A VijayanagAAR
(OOC: I would like to thank all the people who read my first AAR installment and offered positive feedback, esp. Griffin.Gen, TheMonkeyMon, PetitBourgeois and ComradeOm. This installment is shorter than the last, but I hope you all enjoy it!)
Part Three: The Great Northern War: 1430-1442
Following the completion of his southern campaigns, the King wasted no time in preparing to expand northward. He knew that not only were the richest and most valuable lands to be found in the north, but many of the rulers there were heathens, and were not loved by their populace.
The King called his courtiers in, and bade them to display the map of the realm:
For several hours the King did little but stare at the masterpiece, while the courtiers dared not move lest they displease the King.
Finally, the King, unknowingly emulating his grandfather, picked up a brush, and dipping it in the ink, began to draw on the map, ignoring the gasps of the artisans who had spent weeks painting it. When he was finished, he turned to his courtiers, and commanded them to look at his strategy:
“My friends, as you all know, a series of scrolls were created by my grandfather. On them he detailed his plan for the unification of our great country. He saw fit to plan our course far in advance, and commanded his descendants to follow in his footsteps.”
"I have read the scroll that carried the condition requiring the conquest of the south, and I have formulated my strategy with this guide. Please, listen to me, my friends, and I will lead us to victory!”
“We have celebrated the complete subjugation of the southern Princedoms, but the real challenge is to come. The heathen Sheikhs command vast territory in the north, and we must destroy them. I am well aware that they have banded together to help each other survive. But I tell you now that their false Gods will not save them! They cannot, and will not weather the coming storm!"
“They often fight among themselves, the swine that they are, and it is during one of these squabbles that we must strike! We will bleed them white, one minor ruler at a time. We will crush the weaker rulers, and when the time comes, we will take the fight to the stronger!”
The King could see the inspiration on the faces of those close to him. Seizing the opportunity, he shouted “We set out for the border of Orissa at dawn!”, and strode out of his throne room, to thunderous cheering.
Several weeks later, in 1434, the King crossed the border of Orissa with his army. The Orissans, recently having concluded a war with their much larger neighbor, Deccan, were no match for the King’s forces, and quickly succumbed in 1436.
Jubilant at the success of his invasion, the King made quick plans for the invasion of Deccan in 1438, seeing that they were embroiled in a war against another large Sheikhdom to the north. The King anticipated another easy victory. He was unaware that he was about to start the largest war in the history of Vijayanagar.
Although larger, more significant conflicts followed during the course of Vijayanagar’s future history, the war that commenced following the King’s invasion of Deccan would be known forever in history texts as the Great Northern War.
Entering Deccan, with morale high, the King quickly began to siege the Deccan capital. The next day, his camp sentries saw three horsemen approaching at great speed. The men looked ragged, one had an arrow lodged in his shoulder, and the eyes of the horses were rolling, their mouths foaming.
The men dismounted and collapsed before the King. Their messages chilled the King’s blood. He had anticipated the other Sheikhs to be too busy fighting each other further north to respond to his invasion of Deccan. He had thought wrong.
Reacting quickly, the King demanded that his vassals mobilize their armies. The Ceylonese did so rapidly, and landed a force at Goa to siege the Khandeshi troops garrisoning the city.
Realizing that four of the most powerful Sheikhs in northern India were allied against him, the King knew that speed was of the essence.
The King moved quickly to occupy all of Deccan. Once this was done, he moved his army north, taking the fight to the Khandeshi homeland. Many smaller battles ensued, however his opponent, the Grand General of Khandesh, was as wily and crafty a fighter as the King was (OOC: 3-5-2-2 :O), and of the three major battles fought, all ended in defeat for the King’s forces.
However, the King was careful to avoid this army, and instead decided to use his superior resources to crush Khandesh slowly. He began by decisively defeating a Gujarati force north of the Khandeshi capital, forcing the Gujarat Sheikh to sign a white peace.
The King then appeased the Sheikh of Delhi, perhaps the only ruler in India who could truly be considered a threat, with a small sum of money to ensure that he could not come to the aid of Khandesh.
The fighting continued for several years with no respite, and the King was becoming worried. The Vijayanagari populace was tired of this war, and the danger of a commoner revolt was rising. (OOC: By now, I had a WE of 10.25!!!!).
The King had a conference with his most trusted advisors, and decided that the war with Khandesh had to end. Sending out messengers, he received the surrender of Deccan, and the terms of the treaty with Khandesh in 1442.
Although the less-than-favourable outcome of the war left a sour taste in the King’s mouth, he knew that it had not been a total loss. Deccan and Orissa had been subjugated, Khandesh had been crippled, and perhaps most importantly, the Vijayanagari port of Goa, lost to Khandesh in his grandfather’s time, had been restored to the Kingdom.
He also realized the effect that these victories would have on the Vijayanagari populace, after they had recovered from the war – the Kingdom, and through it, the King – had triumphed against the heathen Sheikhs to the north and expanded the Kingdom’s borders. The King was sure that in following wars, the populace would show their enthusiasm more openly…. Either by themselves or with the prodding of a soldier’s spear.
The King journeyed to Goa, and had a monument to the First King erected. It was there that he experienced the same vision that had attacked the First King. Only this time, he saw the future of Goa. He saw technological wonders he could not describe. He saw strange, light-coloured men speaking in strange tongues. He saw massive, disease-ridden ocean vessels entering its port, and above all he saw the black-robed men, looking out over the city’s denizens with fire in their eyes as they erected a cross made of wood on the highest point of the city.