Vengence
Ah, yes, on 1 Jul 1571 (am I really this far behind in my write ups?
) I step back and let Igor have his fun, urging Ivan to declare war on the dispicable Danes. We still had a royal marriage with them, but eh.
And Bohemia and Sweden both joined in our war effort. I was very pleased in a Machiavellian way to see their army in Kustanai march on Kurgan, hoping that they would seige its population down to size, but then disappointed when they continued on past.
On the 28th they paid Brandenburg to evacuate Copenhagen, forcing Hanse to seige it all over again. On 3 Aug the Polish Posse (Naples and Savoy) declared against us, and again Bohemia and Sweden answered our call (with a yes, that is
). By the 5th the cav I had raised at Kola (and left kicking their heels for a few years waiting for this moment) had gallopped through Finmark and Narvik, which were merely colonies. Despite this loss, they offered a mere truce on the last of the month, an offer that was brushed away with the wave of a hand.
On 23 Sep Portugal with the English Royalists declare war; there is no easy access to them, and nothing we'd want besides their trade posts in India (which would be deuced difficult to reach), so I offer a renege on their declaration, which they accept. Kustanai fell to assault on 14 Oct, but the Danes insulted us with another truce offer TND. Polotsk surrendered on the 21st, just after our assault broke off.
Our troops on the steppes were freed up as Kouban surrenders on 4 Mar '72. Smolensk fell that month as well, on the 13th. In early spring we destroy a Polish fleet in the Gulf of Finland in two battles, sinking 1N each time (hey, a naval victory under the conditions I've set myself, no matter how small, is still newsworthy!
). Poland gained a victory as Belgorod surrendereed on 17 May, and I make certain to remind Ivan that Igor is his military advisor
.
On 1 Jun at Far Karelia we wipe out the Danish army returning from Sibir and demand Kouban and Kustanai (4 stars/3), while they counter-offer just Kustanai (which would leave them with Kouban and us without a CB). We recapture Belgorod on 29 Sep, while Mozyr surrenders on 12 Jan '73. I demand Polotsk and Smolensk, to which the Poles agree. I also remind Ivan that, since our diplomats are my responsibility, I'd take the blame for any peace deals that involve our loss
.
In late Mar Denmark reenters Narvik, and again I lay the blame at Igor's feet, and in May our Naval Tech improved. On 13 May a joint Swedish/Hanse seige of Skane succeeded, but Hanse were in command. However, the Danes agreed that day to pay off Sweden to get them out of the war. Then on the 21st the Teutonic Order declared war, and our allies again joined in. The fools were building ships in all three provinces, so they won't be able to reinforce their army for quite some time. I tried to consilidate our war efforts by demanding just Kouban, but even this offer is rejected.
On 1 Jul Denmark ceded Skane and Jylland to Hanse, and on 8 Sep Poland, now with Parma added to their alliance, joined our war on the Teutons (though they would settle for a truce on 26 Dec). The Danes reached Finmark on 5 Oct, again Igor's fault, although he regained his standing when Livonia surrendered on 9 Nov. TND Denmark repeated its offer, and even when Jamtland surrendered on the 28th they repeated the rejection of our demand of Kouban/Kustanai. We did, however, wipe out their army on 19 Dec. On New Years Eve, after twice defeating their army and capturing their capital, the Teutons offered an insulting truce. TND the Danes saved my skin by rejecting the demand for just Kustanai (a scribe had failed to include Kouban in my demand
).
In late Apr, despite our poor naval tech and half maintenance, we defeat the combined fleets of Denmark and the Teutons in the Gulf of Finland, repeating the deed in early May. Elsewhere in May Sardinia declared their independence from Spain, and our colony at Semipalatinsk (1k natives) became a city. Kurland fell on 13 Jun, and TND we rejected two peace offers, one for Kustanai and one for Kurland. Sweden, however, got full indemnities from the Teutons on the 24th.
When Ostlandet fell on 14 Aug, the Danes finally agreed to my demand of both Kustanai and Kouban. I took out a loan to pay for settlers and the promotion of officials in these new provinces. In Feb '75 we founded a trade post at Saian. And finally, on 20 Mar, Memel surrendered and we gained another 17N in the annexation.
Now to get back to playing my latest BB war
-Pat
