Chapter Four
The Great Crimean Campaign
July 1474 - May 1482
”The Grand Prince of Muscovy has dominion over vast expanses of land. He
will find no rest until such times as he lay claim to the woods and snows of
Siberia. Be thankful for that, and pray he never gets over his aversion to
the sea, for then he will be tempted first and foremost by the Sea of Azov,
and to that temptation he will surely succumb. His dynasty sits on a hand-
ful of minor thrones. Our houses are bound together by the ties of holy
wedlock. Remind yourself that no church ceremony, however magnificent,
will ever suffice to stay an assassin’s hand. Keep abreast of every whisper
breathed in a nobleman’s chambres. Cultivate the company of the clergy.
And I’m sorry I let the Ottomans take Trebizond.”
Famous last words, which Prince Gabriel makes a point of never forgetting. For King Giorgi’s strength has waned. The Crown Prince’s plans for weeks of merriment and celebration are brought to an abrupt close when Giorgi passes away on the first day of July 1474. He had reigned over Pontus twenty-nine years and eight months.
The kingdom that Gabriel inherits has twice the land mass and more than twice the population his father had before him in 1444. Many of his subjects pray to Allah, and use a different tongue at home than the one used in the royal palace.
King Gabriel also realises that he does not possess the administrative acumen his father did.
“Keep an eye on the nobles. Cultivate proximity with the clergy. Well then, let there be Estates !”
And there were Estates. Four, in theory ; in practise, two : the Nobility and the Clergy. With the creation of these new institutions, envy is reborn, and fighting begins at once on every side to attempt to gain admittance into the ranks of the New Nobility. But Gabriel refuses to be corrupted.
He receives a visit from the Grand Prince of Muscovy. The latter’s paternal affections are evidenced when he offers to lend Muscovite influence wherever Gabriel might desire it. Just not in the form of ducats.
“And don’t forget to find yourself a wife,” he adds.
Gabriel opts instead to create a new flotilla worthy of holding first position in the Black Sea. That mission will be accomplished in his second year on the throne.
Alas, the Crimean Trade Node is so poor that sending out light ships would burden the treasury rather than gain a penny’s profit. Pontus’ flotilla sits quietly off the coast of Adyghe.
He visits the more recently acquired provinces of Tyn and Yerevan, whose populace grudgingly agrees that it is good to be a part of the Kingdom of Pontus. In Yerevan, where the Armenian way of life holds sway, Gabriel decides to tarry. He is smitten by the graces and charms of Shorena, a girl of relatively comfortable ascendance.
In September 1474, two months after Gabriel’s coronation, weddings bells are rung all over the realm.
Wedded bliss shall however not numb what little political acumen Gabriel does possess. He is acutely aware of, and is kept regularly informed about, his ally Gazikumukh. The ambitious Sheik decides to declare war on the ruffians commonly known as the Great Horde. His goal : the province of Majar, which lies between Pontus and Gazikumukh.
“An ill-advised decision, Sire,” the Chancellor confides without hiding his amusement. “The Sheik is taking a beating.”
“Should we not be alarmed, my Lord ?”
“The Sheik did not request assistance,” the Minister replies cautiously.
Gabriel knows this. The Sheik’s forces have indeed succeeded in occupying many provinces under the Horde’s nominal control, without anyone’s help. It is uncertain who will emerge victorious from this conflict. Gabriel worries that, if the Sheik were to win, he take the provinces of Majar and Manych.
Gabriel does not want this to happen. Manych must be claimed for Pontus. For Gabriel has formulated an ambition : to extend his domain to the Caspian Sea. The route he has chosen passes through Manych, Sarai and Astrakhan. (The latter two are provinces under the rule of the Khan of Kazan.)
In the spring of 1476, Gabriel declares war on the Great Horde.
He has ridden off to war when Queen Shorena gives birth to a son, their first-born. He is christened Gabriel.
It is Gabriel’s most ardent desire that this war reach a swift dénouement, for he is eager to rejoin his wife and son. To his surprise, his dream becomes reality. Pontic and Shirvani forces unite to crush the attackers from the Great Horde. A fierce battle is waged in August, on Shirvani territory. The Horde is crushed. Pontic horsemen have occupied two provinces. The Horde is already on the verge of collapse. That same month, Pontus is granted sovereignty over Manych and the Lower Don. It will be known to history as The Short War (five months).
“We are one step closer to the Caspian Sea,” sighs Gabriel in ecstasy.
Back home, everyone is not as ecstatic as the king. Border tensions are a constant menace to the peace of the Queen’s home province of Yerevan. Neighbouring Melikates, under the rule of the Shah, would like to be a part of Pontus. And more or less everywhere, the clergy are getting grumpy.
“As an Estate, they feel the time is overdue when they should be granted hegemony in certain places,” says the Chancellor.
“Let them have Guria then,” Gabriel decides.
”Sire, they will not be content with less than two provinces.”
Gabriel grants them the province of Kuban. Its populace is one hundred percent Sunni, the clergy’s possession of it will add nothing to the Royal Treasure, but Gabriel hopes that they will do something about converting the masses.
A few weeks later, the Sheik of Gazikumukh in turn makes peace with the Horde : he obtains the province he coveted, with which victory he assumes the title of Sultan. But the region is not to be spared further strife. For the ”Sultan” of Gazikumukh has decided to ally himself with the Khan of Kazan. Consequently, when the Khan declares war on the Horde, and the Grand Prince of Muscovy declares war that same year on Kazan, Crimea, Theodoro and Gazikumukh — all bordering Pontus — there is misery in the air.
”A monumental mistake,” sighs a Count in Gabriel’s Council
à propos the Sultan’s politics. ”Allying with Kazan !”
The same remark is made (inaudibly) when an embassy from the Sultan arrives at Court requesting safe-conduct across Pontus.
“The Sultan has gone mad,” Gabriel concludes. “As if we would ever betray the Grand Prince !”
While the world pursues each his own variation on the theme of madness, Pontus rebuilds after the labours of the Short War. In the spring of 1479, the Shah of Qara Qoyunlu treats with the Timurids, taking from them two provinces for the price of no more aggression.
In the north, the Grand Prince makes mincemeat of his enemies.
“The Grand Prince did not invite us to assist him in his war,” says Gabriel, “assistance he assuredly does not need. But Pontus shall declare war on Crimea. The Prince can hardly object.”
”But Sire, Pontus already has a rather significant Sunni population.”
”Thank you for that information, Councillor. Prepare for war nonetheless.”
Pontic contingents move out in October 1479, followed by Shirvani auxiliary. The provinces along the Sea of Azov are swiftly subdued. The siege of the fortress of Crimea will be an arduous enterprise. But Pontic know-how continues to make progress, particularly in military sciences.
During the siege, Pontic observers are able to note the oddities — or rather the calamities — afflicting the Genovese provinces : militia waving banners of the ”traditional” heathen gods of the region have taken possession of the ports and markets.
The Crimean Campaign places enormous strain on the National Treasure, but Gabriel shies away from raising a war tax. Another source of income presents itself, however : traders in the Black Sea are seeking and are willing to pay for the privilege of exclusive rights to market certain goods. Gabriel grants them the privilege of forming a monopoly. The profit gained from this deal flows immediately through the channels of the Minister of Peace, allowing to maintain the siege of the fortress in Astrakhan.
In June of 1481, the fortress of Crimea itself capitulates. A year later, proud Theodoro follows suit.
Crimea pleads for peace. Gabriel is only too happy to settle. The price shall be four provinces all along the coast of the Sea of Azov or the northern Black Sea. While many Western powers see the peace agreement as proof of Gabriel’s excessive aggressiveness, they also bow before the demonstration of military strength.
One unpleasant note is sounded in the aftermath of this splendid Pontic victory. The Sultan of Gazikumukh, livid with envy and outrage, denounces Gabriel as a felon, an enemy of the human race, etc. etc. He promptly demonstrates his own felony by unilaterally declaring his alliance with Gabriel to be void and defunct.