Part 21 – A fight for survival – King Leofric (1124)
A great many people were trying to decide the fate of the Republic, and of young King Leofric. All were now at least superficially loyal to him, but all were focused on building up their own power at the expense of the crown. While prepared to let King Leofric reign, none were keen to let him rule. They split into six broad factions:
1. The Bagratuni clan. Headed by Leofric’s mother this group were committed to keeping him on the throne, but only to preserve the family’s power.
2. The Legitimists. This faction included most of the Uffason family and were committed to keeping Earl Saebert [Uffason] of Lesbos off the throne. Leofric’s uncle [Prince Ulf of Dioclea] headed this faction as the Legitimists regarded him as Leofric’s true heir.
3. Earl Saebert’s men. These recognised the late King Aethelwulf’s legitimisation of his bastard son Saebert, and so regarded him as Leofric’s heir. These supporters came from a diverse range of backgrounds, but the uncharitable would say they we outcasts on the make.
4. The Serbs. Prince Hvalimir of Rashka led the Serbs out in support of King Leofric, but clearly expected to have both greater control over the whole of Serbia, and a significant influence at court.
5. The Greeks. The Greek magnates of Thessaly and the Peloponnese were waiting for the opportunity to regain their independence or to seize the throne.
6. The Republicans. These idealists wished to see open elections for the position of Senior Consul, and the abolition of the position of Dictator. Their support was mostly drawn from the merchant classes. Therefore although they were lacking in armed force, they had deep pockets.
King Leofric was young and untested in 1124. He has often been criticised by historians for lacking the dashing ruthlessness of his father [King Aethelwulf]. However, he was clearly bright, methodical, determined, and well able to keep his own counsel. He was the first Uffason to inherit the throne and he intended to keep it.
Leofric faced two main challenges - surviving the war with the Emperor, and gaining power over the six factions.
To some extent the war with the Emperor was out of his hands. His two armies were in the hands of Prince Ulf and Earl Saebert. These each led one of the factions and would obey Leofric’s orders only so long as he told them to act as the wished. The only way they would give up their commands was if the war ended and the soldiers went back to their homes. Neither Ulf nor Saebert could gain a decisive victory over the Emperor’s forces, so they continued with the bloody cycle of skirmish, manoeuvre, and raid. This continued to drain the manpower of both sides and laid waste to most of Thrace and Macedonia.
As Leofric could not achieve victory with his own armies he set about finding other armies to come to his aid. He set out from Thessalonike and toured the courts of other Christian Kings. Although they would never admit it all of these rulers were both jealous of Emperor Ilyas’ wealth and fearful of his power. He was hated by a great many men of substance. Few would dare face him alone, but many were considering trying to strip lands from his Empire while most of its forces are tied down fighting the Republic.
Leofric has four successes on his travels:
1. The King of Sicily joined the war in the hope of regaining the provinces of Apulia and Benevento. His forces were relatively weak, but could only be of benefit to the Republic.
2. The King of France declared war on the Empire. While wrapped in crusading language, this declaration had nothing to do with supporting the Republic, and everything to do with stopping the growth of Imperial power in France’s backyard – Iberia. No French forces travelled east to assist us, but their offensive did stop Imperial forces travelling from Iberia to Greece.
3. King Sobeslav of Bohemia and Hungary (known as Sobeslav the Magnificent) was the most powerful man in Christendom. His father (the late King Vojtek) had inherited the throne of Hungary and in doing so created a superpower within central Europe. Leofric had to humble himself before King Sobeslav, like a beggar craving alms. Who knows whether this appealed to King Sobleslav’s vanity or his generosity, but he did declare war on the Empire and an army was dispatched to the Balkans. Unfortunately, like many given to boastfulness, Sobeslav’s weapon was not as potent as he led others to expect, and the army achieved little more than raiding along the Danube.
What was the fourth success? Not an army, but a bride. Leofric knew he must struggle against the factions as well as his external enemies. A wife could give him an heir, and an heir would push Prince Ulf and Earl Saebert further down the line of succession. If they were further from the throne then the raison d’etre of their factions ceased to exist. It might take a while for their supporters to realise this, but it would happen. In particular, the Legitimists would come across and follow Leofric personally, giving him greater strength to counter the remaining factions.
Who was this bride? Princess Richza Premyslid of Bohemia-Hungary. Sister of King Sobeslav, daughter of the late King Vojtek. Of impeccable birth. Determined to be a queen, even if in Christendom’s borderlands. A little older than Leofric (21 to his 16).
Importantly she brought Leofric (and his potential heir) a useful form of insurance. Any faction who deposed either Leofric or the potential heir would set themselves against Bohemia-Hungary, the strongest state in Christendom. Even if Leofric and the potential heir were killed, King Sobeslav would probably invade and seize the crown to sooth his wounded honour.
What was the downside of this marriage? Leofric had humbled himself before King Sobeslav to ask for aid. Many (especially in Bohemia-Hungary) would interpret this as King Leofric having done homage to King Sobeslav. This would make the Republic a vassal of Bohemia-Hungary. He had also introduced another strong foreign element into court. The last foreign influx to court had been the Bagratunis (including Leofric’s mother). They had been refugees from Georgia, keen to adapt to Helleno-Varangian ways. The new Queen Richza was not. She planned in introduce Bohemian ways to court, and the marriage contract stated that any heir would be named and raised as a Bohemian. This had been a bitter pill for Leofric to swallow, but swallow it he did.
As 1124 ground on, Emperor Ilyas begins to accept that he is caught in a stalemate, but one that is being fought on his territory. This is hugely embarrassing as he started his war with the Republic confident of victory and eager for the glory that would result from it. His Iberian and Italian lands were now also being ravaged by the French and Sicilians. Added to this his vassals were beginning to get rebellious, tired of contributing forces to a war with no profit. Worst of all though, what is really worrying for him is that the Seljuks were very aware of his weakness and might declare war at any moment. He needed to secure peace before the Seljuks could intervene. Ideally peace through victory. If not, an honourable peace that would let him prepare for the next war.
King Leofric was desperate for peace, as were most of the influential figures within the Republic. They are drained by the war. They have lost sons, brothers, homes and gold. They were also scared that the Turks would attack and destroy the Republic, just as they had been instrumental at destroying the old Empire.
In late October envoys finally arrived from Emperor Ilyas suggesting peace. The Royal Council included representatives of all the main factions. All the factions were agreed that the offer should be accepted, so they drew up a decree to send back to the Emperor. This accepted Ilyas’ terms and would ensure the end of the war, restoring the status quo ante bellum.
Then something unexpected happened. When King Leofric was called upon to apply the Great Seal [as the Uffasons always sealed documents rather than signing them] to the peace decree he refused to do so. He not only refused, but he had the Patriarch threaten to anathematise anyone making peace with the Empire before King Leofric commanded it. This is interesting for three reasons:
1. It was the first time King Leofric managed to impose his will on the factions.
2. It was the first time the Uffasons had made use of the Church to buttress the power of the ruler.
3. It showed that Leofric was prepared to take a calculated risk that any further conflict would weaken the Empire more than the Republic.
Leofric’s terms were simple. Any peace must reflect not the frontiers before the war, but the land each party controlled now. This would represent a huge gain for the Republic and would rob the Emperor of all his European possessions.
The envoys were not happy about taking back these terms and Emperor Ilyas was not happy about receiving them. Ilyas introduced his new envoys to the widows of the previous set and send them off the King Leofric in Thessalonike, who set exactly the same terms as before.
Several sets of envoys later, Emperor Ilyas was becoming desperate. The Turks were beginning to muster and his forces were still tied down fighting the Republic. He finally offered to concede territory. The Republic could keep all of its gains except for the Emperor’s two demesne provinces in Thrace.
Through this peace treaty King Leofric gained five earldoms for his own demesne: The island of Rhodes; the Macedonian provinces of Philipolis, Strymon, and Naissus; and the Danubian province of Severin. He also gained many Greek converts to Islam as his vassals. These included the Emirs of Kherson, Macedonia, and Karvuna (including all their vassal sheiks), and four sheiks who had done homage directly to the Emperor. These conquests doubled the size of the Republic at a stroke.
This peace demobilised the armies controlled by Prince Ulf and Earl Saebert. It also gave King Leofric huge power of patronage as he gave out grants and honours from the newly won lands.
The war had left Leofric the most powerful man in the Republic. His position was far from secure, but he had become a power in his own right. A faction of his own.