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Legacy of The Tenth Crusade - A Divergences of Darkness Nation Quest [Finished]
- Thread starter Fission Battery
- Start date
- Alt. History
- Location
- New York
Thoughts.
The situation in Maghreb easily could have happened in Egypt if we have made a few different choices. The socialists may have kept control of the army, but they have lost control of much of their country. Algeria is experiencing Crusader settler revolts while Tunisia and Western Libya are in the hands of the monarchists. The legitimacy of the socialist Maghrebi government is in doubt with the Monarchists having a strong rival government. Fortunately for the Pan-Arab socialist cause, the socialists in Egypt have firm control of the capital and a legitimate government while the Egyptian Islamist rebels are relatively weak. I do not think that the Pan-Arab socialist cause could win this war if the Egyptian socialists were also on the back foot with the central government, Alexandria and many other cities out of their control.
I agree with the winning plan. The Maghrebi army is strong, but the Maghrebi socialists need to retake their country, or the army will eventually wither away. The Egyptian Islamist rebels are unlikely to be able to overthrow the government in Alexandria, but the Islamist uprising can disrupt the supply lines from the urban factories to the front lines and sabotage the factories under their control. We also want to avoid the off chance of the Islamists actually taking over Cairo and getting the chance to declare a rival government. The Islamists have focused on getting supporters more in urban areas while the rural areas fell further under the red peasant militias and the socialist controlled state-run rural schools in previous turns. This means that the Islamists in the urban areas must be crushed immediately to secure the vital factories, but the Islamists probably will not have the support to conduct an effective rural insurgency once they are driven out of the cities. Bringing in some Egyptian soldiers back home will also encourage Funj to accept the deal and discourage them from carrying out their unstated threat of occupying the Aswan Low Dam.
We need to invade Hejaz to secure a land bridge to Yemen and link up the socialist armies. It will also allow us to engage the Nejdi army in Aqaba before it is reinforced and let us take Mecca and Medina which will damage the credibility of the Caliphate of the Hejaz.
Calling in Turkey and Iran to crush Iraq is not great for the legitimacy of the UAR in Iraq in the future but the war will be difficult as is and we need to close a front.
We have refrained from calling in Comintern volunteers before to avoid provoking and drawing too much attention from the Entente which worked during the Sinai Crisis. However now, the Entente has dispatched large numbers of Burgundian and Scandinavian mercenaries, marines, and colonial troops to the monarchists. The Entente is also sending large amounts of heavy guns, air and armoured elements to the monarchist bloc. We now have a solid reason to escalate things by calling in the Comintern volunteers. The Arab Brothers' War will be a true proxy war between the Entente and Comintern and be a potential preview of the next world war. There will be much bloodshed in this war. Perhaps we will see aerial dogfights and the world's first tank versus tank battle in this war.
It is fortunate that this conflict is occurring now before people learn how much oil there is in Arabia. The Entente is spending a bunch of resources to get some ports here. If the Entente knew how much oil there is in Arabia, they would probably pour in even more resources to back the monarchists or even directly send in the fleets to shell Alexandria to prevent a socialist victory.
The situation in Maghreb easily could have happened in Egypt if we have made a few different choices. The socialists may have kept control of the army, but they have lost control of much of their country. Algeria is experiencing Crusader settler revolts while Tunisia and Western Libya are in the hands of the monarchists. The legitimacy of the socialist Maghrebi government is in doubt with the Monarchists having a strong rival government. Fortunately for the Pan-Arab socialist cause, the socialists in Egypt have firm control of the capital and a legitimate government while the Egyptian Islamist rebels are relatively weak. I do not think that the Pan-Arab socialist cause could win this war if the Egyptian socialists were also on the back foot with the central government, Alexandria and many other cities out of their control.
I agree with the winning plan. The Maghrebi army is strong, but the Maghrebi socialists need to retake their country, or the army will eventually wither away. The Egyptian Islamist rebels are unlikely to be able to overthrow the government in Alexandria, but the Islamist uprising can disrupt the supply lines from the urban factories to the front lines and sabotage the factories under their control. We also want to avoid the off chance of the Islamists actually taking over Cairo and getting the chance to declare a rival government. The Islamists have focused on getting supporters more in urban areas while the rural areas fell further under the red peasant militias and the socialist controlled state-run rural schools in previous turns. This means that the Islamists in the urban areas must be crushed immediately to secure the vital factories, but the Islamists probably will not have the support to conduct an effective rural insurgency once they are driven out of the cities. Bringing in some Egyptian soldiers back home will also encourage Funj to accept the deal and discourage them from carrying out their unstated threat of occupying the Aswan Low Dam.
We need to invade Hejaz to secure a land bridge to Yemen and link up the socialist armies. It will also allow us to engage the Nejdi army in Aqaba before it is reinforced and let us take Mecca and Medina which will damage the credibility of the Caliphate of the Hejaz.
Calling in Turkey and Iran to crush Iraq is not great for the legitimacy of the UAR in Iraq in the future but the war will be difficult as is and we need to close a front.
We have refrained from calling in Comintern volunteers before to avoid provoking and drawing too much attention from the Entente which worked during the Sinai Crisis. However now, the Entente has dispatched large numbers of Burgundian and Scandinavian mercenaries, marines, and colonial troops to the monarchists. The Entente is also sending large amounts of heavy guns, air and armoured elements to the monarchist bloc. We now have a solid reason to escalate things by calling in the Comintern volunteers. The Arab Brothers' War will be a true proxy war between the Entente and Comintern and be a potential preview of the next world war. There will be much bloodshed in this war. Perhaps we will see aerial dogfights and the world's first tank versus tank battle in this war.
It is fortunate that this conflict is occurring now before people learn how much oil there is in Arabia. The Entente is spending a bunch of resources to get some ports here. If the Entente knew how much oil there is in Arabia, they would probably pour in even more resources to back the monarchists or even directly send in the fleets to shell Alexandria to prevent a socialist victory.
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United Arab Republic, Spring 1919 - The Arab Brothers War Part 3
[]Plan "What're you doing Big Bro?" v2
-[FUN] Renegotiate their request
--Write In: Funj will have to repay the 1/4 of Aswan Low Dam electrical output which they ask for, with modest interest. The rest of their requests are accepted.
-[][BLA] Yes
-[][MIL] Attack Hejaz
-[][MIL] Reinforce Egypt
-[][MIL] Reinforce Libya
-[][DIP] Request Comintern volunteers.
-[FUN] Renegotiate their request
--Write In: Funj will have to repay the 1/4 of Aswan Low Dam electrical output which they ask for, with modest interest. The rest of their requests are accepted.
-[][BLA] Yes
-[][MIL] Attack Hejaz
-[][MIL] Reinforce Egypt
-[][MIL] Reinforce Libya
-[][DIP] Request Comintern volunteers.
===
United Arab Republic, Spring 1919 - The Arab Brothers War Part 3
===
The Funj diplomats readily accepted the counter offer. They deemed it a reasonable request and a positive sign that Funj could look forward to future investments from the Arab League. Their neutrality guaranteed meant one less front to worry about.
The general staff and diplomats decided on a fairly sensible, conservative approach to the war. There was no need to make more enemies or split Egypt's armies too much. It'd remain focused on securing direct connections to their allies and not hesitating to call in support. The Entente was flooding Nejd and Iraq with tens of thousands of volunteers with modern equipment, so it was only fair that the UAR did what it could to level the playing field.
The word is sent out to the Comintern, and the reply is relatively positive. New Africa had already begun shipping volunteers and supplies to Morocco by the time the war broke out. The rest of the alliance, bar Germany, agreed to commit volunteers. Vienna's decision doesn't stop thousands of people from volunteering. Equipment begins pouring across the straits from Ibera into Morocco, bolstering its already modern army with professional soldiers, aircraft, and tanks.
The Comintern supplies reach Egypt a little later, given they still need to be shipped across the Mediterranean and can't walk right over the border like Morocco. Once the supplies arrive they are put to immediate use by the reservists, and soon afterwards the regular army.
===
Egypt left behind a modest garrison mostly consisting of reservists and locals in Syria, while the bulk of the professional army was split into two main forces. The first traveled with Maghreb's stranded army south to Aqaba, where they met Nejd's main army. The UAR had numerical and material superiority, as Entente reinforcements had only started to reach the port city. The Egyptian air force wasted no time hammering Aqaba ahead of the army's approach, hitting hastily fortified positions and the port facilities in an attempt to cripple them.
They were confronted by mass machine gun fire into the air and the Entente's own aircraft. Biplanes roared from hastily constructed runways in the town. The air was filled with the angry buzzing of engines as planes began to duel each other. What was once entirely theoretical suddenly began very real as some of the first modern dogfights unfolded in real time. The bleeding edge in aviation technology smashed into each other as pilots tried to coordinate their attacks against each other. There had been a few air duels between Poland and Tatarstan during the Tenth Crusade, but it was rare and often pilots and spotters tried to shoot each other with their handguns. A few planes had machine guns bolted to their flimsy frames, proving the concept in theory. They never saw much use because of how small and primitive air forces were at the time.
The heavy bombers that had so successfully humbled Levant were prime targets for the Entente, swarming them as best they could to fell the great beasts. Several fell, large frames suffering too much damage to stay in the air, though they were not helpless as their numerous machine gun nests made it hell for any enemy pilot to approach. The air battles did not last long however, coming to an end as on the ground the Egyptian-Maghrebi army quickly encircled the city. The Entente's runways were overrun by the larger force and their own armoured forces were unable to turn the tide.
Nejd contested the encirclement, but did not have the manpower or firepower to effectively do so, drawing into the city as the combined army relentlessly pushed against them. Egyptian tanks broke through urban fortifications with ease, allowing infantry to pour through behind them. There were losses in the process, tanks lost to mines, grenades, and cannon fire among the buildings, but the close cooperation with infantry meant they were well supported. Nejd's hopes of a slow grind were collapsing as the avalanche smashed against their lines, breaking through, and overrunning the city within days of fighting.
The Entente evacuated their own volunteers and members of Nejd's leadership from the port as it fell, retreating southwards. The city taken, the combined army wasted no time marching south along the Peninsula. Hejaz attempted to slow them down, but its garrisons were too small, and the Egyptian-Maghrebi army's momentum too great. At the same time, Yemen fended off an attempted attack from Hejaz, launched by Entente volunteers. Yemen's army was small, but highly motivated, and gave ground to armoured elements, while fighting hard at the flanks and rear, wearing down the slow push by denying it a decisive battle. The heavier tanks were slow, cumbersome, lagging behind the thrust of lighter tanks, trucks, and cavalry, which Yemen could battle on somewhat even footing, even if it was forced to cede ground.
The Entente, under Nejd's flag, launched a naval invasion of Aeden. The capital city was bogged down in heavy fighting as thousands of marines poured into the city. The landing was heavily contested, bogging them down in street to street fighting, the Entente gaining control of the port and area around the city, refusing to let go even as they were forced to fight for every inch. The city was encircled, but kept fighting, while the government retreated inland, intent on holding out for support, which was coming swiftly.
Egypt-Maghreb's approach down the coast of the peninsula was contested. It was less a dead sprint and more a steady march, consistent and unyielding. Medina and Mecca were reached within a couple weeks, at the same time Entente marines pushed inland and Yemen's army was forced to scatter to the countryside. The Entente's army in Hejaz/Yemen attempted to turn around to defend their rear lines as the combined Arab army continued southwards. They pulled their forces back north, attempting to leverage their heavy vehicles and artillery against the Arab army.
It was not enough, as they were outnumbered and outgunned. While the combined armies had suffered casualties along the fighting, and had to leave forces behind to garrison behind them, their losses were relatively light. If either had marched alone then perhaps Nejd could have inflicted heavy casualties, if not stop the advance, and the Entente could have held them off, but that wasn't the case. Realizing they couldn't win, the Entente's commander ordered their vehicles scrapped as they evacuated by sea.
By the end of April, the road to Yemen was open as the spearhead continued its thrust, reaching Aeden and liberating it from withdrawing Entente forces. Hejaz does not surrender, its government fleeing with its backers, intent on returning in a victory unlikely to come.
===
The discussion on Iraq was more one sided than initially expected. It was decided that Iraqi nationalists had nursed a fifty year grudge against Iran and co-opted Pan-Arab sentiment in the kingdom to its own ends. They were not allies of the AENC or UAR, but its enemies. They'd rather destroy the entire Pan-Arab and Internationale project with war against Iran to appease their wounded pride. If Iraqi Ba'athists took issue with that after the war, then they had no place in the future government alongside monarchists.
Iran and Turkey agree to intervene, and waste no time. Their own forces were already semi-mobilized and quickly marched over the border. Turkey from Mosul traveled south along the rivers and roads, opposed by outnumber garrisons that quickly folded and fled south. Iran launched an assault into Baghdad, with another push launched towards the gulf itself. The capital's defenses immediately started to crumble, its modest army overwhelmed by the larger, more modern Iranian army. It was the Entente mercenaries that prevented a complete rout, allowing the government and military to evacuate to the south as Iran took the city after a couple weeks of fighting.
The southern push into Basrah, near the river delta, was stalled by the Entente. It was one of the main staging areas for them, filled with their modern equipment. Aircraft fought overhead as tanks clashed. Iran's armoured forces were small, concentrated in a few areas and backed by motorized forces. They were built to fight in mountain passes and break through forces, something they shared in common with their Entente counterparts. Heavy casualties were inflicted on both sides, tanks fighting each other for one of the first times. Iran poured more men and material into the region, breaking through the Entente lines and forcing them to pull back to Kuwait.
Iraq's surviving army set up positions west of the Euphrates River but it lacked the numbers or material to genuinely contest the combined Turkish-Iranian advances. By the first week of May, Iraq was effectively under Turkish-Iranian control, with its last forces in Kuwait, bolstered by the Entente.
The fighting in the Gulf States continued, the Entente's light infantry and cavalry doing the majority of the work, assisted by Nejd and Oman's stretched thin forces. The majority of their army had been at Aqaba, so it fell to conscripts and garrisons to put down the Ba'athist partisans across the region. The land from Riyadh and Muscat remained under Nejd and Oman's control, holding out hope that the Entente could turn the war around in the north and west.
Iran's modest navy would make itself known however by closing off the Strait of Hormuz. A naval standoff began as a VoC ship filled with soldiers and weapons was stopped from passing through and ordered to turn around. Iran had issued an official blockade against Nejd, Iraq, and Oman, and would be turning away any ships attempting to pass to supply them. The captain of the ship turned away, heading south to Muscat itself. The situation would escalate with Iran landing marines on the other side of the strait at Khasab, followed up by regular soldiers. Supported by sea and air, the tiny Oman garrison surrendered with little resistance. The Iranian air force followed the invasion up by launching bombing runs against Oman itself. Iran marched south, while its ships held the Strait and planes held the sky. The Entente had not deployed aircraft in the area to defend the kingdom, leaving the region vulnerable.
A week later, the Scandinavian Indian fleet arrived at the Straits, demanding Iran stand down and allow commercial traffic to resume. Their fleet was larger than the Iranian one, but consisted of older ships, cycled out from Europe and into India for colony defense. Even so, they outgunned the smaller Iranian fleet. A tense standoff ensued as the captains of the opposing fleets stared down at each other.
Iran agreed in principle that civilian ships should be allowed through, only if they did not support the war. If they diverted to Muscat to land supplies then they'd be entering an active war zone and Iran would not take responsibility for any sailors killed in the crossfire. Iran's air force had been targeting the town's port to cripple its ability to receive supplies. The effectiveness was limited but the lack of air defense meant they had free reign over the sky. Oman had to rely on machine guns alone to try to shoot down the planes.
The Scandinavian Indian fleet refused to leave and pressed their demands again, wasting no time throwing their weight around. The stand off continued for several long hours as negotiations continued back and forth. Reluctantly, Iran stood down, allowing Entente ships to resume passing through the Strait. The fleet didn't want to get itself sunk for nothing, especially since that'd mean stranding the invasion force across the Strait. Commercial traffic resumed as normal, though that didn't stop Iran from continuing its bombing runs against Oman and supporting their invasion.
Entente airplanes, offloaded south of Muscat, began to fill the air and protect the port, forcing Iran to send fighters as escorts. They found that the bomber's larger, more numerous engines gave it a speed and range advantage over the fighters. Despite the Entente's attempts to prevent the bombers from reaching Muscat, they kept getting through. By the end of April, Iran's army was still making gains in the Gulf.
===
While roughly half of Egypt's army marched south, the rest moved quickly back into Egypt. The army's labour reserve had kept the roads well maintained and open to allow supplies to flow from Egypt into Palestine during the war against Levant. Within days, the army reached the Suez Canal, crossed it, and participated in the fighting almost immediately. While the Islamists had concentrated much of their leadership and members in Cairo, they still called on their widespread support network to encourage violence elsewhere. Much of it had already been put down by the reservists, peasant militia most effective at it. There were still lingering pockets of sporadic violence directed towards the Islamists' enemies. They collapsed quickly as the army marched, professional light infantry left behind to aid local militias as the main force wasted no time reaching Cairo.
In Cairo the peasant militia took charge of leading the defense of the city, pulling out stockpiles of heavier guns and explosives. The Islamists' crude armoured vehicles and driven, well trained paramilitary had met their match as socialist reservists and civilian volunteers fought tooth and nail to retake control of parts of the city and outlying areas. Locally they were evenly matched, though more and more mobilized reserves had flocked to the city to encircle the Islamists. By the time the Comintern's aid and volunteers arrived, the situation was already turning against the Islamists.
The Islamists' mirage of a chance was shattered when the army arrived. Islamist "tanks" may have been semi-effect against militia reservists, but they were crude things. Metal welded onto tractors and cars with machine guns attached to them. Their artillery lacked munitions and the Islamist paramilitary lacked trained spotters and operators, simply using the cannons for direct fire support to blow apart houses. The bloodied, well equipped professional Egyptian army tore through the paramilitaries lines.
The Islamists did not fight as well or as hard as the Crusaders. The army pierced their hastily constructed defenses, tearing through barricades and climbing through destroyed buildings to drive the Islamists out of the city. They attempted to flee as the days of fighting stretched on, realizing their predicament, retreating from the city with what supplies they could carry, only to get cut off and encircled by the larger Egyptian army. The fanatics among them attempted to fight, but rank and file started to desert en masse and surrender when caught.
By the second week of April, Khouri returned to Egypt a war hero, and briefly met with Nadir in Alexandria. The general gave his friend the postcard he promised. The army could not rest for long, leaving behind some reservists to help the local militias keep the peace, as they marched along the coast, alongside the Comintern's motorized volunteers. Volunteers from Germany in particular were happy to be in Egypt, many were reservists and veterans putting their experience to good use. Indeed some were even active battalions that had effectively gone AWOL. Their commanding officers decided to ignore Vienna and get transported out of the country by sympathetic naval officers. They'd be damned if they sat on the sidelines, even if it meant potential court martial when they returned back home.
The Egyptians reached Benghazi by the end of April. It was where the Comintern had been sending support, filling the city with tens of thousands of soldiers. Maghreb had been pushed back from Tripoli, so the Egyptian army rested briefly to prepare to march to the front lines further west. Aircraft were sent ahead of the army to scout enemy positions and start bombing them. It'd take them another ten days to reach Tripoli. While they hadn't done any fighting in Libya yet, the morale boost was immediate.
There was a genuine sense of international solidarity. They were bloodied by a sucker punch, but not out of the fight. Their good mood would continue as news from Numidia was received.
===
Morocco wasted no time pushing along the coast. Its modern army bolstered by Comintern volunteers brushed aside European settler paramilitaries. They encountered their first real resistance at Oran, as Entente volunteers and supplies flooded the city by sea. While the locals may have disliked the Italian regime mere months ago, that hatred was quickly forgotten when they took whatever aid they could. Algiers received similar support, allowing the Maghreb royalists to on paper control the entire Numidian coastline.
The vineyards and fields outside Oran ran red with blood as bombers and artillery hit the Entente's fortified positions like the fist of god. The once pristine countryside was reduced to a wasteland as industrial armies fought one another in North Africa. It was a brutal affair, dozens then hundreds of planes filling the sky above, while tens of thousands of soldiers and hundreds of tanks fought each other below. Italy funneled as much firepower into the city as possible, while supplies by land were trying to connect Oran to Algiers and Carthage.
The advantage would eventually give to Morocco, as its supplies proved more reliable, allowing it to push harder, and break through thinner lines south of the nearby lake, allowing Morocco to encircle the town. The rings of hastily built secondary lines were overcome or bypassed entirely, and Morocco continued its push east. Further inland the scattered socialists and royalists fought one another in small towns and villages. Aid came to the former though, allowing them to secure control over much of the Maghreb hinterland.
Morocco reached Algiers by the end of April and besieged the city immediately. Its air force had already been scouting and bombing the city ahead of the army's approach, contesting control over the sky as the Entente firmly held steadfast. The Bey's backers were on the back foot as their advances stalled, but victory still seemed in sight. A constant stream of ships between Sicily and Carthage ensured a steady stream of supplies to keep the royalist cause alive.
In Sicily itself the Partisans were still smuggling new recruits into the country. The island was a massive staging ground for Italian intervention. Anthony informed Nadir that it was unlikely they could stem the flow anytime soon. The Sicilian Partisans were doing what they could to harass the local garrisons and assembled army of "volunteers."
===
The entire time foreign observers and reporters flooded the entire region. The militaries of the world wanted to see modern weapons deployed against each other for the first time, a sort of dress rehearsal for what a second world war could look like. For the average person however, it meant exposure to a suddenly new understanding of Egypt.
Egypt, and indeed much of the Arab world, was seen as a backwards place, if a fascinating one among those inclined to care about archaeology or history. It's a place where history happened, not one with its own history. Most understood Egypt from the Bible as a dark land ruled by tyrannical pharaohs or decadent sultans. Venice had been working to change that view to drum up tourism and investment in their colonial ventures. Interest in Ancient Egypt had grown in popularity because of Venetian and Macedonian archaeological expeditions in the 1880s, but those were seen as valuable relics of the past that local Egyptians were simply squandering.
Socialism was the last thing the average Arcadian or European expected to hear in the same sentence as Egypt. Photographs and interviews with officers and officials educated in Europe was a shock to many. Khouri's face was circulated widely across the world as many watched the general with rapt attention, curious to see what the modern "Saladin" would do. The less orientalist and sensationalist newspapers ran stories of Nadir, Hakim, Issa, and did their best to cover the history of the AENC and Egypt as a whole. The defeat of the Crusaders was a surprising upset that caused the world to perk up for a moment. The Arab Brothers War got its attention.
The name All Egyptian National Congress was suddenly on everyone's lips, talking about it intently as the news story of the year, if not decade. It was not all positive of course. Relatives of Entente soldiers had nothing but curses for the people responsible for their sons and fathers deaths, only a few questioning why their country was even fighting there in the first place. VoC stock briefly dipped when setbacks began, causing serious concern for the Amsterdam Stock Exchange and Anvers. In Entente colonies Africa, India, and Asia colonial police began a series of arrests and surgical crackdowns on local dissents as a pre-emptive measure to prevent the revolutionary wave from spreading.
- Location
- barking
you should be cursing your governments for sending your loved ones to die in a foriegn war (if they volunteered then thats different as it was their own choice but I doubt they did)
Regency
PFP by vanathema (previously yubishines)
- Location
- Morioh Town, Mt. Ebbot
- Pronouns
- They/Them
That's based as fuck, but also does not bode well for our supposed ally's authority lol.
We gonna be 1905 Japan for the decolonial movement huh, the "peripheral" state which fights off the European empires.
Overall our prep paid off. Egypt's western force in eastern Maghreb is set to be the hammer to Morocco's anvil in the Maghreb, while the Egypt-Maghreb force in Yemen will do that for Iran in eastern Arabia.
edit: Lol.
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- Location
- Somewhere in the area
- Pronouns
- He/She/They
???? Iran is not going to coordinate with Funj and Adal, its government is mainly socialist. You might be mistaking them for Tatarstan, who are the only monarchy of the Black Sea Pact, and not one of the nations we called upon to help us fight in the Arab Brothers War.
taovkool
Forever Gone
- Location
- The Library, Department of General Works
Eh, every soldier's family curses whoever their country is at war with. That, or the politicians of their country who is either a gloryhound or a fuckup that got their nation thrown into a war.
Regency
PFP by vanathema (previously yubishines)
- Location
- Morioh Town, Mt. Ebbot
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Lmao my memory is failing me. Sorry about that.
- Location
- The observable universe
The Arab brother war is going well enough but we need a quick victory before the entente can start bringing bigger forces to bear. Still great update and looks like the Magreb will be the hardest front of this war l.
Hope we can inspire anti colonial revolts to bog down the entente even more. Also lol on Germany's Socdem sellouts eating Ls all the time.
Hope we can inspire anti colonial revolts to bog down the entente even more. Also lol on Germany's Socdem sellouts eating Ls all the time.
OTL Egypt was in a similar position until it miscalculated and had to fight off every single European power at the same time
- Location
- New York
The Arab Brothers' War has become a massive conflict and the story of the year. The world bears witness to true aerial dogfights and massive tank battles at last. The conflict has been very mobile one with fixed defenses smashed apart by waves of tanks. Funj has accepted the deal.
The Hejaz/Yemen front.
The socialist bloc is doing very well on this front. The socialist armies destroyed Nejd's army in Aqaba before the Entente could really reinforce it. I was expecting the monarchists to try to repeat the tactics that they used against the Crusaders, but Nejd decided to stand and fight to try to grind down the Egyptian/Maghrebi armies. It seems that Nejd was really counting on Entente support to win there. It probably would have worked if we did not send the Egyptian army to support the Maghrebi army here. The Entente's naval invasion of Yemen was bold and working but we managed to reach Yemen in time to relieve them. Unfortunately for Nejd, this front seemed to be a secondary concern for the Entente and they did not have enough time to sent sufficient reinforcements. We may be in position to invade Nejd next to remove the heart of the monarchist bloc.
The Iraq/Gulf front. The Turkish and Iranian armies have largely defeated Iraq's army and taken one of the Entente's main staging grounds in the Middle East after intense fighting. However, the Entente is propping up the monarchist positions in the Gulf and Iran cannot prevent the Entente from landing more troops. We will hopefully link up with the Iranian forces to expel the Entente from Arabia in due time.
The Egyptian front. The Islamists have been crushed. Already decapitated by the arrest of their officers and struggling against the red peasant militias with the crude weapons that the Islamists could make or steal after their own militias were defunded, they stood little chance against the professional Egyptian army. We will have to rebuild parts of Cairo after this war. However, it seems that there will be no effective Islamist insurgency after this, and we will have clear supply lines to the fronts going forward.
Maghreb front. This is the most intense and hardest front of the war. Due to geographic proximity, most of the Comintern and Entente volunteer forces are being sent to this front. Tens of thousands of European Comintern and Entente soldiers are directly fighting each other under the thin veil of Arab banners. This is a true preview of what a Comintern-Entente war could look like. The Italians and the Maghrebi monarchists have recruited the former Aragonese settlers for the monarchist cause. Morocco's offensive has managed to reach and besiege the cities of Oran and Algiers. However, Entente reinforcements continue to flow in from Sicily and the monarchists believe that they still have a good chance of turning things around. The Italians are massing troops and have turned Sicily into a staging stage for further intervention. Historically during the Spanish Civil War in OTL, Italy sent 70,000 soldiers and spent about their 14 to 20 percent of annual expenditure to support the Spanish Nationalists. If the Italians are willing to spend a similar amount of resources to prop up the Maghrebi royalists, this could be quite problematic for us. We will need to advance on Tripoli and then Tunisia to split the enemy's resources and try to win as quickly as we can. On the other hand, if Italy's intervention is unsuccessful, an Italian defeat would be a great embarrassment.
The Hejaz/Yemen front.
The socialist bloc is doing very well on this front. The socialist armies destroyed Nejd's army in Aqaba before the Entente could really reinforce it. I was expecting the monarchists to try to repeat the tactics that they used against the Crusaders, but Nejd decided to stand and fight to try to grind down the Egyptian/Maghrebi armies. It seems that Nejd was really counting on Entente support to win there. It probably would have worked if we did not send the Egyptian army to support the Maghrebi army here. The Entente's naval invasion of Yemen was bold and working but we managed to reach Yemen in time to relieve them. Unfortunately for Nejd, this front seemed to be a secondary concern for the Entente and they did not have enough time to sent sufficient reinforcements. We may be in position to invade Nejd next to remove the heart of the monarchist bloc.
The Iraq/Gulf front. The Turkish and Iranian armies have largely defeated Iraq's army and taken one of the Entente's main staging grounds in the Middle East after intense fighting. However, the Entente is propping up the monarchist positions in the Gulf and Iran cannot prevent the Entente from landing more troops. We will hopefully link up with the Iranian forces to expel the Entente from Arabia in due time.
The Egyptian front. The Islamists have been crushed. Already decapitated by the arrest of their officers and struggling against the red peasant militias with the crude weapons that the Islamists could make or steal after their own militias were defunded, they stood little chance against the professional Egyptian army. We will have to rebuild parts of Cairo after this war. However, it seems that there will be no effective Islamist insurgency after this, and we will have clear supply lines to the fronts going forward.
Maghreb front. This is the most intense and hardest front of the war. Due to geographic proximity, most of the Comintern and Entente volunteer forces are being sent to this front. Tens of thousands of European Comintern and Entente soldiers are directly fighting each other under the thin veil of Arab banners. This is a true preview of what a Comintern-Entente war could look like. The Italians and the Maghrebi monarchists have recruited the former Aragonese settlers for the monarchist cause. Morocco's offensive has managed to reach and besiege the cities of Oran and Algiers. However, Entente reinforcements continue to flow in from Sicily and the monarchists believe that they still have a good chance of turning things around. The Italians are massing troops and have turned Sicily into a staging stage for further intervention. Historically during the Spanish Civil War in OTL, Italy sent 70,000 soldiers and spent about their 14 to 20 percent of annual expenditure to support the Spanish Nationalists. If the Italians are willing to spend a similar amount of resources to prop up the Maghrebi royalists, this could be quite problematic for us. We will need to advance on Tripoli and then Tunisia to split the enemy's resources and try to win as quickly as we can. On the other hand, if Italy's intervention is unsuccessful, an Italian defeat would be a great embarrassment.
World News, 1919
===
World News, 1919
===
While North Africa and the Middle East had captured the world's attention, it was not the only noteworthy event happening in the world during the Sinai Crisis and Arab Brothers War.
===
Arcadia
The Arcadian Union's election wrapped up with an unsurprising victory for the Grand Coalition of the Farmer-Labour, National Liberals, and Progressive Conservative Parties, which easily won the re-election with little competition from minor parties. The coalition had consistently been in power since WW1 when it oversaw Belgians intervention into the Plantagenian Civil War. The success of stomping out the hated institution of slavery and forging the Union with the freed peoples of Plantagenia was a major point of pride for the party.
The only significant shake up was a realignment in leadership as the pacifistic pro-business center wing of the coalition managed to replace the more militant party heads. The new prime minister was happy to declare that Reconstruction was successful. The militancy which was so necessary before could be a thing of the past. There was no need to maintain a large standing army or aggressively posture against neighbours. The scars of the Plantagenian Civil War had healed in the decades since. The Arcadian economy had never looked stronger as it continued to grow year after year, which was why the coalition promised to ease up government intervention in the hopes of allowing businesses and industry to thrive with less oversight.
The issue of continued subsidies was a contentious one within the coalition. The Farmer-Labours managed to force the National Liberals to promise to maintain them for small farmsteads and businesses. The government was committed to continuing to build economic ties with Arcadia's neighbours in the hopes of transforming the continent into a possible trade bloc in the future and giving Arcadia cheaper access to their raw materials. The prime minister had been foreign minister who pushed to recognize Lusitania and build close ties with the country, personally meeting with the president several times. The petro-state's autocratic nature was a point of contention, but its willingness to do business with Arcadia was enough to silence those voices in the halls of power. The president's openly white supremacist policies, and poor treatment of Lusitania's black and native citizens caused many people to protest the importation of Lusitanian goods.
Liberie was another contentious issue. Many in Arcadia had hoped that it'd join the union in due time. Its refusal to do so was a sore point for some in Nouvelle Bruges, though not enough to harm relationships between the two countries. They both drew open the national mythos of rebellion and the ending of slavery on the continent. Many black Belgian and Plantagenian politicians spoke highly of the black republic and New Africa overall. The Grand Coalition hoped to build ties up with New Africa to convince it to leave the Comintern military alliance. The incoming prime minister argued quite firmly that the countries of the new world must band together to ensure peace in their hemisphere. Nobody wanted the wars fought in the old wars to spill over into the new one.
Qingqiu remained neutral on the issue itself. It was always open to more trade and money coming into its country, but was firmly in Japan's economic sphere. Its massive oil, timber, and mineral reserves fed Japan's ravenous industry, and often competed with Yakutia and Kita Kaigan for investments. While it agreed that maintaining the peace on Arcadia was important, it maintained a well trained military with many units stationed at strategic mountain passes. It still remembered Belgian's attempts to seize Qingqiu land using the Plantagenian Civil War as an excuse to "mistakenly" march into border settlements. While Arcadia had made no hostile moves against Qingqiu in the years since, Sanbao preferred caution and keeping the eastern side of the continent at an arm's reach away from them.
Sanbao itself had recovered from the horrific earthquake of 1905 that leveled the entire capital. The earthquake presented an opportunity to rebuild the city along modern lines. The old tight neighbourhoods that had sprung up during the gold and oil rushes were swept aside in favour of rigid grids with wide boulevards filled with automobiles, plazas for green spaces, and trams to ferry tens of thousands of people around. The historical center of the city was meticulously rebuilt, along with a few other major landmarks that had collapsed. In the years since one could hardly imagine the dense urban squalor that once defined the hilly city.
The government, both federal, provincial, and municipal finally agreed to the proposal of constructing a massive bridge across the bay's entrance. The proposal and bidding process was expected to take many years with Japanese and Arcadian companies chomping at the bit to get the future project.
===
Ameriga
While the eyes of the world were distracted, the Empire Lotharingia conducted military exercises near the border of Amazonie. Ostensibly done to protect ranchers from bandits, the emperor was flexing the military might of his nation to intimidate the smaller republic. There was a problem of people often crossing the border to trade and some to rustle cattle. It however was not a major issue, merely a source of loss tax revenue and a justification.
Lotharingia issued diplomatic communiques to Amazonie demanding closer cooperation on policing issues and opening its economy up to the empire. In a blatant ultimatum, Amazonie was asked to essentially turn over sovereignty to Lotharingia in all but name. The emperor was a firm support of Ameriganism, and wanted his empire to grow larger to become a great power on the world stage. Beornia backed the empire diplomatically and economically, itself nearly a vassal of its larger neighbour. The deadline was approaching as the Arab Brother's War waged on.
Granada issued several public statements calling for peace in North Africa. It avoided condemning any particular as it continued to transport former Crusaders from Palestine. It wasn't out of any true ideological commitment to peace, rather it didn't want to denounce the UAR until after it finished transporting the Crusaders out of the country.
===
Europe
Germany's government nearly lost its majority over its refusal to recognize Egypt and support the Comintern. In a surprising move, the left wing of the social democrats broke from the party over serious disagreements with the center-right's leadership. While it lost the ruling coalition a number of seats they maintained their slim majority, though that didn't discourage the opposition from attempting a vote of no confidence. Vienna's actions were seen as a complete betrayal of Germany's commitment to anti-colonialism and foreign obligations.
The political situation in Germany became even tenser once it became known that soldiers were going AWOL to join Comintern volunteer divisions. Socialist and radical officers allowed soldiers under their command to vote on the matter directly. Many battalions voted in favour of aiding the UAR, especially those from Brandenburg and Holstein. Politicians friendly to the officers covered up their movements and organized their transportation to the USR by calling on captains of a similar political persuasion. The parallel power structures which had been up by decades worked together with sections of the state to defy government orders. The calls to court martial and arrest the people involved were hotly contested by those that supported it. The average German didn't have much of an opinion on Egypt until the Sinai Crisis. It wasn't a country that concerned them, until it made world news. While Venice was seen as one of the "nicer" colonial powers, one that hadn't been hostile to Germany, there was a general sense of sympathy for the blight of Egypt.
Pressure from the opposition and letter writing campaigns forced Vienna to reconsider its stance. It waited until Egypt signed the ceasefire with Macedonia to recognize Egypt as an independent country.
The treaty negotiations between Burgundy and Germany continued with serious headway made. Anvers agreed to trade agreements between the two that'd see serious investments into Germany and goods flow across the borders between them. Other Entente members agreed to co-sign the treaty as well. Scandinavia demanded it receive financial compensation for lost territory and seized property during WW1 in exchange for recognizing the current borders. The exact amount was being debated between Vienna and Anvers. If the price wasn't too high, the government would be willing to pay it if it guaranteed peace in Germany.
The Christian Alliance sent observers and reporters to accompany Entente volunteers. Many in Poland and Macedonia were eager to see the Black Sea Pact's armies in action to gauge how effective they'd be against them. Iranian and Turkish performances against the Entente were surprising to many who expected the nation's armies to be more hampered than they were. Turkey was recovering from the loss of its territory better than expected. The vast oil reserves of the Black Sea Pact was a cause for concern among Polish and Macedonians. Iran had more armoured vehicles and vehicles in general than expected. The aerial dogfights were of particular interest to the Polish too, who took many notes on it and interviewed Entente pilots to refine their own doctrine.
With the collapse of Aragon's colonial empire, the center of the Christian Alliance fully pivoted to Macedonia and Poland. The two countries made inroads with the Entente to tie the two alliances together. Bohemia's king objected to it because it'd lightly lead to making peace with Germany's existence. The dreams of a restored, centralized HRE at the forefront of the king's mind. A dream that wouldn't come true if the Entente was currently accepting the status quo as well. Outreaches to Scandinavia were rebuffed, Copenhagen's own government finally swallowing their stubborn pride regarding Germany in the face of aggressive Comintern expansion in North Africa. Lacking the international allies to back him, the king soon found himself outmaneuvered by his own cabinet and son, essentially sidelining the king from making policy decisions.
Aragon went through a similar process. The king's steadfast refusal to make peace with Italy saw its colonial empire collapse. While the population was forcefeed a steady diet of propaganda to support the king's crusader policies, select members of the government and military saw how that turned out. The king and pope made several public appearances during Christmas and New Year, including the formal recognition of the Eleventh Crusade, both disappeared from public view.
While the operations of the government continued on, it took several weeks before his son and several generals spoke in Barcelona regarding the king's sudden absence. Claiming that his father had fallen ill, the son had been placed in charge of a regency government with the aid of several ministers and military during a time of national emergency. The new government made several public statements in favour of Christian unity in international politics rather than divisions, and re-opened diplomatic ties with Italy. While nothing major yet, it signaled a shift in Aragon's foreign policy.
Yugoslavia and Albania announced the formation of an alliance between them: the Belgrade Pact. Officially it existed to coordinate the defense of both countries and maintain peace in the region, many observers commented it was likely meant to oppose Macedonia and to a lesser extent Hungary.
In Eastern Europe, Muscovy once again refused offers to join the Christian Alliance or Entente. The king of the landlocked state was committed to maintaining his kingdom's neutrality. A century of setbacks and humiliations at the hands of its neighbours had convinced its current monarch that the best it could do was hang onto the territory that it had. In February, Pan-Slavic officers attempted a coup to establish a republic and join the Commonwealth, but were thwarted by loyalist officers. Moscow accused Warsaw of supporting the coup and closed its borders to the Commonwealth. The meager trade between the two halted immediately.
===
Asia
Skirmishes along the Qing-Manchurian border continued over the New Year. The fighting escalated when Mongolian troops began to raid villages across the border. The expected war between Korea and Japan did not come however, despite the serious tensions in the region. Both countries were seemingly content to funnel arms and soldiers into their respective allies for the time being. As a full member of the Comintern, Korea supported sending troops in spirit, but obligations at home meant the government felt it would be unwise to send volunteers to Arabia when it was fighting a low intensity proxy war against Japan. There was a sense that they'd get there after the fighting concluded and do very little once they got there.
The Heavenly Kingdom continued its missionary diplomatic work in Burma and Christiania. Scandinavia condemned its attempts to bypass its government and expelled Taiping missionaries from its colony. Copenhagen refused Nanjing's request for a formal apology for the incident. In March, a standoff in Macau and Hong Kong occurred between Chinese and Entente border guards with the Heavenly Kingdom requesting the return of Chinese land. The cities had been leased to Spain and the Dual Monarchy of England and France. As the two kingdoms had collapsed, the land should have been returned to the legitimate Chinese government, the Heavenly Kingdom.
The Arab Brothers War drew the Entente's attention away from East Asia, presenting Nanjing an opportunity to apply pressure. Negotiations had started by the end of the month, located in Hong Kong. Scandinavia and Burgundy wanted the cities officially leased to them under the similar terms given to Spain and the Dual Monarchy. If not that then serious compensation for returning the treaty ports to the Heavenly Kingdom.
Novgorod, Tatarstan, and Japan negotiated a treaty that formally recognized the current borders in Siberia. Tatarstan found itself having to make several concessions to allow Japanese companies access to Tatarstan resources before Japan finally signed the deal. Burgundy and Scandinavia's attempts to dissuade Japan from agreeing fell on deaf ears as Tokyo flexed its power by doing so anyway. It was a sign to the Entente that while Japan was aligned with them, it was not controlled by them.
World News, 1919
===
While North Africa and the Middle East had captured the world's attention, it was not the only noteworthy event happening in the world during the Sinai Crisis and Arab Brothers War.
===
Arcadia
The Arcadian Union's election wrapped up with an unsurprising victory for the Grand Coalition of the Farmer-Labour, National Liberals, and Progressive Conservative Parties, which easily won the re-election with little competition from minor parties. The coalition had consistently been in power since WW1 when it oversaw Belgians intervention into the Plantagenian Civil War. The success of stomping out the hated institution of slavery and forging the Union with the freed peoples of Plantagenia was a major point of pride for the party.
The only significant shake up was a realignment in leadership as the pacifistic pro-business center wing of the coalition managed to replace the more militant party heads. The new prime minister was happy to declare that Reconstruction was successful. The militancy which was so necessary before could be a thing of the past. There was no need to maintain a large standing army or aggressively posture against neighbours. The scars of the Plantagenian Civil War had healed in the decades since. The Arcadian economy had never looked stronger as it continued to grow year after year, which was why the coalition promised to ease up government intervention in the hopes of allowing businesses and industry to thrive with less oversight.
The issue of continued subsidies was a contentious one within the coalition. The Farmer-Labours managed to force the National Liberals to promise to maintain them for small farmsteads and businesses. The government was committed to continuing to build economic ties with Arcadia's neighbours in the hopes of transforming the continent into a possible trade bloc in the future and giving Arcadia cheaper access to their raw materials. The prime minister had been foreign minister who pushed to recognize Lusitania and build close ties with the country, personally meeting with the president several times. The petro-state's autocratic nature was a point of contention, but its willingness to do business with Arcadia was enough to silence those voices in the halls of power. The president's openly white supremacist policies, and poor treatment of Lusitania's black and native citizens caused many people to protest the importation of Lusitanian goods.
Liberie was another contentious issue. Many in Arcadia had hoped that it'd join the union in due time. Its refusal to do so was a sore point for some in Nouvelle Bruges, though not enough to harm relationships between the two countries. They both drew open the national mythos of rebellion and the ending of slavery on the continent. Many black Belgian and Plantagenian politicians spoke highly of the black republic and New Africa overall. The Grand Coalition hoped to build ties up with New Africa to convince it to leave the Comintern military alliance. The incoming prime minister argued quite firmly that the countries of the new world must band together to ensure peace in their hemisphere. Nobody wanted the wars fought in the old wars to spill over into the new one.
Qingqiu remained neutral on the issue itself. It was always open to more trade and money coming into its country, but was firmly in Japan's economic sphere. Its massive oil, timber, and mineral reserves fed Japan's ravenous industry, and often competed with Yakutia and Kita Kaigan for investments. While it agreed that maintaining the peace on Arcadia was important, it maintained a well trained military with many units stationed at strategic mountain passes. It still remembered Belgian's attempts to seize Qingqiu land using the Plantagenian Civil War as an excuse to "mistakenly" march into border settlements. While Arcadia had made no hostile moves against Qingqiu in the years since, Sanbao preferred caution and keeping the eastern side of the continent at an arm's reach away from them.
Sanbao itself had recovered from the horrific earthquake of 1905 that leveled the entire capital. The earthquake presented an opportunity to rebuild the city along modern lines. The old tight neighbourhoods that had sprung up during the gold and oil rushes were swept aside in favour of rigid grids with wide boulevards filled with automobiles, plazas for green spaces, and trams to ferry tens of thousands of people around. The historical center of the city was meticulously rebuilt, along with a few other major landmarks that had collapsed. In the years since one could hardly imagine the dense urban squalor that once defined the hilly city.
The government, both federal, provincial, and municipal finally agreed to the proposal of constructing a massive bridge across the bay's entrance. The proposal and bidding process was expected to take many years with Japanese and Arcadian companies chomping at the bit to get the future project.
===
Ameriga
While the eyes of the world were distracted, the Empire Lotharingia conducted military exercises near the border of Amazonie. Ostensibly done to protect ranchers from bandits, the emperor was flexing the military might of his nation to intimidate the smaller republic. There was a problem of people often crossing the border to trade and some to rustle cattle. It however was not a major issue, merely a source of loss tax revenue and a justification.
Lotharingia issued diplomatic communiques to Amazonie demanding closer cooperation on policing issues and opening its economy up to the empire. In a blatant ultimatum, Amazonie was asked to essentially turn over sovereignty to Lotharingia in all but name. The emperor was a firm support of Ameriganism, and wanted his empire to grow larger to become a great power on the world stage. Beornia backed the empire diplomatically and economically, itself nearly a vassal of its larger neighbour. The deadline was approaching as the Arab Brother's War waged on.
Granada issued several public statements calling for peace in North Africa. It avoided condemning any particular as it continued to transport former Crusaders from Palestine. It wasn't out of any true ideological commitment to peace, rather it didn't want to denounce the UAR until after it finished transporting the Crusaders out of the country.
===
Europe
Germany's government nearly lost its majority over its refusal to recognize Egypt and support the Comintern. In a surprising move, the left wing of the social democrats broke from the party over serious disagreements with the center-right's leadership. While it lost the ruling coalition a number of seats they maintained their slim majority, though that didn't discourage the opposition from attempting a vote of no confidence. Vienna's actions were seen as a complete betrayal of Germany's commitment to anti-colonialism and foreign obligations.
The political situation in Germany became even tenser once it became known that soldiers were going AWOL to join Comintern volunteer divisions. Socialist and radical officers allowed soldiers under their command to vote on the matter directly. Many battalions voted in favour of aiding the UAR, especially those from Brandenburg and Holstein. Politicians friendly to the officers covered up their movements and organized their transportation to the USR by calling on captains of a similar political persuasion. The parallel power structures which had been up by decades worked together with sections of the state to defy government orders. The calls to court martial and arrest the people involved were hotly contested by those that supported it. The average German didn't have much of an opinion on Egypt until the Sinai Crisis. It wasn't a country that concerned them, until it made world news. While Venice was seen as one of the "nicer" colonial powers, one that hadn't been hostile to Germany, there was a general sense of sympathy for the blight of Egypt.
Pressure from the opposition and letter writing campaigns forced Vienna to reconsider its stance. It waited until Egypt signed the ceasefire with Macedonia to recognize Egypt as an independent country.
The treaty negotiations between Burgundy and Germany continued with serious headway made. Anvers agreed to trade agreements between the two that'd see serious investments into Germany and goods flow across the borders between them. Other Entente members agreed to co-sign the treaty as well. Scandinavia demanded it receive financial compensation for lost territory and seized property during WW1 in exchange for recognizing the current borders. The exact amount was being debated between Vienna and Anvers. If the price wasn't too high, the government would be willing to pay it if it guaranteed peace in Germany.
The Christian Alliance sent observers and reporters to accompany Entente volunteers. Many in Poland and Macedonia were eager to see the Black Sea Pact's armies in action to gauge how effective they'd be against them. Iranian and Turkish performances against the Entente were surprising to many who expected the nation's armies to be more hampered than they were. Turkey was recovering from the loss of its territory better than expected. The vast oil reserves of the Black Sea Pact was a cause for concern among Polish and Macedonians. Iran had more armoured vehicles and vehicles in general than expected. The aerial dogfights were of particular interest to the Polish too, who took many notes on it and interviewed Entente pilots to refine their own doctrine.
With the collapse of Aragon's colonial empire, the center of the Christian Alliance fully pivoted to Macedonia and Poland. The two countries made inroads with the Entente to tie the two alliances together. Bohemia's king objected to it because it'd lightly lead to making peace with Germany's existence. The dreams of a restored, centralized HRE at the forefront of the king's mind. A dream that wouldn't come true if the Entente was currently accepting the status quo as well. Outreaches to Scandinavia were rebuffed, Copenhagen's own government finally swallowing their stubborn pride regarding Germany in the face of aggressive Comintern expansion in North Africa. Lacking the international allies to back him, the king soon found himself outmaneuvered by his own cabinet and son, essentially sidelining the king from making policy decisions.
Aragon went through a similar process. The king's steadfast refusal to make peace with Italy saw its colonial empire collapse. While the population was forcefeed a steady diet of propaganda to support the king's crusader policies, select members of the government and military saw how that turned out. The king and pope made several public appearances during Christmas and New Year, including the formal recognition of the Eleventh Crusade, both disappeared from public view.
While the operations of the government continued on, it took several weeks before his son and several generals spoke in Barcelona regarding the king's sudden absence. Claiming that his father had fallen ill, the son had been placed in charge of a regency government with the aid of several ministers and military during a time of national emergency. The new government made several public statements in favour of Christian unity in international politics rather than divisions, and re-opened diplomatic ties with Italy. While nothing major yet, it signaled a shift in Aragon's foreign policy.
Yugoslavia and Albania announced the formation of an alliance between them: the Belgrade Pact. Officially it existed to coordinate the defense of both countries and maintain peace in the region, many observers commented it was likely meant to oppose Macedonia and to a lesser extent Hungary.
In Eastern Europe, Muscovy once again refused offers to join the Christian Alliance or Entente. The king of the landlocked state was committed to maintaining his kingdom's neutrality. A century of setbacks and humiliations at the hands of its neighbours had convinced its current monarch that the best it could do was hang onto the territory that it had. In February, Pan-Slavic officers attempted a coup to establish a republic and join the Commonwealth, but were thwarted by loyalist officers. Moscow accused Warsaw of supporting the coup and closed its borders to the Commonwealth. The meager trade between the two halted immediately.
===
Asia
Skirmishes along the Qing-Manchurian border continued over the New Year. The fighting escalated when Mongolian troops began to raid villages across the border. The expected war between Korea and Japan did not come however, despite the serious tensions in the region. Both countries were seemingly content to funnel arms and soldiers into their respective allies for the time being. As a full member of the Comintern, Korea supported sending troops in spirit, but obligations at home meant the government felt it would be unwise to send volunteers to Arabia when it was fighting a low intensity proxy war against Japan. There was a sense that they'd get there after the fighting concluded and do very little once they got there.
The Heavenly Kingdom continued its missionary diplomatic work in Burma and Christiania. Scandinavia condemned its attempts to bypass its government and expelled Taiping missionaries from its colony. Copenhagen refused Nanjing's request for a formal apology for the incident. In March, a standoff in Macau and Hong Kong occurred between Chinese and Entente border guards with the Heavenly Kingdom requesting the return of Chinese land. The cities had been leased to Spain and the Dual Monarchy of England and France. As the two kingdoms had collapsed, the land should have been returned to the legitimate Chinese government, the Heavenly Kingdom.
The Arab Brothers War drew the Entente's attention away from East Asia, presenting Nanjing an opportunity to apply pressure. Negotiations had started by the end of the month, located in Hong Kong. Scandinavia and Burgundy wanted the cities officially leased to them under the similar terms given to Spain and the Dual Monarchy. If not that then serious compensation for returning the treaty ports to the Heavenly Kingdom.
Novgorod, Tatarstan, and Japan negotiated a treaty that formally recognized the current borders in Siberia. Tatarstan found itself having to make several concessions to allow Japanese companies access to Tatarstan resources before Japan finally signed the deal. Burgundy and Scandinavia's attempts to dissuade Japan from agreeing fell on deaf ears as Tokyo flexed its power by doing so anyway. It was a sign to the Entente that while Japan was aligned with them, it was not controlled by them.
- Location
- The observable universe
Why does this seem familiar
Arcadia hollows itelf out slowly, Germany faces severe internal pushback but their attempts at normalisation seems to be working, bad news from not!Brazil.
- Location
- New York
The German doves may still succeed in their goals of normalization with the Entente and becoming a neutral state despite all of the bad publicity that the ruling German government is getting. The doves may be vindicated yet. While this may be a good thing for Germany, it is not good for us or Comintern unity. The Entente would be foolish to ask too much from the German government and having the potential deal fall apart. The chances of Entente victory in a Comintern-Entente war become vastly higher if Burgundy does not have to fight a two-front war with both the USR and Germany.
The Christian League is moving toward the Entente. The two blocs are potential allies but the hostility of Aragon's government toward Italy and the Bohemian king's refusal to accept the existence of Germany were major stumbling blocks. With these factors removed, we may see a diplomatic realignment occur which is not good news for the Comintern.
The Christian League has taken note of the Black Sea Pact's performance in the Arab Brothers' War and are impressed. They will be better prepared for and less likely to underestimate the Black Sea Pact in a future war. We should be grateful for the Black Sea Pact's intervention in Iraq because it would have been a tough additional fight for us and it may make it harder for the Black Sea Pact to liberate its own lands in future conflicts with the Christian League.
The Christian League is moving toward the Entente. The two blocs are potential allies but the hostility of Aragon's government toward Italy and the Bohemian king's refusal to accept the existence of Germany were major stumbling blocks. With these factors removed, we may see a diplomatic realignment occur which is not good news for the Comintern.
The Christian League has taken note of the Black Sea Pact's performance in the Arab Brothers' War and are impressed. They will be better prepared for and less likely to underestimate the Black Sea Pact in a future war. We should be grateful for the Black Sea Pact's intervention in Iraq because it would have been a tough additional fight for us and it may make it harder for the Black Sea Pact to liberate its own lands in future conflicts with the Christian League.
Last edited:
IamtooSleepy
I came here to be an ant
Now that Entente and Christian Alliance is increasingly becoming the same bloc, I can't quite blame the Germans leadership for trying to avoiding the war. Especially not when they are very real chance they will be the one who bare the blunt by virtue of almost entirely surrounded by hostile states. It is true that rushing Burgandy alongside USR might ensure victory for the Comintern, but is that really something they are willing to weight against the life and suffering of your people which are certain to happens when they will have to fighting on all sides? Perhaps it is stance born from cowardly, but I am not quite willing to said they being unreasonable for doing so.
We also begin to see the shape of possible faction in the World War. On one side is the grand ailed of the reactionaries in the Christian Alliance and the Entente, on the other, Comintern and the Black Sea Pact, with the possibility of Belgrade Pact or maybe even Muscovy as well. On European front, it's most likely to be a confusing mess, with multiple active fronts. Burgundy and Italy is surrounded by USR and Germany. Germany is surrounded by those two plus Scandinavian, the Commonwealth, and Macedonia. And Commonwealth and Macedonia itself is frighting a two front war with Black Sea Pact. Of course, this is assume Germany would not declare neutrality, but I think there is a chance there might be a civil war if that ever happens.
Africa is almost entirely under control of the Entente, outside of us, of course. On the other hand, such a vast colonial empire might be a prime spot for colonial rebellions to drain resource away from European front. With luck, we and New Africa might start laying groundwork for that before any open hostility started.
In Asia, well, it mostly just Korea surrounded by Entente colonial processions. The same conditions for colonial rebellions exist as in the case of Africa, but I know how much support we could send that way, not when Korea have enough problem on hand with Japan and Tatarstan might actually not go to war with them. Perhaps we might try to convince Heavenly Kingdom to use the war as opportunity to reclaim their lost territories, but I am not certain how well that would work out.
On Acadia and Ameriga, only Comintern has official member states from that two continents. Although Lusitania and Lotharingia might try to use the war as a distraction to do something funny, Acadian new government attempt to prevent war from break out in the new world might work in our favour for this. Although it is also likely that they might lack political will to actually do anything in case of open hostility.
We also begin to see the shape of possible faction in the World War. On one side is the grand ailed of the reactionaries in the Christian Alliance and the Entente, on the other, Comintern and the Black Sea Pact, with the possibility of Belgrade Pact or maybe even Muscovy as well. On European front, it's most likely to be a confusing mess, with multiple active fronts. Burgundy and Italy is surrounded by USR and Germany. Germany is surrounded by those two plus Scandinavian, the Commonwealth, and Macedonia. And Commonwealth and Macedonia itself is frighting a two front war with Black Sea Pact. Of course, this is assume Germany would not declare neutrality, but I think there is a chance there might be a civil war if that ever happens.
Africa is almost entirely under control of the Entente, outside of us, of course. On the other hand, such a vast colonial empire might be a prime spot for colonial rebellions to drain resource away from European front. With luck, we and New Africa might start laying groundwork for that before any open hostility started.
In Asia, well, it mostly just Korea surrounded by Entente colonial processions. The same conditions for colonial rebellions exist as in the case of Africa, but I know how much support we could send that way, not when Korea have enough problem on hand with Japan and Tatarstan might actually not go to war with them. Perhaps we might try to convince Heavenly Kingdom to use the war as opportunity to reclaim their lost territories, but I am not certain how well that would work out.
On Acadia and Ameriga, only Comintern has official member states from that two continents. Although Lusitania and Lotharingia might try to use the war as a distraction to do something funny, Acadian new government attempt to prevent war from break out in the new world might work in our favour for this. Although it is also likely that they might lack political will to actually do anything in case of open hostility.
- Location
- New York
@Fission Battery Do you plan on ending or significantly changing the quest soon? We are approaching a natural end or transition point in the quest. You could end the quest with the end of the Arab Brothers' War or the United Arab Republic adopting a new constitution if you wished (assuming that the UAR is victorious) or you could continue the quest having us navigating the national construction process and the post war world instead.
Other thoughts.
The Entente and the Christian League aligning together and Germany becoming neutral would make up for even the worst possible Entente proxy defeat in the Arab Brothers' War.
I was hoping that Aragon would experience a republican uprising after the two back-to-back national disasters of losing southern Italy and then their colonial empire. However, it seems that there was no revolt and the Aragonese crown prince has decided to seize control to take steps to end Aragon's pariah status. It remains to be seen if the crown prince will take any additional reforms and if his reforms are enough in the long run.
I cannot imagine that the Aragonese settler population in North Africa can remain there if the socialist bloc is victorious. The settler uprising has shown that they are a major threat to socialist rule in Maghreb and this uprising can only worsen their relationship with the Maghrebi socialists. Resentment against the settlers will be even higher than after the Sinai Crisis. With Aragon leaving diplomatic isolation, the settlers may be able to go to Aragon unlike after the Sinai Crisis. Alternately, they might get the same deal with Granada that the former Crusader settlers got or be given a ticket to somewhere else for cheap and allowed to scatter to the wind.
I do not think the Sicilian Republican Army of National Liberation or Sicilian Partisans will be establish an independent Sicilian republic even if the Italian Kingdom experiences the worst case scenario of tens of thousands of volunteers being sent to North Africa only for them to be captured. The Italian government would still have plenty of men to suppress a rebellion. Also, would the Sicilian population really support the partisans and want a republic dominated by former Mafia men? In OTL according to Wikipedia, the Sicilian independence movement was never really widely supported even at the height of its popularity right after WW2 before it lost much of its support when the Italian government granted autonomy to Sicily.
Other thoughts.
The Entente and the Christian League aligning together and Germany becoming neutral would make up for even the worst possible Entente proxy defeat in the Arab Brothers' War.
I was hoping that Aragon would experience a republican uprising after the two back-to-back national disasters of losing southern Italy and then their colonial empire. However, it seems that there was no revolt and the Aragonese crown prince has decided to seize control to take steps to end Aragon's pariah status. It remains to be seen if the crown prince will take any additional reforms and if his reforms are enough in the long run.
I cannot imagine that the Aragonese settler population in North Africa can remain there if the socialist bloc is victorious. The settler uprising has shown that they are a major threat to socialist rule in Maghreb and this uprising can only worsen their relationship with the Maghrebi socialists. Resentment against the settlers will be even higher than after the Sinai Crisis. With Aragon leaving diplomatic isolation, the settlers may be able to go to Aragon unlike after the Sinai Crisis. Alternately, they might get the same deal with Granada that the former Crusader settlers got or be given a ticket to somewhere else for cheap and allowed to scatter to the wind.
I do not think the Sicilian Republican Army of National Liberation or Sicilian Partisans will be establish an independent Sicilian republic even if the Italian Kingdom experiences the worst case scenario of tens of thousands of volunteers being sent to North Africa only for them to be captured. The Italian government would still have plenty of men to suppress a rebellion. Also, would the Sicilian population really support the partisans and want a republic dominated by former Mafia men? In OTL according to Wikipedia, the Sicilian independence movement was never really widely supported even at the height of its popularity right after WW2 before it lost much of its support when the Italian government granted autonomy to Sicily.
It won't be ending. I wanted to cover deciding the government of the UAR, immediate aftermath of the war, recovery decisions, and then several years afterwards. I was thinking of transitioning into a less micro-model similar to Weygand's Red Flag quest where broad foreign and domestic policies are chosen. I feel like it'd be very mean and disappointing to end it right after achieving a victory.
- Location
- Somewhere in the area
- Pronouns
- He/She/They
If you ever felt like returning to a smaller-scope quest model in the setting I'd totally be down to play as Cuba as they focus their efforts in the affairs of New Afrika.
- Location
- New York
The creation of the United Arab Republic has largely been a symbolic propaganda act for the moment. The constituent states of the UAR have generally behaved as fully sovereign states in international affairs. For example, they voted as separate states at the Arab Conference despite the objections of the monarchists that the UAR should have counted as one state for voting purposes. Nevertheless, the creation of the UAR, even in name only, does raise some interesting questions. @Fission Battery
In the short time between socialist Morocco peacefully gaining its independence from the Iberian Union and its entry into the UAR, was independent Morocco automatically a member of the Comintern or would it have to apply for membership? If Morocco was a member of the Comintern, did it relinquish its membership in the Comintern when it entered the UAR? If Morocco relinquished its membership, did the free movement deal with the Comintern automatically end hard Brexit style or did Morocco negotiate a deal with Iberia and the other Comintern states to maintain free movement for now or is everything in a weird legal limbo that everybody is politely ignoring until the Arab Brothers' War ends?
What is the status of the European majority cities of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa? Ceuta was conquered by Portugal in 1415 and was transferred to Spain after the breakup of the Iberian Union of Spain and Portugal in 1668 and has remained under Spanish rule ever such despite Moroccan attempts to reconquer it except for a brief British occupation in the Napoleonic Wars. Melilla was occupied by Spain in 1497 and has remained under Spanish rule ever since despite Moroccan attempts to reconquer it. In real life, the status of Ceuta and Melilla remains a lingering source of tension between Morocco and Spain. Morocco claims the two cities rightfully belong to Morocco saying that Spanish rule over the two cities is a colonial relic that should end. Spain claims that the two cities are integral parts of Spain because these cities have under continuous Spanish rule for centuries (longer than some cities such as Pamplona in mainland Spain) and the populations of the cities favor continued Spanish rule.
Did Ceuta and Melilla have any special status under the Iberian Union? Upon the independence of socialist Morocco, did Ceuta and Melilla remain as enclaves under Iberian rule or did the cities go with Morocco? If Ceuta and Melilla went with Morocco, do they have any special status within Morocco? As long as Morocco was a part of the Iberian Union or as long as both Morocco and Iberia are part of the Comintern free movement zone, this old dispute does not matter too much. However, things are in question when Morocco left the Iberian Union and joined the UAR. In OTL, the Soviet government drew borders between some republics with tensions between them that wouldn't matter much as long as the Soviet Union existed but would ensure ethnic conflict if the Soviet Union ever dissolved such as Nagorno-Karabakh. However here, Morocco was expected to seek peaceful independence by everybody for a while now. Or did the European population flee Ceuta and Melilla during the Revolution and the cities are now majority Moroccan making the dispute a moot point?
In the short time between socialist Morocco peacefully gaining its independence from the Iberian Union and its entry into the UAR, was independent Morocco automatically a member of the Comintern or would it have to apply for membership? If Morocco was a member of the Comintern, did it relinquish its membership in the Comintern when it entered the UAR? If Morocco relinquished its membership, did the free movement deal with the Comintern automatically end hard Brexit style or did Morocco negotiate a deal with Iberia and the other Comintern states to maintain free movement for now or is everything in a weird legal limbo that everybody is politely ignoring until the Arab Brothers' War ends?
What is the status of the European majority cities of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa? Ceuta was conquered by Portugal in 1415 and was transferred to Spain after the breakup of the Iberian Union of Spain and Portugal in 1668 and has remained under Spanish rule ever such despite Moroccan attempts to reconquer it except for a brief British occupation in the Napoleonic Wars. Melilla was occupied by Spain in 1497 and has remained under Spanish rule ever since despite Moroccan attempts to reconquer it. In real life, the status of Ceuta and Melilla remains a lingering source of tension between Morocco and Spain. Morocco claims the two cities rightfully belong to Morocco saying that Spanish rule over the two cities is a colonial relic that should end. Spain claims that the two cities are integral parts of Spain because these cities have under continuous Spanish rule for centuries (longer than some cities such as Pamplona in mainland Spain) and the populations of the cities favor continued Spanish rule.
Did Ceuta and Melilla have any special status under the Iberian Union? Upon the independence of socialist Morocco, did Ceuta and Melilla remain as enclaves under Iberian rule or did the cities go with Morocco? If Ceuta and Melilla went with Morocco, do they have any special status within Morocco? As long as Morocco was a part of the Iberian Union or as long as both Morocco and Iberia are part of the Comintern free movement zone, this old dispute does not matter too much. However, things are in question when Morocco left the Iberian Union and joined the UAR. In OTL, the Soviet government drew borders between some republics with tensions between them that wouldn't matter much as long as the Soviet Union existed but would ensure ethnic conflict if the Soviet Union ever dissolved such as Nagorno-Karabakh. However here, Morocco was expected to seek peaceful independence by everybody for a while now. Or did the European population flee Ceuta and Melilla during the Revolution and the cities are now majority Moroccan making the dispute a moot point?
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Egypt and Yemen both have observer status. Morocco has full membership, though that is subject to change and status in the Comintern will be one of the things covered during the UAR constitution convention. If people decide against full membership, then Morocco loses said full membership upon the formal creation of the UAR.
Well, I didn't know much about cities until now. I feel like it's probably a safe bet that a bunch of settlers fled during the revolution. The population is small enough in 1890s that it very easily could have become Moroccan majority by 1919.
I feel like some of my initial decisions regarding the world may have come back to bite me in regards to tone. Egypt going socialist was supposed to feel like a bold revolutionary struggle, but in hindsight its surrounded by many friendly powers. In hindsight Morocco's kind of set up to be the leading Arab power and probably should have already liberated/conquered/absorbed Maghreb by the start of the quest. I think that's because I wanted a big Maghreb first, then later decided which European countries would be communist and picked the Dual Monarchy. I liked the idea of them maintain their old alliance of Spain but that'd require Spain going red too, so it did so. I probably should have had Aragon control Morocco to put more pressure on Maghreb. Spain also probably shouldn't have been communist or a different power besides the Dual Monarchy should have been the leading leftist power.
These are some of the decisions that you come to regret long after you've made them. Iran being a republic drastically changes the tone of interactions versus if it had been a monarchy. I don't want to fall into the trap of artificial balance for its own sake. That's never fun where you don't feel like you can't get an advantage, but since it is my first time running a quest I sometimes worry about it. If there's a good amount of challenge or not, and if the success feels rewarding and earned or if it was handed to you.
always_confused
Perpetually unwanted
- Location
- SEA
We definitely want to join the Comintern fully asap.
Sorry but can we really call them Settlers if they have lived there for over 500 years?
I probably misunderstood and if so I apologize in advance.
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- Location
- A haze of forgetfulness
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Americans are still settlers even though they have been in North America for about 400 years.
I think (uneducated laywoman here) the key thing about it is if they are respecting the indigenous populations and the land they live on. The USA does not respect either so they are still settlers in their lands.
- Location
- New York
Who counts as indigenous and who counts as a settler or outsider can be complicated at times. Where do we draw the line exactly?
Are the English indigenous to Great Britain? If you define colonial settlers as later arrivals who do not respect the indigenous populations and the land they live on, I am sure you can find lots of Welsh people who think the English do not properly respect them or the land. The Anglo-Saxon ancestors of the English invaded and displaced the Romano-British ancestors of the Welsh from what is now England after the fall of Western Rome.
Some people argue that only transoceanic (European) colonizers and not land conquerors can become the "other" to peoples defined – by contrast – as "indigenous" and that indigenous people are exclusively victims of European colonialism, but others argue this hypothesis is much too Eurocentric and also excludes European Russia and non-European empires.
If a larger portion of a conquered people decides to adopt the culture and religion of their conquerors while a minority decides to stick to the old ways, does that larger portion of the conquered people no longer count as indigenous? This is a question in Egypt. The Copts are descendants of Ancient Egyptians who remained Christian after the Arab conquest of Egypt. Most Arab Egyptians are not actually ethnic Arabs but are rather the descendants of Ancient Egyptians that embraced Arab culture and Islam after the Arab conquest. Some Copts in real life and in the quest such as the leader of the CAP Mina Psoy feel that the Arab Egyptians are foreign colonizers and settlers, but the Arab Egyptians feel that they are as equally indigenous to Egypt as the Copts.
@Fission Battery Why did you have the winners of this quest's WW1 turn socialist while the losers greatly expanded gobbled up the empires of the now socialist victors? In Kaiserreich, Britain and France lose WW1 and turn socialist while the victorious German Empire seizes many of the Entente colonies. Here, Burgundy lost land in Europe and the war but it was the victorious Dual Monarchy and Spain that collapsed into revolution while Burgundy expanded its overseas empire. Wouldn't a defeated Burgundy, probably the world's densely industrialized country (Burgundy is only second after the Dual Monarchy while having less land) be the more likely candidate to turn red according to old school Marxist theory? Of course, a red Burgundy would much more likely to be diplomatically isolated by geography than a red Anglo-French union.
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It was kind of working backwards to build up the initial premise of a red Dual Monarchy and Spain. WW1 technically ended in a stalemate and ceasefire rather than an outright victory for either side. DM and Spain didn't so much as win as peace out during a revolution. Entente tried to push in through France and Northern England, but couldn't put it down or reclaim that part of Burgundy lost to the DM. DM and Spain's colonies were left afloat without the home country to keep them afloat and were forced to accept Entente suzerainty over them to remain stable.
I'll admit I'm going to try not to dwell too much on worldbuilding decisions and what could have been done differently because if I do I'll just get bummed out. It's fine to talk about and I'm happy to answer questions. It just feels like some mistakes were made regarding the geopolitical situation.