Siege Warfare (5)
Manuel gazed at the young Varangian with an intrigued expression. Then he posed a question to him.
"I don't recall ever hearing that Reggio Calabria is a city of the Varangians."
"We took it before the Empire arrived," came the Varangian's enthusiastic reply. Manuel found himself smiling involuntarily at the man's spirit.
"Seized it by force? Did your god do something for you?"
"No. We recruited locals to secure a passage inside, then struck the Muslims' rear amid the chaos of battle."
A raider Varangian who employed strategy. Hearing this, Angelos stepped forward, shaking his head.
"Don't lie, barbarian."
The Varangian burst into laughter. He pointed to the sky with his hand and murmured softly,
"Then believe the heavens did it."
Angelos had no choice but to fall silent at the Varangian's nonchalant response. As the man said, if the heavens had aided them, it would only make their feat even more legendary.
With Angelos quiet, the Varangian stepped forward and continued.
"Governor of Rome, surely these men aren't scavenging like vultures for scraps after the hunt is done."
Comparing Rome to vultures. As Angelos moved to retort at the provocative words, Manuel held him back.
"You have a talent for provocation. Might you tell me the name of this skilled orator?"
"Robert of Hauteville, Robert Guiscard."
"Robert the Cunning. A meaningful name."
He approached slowly, using his staff. Then, in a low voice, he addressed Robert.
"Your back is quite stiff. What do you think would happen if we attacked Reggio Calabria right now?"
Robert laughed loudly and shouted,
"Does East Rome have a hobby of burning its own lands?"
As Manuel opened his mouth to reply, the Varangian was faster.
"Do it if you wish. We are men from the north who make the sea our home and plunder the world. If the land burns, we seize another. For example..."
One corner of Robert's mouth curled up. He pointed with his finger.
"Taranto or Bari would be enticing choices."
At the taunt, the young officer Angelos could no longer hold back and stepped forward.
"Do you think we'd just watch you?"
"Then do it now. If you can stop us. Killing me changes nothing."
The young Varangian's words rang true. Slaying the man before them wouldn't alter the tide. The Varangians plundering Italy would only grow in number, rooting themselves in southern Italy and utterly expelling East Rome's influence.
"Angelos, fall back."
"...Understood."
Angelos retreated. Manuel spoke in a calm voice.
"Tell me what you want."
Threats failing, Manuel chose negotiation. Robert answered without hesitation.
"Acknowledge our rule over Reggio Calabria."
"Acknowledge your rule? Simple enough. By Antipathos's authority..."
"No. I want the Basileus himself to recognize our sovereignty."
The Varangian sought direct recognition of sovereignty from the emperor.
"Do you know what that means?"
It meant becoming the emperor's vassal. True, southern Italy was effectively beyond control, so it would be nominal vassalage—but the implications were vast. The thematic system here had collapsed; there was no katepano. For Manuel, who had planned to appoint a local notable as katepano, it was a clever move. The problem was that the man was a Varangian.
"I know. We will pacify the chaos in Sicily and Naples in East Rome's stead. And become the shield guarding the Christian world from the Muslims across the sea."
The shield of the Christian world. Such grand words from a Varangian's mouth genuinely surprised Manuel. It reminded him of the emperor in his youth—passionate, valiant, even greedy. Like the emperor's own burning wick from long ago.
Manuel was momentarily speechless. But this young Varangian might just be bluffing, so verification was needed.
"A pagan as the shield of Christians? You think the Bishop of Rome will stand idly by?"
"I've made a deal with the Bishop of Rome. As proof, I've converted."
"What was the deal?"
"Protecting the Christian world from Muslims eyeing southern Italy. There are other reasons, but I can't reveal details."
A deal with the pope. The pope sought freedom from the Holy Roman Emperor's influence and expulsion of East Rome from southern Italy. Revealing that could make Manuel refuse. The cunning Robert, aware of this, deliberately concealed the details.
The seasoned Manuel immediately sensed Robert was hiding something. But feigning ignorance to continue negotiations was more profitable than uncovering the secret and derailing talks. He gave a meaningful look.
Silent pressure. The young Varangian, still green in such matters, clamped his mouth shut and stared back, feigning composure.
A battle of wills, as if time had frozen. It ended with Manuel's words.
"Varangian—no, Katepano of Reggio Calabria—I accept your proposal."
"An... Antipathos, sir!"
The shocked Angelos tried to speak, but Manuel cut him off with a hand, signaling no more words, and continued.
"I will send the official document soon."
One corner of his mouth rose. Seeing it, Robert swallowed dryly and nodded.
"Not only did you subdue the officer in front of all those soldiers, but you convinced the imperial governor too...!"
Alberto spoke with an expression of awe. To be blunt without exaggeration, the earlier situation had felt like standing on a cliff's edge. No sooner had we boarded than I subdued an East Roman officer. Then, before an imperial noble who appeared, I threatened with my own life as leverage. It was like repeatedly shoving my head into a lion's mouth.
Surviving with my head intact in such an absurd scenario was truly remarkable.
"You even convinced the governor in the end... Anyway, truly impressive, my lord."
Alberto fussed endlessly beside me. His words made my already queasy stomach worse.
"Be quiet. My head's spinning."
"Ah... So... sorry. I... I'll take you straight to Reggio Calabria."
And so we returned to Reggio Calabria. No sooner had we arrived than Geoffrey and Humphrey welcomed us, and I focused on putting the city in order.
Order, in truth, meant repairing damaged buildings and sorting captured citizens.
"I'm a carpenter."
"Pass."
"I... I don't have any particular skills."
"Then go over there."
My role was distinguishing useful labor from useless—specifically, sorting skilled workers from common laborers. This was essential for ruling Reggio Calabria.
"Still working hard, eh?"
"Humphrey, brother."
As I handled paperwork, Humphrey approached. At his arrival, the citizens cowered, bowing their heads or stepping back.
"They all fear me."
"Can't be helped."
I looked up at the city gates and walls. Heads hung there in abundance—mostly those of Reggio Calabria's power holders. To solidify rule, the leadership layer had to be purged.
Seducing them would be more effective for governance, of course. But no intellectual would readily submit to barbarians from afar, Vikings untouched by Roman civilization. Force or money could crush them, but that worked only on the middle class and below.
Thus, with our relatively low cultural power, we chose elimination. It was terror politics, in a way. But we ensured minimal harm to the common folk. As rulers seeking to govern, we had to temper that terror with mercy toward the ruled.
"How's Geoffrey faring? The brothers are grumbling about loot distribution."
"That's the issue."
As part of mercy, plundering was banned. Naturally, Vikings who lived for spoils were disappointed. Geoffrey's authority and fair shares kept discontent from surfacing, but it was a bomb waiting to explode—Humphrey looked worried.
"Must be a headache for Geoffrey."
"Still, we've got land to rule now. We'll sort it out in time."
As we spoke, I sensed footsteps. Looking over, Geoffrey's herald stood there.
"Pardon the interruption. The Jarl summons you."
We had recognition of rule from the Roman pope, but no formal title yet. So we used "Jarl," the northern term for chieftain.
"What is it?"
At Geoffrey's question, the herald looked troubled and handed me a parchment. Humphrey snatched it eagerly. Reading it, his eyes widened.
"What's it say?"
He passed it to me wordlessly. Scanning the contents, I was as stunned as Humphrey.
Geoffrey, eldest son of the Hauteville family, is hereby appointed Katepano of Italy.
In accordance with the obligations of nobility, the third son, Robert Guiscard, is ordered to serve in the Tagma tōn Varangōn under His Imperial Majesty Basil II, Basileus and legitimate ruler of Rome.