eastern european eagle

Chapter 80 National Size
As for why the population of Bulgaria is so small, the main reason is the melee between Serbia, Ottoman and lords of all sizes. There are at most 300 million people in the entire Balkans.Northern Bulgaria accounted for one-sixth, which is still the best result.

To prevent the emergence of warlords, it is necessary to cut off the possibility of their emergence.Especially military power and finance.

In terms of the army, Peter has built an army that obeys his orders. Although he is still not a full-time soldier, the extensive use of firearms is also a great improvement.At the same time, Peter continued to improve the military institutions, including the Ministry of Finance, hospitals, and loot distribution offices.This is very good in the moment.

As for finances, Peter handed them over directly to the Grand Duke.The financial department of the Senate directly assigns tax collectors to various places to establish a vertical financial system.

It is very important to cut off the nobility, especially the generation of the great military nobility.After all, there are countless examples of military coups in Eastern Rome, and Wallachia should not repeat the same mistakes.

"My lord, there is a situation."

Petkov reported news abroad to Peter, and this news came from Serbia.

"Currently, Brankovich has the absolute advantage, and other lords have expressed their surrender. And they have the support of Ottoman."

"In other words, this is the new lord of Serbia?"

"Yes"

Peter looked at the map of the Balkans. Except for the three major countries of Wallachia, Serbia and Ottomans, everything else was scum.Especially the part near the Adriatic Sea, the broken ones can't be broken any more.

"At present, the Ottomans occupy more than half of the Aegean coast, forming a semi-encircled situation around Athens and other places. Venice is dangerous."

Peter laughed as he listened to Petkov's report.

"No, no, Osman will not let them be wronged."

Peter remembered clearly that the tax Ottoman collected from Venice was 2%.And there are also preferential policies for commercial countries such as Genoa, so the reason why Ottoman blocked the Silk Road and led to the opening of new sea routes is completely wrong.It is purely that countries such as Venice charge too much.

"Now that we're here, are there any possible allies?"

Petkov shook his head, "It's very difficult, my lord. In front of Osman, all the allies here can be crushed."

Now the Balkans are all doing their own thing, facing the same enemy is like six countries united, and they have their own ideas.How can such an alliance not lose the battle.

Peter turned his sights to Morea, which divided the Peloponnese equally with the principality of Achaia.The population is small and the army is almost non-existent.But this is already a possible ally of Wallachia.

"Walachia has no friends in the Balkans, any more than this crumbling Constantinople."

The main task is still to develop productivity. After all, if you are strong, you will be a little worried if the opponent wants to hit you.

----split line----

In the blink of an eye, it was the autumn harvest, and the common people and nobles had basically finished paying their taxes.As calculated, Wallachia's tax revenue this year is 173 million lei.Among them, 55% are customs duties, 35% are civilian tax burdens, and the rest are monopoly revenues such as salt.

In terms of expenditure, because the war against the Ottomans had exhausted the surplus, it had to increase revenue from the domestic fiscal, increased the price of salt, and increased tariffs.Although it was canceled due to the victory of the war, the domestic people still have some complaints.

Of course, borrowing from domestic businessmen in an emergency is also an option.Before and after the Battle of Sofia, Grand Duke Mircea borrowed a batch of 10000 lei from the Chamber of Commerce, and then borrowed several times, and finally reached 85000 lei.Mircea quickly paid off the loan, but borrowing from the Chamber of Commerce is also an option in the short term.

Subsequently, the increase in land and people expanded domestic trade.Mircea and Peter welcome merchants to do business because it brings more income.At the same time, a series of large-scale projects were also started. Infrastructure construction such as dredging rivers and building roads made commercial roads safer and more convenient, and merchants traded more.

Policies to support small farmers continued, and Mircea allowed residents of the new territory to pay taxes in the form of rent in kind.And these things will be exchanged for coins in the form of transactions, which also promotes the development of the market.

In terms of foreign trade, Wallachia also began to get involved in the trade of the Silk Road.Commodities from the East, including pepper and livestock, can resell at several times the profit.This is because Wallachia occupies the northern route of the Silk Road, so these things can also be bought, but the price is not as cheap as that in Egypt.

The trade between Wallachia and the Hanseatic League deepened. In July, Grand Duke Mircea issued a commercial decree: stipulating that merchants of the Hanseatic League enjoy special benefits, and they can pay half of the trade tax than other foreign merchants.This can make those Italian city-states angry enough.

And Peter can also trade some things through the Hanseatic League. Most of his trade is exported through this alliance, so both parties help each other.

Under the impetus of Peter, the first handicraft workshops appeared in Constanta.The number of these workshops ranges from 20 to 120 people, covering industries such as textiles and shipbuilding.A job market and permanent help began to emerge.

Peter used his money to invest in land and industry and commerce, including mines and factories.Ironworks, weapons yards, gunpowder yards, etc. were all established to provide weapons for Wallachia's army and tools for the people.

Pottery and glass industries were established in Moldova, and artisans recruited from Venice and Bohemia really proved their prowess.The products produced soon took away some of Venice's markets, and the profits obtained exceeded many industries.Especially ceramics, although they also have aesthetics, but looking at the patterns that are almost the same as those in the East, they are naturally willing to pay more than ten times the price.

The silk industry is also a fast-growing industry in Wallachia. The largest silk processing industry is Italy, and Wallachia's share is also increasing.Giurgiu became a silk trading center, and Wallachia harvested more than 15 lei from here this year.Calculated according to the 8% tax rate on silk, the value of silk produced in Wallachia this year was nearly 190 million lei. (silver)

(End of this chapter)