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Part 3: The Spring of Nations

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After the war with Denmark, Prussia, while trying to maintain its dominant position in Germany, had to deal with increasing internal problems. Indeed, ever since the battle of Waterloo in 1815, there was a developing rift developing in Prussia between the conservative Junkers and the growing Liberal movements. Indeed, while the Liberals in Germany wanted a united, federal Germany under a democratic constitution, the conservatives, sought to maintain Germany as a patchwork of independent, monarchical states, with Prussia and Austria competing for influence. With the liberal movement (and unrest) growing every day, the King’s government starting suffering increasing pressures from them. Robert Blum, a prominent leader of the Liberal movement in Germany, travelled to Berlin in 1844 in order to support the Liberal cause. For the next 3 years, Blum would write a series of liberal poems, articles and books, denouncing the monarchy and the Prussian system of government, arguing that any leader, even a king, had to be accountable to the people and their wishes. While most of his writings were censored, some of his articles managed to slip by censors, and inflame German public opinion. The tensions in Prussia were palpable and were being felt at every level of society. On March 4th 1846, two drunken soldiers from the 1st (Emperor Alexander) Guards Grenadiers started fighting in a Berlin brothel, killing a prostitute and injuring another. When the case was heard before a military court, the soldiers were given token sentences. This infuriated the public, and rioters took to the streets en masse. Violence erupted as the protesters clashed with police. Finally, the reserve was sent to contain the riots. After attempts to calm the crowd met with failure, the officer in charge, Heinrich Eichhorn, was forced to order his troops to open fire into the crowd. On that day, 4 people lost their lives and 9 more were wounded. While the army’s heavy handed response did successfully quell the riots, resentment toward the King and his government continued to grow. For the next 2 years, unrest boiled under the surface, waiting to erupt again. Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, liberal unrest had been growing quickly in the country. When William II refused to grant the country a constitution in 1848, the Dutch took to the streets. The flames of revolution quickly spread throughout the country. With the Royal Palace surrounded and most of the country no longer under his control (most of the army having defected to the rebels), William II was forced to abdicate. The rebels placed his reluctant brother on the throne and forced him to sign a new constitution severely limiting the monarchy’s power. While William III would try throughout his reign to restore the powers of the Monarchy, he would remain very much a figurehead more than an actual ruler. The Dutch rebellion inspired the Liberals in Prussia to revolt once again against the Monarchy, starting a wave of rebellions all across Europe in what would be known as the Spring of Nations (or Springtime of Peoples). In Prussia, the resentment for the monarchy ensured massive support for the Liberals in Prussia. Armed uprisings took place in Königsberg, Cologne, Berlin, Breslau, Munster, Danzig and Stettin. Barricades were erected, the police stations and barracks surrounded and the “enemies of the people” were “arrested”. Under the threat of revolution, the King sent in the army.


The rain beat down hard on the crowded street. The rebels held City Hall, taking cover behind barricades, waiting for the signal. Werner gazed across to the soldiers advancing towards them. The army had broken through, and the rebels were forced to retreat. Shots fired in the night. Some soldiers fell. The officers yelled orders and they fired back. The Prussian soldiers were more accurate, better trained; their shots often hit their marks, they reloaded quickly. The rebels were inexperienced at best, the sounds of battle distracting them, even scaring some. They reloaded clumsily, their shots often missing their targets. The Prussian soldiers charged forward, overwhelming the first barricade. While the rebels fired onto them, inflicting some casualties, the soldiers pressed forward, charging with their bayonets. Werner fired two shots before the Prussian troops reached the barricade, killing one soldier. As the troops climbed over the barricade, Werner struck the one in front of him with his own bayonet, sticking it into his chest. When he tried to remove the blade however it remained stuck in the soldier’s ribs. While trying to remove his bayonet from the soldier’s corpse, Werner felt a shot of pain in his chest. He looked down at his chest and saw the blood. His vision blurred and he collapsed to the ground. The last thing he saw was the soldiers jumping over the barricade, poised to retake city hall by force...


By September 1848, the Liberals had been mostly crushed. However, the people were still restless. Robert Blum and most of the Liberal leaders were arrested and imprisonned. However, this only put fuel on the fires of Revolution. Finally, after many more revolts, the army was unable to contain the uprising. Therefore, determined to restore order, the King was forced to grant the Kingdom a constitution, creating two chambers: the Herrenhaus (House of Lords) and the Landtag (House of Commons). While the Landtag could technically elect it’s representatives and pass state laws, they had to be approved by members of the Herrenhaus, who’s members were all appointed by the King. As such, the real power remained in the hands of the landed Junkers and with the Monarchy. On November 6th 1848, Otto von Bismarck was appointed to the Herrenhaus. While not a popular choice among the nobles, Bismarck would have a great influence over Prussia’s future...

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So there we go, Part 3. Part 4 will take sometime to make, because not only do I have lots of schoolwork this week, I lost most of my saves, so I have to restart almost from the start ! Therefore, don't expect another update before next Sunday at the earliest. I am not, however, giving up on this, so keep the motivating comments up and the next update will be there that much faster :)
 
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So far everything goes according to plan... Unfortunately.
 
It was actually pretty bad. The plan was to try and keep the Absolute Monarchy for as long as possible, but the militancy problem got so bad I decided to give in.

Will you ever try to go back to an absolute monarchy instead of a constitutional monarchy?
 
I enjoyed reading part 3, that was very interesting. Can't wait for things to get sorted out so we can get some more. :)
 
You'll have to excuse me if I want to see Germany united under the reichsbanner schwarz-rot-gold, being the rebel that I am

Unfortunatly, I will fight that for as long as humanly possible. But it might happen late game, we'll see ;)

I enjoyed reading part 3, that was very interesting. Can't wait for things to get sorted out so we can get some more.

Thanks ! Glad to hear you enjoyed it. Things should get sorted out by the weekend but school is hitting me over the head with work so we'll see if I can keep that promise :rolleyes:

Anyway, I'm thinking about making an interlude update detailling what's been going on elsewhere (+the Great Powers + population etc.) if I can't get a proper update done for the end of the week. How does that sound ?
 
Interlude: The World in 1850

The World in 1850


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From 1836 to 1850, there have been a lot of wars between the Great Powers. In 1849, Austria and Russia fought another war over Rovne. Russia ultimately won that war, enabling it to increase it's position amongst the Great Powers. Spain fought wars in Morocco, increasing it's prestige. It also fought a war with France from the Setif concession and won. The USA and the Ottoman Empire have both been rather peaceful, choosing to sphere/ally their neighbors despite the fact that they have their cores.


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Following the 1848 revolution, the Liberals have lost an important proportion of their support, putting them back into a minority position in the upper house. Hopefully, things will stay that way ;). However, voters (mostly aristocrats and capitalists), still are mostly liberal, which may cause a problem as the Liberal party is a pain. Meanwhile, Prussia is still mainly German, with a small Polish minority. Immigration is fairly small, hopefully that will be fixed when Germany becomes the premier power in the world :)

Anyway, so that's the state of the world in 1850, the next real update will be up by next week. :)
 
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Your industrial score is sorely lacking compared to the other great powers. I'm just surprised that Austria is beating you in that department. I always see it being the other way around. Are you just not focusing on building factories? Or are you having more of a problem with getting craftsmen?
 
Your industrial score is sorely lacking compared to the other great powers. I'm just surprised that Austria is beating you in that department. I always see it being the other way around. Are you just not focusing on building factories? Or are you having more of a problem with getting craftsmen?

Craftsmen aren't promoting. I'm focusing my 3 NFs on Craftsmen for a little while now. Economics have never been my strong suit in the game; thankfully I'm fairly good at warfare so I can nevertheless impose my will on my foes :p

(Funnily enough, I'm beating the US in industrial score)

We'll have to see how things go, but I may have to get more hands on ;)
 
Craftsmen aren't promoting. I'm focusing my 3 NFs on Craftsmen for a little while now. Economics have never been my strong suit in the game; thankfully I'm fairly good at warfare so I can nevertheless impose my will on my foes :p

(Funnily enough, I'm beating the US in industrial score)

We'll have to see how things go, but I may have to get more hands on ;)

It's good to focus on industry sometimes, especially now that it seems to jump for all nations around 1900.

Great updates.

PS. Don't trust the US industrial score. After 1870, it starts rising like mad.
 
Craftsmen aren't promoting. I'm focusing my 3 NFs on Craftsmen for a little while now. Economics have never been my strong suit in the game; thankfully I'm fairly good at warfare so I can nevertheless impose my will on my foes :p

(Funnily enough, I'm beating the US in industrial score)

We'll have to see how things go, but I may have to get more hands on ;)

I totally understand. I'm never able to get enough craftsmen to man my factories. I hear your literacy score helps, among other factors. And BigBadBob is right, the US is going to explode in industry in the next 15 years or so.
 
And that is how USA so rarely expands towards Mexico in V2. :p

I really do hope they change that. Frankly, I find it kind of insulting how the AI isn't smart enough to expand coast-to-coast, and that Great Britain and Russia just find it irresistable to colonize Washington/Idaho, even with the Monroe Doctrine in affect :mad:.
 
And that is how USA so rarely expands towards Mexico in V2. :p
I really do hope they change that. Frankly, I find it kind of insulting how the AI isn't smart enough to expand coast-to-coast, and that Great Britain and Russia just find it irresistable to colonize Washington/Idaho, even with the Monroe Doctrine in affect :mad:.

I have to agree that's pretty annoying, although in my game I think I spotted the US at war with Mexico in order to take Colorado. So there is still hope :)

Anyway, I've started the next update, and it should be up later today or tomorrow. The teaser is on the front page aswell :)
 
Part 4: Rise of the Iron Chancellor

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The end of the Liberal revolutions in Germany brought along with it the end of the Absolute Monarchy in Prussia. Over the next three years, the political structure was further modified. With the situation having calmed down in Germany, the King felt comfortable disbanding the Herrenhaus and the Landtag in order to replace it with a unicameral structure. The new Prussian Diet was composed of 63 members who had to be elected by Landed elite in order to form a government. In the wake of this political reshuffling began the preparation for the first national elections in the history of the Kingdom of Prussia. Three major parties emerged among the voting class: the Nationale Partei (composed of Reactionaries), the Konservative Partei (mainly composed of conservatives) and the Liberaldemokratische Partei (representing the Liberal Bourgeoisie). After a 5 months of political debate, a coalition of Conservatives and Reactionaries was elected by a majority of 73.6%.

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The result of the election came from the perceived strength of the Conservative candidates and because the threat of Prussia’s neighbors France and Austria created a desire for political stability (many thought that the Kingdom would be strengthened if the Conservatives, most of whom had been ministers of the King, continued to rule. Therefore, most of the electors simply didn’t wish to “rock the boat”). Following the result of the election, the King nominated Bismarck to be elected Chancellor of Prussia. Even though Bismarck never formally joined any of the emerging Parties, he usually aligned with the conservatives, and therefore was greeted with overwhelming support by the majority party, who believed he would make a strong leader that could do great things for Prussia. At the other end of the spectrum, the Liberals believed Bismarck would prove to be a weak leader that could be easily manipulated. Therefore, Bismarck was elected almost unanimously and became the Kingdom’s first Chancellor. As Chancellor, Bismarck forged new alliances with the Northern German states and convinced them to sign various economic treaties, making them even more dependent on Prussia, and therefore ensuring their continued support and increasing Prussia’s influence. During the next 5 years, Prussia began a massive program of industrial expansion and tried to encourage people to settle in the city to become craftsmen and clerks to man the new factories. While the Kingdom managed to dramatically increase its industrial production (which was worth more than the production of Austria, the United States and Russia combined).

In 1857, Saxony suffered another Liberal uprising. As the only nation in Germany to have been relatively untouched by the Liberal Revolutions in 1848, unrest in Saxony grew dramatically after its ruler tried to increase his powers and dissolve parliament. Following the defection of most of the Saxon army to the Liberal rebels, the King of Saxony fled to Prussia. Fearing another Liberal revolution, Bismarck and King Friedrich Wilhelm IV decide that Prussia should intervene. On June 12th 1857, Prussian troops invaded Saxony. The Prussian army met the Saxon Republic’s forces at Leipzig on June 16th and at Dresden on June 17th. The Battles were short and casualties minimal on the side of Prussia, while Saxon forces were completely crushed. By the end of the month, Prussian forces occupied most of Saxony. The Austrians didn’t look kindly on Prussia’s intervention in what they perceived as their sphere of influence. Tensions rose and skirmishes were fought along parts of the border. The Austrian Ambassador met with Bismarck on July 11th and demanded that Prussia withdraw its troops from Saxony...

The Austrian ambassador was furiously pacing back and forth across the room outside the chancellor’s office, waiting to be admitted inside. He, as was most of the government he represented, was furious at how the Prussian’s had so deliberately spit in the face of the Austrian Empire. It was vital for the ambassador to convince Bismarck to remove his troops from Saxony. If Austria did not act, it would forever lose it’s already weakened influence with the Northern German states. While Austria absolutely had to do something to prevent Prussia’s move into Saxony, the Empire also could not afford to risk war, for the Empire was still reeling from the Liberal revolutions of 1848 and the army was not entirely loyal to the Emperor. Furthermore, the Italians and Hungarians had once more started to clamour for reform, even independence. Unrest was still rampant. Therefore it was vital for the ambassador to secure Prussia’s withdrawal without risking war. It was this impossible task that the ambassador set out to accomplish when he was finally admitted into Bismarck’s office. His office was surprisingly orderly. Except for a Prussian flag on the wall and a painting of Frederick the Great, the office was also surprisingly empty. In the middle of the room was the Chancellor, sitting at his oak desk, reading what the ambassador recognized as the letter he sent to the Chancellor a few days ago requesting to meet with him.

“Have a seat ambassador” said Bismarck.” Would you like something to drink?”

The ambassador sat and answered: “I must decline, I am afraid we really must get to business. You see, the Emperor is deeply disturbed by Prussia’s recent behaviour and would like this matter settled as soon as possible.”

Bismarck looked at the ambassador straight in the eye: “What is it you want to discuss?”

The Ambassador replied: “Well obviously I wish to discuss the matter of Prussia’s involvement in Saxony”

“I am afraid that is none of your concern.” Answered Bismarck, flatly

“I am afraid it is Chancellor. Saxony is Austria’s ally and, as such, Prussia has no business meddling in its internal affairs. Furthermore, we find Prussia’s occupation of the Kingdom rather distressing.”

“Prussia does not recognise your authority in this matter: the days of Austria dictating the course of German affairs in now long gone. Prussia’s troops will remain where they are and I suggest you accept that fact.”

The furious ambassador rose to his feet and yelled: “The Empire will not stand for this. You will remove your troops at once !"

Bismarck calmly gazed at the ambassador and answered: “If Austria wants the Prussian troops removed from Saxony they are welcome to come up and try, for they will not move on their own."

“That’s it, this means war!” yelled the ambassador before storming out.


While the Ambassador had hoped Bismarck would change his mind, the Chancellor proved to be stubborn in his resolve. Once in Vienna, he advised the Emperor to back down, for Bismarck could evidently could not be bullied into submission. However, he issued an ultimatum to Prussia, threatening war in a last ditch effort to get Prussia to back down. When Austria received no response, the Emperor was forced to back down, as Austria was in no position to fight Prussia’s superior army, as unrest in Hungary and Italy was growing every day. This lead to a massive loss of face in Germany and the German Confederation was dissolved by Prussia and the North German Federation created. This federation cemented Prussia’s dominant position in the north and permanently excluded Austria from Northern German affairs. Meanwhile, faced with the increasing unrest in Hungary, Austria was forced into the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1858, which created the Dual-Monarchy of Austria-Hungary.
Meanwhile, in Italy, nationalist movements were growing by the day...

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There you go, Part 4. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed making it :)
 
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