Constantinopolis (10 page)

“First of all, if Mehmet does come against the city as it appears is likely, he will be fully committed before the walls of Constantinople. That was certainly not the case at Varna.”

“True, but what if he lifts the siege to attack my forces?”

“We will send out a force to attack him from behind. He will be hit from both directions.”

“That is a slight advantage perhaps, although I do not know how many Greeks are left to fight outside your crumbling walls. What else can you promise me?”

“We will have significant aid from the Italians.”

Hunyadi snorted defensively in derision. “Now you are telling me tales I have heard before. I have had the promise of aid from the Italians on many occasions. I experienced Italian aid firsthand before Varna, when the Genoese sold out their Christian brothers and ferried Murad and his armies across the Bosporus in exchange for a huge sum of gold. Besides, why would the Italians help you? They look at you as heretics yourselves, hardly better than infidels.”

“We have agreed to Union with the west. Constantine has declared it. The Latin mass is celebrated in St. Sophia.”

Hunyadi was impressed. He had not expected that. Still, Italians betrayed other Latins as quickly as they did the Greeks. He would need more than that. “Give my compliments to Constantine for his bold decision. Convey to him that I will carefully consider this situation. The key for me will be
actual
Italian aid, not Greek promises and not Italian ones. If there is substantial aid from the West, then I will consider coming.”

“I hate to ask my Lord, but I need to be able to tell Constantine. How many men could you muster?”

Hunyadi smiled to himself again. He needed more men like this one. Maybe he should detain him and not let him waste himself dying in the city, or somewhere along the way home. He was very bold. Such impertinent questions could land the messenger’s head on the ground. “Tell Constantine I will rally between 20,000 and 30,000 men. Brave souls all. But only if I come.”

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1453

Mehmet unfolded the letter again in the flickering firelight of his bedchamber, carefully re-reading the contents. He was still processing the message. Was this real or just another trick for which the Greeks were so famous?

He knew the author vaguely, primarily by reputation although he had met him a time or two in the past. Could he be trusted? Even if the letter was authentic, what was the purpose? Was it simply to ferret out his intentions?

The Sultan spent several more hours carefully considering what he should do. He could not afford to tip his hand but he decided finally that neither could he pass up this opportunity, whatever the risk. Finally he took pen to paper and carefully answered.

Thank you for your letter and offer. I do not know when or if I will be near the city of Constantinople again in the future, but if I am I would be happy to meet with you as you suggest. I do not know what information you could possibly supply me as I am a peaceful man and have no intentions on your city, but I would be happy to exchange a meal with you and hear your ideas for the future of our two peoples.

Mehmet read his response over and over, carefully checking the words to assure he had not provided any hints about his future intentions. Satisfied that the letter opened up the possibility of a meeting but revealed nothing else, he carefully sealed the contents and ordered one of his most trusted messengers to his room. He passed the message on and gave instructions to take the note by the greatest secrecy to Constantinople and to deliver it in private. The messenger bowed and left silently.

Mehmet smiled to himself. He enjoyed these games of intrigue, even if they went nowhere. If the message had been a fake he would have lost nothing. If the contact was real, he now had potential access to vital information about his enemy and about Constantinople. The Sultan lay down, satisfied with his night of labor, and fell into an immediate sleep.

SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 1453

Giovanni, Constantine, Sphrantzes and Loukas Notaras were mounted outside the city walls, examining the work that Giovanni had accomplished since arriving in the city.

Giovanni was supervising the excavation of the Foss, the giant ditch that had formed the outer portion of the triple defenses of the land wall. Over time, the Foss had filled in until it was useless, not much more than a narrow ditch filled with grass. The Genoan leader, with the assistance of a troop of engineers, had worked day and night to restore the ditch. Stretching along with the walls from the Golden Horn to the Sea of Marmara, a distance of 3.5 miles, The Foss was sixty feet wide and twenty feet deep when fully restored. The ditch extended out sixty feet from the outer Theodesian Wall. When completed the ditch would keep Mehmet’s soldiers from reaching the first set of walls, and would present a difficult obstacle, while also leaving his men vulnerable to arrow and musket attack from the walls.

Once past the Foss, any attacker faced the imposing outer wall. The outer wall was six feet thick and 25 to 30 feet high, with taller towers spaced every 150 feet. The outer and inner wall were separated by a terrace. The inner and even more massive wall was on average 15 feet thick and 30 feet high. The inner wall contained 96 towers spread along the distance of the wall, with a typical height of sixty feet. Both the inner and outer walls contained nine main gates and a number of posterns which could be used for surprise sorties by the Greeks once the Ottomans were attacking the walls.

The main gates into the city, were the Gate of Charisius at the top of the 6
^th
hill of the city, and the Gate of St. Romanus which sat at the top of the 7
^th
hill, with the Lycus valley between them. These gates would likely be the main focus of the Ottoman attacks and were therefore being reinforced and rebuilt first.

Because of the limited forces available to the city, only the outer wall was being heavily defended by the Greeks. The inner wall, which was even more formidable and would likely make the city impossible to breach, simply required too many men for Constantine to defend. This reality was yet one of many limitations he was faced with, along with limited food, a tiny fleet, and virtually no money.

“You are doing great work Giovanni,” said Constantine. “Besides the ditch, what progress have you made on the walls?”

“I am about halfway done rebuilding the walls in the areas where they were badly damaged. I also have reinforced the walls and towers with logs and dirt, allowing them to receive and absorb the shock of larger cannon balls. Unfortunately, our resources are still very limited, and I do not know how much time we will have. Certainly the ditch will be completed before Mehmet could launch any kind of attack. As to the walls, there are no obvious breaches, but effective cannon could knock holes in the walls. We will have to be ready with reserves to keep any attackers contained until nightfall, when I can rebuild and reinforce any actual breach. With any luck at all, even with cannon, we will be able to hold the siege for a long time, years even, assuming the city has ample food.”

“Don’t worry about our food supplies,” said Constantine. We own the seas. The Turks have no navy to speak of. They may have been able to cut off the Black Sea, but I can reinforce the city from the Sea of Marmara pretty much at will. As long as supplies are sent from the west, the city will have plenty to eat for as long as we need it.”

“What about the Dardanelles? Do not the Turks control both sides of the straits into the Sea of Marmara?”

“They do, but as you saw when you came through, they have not closed off the straight like they have the Bosporus. And even if they tried to cut them off with forts and cannon a fort or two may be able to stop a single ship, but never a fleet. We will be able to supply the city so long as aid actually does come from the west.”

“I think we are in excellent position then My Lord.”

“Thank you Giovanni, truly you have been the miracle from God we awaited.”

Sphrantzes and Loukas added their assent, and the Greeks rode back through the gates to the Palace. They made their way to the Emperor’s council hall and after a light meal and some wine, sat down to further discuss the situation.

“He certainly has done more for us than we could have done ourselves,” said Constantine.

“I am amazed at his ability,” said Notaras. “I had my doubts when he first arrived, but he has knowledge none of us possess. What fortune to have someone with significant previous experience in siege warfare.”

“That observation brings up a difficult issue,” said Sphrantzes.

“What issue is that?”

“Well my Lord, our friend Notaras is the commander of our forces in the city, but by his own admission, is no expert in siege warfare.”

“What are you trying to say Sphrantzes?” asked Notaras.

“Candidly, and I beg your pardon, I am trying to say that I believe our Emperor should appoint Giovanni overall commander of the city’s defenses. I know you are going to be angry about this Notaras, but really, we need to use the resources we have. You are more of a sailor than a soldier, and you will be needed in the Golden Horn against any navy that Mehmet might put together. We cannot afford to make mistakes in the land defenses. If Giovanni has to find you for permission to deal with an emergency issue, it might be too late. He has stressed again and again that it will be critical to close any breach the moment it happens. We cannot have him looking for permission from Loukas at the moment he should be commanding the attack. Not only that, but what if a local commander challenged Giovanni’s authority? People need to know who is in charge, and his orders must be answered immediately and without question.”

Constantine could tell Notaras was furious. He had started to interrupt Sphrantzes several times.

“What you propose is unprecedented Sphrantzes,” fumed Notaras. “I am the Megadux. It is my right and my responsibility to command
all
military forces in the city. You propose that I command the navy. What navy? Our tiny collection of ships? And against what? A couple of ramshackle boats the Sultan cobbles together. I will defend the city! Giovanni can work with me. I will give orders to all our forces that he is to be obeyed as if I gave the order.
That
will be enough for everyone concerned.”

“And what about the Genoese?” asked Sphrantzes. “They control Galata. We need their aid. We have a Genoan soldier, a famous one, right here in the city, right now. He knows more about warfare than all of us together. If we give him command of the defenses, it is very likely that the Genoans in Galata will come to our aid as well. Is that not another reason to give him the command?”

“You scheme and scheme against me Sphrantzes, but you will not win out this time. Tell him Constantine.”

Constantine looked at his two friends, unsure what to say. Damn Sphrantzes! His dislike of Notaras and constant needling created dissent in his most intimate circle of friends and advisors. If he did not need Sphrantzes, and did not trust him, he would have excluded him from these meetings entirely. But Sphrantzes was cunning and practical. He had resources nobody else possessed, including spies in the Turkish camp. Admittedly, he also created problems. At the present time he had brought into the open an issue Constantine had already considered. There were obvious and significant advantages to naming Giovanni the overall commander of the defenses. However he had intended to raise this issue with Notaras in private, and then very subtly. Now Sphrantzes had forced the issue, and put the Megadux on the defensive. Now he would have to hurt his closest friend. Notaras did not deserve this. He had shown nothing but loyalty and hard work. Once again, Constantine would have to compromise a friend for the necessities of the city.

He looked at Notaras and smiled. His friend was looking at him, trying to read his expression. Constantine could see the color draining out of his face. He knew what was coming.

“Loukas my friend. I don’t agree with how this was addressed at all,” he looked sternly at Sphrantzes. “However, I have been considering this issue and I have a tremendous favor to ask of you. You know that we need every bit of aid that we can put together?”

Notaras squared his shoulders. “Yes, my Lord, I know that but. . .”

“I have considered this issue, and I do want you to understand this decision has nothing to do with Sphrantzes. I must ask a tremendous favor of you. I wish to offer the defenses of the city to Giovanni, and the Island of Lemnos as his hereditary possession if we are attacked and succeed in defending the city. I know this comes as a hard blow to you. This decision has nothing to do with your abilities. But I do feel that we may be able to obtain additional aid from Galata if we elevate a Genoan to this position. And I also believe it will be critical if we are attacked to be able to instantly defend against breaches of the walls. And after all my friend, you are
more
of a sailor than a soldier.”

Notaras looked at Sphrantzes and Constantine. He stood up and bowed to the Emperor.

“Don’t go Loukas. . .”

“I accept this my Lord. I don’t have to like it. I will do whatever you wish in defense of the city. I believe you are making a mistake. You may find others agree. I also worry about the Venetians. You may find they do not agree at all with this decision.”

Notaras bowed again to the Emperor and walked briskly out, without acknowledging Sphrantzes. Of course Notaras also had raised an important issue. The great weakness in the argument of appointing Giovanni was the Venetians. Venice kept an important presence in Constantinople, including a significant force of men. The city-state also had nearly a dozen ships in the harbor of the city, ships that could aid significantly in the defense or be used to obtain provisions from Italy or the Greek Islands. If the Venetians left the city he would be greatly weakened, and certainly he would have lost all the benefit of appointing Giovanni as the leader of the defense. As always, he was forced to pick between impossible solutions to the problems. Regardless, he would have to proceed. For now he would chastise Sphrantzes for his impertinent outburst.