The Fox of France

Over the years, the Irish Sea has become the only significantly broad area where British warships could maneuver freely. The training of Britain's new warships almost exclusively took place in these waters. This naturally led to fierce skirmishes at the two exits of the Irish Sea.

In the North Channel, the French acted swiftly, capturing the Isle of Islay. The British, realizing this development, bolstered their defenses a bit further south at Campbeltown.

Campbeltown is a peninsula stretching out into the sea from Scotland and is the narrowest point of the North Channel, where the width narrows to just twenty kilometers. Here, the British laid mines—naturally, they left a safe passage for themselves.

From the French-controlled Isle of Islay to the Irish coast, the narrowest part spans thirty-seven kilometers, although navigable routes are not this wide. The French also mined these waters, maintaining a safe passage for themselves.

Each night, French minesweepers would set out from the Isle of Islay towards Campbeltown to clear mines; British minesweepers would head from Campbeltown towards the Isle of Islay to do the same. During the day, the French would replace their mines, and the British would do likewise on their side. Naturally, on public holidays, everyone rested.

What truly worried the French was the channel on the eastern side of the Isle of Islay. Turning east from the Isle of Islay towards the Tynish direction, there was another channel entirely under British control, about six kilometers wide at its narrowest point of three kilometers. This channel, fraught with hidden reefs, was previously unnavigable. But now, during these extraordinary times, who knew?

For a while, the French attempted to lay mines there too. However, the previous night, their crew set out on a minesweeper and returned three days later in a lifeboat—they had hit a reef before they could deploy a single mine. So, unfamiliar with the channel, navigating there was as perilous as entering a minefield, whether by day or night.

French scouts were sent to monitor this channel and discovered the British indeed used it—although only for small ships. According to the scouts' reports, they heard explosions in the area—likely the British clearing the channel to prepare for larger ships entering the Irish Sea.

This slender channel's exit was about a hundred kilometers from the Isle of Islay anchorage. A fleet couldn't possibly guard both the Isle of Islay exit and another exit a hundred kilometers away. To block them, the French had to barricade the British fleet outside the narrow waters of the Campbeltown exit. Otherwise, once the British fleet broke free, they could rush into the North Sea before the French main fleet arrived, sweeping through the Danish straits and displacing the cruisers blockading Britain's coastline. More critically, just their presence in the open sea, even if they did nothing, would force the French to concentrate their fleet to seek them out and guard their own shipping lanes, effectively ending the naval blockade against Britain.

Considering the domestic situation in Britain, which couldn't be sustained for long, the blockade needed to be broken quickly. According to various intelligence, if the blockade wasn't broken within a month, a large-scale revolution was highly likely. Therefore, the British fleet was expected to act within this fortnight.

Thus, the French main fleet stationed at Carroll Harbour in Ireland began to move, part of it heading south to blockade the Strait of St. George. The Strait of St. George had the best hydrographic conditions; once the British fleet emerged there, the threat to French coastal shipping lines would be greatest. Additionally, if anything went wrong, it was also the easiest place to retreat. Hence, the French were always most vigilant here. Even normally, several specially enhanced colonial cruisers (fitted with larger steam engines and fewer weapons and coal to increase speed) were stationed in the strait. Their task was to immediately report the British fleet's movements via radio and keep track of them if spotted. Therefore, these cruisers were nicknamed "light bulbs."

Another fleet headed north to the Isle of Islay anchorage.

The Isle of Islay had a favorable bay for sheltering from the wind, but turning it into a port was challenging. The bay was surrounded by typical glacial terrain, with cliffs on all sides except the entrance. It was impossible to build a large port there.

However, the French did have a

small port nearby for the island's army and minesweepers. Additionally, they had long-term moorings for two large coal ships in the bay to support any future fleets that might anchor there. Even so, a large fleet could only be supported there for a limited time since it was not a port.

On the other hand, the fleet could stay there for two to three months without issues. Given Britain's current situation, it would likely struggle to last a few more months.

In fact, during this time, the British government had already expressed its intentions for peace to France through neutral countries. Although the British felt they were sincere, the French thought their sincerity was insufficient.

For example, the British offered to return to France the colonies ceded to Britain after the Seven Years' War, including those in India, and agreed to abolish the Navigation Acts to enable free trade. In the eyes of the British, this was a significant gesture of goodwill, even a surprise.

But the French felt that if the British had shown such sincerity before the Battle of the North Atlantic, it would indeed have been a pleasant surprise, but now, now they dared to call this a surprise?

The French then presented their terms:

1. The British domestic market must be fully open to France and other European nations, lifting all restrictions on foreign capital. All trade disputes should be arbitrated fairly by the Roman Empire's Trade Arbitration Commission, rather than through unilateral actions.

2. Britain must amend its domestic laws to align with international trade laws and accept supervision from European nations.

3. Like France, Britain must enact labor laws to protect workers' rights.

4. Britain must adopt an attitude of religious freedom, abolish the state church, allow any legal religion to proselytize in Britain, and not discriminate against or persecute followers of other religions. On this point, Britain must accept oversight from a Religious Freedom Committee, including the Holy See.

5. The sizes of the British navy and army must be limited. The navy may no longer keep any warships with a displacement over five thousand tons. Coastal fortifications such as artillery batteries must be dismantled within a specified time. The army must hire French instructors and follow French guidance.

6. All British colonies must be placed under the trusteeship of the Roman Empire to ensure the human rights of the colonial people are not violated.

...

In all, the French made up to twenty-one demands. It is said that when Foreign Minister Talleyrand disclosed these demands during a secret negotiation codenamed "Plane Tree" to the British representatives, after reading these twenty-one points, the British representatives were incensed and slammed the table, exclaiming: "This isn't a peace offer; this is a thorough attempt to annihilate Britain. These twenty-one articles are the twenty-one clauses to annihilate Britain!"

Clearly, the demands of both sides were too far apart; the sincerity the French sought was beyond what the British could offer.

At the end of the failed negotiations, it is said that Minister Talleyrand told the British, "These terms are indeed harsh, but if you agree, Britain will still be a kingdom... Isn't becoming a republic a much worse prospect than accepting these terms? The real issue is whether you want to preserve Britain or the British monarchy."

"What exactly do you mean?" The British representative, preparing to leave, couldn't help but ask.

"Preserving Britain means ensuring its continued greatness. As for whether Britain is ruled by a king and nobility, a Protector, or a 'Committee for National Salvation' and 'Revolutionary Tribunal', that's not important. To be honest, we have prepared another peace treaty for a British revolutionary government. And I can assure you, the treaty prepared for a revolutionary government is much more generous than the one you see now for a monarchical government. Do you know why?"

Seeing the British representative still unresponsive, seemingly not understanding, Talleyrand continued: "We do this not out of malice towards the monarchy or preference for the republic. Rather, a republic naturally has more appeal. France managed to survive the most dangerous times because the people were willing to support the republic at all costs. If the British people could support their government like they did in '93, our terms would be equally generous. But what does the monarchy have to do with the people? It's not the people's—after you suppressed the Charter Movement, you couldn't possibly make the people die for you anymore. Only a government after a revolution would have such appeal. It could offer better terms. If you want to preserve Britain, then let's talk after the revolution. If you want to preserve the monarchy, more accurately, to maintain the current distribution of interests, then I advise you to seriously consider our 'twenty-one articles.'"

The British, or more specifically, the British upper class, did not believe they had reached a desperate situation yet; they thought they could still salvage the situation, perhaps even turn the tables.

"Unless we completely break their navy, they won't easily yield. They still hold

onto hope," Talleyrand reported to Napoleon on the progress of the "Plane Tree" plan.

To utterly crush the British hope, Napoleon issued an extraordinary order to the navy: "Even at the cost of the entire fleet, the British must not be allowed to break into the open sea!"

According to the French assessment, the most likely direction for the British fleet was still the south through the Strait of St. George. This area was wider and, being along the well-populated and developed British coastline, had fortifications built by the British that could at least provide some cover during ingress and egress. In an adverse situation, the cover from these fortifications made it easier to retreat. Thus, Admiral Treveil naturally took the main fleet to guard near the Strait of St. George.

As for the North Channel, it was entrusted to Vice Admiral François-Paul Brueys. In the original history, Brueys had encountered Nelson's main fleet during the Battle of the Nile and died in combat. However, in this timeline, the Battle of the Nile never happened, so General Brueys was still alive and had been promoted to vice admiral.

Actually, Vice Admiral Brueys very much hoped to lead the main fleet to intercept the British in the Strait of St. George because he believed that the British were more likely to attempt an escape there. If he could block and annihilate them there, he would surely become an admiral.

Admiral Treveil had been promoted to admiral after a victory in the North Atlantic, and Vice Admiral Brueys believed that Admiral Treveil's command in that battle had many flaws. He even felt that if he had been the commander of that battle, the French losses would have been much smaller, at least the "Ebleado" battleship would not have been lost.

Vice Admiral Brueys even openly criticized during a war college review of the battle: "With an overwhelming advantage in ships, the result was almost a one-for-one fight. This battle was certainly a strategic victory, but tactically, it was hardly commendable. The only praiseworthy aspect was the resolve to annihilate the enemy."

However, when it came time to assign tasks, Vice Admiral Brueys couldn't seize the Strait of St. George because he was thinking of becoming an admiral, while Admiral Treveil, already an admiral, was still thinking of becoming a grand marshal.

Napoleon ultimately chose Admiral Treveil to guard the Strait of St. George because when he asked both commanders about their operational plans, Admiral Treveil emphasized that blocking the enemy fleet was sufficient; if they couldn't come out, France would win. Vice Admiral Brueys, on the other hand, mistakenly claimed that he could definitely annihilate the British fleet.

Indeed, the risk-taking Napoleon personally preferred Vice Admiral Brueys' plan, but as a strategist, Napoleon also knew that there was no need for unnecessary risks. Warfare, of course, should aim for victory, but it should not chase the so-called "perfect victory." Often, the pursuit of a "perfect victory" can lead to all sorts of unimaginable errors, letting a cooked duck fly away.

Thus, as a strategist, Napoleon made the decision to let Admiral Treveil guard the most likely encounter point with the British fleet, the Strait of St. George, while sending Vice Admiral Brueys to the North Channel.

Vice Admiral Brueys then took the second division fleet to the Isle of Islay anchorage. The fleet's main force entered the anchorage on standby, sending out "light bulbs" equipped with radios to monitor the British movements at the Campbeltown Peninsula exit.

Vice Admiral Brueys thought he was likely on a fruitless trip. Although he often publicly called Admiral Treveil a mediocrity who only knew how to fight with more ships and cannons, he also knew that Admiral Treveil wouldn't let anything slip; if the British really came out through the Strait of St. George, Admiral Treveil would surely succeed in blocking them back, although his enemy casualty numbers and exchange ratio might not look good. But he would definitely not lose strategically. And he knew that after this battle, Britain was probably finished. In the future, whether it was the navy or the army, there wouldn't be any major campaigns for a while. Therefore, he guessed that he would probably remain a vice admiral for life. But that mediocrity might really become a grand marshal.

But Vice Admiral Brueys was not relaxed—just in case, just in case the British did consider him and actually came this way, and he, due to unpreparedness, let the British fleet escape, then not only would his chance to become an admiral fly away, but he would also definitely become a fool frequently mentioned in future naval academies.

So, he still perked up, encouraging everyone to stay alert and not let the British escape.

"Once the British fleet comes out from Camp

beltown, they have about seventy kilometers to reach the Tynish Channel, and our anchorage is about eighty kilometers from the corresponding position. Once the enemy fleet enters the Tynish Channel, our interception completely fails. Fortunately, in Belfast, Ireland, we have a series of observation posts, and that segment of the water is only a little over thirty kilometers wide. Our Irish allies, using watchtowers and small boats, can also provide us with some early warning information. If their warnings are timely, we can easily block them; otherwise, this race might indeed be challenging. If the enemy fleet appears at the Campbeltown exit without warning, then the monitoring vessels, besides immediately sending a telegram, must also undertake the crucial task of harassing the enemy as much as possible to buy time for our main fleet. Does everyone understand?" After meticulously assigning the tasks, Vice Admiral Brueys concluded.