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Crusader Kings III Available Now!
The realm rejoices as Paradox Interactive announces the launch of Crusader Kings III, the latest entry in the publisher’s grand strategy role-playing game franchise. Advisors may now jockey for positions of influence and adversaries should save their schemes for another day, because on this day Crusader Kings III can be purchased on Steam, the Paradox Store, and other major online retailers.
I hope that the fighthing habilities of the commies are better than their speeches... So predictable...
well that was certainly unexpected. and really cool, well done both of you. reminded me of turtledove, which is a pure compliment.
Griffin.Gen Your help was needed and is apprechiated.
Kurt_Steiner That remains to be seen. They just pissed off the British Empire.
BritishImperial Wasn't really inspired by him to be honest....
Kurt_Steiner That remains to be seen. They just pissed off the British Empire.
BritishImperial Wasn't really inspired by him to be honest....
They ARE commies, afterall.I hope that the fighthing habilities of the commies are better than their speeches... So predictable...
I assume Chapter 152 received some editing, because that footnote appears to be an orphan.
So Communistical Quebec? That'll not end well, unless the USSA intervenes (which given the extreme caution taken over the agents seems unlikely). In fact I'll say this is a benefit long-term, such treason will discredit Quebecian independence for at least a generation and ensure a suitable distrust of French-Canadians of all types.
El Pip Will be edited shortly. Originally there was supposed to be a conference aboard an American ship.
I think it's inevitable that it turns out as you described, even more son in a so church-minded part of Canada.
I think it's inevitable that it turns out as you described, even more son in a so church-minded part of Canada.
Chapter 154
The flag of the Socialist Republic of Quebec
Somewhere in Quebec City
The Quebec Headquarters of the Sûreté du Québec was mostly in the hands of the rebels. Even though the policemen still held several rooms in the corner of the expansive building, the flag of the Socialist Republic was raised. The QCP had no single leader, but rather a central committee of five members, one of which was at last arriving at the citadel that was used to direct operations in and around Quebec City. Bouteiller was leaving command of the group to his second in Command, who would mop up the scattered pockets of loyalist resistance in the city. The two American agents were scattering and going with one of the groups that cleared the area around the railway station and went to secure a perimeter around the city. Sooner or later the regime would react, and if the Socialist Republic was to endure, the city needed to be held. So far everything was going well. Communication and transportation in and around Quebec City were in the hands of the Republic, and communications had been established with several other settlements that had been seized. Other groups were were streaming in, so that now the SRQ had several thousand fighters that lacked heavy weapons but were highly motivated. The arsenals at the citadel had been mostly empty, only several old 2pdr Anti-Tank guns that the Canadian Army was no longer using were now the SRQ's artillery complement. This would change.
Soon the Quebecois troops within the Canadian Army would join their cause, and hopefully bring a lot of their equipment with them. Meanwhile however Loyalist strongpoints needed to be cleared. Aside from the faint rattle of gunfire in the background an eery tension lay over the city. Cars were in still relative short supply up here at the best of times, but now nothing at all could be heard. If one left the burning citadel behind and moved past the Quebec Parliament building; on which now the flag of the Socialist Republic flew; the noise of gunfire became louder. If one was standing right in front of it, it was clear that the building was on fire. The Rebels had taken most of it, only a small ante-building was still in the hands of the loyalist police officers. Rebel militias were ransacking the offices, and files were flying all over the place, falling down the staircases and out of the windows as if it were snowflakes, mixing with the dirty snow on the streets. A number of bodies was strewn around the entries, giving statement to the resistance that had been put up. The building was relatively far away from the citadel and contained the greatest number of civilian wireless sets as well as a backup telephone exchange, so the officers had been ready by the time the militias had reached them. Inside the short snap of the Lee-Enfield 1917 SMLE the police officers used mingled with the lower thud of the American-supplied Springfields. The loyalists were still holding out simply because three sides of the building were facing a bend in the river and the only entrance was through a narrow hallway that was barricaded about halfway through. Behind the upturned cabinets and tables several officers crouched for cover and were shooting the occasional shot. It was simply a stalemate. The police officers could not go anywhere in a city that was in the hands of the militias, while the militia couldn't come inside and lacked the heavy weapons the break the siege from the outside.
The siege could not last forever though. Munitions inside were low, as were supplies of water and food, and most of the men were already wounded. It was therefore not surprising when the shooting stopped and a white flag appeared. One by one the officers that could still walk appeared out of the hallway, carrying those that could not. They were disarmed and stripped of all possessions but their clothes and then led into the courtyard. It were no more than twenty, the rest was already either taken prisoner or dead. There in the courtyard they were awaiting their fate at the hands of the separatist rebels. One side, the one they had entered from, was lined with rebels carrying American-made machine carbines.[1] Some of the more experienced men suspected what was coming, but when the flames belched from the muzzles of the guns, all of them died the same.
Exact location secret, somewhere in Ottawa
The Canadian Cabinet was assembled. The Emergency had quickly brought them together, even the Quebecoise Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, whose hometown was now in the hands of the rebels. He kept quiet, and hoped that no one would accuse him of having communist sympathies. Already, as the news spread throughout Canada there was violence and hatred by Anglophone Canadians against their Francophone brethren. Quebec leaders that had not been in Quebec city therefore not been rounded up, were already on the air, denouncing the uprising and urging all 'loyal citizens, loyal to Quebec and to Canada as a whole, to resist. On the street however such talk fell on deaf ears. William Lyon Mackenzie King, Prime Minister of Canada and at the moment having a fit did not care about such things. What he cared for was to crush the rebellion as soon as possible, and this was the purpose of this meeting. He had London breathing down his neck, where Churchill had only just been notified and had already sent a cable offering assistance and asking what was going on in Canada, he had multiple uprisings all over Quebec with Montreal threatening to go the way of Quebec City and most of the smaller communities at the very least frightened and threatened, he had a Canadian Army that could no longer trust some of it's best and most elite troops and he had a country with a sense of national unity that had been somewhat shaky at the best of times, and that was now totally down the drain. Politically the fallout was immense already. There were those that demanded for King to step down in the face of 'failed policies and failure to detect and prevent this sorry affair'. Normally the Governor-General would have supported him, if only to give London the apperance of a stable Government, but now that he was dead, men like Manion openly called for King's removal, even though he himself was discredited though due to being married to a French-Canadian wife. The Chief of the Canadian Defence Staff, General Harvey, had just delivered a briefing on what was known and done, and the situation was bleak. King pinched the bridge of his nose and asked: “So you are telling me that the Canadian Army not only cannot combat the current crisis but will also be forced to step back from any overseas commitments made to our allies and to Britain?” “Yes, Sir.” “Then what the bloody hell do you suggest we do? Sit around and hope it all goes away? Swift reaction is needed, Gentlemen.” Lead silence lay in the room, as no one had any workable ideas. It was far too long since Canada had fought on her own soil, and never before had she been forced to deal with a situation like this one, and King realized that the mood was one of defeatism, and that many were prepared to let Quebec go. He slammed his fist down on the table, hard enough to make everyone, including the porcelain sitting on the table, jump. “DEFEAT IS NOT AN OPTION!” he yelled with more conviction than he really felt.
“This still leaves us without a plan of action, Prime Minister.” someone said, and had a point. “We could probably defeat them in the open field using only anglophone units, but they are bottling themselves up in the cities, never mind the smaller groups roaming the countryside.” “But how can we be assured of the loyalties of the French units? There have been a few incidents already where they rioted after it was rumoured they were to be sent to fight their countrymen, as they put it.” “How many, and what unit?” “Surprisingly enough, it was not the 22nd, as I would have expected, but rather a militia force, and about twenty of a three companies.” “So most of the others have stayed loyal? We can hardly draw any conclusions yet, but don't you think that ought to tell us something?” “We still cannot depend on them!” the Chief of Staff insisted. “What if they stay loyal, but then turn on us as soon as the units reach the combat zone? It's not as if they wouldn't.” The only representative of the Quebec Government that had so far made it to Ottawa spoke up. “What makes you so sure that they would? Because they are from Quebec? Because they speak French instead of English? Trust me General, many of my countrymen will fight and gladly do so.” “There is no need in squabbling here like a group of old women. Gentlemen, we are facing a bloody rebellion that has already gone much too far! Quebec City gone, Montreal about to go, and we simply CANNOT afford to sit here doubting each other. We need to pull at the same rope here!” King was close to folding and just then a new voice joined the conversation. “How about the oath?” Everybody's head turned. It had been one of the aides. “Who are you?” the PM asked, being desperate enough to listen to anyone. “Carter, Sir.” “What are you meaning with an oath?” “We could tell the Quebecoise troops that if they are willing to swear a the oath again, thereby saying that they will fight, no matter what or simply walk out never to return. Sir.”
“The regulars would do it, but the militia and the regulars are another matter altogether.” Harvey said thoughtfully. “If we try this, we might have another rebellion on our hands that we can afford even less than the first, at the very least they might just run away.” “Do we have another way?” King asked. When Harvey opened his mouth again, King said: “That was a rhetoric question. We need at the very least the loyalty of the regulars if we are to retake Quebec.”
The tone of voice and the finality carried by it made it clear to everyone involved that the discussion was over and that this way was to be tried. “Now Gentlemen, strategy?” “We are currently moving 1st Infantry, short the Royal 22e Régiment, up to Ottawa, along with the 14th Motorized Brigade. We are calling up even more of the Militia, and as you all know the Units that were preparing to embark to Europe in Halifax are also moving north in order to hold the line there until we can crush the rebellion with overwhelming force.”
“We still need the Franco-Canadians. Start with the 22nd.”
The Regiment in question was currently still stationed in the field quarters to the south of Ottawa. Half a day ago, the rest of the Division had moved out to the north, and the Franco-Canadians had been left behind and watched as their fellow soldiers marched off to battle. Now the camp was mostly deserted. Even though no official restrictions had been placed on the movements of the soldiers ( yet ), most kept to their barracks and only very few moved around. There was little discontent. Most of the soldiers of the Royal 22e Régiment had family in Quebec City and all had family in the areas that were now under communist control, and most of them itched to go and fight for their home. There was talk, there were rumours that they would all be dishonourably discharged from the Army because the Army did no longer trust them, and many started to see the Canadian Flag that still flew over the camp with contempt and disgust. This did change however when a long line of lorries entered the camp and several high Officers from outside the Division, accompanied by the Divisions Commander arrived soon after in several Staff cars. They were even more amazed when they heard the proclamation that was read out to them.
“In the name of his Majesty, King George VI and by order of his Majesties Government of Canada, the 1st Canadian Infantry Division is to participate in operations to put down the unlawful rebellion. As this would entail Quebecoise troops to fight against their own, the Prime Minister had ordered us to offer you, and all of your brethren the following. You can either walk out of the Canadian Army this instant and consider yourself honourably discharged. If you choose to stay, you thereby state that you are willing to fight to put down the rebellion and will be required to swear the oath of allegiance.”
The soldiers said nothing but simply remained at attention. Every last one of them though mulled this over in his mind. On one hand all but a very few despised the atheist communists, while on the other hand they might be forced to shoot at friends and relatives. The Officer that had read out the proclamation knew this and waited before he spoke again. “You have one hour to decide. If you elect to leave the Army, you will just walk out of this gate, if not, reassemble here after that hour has passed. Leaving the unit afterwards will be seen as desertion and be dealt with in accordance to King's regulations.” With that the new Officers turned around on their heels and walked into the vacated office of the Division commander. The troops milled about on the square in front of the lorries, talking among themselves about what they had just heard. One by one a few gathered up their things and left the camp, but when the others lined up again an hour later in full field kit and with their rifles over their shoulders, ready to march out without being ordered to do so, the numbers had not shrunk by much. Almost ninety-nine percent chose to stay and chose to fight. Quebec or not, Canada was their country too, as was evident when they began taking the oath:
I do swear that I will well and truly serve his Majesty, King George VI, King of Canada, his heirs and successors according to law, in the Canadian Forces until lawfully released, that I will resist his Majesty's enemies and cause his peace to be kept and maintained and that I will, in all matters pertaining to my service, faithfully discharge my duty. So help me God.
[Notes: For the next couple of updates I will concentrate on the Quebec uprising.]
[1] SMGs.
I forgot where I heard this from, but what I heard is that the rest of Canada should secede from Quebec, not the other way around.
The same joke is told about Catalonia and Spain, too. Not quite original, methinks... :rofl:I forgot where I heard this from, but what I heard is that the rest of Canada should secede from Quebec, not the other way around.
I think that footnote is missing a mark on the update...it's lonely.
RE: Joke
Yes, but we all know that the Catalonia one is preposterous.
RE: Joke
Yes, but we all know that the Catalonia one is preposterous.
Kurt_Steiner It shall be done!
gaiasabre11 There is also one with Bavaria and Germany.
ColossusCrusher I wonder why our own seperatists are never this vocal...
Griffin.Gen That's all covered with "insane ramblings about the plotline".
BritishImperial At least those within the Canadian Army.
gaiasabre11 There is also one with Bavaria and Germany.
ColossusCrusher I wonder why our own seperatists are never this vocal...
Griffin.Gen That's all covered with "insane ramblings about the plotline".
BritishImperial At least those within the Canadian Army.
You can't fault the hope and optimism of the rebel Quebecois, relying on Francophone units to defect was always a very, very long shot.
That said even after the revolt is put down (barring US help or additional rebels that has to be the long term outcome) I think this will force the Canadian government to keep a very large Home Army in place for the duration of the war and probably for years (decades?) after.
So the biggest upshot of this cunning US scheme will be to help the Nazis and the Russians, probably not the outcome they were hoping for!
That said even after the revolt is put down (barring US help or additional rebels that has to be the long term outcome) I think this will force the Canadian government to keep a very large Home Army in place for the duration of the war and probably for years (decades?) after.
So the biggest upshot of this cunning US scheme will be to help the Nazis and the Russians, probably not the outcome they were hoping for!
Hrm. I can't answer that without revealing too much about the next update, but let me just say that the Canucks have a role to play later in the war and a prominent one at that. But occupation for a couple of years is indeed in order.
STOP! COOKIE TIME