Good morning! It’s the start of the Swedish summer and most of the team have abandoned their posts to get some well-earned rest. Since I’m still here though, I’ve decided to continue the flow of dev diaries by focusing each week on a particular nation with new content coming in next year’s patch and expansion. First up: Naples.
Naples, as it has ever been, begins as the junior partner in a union under Aragon, with King Alfonso V ruling over both nations. This is a relatively recent development; Alfonso is the first King of Naples from the House of Trastámara, having seized it in 1442 from the former King René I, who in 1444 is left only with Provence and Lorraine.
The first 60 years of EU4’s time period were historically a very rough time for the boot of Italy. When Alfonso died he split his inheritance between his heirs, leaving Naples independent under Ferrante I. The throne would then be contested fiercely by France and Spain, with the French invasion being one of the most destructive campaigns of the Italian Wars. Eventually the throne was secured once more by the House of Trastámara (and later Habsburg), and placed in a union with the crown of Spain.
In EU4 we’d like to encourage this competition over the Neapolitan throne. Upon the death of King Alfonso, Aragon must decide whether to divide the inheritance as he had planned. Refusing will come at the cost of legitimacy and greatly raise the liberty desire of Naples, having been cheated out of its imminent independence. The AI is overwhelmingly likely to respect the wishes of its beloved King and cede Naples to his bastard son. This inheritance however was predicated on a special dispensation given by the Pope, and a newly independent Naples must therefore pay its dues in the form of gold and legitimacy (to represent the highly contingent nature of its newfound independence) to the throne of Saint Peter. Later on, both France and Aragon/Spain will receive a long-lasting Restoration of Union CB’s against Naples. With such powerful enemies, the Kingdom of Naples will have a difficult time holding on to its sovereignty, and the fate of Italy hangs in the balance. There’s a little more to say about the Italian Wars, but unfortunately it’s very much tied to our technically unrevealed mercenary rework so I’ll have to return to this topic another time.
Notice anything new here?
There’s one more highly significant event in Neapolitan history we’d like to talk about today: the short-lived Neapolitan Republic. For that I’ll briefly hand you over to @Caligula Caesar.
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From the beginning of the Age of Absolutism, Naples may encounter an event chain which could lead to it becoming a Republic. There is already an event for Masaniello's Revolt in the game, but its conditions are fairly prohibitive, and its impact is limited. This event was reworked into two versions of the same event chain: One version for if Naples is its own ruler, and one for if Naples is ruled in a personal union. In the first version, there is an event where the peasantry, led by Masaniello, revolts, followed several months later by a larger revolt led by Gennaro Annese, which seeks to establish a Republic. You can also opt to side with the rebels, in which case Naples will become a Republic with the Signoria reform, and all neighbouring monarchies will gain the Change Government casus belli on Naples (similar to how the Ambrosian Republic events work). This will also happen if the rebels break the country.
The struggle for liberty will be difficult and costly.
The version where Naples is still in a personal union is more complicated, as offering the choice of becoming a Republic would give Naples a no-brainer – becoming a Republic would break the union. However, the rebels will still be able to establish a Republic if they break Naples, so the player might hope that they do so before their overlord sends troops to defeat the uprising. In this version of the chain, a Christian rival of Naples' overlord (with preference given to France and Castile) will be allowed to give support to the rebels, sending a nobleman and an army of "volunteers" to aid the uprising.
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We have of course also created a brand new mission tree available to both Naples and the new formable Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
As with all mission trees in Italy, we've kept them relatively small and limited their focus. Upon forming Italy, an entirely new and broader mission tree will become available.
The main part of the Neapolitan mission tree begins with establishing Naples as an independent state with an army capable of defending it. This will provide some much-needed legitimacy, as the bastard King Ferdinand is far from universally acknowledged. Pursuing a good relationship with the Papal State and becoming a bastion of Catholicism should also be priorities for an emergent Naples, for what the Pope has granted he can also revoke. For such actions you’ll be rewarded with a large amount of Papal Influence and a permanent bonus to your Tolerance of the True Faith respectively. Naples should also seek to expand its possessions in Italy. The small and obscure State of the Presidi was a territory in Tuscany controlled at least nominally by Naples, and it is as good a casus belli for the subjugation of Tuscany as any. The goal in Italy is to Win the Italian Wars by owning or having a subject own at least 25 provinces in the Italian region, which will improve your Mercenary Discipline until the end of the game. Naples also begins the game with cores on the islands of Sicily and Malta; the reunification of the Two Sicilies would be a prestigious thing indeed, and fulfils the conditions for the decision to actually for the Two Sicilies as a nation. With Sicily secured, it is time to pursue the Neapolitan claims in Epirus and Athens, leading a campaign against the Ottomans in Greece. And from there, it seems only logical to continue the crusade until you have made yourself King of Jerusalem. Naples and other nations that conquer Jerusalem as part of a mission reward will be able to call upon a restored Knights Templar to charge into battle alongside their armies.
Besides a capable army, there must also be a sizable Neapolitan Navy. And with a navy, Naples can Secure the Mediterranean through the conquest of the Baleares, Sardinia, and Corsica. From here two goals present themselves: Defeating the Barbary Pirates who plague Christian shipping even beyond the Sea, and turning the tables on the Crown of Aragon by forcing them into a personal union. The rewards for these achievements are, respectively, 15% increased Ship Trade Power and 15% reduced Liberty Desire from Subject Development.
The final branch of the tree concerns the internal development the politics of the Kingdom of Naples. As any good Italian prince ought to, you must transform Naples into a Renaissance City, Develop Naples by raising its development to 30, and deal Rein in the Nobles. You must also establish stable Neapolitan Governance by taking a side in the struggle for a Republic.
That’s all for today. I haven’t yet decided which nation we’ll look at next week so let me know in the comments what you’d like to see, and perhaps it will influence my decision. I’ll leave you with a final image with no context.
Naples, as it has ever been, begins as the junior partner in a union under Aragon, with King Alfonso V ruling over both nations. This is a relatively recent development; Alfonso is the first King of Naples from the House of Trastámara, having seized it in 1442 from the former King René I, who in 1444 is left only with Provence and Lorraine.
The first 60 years of EU4’s time period were historically a very rough time for the boot of Italy. When Alfonso died he split his inheritance between his heirs, leaving Naples independent under Ferrante I. The throne would then be contested fiercely by France and Spain, with the French invasion being one of the most destructive campaigns of the Italian Wars. Eventually the throne was secured once more by the House of Trastámara (and later Habsburg), and placed in a union with the crown of Spain.
In EU4 we’d like to encourage this competition over the Neapolitan throne. Upon the death of King Alfonso, Aragon must decide whether to divide the inheritance as he had planned. Refusing will come at the cost of legitimacy and greatly raise the liberty desire of Naples, having been cheated out of its imminent independence. The AI is overwhelmingly likely to respect the wishes of its beloved King and cede Naples to his bastard son. This inheritance however was predicated on a special dispensation given by the Pope, and a newly independent Naples must therefore pay its dues in the form of gold and legitimacy (to represent the highly contingent nature of its newfound independence) to the throne of Saint Peter. Later on, both France and Aragon/Spain will receive a long-lasting Restoration of Union CB’s against Naples. With such powerful enemies, the Kingdom of Naples will have a difficult time holding on to its sovereignty, and the fate of Italy hangs in the balance. There’s a little more to say about the Italian Wars, but unfortunately it’s very much tied to our technically unrevealed mercenary rework so I’ll have to return to this topic another time.
Notice anything new here?
There’s one more highly significant event in Neapolitan history we’d like to talk about today: the short-lived Neapolitan Republic. For that I’ll briefly hand you over to @Caligula Caesar.
--------------------
From the beginning of the Age of Absolutism, Naples may encounter an event chain which could lead to it becoming a Republic. There is already an event for Masaniello's Revolt in the game, but its conditions are fairly prohibitive, and its impact is limited. This event was reworked into two versions of the same event chain: One version for if Naples is its own ruler, and one for if Naples is ruled in a personal union. In the first version, there is an event where the peasantry, led by Masaniello, revolts, followed several months later by a larger revolt led by Gennaro Annese, which seeks to establish a Republic. You can also opt to side with the rebels, in which case Naples will become a Republic with the Signoria reform, and all neighbouring monarchies will gain the Change Government casus belli on Naples (similar to how the Ambrosian Republic events work). This will also happen if the rebels break the country.
The struggle for liberty will be difficult and costly.
The version where Naples is still in a personal union is more complicated, as offering the choice of becoming a Republic would give Naples a no-brainer – becoming a Republic would break the union. However, the rebels will still be able to establish a Republic if they break Naples, so the player might hope that they do so before their overlord sends troops to defeat the uprising. In this version of the chain, a Christian rival of Naples' overlord (with preference given to France and Castile) will be allowed to give support to the rebels, sending a nobleman and an army of "volunteers" to aid the uprising.
---------------------
We have of course also created a brand new mission tree available to both Naples and the new formable Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
As with all mission trees in Italy, we've kept them relatively small and limited their focus. Upon forming Italy, an entirely new and broader mission tree will become available.
The main part of the Neapolitan mission tree begins with establishing Naples as an independent state with an army capable of defending it. This will provide some much-needed legitimacy, as the bastard King Ferdinand is far from universally acknowledged. Pursuing a good relationship with the Papal State and becoming a bastion of Catholicism should also be priorities for an emergent Naples, for what the Pope has granted he can also revoke. For such actions you’ll be rewarded with a large amount of Papal Influence and a permanent bonus to your Tolerance of the True Faith respectively. Naples should also seek to expand its possessions in Italy. The small and obscure State of the Presidi was a territory in Tuscany controlled at least nominally by Naples, and it is as good a casus belli for the subjugation of Tuscany as any. The goal in Italy is to Win the Italian Wars by owning or having a subject own at least 25 provinces in the Italian region, which will improve your Mercenary Discipline until the end of the game. Naples also begins the game with cores on the islands of Sicily and Malta; the reunification of the Two Sicilies would be a prestigious thing indeed, and fulfils the conditions for the decision to actually for the Two Sicilies as a nation. With Sicily secured, it is time to pursue the Neapolitan claims in Epirus and Athens, leading a campaign against the Ottomans in Greece. And from there, it seems only logical to continue the crusade until you have made yourself King of Jerusalem. Naples and other nations that conquer Jerusalem as part of a mission reward will be able to call upon a restored Knights Templar to charge into battle alongside their armies.
Besides a capable army, there must also be a sizable Neapolitan Navy. And with a navy, Naples can Secure the Mediterranean through the conquest of the Baleares, Sardinia, and Corsica. From here two goals present themselves: Defeating the Barbary Pirates who plague Christian shipping even beyond the Sea, and turning the tables on the Crown of Aragon by forcing them into a personal union. The rewards for these achievements are, respectively, 15% increased Ship Trade Power and 15% reduced Liberty Desire from Subject Development.
The final branch of the tree concerns the internal development the politics of the Kingdom of Naples. As any good Italian prince ought to, you must transform Naples into a Renaissance City, Develop Naples by raising its development to 30, and deal Rein in the Nobles. You must also establish stable Neapolitan Governance by taking a side in the struggle for a Republic.
That’s all for today. I haven’t yet decided which nation we’ll look at next week so let me know in the comments what you’d like to see, and perhaps it will influence my decision. I’ll leave you with a final image with no context.
