1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 396 Royal Craftsmen
The scorching sun shines on the surface of the eastern Mediterranean Sea, the breeze stirs up the waves, and the blue sea under the blue sky is golden.

After the fall of the Republic of Venice, the Eastern Mediterranean almost became the private domain of the Eastern Roman Empire. The weak Muslim dynasties found it difficult to organize a fleet that could compete with the imperial navy. The rampant Islamic pirates in the past were also completely wiped out. The ships of the Eastern Roman Empire monopolized almost all trade and personnel flows in the Eastern Mediterranean. Sometimes, Mamluk merchants had to rely on the merchant ships of the Eastern Roman Empire to transport goods from Syria to Egypt.

Crete and Cyprus are the two most important islands in the eastern Mediterranean. The administrative management of these two islands has undergone constant adjustment and standardization over the decades.

Crete belongs to Europe and tends to serve as a bridge between North Africa and the Balkans, while Cyprus belongs to Asia and tends to control the trade between the Levant, Anatolia and Egypt. The trade and personnel flow between the two islands are not frequent, and they do not look down on each other. The former "Eastern Mediterranean Province" was soon abolished, and Crete became the center of the Aegean Islands Province. Cyprus was listed as a separate province due to its extremely rapid development speed and extremely important strategic value.

In early 1478, the Mamluk Sultan Qiyit Bey took advantage of the fact that the Eastern Roman Empire was busy with the Anatolian War and led an army of to approach Alexandria. On the grounds that the civil war was over and the contract had expired, he demanded that the two mercenary groups leave Egypt and return to the empire.

After diplomatic mediation, the Eastern Roman Empire and the Mamluk Dynasty reached an agreement and signed a five-year non-aggression pact between the two countries. The Mamluk Dynasty would not provide any assistance to the Anatolian Bey states, still recognized the Cairo Treaty of Commerce, and designated part of the area of ​​Alexandria as an Eastern Roman concession area, allowing Eastern Roman merchants to trade freely.

In return, except for the more than 200 guards stationed in the concession area, the main force of the two major mercenary groups, totaling 2,800 people, were all evacuated from Mamluk. The Eastern Roman Empire would stop attacking Mamluk merchant ships and continue to import grain and other commodities from the port of Alexandria.

The Catalan Mercenaries and the Navarre Mercenaries temporarily left Egypt and arrived in Cyprus by boat from Alexandria. Several marines were also waiting for deployment in Cyprus. All of a sudden, Cyprus became a large military camp and naval port. The arrival of the army and fleet made the commodity trade here flourish rapidly, and another Roman province reaped the benefits of the war.

The city of Nicosia in the province of Cyprus has a circular city wall built on the plain, with mountains facing each other in the distance to the north and southwest. Outside the city are large orchards and farmlands, while inside the city is a vibrant scene.

The city of Nicosia is the capital of the province of Cyprus. It is located on the Messoria Plain in the north-central part of the island. The Pedias River, which originates from the Troodos Mountains, provides the city with excellent irrigation and shipping facilities.

Cyprus was the first Asian territory to be recovered since the revival of the Eastern Roman Empire, nearly thirty years ago. Thirty years of peaceful development have brought great changes to the island of Cyprus. The population of the island exceeds 120,000, and the mainstream population is Greek Romans, of whom nearly one-third live around the capital Nicosia.

Although Nicosia is not a coastal city, it is not far from the ocean and has outstanding agricultural potential. The "Imperial Highway" connects the city of Nicosia with important seaports on the island, and the Padias River allows small boats to pass, which makes it easy for the city of Nicosia to exchange goods with other places.

On the spacious and clean street, a young man dressed as a mercenary walked quickly towards the most upscale tavern in the city. His brown curly hair and brown eyes were not much different from those of a Greek Roman, but his pale complexion and highly recognizable hooked nose revealed his identity - a Western European.

The young mercenary hurriedly pushed his way through the crowded crowd and entered the noisy tavern, looking for his target among the drinkers and waiters.

"George, here!"

Lloyd Stafford called to him from the second floor, waving his fork and speaking in Latin.

George waved to Lloyd, ran up the wooden steps, sat down opposite him, grabbed the glass, and drank it all.

"Good wine!"

George Cavendish cried cheerfully, and took another drink.

"It is said that Richard the Lionheart loved the wine of Cyprus. He has been drinking it to his heart's content these days!"

"Come on, George, be more polite!"

Lloyd frowned deliberately, joking, and continued speaking Latin.

"We are of noble birth, we cannot let others look down on us. Come, try some Rooibos tea, this is what authentic Roman nobles should drink!"

"Also, don't speak English anymore. Speak Latin instead. We'll have to mingle with the upper class in the future, and they'll laugh at us if we speak English!"

"Haha, I can't compare to you, the respected Lord Lloyd Stafford Buckingham!"

George responded in Latin with his tongue spread out.

"My father is not even a baron. Our family only has a small manor. If the emperor is really willing to confer us nobility as you said, then we can talk about this!"

After saying that, George grabbed a chicken leg, looked at the sauce beside him, his eyes lit up, he dipped it, took a big bite, and exclaimed in amazement.

"The food in England really can't compare to that in the Mediterranean countries. Even the king's table doesn't have such good food!"

"This is curry. It came from India and was learned by the Romans. It is difficult to spoil and can be mass-produced in workshops."

Lloyd pushed the roast chicken to George and took a piece of bread and spread it with Black Sea caviar from Constanta.

"Is the matter done?"

"Well, Wellesley wrote to say that he has transported 1,600 refugees to Antalya and is returning to Dublin for a second trip."

George said vaguely.

"He said that he plans to use his family connections to recruit some Garoglass warriors from Ireland and add them to our small mercenary group."

"Even if you don't want to fight in the battlefield and just want to be a big farmer and rancher, we will definitely have to deal with the Turks, and appropriate military force is necessary."

"Also, the weather has been bad in recent years. There was heavy rain in Cork County in southern Ireland for a full half month, and all the farmland was washed away. Wellesley is planning to bring those refugees here as well."

"Okay, I always trust him to do things."

Lloyd nodded.

"Compared to the English, the Emperor's immigration officials prefer the barbaric Irish. I don't know why."

"It's because they are backward and ignorant. The more ignorant a group is, the more the Romans like it."

George shrugged.

"The Immigration Bureau focuses on Lithuania because those Russian serfs are stupid and docile. Even when they come to the Eastern Empire, they still think of themselves as serfs in their bones. They just have a new master who treats them very well."

"Maybe. Anyway, it has nothing to do with us. Attracting refugees is a great achievement. We just need to show off our skills on the battlefield, and we will definitely get titles and lands."

Lloyd shook his head indifferently.

"But don't you think that Ireland's population has been growing a bit too fast in recent years?"

"Well, yes, many Irish people have begun to replace wheat fields with potato fields. Potatoes are suitable for Ireland and are not as delicate as wheat and barley."

"Elysium's territory has expanded to the west coast. Several explorers sailed to the south and discovered a relatively powerful indigenous regime there called the Inca."

George thought of the outdated newspaper he had flipped through a few days ago.

"They stole more productive potatoes from the Inca natives. Once these potatoes spread across the European continent, the population of Ireland will increase rapidly... As for the Irish, as long as there is food to eat, they will keep having children."

“Oh, every tribe is the same.”

Lloyd smiled.

"Look at the city of Nicosia. There are so many young people. Almost all of them were born after 1453."

"In the past, apart from premature deaths, of six children born to a couple, perhaps only two would survive, as the rest were killed by famine, war, and plague. The emperor fed them, kept them away from war, and improved urban hygiene for them. Now, of the same six children, perhaps only five would survive."

"I've been to Paris. Within the city walls, the population of Paris is actually comparable to that of Constantinople, but the streets there are littered with feces and garbage."

"However, even in a third-class city like Nicosia, they have strict health laws. If anyone dares to throw feces everywhere like the French, the children will be warned, and the adults will be flogged for the first time and exiled for the second time. They will not listen to your explanation at all."

George looked at the lively scene below the tavern and nodded with deep emotion.

"Abundant supplies, long periods of peace, and strict and cruel health control... I dare say that as long as the emperor is still here, in a few decades, the population of the Eastern Empire will definitely exceed that of France."

"If they continue to attract immigrants, it may be even faster."

Lloyd finished his bread and picked up a cup of Rooibos tea.

"How's the pocket watch going?"

"Ah, if you hadn't told me, I would have forgotten."

George patted his forehead, took out three exquisite wooden boxes from his pocket, and handed the largest one to Lloyd.

"Master Peter Henlein made this egg-shaped pocket watch himself. It is much more accurate than Manfred's pocket watch from Constantinople, but it lacks in artistry."

As George spoke, he opened his pocket watch box and touched the brass casing.

"Henlein is a German guy. He only cares about accuracy and detail. He doesn't do carving. We have to find other craftsmen for the family crest."

"Well, who are you looking for? Any clues?"

Lloyd took out his pocket watch, opened the copper cover, and watched the slowly turning hands.

"The nobles of Constantinople all wear pocket watches, so we have to follow the local customs."

"Henlein recommended Albrecht, a metalworker from Nuremberg who is also in Nicosia."

George said.

"It is said that most of the wealthy nobles who received pocket watches from Henlein's workshop would go to Albrecht's workshop to continue engraving."

"Well, okay, we'll go now."

Lloyd stood up, asked for a handkerchief, wiped his mouth, paid the bill, and left the pub with George.

“We went to the German quarter of Nicosia, which was the richest except for the St. John quarter where the Greek capitalists lived.”

Walking out of the pub, George looked around, looking for directions.

"There is a Western Rite Church in the German District, which was left over from the Crusades era and was reopened a few years ago. We can also go there to worship."

"Oh? I thought the Eastern Empire would have ill will towards the Crusaders."

Lloyd asked casually.

"Then the Crusader Chapel in Famagusta has also been preserved?"

"The textbooks of the Eastern Empire have given a clear explanation of the Crusades, acknowledging that the first three Crusades helped the Komnenos Dynasty recover the territories in Asia Minor, firmly denying the Fourth Crusade, and at the same time expressing gratitude for the holy wars carried out by the Western Church, including the Varna Crusaders, against the Ottomans. The city of Varna also built a monument to Władysław III. May God bless his young soul."

George crossed himself and continued.

"The emperor has always been clear about gratitude and resentment. The Hunyadi family of the Kingdom of Hungary once did favors to the Eastern Empire. The emperor swore that as long as the Hunyadi family still wore the crown of Hungary, he would never set foot on any piece of Hungarian land. If the Raven King Matthias insisted on attacking the Eastern Empire, the emperor would order the army to retreat three Roman miles to show respect and gratitude."

"As for the Crusader Church in Famagusta, the old chapel has been completely renovated. Princess Charlotte paid for it, and it is now very solemn and majestic. Some Catholics who claim to be descendants of the Crusaders particularly like that place because it was one of the chapels where the Crusader princes were crowned."

"The emperor gave this chapel a new name, called 'The Chapel of the Prince'."

"That's not bad."

Lloyd laughed.

"I didn't expect the emperor to be so kind to Catholics."

"There is no other way. The Eastern Empire has experienced more than two hundred years of chaos and has only recovered rapidly in recent years. Not only is the population insufficient, but the talent is also insufficient."

George said calmly.

"The Emperor needs us."

“For example, the German quarter of Nicosia has more than 3,000 German Christians, most of whom use Western rituals.”

"The emperor has also granted religious exemptions to Saracens, but they are not the same as they were hundreds of years ago. There have been no talented people for a long time. A bunch of scholars are all studying Islamic law, which is useless."

“Although the Eastern Empire absorbed a lot of achievements from Saracen civilization, and some Saracen books even became standard textbooks in the Eastern Roman Empire, those were basically things from hundreds of years ago. Saracen civilization at that time was extremely brilliant, and Jabir ibn Hayyan was directly revered as the father of chemistry by the alchemists of the Eastern Empire, and he was posthumously awarded the title of Honorary Roman.”

"You are very knowledgeable about these things."

Lloyd looked at George in surprise.

"You haven't been asking around in Nicosia these days, have you?"

"That's not necessary."

George smiled. "I went straight to the library of the University of Nicosia. There were copies of the Daily Record from the past ten years and various old newspapers, including those in Latin. I read them all."

"I can't help it. My Lord, you always like to stay in the hotel, so I have to share some of the burden for you."

"Yes, I was right about you. Not only are you skilled in martial arts, but you also know how to read books and newspapers."

Lloyd smiled broadly and patted George on the shoulder.

The two continued walking on the bright and clean street. The architectural style on the roadside gradually changed. Some buildings had a distinct Byzantine-Gothic mixed style, and the street hawking was also mixed with Greek and German words.

If Athens is the dream city of Italian immigrants, Nicosia is the "geo shui treasure land" of German immigrants. The German community here is prosperous, and the German immigrants who settle here are relatively wealthy and are not from poor refugee backgrounds.

When the Eastern Roman Empire just recovered the island of Cyprus, the level of development here was very average. The shift of the East-West trade routes made Cyprus no longer the transit status it used to be. Sugar plantations closed down in large numbers under the squeeze of colonial sugar. The once world-famous copper mines were no longer as good as before due to nearly two thousand years of crazy mining, and the surface copper mines were almost completely exhausted.

For a long time, Cyprus' economy could only rely on wine, olive oil and various agricultural products. Although these things were good, more than half of the entire Eastern Roman Empire could produce them, so they were not really precious specialties.

However, at the end of the 15th century, a mining boom in Germany saved Cyprus from its depressed economy. The mining technology in the German states made great progress, and people were able to mine deeper ores and achieve higher efficiency.

Therefore, under the leadership of Commerce Minister Fugger, a large number of German technicians came to Cyprus and began to explore new veins and build new mines. Some of them were mining engineers, some were skilled miners, and some were experienced mine operators. With their help, the copper mining industry on Cyprus gradually recovered and it once again became the most important copper mining center in the Eastern Roman Empire.

After a long period of collaboration, German immigrants and Greek citizens reached an effective distribution model. Greek capitalists were responsible for contracting the mines, German operators and engineers were responsible for the specific operations and mine construction respectively, and German skilled miners became team leaders and foremen, responsible for commanding and managing Muslim slave laborers.

As more and more copper mines were opened up, more and more German immigrants came here. Most of them came from Saxony. They and their families became the first immigrants in the German area of ​​Nicosia.

Then, various workshops relying on copper mining were quickly established in Nicosia, such as the Adrian liquid production workshop that used copper by-products as the main raw materials, the cannon foundry that used copper as the main material, and the watch workshop that the Eastern Roman Empire had always encouraged.

The watch industry is the mother of precision manufacturing. The innovation and creation of a large number of precision devices including springs and mainsprings were first completed by watchmakers. The late 15th century and early 16th century were the first golden period of the great development of the European watch industry.

At the same time, the development of the watch industry will also promote the innovation of production tools. The old wooden machine tools could not meet the needs of watchmakers. Handicraft machine tools such as thread lathes, gear lathes, hydraulic boring machines, internal cylindrical grinders, etc. ushered in major innovations in the late 15th century. Cranks, flywheels, neck tips, bearings and other fine mechanisms were soon applied to handicraft machine tools. Various machine tools in Europe began to transition from wood to metal, and the main metal materials were copper and copper alloys.

Of course, the above innovations also brought about progress in arithmetic and geometry. Tracing back to the source, these advances are inseparable from the watch industry.

Since among several mature civilizations, only Europeans had such a huge demand for clocks and watches, and only Europeans had advanced technology to mass-produce mechanical clocks, the watch industry and fine machinery manufacturing industry became one of the few industries in European civilization that was significantly ahead of Arab civilization and East Asian civilization at the end of the 15th century.

However, in this era, the leaders of the European watch industry were not the Swiss, but the Germans and northern Italians. The Germans were famous for their precision and meticulous craftsmanship, while the Italians were more inclined to gorgeous decorations.

In order to support the development of the watch industry, the Eastern Roman royal family invited the Italian watchmaker Manfred to Constantinople very early on, and asked him to tailor a set of high-end pocket watches for the royal family members, trying to play a leading role and let the pocket watch craze spread to other wealthy businessmen and nobles.

With more than a decade of support, the Eastern Roman watch industry first developed and grew in Constantinople. High-end pocket watches almost became the standard equipment for Eastern Roman nobles and wealthy businessmen.

How can you come to the party without even a pocket watch?
After the revival of the Cyprus copper industry, Nicosia's watch and precision machinery manufacturing industries were put on the agenda. The copper price here is only one-sixth of that in Constantinople, which is conducive to mass production and commercial manufacturing.

Since the Italian craftsman Manfred did not want to leave Constantinople and did not want to continue to engage in technological innovation, but was only willing to rack his brains to design more gorgeous watch cases, Isaac did not send him to Nicosia. Instead, he sent an invitation letter to the Nuremberg watchmaker Peter Henlein, hiring him to open a workshop in Nicosia with a generous profit and granting him the honorary title of "Royal Craftsman".

"Royal Craftsman" was the highest honor award given to senior craftsmen in the Eastern Roman Empire, and they were allowed to attend the Senate. Currently, there were less than twenty "Royal Craftsmen" in the Eastern Roman Empire, including the cannon maker Urban and the shipbuilder Mansreti.

In order to help Nicosia's watchmaking and precision machinery manufacturing industries solve the problem of precision, Isaac also provided them with some inspiration based on his memory and made a copper caliper for mechanical distance measurement.

This thing is not some high-end industrial product. The Eastern dynasty invented this caliper in the Han Dynasty, and other mature civilizations also had similar tools.

At the same time, with the help of the Eastern Roman Empire's "Lighthouse Project" Executive Agency, the Nicosia Municipal Government continued to recruit high-level craftsmen from Germany, offering them money, honor, housing, land, beauties... whatever they wanted.

This is the origin of the second wave of German immigrants. Unlike the first wave of immigrants, most of them came from industrially and commercially developed cities such as Nuremberg, and their overall quality was also higher.

With the triple encouragement of materials, talents and policies, Nicosia's mining industry, cannon foundry industry, watch industry, metal engraving industry and precision machinery manufacturing industry developed rapidly. The watches produced in Nicosia occupied half of the Eastern Roman watch market. The various machine tools produced in Nicosia were famous throughout the empire for their precision and durability.

"George, I wonder if you've noticed that although this is the German district, many of the names of shops and workshops have a strong Greek style."

Lloyd looked around the street and raised an eyebrow.

"Their owners are obviously of Greek descent."

"Well, those German craftsmen are rigid and stubborn. They can't compete with the Greeks in business and capital."

George nodded.

"I read in an old newspaper that they conducted some questionnaires on children of different ethnicities in Constantinople and found that Russian and Turkic children wanted to be soldiers, Latino children wanted to be engineers and artists, but more than half of Greek children wanted to be capitalists and navigators."

"Greek capitalists in Nicosia often pay to recruit famous craftsmen and help them solve problems with stores, raw materials and sales. The craftsmen only need to produce as much as they can and they can also share some of the profits."

"Some pocket watch workshops opened by Greek capitalists adopt modular production. The case, hands, springs, bracelets... these parts are manufactured by different workers and then assembled together."

"This kind of thing is actually of very poor quality and will break down after a few months of use, but it is cheap and in large quantities. It is made specifically for those middle-class citizens who like to pretend to be sophisticated. They don't really need to tell time, so they just use it to show off."

George couldn't help laughing when he said this.

"Master Henlein cursed at the pocket watch, saying that the Greeks only knew how to play such tricks and that it was a desecration of the craft."

The two talked as they walked, getting closer and closer to their destination. Compared to usual, the city of Nicosia had a more solemn and murderous atmosphere. There were obviously more mercenaries on the streets, and the doors of several weapon and armor shops were crowded with people.

"Ah, dear Sir Lloyd, here we are."

George stopped and looked up at the store's plaque. Above the Latin store name was a crown. It was obvious that this was a workshop with royal craftsmen in charge.

"Albrecht Metal Engraving Workshop."

George whispered.

The two walked towards the store, and the walls of the store were covered with finished carvings, including gilded muskets, silver-inlaid daggers, and copper-inlaid canes...

On the counter near the store door, a child of seven or eight years old was lying down and drawing, with scrap copper ingots and carving knives used for practicing metal engraving thrown aside.

Hearing the footsteps, the child hurriedly hid the painting, picked up the copper ingot and carving knife, and pretended to carve.

Seeing that the two people coming were strangers, the child breathed a sigh of relief and dropped the carving knife.

"Why didn't you knock on the door? I thought it was my father coming back!"

The child complained in Greek, but when the two could not understand, he switched to Latin.

"Hey, you guys, are you new to Nicosia? Can't you even understand Greek?"

The child stood on a chair with his hands on his hips.

“I’ve only been here for two years and I’ve already learned the purest Cypriot dialect!”

"I am Lloyd from the Stafford family, and I am here to see Master Albrecht."

Lloyd had no interest in arguing with the kid, so he stated his purpose directly.

"Albrecht Dürer."

"I am."

Little Dürer waved his hands carelessly.

"Albrecht Dürer, word for word."

"Then it's time to find your father."

George walked forward, took out a candied kola nut from his pocket and handed it to little Dürer.

"Please inform us that the lord next to me is from a famous family."

Little Dürer's eyes lit up, he took the candy and put it in his mouth.

"I can afford it, but my father won't let me eat it, and neither will my teacher, saying it will keep me awake at night..."

Young Dürer explained vaguely.

"Father is not at home, you can wait. We have seen many famous families. Don't forget, my father is a royal craftsman. The emperor personally wrote a letter to invite him from Nuremberg!"

"Well, where did he go?"

Lloyd sighed and looked at Dürer the Younger.

“Is your teacher also a master carver?”

"No, my teacher teaches printmaking. The emperor also invited him here. His studio is just across the street..."

Young Dürer shook his head.

"My father is teaching college students. He will probably be back soon."

“Teaching college students?”

George was interested.

"Regmontanus National University of Nicosia?"

"Yes, Principal Regiomontanus is also a German-Roman. He is a mathematician and astronomer, and a good friend of Patriarch Bessarion. The Patriarch personally invited him to run a school here."

Little Dürer nodded.

"My father teaches metal courses, which is the third strongest subject of Regiomontanus University besides mathematics and mechanics!"

“Although most of the university students are Greek, most of the teachers are German!”

"Why, are you proud of your ethnicity?"

George asked with a smile.

"Of course! Although there are not many German-Romans, they are all first-class talents!"

Little Dürer said proudly.

"Of the eighteen royal craftsmen, six are of German descent. If we include Mr. Gutenberg, who was awarded posthumously, that would be more than one-third!"

"Nicosia originally had four royal craftsmen from Germany. Some time ago, the alchemist Mr. Valentine seemed to have invented something and was awarded the honorary titles of Royal Craftsman and Chemistry Fellow, but he was also directly conscripted to Constantinople."

"My father said that Germany is rich in talents, but unfortunately the princes don't know how to use them, so they all run to the Eastern Empire!"

After saying this, young Dürer looked at the two of them, and then at several apprentices who were dozing off in the store.

"If you are really a noble, then you can only wait for my father to carve for you. His craftsmanship is excellent, but the apprentices he trained are stupid!"

"Okay then, but we have other things to do and can't wait here for long."

Lloyd took out several people's pocket watch boxes and placed them on the table.

"All three pocket watches are engraved with the finest craftsmanship. The Stafford coat of arms, the Wellesley coat of arms, and the Cavendish coat of arms are all here."

Lloyd looked at George, who handed three rings engraved with heraldry to Dürer the Younger.

"The ring is considered collateral. Please hurry up. We will soon participate in the Cilician War as mercenaries. There will definitely be a celebration banquet at that time. Don't let us lose face."

Young Dürer took the ring, weighed it, and nodded.

"Don't worry, I guarantee you'll be satisfied!"

(End of this chapter)