1444, Byzantium Resurrects

On 4 March 1446, Isaac arrived at the port of Patras with the ships and treasures captured in the naval battle.

The Latin merchants in the city saw such a large fleet and thought it was the Ottoman landing force, and they were all on high alert.

Upon discovering that it was the Byzantine fleet, they began to flatter Isaac, praising the might of his army.

'I hear you also contributed to the resistance against the Ottomans?'

Isaac asked casually.

'Yes! We donated money and supplies to form a 300-strong city guard, swearing to fight the Ottomans to the death...'

Isaac laughed inwardly.

If the Ottomans really came, 300 men would be just enough to form a ceremonial guard for the surrender ceremony.

'Now that the Ottoman threat has been averted, this city guard will accompany me to defend the Great Wall of Corinth.'

'Your Highness, this...'

The merchant representative said with difficulty.

'Knight Conte, I hear there are still many Ottoman spies in the city. I give you free rein.'

Isaac turned his head and ordered.

'Yes!'

Conte stroked his sword and grinned ferociously.

'Your Highness! Your Highness! We can find the spies ourselves! You don't need to worry about it!'

The merchants panicked.

If the army were allowed to search the city, their businesses, whether legal or illegal, would likely face dire consequences.

'Then...'

'It is entirely up to Your Highness!'

The merchants looked grim.

'I heard that the Ottomans have another granary in the city?'

A merchant was about to object, but was slapped away by someone next to him.

'Yes, we have already confiscated it and will send it to Your Highness's army immediately!'

'Very good.'

Isaac waved his hand, and the merchants left with a sense of relief.

After a brief rest, Isaac received the first mate of the surrendered Ottoman ship.

This burly man named Demir was the first mate of the Ottoman paddle warship Icer. Seeing that the situation was hopeless, he decisively killed the Ottoman captain who refused to surrender with the support of the sailors, then raised a white flag and surrendered to Isaac.

'Why surrender instead of remaining loyal to the Sultan?'

'Your Highness, we are not Ottomans. The Icer was originally a Karaman warship that was ceded to the Ottomans in a treaty. The Sultan kept us and sent an Ottoman Bey as captain to supervise us.'

Isaac nodded in understanding.

'Since you surrendered at the last moment and switched sides with courtesy, I will not pursue the past.'

'Here are 100 ducats for you. Take them and distribute them to the sailors as a gift from me.'

Isaac threw him a money bag.

'From now on, you are the captain of the Icer. I will have the priest baptise you.'

'Any sailors who refuse to convert to the true faith will be sold into slavery, and I will appoint replacements.'

'Yes.'

Captain Demir felt a little regretful. Now that he had converted to the true faith, it would not be so easy to surrender to the Islamic forces again.

Never mind, this prince does not seem to be a stingy person, so I'll just follow him! Isaac had no interest in the thoughts of this Karaman sailor and called in Captain Fidel and Captain Henry.

'Fidel, Henry, this is Captain Demir, who will be the captain of the paddle warship Icher and will be under your command.'

The three men introduced themselves to each other.

'Fidel, what is the condition of the two captured paddle warships?'

Fidel took out the inspection report issued by the shipwright Patre.

'According to the report, the Ottoman flagship Bayezid is a large three-deck paddle warship, similar to the previous Saint Nicholas, equipped with 12 cannons and performing quite well.'

'As for the Bursa, it's much worse. It's an old galley with one crossbow cannon and two side cannons. Its only advantage is that it has a large hold, which can carry more slave oarsmen, and it's fast.'

'Both warships are not badly damaged and can join the fleet immediately after replenishing their crews.'

After listening to Fidel's report, Isaac nodded.

The fleet was growing larger and larger, but he still did not have a base for repairing, building, and researching ships. In the future, if a large-scale naval battle broke out, they would easily be caught in a stranglehold.

If Venice or Genoa prohibited shipyards from selling warships to Isaac, or directly prohibited Isaac's fleet from entering their ports for repairs, what would he do then?

Although Constantinople had the necessary facilities, it was under constant surveillance by the Ottomans and Latins. If news leaked out, it would be easy for the assembled Ottoman navy to catch him.

As for the Peloponnese, the important ports were almost all Latin colonies, and there were no secrets to speak of.

A military port and supply station where his fleet could stay for a long time must be found as soon as possible.

'Fidel, select the officers for the Bayezid and Bursa paddle warships as soon as possible. Sailors with meritorious service and a foundation in Greek will be given priority.'

'Wasn't that sailor Owen the first to board the Ottoman flagship? Let him be the captain of the Bursa.'

'Captain Kerman escorted the Ibrahim Legion and was promoted to captain of the Bayezid.'

'You decide what to do with the rest.'

The three saluted and left.

After seeing off the navy, Isaac summoned the army.

'Your Highness.'

Knight Conte and Commander Maruna entered and saluted.

'Tell me, what are you going to do with the 300 surrendered Ottoman soldiers and Patras merchants?'

The two exchanged glances, and finally Knight Conte spoke first.

'Your Highness, I have just looked at the 300 city guards provided by Patras. They are in good physical condition and have basic military training, but they have not undergone systematic training and seem inexperienced and unfamiliar with their duties. I can take them.'

'Your Highness, the Ottoman private soldiers are of average quality. We can convert them and enlist them into mercenary regiments.'

'As for the Janissaries... I leave that decision to you, Your Highness.'

Isaac considered the options but was not satisfied with any of them.

'All right, get some rest tonight. Tomorrow at dawn, we will take a boat to the western section of the Great Wall of Corinth to meet up with Ibrahim's army and Michael's army, and then make a decision.'

After the two left, Isaac had a headache.

The army was too diverse, with no unified command.

This was not apparent during the siege, but would become obvious in open battle.

This was a common problem in countries at that time. Some monarchs liked to play political games and allowed different factions within the army to check and balance each other without interference.

The advantage was that the monarch's position was secure, as all the factions needed his support.

The disadvantage was that a lot of resources were wasted on internal strife, and contradictions gradually accumulated until they finally erupted.

Isaac's small group already shows signs of factionalism, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but it must not be encouraged.

The gun must be held tightly in one's own hands.

The main purpose of this trip to the Great Wall of Corinth was to strengthen control over the army.

The next day, escorted by a transport fleet, Isaac led the army to land on the western side of Corinth.

Ibrahim and Mikhail's legions, stationed there, had received the news early and were waiting.

At this time, the Ottomans lacked supplies and were unable to make any headway, so they paused their attack, and the two sides remained in a standoff along the Corinthian Wall.

The veteran guards in Mikhail's legion were excited to see their prince again after a year and banged their spear shafts on the ground.

Many others looked at each other in confusion.

Most of them only recognized their commanders, who told them who to fight, and did not know who they were fighting for.

Some soldiers were seeing their lord for the first time, and their faces were full of indifference.

But when Isaac sent men to drag several bags of gold coins from the ship and announced that they would be rewarded for their service, everyone cheered.

When Isaac made his routine inspection that night, the soldiers were much more enthusiastic.

Everyone gathered around the fire, and Isaac sat down directly on the ground.

Isaac paid special attention to the Mikhail Legion, which had been away for more than a year. This legion was expanded from Isaac's old guard and consisted entirely of Greek Orthodox Christians, who were the most loyal.

He checked the kitchen rations, listened to the soldiers' voices, and asked if there were any incidents of drinking soldiers' blood.

Although Mikhail had always emphasized military discipline, Isaac still found several cooks who had embezzled food rations and a squad leader who had drunk soldiers' blood.

The cooks were demoted to slaves, and the squad leader was beheaded in front of the entire legion.

Their bloody heads were hung on flagpoles for all to see, and instantly, the soldiers of the entire regiment looked at Isaac with an added sense of fear.

No one expected that the usually kind and generous prince would enforce the law so strictly.

As for Ibrahim's regiment, Isaac only offered the usual words of comfort and did not go into detail.

Before gaining their basic trust, going to the lower ranks would be counterproductive.

Isaac then announced that all soldiers who had previously been Muslims would be baptized.

Isaac took this baptism very seriously and specially invited a highly respected priest from Constantinople to preside over the ceremony.

Most of those baptized were soldiers from Ibrahim's legion and Ottoman soldiers who had been captured during the Battle of Corinth.

Isaac gave them only two choices: convert to Christianity or be sold into slavery.

Thus, under the threat of swords, most of the soldiers chose to convert.

Eight devout Muslims preferred to be sold into slavery rather than abandon Allah.

Let them be.

Over the next week, Isaac took advantage of the Ottoman army's halt in its offensive to discuss plans with the four commanders to reorganize the army.

The Prince's Guard and the Patras Port City Guard were merged and renamed the First Legion of the Imperial Guard, directly under Isaac's command, with Mikhail as its commander and a strength of 1,000, of which 800 were currently available.

The Imperial Guard was equivalent to the regular army, and all future armies formed by Greek Orthodox Christians would be placed under its command.

All Ottoman defectors were incorporated into the Ibrahim Legion, renamed the Purple Guard, with Ibrahim as commander and Mehmet as deputy commander, with a strength of 1,000, currently 850.

The Purple Guard consists entirely of converted Muslims, mostly Turks, and all future Ottoman defectors will join this legion.

The South French cavalry and infantry regiments under Count Conte were renamed the Occitan Regiments, with Count Conte as commander, with a strength of 1,000, currently numbering 500.

The Occitan Corps will continue to recruit strong vagrants and landless knights from southern France as soldiers and officers. Of course, vagrants who join must convert to Islam.

Maruna's mercenary corps signed a long-term contract with Isaac and was renamed the Black Corps, with Maruna as commander, with a strength of 1,000, currently 500.

In the future, the Black Corps will continue to recruit low-paid mercenaries from all over the country, regardless of religion, to serve as cannon fodder on the battlefield.

The total number of troops is 2,650.

As for the dozens of surrendered Janissaries, they will be put to other uses.

This is the result of Isaac's careful consideration and weighing of the pros and cons.

At first, Isaac did consider disbanding the various regiments and mixing them together, but after trying it, he found that it was completely impractical.

The result of mixing the regiments was that the Turkish soldiers could not understand the Greek officers' commands, and the French officers could not command the Latin mercenaries.

A lack of uniform language in the army is a major taboo on the battlefield.

In later years, a country called the Austro-Hungarian Empire suffered greatly because of this.

For the sake of a war that was just around the corner, Isaac had no choice but to sacrifice some political considerations.

In addition, Isaac formulated three plans for the future of the army.

First, he would begin to form a second legion of the Imperial Guard, attracting strong people from Greece and the Greek cultural sphere to join.

Second, he ordered the fleet to raid the coast and convert Ottoman prisoners of war to Islam, then incorporate them into the Purple Guard.

Third, he recruited vagrants and landless knights from southern France.

There was no other option; France was the most populous region on the European continent at the time, and its people were physically strong, making them the best source of soldiers.

This military reform did not significantly affect the personal interests of individual soldiers or officers, so it did not cause much turmoil.

Everyone has their own desires. If you can satisfy someone's desires, they will support you unconditionally.

Mikhail was a loyal follower of Isaac. His family was safe and sound, and he had nothing to worry about. His only desire was to see his students do better and better.

Ibrahim wanted to escape slavery and live with his wife and daughter under the sun. Isaac fulfilled his wish.

Maruna is a money-minded individual, and Isaac gave him a long-term source of income.

As for Conte, perhaps his desire is to realize his ideal ambition of leading troops into battle.

Over the next few days, the Ottomans continued to maintain a standoff, with small groups of soldiers occasionally approaching the city walls to reconnoiter. Upon discovering that Isaac's troops were well-disciplined, they immediately withdrew.

Isaac took advantage of this opportunity to begin designing uniforms and standard armor for each branch of the army.

Custom-made uniforms and armor emblazoned with insignia were a costly undertaking, but they greatly boosted the soldiers' sense of pride, enhanced the army's cohesion, and inspired the people to enlist.

This was one of the reasons why the Ottoman Janissaries were so revered.

Isaac invited all the tailors and designers in the vicinity to design uniforms that were satisfactory.

The uniforms of the Imperial Guard were uniform grey, and the insignia of the First Legion was left to them to design.

The uniforms of the Purple Guard were uniform blue-purple, and the insignia was the family crest of Palaiologo, symbolizing Isaac's favor.

The uniforms of the Occitan Corps were all dark blue, with a Constantine Cross as their emblem.

The Black Corps had no specific requirements and were to wear black overalls.

The uniforms were mainly made of linen fabric, with a woolen garment added in winter.

Once this absurd war was over, they would begin to change their uniforms, with an estimated cost of 2,000 ducats.

On 24 March 1446, the Ottomans had accumulated enough provisions and military equipment to support a large-scale operation and began a major offensive against the Corinthian Wall.

The flat eastern and western sections were only defended by a few raiding parties, while the rugged central section of the wall came under heavy attack.

The central section is in dire straits!

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