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Prologue: Jack is as good as his master

At some point on his return to France Admiral de Suffren completed his report on his squadron’s involvement in the Carnation war. His prose contained the usual superfluous phrases, yet it also made an insightful recommendation that would alter the fortunes of a declining kingdom (1). The Minister of the Navy Cesar De Choiseul slowly digested the recommendation and after consulting a globe made his representations to the King Louis XV.

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Admiral de Suffren

In June 1764 a French delegation travelled to the city of Mrak U to negotiate with King Sanda Parama. After tempestuous negotiations the King allowed the French to establish a trading port on the estuary island of Sittwe; with further provisions for the construction of a fort and naval shipyard at a later date. In exchange a military mission under the command of Francis de Gaston would be established in the capital to train their army, with an arsenal to provide muskets and artillery(2).

For the French this agreement meant that they had an excellent trading base with access to the interior and a secure port from which to attack British trade. For Mrak U with a rapacious neighbor to the north in the Kingdom of Ava, the martial prowess of their soldiers was critical to their continued existence as an independent state.

Author’s notes

1) His recommendation was to establish a shipyard at Rangoon, I have modified this to Sittwe as it is closer to the French colonies in India.

2) The military mission will be staffed with repatriated soldiers from New France.

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