He Became Napoleon’S Genius Son [EN]: Chapter 160

(160) The Florida Purchase Hero, Rochejacquelein, Returns

There’s a term called “the moment of the star.”

It sounds like something an old, seasoned politician would say, but it was actually coined by the modern German writer Stefan Zweig.

A historical instant where a fateful decision is made.

It’s a term that succinctly expresses how a decision made in a moment can last forever.

At this moment, the signing of the Florida Purchase Agreement was such a case.

-Rustle, rustle, rustle!

Perpignan, a border city between France and Spain.

A place at the southern tip of France, facing the western Mediterranean.

Here, the highest-ranking officials from both countries gathered.

Danton, the representative of the Directors, and Godoy, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Spain.

The moment the two men finished signing, the people around them applauded in unison.

A ceasefire agreement, the sale of Florida, and the designation of a joint management zone in Hispaniola, including Saint-Domingue.

On September 25, 1796, on the eve of the French Republic elections, the agreement of the century was concluded.

“I sincerely congratulate you on this historic decision, Director Danton, and Prime Minister Godoy.”

Suddenly, Francis Baring, the man standing in the middle, chuckled.

It was a huge transaction worth a total of 50 million francs.

Of course, this amount is nothing compared to the future value of Florida.

However, from the perspective of Godoy and Spain, it is also true that the territory is almost useless.

They thought it would be better to let Britain and France compete with each other, and for Spain to stay out of the fight.

In addition, Francis Baring pocketed a whopping 3 million francs in intermediary fees.

Then, Danton stared at Baring and asked.

“How is Prime Minister Pitt, Mr. Baring?”

He was talking about William Pitt, the Prime Minister of England.

The decision to trade Florida was a matter for France and Spain.

However, to actually utilize Florida, the tacit permission of the nation holding naval supremacy is required.

If Britain doesn’t give France time to project its forces into Florida, it could be a disaster.

The broker, Baring, stroked his pointed chin and replied.

“He won’t accept it easily. However, wouldn’t a temporary ‘truce’ be possible?”

“A truce? You mean just stop the war for a while?”

“Isn’t time what you need most, Director? You’ll need time to win the election and reorganize the government right away.”

Suddenly, Baring said something meaningful.

“Especially to appease the old royalists and open the era of Florida immigration, shouldn’t you?”

Danton, subtly needled about his true feelings, frowned and then chuckled.

This deal was ultimately brought by Eugene Freischütz Bonaparte.

Baring probably heard the outline of the plan from Eugene.

Fortunately, the French and British East India Companies still do not have conflicting interests.

Furthermore, when you think about it, even if Florida is handed over to France, Britain will not suffer any major damage.

They just won’t be able to act like rulers in the West Indies.

“You speak as if you know a lot about immigration, Mr. Baring.”

“Am I not a descendant of Dutch immigrants? Besides, we British are still immigrating prisoners to the far Pacific. A place called Australia.”

“A strange name. Is it similar in origin to Austria? Anyway.”

Danton, who casually dismissed the future Australia of the original history, nodded in a solemn manner.

“Okay, then we will trust Mr. Baring and announce the results of today’s agreement throughout France.”

As if he had been waiting, Spain’s chief secretary to the king, soon to be Prime Minister Godoy, also nodded.

“Our Spain will also announce that peace has arrived. May there be prosperity for both countries and Europe!”

“Hahaha! I’m glad that someone who speaks our language has become Prime Minister. France has traditionally worked with Spain to deal with various issues.”

“I will visit Paris soon, Your Excellency.”

Just a year ago, Perpignan was a place where blood was shed.

Furthermore, Spain, still ruled by the Bourbon dynasty, is an enemy country from the perspective of revolutionary France.

But in the face of common interests, the leaders of both countries shook hands firmly.

The French Director obtained the upcoming parliamentary elections and the territory of Florida.

The Spanish Prime Minister passed on the burdensome new enemy, Britain, to France.

The British banker planted a huge check on the independent nation of the New World, the United States, with huge brokerage fees.

While everyone was smiling contentedly, Napoleon’s painter Antoine Gros sketched the scene.

-Swish, swish!

Soon, this sketch will be made into a print and distributed throughout France.

Along with the news that France has acquired a new [New France de Florida] in the New World.

***

Naturally, this was shocking news for the British Cabinet.

“Chairman Lushington! How can you demand the conclusion of a peace agreement in this way!”

Lushington is the chairman of the East India Company and a member of the British House of Commons.

So, the place where he met British Prime Minister Pitt today was not the East India Company, but the British Parliament.

Right in Westminster Palace.

Lushington stared at the shouting Prime Minister in a secret room at the end of the palace corridor and chuckled.

“It’s not a peace agreement, it’s a truce, Your Excellency.”

“Isn’t that the same thing? Of course, I don’t like war either. But, a truce agreement in which we stop acts of war in the overwhelmingly dominant West Indies!”

“Instead, haven’t we been completely defeated on the European continent?”

Lushington quietly said to the angry Pitt.

“Prime Minister. I wouldn’t have pursued this negotiation if we hadn’t lost the Scheldt River. But right now, our defense line has been narrowed to the Dover Strait.”

At that moment, Pitt flinched and gritted his teeth.

The Scheldt River, the river that separates Flanders (Belgium) and Holland (Netherlands).

The estuary of this river has been the front line for protecting England’s safety since the Middle Ages.

England’s security has been threatened when it is controlled by continental powers, especially France.

The same was true during this War of the First Coalition.

Protecting the Scheldt estuary was England’s strategic goal.

However, due to Hoche’s daring crossing operation, not only the Scheldt River but also the Netherlands itself fell under French control.

The Dutch Republic, centered on the existing province of Holland, collapsed.

Furthermore, a satellite republic virtually controlled by France, [Batavia], was born.

This is the security weakness and crisis facing the Pitt Cabinet.

In fact, Pitt tried to replace this problem with the overwhelming military achievements in the West Indies.

He was trying to negotiate with France, as well as domestic discontent, using the victory in the West Indies as leverage.

But Lushington arbitrarily reversed the balance of power in the West Indies.

Then, a neatly dressed man whispered next to Pitt.

“Your Excellency, Prime Minister, a truce is needed now. The national debt figure has already exceeded 300 million pounds again.”

Prime Minister Pitt glared at the neat man, William Grenville.

“Grenville, I’m the Chancellor of the Exchequer. You are the Foreign Secretary.”

“I know, but I thought you might have forgotten.”

“When did it increase so much? It was definitely reduced to 170 million pounds just three years ago. We weren’t even fighting that hard against the French army, were we?”

At the end of the 18th century, all European countries faced huge debts.

It’s not just a problem that the old kingdom of France had before the revolution.

Even England had a debt of 230 million pounds just before Pitt took office.

It was because of the defeat in the American Revolutionary War.

Pitt has significantly reduced the debt through various tariff promotion policies and financial management.

But at some point, it exceeded 300 million francs again.

Foreign Secretary Grenville, who is also Pitt’s cousin, explained in a neat tone.

“You really forgot. We only sent 20,000 men to the Netherlands, but we sent almost 100,000 to the West Indies. The war expenses used there exceeded tens of millions of pounds.”

Overwhelming achievements require overwhelming war expenses.

In addition, there was a problem with Pitt’s conquest of the West Indies.

Yellow fever.

It was good to attack Saint-Domingue, which was France’s honey pot before the revolution.

However, in addition to being counterattacked by the rebel army led by Toussaint, soldiers contracted yellow fever as soon as they landed.

The fleet led by Nelson was still invincible, but on land, the plague continued to wipe out the soldiers.

Tens of millions of pounds were spent to make up for this loss.

Suddenly, Lushington clicked his tongue.

“Tsk, tsk, shouldn’t we be calling for a cessation of hostilities rather than a truce? Are you still not going to accept this truce?”

Pitt finally raised both hands.

“It’s temporary. Soon, the war will start again.”

But complete peace can never come.

In the first place, England’s prosperity can only be achieved by overwhelming France at sea.

***

Bordeaux, a gateway port to the Atlantic Ocean in France.

-Shoooo!

Recalling the time when he left for Martinique from here, Eugene looked at the sea.

“Oh, it’s a ship coming from afar.”

The ship Eugene is staring at now came from even further away.

Because it is a ship running through Saint-Domingue and Florida.

Suddenly, there was a hand grabbing Eugene’s shoulder next to him.

Marceau, the Paris Police Chief, one of the colleagues who crossed the Atlantic with Eugene before.

“We used to cross the Atlantic on a ship like that, didn’t we?”

“You mean the Santa Maria? It’s a similar model to that ship. Because it was a brig [a two-masted sailing vessel].”

“Couldn’t you send a ship of the line [a large warship]? It would have been better to return home on a nice ship, since you were returning home anyway.”

Eugene shrugged his shoulders as he looked at the brig ship approaching the port.

“I didn’t want to provoke the British Navy. They must be full of dissatisfaction and have stopped fighting, so I couldn’t give them an excuse.”

3 months.

It is the time it takes to send a message from France to the West Indies and then run back from the West Indies.

Indeed, the ship would have cut through the water at the best speed based on the standards of this era.

But only those on board know how long that time was.

People who spent as long as 3 years on a tropical island.

Suddenly, the ship entered the port.

A blond young man jumped off the ship.

“Rochejacquelein!”

At Eugene’s cry, the young man, Rochejacquelein, ran up and knelt down.

“My Lord (Seigneur), I have returned.”

Marceau widened his eyes and chuckled.

“This friend hasn’t been completely infected with the revolution yet.”

Eugene also smiled bitterly and stood Rochejacquelein up.

“Don’t make it difficult for me, Rochejacquelein.”

“Please lower your words. No matter what the era, I am a vassal who was saved by my lord.”

“Well, if you insist, do so. But look at the people gathered at the port besides me.”

Eugene’s hand pointed towards the port downtown.

“Everyone is a crowd welcoming you and the returning soldiers, Rochejacquelein.”

Rochejacquelein turned his gaze.

At that moment, Rochejacquelein and dozens of returning soldiers who were getting off the ship were surprised.

This is because hundreds of thousands of people were shouting.

-Wow!

Perhaps it is a welcoming crowd that has flocked not only from Bordeaux but also from the surrounding area, perhaps from all over the country.

“What the hell is this.”

In the first place, Rochejacquelein did not bring back a victory.

The soldiers who came with him were only a small part, and they were old royalist rebels.

But a fanatical welcoming crowd was gathering as if they had come to conquer.

Instead of Rochejacquelein, who didn’t know what to do, Police Chief Marceau stepped forward.

Marceau, who has been the police chief for 3 full years.

So, he started a general-like speech in a very familiar manner.

“Listen everyone! A talent who was pardoned and selected by Italian Commander General Napoleon! General Rochejacquelein has returned after recapturing Florida!”

“Long live! Napoleon! Rochejacquelein!”

“Italy and Florida belong to France! New France has been revived!”

Prepared shouts are uttered from various parts of the crowd.

But the crowds were shouting the same thing.

The continental territory that the old Bourbon royal family had lost in the New World during the Seven Years’ War.

New France has been revived.

Rochejacquelein, who had only been to Florida to explore, stood there dumbfounded and turned his head.

“A lot has happened, my lord.”

Instead of explaining in detail, Eugene looked at the crowd and answered simply.

“Yes. First of all, thanks to you, the Republicans won the Royalists.”

The French election, in which the Royalists were absolutely dominant, was reversed after the announcement of the Florida purchase.

In addition, this achievement was promoted as Danton’s diplomatic insight and Napoleon’s achievement in discovering talent.