Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 378 020 The Latest Results of the Russian-American Company's Exploration

Unlike the Neva and Nadezhda, which were on a round-the-world expedition, letters sent back by the Russian-American Company from various bases in North America usually had to pass through a system of post stations and bases across Siberia back to Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Or they could take another route through New Spain, but current conditions did not allow the Russian-American Company to do so, after all, Spain was an ally of France.

As for roads in other directions of North America, we must also consider that there are a large number of tribal alliances on the Rocky Mountains and the Great Plains of the North American continent. Normally, no one would take this road.

Therefore, it was not easy to send letters and parcels from Rossburg in the North American territory to St. Petersburg.

The Duke of Enghien's reclamation of Rossbourg went smoothly. The French he brought with him had adapted to life there and established a trading post.

Many of the French here are royalists or do not agree with Napoleon's ideas. In addition, the massacre that almost happened in Saint-Domingue has indeed made many French people determined to stay in a place like Rosseau.

Although it was a bit remote, Spain and Russia simply refused to allow each other's warships to dock at their bases, and life had to go on.

In this environment, the colony of Rossburg, where 90% of its residents were French, maintained an unexpected peace with the Spanish.

The Duke's own letter was also a report on the current situation of the Russian colonies in North America. After all, he now had Alexander's official appointment to manage the vast territory as a friend.

As for the actual situation, Alexander did not receive the first letter from Rossburg until 1806.

Considering that most of the main board members of the Russian-American Company are in Irkutsk, and here in St. Petersburg, No. 72 Moika Embankment is an office and theme store, the people Alexander summoned are mainly his confidants.

However, Count Stroganov was not in Petersburg at the moment, as he had gone to the Mariupol Hussar Regiment’s garrison, and Czartoryski had returned to Vilnius, and the secret committee was about to hold a meeting, but not everyone was present.

He then replaced him with another group of people, including Foreign Minister Badberg, Grand Duke Constantine and Speransky.

However, Constantine brought Nicholas with him, and so General Langsdorff also came.

As for Peter Volkonsky and Solovyov, these two people used to play the role of two generals whenever they were both present at the meetings of the "Secret Committee", and now they are finally sitting here.

"Then let's start this committee meeting. Speransky, you should take the minutes."

Although Speranski's rank was not low, he was the only one present who had the ability to take minutes of the meeting, and his position was more or less that of a secretary.

"Your Majesty, may I begin then?"

"Of course, Andrei Yakovlevich, after all, it is your duty to make the report."

After all, Badberg was one of Alexander's teachers, and using this title was also a sign of respect.

"Okay, Your Majesty, regarding the Russian Empire's North American territories, the negotiations with the surrounding tribes in the summer of 1805 went very smoothly. Duke Enghien has had sufficient exchanges with the nearby tribes, including the seven tribes of the Chinook people. One of them is a young Suquamish chief named 'Seattle', who has shown a friendlier attitude towards us than the chiefs of other tribes."

At this point, Alexander suddenly asked Solovyov: "Soloviev, you have been to Mexico City before, so you should also know the situation on the west coast of North America."

"But it's just a superficial understanding, Your Majesty. After all, I have never been there. I only learned about it through Spanish colonial officials and the information I collected in the past."

"That's an expert, Solovyov."

If this kind of person can be considered an expert, then Alexander is just flattering his level of knowledge, but Solovyov cannot say that taking advantage of the Tsar's good temper is the key to success, as this is something a courtier should learn.

After all, he was no longer an officer of the Guards who could make a living by leading troops or being brave, but instead became an adjutant in the palace without a specific position.

There was no way out. His position as aide-de-camp had been unrestricted all this time. It would only take a few minutes for Alexander to take him back.

Now he could only pass his time doing various strange tasks, teaching Nikolai and Mikhail was the most important part of them.

But it was obvious that Alexander always liked to talk to him about some knowledge that was less popular in St. Petersburg.

"The Russian American Company is undoubtedly more familiar with the Aleuts, but in the tribal peoples of the Puget Sound claimed by the British, it is still rare to see Europeans. As for the specific tribes, I don't know much about them."

But when the name "Seattle" came out, it immediately became an important city in the northwestern United States, such as the headquarters of a certain "super-hard" company, and he had to think of a movie in his mind.

But when Alexander heard this, his face turned grim again.

Think of Kutuzov at Austerlitz, it might be like this.

"Well, Your Majesty. I also want to say that when dealing with the indigenous people around Puget Sound, you must also pay attention to the tribes of the locals. In fact, the positions can still be distinguished. These include elders, war chiefs, shamans and witch doctors. The division of labor is still very clear, and it can be regarded as the basic structure of a primitive medieval territory. The chief of the tribe must be nominated by the elders, while the shamans and witch doctors must be tested by their predecessors."

Alexander was very satisfied when he heard Solovyov start to explain the political structure of the local tribes like pouring beans. After all, he had never thought of a specific way to govern the North American territory.

However, compared to the exploitation of various tribes in Siberia, Russia's rule in North America was much more relaxed. Except for some unfriendly tribes that often had small-scale conflicts with Russian colonists, in most cases, they still traded with each other, which was also an important part of the fur trade.

"Now that you've said so much, Solovyov, is there anything you can do?"

"In fact, just like in Kazakhstan, these tribes can be granted Russian citizenship, but there are some differences. After all, the journey there is long, and we must fully respect the territorial scope of the locals. Our governor is mainly in the settlements. As for these tribesmen outside, they have entered the slavery stage and can be said to be members of civilized society, not as primitive and barbaric as the British say." "So, should they be considered civilized or semi-civilized?"

Solovyov thought about Alexander's question and continued: "I think they should be regarded as members of civilized society, and these chiefs, elders and important tribal members can also be included in our rank list and even be regarded as registered nobles."

"Why do you do this?"

"Because the Spanish also recognized the status of the Marquis of Montezuma, and correspondingly, on the Inca side, some Incas actually had aristocratic status."

Moreover, in the 21st century, the descendants of the Cortes family and the descendants of Montezuma have switched places. Instead, it was the Marquis Montezuma, whose hometown was Tenochtitlan, who became a Spanish noble, while the descendants of the conquerors became Mexicans.

"Well, we can do that. But... Andrei Yakovlevich, please continue reading the rest."

Badberg read the follow-up to Duke Enghien's report, which also mentioned that because of Duke Enghien's special status, the chiefs and elders would organize a warm reception wherever he went. In addition to barter trade and the purchase of furs, tobacco and game, Duke Enghien and his entourage were also "warmly received" by the girls in the tribe.

For the romantic French, although this is a bit primitive, it is a paradise. However, the Duke of Enghien of the Condé family is still relatively young, and he already has mothers-in-law in several tribes. Others may not be able to withstand it.

When reading this, Constantine regretted calling his third brother over. However, Duke Enghien's statement was very tactful. Even though Nicholas' French could get 4 points, the words used in the speech were relatively complex and he might not be able to understand it.

But Alexander was happy to let Badberg continue, as he thought that Nicholas was already ten years old and was almost old enough to be interested in girls.

After all, a few days ago, the 7-year-old Alexander Pushkin made Louisa very happy with his sweet words, which could be said to be a big news for her admission to the Tsarskoye Selo Preparatory School.

Or to compare at home, Uncle Alexei has often played with General Po's nieces since this age.

At this time, Badberg also read out the Duke of Enghien's suggestion.

"It looks like it's the same as we thought. But how many tribes are there in the area?"

"In addition to Puget Sound, there are at least 25 tribes around our Fort Ross territory that have established connections with Fort Ross. We currently have an advantage in these places. The tribal chiefs are also aware that the benefits that the British can currently provide them are "acquisitions" at trading posts, but what they give them is not as affordable as what we give them."

Yes, when it comes to business, the Russians do like to do things regardless of cost. They used muskets and sabers to exchange for various goods from the Indians, especially precious furs and some local medicinal materials.

If these medicinal herbs and furs could be sold in bulk in Guangzhou, even if the prices were suppressed by Chinese merchants, a lot of money could still be made. It can be said that there was great potential for making money.

As for the medicinal material, the locals call American ginseng Garent-oguen, which means "similar to humans". It can be said that this is a consensus in North America and East Asia in the simple world view.

After listening to this, Alexander also found it interesting. If they could control the west coast of North America, even if they could not go deep into the interior, the goods that could be provided here would allow the Russian-American company to make a fortune.

"If our colony is so good, why has it been losing money year after year since the establishment of the company? Before, when the four companies were operating the Aleutians, it was always profitable."

"I can explain this question, Your Majesty."

Badberg also did some preparation before the meeting, and he knew the problems of the Russian American Company.

"Six years ago, when the late emperor was still alive, the Diplomatic Academy and the Naval Committee received petitions from the Aleuts, saying that our Russian-American Company was overdrawing the labor of the Aleuts and using the farmers who immigrated to the local area as serfs."

Upon hearing this, Alexander's face turned bad again, but Badberg knew that the emperor's attitude this time was also different.

"Our homeland is vast enough to abolish serfdom. It is somewhat difficult to understand why the board of directors of the Russian American Company would do this on land without a serfdom basis. Of course, some local tribes have just entered a slave society, but this is not a reason for them to exploit labor."

"That's right, Your Majesty. A more relaxed management style should be implemented in the North American territory. In addition, the naval officers we sent there, as Your Majesty's representatives there, have no intention of long-term planning."

Unlike in Siberia, Russia's business here is even worse. Merchants are exhausting their resources and soldiers are only thinking about making a quick buck instead of operating stably in the local area.

It is no wonder that the Aleuts are relatively docile citizens. During the process of Russian-American companies developing new bases, they have been providing dozens to hundreds of manpower as helpers, but they still complain.

According to the Duke of Enghien's statement, he believed that a governor who would be directly responsible to St. Petersburg should be appointed to manage the vast territory, and more promising plans should be made to make these resource-rich places prosperous, to manage Puget Sound and Fort Ross well, and to support the Aleutian Territory.

Originally, Alexander did not attach much importance to the North American territory, but after finding out the reason for the losses of the Russian-American Company, he also felt distressed. After all, this was all his money, and it would be too not worth it if he lost it.

As for the transportation to Guangzhou, it will have to wait until the round-the-world expedition team returns to St. Petersburg before anything can be decided.

If Alexander knew that the failure of the Golovkin mission led to serious losses in trade with the Qing Dynasty, his face might have been even uglier.

Although there was also the factor that the Qing government believed that opening a port in Guangzhou to Russia would affect the trade in Kyakhta, Golovkin delayed many things because of his kneeling.

This even made Alexander somewhat dissatisfied with Prince Sarcotev. It would be fine if he just looked like Humphrey, but now he had to face another problem. If he really took a "gardening leave", he would be away from the core of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Sometimes, a reliable father-in-law is also crucial. Even if he lives a boring and luxurious aristocratic life at home all day, he should not cause trouble when doing his work in front of the emperor.

(End of this chapter)