Make sure to turn off borders to make the final product look good šš
Darkness before Dawn - Purple Phoenix 1416
- Thread starter elerosse
- Start date
I also recommend this map maker on Reddit, she has a ton of maps based on the Roman Republic/Roman Empire/Byzantine Empire/etc. All made with high quality.
Link: https://www.reddit.com/u/Difficult_Airport_86/s/2mIAAmeTS2
Link: https://www.reddit.com/u/Difficult_Airport_86/s/2mIAAmeTS2
Great, Iāll check it out as well, another update will be posted later today, itāll deal with the aftermath
CHAPTER 15 ā A FORCEFUL MEDIATION
CHAPTER 15 ā A FORCEFUL MEDIATION
- Venetian ducat (a ducat from around 1410 depicted above) is the main currency in circulation in Mediterranean. It became the standard denominations in many countries, used interchangeably in the Mediterranean states such as Ottomans and Roman Empire alongside the official coinages. The exchange rates between the coins differed from time to time, but mainly was as following:
The exchange rate between a ducat and an āakcesā (a akces from Murad II era depicted above) which were a silver coin minted by the Ottomans is roughly 1 ducat: 80-90 akces.
The exchange rate between a ducat and a āstavratonā (a coin from Manuel II era depicted above) which were a heavy silver coin minted by the Roman Empire mimicking a ducat is roughly 1 ducat: 1.2-2 stavratons.
*************************************************
As the sun rose over the horizon, casting its golden rays over the Aegean Sea, Andronikos and Theodoros stood on the walls of Corinth. It had been a month since the battle of Acrocorinth where Antonio lost his army and his dream of conquering Morea. Now, Theodoros had finally mobilized his army and joined his brother at the frontline with fresh troops, ready to lead them onto Athenian soil.
While awaiting Theodorosā reinforcements, Andronikos had already captured several Athenian border castles. Now, if only Ioannesā large reinforcement were to join them, they would vastly outnumber the now few and demoralized Athenian defenders, and possibly take Athens in one decisive strike.
For months, Antonio, the Duke of Athens, had been sending urgent letters to Sultan Mehmed, begging his master for rescue. He knew well how understrength his domain had become, barely able to mobilize more than a thousand new men, he could only defend Athens while leaving the rest of the Duchy to the control of Romans. While awaiting Mehmedās reply, Antonio also wrote to Andronikos, using humbling words and vague promises in effort to stall the Romans and buy himself more time.
Suddenly, a horn blared in the distance, signaling the arrival of a ship into port. It was an envoy from the Ottoman Court, it seemed like the Sultan had finally made his mind to intervene into the matter.
The Ottoman diplomat, a Greek speaking Muslim, handed the Sultanās handwritten letter to Andronikos. The young Despotās brow furrowed as he read the contents, his brows frowning. Theodoros, sensing the change in atmosphere, demanded to know what the message said.
Andronikos looked up, his eyes dark with concern. "The Sultan has declared their intention to mediate on behalf of the Athenians," he said, his voice heavy with the weight of the news. "Our ādear brotherā, Sultan Mehmed demands that we withdraw our forces immediately and cede all claims to Athenian territory."
āWhat?ā Theodoros's eyes widened in disbelief, he looked angrily at the Ottoman diplomat, loudly protesting: "This cannot be," he exclaimed. "We have sacrificed so much, and lost so much, and now the Sultan will swoop in and deny us what is rightfully ours? The Athenians ought to be punished, must be punished for their uncalled and unjust aggression!"
āI understand your position, esteemed Despotā the diplomat smiled but not smiling. āBut you must understand, that Duke Antonio has sworn fealty to our Great Sultan, and the Sultan cannot stand by to see his subject invaded.ā
āWhat about our loses? Your Sultan was supposed to be our friend, our brothers, and yet he enabled his subject to attack us, kill my people, burn my village, where is justice in these barbaric acts?ā
āIt seems you do not like my Sultanās wish, very well, that is a reply I will bring to him, but be warned, Greek! Any rash actions, will call upon you the wrath of Sultan and his army, and they will not be as polite as I am. Good day to you both.ā With defiant and supercilious attitude, the diplomat left the wall.
āThis was outrageous! But, Andronikos, you donāt believe Mehmed would intervene militarily, do you? We wonāt face the Ottomans, right?ā
Andronikos saw the fear in his brotherās eyes. "It wonāt come to that, I believe," he said. "But we cannot afford to let this great chance of us go to waste, we are in the right, and Mehmedās position is not as strong as it seems, otherwise he wouldnāt have sent a diplomat but and army, and an army is always more persuasive than a single mouth."
āWhat do you suggest we do?ā
āWe should send the demand of Mehmed to our father in Constantinople coupled with detailed description of the current situation, I trust our fatherās wisdom, he would know how to handle Mehmed. In the meantime, we shouldnāt sit idly by, but continuously put pressure on Antonio, by send our forces to raid Athenian lands, as retaliation for Athenian intrusion. This way, we can continuously strengthen our position and help our father secure a better deal.
The two brothers agreed on their approach, and proceed to discuss strategies in hushed tones.
Almost another month passed. Roman cavalry raided far and beyond within Athenian lands, at the bequest of Andronikos they mainly targeted Latins while largely left the local Greek populace unmolested. As treasures and wealth from plunder fill the rooms in Corinth, and men grew unwary, finally a news came from Constantinople bringing the final result of the negotiation between Manuel and Mehmed.
As punishment and reparation for his unjustified invasion into Morean land, Antonio were to cede over all lands from Corinth all the way to and include the city of Megara to Theodoros, most of which the Romans already occupies. Furthermore, Antonio was to pay 20.000 ducats as compensation for his pillage in Morean lands.
Along with this letter came a follow up request from Antonio himself. He pleaded with Andronikos to treat well his men who were captured before during and after the battle of Acrocorinth by Thessaloniki men, and he offered a sum of 100 ducats for each of his knights and 20 ducats for each of his foot soldiers returned to him safely.
Although both Andronikos and Theodoros were unwilling to accept, they knew it was the best their father could negotiate for them, and therefore have no other way than bite their tongue and accept.
As for the ransom offer, knowing full well how his almost 2000 large group of Athenian captives were of utmost importance to Antonio, Andronikos intended to squeeze every remaining coin out of the Dukeās pockets. Andronikos therefore drafted a reply to Antonio, demanding an outlandish sum of 1000 ducats per knight, and 200 ducats per non-knight personnel. He added furthermore, that were Antonio to reject the offer, he would send the captives to the mines of Athos, where they will repay their own ransom through twenty years of hard labor.
In fact, Antonio urgently needed his fighting men returned so he can properly defend against Venetian attacks, yet his coffers were totally emptied as he spended them all to finalize his campaign and the ensuring heavy reparation to Theodoros. Desperate, Antonio begged Andronikos again for a rebate, while pawning his familial domains in Italy and all his golden jewelry to a Florentine merchant for some extra funds.
Ultimately, Antonio compromised greatly for a deal with Andronikos ā in return for all of his knights and around 2/3 of his men, which were valued at 300 ducats per knight and 70 ducats per footman, totaling almost 40.000 ducats an astronomical sum, he was to pay 15.000 ducats in cash, and cede a strip of land running from Neopatras to the coastal port of Antikyra to Andronikos to compensate the lack of fund.
As such, the Athenian-Morean war of 1418 ended, for now.
- Venetian ducat (a ducat from around 1410 depicted above) is the main currency in circulation in Mediterranean. It became the standard denominations in many countries, used interchangeably in the Mediterranean states such as Ottomans and Roman Empire alongside the official coinages. The exchange rates between the coins differed from time to time, but mainly was as following:
The exchange rate between a ducat and an āakcesā (a akces from Murad II era depicted above) which were a silver coin minted by the Ottomans is roughly 1 ducat: 80-90 akces.
The exchange rate between a ducat and a āstavratonā (a coin from Manuel II era depicted above) which were a heavy silver coin minted by the Roman Empire mimicking a ducat is roughly 1 ducat: 1.2-2 stavratons.
*************************************************
As the sun rose over the horizon, casting its golden rays over the Aegean Sea, Andronikos and Theodoros stood on the walls of Corinth. It had been a month since the battle of Acrocorinth where Antonio lost his army and his dream of conquering Morea. Now, Theodoros had finally mobilized his army and joined his brother at the frontline with fresh troops, ready to lead them onto Athenian soil.
While awaiting Theodorosā reinforcements, Andronikos had already captured several Athenian border castles. Now, if only Ioannesā large reinforcement were to join them, they would vastly outnumber the now few and demoralized Athenian defenders, and possibly take Athens in one decisive strike.
For months, Antonio, the Duke of Athens, had been sending urgent letters to Sultan Mehmed, begging his master for rescue. He knew well how understrength his domain had become, barely able to mobilize more than a thousand new men, he could only defend Athens while leaving the rest of the Duchy to the control of Romans. While awaiting Mehmedās reply, Antonio also wrote to Andronikos, using humbling words and vague promises in effort to stall the Romans and buy himself more time.
Suddenly, a horn blared in the distance, signaling the arrival of a ship into port. It was an envoy from the Ottoman Court, it seemed like the Sultan had finally made his mind to intervene into the matter.
The Ottoman diplomat, a Greek speaking Muslim, handed the Sultanās handwritten letter to Andronikos. The young Despotās brow furrowed as he read the contents, his brows frowning. Theodoros, sensing the change in atmosphere, demanded to know what the message said.
Andronikos looked up, his eyes dark with concern. "The Sultan has declared their intention to mediate on behalf of the Athenians," he said, his voice heavy with the weight of the news. "Our ādear brotherā, Sultan Mehmed demands that we withdraw our forces immediately and cede all claims to Athenian territory."
āWhat?ā Theodoros's eyes widened in disbelief, he looked angrily at the Ottoman diplomat, loudly protesting: "This cannot be," he exclaimed. "We have sacrificed so much, and lost so much, and now the Sultan will swoop in and deny us what is rightfully ours? The Athenians ought to be punished, must be punished for their uncalled and unjust aggression!"
āI understand your position, esteemed Despotā the diplomat smiled but not smiling. āBut you must understand, that Duke Antonio has sworn fealty to our Great Sultan, and the Sultan cannot stand by to see his subject invaded.ā
āWhat about our loses? Your Sultan was supposed to be our friend, our brothers, and yet he enabled his subject to attack us, kill my people, burn my village, where is justice in these barbaric acts?ā
āIt seems you do not like my Sultanās wish, very well, that is a reply I will bring to him, but be warned, Greek! Any rash actions, will call upon you the wrath of Sultan and his army, and they will not be as polite as I am. Good day to you both.ā With defiant and supercilious attitude, the diplomat left the wall.
āThis was outrageous! But, Andronikos, you donāt believe Mehmed would intervene militarily, do you? We wonāt face the Ottomans, right?ā
Andronikos saw the fear in his brotherās eyes. "It wonāt come to that, I believe," he said. "But we cannot afford to let this great chance of us go to waste, we are in the right, and Mehmedās position is not as strong as it seems, otherwise he wouldnāt have sent a diplomat but and army, and an army is always more persuasive than a single mouth."
āWhat do you suggest we do?ā
āWe should send the demand of Mehmed to our father in Constantinople coupled with detailed description of the current situation, I trust our fatherās wisdom, he would know how to handle Mehmed. In the meantime, we shouldnāt sit idly by, but continuously put pressure on Antonio, by send our forces to raid Athenian lands, as retaliation for Athenian intrusion. This way, we can continuously strengthen our position and help our father secure a better deal.
The two brothers agreed on their approach, and proceed to discuss strategies in hushed tones.
Almost another month passed. Roman cavalry raided far and beyond within Athenian lands, at the bequest of Andronikos they mainly targeted Latins while largely left the local Greek populace unmolested. As treasures and wealth from plunder fill the rooms in Corinth, and men grew unwary, finally a news came from Constantinople bringing the final result of the negotiation between Manuel and Mehmed.
As punishment and reparation for his unjustified invasion into Morean land, Antonio were to cede over all lands from Corinth all the way to and include the city of Megara to Theodoros, most of which the Romans already occupies. Furthermore, Antonio was to pay 20.000 ducats as compensation for his pillage in Morean lands.
Along with this letter came a follow up request from Antonio himself. He pleaded with Andronikos to treat well his men who were captured before during and after the battle of Acrocorinth by Thessaloniki men, and he offered a sum of 100 ducats for each of his knights and 20 ducats for each of his foot soldiers returned to him safely.
Although both Andronikos and Theodoros were unwilling to accept, they knew it was the best their father could negotiate for them, and therefore have no other way than bite their tongue and accept.
As for the ransom offer, knowing full well how his almost 2000 large group of Athenian captives were of utmost importance to Antonio, Andronikos intended to squeeze every remaining coin out of the Dukeās pockets. Andronikos therefore drafted a reply to Antonio, demanding an outlandish sum of 1000 ducats per knight, and 200 ducats per non-knight personnel. He added furthermore, that were Antonio to reject the offer, he would send the captives to the mines of Athos, where they will repay their own ransom through twenty years of hard labor.
In fact, Antonio urgently needed his fighting men returned so he can properly defend against Venetian attacks, yet his coffers were totally emptied as he spended them all to finalize his campaign and the ensuring heavy reparation to Theodoros. Desperate, Antonio begged Andronikos again for a rebate, while pawning his familial domains in Italy and all his golden jewelry to a Florentine merchant for some extra funds.
Ultimately, Antonio compromised greatly for a deal with Andronikos ā in return for all of his knights and around 2/3 of his men, which were valued at 300 ducats per knight and 70 ducats per footman, totaling almost 40.000 ducats an astronomical sum, he was to pay 15.000 ducats in cash, and cede a strip of land running from Neopatras to the coastal port of Antikyra to Andronikos to compensate the lack of fund.
As such, the Athenian-Morean war of 1418 ended, for now.
Great chapter, the Latin-Roman War has been brought to conclusion, even if both sides don't like the outcome. Good that Andronikos squeezed Antonio for all it was worth in getting his soldiers, the land and ducats will surely be put to good use for the Empire as a whole. Would love to see the diplomatic angle with Manuel and Mehmed, I'm sure Manuel was waxing Mehmed hard about how the Romans were in the right while the Latins (and their Turkish mercenaries) where completely in the wrong.
I bet Mehmed just wanted the whole embarrassing ordeal to be over with š¤£š¤£, Bedreddin is the true target that needs to be taken care of in Mehmed's mind. Would love to see how things are in Anatolia with those problematic Turkish warlords. Will this be threadmarked?
I hope we get maps soon šš
Keep up the great work ššš
I bet Mehmed just wanted the whole embarrassing ordeal to be over with š¤£š¤£, Bedreddin is the true target that needs to be taken care of in Mehmed's mind. Would love to see how things are in Anatolia with those problematic Turkish warlords. Will this be threadmarked?
I hope we get maps soon šš
Keep up the great work ššš
Yes, Iām working on it, it should be ready before the next update, which should arrive on Wednesday
MAP of 1418
As promised, here's a map of the situation in Balkans and Anatolia in 1418 - what's notable is the Bedreddin Rebellion still staying strong in Northern Bulgaria while his disciples in Izmir Area still holding strong; compared to 1418 OTL The Romans gained additional control over Patras and Neopatras, and a strip of land in Attica and Boetia at the expense of Duchy of Athens.
fantastic map, very interesting to see how extensive and consolidated the rebellion is between Dobruja and northern Bulgaria ( as well as spreading along the coast ) I had sincerely forgotten about the situation in Albania ( this represents another possible point of pressure / clash for the Ottomans, furthermore Naples and Venice are at loggerheads for control of the region, in particular for the city of Durazzo, therefore a false move by Constantinople can precipitate the situation in loco ) therefore of the Latin principalities only Kefalonia and Athens remain ( even if slightly reduced due to the recently concluded peace agreement ) finally Candar conquered Trebizond ?
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Yes, the Albanian tribes that are in process of consolidation will be another point of focus once the current struggle has settled a bit; Trebizond lives well and at large, I simply didnāt bother to paint them onto the map, as their influence only comes to play at a later stage of the TL
Very good map, I love the detail you put into it, nice to be able to visualize things. The Romans are so close to connecting their land holdings, Bedreddin's Revolt needs just a few more victories to be able to set up the events to firmly kick out the Ottomans from Europe. The more trouble Mehmed has in Europe, the more is see Turks like the Karamanids decide to act against them. Will we possibly get a chapter about the Albania or Serbia? They would be good allies for the Romans to have in their fight against the Ottomans. Hopefully the Romans can do more to consolidate land from the Latins.
GREAT MAP AND GREAT WORK šššššššš
I wouldnāt want to spoil the TL, historically Mehmed still has 3 years left
Interesting! Not to mention that Timur has yet to come to utterly wreck the ottomans.I wouldnāt want to spoil the TL, historically Mehmed still has 3 years left
I have a feeling the Ottoman Empire Murad II will be inheriting from Mehmed will be in worse shape š¤£š¤£š¤£I wouldnāt want to spoil the TL, historically Mehmed still has 3 years left
Timur is already dead by 1405 (and stomping on the Ottomans with the 1402 Battle of Ankara), his descendants could decide to look towards Anatolia like he did though...I have a feeling they aren't ignorant of what Mehmed is going through with Bedreddin and the instability in Anatolia.