1851
The Prince of Conde agrees, after months of hesitation, to take the throne of Bohemia. He is escorted from his home in the Kingdom of Baden by an honour guard sent by King Leopold of Baden, plus elements of the Imperial Guard detailed by the German Emperor himself after the signing of the Treaty of Innsbruck
Entering Prague, the 78 year old Bourbon addresses a joint session of the Bohemian diet, the commons and lords alike, and then is escorted to his palace
A full coronation ceremony is set for March
- - -
British and American negotiators meet at The Hague in the Batavian Republic to begin drawing up a final treaty of peace for the recent conflict in the Americas
As Spring approaches they are joined by representatives from Spain, and also from Fredonia and from Mexico, the latter two parties attracting much more attention in the European press than their numbers alone would merit
- - -
Austria and Hungary agree peace, co-operation and accord in a treaty signed in great secrecy at Pressburg. It is met with stunned silence across Europe when its terms are made public, and then pandemonium breaks loose
In Moscow, Tsar Nikolai fumes with rage, and Nesselrode's tenure on the Foreign Ministry job first wavers, and then as the true ramifications become apparent, falls.
In a joint move, Austria and Hungary attack Transylvania, the former through the stunned and shattered ruin of its one-time Serbian protectorate, the self-proclaimed royal court in Belgrade being taken completely by surprise
As too are Moldavia and Wallachia whose armies fall back, and are then routed in twin defeats. Bucharest falls to Austrian forces, and the Duke of Teschen does not spare the sword. Many of the boyar elite of Wallachia die that day. In Moldavia, the army has fallen back upon Jassy, but a Russian force has come to its aid, interspersing itself between the Hungarians and the shattered Moldavians
Emperor Josef Franz journeys to Buda-Pesh and meets with the republican rulers of Hungary. They agree a common strategy, and an accord which would see Transylvania assumed within the Hungarian state, but the Banat, Belgrade and Oltenia (W Wallachia) annexed by Austria
Pipedreams of an Austro-Hungarian re-unification, however, are dashed in the two-week imperial visit
- - -
Said's Egypt has been busy in the field of diplomacy, agreeing alliances with Tunis, with Janina and peace with Trebizond as Egypt seeks to spread its imperial wings and fly, but remain closer to Earth than did Icarus
Tunisian forces invade Tripoli from the West, and though almost immediately stopped and near-routed, serve to keep a portion of the small British garrison tied up whilst the Egyptian army advances slowly, but surely, along the Cyrenaican coast
Egyptian aid to Janina is in many forms - ships which help to secure her communications, monies which help to pay the army and keep it loyal, and small elite bodies of troops, moved from S Anatolia which enable Janina to see off Montenegro on the one hand, and advance into Southern Serbia on the other. Outflanking Russia from the North, and entering Nish almost unopposed as the Karageorgevic regime collapses in chaos, Janinan forces assault Salonika from behind
Having failed both to woo the governor of Baghdad and to cross the Bosphorus, Said considers it folly to take on Trebizond midway between the two. Instead he orders an alliance with the Pontine state, and then orders the bulk of the army to march into Mesopotamia
He lacks the strength to take Constantinople for the moment, but if he is ever to gather that strength he will need not to have a potential enemy in his rear from Baghdad
- - -
Imperial German forces take Paderborn, Munster and Oldenburg, isolating Hannover as the Northern Alliance disintegrates before it
Karl of Bavaria, brother to King Maximilian, leads another Imperial army to victory at Hamburg, having been freed by the Treaty of Innsbruck from the task of guarding the South
Denmark is the first to formally fold, agreeing a truce with Emperor Wilhelm, and control of Holstein in return for the cession of the island of Heligoland
Sweden lasts but little longer, making no concessions of territory and holding onto Swedish Pomerania, but agreeing to withdraw all co-operation from Northern Alliance forces
Faced with the loss of most of his allies, King Georg V of Hannover launches a last desperate attempt to break the encirclement of his kingdom, but in a climactic battle is defeated
Emperor Wilhelm I enters Hannover in triumph, and in an act of magnanimity confirms Georg V in his royal form, accepting his accession to the German Empire on the same basis as the kingdoms of Baden, Wurttemburg, Wurzburg, Bavaria and Saxony. Hesse-Kassel is also named a kingdom, whilst the majority of other rulers who retain autonomy are created Grand Dukes by his imperial writ
The Frankfurt Diet confirms all of this with scarcely a mutter, for all that it is still made up principally of revolutionaries,. radicals and populists. There is no drug quit like success
- - -
The Treaty of The Hague finally ends the Anglo-American war, ceding British rights in Oregon South of Puget Sound, and relinquishing all claims over the Sioux, Shawnee or Delaware. A border commission will work to establish where the "new" border between British Canada and American Lousiana now is
Building on this closure, Prime Minister Disraeli is able to begin work to bring the remaining revolutionary committees back into the British body politic. A series of social reform acts are passed, aimed more at promoting, establishing and encouraging new organs than in outlawing, or banning established practices for he has to balance the brniging on side of the revolutionaries with the government's major support base amongst the mercantile and industrial aristocracy, the number of earls, marquises and dukes coming from these latter ranks much increased over the last couple of years as the government sought to ensure control of the House of Lords from the more reactionary of the ancient landed aristocracy
Thus education, sanitation, health boards, and housing committees are established but few practices banned. Children will still work in the mills and the mines, but have better houses to go back to, greater access to healthcare, free schools at night and at day, as the need fitted, and streets with better sewage controls and flowing water. Even this would take time, but the work was begun and the first millions allocated
- - -
Finally laying the Polish Uprising to rest, Prussia regarded the new Germany and gave in. King Friedrich-Wilhelm IV agreed a treaty of friendship and peace with Emperor Wilhelm, but scorned any talk of closer integration. Austria had been booted out of the new Germany, and he would take Prussia the same way. Let the rest of them get by without them !
Frankfurt breathed a sigh of relief, and got back down to business. . .
- - -
Spanish and Mexican envoys to The Hague come to blows and both parties storm out
Without any instructions one way or another, the Fredonian party also do not put their signature to any paperwork. President Johnson is making a long play, and refuses to be hampered by well-meaning but dangerous accords
In Washington, President Zachary Taylor finds himself under pressure both from the press and from Congress to bring a final solution to "the Spanish Question"
He orders Generals Fremont and Davis to advance into New Mexico, and press on towards California, in the belief that threatening Spain's remaining possessions will make them more willing to accept what they have already lost
Fremont takes charge of the expedition from Santa Fe, across the desert and mountains, whilst Jefferson Davis advances from Monterrey to Chihuahua, and then West towards the Gulf of California
In Madrid, King Carlos V declares the "truce" brokered by the Duke of Salerno to be broken, and orders the army of Granada to land at Mazatlan and march North. Reluctantly, the Viceroy in Bogata complies
The feared resumption of fighting with Venezuela does not occur, but events to the North force the two sides in the Mexican civil war to come to an agreement. Both Santa Anna and Ampudia stand aside for Bustamente to assume the mantle of president, then with armies under their personal control they strike out, one under Ampudia into rebellious Yucatan, the other under Santa Anna towards Mazatlan, the prize that had evaded him a few years before. With Spain weaker now than ever, he is determined that it will not evade him this time
- - -
Russian armies pour into Moldavia to shore up its faltering resistance, and drive back Hungarian advances deep into Transylvania
An Austrian counter-attack catches the Russians in the flank and forces their withdrawal to the Moldavian border
Another Russian army engages with the Janinans around Nish but cannot force them out of the city
At the same time, Russian forces in Salonika come under sustained and repeated attack by Janinan and Egyptian units
In Athens, the rebels finally seize control of the government, execute everyone associated with the old regime, and form a new one, with one of their number elevated to the princedom
Few believe that he can remain there for long...
Best Regards
Grey Wolf
The Prince of Conde agrees, after months of hesitation, to take the throne of Bohemia. He is escorted from his home in the Kingdom of Baden by an honour guard sent by King Leopold of Baden, plus elements of the Imperial Guard detailed by the German Emperor himself after the signing of the Treaty of Innsbruck
Entering Prague, the 78 year old Bourbon addresses a joint session of the Bohemian diet, the commons and lords alike, and then is escorted to his palace
A full coronation ceremony is set for March
- - -
British and American negotiators meet at The Hague in the Batavian Republic to begin drawing up a final treaty of peace for the recent conflict in the Americas
As Spring approaches they are joined by representatives from Spain, and also from Fredonia and from Mexico, the latter two parties attracting much more attention in the European press than their numbers alone would merit
- - -
Austria and Hungary agree peace, co-operation and accord in a treaty signed in great secrecy at Pressburg. It is met with stunned silence across Europe when its terms are made public, and then pandemonium breaks loose
In Moscow, Tsar Nikolai fumes with rage, and Nesselrode's tenure on the Foreign Ministry job first wavers, and then as the true ramifications become apparent, falls.
In a joint move, Austria and Hungary attack Transylvania, the former through the stunned and shattered ruin of its one-time Serbian protectorate, the self-proclaimed royal court in Belgrade being taken completely by surprise
As too are Moldavia and Wallachia whose armies fall back, and are then routed in twin defeats. Bucharest falls to Austrian forces, and the Duke of Teschen does not spare the sword. Many of the boyar elite of Wallachia die that day. In Moldavia, the army has fallen back upon Jassy, but a Russian force has come to its aid, interspersing itself between the Hungarians and the shattered Moldavians
Emperor Josef Franz journeys to Buda-Pesh and meets with the republican rulers of Hungary. They agree a common strategy, and an accord which would see Transylvania assumed within the Hungarian state, but the Banat, Belgrade and Oltenia (W Wallachia) annexed by Austria
Pipedreams of an Austro-Hungarian re-unification, however, are dashed in the two-week imperial visit
- - -
Said's Egypt has been busy in the field of diplomacy, agreeing alliances with Tunis, with Janina and peace with Trebizond as Egypt seeks to spread its imperial wings and fly, but remain closer to Earth than did Icarus
Tunisian forces invade Tripoli from the West, and though almost immediately stopped and near-routed, serve to keep a portion of the small British garrison tied up whilst the Egyptian army advances slowly, but surely, along the Cyrenaican coast
Egyptian aid to Janina is in many forms - ships which help to secure her communications, monies which help to pay the army and keep it loyal, and small elite bodies of troops, moved from S Anatolia which enable Janina to see off Montenegro on the one hand, and advance into Southern Serbia on the other. Outflanking Russia from the North, and entering Nish almost unopposed as the Karageorgevic regime collapses in chaos, Janinan forces assault Salonika from behind
Having failed both to woo the governor of Baghdad and to cross the Bosphorus, Said considers it folly to take on Trebizond midway between the two. Instead he orders an alliance with the Pontine state, and then orders the bulk of the army to march into Mesopotamia
He lacks the strength to take Constantinople for the moment, but if he is ever to gather that strength he will need not to have a potential enemy in his rear from Baghdad
- - -
Imperial German forces take Paderborn, Munster and Oldenburg, isolating Hannover as the Northern Alliance disintegrates before it
Karl of Bavaria, brother to King Maximilian, leads another Imperial army to victory at Hamburg, having been freed by the Treaty of Innsbruck from the task of guarding the South
Denmark is the first to formally fold, agreeing a truce with Emperor Wilhelm, and control of Holstein in return for the cession of the island of Heligoland
Sweden lasts but little longer, making no concessions of territory and holding onto Swedish Pomerania, but agreeing to withdraw all co-operation from Northern Alliance forces
Faced with the loss of most of his allies, King Georg V of Hannover launches a last desperate attempt to break the encirclement of his kingdom, but in a climactic battle is defeated
Emperor Wilhelm I enters Hannover in triumph, and in an act of magnanimity confirms Georg V in his royal form, accepting his accession to the German Empire on the same basis as the kingdoms of Baden, Wurttemburg, Wurzburg, Bavaria and Saxony. Hesse-Kassel is also named a kingdom, whilst the majority of other rulers who retain autonomy are created Grand Dukes by his imperial writ
The Frankfurt Diet confirms all of this with scarcely a mutter, for all that it is still made up principally of revolutionaries,. radicals and populists. There is no drug quit like success
- - -
The Treaty of The Hague finally ends the Anglo-American war, ceding British rights in Oregon South of Puget Sound, and relinquishing all claims over the Sioux, Shawnee or Delaware. A border commission will work to establish where the "new" border between British Canada and American Lousiana now is
Building on this closure, Prime Minister Disraeli is able to begin work to bring the remaining revolutionary committees back into the British body politic. A series of social reform acts are passed, aimed more at promoting, establishing and encouraging new organs than in outlawing, or banning established practices for he has to balance the brniging on side of the revolutionaries with the government's major support base amongst the mercantile and industrial aristocracy, the number of earls, marquises and dukes coming from these latter ranks much increased over the last couple of years as the government sought to ensure control of the House of Lords from the more reactionary of the ancient landed aristocracy
Thus education, sanitation, health boards, and housing committees are established but few practices banned. Children will still work in the mills and the mines, but have better houses to go back to, greater access to healthcare, free schools at night and at day, as the need fitted, and streets with better sewage controls and flowing water. Even this would take time, but the work was begun and the first millions allocated
- - -
Finally laying the Polish Uprising to rest, Prussia regarded the new Germany and gave in. King Friedrich-Wilhelm IV agreed a treaty of friendship and peace with Emperor Wilhelm, but scorned any talk of closer integration. Austria had been booted out of the new Germany, and he would take Prussia the same way. Let the rest of them get by without them !
Frankfurt breathed a sigh of relief, and got back down to business. . .
- - -
Spanish and Mexican envoys to The Hague come to blows and both parties storm out
Without any instructions one way or another, the Fredonian party also do not put their signature to any paperwork. President Johnson is making a long play, and refuses to be hampered by well-meaning but dangerous accords
In Washington, President Zachary Taylor finds himself under pressure both from the press and from Congress to bring a final solution to "the Spanish Question"
He orders Generals Fremont and Davis to advance into New Mexico, and press on towards California, in the belief that threatening Spain's remaining possessions will make them more willing to accept what they have already lost
Fremont takes charge of the expedition from Santa Fe, across the desert and mountains, whilst Jefferson Davis advances from Monterrey to Chihuahua, and then West towards the Gulf of California
In Madrid, King Carlos V declares the "truce" brokered by the Duke of Salerno to be broken, and orders the army of Granada to land at Mazatlan and march North. Reluctantly, the Viceroy in Bogata complies
The feared resumption of fighting with Venezuela does not occur, but events to the North force the two sides in the Mexican civil war to come to an agreement. Both Santa Anna and Ampudia stand aside for Bustamente to assume the mantle of president, then with armies under their personal control they strike out, one under Ampudia into rebellious Yucatan, the other under Santa Anna towards Mazatlan, the prize that had evaded him a few years before. With Spain weaker now than ever, he is determined that it will not evade him this time
- - -
Russian armies pour into Moldavia to shore up its faltering resistance, and drive back Hungarian advances deep into Transylvania
An Austrian counter-attack catches the Russians in the flank and forces their withdrawal to the Moldavian border
Another Russian army engages with the Janinans around Nish but cannot force them out of the city
At the same time, Russian forces in Salonika come under sustained and repeated attack by Janinan and Egyptian units
In Athens, the rebels finally seize control of the government, execute everyone associated with the old regime, and form a new one, with one of their number elevated to the princedom
Few believe that he can remain there for long...
Best Regards
Grey Wolf