He Became Napoleon’S Genius Son [EN]: Chapter 158

(158) Let’s Acquire Florida by Exploiting the French Directory Election

Paris was already seething with election fever.

“Back, Jacobins, to the Assembly!”

“Vote for the Girondins and Feuillants! The new France wants peace!”

“Long live the King! Argh! Those Republicans, resorting to violence!”

Enjoying a rare cup of coffee at the Boarneh Bank office in Paris, Eugene frowned.

Now that he was reasonably of age, even in the former royal era, he thought coffee was acceptable.

However, it was too bitter.

Whether it was the bitterness of French-style coffee, the Ethiopian beans, or the campaigning activists fighting outside, he couldn’t tell.

Then, a slogan reached Eugene’s ears that made him doubt what he heard.

“We are friends of General Bonaparte! A vote for the hero of the Italian conquest!”

It seemed a Bonaparte faction had already formed in the Assembly.

Napoleon didn’t particularly have the leeway to care, so did Lucien or Joseph make a move?

Or perhaps it was Salicetti’s doing.

Instead of questioning it, Eugene summarized his impressions in one sentence.

“It’s amazing. Paris, too.”

It felt like a battlefield without bloodshed.

On the other hand, the person directly navigating this battlefield had a calm face.

The man still holding his position as one of the five Directors, the leader of the Feuillant faction, Lafayette, smiled as he drank his coffee.

“It’s strange that you returned in this situation. It would have been better after the election.”

“I had matters to discuss with Danton.”

“Something? Not a new war, I hope?”

Eugene shook his head at Lafayette’s question.

“No. It’s a negotiation. To acquire a peninsula in the New World.”

Lafayette was originally a soldier, and his first battlefield was in the New World.

Without a lengthy explanation, he accurately understood Eugene’s plan.

Conversely, he didn’t know much about diplomatic issues, so he didn’t particularly object.

“Interesting. Florida, huh? I’ve never been there, but during the American Revolutionary War, I advanced near the southern regions.”

“What was it like?”

“Unexplored territory with [Native Americans] scattered everywhere. Their relationship with the British was bad, which was convenient for us. But…”

Lafayette suddenly narrowed his brow.

“Occupying that place means fighting a new independent nation, America. Across the vast Atlantic Ocean.”

In fact, a typical diplomat or politician would have mentioned Spain or England.

Spain is the owner of Florida, and England is the ruler of that area’s waters.

However, Lafayette, being a soldier, thought of America, the United States, first.

Still only with a population of 4 million, but conversely, the most populous independent nation in the New World.

They also occupy the best land on the North American continent.

It wouldn’t be strange for them to have southern Florida within their sights.

Eugene knew this as well, but he simply smiled and replied.

“Let’s think about that after winning the election.”

“Haha! A soldier advising a politician on elections. Well, perhaps I might have to ask you for help after the election.”

“What do you mean?”

Lafayette narrowed his brow and said quietly.

“There might be another coup.”

Eugene’s eyes widened.

The reason he met Lafayette was simply because of their friendly relationship.

Eugene was, in his own way, a former constitutional monarchist and a protector of the former queen and princess.

Therefore, he had political positions similar to Lafayette’s.

However, after the Thermidorian Reaction and Napoleon seizing a portion of power, the situation became strange.

In effect, the [Bonaparte faction] came to occupy one of the Directors.

Since then, Eugene had become practically a Bonaparte partisan.

In short, he was in the Salicetti and Auguste Robespierre faction among the Directors.

Still, the fact that he was his father’s superior and Eugene’s patron did not disappear.

That’s why he came to meet him, but he heard surprising information.

Eugene’s eyes flashed.

“Is it because of the Royalists?”

“Either way, it’s the same. In the current situation, no one can achieve an absolute majority. In times like these, the side being chased usually wants to use force. We’ve seen it many times, haven’t we?”

“Who do you think is the most likely?”

Lafayette, one of the Directors, wouldn’t just say that.

He must have some information.

Lafayette suddenly smiled strangely.

“General Bonaparte is no exception, is he? There’s Hoche too. But the most dangerous one right now is someone else.”

“Who are you referring to?”

“No, Pichegru.”

Lafayette looked intently at Eugene and said.

“I’m keeping an eye on him, but he’s someone who could do something dangerous at any time. He also has a considerable number of legions under his command. Be careful.”

Eugene’s eyes widened, then he narrowed his brow.

In the original history, Pichegru was indeed involved in a coup.

But since the political situation is better than in the original history, he thought there wouldn’t be a coup, but is it the opposite?

“I will investigate as soon as this matter is concluded.”

First, successfully purchasing Florida and stabilizing the election would be the solution.

***

In any case, for all republic politicians, the immediate election is more important than eternity.

“The New World? What are you suddenly talking about? Are you talking about Martinique? If it’s Saint-Domingue, I don’t want to hear about it.”

Moreover, this fat, pockmarked, and rugged man, Danton, is even more so.

Danton is literally someone who lives only for today.

Rather than worrying about future deep considerations, he is a politician who has navigated the turbulent times of the revolution by only dealing with immediate tasks.

Instead, his quick reflexes in dealing with immediate crises were superb.

Anyway, in a political situation where Robespierre and Marat were dying, he managed to seize power by joining hands with Napoleon.

But now, with the Assembly election coming up at the end of September, Danton’s top priority is the election.

It was only natural that he was unhappy with the [Boy General] Eugene, who had suddenly rushed from Genoa to Paris.

Still, Danton, being a politician who knew common sense, did not kick Eugene out.

Eugene drank the coffee that Danton had brought and shrugged.

“Saint-Domingue has been taken over by the slaves.”

“Yes. Thanks to that, you monopolize Ethiopian coffee and earn a lot, don’t you? I think we should revive the coffee tax soon. Brigadier General Eugene Freiherr.”

“Weren’t you going to promote me to Major General soon?”

At that, Danton clicked his tongue as if he was dumbfounded.

“Where is the guarantee that I will be re-elected? From what I see now, the Royalists are about to sweep all the districts. Oh, come to think of it, your lover was a former princess, wasn’t she? Good for you? You’ll get promoted even if the Royalists win.”

Eugene smiled wryly at Danton, who was mocking him with black jokes.

Danton is a politician with rough speech, even rougher appearance, and even takes bribes, making him corrupt.

But he has the余裕 [leeway] to make jokes that Marat or Robespierre could not have made.

Anyway, in the same situation, other politicians would be mentally cornered and unable to do anything.

A politician with this 余裕 is needed in the French political scene.

Lightly placing the coffee cup down, Eugene said.

“What if there was a large project that would save isolated Martinique, recapture Saint-Domingue, which is controlled by rebels, and even succeed in the Director’s re-election?”

Danton’s eyes widened.

At one time, the West Indies accounted for a quarter of France’s trade volume.

One-tenth of the tax revenue was filled with sugar and coffee flowing in from the West Indies.

It is naturally a major concern for merchants, who are the main supporters of the Republic.

But while focusing on the war on the European continent, the West Indies battlefield has literally gone to ruin.

Is there a secret plan to solve this ruined war in one fell swoop?

It’s a sound that any politician would be tempted by.

“What is it?”

“It’s the Florida purchase.”

“Flo, what? Are you mispronouncing Floréal? Are we going to buy flowers or something?”

Floréal, that is, the month of flowers, is a month in the revolutionary calendar [roughly corresponding to late April and early May].

It’s usually around April, but since it’s September now, it must have sounded like nonsense to Danton.

Eugene corrected the pronunciation.

“Florida, Your Excellency. It is the southeastern peninsula of the North American continent, currently Spanish territory.”

As with anyone else at the sudden story, Danton had a dumbfounded look on his face.

But Danton is not a genius, but a person with excellent reflexes.

This means that his brain is flexible.

Not as much as the genius Napoleon, but when Eugene unfolded the map and explained, Danton understood.

“We get Spanish land, brokered by the British?”

“You understand quickly.”

“What about America?”

Eugene blinked.

Although there haven’t been many people who Eugene has explained this issue to so far, it’s the second time he’s heard this perspective.

There are hardly any politicians in this era who are aware of the existence of the United States, which will become the largest power in the New World.

But following Lafayette, even Danton mentioned America.

But Danton actually had exchanges with Franklin, who was the American ambassador to France when he was young.

Perhaps he knows more about America than expected.

“The American Federation is hostile to Britain, but they don’t just like us either. But we suddenly face each other across the border? Looking at the location, it’s right south of the American Federation, isn’t it?”

“You’re sharp. But America won’t try to antagonize us right now.”

“Why? America is not keeping the mutual alliance treaty it has with us.”

In other words, Danton’s point is this.

The so-called American Revolutionary War ended in 1783, but the United States was not formally launched until 1789.

Currently, in 1796, the president is the famous Washington.

But the Washington government had signed a mutual alliance treaty with France at the time of its launch.

This is because the French royal family helped during the Revolutionary War.

The revolutionary government also inherited the treaties of the former royal family, so the United States had an obligation to assist France.

In particular, it had to help the French colonies in the West Indies.

However, when the war between France and England broke out, the United States declared neutrality.

This is one of the reasons why France fought extremely unfavorably in the West Indies.

Therefore, the relationship between France and the United States is currently quite bad diplomatically.

In the original history, it even goes into a quasi-war state from 1797, seizing each other’s merchant ships.

But Eugene thought differently.

“America doesn’t have the capacity to pursue an expansion policy yet. It will take at least 20 years. Just sorting out the conflicts between the individual states and the federal government is difficult enough.”

Unless France specifically provokes it, America does not have the capacity to project military power externally.

In fact, it was in 1814 that they attacked Florida.

Originally, the reason why France entered a quasi-war state with France in the original history was because France first dispatched privateer fleets.

Danton, who is quite knowledgeable about international affairs, nodded and twisted his lips.

“Okay, then. If we pay enough, Godoy of Spain will move.”

“How are you so sure about that?”

“He’s not a fool, but he’s a coward, and he’s also very greedy.”

It seems to be an experience of having already concluded a ceasefire treaty once.

In fact, historical evaluations are similar, so Eugene had no objections.

Then Danton tilted his head.

“But, we’re not giving territory, we’re buying it? Unless we give them Saint-Domingue, which is a nuisance. How are you going to get it?”

Eugene flicked his fingers.

Then Hippolyte lightly brought a large sack.

It’s a very light-looking sack, but it’s full of something inside.

Danton’s eyes widened when he saw the object.

“What is this?”

“It was announced a while ago. You’ve heard the rumors, haven’t you?”

“Hmm, this is really similar to [silver coins].”

Just as Danton was about to nod while looking at the object, Eugene asked.

“But even so, we need someone to negotiate. I’m still young, and the Italian command doesn’t have such talent. Is there a suitable diplomat?”

Danton stared intently at the object and smiled.

“I have one. A perfect talent. He recently brought a failed negotiation proposal from England. But, am I getting a brokerage fee for this?”

It was the moment when the flexible, broad-minded, and greedy Danton and Eugene made a deal.

***

The 19th century, which has not yet arrived, is the so-called century of [diplomacy].

“The Florida purchase, it’s a strange negotiation proposal, but it’s not exactly a negotiation proposal I like.”

42-year-old, middle-aged gourmet swallowed goose liver and said elegantly.

Foie gras, [fattened duck or goose liver] the king’s delicacy that Louis XIV admired and made famous.

In an era where the people are dissatisfied with the soaring prices, the one who eats such delicacies must be someone who stakes his life on delicacies.

Eugene put down his fork because it was too salty and stared intently at the gourmet.

He has a very relaxed attitude.

He doesn’t seem like a man who returned to his home country as a British envoy and failed.

At that moment, Danton, not a gourmet but a glutton, who was swallowing liver in front of him, said.

“What do you mean, Monsieur Talleyrand? Was our government’s explanation insufficient? It’s a way to get land with money, not war. I thought it would sound quite tempting to you, a pacifist?”

“I don’t like war. But I think it’s foolish to advance into the New World.”

“What do you mean by that?”

The gourmet, or former British Prime Minister’s envoy, Talleyrand, looked at Eugene.

“There is a prodigy who is called a financial prodigy, a gambling prodigy, and even a war prodigy. But he is still young and doesn’t know anything about the Seven Years’ War. He doesn’t know how difficult it is to advance into the New World.”

This is Talleyrand’s house.

Talleyrand, who was originally dispatched by Pitt as an envoy for peace negotiations, naturally failed.

This is because the negotiation proposal that Pitt demanded was that France withdraw from the Netherlands.

England is not crazy, so they offered to stop the attack on Saint-Domingue instead.

However, from the perspective of the French Revolutionary Government, the Netherlands in front of them is more important than the distant Saint-Domingue in the New World.

This is also true for the upcoming election.

Therefore, the negotiations failed, and Talleyrand did not return to London and remained in Paris.

The fact that Talleyrand’s friends, the Girondins, were reinstated was also effective.

It was in this state that Danton had been paying attention to Talleyrand.

Of course, Eugene also knows Talleyrand.

In later original history, he was Napoleon’s top diplomat, top traitor, and in a sense, the top patriot who protected French territory.

Eugene stared at Talleyrand and asked.

“What do you want to say, Monsieur Talleyrand?”

“Our Republic should expand its territory not to the New World, but to another side.”

“Where is it?”

Talleyrand casually cut the goose liver and held it out to Eugene.

“The Dark Continent [Africa].”

The black liver looks just like the African continent.

“I opposed the war in the early days of the revolution and fled to England. At that time, I saw the mighty power of England.”

“Certainly, the navy is excellent in England, hmm.”

“That’s not it, Director Danton. The true power of England lies in the object called [machines].”

Listening to Talleyrand and Danton’s conversation, Eugene raised his eyebrows.

In short, it’s about the Industrial Revolution.

Talleyrand is saying that he has seen the situation of the British Industrial Revolution, which has already started in the 1760s.

Talleyrand grandly brought up a story that only Eugene would know the future image of in this place.

“Machines replace manpower, and they also pump water from coal mines in large quantities, and even make cloth. I witnessed the scene with my own eyes.”

Of course, the machine represented by the steam engine has not yet completely surpassed manpower.

Therefore, Talleyrand was not speaking very seriously either.

However, Eugene pondered for a moment how to solve this problem.

Then Talleyrand spoke again.

“If I had only seen that, I wouldn’t have opposed advancing into the New World.”

“You went to America, didn’t you?”

“You know? General Freiherr.”

Eugene twisted his lips.

“England, where the Royalists fled first, wasn’t a very good place to flee, was it?”

Talleyrand was originally a strange man who, as a bishop in the early days of the revolution, supported the revolution.

Then, he was dispatched to England as an envoy by Mirabeau, who was the ruler at the time.

However, when Mirabeau died and the Jacobins seized power, he was pushed out of the core and fled to London.

London was already a place where many Royalists had fled, and Talleyrand headed to New York in America again.

Working as a financial broker here for a while, Talleyrand looked for an opportunity and returned to England.

After that, he became Pitt’s envoy and returned again.

Talleyrand, a man who had experienced America and England for nearly 5 years in the Revolutionary Government, said quietly.

“That’s right. But I went to America and saw their greed for the territory they have. They will try to occupy Florida at any time. From their point of view, they think that the entire New World is their destiny to occupy.”

This statement is not just a simple exaggeration, but a historical future.

“Then, it’s better for us to leave the New World to be fought over by England and America, and occupy Africa, which no one has seized.”

That’s why Talleyrand is discussing African colonial expansion.

Also, in the original history, it becomes the path that France actually takes.

However, there is a separate reason why it had to be so.

This is because Napoleon, whom Talleyrand betrayed, was defeated.

Eugene smiled bitterly and then smiled brightly and suggested.

“Monsieur Talleyrand, I’ve heard your beliefs well. Then, let’s present a price.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m saying that I’ll present a price that’s enough to break your beliefs.”

Suddenly, Eugene flicked his fingers.

“Recently, France’s top chemist, Lavoisier, discovered a metal. Aluminum.”

At the same time, adjutant Hippolyte brought the sack and poured it out on the floor.

-Clang! Clang! Clang!

It’s the object that Danton saw.

Eugene carefully watched Talleyrand’s expression along with Danton’s drooling appearance.

On the surface, it’s a very calm face.

But he couldn’t hide the fire burning deep in his eyes.

Greed.

That’s Talleyrand’s essence.

In the original history, when Napoleon negotiated with Austria after the Austrian and Italian expeditions, Talleyrand is said to have taken almost 1 million francs from Austria.

What Eugene threw at Talleyrand was a bribe to ignite that greed.

“The Vatican has approved the value of this metal. 10 times that of silver.”

“It’s light, sparkling, and dazzling.”

“I’ll give you 100,000 of these aluminum [coins]. That’s 1 million livres.”

Eugene divided the foie gras that he didn’t eat and held it out again.

“How is it, isn’t it enough money to break your beliefs?”

Talleyrand, who was quietly looking at the foie gras, took a fork and stabbed it.

“That’s too much money. I understand. I will do my best to persuade him. Besides.”

Suddenly, Talleyrand slyly picked up an aluminum silver coin and smiled.

“With this, Spain will also sell its territory.”

It was the moment when the greedy diplomat, Talleyrand, decided to move to hook Spain.

Succumbing to 100,000 aluminum silver coins.