The Rise of the European Emperor

Blessings are unparalleled, and misfortunes do not come singly. Just as Marin was worrying about how to attack Copenhagen, there was an urgent report from Sweden that the Grand Duchy of Moscow had sent 20,000 troops and had already invaded the Finnish area under Swedish control.

Moreover, these gangsters are very ferocious. After entering the territory of Finland, they wantonly burned, killed, looted, and committed all kinds of evil. Most of the Swedish troops stationed in Finland were murdered.

Old Sten Stuley emphasized in the urgent letter that this group of Maozi troops is very powerful and brutal. The key is that they are not only ruthless to the enemy, but also ruthless to the people, and also ruthless to themselves. When attacking the Finnish city, Mao Zibing acted like a fighter, completely disregarding casualties and attacking fiercely.

Fortunately, Finland is big enough, and it will take a lot of time for Maozi to conquer the whole of Finland. If, until Maozi has complete control of Finland, and then go to Sweden and the Danes to attack from north to south, Sweden will be in danger.

Therefore, the old Sten Stuley wanted to invite his allies to send troops to support Sweden. Otherwise, Sweden is likely to be doomed...

Originally, Marin was worried about the problems that Copenhagen was difficult to overcome. Now, seeing the crisis in Sweden, his brows are even more frowned...

Obviously, Sweden is to be saved. If Sweden is over, Marin is afraid that the Grand Duchy of Moscow will take the opportunity to occupy Sweden and will not leave. Even if Maozi doesn't take Sweden and only controls Finland, that's not a good thing. Because, once Maozi controls Finland, it will expand the sphere of influence to the Baltic Sea region.

Historically, Peter I's Tsarist Russia soon became the overlord of the Baltic Sea after opening the Baltic Sea. In this era, Maozi is not as strong as it was during Peter I's time. However, if they are allowed to take Finland, it will definitely have a profound impact on the situation in Eastern Europe.

Whether it is Marin or Lübeck and Hamburg, the Baltic Sea region is their economic lifeline. Marin's salt sales, the most profitable region, is the Baltic Sea. The trade volume between Lübeck and Hamburg is much larger than that of Marin.

Therefore, Lübeck and Hamburg are more concerned and anxious than Marin. Old Sten Stuley's letter of request for help was also sent to Lübeck. The people in Lübeck were very nervous, so they sent a speedboat directly to Copenhagen to ask Marin if there was a possibility of splitting troops for rescue.

The Hanseatic League and Russia were at odds. When Ivan III occupied the Hanseatic city of Novgorod in 1487, he expelled all Hanseatic merchants and then formed an alliance with the Danes. Since then, the Hanseatic League and the Grand Duchy of Moscow have become enemies.

You know, before Novgorod, the Hanseatic League was one of the most prosperous commercial cities in the Baltic region. Why? Because Novgorod was the main salt supply place for millions of square kilometers and millions of people (including several Tatar Khanates) in the entire Rus region at that time.

It can be said that in the Eastern European plains at that time, except for the Crimean Khanate in the south that imported salt from Ottoman Turkey, most of the other areas were wholesale salt from the Novgorod region.

The Hanseatic merchants, through sea trade routes, sold salt produced in Britain to Novgorod, and bought a large amount of grain, fur, flax, wool, livestock, wood and other commodities from the Rus region at low prices and shipped them back to Western Europe at high prices. sell.

Therefore, Novgorod was very important to the Hanseatic League. Hanseatic cities such as Lübeck and Hamburg set up shophouses in Novgorod.

However, since the Grand Duchy of Moscow occupied Novgorod, the Hanseatic merchants were all expelled. Ivan III later changed to cooperate with Denmark and introduced Danish businessmen. The huge profits from the salt trade in the Rus countries were given to Danish merchants by the Muscovites. After all, Denmark is also a maritime power that is no weaker than the Hanseatic League, and its maritime trade capabilities are not weak. However, this resulted in great losses for the Hanseatic merchants, especially the Lübecks.

Moreover, the national conditions of the Grand Duchy of Moscow are different from those of Western European countries. The Rus countries were ruled by the Mongolian Golden Horde for more than 200 years.

Influenced by the Mongolians.

One of the most important points is that the taxation model is very different from Western Europe...

This is very important and often overlooked.

The Grand Duchy of Moscow was originally a vassal of the Golden Horde, and it had to pay tribute, that is, taxes, to the suzerain Golden Horde every year. Therefore, from a very early time, the Rus countries formed the habit of taxation by the whole people.

Western Europe at the same time did not have this habit. Serfs in Western Europe were only responsible to their respective serf owners and did not need to pay taxes to the past. The only universal sailor is the Catholic "tithing". The kings and princes of Western Europe can only rely on their own fief output and business taxes to maintain.

The Rus countries are different. These countries used to pay tribute to the Golden Horde every year, and they have already formed the habit of paying taxes for the whole people. When the Grand Duchy of Moscow stopped paying tribute to the Golden Horde, the taxation of the whole people did not stop, and the people did not reduce the burden. Those taxes were directly left and used by the Grand Duke of Moscow. Moreover, the burden of the common people is not necessarily heavier than that of Western European countries. Because, the Grand Duchy of Moscow believes in the Orthodox Church, and there is no custom of tithing. The common people only need to pay the taxes of the imperial court, and they do not need to pay taxes to religions.

Therefore, despite the fact that the Grand Duchy of Moscow is a poor country, it has no industry and commerce, but because the imperial court follows Eastern practices and levies taxes on the whole people, its financial strength is not necessarily worse than that of Western European powers.

Therefore, when fighting against Ahema Khan of the Golden Horde in 1480, the Grand Duchy of Moscow was able to recruit an army of 200,000 troops without financial collapse.

In other Western European countries, if it were not for the big countries such as Britain, France and the West, the food supply of 200,000 people would make the monarch go bankrupt...

Of course, the low price of food in Eastern Europe is also the basis for the Grand Duchy of Moscow to be able to recruit a large number of troops. After all, food prices are low, and so is the cost of recruiting soldiers.

In addition, the Rus people have been ruled by the Mongols for more than 200 years, and they have been affected by the influence, and they also have the habit of all soldiers. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Grand Duchy of Moscow has recruited 200,000 troops.

As an enemy, although the Lübeck people do not know that the Grand Duchy of Moscow is so powerful because of the taxation of the whole people, what they do know is that the Grand Duchy of Moscow has a strong ability to explode troops...

So when they heard that the Grand Duchy of Moscow might take Finland, both Lübeck and Hamburgers panicked. They were afraid that the Grand Duchy of Moscow, after gaining access to the Baltic Sea, would be able to explode ships and sailors in large numbers as it did on land. At that time, just after suppressing the wicked wolf of Denmark, we will welcome the fierce tiger of the Grand Duchy of Moscow...

Therefore, Lübeck informed Marin—Lübeck Grand Chancellor Tagfacht and Hamburg Grand Chancellor Heisenberg will personally rush to the front line in Copenhagen to discuss with Marin the matter of dealing with the Grand Duchy of Moscow...

In fact, Marin is very clear in his heart, don't look at Russia's hegemony on the European continent later. However, it has always been a landlubber. Although strong early, the navy has not been strong for hundreds of years. After all, his position is too sad. The Baltic Sea is an inland sea that is easily blocked, as is the Black Sea to the south, which is blocked by the Turks. Therefore, Russia is destined to find it difficult to have a strong navy. Even if a powerful fleet is created, it is still hard to get out of the house... Because of this, Maozi vigorously develops the submarine force. Because submarines are not easy to be blocked...

Of course, Marin wouldn't say these things, and even if he did, no one would believe him. After all, Lübeck and Hamburgers don't have the ability to predict the future, and they don't know the future...