The War of Greek Annexation
By the turn of the century, the Kingdom of Hungary had gone from being a back water kingdom controlled by its neighbors, into one of the dominant players of European politics. For turning back the tide of the hateful Turk, they had garnered prestige that likes of which the Eastern European kings had never before seen.
However, despite this ascendency, the Kingdom was far from being invincible. To the East Lithuania continued to feud with its old rival Poland, and Muscovoy began to gather the other Russian states about her. The Ottoman Empire, just bushed from Europe, was begining to create a hemoragy within Anatolia and speading down into the Middle East. To the West, Austria lay nearly stillborn but still a state to be reconed with some time in the future, and Kings of the Il De France, unable to gain control over their native France, where beginning to spead into Germany and Italy in search of power.
It seemed vital at the time that Hungary must expand to the South to cut out any chance of attack from that dirrection, and then expand into the vital regions of Italy and Germany. One power stood dirrectly in the path of both plans of action: Venice.
The Venetian Republic, chastised over its defeat by Hungary nearly 80 years prior, had been reduced to a status of minority, having not expanded at all since the Veneto-Hungarian war. However, they still possessed a military of some size, and a navy far superior ot that fielded by Hungary or, for that matter, any other state in the region.
War came between the two powers in the early winter of 1494 when Hungary's vassil, Poland, declared war upon Prussia which drew Lithuania and Venice into the war. In a matter of weeks the entire region had become inflamed with battle.
At the prospect of war with Venice, Hungarian forces marched to the border and waited, unwilling to attack the city which was being guarded by over 50 thousand soldiers. However, once the Venetians began to amrch, the forces of Hugnary descended upon them, and defeated the armeis one at a time, and then descended upon Venice itself.
To the south, Hungarian troops took over where those of the Turks had failed, and lay seige to the island Cyclades, quickly subduing all but the capital city.
And so the situation remained for four years. The troops of Venice interupted the seige of the capital, only to be driven int othe sea once again several months later. By 1497 both Vencie and the Cyclades had fallen to Hungary, but peace was as elusive as before. In an effort to drive home a final peace the king commisioned the construction of a great fleet which would be able to land troops in the Venetian islands and totally occupy the country.
Sadly, such plans where wroght with failure. Although the Hungarian fleet would grow in size by 400 percent to an estiamted 12 ships at the time, the fleet of Venice was larger still and much more technologically advanced as well as better trained. In a fit of rage the King of Hungary was said to have pounded on his desk and screamed that "They won't let us leave port, those fools won't let us win, damn them, damn them strait to hell", or so it is written by the Hungarian historian Peter of Pest.
In the end, however, the betterly equipt and trained Hungarian military was able to prevail and, after numberous defeats on land, and a few on sea, the Doge of Venice signed a humilating peace which gave Hungary the Cyclades as well as several hundred ducets in reperations. The war, for Hugnary, had coem to an end.
And yet all was not well. War exaugstion, mixed with cultural anomostities in the multi-cultural kingdom where beginning to tear it apart. Rebel armies where formed in Ragusa, Jedzen, Helles, Bulgaria and more. Ulászló II signed the historical "Edict of Seperation" where as he created several 'Duchies' under his dirrect control which would each be govorned by their own law codes as well as the local lagnauge. Hungary would, of course, remain at the top of the pile, but this subdivision allowed for just enough local autonomy to quell rebellions. These ducies where those of Greece, Slavia, and Rumania.
