Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796

The British declared war, and their main approach was to blockade the sea rather than come to the land.

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

This place is close to Calais, and it is also a very good place to set off. As early as 1798, there was already a preliminary structure of a military camp. At that time, it was considered a strategic deception to the British. In the end, Napoleon went to France.

Now the corps in France have begun to be mobilized one after another, and they have begun to mobilize frequently in the Atlantic coastal areas. At the same time, it should 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 fight, the posture of both sides was already tense.

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

The direct communication between Count Vorontsov and Count Morkov was almost interrupted, and they could only use Oldenburg as a transit station. In this way, the communication efficiency was greatly reduced, and it was unlikely to know what changes had taken place on the other side in time.

However, the news received by Petersburg from both sides was still very accurate.

There has indeed been a short-term sell-off in the stock exchange in London recently because of the war, but the British media are generally optimistic about the current war situation and believe that Britain will win in the end, citing the strength of the Royal Navy and the ability to block the main sea routes of France and Spain.

However, the French side cited the "Glorious June 1st Naval Battle" during the Great Revolution, believing that the British could not completely blockade the Atlantic and Mediterranean waters, and that France currently has sufficient food reserves and stable food prices, so it is confident of defeating Britain.

However, Petersburg and Vienna are actually well aware of the actions of both sides to find allies.

However, Count Vorontsov did take advantage of the panic in Britain to recruit a number of Scottish engineers in May and June, but they have not yet set out for Petersburg. These people need to be divided into two or three batches, take Russian frigates to Courland, land there, and then go to Petersburg one after another.

As for the treatment of recruitment, the Russian government did offer a high salary, as well as factory shares and corresponding positions. According to the Russian rank system, the eighth-level civil servants were hereditary. This temptation was indeed not small. You should know that in Russia's 14-level official system, there is a saying of "eternal ninth-level civil servants". If their inventions can be widely used, they can be inherited according to this level, which is indeed a lot of temptation.

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

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

"Okay, young man, no need to say more, we will hire anyone who is proficient in machinery."

"But I have a wife and a newborn son. What should they do if I go to Russia?"

"In this way, your workplace is not 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 can allow you to display your skills."

When Count Vorontsov recruited talents, he could show his skills and take the whole family away.

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

"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 of 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 maintains neutrality, which is an attitude.

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

Although Count Vorontsov is pro-British, he is not completely manipulated by British policies.

"It's just that this recruitment is a policy plan that was formulated when Emperor Paul was still in power. Considering the troubles caused by Lord Whitworth before, I hope you can understand."

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

What's more, who knows what the British will do?

In short, there are a lot of talents to be recruited, and the idle houses of Russian expatriates around London are enough for some of the people who come here from outside London to apply for jobs.

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

After all, he intends to live in the UK for a long time, even after leaving his ambassadorial term.

As for the brewery left by Mr. Arthur Guinness, it is unknown what Count Morkov thought. Before the war between Britain and France, he took special care of the business of this brewery.

The cause should be Count Bobulinsky. Among the businesses that the current uncle is running, those restaurants that are 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 the descendants of Peter the Great and Tsar Ivan V who took turns to be the dealer. The final result was that the male offspring of the royal family was originally scarce. When Paul and his wife raised four boys and five girls, they solved the offspring crisis.

He never interfered in politics. He spent a few years happily abroad. Later, he returned to his manor and confined himself. The queen also took advantage of the situation to prevent him from coming out. When Paul came to his time, his good days came.

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 the title and the rank of general of the Guards, as well as the official residence and manor left by Count Orlov, all of which were his.

During Alexander's time, the personal wealth of this uncle was still increasing. In addition to the chain of restaurants and stores in Russia, he also got involved in medicine, fur and mining. Many of his industrial and mining enterprises were actually state property held by the Tsar himself, but they were just using his brand to do things better.

Count Bobulinsky was also very clear about this. He lived in seclusion in Tula's manor and did not interfere in political affairs. Even if his brother was killed, he would not easily go to St. Petersburg or Moscow without special reasons. The countess had to appear in these social occasions.

Alexander was particularly concerned about his business for such a self-aware uncle. After all, he had a share in many of the industries, just like the Russian American Company.

Until February and October 1917, when the two revolutions took away the Romanov dynasty and the provisional government one after another, their family's wealth had always been guaranteed.

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

Of course, there is another strange thing, that is, most of the engineers recruited this time are Scottish, and there are Irish and Scottish workers, and they all go with their families.

After all, the English's lack of virtue, coupled with the infighting among themselves, is indeed prone to cause 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 steam locomotives, who has 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 design because James Watt attacked his high-pressure steam engine.

For these things, the earl himself is not surprised.

As for France, this kind of recruitment is obviously not very attractive, and the equipment application in the early stage of the Industrial Revolution is mainly concentrated in Britain and North America. Although France is technologically groundbreaking, it is relatively slow in this direction. Moreover, many nobles who invented during the revolution went into exile abroad or went to the guillotine, and it will take time to recover.

Except for the Marquis who built the steamship, who was recruited to Petersburg because he was in the Condé Corps, it is rare to hear that French engineers came to Petersburg.

There are many French noble officers in Russia, and they even hold some positions in Russia now. In addition to those who were named counts and generals like Langgeron, there are also those like the Duke of Richelieu who went to Odessa to serve as local governors.

As for what else can be gained in Britain, Vorontsov is not very clear.

The rest is that the Russian naval fleet in the Atlantic will come to pick people up.

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

Alexander was overjoyed. According to the scale of the factories opened in Lugansk by his grandmother, the current batch of industrial and mining enterprises started construction in the summer of 1801. The site has already reached a certain scale, just waiting for the engineers and technical workers to move in, as well as the supporting Russian technicians and serf workers - yes, Russian serfdom even exists in mines and factories now.

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

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

In addition, even on the Imperial Village Railway, it is not always possible to run rail carriages. In the future, steam locomotives can still be used, and they can carry several carriages, which can also meet the convenience of the royal family and some nobles to move between Petersburg and Imperial Village.

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 the experience was poor and expensive, so it soon disappeared. The idea of ​​putting steam locomotives on the train was originally a novel idea of ​​the French, and it was certainly not as popular as the rail locomotive.

As for the construction of steamships, it is the first steam-powered project in Russia that has made a breakthrough. Orders for this have been placed in 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, which can replace some inland sailing ships.

As for the naval ships, it is still a long way to go to get steam power, at least there is no hope in the near future.

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

Although, such a pro-British ambassador, because of his position, there will always be some deviations in doing things, including the shift in French policy, which was led by their brothers. It is inevitable that Russia's policy will lean towards Britain. After all, the domestic finances are also in some difficulties, and the price offered by the British is indeed more tempting.

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

However, this will damage Russia's national interests. They intervene in European affairs, but they cannot send most of their forces to the war with the Ottoman Empire and the Persian Empire.

It is not possible to deal with France under Napoleon's rule without taking out most of its strength to lean towards Europe.

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

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