Crusade against the Pope

Chapter 387 The Venetian’s Choice

The East = wealth. This is not a concept that was established after the Age of Discovery.

This East does not refer specifically to the Celestial Empire, but refers to the Catholic Latin-speaking area and all of the East (except the steppes).

Even the uninhabited Arabian Desert gave Europeans the illusion that it was full of gold and silver.

The main reason for this is that since ancient times, the East has been producing various luxury goods, and through the sale of these luxury goods, too many records of getting rich overnight have been left in European history.

On the contrary, in Europe itself, for quite a long time, there were no reliable goods that could fill the trade deficit.

In the early and middle Middle Ages, even the white slave trade played the role of a balancing act.

As for how to participate in the lucrative Eastern trade, for the Venetians, it was something they dreamed about day and night and they could not give it up.

Korner is naturally one of them.

In medieval Europe, the demand for pepper, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger was even greater than the demand for condiments in later Europe.

This is because in the days before refrigeration, there was a greater need for seasoning meat with spices.

But these goods are not produced in the Levant itself; they all come from the more distant India.

The trade routes between Venice, the Levant and India can generally be divided into two.

One route is to enter the Red Sea from India, then dock at the port of Jeddah in Mecca, and then use the land desert ship, that is, the camel caravan through Medina to reach Damascus, and then send it to Acre or Tyre Port, and then pass through Cyprus and Crete to reach Venice.

The other route does not transfer at the Port of Jeddah, but continues northward along the Red Sea, lands near Qusayr or Suez, and finally arrives at the Port of Alexandria in the Nile Delta before going out to sea.

Of these two trade routes, the latter seems to be more cost-effective, after all, the distance of land transportation is obviously shorter than the other one.

However, due to the religious center characteristics of Mecca and Medina, Muslims would rather take a longer detour to complete the pilgrimage.

Egypt and Palestine were in competition with each other in the Levant trade.

As long as he understood this fact, Korner was not at all surprised by the outbreak of war between the two.

If he were the head of the Delfino family, he would not hesitate to push the Kingdom of Jerusalem to declare war on Egypt when the time was right.

This is not about faith, but about real economic interests.

You know, in business, nothing is more profitable than monopoly.

If the Levant region is unified, it means that trade between the East and the West will be almost monopolized by one country.

"Then why didn't you bet on Egypt? But like this..." Federico said with a confused look on his face.

Most Venetians had never been to Palestine and had never witnessed the miracle of Guerris.

In their perception, Egypt is much larger than Palestine.

For a small country to rashly declare war on Egypt is indeed somewhat self-destructive.

As a result, when business risks were soaring, Korner did not choose to withdraw, but instead increased investment. This is really terrible.

The Delfino family is facing the risk of being run on, so there will be no problem if they sell off their stocks quickly or buy in small quantities.

Hearing his son's confusion, Korner tapped him on the head and said, "The gap in military power between Jerusalem and Egypt is not as big as many people think."

"If you look at history, you'll know that decades earlier, when Baldwin III was still on the throne, the Kingdom of Jerusalem was able to force Egypt to pay tribute."

"And, haven't you noticed? The proportion of goods that the Venetians transship in Acre is much higher than that in Alexandria."

There is a technical problem here. Northwest winds prevail in Alexandria throughout the summer, which is favorable for Venetians to travel to Alexandria, but it does not allow sailing ships to return directly.

On the contrary, you can only go back directly in late autumn or early spring, the two seasons when heavy rains rage in the Mediterranean.

Therefore, even after shipping goods in Alexandria, many Venetians would choose to return along the coastline through Acre or Cyprus.

"The debt that the Delfino family invested in the Kingdom of Jerusalem is actually only a small part of our investment in Venice."

"We Venetians now have factories in Acre and Tyre, where we hire workers to weave and make glass, and process sugarcane, mulberry leaves and cotton from local plantations into sugar, silk and white sugar..."

“In other words, even if the Delfino family goes bankrupt, it will not sever our economic ties with the Kingdom of Jerusalem.”

“Neither the Delfino family’s creditors nor the Venetians who have invested in real estate in Jerusalem will allow the Kingdom of Jerusalem to be defeated, and the temptation of victory is so great that this is already a deal comparable to that of the Genoese and Rome.”

The term "Genoese Rome" has recently become a metaphor among the Venetians, referring to the practice of gaining privileges through war that would be difficult to obtain in ordinary trade.

"In short, it won't be long before the Grand Council of Venice announces its participation in this war and supports the Kingdom of Jerusalem."

“Once Venice joins the war, it means that the Kingdom of Jerusalem will gain an advantage in naval warfare and will be able to directly blockade Egypt’s maritime trade.”

"You know, there are no forests in Egypt. Even the wood for the Egyptian fleet is purchased from the Kingdom of Jerusalem or Sicily. Once its maritime trade is blocked for a long time, Egypt will no longer have enough economic income to maintain its army, and no wood to maintain its navy."

When he heard this, Federico understood what his father meant. The price of debt is falling now because the creditors feel that it is difficult for the Kingdom of Jerusalem to win.

But if Venice also joins the war and declares war on Egypt, it means that the probability of winning will increase significantly.

As long as the operation is done properly, the originally acquired debt can be sold at a premium to ensure that the investment is recovered within the 120-day loan sharking cycle.

Of course there was still a small doubt, and Federico asked it.

"But won't the Genoese join the war? Are the Genoese just going to watch us eat up the Levantine trade?"

At this point, Korner couldn't help but laugh. Looking at the Rialto Bridge not far away, he said to his son, "This is something I have to admire."

"The King of Jerusalem has indeed shown amazing wisdom. His envoys asked us to introduce Alexios to the Genoese in order to divert the Crusaders to Romania, even though they have already won."

"But the situation in Romania is still not stable. Instead, it has fallen into a long-term chaos because of the lack of leadership."

"This has tied up the Genoese's energy. Today's Genoese are like a python that has swallowed an elephant. The huge amount of profit has sustained the Genoese's appetite, and the situation in Romania has made it difficult for them to digest it."

"Even if the Genoese support Egypt, their support will be limited because their energy is dispersed."

When talking about this, Corner felt a surge of pride. Venice now ruled the Adriatic Sea. If they could take over Egypt's trade, then one day they would rule the entire Mediterranean.

The Genoese are just a stumbling block in this process, an opponent that must be dealt with.

And Jerusalem, let Jerusalem rule the land!

When the hegemony of the sea and the land united, it seemed that Korner saw the former world ruler like Rome emerging before his eyes.

……

The world in the eyes of the ancients is actually not equal to the Earth. Of course, the world in the eyes of many later generations is not even equal to the Earth.

This is actually very subtle. Even though the ancient Romans were well aware that there was another "world hegemon" in the far east, it did not affect Rome's becoming the master of the known world.

Moreover, due to the relatively obvious isolation of civilization in the classical era, this was not some arrogant boasting, but was widely recognized.

In a sense, traveling from Rome to the Celestial Empire is no different from traveling to another world.

Secondly, the word hegemony does not necessarily mean that it is related to the vastness of land.

Gillis also discussed this.

Hegemony refers to the overwhelming influence or dominance of a country or group over other countries or regions in politics, economy, military, culture, etc.

In common contexts, it means determining the rules of the game, exporting one's own values, and influencing the choices of other countries.

And these are exactly what Gellis is pursuing and making flexible use of.

Within Jerusalem’s circle of allies, rules of the game that differ from the traditional chicken-eating competition are being rebuilt.

Not to mention exporting values, this is what he, Garys, was born to do.

The impact on other countries was even more so. Even Venice tied its chariot to Gairis and had to follow Gairis' footsteps closely for the common interests of both parties.

Of course, in addition to this political hegemony, Gellis also proposed two other types of hegemony.

They are cultural hegemony and economic hegemony.

The concept of cultural hegemony comes from the philosophical and sociological theories proposed by Italian Marxist Antonio Gramsci.

It refers to the ruling class shaping the social, political and economic status quo in accordance with its own ideas, making them considered to be natural, inevitable and permanent social conditions that benefit every social class, rather than artificial social structures that only benefit the ruling class.

In short, it is relatively difficult for people living in capitalist countries to think that they are in "dire straits". Instead, they take these things for granted, as things that must exist, and they feel that residents of countries under other systems are in even greater "dire straits".

Moreover, based on cultural hegemony, other societies can be bound together to establish global cultural hegemony.

As for economic hegemony, it is much more straightforward. It is nothing more than one country or a few countries controlling the global economic order through economic rules, technological monopolies, and monetary systems (such as the US dollar).

These three hegemonies are what Gellis is committed to pursuing.

Today, Gellis has achieved initial success in shaping cultural leadership in the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

At least, people generally no longer recognize the authority of the old feudal group, but instead clearly recognize the existence of a country called Jerusalem.

Of course, the country could also be called the United Kingdom of Palestine and Syria, as Gillis once said.

It refers to the entire country ruled by the hereditary monarch of Jerusalem, including not only Jerusalem itself but also a large amount of new land that was subsequently incorporated.

One thing that must be said is that monarchical centralization itself, although Gellis does not like it very much.

But this is indeed part of social progress.

Contrary to many people's stereotypes, medieval monarchs did not regard the country as their private property. After all, the noble lords could strongly oppose this view.

On the contrary, the people generally regard the monarch as the entity of the state.

The vague concept of a nation can only be understood by educated people, but for illiterate people, it is too difficult to understand.

To illiterate people, only concrete people and objects can generate substantial cognition.

In the early and middle Middle Ages, the concept of the state was not independent, but instead needed to rely on the monarch to be recognized.

The logic here is exactly the old saying "divine right of kings".

First, God created the world, so God is supreme. Then the church is God's spokesperson. Then the church will rule the secular power and grant it to the king through ceremony so that the king can share the divine power.

A king who successfully shares divine power is naturally sacred. It is because the monarch is sacred that the country is sacred. The two cannot be reversed.

However, in the Middle Ages, it was impossible for a king to be recognized by everyone, so middlemen and second-hand dealers would inevitably emerge, that is, the group of aristocratic lords.

The loyalty of the lower-level serfs and freemen to the lord constituted the territory, while the loyalty of the aristocratic group to the king constituted the upper institutions of the state.

The saying "My vassal's vassal is not my vassal" is also implemented here.

In other words, being loyal to the monarch was the responsibility of the noble lords, but not the responsibility of the lower-class serfs and peasants.

The bottom layer is almost completely separated from the top layer.

If one wants to establish an intuitive national identity, at this time, one must rely on the centralization of the monarchy itself.

Increase the direct connection between the bottom layer and the top layer.

Take Charles IV, the "wisest king of all time" repeatedly mentioned in "Kingdom Comedy". One of his major contributions was the introduction of the concept of "Bohemian Crown".

The term referred to all lands ruled by the hereditary kings of Bohemia, including not only the core territories of Bohemia but also its merged provinces.

In 1355, Charles IV was crowned Holy Roman Emperor, and the power of the Luxembourg dynasty reached its peak.

Charles IV, with his imperial authority, decreed that whatever the dynastic developments, even if the House of Luxembourg perished, the united Bohemian lands should continue to exist.

In other words, the concept of a unified Bohemian state was shaped by the centralization of monarchy.

(End of this chapter)