Poor, poor Aragon. They didn't deserve this fate.
It would appear that Mike doesn't like Aragon as much as we thought.
Chapter 588
The Provence ruler, fearing for his safety due to a shared border with France, agreed to be a vassal of the Republic for added protection. Meanwhile, the independence war declared by Dutch West Indies concluded with the defeat of Netherlands despite no contributions from the Republic. Sadly, trouble was brewing when Austria, during the peace talks with Hungary, took some Italian provinces. The Doge was horrified to learn this development but his demand for explanation was ignored by the Austrian ruler. It was becoming obvious that conflict between these two nations were inevitable now that Austria felt confident she could take on the Republic.
The Republic, in one of her lesser known wars, annexed Bukhara to secure much of Siberia. Despite the region not proving to be rich in any ways, the Doge didn't want nations like Scandinavia expanding further east to share a border with the Republic as he had once again seen history repeated between Nuova Italia and Austria with the relations between the two nations deteriorated. The Doge also took a historical decision where he, following the unification of much of the Italian Peninsula, declared his nation as Italia. Here was the one and true Italia that kept the interests of not only Italians but also all those who lived under the rule of the Republic.
With the formation of Italia, war was declared on Austria to reclaim Italian provinces. The war wasn't even surprising for the Austrians who had increased their garrisons along the border as though they anticipated this conflict. This further solidified the Doge's belief that the Austrians had been plotting this war for a long time. England, Haiti (formerly Dutch West Indies), and Scandinavia all came to the aid of Italia in her fight to regain her cores. The Austrians, however, underestimated the Italians in their desire to retake Italian provinces. Austrian armies were shattered left and right as they were quickly overwhelmed. Soon, Italian provinces were returned to Italia while both England and Scandinavia made some gains from the wars by taking land from Austrian allies.
With peace restored in Europe, the English also accomplished an historical moment with the formation of Great Britain. Both the British Isles and Italian Peninsula were united by their respective people which called for celebrations for both nations. The last war also further solidified the relations between Italia and Great Britain to the dismay of other European nations. The Republic then fought a small war in China to further expand her borders in the region. There would be no nation that could challenge the region unless it dared to take on the Republic who was very much feared in Asia.