TroG Parliament

[naut]

In my youthful exuberance I completely missed your previous proposal. What you put forward is nonetheless sound and fair, I firmly accept.

[Innocentius]

Chancellor Innocentius stands up and adresses the Parliament.

Honourable members of the Parliament! Terrible news have just reached us!

Our beloved Consul, Gregorio II, is dead. The diseace ultimately claimed his life. May his glorious memory last forever!
And as I believe most of you know, I was a very good friend of our Consul, and with his death in mind, I have decided to step down from my office as Chancellor . I shall be succeeded by the very competent Isbulino Doria of Tuscany, who will rule the Republic untill Prince Gregorio comes of age. May his reign be both wise and fair!

Innocentius returns to his seat, but soon shakes his head and leaves the Parliament.

[Kavhan Isbul]

Chancellor Isbulino Doria holds a brief inauguration speech.

First let me express my deepest condolences to Prince Gregorio - Consul Gregorio was a great leader, who shall be deeply missed by all of us.

As a Chancellor I promise to hold the Republic's interests above my own, and to keep all of the Houses well informed of the situation in the Republic's lands. My cousin Rythmic will be Margrave of Tuscany until my duty is finished. Until Prince Gregorio matures, I shall do my best to maintain peace on our borders, and I shall only accept alliance proposals from fellow Christians, which of course excludes all schismatics and heretics. I have much work to do, so I will close this session of Parliament as I need to attend to my duties immediately. May the Lord bless you with good health and prosperity, until our next session.

With this the first session of Parliament in Genoa ends, and Isbulino's is greated with applause (except for Gunslinger of Cagliari and his cousin Martok, who remain in their seats with a grim look on their faces). He waits for the Hall to get empty as all Genoese nobles leave for their lands, and then makes for his large quarters in the Parliament Building. "Genoa needs a Chancellor's Palace," he thinks,"but I will cause a riot if I start building one now. Perhaps it could be built here later, or perhaps ... a beatiful large palace would befit Florence more one day."

[Kavhan Isbul]

Let me open a new session of Parliament. I hope you have had a chance to read my report of the last 5 years, during which I was at the helm of the Republic. We now finally have a Consul to make the strategic decisions, but this does not mean that there is no need for debate.

The first decision to be amde concerns the Republic's fleet, as we have 2 fleets and a third will be ready next year. I suggest extending our naval reach to the Straits of Sicily. There is rich trade to be had with Palermo, and our presence in these waters will deter any Norman pirates. Alternatively, we can move our fleets West, to establish a connection with the port of Barcelona.

The second matter in need of discussion is the current war between two of our neighbors - the Holy Roman Empire and the Venetians. The Pope has sided with the Venetians. My personal suggestion is that we should wait to see how this conflict develops and if the Emperor is excommunicated and civil war breaks out in his lands, we might consider snatching Provence from him. If the Empire holds fast, and the Germans successfully invade Venice or Milan, we can either finish off whatever is left of the Venetians, or help our allies to prevent the Empire from becoming too strong.

Last time we discussed Naples. My opinion has not changed. The Pope has trained a number of soldiers he now keeps in Rope and Peruggia and is likely to use them to drive the Eastern Romans out of Naples and the Southern part of our peninsula. The Normans keep a princess and an emissary as spies in Naples, and most likely have their own ambitions. We should wait until a war between the Pope and the Normans breaks out and take full advanatge of any advantageous situation that may arise. As for the Eastern Romans, I am of the opinion that attacking them in the Levant is a better option, because the islands there are easier to defend as long as we have a sieable fleet.

There are other, less obvious options for expansion. The Almohads in North Africa are a threat to our fellow Christians on the Iberian peninsula. If we can side with the Castille-Leonese, the Aragonese and the Portugese, an attack on Valencia or Murcia is likely to meet the Pope's approval. We can also attack them in Tunisia, to prevent the Normans from getting to North Africa before us. Keep in mind however, that we will nto be able to recruit soldiers in North Africa, and in Iberia we will be limited to local jinettes.

Our Hungarian allies have been telling me that they are having problems with the Serbs, heretics similar to the Greeks, who refuse to accept the teachings of Rome. They are also worried about a Pagan horde of Cumans on their Eastern borders. The Hungarians are good allies, who we can use against the Germans and the Venetians, and perhaps also against the Eastern Romans. We might consider sending fleets in the Adriatic and helping them against the Serbs. A foothold in the Balkans will allow us to recruit Slavs, who make excellent garrison troops and javelinmen. When our fleets are strong enough, we may even establish a presence in the Black Sea, where a colony in Crimea will boost our traders' valid interests in the area.

Many options to consider, and I would love to hear the opinions of all nobles. The final decision will belong to our Consul Gregorio. I will also need all the houses' schedules for the next five years, as we need to plan ahead and continue the development of our lands. Feel free to share your plans here, or to send me a messenger if you would prefer to keep them secret.

[Warmaster Horus]

So many possibilities... yet by choosing one we abandon the rest. I urge you all to think a great deal on this matter, for it shall influence our future options.

On the situation in Northern Italy, I believe we should side with the Venetians and the Pope, "snatching Provence", as the Chancellor puts it. We should also prepare troops for northern "expeditions", during which we can reduce the Roman Empire to nothing. Or at least weaken them as much as possible. The provinces we'd acquire, I propose to let them be. Devastate them, and then abandon them.
In other words, noble men, I propose a raid.

Attacking the Byzantine Empire, for that is what they are now, in the Levant requires a fleet. A war fleet. I'm sorry to say that we do not have such for now. But we should not forget that idea yet. Should the Emperor Alexius (OOC: he's the Byzantine Emperor, right?) decide to attack an ally of ours, we should then retaliate in such a manner.

About the Almohad Caliphat, we should first acquire an alliance with their potential enemies. Remember, conquering Valencia is alright, only if the Aragonese don't want it.

To have a foothold in the Balkans would, indeed, allow us to recruit Slav Warriors for our glorious armies. But it would also be a relatively far colony, open to attacks. And we would not necessarily be able to defend it correctly.

I remain to be convinced that we should move against any other than the Holy Roman Empire. But I can still be persuaded.

After this, Consul Gregorio sits, and prepares to listen with care to the others proposals.

[Kavhan Isbul]

The Genoese nobles remain seated, keeping their opinions to themselves. Isbulino Doria finally breaks the silence in the hall.

Your Majesty's idea is quite interesting, and if it is a raid into the Empire that you wish, then I shall organize an army and Your Majesty will lead it against the enemies. However, here are a few things to consider. Currently, the German provinces are mostly undevelopped, with few farms and buildings, and what we can get from pillaging will only be enough to cover the expenses of raising and keeping an army. Currently, we do not have any spies deep into the Empire, and therefore we would amrch against an enemy of unknown strength. If there is a large Imperial army in Burgundy, it might stop us before we have gotten any far, and then we will have to deal with a strong retaliation. Finally, even if the campaign is successful and Your Majesty manages to devastate a few enemy provinces and get deep into enemy territory, Your Majesty may find himself trapped with little hope to make it safely back to Genoa, if the French or some other Kingdom takes over the devastated German lands and cuts our army off.

We, the Genoese, have been making our fortune from trade, not from from war - we are merchants, not warlords. Our strength lies in our navy and in good relations with out trading partners. If an advantegous situation develops - the Emperor is excommunicated and attacked on multiple fronts, then we may consider taking Provence in the name of the Republic, similar to the way we acquired Corsica and Sardinia, and then develop it for trade. We will be also able to recruit soldiers there - after all most of the people in cities such as Nice speak the same language as we do.

I would love to hear the opinions of our nobles. What does my cousin Rythmic have to say? What does Wasp of Ajaccio think? The resigned Innocentius of Florence surely also has an advice to offer? And of course, strong minded nobles such as Martok and Gunslinger of Cagliary will have an opinion of their own, which they are welcome to express.

[Warmaster Horus]

The Consul hurriedly rises, before others can speak, and says:
Indeed, it is a rather "risky" method of war, this raid I propose, but remember that it was only a proposal. A raid is to be thought of, and considered with care in a future. But not yet. In the years to come, that may seem to be the correct strategic decision, but for now, we do not know. Provence is obviously what we are wishing to gain from such a confrontation. But only if said confrontation actually occurs.
In my previous speech, I was only pointing out what ... endings the various courses of action may lead to.