Novum Romanum Imperium -- A Tuscany DW AAR

[BearJuice67]

Great update. Always leaving us on a cliff hanger, whether you mean to or not. I don't know what it is, but I always have sympathy for the Orthodox faith. Especially in the two most important cities: Constantinople and Moskva. I guess I was kind of rooting for that revolt to force convert Constantinople, keep it Orthodox for a couple more years. I also can't wait until you get both Tunisia and England. I'm a pretty big history buff, so you might know what I'm getting at here. Keep up the good work, man

[Avindian]

Woo ! Moar land for Italians !

Yep

That was an interesting update. To bad for how Andreas Germanicus went out. sounds like the Senate might be about to bite the big one.

He'll be one of the oldest people in history when he finally dies, if it makes you feel any better

Great update. Always leaving us on a cliff hanger, whether you mean to or not. I don't know what it is, but I always have sympathy for the Orthodox faith. Especially in the two most important cities: Constantinople and Moskva. I guess I was kind of rooting for that revolt to force convert Constantinople, keep it Orthodox for a couple more years. I also can't wait until you get both Tunisia and England. I'm a pretty big history buff, so you might know what I'm getting at here. Keep up the good work, man

Not entirely following your reference, but Constantinople is actually still Orthodox as of this update.

[BearJuice67]

Not entirely following your reference, but Constantinople is actually still Orthodox as of this update.

Tunisia is ancient Carthage. And as for England, I'm fascinated with Celtic history

[blsteen]

Wow, a update with action and adventure. Too bad about the Archduke and family but...them's the breaks. Damn politicians always squabbling as the debt clock...oops, fiddling while Rome (Constantinople as Second Rome) burns.

[Avindian]

Tunisia is ancient Carthage. And as for England, I'm fascinated with Celtic history

I didn't get the connection; now I can see there wasn't one to get Didn't think of the Carthage angle, but there is a certain symmetry there.

Wow, a update with action and adventure. Too bad about the Archduke and family but...them's the breaks. Damn politicians always squabbling as the debt clock...oops, fiddling while Rome (Constantinople as Second Rome) burns.

[generalolaf]

I read most of this a couple of months ago, and really liked it. Now that I have the game, I'm able to say: this is a great AAR, nice work!

[Avindian]

I read most of this a couple of months ago, and really liked it. Now that I have the game, I'm able to say: this is a great AAR, nice work!

Thanks for the kind words!

I'm working on editing screen shots now for the next update -- the update should be up this weekend.

[Duke of Britain]

This is a awesome AAR! one of my favourites so far.

so, you're going to Absolute Monarchy?

[BearJuice67]

so, you're going to Absolute Monarchy?

That would be the first time I've seen an Absolute Monarchy in this game.

Also, I hope when you get to taking Tunisia, you make it very elaborate, like taking it back for the Carthaginians

[Avindian]

This is a awesome AAR! one of my favourites so far.

so, you're going to Absolute Monarchy?

You'll have to wait and see, but practically speaking, Absolute Monarchy would be a long ways off, tech wise.

That would be the first time I've seen an Absolute Monarchy in this game.

Also, I hope when you get to taking Tunisia, you make it very elaborate, like taking it back for the Carthaginians

I will now!

May not get a chance to update this weekend; I'll try, but I make no guarantees. I will update early next week if I can't do it tonight, however.

[blsteen]

That would be the first time I've seen an Absolute Monarchy in this game.

Also, I hope when you get to taking Tunisia, you make it very elaborate, like taking it back for the Carthaginians

What good would a Carthaginian peace be then...isn't it called that because the Romans sacked, burned the city and then according to unverified fact (but nasty intention) sowed the land with salt (ooh nasty). Apparently, three Punic Wars were enough.

[Avindian]

Chapter 24: The Fruits of Diplomacy

14 September 1555, Castle St. Maso, Rome

Francis I, Emperor of Tuscany and King of Milan, had made a lot of changes, not all of them popular. Francis still blamed the Senate for the delays in the war against the Ottoman Empire and Morocco and the subsequent losses. He briefly considered tearing up the Constitution altogether; however, after a discussion with his close friend Daoud Selim Iskander, the Foreign Minister, he decided that would make him appear a tyrant in the eyes of Europeans and the world. That would be bad for international prestige.

Francis had two real options. He could call upon the people of Tuscany to support him against the nobility, forming a Republic, or he could leave the nobility intact and reduce the power of the Senate. Both options had some appeal. His family had no history of nobility before his accession to the Imperial throne; that reduced his own stake in supporting the nobility while simultaneously making an alliance with wealthy members of the middle class not only possible but practical. However, he was concerned with a great loss of stability if he adopted a republic. After all, all of his closest advisors were nobles, except for Iskander. Since they had appointed the Provincial Governors, they were loyal to the nobility, not necessarily to the Empire.

Francis' solution was elegant and effective. He went back to the laws that originally mandated Provincial Governors, on the grounds that they were to handle day-to-day operations while the Senators served in Rome. He realized he could make a similar argument for those members of the Imperial Council who were also Senators. Of the seven Senators, four had no office: the Catos, Primus Tullius Cicero, and Drusus Germanicus. Axel Gathenhielm was Chancellor, Giuliano di Campofregoso was the Theologian, and Salvestro Pieroni was the acting Marshal of the Empire. Thus, these three were required to relinquish their Senate seats in order to hold office. None of them were reluctant, and most were relieved.

His next step was ingenious. The constitution specifically granted Senate seats to all Dukes and Counts, not Archdukes, and he published a decree pointing this out. That eliminated the yet-to-be-named Archduke of Constantinople, along with the Germanicus family, the Archduke of Africa, and that further eliminated an additional two Senators. Drusus Germanicus fought valiantly to protect his right, but by getting the aged patriarch of the family, Sir Andreas, to sign an agreement relinquishing his Senate seat, his objection was bypassed.

That left the Catos and Cicero. Because Alessandro del Moro was never married and the Duchy of Sicily-Malta was vacant, the Duchies were re-arranged. Marius Porcius Cato, the former Duke of Pisa-Siena, was given Romagna-Ancona as well. Publius Tullius Cicero became the new Duke of Sicily and Malta; Marcus Porcius Cato III was given Florence in addition to the former Kingdom of Naples. Rome belonged to the Emperor personally. Francis I then renamed the Senate the "Council of Italy" and gave them considerable authority over domestic affairs, actually increasing the power of this new Triumvirate that ruled Italy. However, the Emperor still maintained veto power and had to sign any bills introduced; these bills were only binding on Italy. Any thing that concerned the entire Empire needed an Imperial decree.

Francis I had the Senate situation under control, and only needed to deal with the vacant Archduchy. All lands east of Constantinople were now called the Archduchy of Asia Minor; Constantinople and points west were now part of the Heir to the Throne's patrimony, and the Heir was now officially the Prince of Constantinople. General Pieroni was named the Archduke of Asia Minor; he had three sons, Vittore, Cesare, and Michele, so there was little danger of another del Moro or Graecus situation.

To give him some time to consolidate his power, Francis also sold Cherson to Transylvania. This would prevent periodic wars with Crimea.



The Emperor had, almost overnight, completely undone all of John I's reforms; forced reforms, but reforms nonetheless. The institution of nobility was as strong as ever, and he even kept a minor representative body, giving them domestic authority over the Italian peninsula, but making sure he still the ultimate say. He was amused that only one person really objected to the death of republicanism in the Empire, Drusus Germanicus. Without the Senate for a forum, though, Drusus was stuck in Africa, hundreds of miles from Rome, and effectively neutered. To make sure that there would be no new problems, his first decree made the title of Count no longer hereditary; new members of the Imperial Council would still earn the title, but could not pass it along to their children, ensuring the Senate could not be revived.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9 February 1556, the offices of Foreign Minister Iskander, Rome

Daoud Iskander was depressed. His machinations over the Holy Land had backfired in a big way. Although he was still an important man, his agitation during the War with Morocco had ultimately cost him any chance of being a Duke, at least under Francis I. The Emperor had told him in no uncertain terms that there would be no more expansion until the ex-Ottoman lands were recognized as eternally Tuscan. What was worse, Iskander had spent a lot of time trying to build a consensus in the Senate, and some of his former revolutionary brethren no longer took him seriously.

For the moment, Iskander focused entirely on diplomacy. He'd already made an important move, gaining a powerful ally for the Empire of Tuscany.



The only other really respectable Protestant nation, Burgundy was intended to be a counterweight to Austria. Castille was another possible threat to Tuscan power, and Burgundy would be valuable in that instance as well. The British were simply not a worthy ally, as they had many internal troubles and their navy was not good enough by itself to make them useful.

The war with Qara Koyunlu, announced shortly after the alliance with Burgundy, was getting to be a headache. A couple of legions would invade, take some land, then the hordes would concede defeat. Still, it kept at least some of the men sharp.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10 July 1557, the Headquarters of the Eighth Legion, Bursa

Danilo Barberini was appointed General by Marshal Pieroni to help deal with the Turkish nationalists in the western provinces of Anatolia.



Barberini, unlike Pieroni, had actually had some combat experience prior to becoming an officer. Unfortunately, few armies consider bar brawls combat experience. He'd enlisted in the army as a teenager as an eighteen year old and was promptly discharged six weeks later for knocking out his lieutenant while in a drunken stupor. He was almost entirely illiterate, and only rose as far as sergeant in a mercenary company because his men were afraid of his temper. Under normal circumstances, he'd never have been a lieutenant in the legions, much less a general.

However, he had an important advantage over other, more qualified applicants. The Barberini name. His father was very close friends with the Marshal's father, as merchants that had grown up selling merchandise together. For all of Danilo's faults, he protected Salvestro as they grew up together, and that counted for a lot. He didn't lack personal courage, and was always leading from the front, which were valuable qualities in and of themselves. It was a testament to the Legionary Academy's training that his men functioned so well, but they did. Barberini didn't care about glory or titles; he just wanted to hurt people.

When the Emperor ordered Danilo to build better fortifications in Sivas, he did that, by making his men work 18 hour days until it was finished. When the Marshal asked him to put down a rebellion, it was done brutally and quickly. When Burgas refused to convert, he threatened to burn down all the mosques in the area. He got results, and that was all that Francis I really cared about. In the war against the Hordes, his viciousness actually convinced the Qara Koyunlu to pay tribute to the Empire.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 August 1558, the office of Chancellor Gathenhielm, Rome

Axel Gathenhielm could have been upset that he wasn't part of the Council of Italy. His provinces -- Istria and Sardinia -- were manifestly Italian speaking. However, in all honesty, he didn't care. All Axel ever wanted was to help the Empire his grandfather had served so well. He'd been Chancellor for a long time, but he enjoyed the work. He'd pushed for a new Embassy to be built -- this time in Trebizond. He'd gotten plenty of funding to build more advance Production and Trade facilities throughout the Empire. Peace was booming. He chuckled quietly to himself over his Foreign counterpart's missions to claim other thrones; the only way he could succeed is if that country's ruler died a year after the claim, since Francis I refused to sanction a war. [1] Still, Iskander had maintained the alliance with Burgundy even after the uneasy relations, no mean feat.

Chancellor Gathenhielm scored a personal triumph as well. When it came time to choose a new direction for policy, he'd advocated Emperor Francis become a Patron of the Arts. Marshal Pieroni had argued for a system of Battlefield Commissions, while Theologian di Campofregoso insisted on declaring the Protestant Church the One True Faith. Both of those, however, were expansionary; Axel's idea was not, and so he won the debate.



Axel was concerned about one thing, however. He'd been very unlucky in life; none of his children had survived to adulthood, and he'd never remarried after his wife died shortly before his departure for Tuscany. He wanted to make sure that his people were still taken care of when he was gone, and to that end, had requested that Primus Tullius Cicero inherit Sardinia and Istria upon his passing. When Gathenhielm was temporarily Foreign Minister and Chancellor, he'd grown very close to Agrippa and his children, and trusted them to do things right.

The Chancellor put such bleak thoughts out of his mind and looked through the remaining paperwork for the day. Crimea had been driven back by Transylvania; good for them. Maybe Transylvania would someday agree to become allies with, or even the vassals of, Tuscany? That would be quite a coup, he thought.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
17 May 1563, the Castle St. Maso, Rome

Emperor Francis I was ecstatic with how events had proceeded since his reforms and the end to frivolous debates. His firm no-expansion attitudes had kept the Empire stable and productive, and the economy was booming. He'd just ordered more funds directed into Trade Technology, and Chancellor Gathenhielm was doing an excellent job of sponsoring and seeing through construction projects all over the Empire.

Qara Koyunlu had been defeated in record time -- less than a month passed between the first barbarians crossing into Tuscan lands and their concession of defeat. Muscovy had requested Tuscan assistance in a war against the Manchu; the Empire agreed, for the sake of the alliance, but had committed neither forces nor ships.



The only potential note of discord was his idiot Foreign Minister's continuing attempts to claim foreign thrones. Although Iskander kept repairing relations with Burgundy, Francis was concerned that eventually Burgundy would not sign a new alliance. More to the point, Burgundy was actually doing badly in wars; they'd given up some African land to Morocco and gave some considerable cash considerations to Castille in a couple of their recent wars. Francis wondered if he could find a better ally, but ultimately new that most of the nations in Europe saw his nation as heathens and would not sign formal alliances.

His recent policy move, further increasing tariffs to protect Tuscan industry, ensured that Mercantilism completely dominated the Tuscan Empire. The only "foreign"Center of Trade Tuscans were funded to set up in was Genoa; Thrace remained the main center for Imperial trade. This cost the Empire a couple of merchants in Liguria, but this was entirely worthwhile, in Francis's view. The more power he had over his state, the better.

Perhaps his greatest joy was for Leopoldo's upcoming birthday. In just a couple of months Leopoldo would reach his majority and travel to Constantinople to rule there. He'd get a real chance to learn the craft of the statesman, so that when he was ready to become Emperor, he would already have plenty of experience. Julius Tullius Cicero, Primus' son, would be going with Leopoldo to help; Julius had served in his father's court for five years and at age 30 was the perfect advisor for the young Prince.

Francis didn't know he'd also be planning a funeral.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7 August 1563, Florence

Sir Andreas Germanicus had been sick for a long time. At the end, he had so many ailments the doctors couldn't even determine what killed him. He'd been Commandant of the Empire for 93 years; he was over 120 years old when he died. Some rumors circulated that he'd lied about his age when he entered the Empire. He'd never gotten around to legally changing his name from the pseudonym he'd used when emigrating to Tuscany so long ago, and so, at first, many were mystified by the obituary.



Still, he was given a proper funeral. If any one man truly embodied the spirit of the Empire of Tuscany, it was Andreas Germanicus. He'd been hired by Julius II and outlived four Emperors. The only man even close to his stature in the military was Marshal Marcus Porcius Cato, who was also the only other member of the Order of the Tuscan Empire. He'd left behind a son, Gaius Germanicus, and a grandson, Drusus Germanicus. Drusus had been married for ten years -- he was in his late thirties -- but had no children, since he'd spent so much time in Rome, away from his wife. One of Andreas' last requests was to pray to God that his line would continue.

Emperor Francis immediately issued a decree: the Imperial Academy of the Legions that Sir Andreas had worked so hard to build was renamed the Sir Andreas Germanicus Academy of the Imperial Legions and Fleets. It had always been in Florence; it was never moved when the capital was. It had been constantly expanded, and was one of the largest buildings in Florence.

All of this was exceptionally intimidating to the new Commandant.



Alberto Chiastvelli was from a long military tradition. His great-grandfather had been the original commander of the Third Legion; each of his forebears had served at least twenty years in the military. Chiastvelli was no exception; he'd attended the Academy himself and was one of the first cavalry officers to master the Caracole formation. He was not a remarkable administrator, and Marshal Pieroni was particularly threatened by him. He'd specifically asked that Chiastvelli not be made a member of the Imperial Council; when Francis demurred, Pieroni settled for his appointment on the Council being temporary.

Prince Leopoldo's birthday celebration went on as planned, although nobody was particularly in the mood to party, not even the Prince. Still, the party had been planned for weeks, and those that came did try to have a good time, at least as much as could be expected.

The future Leo III always associated his birthday with sadness from then on.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9 May 1567, Foreign Minister Iskander's office, Rome

Philosopher Vitale Gori had been gone for six years and Emperor Francis I had him pronounced dead. There was a state funeral for him as well, but there wasn't many people there. Very few people knew him, and the philosopher didn't encourage it. He'd left in 1561; when Francis asked where he was going, Vitale smiled and said "to find an answer to a question." Francis had asked what the question was; Vitale grinned even wider.

"That's the question I need answered, Emperor."

That was the last anybody ever heard from him.

Foreign Minister Iskander looked at the man in front of him. Francis I had gotten more and more irritated with Iskander's attempts to claim thrones and the gold it cost to repair relations with Burgundy. Iskander kept trying to force a war that wouldn't come, and Francis was just looking for an opportunity to replace Iskander. When Gori died, the Emperor hired General Barberini's younger brother Giovanni.



Unlike Danilo, Giovanni Barberini was eminently qualified to be an "Ambassador", which was his title for the present. Barberini attended the University of Pisa and graduated in 1558. He spent nine years abroad in Burgundy, first as a clerk but starting in 1563 as Ambassador, and was in fact the reason that Burgundy continued to resign the alliances after breaking them. He spoke French, English, German, and Turkish, all critical languages to know in 16th century Europe. Iskander knew Barberini would take his job, and probably sooner rather than later.

Lesser men might have resented that. Not Iskander. He'd actually offered to resign as soon the Emperor mentioned the new hire; the Emperor wanted him to stay for another year to help Barberini grow into the role. Daoud hadn't come up with a new job yet, but he was close to Drusus Germanicus, and wanted to return to Africa anyway. Perhaps he'd find a job there?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12 November 1567, London

The war with Great Britain had taken everybody by surprise. Burgundy had claims on British land that they desperately wanted to reclaim. When the call to arms came, Emperor Francis I had no choice but to accept.



Unlike the war with the Manchu, Francis I even committed troops; he hoped to convince Burgundy to give him Provence as a vassal. When the Second Legion took Provence and their African holdings, however, Burgundy let Provence off with a small cash settlement. Disappointed, Foreign Minister Iskander sent Ambassador Barberini to Great Britain to see what kind of terms he could get.

Barberini had never been to London. Although Rome's obvious inferior, it was still a respectable city, and his ability to speak English made it much more respectable than his colleagues might have found it. When he finally met with the King, he seemed distracted. Giovanni had planned to offer a small pouch of gold for peace. Instead, the King handed him a white peace. Briefly, Barberini considered rejecting it, even suggesting to the Emperor that some territory might be acquired after all in a note. However, Barberini didn't want to make the same mistakes Iskander did, and so after a couple of days, simply signed the white peace on the Emperor's behalf. Francis was so pleased he promoted Barberini on the spot to Foreign Minister. Iskander was made Governor of Diamentia by Drusus Germanicus, a role that let him get back in touch with his old comrades.

The Barberini family was rapidly becoming a force to be reckoned with in the Empire.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6 April 1570, Chancellor Gathenhielm's office, Rome

Axel didn't actually like his counterpart in the Foreign Ministry very much. Barberini looked down on the Swede, which was quite a trick since Axel was a good four inches taller. Only days after Iskander's arrival in Diamentia, they finally stopped resisting and accepted the teachings of Luther. With the Italian peninsula entirely Protestant and it slowly spreading in the East, the fact that the largest settlement outside of Europe or Asia converted so rapidly was a positive sign. Axel's latest achievement was the groundbreaking on a Fine Arts Academy in Ancona, arguing to Francis that a true Patron of the Arts must be a center for learning in the arts as well.

Giovanni had an even better month, however. He'd convinced the King of Mantua to surrender his sovereignty to Tuscany.



Axel sighed. It wasn't that Giovanni was impolite -- far from it. He was just condescending. He'd gone to a good school and was Italian born; Axel was still seen as a foreigner, despite his years of service, and hadn't even attended college. Giovanni's family was incredibly wealthy. Axel's wasn't, at least not since the time of his Grandfather. He was a Duke and Giovanni wasn't, but Giovanni was a Count, and really seemed to have the ear of the Emperor.

For the first time, Axel began to seriously contemplate retirement.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21 October 1572, Constantinople

Prince Leopoldo wondered if his father even remembered where he was sometimes. Being the Emperor's son was great, sure, but he never saw Francis I. In fact, since his birthday, the only Italian he ever spoke was with Julius Tullius Cicero. At least he and Cicero got along very well; otherwise he'd probably go completely insane. He hadn't even found a girlfriend yet. His father was always trying to set him up, mostly to gain legitimacy and respect throughout the world. So far, though, he hadn't found anybody.

About the only thing he enjoyed was talking with the soldiers. General Barberini was always good for some stories and a lot of drinking. However, he was more interested in strategy, and found out that Marshal Pieroni was actually a bad teacher in that respect. He begged his father to send him to the Legionary Academy, and while Francis refused, he did have them send him some reading materials. He shared a passion for administration with his father, and Cicero was very hard working as well.

Leopoldo was most of all bored. For all of Archduke Graecus' greed, his records were in fantastic order, and the people west of the Turkish straits were mostly settled. Although Marshal Pieroni was Archduke of Asia Minor, the Prince still handled most of the day-to-day problems in his lands, since the Marshal was needed in Rome. Leopoldo was ready to leave for the day, when a courier dropped this petition on his desk.



Leopoldo's face lit up. He sent orders to General Barberini to mobilize his men and move west; there was a rebellion to put down!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
19 June 1575, Castle St. Maso, Rome

Francis I wasn't as enamored with Giovanni Barberini as he initially was. He'd even considered recalling Daoud Iskander, but every indication from Africa was that he was happy and enjoyed his work. Barberini just hadn't done any spectacular work. The crown of Mantua was a brilliant move, and well-executed, but he'd been very quiet for a couple of months now.

He was equally irritated with Salvestro Pieroni. The man, to be blunt, was an idiot when it came to military affairs. He only made him Marshal because he had nowhere else to turn, but Chiastvelli was twice the strategist Pieroni was. He thanked God that Leopoldo had such a military mind; he wouldn't be stuck with the poor state of affairs that existed.

He was very pleased with Chancellor Gathenhielm, however. He'd started the first university east of Constantinople in Kastamon. He'd drafted the School Establishment Act, a very popular decision that greatly expanded school funding across the Empire.



As a result, the Emperor had officially encouraged Innovation as the next major policy move, and the result had been a particularly brilliant Army Reformer arriving in Tuscany.



Matteo Pierallini had attended one of the finest schools in Europe, the University of Vienna, as an Italian citizen living in the Austrian Empire. Upon graduation, instead of joining the Austrian army, he sneaked across the border from Cremona into Lombardy. He stayed there for two years, until at the age of 20, the Governor of Lombardy recommended him for the job of Army Reformer. The Emperor hired Matteo almost on the spot, and even briefly considered naming him Marshal. Still, 20 was very young to be the highest ranking military official in the country. He did take Chiastvelli's spot on the Imperial Council; Chiastvelli remained Commandant of the Imperial Academy but had no other duties, which suited him just fine.

Francis I was particularly excited because he knew, very soon, that many of his Turkish territories would be recognized by the rest of Europe. Soon, he could expand again.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16 February 1577, Marshal Pieroni's office, Rome

Salvestro Pieroni was not terribly surprised when he heard General Barberini had died in a bar fight. That did leave him with no active Generals, but he knew the Emperor would hire a new one when and if a war broke out.

Pieroni smiled to himself at the thought of war. Almost any new conquests would be part of the Archduchy of Asia Minor, and four Turkish provinces -- Bulgaria, Anatolia, Bithynia, and Bursa -- were all legally core parts of the Empire of Tuscany. He was due to speak with the Emperor in a few days to determine a worthwhile target.

The reason that he was so excited was that the Empire was no longer overextended.



With Turkish accepted as a culture, that also meant that he'd have an easier time keeping the peace in any new territories.

Pieroni was most interested in planning his first war; he'd never really been tested as Marshal, and he knew that his troops were looking up to him for guidance. (Of course, any of his former soldiers were dreading any idiot plan he'd come up with, but he chose not to consider that.)

What Pieroni didn't know was that, while war was coming, he wouldn't be a part of it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] The problem was all the thrones I claimed were in the Empire (Burgundy, Savoy, Mantua), so I couldn't really start a war, but for some reason I kept trying

So, it's a time for a new contest! The winner will not only get to choose a new character, but he is guaranteed to be important because he'll be my new Marshal.

Here's the question: I declare war on a Muslim power, first thing, in the next update. (It isn't Morocco, although I do end up at war with them). If you can name the power I declare war on, you win! I'd advise a very close peek at the 1550 update, for those interested.

I won't be updating again until later this week, so you'll have time to guess.

[Avindian]

What good would a Carthaginian peace be then...isn't it called that because the Romans sacked, burned the city and then according to unverified fact (but nasty intention) sowed the land with salt (ooh nasty). Apparently, three Punic Wars were enough.

That is why it's called that; I assumed BearJuice67 meant from the Carthaginians, but if he did mean for, well, that won't happen, unfortunately

[loki100]

lots of juicy political manouvering in that update ... like the subtle changes to the constitution and Pierallini will be pretty awesome if he can gain you land tech advantages in the west. Notice you're stocking up on Colonial Range people ... are you finding Europe a wee bit too small?

[swinkee]

Making my first post on this forum to say I've been following this for a while and am really enjoying it. Keep up the good work.

And also:

So, it's a time for a new contest! The winner will not only get to choose a new character, but he is guaranteed to be important because he'll be my new Marshal.

Here's the question: I declare war on a Muslim power, first thing, in the next update. (It isn't Morocco, although I do end up at war with them). If you can name the power I declare war on, you win! I'd advise a very close peek at the 1550 update, for those interested.

I'd guess Dulkadir. One province, but bordering two of yours, so it'd tighten up your defensible territory and allow you to concentrate your armies. Also, it looks like they're taking Erserum in the background of that last image, which would also tighten up border defenses.

[esemesas]

Hmmm, I would have to guess you declare war on The Mamluks.

[FinnishFish]

Nice... + Getting Turkish in accepted cultures is a great thing!

[History_Buff]

I am going to say Dulkadir as well. The Mamelukes would be too obvious. I personally think those reform's of Francis are going to bit the empire in the butt eventually. It might not be in his lifetime, but I think it will happen. Absolute monarchies, which is in essence what the empire is at the moment, only work when the King is good. If the King is an idiot, then their is usually no one in a position to stop him.

[Boris ze Spider]

Would it happen to be the Timuruds.

[Michaelangelo]

I'm not going to even bother with the contest. Time to give someone else a chance.
Unfortunate that Andreas Germanicus died, since he was a cool character. As for Axel, he better not retire to soon. He's got to last for two lifetimes to make up for Constantine's short life.