The HAARd Way - Friesland AAR

Thanks for voting all who did. I guess it’s understandable that people will vote less now that they know the AAR won’t last much longer. This is the penultimate chapter.

Chapter Nine: The Roman Wars Reach their Peak

The Frisian Assembly voted in favour of declaring war on Austria to defend Transylvania, however they did not call off the planned invasion of Britain. The intention was to deal with that quickly while holding the line against Austria before turning around and finishing them off. Burgundy, Denmark, Prussia and Silesia all followed Friesland as allied. They didn’t count on Rome though. Emperor Cafarelli had held off on honouring his alliance agreements with Austria until Friesland’s response came through. Rome joined the war on Friesland and its allies bringing the reborn Roman Empire to war with almost the entirety of mainland Europe.

Invasions


Early 1821, allied forces cross to Ireland

Heedless of events going on behind them, the allied forces of Friesland, Navarra and Brittany crossed the water and began to unload onto Ireland. The British fleet sortied and managed to achieve a few minor victories sinking some of the transports and their escorts but the numbers of the allied fleet were too great and the majority of the invasion force made it safely onto the Emerald Isle. Once ashore, it was easy to come into contact with local Irish partisans and deploy the armies to begin retaking the whole island.

The British armies already in Ireland were struggling with supply lines under constant threat by angry locals. They had been told that the fleet could protect them while they pacified the region, but they had a proper military enemy to deal with on top of that. An initial attack was rushed to the landing site, but was beaten back with help from the Irish partisans that already had a handle on the terrain of their homeland. The zone of allied control steadily expanded out from the beachhead and began to move across the island. The British were outnumbered and outgunned and would not be able to last long without reinforcement.


Early-Mid 1821, Transylvania conquered

Despite declaring war to help Transylvania, Frisian forces were stuck on the Austrian border and the Silesians and Prussians were too few in number to change the face of the war in a meaningful way. Adding another problem was the official entry of Rome and Illyria into the war opening a second front in the south of the country. Illyrian forces poured in and claimed the lands along the south that had significant Croatian minorities. The Transylvanian government surrendered within months and was completely absorbed into Austria and Illyria, who turned their attention north into Silesia.


Early-Late 1821, invasion of Burgundy

Rome had been preparing for the past year, leaving the Middle East to local forces and assembling every available Roman on the Italian Peninsula to make the final push to secure Western Europe for the Roman Empire. That time was now. Immediately upon entering the war, Roman forces poured across the Burgundian border and overwhelmed the defenders there. Immediately they began to push for Dijon to knock the Burgundians out of the war while keeping the south of the country out of their control to take advantage of the lack of cooperation between Burgundy and the whole peninsula of enemies sitting to their south.

The siege of Dijon began in June of 1821, with almost all Burgundian land to the south having already fallen. The fanatical defenders of the capital fought against every push in an effort to hold out until relief arrived from forces to the north. It wouldn’t be enough however, as the losses in the opening days of the campaign had broken more than half of the Burgundian army while leaving the Roman’s with the majority of their strength intact. Pleas were sent to Friesland to provide reinforcements, but they were ignored as every man was either holding the line against Austria in southern Germany or busy with the invasion. As 1821 came to a close, Dijon fell and Roman forces began their relentless march against the demoralised Burgundians. Their victory seemed inevitable.

The Wooden Wall Shattered


Early-Mid 1821, allied forces cross the Irish Sea

Ireland was completely secured by alliance forces within a matter of months, and preparations immediately began to follow up on this outcome. The plan was simple, cross the Irish Sea and land in northern England with the full allied force and newly raised and equipped Irish militia regiments. Britain had not suffered a full invasion in centuries so it was questionable how effectively they could fight a war on their own home soil. Their only hope was to stop the invasion, and the British Command knew that. Every single warship capable of floating was scrambled to the west coast to disrupt the crossing attempt.

The Battle of the Isle of Man was the decisive moment of the Irish War. The rag-tag assembled British Fleet, once again led by Admiral Nelson, engaged the Frisian and allied fleets as they attempted to seize the Isle of Man as a staging area for further incursions. The following battle was one of the largest since the Battle of Trafalgar, only this time the results were reversed. Assembled on such short notice, the British fleet had very poor organisation and could not stand up to the combined allied fleet. Admiral Nelson was hit by a sniper in the chaos and his fleet promptly began to break apart as his skill was all that held the disorganised elements together. The remains limped back to port and waited for the inevitable.


Mid-Late 1821, the London Campaign

Landings in the north of England were all well and good, but it wouldn’t be enough to declare complete victory over the British. The London Campaign was a dedicated effort to push for the British capital and force them to make peace. They were opposed by the remains of the British Army as well as a hastily assembled militia to make up for the gaps resulting from the loss of the forces in Ireland. Taking land was not the aim here, except to maintain supply lines, so Frisian armies marched south ignoring anything that wasn’t directly in their way. Basque, Breton and Irish soldiers held the supply lines, as well as engaging and blocking British forces from other regions of the Isles from interfering. London itself had no real fortifications, leading to the Frisian army marching directly into the city and up to the Houses of Parliament without being opposed in a meaningful way. While the King had already fled, the Prime Minister was more than willing to begin negotiations now that Frisians were on the streets of the capital.


Late 1821, British losses for peace

This was the largest defeat Britain had suffered in a very long time, and it showed it the resultant peace treaty. Wallonia was reabsorbed into Friesland, and the remaining British continental territory was annexed by either Brittany or Navarra. British South Africa once again came under Frisian control completely. Finally, the Ireland situation was solved in favour of the Calvinists and they were officially acknowledged as the true Irish nation. The Catholic now minority around Dublin would have to live with it. The war was over, and finally the war with Rome could come back into focus.

Iberian Counterattack


Late 1821, Navarra and Brittany declare war on Rome

Shortly after Britain’s surrender, Brittany and Navarra declared war on Rome. It was plain from the invasion of Burgundy that Rome intended to fulfil its designs to unite the old Empire with or without approval so they might as well join in the fight now. While they still had forces to bring home, they could deploy at least some assistance to the Burgundians to keep them from collapsing completely. There was also the matter of someone else coming to Burgundian aid.


Late 1821-Early 1822, Iberian forces join the defence of Burgundy

A wily Burgundian diplomat had, without authorisation from his beleaguered masters, worked to negotiate free passage treaties with all the nations of Iberia. Soon, Aragonese, Castillian and Portuguese armies were crossing the Pyrenees and marching into Burgundy. They ran directly into a number of newly raised Roman armies on their way to deliver the final blow to Burgundy and began to use the weight of numbers to push them back.

Further north, the Roman advance was forced to come to a halt as Burgundy’s newest allies advanced behind them. The city of Dijon was liberated, and it took all that the Romans had to keep themselves from being cut off completely. The war was far from over however, as Rome still had a qualitative advantage over its foes and Burgundy was close to collapse even with this rescue.


Early 1822, Basque and Aragonese colonial forces defend North Africa

Colonial forces coming in from West Africa were a welcome relief to the Muslim defenders who were doing everything in their power to halt the Roman advance. IT was truely a sign of the times that these two groups who would have been hated enemies in centuries past were now working together to take down a larger threat. Whether Christian, Muslim, or following the Cult of Reason, nobody wanted to see one man seize control of all of Europe.

The Northern Front


Early -Mid 1822, Austria and Illyria push into Silesia

Following the fall of Transylvania, a large consolidation effort began where loyal Austrian supporters from the last time the region was under their control were contacted and placed back into positions of authority in the new territories. Attempted insurgencies were brutally put down and the counterattacking Silesians and Prussians were easily held at bay due to their inferior forces.

This changed as winter began to thaw out in 1822. Support had still not come from Friesland to the opposite side of the front, so it was decided to go ahead with a full-scale invasion to knock these two nations out of the war before it could show up. Illyria led the charge, as Austria needed the forces elsewhere, and with superior numbers began to push back the counterattack and begin to make headway into Silesia proper.


Early-Mid 1822, Austrian and Frisian forces stalemate on the border

Friesland and Austria continued to fight bitterly on the south German border. Centuries of conflict had brought about deeply rooted hatreds on both sides that interfered with the normal running of a war. Neither side was willing to give any ground to the other, leading to massive battles where both sides would fight until total depletion. In such an environment, the slightly more numerous Austrian armies had the upper hand and were slowly gaining ground into Friesland. Things could very well be about to change however, as Frisian reinforcements were finally returning from the British Isles. The war was ready to enter its final phase.

Read more in the final chapter.

Rome and Austria have made tremendous gains so far in the war, but that could all be about to change. Our forces have returned from the invasion of Britain and are preparing to launch a counterattack. In what direction should we aim it?

Option A: Burgundy. We need to save our allies!
Option B: Austria. Let’s end this rivalry once and for all!
Option C: Eastern Europe. Illyria is the weak link in their alliance, so let’s break them first!

The Messenger: There will be one Epilogue. Ironically enough, it will actually be more or less the original epilogue I had planned before deciding to do this second part as an experiment. I guess my plans for the ending came full circle in the end.

Option B was picked, although all choices would have had similar though not identical outcomes. Thanks for voting and for all the compliments!

Chapter Ten: Finale

The End of Austria


Mid 1822, Frisian reinforcements arrive

It was decided by Frisian military commanders to direct the approaching reinforcements to the Austria front. The east wasn’t as important as Friesland itself, and Burgundy was covered by the massive variety of allies fighting there so it was decided to focus on this front solely before mopping up the remainder of the regions. The surge of fresh blood to the depleted armies of southern Germany proved a decisive factor, and the Austrian invasion was steadily pushed backwards in the advance.

Further east, a single Frisian army was deployed to assist the Silesians and Prussians in holding off the Austrian and Illyrian armies. It wasn’t enough to prove a decisive factor in victory or defeat, but it halted the enemy advance entirely in their tracks. Meanwhile, the arrival of reinforcements had drawn away a significant portion of the garrison forces in Transylvania, prompting several uprisings by partisans seeking to regain independence and sponsored by the government-in-exile.


Mid-Late 1822, the fight comes to Austrian soil

While the fight was slow going, over the following months Friesland was able to retake all the land lost in the last year and even encroach in Austrian land with its own forces. The Bavarian Alps were the first obstacle, especially as the sheer number of troops on both sides made the front look more like a single continuous line of battle rather than armies manoeuvring around each other as in days past. As the line moved forward, Austrian forces frantically constructed fortifications to hold the passes and slow down the Frisian advance further. The weight of the invasion could not be resisted however, and eventually the mountains were breached.


Late 1822, the end of Austria

By the end of 1822 the Austrian army had been effectively ground to dust from the sheer attrition of the battles with Friesland. It was not anywhere near as powerful as it had been in conflicts past so it did not have nearly enough manpower to match Friesland in a straight-up fight. Vienna was taken in a protracted battle with what remained of the Austrian army and the Austrian Assembly was arrested. Subsequently, it was announced that as the last remaining Germanic state outside of Frisian influence, Austria would be brought in a semi-autonomous part of Greater Friesland. This was the ultimate solution to the problem that Austria had presented to Friesland through the centuries. With a Frisian-friendly government installed and incorporation into the nation the Austrians would never challenge Friesland on the European stage ever again. The long rivalry was over.

Battle for Burgundy


Mid-Late 1822, battle in the Dijon Salient

The Iberian offensive to retake Dijon was a major risk, as with Roman forces continuing to swarm around the region they risked being cut off entirely and annihilated. However, the same could be said of the Romans as the advance force in north Burgundy was holding onto its supply lines by a thread. This lead to the Battle for the Dijon Salient as both sides attempted to surround the other a secure a significant victory that could determine the fate of the war.

It began with a major Roman offensive from both the north and south to cut off the Burgundian capital. However, that was countered by a concentrated counterattack against the southern attacking force from the defending force. In response to this, further Iberian forces were brought up from the southern front to reinforce the perimeter and prepare to push into the Lorraine and cut off the northern force. However, thinning the forces in the south allowed Rome to do the same and the situation was returned to a stalemate. It took the Frisian destruction of Austria to win the day, as in the dying days of an independent Austria Frisian forces that were determined to not be necessary in the final push were redirected to hit the Lorraine from the opposite direction. The region was retaken and a few weeks later the remaining Roman forces in the north surrendered.


Late 1822-Early 1823, Roman forces driven from Burgundy

With most of their army now taken prisoner, there was nothing the Romans could do except retreat in the face of a counterattack by effectively every nation in western Europe. The retreat to Piedmont came so suddenly that the anti-Roman armies actually had trouble keeping up with the fleeing Romans. This was very fortunate for Rome, as it gave a chance to assemble a defence in the foothills of the Alps. However, the fall of Austria opened up another front so there would not be nearly enough forces available to hold the invaders back forever.

Cafarelli’s Last Stand


Early 1823, Anti-Roman armies finally enter Italy

Frisian forces had rested during the winter to recover their strength after the fall of Austria, and now they were ready to resume the advance into Roman territory. Illyria was not considered to be as much of a threat, as they had taken severe losses when the liberation of Transylvania cut off a large portion of their troops in Silesia. The invasion of Italy, and the final downfall of the Roman Empire, could finally begin.

In the west, the combined armies outnumbered Roman defenders almost by an order of magnitude. One of the largest armies assembled in history was ready to knock on their door and they simply did not have manpower to resist it. For all the fortification work that had gone into the region, they could not cover every possible avenue of approach while their enemies had more than enough forces to probe every attack vector. Small breaches in the line ultimately lead to total collapse as forces began to pour through in massive numbers. One by one, the Roman armies began to surrender as they found their cause hopeless.


Early-Mid 1823, the march to Rome

The remaining Roman forces rapidly withdrew to defend the peninsula itself, where they could concentrate their forces. At the same time a full-scale draft was ordered by the Emperor. Without time to train, the draft amounted to handing newly developed rifles out en masse to every able-bodied man. These forces were intended to shore up the gaps in the lines of the remaining proper army divisions.

It all culminated in the Battle of Siena where the main force lead by Frisians met with the Roman soldiers and irregulars outside of the old capital as they made their way towards Roeme itself. The irregular forces determined the fate of the battle when a well-placed cavalry charge scattered them and sent a whole flank of the Roman army into retreat. Nothing stood in the way of victory.


Mid-Late 1823, Cafarelli surrounded

Rome fell shortly afterwards and the majority of the Roman army surrendered. It was not over yet, however, as Emperor Cafarelli took what remaining forces he had and began fleeing to Sicily. On the island he believed he could hold out for as long as necessary as any landings could be intercepted and there were enough resources there to continue the war without supplies. The alliance would eventually return to fighting amongst themselves that would be his chance.

All his plotting was for naught however, as he discovered the passage across the straits to Sicily were barred. Ironically his plan fell apart due to the smallest nation in Europe. The city-state of Venice declared war on Rome in the dying days of the war, freeing up the massive fleet of Frisian warships on loan to the city to actually deploy and assist the Iberians in hunting down and wiping out the Roman navy in a decisive battle. On top of all of that, Iberian forces were beginning to land on the Mediterranean islands and it appeared Sicily would be next.

Getting increasingly desperate, the Emperor ordered his troops to cross the strait. Many refused and turned to surrender to the enemies advancing behind them, but Cafarelli was determined to make it to Sicily which he saw as the one shining hope for his Empire. The Frisian Flagship People’s Hammer was the ship to end the Roman Empire once and for all, as it spotted his attempt to run the blockade with the remaining loyalists in commandeered merchant vessels. Cafarelli’s ship was hit in the powder magazine and exploded spectacularly, ending the ambitions of the Roman Emperor.

Aftermath


1824, the successors to Rome

Following the death of the Emperor, the remains of the Roman Senate unanimously agreed to accept whatever terms were laid before them by the alliance. First up was the dissolution of all imitation Roman offices, including the Senate. A proper Revolutionary Assembly was returned to Rome, staffed by old political enemies of Cafarelli who’d fled into exile during his purges. Revolutionary Italy was back (although not in the screenshot. Oops). The rest of the Empire was completely dismantled. Turkey, Greece, Palestine and Bulgaria were all granted independence while Castille regained the majority of its Middle-Eastern territory. The Mediterranean islands fell to Iberian control as reward for fighting Rome for so long and for everything that been lost. Friesland took political control of the Italian government for the moment, although the country would no doubt grow powerful enough to slip out of their sphere of influence eventually. Illyria was given a Frisian-friendly government but otherwise allowed to keep the majority of their territory besides Bulgaria.


1824, the world entering the Age of Industry

The Era of Revolution was over. Friesland and the other revolutionary states were once again playing the political game in Europe as a whole new era began. Industry, nationalism, imperialism were all coming into force in the world. The successes of the American Independence Wars were inspiring further revolutions elsewhere in the world, and Europeans were pushing deeper into Africa and Asia to compensate. One thing could be taken for sure. The world would never be the same again, but Friesland would be there to meet it head on as one of the dominant powers of the world.

The End.

Preview Part Four:

One of the key moments in the founding of our nation was the era of the Qasim Khanate. The Mongol Hordes were interested in creating vassal states out of the various Rus nations that existed in Eastern Europe, and decided upon installing an actual Islamic Rus Khanate in the region of Kasimov. This was decisive, as the Qasim Khanate was subsequently able to expand against the remaining Christian principalities with the sponsorship of their Mongol overlords and hired mercenary Serbian Knights, spreading Islam into the region as they moved forward. We can only speculate how history might have changed if the Mongols had not attempted to spread Islam into the lands of the Rus and our nation was founded by Christians.

Another major influence from that era that cannot be ignored was the pagan Finns to the north who...

-Excerpt from the winning essay in the Junior Rus History Contest, held during World History Month, May 1431 AH


Stay tuned for the epilogue and final preview!

dinofs: That's part of my way of thanking SK, since he's given me permission to use al-Rus in my next AAR if it comes up.

Epilogue:

Headquarters of the 28th Amsterdam Regiment
West bank of the River Havel, ten kilometres north of Berlin
May 14th 1942

The earth shook as another volley of shells fell around the encamped Frisian army with even more accuracy than the last. It was clear the Russians were zeroing in on their location, but they had no choice but to hold to the last. As the thunder of the artillery quieted one man could be seen poking his head over the top of the hillside trench with a pair of binoculars. From this vantage point he could clearly see the critical part of the battle.

“Damn, they’re across,” Colonel Martena muttered. Down below, Russian engineers had managed to assemble the bridge across the river and already tanks were crossing to reinforce the beachhead they’d achieved earlier in the day.

If only they had artillery, a stationary target in the open like that would be easy meat but for some reason Command had repurposed all artillery for the Battle of Berlin going on not so far away. It was if the lessons of the last Great War hadn’t been learnt at all. The upper echelons of command were still obsessed with a glorious decisive battle in a key political location, even though it had turned into a brutal street-by-street urban quagmire. It was costing them in the big picture, and things like this were the result. If the Russians managed to get a significant force of armour across the river then they could easily hit the supply lines into the city and cause the troops fighting there to run out of food and ammunition. It was a mess, and it could cost them the city.

Just then, something came screaming out of the sky and impacted the side of the Russian bridge directly. Tanks and halftracks were sent tumbling into the water along with their occupants. Shortly afterwards something else descended into the centre of an infantry column on the far banks sending an explosion of dirt and flesh into the air. Rockets! One after another, the volley descended onto the exposed Russian positions and tore a gaping hole in what was once a respectable attack force. Even as the Russians scrambled to cover and attempted to restore order to the attack force the treeline a few hundred metres down the river started to fold over to reveal Frisian tanks approaching at top speed with weapons blazing.

“Sergeant Hagedorn, are you watching this?” the Colonel called out. A moment later a man wearing a radio pack on his back made his way along the trench and lent on the edge along with his commander.

“Of course sir, I’ve always been watching,” the Sergeant responded with a smirk.

The Colonel didn’t seem to notice the odd phrasing and continued watching the unfolding tank battle through his binoculars. “Get the commander of that armour on the radio, now!”

As the Sergeant did so the battle continued below. The appearance of the Frisian armour following right behind the rocket artillery barrage had completely demoralised the Russian forces and many were already pulling back. The Frisian tanks moved rapidly to secure the far bank and ensure the destruction of the Russian bridge and any further bridge-building equipment. It all happened so fast, and as the Colonel continued to watch with fascination the Sergeant returned.

“I have the Lieutenant in charge on the line, sir.”

The Colonel took the mouthpiece and spoke into it. “What’s going on down there?”

“This is the commander of the 4th Frisian Panthers reporting, sir,” the voice of the Lieutenant came back over the line with the sound of grinding tank treads in the background. “We were dispatched by General Eelsma to assist in defending the river.”

“And thank the Revolution that you did, they could have made a real breakthrough here.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it, sir. Friesland has survived worse than this. We grew from a tiny Duchy, beat the Burgundians, beat the Austrians, tore down the Holy Roman Empire, stopped that Roman madman and won the last Great War. As long as people like us guard this country, we will not falter and this war will end in our favour.”

Listening to this, the Sergeant smirked again and turned around. The radio dropped to a table with a quiet clatter and the Colonel continued talking on it apparently under the impression that it had been placed there all along and there had never been a Sergeant Rainer Hagedorn at his side.

“Excellent work, I should recommend you for promotion once this is over...Lieutenant...?”

“von Holstein, sir. Lieutenant Hendrik von Holstein.”

Report End
Projector B532 ‘Rainer Hagedorn’, signing off
Disconnecting...

And there we have it, the end of Friesland’s story for good. I hope you all enjoyed reading this AAR and I also hope that you’ll be reading my next one starting sometime later this week. I was slightly disappointed that the quiet B-plot would never go anywhere as I discarded my idea for the next AAR that would have continued it, so I threw a few last bits of mystery in there. I might pick it up again later, but it won’t have any role in my next AAR. See you there.