Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 172: The Tricky Relations between Russia and Britain

If you conduct an investigation, you can always find out a lot of things.

After Count Rostopchin was dismissed and returned to his estate, von Paalen actually committed regicide. This forced Alexander to frequently replace the responsible personnel at the Diplomatic Academy, and the first department reform would be targeted here, to be reorganized into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

To this end, Alexander recalled Count Panin and also wanted Prince Alexander Kurakin, who had been dismissed by Paul, to return to his post as Foreign Minister.

Today in the Tsar's office in the Winter Palace, Alexander saw how von Paalen and Platon Zubov contacted the British. Not to mention the situation of the letters to the British, Lord Whitworth's reply and some other evidence are all here.

"The British are indeed suspicious, but without clear evidence, we accuse the British government of this. They can just blame Lord Whitworth himself and say it's not a government action but a personal grudge."

"Why do you say that? Alexander Borisovich, I want to hear your opinion."

"Your Majesty, I think the British like to use this method, which is to confuse the audience. The son of the Grand Tutor knows this very well. He has specially studied how to deal with the British."

However, Alexander was not happy when it came to "Humphreysky". Although they both advocated enlightened politics, they were always at odds with each other and were not harmonious.

"Your Majesty, you can actually be of some use when you need someone. Moreover, this is a period of change in our foreign policy. Reconciliation or neutrality with the British may bring public resentment. At least this is not Constantinople or Isfahan, where the pagans will lose their minds. Russia is always a civilized country, and we must find a way to deal with the British."

"Well, if necessary, you can let him come over and not manage the files. That department is really not suitable for him. At this time, we still need to let him find a suitable position."

It would take time to bring back Prince Alexander Nikolayevich Saltykov, and the British decision was now moving towards an unknown and dangerous situation among the people of St. Petersburg because of these letters from Lord Whitworth.

There were still many issues to be discussed at the Standing Council of State, but the three people mentioned in the historical documents were not included. The regicide was successful but the political intention was crushed, which led to changes in the members of the 12-member committee.

In addition, when some rumors had spread about the personal grudge between Lord Whitworth, the British ambassador to St. Petersburg, and Tsar Paul, and the possibility that Britain was involved in the regicide, there was still a strong anti-British sentiment in St. Petersburg.

The British diplomacy in the 1800s was not necessarily brilliant, and sometimes there was a kind of clear stupidity, especially the diplomats stationed in the host country and the East India Company, who often distorted the cabinet's decisions.

In other words, it is Lord Whitworth's own actions that have led to the current not-so-optimistic diplomatic situation in the UK.

After all, the First Consul was bombed in Paris some time ago, and General Bonaparte was very dissatisfied, saying that the British were a group of despicable villains.

This is good. Paris and St. Petersburg are forced to reconcile. Alexander's decision not to turn against London directly is already a very calm move.

The countermeasure is to impose tariffs on goods imported from the UK. What the British can't stand the most is rising costs, and of course their smuggling is also rampant.

Under this premise, what will the British Cabinet do? If it sends gunboats, it must also consider the low salinity of the Baltic Sea and the navigation conditions after thawing.

In short, there are ways to deal with the British. If the British really want to start a war, they will go too far.

It would be a very foolish act for Britain to turn a powerful ally into an adversary.

Alexander Kurakin therefore advocated sending a diplomatic note to London, strongly condemning the invasion and expressing sympathy for the Irish and the colonial people.

This routine will certainly annoy the British, but Paul's adjustments to the relationship between the two countries during his tenure have also left the current British Prime Minister with little recourse.

Especially at this time, the Appleby constituency where Cambridge is located finally breathed a sigh of relief after the former Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger stepped down.

He almost couldn't step down. After all, King George III suddenly suffered a madness attack in February. The new cabinet was unable to meet the king, so the previous cabinet stayed in charge until the king's illness improved, and then officially handed over the power.

As for what Lord Whitworth did in Petersburg, since Denmark was at the doorstep of the Baltic Sea, the message had to be delivered through the Hanoverian territory, which would lead to quite a few shocking stories.

"The news from Petersburg is now known not only to us but also to Berlin, Vienna and Paris."

"Madrid and Lisbon, I suppose, too, Uncle."

"Thank you, Lucy. They should know that too."

“So what will the Russians do?”

"I think that at this time, the Russians should issue a proclamation of condemnation. They may first send a note to the embassy in Petersburg, that is, Lord Whitworth. There will be some time delay in between."

"If the Russians really found something, it could be a big problem."

William Pitt the Younger sat on the sofa, his niece was actually his personal office secretary under normal circumstances, and he often entertained others in his office in this way after leaving office.

He had an idea of ​​how bad the relationship between Russia and Britain would be if something was really found out.

If it is just condemnation, it will be meaningless and easy to be ignored; if the condemnation is ignored, no one knows what St. Petersburg will do next; and if trade is interrupted, there will be nothing left with trade with Russia; and if a war is launched in the end, it will seem extremely excessive.

As for aid, this option was no longer available after Paul actually withdrew from the anti-French alliance.

"We should talk to the Russians. I wonder if the new Russian Tsar intends to reinstate Count Vorontsov as Prime Minister?"

"I don't think so for now. The Russian government is in the process of reforming their diplomatic service."

"Reform? The Russians have done enough in the past five years. What else do they want to do now? I hope the Prime Minister can handle it properly. You know, our King will at least not let a ship rock back and forth in a strong wind."

But George III could fall ill at any time and anywhere, which might be more dangerous than swinging back and forth.

It is a pity that there is only Appleby here, but no Huck, Humphrey and Bernard. In fact, the attitude of the British also determines whether Britain can sell Scottish steam engines to Petersburg.

If Solovyov in St. Petersburg knew about this, he might sigh that even if the world moved forward 200 years, many things would not have changed much.

But this time the Russians became too strong. In terms of industrial planning, Alexander actually intended to continue the rail transit plan and bring the rail carriages out of the mines and use them for transportation in vast areas of Russia. This would also improve the transportation efficiency between cities and towns and make good plans for future transportation networks.

Alexander's ambition for success is much more serious than that of his parents, especially the road planning from Moscow to St. Petersburg and from Moscow to many places has been put on the agenda.

Even he himself had only seen steamships, and Russia did not have mature steam locomotives.

Then Solovyov had to fire the boiler while watching the Tsar and Maria Naryshkina quarreling and kissing on the boat.

"Soloviev, can this ship be made bigger?"

"Your Majesty, I think this requires a more powerful boiler. The current speed of this ship is too slow, not even as fast as a canal transport ship of similar size. If we want to gain a certain shipping speed advantage at sea, I think... at this time, we should use a fast clipper ship. However, the completion time of the first ship of the Admiralty Shipyard will be delayed."

"Ah, I know that. How fast do you expect it to go?"

"The voyage that used to take six months to complete can now be completed one to two months earlier. This is a technical advantage. After all, we have to follow the laws of nature more closely and take into account the air resistance. Especially when running against the wind, the feeling is different from when running with the wind."

Alexander covered a lot of ground, but he might not know that much about the specific content. However, he might be more familiar with the structure of the human body.

"That's good. We also need some way to deal with the British. At least when we are hostile to them, they can't catch up with some fast ships."

Then he kissed Naryshkina's cheek, his hands not quite still either. This strong Polish woman was probably a bit stronger than Solovyov, although the comparison was not appropriate.

As for this kind of boating in the Tauride Palace, it is not done often. Louisa is very clean and is taking a bath now. She takes a long time to bathe. Not only does she need to clean herself, but she also needs to keep her body in a warm environment. The doctor believes that this is good for her health.

Apart from the pain in her ankles that always comes from walking, Louisa is in much better shape than the poor little girl who would become weak after talking a few more words in the winter.

After seeing Naryshkina off, Alexander returned to the Tauride Palace. Louisa pretended not to know and, at this time, was quite flattering to her husband.

"There you go again, Alexander."

"You've gained weight again, especially in your belly, Lisa, I think."

"It's probably the kids this time. My waistline is bigger than the last two times. I've told you that many times."

"You work so hard, I want to give you a queen's fee of 100 million rubles a year. You should accept it all. Your auction house is already simple enough."

"No, Your Majesty, I don't think it will cost that much. You can reduce my fee to 20. I don't need that much."

"Yes, you don't eat much, and you don't like jewelry. Your body is so light and slender that you can save a lot of fabric, including your feet. Your feet are also very small, so you can save a lot of material for shoes."

"Your Majesty, you can spend all the remaining money. These 80 rubles can do a lot of things."

"That's so nice of you, Lisa, do you want a kiss?"

Although the relationship between Louisa and Alexander has faded, the couple still show intimacy when interacting with each other. Alexander has to play his role well, and Louisa has to protect herself, especially when there are always people threatening her position.

As for the 20 rubles that Louisa kept, in reality her spending never exceeded 1, most of which was used to support girls' schools.

In the Tafred Palace, she didn't need to be ostentatious; just a few close maids and attendants would be enough.

Solovyov felt that Louisa was worthy of the status and reputation of the Russian Queen, and in recent months her reputation in St. Petersburg had been very good, and there were more people sympathizing with her than before.

After all, a queen who can handle the relationship between her monarch husband and his mistresses, lives a simple and low-key life, takes the initiative to save a large amount of royal expenses to save money, and even uses the money herself to fund two girls' schools and charity, can be called a virtuous queen.

Especially when compared with the Empress Dowager, the pomp and expense were far apart, not to mention the two empresses' exaggerated wardrobes.

It could be seen in the Tauride Palace that Solovyov often saw Louisa wearing white clothes, and the black clothes she wore at Paul's funeral some time ago. However, she was rarely seen wearing the red long dress that matched her figure very well.

"Louisa, His Majesty is away again now, do you want to go get some fresh air?"

"No, it's fine lying like this, Mishka, come and chat with me."

"If you want me to tell you a story again, I don't have time to create or translate new content recently, otherwise..."

Krylov was not yet famous, and he had gone to Riga with Prince Sergei Golitsyn. It was difficult to find a talented fabulist, and even Krylov himself had not yet published his satirical works.

"You don't need another story. You'll be familiar with Iphigenia's story if you remember it. It's a sad story, but she was reunited with her brother in the end."

It can be heard that Louisa misses home very much. Although she has a daughter here, she is being raised by a nanny and a tutor. She is in poor health and is pregnant. Obviously, she is not like the young Queen Mother who could take care of the child herself, which makes her feel lonely all the time.

The only things that could entertain her were Big Natalia singing with her at night, teasing Little Natalia like a cat, and Solovyov telling her stories during the time he was on duty.

(End of this chapter)