1444, Byzantium Resurrects

If European history is a grand drama, then France is undoubtedly the star of the show.

The entire French region is hexagonal in shape, with three sides bordering the ocean and three sides controlling the land.

The English Channel, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Mediterranean Sea form its borders.

The Lowlands, the Rhine, the Alps, and the Pyrenees form its borders.

These place names alone reveal France's advantageous geographical location.

France's population currently far exceeds that of other European countries, with more than 20 million people.

By contrast, the Holy Roman Empire, which prided itself on its Roman heritage, had a population of 15 million, while the mighty Ottoman Empire had only six million.

The Hundred Years' War between England and France caused immeasurable damage to northern France, but it also aroused the patriotic enthusiasm of the lower classes, sparking nationalism throughout the region.

The British may not have realized that they had unleashed a terrible monster.

Baron Conte was travelling by carriage along a small road in the French countryside, accompanied by several attendants.

Returning to France after a long absence, Conte did not feel the excitement he had anticipated, but instead experienced a sense of alienation.

His homeland had been destroyed by the British, and his leader had died under the judgement of a French bishop.

For Conte, there were few precious memories left here.

The carriage rattled on, and a small wooden fortress came into view.

It was located deep in the mountains at the junction of Toulouse and Provence, in the southern part of the Kingdom of France, where few people ever ventured and travelers were rarely seen.

Baron Conte and his entourage got out of the carriage and approached the small fortress.

Whoosh, whoosh!

Several arrows were shot down from the fortress and stuck in the ground in front of Conte, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Baron Conte stopped in his tracks.

"Philip, it's me."

"Count Conte? We thought you were dead."

Philip turned his head away from the fort and shouted down at them.

"Open the gate! We're friends!"

The gate creaked open slowly, and Conte entered the fortress with his entourage.

"Conte, what are you doing here?"

Philip jumped down from the ramparts and smiled at Conte.

"Still working as a mercenary?"

"Or are you the favorite of some noble lady?"

Philip looked Conte up and down, taking in his weathered, mature, and handsome face, and curled his lips.

"Before you stands the lord of Shui Oasis and Valka Village, a nobleman of the Kingdom of Cyrenaica and a member of the Dubois family: Baron Conte!"

Before Conte could respond, someone from his entourage spoke up on his behalf.

"The Kingdom of Cyrenaica?"

Philip thought hard, turned his head, and looked at the crowd that had gathered.

"Has anyone heard of it?"

"Boss, when I went to town to buy medicine last time, an Italian merchant mentioned it!"

"It's a newly established kingdom located in North Africa."

Someone in the crowd reminded him.

Philip laughed.

"So Conte, a minor noble from a small North African country, bought all your martial arts skills?"

"Who would recognize your title?"

"The Pope and the Patriarch of Constantinople."

Conte replied solemnly.

With a wave of his hand, a servant took out a document proving his noble status.

Philip's smile froze on his face.

"So, honorable Baron, you didn't come here just to show off to your friend in need, did you?"

Conte looked at Philip and pointed to his surroundings.

"Get back to work! Go on!"

Philip immediately understood, waving his subordinates away.

He took Conte into his tent, pulled a dirty wine bottle out from under the bed, and poured himself a cup.

After a moment's thought, he took out a small cup and poured some wine for Conte; his face was full of pain.

"I'm wanted by the authorities, so I have nothing else to offer you, Baron."

Philip bowed exaggeratedly.

"How have things been in the south these past few years?"

Conte did not refuse, downing the wine in one gulp and deftly refilling his cup with the bottle.

"Not good."

Philip replied bluntly.

"The royal knights are closing in, and local officials view us as a plague, eager to eliminate us entirely."

Count Conte nodded; this matched the intelligence he had gathered.

During the Hundred Years' War between England and France, a large number of mercenary organizations emerged, mainly composed of knights who had lost their lands and the second sons of minor nobles who were not in line for inheritance. They rendered great service to the Kingdom of France in winning the war.

However, these people had no fixed income and relied on commissions and war profits to survive. This often resulted in them disturbing local areas and robbing merchants and travelers.

In 1445, the Anglo-French War temporarily subsided. Eager to centralize power, King Charles VII of France decided to eliminate these local troublemakers. He used the armored cavalry regiment that he had founded as crown prince as the basis for a cavalry company dedicated to arresting illegal mercenary groups.

These knights were known as royal knights, royal police knights, or royal cavalry.

Over the next two centuries, this well-equipped and loyal group of armored knights appeared on various battlefields, establishing a formidable reputation and becoming known as the "flower of knighthood."

"I heard that the crown prince and the king are in conflict and on the verge of war. Do they really have the energy to deal with your mess?"

Conte asked.

The French Crown Prince, who would later become King Louis XI, was a model of filial piety.

From childhood, he had been at odds with his father, Charles VII, leading the Great Feudal Rebellion of 1440, the Arras Uprising of 1446, and the recent secessionist movement.

During Louis's reign, his territory almost became an independent kingdom. He expelled the officials sent by his father, installed his own confidants, established institutions, and pursued a completely different foreign policy.

Currently, the contradictions between the two had reached a critical point, yet Charles VII still clung to the last shred of filial piety and refused to take action against Louis.

"Don't mention it,"

Philip rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Louis is even more vicious than his father. He executed mercenaries who disobeyed him without trial."

"Our brothers in the north are even worse off than us."

The mercenary leader drained the last drop of wine, held the bottle up to his eyes, and stared into it.

Conte glanced behind him, and his attendant took out a bottle of fine wine and handed it to Philip with disdain.

Philip's eyes lit up as he raised the bottle, bit off the cork, and gulped it down.

"Where did you get this? It tastes different, not like the local wine."

"Saint Joseph, from my own vineyard."

After finishing the wine, Philip sighed contentedly, wiped his mouth, and looked at Conte with deep meaning in his eyes.

"Conte, just say what you want to say. There's no point in hiding it."

Conte smiled.

"You're still in contact with the others, aren't you?"

"Your Majesty, you wanted to see me?"

Captain Fidel appeared in Isaac's study at Black Castle, looking dusty and exhausted.

"Sit down."

Isaac greeted him.

Fidel sat down and drank the water in his cup in one gulp.

"Mr. Fidel, do you remember me?"

Priest Pirni, who had been hiding nearby, suddenly asked, startling Fidel.

"You... Pirni of Adana?"

Fidel frowned, taking a long time to remember.

"Yes, yes, thank you for remembering me."

Pirni nodded repeatedly.

"Your Highness, this is Pirni, the Circassian priest I mentioned to you before."

Isaac nodded.

In 1448, Isaac sent Fidel, who was raiding at sea, to observe the Orthodox Christians in the countries of Karaman Bey and Ramazani Bey, and to try to make contact with them.

Pirni was one of Fidel's achievements on that trip.

However, Isaac's power was too weak at the time, so Pirni did not take him seriously.

It was not until after the Cyrenaica War had ended and the kingdom had been formally established that Pierini began to remember Isaac.

After consulting the local church, Pirni decided to accompany eunoda and Anata to meet the new ruler of Cyrenaica.

"Priest Pirni, please tell us your plan in detail so that Captain Fidel's fleet can consider its feasibility too."

"Your Highness, how much do you know about us?"

"How much do you know?"

"I know your past, I understand your present, and I can foresee your future."

Isaac smiled.

Armenia is a country formed by refugees.

The Armenian mountain dwellers had lived in the Armenian Highlands of the Caucasus region for generations. During the Eastern Roman Empire's heyday, Armenia was its most loyal vassal, providing soldiers to defend the empire's eastern border.

The empire treated them well, and many of its generals came from Armenia.

However, following the disastrous defeat at the Battle of Manzikert, the Armenian Highlands fell, and the Eastern Roman Empire was severely weakened. It retreated to the Anatolian Peninsula to defend its territory.

Unable to endure Turkish exploitation, the Armenians subsequently fled southwards and established a new kingdom in the Cilicia region.

This kingdom flourished, absorbing advanced systems and cultures from Western Europe and the Eastern Roman Empire and utilizing its geographical advantages to amass great wealth during the Crusades.

However, internal strife among the major Cilician families led to the kingdom gradually being overrun by the powerful Mamluk Empire.

In 1375, the Mamluks captured the last Armenian stronghold, declaring the Kingdom of Armenia extinct.

Although the kingdom was destroyed, a large Armenian population remained and continued to live under Muslim rule.

This was an old tradition of deliberately keeping non-believers alive so that they could be heavily taxed.

This policy was effective while the country was strong, enabling it to integrate and maximize its potential quickly.

However, as the country began to decline, the ruling class realised that these people, who were from a different culture and religion, had become too powerful to control and were causing internal conflict.

What should be done?

Kill them.

This is what happened in the horrific Armenian Genocide of the 20th century.

"As you can imagine, we now live under the rule of infidels, and life is becoming increasingly difficult."

Pirni spread his hands.

"Oh? I remember you being known for your docility decades ago. No matter who ruled — Mamluks, Karamanis, Ramazans — you always paid your taxes obediently."

"Your Highness, in the past, the taxes were low, so we endured. But now it's completely different."

Father Pierni's expression grew somber.

"It's all the fault of the Karamanos. For generations, the Karamanos beys have been obsessed with war. They have provoked the Ottomans to the west and raided the Ramazans and even the Mamluks to the east. They have turned the peaceful Cilicia into a mess!"

"The Karamanos have won few battles and lost many. After losing wars, they impose taxes on Christians, conscript young men from our communities, and use the tax revenue to continue fighting."

"Our followers are currently mainly distributed within the territories of the Karamanos and Ramazani beys. The two sides have been at war for years, and it is our blood that is being spilled!"

"We have heard that you defeated the Mamluk Sultan. Can you rescue us from this sea of suffering?"

The priest of Pirni waved his hands excitedly, speaking with righteous indignation.

Isaac signaled for him to calm down, cursing silently to himself.

What's the matter? Did you look south towards the royal army, see that it had grown from a company to a regiment, and start to get ideas?

"Why don't you go and beg the Lusignan family of Cyprus?"

"I remember that the current king of Cyprus is also the king of Cilician Armenia."

Following the collapse of the Armenian kingdom, its last king fled to Europe and handed the throne to his nephew, who was already ruling in Cyprus.

From then on, the Lusignan family wore three crowns and ruled Europe.

When it came to Cyprus, Pirni clearly looked down on them.

"The Lusignans were scared by the Mamluks and have been holed up on the island ever since Peter I, not caring about our survival."

He paused.

"Furthermore, we would rather live under Muslim oppression than associate with Roman Catholics."

"These people don't even consider us brothers."

Isaac thought for a moment.

"Have you never considered overthrowing Muslim rule and regaining your freedom?"

His original intention in contacting the Armenians had been to incite them to revolt and divert the Mamluks' attention.

"This... we..."

Pirni stammered.

"All right,"

Isaac no longer wanted to trouble this poor man, who was unwilling to endure exploitation yet also unwilling to take up arms in rebellion.

"If you swear allegiance to me and acknowledge me as your lord, you can settle on my lands and pay the same taxes and perform the same corvée labor as the Orthodox Christians."

"Regarding religious matters, I can grant the Armenian Apostolic Church partial autonomy, on the same terms as the agreement I reached with the Coptic Church of Egypt."

You may migrate to Cyrenaica, register there, and live among the Orthodox Christians.

Just as the former emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire had allowed them to leave the Caucasus and settle in Cilicia, Isaac decided to accept these Armenian refugees.

"Captain Fidel will be responsible for liaising with you."

Pirni wanted to say something else, but Isaac cut him off.

"This is my final act of mercy. Whether you accept it or not is entirely up to you."

Priest Pirni thanked him and bowed before leaving.

"However, we have agreed that I will soon join forces with the Republic of Genoa to launch a sweep along the Anatolian coast. If you and the Armenians fail to give me a definite answer, then—"

Pirni turned around and stared at Isaac in shock.

"Then I will naturally assume that you are colluding with the heathens."

Isaac shrugged his shoulders.

"Don't blame me if I show no mercy, then."

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