For most people, the allure of court lay in the lavish decoration of its rooms, the attire of its guests, extravagant entertainments and banquets, as well as money, fame, and power. They drew ambitious men and beautiful women like magnets.
Perhaps because it had once been a mint, the "theater" had terrible lighting for the sake of preventing theft. Even in daylight, it was dim and gloomy.
"What do you think?"
Langenhoven asked as Georgiana looked around.
She did not answer at once. She had still underestimated the bankers. She had only considered that the Royal Navy had blockaded French vessels, and that transporting grain to France would cost them far more than the commission they earned. But she had not expected them to sell negotiable bonds directly. All they had to do was announce that the French government would certainly honor these grain bonds, and international buyers would come knocking. They merely acted as middlemen, assumed no risk at all, and the money went straight into their pockets.
The British said England had no shortage of grain. Georgiana had assumed America supplied them with grain behind the scenes, so even if Britain exported food at high prices, they need not fear famine. The Bread and Blood Movement opposed cheap foreign grain. As grain prices rose, rents would rise as well. Farmers would not earn much from skyrocketing grain prices, and if prices fell at such a time, they would risk bankruptcy.
That was why the Corn Laws had been brought up again at this time. Protective tariffs had every reason to exist. At the beginning, the French Revolution had been concentrated mainly in the cities, where there were many workers. Even if bread prices did not soar madly, without work they still had no source of income. How long