Typo.
I'll be keeping my eye on this one. If only it weren't to the luck of the draw to get that mission which grants cores on Gallia!
I think England has to be at war with France to get that mission, so it’s pretty hard to get. It does have a high probability of popping up though if England completes/cancels their current mission. This is why I personally hate the recover Normandy mission.
Awesome, another England AAR! I shall follow this closely.
Welcome aboard! I hope it's interesting!
Chapter 2: Ambitious but Feeble
King Henry IV begins his reign by signing an alliance with Scotland. His ultimate goal is to show the Scottish just how helpless they are without protection from a superior neighbor. The Scottish, as we will soon see, are a stubborn people. Overtures of goodwill toward Castille and Aragon are spurned as they both deny proposals of marriage. However, support for the English comes from an unlikely source. The Teutonic Order wishes to form an alliance, and King Henry IV sees no reason to decline. He has a thirst for foreign wars and glory.
But first King Henry must solidify his power by centralizing the government. His policies are not overwhelmingly popular, and some claim that he seeks to bypass the power of parliament entirely. Such is the debate that it becomes heated, and Stephen Gloucester, Duke Norfolk raises an army of supporters to pretend to the crown. King Henry is convinced that they are supporters of his cousin, the deposed Richard II, and orders Robert Knolles to march on them from London. During the chaos of rebellion, Richard II mysteriously vanishes from the imperial prison and is never seen again. Robert Knolles and Stephen Gloucester fight 3 battles as the pretender is forced to retreat to Wessex, hoping to find escape. But no one is sympathetic, and he is captured and executed after the Battle of Wessex, ending House Plantagenet's final attempt to regain the throne of England.
In an attempt to reassure his subjects that he is a competent ruler, an aggressive trading policy is enacted, and proves initially successful through December of 1404. The trade spurs English development and military capacity as Merchants import quality iron, cloth, and naval supplies. However, trouble abroad brings trouble at home, and a once booming trade goes bust in a matter of years, leading to a depressed English economy, threatening to bankrupt the country and limit technological growth. Henry IV, though, is not an able administer, and cares only for conquest. To supplant his weakening income, he squeezes the nobility for their worth by collecting war taxes and reducing the quality and quantity of military supplies.
Munster attacks Connaught before England can guarantee all the Irish minors. This will hopefully save 2 infamy some day in the future.
King Henry IV fires Geoffrey Chaucer and hires a Castillian who is well known for training officers in the military. Over time, Henry hopes that this will enable him to field top quality generals.
At the end of 1400, Henry is made aware that while his trade policies are working well, the system has not been policed properly, and smugglers are now actively working to make a profit without a ducat going to the King’s treasury. This is devastating news for Henry, and historians identify Henry’s choice to allow the smugglers to continue unabated to have been the turning point in the English economy.
I would have needed to take out a loan to stop them. In the future, I think I’ll take the loan. You should note the burgeoning trade and the current treasury in the picture as well.
The Holy Roman Emperor dies, but the title remains with Bohemia. Munster annexes Connaught a month later. Another month goes by, when a messenger from the Teutonic Order arrives. England has been called to war! The Teutonic Order is invading Pskov, but Ryazan and Tver protect them. With no fear of retaliation, Henry joins the war and raises taxes. The Welsh don’t understand what this means, however, and think that it’s a good time to revolt against Henry IV.
Perhaps it’s time to splurge on the military…but first, Henry expands his bureaucracy so that he can have even more bureaucrats. He doesn’t quite know what he’ll do with them, but it’s an expensive policy that he believes that he can afford. Once this is done, England’s other army routs the Welsh rebels.
This is Aragon. I checked it months before and it said, “Personal Union with England”. I hate this kid.
Things become a bit stale for 2 years. France goes in a cycle of embargoing England and allowing trade. I check to see how my army stacks up. My 11k Cavalry and 7k infantry aren’t even on the first page. France, Burgundy, and Austria are the scariest, possessing more cavalry than I do. Worst of all, when I investigate my chances to vassalize Scotland, the response is, “Impossible”. It seems I’ve made a rather bad mistake. Maybe my next king will betray the Scots if I can’t do it diplomatically. I tried to use Sphere of Influence to increase my chance, but it has so far always been impossible. Ryazan wants peace, and War Exhaustion is bad, so it is accepted. Glamorgan becomes fortified. Not all the Welsh are disloyal! Burgundy annexes Aachen…they will get Cologne as well, but first…
Henry knows that there are a lot of countries to deal with, but he has faith that the English navy will keep him safe from the dreaded galleys of Scandinavia. The English quickly take up a leadership position in the war and call Scotland into the conflict.
Aquileia? Don’t they have some gold mines?
King Henry has finally decided to take the initiative and makes a rather absurd plan to put the English economy on firm, golden ground. As Henry IV sails to Friuli, Robert Knolles puts down another Welsh rebellion with his 10,000 cavalry. This is Robert Knolles final battle, as he dies shortly after. The crafty Welsh must have injured him, hoping against hope to throw of the yolk of English rule. Venice allows the English to use their ports and supplies, giving Henry’s 12,000 troops time to reorganize before the attack. King Henry IV, however, is not pleased…Bohemia is already besieging Göry, Aquileia’s coastal gold mine.
Victory! But what about Bohemia? Curse you, blasted Emperor.
Back at home, more Welsh rebels appear, leaving England’s now leaderless army to attempt to suppress them. They are still successful, the Welsh plan is in ruins. During his siege of Friuli, Henry IV is told of matters at home. The merchant class are complaining about how current policies favor the aristocracy, hurting the merchant business. Henry would really like to tell the merchants that they should clean up their smuggling operations first, but with the English people beginning to feel exhausted from war, the Merchants proposition comes at a perfect time, and Henry sends word back to London to acquiesce to their demands. (Plutocracy +1). This is, ironically, the beginning of England’s recession, when bad economic policies finally rear their ugly heads. For whatever reason, England’s 5 merchants in Lübeck slowly dwindle, as do the 2 in Antwerpen.
In February and March of 1405, Mecklenburg and Saxe-Lauenburg join the war on Denmark’s side. In June, France warns England not to start any wars. Perhaps the expedition into Aquileia will be cut short.
More Welsh rebels are put down. Cornwall assimilates to English culture. But there is good news from home, as advances in the administration show results. England can now adopt the idea of military drills, drastically increasing the effectiveness of English armies. King Henry IV also decrees that Churches should be built whenever possible, though the current economic pace is too slow to keep up with the training of administrators, so paintings are commissioned at times and the Florentine School is supported as well.
Bohemia isn’t all useless, I guess.
Perhaps the best 50 ducats I’ve spent all game. I commissioned this general in response to a Danish invasion of Northumberland. Scotland ended up getting the glory from defeating their army, though.
Friuli falls to Henry after a year and five months. In the meantime, Aquileia lifted the occupation of Görz, but now Bohemia sieges Krain, the other gold producing province. Sweden lands troops in Labourd, and the English navy takes them out, capturing a galley and a transport. Alexander Benbow leads troops to lift the siege.
Then, in a surprise move, the aristocrats of England give a generous gift for all that Henry IV has done for them, even though he favored the plutocracy. I guess they’re grateful that he didn’t go farther, so the coffers fatten by 100 ducats. This is when Cologne falls to Burgundy, February 1st, 1407. Benbow moves to harry Holstein and Saxe-Lauenburg, while keeping the Danish armies locked down on Sjaelland. Görz is taken by England, but Krain is in Bohemian hands, and the Aquileian army has been destroyed. Benbow conquers Saxe-Lauenburg, and England takes the country as a vassal. News from France arrives that they have conquered all of Provence.
After waiting for a year for Bohemia to make peace with Denmark, Henry IV loses his patience, and settles for half of his goal, forcing Aquileia to cede Görz for peace. Shortly after, Denmark releases Holstein from vassalage in exchange for peace. Görz is removed from the Holy Roman Emperor, after Henry realizes that leaving it under the jurisdiction of Bohemia would be a bad idea. This severely strains the relations of these two nations that once enjoyed good relations.
Scotland still says that it’s impossible to become a vassal, France annexes Armagnac peacefully, and Bohemia’s heir ascends to the throne and is elected Emperor once again.
Next time, England will surely be tested to its limit, when…
Raise your hand if you saw this coming.
War summary with help from the EU3 Stats Generator by
comagoosie:
War of Teutonic Aggression
Attackers: TEU, ENG, POM, BOH, SIL
Defenders: PSK, RYA, TVE, GEO, MOS, NOV, POL, MOL, LIT
Code:
Attacker Defender
Battles Won 32 10
Losses 36106 86025
English Contribution: Moral Support
Danish Conquest of Ösel
Attackers: DAN, AQU, SWE, NOR, SHL, MKL, LAU
Defenders: TEU, BOH, POM, ENG, SCO, SIL
Code:
Attacker Defender
Battles Won 8 38
Losses 59748 36651
English Contribution: 18 battles, 4963 battle losses
A teaser: The War with Burgundy is already the 7th bloodiest conflicts in the history of the world, and it has only gone on for 11 months.
