Glen
Moderator
1493:
England:
John Cabot, after failed attempts to interest the Portuguese and Spanish in his services, moves his family to England in hopes of being engaged as an explorer.
Thomas Wittingham of Middlewich, Cheshire, England invents the toothbrush. Wittingham family tradition claims he was inspired by a dream.
France:
1493 Spring: Cem the Pretender, claimant to the Ottoman throne, flees his confinement in Paris.
Spain:
1493 March 15: Christopher Columbus regales Spain with tales of the riches he has seen in Asia after returning from his first voyage.
1493 April: Some of Christopher Columbus' companions on the journey tell a less flamboyant tale, bringing some of Columbus' claims into question. Word of this reaches the Spanish Court, making Ferdinand and Isabella weigh how much support to give to a second journey under Columbus.
1493 Summer: Word reaches the Spanish Court of the increased persecution of Christians throughout the Mameluke Empire, even in Jerusalem. Rather than causing a rescension of the expulsion of the Muslims or a softening of the Inquisition's attempts to find secret Muslims in Spain, it instead provokes an opposite reaction. Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain are incensed by the persecution of Christians in Mameluke lands. The Spanish begin considering actions directly against the Mamelukes.
1493 Fall: When word reaches the Spanish Court of renewed war between the Ottomans and Mamelukes along their border, the Spanish see an opportunity. They prepare the Spanish navy and call upon their ally and fellow Trastámaran, the King of Naples to join with them.
Holy Roman Empire:
1493 August 19: The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III dies.
1943 September: In Wien, an obscure, but well spoken, priest from a middling background begins preaching about the need to reform the Catholic church. His message is clear and he is charismatic - he soon begins to attract a following.
Saxony:
Henry, second son of duke Albert of Saxony, is attacked by bandits while riding to Leipzig. After reportedly praying to God for deliverance, Henry is rescued by a party of armsmen in service to his father. Henry thanks God for his deliverance, and promptly announces his intention to enter the priesthood. His father and brother are shocked, but they will not go against a calling from God. So Henry enters the priesthood, thus taking him out of the Albertine succession.
Northern Italy:
1493 March 20: William Palaeologus, the six year old eldest son of Margrave Boniface of Montferrat, dies from a fall. His young brother Boniface is now the defacto heir to Montferrat.
Milan:
An attempt is made on Duke Gian Galeazzan Sforza. The assassin is killed. He is linked to the Duke's uncle Ludovico Sforza. This kind of familial 'tension' is common in Renaissance Italy. Ludovico still looses his head.
Italian Peninsula:
Florence:
1493 April 1: Piero de' Medici dies in a drunken fall down the stairs of his palace. Some believe he did not fall but instead was pushed, but there is no proof. His brother, Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici, is now the head of the family.
The Cardinal immediately sets to work expanding his families' interests. He first turns his eyes to the small independent Republic of Lucca...
The small Republic of Lucca lives in peace while warily watching surrounding lands. Especially of concern is Florence, again growing in power and influence. Florence has long sought bring Lucca under its sway. The ascension of the powerful and cunning Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici in place of his dead fool brother Piero was especially alarming. The commune decided late in 1493 that the defenses of the Republic had to be improved, and the hiring of mercenaries was authorized. Lucca would also need allies, and many options considered.
Meanwhile, Savonarola, a fiery orator who had often blasted the Medicis in his sermons for their wickedness and impiety from his pulpit at San Marco, gained a large following after the death of Piero, who was often a target for his extravagance. Savonarola's preaching of the end of days and of the judgment of God upon all men scared the normally free wheeling Florentines into contrition. He also made attacks on the immorality of the Church, which many saw as veiled attacks on the Cardinal de' Medici. There was also the prospect of invasion from France on the horizon, which just served to increase the tension
Naples:
Renaissance sculptor Francesco Laurana returns to Naples from France. He is commissioned to build a statue of King Ferrante (Ferdinand I).
A medical school is built in Salerno to attract physicians and natural philosophers from across Europe.
Papal States:
1493 May 5: Inter Caetera of Pope Alexander VI issued:
We (the Papacy) command you (Spain) to instruct the aforesaid inhabitants and residents and dwellers therein in the Catholic faith, and train them in good morals. Further, grants of land are to be given unto the Holy Catholic Church, in so that churches and missions may be established, to bring them more fully into Grace.
1493-98: Pope tries to bring under control the territories of the Papal States, in an effort to create a new Duchy of Romagna for his son Giuffre. By 1498 he has largely succeeded, and the creation of the Duchy is pronounced.
Scandinavia/Baltic:
King Hans (John) of Sweden enters an alliance with Russian ruler Ivan III.
King Hans has the Sjaelland Thing recognize his claim to Copenhagen effectively removing the city from the Bishop of Roskilde. His sole claim to Copenhagen makes him able to better support English merchants traveling to the Scania herring market.
King Hans encourages merchants to take up state responsibilities by working for the King and offers the possibility of being created nobility.
A letter is sent to the Friedrich von Sachsen, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights from the Hansa:
At present our trade is being severely curtailed by the Dutch and Scandinavians. I propose that we work toward a cooperative understanding with one or the other, and work to undermine our remaining competitor in whatever way possible. We are also interested in possibly capitalizing on the discovery of the new world by establishing a trading colony there.
Finally, I will be moving the Baltic cities toward a more official federation of free cities, and hope to invite both the Rhenish and Prussian cities to join. Should this not be possible, the Wendish Federation would simply act as a unified entity within the league.
This letter is the answer the Grand Master had been looking for. As far as he was concerned, the writing was on the wall. Prussia would sooner or later have to be abandoned. There were simply not enough knights to control and defend the land. A letter was sent in response, and a partnership begun.
1493-99: The Teutonic Order begins working with the Hanseatic League. Knights begin to be stationed in Hansa Cities for defense, and the island of Gota and Teutonic possessions in Prussia are open for Hansa trade and settlement. Shipyards are built in Konigsberg, and a new Teutonic fleet is built, financed and manned partly by the Hansa. Finances began to improve, and more knights were recruited. The local economy also improved and the people were mostly left alone, so they were content.
There was involvement in Sweden, with the League and Knights supporting Sten Sture in return for trade concessions.
There was also talk within the League of possibilities in the new western route to the Indies. Perhaps exploration and profit could be made there. But that would cost a lot of money, and even with the increase in wealth, more was needed.
Eastern Europe:
Moldavia, Wallachia, and Austria form the Anti-Ottoman League to drive the Muslims out of Europe.
Poland:
John Albert, newly elected King of Poland, is not pleased by the abrupt formation of the Anti-Ottoman League. Not only does he think he should be at least informed of this by his Moldavian vassals, he also dreams of his own victories against the unholy Turk; yet he is hamstrung in his ambition by the need to pacify his unruly Polish nobility and wheedle money for his military enterprises from the Seim. So he swallows his pride (or, at least, the most prickly parts of it), and by the next year at Leutschau, the Polish king met not only with his brother Wladislaw of Hungary, Elector John Hohenzollern of Brandenburg and Moldavian gospodar Stephen, but also - with great reluctance - with representatives of Maximilian, whom he would rather see as an open enemy. Hopes that any kind of united Christian front against Ottomans would be established were small...
Russia/Muscovy:
1493 July: The Great Fire destroys a large part of the old portion of Moscow. Ivan declares that no new building anywhere in Moscow is to be built out of wood or other flammable materials. A large area around the Kremlin is left open for the market (roughly equivalent to 240 meters in OTL), but the shops must be temporary and portable.
Rhodes:
1493 Summer: Cem the Pretender, claimant to the Ottoman throne returns to Rhodes, calling on Pierre DAubusson, the grand-master of the order, to lead a crusade on Cem's behalf. Cem makes vague half-formed promises about converting to Christianity. Debate rages across Rhodes as to what should be done. DAubusson knows that the order is in far too vulnerable a position for a crusade at this point. Yet can he pass up the possibility of a Christian Ottoman emperor? As time passes however, it becomes clear that Cem's promised conversion to Christianity is less than genuine. Cem still promises the Rhodeans rich gifts of territory and possible restoration to Jerusalem (on which promise he's in little position to make good). Ultimately, DAubusson rejects this call for a crusade, claiming that "as the last Christian presence in Ionia it is paramount upon me, as grand-master, to look first to the order and it's preservation." Later historians have claimed that DAubusson truly was the first grand master to turn away from the crusader ideal, but this is far from the truth. In reality, DAubusson did not want a crusade which he could not win.
1493 Fall - Winter: DAubusson learns through his connections with the Neapolitan Court that the Spanish and Neapolitans are considering a foray against the Mamelukes in retaliation for their persecution of Christians, especially now that they are tied up in a war with the Ottomans. This seems to be the opportunity DAubusson was waiting for. He sends messages of alliance to Spain and Naples. He ponders what use Cem could be in this endeavor, but for the time being decides to hold him in reserve.
Ottoman Empire:
1493 April: Prince Ahmed enters into secret negotiations with the Mamelukes to assist him in overthrowing his father, Sultan Bayezid of the Ottoman Empire.
1493 November: As the Ottoman navy masses to assist in repelling Ahmed's faction and their Mameluke allies, a terrible storm strikes, causing the loss of a large number of Ottoman ships, and damaging most.
Mameluke Empire:
1493 Summer: The Mamelukes increase persecution of Christians throughout the Empire, not just in Syria, in response to the expulsion of Muslims from Spain the previous year.
The Mameluke Sultan, az-Zahir Sayf-ad-Din Jaqmaq, orders the mobilization of all troops in Eastern Egypt and Sinai to confront the advancing Ottoman troops. Upon reaching an agreement concerning Prince Ahmed's claim to the Ottoman throne, and adjustments to the border in favor of the Mamelukes, the Mameluke troops of Eastern Egypt and Sinai were deployed to Syria to assist Prince Ahmed in his quest. He also sends some troops with supplies for the Arab/Berber kingdoms fighting Alodi.
1493 Summer: Makuria and Nobatia begin winning some battles pushing Alodi away from the Coast. The king of Alodi sends envoys to Ethiopia requesting aid.
1493 Fall: Ahmed leads a faction of Ottomans and a large Mameluke army over the border between Syria and Anatolia, intent on wresting the Ottoman Empire from his father, Bayezid II.
Maghreb:
1493 Spring: Muhammahad XII has a fight with his Mother, and moves along with most of the Army of Granada [and the Treasury] to Zarzis in southern Tunisa. Most of Moorish Granadians fleeing from Spain go either to Tielsim [small kingdom now part of Morocco] if followers of Muhammad XII’s Mother, or to Zarzis if a followers of Muhammad XII.
1493 Spring: The Mamelukes begin their westward expansion toward the Barbary Coast. The Sultan sends a small but powerful army he believes will be able to conquer Tripolitania and Tunisia easily, as both are suffering from warlordism.
1493 Summer: The Mamelukes recapture all of Libya east of Tripolitania. The remains of the Granadian army have settled in Zarzisi; they prevent the Mameluke from conquering Zarzisi when they take the rest of Libya.
Yemen:
The Tahirid Sultan, having examined the shape of the world around him, with the Mamelukes to the north and the Europeans beginning to move forcefully into the traditionally Arab trade routes of the Indian Ocean, decided to embark upon a series of policy initiatives in order to buttress Yemeni economic and military strength against potential outside threats.
The main portions of this initiative were threefold. First, a proclamation was made of the willingness of Yemen to accept the expelled Jews and Muslims of the Iberian Peninsula, along with other such unwanted (and productive) minority religions that other states might wish to dispose of. This proclamation was disseminated throughout the Indian Ocean by Arab traders, reaching throughout the known world by spring of 1494.
Second, the Yemeni Sultan, after consultation with learned scholars as to the legality of such a move, proclaimed himself the Defender of the Hajj, in so far as that the Tahirid Sultanate would escort shipbound hajjis from Socotra to Jiddah, protecting them from pirates (and other potential marauders) along the way. Furthermore, it was announced that any attempt by merchants to take advantage of the hajj with exorbitant price increases would not be tolerated by the Sultanate.
Third, in order to fulfill the above duty, and incidentally to safeguard the Indian Ocean trade network that was Yemen's lifeblood, a major increase in naval construction was to occur. Realizing that Yemen itself did not possess an abundance of forests from which to harvest wood for shipbuilding, the decision was made to look southward, toward the heavily forested island of Madagascar. With longstanding trade contacts already present there, particularly with the Sakalava tribe along the island's western coast, the Sultanate would use Madagascar as its primary source of raw material for new naval construction.
Contacts would also be strengthened with the Swahili city-states along the East African coast, as certain other materials (hemp, for example) would be needed for the naval expansion. Over the next two years, a series of marriages would be arranged between the Yemeni throne and the ruling families of those city-states. In particular, a series of emissaries were sent to Sofala, offering the local ruler Tahirid protection in the event that ill-intentioned European visitors came to call. While the Sofalan emir declined the full Yemeni offer, he did agree to allow a small Yemeni garrison to remain in the area in order to safeguard the expanded degree of trade visiting the port.
Sub-Saharan Africa:
The king of Benin, marries one of his daughters to a high chief of the Oyo. He also builds up his contacts with the surrounding area, with a mind to marrying into, or outright taking the lands to the North West he thinks are in need of better leadership.
Delhi and Mewar:
1493 April: Sultan Sikandar Lodhi orders a massive Survey of All the Sultan’s Lands & Peoples in the Delhi Sultanate. The Sultan had been looking for a way to solidify his rule, and appears to have chosen to emphasize his knack for administration.
Barbak Shah Lodhi interprets his brother’s survey not as a show of strength but as an opportunity for his own advancement. He begins audaciously building and training his army. Sikandar decides to revoke Barbak’s title as Shah of Jaunpur and instead make him Grand General of the Armies. Barbak accepts. Both seem convinced that the other is the fool.
1493 May: Rawat Surjamal, cousin of the Rana of Mewar Raimal, strikes and spits on the Rana’s son Jaimal after an argument. All Mewar is aghast at his rudeness.
1493 June: Rana Raimal has had enough of his sons’ and cousins’ feuding. He sends them all off on “humility quests.” His sons are all sent to religious schools – Prithviraj to a Jain colony, Jaimal to a Buddhist monastery, and Sangramsingh to apprentice to the young Hindu theologian Nanak Dev. His cousins are given much more humiliating assignments – Rawat Surjamal is to manage a farm, and Rawat Sarangdeo is to manage a construction company. The cousins are furious that they are to be treated so far below their caste, but they know that the alternative is death.
1493 July: Rana Raimal sets about creating a detailed Oligarchic system, based on what scholars have told him of the great administrations of the past. His guiding principle is to make no one man have so much power over anything that he could abuse it for corrupt purposes. For now, this system is just a way to improve Mewar’s government, but it is clear that Raimal has designs on converting it into a far grander system.
Gowan Domestic Affairs: 1492-1500
The new Karaeng of Gowa, I-Pakere'tau Karaeng Tunijallo'-ri Pasukki' Somba-ri Gowa (henceforth referred to as I'Pakere'tau I, or just 'the king'), was crowned in 1492, as in OTL. Subsequently, Gowan politics split into two predominant factions, or 'parties', each trying to gain influence over the young and inexperienced king:
The 'imperial court' faction, centered on those ministers directly responsible to the Karaeng, who sought an isolationist foreign policy and conservatism. The predominant figure in this movement was the Tuma'bicara-butta ('spokesman of the land', or prime minister) until 1493; after his death, the movement splintered into competing factions. The movement's prime goal was protectionism; they felt that Macassar, the capital of Gowa (and often identified with it), needed to be protected from foreign influences. They can be considered the 'Tories' of Makassar.
The 'noble' or 'parliamentary' faction, centered on the Bate Salapang (the supreme council of nobles, akin to a Parliament). These nobles, eager to increase their own wealth and power, aimed for a program of rapid economic and military expansion. This faction was largely responsible for the Yolgnu Wars, the conquest of Garassik, and the establishment of trading stations on Marege. They also urged the expansion of foreign trade and the liberalizing of trade barriers. They can be considered the 'Whigs' of Makassar.
{In OTL, the conservatives triumphed; delaying Makassar's rise for centuries. By then, the Dutch had gained a strong enough foothold to conquer the region. In TTL, however, the economic opportunities provided by Marege prove sufficient inducement for the triumph of the nobles, who dominated the decade and the rest of I'Pakere'tau I's reign.}
A virus mutates randomly in Indonesia some time in 1493. The virus, although harmless to humans, proves virulent when introduced into trepang (sea cucumber) stocks. This results in a 50% reduction of trepang stocks around the Indonesian archipelago by 1500, and with the almost complete extinction of trepang in the waters surrounding Makassar.
Thus deprived of their prize catch, the trepangers of Gowa, a small kingdom centered on the port city of Makassar, are forced to look further afield...
Majahapit:
King Girindrawarddhana is informed by his ministers that the price of trepang has more than tripled recently due to local stocks dying off. The King decides that trepang is too important to the economy, and sends ships to scout out and secure new island sources.
Excerpt from The Birth of the Yolgnu Nation: 1493-1501
In 1493, the Yolgnu existed primarily as a concept; a series of traditions, religious practices, and linguistic dialects, with all those identifying themselves as 'Yolgnu' linking themselves to a particular territory: specifically, eastern Marege (OTL's eastern Top End)
Beyond that, however, there was very little in the way of unity. The Yolgnu were divided into clan groups and bands, who functioned largely autonomously. Without any significant foreign threats, there was no reason for unity-or, indeed, technological developments. So the Yolgnu survived, for tens of thousands of years, largely as they always had.
However, Yolgnu history can be said to have truly begun, from the day the Invaders arrived. The first contact with the traders dubbed generally the 'Macassans' could not have begun more inauspiciously. The exhausted and lonely traders attempted to abduct a party of Yolgnu women; the Yolgnu reacted violently, spearing several Macassans. Unlike the other Aboriginal tribes of Marege, who generally experienced positive first contacts, the Yolgnu recognised, from the beginning, the threat which Macassan influence posed to traditional tribal culture.
To this end, the Yolgnu began to unify politically, through a series of corroborees and tribal meetings. It was decided to oppose the Macassans, and hopefully to drive them back where they came from. A previously insignificant band 'headman' rose to prominence for his vitriolically anti-Macassan stance. According to legend, one of his sisters was one of those women attacked by the Macassans. His name has been lost to history, but Gowan records call him Gallarang-the leader.
The Macassans had no understanding of tribal borders. As such, trepangers frequently strayed into Yolgnu territory, where they were immediately set upon by hunters.
Due to their comparative size (unlike many other tribes in the region, who comprised only hundreds of individuals, there were over two thousand Yolgnu), the Yolgnu came to dominate the burgeoning anti-Macassan movements. Through both ideological sympathy and intimidation, a loose confederacy of tribes began to form, devoted to opposing the Macassans. Over the next decade, an undeclared war for influence would develop between the two nations, as both sides sought allies and prestige in the region.
The First Yolgnu War of 1507-1511 proved disastrous for both sides. The Macassan invasion force floundered, unable to strike at the Yolgnu, and proved a heavy drain on the Gowan treasury. The Yolgnu, however, faced even harsher conditions. The Macassans' tribal allies, eager to gain favour, committed atrocities against Yolgnu civilian populations, most notably in the Gagadju Massacre.
Far more deadly, however, was a virus brought by the soldiers: smallpox. The disease wreaked havoc on the Yolgnu population, killing over half the population, most notably the previously dominant elders. The Yolgnu were devastated, reduced to only a few hundred individuals from a height of thousands-all radicalised against the Macassan invasion. This allowed Gallarang, already a hero for his guerrilla activities, to gain effective political control over the Yolgnu.
But even he realised that the Macassans could not be driven out. Instead, he decided that to preserve Yolgnu independence, an accomodation must be made. In the Makaratta (treaty) that ended the war in 1511, predictably harsh terms were imposed: the Yolgnu allies were annexed, and they were forced to swear friendship to Gowa and send hostages to Makassar guarantee the peace. Yet they were granted their independence, and Djerrkura was recognised as bate (prince) of Yolgnu. He quickly set about creating the foundations for an independent Yolgnu state. Within a few years, hostages returning from Gowa told Gallarang of the ways of the Gowans. A council of elders was convened to serve a similar role to the Bate Salapang.
However, the Yolgnu still faced formidable difficulties. Their population had been ravaged, the war had led to the burning and destruction of much of their territories, and their population were inevitably beginning to gravitate towards settlements on the coast. However, such challenges remained for another decade to resolve.
Japan:
In 1493, Hojo Soun set the precedent for aspiring samurai after he acquired Kokukuji castle in Izu. Following his lead in the next decades many other men will rise from obscurity to greatness at the expense of their former masters, rivals, or even family members.
Shogun Ashikaga Yoshitane attacks Hosokawa Masamoto over a dispute regarding the accession of a new Shogun following the death of Ashikaga Yoshihisa in 1489. Yoshitane is defeated and exiled; Ashikaga Yoshizumi becomes puppet Shogun. However, the authority of both the Imperial court and the Shogunate is is sharp decline, and the country is plagued by civil war, insurrection, and rife political instability. There is little faith in either the court or the Shogunate and many Samurai are showing aspirations of grandeur. Hojo Soun acquires Kokukuji castle in Izu (Shizuoka prefecture), becoming the first 'sengoku daimyo'.
On the occasion of the birth of an heir to the Ming throne, the Ashikaga shogunate commissions an embassy to the Chinese court, presenting gifts to the Imperial family, especially the Emperor, the new heir, and the child's mother. Shogun Ashikaga Yoshitane is looking to foster better relations with Ming China (although relations between the two countries are not bad).
Ryukyku likewise sends an embassy. Although humble, it is still lavish. Ryukyu is of course a Chinese quasi-vassal, so the Ryukyuan embassy is not as surprising as the Japanese one.
New World:
Word of the arrival of people from the sea, has trickled throughout the Caribbean. They seem to have a lust for Yellow metal, spreading over-all distrust of these foreign wizards.
The Narragansett, claiming to be responding to an insult (the story, of course, varies widely depending on who it telling it), stage a major, successful raid on the Poccaset, a Wampanoag tribe that lives near the border between the two groups. An overly quick counter attack fails to do much, leaving many young Wampanoags angry. The older chiefs start looking for allies.
April 1493: The Seneca send out scouting parties to found new villages in the fertile lands to the south that have been abandoned after the recent wars. They set up a string of tiny farming communities at Kinzua Rapids.
June 1493: The Susquehanna get word of the Seneca’s expansion and send out their own scouts. They will eventually set up several small fishing and trading posts along the Juniata River, pushing the crippled remnants of the Onojutta onto even more marginal land.
December 1493: A bitter winter forces some Cayuga and Onondaga villages to head further south than usual in their search for game, into the lands of the weak Wyoming Tribe. The Onondaga Eldest – oral tradition holds that it was the legendary Hiawatha – states his opposition, not only because this abuses the last peace treaty with the Wyomings, but also because it may provoke the Susquehanna, whom he calls the “warm blood brothers” of the Haudenosaunee.
1493-1495: The princess Porâsaia, only child of a major Guaraní community-Chief Abaangui, dies, leaving Chief Abaangui heirless. The old man wanders off in mourning, and is never heard from again. In an unheard-of move, a young man named Kurepi, declares himself a living god, and performs several "miracles," in various Guaraní communities. Guaraní priests throughout all the communities reaffirm his claims. By the fall of 1495, he has formed a substantial following, and tentatively united the Guaraní people.
Incan Empire:
Thupa inca dies. Wayna Qapac accedes to the throne. He begins consolidation which will last until about 1520.
England:
John Cabot, after failed attempts to interest the Portuguese and Spanish in his services, moves his family to England in hopes of being engaged as an explorer.
Thomas Wittingham of Middlewich, Cheshire, England invents the toothbrush. Wittingham family tradition claims he was inspired by a dream.
France:
1493 Spring: Cem the Pretender, claimant to the Ottoman throne, flees his confinement in Paris.
Spain:
1493 March 15: Christopher Columbus regales Spain with tales of the riches he has seen in Asia after returning from his first voyage.
1493 April: Some of Christopher Columbus' companions on the journey tell a less flamboyant tale, bringing some of Columbus' claims into question. Word of this reaches the Spanish Court, making Ferdinand and Isabella weigh how much support to give to a second journey under Columbus.
1493 Summer: Word reaches the Spanish Court of the increased persecution of Christians throughout the Mameluke Empire, even in Jerusalem. Rather than causing a rescension of the expulsion of the Muslims or a softening of the Inquisition's attempts to find secret Muslims in Spain, it instead provokes an opposite reaction. Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain are incensed by the persecution of Christians in Mameluke lands. The Spanish begin considering actions directly against the Mamelukes.
1493 Fall: When word reaches the Spanish Court of renewed war between the Ottomans and Mamelukes along their border, the Spanish see an opportunity. They prepare the Spanish navy and call upon their ally and fellow Trastámaran, the King of Naples to join with them.
Holy Roman Empire:
1493 August 19: The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III dies.
1943 September: In Wien, an obscure, but well spoken, priest from a middling background begins preaching about the need to reform the Catholic church. His message is clear and he is charismatic - he soon begins to attract a following.
Saxony:
Henry, second son of duke Albert of Saxony, is attacked by bandits while riding to Leipzig. After reportedly praying to God for deliverance, Henry is rescued by a party of armsmen in service to his father. Henry thanks God for his deliverance, and promptly announces his intention to enter the priesthood. His father and brother are shocked, but they will not go against a calling from God. So Henry enters the priesthood, thus taking him out of the Albertine succession.
Northern Italy:
1493 March 20: William Palaeologus, the six year old eldest son of Margrave Boniface of Montferrat, dies from a fall. His young brother Boniface is now the defacto heir to Montferrat.
Milan:
An attempt is made on Duke Gian Galeazzan Sforza. The assassin is killed. He is linked to the Duke's uncle Ludovico Sforza. This kind of familial 'tension' is common in Renaissance Italy. Ludovico still looses his head.
Italian Peninsula:
Florence:
1493 April 1: Piero de' Medici dies in a drunken fall down the stairs of his palace. Some believe he did not fall but instead was pushed, but there is no proof. His brother, Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici, is now the head of the family.
The Cardinal immediately sets to work expanding his families' interests. He first turns his eyes to the small independent Republic of Lucca...
The small Republic of Lucca lives in peace while warily watching surrounding lands. Especially of concern is Florence, again growing in power and influence. Florence has long sought bring Lucca under its sway. The ascension of the powerful and cunning Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici in place of his dead fool brother Piero was especially alarming. The commune decided late in 1493 that the defenses of the Republic had to be improved, and the hiring of mercenaries was authorized. Lucca would also need allies, and many options considered.
Meanwhile, Savonarola, a fiery orator who had often blasted the Medicis in his sermons for their wickedness and impiety from his pulpit at San Marco, gained a large following after the death of Piero, who was often a target for his extravagance. Savonarola's preaching of the end of days and of the judgment of God upon all men scared the normally free wheeling Florentines into contrition. He also made attacks on the immorality of the Church, which many saw as veiled attacks on the Cardinal de' Medici. There was also the prospect of invasion from France on the horizon, which just served to increase the tension
Naples:
Renaissance sculptor Francesco Laurana returns to Naples from France. He is commissioned to build a statue of King Ferrante (Ferdinand I).
A medical school is built in Salerno to attract physicians and natural philosophers from across Europe.
Papal States:
1493 May 5: Inter Caetera of Pope Alexander VI issued:
We (the Papacy) command you (Spain) to instruct the aforesaid inhabitants and residents and dwellers therein in the Catholic faith, and train them in good morals. Further, grants of land are to be given unto the Holy Catholic Church, in so that churches and missions may be established, to bring them more fully into Grace.
1493-98: Pope tries to bring under control the territories of the Papal States, in an effort to create a new Duchy of Romagna for his son Giuffre. By 1498 he has largely succeeded, and the creation of the Duchy is pronounced.
Scandinavia/Baltic:
King Hans (John) of Sweden enters an alliance with Russian ruler Ivan III.
King Hans has the Sjaelland Thing recognize his claim to Copenhagen effectively removing the city from the Bishop of Roskilde. His sole claim to Copenhagen makes him able to better support English merchants traveling to the Scania herring market.
King Hans encourages merchants to take up state responsibilities by working for the King and offers the possibility of being created nobility.
A letter is sent to the Friedrich von Sachsen, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights from the Hansa:
At present our trade is being severely curtailed by the Dutch and Scandinavians. I propose that we work toward a cooperative understanding with one or the other, and work to undermine our remaining competitor in whatever way possible. We are also interested in possibly capitalizing on the discovery of the new world by establishing a trading colony there.
Finally, I will be moving the Baltic cities toward a more official federation of free cities, and hope to invite both the Rhenish and Prussian cities to join. Should this not be possible, the Wendish Federation would simply act as a unified entity within the league.
This letter is the answer the Grand Master had been looking for. As far as he was concerned, the writing was on the wall. Prussia would sooner or later have to be abandoned. There were simply not enough knights to control and defend the land. A letter was sent in response, and a partnership begun.
1493-99: The Teutonic Order begins working with the Hanseatic League. Knights begin to be stationed in Hansa Cities for defense, and the island of Gota and Teutonic possessions in Prussia are open for Hansa trade and settlement. Shipyards are built in Konigsberg, and a new Teutonic fleet is built, financed and manned partly by the Hansa. Finances began to improve, and more knights were recruited. The local economy also improved and the people were mostly left alone, so they were content.
There was involvement in Sweden, with the League and Knights supporting Sten Sture in return for trade concessions.
There was also talk within the League of possibilities in the new western route to the Indies. Perhaps exploration and profit could be made there. But that would cost a lot of money, and even with the increase in wealth, more was needed.
Eastern Europe:
Moldavia, Wallachia, and Austria form the Anti-Ottoman League to drive the Muslims out of Europe.
Poland:
John Albert, newly elected King of Poland, is not pleased by the abrupt formation of the Anti-Ottoman League. Not only does he think he should be at least informed of this by his Moldavian vassals, he also dreams of his own victories against the unholy Turk; yet he is hamstrung in his ambition by the need to pacify his unruly Polish nobility and wheedle money for his military enterprises from the Seim. So he swallows his pride (or, at least, the most prickly parts of it), and by the next year at Leutschau, the Polish king met not only with his brother Wladislaw of Hungary, Elector John Hohenzollern of Brandenburg and Moldavian gospodar Stephen, but also - with great reluctance - with representatives of Maximilian, whom he would rather see as an open enemy. Hopes that any kind of united Christian front against Ottomans would be established were small...
Russia/Muscovy:
1493 July: The Great Fire destroys a large part of the old portion of Moscow. Ivan declares that no new building anywhere in Moscow is to be built out of wood or other flammable materials. A large area around the Kremlin is left open for the market (roughly equivalent to 240 meters in OTL), but the shops must be temporary and portable.
Rhodes:
1493 Summer: Cem the Pretender, claimant to the Ottoman throne returns to Rhodes, calling on Pierre DAubusson, the grand-master of the order, to lead a crusade on Cem's behalf. Cem makes vague half-formed promises about converting to Christianity. Debate rages across Rhodes as to what should be done. DAubusson knows that the order is in far too vulnerable a position for a crusade at this point. Yet can he pass up the possibility of a Christian Ottoman emperor? As time passes however, it becomes clear that Cem's promised conversion to Christianity is less than genuine. Cem still promises the Rhodeans rich gifts of territory and possible restoration to Jerusalem (on which promise he's in little position to make good). Ultimately, DAubusson rejects this call for a crusade, claiming that "as the last Christian presence in Ionia it is paramount upon me, as grand-master, to look first to the order and it's preservation." Later historians have claimed that DAubusson truly was the first grand master to turn away from the crusader ideal, but this is far from the truth. In reality, DAubusson did not want a crusade which he could not win.
1493 Fall - Winter: DAubusson learns through his connections with the Neapolitan Court that the Spanish and Neapolitans are considering a foray against the Mamelukes in retaliation for their persecution of Christians, especially now that they are tied up in a war with the Ottomans. This seems to be the opportunity DAubusson was waiting for. He sends messages of alliance to Spain and Naples. He ponders what use Cem could be in this endeavor, but for the time being decides to hold him in reserve.
Ottoman Empire:
1493 April: Prince Ahmed enters into secret negotiations with the Mamelukes to assist him in overthrowing his father, Sultan Bayezid of the Ottoman Empire.
1493 November: As the Ottoman navy masses to assist in repelling Ahmed's faction and their Mameluke allies, a terrible storm strikes, causing the loss of a large number of Ottoman ships, and damaging most.
Mameluke Empire:
1493 Summer: The Mamelukes increase persecution of Christians throughout the Empire, not just in Syria, in response to the expulsion of Muslims from Spain the previous year.
The Mameluke Sultan, az-Zahir Sayf-ad-Din Jaqmaq, orders the mobilization of all troops in Eastern Egypt and Sinai to confront the advancing Ottoman troops. Upon reaching an agreement concerning Prince Ahmed's claim to the Ottoman throne, and adjustments to the border in favor of the Mamelukes, the Mameluke troops of Eastern Egypt and Sinai were deployed to Syria to assist Prince Ahmed in his quest. He also sends some troops with supplies for the Arab/Berber kingdoms fighting Alodi.
1493 Summer: Makuria and Nobatia begin winning some battles pushing Alodi away from the Coast. The king of Alodi sends envoys to Ethiopia requesting aid.
1493 Fall: Ahmed leads a faction of Ottomans and a large Mameluke army over the border between Syria and Anatolia, intent on wresting the Ottoman Empire from his father, Bayezid II.
Maghreb:
1493 Spring: Muhammahad XII has a fight with his Mother, and moves along with most of the Army of Granada [and the Treasury] to Zarzis in southern Tunisa. Most of Moorish Granadians fleeing from Spain go either to Tielsim [small kingdom now part of Morocco] if followers of Muhammad XII’s Mother, or to Zarzis if a followers of Muhammad XII.
1493 Spring: The Mamelukes begin their westward expansion toward the Barbary Coast. The Sultan sends a small but powerful army he believes will be able to conquer Tripolitania and Tunisia easily, as both are suffering from warlordism.
1493 Summer: The Mamelukes recapture all of Libya east of Tripolitania. The remains of the Granadian army have settled in Zarzisi; they prevent the Mameluke from conquering Zarzisi when they take the rest of Libya.
Yemen:
The Tahirid Sultan, having examined the shape of the world around him, with the Mamelukes to the north and the Europeans beginning to move forcefully into the traditionally Arab trade routes of the Indian Ocean, decided to embark upon a series of policy initiatives in order to buttress Yemeni economic and military strength against potential outside threats.
The main portions of this initiative were threefold. First, a proclamation was made of the willingness of Yemen to accept the expelled Jews and Muslims of the Iberian Peninsula, along with other such unwanted (and productive) minority religions that other states might wish to dispose of. This proclamation was disseminated throughout the Indian Ocean by Arab traders, reaching throughout the known world by spring of 1494.
Second, the Yemeni Sultan, after consultation with learned scholars as to the legality of such a move, proclaimed himself the Defender of the Hajj, in so far as that the Tahirid Sultanate would escort shipbound hajjis from Socotra to Jiddah, protecting them from pirates (and other potential marauders) along the way. Furthermore, it was announced that any attempt by merchants to take advantage of the hajj with exorbitant price increases would not be tolerated by the Sultanate.
Third, in order to fulfill the above duty, and incidentally to safeguard the Indian Ocean trade network that was Yemen's lifeblood, a major increase in naval construction was to occur. Realizing that Yemen itself did not possess an abundance of forests from which to harvest wood for shipbuilding, the decision was made to look southward, toward the heavily forested island of Madagascar. With longstanding trade contacts already present there, particularly with the Sakalava tribe along the island's western coast, the Sultanate would use Madagascar as its primary source of raw material for new naval construction.
Contacts would also be strengthened with the Swahili city-states along the East African coast, as certain other materials (hemp, for example) would be needed for the naval expansion. Over the next two years, a series of marriages would be arranged between the Yemeni throne and the ruling families of those city-states. In particular, a series of emissaries were sent to Sofala, offering the local ruler Tahirid protection in the event that ill-intentioned European visitors came to call. While the Sofalan emir declined the full Yemeni offer, he did agree to allow a small Yemeni garrison to remain in the area in order to safeguard the expanded degree of trade visiting the port.
Sub-Saharan Africa:
The king of Benin, marries one of his daughters to a high chief of the Oyo. He also builds up his contacts with the surrounding area, with a mind to marrying into, or outright taking the lands to the North West he thinks are in need of better leadership.
Delhi and Mewar:
1493 April: Sultan Sikandar Lodhi orders a massive Survey of All the Sultan’s Lands & Peoples in the Delhi Sultanate. The Sultan had been looking for a way to solidify his rule, and appears to have chosen to emphasize his knack for administration.
Barbak Shah Lodhi interprets his brother’s survey not as a show of strength but as an opportunity for his own advancement. He begins audaciously building and training his army. Sikandar decides to revoke Barbak’s title as Shah of Jaunpur and instead make him Grand General of the Armies. Barbak accepts. Both seem convinced that the other is the fool.
1493 May: Rawat Surjamal, cousin of the Rana of Mewar Raimal, strikes and spits on the Rana’s son Jaimal after an argument. All Mewar is aghast at his rudeness.
1493 June: Rana Raimal has had enough of his sons’ and cousins’ feuding. He sends them all off on “humility quests.” His sons are all sent to religious schools – Prithviraj to a Jain colony, Jaimal to a Buddhist monastery, and Sangramsingh to apprentice to the young Hindu theologian Nanak Dev. His cousins are given much more humiliating assignments – Rawat Surjamal is to manage a farm, and Rawat Sarangdeo is to manage a construction company. The cousins are furious that they are to be treated so far below their caste, but they know that the alternative is death.
1493 July: Rana Raimal sets about creating a detailed Oligarchic system, based on what scholars have told him of the great administrations of the past. His guiding principle is to make no one man have so much power over anything that he could abuse it for corrupt purposes. For now, this system is just a way to improve Mewar’s government, but it is clear that Raimal has designs on converting it into a far grander system.
Gowan Domestic Affairs: 1492-1500
The new Karaeng of Gowa, I-Pakere'tau Karaeng Tunijallo'-ri Pasukki' Somba-ri Gowa (henceforth referred to as I'Pakere'tau I, or just 'the king'), was crowned in 1492, as in OTL. Subsequently, Gowan politics split into two predominant factions, or 'parties', each trying to gain influence over the young and inexperienced king:
The 'imperial court' faction, centered on those ministers directly responsible to the Karaeng, who sought an isolationist foreign policy and conservatism. The predominant figure in this movement was the Tuma'bicara-butta ('spokesman of the land', or prime minister) until 1493; after his death, the movement splintered into competing factions. The movement's prime goal was protectionism; they felt that Macassar, the capital of Gowa (and often identified with it), needed to be protected from foreign influences. They can be considered the 'Tories' of Makassar.
The 'noble' or 'parliamentary' faction, centered on the Bate Salapang (the supreme council of nobles, akin to a Parliament). These nobles, eager to increase their own wealth and power, aimed for a program of rapid economic and military expansion. This faction was largely responsible for the Yolgnu Wars, the conquest of Garassik, and the establishment of trading stations on Marege. They also urged the expansion of foreign trade and the liberalizing of trade barriers. They can be considered the 'Whigs' of Makassar.
{In OTL, the conservatives triumphed; delaying Makassar's rise for centuries. By then, the Dutch had gained a strong enough foothold to conquer the region. In TTL, however, the economic opportunities provided by Marege prove sufficient inducement for the triumph of the nobles, who dominated the decade and the rest of I'Pakere'tau I's reign.}
A virus mutates randomly in Indonesia some time in 1493. The virus, although harmless to humans, proves virulent when introduced into trepang (sea cucumber) stocks. This results in a 50% reduction of trepang stocks around the Indonesian archipelago by 1500, and with the almost complete extinction of trepang in the waters surrounding Makassar.
Thus deprived of their prize catch, the trepangers of Gowa, a small kingdom centered on the port city of Makassar, are forced to look further afield...
Majahapit:
King Girindrawarddhana is informed by his ministers that the price of trepang has more than tripled recently due to local stocks dying off. The King decides that trepang is too important to the economy, and sends ships to scout out and secure new island sources.
Excerpt from The Birth of the Yolgnu Nation: 1493-1501
In 1493, the Yolgnu existed primarily as a concept; a series of traditions, religious practices, and linguistic dialects, with all those identifying themselves as 'Yolgnu' linking themselves to a particular territory: specifically, eastern Marege (OTL's eastern Top End)
Beyond that, however, there was very little in the way of unity. The Yolgnu were divided into clan groups and bands, who functioned largely autonomously. Without any significant foreign threats, there was no reason for unity-or, indeed, technological developments. So the Yolgnu survived, for tens of thousands of years, largely as they always had.
However, Yolgnu history can be said to have truly begun, from the day the Invaders arrived. The first contact with the traders dubbed generally the 'Macassans' could not have begun more inauspiciously. The exhausted and lonely traders attempted to abduct a party of Yolgnu women; the Yolgnu reacted violently, spearing several Macassans. Unlike the other Aboriginal tribes of Marege, who generally experienced positive first contacts, the Yolgnu recognised, from the beginning, the threat which Macassan influence posed to traditional tribal culture.
To this end, the Yolgnu began to unify politically, through a series of corroborees and tribal meetings. It was decided to oppose the Macassans, and hopefully to drive them back where they came from. A previously insignificant band 'headman' rose to prominence for his vitriolically anti-Macassan stance. According to legend, one of his sisters was one of those women attacked by the Macassans. His name has been lost to history, but Gowan records call him Gallarang-the leader.
The Macassans had no understanding of tribal borders. As such, trepangers frequently strayed into Yolgnu territory, where they were immediately set upon by hunters.
Due to their comparative size (unlike many other tribes in the region, who comprised only hundreds of individuals, there were over two thousand Yolgnu), the Yolgnu came to dominate the burgeoning anti-Macassan movements. Through both ideological sympathy and intimidation, a loose confederacy of tribes began to form, devoted to opposing the Macassans. Over the next decade, an undeclared war for influence would develop between the two nations, as both sides sought allies and prestige in the region.
The First Yolgnu War of 1507-1511 proved disastrous for both sides. The Macassan invasion force floundered, unable to strike at the Yolgnu, and proved a heavy drain on the Gowan treasury. The Yolgnu, however, faced even harsher conditions. The Macassans' tribal allies, eager to gain favour, committed atrocities against Yolgnu civilian populations, most notably in the Gagadju Massacre.
Far more deadly, however, was a virus brought by the soldiers: smallpox. The disease wreaked havoc on the Yolgnu population, killing over half the population, most notably the previously dominant elders. The Yolgnu were devastated, reduced to only a few hundred individuals from a height of thousands-all radicalised against the Macassan invasion. This allowed Gallarang, already a hero for his guerrilla activities, to gain effective political control over the Yolgnu.
But even he realised that the Macassans could not be driven out. Instead, he decided that to preserve Yolgnu independence, an accomodation must be made. In the Makaratta (treaty) that ended the war in 1511, predictably harsh terms were imposed: the Yolgnu allies were annexed, and they were forced to swear friendship to Gowa and send hostages to Makassar guarantee the peace. Yet they were granted their independence, and Djerrkura was recognised as bate (prince) of Yolgnu. He quickly set about creating the foundations for an independent Yolgnu state. Within a few years, hostages returning from Gowa told Gallarang of the ways of the Gowans. A council of elders was convened to serve a similar role to the Bate Salapang.
However, the Yolgnu still faced formidable difficulties. Their population had been ravaged, the war had led to the burning and destruction of much of their territories, and their population were inevitably beginning to gravitate towards settlements on the coast. However, such challenges remained for another decade to resolve.
Japan:
In 1493, Hojo Soun set the precedent for aspiring samurai after he acquired Kokukuji castle in Izu. Following his lead in the next decades many other men will rise from obscurity to greatness at the expense of their former masters, rivals, or even family members.
Shogun Ashikaga Yoshitane attacks Hosokawa Masamoto over a dispute regarding the accession of a new Shogun following the death of Ashikaga Yoshihisa in 1489. Yoshitane is defeated and exiled; Ashikaga Yoshizumi becomes puppet Shogun. However, the authority of both the Imperial court and the Shogunate is is sharp decline, and the country is plagued by civil war, insurrection, and rife political instability. There is little faith in either the court or the Shogunate and many Samurai are showing aspirations of grandeur. Hojo Soun acquires Kokukuji castle in Izu (Shizuoka prefecture), becoming the first 'sengoku daimyo'.
On the occasion of the birth of an heir to the Ming throne, the Ashikaga shogunate commissions an embassy to the Chinese court, presenting gifts to the Imperial family, especially the Emperor, the new heir, and the child's mother. Shogun Ashikaga Yoshitane is looking to foster better relations with Ming China (although relations between the two countries are not bad).
Ryukyku likewise sends an embassy. Although humble, it is still lavish. Ryukyu is of course a Chinese quasi-vassal, so the Ryukyuan embassy is not as surprising as the Japanese one.
New World:
Word of the arrival of people from the sea, has trickled throughout the Caribbean. They seem to have a lust for Yellow metal, spreading over-all distrust of these foreign wizards.
The Narragansett, claiming to be responding to an insult (the story, of course, varies widely depending on who it telling it), stage a major, successful raid on the Poccaset, a Wampanoag tribe that lives near the border between the two groups. An overly quick counter attack fails to do much, leaving many young Wampanoags angry. The older chiefs start looking for allies.
April 1493: The Seneca send out scouting parties to found new villages in the fertile lands to the south that have been abandoned after the recent wars. They set up a string of tiny farming communities at Kinzua Rapids.
June 1493: The Susquehanna get word of the Seneca’s expansion and send out their own scouts. They will eventually set up several small fishing and trading posts along the Juniata River, pushing the crippled remnants of the Onojutta onto even more marginal land.
December 1493: A bitter winter forces some Cayuga and Onondaga villages to head further south than usual in their search for game, into the lands of the weak Wyoming Tribe. The Onondaga Eldest – oral tradition holds that it was the legendary Hiawatha – states his opposition, not only because this abuses the last peace treaty with the Wyomings, but also because it may provoke the Susquehanna, whom he calls the “warm blood brothers” of the Haudenosaunee.
1493-1495: The princess Porâsaia, only child of a major Guaraní community-Chief Abaangui, dies, leaving Chief Abaangui heirless. The old man wanders off in mourning, and is never heard from again. In an unheard-of move, a young man named Kurepi, declares himself a living god, and performs several "miracles," in various Guaraní communities. Guaraní priests throughout all the communities reaffirm his claims. By the fall of 1495, he has formed a substantial following, and tentatively united the Guaraní people.
Incan Empire:
Thupa inca dies. Wayna Qapac accedes to the throne. He begins consolidation which will last until about 1520.