King of German Mercenaries

Marin's letter to the emperor, because it was sent quickly, naturally quickly reached the emperor's hands. At this time, the troops and horses of the two phalanxes of reinforcements had just set off not long ago.

Maximilian I was very happy that Marin demanded only one seat in the Imperial Parliament. Of course, he was not very happy that Marin only sent reinforcements from two phalanxes.

However, Maximilian I also knew that Marin could not come out to reinforce himself. Because, whether it is the Principality of Saxony, which controls West Friesland, or the Earl of Oldenburg, which has Denmark as its backer, they are all eyeing the Earl of East Friesland.

Therefore, it is very reasonable for Marin to send two or three phalanxes for reinforcements. Of course, if you grit your teeth, you can also make up 4 square formations to support.

Because there was no need to pay any fiefs and titles, Maximilian I agreed to Marin's request without hesitation. In addition, Maximilian I also wrote back to Marin, telling Marin that the nobles of the Habsburg family and the nobles of the Swabian alliance would support Marin to get a seat in the imperial parliament.

Because, Marin sent troops this time, not only to support the emperor, but also to support the Swabian Alliance. As the supported side, they have no reason not to support Marin.

However, the Saxon nobles who also had a good relationship with the emperor would definitely oppose Marin's entry into the Imperial Parliament because of the Battle of Lyle County. At the same time, many hostile princes of the Habsburg family would not support Marin.

However, to enter the Imperial Council, it does not require unanimous approval, only more than half of the votes are enough. Moreover, Maximilian I clearly told Marin that despite the large number of imperial parliaments, most of them were united around the Habsburg family and the seven great princes. As long as the consent of the majority of the electors is obtained, most of the princes around the electors will agree.

For example, the Archbishop of Cologne, one of the seven emperors. As long as he speaks at the Imperial Parliament, the subsidiary powers around the Archbishopric of Cologne, such as the Bishopric of Münster, the Bishopric of Minden, the Bishopric of Osnabrück, and the Bishopric of Paderborn will all agree.

Similarly, the other electors also have their own gang of younger brothers. Most of them are surrounded by these electors. As long as they get the electors, these people will also vote with the electors.

However, there are exceptions. For example, strong principalities such as the Principality of Cliff and the Principality of Gede are often more assertive and may not be consistent with these electors.

Therefore, if Marin wants to be approved as a member of the Imperial Council, he only needs to get the consent of most of the electors and those powerful and independent princes.

As for how to get the elector and the powerful nobles to agree? The advice given by Maximilian I is also very simple and crude - bribe...

In fact, the position of Emperor Maximilian I was also promoted by his father, Frederick III, who spent a lot of money and connections. Originally, when Maximilian I came to power, the princes did not oppose him. However, Maximilian I clearly expressed his intention to learn from France to strengthen the kingship, which annoyed the various princes.

Strengthening the kingship is equivalent to weakening the independence and autonomy of the princes, which is equivalent to cutting the flesh of the princes. How can they be willing? Therefore, after Maximilian I expressed this intention in his youth, the princes increasingly resisted him.

This also led to the fact that when Maximilian I died and his grandson Charles V wanted to ascend the throne, in order to ensure his election, he had to borrow 850,000 Gulden gold coins from the Fugger family to bribe the seven great emperors. Just kept the throne.

Of course, what Marin needs is not the throne, but a seat in the Imperial Parliament. So, it doesn't cost that much.

The suggestion given by Maximilian I was to give those electors, 10,000 to 20,000 gold coins each. As for those principalities with strong independence, a bribe of a few thousand gold coins per family is enough. After all, Marin has become a de facto count of East Frisland, and entering the Imperial Parliament is just a re-confirmation of his identity. So it's not a big deal.

Moreover, Maximilian I also helped Marin to analyze and told Marin that the Elector of Saxony and the nobles of Saxony need not be considered, they are already enemies. Therefore, Marin can only choose to bribe other electors. In addition, King Vladislas III of Bohemia, one of the seven great emperors, would not agree to the profit of Marin, the emperor's thug, because of his struggle with Maximilian I for the succession of the Kingdom of Hungary. good thing.

Therefore, Marin had few choices and could only bribe five electors, including the Archbishop of Cologne, the Archbishop of Mainz, the Archbishop of Trier, the Elector of Brandenburg, and the Elector of the Palatinate. As for the Habsburg family, there is no need for bribes, and the Swabian League will also stand on Marin's side. Then, there are some powerful nobles who are not attached to the elector and need Marin to bribe.

The emperor made a list for Marin, and there were about 26 powerful princes who needed to be bribed individually. Of course, for ordinary powerful nobles, giving a few thousand gold coins is enough. Even two thousand gold coins can be sent. After all, it's not a big deal either.

Only those five electors, who are used to seeing big scenes, are also greedy. They don't have tens of thousands of gold coins, so they can't impress them...

Seeing the emperor's reply, Marin was a little spartan. Unexpectedly, even if I sent reinforcements myself, I could not guarantee that the emperor would get him a seat in the imperial parliament, and he would have to spend his own money to bribe...

However, not getting yourself a seat in the Imperial Parliament is indeed a bit unjustifiable. Just like going to a university in the later world and getting a diploma but not getting a degree certificate, it always makes people feel uneasy.

More importantly, the politically older emperor told Marin in a letter that through this bribe, Marin could significantly improve relations with princes who had no direct conflict of interest. One more friend is better than one more enemy. Having more friends can also minimize the possibility of being beaten by a group.

Anyway, these bribes add up to only a few gold coins, and this can indeed ease the relationship between Marin and the princes, so Marin finally decided to follow his plan. However, instead of giving money directly, he intends to use spices instead.

Marin himself disliked the spice being too heavy, but those big nobles liked this tune. Anyway, the cost of buying spices is very low, and sending them out as enough gold coins is also a way to open up sales.

Therefore, Marin directly took out all the remaining spices in stock, sent people to transport them to the area where the bribery target was located, and started spice bribes.

Bribes with spices can both clear the inventory and look more elegant. Unlike direct bribery of gold coins, it seems too vulgar...

Moreover, I don’t know what the great European nobles of this era think, but they are very fond of spices, and they have to dip some spices to appetize their meals.

As a result, Marin's spice bribery went very smoothly. All bribes are expected to be completed by the end of the year. By the spring of next year, when the new Imperial Council is convened, Marin should be able to get a legal seat in the Imperial Council and become an "organized" person...