The Chronicles of the Illuminati

[TinCow]

Chapter VI: Securing the Votes

My friend, I would request your vote and legal support for the attached edict, which will be a Franconian House Edict at the upcoming Diet session. If you can suggest any revisions to increase the demographic of electors who will vote for it, they would be welcome.

"Edict 10.?

An attack will be held against the Russian barbarians. An army will be gathered for a Baltic Crusade against the Russians.
This army shall from the start be commanded by a Franconian general, but generals from other houses are allowed to join as well.

The goal of this small non-papal campaign is attacking and sacking the settlements of Vilnius, Riga, Novgorod and Helsinki. Many buildings in these settlements will be destroyed before leaving the settlements again, such as buildings of happiness and law, so they can turn into the hands of rebels. This should damage the Russian war machine and additionally fill our coffers.

The objective is to finish this crusade by the year 1280."

Péter von Kastilien
Count of Breslau

Péter,

It is good to hear from you, my friend! I will certainly consider supporting your edict and will encourage others in Bavaria to do the same. However, the current free-for-all in the Election is somewhat disturbing and unpredictable. It is important that we elect a man who will properly defend the interests of the Reich. I have no firm plans yet, but I may ask a favor in return for backing you edict. I will look into matter further and contact you again.

Your friend,
Lothar

Péter,

It is good to hear from you, my friend! I will certainly consider supporting your edict and will encourage others in Bavaria to do the same. However, the current free-for-all in the Election is somewhat disturbing and unpredictable. It is important that we elect a man who will properly defend the interests of the Reich. I have no firm plans yet, but I may ask a favor in return for backing you edict. I will look into matter further and contact you again.

Your friend,
Lothar

Personally, I believe Fredericus von Hamburg, the wise Count of Hamburg and Aleppo, is the best choice for chancellor. His manifesto states no partiality towards any house and a devotion to protect our eastern territories from the Mongol hordes.

This is very true. Count von Hamburg is a good man and his statements in the Diet are admirably honest. He must be doubly appealing to you, since he is a man of Franconia. In all honesty though, I am concerned that his lack of planning will lead to chaos at home. We are already having difficulties defending our borders and the interior of our provinces with the Household Armies. If the status quo continues, enemy armies will continue to breach our borders, settlements will continue to be besieged, and our lands will continue to be sacked.

The only man who has proposed any kind of solution this problem is Ulrich Hümmel. His proposed defensive armies for the Duchies is a wonderful idea. With two extra armies permanently assigned to guard our lands, the Household Armies would be free to strike at our enemies. Even if your Russian edict doesn't pass, Franconia could take her Household Army on a punitive expedition into Russia knowing that your borders were secure. All of Franconia voted for Ulrich in the last election, so clearly you think he is a worthy man. In my mind he has proposed the best solution.

Verily, that is the question in the House of Franconia right now. Ulrich Hummel has always supported us, but the thought of a Franconian Chancellor, nay, the first Franconian Chancellor, is all too appealing.

King Salier,

You gave me quite a scare in the Diet, my lord. I hope you have recovered from your episode, and I pray for your good health.

I hate to talk politics while you are resting, but the four way election provides some opportunities for Bavaria and Outremer. Since there is no Bavarian candidate, mores the pity, our House can serve as the deciding force in this election. The Swabian vote is split and the Franconians will vote for von Hamburg.

If Bavaria can present a unified and decisive voting bloc in the election, the next Chancellor will be indebted to us. I have heard my Father and Lothar support Ulrich Hummel. I have also heard that Duke Arnold is leaning toward him as well, and might bring Austria with him. While Count Hummel is not my first choice, none of the candidates are particularly strong. Hans, at least in experience, is the best of the lot, but I am leery of having anyone serve two consecutive terms. Fredericus has done much as a warrior, but his manifesto is lacking. When he announced his candidacy, it was the first time he had spoken in the Diet in years. Jobst is unpredictable, and it is possible he could serve consecutive terms as well.

In order to maintain House unity and increase the influence of Bavaria, I will vote for Ulrich Hummel. For the same reasons, I ask you to join me in doing so. With the approach of the Mongols to the Holy Land, there would also be an advantage in a Crusader Chancellor. Outremer will need all the men and florins a cooperative Chancellor can provide to face the Horse Lords.

Think over what I have said, you Majesty, and I hope you will reach the same conclusion.

Your servant,

Matthias

Lothar,

I'm sure that you have received word from Ulrich Hummel and his intentions to run for Chancellor, I have foregone running myself in order to support him, I encourage you to do the same. I agree with you that Hans is an arrogant glory seeking fool, who relies on short memories to inflate his own position. After all this is the same man who kidnapped two regiments of Teutonic and almost got killed using them to fight the Hungarians.

Father,

With the election drawing near, every last vote for Ulrich must be obtained. We must not back the loser of this election. I believe that it will be a close run between him and Fredericus von Hamburg. It appears at the moment that the Kaiser and all of Franconia are behind him. I do not know the status of Swabia, but they are likely to split their votes amongst Hans and Prinz Jobst. We must ensure that every last Bavarian follows your lead and votes for Ulrich. I am particularly concerned about Conrad Salier. I urge you to exercise all your influence over him to ensure that he supports the will of Bavaria.

If you have any friends in Swabia or Franconia that you can exploit to gain further votes, I strongly suggest that you contact them as well. Leave Austria to me, I shall bring it to Ulrich's side.

Your loyal son,
Lothar

Greetings!

I urge you to vote for me. I can guarantee you that if you vote for me, Austria shall get the spoils from the east; if Fredericus is, then Franconia will.

Support me, gut electors, and I am guaranteed victory, despite Kaiser Henry's influence.

Ulrich Hummel

Lord Ulrich,

I'll take you request under consideration.

Arnold

My Prinz,

I humbly wish to speak to you about the election. I do not wish to offend you, but I must speak bluntly. You cannot win this election. The Kaiser and all of Franconia supports Fredericus von Hamburg. My father, Duke Gerhard, has pledged his support to Ulrich Hummel and as his vassals the rest of Bavaria is obliged to follow his orders. Hans will surely vote for himself. The simple fact is that there are not enough votes remaining to grant you victory. This is no great loss, as you will surely be Kaiser by the time of the next Diet and you can assume the post of Chancellor by right at that time.

The next best thing to being Chancellor is having a Chancellor beholden to you. I urge you to support Ulrich Hummel with your vote. He is a fellow Swabian and will surely look out for your interests and lands far more effectively than a Franconian. Indeed, it was his singular desire to protect Swabia that led to him being stripped of his title as Duke. Fredericus has no plans at all for the defense of the Duchies. This is of great concern to all the Houses, but it certainly must be for Swabia, with so many large French armies around your borders. Ulrich's plan of providing two additional defensive armies to each Duchy will help to ensure Swabia's security. Simply put, Ulrich would be far better protector of the Homelands than Fredericus. Both for Swabia and Bavaria.

I humbly apologize if these words have angered you. As I stated before, I am your loyal vassal and will do all in my power to support you once you have assumed the throne. I would even support you now if it would bring you victory, but that is simply not within my power. The election is very close and every vote counts. If you were to support Ulrich Hummel, his victory would be almost certain. Might I suggest that you could in turn use this position to extract favors from him? I suspect that Ulrich will meet whatever demands you ask of him.

I hope you will see my honesty and candor as proof of my friendship and loyalty to you. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to aid you, be it now, or at any time in the future.

Your loyal vassal,
Lothar

Dear Lothar,

No, those words did not anger me, as they are of complete truth. I knew when I entered this Chancellorship race that I couldn't win.

Yes, I shall support Ulrich. I know the Franconians shall, if one of theirs win, use that persons Chancellorship to attack Russia, when other things are happening.

With your unwavering support Lothar, I shall remember your name when I assume the Throne.

Prinz Jobst,
Count of Dijon,
Commander of the EIA,

My Prinz,

I am glad to be of service in whatever way I can, even when the manner of my service is less than ideal.

Since you have agreed to support Ulrich, I would like to remind you again that the election is bound to be close. I do not know the exact numbers, but I believe that with your support Ulrich will win, but only by the slimmest of margins. If one of his supporting electors does not arrive in the Diet in time to vote, the election could go to the Franconian. Any extra votes that we can secure for Ulrich will greatly reduce this risk. I was wondering if you knew what Duke Scherer's voting plans were. If he is not inclined to vote for Ulrich, perhaps a word from you would convince him otherwise.

Your loyal vassal,
Lothar

Brothers,

I have excellent news! I did not mention it before, as I did not wish to arouse any undue hopes, but I decided to take a risk and contact Prinz Jobst. I did so as a private citizen, not a member of the Order, and attempted to explain the situation in a sympathetic manner. As you will see below, Prinz Jobst has agreed to vote for Ulrich in the election! This by no means makes our position safe, but it gives us much more room to work with.

Keep up the pressure, I believe we can win this yet.

Lothar

Excellent Lothar!!

I believe we have set this election up as best we can. My advisors have confirmed that the three members of the Austrian House have read my instructions. To date there has been no impression that they will not follow my request.

I'm looking forward to this elections fellow Illuminati, this could be the beginning of great things to come.

Arnold.

Brothers,

As you can see from the transcript below I fear I have a problem.

He was specifically told to vote for Hummel and now he does this...

My lords, before the voting starts in earnest I feel I must make a plea.

Do not vote for Count Hummel.

If I may speak of things that were before my time, it was not too long ago that the then-Duke went rogue and attacked the French at Rheims, using vague statements about avenging my namesake as an excuse. He did not issue a formal apology to this esteemed body, and instead managed to avoid censure by voluntary abdicating his position and relocating to the east. Again, I may be young, but Count Hummel's attitude towards the law is all too similar to that of our previous Emperor, Heinrich. Some will say that the charter has become sturdier since those times, but I say that we can not rely on paper and words to protect us from mischief. Legal documents cannot adapt. Men can. And good men must be vigilant to ensure that honor and justice are ever prominent in our realm.

We electors need a chancellor who will work with us, not circumvent our decisions in manners that are only technically legal. In short, we need someone who will obey the letter of the law and the spirit. That is why I must request that my colleagues withhold their support for Count Hummel's bid for the chancellorship.

I'm inclined to have him buried in the back waters of Budapest.

Do either of you have a suggestion?

Arnold

My Lords and Electors,

As you have all seen I have appointed those of you without Austrian titles.

Congratulations to Sigismund and our newest member the 6th Elector of Austria on your new appointments.

There are of course a manageable number of Edicts at this session and like my father I am happy for you to vote individually based on you personal opinions with regards to the Edicts.

However, and also like my father, there is sometimes a need to make directives to ensure the House prospers in competition with other groups and individuals.

I have had contact with the various Chancellor candidates and have made my decision who we as House Austria should support.

Therefore I would ask you to place your support behind Lord Hummel. This will ensure the further good standing of Austria and our future in the coming Chancellors term.

Please contact me individually if you have any issues with this request.

Duke Arnold

I fear I do have issue with a Hummel Chancellorship. Hummel is well known to despise the notion that he is beholden to any notion of duty or servitude. When we were just boys, he even went so far as to defy the Chancellor’s orders and besiege Rheims. To give a man who has no qualms about ignoring the will of the electors, the chancellor, and the Emperor more power is not good for Austria or the Reich, especially since he has yet to issue an apology. I cannot vote for such a man.

Dear Sigismund,

I entirely agree with your train of thought, and therefore have made secure and detailed negotiations to ensure this does not happen if he is to gain power. At least at the expense of Austria.

It is his very actions that have allowed me to predict how he sees various topics and be able to make sure this does not happen while he is in power.

All I can say is that as your Duke I have decided it is best for us as an entire House to have the "Devil you know, rather than the devil you don't" in power.

Does that help at all Sigismund?

Yours
Arnold

Indeed, it helps immensely! Woe my arrogance of youth, for as I could not foresee a way to reconcile my differences I assumed there were none. I have already made arrangements so that no others will hear my screed, and I will vote for Hummel. All that is left is apologize to you personally for such an ill-considered and rash action. So let my apologize with action: If there is anything I can do to make amends, short of endangering my mortal soul, please let it be known and it shall be done.

Dear Sigismund,

It is entirely understandable. As Duke I'm able to engage in topics that I could not previously. I remember when my own father would ask me to do things because he had made arrangement that I did not know of.

If you can vote for Hummel that is all I ask of you for the moment.

There is no need to apologies my friend. Soon you will be leading fellow Austrian's into battle and I would prefer a general who thinks before acting.

Arnold.

Brothers,

It seems you put the fear of God into young Sigismund, Arnold, he has withdrawn (edited) his comments in the Diet.

Following in Lothar's footsteps, I have contacted the only Swabian who isn't running for Chancellor, Duke Scherer. I've enclosed a copy of our exchange of letters.

I hope this will bear fruit.

Duke Scherer,

Forgive me for intruding on your time at this Diet session, but I feel I must write you. The four way election, with no less than three Swabians running, is unprecedented. It seems that Fredericus von Hamburg, with the undivided support of the Kaiser and his House, is the favorite to be Chancellor.

Yet, there might be hope for Swabia. My Father, Duke Steffen, plans to support Ulrich Hummel, along with many of the Bavarian electors. I have also heard, despite the pleas of Sigismund von Mahren, that most of the Austrians will back him. I plan to vote for him as well, but to ensure that he defeats Count von Hamburg, I suggest that you and your fellow Swabians unite behind him. Only if this occurs will we be able to defeat the combined influence of Franconia and the Kaiser.

I understand if you are reluctant to do this, but Prinz Jobst has not gathered much support, I have heard rumors that he is planning to vote for Count Hummel himself, and Count Hans is running for an unprecedented second term. The best choice to ensure the continued support of Bavaria and Swabia's interests is Count Hummel. If Count von Hamburg assumes the Chancellorship, the resources of the Reich will be focused on this "Crusade" into Russia, and not in the West.

As a token of my good will, I will second your edict in the Diet.

Good Fortune,

Matthias Steffen

I thank you for your seconding of my edict and your efforts to reach out to me. I wish to have the Chancellor be another Swabian and would be eager in joining you in voting for Ulrich. However, I have doubts over whether other members of my house Hans and Prinz Jobst would be willing to support Ulrich. I shall do my best to convince them, but cannot have any guarantees.

Brothers,

It appears that Duke Scherer does not know how to properly scheme. He has mentioned my letter to him in the Swabian Chamber:

Now I wish to talk about a different matter. Matthias Steffen has recently come to me with concerns about the race for chancellorship. Fredericus von Hamburg with the support of his house and the emperor seems to be in the lead in the race. The Bavarians does not wish for him to be chancellor, but given our house's lack of unity and uncertainty about the Austrians, a Franconian chancellor may be elected. The Bavarians offer to support Ulrich Hummel in his race for the chancellor. I will not say who I wish to win the election, but I would rather have another Swabian chancellor elected and will support Ulrich. Given uncertainty regarding the Austrians, I urge the other electors Hans and Prinz Jobst to support Ulrich too.

If I got access to this information, that means other Electors can as well. I apologize for this leak of information, I assumed that Duke Scherer knew what a backroom deal was and wouldn’t go blabbing about our arrangement. Next time I'll have to spell it out.

This is unfortunate, because Hummel might be able to figure out that the offer from us and my letter to Scherer are related. Still, he has no solid facts, but I am sorry about it. Perhaps I should stick to waxing philosophic in the Diet and leave the cloak and dagger intrigues to Lothar.

I have written again to Scherer asking that he edit the transcript so as not to mention me or our deal, but I have not heard back from him. It's too late anyway, as anyone who has already read it knows.

I need a drink.

Lothar

Markus,

I am disturbed to note that you have cast your vote for Prinz Jobst. I expected that our father had contacted you, but I suspect now that he has not. Our entire house is pledged to Ulrich Hummel and the election is too close to abandon any vote. Out of loyalty to your Duke, your father, and your brothers, please announce that your vote was in error and that it was intended for Count Hummel. You will note that even Prinz Jobst, the man you prefer, has himself voted for Ulrich.

Your brother,
Lothar

Lothar,

I am surprised to hear from you that my vote has been counted as I haven't voted yet. This must indeed be a mistake. I will try to have this corrected as soon as possible. Thank you for the notice.

Your younger brother,
Markus

Brothers,

I am pleased to report that it seems we have achieved complete success. In truth, things have gone better than I even imagined. Ulrich has agreed to our terms, and better yet, he is in our debt. He will surely be a valuable ally or pawn, depending on what use we have for him. Perhaps he may even prove himself worthy of being one of us.

All of us have been instrumental in achieving victory for Ulrich. I personally brought Prinz Jobst to our side and have made sure that Markus is correcting his voting 'error.' Arnold has delivered the votes of Austria to our cause and kept one of his own errant vassals in line. Most importantly, and most impressively though, is Matthias. Indeed, Matthias, it is you that has made Ulrich's victory not only possible, but certain. Your communications with the Duke of Swabia have not only brought his vote to Ulrich, but he in turn has then swayed Hans to add his weight as well. Now, even if Conrad Salier's vote goes to the Franconian, Ulrich will be victorious.

I cannot put in words how proud I am to see our small Brotherhood achieving so much. We are still young and few in number, yet our actions alone have determined the fate of the election. This is indeed our first great achievement, and I do not doubt that many more will follow.

I salute you, glorious Brothers of the Illuminati!

Lothar

Brothers,

My words to Duke Scherer bore unexpected fruit, which I hope will balance out the unfortunate disclosure of our deal.

The voting is indeed encouraging, but I have not heard back from King Salier, so I worry. Still, you always were better at math than I Lothar, so I'll take your word things are going well.

Lothar, I am very impressed by the drive and insight you shown in arranging this, I had my doubts, but you proved me wrong.

Arnold, I was equally impressed on how you imposed voting discipline in your House. You have to tell me how you brought Sigismund into the fold.

If we have achieved victory, it is imperative that we monitor Ulrich's actions to make sure he is keeping up his end of the deal. It is easy enough to make a few promises when the world is offered to you, but more difficult to actually keep them.

To the first triumph of our Brotherhood! The first step to a more Enlightened world!

Matthias

Brothers,

I don't think we are going to win. The 4th Elector of Austria did not follow my request plus Lord Zirn and Sigismund have not voted at this stage.

It will be close.

Arnold

Do not fret, Grand Master, I have checked the voting records and Ulrich simply cannot lose. Sigismund has now voted and do not forget that Markus Steffen's vote has been re-assigned to Ulrich. With the current standings the voting is as follows:

Ulrich Hummel: 42
Fredericus von Hamburg: 33

All of Franconia and the Kaiser have already cast their votes. The only possible area where von Hamburg can make up ground is from the only votes not yet counted: Conrad Salier and Lord Zirn. The only way von Hamburg can win is if both men vote for him. Conrad Salier has apparently notified the Kaiser of his voting choice, so we know his result will be included. If he votes for Ulrich, Hans, or Prinz Jobst, then von Hamburg cannot win. If he votes for von Hamburg, then all rests on Lord Zirn. If Lord Zirn votes for Ulrich OR refrains from voting, Ulrich will win.

So, the only thing we must do to win at the point (and the only thing we can do) is to ensure that Lord Zirn does not vote for von Hamburg. Anything else, even him missing the vote altogether, will bring us victory.