English Translation

53 50 England naturally did not agree with a peaceful policy of Russia. Paul had talks with the representative of the board of directors in Berlin, which, however, remained unsuccessful as a result of the French demands. 1 However, Paul's commanding count Nikita Panin, who was associated with the English envoy in Petersburg, was not uninvolved in the failure of the negotiations, and he did everything he could to prevent a rapprochement with France. England worked with all its means to bring Russia into a new war against France, with the support of the Russian envoy in London, Count Semen Vorontsov, with all his inner conviction, he saw the principles of the Jacobins as a danger to all states. 2) As already under Catherine II, England is trying to pull the Russians into the western Mediterranean as a counterweight against France, this time 1 796 by the offer of Corsica.3) One can see from this otherwise unsuccessful step how little England fears Russia in the Mediterranean at that time. Various French emigrants work at the Russian court, supported by the Empress, in the same sense on the emperor and his immediate surroundings. However, it is for the time being only on 2l, February 1797 as the result of the negotiations which date back to the time of Catherine to conclude a trade agreement with England which is quite favourable for Russia. In order to reach the conclusion of the contract, the English envoy Whitworth used the emperor's girlfriend, Miss Nelidov, for he paid her a bribe of 30 o00 rubles shortly before or after the conclusion. 4) Whitworth had very cleverly used the Emperor's mood, which was still focused on maintaining peace, to at least enforce the trade agreement. 1) Aleksandrenko 1, p.75; Šumigorskij, p.142. 2) Letter from Voron- zow to his brother of 6 June 1797 at AlekSandrsko, p. 75. 3) Gerhard S.420. 4) Th.Schiemann: History of Russia under Emperor Nikolaus I, vol.l, Berlin l904, p.27 and n.l.