British Supremacy - A British AAR

[germanpeon]

The year is 1594. The British Empire is in the midst of a period of unprecendented and inconceivable prosperity. Governing land stretching from Iceland in the far, frigid north, down to Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and England itself, then accross the channel to Normandy, from whence William the Bastard had laid the foundation for the English kingdom which would form the nucleus of the great British Empire, the British have succeeded in the creation of an Empire few would, or even could, challenge.

The British Empire, however, does not stop there. The British have successfully, over the past century or so, spread their influence into the New World, and claimed a colonial dominion stretching from Greenland in the far North, to Georgia in the far south, called 'Florida' by the Spanish, and as far west as the western shore of the Mississippi River.

The most surprising and perhaps crucial territorial possession of the British crown, however, lay back in Europe, south of the land settled by Rollo many centuries ago. This land is called France. Conquered in a series of wars, often called the 200 Years' War, France forms an integral part of the British Empire from the perspective of the British crown, and is something the British are determined to the death of the Empire to maintain control of.

With the weight of its millions of industrious peoples, The British Empire is, at the very least, in a highly enviable position in the world. The Empire, through it's enormous territory and population, is the most powerful state in the world and is capable of greater things than any other. This by no means is to claim that the British Empire is invincible, or that it has no problems of its own, though one would be hard pressed to find a state more successful in the ways in which a state is often thought to be.

*--------------------------------------*

I feel that the time is right for me to stake my claim in AARland. I should warn you, however, that I have absolutely no idea where this AAR will go. It will most likely be told through various and varied characters of my own creation. I will attempt to create a world for you, the reader, in which the British Empire dominates, most notably, North America, The British Isles, and much of France.

If any of you would like to see screenshots of the actual game, you're out of luck. However, if anyone would be so kind as to explain to me how to upload other pictures from the internet, I would be very grateful, as these may make this journey more enjoyable for both the reader and the storyteller.

Another warning, if I may. I am an indecisive and excitable person, and as such I may change any part of this AAR, at any time, to suit the needs of my storytelling, much as in George Orwell's 1984.

Enough with that, for now.


Here goes nothing.

[germanpeon]

Toulouse, 1594

It is a warm day in Spring, and in the courtyard of the recruitment center many young men prepare to enlist in the British armed forces.

"Laurent! Jacques Laurent!"

As Jacques heard his name called by the master of enrollment, a bullish and grizzled looking Englishman who no doubt had seen war many times, he wondered what lay ahead of him. His decision to enroll in the military was not an uncommon one for the young men of his village outside of Toulouse. Most of the good jobs in his village, in the city, and in fact throughout the Empire required one to have a good knowledge of the English language, of which his was only rudimentary. Add to that the fact that Jacques was uneducated, and his prospects were few and far in between.

"Come here, Laurent. Stand at attention, that's a good lad. Now let's get a good look at you."

What were his other options? He was from a modest family of farmers who had never been farther than Toulouse and had not an ounce of education. With the coming of the English, and then the British, France had seen massive agricultural reform that revolutionized production. Farm work was easier, more efficient, and produced amply more. Every farming community was quick to adopt the new techniques, and why wouldn't they? The agricultural revolution had the side effect of greatly lowering the number of farmhands necessary to operate any given plot of land. This in turn led to widespread unemployment and migration into cities.

“You’ve done some farm work, haven’t you? Many young men pass through here having the look of a farmer about them. Damn good soldiers, they become. Strong, tough, and with the endurance of a bull. Just the thing His Imperial Majesty looks for in his armies.”

‘Of course,’ thought Jacques. Many of his friends had also enlisted in the past several years, as their families also failed to find work sufficient to require their sons to stay on the farm. Most turned to the military, seeking to prove to the English that the French were in fact good soldiers, despite the many humiliating defeats suffered by the French crown throughout the 200 years war. In the military also came a certain amount of prestige in the knowledge that one was serving in the most technologically advanced, famous, and feared army in all of Europe. Indeed, the future was bright for the average soldier of the British armed forces, as the Crown had not known a serious threat since the defeat of the French and Burgundians and the seizure of France by the British Empire.

*-----*

Feel free to comment, criticize, and so on. Be as nice or mean as you feel is necessary to increase the quality of this AAR.

[nsahn]

I like what I've read so far. Did you do any research in preparation?

[germanpeon]

Originally Posted by nsahn

I like what I've read so far. Did you do any research in preparation?

Absolutely none, save a glance at the Wikipedia article for the 100 Years' War. Thank you, by the way.

I'm going to rely mainly on my limited but hopefully sufficient knowledge of the time and the involved states to illustrate a hopefully somewhat realistic seeming British Empire. I may do some minor research on the time period (France and England mostly), but don't expect anything more information than that which I can muster from Wikipedia and other such websites.

I've got some notes on the relationships between the peoples and nations of the Empire and I'm hoping to focus the AAR on how I think the different parts of the Empire would interact with each other in the scenario I've created.

[mad general]

This is a great AAR, I love a good' ol Britain AAR.

[germanpeon]

Originally Posted by mad general

This is a great AAR, I love a good' ol Britain AAR.

Thanks for your support! I'm somewhat of an Anglophile myself. Must be my Canadian father.

As to all you lurkers (300 views and two comments?!), some of you please be so kind as to offer me some kind of feedback, good or bad. Criticism is just as helpful as praise.


I'll have another update up in the next few days. I may leave Jacques alone for a while and explore some other characters, however. I do plan on exploring him a bit more, but this will not be the case for all the characters in this AAR. Some will appear once, while you might see others, such as Laurent, multiple times. It's based on how useful the character is to the illustration of the world of the AAR, really.

[CatKnight]

Looks like a good start, germanpeon! Good luck!

[Auray]

Looking good so far! I'll be following.

[volksmarschall]

I shall be following, a very interesting and engaging opening!

[blsteen]

Long live the empire!

[Tommy4ever]

Glorius Imperium of Britannia!

Good to see that the French are where they belong: under a British jackboot

[The Valkyrier]

Got me hooked already

Looking forward to seeing where this leads!

Originally Posted by germanpeon

if anyone would be so kind as to explain to me how to upload other pictures from the internet

If you can't link the picture from the original source then I suggest using Photobucket or a similar service. It's free and easy to use, that's where I upload the pictures for my AAR.

[germanpeon]

Good thing someone posted or I would have forgotten to say anything. About that. I apologize for the lack of updates but I've got a family member who is going through somewhat of a rough patch so my time is rather filled most days. I will certainly be able to update at some point in the near future, but don't be shocked if I don't in the next few days. Sorry to keep you waiting this long without saying anything.

@TheValkyrier Thanks! I'd also like to see where this leads, because I don't have a 'plan' per se, as to where this will go beyond the next few updates.

I figured out how to use photobucket after some experimentation about a week ago, but thanks nonetheless.

I'm a big fan of your Latin Empire AAR, by the way.

[Range]

Excellent...well written beginning...perfectly laid out...precise and picturesque. I'll be following as this is the kind of writing I like and wish I could do. Look at that...I'm excited...

And, you never need to apologize for slow posting...family comes first. Besides, writing is an art and needs to breathe on its own and should never be forced.

As for responses...no doubt, you've got a growing following and rightfully so...keep it up.

[Fookison]

De-lurking to say, well done on the beginning sequence and looking forward to the updates!!