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Two Sicilies shall prevail!!! No I'm kidding, they are going to be push over in the face of the drunken Irish. This is an interesting concept for an AAR, and don't worry about boring updates, there has been plenty of intrigue already and I'm sure plenty more in store.
stnylan - yep, once I got those capitalist up there, I finally got the whole place in the relaxing white coat. Thanks for the continued support.
anonymous4401 - Indeed, I was suprised myself to see such a score but more on that after my military actions.
Olaus Petrus - Irish interest happen to conflict with the largest power in the world so I must look elsewhere. Colonies are certainly appealing though.
coz1 - You sir are the reason for me updating so late, damn your well written AAR
. Don't worry before I went galavanting in world affairs I checked my purse and I was ok... for now.
wej - Hmm, I divided Italy would probably be better for Ireland, less competiton. As for unfound hatred, atleast its not against the Irish.
joebthegreat - As you shall see, lackluster performance will stop me from gaining anything at all save a thriving coffin industry.
Vincent Julien & Meanman - Thanks its good to see some more influx into this AAR, for a second I thought it might get stagnant, *whew*
Edit: It helps to not forget to post the comments first or even post them all. *does a little swapping* Who knows what anonymous and stnylan are talking about. As if they read the update before I even updated it.
anonymous4401 - Indeed, I was suprised myself to see such a score but more on that after my military actions.
Olaus Petrus - Irish interest happen to conflict with the largest power in the world so I must look elsewhere. Colonies are certainly appealing though.
coz1 - You sir are the reason for me updating so late, damn your well written AAR
. Don't worry before I went galavanting in world affairs I checked my purse and I was ok... for now. wej - Hmm, I divided Italy would probably be better for Ireland, less competiton. As for unfound hatred, atleast its not against the Irish.
joebthegreat - As you shall see, lackluster performance will stop me from gaining anything at all save a thriving coffin industry.
Vincent Julien & Meanman - Thanks its good to see some more influx into this AAR, for a second I thought it might get stagnant, *whew*
Edit: It helps to not forget to post the comments first or even post them all. *does a little swapping* Who knows what anonymous and stnylan are talking about. As if they read the update before I even updated it.
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Excellent little update. I like the way you handled the tension on this one. It was all building up to that first battle, and then the invasion of Two Sicilies, when suddenly everything switches back to O'Donnell again and his men, and with the promise of a second, crucial, battle that will decide the war. It puts everything else into its proper context - that of the warm-up rather than the main event.
I eagerly await to see what happens.
I eagerly await to see what happens.
The Cost of Prestige
The Irish Army: Óglaigh na hÉireann
After a month at sea, 3 divisions of the Irish Expeditionary Army reached the shores of the Italian Peninsula near the city of Tuscany in the province of Grosseto. Under the command of the flamboyant General O’Donnell the forces almost immediately moved south to meet the advancing Southern Italians who had recently captured Rome without a shot being fired. O’Donnell an able administrator was a poor tactician and his gung-ho charge into unneeded battle would cost Ireland heavily.
On the strategic scale Sardinia Piedmont was in a delicate situation, Austria who in an attempt to thwart Italian unification declared war and had the initial advantage in numbers on the border. General Giuseppe Garibaldi favored defeating the stronger Austrians and therefore shifted almost all arms from Sicilian front to the Austrian one, with the help of a French army the front he hoped to stabilize the east but at the cost of an almost undefended southern one.
The Irish, although they promised Count Cavour an army, came as a complete surprise to the Italian who thought little of Ireland but was thankful nonetheless and instructed O’Donnell to hold the southern front as long as possible. The numbers Ireland brought would surely stem the advancing southerners long enough for the Sardinian reprisal but unfortunately the chain of command had its limits.
On the morning of the 14th of July O’Donnell engaged the whole of the Irish Expeditionary Army (28,943 effectives) against the smaller but technologically superior Sicilians under General Galantro (21,200 effectives). The sporadic hills outside of Rome proved a problematic terrain to attack, Galantro having consolidated his gains and men had an intimidating defensive line and no one knew it more then O’Donnell who on the previous night found the Sicilian’s position impossible to outflank but nonetheless ordered the attack to commence for he felt any offensive measures was a more practical way to defend the whole with of Italian Peninsula with a handful of Italians and Irish.
The opening stage of battle, the Fingal assualt can be seen
The initial stages of the battle could be said to foreshadowed the rest of it. Before dawn the Irish Fingal Regiment attempted to seize a ridge dominating the eastern flank of Galantro’s army, the charge uphill had exhausted most men and when met with gunfire most fled down hill in a panic, witnessing the cowardice, O’Donnell himself rode out to rally the panicked Irishmen only to be shot on top of his horse, a clear target for sharpshooters in surrounding hills. O’Donnell would leave the field alive and would catch fever for the remainder of the battle but nonetheless command his army. The troops continued to assualt forward and finally after an hour of intense melee the skirmish was over with the Fingal Regiment loosing 70% of its men with nothing to show save the scattered dead up and down the ridge which would never be truly theirs. The ridge would be bitterly known Carrantuohill after Ireland’s highest peak (although not nearly as tall) and would be the focus of the loosing battle. Both generals new the importance of the high ground especially since the Irish did not have proper artillery to dislodge the defenders from said high points, in retrospect it was inevitable that this battle unfolded as it did.
At the end of the battle some 3 days later O’Donnell retreat was orderly and timed, although Galatro probably didn't have the means to pursue it was nevertheless a caution after the near envelopment of the army the day before. The Irish Expeditionary Force was nearly at half its strength and although reinforcements would eventually arrive, Ireland’s chance at glory seemed over for the remainder of the war as news of the 15,000 casualties shook Ireland proper; no one wanted to risk any further action in what was now a fruitless war.
Regardless of the popular support another Irish expeditionary force was on its way and would soon arrive under General Tyrconnel who would relieve General O’Donnell and ironically launch an offensive of his own although the situation was different; Austria, having fought for months a two front war signed a peace after the disastrous defeat at Treviso and freed up massive amount of Sardinian and French troops now making their way down to meet Tyrconnel. Furthermore amphibious invasions along the coasts of Southern Italy had begun and defeat of the Two Sicilies was predicted by next spring season. Knowing as much as any other of his kingdoms fate, Galantro had acquired a sizable force for an offensive aimed at the very force he had so soundly defeated 3 months before, O’Donnell’s Irish.
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Of course stnylan and I can control the flow of time. How else do you think we have the power to comment on/write so many AARs?
good luck to General Tyrconnel, i hope he can wipe out those nasty italians...
Don't let me down! You must kill all the italians! or atleast destroy the army, so you can later unite all of Italy, under Irish rule! *Evil laugh*
Don't let me down! You must kill all the italians!
or atleast destroy the army, so you can later unite all of Italy, under Irish rule! *Evil laugh*
Well, thankfully I didn't keep you from it too long. Good to see another update, but slightly sad to see such a defeat. Things do look a might better, but I wonder what Ireland hopes to gain from this war in the end. They certainly won't get any land, and I don't know that the prestige bump will be much to sneeze at. I suppose getting some work for your troops will be helpful...if they don't all die in the process.
Irish Resolve
After the defeat outside of Rome Irish activity had slowed down, the recent invasions of southern Italy by France had focused most of the Sicilians attention and it was felt if any attack was going to be launched it would be against them. In fact General Tyrconnel was in the process of completely stripping O’Donnell’s 1st army of most of his men for campaigns elsewhere when the attacks were launched
The late campaigns of Italian Unification
Acquiring a quarter of the available army, Galantro hoped to crush the Irish Armies in two separate battles then turn on the growing Sardinian forces in the west. General Corleone and his 10,000 man army was sent directly north to face Tyrconnel’s 2nd army while the bulk of 32,000 men under Galatro went across the Apennines to face O’Donnell’s 1st army.
The first attack on Tyrconnel’s 2nd army in Viterbo was promptly defeated although it shook the Irish and Sardinian troops; the battle showed how overwhelming numbers could be substituted for lack of firepower due to poor equipment and after initial engagements Corleone retreated badly mauled back to Rome. Having won the first engagement Tyconnel had the option to push towards the almost undefended Rome or turn and face Galatro’s army attacking O’Donnell. Having similar sentiment as O’Donnell the latter was chosen. An apprehensive commander, Tyrconnel would not march his men into battle recklessly and the time taken for consolidation and reinforcements delayed his arrival and having no affect on the outcome of the upcoming battle in Perugia.
The Defense of Perugia
The defense of Perugia cost Ireland the bulk of her standing army, having lost in the battle of Roma O’Donnell felt sure the next Irish engagement could, if lost, crush Irish resolve for war and the battle reflected that. Opening moves of the battle unfolded like many encounters of the time, what made it differ was the sheer ferocity of it with neither general wanting to conceit defeat. Eventually it was the Irish that won the field almost completely annihilating the opposing side in a two day struggle, many parts due to the breakdown of battle into hand to hand fighting negating the Sicilians superior breech loaded, American made Henry Rifles.
The battle ended with both sides sustaining similar casualties the difference being O’Donnell’s 1st army maintained equanimity while Galatro’s Sicilians broke rank and dissolved into the countryside. All in all the combined Sardinian and Irish forces suffered 14,500 casualties 900 of which were Sardinian almost the complete detachment of which 80% all of their casualties were sustained on the first day.
The green cladden Rangers on Gillicks Farm
The battle much like the First Battle of Roma took a heavy toll on Ireland’s will for war, the war was of a new breed of “live war” much like the Crimean War in which new technology such as the telegram allowed for news of such battles to be read by the masses the following days. And with such technology the press had made heroes specifically of the Connaught Rangers an Irish battalion from the south that were glorified by war correspondent William Wilde after the heroic stand upon Gillick’s farm, named after the commanding Lieutenant Colonel who was of the first to die after seizing it.
The battle was the last Irish combat seen on mainland Italy for the rest of the war and apart from small skirmishes in Sicily, the Irish Expeditionary Army was parted from any further involvement in the foreign war which in contemporary view seen as trivial waste of life for almost no gain. La Mormara’s push into Rome and defeat of the remaining Southern Italians ended the war and unified the Italian peninsula, it seemed the Irish soldier was to head home but it was not to be as with most powers of the time Ireland would expand her empire to the more “uncivilized” areas of the world.
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Victory! But at a price. Ireland doesn't really have the manpower I would think to engage in long protracted European wars like that.
Expensive war and little to gain. I think that your decision to turn your attention towards uncivs is wise one.
A well written piece showing both the heroism and futility of war all at the same time. Nice.
A good victory, but costly, the your Irish did fight bravely as they often do. Have them hoist a few for me as congrats when they return home. And I agree - turn to uncivs for a time and see if Ireland can carve a piece of the world for herself.
A good victory, but costly, the your Irish did fight bravely as they often do. Have them hoist a few for me as congrats when they return home.
And I agree - turn to uncivs for a time and see if Ireland can carve a piece of the world for herself.
Dang, i really wanted italy out of the picture....o well, i guess i have to live with it...or i can attack them!!! yay!!! lol, im just kidding...
Moving into the uncivilized places of the world, might or might not give you more enimies...but it is a good idea, for the irish need to expand their empire to a much bigger area then just a small island! good luck to the irish
Moving into the uncivilized places of the world, might or might not give you more enimies...but it is a good idea, for the irish need to expand their empire to a much bigger area then just a small island! good luck to the irish
An island can not hope to rule a continent... but you sure as hell can try!
Colonization in Africa is nice, and maybe you could go to Asia too. You could probabally break the Monroe Doctrine and invade Venezuala or something too if you wanted. Then Ireland can be a collective mass of small ammounts of all the different people of the world! Then you can get torn apart internally! Huzzah!
Colonization in Africa is nice, and maybe you could go to Asia too. You could probabally break the Monroe Doctrine and invade Venezuala or something too if you wanted. Then Ireland can be a collective mass of small ammounts of all the different people of the world! Then you can get torn apart internally! Huzzah!
mwahahahahaaa...
Eire Abu! Faugh a Ballaugh! sléacht na Sasanaigh!
and bring back Gaelic too
Eire Abu! Faugh a Ballaugh! sléacht na Sasanaigh!
and bring back Gaelic too