State of the Empire, 1500
2 January 1500, the Imperial Council Chamber
The Imperial herald waited until all those present were seated, then unrolled a scroll and began to read the names of those present:
John I Datti, Emperor of Tuscany
Rodolfo Datti, Prince of Tuscany, Duke of Rome, and Heir to the Throne
Count Axel Gathenhielm, Chancellor of the Empire
Count Andreas Germanicus, Marshal of the Empire, Commandant of the Legions
Count Bonaventura Bizzelli, Court Philosopher
Count Pietro Leopoldo Bizzelli, Minister for Foreign Affairs
Sextus Porcius Cato, Duke of Pisa and Siena
Publius Porcius Cato, Duke of Naples
Agrippa Tullius Cicero, Duke of Romagna and Ancona
Bartolomeo del Moro, Duke of Sicily and Malta
Tiberius Graecus, Duke of Constantinople
The herald bowed, then left the room. Emperor John I rose and opened the meeting.
"Good afternoon, gentlemen of the Empire. I know we all are looking forward to the festivities, so I will make sure we are done as quickly as possible. Let us begin by examining a map of the Empire of Tuscany."
Marshal Germanicus rose, and began to address the borders of the Empire.
"My Emperor, we are more secure now than we ever been, thanks to your leadership. Our loyal vassals Modena and Ferrara, along with our fraternal ally Parma, guard our northern border. We have one of the largest fleets in Europe, as we will see later on, and no real enemies left in Italy.
"In Asia minor, things are a little more dangerous. The Ottoman Empire completely surrounds Thrace, and while we have a superior fleet, the Turk could quite easily overrun us. This is a threat we must deal with sooner, rather than later.
"The dominant power in Europe is Austria. At some point, we will have to reclaim our lands in Italy and the coast of the Adriatic. As leader of the Hol- I mean Damned German Empire, Austria is a threat not to be taken lightly. We should, after perhaps confronting the Ottoman Empire, begin seeking out additional allies, apart from Sweden, Ferrara, Modena, and Parma. Are there any questions?"
There were none. Emperor John thanked Marshal Germanicus, then turned to Chancellor Gathenhielm.
"Chancellor, if you would, please present the state of our economy."
The Swede rose from his seat, and placed three documents on the table.
The monthly income of the Empire of Tuscany
The yearly revenues of the Empire, 1499
The yearly expenditures of the Empire, 1499
Axel then cleared his throat and began to speak.
"First, our monthly income. We have a small shortfall each month, but we more than make up for this with our yearly census taxes. As you can see, taxation is our dominant source of monthly wealth. Thanks to the National Bank of the Tuscan Empire, we are able to mint a fair sum each month -- 8.3 ducats -- and incur no inflation. Our monthly investment in Land Technology will ensure that we have the most modern soldiers in all of Europe.
"In 1499, production was our single greatest source of income; the Constables and Workshops of the Empire have been incredibly profitable. Our vassals accounted for an additional 13.7 ducats last year; less than we would make should we annex them properly, but a considerable sum nonetheless.
"Our military was our only major expenditure in 1499, and even so we made a considerable profit on the year. This next chart will show our income compared to the rest of the world."
"We are seventh in the entire world; all those higher than us are many times our size, giving them far more citizens to tax. Great Britain has had tremendous success with trading as well; we currently only have merchants in Thrace, which this chart will show."
"Venice is the largest COT in the world, as you can clearly see, but Holland is no. 2, and the belongs to Great Britain. I believe this accounts for their superiority in income. Thrace is #5. I would advise, if possible, that we consider making some sort of arrangement with Venice, to boost our chances of successfully trading with them."
Emperor John I replied, "Or we could just annex them."
Everybody laughed, until they realized the Emperor was not joking. The room got deadly silent. The Chancellor coughed, and removed two more charts from his sheaf.
An artist's succinct rendering of several key areas
The official history of the Emperors of Tuscany
"Gentlemen of the Imperial Council, we are nearly unified religiously; the missionary has run into considerable resistance converting the people of Constantinople, but will continue to try. Fish and wine are our predominant trade goods. Europe properly recognizes about half of our lands as ancestrally Tuscan; Naples, Constantinople, Sicily, and Malta should become core soon. We graciously allow the Umbrian culture to flourish, and once Sicily is part of our core lands, I have no doubt that Sicilian will also flourish under the Empire of Tuscany."
Everybody expected an outburst from the Emperor over his place in Imperial history, but he quietly nodded. "Thank you, Chancellor. Marshal, if you please?"
Marshal Germanicus rose again. His own sheaf of documents contained the state of the Tuscan military and two comparison charts.
Tuscany's army and navy
The armies of the world
The navies of the world
"We currently have 45,000 soldiers, divided into five Legions. Two are currently in Thrace, the First and the Fifth. The Second is stationed in Siena, the Third in Pisa, and the Fourth Legion in Apulia. Our fleet is stationed in Thrace as well. Since the Ottoman Empire is our biggest concern right now, I feel it should remain docked there until further notice. Any questions on troop deployment?"
The Duke of Sicily raised his hand. "Why isn't the Second Legion in Sicily?"
Andreas nodded. "Duke del Moro, at present we are more concerned about Austria than any invasion by sea of Sicily, which our fleet is perfectly capable of handling with little problem. If necessary, we will send the Fourth Legion over the Strait of Messina to assist with any problems. Anything else?"
There were no further questions.
"Very well. We have the ninth largest army in the world and the fifth largest navy, just one ship shy of our only rivals in Italy, Venice. We can build three additional ships, and I recommend we do so at the earliest possible opportunity. Three more Carracks would give us an overwhelming edge over Venice. Without either more of our lands becoming core or additional conquests, I cannot expand the Legions without considerable increases in funding. Chancellor, is this something we might consider?"
Chancellor Gathenhielm shook his head. "Not at present, Marshal Germanicus. We will continue expanding our buildings, especially Constables and Workshops, as well as adding additional buildings for our fleet, such as Docks and Drydocks. It is more beneficial, in the long run, to spend our treasury on buildings than on the military. We could perhaps hire mercenaries, should we need additional men in the future."
The Marshal nodded. "That is all I had for today, my Emperor."
Emperor John I now rose.
"We have one final matter to consider."
"We must discuss what policy changes we should make. We have maximized the amount we can practically centralize without riots in the streets. We could consider giving our citizens greater freedoms, but does anybody else have a concrete suggestion?"
Sextus Porcius Cato rose. "Emperor, I believe that we must expand our scientific knowledge if we are to prosper against those foes with larger armies. We should encourage Innovation."
Marshal Germanicus rose again. "We need troops of the very highest Quality to defeat our larger enemies as well; moves in that direction would be very welcome."
Chancellor Gathenhielm was the last to speak. "I believe you should continue to emphasize our Aristocracy. Mercantilism would also be wise, particularly if we add Venice to the Imperial crown someday."
Emperor John nodded once. "Those are all fine suggestions; when we next need to change our policies, I will consider them all carefully.
"Our most immediate task would be to pursue some sort of diplomatic relationship with Milan. To declare the rebirth of Italy, we need the province of Lombardia. A Personal Union would be ideal; if and when my successors inherit, we could then immediately proclaim the Empire of Italy. I would also like to annex lands from the Ottoman Empire; in particular, I have found some ancient documents that could allow us to consider Burgas as core territory.
"I have one final task for our people. We must someday challenge Austria. We do not need to do this immediately, but it would be ideal if we could soon. The longer they remain Damned German Emperor, the more tightly they hold sway over Central Europe. I do not care who runs the Germanies; I do care that they hold our ancestral lands. As soon as it is practical, we will also declare our independence from the Damned German Empire. If we can secure the Personal Union with Milan, that would be our opportunity to leave. Are there any final thoughts or concerns?"
Marshal Germanicus had one question. "Emperor, once we have the right to regain the former cores of the Roman Empire, would this not inevitably bring us into conflict with Austria, if they attempt to preserve their Empire and we are not part of it?"
John I appeared slightly irritated at this question. "Marshal, it is your responsibility to ensure that we can handle that challenge when the time comes. The Damned German Empire should not be master of our lands; if we must fight them for it, so be it. I will tolerate no dissent on this question. Is there any other question?"
There were none; many present appeared anxious to leave the Empire and participate in the celebration.
"Then you are all dismissed. Enjoy the festival!"
As Andreas Germanicus rose to leave, the Emperor placed one hand on his shoulder. When everybody else had left, he spoke to his Marshal.
"Andreas, that kind of question must never be brought up in public again. I cannot have my authority directly challenged. I recognize that you have many more years of military experience than I do -- you have been Commandant for 26 years, and Marshal since Publius Porcius Cato retired. However, I have a responsibility to my people, and one of them is ensuring that Tuscany is not interfered with by some fool in Vienna. My foreign policy has been greatly restricted by Austria's constant drain on our diplomats. We must have freedom as soon as possible. Do you understand?"
Andreas hesitated briefly, then nodded. "Yes, your Imperial Majesty. Perhaps my love for my former home is clouding my judgment."
The Emperor's expression softened. "It must be very difficult to be so far away from your friends. I have not forgotten our deal. You are still well under 60, and fully capable of leading our men into battle, should the need arise. Are you feeling well? No nagging injuries?"
Andreas shook his head.
The Emperor then said, "Very well, Marshal. You are dismissed. Enjoy the celebration!"
After he had left, the Emperor looked at something he had not shown the rest of the council; a map of the world, prepared by some of the finest cartographers money could buy.
He alone understood that there were lands across the sea. Empty lands (or reasonably close to empty) existed for the taking. However, he had decided to keep this information secret; Europe should be the Roman Empire's concern, not some fanciful land thousands of miles away.
He'd also left one other thing out of the meeting. He had already decided to declare war on the Ottoman Empire as soon as an opportunity arose, and he had no intentions of ever allowing that German-born troublemaker anywhere near the troops in the field. Andreas Germanicus was too popular and well known in the Empire to fire him, but he could at least make sure that he never got anywhere near a field command and a Duchy.
He smiled and laughed quietly. If his father was Julius the Great, he would be known as John the Greatest.
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I will have the next update done sometime next week, most likely.
