The Great War: 1914

[enigmamcmxc]

The Great War: 1914-1920
An Austrian AAR



Contents:

Part I - Introduction

Chapter 1 - War desends upon Europe
Chapter 2 - Jane's fighting guide to the Austrian Army, 1914 edition
Chapter 3 - A short history of Europe – unknown author, magazine article published 1914

Part 2 - The opening phases

Chapter 4 - 1 August 1914, emergency strategy meeting
Chapter 5 - Revolution
Chapter 6 - Von Baden's war diary August-September 1914
Chapter 7 - Dispatch from the front, 28 September 1914
Chapter 8 - Southern Offensive

Part 3 - 1915

Chapter 9 - Russian Winter Offensive
Chapter 10 - The first year ends
Chapter 11 - National news and dispatches from the front
Chapter 12 - Dispatches from the front
Chapter 13 - Further dispatches

Part 4 - 1916

Chapter 14 - Indirect Approach
Chapter 15 - Strategic review, 26 June 1916
Chapter 16 - National Newspaper front page, 9 July 1916
Chapter 17 - Austria'a darkest hour
Chapter 18 - A happy Austrian Christmas

Part 5 - 1917

Chapter 19 - 1917

Part 6 - 1918

Chapter 20 - Tackling a revolution
Chapter 21 - Summer and the Treaty of London
Chapter 22 - National Newspaper front page, 3 December 1918

Part 7 - 1919/20

Chapter 23 - 1919, the early months
Chapter 24 - Treaty of Constantinople
Chapter 25 - Breaking the horde
Chapter 26 - The "Big Push"
Chapter 27 - This is the end

Part 8 - Epilogue

Chapter 28 - Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Chapter 29 - The price of victory

[enigmamcmxc]

Since the Napoleonic Wars and its aftermath, the face of Europe has changed dramatically. After decades of constant warfare, the turn of the century brought one last major war before several years of peace.

1914 brought about increased tensions between Europe’s main powers, distrust running rampant among them. Nations concerned about others strength sought to strike while others sought to right the wrongs of past grievances. Why the war broke out, who fired the first shot, and who is really to blame will take decades of laborious historical debate. This is the story of the war that was fought, not why.

On 1 August 1914 Europe found herself at war, the continent split into two vast alliances. On one side the Entente Powers and the other, the Central Alliance.

The Entente comprised of the British Empire, the French Empire, Spain, the Russian Empire, Sweden, Belgium, Serbia, Italy, and the Ottoman Empire. The male population of this bloc amounted to some 140 million male subjects, of which a pre-war estimate of 2.25 million were within the armed forces of these nations; the vast majority being colonial forces of the British and French. In conjunction these forces had a fleet of around 1,600 ships.

The Central Alliance consisted of the recently created Austrian-Hungarian Empire, the German Empire, the Netherlands, Portugal, and numerous Italian allies. A population of 44 million with 1.7 million at arms. The combined naval might of these nations amounted to nearly 900 ships. Loosely aligned was China and Egypt, adding a further male population of 95 million people with 3 million men at arms, and around 100 ships.

While the Chinese, statistically, added a huge army to aid the Central Alliance, there power was a sham. In a series of wars, the British Indian Army had decimated the Chinese.

China 1914

[enigmamcmxc]

While the nation is officially known as Austria-Hungary, since the end of the five year Balkan War ending in 1903, the army continues to describe itself as the “Austrian Army”.

Prior to the outbreak of the Balkan War the majority of the army was comprised of men all over the Austrian Empire, it was a truly multi-ethnic force with the largest majority being Austrians making up only 48 per cent of the rank and file; Italians and Poles making up a further 20 per cent of the armed forces and Hungarians contributing nearly 6 per cent. The Officer Corps however was dominated by Austrians who made up 80 per cent.

However after 758,376 casualties in that five year war (a further 200,000 men being lost between ’83 and ’94), it resulted in major military reforms. Of the 915,000 regulars in the 1914 ‘Austrian Army’, 70 per cent were Austrian, ethnic forces relegated to the supporting arms of the cavalry and engineers. The largest ethnic minority is the Polish cavalry making up only 5.5 per cent of the armed forces. Hungarians only contributing 2.5 per cent. The Office Corps is still dominated by Austrians, now making up 88 per cent while Hungarians contribute 5 per cent.

The Austrian Army is comprised of 25 field armies of 33,000 men each; I. Armee consisting 36,000 men instead. Eight cavalry corps of 9,000 men each supports the field armies. The latter are given the role of protecting the rear of the front line for infiltrations when static lines are being held while they form the vanguard and flank protection on the offense. Over the last few years the Austrian military have heavily funded the production of ‘Motorgeschütz’ – panzerkampfwagens –nicknamed tanks by the military. Each Army has been issued with a brigade of these machines and it has been announced that the military has started experimenting with “Panzer Korps”. Units containing these machines along with dragoons, to provide mobile infantry, to provide fast striking units to exploit penetrations. The latest reports indicate that only one such formation currently exisits.

The Austrian "tank"

The Austrian military considers itself to be the most advanced and well trained force in Europe, and possibly the largest in the world when excluding the British and French colonial forces and the Chinese conscripts. The Army also contains a large cadre of veteran units, bloodied in the Balkans War, subduing the 1904 communist revolution, and from the 9-month long conquest of Northern Macedonia that saw the destruction of the Ottoman Army (just over 30,000 casualties were suffered but around 130,000 inflicted).

[enigmamcmxc]

Europe has always been at war. The wars spur on by the French revolution caused millions of deaths and should have been the end to Europe’s infighting. However it was not. Millions more have died in the resulting violence as Europe has torn itself apart over the last one hundred years, not to mention the bloodshed Europeans have caused across the globe.

The British Empire often claiming to be the peacemaker of the Europe, intervening to maintain balance within Europe has instead engaged in various conflicts with most of Europe, attempted to colonise most of Africa, and even launched an invasion of the United States. Boasting one of the world’s largest armies, if not the largest, has took control of provinces within the Low Countries of Europe and launched its vast Indian Army to colonise China.

France, the once mighty powerhouse from where Napoleon had marched across Europe with a nearly unstoppable army, has declined in strength turning her attention to fighting various wars with the Prussians and German states over the Rhineland while building her colonial army to march across North and West Africa. While unable to match the British Royal Navy, the French have built up a formidable fleet: in one decisive action, during the 19th Century, the French destroyed the entire 100 ship Austrian fleet knocking Austria out of the war they had engaged upon to support her Prussian allies.

The German states had finally managed to put aside their differences merging first into a confederation and by the turn of the century into the German Empire, even acquiring colonies in Africa. While they had been able to hold their own against the French they had engaged in several wars with the Russians, usually piggybacking on an Austrian effort, which resulted in gains made before being crushed in follow-up wars and their gains lost.

Russia had suffered the most of the European states. Within the space of fifty years their nation had been invaded and devastated numerous times, their army losing between 3-4 million men fighting the Austrians, Germans and Turks. They had expanded east, colonising Siberia but had lost numerous territories to the expanding Austrians and Germans. In the last war fought with the Austrians, her ports had been blockaded; her armies bled white on the Austrian border defences, resulting in St Petersburg and Moscow being captured.

The Ottoman Empire, while not losing as many men as the Russians, had suffered set back after setback being steadily driven south by the Austrians and Russians while the Egyptians pushed north. The once powerful empire appears on its last legs. In each war it has engaged with, it has had its entire European empire occupied and its capital sacked; in the Balkans War, Austria’s Italian allies even invaded Asia Minor and demanded territories only to have their claims rejected by Austria.

Austria, as it had been known until the turn of the century when it was retiled and reinvented as the Austrian-Hungary Empire, has through a series of wars established themselves as the dominant power in the centre of Europe. For most of the 19th Century the nation had, due to military weakness, avoided war instead building up her industrial base, raillines, while promoting a liberal philosophy. However in the final decades of the century, she engaged in numerous bloody wars gaining swathes of territory. During this time she had gone through an industrial downturn but over the last 20 years has recovered from the depression to become one of the world’s leading providers of various goods.

While Europe has been in a near enough constant state of warfare, engaging in new battlefields in Africa and Asia, Europe’s cousins across the sea in North America have been equally bloody. Seven wars had been fought since the inconclusive “American Civil War”, the “Confederate states” remaining just strong enough to hold off “Union” attacks. Both however have also engaged in numerous wars with Mexico. Europe’s largest export – war – has seen an excellent consumer in the Americas.

[enigmamcmxc]

Attending this emergency planning meeting was His Imperial and Royal Majesty Franz Joseph I, nominally the commander-in-chief of the army, the Prime Minster, the Chief of the Army Staff and commander of I.Armee, Engelbert von Baden, the Commanders-in-Chief of the Fleet Gerhard Hellpach, the Finance Minister, and numerous other cabinet and military officers. Looking out over a brightly lit square in Venice, the meeting, taking place in a stuffy conference room, got under way during the early hours of the morning, the war being less than a few hours old.

Franz Joseph I who, during the early years of his reign, had personally saw to the industrialisation and liberalisation of the empire, along with ordering strong border defences and extensive internal lines of communication be constructed while bolstering the civil service and promoting free trade and internal promotion between the classes; looked worried. He had good sense to be worried, never had the empire saw such an extensive alliance arrayed against it, this was going to be the empire’s largest challenge and a real possibility existed of the empire being invaded (something that had not happened during his reign, although small numbers of Russian troops had in once case managed to retreat north past the border defences rather than back into Serbia).

The Prime Minister opened the meeting discussing briefly the political situation, who the enemy was, the countries war goals (acquire vast tracts of territory form the Russians and Ottomans, and humiliate the upstart Italians) and that the upmost priority of the armed forces was to ensure the safety of the empire and not allow enemy soldiers within her borders (newly conquered areas in what use to be Russia and the Ottoman empire was a different matter, a grey area). A successful defence of the borders should see to Britain suing for peace. He also announced that, as of 0100 that morning he had signed the conscription act: the mobilisation of the work force was under way and should bring an additional one million men to the army to support the 900,000 regulars.

The Finance Minister was next to talk. He outlined how the empire had amassed a huge fortune, over 4 million pounds and raising at around one thousand a day, but due to task now facing the empire and her allies proposed that the Italian allies, the Netherlands, and Germany should all be issued large grants to help prop them up: the longer they fight he reasoned, the better the chances of the Austrian military to vanquish her foes. He additionally proposed that the Confederate States of America, a long term ally of Austria, should also be wired large sums of money thus to keep her fighting the United States and ensure the Americans are too busy to interfere in European matters unless it was on Austrian terms. China likewise should be issued a large grant, to aid her in tying down British forces.

High Admiral Hellpach, declared that the navy could not be expected to be used in an aggressive role like it had been in previous wars: ranging far and wide in small groups to blockade Ottoman and Russian ports. While it contained 165 ships, with more under construction aiming at a total strength of 200, he highlighted the navies of the Central Alliance while large were still outnumbered by the Entente, they were spread out: the Germans in the Baltic, the Portuguese in the Atlantic, the Dutch in Indies and the North Sea. The Austrian Fleet would be the only allied force operating in the Adriatic or the Med, the Greeks or even the Egyptians could not be relied on thus the navy must be restricted to the defence of the Adriatic Sea; operating to keep to Austrian commercial sea lanes and ports open. He proposed that the 32 dreadnoughts and 33 cruisers of the main fleet be reinforced by the 50 cruisers sitting in the reserve fleet and seek battle with the French: inflict a decisive defeat upon them then return to operate a single standing patrol between mainland Italy and Greece, while the reserve fleet of 50 pre-dreadnoughts blockade Italian Adriatic ports.

Field Marshal von Baden, had tough decisions on his hand. He stated that it was his firm belief that the Ottoman Empire was already defeated: since 1903 and the Macedonian invasion, the Ottomans had suffered a series of revolutions crippling the country. He noted that Russian troops were already operating in the Ottoman’s European provinces to suppress these revolutionaries indicating the lack of an Ottoman army. He therefore proposed that while the rest of the army prepared, the Panzer Korps and all Cavalry Corps, supporting the southern armies, should immediately move into the Ottoman lands and occupy them before any conscripted force could engage our own. Russian opposition was expected to be minimal and the only major opposition should come from these armed communists roaming the countryside. With the southern flank secure, a defensive line being held at Constantinople and linking up with the bulge of our frontier, all resources could then be redeployed east or west as the situation demanded.

Highlighting the fact that Austria had been able to mobilise a million men, it was most likely that our larger neighbours would have been able to do greater. Von Baden therefore announced that these conscripts would not be used in offensive action for the time being as that would throw away this resource before it had been fully trained. 31 new armies could be formed from the conscripts but they would lack cavalry or heavy artillery; he announced that 61 new regular brigades should be formed to reinforce these armies with the equipment they needed. With such manpower being allocated to these units it would leave very few resources left, enough he calculated that could be used for the raising of four new Panzer Korps. It would take the best part of a year for all these forces to be equipped and trained and it was his belief that in the time being this would allow the conscripts to be full trained too. Therefore until that time they would be deployed to Italy, to replace the regular forces who would then be transferred east, used as garrison forces in the Balkans in a second echelon following the invasion, and for around 250,000 of them to be held near the German border ready to be deployed in the border defences there (not as strong as the eastern, southern, or western ones) in the case of German collapse; the rest could be positioned centrally to act as reserves for either front.

When quizzed on his decision to shift his weight east, von Baden, announced that it was his firm belief that like the 1880s and 90s, British forces would be deployed to support the Russians; advancing from India. Looking at his strategic map he did not believe the German alliance with the Chinese would provide the British with much distraction and was only buying the Germans extra time before the full weight of the British hit them. He had considered the possibility of a Franco-Spanish attack through the Sardinia kingdom, along with the threat the Sicilians were posing, but believed the former would concentrate against the Germans and the latter would be bogged down fighting Austria’s allies. Thus a Anglo-Russian offensive seemed the most pressing matter.

With the southern flank secure, all forces trained, it was von Baden’s belief that a knockout blow could then be delivered against the Russians with similar results to the Balkan Wars – St Petersburg and Moscow being captured. Resources could then be concentrated westward. Each opponent could be taken out in turn.

[enigmamcmxc]

In the midst of the nation mobilising for war, an attempted revolution was launched. On 14th August, Communists cells took to the streets in open warfare against the nation. In a leaflet released that morning, the revolutionaries announced their goal as to stop the mobilisation for war: no longer would the proletariat of the nation be used as pawns by the bourgeoisie rulers. Peace would be forced upon Austria-Hungary.

An estimated 80,000 of the 230,000 strong membership of the outlawed Communist Party took to the streets mainly in urban centres and coincidently the deployment centres of the mobilised forces. Untrained conscripts, who had been told they would not – and it had not been planned – to send them into battle at such an early stage now found themselves fighting with their own countrymen. Military formations remained loyal and there was no instance of them joining with the rebels.

Revolutionaries on the streets

Conscripts and regulars now moved to brutally supress these men attempting to betray the country. In all but two instances these rebels were within the boundaries of what were soon to be the frontline i.e. Austria-Hungary proper and not recent conquered lands. In the previous, and only other, attempted revolution in 1904 (nicknamed Red May) 69,000 were communists killed, wounded, or captured (1,821 government troops were killed or wounded) and based mainly in the recently conquered lands of the Ottoman Empire. An estimated 9,000 revolutionaries were operating in southern Serbia and a further 3,000 further south. Wanting to keep the frontline line secure only a limited force was sent to either destroy or force the Serbian communists south.

Regulars and conscripts on the streets putting down the revolution

By 29 August, the "revolution" was over. It was brutally supressed. 84,000 revolutionaries had been killed or inprisoned while 2,444 soldiers had been killed or wounded. However while the revolution had no real chance of success, it had imposed severe delays on the deployement of our forces. On 17 August Russian troops were closing on our borders, some had already started to occupy Grondo. By 29 August Russian troops had advanced into Macedonia and engaged the final elements of the revolution we had opted not to engage. Our offensive south had not started and 135,000 regulars were redeploying to the Western Front that the Germans had not manned.

[enigmamcmxc]

10 August 1914

Spoke to German ambassador this morning followed by a meeting with our chief of intelligence. German troops have fully mobilised and are deploying east to fight the Russians. French troops have crossed German border. No wonder the Germans lost to the Russians last time out, they cannot co-ordinate themselves properly and conduct a two front war.

12 August 1914

With conscripts pouring into Italy I have gave orders for the four regular armies based there, including my own, to move into Germany. Conscripts, once organised in their marshalling areas, have been ordered to replace troops along the southern borders. The conscripts have been ordered to man the entire length of the northern border with a particular concentration near the Swiss-German-Austrian border area due to the German deployment making their long term survival in this war seem remote. Other newly raised forces have been ordered into position behind the eastern defences, forming a second line. Remaining forces will be spread across the empire as reserves and numerous units assigned to the south to follow-up the future push.

14 August 1914

Damned communist uprising, traitors to the empire! Have ordered them to be crushed by the army.

28 August 1914

New information received by staff officers, 50+ new armies – 100 divisions – and some extra brigades have been organised from the conscripts. Previous estimate of 31 new armies was based of our current full strength armies not two infantry divisions minus supporting arms. This means that the new regular forces being trained will not be enough to fully support the conscript forces.

29 August 1914

Communists crushed! They have impeded the deployment of my forces resulting in the southern push being cancelled for the moment.

30 August 1914

Reports have been fed back to me that Russians are advancing from the south and have engaged out outlaying positions in the east but so far in limited numbers.

31 August 1914

My eight divisions split across the four armies have arrived in Germany. Met with chief of intelligence who believes that upwards of 200,000 Frenchmen are already in Germany although split up. Germans have now engaged the French. Regardless it will be my intention to rout the vanguard then push back across the border the whole weight of the French invasion.

3 September 1914

Germans have considerably reinforced the Western Front and the French, it would seem considerably withdrew from it. Some reconnaissance is to take place and if it is deemed the Germans have all in hand, we will withdraw back to Austria.

Informed that major battle developing in the east: ordered more troops into the fight.

4 September 1914

Further French forces identified four divisions to engage. I must admit that am looking forward to the engagement: it will be the first time since 1902 since a major battle as been fought, excluding what is developing on the Eastern Front. There is quite a number of German forces on the front, more than I had given them credit for. Four of my divisions are to hook around the north of the battle I am to engage in, to attack other Frenchies.

12 September 1914

All four armies are now engaged in battle with the French, north and south of us German forces are busily engaged in battle. Fight going well.

13 September 1914

Heard today that the Fleet, on completing its aggressive mission into the Mediterranean has only destroyed a single Russian ship: failed to find the French and let the Italians get away. Disastrous display!

20 September 1914

More and more Russians have been committed to the battle in the east; I have ordered reserves into the fight. In the west my battle if going well however the divisions to my northwest are having a hard time outnumbered by French infantry and have suffered heavy casualties.

26 September 1914

After considerable delays the armies in the south are ready. I have gave them authorisation to begin operations against Russian and Ottoman forces.

[Soulstrider]

Enjoying it so far, but you could try to put more ingame screenshots

[enigmamcmxc]

Thanks, and cheers for the suggestion: more screensots in the future

[brycef]

I like the war diary aspect...gives as sense of your strategy as things develop and you react and plan for events.

[enigmamcmxc]

Prime Minister, Our forces in Germany have finally disengaged with the French. In one sector we pushed the French back, the other more northern battle we lost and our men were forced to retreat. Casualties have been extraordinary high, whole units have been nearly wiped out. We have suffered 28,798 casualties and three armies are combat ineffective. I do not know how much more of a role we can play in the Western Front unless considerably reinforced.

We were outnumbered in cavalry, 2-1 in infantry, and in number of guns. However from these two clashes with the French, who suffered much lower losses (estimated to be in the region of 10,041), I must conclude that the lack of indirect fire artillery and competently trained non-commissioned officers is the reason behind these casualties. We have been complacent following our victories over the Russians and Turk and now we must pay the price.

- Von Baden.

[enigmamcmxc]

Thanks Brycef, i wanted to mix things up a bit and thought the dairy would be a good idea. Glad to see it worked out and was liked

[enigmamcmxc]

After much delay, due to longer than anticipated reorganisation of the conscripted men and the communist uprising, the offensive in the south has finally got under way on 25 September. Operation Franz Ferdinand named after the heir apparent, totalling 350,000 men: several armies, all seven cavalry corps, the panzer corps, and 79,000 conscripts to act as a follow-up force. Opposition was estimated to be in the region of 150,000 men, mostly Russians. Greeks troops are also operating in the area in limited numbers.

The plan of attack was for the field armies to wheel left advancing south then east, along a broad front south of the Serbian border to engage the Russian forces. The cavalry and panzer corps would comprise the second wave, following up the infantry and to exploit any gap created in the frontline. With such a gap exploited they would move to encircle all opposition, with an encirclement battle being the main strategic aim it was believed that a much quicker victory, and cheaper in terms of lives, could be achieved than in previous wars. The final wave, the conscripts, would occupy and clear the territory behind the main advance freeing up the main force to carry on forward. The ultimate goal: the Russian border and Constantinople.

In conjunction with the strategic aims laid down at the beginning of the war, southern “Serbia” and northern Macedonia would act as a buffer zone: an area the Russian and Ottoman troops would be allowed to advance in unmolested. They would waste their time ensuring the area was occupied, and hopefully their numbers would dwindle due to supply problems as they did, slowly closing up on the main defensive line. In the meantime our force would be intact and concentrated. As the enemy would slowly advance, they would be spread out, unorganised with no front formed.

At the launch of Operation Franz Ferdinand some of these unintended aims of not engaging the enemy had occurred. A frontline had been established, stretching from the border of Serbia to the sea however there appeared to little organisation and Russian strength was spread out. Four Russian armies manned the north and centre of this front, their southern flank locked with the Ottoman Army who then held the line to the sea. Little in the way of reserves was detected. In a few days, the Austrian troops crossed the no-man’s land between the start point and the Russian troops, crashing into them. With contact made, the Russians moved their southern wing north to reinforce the sectors under attack. They therefore opened up a gap between them and the Ottoman Army; the cavalry and panzer corps was ordered on 1October to exploit immediately with men to pivot north and south to cut off the Russians and Ottoman forces. Total and victory looks assured.

By the 25th of the month the mobile troops had penetrated into the rear. The northern shoulder of the Russian line had also been broken and troops advanced east. These troops and elements of the mobile force had advanced around 200 miles. The rest had become engaged in a battle along the border: protracted and bloody. For the rest of the year the advance forces moved no further, digging in for the winter, as the battles along the border continued. The Ottoman Empire, as fragile as ever, saw yet another uprising by their people resulting in our men having combat them and the combined weight of the Russian and Ottoman military. By the end of the year one field army and several of the cavalry corps had been reduced to a shadow of their former selves and the panzer corps nearly wiped out. 31 December, after just over 3 months of fighting, 35,927Austrian troops had been killed or wounded. Russian losses amounted to 60,407 killed or wounded and a further 25,000 captured, while 13,707 Ottoman troops had been killed or wounded in conjunction with 18,000 rebels.

On the Eastern Front, Russian troops had advanced into Germany and into the Lublin area. This move threatened to outflank our border defences thus a limited offensive was launched that drove the Russians back. At the eastern end of our border defences, along the outpost line, a massive Russian attack was launched. In response we matched their effort. However within two months 650,000 Russians were engaged against 300,000 of our own men. By December the army was ordered to retreat, to pull back to the main line of resistance – shortening our defensive line as so many troops engaged in one place had stretched the limit of the army. Over 100,000 Russians were killed or wounded in this one battle bringing their losses on the eastern front to 112,457 while our own losses on the eastern front totalled 53,296 along with 3,000 prisoners.

In Germany, by December it was decided to withdraw the four armies (three of which were shells of their former selves) back into Austria. 35,549 more men had been lost fighting the French, making not gains, inflicting only 14,579.

Red - Frontline at the end of 1914
Blue - Main Line of resistance
Yellow - Line held by conscripts

[Baltasar]

Those losses are quite terrible indeed. Any chance to commit more forces into any single front to achieve local superiority in numbers?

[Selzro]

Good show! An AAR focused on a WWI variant is an excellent idea, and one starring Austria-Hungary even more so. Keep it up!

One question: Are Greece and Egypt on your side? You mentioned them in passing in one of the first posts and now I see Greece has occupied Chalkidike, in Macedonia. If they are allied to you, what's the situation on their respective fronts? Are they being overrun by the Ottomans/Russians?

[enigmamcmxc]

Baltasar: Am going to attempt to finish off the Ottomans off over the winter, which should free up my forces, and ive given up on attempting to help the Germans for the moment. So fingers crossed - spring/summer offensive with every regular i have.

Selzro: Greek war aim is to take control of modern day Greece (minus Crete) and Constantople (there post WW1 real life goals i believe?). There forces are small, 60,000 iirc when i loaded up as them, but they seem to be doing okay and have been left alone by the AI: the computer seemed more concered with retaking the lands lost to rebels which was most of the Ottoman Empire. They are allied with me but i have not actively sought to help them out.

As for the Egyptians, they are not allied to me and i have no yet looked at what they are up to. They have however got their fleet sitting off Constantople, you can see it in that last picture.

[Leonaru]

Cool, an alt-history WWI.

[enigmamcmxc]

It was a bloody pain in the ass to set up too! I guess it would have been easier had i figured out how write events alas i tried to simpley edit my save game to artifcially create it ... which failed. Resulting in me loading up each nation, declaring war on the others. The editing the crap out of my savegame to add in the various war goals, break a few conflicting alliances between minors and edit out some of the nations who ended up on both sides etc. Never again!

[enigmamcmxc]

The redeployment of the Austrian Army on the Eastern Front resulted in the Russians being put off from following up from the Battle of Korosten. The Russian Army, with a small French presence, was reinforcing their northern wing and advancing into Germany and towards Austrian soil, they were launching a massive outflanking move around our main force and border defences.

The German Army was unable to stop them. The only troops in position to initially respond were several divisions of the conscripts. Von Baden’s men, recuperating in the Alps, were ordered to reinforce the northern wing as well as some of the regular reserves from our main line. As the regulars reach the area they are thrown into the battle reinforced by the conscripted men.

Conscripted troops were the first men moved into position to counter the main Russian thrust, then reinforced by additional conscripts and regulars.

In an attempt to draw Russian attention elsewhere a limited counterattack is launched towards Korosten and conscripts march into Serbia. Meanwhile our troops in Thrace are ordered to continue to move up towards the Russian border and the Ottoman capital. On 23 February, after more than four months of fighting, our troops capture Sofia: the entire defending Russian force destroyed. For four months 45,000 Russians had threw back wave after wave of the Austrian army mauling numerous formations and rendering most of the cavalry arm non-combat worthy. We had suffered around 50,000 casualties during this battle and captured only 17,000 Russians at the end of it.

On 2 March, the Second Battle of Korosten was closed down. The battle had diverted much Russian attention but, with so many men committed to the Battle of Brest-Litovsk and in the south our line was stretched out with few reserves. The Battle was much more indecisive than previously with more evened casualties. On March 8th, at Brest-Litovsk, von Bade was killed in action.

Russian troops were repulsed from Austrian lands, with one exception that is still holding out, and drove back into Germany. Two entire Russian armies were destroyed in the process, one can be seen above surrounded in German lands.

The Russian offensive over the course of the last two months was repelled with new assaults launched to complete the rout. However a small force of Russian troops had penetrated into the northern sector of the empire and were surrounded by our men, however these Russians were able to throw back several assaults. Elsewhere two major battles had erupted on German territory to destroy the remnants of the Russian offensive.

The Austrian counter-offensive

In the early days of the month our troops were moving on Constantinople, which was entered at the end of the month, and the Russian border. No serious opposition was seen throughout the south bar the heavy presence of the Ottoman Red Guard that took serious losses during the winter. However throughout the month 40,000 French troops were identified near the Ottoman capital that posed a very problematic threat to our southern operations. During this time a new Non-Commissioned Officer training programme was launched, the initial programme expected to be completed by the end of the year.

The last three months have been just about as bloody as the first three months of the war. 133,121 casualties have been incurred and 3,000 men captured, of which only 59,483 were lost countering the Russian offensive and the supporting battles. The Russians have thus far lost 70,216 men in their winter offensive, incurring a further 53,020 casualties with an additional 17,342 captured in the south. French losses amounted to 2,238. Serbian losses: 2,338 casualties and 3,639 captured. Ottoman losses, considering Austrian and Greek forces are ranging all over her European possessions, amounted to only 3,000 during this three month period. The heaviest losses incurred by any force during the winter, was the “Ottoman Red Guard”, losing 147,000 men.

At the end of six months of warfare, troublesome news reaches high command. There are whispers among the Ukrainian regiments of secession. These men had come from a population that for 30 years had been loyal to the empire, since their lands were seized from the Russians, this is worrying indeed. Regardless of the consequences the ring leaders are rounded up, if the empire was not at war it may have been a different story but six months into a great war this is high treason.

[King50000]

This looks pretty cool. There is a Great-War mod that sets up a "Great War" scenario, why didn't you use that?