Chapter Summaries

Governor Ust let Shefik recruit soldiers to recover property seized from the guardsmen, while Berber leaders celebrated their newfound power and claimed Roman descent. When Hadid marched on their tribes to reclaim the confiscated wealth, the chiefs sought help from Zhemile and Ust but found themselves abandoned and unable to resist.

• Shefik gave Governor Ust 210,000 riyals taken from the guardsmen and received permission to recruit soldiers, with Ust warning him to keep Paris uninvolved.
• Berbers across Algiers celebrated the guardsmen's expulsion, while tribal chiefs gathered with Rahman and planned to accuse the navy of crimes and keep the confiscated wealth.
• Rahman learned that Hadid had gathered more than three thousand soldiers and was moving against tribes whose leaders had pocketed the guardsmen's property.
• Rahman and the chiefs asked Zhemile for military help, but Zhemile said he had been suspended and could not mobilize troops.
• The chiefs sought Governor Ust, learned he had left for Annaba, and sent word for their people to hide in the mountains as Hadid's forces approached.

French troops sent by Governor Ust defeated Hadid’s navy rebels and protected the Akelm Tribe, prompting Berber tribes across Algiers to join a widespread purge. By early October, most Ottoman and Greek residents had been driven into the southern deserts as Governor Ust and his officials began the next step of unifying Algiers.

• Razzaz tried to evacuate the Akelm Tribe as Hadid’s navy demanded money and camels, then attacked when he could not pay.
• French soldiers arrived, captured the navy force, and told Razzaz that Governor Ust had sent them to suppress the rebellion.
• Akelm tribespeople celebrated the French Army, and more than a dozen tribes escaped looting under its protection.
• Berber tribes searched for navy members, while French Tunis Legion soldiers maintained routes south toward the M'zab Tribe.
• Berber-Arab forces drove most Ottomans and Greeks in Algiers into the southern desert by early October, as Governor Ust and Zhemile began advancing the unification plan.

Uster announced new laws that rewarded Berber tribes and offered Algerians land, while Joseph used the land decree to draw tribespeople away from tribal authority and establish French-governed settlements. The scheme sparked a rush of applications and new villages, and Razzaz began to realize his tribe was losing its young men.

• Uster announced that tribes could keep a third of the Guard Corps and Naval Power’s confiscated property and introduced lower taxes and land grants.
• Joseph planned to use free farmland in former Guard Corps and Navy territory to weaken tribal communal control and build settlements governed by the Algiers Province.
• More than 20,000 people applied for new farmland in less than a month, and the French Agricultural Service Consulting Company began supplying tools, seeds, and fertilizer on credit.
• Applications doubled the following month, and more than a hundred villages appeared across northern Algiers.
• Razzaz noticed that his tribe had lost three or four hundred members, mostly young men, threatening its spring planting.

Razzaz and the tribal chiefs asked Rahman to halt free land claims as men left their tribes, but Rahman warned them against challenging the policy and invited them to Paris. France’s swift takeover of Algiers reshaped European calculations, and Rahman and the Algerian nobles arrived at Versailles for an audience with the King.

• Razzaz and more than a dozen tribal chiefs urged Rahman to stop or restrict applications for New Arable Land because their tribes were losing workers.
• Rahman rejected their proposals, warned that opposing free land claims would be dangerous, and invited the chiefs to accompany him to Paris with gifts.
• William III discussed easing Prussian serf reforms after learning France had taken control of Algiers, while insisting that serfs should not continue performing Corvée.
• Franz II and Kobzl considered France’s conquest an opportunity to improve Austrian trade and exploit Ottoman displeasure, and Franz ordered a congratulatory letter sent to Paris.
• Grenville and Pitt the Younger planned to use Ottoman dissatisfaction to pursue access to Egyptian cane sugar and strengthen Ottoman forces against Russia.
• Rahman and more than thirty Algerian nobles met the King at Versailles in a low-key audience.

Rahman presented Joseph with a plan to simplify French instruction in Algiers, and Joseph tasked him with preparing teaching materials. Talleyrand reported that Selim III had agreed to consider acting against the Mamluks, with a campaign planned for the end of the year or early next year.

• Rahman and the tribal chiefs brought gifts to Joseph, who thanked Rahman for his thoughtfulness and new noble title.
• Rahman explained how he had taught French through simplified grammar and fewer tenses, and Joseph asked him to organize the method into teaching materials within three months.
• Eman told Joseph the ball was about to begin, and Rahman withdrew as Joseph went to change.
• Talleyrand told Joseph that Selim III had softened after Talleyrand offered help against the Mamluks.
• Talleyrand said the Grand Vizier proposed acting against the Mamluks at the end of the year or early next year and wanted an agreement.

Joseph arranged French support for the Ottoman campaign to retake Egypt, advancing his plan to secure the Suez region and eventually dig a canal. The Ottomans rejected British arms and began preparing a major force against the Mamluks, with Muhammad Ali set to lead the Albanian Corps.

• Joseph told Talleyrand to return to Constantinople and meet Muhammad Ali to prepare for the coming campaign.
• Izzet rejected Fox’s offer of British weapons and instructors, insisting that the Sultan would need British troops to defeat the Mamluk rulers of Egypt.
• Izzet considered France’s offer to help the Ottomans suppress the Mamluks in return for recognizing French control of Algiers.
• Joseph planned to use the Ottoman recovery of Egypt and Muhammad Ali’s future ambitions to gain French influence over Suez and build a canal.
• Izzet appointed Koca Sokullu commander of the Ottoman campaign and accepted the French proposal for Muhammad Ali to lead the Albanian Corps.
• Beginning in late June, nearly seventy thousand Ottoman troops prepared for war against the Mamluks.

As American forces prepared to attack the Cherokee, Chief Chinabe Hase joined Longhorn and the warriors in prayer. A French diplomat then delayed the attack by claiming the Cherokee towns and resources were collateral for debts owed to a French bank.

• Chief Chinabe Hase surveyed the outmatched Cherokee defenses as Longhorn urged the warriors to pray for salvation.
• Longhorn led the Cherokee in prayer, and Chinabe Hase reluctantly joined them.
• Baron Lespes presented Major Christie with loan agreements showing that the Cherokee had pledged their towns and future revenues as collateral to a French bank.
• Lespes demanded time to recover the bank's loans, and Christie postponed the American attack until at least the weekend.

Baron Lespes persuaded Christie to postpone an American crossing of the Altamaha River, and the Cherokee mistook the Americans' withdrawal for the miracle promised in Longhorn’s Gospel. Joseph planned to use France’s influence to settle and support Indigenous nations across North America while securing key ports such as New Orleans; the chapter ended with Hasai’s people asking what to do next.

• Lespes convinced Christie to let him seek a debt agreement with the Cherokee and arranged for the Americans to cross the river on Sunday unless the Indians made an unusual move.
• Hasai and the Cherokee saw the American troops turn away from the river and believed their prayers and Longhorn’s Gospel had driven them off.
• Longhorn proclaimed that the Gospel’s prophecy had come true, and the Cherokee joined him in giving thanks.
• Joseph planned to direct Indigenous populations toward settlements west of the Mississippi and support nations across North America as a buffer to American expansion.
• Joseph intended for France to retain control of important ports, especially New Orleans, and pursue influence in California.
• After the Americans disappeared from view, a Cherokee tribal officer asked Hasai what they should do next.

Louisiana offered the Cherokee land in Arkansas and helped them migrate there, drawing them into closer ties with the French and Creek. Meanwhile, Bettina confronted Little Turtle and the Northwest Tribal Alliance in Ohio, where the chiefs remained cowed by their defeat at Fallen Trees.

• Hassai accepted Louisiana's offer of fertile Arkansas land in exchange for following basic laws and helping defend it.
• Hassai led eight thousand Cherokee west, and the French arranged Spanish supplies along the route so few died during the arduous migration.
• The Cherokee settled in Arkansas, took a low-interest loan for tools and seeds, and welcomed a Creek priest to establish a diocese.
• The Creek and Cherokee grew close through their shared faith as ninety thousand Muskogean-speaking Indians migrated to Louisiana under American pressure.
• Bettina challenged Little Turtle and the Northwest Tribal Alliance in Toledo, and Three Fires and the other chiefs lowered their heads when she asked why they did not resist the Americans.

Bettina persuaded the Northwest tribes to consider moving to Louisiana, where they could rebuild and resist American expansion. Father Vigne converted the Sioux and secured their agreement to relocate, while more than 160,000 Indians had gathered west of the Mississippi by the end of 1796.

• Bettina offered the Northwest tribes weapons and a new home west of the Mississippi, promising they would not have to submit to anyone so long as they obeyed Louisiana's laws.
• Chief Bluecoat agreed to lead the Shawnee west in exchange for four hundred Flintlock Guns, and Little Turtle and other chiefs then agreed to migrate as well.
• Father Vigne reached the Sioux settlement after weeks of travel and began preaching to a hunting party about the prophecy and the Alabama Miracle.
• Chief Red Horse agreed to move the Sioux to the middle Mississippi and follow Louisiana's laws in return for 150 million mu of land.
• By the end of 1796, more than 160,000 Indians had gathered west of the Mississippi, and missionaries continued converting tribes and encouraging further migration.

Mac Grant and his family escaped Cory Arron’s rule and met his pirate cousin Sean, who had begun ferrying refugees to Saint-Domingue for Parliament. They arrived in Port-au-Prince hoping to start a sugar plantation, only to find the island overwhelmed by a recent influx of refugees.

• Mac Grant waited with his family and hundreds of other fugitives at Maspoint Port, fearing Aaron’s Royal Guard would catch them.
• Sean Grant arrived aboard a brigantine, showed that Saint-Domingue Parliament had hired him to transport refugees, and convinced Mac to board.
• Sean and Mac discussed starting a sugar plantation in Saint-Domingue, where land was cheap and labor plentiful.
• A week later, Sean and Mac reached Port-au-Prince and mortgaged the ship, but found the land market crowded with prospective buyers.
• Mac learned that more than a hundred thousand refugees had recently arrived through a transport effort organized by Joseph, while the government provided aid, expanded sugar cultivation, and deployed troops and guns.

Mac Grant expanded his plantation in Saint-Domingue as President Auge arranged a trade of surplus Flintlock Guns for Louisiana bison meat to curb American grain prices. In France, Eli Whitney entered a machinery bidding contest after hearing a rival machine had surpassed his precision, just as the Crown Prince arrived.

• Mac Grant bought 110 acres, hired more than eighty former plantation workers, planted sugar cane, and received an offer of an interest-free loan for another sixty acres.
• Auge and Brisot responded to American grain price increases by arranging to trade Saint-Domingue's surplus Flintlock Guns for Louisiana bison meat, pumpkins, and vegetables.
• The Avoyel Tribe began hunting bison for meat in exchange for Flintlock Guns, and American grain merchants restored their prices to last year's levels.
• At the French United Steam Engine Company bidding event, Eli Whitney heard that a rival Milling Machine had achieved 0.2-millimeter accuracy, then prepared Blythe Steel Company's prototype for its turn.
• A commotion spread through the bidding crowd as Cruset's friend announced that the Crown Prince had arrived.

Joseph observed a bidding demonstration of Milling Machines that could improve the precision of Steam Engine parts and support the development of more powerful engines. The Lenoir Brothers’ machine won the judges’ preliminary assessment, and Joseph asked how it achieved its accuracy.

• Trevithick explained to Joseph that stronger steel had increased the Steam Engine’s output, but unreliable Cast Iron Boilers and limited machining precision still constrained further gains.
• Whitney demonstrated a Rotary Milling Machine that cut curved shapes, impressing Murdoch and Trevithick, though its measured precision fell short of the required standard.
• After the five demonstrations ended, Depardieu reported that the Lenoir Clock Factory’s Milling Machine had reached 0.2-millimeter precision and appeared to be the leading bid.
• Joseph questioned Philippe Lenoir and Jacques Lenoir about their machine, and Philippe credited watchmaking equipment and an exceptionally hard material for its fine screws, parts, and Milling Cutter.

Joseph joined the Lenoir brothers and Eli Whitney in founding the Royal Precision Equipment Company, then learned that Catherine II had died and hurried back to Paris. Several days later, he returned to Versailles and found Alexandra grieving her grandmother.

• Joseph confirmed Philippe Lenoir’s milling machine had won the bid and proposed combining it with Whitney’s design in a new company.
• Joseph arranged for the Lenoir family’s factory and Blythe Steel Company to join the Royal Precision Equipment Company, and promoted Whitney to D-Level Talent while promising patent protection for his Cotton Gin.
• Eman received word that the Russian Tsar had died, and Joseph ordered an immediate return to Paris.
• Joseph arrived at Versailles several days later and saw Alexandra, visibly haggard from her grandmother’s death, come out to welcome him.

Joseph comforted Alexandra as she mourned Catherine II, then directed Talleyrand to pursue diplomatic efforts in Saint Petersburg. He learned that Britain had begun flooding the London Futures Exchange with cheap sugar and concluded that France was better positioned for the coming sugar war than the British realized.

• Joseph offered Alexandra a private place in Tuileries Palace to pray for Catherine II in the Eastern Orthodox manner until the forty days after her death had passed.
• Joseph told Talleyrand that Paul I would likely withdraw Russian forces from Persia and instructed him to leave for Saint Petersburg to make diplomatic efforts.
• Bayei reported that British sugar contracts had begun trading at low prices and that cane sugar prices in London shops were falling.
• Joseph learned that Prussia's sugar beet output might exceed 22,000 tons and considered how much sugar Britain could use to drive down prices.
• Gaudin noted that Britain had not released much of the sugar it imported from India last year, leading Joseph to suspect the British had stored it.
• Joseph calculated that Britain would actually obtain only 44,000 tons of sugar, while France would reach 109,000 tons after Prussia's beet seeds failed to produce seeds and Prussia honored its agreement to sell sugar to France.

Joseph organized a plan to counter Britain’s cane sugar short-selling by attracting speculative investment and preventing French sellers from lowering prices. He recruited wealthy French nobles with promises of huge returns, while European bankers remained doubtful about France’s intentions.

• Joseph told the ministers that Britain was preparing to short cane sugar and ordered them to help defeat the operation.
• Joseph assigned Bayei to attract speculative and government funds, instructed Brienne to keep French sugar sellers from cutting prices, and directed Lavalette to spread news in Britain.
• Joseph told Gaudin that the Treasury had only 14 million Francs available and said he would find a way to handle the funding.
• At Madam of Vence’s ball, Joseph persuaded Madam of Vence and Duke of Debris to invest by promising returns of at least eighty percent.
• After the ball, Duke of Debris and Madam of Vence separately began seeking money for the investment.
• In Karlsruhe, Salomon Rothschild and Wallenberg discussed Britain’s cane sugar stockpile and questioned whether France was using them, before Earl of Calonne arrived.

Calonne arranged a tour of French sugar supplies to reassure European investors and prepare them to buy contracts in London. As Henry Petty tried to drive sugar prices lower, an unknown buyer began purchasing London's contracts in enormous quantities.

• Calonne invited investors to inspect sugar reserves at Metz and cargoes at Saint-Domingue before buying contracts at the London Futures Exchange.
• Henry Petty learned that Paris was trading only about two hundred loads a day and ordered 7,500 loads listed at 2 shillings 3 pence.
• Blount told Petty that a buyer had purchased all 7,500 loads, and the buyer then swallowed several additional batches.
• Petty replenished the contracts until the buyer had acquired 37,000 loads, leaving just over 2,000 available.
• The next day, the mysterious buyer swept up London's cane sugar contracts again as soon as the Exchange opened.

Petty believed France had exhausted its funds and drove sugar prices lower, while Joseph used the apparent retreat to prepare a larger counterattack. Joseph’s agents spread crop-failure rumors across Britain, sparking panic buying as the chapter ended.

• Petty traced three days of Cane Sugar purchases to funds transferred from the Bank of France and increased the daily supply he released to 40,000 dan.
• After French buyers retreated, Petty celebrated and announced that Cane Sugar prices across Europe would be lowered to 2 Shillings per Pound.
• Joseph held back his remaining funds, intending to lure British short-sellers into lowering prices before launching a counterattack.
• Petty released more sugar after London prices fell, and mysterious buyers purchased 120,000 dan over four days before withdrawing again.
• Mrs. Mars told Mrs. Bowen rumors of crop failures and rising prices, prompting her to join the queue to buy sugar.
• The United Irishmen Association spread Joseph’s crop-failure rumors across Britain, and Earl Spencer ordered officials to arrest those responsible as panic buying spread.

Petty’s efforts to calm Britain’s sugar market drove prices down, while Calonne revealed to European financiers that France would control far more sugar than Britain expected. The financiers agreed to buy up London’s remaining sugar contracts, and their orders soon overwhelmed Petty’s defenses.

• Spencer restricted British sugar purchases to two pounds per person per month, but the limit intensified fears of a shortage as Petty increased daily releases and prices fell.
• In Port-au-Prince, Calonne told Salomon Rothschild and the other financiers that Saint-Domingue’s sugar, French beet sugar, Ottoman imports, and Prussian sugar would leave France with about 1.9 million dan and London with at most 700,000 dan.
• Calonne explained that Prussia needed French beet seeds to protect its growers, so its sugar would go to France rather than repay British loans; Rothschild and the other financiers agreed to buy London’s remaining sugar.
• More than forty days later, the financiers’ orders reached London, where their agents poured money into the futures exchange and bought sugar contracts faster than Petty could respond.

Petty tried to hold down sugar prices as French buyers repeatedly purchased cane sugar, while a downgrade of the Paris Futures Exchange briefly convinced him they were running out of funds. A wave of delivery defaults in Prussia then exposed the missing sugar and Prince Heinrich admitted that failed beet-seed production had left him unable to fulfill the agreement.

• Scott and his associates stopped buying after Petty had dumped 130,000 dan of cane sugar, and Petty withheld his report urging the British Government to maintain prices.
• French purchases resumed, and after Petty learned that they had bought more than a hundred million Franc worth of sugar, he prepared to submit his report to Grenville.
• Petty received news that Genoa United Credit had downgraded the Paris Futures Exchange to Baa Grade and released another 20,000 dan of sugar, but large-scale buying resumed three days later.
• Hekros discovered that Stettin’s delivery Warehouses held no sugar and received a Default Notice, as other traders also failed to collect their contracts.
• Gordon Boris confronted Prince Heinrich over the missing sugar, and Heinrich admitted that failed Sugar Beet collection and seed production had prevented Prussia from meeting its obligations.