I keep getting drawn back to ETW: I don't know why, it's so slow and the AI is not the brightest, but there is something about the scale and freedom, I find irresistable. One thing that is bugging me is how to cope with all the entangling alliances I start with as Great Britain and the consequent wars I get dragged into. I feel I can't make peace - even if the enemy would want to - because I joined the war to honour an alliance. Is it as simple as that or can you extract yourself from pointless fights without breaking the alliance (e.g. after a period of time).

I ask because I made peace with Spain after they attacked me and I had callied on my allies to help. The alliances stayed in tact, even though the allies were still fighting what was originally my fight. I wonder if you are only obliged to keep fighting if they called on you to help (not, as I did, you asked them)? Or is there some time limit after which you can bow out? It took Spain quite a while to agree to terms.