Hmm, down on page two - you can tell things have been busy. Anyway, on with the history:
CHAPTER VIII
Stalemate in the Mediterranean
Venice had been soundly beaten by the Turks in 1605, and the Signory acted with extreme caution over the following four decades.
While it is not unfair to say that the quality of Venetian decision-making during this period was poor, it is also true that the Venetians suffered a set of tactical disadvantages that would have taxed the most intelligent strategist.
Throughout the years from 1604 to the War of the Turkish Succession in 1651, the Turks led a strong alliance. Venice, in contrast, was mostly allied only with Poland and Savoy throughout this period.
Worse for la Serenissima, while the Turks and Poles only shared a short border, and the Savoyards were some way away, the Republic needed to secure itself on six fronts. In the African possessions alone, Venice shared long borders with Turkey, Algeria and Nubia, all strong members of the Turkish alliance. In Europe, the situation was little better, with the hostile Austrian empire to the north of Venice's possessions and the Turk to the east. Only the west gave full security, where the unallied but friendly nation of Languedoc defended the Republic's alliance against France and Spain.
The forty years until the War of the Turkish Succession were spent principally in financial development. Aided by a decree of the Signory banning foreign merchants for three years, Venice secured such a position of strength in the City and in Alexandria that no foreign nation dared to send traders there. It also held a constant monopoly in Sant'Isidoro (modern Santee), and intermittently a monopoly in Constantinople.
This financial spadework made the Republic rich and - more importantly - ensured that the process of technological advancement was not impeded. By the time the peace of Venice was first disturbed, in 1638, the Venetian army and navy were both strong, and the City was ready to defend itself against all comers.
The war of 1638 was declared by Austria, still landlocked, and desperate for an outlet on the sea. The Austrian alliance of Hungary, Bohemia and Bavaria joined in the war, as did Poland and Savoie. The Venetians, whose relationship with the Hungarian monarchs had always been very close, were horrified, and their armies did not hesitate in sweeping up to Vienna and storming the walls. With the Austrian empire at their mercy, however, the Russian Tsar took the opportunity of declaring war on Poland. Venice made a hasty peace with the Austrians (for 210 ducats), to allow the Poles to concentrate on their eastern borderlands.
The Russian declaration of war had brought the Danes in on the Russian side, and the Republic received with horror the news that the Danish colony of Manhattan, bordering the Venetian colonies in America, was not only strongly fortified, but guarded by 16,000 men. The small Venetian colonial army, no more than 9,000 even after frantic recruitment in the colonial cities, was not able to face down the Danes. It therefore played a game of cat-and-mouse, rampaging through the swathe of English trading posts on the inland side of the Venetian colonies. Meanwhile, the Danes were given free run of the Venetian colonial empire, and Republic sat tight, waiting for the Poles to make peace with the Russians. Peace came in 1540, and the Danes were forced to withdraw. However, the clearance of English trading posts enabled the Venetians to expand their colonial empire beyond the Appalachian mountains, to take in another five provinces.
The city was at peace once again, and the financial consequences of the war were slight. Technical improvements to fortification techniques enabled the Signory to bring key installations up to Class 3 forts. An administrative reform introduced governors in the foreign territories, and inflation began to fall for the first time in many years.
The year 1650 was notable for the internal collapse of two major nations. The bad news for the Venetians was the civil war in Poland precipitated by Chmielnicki's rebellion. The good news was the war of Turkish succession.
1648 was a strange year, notable for two rebellions that deeply affected the Venetian alliance. First, Thuringia revolted from Austrian rule, and the Austrian alliance fell apart. Instantly, the Signory sent representatives to Hungary, and secured the adherence of the Magyars to the Venetian alliance. A few months later, the perennially good relations between Venice and Hungary were cemented by a vassalisation arrangement, mirroring Venice's 1629 vassalisation of Savoie.
The more serious rebellion occurred in Poland, where tens of thousands of cossacks stormed out of the steppes, led by the renegade nobleman Bogdan Chmielnicki. The slaughter was terrible, and by the time the smoke cleared, four provinces of Poland-Lithuania were in Chmielnicki's hands as the independent nation of Ukraine.
Venice might have worried that her strongest ally was so weakened by internal dissent, but could not have hoped for the stroke of good luck that was about to fall into her hands.
Murad IV, the Sultan of Constantinople, arrived in Venice, late in 1648, in disguise. In itself, that was not unusual - Venice was not a friendly place for Turks at that time. His mission, however, was entirely unprecedented.
Murad, a vain and silly man, had decided that the current Sultan, Ibrahim II, was unworthy of ruling the Ottoman empire. What drew him to this conclusion is still unknown - it was certainly some sort of deep court intrigue, and quite probably very personal.
Whatever the reason, Murad presented the Venetians with an offer they could scarcely believe. Murad would, he said, stir up rebellions in all the Turkish provinces, and in return for Venetian support, he would grant the Venetians whatever land they wanted on the continent of Europe.
Amazed, the Venetians readily agreed, and gave Murad a large sum of gold and thirty pieces of silver (a joke that was lost on him). With dreams of empire in his head, Murad headed back across the border in disguise, and began fomenting rebellion against the Sultan.
The European provinces were the first to rebel, but before long the entire empire was in flames, and Murad was leading a rebel army on Constantinople. At this point, seeing their plans coming entirely to fruition, the Venetians declared war on the Sultan in support of Murad. Thus, on 13th April 1649, began the war of the Turkish Succession.
The war was divided into two parts. The African campaign involved the small Venetian garrison completely deserting the Republic's territory to make a land grab against Turkish possessions in the Middle East. While they were on that mission, they left the African provinces to be ravaged once more by the Algerians and Nubians. The Turkish allies, however, were weak and their armies were unable to make any progress against the upgraded fortifications of the Delta.
Meanwhile, in Europe, the Poles swept on Moldavia, while the Hungarian army attacked Transylvania. The Provveditor of Hellas, Francesco Contarini, marched his garrison to assist in the siege of Constantinople, while the first act of the Home Army under Mocenigo was to attack Ragusa (Dubrovnik).
Ragusa, formerly a Hungarian vassal, had infuriated the Venetians - who had their eye on the territory - by allying with the Turks, and their first ambition in this war was the capture and annexation of the city-state. This was achieved a few short days before Constantinople was captured.
The capture of Constantinople, meanwhile, was an example of Venetian diplomacy - and Venetian callousness - at its most refined. Contarini, having given the rebels his assistance in the siege, stood back and allowed them to capture the city. For five days, he sat on the Chersonese with his army, while Constantinople burned.
For Murad was not one to forgive a slight lightly. The list of indignities heaped on the corpse of his predecessor would be too long to recite here. Meanwhile, his soldiers had absolute licence to rape, destroy and pillage throughout the city.
When Contarini judged that the rebels would all have dissipated into the city and surrounding countryside, he politely requested a triumphal entry into the city.
Murad, overcome with gratitude, foolishly allowed the Venetians to march to the palace, under a triumphal arch, in full armour. It was at this point that the second part of the Venetians' plan came into effect.
Surrounding Murad in the throne room of the palace, Contarini briefly pointed out the lack of armed support, and the effective possession of Constantinople by the Venetians.
He then made Murad sign the famous Treaty of the Palace. Under this treaty, Hungary gained Transylvania and Poland gained Moldavia. The Republic took Macedonia and Judaea in addition to the annexed Ragusa. More importantly for the future of the Turkish state, the Porte was forced to grant independence to Serbia (Serbia, Bosnia and Kosovo), and to restore the territory of the annexed Hedjaz and Aden. The Turks were crippled, Albania and Morea stranded on the European continent, and the Venetians triumphant over their foolish client. From the day of the treaty of Palace, the Venetian Doges granted themselves the title of "Lord of Half the Roman Empire". Their empire in Europe was nearing their strategic goal - unification - and they had won an epochal victory over their ancient enemy.
CHAPTER VIII
Stalemate in the Mediterranean
Venice had been soundly beaten by the Turks in 1605, and the Signory acted with extreme caution over the following four decades.
While it is not unfair to say that the quality of Venetian decision-making during this period was poor, it is also true that the Venetians suffered a set of tactical disadvantages that would have taxed the most intelligent strategist.
Throughout the years from 1604 to the War of the Turkish Succession in 1651, the Turks led a strong alliance. Venice, in contrast, was mostly allied only with Poland and Savoy throughout this period.
Worse for la Serenissima, while the Turks and Poles only shared a short border, and the Savoyards were some way away, the Republic needed to secure itself on six fronts. In the African possessions alone, Venice shared long borders with Turkey, Algeria and Nubia, all strong members of the Turkish alliance. In Europe, the situation was little better, with the hostile Austrian empire to the north of Venice's possessions and the Turk to the east. Only the west gave full security, where the unallied but friendly nation of Languedoc defended the Republic's alliance against France and Spain.
The forty years until the War of the Turkish Succession were spent principally in financial development. Aided by a decree of the Signory banning foreign merchants for three years, Venice secured such a position of strength in the City and in Alexandria that no foreign nation dared to send traders there. It also held a constant monopoly in Sant'Isidoro (modern Santee), and intermittently a monopoly in Constantinople.
This financial spadework made the Republic rich and - more importantly - ensured that the process of technological advancement was not impeded. By the time the peace of Venice was first disturbed, in 1638, the Venetian army and navy were both strong, and the City was ready to defend itself against all comers.
The war of 1638 was declared by Austria, still landlocked, and desperate for an outlet on the sea. The Austrian alliance of Hungary, Bohemia and Bavaria joined in the war, as did Poland and Savoie. The Venetians, whose relationship with the Hungarian monarchs had always been very close, were horrified, and their armies did not hesitate in sweeping up to Vienna and storming the walls. With the Austrian empire at their mercy, however, the Russian Tsar took the opportunity of declaring war on Poland. Venice made a hasty peace with the Austrians (for 210 ducats), to allow the Poles to concentrate on their eastern borderlands.
The Russian declaration of war had brought the Danes in on the Russian side, and the Republic received with horror the news that the Danish colony of Manhattan, bordering the Venetian colonies in America, was not only strongly fortified, but guarded by 16,000 men. The small Venetian colonial army, no more than 9,000 even after frantic recruitment in the colonial cities, was not able to face down the Danes. It therefore played a game of cat-and-mouse, rampaging through the swathe of English trading posts on the inland side of the Venetian colonies. Meanwhile, the Danes were given free run of the Venetian colonial empire, and Republic sat tight, waiting for the Poles to make peace with the Russians. Peace came in 1540, and the Danes were forced to withdraw. However, the clearance of English trading posts enabled the Venetians to expand their colonial empire beyond the Appalachian mountains, to take in another five provinces.
The city was at peace once again, and the financial consequences of the war were slight. Technical improvements to fortification techniques enabled the Signory to bring key installations up to Class 3 forts. An administrative reform introduced governors in the foreign territories, and inflation began to fall for the first time in many years.
The year 1650 was notable for the internal collapse of two major nations. The bad news for the Venetians was the civil war in Poland precipitated by Chmielnicki's rebellion. The good news was the war of Turkish succession.
1648 was a strange year, notable for two rebellions that deeply affected the Venetian alliance. First, Thuringia revolted from Austrian rule, and the Austrian alliance fell apart. Instantly, the Signory sent representatives to Hungary, and secured the adherence of the Magyars to the Venetian alliance. A few months later, the perennially good relations between Venice and Hungary were cemented by a vassalisation arrangement, mirroring Venice's 1629 vassalisation of Savoie.
The more serious rebellion occurred in Poland, where tens of thousands of cossacks stormed out of the steppes, led by the renegade nobleman Bogdan Chmielnicki. The slaughter was terrible, and by the time the smoke cleared, four provinces of Poland-Lithuania were in Chmielnicki's hands as the independent nation of Ukraine.
Venice might have worried that her strongest ally was so weakened by internal dissent, but could not have hoped for the stroke of good luck that was about to fall into her hands.
Murad IV, the Sultan of Constantinople, arrived in Venice, late in 1648, in disguise. In itself, that was not unusual - Venice was not a friendly place for Turks at that time. His mission, however, was entirely unprecedented.
Murad, a vain and silly man, had decided that the current Sultan, Ibrahim II, was unworthy of ruling the Ottoman empire. What drew him to this conclusion is still unknown - it was certainly some sort of deep court intrigue, and quite probably very personal.
Whatever the reason, Murad presented the Venetians with an offer they could scarcely believe. Murad would, he said, stir up rebellions in all the Turkish provinces, and in return for Venetian support, he would grant the Venetians whatever land they wanted on the continent of Europe.
Amazed, the Venetians readily agreed, and gave Murad a large sum of gold and thirty pieces of silver (a joke that was lost on him). With dreams of empire in his head, Murad headed back across the border in disguise, and began fomenting rebellion against the Sultan.
The European provinces were the first to rebel, but before long the entire empire was in flames, and Murad was leading a rebel army on Constantinople. At this point, seeing their plans coming entirely to fruition, the Venetians declared war on the Sultan in support of Murad. Thus, on 13th April 1649, began the war of the Turkish Succession.
The war was divided into two parts. The African campaign involved the small Venetian garrison completely deserting the Republic's territory to make a land grab against Turkish possessions in the Middle East. While they were on that mission, they left the African provinces to be ravaged once more by the Algerians and Nubians. The Turkish allies, however, were weak and their armies were unable to make any progress against the upgraded fortifications of the Delta.
Meanwhile, in Europe, the Poles swept on Moldavia, while the Hungarian army attacked Transylvania. The Provveditor of Hellas, Francesco Contarini, marched his garrison to assist in the siege of Constantinople, while the first act of the Home Army under Mocenigo was to attack Ragusa (Dubrovnik).
Ragusa, formerly a Hungarian vassal, had infuriated the Venetians - who had their eye on the territory - by allying with the Turks, and their first ambition in this war was the capture and annexation of the city-state. This was achieved a few short days before Constantinople was captured.
The capture of Constantinople, meanwhile, was an example of Venetian diplomacy - and Venetian callousness - at its most refined. Contarini, having given the rebels his assistance in the siege, stood back and allowed them to capture the city. For five days, he sat on the Chersonese with his army, while Constantinople burned.
For Murad was not one to forgive a slight lightly. The list of indignities heaped on the corpse of his predecessor would be too long to recite here. Meanwhile, his soldiers had absolute licence to rape, destroy and pillage throughout the city.
When Contarini judged that the rebels would all have dissipated into the city and surrounding countryside, he politely requested a triumphal entry into the city.
Murad, overcome with gratitude, foolishly allowed the Venetians to march to the palace, under a triumphal arch, in full armour. It was at this point that the second part of the Venetians' plan came into effect.
Surrounding Murad in the throne room of the palace, Contarini briefly pointed out the lack of armed support, and the effective possession of Constantinople by the Venetians.
He then made Murad sign the famous Treaty of the Palace. Under this treaty, Hungary gained Transylvania and Poland gained Moldavia. The Republic took Macedonia and Judaea in addition to the annexed Ragusa. More importantly for the future of the Turkish state, the Porte was forced to grant independence to Serbia (Serbia, Bosnia and Kosovo), and to restore the territory of the annexed Hedjaz and Aden. The Turks were crippled, Albania and Morea stranded on the European continent, and the Venetians triumphant over their foolish client. From the day of the treaty of Palace, the Venetian Doges granted themselves the title of "Lord of Half the Roman Empire". Their empire in Europe was nearing their strategic goal - unification - and they had won an epochal victory over their ancient enemy.
