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The Life and Times of Murad The Tranquil(1574-95)
At the very first meeting of the Divan in the reign of Murad III, it speedily becomes evident that the man is unfit for a career in government. He is a quiet, thoughtful, and studious man, but he lacks any sort of ambition and is utterly devoid of charisma. During 982 (1574), Murad is clearly disconcerted by the enormous tasks involved in running a gigantic empire. Murad's first act as Sultan is to appoint several of his learned friends as chief judges in the provinces. These wise men are esteemed everywhere they go, and the people celebrate their Sultan's wisdom with renewed productivity (Good Policy--RE). When our military alliance expires, Murad immediately dispatches diplomats on missions of renewal, with the result that the alliance is recreated. Like the rest of the Divan, Murad is worried by the news of 27 Rajab 982 (11 Nov 1574) that Morocco had accepted vassalage to Algiers. With his work load pressing on him as never before, Murad appoints Edirne Pasha his Grand Vizier and retires from government to his immense relief at the turn of the Christian Year 1575 (Excellent Minister). Murad, who detests all forms of violence, makes the simple demand of us that we do not declare any offensive wars in his name.
With Edirne acting Sultan, the Divan gets down to business, we may be unable to declare offensive wars, but we position our forces in the best strategic positions we can find just in case the Pope should attempt the reconquest of Rome with his French protectors. It seems unlikely as my reports indicate that France is in the throws of a religious uprising, and that rebels conrtol the capital. Reports also reach me that our Persian enemies have vassalized the Uzbeks. This is clearly unacceptable, and though we of course cannot initiate war with the Persians and their new vassals, we move Turkish troops to the Persian border and send the Shah an insulting letter hoping to precipitate a Persian DOW, but with no success. Better news came from Hungary, where Turkish troops had smoked out another nest of Protestant rebels in Magyar and our missionaries had brought the joy of Islam to the troublesome province (note: In order to accomodate Catholics, Orthodox, and Shi'ites, tolerance to Protestants set at 0). More good news comes from the Caribbean, where Moron has attained sufficient population to be judged a city in 985 (1578).
Using Moron as a base of operations, new Turkish exploratory missions are sent to map the New World, one mission heads south and the other north. The southerners soon discover the Inca Empire, a nation that is large and wealthy, yet poorly defended. When our nation and the Incas exchange diplomats for the first time, we also exchange maps, learning much about South America's geography. Soon colonial efforts are diverted to southern America, with a tradepost established in Isthmus and the colony of Dawasir begun in Cupica in Shabaan 989 (Sep 1581). By 992 (1584) we have established a tradepost in Cali, creating a common border with the Incas. By 995 (1587), Cupica has become the Empire's second city in the New World with a population of 2100. Soon a fortress is begun and troops are levied, giving us a soild land-based military presence in the New World. A year later, the tradepost in Isthmus is expanded to a colony and renamed Qizan. Meanwhile, Siberia has not been forgotten. Aralsk is upgraded to a city in 994 (1586) and soon becomes the chief Ottoman military staging area for the Uzbek border. Our line of tradeposts is extended to Saian, which becomes the second colonial city in the Corridor in 999 (1590). Its new inhabitants name the colony Balikesir. Our first "Corridor Colony" in Angara is upgraded to a city in 988 (1581). Back in the Americas, 999 would also see the establishment of the colony of Kirrikale in Bogota and the discovery of the Iroqouis nation by the northern expedition. The Turkish diplomat sent to Mohawk gets along famously with Chief, who soon agrees to an exchange of maps and accepts an invitation to join the Ottoman alliance.
Internally, this long period of peace would do wonders for the civilian economy. By the end of Murad's reign, there is scarcely a single province lacking a Tax Collector and a Chief Judge. Industrial development has also been encouraged, with the construction of a winery in Kerch (1584) and Naval Manufacturing Center in Trabzon (1586). The military was not neglected despite Murad's peaceable intentions, and Turkish troops become the first in the known world to adopt the use of Muskets (Land Tech 12) in 990 (1582). Sadly, 990 would also see a naval disaster off the shores of Ragusa that sunk 3 Turkish warships with their crews (event). After the introduction of muskets, Edirne turned his attention to infrastructure improvements, resulting in our attaining the ability to promote governors (infra level 5) in 999 (1591). Governors are soon promoted throughout the wealthier provinces of the realm, severly curtailing inflation.
In foreign affairs, the long period of peace led to Murad's subjects calling him "Murad the Tranquil." Certainly not everyone was at peace in these years. Our military alliance was expanded in 990 (1582) to include the Mughal Empire, allowing us to attack Persia from 2 sides. The Mughals also agree to exchange maps and marriageable youths with the Sultan, bringing relations between our lands to an all-time high. Our new, expanded alliance now consists of Turkey, Hafsids, Mughals, Oman, and Iroqouis. Algiers grew greatly in power in these years, annexing their Moroccan vassals on 10 Shawaal 994 (24 Sep 1586). Meanwhile, the German nation of Hessen had been vassalized by the Dutch. A war was fought in northern Europe, ending with our Russian enemies capturing the province of Ingermanland from the Teutonic Order. A major European war broke out between France and Austria, a long and bloody affair that had not ended by the death of Murad III. Nevertheless, early action would see France's norhtern defenses collapse, allowing the Netherlands to exact Luxembourg, Calais, and 250D in tribute from France. While the Dutch were advancing from the north, Austria took advantage of France's absence in Germany to conquer and annex France's Bavarian allies.
All good things must come to end at the reign of Murad the Tranquil was no different. The Sultan succumbed to a severe illness in Jumaada I 1003 (Jan 1595). He was replaced on the throne by Mehmed III(3/2/4)
. I can only hope Mehmed will be as obliging as his predecessor....
At the very first meeting of the Divan in the reign of Murad III, it speedily becomes evident that the man is unfit for a career in government. He is a quiet, thoughtful, and studious man, but he lacks any sort of ambition and is utterly devoid of charisma. During 982 (1574), Murad is clearly disconcerted by the enormous tasks involved in running a gigantic empire. Murad's first act as Sultan is to appoint several of his learned friends as chief judges in the provinces. These wise men are esteemed everywhere they go, and the people celebrate their Sultan's wisdom with renewed productivity (Good Policy--RE). When our military alliance expires, Murad immediately dispatches diplomats on missions of renewal, with the result that the alliance is recreated. Like the rest of the Divan, Murad is worried by the news of 27 Rajab 982 (11 Nov 1574) that Morocco had accepted vassalage to Algiers. With his work load pressing on him as never before, Murad appoints Edirne Pasha his Grand Vizier and retires from government to his immense relief at the turn of the Christian Year 1575 (Excellent Minister). Murad, who detests all forms of violence, makes the simple demand of us that we do not declare any offensive wars in his name.
With Edirne acting Sultan, the Divan gets down to business, we may be unable to declare offensive wars, but we position our forces in the best strategic positions we can find just in case the Pope should attempt the reconquest of Rome with his French protectors. It seems unlikely as my reports indicate that France is in the throws of a religious uprising, and that rebels conrtol the capital. Reports also reach me that our Persian enemies have vassalized the Uzbeks. This is clearly unacceptable, and though we of course cannot initiate war with the Persians and their new vassals, we move Turkish troops to the Persian border and send the Shah an insulting letter hoping to precipitate a Persian DOW, but with no success. Better news came from Hungary, where Turkish troops had smoked out another nest of Protestant rebels in Magyar and our missionaries had brought the joy of Islam to the troublesome province (note: In order to accomodate Catholics, Orthodox, and Shi'ites, tolerance to Protestants set at 0). More good news comes from the Caribbean, where Moron has attained sufficient population to be judged a city in 985 (1578).
Using Moron as a base of operations, new Turkish exploratory missions are sent to map the New World, one mission heads south and the other north. The southerners soon discover the Inca Empire, a nation that is large and wealthy, yet poorly defended. When our nation and the Incas exchange diplomats for the first time, we also exchange maps, learning much about South America's geography. Soon colonial efforts are diverted to southern America, with a tradepost established in Isthmus and the colony of Dawasir begun in Cupica in Shabaan 989 (Sep 1581). By 992 (1584) we have established a tradepost in Cali, creating a common border with the Incas. By 995 (1587), Cupica has become the Empire's second city in the New World with a population of 2100. Soon a fortress is begun and troops are levied, giving us a soild land-based military presence in the New World. A year later, the tradepost in Isthmus is expanded to a colony and renamed Qizan. Meanwhile, Siberia has not been forgotten. Aralsk is upgraded to a city in 994 (1586) and soon becomes the chief Ottoman military staging area for the Uzbek border. Our line of tradeposts is extended to Saian, which becomes the second colonial city in the Corridor in 999 (1590). Its new inhabitants name the colony Balikesir. Our first "Corridor Colony" in Angara is upgraded to a city in 988 (1581). Back in the Americas, 999 would also see the establishment of the colony of Kirrikale in Bogota and the discovery of the Iroqouis nation by the northern expedition. The Turkish diplomat sent to Mohawk gets along famously with Chief, who soon agrees to an exchange of maps and accepts an invitation to join the Ottoman alliance.
Internally, this long period of peace would do wonders for the civilian economy. By the end of Murad's reign, there is scarcely a single province lacking a Tax Collector and a Chief Judge. Industrial development has also been encouraged, with the construction of a winery in Kerch (1584) and Naval Manufacturing Center in Trabzon (1586). The military was not neglected despite Murad's peaceable intentions, and Turkish troops become the first in the known world to adopt the use of Muskets (Land Tech 12) in 990 (1582). Sadly, 990 would also see a naval disaster off the shores of Ragusa that sunk 3 Turkish warships with their crews (event). After the introduction of muskets, Edirne turned his attention to infrastructure improvements, resulting in our attaining the ability to promote governors (infra level 5) in 999 (1591). Governors are soon promoted throughout the wealthier provinces of the realm, severly curtailing inflation.
In foreign affairs, the long period of peace led to Murad's subjects calling him "Murad the Tranquil." Certainly not everyone was at peace in these years. Our military alliance was expanded in 990 (1582) to include the Mughal Empire, allowing us to attack Persia from 2 sides. The Mughals also agree to exchange maps and marriageable youths with the Sultan, bringing relations between our lands to an all-time high. Our new, expanded alliance now consists of Turkey, Hafsids, Mughals, Oman, and Iroqouis. Algiers grew greatly in power in these years, annexing their Moroccan vassals on 10 Shawaal 994 (24 Sep 1586). Meanwhile, the German nation of Hessen had been vassalized by the Dutch. A war was fought in northern Europe, ending with our Russian enemies capturing the province of Ingermanland from the Teutonic Order. A major European war broke out between France and Austria, a long and bloody affair that had not ended by the death of Murad III. Nevertheless, early action would see France's norhtern defenses collapse, allowing the Netherlands to exact Luxembourg, Calais, and 250D in tribute from France. While the Dutch were advancing from the north, Austria took advantage of France's absence in Germany to conquer and annex France's Bavarian allies.
All good things must come to end at the reign of Murad the Tranquil was no different. The Sultan succumbed to a severe illness in Jumaada I 1003 (Jan 1595). He was replaced on the throne by Mehmed III(3/2/4)
. I can only hope Mehmed will be as obliging as his predecessor....
The next update should prove interesting. What with seeing what an Ottoman Empire allowed to breathe can do.
The Story of Colonel Antalya
No sooner had Mehmed III rose to the throne than he became deeply suspicious of Murad's divan, which had effectively governed the country for the last 20 years. Despite his lackluster mental capacities, Mehmed was determined to rule on his own, and within a year of his accession, all the members of the old divan are either exiled, imprisoned, or killed, my old incarnation, Jalal Pasha, was among the victims. I was run through in downtown Istanbul by thugs loyal to Mehmed and when I resumed consciousness with the ear-splitting headache that heralded a new incarnation, I feared I had left Turkey for good. Then the call of the muezzin reached me and I felt I was still in Turkey, which proved (sort of) correct. I was still in the Empire, but I was now Seargeant Mucip, wing commander of the American Army of the Sultan under Colonel Antalya. I now lived in the American colonies I had done so much to establish not long ago...
Before continuing, it would be wise to describe Turkish America as I found it. The very idea of Turkish America was begun in the year 979 (1572) with the establishment of Chibam in Moron. Chibam had become a city and capital of Ottoman America by 985 (1578). By 1003 (1595) Turkish America included Dawasir (Cupica), chief military staging ground and my new headquarters, the sleepy colony of Qizan (Isthmus) (pop. 213), the growing colony of Kirrikale (Bogota), and the trading territories of Cali and Mobile. By 1005 (1597), Bogota had become a city, and the largest one in Ottoman America at 3500 at that. Kirrikale was now provincial capital, but Dawasir remained headquarters of the Oujak of America, where I was now assigned. The task was dull, and my unit (20,000 Sipahis) had little to do besides chasing llama-rustlers. The bulk of the solidery wished they were back home and fantasized about fighting alongside Suleyman the Magnificent. I became very popular for relating the stories my "grandfather" had from participating in Suleyman's campaigns, and I recalled for the men over many a starlit night the epic events of Suleyman's reign: the assault on Prague, 1st and 2nd Kouban, the taking of Baghdad and Isfahan, the capture of Rome, the last stand of the Hospitallers, it was a joyous time of remembrance for myself as life in the colonies seemd dull indeed, but perhaps events would conspire to liven our lot in life.
The reign of Mehmed III came and went without any sort of distinction, the highlights were the establishment of new gold-minig colonies in Buriat (New Thrace) and Yarumal (New Kosovo). Mehmed's arrogant manner would precipitate native revolts in Buriat and Saian in Siberia and lead to the destruction of the northern expedition, who were set upon and cruelly murdered by savage natives in a land called Nippissing. Mehemd's most lasting accomplishment would be his new Naval manufacturing center in Rumelia (built 1600-02) and few lamented his death in Jumaada II 1012 (Dec 1603). Ahmed I (3/4/4) rose to the throne and immediately showed himself to be a warmongering autocrat. His first act as Sultan was to decalre war upon England for their unconsciable embargo against Turkish merchants. At the Oujak of Dawasir, we mostly felt a sense of guilt as we twiddled our thumbs an ocean away when our sworn enemies in Hedjaz (Persia, Nubia, Uzbeks, Aden), Austria (Prussia, Saxony), Genoa (Spain), and Russia (Portugal, Algiers) joined the conflict. Our worries were alayed however, when a messenger from Kirrikale (Bogota) informed us of our marching orders: it seems that after Ferhad Pasha (4/3/3) had assaulted and captured Saxon Milan, France (Mysore, Incas, Navarra) had joined the war. We were now instructed to march southwards against the Inca Empire. We mounted our steeds and rode out from Dawasir in Jumaada I 1013 (Oct 1604), with little forknowledge of the campaign that lay ahead of us. However, after years of chasing unlicensed fur-trappers, combat with the enemy would make a welcome change and the air around us was full of dreams of victory and glory as we rode over the sparse lands of Cupica and the virtual wilderness of the Cali territory.
The forests of Cali, well beyond the pale of civilization, distant even from nearby cities like Dawasir, had never seen anything like the Battle of Cali, fought between 20,000 Sipahis and 34,000 angry Incan footsoliders. Much of the mobility edge provided by our horses was lost in the dense forest lands, and the Battle had little in the way of grand strategy, we broke our amy into strike forces of 60-120 each and advanced against specific areas of the Incan army. The thickness of the vegetation prevented any effective communication bewteen units, and each strike force did as best it could and hoped its fellow Turks were equally successful. Our strike force enjoyed great success, as we manouevered around an advancing division of heathens and fell upon them from the rear, our quarries quickly dispersed, leaving many of their compatriots dead on the field. Several hours later, the Turkish army reassembled in a large forest clearing near where Turkish traders in the territory set out on their searches for exotic goods. We discovered that victory was ours, and that the enemy was in retreat. We rode on, the most fearful part of the mission lay ahead of us, as we moved towards Incan homelands, the pagans would be in their element and we would not. Still, Colonel Antalya pressed forward and we joined him. The Incas had fallen back farther than we had thought, for we occupied the provinces of Gayanquil and Cajamarca without seeing a single Incan solider. The cities of the Incas lacked fortifications, meaning that we had only to ride through a city to claim it for Ahmed in Istanbul. Nevertheless we were wary, the rigours of the journey and combat with the Incas had severly depleted our forces, we were down to scarcely over 4,000 men as we rode into Huanaco. Then our scouts brought us hideous news--it seemed the Incas had retreated to assemble reinforcements and a stygian horde of 68,000 godless pagans was advancing from the capital province of Cuzco. Representatives from Kirrikale (Bogota) offered peace in excahnge for Gayanquil and Cajamarca to the Incan Emperor, but the heathen king refused, he had his eyes set upon Dawasir and the Cali territory. Outnumbered 17-to-1 by the advancing Incan horde, we prepared our retreat when Colonel Antalya shocked us all by telling us that we would lodge ourselves into the mountain fastness of Huanaco and make a stand against the pagan force. Many wished to desert on the spot, but the pious Antalya carried the day, asking us if God would abandon those who believe in him in favor of those who have rejected His holy word. Thus the 4,000 prepared to make our stand, wedging ourselves in the highest mountain passes we could locate and preparing for the Incan attack. The path the pagans would follow was clear, our altitude would give us an advantage, as would our superior weaponry and lightning-fast Arabian steeds, the Incas have known of horses since the arrival of Europeans, but those were lousy Spanish nags, not the purebred Arabians we Sipahis rode, and we gave oursleves what hope we could as we waited for the onslaught of the pagans. The hours seemed to tick by like decades until we finally heard the cacaphonous noise made by 68,000 advancing infantry, we turned to face our quarry and each made his peace with God, we didn't know if any of us would survive.
With muskets raised, we rained death upon the Incan advance guard as the Battle of Huanaco got underway. The pagans fell as fast as we could load our guns, but the mass of unbelievers advanced faster. With the Incas halfway up the slope to our positions, Antalya gave the order to charge, we leaped upon our mounts and gave a rousing call of "Allahu Akbar" and then we charged upon the godless masses, each expecting death but determined to take as many Incas with us as possible. It was a chaotic scence as we advanced, each of us preoccupied with the task of ensuring that each stroke of our scimitars struck down a solider of heathenism. After fighting for I know not how long, I had the luxury of surveying the larger field--we were winning. Our downhill charge had given us momentum, while the Incan formations had created human traps, as the soliders in front were pinned by those in the back as our soliders cut them to pieces. Allah had not abandoned his servants. What we had expected to be our final blaze of glory was fast becoming a route. And then it was done. Panic-striken, the rear lines of the Incas collapsed and fled, the pagan soliders abandoned thier standards and the field of battle to the Ottoman cavalry. Of the 68,000-strong Incan army, only 13,000 had escaped in disarray, while only 350 Turkish cavalrymen had met their martyrdom. We set off in hot pursuit, when our spirits were lifted further by the arrival of Lt-Colonel Rum and his reinforcments, 3,000 fresh troops. the last of the heathens were chased down in Lima, with Antlaya on their backs and Rum executing a pincer manouever that forced them into a trap. After that, only cleanup operations remained and Antalya entered Cuzco in triumph. As the stunned Incan Emperor signed over his territories to the House of Osman, he asked Antalya if he were a god. Antalya answered that he was but a humble servant of the True God and that his soliders went into battle wearing the invincible armor of Islam. Back in Kirrikale, the celebrations lasted for weeks, Ottoman America had gone from frontier land to being one of the richest lands of the globe. Yet as the heady celebrations wound to their close, our thoughts turned to our brothers in arms, how had Turkey's armies fared in the Eurasian theatre?....
No sooner had Mehmed III rose to the throne than he became deeply suspicious of Murad's divan, which had effectively governed the country for the last 20 years. Despite his lackluster mental capacities, Mehmed was determined to rule on his own, and within a year of his accession, all the members of the old divan are either exiled, imprisoned, or killed, my old incarnation, Jalal Pasha, was among the victims. I was run through in downtown Istanbul by thugs loyal to Mehmed and when I resumed consciousness with the ear-splitting headache that heralded a new incarnation, I feared I had left Turkey for good. Then the call of the muezzin reached me and I felt I was still in Turkey, which proved (sort of) correct. I was still in the Empire, but I was now Seargeant Mucip, wing commander of the American Army of the Sultan under Colonel Antalya. I now lived in the American colonies I had done so much to establish not long ago...
Before continuing, it would be wise to describe Turkish America as I found it. The very idea of Turkish America was begun in the year 979 (1572) with the establishment of Chibam in Moron. Chibam had become a city and capital of Ottoman America by 985 (1578). By 1003 (1595) Turkish America included Dawasir (Cupica), chief military staging ground and my new headquarters, the sleepy colony of Qizan (Isthmus) (pop. 213), the growing colony of Kirrikale (Bogota), and the trading territories of Cali and Mobile. By 1005 (1597), Bogota had become a city, and the largest one in Ottoman America at 3500 at that. Kirrikale was now provincial capital, but Dawasir remained headquarters of the Oujak of America, where I was now assigned. The task was dull, and my unit (20,000 Sipahis) had little to do besides chasing llama-rustlers. The bulk of the solidery wished they were back home and fantasized about fighting alongside Suleyman the Magnificent. I became very popular for relating the stories my "grandfather" had from participating in Suleyman's campaigns, and I recalled for the men over many a starlit night the epic events of Suleyman's reign: the assault on Prague, 1st and 2nd Kouban, the taking of Baghdad and Isfahan, the capture of Rome, the last stand of the Hospitallers, it was a joyous time of remembrance for myself as life in the colonies seemd dull indeed, but perhaps events would conspire to liven our lot in life.
The reign of Mehmed III came and went without any sort of distinction, the highlights were the establishment of new gold-minig colonies in Buriat (New Thrace) and Yarumal (New Kosovo). Mehmed's arrogant manner would precipitate native revolts in Buriat and Saian in Siberia and lead to the destruction of the northern expedition, who were set upon and cruelly murdered by savage natives in a land called Nippissing. Mehemd's most lasting accomplishment would be his new Naval manufacturing center in Rumelia (built 1600-02) and few lamented his death in Jumaada II 1012 (Dec 1603). Ahmed I (3/4/4)
rose to the throne and immediately showed himself to be a warmongering autocrat. His first act as Sultan was to decalre war upon England for their unconsciable embargo against Turkish merchants. At the Oujak of Dawasir, we mostly felt a sense of guilt as we twiddled our thumbs an ocean away when our sworn enemies in Hedjaz (Persia, Nubia, Uzbeks, Aden), Austria (Prussia, Saxony), Genoa (Spain), and Russia (Portugal, Algiers) joined the conflict. Our worries were alayed however, when a messenger from Kirrikale (Bogota) informed us of our marching orders: it seems that after Ferhad Pasha (4/3/3) had assaulted and captured Saxon Milan, France (Mysore, Incas, Navarra) had joined the war. We were now instructed to march southwards against the Inca Empire. We mounted our steeds and rode out from Dawasir in Jumaada I 1013 (Oct 1604), with little forknowledge of the campaign that lay ahead of us. However, after years of chasing unlicensed fur-trappers, combat with the enemy would make a welcome change and the air around us was full of dreams of victory and glory as we rode over the sparse lands of Cupica and the virtual wilderness of the Cali territory.The forests of Cali, well beyond the pale of civilization, distant even from nearby cities like Dawasir, had never seen anything like the Battle of Cali, fought between 20,000 Sipahis and 34,000 angry Incan footsoliders. Much of the mobility edge provided by our horses was lost in the dense forest lands, and the Battle had little in the way of grand strategy, we broke our amy into strike forces of 60-120 each and advanced against specific areas of the Incan army. The thickness of the vegetation prevented any effective communication bewteen units, and each strike force did as best it could and hoped its fellow Turks were equally successful. Our strike force enjoyed great success, as we manouevered around an advancing division of heathens and fell upon them from the rear, our quarries quickly dispersed, leaving many of their compatriots dead on the field. Several hours later, the Turkish army reassembled in a large forest clearing near where Turkish traders in the territory set out on their searches for exotic goods. We discovered that victory was ours, and that the enemy was in retreat. We rode on, the most fearful part of the mission lay ahead of us, as we moved towards Incan homelands, the pagans would be in their element and we would not. Still, Colonel Antalya pressed forward and we joined him. The Incas had fallen back farther than we had thought, for we occupied the provinces of Gayanquil and Cajamarca without seeing a single Incan solider. The cities of the Incas lacked fortifications, meaning that we had only to ride through a city to claim it for Ahmed in Istanbul. Nevertheless we were wary, the rigours of the journey and combat with the Incas had severly depleted our forces, we were down to scarcely over 4,000 men as we rode into Huanaco. Then our scouts brought us hideous news--it seemed the Incas had retreated to assemble reinforcements and a stygian horde of 68,000 godless pagans was advancing from the capital province of Cuzco. Representatives from Kirrikale (Bogota) offered peace in excahnge for Gayanquil and Cajamarca to the Incan Emperor, but the heathen king refused, he had his eyes set upon Dawasir and the Cali territory. Outnumbered 17-to-1 by the advancing Incan horde, we prepared our retreat when Colonel Antalya shocked us all by telling us that we would lodge ourselves into the mountain fastness of Huanaco and make a stand against the pagan force. Many wished to desert on the spot, but the pious Antalya carried the day, asking us if God would abandon those who believe in him in favor of those who have rejected His holy word. Thus the 4,000 prepared to make our stand, wedging ourselves in the highest mountain passes we could locate and preparing for the Incan attack. The path the pagans would follow was clear, our altitude would give us an advantage, as would our superior weaponry and lightning-fast Arabian steeds, the Incas have known of horses since the arrival of Europeans, but those were lousy Spanish nags, not the purebred Arabians we Sipahis rode, and we gave oursleves what hope we could as we waited for the onslaught of the pagans. The hours seemed to tick by like decades until we finally heard the cacaphonous noise made by 68,000 advancing infantry, we turned to face our quarry and each made his peace with God, we didn't know if any of us would survive.
With muskets raised, we rained death upon the Incan advance guard as the Battle of Huanaco got underway. The pagans fell as fast as we could load our guns, but the mass of unbelievers advanced faster. With the Incas halfway up the slope to our positions, Antalya gave the order to charge, we leaped upon our mounts and gave a rousing call of "Allahu Akbar" and then we charged upon the godless masses, each expecting death but determined to take as many Incas with us as possible. It was a chaotic scence as we advanced, each of us preoccupied with the task of ensuring that each stroke of our scimitars struck down a solider of heathenism. After fighting for I know not how long, I had the luxury of surveying the larger field--we were winning. Our downhill charge had given us momentum, while the Incan formations had created human traps, as the soliders in front were pinned by those in the back as our soliders cut them to pieces. Allah had not abandoned his servants. What we had expected to be our final blaze of glory was fast becoming a route. And then it was done. Panic-striken, the rear lines of the Incas collapsed and fled, the pagan soliders abandoned thier standards and the field of battle to the Ottoman cavalry. Of the 68,000-strong Incan army, only 13,000 had escaped in disarray, while only 350 Turkish cavalrymen had met their martyrdom. We set off in hot pursuit, when our spirits were lifted further by the arrival of Lt-Colonel Rum and his reinforcments, 3,000 fresh troops. the last of the heathens were chased down in Lima, with Antlaya on their backs and Rum executing a pincer manouever that forced them into a trap. After that, only cleanup operations remained and Antalya entered Cuzco in triumph. As the stunned Incan Emperor signed over his territories to the House of Osman, he asked Antalya if he were a god. Antalya answered that he was but a humble servant of the True God and that his soliders went into battle wearing the invincible armor of Islam. Back in Kirrikale, the celebrations lasted for weeks, Ottoman America had gone from frontier land to being one of the richest lands of the globe. Yet as the heady celebrations wound to their close, our thoughts turned to our brothers in arms, how had Turkey's armies fared in the Eurasian theatre?....
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The End of Ahmed's War (1604-09)
As the exhilaration of the Incan annexation died down, the Ottoman governor in Kirrikale (Bogota) reminded our units that we were still at war with other nations and that our guard must be kept up. His advice was to prove sage-like when a Spanish contingent landed in Cupica and advanced upon Dawasir. As new reinforcements were being raised, we rode out to meet the Spanish. We proceeded with great hubris after our crushing victories against the Incas, but God punished us for our pride by sending us down to defeat against the Spanish troops, who numbered only 2,000 to our 6,000. Antalya blamed himself for this deplorable failure, and led us back to the staging areas of Bogota. The Spanish force was far too small to besiege Dawasir, so the infidels contented themselves with looting the surrounding countryside. After taking time to review tactics and receive new recruits, Antalya was ready and we moved back into Cupica. This time we proceeded with caution and achieved success by luring the Spanish infantry into an open clearing where they proved no match for our Arabian steeds, the Spanish forces were utterly vanquished.
When we rode back into Kirrikale, we received news from the mainland courtesy of a company of traders who had arrived from Palermo to buy tobacco and furs in Kirrikale’s bustling markets. These traders told us the war was an immense success—Ferhad Pasha, after taking Milan, redirected his units against Austria, with the result that Styria and Vienna were both occupied by Turkish troops. An Austrian army sent to retake Styria had been repelled with heavy losses by Turkish divisions from Illyria. 2 troupes of Prussian soldiers had also been defeated by the armies of the ever-victorious Sultan. In the Islamic lands, Nubia had been forced to cede Batn Al-Hajar and was out of the war. Persia and the Uzbeks were also losing ground. The Uzbek armies had abandoned their own lands to fight alongside their Persian overlords. This was a poor strategic decision, as 53,000 Ottoman troops poured off the Steppes and into Uzbek territory. Ust Urt and Bouztachi had been occupied and Amou Daria was under siege. Uzbek forces had left the Persian front with their capital in peril, but our sources knew not the outcome of any battles between Ottoman and Uzbek armies. Our Mughal allies had come through for us, sending large armies against Persia. The Mughals had overthrown Persia’s border defenses and were moving against the Persian heartland. Ottoman forces had meanwhile captured Kars, and both Kirkuk and Basrah were under siege. General Lala Muhammad (2/2/3) was in command of Turkish forces in Persia.
We now settled in to wait and learn of further developments on the mainland, but it was not to be. For the Italian Republic of Genoa had crossed the seas and landed troops in Isthmus. We rode out to meet this menace, and Antalya once more showed his tactical skill. The Genoans were unfamiliar with the terrain, and we used this knowledge to set up an ambush from a covered grove of trees. When the Genoan troops crossed our path, we fell upon them and they were slaughtered to a man. There was no time to celebrate this victory, as Spanish troops were on the march from Mexico. We moved up to Isthmus to meet the invaders, and they were defeated after a difficult battle. Antalya then elected to deliver the knockout blow and we rode through Spain’s trading territories, torching as we went, until we arrived in Tuxpan, the capital of Spanish Mexico. Tuxpan was unfortified and thus easily taken. Meanwhile, in Cuba, 1,400 Turkish soldiers from Moron and routed 3,000 Spanish recruits in Havana, and this important Spanish city was also occupied.
After months of waiting we received word from Kirrikale to ride home—the war was over. After chroniclers searched without success for the motivation behind our starting this conflict, it comes to be known simply as Ahmed’s War (1604-09). The War was resolved for good by the Treaty of Istanbul on 16 Rajab 1018 (14 October 1609). Prior to the resolution, Ferhad Pasha had captured Genoa, while Lala Muhammad had occupied Kirkuk, Basrah, and Isfahan from Persia. 29,000 Uzbeks, under the Khan’s personal command had attempted to retake Ust Urt, but had been engaged and defeated by 33,000 Turkish troops from Astrakhan, ending serious Uzbek resistance. All of the Khanate’s lands were captured and the units that captured Merv moved on Khorasan in Persia, and this province was occupied as well. Poland elected to sit out the war entirely and Russia’s troops had been utterly baffled by the level 3 fortifications that had been raised along the Russian border, they sieged Lugansk for a time but got nowhere and eventually withdrew. By the terms of the treaty, Saxony ceded Milan, Austria surrendered Styria, Perisa ceded Basrah, Khorasan, and a cash indemnity to us, while giving Persis to the Mughals. The Uzbeks were annexed outright. The Spanish/Genoan alliance surrendered Tuxpan and all hostilities were called off for at least 5 years. Ahmed had taken to calling himself “Ahmed the Great” and staged multiple parades through Istanbul in his own honor.
The Ottoman Empire in Eurasia after Ahmed's War
The Ottoman Empire in America after Ahmed's War
As the exhilaration of the Incan annexation died down, the Ottoman governor in Kirrikale (Bogota) reminded our units that we were still at war with other nations and that our guard must be kept up. His advice was to prove sage-like when a Spanish contingent landed in Cupica and advanced upon Dawasir. As new reinforcements were being raised, we rode out to meet the Spanish. We proceeded with great hubris after our crushing victories against the Incas, but God punished us for our pride by sending us down to defeat against the Spanish troops, who numbered only 2,000 to our 6,000. Antalya blamed himself for this deplorable failure, and led us back to the staging areas of Bogota. The Spanish force was far too small to besiege Dawasir, so the infidels contented themselves with looting the surrounding countryside. After taking time to review tactics and receive new recruits, Antalya was ready and we moved back into Cupica. This time we proceeded with caution and achieved success by luring the Spanish infantry into an open clearing where they proved no match for our Arabian steeds, the Spanish forces were utterly vanquished.
When we rode back into Kirrikale, we received news from the mainland courtesy of a company of traders who had arrived from Palermo to buy tobacco and furs in Kirrikale’s bustling markets. These traders told us the war was an immense success—Ferhad Pasha, after taking Milan, redirected his units against Austria, with the result that Styria and Vienna were both occupied by Turkish troops. An Austrian army sent to retake Styria had been repelled with heavy losses by Turkish divisions from Illyria. 2 troupes of Prussian soldiers had also been defeated by the armies of the ever-victorious Sultan. In the Islamic lands, Nubia had been forced to cede Batn Al-Hajar and was out of the war. Persia and the Uzbeks were also losing ground. The Uzbek armies had abandoned their own lands to fight alongside their Persian overlords. This was a poor strategic decision, as 53,000 Ottoman troops poured off the Steppes and into Uzbek territory. Ust Urt and Bouztachi had been occupied and Amou Daria was under siege. Uzbek forces had left the Persian front with their capital in peril, but our sources knew not the outcome of any battles between Ottoman and Uzbek armies. Our Mughal allies had come through for us, sending large armies against Persia. The Mughals had overthrown Persia’s border defenses and were moving against the Persian heartland. Ottoman forces had meanwhile captured Kars, and both Kirkuk and Basrah were under siege. General Lala Muhammad (2/2/3) was in command of Turkish forces in Persia.
We now settled in to wait and learn of further developments on the mainland, but it was not to be. For the Italian Republic of Genoa had crossed the seas and landed troops in Isthmus. We rode out to meet this menace, and Antalya once more showed his tactical skill. The Genoans were unfamiliar with the terrain, and we used this knowledge to set up an ambush from a covered grove of trees. When the Genoan troops crossed our path, we fell upon them and they were slaughtered to a man. There was no time to celebrate this victory, as Spanish troops were on the march from Mexico. We moved up to Isthmus to meet the invaders, and they were defeated after a difficult battle. Antalya then elected to deliver the knockout blow and we rode through Spain’s trading territories, torching as we went, until we arrived in Tuxpan, the capital of Spanish Mexico. Tuxpan was unfortified and thus easily taken. Meanwhile, in Cuba, 1,400 Turkish soldiers from Moron and routed 3,000 Spanish recruits in Havana, and this important Spanish city was also occupied.
After months of waiting we received word from Kirrikale to ride home—the war was over. After chroniclers searched without success for the motivation behind our starting this conflict, it comes to be known simply as Ahmed’s War (1604-09). The War was resolved for good by the Treaty of Istanbul on 16 Rajab 1018 (14 October 1609). Prior to the resolution, Ferhad Pasha had captured Genoa, while Lala Muhammad had occupied Kirkuk, Basrah, and Isfahan from Persia. 29,000 Uzbeks, under the Khan’s personal command had attempted to retake Ust Urt, but had been engaged and defeated by 33,000 Turkish troops from Astrakhan, ending serious Uzbek resistance. All of the Khanate’s lands were captured and the units that captured Merv moved on Khorasan in Persia, and this province was occupied as well. Poland elected to sit out the war entirely and Russia’s troops had been utterly baffled by the level 3 fortifications that had been raised along the Russian border, they sieged Lugansk for a time but got nowhere and eventually withdrew. By the terms of the treaty, Saxony ceded Milan, Austria surrendered Styria, Perisa ceded Basrah, Khorasan, and a cash indemnity to us, while giving Persis to the Mughals. The Uzbeks were annexed outright. The Spanish/Genoan alliance surrendered Tuxpan and all hostilities were called off for at least 5 years. Ahmed had taken to calling himself “Ahmed the Great” and staged multiple parades through Istanbul in his own honor.
The Ottoman Empire in Eurasia after Ahmed's War
The Ottoman Empire in America after Ahmed's War
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We Have Met the Enemy, and it is us
The merchants coursing through Kirrikale brought some interesting news—Savoy had successfully revolted from France and our Muslim brothers in Kazan had regained after the fall of the Russian government. Sadly, Russia had wasted little time in re-annexing Kazan, and our hearts went out to our brothers in faith. As the war came to its close, life in the colonies once again became lethargic, the government heavily favored Siberia over America in colonial terms, and while Saian became a city and the line of trade territories was extended further eastward, Istanbul exhibited a preference for sending missionaries rather than colonizers. These missionaries reported high success rates in the rural lands once belonging to the Incas, but the larger cities remained unrepentant of their heathen ways. Another favored area was the desert regions of east Arabia, where the colony of Quattar (Doha) was upgraded to the status of a full province in 1020 (1611). In Shawaal 1021 (Decmber 1612), the colony of Isparta was established in Mobile, the first real colonial venture in America in many years.
Sultan Ahmed continued to thrive on the glories of his conquests and he was bathed in a more radiant light still when the Pashas regulating internal affairs discovered the ability to build goods manufactories (level 6 infra). 2 of these buildings were immediately commissioned in Karakum and Kirrikale (Bogota). Ahmed’s diplomatic intrigues paid dividends with the vassalization of the Hafsid Empire in Safar 1023 (April 1614). Tragically, Ferhad Pasha, leader of Ottoman forces in Europe during Ahmed’s War, was killed in a hunting accident that same month. Shortly afterwards, illness would claim the life of my present incarnation and I moved once more to Istanbul, I was now proprietor of a well-known restaurant, out of power but in a wondrous position to hear all the rumors making the rounds in Istanbul. Sultan Ahmed was pushing his image as “Ahmed the Great” clear up to his death in Thaw al-Qidah 1026 (Nov 1617). Events that followed left many people desirous of the glory days of Ahmed.
No sooner was Ahmed buried than a group of corrupt eunuchs had placed the imbecile Mustafa I (1/1/2) on the throne. The best thing that can be said about Mustafa’s reign was that it was short, for not 2 months later a counter-coup led by the army had placed Osman II (6/6/7) on the throne. Osman proved a wise and beneficient ruler. Buriat was uprgraded to a city and the colony of New Hellas was established in Kalar during his first year as Sultan. Under Osman, new methods of smelting metals allowed the construction of weapons manufactories and the first of these was built in Bulgaria. Osman’s skillful diplomacy led to Oman’s acceptance of vassalage on 7 Thaw al-Qidah 1030 (23 Sep 1621). The most interesting event on the international scene was Austria’s incorporation of her Saxon vassals. Sadly, Osman, always a sickly man, was felled by disease after only 4 years of rule. The eunuchs reinstalled Mustafa, who was as imbecilic as ever. For over a year, the eunuchs and their partners in corruption ruinously abused their positions in power, plunging the empire’s internal affairs into chaos. Then, on 5 Shawaal 1032 (2 Aug 1623), yet another countercoup put Murad IV (5/7/7) on the throne. Murad immediately announced a crackdown on the eunuchs. Most of the people vigorously supported Murad’s radical reforms, but the eunuchs and their connected special interests raised the standard of revolt, and they used their ill-gotten gains to recruit all manner of ruffians to their cause. The First Civil War had begun…
The First Civil War consumed all the attention of the Ottoman government from 1032-35 (1623-26). The eunuchs and their supporters sponsored countless revolts and it was sometimes difficult to find enough government troops to deal with all the revolters. Murad kept his cool throughout these turbulent years and persistently refused every peace offer made by the eunuchs. The Civil War would in many ways be more destructive than any of the external wars the Empire has fought over the years. The refineries in Kaffa, Crete, and Luca, as well as the weapons manufactory in Bulgaria were all destroyed in the fighting, leaving the economy considerably poorer than it had been before the outbreak of hostilities. Finally, late in 1035 (1626), the last rebel stronghold in Socotra was stormed and captured. Murad showed no mercy to the eunuchs and their supporters, and these traitors to the Empire were executed without the hope of clemency. As Murad began to reign on his own, he found his kingdom near bankruptcy, his army weakened and demoralized by years of fighting with their neighbors and brothers, and his people wondering what would become of the glorious Pax Ottomanica the realm had once enjoyed….
The merchants coursing through Kirrikale brought some interesting news—Savoy had successfully revolted from France and our Muslim brothers in Kazan had regained after the fall of the Russian government. Sadly, Russia had wasted little time in re-annexing Kazan, and our hearts went out to our brothers in faith. As the war came to its close, life in the colonies once again became lethargic, the government heavily favored Siberia over America in colonial terms, and while Saian became a city and the line of trade territories was extended further eastward, Istanbul exhibited a preference for sending missionaries rather than colonizers. These missionaries reported high success rates in the rural lands once belonging to the Incas, but the larger cities remained unrepentant of their heathen ways. Another favored area was the desert regions of east Arabia, where the colony of Quattar (Doha) was upgraded to the status of a full province in 1020 (1611). In Shawaal 1021 (Decmber 1612), the colony of Isparta was established in Mobile, the first real colonial venture in America in many years.
Sultan Ahmed continued to thrive on the glories of his conquests and he was bathed in a more radiant light still when the Pashas regulating internal affairs discovered the ability to build goods manufactories (level 6 infra). 2 of these buildings were immediately commissioned in Karakum and Kirrikale (Bogota). Ahmed’s diplomatic intrigues paid dividends with the vassalization of the Hafsid Empire in Safar 1023 (April 1614). Tragically, Ferhad Pasha, leader of Ottoman forces in Europe during Ahmed’s War, was killed in a hunting accident that same month. Shortly afterwards, illness would claim the life of my present incarnation and I moved once more to Istanbul, I was now proprietor of a well-known restaurant, out of power but in a wondrous position to hear all the rumors making the rounds in Istanbul. Sultan Ahmed was pushing his image as “Ahmed the Great” clear up to his death in Thaw al-Qidah 1026 (Nov 1617). Events that followed left many people desirous of the glory days of Ahmed.
No sooner was Ahmed buried than a group of corrupt eunuchs had placed the imbecile Mustafa I (1/1/2) on the throne. The best thing that can be said about Mustafa’s reign was that it was short, for not 2 months later a counter-coup led by the army had placed Osman II (6/6/7) on the throne. Osman proved a wise and beneficient ruler. Buriat was uprgraded to a city and the colony of New Hellas was established in Kalar during his first year as Sultan. Under Osman, new methods of smelting metals allowed the construction of weapons manufactories and the first of these was built in Bulgaria. Osman’s skillful diplomacy led to Oman’s acceptance of vassalage on 7 Thaw al-Qidah 1030 (23 Sep 1621). The most interesting event on the international scene was Austria’s incorporation of her Saxon vassals. Sadly, Osman, always a sickly man, was felled by disease after only 4 years of rule. The eunuchs reinstalled Mustafa, who was as imbecilic as ever. For over a year, the eunuchs and their partners in corruption ruinously abused their positions in power, plunging the empire’s internal affairs into chaos. Then, on 5 Shawaal 1032 (2 Aug 1623), yet another countercoup put Murad IV (5/7/7) on the throne. Murad immediately announced a crackdown on the eunuchs. Most of the people vigorously supported Murad’s radical reforms, but the eunuchs and their connected special interests raised the standard of revolt, and they used their ill-gotten gains to recruit all manner of ruffians to their cause. The First Civil War had begun…
The First Civil War consumed all the attention of the Ottoman government from 1032-35 (1623-26). The eunuchs and their supporters sponsored countless revolts and it was sometimes difficult to find enough government troops to deal with all the revolters. Murad kept his cool throughout these turbulent years and persistently refused every peace offer made by the eunuchs. The Civil War would in many ways be more destructive than any of the external wars the Empire has fought over the years. The refineries in Kaffa, Crete, and Luca, as well as the weapons manufactory in Bulgaria were all destroyed in the fighting, leaving the economy considerably poorer than it had been before the outbreak of hostilities. Finally, late in 1035 (1626), the last rebel stronghold in Socotra was stormed and captured. Murad showed no mercy to the eunuchs and their supporters, and these traitors to the Empire were executed without the hope of clemency. As Murad began to reign on his own, he found his kingdom near bankruptcy, his army weakened and demoralized by years of fighting with their neighbors and brothers, and his people wondering what would become of the glorious Pax Ottomanica the realm had once enjoyed….
Good update, so you are suffering from rebelions, well that is not weird seeing your Empire, still there is more land to be conquered so just keep it going, at least then you will be able to turn your attention away from the rebels
The Wars of Murad IV (1632-36)
As the Civil War died away, the process of rebuilding began. The lost manufactories were all immediately ordered rebuilt (I make about 800D/yr ) and the number of government troops was increased back to its prewar levels. Despite the war’s end, the land is not yet at peace, as bitter memories linger in the people’s imagination. The people desperately need something to remind them of their collective Ottoman identity. After mulling the matter over with his Divan, Murad comes up with his plan to reunify the nation—conquer other peoples’ lands. Murad himself (3/3/3/1) is the best general in the Imperial army, and he assumes command of Ottoman troops stationed in Moldavia. Preparations are begun, and Wars of the Boundary begin with Murad using a border dispute with the Habsburg Emperor of Vienna as a pretext. As expected, the Empire’s neighbors all join the fray, hoping Ottoman troops will be tied down with Austria. Murad and his Janissaries move against Poland however, and the provinces of Podolia, Chernigov, and Pripet and under Turkish occupation by year’s end. On the Austrian front, the Habsburgs took advantage of Ottoman preoccupation elsewhere to capture their former territory in Styria. Only after Styria’s fall were Murad’s troops rerouted to the Austrian front, where Murad enjoyed fantastic success yet again, pushing through Pressburg and Odeburg to reach the gates of Vienna itself. The siege of Vienna was a difficult affair, made no easier by harassment from Austrian and Hannoveran forces. But Murad’s determination pays off yet again and Vienna falls to the Janissaries in Muharram 1044 (July 1634).
Elsewhere, Turkish armies were also advancing against her enemies. In America, raiding parties from Mobile ransack and burn Spanish and French trade stations in the nearby territories of Florida and Louisiana, prompting white peace agreements with these enemies. 29,000 Ottoman Sipahis from Tuxpan rode out against the Hordes of the Aztec Empire during these same years, hoping to achieve glory much as Antalya’s forces had done against the Incas. The Aztecs proved as pathetic in war as their pagan compatriots, and even though the odds were only 3-to-1 against the Ottomans this time, the result was the same and the Aztec armies were humiliated in battle, prompting the total surrender of these lands. Persia faced a 2-fornt Ottoman assault, with attacks coming from the direction of Basrah in the south and Khorasan in the north. The Persians had scarcely any troops fit for combat with complete Ottoman victory the inevitable result. Isfahan was captured and occupied by Thaw al-Qi'dah 1044 (May 1635).
A new front opens in the Wars of the Boundary, as Algiers enters the war against the Turkish territories in the former lands of the Hafsid Empire (who agreed to incorporation into the Ottoman Empire back in 1036/1627). Turkish engineers had erected gigantic fortifications in Tunisia, and this move paid off handsomely, as over 85,000 Algerians would die of heat and starvation outside the walls during a fruitless 14-month siege. Ottoman forces would finally meet and rout the remaining Algerians in Rajab 1045 (Jan 1636), and an additional battle was won by the Janissaries in Kabylia a month later. Algiers was forced to sign a white peace and the our main rivals in the West lost immense prestige from the their humiliatingly poor performance in this war. After 4 long years of war, hostilities were ended across the board by the Treaty of Laibach of 27 Shawaal 1045 (4 April 1636). By the terms of the treaty, the Austrians ceded Pressburg and Odeburg to Turkey, Persia lost Lut, Elbruz, and Kirkuk to the Ottomans, and the lands of the Aztec Empire were completely annexed into the Turkish Empire. Murad returned to Istanbul in triumph and the victorious wars had done much to heal the rift left by the Civil War. Murad settled down to govern the Empire in peace, and would expand it peaceably in 1047 (1637), when the nation of Oman accepted a peaceful union with Turkey. Murad’s dreams of peace would sadly not be fulfilled, as the Mughal Empire, watching the utter sadness of Persia’s military forces, declared a war of their own in Thaw al-Qi'dah 1047 (April 1638), asking for Ottoman support. Murad stood by his allies, and the country was once again at war with Persia….
As the Civil War died away, the process of rebuilding began. The lost manufactories were all immediately ordered rebuilt (I make about 800D/yr
) and the number of government troops was increased back to its prewar levels. Despite the war’s end, the land is not yet at peace, as bitter memories linger in the people’s imagination. The people desperately need something to remind them of their collective Ottoman identity. After mulling the matter over with his Divan, Murad comes up with his plan to reunify the nation—conquer other peoples’ lands. Murad himself (3/3/3/1) is the best general in the Imperial army, and he assumes command of Ottoman troops stationed in Moldavia. Preparations are begun, and Wars of the Boundary begin with Murad using a border dispute with the Habsburg Emperor of Vienna as a pretext. As expected, the Empire’s neighbors all join the fray, hoping Ottoman troops will be tied down with Austria. Murad and his Janissaries move against Poland however, and the provinces of Podolia, Chernigov, and Pripet and under Turkish occupation by year’s end. On the Austrian front, the Habsburgs took advantage of Ottoman preoccupation elsewhere to capture their former territory in Styria. Only after Styria’s fall were Murad’s troops rerouted to the Austrian front, where Murad enjoyed fantastic success yet again, pushing through Pressburg and Odeburg to reach the gates of Vienna itself. The siege of Vienna was a difficult affair, made no easier by harassment from Austrian and Hannoveran forces. But Murad’s determination pays off yet again and Vienna falls to the Janissaries in Muharram 1044 (July 1634). Elsewhere, Turkish armies were also advancing against her enemies. In America, raiding parties from Mobile ransack and burn Spanish and French trade stations in the nearby territories of Florida and Louisiana, prompting white peace agreements with these enemies. 29,000 Ottoman Sipahis from Tuxpan rode out against the Hordes of the Aztec Empire during these same years, hoping to achieve glory much as Antalya’s forces had done against the Incas. The Aztecs proved as pathetic in war as their pagan compatriots, and even though the odds were only 3-to-1 against the Ottomans this time, the result was the same and the Aztec armies were humiliated in battle, prompting the total surrender of these lands. Persia faced a 2-fornt Ottoman assault, with attacks coming from the direction of Basrah in the south and Khorasan in the north. The Persians had scarcely any troops fit for combat with complete Ottoman victory the inevitable result. Isfahan was captured and occupied by Thaw al-Qi'dah 1044 (May 1635).
A new front opens in the Wars of the Boundary, as Algiers enters the war against the Turkish territories in the former lands of the Hafsid Empire (who agreed to incorporation into the Ottoman Empire back in 1036/1627). Turkish engineers had erected gigantic fortifications in Tunisia, and this move paid off handsomely, as over 85,000 Algerians would die of heat and starvation outside the walls during a fruitless 14-month siege. Ottoman forces would finally meet and rout the remaining Algerians in Rajab 1045 (Jan 1636), and an additional battle was won by the Janissaries in Kabylia a month later. Algiers was forced to sign a white peace and the our main rivals in the West lost immense prestige from the their humiliatingly poor performance in this war. After 4 long years of war, hostilities were ended across the board by the Treaty of Laibach of 27 Shawaal 1045 (4 April 1636). By the terms of the treaty, the Austrians ceded Pressburg and Odeburg to Turkey, Persia lost Lut, Elbruz, and Kirkuk to the Ottomans, and the lands of the Aztec Empire were completely annexed into the Turkish Empire. Murad returned to Istanbul in triumph and the victorious wars had done much to heal the rift left by the Civil War. Murad settled down to govern the Empire in peace, and would expand it peaceably in 1047 (1637), when the nation of Oman accepted a peaceful union with Turkey. Murad’s dreams of peace would sadly not be fulfilled, as the Mughal Empire, watching the utter sadness of Persia’s military forces, declared a war of their own in Thaw al-Qi'dah 1047 (April 1638), asking for Ottoman support. Murad stood by his allies, and the country was once again at war with Persia….
Persia just can't seem to stay at peace very well, does it?
Go smash 'em. Why not opt for annexation this time?
Go smash 'em. Why not opt for annexation this time?
Ok, I am all caught up now. Rampant expansion is a glorious thing to see, especially by you Zach. You are normally more conservative! :rofl:
Keep it up and Ottoman global domination will be yours!
Keep it up and Ottoman global domination will be yours!
War Without End (1638-56)
The war forced upon the Ottoman Empire by its reckless Indian allies quickly comes to be known as the Endless War (1638-46). The actual situation was nothing that the Empire had not survived before; rather it was yet another war following hot on the heels of previous wars that drove many in society over the edge. Many came through my establishment in Istanbul, their faces marked by grave uncertainty—who were our enemies now, and where was the government going to find the troops to fight on all its fronts. What had it all been for, asked those who had fathers, grandfathers, uncles, brothers, cousins, involved in the Empire’s wars. Where was the Pax Ottomanica the Sultans had promised would result from their wars of conquest? I of course, had no answers to give them. Reports form the Porte were bad, Murad IV, whose vigorous leadership had purged the Empire of many of its most corrupt elements and won great fame for himself and his people during his first 15 years in office, was gravely ill. The last two years of his life were spent in dire uncertainty, and when he finally died in 1050 (1640), the throne passed to yet another incompetent, Ibrahim I (2/2/3). The Mughals had chosen their moment well, as Persia had literally nothing to throw at us, and their cities were soon once more occupied by foreign troops. The Mughals took the province of Hamad for their trouble, while we fought on until the Persian Sultan had not a single territory under his control. With his realm in a literally hopeless situation, the Shah had no alternative but to surrender Tabriz, Kerman, and Awhaz to the Ottomans. Their Nubian allies fared little better, and at war’s end, the Nubian king held only his capital province—Masawa and Bisharin had been lost to Ottoman armies.
Naturally, the Europeans joined the war against us with their usual ineptitude. We cut our way through Spanish America while crushing their Polish allies at the Battle of Kiev, but Poland was saved yet again through Spanish generosity, as the Spanish parted with Nicaragua and Mosquitos, 2 colonial possessions the Spanish had built into thriving cities, the gift was most appreciated. The war was lengthened when Helvetia and their ally Baden entered the fray in 1053 (1643) and immediately marched southward with 120,000 troops between them. Ibrahim prepared to surrender all, but mercifully his generals in the field were more level headed. They withdrew their forces to Mantua, leaving the Swiss-Badenite horde to deplete itself through attrition down to a manageable size before they fell upon and annihilated the infidel forces. Ibrahim danced through the Seraglio and personally counted all the gold the Swiss were forced to pay to continue their sovereignty. The most intractable foe of all these late-comers was Algeirs, the leaders of which nation openly challenged the Ottomans for superiority of Islam. This challenge was answered with force, and Turkish armies plowed through Algiers, determined to either take 3 provinces and teach the blighters a lesson or shallow them whole. Turkish siege forces had just 3 provinces left when the Bedouin Oligarchs acknowledged defeat and surrendered Kabylia, Orania, and Atlas.
Colonization had continued apace despite the ravages of war, and the Turks had reached the eastward limits of possible expansion in Siberia, coming head to head with an extensive network of Mughal trading stations. In these years, the Siberian “quadrangle cities” of New Macedonia (Nerchiinsk), New Trabzon (Nagorje), New Sivas (Ekimcan), and New Kerch (Khretset) were founded. In the Americas, the natives of New Kosovo (Yarumal) revolted and did great damage to the settlement there. Word spread around Istanbul that the scorched-earth policies of the army led to the death or eviction of all natives in the province. The years after the Peace of 1056 (1646) were tense, and it was common knowledge that corruption had once again seeped into the Sublime Porte. A new Civil War could be touched off at any moment. The death of the hapless Ibrahim and his succession by Mehmed IV (5/4/6) provided just such a spark, as Mehmed announced a fresh wave of anti-corruption measures. The crooked officers once more retired to their barricades, and the Second Civil War (1648-56) was underway. The second war proceeded in the much the same fashion as the first, with loyal government troops fighting numerous battles agsinst the rag-tag armies of the crooked officials. These nests of corruption were slowly and methodically tracked down, but more worrisome were nationalistic revolts that occurred in several provinces, leading to disaster when rebels in Egypt elected a new Mamluk Sultan and proclaimed independence with the provinces of Egypt, Alexandria, and Delta under rebel control. Forces stationed in nearby Lebanon were called out to crush the rebels, and those brave and loyal men fearlessly crossed the Sinai to conduct their blitz campaign against the hastily trained rebel army, which gave way before the hardened Janissaries in one engagement after another. Within a year of their declaration of independence, the Second Mamluk Sultanate met the same fate as the first. Sadly, Europe thought it saw weakness yet again and entered another anti-Ottoman mega-war. These Europeans were dealt with post-haste by units of Mad Assaulters, and soon the Europeans were dropping out as quickly as they had entered, with Austria ceding Tyrol and Poland giving up Podolia. Spain lost another colonial possession in the Americas, the gold-mine of Saltillo, which the idiotic Spaniards had built only a trading station on. Persia entered the war as well and was soon deprived of Balucht. Mehemd settles down to govern feeling somewhat like Alexander. Are there other worlds left for the Ottomans to conquer?
The war forced upon the Ottoman Empire by its reckless Indian allies quickly comes to be known as the Endless War (1638-46). The actual situation was nothing that the Empire had not survived before; rather it was yet another war following hot on the heels of previous wars that drove many in society over the edge. Many came through my establishment in Istanbul, their faces marked by grave uncertainty—who were our enemies now, and where was the government going to find the troops to fight on all its fronts. What had it all been for, asked those who had fathers, grandfathers, uncles, brothers, cousins, involved in the Empire’s wars. Where was the Pax Ottomanica the Sultans had promised would result from their wars of conquest? I of course, had no answers to give them. Reports form the Porte were bad, Murad IV, whose vigorous leadership had purged the Empire of many of its most corrupt elements and won great fame for himself and his people during his first 15 years in office, was gravely ill. The last two years of his life were spent in dire uncertainty, and when he finally died in 1050 (1640), the throne passed to yet another incompetent, Ibrahim I (2/2/3). The Mughals had chosen their moment well, as Persia had literally nothing to throw at us, and their cities were soon once more occupied by foreign troops. The Mughals took the province of Hamad for their trouble, while we fought on until the Persian Sultan had not a single territory under his control. With his realm in a literally hopeless situation, the Shah had no alternative but to surrender Tabriz, Kerman, and Awhaz to the Ottomans. Their Nubian allies fared little better, and at war’s end, the Nubian king held only his capital province—Masawa and Bisharin had been lost to Ottoman armies.
Naturally, the Europeans joined the war against us with their usual ineptitude. We cut our way through Spanish America while crushing their Polish allies at the Battle of Kiev, but Poland was saved yet again through Spanish generosity, as the Spanish parted with Nicaragua and Mosquitos, 2 colonial possessions the Spanish had built into thriving cities, the gift was most appreciated. The war was lengthened when Helvetia and their ally Baden entered the fray in 1053 (1643) and immediately marched southward with 120,000 troops between them. Ibrahim prepared to surrender all, but mercifully his generals in the field were more level headed. They withdrew their forces to Mantua, leaving the Swiss-Badenite horde to deplete itself through attrition down to a manageable size before they fell upon and annihilated the infidel forces. Ibrahim danced through the Seraglio and personally counted all the gold the Swiss were forced to pay to continue their sovereignty. The most intractable foe of all these late-comers was Algeirs, the leaders of which nation openly challenged the Ottomans for superiority of Islam. This challenge was answered with force, and Turkish armies plowed through Algiers, determined to either take 3 provinces and teach the blighters a lesson or shallow them whole. Turkish siege forces had just 3 provinces left when the Bedouin Oligarchs acknowledged defeat and surrendered Kabylia, Orania, and Atlas.
Colonization had continued apace despite the ravages of war, and the Turks had reached the eastward limits of possible expansion in Siberia, coming head to head with an extensive network of Mughal trading stations. In these years, the Siberian “quadrangle cities” of New Macedonia (Nerchiinsk), New Trabzon (Nagorje), New Sivas (Ekimcan), and New Kerch (Khretset) were founded. In the Americas, the natives of New Kosovo (Yarumal) revolted and did great damage to the settlement there. Word spread around Istanbul that the scorched-earth policies of the army led to the death or eviction of all natives in the province. The years after the Peace of 1056 (1646) were tense, and it was common knowledge that corruption had once again seeped into the Sublime Porte. A new Civil War could be touched off at any moment. The death of the hapless Ibrahim and his succession by Mehmed IV (5/4/6) provided just such a spark, as Mehmed announced a fresh wave of anti-corruption measures. The crooked officers once more retired to their barricades, and the Second Civil War (1648-56) was underway. The second war proceeded in the much the same fashion as the first, with loyal government troops fighting numerous battles agsinst the rag-tag armies of the crooked officials. These nests of corruption were slowly and methodically tracked down, but more worrisome were nationalistic revolts that occurred in several provinces, leading to disaster when rebels in Egypt elected a new Mamluk Sultan and proclaimed independence with the provinces of Egypt, Alexandria, and Delta under rebel control. Forces stationed in nearby Lebanon were called out to crush the rebels, and those brave and loyal men fearlessly crossed the Sinai to conduct their blitz campaign against the hastily trained rebel army, which gave way before the hardened Janissaries in one engagement after another. Within a year of their declaration of independence, the Second Mamluk Sultanate met the same fate as the first. Sadly, Europe thought it saw weakness yet again and entered another anti-Ottoman mega-war. These Europeans were dealt with post-haste by units of Mad Assaulters, and soon the Europeans were dropping out as quickly as they had entered, with Austria ceding Tyrol and Poland giving up Podolia. Spain lost another colonial possession in the Americas, the gold-mine of Saltillo, which the idiotic Spaniards had built only a trading station on. Persia entered the war as well and was soon deprived of Balucht. Mehemd settles down to govern feeling somewhat like Alexander. Are there other worlds left for the Ottomans to conquer?
The Reign of Mehmed IV, the Builder (1656-88)
Civil Wars are just bad news. I learned that the hard way in the final days of the Second Civil War. I was tending my premises in Istanbul when thugs associated with the party of the corrupt officials launched a desperate daylight raid, I was caught in the violence and killed. 4 years later, in Jumaada II 1070 (1660), I lived again as Bayram Pasha, Grand Vizier and de facto head of state, as Mehmed IV had developed a passion for hunting, particularly gleeing in releasing captured rebels into an enclosure so that he and his debauched entourage could hunt them down. As Mehemd's gifts as an administrator were largely lacking anyway, I happily settled down to my new task. I had been privvy to the High Counicls of the Ottoman government across 2 centuries and several incarnations, but this was my first tour of duty as ruler. I made industrial development the hallmark of my policy, and ordered the construction of a naval goods manufactory in the province of Delta as my first act. By 1072 (1662), the new manufactory was up and running and provincial income had substantially increased. The Empire's wealth was immense, and I maximized this wealth for development of industry, building additional naval goods factories in Georgia and Lebanon, weapons factories in Orenburg and Kirkuk, refineries in Tuxpan and Naples, and consumer goods factories in Aleppo and Anatolia. This spate of construction earned the profligate Mehmed the honorific title "Mehemd the Builder." I smirked every time I read or heard this epithet used, as I was unsure if Mehemd even knew of the building projects we had completed. I gave reports to him biweekly at one of his various hunting lodges scattered throughout Thrace and he seemed interested only when troop movements were discussed. Of these, there were comparitively few, as a nation would have to be foolhardy indeed to attempt a strike at the Empire.
In foreign policy, I continued the policy of expansion so dear to the House of Osman, but elected to due so by diplomatic rather than military means. My first major coup was the vassalization of the Hedjaz, which was announced in the Holy month of Rammadan in the year 1076 (1666). 11 years later, in Rammadan 1087 (1677), the Kingdom of Hedjaz was peacefully annexed into the Ottoman Empire. A few months later, in Shabaan 1088 (Oct 1677), the Sultanate of Aden would also enter into a relation of vassalage with the Ottoman Empire.
Meanwhile, my policy of industrialization reached its greatest fruits in Rajab 1088 (Sep 1677) when the Ottoman Infrastructure Research Office announced that further advancements in infrastructure were simply not possible (max infra tech, to give you some idea of my research priorities). The next several years were spent ingratiating ourselves with the ruling classes in Aden, hoping to secure a second diplomatic annexation in southern Arabia. Sadly, the death of Mehemed IV in a hunting accident in Muharram 1099 (1687) left my position and hence my policies up in the air. The new Sultan, Suleyman II (3/3/4) is even less competent than his predecessor. After my first meeting with second Suleyman I marvel that the Empire has done so well over the past century despite a long string of worthless monarchs and 2 Civil Wars. Truly, this land must be favored by God. Suleyman disagrees with my policy of peaceful expansion, and appoints Koprolo Mustafa Zade (4/2/3) as his top general in preparation for new wars of conquest. I manage to persuade Suleyman to remain outwardly peaceful long enough to quietly absord the Sultanate of Aden, which agreed to permanent union with the Ottoman Empire on 15 Shawaal 1099 (12 Aug 1688). Beyond that, Suleyman would not be restrained, and war was declared upon Persia in Rabay I 1100 (Jan 1689), Suleyman vows this would be the Empire's last war with the Persians...
Civil Wars are just bad news. I learned that the hard way in the final days of the Second Civil War. I was tending my premises in Istanbul when thugs associated with the party of the corrupt officials launched a desperate daylight raid, I was caught in the violence and killed. 4 years later, in Jumaada II 1070 (1660), I lived again as Bayram Pasha, Grand Vizier and de facto head of state, as Mehmed IV had developed a passion for hunting, particularly gleeing in releasing captured rebels into an enclosure so that he and his debauched entourage could hunt them down. As Mehemd's gifts as an administrator were largely lacking anyway, I happily settled down to my new task. I had been privvy to the High Counicls of the Ottoman government across 2 centuries and several incarnations, but this was my first tour of duty as ruler. I made industrial development the hallmark of my policy, and ordered the construction of a naval goods manufactory in the province of Delta as my first act. By 1072 (1662), the new manufactory was up and running and provincial income had substantially increased. The Empire's wealth was immense, and I maximized this wealth for development of industry, building additional naval goods factories in Georgia and Lebanon, weapons factories in Orenburg and Kirkuk, refineries in Tuxpan and Naples, and consumer goods factories in Aleppo and Anatolia. This spate of construction earned the profligate Mehmed the honorific title "Mehemd the Builder." I smirked every time I read or heard this epithet used, as I was unsure if Mehemd even knew of the building projects we had completed. I gave reports to him biweekly at one of his various hunting lodges scattered throughout Thrace and he seemed interested only when troop movements were discussed. Of these, there were comparitively few, as a nation would have to be foolhardy indeed to attempt a strike at the Empire.
In foreign policy, I continued the policy of expansion so dear to the House of Osman, but elected to due so by diplomatic rather than military means. My first major coup was the vassalization of the Hedjaz, which was announced in the Holy month of Rammadan in the year 1076 (1666). 11 years later, in Rammadan 1087 (1677), the Kingdom of Hedjaz was peacefully annexed into the Ottoman Empire. A few months later, in Shabaan 1088 (Oct 1677), the Sultanate of Aden would also enter into a relation of vassalage with the Ottoman Empire.
Meanwhile, my policy of industrialization reached its greatest fruits in Rajab 1088 (Sep 1677) when the Ottoman Infrastructure Research Office announced that further advancements in infrastructure were simply not possible (max infra tech, to give you some idea of my research priorities). The next several years were spent ingratiating ourselves with the ruling classes in Aden, hoping to secure a second diplomatic annexation in southern Arabia. Sadly, the death of Mehemed IV in a hunting accident in Muharram 1099 (1687) left my position and hence my policies up in the air. The new Sultan, Suleyman II (3/3/4) is even less competent than his predecessor. After my first meeting with second Suleyman I marvel that the Empire has done so well over the past century despite a long string of worthless monarchs and 2 Civil Wars. Truly, this land must be favored by God. Suleyman disagrees with my policy of peaceful expansion, and appoints Koprolo Mustafa Zade (4/2/3) as his top general in preparation for new wars of conquest. I manage to persuade Suleyman to remain outwardly peaceful long enough to quietly absord the Sultanate of Aden, which agreed to permanent union with the Ottoman Empire on 15 Shawaal 1099 (12 Aug 1688). Beyond that, Suleyman would not be restrained, and war was declared upon Persia in Rabay I 1100 (Jan 1689), Suleyman vows this would be the Empire's last war with the Persians...
The Great War (1689-96), Part 1
War having been declared, our forces were mobilized towards Kars, which had the only Persian army we could observe. Sadly these 11,000 Persians were faster than our troops and soon began pillaging their way through the Caucasus and towards Siberia. As our territories in Siberia were frequently little more than trade stations, we immediately send the closest army we can find, 25,000 men patrolling Amou Daria, to intercept the Persians. The Persians are cornered in Alga, but the long march had severely damaged morale, and the Persians scored victory at Alga. Fortunately, the Persian army, now down to 4,000, elected to remain in Alga rather than press on. This allowed our armies to regroup and return to Alga and inflict defeat upon the Persians. 2nd Alga was the last of the Persian army and only the sieges were left. Sadly, Persia had erected large fortresses in Kars, Isfahan, and Hormouz, and patience was required for the troops as they settled down in Kars and Hormouz for the siege. As these sieges proceeded, the usual mountainous waves of badboy declarations arrived in Istanbul. Nubia was among the first states to declare war upon us, this seemed unwise as they had 3,000 troops only stationed in their capital and only remaining province, while 25,000 Ottomans waited threateningly nearby. I predicted annexation in short order when conferring with the Sultan, and sure enough, our field commanders sent Nubia’s seals of state to the Seraglio by messenger within a space of just three months.
Elsewhere, border skirmishes between small forces occupied us in Poland, while France and Savoy entered Turkish Italy with more than 130,000 troops. Waiting tactics were deployed against the Franco-Savoyards, even though it meant much hardship for the citizenry of the border zone. Ethiopia took advantage of the war against us to invade our fledging city in Mogadiscio, which had surrendered by the time Ottoman troops arrived in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian campaign was a brutal affair. Though Ethiopia’s army was so hopelessly backward as to be flinging spears against the Ottoman bayonet corps, the poverty of the land led to high death rates from attrition. It would take 2 years before Mogadiscio was liberated, after which the last of Ethiopia’s forces were met and defeated in Ogaden, leading to the annexation of Ethiopia on 28 Shawaal 1104 (July 2, 1693).
War is often needless, and I reflected on as much when Suleyman II died in 1102 (1691), with his grand project of conquering Persia still far from complete. By that time, however, war had begun, and I fully intended to prosecute it to its bloody end. Ahmed II (2/2/4) became Sultan, and due to his extreme incompetence, me and the other members of the Divan conspired to keep him locked in his room at least until the war was over. Algiers had entered the war meanwhile, the Algerians still claimed to be the true champions of Islam despite the crushing defeat we gave them last time. Forces were mobilized for an annexation war against Algiers. The first battle took place in Aures, where 20,000 Ottomans fought a long a bloody engagement over harsh terrain against 11,000 Algerians. After much difficult fighting, the Algerians succumbed. Ottoman forces marched upon Algiers itself and assaulted the fortress, but the Algerian garrison held. Elsewhere, Morocco with its refinery was besieged with great care. Spain now landed 28,000 cavalrymen in Orania, winning a battle against the tired Ottoman Algerian army. The Spanish were bought off shortly afterward, but the campaign against Algiers had suffered a setback. It would be another year before forces sufficient to reduce the Algerian capital in a second great assault could be moved into place. Morocco and Toubkal had surrendered by then, and a siege was launched in Sahara, Algiers’ last remaining province. Perhaps the gravity of the situation led the Algerians to mount a determined resistance that we could not help but be awed by before they finally raised the white flag on 13 Jumaada I 1106 (December 30, 1694), they left the fortress starving and gaunt but with heads held high, they knew they were Ottoman subjects now and immediately enlisted with the Janissaries for the liberation of Tangier, a land whose Muslim population had suffered too long under the rule of the Portuguese infidels. 32,000 Janissaries moved against Tangier, expecting a difficult battle with the Portuguese garrison. However, the Muslims in Tangier knew their brothers in faith had come to liberate them and threw open the gates to the city. The Janissaries entered to the euphoric cheers of the populace and the Portuguese surrendered their arms. Sadly, the good people of Tangier were betrayed, as the diplomat I sent to negotiate surrender terms with Portugal was bribed by the unscrupulous Portuguese to return possession of Tangier to the infidels (I accidentally offer Portugal WP).
War having been declared, our forces were mobilized towards Kars, which had the only Persian army we could observe. Sadly these 11,000 Persians were faster than our troops and soon began pillaging their way through the Caucasus and towards Siberia. As our territories in Siberia were frequently little more than trade stations, we immediately send the closest army we can find, 25,000 men patrolling Amou Daria, to intercept the Persians. The Persians are cornered in Alga, but the long march had severely damaged morale, and the Persians scored victory at Alga. Fortunately, the Persian army, now down to 4,000, elected to remain in Alga rather than press on. This allowed our armies to regroup and return to Alga and inflict defeat upon the Persians. 2nd Alga was the last of the Persian army and only the sieges were left. Sadly, Persia had erected large fortresses in Kars, Isfahan, and Hormouz, and patience was required for the troops as they settled down in Kars and Hormouz for the siege. As these sieges proceeded, the usual mountainous waves of badboy declarations arrived in Istanbul. Nubia was among the first states to declare war upon us, this seemed unwise as they had 3,000 troops only stationed in their capital and only remaining province, while 25,000 Ottomans waited threateningly nearby. I predicted annexation in short order when conferring with the Sultan, and sure enough, our field commanders sent Nubia’s seals of state to the Seraglio by messenger within a space of just three months.
Elsewhere, border skirmishes between small forces occupied us in Poland, while France and Savoy entered Turkish Italy with more than 130,000 troops. Waiting tactics were deployed against the Franco-Savoyards, even though it meant much hardship for the citizenry of the border zone. Ethiopia took advantage of the war against us to invade our fledging city in Mogadiscio, which had surrendered by the time Ottoman troops arrived in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian campaign was a brutal affair. Though Ethiopia’s army was so hopelessly backward as to be flinging spears against the Ottoman bayonet corps, the poverty of the land led to high death rates from attrition. It would take 2 years before Mogadiscio was liberated, after which the last of Ethiopia’s forces were met and defeated in Ogaden, leading to the annexation of Ethiopia on 28 Shawaal 1104 (July 2, 1693).
War is often needless, and I reflected on as much when Suleyman II died in 1102 (1691), with his grand project of conquering Persia still far from complete. By that time, however, war had begun, and I fully intended to prosecute it to its bloody end. Ahmed II (2/2/4) became Sultan, and due to his extreme incompetence, me and the other members of the Divan conspired to keep him locked in his room at least until the war was over. Algiers had entered the war meanwhile, the Algerians still claimed to be the true champions of Islam despite the crushing defeat we gave them last time. Forces were mobilized for an annexation war against Algiers. The first battle took place in Aures, where 20,000 Ottomans fought a long a bloody engagement over harsh terrain against 11,000 Algerians. After much difficult fighting, the Algerians succumbed. Ottoman forces marched upon Algiers itself and assaulted the fortress, but the Algerian garrison held. Elsewhere, Morocco with its refinery was besieged with great care. Spain now landed 28,000 cavalrymen in Orania, winning a battle against the tired Ottoman Algerian army. The Spanish were bought off shortly afterward, but the campaign against Algiers had suffered a setback. It would be another year before forces sufficient to reduce the Algerian capital in a second great assault could be moved into place. Morocco and Toubkal had surrendered by then, and a siege was launched in Sahara, Algiers’ last remaining province. Perhaps the gravity of the situation led the Algerians to mount a determined resistance that we could not help but be awed by before they finally raised the white flag on 13 Jumaada I 1106 (December 30, 1694), they left the fortress starving and gaunt but with heads held high, they knew they were Ottoman subjects now and immediately enlisted with the Janissaries for the liberation of Tangier, a land whose Muslim population had suffered too long under the rule of the Portuguese infidels. 32,000 Janissaries moved against Tangier, expecting a difficult battle with the Portuguese garrison. However, the Muslims in Tangier knew their brothers in faith had come to liberate them and threw open the gates to the city. The Janissaries entered to the euphoric cheers of the populace and the Portuguese surrendered their arms. Sadly, the good people of Tangier were betrayed, as the diplomat I sent to negotiate surrender terms with Portugal was bribed by the unscrupulous Portuguese to return possession of Tangier to the infidels (I accidentally offer Portugal WP).
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The Great War (1689-96), Part II
In 1106 (1695), Sultan Ahmed II died in his padlocked room in the Seraglio, and his successor Mustafa II (2/3/4) was immediately thrown into the same room. War in the colonies went poorly and the French used their occupation of Mobile, Milan, and Tyrol to force the Divan to peace, we elected to settle with France, accepting their demands of Mobile + 250 ducats. We had 2 far more serious problems on our hands by then, internal revolts inspired by the long war and an invasion in force by our arch-enemies the Russians. Ottoman policy towards Russia was to use large fortresses to hold the border, as maintaining large numbers of troops in the far northern reaches of the Turkish Empire was a logistical nightmare. The killing fields of Lipetsk still evoked a shudder from historically-conscious Turks, and all in the Empire wished to avoid a repeat of the horrible bloodshed of the Russian campaigns fought in Suleyman the Magnificent’s time. The Russians surged across the border in gigantic numbers, their tactics had advanced since our last meeting with them, and they captured our border fortresses with a speed which flabbergasted many in Istanbul. By the time sizable Turkish forces could be moved to the area, the Russians had smashed their way to Crimean peninsula. 46,000 Russian stormed and captured Crimea and moved on to Bessarabia. There they were met and engaged by 55,000 Ottomans. The battle was fierce, but the skill of the Russian generals and the speed of the Russian cavalry proved decisive and the battle was lost. The fortress of Bessarabia was soon on the verge of surrender while Russian envoys demanded high tributes for peace. The Divan refused to give the Russians so much as an inch, despite the fact that the peasants grew steadily more unhappy each time a Russian peace offer was refused. Massive troops recruitments began, among a group of 44,000 Mad Assaulters, who were sent in to Russia via defenseless Poland to take some Russian towns and give the Divan a bit of leverage. The revolts had begun in earnest by then and it was difficult to find troops to meet the Russian menace. Finally, a golden opportunity presented itself when the Russian launched an assault against Bessarabia’s faltering garrison. 25,000 Ottomans sipahis from Rumelia charged towards Bessarabia at full speed. They arrived just as large sections of Bessarabia’s walls began to give way, not a minute too soon. The Russians enjoyed large numerical superiority, but their morale was close to breaking after the rigors of assault and the sipahis soon cut their lines to pieces and the Russians were forced to flee. The Mad Assaulters had captured Belgorod and were moving north when news of the rescue of Bessarabia reached them. The tide of the war had begun to turn. As the Russians regrouped in occupied Lugansk, an army fresh from defeating Hungarian rebels arrived on the scene. Together with the forces already in the area and fresh recruits from the Caucasus, a two-sided assault was launched against the Russian positions in Lugansk. The Battle of Lugansk was a great Turkish victory, the Russians left their artillery on the field and the victory allowed the Ottomans to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. On 17 Thaw al-Hijjah 1107 (17 July 1696), Russia and the Ottoman Empire agreed to a 5-year truce. 3 months earlier, Isfahan had surrendered at last, and Persia was no more.
Now, it was just a matter of rounding the last of the rebels. It was in South America, in the southernmost possession of the Turkish Empire, that the last rebel holdouts finally surrendered to government troops in March 1697. The Divan met shortly afterwards and considered the question of whether or not to release the Sultan from his padlocked throne room. We decided against any such rash measure and continued to govern the Empire much as we had before the insane wars of Suleyman II was launched. We began making peaceful plans and sent a contingent of merchants to Delhi to expand our trade their. On 24 Jumaada I 1109 (8 December, 1697), the Mughal Empire informed us that the traders had been executed and that we were never to send another merchant to their lands again. Fools! This means war…
The Ottoman Empire in Eurasia after the Great War
In 1106 (1695), Sultan Ahmed II died in his padlocked room in the Seraglio, and his successor Mustafa II (2/3/4) was immediately thrown into the same room. War in the colonies went poorly and the French used their occupation of Mobile, Milan, and Tyrol to force the Divan to peace, we elected to settle with France, accepting their demands of Mobile + 250 ducats. We had 2 far more serious problems on our hands by then, internal revolts inspired by the long war and an invasion in force by our arch-enemies the Russians. Ottoman policy towards Russia was to use large fortresses to hold the border, as maintaining large numbers of troops in the far northern reaches of the Turkish Empire was a logistical nightmare. The killing fields of Lipetsk still evoked a shudder from historically-conscious Turks, and all in the Empire wished to avoid a repeat of the horrible bloodshed of the Russian campaigns fought in Suleyman the Magnificent’s time. The Russians surged across the border in gigantic numbers, their tactics had advanced since our last meeting with them, and they captured our border fortresses with a speed which flabbergasted many in Istanbul. By the time sizable Turkish forces could be moved to the area, the Russians had smashed their way to Crimean peninsula. 46,000 Russian stormed and captured Crimea and moved on to Bessarabia. There they were met and engaged by 55,000 Ottomans. The battle was fierce, but the skill of the Russian generals and the speed of the Russian cavalry proved decisive and the battle was lost. The fortress of Bessarabia was soon on the verge of surrender while Russian envoys demanded high tributes for peace. The Divan refused to give the Russians so much as an inch, despite the fact that the peasants grew steadily more unhappy each time a Russian peace offer was refused. Massive troops recruitments began, among a group of 44,000 Mad Assaulters, who were sent in to Russia via defenseless Poland to take some Russian towns and give the Divan a bit of leverage. The revolts had begun in earnest by then and it was difficult to find troops to meet the Russian menace. Finally, a golden opportunity presented itself when the Russian launched an assault against Bessarabia’s faltering garrison. 25,000 Ottomans sipahis from Rumelia charged towards Bessarabia at full speed. They arrived just as large sections of Bessarabia’s walls began to give way, not a minute too soon. The Russians enjoyed large numerical superiority, but their morale was close to breaking after the rigors of assault and the sipahis soon cut their lines to pieces and the Russians were forced to flee. The Mad Assaulters had captured Belgorod and were moving north when news of the rescue of Bessarabia reached them. The tide of the war had begun to turn. As the Russians regrouped in occupied Lugansk, an army fresh from defeating Hungarian rebels arrived on the scene. Together with the forces already in the area and fresh recruits from the Caucasus, a two-sided assault was launched against the Russian positions in Lugansk. The Battle of Lugansk was a great Turkish victory, the Russians left their artillery on the field and the victory allowed the Ottomans to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. On 17 Thaw al-Hijjah 1107 (17 July 1696), Russia and the Ottoman Empire agreed to a 5-year truce. 3 months earlier, Isfahan had surrendered at last, and Persia was no more.
Now, it was just a matter of rounding the last of the rebels. It was in South America, in the southernmost possession of the Turkish Empire, that the last rebel holdouts finally surrendered to government troops in March 1697. The Divan met shortly afterwards and considered the question of whether or not to release the Sultan from his padlocked throne room. We decided against any such rash measure and continued to govern the Empire much as we had before the insane wars of Suleyman II was launched. We began making peaceful plans and sent a contingent of merchants to Delhi to expand our trade their. On 24 Jumaada I 1109 (8 December, 1697), the Mughal Empire informed us that the traders had been executed and that we were never to send another merchant to their lands again. Fools! This means war…
The Ottoman Empire in Eurasia after the Great War
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Er, is that Portugal in Kamchatka?
Good job, btw. Looks like a possible WC should you press the issue.
Good job, btw. Looks like a possible WC should you press the issue.