In 1419 the princebishopric of Cologne was one of those fragmented countries in present-day Germany, which was nominally a part of the Holy Roman Empire, known from Wari Bana's other AAR. This HRE was neither holy, Roman, nor was it an empire, but that's a different story. Let's suffise to say a red line on the religious map demarcated it's borders and he who was emperor could move his armies freely within it's boundaries for as long as he was at war.
Cologne was allied to the equally fragmented People's Republic of Mainz, and together they held five provinces. For Cologne these were the adjoining Cisrhenum provinces of Koeln and Trier, and the Transrhenish province of Westfalen. Chief Commander and Supreme Leader of the small state was His Holyness, Dietrich von Mors, a somewhat obscure historic figure who had gained sovereignty over the Episcopate through bribes and bullying. His family had gained great wealth by developing and commercializing the well-known brand of consecrated breakfast cereal "Papal Pops". (The slogan "Papal Pops will take you straight to heaven!" was changed to the more neutral "Papal Pops - Better than a Crusade" after a food poisoning scandal, which nearly cost the von Mors' their wealth and good name.)
Von Mors was a man of vision, and he immediately recognised the problems Cologne was going to face would it want to develop into a regional power, no longer at the will of foreign Emperors or - God forbid - the French. Cologne lacked a harbour to trade with more interesting people than the boring Europeans, she lacked territorial unity, which, admittedly, could be seen as a plus in some cases, but was a thorne in the eye of any self-conscious nationalist (or episcopalist, if you will). Furthermore she lacked strong allies who were not equally handicapped and fragmented. And perhaps the most important: her citizens lacked an ideology that spurred them to world conquest.
All von Mors could do was wait.
Cologne was allied to the equally fragmented People's Republic of Mainz, and together they held five provinces. For Cologne these were the adjoining Cisrhenum provinces of Koeln and Trier, and the Transrhenish province of Westfalen. Chief Commander and Supreme Leader of the small state was His Holyness, Dietrich von Mors, a somewhat obscure historic figure who had gained sovereignty over the Episcopate through bribes and bullying. His family had gained great wealth by developing and commercializing the well-known brand of consecrated breakfast cereal "Papal Pops". (The slogan "Papal Pops will take you straight to heaven!" was changed to the more neutral "Papal Pops - Better than a Crusade" after a food poisoning scandal, which nearly cost the von Mors' their wealth and good name.)
Von Mors was a man of vision, and he immediately recognised the problems Cologne was going to face would it want to develop into a regional power, no longer at the will of foreign Emperors or - God forbid - the French. Cologne lacked a harbour to trade with more interesting people than the boring Europeans, she lacked territorial unity, which, admittedly, could be seen as a plus in some cases, but was a thorne in the eye of any self-conscious nationalist (or episcopalist, if you will). Furthermore she lacked strong allies who were not equally handicapped and fragmented. And perhaps the most important: her citizens lacked an ideology that spurred them to world conquest.
All von Mors could do was wait.
