1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 143 War Marshal

Chapter 143 War Marshal
Balkan Peninsula, Eastern Thracian Plain, Edirne, capital of the Ottoman Empire.

In 1369, Ottoman Sultan Murad I conquered the city, removing the last long-term fortress of the Eastern Roman Empire on the Thracian Plain, and moved the capital from Bursa here, diluting the local population with immigrants.

From then on, Constantinople officially became an isolated city. The Turkic cavalry set out eastward from Edirne and reached Constantinople on the Black Sea within a day.

Outside the Theodosian Walls, there was no longer any pure land for the Romans.

It was late at night. The rustling autumn wind brought a bit of coolness. The gray and black sky was tinged with purple. There were few people on the streets. Under the dim light from the torches, the patrolling soldiers swept every dark corner with vigilant eyes.

Da, da——

The sound of horse hooves came from the avenue, and patrolling soldiers rushed over after hearing the news.

The dim firelight prevented them from seeing the visitor's face, and they could only infer that he was either wealthy or noble from his gorgeous clothes and the number of his followers.

"who?"

The captain yelled.

They were directly under the Ottoman central government and were solely responsible to His Majesty the Sultan.

Anyone who disobeys the Sultan's orders will pay the price, no matter who he is.

The visitor reached out and took the torch from the attendant, letting the flame illuminate his face.

The captain was startled and quickly bowed and saluted, his face full of respect and admiration.

"Mahmud Pasha, welcome back triumphantly!"

"It is an honor for the Empire to have a general like you!"

The story of the Karaman War and the legendary story of Mahmud Pasha had already spread throughout the Ottoman Empire. Under the promotion of Sultan Mehmed II, Mahmud Pasha, who came from the Devshirme system, naturally became an idol of young soldiers and had a large number of admirers in Edirne.

Although he nominally had Eastern Roman royal blood, he did not receive any preferential treatment from it. He started out as an ordinary Janissary soldier and, step by step, relied on his outstanding talents and loyalty to gain his current status and power.

The imperial consort, the sword-wielding vizier, the war marshal... In just over a decade, a young man who converted halfway grew into the third-in-command of the entire Ottoman Empire and a close and trusted minister of Sultan Mehmed II.

He seems to be a symbol of the Ottoman spirit, representing a vigorous and upward force.

Through the propaganda about Mahmud Pasha, Mehmed II clearly conveyed his personnel policy to the entire empire.

Only look at ability, not background.

After the Battle of Constantinople, Khalil Pasha was executed and the traditional Turkic nobles headed by the Candarli family were purged. The Ottoman Empire ended the Candarli era that lasted for nearly a century, and the emerging class represented by Zagan Pasha and Mahmud Pasha began to enter the historical stage.

Against this background, Mehmed II began to reform the entire empire's military, political and bureaucratic system, throwing the corrupt older generation into the trash and boldly promoting young officials with outstanding abilities to important positions. The power of the aristocracy was curbed and the degree of centralization was greatly strengthened.

The victory of the Karaman War greatly boosted the morale of the Ottoman army and civilians. The rising star generals and the outstanding performance of Kapikulu's central army made the lower-class Muslim people begin to believe again that the disastrous defeat under Constantinople would not change the trend of the Ottoman rise. The empire was still vigorous and the sultan was still powerful and wise.

"His Majesty the Sultan summoned me to the palace to thank you for your kindness."

Mahmoud seemed a little tired. He nodded slightly to the captain and was about to move on.

"Aga..."

The captain thought about it, gritted his teeth, and stopped in front of the horse.

"What else?"

Mahmoud frowned.

"The Sultan has stipulated that one must have a pass issued by him personally to ride a horse on the streets during curfew."

Seeing Mahmoud's strange expression, a feeling of regret instantly rose in the captain's heart, but considering the situation, he still gritted his teeth and explained to him.

Mahmoud was silent for a moment, then spoke slowly.

"You're fine."

The attendant behind him quickly took out the document, handed it to the captain, and looked at him with an unfriendly look.

The captain looked at his subordinates hiding far away and broke out in a cold sweat. He actually spent a long while reading the brief pass.

"No problem, you..."

The attendant snorted coldly, snatched the document back and put it in his pocket.

Mahmoud said no more, stepped on his horse's belly, and trotted towards the palace, leaving the patrol captain wandering there with a nervous look on his face.

Autumn came exceptionally early this year. On the streets of Edirne, the cold wind from the East European steppes has begun to howl.

The horses trotted along the empty streets, and the cool breeze blowing in his face lifted Mahmoud's spirits.

In front of the magnificent gate, an old eunuch was waiting there early and led Mahmoud into the palace.

Mahmoud looked around. Compared to the last time he came, the palace seemed even more desolate. Only less than half of the palace had lights on.

"The country has been in a difficult situation in the past two years. His Majesty announced that everything should be simplified and many redundant officials and staff were laid off, so this place became empty."

The old eunuch seemed to understand what Mahmoud was thinking and explained with a smile.

"Perhaps it won't be long before I retire and return home."

"How could that be? You have watched His Majesty grow up since he was a child..."

Mahmoud said smoothly and steadily.

After the Battle of Constantinople, Mehmed II not only did not sink into despair, but instead seemed to have become a different person. He devoted all his energy to governing the country, often working tirelessly to conceive reform plans and having long talks with several ministers all night long.

He wanted to do too many things, and his finances gradually became unsustainable, so he made up his mind to give up his previous luxurious lifestyle, drastically cut his own and the royal family's living expenses, and invested all the money saved in state affairs.

Whenever he thought of this, Mahmoud always admired his Sultan and father-in-law from the bottom of his heart.

You know, in this era of absolute monarchy, not many monarchs have such a strong will to go from luxury to frugality.

The two continued forward and stopped in the courtyard in front of the hall.

"Your Majesty is waiting for you inside."

The old eunuch said.

"I have something I would like you to do."

Mahmoud hesitated for a moment.

"Do you have any impression of the patrol captain on duty today?"

The old eunuch thought about it.

"You are talking about Ataturk, right? He has a similar background to you. He was the son of a Bulgarian knight and was recently promoted by His Majesty to the position of patrol captain."

"This person is notoriously stubborn. Many people have gone to Your Majesty to complain before. Did they offend you unintentionally?"

"He did the right thing."

Mahmoud shook his head and unfastened his sword from his waist.

"This is a trophy captured from a Karaman noble. Please give it to the captain who is loyal to his duty."

"Tell him that this is His Majesty's reward for his loyalty. May he continue to work hard."

"Tell him that it is an honor for the Empire to have a soldier like him."

The old eunuch took the sword, with a hint of approval in his eyes.

"I will."

Mahmoud nodded, dismounted, and the guards pushed open the door of the hall.

"Ah, you're here!"

In the hall, Muhammad II sat on the throne in casual clothes, with his crown and scepter placed aside, looking quite casual.

In front of him, Zagan Pasha was holding a thick stack of documents and reporting to the Sultan.

Mahmoud took out a silk woven bag and opened it in front of the Sultan, revealing a gem that sparkled with moving light.

He knelt on one knee and presented the brocade bag. "According to tradition, when a minister meets the Sultan late at night, he should bring a gift that matches the status of both parties."

"What are you doing..."

Although Mehmed II did not say anything, he could not hide the smile on his face.

As the master of the entire Balkans and Anatolia, Mehmed II certainly didn't care about these things.

What delighted him was this respectful attitude.

"Stop bowing and come sit down!"

Mehmed II accepted the jewel, pulled Mahmoud up from the ground, and ordered the eunuch to push a chair over.

Mahmoud Shane sat down, looked at Zagan Pasha, nodded, and said nothing.

With the fall of Khalil Grand Vizier and the rapid rise of Mahmoud, their relationship became increasingly distant and it would never be possible to return to the friendship they had before.

Both of them knew very well that their Sultan was a sensitive power creature at heart, and certainly did not want to see too much harmony between their two important ministers, so they were happy to oblige.

"You must be freezing on the way. Come and warm yourself by the fire!"

Mehmed II patted Mahmoud on the shoulder affectionately, signaled the eunuch to light the stove, and personally brought a cup of steaming hot drink.

"This is coffee. A Venetian gave me some some time ago. It is said that it was grown by our Greek emperor in the West African colony."

"Try it and see how it differs from the Arabic coffee."

Mahmoud took the brown liquid with a rich fragrance, took a sip, and smacked his lips.

"how?"

“It doesn’t seem to make any difference.”

Mahmoud Pasha looked strange.

"What did I say? I knew he would say the same thing!"

Mehmed II looked at Zagan Pasha and explained to Mahmoud, and all three of them laughed.

After laughing, Mehmed II stared at the rising steam above the coffee, with a hint of jealousy and sadness in his eyes.

"The coffee and the sugar added to it came from the Greek emperor's colonies in West Africa. He could make a lot of money just from these two commodities."

"Combining the gold trade and the slave trade, I'm afraid his profit must be at least 100,000 ducats a year."

"The speed at which his strength increases is simply terrifying."

"Your Majesty, that's not the case. The Greek emperor has enemies everywhere. Once the route to the West is cut off, he will have nothing left."

Seeing that Mehmed II was in a low mood, Zagan Pasha quickly stood up to comfort him.

"Besides, under your governance over the past few years, hasn't our strength also grown rapidly?"

"You liberated the serfs and distributed the land of the big landlords to them for cultivation. You learned from Cyrenaica and implemented crop rotation and composting. The amount of cultivated land is increasing day by day, and the grain output is half higher than in previous years!"

"You encouraged the textile industry. This month alone, you established textile workshops in four major cities. You also invited technical experts from Persia to provide guidance. Silk and fabrics are exported to Western Europe."

"The olives in Izmir, the perfume workshops in Bursa, the sugarcane plantations in Antalya, the civilian shipyards in Çanakkale, your country is thriving and developing."

Mahmud also agreed with this. As a close minister and friend of the Sultan, he knew better than anyone how hard Mehmed II had worked in recent years for the prosperity of the country.

"Although your businesses are not as profitable as the gold and slave trade, they are truly beneficial to the country and the people. The people are praising your wisdom."

"On the other hand, the Greek emperor was just a reckless man who plundered everywhere with his tyrannical military force!"

"His empire is held together by his own prestige. If he fails once, ambitious people inside and outside the country will attack him and devour him completely."

When Mehmed II heard this, he was silent for a long time and handed a letter to Mahmoud.

"Not long ago, the Greek emperor defeated Yahya west of Tripoli, killing and wounding 12,000 people, taking 8,000 prisoners, and leaving more than 3,000 missing, while he himself lost only more than 7,000 people."

"After this battle, the 30,000-strong army that Yahya had assembled with great difficulty was wiped out, and most of the troops that escaped were the troops of the coward Ebenezer."

"In less than a week, Tripoli and Zuwara Fortress were successively captured. The Knights and pirates on the Kerkennah Islands are ready to make a move. The lord of Sfax was killed in the battle and the people's hearts were lost. I'm afraid it will be difficult to keep it."

“The Hafsid dynasty is over.”

Mahmoud put down the letter and was stunned.

Yes, the Hafsid dynasty is probably coming to an end.

Unlike the Ottoman Empire, the Hafsid Dynasty was essentially a large tribal alliance. The Hafsid family was the most powerful and successfully subdued the rest of the tribes and proclaimed themselves the caliph.

The Battle of Tripoli almost wiped out all the elite central troops that Yahya had painstakingly built up, and the central authority fell to its lowest point.

After the city of Tripoli fell into the hands of the Christians, the Tripoli Corridor was unobstructed, and the army could march straight into the soft heartland of the Hafsid Dynasty at any time.

As a result, Yahya will not even have time to restore the national strength and reorganize the military prestige, and will have to face the Crusaders directly.

Objectively speaking, Islamic forces in North Africa are still very strong, local strength still exists, the people are fierce and brave and do not accept control. It is difficult for foreign Christian forces to directly control them, and there are still many difficulties. It will take more than ten years to completely stabilize them. They may even be overwhelmed by the long-term rebellion and eventually be forced to withdraw.

However, it can be concluded that the days of the Hafsid dynasty as a central government have basically come to an end.

The Battle of Tripoli did not defeat the Berbers in North Africa, nor the Sunni Muslims, but the Hafs family and the central authority they represented.

When the nominal central authority is completely lost, can the ambitious emirs and tribal shaikhs in various places put aside their grudges and fight against the powerful enemy together?

Mahmoud shook his head, unwilling to think about it.

"That's why I came to you late at night."

Mehmed II spoke slowly, his expression extremely serious.

"In your opinion, how should we respond?"

Mahmoud stood up, walked to the wall and looked at the map carved on it.

After the Battle of Constantinople, in order to warn himself, Mehmed II ordered people to carve maps of the Balkans and Anatolia on the walls of the council hall, and marked Constantinople in a striking purple-red color.

“I think this is a great opportunity for us.”

"As you know, I just returned from leading troops on the Wallachian border, and under your instructions, I had some contact with Vlad III."

"From what I have heard, he is a complete lunatic. He not only humiliated your envoy, but also expelled the envoys of the Hunyadi family from the country."

"You mean, we take advantage of the Greek emperor's expedition to North Africa, mired in war, and attack Wallachia?"

Zagan Pasha asked.

"of course not."

Mahmoud's expression remained unchanged.

"Walachia is poor and depopulated, but there is a mad duke who will bite any outsider who covets his power."

"What can we gain by beating him?"

"Your Majesty, I hope you can put aside your hatred for the time being and look at the long-term."

"I can tell the difference."

Mehmed II said.

"Since our Greek emperor is always causing trouble for us, we might as well cause him some trouble so that he can't take care of both ends."

"Our goal is here."

Mahmoud Pasha raised his hand and pointed to a place on the left side of the map.