Concert of Europe

[Franconicus]

When will the chapter be up anyhow?

Here it is:


Chapter 11 – June 1826 to May 1827

June

Fürst von Metternich mediates between England and France. France, obviously helpless against the British rule of the seas, accepts to give back Malta, to demilitarize Toulon and to pay 3.5 million. France also agrees to sever trade with the US and stop help for the Sultan. In return, Britain waives any claim on French territory and agrees not to support the Spanish army.

July

Left alone without ally and fleet, the Ottoman Sultan has to ask for peace, too. Lord Canning dictates the terms of the peace treaty:
The Ottoman troops at Malta surrender immediately, the trade between the Turks and America is stopped and the Turks have to pay 3.5 million talers to London. Furthermore, the Sultan has to swallow another bitter bill. He has to give extraordinary rights to the Greek population, like involvement of the Greek in the government and equal treatment of Christianity and Islam on the peninsula. A problem still unsolved is the situation of the ten thousands of Ottoman soldiers on the Iberian Peninsula.
The peace between the three Empires changes the situation of the remaining war, the war between Spain and France. The Spanish Republicans are badly disappointed by being left alone by the English. At least they are no longer threatened by the Ottoman troops.
Although there is peace now in almost the whole Mediterranean Sea and hopefully trade in this region will soon recover, many English are a bit disappointed that England was not able to gain more influence in the Eastern Med. Nevertheless, people are glad that war is over and hope that the war in America will come to an end, too.

August

The Ottoman expedition corps gathers west of Valencia and waits there to for an opportunity to sail home. The French general persuades the Turks to give their artillery and heavy siege equipment to the French. In return he promises to supply them with food and a passage to Turkey.
Although the Turkish commander receives warnings from the Spaniards, the Turks decamp and march to a bay south of Valencia, where they are supposed to meet a French fleet, which should pick them up.
Waiting two weeks for the French ships without provisions, the Turks find themselves surrounded by the French 10th Light Regiment and the 5th Hussars and the 2nd Dragoons. Three French frigates appear in the morning and begin to shoot at the Turkish camps. French infantry and artillery joins in and thousands of Turks lie dead or wounded on the ground before the rest is able to get into battle formation. Although superior in numbers, the Turks do not stand a chance, as they lay on open ground without cover or cannons, while the French keep on firing from the surrounding hills.
The Ottoman commander realizes that it is impossible to stand the ground. He drives his soldiers against the hills. Although they suffer high casualties, the Turks manage to take the hills and to assault two French batteries. The Turkish commander is shot in the head and when the French cavalry execute a counter-charge, the Turkish breakthrough turns into a headless flight. The French infantry clears the beach. In this massacre, the French kill more than 20,000 of the former allies. About 4,000 Turks escape and join the Spaniards.

At Vienna, the Rothschilds open the biggest private bank house of Europe.
The telegraph line is opened between Vienna and Prague.

Crete: The situation for the Egyptian is continuously getting worse. After the withdraw of the Ottoman soldiers and officers from the administration, Egyptian troops are not able to control the land. Instead, they try to defend themselves in the coastal cities. The Greek rebels control the mountains and the road along the coast. The Egyptians have to use ships to connect their garrisons.

September

The French commander at Spain waits for fresh troops from the north. Finally the 8th Regiment, consisting of Swiss mercenaries, arrives. Now the French army marches against Cadiz and surround the town in November. The three French frigates try to attack the harbor of Cadiz, but they are intercepted by the Spanish fleet and rapidly sunk.

Unlike at Spain, the Ottoman troops from Malta hand their positions to the English and are shipped home without any accident. The last French and Turkish troops leave the island. The English begin immediately to repair the harbor and the fortifications.

At Northern America, the capitol of Canada surrenders. Thousand of Canadians become prisoners of war, along with them the British Military Governor. The remaining troops of the Empire capitulate three days later and American soldiers occupy the eastern coast.

Crete rebels assault Rethymnon and occupy it for four days. They kill the garrison and all Muslim citizens.

October

The city of Athens is currently the refugee of the Ottoman fleet. Even after the defeat at the Battle of Gibraltar, there are still several ships-of-the-line and many small vessels. Inside the town there is only a small garrison of about 100 soldiers plus some supply units and a military hospital. During the war, the Ottoman fortified the harbors, but now the fortifications are only poorly manned.
In the beginning of October, a convoy of French transport ships appears in front of Athens. The Ottoman Admiral prepares his ships to welcome the French, which he thinks are still friends. The French ships enter the military harbor Zea and head straight to the sol. While the Ottomans fire salutes, French soldiers of the 57th “The Terrible” Line Regiment leave the French ships and assault the Ottoman ships. Soon there is tough close combat on the ships. It takes a moment until the Turks realize what is going on. The French soldiers get control over the flagship. Smaller Turkish ships fire at the French transport ships and sink them. Ottoman sailors from other ships try to assault the flagship, while a battery fires from the shore and hits French and Ottoman ships. The harbor sinks into a chaos of fire, smoke and noise. The French seize some more ships, but the Ottoman receive constantly reinforcements from the town. Outside of the harbor, a British squad appears, but the British sailors are only watching the scene without interfering.

General Oudinot breaks up the fight and tries to leave the harbor with the sized ships, but they have to find out that the exit is blocked by chains. The French infantries are trapped and drop like flies. They cannot break through the gate and Oudinot decides to leave the ships and to fight the way through the town. Oudinot is killed by a bullet. About 400 reach the commercial harbor and seize some small ships. Still under constant musket fire, they leave the harbor. In the meanwhile, several smaller Ottoman warships left Zea and are now hunting the fleeing French. Only 136 French infantries make it to the English fleet, the rest of the regiment formerly known as the “Terrible” one.

France disbands more than 20,000 troops. The government gives the men medals and promises them to find new jobs, but reality is different. When the men return home, they find it impossible to get a job. Especially in the south, the economic situation is disastrous. Many emigrate to Switzerland, Northern Italy or Southern Germany where they hope to find a living. The rest is just travelling around, hoping to make some talers to get through the day.
The King of France raises the taxes to cover the expenses for war and the peace treaty with England.
France also starts building a series of small fortress on the border with the Dutch.

At Prussia, the conflict about the imprisoned Catholic bishop escalates. All Catholic priests preach against the Prussian King. They blame him for being King only for the Protestant and tell the people that he is not the chosen one.
They call all Catholics not to support his reign any longer.

November

The Ottoman is bankrupt. The government stops the payment to the English and also postpones the pay of soldiers and officers.
Thousands of Greek civilians, among them hundred of priests of the Orthodox Church, are imprisoned by the Turkish government. They are blamed for high treason.
The Porte increases the strength of her Palestine Army.

The government of the Netherland decides to fortify the cities of Luxembourg, Mons, Brussels and Hainaut. Construction work begins immediately, with a priority for the fortresses along the border to France.

Nicholas appeals to the common people of Russia to support him. They do not care much about his promises, but most of the peasant seem to accept him as the God send monarch. However, most of the Russian aristocrats are against him.

Egyptian soldiers surround a monastery and kill 43 Orthodox monchs.

December

The military governor of the Jerusalem proclaims the foundation of the Islamic Caliphate of the Levant. As justification he argues that the Sultan left the path of the true believers by allying with the French. Some very important Christian churches are burned down!

France is bankrupt! The bankers of France tell the French minister of finance, that they are no longer able to give more money.
The government stops the building of the fortresses and the payment for the administration and raises the taxes once more. One of the most influent bankers of France, Simon de Montagne, is murdered in the streets of Paris. The government blames English spies for the murder of the Jewish banker.
The Parisian artisans go on strike to protest against the high taxes on food. Thousand of unemployed former soldiers come into the capitol and join the protests.
The bankruptcy of France and the Ottoman Empire as well as chaotic situation at Russia makes the stock markets all over Europe fall. The markets at Berlin and Vienna have to be closed for two weeks. At Berlin there are furious demonstrations of people that lost all of their fortune. The new middle class sees itself threatened by the financial and economic crisis and blames the King for not protecting Prussian interests. Especially the ruin of the Prussian enterprises at Turkey lowers the trust in the government.

At Spain, the French troops keep on besieging the Republicans. They try to silence the guns of the work by a powerful artillery-fire and start to build fascines and short ladders to enable the soldiers to pass the ditch and
mount the parapet. However, food is getting tight. French frigates try to block the harbor, but the Spanish navy, led by the admiral’s ship ‘Constitution’ sallies and sinks the French ships. Cadiz is still supplied by the sea by ships mainly from Italy.

End of the year, the 8th Swiss Regiment, 2,008 men under the command of General Conrad Rudolph, leaves her positions and marches eastwards to raid the cost. They send a message to the French commander telling him that they will not serve France if they do not get paid and will now make their own war. The French general sends three other regiments and his cavalry to catch them and in a wild combat, the Swiss regiment is erased.
The French General is concerned for he wonders how long he will be able to besiege Cadiz

The American President Adams announces the building of a one hundred new military ships. The U.S. Navy, he says, will then force the British to peace.

January:

At New Year’s Day, Nicolas is crowned as new King of the Poles. He accepted a constitution that gave the Polish aristocracy the rights to pass laws and he promised to replace Russian officers from the army and administration. He also swears that he will defend and protect all Polish lands, which may bring him into conflict with Prussia and Austria.

A Dutch squadron bombards and destroys the city on Zanzibar, the island that became the centre of slave trade in the Indian Ocean.

Another Dutch squad appears in front of Cadiz and blocks the harbor. Dutch ships supply the French troops.
The commander of the Spanish defenders deserts and changes sides. Although the Spaniards continue to fight, the French have now all plans of the defenses.

At South Africa, citizens with Dutch origin protest against the British government.

Egyptian forces march south along the river Nil. They defeat a Sudanese army and occupy several towns.
Egyptian diplomats form a military and trade alliance with Libyan and Algerian tribes.

February

The new Egyptian government tries to reform the country. Advisors from France and England drill the navy and army. There will no longer be forced recruitment, but the recruits will be attracted by fair payment. This, of course, makes the expenses rise.
The country also tries to build up a strong textile industry with power looms imported from France. The government also wants to build a railroad, but cannot find expert in her country.

More and more people from all over the country come to Paris. They want to express their anger about the King. The garrison of the capital remains passive and the protestors now control the city. The King spends his days at Versailles together with his advisors, protected by his guard of foreign mercenaries.

All over Europe, food production cannot keep up with the growth of population. Therefore the price for food is going up.

The Netherlands are less affected from the financial collapse of France than expected. Stock rate fall less than at Prussia, but the trade with France and Prussia is reduced. Especially machines and machined good are hard to sell.
At Vienna, the stock rates fall, too. Papers loose more than 50 % within only few days. The Rothschild Bank buys and stabilizes the market of Vienna.

March

There are protests against the Ottoman government at Istanbul.

The Russian troops leave Poland and march towards Kiev. Here, the garrison joins them. Nicholas signs a treaty with the Shah of Persia, giving away the Caucasian provinces to Persia. Then he turns northwards with his troops. At Smolensk he finally meets the army of the rebels. Although outnumbered. he decides to attack. "Today, I will become Czar or die!" he tells his soldiers. He leads the charge of the cavalry. Against the will of their officers, the soldiers of the rebels turn around and follow his banner. Soon the rebels have to surrender and the way to Petersburg is open for the Czar.

The bishops of the Catholic south blame the Dutch government for making policy only for the Protestant north. They advice Catholic people neither to work for the government nor to serve in the armed forces.

The French King signs a law that forbids the work of children.

April

A combined expedition of French and Egyptian forces reaches the western coast of South Africa. Although they see English ships along the coast, the French immediately land and found a camp. The Egyptians hesitate, but finally they follow. The expedition begins to build a base and to fortify it. Soon, the forces have contact with a British patrol, which, however, disappears immediately. The French forces are about 5,000 men under the command of General Francois Nicoms and General Benoit Haxo along with 500 engineers, 800 civilians and 150 merchants. The Egyptian forces are about the same size.

After several months, the defenders of Cadiz give up. They set the imprisoned King free . this is the end of the Spanish republic. The French army loots Cadiz and leaves back for France. Only the regiment of Spanish royalists stays.

The Spanish King begins to build up his rule again by arresting and punishing all rebels. Thousands are arrested, hundreds are sent to death.

Austria passes a law to introduce compulsory military service. All men have to serve for three years. Volunteers, who are able to study or pass a test, may serve only for one year. They have to pay for their equipment, get special military education and leave as officers of the reserve.
The Landwehr, all those that passed their three years, form now a military reserve until the age of 45. They will have training every third year.

May

Nicolas reaches Petersburg and crowns himself as Emperor of Russia, again.
Metternich visits Naples to discuss the terms of an Austria withdraw.
 
England
Although the trade in the Med is open again and the Ottoman/French ambitions are ruined, there is still enough to do: America, South Africa, France, Economy?

Netherlands
You receive a message from the Indian Ocean, reporting that Zanzibar’s fortifications are destroyed, its ships sunk. Some hundred infantries would be able to take the island.


Prussia
You are losing the love and support of your people. Your economy is weakened and your political influence seems to be fading away.
Maybe you should also watch closely the situation at Poland, The new “King of Poland” made a lot of concessions to the nationalists. This may cause more trouble in your provinces!

Austria
France is at the dawn of a new revolution. The Ottoman Empire struggles to survive. New threats, but also opportunities.
You also should watch the economy. Although Austria is rather strong, other countries may fall into chaos and pull you into trouble.
Bavaria proposes a meeting to discuss the situation at France, the Balkans and Palestine.

France
You are broke and your country is at the edge of a new revolution. The army from Spain returns and waits for reward. Trade is low, tax income tiny and the Provence suffers from the damage from the last war.

Russia
Congratulation! You are now King of Poland and Czar of Russia.
How do you want to rule the countries? How strong to you want to have your army / navy? What to do with the supporters of the rebels?
The Poles urge you to give those provinces of Poland that used to be Polish, back to Poland.
The Turks are extremely week. This may lead to trouble on the Balkans. What do you intend to do?
As Czar, you are the defender of the church. The Orthodox Church urges you to protect the Christians at Levant!


Ottoman Empire
Your situation is dangerous. Your run out of cash, the church begins to turn against you, your army is unreliable and Egypt, Crete and Levant split off.
How do you want to keep control in your countries? How do you want to pay the Brits? What do you do with rebellion of Levant? Right now, your country is extremely weak. Other countries may take advantage of this.

Egypt
How do you deal with your new neighbor of Levant?
The frigate from America never reached one of your ports, although the American pretend that they sent it!
Your engineers do not seem to be able to build a railroad or locomotive or something like that!