Pics & History of your Empire

Here comes the next part of my Bulgarian campaign.

Part II: Kaloyan's sons

Tsar Kaloyan was blessed with 6 sons from his marriage to a Cuman princess: Kaloyan, Mihail, Ivan, Kurt, or Vulo in Slavic, known as Ivaylo, Aleksandar and Todor. It fell to these brothers to defend and expand their father's Empire. The oldest of them, Kaloyan, when a small child once happened to stumble upon a group of Bogomils, led by an old Bogomil priest, who was telling an apocrypha, according to which the Cumans were the third part of the Bulgarians - the first being the Danube Bulgarians, and the second the Volga Bulgarians (note: such an apocrypha exists in reality). Half a Cuman himself, the young prince wanted to learn more about the history of his people, and he spent hours in the libraries in Turnovo, and then in Constantinople. He read how the Bulgars came with their horses to the Balkans, and carved out a country at the expense of the mighty Eastern Roman Empire. He was fascinated by Khan Krum the Fearsome, who managed to defeat the Romans when everything seemed lost, and then took advantage of the demise of the Avars at the hands of the Franks to take Carpathia and the Hungarian plane for Bulgaria. These lands were not only rich in iron and other resources, but also allowed Bulgaria to stand between Constantinople and the West, thus all trade passing through Bulgaria. All this income allowed Bulgaria to become an Empire, reaching its peak at the time of Simeon the Great, the first Tsar. Unfortunately the same route the Bulgars took to arrive at their lands was used by other firece tribes from the steppes, among them the Magyars, who invaded, followed by the Rus. Quickly most Bulgarian lands north of the Danube were lost, and soon Bulgaria was subdued by the Roman Empire for almost two centuries, until his uncles Asen and Petar liberated the country.
The young Kaloyan dreamed of retaking all lands that the great khans and tsars of the past once ruled, while fortifying his steppe frontier and not allowing another invaders from the East bring chaos and destruction to Bulgaria. His father had managed to unite almost all of the Balkans, but when Kaloyan II was crowned the new Tsar of Bulgaria, there were still former Bulgarian lands outside of his realm, and many enemies to deal with, both internal and external. To the South, the Niceans were allies, but their Emperor was constantly looking at Constantinople, the great city which the Greeks believed to belong to them. The Bulgarians had never been a people of seafarers and their small fleet was far from sufficient to guard the seas - a fact that was all too well demonstrated when the Normans from Sicily invaded Greece ony a few years ago. They were now gone and peace was restored, but who knew when they might decide to come back. The war with the Serbs was nearing its end, but still traces of them remained. From the North, the Hungarians were amassing large armies, and their bishops were roaming freely in Bulgaria, spreding the teachings of the heretic in Rome. To the East, the Cumans had accepted a cease-fire, but a far greater danger was approaching from the East.
There was much dissent among the Bulgarian aristocracy, which seemed divided in two main parties - those who wanted peace and claimed that Kaloyan The First's wars had exhausted the country, and those who wanted war, claiming that offense is the best defense. Kaloyan II chose to follow the advice of the former - after Belgrade fell and Bulgaria was at peace, he sent out emissaries to obtain an alliance with his neighbors. The Hungarians and the Sicilians all saw reason and accepted. Prince Ivan was sent with a large army in Greece in case the Sicilians decided to break the alliance again, and Lord Sgouros was sent in Serbia to guard against any rebellion or Hungarian attack. Prince Aleksandar was sent to guard Wallachia, and prince Ivaylo, who knew well the terrain in Moldova where he spent most of his youth, campaigning together with his father against the Cumans, was sent with a large army, containing the best mercenary crossbowmen from Italy and some heavy steppe cavalrymen mercenaries to protect the most feasible border to the North-East. Kaloyan II himself remained with a large garrison in Constantinople.
With all borders secured, the next years were spent in peace. The navy grew, income from trade increased and rulers from far came to offer alliance. In Constantinople, where the Latins once had their capital, there were still traces of them and Kaloyan, admitting their military prowess started hiring some as auxiliaries. Then many more came, attracted by the generous pay he offered, and these auxiliaries, expert with the spear, started to become a part of every Bulgarian army. One day, emissaries from the Russian princes of Kiev and Novgorod came, acknowledging Bulgaria's place at the top of the Orthodox world and asking for an alliance as they suffered greatly from the Mongol Hordes. Kaloyan accepted, and sent a priest as an emissary to Khogadai, hoping to convert him to Christianity and offering peace. He offered him a treaty, according to which the Mongols shall rule in the steppes, and the Bulgarians shall rule in the Balkans. Khogadai, whose armies were undefeated, was too proud to accept such an offer. "Who is this fool, who thinks he can divide the world with me?" he answered. War was inevitable, and after a brief campaign against the Cumans, during which the Mongols did not face any serious opposition, their hordes reched the Bulgarian lands and invaded Moldova.
Prince Ivaylo was outnumbered, and he knew that facing the enemy in the open steppe would spell disaster, as the fearsome Mongol heavy horsemen had no match in the known world. Therefore he chose to set up his forces on the top of small forested hill, from where his mercenary crossbowmen could keep the Mongols at bay. Only a small part of his army had poleaxes, proven so efficient against armored cavalry in the wars with the Cumans, and Ivaylo developed a risky plan - he hid those in the forest, leaving his left wing weaker on purpose, guarded only by some peasant spearmen with no armor and some Bulgarians Brigands. The Mongols fell into the trap, and sent their first wave into this flank. They had little problems routing the spearmen and causing the Brigands to retreat, but then were ambushed by the halberdiers, who hacked them to pieces in the forest. The rest of the Mongols, who did not know of what was happening, thinking that the Bulgarian lines were breached, also blundered into the trees only to meet their death. Another part of the Heathens wanted the glory for themselves and charged head on into the center of the Bulgarians, but the center stood fast and allowed enough time to the Slav javelinmen behind the spear wall to decimate the attackers. Expecting an easy victory, the disbelief of the Mongols turned into frustration, and they attemmpted a feign retreat, but Ivaylo did not abandon his position and simply waited for their horse archers to return and shot them down with his Brigands and mercenary crossbowmen. With the casualties mounting, the pagans lost all courage and ran for their lives. Ivaylo gave chase with his boyars and managed to kill the enemy leader, at which all the Mongols completely lost hope and retreated back East, to where they came from.
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This was the first time that the Mongol armies, who had little trouble conquering from Moscow to Armenia, experienced defeat. Songs were written in Europe for Ivaylo, the hero who saved Europe. The Mongols were far from being done, their armies still countless and fearsome, but they were stopped for now and in the next years they preferred to wage their wars against the Russians and in Asia Minor, avoiding another battle with Bulgaria. While Khogadai never accepted a cease-fire, the situation on the North-Eastern frontier seemed under control.
Now Kaloyan II prepared a plan, which would make his childhood dream a reality. The Hungarians started attacking the Cumans and pushing them out of the lands of the Poles, which the Cumans had conquered as they were forced West by the hordes of Mongols. Kaloyan, half a Cuman himself, allied with his cousins and warned the Hungarians to stop their attacks on his good friends, the Cumans. The Hunagrians paid no heed to him, and moved more armies into Lesser Poland. This is exactly what the Bulgarian Tsar wanted and he declared war on his Northern neighbors - one army with Lord Angelos, Lord Sgouros's son, invaded Croatia, another army with Prince Ivaylo attacked Carpathia, and Kaloyan II himself led the final army into Hunagry. Lord Angelos and Prince Ivaylo met with little opposition and besieged the Hungarian forces in their strongholds, but in Hungary the Hungarian king himself led a large army in defense of his capital. Kaloyan II was not a general of his father's ability and the battle was a complete disaster to the Bulgarians, who were routed and gave many casualties, causing few on the Hungarians. Kaloyan managed to escape, and went back to Constantinople, leaving the rest of the war to his Lord Angelos and his brothers.
They did not fail him. Lord Angelos was able to take Hungary while Prince Ivaylo managed to defend Carpathia twice against forces led by the Hungarian king. At the end the Hungarians had to accept defeat and a treaty was signed, granting Croatia, Hungary and Carpathia to Bulgaria. Kaloyan had been finally able to accomplish what he dreamed of - the largest Bulgarian Empire of all times! At the same year, the Cathedral in Turnovo was completed, confirming Bulgaria's place at the head of Orthodox Christianity.
By then, the Mongols finally managed to gather enough courage to invade again. This time it fell to Prince Alexandar to defend Moldova. He met them on the plain, but the past experiences had convinced the Bulgarians of the usefulness of halberdiers, and now he had more of them among his men, while the Mongols had less heavy cavalrymen, as the last defeat a decade ago has caused them to abandon the armor of their fallen as a trophy to the winners. Once again, the Mongols could not breach the resolute resistance of the Bulgarians, and the devastating accuracy of the Bulgarian bowmen ensured that the Mongols lost another major battle.
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They returned the next year for a skirmish, which showed the need of a swift cavalry to counter and chase the pasky Mongol horse archers. Such was provided from Wallachia - a land famous for its light horsemen, and assured of success, Prince Alexander pushed into Levidia, where he earned himself another victory and for the first time the Mongols saw themselves losing territory.
https://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l...g?t=1167008813
A year later, Kaloyan II succumbed to fever, without leaving an heir. He left to his brothers an Empire with all resources and confidence needed for Bulgaria to rise from regional power to a world one. He gathered the five of them around his deathbed and told them: "I have been able to realize my dream - to unite all the lands of the old Bulgarian Empire. It is up to you to continue the deed of our father. Now swear to me that you will never fight among yourselves, and that you will spread Orthodox Christianity to the rest of Europe." They all made an oath on the Bible to stay together and to do all they can to bring Christianity to all heathens, heretics and unbelievers, and the old Tsar passed away, having taken care of all his Earthly deeds.
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Great write up, and well played Kavhan! I'm looking forward to reading your next instalment...in the meantime, here is the latest chapter of my English campaign. I am now at that awkward point I believe where the will to continue needs to be strong...Byzantium and the Horde shape as the two factions most likely to cause trouble (though I suppose it is also sensible to keep a "weather eye" on Poland...

The Chronicles of Bamff’s English

Chapter 9
King Edmund III the Reign of the “Black Adder” (1263 – 1285)

The year of our Lord 1263 is indeed a mixed one for the English realm. The Kingdom rejoices in the news that Lord Roos is to wed Princess Bianca, thereby strengthening the ties of this great general and governor to the kingdom. This wonderful news is offset by word of the outbreak of St. Vitus Dance in Portugal. Further bad news arrives as the court hears of the death of Sir Richard Plantagenet. For many years, one of the ablest of England’s generals, it is something of a surprise that this old warrior has died at home in his bed rather than astride his steed on the field of battle. The combination of old age and an assortment of old war wounds have contrived to do what many a foe failed to, and King Edmund himself mourns the loss of a faithful servant.
King Edmund’s woes are further deepened in 1264, with Bavaria awash in floodwater. The unseasonal rains caught many by surprise, and the Town Watch is destroyed.
The Sicilian King, continues to refuse our repeated offers of alliance. Odd behaviour indeed, muses King Edmund, given the respective strengths of our two kingdoms.
As if things were not bad enough, the continued build up of Byzantine forces in Saxony weighs heavily on the King’s thoughts, as does the isolation, and consequent vulnerability of the English garrisons in Tripoli and Palestine.
King Edmund decides that firm action is required to shake the kingdom from its growing malaise, and to this end he decrees that, at long last it is “Egypt’s time”. Long has he planned this action with his most trusted generals, and now he has received the blessing of His Holiness, Pope Innocent II to launch a crusade on the Sinai. The Holy Army will be led by the extremely pious general Sir Roger Cromwell.
Innsbruck Castle in Tyrolia falls in 1266. The emaciated and exhausted inhabitants swear allegiance to King Edmund as the culmination to a grand ceremony in which Sir George Hubert and his army march triumphantly through the gates of the castle. Another province is claimed in the name of King Edmund!
At the same time, England’s Grand Inquisitor has been busily at work in Sicily, seeking out heretics. It would appear that he has found some, too. 18,000 Sicilians perish in the flames in 1266, and the confidence of the local populace in the Sicilian King is so shaken that they rebel, overthrowing their rulers. Seizing the opportunity, King Edmund orders Lord Fitzwalter, Duke of Aragon, to take an army to Sicily forthwith, and make the local ruler “an offer he can’t refuse”. While confused as to why he thought of saying such a thing, the king notes to himself that for whatever reason, it did seem somewhat amusing.
Fitzwalter’s army faces the Sicilians in 1267, amidst the gently rolling hills adjacent to the Gulf di Catania. The pleasant seaside setting is a curious backdrop indeed for the carnage that is about to unfold.
The locals have attempted to conceal their location and numbers by positioning the bulk of their forces at the base of a gentle gully. In reality this achieves little more than to indicate to Fitzwalter that his opposing general does not share his own level of combat experience and expertise.
This appraisal is confirmed but moments later as the Sicilian general, Garibaldi, leads his knights in a charge against what he perceived to be the exposed English left flank. The English left flank it is – exposed it is not. The English arbalests and longbowmen step forward from their forest cover, take aim and fire. Three volleys exact a heavy toll. 15 Sicilian knights, their general amongst them, have died in vain – they did not even reach the English forces that they had charged against. Worse news still for the 5 survivors is that whilst they were riding across the plain on their ill advised attack, Sir Charles Curthose had positioned his troop of Royal Knights behind them. He now charged from their flank, to complete the destruction of the regiment.
Curthose regathers his men, and having suffered not a single casualty, they proceed to a position in the rear of the right flank of the main Sicilian force. They hold their charge to strike simultaneously with Sir Edward Despenser’s huscarles. The Sicilians rally to the defence of their flank, allowing the English arbalests and longbowmen to exact a fearful toll from their newly acquired positions along the high ground overlooking the gully.
Curthose and Despenser’s men suffer terrible casualties, but their sacrifice has not been in vain. They have occupied the Sicilians, pinning their forces to present them as no more than practice targets for the English archers, and now the English billmen march steadily down the slope, carving a swathe through the Sicilian ranks. Sir Aelfgar Percy’s knights charge in from the left Sicilian flank and the locals rout, with the survivors being ridden down mercilessly by the knights of Sir Geoffrey Beckett and Lord Fitzwalter’s hobilars. As the Sicilians flee the field, they leave 398 of their number littering the field. A further 375 surrender. 76 Englishmen have perished in the action – almost exclusively men from Curthose’s knights and Despenser’s huscarles.
Cromwell’s crusading army has suffered even fewer casualties in the Sinai. The mere sight of this impressive force was sufficient to send the Egyptian defenders scurrying for the sanctuary of their castle. They are poorly provisioned for such a large garrison, and very soon the castle surrenders to Cromwell.
News from the Treasury that the English Coffers have now burgeoned to in excess of 1,000,000 florins caps a memorable year for King Edmund. True, he had lost the alliances of Italy and Byzantium by waging war on Egypt, but it was worth it, reflects the English monarch. A smile crept across his bearded face as he mused to himself “Edmund the Rebuilder – a fitting title for a king who could turn the fortunes of his kingdom so completely.”
Almost giddy with his own recent successes, Edmund wasted little time in launching his next Crusade. This time, his target was Egypt itself.
News arrives from an ageing John Bolingbroke in Milan that the Italians are mobilising a force to strike at the Germans “the year after next”. King Edmund sighs “This is a song I have heard before. What news will Bolingbroke send next – perhaps that the Earth is not flat!” This comment brings much laughter at court.
As the Crusade makes its way across Europe, Prince Edward leads the invasion of Arabia in 1272. Sultan Muhammed I himself commands the Egyptian forces in that province. The province is cut off from the rest of the Egyptian empire. To the north, Byzantium holds Syria. To the west, Tripoli, Palestine, and Sinai are all in English hands. The Egyptian ruler, having no place to run, knows that he must stand and fight.
Princes Ali, al Mustali, and al Adil all stand at their father’s shoulder, as the two armies face each other across the desert sand at Wadi el Hasa, a short distance from Karak Castle.
The battle is a disaster for he Egyptian forces. First their cavalry units (mostly Ghulam cavalry and Ghulam bodyguards, with a small number of Saharan cavalry and Bedouin Camel Warriors thrown in) are goaded into charging uphill through the sand to reach the “unprotected” English arbalests, archers, and longbowmen. They are cut down in droves. Those Egyptians that do reach the English line are surprised by two regiments of Order foot soldiers, who march in good order through the line of archers to meet the Egyptian assault.
In the meantime, The English knights and hobilars have worked their way around the Egyptian flanks and they now charge into the rear of the desert archers, peasants and nubian spearmen that have been left with no cavalry protection. With the Sultan already dead, the Egyptian forces break and run. At the completion of the battle, Prince al Mustali is the sole survivor of the royal line. He is ransomed back to his people, and is crowned Sultan al Mustali III. His poor performance in battle and capture has cost him more than the gold that was required to secure his release. He is now known as “al Mustali the fleet of foot” – a “good runner” indeed!
The following year, the English crusaders arrive in Egypt. The Egyptian forces are crushed, with 1,068 dead, and several hundred prisoners taken, for 374 crusader casualties.
This savage defeat, so close to the Egyptian defeat at Wadi el Hasa, is more than some of the Egyptian generals can bear. Sultan al Mustali III is not so fleet of foot as to avoid a rebellion, and the province of Anatolia rises against him in 1274. Once again, al Mustali demonstrates his impressive speed, withdrawing his few loyal forces immediately rather than giving battle. His kingdom is now but a mere shadow of what it once was, with only the provinces of Lesser Armenia and Rum now under Egyptian rule.
Cairo Castle falls in 1275, delivering the province of Egypt, and completing the Crusade.
The remnants of the Egyptian forces defeated at Wadi el Hasa continue to hold out in Karak Castle until 1277. Arabia has now also been brought to heel.
In 1278, Byzantium takes advantage of the rebellion in Anatolia, with a large army seizing the province from the rebel forces after a short but fierce battle. Sultan al Mustali is indeed in an awkward position now – completely land locked, and surrounded on all sides by the Byzantine empire. Byzantium itself is a fragmented kingdom. Large tracts of land around the Mediterranean continue to be held by this faction, together with a number of provinces in the North East – although these lands are separated from the rest of the Byzantine Empire by lands held by the fearsome Golden Horde. In the west, Saxony remains a protectorate of the Byzantines, and the garrison in this far flung outpost continues to grow alarmingly.
Once again in 1281, word comes from our spy in Milan that Italy will strike the Germans in Austria “the year after next”. Once again in 1283, this “intelligence” proves to be well wide of the truth.
The reign of the “Black Adder”, King Edmund III, comes to and end in 1285. His 27 years on the throne had seen the kingdom of England expand, and his people prosper. He loss is mourned by all of England. King Henry I ascends to the throne.

An interesting read bamff, sounds as if your intelligence is a little American.

Happy New Year everyone.

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Originally Posted by r johnson

An interesting read bamff, sounds as if your intelligence is a little American.

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Seconded, although I did hear that the Papacy was stockpiling Weapons of Mass Distraction.

There are a lot of good reads in this thread. Always wanted to have a go myself but my knowledge of history isn't great and it seems like a lot of time and effort went into some of these.

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Originally Posted by marcusbrutus

There are a lot of good reads in this thread. Always wanted to have a go myself but my knowledge of history isn't great and it seems like a lot of time and effort went into some of these.

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I agree I always like reading the accounts posted in here. The amount of time it takes must be staggering. The notes and then actually typing it all up. Heck it takes me an age to type up an account of one battle, I can't imagine recording a whole game.

The Chronicles of Bamff’s English

Chapter 10 –King Henry I (1285 - 1310)
Word is received at Wessex in 1286 that Milan is revolting. The young king notes somewhat flippantly that it was not so when had visited last summer – indeed he had found the place to be “most agreeable”. He dismissively silences the anticipated sycophantic giggling that follows his poor jest with a wave of his hand, and then notes in a somewhat darker tone “Finally something IS indeed afoot in Milan….and yet on this occasion our agent is silent. Is this fellow a complete buffoon? Or perhaps it is I who is the buffoon – after all, is it not my purse from whence his payment comes?”
King Henry is no longer in a jocular mood in relation to the competence of his agent in that province. He reflects on the stream of false intelligence, and the absence of word when events have indeed unfolded in that province. Could it be that the English agent is in fact in the pay of another kingdom? No matter whether it is incompetence or treachery, muses the king, noting that either way, there is no use for such a man on the royal payroll. The king draws aside a trusted aide, and following a brief whispered conversation, this man rides through the night to reach a notorious alehouse to pass on the king’s bidding….
The rebellion is crushed ruthlessly by the Italians in 1287, and a new English spy arrives in that province. Apparently his predecessor had met with an unfortunate accident whilst enjoying a ride in the Milanese countryside…..
All remains quiet across Europe for a number of years. King Henry has devoted a great deal of time and energy into maintaining trade routes, and this is paying handsome dividends indeed. Thousands of florins flow into the royal treasury with each passing year.
The new English agent in Milan has wasted little time. His efforts at sowing discord are rewarded in 1294, as another rebellion rises in Milan. The Italians again crush the rebel army in 1295.
That same year, Ettore Fieschi is encouraged to lead a further uprising of the Milanese. “Fieschi’s Fiasco” is doomed before it begins, and soon the unfortunate firebrand’s body is on display at the gates of Milan Castle. Italy retains control of the troubled province.
Word arrives in 1296 that the Sicilians have invaded Sicily. It is but a half-hearted attempt by the Sicilians to retake their homeland, with the entire force withdrawing to Naples with nary an arrow loosed in anger. The English agent in Milan has indeed been busy. He has encouraged one Uberto Sismondi to take up where young Fieschi left off, and Sismondi’s rebel army meets the Italians outside Turin in 1297. Sismondi fares little better than did Fieschi, and soon his corpse is also strung up alongside Fieschi’s at the gates of Milan Castle.
All of Europe is shaken in 1298 at the news that King Adam IV of Sicily has been burned at the stake as a heretic by English Grand Inquisitor, Anthony Greystoke. There had been suspicions for some time that the Sicilian monarch was not a true believer, but the confirmation of this news still rocks the continent.
With the encouragement of the English agent in Milan, Guido Piccolomini raises another rebel army to fight the “Italian oppressor”. Again the Doge’s forces triumph, and Piccolomini’s broken body is added to the gruesome display on “traitor’s gate”.
This does not dissuade Lorenzo Prignano from raising another army of Milanese rebels in 1299. As Prignano’s body joins those of previous rebel leaders, King Henry notes “The Italians will soon need to extend that castle wall – there seems to be no further room for display.”
As it transpires, the Italians do not need to extend the wall, for in 1301, Conrado Boniaiuti succeeds where all previous rebel leaders have failed in Milan. He drives the Italians out of the province. A handful of Italian troops cling doggedly to Milan Castle.
Not satisfied with having fed one Sicilian monarch to the flames, Grand Inquisitor Anthony Greystoke adds another in 1302. King Aed II perishes as his father had before him. “Perhaps this will make those Sicilian fools more amenable to a peace treaty.” Comments King Henry, before adding with a wicked smile “After all, clearly it is God’s punishment upon them for their aggression against our sovereignty over Sicily.”
Doge Pietro XI of Italy leads a large Italian army to retake Milan in 1302. Sadly for the Italians, the Germans seize this opportunity with both hands. With the bulk of the Italian army engaged in Milan, there are few men left to defend Venice, and the Holy Roman Emperor Otto VI sweeps south from Austria to conquer the port province.
King Henry’s hopes of a ceasefire with Sicily are dashed in 1303. An army led by Prince Allan (the chronicles note that this would appear to be not the most classically Sicilian of names, but that nonetheless this was apparently the Prince’s name) crosses from Naples. Prince Allan’s army is some 528 men strong, and includes no less than 160 Royal Knights. Lord Roos gathers his forces together for the defence of the island of Sicily. Whilst it is true that on parchment the English have the weight of numbers on their side with 729 men at Roos’ disposal, it is the comparative quality of the available troops that gives the English some cause for concern – Roos has only 40 knights in his army, and 40 hobilars. Most of his men are arbalesters, and his forces include no spearmen.
The two armies meet south west of the township of Messina. Roos has positioned his force atop a small hill. One squadron of English knights has moved around the Sicilian left flank, and this draws the attention of two squadrons of Sicilian knights and one regiment of urban militia. With the Sicilian forces split, Roos has nullified some of the potential impact of a massed charge of Sicilian knights. As the other Sicilian forces move uphill towards the English position, the arbalesters reap a grim harvest. Just one regiment of billmen and one of huscarles stand between the Sicilian knights and the arbalesters. These forces stand firm, holding the knights for long enough for the second squadron of English knights to charge them from the rear.
Prince Allan orders his spearmen and feudal sergeants to wheel in on the English knights. As these units expose their flank, they find themselves charged by English chivalric men-at-arms and gallowglasses respectively. The resulting carnage, coupled with the death of Prince Allan himself, and the charge from the Sicilian rear of the English knights sees the Sicilian forces flee in confusion and disarray. Roos’ own hobilars exact a heavy toll of the fleeing Sicilians. As dusk draws near, the heralds record 339 Sicilians slain, and 114 captured. English losses are but 69 men.
Even this defeat brings no sense to the Sicilian court, and Greystoke’s grim work continues in Naples, with the encouragement of King Henry. Alexander I of Sicily is burned at the stake in 1305. Europe is no longer shocked –with so many ‘heretics’ already ‘exposed’ in one family, one more is no surprise.
Lord Roos’ younger brother, Sir Alfred Roos, leads an English army into Venice in 1305. King Henry reasons that if the Italians do not care enough for this wealthy province to keep it for themselves, then there is no reason to allow it to fall into the hands of the Holy Roman Emperor, a long time enemy of England. The German forces do not even give battle; instead they flee north into Austria as fast as their steeds can carry them.
The following year is a tumultuous one in this part of the Mediterranean. King Angus II of Sicily joins an ever growing list of his forbears in being burned alive at the stake by Grand Inquisitor Anthony Greystoke. It is the end of the Sicilian royal line, and Naples dissolves into rebellion upon Angus’ untimely death. King Henry notes at court that the world is better off without these vile perverts and heretics on the throne of Sicily. Clearly there had long been signs that the devil’s work was afoot in that nation, what with all recorded kings of Sicily bearing names beginning with only the letter “A”. Henry reflects to himself before continuing his tirade – he is also unsure why the fact that every Sicilian King’s name started with an “A” was a sign of Lucifer’s hand, but by goodness it sounded sinister when he said it!
Gathering his thoughts, he also points out to his military advisors that the names of these so-called Sicilian monarchs were also clearly Scottish rather than Sicilian in origin, and that consequently it would be worthwhile to ensure that Scotland remains subdued – at least until 1325. The attainment of such a goal would indeed be a Glorious Achievement!
[Author's note: Apologies - couldn't help myself. Funnily enough I note another thread about these Sicilian names!]
Henry has other goals in his sights, and late in 1305, he had sailed for Provence, there to meet an army already assembling in that province.
Having joined his men in the field, King Henry himself leads the English invasion of Milan in 1306. Doge Pietro XI stands ready to defend Milan against the English invader. The Doge is an impatient commander, and Henry knows this. He positions his arbalesters atop two steep sided hills, and sends forth a unit of longbowmen to the valley floor to act as live bait. They sting the nearest Italian units into action, with two regiments of feudal men at arms charging down hill from their position in the forest. The longbowmen retreat under the cover of arbalest fire, and then the men at arms find a squadron of royal knights charging from their flank....
The bait is taken! Rather than letting the English come to him (as a more prudent commander might), the Doge charges to the aid of his men at arms. Arbalest bolts rain down from all sides, decimating the ranks of the Italian knights. With the Italian forces now stranded half way up the slope towards the English line, King Henry orders his billmen to advance. They approach the Italians from two sides. The English knights charge from the Italian right flank. All too late, the Doge notes that he is surrounded, as a second unit of English knights rides through the Italian archers from the rear and smashes into the main Italian force. Of 499 Italian troops that originally took the field, only 39 escape to take refuge in Milan Castle. 95 prisoners are taken. 364 Italian corpses line the valley floor. English casualties number 110.
The following year, Henry finishes what he has started, as Milan Castle falls to his besieging army. The use of a potent new siege weapon, the “Demi Culverin”, reduces the castles walls and saves countless English lives.


https://i140.photobucket.com/albums/...Henry-1310.jpg
Above: The state of Europe, 1310.

https://i140.photobucket.com/albums/...igeofMilan.jpg
Above: The seige of Milan Castle (author's note: Just love watching those walls come down! Also managed to catch one of the Demi Culverins actually firing in this screen shot)

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Originally Posted by r johnson

An interesting read bamff, sounds as if your intelligence is a little American.

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Hahaha! Isn't it just? In my most recent update too, notice how many times my spy sets up a revolution without providing just enough support....poor old Milanese revolutionaries really copped it for listening to my guys promises....

A good read as always bamff.

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Originally Posted by Rythmic

A good read as always bamff.

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Thanks for the vote of approval Rythmic! Your kind words are appreciated.

Another great post bamff. I hope you don't mind, but I took some notes, I'm having similar problems with the Spanish.

Very nifty story, bamff. I particularly liked the bit about using the fact that all Sicillian King's names started with "A" as a sign that they were marked by Satan, especially as recently I've been reading The Scarlet Letter for literature in school. You didn't check their traits to see if any of them were adulterers, did you? ~D

Thanks Sensei Warrior and Specialist290!

I'm afraid I didn't check the Sicilian-Scots V & V's prior to letting loose my "little toastmaster"....but yes, I am afraid I am guilty as charged of including all manner of weird oblique references in my ramblings....

Bamff - another excellent post as usual, and I personally admire your patience in finishing this campaign, and doing so at a relatively slow pace.

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Originally Posted by Kavhan Isbul

Bamff - another excellent post as usual, and I personally admire your patience in finishing this campaign, and doing so at a relatively slow pace.

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I'll second that. :bow:

Thanks guys :bow: - I set myself a target of a 10 or 15 year stretch when I sit down...sometimes the AI helps slow the pace a little by throwing you a battle that takes hours to resolve (more so when you are also trying to note down what is going on).
I am determined to see it through - even though as I said a couple of posts back that Byzantium and the Horde look to be the only possible obstacles in my path....and I am growing ever more impatient to try my hand at the Aragonese.....and then there's those nagging thoughts about XL (which nag ever louder each time Kavhan posts an update on his campaign!)

Gaaah! My Bohemian campaign has ended:furious3: Here's why:

Things were going really well. The Ventians and Germans got engaged in a war, with the Venetians being rather successful. Soon enough, the Germans emptied Austria to invade Venice. I quickly seazed the opportunity and removed myself a border with the Germans without fighting for it (the Germans in Venice were destroyed pretty quickly by the Genoese).
I then fended off three invasions of Friesland pretty easily, and then concluded a ceasefire with the HRE.
Anyway, things on the Eastern front were doing pretty badly at first, the Spaniards were kicked out of Lesser Poland by the Cumans but managed to survive in Volhynia. The tide turned when the Huns defeated the Cumans in Carpathia. I again siezed the opportunity and took the nearly empty Lesser Poland.
Just the next year though, the garrison sallied with reinforcements (including the Khan) from Moldavia. This was one of the best battles I've ever had. The numbers were almost equal (I had slightly more men), but I had an infantry-heavy army with plenty of Bohemian Bowmen. I took my stand atop a mountaintop, deployed all my troops so that I COULDN'T be outflanked (the ground on my flanks was impassable ground) and just let the enemy attack me. I had morale bonus thanks to the hill, and all my troops were close enough to the general to get a morale bonus. The Cumans foolishly charged while I rained arrows upon them. The battle was pretty one-sided, and went on for about 15 mins and then...complete freeze. Nothing to do, all I could do was to restart my computer:furious3: And the battle was going so well. The bar was entirely green, I hadn't had a single casualty while the poor Cumans laid dead in their hundreds.

Having to replay the last 5-10 years (I don't recall when the last Autosave was made) and hoping for such a nice battle again...well...:thumbsdown:

Anyway, inspired by Kavhan Isbul's Bulgarian campaign, I've decided to try a Swedish campaign. Playing as a faction you know a lot about historically really helps in your writing.

Unlucky Innocentius, it's so frustrating when that happens.

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Originally Posted by Innocentius

Anyway, inspired by Kavhan Isbul's Bulgarian campaign, I've decided to try a Swedish campaign. Playing as a faction you know a lot about historically really helps in your writing.

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I'm looking forward to the write up - I was thinking about playing as Sweeden in my next game.

Sorry to hear about your Bohemia campaign, Innocentius. You have my sympathy. :sad:

Well apparently I'm a glutton for punishment, because I started up another Portuguese campaign last night. ~:rolleyes: I'm taking a different tack this time around. Given that historically, there was a certain amount of animosity between the two kingdoms, I've attacked Castille-Leon as my first move. I've also bribed the Cid, and Valencia has now been added to my lands. I've determined that--one way or the other--I will unite the Catholics of northern Iberian before taking on the mighty Almoravid dynasty....

Sorry to hear about your Bohemian campaign Innocentius I hate it when the game or my computer doesn't work for whatever reason:furious3:.

Innocentius, that is very unfortunate. When something such as that happens I usually give up and start again because I'm too impatient.

Good Luck Martok. Make sure that you don't leave yourself vulnerable as the Moors will seize any target.

marcusbrutus Sweden is hard, but none the less a worthy challenge. My advice attempt to rush Norway relatively early on. It may be poor, but it is more than nothing.

Thought I would give a tip of the hat to the participants of this thread. Like most of you I have been playing MTW of and on for years. this thread helped bring me back from a 4 month hiatus. So while i havent posted to the thread, thought I would say hey and tip my hat to all of you, as I have read just about all the posts.

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Originally Posted by Innocentius

Anyway, inspired by Kavhan Isbul's Bulgarian campaign, I've decided to try a Swedish campaign. Playing as a faction you know a lot about historically really helps in your writing.

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i particularly wanted to comment to you because I enjoyed your bohemian campaign. I have played them a lot, and the Boheimain bowmens are a fine unit, been pulled out of a few scrapes with thier ability to not crumble at every melee.

Sweden is a great game, its one of the better provinces in Northern europe because of the steel, and you start with a long boat in the Baltic(or is that the danes?) with very good rebel provinces to grab that are income producers.

@Rythmic: Thanks for the well-wishes, bud. Unfortunately I've been dealing with an epic-level migraine the last few days, so I haven't gotten any playing time in since last week. I have made progress since I started the Portuguese campaign, but I just haven't had time to compose it into a proper story yet. And I'll be gone this weekend too.... ~:mecry:

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Originally Posted by Odin

Thought I would give a tip of the hat to the participants of this thread. Like most of you I have been playing MTW of and on for years. this thread helped bring me back from a 4 month hiatus. So while i havent posted to the thread, thought I would say hey and tip my hat to all of you, as I have read just about all the posts.

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You should post some of your own, man! It doesn't have to be fancy or anything -- just tell us what happened. We love AAR's here. :yes:

I might start posting here. I tried Bohemia, but...got bored quickly. Something about being indecisive, and the only thing knowing to do is to build an army, buildings, and get Catholic Bishops, etc. LOL! I.e., to develop Bohemia. I was...timid.

Decided that Lithuania is for me. Rebels in the area, so it gives me room to expand, and then I can build up and decide who to attack. Only just started the other day, haven't actually done anything yet...

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Originally Posted by Martok

Unfortunately I've been dealing with an epic-level migraine the last few days, so I haven't gotten any playing time in since last week.

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Sorry to hear that.

My playing time has been entirely gobbled up by the Lady Frog's gripping tale The Machiavellian Adventures of Princess Eleanor. [Warning only read if you have at least a weeks free time].

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Originally Posted by Martok

You should post some of your own, man! It doesn't have to be fancy or anything -- just tell us what happened. We love AAR's here. :yes:

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My rig at home is pretty old and is stripped down to essentials (one being MTW, that and HOI are the only games on there), so I cant view pics i take. I dont have a program on my home PC but it shouldnt be to hard to email to work and see how it looks.

i'll give it a shot.

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Originally Posted by Rythmic

My playing time has been entirely gobbled up by the Lady Frog's gripping tale The Machiavellian Adventures of Princess Eleanor. [Warning only read if you have at least a weeks free time].

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Yeah, I've heard it's good -- but then, I wouldn't expect anything less from our Lady Frog. :yes: Reading it has been on my "to do" list for a while now, but I still have yet to get around to it. One of these days....! :book:

Unfortunately, I had to abort my Portuguese campaign (yes, already!) due to "technical difficulties". (Read: I messed up when trying to install the Samurai Wars mod, and now my game won't run.) :sad: I got MTW up and running again this morning, but I haven't installed XL yet. I'm going to try and get back to where I was at before (conquer northern Spain and unite the Catholics of Iberia) ASAP, but I probably won't have much of a chance to play until tomorrow night at earliest. (Grrr.... :furious3:)

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Originally Posted by Odin

My rig at home is pretty old and is stripped down to essentials (one being MTW, that and HOI are the only games on there), so I cant view pics i take. I dont have a program on my home PC but it shouldnt be to hard to email to work and see how it looks.

i'll give it a shot.

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Hey, whatever you can do, Odin! I have yet to even figure out how to post screenshots with my AAR's, so no worries there. ~:)

Great news! :horn: I started a Venice/Hard/Early/GA/XL campaign!

I've been keeping a record of my actions - buildings, recruitment, alliances...and it really adds to the feel of the game. It feels like everything is of concern, has value. It's not just a unit of Archers being trained...they'll complete their training in 1092, at a cost of 225 Florins to the State. It's not just an alliance being rejected out of hand...it's a nudge to attack the non-Catholic infidels to prove Venice's sincerity! :coffeenews:

I have personal rules like no uber armies. Only Catholic allies. No uber-expansion. And I make up stories if I want to start a war. Right now, I'm settling to...pick off Tuscany from the Genoese. The story goes that they have increased border activity, and this has been seen as an aggressive action. I can't recall now, but I believe they also have a non-Catholic ally...maybe the Genoese are also a threat to the Papacy and the Italian Catholic population, as well as Venetian sovereignty? A clear message must be sent out. :knight: :charge: :duel:

I'm building a Town Watch in Venice to get Militia Seargants (adds to the feudal atmosphere), and an Inn in Milan to get some quick troops from the surrounding area. I plan to, before 1100AD, attack Tuscany and reclaim Venetian independency, and to protect the Pope. My main provinces can then replace the mercenaries as I disband them over a short period. Only one attempt may be made by the Venetians to call a ceasefire. Perhaps after a period of 5 or so years minimum, it can be attempted again. But primarily, the idea is that the rarity of Venice offering a ceasefire will symbolise Venice offering a chance for Genoese to reconcile with Venice and 'apologise' ~:grouphug: ...other than that, the Genoese must capitulate themselves and realise how wrong they were. :surrender:

Might write it up properly another time.

Good luck with your Venetian campaign Kaidonni:2thumbsup: The splitting of the "Italians" is indeed one of the best features of the XL Mod.

I've tried to start a Swedish campaign twice now, but I always suffer a freeze during the first battle against the norwegians (who seem to be unbribable). My computer has seen its best days. I'm serious here: there really must be some slow self-destruct device in all computers (and cell phones) so that we'll be forced to buy new ones within a few years. Just a few month ago, my MTW was working flawlessly.
Anyway, will have another go during this weekend.

Well, it seems like their has been a slight lull in the action, so I thought I'd pose a quick question to the masses.

I've been toying with the idea of starting a game and posting it up in here ever since the thread started. I got up enough nerve and started an English game right around the time that bamff did, and bamff beat me to the first post. So I figured I'd hold off for a bit, not to mention bamff's story has been an excellent read :2thumbsup: .

Would anybody be interested in reading about an VI Early Expert Danish Campaign? I haven't worked out all the rules, but the hook is I'm going to try to obtain a total domination by High (1205). I figured if anyone else is interested than I'd post it up in here, if not then I get to try it on my own.