Chapter Summaries

Joseph addressed France’s agricultural and settlement problems before confronting signs of industrial overproduction and Italian resistance to French imports. He proposed helping Italian states develop specialized industries and called a Paris summit, while in Warsaw parliamentarians argued over improving relations with Saint Petersburg.

• Joseph told Venio to publicize North American settlements and promote simplified French to encourage emigration and development.
• Mirabeau warned that French industrial growth could slow as markets neared saturation, and Bayei reported that Northern Italians were rejecting French goods.
• Joseph decided to support specialized industries in the Italian states, including Florence’s leatherworking and Murano’s glassmaking, to raise local incomes and expand markets for France.
• Joseph asked Brienne to invite the Iberia-Apennine Common Market member states to a Paris summit on trade and industry one month later.
• In Warsaw, one parliamentarian praised Saint Petersburg’s sincerity and urged better relations with neighboring states, while another denounced the invaders as barbarians.

Polish deputies debated whether to restore trade with Russia as hardship in the Eastern Provinces fueled support for the Tsar’s proposal. After a march broke out in Babruysk, Kościuszko arrived at the regent’s palace and warned that Poland had reached another moment of life and death.

• Jan Kiliński’s supporters and Count Branicki’s Peace Faction argued over the Russian proposal until Speaker Czartoryski adjourned Parliament and delayed the vote for a week.
• Hugo Kołłątaj described the growing hardship and secret trade in the Eastern Provinces, while Jakub Jasiński called for suspected collaborators to be arrested.
• At Tin Roof Palace, Jasiński and Ignacy Potocki urged Prince Poniatowski to reject the proposal and purge Eastern Orthodox deputies from the Great Sejm.
• A palace official reported that thousands were marching in Babruysk to demand restored trade with Russia and a smaller garrison, with unrest spreading toward Minsk.
• As Prince Poniatowski’s advisers argued over suppressing the march, Kościuszko arrived and declared that Poland had reached a moment of life and death.

Poland prepared for a possible Russian invasion as Prince Poniatowski and Kościuszko pushed for military reinforcement and action against pro-Russian representatives. In London, Amschel Rothschild confronted Salomon over an enormous loan to the British Government, whose political and military crises made repayment uncertain.

• Kościuszko warned Prince Poniatowski and Ignacy Potocki that Russia was likely preparing to invade Poland and urged them to reinforce the eastern defensive line.
• The Great Sejm rejected restoring relations with Russia, Polish troops moved east, and intelligence reports of Russian mobilization led Prince Poniatowski to order national mobilization and detain twenty-one representatives suspected of favoring Russia.
• Amschel Rothschild arrived in London and learned that Salomon had signed an eight-million-pound loan agreement with the British Government.
• Salomon explained how he planned to finance the loan through sugar futures and French Government Bonds, while Amschel warned him about the risks of British unrest and a possible war with France.

Salomon reassured Amschel that Britain could defeat France by exploiting anti-French sentiment across Europe, while a British loan from the Rothschild Consortium eased the government's financial strain. After hearing of unrest in Poland, Pitt the Younger urged Britain to encourage Russia, Prussia, and Austria to invade and draw Russia into an alliance against France.

• Salomon told Amschel that Britain could recover from setbacks and that resentment toward France across Europe could leave it isolated.
• Henry Petty reported that Britain would borrow 8 million Pounds from the Rothschild Consortium at lower interest than the banks had demanded.
• Fox reported unrest in Poland, the imprisonment of more than a thousand people, and Russian efforts to restore relations with Persia.
• Pitt the Younger proposed exploiting the Polish unrest to encourage Russia, Prussia, and Austria to occupy Poland and form an alliance against France.
• Grenville and Pitt the Younger discussed persuading Paul I to join the Anti-French Alliance with British diplomatic and financial support.

Pitt the Younger, Grenville, and Fox planned to draw Russia and Austria into opposing France while stirring unrest in Italy and redirecting Spain toward Morocco. Lord Elliot arrived in northern Morocco with weapons and funds to enlist the Wazzan Tribe, leaving Esther stunned by the scale of the offer.

• Pitt the Younger explained that Britain could tempt Russia into war by offering influence in the Balkans and restrain it by controlling its access to loans.
• Grenville agreed to negotiate with Austria while Sir John Chack-Norris and Sir Arthur Paget were assigned to plan actions in Italy.
• Fox said the Duke of York would attend the founding ceremony of the United Kingdom of Portugal and Brazil, and Grenville raised concerns about Spain turning toward Gibraltar.
• Pitt the Younger proposed diverting Spain by making Morocco more tempting than Gibraltar.
• Lord Elliot told Esther that he had brought the Wazzan Tribe three thousand flintlock guns and 120,000 pounds sterling.

Lord Elliot arranged for the Wazzan Tribe to provoke Spain into invading Morocco, while Spain’s forces advanced before suffering an ambush in the Rif Mountains. The chapter ended in Florence, where a young man blamed France for poverty and unemployment.

• Lord Elliot explained that the Rif Tribe had raided Melilla in the Wazzan Tribe’s name to provoke Spain into war, while Britain armed the Wazzan Tribe in exchange for a trade monopoly.
• The Wazzan Tribe agreed to Elliot’s offer, received weapons smuggled to Mount Bouhlel, and attacked the neighboring Zumi Tribe.
• Baron Llorka persuaded Spain’s leaders to invade Morocco, and Carlos IV declared war after the council agreed to send troops.
• The Spanish Army landed at Melilla and quickly seized areas of Tangier and Tetouan, while Spain sent only three thousand soldiers to besiege Gibraltar.
• The Wazzan Tribe ambushed Spanish infantry near the Rif Mountains, killing more than four hundred and capturing over two hundred; Spanish troops then searched the mountains without finding the tribes.
• In Florence, a young man addressed passersby and blamed the French for unemployment, hunger, and debt.

Count Costantini used the Young Italy Organization’s growing influence and Sardinian royal backing to promote an Italian Confederation, while Wilson proposed arming protesters to drive French influence out of Italy. The chapter ended with Costantini considering Wilson’s suggestion to give protesters Flintlock Guns.

• A young man rallied citizens against French goods and urged them to protest at Pitti Palace.
• Count Costantini recruited influential politicians to support the Italian Confederation and arranged for Albano to contact the street speaker.
• Wilson met Count Costantini in Florence and learned that the Young Italy Organization had Sardinian royal support and could mobilize more than a hundred thousand people.
• Wilson argued that armed protesters could help drive out French influence, and Count Costantini considered the proposal.

Wilson and Sir Norris encouraged Italian unificationists to provoke France into a costly occupation of Northern Italy. In Paris, Joseph learned that Spain’s campaign in Morocco had gone badly wrong after its commander sent over ten thousand troops into the Rif Mountains.

• Wilson persuaded Count Costantini to demonstrate the unificationists’ strength in exchange for more weapons.
• Protesters burned French goods in Lucca, and demonstrations spread through Northern Italy as British agents helped arm the unrest.
• Sir Norris ordered more Flintlock Guns shipped from Volturno Fort and planned to coordinate with Baron Bruch and the unificationists to provoke French reprisals.
• Joseph read a report that Spanish commander Soldano had sent more than ten thousand soldiers into the Rif Mountains after Moroccan tribesmen ambushed an Infantry regiment.

Joseph rejected Spain’s request to send French troops into Morocco and devised a plan to help Spain with locally recruited mercenaries and a French commander. As he finished arranging the expedition, news arrived that rioters in Lucca had attacked a French caravan.

• Berthier told Joseph that over 7,000 Spanish soldiers remained trapped in the Rif Mountains and Madrid wanted reinforcements.
• Joseph refused to involve the French Army in Morocco, but also rejected advising Spain to withdraw.
• Joseph decided Spain should recruit mercenaries in Portugal and northwest of Algiers, and appointed colonel Surt to command them.
• Joseph ordered Surt to land at Anfa and attack toward Marrakesh while the Soldano Legion held the line near the Rif Mountains.
• Lavalette told Joseph that a riot had broken out in Lucca and attackers had taken a large quantity of goods from a French caravan.

Joseph responded to the unrest in Northern Italy by accelerating economic reforms and ordering a cautious campaign against the Young Italy Organization. As French orders reached the region, Queen Caterina signed Florence’s Guild and Taxation reform decrees despite ministerial objections.

• Lavalette told Joseph that the Young Italy Organization was behind the spreading riots and that its funding might have come from Naples or Sardinia.
• Joseph ordered the Security Bureau to investigate Sardinia and summoned Mirabeau and Talleyrand to implement the Northern Italian recovery plan ahead of schedule.
• Joseph directed Mirabeau to create immediate paid work and training opportunities, while Talleyrand was ordered to secure reform decrees from Milan, Lucca, and Florence within three days.
• Joseph instructed Lavalette to counter the Young Italy Organization through propaganda first, then arrest members involved in violence or incitement only when there was conclusive evidence.
• The next afternoon, Queen Caterina signed Florence’s Guild and Taxation reform decrees after receiving orders from Paris, overruling several ministers.

Queen Caterina and the parliaments of Lucca and Milan approved reforms that advanced the Common Market, while French Security Bureau agents countered Milanese protests by publicizing new jobs and explaining the reforms' benefits. The protesters dispersed as applicants rushed to factories, and the chapter ended with an agent arguing that French loans and expertise would help Milan compete.

• Queen Caterina chose not to risk offending France, and the Lucca Parliament passed the reform bill.
• After Mirabeau met with Giuseppella, two legislators who opposed reform were arrested for corruption, and Milan's Parliament passed the bill by an overwhelming vote.
• French Security Bureau agents announced job openings around Milan, drawing protesters away from demonstrations and into hiring lines.
• Security Bureau personnel explained that Guild restrictions and transit fees had been reduced, and that the Common Market allowed Milanese goods to reach wider markets.
• A Security Bureau agent argued that French competition was not to blame for Milan's failing workshops and cited French loans, road work, rail plans, and factory expertise as help for local industry.

Milan's skills training school drew job seekers with the promise of quick certification and work, supporting Joseph's effort to stabilize Northern Italy through industrial investment. In Florence, Count Costantini sought Carlo Botta's help promoting Italian identity but arrived as Botta angrily argued that Florence, not Milan, was Italy's artistic center.

• Wilson's subordinate fled after the crowd turned hostile toward him.
• A newspaper reader told Milanese job seekers about the training school's short courses, low tuition, and bread loans, prompting many to rush toward Porta Romana District.
• Joseph's industrial aid expanded jobs and French influence in Northern Italy, and he decided Ferdinand IV would share the costs after Naples became involved in the riot.
• Count Costantini observed that new factories and training had displaced talk of Italian unification in Florence, then went to visit Carlo Botta and offer support for his History of Italy.
• Carlo Botta interrupted his writing to denounce Milan's artistic claims and praise Florence as Italy's true artistic center.

Joseph used a manufactured dispute between Milan and Florence to inflame regional antagonism and undermine Italian unification. Meanwhile, Talleyrand persuaded Lucca’s consul that Neapolitan weapons found in Lucca gave the republic grounds to declare war on Naples.

• Costantini visited Botta, who raged about Rossi Pastori’s book Great Milan and vowed to write a rebuttal.
• Botta’s rebuttal and Milanese responses circulated cheaply between Florence and Milan, escalating their war of words.
• Joseph revealed that Baron Scheller had written Great Milan on his instructions to provoke regional divisions and obstruct the Young Italy Organization.
• Lucca arrested Young Italy members and uncovered evidence that Neapolitans had supplied weapons to rioters.
• Talleyrand told Consul Alberto Ariosto that Lucca could treat the weapons as an invasion and declare war on Naples.

Talleyrand persuaded Lucca to declare war on Naples, and the Mediterranean Security Organization launched its first joint operation. Naples surrendered and agreed to pay compensation, while the coalition withdrew after demonstrating that it could protect its member states.

• Talleyrand assured Ariosto that the Security Organization would support Lucca and enter Abruzzo if Naples retaliated, and Ariosto ordered a vote on declaring war.
• Naples's Prime Minister John Acton dismissed Lucca's declaration as a minor matter and offered only a limited explanation for the incident.
• Lucca's nine hundred guards and allied troops advanced into Abruzzo, where the Neapolitan border commander surrendered without resistance.
• Ferdinand IV sent Caracciolo to negotiate as the coalition advanced toward Naples City, and Naples agreed to pay Lucca six million Francs and the Allied Forces 1.5 million Francs.
• At Lucca's request, the Allied Forces withdrew, and celebrations across Northern Italy followed the coalition's bloodless victory.

Joseph used the Security Organization to keep Sardinia’s elite troops stationed in Ancona while secretly positioning forces in Parma. Meanwhile, Surt captured Anfa Port and Marrakesh, where he learned Sultan Suleiman had gone to Meknes and that the Sultan’s brothers were in the city.

• General Honorato di Ghiva received orders to station Sardinia’s Royal Guard Corps in Ancona for a year under the ceasefire agreement.
• Joseph kept the Young Italy Organization’s arrested members from being questioned about their supporters and secretly left troops in Parma.
• Surt’s Spanish and Portuguese forces captured Anfa Port after drawing away the English Fleet.
• Surt transported more than 2,300 soldiers upriver, marched toward Marrakesh, and seized the city after breaking through its eastern gate and taking the palace.
• A palace steward told Surt that Sultan Suleiman had gone to Meknes, and a young eunuch offered to lead him to Suleiman’s brothers, Hisham and Ibrahim.

Surt learned that Suleiman had accepted Spain’s terms after Spain backed Hisham as a rival Sultan, and he led his army back to Melilla after the Treaty of Fez. A month later, Carlos IV offered France Ceuta ahead of schedule, giving Joseph a strategic naval base near the Strait of Gibraltar.

• Surt prepared Marrakesh’s defenses until he learned that Suleiman had accepted Spain’s terms, including ceding Tangier, Tetouan, and northern Sera.
• A Spanish officer explained that Suleiman had yielded because Surt’s forces had captured Hisham and Ibrahim, leaving Spain able to support either rival to Suleiman’s succession.
• Spain and Morocco signed the Treaty of Fez, and Surt led his army back to Melilla after a month in Marrakesh.
• Count Floridablanca delivered Carlos IV’s letter to Joseph, thanking France for its help and offering to transfer Ceuta Fortress ahead of schedule.
• Joseph accepted the strategic importance of Ceuta as a nearby base for French ships and their future operations in the Atlantic.

France and Spain signed clauses to cooperate against Britain around Gibraltar, while Fox failed to persuade Russia to join an anti-Polish alliance. Paul I rejected Britain’s offers and said France had already promised to support his claim to Malta.

• Count Floridablanca and Archbishop Brienne signed clauses granting France Ceuta Port and creating a French-Spanish fleet and land force to besiege Gibraltar.
• Fox offered Count Ouditman territory, troops, and loans in exchange for Russia joining Britain against Poland, but Count Ouditman insisted Russia was pursuing friendly relations with Poland.
• Fox offered Russia support in Serbia and recognition of Paul I’s rule over Malta, and Count Osterman agreed to approach the Tsar again.
• Paul I rejected Britain’s proposals, reaffirmed Russia’s focus on the Far East, and said the Crown Prince of France had already written in support of his position on Malta.

Fox learned from Count Zubov that Russia was preparing to ally with Persia and advance toward Afghanistan, while Zubov urged Britain to provoke conflict that could restore his command. In Paris, Joseph arranged an expedition to Egypt and persuaded Leroy to look for valuable discoveries there.

• Fox met Count Zubov, who revealed that Russia was stockpiling supplies at Orenburg and negotiating with Ali Shah.
• Zubov told Fox that General Nikolai Bakhov had assembled over twenty thousand Cossack Cavalry for an advance through Persia toward Afghanistan.
• Zubov urged Fox to persuade Persia to attack Russian forces and Georgia so the resulting crisis could help him regain command.
• Fox agreed that Zubov’s information and proposal would help him make the case for British policy.
• Joseph instructed Leroy to equip an expedition to Egypt with scientific instruments and transport ships.
• Joseph told Leroy about Egyptian Blue, a low-cost dye extracted from water lilies, to convince him Egypt could yield profitable discoveries.

Joseph planned France’s campaign in Egypt and the future Suez Canal, then toured four low-cost schools built in Paris by Viscount Dibisson and Miss Clary. He offered to help staff the schools, seeing them as a way to expand public education beyond the church’s control.

• Joseph calculated the economic opportunities of Egyptian goods and culture and considered how France could secure cooperation for building the Suez Canal.
• Joseph learned that Massena’s army was preparing to sail for Egypt while Selim III and the French-Spanish forces prepared coordinated attacks.
• Viscount Dibisson introduced Miss Clary, who had contributed most of the money for four schools serving children unable to afford private preparatory schools.
• Joseph toured the New Primary School and learned that it had eleven classrooms, six teachers, low tuition, and daily bread for students.
• Joseph offered to help the schools find teachers and proposed granting them government-employee status.

Joseph inspected Viscount Dibisson’s new primary school and addressed its lack of equipment and low enrollment as he prepared to expand the schools. Miss Clary then asked him for permission to travel to Elba Island.

• Joseph reviewed the new phonetic system, textbooks, and teaching guides prepared for the primary schools.
• At Dibisson’s school, Joseph found that students had no desks or chairs and donated ten thousand Francs to buy them.
• After learning enrollment was lower than expected, Joseph proposed providing each student with two loaves of bread daily, with government tax reductions to cover the cost.
• Joseph discussed opening more New Primary Schools with royal funding and considered how church reform could support nationwide education.
• As Joseph prepared to leave, Miss Clary knelt and asked permission to go to Elba Island.