Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1068: Tax Increase?

So Akibides steadied his nerves and mustered the courage to rebut: "We have acquired some gold and silver mines, but His Majesty once warned the Ministry of Finance that currency must not be minted indiscriminately. It must correspond with our annual grain yield and tax revenue... In short, if we issue too much, the silver coins in our hands will lose their value. Therefore, the Ministry of Finance cannot simply mine gold and silver to fund this new mercenary army on its own authority. It requires His Majesty's approval." With that, Akibides turned toward Davos and bowed respectfully.

Davos said softly, "Akibides is right. The gold and silver mines are strategic resources of the kingdom. They cannot be used for long-term financial expenditures unless an unforeseen emergency arises."

"His Majesty's judgment is correct! If we recklessly mine and mint gold and silver, flooding the kingdom with currency, it will only ruin our commercial prosperity and trigger chaos," Marigi, the Minister of Commerce, immediately agreed, endorsing Akibides's stance.

Emboldened, Akibides continued, "Furthermore... Lord Alexis, you only see how much territory the kingdom has gained, but you fail to see how many officials we have had to appoint to manage those lands, nor the additional salaries we must pay them. That alone is a massive expenditure. That doesn't even account for the heavy costs required to relocate citizens to these new territories, or the funds needed to build roads, bridges, temples, and other public facilities—along with their maintenance. That is an even greater drain. To tell you the truth, if our thriving commerce hadn't generated enough trade tax revenue to barely cover these rising costs, your monthly salaries would likely have been reduced already."

As he spoke, Akibides nodded to Marigi in gratitude.

Alexis was dumbfounded. He had originally thought that by passing this new decree, the kingdom would gain two or three special legions ready to deploy into battle at a moment's notice, making the Ministry of Military Affairs' job much easier. He never expected the real difficulty still lay ahead.

He asked helplessly, "Since everyone agrees on establishing an army composed of foreign freemen and agrees that adequate funding is required to maintain it, yet the national treasury cannot provide that funding... and without funding, the army cannot be built... what should we do?"

Lysias kept his gaze lowered, adopting a look of deep contemplation.

Cyprolus's eyes darted around; several times he opened his mouth to speak but stopped himself.

Hermon shrugged and apologized, "I don't know much about the kingdom's finances."

Akibides, who had just been loudly complaining about their lack of funds, now maintained his silence.

The other ministers were either genuinely uninformed and bewildered or putting on a thoughtful act. A strange calm settled over the Royal Palace hall.

Just then, a loud, clear voice rang out: "Because establishing an army completely divorced from daily labor and ready to fight at a moment's notice is a necessity for our kingdom's ever-expanding borders, and because it is a vital, long-term national policy, its military expenses would be best funded by a new tax levied directly on the people!"

At these words, some were astounded, some remained expressionless, and others visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

A tax increase—someone had finally said it! ... Davos tightened his grip on his armrests and looked at the speaker. Attaris. As expected! He was a man willing and brave enough to shoulder responsibility, living up to his reputation as the brilliant talent Kunogorata had recommended years ago. Even knowing this proposal would offend the vast majority of the public, he had spoken without hesitation, valuing the kingdom's safety above his own gains and losses. By comparison, Cyprolus, the other Rotating Chairman whom he highly regarded and who possessed even stronger administrative abilities, clearly overthought things. As for men like Lysias, Hermon, and Sedorum... heh.

Davos impassively swept his gaze across the ministers, taking in their varied expressions. When his eyes met Cyprolus's, the latter quickly looked away. Cyprolus had already realized that his performance just now had disappointed Davos.

"A tax increase? That does not seem appropriate. The public will likely find it hard to accept," Herpus, the medical minister, was the first to respond.

"Indeed. Since the establishment of Daionia, the kingdom's direct tax has remained at one percent. It has not changed in nearly twenty years, and the people have grown accustomed to it. If we levy a new tax now and force them to pay more, I fear they will struggle to accept it," Heracleides, the construction minister, then stated his position. As technical officials, both he and Herpus seemed unable to consider the issue from the kingdom's overarching perspective, thinking first of the public's sentiment instead.

"His Majesty just stated that times are changing, the environment is changing, and the kingdom is changing. Naturally, our laws must change along with them to meet new demands! Twenty years ago, when Daionia was first founded, we had only three or four small towns and a population of barely thirty thousand. We were entirely inconspicuous. But today, the Kingdom of Daunia is the hegemon of the western Mediterranean! Our territory is over a dozen times larger than before, our population exceeds three million, and we have many vassal city-states and factions under our banner. We are no longer that tiny alliance of city-states from the past!"

Cyprolus finally stepped forward to speak, his tone passionate. "When Daionia was first established, all public officials, including the Senators, received no salary. But today, the monthly wage of a junior kingdom official can roughly buy a cow, to say nothing of our own stipends.

"Twenty years ago, when Daionia marched to war, the total number of combat-capable citizens was less than ten thousand. They could reach the front lines within a few hours, end the battle in a day or two, and return to their cities. The time spent was so short that the soldiers wouldn't even finish the rations they had brought from home.

"Yet today, the moment the kingdom wages war, we can easily mobilize tens of thousands of men. Combat durations are measured in months, and the military rations required are measured in tons—and that does not even account for the consumption of other supplies. All of this must be provided by the kingdom.

"Twenty years ago, aside from building roads, Daionia had no major expenditures. But now, the kingdom boasts countless public buildings. Not only are the construction costs immense, but the maintenance fees alone form a staggering figure. Furthermore, the income generated by the schools and public hospitals in various towns is nowhere near enough to keep them operational. They require kingdom subsidies to survive...

"The larger the kingdom, the greater the consumption. Can that mere one percent tax truly satisfy the ever-growing needs of the Kingdom of Daunia? Of course not! We have relied on the commercial taxes generated by the trade prosperity our kingdom's strength brings! We have relied on the inheritance taxes collected from citizens made wealthy by the kingdom's might! We have relied on the miscellaneous fees gathered from the rich and colorful lives our people now enjoy—such as the athletic competition lotteries hosted by the Ministry of Commerce, library borrowing fees, and so on! We have relied on His Majesty's brilliant leadership and everyone's diligent work to barely guarantee the kingdom's development today!

"To be completely honest, maintaining a direct tax of just one percent for twenty years is an absolute miracle! It is the blessing of Hades! It is His Majesty's mercy! Even during the most difficult periods of war, the kingdom only borrowed money from the public rather than brazenly levying an exorbitant war tax. The people of Daionia should feel incredibly fortunate that they live in such a blessed kingdom instead of anywhere else.

"Look around us. This is no longer the traditional world of decades past, where the citizens of Greek city-states paid no direct taxes.

"In the eastern part of Sicily, during the reign of Dionysius, every city-state faced a war tax exceeding thirty percent, which persisted for years. Even after he was eventually overthrown, Syracuse's annual direct tax approached ten percent to ensure the city could recover its strength as quickly as possible and secure its safety under our pressure.

"In western Sicily, the tax rates of the Phoenician City-States and Carthaginian dependencies were relatively lower, yet they still exceeded five percent. It is said that the funds from these taxes were all spent on the conquest of Southern Iberia.

"And look at the Greek Mainland. Wars have raged continuously over the past few decades. Which city-state there does not have a direct tax of over twenty percent? Even Athens, the wealthiest of them all, devised an ingenious method of taxation: they divided their subordinate demos districts into zones and ensured that each tax zone contained several settled, wealthy foreign merchants. They then mandated a specific tax quota for that zone, imposing punishments if they failed to meet it. Usually, due to the pleas and coercion of the district's residents, more than half of the tax burden fell entirely on the shoulders of those wealthy merchants.

"Let us not even mention Sparta. There, all wealth generated by the city-state has always been controlled by the government, which then takes responsibility for its distribution.

"Gentlemen, this is a world fraught with frequent wars and ever-present danger. The nations and factions surrounding us are all accumulating strength and striving for dominance. Even though Daionia is powerful now, we cannot lower our guard. The kingdom must not only increase taxes, but the new tax rate cannot be too low! Only then can we guarantee the kingdom's normal operations and possess enough strength to defend our territories and safeguard our people's interests!"

Cyprolus's words were deafening in their impact, leaving some men momentarily stunned and others suddenly enlightened.

Immediately after, Davos praised loudly, "Well said!"

Only then did many realize: His Majesty supported the tax increase!

The atmosphere in the hall began to shift, but Lysias still offered anxious counsel. "Your Majesty, once an additional tax is proposed, it will not only spark massive controversy in the Senate, but it will also provoke great dissatisfaction among the public. It could cause unrest throughout the kingdom and severely impact your prestige, Your Majesty!"

Davos smiled faintly and said in a deep voice, "If men like Attaris and Cyprolus can brave personal disgrace to make such a proposal for the sake of the nation's interests, how could I, a descendant of Hades, the guardian deity of this kingdom, care about a little slander! I ask you only this, Lysias: is a tax increase necessary or not?"

Davos's words cut straight to the heart of the matter. Unable to evade the question, Lysias could only answer, "Your Majesty, given the kingdom's current situation, we... do need an army composed of foreign freemen. And in order to prevent disrupting the kingdom's normal operations, we also... need to add a small additional tax to provide material support for this army."