Chapter 425 The Duke of Normandy

However, it turns out that the Pope has little influence unless he can reconcile the church.

The Patriarch of Constantinople has been very comfortable in recent years. His status has returned, and he doesn't have to suffer the anger of the heretic in Rome. Various orders kept him busy, and then he fell ill as expected.

Anthony is 73 years old, and it is really tiring to deal with a lot of things every day. The emperor is going to let him retire and let others replace this loyal patriarch.

Regarding the issue of Eastern missionary work, Patriarch Anthony dragged his sick body to issue an edict, allowing Eastern missionaries to respect Eastern living habits and culture and try to reconcile conflicts with the East.

In front of believers, the church usually has a flexible way of missionary work. Since this can convert them, let them go.

Peter received letters from Vlad and Stefan, both of whom asked for help from their eldest brother. From aiding spices to money and troops, Stefan, in particular, hoped to have some money to train his army to go north and build a family property. Who made the Duke of Normandy not have the Duchy of Normandy?

"Your Highness, I think we need to maintain relations with France now, but France still has two powerful ministers, Burgundy and Orleans, and England must also be taken into consideration."

Peter thought about it and thought it made sense, then asked: "When can we establish contact with the King of Wales?"

Unexpectedly, the other party shook his head: "Your Highness, don't think about this. Our country is too far away from Wales. Even if we establish contact, we can't give them practical assistance."

This is indeed a difficulty. It seems that Wales cannot avoid the fate of being annexed by England.

Sometimes you have to envy England's position. It is isolated outside the European continent and avoids many direct wars. This is also an important background for the continental balance policy in the future.

"In this case, let's talk about how to help the Duke of Normandy gain a foothold in France. We need to help him, otherwise the marriage will become meaningless."

Peter's idea is that since the Habsburgs can become the most powerful family in Europe, then Bartland can also become a family that controls Europe. You use marriage, so I use marriage, you use religion, so I use religion, I don't believe you can still come out.

In view of Stefan's current situation, Peter's best idea is to let him continue to acquire land and property, and then take advantage of an opportunity to defeat Valois and become king himself, but this may cause a European war.

Then he can only settle for the second best, and become the most important political force in France by constantly gathering forces and becoming a shadow king.

"At present, it is still necessary to let Your Highness have his own army and fiefdom, which is the foundation."

Needless to say, the question is how to get it? Although the Duke of Normandy is the highest-ranking noble in France, his strength is very weak.

"Your Highness, now the nobles in France have chosen sides. Unless the land that originally belonged to the Duchy of Normandy can be restored."

This is equivalent to saying nothing.

"Okay, okay, all go out."

Peter didn't want to talk to them anymore, it was too much of a headache. The minister also tactfully withdrew. Seeing Peter's headache, the eunuch brought a cup of tea, which was especially suitable for relaxing the body and mind.

I don't know what the western region is like now, but the problem should not be big. There is no problem in the east either. Moscow and Brandenburg are preparing. As long as France is stabilized, it will be fine.

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Stefan continued to fight for his career. He also got help from his father-in-law, or more precisely, Secretary of State Salmon. The king approved him to own a manor near the British occupied area, and he also used the money he had just obtained to recruit troops. According to common sense, he should have gone to fight Britain, but he didn't. He took his mercenaries directly to Brittany.

Brittany is located on the Brittany Peninsula in northwest France, with Nantes as its capital. In the previous Duke's Succession War, England helped the Montfort family ascend to the position of Duke, and he was also an ally of Britain. Relying on the geographical advantage of the North Atlantic, the family also had a little money.

Stefan went to Nantes to borrow money. As for why he took the army with him, it was because he was afraid that the other party would not lend it to him.

The Duke at this time was John VI. He was scared to death when he heard that the Duke of Normandy came to visit with some troops. Let this distinguished Duke come in quickly.

"I came here today to ask the Duke for a favor. I hope I didn't bother you."

"No, it's my honor to have you here."

I have to say this. Although he owns such a large piece of land in Brittany, he can't stand the fact that the other party has a father and elder brother who are Roman emperors, a second brother who is the executive officer of Novgorod, a third brother who is the elector of Brandenburg, and a brother-in-law who is the king of Naples. This is also very arrogant in the aristocratic circle.

"I came here hoping that the Duke can help me with some money. After all, I'm a newcomer and my finances are a bit tight."

... . . . . .

No, this is the first time I've seen this reason. You just said you want to borrow it, why don't you go directly to the merchants in Paris or Hanseatic? I'm afraid you're just robbing them, right?

If that's the case, you have to take some money, otherwise the other party won't leave. He has never encountered such a thing since he grew up.

"That's right. You and I are both loyal subjects of France, so we should unite. I am willing to provide 40,000 ecus to Normandy."

When Stefan heard that there was 40,000, he felt that it was not enough, but because it was the first time to borrow money, he was too embarrassed to say anything, so he didn't continue to pester him. He had to be more confident.

The success of the first loan gave him a boost of confidence. Next, he would wait for Britain to hold another election so that he could regain his fiefdom, and only then would he have his own power in French politics.

Henry IV focused all his attention on pacifying Wales. Owen kept fighting guerrilla warfare with them near Cardiff, and Scotland in the north was still making trouble, which made him unbearable, but he was really unable to do it, so he let the Duke of York take charge of northern affairs. He personally led the army to attack Wales.

The 22-year-old Henry V was left in London as regent. When he was born, his father was only the Earl of Derby. When the Earl of Derby was exiled, Henry was adopted by Richard II and received a good education. After the Earl of Derby usurped the throne, he was named Prince of Wales.

Good qualities made Henry proficient in history, military affairs, government affairs and other functions. He also personally inspected the Aquitaine region and stabilized the local situation. This time the king personally led the expedition, which gave him the opportunity to handle government affairs.

The already unstable relationship between Britain and France became precarious after the expiration of the armistice agreement, and no one knew when the next war would break out.