Part 66
Cesena, September 1357
The city fell to the papal army under cardinal Gil de Albornoz. The city, defended by Marzia de li Ubaldini the wife of Francesco II Orledaffi lord of Forli had held out for months before being forced to surrender. It might had fallen earlier if the 4,000 men strong army sent by Louis of Hungary, initially intended to reinforce the papal forces had actually done so. But Louis had received news that Louis of Taranto had actually regained a number of castles from his viceroy the previous year and thus had diverted the Hungarian expeditionary force against the Neapolitans instead.
Adrianople, April 1358
Matthew Kantakouzenos marched south to deal with the continuing raiding of Suleiman pasha. It wouldn't go well as his army was surprised and destroyed by Suleiman with Matthew killed on the battlefield. Ottoman raiders would reach all the way to Adrianople following the battle but fail to capture the strongly fortified city itself. But the Byzantines seemed incapable of holding back the Ottomans, the Serbs despite proclamations by Dusan that he was going to campaign against the Serbs were instead focused on the continuing war with Hungary, now entering its third year and the Sicilians between war exhaustion and the diplomatic scuffle between Alexandros II and Ioannis V that had led to the proclamation of Alexandros as basileus were not showing of any signs of being interested of going to war with the Ottomans in support of the empire limiting themselves to vigorously suppressing piracy in the Aegean...
France, July 1358
French oble forces under Charles II of Navarre, the brother of Agnes crushed the peasant rebellion that had errupted in the aftermath of the French defeat at Poitiers. Charles and Alexandros had never met in person with their contacts limited to letters exchanged between the two courts and a trade expedition organized by Messinese and Monemvasiot merchants to Flanders, with the support of the crown using the ports of Navarre. The expedition had proven rather profitable. That news of it had not been taken all that well by either Venetian or Genoese merchant circles was something of an ubderstandment of course.
Epirus, September 1358
Nikephoros II Orsini, had taken his chances with the continuing Serb-Hungarian war and invited by Epirote nobles had landed at the head of a small band of Turkish mercenaries to try to force out the Serbs. His campaign had started out well with Arta throwing its gates open to him. But things had gone downhill from there. The bulk of the Serb army might have been tied down fighting the Hungarians, but the local garrisons reinforced by Albanian mercenaries had proven too much for him. Nikephoros had been killed in battle near Ioannina and the Serbs had recovered all lost castles.
Thrace, October 1358
Didymoteichon fell to an Ottoman army under Lala Sahin pasha. By now the Ottomans were in control of a large swathe of Thrace and were not showing any signs of slowing down. A proposed armistice and marriage of Orhan's son Halil with Ioannis V daughter had been refused outright by the Ottoman sultan.
Syracuse, December 1358
The fourth daughter of Alexandros II and Agnes was baptized Maria after Alexandros paternal grandmother in the cathedral of Syracuse on Christmas eve. The now royal or imperial couple, basileus could translate in both ways in Latin and Alexandros II was very careful to point in his letters to both king Louis of Hungary and the pope that he was not laying claim to the title of king of Sicily and his was a different one, was not showing any sign of slowing down in the child making department. But a son still eluded them...
South Italy, April 1359
Two years of energetic campaigning by the reinforced Hungarian army had pushed the Neapolitans back to their strongholds on the western coast provinces of the regno. Now the reinforcements sent over by Louis of Hungary were gone but the situation wasn't any less dire for Joanna and her husband who could barely field 5,500 men for this year's campaign being outnumbered by the joint forces of Hungary and the lord of Abruzzo.
Mykonos, June 1359
Turkish piracy in the Aegean had waned in the aftermath of the Aydinid naval defeats the previous decade but it was increasing again as the maritime emirates in the Anatolian coast were gradually recovering. But large Turkish raiding fleets would inevitably draw Christian reaction as well and the Sicilians were ever vigilant to the threat attacking a large Tukish raiding fleet and destroying 35 ships outside Mykonos...
Adrianople, August 1359
The strongly fortified city fell to the Ottoman army of Suleiman pasha. This was something of a shock to Dusan who could not deal with the Ottomans while still having to fight the Hungarians. Peace feelers would be sent to the Hungarian court in a much more serious manner...
Cyprus, October 1359
Peter I succeeded Hugh IV as king of Cyprus. Unlike his father Peter was showing great zest over the crusading idea and defending Christedom against infidels and schismatics alike. And egged on by Roger de Pins, the grand master of the knights of St John who had settled back to Cyprus after the loss of Rhodes and Manuel Kantakouzenos, Peter also had a particularly dim view of the House pf Lascaris-Vatatzes...
Skopje, December 1359
Peace had finally been signed between signed between Hungary and Serbia and Stefan Dusan could now turn his effort east declaring he was going to drive the Ottomans out of Europe. He would do nothing of the short as he would suddenly die in his court two days before Christmas. He would be succeeded to the Serb throne by his son Stefan Uros V but the new king would prove incapable of controlling the nobles, already disgruntled by the costly unprofitable wars against the Sicilians and the Hungarians, in the way his father did. The Serb empire would immediately start splintering in all but name.
Syracuse, March 1360
Demetrios Kydones joined the university faculty. If Kydones, a former mesazon under emperor Ioannis VI Kantakouzenos had hoped for more he would be deeply disappointed. Alexandros II might might appreciate his education and the anti-hesychast position of Demetrios brother Prochoros, the Hesychast controversy was still raging with support of the Palamists and the Baarlamists often enough a sign of political support of House Palaiologos or House Lascaris-Vatatzes by now, but he was not going to trust a former Kantakouzenist high official in the administration of Sicily. Particularly one that had been vocally against the commune of Thessaloniki that now was a loyal and important part of his realm...
Epirus, June 1360
It had taken just months and the Serb nobles were already at each others throats with Radoslav Hlapen the governor of Edessa invading Epirus held by Simeon Uros Palaiologos the half brother of Stefan Dusan. Further north in Albania Karl Thopia had seized control of Durazzo and proclaimed himself independent from the Serb emperor.
The city fell to the papal army under cardinal Gil de Albornoz. The city, defended by Marzia de li Ubaldini the wife of Francesco II Orledaffi lord of Forli had held out for months before being forced to surrender. It might had fallen earlier if the 4,000 men strong army sent by Louis of Hungary, initially intended to reinforce the papal forces had actually done so. But Louis had received news that Louis of Taranto had actually regained a number of castles from his viceroy the previous year and thus had diverted the Hungarian expeditionary force against the Neapolitans instead.
Adrianople, April 1358
Matthew Kantakouzenos marched south to deal with the continuing raiding of Suleiman pasha. It wouldn't go well as his army was surprised and destroyed by Suleiman with Matthew killed on the battlefield. Ottoman raiders would reach all the way to Adrianople following the battle but fail to capture the strongly fortified city itself. But the Byzantines seemed incapable of holding back the Ottomans, the Serbs despite proclamations by Dusan that he was going to campaign against the Serbs were instead focused on the continuing war with Hungary, now entering its third year and the Sicilians between war exhaustion and the diplomatic scuffle between Alexandros II and Ioannis V that had led to the proclamation of Alexandros as basileus were not showing of any signs of being interested of going to war with the Ottomans in support of the empire limiting themselves to vigorously suppressing piracy in the Aegean...
France, July 1358
French oble forces under Charles II of Navarre, the brother of Agnes crushed the peasant rebellion that had errupted in the aftermath of the French defeat at Poitiers. Charles and Alexandros had never met in person with their contacts limited to letters exchanged between the two courts and a trade expedition organized by Messinese and Monemvasiot merchants to Flanders, with the support of the crown using the ports of Navarre. The expedition had proven rather profitable. That news of it had not been taken all that well by either Venetian or Genoese merchant circles was something of an ubderstandment of course.
Epirus, September 1358
Nikephoros II Orsini, had taken his chances with the continuing Serb-Hungarian war and invited by Epirote nobles had landed at the head of a small band of Turkish mercenaries to try to force out the Serbs. His campaign had started out well with Arta throwing its gates open to him. But things had gone downhill from there. The bulk of the Serb army might have been tied down fighting the Hungarians, but the local garrisons reinforced by Albanian mercenaries had proven too much for him. Nikephoros had been killed in battle near Ioannina and the Serbs had recovered all lost castles.
Thrace, October 1358
Didymoteichon fell to an Ottoman army under Lala Sahin pasha. By now the Ottomans were in control of a large swathe of Thrace and were not showing any signs of slowing down. A proposed armistice and marriage of Orhan's son Halil with Ioannis V daughter had been refused outright by the Ottoman sultan.
Syracuse, December 1358
The fourth daughter of Alexandros II and Agnes was baptized Maria after Alexandros paternal grandmother in the cathedral of Syracuse on Christmas eve. The now royal or imperial couple, basileus could translate in both ways in Latin and Alexandros II was very careful to point in his letters to both king Louis of Hungary and the pope that he was not laying claim to the title of king of Sicily and his was a different one, was not showing any sign of slowing down in the child making department. But a son still eluded them...
South Italy, April 1359
Two years of energetic campaigning by the reinforced Hungarian army had pushed the Neapolitans back to their strongholds on the western coast provinces of the regno. Now the reinforcements sent over by Louis of Hungary were gone but the situation wasn't any less dire for Joanna and her husband who could barely field 5,500 men for this year's campaign being outnumbered by the joint forces of Hungary and the lord of Abruzzo.
Mykonos, June 1359
Turkish piracy in the Aegean had waned in the aftermath of the Aydinid naval defeats the previous decade but it was increasing again as the maritime emirates in the Anatolian coast were gradually recovering. But large Turkish raiding fleets would inevitably draw Christian reaction as well and the Sicilians were ever vigilant to the threat attacking a large Tukish raiding fleet and destroying 35 ships outside Mykonos...
Adrianople, August 1359
The strongly fortified city fell to the Ottoman army of Suleiman pasha. This was something of a shock to Dusan who could not deal with the Ottomans while still having to fight the Hungarians. Peace feelers would be sent to the Hungarian court in a much more serious manner...
Cyprus, October 1359
Peter I succeeded Hugh IV as king of Cyprus. Unlike his father Peter was showing great zest over the crusading idea and defending Christedom against infidels and schismatics alike. And egged on by Roger de Pins, the grand master of the knights of St John who had settled back to Cyprus after the loss of Rhodes and Manuel Kantakouzenos, Peter also had a particularly dim view of the House pf Lascaris-Vatatzes...
Skopje, December 1359
Peace had finally been signed between signed between Hungary and Serbia and Stefan Dusan could now turn his effort east declaring he was going to drive the Ottomans out of Europe. He would do nothing of the short as he would suddenly die in his court two days before Christmas. He would be succeeded to the Serb throne by his son Stefan Uros V but the new king would prove incapable of controlling the nobles, already disgruntled by the costly unprofitable wars against the Sicilians and the Hungarians, in the way his father did. The Serb empire would immediately start splintering in all but name.
Syracuse, March 1360
Demetrios Kydones joined the university faculty. If Kydones, a former mesazon under emperor Ioannis VI Kantakouzenos had hoped for more he would be deeply disappointed. Alexandros II might might appreciate his education and the anti-hesychast position of Demetrios brother Prochoros, the Hesychast controversy was still raging with support of the Palamists and the Baarlamists often enough a sign of political support of House Palaiologos or House Lascaris-Vatatzes by now, but he was not going to trust a former Kantakouzenist high official in the administration of Sicily. Particularly one that had been vocally against the commune of Thessaloniki that now was a loyal and important part of his realm...
Epirus, June 1360
It had taken just months and the Serb nobles were already at each others throats with Radoslav Hlapen the governor of Edessa invading Epirus held by Simeon Uros Palaiologos the half brother of Stefan Dusan. Further north in Albania Karl Thopia had seized control of Durazzo and proclaimed himself independent from the Serb emperor.
