What is the meaning of the term gilded?

The Word 'gilded' has a few distinct senses or meanings: 1: rich and superior in quality; 2: made from or covered with gold; 3: based on pretense; deceptively pleasing; 4: having the deep slightly brownish color of gold

It means that the corruption of that time was covered in a thin layer of lies and deception to make it look like nothing wrong was happening.