• We have updated our Community Code of Conduct. Please read through the new rules for the forum that are an integral part of Paradox Interactive’s User Agreement.

blklizard

Field Marshal
28 Badges
Mar 7, 2012
5.458
91
  • Crusader Kings II
  • Victoria 2: Heart of Darkness
  • Victoria 2: A House Divided
  • Semper Fi
  • Heir to the Throne
  • Hearts of Iron III Collection
  • Hearts of Iron III: Their Finest Hour
  • Hearts of Iron III
  • For the Motherland
  • Europa Universalis IV: Art of War
  • Europa Universalis IV
  • Divine Wind
  • Europa Universalis III Complete
  • Europa Universalis III: Chronicles
  • Europa Universalis IV: Wealth of Nations
  • Europa Universalis III
  • Cities in Motion
  • BATTLETECH: Heavy Metal
  • BATTLETECH: Season pass
  • BATTLETECH: Flashpoint
  • BATTLETECH
  • Hearts of Iron IV Sign-up
  • Europa Universalis IV: Common Sense
  • Europa Universalis IV: El Dorado
  • Crusader Kings II: Sons of Abraham
  • Victoria 2
  • Europa Universalis III Complete
  • Europa Universalis III Complete
Hi, all! For those that still stick around in these parts of the AAR, I hope you might be interested.

Let me begin with how this AAR came to be. I was just playing a game with the Death and Taxes Mod and came up with an idea to make the game more interesting. I won't reveal what I did since I want to give the readers some surprises. Let's just say the borders in Europe of the game I played became rather nice and I would be using the map for this AAR.

The main focus of this AAR will be on the many battles that would ultimately determine the outcome of a war known as the Great European War. I will be using a format similar to Wikipedia along with links (to my own posts, of course). I will, however, not go straight into the war but, instead, write about the history of the nations that would take part in the war. Once we know the past, we will proceed forward in time until the war is concluded.

During the early stages of this AAR, it would be quite hectic with things needed to be added to posts so I hope the readers can be patient with me. It will become more clear my intention and I'm hoping the AAR will look nicer once I get a few posts together. Without further ado, let's begin! :)
 
Great European War (Part 2 found here)


The Great European War (1750-?) was a major conflict involving all the European powers, though one nation didn't take an active part in it. France, or Revolutionary France as many called it at the time, had went through a bloody revolution resulting in the nation retaining great power status in Europe once again. France declared war on Lotharingia in hopes of reclaiming her provinces. France brought in her allies, Spain and Finland, into the conflict feeling confident that their side was more than capable of crushing Lotharingia. Lotharingia called in her allies, Italy and Livonia, into the conflict. Learning that Livonia was at war, Russia declared war on Livonia which brought Great Britain and Scandinavia into the conflict against her. Jagiellon, or Jagiellonian Empire, warned Russia against aggression and declared war on Russia. Germany answered the call to arms from Jagiellon. Against the aggression of Jagiellon and Germany, Russia's allies, Sicily, Austria-Hungary and Greece, entered the war. Sicily, seeing that Russia was already at war with Great Britain, used the opportunity to attack Italy to control all of the Italian Peninsula. Sicily brought in Illyria to force the Italians into a two front war. Bulgaria was called in by Jagiellon to fight Russia which prompted the entry of Romania which perceived Bulgaria's aggression as a threat. When Netherlands was called into the conflict by France, both Belgium, alongside Great Britain, and Westphalia, alongside Russia, joined the war to contain the Dutch threat. Iceland, while not participating in the war directly, provided enormous loans to Russia and her allies.

The factions could be seen here.

Political Map below:

z04ThGb.png


Diplomatic Map below:

blDPo54.png


Overview of faction units:
Faction 1: Infantry/Cavalry
Faction 2: Infantry/Cavalry
Faction 3: Infantry/Cavalry
Artillery and Navy

Ledger (With lots of important information prior to war) Ledger Guide
 
Last edited:
France

KWp8HtZ.png

France (1356) (Dark Blue Represent French Vassals)

History

Kingdom of France (1356-1745)

The House of Valois ruled over France since 1328. France had numerous vassals that occupied nearly half of the French territory. As a result, the French monarch had many limitations in both internal and external affairs as, should his vassals rise up against him, he could very easily be defeated. To keep his vassals happy, the monarch gave his vassals a fair amount of autonomy and low taxes. In 1356, the French monarch, Jean II, looked to change all that by integrating his vassals into his realm. His vassals, of course, weren't too happy with the proposal and a few of them rose up. Jean II anticipated the uprisings seeing him already hire mercenaries to deal with the internal threat. However, the rebellions lasted for several decades before the rebels were finally suppressed in 1391. During the rebellions, the nation of Provence was called in by one of the vassals against France. Provence was later annexed into France when the rebellions ended in failure. The new French Monarch, Charles VI, seized the territory of the vassals that rebelled solidifying his control over the region. Charles VI had hoped to integrated his remaining vassals into France but a devastating war soon befell France.

In 1392, France was involved in a massive war known as the Twenty Years' War. France fought alone against Castille, Portugal and Burgundy after Austria refused to come to their aid due to other commitments. Castille, at the time, had Aragon under a personal union, Granada as a vassal and Navarra already annexed. So, France was effectively at war with the entire Iberian Peninsula and Burgundy. The war immediately went downhill for the French following two major defeats, one near the Castillian border and the other near Burgundian border, in the early stages of the war. France never recovered from those two defeats seeing Charles VI to eventually agree to talk peace in 1412. The peace treaty was a very harsh one as much of France was dismantled. Many of France's former vassals were given independence and France was split into two sections. France had went from a dominant power in the region to a minor player following the Twenty Years' War. Charles VI died shortly after the peace deal leaving a broken France to his son. To many at the time, few thought France could ever recover from the devastating war. By bordering Burgundy where the Burgundian monarch still eyed the French territories with envy, the remainder of France seemed destined to become a part of the Kingdom of Burgundy sooner or later.

i83jhzn.png

Left: France (1391) Right: France (1412) (Dark Blue Represent French Vassals)

Starting 1412, France entered a terrible decline. The Twenty Years' War had weakened this nation to the point it could no longer hold its territory intact. Champagne was the first vassal to sense weakness and broke free in 1420 while the French monarch was busy suppressing a major revolt in the south. French forces were too preoccupied in the south to deal with Champagne so the French monarch was forced to grant independence. This act made others see the French monarch as weak resulting in vassals in the south to grow bold as they rose up. Despite the fact that a few French armies were stationed in the region, the armies were fighting a losing battle as the numerous revolts drained the resources and men of France. These uprisings ultimately saw France lose nearly complete control of her southern possessions in 1450. Toulouse became another nation in southern France while France's last vassal in 1412, Orleans, broke free and went on to carve out a nation of her own. France was reduced to only two provinces, one with her capital, Paris, while the other had Limoges. Surrounded by neighbors who all had the capabilities of crushing her, France was at the brink of annexation.

The truce between Toulouse and France barely expired when Toulouse declared war on France. Unable to reach Paris itself, the Toulouse monarch was content in taking only Limoges which eliminated all French presence in the south in 1455. With only Paris under her control, France appeared to be doomed when Normandy declared the Conquest War of Paris in 1457. The Normandy monarch saw the French crown rightfully his and taking Paris helped support his claim. Thinking the war was an easy one, the Normandy monarch already made preparations for relocating his nation's capital to Paris before his army even marched into French territory. However, the Normandy monarch paid for his carelessness when the French monarch, Xavier I, led his small army to victory in the Battle of Paris. Outnumber nearly 10 to 1, Xavier made several bold maneuvers with him at the head of his army that sent the Normandy army packing and ensured France's existence was extended. The war lasted a total of five years which concluded with decisive French victory. France took a third of Normandy territory as Xavier I performed a miracle for a nation that was destined to be annexed in that very war. While France was still in a perilous situation, the nation was given a second chance to reclaim its former glory in a fractured French region.

9FWLiQm.png

Left: France Region (1450) Right: France Region (1462) (Borders are heavily debated)

Xavier I took part in one more war where France was faced off against both Normandy and Champagne. The Normandy monarch was furious with his earlier defeat and agreed to split France with Champagne should the nation join the war. Thus, the two nations forced France into a two front war where they command much more soldiers. Xavier I had proven himself a brilliant strategist but he couldn't be at two locations at the same time. Thus, Xavier I boldly deployed some of his most experienced soldiers as a holding force at the western border while he personally took on the Champagne army. The Champagne general stood little chance against Xavier I seeing Champagne handing over some territory in 1468. Once the Champagne army was defeated, Xavier I turned his sights on the Normandy army that has failed to break through the holding force. All hope was lost for the Normandy army when their general, also the monarch, fell in battle. The son of the Normandy monarch agreed to give up territory in exchange for peace in 1470. Xavier I once again brought victory to his nation but he died two years later due to illness. The future of France lie in the hands of his son, Xavier II.

In 1478, the war was renewed and Xavier II must lead his people to victory this time. Like his father, Xavier II faced off against unfavorable odds but, thanks to his father, the odds were indeed much better. Xavier II had a cousin who was assigned to lead the campaign into Champagne while the French monarch took on Normandy personally. The two men were winning battles after battles until they forced their enemies to meet at the peace table in 1484. Seeing Normandy as the main aggressor, Xavier II demanded more territory from the nation that greatly weakened their ability to wage wars in the future. As for Champagne, she was given a more generous peace offer if the Champagne monarch agreed to severe all ties with Normandy. Because Champagne has been continuously losing territory since they formed an alliance with Normandy, the Champagne monarch agreed without hesitation. France, following the three wars, had grown to a regional power after the hard work by Xavier I and II. Xavier II wanted to strengthen his nation further by attacking the weakened Normandy to reclaim much of northern France region. Meanwhile, Xavier II heard disturbing news of the expansions of both Brittany and Guyenne.

X0QjShM.png

Left: France Region (1470) Right: France Region (1484) (Borders are heavily debated)

In 1486, Xavier II renewed his war with Normandy now that the nation was too weak to resist. While the war was taking place, Xavier II's spies discovered that Champagne forces were gathering at the France-Champagne border. The fact that those forces were gathering so near the border worried Xavier II somewhat. With the war in Normandy wrapping up, Xavier II picked the opportunity to lead his own army secretly to the border where he declared war so he had the initiative. The Champagne monarch was debating whether to attack France but his hesitation when his troops were at the border proved to be his undoing. Xavier II caught his forces unaware and completely annihilated them which was the deciding factor of the war. Following his decisive victory, Xavier II led his army to occupy Champagne cities and towns one after another until he threatened the Champagne capital. Faced with inevitable defeat, the Champagne monarch agreed to give up territory to France. Then, the delegates sent by Xavier II returned in 1496 with news that the Normandy monarch agreed his peace terms of handing over more land. Normandy was only a step away from annexation while Champagne wasn't too far from that fate either. Sadly, Xavier II, at the age of 40, passed away that very year leaving behind the slowly recovering nation to his son, Xavier III.

Xavier III was as ambitious as his father and grandfather in that he yearned to reconquer the cores of France from the pretenders. In 1499, Xavier III declared war on Normandy to finish what his father was aiming for before his untimely death. Normandy was annexed in 1500 seeing one less French pretender in the France region. A year later, Xavier III renewed the war with Champagne to continue the conquest of the nation but, unlike his father, he encountered a lot more resistance. The Champagne monarch anticipated the war and hired Swiss mercenaries to bolster his strength. These mercenaries and their commanders were veterans making them dangerous foes for the French armies. Xavier III, following the first battle, learned not to underestimate the mercenaries with the war entering a grueling stage as neither sides could gain an edge. However, the fortunes favored the French when the Champagne treasury dried up from the war efforts in 1511. Once the payment was gone, the mercenaries simply left the battlefield allowing French forces to march straight to the Champagne capital. In addition to more territory, Xavier III demanded a large reparation that he knew Champagne could only pay off with loans. Thus, he crippled the finances of the nation leaving them open for annexation in the next war.

gzPJPAw.png

Left: France Region (1496) Right: France Region (1512) (Borders are heavily debated)

Xavier III annexed Champagne in 1515 with little difficulty. The nation was crippled to the point where it could no longer field an army. The Champagne monarch reluctantly handed over his crown as another pretender was removed from the France region. Xavier III had wanted to continue expansion but several uprisings put his plans on hold. Many peasant revolts occurred across France requiring the French armies to suppress them. Unfortunately, Xavier III met his untimely demise in 1522 during one of the peasant revolts. The French monarch's sudden death sent the French court into turmoil as Xavier III had no surviving heirs for the throne. The French nobles met up for a lengthy meeting which in the end determined the new monarch of France. Henri, a cousin of Xavier III, was seen as the ideal candidate. He belonged to the House of Valois and he participated in the last two campaigns in Champagne. Most importantly, he was known for his stewardship given that his family has been making considerably more wealth than everyone else in the realm, including the monarch. The nobles had hopes of Henri strengthening France's financial situation so it could take on the foreign powers, like Great Britain and Castille, that were meddling in French politics.

Henri set in motion several reforms for France when it was the most stable. Those unhappy with the government have been removed in the last uprisings and Henri, with the most powerful and influential nobles by his side, met little resistance in bringing change to the nation. The French treasury filled up much faster and the decade of peace saw the French population rising steadily following major advances in agriculture. Henri was content with the peaceful rule until news arrived about Great Britain taking more territory in the west and a border was created between the two nations. Brittany was crumbling under revolts with the British taking advantage. Allowing Great Britain to expand unopposed threatened France directly resulting in Henri declaring his first war against Brittany. Henri didn't lead an army personally but his generals, experienced from the earlier campaigns, were more than a match against the weakened Breton. Land was taken from Brittany in 1540 further strengthening France's control of northern France region. However, the growing influence of Great Britain and Castille in the region was troubling news for the French monarch knowing that he must act soon. Henri hoped to put the extra ducats in the treasury to good use as he was determined to expel the foreigners and reclaim the territory for France.

wy6HMEN.png

Left: France Region (1522) Right: France Region (1540) (Borders are heavily debated)

Henri never got a chance to see another war when he passed away in 1545. That was the same year that Great Britain and her allies were at war with Castille and her allies. Henri II rose to the throne and, in 1546, he declared war on Brittany. The Breton nation was struggling to recover from their last few wars which made it the ideal time to strike. Brittany put up little resistance as French troops soon occupied the entire realm. During the occupation, there were many provinces that defected to France allowing the rising nation to annex Brittany to conclude the war in 1557. Three years later, Henri II learned that Great Britain was losing their war against Castille seeing their provinces in the south completely occupied. Viewing this as a moment to strike, Henri II declared war on the preoccupied British. British forces were already heavily engaged with Castillian and Aquitaine forces resulting in them unable to stop French forces from occupying their remaining continental provinces. In 1590, Great Britain, battered from the war with no chance of victory, agreed to give up all their continental provinces except Gibraltar. France had complete control of northern France region while Castille and her ally, Toulouse, controlled the southern half.

There were only three major players in the France region and a clash between them was inevitable. Because France was involved in two relatively easy wars before, her treasury was still growing steadily from Henri's reforms while her armies were still strong. Castille and Toulouse, however, took the brunt of the British forces. Thus, Henri III, who took the throne in 1602, declared what is now known as the Fifty Years' War. France was at war with Castille, Aragon, Portugal, Granada and Toulouse. To even the odds, Henri III put the ducats in the treasury to good use to hire the Swiss mercenaries, some of whom had predecessors that fought against Xavier III. Good fortune smiled upon the French forces when several rebel uprisings took place in southern France as the locals fought to overthrow their foreign overlord. The combination of French forces and rebels eventually wore down the enemy resulting in a peace deal in 1652. Both Castille and Toulouse ceded territory to France while Castille was forced to release Leon and Navarra as independent nations. To deliver a more devastating blow, a new monarch was put on the Aragonese throne removing the personal union. Weakening Castille helped set the stage for a easier followup war for France to retake all of their former territory.

gT1necd.png

Left: France Region (1590) Right: France Region (1652) (Borders are heavily debated)

In 1657, the French monarch, Henri IV, declared a new war on Castille. His primary objective wasn't recovering all of France but to deliver a crushing blow so Castille won't be a threat in the future. Leon and Navarra, the two nations freed by France in the previous war, answered the call to arms as they faced off against the same opponents of France in the last war. Occupying Castillian and Aquitaine territory in southern France region was simple enough but the fight in Iberia was more grueling. It wasn't until 1681 that the Aragonese monarch agreed to exit the war. The exit of Aragon allowed French troops to finally fight on Castillian soil where their allies were losing their battles. The Castillian monarch hoped to force Leon and Navarra out of the war so his forces could deal with only the French. However, French forces arrived in time to turn around several battles that allowed the two smaller nations to stay in. With steady advances, France and her allies made enough progress to finally talk peace in 1705 on their terms. Castille ceded large tracts of territory to Navarra while Portugal ceded land to Leon. The two powerful Iberian nations were weakened as two new nations were in the position to replace them. Aragon, at the conclusion of the war, was fortunate to lose little as they only had to pay reparations to France.

Five years later, another war was declared by France and, this time, all of the France region was recovered by the nation. Leon and Navarra, after being strengthened with their new gains from the previous war, could handle Portugal and Castille with ease and took more land for themselves. Aragon wisely didn't participate in the war seeing them avoiding the worse of it. Thus, the war was a short one as it concluded in 1717. France was whole again and her southern flank was more or less protected. While the Aragonese monarch still showed distrust, Leon and Navarra were more than ready to give a hand and deal with the Catalan nation. France, in 1450, looked dangerously close to being wiped out on the map. However, many great monarchs took the throne and helped her not only survive many invasions but eventually recover all of her former territory. In addition, France gained a few more extra provinces that strengthened the nation further. Unfortunately, the unified France was only a show on the outside. The three wars against Castille has drained the French treasury to the point that the nation was heading into bankruptcy. Her many monarchs, with the exception of Henri, were skilled at conquest but their stewardship was very lacking. As a result, a great change swept across France as the nation headed into a revolution.

N3g1TJy.png

Left: France Region (1705) Right: France Region (1717) (Borders are heavily debated)

Republics (1721-)

The nearly depleted treasury had the monarch, Henri V, raising taxes of the lower class. The extra taxes and the rising food prices installed discontent into these people. The representatives of the lower class tried to solve this problem diplomatically but Henri V refused to listen to any reason. Faced with the prospect of dying by starvation, the lower class rose up in 1718 when they stormed the Palace of Versailles. Henri V was killed during the uprising but the rebels were, in the end, massacred by French soldiers. The death of Henri V meant that his son, fourteen years old, was next in line with a regent controlling all affairs. The regent, Simon Maret, was sympathetic towards the lower class and tried to implement a few reforms to help both the French economy and the lower class. The reforms helped dissipate some of the anger amongst the lower class but, sadly, Henri VI didn't share his views. When Henri VI took the throne in 1720, he removed the reforms so that everything returned to the way his father left it. The indifference of the monarch towards the lower class had new uprisings occurring. This time, French forces could do little to suppress the massive revolts that spread across the region. The French monarch was overthrown and a republic was put in its place in 1721.

When France turned into a republic, the nation still wasn't stable. The depleted treasury was the major priority of the new ruling class but they soon faced a major threat in the east. The Kingdom of Lotharingia attacked France in 1722 thinking that the republic was too weak to resist. The Lotharingian monarch was only partly right about the resistance. While no actual French armies existed at the time, there were many militias that fought furiously and slowed down the advances of Lotharingian forces. Lotharingian forces were suffering minor losses against the less professional militias but taking cities and towns proved to be exceptionally slow and painful. The war between the two nations lasted for twenty years with the republic handing over some of its eastern provinces. The French Republic spent the next eight years solidifying its control over the region as the government implemented new policies that helped the nation recover. During this era of peace, many of France's revolutionary ideas were spreading to its neighbors that resulted in many uprisings. While most of these uprisings were suppressed, a few succeeded resulting in a few provinces defecting to the French Republic. In 1750, the French Republic was once again a stable, dominant power in the region and the government sought to recover land that were rightfully theirs.

9OVgLQQ.png

France Region (1750) (Borders are heavily debated)
Note: I apologize for the slight differences in the maps. The maps above, with the exception of the first three, were made from paint so their borders don't line up very well with the last map. I think it's fairly clear about the changes in borders but feel free to ask if you aren't clear.
 
Last edited:
subbed
 

Welcome! I'm afraid there isn't much to look at now. Let's just say the history of France is quite long and will take awhile to document. They are but only one of the many nations in this AAR.
 
I'm certainly intrigued to see how this AAR works out. Are you just going to update/edit posts for each country as you go along instead of making a new post each time?
 
I'm certainly intrigued to see how this AAR works out. Are you just going to update/edit posts for each country as you go along instead of making a new post each time?

Yes, I will be editing posts for each country. There's twenty one nations so that's twenty one posts. After that, there will be a post for each battles which will be quite numerous. Once I complete one post, I will alert everyone with a quick update here. I just don't want to clog up my AAR with lots of small updates that take up room and can be difficult to keep track. I feel this is a lot cleaner once it's completed. Plus, I won't feel pressed for time when I can do a little bit of update whenever I can instead of trying to put together a medium sized post each time.
 
Last edited:
Another AAR from your hand, and one I can follow from the start? Count me in, this sounds interesting!

1356, thats the Death and Taxes mod startdate, right?
 
Another AAR from your hand, and one I can follow from the start? Count me in, this sounds interesting!

1356, thats the Death and Taxes mod startdate, right?

Welcome! I know it can be daunting to follow long AARs when I have up to 200 chapters in my other AARs :p. Yes, 1356 is the start date. I didn't want to bother with the history before that since it can be found on wiki.
 
Just a quick update! I've finished the Kingdom of France section of French History. Check it out and I welcome any feedback. I won't be starting the Republics section until after the New Years. So, Happy New Years all! :)
 
French Kings are efficient now aren't they? :sarcasm alert: :rolleyes:
 
Only took 3 centuries to recapture all that lost territory. For a nation that was at war a lot, they didn't accomplish much. :p

This update has made me more interested in Great Britain, mainly about when they formed Great Britain and when they got Gibraltar.

Just a minor piece of feedback, but you might want to watch your use of tenses. There were a few times you didn't use past tense. Also avoid the passive tense, aka "would". Just some tips from someone with a minor in creative writing. :)
 
Interesting piece about France. They went from almost destroyed to their full strenght again, not bad at all. Looking forward to the other nations.
 
French Kings are efficient now aren't they? :sarcasm alert: :rolleyes:

Well, they are the BBB. Their rulers have interesting stats to say the least.

Only took 3 centuries to recapture all that lost territory. For a nation that was at war a lot, they didn't accomplish much. :p

This update has made me more interested in Great Britain, mainly about when they formed Great Britain and when they got Gibraltar.

Just a minor piece of feedback, but you might want to watch your use of tenses. There were a few times you didn't use past tense. Also avoid the passive tense, aka "would". Just some tips from someone with a minor in creative writing. :)

Well, they have at least recovered. It could have ended a lot worse. SPOILER: Great Britain will be the last nation to be updated :p.

Thanks for the feedback! I will spend today fixing those mistakes and will keep them in mind for future updates.

Interesting piece about France. They went from almost destroyed to their full strenght again, not bad at all. Looking forward to the other nations.

I'm afraid we're not done yet. We still have the revolution to go through before our next nation. SPOILER: I'm currently deciding between Spain and Lotharingia for the next nation (might roll a die for it).
 
SPOILER: Great Britain will be the last nation to be updated :p.

Of course it is. :rolleyes: Go with Lotharingia next. The name alone intrigues me, especially since we saw nothing of what happened east of France.
 
Lotharingia


Bby7xNy.png

Lorraine and Her Immediate Neighbors(1356)

History

Kingdom of Lorraine (1356-1647)

The House of Metz ruled over the Kingdom of Lorraine, a small nation in the HRE surrounded by many dangerous neighbors. To survive from 1356 onwards, the Lorraine monarchs must use all the tools at their disposal to carve out a large territory they may call their own. Thus, the Lorraine monarchs must attack nations that were weaker than theirs in order to expand. The first target of Lorraine expansion was Bar, a nation to the west of Lorraine. Bar had no allies which made them the ideal target. The Lorraine monarch, Jean, led four thousand men into Barrois where the enemy was rumored to have two thousand Bar soldiers. A year of fighting led to a decisive battle outside the Bar capital where the Bar army was annihilated. The Bar monarch escaped into his capital city but the city was captured months later. Jean demanded the annexation of Bar in 1358 which, on the map, seemed to have doubled his territory. The celebration of the victory was, however, short-lived when Jean learned Burgundy, the greatest threat to Lorraine's survival, defeated Switzerland in a recent war with a province acquired. The fact that Burgundy also grew stronger in the process was troubling news for Lorraine. Jean could only hope that the Burgundian monarch won't turn his sights on Lorraine as the large nation no doubt could crush the measly army Lorraine could field, even with the annexation of Bar.

Fortune favored the Lorraine monarch, Jean II, in 1382 when a war broke out between Burgundy and England. The fierce war was over the claim of Calais resulting in most, if not all, Burgundian forces in the north. With the Burgundian capital wide open to an attack, Jean II wasted no time gathering his forces and declared war on the distracted nation. Castille, while answering the call to arms from Burgundy, was unable to assist since Castillian forces couldn't make it to the landlocked Lorraine. Lorraine forces met some resistance and eventually arrived outside the Burgundian capital. The Burgundian monarch didn't think that Jean II had the guts to declare war which explained the lack of defenses. Seeing the capital encircled and knowing that no reinforcement could arrive from the north when the battles were fierce, the Burgundian monarch agreed to cede a single province to Lorraine in 1385. The victory for Lorraine was a double-edged sword as Jean II waited impatiently for the outcome in the north. If Burgundy won the war against the English, her monarch could bring down his wrath upon Lorraine for the small war between the two nations. Luckily, good news arrived in 1390 about the English defeating the Burgundian forces. Burgundy lost several territories up north weakening them. Still, Jean II feared for his successors who could face a very likely war against Burgundy. Burgundy was defeated but, in all aspects, they were still stronger than Lorraine.

ZKcaBka.png

Lorraine and Her Immediate Neighbors(Left:1358, Right:1390)

Since the war with Burgundy, Lorraine enjoyed a long period of peace. The people of both Barrois (former Bar) and Franche-Comté (former Burgundian territory) accepted the rule of Lorraine monarchs. The Lorraine treasury grew steadily while her army was nearly doubled in numbers. In 1440, Jean IV acquired claims on lands of The Palatinate. The Palatinate was one of the few prince-electors of the HRE that has entered a small decline. Their previous few wars went unfavorably and their greatest loss was a rich province in the east. The Palatinate was weakened and Jean IV, upon sensing this weakness, worked quickly to fabricate claims so he could declare war. Normally, an attack on a prince-elector resulted in a direct intervention of the emperor. The HRE emperor at the time was the Bohemian monarch who just happened to share the same dynasty with Lorraine monarch. The close ties between the two nations made it possible for the emperor to turn a blind eye on the attack allowing Lorraine to ultimately annex The Palatinate in 1445. The two provinces under The Palatinate were very rich which made it possible for them to acquire the prince-elector status through bribes. Lorraine was, following their new territory, more or less on even footing with Burgundy. The small nation has nearly tripled its size transforming it into a serious rising power in the region. Jean IV, unwilling to take a huge gamble, chose to remain passive until a more opportune moment arose for the war with Burgundy.

When Jean V rose to the throne, his subjects had fabricated on all of Alsace's territory. Alsace controlled only a single province in 1356 but, through rebels that rose up in Austrian territory, they gained two additional provinces through defection in 1449. Austria, naturally, couldn't allow such an insult to happen as the Austrian monarch declared war on Alsace to regain his provinces in 1450. Jean V, an ambitious monarch who wanted to one day take on Burgundy, declared war on Alsace in 1451. Austrian forces were busy fighting the allies of Alsace giving Lorraine forces a chance to attack the poorly defended rear. Alsace was annexed in 1452 but Lorraine's warring days were far from over. The Austrian monarch, furious with Lorraine taking Austrian land by annexing Alsace, declared the War of Austrian Aggression on Lorraine in 1453. The foolish move brought Bohemia and her allies into the war putting much of the HRE and major powers in Eastern Europe at war. The two sides fought it out until, finally in 1546, a peace deal was agreed upon by both sides. Austria, one of the major powers in European politics, were dismantled which, along with the effects of the war, greatly weakened them. Bohemia was the winner in the war as she acquired more territory while Lorraine held onto her three new provinces she took from Alsace. The war placed a huge strain on the nation so the Lorraine monarch, Jean VII, and his son spent their reigns aiding their nation in her recovery.


OZnSJ66.png

Lorraine and Her Immediate Neighbors(Left:1445, Right:1546)

When Jean IX rose to the throne, Lorraine fully recovered from the War of Austrian Aggression. The new Lorraine monarch wanted to make history by declaring war on Lorraine's long time rival, Burgundy in 1627. His father and grandfather's combined reign of eighty years not only stabilized the region but the Lorraine treasury was full and her men strong. Burgundy had, by then, lost all of her northern possessions reducing the nation to only the remaining region shown in the 1546 map. A strong Lorraine and a declining Burgundy placed Jean IX in the perfect position to wipe out the neighbor that terrorized his nation for centuries. Burgundy, despite being in decline, put up much resistance extending the war till 1647 when their army was annihilated at the Battle of Dijon. The major defeat led to full annexation of Burgundy putting Lorraine as the undisputed power in the region. Jean IX, under the suggestion of his subjects, chose to claim the crown of Lotharingia to emphasis the greatness of his nation. However, claiming the crown created a divide between Lotharingia and the HRE because the crown directly challenged the power of the HRE emperor. The close ties between the Lorraine and other HRE nations severed but Lotharingia, with the annexation of Burgundy, was a serious power not to be reckoned with. The severance in ties did allow the nation to make new allies that were closer to her.


0bVhhHI.png

Lorraine(1647)

Kingdom of Lotharingia (164:cool:

For the next century, Lotharingian monarchs spent most of their reigns aiding their new allies in the region. The nation was credited in the participation of both the formation of Belgium and formation of Italy, two nations that were dominant powers in their own region. For a very long time, Lorraine, eventually Lotharingia, chose to avoid conflict with France. With Burgundy threatening them at every moment, attacking France was never an option. Even when Burgundy was annexed, France had, by then, reclaimed much of their territory. Lotharingian monarchs bid their time until an opportunity arose in 1722. The French monarch was disposed the year before and a republic was established. The Lotharingian government feared the ideas that originated from Revolutionary France and sought to destroy them. The war in 1722 was meant to reinstall a monarch in power within France but, as the war got dragged on, the Lotharingian government saw their previous goal an impossible task with Republican leaders gone underground. Thus, the Lotharingian monarch agreed to taking provinces from France to weaken his neighbor while strengthening his own. From 1742 to 1750, the Lotharingian government spent most of its time and resources in cracking down on revolutionaries to halt the spread of their ideas. Meanwhile, their neighbor, Revolutionary France, prepared for a reconquest war against Lotharingia to pay back a decade old debt.


tvyJKhk.png

Lorraine (1750)


 
Last edited:
Hmm the French eastern frontier is still quite irregular, but that could be the EU provinces I guess.
Lorraine is growing slowly but steadily, for now. Am I right that piece of Austria is the single loose province they have there at the start, severed from mainland Austria?
 
Hmm the French eastern frontier is still quite irregular, but that could be the EU provinces I guess.
Lorraine is growing slowly but steadily, for now. Am I right that piece of Austria is the single loose province they have there at the start, severed from mainland Austria?

In 1356, the HRE is a big mess with fifty or so provinces (I've never actually counted and I greyed them out). Normally, France just steamrolls their eastern neighbors in the game with no one that can challenge them. For Austria, those are actually two provinces. Something interesting does happened with those provinces (which occurs often in the game) that will be mentioned in the update above.
 
Did Lorraine and Austria really fight an almost hundred year war over three provinces? I've always wondered what nations even do during wars that long. Do they take year-long tea breaks between the occasional border skirmish? :p

Now I'm intrigued about Belgium and Italy. I can only assume that the British didn't hold onto the northern Burgundian provinces, otherwise there would be no Belgium.
 
Did Lorraine and Austria really fight an almost hundred year war over three provinces? I've always wondered what nations even do during wars that long. Do they take year-long tea breaks between the occasional border skirmish? :p

Now I'm intrigued about Belgium and Italy. I can only assume that the British didn't hold onto the northern Burgundian provinces, otherwise there would be no Belgium.

There were other participants in that war too. Austria, Bohemia and Poland (small spoiler: Poland has inherited Lithuania by this point) to name a few. I've had wars where I should lose but AI couldn't get military access to my lands :p. The wars lasted until the AI decided they had enough.

I've revealed four nations now: Great Britain, Spain, Belgium and Italy. My next update might involved a different part of the world :).