A New Alexiad: Tarkhaneiotes Triumphant
- Thread starter Eparkhos
- Start date
Eparkhos
Banned
About 1/3 of the pre-civil war Menteshe is ROMAN, as Mesut despises them but is unwilling to give up the tax base.
So Alexios main priorities for the moment are restoring central authority and military reform. The latter will probably depend largely on the former plugging the big hole in the budget, but even a few changes in organisation can make some difference.
With most of their enemies seemingly distracted, the Rhomanoi seem to have some breathing space. What they make of it and how long it lasts are the big questions.
With most of their enemies seemingly distracted, the Rhomanoi seem to have some breathing space. What they make of it and how long it lasts are the big questions.
Wait a second, just had another look at the PoD. Romans with guns. Earlier volley fire tactics inspired by the Western Empire? Probably a long way away unless someone come up with the idea of putting a handgun barrel on a crossbow stock centuries earlier than OTL.
Eparkhos
Banned
Well, as it is (1299-1300) the cannons are mostly being used for siege warfare. Although there will be volley fire tactics later, as of now Alexios' military is centered more on light cavalry and some early mounted infantry.
1300
Eparkhos
Banned
1300:
Winter:
Nikephoros and a small cavalry detachment raid across the Bulgarian border, spending three weeks in February ravaging the frontier. On the 28th of February, as Nikephoros passes through the small town of Chelopech on the Roman side of the border, he stops for a few minutes to water his horse in a small trough. While dismounting his horse spooks and throws him. Nikephoros survives unharmed apart from a sprained wrist, but when his men grab his horse’s reigns it kicks at the trough, knocking it over and sending water spilling into the muddy street. The horse is brought under control, but when the junior emperor stands, he notices that the water had pushed a layer of dirt from where the trough had fallen. He starts to mount again, but a glint of bright yellow catches his eye. He stops, and orders his men to start digging. The Romans had just stumbled across the largest gold deposit in Europe, with 435 MILLION TONS of gold.
On the 8th of March, Fredrico di Barcelona, younger brother of Jaime II, arrives in Konstantinopolis, ostensibly for trade purposes but in reality to get him out of Zaragoza, as Jaime fears the social furor that would come from a revelation of Fredrico’s homosexuality.
(P.S. Fredrico, if you’re reading this from beyond the grave, since not-you was born after the POD, he’s not you, he’s ATL you.)
Spring:
The audit of the praktika comes up with a list of 143 (out of 258) major pronosoi who were failing to live up to their side of the contract. The praktika were burnt in Konstantinopolis, and imperial armies fan out across the empire and begin seizing estates. The private armies of the pronosoi attempt to resist, but one by one they fall to overwhelming force. The one exception is Sebastianos Kourkouas, Alexios’ lieutenant. Kourkouas was not one of the deficient, but believed that the seizure was only part of the build up to an overall seizure of aristocratic land. He raises the flag of revolt on 15 June, and marches from his lands around Nikaea and marches on the capital, careful to avoid coastal routes in light of Mouzalon’s death the year previous. Alexios himself crosses the Hellespont and meets Kourkouas at Agilion on 21 June. Alexios’ army is twice the size of Kourkouas’ and the rebel chooses to surrender to save his men. When he is brought before the emperor, Alexios demands to know why he betrayed him. Kourkouas explains the entirety of Alexios’ planned land reclamation project, which had been unknown to anyone outside his immediate council. Alexios then asks what should be done to the rebel, and Sebastianos replies, “Do with me as you do with a man who as, as you have said, seen the future.” Alexios imprisons him in the Monastery of Saint Urbicius in Konstantinopolis, moving his residence to the Palace of Botaneiates, the smallest palace in the city, both to save costs and to be able to just run a block down and consult Kourkouas in the middle of the night.
Summer:
With the new gold supplies found on the frontier, Alexios starts minting a new coin, the rhominisma, an anti-trachea coin which weighed 4.5 grams and was 20 karat gold. The early rhominisma are hoarded in the capital, not entering circulation as there were not enough yet minted to be useful as a currency.
Sorry for not posting last night, I fell asleep at the keyboard.
Winter:
Nikephoros and a small cavalry detachment raid across the Bulgarian border, spending three weeks in February ravaging the frontier. On the 28th of February, as Nikephoros passes through the small town of Chelopech on the Roman side of the border, he stops for a few minutes to water his horse in a small trough. While dismounting his horse spooks and throws him. Nikephoros survives unharmed apart from a sprained wrist, but when his men grab his horse’s reigns it kicks at the trough, knocking it over and sending water spilling into the muddy street. The horse is brought under control, but when the junior emperor stands, he notices that the water had pushed a layer of dirt from where the trough had fallen. He starts to mount again, but a glint of bright yellow catches his eye. He stops, and orders his men to start digging. The Romans had just stumbled across the largest gold deposit in Europe, with 435 MILLION TONS of gold.
On the 8th of March, Fredrico di Barcelona, younger brother of Jaime II, arrives in Konstantinopolis, ostensibly for trade purposes but in reality to get him out of Zaragoza, as Jaime fears the social furor that would come from a revelation of Fredrico’s homosexuality.
(P.S. Fredrico, if you’re reading this from beyond the grave, since not-you was born after the POD, he’s not you, he’s ATL you.)
Spring:
The audit of the praktika comes up with a list of 143 (out of 258) major pronosoi who were failing to live up to their side of the contract. The praktika were burnt in Konstantinopolis, and imperial armies fan out across the empire and begin seizing estates. The private armies of the pronosoi attempt to resist, but one by one they fall to overwhelming force. The one exception is Sebastianos Kourkouas, Alexios’ lieutenant. Kourkouas was not one of the deficient, but believed that the seizure was only part of the build up to an overall seizure of aristocratic land. He raises the flag of revolt on 15 June, and marches from his lands around Nikaea and marches on the capital, careful to avoid coastal routes in light of Mouzalon’s death the year previous. Alexios himself crosses the Hellespont and meets Kourkouas at Agilion on 21 June. Alexios’ army is twice the size of Kourkouas’ and the rebel chooses to surrender to save his men. When he is brought before the emperor, Alexios demands to know why he betrayed him. Kourkouas explains the entirety of Alexios’ planned land reclamation project, which had been unknown to anyone outside his immediate council. Alexios then asks what should be done to the rebel, and Sebastianos replies, “Do with me as you do with a man who as, as you have said, seen the future.” Alexios imprisons him in the Monastery of Saint Urbicius in Konstantinopolis, moving his residence to the Palace of Botaneiates, the smallest palace in the city, both to save costs and to be able to just run a block down and consult Kourkouas in the middle of the night.
Summer:
With the new gold supplies found on the frontier, Alexios starts minting a new coin, the rhominisma, an anti-trachea coin which weighed 4.5 grams and was 20 karat gold. The early rhominisma are hoarded in the capital, not entering circulation as there were not enough yet minted to be useful as a currency.
Sorry for not posting last night, I fell asleep at the keyboard.
Last edited:
Eparkhos
Banned
A trachea was a coin with a curved rim. An anti-trachea coin has flat edges, like most coins.
oh...
Cause, uh, when I googled it it weren't what I was expecting to say the least.
Eparkhos
Banned
oh...
Cause, uh, when I googled it it weren't what I was expecting to say the least.
Images of the throat?
Intermession - The Papioi
Eparkhos
Banned
Since 1301 is really friggin' big, here's an intermission whilst I work:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Papioi, the First Modern Intelligence Agency
By Niketas Akropolites (written 2017)
The Papioi (lit. ‘Those who are as trusted as priests) originated in 780, as the security for the Great Palace in Konstantinopolis. The Papioi as we think of them today originated in 1296, as part of Alexios the Great’s Chrysobull of 1296. The now-famous Chechen freedman Khizr the Vainakh was appointed as the body’s head. The Papioi were spies, performing a role similar to that of the Speculares during the reign of Hadrian.
The Papioi were organized in a semi-federal system, the base office being a Zarabon, headed by a Zarabos with generally two to three sub-agents in most major cities. Above the Zarabon was the Diaitarion, which was headed by a Diaitarioi, who was in command of twenty agents and controlled his Diaitarion. There was a Diaitarion for each major region of the world.
Figure 1: The Diaitarion in 1300
The Caucasian Diaitarion – HQ in Kutaisi
The Serbian Diaitarion – HQ in Ras
The Bulgarian Diaitarion – HQ in Tarnovo
The Hungarian Diaitarion – HQ in Esztergom
The Rus’ (Non-Mongolian Eastern Europe) Diaitarion – HQ in Kiev
The German Diaitarion – HQ in Vienna
The Sicilian Diaitarion – HQ in Naples
The Italian Diaitarion – HQ in Ancona
The Iberian Diaitarion – HQ in Toledo
The Frankish Diaitarion – HQ in Namen
The Britannic Diaitarion – HQ in London
The Scandinavian Diaitarion – HQ in Lund
The Scythian Diaitarion – HQ in Sarai
The Persian Diaitarion – HQ in Tabriz
The Egyptian Diaitarion – HQ in Cairo
Above the Diaitarion was the Mikrion, which was headed by the Mikros. The Mikros commanded fifty agents and was in charge of a group of Diaitarion. The Mikrai reported directly to the Megas Papias.
Figure 2:
The Postumoi Mikrion – The Iberian, Frankish and Britannic Diaitarioi. HQ at Namen
The Authalfic Mikrion – The German, Italian and Scandinavian Diaitarioi. HQ at Vienna
The Haemic Mikrion – The Serbian, Sicilian, Bulgarian and Hungarian Diaitarioi. HQ at Ras
The Scythian Mikrion – The Scythian and Rus’ Diaitarioi. HQ at Kiev
The Persian Mikrion – The Persian and Caucasian Diaitarioi. HQ at Tabriz
The Egyptian Mikrion – The Egyptian Diaitarioi. HQ at Cairo.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Papioi, the First Modern Intelligence Agency
By Niketas Akropolites (written 2017)
The Papioi (lit. ‘Those who are as trusted as priests) originated in 780, as the security for the Great Palace in Konstantinopolis. The Papioi as we think of them today originated in 1296, as part of Alexios the Great’s Chrysobull of 1296. The now-famous Chechen freedman Khizr the Vainakh was appointed as the body’s head. The Papioi were spies, performing a role similar to that of the Speculares during the reign of Hadrian.
The Papioi were organized in a semi-federal system, the base office being a Zarabon, headed by a Zarabos with generally two to three sub-agents in most major cities. Above the Zarabon was the Diaitarion, which was headed by a Diaitarioi, who was in command of twenty agents and controlled his Diaitarion. There was a Diaitarion for each major region of the world.
Figure 1: The Diaitarion in 1300
The Caucasian Diaitarion – HQ in Kutaisi
The Serbian Diaitarion – HQ in Ras
The Bulgarian Diaitarion – HQ in Tarnovo
The Hungarian Diaitarion – HQ in Esztergom
The Rus’ (Non-Mongolian Eastern Europe) Diaitarion – HQ in Kiev
The German Diaitarion – HQ in Vienna
The Sicilian Diaitarion – HQ in Naples
The Italian Diaitarion – HQ in Ancona
The Iberian Diaitarion – HQ in Toledo
The Frankish Diaitarion – HQ in Namen
The Britannic Diaitarion – HQ in London
The Scandinavian Diaitarion – HQ in Lund
The Scythian Diaitarion – HQ in Sarai
The Persian Diaitarion – HQ in Tabriz
The Egyptian Diaitarion – HQ in Cairo
Above the Diaitarion was the Mikrion, which was headed by the Mikros. The Mikros commanded fifty agents and was in charge of a group of Diaitarion. The Mikrai reported directly to the Megas Papias.
Figure 2:
The Postumoi Mikrion – The Iberian, Frankish and Britannic Diaitarioi. HQ at Namen
The Authalfic Mikrion – The German, Italian and Scandinavian Diaitarioi. HQ at Vienna
The Haemic Mikrion – The Serbian, Sicilian, Bulgarian and Hungarian Diaitarioi. HQ at Ras
The Scythian Mikrion – The Scythian and Rus’ Diaitarioi. HQ at Kiev
The Persian Mikrion – The Persian and Caucasian Diaitarioi. HQ at Tabriz
The Egyptian Mikrion – The Egyptian Diaitarioi. HQ at Cairo.
1301: Year of the Eight Emperors
Eparkhos
Banned
1301:
Spring:
Mahmud Ghazan and Ioannes Komnenos cross the Rumite border with eight tumens. Mesut tries to challenges them at Konya on April 26 with 35,000 men. As great a strategist as Mesut was, he is overwhelmed by sheer force-of-numbers and the Rumites break and flee with 25,000 Turkish and 14,000 Mongolian dead. Mesut is thrown from his horse and knocked out, waking up in an Ilkhanate prison, sans his left arm. Ghazan continues west.
Survivors of the catastrophe flee west across the border, and on 5 May news of the invading Mongolian horde arrives in Konstantinopolis. Alexios raises the Thrakion, Optimatoi and Opsikion and marches south, bound and determined to stop the Illkhan. The Roman force numbers 24,000.
Ghazan marches northwest from Konya, but is stopped on the road north on 1 May at the fortress town of Akshehir. A lieutenant of Mesut named Osman and 4,000 men were holed up in the fortress, too large a force for the Ilkhan to leave in his rear. Ghazan lays siege to the city that day, but after four days grows impatient, leading six tumens north and leaving the siege to his younger brother Oljaitu-Nikolya. However, as Ghazan’s cavalry ride between Akshehir and the nearby eponymous lake, Orhan, Mesut’s second son, and the remains of the Rumite army attack the besieging force. Oljaitu-Nikolya breaks the siege to pursue the Rumites, and whilst he is distracted Osman launches a sally. With the famous cry of “İleri baylar! Ölümden korkanlar iki kez ölecek, ama korkmayanlar yok olmayacak!” (lit. Forward, gentlemen! Those who are afraid of death will die twice, but those who are not afraid will not perish!) the Turks charge into Ghazan’s rear, slaughtering the unprepared horsemen. Three other tumens swing around and encircle Osman, slaughtering the Turks to the man. When the dead are counted, over 18,000 Mongolians had been killed in the surprise attack and all of the Turks had been killed, but Osman’s body was never recovered. Ghazan orders a halt to the day’s march to recuperate, and Oljaitu-Nikolya rejoins the main army. The Ilkhanate army resumes marching on 7 May, but moves much slower as Ghazan engages in scorched earth tactics as retribution for guerilla attacks.
Alexios and his mounted infantry arrive outside the border town of Nikopolis on the 17th of May, and begin establishing defensive works as news of the large Mongolian approaching from the southeast was brought in daily by waves of fleeing Turkish civillians. On the morning of the 21st of May, Ghazan’s army appears before the walls of Nikopolis. Alexios leads his men out onto the plain, armor glistening in the Anatolian sun as they spread out into a thin silver line. Mongolian cannons roar to life, sending shot and shell whistling through the air. In response, the guns of Nikopolis open up, pounding the Mongolian lines with an inferno of Greek fire. The Iranian horses shy and spook, throwing men across the field. Mongolians scramble to throw sand over the fires, and as their lines are confused and men are dismounted the Romans charge, sprinting across the barren ground screaming war cries. The two lines slam into each other, blades and arrows flying as the men hack each other to pieces. The Romans push forward and the Mongols give, fleeing backwards. And then, on the left flank, two Armenian auxiliaries collide, then both turn and retreat rather than fight their countrymen. The Roman left flags, and starts to pull back as the retreat starts, but the Mongolian right rallies as they start to sweep around the Roman flank. The rest of the Roman army sees this and begins to run. Alexios watches as his men turn and run. He sweeps his helmet off his head and throws it to the ground, screaming profanities into the sky. He sees a shadow flicker in the corner of his eye and then everything goes black.
The Battle of Nikopolis is a major Roman loss, with 12,000 Roman dead and 4,000 captured. The Mongolians lose only 8,000 men. Alexios is one of the captured, but is spared by Ghazan in exchange for giving Ioannes II Trapezous back. Spared from execution, but not from imprisonment. Ghazan had marched west with the intention of punishing the Rumites for selecting a Sultan without his approval and Alexios for sniping Trapezous. With both secured, he retreats to deal with rebels in Khorasan. Ghazan releases most of his Roman prisoners, after showing them the very much alive Alexios.
As news of the defeat at Nikopolis and the capture of the Basileus spreads throughout the empire, chaos spreads in its wake. Alexios had left instructions for a regency council to rule if he fell in battle before Theodores’ age of majority, but what should be done now, when he was gone but still alive? In theory Caterine, Planoudes, Metaxes and Akropolites were to share power, but Akropolites and Metaxes were both extremely anti-Latin and hated Caterine, but she was the Dowager Basileia and mother to the heir of the throne. To add to the confusion, on 2 June Konstantinos Palaiologos escaped the Stoudion and fled into Thrake, where he started to form a Restorationist army.
On 9 June Caterine and Mouzalon are booted from the Palace and set themselves up in Blakharnae, taking Theodore but leaving Sabbas in the Palace. During the night of 9-10 June Sebastianos Kourkouas talks the guards at his cell into letting him out. He then rides cross town to the house of the minor noble Andronikos Raoul, in the Vlanga district. Raoul is a fairly quiet man, a veteran of the Turkish Wars, but more importantly is Alexios’ brother-in-law by his elder sister Sofia. One of their sons, Ioannes, bears a strong resemblance to Alexios’ dead son Mikhael. Kourkouas and the Raouls then rush to the Forum where Kourkouas gives a rousing speech to the morning crowd saying that he had Alexios’ firstborn and rightful emperor with him, and leads a mob to the Hagia Sophia. The mob demands that Ioannes and Sebastianos Kourkouas be crowned as co-emperors, but Athanasios refuses. Kourkouas then threatens to “accidently” set fire to the church, and in a hurried ceremony they are crowned as Ioannes V and Alexios VII, whom I will continue to call Kourkouas because fuck him.
The co-emperors then lead their mob towards the Palace of Botaneiates. Namejs, the head of the Hetaerian Guards suddenly decides that the walls of Galata look really insecure and commandeers a fishing boat to the other side of the Golden Horn to reinforce them, leaving the Hetaerians to slowly slip away into the crowded city. The mob storms the Palace and kills Metaxes and Akropolites. Their heads are paraded through the streets and the Basileia and Planoudes both wisely flee, Planoudes being smuggled out of the city in a barrel on a Pisan trader and Caterine riding out of the Blakharnae Gate and into Thrake. By noon on 10 June, Kourkouas is the undisputed emperor in Konstantinopolis.
Caterine rides north from the city, presumably attempting to reach the Genoese trade port at Saint George on the Danube, and from there to safety in Italy. But on 14 June she is stopped by a group of Restorationists. Upon realizing that they had the Basileia Dowager in their possession, the rebels convey her to Konstantinos Palaiologos. The two agree to a marriage of convenience on 19 June, and two days later the governor of Adrianople throws open the gates to them, and on 22 June Konstantinos Palaiologos is crowned as Konstantinos XII in Adrianople. The revanchist army marches south.
On 18 June, news of the defeat at Nikopolis arrives in Thessalonika and reaches the ears of Nikolaos Glabas. Nikolaos sees this as a glorious opportunity for a power grab and has himself crowned as Nikolaos II at Mount Athos on 24 June.
Summer:
Nikolaos II marches east at the head of 10,000 foot and 6,000 cavalry, cities along his route throwing open their gates as he passes. When he arrives at Kavala on 17 July, however, he is refused as the city paid homage to Konstantinos XII. Nikolaos takes the city by force and slaughters the entire city before continuing his march east. However, Konstantinos begins shadowing his army from 22 July, harassing it as it marched and just generally being a pain in the ass to Nikolaos.
Alexios VII learns of Nikolaos’ rival claim and raises an army of 8,000 infantry and 3,000 horse and marches east to meet him. The two armies meet at Tzirallon on 6 August. The Glabasids have the numerical advantage but are exhausted after weeks of Konstantinist raids, and ends in a draw with 5,000 Glabasid and 4,000 Alexist dead. Nikolaos and Alexios meet in person after the battle and hash out an agreement where Nikolaos is given the title of Exarch and given control over everything west of Strymon and Neothrakia. Nikolaos abdicates his title and marches west. Thus ends the second of the eight emperors of 1301. Glory f*cking hallelujah.
Alexios then marches north in an attempt to retake Adrianople, Konstantinist raids harassing him all the time. However, on 11 August, the Alexists are ambushed at Alpiya by 6,000 Konstantinists and annihilated, with less than 2,000 Alexists surviving, Alexios VII not among them. Konstantinos XII marches south-east and arrives outside Konstantinopolis on 26 August. The gates are opened within an hour and Konstantinos XII sweeps into the city, executing Ioannes V on 27 August. Thus ends numbers 3 and 4 out of 8.
You know what, fuck it. I’m tired, it’s after midnight and I have work tomorrow. Konstantinos XII crowns Theodore as his co-emperor Theodore III on 31 August. Alexios Kallergis then declares himself Alexios VIII and his fleet storms the capital on 21 September, killing Konstantinos XII. 5 of 8. Ioannes of Trapezous then declares himself emperor and reconquers Trapezous, then marches west. Nikephoros defeats Ioannes VI and kills him on 9 October. 6 of 8. Nikephoros then marches west and overthrows Alexios VIII on 14 November. 7 and 8 of 8, Nikephoros IV and Theodore III finish out the year. Oy Vey, and good fucking night.
Alexios VI: --- 21 May/10 June
Alexios VII: 10 June --- 11 August
Ioannes V: 10 June ---27 August
Konstantinos XII: 22 June --- 21 September
Nikolaos II: 24 June --- 6 August
Theodore III: 31 August ----
Alexios VIII: 21 September --- 14 November
Ioannes VI: 26 September --- 9 October
Nikephoros IV: 14 November ---
Spring:
Mahmud Ghazan and Ioannes Komnenos cross the Rumite border with eight tumens. Mesut tries to challenges them at Konya on April 26 with 35,000 men. As great a strategist as Mesut was, he is overwhelmed by sheer force-of-numbers and the Rumites break and flee with 25,000 Turkish and 14,000 Mongolian dead. Mesut is thrown from his horse and knocked out, waking up in an Ilkhanate prison, sans his left arm. Ghazan continues west.
Survivors of the catastrophe flee west across the border, and on 5 May news of the invading Mongolian horde arrives in Konstantinopolis. Alexios raises the Thrakion, Optimatoi and Opsikion and marches south, bound and determined to stop the Illkhan. The Roman force numbers 24,000.
Ghazan marches northwest from Konya, but is stopped on the road north on 1 May at the fortress town of Akshehir. A lieutenant of Mesut named Osman and 4,000 men were holed up in the fortress, too large a force for the Ilkhan to leave in his rear. Ghazan lays siege to the city that day, but after four days grows impatient, leading six tumens north and leaving the siege to his younger brother Oljaitu-Nikolya. However, as Ghazan’s cavalry ride between Akshehir and the nearby eponymous lake, Orhan, Mesut’s second son, and the remains of the Rumite army attack the besieging force. Oljaitu-Nikolya breaks the siege to pursue the Rumites, and whilst he is distracted Osman launches a sally. With the famous cry of “İleri baylar! Ölümden korkanlar iki kez ölecek, ama korkmayanlar yok olmayacak!” (lit. Forward, gentlemen! Those who are afraid of death will die twice, but those who are not afraid will not perish!) the Turks charge into Ghazan’s rear, slaughtering the unprepared horsemen. Three other tumens swing around and encircle Osman, slaughtering the Turks to the man. When the dead are counted, over 18,000 Mongolians had been killed in the surprise attack and all of the Turks had been killed, but Osman’s body was never recovered. Ghazan orders a halt to the day’s march to recuperate, and Oljaitu-Nikolya rejoins the main army. The Ilkhanate army resumes marching on 7 May, but moves much slower as Ghazan engages in scorched earth tactics as retribution for guerilla attacks.
Alexios and his mounted infantry arrive outside the border town of Nikopolis on the 17th of May, and begin establishing defensive works as news of the large Mongolian approaching from the southeast was brought in daily by waves of fleeing Turkish civillians. On the morning of the 21st of May, Ghazan’s army appears before the walls of Nikopolis. Alexios leads his men out onto the plain, armor glistening in the Anatolian sun as they spread out into a thin silver line. Mongolian cannons roar to life, sending shot and shell whistling through the air. In response, the guns of Nikopolis open up, pounding the Mongolian lines with an inferno of Greek fire. The Iranian horses shy and spook, throwing men across the field. Mongolians scramble to throw sand over the fires, and as their lines are confused and men are dismounted the Romans charge, sprinting across the barren ground screaming war cries. The two lines slam into each other, blades and arrows flying as the men hack each other to pieces. The Romans push forward and the Mongols give, fleeing backwards. And then, on the left flank, two Armenian auxiliaries collide, then both turn and retreat rather than fight their countrymen. The Roman left flags, and starts to pull back as the retreat starts, but the Mongolian right rallies as they start to sweep around the Roman flank. The rest of the Roman army sees this and begins to run. Alexios watches as his men turn and run. He sweeps his helmet off his head and throws it to the ground, screaming profanities into the sky. He sees a shadow flicker in the corner of his eye and then everything goes black.
The Battle of Nikopolis is a major Roman loss, with 12,000 Roman dead and 4,000 captured. The Mongolians lose only 8,000 men. Alexios is one of the captured, but is spared by Ghazan in exchange for giving Ioannes II Trapezous back. Spared from execution, but not from imprisonment. Ghazan had marched west with the intention of punishing the Rumites for selecting a Sultan without his approval and Alexios for sniping Trapezous. With both secured, he retreats to deal with rebels in Khorasan. Ghazan releases most of his Roman prisoners, after showing them the very much alive Alexios.
As news of the defeat at Nikopolis and the capture of the Basileus spreads throughout the empire, chaos spreads in its wake. Alexios had left instructions for a regency council to rule if he fell in battle before Theodores’ age of majority, but what should be done now, when he was gone but still alive? In theory Caterine, Planoudes, Metaxes and Akropolites were to share power, but Akropolites and Metaxes were both extremely anti-Latin and hated Caterine, but she was the Dowager Basileia and mother to the heir of the throne. To add to the confusion, on 2 June Konstantinos Palaiologos escaped the Stoudion and fled into Thrake, where he started to form a Restorationist army.
On 9 June Caterine and Mouzalon are booted from the Palace and set themselves up in Blakharnae, taking Theodore but leaving Sabbas in the Palace. During the night of 9-10 June Sebastianos Kourkouas talks the guards at his cell into letting him out. He then rides cross town to the house of the minor noble Andronikos Raoul, in the Vlanga district. Raoul is a fairly quiet man, a veteran of the Turkish Wars, but more importantly is Alexios’ brother-in-law by his elder sister Sofia. One of their sons, Ioannes, bears a strong resemblance to Alexios’ dead son Mikhael. Kourkouas and the Raouls then rush to the Forum where Kourkouas gives a rousing speech to the morning crowd saying that he had Alexios’ firstborn and rightful emperor with him, and leads a mob to the Hagia Sophia. The mob demands that Ioannes and Sebastianos Kourkouas be crowned as co-emperors, but Athanasios refuses. Kourkouas then threatens to “accidently” set fire to the church, and in a hurried ceremony they are crowned as Ioannes V and Alexios VII, whom I will continue to call Kourkouas because fuck him.
The co-emperors then lead their mob towards the Palace of Botaneiates. Namejs, the head of the Hetaerian Guards suddenly decides that the walls of Galata look really insecure and commandeers a fishing boat to the other side of the Golden Horn to reinforce them, leaving the Hetaerians to slowly slip away into the crowded city. The mob storms the Palace and kills Metaxes and Akropolites. Their heads are paraded through the streets and the Basileia and Planoudes both wisely flee, Planoudes being smuggled out of the city in a barrel on a Pisan trader and Caterine riding out of the Blakharnae Gate and into Thrake. By noon on 10 June, Kourkouas is the undisputed emperor in Konstantinopolis.
Caterine rides north from the city, presumably attempting to reach the Genoese trade port at Saint George on the Danube, and from there to safety in Italy. But on 14 June she is stopped by a group of Restorationists. Upon realizing that they had the Basileia Dowager in their possession, the rebels convey her to Konstantinos Palaiologos. The two agree to a marriage of convenience on 19 June, and two days later the governor of Adrianople throws open the gates to them, and on 22 June Konstantinos Palaiologos is crowned as Konstantinos XII in Adrianople. The revanchist army marches south.
On 18 June, news of the defeat at Nikopolis arrives in Thessalonika and reaches the ears of Nikolaos Glabas. Nikolaos sees this as a glorious opportunity for a power grab and has himself crowned as Nikolaos II at Mount Athos on 24 June.
Summer:
Nikolaos II marches east at the head of 10,000 foot and 6,000 cavalry, cities along his route throwing open their gates as he passes. When he arrives at Kavala on 17 July, however, he is refused as the city paid homage to Konstantinos XII. Nikolaos takes the city by force and slaughters the entire city before continuing his march east. However, Konstantinos begins shadowing his army from 22 July, harassing it as it marched and just generally being a pain in the ass to Nikolaos.
Alexios VII learns of Nikolaos’ rival claim and raises an army of 8,000 infantry and 3,000 horse and marches east to meet him. The two armies meet at Tzirallon on 6 August. The Glabasids have the numerical advantage but are exhausted after weeks of Konstantinist raids, and ends in a draw with 5,000 Glabasid and 4,000 Alexist dead. Nikolaos and Alexios meet in person after the battle and hash out an agreement where Nikolaos is given the title of Exarch and given control over everything west of Strymon and Neothrakia. Nikolaos abdicates his title and marches west. Thus ends the second of the eight emperors of 1301. Glory f*cking hallelujah.
Alexios then marches north in an attempt to retake Adrianople, Konstantinist raids harassing him all the time. However, on 11 August, the Alexists are ambushed at Alpiya by 6,000 Konstantinists and annihilated, with less than 2,000 Alexists surviving, Alexios VII not among them. Konstantinos XII marches south-east and arrives outside Konstantinopolis on 26 August. The gates are opened within an hour and Konstantinos XII sweeps into the city, executing Ioannes V on 27 August. Thus ends numbers 3 and 4 out of 8.
You know what, fuck it. I’m tired, it’s after midnight and I have work tomorrow. Konstantinos XII crowns Theodore as his co-emperor Theodore III on 31 August. Alexios Kallergis then declares himself Alexios VIII and his fleet storms the capital on 21 September, killing Konstantinos XII. 5 of 8. Ioannes of Trapezous then declares himself emperor and reconquers Trapezous, then marches west. Nikephoros defeats Ioannes VI and kills him on 9 October. 6 of 8. Nikephoros then marches west and overthrows Alexios VIII on 14 November. 7 and 8 of 8, Nikephoros IV and Theodore III finish out the year. Oy Vey, and good fucking night.
Alexios VI: --- 21 May/10 June
Alexios VII: 10 June --- 11 August
Ioannes V: 10 June ---27 August
Konstantinos XII: 22 June --- 21 September
Nikolaos II: 24 June --- 6 August
Theodore III: 31 August ----
Alexios VIII: 21 September --- 14 November
Ioannes VI: 26 September --- 9 October
Nikephoros IV: 14 November ---