1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 18 Return of the King

January 1446, 1, Cape St. Vincent, Portugal.

The usually bustling port is now silent.

The area near the main road of the port had been cleared by the guards and covered with carpets and flowers, with a guard standing every three meters along the road.

On the left are the Genoese crossbowmen, and on the right are the infantry knights of southern France.

Near the port, more than a dozen warships were lined up in a row, and the sailors stood in neat rows on the deck. The purple double-headed eagle flag on the ship fluttered in the wind.

Isaac, along with the military and political officials and the captains of each ship, were waiting at the dock. All of them were dressed in formal attire and had sabers on their waists.

Isaac, the leader, was wearing a purple robe and holding a royal scepter, looking at the sea in the distance.

Suddenly, a strange color appeared where the sea and the sky met. First, the mast and sail, then the hull and the side of the ship, and finally the entire fleet appeared in everyone's sight.

Leading the way was Isaac's flagship, the Duke of Moria, which had just completed the mission of transporting the reclamation team.

Behind the Grand Duke of Morea, a dilapidated warship was being towed, and its name could still be vaguely recognized by the writing on the bow.

Saint Nicholas.

On both sides of the Grand Duke of Morea, two new caravels were stationed on the left and right, about ten meters apart, providing escort.

The last of the fleet was a few transport ships, on which was today's protagonist -

Sailor and captain of the San Nicolas.

The Grand Duke Moria came closer and closer until it completely occupied half of the sky for everyone at the dock.

Boom——Boom——

The salutes near the port sounded at the right time to welcome the return of the heroes.

On the largest transport ship, Captain Henry and 53 sailors slowly disembarked and walked towards the eagerly waiting crowd.

Henry and the sailors, dressed in their brand new uniforms, lined up neatly and saluted Isaac.

"Your Highness, the captain and crew of the Saint Nicholas report to you!"

Isaac said nothing, walked up, patted Henry on the shoulder, and helped him straighten his navy uniform.

Henry turned back and a sailor handed him a roll of parchment.

Henry took the parchment and knelt down to present it.

"Your Highness, our ship has discovered a large archipelago. This is a nearby nautical chart, and all the scenery on the island that has been explored is recorded!"

Isaac took the parchment and looked at it carefully.

The nautical chart was rather rough and unclear, but Isaac roughly came to a conclusion from Captain Henry's description of the basic geographical conditions of the island.

It is dry and barren, covered with limestone, and the wind directions of the two archipelagos are different in the north and south.

This should be the Cape Verde Islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean.

Historically, this deserted island was first discovered by the Portuguese in 1456 and a colony was established. Before that, there were no indigenous people here.

Most of this archipelago is wasteland and has basically no economic value, but its geographical location is extremely important.

This is the golden key to communicate with the new world.

Sailing southwest from the Cape Verde Islands will be affected by the trade winds, making the voyage very smooth.

Once the empire has solved the immediate problem of survival, exploring new worlds can be put on the agenda.

Isaac asked, putting the scroll down.

"Captain Henry, since you were the first to discover this archipelago, how about naming it after you?"

Henry looked at the sailors behind him and pointed at the St. Nicholas floating on the sea.

"Your Highness, let's name the new territory of the empire after it."

"Good! The name of the St. Nicholas Islands will appear on the map immediately."

"Let's name the island with the small valley and the woods after you!"

Henry Shane.

"Your Highness, there is one thing I would like to ask for your forgiveness for."

"But it doesn't matter."

"When I was stranded on a deserted island, I privately released the slaves on the ship and granted them freedom. Your Highness, please punish me."

Isaac looked at the sailors, and the freed slaves shrank their heads when they saw Isaac turning his eyes.

Some of these slaves were Slavs and some were Turks.

Isaac clapped his hands, and the servant behind him brought the contract for the slaves on the ship.

"In the name of God, I come here to break your chains and untie your fetters as a reward for your service."

Isaac tore the contract into pieces.

"From now on, you are Romans protected by the empire."

The people behind him applauded.

Then Isaac ordered the prepared reward to be brought.

Ordinary sailors were rewarded with 50 ducats each, equivalent to their income for five years, and were promoted to higher positions and allowed to join the newly formed fleet.

Captain Henry was made a baron and was allowed to choose any island in the St. Nicholas Islands as his fiefdom.

Of course, it is still a wasteland now and Baron Henry needs to build it himself.

Provide soldiers in times of war and provide taxes in times of peace.

As for the governor of the islands, that will be left for later.

Officers including Boatswain Owen were knighted and awarded 100 ducats.

Lordship is a title extended from the Senate, which only represents status and has no fiefdom or annuity.

After the rewards were given, everyone shouted "Long live the king".

"The wreckage of the St. Nicholas is stored here for future generations to see,"

Isaac looked at Henry, his face remained calm even after he was made a baron.

"I have ordered another carrack from the Genoese merchant of the Snope family. It will also be named St. Nicholas, and you will be the captain again."

"Thank you, Your Highness!" A smile finally appeared on Henry's resolute face.

The crowd gradually dispersed, and the sailors were arm in arm, throwing their money bags in their hands, chatting about obscene topics, and from time to time there were bursts of obscene laughter.

The senior officers of each ship enviously surrounded the officers of the St. Nicholas wearing the Lord's badge and congratulated them on their safe return.

This is the atmosphere Isaac wants to create in the army, an uplifting atmosphere.

As long as you make merit, His Highness will reward you.

The slave contract, the baronial and lordly titles, and the order for a new carrack were all prepared by Isaac when he received the news.

Just for today.

The next step was to wait for the second carrack to arrive, then assemble the army and march back to Corinth.

Isaac looked at the warships with flags flying, and a sense of accomplishment arose in his heart.

……

February 1446, 2, Port of Ceuta.

Isaac summoned all his ships and troops and assembled all his military and political officials to prepare for the next arrangements.

Pushing open the door of the conference room, Isaac walked forward.

All the officials attending the meeting stood up and saluted.

Walking up to the main seat, Isaac motioned for everyone to sit down.

Sitting on Isaac's left and right were Fleet Captains William and Fidel, and below them were the captains of each ship, Commander Maruna and Knight Conte.

Both Governor Lothar and Governor Gothia sent representatives to attend.

"Anders, please report the current situation to them."

Aide-de-camp Anders stepped out and saluted.

"My Lords, at present, the navy has two caravels, the Duke of Morea and the San Nicolas, and six caravels, the La Palma..."

"There are three galleys, namely the Marquis of Gian, the Sparta, and the Northumbria. The Northumbria is currently carrying out a mission off the coast of Epirus."

"One converted cog ship, 18 transport ships, including newly purchased ships."

"In terms of the army, there are 150 French cavalry regiments under the command of Monsieur Conti and 350 infantry regiments,"

"500 mercenaries under the command of Commander Maruna."

"In addition, our Captain Mikhail and Corps Commander Ibrahim have arrived south of the Corinthian Wall. Their number is currently unknown."

“This is the current situation of our army.”

This was the maximum military force Isaac could muster for the time being.

Commander Maruna, with the funds provided by Isaac, merged small mercenary groups in northern Italy and recruited landless knights, totaling more than 500 people.

However, the quality of the soldiers varied greatly. The initial Genoese crossbowmen were naturally experienced soldiers, and the military capabilities of the Landless Knights were also guaranteed, but it was hard to say about the other mercenaries.

Perhaps not much better than the old peasant in Constantinople.

The French legion, which was trained by Conti and other fourteen knights for more than half a year, was much better. The 150 cavalrymen were all brave and strong among the refugees. Isaac spent a large sum of money to equip them with horses and saddles.

The infantry regiment of 350 people was inferior, mainly composed of French refugees and Slavic slaves, and some Portuguese were recruited to serve as officers.

These French people have gone through a long period of war and the survival of the fittest in the chaos, so they are still quite capable.

Soldiers who have received formal training are much stronger than Maruna's mercenary group in spirit, strategy and tactics.

This is why Isaac recruited Conte and others.

Isaac strictly prohibited religious struggles from spreading in the army, required refugees to be baptized by the Greek Orthodox Church before joining the legion, and hired priests to teach Greek.

This arbitrary behavior did not cause much trouble, as these hungry refugees probably no longer cared about these things.

In general, although the army cannot fight the Ottomans in the field, it can still cooperate with friendly forces to defend the city.

Isaac stood up and cleared his throat.

"Next, the envoys from the Viceroyalties of La Palma and Bijagos began to report."

"The La Palma Governorate has received five groups of refugee reclamation groups, with a total of 965 civilians and 63 slaves. We have established a field and fenced off three pastures. The basic facilities in the port area have been completed. With more and more expedition fleets passing through, I believe it will become more and more prosperous."

The envoy of Governor Lothair spoke first.

"Due to the distance, the Governorate of Bijagos has only accepted a group of refugees, a total of 200 people. When I left, Governor Gosia had already established a residential area and built several canoes. He planned to go to other islands and use robbery to get through the initial difficult period."

Isaac nodded in satisfaction.

"Speaking of ranches, there are many islands near your two governorates. You can choose an uninhabited island and transport a group of livestock there. They will reproduce quickly and you won't have to manage them on a regular basis."

"When the herds become large, you can go to the island and slaughter them."

The two messengers nodded quickly and took out their pens to take notes.

The meeting also discussed other miscellaneous matters, such as military wages and military supplies.

At the end of the meeting, Isaac knocked on the table, signaling everyone to wake up.

"I have decided to formally establish the Mediterranean Fleet and the Atlantic Fleet."

"The Mediterranean Fleet is commanded by Fidel, with Henry as his auxiliaries. It commands all warships except six caravels and ten transport ships."

"The Atlantic Fleet is captained by William, with six caravels and eight transport ships under its command, with the La Palma as the flagship."

After arranging the fleet allocation, Isaac paused.

"News has come from Mystras that the Ottoman army has assembled, Ottoman scouts have appeared on the border of Thebes, the first round of migration in the Athens area has been completed, and the Corinthian Wall has been repaired."

"Our Roman compatriots are waiting for our rescue behind the Corinthian Wall. I have decided to set off on a chosen day, heading for Corinth."

"The rise and fall of the empire depends on this battle!"

"You must move forward bravely!"

Isaac bowed deeply to everyone.

About the Senate, let's talk about some identity evidence

Some are translated as "贵贵", some are translated as "宪豪者", and some are translated as "过于举者", which is very difficult to pronounce.
For the convenience of readers, I will translate it as "Lord"

If you have any objections, I can change it back.


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(End of this chapter)