1444, Byzantium Resurrects

On the morning of 6 June 1448, Isaac assembled his entire army at the port of Surt and announced his intention to attack Cyrenaica in order to eliminate the Mamluk threat once and for all.

For this battle, he assembled all his forces:

The First Legion of the Imperial Guard comprised over 1,000 men. The Second Legion of the Imperial Guard, also numbering over 1,000 men. The Purple Guard, with over 1,000 men; The Slave Legion, with over 3,000 men;

The Dobruja Legion, with over 1,500 men; Over 4,000 conscripted tribal troops;

500 men under Count Adnan of Uguchi;

1,500 men sent by Duke Parma; Five hundred mercenaries were sent by Grand Duke Constantine of Moravia.

In total, there were more than 15,000 troops, as well as conscripted laborer's, sailors and other personnel, bringing the total number of troops to 30,000, although they claimed to number 100,000.

Having suffered heavy losses in the siege of Surt, the Occitan army remained in the duchy to replenish its ranks.

In order to prevent the tribal forces from causing trouble, Isaac took almost all of his able-bodied men away, leaving only the elderly, infirm and weak behind.

After ensuring basic security in the west and south, he prepared to fight Yusuf in the east.

Due to the extremely poor supply capabilities along the route from Surt to the port of Breiga, General Isaac divided his army into two groups.

He led a group of elite troops along the coastline through the desert corridor, with commercial and conscripted civilian transport ships providing supply support for the expedition.

On 10 June 1448, Isaac led 4,000 vanguard troops from Breiga Port northwestwards, marking the beginning of the great battle.

...

Ajdabiya, a major town in south-west Cyrenaica, can be reached in a day on horseback from Brega Port.

The climate here is relatively favorable for the region, being Mediterranean, with many oases in the surrounding area and winter precipitation, which often forms several seasonal dry rivers.

The local population live a life of both herding and farming, mainly raising livestock for meat, milk, and fur.

In autumn and winter, many residents go to the dry riverbeds to sow wheat, which they harvest in spring.

As early as the ancient Greek period, colonists from Greek city-states arrived on this land, discovered its fertility in the northern desert and named it Cyrenaica.

Later, the Kingdom of Cyrenaica, established by the Greeks, successively submitted to Egypt and Rome but retained considerable autonomy.

It was not until the rise of Islam that the entire North African region was conquered.

Today, Roman roads and Greek ruins still offer glimpses of the traces left behind by Christian forces.

The city of Ajdabiya, which has a population of around 7,000, is surrounded by a low wall and guarded by 1,000 soldiers who are loyal to Yusuf.

Ajdabiya is the key to the core region of Cyrenaica and must remain under our control.

"Your Highness, ahead is the town of Farig, a subordinate town of Ajdabiya."

The magistrate of Breiga, Ayyanas, introduced himself as Isaac's guide.

"Jacob, whom we released, has overthrown the new sheikh and re-established his ownership of the town."

He is now somewhat hesitant and does not want to fulfil his previous promise."

Isaac recalled how Jacob had knelt on the ground and begged him to let him go, swearing eternal loyalty while he was still locked in his cage.

Isaac unfolded the map and looked for the location of his camp.

To the south of the city of Aqida, the towns of Farig, Mold Spring and Babuse were arranged in an arc, surrounding Aqida.

Many Berber tribes lived in the area, leading a semi-nomadic, semi-sedentary lifestyle and providing the main source of conscripts.

Now, because Isaac had released the former tribal sheikhs, widespread chaos had ensued.

The three towns were sparsely populated and militarily weak, posing no threat.

"Order Ibrahim to lead four hundred cavalry from the Purple Guard to capture Mold Spring, the farthest town. Mikhail will lead the two legions of the Imperial Guard to besiege Babuse Town. Mehmed will lead the remaining troops with me into Farig Town."

"After capturing the towns, hold your positions and await further orders."

"Yes!"

The army split into two groups and headed northwest and northeast.

"Ayyanas, go to Jacob Sheik in Farig Town and ask him a question."

"Is he ready to face my 100,000 troops?"

"If he doesn't surrender now, his entire family will be slaughtered when the city falls!"

Isaac stared coldly at Farig in the distance.

Due to supply issues, he could not possibly bring all his troops with him; four thousand was the absolute limit.

He didn't want to use his current forces in a war of attrition against these local warlords.

He hoped that Jacob Shek would be sensible enough to understand.

That night, news reached Farig Town of the fall of Babuse Town and Mold Spring, and Jacob Shek announced that he had converted to Orthodoxy and pledged allegiance to Isaac.

The next day, Isaac entered Farig Town, and the road to Ajdabiya remained unobstructed.

...

Meanwhile, in Surt, Bilinchi Yusuf Emir sat on his throne, looking down at his ministers arguing below. His mind was in turmoil.

Having narrowly escaped from the city of Surt, he had lost both his army and his authority.

Without an army, the merchant guild would not support him and the tribes would not obey him.

Without the support of the merchant guild and the obedience of the tribes, it was impossible to recruit soldiers.

Yusuf found himself in a vicious cycle.

This predicament was not impossible to resolve, but it would take time.

So, when spies reported that the Duchy of Surt was teaching its western neighbor a lesson, he and his advisers breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as he had two years to recover, he could return to Surt with a stronger army.

However, news of a large-scale attack by Surt arrived last night.

His advisors, who had previously been ambitious, suddenly panicked and began to blame and attack each other.

Now, the ministers' opinions were divided into two main camps.

One faction believed that they should immediately ask Cairo for help, requesting that they send a large army to destroy the invading Kafirs.

Most of these people were local landowners and wealthy gentry, afraid that the Christians would take their land away from them.

The other faction strongly opposed inviting reinforcements from Cairo, believing that this would enable Sultan Chakmak's forces to enter Bilinchi and weaken Yusuf's power.

These people were mostly Yusuf's advisers and administrative officials at various levels. They had no status in the region themselves and relied entirely on the power granted to them by Yusuf to maintain their comfortable lives.

However, even these people could not come up with a solution to the immediate problem.

"Emir, I believe the most important task now is to ensure the city of Ajdabiya is not lost, and to defend the southern gate of Bilinchi."

A staff member stepped forward.

"How can we defend it? Ajdabiya City only has 1,000 troops in total, and the commander is Basmu, a sycophant who only knows how to flatter people!"

"Basmu is the governor appointed by the Emir. Are you questioning the decision of His Excellency?"

"You..."

Yusuf couldn't take it anymore and stood up abruptly.

"Ajdabiya must not fall. Gather the troops today, and follow me south tomorrow to rescue it!"

...

"Governor Basmu sent you here to surrender?"

Isaac sat up straight in his tent outside the town of Fagri, where he was receiving the envoy from Ajdabiya.

The envoy looked somewhat embarrassed.

"Your Highness, Ajdabiya City bears you no grudge. Governor Basmu is willing to provide you with 2,000 ducats in military pay. Can you bypass Ajdabiya?"

As soon as he had finished speaking, everyone present burst into laughter, mocking the governor's stupidity. "Twenty thousand ducats, and I will withdraw my troops immediately."

Once the laughter had subsided, Isaac looked down at the envoy and mocked him.

"Your Highness, this..."

"Tell Basmu that if he surrenders now, he can still save his life."

Isaac didn't want to waste any more time with the envoy and ordered his guards to throw him out.

The next day, Isaac gathered his troops and surrounded Aqida.

Although the city did not have high walls, it had relatively complete defensive facilities, such as castles, and there were tunnels throughout the city. A rash attack would drag his troops into endless street fighting, which would not be worth the cost.

Isaac seized the initiative by taking the farms and wells outside the city, replenishing his military supplies and isolating the garrison inside the city in terms of resources.

That night, the unfortunate messenger entered Isaac's camp once again.

This time, Basmu was willing to surrender to Isaac on the condition that he be granted the title of Earl of Ajdabiya.

Isaac immediately dismissed the messenger.

Mikhail had fought countless battles to earn the title of Count. What makes you think you deserve it? If we were to hand over Ajdabiya so easily, what would the other nobles think? Are you willing to follow Count Adnan and lead your men to the frontier?"

After hearing the report, Basmu was furious and vowed to kill Isaac.

Ignoring Basmu's anger, Isaac scattered his cavalry, surrounded the Muslim tribes and searched for Yusuf's possible reinforcements.

The key to this war lay in Bilinchi City. If they could force Yusuf to come to the rescue and defeat his main force in a battle on the battlefield, the pressure of besieging Bilinchi would be much less.

However, Isaac did not believe that Yusuf, who was still in Bilinchi, could muster a four-thousand-strong army at this point.

The militia mobilized from the city was barely adequate for defending it, and forcing them into open battle might backfire, completely demoralizing the entire force.

After waiting a whole week, Isaac failed to capture Yusuf's main force but instead captured the disheveled Governor Basmu.

It is said that when Basmu was captured by camel riders, he had only a few attendants with him. They were hiding in a stable outside the city and were fast asleep.

"Your Highness! I am willing to lead the entire city of Ajdabiya in surrendering to you!"

Basmu knelt at Isaac's feet.

"Then how did you end up here?"

After Basmu had explained, Isaac suddenly understood.

The news that Basmu, the governor, had negotiated with Isaac and was preparing to surrender had somehow leaked out. The Urimahs in the city were furious. They launched a rebellion, imprisoned the governor and declared that they would resist to the end.

Basmu's supporters bribed the prison warden to help him escape.

This was not good news for Isaac.

It seemed that the entire Urimahs class in North Africa now regarded him as a dangerous enemy and that the conflict was completely irreconcilable.

In future attacks on the city, the defending troops would hesitate to surrender and resist even more fiercely with these people holding them back.

"Your Highness! Your fame is known from Misurata to Bilinchi! It is the greatest honor of my life to follow such a heroic figure as you..."

Basmu began his performance, trying to win Isaac's favor.

But he saw Isaac's impatient gaze.

"I don't want your praise; I want Ajdabiya."

"Of course, Your Highness. I..."

"Can you give it to me?"

Isaac leaned forward and stared at Basmu, who cowered in a ball.

"The rebels have almost taken control of the entire city..."

"That means you are useless."

Isaac shook his head regretfully and opened his mouth to call the guards.

"Your Highness!"

Basmu's cry was tinged with tears.

"I know of a secret passage that leads directly to my mansion in the city. It can be used by a small number of soldiers!"

...

"Wow, so much gold!"

After sending out scouts to verify Basmu's claim, Isaac led 500 guards from a farm outside the city. They pushed open a secret door and walked down the winding passage to the basement that Basmu had described.

The opulence shocked everyone present.

Coins minted by various countries were piled in boxes in the corners, along with sculptures, ivory, spices and silk.

There were study rooms, reception rooms, rest rooms and armories — everything you could imagine. The soldiers even found two scantily clad dancers in the bedroom.

It was no wonder he hadn't wanted to say anything, even as he was dying. "You've emptied the entire wealth of Ajdabiya!" Isaac turned back to look at Basmu, who was smiling awkwardly.

"Your Highness, these are all yours..."

His eyes flashed with pain.

Isaac roughly estimated that this underground palace was worth more than 5,000 ducats.

"What else is hidden? Speak up!"

"I permit you to take five hundred ducats and your two women to settle in Sul."

"Thank you, Your Highness, but there really is nothing else."

"Then your five hundred ducats are also gone."

Isaac waved the blueprints in his hand.

He had just taken them out of a golden cup.

"Your Highness, this was my previous hiding place..."

"This is a cellar that I discovered while serving as Yusuf's treasurer. It is located beneath the western walls of Bilinchi."

"Why didn't you use it?"

At this, Basmu's face fell.

"An earthquake collapsed the city walls, exposing the gold. Yusuf believed this to be a blessing from Allah and took it for himself."

Isaac's eyes lit up.

...

On the night of 22 June 1448, he led 500 elite troops out of the governor's mansion and snuck into the nearby military camp. Taking advantage of the guards' sleep, they poured fire oil and burned and killed indiscriminately.

The unfortunate garrison troops had just been woken by sentries and their armor and weapons were out of reach. They ran out of their tents in a daze and found themselves surrounded by flames.

It was summer, the air was dry and the fire spread quickly, lighting up the entire sky.

Desperately trying to escape from the camp, the garrison soldiers encountered Sulayman's soldiers who were already waiting outside.

Those who escaped were unarmed and some had their eyebrows and hair burned off by the flames; they were like lambs waiting to be slaughtered.

They couldn't understand why the enemy had come out of the governor's office in single file.

Then, Isaac opened the south gate and the rest of the army quickly entered, occupying important positions in the city.

In the mosque at the edge of the city, the Sunni Ulema refused to surrender, relying on the surrounding castles and moats to gather some of the defeated soldiers and hold their ground. Conte Mikhail led his army in an attack, but to no avail.

The next day, the messengers sent by Isaac were beheaded by the Ulema and their heads thrown out of the castle.

Flying into a rage, Isaac ordered his men to fill small catapults with oil and lime and aim them at the mosque and the surrounding castles.

Amidst the raging flames, the city of Ajdabiya fell.

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