I guess you can say that I am well overdue for an AAR since I've been roaming around these forums for a couple of years now. Many people here on the forums from Diplomacy to Hearts of Iron and everything in between have inspired me to create my first and very own AAR and I hope this encourages others to do the same. After deciding to do my first AAR I was stuck with the question of which country to play as. I did a little bit of research and finally decided on the country to play as and help change its history. (Hence the title changing one's stars .) And that country for better or for worse is...
Difficulty/A.I. Aggressiveness: Normal/Normal
Version: Vickie 1.4
Cheats: None
Goals:
It should be noted that I began this AAR as a prototype and initially didn't think to actually publish/post it on the forums but as the game progressed I decided that I might as well contribute to the forums by doing more than commenting on other AARs. This is also the very first time that I was playing Victoria so I had no prior knowledge nor practice in the game's mechanics at the time (should be a fun learning experience eh?). Unfortunately I lost some of the game data so our story really begins in 1861, but don't sweat it I have compiled a brief summary of what went on during the first decades of our endeavor and how Brazil came about. And here it is:
Brazil began as a mere colony of Portugal when it was discovered by Pedro Alvares Cabral in 1500. Due to successful profits elsewhere in its trade empire Portuguese interest in their large colony didn’t pick up until 1530. In its first century the colony’s major export, which gave it its name, was the brazilwood. It is a large tree prized for its red dye. During the first two centuries of the colonial period, attracted by the vast natural resources and untapped land, other European powers such as the French and the Dutch tried to establish colonies in several parts of the Brazilian territory in defiance of the Treaty of Tordesillas. The treaty divided the new world between Spain and Portugal.
In 1808 the Portuguese court fleeing from Napoleon's troops, which had invaded the territory of Portugal proper, moved aboard a large fleet escorted by British ships with all the government apparatus to its then-colony Brazil establishing themselves in the city of Rio de Janeiro. From there the Portuguese king ruled his empire for 13 years before returning home. In 1815 the king vested Brazil with the dignity of a united kingdom with Portugal and Algarves. When King John VI of Portugal left Brazil to return to his European territory in 1821, his elder son Pedro stayed in his stead as regent of Brazil. One year later Brazil declared independence from its mother nation of Portugal thus starting its roller coaster history as a constitutional monarchy.
The mid to late 1830’s were marked by Brazil being humiliated in what started out to be a war solely against Uruguay that spiraled out of control due to poor military leadership and the entrance of Argentina and Paraguay into the conflict. It resulted in the loss of a chunk of land to Uruguay. To add insult to injury during the war a military revolt under the command of a disgruntled officer erupted deep inside the country spreading out in all directions like a wild fire consuming half of the nation at its peak further hindering the war effort. If that weren’t enough, a series of political assassinations took place after the war from anarchists wishing to derail the monarchy. In 1841 Brazil sought to compensate for the loss of land to Uruguay by declaring war on Venezuela.
After over a year of warfare Brazil was defeated again this time not only losing a swath of land to Venezuela but their entire army was destroyed. Following on the heels of the defeat even more social and political upheaval rocked the country with revolts and assassinations occurring at all corners of the nation. The economy itself had been stagnant since after the first dismal war. On May 7th 1845 Brazil had a liberal revolution that saw the end of the conservative party’s longstanding grip on power, for the time being. Due to Chief of Staff Diego Hidalgo’s poor performance in leading the country during the last two wars he was replaced by Chief of Staff Sanchez. The revolution would cease five years later with the Conservatives eventually regaining their lost power and tightening their grip for decades to come.
After the debacle in the early 1840’s Brazil would spend much of the decade and even into the early 50’s rebuilding its army and stabilizing herself both politically and economically.
Then finally with its army strong enough and the country ready for what was to come, Brazil declared war on Venezuela in May 1852 beginning the “Reclamation Era”. The war would last a grueling six years before Brazil emerged victorious taking back all the lost land in Venezuela’s possession and then some. The majority of the decade was spent at war with it formally concluded on April 30, 1858. But Brazil's revenge was far from satisfied as they proceeded to declare war on Paraguay on September 1st 1859.
Meanwhile in America, on December 21st 1860 a few southern states had seceded from the union. In response the union declared war on the newly formed Confederate States of America a week after its formation. As the days progressed more and more southern states joined the CSA with the first casualties of the war being reported in. And to round off our story of some of the events that have taken place in both Brazil and the world that wasn’t the only action taking place on the North American continent. On January 12th 1861 France chooses to intervene in Mexico. Unfortunately for the Mexicans, the French weren’t coming alone. Without further ado, I present to you my ups and downs as Brazil.
Brazil
Difficulty/A.I. Aggressiveness: Normal/Normal
Version: Vickie 1.4
Cheats: None
Goals:
- Survive
- Prosper
- Change country's history
- Finish game as one of the Top 20 nations in the world
It should be noted that I began this AAR as a prototype and initially didn't think to actually publish/post it on the forums but as the game progressed I decided that I might as well contribute to the forums by doing more than commenting on other AARs. This is also the very first time that I was playing Victoria so I had no prior knowledge nor practice in the game's mechanics at the time (should be a fun learning experience eh?). Unfortunately I lost some of the game data so our story really begins in 1861, but don't sweat it I have compiled a brief summary of what went on during the first decades of our endeavor and how Brazil came about. And here it is:
Prologue
Brazil began as a mere colony of Portugal when it was discovered by Pedro Alvares Cabral in 1500. Due to successful profits elsewhere in its trade empire Portuguese interest in their large colony didn’t pick up until 1530. In its first century the colony’s major export, which gave it its name, was the brazilwood. It is a large tree prized for its red dye. During the first two centuries of the colonial period, attracted by the vast natural resources and untapped land, other European powers such as the French and the Dutch tried to establish colonies in several parts of the Brazilian territory in defiance of the Treaty of Tordesillas. The treaty divided the new world between Spain and Portugal.
In 1808 the Portuguese court fleeing from Napoleon's troops, which had invaded the territory of Portugal proper, moved aboard a large fleet escorted by British ships with all the government apparatus to its then-colony Brazil establishing themselves in the city of Rio de Janeiro. From there the Portuguese king ruled his empire for 13 years before returning home. In 1815 the king vested Brazil with the dignity of a united kingdom with Portugal and Algarves. When King John VI of Portugal left Brazil to return to his European territory in 1821, his elder son Pedro stayed in his stead as regent of Brazil. One year later Brazil declared independence from its mother nation of Portugal thus starting its roller coaster history as a constitutional monarchy.
The mid to late 1830’s were marked by Brazil being humiliated in what started out to be a war solely against Uruguay that spiraled out of control due to poor military leadership and the entrance of Argentina and Paraguay into the conflict. It resulted in the loss of a chunk of land to Uruguay. To add insult to injury during the war a military revolt under the command of a disgruntled officer erupted deep inside the country spreading out in all directions like a wild fire consuming half of the nation at its peak further hindering the war effort. If that weren’t enough, a series of political assassinations took place after the war from anarchists wishing to derail the monarchy. In 1841 Brazil sought to compensate for the loss of land to Uruguay by declaring war on Venezuela.
After over a year of warfare Brazil was defeated again this time not only losing a swath of land to Venezuela but their entire army was destroyed. Following on the heels of the defeat even more social and political upheaval rocked the country with revolts and assassinations occurring at all corners of the nation. The economy itself had been stagnant since after the first dismal war. On May 7th 1845 Brazil had a liberal revolution that saw the end of the conservative party’s longstanding grip on power, for the time being. Due to Chief of Staff Diego Hidalgo’s poor performance in leading the country during the last two wars he was replaced by Chief of Staff Sanchez. The revolution would cease five years later with the Conservatives eventually regaining their lost power and tightening their grip for decades to come.
After the debacle in the early 1840’s Brazil would spend much of the decade and even into the early 50’s rebuilding its army and stabilizing herself both politically and economically.
Brazil's precarious situation in 1851
Then finally with its army strong enough and the country ready for what was to come, Brazil declared war on Venezuela in May 1852 beginning the “Reclamation Era”. The war would last a grueling six years before Brazil emerged victorious taking back all the lost land in Venezuela’s possession and then some. The majority of the decade was spent at war with it formally concluded on April 30, 1858. But Brazil's revenge was far from satisfied as they proceeded to declare war on Paraguay on September 1st 1859.
Meanwhile in America, on December 21st 1860 a few southern states had seceded from the union. In response the union declared war on the newly formed Confederate States of America a week after its formation. As the days progressed more and more southern states joined the CSA with the first casualties of the war being reported in. And to round off our story of some of the events that have taken place in both Brazil and the world that wasn’t the only action taking place on the North American continent. On January 12th 1861 France chooses to intervene in Mexico. Unfortunately for the Mexicans, the French weren’t coming alone. Without further ado, I present to you my ups and downs as Brazil.
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