Heaven On Earth: Part One

[unmerged(87106)]

First of all, congrats to FYROM!

The above post initiates a new pattern of glorifications on the first of every month. I realized that if I continued the "every-week" pattern, then I would run out of saints.

Also, as said in my signature, I will be away on vacation (or holiday as Europeans say...see not all Americans are ignorant )from the 2nd to the 12th. So, obviously, there will be no updates during that time. If the ACAs are not held by tomorrow, I will write my vote and someone will have to post it on my behalf. I will post that they are permitted to post my vote as evidence and they can link to it in my (or their) vote post.



asd

 

[Capibara]

Have fun on your vacation, you could vote now btw

 

[Enewald]

I say vacation even if I am european... I hope that this thread shall not be spammed while you are away...

And a nice interview.

Holy FYROM?

 

[unmerged(87106)]

Vote!

I'd hate to a selfish pr*ck. But I kindly ask all my AAR fans to go out and vote for this AAR for Best CK History-Book!

In any case just vote!

Thanks to all my fans for reading this AAR and enjoying it. Your views and comments keep it going! Thanks!



asd

 

[Enewald]

But I kindly ask all my AAR fans to go out and vote for this AAR for Best CK History-Book!

Kinda fun... I have seen this so many times today, and more of this I shall see tomorrow. Everyone asking ME to vote for them.

I wish I could vote for everyone.

*tries to create 30 new accounts, fails*

 

[Terrifying Effigies]

Thanks again for the sainthood . Your AAR is making me want to go out and buy CK!

 

[unmerged(87106)]

Thanks again for the sainthood . Your AAR is making me want to go out and buy CK!

Oh yeah, sorry for not PMing you that you can announce your sainthood.

So, you may announce your glorification!



asd

 

[Lord Valentine]

Just read through the AAR in one go (damn I have to work tomorrow. I should be sleeping! :rofl and must say I am impressed. You have created a world that is alternative and yet believable. What an irony that it should be Manuel I of all persons, who after all in reality squandered huge resources on trying to reconquer Italy, who loses the peninsula to the pope.

~Lord Valentine~

 

[unmerged(81979)]

Congrats FYROM and excellent interview, asd21593!

 

[CountArach]

Well I have now read everything since I last posted (About 8 chapters) and I am impressed with the huge fight that the Latin Kingdoms are putting up! Losing Italy might be a blow, but it is just like cutting one head off the hydra - you still have plenty more to keep biting with.

I look forward to the next update!

 

[Warpimp]

just found this today. Great AAR. Subscribed.

 

[unmerged(87106)]

I'm back!

I'm back!

Thanks for all the comments while I was away. I'm going to try to catch up on all my subscriptions as fast as possible. I've only been gone for 10 days and it's already going to be very daunting to read all the new updates. Anyway, until then there won't be any updates in this AAR. I should be done reading it all by tomorrow. After that, my normal summer life will resume and updates shall come once again!

Thanks again for all the comments!

And remember, go out and vote in the ACAs!

(not just for this AAR, any AAR!... just go and vote!)



asd

 

[Capibara]

Excellent to see you back! I hope you enjoyed your vacation, eagerly awaiting next update!

 

[unmerged(87106)]

600th Post!

I guess this would be a good way to celebrate my....

600th post!!!

Thanks to all my AARland followers for making this my most successful AAR so far! Only about half way through, and it's already 14 pages!

Thank you very much, you'll always be my favorite forum!



asd

 

[unmerged(87106)]

Heaven On Earth

Europe 1180: Towards The Sky
(Mood Music)

The last 10 years of Manuel I’s reign were a decade of humiliation for the Emperor. The devastating loss of Italy to the Papal Empire was too much for the Imperial populace to handle. The last decade of Manuel I’s life was spent in the palace of Constantinople. He rarely left the palace grounds, fearing the insults and glares that would be thrown at him. He died quietly in his great palace on February 19th 1180. He was succeeded by his young son Alexios II Komnenos, who was just about able to reign at the age of 13. The coronation of the teenage Emperor was much celebrated. With a name like Alexios, the Empire thought he would grow to become like Alexios I The Great and redeem the mistakes of his father. If one thing was sure, it was the fact that the young 13-year old would rule the Empire for a long time.

A depiction of the boy-Emperor Alexios II​

During the 21-year reign of Manuel I, the ever-changing face of Europe, predictably, changed. The Kingdom Of Castille went to war with Aragon and Leon simultaneously. And, almost miraculously, their strategic king led his armies to victory over both Iberian nations. This led to some significant expansion for Castille, while Leon and Aragon were severely weakened and both their sizes roughly cut in half.

A Castilian general proclaiming his dominance over an Aragonese town ​

Another fairly large change was the Lotharingian conquest of North Africa. During the War of Stone, the Lotharingian army campaigned throughout the North African coast, after defeating the Orthodox. Their conquest of the area, however, took much longer than the Papal-Orthodox War. From 1170 to 1175, Lotharingian troops were repeatedly reinforced from the Lotharingian mainland.

The conquest of the desert was much harder than expected. The African Muslims put up a tough resistance against the Lotharingians. The desert climate helped the natives, who knew what to wear and how to fight in the desert. Companies of Lotharingian soldiers routinely got lost in the Sahara, only to be ambushed and massacred by native bandits. Eventually, the Imperial organization, sheer numbers, and weapons of the Lotharingians won out over the Saharans, and Algeria and Libya were in the hands of the Lotharingian Empire. Within days of the news, the Pope sent orders to the Lotharingian Emperor to convert the populace of North Africa to Catholicism.

A map of Europe in 1180​

 

[Kurt_Steiner]

And the Basileus' first moves is going to be...?

 

[Capibara]

Will a Catholic kingdom be established in North Africa?

 

[Nikolai]

Lotharinga won't last. As it were, it had way too long borders compared to size, and with two equally strong neighbours to boot. Now, with North Africa added to the kingdom, with lots of trouble with insurgents probably ahead, AND a new neighbour in the Orthodox empire, it's in big trouble. Especially with a young emperor there, who will have to prove his worth soon.

 

[unmerged(87106)]

Heaven On Earth

Emperor Alexios II: On The Steppe
(Mood Music)

The early years of Alexios II were peaceful. The boy-Emperor, at 13, could not make any significant decisions for awhile. Until 1190, Alexios II made no important decisions. He simply let the Empire run normally. And it worked. The peaceful decade after Manuel I’s death allowed the Empire to recover from the loss of Italy.

That decade also saw intense education and military training for Alexios II. He wanted to live up to his name and be just as great as Alexios I The Great. So he spent long hours in the palace courtyard practicing sword fighting. He went into the hippodrome in the evenings and rode his horse until it was pitch black. He spent his days learning in the finest academies of Constantinople. Everyone loved the new Emperor. He made appearances in lavish parades constantly, to screaming crowds. There are even reports of young women ripping off their clothes and throwing themselves on the young Emperor!

Alexios II liked to lead parades in the ancient Roman style, as this painting reflects​

The early years of Alexios II’s reign also saw campaigns to convert the outer parts of the Empire to Orthodox Christianity. Alexios II used John II’s model of peaceful and subtle Christianization and it had great success in Egypt, Syria, and the Baltic nations. However, Catholic areas like Hungary remained fervently Catholic, as they still remembered the Rape of Hungary.

Finally, in 1190, at the age of 23, Alexios II felt he was ready to conduct his first military campaign. In the spring, he led 20,000 men across the Volga and further into the Russian steppes. This campaign pitted the mighty Imperial army against the clever steppe nomads. But Alexios II was smart enough to know the tactics of the nomads, such as feigned retreats and horse archery. He always restrained his troops when the nomads “retreated.” Through clever encirclements and the power of Imperial numbers and organization, the years 1190 to 1193 saw no major battles, at least for the Empire. While some engagements were devastating for the nomads, losing a couple of hundred men was nothing for the Empire. By 1193, a large piece of the Russian steppe beyond the Volga was under Orthodox control.

Alexios II battling on the Russian steppes​

 

[unmerged(83622)]

I haven't been able to follow this properly, but seeing a that humongous Lotharingia is, given what I write about in my own AAR, a sight for sore eyes.