From 1809 Rothschild began to deal in gold bullion, and developed this as a cornerstone of his business, which was to become N. M. Rothschild &amp; Sons. From 1811 on, in negotiation with Commissary-General John Charles Herries, he undertook to transfer money to pay Wellington's troops, on campaign in Portugal and Spain against Napoleon, and later to make subsidy payments to British allies when these organized new troops after Napoleon's disastrous Russian campaign.