Chapter 262 The novice colonist

Chapter 262 The novice colonist

Muhammad was so angry that he wanted to lift the table when he saw the battle reports coming back from the front line. They all failed. There had never been so many failures since the founding of the Ottoman Empire. If the ancestors had known about it, they would have come to him that night.

Now, two brothers are gone, one brother is gone, and he is the sole ruler of the Ottoman Empire. What he has to do now is to unite those broken forces, and then launch a Battle of Manzikert to open the door to Europe again.

He had to continue to absorb the power of the Turkic tribes, so he set his sights on the surrounding small countries that had regained their independence, especially Karaman and Durkadir. There is a large population here that he can use. In up to five years, he can raise a large army and fight westward.

Rome now used Ancyra as a stronghold to form a defense against the Ottomans. And they continue to build roads and bridges to improve the transportation situation in the interior, so that reinforcements can arrive quickly.

"Our progress in Anatolia is going well now. If we continue at this rate, we will reach Lake Van in less than three years."

Mircea couldn't help but smile when she heard what was happening on the battlefield. He didn't expect the progress to be so smooth, which made him think that Alexander the Great's conquest of Persia was like this.

Although he was a bit confused, his many years as a grand duke had tempered his calm and cautious character. He was naturally happy about the situation in the east, but in Anatolian land, an army not under his command made him a little uncomfortable. That was Peter's army.

He was very grateful to this army for taking down Ancyra and gave him many rewards, but he was too worried about the size of 18,000 people here. It's best to get them out of here and go somewhere else.

"We have to find other ways to get Peter to evacuate voluntarily, but in what way?"

Mircea thought, looking at the current map of Rome. The ever-expanding area requires more troops to maintain. Peter's army does not have to worry about cutoffs for the time being, and he is already the heir to the throne, so there is no point in rebelling at this time.

Mircea consoled himself with the thought that he should believe in his son. And now Rome's growing strength is inseparable from Peter's pioneering reform demonstration in Dobroga. As long as he does not interfere in the most sensitive military issues, he can do whatever he wants in other aspects.

If he likes sailing, let him do it; if he likes culture, let him be in charge of this place; if he even wants to expand the territory, he can give him the corresponding title, and it will all be his in the end anyway.

Confrontation with the front line, large-scale construction and cultural sponsorship all required funds, and Mircea began to encourage merchants to explore the Eastern trade routes to find more business opportunities. Taking this as an opportunity, the reconquest movement entered its second stage.

The benefits of territory take a long time to appear, and trade is undoubtedly the fastest way. Mircea encouraged the export of handicrafts and agricultural products and restricted the import of luxury goods, charging duties on them. For Egypt and the Levant, he knew about the existence of the Ross Company and the Southern Chamber of Commerce, and granted them the trade concession in the East. After several years of development and Peter's permission, the Ross Company was reorganized and began to explore silk from land. the road.

The Southern Chamber of Commerce used the emperor's charter to raise funds from various chambers of commerce. Among the fund certificates issued for 1 million lei, the Magna Hellas Chamber of Commerce sponsored 40% of the total, which shows the local economic strength and yearning for the East.

Of course, the Chamber of Commerce is also struggling now. The previous fundraising has already drawn a lot of cash flow, and it will have to wait until next year at least before it can recover. President Qadajiu took these funds and invested them in business in Syria, Palestine and Egypt. They relied on the local Orthodox Christians to gain a foothold in Antioch, Damascus, Ashkelon and Alexandria. Based on the route maps of Arab merchants and the maps of previous Roman Empire rule and war paintings, they decided to divide their troops into three routes: the northern route started from Antioch and Alexandria. Starting from Tiktu, we will go to Mosul, Baghdad, Yerevan and other places along the Mesopotamia to open up trade with Persia; the middle route will be based on Damascus and Ashkelon to stabilize local trade and rule when necessary. Mercenary protection; the southern route starts from Alexandria, deep into the interior of Africa and the Red Sea, and is also responsible for the excavation of the Suez Canal.

Although 6% to 9% of profits have to be handed over every year, there is still a lot of dividends left. The Chamber of Commerce has gathered a group of experienced businessmen, and they are also the Chamber of Commerce with the largest number of mercenaries and missionaries. Because they often deal with pagans, they are well aware of their characteristics and the habits of their rulers. Through continuous efforts, they finally established a strong presence in the Middle East. Stand firm.

In order to allow the Chamber of Commerce to develop rapidly, Cadajo began to implement a policy of immigration colonies. Some people who could not survive could go to Rome's colonies in the east through them. Relying on this method, he quickly gathered 150 people and set off to the east. In addition to the pressure of life, some people also came to the new land to spread their religion, and the monastery provided them with many books to spread their religion. The Pope did not expect that the first person to preach to the East would be his mortal enemy.

The Chamber of Commerce also negotiated with slave traders and proposed to purchase more black slaves. Faced with such a business, how could they let it go? Knowing that the buyer needed slaves who could do heavy work, they quickly took out the best goods. When they heard that long-term supply was needed, they smiled from ear to ear.

Mamluk Sultan Faraj took Rome's actions seriously. He did not know the use of commanding a group of slaves to dig soil here. It was expensive and laborious, and the large-scale purchase of land made him suspect that Rome was preparing to pave the way for Egypt to launch an attack. No, he will make stern representations to Rome.

The Mamluk system was similar to that of France, with local lords recognizing the authority of Cairo, and Cairo recognizing their local power. Both sides recognized each other and gathered troops to prepare for war when foreign enemies invaded. The current Sudan was selected from the Circassians trafficked from the Caucasus. They were militarily qualified, but they were lacking in other aspects.

The Chamber of Commerce also had a trading post in Ceuta, where goods from West Africa were also traded, and Roman merchants exchanged industrial products produced in their own country. As for Castile and Portugal, they are still busy with how to launch the final attack on Granada. They have no ideas on them. Even if they do, they are just thinking about collecting more money.

Private colonial teams sponsored by other chambers of commerce have successfully colonized Sicily, and some inland areas have been controlled. The food produced locally is used to trade handicrafts with Naples and Rome. Less is shipped to Iberia, and some retail sales are also used by Roman merchants. Control, the prestige of the Norman dynasty in the past is no longer there, Sicily will either be unified or annexed.