Aut CaesAAR aut nihil: Neapolitan ambitions (D&T mod)

Chapter 26: A nation under construction (1611-22)

Despite its turning into a sort of thalassocracy, Sicily continues to have land enemies, and beginning with a boundary dispute against Austria over Piedmont (March 1611) this circumstance would influence King Francesco’s foreign affairs for many years to come. Under the leadership of Maria Theresia, Austria has grown both to the West (taking over the Lorraine lands across the Rhine from Louis XII of France) and to the East (beating the Hungarians in the 1607-11 Great Eastern War). Yet, dealing with Sicily and its longstanding Spanish ally is a completely different story, and Maria Theresia desperately needs the help of both the Holy Roman Emperor and her Italian vassals of Venice and Mantua.

Hostilities begin with a great battle fought in June 1611 on the plains of Lombardy among 41.000 Sicilians on one side and 19.000 Swiss and 28.000 Austrians on the other. Victory goes to the Germans, but Francesco’s clever strategy of isolating Maria Theresia (by signing separate peace deals with her allies) brings fruits in the following months: when Piedmont is occupied in November, the Archduchess cannot do anything else than accepting its loss, renouncing claims on Verona and Brescia and paying 250 ducats of tribute. The following year Venice pays 25 ducats of indemnities and renounces all claims on the Italian mainland, then Albania is reduced to vassalage (and forcefully converted to Catholicism) and conclusively in February 1615 Emperor Johann Friedrich III of Brandenburg is forced to formally recognize the Sicilian annexation of Mantua.

Another war with Austria ensues shortly after, in November 1616, as King Francesco wants to profit from the excellent quality and condition of the Sicilian army. This second time his main target is Nice, but war operations include a massive campaign in Veneto to shock Archduchess Maria Theresia. Treviso falls by assault into Sicilian hands in December (with the decisive support of Spanish and Modenese forces) and an Austrian reinforcement of 16.000 men sent to take back the town is completely annihilated by General Guglielmo Gaetani dell’Aquila in the following January. In March Sicilian and allied forces invade Tirol and eradicate another enemy force strong of 23.000 units. When in June also Nice is captured, Maria Theresia is obliged to accept another humiliating treaty, by the terms of which Austria cedes that city and releases Aquileia as an autonomous entity (but two years later also Aquileia would swear allegiance to Sicily). Following the pivotal victories against Austria of 1611 and 1617, Francesco of Sicily’s predominance in Italy becomes undisputable. In the following years, the king focuses all his energies on creating a legitimate rule in Northern Italy, for too much time divided into small states or prey of foreign domination: recently acquired provinces are severed from the Empire, cultural unity is imposed and a new army is drafted in Lombardy for the defense of northern borders. Crete – already in the Sicilian sphere of influence – is subjugated in 1620 and the small vassal states of Modena and Pisa are incorporated in the realm two years later.

Colonization continues also during this period of continental fighting as Curacao, off the Venezuelan coast, is firstly settled in 1615. Yet, for the first time overseas expansion comes from an aggressive stance of Sicilian colonists: colonial militias and wargalleons grow in numbers, trade conflicts intensify (for instance, with Portugal) and finally an authentic colonial war with Sweden erupts in September 1615. The conflict lasts less than 8 months until April 1616, but leads to exceptional gains for King Francesco, as a row of Sicilian raids conquer the Swedish colonial settlements of Cuba, Jamaica and Turks Island. In the following years the new territories are populated by Neapolitan settlers that also introduce large scale plantations to maximize output of tropical crops and get a trade monopoly in the whole Caribbean area.

Chapter 27: Hardline approaches (1623-39)

After the clear victories of the previous decade, King Francesco of Sicily begins to take a more assertive approach in foreign affairs. Consequently, he adopts policies more oriented to strengthen land over naval forces: a new weapon manufactory is built in Sardinia starting in 1624, regimental camps, barracks, training fields and improved fortifications flourish in every city, military techniques are perfected with the introduction of gallop cavalry and reformed tercio, finally in 1636 a brand new war college is founded in Rome to form and train generals and cadres.

The landmark year of this recent evolution is 1623, when King Francesco launches a Crusade to reclaim the Holy City of Jerusalem from Ottoman yoke. A bit of background is in order here, and it must start with the decline of the two main Muslim potentates, Mamluk Egypt and Ottoman Turkey: since the second half of XVI century, both have been on the defensive, crippled by internal and external perils. The former has been repeatedly debased by its nemeses, Syria and Ethiopia, the latter has experienced a serious collapse under the weak rule of Osman II. In the beginning of the new century, the Sultan has lost his authority over Bulgaria, Serbia, Albania and helplessly witnessed a Muscovite invasion in Northern Anatolia. The only Ottoman victory precisely comes against Mamluks and results in the bitter Turkish occupation of Palestine and Medina.

Thus Francesco of Sicily determines to intervene for the liberation of the Holy Land, severed from the rest of the Turkish territories and not easily defendable by the regents of the new young Sultan, Ahmet II. An expedition of 14.000 crusaders embarks from Syracusa on February 21, 1623, reaching the coast off Gaza after one month of sailing. The town is taken by assault on April 28, and from there the Sicilian expedition moves to Judea. The siege of the Holy City lasts eleven months until on April 8, 1624 Jerusalem is back in Christian hands – more than four centuries after Saladin’s conquest. Along with the loss of the rich and prestigious city, the Ottomans renounce their claims to Constantinople and Epirus and pay a levy of 450 ducats.

Also a colonial war (stemming from anglo-hispanic frictions) sees the involvement of Sicily. In the same period of the Sicilian appropriation of Swedish Caribbean holdings, Spain and England have seized the Scandinavian colonies on the North American mainland, but the two winners have then started to quarrel about the spoils. The outcome of a first skirmish (in which Sicilian participation remains negligible) is favorable to Spain, as England gives up large chunks of land in Mexico, Peru and its holdings in Brittany. Hostilities resume on larger scale in 1629 when England (this time supported by Portugal) attacks Scotland, immediately supported by Spain and later, since early 1630, by Sicily.

With the involvement of such huge colonial powers, the so-called Atlantic War is the first truly global war, with fighting in Europe, North America, the Caribbean and South America; just referring to Sicilian operations, the main theatres are Portugal, Antilles and Western Mediterranean. King Francesco sends an expedition that reaches Cadiz in February 1630 and advances towards Portugal. In the following couple of years, the Sicilian expedition would distinguish itself in the Iberian campaign with the capture of Faro (1630) and Lisbon (1631).

On the contrary Sicilian colonies in the Caribbean Sea suffer greatly from a flurry of Portuguese raids, unmatched by the little fleet dispatched there for defense. From mid-1630 to early 1635, a strip of islands going from Puerto Rico down to Barbados gets ravaged by Lusitanian assaulters, severely harming commerce and forcing Sicily to rethink its national trade policy. Only Cuba and the other Western islands remain safe from attacks, while in 1633 the first Sicilian settlement on the mainland is established on the Mosquito Coast – well protected by near Spanish stations and soon converted into a penal colony.

Notwithstanding the successes in the Caribbean, the Portuguese situation is desperate with the motherland and large areas of Brazil occupied by enemy forces, thus in May 1635 they agree an armistice with Carlos II of Spain ceding Porto, Braganca and Demerara on the Guyana coast, renouncing any claims to Galicia and paying a huge tribute in gold.

The only remaining enemy is now England, which in November 1634 has annexed the rump of Scotland: since the beginning of the war, the powerful Royal Navy has created much trouble to Sicily, including a sound defeat in the waters of Liguria (summer 1630) and subsequent invasions of Corsica and Sardinia (1632). Two years after Francesco I dispatches a force of 42.000 men to liberate the Tyrrhenian islands from English control, an objective finally achieved with the rescue of Cagliari (October 1635). Free from direct threats Francesco’s commanders can now go on the counteroffensive, knowing that Sicilian and Spanish navies exceed the English sea power. The first probe in the Atlantic waters is not positive and results in the defeat at the battle of Finisterre. But when the English send a big force in the Gulf of Venice to capture the province of Friuli (which they would annex in 1639), the Sicilian fleet prepares a new Atlantic expedition under the leadership of a valiant admiral, Giovanni Mazzini, this time with the plan of blockading the British Isles. The effort requires time and costs, but in summer 1637 the blockade of the English routes is complete, with tremendous effects on both trading activities and American campaigns. So in December 1637 England cannot do else than sign a truce with Sicily, even if the intercontinental struggle with Spain goes on.

Chapter 28: The birth of Italy (1640-46)

In this period the final act of the creation of the Kingdom of Italy takes place, with the involvement of two sovereigns of the House of Durazzo. Despite being very old Francesco I persists in his determined foreign policy, bringing new lands under Sicilian control, Trent and Achaea. In May 1640 the king resolves to wage war against Austria for the possession of Trent while Archduke Matthias von Welf is busy in the conquest of Switzerland (a result achieved four years later, thus establishing a direct continuity between his French and German holdings). The conflict lasts only one year until Trent passes under Sicilian control in May 1641, but it is already decided in summer 1640 by two brilliant victories at Trent and Treviso and the landing of an expeditionary force at Rhodes.

Francesco’s conquests do not end here, as the force employed in the siege of Rhodes on the way home attacks the Byzantine garrison in the province of Achaea, another longstanding target of the Sicilian King (as its control would directly connect Morea to Epirus). Despite the remonstrations of Eastern Roman Emperor Andreas I, Achaea is captured in January 1642.

Until his death on May 7, 1644 Francesco I works intensively with his son to set up the establishment of the Kingdom of Italy. The conditions cannot be more congenial: the successor to such a great and long-lived sovereign (45 years of rule) is Francesco II, an ageing man already in his sixties, who clearly understands that his own task is just handing over the crown to his grandson Martino.


Francesco II actually rules for just more than two years, even if he has already shared the reins of power during his father’s long autumn. The only significant event during his period in office is the annexation of Florence, the last city south of the Po River which is not yet part of the royal domains. For the rest, Francesco II works with full dedication and competence to accomplish his vision of a newly founded nation, capable to play a major role in European affairs. Then, on a day of early autumn – precisely on September 26, 1646 – Francesco II summons all magnates and diplomats to declare the birth of the Kingdom of Italy and pass over the crown to his grandson Martino, now aged 8.

Along with the understandable terms for the regency, the legacy of Francesco II for his heir includes three features:

• The strong encouragement to redeem the Italian territories still in foreign hands, Savoy and the so-called Venezie (five northeastern provinces from Venice itself to Triest);
  
  
• The betrothal of the future King of Italy Martino with the only daughter of Carlos III of Spain (officially, to cement the friendship with a time-honored allied; in reality, to be there in case the Iberian ruler dies without male heirs);
  
  
• The endowment of a residence at Vatican Hill for the Catholic Popes, as a symbolic compensation for Ladislao’s conquest of the Papal States in early XV century. In return, next Pope Leo X would show great benevolence towards the Kingdom of Italy.

Chapter 29: Martino, a young flower of war (1647-56)

The regency for Martino, which lasts 7 years, mainly faces the issue of unifying also culturally the diverse communities of the peninsula, with a particular focus on its northern part. To this purpose, a significant program of public works is approved in 1647 to commemorate 200 years since Ferrante’s crowning at Palermo and the reinstatement of the Sicilian Kingdom – which now can be really seen as the very first stage of the Italian reunification.

The major oeuvres of this period beautify the capital, Naples: the new royal palace, the glorious arch monument of triumph dedicated to the Durazzo kings of the past, the building of the Mint. But also the colonies benefit from this plan, as clearly shown by the establishment in 1653 of the “King Martino University” in St. Lucia, one of the first and most admired institutions of higher education in America. The country that can afford all this globally ranks no. 3 in income after Ming China and Russia (that is how the Grand Prince of Muscovy styles his huge empire since 1632) and no. 1 in military and production technology; maintains the sixth fleet and the eighth army in the world; leads global trade in key markets like wine, cloth and tropical crops; benefits from an enviable cultural and religious homogeneity.

There is actually a military colonial adventure that an otherwise prudent regency undertakes in aid of Spain: the 1651-53 Deccan expedition, also driven by the fact that there is no more room for expansion in Central America (except for Italian merchants that continue to monopolize the trade hub of Campeche, now the biggest in the world). A fleet of warships and transports with 15.000 men sails for the Indian Ocean, cruising around Comorin Cape in March 1652 after having founded a naval station at Luanda, in Central Africa. The sizeable but fragile Indian potentate of Deccan cannot resist the superior European technology: in just six months the Italians occupy the whole island of Ceylon, before disembarking on the southern tip of India. The campaign proves very successful and culminates with the conquest of the coast of Malabar up to the Kanara region (1653), but then the Spaniards sign the peace with Deccan for a port and nothing goes to Italy.

Martino becomes major in 1653 and immediately wages war against Matthias of Austria for the redemption of the lands still under foreign control. With an army of 60.000 soldiers and a strong popular enthusiasm for such a young warring leader, Martino crosses the Austrian border on May 9, 1653 leaving at Naples his brother and heir apparent, Francesco. While the Italian king’s forces are besieging Treviso and Venice, a big Austrian contingent led by Matthias himself arrives to break the blockade. The First Battle of Treviso, fought for many days across June and July 1653, results in Martino’s defeat and retreat, with heavy casualties on the Italian side. The occupation of Savoy, later in the year, does not remove the perception that Martino has acted courageously, but also committed several mistakes due to inexperience and ill-timing. Luckily enough, the Spanish advance through the Western territories of Austria (that is: Central France) forces Archduke Matthias to deploy more and more forces there, leaving Martino in position to reorganize and restart an offensive, capturing Treviso in August 1654. No major campaigns occur for the rest of the year, until in June 1655 the Austrians descend into Italy with new reinforcements. The pivotal Second Battle of Treviso occurs on June 18, 1655 (two years after the first), and sees the death of King Martino on the field.

Thanks God, succession is safe as Martino’s 12-year-old brother, Prince Francesco, can assume the royal title after a short period of regency. Moreover, Archduke Matthias is in dire straits because he is losing all the Western territories to Spain, therefore eager for an armistice. In March 1656 the Peace of Trent sanctions the definitive withdrawal of Austria from the peninsula with the cessation of Savoy, Treviso, Gorz and Triest to the Kingdom of Italy; few months later, in December, also Venice capitulates and is annexed to Francesco III’s domains: a great victory that has cost a king’s life…

This AAR is approaching its natural end. With Italy formed two centuries in advance than RL (only Genoa and Friuli are missing, but will soon be integrated) and a sizeable colonial empire, the story is starting to go out from the boundaries of historical plausibility. Also, the steel alliance with Spain practically allows me to wage war against everybody without fearing defeat.

Thus, I believe I will soon post an epilogue and then have this AAR rest for some time. It has been quite fun, but it's time to move ahead, maybe going to try EU4...

Chapter 30: Epilogue, with Francesco III’s definitive triumph (1657-70)

Martino’s death does not find the Kingdom of Italy unprepared, as Francesco III ascends the throne in 1655 and takes officially power three years later after a brief regency. In this period, Northern Albania is annexed to the Kingdom of Italy (thus allowing the levy of a toll for the passage of ships across the Strait of Otranto), the Admiralty is established at Taranto, the Embassy Palace at Durazzo and additional drafts are recruited to cover the losses suffered during Martino’s costly campaigns. Then, starting from May 1658 Francesco III embarks in the definitive wars to complete the unification of Italy:

• First prey is the proud Republic of Genoa, with its remarkable colonial holdings in Africa and a long-standing alliance with Portugal. Its subjugation comes in 1659 after a short conflict which sees Italians seizing the Genoese colony of Kisarna and burning lots of other outposts in Southern Africa and Madagascar. Ten years later, Genoa is annexed to the Kingdom of Italy together with its remaining colonies in Northern America (Chipewyan), Africa (Borgu, Benguela) and the oceanic islands of Fernando Po, St. Helena and Mahe.
  
  
• Second target is the conquest of Friuli, still in English hands. Its liberation requires much more time and effort than Genoa: Friuli is occupied in October 1660, but enemy forces – supported by one of the most powerful navies in the world – ravage Italian holdings in the Lesser Antilles and Epirus. Only when Spanish and Italian fleets manage to act in full coordination (1664) a blockade and subsequent invasion of Britain convinces the English leaders to give up Friuli and release Southern Albania under Italian protection.
  
  
• Another minor colonial conflict fought in two acts (1659 and 1666) brings under Italian control the region of Kongo and a valuable harbor at Delagoa Bay, on the Indian Ocean.

Here and now, A.D. 1670, I would like to stop this AAR as the main initial goals have been fulfilled and even exceeded: Italy has been unified; a powerful and respected Mediterranean empire is in place and even two strong colonial bases exist in the Caribbean Sea and Central Africa:

Few other rankings for the Kingdom of Italy:

• No. 2 in global income after Ming and ahead of faithful ally Spain;
  
  
• No. 3 in extension, after Ming and Spain;
  
  
• Top overall trader (particularly in goods as wine and salt) and best production technology;
  
  
• 7th strongest army and 6tt most numerous fleet.

Guys, that's all for now...

Thanks for your support.

At the moment I prefer to stop here, who never knows ... maybe one day I can bring it to 1900!
Really, now seems quite easy. Every power (Austria, England, Ottoman Empire) fears me+Spain. Only Russia and Ming China seem unbeatable, but frankly I do not see any reason to expand there. Also colonial game is stuck, as everybody has settled on every province of the world already (apart New Zealand, with Ming and Malaysia owning the rest of Oceania).

I really enjoyed this AAR and Death & Taxes mod!