The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 277

Chapter 277: Others Use Guns and Cannons to Colonize, I Use Information Asymmetry

“Line up properly! Anyone trying to push ahead will be thrown straight into the Gulf of Gabès!”

At the docks, over a dozen Tunisian Legion soldiers on horseback shouted commands in Arabic.

At the foot of three gangplanks leading to transport ships, doctors from the Twin Trading Company examined the former Tunisian Imperial Guards. Those deemed physically fit were allowed onto the ships, while the rest were unceremoniously dismissed.

The ones permitted to board sighed in relief, knowing they wouldn’t starve in the near future. According to official promises from Tunis, if they performed well in New Zealand, they could bring a family member to join them after one year.

One man, disheveled with a scraggly beard, led his wife and two children up the gangplank under a soldier’s escort, bypassing the crowd. He was a blacksmith—a highly skilled worker—granted the rare privilege of bringing his entire family. Envious eyes followed their every step.

It wasn’t long before three transport ships were fully loaded. They slowly pulled away from the dock as three more empty ships took their place to continue loading laborers.

From this moment on, the so-called Tunisian Imperial Guards became a thing of the past. Their new identity was simple: laborers bound for New Zealand.

By noon the next day, the Twin Trading Company fleet, carrying 5,000 laborers, set sail. The ships would pass through the Strait of Gibraltar en route to the distant island of New Zealand.

...

South Pacific

Cook Strait

On the foredeck of the Twin Trading Company’s armed merchant ship Melody, Marion Dufresne gazed at the vast, flat black sand beach in the distance and finally felt a wave of relief.

Until now, neither France nor Russia had paid much attention to this massive island known as New Zealand—a landmass comparable in size to Britain. Yet, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had been unwavering in his conviction, directing them to search for a harbor in this area.

Dufresne had been apprehensive at first. Information from Spain suggested that British explorers had landed on the island’s northern side in the past. For three days, his fleet sailed along the western coast of New Zealand’s North Island. Then, just as the Crown Prince had foretold, they discovered an excellent harbor.

Of course, Joseph himself didn’t know the exact location of Kaffia Harbor. However, he remembered a documentary mentioning that this was the port closest to New Zealand’s grazing region.

Under Dufresne’s command, the Twin Trading Company’s five ships carefully anchored in a crescent-shaped bay. Smaller boats were launched, and they passed through towering rocks on the shore to set foot on this mysterious island.

This expedition marked the initial phase of colonization efforts by the Twin Trading Company. Only about 600 people had been sent in this advance team.

Initially, the company had recruited fewer than 300 volunteers. After all, the South Pacific islands were notoriously desolate, and most adventurers were reluctant to seek opportunities there.

The situation shifted when the Crown Prince assured the Church that the island had a population of tens of thousands who would unquestionably accept Catholicism.

The Church swiftly organized a large group of missionaries to join the expedition, even covering their expenses. For the Church, a mission field with tens of thousands of potential converts was a rare and precious resource. This opportunity might even bolster their chances in future competitions for the position of Archbishop. Consequently, various dioceses scrambled to secure spots, almost to the point of infighting.

To secure the support of the Twin Trading Company, the Church even relinquished command of the missionaries to the company.

Sailors quickly erected a makeshift camp on the beach and began unloading supplies from the ships.

Meanwhile, Dufresne led a team of fewer than 100 explorers into the island’s interior—a critical step for establishing New Zealand as a colony of France.

After a day and a half of trekking, the team approached a winding range of hills. Suddenly, a loud cry rang out from a massive pando tree ahead.

Recalling the Crown Prince’s advice, Dufresne immediately ordered the team to halt and signaled for Tolman, the interpreter, to step forward. Before departing, they had made a stop in Tahiti to hire locals fluent in French. Although few Tahitians spoke the language, it wasn’t impossible to find some due to early Spanish colonial influence.

Tolman waved amicably at the burly, dark-skinned man in the tree, speaking in a series of guttural phrases. The man responded, and Tolman turned to the expedition leader.

“Sir, they’re asking us to lay down our guns.”

Dufresne tensed. As the Crown Prince had warned, these natives were far from primitive. Though they were nearly naked, they understood the danger of firearms.

This was one reason Britain’s colonization of New Zealand had been notoriously difficult. Over a century earlier, the Spanish had made contact with the Māori, exposing them to foreign technologies and ideas. The Māori were far more sophisticated than the untouched tribes encountered in the Americas.

Having seen muskets, grown crops like potatoes and sweet potatoes introduced by the Spanish, and adopted sweet potatoes as a staple food, they were a formidable opponent.

Dufresne ordered his team to place their weapons on the ground. Accompanied by two aides and the interpreter, he cautiously approached the Māori man.

Barely a dozen steps forward, dozens of burly Māori warriors armed with stone spears emerged from the surrounding underbrush and hills.

Dufresne signaled his men to remain calm. The interpreter shouted, “We are friends here to trade with you.”

Seeing no hostile moves from the lead Māori, Dufresne mustered his courage. Following the Crown Prince’s Guide to New Zealand, he leaned forward, touching his nose to the native’s in a traditional Māori hongi greeting.

The Māori man froze briefly, then broke into a hearty laugh, returning the gesture.

The surrounding warriors followed suit, some even approaching the explorers for their own nose-to-nose greetings.

This simple yet effective gesture instantly fostered goodwill between the two sides.

By evening, the explorers were led to the local Māori “hapū,” or tribal community, to meet its chief.

The chief, delighted with Dufresne’s gift of a soft wool blanket, called for a celebratory feast featuring roasted meats, seafood, and sweet potatoes. The explorers adhered strictly to the guidelines in the Guide to New Zealand, ensuring smooth interactions.

Subsequently, the chief led Dufresne on a five-day journey to meet with the leaders and high priests of the Tainui iwi, New Zealand’s largest tribal confederation.

Unlike the Dutch, who had been driven out decades earlier, or the British, who struggled for years to subjugate the Māori, Dufresne’s expedition was almost divinely blessed in its success.

Such was the terrifying power of information asymmetry!

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