Part 17, Desperate Measures, in the Name of San Marco
March 17: The rattled delegation returns to Venice and shares the shocking events with the Doge and Council of 10, as well as many other of Venice’s highest authorities including da Vinci and Maranazzo. The news incites nothing short of a panic from both investors and the Council of 10. Council members shout that Doge Loredan’s decision to build the canal has led to the financial ruin of the republic, and that he will face the consequences. After the commotion has been relatively calmed, the Doge and the high councils reconvene their discussions. Both come to an obvious decision; the amount of capital sunk into the Ptolmeic Channel is enormous, and failure to see return on investment would be cataclysmic for the republic. Military action against the Mamluk Sultanate is unavoidable. The navy is immediately readied by Marco Maranazzo, who will be the sole commander of the mission so as to have a uniform fighting force. An emissary is quickly dispatched to Constantinople to request Ottoman assistance in the matter. However, there is no guarantee -though likely- that the Porte will agree to the request, and even if it does it will be many months before its army can be fully marched into Egypt. For the pressing matter at hand, the most serene navy will strike at once.
March 21: Maranazzo’s birthday. Instead of in his home on the outskirts of the lagoon, he is at the helm of a ship, the “Anianus”, named in honour of the first Christian convert in Alexandria. The Doge and the Patriarch of Venice stand at the edge of the shores. Behind them, many high ranking citizens, as well as commoners, Christians and Jews, Venetians and Albanians, all look at the marvel from the distance.
To explain the actions about to be taken against Egypt to the Venetian populace, Loredan has found it imperative to legitimize the grounds for attack in something other than strictly commerce. He chooses a subject he knows will garner the most support from the people, and especially from the men who will perform the deed. Just as it has done to its ground forces, Venice’s navy is completely homegrown and very well trained. If Loredan can unite them under a holy purpose, he is sure he will get the best results. At Andrea Gritti’s suggestion, the event is turned into a spectacle so as not to anger the populace with yet another war, instead convincing them that it is a duty they must fulfill.
The Patriarch initiates the blessing of the grand navy on its special quest. He continues about how the land of the most venerated of Venice’s Saints, the watchful protector of the republic, has incited a great betrayal of the republic and of Christendom. Loredan delivers the final note, calling on God’s most glorious blessing upon the ships, as they set off to reclaim the city where was put to death the most legendary, most revered; San Marco. The ceremony concludes with those in attendance, both spectator and sailor alike, crying ‘Viva San Marco!” the motto of the republic.
Early April: The Mamluks keep their promise, and all work is suspended indefinitely on the Ptolmeic Channel. They expect that, for the most part, Venice is in a similar situation as them, and that the canal’s completion is essential and well worth their demands. While they wait for the Venetians to return and accept the deal, the now unemployed army of Channel-workers, trained and slave alike, are left with nothing to do. Some skilled Venetian workers head towards Alexandria to head home and at least wait out the stoppage.
April 28: The Venetian armada arrives off the coast of Egypt, but does not at once make land. Rather, the fleet sails up and down the coast. Seeing the Venetians scouting the shores, the surprised Mamluks hastily begin harvesting all the crops including unripened grain, and poisoning wells to deprive the enemy of local food supplies. The locals are in shock; they never thought that the Venetians would mount a full scale siege in response to the hard-line stance taken by their government.
In the early morning of the 29th of April, the Venetian forces rush ashore just 6 km west of Alexandria, and head straight for the city. They arrive by sunrise beneath Alexandria’s walls and surprise the city. After a morning of moderate fighting, the troops stationed in the city give up and flee. Unfortunately it is not before they take the chance to massacre some Venetian shipwrights and citizens living inside the city (i).
It turns out the majority of the Sultanate’s forces were much farther east awaiting any Ottoman assault. After the city’s capture, Maranazzo takes the fleet north to secure Aboukir Bay before anchoring the battle-fleet in the old port of Alexandria.
For such glorified hype, the invasion was an easy success. A majority of the men didn’t even take part in the city’s capture, and are frustrated. Maranazzo and his commanders assure them that they got lucky the Egyptian forces were not stationed there, and that the real difficulties will start now that they have taken the city.
May: Arriving in Constantinople, the Venetian envoy has its work cut out for it. They were alerted by spies months ago of the Ottoman intent to invade Egypt, and attempt to capitalize on the information in lieu of recent, unanticipated events. The Ottomans are given a complete update of the situation in Egypt, and are then immediately met with a proposal to enter into a lucrative agreement with the Venetians, to which Selim quickly agrees. The deal stipulates that the Ottomans will invade the Sultanate of Egypt from the east, and in turn will be equal partners in the remaining completion of the Ptolemaic Channel, incurring costs and supplying manpower as is required. In turn, they will receive an equal share in the eventual profit realization of the completed canal. Venice will be allowed to keep Alexandria so as to have an outpost near the channel.
Retiring from a successful meeting, both sides are happy with the fair agreement reached, each feeling as if they’ve won on a point when in reality this is not the case:
The Venetians feel they have won by agreeing to a 50/50 split with the Ottomans in turn for the hurried invasion of Egypt. In reality they expected the Mamluks to contribute enough capital to the construction process to reach about that, so nothing new is added while a powerful, stable, and effective partner is gained.
The Ottomans are the true winners of the deal, expecting at least a portion of the Egyptian forces to attack the Venetians in Alexandria whereas before they’d have to deal with them. They were going to invade around this time next year anyways, so this saves large sums of money from going to supporting an idle waiting force. Lastly, they now get the benefits of the Ptolmeic Channel.
Late May: The Venetian carracks in the Red Sea are ambushed and attacked by Mamluk ships. The carracks are armed only with some cannons meant solely to test how the ships react to their blasts. They were not intended to experience any fighting. Of the 12 carracks in the Red Sea, the Mamluks manage to sink 8, claiming all on board. The remaining 4 demonstrate enough speed to escape. The only saving grace of the encounter is the valuable information gained on the ships’ performances in a real-world situation, which will be shared with the republic as soon as the sailors can make it back.
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(i): This capture of Alexandria is one modeled similarly to the OTL capture undertaken by Napoleon.