1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 186 Establishing Sea Power
Swoosh! Clang!
In the garden of the palace, Isaac and Grand Master Conti stood side by side, watching the sword fight between the second son Alexios and his son-in-law Carlo Tocco.

Both of them were children, each holding a blunt wooden sword, and there was a hint of order in the chaos.

The children had limited physical strength and soon both of them became exhausted and gasping for breath.

"Your Majesty, the sword fighting skills of the prince and the consort have improved by leaps and bounds recently. If they continue like this, they will definitely become good swordsmen within ten years."

Grand Master Conti looked at his two apprentices with satisfaction.

"That's true, but for a military general, swordsmanship is just the most insignificant skill."

Isaac also smiled and nodded.

"After this, if you have time, you can teach them more about riding. They may not know how to fight on the battlefield, but they must know how to escape."

"They like you, and you know it."

"It's natural."

Conte was helpless, he knew that his emperor was so straightforward when facing people close to him.

"Is Helena okay? I heard she just gave birth to a boy."

"With the blessing of God, everything is fine, mother and child are safe."

Conte crossed himself.

"What's the little guy's name?"

"I discussed it with Helena and decided to call him Titius."

Titius was a childhood friend of Alexius the Great of the Komnenos dynasty of the Eastern Roman Empire and a famous general.

Isaac understood what Conte meant.

"Nice name. Have you been baptized?"

"not yet."

"Then choose a good day and I will be his godfather."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Conte was overjoyed, as this meant that the newly born Tetisius had obtained a ticket to the highest power center of the Eastern Roman Empire.

As both a nephew and a godson, the emperor will surely treat him well.

Isaac chatted with Conte for a while, encouraged the two children who were eager to be appreciated, gave them two Andalusian foals as a reward, and then returned to his study.

Before I had finished processing the pile of documents, there was another knock on the door.

"come in."

Prime Minister Isurt and Minister of Works Lancelot came together, claiming that they had important matters to discuss.

Isaac had no choice but to put down his pen and told the maid to bring three cups of coffee.

"Say something quickly!"

The two looked at each other and the prime minister spoke first.

"First, Anderson reported that the Aragon issue has been completely resolved. Juan II was eager to start a civil war, but after Pius II intervened to mediate, he took advantage of the situation and agreed to our peace treaty."

"Oh? What was the final result?"

Isaac took a sip of coffee and felt refreshed.

"Juan II acknowledged that King Ferdinand was his brother's biological son, but still refused to acknowledge his status as the legitimate King of Naples."

"Let him be, an old man who doesn't recognize his relatives."

Isaac cursed viciously.

"King Juan II agrees to sell us the Maltese Islands, including Malta, Gozo, Pantelleria, and Lampedusa, for one thousand ducats."

Isaac spat out a mouthful of coffee.

Old man, you are so bold!

"Send him a groschen. If he is not satisfied, come and take it!"

"Second, after learning that you had negotiated peace with the Kingdom of France and the Kingdom of Aragon, some pirates expressed dissatisfaction and approached Speaker Giovanni, wanting to continue looting."

"Catch the most violent ones, confiscate their property and ships, and send them to New Thrace."

Isaac snorted.

The Mediterranean Sea is not like the Atlantic Ocean, it's just a big bathtub, where can you go?

"Also, inform them not to provoke the French any further for the time being. Aragon is free to do as he pleases."

"There are so many Saracen countries, there's no need to worry about not being able to rob things."

"Try to divert their attention to the Eastern Mediterranean. The Ottomans, the Mamluks, and even Venice are all our enemies, and their territories are far richer than a half-crippled southern coast of France."

"Tell them that the rescued Greek Orthodox, Armenian and Coptic Orthodox should not be oppressed, but should be handed over to the government, and we will exchange them for Berber slaves."

"Yes."

Isurte nodded and took note.

"Third, the captured Venetian warships and the surrendered Genoese warships have been basically repaired. What do you plan to do with them?"

"Both large warships were added to the Mediterranean Fleet, the Venetian one was renamed the Emperor Zeno, and the Genoese ship was renamed the Doge of Ravenna."

"In addition, I have already talked to Bartholomew, and he agreed to sell the Grand Duke of Genoa to us and add it to the Mediterranean Fleet." "Select a few of the other small ships that are in good condition to join the Black Sea Fleet, and sell the rest of the ships together. The unsold ones will be sealed in the warehouse."

Isaac stood up and counted his ships.

After several naval battles and incorporations, Isaac now has five large warships, two of which have a displacement of more than one thousand tons, temporarily surpassing the Venetian fleet, making him the true king of the Mediterranean.

"How about this? Divide the Mediterranean Fleet into two branches, the Eastern and Western, with Carthage and Constantinople as home ports respectively, with Admiral Fidel and Admiral Henry as fleet captains."

"As for the specific division of ships, go talk to the two of them and remember to submit the results."

The Prime Minister closed the document and Minister of Works Lancelot took over the conversation.

"Your Majesty, I came here mainly to discuss with you the construction plan of the Malta Fortress Complex."

"What's wrong? Is there not enough funding?"

Lancelot shook his head.

"On the contrary, I think you've invested too much in the Malta fortress complex."

"Three thousand ducats were thrown into a deserted island. Isn't that too much?"

Lancelot's face was full of question marks.

"The project will be divided into three years, and each year will cost one thousand ducats, which is not too much. At most, I will make fewer clothes and Leonor will hold fewer parties."

Isaac looked at Lancelot with dissatisfaction.

"That's not what I meant. I meant that you have money that could be invested elsewhere, like roads in the Balkans."

Lancelot explained quickly.

"Of course we have to build roads and fortresses. I won't go to war next. There is enough money."

Isaac shook his head.

"The geographical location of the Maltese Islands is too important. It controls the commercial shipping routes of the entire Mediterranean. My goal is to turn it into a maritime fortress and firmly control the Strait of Tunisia and the Strait of Malta in our hands."

"Once the facilities on these islands are fully constructed, my fleet will be able to rely on the island chain to occupy the entire Golden Waterway and divide the Mediterranean into two."

"Just wait and see. Once the plan is completed, the tolls from the port of Valletta alone will bring in a lot of money."

There are only two waterways between the Eastern and Western Mediterranean, the Strait of Messina and the Strait of Tunisia. The Strait of Messina has fast-flowing waters and contains the Hiera Reef and the Caribdis Whirlpool. It has been a dangerous trade route since ancient times. The Strait of Tunisia is wider and deeper. If given a choice, merchants would prefer the latter.

"Malta's naval port and fortress complex must be completed as soon as possible. You have to help me keep an eye on them."

Isaac did not change his decision.

Seeing that Prime Minister Isurt hesitated to speak, Isaac raised his eyebrows.

"If you have something to say, just tell us. We have been together for more than ten years. There is no need to hide it."

"Your Majesty, I think you have invested too much effort in the navy. After the expansion of the fleet this year, the navy's military expenditure has exceeded 40,000 ducats, accounting for half of the total military expenditure."

“This is truly unprecedented.”

The prime minister looked confused.

Isaac stood up and looked at the map carved on the wall.

On the map, the land was iron black, the territory of the Eastern Roman Empire was dyed with murex purple, and the vast ocean was brilliant gold.

"Remember what I said today."

"The next few hundred years will be the age of the ocean, and the importance of the navy will become increasingly important."

"I am the first monarch to attach such importance to the navy, but I will definitely not be the last."

"I can say with great confidence that the navy I value will bring extremely rich rewards to the empire in the near future."

Isaac looked at the two men's faces and knew that they were not convinced by his few words.

"Okay, everyone go back. I will issue a decree soon and you just need to cooperate in its implementation."

……

On January 1461, 1, Isaac, co-emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, summoned his ministers and promulgated the "Sea Power Decree."

The decree stipulates that in order to protect the vast sea borders, the total naval strength of the Eastern Roman Empire must be ranked first in the entire Mediterranean, and must exceed the combined strength of the fleets of the second and third ranked countries.

At this point, the Eastern Roman Empire's naval affairs had a guiding principle, and the entire territory worked together to step up shipbuilding.

With the continuous injection of wealth and policy encouragement, the Roman Arsenal located on the outskirts of Carthage continued to expand in size. On March 1461, 3, it successfully launched the first large carrack for sale to Pope Pius II.

Since then, the Carthage Naval Shipyard has finally turned a profit and no longer needs Isaac's subsidies.

Stimulated by this, within just two months, Isaac approved the construction of three large and medium-sized shipyards in the Balkans, namely the Constantinople Shipyard, the Thessalonica Shipyard and the Athens Shipyard. They were all semi-military and semi-civilian in nature. The Macedonian region had abundant fir wood, enough to build small warships and commercial ships.

The Eastern Roman Empire's "Sea Power Decree" and the subsequent shipbuilding storm soon caused panic in the Republic of Venice. The Great Council soon introduced a new shipbuilding plan and started an arms race with the Eastern Empire.

They knew very well that the emperor of the Eastern Empire was a profit-seeking man, and his naval warships were a group of hungry sharks, always ready to swarm into the rich trade routes.

They were also well aware that the Republic of Venice could no longer withstand the Second Battle of Malta. If they failed to win the arms race, the prosperous trade routes in the eastern Mediterranean would simply not be preserved.

When they learned that Isaac would focus on the navy, several of his land enemies breathed a sigh of relief. King Charles VII of France withdrew part of the garrison in Genoa and went north to quell the rebellion. Bulgarian Bey Mahmud also returned to Sofia to stabilize the internal situation.

Of course, Isaac wanted this very much.

Let others fight for the land, and you, the blessed Roman Empire, control the hegemony of the sea! What Gaia, the god of the earth, gives to others, Poseidon, the god of the sea, will also give to you!

(End of this chapter)