The Shadow of Venice Does Go Far
The ripple of shock and awe ripped through Venice like a great wave. Most of the old ways of how Venice was run remained the same, but the small changes were the ones that shocked the most. Firstly, there was the matter of the old Doge. His body still lay in it casket, waiting for a good burial. Fredrik denied that request and, instead, had his body placed upon a traditional Viking funeral pyre and set to drift out to sea. Many people were outraged, but others found the ceremony to be preferable as they had always seen him as a man of the sea. Interestingly enough, over time, this became the method of burial for all Venetians and continues to this day. The next move of the new Prince Mayor was to lower taxes for all cities. Almost no one disagreed with the measure, but it was seen as quite revolutionary as no one had changed tax laws in a good century. Unsurprisingly, it was met with universal acclaim and soon Fredrik had petitioners out the door wanting their tax laws changed. Next, Fredrik had some of his council members sent into the city to do important work. One such councillor, the Steward of Venice and the venerable Greger, found a master builder so good at his craft that he could he could erect a building that might take a year, in half that time. He was commissioned at once. The surprise came when everyone found out that he was of peasant birth. Many called for a revocation of his licence, but Fredrik stood his ground and today he is known for building some of Venice’s most famous buildings, like the Great Tower and the Blue Gold Lighthouse.
At home, a son was born to Fredrik by the name of Beowulf. This was cause for great celebration and revelry. However, at the feast, as Fredrik stood and stared out at the crowd who waited for his speech, the words would not come to him and he let his wife take the stage in his stead. Ashamed and humiliated, he vowed to never let such a thing happen again and actively sook out ways to improve his abilities. As Fredrik wallowed at the Palace, two months of envoys from a distraught lordling next door, caused him to almost nail the hats to the poor men’s heads. Fortunately, Fredrik was a just man and had his servants gather up some roses that his had grown and sent back with the envoys. He then took this opportunity that had raised him from his depression and went out to attempt to become a better warrior than he was. He took the time to befriend Greger, laying the foundations for a friendship that would last the rest of the great man’s life. During one of the daily conversations that the two men would have, a letter from Fredrik’s nettlesome neighbour came to him. The man was deeply touched and humbled by the gift and promised to leave Fredrik be from thence forth. Fredrik was proud of this, but Greger pointed out the power that the roses held and urged him to keep the hobby up. So Fredrik set about gardening, a hobby that would expand into a lifetime of toil in the dirt. His passion lead to the beautiful Royal Gardens in Venice today, should you ever find yourself in that far away land, I urge you to pay visit to it, it’s quite humbling.
Word came to Fredrik that the lords of Byzantium had declared the Emperor worthy of an authority that had never been seen before in all the lands. His word was almost absolute in power and word of it had travelled far indeed. But another thing occupied the mind of young Fredrik. Word had come to him from the seer that the gods were displeased that he had been at peace for so long. If he did not meet someone in the battlefield soon, their disfavour would fall upon all of Venice. Discussing the issue with his new Marshal, Mayor Sölvi of Lido, they found the perfect place to find the favour of the gods again. The city of Amalfi was ruled by Norsemen who had abandoned the old ways in favour of the true Lord. Of course, Fredrik didn’t see it this way and at once sent word to Price Mayor Snæbjörn that the province of Foggia was to become Venetian land whether they liked it or not. He gathered up a group of foreign men from a faraway land called the Pecheneg Band and sent them to claim Foggia for Venice. The men were smashed by the Amalfi soldiers, so Fredrik called forth his personal mercenaries, the Bulgarian Band. Still run by the man who had brought him victory in Croatia, they were paid handsomely to deal with the failure of the Pecheneg Band. Together, the two bands wiped out over three quarters of the Prince Mayor’s men while only a few hundred themselves. It wasn’t long before the city was theirs, leaving only the outlying barony and chapel to take.
While the war raged on, matters at home became major issues. Two priests had arrived in the city from foreign lands and had begun proselytizing the word of the one true Lord. Showing his true colours, the justly Fredrik let them be, to the annoyance of many courtiers, allowing to spread the great and wonderful gospel in the city. Some say that he only let them be as to continue his work against the Orseolo family. He had begun pressuring them to pay more than their due to the Palace and undermining their word amongst the other Patricians. Their hold on the city was still strong, but the new measures gave their leader, Marcello Orseolo, reason for pause.
Winter rolled in again and the Barony of Lucera had been won. By December, Fredrik’s troops were besieging the Chapel of Siponto when the Prince Mayor’s men were seen on the horizon. With a force smaller than Fredrik’s but newly invigorated, they sought to, once and for all, end the war of supposed Venetian aggression. Amalfi sword battered against Venetian shield but the mercenaries held their ground. It wasn’t long before over half of the Amalfi men were dead on the field and the rest fleeing for their lives. When word of the crushing defeat came to the Prince Mayor, he travelled to Foggia himself. On Christmas day, both men celebrated peace between the two republics with Amalfi ceding the land to Venice. But it was not all good news. Emperor Leon the VI sought Venice as his own. His aggressions were made plain to all who would listen and the lords of Byzantium rallied behind him. Fredrik saw an opportunity to be held for greater expansion and protection. A treatise was quickly drafted and sent to Constantinople. The Seal of Venice stamped deep into wax, the paper proclaimed, if he would have it, Leon VI as the new liege to the lords of Venice. The night rolled into day and a new century was proclaimed, in the year of our Lord nine hundred, Fredrik Súrr sat in his library, eagerly awaiting a reply from the mighty Byzantine Empire.