Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1365 Helpless and absent-minded

In May 1664, when local leaders were discussing whether it was time to end the war with the Portuguese and adjust the country's strategic center, Sicily, thousands of miles away in the Mediterranean Sea, was stationed in the Republic of China on the East Coast. European Plenipotentiary Envoy Zheng Yong is treating Prince Pedro, a delegation of the Kingdom of Portugal, and his party who are eager to request the resumption of peace negotiations with a calm attitude.

In the second half of last year, because Zheng Yong had too much disagreement with the Portuguese, he finally interrupted the negotiations between the two parties and returned to Amsterdam.Afterwards, he went to the Baltic Sea on a ship of the merchant station, and dealt with the affairs of the Riga merchant station. At the same time, he briefly visited the Principality of Courland and Brandenburg-Prussia, which had relatively close commercial relations with the east coast. He further deepened the foundation of in-depth cooperation between the two countries with Grand Duke Jacob, and exchanged views with the "speculator king" Frederick Elector on the situation in the Baltic Sea.

Later, he even wanted to go to Moscow or Arkhangelsk, but considering that it was already the middle of winter and the Russian Empire was freezing, he left Riga and returned to Amsterdam-and after leaving Before, he even planned to visit Poland, but considering that the relationship between the two countries is still relatively cold, he gave up and hurried back to the East Coast Commercial Station of the United Provinces, planning to return to the Mediterranean after the new year to see the Inexplicably proud of the Portuguese head, has it become more sober?

And at the beginning of January 1664, when he was about to leave by boat, several Dutch businessmen who knew him successively revealed an amazing news: a British company called the Royal Explorer African Trading Company had attacked in West Africa. In some strongholds of the United Provinces, the West India Company suffered heavy losses. The employees of the company who escaped by chance have complained to the Vlissingen City Council, the Zeeland Provincial Council, and the Hague three-level council respectively, asking the United Provinces to make decisions for them. Crack down on the arrogant British "pirates" (this scolded the shareholders of the Royal Explorer African Trading Company and the Duke of York together...), and demanded huge compensation to recover their losses.

The three-level parliament exploded at that time, and members of the parliament spoke one after another. Some advocated declaring war on the United Kingdom, some disagreed, some advocated reciprocal retaliation, and some believed that we should stay calm and fight against the British first. Claiming compensation and so on, in short, it was a mess-it was also in line with the "vegetable market" style of the three-level council-in short, the last three-level council did not negotiate anything, but agreed to be led by Admiral Michelle Adrianson de Ruyter advanced the request to recover the West African stronghold, and clearly stated that the naval departments of the provinces of Zeeland and Holland were responsible for arranging ships, personnel and armaments.

This arrangement undoubtedly caused a war of words, because the two provincial councilors felt that the other provinces were also obliged to pay for the dispatch, which naturally got the support of OberiJssel, Gelderland, Utrecht, Vladivostok. The ruthless rejection of Lislan and other provincial councilors.They all said that the provinces of Holland and Zeeland have always been lying on their bodies to suck blood, and it is right to pay more at this time. Naturally, this unsatisfactory remark was unanimously countered by the two provincial councilors, and then they got close to Oran. The member of the Zhi family came out to make sarcastic remarks, which led to the split of the four provincial members who were united just now. The entire three-level parliament fell into dark debates and verbal battles for several days, and the efficiency was horribly low...

The disorderly state of the third-level council lasted until the day Zheng Yong left Amsterdam on January 1664, 1. According to some well-informed businessmen later, the third-level council finally decided that Admiral Ruyter would lead a group of The fleet went to the waters of West Africa to recover the strongholds occupied by the British. At the same time, the three-level parliament also authorized Ruyter to "properly punish" the British to let them know how bad the attack on the West India Company was. .By the way, the military expenses for this troop dispatch are jointly borne by the provinces of the Netherlands and Zeeland, of which the province of the Netherlands bears 8%, which shows its consistent nature of "being taken advantage of".

Of course, the rich men of the third-level parliament who are afraid of an all-out war with the British may not have imagined what will happen to the authorization given to Admiral Ruyter, and they are busy fighting with words all day. , How brave is a real man at sea, so that he dared to take a small fleet to attack Barbados, England's most important stronghold in the Caribbean at this time-although he failed in the end, he was still scared The British jumped and indirectly contributed to the escalation of tensions.

In early February 1664, Zheng Yong, who arrived in the Western Mediterranean, did not land in the port of Palermo, but went directly to Pisa, visited Parma, Tuscany, Milan and other places along the way, and finally took time to meet with a friend from Lucca. Group of businessmen.The talks with these Italian businessmen are generally quite pleasant. After all, many of them have not been cooperating with the East Bank for a day or two, and they have made a lot of money, so in the end, it is basically a good time for both guests and hosts.It not only deepened the mutual relationship, but also attracted the interest of some Italian businessmen who did not know much about the East Coast. These people made it clear that they were willing to go to the East Bank for investigation and investigation, and if they had the opportunity, they would also be willing to invest. Zheng Yong naturally expressed his gratitude for this.

Zheng Yong, who inadvertently contributed to many investments from Italy, did not board the ship from the port of Livorno until late April, and then arrived at the port of Palermo in Sicily. The prince and his party are conducting a new round of negotiations on the long-delayed peace talks between the two countries.

Perhaps the Portuguese also knew about the fierce conflict between Britain and the Netherlands in West Africa—it was almost inevitable—so their expressions were not very good, especially Prince Pedro, the leader. The face of His Majesty Alfonso's younger brother looked like a poker card, without any expression, which may confirm his mood at the moment from one side.After all, a huge scapegoat that is likely to sign an agreement with the yellow-skinned heretics to "forfeit power and humiliate the country" will fall on him. I am afraid that no one will be happy if it is changed.

Paul from the Doria family was very enthusiastic. He first said some romantic words to enliven the atmosphere on the negotiating table, and then mentioned in casual words that in the previous negotiations, there were basically no major issues that were confirmed by both parties. Different agreements, namely: Article 20 of the terms of peace negotiations proposed by the people on the east coast, the release of both parties captured during the war; Article [-], the Portuguese open their own country and overseas colonial markets to the east coast merchants, and give them the same as other countries Equal tariffs, but they must be passed through by Portuguese businessmen, that is, if people from the east coast want to enter these markets, they must find Portuguese agents to cooperate; Article [-] allows fishermen on the east coast to fish in the offshore waters of Brazil; Article [-]. Merchants and diplomats on the east coast are allowed to freely believe in Taoism and participate in religious activities in the Kingdom of Portugal and its overseas territories. However, without the permission of the Portuguese, people from the east coast are not allowed to preach in their territories without authorization; Article [-], The Almeida family, which had stolen the poor technology of the East Coast steam engine, was fined [-] cruzados to compensate the East Coast people for their economic losses.

The above five items were actually confirmed a long time ago. Before the start of this negotiation, Paul Doria, the intermediary, jumped out and read it out again. After the negotiators of both parties expressed no objection to confirm it, he invited all parties. The representatives and entourage sat down and began to discuss the first five items.

To be honest, the time of the firefight in West Africa shocked the Portuguese quite a lot. The country of their in-laws, which they relied on as their thighs, suddenly fought with the "sea coachman" for gold, ivory and slaves. The so-called United Provinces are at war, which makes everyone in Lisbon a little confused. What the hell is going on!It was also said that the army would be sent to Brazil to help us defend Bahia and Pernambuco (it was true that a small part was sent, and some were intercepted on the way...), but now you are actually making a film with someone else , Nirvana, that is the United Provinces, a rich and powerful man, why did you get into it so quickly?

The problem is that we don't care who you beat up, but you have to help the little brother clean his ass first, right?You know, we are now fighting with a vicious pagan country, fighting from the Far East to India, from East Africa to West Africa, and then from South America to Portugal. The huge overseas colonial empire is on the east coast. You are on the verge of falling under the attack, why don't you help us settle the matter first?Well now, you've got mixed up with others, and it seems that you won't be able to get out of it in a short time, so what do you want us to do?

Therefore, it is conceivable how helpless the Portuguese are now. Some conditions that were completely unacceptable to them do not seem to be so unquestionable now.On the other hand, on the side of the people on the east coast, Zheng Yong's mind at this time is actually only half on the negotiation venue. He will pay more attention to it, no doubt all the news related to the possible war between Britain and the Netherlands, because of this matter It is also very important to the East Coast Republic of China, and its importance has even surpassed the peace negotiations between the East and Portugal that the overall situation has been determined at this time-the East Coast people urgently need to grab benefits from the Second Anglo-Dutch War!

The Nth round of talks and negotiations between the two parties started under such a helpless or absent-minded rhythm, and perhaps it confirmed the major changes in the previous international situation. The negotiator of the Kingdom of Portugal, Prince Pedro, came up Just give Zheng Yong a big "surprise": After Zheng Yong read out the request of the East Coast Republic of China to the Kingdom of Portugal to cede territory according to the scriptures, the Portuguese "twitched" and said that the border between the two countries on the Brazilian side It can be pushed northward to the front line of Porto Seguro, that is, from here to the south is the territory of the east coast, and to the north is the territory of Brazil, which basically meets the bottom line requirements of the local government for Zheng Yong.

Considering that this is the third time for the Portuguese to make concessions on the Brazilian border issue, the possibility of further concessions is obviously not high, because then the Bahia General District, where the capital of Portuguese Brazil is located, will also be ceded to the people on the east coast. Yes, this is obviously impossible!Therefore, after talking back and forth with them for a long time, Zheng Yong pretended to be dissatisfied and lightly let it go, and agreed to the Portuguese proposal to use Porto Seguro as the boundary. The first clause of the peace talks , so far the dust has settled.

After talking about this point, the following is still a very critical question about the Cape Verde Islands.For this important node that the navy attaches great importance to and repeatedly asked to win, Zheng Yong did not dare to neglect, and he worked hard to deal with them with all his energy.In fact, the negotiations have reached today, no matter how stupid the Portuguese are, they have a clearer understanding of some bottom-line requirements on the east coast. For example, they now know very well that the people on the east coast must want the Cape Verde Islands, otherwise the negotiations may break down again. They can't afford the consequences!

It is also because of this that, although they are extremely reluctant, this time the Portuguese are finally willing to discuss the status of the Cape Verde Islands, instead of not being willing to mention it as before. The attitude has changed a lot, which can be seen.As a result, the negotiators of the two sides quarreled for another half a day on the status of Cape Verde. The islands were divided and ruled, including San Antang Island, San Vicente Island, San Nicola Island, and Sal Island. Seven islands have since come under the jurisdiction of the East Coast Republic of China, including Santiago Island, Fogo Island, and Mayo Island. The other eight islands, including Boavista Island, Brava Island, etc., are still under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Portugal, which means that the two sides each have half, each compromised a step, and barely reached an agreement-so far, the second clause of the peace talks , East and Portugal have also reached an agreement.

As for the arrangements for Angola, Macau, Mozambique and other places, in fact, as early as last year's peace talks, the two sides had almost reached an agreement. Generally speaking, the two sides had little difference. Therefore, after dinner, the two sides spent less than one Within hours, an agreement was reached on this, that is, the Kingdom of Portugal ceded the city of Lorenzo Marquis and its adjacent territory (that is, the Yicheng area of ​​​​the people on the east bank), and the rest of the area remained the territory of the Kingdom of Portugal; ceded ten miles south of the Congo River The land of Courland was given to the Principality of Courland, and the two countries used this as the boundary; Macau was still under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Portugal-these three land redistribution agreements basically agreed on the third article of the peace talks, and now the remaining What was left was nothing more than Articles 5 and 10. The two parties agreed to discuss it the next day (that is, May [-]).

Silent all night.

On May 1664, 5, negotiators from Portugal and the East Coast sat down again in the winery of the Doria family to discuss in detail the last two items of the peace talks. The problem.In fact, during the negotiation last year, Zheng Yong had let it go, but recently, after exchanging some diplomatic letters with the mainland, he felt that it was necessary to take it out and beat the Portuguese. What kind of fortress to build and how many troops to station (no matter how many are stationed there are not as many troops on the east coast, and if there are more, they may not be able to support them...), but there is one thing, you can't unscrupulously invite a large number of people who have malicious intentions towards the East China Republic. If there are any foreign troops stationed here, they must report to the East Coast side and obtain permission in advance, otherwise the East Coast people reserve all the rights to move freely.

The Portuguese are naturally very dissatisfied with being so arrogant on the east coast. Gein did not treat the Kingdom of Portugal in the same position at all, and treated them as a child who could scold them at will, so they raised serious protest.But who is Zheng Yong? He has participated in the negotiation for so many years, and he has known these harsh European nobles better than their own mothers. Therefore, he insisted that he would not give in. There is a feeling that you can try to interrupt the negotiation again!

Paul Doria, the mediator, came on the stage at this time. He participated in the entire negotiation process and pointed out that it was not easy for the two sides to talk about it today. He also did not want the negotiation to fall short when it was close to completion, so he hoped that both parties could deal with this matter calmly. Don't cause harm to the overall situation of the country because of emotional disputes.

Paul Doria's words sounded nothing to Zheng Yong, the special envoy on the east coast, but to Prince Pedro from Portugal, the feeling was much more complicated.Isn't that right? Those words were originally heard by people who talked about the Kingdom of Portugal. What else do you have now?There are quite a few warships and armed merchant ships at the mouth of the Tejo River, but does any one dare to sail out of the port to fight the people on the east coast?Probably not!Your army sounds mighty and mighty. It has defeated the Castilian army continuously, and the number seems to be quite large, but the question is, can you swim across the sea to trouble the people on the east coast?I'm afraid it won't work either!

Well then, since this doesn’t work, then that doesn’t work either, what are you still insisting on?Ridiculously decent?Can it be eaten as a meal?The Portuguese naturally had nothing to say after asking themselves so much, so they finally agreed to the article proposed by the people on the east bank. So far, the fourth article of the peace agreement (this part has been modified) is also a difficult battle between East and Portugal. After back and forth negotiations, an agreement was finally reached.

If this one is done, then only the final compensation is left.On this issue, during the negotiation last year, the Portuguese expressed their willingness to pay 100 million cruzados in compensation to compensate the people on the east coast for their war expenses (together with the fine of 20 cruzados from the Almeida family) .At that time, Zheng Yong did not agree, because it was far from reaching the negotiation bottom line of 200 million cruzados given by the mainland, not to mention the astronomical figure of 500 million cruzados he called out at the beginning, which dropped too much all of a sudden. , this face is not good-looking, so the negotiation was not reached at that time, and then the negotiation was interrupted.

And this negotiation may be the reason for the aggravated sense of crisis. The sincerity shown by the Portuguese is quite sufficient: Prince Pedro expressed on behalf of the Kingdom of Portugal that he is willing to give China East Coast Republic 200 million cruzados (Note: Silver grams Luzardo) to compensate for the various losses of the East Coasters during the war.

Zheng Yong, the special negotiating envoy of the Dong'an people, was actually somewhat satisfied with this, and basically agreed with this price in his heart.But the so-called negotiation, isn't it just asking for a price and paying back the money after landing!The Portuguese are willing to give 200 million cruzado, if I really agree, wouldn't I be a fool!We must talk again!

Ever since, Zheng Yong and Prince Pedro negotiated many times around the specific amount of war reparations, just like the aunts in the vegetable market.Helplessly, the pockets of the Portuguese were not rich, and they owed a whole lot of debt to the Jewish bankers. Therefore, the bargaining process was relatively difficult. It was not until noon that the two sides finally set the amount of war reparations at 230 million Cruzado's numbers let everyone breathe a sigh of relief, this Nima is really too tired.

When the negotiation process reaches this point, the task is basically completed.As an intermediary, Paul Doria did not delay, and immediately wrote three peace treaties in Portuguese, Chinese, and Latin—"Palermo Peace Treaty"—the three peace treaties, each of which was kept by the three parties, and then Zheng Yong , Prince Pedro and Paul Doria each signed their names on the three peace treaties.As for when these peace treaties will come into effect, it still needs to be approved by the governments of the East Coast Republic of China and the Kingdom of Portugal. In the meantime, the two sides are still in a state of war.

(End of this chapter)