Rise of the Mecklenburg Empire

[History_Buff]

Since technical difficulties have temporarily sidelined my current HOI2 AAR, I have decided to start up another one. This will be my first EUIII AAR and second AAR overall. This will be a DW 5.0 AAR. I have turned off lucky nations and am playing on hard difficulty with high Ai agressiveness with everything else being default. I have decided to play as Mecklenburg for two reasons. First, they are one of my favorite countries to play as. 2 Their is nothing I like to do more in this game then to take a small, insignificant country and turn it into a superpower. For those of you who are not familiar with my play style, I am a very aggressive player and a major expansionist. That means their will be plenty of wars in this AAR. Now, here are my goals for this AAR

1. Make Mecklenburg a Great power and become the undisputed master of Northern Germany and, hopefully, Northern Europe.
2. Form Germany if possible
3. colonize India and whatever else I can get my hands on.

The first two goals I am confident I can achieve, as I have done it in the past. However, past experience has generally taught me that by the time I am able to spare the troops to colonize, most of the best lands are often gone. That means I may have to steal someone else's colonies if I want to be able to colonize.

Now for some house rules.

No using cheats.
No reloading, if I am annexed, I will start over. This rule can be broken on a case by case basis, but only after being put to a vote by you readers. This should reduce the gamey-ness of it. interactivity has been approved by Mr. Capitalist So without further ado, let us begin.

Duke Ulrich von Mecklenburg awoke on October 14 1399 after having the strangest of dreams. He had dreamt that his nation, The Duchy of Mecklenburg, would one day count among the greatest nations of Europe. At first he dismissed this dream as nothing but folly. While his ancestors had ruled in Mecklenburg, first as Kings of the Obotrites then as Dukes of Mecklenburg for 268 years, a legacy that he was proud of. After all, he had the blood of Kings in him, but that did not change the facts of the situation. The Mecklenburg he ruled was a tiny state, considered an insignificant spec by those nations who even bothered to learn of its existence at all. It was also in close proximity who would not think twice about crushing any upstart state that dare cross them. To her Northwest were the independent cities of Bremen, Lubeck, and Hamburg. These cities were center of the Hanseatic League, known simply as the Hansa to most. They commanded a mighty army and were easily one of the powers of the region. Further north was Denmark, a nation on the rise recently. Her King Erick VII of Pomerania also reigned as King Erick I of Sweden and King Erick III of Norway. To her South lay the mighty state of Brandenburg, currently languishing under a personal union with the pissant state of Luxembourg and her King, Jobst I von Luxembourg.

However, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that maybe it was worth a try. Brandenburg was restrained by its Union and could not act against Mecklenburg, hopefully until it was too late. Reports from Denmark also seemed to indicate that the Kalmar Union was not as happy as one might think, with Sweden chaffing under Danish rule. The Hansa for its part was more concerned with trade at the moment then conquest and as long as Mecklenburg did not give them cause for alarm, their was no reason they should attack Mecklenburg. Whatsmore, Mecklenburg also had several small nations around it that might be prey for the nation and other middling powers that might consider allying with her. The nation of Saxe-Launenburg was a nation of similiar size and it currently had no allies to speak of and no heir to the throne, as did the nation of Luneburg. Luneburg might also prove a useful ally if a conquest was not feasible. As for other allies, the Bishopric of Munster, the Archishopric of Bremen, and Kingdom of Brunswick were friendly to his duchy and might be convinced to ally with him. Duke Ulrich was also a very ambitious man and was not satisfied with ruling a small pissant state forever and it had often been said that dreams were sometimes messages from God, why not this dream? He therefore resolved to do all in his power to make this dream a reality.


Duke Ulrich von Mecklenburg
(portrait of another Duke Ulrich of Mecklenburg, the Link is here)

[History_Buff]

His first act was to give himself a new title. He would now be known as the King of Mecklenburg, not just a lowly Duke. He made the announcement public that day before going to meet with his advisors. He then sent a letter asking for approval of his new title to the Bohemian Holy Roman Emperor, citing his ancestor Nikltot's title of King of the Obotrites as grounds for taking this title.

He then went to meat with his two advisors. Heinrich von Meinecke and Gustav Wilhelm von Hannover. These men were old friends of his and the three had grown up together, so each man trusted the others with his life. Heinrich was a consummate diplomat and bureaucrat while Heinrich was a master of espionage and had many contacts in foreign courts. Heinrich was his eyes and ears while Gustav served as his trusted right hand. Together, the three men made an excellent team and Mecklenburg would need all of their many talents.

"All right, lets get started shall we, first, I would like to announce that from here on out we shall not be content with the lands we already have and shall look for as many opportunities to expand as possible".

Gustav then spoke up "My King, I believe our first move should be to arrange a marriage for you to the King of Saxe-Launenburg's daughter. She is his only heir and it would allow you to claim the throne of that nation".

"I agree, we should start their, send the request at once"

Now it was Heinrich's turn to speak up " Your Majesty, I believe we should send offers of alliance to Brunswick, Munster, and Luneburg".

At this remark, Gustav immediately posed a question "My good friend, why should we ally with Luneburg, they are nearby and they also lack a suitable heir, why not arrange a royal marraige for them and try to claim their throne as well?"

"That is a good question and at first glance, it looks like the smartest move, but in actuality, it is not a very good first move. My contacts in the Luneburg court inform me that they have very close ties with the Hanseatic cities. While their is not yet a formal alliance, I think that such an alliance may come soon and make claiming their throne out of our reach."

"Very Well, I have heard your council and I agree with both of your points, send out the dispatches at once. Now, let us get a look at the state of our nation. Gustav, you shall go first with the state of our army"

"As you wish sire, our army currently numbers 1,000 infantry soldiers stationed in the capital, however, we have room to support another regiment if we need it."




"Very good, I do not think we need that other regiment just yet, but I think we may need it soon. Also, I believe we should commence a search for a commander of our armies. They currently have no leader and our being directed by a junior officer. While this is fine for now, It may cause problems for us down the road. Now Heinrich, if you would be so kind as to give me a report of our nations finances and policies."

"As you wish my King, we currently are not minting any money and we are investing in the researching of new technologies rather evenly. As for our policies, we currently vest a good deal of power in the local nobility, however, if we were to change that, We may anger the nobles and as things stand, we would not survive that revolt. We also put emphasis on free trade at the moment. If I could, your majesty, I would suggest moving more towards free trade to give our merchants a better chance at competing for trade in foreign markets in the future."




"I agree with you assessment of our current situation and if neither of you have any further business, I believe this council is concluded, dismissed".

As the men filed out, the King once again turned his mind to the dream he had the previous night. It would be a long road to ensure the fulfilment of that dream, but he believed he was up to the task. While he had capable men working for him in Heinrich and Gustav, he was not naive enough to believe that that guaranteed victory. Despite his ambition and pride in his nation, Mecklenburg was still an insignificant speck to most nation of importance. He would have to plan his next moves carefully as one wrong turn could mean not only the end of his dream, but also the end of his nation as a whole. He then retired to his study to plan out his next move.

Alright, there you have it, that is Mecklenburg's starting situation. Not the best of situations, but it could be worse. This is my first attempt at a narrative style, so let me know what you think of it.

[Sethanon]

A promising start! I am looking forward to this !
Lets rise to greatness!

[Viking_Manstein]

I like it, keep it up

[herrhals]

how about not forming Prussia/Germany just to keep that sexy flag and sexy color?

[blsteen]

Hmmm, Meck. I wonder how they perform as a OPM instead of the uber TPM that they were.

[History_Buff]

A promising start! I am looking forward to this !
Lets rise to greatness!

Indeed, I shall make Mecklenburg rise to its rightful place among the Great powers of Europe

I like it, keep it up

Oh, I intend to. I will try my best to ensure this does not die.

how about not forming Prussia/Germany just to keep that sexy flag and sexy color?

I may just do that. I always debate about forming Germany, more because I like the idea of being the Mecklenburg Empire rather then the German Empire. I will say I have no intention of forming Prussia. If anything, I will go straight from Mecklenburg to Germany.

Hmmm, Meck. I wonder how they perform as a OPM instead of the uber TPM that they were.

My experiences have been mixed. Generally, if I survive the first few years and manage to expand quickly enough, I can usually survive and prosper. I played a game as Mecklenburg in HTTT version 4.0 and managed to turn Mecklenburg into easily the most dominant power in Europe west of Russia by the mid 1600's.

Now, a few more house rules to add in. No excessive vassalization. All vassals that I acquire will eventually be annexed to my nation as soon as they outlive their usefulness. For example, if I vassalize an elector, I may keep that Elector around until I now longer need them, or until I decide to start cleaning up my borders. Also, I will generally stay away from gamey tactics as much as possible. There will be no running away to a small island somewhere or even worse, the Americas, and using that to bring Mecklenburg to greatness. Mecklenburg is a North German state and it shall remain a North German State and my capital will most likely remain in Rostock the whole game and will never be located outside of Europe or Northern Germany. Now, without further ado, let us begin the long awaited update.

Gustav Wilhelm von Hannover was a happy man. he had sent out numerous alliance requests as well as a request for a royal marraige to Amalia Askanier, the daughter of King Erich III Askanier of Saxe-Launenburg. All of these requests had been accepted.

He was personally most pleased about the royal marriage between Ulrich and Amalia, and not only for political reasons. While it was true that the marriage would make Ulrich the most obvious choice to succeed the aging King Eric. To this effect, Eric presented a letter to Ulrich to be opened on the King's death that would make him the New King of Saxe-Launenburg. Gustav, however, also had other reasons to be happy with the match. Both from what he had seen and what he had heard from his old friend seemed to show that the two of them got along famously. The two of them seemed to bring out the better sides of each other and Ulrich looked to be a lot more happy since the marriage had happened. The usually deathly-serious King now seemed to be more relaxed and Gustav believed this had everything to do with his new bride. Therefore, he was quite looking forward to the upcoming meeting with the King.


Amalia Askanier, Queen of Mecklenburg1

When Heinrich and Gustav arrived in the Throne Room, he could tell something was amiss. Both the King and Queen looked decidely unhappy. He glanced over at Heinrich and noticed that he also seemed uneasy. Both of them knew the King well enough to be able to tell that the look he was giving them meant that he had grave news to tell them.

"My friends, the news I have for you today is both unfortunate and foul. Amalia recently received a letter from one of her old friends in her father's court. Apparently, her father has fallen ill and, in his weakness, his wife, Magdelena, has begun to try and maneuver her son from her previous marriage, also called Eric, into the succession. I have discussed this with Amalia and I our best option might be to reveal the letter I was given by Eric early and attempt to use it to press my claim to the throne now before Magdelana can get Eric named heir or, even worse, kill King Eric. However, things are not as easy as they sound, as I am told that Magdelena has been in contact with nearby Brunswick and that their King intends to support them should we attempt to press our claim to the throne. Therefore, I would like to confer with you before I make my decision."

Gustav was shocked. This was grave news indeed. If Mecklenburg did not act fast, they could lose their claim to the throne. However, While Mecklenburg's army should be more then sufficient to subdue Saxe-Launenburg, Brunswick was a different beast altogether. Brunswick was twice the size of Mecklenburg with a population to match. They could field 6,000 men without having to worry to much about the strain on their supply lines. Mecklenburg, on the other hand, could only hope to muster 2,000 men, as trying to raise more then that would stretch their supply lines and economy to the breaking point. Their seemed to Gustav that their was only one way that Mecklenburg would stand even a ghost of a chance at winning this war: They would need the help of their new allies Munster and Luneburg. Upon realizing this, he spoke up

"Sire, while we most certainly have a very good claim to their throne, The question we must really ask is whether we can enforce that claim. In order to do so, we would have to call on the help of our allies. The question then becomes whether they would answer that call, as they stand to gain little from this war but will probably do the lion's share of the fighting. I therefore ask for more time to ascertain whether they will lend their assistance or not."

"Very well, I shall give you two months to ascertain whether our allies will help us or not, in the meantime I intend to go public with the letter announcing my standing as heir to the throne of Mecklenburg. With luck, it might be able to derail Magdelena's plans without us needing to fight a war at all. Heinrich, see if you can have your informants assist Gustav, they might be able to confirm any information you get about our allies intentions. We shall convene again on New Years."

"As you will my lord, lets go Gustav, we have a war to prepare for".

"Very well, old friend" Gustav replied "let us hope that our allies and God look favorably upon us."



As Gustav turned to leave, he could not help but take a glance at the new Queen. She looked very concerned and much more serious then she usually was, like something about her was missing. She had lost the glow she had had when she first came to Mecklenburg, as if she had buried it deep inside. Their was no question that the times ahead for Mecklenburg would be taxing, but he could tell by her countenance that they might be equally trying for her. Gustav was saddened to think that the happy, spirited girl that had come to this court as his friend's new bride might be gone for good. He hoped he was wrong about that. He also looked at the King. He had been so happy and full of life these past few weeks. Now, all traces of that seemed to be gone from him as well. He had gone back to the dead-serious monarch he had been before the marriage. For a brief moment, he had been the man that he and Heinrich had known growing up, funny, energetic, and outgoing. Now, that man was gone, replaced with an entirely different one. He hoped as well that this too was only a passing phase. After forcing these thoughts from his mind, Gustav left the Throne room to go see to his appointed task.

After many long weeks, Gustav was finally ready to present his report.

"My King, after much investigation me and Heinrich are finally ready to present our report".

"Very well, go ahead".

" My King, my ambassador's inform me that after extending feelers to decipher whether our allies will follow us into war, They have received the following replies: Brunswick replied that they would likely join us in this war, however, Heinrich's informants told me that this was a front. They in actuality have no intention of doing so. They are merely unaware of the fact that we know of their plans to help Saxe-Launenburg. They are probably informing Saxe-Launenburg right now about our plans, but I doubt it will mean anything. Luneburg's response was rather odd. They seemed very enthusiastic about joining us in this war, even after I informed them that they would most likely be facing their southern neighbor Brunswick. Heinrich's informants told me that this support is genuine and we can be assured of their help in this war, however, even if they do provide aid, we would still be outnumbered and we have yet to find a leader for our armies."

At this Heinrich looked rather miffed. Once he had found out that the King was searching for a commander to lead his armies, Heinrich had jumped at the opportunity. He had been lobbying for the last month to be put in charge of the war effort. This puzzled Gustav. True, Heinrich had served in the military for several years not long ago, but he had always got the impression that Heinrich had hated it. Heinrich had always enjoyed the comforts of being a noble a little more then he should, and he had constantly complained about the rather spartan existence that being a soldier forced upon a man. Therefore it seemed odd that a man who had hated soldiering so much not long ago and, by the way, had never risen beyond the rank of Captain, should be pushing so hard to be named General of Mecklenburg's armies. Ulrich seemed to see this too and had been stonewalling him. However, despite the ridiculousness of his request, he did bring up one undeniable fact. That fact was that Whoever controlled the army would have significant power and that their were only so many men that the King could trust with that power and. Indeed, Their Gustav believed that all of the people who could be trusted with that power were currently in the room. Gustav himself would not make a good candidate because, while he was good at what he did, he was no soldier and believed he would be all too likely to make an atrocious general. Heinrich was experienced in battle, but had never shown too much of an aptitude for it. The King could certainly lead the army himself, but that also entailed putting himself in harm's way, not the smartest move for a man who currently lacked an effective heir. Therefore Gustav had no idea who would lead the army. However, realizing these thoughts were currently out of place, he returned his mind to the business at hand.

"Now, while are two closest allies in terms of proximity have made it quite clear that they will join us, however, I have some rather unfortunate news as well. As you all know we are currently in alliance with the Bishop of Munster. He commands as many men as the King of Brunswick and, should he decide to join us, it could well be the thing that turns the war in our favor. However, I have some rather bad news in that regard. When I inquired about them joining us in this war, they informed me that they do not believe that we can win and that they are not inclined to join us in our war. Heinrich's informants tell me that their are many at the Bishop's court that are wary of the growing power of Brunswick and have pointed out that should Brunswick defeat us, their power would only grow from the likely resulting annexation of Luneburg, which Brunswick still considers to be rightfully theirs following the splintering of of the Principality quite sometime ago. Still others point out that their reputation will surely suffer should they simply stand bye and watch as we, their allies, get defeated by Brunswick. Therefore, while their is a chance that Brunswick will join this war, it is not very likely."

"That is unfortunate, I was hoping that we could count on their aid. However, we shall have to make do without them it seems. We must declare war on Saxe-Launenburg soon or lose our claim entirely. We have no choice. Mecklenburg most go to war, and I have contracted a company of cavalry mercenaries to augment our forces for this attack."

Gustav was puzzled, why was the King so determined that Mecklenburg must go to war? Curious, he asked the King. "Your Grace, why must we move to war regardless of our most important allies seeming unwillingness to help? What happened with the proclamation of your claim?"

At this question the King looked visibly annoyed. "It backfired on us completely. I appear to have underestimated Magdelena. Upon my announcement, she produced her own document, allegedly from King Eric, proclaiming her son Eric as his heir. She then went on to call minea forgery! I myself find the fact that this has only come up after I make my claim known to be too convenient, but I am apparently in the minority. Our prestige has taken a massive hit from this, as her agent's are painting me as a greedy usurper in foreign courts as we speak. However, that is the least of our worries, as a successful attempt to claim their throne will change all of that. Apparently, keeping this letter a secret was a bad idea for more reasons then one. The nobility now have reason to doubt the legitimacy of my rule, as they wonder what I might have given in return and what other secret agreements I might have made. They have also begun to attack Amalia. They say she is exerting too much influence over me and that is the cause of my "obsession" with Saxe-Launenburg. If we do not move, and do it now, we will lose any chance of ever claiming the Saxe-Launenburg throne. Heinrich, send the declaration of war, and pray to God that Munster joins our cause."

With those words, the King began the war that would either make or break Mecklenburg.

1. Work from John Atkinson Grimshaw here is a link to some other things by him brownie points (and maybe a character) to anyone who can guess who else used this picture on this forum.

And there is the second update. I will begin working on the next one soon. However, their is a reason I cut this off when I did and why I have so few screenshots. Apparantly, I forgot to take screenshots during the war. However, I can reload to just before the war and do so. I will not change the outcome and will endeavour to essentially do the same things I did last time. However, if you do not want me to do that, I can try to do the next update from memory. It is up to you readers. Thus, we have our first reload vote. The good news is that this is the only time this happened so future posts will hopefully have more screenshots and less text wall.

[blsteen]

Reload smreload..
Putting a few paragraphs out there isn't the worst that ever happened
Good luck with the war

[Jake the Fake]

Looks Awesome. Mecklenberg is a country I like to play myself. It's such a shame they were downgraded to an OPM. I play some games myself just like this. I will follow

[morningSIDEr]

Great stuff, colour me subscribed. I've really enjoyed reading your HoI2 AAR and this one promises to be just as full of action and warfare; exactly the type of AAR I enjoy. Hopefully the coming war with Saxe-Launenburg goes well, I always find starting with a small nation in EU3 requires a good deal of luck above all else, so too it appears now, I'm eager to see who respects the various alliances. The narrative style is very good, I like the subtle changes from the more gameplay/historical style you used in Last Bastion of Freedom.

As for reloading or not, I don't think it required. Your descriptive abilities are more than good enough to make up for a lack of screenshots for this coming war!

[History_Buff]

Reload smreload..
Putting a few paragraphs out there isn't the worst that ever happened
Good luck with the war

Why thank you. I am also glad you liked the written out style. Thankfully, I did not make too many blunders like this, so I should not need to do this a second time.

Looks Awesome. Mecklenberg is a country I like to play myself. It's such a shame they were downgraded to an OPM. I play some games myself just like this. I will follow

Mecklenburg was actually the first nation I ever played a game of EUIII as. I played my first game as them in IN and I agree, it was very sad that they downgraded them to opm status. However, I have had some epic games as them both before and after the nerfing.

Great stuff, colour me subscribed. I've really enjoyed reading your HoI2 AAR and this one promises to be just as full of action and warfare; exactly the type of AAR I enjoy. Hopefully the coming war with Saxe-Launenburg goes well, I always find starting with a small nation in EU3 requires a good deal of luck above all else, so too it appears now, I'm eager to see who respects the various alliances. The narrative style is very good, I like the subtle changes from the more gameplay/historical style you used in Last Bastion of Freedom.

As for reloading or not, I don't think it required. Your descriptive abilities are more than good enough to make up for a lack of screenshots for this coming war!

Thank you very much. You are right, you do need a fair bit of luck with a small nation. My first game as Mecklenburg in HTTT, I got VERY lucky when Pommerania declared war on me and, with the help of my allies, I was able to seize one province from them and vassalize the rest. I was then able to conquer Luneburg and sat as a 3pm for a long as heck time. I got DOWed by Hesse several times and only survived by pulling an end run around their armies and siegeing their one province before they could siege mine. It was a slog, but eventually, I turned myself into probably THE dominant power in Continental Europe in that game and had several epic wars with France and Austria. I wish I had gotten a screenshot, not the least of which because the Ottoman Empire actually managed to eat Russia. They conquered almost all of Russia and had a direct border with me. It was somewhat scary. That being said about OPMs, I have always loved taking a small, insignificant country and turning it into a superpower in EUIII. I am hoping to be able to do that with Mecklenburg.

As for reloading, due to a tie, I decided to do a compromise. I loaded back and took screenshots of the majorly important events that I thought needed screenshots, but did not take screenies of the battles.

King Ulrich sat in his throne thinking. He had risked everything on this war. If he failed, his country could cease to exist entirely. While he was confident that he could beat Saxe-Launenburg and that Wurzburg would not take part in the fighting, he knew Brunswick would take part. Moreover, he knew he could not hope to beat Brunswick on his own. Luneburg would also be little more then a snack to mighty Brunswick, who had been looking for an excuse to re-annex the territory since it splintered from them. Ulrich therefore knew they would target Luneburg immediately if they sided with Saxe-Launenburg. This would normally be comforting news, as one would think, knowing what Brunswick would do, he could simply send his men to Luneburg to help them defend their lands and hope their combined forces could win the resulting battle. However, the problem was that Saxe-Launenburg lay between him and Luneburg, meaning he would have to first defeat their army before marching into Luneburg. Furthermore, if he did this before taking the region, his rear would be exposed. Even if he did defeat the Launenburg army and advance into Luneburg, the chances were that the Luneburg armies would already be long since defeated before he arrived. Thus, he knew he had only one chance: Munster. If they declared for him, his realm would be secure. The Men of Munster would charge into Brunswick while they were distracted with Luneburg and lay waste to their lands. If he was lucky, they might be able to seize a foothold before the Brunswick army returned. If he was really lucky, the Luneburg army would be somewhere other then Luneburg when the Brunswick army arrived. If all of this happened, then an unwinnable war suddenly became winnable. He therefore sat here waiting for Gustav to bring him word of whether or not Munster had sided with him.

Just as that thought entered his head, Gustav entered, with a role of parchment in each hand, grinning from ear to ear.

"Good Morning Sire, I trust you are well".

"As well as can be expected, what news have you brought me".

"It is both good news and bad news. The good news is that which you have been waiting for. The councilors in Munster who were favorable to our cause have managed to convince the Bishop to side with us. Munster has answered our call. "

Upon hearing this news, It was all Ulrich could do to keep from jumping for joy. His country's future, which had seemed so precarious only moments ago, seemed like it might actually be looking good now. Had Gustav been a woman at that moment, Ulrich might have kissed him. As it were, he simply clapped him on the back and congratulated him on a job well done.

"Do not congratulate me yet sire, for I bare two facets of bad news as well", replied Gustav.

"What is it, old friend".

"The first was expected. Brunswick has sided with Saxe-Launenburg, however, we were already planning for that and with Munster on our side, they are not as invincible as they were. The second bit of news is more personal. I am afraid to inform you that I just spoke with Heinrich and he has told me that an informant has told him that Erich III Askanier has died, in a most suspicious fashion I am told. On his deathbed, they reportedly found a will that made Magdelena's teenage son, Eric, the new heir to the throne as well as adopting him as his son".

Upon hearing this, Ulrich reacted with a mixture of rage and sadness. The man he had once called father-in-law and whom his wife called father was now dead. He was certain that this "will" was a forgery and he knew exactly who had forged it. He was also furious that, after outliving his usefulness, Magdelena could have King Eric killed in so callous a manner. He paused a moment to think how Amalia would take this news. She would never see her father again and the country was, for all intents and purposes, now being run by the very person who had had him killed. He knew this news would greatly sadden her, something she most certainly did not need at the moment. Amalia, who had once been so full of life, had seemed to fall into a deep depression lately and Ulrich could barely stand to be around her, as it pained him to much to see her like that. He swore that he would get Magdelena and find out who she had hired to kill Eric and then kill him with his own hands. Had Magdelena not been a woman, he would have made a similiar vow about her as well. As it were, he resolved to capture her and have her put to death, and he was seriously contemplating carrying out that sentence personally as well. Maybe that would give Amalia some sort of peace and, maybe, vengeance would help to lift her out of her depression.

After letting the news sink in and thinking some more about Amalia, Ulrich finally responded.

"This is grievous news indeed, but at least with Munster on our side our army can march more easily and we might have a chance at vengeance."

"Now that you mention it Sire, how are you finding campaigning".

"It is a hard life, but it gives me ample time to clear my head. I still wish we had been able to find a proper general, but we have not fought a war in a long time, so their is not abundant of talent in our country. Also, I have to admit, while I am no great military genius, Heinrich was right, their are not that many people I could trust with this kind of authority."

"About that, I thought for certain you were going to give Heinrich the command. He has military experience and his loyalty to you can hardly be questioned. Why did you chose to command yourself?"

"Simple, Gustav, he wanted it too much. I remembered how much he hated campaigning and I found it odd that he should be so eager to go on campaign again. Also, while I do not doubt his loyalty to me and feel certain he would never turn on me, I cannot say the same about my eventual successor. If I leave him in command of the army and I die, whether I have produced an heir or not, I am not altogether certain he would not attempt to use his command of the army to seize the throne."

At that, he noticed Gustav breath a sigh of relief, which told him that his friend had had the same misgivings. Gustav then turned and left the tent. Ulrich then went back to the business of leading the army. He ordered it to march to march on Saxe-Launenburg with all haste.

A few weeks later, in the camp of the Mecklenburg army.

The man who was now being throne at his feet hardly looked like a duke. Indeed, he could hardly be called a man, being no older then 17 or 18. The so called Duke Erich IV had been captured after Ulrich defeated him in battle and had been brought before him.

"Young man, you have been brought before me to answer for your crimes. You stand accused of being a usurper, having robbed my wife and by extension me of our rightful claim to the throne of Saxe-Launenburg throne. What have you to say for yourself?"

"I offer nothing".

"You will not attempt to defend yourself".

"I do not believe their is anything I could say that would change my fate. I did not ask to be King, I was put here by my mother's machinations. She is the one who has always wanted power, not me. However, unlike her, I am willing to admit when I have failed and I accept whatever fate you deem appropriate."

Ulrich was immediately impressed with this boys courage. He had fought well in the battle, he had been told, striking down a dozen men, and now here he sat, staring death in the face and he showed now signs of fear. He also had to admit, this boy had not asked for any of this. It was his mother's schemes that had put him on the throne, most likely hoping he would be a compliant puppet. However, after this display, he doubted whether he would have been as easy to control as Magdelena thought. He looked at his wife, who had decided to come to witness this affair. Finally, he spoke.

"Eric Askanier, rise"

Eric rose to his feet

"You stand accused of a terrible crime, however, you do not fear your judgement. More importantly, you make a good point. You did not ask for the power you have been given. Your mother stole it from my father-in-law and then gave it to you. Therefore, I have decided to spare your life. However, I have two conditions. The first is that you must ask my wife, whose father your mother stole from her, for forgiveness. If she accepts your apology, your life will be spared, so long as you swear allegiance. I will not ask you to take up arms in this conflict against your own mother in this conflict, but I will ask that you serve me faithfully in all future conflicts and renounce any rights to the throne of Saxe-Launenburg."

Upon being told this, Eric Askanier silently thanked God that he had been spared. He then did the only thing he could do. He fell to his knees before Amalia Askanier and begged her forgiveness

"my dear queen, I know the crimes that my mother has committed against you are unforgiveable. She stole your father from you and their is nothing that I can say that will change that. As a man who has also lost his father, I can understand some of the pain that you are going through, however, my father was not murdered so I would be lying if I said I knew how you felt. I do not ask for you to forgive my mother for what she has done, no one can, for her crime deserves no forgiveness. She not only betrayed the trust your father placed in her by scheming to put me on the throne, she also went so far as to commit the ultimate betrayal and took his life when he was no longer useful to her. All that I ask is that you forgive a man who neither wanted this power or the part I have played in taking your father away from you."


1. Erich Askanier throwing himself at Amalia's mercy.

Upon hearing this testimony, Amalia rose. Many thought that she would condemn young Eric to death, as payment for the death of her father instead she responded thusly.

"Eric Askanier, your families crimes are legion. First, when my father fell ill, an act I am not convinced that Magdelena did not cause, she began plotting to steal my rightful inheritance from me. Then, she had the audacity to have my father murdered and put you, who have not a drop of my families blood, on his throne. She even went as far as to forge a will declaring your adoption, allowing you to lay claim to the name Askanier, my name. However, I do not believe that you had any hand in these events, and I have seen no evidence to the contrary. You did not ask to be made King and you certainly did not ask for my father to be killed. I could have you killed, but what purpose would that serve? Your mother's crimes are not your crimes and by killing you, I would thus be killing an innocent boy and how would that make me any better then your mother? Therefore, on the behalf of the Askanier's, and my father, I forgive you young Eric."

Eric could hardly believe his ears. He had been certain that he would be put to death, even though he had not been a part of his mother's plotting. In fact, while she claimed she had done it all for him, he knew better then that. None of this had been for him, it had always been about her. She wanted power and, as a woman, the only way she could have it was through a man. She thought she could get it with Eric III but, when the old man proved less pliable then she liked, she had had him eliminated. No doubt she had had him made King because, as his mother, she felt he would feel compelled to listen to him. Little did she know he had had no intention of being her willing puppet. Had Ulrich not declared war when he did and had he not been captured here, he had begun putting plans in motion to have her removed from power and arrested, possible making her face justice for what she had done. Now, however, he did not have to worry about that. Ulrich would see to his mother, and if there was one thing he knew, it was that Ulrich was furious at what his mother had done. He most certainly would not want to be her when he finally got a hold of her.

July 1, 1400, in the camp of the Mecklenburg army

Things were going well for Ulrich von Mecklenburg so far. Munster had smashed the armies of Brunswick in Luneburg and at the gates of Brunswick itself. Brunswick's armies now lay broken and shattered and Luneburg and Munster were besieging their castles and cities. Somehow, Ulrich greatly doubted this was how Magdelena and the King of Brunswick thought this war would go. From what he heard, things were also doing well at home. After the trial, Amalia seemed to be less depressed then usual, but she had still not climbed completely out of her depression. He doubted that anything short of justice for her father would even have a chance of restoring her to who she was, but he had to try. She was managing the Kingdom well in his absence, with both Gustav and Heinrich to advise her.

The only blemish thus far was Saxe-Launenburg. With the renounciation of Eric's claim, Ulrich had hoped that Magdelena would be forced to surrender. Instead, however, she had rallied the men loyal to her and arrested those men who were in a position to remove her from power and declared herself Queen of Saxe-Lauenburg. She then vowed never to surrender to Mecklenburg. The people, however, spurned her rule. She had seized power by force and therefore the people saw her as nothing more then a pretender. However, as long as she held the support of the garrison and its commander, she could prolong the war indefinitely. Unfortunately for Ulrich, she had the support of the garrison commander, who was so fervently in support of her that Ulrich suspected that their relationship was a little more intimate then they both let on.

While he was thinking this, an aide burst into his tent carrying in his arm a parchment and looking very out of breathe.

"What the devil is going on? Why are you disturbing me and why do you look like you just ran a mile chased by demons the whole way?"

"I am sorry sire, but it appears that this war has just expanded".

"Whatever do you mean".

"There has been a letter from Gustav. He informs you that Magdeburg has recently signed an alliance with Saxe-Launenburg and has joined the conflict."

"and you ran all this way just to tell me this."

"yes sire".

"I fear your effort was wasted. Magdeburg has no hope of prevailing against us and our allies alone and they have no allies of note they can call in. In fact, I do not doubt that either Munster or Luneburg probably has an army in route to confront them as we speak. I fear that the Bishop of Magdeburg may have just committed suicide for his fiefdom. However, I appreciate you bringing me this news as soon as you got it. you are dismissed".

"Thank you sire"

and with that, the aide walked out. Ulrich then laughed to himself. The stars were certainly aligning for him in this war. If he could wrap up this siege, he might be able to annex Magdeburg to his Kingdom and come out of this war with one personal union and a new province. If one of his allies beat him to the punch, he might be able to get a vassal out of it for his trouble. That would certainly not be a bad thing.

September 22, 1400, Hannover, Kingdom of Brunswick

Ulrich could not believe it had had actually happened. He and his allies had finally brought Brunswick to its knees. Luneburg had managed to seize the province of Brunswick while Munster had seized the capital of Hannover. The two had then been bickering for some time. Both countries wanted to annex the provinces they had taken, but neither was willing to recognize the others claim. Ulrich, for his part, was unwilling to let Luneburg have Hannover. True, Luneburg was allied to him, but they were also allied with another, more concerning power: the Hansa. The thought of a strengthened Luneburg allied to the Hansa was not something that Ulrich relished. Therefore, he used his position as alliance leader to force through another peace treaty, realizing that Luneburg and Munster were never going to agree on a course of action, and might actually come to blows over the issue. He got King Heinrich Milde von Welf to swear fealty to him, thus making Brunswick a vassal of Mecklenburg.

Heinrich was more then happy to get out of the war without losing any territory. Whatsmore, Brunswick was still more powerful then Mecklenburg in terms of how many men they could muster. Ulrich had no doubt that Heinrich intended to bide his time until he became powerful enough to challenge him and then break the vassalage and prepare for round two. However, Ulrich did not plan to give him that time. He had plans to expand Mecklenburg and to ensure that Brunswick would not find it easy to break free. For now, at least, Heinrich had removed his most powerful enemy from the equation, perhaps permanently, and had greatly expanded his countries influence. Munster and Luneburg were angry at being given none of the spoils, but Ulrich simply reminded them that they had had weeks to agree on a settlement and that he had finally had enough of their bickering. While angry at not sharing in the spoils, they had to admit that he was right on this point, they had been unable to reach a favorable peace treaty. However, the relationship between Mecklenburg and one of their most valuable allies, Munster, was significantly strained by this act.

April 12, 1401, Magdeburg

Yet again, Ulrich had secured a victory for his nation. Magdelena had, unfortunately, proved most obstinate in her resistance to him. She had held out long enough that the army of Luneburg was able to siege and take the city of Magdeburg. However, Luneburg proved to have no desire to annex the province, as it would give them a border with the sleeping giant of Brandenburg. Mecklenburg, however, already bordered said giant, but Luneburg would not let Mecklenburg simply annex the province they had died trying to take. Therefore, a compromise was worked out wherein the bishop of Magdeburg was forced to swear fealty to Ulrich. This did not give Ulrich control of the province, as he would have liked, but it did add another forced ally. It also allowed Luneburg to dispose of the potentially dangerous province. Ulrich thus further extended his countries reach and went a long way towards securing its future.



April 13, 1401 Launenburg City

It was finally over. After a year of warfare and siege, the city of Launeburg had finally surrendered. Rumor had it that the city had been reduced to eating rats, and there were even rumors of cannibalism in the streets. Finally, the people and the soldiers manning the walls could take no more. One of the garrison commanders subordinates led a mutiny against his commander and had him arrested. He then opened the gates to the Mecklenburg army. Surprisingly, there was no sack like one would expect after the fall of an enemy city. Ulrich wanted to present himself as the King of Saxe-Launenburg, and robbing and killing his people hardly seemed to him to be a good first impression. However, while the people were spared further deprivations, the same could not be said of Magdelena. She had been dragged from her bed, some claimed naked, and thrown before the King and Queen. Then, this woman who had done so much harm to Ulrich, and especially Amalia, had the nerve to claim she was not to blame, laying the blame at the feet of half a hundred different people. When it became clear that this was not going to work, she then began pleading for her life first to the queen and then to the King in what was described as a "most unseemly manner". The King and Queen, however, refused to even acknowledge her. The King asked her one question: Who was responsible for Eric III's death. Magdelena, finally realizing that all hope of saving herself was lost, confessed her crimes, from poisoning the King to make him fall ill, to forging the will, to having the garrison commander, a man by the name of Bernhard, murder the King. After this, she again tried to beg for her life. The King, however, ordered her to be silenced. She then put her fate in the hands of his wife Queen Amalia. Unlike when he had done the same with Erick, the Queen was not merciful. She immediately sentenced her to death, seeming to spit out the words. The King then proclaimed that he would personally play the part of headsman for the woman who had had his father-in-law murdered. A few minutes later, Magdelena, the great seductress who had sparked the war, was dead and Ulrich was the new King of Saxe-Launenburg. He then vested Eric Askanier with the job of governing the territory, under heavy supervision of course. Upon doing so, the King returned to the capital of Rostock, for he had already begun planning his next conquest.



1. actual picture of Lucrezia Borgia, supposedly holding court in the Vatican in her father's absence. The Link to where I found it is here.

There you have it. For those of you who are wondering, the reason I sparred Eric was because the game did. I noticed a little bit into the next update that he actually was still alive and leading Saxe-Lauenburg's armies. For those of you who are also wondering, no, I do not intend to exploit vassals for protection. Had I been in a position to do so, I would have annexed Magdeburg and Brunswick and vassalized the much reduced Brunswick, however, the siege of Launenburg took longer then expected. I do, however, intend to annex both countries once they have outlived their usefulness. Next update will be up as soon as I can get it up.

[Viking_Manstein]

Your prestigelevels are epic, make Mecklenburg a true superpower !

[blsteen]

nice moves...too bad about Magdeburg but I'm sure that the opportunity to expand again will come shortly

[catman1776]

Magdelena deserved her punishment for her crimes. Very nice story and can't wait to read more of it!

[History_Buff]

Your prestigelevels are epic, make Mecklenburg a true superpower !

Thanks. It is pretty high and that is the idea.

nice moves...too bad about Magdeburg but I'm sure that the opportunity to expand again will come shortly

It may come sooner then you think.

Magdelena deserved her punishment for her crimes. Very nice story and can't wait to read more of it!

Thank you.

Alright, now I have a problem. When I try to load this game, my framerate dies. The game freezes or, in less extreme cases, slows to a snail's pace. Normally, I would say my computer is unable to handle the game, but I was always able to play it before, including Divine Wind, and I never had this problem. I did recently get my hard drive replaced, so that might be the problem, but I doubt it. Anyone with any ideas on how to fix this, I would greatly appreciate your help.

[generalolaf]

Great AAR! Good luck with the game. I'll follow this

[blsteen]

Alright, now I have a problem. When I try to load this game, my framerate dies. The game freezes or, in less extreme cases, slows to a snail's pace. Normally, I would say my computer is unable to handle the game, but I was always able to play it before, including Divine Wind, and I never had this problem. I did recently get my hard drive replaced, so that might be the problem, but I doubt it. Anyone with any ideas on how to fix this, I would greatly appreciate your help.

Yikes...overheating video card?? Is it just Eu3 or some other games or apps as well. That would narrow it down to more a software vs hardware issue.

[History_Buff]

Great AAR! Good luck with the game. I'll follow this

Thanks, I am glad you like it

Yikes...overheating video card?? Is it just Eu3 or some other games or apps as well. That would narrow it down to more a software vs hardware issue.

Yeah, that yikes is what I said when this started happening. Right now, EUIII is the only game installed on my computer, and the only other thing I use it for is note taking in class and surfing the internet. I may install another game to see if it has problems too though. However, the good news is that I have played quite a bit and I should have enough material for a few more updates, which gives me a little time before this becomes an issue. I do not know if I can update this week, as I have a project I have to do this week and work puts a lot of demands on my time.

[morningSIDEr]

Yeah, that yikes is what I said when this started happening. Right now, EUIII is the only game installed on my computer, and the only other thing I use it for is note taking in class and surfing the internet. I may install another game to see if it has problems too though. However, the good news is that I have played quite a bit and I should have enough material for a few more updates, which gives me a little time before this becomes an issue. I do not know if I can update this week, as I have a project I have to do this week and work puts a lot of demands on my time.

Worrying stuff. I hope it turns out to be nothing too difficult to fix with regards to your PC. No rush with the updates either, real life matters always come first. As for the last update though; cracking stuff. I was a bit surprised that you allowed Eric Askanier to go free when reading that part, but then noted your explanation at the end about the game itself allowing him to go free (EU3 is far too merciful...). Very good gains, the initial gamble has paid off spectacularly and it is especially pleasing to see Magdelana humbled. Now onwards, computer permitting, to yet more glory!

[Ashantai]

Nice start. Will be watching.