CHAPTER 14
1335-1341
BLOOD OF THE FAITHFUL
Traitorous rebels decided to raise a hand against the Throne. For this crime against the laws of God and men there is only one sentence – death. But to bring justice to the rebelling provinces it sometimes takes months or years, precious time which should be spent on preparing for inevitable barbarian invasion, not wasted on spilling Romanoi blood. Alas the traitors decided otherwise. By declaring war on the Throne, faithless rebel leader Eustathia of Acre, committed unforgivable sin. What's even worse than condemnation of her soul to eternal torture in Hell – a proper punishment – she managed to gather huge support among
aristoi. They weren't as numerous as those who betrayed the Empire during civil war of 1326-1328. But they were wealthy enough to gather huge bands of mercenaries and common sellswords, a true carrion for the vultures. The scale of the rebellion was greater than expected and thus basileus Luis decided to use this war as a display of power – he commanded to gather all
tagmata and together with mercenaries and tens of
themata to crush the traitors.
While the Imperial Army landed on the shores of Syria nearby Holy City of Antioch where the rebels were heading on 29th March 1336, they had only one order – to put all the rebels to the sword, no mercy to be shown. Soon a gigantic battle started on the fields of Gibelet and hills were washed with the blood of Romanoi. Such pointless loss while the Empire was facing threats from the Horde and the savages from the Far West was the worst blow against the Throne the rebels could have hoped to achieve. And so thousands of Romanoi died fighting against the bands of mercenaries and what little
themata the rebels had.
Alas, it was not the only case of fratricidal fight among the Christians during these days.
King Theoderich making good use of the heretic unholy war declared by the leader of Cathars against the dying kingdom of Sweden decided to stab the last Norse realm in the back. The war was brutal and the victory of Germans swift – king Faste wisely decided to surrender contested lands hoping that this would allow him to concentrate all forces on the attacking heretics. It didn't make much difference to the commoners – again Christians were dying like dogs, whole villages burnt to the ground. To attack our brothers and sisters in True Faith during such dark times was pure madness – it was during these days when Bureau of Barbarians decided to advice the Emperor that king Theoderich may not be trusted.
Finally, after over two years of pointless struggle, the rebels were forced to surrender completely on 21st July 1337 and to submit to the Throne, waiting for the harsh judgment to be passed upon them for the atrocities they committed. They were all properly punished, their titles and lives taken from them, for there is no greater crime than to raise a hand on God's regent on Earth.
Triumphant basileus Luis seized the occasion – with
aristoi either defeated or fearing the might of the Throne, he proclaimed himself supreme ruler of the Abyssinia on 30th July 1337. These lands south to the province of Aegyptus weren't important for most of the
aristoi, but nearby border with the Shia and the fact that there were still good Christians living there created a perfect occasion for the Emperor to once again confirm his role as the sole Protector of Christendom. By assuming this title basileus Luis declared that there will be no peace with the Caliphate until it's destroyed and the Muslim threat is eliminated once and for all.
And if the Emperor stopped there, this declaration would soon be forgotten. But he was determined to fulfill his promise. Being born in Aragon, he understood the threat of the savages better than anyone – even in the times of prosperity while the interior of the Empire was safe, raids of the barbarians were constant and there was never peace on the imperial borders. Being brave ruler and skilled tactician he was, he knew that the barbarians will return sooner or later – they always did. For centuries the Empire was an invincible wall and a beacon of hope for the Christendom. Innumerable armies of heathens and pagans were trying to destroy Basileia Romaion. Huns, Ostrogoths, Persians, Slavs, Bulgars, Arabs, Turks and now Mongols and Aztecs, all of them like dark waves crushing into the mighty Walls of the City, trying to consume all that is good and holy – and so far none of them has succeeded. The Empire stood proudly against the endless hordes of barbarians for hundreds of years but it would not be possible for it to survive without God's grace and sacrifice of its citizens – the blood of the martyrs was the price that had to be paid for this. And the Empire was paying it for centuries and so were the Enemies of God. Basileus Luis decided that it was time to show the savages the true might of the Romanoi, that it was time to not only defend but to strike.
And truly the time was right. The Horde invasion forces was defeated, although barely, and Ilkhanate was facing several revolts in what was once Russia and Persia. Republic of Pisa and Caliphate alike recently tasted imperial sword and for the time being they pose no threat to the Empire. And with the forces of savages from the Far West concentrated in the north, where they were drowning Christian uprisings in blood and where the last free Norse lords were desperately fighting for survival, their supreme ruler Tlacaeleltzin was not prepared to defend his southern provinces. And truly nobody could even think about something such daring as the attack on the Aztec realm. But being the author of Aragonese Offensive and the bold attack on Pisans, the Emperor had no doubts about his plan – the God was on his side.
The holy war was declared on 12th September 1337. The people of the City were cheering when
tagmata were leaving Konstantinoupolis
The enemies of the Throne and House Doukas among quickly pointed out that the decision to attack the savages was a mistake – as soon as the news of the imperial armies assembling in Greece to reconquer the province of Africa reached khagan Menggei, the barbarians put aside their differences and submitted to the will of their overlord. Treated like a god by his subjects khagan gained absolute authority over his subjects. According to imperial spies, the Horde immediately started preparing for war – without a doubt worshippers of Tengri were hoping that if the Imperial Army was to be defeated by the Aztecs, the Empire will finally fall when they launch the attack. And khagan Menggei was patient – called by his slaves the Great, he was a dangerous foe and he knew that Basileia Romaion may not survive the war on two fronts. For the time being though, all he needed to do was to wait.
Just like the invading forces of the great
strategos Flavius Belisarius in over 600 years ago during the war against the Vandals, the Imperial Army arrived in Africa in 15th January 1338 and immediately laid siege to Aztec strongholds. The small army of the defenders were wiped out effortlessly by
tagmata while the combined forces of the Brotherhood, mercenaries and soldiers from several
themata were reconquering Tunis. Soon the North Africa was under complete control of the Imperial Army.
Then the savages arrived.
Over 40,000 strong, the army of the invaders from the Far West was gigantic and even the forces this size consisted of slightly more than one fifth of the forces of Aztec realm. With most of their leaders and armies in the North, it was believed that the war chiefs in command of the army sent to defend the Africa were going to be mediocre. The reports of the imperial spies were correct but even the Bureau of the Barbarians didn't expect one thing – that Tlacaeleltzin Acatl, the Enemy of the Free Man of Europe, will join his army.
The titanic battle on the fields of Ariana began on 31st May 1338.
The presence of their supreme lord alone more than doubled the ferocity with which the savages fought. It was as if two forces of nature itself collided in battle, soldiers of Iesus Kristos facing the locust of worshippers of the Dark Gods. No mercy was given and none was expected – there was only death. Savages were fighting like a beasts they were and many of the troops from
themata faced with such horror began to panic. For the peasants from Syria and Armenia their warriors were like a daemons, with their strange feathered armor's and heads of the weird animals on their helmets. In the bloodthirsty frenzy some of them were devouring the corpses of fallen Christians on the battlefield and for ever killed savage several new appeared like an endless horde from the depths of Hell.
The darkest moment of the battle came when the cannibalistic cultists of Huitzilopochtli overcome the elite guards of the Brotherhood's grandmaster Bernardo di Pisa and his head was ripped from his lifeless body covered in the bloodied banner of the order. Grandmaster Bernardo being the second leader of the Brotherhood after Leon Angelos, Hero of the Empire, wasn't as great a man as son of Saint Markos nor his predecessor, grandmaster Adolf von Zähringen but his death was a terrible blow to the morale. It was then when one of the Brotherhood's monks-knights, Damianos of the House Botaneiates, led what was left of the right flank to a desperate attack. And – miraculously - the charge completely crushed the savages. They say that the God's angels were among the charging monks and that archangel Gabriel himself appeared on the battlefield to take the banner of the Brotherhood from the hands of heathens. Devastating charge turned to be decisive – with his left flank destroyed and a serious risk of being captured, Tlacaeleltzin Acatl, the Enemy of the Free Man of Europe, was forced to retreat leaving his troops behind.
Soon the battle was over.
With every captured savage put to the sword, more than 40,000 Aztecs were slaughtered on the fields of Ariana. Although victorious, Imperial Army suffered heavy losses and almost 20,000 Romanoi were killed by the savages. When the news reached the Great Palace on 7th June 1338, the City was celebrating – it was proved that the terrifying savages weren't invincible. From this day basileus Luis was known as “the Pious”, for even despite the fact that the war was not over the sole fact of Aztec defeat was an astonishing achievement. For his valor and courage on the battlefield, Damianos of the House Botaneiates was chosen by the Emperor as the new grandmaster of the Brotherhood. Alas, he died from his wounds and so the new grandmaster was chosen from the survivors of the battle of Ariana, Nikephoros of Megara.
By the 26th June 1338 the invading forces were able to resume the siege. The counter-attack of the savages was badly coordinated and soon thousands more of them were sent to Hell were they came from. Furious Tlacaeleltzin Acatl knew that by the time his vast armies were to be transported from the North to Africa the war was going to be over. Being cunning and ruthless man, he knew that he could not won this time – he decided to minimalize his losses and concentrate on Scandinavia first and then, in time, have his vengeance.
On 22nd November 1338 the savages accepted the terms of peace – basileus Luis was victorious. Celebrations were hold in every city of the Empire, with holy masses and processions with icons of the saints. The Aztecs were beaten. It was unthinkable but it happened – it was as if hope returned to the hearts of men. Emissaries from the Christian kingdoms arrived in Konstantinoupolis to congratulate the Emperor his victory.
But by defeating the invaders from the Far West, basileus Luis the Pious became not only a symbol – he became a target. Tlacaeleltzin Acatl sweared to see the Empire in ruin and it was obvious that from now on the Aztecs, having tasted the imperial sword, will never stop until Basileia Romaion is defeated. It became obvious to everyone of them that Europe will never be fully controlled with the Empire protecting the Christendom.
And the power of the Enemy can not be underestimated. With West and North under their control and the unknown lands in the Far West as their power base, they were the single greatest threat to the Free Men of Europe. Until they are not defeated, no Christian is safe – and one can't forget that even the mighty Aztecs are just puppets in the war waged by Diabolos and the Dark Gods against God's children.
But no daemon can resist the power of Cross – not even Tengri the Sky-Father.
On 24th August 1341 khagan Menggei the Cursed died – a powerful foe of the Empire defeated by death with his soul taken for Judgment and eternal torture in Hell. But what was even more important was that the mighty Horde with its vast and innumerable armies were now left in the hands of a child.
His heir, Inalchi Toluid, was barely 2 years old when his father died. According to imperial spies, the succession crisis was imminent – barbarians respected only power and what chance does a child stand against the ruthless and ambitious horse-lords? The Emperor was celebrating – finally, after all these years full of suffering and horror, the Enemies were not going to launch another attack for at least few years.
Seizing the occasion, together with king Theoderich of Bavaria another Christian offensive was launched against the heathens few weeks after the death of khagan. And again the soldiers of God were triumphant. It seemed that finally long-awaited peace was secured for Basileia Romaion, even if only for a while and for the terrible price of tens of thousands lives.
Truly the the martyr's grave was the Empire's keystone.
Thank you very much!
