Chapter 24: Into One, Out the Other.
In Emperor Alexander's eyes the Time had come to stop the excessive Focus on Colonial Expansion that had gripped the Empire for now well over a century. Slow progress had stifled Borders in Europe despite Cathayan superiority on the field of battle, which had let Nations such as England, Sweden and Ferrara compete with Cathay as Rivaling Great Powers on the continent.
However, Absolute rule did not necessarily mean Absolute control. The East India Company had grown wealthy and practically independent in its operations in Asia, ceasing further territories without consent of the Monarchy
To Avoid reprisal from the government, the Company often used lower level officials of low connection and importance to take blame for their more illegal international dealings while the actual officials in power, often far closer to the reigns of power of court kept themselves clean and fabulously wealthy. Despite the Will of Alexander the Colonial march continued across the Globe through the semi autonomous governments of the 12 Provinces, Yucatan or the Colonial East India Company.
Similar success which the Swedish and British had tried to imitate however proved to be an illusive beast. The Swedish soon found the Native Chinese people to be numerous and unwilling to tolerate a foreign invader. Without the experience and power behind their colonial government the Swedes were run out little more than a decade after their original entry into the region. The Scandinavians however would not renounce their claims to what was rightfully theirs by treaty and cling to small coastal forts and islands leaving plans in reserve to eventually return to continent proper.
Ultimately Alexander with his abilities may have been able to step in and stop the growing influence of the various colonial authorities within the Empire and the Empires dependence on therm in Turn. However Coincidence had other plans. New Ideas of Nationalism stirred up by German Philosophers longing for a return to a Unified Kingdom of Germany had spread to Italy, where the Kingdom of Sicily used such ideas to justify the conquest of the entire Peninsula and finally Link their holdings
The Sicilians already in an identity crisis between their balkan and Italian holdings could not afford a defeat and defeated the Italians at several key battles in Croatia, forcing King Lorenzo Caetye of Italy to call for Cathayan aid before the Bavarians and Sicilians could break his Kingdom apart.
Emperor Alexander knew that ultimately this would only be the first of a series of major wars in Europe as new Thinking in Central Europe would force the Bavarians, Bohemians, Italians and Greeks into constant conflict. Quickly armies were raised and Alexander took steps to ensure that all equipment would soon be standardized to ensure a greater control over military equipment at his disposal in the coming years.
Ultimate the Weapon Standards act of 1702 Would be the catalyst to the creation of several government backed arms companies dedicated wholly to the production of licensed and inhouse weaponry for use with the Imperial Marines, Royal Guard and Army, some which would still exist well over 300 years later.
The Entry of Bohemia and Cathay into the war would be swift and Brutal for the defending Alliance. Bavaria, weakened from almost a century of economic stagnation found itself outnumbered and outgunned against superior opponents on all sides.
The Bavarian Collapse culminated with the nearly two year long siege and Sack of Ulm one of the larger cities in Bavaria and centerpierce to the Kingdom's Western Provinces Meanwhile in that Time Other Khitan Reinforcements had been allowed to Bypass Bavaria entirely and march through Burgundy and down to Rome to fight the Sicilians on the Italian front.
For Sicily, a War that initially they had thought decisively won in the North with a few quick battles had turned into a complete disaster. The Italian Mainland was lost and Cathayan marines aligned with the Italian navy made the crossing into Sicily proper, threatening to March on the Capital. The Sicilian Monarchy responded by fleeing the Capital causing utter chaos within the Kingdom as its core region fell to the Italians.
In response, a group of nobles and important mayors and officials from the Balkan half of empire held the "Symvoúlio ton ptinón" or Council of Birds which named Duke Leo of Belgrade, a Serb and Cousin to the exiled King Michael IV to the Sicilian Crown. The New Sicilian Government, officially headed by Leo but in practice run by the Council of Birds sued for Peace with the Italians, undercutting deals King Lorenzo had signed under the table to ensure Bohemian and Khitan support.
Emperor Alexander was Furious, As payment for saving the Kingdom if Italy he had received almost nothing in the Signed Treaty of Athens while Italy had used the opportunity to seize the valuable gold mine of Tirol as well as strengthen it's position in both Italy and America without compensating her allies, further straining Relations between the two Kingdoms.
With a Peace signed Alexander could do what was possible in reforming the Administration away from its focus overseas, abandoning or discarding many colonial charters and laws signed by his predecessors. The Days of vast expanses of land, ripe for the taking for those brave enough to risk it was drawing to a close. America had a pre-established order now and the Mother Country would no longer benefit from just prestige of her territories abroad, they needed to be profitable.
To this end, Alexander implemented harsh new laws along mercantilist guidelines. Cathay after all had all the tools for exclusivity for its trade lanes and yet local colonial governors were buying the cheapest available product which often was provided by Foreign or Native traders. This lost Imperial Tradesmen Revenue and thus tax income for the Empire that had to instead be gained through higher and higher tariffs.
To cut this loss at the head Alexander founded the Khitan West India company in hopes it would find similar success to its Asian counterpart. The KWIC would be given sole trading rights with foreign nations while all private ventures were forbidden from the same practice thus forcing all imports and exports to go through the government KWIC.
Ultimately however the response to this and other changes of Alexander would be met with Uproar in the Colonies who saw no logical or rational reason for the abolishment of their means of doing business other than blind greed.
In Europe however the Policy was far more successful. Khitan manufactories who now no longer needed to compete with foreign competition in the colonies had pivoting into an export driven enterprise quickly, and with great profits.
Though Criticism not only remained but would grow in time, as Smuggling grew widely in popularity throughout the Empire and Imperial Merchants abroad lost their competitive edge and reputation, forcing profits to ultimately be funneled back into the navy to protect against privateers and enforce Khitan interests.
On land, Alexander quickly resumed a more aggressive stance, Aiming to finally unite the Khitan peoples of Europe once and for all. The Major obstacle in the way was the Duchy of Ivrea which had existed in some form since the collapse. With only the Princedom of Toulouse and Bavaria as an ally the Khitan Army swept in and quickly laid siege to Ivraen Lands with intent to take them wholesale for the Empire.
With relations already strained with Italy Alexander also saw this as an opportunity to win Support from the Granadan Kingdom which was currently struggling in a war against both Portugal and the Princedom of Toulouse. Despite Granada's success or Failure in its war it would still hold gibraltar and thus hold the Keys to both the Italian and Sicilian Colonial Empires, Winning favour with the Iberian Princedom could be worth it's weight in gold.
Ultimately the war would be swift and Brutal, Toulouse could not hope to match the forces of the Khitan in terms of numbers or troop quality and fell like wheat in early Autumn. Alexander's demands were made with the intent to secure his position in Southern France once and for all, demanding the Basqueland for the creation of a new Client Kingdom of Navarra
Ivrea meanwhile was annexed wholesale into Cathay and the Kingdom of Aquitaine ending yet another Princedom dating back to the Great Western War. Now there would be just three States in France, Aquitaine, Cathay and Toulouse with Aquitaine and Toulouse both claiming to be the rightful ruler of the Occitan Romantic Peoples, while Cathay claimed dominion over the Khitan People which included the Half Romantic, French that existed in the Occitan-Khitan border territories.
The Kingdom of Aquitaine ultimately would remain an oddity in Europe A power in of itself but completly subservient to the greater Khitan Empire, The House of Karling had originally been pushed into the region centuries past and ultimately would survive until being raised to Kingdom Status within the Empire again and protected by the Khitan Empire.
Despite cultural connections the Khitan administration would only entertain the idea of Occitan Integration in the abstract during these years with the result always remaining the same, that it was best the Kingdom of Aquitaine exist as a separate entity from the crown, Dejure part of the Empire led by a local administration to both provide a valuable buffer state against the Italians and Spanish but also to prevent rebellion in a populous province notorious for supporting pretenders in the distant past.
However Talent, wealth and discipline could do little to challenge the passage of time. Alexander had spent much of his rule simply reorganizing the mess of his predecessors and would suffer a sudden heart attack, rendering the Great Emperor confined to the Capital and severely weakened. An ill Omen that the great Golden age of the Empire started fifty years prior as swiftly drawing to a close.
The Great Khitan Empire had failed to conquer all of China, but it had retaken much of its lands in Europe and built an Empire across the world, but even with all of this it found itself as the first of its peers, less a hegemony and instead simply ahead of the curve.
The reminder of the Emperor's mortality after a rule of frustration and reorganization had shown a Weakness in Absolutism, that even a competent ruler, with absolute power may not necessarily be able to right the ship, or even steer it in his desired direction.
However in the Universities and the Coffee shops brewed different theories of government, of man, and the natures of all things. Cathay was by no means a sinking ship but should a different one begin to take on water, if a monarch could not save their people.
Perhaps Revolution Could.