Part 25: The Ottomans Part 2: 1423-1451

The Ottomans Part 2: 1423-1451



Changing our form of government to Empire causes our royal family to lose a bit of its legitimacy as other countries question our right to such titles. In order to repair that, we arrange royal marriages with any willing partners.



The Golden Horde's hostile intentions towards us are stymied by aggressive Georgian rebels.



Horde armies retreat into Ottoman territory away from rampaging Georgian nationalists.



Our primary army is lead by a general who is a veteran of our wars with the Turkish minors and Byzantium. He leads troops to the border and annihilates any horde troops that slip past the Georgians.



Naples utilizes the Crusade against us to declare a holy war. Recall that the crusade was originally brought against us by the pope at the urging of the Neapolitans. Our new alliance with the Mamluks is already ruined by their reluctance to aid us against this aggression.



Admiral Ali sets our entire navy on patrol in order to prevent any Christian invaders from setting foot on our shores.



Ali is not the most skilled admiral, but he is far superior to the untrained officers that the Neapolitans and Sicilians allow to command their fleets. He is also command superior numbers than our rivals, and focuses on fleets of galleys which are well suited to combat in the Mediterranean.



We claim victory in several naval engagements over a short span of time. Admiral Ali seems to excel at capturing ships in nearly every battle. This increases the gap in naval strength between us and our enemies that much more quickly.







No matter where the enemy fleets go, Admiral Ali is able to intercept them before troops are landed. The Italian states that rallied behind Naples in declaring war against us begin to lose their nerve as offers of peace begin to pour in from the west.



And finally, with nothing to show for their war but a crippled navy, Naples themselves calls for an end to hostilities. We agree to peace.


The threat of the Timurids fades away once again as the Mamluks re-take Van.



Hostilities with the Golden Horde remain, but Georgian nationalists continue to prevent them from making any real headway against us.



Venice attempts to succeed where Naples stumbled and declares their own holy war against us. The inclusion of the Teutonic Order in their alliance is largely ceremonial as I doubt they will sail their galley fleet all the way around from the Baltic Sea.



Admiral Ali sails up the Adriatic Sea and intercepts the Venetian navy before it can make its way out, chasing them back to port and capturing a couple of vessels in the process.



The Venetian provinces of Ragusa and Zeta come under siege. With their navy pinned down in Venice, they are unable to send relief.



With Ragusa and Zeta in our hands, our fleet is called back just long enough to drop an invasion force in Crete.



As the siege of Crete takes place, our other armies maintain order in home provinces and fight off horde raiders.



Once the siege of Crete comes to a conclusion, we attempt to bring the war to an end with an invasion of Venice itself. Admiral Ali faces the Venetian admiral Sebastiano Dolfin once again, and once again Ali is victorious.





Ottoman troops make a landing in Venice, and after a close battle the Venetian army is routed.





Venice and Treviso each fall to Ottoman forces, bringing a more final end to this Crusade than the last.





Zeta, Ragusa, and Crete are all demanded as tribute to punish Venice for their foolishness. The conquest of Crete was actually our current mission, so we receive further rewards for taking it.



Crete becomes a favorite naval base of Admiral Ali with its central location.



Our new mission is to seize several territories from the Mamluks. Our alliance was broken with them by their own action (or lack thereof), but does that mean we want to go to war with them right now? They still insulate us from horde powers, so I'm not so sure.



Naples provides us with a distraction to take our minds off of the Mamluks when they declare their second crusade against us.



Ali sets out from Crete to patrol our coasts once again.



The Golden Horde has seen a resurgence of power, however. With the Georgian revolts put down for now, they pour into Asia Minor.



Ottoman troops are sent to Naples to force a quick end to the war while our other armies head east to fight back the invading hordes.





An initial battle against the Golden Horde is bloody to both sides, but subsequent fights lean clearly in our favor as our veteran generals take charge of the situation.



The invasion of Naples occurs with little resistance as the Neapolitan army fights in another war against Italion minor states to the north.



The Golden Horde is eviscerated as well, with the help of a mass resurgence of Georgian patriots that our spies might have had something to do with.



The second crusade declared by Naples ends with generous terms. They are simply forced to cede any claims to their old province of Jaina.



In 1439, Admiral Ali dies while anchored outside of Istanbul. His naval victories have built up our naval tradition, and we can use that to recruit even more skilled admirals in the future.



Morocco surprises us with an offer of alliance. They've done well for themselves, and it would be nice to have a powerful ally to fill the void that the Mamluk alliance once did. We accept.



The Mamluks aren't content with simply ruining their alliance with us. After we forge a new alliance with Morocco, they respond by embargoing the both of us. Alexandria is the richest CoT that we are able to actually compete in, so something must be done.



We decide to respond by opening a new CoT in Istanbul. The majority of our provinces traded through Alexandria, while a few of the westernmost ones traded through European centers. Once a new center of trade appears in our capital though, all of our provinces take their business there.



Morocco has a more direct idea regarding how to deal with this trade dispute. I suppose war was inevitable with the Mamluks, but I didn't think it'd be so soon. Instead of directly joining the call to arms against them, we declare our own war of conquest.





Morocco launches their invasion through Libya while our troops mass on the northern borders.


Two of our armies traverse the northern Mamluk territories and begin sieging all of them.



A third army concentrates on defeating the northern Mamluk forces.



Castille turns its attention towards a distracted Morocco and declares war. They ask for our aid, and we give it.



A new admiral is commissioned. Admiral Lala is a suitable successor to Ali with a bonus to maneuverability and shock.



Admiral Lala sails west to prevent a landing on Tangiers, intercepting a Castillian navy past Gibraltar.



Lala is out of his element fighting on the ocean, and his opponent is a skilled commander as well. Lala is forced to retreat the navy into harbor. Its clear that we should only commit our galley based navy to fighting within the Mediterranean.





Further naval engagements prove to be much more successful. Lala directs the navy back to the Mediterranean waters where the galleys can fight at their best. Moroccan ships begin making an appearance as well, giving our side a distinct advantage in numbers. This Breton navy is sent to the bottom of the sea before the army it was transporting could disembark.



Castillian ships flee to port, unable to repeat their initial victory.



Morocco sweeps through the southern Mamluk provinces, sieging them all.





Castille lands an invasion force in Crete while our navy is back at home picking up troops of our own. They are immediately sent to Crete to end the attack.



Afterwards, our troops are shipped to Morocco in order to break the ongoing sieges there. They land in Tangiers under the command of an extremely talented new general under our command named Alauddin Amasyali.



Georgia reclaims its independence once again, cutting us off from the Golden Horde.



Morocco claims victory against The Mamluks and seizes Alexandria from them.



Poland becomes the junior member of a personal union under Austria. If they inherit Poland and retain their status as Holy Roman Emperor, they will be be a fierce opponent down the road.



Alauddin finishes off the Casillian forces in Morocco and ensures that every piece of land is returned to Moroccan rule. Castille's navy is crippled and they are unable to land any further sizable forces on Morocco's shores. With the imminent threat of attack over, General Alauddin and Admiral Lala work together to achieve a new objective:



An invasion of Iberia itself. The plan is to land troops under the command of the talented General Alauddin in a spot where they would have favorable terrain on their side against any Castillian counterattacks. The remaining standing army of Castille is immense, though. All we can do is cause as many casualties as possible before retreating to the sea and then retiring to Tangiers to re-arm and re-man.







General Alauddin's invasion is relentless. Every few months he returns from Tangiers with a full company of men and causes terrible casualties to the Castillians. Eventually, he is able to contest the province of Murcia and provide his troops from respite there without needing to board ships once again.



The Castillian army meets Alauddin in battle at Murcia once again, but a series of catastrophic tactical failures cause them to suffer a humiliating defeat while leaving the Ottoman army barely scathed. General Alauddin gives chase to deliver a final blow to the Castillian army.



The vast majority of Castille's army is annihilated at La Mancha, but Alauddin falls dead on the march back to finish the remaining stragglers.



The loss of our general's life can't stop the momentum that he created, though. Castille's available manpower is next to nothing after losing so many men so quickly. The invading Ottomans begin to siege old Granadan holdings and other nearby Andalucian provinces.



A large section of southern Iberia is seized in the peace settlement. Our army remains stationed here to fight rebels as clerics arrive to convert provinces to the Sunni faith. Once we restore some of the infrastructure in the old Granadan holdings and succeed in converting the religions in the area, this entire area will be organized and released as a new Emirate of Granada. Once we've constructed a strong enough Granadan state, we might even release them as a free country to see if they can succeed on their own as an ally.



Morocco flourishes in their alliance with us.



Georgia continues to cause the hordes trouble, and I'm happy enough to leave them to it for now.



The only thing that remains is to decide what to do with the conquered Mamluks. Should we seize as much territory as we can from them without going over the infamy limit? This would give us borders with the hordes, but we can probably fight them off. Another option would be to only take coastal provinces, and leave inland provinces under the Mamluks control for now so they can continue blocking off the hordes. We could also take all of the provinces that Syria has cores on and then release a Syrian vassal state, but I think I'd like for us to eventually own the territory stretching around to Egypt directly.