Chapter 100 You Reap What You Sow

Months had passed since Marcellus initially reunited the borders of the Western Roman Empire, and now the Spring Harvest had begun. After Marcellus’ introduction of agricultural technology, there were a myriad of skeptics in the Western Roman Empire. However, as the farmers tended to their fields and pulled their crops from the earth, they realized just how much their crop yields had grown.

Not only was there a 25% increase in crops from the extra planting of the three field system, but with the heavy plow, and the horse yoke, Farmers were able to plant substantially larger plots of land in a much shorter time. Thus, with the larger fields, and the three-field systems combined, the crop yields of the Western Roman Empire were larger than ever before in history.

Though only North Africa, Italia, and Illyricum had been able to introduce these techniques, the food that had been grown from the western soil was enough to supply the entire Empire with enough food to last the year. Naturally, a portion of this harvest was stored for a later date. After all, this was just one of two harvests this year.

Currently, Marcellus walked through the farming village that he had burnt down on his journey to Ravenna during the days of his rebellion. Despite the massacre that had taken place here, the Romans had already resettled the area. Thus it came as a bit of a surprise to the local inhabitants when a small number of Palatini and their Imperator strode through the streets of the village.

Marcellus gazed upon the people who were stacking the grain that they had harvested into piles. There were wide smiles on their faces. It made his heart bleed that the people enjoying the fruits of his innovations were not the same people who once dwelled in this land.

When the emperor passed by a young girl playing with a stalk of wheat, her mother quickly ran out to her and dragged her into the house, in fear of the Roman Forces who had entered the village. Marcellus could only sigh when he saw this before proceeding to the man tasked with leading this village.

Under Marcellus’s new military dictatorship, the control of towns passed from the hands of Magistrates, councils, and assemblies into the hands of a single Military Officer and his cadre of Non-Commissioned Officers.

As for the military structure of the Empire, it was a blend of the Principate and Dominate systems. Though the Field Armies were reorganized into proper principate legions, the Limitanei remained, albeit as full-time soldiers, with superior training and equipment over their predecessors.

These Limitanei not only acted as the defensive garrisons of every town and city but also as the governance of the regions they occupied. For small towns such as this, the officer in charge was usually a centurion. As for the amount of soldiers stationed within, it varied depending on the potential threat attributed to the area. Some towns received a whole Cohort of Limitanei, while others received one or two centuries.

In each town a Castra was being constructed to act as the primary means of defense of the town. The idea behind this was that during an enemy attack, the citizens of the town would evacuate to the Castra, where the soldiers would defend them until a proper field army could come and defeat the enemy.

The Castra of this town was still undergoing construction, but the barracks and officer’s quarters were already constructed. Thus, Marcellus personally strode into the Centurion’s quarters, where the man was hard at work looking over the ledgers, and approving the necessary expenses to finish the construction of the town’s defenses. When the centurion saw the Imperator enter the room, he quickly stopped what he was doing and jumped to attention.

“Imperator! I did not realize you would be visiting us. What can I do for you?”

Marcellus had a bitter smile on his face and gazed around the office for a few moments before speaking of the reason for his visit.

“It’s good to see the people of this town thriving. It is such a pity what happened to those who lived here before. Though I tried to avoid the fate it suffered, but in the end, a massacre still unfolded. Because of this, I wanted to establish a monument in the town dedicated to the slain. You don’t need to worry about the expenses I will pay for it myself. What do you think?”

The Centurion scratched the back of his head as he heard this. In all honesty, he was not expecting the reason for the Imperator’s visit to be something so trivial. However, if the man had gone to such lengths just to hear a lowly centurion’s opinion, he would not remain silent.

“It’s certainly possible, but it will have to wait until after the Castra’s construction has finished. Afterward, we can certainly erect a statue of some kind in order to commemorate those who perished during the revolution.”

Marcellus nodded his head when he heard this, before shifting the topic to something else that was important to him.

“That’s good… I have another question for you: how are the crop yields in this town?”

The Centurion quickly looked over his books and flipped to the most recent count of crop yields in comparison to what was historically managed by this town. After several moments of silence where he studied the content, he replied with a confident tone.

“Excellent, we have practically seen our crop yields double thanks to the innovations you provided us. If we have these kinds of yields every year going forward, we can expect a population boom to happen within the next generation.”

Marcellus nodded his head once more after hearing this. If the majority of Roman towns were having crop yields on par with this one, then he could expect great things in the future. Any excess crops could be stored or sold to other regions.

There were other concerns that Marcellus had, and thus he quickly inquired about the security of the region.

“Tell me, have you spotted any signs of barbarians or Bagaudae in the vicinity? What about brigands? Are they a threat at all?”

The centurion looked over the reports on his desk to make sure he wasn’t giving the Imperator any false information. After a few moments, he began to inform Marcellus of what he knew.

“As far as I know, the Barbarians keep themselves north of Mediolanum. Since the restoration of the Legions, we have been pushing them further and further northward. With the current situation, the town is not in any immediate danger of a barbarian raid.

As for the Bagaudae, they’ve been pushed westward into Gaul. I believe that is a problem for the Suebi to handle. Any other form of brigands, highwaymen, or thieves seems to be practically eliminated. With the regular patrols of the Field Armies, brigands are too afraid to act up.

I’m sure you witnessed the many men lashed to crosses on your journey here. Any man caught engaging in such activity is crucified under your orders, because of this crime, even on the roads, has significantly decreased. I dare say that for the first time in decades, Italia is safe to travel through for the average person.

However, once you get into Illyricum, you might have troubles. There have been rumors from traders that come from the east that the Goths who protect the region haven’t exactly been taking an active stance in deterring brigands and thieves. I believe you may need to have a talk with the man you placed in charge of the region.”

The diocese of Illyricum was disputed territory between the two halves of the Roman Empire. Though after the death of Theodosius I it officially entered the hands of the Western Roman Empire, it did not take long for the East to assert control over the region.

However, that recently changed with the deal that Marcellus had made Alaric, and currently the Goths occupied the region, having driven out, or assimilated any eastern Roman forces that occupied the region. This was a major point of contention with the Eastern Roman Empire, one that fueled their attempts to remove Marcellus from office.

Still, if Alaric was not ruling properly, Marcellus would need to have a talk with him. He didn’t allow the Goths to settle the Diocese of Illyricum just so they could let it continue to rot in its current state. Thus, he could only nod his head and agree to this suggestion.

“Very well. I will speak with Alaric about his ongoing efforts to control the region. It is good that you informed me of this. From the reports the man has been giving me, he made it sound as if everything was under control. I will make sure you receive a bonus for entrusting this information to me.”

The Centurion nodded his head and thanked the Imperator for his benevolence.

“Thank you, if, you need anything else, feel free to ask!”

Marcellus merely nodded his head and patted the man on the shoulder before departing. Before he did so, he left the man with some words of encouragement.

“Keep up the good work!”

Marcellus walked through the village one more time before returning to his horse. It was true what they said; you reap what you sow. He had spent significant time and effort restructuring the Roman Empire in both its civil and military affairs after he ascended to the throne. Italia was now secure, and the barbarians were being driven back into their lands. The roads were safe, and crop yields were at an all-time high.

Soon word would spread of these achievements, and the people of Rome would begin to change their opinion about Marcellus. Despite this, the hatred of the Patrician class would remain. After all, Marcellus had pretty much usurped all their power, and distributed it to the military.

Though the Patricians remained exceptionally wealthy, they were no longer the political elite in the Western Roman Empire, and because of this, they would continue their efforts to depose Marcellus from his position.