4.26 Europe: a.d. 1201 to 1300

Europe

Back to Europe: A.D. 1101 to 1200

Although Europe was in great part burning with the Crusade zeal, still the trade and economy was such that one might say that western capitalism was established in this century. The scale of crossbow manufacture, particularly in Barcelona and Genoa, had reached the stage where the supply allowed not only use in the crows nests of fighting ships but also in land battles as well. This further signalled the downfall of horse warfare as suggested by the success of the Catalan Company whose exploits will be told under TURKEY and SOUTHERN EUROPE, in the next chapter. (Ref. 279 ) Additional Notes

Southern europe

Eastern mediterranean islands

In 1204 at the close of the 4th Crusade, the Latin Empire of Constantinople controlled the Cyclades under the title of Duchy of the Archipelago, with ruling Italian and Venetian nobles. At the same time, Rhodes was freed from Byzantine control and some areas came under rule of local lords, while others were under Genoa or Nicaea.

By 1282, however, the Seljuq Turks took over the entire island of Rhodes while Venice continued to dominate Crete after the 4th Crusade. When the Hospitallers arrived on Cyprus in 1291, they established sugar cane, which they had brought from Syria. (Ref. 38 , 86 )

After Constantinople was sacked by the 4th Crusaders, the Byzantine areas, including Greece, were divided into feudal dominions, each ruled by a Latin noble. Most of these on the mainland were French and French became the official language there for a period of 57 years, particularly in the feudal state ruled by the Villeharddouin princes. An unique mixture of French and Hellenistic culture flourished in Morea in the Peloponnese. In 1261 the Byzantine Empire was restored under the Palaeologus Dynasty, but the territory was much reduced and there was little attached glory. Greek art and literature did experience some revival and there were at least two peripheral Greek dynasties - the Greek Empire in Exile at Nicaea in Asia Minor and the Despotate of Epirus on the west shore of the Greek peninsula. The latter had fallen to the Bulgars in a war in 1230 but the Greek-Nicaean empire armies triumphantly re-entered the area in July of 1261.

Upper balkans

The Second Bulgarian Empire emerged after the Crusader sacking of Constantinople, with the Asen Dynasty oscillating in allegiance between the West and the East. Under her greatest king, John Asen II, Bulgaria ruled also Thrace, Macedonia, and for awhile after 1230, also Greek Epirus and Albania. This king was much beloved, even by the Greek population. Finally he broke with Rome and the Bulgarian Church became independent. While Bulgarian territory was at its maximum a Mongol invasion greatly disordered and weakened the state and the leadership of the Balkans moved farther west to the Serbs. Ever since that time, even up until the 20th century, Bulgaria has been striving to regain that once extensive empire which included parts of Yugoslavia, Turkey (old Thrace), Greece (old Macedonia) and Albania. As the Mongols, under Kadan, headed back toward Mongolia in 1241, the Bulgarian King Koloman I paid tribute and accepted Batu as his overlord. (Ref. 72 , 27 )