The Iron Cross Triumphant
August Wilhelm I “Kaiser” pt. 2: 1600 – 1612
Reorganization:
After the formation of Germany several important changes were made to the Reich. Several long time Germanic vassals agreed to be integrated into the Reich, and the capitol was relocated to the growing city of Berlin. The German victories against Champagne and Great Britain followed by the subsequent annexation of several vassal states sparked a frenzy of international suspicion and concern about this “new roman empire.” Diplomatic relationships even with allies such as Spain and Muscovy were strained by their fears of German strength. Domestically the formation of the Reich caused unrest when it became apparent that the Kaiser would not immediately enforce his claims upon the independent Germanic states. The move of the imperial court to Berlin only exasperated matters as the entire bureaucracy was forced to relocate as well. In an attempt to assuage fears about the high degree of centralization in the Reich August wrote and passed a landmark bill of rights, one of the first in Europe. The new document specified limitations on governmental power giving the courts a written document to refer to in cases against the government.
Longtime vassals joined the Reich, the capitol was also moved to Berlin
The Bill of Rights helped quell internal unrest
Another long running domestic problem for the Kaiser was the issue of succession. August Wilhelm had not married in the first few years of his reign, but conducted an affair with Duchess Gertrude of Thüringen, who was betrothed to the count of Sjallend. Matters changed with the birth of his son Emil, Gertrude’s betrothal was swiftly dissolved and she was quickly married to August Wilhelm to ensure the heir’s legitimacy, but rumors constantly circulated about the circumstance of Emil’s birth. As he grew older Emil demonstrated a remarkable genius at military and political affairs, but possessed a fiery temper and violent reactions to any insult – real or perceived.
The Unification Wars
Three years passed after the formation of Germany, and August faced internal unrest and continual loss of prestige as he failed to enforce his claims on the Germanic states. Matters came to a head in 1603 when Great Britain annexed Austria after a hundred years of a personal union. The public cry for action had become too great and something needed to be done about Germany’s uncontested claims. Britain could not be attacked as the truce from 1600 was still in effect, but the smaller German nations were ripe for conquest. Mere months after the British annexation declarations of war were issued to Trier, the Palatinate, Alsace, Augsburg, and Salzburg. Champagne, Ukraine, and Switzerland joined against Germany and the German Unification war began.
The British annexation of Austria prompted outrage from Germany
The start of the Unification Wars in 1603
At first German armies were not properly positioned to deal with the French or the Swiss and suffered several defeats. However, once reinforcements were rushed in from the German minors the Kaiser quickly overpowered the French and Swiss. The Ukraine attempted an invasion of Crimea but was rebuffed by the army stationed there. Germany had learned well from the previous war and had stationed a permanent army in the Ukraine to defend against any attempted invasion.
Although some snags occurred German armies were quickly triumphant
The French were unprepared for another war so soon after the war in 1600 and were quickly overpowered. With the elimination of most hostile armies complete the German armies settled in for the long sieges of the heavily fortified enemy lands. While August could have quickly assaulted the fortifications hastening the end of the war, the sieges served two purposes. First it gave him time to cool international opinion and deal with the political ramifications of the wars, and second it conserved his forces for the upcoming was with Great Britain. Still, the sieges progressed frustratingly slowly and two whole years passed until the final victories came in 1605. Trier, Salzburg, Alsace, and Augsburg were annexed while Champagne was forced to renounce some claims and convert to Catholicism. The last minor nation to fall was the Palatinate, which was annexed in its entirety.
Much of the contested territory was united with Germany in the Unification Wars
The annexation of the Palatinate would have dire consequences far beyond what August Wilhelm intended. The province of Metz was not German, but included in the deal for the sake of the German border. Outrage over Augusts’ use of his reconquest wars to expand German territory outside of German lands swiftly flared and precipitated a number of crises. In North America the formerly peaceable Huron tribes attacked the German settlers, hoping to drive them out while the Kaiser was occupied in Europe. The worst was yet to come.
Georgia was a small nation bordering Crimea, and had strong relations with Muscovy and Spain. After the annexation of the Palatinate the Georgians declared war against Germany and called upon their allies for assistance. Muscovy was still occupied with the East and dishonored both calls, but Spain, eager for a shot at the German colonies sided with Georgia. The centuries old alliances with Spain and Muscovy had been sundered.
Augusts' heavy handedness in the Unification Wars triggered the dissolution of the alliances with Spain and Muscovy
Fortunately for August the war with Spain was quickly concluded when Georgia realized that without Muscovy they stood little chance against the German Crimean army. Peace was quickly signed and soon after August made peace with the Swiss and Ukrainians. The Swiss were forced to release Savoy, while the Ukraine was made to release Lithuania. The war with the Huron was fought to its bitter inevitable conclusion and resulted in the breakup of the Huron and Iroquois tribes into separate entities.
The final peace deals of the unification wars favored the Germans
Although August successfully acquired much of the German territory he had claimed in 1600, the sundering of the Muscovite and Spanish alliances was disastrous. Germany’s only real ally was Jerusalem, who was poorly positioned to intervene in European affairs. Instead of being able to count on assistance by the great powers, Germany would now have to plan for dealing with them as enemies.
Gameplay Notes:
- Emil was a bastard, but his awesome stats more than make up for the weak claim.
- Annexing 5 vassals at once and moving my capitol left me at -3 stability and slightly over the infamy limit. Fortunately I was able to survive the constant rebellions, thanks in part to the bill of rights.
- With so many foreign cores I was losing prestige at a rate of ~20 per year! I would have liked to wait a bit longer to declare war but really didn’t want to go into negative prestige.
- The Palatinate had one non-core province. I either had to take it or leave them a 2pm. Doing so left me ~.7 above the limit, so I decided what the heck? What could go wrong?
- And then my alliances went bust. Fortunately the insane Georgians called uncle before things could get ugly.
The Austrian Unification War
In the winter of 1605 August was ready to deal with the “Austrian question.” The Austrians had served British interests for over a hundred years and were fed up with the British masters. Some wanted an independent Austria to assert hegemony over the Balkans, while others felt that the Austrians would be better off as part of the German Reich. August wanted to secure the Austrian territories and permanently evict the British from Continental Europe. In December 1605 war was declared. This one would be completely different from the last.
Fredrick Davis of Britain had begun preparing for the next war immediately after the treaty of 1600, and had taken the lessons of his defeat to heart. Fortifications on Britain itself were upgraded and the British home armies were strengthened and posted in Scotland and along the channel opposite German France. This came at the cost of Britain’s navy, which had seen little growth since 1600. Without sea access, Austria was seen as expendable and only lightly defended. Fredrick’s strategy was to lure German armies into Britain itself and annihilate them on the beaches, then counterattack hopefully with support from Champagne or another hostile nation. Meanwhile, Britain’s overseas armies would seize as much colonial territory as possible, and hopefully offset the anticipated loss of Austria.
German armies swiftly overran Austria in early 1606 and quickly captured Vienna by March. Better yet the bulk of the Royal navy was caught and utterly annihilated in the English Channel, removing Britain’s ability to redeploy troops overseas. A naval blockade of the isles was quickly erected, and August began to probe the possibility of peace. Unfortunately King Fredrick refused to cede Austria, so August decided to once again invade England itself to bring the British to the table.
The German Navy obliterated the Royal Navy in a series of battles in the Channel
The second invasion of Britain was hastily planned and completely different from the previous one. With total naval dominance August could land troops without interference. Spies indicated a heavy British presence along the channel, making any invasion there costly. Scotland was passed up as an invasion site as it would require a long march down the entirety of Britain during the rapidly approaching winter. Norfolk was chosen as the initial landing ground for its lack of British troops and easily defensible terrain. The initial landing of ~25,000 would dig in for the British counterattack and be reinforced by sea, annihilating the entire British army in an epic battle. While this plan has since come under great criticism, one must remember that to this point the only German experience with British troops was Munchov’s complete victories during 1599. German leaders assumed that the British army was inferior in every aspect to theirs and counted on the swift, bloodless victories they had achieved in 1599. With over 100,000 of the best troops in the world poised in Calais to invade them fully expected to be dining in London by Christmas.
Situation in Britain immediately before the first landings
Almost immediately the German invasion ran into troubles. The initial landing was quickly assaulted by 44,000 British troops and only rushed reinforcements prevented the beachhead from being overrun. Despite inflicting massive casualties on the British General Friedrich August was forced to retreat south to Essex or face annihilation by a massive British army marching south from Scotland. The third wave landed at Essex instead of Norfolk, and surprised an army of 10,000 that the British had rushed to cut off the Germans. However, the British still had local superiority, and were putting up a much better fight than the Germans had expected. Realizing that without further reinforcement he faced the loss of 50,000 troops, a quarter of his army, August Wilhelm went all in and accelerated his invasion plans.
Although the casualties favored the Germans the sheer number of British troops forced a withdrawal South
Wanting to transport his men across the channel as quickly as possible August Wilhelm had the third wave to strike at the now lightly defended Kent, and ordered Friedrich August to march south past London and link up with the reinforcements. However, another factor was coming into play, the unusually harsh winter of 1606. With thousands of men concentrated within such a small area logistics quickly became a nightmare. The initial landings were in full flight from the Northern British army and could not raid or steal enough food quickly enough. In Kent and London the local farms could not supply the massive army, and the hunger only exasperated the exposure issues from the winter. It is estimated that as many men died from cold and starvation as fell to the British armies. Despite these growing problems the Channel campaign at first appeared successful. The British were driven out of Kent and London and the Germany army from Norfolk arrived, losing only their rearguard of some 6,000 men. But the British kept coming, reinforcing their losses with even more men from Scotland, the Marches, and Cornwall. With losses quickly mounting from attrition and London still unconquered by January of 1607 August Wilhelm ordered a desperate offensive to break the British army once and for all. The result was a total bloodbath.
Although successful, German casualties continued to mount. Not shown are losses to attrition
August Wilhelm led 40,000 men to Wessex and attacked Fredrick Davis’ army there, while the remaining 20,000 men defended London against the British forces in the North. Although August was at first successful and drove Fredrick off with heavy losses, the crafty king retreated to Oxfordshire in good order. With yet another fresh British army approaching from the Marches and the army at London being whittled away by attrition and constant attacks August was forced to follow and lest the King have time to regroup and reinforce. The battle of Oxford was brutal and desperate with both August and Fredrick leading their tired and demoralized troops from the frontlines. Then on February 12, disaster struck both armies. Fredrick Davis was struck with a musket ball in the gut, a wound which would eventually end his life. The same day August Wilhelm was grazed by a cannonball, badly mangling his right arm. Only a quick amputation saved his life. Without their leaders both armies sullenly retreated to their camps
The situation in Britain. Although victorious on the battlefield the German position is rapidly weakening
The hideous casualties and personal injuries had utterly destroyed both monarchs’ appetite for war. The next day they met to negotiate a peace. Fredrick did not want to leave his young son in a war with Germany, and the British people were exhausted from their massive losses. August was sick of the death and destruction around him, and wanted to evacuate his armies from Britain before more British reinforcements or the winter could utterly annihilate them. The peace was relatively mild, Britain only had to cede German Austria, release Wallachia, and allow the German armies to leave peaceably. The remaining British holding on the continent were surrounded by hostile neighbors and slowly abandoned to local Hungarian rule. Germany had won, but it was a Pyrrhic victory.
Europe after the peace treaty
Gameplay Notes:
- Never attempt a winter invasion of Britain next to 40,000 troops. The big limiting factor was my transport capacity; I only had 22 in theater. When the British didn’t fold before my shock 6 fire 4 general I realized I had to go all in or risk losing the army, which only made things worse.
- Killing the British fleet actually hurt me long term because they couldn’t rush troops off to invade the colonies like last time
- It was nice to see the AI give me a serious challenge; I seriously came close to losing the whole thing a couple times. If things had gone on longer I probably would have lost the entire army, over 100,000 men!
Consequences
Over 75,000 Germans died during the second invasion of Britain, more than half of the invasion army. Many units returned to Germany with barely one in ten men left alive. The Kaiser had lost his arm, and with it his stomach for war. For the remainder of his reign August Wilhelm would return to his beloved arts and keep Germany out of any wars. In the rest of Germany the loss of so many men subdued the militancy that characterized the early years of the German Reich. Although other Germanic lands remained independent from the Kaiser, there was little will to forcibly integrate them into the Reich. Recruitment to the army suffered as well with many young men unwilling to join the army. Fortunately Germany was vast enough to supply its peacetime army even without these “cowards.”
German losses during the invasion exceeded 75,000. Several armies were almost completely destroyed. The "victory" would have long term effects on German culture
Internationally nations had been closely watching the German invasion. Even though they had “lost” the British had held their own against the fearsome German army, proving that the Germans were not invincible. While not yet willing to directly challenge the Germans, nations began to fulfill ambitions that the Kaiser would not have tolerated in 1605. The most dramatic events were in France where the King of Champagne signed a new alliance with the British, returned his nation to Protestantism, and declared himself the King of France. After nearly a hundred years of civil war France was back on the rise. In retrospect most historians agree that the French would have been far better off remaining at least superficially Catholic. Their return to Protestantism strained and quickly broke their alliance with the British and returned to the Germans their favorite excuse for nibbling away at France.
France rose from the ashes of defeat following the disastrous invasion
August Wilhelm would devote the rest of his reign to domestic affairs. With his generous patronage several academies and other manufactories were constructed. New styles of architecture heavily influenced by interaction with the East were promoted by August, over the objections of the more narrow minded in his court. Years of peace helped stabilize Germany from the rush of changes in 1600 and increased prosperity. His patronage of the arts also promoted the emerging German national identity and began to overshadow the brutality of the war with Britain.
The years of peace saw a tightening of German culture and developments in architecture
At the end of his reign world events began to move once more. In Jerusalem Amalric III finally ascended to the throne and immediately launched a crusade against Persia. August sent his nephew good wishes, but little material aid as Jerusalem was clearly winning. Other areas of concern were Norway, which was under heavy assault from Novgorod and Milan which was once again fighting desperately against Britain and Naples. Although Emil forcefully argued for direct intervention, August was unwilling to lead another war and instead sent massive war subsidies to the beleaguered nations. Their fate would be left up to Emil.
Immediately after assuming the crown of Jerusalem Amalric III launched an invasion of Persia
Generous aid helped Norway and Milan survive
August Wilhelm died on November 3, 1612 leaving Germany in the hands of his son Emil “the Bastard.” During his nineteen year reign August had finally unified the Germans under their own banner, crushed Persia, successfully invaded Britain, ended the Spanish and Muscovite alliances, and failed to invade Britain. With a list of failures almost as long as his successes August Wilhelm is one of the more controversial Kaisers, but has the unmatched distinction of being the first.
Emil ascends to the Imperial throne
Gameplay Notes:
- I could have gone to war, but I was RP’ing here. I figured that after the mess in England August would not be very enthusiastic for war.
- Manpower regain is unrealistically high if you ask me. I had recovered from the British debacle within a year
- British non-core holdings in the Balkans were undefended and fell prey to spies inciting nationalists.
- The Milanese AI is incapable of winning a war; they have their 40K doomstack besieging provinces instead of crushing the smaller Neapolitan and British stacks
