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I modified one of Allmy James's Flags and used Chris's most recent crest for Mary to make a two other possibilities:
Thanks, everyone, for waiting patiently and also for the many wonderful suggestions regarding the Union Flag!
No downer at all, CJL. Personally I am amazed (though grateful) that Byzantium has not had a single revolt event ever since the beginning of the PU. Meanwhile, places like Malta and Scotland (and even Gibraltar, still) have a flare-up every 5 years, at minimum. If it were possible for France to have demanded an end to the PU in the 1476 peace negotiations, I am sure they would have done so (and I would surely have accepted rather than lose Gascony).
But, the game is what it is. :wacko: In gameplay terms I chalk BYZ's relative quiet up to granting the religious and political autonomy events... and in roleplay, I guess a real-life Byzantium under English rule would probably be happy if—as I have done—ENG leaves them to their own devices but does flex military muscle when the Turks get involved.
Thanks, and welcome aboard!
:rofl: Hadn't thought of that at all until you mentioned it... the People's Democratic Republic of Britannia Major and Nova Roma. By the way, Mr. Capiatlist, thanks for the running the ACAs. First-class job and it's a great pat on the back to many terrific authors.
As far as the flag goes, I think my personal favourites are robb1993's idea (Union flag with CoA in white circle), c0d5579's idea (Union flag with Byzantium B's in each quarter), AllmyJames' first concept (1707 Union Flag with gold Byzantium cross as outline to cross of St. George), and thekonkoe's first concept (1707 Union flag with gold Byzantium B's on each arm of St. George's cross).
I'm still thinking about what form the Union flag will take—but I can't say any more about it for fear of delving into spoiler territory.
This is also a good time to mention that minefield has done some truly stellar work creating wonderful Victoria 2 and EU3 flag packs. They'd be a fine addition to anyone's V2 or EU3 game, and I've incorporated the EU3 pack into the AAR (though you will not see them start to appear in screenshots until the early 1500s, as that's what I have played up to).
Here's an example of comparing some default EU3/MMU flags (with their super-bright primary colours) to those from minefield's pack. The last one is my ENG rework for the AAR, using minefield's flags as a base.
Let me also offer thanks to everyone who voted for this AAR in the ACAs. I didn't win the history-book category, but regular reader and author gabor did! His Single Men - Holy See MMU AAR is a worthy winner—a terrific read that also explores a lot of the Dei Gratia / MMU Catholic religion events. It can be an eye-opener if you (like me) have never really messed with playing the Papal States in MMU. Check it out!
Now, a bit of bad news: I'm probably still a day or two away from posting an update, but I will leave a semi-spoiler here for you to ponder!
...As for the gameplay... wholly disappointing that England could not hold onto Gascony, take Paris, or expand into Flanders
(I know, I'm a downer)
No downer at all, CJL. Personally I am amazed (though grateful) that Byzantium has not had a single revolt event ever since the beginning of the PU. Meanwhile, places like Malta and Scotland (and even Gibraltar, still) have a flare-up every 5 years, at minimum. If it were possible for France to have demanded an end to the PU in the 1476 peace negotiations, I am sure they would have done so (and I would surely have accepted rather than lose Gascony).
But, the game is what it is. :wacko: In gameplay terms I chalk BYZ's relative quiet up to granting the religious and political autonomy events... and in roleplay, I guess a real-life Byzantium under English rule would probably be happy if—as I have done—ENG leaves them to their own devices but does flex military muscle when the Turks get involved.
Thanks, and welcome aboard!
:rofl: Hadn't thought of that at all until you mentioned it... the People's Democratic Republic of Britannia Major and Nova Roma. By the way, Mr. Capiatlist, thanks for the running the ACAs. First-class job and it's a great pat on the back to many terrific authors.
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As far as the flag goes, I think my personal favourites are robb1993's idea (Union flag with CoA in white circle), c0d5579's idea (Union flag with Byzantium B's in each quarter), AllmyJames' first concept (1707 Union Flag with gold Byzantium cross as outline to cross of St. George), and thekonkoe's first concept (1707 Union flag with gold Byzantium B's on each arm of St. George's cross).
I'm still thinking about what form the Union flag will take—but I can't say any more about it for fear of delving into spoiler territory.
This is also a good time to mention that minefield has done some truly stellar work creating wonderful Victoria 2 and EU3 flag packs. They'd be a fine addition to anyone's V2 or EU3 game, and I've incorporated the EU3 pack into the AAR (though you will not see them start to appear in screenshots until the early 1500s, as that's what I have played up to).Here's an example of comparing some default EU3/MMU flags (with their super-bright primary colours) to those from minefield's pack. The last one is my ENG rework for the AAR, using minefield's flags as a base.
Let me also offer thanks to everyone who voted for this AAR in the ACAs. I didn't win the history-book category, but regular reader and author gabor did! His Single Men - Holy See MMU AAR is a worthy winner—a terrific read that also explores a lot of the Dei Gratia / MMU Catholic religion events. It can be an eye-opener if you (like me) have never really messed with playing the Papal States in MMU. Check it out!
Now, a bit of bad news: I'm probably still a day or two away from posting an update, but I will leave a semi-spoiler here for you to ponder!
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Is Juana repeating the exploits of her English counterpart and interfering in Greece? Or is she dead, I can't remember. Having that in the corner though would be odd.
Yes! Nice teaser, and I'm glad you're still playing this! I'm looking forward to the update.
Of the three flags that All My James made, I like the middle one best. Red, gold and white- imperial colors. Colors of England and Romanion. And allows for Communist jokes.
In Soviet Byzantium Patriarch is politically ruined by you!
In Soviet Byzantium Patriarch is politically ruined by you!
If Castille is fighting the Ottomans, wouldnt that allow for another English crusade? The Ottomans will not be better at a two front war then anyone else
Presumably such a war would enlarge the Greek holdings, how would that be justified at Home when France continues to pose such a threat and England still seems somewhat weary of war. No longer does the ruling monarch feel the same level of connection to Rome as Jane did, though William may give us a surprise.
Well, theoretically speaking, an enlarged Byzantine holding in the East would allow the English to take their eyes off of Byzantium far more often without worries of the Ottomans overrunning the territory. Besides that, an enlarged Byzantium could be favorable to England as far as special trade rights are concerned for rare eastern goods.
Also, an enlarged Byzantium could provide a larger navy and army for not itself, but for England as well. After all, if they have enough troops and ships to spare without worrying about the Ottomans pouncing (much like how the English felt about their wars and France) we could see Greeks making landings in Southern France should England ever see fit to retrieve its rightful continental holdings. We can't just let Armagnac sit there with our cores and no French cores, now can we?
Also, an enlarged Byzantium could provide a larger navy and army for not itself, but for England as well. After all, if they have enough troops and ships to spare without worrying about the Ottomans pouncing (much like how the English felt about their wars and France) we could see Greeks making landings in Southern France should England ever see fit to retrieve its rightful continental holdings. We can't just let Armagnac sit there with our cores and no French cores, now can we?
The AI seems to have figured that out, too.
The Ottomans will be at war with a lot of Europe in the very near future.France has acquired some infamy in the meantime which may slow down their compulsion to re-acquire certain English-held cores.
Very true. My long-term goal for Byzantium has always been to have them develop a self-reliant military capability. And also to stop being a drag on my admin efficiency.
Absolutely not!
XVI. William III Lancaster - 1483-1488: Early life of William of Raglan ~ The New World ~ An Emperor Deposed
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Capitulum XVI.
In cities, mutinies; in countries, discord
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A TENERIS UNGUICULIS
Capitulum XVI.
In cities, mutinies; in countries, discord
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A TENERIS UNGUICULIS
Prince Wilhelm von Habsburg-Lancaster was born at Raglan Castle in 1445, the eldest son of then-Princess of Wales Mary of Lancaster and her Austrian husband, Count of Gorizia Maximilian von Habsburg. The arrival of the young prince was followed a few years later by sisters Katharina (born 1447) and Cecilie (born 1449). Early life for the Habsburg-Lancaster brood was somewhat tumultuous, as the Princess and her husband were vastly different personalities—hard-pressed to live amicably under the same roof even in the happiest of circumstances. By 1451, his parents' squabbles had developed into full-blown screaming matches—some of which played out in front of shocked aristocrats, courtiers and foreign dignitaries. The worst of these violent clashes sometimes involved the children themselves, with an enraged Maximilian bellowing and hurling books, toys—whatever was at hand—at his squalling, terrified offspring.
From the age of 6 onward, Prince Wilhelm rarely saw his father—who had in fact moved into separate lodgings—but he gained a kinder, gentler stepfather in Baron Hugh de Camoys, who became an increasingly frequent visitor to Mary's household at Eltham Palace. Camoys—a veteran of Gascon campaigns and a hazardous posting in Gibraltar—did all he could to instill martial values in the future king, but the shy and introverted boy had little interest in them. He had some aptitude for the political theories and statecraft of the age; but trying to assimilate a working knowledge of the laws, customs and traditions of England, Scotland, Ireland, Greece, Normandy and Gascony would have been taxing to even the most diligent student-at-law. A dismal lack of academic progress forced Wilhelm to recognise that he lacked the inclination (and possibly the ability) to master certain subjects, so the prince thought he might compensate by focusing his energies on analysing and evaluating people instead. A king didn't have to know every minute detail of policy so long as he could call upon some honest learned person that did; therefore it was equally important to be a good judge of character.
The years in the Camoys-Lancaster household were a welcome respite; at last Wilhelm and his sisters knew domestic tranquility. Even Maximilian's tragic death in a hunting accident could not disturb it, for lingering memories of their father's terrifying rages smothered any residual sympathy and filial piety. To keep their place in the line of succession, the family anglicised their names and swore an oath of abjuration—thereby assuring both Parliament and Austria's new Ascanian dynasty that they would never press any claim on Maximilian's former holdings.
As the prince entered his twenties, pressure mounted for him to make an advantageous match with a foreign princess; certainly this would have been Queen Jane's preference. But the Princess of Wales—having experienced the "blessings" of political matchmaking—interceded on her son's behalf, and was eventually able to secure an unprecedented dispensation from the Queen. Mary's offspring (now known as William, Catherine and Cecily) would be permitted to marry spouses of their own choice, political considerations notwithstanding. Thus in 1467 the 22-year-old William became England's first future monarch to marry a commoner—taking as his bride the 16-year-old Eleanor Wydeville, 10th child of Richard Wydeville, Baron Rivers.
Earliest surviving portrait of Prince William of Wales and Eleanor Wydeville, some years after their marriage.
By all contemporary accounts, William and Eleanor had a strong and successful marriage, their union yielding four children: Henry (born 1469), Edward (born 1471), Margaret (born 1473) and Richard (born 1475).
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Upon Mary's coronation in 1477, the 32-year-old William is created Prince of Wales and nominated as the junior co-Emperor. But despite a promising start, the Privy Council and Parliament soon become concerned by her increasingly erratic behaviour. Under the medical science of the day the Queen is diagnosed with a form of madness (what today's physicians would likely call Alzheimer's disease or senile dementia). By the winter of 1479, it's clear that the 62-year-old Mary is no longer capable of carrying out the duties required of a monarch; from then on the government is conducted in William's name as Prince Regent.
Though still an extremely shy and private person, William's strong sense of duty keeps him active and interested in the duties of state. A key part of those duties is interaction with many courtiers, diplomats and aristocrats, something he was always uncomfortable with in his youth. By December of 1483—when he finally succeeds to the throne in his own right—King William III has managed to acquire a veneer of ease and grace in social situations, surprising many foreign observers.
Court of Love from Poems; Art d'amour; Les demandes d'amour; Le livre dit grace entiere sur le fait du gouvernement d'un prince, Charles, Duke of Orléans, late 15th c. (left)
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Like most of his forebears, William III understands that domestic and international commerce are the lifeblood of his realm. An increase in trade means greater revenue from taxes, and additional tax income can be used to strengthen the civil and military sinews of the kingdom. Above all else, the King-Emperor desires a prolonged interval of peace and prosperity for his subjects (and naturally, for himself). After meeting extensively with the Lord High Treasurer, senior bureaucrats and merchant burgesses from Parliament, William and his council do their best to craft a mutually beneficial policy.
The Money Changer and His Wife, Quentin Matsys, 1514 (left).
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On March 8th of 1484, Castille concludes a five-year-long war with neighbouring Aragon—leaving the Catalan realm a broken shell of three disconnected provinces. Aragonese allies France and Lorraine sign a separate treaty the following day and agree to pay war reparations. Castile's ability to engage France in a protracted war and emerge victorious is yet another sign of the Iberian kingdom's ascendancy in the geopolitics of western Europe.
If that portent were not enough, the Canary Islands return to Castile's embrace the following month, after a long and successful rebellion against their former Portuguese masters. It is one of many African disappointments for Portugal, who also lost Oran and Gabes to rebellion in the previous two decades.
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Later that summer, a diplomatic row erupts between England and its former Gascon territory when the Count of Armagnac, Charles I d'Anjou, attempts to unilaterally assume the higher title of duke. London's ambassador testily replies that there is already a duke whom the count ought to recognise as his liege—William III, King of England and Duke of Aquitaine. The high-handed English response gets the ambassador expelled from Bayonne and also harms relations with France and Castile, who are alarmed by the revanchist attitude on display.
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THE THIRD WAR OF PAPAL AGGRESSION
Ever since they conquered the bulk of central and southern Italy in the early 15th century, a succession of popes have been suspected of harbouring greater territorial ambitions. Fears of further papal expansion are realised in late July of 1485, when Rome overreacts to a minor diplomatic gaffe by Lorenzo de' Medici, Gonfaloniere of the Florentine Republic. Soon Pope Celestine VI draws his allies Brittany and Sicily into a fratricidal war against Florence (Tuscany), Ferrara, Naples, Savoy and Venice.
King João III of Portugal roundly criticises the invasion, and in so doing earns a bull of excommunication that September. With its network of military alliances Portugal is not in any danger, though its diplomacy does suffer in the short term. England's William III tries to walk a fine line between supporting his ally and giving due deference to the Pope. He refuses to cut off relations with the Portuguese king but also declines to criticise the Pope's unwarranted aggression, angering both Rome and Lisbon. (Relation between Portugal and England changed by -25, relation between the Papal State and England changed by -50.)
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FINIS AMORIS UT DUO UNUM FIANT
FINIS AMORIS UT DUO UNUM FIANT
In 1484 William's eldest son Henry reaches the age of majority, and English ambassadors search the courts of Europe for a potential bride of suitable age and dowry. Traditionally, consorts tended to be drawn from the near abroad—France, Castile, Aragon and Portugal—depending on which nation held the balance of power in western Europe (and which neighbours sought to befriend or restrain it). Queen Jane's wars with Aragon, Castile and France had for the most part soured relations with those realms, while the princesses of Portugal were much older and already married. Lancastrian rule at home and in Byzantium is thought to be quite secure, therefore a purely domestic match is considered unnecessary. Relations with Austria have cooled noticeably since 1475, when the Emperor sent a token force to the French and Castilian wars but simultaneously demanded English assistance against the Turks. In fact ever since the Ascanians supplanted the Habsburgs as Austria's ruling dynasty, the archduchy has looked less and less like a continent-bestriding imperial power and more like a minor petty dukedom that needs to be saved from its own worst impulses. The Ascanian candidate is a beautiful and highly accomplished daughter of Emperor Ferdinand II, but William III cannot master his petty dislike of her father and refuses to give his consent. To appease the Austrians, she is instead promised to Henry's younger brother Edward.
There was another candidate, Christina Christiansdatter—youngest sister of Denmark's King Frederik I Gryf—and initially she was considered something of a long shot. After the 1434-37 and 1448-50 wars, Denmark and England had eventually reached a grudging modus vivendi. Despite plenty of hard feelings on either side, relations could never be allowed to get too frosty. English trade depended on Danish goodwill to transit the Øresund and reach Hansa ports in the Baltic; while Danish trade depended on English goodwill to make safe passage past the British Isles, to enter the Mediterranean via Gibraltar, and to travel overland into Asia via Constantinople. By 1484 the parliaments of both realms could certainly see the economic advantages of such a match, though neither particularly desired the other as a military or diplomatic ally. The proposed betrothal thus lurched through a year of diffident and recalcitrant negotiations, until—to the surprise of the English Privy Council and Danish Rigsraadet—all of the objections, concerns and conveniently manufactured impediments had been dealt with to the satisfaction of both countries. All that remained was for the lords of England and Denmark to assemble at the Abbey on a cold November morning, offer their foreign counterparts smiles and insincere pleasantries through gritted teeth, and finally see the prince and his princess exchange vows.
Henry of Raglan, Prince of Wales and Christina Christiansdatter were married at Westminster Abbey on November 2nd, 1485.
Fortunately, the reluctance of the councils did not extend to the couple themselves. For her part, the teenaged Christina had accepted the betrothal in good grace—for few noble women would look askance at being the future queen and empress of a large and prosperous realm. The 16-year-old Henry seemed genuinely fond of his new wife, though he tended to be—like most young men his age—fond of any young woman willing to laugh at his jokes, sigh at his awkward poetry, and indulge in a few minutes of pleasant conversation.
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FACILIS DESCENSUS AVERNO
FACILIS DESCENSUS AVERNO
The Holy Roman Emperor's defence of Moldavia is anything but pleasant—and has in fact turned into the most disastrous defeat ever inflicted upon Austrian arms. Over the past decade, the Ottoman aggressors have won most of the engagements they've fought against Imperial armies, killing or capturing tens of thousands of Christian soldiers. Every family in the archduchy—from the grandest noblemen to the meanest serf—has lost several friends and loved ones to the war, and both manpower and morale are suffering grievously. The war has made a mockery of the Emperor's pretension to be the guardian of Christian Europe, but despite horrific casualties Archduke Ferdinand II is determined to fight on. Thirty years ago England fought Turkey to a draw with far fewer men and horses, and no Ascanian archduke—backed by the wealth and power of the Holy Roman Empire—can fail to do at least that much.
The problem is that after ten years of war (and Ferdinand's incompetent leadership) neither the archduchy nor the Empire have any more wealth or manpower to offer. Austria's treasury is all but empty; likewise the reserve levies. Wives who bid goodbye to their husbands and eldest sons a decade ago now find sergeants arriving to conscript their elderly fathers, grandfathers and youngest sons. Even the blind and the lame (whether high-born or low) are not exempted, for by Ferdinand's reasoning they can absorb the enemy's arrow or lance just as well as the able-bodied.
The Imperial Council suggests a negotiated end to the conflict, and is even prepared to grant major concessions—but Emperor Ferdinand flatly refuses to entertain the idea. In the face of increasing civil unrest the Council's suggestions harden into demands, but still Ferdinand is unmoved. Soon the Austrian lords and commons start to wonder if they are in the grip of a madman—willing to sacrifice the very survival of his realm in the pursuit of a singular, unattainable vision.
Finally, in April of 1486, the simmering discontent explodes into open rebellion and strident calls for Ferdinand's deposition.
Led by Franz Zwerger, Prince-Bishop of Seckau, the rebels quickly overpower the garrisons in Upper Austria, Lower Austria and Styria. Ferdinand is relatively secure in his palace on the Danube's western bank, but rebels are rapidly investing the eastern half of Vienna. A few weakened loyalist armies attempt to regroup in Cilli (Celje), but have not recuperated enough to challenge the revolters. Out of all the imperial allies and client states, only the King of Bohemia sends forces to try and relieve the Ascanian Emperor. Ferdinand's ally in London is, for the moment, quite silent.
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To the east of beleaguered Austria lies the Magyar kingdom of Hungary, and the Hungarians are not at all sorry to see their neighbour so humbled. Fourteen years ago Hungary attempted to defend the Republic of Venice from Austrian predation, but was defeated and subsequently fragmented by her foe. Over the past decade Hungary's king has worked to recover his lost territories and, for the most part, has succeeded in doing so.
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Closer to home, the populace of the Irish archdiocese of Cashel is displeased by the prolonged absence of their Archbishop (an Italian who concurrently holds senior Curia offices in Rome). The archbishop's deputies are local men, but they lack sufficient ecclesiastical training and often introduce errors into the liturgy and mass. Repeated pleas to return issue from the Munster gentry, but they are ignored—as are several admonishing letters from the Lord Deputy of Ireland. In the spring of 1486, London makes official note of its displeasure via a direct protest to Rome.
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November of 1486 is a particularly active month in the annals of European military history. On the 9th, Archduke Ferdinand II is finally forced to concede defeat in the disastrous war with the Ottomans. To placate the victorious Turks, Moldavia is forced to cede the province of Budjak, while Austria releases Luxembourg and pays an indemnity of 10 million ducats.
Pope Celestine VI's war with the minor Italian states has also gone badly. Papal-held southern Italy is in the process of being has overrun by Neapolitans; Savoyards have captured the Dauphiny; and Florentine/Tuscan troops have captured Romagna. On November 21st, the Papal State cedes Romagna to its conquerors (though the province will be returned one year later under threat of excommunication).
Castile's House of Trastámara has learned well from the examples provided by its English and Austrian rivals. The English Crusade of 1456-57 did much to elevate the prestige of the Lancaster dynasty (especially in the Balkans) while the calamitous defence of Moldavia has had the opposite effect on the House of Ascania. Significantly, English control of Malta can also allow it to interdict the flow of trade to and from the Near East, if required. Castile must therefore gain a foothold near Malta in order to counterbalance the English port. And if in the process the Trastámaras can credibly claim to be Europe's new guardians—and possible contenders for the Holy Roman crown—so much the better.
In the autumn of 1486, Castile and its ally Burgundy embark on a crusade against the Turk.
Unlike the Austrians, the Iberians fight shrewdly in their initial engagements. The large and powerful Castilian navy easily outclasses the Ottoman fleet, and they are able to destroy all but a handful of Turkish warships during a cataclysmic battle in the Aegean Sea. Having established local naval supremacy, the Castilians then land troops in Corfu and Epirus—which are cut off from Ottoman attack by Byzantine territory and a lack of surviving Turkish transports. The Ottoman Sultan is caught by surprise, with the bulk of his forces still on the western coast of the Black Sea—marching home from the occupation of Wallachia and Moldavia.
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DE ORBE NOVO
DE ORBE NOVO
In the 13th century most of central Asia was controlled by the Mongol Empire, and the pax Mongolica ensured that European traders enjoyed a relatively safe land passage (known as the Silk Road) to India and Cathay. With the rise of the Ottoman Turks and fracturing of the Mongols into competing successor states, the land route to Asia suddenly became much more difficult and dangerous. Seafaring nations—who had the wherewithal to avoid the hazardous land route—sought to gain a competitive advantage by sailing to Asia instead.
Above all other nations Portugal was instrumental in finding a sailing route to the Far East, pioneering an impressive era of exploration in the mid-15th century. In the late 1450s, Portuguese navigators were edging down the coast of western Africa; by the mid-1460s they had rounded the Cabo da Boa Esperança (Cape of Good Hope) and entered the Oceanus Orientalis; by 1473 a hardy few had established a small trading colony—known as Goa—on the western coast of the Indian subcontinent. This eastern Indies route was of course dominated by Portuguese ships and merchants, which could hardly be a boon to the coffers of other maritime nations. Some foreign sailors—such as Cristoforo Colombo of Genoa—thought a shorter and more direct route lay to the west across the Oceanus Occidentalis.
In the 3rd century BC, Greek polymath Eratosthenes of Kyrene had calculated—via an amazing feat of geometry and extrapolation—that the circumference of the Earth was 252,000 stadia. But by the 15th century it was uncertain whether Eratosthenes had used the Attic or Egyptian stadion in his calculation, and whether subsequent astronomers (such as the Persian Alfraganus) based their circumference estimates on the Arabic or Roman mile. This uncertainty meant that there was ample debate about the true size of the Earth, and Colombo's reckoning (which assumed shorter units of measurement) suggested that the western route would be the quickest. He planned to equip three sturdy carracks, sail westward from the Canaries, locate a western route to the Orient, and return in one year's time.
Finding a monarch to fund this western expedition was no easy task, for the prevailing opinion amongst the experts of the day was that it would in fact be longer. In 1484 Colombo's proposal is presented to João III of Portugal, but Portuguese scholars conclude that the distance estimates are incorrect. João—already in possession of the eastern route—quickly loses interest. Nor are overtures to the great merchant republics of Genoa and Venice received with any enthusiasm. In 1485 the ambitious Queen of Castile and León, Juana I de Trastámara, sees opportunity where others see only folly. Juana's gamble pays off on July 13th, 1486, when Colombo's fleet makes landfall at an island he names San Salvador (in what we now know as the Bahamas). Subsequent forays from the same expedition yield additional discoveries—the large islands of Juana (named for the queen, sometimes known as Cuba) and Hispaniola.
Colombo returns to Iberia in November amidst great fanfare and acclaim; news of the discoveries is quickly followed by intense Castilian lobbying in Rome. A week later a Portuguese expedition arrives in Lisbon, reporting the presence of a southern land mass to the west of Africa. In December, Pope Celestine VI issues the bull Inter caetera ("Among the other"), dividing this New World between its Castilian and Portuguese claimants.
Neither nation is especially pleased by the terms, and both immediately begin jockeying for changes to the line of demarcation. London lodges an objection, too—arguing that all nations should be at liberty to stake claims on the New World's terra incognita—but the English assertion is quickly dismissed by the Castilian-dominated Curia.
As consolation for England being denied privileged access to the New World, Pope Celestine VI agrees to canonise a 13th-century Bishop of London. Soon the deceased cleric's crypt becomes a notable centre of pilgrimage.
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A FRONTE PRAECIPITIUM A TERGO LUPI
The rebellion in Austria has continued to gain strength. Over the past year, Ascanian loyalists were unable to decisively defeat Zwerger's rebel armies, while allied Bohemian troops became mired in a long and exhausting siege of Krems an der Donau. The rebellion's popularity stems in part from the bishop's reputation for sober living (as compared to the carousing Ascanians); but Zwerger is also known to have made deals with Bosnian, Serbian and Wallachian nationalists. He has reportedly promised greater autonomy in return for their support.
Emperor Ferdinand, meanwhile, is barely able to keep his lines of communication open to the rest of Europe. Though he controls the Hofburg and the western half of Vienna, Zwerger's rebels control the eastern bank of the Danube—and are frequently able to intercept imperial messengers.
For months the Ascanians have hoped in vain for assistance from England; though relations have been frosty of late, the two realms are still allied by treaty. In London there is much debate about whether to send assistance, and what sort of assistance to send. While the Austrians have technically honoured the military alliance, they have also slowly but surely pursued expansionist goals in the Balkans—annexing Bosnia, vassalising Wallachia and dismembering Hungary. A more robust Austria might also lean toward gobbling up Serbia, making the Emperor a direct neighbour of Byzantium—with all the expansionist headaches that might entail. Letting Zwerger's rebellion (with all its splintered nationalist factions) run its course might be a better long-term prospect. Above all, William III positively abhors the idea of sending English armies to fight the Austrians' civil war.
When William finally acts in February of 1487, Ferdinand and his courtiers are initially ecstatic. The king has sent England's most competent general, Charles James Benbow, Earl of Derby, to aid the embattled Ascanians. The earl is a grizzled veteran of the Castilian and French Wars, but his arrival in Vienna proves to be a mixed blessing. After reviewing several bedraggled companies of knights and men-at-arms, Benbow castigates the Austrian nobility in front of their Archduke-Emperor. The earl exclaims loudly that the Austrian armies are like lions led by sheep—not lacking in raw potential, but doomed by unimaginative tactics, doctrine and leadership. The incendiary remarks anger Austrian aristocrats, who want the Earl of Derby bundled back aboard the first ship bound for England, post-haste. But Ferdinand has had a decade of disappointments with his own men at the helm, and he's willing to tolerate the intemperate Benbow.
Weeks later, the Earl produces evidence that some of the Emperor's key advisors have defrauded and impoverished the army by lining their own pockets; prudence suggests that the offenders must be relieved at once. Some bewildered defendants denounce Benbow's findings as clever forgeries, but all are duly convicted in expedient show trials. None will escape the traitor's death of hanging, drawing and quartering.
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EXIGO A ME NON UT OPTIMIS PAR SIM SED UT MALIS MELIOR
On the Italian peninsula, Pope Celestine's war of greed and expansion has backfired dramatically. Most papal territories (both French and Italian) are now under foreign occupation, and on April 24th, 1487, Neapolitan armies sack and burn Rome itself. The Pope is forced to flee to Apulia—his last free province. In fury, he excommunicates the entire Kingdom of Naples for daring to ransack the Eternal City.
Sadly, Celestine's woes are only beginning.
International sentiment against the war—combined with many years of blatant rent-seeking and favouritism toward Castilian causes—has caused consternation in the Court of St. Denis. By deft manoeuvring, new French king Louis XIII convinces Celestine to convoke an ecumenical synod in Morbihan; the deal is sealed when the French treasury offers to cover more than half of the planned expense.
The Council of Lorient is one of the more memorable events in the history of medieval Catholicism. It is in every sense an international congress. Fifteen thousand ecclesiastics of all ranks take part in it, besides hundreds of laymen from all parts of Europe. Although convoked primarily to address the ever-increasing calls for church reform, Louis plans to turn it into a referendum on Celestine's rule—and, if necessary, to depose the Castilian-supported Pope and replace him with a pontiff more attentive to French interests.
The Pope is completely blindsided when French bishops begin denouncing his rule as corrupt and too enmeshed in worldly cares.
Like his Valois ancestors, Louis XIII of France is a shrewd tactician. In October of 1487 (while the Council is still voting!) the French army invades papal Avignon and Dauphiné. In Lorient, an attempt to seize the Pope himself is foiled when Breton men-at-arms resist and raise the alarm; later they are able to smuggle Celestine VI aboard a Breton merchant ship bound for Italy. (France and ally Armagnac declare war on the Papal State and its ally Brittany with the Reconquest CB.)
The Council of Lorient will continue debating and voting on the deposition of Celestine VI for a full year, though in the final tally the motion to depose will be defeated.
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AQUILA NON CAPTAT MUSCAS
AQUILA NON CAPTAT MUSCAS
Ever since Anglo-Irish armies had liberated the County of Holstein from their former Danish masters, the counts of the Holstein-Gottorp line had made a point of marrying their daughters off to Lancastrian sons. As a matter of political necessity they also married into various noble houses in the Holy Roman Empire, thus increasing the security of their realm against Danish encroachment. In 1475 the last Holstein-Gottorp count perished without a surviving son, and so the county came into the possession of his son-in-law, the Duke of Brunswick. Unfortunately, during the brief period of personal union, both the Duke and his new county came to realise that neither particularly wanted nor valued the other. Upon his death, the estates of Holstein suddenly found themselves looking for a new ruler.
Fortunately, Denmark's House of Griffins had learned all the right lessons from their abortive wars of conquest in Jutland. What they could not win by force of arms they would win by diplomacy instead. Knowing that Holsteiners might still be fearful of his overtures, the King of Denmark offers an artful compromise. In return for accepting his cousin Johan as their new count, Frederik I Gryf pledges to respect Holstein's borders, customs and traditional liberties. In September of 1487, the newly-installed Count Johan II von Gryf even revives the old custom of marrying a daughter off to a minor Lancastrian—athough the prospect of William III going to war on behalf of either of his Griffin in-laws is vanishingly small.
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Alongside Austria and England, the Electorate of Brandenburg had been one of the defenders in the long Ottoman Jihad against Moldavia. Like most of that war's combatants, the Brandenburger army was a spent force by the time peace arrived in the summer of 1486. Thus it was nothing short of a disaster when, a few months later, the Elector of Brandenburg honoured his alliance with the Teutonic Knights and opposed the Danish-Polish Reconquest of Gotland.
The siege of Gotland lasts barely two months, and the Teutons cede it to the Danes shortly thereafter—leaving Brandenburg to face the might of Denmark and Poland all on its own. By November of 1487, Polish armies have thoroughly ravaged and occupied almost all of the margraviate. In a humiliating peace, Brandenburg is forced to cede the province of Potsdam to Poland. It is the second imperial territory (after Glogowski) taken by the Poles. Though the Reichstag demands defensive action, Emperor Ferdinand II is in no position to offer it; he has been forced to abandon rebel-held Vienna for the Carinthian town of Klagenfurt am Wörthersee. (Event "Aggression in the Empire"; Austria responds with "Our hands are tied".)
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The Papal State's wars against Italy and France are slowly winding down to their inevitable, ill-fated conclusion.
In February of 1488 Pope Celestine VI accepts peace with Savoy, having been forced to release the County of Auvergne as a sovereign state (and pay a small indemnity). This creates a small conundrum for Louis XIII de Valois, whose technical casus belli against the Pope had been the return of Auvergne to French rule. With Auvergne now independent, Louis focuses his wrath upon Celestine's sole ally—the Duke of Brittany.
The Breton army, however valiant, has no hope of repelling the greatly superior numbers of French knights and men-at-arms. The Vendée falls to French occupation in March, and by June Finistère has, too. For helping the Pope escape during the Council of Lorient, the Duke of Brittany is punished severely. Finistère is ceded to France, the duke is forced to swear fealty to Louis XIII, and the entire treasury is seized.
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FATA VOLENTEM DOCUNT, NOLENTEM TRAHUNT
By mid-April of 1488, the Austrian revolt has chased Emperor Ferdinand II out of Klagenfurt to the port town of Triest, with the forces of Prince-Bishop Franz Zwerger in hot pursuit. Much of Ferdinand's court has abandoned him, and several prominent former loyalists have treacherously switched their allegiances to the Zwergers. Earl of Derby Charles Benbow remains, having assured the Emperor that in extremis, he can be evacuated to one of the English territories and maintain a government-in-exile there.
Had the Ascanians been a more beloved dynasty, it's possible that one or more Conveners of Imperial Circuits might have risen in the Emperor's defence. Instead, central Europe watches spellbound as an Emperor teeters on the verge of deposition—not by papal writ, as in the case of Henry IV and Otto IV, but by force of arms.
As days pass, it becomes apparent that besieged Triest will not last long. The town's sympathies are clearly with the rebels; the local garrison was compelled to prepare the town against siege only after being threatened with violence from the Emperor's personal guard. Since Ferdinand's arrival, no vessels except fast English pinnaces have entered the harbour; they report the presence of a sizeable Zwerger blockade nearby.
The discontent of the townsmen increases daily, and on the 25th the captain of the imperial guard advises his sovereign to take up Derby's offer of evacuation to Malta. In the dead of night Emperor Ferdinand, his family, and the remaining members of his council are smuggled aboard a fishing boat. They set sail for a planned rendezvous with an English scout. At sunrise many hours later, a multitude of billowing sails come into view on the horizon. Ferdinand is momentarily gripped by terror, thinking that the vessel's master has blundered into the blockade. As the fishing boat draws nearer, the colours of the fleet come into focus: it's an English squadron—relief at last.
Then a different kind of terror—tinged with despair—grips the Emperor; for no collection of rebel galleys could ever hope to fight off this flotilla of ocean-going carracks and pinnaces. The Zwerger blockade was a lie; this is the real blockade, and its purpose is to catch him.
Ferdinand and his entourage are turned over to the rebels the following day. All are charged with high crimes against the Archduchy and Empire, and will face execution if found guilty. To spare the life of his family, the Emperor signs a confession of guilt and formally abdicates both his imperial and ducal titles.
On May 1st, 1488, a newly constituted Imperial Council acclaims Prince-Bishop Zwerger as Archduke of Austria. True to his word, Zwerger relinquishes Austrian control over the Balkan territories. Bosnia is granted full independence, the Croatian provinces are surrendered to Serbia, and Wallachia is released from vassalage. Later the same day, a special session of the College of Prince-electors names Franz I Zwerger the new Holy Roman Emperor. As one of his first official acts, the new Emperor attests to the continuity of foreign policy between the old and new regimes, confirming the military alliance between Austria and England.
Having confessed to high treason and gross abuse of power, former Emperor Ferdinand von Askanien will be executed in Vienna the following day. Though promised freedom, his family will remain incarcerated for two more years and eventually perish from starvation. Any surviving Ascanian loyalists amongst the Austrian nobility will be quietly purged over the next few years, as Franz I crafts a less feudal, more despotic archduchy.
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BEATI QUORUM REMISSAE SUNT INIQUITATES, ET QUORUM TECTA SUET PECCATA
BEATI QUORUM REMISSAE SUNT INIQUITATES, ET QUORUM TECTA SUET PECCATA
Despite waging an unsuccessful war of aggression on his neighbours, Pope Celestine VI is in no mood to concede defeat. In early June the Duke of Ferrara's messenger arrives with his lord's demands; the Pope must discuss concessions for the return of Ancona, which has been under occupation for over a year. Rather than open negotiations with a minor member of the defending alliance, Celestine simply excommunicates the Duke.
It is, in the end, a miraculously effective strategy. The Pope has excommunicated most of the defensive alliance, and those rulers—feeling the heat from their good Catholic subjects—begin to apply pressure to the ringleader, the King of Naples. The peasant or nobleman in the street can easily rationalise defending his own homeland; but being barred from holy communion because his overlord seized the Pope's rightful lands is something else altogether.
Under intense allied pressure, Neapolitan resolve cracks in the summer. On July 2nd, the King of Naples offers Celestine a peace status quo ante bellum—a rather remarkable act of forgiveness for such a brazen and foolish war.
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In August, a doctor of philosophy from Oxford University drafts a well-received treatise on the history of religious government (Government Technology Level 10. Allows Theocracy, Religious Order, Papacy).
The first five years of William III's reign have seen tumultuous events shake Europe while peace and stability are ascendant at home. It is one of history's little ironies that the monarch who devoted much of his energy to avoiding war would—in a few short years—be remembered as one of England's most famous warrior-kings.
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ENGLAND c. 1488
William III Lancaster (ADM 5/DIP 3/MIL 4)
By the Grace of God, King of England, Scotland and France and Lord of Ireland
True Emperor and Autocrat of the Romans, Duke of Normandy and Aquitaine,
Earl of Artois, Cambray, Picardy and Malta
ENGLAND c. 1488
William III Lancaster (ADM 5/DIP 3/MIL 4)
By the Grace of God, King of England, Scotland and France and Lord of Ireland
True Emperor and Autocrat of the Romans, Duke of Normandy and Aquitaine,
Earl of Artois, Cambray, Picardy and Malta
Dynastic Links:
~ Burgundy (Duke Henri III Lancaster-Valois-Bourgogne)
~ Cyprus (Basileus Eudes III Lancaster-Lusignan)
~ Lüneburg (Duke Friedrich III Lancaster-Brunswick-Lüneburg)
Treasury: £31.6 million (316m ducats)
GDP (estimated): £118.90 million (1,189m ducats)
Domestic CoTs: London £50.32 million (503.28m ducats), Constantinople £23.53 million (235.38m ducats)
Army: 12,000 Knights (Chevauchée), 24,000 Longbowmen
Reserves (potential levies): 19,416
Navy: 24 Carracks, 24 Pinnaces, 21 Cogs
Discipline: 115.20%
Tradition: Army 6.90% Navy 5.50%
Prestige: Thirty-second (32.40)
Reputation: Slightly Tarnished (2.27/15.00)
Legitimacy: 100
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A very comprehensive update! I was hoping Celestine might get more comeupance, however. Austria was well-handled, especialy since Serbia should be a freindlier neighbour to Byzantium and hopefully a more competant foe against the Turks.
What an exhaustive and well written update. This remains my favorite AAR. I look forward to the next update, your teaser was most effective.
You know, I can never help but chortle every time I see the title 'Autocrat and Emperor of the Romans' is placed after titles like King of England, France, Scotland and Lord of Ireland. Tells you how far that title has dropped those past few centuries, no thanks to the bloody Latin Catholics...
Anyway, I always find it funny how soft-spoken and shy people somehow turn into famous generals in history. Ulysses S. Grant was, amongst strangers, surprisingly soft-spoken and withdrawn. And now it seems dear William, who is more comfortable surrounding himself with competent people and being silent, is going to be 'A Great Warrior King'.
By the way, what are Prince Henry's abilities like?
Anyway, I always find it funny how soft-spoken and shy people somehow turn into famous generals in history. Ulysses S. Grant was, amongst strangers, surprisingly soft-spoken and withdrawn. And now it seems dear William, who is more comfortable surrounding himself with competent people and being silent, is going to be 'A Great Warrior King'.
By the way, what are Prince Henry's abilities like?
Another great update. I especially enjoyed the part about the Austrian civil war and William's introduction. Looking forward to your telling of his reluctant glorious deeds.