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This AAR is fantastic! I though i'd responded last night, but it seems that I must not have. Well, let me just say that your unique mix of humour and storytelling abilities is much appreciated - and I, for one, welcome the possiblity of future expeditions... Just imagine! Dom Pedro's expedition to the distant lands of Heliogland Bight! 
I agree wholeheartedly with Communitarian. I really like how you create your story from the events and changes in Brazilian society that you make in the game, and that you connect the actions of certain individuals to society as a whole (industrialisation, political strife, etc). Great AAR!
Hi. I'll post an update later tonight (CET). It's almost ready, I just need to put the screenshots in order. Sorry about the delay! I had some exams at college and a corrupted save game, but nothing serious (thankfully I save all the time without even noticing... sometimes twice in the same date... maybe I have a Savegame OCD... hmm ).
).
Chapter III - Addendum
That someone with such a personality type would break in and interrupt a session, only to utter such magnificent words, was not expected at all. Pedro de Alcântara had always been a rather silent boy. He presumably remained unaware of his true surroundings as he grew up, and much less was known by him of the political strive in the country. But that is what others thought.
A young Dom Pedro II, and his former tutor José Bonifácio
When Dom Pedro I abdicated, he left his son with a few guardians to tutor him. One of them was called José Bonifácio. This aged and experienced man was a vital advisor during the movement for Independence of Brazil and his services were so held in so high regard, that he was appointed as the main tutor of Pedro II during the regency period. It was through him that the child acquired an interest in modern languages, and began to learn French, English and German.
However, due to Bonifácio’s strong political ideologies (he first wanted the return of Dom Pedro I to Brazil and then after the former king's death, he pleaded for an immediate enthronization of the young Dom Pedro II), the reactionary government of Brazil under Teófilo dos Reis fabricated evidence against him, accused him of being a traitor, and eventually managed to forbid him of having any contact with the young monarch. Quite paradoxical, since he could be considered a reactionary as well, but as we have seen, Teófilo wanted to stay in power to further his personal goals.
Another of his guardians, which had a strong influence over him, was an Afro-Brazilian freeman called Rafael, a veteran of the old ill-fated Argentine-Brazilian war. This brave and hardy man was entrusted to take care of Pedro II with his life and always make sure to provide the best for the boy. That in his view, included the secret regular delivery of letters from José Bonifácio, whom Rafael himself revered.
Noticing the similarities of the contents of the letters and his famous introductory speech to the Upper House and later actions, it is widely accepted nowadays that Dom Pedro II followed the sound advice of José Bonifácio.
While making himself seem oblivious of the events in the country, the boy was just observing the development of the situation all along and when old enough, he felt ready to intervene and take his rightful and promised position as the Emperor of Brazil.
Introductory Addendum to Chapter 3: The young Dom Pedro II
That someone with such a personality type would break in and interrupt a session, only to utter such magnificent words, was not expected at all. Pedro de Alcântara had always been a rather silent boy. He presumably remained unaware of his true surroundings as he grew up, and much less was known by him of the political strive in the country. But that is what others thought.
A young Dom Pedro II, and his former tutor José Bonifácio
When Dom Pedro I abdicated, he left his son with a few guardians to tutor him. One of them was called José Bonifácio. This aged and experienced man was a vital advisor during the movement for Independence of Brazil and his services were so held in so high regard, that he was appointed as the main tutor of Pedro II during the regency period. It was through him that the child acquired an interest in modern languages, and began to learn French, English and German.
However, due to Bonifácio’s strong political ideologies (he first wanted the return of Dom Pedro I to Brazil and then after the former king's death, he pleaded for an immediate enthronization of the young Dom Pedro II), the reactionary government of Brazil under Teófilo dos Reis fabricated evidence against him, accused him of being a traitor, and eventually managed to forbid him of having any contact with the young monarch. Quite paradoxical, since he could be considered a reactionary as well, but as we have seen, Teófilo wanted to stay in power to further his personal goals.
Another of his guardians, which had a strong influence over him, was an Afro-Brazilian freeman called Rafael, a veteran of the old ill-fated Argentine-Brazilian war. This brave and hardy man was entrusted to take care of Pedro II with his life and always make sure to provide the best for the boy. That in his view, included the secret regular delivery of letters from José Bonifácio, whom Rafael himself revered.
“… and so a future Emperor such as you, my boy, is to be aware of his surroundings at all times. And do not believe when petty people, the court advisors and the regents, say you are too young to be preoccupied with the matters of the realm. Some might say it is not yet time for you to lead. But I say, while you do not lead yet, you already are a leader.”
Noticing the similarities of the contents of the letters and his famous introductory speech to the Upper House and later actions, it is widely accepted nowadays that Dom Pedro II followed the sound advice of José Bonifácio.
While making himself seem oblivious of the events in the country, the boy was just observing the development of the situation all along and when old enough, he felt ready to intervene and take his rightful and promised position as the Emperor of Brazil.
Chapter III
It is important to remember that Brazil was at the time officially a type of Constitutional Monarchy. While the young Emperor was respected and seen as the proper leader the nation needed (especially after the Reactionary Scandal), and while he could appoint the leading politicians to high positions in the government, there were still elections and laws. Throughout 1841 he was the de facto Emperor of Brazil. However due to bureaucratic matters, his powers were only fully given to him after some time, namely on his birthday 5th of December 1841, making him the “de facto” and “de jure” Emperor.
There was some opposition from extreme liberal circles, which saw the early ascension of Dom Pedro to the throne as a mistake. However, after a great speech by João Paulo Fernandes - a member of the parliament - these voices were silenced. The popularity of the new Emperor was rising steadily.
The speech by the conservative João Paulo Fernandes silenced all those against the Emperor
The first decision of Dom Pedro II as Emperor was to appoint the then 78-year-old José Bonifácio as responsible over many economic matters. First steps were to lower the taxes for some strata of the society and continue with the promotion of Industrial jobs. Advancements of Mechanical Production were being set forth in Brazil. A great amount of these new practical applications were acquired from British immigrants, many former craftsmen, who brought along their knowledge and experience in the field. There was a sizeable British community in São Paulo.
As an admirer of great philosophical discussions, Dom Pedro also provided grants for the philosophers in various Brazilian universities to further their theories and write publications. Research on Ideological Thought commenced.
The development of new ideas in the field of philosophy was seen by Pedro II as essential to the consciousness of the nation as a whole
Although incentives for new possible recruits were being given since the victory in the Cisplatinean war and the Military budget was rather demanding, the army of Brazil was still in a state of disrepair. New recruits were hard to find, despite the good salary. The Brazilian Army was not growing at all.
In this situation, the government did not have so many resources to directly influence the population to work as soldiers and craftsmen at the same time. Emperor Dom Pedro II had his first decision to make. Industry or Military? The Emperor with the help of José Bonifácio, chose the former and kept state incentives for the industrial jobs.
A Naval Problem
Another neglected area of the military was the navy. Although Brazil had a vast coast, it had only one main port in Rio de Janeiro and above all the Brazilian Navy was pitiful. The total ship count was: 2 Men’o’war, and 4 Clipper Transports. The admirals were a tragedy: one was a rather maniac but balanced fellow (can mad people be balanced at all??), and the other a disqualified ‘diplomatic unmanly man’.
The only two fleets of Brazil
Contemporary writings relay us the following, attributed to Dom Pedro II, when invited to dinner by an English Admiral, onboard of a British ship temporarily docked in Rio de Janeiro in 1842. The Admiral asked the Emperor how the flagship of the Brazilian Navy was called. A tricky and perhaps purposeful question, considering the state of the national Navy was in.
The youngster replied: “It is interesting for you as a British Admiral to ask me that. I suppose you might already know it’s the ‘São Paulo’?”
“Pardon me? This ship does not exist!”
Calmly the 16-year-old replied: “It does. Maybe it is not so much of common knowledge to the British Navy after all…”
The ship did indeed not exist at the time. However, for a 16-year-old boy, it was a quite clever subterfuge. Later on, it is reported that he mentioned to Damião Ramos, his military advisor:
In the following weeks, shipyards along the coast began the construction of 14 additional ships. The budget of the country took a hit for a long time, as Brazil had to import many materials for the construction of the warships. This caused some to complain about the meaningfulness of the naval expansion, but the Emperor was determined to continue with such endeavor. Debates on the parliament occurred, mainly about the purpose of this expansion. When questioned about it, the young Dom Pedro II reportedly said:
The Emperor was clearly self-confident and ambitious. Who could stop him? If the country could not find many able soldiers, perhaps the life as a sailor would appeal to some.
Furthermore, two naval bases were planned to be built: one in the South (Porto Alegre) and one in the North (Natal).
The Portuguese Question
In many occasions during the regency period, the young Pedro II tried to contact his father in Portugal. In none of these he received an answer. His father’s whereabouts were unknown to him at first, but as time went by, he discovered the truth which was partially hidden to him by the regency in Brazil.
A War was happening in Portugal, a chaotic fight of Miguel (his uncle) against his father over the succession of the Portuguese throne. Pedro I wished that Maria his daughter (and sister of our young Pedro II of Brazil) received the title, but she was also too young to be queen. Miguel, who was known at the time as “Miguel the Usurper” demanded the right to be King. After a long war, Pedro I managed to defeat his brother and restore the infant Maria to the throne, but after only a few years he died of tuberculosis in 1834. Miguel the Usurper was exiled to Italy and lived for many years a life of misery and destitution, powerlessly depending on the help of the Pope to live in an apartment in Rome.
The trio of intrigue
The now Emperor of Brazil, Pedro II, only received the news long after the death of his father, since it was agreed that this could have a profound impact on the boy and put the monarchic institutions in Brazil at risk.
Regardless, his sister Maria was crowned Queen of Portugal. She married twice, but in both cases, tragedy struck the Portuguese Royalty and her husbands died. The childless widow was sole queen of Portugal and had a troubled reign until 1841, when she also died at the age of 22 under suspicious circumstances.
Her brother Pedro II of Brazil was already old enough at the time to understand the events, and it is known that he indeed received a few letters from his sister. Her death strangely coincided with the fleeing of the corrupt Teófilo dos Reis from Brazil to Portugal.
After her death, the then exiled Miguel - her usurper uncle - returned to once more dispute the throne and this time he found support. Through unknown means, he managed to acquire enough money to bribe many officials in the Portuguese court and finance this return. While many of the people were opposed to this decision, there were no other clear successors for the throne after the death of Maria. Miguel was then crowned King in 1841 as Miguel I of Portugal.
Does this whole mess in Portugal sound fishy somehow? Under what precise circumstances did the innocent Maria die? And how could a destitute Miguel return to Portugal and have bribe money?
Dom Pedro II knew the answers.
Diplomacy
The Emperor Dom Pedro II became more and more interested in the foreign affairs as the months by and he adapted himself to the new situation. On February 1843, he decided it was time for Brazil to turn itself to the world, and called Manuel de Souza – the foreign advisor – to personally review recent diplomatic events. The advisor began by saying:
My Emperor, here are the international reports…
The British fought a successful war against the Dutch, as the latter tried to re-annex former territories in Belgium, and acquired more territory to the north of Brazil: The Dutch Guyana is now a British overseas territory.
“The British have been fighting in our doorsteps… hm…”
Early 1840 the Prussians made an alliance with the Austrians and…
“Wait wait…” – Dom Pedro raised an eyebrow – “…how is that even possible?”
Well, I suppose… they saw fit to pursue this… uh… friendship.
“Hmpf… I guess we will not see so many Brother Wars now…” - he mumbled – “After the patch it rarely happens anyway…”
I’m sorry, sir?
„Nothing, go on...“
Errmm… of course sir. There is a war going on in South America, as your majesty might know. The Colombians have declared war on Peru. Concession of territory.
“Little fights of our neighbours. We should not get involved, else we might compromise our position in the continent. Additionally, our country acted aggressively enough in the last decade with the re-annexation of Uruguay. But it is interesting to observe how it progresses.”
Other minor reports are… - but Manuel de Souza was abruptly interrupted by Damião Ramos, the War Minister.
Sir! Sir! I have news!
“yes?”
The French… they… declared war on Spain! Europe is in a state of alarm!
“Is there anyone else involved?”
Yes! The Austrians are allied with the French. And the Spanish have Prussia, the Netherlands and Portugal on their side.
The Emperor laughed.
"Austria at war with Prussia? I suppose the Germanic Friendship was a bit too much, even for them."
Then he stopped for a moment, in silence. His eyes widened, and he slowly remarked:
“But... Portugal? This… is definitely interesting.”
Chapter 3: The New Emperor
It is important to remember that Brazil was at the time officially a type of Constitutional Monarchy. While the young Emperor was respected and seen as the proper leader the nation needed (especially after the Reactionary Scandal), and while he could appoint the leading politicians to high positions in the government, there were still elections and laws. Throughout 1841 he was the de facto Emperor of Brazil. However due to bureaucratic matters, his powers were only fully given to him after some time, namely on his birthday 5th of December 1841, making him the “de facto” and “de jure” Emperor.
There was some opposition from extreme liberal circles, which saw the early ascension of Dom Pedro to the throne as a mistake. However, after a great speech by João Paulo Fernandes - a member of the parliament - these voices were silenced. The popularity of the new Emperor was rising steadily.
The speech by the conservative João Paulo Fernandes silenced all those against the Emperor
The first decision of Dom Pedro II as Emperor was to appoint the then 78-year-old José Bonifácio as responsible over many economic matters. First steps were to lower the taxes for some strata of the society and continue with the promotion of Industrial jobs. Advancements of Mechanical Production were being set forth in Brazil. A great amount of these new practical applications were acquired from British immigrants, many former craftsmen, who brought along their knowledge and experience in the field. There was a sizeable British community in São Paulo.
As an admirer of great philosophical discussions, Dom Pedro also provided grants for the philosophers in various Brazilian universities to further their theories and write publications. Research on Ideological Thought commenced.
The development of new ideas in the field of philosophy was seen by Pedro II as essential to the consciousness of the nation as a whole
Although incentives for new possible recruits were being given since the victory in the Cisplatinean war and the Military budget was rather demanding, the army of Brazil was still in a state of disrepair. New recruits were hard to find, despite the good salary. The Brazilian Army was not growing at all.
In this situation, the government did not have so many resources to directly influence the population to work as soldiers and craftsmen at the same time. Emperor Dom Pedro II had his first decision to make. Industry or Military? The Emperor with the help of José Bonifácio, chose the former and kept state incentives for the industrial jobs.
A Naval Problem
Another neglected area of the military was the navy. Although Brazil had a vast coast, it had only one main port in Rio de Janeiro and above all the Brazilian Navy was pitiful. The total ship count was: 2 Men’o’war, and 4 Clipper Transports. The admirals were a tragedy: one was a rather maniac but balanced fellow (can mad people be balanced at all??), and the other a disqualified ‘diplomatic unmanly man’.
The only two fleets of Brazil
Contemporary writings relay us the following, attributed to Dom Pedro II, when invited to dinner by an English Admiral, onboard of a British ship temporarily docked in Rio de Janeiro in 1842. The Admiral asked the Emperor how the flagship of the Brazilian Navy was called. A tricky and perhaps purposeful question, considering the state of the national Navy was in.
The youngster replied: “It is interesting for you as a British Admiral to ask me that. I suppose you might already know it’s the ‘São Paulo’?”
“Pardon me? This ship does not exist!”
Calmly the 16-year-old replied: “It does. Maybe it is not so much of common knowledge to the British Navy after all…”
The ship did indeed not exist at the time. However, for a 16-year-old boy, it was a quite clever subterfuge. Later on, it is reported that he mentioned to Damião Ramos, his military advisor:
“What could have I said? Which ship is the flagship of the Brazilian Navy, when my only choices are: the “Primeiro de Março” or the “Paranahyba”? Will one be the flagship and the other the tugboat? Or maybe the other way around? We will have the ‘São Paulo’ and not only this, but many others. This is fit for an Empire, nothing less.”
In the following weeks, shipyards along the coast began the construction of 14 additional ships. The budget of the country took a hit for a long time, as Brazil had to import many materials for the construction of the warships. This caused some to complain about the meaningfulness of the naval expansion, but the Emperor was determined to continue with such endeavor. Debates on the parliament occurred, mainly about the purpose of this expansion. When questioned about it, the young Dom Pedro II reportedly said:
"Do you really expect an Empire to have a couple of barges as a Navy, captained by the odd drunkard with his dog as Number One? This laughable vision in itself shows the purpose of it!"
The Emperor was clearly self-confident and ambitious. Who could stop him? If the country could not find many able soldiers, perhaps the life as a sailor would appeal to some.
Furthermore, two naval bases were planned to be built: one in the South (Porto Alegre) and one in the North (Natal).
The Portuguese Question
In many occasions during the regency period, the young Pedro II tried to contact his father in Portugal. In none of these he received an answer. His father’s whereabouts were unknown to him at first, but as time went by, he discovered the truth which was partially hidden to him by the regency in Brazil.
A War was happening in Portugal, a chaotic fight of Miguel (his uncle) against his father over the succession of the Portuguese throne. Pedro I wished that Maria his daughter (and sister of our young Pedro II of Brazil) received the title, but she was also too young to be queen. Miguel, who was known at the time as “Miguel the Usurper” demanded the right to be King. After a long war, Pedro I managed to defeat his brother and restore the infant Maria to the throne, but after only a few years he died of tuberculosis in 1834. Miguel the Usurper was exiled to Italy and lived for many years a life of misery and destitution, powerlessly depending on the help of the Pope to live in an apartment in Rome.
The trio of intrigue
The now Emperor of Brazil, Pedro II, only received the news long after the death of his father, since it was agreed that this could have a profound impact on the boy and put the monarchic institutions in Brazil at risk.
Regardless, his sister Maria was crowned Queen of Portugal. She married twice, but in both cases, tragedy struck the Portuguese Royalty and her husbands died. The childless widow was sole queen of Portugal and had a troubled reign until 1841, when she also died at the age of 22 under suspicious circumstances.
Her brother Pedro II of Brazil was already old enough at the time to understand the events, and it is known that he indeed received a few letters from his sister. Her death strangely coincided with the fleeing of the corrupt Teófilo dos Reis from Brazil to Portugal.
After her death, the then exiled Miguel - her usurper uncle - returned to once more dispute the throne and this time he found support. Through unknown means, he managed to acquire enough money to bribe many officials in the Portuguese court and finance this return. While many of the people were opposed to this decision, there were no other clear successors for the throne after the death of Maria. Miguel was then crowned King in 1841 as Miguel I of Portugal.
Does this whole mess in Portugal sound fishy somehow? Under what precise circumstances did the innocent Maria die? And how could a destitute Miguel return to Portugal and have bribe money?
Dom Pedro II knew the answers.
Diplomacy
The Emperor Dom Pedro II became more and more interested in the foreign affairs as the months by and he adapted himself to the new situation. On February 1843, he decided it was time for Brazil to turn itself to the world, and called Manuel de Souza – the foreign advisor – to personally review recent diplomatic events. The advisor began by saying:
My Emperor, here are the international reports…
The British fought a successful war against the Dutch, as the latter tried to re-annex former territories in Belgium, and acquired more territory to the north of Brazil: The Dutch Guyana is now a British overseas territory.
“The British have been fighting in our doorsteps… hm…”
Early 1840 the Prussians made an alliance with the Austrians and…
“Wait wait…” – Dom Pedro raised an eyebrow – “…how is that even possible?”
Well, I suppose… they saw fit to pursue this… uh… friendship.
“Hmpf… I guess we will not see so many Brother Wars now…” - he mumbled – “After the patch it rarely happens anyway…”
I’m sorry, sir?
„Nothing, go on...“
Errmm… of course sir. There is a war going on in South America, as your majesty might know. The Colombians have declared war on Peru. Concession of territory.
“Little fights of our neighbours. We should not get involved, else we might compromise our position in the continent. Additionally, our country acted aggressively enough in the last decade with the re-annexation of Uruguay. But it is interesting to observe how it progresses.”
Other minor reports are… - but Manuel de Souza was abruptly interrupted by Damião Ramos, the War Minister.
Sir! Sir! I have news!
“yes?”
The French… they… declared war on Spain! Europe is in a state of alarm!
“Is there anyone else involved?”
Yes! The Austrians are allied with the French. And the Spanish have Prussia, the Netherlands and Portugal on their side.
The Emperor laughed.
"Austria at war with Prussia? I suppose the Germanic Friendship was a bit too much, even for them."
Then he stopped for a moment, in silence. His eyes widened, and he slowly remarked:
“But... Portugal? This… is definitely interesting.”
War looms over Europe...
Last edited:
Looks like quite a conflict in Europe. Can we get a view of your factories? Or atleast your industrial score?
@Tommy4ever: That war was the most unexpect thing I've ever seen since I began playing V2. Never thought I'd see so many GPs in one war! I hope it doesn't end in a white peace.
And about the industrial overview, sure. I was going to post some screens, but then that would exceed my screenshot limit for the chapter. But here's an overview:
The wine factories were madly profitable, even better than cement. But for some reason now their profit has diminished. The profitable one is the first one I built manually, in the state of São Paulo. The others were built by the AI.
My industrial score is 4, that means #9 in Ranking. I'm letting the capitalists build for me since now the Conservative Party is in power and they're only interventionist/free trade.
I have 4787 craftsmen in the country, 94 clerks and 557 capitalists. My problem all along is getting enough craftsmen (also a problem due to low literacy), so I'm wondering if I should've really focused on industry.
I hope it doesn't end in a white peace. And about the industrial overview, sure. I was going to post some screens, but then that would exceed my screenshot limit for the chapter. But here's an overview:
The wine factories were madly profitable, even better than cement. But for some reason now their profit has diminished. The profitable one is the first one I built manually, in the state of São Paulo. The others were built by the AI.
My industrial score is 4, that means #9 in Ranking. I'm letting the capitalists build for me since now the Conservative Party is in power and they're only interventionist/free trade.
I have 4787 craftsmen in the country, 94 clerks and 557 capitalists. My problem all along is getting enough craftsmen (also a problem due to low literacy), so I'm wondering if I should've really focused on industry.
Great Update Planck, thank you for this chapter, very interesting to see how Dom Pedro II came to rule and where his priorities are.
Thats quite a war going on there in Europe, but of little interest for Brazil,... or not?
Thats quite a war going on there in Europe, but of little interest for Brazil,... or not?
If Portugal goes to war, they will be weakened and we could bring Miguel to justice.
But of great interest to me, i've never seen a Great War in V2 before, or a French war with Spain.Thats quite a war going on there in Europe, but of little interest for Brazil,... or not?
I know what you mean by the neglected navy, I useally neglect it which turns out to be my undoingo
o 
you don't need to think about pourtugal's involement in the war. Your main concerns should be the building of your infusructure. Then you may resume becoming the EPIC EMPERER OF THE BRAZILLIAN EMPIRE, WHICH WILL SPAN SOUTH AMERICA AND BEYOND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Don't listen to him! As a brazilian fan of your AAR ! I demand your remove that traitor of an uncle from the throne of Portugal! Dom Pedro II must have his rightful throne!