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Archduchy of Austria
1741 – 1757
1741 – 1757
In 1741 Austria was very weak due to the absence of the Emperor over the last 30 years. The neighboring states were able to improve their economical and military situation while Austrian trade has broken down and the number of soldiers was few compared to the number of its enemies due to the lack of conscription centers. Hence, the first order of the new Empress Maria Theresia was to build conscription centers and increase the number of soldiers. In few years Austria had an army as large as its greatest rivals, the Ottoman Empire and England. Nevertheless, Maria Theresia felt uneasiness since she knew that if all enemies would attack at the same time Austria would have no chance. Unfortunately, the low trade income avoided further investments. Therefore, the few funds were used to fortify the Hungarian border since it was easily to fortify and the Ottoman Empire was the greatest threat for Austria. The border to Prussia was impossible to fortify as it was too long.
Finally, as predicted, England, the Ottoman Empire and Prussia declared war upon the peace loving Austrians in a critical situation as their ally the Tsar of Russia was absence. On its own Austrian forces were certainly overburdened with these huge masses of attackers. The Prussians started to invade Franconia on the west flank and Silesia on the east flank. The English went on land at the Nordic Coast and the Ottoman Empire tried to conquer Hungary. However, the first invasion of the English could be thrown back and the defense of the Hungarian cities seemed to be able to resist the Turkish attackers. The only problem was the Prussians which had been able to occupy grand areas of Franconia and Silesia. Soon the English tried a second attempt in the Netherlands and the Ottoman Sultan recognized that he would be unable to occupy the Hungarian cities and so bypassed their defense by invading Italy by ship. However, the Turkish forces could be beaten several times in the Po lowlands thanks to the forceful Austrian cavalry. Unfortunately, this was only possible by reducing troops at the Prussian front with had to back off consequently. Afterwards, Prussian troops under the command of Friedrich II were able to advance until the Marchfeld, tight in front of Vienna. However, Friedrich II was not venturous enough to make the final step and conquer Vienna instead he marched in Bavaria where he conquered several cities and could be finally beaten by brave Austrian forces. In the meantime, Maria Theresia decided to fulfill the English demands in order to have a chance to win against Prussia. And indeed, the Austrian army managed to throw back the Prussians repeatedly but it was too messed up for the execution of sophisticated war plan. Consequently, it seemed that the war would be a long haul. But suddenly the Ottoman Empire offered us a white peace which we accepted and the war was over with the result of a further strengthening of England.
AAR reward: 1500d
On-time cookie: deflation
Last edited:
Duke of Austria said:
I thought Sid was around when we attacked. I may be wrong of course.
AAR Prussia 1757-1771 The major victories of Friedrich II
After his first failure to enlarge Prussia with lands occupied by the Austrians, Friedrich didn't give up. His ambitions had not diminished after the major failure of his first war against the Austrians.
Together with the sultan a new attack was planned. Hoping to make sure that the Spanish wouldn't intervene the English king was asked to stay at peace with the Austrians. The Swedes were having enough problems of their own (OOC: ghosted for a while), so the Ottomans and Prussians would have to deal with the Austrians. In 1759 the attack was launched.
The first few months of the war went according to plan. Several forts were taken and Friedrich soon assumed the war wouldn't take that long. The loss of general Ferdinand in battle was compensated by the promotion of a talented officer named Blucher, who proved to be one of the best generals Prussia had ever had.
In his early career only Friedrich himself was generally seen as a better general. Even the great Austrian general von Laudon was seen as a slightly less talented general. Of course during his life new and better generals would be sent to war by others, the first being the great Russian general Suvurov, who wouldn't command an army till 1770.
After the first few months the optimism was soon gone. The Austrians under von Laudon soon launched a counter-offensive. A major counter-offensive as the Sultan later reported that the Balkans frontier had been lightly defended... So the Prussians were up against the major part of the Austrian army headed by von Laudon. Prussia was stronger than it had ever been, but even the skills of Friedrich and Blucher did not seem enough to stop the onslaught. Outnumbered time after time, Friedrich suffered defeat after defeat. Even the mighty fort at Lausitz was taken by the Austrians and any Prussian attempts to take it back ended in failure.
With most of the initial Prussian gains retaken and the forts in Lausitz under control, the Austrians launched an attack on Berlin itself. Friedrich was on the run and Blucher didn't have a large enough army to protect Berlin against von Laudon. After Blucher fled to the north, only the brave garrison in the Berlin fort stood between the Austrian army and the capitol of the Prussian kingdom...
The first major attack of the Austrian army was halted, as many Prussian officers had predicted. The fort in Berlin was one of the largest in the world and even von Laudon shouldn't be able to take easily. Not so many Prussian officers believed the garrison would be able to hold off a second assault. Friedrich regrouped his army north of Berlin, hoping to beat back the Austrians before they could launch the second assault. As the army started marching to Berlin it became clear that the Austrians would launch their second attack before Friedrich could arrive. Putting all hope in the garrison in Berlin, Friedrich continued to march the Prussian army to Berlin, arriving there after the assault...which had been repelled by the brave men of the legendary Berlin garrison! The exhausted Austrians were beaten by Friedrich's relatively fresh armies and pursued till they were on Austrian soil again.
The losses of the Austrian army during the siege and assaults on Berlin and against Friedrich's army after that were large. So large that Friedrich was finally able to fight on Austrian soil again. The Ottomans had been able to launch a major offensive in the south, coming close to Wien, weakening the Austrians even further. After a Prussian offensive in the Silesian area the Austrians accepted the demands of the Prussian-Ottoman alliance. The Ottomans gained the city of Venice, while the Prussians gained most of the Silesian region (Breslau, Liegitz and Lausitz).
Again Friedrich had attacked the Austrian and again the cost had been enormous. But this time he had succeeded. The Prussians had finally managed to beat the Austrians, even if the bravery of the garrison of Berlin was all that had saved Friedrich from another defeat.
Prussia would know little more than 5 years peace though. Friedrich's ambition had survived defeat and victory didn't dimish it either. So a new attack was planned.
The Austrian assault on Berlin had given Friedrich a taste of Austrian might, so fighting them without support didn't seem like a good idea to him. Again the Ottoman Sultan would join in the attack.
Again they declared war on the Austrians and again the Prussians were succesful in the first months of the war...very succesful this time. An Austrian army under von Laudon was attackedand completely destroyed. Von Laudon was captured and while he was treated with all respect by Friedrich, his release was out of the question.
The Ottomans did not fare so well though. The Spanish intervened and forced them to make peace with the Austrians. A small setback for the Prussians, but with von Laudon captured Friedrich was confident that Prussia could beat the Austrians without any help. And indeed the usual defeats at the hands of the Austrians were over, instead this war saw victory after victory of Friedrich against the Austrian armies. Soon the Austrians accepted peace and Magdeburg, Leipzig and Lueneburg were recovered by the Prussians.
The early 1770s then saw a short involvement of Prussia in the great attacks on Sweden. Friedrich's initial reaction was to try and save Sweden from the Russians and English, but soon he was persuaded that the Prussians would not be able to save the Swedes from their numerous enemies. So in 1771 Prussia was again at peace. Stronger than it had been for centuries and finally a country equal to most of its neighbours.
AAR reward: Cash
On-time reward: deflation
After his first failure to enlarge Prussia with lands occupied by the Austrians, Friedrich didn't give up. His ambitions had not diminished after the major failure of his first war against the Austrians.
Together with the sultan a new attack was planned. Hoping to make sure that the Spanish wouldn't intervene the English king was asked to stay at peace with the Austrians. The Swedes were having enough problems of their own (OOC: ghosted for a while), so the Ottomans and Prussians would have to deal with the Austrians. In 1759 the attack was launched.
The first few months of the war went according to plan. Several forts were taken and Friedrich soon assumed the war wouldn't take that long. The loss of general Ferdinand in battle was compensated by the promotion of a talented officer named Blucher, who proved to be one of the best generals Prussia had ever had.
In his early career only Friedrich himself was generally seen as a better general. Even the great Austrian general von Laudon was seen as a slightly less talented general. Of course during his life new and better generals would be sent to war by others, the first being the great Russian general Suvurov, who wouldn't command an army till 1770.
After the first few months the optimism was soon gone. The Austrians under von Laudon soon launched a counter-offensive. A major counter-offensive as the Sultan later reported that the Balkans frontier had been lightly defended... So the Prussians were up against the major part of the Austrian army headed by von Laudon. Prussia was stronger than it had ever been, but even the skills of Friedrich and Blucher did not seem enough to stop the onslaught. Outnumbered time after time, Friedrich suffered defeat after defeat. Even the mighty fort at Lausitz was taken by the Austrians and any Prussian attempts to take it back ended in failure.
With most of the initial Prussian gains retaken and the forts in Lausitz under control, the Austrians launched an attack on Berlin itself. Friedrich was on the run and Blucher didn't have a large enough army to protect Berlin against von Laudon. After Blucher fled to the north, only the brave garrison in the Berlin fort stood between the Austrian army and the capitol of the Prussian kingdom...
The first major attack of the Austrian army was halted, as many Prussian officers had predicted. The fort in Berlin was one of the largest in the world and even von Laudon shouldn't be able to take easily. Not so many Prussian officers believed the garrison would be able to hold off a second assault. Friedrich regrouped his army north of Berlin, hoping to beat back the Austrians before they could launch the second assault. As the army started marching to Berlin it became clear that the Austrians would launch their second attack before Friedrich could arrive. Putting all hope in the garrison in Berlin, Friedrich continued to march the Prussian army to Berlin, arriving there after the assault...which had been repelled by the brave men of the legendary Berlin garrison! The exhausted Austrians were beaten by Friedrich's relatively fresh armies and pursued till they were on Austrian soil again.
The losses of the Austrian army during the siege and assaults on Berlin and against Friedrich's army after that were large. So large that Friedrich was finally able to fight on Austrian soil again. The Ottomans had been able to launch a major offensive in the south, coming close to Wien, weakening the Austrians even further. After a Prussian offensive in the Silesian area the Austrians accepted the demands of the Prussian-Ottoman alliance. The Ottomans gained the city of Venice, while the Prussians gained most of the Silesian region (Breslau, Liegitz and Lausitz).
Again Friedrich had attacked the Austrian and again the cost had been enormous. But this time he had succeeded. The Prussians had finally managed to beat the Austrians, even if the bravery of the garrison of Berlin was all that had saved Friedrich from another defeat.
Prussia would know little more than 5 years peace though. Friedrich's ambition had survived defeat and victory didn't dimish it either. So a new attack was planned.
The Austrian assault on Berlin had given Friedrich a taste of Austrian might, so fighting them without support didn't seem like a good idea to him. Again the Ottoman Sultan would join in the attack.
Again they declared war on the Austrians and again the Prussians were succesful in the first months of the war...very succesful this time. An Austrian army under von Laudon was attackedand completely destroyed. Von Laudon was captured and while he was treated with all respect by Friedrich, his release was out of the question.
The Ottomans did not fare so well though. The Spanish intervened and forced them to make peace with the Austrians. A small setback for the Prussians, but with von Laudon captured Friedrich was confident that Prussia could beat the Austrians without any help. And indeed the usual defeats at the hands of the Austrians were over, instead this war saw victory after victory of Friedrich against the Austrian armies. Soon the Austrians accepted peace and Magdeburg, Leipzig and Lueneburg were recovered by the Prussians.
The early 1770s then saw a short involvement of Prussia in the great attacks on Sweden. Friedrich's initial reaction was to try and save Sweden from the Russians and English, but soon he was persuaded that the Prussians would not be able to save the Swedes from their numerous enemies. So in 1771 Prussia was again at peace. Stronger than it had been for centuries and finally a country equal to most of its neighbours.
AAR reward: Cash
On-time reward: deflation
Heh, Silesia gained by a sneak attack from Friedrich II. on Maria Theresia, who would have thought. 
AAR Prussia 1771-1779
From the archives of the Swedish and Prussian government:
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Swedish council in Stockholm, summer 1771
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, probably spring or summer 1772
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Swedish council in Stockholm, unclear date. Most likely 1773.
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, probably late 1773
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, 1774
Letter from Gerhard Blücher to Friedrich II. Probably 1774
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Swedish council in Stockholm, probably 1774
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, 1775 or 1776
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Swedish council in Stockholm, probably 1777
AAR Reward: Cash
On time reward: deflation
From the archives of the Swedish and Prussian government:
Letter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Swedish council in Stockholm, summer 1771
Code:
Dear sirs,
The Prussian army will come to your aid against the Russians. I will personally lead my men.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of PrussiaLetter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, probably spring or summer 1772
Code:
Dear Sirs,
Crushed the Russians several times. Unclear where Suvurov is.
Will need reinforcements, so recruit more soldiers.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of PrussiaLetter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Swedish council in Stockholm, unclear date. Most likely 1773.
Code:
Dear sirs,
I appreciate the fact that there are some Swedish armies supporting us in the Baltic area.
What I don't appreciate is that your king is with them.
While I can only agree that a king should lead his armies if he is a good general,
I also think that if a king doesn't know what to do in a battle he should stay at home.
And to be honest, Gustav is one of the worst generals I've ever seen. And one of the most arrogant.
Never before has someone insisted on taking command of my army, but this incompentent fool did it.
On grounds of him also being a king and the fact that we were fighting on Swedish soil.
Of course with this drooling idiot at the head of our armies we had no chance against Suvurov.
Who, if you didn't know yet, is the best general the Russians have.
And who is one of the best living generals at the moment.
So to prevent more unnecessary losses, convince him to get out of the Baltic area.
Tell him to defend Stockholm perhaps.
Or better, convince him to defend Lapland, perhaps we won't do any harm there.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of PrussiaLetter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, probably late 1773
Code:
Dear Sirs,
Several victories, but not enough men to keep the offensive going.
Now retreating from Suvurov's armies.
I need reinforcements, so recruit more soldiers.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of PrussiaLetter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, 1774
Code:
Dear Sirs,
Forces evenly matched, so I need reinforcements to launch an offensive.
Recruit more soldiers.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of PrussiaLetter from Gerhard Blücher to Friedrich II. Probably 1774
Code:
My king,
Have destroyed French attack force, but they did manage to destroy a manufactory.
On a further note, the people are getting a little restless.
News of the Swedes taking the war to English lands, while not sending extra forces against the Russians, did not increase the popularity of this war.
Even worse was the reaction on the news that a large Swedish army was destroyed in a battle on the English island of Gotland.
Signed,
Gerhard Blucher, general of the Prussian home armyLetter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Swedish council in Stockholm, probably 1774
Code:
Dear sirs,
I am a little surprised that attacking English lands seems to have higher priority for Sweden than sending extra forces to protect their Baltic territory.
I would appreciate a small change in the priorities of the Swedish armies.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of PrussiaLetter from Friedrich II of Prussia to the Prussian council in Berlin, 1775 or 1776
Code:
Dear Sirs,
Need reinforcements to keep the offensive going.
Recruit more soldiers.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of Prussia
Code:
Dear sirs,
With the Ottoman attack on Russia I think the Prussian army is not needed anymore in this war.
I will start negotiating with the Tsar for peace between Russia and Prussia.
Signed,
Friedrich, king of PrussiaAAR Reward: Cash
On time reward: deflation
AAR Prussia 1779-1796
In 1779 Friedrich II had had a lot of successes in his already long reign. From a kingdom that could be crushed by any of its neighbours he had made a power all its neighbours had to take seriously. But still his ambition wasn't gone. His goal was to establish Prussia as the most important German state. The only way to do that was to beat the Austrians without any other country interfering. If Prussia managed to do that all the world would have to admit that Prussia was the strongest and most important country in the German lands.
So Friedrich started to prepare the country for this great task. Diplomats were sent to some European courts to make sure noone would interfere. To make sure the Russians stayed out, Friedrich asked to Sultan to interfere if (and only if) Russia would not stay neutral.
In 1785 Prussia was ready for war. The army numbered more than a million men and were lead by some of the finest generals alive. Friedrich himself unfortunately couldn't leave Berlin anymore. All the forced marches out of tricky situations in Austria and in the Baltic had left its mark on the old man.
Still, with generals like von Bülow and of course Blücher the skill of the Prussian generals was no problem.
After the declaration of war the Prussians overran the Austrian forts on the border at several places. Blücher, in charge of the main army, attack in the west, while smaller armies attacked in eastern Bohemia and near the Russian border. Of course the Austrians did not give up that easily and the offensive in Bohemian lands was soon halted by them. The eastern army was sent to Bohemia as well, but even that wasn't enough to withstand the Austrian counter-attack. Even the Prussian city of Breslau was taken by the Austrians.
Of course the Austrians couldn't perform that well on all fronts. Blücher managed to capture many forts in western Austria, forcing the Austrians to send their armies there. As the war went on, the battles were more and more only fought in the western Austrian lands. Both countries couldn't reinforce their armies as fast as they used in the first months and offensives became less frequent. The front in the eastern Bohemia and the lands east of it didn't change anymore. In the west however Blücher and Von Bülow still launched attacks, only to meet stiff Austrian counter-attacks. During some of these counter-attacks the Austrians even followed Blücher on Prussian soil and during one of these pursuits caused the fateful battle of Magdeburg.
Blücher fled from the Austrian army to the area around Magdeburg, where von Bülow and his army were stationed. After joining their forces they outnumbered the Austrians, so the defence was prepared. The Austrian pursuing army (which was more than half the complete Austrian army) did not retreat as the Prussians had assumed, but attacked, even when outnumbered and under worse leadership than the Prussians. The result was a total slaughter. About every less than average Austrian general was captured and more than half the Austrian army was destroyed. The Austrians soon accepted the loss of Bremen, Hannover and Braunschweig after this blow.
It's unclear what Friedrich II would have done after this and it will never been known. The most succesful ruler the country had ever had, had died in 1786. His nephew, Friedrich Wilhelm, had succeeded him as Freidrich Wilhelm II and was not nearly as ambitious as Friedrich II. The new king had not interfered in the war against Austria, but didn't seem too eager to get Prussia in any more wars. However, soon Prussia was in yet another war.
The Russians attacked the Swedes again and the Swedes again asked their long-term ally Prussia for help. And Prussia again sent an army to help the Swedes.
The previous war of Sweden and Prussia against the Russians had not been a major success. Or so the Prussians thought. The attacks on Russian lands had cost many more men than necessary. This time the Prussians decided on a more defensive stance. A small army was sent to help the Swedish main army in Finland and the rest of the army would stay in Prussia for now. The Russians started a major offensive in Finland and soon the main Swedish army was destroyed. The Prussian support army didn't survive either (apart from a few 100 men, who were soon discharged from service. The Russian general Suvurov didn't stop in Finland though. The Russian marched in Stockholm and there was not much the Swedes and Prussians could do. Apart from destroying any reinforcements coming from Russia and retaking some cities in Finland.
Suvurov's string of succesful battles and assaults did not come without a price. His army was getting smaller and smaller and most reinforcements didn't get past Finland. Too late Suvurov decided to go back to Russia. The new Swedish army was crushed in Halsingland, but the attack on Von Bülow's army in Vasterbotten was a loss. The Prussians had sent Blücher to help Von Bülow... Suvurov lost most of his infantry in this battle. He managed to march with the remains of his army to Osterbotten, but there Blücher and Von Bülow forced him to a battle, which ended in the destruction of the main Russian army and the capture of their great general Suvurov!
The Russians soon decided to make peace with Sweden and Prussia, giving Friedrich Wilhelm the peace he had been hoping for. This also gave Prussia the time to finalise the buying of the areas of Warma and Ostpreussen from the Swedes, thereby increasing the strength of Prussia even more.
AAR reward: Cash
On-time reward: deflation
In 1779 Friedrich II had had a lot of successes in his already long reign. From a kingdom that could be crushed by any of its neighbours he had made a power all its neighbours had to take seriously. But still his ambition wasn't gone. His goal was to establish Prussia as the most important German state. The only way to do that was to beat the Austrians without any other country interfering. If Prussia managed to do that all the world would have to admit that Prussia was the strongest and most important country in the German lands.
So Friedrich started to prepare the country for this great task. Diplomats were sent to some European courts to make sure noone would interfere. To make sure the Russians stayed out, Friedrich asked to Sultan to interfere if (and only if) Russia would not stay neutral.
In 1785 Prussia was ready for war. The army numbered more than a million men and were lead by some of the finest generals alive. Friedrich himself unfortunately couldn't leave Berlin anymore. All the forced marches out of tricky situations in Austria and in the Baltic had left its mark on the old man.
Still, with generals like von Bülow and of course Blücher the skill of the Prussian generals was no problem.
After the declaration of war the Prussians overran the Austrian forts on the border at several places. Blücher, in charge of the main army, attack in the west, while smaller armies attacked in eastern Bohemia and near the Russian border. Of course the Austrians did not give up that easily and the offensive in Bohemian lands was soon halted by them. The eastern army was sent to Bohemia as well, but even that wasn't enough to withstand the Austrian counter-attack. Even the Prussian city of Breslau was taken by the Austrians.
Of course the Austrians couldn't perform that well on all fronts. Blücher managed to capture many forts in western Austria, forcing the Austrians to send their armies there. As the war went on, the battles were more and more only fought in the western Austrian lands. Both countries couldn't reinforce their armies as fast as they used in the first months and offensives became less frequent. The front in the eastern Bohemia and the lands east of it didn't change anymore. In the west however Blücher and Von Bülow still launched attacks, only to meet stiff Austrian counter-attacks. During some of these counter-attacks the Austrians even followed Blücher on Prussian soil and during one of these pursuits caused the fateful battle of Magdeburg.
Blücher fled from the Austrian army to the area around Magdeburg, where von Bülow and his army were stationed. After joining their forces they outnumbered the Austrians, so the defence was prepared. The Austrian pursuing army (which was more than half the complete Austrian army) did not retreat as the Prussians had assumed, but attacked, even when outnumbered and under worse leadership than the Prussians. The result was a total slaughter. About every less than average Austrian general was captured and more than half the Austrian army was destroyed. The Austrians soon accepted the loss of Bremen, Hannover and Braunschweig after this blow.
It's unclear what Friedrich II would have done after this and it will never been known. The most succesful ruler the country had ever had, had died in 1786. His nephew, Friedrich Wilhelm, had succeeded him as Freidrich Wilhelm II and was not nearly as ambitious as Friedrich II. The new king had not interfered in the war against Austria, but didn't seem too eager to get Prussia in any more wars. However, soon Prussia was in yet another war.
The Russians attacked the Swedes again and the Swedes again asked their long-term ally Prussia for help. And Prussia again sent an army to help the Swedes.
The previous war of Sweden and Prussia against the Russians had not been a major success. Or so the Prussians thought. The attacks on Russian lands had cost many more men than necessary. This time the Prussians decided on a more defensive stance. A small army was sent to help the Swedish main army in Finland and the rest of the army would stay in Prussia for now. The Russians started a major offensive in Finland and soon the main Swedish army was destroyed. The Prussian support army didn't survive either (apart from a few 100 men, who were soon discharged from service. The Russian general Suvurov didn't stop in Finland though. The Russian marched in Stockholm and there was not much the Swedes and Prussians could do. Apart from destroying any reinforcements coming from Russia and retaking some cities in Finland.
Suvurov's string of succesful battles and assaults did not come without a price. His army was getting smaller and smaller and most reinforcements didn't get past Finland. Too late Suvurov decided to go back to Russia. The new Swedish army was crushed in Halsingland, but the attack on Von Bülow's army in Vasterbotten was a loss. The Prussians had sent Blücher to help Von Bülow... Suvurov lost most of his infantry in this battle. He managed to march with the remains of his army to Osterbotten, but there Blücher and Von Bülow forced him to a battle, which ended in the destruction of the main Russian army and the capture of their great general Suvurov!
The Russians soon decided to make peace with Sweden and Prussia, giving Friedrich Wilhelm the peace he had been hoping for. This also gave Prussia the time to finalise the buying of the areas of Warma and Ostpreussen from the Swedes, thereby increasing the strength of Prussia even more.
AAR reward: Cash
On-time reward: deflation
The Reign Of Fire (1779 - 1796)
Every Empire has its time. A spring time´s bloom, a summer of passion, an autumn of harvest and finaly a winter of decay. The grand Empire of the Ottomans was no exception to this rule. Way past its prime it seemed oddly out of place, a gigantic relic of glorious times long since passed. An old dinosaur that had lost its teeth. What was to be done, Sultan Selim III. mumbled. What to do to stop this painful rot, this slow slide into mediocrity?
Selim knew he was not exceptional a ruler himself. But then who was? Where not all great men mere mortals in the end? The only thing sure was that something would have to be done. His realm was disintegrating before his very eyes. Whacked by civil unrest and misguided religious dogmatism, forever destabilized by the many different peoples under the umbrella of islam
it was getting ever increasingly difficult to resert the mere semblance of control.
"Damn this!" the Sultan roared, "and damn you all, you pack of thieving diletantes!". With anger in his eyes and disgust in his stomach he dismissed all royal ministers. For puny bureaucrats they had been who excelled only in their mutual greed. All they ever did was plunder the empire´s riches for their own petty needs and drown their sorrows in liquor. No, he needed brisk men of action, capable men who would be able to once more bring order to the empire and strength to its many soldiers.
When he saw the honourless scroundrels who seeked to become his new ministers, however, Selim III.´s heart sank. Furiously he ordered them flogged and forced himself to relaxe. Smoking a Huka and drifting of into the etherical realms of opium he sadly smiled a bitter smile and reinstated his old cabinet.
Mediocre ministers and fools they had been but at least not outright criminals. At least he hoped and prayed so.
A dozen moons later further worrying news arrived. The cradle of civilization itself had been engulfed in war. Some lawless elements had ousted the rightful governor of Egypt, castrated him and sent him back to Constantinople with a message for the Sultan. In it they had had the cheek to declare independence and dare his majesties armies to ever return.
Furious to the brink of breakdown Selim III. ordered his generals to organise an immediate punitive expedition. Order was to be restored and the godblessed control of the Ottomans over all lands south of Alexandria once more regained. His generals, however, being a lowly bunch of cowards and traitors covered in fear and advised negotiation. General Gazi suggested bribing them off while General Bayar simply advised to give up Egypt for good, claiming it was not worth bothering. Thoroughly disgusted by this defeatist attitude the Sultan howled in anger. Downing a bottle of Brandy he drew his sword and roared :
"Must I do this myself? Is there no man left at this court who is still a man? What women are you? What has become of this realm that we have stooped so low? I warn you! The next man who talks of capitulation or negotiation shall be hanged and quartered and his remains fed to the christians!"
There was shock and silence after this. One man, however, stood up and drew his own sword. General Djezzar Pasha fell to his knees and vowed not to rest nor taste the sweetness of wine or woman ere Egypt was not once again in the hands of the Sultan. Later that same day he left with 100.000 men, marching due south. Weeks passed. Then, lo and behold, news spread of Egypt´s surrender and its subsequent subjugation. Pasha returned in a triumphant parade. The Sultan moved to tears by this show of bravery induced him with the title of Lion Of Egypt. Fresh hope blossomed. Could a new and hard steel be once more forged out of this rusty old iron?
Ah...Allah, it seemed, contiued to smile benevolently on the Ottomans. In any case the Empire´s resolve had created quite an impression in europes courts. Soon thereafter the russian ambassador requested an audience with Selim III. and handed over an official dispatch of the Czar of Russia :
Ha! Selim smiled coldly. With contempt in his look he glanced at the socalled "nonaggressionpact" and immediately knew it was a fake and a crude one at that. Silly russian subterfudge! Lowly deceit the likes of which could only come from russian scumbags....and above all....from this loathsome woman. Ah well. The Sultan had never planned to engage Russia anyway. A backward and cold country populated by semicivilized savages....in short a lost cause, a hopeless case. Should they rot in their barbarity till Kingdom come! Smelly Cavemen with furcaps and bad manners the lots of them! Sacrifising even one ottoman soldier would be a waste for such a wasteland. No. Selim III. had his own plans. Hence he eagerly consented to this Treaty. He wished no land from the Bear...
For in the meantime he had assembled a truly grand army in the Balkans. Having secured spanish and now also russian neutrality he was free to act and fullfill the destiny of the Ottoman Empire. Ever since the days of Suleyman the great had the goal of all undertakings, the big prize, been Vienna. Austria, this fierce empire of evil, this realm of heretics needed to be reigned in. Only once it had finaly seen the light and acknowledged ottoman overlordship could Sultan Selim III. die in peace. To this effect a mobilisation of epic proportions had been ordered and 2 million soldiers recruited and massed near Bosnia. The Sultan knew of his generals limited abilities but still he hoped that the aweinspiring numbers of his fine soldiers alone would prevail in the end. Also he had worked out a daring attack plan and hoped that this ambitious undertaking could thus be achieved...
On january 1st 1791 General Gazi and 400.000 men (including 900 cannons) were shipped to Veneto. Simultaneously General Bayar assembled another 350.000 men in Croatia, fielding 750 cannons. In march of same year war was declared and the holy Crusade for Vienna began. Both generals immediately invaded and overwhelmed the bordergarrisons. Constantly beeing reinfoced with fresh infantry both armies quickly advanced, crushing several austrian armies in the process. The Archduke´s defense, however, was suspiciously limited. It seemed he was withdrawing most of his forces while sacrifizing others in order to lure the ottoman armies ever more northwards. Selim understood this and grew worried. General Gazi, however, did not and gripped by a mad fury advanced ever further. After 6 months of war he reached Vienna, encountering only meager resistance. He promptly stormed the city, allowed his soldiers to plunder its riches and then continued on towards Munich. General Bayard followed suite and occupied most of balkanic Austria. With the Halfmoon now flying in Vienna the war seemed won. The Sultan allowed himself to hope. He sent peaceovertures to the Archduke merely demanding the vassalisation of Austria. The Archduke however refused. Thus stability dropped in Austria and chaos broke out. Its citizens, it seemed, did not believe in the continuation of war. But something did not smell right. The main body of the Archduke´s army had still not been crushed. The Sultan feared that Austria would not yield before it was crushed. So he ordered Gazi to continue his offensive into Germany. This the mad general did, taking Munich shortly thereafter. Suddenly, out of nowhere however, the mainarmy of the Habsburgs appeared. A new general commanded it, a man of brilliant tactical genius. This man, Erzherzog Karl by name, attacked Gazi´s Army and simply massacred it. Nobody knew what exactly happened. The Sultan had ordered a tactical retreat but Gazi had stubbornly stormed on ahead and into his doom. Worse, the incompetent General Bayar also defied orders and instead of retreating remained in a whorehouse in Salzburg, transfixed by the beauty of the fair austrian lasses. His army was attacked by surprise and destroyed. In a matter of 3 months the tide of war had turned. Both main armies destroyed with the loss of 200.000 men and 1000 cannons forced the ottomans to fall back. Erzherzog Karl now retook several provinces. In desperation Selim III. begged old general Djezzar Pasha, the Lion Of Egypt, to save the day. Pasha promptly set sail with 100.000 men and 500 pieces of cannon. A few months later he reached Croatia where he was joined with heavy ottoman reinforcements, upgrading his strength to 320.000 men and 800 cannons. By now the murderous Erzherzog had advanced all the way down to the Balkans. Too far it turned out. With his exhausted army he tried to storm a maximumfort and took heavy casualities, reducing his force to a mere 90.000 men. Then Pasha attacked.
With such overwhelming odds the battle was a foregone conclusion. Heavily defeated and almost routed the Erzherzog retreated with a small force of 5000 men. Pursued by Pasha his fate was sealed. He would die. The austrian Archduke now begged Sultan Selim III. for mercy. The Sultan was inclined to show compassion as he was impressed by the Erzherzog´s skills. Also, he thought, as Austria would now become a protectorate of the Ottoman Empire he could well use this fierce soldier. So in a noble spirit Selim consented and the Peace Of Constantinople was signed. Austria agreed to ottoman overlordship and the Sultan in return spared the life of this magnificent general. After peace was signed the Sultan wept with joy. It had been a day of days. Oh....such glory at such late stage. It was almost too much for a man. Widespread celebrations marked the return to peace. The Ottoman Empire shined brighter than ever and with a 100.000 strong turkish garrison in Vienna an irongrip was exerted on the Heart Of Europe...
Ontime : Deflation
AAR : Deflation
please.
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