Regarding Muhammad's suggestion, the Queen Mother thought for a moment and then turned to Guo Kang: "My child, what do you think?"
Guo Kang didn't expect that she would give up thinking so quickly, so he had to think for a while and then asked: "Does the Queen Mother remember that Basil marched into Naples?"
The Queen Mother thought for a moment and nodded.
"Then do you still remember his intention of sending troops?" Guo Kang looked around the crowd again and asked.
"There is a problem with the inheritance of the Anjou family in the Kingdom of Sicily. Several branches are fighting. The Kingdom of Aragon wants to take the opportunity to intervene and expand its territory to southern Italy." Theodora and her grandmother looked at each other, and then said : "Basile believes that the Greek region is now our important territory and we cannot allow a powerful enemy to appear so close across the sea. Therefore, at the invitation of France, he sent troops to help the Anjou family and expel the Aragonese army."
Guo Kang nodded.
Originally, Sicily and southern Italy were the territory of the same kingdom, but after the Sicilian Vespers War, the king of the French Angevin family was expelled from the island by the Aragonese army, leaving only the territory of Italy.
Since the capital was Naples, this period was also commonly known as the Kingdom of Naples, but their own official name was still the Kingdom of Sicily to show that they did not forget their orthodoxy. This resulted in two Sicilian kingdoms existing at the same time, which could easily confuse people.
"Everyone has not forgotten their ambitions." Guo Kang reminded: "Before, the Kingdom of Aragon pretended to appoint a royal member as the independent king of Sicily. But just a few years ago, even this formal performance was No more. Their army has been operating near Sicily, and I estimate that within a few years, they will attack Naples again and annex it."
"And the Anjou family, as you have seen, will definitely not be able to stop them. Although France supports them, it cannot achieve substantial results."
"Last year, the battle for the throne of Aragon ended, and the new king Fernando just ascended the throne." Guo Kang paused and asked: "Do you still remember his title? I always can't remember these things that are too long..."
Theodora nodded: "King of Aragon, King of Valencia, King of Mallorca, King of Sardinia, King of Sicily, King of Corsica, Duke of Athens..."
"Okay, just stay here." Guo Kang quickly interrupted her: "How can you carry it..."
"Isn't this what you need to learn in diplomacy courses?" Theodora muttered: "You want to be a think tank and you are still lazy?"
"I didn't say I wanted to be one." Guo Kang scratched his head: "Anyway, you see, they have been claiming the entire Kingdom of Sicily, as well as the territory of the so-called Principality of Athens."
"A few decades ago, we might not have paid much attention to these places, but as Basil said, the Greek region is already our important core territory. Can we tolerate him coveting Athens?"
Everyone shook their heads.
"The Greek region is our core territory, so Naples is an important border that cannot allow enemies to exist for a long time. The Adriatic Sea is not wide, and pirates and invading armies can come from Naples at any time, making the Greek region unsafe. Our barriers , should I give it to someone else?"
"This is really not possible." Tuo Huan said.
"This new king has just defeated competitors from all walks of life. It is very likely that he will take new actions, especially when we have too many enemies and may not be able to take care of him for the time being." Guo Kang said: "Don't forget, this country It expanded step by step from the Spanish Peninsula, and what they have always wanted is dominance in the Mediterranean."
"But the Mediterranean Sea is too small to accommodate two masters." Guo Kang shook his head and knocked on the armrest of the chair: "Who do you think is the suitable master?"
"Whether in a theological sense or a secular sense, Rome should be the master of the Mediterranean." Lama Wang nodded and said.
"Everyone just remembers that we are Rome." Guo Kang said: "Then don't forget that these countries in Iberia have been merging with each other, and now there are only three left."
"This Portugal is not an honest person. He is seizing this port now not just for the benefit of the Mediterranean." He reminded everyone: "Don't forget, starting from Morocco, there is another direction of expansion."
"The Almourabit dynasty started not in Morocco, but on the Senegal River in the south. While they were attacking north, they were also attacking the Kingdom of Ghana in the south. Because it was also very wealthy and an important source of gold."
"After both the Al-Murabit dynasty and the Kingdom of Ghana collapsed, the more powerful Kingdom of Mali emerged locally. Their most famous deed was that King Musa passed through Egypt in 1324 on a pilgrimage. Along the way, he spent and gave away gold , causing the gold price in Egypt to drop by one-fifth, and it took more than a decade to recover.”
"How come they are so rich?" the Queen Mother asked in surprise.
"This kind of thing is produced over there." Guo Kang replied: "Moreover, the transportation from West Africa to the Mediterranean is very convenient. There are currently six main roads alone, and each road has more than 10,000 camel caravans. Musa Pilgrimage The team is said to be as many as 60,000 people, and there is no shortage of supplies along the way."
"Sea transportation is also very convenient. The Western European fleets can't cross Morocco, so they think it's a barbaric land outside. But in fact, it's just that their sailing skills are too poor. In the time of the Pharaohs, the Egyptians had circumnavigated the entire Africa."
"Of course, this case is just an example. It may be intentional by their king." Guo Kang analyzed: "The local culture was originally relatively backward, but after this series of displays, the Egyptians are aware of their reputation. Mu As a result, Sa was able to return to Timbuktu with a large number of scholars, architects, and businessmen, and also purchased real estate in Cairo and Mecca to serve as a transit point for travelers. In this way, the trade route became smoother."
“The scholars who went to West Africa from Egypt and Andalusia helped him build new cities, opened colleges, and promoted education. At one time, there were thousands of people studying at Timbuktu’s universities, many of whom came from Spain. In this way, the local civilization has successfully risen to a higher level."
"Anyway, spending money is also a skillful thing." He concluded: "Gold is not particularly valuable in their hometown, but when it is spent like this, it immediately transforms into more financial channels and national power, including military An upgrade in power.”
"After that, the Kingdom of Mali organized more than 10,000 cavalry, defeated the Tuareg nomads who often came to plunder, and also conquered part of Sudan eastward, controlled the gold mines there, and established established a trade route throughout Africa, from the coast of West Africa to the Red Sea region.”
"These people look like they are being taken advantage of, but they are actually very smart. They may seem to spend a lot, but many of the things they earn back are priceless things. You cannot compare them with the nouveau riche in Spain."
"And if we allow Portugal to successfully gain a foothold, they will also get involved in these valuable assets." Guo Kang finally reminded.
(End of chapter)
