The Eagle of Eastern Europe

"You can take a rest and let the soldiers rest for a few days before going to Tabriz.

Muhammad looked at the news from the front and said to his men.

"yes"

With the Sultan's order, this group of people just let themselves go. In addition to the soldiers, there were also their wives, children, merchants, hawkers, prostitutes and others in the city, totaling about 70,000 people. They sang and danced in the city of Van, went hunting, and robbed the belongings of the Armenian caravan. They all liked the wine and drank a lot.

At this time, Muhammad believed that Antioch was at least a month away from Van. With the speed of the Roman army, he could rest for a while before defecting.

But soon, three days passed. Muhammad was horrified to find that the Roman army had arrived at the gates of Van. Did they say they flew here?

On the one hand, Peter asked the surrendered Turks to write a letter to ask Muhammad to relax his vigilance. On the other hand, he ordered the army to march quickly. Not far behind the messenger who sent the letter, there was a Roman army secretly following him.

It would take at least three or four days to get from Tunceli to Van. Peter asked most of the cavalry to follow him first, then the infantry, and finally the supplies. And move forward at the fastest speed every day, striving to feel the city of Fan within half a month.

So six days later, Muhammad saw Roman cavalry approaching the city. He wanted to send troops to destroy them, but to no avail, he could only hold on and try to make the other side collapse without a fight.

Among the Roman cavalry were not only those newly trained by the empire, but also a large number of Cossacks and tribes that had surrendered to the empire, including the tribal leaders who surrendered a few days ago. It is said that Muhammad's expression changed into something wonderful when he saw him.

Woick ordered the cavalry to surround the place, set fire everywhere and guard key areas to ensure that they could not escape.

At this time, people in Fan City were already panicking. They had to either escape or enjoy the last carnival. Prayers in religious places continued day and night, hoping that Allah would come and destroy all the enemy armies.

Muhammad wore armor and patrolled the city walls every day, and also sent some of his troops to attack the Roman army in order to open an escape route. But once they left, they never came back. The reason was that at this time, Peter had already begun to recruit Turkic tribes to surrender. As soon as these cavalry went out, they surrendered directly on the spot. Woike was also sent to the city to shout that as long as they surrendered to the empire, they would be able to keep it. life.

Under such a propaganda offensive, some soldiers sneaked out of the city and surrendered. Muhammad and his soldiers personally chopped off their heads and placed them at the city gate to shock the defenders, which also made morale even lower.

Six days later, the main force led by Peter arrived. During this period, Muhammad did not make any breakthrough moves, and the other party stopped persuading them to surrender, which undoubtedly made them more desperate.

At this time, the internal situation of Fan City was already very bad. Temporary shacks could be seen on both sides of the road from the city gate to the city center. Naturally, this could not guarantee the hygiene and cleanliness of the city. There was excrement everywhere and few people cleaned it. Moreover, it is already June, the temperature is gradually rising, flies and mosquitoes are flying everywhere, and the stench is high.

In addition, drinking water is also an issue. The city of Van could have relied on Lake Van outside the city, but they were now under the control of the Roman army, so the city could only rely on the wells within the city. Soldiers often had disputes and even conflicts over the right to use the wells.

The day after the main force arrived, Peter personally wrote a letter and sent it to the city. There were no words of persuasion to surrender, but more words of contempt.

"Your Excellency, it has been hundreds of years since your ancestors raised armies to build the country. Now you have lost power and humiliated the country. It is your own fault. The emperor's favor has fed you and your country, but your ancestor Osman was ungrateful and attacked the empire's land and plundered its people."

"Your grandfather, your father is eyeing Constantinople. But God is fair. Your grandfather died in Serbia, and your father was captured by the East. Only you and your brother escaped by chance. Overcome this calamity. Now you are the only one left in the entire Ottoman royal family. If you had continued to stay honestly, the two countries would not have fought each other like today."

"If you are willing to surrender, please look outside the city. Food, wine, silk and satin are all prepared for you. If you are not willing to surrender, please look outside the city. Here are swords, hammers, guns and cannons. , everything is ready for you.”

After hearing Peter's letter, Muhammad gritted his teeth in anger. "Peter, how proud he is, such an insult is unprecedented!"

It was even less likely that Muhammad would surrender, but his soldiers would not think so. The Roman army surrendered smoothly during their first siege, and Peter successfully entered the city of Van. However, Muhammad still had 1,000 soldiers stationed in the castle in the city to resist desperately.

Peter entered the city through the main gate, and the surrendered Turkic soldiers knelt on both sides of the road and begged for mercy. The priest entered the city carrying a cross and an image of the Virgin Mary, then demolished the Crescent Church sites that had stood in the city for centuries and rebuilt the church.

The Roman soldiers all cheered for victory. At the same time, some people marveled that the once prosperous Ottomans were now so weak. They did not expect that the artillery and muskets equipped on a large scale by Peter could exert such power.

Peter held a grand celebration here, and it was an even greater blow to Muhammad who was hiding in the castle.

Peter launched the final attack on the Ottomans. The Ottoman army gradually became unable to resist, and the castle was bombarded by artillery. Muhammad also knew that he would die, so he charged at the Roman army with a scimitar.

"Even if the empire dies, I, Muhammad, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, will not insult my ancestors today. From our origins in Anatolia to the empire that once dominated Europe, history will remember us."

He fought with the remaining soldiers and the Roman army until the sword was cut off. Muhammad drew the dagger from his waist and slashed his neck. The young sultan lost his life.

By evening, all resistance in Fan City had been eliminated. Muhammad's body was also found, and Peter sent him and his captives back to Constantinople. Rome's war against the Ottomans was basically over, and a large area of ​​territory had been recovered. The population needed to be registered to confirm how much it was. At this point, the Ottomans were destroyed and the country was established for 106 years!

(There should be Yale here)

Peter ordered the demolition of pagan places everywhere, leaving only tolerable religions. The basic policy of re-establishing the Orthodox Church as the state religion, while vigorously attacking the Turkic language, attempted to re-establish centripetal force against the empire on this land. With the demise of the Ottomans, the important northern city of Yerevan also surrendered to Rome under the leadership of the Armenians, and the entire Armenian plateau returned to Roman hands.