[This is my first ever effort at an AAR of any kind so comments are especially welcome]
I write this account based on notes from my father, grand-father, great-grandfather and great-great grandfather. I will judiciously edit their diaries to provide the reader with the crucial elements of their thoughts and activites shorn of the tedium of court politics and social life. We have all held the same position as advisor to the Elector of Brandenburg and our tale begins 300 years ago.
The year is 1492 and the Elector of Brandenburg has charged me with advising him as we try and expand the greatness of the House of Hohenzollern. My arrival to this smallish electorate from the University of Assisi did not impress me. The land consists of three provinces: Madgeburg, Brandenburg, and Kustrin. None are particularly rich. The Elector has no access to the ocean and limited trade opportunities. He has a scant 150d in his treasury at this time. The trade skills and infrastructure of his domain are grossly inadequate and do not appear to be at all advanced beyond the most basic state of skills, technology and knowledge. This should be the greatest challenge that I have.
The Elector is in a very compromising position, lacking any defensible borders and in close proximity to the unstable Polish-Lithuanian state. His other neighbors: the Elector of Saxony and Hanover are less troublesome. The Bohemian state sites to the south. The wealthy Hanse lie to the north blocking access to the sea. His internal defenses are grossly inadequate. While all three provinces are fortified, they have the minimal level fortifications. This too, is unacceptable. The Elector’s army consists of 16,000 men of good quality and form.
I and the Elector look on his state as a work in progress. There are opportunities to bring his wise rule to other states less ably led. The real issue is a lack of funds to fuel the growth of an army and conduct diplomacy. Currently my main concern is defense but this smallish army will not do for expansion either. I have shared with the Elector tales of the Italian states where I studied- the vast wealth and power they have because of the immense riches of their coffers and the scope of their trade. I have pointed to the map and told him that for Brandenburg to wield this kind of power and influence it too must reach for the seas and grab the riches of trade. There are two opportunities for this within reach of the Elector’s domain. Holstein under the control of the Hanse and Danzig under the control of Poland-Lithuania. It is evident to me, and also to the Elector, that expansion at the expense of the Poland is not a viable option for his state. We have therefore determined that the Hanse are our natural enemies and a source of opportunity. Devouring them will be a long and slow process but it shall be done.
January of 1492 saw the beginning of my diplomatic efforts to secure the state. We have few diplomats and no resources to influence our neighbors. I need a friendly state with large resources to secure the Electorate. In particular, I am concerned about Poland and need a counterbalance. I work quickly to arrange an alliance with the King of the Magyars. While they are not able to send troops directly to the Electorate they can intervene directly into Poland and that is my main concern. I also begin readjusting our financial priorities. Our research into naval technology does not serve our immediate ends and no funds will be devoted to that. The year continues with a flurry of diplomatic activity. In may I add Thuringen to the Hungarian alliance and follow that in October with Hessen and Wurttemburg. All is success to this point but the year ends on a poor note as Cologne refused to join our alliance.
1493 began on the same sour note. Kleves also rejected a place in our alliance. I am mostly out of diplomatic options as our other neighbors are hostile or already involved in alliances. That is fine. I feel secure with the alliance I have formed. Even more promising by March of this year reforms in our infrastructure have begun to payoff and there are encouraging signs of our investment in our merchants paying off as well. All is quiet about Europe as a most Christian peace prevails.
1494
Our coffers continue to slowly fill but we still lack the resources to make any major moves. We are weak and vulnerable now. I do not feel well about our situation. April sees Russia and Denmark go to war with the Kazan. A war far from my borders but one that makes me happy yet. Russia might expand and counterbalance the Poles while the war will hopefully drain the resources of the Danes who must also be eyeing the Hanse as I do. The war comes to a quick close in November with only 28d passing from the Kazan to the King of the Rus. A foolish war for almost no gain. It is the kind of war the Electorate can not afford to ever have. In December, our army shows the Elector and myself the advantages of the new metal cannon balls they have added to our arsenal. These will make our siege efforts more effective once we have built up the infrastructure to produce our own artillery.
1495
A year of quiet throughout Europe. The Lord blesses us with peace since we are not ready for war. My efforts to improve our infrastructure and trade have succeeded. The improvements in road and the postal service have helped our merchants greatly. Enough, in fact, that they are now ready strong enough financially to be sent abroad to expand their wealth- and ours.
1496
In October, we initiated the expansion of the fortress of Kustrin. The choice is ironic since it is the least valuable province in our domain but my fear of the Poles is greater than my fears to the west. Kustrin will sit as a strong barrier against the Poles. In November we hired away some cannon casters from the French to teach our arms makers how to build the cannon they use to such effect. The technology will help us greatly but we lack the funds to begin equipping our forces with the wonderful new weapons.
1497
Peace, which has held so well, finally ends and a terrifying new vision arrives. Poland declares war on Courland. The expansion of the Poles worried me but worse is the alliance they they reveal to the world: Spain, England, Milan, Naples and the Palatinate. My lone consolation in this alliance is that only the Poles border me and I lack a sea cost to allow the Anglo-Spanish forces to apply their navies. For now, they will have to ferry troops to Poland and then march them on me. I search in vain for other allies to add to my alliance.
1498
In February, the inevitable happens- Courland is annexed by the Poles. I have little time to worry on this before my monarch is struck with an illness in March. The fever makes him rave so. His ravings leave him inaccessible to most diplomats and cause much concern at the court. My role becomes all the more important. I have him taken from the court in Berlin to a country estate in Kustrin. Out of site, he may fully recover his health.
1499
Early spring the Elector has recovered his health. He is most greatful for my handling of his illness. With his return- and because of our judicious spending, I tell him we now have the resources to hire tax collectors to expand our revenues in all three provinces.
1500-1501
Even with the added expense of the tax collectors we begin expanding our fortress in Brandenburg. Again, Madgeburg is a more wealthy province but we can not expose the capital to attack. I have made the decision that the Electorate is not capable of an offensive war and so am building the fortresses first. In the event of a war, I hope the forts will slow down an attacker long enough for our allies to rescue us or for my diplomacy to end the war. Our army remains at only 16,000 men.
1502
Feb: My careful efforts to expand trade have been thwarted. We suffered a dire setback in our efforts to expand our trading capability as some of our leading merchants fled the country after a failed business venture with a leading noble family in Berlin. Their skills and wealth will be hard to replace. Despite the setback we continue to expand our defenses and begin the expansion of the fortress in Madgeburg. Two wars begin in this year. Persia, Mamelukes, Teutonic Order, the Hanse and Venice declare war on Turkley and their Tunisian allies. The alliance of the Christian states with the Arabs is a depressing development. The Hanse and Venice show their true colors. They are not real remembers of the Pax Christi but instead servants of Mammon. Still, I wish them well in their war with the Turk. In June, Russia, the Danes and Pskov go to war with Kazan. I still have hopes for the power of Russia.
1503
The expansion of the army finally begins. I will add 1,000men per year until the army grows to 35,000 men. I hope to field 23,000 infantry and 12,000 horse by 1520. The wars in the Levant begin to die down when Persia declares a white peace with the Turks. In Febuary, the Rus come to a similar agreement with Kazan. I am beginning to fear the Russians are not worthy allies as their struggles in Kazan are inexplicable. My Hungarian alliance expires. Tasks in Berlin kept me from mounting an effect campaign to preserve the alliance and attempts to find another are unfruitful. By years’ end, the Electorate has no allies and I am desperate.
1504-1509
Desperation has forced me to do what I least wanted to do- ally with the Russians. I sough other options through August of 1504 but to no avail. I join the Russians’ alliance along with the Danes and Pskov. I hope to make short work of this alliance. 1506, July Our army’s drills with their new artillery have taught them how to work with this new tool on the battlefield. In 1507, I break with plan and begin adding 1,000 infantry and 2000 cavalry per year to reach my army goal. By 1509, my goal is to maintain a reserve of 300d in the treasury at any time. Great news arrives in August! The nobles in Kustrin are concerned about the Poles to the east and have funded an expansion of the Kustrin fortress. This makes the fortress the largest in the Holy Roman Empire.
1510-1512
My reign of peace ends. Russia declares war, again, on the Kazan. Demark, and Pskov respond to the call. I reluctantly add Brandenburg to the war. I have no other options currently and the war will cost me nothing. I fact, I am planning to raise war taxes in October to add to the coffers of the state. Unfortunately, the Russians end the war early for 50d in Spetember. The Russians are hopelessly incompetent- they can not even lay low the kingdom of these steppe barbarians. I must find more useful friends.
1513
After a decade of rule Brandenburg is better than when I arrived. We hold the same three provinces but have added substantial infrastructure improvements and expanded our trade. The army stands at 29,000 men. All our fortresses have been expanded and 408d sit in the treasury.
April, sees the Turks and their Wallachian vassals go to war with the Malemukes.
1514-1515
July 1515, we have reached our goal of a 32,000 man army. In September, we complete further improvements in our infrastructure and the Elector is able to more effieciently collect revenues. Shortly after this triumph we suffered though trying times. The Minister of Trade was executed for incompetence and corruption. His actions meant that much of the funds we thought to be funneling towards our merchant companies and trading institutions were going to his pockets. The money is lost and his connections with important familes meant that our decision to execute him proved unpopular. Rumblings about the court worry me but the effect is not dramatic as his crimes are quite apparent to all.
1516-1517
We created a new post- Legal Council in Jan 1516- and will send our first charge to Madgeburg after we have made all the arrangements necessary. He should bring us a more effecient system of justice and tax collection. In September, I negotiated a royal marriage with Thuringen in hopes of rebuilding the Hungarian-Thuringen alliance. The explosion of the teaching of this Martin Luther in Ooctober has stunned me and the Elector. Our unease with the Catholic state has been growing for sometime. The corruption, greed, loss of vision and increasingly temporal feel to the Papacy has caused much worry but is what this Luther proposes the answer to our spiritual questions?
1518
Feburary. The Elector and I have met with the minions of Luther. His teachings offer much to the good Christian soul. We are impressed- as are many in our court. Plans begin for how to bring this new faith to our lands. The 5 year war between the Malemukes and Wallachia comes to and end and the Wallachians seize Judea and Samaria from the Malemukes. The changes does not hearten me much. The Holy Lands are freed from the Arab but now are in the hands of the forces of the allies of the Turk. April, the Elector declares for the Lutheran faith- and I convert to. The anti-Christ pope must not be allowed to bring man into damnation. The change shatters our alliance and tosses the land into chaos.
In March 1518, Milan, Spain, England, Naples, Palatinate, Lorriane and Poland-Lithuania declare war on Venice, the Hanse and Teutonic Order. I have terrible fears for the lands of the Hanse. I want their territory but the Poles might well spirit away the lands first. In May, the Catholic peasants in Kustrin revolt. The march and battle cost us 3000 men. In October, the same kind of revolt affects Madgeburg. This revolt is devastating because they destroy all the work initiated to bringing the legal council to the province. That is 100d lost. The army arrives but another 2000 men falls from the ranks. A siege of Madgeburg begins. In December, the Turks finally end their war with Malemukes for 25d and Syria. This has been an ill year.
1519
May, we begin laying the groundwork for our first legal council, this time in Brandenburg. In June, we recapture Madgeburg. No further revolts occasion our change of faith. During that same month an Anglo-Spanish force opens a siege of Western Pommerania. This is a most unwelcome sign. Their seizure of this land will isolate the Hanse from her eastern holdings and risk the viability of the entire Hanseatic domain- and also place a very large power on our northern border. By December of this year we have stabilized the nation. While the populace and nobles are not happy, they no longer bear any anger towards us.
1520
2 years after the massive Venetian War began it begins to come to an end. In rapid succession, the Order makes peace with Poland (June-117d), the Hanse with England (June-232d) and Venice with Milan (Aug-66d and Manuta). The latter loss is crippling for Venice in my opinion. By October, our army has been equipped with the new gunpowder arquebuses. The weapons create a lot of smoke and flame but I am not sold on their value as a weapon. We begin work on training men to fire and use effectively these awkward tools.
1521
The year begins in a disaster! Spain seizes Western Pommerania in January and in Febuary strikes a peace accord with the Hanse in which they gain Western Pommerania and 250d. The change in the landscape is as bad as can be imagined. The tools of the pope now have direct access to the Electors domain. The landscape is now totally altered.
In June, Thuringen declares war on the Palatinat. Thuringen’s allies Bohemia, Saxony, Hesse and Baden come to her aid. The Palatinat have a better set of allies: Spain, Poland, England, Milan, Naples and Lorraine. I fear for the survival of Bohemia.
1522
Jan-Feb I watch as Sudeten is besieged and Moravia as well. The unacceptable thought of the destruction of Bohemia fills my mind- unless there is a way to expand the Elector’s holding by the destruction of Bohemia. Silesia is rich, Protestant and vulnerable.
March 1 1522 We issue a declaration of war vs. Bohemia and her allies Thuringen, Saxony, Hesse and Baden. I would be more worried but the other minor states are mostly spent or involved in other areas- particularly the Palatinate. We have no Casus Belli but the unilateral destruction of Bohemia by the Polish Alliance is a survival issue for my state and I can not risk it’s unilateral annhilation.
The 35,000 man army of Brandenburg led by the talented general Casmir moves south into Silesia and begins a siege in April. By August the siege rolls on and the army is split with 15,000men marching on Erz.
October, a 6000 man Bohemian force is crushed in Erz and I lift that siege and march on Bohemia to try and bring a faster end to my war. The march is interrupted when a Hessian force launches a siege of Brandenburg. The Bohemian detachment wheels north to lift the siege.
November The relief force, now at 13000, arrived and drove the Hessians from the capital through some deft maneuvering. Both armies remain intact but the Hessian fall back into Saxony. December, Silesia falls to us and the siege army moves on Moravia.
1523
The war moves on. In January in Moravia, Casmir’s 15000 man army meets 6,000 Bohemians and routes them, again with minor losses. In February, we suffer a humiliating setback in Moravia. 16,000 Brandenburgers are beaten by a force of only 6,000 Bohemians and we lost 7000 men- Casmir had taken ill and was not available for this battle and it showed. The route drives us from Moravia. Worse, the battered force is caught in Silesia and forced back into Kustrin. The only advantage is the routing army arrived in Kustrin as new forces arrived (mostly pulled from the army defending Berlin) and others finished being built. The army recovers and is now a force of 14,000. By April, Casmir’s army catches its breath and launches into Silesia again facing what is now a 25000 man Bohmeian force. A loss likely forces me into a white peace. The Electoral Army wins a stunning victory by losing 2000 men to 7000 men. I would like to follow up the victory but a new Hessian force in Madgeburg forces my army to retreat to deal with that threat- the force is too large for the remants of the Erz detachment to handle alone. July, the Hessian army (only 4000 by the time my forces arrive) are driven off. A separate white peace is signed with Hessen and Saxony. New forces and the remants of the old Erz detachment bring the force up to 21k men still led by Casmir. That unit turns back to Silesia where a 7000 Bohemian army awaits. In September my army arrives in Silesia and suffers an even more humiliating setback that in February. Losses are light but the Bohemians chase the Electoral army back to Kustrin- again. The army strengthens some depleted regiments to rise to the level of 25000men and then moves south in December to try and lift the siege of Silesia manned by an 11000man Bohemian force. Late in December our forces clash and amid very light losses the Bohemians are chased off into Moravia with the Electoral Army in pursuit.
1524
This year begins with a great victory. The retreating Bohemians (10,000) merge with another army in Moravia (25000). The attempt to integrate the retreating army does not succeed well. The Electoral Army arrives and delivers a crushing blow- losing 3000 but balancing that by eliminating 12000 Bohemians who retreat on Bohemia. A force remains to cover Moravia while the bulk of the army tries to follow up on the field victories in Moravia and Silesia. In March, I get a most unexpected peace offer from the Bohemians. They offer Silesia- an offer I promptly accept.
The war was poorly planned and organized on our end. The battles went on far longer than needed. In particular I panicked a bit on the sieges laid by the Hessians. These were sieges with almost no hope of success that could have been ignored. My efforts to break these sieges gave the Bohemians the breathing space to build their armies up. The war was really decided on the scope of the superior generalship of Casmir which allowed us to win several stunning victories.
In September, the Malemukes are attacked by Turkey, Wallachia, Tripoli, Georgia, Hedjaz and Tunisia. The Malemukes should be wiped off the map by all rights.
I write this account based on notes from my father, grand-father, great-grandfather and great-great grandfather. I will judiciously edit their diaries to provide the reader with the crucial elements of their thoughts and activites shorn of the tedium of court politics and social life. We have all held the same position as advisor to the Elector of Brandenburg and our tale begins 300 years ago.
The year is 1492 and the Elector of Brandenburg has charged me with advising him as we try and expand the greatness of the House of Hohenzollern. My arrival to this smallish electorate from the University of Assisi did not impress me. The land consists of three provinces: Madgeburg, Brandenburg, and Kustrin. None are particularly rich. The Elector has no access to the ocean and limited trade opportunities. He has a scant 150d in his treasury at this time. The trade skills and infrastructure of his domain are grossly inadequate and do not appear to be at all advanced beyond the most basic state of skills, technology and knowledge. This should be the greatest challenge that I have.
The Elector is in a very compromising position, lacking any defensible borders and in close proximity to the unstable Polish-Lithuanian state. His other neighbors: the Elector of Saxony and Hanover are less troublesome. The Bohemian state sites to the south. The wealthy Hanse lie to the north blocking access to the sea. His internal defenses are grossly inadequate. While all three provinces are fortified, they have the minimal level fortifications. This too, is unacceptable. The Elector’s army consists of 16,000 men of good quality and form.
I and the Elector look on his state as a work in progress. There are opportunities to bring his wise rule to other states less ably led. The real issue is a lack of funds to fuel the growth of an army and conduct diplomacy. Currently my main concern is defense but this smallish army will not do for expansion either. I have shared with the Elector tales of the Italian states where I studied- the vast wealth and power they have because of the immense riches of their coffers and the scope of their trade. I have pointed to the map and told him that for Brandenburg to wield this kind of power and influence it too must reach for the seas and grab the riches of trade. There are two opportunities for this within reach of the Elector’s domain. Holstein under the control of the Hanse and Danzig under the control of Poland-Lithuania. It is evident to me, and also to the Elector, that expansion at the expense of the Poland is not a viable option for his state. We have therefore determined that the Hanse are our natural enemies and a source of opportunity. Devouring them will be a long and slow process but it shall be done.
January of 1492 saw the beginning of my diplomatic efforts to secure the state. We have few diplomats and no resources to influence our neighbors. I need a friendly state with large resources to secure the Electorate. In particular, I am concerned about Poland and need a counterbalance. I work quickly to arrange an alliance with the King of the Magyars. While they are not able to send troops directly to the Electorate they can intervene directly into Poland and that is my main concern. I also begin readjusting our financial priorities. Our research into naval technology does not serve our immediate ends and no funds will be devoted to that. The year continues with a flurry of diplomatic activity. In may I add Thuringen to the Hungarian alliance and follow that in October with Hessen and Wurttemburg. All is success to this point but the year ends on a poor note as Cologne refused to join our alliance.
1493 began on the same sour note. Kleves also rejected a place in our alliance. I am mostly out of diplomatic options as our other neighbors are hostile or already involved in alliances. That is fine. I feel secure with the alliance I have formed. Even more promising by March of this year reforms in our infrastructure have begun to payoff and there are encouraging signs of our investment in our merchants paying off as well. All is quiet about Europe as a most Christian peace prevails.
1494
Our coffers continue to slowly fill but we still lack the resources to make any major moves. We are weak and vulnerable now. I do not feel well about our situation. April sees Russia and Denmark go to war with the Kazan. A war far from my borders but one that makes me happy yet. Russia might expand and counterbalance the Poles while the war will hopefully drain the resources of the Danes who must also be eyeing the Hanse as I do. The war comes to a quick close in November with only 28d passing from the Kazan to the King of the Rus. A foolish war for almost no gain. It is the kind of war the Electorate can not afford to ever have. In December, our army shows the Elector and myself the advantages of the new metal cannon balls they have added to our arsenal. These will make our siege efforts more effective once we have built up the infrastructure to produce our own artillery.
1495
A year of quiet throughout Europe. The Lord blesses us with peace since we are not ready for war. My efforts to improve our infrastructure and trade have succeeded. The improvements in road and the postal service have helped our merchants greatly. Enough, in fact, that they are now ready strong enough financially to be sent abroad to expand their wealth- and ours.
1496
In October, we initiated the expansion of the fortress of Kustrin. The choice is ironic since it is the least valuable province in our domain but my fear of the Poles is greater than my fears to the west. Kustrin will sit as a strong barrier against the Poles. In November we hired away some cannon casters from the French to teach our arms makers how to build the cannon they use to such effect. The technology will help us greatly but we lack the funds to begin equipping our forces with the wonderful new weapons.
1497
Peace, which has held so well, finally ends and a terrifying new vision arrives. Poland declares war on Courland. The expansion of the Poles worried me but worse is the alliance they they reveal to the world: Spain, England, Milan, Naples and the Palatinate. My lone consolation in this alliance is that only the Poles border me and I lack a sea cost to allow the Anglo-Spanish forces to apply their navies. For now, they will have to ferry troops to Poland and then march them on me. I search in vain for other allies to add to my alliance.
1498
In February, the inevitable happens- Courland is annexed by the Poles. I have little time to worry on this before my monarch is struck with an illness in March. The fever makes him rave so. His ravings leave him inaccessible to most diplomats and cause much concern at the court. My role becomes all the more important. I have him taken from the court in Berlin to a country estate in Kustrin. Out of site, he may fully recover his health.
1499
Early spring the Elector has recovered his health. He is most greatful for my handling of his illness. With his return- and because of our judicious spending, I tell him we now have the resources to hire tax collectors to expand our revenues in all three provinces.
1500-1501
Even with the added expense of the tax collectors we begin expanding our fortress in Brandenburg. Again, Madgeburg is a more wealthy province but we can not expose the capital to attack. I have made the decision that the Electorate is not capable of an offensive war and so am building the fortresses first. In the event of a war, I hope the forts will slow down an attacker long enough for our allies to rescue us or for my diplomacy to end the war. Our army remains at only 16,000 men.
1502
Feb: My careful efforts to expand trade have been thwarted. We suffered a dire setback in our efforts to expand our trading capability as some of our leading merchants fled the country after a failed business venture with a leading noble family in Berlin. Their skills and wealth will be hard to replace. Despite the setback we continue to expand our defenses and begin the expansion of the fortress in Madgeburg. Two wars begin in this year. Persia, Mamelukes, Teutonic Order, the Hanse and Venice declare war on Turkley and their Tunisian allies. The alliance of the Christian states with the Arabs is a depressing development. The Hanse and Venice show their true colors. They are not real remembers of the Pax Christi but instead servants of Mammon. Still, I wish them well in their war with the Turk. In June, Russia, the Danes and Pskov go to war with Kazan. I still have hopes for the power of Russia.
1503
The expansion of the army finally begins. I will add 1,000men per year until the army grows to 35,000 men. I hope to field 23,000 infantry and 12,000 horse by 1520. The wars in the Levant begin to die down when Persia declares a white peace with the Turks. In Febuary, the Rus come to a similar agreement with Kazan. I am beginning to fear the Russians are not worthy allies as their struggles in Kazan are inexplicable. My Hungarian alliance expires. Tasks in Berlin kept me from mounting an effect campaign to preserve the alliance and attempts to find another are unfruitful. By years’ end, the Electorate has no allies and I am desperate.
1504-1509
Desperation has forced me to do what I least wanted to do- ally with the Russians. I sough other options through August of 1504 but to no avail. I join the Russians’ alliance along with the Danes and Pskov. I hope to make short work of this alliance. 1506, July Our army’s drills with their new artillery have taught them how to work with this new tool on the battlefield. In 1507, I break with plan and begin adding 1,000 infantry and 2000 cavalry per year to reach my army goal. By 1509, my goal is to maintain a reserve of 300d in the treasury at any time. Great news arrives in August! The nobles in Kustrin are concerned about the Poles to the east and have funded an expansion of the Kustrin fortress. This makes the fortress the largest in the Holy Roman Empire.
1510-1512
My reign of peace ends. Russia declares war, again, on the Kazan. Demark, and Pskov respond to the call. I reluctantly add Brandenburg to the war. I have no other options currently and the war will cost me nothing. I fact, I am planning to raise war taxes in October to add to the coffers of the state. Unfortunately, the Russians end the war early for 50d in Spetember. The Russians are hopelessly incompetent- they can not even lay low the kingdom of these steppe barbarians. I must find more useful friends.
1513
After a decade of rule Brandenburg is better than when I arrived. We hold the same three provinces but have added substantial infrastructure improvements and expanded our trade. The army stands at 29,000 men. All our fortresses have been expanded and 408d sit in the treasury.
April, sees the Turks and their Wallachian vassals go to war with the Malemukes.
1514-1515
July 1515, we have reached our goal of a 32,000 man army. In September, we complete further improvements in our infrastructure and the Elector is able to more effieciently collect revenues. Shortly after this triumph we suffered though trying times. The Minister of Trade was executed for incompetence and corruption. His actions meant that much of the funds we thought to be funneling towards our merchant companies and trading institutions were going to his pockets. The money is lost and his connections with important familes meant that our decision to execute him proved unpopular. Rumblings about the court worry me but the effect is not dramatic as his crimes are quite apparent to all.
1516-1517
We created a new post- Legal Council in Jan 1516- and will send our first charge to Madgeburg after we have made all the arrangements necessary. He should bring us a more effecient system of justice and tax collection. In September, I negotiated a royal marriage with Thuringen in hopes of rebuilding the Hungarian-Thuringen alliance. The explosion of the teaching of this Martin Luther in Ooctober has stunned me and the Elector. Our unease with the Catholic state has been growing for sometime. The corruption, greed, loss of vision and increasingly temporal feel to the Papacy has caused much worry but is what this Luther proposes the answer to our spiritual questions?
1518
Feburary. The Elector and I have met with the minions of Luther. His teachings offer much to the good Christian soul. We are impressed- as are many in our court. Plans begin for how to bring this new faith to our lands. The 5 year war between the Malemukes and Wallachia comes to and end and the Wallachians seize Judea and Samaria from the Malemukes. The changes does not hearten me much. The Holy Lands are freed from the Arab but now are in the hands of the forces of the allies of the Turk. April, the Elector declares for the Lutheran faith- and I convert to. The anti-Christ pope must not be allowed to bring man into damnation. The change shatters our alliance and tosses the land into chaos.
In March 1518, Milan, Spain, England, Naples, Palatinate, Lorriane and Poland-Lithuania declare war on Venice, the Hanse and Teutonic Order. I have terrible fears for the lands of the Hanse. I want their territory but the Poles might well spirit away the lands first. In May, the Catholic peasants in Kustrin revolt. The march and battle cost us 3000 men. In October, the same kind of revolt affects Madgeburg. This revolt is devastating because they destroy all the work initiated to bringing the legal council to the province. That is 100d lost. The army arrives but another 2000 men falls from the ranks. A siege of Madgeburg begins. In December, the Turks finally end their war with Malemukes for 25d and Syria. This has been an ill year.
1519
May, we begin laying the groundwork for our first legal council, this time in Brandenburg. In June, we recapture Madgeburg. No further revolts occasion our change of faith. During that same month an Anglo-Spanish force opens a siege of Western Pommerania. This is a most unwelcome sign. Their seizure of this land will isolate the Hanse from her eastern holdings and risk the viability of the entire Hanseatic domain- and also place a very large power on our northern border. By December of this year we have stabilized the nation. While the populace and nobles are not happy, they no longer bear any anger towards us.
1520
2 years after the massive Venetian War began it begins to come to an end. In rapid succession, the Order makes peace with Poland (June-117d), the Hanse with England (June-232d) and Venice with Milan (Aug-66d and Manuta). The latter loss is crippling for Venice in my opinion. By October, our army has been equipped with the new gunpowder arquebuses. The weapons create a lot of smoke and flame but I am not sold on their value as a weapon. We begin work on training men to fire and use effectively these awkward tools.
1521
The year begins in a disaster! Spain seizes Western Pommerania in January and in Febuary strikes a peace accord with the Hanse in which they gain Western Pommerania and 250d. The change in the landscape is as bad as can be imagined. The tools of the pope now have direct access to the Electors domain. The landscape is now totally altered.
In June, Thuringen declares war on the Palatinat. Thuringen’s allies Bohemia, Saxony, Hesse and Baden come to her aid. The Palatinat have a better set of allies: Spain, Poland, England, Milan, Naples and Lorraine. I fear for the survival of Bohemia.
1522
Jan-Feb I watch as Sudeten is besieged and Moravia as well. The unacceptable thought of the destruction of Bohemia fills my mind- unless there is a way to expand the Elector’s holding by the destruction of Bohemia. Silesia is rich, Protestant and vulnerable.
March 1 1522 We issue a declaration of war vs. Bohemia and her allies Thuringen, Saxony, Hesse and Baden. I would be more worried but the other minor states are mostly spent or involved in other areas- particularly the Palatinate. We have no Casus Belli but the unilateral destruction of Bohemia by the Polish Alliance is a survival issue for my state and I can not risk it’s unilateral annhilation.
The 35,000 man army of Brandenburg led by the talented general Casmir moves south into Silesia and begins a siege in April. By August the siege rolls on and the army is split with 15,000men marching on Erz.
October, a 6000 man Bohemian force is crushed in Erz and I lift that siege and march on Bohemia to try and bring a faster end to my war. The march is interrupted when a Hessian force launches a siege of Brandenburg. The Bohemian detachment wheels north to lift the siege.
November The relief force, now at 13000, arrived and drove the Hessians from the capital through some deft maneuvering. Both armies remain intact but the Hessian fall back into Saxony. December, Silesia falls to us and the siege army moves on Moravia.
1523
The war moves on. In January in Moravia, Casmir’s 15000 man army meets 6,000 Bohemians and routes them, again with minor losses. In February, we suffer a humiliating setback in Moravia. 16,000 Brandenburgers are beaten by a force of only 6,000 Bohemians and we lost 7000 men- Casmir had taken ill and was not available for this battle and it showed. The route drives us from Moravia. Worse, the battered force is caught in Silesia and forced back into Kustrin. The only advantage is the routing army arrived in Kustrin as new forces arrived (mostly pulled from the army defending Berlin) and others finished being built. The army recovers and is now a force of 14,000. By April, Casmir’s army catches its breath and launches into Silesia again facing what is now a 25000 man Bohmeian force. A loss likely forces me into a white peace. The Electoral Army wins a stunning victory by losing 2000 men to 7000 men. I would like to follow up the victory but a new Hessian force in Madgeburg forces my army to retreat to deal with that threat- the force is too large for the remants of the Erz detachment to handle alone. July, the Hessian army (only 4000 by the time my forces arrive) are driven off. A separate white peace is signed with Hessen and Saxony. New forces and the remants of the old Erz detachment bring the force up to 21k men still led by Casmir. That unit turns back to Silesia where a 7000 Bohemian army awaits. In September my army arrives in Silesia and suffers an even more humiliating setback that in February. Losses are light but the Bohemians chase the Electoral army back to Kustrin- again. The army strengthens some depleted regiments to rise to the level of 25000men and then moves south in December to try and lift the siege of Silesia manned by an 11000man Bohemian force. Late in December our forces clash and amid very light losses the Bohemians are chased off into Moravia with the Electoral Army in pursuit.
1524
This year begins with a great victory. The retreating Bohemians (10,000) merge with another army in Moravia (25000). The attempt to integrate the retreating army does not succeed well. The Electoral Army arrives and delivers a crushing blow- losing 3000 but balancing that by eliminating 12000 Bohemians who retreat on Bohemia. A force remains to cover Moravia while the bulk of the army tries to follow up on the field victories in Moravia and Silesia. In March, I get a most unexpected peace offer from the Bohemians. They offer Silesia- an offer I promptly accept.
The war was poorly planned and organized on our end. The battles went on far longer than needed. In particular I panicked a bit on the sieges laid by the Hessians. These were sieges with almost no hope of success that could have been ignored. My efforts to break these sieges gave the Bohemians the breathing space to build their armies up. The war was really decided on the scope of the superior generalship of Casmir which allowed us to win several stunning victories.
In September, the Malemukes are attacked by Turkey, Wallachia, Tripoli, Georgia, Hedjaz and Tunisia. The Malemukes should be wiped off the map by all rights.
