Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 250 017 We can recruit talents thanks to the great virtue of Britain

The British declared war, but their main approach was still to blockade the country at sea rather than on land.

Therefore, Napoleon prepared to set up a large camp in Boulogne-sur-Mer in preparation for crossing the English Channel.

This place is close to Calais and is also an excellent place for departure preparation. As early as 1798, there was a preliminary structure of a military camp. It was considered a strategic deception against the British at the time, and eventually Napoleon went to France.

Now the French army has begun to mobilize one after another, and has begun to mobilize frequently in the Atlantic coastal areas. It should also be noted that several major naval bases in France have begun to strengthen their vigilance.

Although the British only sent their fleet to the Bay of Biscay for a small-scale attack, the situation between the two sides was already tense.

Of course, it is also difficult to get any news about the London market directly in Paris.

Direct communication between Count Vorontsov and Count Morkov was almost cut off, and they could only use Oldenburg as a transit station. This greatly reduced communication efficiency and made it unlikely to know what changes had taken place on the other side in a timely manner.

But the information St. Petersburg received from both sides was still very accurate.

There has indeed been some short-term selling on the stock exchange in London recently due to the war, but the British media are generally optimistic about the current war situation and believe that Britain will ultimately win because of the strength of the Royal Navy and its ability to blockade the main sea routes to France and Spain.

However, France, citing the "Glorious Battle of June 1st" during the French Revolution, believed that it was impossible for the British to completely blockade the Atlantic and Mediterranean waters, and that France currently had sufficient food reserves and stable food prices, so it was confident of defeating Britain.

But in fact, both St. Petersburg and Vienna were well aware of the two sides' efforts to find allies.

However, Count Vorontsov did take advantage of the panic in Britain and recruited a number of Scottish engineers between May and June, but they had not yet set out for St. Petersburg. These people needed to be divided into two or three groups and take Russian frigates to Courland. After landing there, they would go to St. Petersburg one after another.

As for the recruitment treatment, the Russian government did offer very high salaries, as well as factory shares and positions of corresponding levels. According to the Russian rank system, they could be hereditary as eighth-level civil servants. This was indeed a great temptation. One should know that Russia's fourteen-level official system has a saying of "eternal ninth-level civil servants". If their inventions could be widely used, they could be inherited according to this level, which was indeed a great temptation.

Even better than the treatment offered by the British, Count Vorontsov also recruited George Stephenson, but he did not come to the Russian Embassy in London with a plan for a steam locomotive.

"Sir, I just want to prove to you that the use of steam engines in coal mines is an integral structural project. It is not just the main structure of the steam engine, but also involves the transmission, my transmission device."

"Well, young man, there's no need to say anything more. We will hire anyone who is proficient in mechanics."

"But I have a wife and a newborn son. What will happen to them if I go to Russia?"

"In this case, your workplace will not be in St. Petersburg or Moscow, but in Taganrog, which is close to a coalfield. If necessary, you can go to Mr. Gascoigne's Lugansk foundry. These places will allow you to use your skills."

When Count Vorontsov was recruiting talents, those who could demonstrate their skills could be taken away with their entire family.

He will also explain to his British friends the questions raised by the British side.

"Our country is in urgent need of engineering talents in the mining and military industries. In the past few years, Russia's industry has developed rapidly. Strengthening our country's industrial strength is also an important part of the alliance between Britain and Russia."

What's more, the recent deterioration in relations between Russia and France was caused by Count Alexander Vorontsov, the brother of Count Vorontsov. These pro-British factions still have a lot of say in diplomatic occasions, but Russia still remains neutral. This is an attitude.

"But you don't have to recruit even a poor little watchmaker, Earl. If necessary, our British government can provide you with the best engineers to support your industrial construction."

Although Count Vorontsov was pro-British, he was not completely at the mercy of British policies.

"It's just that this recruitment is a policy plan that was formulated when Emperor Paul was still in power. We have to take into account the trouble Lord Whitworth caused before. I hope you can understand."

Although he was also an insider, he was in London and did not participate in the planning. This aspect was also very useful during the bargaining.

Besides, who knows what the British will do?
In short, a lot of talents were recruited, and the idle mansions of Russian expatriates around London were enough to accommodate some of the applicants who came here from outside London.

However, what the Earl was more concerned about was the sharp drop in land prices in the British Isles, which was a good opportunity to purchase property.

After all, he intends to live in the UK for a long time, and even wants to live here after he ends his term as ambassador.

As for the brewery left by Mr. Arthur Guinness, no one knows what Count Morkov was thinking. Before the war between Britain and France broke out, he took special care of the business of this brewery.

The cause should be Count Bobulinsky, the current emperor's uncle, who is running a business. The restaurants opened abroad need beer supply. It is said that the dark beer of Guinness Brewery is of excellent quality, so there is such a purchase request.

For the current Tsar Alexander, excluding the Queen Mother, this uncle is also a rare elder - after all, in the 18th century, the Romanov dynasty was mainly ruled by the descendants of Peter the Great and Tsar Ivan V, who took turns to rule the family. The final outcome was that there were few male descendants in the royal family, and it was not until Paul and his wife raised four sons and five daughters that they solved the crisis of offspring.

He never interfered in politics and spent a few happy years abroad. Later, he returned to his own estate and confined himself. The empress also took advantage of the situation to prevent him from coming out. His good days came during Paul's reign. Paul favored his younger brother very much, even though he was also the son of the enemy who killed his father. He rewarded him with titles and the rank of general of the Guards, as well as the official residence and estate left by Count Orlov, all of which were his.

During the reign of Alexander, the personal wealth of the emperor's uncle continued to increase. In addition to the restaurant chain and store business in Russia, he also got involved in medicinal materials, furs and mining. Many of his industrial and mining enterprises were actually state properties held by the Tsar himself, but they were simply using his brand to do their business better.

Count Bobulinsky was also well aware of this. He lived in seclusion in his estate in Tula and did not interfere in state affairs. Even when his brother was murdered, he would not easily go to St. Petersburg or Moscow without special reasons. The Countess had to appear in these social occasions.

Alexander took special care of his uncle's business as he was a self-aware uncle. After all, he had a share in many of the industries, just like the Russian American Company.

Their family's wealth was secure until February and October 1917, when two revolutions took away the Romanov dynasty and the Provisional Government respectively.

As for negotiating business, Count Vorontsov probably knew that there were managers from the UK going to Dublin to handle it, so he didn't need to take too much care.

Of course, there is another strange thing. Most of the engineers recruited this time are Scottish. Among the workers there are both Irish and Scottish, and they all bring their families with them.

After all, the English's behavior, their lack of morality, and the infighting among themselves, do easily lead to this problem. In addition to some capitalists, even nobles have suffered from this kind of inhuman behavior in the UK, not to mention the general public. He does not distinguish between England and Scotland.

Even Richard Trevithick, one of the inventors of the steam locomotive, who had already come up with a relatively mature design in the coal mine, went to the Russian Embassy in London to apply for a job while correcting his own design because James Watt attacked his high-pressure steam engine.

The Earl himself was no longer surprised by these things.

As for France, this kind of recruitment obviously did not have much appeal, and the application of equipment in the early days of the Industrial Revolution was mainly concentrated in Britain and North America. Although France was technologically groundbreaking, it was relatively slow in this regard. Moreover, many nobles who invented things during the revolution went into exile abroad or were beheaded, so it would take time to recover.

Apart from the Marquis who built the steamship and was recruited to St. Petersburg because he was in the Condé Corps, it was rare to hear of French engineers coming to St. Petersburg.

There are quite a few French noble officers in Russia, and they even hold some positions in Russia now. In addition to those like Langeron who were conferred the title of count and became generals, there are also those like the Duke of Richelieu who went to Odessa to serve as local governor.

As for what else he could gain in Britain, Vorontsov was not quite sure.

All that remains is for the Russian naval fleet in the Atlantic to come and pick them up.

Soon after receiving the news of the outbreak of war between Britain and France, the Tsar himself learned of Count Vorontsov's achievements in London through a fast sailing ship returning from Norwich.

Alexander was overjoyed. According to the scale of the factories opened in Luhansk by his grandmother, the Empress, in her later years, this batch of industrial and mining enterprises had started construction in the summer of 1801. The site had already reached a certain scale and was just waiting for the subsequent engineers and technical workers to move in, as well as the supporting Russian technicians and serf workers - yes, Russian serfdom even existed in mines and factories at this time.

Under the premise that serfdom cannot be abolished, the only option now is to raise productivity to a higher level.

Alexander himself was initially just curious about steam power, which was just a novelty. However, after he took a ride on the steamship named after Queen Elizabeth, he also thought it was profitable. He also asked the ministers at the meeting of ministers to at least prepare some steam locomotives in the mines, which would be much more efficient than animal and human transportation.

In addition, the Tsarskoye Selo Railway cannot always run on horse-drawn carriages. In the future, steam locomotives may be used, and they can carry several carriages. This will also allow the royal family and some nobles to move conveniently between St. Petersburg and Tsarskoye Selo.

This use is quite intuitive, as it can shut up some nobles, especially those who say "Russia is a country short of coal". This is a lie with open eyes, without considering that when Peter the Great moved to Little Russia, coal mines had already been discovered there.

In 1803, the "London Steam Carriage" had already appeared on the streets of London, but it was a poor experience and expensive, so it soon disappeared. The idea of ​​using steam locomotives was originally a novel idea of ​​the French, and it was certainly not as popular as rail locomotives.

As for the construction of steamships, it is the first steam-powered project in Russia that has achieved a breakthrough. Orders in this regard have begun to be placed at the Admiralty Shipyard and the shipyard run by the Goncharov family. Although these ships are only used for short-distance sailing on the Neva River and the canal, they can replace some inland sailing transport ships.

As for naval ships, it is still a long way off before they can be powered by steam, or at least there is no hope of that in the near future.

Count Vorontsov's mission in London was such a great success that Alexander decided to award him a medal, which was also a recognition of his diplomatic achievements over the years.

Although such a pro-British ambassador would always have some deviations in his actions due to his position, including the shift in policy towards France, which was led by their brothers. It was also inevitable that Russia's policy would tilt towards Britain. After all, the domestic finances were also in some difficulties, and the price offered by the British was indeed more tempting.

However, Russia is so far away from France that if it wants to intervene in European affairs, it also needs the emergence of a broad anti-French alliance.

However, this would harm Russia's national interests. If they intervened in European affairs, they would not be able to deploy most of their forces in the wars with the Ottoman Empire and the Persian Empire.

To deal with France under Napoleon's rule, it would be impossible not to devote most of our strength to Europe.

However, in 1803, there was no good excuse for Russia to intervene. St. Petersburg was too far away from the core area of ​​Europe and the supply routes were too long.

More importantly, as a teammate, Austria is not even as reliable as the British. After all, it was they who messed up last time.

(End of this chapter)