A bunch of people have said that Flanders should have its own national ideas, and I thought I might contribute some thought or something. I sort of went for a Dutch-lite sort of set that is fairly well rounded, good for trade, not militarily impotent, and gives some access to colonization (even if they don't take exploration until their 7th idea or expansion at all in the historical idea groups).
Traditions:
-10% Infantry Cost (City militia from Brugge, Ghent, and Antwerp)
+1 Merchant
Ideas:
Legacy of the Golden Spurs
+10% Infantry Combat Ability
The Battle of the Golden Spurs, fought during an independence revolt against the French 1302, was a resounding victory against a well trained and heavily armed and armoured force of Knights by little more than a burgher militia. It was the policies of centralization and the attempt to institute fully French rule that roused the people to such anger, policies that most Flemings would still take issue with.
The Great Privilege
-1 National Unrest (alternatively maybe -10% stability cost reduction)
The cities of Brugge, Ghent, Ypres, and Antwerp have always functioned as nearly city-states unto themselves; their merchants and burghers command powerful fortunes and hold great political sway. As such, when aristocratic lords challenge the influence and power of the mercantile class, people who it is our best to appease are suddenly no longer appeased. The Great Privilege affirms the rights of the states-general to confirm and even oversee the goings-on within the governance of the realm. Among other things, it states that declarations of war, tax levies, and officers of the administration must be approved by the states-general.
Defend the River Trade
+10% Fort Defense
It is the Scheldt river that Antwerp relies on for trade and commerce to flow through, without access the trade that flows through the city will evaporate, and any advantage the city once had will no longer be relevant. Because of this very important fact, it is of the utmost importance that this river be kept open to the city and the ships that it relies on for the lifeblood of trade. Fortifications on the mouth of the river and in the river valleys should provide ample deterrent against any future threat to our interests there.
Sugar Capital of Europe
+10% Production Efficiency (if this is the double bonus, +10% Domestic trade power would work)
Antwerp, by virtue of its position, is the undisputed center of sugar refining Europe. The cargoes of raw sugar that arrive from the new world by the day are quickly refined into a usable product and exported to European cities that have become increasingly hungry for sweets and confections. Additional cargoes of spices like cinnamon only add to the value of this burgeoning baked-goods boom. Large scale production must be maintained if we are to hedge this position to our further benefit.
Policy of Toleration (based on the centuries long toleration of the Jews and Christian minorities for lines of credit and the like)
+2 Tolerance of Heretics
It is against reason to forbid the spending of money by any man, whether a Catholic, a Protestant, or a Jew. Bankers and traders the world over should know that they are welcome in Flanders, whatever their creed, and whatever their tongue, a purse of guilders and a letter of credit are worth just the same to us. A wide reaching and legally codified policy of tolerance is the best way to guarantee that the freedoms to transact are not hampered by accusations of heresy or underlying religious tensions.
Vlaamse Oostendse Compagnie (Based somewhat on the company that formed in the Austrian Netherlands)
+1 Colonist
Divisive rivalry between merchant factions within our lands prevents the full and most complete exercise of our maritime and mercantile power. The creation of an East India company to serve our ports and cities can aid in halting the infiltration of our markets by the merchants of competing states and further aid in the establishment of a lucrative tea and spice trade directed toward the ports of Antwerp and Brugge.
Modernize Antwerp Harbor (Based on Napoleon's significant improvements to Antwerp harbor beginning in 1811)
+25% Naval Forcelimit (and maybe if it's the double bonus, something like -10% ship building time)
The Scheldt, as it currently is, has started becoming increasingly insufficient for our great volume of commercial activities. By installing a series of locks and dredging the silt from the river, we can increase the number of ships able to enter and transit the river without issue. This has the additional benefit of being able to construct and harbor a much larger and more modern navy without the need to create entirely separate dockyards for the construction of ships of the line.
Ambitions:
+10% National trade income modifier
Other ideas could be something revolving around the Watergeuzen privateers that operated out of Flanders during the Dutch revolt (likely giving embargo or privateer efficiency), something to do with the Beeldenstorm wave of iconoclasm that originated in Flanders (probably true faith tolerance or a minor boost to fervor), possibly something to do with the early Flemish textile trade (though the fact that the city of Antwerp made the Spanish more money from trade in refining sugar and importing spices than the entirety of their colonies in the Americas combined during the city's golden age I thought was somewhat more significant).
Traditions:
-10% Infantry Cost (City militia from Brugge, Ghent, and Antwerp)
+1 Merchant
Ideas:
Legacy of the Golden Spurs
+10% Infantry Combat Ability
The Battle of the Golden Spurs, fought during an independence revolt against the French 1302, was a resounding victory against a well trained and heavily armed and armoured force of Knights by little more than a burgher militia. It was the policies of centralization and the attempt to institute fully French rule that roused the people to such anger, policies that most Flemings would still take issue with.
The Great Privilege
-1 National Unrest (alternatively maybe -10% stability cost reduction)
The cities of Brugge, Ghent, Ypres, and Antwerp have always functioned as nearly city-states unto themselves; their merchants and burghers command powerful fortunes and hold great political sway. As such, when aristocratic lords challenge the influence and power of the mercantile class, people who it is our best to appease are suddenly no longer appeased. The Great Privilege affirms the rights of the states-general to confirm and even oversee the goings-on within the governance of the realm. Among other things, it states that declarations of war, tax levies, and officers of the administration must be approved by the states-general.
Defend the River Trade
+10% Fort Defense
It is the Scheldt river that Antwerp relies on for trade and commerce to flow through, without access the trade that flows through the city will evaporate, and any advantage the city once had will no longer be relevant. Because of this very important fact, it is of the utmost importance that this river be kept open to the city and the ships that it relies on for the lifeblood of trade. Fortifications on the mouth of the river and in the river valleys should provide ample deterrent against any future threat to our interests there.
Sugar Capital of Europe
+10% Production Efficiency (if this is the double bonus, +10% Domestic trade power would work)
Antwerp, by virtue of its position, is the undisputed center of sugar refining Europe. The cargoes of raw sugar that arrive from the new world by the day are quickly refined into a usable product and exported to European cities that have become increasingly hungry for sweets and confections. Additional cargoes of spices like cinnamon only add to the value of this burgeoning baked-goods boom. Large scale production must be maintained if we are to hedge this position to our further benefit.
Policy of Toleration (based on the centuries long toleration of the Jews and Christian minorities for lines of credit and the like)
+2 Tolerance of Heretics
It is against reason to forbid the spending of money by any man, whether a Catholic, a Protestant, or a Jew. Bankers and traders the world over should know that they are welcome in Flanders, whatever their creed, and whatever their tongue, a purse of guilders and a letter of credit are worth just the same to us. A wide reaching and legally codified policy of tolerance is the best way to guarantee that the freedoms to transact are not hampered by accusations of heresy or underlying religious tensions.
Vlaamse Oostendse Compagnie (Based somewhat on the company that formed in the Austrian Netherlands)
+1 Colonist
Divisive rivalry between merchant factions within our lands prevents the full and most complete exercise of our maritime and mercantile power. The creation of an East India company to serve our ports and cities can aid in halting the infiltration of our markets by the merchants of competing states and further aid in the establishment of a lucrative tea and spice trade directed toward the ports of Antwerp and Brugge.
Modernize Antwerp Harbor (Based on Napoleon's significant improvements to Antwerp harbor beginning in 1811)
+25% Naval Forcelimit (and maybe if it's the double bonus, something like -10% ship building time)
The Scheldt, as it currently is, has started becoming increasingly insufficient for our great volume of commercial activities. By installing a series of locks and dredging the silt from the river, we can increase the number of ships able to enter and transit the river without issue. This has the additional benefit of being able to construct and harbor a much larger and more modern navy without the need to create entirely separate dockyards for the construction of ships of the line.
Ambitions:
+10% National trade income modifier
Other ideas could be something revolving around the Watergeuzen privateers that operated out of Flanders during the Dutch revolt (likely giving embargo or privateer efficiency), something to do with the Beeldenstorm wave of iconoclasm that originated in Flanders (probably true faith tolerance or a minor boost to fervor), possibly something to do with the early Flemish textile trade (though the fact that the city of Antwerp made the Spanish more money from trade in refining sugar and importing spices than the entirety of their colonies in the Americas combined during the city's golden age I thought was somewhat more significant).
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