The Salzburg Unrest

After handling all matters related to the Imperial Conference, Laszlo finally departed Regensburg and returned to Austria.

The Emperor's mobile court slowly advanced towards Vienna along the road by the Danube River, allowing Laszlo to take the opportunity to inspect Lower Austria.

It was early spring, and the farmers living in the royal domains of Lower Austria had already begun their spring planting.

As the only region in Austria suitable for large-scale cultivation, the banks of the Danube River were dotted with farmers toiling in the fields.

Because most of Lower Austria around Vienna had been designated as direct royal domain through Laszlo's tireless efforts, any of his decrees could be effectively and forcefully implemented there.

After all, dozens of royal bailiffs would patrol the entire Lower Austria territory weekly, largely eliminating any duplicity from subordinate officials.

In the early days of Laszlo's reign, Lower Austria was still predominantly a manor economy, and agricultural development was significantly restricted.

At that time, Laszlo focused development on core cities like Vienna and Vienna Neustadt.

Many serfs, risking great danger, fled their manors to gain free status, flocking to cities like Vienna, which were flourishing due to Danube River trade and the Emperor's support.

Residing in a city for a full year granted one citizen status, which was the simplest way to escape serfdom.

Despite protests from many nobles, Laszlo tacitly allowed this to happen.

This move caused Vienna's population to surge from less than 20,000 to over 30,000 within a few years.

As the absolute core of the entire Empire, Vienna, known as the "Goddess on the Danube River," attracted settlers from all the lands under Laszlo's rule.

Hungarians, Bohemians, Germans, and Italians converged here, causing the city's handicraft and commercial industries to develop at an extremely rapid pace.

By the time Laszlo realized it, agriculture in the Enns River basin of Lower Austria had already suffered a considerable blow as a result.

After completing the land survey in Austria, Laszlo clearly understood that there were still large tracts of uncultivated wasteland in the royal domains.

However, at that time, he was only concerned with how to collect more taxes from farmers to support his vast army,

and he had little time to spare for the development of the Lower Austria territory.

Fortunately, he later made efforts to develop Austrian agriculture, such as enacting beneficial policies.

These policies included encouraging land reclamation, allocating land to immigrants and granting tax exemptions for several years, restricting manors from excessively taxing serfs and imposing overly heavy labor, and allowing serfs to redeem themselves, among others.

Additionally, Laszlo made significant efforts to promote the three-field system.

He sought help from the Church, having priests package the three-field system as a farming method taught by God, which quickly spread among farmers.

After all, trying to explain to farmers through mathematical calculations that the three-field system required less labor for larger cultivated areas than the two-field system would be like casting pearls before swine.

Since the Austrian Church was already completely subservient to Laszlo himself, he naturally chose a promotion method that fit the characteristics of the era.

Lower Austria already had a considerable scale of three-field cultivation, and with Laszlo's promotion, farmers in Lower Austria have basically adopted this method.

One field for grain or cash crops, one for fodder, and the remaining one fallow to restore soil fertility.

This farming method, after many years of practical testing, has been proven to significantly increase crop yields.

This combination of expanding cultivated land and improving agricultural techniques led to a significant increase in Austria's grain production.

Besides grain, Austria's wine industry also saw considerable development.

In fact, due to unhindered trade between Hungary and Austria, a large amount of grain exported from Hungary flowed into the Empire through Austria.

These imported grains greatly satisfied Austria's domestic grain demand, leading to a continuous expansion of grape cultivation areas in Lower Austria.

Laszlo himself invested in or authorized over twenty wineries, and the Packages wine-making industry also flourished.

To improve the quality of wine, Laszlo spent heavily to introduce several excellent grape varieties from Burgundy, Tuscany, and Hungary.

He dispatched people to continue experimenting with improving grape varieties, while also starting to heavily promote so-called "Austrian fine wines" under the Emperor's name.

The export tax, originally 3 florins per barrel of wine, was also reduced to 2 florins by him.

Consequently, diverse Austrian wines circulated widely throughout Central and Eastern Europe along the Danube River and Rhine River trade routes, bringing more trade revenue to the royal family.

As the most central part of all his territories, the management and development of Lower Austria undoubtedly pleased him.

In contrast, the situation in Styria, which he had taken from his uncle Frederick, was not as optimistic.

Because Frederick himself had weak control over his territory, the power of the nobles and the Church in Styria grew increasingly inflated.

After the Styrian rebellion instigated by Albrecht VI was suppressed, almost all of his territories in Austria were confiscated.

Only the exclave of Burgau in Bavaria was granted by Laszlo to the widow of Albrecht VI for her residence.

Not long ago, the city of Augsburg, near Burgau, even wished to purchase the territory of Burgau for 40,000 florins, but this transaction was promptly halted by Laszlo.

Although the land was bestowed upon his aunt whom he had never met, it was still a part of Austria; how could it be sold just like that?

Seeing that Albrecht VI himself had died in battle and his territory had been completely devoured, the nobles of Styria immediately recognized the Emperor's formidable power.

They quickly chose to cooperate with their new liege lord, maintaining stability in Inner Austria.

However, such stability was only relative.

Compared to Outer Austria and Lower Austria, two regions with high popular loyalty, Styria had an unusual number of troublemakers.

As soon as Laszlo returned to Vienna, he immediately received news that made his vision darken.

Inside Hofburg Palace, barely having settled down after arriving home, Laszlo received word that an envoy from the Archbishop of Salzburg sought an audience.

In the imperial court, Archbishop Georg, accompanied by Rudolf, the secretary of Salzburg, came to seek an audience with the Emperor.

Other ministers of Austria were also summoned for discussion; they were all curious why the Archbishop of Salzburg had sent an envoy so soon after parting ways with the Emperor.

"Rudolf, I just spoke with Archbishop Burkhard a week ago. I wonder why he has sent you now?"

Laszlo made no secret of his confusion.

He and Archbishop Burkhard of Salzburg had just had a heated discussion not long ago.

Laszlo congratulated the Archbishop on his promotion to cardinal during the Imperial Conference.

Subsequently, the two debated for several hours over the ownership of Salzburg.

Laszlo hoped to incorporate Salzburg into the Austrian Imperial Circle, but the Archbishop strongly opposed this.

(Schematic diagram, caution for trypophobia sufferers)

His own diocese originally included Bavaria and Austria, but the Emperor, through a deal with the Pope, had separated Austria and established a new archdiocese.

The current Archbishop of Vienna, Georg, was once a suffragan bishop under Burkhard.

This matter caused Archbishop Burkhard to harbor resentment towards Laszlo.

His current jurisdiction was only Bavaria, and now the Emperor actually wanted to include him in the Austrian Imperial Circle.

This was clearly an attempt to interfere with Bavaria using his influence.

Burkhard sternly rejected Laszlo's demand, and ultimately Salzburg was still assigned to the Bavarian Imperial Circle.

However, Laszlo, returning good for evil, still bestowed the honor of presiding over the College of Ecclesiastical Princes upon Archbishop Burkhard.

After all, he was the only imperial cardinal besides the two cardinals in Vienna, so it was natural to try and win him over.

As a result, while the relationship between the Emperor and the Archbishop of Salzburg did not worsen, it did not improve much either.

Laszlo had originally intended to put the Salzburg matter aside for the time being.

After all, in recent years, he had annexed the Prince-Bishopric of Brixen and subjugated the Bishop of Trento, almost touching the bottom line of the Roman Church.

If he were to act against the Archbishop of Salzburg again, Pope Paul II might well issue an excommunication order against him.

Unexpectedly, he didn't go looking for trouble with the Archbishop of Salzburg, but the Archbishop came looking for him instead.

Therefore, his gaze towards Rudolf was somewhat sharp.

And Rudolf, as the special envoy of the Archbishop of Salzburg, seeing the Emperor's fierce gaze, sighed inwardly.

The Archbishop's worries were likely true.

He pulled out a letter from the Archbishop from his pocket and presented it, saying to the Emperor with some trepidation: "Your Majesty, Archbishop Burkhard deeply regrets his defiance towards you at the Imperial Conference and has specially sent me to express his apology.

Furthermore, the Archbishop humbly requests that you fulfill your responsibility as Emperor and protect Salzburg from its enemies. I, on behalf of Archbishop Burkhard, file a complaint with the Court of the Empire.

The Archbishop promises that he will legally defend the disputed territory before you and accept your wise and lawful ruling."

"Wait a moment, bring that letter up, let me see what's going on."

Laszlo understood; someone was trying to use force against the Archbishop of Salzburg.

Although he didn't know who the other party was, Laszlo just wanted to say, "Well done," as it was a way to vent his anger.

Only when threatened could the Archbishop of Salzburg remember the goodness of him, the Emperor.

Isn't this knowing how to show respect to the Emperor?

That's just how people are...

However, Laszlo still felt a bit strange, as the envoy's tone was so humble that it sounded less like a request for him to fulfill his imperial duty of protecting Church lands and more like a plea for mercy.

He opened the Archbishop's letter, and after reading just a few lines, his expression immediately became quite remarkable.

"Your Majesty, is there a problem?"

Eyczing, who was the first to notice the abnormality, looked at the Emperor with some curiosity.

Laszlo cleared his throat twice to cover his embarrassment; in fact, when he first read the letter, his mind couldn't process it for a moment.

The Archbishop of Salzburg clearly stated in the letter that a portion of the Styrian nobles were mobilizing troops, preparing to attack the Archbishopric of Salzburg.

If Laszlo's memory served him correctly, the ringleader mentioned in the letter was precisely the president of the Styrian Estates Assembly, whom he had personally appointed.

In other words, the governor of Styria, whom he had personally appointed, was actually organizing his subordinate nobles to prepare to severely beat the Archbishop of Salzburg.

This was certainly not to vent his anger, but rather due to a territorial dispute between the Styrian province and the Archbishop of Salzburg.

In short, the Bishop of Salzburg had an exclave in Styria, but the boundary between this exclave and Austrian territory had always been unclear.

Long-standing accumulated conflicts finally led to this unrest.

Although the Archbishop of Salzburg did not explicitly state it in the letter, he implicitly suspected that Laszlo was behind it.

Laszlo certainly wouldn't take the blame for this unexpected accusation.

And honestly, this matter was absurd; his direct vassals, the Styrian nobles, were openly attacking an Imperial Prince.

If anyone with ulterior motives in the Empire got wind of this, they would undoubtedly heavily promote the "Austrian threat" theory.

Ultimately, his rule over Styria was far less secure than his rule over Austria proper and Tyrol.

As the region with the strongest noble power in Austria, Laszlo now had a completely new appreciation for their audacity.

"Ahem, several nobles in Styria are gathering troops, preparing to attack the Archbishop of Salzburg.

I fully agree with the Archbishop of Salzburg's request. Regarding territorial disputes, one should first appeal to the Court of the Empire, rather than resorting to violence.

Rudolf, please go back and tell the Archbishop that I will absolutely not allow such behavior that disrupts the order of the Empire to continue.

Assure the Archbishop that I will ensure the archdiocese is protected from conflict, and its territory and people remain safe and unharmed."

"Thank you for your benevolence, Your Majesty. The Archbishop and the people of the archdiocese will remember your grace."

Laszlo's explanation slightly relieved the envoy Rudolf, but his doubts remained unresolved.

Could it be that the Emperor truly wasn't behind this matter?

But how could the Emperor, known for his strong authority, not even know that his own nobles were preparing to cause trouble?

After seeing off the envoy, the ministers saw the Emperor's expression almost instantly turn incredibly grim.

"Your Majesty, the most urgent task is to issue an edict to prevent the impending disaster," Georg suggested anxiously, "then summon the ringleaders of this matter back to Vienna to inquire about the situation.

Additionally, immediately involve the Court of the Empire to resolve this dispute and minimize its negative impact. It's no wonder he was so flustered; nobles attacking Church territory was no small matter, especially since these nobles were direct vassals of the Emperor.

It was fortunate that the Emperor returned in time. If those nobles had actually acted, this minor conflict might have directly escalated into a confrontation between the Emperor and the Roman Curia, even if the Emperor himself was unaware of it.

"Hmm, I will issue an edict immediately," Laszlo said, nodding gravely. "Eyczing, you personally make the trip and stop all their dangerous actions.

Georg, send someone to Salzburg and invite the Archbishop to Vienna personally; I will resolve the issue for him.

As for Rome, since this matter can be prevented, we will act as if nothing happened.

If the Pope inquires about this, Bessarion, then I will trouble you to go to Rome and explain to the Pope that this was a misunderstanding."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The Austrian court, which had settled down due to the restoration of peace, immediately became tense again due to this unexpected upheaval.

Everyone could see that the Emperor was truly angry this time.