Diplomatic entertainments mark opening talks at Soffmons Castle
Reports from Paris and Venice describe plenipotentiaries dining in state as talks begin on the 14th and 15th with Cardinal de Finery, Count Sinzendorf, and the Duke de Bourdonville hosting. Foreigners arrive daily, lodging scarce amid the grand mobilization. Meanwhile Russian coast defenses grow with four frigates and cannon bound for Spain, and contagion spreads through Zante and Napoli.