For Segur, however, the journey did not seem like a simple joyride. He feared that it would take on the character of a serious political demonstration against the Turks and lead to wars with them. “The Empress intends to crown her grandson Constantine in Kherson, in the hopes of arousing in the Greeks a desire to overthrow the Turkish yoke,” he wrote to the French ministers. “As a result of this, the huge Ottoman Empire should sooner or later collapse amid a horribly long internecine war. This plan—adding a French ambassador—seemed to the MNB unrealizable, but it would alarm the Turks, and this was enough to lead to discord. In such a case, we would incite Russia against us, and we would lose hope of ever ending the trade agreement.”
Segur was in a hurry to conclude this agreement, and since the negotiations were not moving forward well—Russian ministers were slowing things down, raising disputes over duties on French wine and soap, or over duties on Russian iron—Segur finally turned to the assistance of his favorite Mamonov; everything was immediately settled without difficulty. "Some kind of secret force influenced the disposition of the Russian ministers; Vorontsov became more compliant, Bezborodko more active, Osterman more amiable. Almost all the changes that our (French) court desired were made." After several more meetings, an agreement beneficial for Franchi was signed.
Catherine wanted to take her eldest grandchildren, Grand Dukes Alexander and Constantine, with her on her travels. Their parents, Grand Duke Shavel and his wife Maria Fedorovna, were very opposed to this, not wanting to let their children go for such a long period of time, considering it too difficult for themselves, and dangerous for the children. They wrote to the empresses: “The thought of being separated from Your Majesty in those six months was already difficult for us, but duty forced us to respect your silent words, Empress, regarding this journey and to hide our grief; but we are aware of the orders you gave regarding the preparation of our sons for the journey.” ours completed our grief, for the very thought, Empress, of being separated from you and them is too painful for us... Our fears, Sovereigns, are based on the health of our children, whose young age raises doubts about whether they will endure the fatigue of a long journey undertaken in the middle of winter, and the change in climate... This journey and the entertainment associated with it can slow down uspfhi their brought up! I“.
Catherine answered them: “My kindness, my children. A mother, seeing how sad her children are, can only advise them to moderate their grief... Your children belong to you, belong to me, belong to the state. From their very infancy, I made it my duty and considered it a pleasure to take care of them. You have repeatedly expressed this to me. verbally and in writing that you look at my care for them as true happiness for your children, and that nothing could be better for them. I love them dearly. This is how I reasoned: separation. with you I will be comforted, so that they will be close to me, of the five, three will remain with you; Is it really possible that I alone, in my old age, for 6 months, will be deprived of the pleasure of taking someone from my family with me?
But fate had mercy on the parents; led the princes fell ill with measles and did not travel with the empress at all.>
Two more crowned persons were invited to take part in the trip - the Polish king Stanislav Poniatovsky, who had once been an admirer of Catherine, and received his crown from her hand, - and the German Caesar Gosif II, who lived with her in Poland and was now going to destroy Turkey. They were supposed to join later, at Dnfprf.
UP. BEFORE KSHVA.
On January 2, 1787, Catherine solemnly, with cannon fire, left St. Petersburg and went to Tsarskoe, from where she was supposed to go to the Crimea. All the participants in the trip gathered in Tsarskoe, and on January 7 they set off in gilded carriages. “The train consisted of 14 carriages and 124 sleighs with 40 spare ones; at each station, 560 horses were waiting for us,” says Segur.
The Empress's carriage, drawn by 30 horses, was a white carriage; it consisted of
There were so many rooms - an office, a living room for 8 people, a gaming table, a small library, and was equipped with all sorts of amenities. In this carriage sat with the Empress Count Mamonov, Lev Naryshkin and maid of honor Protasova; “Pocket ministers” - foreign ambassadors - were invited to the carriage one by one, - one day there was Fhal Kobenzel, another - Segur, the third - Fitz Herbert, etc. According to the latter, the movement of the carts “was as smooth and calm as the movement of gondolas”; it was quite a walk.