Georgiana lit a stick of incense, then untied her robe and stepped into the bathtub strewn with roses. Warm water enveloped her as she breathed in the fragrance of spices and drifted into her "memories."
In 1846, in order to build a railway station, the Austrians demolished a religious building and a palace in Venice. That religious building happened to be the Brotherhood's meeting place.
By the time the Holy Roman Empire had passed into Franz II's hands, it had only two seaports left. Even those two had once been occupied by Napoleon and were returned only because of a peace treaty. No wonder Austria had still redeemed Belgium's national bonds at face value after its defeat.
Talleyrand had made a fortune because of it, but she had no desire to think about that lame, stinking dog now.
Venice had grown rich through spices. Portugal had likewise become powerful through the spice trade. In the sixteenth century, at the height of the Portuguese Empire, it monopolized the spice trade. Anyone wishing to buy or transport spices had to purchase a license from the king. At the time, Portugal's overseas empire maintained numerous trading posts along Africa's eastern coast and in India. Napoleon had even discovered an old Portuguese trading station near Suez.
Georgiana had imagined England following the trading posts and military bases along western Africa, rounding the Cape of Good Hope, and sending troops to India. Such a long supply line would increase military expenditures. Yet the English had found another route, stirring up Switzerland so Bonaparte had no time to manage affairs in the East.
Whether or not Austria was Marie Antoinette's homeland, having Austria send troops to interfere in France's domestic affairs would only make France follow in Burgundy's footsteps. The Swiss were mercenaries, and Hesse-Kassel was