Greetings my fellow comrades! This is my first foray into the territory of an AAR, so please forgive any faults you may find (and I'm sure there will be quite a few). Since I am a novice, I shall start with a small prologue, with the intent of (hopefully) whetting your appetite and allowing me to practise my writing. This AAR has taken much inspiration from Teivel's excellent AAR "One and Indivisible" and as such, the style shall be a similar nature; a hybrid. I hope that this is perceived as an homage and not plagiarism So, without further ado, I present to you my prologue to "Avalon: The Worker's Paradise"!
It was a cool November evening in Berlin and General Erich von Ludendorff paced before the grand doors to the Imperial study, awaiting his summons. He was debating how to best present his plan to the Kaiser, when the doors opened and a servant bid him to enter. He stepped through the great doors and halted in front of a desk, behind which sat His Imperial and Royal Majesty Wilhelm the Second, Kaiser of the German Empire.
General von Ludendorff bowed deeply “Your Imperial Majesty.”
Wilhelm rose from his seat “Ah, the hero of the Great Spring Offensive. Tell me, to what end does my First Generalquartiermeister seek an audience with me?”
Erich took a deep breath, sent a silent prayer to the heavens and spoke to his leader
“We have been at war for seven long years now. The country is on the verge of economic collapse, the military is strained, and our armies have neither the ability nor the will to invade the British Isles. The war must end.
We must have a Peace with Honour.”
The Kaiser leant on his desk, brow furrowed in thought
“Yes, what you say is true. The people have had enough of this war. Russland, Italien, Frankreich, Rumänien, Griechenland und Serbien have fallen to our armies. The trade with France and Italy has weakened the effect of the British blockade on our people, yet morale is still in dire straits among the populace.”
The Kaiser sat, and indicated for the General to do the same. One hand went to his face to pull at his moustache
“The plan has much merit. How to achieve it is another matter entirely.”
von Ludendorff softly sighed in relief. He was worried that the Kaiser would show the same militaristic vigour of his youth, fuelled by the recent death of the Empress. He cleared his throat and proceeded to outline his plan
“Your Majesty, Britannien is in even worse shape than we are. They have lost almost all of their allies, seen themselves thrown off the continent and are suffering mass revolt in Eire. They are sick of war, and would accept worthy peace conditions.”
The Kaiser stood “Tell the Foreign Office to draw up a draft.” He put his pen to paper and began to write ‘I, His Imperial and Royal Majesty Wilhelm the Second, by the Grace of God, German Emperor and King of Prussia, Margrave of Brandenburg, Burgrave of Nuremberg, Count of Hohenzollern, Duke of Silesia and of the County of Glatz, Grand Duke of the Lower Rhine and of Posen, Duke in Saxony, of Angria, of Westphalia, of Pomerania and of Lunenburg, Duke of Schleswig, of Holstein and of Crossen, Duke of Magdeburg, of Bremen, of Guelderland and of Jülich, Cleves and Berg, Duke of the Wends and the Kashubians, of Lauenburg and of Mecklenburg, Landgrave of Hesse and in Thuringia, Margrave of Upper and Lower Lusatia, Prince of Orange, of Rugen, of East Friesland, of Paderborn and of Pyrmont, Prince of Halberstadt, of Münster, of Minden, of Osnabrück, of Hildesheim, of Verden, of Kammin, of Fulda, of Nassau and of Moers, Princely Count of Henneberg, Count of the Mark, of Ravensberg, of Hohenstein, of Tecklenburg and of Lingen, Count of Mansfeld, of Sigmaringen and of Veringen, Lord of Frankfurt, hereby grant General Erich von Ludendorff permission to negotiate a peace with the Entente under the following conditions…’
Several days later, The Cabinet Room of 10 Downing Street, London
“Can you believe it!? The nerve of the Boche! The sheer bloody nerve!”
The source of the animated voice was Andrew Bonar Law, Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Arthur Balfour, the Foreign Secretary replied “If we don’t accept this offer, the people will throw us out! We’ll have a damned Bolshevik uprising on our hands. The King would go the way of the Czar, and we’d all go to the guillotine. Is that what you want?”
“Gentlemen, it’s clear that the Hun has us in quite a pickle.” Came a new, gruff voice “If we accept this so-called ‘Peace with Honour’, we end the war. However, we also lose it. There will be damage to our reputation. But, the war would be over. We would maintain control over our Empire and our Dominions. Our people would be relieved; not over-joyed, to be true, but relieved none the less. Many in our government” A look to Bonar Law at that “would not be pleased. Yet Arthur speaks the truth. If we refuse, we face more internal strife. We cannot maintain control over Ireland under these conditions for much longer, and the military is in no state to invade Europe. I think it’s clear that we must accept the lesser of two evils. The mainland is beyond our reach gentlemen. The question comes down to whether or not we’re completely mad. I leave it to our esteemed Prime Minister to decide.”
With that, all three heads turned to the man with his head in his hands. David Lloyd-George looked up with a tired and haggard face, old past its years by the pressures of the war
“I see your penchant for speaking hasn’t faded, Winston old boy.” Winston Churchill gave a small nod, appreciating the compliment. Lloyd-George sighed “Gentlemen, your opinions are all appreciated. I understand your objection Andrew, and Arthur’s concerns are well justified. I have made up my mind.
“Send a telegram to the German High Command. We accept this ‘Peace with Honour’. God help us all.”
Lecture Hall, Cambridge University, 1984
"The 'Peace with Honour' was signed on November the 11th, 1921. It brought the 7-year long conflict to it's end. The two imperialist nations then began to lick their wounds; Germany at the height of it's power, the United Kingdom attempting to suppress the righteous anger of the people of Britain. The loss of the war demonstrated how corrupt and inefficient the blood-thirsty capitalistic imperialist nation of Britain was. The veil had been torn down, and the people had seen their leaders for what they were.
Pathetic cowards. The rise of the British people in revolution was inevitable; they merely awaited the spark; and that spark came."
The lecturer, one Winston Smith, paused for breath, surveying the room before him, packed as it was with students, many eagerly taking notes, others transfixed by his display of socialist fervour.
"Inspired by their comrades in the newly established Commune of France, the TUC called for a general strike following the repression of a strike in South Wales in 1925. The imperialists then tried to call their dogs in the military to crush the will of the people, but little did they know that their soldiers were not mindless automatons, but instead men in their own right. Many joined our righteous cause, both in the Army and in the Navy. Six weeks of revolution followed. Six weeks of the glorious rise of the British proletariat to take their rightful place at the helm of their nation, to be ruled as the people are meant to be ruled; by the people. They drove out the Royal family, along with many of the capitalist bourgeois bastards, dissolved the corrupt Houses of Parliament and formed the noble Congress of Trade Unions.
The Union of Britain was born, and it's future was bright."
Well, there you go. Hope you enjoyed. Next, an overview of the UoB in 1936. And please, comment if you have anything to say.
November, 1921
Stadtschloss Palace, BerlinIt was a cool November evening in Berlin and General Erich von Ludendorff paced before the grand doors to the Imperial study, awaiting his summons. He was debating how to best present his plan to the Kaiser, when the doors opened and a servant bid him to enter. He stepped through the great doors and halted in front of a desk, behind which sat His Imperial and Royal Majesty Wilhelm the Second, Kaiser of the German Empire.
General von Ludendorff bowed deeply “Your Imperial Majesty.”
Wilhelm rose from his seat “Ah, the hero of the Great Spring Offensive. Tell me, to what end does my First Generalquartiermeister seek an audience with me?”
Erich took a deep breath, sent a silent prayer to the heavens and spoke to his leader
“We have been at war for seven long years now. The country is on the verge of economic collapse, the military is strained, and our armies have neither the ability nor the will to invade the British Isles. The war must end.
We must have a Peace with Honour.”
The Kaiser leant on his desk, brow furrowed in thought
“Yes, what you say is true. The people have had enough of this war. Russland, Italien, Frankreich, Rumänien, Griechenland und Serbien have fallen to our armies. The trade with France and Italy has weakened the effect of the British blockade on our people, yet morale is still in dire straits among the populace.”
The Kaiser sat, and indicated for the General to do the same. One hand went to his face to pull at his moustache
“The plan has much merit. How to achieve it is another matter entirely.”
von Ludendorff softly sighed in relief. He was worried that the Kaiser would show the same militaristic vigour of his youth, fuelled by the recent death of the Empress. He cleared his throat and proceeded to outline his plan
“Your Majesty, Britannien is in even worse shape than we are. They have lost almost all of their allies, seen themselves thrown off the continent and are suffering mass revolt in Eire. They are sick of war, and would accept worthy peace conditions.”
The Kaiser stood “Tell the Foreign Office to draw up a draft.” He put his pen to paper and began to write ‘I, His Imperial and Royal Majesty Wilhelm the Second, by the Grace of God, German Emperor and King of Prussia, Margrave of Brandenburg, Burgrave of Nuremberg, Count of Hohenzollern, Duke of Silesia and of the County of Glatz, Grand Duke of the Lower Rhine and of Posen, Duke in Saxony, of Angria, of Westphalia, of Pomerania and of Lunenburg, Duke of Schleswig, of Holstein and of Crossen, Duke of Magdeburg, of Bremen, of Guelderland and of Jülich, Cleves and Berg, Duke of the Wends and the Kashubians, of Lauenburg and of Mecklenburg, Landgrave of Hesse and in Thuringia, Margrave of Upper and Lower Lusatia, Prince of Orange, of Rugen, of East Friesland, of Paderborn and of Pyrmont, Prince of Halberstadt, of Münster, of Minden, of Osnabrück, of Hildesheim, of Verden, of Kammin, of Fulda, of Nassau and of Moers, Princely Count of Henneberg, Count of the Mark, of Ravensberg, of Hohenstein, of Tecklenburg and of Lingen, Count of Mansfeld, of Sigmaringen and of Veringen, Lord of Frankfurt, hereby grant General Erich von Ludendorff permission to negotiate a peace with the Entente under the following conditions…’
Several days later, The Cabinet Room of 10 Downing Street, London
“Can you believe it!? The nerve of the Boche! The sheer bloody nerve!”
The source of the animated voice was Andrew Bonar Law, Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Arthur Balfour, the Foreign Secretary replied “If we don’t accept this offer, the people will throw us out! We’ll have a damned Bolshevik uprising on our hands. The King would go the way of the Czar, and we’d all go to the guillotine. Is that what you want?”
“Gentlemen, it’s clear that the Hun has us in quite a pickle.” Came a new, gruff voice “If we accept this so-called ‘Peace with Honour’, we end the war. However, we also lose it. There will be damage to our reputation. But, the war would be over. We would maintain control over our Empire and our Dominions. Our people would be relieved; not over-joyed, to be true, but relieved none the less. Many in our government” A look to Bonar Law at that “would not be pleased. Yet Arthur speaks the truth. If we refuse, we face more internal strife. We cannot maintain control over Ireland under these conditions for much longer, and the military is in no state to invade Europe. I think it’s clear that we must accept the lesser of two evils. The mainland is beyond our reach gentlemen. The question comes down to whether or not we’re completely mad. I leave it to our esteemed Prime Minister to decide.”
With that, all three heads turned to the man with his head in his hands. David Lloyd-George looked up with a tired and haggard face, old past its years by the pressures of the war
“I see your penchant for speaking hasn’t faded, Winston old boy.” Winston Churchill gave a small nod, appreciating the compliment. Lloyd-George sighed “Gentlemen, your opinions are all appreciated. I understand your objection Andrew, and Arthur’s concerns are well justified. I have made up my mind.
“Send a telegram to the German High Command. We accept this ‘Peace with Honour’. God help us all.”
Lecture Hall, Cambridge University, 1984
"The 'Peace with Honour' was signed on November the 11th, 1921. It brought the 7-year long conflict to it's end. The two imperialist nations then began to lick their wounds; Germany at the height of it's power, the United Kingdom attempting to suppress the righteous anger of the people of Britain. The loss of the war demonstrated how corrupt and inefficient the blood-thirsty capitalistic imperialist nation of Britain was. The veil had been torn down, and the people had seen their leaders for what they were.
Pathetic cowards. The rise of the British people in revolution was inevitable; they merely awaited the spark; and that spark came."
The lecturer, one Winston Smith, paused for breath, surveying the room before him, packed as it was with students, many eagerly taking notes, others transfixed by his display of socialist fervour.
"Inspired by their comrades in the newly established Commune of France, the TUC called for a general strike following the repression of a strike in South Wales in 1925. The imperialists then tried to call their dogs in the military to crush the will of the people, but little did they know that their soldiers were not mindless automatons, but instead men in their own right. Many joined our righteous cause, both in the Army and in the Navy. Six weeks of revolution followed. Six weeks of the glorious rise of the British proletariat to take their rightful place at the helm of their nation, to be ruled as the people are meant to be ruled; by the people. They drove out the Royal family, along with many of the capitalist bourgeois bastards, dissolved the corrupt Houses of Parliament and formed the noble Congress of Trade Unions.
The Union of Britain was born, and it's future was bright."
Well, there you go. Hope you enjoyed. Next, an overview of the UoB in 1936. And please, comment if you have anything to say.
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