Farquharsan: Good question, I've been trying to figure out an English form of the adjective "Of Cologne" ever since I started this game. I believe the German Kölner may be acceptable. Ok, here's Part 2
Hermann IV returned to his see basking in the glory of military victory and posing as a hero of the German people for his successful fight against the Poles. The celebration was destined to be short-lived however, as Hermann was soon to learn that he had seriously underestimated the diplomatic skills of Maximilian I. Maximilian sent Hermann a note congratulating him on his victories and ordering him to replace in Bremen and Hannover those German sovereigns the Poles had forced out. As Hermann had already announced Bremen and Hannover’s incorporation into Greater Cologne this demand proved somewhat problematic. Hermann responded by saying that the proposed restoration of Hannover and Bremen’s previous status as independent states within the Imperial Framework had been referred to the Committee for Ecclesiastical and Temporal Affairs, one of the countless organizations that made up Cologne’s notoriously inefficient bureaucracy. Maximilian, knowing that referral to the Committee for Ecclesiastical and Temporal Affairs was a certain death-sentence for any initiative, issued an Imperial Decree denouncing Cologne for selling out the Empire to France (citing Cologne’s giant bureaucracy and the increasing tendency of Cologne’s restauranteurs to serve molded cheeses as examples of pernicious French influence) and authorizing any “good German Prince” to attack the Archbishopric to restrain Cologne’s growing strength within the Empire. Hermann was busily preparing a suitable diplomatic reply to this provocation when the Elector of Brandenburg declared war in October of 1497 (Sweden, Pommern). In November 1497, the Danes, seeing their position in Holstein threatened, declared a war of their own against Cologne. Cologne had enough problems facing attack from the east and the north, when Burgundy (Gelre, Brittany) decided to open up the southern and western fronts in June 1498.
That the nascent Empire of Cologne survived the Six Years War of 1497-1503 at all has been one of the most persistent puzzles in German history. I believe the answer can be summed up in one word: France. The French were no fans of the House of Habsburg and had no intentions to see their enemies succeed at reducing the influence of France’s most steadfast ally in the Empire. Therefore, to the immense relief of the Archbishop, the French threw the bulk of their not inconsiderable strength into maintaining Cologne’s position within the Empire. This was most noticeable on the southern front, for so thoroughly trounced at French hands were the Burgundians that they failed to place so much as a simple raiding party in the Archbishop’s territories. Gelre managed to launch a 2-pronged offensive in January 1499, laying siege to Kleves and Cologne. Archiepiscopal armies defeated the Dutch in Cologne but were turned back before Dusseldorf (Kleves). By May of 1499, a second counter-attack in Kleves had dislodged the Dutch, who made no further appearances at the front. Burgundy ultimately bought her way out of the war with 102 ducats.
The claims of German nationalists that French action in the Six Years War was negligible or unnecessary results chiefly from the fact that French efforts were confined to the northern and southern fronts, leaving Cologne to fight its battles in the eastern and western theaters on its own. If French action was confined to only 2 theaters of war that should not prevent us from noting that French action on these fronts was ultimately decisive. Take the war against Denmark for example. The Danes launched their offensive in November 1498 by sending 22,000 men to capture Bremen. With his armies engaged elsewhere, Hermann IV sought and obtained a loan from the Fugger family of 200 ducats to raise a new, cavalry-based army to dislodge the Danes. This army, which numbered 19,000 horse when mustered, was sent against the Danes only to suffer resounding defeat in February 1499, a month prior to Bremen’s capture by Danish forces. The war in the north would almost certainly have turned to Cologne’s disadvantage were it not for the large French force that sailed into the Sound and launched a violent assault upon Copenhagen. As the Danes left to defend their capital, Cologne’s armies were able to retake Bremen and bring the war to Denmark by occupying Holstein. After the French successfully captured Copenhagen, the Danes were forced to make peace, surrendering Holstein to Cologne and paying 137 ducats indemnities, though the Danes kept the county of Holland, which they had occupied and annexed in 1500.
This more or less left only the eastern front for the Archbishop, and here Cologne proved itself on the battlefield remarkably well, beginning by crushing Brandenburg’s attempted invasion of Hannover in November 1497. As the Archbishop’s forces pursued the Margrave’s into Magdeburg, which fell to Cologne in May 1499, the ex-Duke of Hannover returned to his former fiefdom and raised a revolt of those loyal to him against the Archbishop. The revolt was put down quickly and the ex-Duke was sent into exile in Vienna, where Hermann strongly suspected Maximilian of having arranged the Duke’s attempted return. Berlin fell to the Archbishop’s troops in July 1500, effectively knocking Brandenburg out of the war, though Hermann refused to make peace with Brandenburg before he dealt with Pommern. Pommern had taken advantage of the concentration of troops in Brandenburg to capture Hannover in September 1499. The first attempt by Cologne’s forces to repel the Pomeranians failed, but a second attack sent them into retreat and Hannover was retaken in August 1500. After that, an invasion of Pommern proper was launched to stellar success—Vorpommern fell in September 1501 and Mecklemburg followed in October 1502. The rest of the war was spent fighting rebels, who appeared in Oldenburg and Mainz to the great distraction of the war effort. The rebels in Oldenburg even held the citadel for a few months before they were properly chastised and the rebels in Mainz managed to best each of the first 2 armies the central government sent against them before finally falling under a third attack. Major combat of the Six Years War was over by October 1502 and Cologne sought to maximize its advantage by negotiating with its fallen enemies separately. Thus, by the Treaty of Vorpommern, signed on 14 December 1502, Mecklemburg was ceded to Cologne while Jylland was ceded to France, while the Treaty of Berlin, signed 11 January 1503 (and ending the Six Years War) granted Magdeburg to Cologne and forced Brandenburg to pay 288 ducats indemnities to the alliance. Thus, by the end of Six Years War, Cologne had come into her own as a north European power.
Cologne brings new definition to the phrase "imperial city." Bizarre things are happening in this game, Burgundy's still hanging around (they chose not to be inherited) though they've lost the Lowlands to revolt. In the Lowlands, note the Ottoman
presence in Zeeland and Friesen. Also note Saxony's unauthorized use of Cologne's patented dark green map color, letters have been dispatched to the Saxons telling them to cease and desist or else face the gravest consequences. Mainz is being sieged by rebels btw. Any suggestions as to my next target--Helvetia? Würzburg? Saxony? Brandenburg?
Hermann IV returned to his see basking in the glory of military victory and posing as a hero of the German people for his successful fight against the Poles. The celebration was destined to be short-lived however, as Hermann was soon to learn that he had seriously underestimated the diplomatic skills of Maximilian I. Maximilian sent Hermann a note congratulating him on his victories and ordering him to replace in Bremen and Hannover those German sovereigns the Poles had forced out. As Hermann had already announced Bremen and Hannover’s incorporation into Greater Cologne this demand proved somewhat problematic. Hermann responded by saying that the proposed restoration of Hannover and Bremen’s previous status as independent states within the Imperial Framework had been referred to the Committee for Ecclesiastical and Temporal Affairs, one of the countless organizations that made up Cologne’s notoriously inefficient bureaucracy. Maximilian, knowing that referral to the Committee for Ecclesiastical and Temporal Affairs was a certain death-sentence for any initiative, issued an Imperial Decree denouncing Cologne for selling out the Empire to France (citing Cologne’s giant bureaucracy and the increasing tendency of Cologne’s restauranteurs to serve molded cheeses as examples of pernicious French influence) and authorizing any “good German Prince” to attack the Archbishopric to restrain Cologne’s growing strength within the Empire. Hermann was busily preparing a suitable diplomatic reply to this provocation when the Elector of Brandenburg declared war in October of 1497 (Sweden, Pommern). In November 1497, the Danes, seeing their position in Holstein threatened, declared a war of their own against Cologne. Cologne had enough problems facing attack from the east and the north, when Burgundy (Gelre, Brittany) decided to open up the southern and western fronts in June 1498.
That the nascent Empire of Cologne survived the Six Years War of 1497-1503 at all has been one of the most persistent puzzles in German history. I believe the answer can be summed up in one word: France. The French were no fans of the House of Habsburg and had no intentions to see their enemies succeed at reducing the influence of France’s most steadfast ally in the Empire. Therefore, to the immense relief of the Archbishop, the French threw the bulk of their not inconsiderable strength into maintaining Cologne’s position within the Empire. This was most noticeable on the southern front, for so thoroughly trounced at French hands were the Burgundians that they failed to place so much as a simple raiding party in the Archbishop’s territories. Gelre managed to launch a 2-pronged offensive in January 1499, laying siege to Kleves and Cologne. Archiepiscopal armies defeated the Dutch in Cologne but were turned back before Dusseldorf (Kleves). By May of 1499, a second counter-attack in Kleves had dislodged the Dutch, who made no further appearances at the front. Burgundy ultimately bought her way out of the war with 102 ducats.
The claims of German nationalists that French action in the Six Years War was negligible or unnecessary results chiefly from the fact that French efforts were confined to the northern and southern fronts, leaving Cologne to fight its battles in the eastern and western theaters on its own. If French action was confined to only 2 theaters of war that should not prevent us from noting that French action on these fronts was ultimately decisive. Take the war against Denmark for example. The Danes launched their offensive in November 1498 by sending 22,000 men to capture Bremen. With his armies engaged elsewhere, Hermann IV sought and obtained a loan from the Fugger family of 200 ducats to raise a new, cavalry-based army to dislodge the Danes. This army, which numbered 19,000 horse when mustered, was sent against the Danes only to suffer resounding defeat in February 1499, a month prior to Bremen’s capture by Danish forces. The war in the north would almost certainly have turned to Cologne’s disadvantage were it not for the large French force that sailed into the Sound and launched a violent assault upon Copenhagen. As the Danes left to defend their capital, Cologne’s armies were able to retake Bremen and bring the war to Denmark by occupying Holstein. After the French successfully captured Copenhagen, the Danes were forced to make peace, surrendering Holstein to Cologne and paying 137 ducats indemnities, though the Danes kept the county of Holland, which they had occupied and annexed in 1500.
This more or less left only the eastern front for the Archbishop, and here Cologne proved itself on the battlefield remarkably well, beginning by crushing Brandenburg’s attempted invasion of Hannover in November 1497. As the Archbishop’s forces pursued the Margrave’s into Magdeburg, which fell to Cologne in May 1499, the ex-Duke of Hannover returned to his former fiefdom and raised a revolt of those loyal to him against the Archbishop. The revolt was put down quickly and the ex-Duke was sent into exile in Vienna, where Hermann strongly suspected Maximilian of having arranged the Duke’s attempted return. Berlin fell to the Archbishop’s troops in July 1500, effectively knocking Brandenburg out of the war, though Hermann refused to make peace with Brandenburg before he dealt with Pommern. Pommern had taken advantage of the concentration of troops in Brandenburg to capture Hannover in September 1499. The first attempt by Cologne’s forces to repel the Pomeranians failed, but a second attack sent them into retreat and Hannover was retaken in August 1500. After that, an invasion of Pommern proper was launched to stellar success—Vorpommern fell in September 1501 and Mecklemburg followed in October 1502. The rest of the war was spent fighting rebels, who appeared in Oldenburg and Mainz to the great distraction of the war effort. The rebels in Oldenburg even held the citadel for a few months before they were properly chastised and the rebels in Mainz managed to best each of the first 2 armies the central government sent against them before finally falling under a third attack. Major combat of the Six Years War was over by October 1502 and Cologne sought to maximize its advantage by negotiating with its fallen enemies separately. Thus, by the Treaty of Vorpommern, signed on 14 December 1502, Mecklemburg was ceded to Cologne while Jylland was ceded to France, while the Treaty of Berlin, signed 11 January 1503 (and ending the Six Years War) granted Magdeburg to Cologne and forced Brandenburg to pay 288 ducats indemnities to the alliance. Thus, by the end of Six Years War, Cologne had come into her own as a north European power.
Cologne brings new definition to the phrase "imperial city." Bizarre things are happening in this game, Burgundy's still hanging around (they chose not to be inherited) though they've lost the Lowlands to revolt. In the Lowlands, note the Ottoman
presence in Zeeland and Friesen. Also note Saxony's unauthorized use of Cologne's patented dark green map color, letters have been dispatched to the Saxons telling them to cease and desist or else face the gravest consequences. Mainz is being sieged by rebels btw. Any suggestions as to my next target--Helvetia? Würzburg? Saxony? Brandenburg?
