Chapter 301 The Joy of Victory and Italy's Layout

Constantinople was immersed in joy every day. It defeated the Venetian navy, broke the anti-Roman alliance, and then destroyed Venice. Which of these things was not exciting? They had been suppressed for too long. How could such a victory not make them support the royal family and the country?

After preaching in Hagia Sophia, Patriarch Anthony talked with the Patriarch of Wallachia Carol who came. Carol agreed with the proposal to re-establish the Roman Patriarchate. Would he only allow the other party to establish a bishop in Constantinople, but not allow himself to re-establish the Roman Patriarchate in Italy?

Religious people discussed, and the people at the bottom also discussed. In the tavern, a nouveau riche told everyone present that he had just spent 200 lei to buy a Venetian female slave, who was said to be the daughter of a local noble.

"Boris, is what you said true or not? Is it your turn?"

"Of course it's true. It said that they would send them all to Anatolia. I saw that I couldn't miss this opportunity, so I bought one. It's a bit expensive at 100 lei, but it's definitely worth it."

"Really, how did I catch up?"

The people in the tavern talked about this conquest one after another. In addition, the celebrations in the capital have not stopped these days. It should be that the West has won consecutive victories.

The public's support is very strong, and even some nobles with dissent have to support the royal family. In the boyar meeting, there were only words of support, and there were no voices of opposition.

However, Rome did not fall behind in political power seizure. The old nobles and the new nobles fought fiercely. Angel was about to turn 65 years old. Which faction would get the position of the new prime minister? Whoever would have the upper hand in the struggle.

"Your Majesty, the most discussed topic among the nobles in Constantinople recently is the successor to the prime minister."

Gica reported to Mircea that both factions were trying to gain support from all aspects, from landlords and nobles to merchants and officials. They were everywhere. But there were several places and people that they could not touch, because if they did, it would change the political situation.

The first was the small force controlled by Mircea and the large army controlled by Peter. They were the defensive and offensive forces of the empire. They were firmly in the hands of Mircea. Even Peter was a member of the royal family, and the two factions could not win them over. Whether it was the army or the navy, the generals were promoted by the emperor and Caesar. They were loyal to the royal family and had no interest in party disputes. The two factions were afraid that the royal family would command the army to destroy them all.

The second was the newly established East India Company. They were chartered by the royal family, and various chambers of commerce participated in the financing and were responsible for the oriental trade. After the fall of Venice, the East India Company conducted the spice trade alone, and its annual income was higher than that of the various chambers of commerce. But they obeyed the royal orders, so the two factions could only win over some people. After all, the royal family also affects some personnel changes.

The third is the nobles who have duchies in the local areas, including the Duke of Argo, the Despot of Epirus, the Despot of Illyria and the Duke of Ukraine. Among them, there are two members of the royal family, one is Caesar's father-in-law, and the last is a close comrade-in-arms of the royal family. They can only be leaders instead of being joined, and the emperor will not allow them to participate in political struggles.

Excluding these three factors, the struggle between the two factions is limited to the struggle for cabinet and local official positions. Mircea will never allow military power to fall into the hands of the nobles, so he tried every means to avoid it. And these nobles have no intention of infiltrating the army for the time being, so they just work hard on civil servants.

However, the political struggle of the upper class cannot affect the benefits of plundering Italy to the empire. A large number of gold coins, craftsmen, and books supplemented the economy and culture of the empire. Mircea once again proposed to the Senate to expand the army to 100,000. This proposal was passed smoothly. After all, who would take advantage of victory to pour cold water?

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Peter also began to eliminate those local snakes, directly issued church land decrees, and assigned all Catholic Church land to the Orthodox Church. At the same time, for the newly occupied land, Peter integrated it into a Principality of Romagna, with Ancona as its capital; there is also a so-called Republic of Emilia, which can also be called the Republic of the Southern Alps, which governs the former Republic of Bologna and part of Milan. The territory is divided into several regions, which elect their own sheriffs, judges and electors.

Formally, this is a republic, but in fact it is an independent ally of Rome, but in fact the alliance treaty puts it under the control of France. The terms of the alliance treaty actually handed over local control and the power to station a 25,000-man force to Rome at the expense of the republic. A 10,000-man force was also required for future wars.

That Francesco also knelt down to pledge allegiance to Peter, converted to Orthodoxy in public, and changed his name to Andreas. His family also pledged allegiance, and then he was appointed Duke of Romagna. After all, if you want to find a nobleman who is familiar with northern Italy, he is the only one who meets the requirements.

Andreas didn't expect to become a duke so easily, but he knew that this was inseparable from Rome. Since he had converted to Orthodoxy, he had been at war with Roman Catholicism from then on. As for his hometown Genoa, he only maintained economic exchanges. Other ties were cut off. After all, no one would remember a ruined nobleman.

The Duchy of Romagna signed an alliance with the Republic of Emilia, and they signed an alliance with Rome. To be honest, these two were satellite states of Rome and pawns to contain the situation in Italy.

After robbing Rome, Peter turned his attention to the two countries in the north. They were smart. They just waved their hands and offered money. The two countries with a total area of ​​80,000 square kilometers offered 700,000 gold coins to beg for mercy. But Peter had not enjoyed the war to break Milan, so he left them alone, and then prepared to send the vanguard to the south to support Laszlo, and returned to the north with the remaining soldiers.

Peter turned Italy upside down. Except for the stubborn Palatinate army at the beginning, no one else came with an army. There were some short-sighted noble heirs who wanted to earn military merits, but ended up giving experience to the other side. France watched the show, Bohemia watched the show, and the one who wanted to rescue was paralyzed first. Even Burgundy had to cancel because of the regency dispute in France, and John had to fight for the support of Avignon.

The lesson this time was almost enough. If Milan and Savoy withdrew, Austria and Aragon would be left to support them. One was beaten, and the other was not. How about a Sicily landing?