In addition to these five problems, there are also difficulties in the diplomatic field. Before 1204, the diplomatic situation of the Eastern Roman Empire was very dangerous. The split between the Eastern and Western Christian churches became increasingly worse. In addition, the empire's own national power was weakened.

Various provinces rebelled and established their own countries, such as Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia and other countries. On the one hand, these independent countries weakened the strength of the empire, and on the other hand, they put the empire into diplomatic and geographical difficulties. It was almost

In a state of being surrounded.

There is a powerful Kingdom of Hungary in the west. It continued to expand while the empire was weak, and supported several vassal states on the land of the empire. The independent countries of Serbia and Croatia mentioned earlier are Hungary's masterpieces.

In the north, the Bulgars, who had been depressed for a hundred years after being defeated by Basil II, rebelled again. After receiving the support of the Kipchaks, their territory expanded rapidly. On the eve of the capture of Constantinople, the Bulgarian army had already reached Thrace.

The important city of Adrianople.

In the east, after the empire's disastrous defeat in the war against the Turks in 1176, "Emperor" Manuel I became depressed and died soon after. The Sultanate of Roma took the opportunity to expand rapidly and soon captured Antalya, an important port city in the Eastern Mediterranean.

, by 1204, this country ruled by Turks had occupied most of the land in Asia Minor, and with its strong military strength, it once became the most powerful country in Asia Minor.

In the southeast, the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, established by Armenian exile forces, is struggling to survive, surrendering to the powerful military power of the Sultanate of Rom. This was the most loyal eastern ally of the empire for hundreds of years, but it is in its most dangerous situation.

was stabbed in the back by the empire, and a large area of ​​Armenian land became the "fruits of victory" of Basil II. From then on, the relationship with the empire began to gradually deteriorate.

It can be said that in terms of diplomacy, almost all the countries around us are full of disgust and hatred for the empire.

Now, the diplomatic problems faced by the Trebizond forces under the rule of Alexius are equally dangerous. Not to mention the previously mentioned countries, Michael entrenched in the Impyrus region and Nicaea as a stronghold

Theodore and the Comnenus brothers of Trebizond formed three mutually hostile forces. They all believed that they were the legitimate descendants of the empire, so they often went to war with each other. It was almost impossible to unite with them to resist foreign enemies.

matter.

The Latin Crusaders who occupied Constantinople are now entrenched in the Thrace region. The Latin knights are targeting the remaining territories of the Eastern Roman Empire. Although Trebizond will not directly face the Latin attack,

But the Turks are also eyeing this land. The sultans of successive generations have always wanted to break through the "encirclement" and get a port city leading to the Black Sea. Trebizond and Sinop are the best choices.

The Venetian's goal of revenge has been achieved, but Trebizond is located at the chokepoint of the Black Sea trade route, which has seriously affected the Venetian trade in the Black Sea. Unless the Venetian suffers a heavy blow and is unable to recover, this maritime republic will never stop its pace of expansion.

.

Among the countries that may be willing to help Trebizond, except for the distant Republic of Genoa and the Republic of Pisa (both maritime trade powers, in order to counter the maritime hegemony of the Venetians), the only surrounding country is the Kingdom of Georgia.

This country entrenched in the Caucasus and established by the Georgians fought countless wars with surrounding forces, but was not defeated in the end. Relying on the complex terrain and tenacious fighting spirit, in the mid-12th to 13th centuries, it ushered in

The heyday of this country.

It is impossible for the Sultanate of Roma to help Trebizond. But what is unexpected is that the Sultanate of Roma is a Turkic country with a very high degree of Hellenism! Greek and Turkic are the national languages ​​of this country and are commonly used by the upper class.

Greek is communicated with each other, mosques and churches can be seen everywhere, Greek merchants in the city sell high-quality and cheap goods everywhere, and the Turkic herdsmen on the grasslands are free, which is very rare in a Muslim country! Even their Sultan

, all accepted the baptism of the Orthodox Church. If it weren’t for the foreign flags flying high, I would have thought this was an empire!

The arrival of the Turks did not affect the lives of the local Greeks at all. These nomads preferred to live in the countryside and grasslands, and it was not until later that they gradually transformed into settled life. Over a hundred years, the local Greeks have become accustomed to living with the Turks.

, two different ethnic groups did not fight because of religious and ethnic discord. On the contrary, the local social order was very stable, even more stable than that of the Eastern Roman Empire!

Historically, after the fall of Constantinople, a large number of Greek scholars not only chose to flee to the Impyrus area, but some even fled to the Sultanate of Roma and accepted the asylum of the Sultan. Why? Because Roma

The Sultan was very tolerant of Greek culture and allowed and encouraged them to continue publishing Greek works in this land.

Therefore, Alexius could only rely on the Kingdom of Georgia at the beginning. Rome and Georgia were both Orthodox Christian countries. Alexius firmly believed that instead of letting the pagans fight over, it would be better to let the Orthodox believers continue to rule this land and become their

Buffer line with the infidels!

Author: The reason why Asia Minor was later converted to Muslims was because the Mongols drove a large number of uncivilized Turkic barbarians to Asia Minor. The Roma Sultanate was unable to digest them and could only place them on the borders of the country.

Weakened and unable to control these Turks, the local Greeks were massacred by uncivilized Turkic barbarians and forcibly converted to Islam, resulting in a significant decline in the proportion of local Greeks and Orthodox believers, and ultimately led to the loss of Asia Minor except for the coastal areas

, there is almost no trace of the Greeks. At the beginning of the 13th century, the Greeks in Asia Minor still accounted for more than 60% of the population, and the Orthodox Christians accounted for more than 80%; but now, the Greeks in Asia Minor account for less than 1% of the local population.
Chapter completed!