week 2 - extension of war Flashcards
french alliance
vergennes believed that france could reclaim fisheries off north america and that the french colonies in the west indies might be retained
wanted to reduce british power to re establish the primacy of france in europe
no war should be undertaken unless success seemed likely
vergennes sent beaumarchais to london with instructions to listen carefully and report accurately
sent secret aid to america in spring 1776
always the risk that france and spain would insert themselves into america as new masters
benjamin franklin
if he had been caught crossing to france, he would’ve bene hanged
encircled by spies - intercepted his mail in transit
fought a war of disinformation with france, with little help from america
congressional dispatches were intercepted more often than not, which meant that franklin was generally starved for news. for the first year he heard almost nothing from congress; what he did hear was by no means uplifting. engaged in a war of propaganda in which his very person qualified as a weapon. french press was tightly controlled by the state. fortunately vergennes had every interest in
helping franklin, more so than even franklin suspected.
middle of 1778 - franklin’s job consisted not in soliciting secret aid for america but in sustaining an alliance that was ill-advised and, in the end, ruinously expensive for france. consisted of fending off a most extraordinary number of callers and correspondents: the mail arrived in torrents; the visitors were unceasing, as were the solicitations of those who wanted to fight in america. a dazzling array of benevolent souls could supply top-quality blankets, shoes, beer, folding tables, playing cards, healing powders, at attractive prices.
for every frenchman who hoped to open a sugar refinery in philadelphia or a glass manufactory in virginia, there was another who was running away from his multiple wives, or who inquired if it were true that vast tracts of land in america were being distributed for free.
followed by the industrious souls who had devised the means to blow up gibraltar, a method to transform ordinary table salt into saltpetre, liquids that could fireproof wood.
most of europe looked upon Franklin’s home as a kind of political shrine; every hard-luck story in europe came his way, along with volumes of unsolicited advice.
