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Part 2 of 2

From the Memoirs of a Prussian Royal Uhlan, pub. 1856 by Kapitan Franziske Grzybowski (continued...)

In August, after having defeated three armies, our scouts reported no more large formations, so the time had come to move on our next target – Aqaba. One of King Solomon’s ancient cities, Aqaba is home to a centuries-old fortress. But we are told by local guides that its defenses are primarily oriented toward the ocean. The Kronprinz believes we can take the city by storm if we cross the desert.

We mounted our expedition, leaving the Sachsen Uhlans behind to protect Sinai. The route was long, hot, dry and treacherous. We lost many camels, and not a few men in the effort. But when we arrived to overlook Aqaba, we knew that we would be successful. The defenders were some of the same we had met in earlier battles in the Sinai, and they were weak. We fell upon them, and approached the ramparts of the fort with the sweeping, loping glide peculiar to camelback cavalry.

aqaba3.bmp


I was riding at the side of His Majesty, Kronprinz Friedrich, when suddenly my right foot lost its hold of its stirrup. At the speed we were charging, I had to frantically grapple to avoid being unbalanced, felled, and trampled underfoot. It wasn’t until after I’d regained my safety that I realized I’d been hit by a bullet.

I’d slowed, and the Kronprinz peered back at me with concern. Blood spattered my pantleg, and the camel’s side, though the blood was all mine. I had no control of movement in my foot, my lower leg being apparently shattered. And then the pain seized me, and I cried out. The Kronprinz quickly ordered someone to attend to me, with the clear tone of a magisterial directive in his voice. And then he raced ahead with the rest of the regiment as they stormed the gates.

Soon, I came to be able to handle the pain. My attendant wrapped the wound, strapping two bayonets in parallel to stiffen my leg. This was all without my dismounting, as I felt I was in too much pain to do so – I have always been a stubborn patient. The sound of muskets and rifles was beginning to die down. And I felt I had missed my chance at fame.

Completely to my surprise, I found the Kronprinz at my side. He asked if I were able to ride. I put all else aside, and told him I was. He and I rode, slowly, side by side through the narrow gate into the captured fortress.

aqaba4.bmp


Once all was quiet and still, and once I had been taken to the infirmary to be looked at, it was discovered that the bullet (the Egyptians used bullets of massive caliber!) had lodged itself in my lower legbone, splintering it and forcing its pieces apart.

The war was very soon over, as was my military service to the Prussian Crown. Ultimately, I was able to walk ably, but I will always have the limp of a war veteran. So it was, in September 1854, that my 20-year career as a Prussian cavalry soldier and officer came to an end.

Thinking back, I am almost sure that during the battle, I had watched the Kronprinz – unmistakable, in his brilliant white uniform, silver breastplate, and plumed white charger (his was the only horse in the assault) – enter the fortress with the advance party. But ever since, he has had the enormous grace to introduce me to dignitaries as the man who, side by side with him, stormed the fortress at Aqaba.
 
halberstamB.jpg


“Ship, Ho!” cried a lookout from what seemed like some distance away.

Kapitan Gerhard Detzler peered up into the rigging to see the man who had spoken, and then looked in the direction the man was pointing. He could see nothing but sea in that direction, from his poor vantage on the deck, but he immediately began shouting orders to bring his ship – the freshly new Prussian paddlewheel steamer SMS Halberstam – into action against the enemy.

The opposing ships turned out to be two Egyptian ships of the line, and one smaller frigate. The Prussian vessel, which combined steam- and sail-power into its function, was not necessarily better than its sail-driven counterparts, but it had thee advantages of speed and a flexibility of navigating in spite of the vagaries of the wind. Even so, Detzler knew these were long odds, so he took care to bring the result out to his advantage.

The battle started out well for the Halberstam. She maneuvered against the first man-of-war, and managed to strike holes in her sails and gundeck. The enemy returned fire.

Having never been on the targeted end of a naval engagement before, Detzler was amazed to note that he could see the cannonballs as they flew toward him and his ship. Strangely, it seemed he had all the time in the world to watch it as the projectile approached, growing larger and seeming to follow a strange, curving track that almost suggested a will of its own. And meantime he noticed another shell, smaller for the distance, tracing its own crazy trajectory. But he found that, trying to focus on both at the same time in these split seconds, combined with the premonition that the one was aimed right at him, made him dizzy… and he fell.

The first slug’s whistling journey terminated with a tremendous crash just above his head… or where his head had been just moments before. His sensation of slow motion persisted, and from his supine position he witnessed the corner of the deckhouse erupt in a shower of splinters and flinders, all of which pursued the cannonball out toward the sea beyond at a somewhat slower pace.

Detzler lay looking up at the sky for a few moments. What had happened? Why was he still alive? What were those noises? Finally, he came to his senses and realized his duty. He stumbled to his feet to let his crew know he was still in command, and to set an example for all who might watch. The rays of the sun added to the surreality of these moments, diffuse as they were through their cover, playing across the deck as each found their way intermittently past obscuring wisps of smoke. It took him several seconds to completely shake the sublime haze out of his mind.

He took stock of their situation. The two larger ships were now enveloped behind billowing clouds of white smoke, which stood out beyond the Halberstam’s own cloak of grayish haze. Amazingly, it seemed Halberstam had taken only the one hit from the Egyptians’ first volley. With Detzler back in control of the situation, the battle began to go well for them.

The more nimble Egyptian frigate had gradually worked around the other side of the Halberstam, but that only placed her in opposition to her starboard cannon, which also began to tell against the enemy.

For every shot that hit the Halberstam, her superior artillery and fire control technology scored twice that many against their targeted ship. Clouds of smoke drifted between the vessels across the face of the water. Perhaps, Detzler thought, he could soon turn his attention to the other ship… wherever she had gone.

But when the wind parted one vaporous curtain, Detzler was dismayed to see the second ship of the line slightly ahead of her and in broadside position.

Her volley sent two shells into the Halberstam’s rigging. One tore away a yardarm and draped part of the foredeck in sailcloth. The other whistled over Detzler’s head, and reported from behind him with only a muffled metallic clang. But when he looked back, he saw the ship’s funnel badly mangled and leaning slightly astern, belching smoke in strange ways, contrary to its function.

“Helm! Starboard forty degrees,” Detzler commanded. “Bring our guns to bear on the second ship, and let’s put some distance from the first.”

“Aye, aye, Kap’n.” The ship heeled over to port, and eventually the helmsman repeated back, “Forty degrees starboard, Kap’n.” Sailors had moved to clear the debris from the foredeck. Everyone was doing their duty admirably, but something was just not right.

Detzler called to his first officer, who had just appeared from belowdecks. “What’s going on?”

“Kapitan, we just cannot make good steam without ventilation. That raking did us some damage, all right.”

It would take hours to fix the smokestack, and until they could focus their energies on that, they were reliant on sail power and at a distinct disadvantage. Detzler knew he would have to find his sought after glorious victory another time.

“Very well. Leutnant, make way out of here. Let’s try to outrun these heathens, before they end our days.”
 
Really Really good reads.

The Kronprinz climbed to the very top of our dune and turned his back on the charging Egyptians, within clear sight of their riflemen and taking fire. Having placed himself there as a target, he held his sabre high, and at the top of his lungs bellowed to those timid souls to return to the dune and hold the line. They all stopped – to a man – and after only a moment’s hesitation, they each returned to their posts, took up their rifles, and began dropping horses and cavalrymen with their shots.

Really Brave. :D
 
More! Btw, do you intend to unify Germany under Prussia?
 
Vincent Julien said:
More! Btw, do you intend to unify Germany under Prussia?
You know... Funny you should ask that. I'm really not sure at this point.

I was thinking about this over the weekend, whether I even want to bother unifying Germany or if I'd prefer to just have the mongo Prussian Empire.

I know there are certain advantages to unifying Germany, but it has also been my intent to play regardless of historical or game-related foreknowledge, and I'm not really sure if it's going to be possible to meet all the conditions for unification if the characters in my story do what they would without foreknowledge.

My gameplay is about 6 years ahead of the AAR at this point, and events are underway that may bear upon this decision for better or for worse.

We shall see! Thank you for reading. And thanks also to the lurkers... I've been noticing a flood of people reading even as the comments have slowed down.

Rensslaer
 
I, for one, have been terribly remiss at trying to keep up over the last few days. However, it does provide me with a nice lengthy read when I return so the tradeoff is at least good for me. I really enjoy the diary entries. Sad to hear that Grzybowski will no longer be able to provide them. But I see others you are setting up to do so. And when you move into narrative, one certainly does not find this AAR lacking. A great couple of reads. Keep at it.
 
Cornelius said:
Not to mention that the not-in-game pictures add greatly to the flavour of this story.
Thank you Cornelius, LewsTherin, Lort Gob, von Lippe and Vincent for lurking and commenting, as well as to my regular commenters, as always.

I'm glad you enjoy the photo/pics... I'm really glad, because I just spent 2 hours yesterday making extensive modifications to a famous sketch to fit with my story... I'll brag about it when the time comes. ;)

Additionally, I want to mention that the overland camelback assault on Aqaba was an homage to Lawrence of Arabia, which I hope you will take the time (4 or 5 hours, depending which version) to see... it's really worth it!

Rensslaer
 
Great set of updates Ren!

I thought that camal charge looked (read) familiar. :rolleyes: I agree, watching Lawrence of Arabia is well worth the time served! :cool:

Can't wait for the next set of updates.... question for you, game wise. How does the rest of Germany look at Prussia at this point.... and the rest of the Great Powers for that matter?
 
Offensive in Egypt: Phase Three

The third and final phase of the Prussian-Egyptian War came in the middle of 1854.

The first mainland operation from the Mediterranean involved landing Prussian infantry and cavalry under Generals Tegel and Haber at the mouth of the Nile. They first secured a bridgehead at Tanta, and then moved quickly south toward Cairo (al-Qahira), with cavalry leading and infantry staying to secure the territory. The Prussian Crown Prince, Friedrich Wilhelm, landed from the Red Sea at Sinai to blockade Egyptian forces moving south from the Levant and Palestine, and another small force landed on the Red Sea coast at Galala.

Friedrich Wilhelm’s Potsdam Guards and Sachsen Uhlan cavalry held off repeated attacks of varying degrees in the Sinai, allowing Tegel and Haber to continue their operations along the Nile unmolested. By the end of July, suffering greatly from the worst desert heat of the year, converging cavalry divisions fought off sporadic resistance to capture the Egyptian capital. However, owing to the continued efforts of Egyptian cavalry from Alexandria (where the Egyptian Caliph had fled) to disrupt Prussian operations, the region around the capital was not secured until a month later.

On July 17th, the southern engagement all had been dreading began. An estimated 130,000 Egyptian cavalrymen descended upon the fortified Prussian establishment along the Red Sea at Massaua. Forty-thousand Prussian and about 10,000 Russian infantry held the line for a month and a half while Prussian units in the north attempted to either defeat Egypt outright or offer support to the beleaguered defenders at Massaua. It became a race against time.

In August, Prussia’s first paddlewheel steam warship made an abortive attempt to drive marauding Egyptian ships from the Mediterranean. But despite raids that occasionally chased Prussian clipper transports away from their missions, by the beginning of September, Prussian troops ranged far and wide across most of Egypt – at Alexandria, at Oulad Ali, and north of Massaua, where General Tegel had been relocated to threaten the Egyptian cavalry investment.

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At the end of August, the few remaining Russian regiments offered their apologies to the Prussian commander and retreated to Yebuti. By the end of September, the Prussians also had taken too many casualties to maintain the line. But by that time, victory in the north seemed certain and negotiations had been underway with the Egyptian Caliph for two weeks. These faithful Prussian divisions received permission to retreat to defensive lines in Yebuti.

Inevitably, the Egyptians agreed to make peace on terms suggested by Prussia. They would pay substantial indemnity for three years, and agreed to cede two key provinces to Prussia: Massaua, which added to the already established Prussian territory at Yebuti, and produced valuable amounts of gold and silver, and Sinai (including the key port of Aqaba), which with the addition of a transport fleet in both the Red and Mediterranean Seas would completely eliminate the delay caused by rounding the Cape of Good Hope around Africa. King Wilhelm was satisfied with the deal, as he did not wish to further antagonize the world with the accumulation of more conquests that would not significantly aid the Prussian state.

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p.s. My next update (attn Draco! -- thanks for asking) will wrap up the Crimean War, give an update on conditions in Europe, and go on with the Prussian financial mess.
 
Your war in Egypt sounds very familiar - like every damn game I play in which I invade Egypt. They are some tenacious buggers. Nice job in the peace deal. Initially I was unsure why you chose Sinai, but you might have something there. Now if I could figure out how to trigger that canal event. :rolleyes:
 
Cornelius said:
Yea, I've noticed Prussian substantial negative Ind. power, which most certain comes from a quite BIG debt. :)
Well, you know, I was thinking... ;)

This is my first game, so I'm sure I've learned a lesson about all this. But through my unfortunate choices (all meant for the better of the nation, naturally) and my dumb misfortune, I find that I've been at war and maintaining full army maintenance for 120 of the past 230 months!

7 months for Madagascar, 34 for China, 14 for Peru, 28 for Austria (+1 for the French colonial war), 5 for Denmark (Denmark!!!), and 32 for Egypt.

Whereas full army maintenance seems never to be affordable, I think that's mainly how I've gotten so far in. I had no idea how long these wars would take... always longer than I'd meant them to!

My secondary problem, in between wars (and yet I persist), is in believing that I'm never going to get out of debt unless I go further into debt to improve my economy... or something like that. Darn it, I've been infected by "govthink"!!! This isn't my personal political philosophy, I swear it! :confused:

Rensslaer
 
Just caught up. A very good read as always. I don't envy you those money troubles.
 
Tour of Europe in the '50s

The Crimean War began relatively well for Russia. Within a year, she made inroads into Ottoman territory in both Europe and Asia Minor. By the middle of 1854, Russia had annexed Moldavia, and a year later she annexed Wallachia. Shortly afterward, Serbia signed a separate peace, and Russia was free to concentrate on Ottoman territory exclusively… at least until the British made landings in the Crimea.

But not all was well with the alliance. At the end of 1854, Russia’s ally Greece had suffered dearly at the hands of their traditional enemies, and in December they made a separate peace, granting a good portion of their remaining territory to the Ottoman Turks. Greece was being progressively pushed into the Aegean Sea.

greece.gif


The year 1856 was the final year of the war with England (which, as you can see in the graphic provided below, is the only world power who “showed up”). Russia made peace with Tuscany in January, with Spain in March, and, ultimately, with Britain in December. The treaty with the United Kingdom was harsh, but as you can see from the map (inset) Russia had not fared strongly against the Brits. Russia lost its entire colonial empire (Alaska, Ifni in Africa, Piura in Peru), as well as two provinces on the Baltic Sea.

A map showing the Russian peace settlement with the United Kingdom (see inset for a depiction of British conquests prior to peace):
ss141a.jpg


Interestingly, Alaska becomes a mere footnote to Canada:
ss145.gif


However, the concording of peace with Britain allowed Russia to refocus her attention on her original war aims – teaching the Ottomans a lesson. And France was not able to carry the Turks by themselves. In 1858, Russia made peace with France and the Ottoman Empire, where the Turks ceded three European provinces to Russia. This, in addition to the annexation of Moldavia and Wallachia, improved Russia’s position in the Carpathian region. Peace was not concluded with Sardinia until June.

At the beginning of 1856, portions of rebellious Ireland declared their independence from the United Kingdom. For the next year, these two willful powers fought it out, and in the end, England allowed freedom to but the lone province of Dublin on the Irish Sea, but independence, nevertheless. As noted, the British made peace with Russia at the end of that year, and then continued to pursue their ages-old conflict with China. Ultimately, the frustration of this war, and the endless casualties it inflicted upon both the personnel and the pride of the British Army got the better of them, and in January of 1859 the United Kingdom made peace with China, retaining only the province of Beihei (near Prussian China) and the island port of Hong Kong. This seems such a small benefit for a war that lasted nearly 20 years and surely cost hundreds of thousands of British lives (and countless more Chinese).

At the beginning of 1859, finally began the war that was put off in the 1830’s – the Ottoman Empire declared war on Egypt. The battles throughout Syria were indeterminate for some time.

During these years, romanticist art, music and literature flourished in Prussia, bringing much acclaim upon its talented artists and crowded operahouses. Many advancements were made in industry, medicine, and financial regulation, as well as a great number of improvements in military and naval technology and practices. For instance, the Potsdam Military Academy was founded, to help professionalize the Prussian Army, and Dr. Gregor Mendel proved what royal protocol officers have always known – that hereditary traits are passed on from generation to generation.

Some of the financial advancements were key in helping Prussia contend with her enormous debt. The debt was reduced over time from about 415,000 pounds to about 400,000 pounds. But then began another infrastructural building spree, and the debt began to build once more.

Between 1853 and 1858, Prussia undertook a massive railroad building enterprise, on the theory that it would not only aid in national defense and internal security, but also would make goods and products easier to transport and would therefore improve Prussia’s economy.

rail1858.gif


Prussian industrialists also built a new machine parts factory, expanded Prussia’s ammunition industry, and the government helped train farmers to labor in Prussia’s many new and existing factories.

And, last but not least, on May 19th, 1857, King Wilhelm I of Prussia proudly announced to the world that his son, the Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, would be wed to The Princess Royal Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa. The ceremony was performed at St. James Palace on January 25th, 1858. The Crown Prince was 26, the Crown Princess 17.