Chapter 300 Exit

On the fifth day, Boniface saw Peter's peace terms and asked the pope to pay 800,000 ducats as ransom. Each of the seven cardinals in the city had to pay 400,000 ducats as ransom, otherwise, they would have their property confiscated.

Several bishops immediately raised money, and the pope felt uncomfortable. In addition to money, the other party also asked for the cession of Ravenna, San Marino and other lands, that is, to return to the scope of St. Peter's inheritance. The pope did not want to agree to such a request, but the army and artillery outside were not made of mud, so he refused to try.

Moreover, the Papal States at this time could not be regarded as a real country, but a loose combination of several feudal city-states or small countries with the pope as the supreme lord. Some city-states had their own secondary lords, while some city-states (such as Rome) did not. Generally speaking, the relationship between the pope and these small states was similar to the relationship between the king and the free city in other Western European countries. Since there was no secular monarch to compete with it, the church became the highest authority in these city-states.

While waiting for the Pope to agree to the treaty, the wealth and culture inside Rome were almost emptied. Even the Pope's triple crown was taken away. This crown, which symbolizes the supremacy of Catholicism and is worth millions of gold coins, was also packed and taken away. Innocent III would definitely faint if he were reborn.

The news of the capture of Rome was a bombshell to the entire Catholic world, but France was the only exception. Prince Charles, who had not yet succeeded to the throne, even hoped that Peter would kill the Pope of Rome, so that the Avignon Pope they supported would be the only orthodoxy. In this way, France could use the name of the Pope to start a war and excommunicate England.

The religious princes in the Holy Roman Empire could not sit still, and most of them supported the Pope of Rome. The three major religious electors once again called for the recovery of Rome, and Austria responded positively, saying that they would pay with their lives for religion.

Responses are responses, but Austria will not pay troops again. If it happens again, Vienna will be gone. He just expressed an attitude, and the princes of the Holy Roman Empire will not sit idly by and watch Austria be occupied by Rome.

Under the watchful eyes of various countries, Peter drained Rome of all its wealth. The Pope was forced to compromise and signed the agreement in person in the Pantheon. At the age of 46, he was so scared of the 22-year-old prince that he couldn't even pick up a pen, but in the end he gave up his wealth and a lot of land to send this devil away.

Congratulations to the Papal States for becoming the third country to withdraw from the war. The price paid included 3.5 million ransoms, 900,000 various cash, a large number of books and religious items equivalent to more than 8 million in cash, plus land in the eastern region. The Roman army also caused 3,000 to 7,000 deaths, and the losses along the way were countless.

The church has a strong foundation for so many years. Fortunately, it was robbed early, otherwise it would have been left to the Habsburgs. The next thing to do is to transport them back.

It is a bit difficult to transport them back because there are too many of them, so they are first transported by carriage, and then transported to Constantinople by sea and land to a safe place.

The situation in Italy was generally stable, and Peter began to plan a new country on the occupied land. Rome could not get too deeply involved in Italy, which would have an adverse impact on the country's future strategy.

"Come and see, these are all our spoils of war, and they will definitely make Constantinople more glorious."

Peter had no religious guilt at all. Since the Eastern and Western churches had split after 1054, the two sides were no longer brothers, but heretics. Since they were enemies, why should there be a sense of guilt? Taking away the enemy's things and making them spoils of war was his goal.

"Your Highness, the one from Genoa is here again."

Peter had expected that the Genoa Parliament would only be efficient at this time.

"Your Highness," Francesco came to Peter with a smile. "The governor asked me to come and sign a peace treaty with your country, and they all agreed to your conditions."

"So fast, it's worthy of being Genoa. I hope you won't be like Venice, otherwise, Venice's end will be your end."

Peter's words were a warning to Genoa, asking them not to backstab. Francesco agreed immediately and promised not to rebel.

Six days later, Genoa also signed a peace treaty with Rome, and withdrew from the war after paying 1.8 million florins and some political costs. Now the Venice Alliance only has Milan, Savoy, Austria and Aragon left, and the other minions are useless.

(The process is a bit confusing, I will hang myself to apologize first)

The wealth plundered from Italy in the past few months is enough to pay the empire's taxes for two years. The finance minister no longer cries poor, and the emperor has officially separated the royal finances from the imperial finances. Before, because of the small number of industries and small taxes, the two were not completely separated. Now the formal separation of finances can operate more healthily.

The royal handicraft industry has also expanded greatly. Among the craftsmen transported, the craftsmen of glass, luxury goods, and textile industries were intercepted by the royal family and distributed in workshops across the country, creating a steady stream of wealth for the royal family.

Others either become lifelong hired workers in government enterprises or go to Anatolia to become pioneers. Anyway, the emperor has ordered the residents of Anatolia to be tax-free for two years, and of course they have no personal freedom.

The slaves brought back from northern Italy cannot do heavy work, but they can escape quickly. They still need more training, but the Armenians who came because of the preferential policies are definitely the main force in rebuilding the core.

There are a large number of Armenians living in Anatolia and the Armenian Plateau, and successive Roman emperors also have Armenian ancestry, such as Heraclius.

They went from Cilicia to the Ancyra region to reclaim the land for Rome. At the same time, acting as a middleman with the nomadic regime, Mircea adopted a tolerant attitude towards this nation, recognizing the Armenian Church and Armenian language. They can also take university exams, but the prerequisite is that they must learn Romanian.

Except for some people who are too difficult to assimilate, the main body of the empire should now be called Romanians, and Armenia is an acceptable culture. There are also some Cossacks, Hungarians and individual nomads. They believe in Orthodox Christianity, speak Romanian, and are also part of the Roman Empire.

Mircea and the government tried to reverse the narrow nationalism after 1261. After all, except for Latins and Westerners, other ethnic groups are still easy to get along with. After two years of development, things gradually improved, and the destruction of Venice promoted national integration. That kind of narrow nationalism began to disappear, replaced by a more relaxed cultural atmosphere, but only the culture recognized by the government is acceptable, and the others are still discriminated against and suppressed.