Chapter 661: Monopolizing Mediterranean Trade
"I understand your good intentions," Melika Muhammad stated, adjusting his massive white turban and straightening his back. "However, His Great Majesty the Sultan has decided that our nation's trade will align entirely with Great Britain."
Talleyrand shook his head. "The maiden you are so enamored with may still be smiling sweetly at you, but what you may not know is that she has already turned around to rendezvous with your enemy.
"Ah, I mean, the one who seized the northern peninsula from your home."
The northernmost peninsula of the Ottoman Empire was only Crimea, so he was clearly referring to Russia.
Melika Muhammad narrowed his eyes. "Trade between Britain and Russia has always been close, yet this hasn't prevented the increasing number of British merchant ships arriving in Constantinople.
"Furthermore, Britain's significant commercial influence over Russia might, at times, even help us counterbalance Russia."
"Haha," Talleyrand chuckled heartily. "You truly harbor expectations for a woman who has changed her heart?
"Oh, you just mentioned merchant ships.
"I almost forgot, my primary purpose in seeing you this time is to discuss merchant vessels."
"I must remind you, my nation merely eradicated pirates. And these pirates, moreover, originated from Anatolia. It was out of gratitude for our righteous actions that the Duke of Tunisia decided to pledge allegiance to His Majesty the King." Talleyrand first retorted with righteous indignation, then adopted a businesslike expression,
"Let us return to the matter of merchant ships. You must be well aware that rowers boarding in Mitidja will exhaust their strength by the time they reach Egypt at the latest. Afterwards, they must either stop in the Port of Alexandria for several days or take on new rowers there.
"Either way, the cost of transport will significantly increase."
Melika Muhammad seemed to be losing patience. "Such minor costs are acceptable, Mr. Talleyrand. If you intend to use this as a bargaining chip, I'm afraid..."
Talleyrand inhaled deeply the aroma of the coffee in his cup, a look of rapture on his face. "Such fragrant and mellow coffee cannot even be found in Versailles. Oh, if this cup of coffee could be delivered to France within six days, I believe its selling price could reach as high as 1 franc."
"Six days?" The Grand Vizier shook his head. "Even an emergency voyage wouldn't achieve that speed, and it would make the cost of this cup of coffee exceed 8 francs."
When people think of coffee, they often envision European coffee culture, subconsciously assuming it to be the center of the coffee trade.
In reality, the Ottoman Empire was the coffee hegemon of the era. From Yemen to Ethiopia, the Ottomans produced over a third of the coffee demanded by Europe. This coffee was also a vital Ottoman export.
Less than a century prior, that figure was 90%! It wasn't until Indonesia and America began cultivating coffee on a large scale that the Ottoman monopoly was broken. However, Yemeni coffee, in both quality and price, continued to stand unchallenged.
The "emergency voyage" Melika Muhammad mentioned referred to pushing rowers to their limits, forcing ships to cross the Mediterranean Sea at maximum speed, a method typically reserved for urgent messages.
Applying such a method to commerce, however, would result in prohibitively high costs.
As he had just stated, a cup of coffee priced at 8 francs. In the Ottoman ports of the Levant, its cost wouldn't exceed 2 sous; the rest was entirely the cost of the rowers.
Talleyrand leisurely swirled his coffee cup and smiled. "What if my merchant ships could maintain a speed of over 8 knots without using rowers?"
"How could that be?" Melika Muhammad dismissed with a wave of his hand. "Sails alone cannot achieve such speeds."
"Indeed. However, it can be achieved with coal. Steamships from Brittany have already entered production and can reach here from France in just six days." Talleyrand looked at him, a hint of triumph in his voice.
He chuckled. "The cost is only slightly higher than that of ordinary galley-frigates. Oh, and if British ships resupply in Algiers, their costs would actually exceed those of a steamship."
Indeed, while steam paddleboats were primarily designed for inland river navigation, they were perfectly usable in the calm waters of the Mediterranean Sea.
Of course, currently, only Tunisia along the Mediterranean coast possessed minor coal deposits, making coaling stations along the route very difficult to establish. Merchant ships would therefore have to carry significant amounts of coal, reducing their cargo capacity.
Yet, this did not deter Talleyrand from impressing the Ottomans with a promising future.
After he had signed a trade promotion agreement with Muhammad Ali and returned to Marseille, he learned that the Brest shipyard had begun producing steam paddleboats. He immediately realized this could be used to renegotiate trade with the Ottomans.
However, the primary reason for his haste to return to Constantinople was a diplomatic mission concerning the Polish situation, entrusted to him by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
Melika Muhammad's eyes suddenly widened. "Are you serious?"
"You see, I am the most candid of men." Talleyrand gestured to the west. "A steam transport ship will arrive at the port in three days. You can go see for yourself.
"Oh, that ship only departed Nantes when I left Marseille. It traversed more than half of France, yet it will arrive only three days after me."
A tempest of emotions immediately surged in Melika Muhammad's heart.
If such a ship truly existed—one that required no rowers and could maintain high speeds—it was foreseeable that Mediterranean shipping would soon be monopolized by it!
It was crucial to understand that the greatest limiting factor for galley-frigates was not cost, but rowers.
Whether in the Port of Alexandria or the ports of the Levant, countless merchant ships could be seen queuing daily, waiting to hire rowers. Wealthy ship owners, of course, might purchase enslaved people to row, but those costs would skyrocket, and even enslaved people required regular rest to replenish their strength.
Therefore, any cargo owner wishing to transport goods to Italy or France would undoubtedly choose steamships, whose voyages were unrestricted.
Moreover, steamships were inherently much faster—an ordinary galley-frigate typically required 12 days, or even half a month, to travel from Constantinople to Marseille.
No wonder the limping man before him spoke with such confidence, claiming France would become the Ottoman Empire's largest trading partner.
They certainly couldn't gobble up the entire market, but soon, even the meat from their own shops might have to be transported and sold using French ships.
With such a vast disparity in cost and efficiency, no prohibition would prove effective. Ottoman merchant ships would carry goods out of port and immediately transfer them to steamships waiting offshore. Anyone who failed to do so would lose their competitive edge among their peers.
The Grand Vizier suddenly thought of a problem, raising a hand to press down on Talleyrand's coffee cup. "The British will not sit idly by and allow you to monopolize Mediterranean shipping. Their fleet will control the entire Aegean Sea, right up to the Gulf of Sidra."
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