The Eagle of Eastern Europe

Constantinople sells a large amount of goods every day, and Baptiste smiles from ear to ear when he looks at the daily income.

Therefore, when Peter came to him and proposed setting up a colonial management agency, he readily agreed. After all, the more trade there is in the East, the more money the finance will make.

Baptiste still thought too little. At this time, the luxury goods trade was the most profitable. Those colonies cost a lot of money to expand and colonize, and were initially tax-free for a period of time.

According to the report of the East India Company, the tax revenue of Androniko and Aden, the most populous cities, was 20,300 silver lei and 68,000 silver lei respectively. The bulk of this is trade taxes, with poll taxes and land taxes accounting for only a small part.

Rome's colonial policy at this time, in addition to missionary centralization, was to rule the largest land at the smallest cost. As land continues to expand, various local supporting facilities must keep up. Those immigrants also need to ensure their safety so that they can have a stable income.

Peter also sent gifts to his brothers. It was too far from Constantinople and some luxury goods were needed to support the scene. I don’t know what happened to Vlad.

At this time, Vlad had entered the territory of Brandenburg. In Prague, German King Jobst personally announced that Brandenburg would be awarded to him. This surprised the surrounding nobles, and the land of HRE was granted to the heretics.

The Elector of Saxony immediately disagreed and called for an Imperial Diet to decide Brandenburg's ownership. The German king directly rejected it on the grounds that Brandenburg was his land and did not need to be dealt with by the Imperial Parliament.

Vlad entered Brandenburg with 6,000 troops and a large amount of money. The local capital is Brandenburg an der Havel, a small town with a population of less than 2,000. Vlad also felt stressed looking at it.

"It's really difficult, worse than Anatolia."

Vlad's appointment had been sent out a few days ago, so the citizens were respectful when they saw Vlad.

"I have met the Elector. I am Count Louis von Krebs. I will help you rule this land."

Vlad looked at the Earl in front of him with a somewhat unsmiling look, which made people feel a majestic temperament.

"Nice to meet you, Earl"

After saying hello, Krebs led Vlad into Brandenburg an der Havel. Vlad's army also entered and garrisoned here.

As a large landowner in Brandenburg, Krebs was very powerful in Brandenburg. This time, there was a sudden change of elector, and he was from the east. These landowners planned to give him some color. They formed an alliance with the local Catholic Church and prepared to suppress the elector and force him to compromise and recognize their sphere of influence and property. As long as the other party admits it, they can consider supporting him as Brandenburg's leader.

Vlad was tired of listening to Krebs' explanation about which family this land belonged to and which place belonged to the church. If he hadn't needed someone familiar with the local area to guide him when he first arrived, he would not have survived more than a week.

"Thank you, Your Excellency, for your guidance. I probably understand it. If there is anything I don't understand, I will ask you for help."

"The Elector is ridiculous, you just need to remember that one less thing is worse than one more thing."

With that, Krebs left. Vlad immediately changed his expression and wanted to tear the opponent into pieces.

"Does he want to show off to me? Don't think that Brandenburg is your world."

Vlad did not believe that he would be unable to move forward in Brandenburg without these people. The first step now is to build a new administrative center. Brandenburg an der Havel had come under the control of local landowners and there was no established burgher class in the town, so it was necessary to re-establish a center from which to issue orders. And his army also needed a new garrison.

Therefore, he decided to build a new capital city. There is a good place not far east of Brandenburg. The local business development is good, so I decided to choose that place.

Of course, it is impossible to make the whole country of Brandenburg an enemy. He also needs to win over one faction and fight another. The territory of the Askanian family in the east happens to be in the new capital. Making good friends with them can increase his strength.

Vlad's entry into Brandenburg also aroused the thoughts of the domestic nobles, although they were not optimistic about the elector. But some nobles saw future potential in him. Among them was the Askany family.

The Ascanian family is named after the Ascanian castle. In the late 12th and early 13th centuries, the Ascanian family was the Duke of Saxony and the seventh son of Albrecht I "Bear", Margrave of Brandenburg. Earnhard III was called Duke of Saxony, Count Aschersleben, and Count Anhalt. His eldest son Henry I received the Ascanian mainland along the lower Elbe River around Aschersleben, Bernburg, Köten and Zerbst, and was granted the title of Anhalt of the Holy Roman Empire in 1218. Prince. Therefore this family is also known as the Anhalt family.

At this time, Prince Bernhard V of Anhalt had a comprehensive understanding of the elector. If it could expand the family's strength, then he would be willing to try any method. But before that, he needed to see what the elector was capable of.

The Catholic Church in Brandenburg gave him a direct warning. If Vlad could not convert, the church would not cooperate with him.

This frightened Vlad at first, but he soon made his move. Since Catholicism doesn’t recognize it, then other religions can just do it. The Orthodox bishop announced a blessing for Vlad and began a thorough investigation into corruption in the Catholic Church.

Vlad also took advantage of the calls for religious reform coming from Bohemia. He admitted that civilians could also enjoy the Holy Grail and promised to reform the Catholic Church. This was supported by the Reformists, who united to recognize Vlad's status.

For more farmers and citizens, Vlad gave them easy taxation and recruited farmers to reclaim swamplands with preferential policies such as tax exemptions.

Three days after doing these things, Vlad began to write a letter to his brother to inform him of his situation here. Before he got Bohemia, he had to live here for a while.

Moreover, there are still some places in Brandenburg that are separate. The local landowners control everything and only recognize the place as Brandenburg in name. Vlad needed Rome's support to pacify these and transform this confederation of landowning nobles into a centralized state. The previous feudal system was no longer suitable for the times. Now was the era of absolute monarchy, and Brandenburg must keep up with the trend.