The odds do long a little long. Though it does depend, of course, on the AI getting its act together which is never a given.
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To my mind the real problem is France. With that force you can hold the Austrians (although they will surely drive for Parma once you occupy it) and march through the peninsula. But can you do all that while holding the French at the border? I look forward to finding out.
If Quirinus can hold Turin, I don't doubt he can form Italy, and when he's formed Italy, France shouldn't be a problem! 
So many doubters
For those of you who've read my other AAR's, you know how I feel about the capabilites of cavalry, especially at the start of the game.
I will say, that once unification occurs, all of the other Italian armies will fall under my control. At present there are 10 divisions among the other nations. Assuming no one looses any divisions (which they shouldn't since I am using cavalry) then after unification, we should have 27 Italian divisions versus a combined total of 33 Austrian and French divisions. Those are odds I can certainly live with...
For those of you who've read my other AAR's, you know how I feel about the capabilites of cavalry, especially at the start of the game.
I will say, that once unification occurs, all of the other Italian armies will fall under my control. At present there are 10 divisions among the other nations. Assuming no one looses any divisions (which they shouldn't since I am using cavalry) then after unification, we should have 27 Italian divisions versus a combined total of 33 Austrian and French divisions. Those are odds I can certainly live with...
I've already tried to tell them that, but they won't listen!Quirinus308 said:So many doubters
For those of you who've read my other AAR's, you know how I feel about the capabilites of cavalry, especially at the start of the game.
Quirinus308 said:So many doubters
For those of you who've read my other AAR's, you know how I feel about the capabilites of cavalry, especially at the start of the game.
I have absolute faith in you! Partly because I've seen you conquer the world in much the same way twice before, but still... It would be pretty bad if it came somehow unstuck though...
I have faith in you, simply that you are doing a closely-to-historical-results make it interesting on how much are you gonna win.
Hastu Neon said:
Indeed. Will the Italians overcome their slumber under the repressive jackboot of the Austrian reaction to join hands as comrades for the glorious cause of the revolution and, with voices crying to the heavens, engage in their great endeavour of freedom and prosperity to bring equality and justice ...
OK, OK, so I've seen one too many DPRK news reports. But I'm sure you get the point.
Chapter 2: The War of Independance
The Defense of Piedmonte
Giovanni Salerno
The Peninsula Campaign
The Quirinal Convention
The Military Situation, Post Unification
The Regio Esercito
The Regia Marina
The Twin Offensives
The Rhône Offensive
The Piave Offensive
Guerra Lampo
Rafaldini's Drive on Paris
The Aftermath of the Fall of Paris
In Other News
The Winter Push / Lienz Campaign
The Race to Wien
Final Chapter
Epilogue
The Defense of Piedmonte
Giovanni Salerno
The Peninsula Campaign
The Quirinal Convention
The Military Situation, Post Unification
The Regio Esercito
The Regia Marina
The Twin Offensives
The Rhône Offensive
The Piave Offensive
Guerra Lampo
Rafaldini's Drive on Paris
The Aftermath of the Fall of Paris
In Other News
The Winter Push / Lienz Campaign
The Race to Wien
Final Chapter
Epilogue
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The Defense of Piedmonte
With Rafaldini and Salerno leading their respective cavalry forces south, the defense of Piedmonte was left to just 5 divisions. Three of those infantry divisions were grouped into the I. Legion, for the defense of Torino, and the western border. Of the remaining two divisions, one infantry was formed into the understrengthed II. Legion, while a lone cavalry division formed the 1st corps. These two divisions were to hold back the Austrians in the east.
Once the war began the lone French division on the border showed little interest in bothering Piedmonte, so the I. Legion was given orders to head southwest and capture the French border town of Draguignan, then proceed north along the border.
Against the Austrians, the II. Legion was sent to hold Novara while the 1st corps would sneak in behind the Austrians to capture Milano. It was hoped that the Austrians would strike against Novara, and that the II. Legion would be able to pin them down until they could be trapped. It was a good plan.
Unfortunately the Austrian force und Erzherzog Karl arrived at Novara before the II. Legion, negating any defensive advantages, they might have had. To make matters worse, Erzherzog Karl was leading a cavalry force whose shock abilities would prevent the Sardinians from holding them for any extended period. To their credit they held out in Navara for six weeks at a cost of approximately 1500 Italians.
On the western front, Draguignan was captured without opposition. The French however were bringing additional divisions to the area, and soon enough were threatening Torino. The I. Legion was recalled to Torino to protect the city and the king before moving on to Grenoble.
The battle for Torino was never really in doubt as the Sardinians enjoyed a 3 to 1 superiority, but after the battle, the decision was made to use the I. Legion against the Austrians, and the weaker II. Legion to hold at Torino. The 1st Corps having captured Milano had moved in behind Erzherzog Karl to capture Bergamo. It was hoped that the capture of Bergamo would mean that Erzherzog Karl would be trapped at Novara. With that in mind, the I. Legion was sent in to prevent his escape.
Two and a half months into the war, the Sardinians were holding their own in Piedmonte, but by July 20th all that was in jeopardy. With even forces at the two fronts, the Kingdom of Two Sicilies tipped the balance by landing an invasion force at Genova. This was coupled with the news that the French had finished their campaign in Africa. More troops would be arriving soon.
With Rafaldini and Salerno leading their respective cavalry forces south, the defense of Piedmonte was left to just 5 divisions. Three of those infantry divisions were grouped into the I. Legion, for the defense of Torino, and the western border. Of the remaining two divisions, one infantry was formed into the understrengthed II. Legion, while a lone cavalry division formed the 1st corps. These two divisions were to hold back the Austrians in the east.
Once the war began the lone French division on the border showed little interest in bothering Piedmonte, so the I. Legion was given orders to head southwest and capture the French border town of Draguignan, then proceed north along the border.
Against the Austrians, the II. Legion was sent to hold Novara while the 1st corps would sneak in behind the Austrians to capture Milano. It was hoped that the Austrians would strike against Novara, and that the II. Legion would be able to pin them down until they could be trapped. It was a good plan.
Unfortunately the Austrian force und Erzherzog Karl arrived at Novara before the II. Legion, negating any defensive advantages, they might have had. To make matters worse, Erzherzog Karl was leading a cavalry force whose shock abilities would prevent the Sardinians from holding them for any extended period. To their credit they held out in Navara for six weeks at a cost of approximately 1500 Italians.
On the western front, Draguignan was captured without opposition. The French however were bringing additional divisions to the area, and soon enough were threatening Torino. The I. Legion was recalled to Torino to protect the city and the king before moving on to Grenoble.
The battle for Torino was never really in doubt as the Sardinians enjoyed a 3 to 1 superiority, but after the battle, the decision was made to use the I. Legion against the Austrians, and the weaker II. Legion to hold at Torino. The 1st Corps having captured Milano had moved in behind Erzherzog Karl to capture Bergamo. It was hoped that the capture of Bergamo would mean that Erzherzog Karl would be trapped at Novara. With that in mind, the I. Legion was sent in to prevent his escape.
Two and a half months into the war, the Sardinians were holding their own in Piedmonte, but by July 20th all that was in jeopardy. With even forces at the two fronts, the Kingdom of Two Sicilies tipped the balance by landing an invasion force at Genova. This was coupled with the news that the French had finished their campaign in Africa. More troops would be arriving soon.
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Right boys, the French are up to their necks in a war against an Arab country powerful enough to defeat Spain. Let's go to war with them, it'll be years before they manage to get out of Algeria!
Somebody give me a length of rope.
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A very bold plan, and lots of risk associated with it. Hopefully the French won't be in a hurry to imitate the Sicilians and ferry their troops on the Sardinian front. I'll be following this
so far so good I suppose, i never saw an event of the Austrians sacsseding there Italian provinces, is there such?
You failed inform us about the Capturing of capitols in Italy... is it well?
You failed inform us about the Capturing of capitols in Italy... is it well?
Well you've survived the initial French and Austrian attacks anyway. Eventually however they will surely smother you with men... unless you've unified the peninsula by then.
Just a quick heads up...
I am reorganizing some of the previous updates, and how they are listed in the table of contents. After this I plan to do a feedback post, and then at least one update today on General Salerno. If time permits, then we will have our first real look at the peninsula campaign today. Of course that depends on if I have to really "work" while I'm at work.
Q
I am reorganizing some of the previous updates, and how they are listed in the table of contents. After this I plan to do a feedback post, and then at least one update today on General Salerno. If time permits, then we will have our first real look at the peninsula campaign today. Of course that depends on if I have to really "work" while I'm at work.
Q
Yes, so do Igis said:
No, historically it took several wars, and French backing to finally see the peninsula united. Italian unification was not a strong point for me before this AAR, but I must say it’s a fascinating story, and well worth the study.Hannibal Barca2 said:
Well, at least the Prussians aren’t involved.Minarchist said:
Thanks, I may need it.Anduwaithe said:
Thanks for the vote of confidence.Ahura Mazda said:
Yes, the AI is often the great equalizer.stnylan said:
I feel like I should be able to unify before the French can really press me on the border. After that, it’s a bit of a crap shoot.ComradeOm said:
France is a bit of an enigma. One thing in my favor is that the French AI loves Italy, so hopefully they will want a quick end to the war after unification. A white peace would be nice.Ahura Mazda said:
I shall have to make sure that doesn’t happen then.DerKaiser said:
Well…I’m not exactly doing a closely-to-historical-results AAR. I am basing things on history to be sure, but once the game started, I will do whatever seems best, and in line with the story. My goal is to create a historically plausible scenario. As to this particular war, my first and foremost goal is unification. After that we’ll see. Certainly I would like to see the Austrians out of Lombardo-Veneto.gis said:
Then more you shall have…Hastu Neon said:
LOL, I shall have to keep you in mind in case we go Fascist later. I could always use a good minister of propaganda.Corbett said:
True, I really would have like the war in Africa to last a little longer. It’s the French that scare me the most in this war. My biggest fear is after unification. Then I will be trying to hold the front lines, and they will have the entire length of the peninsula to land on.Lordban said:
There may be an event tied into the 6 weeks war, but I’m not sure. In either case, I don’t want to wait that long.gis said:
As to the capitals, we’ll get into that in the next two or three updatesWell, then I guess we know what we have to do.ComradeOm said:
The heir to the throne is Vittorio Emanuelle, the man who historically united Italy.gis said:
Well, I hate to put things off to the last minute. Actually I really struggled to come up with a legitimate reason for this war. In the end, this was the best I could come up with. I think it works, but I would have liked a little more substance to it.Rensslaer said:
Well, anyone who’s read my AARs knows how I feel about cavalry, especially early in the game. To be honest I must credit Falconhurst for showing me the way on that one. The key is to avoid those battles of attrition, which will come later in the game. In short you got to know when to get out of the cavalry game. As to Bismarck, it’s not an exact match. Rafaldini’s strength is military, not diplomacy, but that’s a future update. The Ems telegram was not meant to be an inspiration in the AAR, but I can certainly see the similarity.DerKaiser said:
Giovanni Salerno
Giovanni Salerno was the man hand-picked by Rafaldini to lead the I. Cavalleria in The Peninsula Campaign of The War of Independence. The I. Cavalleria was to have the prestigious role of capturing the two most important capitals on the Italian peninsula, Roma and Napoli. However, on the eve of the wars start, command of the I. Cavalleria was taken from him and given to Rafaldini. Ultimately this decision came down from King Carlo Alberto, but there were many who felt it was due to Rafaldini not wanting anyone but himself to gain the glory reserved for the I. Cavalleria. Regardless of origination of the order, it represented the first (but not the last) time Salerno would be upstaged by his mentor and friend, Rafaldini. This constant rivalry would plague Salerno his entire career as he continually tried to step out of Rafaldini’s shadow.
With Rafaldini in command of the I. Cavalleria, Salerno was given the II. Cavalleria, a second cavalry force with only 3 divisions. His primary goals were to secure Parma, Modena and the capital of Tuscany while at the same time protecting Rafaldini’s flank from the Austrians.
Giovanni Salerno was the man hand-picked by Rafaldini to lead the I. Cavalleria in The Peninsula Campaign of The War of Independence. The I. Cavalleria was to have the prestigious role of capturing the two most important capitals on the Italian peninsula, Roma and Napoli. However, on the eve of the wars start, command of the I. Cavalleria was taken from him and given to Rafaldini. Ultimately this decision came down from King Carlo Alberto, but there were many who felt it was due to Rafaldini not wanting anyone but himself to gain the glory reserved for the I. Cavalleria. Regardless of origination of the order, it represented the first (but not the last) time Salerno would be upstaged by his mentor and friend, Rafaldini. This constant rivalry would plague Salerno his entire career as he continually tried to step out of Rafaldini’s shadow.
With Rafaldini in command of the I. Cavalleria, Salerno was given the II. Cavalleria, a second cavalry force with only 3 divisions. His primary goals were to secure Parma, Modena and the capital of Tuscany while at the same time protecting Rafaldini’s flank from the Austrians.
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The Peninsula Campaign
The first battle of the peninsula campaign started on May 10, 1837 as General Salerno led the II. Cavalleria into Parma.
With a 3 to 1 advantage, General Salerno wasted little time in securing the city, and placing the duke of Parma in protective custody. From there he moved on to Modena, where he hoped to score another easy victory before capturing his biggest prize, the Grand Duke of Tuscany.
Salerno’s only hope of outperforming Rafaldini in the campaign would be if he could move quickly enough to capture his objectives before Rafaldini. If he could do that, then he could possibly drive into Lombardo-Veneto and that coupled with his capture of Tuscany would at least put him on equal footing. But it wasn’t meant to be…
Rafaldini faced almost negligible resistance in his drive south. His first battle was at Lucca over 4 weeks into the campaign. There he held a 100 to 1 advantage. (I won’t even bring up the fact that he faced irregular troops).
While securing Lucca his scout’s spotted a force heading north against General Salerno. Rafaldini being the senior general then ordered Salerno to hold his position to prepare for the Tuscan forces while He himself captured the grand duke. From there Rafaldini headed south towards Roma and Napoli. where he only faced one division of Papal forces before entering the cities unopposed.
Thus with all the key Italian capitals under Sardinian control, the Italian people were on the verge of being unified for the first time sine the days of the Roman Empire. In a last ditch effort to stop this from happening, the Austrians sent
the King a peace offering.
The first battle of the peninsula campaign started on May 10, 1837 as General Salerno led the II. Cavalleria into Parma.
With a 3 to 1 advantage, General Salerno wasted little time in securing the city, and placing the duke of Parma in protective custody. From there he moved on to Modena, where he hoped to score another easy victory before capturing his biggest prize, the Grand Duke of Tuscany.
Salerno’s only hope of outperforming Rafaldini in the campaign would be if he could move quickly enough to capture his objectives before Rafaldini. If he could do that, then he could possibly drive into Lombardo-Veneto and that coupled with his capture of Tuscany would at least put him on equal footing. But it wasn’t meant to be…
Rafaldini faced almost negligible resistance in his drive south. His first battle was at Lucca over 4 weeks into the campaign. There he held a 100 to 1 advantage. (I won’t even bring up the fact that he faced irregular troops).
While securing Lucca his scout’s spotted a force heading north against General Salerno. Rafaldini being the senior general then ordered Salerno to hold his position to prepare for the Tuscan forces while He himself captured the grand duke. From there Rafaldini headed south towards Roma and Napoli. where he only faced one division of Papal forces before entering the cities unopposed.
Thus with all the key Italian capitals under Sardinian control, the Italian people were on the verge of being unified for the first time sine the days of the Roman Empire. In a last ditch effort to stop this from happening, the Austrians sent
the King a peace offering.