Chapter 265 East India Company

A day later, Kadajou also came to Constantinople. He brought a series of bills of the Chamber of Commerce to ask for Peter's final decision.

"Meet Your Highness"

"Well, you are here, let's start."

At this time, there were only Peter, Mason and Kadajou in the room. Kadajou first reported the situation of the Chamber of Commerce to Peter.

At present, the Chamber of Commerce is actively opening up the Egyptian trade route. In addition to Suez, the Chamber of Commerce has also opened the Nile River trade route. Going upstream along the Nile River can reach the Nubian region and conduct various trades, especially slave trade.

At present, the Chamber of Commerce has 400 employees, 320,000 gold lei in liquid capital, two colonies and dozens of caravans. These are the current assets of the Chamber of Commerce.

"Your Highness, what should we do next?" Kadajou asked Peter.

"Did you feel anything when you entered Constantinople?"

"Yes, the price of spices has dropped a lot. Which caravan is back?"

Peter looked at Kadajou and then at Mason. Mason personally explained to him the president who was busy opening up the Suez Canal.

"Oh, so you are the captain sent by His Highness to explore the East. I'm so sorry that I didn't recognize you."

"No, without the support of the president, this fragile trade route will be destroyed by the pagans."

The two were stopped by Peter from complimenting each other. Seeing that they had met, Peter finally spoke out his order, formally reorganizing the Southern Chamber of Commerce and establishing a trading company.

"I have decided to reorganize the Chamber of Commerce and establish a trading company. I will give you a 15-year monopoly on Eastern trade."

The sudden order made the two stunned. Kadaju quickly reacted and thanked Peter. Now the Chamber of Commerce has finally obtained the monopoly on Eastern trade, and it will be 15 years. How much wealth will flow into their wallets.

In addition to the trade monopoly, Peter also gave the chartered company the power to expand, sign peace treaties with other warring countries, and preach, and named the company the East India Company. The legal capital is 500,000 lei, and 7% of the profits must be handed over to the government every year, and Peter also has nearly 40% of the company's shares. There is also a dividend every year.

Mason was naturally also a member of the company, and Peter gave him 2% of the company's shares. At the same time, there was an appointment letter appointing him as the Governor of the East.

"Your Highness, I am afraid that I am not qualified for this position."

"If even you are not qualified, then no one in the empire can take the position. Mason, I order you to accept this position."

"Yes"

Peter's unconditional trust in Mason made him finally accept the position, and Kadaj was responsible for the affairs at the headquarters, including the continued construction of the Suez Canal.

In early 1401, the Roman East India Company was officially established, and Constantinople took the first step in colonization. The entire company's decision-making level consists of a governor and 16 directors on the board of directors, and there are 4 departments responsible for trade, navy, diplomacy, and missionary affairs.

Every part of the Chamber of Commerce has begun to undergo earth-shaking changes, and the directors are ready to discuss what to do next, but for now they still have to listen to Peter first.

"At present, in order to ensure the safety of the Indian route, Aden must be occupied first."

"Yes, Your Highness, the pagans in Aden are the biggest obstacle to our trade. They sponsor pirates to rob our ships and steal our goods. If Aden is not taken first, the fleet will be in danger of being hijacked."

Mason told Peter about the importance of Aden and another city, Muscat, which are key nodes for controlling the Indian Ocean trade. The first thing the East India Company did was to take Aden.

"The navy must be established quickly. Before the canal is opened, everything depends on you."

Mason and Kadaj performed a simple loyalty ceremony to Peter, and then spoke of future plans at the first board meeting in Constantinople. The meeting passed a proposal to develop the navy and colonies, one part of which was responsible for immigration and the other for building the Indian Ocean navy.

Androniko Port has become an important stop for the Roman navy and fleet, and the current population has exceeded 400 people. Various constructions are already on the agenda. As long as you come here, you can temporarily get rid of the pagans' pursuit.

The Ifat Sultanate was the first regime to attack the colony, because the port was built on their land. The local Sultan ordered 1,200 troops to destroy it, but was killed or wounded by the enemy's artillery and strong city defense. The colony gained a foothold, and missionaries began to spread Orthodoxy around.

Rome's unprecedented colonial move was 100 years ahead of the West, and its exploration was decades earlier than the West. You must know that the pioneers can get the most dividends, which can be seen in this trade.

With more funds, they began to build more warships and buy more slaves to be responsible for reclamation. Constantinople's actions naturally could not be hidden from Venice. This time, the people of the Great Council unanimously agreed to give Rome a taste of color.

They unanimously passed a policy of high tariffs and prohibition of transportation on some Roman goods, accounting for about a quarter of Rome's exports to the West. At the beginning, it did cause panic among many merchants, because their goods were all transported by the Venetians, but this also gave the Great Greek Chamber of Commerce, which mainly engaged in shipping, an opportunity. Their merchants took the opportunity to buy a large number of ships and began to occupy the vacancies left by the Venetians.

The Genoese also got involved, and their prices were cheaper than those of the Venetians. Originally, it was a measure taken by the Venetians to punish Rome, but it benefited Genoa and the Greek region, and port cities such as Athens and Thessaloniki developed rapidly. The fleet could bypass Crete controlled by Venice through Genoa and then set off to the west; or export to the west through Hungary via the Danube River. In short, Rome had 100 ways to circumvent the so-called sanctions of the Venetians.

The so-called Venice heyday that began in 1380 seemed to be over. Their navy was still the best in the world, but their trade began to be surpassed by Rome. In particular, the important spice trade caused a lot of losses to the merchants who operated it, not to mention other industries.

The continuous encroachment on Venice's trade scope made the Great Council act quickly. They preset more than a dozen methods and even did not hesitate to fight with Rome. According to Rome's current naval situation, it would be easy to destroy it. But this also gave their trading houses and industries in Rome to Constantinople, and even if they could destroy the Roman navy, what would happen next? Should they continue the blockade or use mercenaries to destroy Constantinople? This was something the Venetian parliament needed to discuss.