Book 1; 1335 to 1341 - The Silent Decade, Part 2
"Even as a semblance of peace held for the Empire, around it the same could not be said," - Alexandros Komnenos, Resurgent Palaiologoi, Chapter 6 of 10, 'The Silent Decade'.
1335 - 1336
One might have thought 1335 would be a quiet year, and in 9/10ths you'd be rather accurate; all it had seen, as far as the Romans were concerned, was Andronikos III naming (in March) his closest friend and advisor, the scholar-warrior John Kantakouzenos, to the position of Chartophylax (Guardian of the Archives) of the still-rebuilding Bibliothēkē (Library of Constantinople).
The Emperor, who was by now far too used to Kantakouzenos' refusal of offers of greater political power, figured his closest friend would find this offer particularly tantalising, and in that he wasn't wrong. John had already been digging through the rebuilding ruins of the Queen of Cities in those moments he had to himself in order to scrounge up whatever knowledge had survived; hidden by priests, and librarians, during the 1204 Sack; having the goal of refilling the Bibliothēkē as much as he could.
This new duty simply made it more official, even if John himself still spent most of his time running the day-to-day administration of the Empire for Andronikos [1].
It was also in this year that much of the lands of what one might call the Archduchy of Austria (although not in existence yet) would be unified for a time under the Habsburgs at the behest of their friend, turned enemy, turned friend again, Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor. This would be the first, in a line, of unifications, splits, and unifications, until the realm would be unified fully in later years.
To this, of course, the First Congress of Visegrád would be called--opposing the threat the Habsburgs posed due to their sudden expansions; with Casimir III of Poland, John I of Bohemia, and of course, Charles I of Hungary-Croatia, being the participants. It was within this Congress that it was decided to reroute trade from the Habsburg Domains; around, to starve them of material and incomes and in turn bring easier flow of goods from merchants in wider Europe. Also here was the already de-facto rule of the Bohemians over Silesia confirmed de-jure by Casimir III; all three monarchs departing on good terms.
This moving of trade, particularly in Hungary-Croatia, would in turn eventually come to flow through Moldovia (of which Wallachia ruled part), into Wallachia, and then through the Bulgarian lands into those of the Romans; strengthening the routes already established in August of 1332 between the three.
Now--quiet, that was coming to an end around the Romans.
In the last days of 1335, December, the last legitimate Khan of the Ilkhanate would die, as disease ravaged his realm, and those surrounding. What followed, quite expectedly, was the implosion of the Ilkhanate, as various realms burst forth none more clearly than the Kingdom of Georgia, which freed itself from the Mongol yoke with force in battle; bringing a potent Orthodox Realm to the fore once more.
Its King, George V, would in time make more firm contact with its former allies in Trebizond, even as disease began to spread west out of the ruins of the Ilkhanate. Andronikos III of Trebizond, ally of the Romans, would die from a small, early, outbreak of what would later be known as the Black Death, leaving his 8-year-old son, Manuel II of Trebizond, as the new Emperor and Autocrat of all the East, the Iberians and of Perateia [2].
Manuel II would not last long; murdered by his uncle Basil Megas Komnenos [3] who took the throne of Trebizond, establishing firmer contacts with Georgia, and redeclaring his favour for the Romans, as his elder brother had done before him.
Andronikos III, of the Romans, and George V of Georgia, were both appalled by what Basil had done, but even as they established their own links of trade and friendship the two yielded to pragmatism.
As if by divine punishment Trebizond would be raided by the Turks in mid-1336, and Andronikos himself--far enough away to not be stung by it, as George V was, was able to find the irony in it.
1337 - 1339
Confiscating (in May) Gascony from the hands of Edward III, King of England, Philip VI of France would begin a months-long feud and debate between himself, his vassals, and those of England (although England herself, technically a vassal of France in terms of certain territories, refused to be referred to as such). This would come to blows, and war, in October, as Edward III declared himself rightful King of France, in defence of his rights, and through his cognatic lineage [4].
Thus began the 100 Years War.
Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor, would declare the following year Edward III, seen as the height of chivalric manner, to be Vicar-General of the Empire; parsing out with Edward the Treaty of Koblenz, wherein his Kingship over France was endorsed by the Wittelsbach Emperor. Of course, in response, Philip would lead a siege of Guyenne in Edward's Aquitanian lands, and unleash his navy against English ports.
Although, in more distant news, Andronikos' estranged Latinophile uncle--the Marquis of Montferrat, Teodore Paleologo-Montferrato [5], would pass away; leaving his lands to his son Giovanni.
Later, in 1339, the Second Congress of Visegrád would be called by Casimir III of Poland in his worry for his succession [6], making clear the purpose of establishing a new line of succession, which would be decided in favour of Charles I of Hungary-Croatia, and those of his line.
1340 - 1341
Arriving in Flanders in January, Edward III would officially proclaim himself King of France in France-proper; rallying the Flemish to his banner, and leading forces alongside his son, Edward the Black Prince, into France in a campaign that would last months; clashing multiple times against the forces of Philip VI, but not making much headway.
Such stalled progress pushed Edward III, relying on his new Flemish allies, to instead undertake a brilliant naval campaign (likely in revenge for Philip's earlier coastal raids); crushing the French fleet in person (having left the Black Prince behind in his stead) in the Battle of Sluys, wherein the noble French admirals, Hugues Quiéret and Nicolas Béhuchet, would be killed. Edward, injured, still made a show of burning the remaining wrecked French ships thereafter.
Buoyed by this, and expecting further victories, the English and her allies would be resoundingly crushed at the Battle of Saint-Omer by a French force less than a 6th their size; causing squabbling amongst Edward, his lieutenants, and allies that in turn doomed the following Siege of Tournai.
Irritated by this, the English Parliament would withhold the funds vital to the war; forcing Edward to, through Pope Benedict XII, enact a hasty 9-month truce at Espléchin--set to end in mid-1341.
Of course, though, the truce would not last, as less than 4 months into the treaty Edward would be drawn into meddling with the ongoing Breton succession crisis, forcing Philip to respond in turn--to which Edward declared the treaty null at 'Philip's aggression'; leading his rejuvenated forces into Brittany in what would become yet another front of the Hundred Years War.
In the east though, it is of note that the 10 Year Peace of Andronikos and Orhan had ended roughly a year prior.
---
[1] While Andronikos III had gradually taken on more administrative duties, the truth was that the majority of the important day-to-day decisions were still made in his name (with his permission) by John. This would become even more pronounced, as during the Silent Decade, where Andronikos' realm was largely at peace and thus not a place he could fight for or in, the Emperor instead focused on his family.
[2] Of course, the Megas Komnenoi had to show their Imperial Pedigree was superior to that of the 'usurpers' in Constantinople, at least in the founding of their own Empire. By this time it has simply become the title of use, not a declaration.
[3] Historians theorise that Basil's brutal killing of his nephew (rather than the usual blinding, and exile), and usurpation of the throne, was a long-boiling vengeance over his eldest brother, Andronikos III of Trebizond, murdering their two younger brothers upon taking the throne. Basil only escaped this because he himself was in Constantinople on diplomatic business at the time.
[4] Edward III had originally, as it seemed, been fine with Philip VI's ascent to French Kingship over himself (due to French Salic law technically disallowing him). However, Philip's choices in antagonising Edward III eventually led the English King to declare his claim for the French throne, starting what would become the 100 Years War.
[5] Teodore Paleologo-Montferrato, born Theodore Palaiologos, was one of the later sons of Andronikos II Palaiologos with his second wife, Eirene Aleramici (born Yolande of Montferrat). Andronikos II had married her in order to inherit her claims to the Kingdom of Thessaloniki in a bid to deter Latin claims or attempts on the land. With her also came the Aleramici claims/rule over the lands of the Marquisate of Montferrat. When she died, and those claims were passed to her children with Andronikos, the Emperor chose Theodore as the one to inherit. The nobles of the Empire worried Theodore would Latinise, and abandon his Roman identity--which turned out to be accurate; the new Marquis embracing the Papacy and raising his children in the Lombardic manner of North Italy.
The Palaiologi of Montferrat, or the Paleologo-Montferrato, being a cadet branch of the mainline Palaiologi headed by Andronikos III, are considered unimportant, and Andronikos III himself never had a relationship with his uncle, as Teodore left to rule Montferrat at 16 when Andronikos was only 9. Andronikos hasn't really thought about his distant, Latinised, kin.
[6] Casimir III possessed only daughters despite several marriages, and would die without a male heir in 1370; putting Poland under a Personal Union alongside Croatia with Hungary.
1335 - 1336
One might have thought 1335 would be a quiet year, and in 9/10ths you'd be rather accurate; all it had seen, as far as the Romans were concerned, was Andronikos III naming (in March) his closest friend and advisor, the scholar-warrior John Kantakouzenos, to the position of Chartophylax (Guardian of the Archives) of the still-rebuilding Bibliothēkē (Library of Constantinople).
The Emperor, who was by now far too used to Kantakouzenos' refusal of offers of greater political power, figured his closest friend would find this offer particularly tantalising, and in that he wasn't wrong. John had already been digging through the rebuilding ruins of the Queen of Cities in those moments he had to himself in order to scrounge up whatever knowledge had survived; hidden by priests, and librarians, during the 1204 Sack; having the goal of refilling the Bibliothēkē as much as he could.
This new duty simply made it more official, even if John himself still spent most of his time running the day-to-day administration of the Empire for Andronikos [1].
It was also in this year that much of the lands of what one might call the Archduchy of Austria (although not in existence yet) would be unified for a time under the Habsburgs at the behest of their friend, turned enemy, turned friend again, Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor. This would be the first, in a line, of unifications, splits, and unifications, until the realm would be unified fully in later years.
To this, of course, the First Congress of Visegrád would be called--opposing the threat the Habsburgs posed due to their sudden expansions; with Casimir III of Poland, John I of Bohemia, and of course, Charles I of Hungary-Croatia, being the participants. It was within this Congress that it was decided to reroute trade from the Habsburg Domains; around, to starve them of material and incomes and in turn bring easier flow of goods from merchants in wider Europe. Also here was the already de-facto rule of the Bohemians over Silesia confirmed de-jure by Casimir III; all three monarchs departing on good terms.
This moving of trade, particularly in Hungary-Croatia, would in turn eventually come to flow through Moldovia (of which Wallachia ruled part), into Wallachia, and then through the Bulgarian lands into those of the Romans; strengthening the routes already established in August of 1332 between the three.
Now--quiet, that was coming to an end around the Romans.
In the last days of 1335, December, the last legitimate Khan of the Ilkhanate would die, as disease ravaged his realm, and those surrounding. What followed, quite expectedly, was the implosion of the Ilkhanate, as various realms burst forth none more clearly than the Kingdom of Georgia, which freed itself from the Mongol yoke with force in battle; bringing a potent Orthodox Realm to the fore once more.
Its King, George V, would in time make more firm contact with its former allies in Trebizond, even as disease began to spread west out of the ruins of the Ilkhanate. Andronikos III of Trebizond, ally of the Romans, would die from a small, early, outbreak of what would later be known as the Black Death, leaving his 8-year-old son, Manuel II of Trebizond, as the new Emperor and Autocrat of all the East, the Iberians and of Perateia [2].
Manuel II would not last long; murdered by his uncle Basil Megas Komnenos [3] who took the throne of Trebizond, establishing firmer contacts with Georgia, and redeclaring his favour for the Romans, as his elder brother had done before him.
Andronikos III, of the Romans, and George V of Georgia, were both appalled by what Basil had done, but even as they established their own links of trade and friendship the two yielded to pragmatism.
As if by divine punishment Trebizond would be raided by the Turks in mid-1336, and Andronikos himself--far enough away to not be stung by it, as George V was, was able to find the irony in it.
1337 - 1339
Confiscating (in May) Gascony from the hands of Edward III, King of England, Philip VI of France would begin a months-long feud and debate between himself, his vassals, and those of England (although England herself, technically a vassal of France in terms of certain territories, refused to be referred to as such). This would come to blows, and war, in October, as Edward III declared himself rightful King of France, in defence of his rights, and through his cognatic lineage [4].
Thus began the 100 Years War.
Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor, would declare the following year Edward III, seen as the height of chivalric manner, to be Vicar-General of the Empire; parsing out with Edward the Treaty of Koblenz, wherein his Kingship over France was endorsed by the Wittelsbach Emperor. Of course, in response, Philip would lead a siege of Guyenne in Edward's Aquitanian lands, and unleash his navy against English ports.
Although, in more distant news, Andronikos' estranged Latinophile uncle--the Marquis of Montferrat, Teodore Paleologo-Montferrato [5], would pass away; leaving his lands to his son Giovanni.
Later, in 1339, the Second Congress of Visegrád would be called by Casimir III of Poland in his worry for his succession [6], making clear the purpose of establishing a new line of succession, which would be decided in favour of Charles I of Hungary-Croatia, and those of his line.
1340 - 1341
Arriving in Flanders in January, Edward III would officially proclaim himself King of France in France-proper; rallying the Flemish to his banner, and leading forces alongside his son, Edward the Black Prince, into France in a campaign that would last months; clashing multiple times against the forces of Philip VI, but not making much headway.
Such stalled progress pushed Edward III, relying on his new Flemish allies, to instead undertake a brilliant naval campaign (likely in revenge for Philip's earlier coastal raids); crushing the French fleet in person (having left the Black Prince behind in his stead) in the Battle of Sluys, wherein the noble French admirals, Hugues Quiéret and Nicolas Béhuchet, would be killed. Edward, injured, still made a show of burning the remaining wrecked French ships thereafter.
Buoyed by this, and expecting further victories, the English and her allies would be resoundingly crushed at the Battle of Saint-Omer by a French force less than a 6th their size; causing squabbling amongst Edward, his lieutenants, and allies that in turn doomed the following Siege of Tournai.
Irritated by this, the English Parliament would withhold the funds vital to the war; forcing Edward to, through Pope Benedict XII, enact a hasty 9-month truce at Espléchin--set to end in mid-1341.
Of course, though, the truce would not last, as less than 4 months into the treaty Edward would be drawn into meddling with the ongoing Breton succession crisis, forcing Philip to respond in turn--to which Edward declared the treaty null at 'Philip's aggression'; leading his rejuvenated forces into Brittany in what would become yet another front of the Hundred Years War.
In the east though, it is of note that the 10 Year Peace of Andronikos and Orhan had ended roughly a year prior.
---
[1] While Andronikos III had gradually taken on more administrative duties, the truth was that the majority of the important day-to-day decisions were still made in his name (with his permission) by John. This would become even more pronounced, as during the Silent Decade, where Andronikos' realm was largely at peace and thus not a place he could fight for or in, the Emperor instead focused on his family.
[2] Of course, the Megas Komnenoi had to show their Imperial Pedigree was superior to that of the 'usurpers' in Constantinople, at least in the founding of their own Empire. By this time it has simply become the title of use, not a declaration.
[3] Historians theorise that Basil's brutal killing of his nephew (rather than the usual blinding, and exile), and usurpation of the throne, was a long-boiling vengeance over his eldest brother, Andronikos III of Trebizond, murdering their two younger brothers upon taking the throne. Basil only escaped this because he himself was in Constantinople on diplomatic business at the time.
[4] Edward III had originally, as it seemed, been fine with Philip VI's ascent to French Kingship over himself (due to French Salic law technically disallowing him). However, Philip's choices in antagonising Edward III eventually led the English King to declare his claim for the French throne, starting what would become the 100 Years War.
[5] Teodore Paleologo-Montferrato, born Theodore Palaiologos, was one of the later sons of Andronikos II Palaiologos with his second wife, Eirene Aleramici (born Yolande of Montferrat). Andronikos II had married her in order to inherit her claims to the Kingdom of Thessaloniki in a bid to deter Latin claims or attempts on the land. With her also came the Aleramici claims/rule over the lands of the Marquisate of Montferrat. When she died, and those claims were passed to her children with Andronikos, the Emperor chose Theodore as the one to inherit. The nobles of the Empire worried Theodore would Latinise, and abandon his Roman identity--which turned out to be accurate; the new Marquis embracing the Papacy and raising his children in the Lombardic manner of North Italy.
The Palaiologi of Montferrat, or the Paleologo-Montferrato, being a cadet branch of the mainline Palaiologi headed by Andronikos III, are considered unimportant, and Andronikos III himself never had a relationship with his uncle, as Teodore left to rule Montferrat at 16 when Andronikos was only 9. Andronikos hasn't really thought about his distant, Latinised, kin.
[6] Casimir III possessed only daughters despite several marriages, and would die without a male heir in 1370; putting Poland under a Personal Union alongside Croatia with Hungary.
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