novelraw Chapter 271: Immigration and Trade
Chapter 271: Immigration and Trade
Returning to his office, Wigg continued processing official documents. First on the agenda was the financial expenditure for the first half of the year, with the largest expenses stemming from the war and immigration.
From the moment the standing army marched out, the war had lasted for over three months. Grain was provided locally by Ireland, while the remaining expenses were borne by the Royal family. It amounted to approximately three thousand four hundred pounds, which remained within an acceptable range.
Next was the expenditure regarding immigration.
Last year's turmoil in Northern Europe had severely devastated production in central and southern Denmark, resulting in widespread famine and causing numerous refugees to flood into Britain. By August, this year's immigrants exceeded twenty-seven thousand, all of whom had been settled in Cambridge and East Anglia.
Counting these Viking compatriots and the local residents of the newly established East Anglia county, the population of the directly governed territories had reached seven hundred and seventy thousand, of which Viking immigrants accounted for about two hundred and ten thousand.
To resettle the new arrivals, the Cabinet had spent three thousand two hundred pounds, primarily on purchasing clothing and cheap grain like barley and oats, as well as constructing temporary housing.
Moving forward, the Cabinet planned to recruit a portion of the immigrants to build various infrastructure projects, which was estimated to require an additional appropriation of two thousand pounds.
After spending half an hour flicking the beads of his abacus, Wigg found no errors or omissions and let out a helpless murmur.
"My money. The savings I worked so hard to accumulate are gone in the blink of an eye."
That evening, Wigg yawned as he walked into the dining hall, unexpectedly catching sight of Hrogeir. Compared to their last meeting, the man was dark and gaunt, looking even more haggard than Fridleif, who had been fighting a war for three months."Hey, did you get sold to a mine?"
Hearing the tease, Hrogeir forced a pitiful expression and recounted his experiences over the recent period.
Ever since receiving the King's promise, Hrogeir had spent a fortune to purchase a two-masted brigantine, hiring a captain and forty sailors to explore the uncharted archipelagos in the waters west of Iberia.
These islands were located deep in the ocean. Legend had it that Arab merchant ships had visited the area, but these were merely baseless rumors, unfit to serve as navigational references. The difficulty of this exploration was far higher than their initial journey to the Canary Islands near the African coastline.
At the beginning of the year, the expedition ship had set out from the Canaries, making three successive forays deep into the ocean. Along the way, they encountered violent storms that swept four unlucky sailors into the depths. Coupled with the attrition of ten men lost to disease, morale plummeted to a breaking point.
In June, the ship returned to Sun Island, where the crew announced a collective resignation. Even raising their commission could not sway them. Left with no other choice, Hrogeir promised to board the ship himself, leading his employees on one final westward exploration.
For a time after that, the exploration vessel continued to wander aimlessly across the sea. One day, the lookout spotted a flock of black dots flying across the distant horizon, and the ship immediately changed course, sailing due north.
Two days later, a lush archipelago covered in vast forests appeared ahead. The sky was filled with circling albatrosses and grey pigeons, while sperm whales occasionally breached the ocean surface. Pods of dolphins chased the rolling waves, and seals rested along the shores.
The expedition ship sailed toward the largest island. After coming ashore, Hrogeir and twelve sailors donned their armor and cautiously ventured inland.
At first, some mistook the mist lingering in the mountains for cooking smoke, scaring themselves half to death. But after four days of exploration, they found no roads or farmlands of any kind.
The archipelago was entirely uninhabited. Hrogeir was in high spirits; to commemorate the flock of pigeons that had guided their way, he named the place the Grey Pigeon Islands.
Having completed his exploration, Hrogeir returned to the Canaries. He hired hundreds of Guanches, putting them on the Sugarcane Company's ships to head for the Grey Pigeon Islands to construct houses and a temporary port.
After dealing with various trivial matters, Hrogeir ignored his exhaustion and transported cane sugar and sugarcane rum back to Londinium. After listening to this tale of adventure, Wigg asked for two crucial pieces of information: the archipelago's climate and its approximate area.
Hrogeir scratched his head, his tone slightly hesitant. "The local climate is similar to the Canary Islands and Lisbon. There are nine islands in total, generally quite small. I estimate it's only about a third the size of the Canaries."
(The area of the Grey Pigeon/Azores Islands is 2,344 square kilometers, while the Canary Islands are 7,273 square kilometers.)
Sensing the other party's unease, Wigg fulfilled his promise and enfeoffed him as the hereditary Baron of the region.
"Thank you for your generosity! My descendants shall pledge their loyalty to the Tynemouth family for generations to come."
A barony met Hrogeir's expectations. As a wealthy merchant lacking in military merit, he knew he wasn't qualified to become a great noble. Being granted the title of Baron was already an exceptional reward.
The days ahead were still long, and Hrogeir pinned his hopes on his sons. As long as they did their jobs steadily, with their blood ties to Crown Prince Fridleif, advancing from a Baron to an Earl wouldn't be a problem. After all, the archipelago's area already met the standards of an Earldom.
Moreover, the Grey Pigeon Islands held immense development potential. In the early stages, they could hunt whales and seals, selling whale oil and hides to Britain. By utilizing these funds to recruit settlers and establish plantations, they could later reap massive profits from various cash crops.
Looking at the grinning Hrogeir, Wigg suddenly remembered the red dye desperately needed by the textile industry and suggested planting madder there. Hrogeir readily agreed.
Due to poor management, Hrogeir's textile workshop had been forced out of business by merchant guilds led by Harry, Pontilan, and others. He had engraved this humiliation into his heart. If he could one day control the source of red dye, he swore to enact a proper revenge against a certain competitor.
"Your Majesty, everything will be done according to your commands. I will prioritize planting madder; things like grapes and citrus can be put on hold for now."
Witnessing Hrogeir's sudden excitement, Wigg said nothing more and lowered his head to enjoy his dinner.
The next day, Wigg chaired a Cabinet meeting. Judging by the comprehensive reports from the various ministers, the situation in Britain was developing steadily.
Meanwhile, the situation in West Francia was excellent. Taking advantage of the internal strife in East Francia, Charles the Bald dispatched troops to force the three splinter kingdoms of Middle Francia into submission. He then sent envoys to divide and disintegrate the strength of East Francia, keeping the three brothers—including Carloman—in a state of equilibrium, effectively checking and balancing one another.
Through a series of extortions and diplomatic conspiracies, Charles the Bald secured the nominal allegiance of Middle Francia and East Francia. He declared himself the Emperor of Rome and King of all the Franks, his prestige skyrocketing.
"Tsk, tsk. An uncle bullying his nephews. This man really has no scruples."
Wigg's tone was light and brisk, completely devoid of worry.
Although Charles the Bald currently boasted tremendous momentum, the territory he actually controlled was quite small, limited to the Paris Basin and the Loire River valley.
On the northern shores of the Channel, the Tynemouth family possessed twelve counties under their direct rule in Britain. The Five Northern Counties (Scotland) covered a vast expanse of land, directly accounting for 78,000 square kilometers. Combined with Teyne, York, Nottingham, Tamworth, Cambridge, East Anglia, and Londinium, the Crown Lands encompassed roughly forty percent of the entire kingdom.
In the original timeline, when William I the Conqueror seized England (an area of 130,000 square kilometers), he designated only a fifth of the country as Crown Lands, amounting to a mere 26,000 square kilometers.
Judging by the proportion of Crown Lands, the situation Wigg faced was far better than that of his historical counterparts on the English and French thrones.
Time was on his side.