The French Ambassador Marquis P.-F. L’Hopital: First Difficulties during His Stay in Riga
The paper considers the arrival of the French ambassador Marquis P.-F L’Hopital to Russia. The author analyses the consequences of the events accompanying his stay in Riga and the complaint of the French diplomat about his reception by the Russian party which further influenced the development of the Russian-French relations during the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763). The author places emphasis on the reaction of the Russian government during the negotiations aimed at prevention of any infringement in the court etiquette of Count Chernyshev who was sent to France. On the basis of the studied data it is possible to draw a conclusion that Marquis P.-F. L’Hopital’s complaint about the lack of cannonade became the basis for mutual discontent between Russia and France, and also the reason for speculation from the latter. The studying of the French diplomat visit to Russia is carried out for the first time which is the novelty of the research. While writing the article, the author uses published, and unpublished archival sources which allows him to fully investigate the problem.