1399. France lies a fractured ruin of what it was under the rule of Charlemagne, plagued by disease and troublesome feudal lords, bickering over inconsequential tracts of land. One such vassal has grown strong enough to challenge the true French king, and has the gold to back it up. The heartland of Germany, once the bastion of barbarian resistance to the Roman rule has collapsed into a decentralised state that can barely defend itself from the multitude of Russian kings and Scandinavian Jarls that threaten their coastlines and borders. Tattered Roman banners fly from the streets of Constantinople; the Roman Empire has been on the decline for hundreds of years now and the Ottoman Sultan intends to put the final nail in the coffin for his arch enemy, bringing to rest a centuries old conflict of East versus West. Even the once great Iberian peninsula, home of the Moors and a key part of the Islamic revolution has but one outpost of greatness left, and the Castilian king has his eyes set on wiping out the final Islamic beacon of civilisation. But all this is about to change. This is the story of the Austrian bid for greatness.
It was the 14th of October, 1399. The Archduke sat upon his golden throne, gazing in wonder at the ornate painting of the borders to the old Roman Empire, wondering in sadness about the eventual fate of the Byzantines to the South of him. It struck him as impossible that this new Ottoman Empire from the East could annex the Sons of Rome, but the reality struck hard. It was a changing world out there; the turn of the 15th century would bring about great changes to the European balance of power. With the ambitious Burgundians to the West, threatening the province of Sundgau and the failed Crusaders from the Baltic eyeing German lands, the Archduke recognised the need to begin carving out an empire for himself. Two months later, the declaration of war was sent to the Bavarian capital.
In those two months, 10,000 Austrian peasants had been given arms and armour and thrown into battle against the Bavarian king. The entire Bavarian kingdom was under siege, with all manner of siege weapons employed to bring the walls of their castles crashing down and under rightful Austrian dominance. To show the Germans that they meant business, the Austrian generals had orders to mercilessly hunt down Bavarian soldiers wherever they hid. None were spared. The Archduke was pleased with the work that his generals and soldiers had made and had the Bavarian king beheaded at the stone steps leading to his throne, letting his inferior blood drain out and leaving the head resting atop a pike outside the Bavarian palace.
Austrian conquests did not stop there. 25 years of constant war took its toll on the Austrian people but, with Austrian resolve they battled through, culminating in the conquests of Bavaria, Hungary, the Palatinate and parts of Northern Italy, much to the Venetian’s dismay. The Archduke was sure to sign deals and agreements with his shield-brothers, the Teutonic Crusaders, who swore their loyalty to him in return for military co-operation. Clearly the years of stress took their toll on not just the people but the nobility too, and on the 14th of December 1423, the Archduke died in his sleep. This ushered in a new age, for the new Archduke was known to be a more peaceful man, willing to slowly integrate his father’s conquests into the Austrian Empire and ensure the security of the realm.
The new Archduke was a shrewd diplomatic leader. By his hand, he managed to convince the Polish nobility of his claim to their throne and upon the death of their monarch their lands were annexed. In order to cement his relationship with the Teutonic Order, all Polish lands were gifted to the Order. He began one war against Ansbach, bringing them under Austrian dominance and another against Baden, forcing them to be a vassal. Deals were struck with the Hanseatic Trade League, in order to give Brandenburg to the Teutons and with the death of the Bohemian king, the Archduke was elected to leader of the Holy Roman Empire, massively strengthening his position in Europe.
However, the money-grabbing Hansa had signed a secret pact with the Venetians. Venice launched a seemingly unprovoked attack, supported by their allies the Byzantines and the dirty Hansa, on the unprepared Austrian army of a mere 60,000 troops. Ground had to be given to the Venetians in their most remarkable victory over the Austrian Reich and it seemed that the battle lines were drawn up around Tirol. A stalemate ensued while the Austrian army rolled into Hungary to beat back the Romans, who had grown their empire back from nothing remarkably quickly, much to the incredulity of every European leader. But this attack was not what bothered the Reich. No, the Southerners could be held at bay indefinitely. It was the stab in the back that the Hansa dealt to Austria’s Teutonic brethren. The Teutons swore revenge, and by God will the Hanseatic League know fear when the Crusaders march through the streets of Lubeck.
Onwards, glorious soldiers of the Reich!