soon, as his seniority in the Civil Service would expire soon if he was not in some sort of office, but he detested the idea of being on Liang, which the Camians threatened to take. Trjuk appeared before the Executive Committee and stated the "colonelcy can be offered to a starving pauper and be still rejected," while making dissenting speeches to aristocrats and other party leaders. Eventually, he was forced to accept the position. After the appointment, he lingered in Kien-k'ang, unwilling to travel to the island, for several months. The government ordered him to set sail in March 1864, after irrepressable Liberal derision and caricature of his refusal to take up his commission, which was threatening the image of the Conservative Party.
On his first day in office, Trjuk made a serious blunder by playing and accidentally discharging a pistol, killing one of his subordinates. The government sent a tribune (government attorney) to investigate the homicide, and Trjuk was duly acquitted by the House of Lords, on the grounds that he did not know how a pistol worked or that it was dangerous. In 1865, Trjuk was made Lord M′reng (顭君) on completing 20 years of public service.
Death
Trjuk died in 1881, aged 68, to typhoid fever.
Quotes
- "Sir, you stench of verdigris." — to the Liberal prime minister in 1851. Themiclesian coins were made of bronze, and to stench of verdigris was to evoke the image of money.
- "Sjeh Prefecture is made more noble by the absence of a great amount of Liberals in its bosom, and its nonsensical expositions about equality in its mouth."
- "The first allegiance of the aristocracy is towards the little people in the streets and in the fields. By their vileness they ennoble us." — to fellow Conservative MP Hjen Gap, in a division.
- "With the prolongation of this Liberal government, we move from aristocracy to plutocracy, where power is measured by wealth and not merit." — to his constituents in the general election of 1854.
- "Sir, you commit treason if you fight this hour, and it is my unenviable duty to stop you." — to a fellow officer in the 2nd Regiment of Marines, before discharging a pistol on him.
- "I beg your pardon that I must shoot you. Please charge all convalescence costs to my estate agent." — to another fellow officer who wanted to engage the Camians, shooting him in the foot. The pistol flew out of his hand and left a scar on his left forehead.
- "This is a democratic isle, and we are a democratic force. Two commanders outweigh one." — to the commander of the 624th Signals Company and 81th Land Battalion of Naval Engineers, discussing whether they should surrender to the Camian forces.
- "Even if I surrender and soil your name a thousand times, I am the fittest man to be Captain-General, for I have been a member of parliament."
- "I am honoured to defend your pay-rise. To my mind there is no greater honour than to improve the condition of those who undergo the worst of conditions."
- "My lords and gentlemen, if each of you grant an amount equal to one percent of your personal income to my forces, they shall eternally be in your debt and thereof grateful to our high and august Parliament. At a stroke of your pen, you have power to improve their condition immesurably." — in his speech arguing for a 9-pence pay-rise for marines.
- "And because the populace continue to migrate to the coast, the cost of land continues to rise. Land being the source of many products, the cost of things in the vicinity also rises commensurately. The increase in the price of things is projected to be 13.2 per cent over the next six years; if nothing else, I ask humbly this house to adjust our salaries according to this figure."
- "The Master-General of the Ordnance: a pimp without a harlot, and so therefor his own harlot. And he is still worse than either, for he is of the middling sort." — on the Master-General of the Ordnance, who rejected one of his papers for new cannons.
- "The 20-year term of service must be abolished forthwith. It is cruel and drives recruits away, making the public gossip of innocent men as freaks of nature." — before the Council of Protonotaries, 1873, arguing that the standard 20-year term of service should be abolished.
- "I have lived an aristocratic life and done right things for lesser, lower individuals assigned to my custody. I think I may face my noble ancestors and friends with no shame." — on his deathbed.