Bohemia: Forging a Central European empire in Magna Mundi

[Urza]

5. News from the Mediterranean

Another update with 'what's going on in the world'-focus

Ottoman Exploits

Turkish empire in 1468

It is in November 1468 that the Ottoman Sultan Numan I., eager to expand his domain further into rich Syria and acting upon news of significant provincial uprisings in Egypt against the long-weakened rule of the Mamluk Burji dynasty, declares war on this rival, also perceived to be diplomatically isolated.

Little does he know that, while indeed few of the Muslim principalities dare to side with the declining Mamluk Sultanate, a secret agreement of the latter with a powerful Christian adversary is about to lead to the opening of an unexpected second front.

It says the Mamluks declared war, but I think it is event-driven again.


For this reason the worst fate can be averted for the Burji, and even after the unavoidable Ottoman triumph in the Levant, Numan, maybe in fear of another crusade, settles for very modest demands. Austria has to give away most of their recently acquired Serbian holdings, but keeping even part of it should be counted as a success, given the circumstances; at least, this is the tenor heared by the Mamluk ambassadors, curiously leading the negotiations of the alliance.

Expecting this alliance to last seems unreasonable now.


More Ottoman military vigor is invested into pursuing the sultan's claims on the lands formerly belonging to the deceased Roman Empire. In 1471, the crusader state of Athens as well as further parts of Serbia are absorbed, and Numan doesn't stop at this point.

Naxos was able to hold onto its independence.


Disregarding the formally still lasting truce, this time capitalizing on a conflict between the Mamluks and some of the Arabian states, the Ottomans shocks both parties alike by declaring war again in May 1475. The clever Egyptian diplomats manage to convince the Austrian emperor once more that this means an immediate threat to his specific and Christian interests in the Mediterranean in general.

Austrian military campaigns are launched through Croatia and Serbia, utilizing armies from across the Holy Roman Empire, gathered on the emperor's calling. These are initially successful, also due to the largest Ottoman armies battling elsewhere, and go on for over two and a half years.

A sudden end is however reached with the death of Ladislas Postumus during the assault on a castle somewhere in Albania. The heiress to the Austrian duchy, Maria Theresia, decides to drop the costy war effort, rather unpopular within the empire, to avoid a further loss of favour for her dynasty. This way, at least a bare majority within the college of electors can be convinced to support her husband for emperor.

The archbishop of Cologne's vote can be interpreted as an abstention


This time, the Mamluk territorial losses are more substantial.

Backing off in this particular war does not mean the end of Austria's aggressive Balkan policy under Maria Theresia. In fact, the more humble goal of attaining suzerainty over Bosnia is pursued again as early as January 1478.

I accept and take the stability hit, seeing it as a trade for some Austrian trust.


And so, only half a year later..

Turkish empire in 1478


Venetian miscalculation

Being world-renowned first-class merchants with a long and rich history to look back on, especially well-versed in the arts of diplomacy, espionage, economics, mathematics, it seems a bit odd that Venetians are actually not good at all when it comes to risk management in the military field, especially concerning subtle aspects such as who and when to attack, if war is considered an attractive prospect, who that country might count among his friends and who else might take offence at the approach.

"We cannot foresee everything" - Merchants of the Venetian council explaining the situation to the burghers in April 1472


You might notice that Bohemia is the defensive alliance leader. This is a nice result of my earlier warning, although realistically the Austrian emperor should probably be the leader. Since a Venetian DoW during the first years of the game (often rather suicidal) is almost bound to happen, I had some regiments placed preemptively in Slovenia beforehand.

Left: View of the preemptive placement.. I know it is a bit gamey, but should I rather pretend to be surprised? Right: Milan is still a Venetian vassal


Another difficult topic for Venetian military leaders is the question where to focus and spend their resources. So, while the Venetians concentrate on places like these ..

.. admittedly, with some success ..

.. The terraferma soon (August 1473) looks like you can see below, with the city Venice itself under Austrian siege. Given the circumstances, the demands of the 'defending party' are quite reasonable.

Gameplay-wise, the acquisition of these two Italian provinces (Istria and Friuli, if the screenshot is unreadable) is a step for Bohemia towards losing the 'Limited Port Infrastructure' modifier. My hope is that Austria will keep helping me with any rebel problems for a while, so the amount of extra attention the provinces will need should be limited. Apart from that, it is also nice to have a foothold in Italy, although it is mostly symbolic at this stage. Istria is not in the HRE or the 'original HRE' region and Friuli, while flagged as 'original HRE', is rather poor and not the capital of a former HRE state, so its conquest doesn't result in any penalties for me. Taking for example rich Treviso might have been a different matter and also Treviso (like Verona) somehow doesn't count as having a port and is of no use in getting rid of the 'Limited Port Infrastructure'.

Taking provinces from Venice is not 'safe' with regards to the HRE in MMP2

We now have access to the Barbary Pirates mechanic. Also, extensive anti-piracy measures are installed (of course in Danzig they are already in place).

 

[Lethe]

I love MM AAR's and this one is especially well written. Keep up with the european affairs updates and everything else. I want this one to last till the end!

 

[unmerged(90806)]

Oh, playing MMU now, how I miss OE going against the Mameluks! The sneaky ploy to get Venetian provs worked like a dream. I thought Treviso is not part of HRE. Check it, you might get away with yet onether murder.

Are you going to support Berbery pirates now? Not that appealing as your income doesn't depend on trade.

Why extensive measures in the new provs? They're not CoTs, they're pbly poor anyway, at least until they core. I would just let them rot for a while, I might even think of low taxes, and let piracy spread to my new neighbours.

 

[Urza]

Lethe : Thanks for the feedback, please enjoy.

gabor : Treviso is not part of the HRE, but once conquered an event would fire anyways with choices like returning the province or hand it to the demense or keep it. If kept, it results in the same effects and potential penalties as if it had been in the HRE. At least this is how it turned out in my Alsace game!
At the moment I won't support the Barbary pirates, because as you say my trade and production income are so low. But maybe at some point later? The option is there now.
I chose the extensive defences, because naturally I don't have a national anti-piracy plan and having rampant piracy also has some global effects, like reducing prestige. It does mean that my income from these provinces is now even lower..

 

[Urza]

6. Developments in East and West

The third and final update to cover the 1468-1479 period

An early Tsardom, with some twist

It had been a bold step for the princes of Moldavia, threatened from all sides among others by the Turks, the Polish commonwealth and Hungary, to seek the solution in aligning themselves politically with the distant Rus. Whatever the reason (religious ties being doubtlessly part of it), the effects of their voluntary submission on Russian foreign policy and political thinking cannot be underestimated.

The idea of somehow taking up the banner of fallen Constantinople, of assuming a role of political leadership among the Orthodox pricipialities, of protecting whatever good there was left in the world, was of course not new, but the Moldavian example gave this thought an actuality and concreteness not felt before and which might have taken a much longer time to develop otherwise.

In more practical respects, the tributary payments came in quite handy for the Muscovites as well.

Clearly, Moscow could never hope to fulfil its envisioned role - or achieve even long-term survival in the light of the greed of the Tartar Muslim hordes to the East or potential further Polish-Lithuanian ambitions - while the Rus itself remained divided. Thus, unification by force became one of the most ardently pursued goals of the time for the Moscovian Grand Princes.

Having conquered Tver and taken land from Novgorod in earlier wars already, another opportunity presented itself in January 1473, when a conflict between the merchant princes of the Republics of Novgorod and Pskov escalated to a declaration of war of the former with the goal of forcing the latter into relinquishing much of their independence. This was all Dimitri VI. of Moscow needed as an excuse to declare war on Novogord himself, ostensibly siding with threatened Pskov.

The twist of the situation, however, was represented by the fact that Novgorod had been able to rally quite potent and somewhat unexpected allies, in the form of the Livonian Order. Acting independently of their formal Teuton masters, these knights had seen fit to meddle in Russian affairs once more, adding a 'Baltic dimension' to the war and the Northern Baltic region as a major theatre.

Wars in Russia are never over soon, both conflicting parties possess considerable military prowess, and for a good 4 years, fun is being had by all on the battlefield. In the end, Moscovian numbers and tenacity win through.

The result is this:

I am not sure if this will do Moscow much good - the Baltic is another area they will have to spend resources on in the future. But who knows?


In 1478, Moscow is ready to take another step towards embracing its desired destiny.

..and 'Russia' is there.


And what role does Moldavia still play in this? Let's just say they have been very friendly with the Russians lately.

I can imagine a dozen ways how this could end in disaster for Russia in the future.



A Burgundian inheritance

The version of the game I am using is MMP2, where the dynamic establishment of personal unions tends to be a rare occurence. Ever rarer is outright inheritance. When it does happen in a situation with significant implication, it is sure to take you aback.

According to the rules of the empire, this implies that the duke of Burgundy now is one of the electors, despite Burgundy not being a member state.

I am not sure if or how this will impact the chance of Burgundy itself being inherited, but for the time being, dissolving the HRE has become a lot harder (as you need to occupy all the capitals of the electors, or ally with them, to do this).

Speaking of rare occurences, there was also this:

A pity it had to break. But until my current king dies, they will still have to side with Bohemia in war and when he dies, there will be a small one-time chance to inherit them. The CB, however, is worthless for me.


Back to Bohemia

The society of Bohemia goes through a tough struggle to come to terms with the reorientation towards more secularism aimed at by Jiri Podebrad and his similarly minded successor Ladislav. As old power structures are broken up and new ones are formed, unrest is the order of the day and preventing the country from being torn apart becomes a challenge for the king.

And this is only part of it. Seeing that I start having more money, I can afford spending some of it on these events to avoid some of the negative conquences. Something like that wasn't viable when I initiated the NI change. The peasant 'return to tradition' demand is denied, because it would permanently lower the base tax of some provinces. The merchant event is mostly positive, as I don't want to stay on the aristocratic side of the aristocracy-plutocracy slider in the long run.


While most complains from the peasantry are ignored, one prominent petition encompassing sensible, moderate ideas to mitigate the suffering by loosening the laws on serfdom is given approval.

This decision is of course also politically motivated. In general, less serfdom means less power for the aristocracy and more for the king.


Nowhere within the lands attained by Bohemia in the long war are the discrepancies between the old and new regime felt as strongly as in Danzig. The city council insists on a multitude of traditional rights of self-government, while Bohemian city laws are in general more limiting. While compromises can be reached in this area and the special status of the city (and others in the area formerly belonging to the Teutonic Order) is acknowledged by the Bohemian crown, the ambiguous situation gives rise to a renewed conflict between the 'patriciate' of the Hanseatic merchants of the city and the common burghers organized in the guilds of craftmen, culminating in a series of bloody clashes in June 1470. Ladislav sends a small army to assume control of the situation and gives orders to support the burghers, also seeing this as a welcome chance to cut down the Hanseatic influence in the region by a notch. Unfortunately, the leaders of the revolt are already dead when the bulk of the royal forces arrive as the patricians have claimed victory. Without the support of a significant part of the urban population, it would be hard to enforce changes to the organization of the governance of the city. Furthermore, a bad relationship between the Bohemian crown and the Hansa could have a dampering effect on trade in the entire region and at this point the tariffs imposed on this trade are already contributing greatly to the royal income. For these reasons, Ladislav decides to back down from pressing any further demands, leaving the city to its own fate for now.

top right: Current income overview and breakdown of the most important contributors


The process of social adaption goes on for a while, until in March 1472 its second phase is completed.

Little use to start with the social spending now, I think.


From this point on, the events become a little less extreme, but only slightly less frequent.

In November 1476, there is a disagreement among the military leadership of the country which will reveal to have some very inconvenient consequences.

In the course of the many reforms already being put into place, Ladislav also pushes for a further centralization of the state, especially aiming for increased revenues from trade for the crown. Surely, the outcry provoked by this will simply blend in with the already existing general dissent.

Finally, the relief.

"The reneging is complete." - the modifier wore off in Feb. 1473, but the event sequence took a little longer. Stability was soon lowered again to +2 due to the Austrian DoW on Bosnia.


Many years after the pogroms in Prague, the anti-Judaic tendencies in the country have calmed down enough for Ladislav to be able to make the endorsement of Jewish immigration an official policy of the kingdom again. Hopefully, in time a larger congregation will form again in the capital.

Some Gameplay Notes

I built chartered markets in Litomerice, Lausitz, Moravia, Poznan and Danzig - focusing on provinces with good trade goods and those where the extra population growth is the most useful. Chartered markets are IMO the best province investments in the mod, and worth building everywhere, usually first.

Once the war exhaustion was lower and new troops more affordable, the army was also significantly expanded: To a size of 12 infantry and 6 cavalry regiments. My force limit is now about 35 by the way.

In 1472, there was an alliance offer from Brandenburg, which I turned down in fear of them attacking Pommerania or dragging me into some other war. This might have been a mistake, as they are now allied with my rival Poland.

As of 1478, my reputation has lowered to 'slightly tarnished' again and war exhaustion is close to zero.


Minor International Happenings

England annexed Leinster.

Tuscany returned Romagna to the Papal States.

France waged a short successful war against Brittany and Burgundy, gaining Finistére and Nevers.

Milan became a merchant republic.

France diplo-annexed Armagnac.

Gelre was diplo-vassalized by Denmark.

Silesia received Jewish refugees and soon there are Shtetls in 3 of their 4 provinces.

This can only be good for us.

Thuringia collapsed and became a Noble Republic.

Poland annexed Mazovia and changed capitals.

Really a smart move?

 

[Rabid]

How kind of the Poles to move their capital onto your border

 

[JacktheJumper]

The moment I saw the title "An early Tsardom, with some twist" I though that maybe, just maybe, Novgorod menaged to overcome Muscovy and formed Russia... But, alas, twist wasn't that twisty, and Muscovy won as always

Also, whoah on that Burgundy annexing Palatinate. Does that mean that when proper Burgundian Inheritance happens, HREmprah will get electoral vote in turn, making him even more powerful?

Also, how can annexation of Moldavia bring disaster to Russia? It will make them even more willing to go to war with Lithuania, of course, but that's one of the things they'll do anyway...

 

[unmerged(90806)]

I know what will happen: with this nasty -1 morale modifier lasting till Nov 1481 you'll be dragged into a major war and you'll watch in shock how incompetent your armies are. You mentioned Austria dowing Bosnia, will this escalate?
Russia diplo-annexing Moldavia may be a problem for AI because it refocuses Russia's interests, opens it to new threats: OE and may prevent colonisation.
Pol seems to be asking you to be rid of Kraków. A very juicy province and with time Polish may become an accepted culture!
Modena would be such a nice headbridge in Italy. Shame if nothing comes out of it.
You got lucky you didn't lose 1 tax in Danzig with this 'Patricians' event.

 

[Urza]

How kind of the Poles to move their capital onto your border

Yes, this will make things a little easier.

The moment I saw the title "An early Tsardom, with some twist" I though that maybe, just maybe, Novgorod menaged to overcome Muscovy and formed Russia... But, alas, twist wasn't that twisty, and Muscovy won as always

To be honest, I have never seen Novgorod win in MM. It would be great if the system was a bit more flexible.

Also, whoah on that Burgundy annexing Palatinate. Does that mean that when proper Burgundian Inheritance happens, HREmprah will get electoral vote in turn, making him even more powerful?

I think so.

Also, how can annexation of Moldavia bring disaster to Russia? It will make them even more willing to go to war with Lithuania, of course, but that's one of the things they'll do anyway...

AI isn't good at focusing on different areas at the same time and properly assigning priorities (see Venice). They might get into wars with the OE and others, and they will probably keep a lot of troops there which they won't be able to use against e.g. the Tatars. But you are right that in a war against Poland, it could be a plus.

I know what will happen: with this nasty -1 morale modifier lasting till Nov 1481 you'll be dragged into a major war and you'll watch in shock how incompetent your armies are.

Nail on the head pretty much, the details will show in the next update.

Russia diplo-annexing Moldavia may be a problem for AI because it refocuses Russia's interests, opens it to new threats: OE and may prevent colonisation.

Exactly.

Pol seems to be asking you to be rid of Kraków. A very juicy province and with time Polish may become an accepted culture!

Sure.

You got lucky you didn't lose 1 tax in Danzig with this 'Patricians' event.

Actually I would have prefered the -1 base tax to the -20% population. Danzig has already 8 base tax and population is very important in MM (for buildings and such).

 

[CJL78]

Also, how can annexation of Moldavia bring disaster to Russia? It will make them even more willing to go to war with Lithuania, of course, but that's one of the things they'll do anyway...

It will be interesting if Pol/Lith, OE, Sweden, and Asian hordes all jump on Russia at once...

 

[Urza]

7. Reconciliation reconsidered

A new chapter of the struggle for hegemony over Prussia and its neighbouring lands opens in early 1479, when Polish demands for cessation of certain territories based on expired loans lead to armed conflicts culminating in a declaration of war on the state of the Teutonic Order. Judging that this is an intolerable interference with Bohemian interests, Ladislav has his country enter the conflict, invoking a formal warning not to aggressively start a war issued earlier; this time, in a way in reversal of the previous situation, Bohemia is allied with the Teutonic Order. Political interests have proven to be prevalent compared to sympathies or other unsophisticated motives once again.

As Bohemia is not one of the countries originally involved in the war, calling upon the alliances with Austria and Pommerania isn't a given and is in fact decided against by the king to not needlessly jeopardize the relationship with these countries (and incur the stab, BB hit etc.). On the other hand, Poland's allies Lithuania and Brandenburg are present in full force. With the still ongoing discord over the religious reforms among the generals, careful maneuvering is called for. The main war aim is to protect the status quo.

Silesia doesn't directly participate in the war, but is to provide supplies and logistic assistance for the army. The Silesian estates in turn request economic support for the following years, which is granted.

While its coordination is far from perfect, the Bohemian military leadership can count some outstanding individuals among its ranks.

A peculiar aspect of the situation is the involvement of the bishopric of Würzburg. The exact reason for the bishop to pledge his support to the Teutonic knights remains unclear, but a rumored personal dispute between the bishop and the elector Albrecht Christian of Brandenburg could very well have been part of it. In any case, spies report to Ladislav that the bulk of the Brandenburgian army set forth on a long march through Saxony, avoiding to pass through Bohemian Lausitz, with the lands of the bishopric as the presumed destination as soon as the war began, while only smaller forces are being sent on ships to support Poland in Prussia or remain in the electoral march.

Only a few months later, news of the bishop's defeat and the sack of Bamberg arrive. At this time, the war in Prussia is still undecided and by all indications will remain undecided for a while. The numerous well-defended castles of the Order call for longer sieges and, Poland being unable to exert any significant naval power through its few ports in Lithuania, supplies can be brought in from the sea and over land (rivers) from Bohemian Prussia on a regular schedule. (in gameplay terms no blockading to speed up sieges) Smaller skirmishes in Bohemian territory near Plock and Torun happen, but are of little implication.

Almost detached from this, the Livonian Order fares much worse. The Russians brought down many of the defensive positions in Courland in their recent war and the exhaustion from this war is still strongly present. Outnumbering the enemy many times, Lithuanian forces have little trouble attaining victory after victory.

With Albrecht Christian enjoying himself in Bamberg, Ladislav reaches the decision to order a large-scale offensive in Brandenburg. Assuming that the war will be fought exclusively in Prussian lands on the Bohemian side will prove to be a miscalculation for the margrave. Will he be able to appeal to the emperor on account of his status as an elector while having himself just taken the war to the bishopric? Maybe, but Ladislav is willing to risk this much imperial goodwill.

In Brandenburg, the great importance which has been given to the development of siege tactics and canons by the crown since Jiri Podebrad shows merit. Within little more than half a year, most of the important cities, among them Berlin and Potsdam, have been conquered. When Albrecht Christian receives notice of the fall of Berlin, his army is still in the middle of besieging Würzburg.

With this, the war is decided for Brandenburg and the elector has little choice but to comply with the demanded terms, among them cessation of a region which has already seen a few changes of ownership in the past.

In March 1480, the war in Livonia is also over. The northern branch of the Order has to accept sovereignty of the Polish crown.

Within the following months Ladislav on several occasions leads the army on forays in Poland. This serves to distract king Henryk I. of Poland a bit from his campaign in Prussia and to disrupt the balance of some of the Polish-Lithuanian military operations.

On his return from one of these advances, Ladislav is informed that a significant part of the more radical utraquist hussites in the country, lead by the general who had already been publicly and inconveniently speaking out against the religious reforms before, have taken up arms, refusing to obey the king and demanding a renewed break with Rome in return for loyalty. While the Compacta had never been revoked, rapprochement with the Papacy had been progressing steadily since Jiri Podebrad became king and for some, the concessions made in the process, such as favouring the Catholic bishops in the country over the Hussites and promising the pope to work towards an extinction of heresy in Bohemia in the future, clearly went too far.

Ladislav has no intention to give in to these demands, but confronting the radicals with enough insistence to ensure a quick victory is impossible while the war with Poland is still in progress. To win more time, delegates are sent to Prague to ostensibly begin negotiations, while Ladislav begins pushing for Warszawa with the goal to bring Henryk to the negotiation table. In September 1480, the king's tactical abilities win an important battle.

The Bohemian army surrounding Warszawa along with the still unchanged situation in Prussia is, like Ladislav hoped, enough for Henryk to relent. He agrees to a truce, demanding only a small sum to keep face.

With the negative morale modifier, going for more would have been difficult and meant a lengthy struggle, which I don't really want again.


The outcome of the war can be seen as an acknowledgement of Bohemian claims in the Baltic region. Local and international recognition of these has come a step closer.

Concerning Neumark, the legitimacy of the possession is of course denied by the empire, but the situation is tolerated in so far that no sanctions are imposed and no further action is taken on the part of the emperor.

The Austrian emperor still has more provinces than me and a larger army, and Neumark like Friuli is rather poor. Taking another HRE province without incurring penalties won't be possible though, and this one was already a bit of a gamble.


Seeing that the king is now able to use his army to confront them, much quicker than anticipated, and that they have missed their chance, the radicals offer to drop their demands and pledge their loyalty again. The pragmatic Ladislav is not averse to this and peace is made between the religious factions in Bohemia again.

While his talents in negotiations and warfare are undisputed, there is one area in which Ladislav is not on par with the talented Jiri Podebrad, and that is the administration of the provinces. For this reason, the grasp of the state on the various lands of the crown is not as strong during his reign.

This will improve once either the 'innovativeness' or the 'centralization' slider will be on the left side


In April 1482, the count of Mantua, a city near the duchy of Modena currently ruled in personal union by Ladislav, dies leaving a designated heir with an otherwise rather weak claim named Federico who is also a minor by one year. By skillfully intervening in the conflict over the succession and exerting his influence among the princes of the empire, Ladislav achieves the acceptance of Federico as the rightful heir. Thankful for the backing and still not completely firm in his position, the easily manipulable Federico will accept guidance also in other respects. A loyal vassal has been won.

It took 3 tries in gameplay, the situation being favourable becauce of the ruler stats.


The reputation of Bohemia within the empire was damaged to a certain degree when word spread about plans and preparations to review and bring up again old boundary disputes between Saxony and Bohemia concerning the region around Lausitz. According to the dubious documents, supposedly written by a scribe of the empire on behalf of Frederick Barbarossa himself, which were presented soon after to the prince-electors and the emperor, territories as far as and including the city of Leipzig were actually awarded to the Bohemian crown. Advantageously for the claimants, the borders, up to the current day, are indeed not as clearly cut and defined as in most other regions of the empire, but naturally the far-reaching claims brought forward were almost exclusively met with disapproval by the princes, if mainly because they could mean a dangerous disturbance of the peace in the empire. If the claims should ever find recognition by a majority, it will only be after years of hard work on the diplomatic front, probably involving concessions in other areas, intrigues and complaisances.

Lusting after the lands of a fellow monarch for no good reason is considered bad style. I choose to do this now, because the ADM rating of the ruler of Saxony is low, making the spy actions against him easier. If this were to succeed in the nearer future, it is likely that Saxon will become an accepted culture since we already have the core on Lausitz.

Only a year later, the first event in the 'core forging' sequence fires. I choose the most expensive option which has also the best success rate.


Reconciling with the papacy has been a focus of Bohemian foreign policy for a while, but for both Jiri Podebrad and Ladislav the motivation was and is entirely political. Diplomatic isolation of Bohemia is what Jiri sought and Ladislav seeks to prevent, not to be branded as heretic on grounds of the special religious situation in the country, with the threat of excommunication always looming ahead. However, when the holy see itself is at strife, when the moral authority of the papacy itself begins to totter because of its increasingly obvious corruption, the need to get on the pope's good side might decrease in the future. One of the signs of such corruption is seen by many in the temporal aspirations of the popes for rule over land in Italy, expressed in recurrent aggressions of the papal states against Urbino. Urbino has been part of the empire as an independent duchy since 1453, but originally belonged to the papal states, which it is claimed by, and has therefore been a point of contention between popes and emperors for decades.

In April 1482, another war in this series of conflicts had just begun and Ladislav proposed to the emperor, who at this time was engrossed in a war against the Turks over Bosnia, to act as a representative for the imperial interests in Italy and lead the defence of Urbino against the armies of the papal states and their allies, the kingdom of Naples (whose king incidentally is still the same Carlos who usurped the throne in the 70s). What spoke for this plan was that a large number of Italian states, including Venice and Florence, had already pledged support for Urbino and declared war on the papal states on their part; as duke of Modena, it would not seem out of character for Ladislav to enter the conflict. Also, any withdrawal of troops to Italy could endanger the Habsburgian war efforts in the Balkans, while Bohemia could provide a large number of men and resources on its own. Lastly, Bohemia was at this point in general regarded as a reliable ally in Austria ('They feel we are highly trustworthy'), so the proposal was considered safe and the emperor agreed.

In actual gameplay, all it needed was of course a simple warning.


It took over three months for the Bohemian armies to move to Italy and when they arrived, the pope had already suffered several defeats in battles against the Italian alliance. Romagna had been taken over by Florentine armies, while the Venetians were besieging L'Aquila. Nevertheless, the end of the war is still in the distance as the papal armies are about to approach Urbino again, while the king of Naples with his men have encircled Pisa. There is still glory to be gained in bringing about a decisive victory and the Bohemian soliders, many of them veterans from the war against Poland, along with the remarkably capable generals entrusted with leading part of the forces, both of these along with the charismatic and strategically thinking Ladislav, prove to be up to the challenge.

In November, the walls of Rome are breached. The papal legate delivers the message that the pope has agreed to pay a certain monetary compensation to Firenze in return for the release of Romagna. A few weeks later, peace with Naples is made.

With this, the war should be over, Urbino's precious independence having been secured once again. But Ladislav has a different plan, and the conclusion of the Bohemian war against the pope doesn't happen before September 1483.

"..Thus, as a more permanent admonishment and appeal to a change of mind on the part of the harmful influences doubtlessly surrounding the holy father, we have placed Romagna under our temporary supervision." - This could have consequences. It will do away with the 'Limited Port Infrastructure' though.


To be named in the context of this Italian episode are also the rebellions in Silesia and Friuli, which took place during the campaign in Italy. Even after such a long time of Bohemian overlordship, there are many in Silesia who would rather do without and in fact would jump even at a small chance like the one offered by this short war to violently press for independence; the high taxes levied and the devastations suffered in the countryside of Silesia during previous wars surely forming part of the reason. Meanwhile, the relationship with most of the Silesian nobility is good as always. All rebellions are put down in time with relative ease.

Since I granted military access to Austria, Silesia and Pommerania, they will often help me with rebels, also when I am not at war, as long my relationship with them remains high. Of course, Silesia still won't help me with Silesian rebels in Wroclaw.


Gameplay and Minor Notes:

I got 'Demands for Autonomy' from the estates of Modena and choose the option to 'guarantee their privileges forever'. In the lucky case that the inheritance should happen, this will mean decreased income from these provinces, but rejecting the demands means almost zero chances to inherit, so it is the obvious choice.

A lot of my money is spent on trying to influence cardinals, with varying (not great) success. Most of the time the chance is between 15% and 20%, one try costing about 40 ducats. For a rich country with a notoriously less-than-perfect reputation like I intend Bohemia to become (the second part is making good progress already) surely a good investment, given the fact that each controlled cardinal gives -0.08 badboy/year plus other bonuses. I think the chance depends a lot on the relationship one has with the country the cardinal is from, but I am not sure about the details. If you know more about how the chance is calculated, please tell me.

My relationship with the empire after the conquest of Neumark is still 'decent' - this is also because I gave a "Yes" vote to the 'Reich Court' imperial reform. It subsequently passed all 3 benches of the Reichstag and is now in place.

The duke of Austria might become very disappointed when he hears this, but Ladislav still secretly supports the duke of Bavaria for emperor. At present, there are four electors voting for Bavaria and two for Austria - the duke of Burgundy votes for himself, but this will probably change with time when a corresponding event has fired.

The Austrian war against the Turks mentioned above is actually only the extension of the war against Bosnia, which was guaranteed by the OE. I myself simply made peace with the OE for 25 ducats at one point. This war also resulted in white peace after a few years, but the distraction from the war against the Mamluks, which was in progress parallely, was so great for the Ottomans that the Mamluks managed to occupy most of the Levant again, even successfully long-waiting one province (Gaza). As soon as the meaningless war over Bosnia was over, the tides turned and the Ottomans recaptured their lost territory, finally (June '84) also gaining 3 additional provinces, including Beirut. It looks like a Turkish conquest of Egypt might be not that far away anymore.

The Mamluks, on the other hand, have come to lead a personal union with Tunisia.

Denmark, another sadly often suicidal country in the game, has started a war against Bremen and are now at war with not only the Hansa states, Austria, Brandenburg, the TO and a good number of other states in the HRE, but also with Sweden. An interesting detail is that for some reason Würzburg leads the defending alliance (how alliance leaders are chosen is still a mystery to me, I hope this gets reviewed for MMtG).

Georgia annexed Armenia and France annexed Orleans.

Granada breaks its vassalization with Castille, but there is no war yet.

An curious case is the kingdom of Cyprus, ex-crusader-state, now turned Greek and Orthodox, ruled by "Basileus" (!) Jean (!!) III. and constantly attracting Orthodox refugees from Crimea, while the remaining Catholics merely make up a 'persecuted presence'.

My advisors at the moment are still the two excellent masters of mint from the beginning plus a one-star theologian. I keep the theologian to be hopefully able to enact the 'church taxes' (+8% global tax) as soon as they are available - the requirements for these include the 'statute in restraint of appeals' which in turn requires a weak papacy, haing gotten the 'Renaissance Ideas' event and a monarch who is a good administrator. The first requirement is already met and Hungary has already passed the 'statute' as the first country to do this. The other two obviously depend on chance.

Land tech 10 was reached in '84 and I changed the preferred infantry type to Pikemen (better defence stats compared to 'Men at Arms').

Russia offered an alliance, which is a very interesting proposal, but I still rejected - for fear of being dragged into a war against the likes of Pskov. Since my reputation will still be rather high for a while (4.4 at the end of '84), I am not interested in wars now. But maybe in 5 years?

Stability is now at +3 again, yearly net income about 80 ducats, manpower 22k, monthly income 30, war exhaustion 3.

 

[JacktheJumper]

Very good, packed-up update, though in the end I'm a bit surspised that you can get any money at the end of the year at all - what with your inefficient administration, rebellions, plentiful of wars and war exhaustion. And watch out for those uncored imperial provinces you've grabbed - I'm pretty sure they'll be a burden to you pretty soon.

Also, if you're forging a core, don't forget to hire a spymaster and to lower your badboy - it can't be bad, innit? And when the option to forge stronger claims comes up, take it - going with factual claims has never worked for me, and they both cost 50 ducats each.

Looking forward for the next episode and possible answers

 

[Timmie0307]

Great update, also interested in which direction you will take Bohemia..

 

[unmerged(90806)]

With this, the war is decided for Brandenburg and the elector has little choice but to comply with the demanded terms, among them cessation of a region which has already seen a few changes of ownership in the past.

Wasn't vassalisation a better option?

the radicals offer to drop their demands and pledge their loyalty again. The pragmatic Ladislav is not averse to this and peace is made between the religious factions in Bohemia again.

Did you actually have a Hussite rebellion?

the count of Mantua, a city near the duchy of Modena currently ruled in personal union by Ladislav, dies (...) A loyal vassal has been won.

I'm intrigued by these forays in Italy. Surrounding Austria?

it is likely that Saxon will become an accepted culture since we already have the core on Lausitz.

True. Happened once to my Hussite Bohemia.

With this, the war should be over, Urbino's precious independence having been secured once again. But Ladislav has a different plan, (...) It will do away with the 'Limited Port Infrastructure' though.

You'll be asked to give Romagna back. I don't remember the penalties for refusing, surely you'll show them to us. Romagna is an asset, no doubt. The way you dealt with the Pope had something Hussite about it.

A lot of my money is spent on trying to influence cardinals, with varying (not great) success.

How Macchiavellian! You've just warred the Pope!

Denmark, another sadly often suicidal country in the game (...) interesting detail is that for some reason Würzburg leads the defending alliance (how alliance leaders are chosen is still a mystery to me, I hope this gets reviewed for MMtG).

I think it's not MM-related issue. And I hate it how sometimes alliance leaders are chosen. Once I even started a thread about it. And Denmark is the best example of how screwed it is; how come a landlocked country can lead an alliance against them? And how is Denmark supposed to beat Würzburg? In my recent aar when Denmark made its 3rd try at Holstein, I saved and quit the game and edited the save changing leader from the Swiss (?!) to the Pommeranians. Did the trick.

 

[Urza]

JacktheJumper,Timmie0307 : Glad you enjoyed it. I just played about 5 years further and again so many things happened that it looks like these could take 2 updates again. I hope nobody minds the slow pacing.

Very good, packed-up update, though in the end I'm a bit surspised that you can get any money at the end of the year at all - what with your inefficient administration, rebellions, plentiful of wars and war exhaustion.

The 80 yearly income refer to the situation at the end of the update, when I just reached +3 stability again and have the military upkeep slider all the way to the left (thanks to the 2 military NIs, fighting rebels is still possible with this setting, I just raise the spending for a month or two when some of my regiments need reinforcements). During the years before, it was less, but still above 40. Revolt risk is pretty manageable now and in most provinces is at the minimum (which is 4% due to very high taxes). Other reasons for the relatively high income are that my income in general is strongly tax-based. One of the main assets of the Polish provinces is also that they have Jewish Shtetls (+40% tax). For the early years of the game and a middle-sized land-based country like Bohemia, I can only recommend the high taxes. Example:

But important is also that these two bright persons are still alive:

Finally, my army is not that big. With 12 inf. and 6 cav. regiments, I only spend 1.5d/month on upkeep when war exhaustion is low and the upkeep slider is all the way left.

And watch out for those uncored imperial provinces you've grabbed - I'm pretty sure they'll be a burden to you pretty soon.

That could become a problem in the future I think, if for example the emperor changes and chooses to 'reopen all pending cases' (or something like that). But for now, there are no penalties ('imperial admonition' etc.).

Also, if you're forging a core, don't forget to hire a spymaster and to lower your badboy - it can't be bad, innit? And when the option to forge stronger claims comes up, take it - going with factual claims has never worked for me, and they both cost 50 ducats each.

Strange, my experience is almost the opposite. After having failed several times with the 'forge stronger claims' option often, I tend to use almost exclusively the other one and have succeeded with that one more often. Watching badboy is a priority. Unless Poland attacks.

Wasn't vassalisation a better option?

You could be right, greed probably got the better of me there.

Did you actually have a Hussite rebellion?

No, just the 'inconvenient general' effect. But that effect was decisive in the war, so I felt the explanation for the effect offered by the game was a little weak.

I'm intrigued by these forays in Italy. Surrounding Austria?

Just subverting the Holy Roman Empire in general. Also, Italy is simply relatively nearby and has rich provinces, and the PU with Modena offered a good starting point.

You'll be asked to give Romagna back. I don't remember the penalties for refusing, surely you'll show them to us. Romagna is an asset, no doubt. The way you dealt with the Pope had something Hussite about it.

Ah, I hope it won't be excommunication. That could be very nasty.

How Macchiavellian! You've just warred the Pope!

Nothing proves the corruption of the church better.

I think it's not MM-related issue. And I hate it how sometimes alliance leaders are chosen. Once I even started a thread about it. And Denmark is the best example of how screwed it is; how come a landlocked country can lead an alliance against them? And how is Denmark supposed to beat Würzburg? In my recent aar when Denmark made its 3rd try at Holstein, I saved and quit the game and edited the save changing leader from the Swiss (?!) to the Pommeranians. Did the trick.

Interesting, maybe I should do something like that too if Denmark screws up too badly.

 

[History_Buff]

Italy is a very good place to invest, especially if you intend to fight Austria. I have played as numerous North German nations, mostly Mecklenburg, many times and always tried to gain influence in Italy if I could. My strategy is a bit different though. I do not directly try to gain territory, I simply vassalize as many people as I can. Once they are vassalized, They will be forced to join me in all of my wars. If you can vassalize/slash ally with the whole Peninsula, as I did once, then Autria is forced to fight on two fronts. Also, I would suggest building an Army of Italy. I did this when I played my last Mecklenburg game. I stationed it in lands I gained in Southern France when some Patriot rebels decided giving the land to me was better then independence, which was exactly the opposite of what I wanted. Then, when I went to war with Austria, they focused all of their attention on me and the main body of my lands to the north of them, completely ignoring the 24,000 man army that snuck into their holdings in Italy and Southern Germany. The result was that I was able to seize everything West of Salzburg, which they controlled, from them without ever fighting a major battle. In the end, I won the war despite the fact that I was losing most of the battles near the end. In other words, having an army in allied territory in Italy might catch the Austrians completely by surprise and prove to be a trump card for you.

 

[myLAAN]

Bohemian conquest of Europe is historical neccessity, that's how I see it

 

[telesien]

Never got the idea why Bohemia have that NI, so razing it, makes totally sance. Its one step to useless anyway with the nother religius NI as well.

btw following..

Because the result of Hussite wars was that Pope officially granted them status of recognized church. So Bohemia was the one and only country with two churches at the same time and nobody could do anything about it


And this AAR looks very interesting, so I will be watching it for sure.

 

[Urza]

Welcome History_Buff, myLAAN, telesien.

History_Buff : Wow, that sounds like quite a feat playing Mecklenburg. But surely that wasn't with Magna Mundi? Anyways, I was thinking along the same lines about Italy. Still, I don't want too many vassals as that would mean every vassal (including Silesia) has a higher chance to break away, and I obviously don't want to remain decentralized (which would mitigate the risk).

myLAAN : That's what all the 19th century historians in this game's alternative history will claim. I hope.

telesien : From that point of view 'Divine Supremacy' somehow makes sense. But the ingame effects given by that NI (primarily better conversion chance of non-Catholics to Catholicism) have little relation to that.

 

[Urza]

8. Popes and another Polish war

Corresponding to the customs in these days, great amounts of the silver extracted from the rich Bohemian mines are sent to Rome in an attempt to soothe relations with the church. Knowing that winning the pope's favour or the endorsement of a large amount of the prelates, owing to the recent events, won't be possible, Bohemian operatives instead focus on supporting a small number of key individuals in influential positions.

Beneficial to these endeavours is the current dividedness of the church and the weak authority of the papacy in temporal, but also spiritual matters across Europe. In addition, while corruption is widespread, the attachment of the cardinals to any single monarch tends to be fickle and may change within days. There is no Catholic power with the ability to obtain the backing of a majority (or anything close to that) of these hollow-hearted holy men.

In July 1486, the current pope, Innocentius IX., dies. Ladislav celebrates this occasion in private with his most trusted officers.

A few days later, other good news arrive. One of the cardinals has finally given in to the pressure applied by Bohemian operatives in Italy and promised that he will bring his influence to bear in the king's favour. (Apparently, a debt was involved.)

It came to no little surprise to Ladislav that due to the complicated workings of sympathies, dependencies and power politcs present during the conclave (or simply due to God's will, one may as well say), cardinal Kolovrat was chosen by a two-third majority in August, presumably seen as a compromise candidate. Since the king's influence within the curia is very limited, it would be difficult to elicit significant tangible gains from the situation. Yet, a pope who is at least mildly well-disposed towards Bohemia is an improvement. A request to reaffirm the validity of the Compacta is accepted.

Of course, it came to no real surprise to me. It is a little strange that, with the backing of only 2 cardinals, becoming sponsor of the future pope is almost guaranteed if there is no other country controlling more cardinals. Also, AI countries rarely make use of the cardinal bribing feature, making it extra powerful.


Meanwhile, Europe is kept in suspense by a war between Burgundy and the Holy Roman Empire over Liege, as well as a war of Denmark against the same empire and the Hansa.

Denmark has pushed a button that should never be pushed.


All things considered, Bohemia is now enjoying a time of internal stability and economic growth. Trade through Danzig, although hampered by the Hanseatic war, is still going strong. Relations with the neighbouring countries save Poland and Saxony are good and the reputation of the country among the princes of the empire seems comfortable. The power of the king is expanded through a further development of the bureaucracy established by Podebrad, while the university notices a steady inflow of students and scholars from within as well as outside of the country. Some ideas are applied to bring improvements to the crop yield.

Humanistic ideas, pioneered by Italian scholars and artists, also begin spreading to the Bohemian lands. The king is particularly fond of this school of thought and begins to promote its discussion and study.

This event sooner or later fires in every owned province - a nice bonus.


In the area of foreign affairs, Ladislav records another success as he is able to bind the duke of Mecklenburg, a domain not too long ago battered by the plague, closely to the Bohemian crown on grounds of offering substantial financial assistance for the building of new cities and promising military protection.

With now 3 vassals, I hope I will get the event to establish the 'House of Highlords' .. to reject it in return for +1 centralization.


While the estates of the duchy of Modena had largely been given free reign by Ladislav since his accession and their privileges had been repeatedly confirmed, he decides to bring his title as duke to greater use by appointing his eldest son, Ferdinand, who would hopefully succeed Ladislav as king of Bohemia someday, as governor. In this domain, the standing of the duke is hardly disputed for now and the position will allow Ferdinand to become submerged in the politcs of Italy and to gain valuable practical experiences.

The soothing but brief period of peace comes to a sudden end in March 1487, when Henryk I. of Poland decides it is time for another round in the conflict over Prussia and declares war on the Teutonic Order.

It is time again.


Chessing with Poland
gameplay of the war

Cunningly, only days after our entry into the war, Poland concludes peace with the Order in return for a small sum. Bohemia stands alone, but it is used to it. On the opposing side, only Lithuania and the Livonian Order followed Poland's call to arms.

Since I have no navy, Lithuania and the Livonian Order are able to blockade Danzig during the entire war, and most of the time also my Mediterranean ports, causing my income to plummet. Therefore I set minting to the minimum to reduce what little inflation there is.

4th of April 1487: A small Polish army of 2k attacks Plock, soon dispelled by my 6k cavalry, lead by the king. Hoping to cause some quick casualities, I send them to Warszawa where another 8k Polish infantry and cavalry wait.

18th of April: After a few days of battle, I have to withdraw to Plock, as expected. Unfortunately, there were only 2k casualties - on both sides. I have 9k infantry positioned in Plock to secure the retreat. Since almost the entire Polish army in Warszawa pursues, the other 6k infantry in Kalisz are also sent to Plock.

1st of May: Battle in Plock, no luck. I lose 1,5k and have my troops redraw to Torun at the first opportunity. The marching order for the 6k in Kalisz is cancelled and replaced with an order to march to Torun as well.

20th of May: Poland besieges Plock and part of the Polish army moves towards Kalisz.

26nd of May: I have divided my army into two stacks in Torun and Poznan, so that no attrition will occur.

5th of June: 'Water Shortage' in Plock.

13th of June: 3k new infantry have been levied in Bohemia and are assigned to gather in Silesia. (Silesia doesn't participate in the war, so it is handy to place regiments there: Next to the Polish border, but Poland cannot reach them).

6th of July: After sending my entire northern army to Kalisz (both stacks so that they will arrive at the same day, also after having received two months worth of reinforcements), a short battle is concluded against the 2600(cav.)/7500(inf.) Poles under Henryk I. Only minor casualities on both sides, but the city is relieved of the siege. Henryk withdraws to Plock, Ladislav pursues.

12th of July: The new 3k stack is placed under the command of general Divis Augusta and tasked to march towards Krakow as a distraction (Things like that can be very effective against AI).

10th of August: After my 5500/12000 met the Polish 8000/9700 a few days earlier, I let the battle come to an end by having my men retreat to Torun. Casualities: 1000/1800 Boh., 350/3500 Pol. Being able to still receive reinforcement at the end of the month is more valuable than continuing since Poland and Lithuania have a far larger army and more manpower; I cannot afford taking much attrition. The Polish army retreats to Warszawa, presumably also to reinforce.

15th of August: The siege of Krakow begins. Poland seems to be alerted by this and sends an army to the South.

19th of August: The siege of Krakow is abandoned to escape in time to Silesia before the Polish army arrives.

22nd of August: I have my army in the North move to Kalisz and Plock again.

4th of September: Lithuanian armies begin to arrive in Poland. A medium-sized army is moving towards Plock, same procedure as before on my side.

23rd of September: Victory in Plock; casualities : 600/600 (Boh.) and 600/2400 (Pol.) There are only 2500 Poles remaining in 14 regiments - they retreat towards Sieradz, I have my army follow.

20th of October: Victory in Sieradz, the Polish stack is destroyed. I order the 3k in Silesia to join forces with the rest of the army in Sieradz. Meanwhile, Poland approaches Plock with another army (7000/4000) from Warszawa, aided by 5k Lithuanians.

1st of November: After having suffered attrition at the month's end, Poland withdraws its army again from Plock. I don't understand AI.

25th of November: After the arrival of the 3k from Silesia, an assault has been successfully conducted. The entire army is next sent to Plock, where 4k Lithuanians and 2k Poles await.

12th of December: The battle ends with victory, but only minor casualities are inflicted. The strategy now is again to split my armies and have them reinforce.
Poland already has 9.28 war exhaustion, Lituania 1.95, Bohemia 1.92.

28th of January 1488: Sieradz is reconquered by Poland, while my armies are on the way to Kalisz, where a Lithuanian army has attacked.

6th of February: The battle of Kalisz ends with victory; the enemy lost 1k/3k (without a general), Bohemia about 100. The Lithuanians (15 regiments, but only about 6500 men) retreat towards Sieradz, where they expect support from the Polish forces. Strangely, though, the larger part of the Polish army in Sieradz moves to Plock. After they have arrived, I order my army to pursue the Lithuanians.

2nd of March: The Lithuanian army is beaten (another 1500 losses caused and 250 suffered), but not destroyed. Sieradz recaptured by Bohemia (occupying a single border province is very important). The remaining Lithuanians retreat to Plock.

16th of March: I split my army into 3 stacks placed in Sieradz, Kalisz and Torun.

13th of April: I 'lose' (by retreating) a battle of my entire army against their forces in Plock; the Polish forces retreat to Warszawa afterwards, while the Lithuanians remain. Same strategy.

16th of May: Victory in Plock, but not a total one since 7 regiments (not full strength) of the Livonian Order came to aid Lithuania; only 2k Lith./Liv. casualites, 6 (not k) Bohemian. The enemy retreats to Warszawa, the Bohemians pursue.
Lithuania now has 4.88 WE, Poland 12.2, LO 2.56, Boh. 2.57

30th of May: A decisive battle in Warszawa begins involving my entire army (5800/14000), almost the entire remaining Polish army and a large part of the Lithuanian and Livonian armies. Since Poland's and Lithuania's regiments are all heavily understrength by now, it won't be difficult to win.

9th of June: Interestingly, Lithuania has landed 4k soldiers in Danzig and begins to siege.

3th of July: Victory in Warszawa.

The rest of the war was easy. The enemy fled from Warszawa into multiple directions, making it child's play to chase them down one by one. The city Warszawa fell in September and the remaining work was mainly to besiege all provinces of Poland, relieve Danzig and repel further attacks from Lithuania, since occupying all provinces of the alliance leader (Poland) is enough to get 100% war score. (On the other hand, occupying, say, 3 quarters of Poland was worth less than 50% since Lithuania's provinces also count in that case - a bit strange). The only aspect that was a bit annoying was Lithuania constantly levying new armies. But this also became a lot more manageable in November, when Russia declared war on them.

The conclusion of the war will have to wait until the next update, though.

Earlier, in November 1487, the pope died. His successor, an Italian, took on the name Paulus II. and is also sponsored by Prague. Bohemian influence in the curia has grown slightly (3 controlled cardinals) and my policy of letting the pope do what he wants as long as he puts in a good word for me now and then continues.

With the decreasing papal influence, the effects from being papal controller have also become smaller


International and Minor Notes

Castille got Columbus and the New World was discovered, apparently both by Castilian and Portuguese navigators. In the 'Treaty of Galicia' the new world is divided between the two claimants.

I got the 'Dawn of a new Reality' events in Plock and Poznan. Also 'foreign interference' (+1BB) in Romagna and Neumark.

Castille restricts the rights of their Jews, forcing them to live in ghettos.

The Ottomans win a war against Venice gaining the provinces Crete, Corfu and Dalmatia.

Georgia, having reconquered Armenia earlier, also annex Ak Koyunlu without problems and now have 6 provinces again.

One of my precious masters of mint dies in 1489. I haven't found a suitable replacement yet.

France gets the 'Counter Strike' event and declares war on Burgundy, who are at this time still at war with Austria and Liege. Although Burgundy is quick to end that ongoing war (Liege is vassalized), they still lose the provinces Cambray and Valenciennes in a peace agreement only a year later.

Maria Theresia wants to become archduchess. I support the endeavour to improve my relations with Austria. She doesn't get enough support at first, but takes the option to try to win over more countries with gifts.

The Mamluks have started to guarantee my independece. ?. (One of Helius' complicate mechanism probably)

I reach government tech 11. The next NI is not far away.

After reconsidering, my vote for emperor goes to Austria again. This will improve my relations with them (we are allied) and I think as long as they stay emperor, the HRE will not complain again about my acquisitions (Friuli, Neumark).