Interesting ideas BB. Of course we dont know how much army you have alexanderjohn. It may be that you have enough to keep it together while at the same time you can free enough cash to build farms and stabilise by happiness buildings. If that's the case then you better stay put. But if not giving up some area to concentrate in something more tangible, economically viable and defensible may be a route to take.

In any case: keep us updated and if you wan/want you can post some screenshots too.