Round XXI (1526-1536): Preventive Attacks
Ray: GOOOOOOOOOOD Evening everyone and Welcome to "BIG RULER". I'm Ray Porter, and I am here with George I. Joe and B. Rene Daid to help you all follow that alternative history! This season, we are following
Savoy. Last time, Italy was -again- largely attacked by all their Muslim neighbors but successfully won the round, while colonizing a large Horde land, and acquiring new vassals. Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Philippe II de Savoie,
Re d'Italia, Rei d'Aragó, Magyarország Királya, Knjaže Bălgarija, Erzherzöge Österreich, Duc de Lorraine, Duce de Milano, Graft von Hohenzollern.
Philippe: Good evening Ray.
Ray: Philippe, we have a lot to discuss today, but first of all, I would like to talk about a very specific topic: your heir. You don't have a son, and last time your younger brother died, so the apparent heir right now is your nephew Fernandino. We have been following your family for nearly two centuries, and -if you don't have a son- this will be the first time that a de Savoie is crowned while his father had never been...
Philippe: This is true. I already have four daughters, so at my age, I have no doubt Fernandino will succeed me. I don't think it will be an issue though. He is still in direct line of inheritance, as my late father was his grand-father... I can see why it bemuses you, but I can assure you Italy has nothing to worry about.
Ray: I'm glad to hear it. Last round, we saw you getting a few more vassals, starting colonizing and suffering attacks from Muslims...
Philippe: "suffering" is not the correct term. We of course were under attack, but we were ready and ultimately won every single war we fought.
Ray: True. Anyway, is this the strategy you are going to follow this round?
Philippe: Part of it, yes. We will still try to enlarge our vassals circle, and our colonization priorities will remain Hordes land, before neighbor provinces and finally the Indian Ocean.
George: But you are going on the offensive?
Philippe: This is likely. We know that Muslims will attack us at any chance they'll get. We don't know who will attack nor when, and this might be problematic. We need to control that, and attack first.
George: Any idea who might be your first target? We saw Kanem Bornu was going down...
Philippe: We have a large army at the border with Kanem Bornu, so it will not be annoying if they do attack us. Other nations are more problematic and need to be taken care of....
George: Who? Fez? Ottomans? Jalayirids?
Philippe: You'll see.....
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George: I'm waiting forward to see who his first target will be...
Ray: Waiting for that, Philippe continues to clean his borders during the winter 1526-1527, vassalizing Serbia and annexing Siena.
George: And my time finally comes in October 1527, with a declaration of war against the Ottomans! 60 regiments have been pressed against the Turkish borders, against the 7,000 defending troops.
Ray: This is a pretty unfair war, and the Ottomans are annexed as soon as December.
George: Italy needed to storm this country, to prevent any other Muslim state to join. Moreover, they needed the troops back on the Hordes border in February, when the truce ended and the Horde declare war. Here is the situation in April. There are a lot of rebels in the Hordes territory, which helps Italy to progress.
Ray: What should be Italy objectives for this war?
George: Probably the Circassia-Alania-Kizlyar line. Easy to defend, and giving a boost to Georgian's ability to defend against the Horde. Anyway, with the situation here under control, Italy declare war on minor state Algiers, quickly defended by Fez. This is well played, because Aragon stays out of the war. Fez will have no chance to capture the undefended Aragonese colonies!
Ray: Algiers is quickly annexed though, a month only after the declaration of war, while Alania joins Italy in November. The Italian senate now asks for the Ostvak province.
George: What?
Ray: Italy has a small colony in the Obdorsk area. Its creation generated a 1-month war with the Sibir Horde. Italy quickly capitulated to protect its undefended colony... But since then, SIbir has been vassalized by Muscowy.... I don't see how this mission can be completed.
George: Philippe might have a plan, as he doesn't complain to the senate... Anyway, here is the situation in Morocco in November 1528.
Ray: the war is still undecided, but we only are four months into it...
George: This is too long. Philippe's strategy is a "hit and run" one. Otherwise he might just wakes the other Muslims up.... And thi is the case in December! Mazandaran and Qara Koyunly attacks Italy. Peace is quickly signed with Fez, the Moroccan state revoking their claims and paying war reparation, and with the Blue Horde, who capitulates after having lost a 200 miles - strip of land, and its entire army.
Ray: I doubt there will be a lot of wars left with the Horde.
George: You are right. Moscow, Poland and Crimea might just annex it before the end of this round, and I don't even consider these huge revolts who might declare independence! Anyway, this peace allows the Italian army to move South and fight Mazandaran in Persia.
Ray: As always, winning the decisive battles gives ITaly the lead, and the peace is signed as soon as May 1529, resulting in Italian victory.
George: Italy now nearly entirely surrounds the Jalayirids...
Ray: Abkhazia is vassalized in May 1529, while there are some tensions in Europe...
George: Indeed. Denmark is at war with Sweden, England, and a few minors. While Italy controls nearly the entire continental Denmark, there are still a few Danish towns North of the peninsula. Refugees are spreading to Italy.
Ray: But Philippe sword he won't go to war in Europe.
George: He will if he can storm a nation... And this is the case for Denmark. Attacked in December 1529, peaced out in February 1530.
Ray: Now Itlay controls the entire peninsula.
George: Indeed. Philippe rests for a few months, then storm the Arzew-based state of Toggourt. Attacked in March, annexed in April.
Ray: Now the Commonwealth looks much better. The major enclaves have been removed, and only a few coastal provinces in the Mediterranean are not under Philippe's rule.
George: Next winter brings new war for Italy. This is the best season to attack Muslims, and this time it is going to be the Jalayirids. Hejaz defends though.This is going to be complicated.
Ray: This is like the sixth or seventh war against Hejaz, and Italy never progresses. Why that?
George: It is mainly desert, which is not Italy's advantage. and the border with Hejaz is located to a small corridor South of Jerusalem. However, if Italy keeps going along the Red Sea and down the Euphrates, we might end up with tree fronts war with Hejaz, which will be way more manageable for Italy.
Ray: Early battles indeed are tough for Italy. A lot of lost fights in Spring....
George: This is not good. More than 25,000 Italians killed, a third of Italy's army in Persia. This is a huge blow for Philippe, who signs a white peace with Hejaz in June 31. This allows him to re-affect some troops North, and win some battles.
Ray: This is good, but I don't think Italy can afford to loose so many men during a long time.
George: They can't. Philippe needs this war to end quickly. 10 months into the war, the front is in its favor though.
Ray: You are right. Peace is signed a few weeks later, in November. Jalayirids surrender.
George: This was about time... Italy only has a few months of peace before in February, the Blue Horde attacks Italy again.
Ray: again?!
George: They won't be any trouble. Do you remember how bad they were five years ago? Well it's even worse now...
Ray: Indeed... I don't see it being a problem.... Except Fez thinks it is a nice opportunity to attack the commonwealth!
George: NOOOOOOO!
Ray: What? Fez is no threat! Look, Fez armies are moving away from the Italian border
George: You don't understand! They are moving South-West, annexing undefended Aragon colonies one after the other!
Ray: You are right! Aragon is down to one single colony now...
George: It takes time to the Inchiri Army to move North, but they finally capture back the lost colonies...
Ray: But this wars calls for more Muslim in the party. in July, Mazandaran and its distant Khorasan ally attack Italy.
George: distant does not mean harmless. In October, Khorasan lands some troops in undefended Andamans Italian colony.
Ray: All the Italian colonies in the Indian Ocean might be lost! Italy has not any troop or navy in the Indian Ocean, so Khorasan has a wide open road to it.... This scares Philippes, who quickly signs peace with Mazandaran.
George: As soon as the Khorasan troops leave the colony, Philippe sends a spy there. The 200 Italian farmers revolt against Khorasan authority.
Ray: And in April 1535, peace is signed with Fez and the Horde, ending the wars...
George: This has been an heavy round. A lot of wars fought, but this time, Italy managed to minimize its loss, so the nation barely suffered from the fights.....
Ray: This indeed has been a very entertaining round! Don't miss next round of BIG RULER as I'm sure Philippe will try to connect all its African holdings
