575
Captain
There is no Purgatory for warcriminals - they go directly to Hell!
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Likes: 4,106
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Post by 575 on Oct 12, 2023 9:58:25 GMT
There was two?? Saw one in the Seventies guess it then must have been the second - it was in color! If you want to be precise: There are four screen adaptations - a silent movie from 1923, a b/w movie (two parts) from 1959, the series from 1979 in eleven parts, and the new flick with Armin Mueller-Stahl from 2008. Sayeth WP.I wrote Series - the second of the two which turns out as the 1979 as written - compende? You yourself started asking if the first or second series so who's talking now! |
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 14, 2023 10:42:06 GMT
If you want to be precise: There are four screen adaptations - a silent movie from 1923, a b/w movie (two parts) from 1959, the series from 1979 in eleven parts, and the new flick with Armin Mueller-Stahl from 2008. Sayeth WP.I wrote Series - the second of the two which turns out as the 1979 as written - compende? You yourself started asking if the first or second series so who's talking now! I used to think "of course there are just two series", but then I looked up German WP and found that they defined the latest series as a "film". And seeing that its TV version has 180 minutes (and the movie version only 150), which is less than the two-parter from the Fifties (208 minutes) has... it's a bit irritating.
I hope you're not offended!
Now back to new stories from the Chaos TL...
The list of changes caused by the Twenty-Year War:
Holstein acquired Lübeck (not the city itself; due to the complicated structure of the HRE, many cities were free cities, even though there were states around them named after them)
Mecklenburg acquired Schwerin.
Pomerania acquired Cammin.
Brandenburg acquired Magdeburg.
The Wettin states of Thuringia, Meissen and Osterland only acquired Meißen and Merseburg, which is why they made war against Brandenburg, too.
Braunschweig-Lüneburg acquired Bremen and Verden (thus gaining access to the sea), and could also acquire Hildesheim and Eichsfeld (former property of the electorate of Mainz).
The Netherlands wanted to acquire Lüttich / Liege, but were delayed and almost beaten by Luxemburg, since they were preoccupied with the war against France, which cost them the Artois. At the same time, the French used the opportunity and took the free cities of Metz, Toul and Verdun.
The landgravate of Hesse acquired Fulda.
The duchy of Jülich-Berg acquired the electorate of Cologne quite peacefully.
Luxemburg acquired the core of the electorate of Trier, including the city itself, which made the archbishop their tool. Via Tyrol they also acquired Augsburg, Bressano / Brixen and Trient.
Nassau acquired (thanks to some smart alliances) a part of Mainz in Hesse, a part of the electorate of Trier around Koblenz, Dortmund, and the diocese-duchy of Westphalia (formerly owned by the archbishop of Cologne).
The electorate of the Palatinates acquired Worms, Speyer and Eichstätt.
Württemberg acquired Ellwangen, Kaufbeuren, Memmingen and Biberach.
Bavaria acquired Freising and Passau, and after the war with Austria even the biggest chunk around, Salzburg, but had to give Eastern Styria to Austria.
Switzerland acquired Strassburg, Konstanz and Basel.
The republic of Venice acquires the patriarchate of Aquileia, which leaves the HRE.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 14, 2023 11:10:45 GMT
Yet again: A thread from the WWW forum.
igor:
Hello! 1 question about Russia: Can we make Vladimir somewhat smaller, I'd lik to see some more states in the area??
(19. 4. 1993 CE, 16:07)
Henrich:
Having the patriarch, Vladimir was the natural leading nation in NE Europe... and compared to Kiev, they had the better geopolitic situation: Their only neighbors were the Volga Hungarians (who left the area for Hungary proper since the 13th century), the backward Volga Bulgarians, and the Feudal Republic of Novgorod, which was more commercial and less militaristic. Kiev, Smolensk and the other southern states had a lot of enemies at the border: The mighty Teutonic knights, the Kipchaks [1], Poland, Hungary... that strained their powers somewhat...
(19. 4. 1993 CE, 17:45)
igor:
is there no way making Vladimir weaker?!?
(19. 4. 1993 CE, 18:16)
buschenschankler:
yea igor get me sum vodka |||
(19. 4. 1993 CE, 18:59)
Henrich:
I could rather invent a way how to make them *even* stronger...
(19. 4. 1993 CE, 19:22)
Administrator Jan:
buschenschankler, I've got enough of your senseless "I'm so drunk" messages. You're kicked for a week.
(20. 4. 1993 CE, 2:31)
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 14, 2023 11:42:41 GMT
Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Late evening.
The room is full of people holding important positions in the court. They have been talking for hours. They all share a dangerous problem they have to solve. Nobody speaks openly about it, but everyone knows it. The new emperor, although neither incompetent nor uncultivated, hasn't begot a son, or any child, since he became a man, and it's not a matter of his health. If this situation will continue for some more years, one of his relatives might become impatient and try to take power for himself, throwing if not the empire, at least the court into confusion. All of those present are afraid to lose something in that case. The talking goes on and on, only stopped for a few minutes when the servants approach with new tea.
"Should we Deceive the Sky to cross the Ocean [1]?" someone suggests.
"A deceit? By all proper respect, how is that possible?" someone else wants to know.
Then the former person tells about the plan, which is after some discussion approved by everyone.
Buddhist cloister, somewhat outside of Nanjing
A messenger on a fast horse approaches on the road, bringing a well-phrased letter to the abbess, pointing out how it'd be in the interest of the whole empire if the situation at the court stays stable, thus explaining the uncommon request.
Some days later, at the very same cloister, a man from the court comes to a visit. The Bhikkhuni [2] are lined up along a line. After a long thinking, he choses a young, slim, fair-skinned girl, her head shaved as it is custom for buddhist nuns.
Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Some days later.
"Just remember: Whenever someone asks you, tell them you are a boy, and your name is..."
Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Some weeks later.
The conspirators, if that's the right word for such a group of concerned persons, hear the newest palace gossip, finding out to their satisfaction, that the emperor indeed happens to "like" the new boy at the court.
And thus, the peace of the Hong dynasty was saved, and a formerly unknown girl from the province of Anhui became the mother of the future emperor.
[1]: Famous Chinese strategy. Its original meaning is: Lure the Heavenly Emperor (who didn't want to enter a ship) onto a ship which is disguised as a little palace and unveil the illusion when he is already sailing on the sea.
[2]: Buddhist nuns
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575
Captain
There is no Purgatory for warcriminals - they go directly to Hell!
Posts: 2,729
Likes: 4,106
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Post by 575 on Oct 14, 2023 12:46:01 GMT
I wrote Series - the second of the two which turns out as the 1979 as written - compende? You yourself started asking if the first or second series so who's talking now! I used to think "of course there are just two series", but then I looked up German WP and found that they defined the latest series as a "film". And seeing that its TV version has 180 minutes (and the movie version only 150), which is less than the two-parter from the Fifties (208 minutes) has... it's a bit irritating.
I hope you're not offended!
Now back to new stories from the Chaos TL...
The list of changes caused by the Twenty-Year War:
Holstein acquired Lübeck (not the city itself; due to the complicated structure of the HRE, many cities were free cities, even though there were states around them named after them)
Mecklenburg acquired Schwerin.
Pomerania acquired Cammin.
Brandenburg acquired Magdeburg.
The Wettin states of Thuringia, Meissen and Osterland only acquired Meißen and Merseburg, which is why they made war against Brandenburg, too.
Braunschweig-Lüneburg acquired Bremen and Verden (thus gaining access to the sea), and could also acquire Hildesheim and Eichsfeld (former property of the electorate of Mainz).
The Netherlands wanted to acquire Lüttich / Liege, but were delayed and almost beaten by Luxemburg, since they were preoccupied with the war against France, which cost them the Artois. At the same time, the French used the opportunity and took the free cities of Metz, Toul and Verdun.
The landgravate of Hesse acquired Fulda.
The duchy of Jülich-Berg acquired the electorate of Cologne quite peacefully.
Luxemburg acquired the core of the electorate of Trier, including the city itself, which made the archbishop their tool. Via Tyrol they also acquired Augsburg, Bressano / Brixen and Trient.
Nassau acquired (thanks to some smart alliances) a part of Mainz in Hesse, a part of the electorate of Trier around Koblenz, Dortmund, and the diocese-duchy of Westphalia (formerly owned by the archbishop of Cologne).
The electorate of the Palatinates acquired Worms, Speyer and Eichstätt.
Württemberg acquired Ellwangen, Kaufbeuren, Memmingen and Biberach.
Bavaria acquired Freising and Passau, and after the war with Austria even the biggest chunk around, Salzburg, but had to give Eastern Styria to Austria.
Switzerland acquired Strassburg, Konstanz and Basel.
The republic of Venice acquires the patriarchate of Aquileia, which leaves the HRE.
Nah - just thought it unnescessary as part of the conversation.  |
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stevep
Fleet admiral
Posts: 24,832
Likes: 13,222
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Post by stevep on Oct 14, 2023 22:55:06 GMT
Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Late evening. The room is full of people holding important positions in the court. They have been talking for hours. They all share a dangerous problem they have to solve. Nobody speaks openly about it, but everyone knows it. The new emperor, although neither incompetent nor uncultivated, hasn't begot a son, or any child, since he became a man, and it's not a matter of his health. If this situation will continue for some more years, one of his relatives might become impatient and try to take power for himself, throwing if not the empire, at least the court into confusion. All of those present are afraid to lose something in that case. The talking goes on and on, only stopped for a few minutes when the servants approach with new tea. "Should we Deceive the Sky to cross the Ocean [1]?" someone suggests. "A deceit? By all proper respect, how is that possible?" someone else wants to know. Then the former person tells about the plan, which is after some discussion approved by everyone. Buddhist cloister, somewhat outside of Nanjing A messenger on a fast horse approaches on the road, bringing a well-phrased letter to the abbess, pointing out how it'd be in the interest of the whole empire if the situation at the court stays stable, thus explaining the uncommon request. Some days later, at the very same cloister, a man from the court comes to a visit. The Bhikkhuni [2] are lined up along a line. After a long thinking, he choses a young, slim, fair-skinned girl, her head shaved as it is custom for buddhist nuns. Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Some days later. "Just remember: Whenever someone asks you, tell them you are a boy, and your name is..." Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Some weeks later. The conspirators, if that's the right word for such a group of concerned persons, hear the newest palace gossip, finding out to their satisfaction, that the emperor indeed happens to "like" the new boy at the court. And thus, the peace of the Hong dynasty was saved, and a formerly unknown girl from the province of Anhui became the mother of the future emperor. [1]: Famous Chinese strategy. Its original meaning is: Lure the Heavenly Emperor (who didn't want to enter a ship) onto a ship which is disguised as a little palace and unveil the illusion when he is already sailing on the sea. [2]: Buddhist nuns
That does seem to assume an emperor with very little knowledge of human anatomy if he can't tell the difference between a man and a women or which hole he's using.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 18, 2023 15:25:43 GMT
Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Late evening. The room is full of people holding important positions in the court. They have been talking for hours. They all share a dangerous problem they have to solve. Nobody speaks openly about it, but everyone knows it. The new emperor, although neither incompetent nor uncultivated, hasn't begot a son, or any child, since he became a man, and it's not a matter of his health. If this situation will continue for some more years, one of his relatives might become impatient and try to take power for himself, throwing if not the empire, at least the court into confusion. All of those present are afraid to lose something in that case. The talking goes on and on, only stopped for a few minutes when the servants approach with new tea. "Should we Deceive the Sky to cross the Ocean [1]?" someone suggests. "A deceit? By all proper respect, how is that possible?" someone else wants to know. Then the former person tells about the plan, which is after some discussion approved by everyone. Buddhist cloister, somewhat outside of Nanjing A messenger on a fast horse approaches on the road, bringing a well-phrased letter to the abbess, pointing out how it'd be in the interest of the whole empire if the situation at the court stays stable, thus explaining the uncommon request. Some days later, at the very same cloister, a man from the court comes to a visit. The Bhikkhuni [2] are lined up along a line. After a long thinking, he choses a young, slim, fair-skinned girl, her head shaved as it is custom for buddhist nuns. Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Some days later. "Just remember: Whenever someone asks you, tell them you are a boy, and your name is..." Nanjing, Imperial Palace. Some weeks later. The conspirators, if that's the right word for such a group of concerned persons, hear the newest palace gossip, finding out to their satisfaction, that the emperor indeed happens to "like" the new boy at the court. And thus, the peace of the Hong dynasty was saved, and a formerly unknown girl from the province of Anhui became the mother of the future emperor. [1]: Famous Chinese strategy. Its original meaning is: Lure the Heavenly Emperor (who didn't want to enter a ship) onto a ship which is disguised as a little palace and unveil the illusion when he is already sailing on the sea. [2]: Buddhist nuns
That does seem to assume an emperor with very little knowledge of human anatomy if he can't tell the difference between a man and a women or which hole he's using.
I'll admit that the story sounds pretty odd, but as a matter of fact, something like this really happened with an East Asian emperor (Japanese, AFAIR). Got the story told by someone with a PhD in East Asian languages and such.
Now back to the new stories...
Paper 391-816-028-754, hosted by the University of Munich, Bavaria (date is missing, as is the title, but I guess it's from the end of TTL's 20th century)
One distinct point in history that could have changed further development of Europe a lot is the still not completely exposed sparing of the (then) republic of Florence during the Black Death.
Not only did this allow Florence to resettle quite some depopulated areas in Northern-Central Italy (thus also lessening the overpopulation of Tuscany, and spreading the Florentine dialect), but it also allowed them to continue being a center of arts and science.
Even so, Italy lost its lead in arts in the 15th century, since they only continued to develop the old Rinascita style, to the point where it degenerated into Mannerism, while in the Quadruple Monarchy the new style had its dawn. But if the Black Death had struck Florence, Lorenzo del Vacca might have stopped creating art, as did Raffaele Aldovrandi in Milan. Even more important, his discoveries in science and engineering hadn't happened, which connected in our history the tradition of science during Rinascita with its blooming after the invention of the printing press. If del Vacca had died during the Black Death, Europe would miss his discoveries. Even so, his last years were overshadowed by the sorrow that Muslim hordes may invade Florence, after his weapons were invented too late to prevent the Sacco di Roma. [...]
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 18, 2023 15:50:33 GMT
The Rise of the Sultanate of Rum - a Summary
by Richard Mandeville, 1831, London
The Sultanate of Rum was established after the battle of Manzikert in 1071, which weakened the Byzantine Empire by a great measure. [...]
For the first century after their victory that laid the foundations of their empire, their expansion was confined by the recovered Byzantine Empire, which surrounded the Seljuks on all sides but the East. [...]
Their opportunity arose in 1204, after the crusaders took Constantinople. They filled the power vacuum, expanding to the sea in the North and South-West, even gaining Crimea. [...]
At the time the empire was divided, they already had taken Constantinople and consolidated their standing in Europe, so even the division wouldn't have made it possible for the Christians to throw them back again. [...]
After the reunification, the Seljuk made the momentous alliance with the pirates of the Barbary coast. From now on, they could attack the Christian states by land and by sea, and the consequences are well known, not only in Italy, which suffered severely under the Seljuks. [...]
Even after the fall of Rome, Christianity didn't unite against the Muslim invaders, but even continued to make war against each other. Without this, the Seljuk threat could've been contained decades earlier, and Vienna never had fallen. [...]
Now however, the Seljuks faced the problem to defend their empire at multiple frontiers at the same time: The Quadruple monarchy in Morocco, Florence, Venice and its protector France in Italy, several states of the HRE, and the Russians in the Kuman lands. This threw them in a situation where they never could rest on their laurels, having to leave strong occupation troops in the contested lands, which couldn't participate in the spoils of conquest. Thus, they had to raise taxes for their Christian population, until the limit was reached, and from then, their rise was stopped, and the tide turned. [...]
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 18, 2023 16:03:35 GMT
"The Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation - a swan song" by Ph.D. Immanuel Schneider, Department of Political Science, University of Weimar, 1752
By God, what have the German lands turned into!
[...]
In fact, the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation is mostly German, but doesn't fit any of the other points. There are few places inhabited by Germans left which haven't been reigned some time by French, Danes, Swedes, Poles, Russians, Hungarians or Italians. [...]
The reform of the empire after the terrible Inter-German War [1] could've been the opportunity to, if not restore the old Empire of the Ottones, at least build something new and better, but the opportunity was missed. The mightier princes were appointed electors, a few slow-working state organs were established, and after that, everything was pretty much as before, only that the church had lost its worldly power and its people could spend their time wailing about the deeds of the princes without being able to do something, from now on. [...]
But since the so-called Reichsreform, all our princes have done was gobbling up their smaller neighbors, and after that was done, waiting that a dynasty would die out again, and there'd some land to be inherited. But otherwise, neither of them cared for the empire, and neither did our French emperors. This is why our country has been artificially divided by alliances changing every few years. But why do I complain? It was clear the the Empire would take this way since the talk about the reforms began in 1500. The dozen of the bigger states wasn't really declared sovereign, but in fact they acted since then as if they were, and we know the result of it. [...]
If things should go on like this, we might soon have to write an obituary: "Today our beloved Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation passed away in the great age of 911 years [...]
[1] Alternate German term for the Twenty-Year War.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 22, 2023 18:58:25 GMT
A movie review for "Alexander", from "Das Reich", 13.9.1936, by Joachim Röskau
This new movie from the Paradies film studios presents the viewer, especially the young one, the story of the Scottish-Norwegian prince Alexander (Sebald Maartens), last surviving heir of his dynasty. After his adventurous flight from Norway, where the leaders of the republican nobles (former horror movie actor Albrecht Bangemann proves in his role as count Olaf Olafsson how he can also perform serious roles) have conspired to kill him, the young prince goes to Atlantis, to meet Frau Welt [1]. After some colorful time at the court of the Mexica and in his fight against the Spaniards, the prince has to return to Europe, where the king of France (Dietrich Lennart) supports him with the army and money he needs to retrieve his former lands, which haven't been under his rule for so long. Now the movie becomes more grim, as the war in the Occidental lands begins. Only thanks to what his advisors - Nils, his Norwegian fighting coach (Georg Götzner); Seamus, his teacher for strategy and tactics (Josef Plattner); and Donald, the old court bard (Stevan Braun) - teach him, the formerly naive Alexander becomes what he has to become, to reign undisputedly in his empire. Despite a few historical errors (Nils never gave his life for the prince, as depicted in the movie; and Oswald of Cottington (Edmund Miller), his evil counterpart in the movie, only played a minor role in the war and never met the prince in person), "Alexander" is a masterpiece of entertainment and a valuable instruction at the same time.
[1] Lit: Mrs World. In medieval times an allegory to worldly pleasures, today ITTL more like a "harsh, but with reasonable rules" world.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 22, 2023 20:05:20 GMT
"Kingdom of God" [1], by James of Athelhampton, 1522
Atlantis, the Kingdom of God, is the mightiest empire the world has ever seen, greater than the empire of Charlemagne, greater than the Roman Empire, even greater than the empire of Alexander the Great. It is the hope for the believers, the haven for the persecuted masses, and no pagan or heretic has ever defiled its soil by setting his foot on it. [...]
The capital of Atlantis is New Jerusalem, situated at the banks of a mighty stream. The city is divided into five communes: New Paris for the French, New Cologne for the Germans, New Rome for the Italians, New Toledo for the Spaniards, and New London for the English, plus several smaller communes. Four communes form a ring, the Germans in the North, the Italians in the East, the Spaniards in the South, and the French in the West. In the center of the city, however, live the English, for it is their Royal house of Plantagenet that reigns in Atlantis. [...]
New Jerusalem is the biggest city on Earth; it counts one million subjects, ten thousand noble families, one thousand churches, and one dozen universities. Its communes are separated by canals as the city of Venice had them, only much greater and more beautiful. [...]
The current king is Edward X, who has reigned Atlantis for thirty years. The king has all the worldly and spiritual power. He is honest, austere, courageous, stern, just, pious and highly learned, for the kings of Atlantis are educated alone by the wisest men of their country. [...]
[1] "Kingdom of God" is the first utopian novel of the Chaos TL. Experts for the History of Literature say it's clearly influenced by the fear that the Seljuks might drive the Christians to Atlantis. It is indeed remarkable that Europe is barely mentioned in the text.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 22, 2023 20:06:37 GMT
"Religious history of Novorossiya" - by Ph.D. Iossif Andreyevich Kurbskiy, Department of Religious History, University of Tver, 1913
The settlers in Novorossiya didn't stand under the influence of the church of Vladimir-Suzdal anymore, but also hadn't met the only other possible source of civilization yet, the Empire of Chunkvo. Lacking a real spiritual leadership, they'd be all alone in a land mostly untouched by man, living a hard life, harder than that of the Germans [1] at the same time in Atlantis. [...]
Many of the men would marry the women of the tribes they had defeated, and especially their leaders often practiced polygamy. As my faculty brother [2] Aleksandr would write, even today one can see in the purer-bred Novorossiyans the influence: their darker hair, their higher cheekbones, their shorter size (although this also might be an influence of the harsh climate), [...]
The Christian religion was but a lip service for them; behind their icons, they would hide pagan idols, they met with tribal shamans, and only kept the worse sides of both cultures. Even the worst habit of the pagan tribes, the consummation of the intoxicating fly agaric, was adopted by them, with the worst imaginable consequences, as the monk Ilya of Rostov-at-the-Lena tells us after becoming an eye-witness in 1628:
"I thought God had sent me straight to hell, one cannot describe the feelings I had while having to watch this scene... Dvoryans, under the influence of the devilish drug, stood half-naked in the bitter cold of October and roared as if they wanted to shatter the Earth with their screams; they tried to break trees and throw rocks, as if they were wild bears, and even proved an unbelievable strength doing so; their women wailed and their children cried, as they couldn't calm them, for they had to fear that their husbands and parents would defile their bodies [...]"
[1] ITTL, "Germans" also can stand for any foreigners from the POV of the Russians.
[2] Either a special term for someone working at the same university, or someone who studied with the author together, maybe even in a kind of fraternity.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 25, 2023 21:51:02 GMT
Oekonomische Betrachtungen [1], Franzensburg, Kal., 28.8.1896
History of the Nipponese Trade Empire since the 16th century, by Karl Lechner
The Chinese treasure fleets had opened ways to other nations as far as Africa, so the groundwork for overseas trade was laid - including well-drawn maps of the whole Indian Ocean. When the Muslim pirates made trading more dangerous, and the Hong emperor didn't want to put his treasure ships into unnecessary risk, the Nipponese merchants stood ready to fill the gap. [...]
The Nipponese didn't consider trade such an unworthy occupation as the Tschunken [2] did, probably also because Nippon was dependant on many resources, while Tschung had almost everything in abundance. So the Nipponese merchants started trading the silk and artworks from their lands (and often their famed swords too, which became very popular among Arab, Persian and African rulers and warriors) for metals, coffee and spices. [...]
After the king [3] of Nippon had broken the power of his knights, the so-called samurai, guns soon spread through the land faster than anywhere else, if we can take the old Nipponese records for granted [4]. It is true, however, that every Nipponese merchant going to lands far away from home would be accompanied by several bodyguards armed with Russian-style matchlock guns, and they became feared everywhere by the natives. [...]
Even former knights went into trade, after having lost their income paid by the state. The king had the swords of the renegade knights collected, and as one didn't want to destroy those masterpieces, they were collected and later exported. [...]
[1] German for "economic examinations". A newspaper from TTL.
[2] TTL German name for the people from Zhongguo / Chinese.
[3] ITTL, "Tenno" is translated as "king", which makes more sense, since the tenno hasn't any kings under him, as an emperor does.
[4] The records are right indeed, although they could sound exaggerated for those who don't know the full truth.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 25, 2023 22:10:23 GMT
Excerpt from a letter by Charles "Antoine" de Bar to his friend Bernard de Galaup, written October 24th of 1743.
Mon tres cher Bernard,
my stay in our province Algerie now goes into the second month, and I can't but state that I enjoy it profoundly. At the moment I'm traveling the mountains around Algiers, to take the comfort of their more pleasant climate, let alone the influence on the health. [...]
I found a rustical, if a bit unsophisticated guesthouse in a little settlement of Styrians - their knowledge of French is debatable, but they're good Catholics - named EdelweiB [1] (the inhabitants insist that this is the correct writing), which comes from "edel" for "noble" and "Weib" for "wife/woman", according to my knowledge of German. Obviously these settlers named their town after our old queen, at least I can't imagine differently. [...]
I'm writing this letter from what the locals call a "Bou-chen-chanque", which is a kind of little garden where one can drink a glass of the must the vine dressers produce here. It is quite a pleasant place, although the wine can't be compared with what a post station in La France would serve. [...]
Sincerely, your friend Antoine.
[1] He means Edelweiß, mistaking the German ß (sz ligature) for a B.
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Post by Max Sinister on Oct 25, 2023 22:59:38 GMT
Half a century, French kings have reigned in Aragon - Charles VIII and François I, or Carles and Francesc, as the Catalonians used to call them. After them, the Triple Monarchy of England-Castille-Portugal used the opportunity of François II's unpopularity and had king Henry V (aka Enric) elected king of Aragon, for the last twelve years. But now, the two most powerful men of Europe have applied for the crown of Aragon, and François III in fact already has been proclaimed king by his Catalan followers. The pro-Castillian faction among the Aragonese nobles protested, and now the land is divided, and both groups expect from their favorites that they won't back down. Some people talk about war - a possibility no one in France or the Triple Monarchy wishes for, after the experiences from the Great Occidental War, but it's not out of reach. So the two kings decided to negotiate the Aragonese question among worthy opponents, i.e. each other. Two rounds of talks have been prepared, the first in France, the second in Castille. It is a great day in France, when king Henry V and his court arrive in the castle outside Paris. Quite some time passes until the herald has announced the arrival of all the guests, who now roam the corridors and salons of the castle. The English, Castillian and Portuguese estimate the strength of their French counterparts, and those among the nobles who can afford it use the opportunity to show off with their African or Moorish servants, the sugary snacks they're eating or their beaver pelts, while the French try to counter with their printed clothes, their German-made watches or the Mexican chocolate they're drinking. A long dinner takes part, during which the guests use the opportunity to try the Bordeaux wine you get that seldom today. But finally, the preludes are over, and the two kings are all alone, in the French king's library. For a while, they look into each other's eyes, neither saying a word. "Our father has governed the Crown of Aragon for a full dozen years", Henry V opens the talk. "But our uncle and our granduncle have reigned there for more than fifty years", François III returns. "We don't wish for a war, but if it was the Lord's will, we wouldn't hesitate to fight." "Neither do we wish, but we would fight too, with the pope's approval." Henry almost winces for a moment, decides to change the topic. "Our tercios have improved greatly since the Great War, and the pagans would attest this, if they only said the truth for once. Rome was liberated by us, and many harbors at the Moorish coast are now closed to their ships." "Our rapier fighters also have fought valiantly against the pagans, and they have freed Naples and Hungary only recently." "We are king of three countries, you only reign one." "Our country exceeds the three of yours in population." "Our empire in Africa and the Caribbean surpasses yours by far, and we receive that many riches from there, that even a second Great War couldn't shake our finances." "Our empire in Atlantis meanwhile is greater than Europe, and our men know how to make more money out of an average French province than you receive from your richest colony." "Our people would really appreciate a war, to gain fame for the Triple Monarchy." "And so would our people. They only remember the last victories." The next days are still filled with parties and hunts in the forest, but the most important part of the meeting is already over. Several months later, the kings meet the second time, and everything is the same as before - only this time, they meet in Toledo, their followers drink Porter, and the kings meet on a slightly grassy plain, going for a stroll, all alone but for their horses. "Murcia once was a Castillian province. It should be rightfully a part of our monarchy." "Navarre meanwhile became a part of our kingdom, and it has to be defended." "Our court isn't willing to back down, and would demand that we go to war, if Aragon doesn't become ours again." "'Tis the same thing about us, and we are expected to keep Aragon this time forever." "Who has more power, the king of France or his court?" "Everyone in our country would acclaim the king has, and no one but us could even dare to say otherwise." "Aye, 'tis the same in our countries, just three times - once in English, once in Castillian, and once in Portuguese." "And what about your parliament? A whole assembly of men who have nothing to do but telling the king what would be the wisest thing to do." "I heard the very same thing about the estates of your country." "And Aragon is a country where the nobles even elect the king." "They have done so for centuries. This country doesn't honor kings anymore, truly." For a while, both kings stay silent, while the horses jog trot on, until they've reached a sandy place on the plain. "We have many supporters in the Crown of Aragon." "So do we." They stop their horses and unmount, pulling their swords, and turning back to back. For some time, only a scratching can be heard through the wind. Then, the kings turn around, Henry lets his guest pass, and they both check which names their counterpart wrote into the sand. "It is obvious that the majority in the North of Aragon supports our claims", François states. "It is as clear to see that in the South our supporters have the majority", Henry returns. "So there can be only one solution for Aragon?" "Aye. We'll do it." And thus, the division of the nobles' republic of Aragon happened.
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