Reads ok. One tip - there is really no need to allcaps anything, even if people are shouting. The best way to improve your writing is to write more. 
-
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thanks, i'm pretty damn sick today, so i'll probably get an update or two in, considering i have no school
well i guess me missing school doesnt really matter anyway, an automated message just called saying the schools were let out early, so i didnt miss much *
also, update coming soon, it will depict my most thorough beating in HOI2 EVER!**
*icy storm here in new york
**taking your advice and bolding/italicizing the "ever"
also, update coming soon, it will depict my most thorough beating in HOI2 EVER!**
*icy storm here in new york
**taking your advice and bolding/italicizing the "ever"
Return of the Conquistadors: A History of Modern Spain
El Desastre Italiano: 1937-1938
The conquest of Albania gave Spain a vital naval and air base on the Adriatic Sea. It was a perfect place to launch the invasion of Italy from. Five divisions were already in Albania and boarded their transports. In early 1937, they were just off the coast of the Italian boot. A declaration of war was sent to Mussolini and the war was on!
The 50,000 Spanish troops initially made gains and secured a beachhead. But the Regia Marina was much more powerful than the Spanish Navy. And with the Spanish troops so far away from home, it was near impossible to supply them while going through enemy waters. Brave cargo ships frequently tried to run past the Italian navy, but few were successful. With no proper supply lines, the Spanish troops at Foggia were no match for the coming Italian troops, who were much better equipped.
In a panic, the Spanish government sent nearly their whole navy to the Adriatic. Being beaten down along the way, it arrived an exhausted Fleet, poorly equipped to save the now dying Spanish troops. Over 40,000 Spanish casualties were reported as a frantic retreat to the boats ensued. Whatever Spanish men made it to the boats were later killed on the ships by the Regia Marina. Almost the entirety of the Spanish Navy was destroyed. With little ammo or supplies, the once great Spanish “Armada” was at the bottom of the Adriatic, only a pitiful 2 submarine flotillas made in back to Spanish Naval Headquarters Barcelona.
With the invasion of Italy a failure, the Spanish government pleaded for a white peace. When the Italians denied it, Juan III even offered Albania and African territories. But still, the Italians were bent on destroying Spain. When they landed 1 division at Oviedo, the Spanish thought that the invasion would be crushed easily. But soon, more and more Italian divisions landed at Oviedo. Spanish defenses fell apart as more and more Italians landed at Oviedo. The Spanish could not stop it with no navy. The better equipped Italians captured all vital Spanish areas and the entire war effort collapsed. It was humiliating to the Spanish government. On June 26th 1938, the Spanish were down to just the city of Madrid. With nearly the entire Army of 40 divisions cooped up in the city, while surrounded by roughly the same amount of Italians, a stalemate broke out.
However, a miracle came in the form of Germany. King Juan III, who had fled to Munich, asked Hitler to join the Axis and help Spain in its war. He miraculously agreed and Spain was saved. The German blitzkrieg slammed across northern Italy. With no industrial heartland, the Italian war machine fell. The Italians were pushed out of the streets of Madrid and on July 7th, peace was signed. In fact, the Italians offered the peace and let the warring nations return to their pre-war borders. But Spain was devastated. Over 750,000 people died, mostly civilians, Spains entire navy was gone, their air force was gone, and their Army was incapacitated and exhausted. The Italian War was a worse disaster than 1898.
The Battles of the Adriatic
What is left of the once great Spanish Navy
The Italians land at Oviedo!
The Italian Disaster
El Desastre Italiano: 1937-1938
The conquest of Albania gave Spain a vital naval and air base on the Adriatic Sea. It was a perfect place to launch the invasion of Italy from. Five divisions were already in Albania and boarded their transports. In early 1937, they were just off the coast of the Italian boot. A declaration of war was sent to Mussolini and the war was on!
The 50,000 Spanish troops initially made gains and secured a beachhead. But the Regia Marina was much more powerful than the Spanish Navy. And with the Spanish troops so far away from home, it was near impossible to supply them while going through enemy waters. Brave cargo ships frequently tried to run past the Italian navy, but few were successful. With no proper supply lines, the Spanish troops at Foggia were no match for the coming Italian troops, who were much better equipped.
In a panic, the Spanish government sent nearly their whole navy to the Adriatic. Being beaten down along the way, it arrived an exhausted Fleet, poorly equipped to save the now dying Spanish troops. Over 40,000 Spanish casualties were reported as a frantic retreat to the boats ensued. Whatever Spanish men made it to the boats were later killed on the ships by the Regia Marina. Almost the entirety of the Spanish Navy was destroyed. With little ammo or supplies, the once great Spanish “Armada” was at the bottom of the Adriatic, only a pitiful 2 submarine flotillas made in back to Spanish Naval Headquarters Barcelona.
With the invasion of Italy a failure, the Spanish government pleaded for a white peace. When the Italians denied it, Juan III even offered Albania and African territories. But still, the Italians were bent on destroying Spain. When they landed 1 division at Oviedo, the Spanish thought that the invasion would be crushed easily. But soon, more and more Italian divisions landed at Oviedo. Spanish defenses fell apart as more and more Italians landed at Oviedo. The Spanish could not stop it with no navy. The better equipped Italians captured all vital Spanish areas and the entire war effort collapsed. It was humiliating to the Spanish government. On June 26th 1938, the Spanish were down to just the city of Madrid. With nearly the entire Army of 40 divisions cooped up in the city, while surrounded by roughly the same amount of Italians, a stalemate broke out.
However, a miracle came in the form of Germany. King Juan III, who had fled to Munich, asked Hitler to join the Axis and help Spain in its war. He miraculously agreed and Spain was saved. The German blitzkrieg slammed across northern Italy. With no industrial heartland, the Italian war machine fell. The Italians were pushed out of the streets of Madrid and on July 7th, peace was signed. In fact, the Italians offered the peace and let the warring nations return to their pre-war borders. But Spain was devastated. Over 750,000 people died, mostly civilians, Spains entire navy was gone, their air force was gone, and their Army was incapacitated and exhausted. The Italian War was a worse disaster than 1898.
The Battles of the Adriatic
What is left of the once great Spanish Navy
The Italians land at Oviedo!
The Italian Disaster
indeed i was, but for the purposes of the aar, king juan was mad
i was very surprised by the italians though, south italy was so tempting and undefended and my navy was strong, i honestly dont know what went wrong, i was truly set for a victorious war, but it was fun to lose for once, like i said it was my most thorough beating ever
i was very surprised by the italians though, south italy was so tempting and undefended and my navy was strong, i honestly dont know what went wrong, i was truly set for a victorious war, but it was fun to lose for once, like i said it was my most thorough beating ever
Alright Viden, we get it, it was a very stupid move on my par....i mean King Juan III's part
________________________________________________________
Return of the Conquistadors: A History of Modern Spain
Antonio’s Journey
Chapter Four: Villa Cisneros
It was an oddly chilly summer night in the defense of Madrid. It seemed all was lost for the Spanish kingdom-turned-empire. The world was watching as 400,000 Spanish men defended the capital. The world was watching as King Juan III frantically searched for an ally in Munich. And beyond all the international politics was a gritty, bloody fight in the city. The soldiers didn’t care about the empire, the king, or the city. They only fought to keep themselves and their families alive.
In a dimly lit room in an isolated suburb of Madrid, 10 Spanish soldiers stood strong as 500 Italians surrounded the house. This house was the last Spanish-held one in the suburb of Villa Cisneros. If taken, nothing would be gained by either side. It didn’t matter to the entire defense of the city. But for those 10 men, it literally meant life or death. And there Antonio and Juan stood, now leaders of their men, ready to defend this pitiful shack.
“We shall defend the stairs, Jose get the machine gun and watch the windows, everyone else find a place to fight, today we fight for God!” said Juan very eloquently. He was always very social, while Antonio was the “quiet one.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The attack started at night. Five hundred Italian troops assaulted the tiny house. The scene was something similar to Thermopylae. The Spanish were outnumbered 1 to 50. There was no chance to win, but a chance to kill as many Italians as possible so all will remember the little house of Villa Cisneros. A grenade smashed through the window!
“Everyone down!” shouted Antonio as the grenade was about to explode. “Oh my God! This is the end” he thought.
But miraculously the grenade was a dud and did not explode. Juan, keeping his sense of humor even in times like this, threw the dud out the window just to scare the Italians. The terrified enemy troops scattered for minutes before realizing the grenade was broken. Then, after moments of silence and some giggles from the fearless Spanish men, Jose opened fire with his machine gun. All the Spanish men let out a great war cry. Jose fired away the bullets like a madman killing tens of Italians.
But the Italians persisted and continued to attack. About 20 Italians broke through the door leading up the staircase, right where Antonio and Juan were defending.
“Attack!” they both screamed. And they fired off their rounds. The Italians, huddled at the bottom of the stairs, fell like dominoes. But more and more came. WHOOSH! A bullet whizzed right by Antonio.
“Come on! Fire your gun Juan! Are you stupid, man! Shoot!” screamed Antonio. When he turned around however, there was horrifying site. There was Juan, his best friend, lying dead on the floor. With a great scream of anger and sadness, he charged down the stairs in fury and killed many Italians with a combination of grenades and his bayonet. But when he saw a tank coming toward him, sense came back to his mind and he fled back inside the house.
BOOM! A shell from the tank smashed into the house. A squeak and crack were heard and the house started to collapse as its structure was ruined. And suddenly everything went black….
Scenes from the war
________________________________________________________
Return of the Conquistadors: A History of Modern Spain
Antonio’s Journey
Chapter Four: Villa Cisneros
It was an oddly chilly summer night in the defense of Madrid. It seemed all was lost for the Spanish kingdom-turned-empire. The world was watching as 400,000 Spanish men defended the capital. The world was watching as King Juan III frantically searched for an ally in Munich. And beyond all the international politics was a gritty, bloody fight in the city. The soldiers didn’t care about the empire, the king, or the city. They only fought to keep themselves and their families alive.
In a dimly lit room in an isolated suburb of Madrid, 10 Spanish soldiers stood strong as 500 Italians surrounded the house. This house was the last Spanish-held one in the suburb of Villa Cisneros. If taken, nothing would be gained by either side. It didn’t matter to the entire defense of the city. But for those 10 men, it literally meant life or death. And there Antonio and Juan stood, now leaders of their men, ready to defend this pitiful shack.
“We shall defend the stairs, Jose get the machine gun and watch the windows, everyone else find a place to fight, today we fight for God!” said Juan very eloquently. He was always very social, while Antonio was the “quiet one.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The attack started at night. Five hundred Italian troops assaulted the tiny house. The scene was something similar to Thermopylae. The Spanish were outnumbered 1 to 50. There was no chance to win, but a chance to kill as many Italians as possible so all will remember the little house of Villa Cisneros. A grenade smashed through the window!
“Everyone down!” shouted Antonio as the grenade was about to explode. “Oh my God! This is the end” he thought.
But miraculously the grenade was a dud and did not explode. Juan, keeping his sense of humor even in times like this, threw the dud out the window just to scare the Italians. The terrified enemy troops scattered for minutes before realizing the grenade was broken. Then, after moments of silence and some giggles from the fearless Spanish men, Jose opened fire with his machine gun. All the Spanish men let out a great war cry. Jose fired away the bullets like a madman killing tens of Italians.
But the Italians persisted and continued to attack. About 20 Italians broke through the door leading up the staircase, right where Antonio and Juan were defending.
“Attack!” they both screamed. And they fired off their rounds. The Italians, huddled at the bottom of the stairs, fell like dominoes. But more and more came. WHOOSH! A bullet whizzed right by Antonio.
“Come on! Fire your gun Juan! Are you stupid, man! Shoot!” screamed Antonio. When he turned around however, there was horrifying site. There was Juan, his best friend, lying dead on the floor. With a great scream of anger and sadness, he charged down the stairs in fury and killed many Italians with a combination of grenades and his bayonet. But when he saw a tank coming toward him, sense came back to his mind and he fled back inside the house.
BOOM! A shell from the tank smashed into the house. A squeak and crack were heard and the house started to collapse as its structure was ruined. And suddenly everything went black….
Scenes from the war
Holy shit. I have never thought that AI Italy could be that aggressive, or that good at making amphibious assaults.
You should not have rushed to war so quickly. Take more time for building up, researching, preparing your forces. Italy's navy is not something you want to take lightly unless you are Britain, America, or Germany. Same with the Italian army.
You should not have rushed to war so quickly. Take more time for building up, researching, preparing your forces. Italy's navy is not something you want to take lightly unless you are Britain, America, or Germany. Same with the Italian army.
thanks for the comments everyone, but i cant update right now as i'm in the mist of one of those....
"make up the tons of work you missed because you were sick and out of school" moments :rofl:
i hope i can finish this aar before Christmas though
"make up the tons of work you missed because you were sick and out of school" moments :rofl:
i hope i can finish this aar before Christmas though
"It'll be over before Christmas," eh? Where have I heard that before? (Not criticizing the AAR or your schedule; just thought it was an interesting comparison to make ).
On the "big picture" scene, I can sense that there are now quite a few Spanish who are rather discontent w/ King Juan's "little mistake" there. Perhaps we won't get to avoid the Civil War after all...
As for the narrative, that was a rather touching scene. Sad to see Juan go I hope Antonio makes it out alive, although w/ a collapsed building practically on top of him, the odds don't look too good...
(Not criticizing the AAR or your schedule; just thought it was an interesting comparison to make ).On the "big picture" scene, I can sense that there are now quite a few Spanish who are rather discontent w/ King Juan's "little mistake" there. Perhaps we won't get to avoid the Civil War after all...
As for the narrative, that was a rather touching scene. Sad to see Juan go
I hope Antonio makes it out alive, although w/ a collapsed building practically on top of him, the odds don't look too good...
i knew someone would be emotionally scarred by juan's passing
:rofl:
EDIT: are we allowed to post "romantic " moments here? (no this isnt the horny 14-year old speaking :rofl: ) i actually think it could add to the story
:rofl:EDIT: are we allowed to post "romantic
" moments here? (no this isnt the horny 14-year old speaking :rofl: ) i actually think it could add to the story
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this update is pretty short, and not as good quality as usual considering i'm still sick, but enjoy it anyway
_____________________________________________________________
Return of the Conquistadors: A History of Modern Spain
Antonio’s Journey
Chapter Five: No Man’s Land
Antonio was buried in the rubble for about 15 minutes, when Italian troops uncovered him and he was taken as a prisoner of war. He received special treatment from his Catholic brethren; they all believed his survival was a miracle. Indeed it probably was. When the war ended, he was released and sent back to Madrid.
When he came home, he found a tattered city. He ran to his old town, and he found a terrifying site. It was gone. ‘Oh my God!’ he thought. The entire town was smoldering and he knew his family was dead. It seems the Italians employed total war and destroyed everything in their path. For the next couple of weeks, Antonio resided with the rest of his Army, in a damaged hotel in Madrid.
After a long period of mental pain and mourning, he remembered someone. Her name was Maria. ‘Maria, I must find you!’ he thought. Immediately he took a train to the province of La Coruna, only to find another site of wreckage. The town was a ghost town, with buildings all over it destroyed. The town square was empty, with a decapitated statue of King Juan III in it. All he could do was place some flowers at the ruined door of the café she used to work at.
It seemed as if all his loved ones were gone, Antonio thought as he got back on a train to the Army Training Camp in Barcelona. ‘She’s gone, everyone’s gone!’ he thought. His anger only strengthened. At the Training Camp, he was very harsh on the new recruits. Throughout 1938 and early 1939, he pushed his recruits to the brink of their powers, and forged a new breed of embittered soldiers, hungry for blood. Their thirst would be quenched as Spain, and the world, entered 1939, the Year of Fate.
_____________________________________________________________
Return of the Conquistadors: A History of Modern Spain
Antonio’s Journey
Chapter Five: No Man’s Land
Antonio was buried in the rubble for about 15 minutes, when Italian troops uncovered him and he was taken as a prisoner of war. He received special treatment from his Catholic brethren; they all believed his survival was a miracle. Indeed it probably was. When the war ended, he was released and sent back to Madrid.
When he came home, he found a tattered city. He ran to his old town, and he found a terrifying site. It was gone. ‘Oh my God!’ he thought. The entire town was smoldering and he knew his family was dead. It seems the Italians employed total war and destroyed everything in their path. For the next couple of weeks, Antonio resided with the rest of his Army, in a damaged hotel in Madrid.
After a long period of mental pain and mourning, he remembered someone. Her name was Maria. ‘Maria, I must find you!’ he thought. Immediately he took a train to the province of La Coruna, only to find another site of wreckage. The town was a ghost town, with buildings all over it destroyed. The town square was empty, with a decapitated statue of King Juan III in it. All he could do was place some flowers at the ruined door of the café she used to work at.
It seemed as if all his loved ones were gone, Antonio thought as he got back on a train to the Army Training Camp in Barcelona. ‘She’s gone, everyone’s gone!’ he thought. His anger only strengthened. At the Training Camp, he was very harsh on the new recruits. Throughout 1938 and early 1939, he pushed his recruits to the brink of their powers, and forged a new breed of embittered soldiers, hungry for blood. Their thirst would be quenched as Spain, and the world, entered 1939, the Year of Fate.