It is nearly the tenth anniversary of the German adventure in China. The country lies fragmented. The Puppet Emperor Pu Yi in Beijing struggles to throw off his German shackles while various regional powers vie for control of the Chinese interior. The religious fanatics continue to stir up trouble while in Yunnan, Long Yun dreams of Uniting the country under military leadership. To the North, Manchuria chafes under Japanese rule and the border regions of Tibet and Mongolia drift farther away from China under respective dictatorships...
In the South, the last direct remnants of German control remain. A wide swath of coastal territory between Shangai and German Indochina lies the territory of the General East Asia Company or AOG. They have been given significant leeway by their masters in Berlin do one thing: Generate profit. The past yen years have seen unrest certainly, but they have also seen progress. The South China Railway was been built at great cost but now connects nearly all of the AOG with its major port of Guangzhou and South to Hannoi.
Though nominally led from Berlin through the executive board, the real power in South China is Governor General Alexander von Falkenhausen. While both the board and the Company headquarters in Potsdam have been content to reap profits, the old general sees both opportunity and danger in the Far East. With political turmoil is on the horizon in Europe, he is ever cautious about a time when the AOG will have to fend for itself both against an aggressive Japan and a Hungry Qing Empire.
To that end, Falkenhausen has increased infrastructure and manufacturing under the pretext of corporate profiteering and political control. Sweeping army reform and upgrades are ordered though the "army" still officially operates only as police and legally relies on the empire's armed forces to protect it from external threats.
A military high command is formed under the guide of a police command structure. Defense forces are given a secret parallel command structure to be activated in wartime. The entire process takes place without the knowledge of the Qing viceroy or the German inspector general, the two individuals that officially control the AOG.
Industrial production exceeds that of the much larger Qing Empire but recruitment of reliable troops is difficult as the regime is held in low regard by the majority of the local population. Though progress has been made to Sinify some of the lower echelons of AOG leadership, resistance from the German bureaucrats is intense and Falkenhausen must be cautious in not angering either side too much. He is wary that keeping the leadership entirely German will lead to revolution, but also any rapid transition will spook the board and lead to his sacking.
Even though much of the army is less than reliable, equipment is far superior to that of the Qing and neighboring Yunan. Most of the equipment is provided by the empire or manufactured from high quality local industries based on the German model.
A relatively well equipped air force compliments a ground army centered around a few elite divisions and a sea of conscripts.
In the South, the last direct remnants of German control remain. A wide swath of coastal territory between Shangai and German Indochina lies the territory of the General East Asia Company or AOG. They have been given significant leeway by their masters in Berlin do one thing: Generate profit. The past yen years have seen unrest certainly, but they have also seen progress. The South China Railway was been built at great cost but now connects nearly all of the AOG with its major port of Guangzhou and South to Hannoi.
Though nominally led from Berlin through the executive board, the real power in South China is Governor General Alexander von Falkenhausen. While both the board and the Company headquarters in Potsdam have been content to reap profits, the old general sees both opportunity and danger in the Far East. With political turmoil is on the horizon in Europe, he is ever cautious about a time when the AOG will have to fend for itself both against an aggressive Japan and a Hungry Qing Empire.
To that end, Falkenhausen has increased infrastructure and manufacturing under the pretext of corporate profiteering and political control. Sweeping army reform and upgrades are ordered though the "army" still officially operates only as police and legally relies on the empire's armed forces to protect it from external threats.
A military high command is formed under the guide of a police command structure. Defense forces are given a secret parallel command structure to be activated in wartime. The entire process takes place without the knowledge of the Qing viceroy or the German inspector general, the two individuals that officially control the AOG.
Industrial production exceeds that of the much larger Qing Empire but recruitment of reliable troops is difficult as the regime is held in low regard by the majority of the local population. Though progress has been made to Sinify some of the lower echelons of AOG leadership, resistance from the German bureaucrats is intense and Falkenhausen must be cautious in not angering either side too much. He is wary that keeping the leadership entirely German will lead to revolution, but also any rapid transition will spook the board and lead to his sacking.
Even though much of the army is less than reliable, equipment is far superior to that of the Qing and neighboring Yunan. Most of the equipment is provided by the empire or manufactured from high quality local industries based on the German model.
A relatively well equipped air force compliments a ground army centered around a few elite divisions and a sea of conscripts.
Last edited:
- 1
