Chapter 583: The Caribbean Strategy
The group walked along the edge of the sugar beet experimental fields. Joseph continued,
"So, by October next year, can we ensure a sufficient supply of sugar beets for the refinery?"
Achard, familiar with France's sugar production plans, confidently nodded.
"Yes, Your Highness. Members of the clergy are already learning planting techniques from me. As long as enough farmers cultivate sugar beets, a monthly output of 5,000 tons of sugar is merely the baseline."
Joseph nodded slightly.
With this assurance, his sugar strategy could move forward.
This time, he intended to strike Britain where it hurt most—deeply and decisively.
After inspecting wheat and corn hybrid experimental fields, he returned to Versailles.
Joseph planned to leave the next day for Brittany to advance the installation of steam engines on naval vessels, a project that might keep him there for some time. For now, he intended to dine with his parents—lest his mother complain about his prolonged absence again.
Coincidentally, Talleyrand was also at Versailles, making it convenient to discuss arrangements for the Caribbean.
An hour later, the Foreign Minister appeared in the Prince's receiving room—having come of his own volition.
After a quick bow, Talleyrand handed over a report.
"Your Highness, I was just about to head to the Tuileries to find you.
"This is an urgent dispatch from the Marquis Vida de la Bayettrie of Saint-Domingue, sent a month and a half ago.
"The Boukman insurgents are slaughtering plantation owners in the northern part of the island. Their numbers have grown to over a thousand. Meanwhile, Vincent Ogé is rallying sympathizers in Port-au-Prince to pressure the colonial assembly into hindering suppression efforts."
Joseph skimmed the report as Talleyrand elaborated, piecing together the situation in Saint-Domingue.
The primary threat was the Boukman movement—a black slave rebellion.
These insurgents practiced Vodou and harbored deep hatred for white colonists. Their flag even depicted the corpse of a white infant.
Wherever the Boukman movement spread, they killed all whites they encountered, often torturing them first—even those who supported abolition.
The source of their animosity was clear: they used the same brutal methods that plantation owners had once used to abuse slaves.
Vincent Ogé, leader of the abolitionist movement on the island, opposed the Boukman insurgents—who targeted him as well—but often used his political influence to aid black rebels out of sympathy.
As a result, multiple attempts by the Saint-Domingue governor to suppress the Boukman movement had failed.
This latest uprising was larger than ever, with hundreds of plantation owners and their families killed in the northern part of the island, spreading widespread fear.
Talleyrand, visibly anxious, urged:
"Your Highness, given the current situation in Saint-Domingue, I strongly recommend dispatching an expeditionary force immediately to restore order!"
His urgency was understandable—Saint-Domingue was immensely valuable to France.
France had traded the entirety of Canada—millions of square kilometers—for the small island, which generated annual trade revenues of 40 million francs. It also supplied most of France's and parts of Germany's sugar.
If the rebellion wasn't quelled quickly, France would lose tens of millions in income and be forced to buy Britain's overpriced sugar instead. The British would undoubtedly charge up to 10 francs per pound of sugar.
Joseph shook his head slightly.
He recalled that this uprising was the spark for what history called the Haitian Revolution.
Within months, Ogé himself would take up arms to lead the revolt, eventually giving rise to the truly formidable leader, Toussaint Louverture.
Louverture, born a slave, was a brilliant military commander. After the rebellion erupted, he led an army of black slaves and some mixed-race fighters to defeat the French forces on the island.
He then repelled Spanish and British armies, both of which sought to exploit the chaos to seize Saint-Domingue.
Eventually, Napoleon sent Charles Leclerc with 30,000 troops to suppress the revolt.
After intense battles, Leclerc resorted to deceit, feigning negotiations to capture Louverture.
However, Louverture's successor quickly crushed Leclerc's forces, and the French suffered over 30,000 casualties.
Given the high costs and risks, a military response to the rebellion was the worst option. The island's distance made troop deployment prohibitively expensive, and even a victory would severely strain French finances.
If this were the past, Joseph might have resorted to a divide-and-conquer strategy: granting freedom to slaves to split their ranks while encouraging the Catholic Church to launch a "holy war" against Vodou. This would have pacified the rebellion over a year or two.
But now, with Achard's sugar beets, he had entirely different options.
First, France could achieve sugar self-sufficiency, which provided a fallback.
Second, while France's Caribbean plantations generated around 40 million francs annually, Britain raked in 140 million francs from theirs.
Should Britain lose Trinidad and its West Indian colonies, they'd have no alternative sources of sugar. With Britain's massive sugar consumption, such a shortage could incite public unrest severe enough to topple the government.
Joseph turned to Talleyrand.
"I don't want to send troops to Saint-Domingue. Instead, I'd like you to go there."
"Me?" Talleyrand was startled. "Your Highness, if I may speak frankly, the blacks there have no inclination to negotiate."
"That's because we've offered them too little." Joseph smiled. "What if we handle it this way..."
After explaining his plan, Talleyrand's anxiety faded, replaced by deep contemplation.
"Your Highness, while your plan is undeniably risky, the potential rewards are extraordinary."
He shook his head suddenly.
"However, I am not the right person to execute this plan. My current position would draw immediate attention from the British the moment I step onto the island."
Joseph nodded after a moment's thought.
"Do you have someone in mind for the task?"
"Jacques Pierre Brissot," Talleyrand replied without hesitation. "He's a fervent abolitionist, highly capable, erudite, and an excellent orator."
"Brissot?" Joseph quickly recalled the name. Brissot was one of the leaders of the Girondins, known for drafting petitions to depose the King. Once in power, he advocated war against Britain, the Netherlands, and Spain.
Talleyrand elaborated:
"He previously worked as a secretary for the Duke of Orléans, which has hindered his career in government. However, I understand that his ties to the Duke are not particularly deep."
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