Chancellor's Report, 1374

In summary, 1374 was a year of consolidation following our mighty deeds of the past decade. Count Ruppel destroyed the French who departed Rennes, while Welf von Luxemburg and Hugo de Cervole greatly diminished the army of Lancelot de Nevers, though his men still besiege Anger. Ludwig von Bohmen is preparing his soldiers for an attack against Bruges, reinforced by men from Staufen and other nearby cities. In the south the French held at Dijon and did not press deeper, though the southern cities of Swabia still remain under threat until a commander can be found to drive south to aid them.

To the east Prague remains under siege, though reinforcements are on the way to aid Lord Becker, while Breslau has once again fallen to the Poles. The Russians decline to lay siege to Hamburg, perhaps so that they could bring up a nobleman to command the attack. Prince Stenkil at long last has come to the walls of Arhus, where I will bury his army and hang his remains from the north gate.

Further south the Hungarians dithered about their attack on Vienna, perhaps once again affrighted by the arrival of Duke Arnold, though they slipped a smaller army in behind him. I have hope that Count von Hapsburg can gather sufficient forces to turn back that attack on his own and thus allow his Duke to proceed north and eventually east into Hungary.

In Bavaria Hermann Steffen took up leadership of the garrison of Rome, and the Sicilians once again declined to lay siege anywhere. Their captains appear fearful and disorganized, and though they are making a wreck of the countryside they have yet to threaten any city. Duke Steffen and Kaiser Peter are both marching south, to be reinforced as I can manage.

In Outremer the Byzantines made some slow motions towards Adana, but the road north is still clear and the men at Edessa are still evidently deadlocked over their plans. On the whole, matters are still quiet, and the conversion of the populace of Nicosia is proceeding apace.

Diplomatic Report

There is little to report on this front, as our enemies remain our enemies, and our allies remain our allies. Negotiations with the Russians regarding a ceasefire fell through again, and the English declined to exchange military access or come back into the war against the French.

Our spy has caught his first sight of the second Mongol invasion. I have thus far ordered him to keep his distance, and I am open to any suggestions about how best to approach this fresh enemy. Near Zagreb one of our experienced agents was lost attempting an action against a Hungarian noble, while a second spy has made his way into the city of Rennes. These actions have earned our great Kaiser something of a reputation, or so rumor from less well led nations has it.





The Office of the Exchequer

Army upkeep jumped substantially this season, and income fell slightly due to the large number of cities under siege or with trade routes cut. As such, there are only twenty seven thousand florins available to be spent, but the armies of the Reich are well equipped and strong. A Teuonic Knight's Chapter House was accepted at the city of Prague despite the siege, per Lord Becker's request. I have extended my personal thanks to the Teutons for all their recent aid and expansion in our cities, and I would encourage all nobles of the Reich to do the same.



The Physician's Office

This department is closed and funding is cut off until such time as there should be a new plague. Praise God, the Reich is free of plague! (I think I figured the mechanism out here, if the captain of a sick stack comes from a company that is too small to lose men to the plague then those men can't get well, even when the rest of the stack does. Having a general in command seems to fix this, I think.)

The War Office

I believe the armies of Outremer are positioned to prepare for an offensive. God willing those fools at Edessa will never sort out their issues, and thus one man commanding the passes at Adana could defend all of our southerly holdings. The Egyptian attack against Jerusalem is worrying, but not of great concern as the Pope has two large armies in the region and Egypt is still fighting the Turks. If Viceroy Matthias could move to hold Adana and Andreas von Salzgitter could head north to Caesarea then the Byzantines will face a difficult situation indeed.

The situation in Bavaria reveals the shocking incompetence of Sicilian leadership, as they clearly feared to send any of their precious few remaining nobles into our lands and their captains act as though they have no plan at all. When the Duke and the Kaiser arrive I expect they and Hermann Steffen will be able to go on the offensive easily. Marsellies's land trade is still blocked by rebels, but they present little threat.

Anger is still under siege in Swabia with two of her finest generals trapped within, but Count Ruppel now has free action from Caen and could aid in the lifting of the siege if necessary. A small French army has sieged the fort north of Paris, but this is of little consequence. I believe Count von Bohmen will be able to proceed with the siege of Bruges this season where the French are cut off and unable to get reinforcements. To the south it is much to be hoped that one of Swabia's generals will volunteer to strike out to defend the rest of the Duchy.

In Franconia Prince Stenkil will soon meet his doom, and I expect the Russians will quit shuffling around and lay siege to Hamburg soon, requiring Prinz Dieter to choose whether to conduct the defense from within the walls or without. I am sure Madgeburg will be held even if Duke Dieter does not wish to sally.

In Austria Duke Arnold must again decide whether to go north or south, while Max Zirn must decide if he will attempt to force the Hungarians to cross the bridge near Vienna under fire, or let them advance as they will. Hopefully Lord Becker has sufficient men now to drive off the Poles from Prague and start to take advantage of the Teutons now there.

The offensive season will open as soon as I free myself from Arhus, in the mean time here is the situation:

http://www.totalwar.org/patrons/pbm/kotr1374-1.zip

Fritz von Kastilien

OOC: Taking the save for Arhus!