The Rise of the Byzantine Empire

[elricstorm]

The Rise of the Byzantine Empire - A Venice (IN) AAR

Intro:

This is a Venice run AAR with many vassals, one of which is the Byzantine Empire. It is a complete story with many political, religious, and espionage intrigues, and reads as such. There are a lot of historical pieces that are added throughout the story to make it read a bit more eloquently.

EU3 IN 3.2b
No Mods (After chapter 7, beginning chapter 8 I've added Strannik's Hand Drawn Map to make the remainder chapters appear more elegant)

Table of Contents

Chapter One: (1) : Introduction

Part One: 1399-1411
Part Two: 1411-1414​

Chapter Two: (2) : Expansion into Italy and the Golden Horde Aggression

Part One: 1415-1425
Part Two: 1425-1430​

Chapter Three: (3) : A Time of Victory, A Time of Sadness, A Time of Strife..

Part One: 1430
Part Two: 1431-1440​

Chapter Four: (4) : And the meek shall inherit nothing...

Part One: 1441-1443
Part Two: 1443-1463
Part Three: 1463-1475​

Chapter Five: (5) : My Lord would you like a sandwich? .. We are the sandwich ..

Part One: 1475-1477
Part Two: 1477-1482
Part Three: 1482-1485​

Chapter Six: (6) : A mali estremi, estremi rimedi. - Desperate times call for desperate measures.

Part One: 1485-1488
Part Two: 1488-1490
Part Three: 1490-1493
Part Four: 1493-1496​

Chapter Seven: (7) : Excuse me sir, you are leaning against my Vassal!

Part One: 1496-1501
Part Two: 1501-1505
Part Three: 1505-1514
Part Four: 1514-1520
Part Five: 1520-1527​

Chapter Eight: (8) : The Formation of Italy

Part One: 1527-1532
Part Two: 1532-1540​

Chapter Nine: (9) : The Sleeper Has Awakened

Part One: 1540-1544
Part Two: 1544-1546
Part Three: 1546-1548
Part Four: 1549-1551​

Chapter Ten: (10) : An Alliance with the Land Beyond the Forest

Part One: 1552-1556
Part Two: 1556-1561
Part Three: 1561-1566​

Chapter Eleven: (11) : Northern Conquest

Part One: 1566-1569
Part Two: 1569-1573
Part Three: 1573-1575
Part Four: 1575-1583​

Chapter Twelve: (12) : Bohemian Rhapsody

Part One: 1583-1585
Part Two: 1585-1588
Part Three: 1588-1600​

Chapter Thirteen: (13) : Fall of the Jagiellon Dynasty

Part One: 1600-1602
Part Two: 1602-1605
Part Three: 1605-1607
Part Four: 1607-1612​

Chapter Fourteen: (14) : A Cruel Wind Blows East

Part One: 1612-1619
Part Two: 1619-1625
Part Three: 1625-1627
Part Four: 1627-1630​

Chapter Fifteen: (15) : Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and ill-tempered wife

Part One: 1630-1636
Part Two: 1636-1639
Part Three: 1639-1646​

Chapter Sixteen: (16) : The First French-Italian War

Part One: 1646-1648
Part Two: 1648-1651
Part Three: 1651-1656​

Chapter Seventeen: (17) : The Italian Wolf, the Spanish Bull, and the Gallic Rooster

Part One: 1656-1657
Part Two: 1657-1658
Part Three: 1658-1660
Part Four: 1660-1663
Part Five: 1663-1666​

​

 

[elricstorm]

Chapter One

Chapter One

Venice, a well established Country, her majestic Center of Trade in Venezia is the wealthiest of all Latin cultures at the end of my lord's year, 1399. Her glory to become a major coastal power and bask in the riches of trade are in sight. I am but a meager storyteller mind you, but I will do my best to translate what can best be described as a book with a burned cover, the very first pages a mere smudge, perhaps because of an error of judgment on the part of Antonio Veniero, Venice's current ruler.

It begins with a quest to embrace Plutocracy, in order to establish better trade and entice merchants. However, the aristocrats were not too happy and a War of Milanese Aggression ensued as rebels rose up in Venezia, and began to sack the Capitol. We all sat with heavy hearts, our inner sanctum burned fiercely, as our garrisons were no match for the heavy forces that began a seige that lasted for several months.

It was during this time that the Byzantine Empire, filled with hate and woeful revenge, thought to usurp Venice, and retake a piece of glory it felt it was inclined to have. Antonio was too late and failed to even have a single advisor close by in order to better help him manage the turmoil that faced our Country. In desperation, he reached out to Austria and Milan and forged the first alliances in our story. With our homeland in disarray, we stretched out our hands to Athens, and created a small army to tackle the Byzantine Empire with, and our ships sailed swiftly to the cause.

Within a couple of short months we overtook Thrace and demanded the full annexation of the Byzantine Empire. While they would never repay those loans, we would make them suffer for their shameful disregard of diplomacy, or lackof. However, our country was in ruins, and it collapsed shortly after. The aristocracy had won. Our Country, reformed and reshaped, housed a large force and quickly sought to claim Naples. But, Antonio was angry and therefore decided to make everyone pay. He made vassals out of Crete, Athens, and Thrace, allowing the Byzantine Empire to thrive once more. His belief was that they would pay for those loans, whether they wanted to or not.

Achaea, Genoa and Naxos asked for our alliance, and Antonio in a drunken stupor, gladly accepted their friendship. We had alliances with Austria, Milan, Achaea, Genoa, and Naxos. With a point of emphasis, he warned Naples not to go to war. Naples laughed at his insolence and went to war with Sicily. We kept our promise and declared war on Naples. How quickly Antonio had forgotten that alliances forged so soon are held together by resin and sea water - washed away as quickly as they are formed. Achaea,, Genoa, Naxos, Austria, and Milan all broke their alliance with us and we were left to fight this war alone.

In 1403, Antonio Veniero passed away. I can state with a soft heart and through many tears that our country CHEERED and ROARED when the news traveled across our lands. Our drunken ruler was no more! With war ensuing against Naples, we found a hidden reserve of hope in our new ruler, Leonardo Barbarigo, who seemed quite confident and personally led our forces in this war. We had a fierce battle in Calabria, as a large force began to overtake our siege. We quickly had to backtrack and pull our remaining forces from Napoli in order to stave off the Calabria Citeriore countrymen who fought throughout the north. With great effort, we fought and overran them.

In the end, we took 3 of her territories. We were generous with our offer for peace and took Abruzzi, Apulia, and Calabria.

In the year 1406, the Ottoman Empire attacked Corfu. We refused to let the Turks cross into our Empire, and we blocked their passage by staging our fleet of ships in the Gulf of Taranto. The Turks were very upset about this and took to the sea in an effort to drive our wooden wall of sails into the rocks and down to the darkened abyss.

Wave after wave, she came at us but our Navy stood strong, capturing two of her vessels.

In 1407, Leonardo's reign was at an end. Pasquale Gritti became our new diplomatic leader and while not the military man like Leonardo, held steadfast for 4 long years. The First Ottoman War lasted until 1411, as a stalemate ensued and a white peace was made. The Turks had over-extended themselves and began to feel pressure from Hungary, and even the Byzantine Empire.

 

[elricstorm]

Pasquale stepped down in October of 1411 and Pietro Barbarigo, brother of Leonardo, and a like-minded military leader, began his rule. With conquest in mind, he decided to reach out to Sicily. He was not a good diplomat and in spite of his willingness to listen, had no finesse when dealing with matters at court. He brazenly and blatantly attacked Messina, Palermo, and Malta from sea, in a three-pronged strike with triple cavalry and infantry divisions in simultaneous succession. It was a crippling blow and no other Countries rose a finger to help. The small price of tarnishing our image as a Country was worth the reward.

The war only lasted one year. Sicily ceded Messina, Malta, and we had her renounce her claim over Athens.

Our Tiny Empire was starting a life of its own. We maintained four vassals and much of the southern lands of what would eventually become Italy. We were happy with the short time that we had accomplished this all.

Our Country was quiet for a year when we were faced with a trading decision. Because our country has political interests in northern Italy and trading interests in the Mediterranean, we needed to split our administration in two and have our interests run by the Stato da Mar.

This was a very good decision as it would benefit our trading income and help us to become a sincere trading power in Italy. More importantly, in the winter of 1413 we learned that the Ottoman Empire had gone to war with Castille and Portugal and was being severely beaten on their own lands. The Turks were running and finding no where to escape. Castille and Portugal followed suit and embraced the war with a Latin passion that even I can be proud of to have been witness to the event. In less than a year, the Turks were overrun and were forced to release several nations. In a remarkable move, the Byzantine Empire was richly rewarded several provinces, and our diplomats at court began to turn a weary eye to the south. What was once thought of as a fading society, was now a society flourishing anew.

 

[unmerged(64330)]

Very intressting, and a good start to!

*Subscribed*

 

[enkhuush]

I thought it was real Byzantium. But real Byzantines doing really great in this occasion. Good luck!

 

[elricstorm]

This is the end of Chapter One.

As you can see, I'm playing IN and originally was trying to become a trading power. But, things turned very ugly in the beginning and I was forced to play things out.

What surprised me was how quickly the Byzantine Empire was rebuilding and how fast the Ottoman Empire was being destroyed. The first chapter only covers until 1414, but as you can see, the Ottoman Empire is a small blemish in the world now and it's only been 15 years. Meanwhile, a conquered BE is now a Country consisting of 6 territories now. She also took Athens and swallowed up one of my vassals.

I didn't have the very beginning screen shot because, well, I figured it would start as just another game. However, I've always been interested in the Byzantine history surrounding Venice, and when I was attacked, and the various circumstances came about, it was something that I thought I should start screen-shotting, just in case.

In Chapter Two, I'm going to work on Sicily, Milan, and removing coastal influences from the Ottoman Empire. I'd also like to gain an alliance at some point with BE, but I'm reserving that for later on. I'm not sure how the BE scenario is going to work out, but I plan on protecting my vassal, and with that promise, she will probably grow larger...

 

[elricstorm]

Chapter Two

Chapter Two:
Expansion into Italy and the Golden Horde Aggression

At the end of Winter, in March of 1415, Pietro Barbarigo, seeing that Milan was at war with Ferrara and Genoa, felt the possibility to expand our government influence by attacking Pisa and Siena, both rich provinces in terms of cultural education. Siena University, founded in 1240, and famed for its faculties of law and medicine, rivaled Florence in the arts. Milan, having won the Battle of Montecatini in 1315, had found a great deal of internal struggles, and had weakened by the loss of its Mercantile strength. It was ripe for conquer.

By November, 1416, a little over a year into battle, the war with Milan was over. The devastating defeat in Lombardia was too much for Milan to stomach. She quickly ceded Pisa and Siena to our commanders. A large rebel uprising occurred in Abruzzi, but was quickly swallowed up by our forces, still energetic and upbeat over the victory.

In October, 1419, Pietro Barbarigo, devastated by disease and sickness, passed away. Our nation mourned his passing. He was a stern ruler, but a victorious one. In his wake, Lorenzo Labia, an Sicilian financier, rose to office and began the tedious task of enforcing our trade routes, and establishing our role in Mercantile interests. For four long years, our Country saw peace and tranquility as we began to build temples in Venezia and Treviso. In 1423, the Golden Horde violently attacked us without provocation. Lorenzo, having no stomach for war and knowledge of battle tactics, stepped down from office after a quiet rule.

Bruno Rovereto, whom some claimed to be a former notorious pirate and former captain of the 3rd fleet, rose to office through political maneuvering. He was cunning and tactful, some even say he was rather pleasant to be around as he had a taste for wine and good women.

Protecting our Byzantine interests to the south, we landed our troops at Albania, Antalya, Bursa, and Bithynia. His goal was to take the coastal territories from the Turks and run the Ottoman Empire into the ground. Albania was a key province as it bordered are eastern coast and gave us quick access to the Byzantine Empire and Corfu. The Turks, weary from war with Bulgaria, Aragon, Castille, and Portugal were little match for our forces.

 

[elricstorm]

The Turks quickly fell to our armies and ceded the coastal provinces of Albania, Antalya, Bursa, and Karaman. Many political discussions surfaced as to why the coastal province of Bithynia was never taken. Some say that Bruno was coerced with bribes from Byzantine bankers in particular circles that even I cannot fully detail here for little is known.

However, all seemed to be forgotten when the Golden Horde, exhausted from war and aggression, handsomely paid up a large tribute which not only paid for our war, but covered expenses to pay for temples to be built in all our provinces over the next two years.

On October 14, 1427, news spread that a mysterious illness had fallen on our ruler, and left him crippled and weakened. By October 17th, 1427, he was dead. Many say that he was poisoned, or that some ill begotten curse was upon him, but I believe it was his time, as all men feel it when it comes. Cristoforo Quirini replaced him, and by all accounts, was a very vague and mysterious ruler. He was surrounded by a contingent of spies and secrecy, and it led me to believe that perhaps the people who thought Bruno was poisoned were right. He fabricated claims against Palermo and Sicily and subsequently went to war with her.

We demanded her full annexation and controlled all of Southern Italy.

(Our current diplomatic map of our empire)

.. end of Chapter 2

 

[Nodscouterr]

First when I read the post, I thought this was gonna be another Byzantine AAR.
But this is so much more.

 

[elricstorm]

As you can see, our diplomatic empire is rather large for 1430. Venice currently has 14 provinces and 3 vassals that have 8 provinces for a total of 22 provinces under our influence in the span of 30 years. Our reputation is respectable to slightly tarnished.

My goal was to take the coastal provinces away from the Ottoman Empire or any other power in that area that decides to surface after they are gone. In addition, I'm leaving the doorway open for Byzantine to annex OE and take a foothold into Bithynia. I still have not allied with BE, but I plan to try in Chapter 3, and now that OE is a wasteland, I will ally with all of my vassals.

I have two universities now and will more than likely concentrate on gaining the others. I have quite a few important decisions to make now and I'm not sure what my plans are going to be at this point in time. My prestige is severely suffering but it's nothing that I can't fix in time. A time for Allies is important but I need allies that I know I can trust which is why my vassals are my next objective. I don't want allies in Austria because I know she and I will more than likely encounter some issues by 1500. These next twenty years are going to be critical though, and I'll have to plan things carefully.

 

[elricstorm]

Chapter Three:
A Time of Victory, A Time of Sadness, A Time of Strife..

In the fall of my lord's year fourteen-hundred and thirty, the Milanese insurrectionists within our Country openly rebelled, and with that rebellion, came war.

With our prestige suffering, and our reputation severely in decline, we faced not one, but two enemies in our lands as Naples, freed from its captivity, rose up against us as well.

We pulled our armies from Southeast Karaman and waged war against the Napolians. Milan assaulted Treviso with a force of 11,000 strong. Cristoforo, betrayed by his spies who never saw the attack coming, raged in anger and prayed in the Basilica of San Marco.

Revolts sprang up in Palermo...

Warnings were sent to us from the Turks...

Faced with oppression from all sides, Cristoforo reached out with disgust to the Southeast, and asked for help from one of our vassal's, the Byzantine Empire.

By the time Napoli was taken, Cristoforo had gone mad and committed suicide in the Palazzo Ducale di Venezia, or the Doge's Palace. His replacement was a strong military man by the name of Vittore Bembo. I mention his name with great resonance because he would eventually be recorded as one of the most notable rulers of our time.

 

[elricstorm]

Under Vittore Bembo, we demanded for the annexation of Naples and received it. Vittore quickly utilized and separated our forces, working behind the Milanese flank, taking Parma, Modena, Lombardia, and battled fiercely in Brescia.

However, the rebels in Palermo found success...

And, more rebels sprang up in Antalya. Our forces in Karaman were no match for them and we lost them all, to the man.

Feeding the frenzy of more rebellions in the South, more rebels rose up in defiance in Karaman...

It was a long and bloody conflict which lasted almost 2 years. With Rebels surfacing all over our lands, Vittore felt that our ability to administrate our provinces afar would be better served by the Byzantine Empire. He had already sent missionaries to do their work in Antalya and Karaman but felt that by selling the provinces of Albania and Bursa, provinces filled with heretics, it would shore up our borders, the borders of our vassal, and remove the rebellious focus on our Country. In September of 1432, Brescia fell and with it, Milan's defeat. She ceded Parma and Modena to our Empire and we quickly regrouped to take down the rebel factions violating our countryside.

Our armies marched on Palermo...

And continued on to Antalya...

.. until the Rebel uprisings were defeated.

In 1437, Vittore Bembo successfully allied with Crete to finish completion of the Venetian Vassalization Alliance. When his reign was up, no one asked him to return. While he single-handedly had saved our Country from utter ruin at the hands of Milan, Naples, and the Rebel uprisings, his administrative offering to the Byzantine Empire was too much for our people to forgive. Our Allies were all heretics and a blasphemous people, our reputation was ruined, and other countries scoffed at us when we tried to ply our trade overseas.

He was replaced by Giovanni Modigliano, a very great diplomatic man with solid administrative talents. At at time when our Country was truly suffering, we were blessed to have someone with the knowledge and foresight to steer our nation into better times.

We quickly saw the effects of positive administration as our Inflation was cut in half:

He tried to mend fences with other nations, and established our first two glorious alliances:

Giovanni knew that in order to fix a tarnished image he would need time to stave off a frustrated people. But, he also knew that he would have to have a strong alliance to help during that time. Castille and Savoy would help neutralize our enemies close to home. Meanwhile, the Byzantine Empire was growing...

(Diplomatic Map - December 1440)

.. End of Chapter Three

 

[elricstorm]

Chapter Three is now at an end. It's been 40 years and it's been a very interesting 40 years. One thing that I'm trying to do is play the rulers based on their strengths and weaknesses. The stronger they are in one area, the stronger I play them in that area.

I have no idea where this will all go, but I'm having a lot of fun getting there.

 

[TonyJoe]

I just found this AAR - it looks very interesting. I'll be following your exploits.

 

[elricstorm]

BE - Overview

Before I begin Chapter 4 (because it will be a very long one), I just wanted to provide a brief overview of the Byzantine Empire and how she is doing.

.. and her ships .. (25 total) - 8th out of all Nations and even greater than Venice by a small margin

She has good inflation and is on par with other countries across the board, in terms of tech.

 

[elricstorm]

Chapter Four:
And the meek shall inherit nothing...

Giovanni Modigliano cleared his eyes and set his ink to parchment. There was a lot of work to be done. As fine an administrator as he knew he could be, his Country was suffering. In 1441, he passed several notable acts which affected Venetians and her surrounding neighbors.

He was a firm believer in establishing and building relations, so an embassy was built to strengthen our alliance with Savoy. As an upright man, he felt disdain for any who would commit blasphemy on God, Jesus or the Holy Scriptures and thereby declared it unlawful to do so. As he also knew that our Country was suffering from unlawful use of trade, he passed the Liquor Act to ensure that our finances would not suffer. After all, he had no plans to go to war anytime in the near future and therefore the nation's stability would not be in question. Our reputation was in decline and all nearby friends and enemies alike were waiting for our Country to make the simplest of mistakes.

In March of 1442, after rumors surfaced that Castille was preparing for war with Algiers, who were allied with the Ottoman Empire, Giovanni ended our alliance with Castille, issuing an apologetic statement to her Kingdom, asking for pity upon us as we reforged our unions with our Trade and not our swords. He, like many others, believed we could not afford another costly war. Likewise, he felt it necessary to establish a yearly gift to Saxony, in order to appease the Pope who held power through much of the local populace in our Nation.

In May of 1442, nearly two months after our gift to Saxony, our Country was blessed with the news that our missionaries had successfully converted the heretics in Antalya.

Giovanni had a few core philosophies concerning the financial, moral, and ideological foundations of a good Country: Reduce Inflation, Improve Relations and our Reputation as a whole, and provide for the financial stability of the people through a strong Mercantile industry.

It would come by no surprise then, that when our elections surfaced in 1443, Giovanni was asked to stay on for another term. The people embraced him, rejoiced in the care that he gave to our Nation and more importantly, respected him as a man of the one true faith. One of Giovanni's most important notable quotes, overheard at a banquet in his honor after quite a few drinks was, "Those who heed life with speculation and contemplation, are the ones stuck home with constipation." While many would laugh and find it a rather amusing anecdote, the philosophy was sound. Those who think about doing, usually do nothing.

A Storm soon Approaches...

In January of our Lord's year, fourteen-hundred and forty-three, we were all surprised to learn that our sternest and only latin ally Savoy, declared war upon the Papal State. We could not turn our backs on our only ally and therefore, though most unfortunate, went to war on our neighbor.

Our armies soon laid siege to Roma and the bulk of our cavalry chased down the small forces she had remaining which ran to hide in Abruzzi. By September of the same year, before fall had ended, we had been victorious and asked for her complete annexation.

 

[elricstorm]

Over the next two years, rebellions surfaced in many places.

In 1445, the only positive news that benefited our Country was that we had converted the last faction of heretics in Karaman, which created a union of Catholics in the Southeastern heretic wastelands. Our missionaries had been successful abroad, and we were very thankful for them.

In the winter of 1447, Giovanni Modigliano, retired from office at the age of 64. Only two weeks after retiring, he was found dead in his sleep. His funeral was held privately at the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore, once donated to a monk after his name, Giovanni Morosini. The bells of San Giorgio Maggiore were heard across the tiny island, and many were said to have wept openly at his passing. With his departure, came another solid diplomat and former banker, Silvestro D'Alviano.

Silvestro believed that relations with nearby provinces needed to be stirred carefully and thereby improved relations with our vassals first, Savoy second, and finally Saxony and Castille. In 1450, a prosperous trader, Giralamo Schio came to Venice and we hired him as an advisor right away.

In August of 1453, nearly six years after Silvestro took office, our Country finally felt the full effect of prosperity. Our Country was stable, our prestige was getting stronger, and we were leading four center of trades, and expanding quickly.

After serving two terms, in 1455, Silvestro was replaced by Marco Antonio Polani, another prestigious diplomat.

During Marco's short reign, Abruzzi, Apulia, and Calabria became cores for our nation. In addition, we began accepting the Umbrian culture as an integral part of our nation.

After one term, the Country reached out and voted for a solid administrator. They received Jacopo Schio...

Jacopo was a great administrator and believed our inflation was not as much a problem as our trading overseas. He established a new national idea in October, 1461, for Shrewd Commerce Practices to better help us compete as a trading Country.

 

[elricstorm]

In 1463, the territories of Malta and Messina became cores in our Country.

A stab through the heart shall wound a Country and goad it into war...

In October of 1463, a Turkish assassin infiltrated a luncheon and assassinated our Doge and a nearby Noble in the Piazza San Marco, before committing suicide. He carried with him a ring that identified him from the region of Bursa. Vittore Ermelli, a diplomat, came to office and quickly prepared us for war but held back until the matter could be investigated fully.

News from the west over a great war escalating between France, England, and Castille further added flames to an already delicate fire. A council was formed and a two year investigation ensued. In the year of 1466, Pisa and Siena became our cores.

Emissaries from Bursa and great promises came to us, in an attempt to strengthen our alliance with Byzantine. After great debate and turmoil over our Byzantine friendship to the South, it was felt that the assassin was in actuality from a region further to the East, in Bithynia, located in the Ottoman Empire. After all, we needed a reason to go to War and someone had to pay for a crime committed several years earlier. It would not be found out for another three years that the true assassin had been hired by Milan.

In January of 1470, we openly declared war on the Ottoman Empire.

To the North, our Milanese enemies sought to stretch us thin and were somehow prepared. They declared war on us while our armies were far to the south.

War raged on all sides. To the South, the Mamluks conquered Karaman and Antalya was overtook by Muslims. We pulled much of our armies to return home to fight, but the forces we had in the region were swallowed up and vanquished. Many Venetians died in battle at the cries of Allah. Our forces rallied on the homeland instead and with help from Savoy, laid siege to Lombardia, Brescia, and Verona.

In July of 1471, it was discovered that the Ottoman Horde were defeated by the Byzantine Empire. She destroyed much of her fleet and morale and sacked Morea.

By October, 1471, our ruler had been dismissed and a military leader rose up to unite our Country in the war she faced.

Shortly after taking office, the Milanese were defeated and Verona and Brescia were ceded to our nation. In addition, Anselmo Foscolo forced Milan to agree in renouncing all claims on Parma and Piedmont.

In March of 1472, we gathered our forces and retook Antalya and Karaman.

With defeat to our forces and our Byzantine neighbors supporting us in the conflict, the Mamluks and the Golden Horde agreed to a white peace. The rest of the war came to an end abruptly in the wintery month of February, 1474. Our nation was finally at peace once again.

It is the year 1475 now and our Nation rests.

End of Chapter Four (maps and notes to follow)

 

[humancalculator]

Subscribed!

 

[elricstorm]

End of Chapter 4 notes:

Here's our current diplomatic map:

Our statistics:

And the Byzantine stats:

As you can see, the Byzantine Empire continues to grow. She now has Morea and has 9 provinces to her name is a solid foothold in both separating land masses to the southeast. Our relationship has been rocky here and there and we currently are at around 190 with her, and was as low as 47 at one point in time.

Venice now controls most of Italy and had to wait for cores and rebuild her reputation in order to proceed. We're hovering at 2.1 inflation and declining but have had trouble with trading. At this point in time, there's a lot that is right and a lot that is wrong, but it's extremely interesting.

I'm looking forward to the next chapter. Please provide any thoughts and input as I will gladly take the criticism.