Laszlo's idea of establishing an imperial public tax system by supporting the Crusade made the Electors ponder.
Even the Emperor's most ardent opponents had to admit that his proposal was sincere.
A treasurer, elected by the Imperial Diet, would be responsible for overseeing and managing the use of public donations and taxes, with strict limitations on how the funds could be used.
As long as the donations and taxes from the Empire's subjects did not go directly into the Emperor's own pockets, the proposal was not unacceptable to the Electors.
Admittedly, the Emperor had his ideal of "establishing a world Empire," and the Electors also had their own private agendas.
The secular Electors hoped to expand their political influence, acquire larger territories, and higher titles, while the ecclesiastical Electors either sought to gain more say for their families or devised ways to accumulate more wealth for their own enjoyment and to build more lavish and magnificent churches.
The establishment of the Imperial Diet was ostensibly to provide a common platform for communication among the various estates of the Empire, but its essence was a product born for the Emperor and the Electors to more conveniently manipulate the Empire.
The combined power of the Seven Electors was enough to overwhelm all other Princes, so they naturally held the power to carve up the Empire.
If this proposal were truly passed in the Imperial Diet, they would, of course, have to contribute money, but they would not be the ones contributing the most.
The more than seventy Imperial Free Cities that paid annual tributes to the Emperor would undoubtedly be the biggest contributors of Imperial taxes—this was the price of freedom.
In addition, the Chamber of Ecclesiastical Princes, composed of fifty-two high-ranking clerics, the Chamber of Secular Princes, composed of over forty secular Princes with strong military power and high honors, and the Third Council, which included nearly two hundred Imperial Counts of various kinds, were also the true mainstays of Imperial tax collection.
Even before the resolution was voted on, shrewd individuals in the Electoral College were already considering how to manipulate the process when the Imperial tax register was later established, in order to extract more public taxes from the weaker Princes.
Since the Emperor said the money was to be used for Imperial affairs, then using the money to solve the Emperor's problems and using it to solve the Electors' problems were both Imperial affairs, weren't they?
"Your Majesty, the Empire indeed needs such a tax to handle Imperial affairs and maintain the operation of the Imperial government.
However, what the Archbishop of Cologne said also makes sense; wasn't the original intention of the Imperial reform to solve the Empire's internal order, financial, and judicial problems?
After the reform, the Empire should remain peaceful and orderly, the Princes would not have to worry about foreign invasions, and all disputes would be referred to the administrative district courts and the Imperial Court of Justice.
If we want the Empire's subjects to willingly pay this tax, perhaps we should first solve the current problems of the Empire before continuing this discussion."
Ernst was the first to break the silence.
In fact, he was not so resistant to this proposal. More than thirty years ago, Emperor Sigismund had played this trick to counter the Hussites.
At that time, the "Imperial War Tax Law" had levied war taxes and recruited Crusade knights across the entire Empire. After the Emperor received the money, the Electors' money was returned in full, and the Princes' money also largely had to be spent in consultation with the Electors, absolutely not for the Emperor's private matters.
However, Emperor Laszlo was much stronger than his grandfather back then; suppressing the entire Empire single-handedly was not just talk.
It was basically impossible to get back the money that was handed over, so how to make this money play its greatest role was Ernst's most pressing concern.
To say nothing of distant matters, the Elector of Brandenburg and the two Dukes of Pomerania, who were fiercely fighting in the Upper Saxony Imperial Circle, which was under the jurisdiction of Elector Ernst of Saxony, must stop immediately, otherwise Saxony would inevitably be affected.
If the Elector of Brandenburg really won, it would be hard to say who would be the boss in Upper Saxony in the future.
Especially now, the House of Wettin's Saxon territory was divided into three, while the Hohenzollern Family's territory, originally split into three, was about to be unified under the Margrave of Ansbach. At that time, it would be difficult to say who was stronger.
Although Ernst was now allied with the Margrave of Ansbach, he did not want to see his ally truly prosper, as that could shake Saxony's leading position among the northern Princes of the Empire.
Therefore, if the Emperor could end this war through some means and curb Brandenburg's potential expansion, Ernst would not mind paying this public donation tax.
Especially since the Archbishop of Mainz and the Elector of Bavaria had already openly sided with the Emperor, and the Elector of Brandenburg had lost his voting rights due to absence, he had no need to anger the Emperor over this.
Laszlo had long anticipated Ernst's request.
Even if no one brought it up in the Electoral College, members of the Princes' Chambers and even the Third Council would surely make such a demand.
The turmoil of the past few decades had led to the Empire's chaos and decline; seeking peace had become a universal consensus among all strata of the Empire.
The Empire's subjects so urgently desired reform, and Laszlo's influence on the Elector group further reduced resistance to reform.
However, since it concerned a general Imperial tax, involving the interests of almost all subjects, Laszlo knew he had to do something concrete to gain the trust and support of his subjects.
"Ernst, you do have a point.
To ensure that the Empire can maintain peace during our war against the Ottomans, I have prepared a five-year "Land Peace Edict," the term of which is the same as the term for our first attempt to collect public donations and taxes.
All ecclesiastical and secular Princes, high-ranking clerics, and other estates belonging to me and the Empire should spontaneously maintain the overall peace of the Empire, resisting any injustice, violent revenge, and other atrocities.
For all unresolved disputes, the Imperial Court of Justice will issue judgments as soon as possible."
Laszlo ordered a document to be brought. This was a decree previously drafted for him by the Salzburg Archbishop, its format and wording largely referencing peace edicts issued by previous Emperors.
However, the effectiveness of this decree should be the strongest in history.
As long as the Emperor could maintain the order of the Empire as agreed, then achieving long-lasting Imperial peace was not impossible.
"Your Majesty, the church reforms currently being implemented in Frankfurt have caused many disturbances. If you could strictly prohibit church reforms like the previous Emperor, or authorize me to handle this matter, it would certainly be of great benefit to promoting Imperial peace."
Seeing the Elector of Saxony make a request, Archbishop Adolf II of Mainz, who had always been obedient to Laszlo, also put forward his own request.
In the Mainz War, although Dieter failed, his dangerous reformist idea of completely breaking away from the Roman Church and establishing an independent Imperial Church spread widely in central Empire.
This caused small-scale unrest and internal opposition within the church, deeply worrying Archbishop Adolf.
On one hand, he was reluctant to continue being exploited by the Holy See, while on the other hand, he needed the support of the Roman Church to consolidate his position.
Therefore, he could only take a conservative stance.
Upon his accession, Albrecht II had jointly issued the "edict of mainz" with the Pope, which, while strengthening the Emperor's control over the Imperial Church, also proposed regulations to limit church reforms.
However, Emperor Laszlo's ambiguous attitude towards church reform caused the reformist faction within the Imperial Church to revive, and some rather dangerous ideas have now emerged.
Fortunately, people's lives are still tolerable for now, but if the situation in the Empire worsens in the future, who knows what might happen if those reformist clerics rally the people.
"This… Laszlo was also a bit indecisive for a moment, "I will send a special envoy to Frankfurt to investigate this matter. If it is determined that this will harm the order of the Empire, I will issue an order to prohibit it."
"I hope you can resolve this matter as soon as possible, lest the scope of the unrest further expand."
Archbishop Adolf urged with some regret. He had originally wanted to use this opportunity to extend his influence into Frankfurt, but it now seemed unlikely.
"You have already tried to issue peace ordinances like this once, but the results do not seem to be satisfactory.
Unless you can add a clause at the end of this edict, stating that before the Emperor issues a sincere and commendable peace edict and strictly enforces it to achieve true peace in the Empire, the Imperial states shall not send soldiers or provide any form of assistance to the Ottoman front.
Furthermore, this edict should be confirmed by the Holy See, and all people, including you, should be required by the most stringent ecclesiastical and Imperial laws to obey this edict and fulfill their duties.
If you dare not do so, I imagine the Empire's subjects have no reason to pay money for the conquest of a distant eastern city that has nothing to do with them."
The Archbishop of Cologne stared at the Emperor with a playful gaze, as if certain that the Emperor could not achieve this step.
Laszlo glared angrily at the gaunt, deep-set eyed Archbishop, who always looked like he was plotting some famous conspiracy, cursing him countless times in his heart.
If it weren't for the bad impression of assassinating an Elector on the spot, Laszlo would have loved to call the guards to cut this guy down.
The Archdiocese of Cologne itself was a mess right now; this Ruprecht hadn't even completed his consecration ceremony, nor had he been able to visit Vienna to meet and complete the investiture.
However, this did not prevent him from continuing to pick faults with Laszlo in the Electoral College.
As far as Laszlo knew, this man had previously allied with the Duke of Guelders, attempting to reclaim several important towns within the Cologne diocese that had lost control by the previous Archbishop through war.
However, with the civil strife in Gelre and the intervention of the Duke of Burgundy, Ruprecht's plan to expand his power fell through, and his most important ally was also controlled by the Burgundians, who forcefully severed their alliance with him.
It was precisely because of this that he harbored such hatred for the Emperor and the Duke of Burgundy, constantly trying to make Laszlo uncomfortable.
Thinking of this miserable fellow still contending with the Cologne Cathedral chapter for diocesan financial power, with several prominent families in the diocese hostile to him, and his ally controlled by the Burgundians, Laszlo's anger dissipated by more than half.
While his constant antics were a bit annoying, they also reflected the demands of some opponents within the Empire, and Laszlo could use this opportunity to adjust policies and edicts to satisfy as many people as possible.
"What is there to fear? Since everyone wants peace and security, I will grant it to them."
Laszlo's confident tone made Ruprecht, who had been expecting to see the Emperor reveal his true nature, stiffen, but he quickly recovered and showed a triumphant smile.
Ending all internal wars in the Empire and ensuring the security of the Imperial borders was not something that could be achieved on a whim.
If the Emperor broke his word, then all Imperial Princes would have an excuse to refuse to pay the so-called public donation tax, and he wanted to see what the Emperor would do.
Laszlo paid no attention to Ruprecht's opinion; whether the Empire was in chaos or not, it was up to him.
If a chaotic Empire facilitated the Habsburg Family's acquisition of interests, he would not hesitate to fan the flames and instigate regional wars;
If peace was more beneficial, then he would do his utmost to restore order to the Empire.
Under the gaze of the Electors, the Imperial Diet's scribe quickly added the clause proposed by the Archbishop of Cologne to the end of the "Imperial Peace Edict," with some minor modifications.
If the Emperor was unable to maintain the peace of the Empire, then all Imperial subjects were not obliged to pay public donations and taxes or participate in the Crusade;
Conversely, if the Empire achieved general peace, then anyone who refused to bear public donations and taxes or Crusade obligations would be subject to dual punishment from the Pope and the Emperor, namely excommunication plus an Imperial ban.
The moment the reciprocal conditions were written down, the faces of the Electors grew serious.
This way, this peace edict would no longer be regarded as a child's play, as it had been before.
"How about it, Archbishop Ruprecht, are you satisfied now?"
Laszlo enjoyed the constantly changing expression on the Archbishop of Cologne's face, smiling as he instructed the scribe to begin drafting the second document, the "Imperial Public Donation and Tax Ordinance."
The ordinance consisted of thirteen articles. The first four defined the scope of taxation, namely all subjects living on Imperial land—here, Imperial land specifically referred to the German region, with Italy and the Netherlands being calculated separately.
Article five established the creation of an Imperial treasury, with a Grand Treasurer and seven treasurers appointed by the Emperor, the Electoral College, and the Princes' Chambers to manage taxation and the use of funds.
The subsequent articles mostly delineated the responsibilities to be borne by the various Imperial estates.
In the final article, Laszlo specifically requested the addition of "prohibiting any Imperial subject from helping, advising, or attempting to help the Ottomans or others do anything detrimental to Christendom, the Empire, and the German nation."
These two edicts were subsequently passed unanimously in the Electoral College and sent down to the Princes' Chambers for a vote.
Although the Princes were troubled by the need to pay an additional tax, if the Empire could truly maintain peace, paying this small price seemed acceptable.
In fact, the amount of public donations and taxes collected was not much, roughly 120,000 florins, which was enough to maintain a mercenary army of 20,000 for two months. Spread across the entire Empire, it was not a large sum, and it was only collected once a year.
Therefore, with the encouragement of the Emperor's supporters, both the Chamber of Secular Princes and the Chamber of Ecclesiastical Princes passed the two edicts.
However, the Public Donation and Tax Edict caused a strong reaction in the Third Council. The Free Cities and Imperial Counts were shocked by the amount of tax they had to bear, but considering that the powerful figures above had already reached a consensus, they could only swallow their anger.
The two-week Imperial Conference in Nuremberg finally concluded with the Imperial envoy signing and sealing the two new edicts on behalf of the Pope.
"To counter any enemies that may threaten the Empire and the Church, the Emperor seeks the support of the vast Imperial subjects.
In accordance with the intentions put forth by the Imperial subjects, aimed at strengthening the holy Roman Church, ensuring the safety of Imperial roads, and protecting widows, orphans, and the poor, His Great Majesty Emperor Laszlo I has decreed that for the next five years, no robbery,
feuds, disputes, or wars shall be initiated or continued, and all disputes shall be resolved in the regular courts of the relevant localities or the Imperial Court of Justice.
Anyone who still oppresses, harms, or initiates war in violation of rights shall be convicted of lèse-majesté, lose the respect and protection of the Emperor and the Pope, and become an outcast of the world.
Anyone may, by their right, dispose of the criminal and all his property as they wish."
As the last paragraph of the "Farewell Letter of the Imperial Conference" was read, the Princes and representatives of the estates from various parts of the Empire walked out of the Imperial Diet hall in Nuremberg with complex feelings.
Compared to the clamor of previous days, Nuremberg today was exceptionally quiet, as if the winds of peace were already preparing to blow from this city to every corner of the Empire.