The Chilean Rise to Power - An alt-histAARy

Part II: Preparing for the Worst​

"For the last year and 3 months your government has asked many things of Chile and her citizens. We stand at the brink of a conflict that could forever change the course of South American history. Our old rivals of Bolivia have shown us thier true nature, as they have bullied and threatened their Neighbors. Their Leader, German Busch Beccera, thinks he is exacting some sort of revenge against our great nation. But I know better, for while we are small by the standards of the Europeans and the Americans, I know that we are strong. Our Army..." President Pedra Aguirre Cerda paused and smiled to all of the soldiers of Chile's IIIrd Army Corps, lead by the able-minded General Fuentes Rabe, "Is the single most professional force in all of South America, and if Beccera and his communists think they can threaten the Democracy of this nation or any other," Cerda nodded to Paraguay's Ambassador, "They will be sorely mistaken. Chile's brave soldiers, you are our greatest defense against our enemies and I know that while the world may not be watching us now, they will be. Antofagasta will be ours again! If by reason or by force."

The Soldiers and Officers of the Chilean Third Corps cheered as President Cerda left the podium and presented it to General Rabe.

Cerda knew his speech would be heard in Bolivia and the rest of South America, Beccera would easily see it as an open threat to his territorial claims. But Chile hadn't spent the last year in preparation for nothing.

1939 was indeed a busy year, and Cerda had proven himself as a talented and able president of Chile, his approval rating was already the highest ever in Chilean history and dispite what Cerda had said in his speech, the world did indeed notice.

All of this was not possible though if it was not for his cabinet who had managed and rebuilt the country from the ground up.

The first thing they did was work to update and improve upon Chile's Mountain Corps, as their entire country was a vast mountain range, and they were not about to loose their reputation in having some of the best trained and equiped mountain troops in South America.

Many of Chile's commanders stated that with work they would be able to boast not only the greatest in South America, but the world. Cerda had his doubts, but it was a nice thought.

The second thing they researched was the possiblity of a Chilean air carrier.

Admiral De la Motte said that Great War Carriers were already obsolete and suggested further research before actually building one, however, one has to start somewhere. They also researched greater Destroyer tech and air carrier Doctrine. De la Motte insisted that he do the research himself.


Unfortunately, before further naval research could be done, news from the border stated that the Bolivians were already building up forces to the north.


It was immediately decided that despite Bolivia's new coastline, they would not be able to build a navy to compete with Chile's and attention was turned to production of more infantry divisions. And from there the 3rd Army Corps was created. The most important thing they would need that General Rabe insisted was that they would need to create a new mobile Headquarters to further organize Chilean forces against Bolivia.


The efforts in gaining Paraguay's Trust along with improving Brazilian relations have also gone very well.

On top of the continous courtship with Chile's Neighbors, Foreign Minister Tacomal suggested that Chile give Paraguay a continous number of supplies so that they could spend their severely limited IC on more important things.

This would also hopefully allow the people of Paraguay to last longer against a second Bolivian attack.

All was ready, or so President Cerda hoped as he left the base and entered the Presidential Limo, all he and the rest of Chile could hope for was that it would all be enough.
It was indeed a long year.

General_Grant said:

Viva Chile!

Small question:
ENDESA
_____________
Skill:14

What about it?

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It was a little something to even Chile's technological shortcomings with Bolivia beleive it or not. ( While playing with Bolivia i gave them tech teams with skills as high at the low forties.) So to help even things out i gave Chile a skill 14 naval tech team.

Hope that helps clarify things for you.

Part III: The Andes Erupt!​

3.1 Initial Successes​

The President's office was a frenzy, the entire cabinet excluding Admiral De La Motte and General Rabe was there. The only calm man in the room was President Cerda himself as he read over the reports. Beccera declared war. Not just on Paraguay, but Chile as well. This was indeed the worst case scenario, but there was a bright spot, Chile had 10 divisions at her disposal to send against the Bolivians.


F.M. Tacomal just put down a telephone and whispered to the president, "Paraguay accepts our offer."
"Beautiful, hopefully they will last long enough for our armies to connect."
"Hopefully, but I wouldn't hold my breath. They have only 3 militias and one permanent infantry division."


"Sir, we have news of Rabe's Army, they have invaded Antofagasta! " Rabe's stand-in Field Marshal Novoa Fuentes shouted over the commotion.

Everyone stopped. President Cerda was the first to speak, "Are they winning?"

Field Marshal Fuentes paused and returned to the telephone, "So far they have succeeded in their first engagement, the Bolvians are in full retreat he says."

There were sighs of releif around the room.

---

Three weeks passed as Cerda and his Commanders reviewed the data from the past engagements. So far so good was the mantra of the day as they read review after review.
While there was a minor defeat during the initial advance,

Antofagasta was infact finally reclaimed. Crowds of Chilean citizens trapped in Bolivian occupation cheered and greeted their Nation's grand army as they marched through the streets of the great port city.

In the city the Chilean naval intelligence officers and engineers discovered several incomplete Submarines in the new Bolivian naval base built near the city. Unfortunately, none of the subs were finished enough to be useful for the Chilean cause. But this did infact prove Bolivia's intentions of building a navy.

Amazingly, Chile was not the only Country to have early successes, Paraguay too managed to push Bolivian troops out of their territory as they managed to take back Asuncion.


Unfortunately, while things may have started well, there is always the chance for a sour turn of unexpected events...

chefportnen: Yes, I was surprised too! :O

Edge of a Knife: Actually, you can bring tech team skills as high as you want, and they actually do research faster accordingly. Just keep in mind, the higher the skill the more they cost. One time playing as Brazil I gave them a skill 98 Nuclear Tech team (for fun ) and discovered that they were costing me upwards of 30$ a day to keep running :X

son of liberty: The rest of the world has normal skill levels, and you will see that in the end, Bolivia's tech advantage doesn't amount to much.

rcduggan: Welcome to the AAR! And by the way, i love ur Nepal AAR, I'm still waiting for the Ranas to get kicked out once and for all.

son of liberty said:

So it is a fun game, not a serious one? That's cool, we all need some fun

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It is a fun game, but i would like to have a bit of a serious tone to it. Make no bones about it, a second Saltpeter War is on its way. Complete with all the drama of the last one.

I'm trying to put as much historical backbone into this "conflict" as i can. While at the same time adding my own artistic liberties.

btw, this is a an interesting article i found not long ago. Bolivia's Navy

Also, some historical background on the First Saltpeter War.
The First Saltpeter War

There is truely no love between Chile and Bolivia, then or now.

Part III: The Andes Erupt!​

3.2.1 It's Official! A Second Saltpeter War​

Europe was in a frenzy, Hitler's Nazi Germany had taken Poland and Norway. The Allies have suffered defeat after defeat as they tasted the fruits of their Treaty of Versailles. But there was another war raging. One that had been caused by conditions similar to that of the Great War.

In South America during the 1880s a war had been fought between Chile and the combined Allied forces of Peru and Bolivia, originally started as a territorial dispute between Chile and Bolivia, the two contries entered open combat resulting in Chilean victory against Bolivia and Peru. While Peru had done a large portion of the fighting, it was Bolivia that suffered greatest. Chile's Victory resulted in the gaining of Bolivia's only Coastal Region, Antofagasta. Peru too had been robbed of many of its national treasures, including many of thier books and charts from the Peruvian National Library.

The War ended much like World War I, with the Victor placing many unfair and restrictive terms on the losers. Peru was occupied for two years by Chile and had lost its small and agile fleet of two Second Generation Ironclads and smaller warships against Chile's older but larger navy. The Peruvian Ironclad "Huáscar" would be a legend of its time as the Chilean Navy spent six months hunting her down.

Bolvia though, would never again have a navy or a coast. And it was this that resulted in the hostile situation now. Beccera was determined restore his country's former territory. Of course, Chile would never stand for it.

Now it was 1940, 60 years later and once again Chile and Bolivia were at war, the Chilean Navy launched mobility campaigns and supply missions as troops steam rolled the Bolivian defenders. But dire news had just surfaced from the north. Peru announced to the world their intention of assisting Bolivia in restoring their borders. Now the Second Saltpeter war had begun.


Realizing that they would now have a threat from the sea to deal with, De la Motte assigned the Main Chilean Battlefleet a new mission; to find and intercept the Peruvian Navy. It would seem that history was repeating itself to the letter.

The Second Chilean Fleet would resume supply and fire support missions however. The Second Fleet commanded by Admiral De La Motte himself unfortunately was the first to encounter the Peruvian fleet of Two Heavy Cruisers and Three Destroyer Groups. It would seem that the "Huáscar" had been reborn with this new Peruvian fleet.
History would call the first encounter a Chilean victory as the Chileans managed to force the Peruvian fleet into retreat, however, it was also Chile that suffered the first losses, as a Second Generation Destroyer Group had been sunk by the Peruvian Heavy Cruisers.


Fortunately there was good news to be had on land. Cerda was pleased to learn from his Armaments Minister that research had been finished on 1939 level Infantry tech, and that the divisions currently in combat would be the first to be modernized. Research had also begun on a newer set of weapons and tactics however, as military planners anticipated a drawn out conflict.



Foreign Minister Tacomal's plan of bringing Brazil into the war was not going well unfortunately. He knew that Brazil would be wary of entering the conflict, dispite the lost Territory, as far as Brazil was concerned, Rio Blanco was untamed wilderness, and not worth the attention. Unlike Chile or Paraguay who had lost territory of considerable importance, this was not Brazil's case. And so as a result of Brazil's Strong Isolationist policies, the deal did not fall into Brazilian favor.

Part III: The Andes Erupt!​

3.2.2 Peru Relive's her Legacy​

Though the news in Brazil was bad, it was worse for Paraguay...


In an attempt to connect with the forces of Paraguay, General Rabe launched an offensive into the Bolivian Province of Sucre, speareheaded by two of Chile's Elite Mountain Divisions.

It was also in this battle that Bolivian troops proved their mettle in battle.
After the Mountain Corps arrived in Sucre, they were assaulted on all sides by Determined Bolivian troops. This war would indeed be more ferocious than the last.

In a desperate attempt to allow the forces of Lt. Gen. Danus Pena to escape alive. General Rabe launched a diversionary assault upon the capital province of La Paz. This unfortunately was not enough to stop the inevitable.



And, to add insult to injury, the Peruvian "Huáscar" fleet had delt another deadly blow upon the second Chilean fleet, it was indeed a deadly game of Cat and Mouse that so far Chile was loosing.

The battle was a resounding defeat, the only ships to survive were the two Submarine groups attached to the fleet. Admiral de la Motte was barely able to escape with his senior staff aboard one of the subs as his Light Cruiser went down with the rest of the destroyer groups. Casualties were relatively low however as the Peruvians were willing to take many of the surviving Chilean Sailors aboard.

President Cerda while not a military man, had none the less become very familiar with the tactics and strategies used by his commanders. But none of the thier advice or knowlege was necissary to tell Cerda that losing an entire fleet was bad news. He understood however that chances for a Chilean victory in the battle were small anyways, as it was later revieled that the Peruvians not only employed their powerful pair of Heavy Cruisers but also a full squadron of naval bombers. Not even the technologically superior Chilean destroyers groups would have been able to even those odds. It was a miracle the Admiral de la Motte was able to escape with his life.

But it was also the result of this battle that forced to Cerda to make the decision to pull De la Motte from the field and bring him back to the main headquarters.

The old Admiral entered the room with a somber expression and a heavy folder in his arms. Normally he would have had his Aids bring such material into the room, but his shame and guilt convinced him to present it in person. His resignation papers.

Cerda looked at the file and threw it into the waist basket. "Look, I know that you are ashamed of what happend three days ago, however, your leadership is still needed in the grand scheme, and I don't know enough about Naval Doctrine to make any intelligent decisions as to your successor or anyone else in the naval staff. However, I do think that we need to redesignate the second fleet, or rather what is left of it."

The last portion of the Presidents words stung like a hornet, "You are suggesting a change in mission?"

"Yes, and not just that, but I want to open a slot for a new second fleet. When this war is over, we will have a Carrier, trust me."

"What do you suggest we do with the current one?" de la Motte was puzzled.

"Who is our most experienced submarine commander?" Cerda inquired.

"I happen to know that Admiral Gustavo Silva has studied extensively in submariner tactics. I am certian that he would be perfect for a Submarine fleet." De la Motte suggested, "Am I right in assuming that you want to add our newest submarine squadron into this new fleet as well?"

"Yes, I think it would be a wise decision at this point."

"I will begin the reorganization right away." De la Motte stood, saluted and prepared to leave the room.

"Admiral." Cerda stopped him, De la Motte turned back, "We still need you in this war, those sailors will not be forgotten nor will they have died in vein."

The Old Admiral nodded and left the room. Now with a new sense of purpose. Chile would rebound from these setbacks. He immediately arranged to meet with General Rabe to set up a new strategy for victory.

son of liberty said:

Sounds like serious battle. What is your OOB?

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Ummm...
What does OOB mean??? I'm afraid i need to lurk more :wacko:

Part III: The Andes Erupt!​

3.3 Chile Strikes Back!​

General Fuentes Rabe looked over the battle field map laid ontop the makeshift table in the Headquarters tent. Antofagasta Province was a massive desert surrounded on all sides by the Andes Mountains. The Bolivians, like the Chileans, knew the mountains well and would use them to thier every advantage. The hard part he now learned was how to move the bulk of the Chilean Army up and through the difficult terrian, without being surrounded or routed. Beccera, to his credit, had spawned a skilled and determined fighting force. And now they had the Peruvian military to worry about as well.

So, needless to say, there was a lot on the General's mind. His subcommanders, Lt. General Danus Pena, and General Espinoza Mujica of the newly comissioned 5th Corps Mountain would be key in his new offensive plans and he needed them to be fully keyed into the task at hand.

Both Generals were highly experienced and skilled in Mountain tactics and Cold Weather fighting, they would instrumental if future victories were to be counted on.
Also with them was a Liaison Officer from Paraguay so that the Chilean plans could be relayed over to their Paraguayan allies. As they too would have a part to play.

"As we now know, our enemies of Bolivia and Peru are better trained and prepared than we originally imagined or predicted. Not only that, but our spies and intelligence officers have now surmised that we are in fact outnumbered outright by the Bolivians alone and not just the Peruvians." He paused and looked up to his commanders, they nodded in quiet agreeance, "However, we do have two advantages to aid us. One, we have a more modern force, thanks to the rapid modernization efforts from our industrial sector, we now have superior technology to our enemies. And two, we are still better trained than they are."
"Not to interupt you sir, but what you getting at?" General Mujica was growing impatient as anxiously waited to learn the Army Cheif's plans of attack.
General Rabe shot him an irritated glare and continued, "Our original plan was to take Sucre and use it as a stepping stone to take the rest of the Bolivian provinces, however, it seems the Bolivians are not very keen on our plans and have stopped us on every attempt to this point. However, intelligence reports have shown that they made a critical error in strategy."
"That being?" Asked the Paraguayan officer.
"They have moved a total of six divisions into Sucre, leaving their Capital of La Paz with only a total of 2 divisions defending. I beleive that if we launch two simultaneous attacks, one being the main push towards La Paz, and the other against Sucre. The Bolvians will hopefully assume that we are trying to retake Sucre again. However, with this HQ here supporting you, General Pena, and a small attachment of regular infantry, we should be able to take and hold the Capital." Rabe paused, and Lt. Gen. Pena raised his brow and nodded.

"Sounds to be a good plan," he said, "however, what of the attack on Sucre?"

"I am glad you asked," General Rabe turned to General Mujica, "General, I need your 5th Corps to lead the charge on Sucre on your own, if you succeed in routing the Bolivians there, i want you to keep and hold that territory for as long as you can until our reserve divisions arrive there from Santiago. There, the Cavalry division attached to you will detach and connect with forces from Paraguay in a second offensive against Asuncion, from Santa Cruz. The land there is flat and ideal for Cavalry and standard infantry, so they should do well to assist the Militias from Paraguay."

The two mountian commanders nodded aprovingly and stopped, "What of the Headquarters Corps? Will your forces be following our paths or will you be taking a different route?"

"My command will be moving northward to confront Peru's forces in Arequipa. Lt. Gen. Pena's troops will be supporting us there as the Ande's also dominate the landscape there."

With all of the operation's details fleshed out, the four officers returned to their seperate commands and prepared for the coming storm, and with it a total victory.

--------

The rest of the Cabinet was informed of the operation and President Cerda gave the go-ahead.

If this war hadn't gather the attention to the countries fighting the world war before, it would now. As Chile's commanders were about to show their qualities.


General Mujica completed his assault at the same time as the attack on La Paz, unfortunately, the attack was more of a change than predicted, even for his seasoned and well equipped Mountain Divisions, but dispite being outnumber, he had indeed managed to rout Bolivia's defending forces.

Bolivia's supply lines were in disarray since the two pronged attack took place, and as a result all of Beccera's divisions were without ammunition and food. All major roads and rail were cut as Chilean troops marched through the Bolivian countryside.
Peru, dreading another defeat attempted a meager peace offering. This act of cowardice from Bolivia's supposed allies shocked even President Cerda who had only recently gotten over the defeat of Chile's Second fleet. When the offer reached the Chilean senate the idea of the country that had so mauled such a decorated fleet was now so willing to give up offended their very inner being. Refusal to such a gutless request seemed only natural to the Chilean Government. Peru would not receive such an easy way out.


Dispite Peru's early vote inconfidence, the Bolivian army was not about to give up just yet, as Beccera launched a counterattack and momentarily retook the capital. But the victory was short lived as Lt. General Pena returned again with a new sense of purpose.



Phase I of General Rabe's plan now completed Phase II was able to commence and as predicted, the flat terrain of Santa Cruz made taking the province a simple task. All forces were now in place.


General Mujica out of his own initiative, felt it was necessary to further cut off Bolivia's supply lines and attacked the Province of Riberalta.
At the same time, forces in Santa Cruz encountered a farce of an event as they had encountered Beccera's Mobile HQ trapped within Asuncion , as they were attempteding to break through the line there and link up with forces in Riberalta. The Cavalry and Infantry unit there routed Beccera's HQ and counterattacked, with the help of Paraguayan Militia Divisions. It resulted in a total victory with Beccera himself captured. (Writer's Note: Sorry I didn't take a screenshot of this, in hind sight I really wish I had as it was extremely hilarious to see a lone HQ trying to fight off three militias, a 1939 INF Div, and a Tech2 Cav Division!)

Shortly after, the victory in Riberalta was also achieved. (Suprisingly it was not Bolivian commanders defending the possition but rather those of Peru. Perhaps that was why they were so easily defeated?)


With the campaign in Bolivia complete General Rabe himself was able to launch his assault upon the Peruvian Province of Arequipa. The forces there were easily defeated.


With the victory at Arequipa and Asuncion, the people of Chile and especially Paraguay were ellated. When Paraguayan troops finally linked up with the Chilean Santa Cruz force, there was much celibration between the two armies, truly a grand day for the alliance.


With the Paraguayan retaking of Asuncion, all of Bolivia's key provinces were under allied control. Bolvia was finished and officially out of the war.


--------

Bolivian troops still loyal to Beccera's cause sided with Peru's remaining forces and reinforced Peru's existing holdings.

Bolivia may have been defeated, but the war was not yet over...