HRE NES

[foolish_icarus]

In which case I will send agents to try to determine the truth of the matter, but whatever they find out will be kept secret until I determine what to do with the information, if there is any. For the moment, no mention of taking Hatto to trial in any way will come from King Conrad's court.

[Cyclotron]

Report: The Vienna Campaign

The force assembled in Linz was at first delayed – the poor quality of roads, coupled with swollen streams in Spring and the distance needed for Arnulf’s allies to travel conspired to delay the march from Linz until mid June. Around the 1st of July, the combined armies of Germany crossed the vague border between Bavaria and the wild lands of the East.

Following Duke Arnulf’s cautious procedures, the army made careful and deliberate progress down the southern bank of the Danube. Scouts had little to report for the first month – the land was eerily quiet, most of the farms along the Danube abandoned by the peasants some time ago. Unfortunately, no forage could be found here – the Magyars had already stripped it bare. Nevertheless, the army was able to continue its pace, supplied by wagons and small water craft plying the Danube. Around the end of July, a sighting was made, but this time scouts were unnecessary – every man in the army could see the procession of torches on the opposite bank, traveling west during the night. It is likely they were Magyars, numbering a few hundred, though whether they were an independent raiding party or reinforcements associated with Hadúr Zoltán’s assault on Bohemia could not be determined. Doubtless, both sides saw each other, but with the banks out of bowshot and no way to get across, each side had to be content with merely watching the other.

By this time, parts of the army began to get restless – while the slow pace and relative lack of contact was just fine by the freedmen, the knights voiced increasing dissatisfaction with the methodical and generally boring progression down the banks of the Danube. Though the presence of the King of East Franconia, as well as that of their immediate commanders, was more than enough to stifle their dissent, it clearly did not vanish. In early August, contact was made with the enemy.

Whether by blind luck or the mistake of their commander, a small Magyar raiding force of around 120 horsemen blundered into the German army around dusk. How they managed to get past the scouts is unknown, but the lack of action may have contributed to a low degree of watchfulness. What is known is that, in the low light of dusk, neither side realized the presence of the other on the wooded slopes of the river’s bank until the horsemen were practically on top of the German vanguard. The Magyars exchanged a few arrows with the van, but quickly began to flee, realizing the enormity of their mistake. Though eager for action, Burggraf Reinhard von Fulda managed to keep the archers in the van from pursuing the enemy, and quickly brought the Magyars to the attention of his commanders.

Meanwhile, Vizegraf Bernard von Thurgau, commander of the Swabian contingent, opted to show less restraint. With his chivalry on the right wing of the van ready for action, and in an excellent position to catch the Magyars between the knights and the river, he charged with his 200 knights and several hundred sergeants. Other knights may have joined him given the chance, but the battle was over too soon – caught between the knights sweeping down from the slopes and the river’s edge, the Magyars panicked and were swiftly crushed. Thurgau’s knights butchered the Magyar party, and those few that fled fared little better, either ridden down by his Sergeants or drowned in the river as they tried to escape. Thurgau lost only ten sergeants, and all 120 of the enemy were slain – a furious Duke Arnulf found that there were not even any Magyars left alive to press for information. For his part, Thurgau became the celebrity of the combined chivalry, with all the knights of the army discussing how unfortunate it was that only the Swabians had managed to see action.

By mid-August, Vienna was near, but the situation around the army was growing more hostile. Scouts had spotted several Magyar patrols, and these patrols began making probing skirmishes on the German wings. Realizing that an attack was imminent, the army began to approach higher ground, but quickly realized the problem with following the river’s course – they were now in the low-lying Wachau valley, and their course by the river had placed them directly under the high ridge over the valley, which was now held firmly by the Magyars. While some generals advocated storming the high ground, Rhinegraf Gisfried von Ingelbeim insisted that this would be folly. Though not liked by his fellow commanders, the Duke’s insistence that he be prominent in the positioning of troops played into his hands, and he was able to sway the council of war to his point of view. Together with the Duke and Freiherr Visloff der Kroat, he concluded that moving during the day and fortifying at night, slowly inching along the valley, would be the best way to get through the perilous Wachau without risking annihilation. Though the Magyars made frequent sharp attacks on the army, they were easily spotted ahead of time in the day, making it easy for the archers with their pavises to fend them off, and at night the camp was far too well entrenched for the horsemen to dislodge them. Efforts to draw the Germans away from their fortified camp ultimately failed.

Von Ingelbeim and der Kroat both agreed that the Magyars would be forced to either commit to an attack or abandon the effort by the time the army reached the shore opposite to the village of Krems – there, the Wachau ended and the terrain became steeper and more wooded. Thus, the stage was set for the battle to take place on the most favorable high ground the Germans could find, within eyeshot of Krems on the opposite bank, on a low ridgeline of the Grosser Bolzberg that protruded to the river’s bank. As the Germans reached the ridge, the Magyars began pouring down the slopes of Statzberg. Late in the morning on the 19th of August, der Schlacht von Statzberg began – the Battle of Statzberg.

Following their previous tactics, the Magyars began by pulling back their initial feint-charge, and instead showered the ridge with volley after volley of arrows. With German archers occupying the high ground behind several hundred pavises, however, they were hard pressed to break up the German formations. Though the high ground was not very high, and the German archers far fewer in number than the horse archers, the meager advantages of the German light archers allowed them to stave off a general assault on the German front or eastern flank. The presence of the Germanic chivalry and infantry in the trees behind the archers dissuaded the Magyars from charging the archers.

The western flank, however, was the wooded mountain of Grosser Bolzberg, which was far higher than the ridge occupied by the Germans. The Magyars sent around 2,000 horsemen around the central valley between the ridge and Statzberg, and these infiltrated through the woods of Grosser Bolzberg and assaulted the German west flank. The heaviest fighting of the battle was here, with Magyar horsemen fighting a vicious and chaotic hand-to-hand battle with massed medium spearmen. Though the Magyars attempted to use their familiar approach of drawing back and shooting as the enemy pursued, the thick trees made this difficult, and neither side was able to fully control their forces on the mountainside. Giesfried von Ingelbeim was in command here, and together with his small corps of knights and sergeants managed to keep the worst charges of the Magyars from shattering the flank, leading his countercharges from the front and managing somehow to not get himself killed. The main body of German chivalry, pinned down by Magyar archers in the valley, was unable to come to their assistance, but eventually the spearmen triumphed – with the valley horse archers unable to rout the pavise foot archers, the Magyar flank attack eventually collapsed, with heavy losses on both sides. At this point, the entire Magyar host retreated in reasonably good order over the mountain, defeated but not dissolved.

The casualties for this battle were:
760 Medium Spearmen, of which 120 recovered
220 Light Archers, of which 80 recovered
40 Sergeants, of which 5 recovered
30 Knights, of which 10 recovered
For a total of 835 German deaths (I’ll separate this into Duchies at the conclusion of the campaign)

It is estimated that between one and two thousand Magyar Horsemen were killed, though owing to the need to quickly approach Vienna after the victory, no detailed body count was made. The amount of Magyars present for the battle could have numbered anywhere from 3 to 6 thousand. Their leadership is unknown.

Fearing that the Magyars would return or attempt to regroup and cut off the German advance to Vienna, no loot was collected from the fallen Magyars or Germans.

No generals were killed in the battle. Vizegraf Bernard von Thurgau, in command of the foot archers, was wounded by an arrow in the shoulder, but managed a full recovery.

The remainder of the march to Vienna was uneventful; the town was reached a week after the battle. No pillaging occurred upon the army’s entry; in truth, there was basically no pillage to be had. The town was found in good, but impoverished condition, several hundred Slavs welcoming the “Frankish” army into their town, which proved woefully inadequate to house seven thousand men. The town was evidently never garrisoned, and major remnants of the stone wall built by the Romans (when Vienna was a border fortress-town) still remain. The townsmen, with the help of plentiful labor from the German army, constructed a crude but large palisade and some lodgings for the army. Though the army was forced to live on meager rations and in poor accommodations for the fall and early winter, the availability of some supplies by river and the onset of a relatively mild winter this year, combined with a decent harvest in Vienna (Magyar raids on the croplands notwithstanding) made the ordeal uncomfortable at best, but never truly dangerous. Only a few small Magyar patrols were sighted in the remainder of the year. Assuming the area can be rid of the Magyar presence, Vienna seems to be back in the sphere of German domination. Several priests traveling with the army also constructed a makeshift wooden chapel in the city with the help of the soldiery; Vienna’s previous chapel was destroyed by the Magyars. A more permanent structure may be needed.

Attempts to reach the battlefield, in order to bury the dead and collect arms, met with a rude shock – not only had much of the equipment been taken already, but many of the German bodies had been cruelly mangled and defaced. Spooked by this obvious display of Magyar presence in the area, the scouts fled the scene, and the field remains empty of all but ravens and dead men. The army has not returned for fear of an ambush. Clearly, the Magyar force is still quite active in the area.

Overall, the morale of the freedmen is somewhat below average – the victory did not come without loss, and was not a decisive one. Conditions now are marginally worse than what even poorer freedmen are used to, and while the Viennese seem nice enough they don’t speak in anything intelligible to a German. The certainty that the Magyars are waiting just beyond the palisades has quietly gripped the soldiery, and the ghastly tales of the scouts from the battlefield didn’t help. The knights are somewhat more positive, glad to be taking up arms against the Magyars, though most still are chomping at the bit for action.

[appleciders]

Well, that went pretty well. I had hoped to loot the bodies, but it's not too big a deal. Yay for pavises! I suppose the next bit to deal with is the splitting of territory around Vienna. I'd like to have that added to the March of Carinithia, and I suggest that a sizeable percentage of this new conquered be given to the Church. Cyclotron, if I keep this territory as a conquest, would I be able to draw on the locals for any new troop types, or is Vienna too close for that?

Duke Arnulf of Bavaria to King Conrad I of Germany
A well fought battle, father! We have liberated the sizeable city of Vienna, and may our campaign against the heathen Magyars continue in this successful vein! A new chapel in Vienna, in addition to a percentage of the new land given to the church, might mend the rift between the Holy See and ourselves. Might I also suggest that this gift to the church might improve your chances against the archbishop in a church trial? In any case, we shall discuss these matters more fully in person this Saturday.

[Cyclotron]

The stretch of the Wachau valley and Vienna itself that you've conquered is primarily a strip of pillaged land thinly populated by impoverished Slavic and Bavarian peasants. This area would not supply you with any new troop types.

However, theoretically, the Wachau valley is quite fertile. In the present it is one of Austria's premier regions for growing wine grapes, as my photos will attest:

[Cyclotron]

Prague

From the varied rumors and reports brought by Slavic refugees from Prague, it seems that Duke Spytihnìv, convinced that his large but untrained army could not stand against the Magyars in the field, retreated to Prague itself, and held the walls. Perhaps he was trying to outlast the Magyars, or perhaps he was hoping for German reinforcements; nobody is sure. Though the Bohemians could easily defend the great walls, the Magyars never attacked, choosing instead to surround the city and keep any man from entering or leaving. After three months of a sustained siege, Spytihnìv's troops were desperate - the army of over 20,000 men, as well as the civilians who had fled to the city, quickly ran out of food, and even the stray cats of the city had already been devoured.

Suddenly, the Magyars struck camp and moved away one morning. Though Spytihnìv attempted to keep his men back, fearful of a trap, the starving peasant masses - hoping the Magyars had given up - would not listen to him, and flooded out the gates to find forage. When they had left the gates, the Magyars sprung from the forests, and slaughtered them by the thousands. The refugees who saw it say they have never seen such a terrible massacre. Duke Spytihnìv, distraught and despairing for his city, realized he now had not the troops to hold the walls, and still no food even if he did, and so surrendered to Zoltán, the Hadúr (chieftain) of the horde. Zoltán, amazingly, had mercy on the Duke and his city, and extracted from the Duke an oath of loyalty, in exchange for which Prague would be unharmed and the Duke could retain his title.

The last refugees to leave say that the Duke had begun reconstituting his army - though smaller, this new force is built from a core of his veteran Moravian troops, as well as the previously rebellious nobles and their retainers that had already joined the Magyars. Where he and the Magyars intend to strike next is unknown; for now, Zoltán and his riders winter in the environs of Prague.

[Cyclotron]

I plan to update the sheets and send out a few PMs on Saturday. In the meantime:

Hadúr Zoltán to Duke Arnulf of Bavaria
Kneel before the Fejedelem and renounce your God, or be utterly destroyed.

Archbishop Hatto of Mainz to all nobles
I am personally scandalized by these prepostorous claims made against me by my foes in Saxony - surely it should be obvious that such malefactors wish only to besmirch my good name before my countrymen. May God visit his wrath upon these fork-tongued Saxon snakes!

Emperor Alexander III to King Conrad I
His Imperial Majesty,
Emperor of the Romans,
Regent of Christ on Earth,
Sends tidings to rex germanicum Conrad I and requests that he come to an amicable arrangement with the Magyar tribes, whom the Emperor of All the Romans Alexander III Makedoniki declares as His allies in good faith, and as important to His efforts against the Bulgars, who threaten the safety of the Roman Empire.

King Rudolph II of Upper Burgundy to King Conrad I
My fellow Christian monarch,
As inheritor of my father's throne and responsibilities, I assure you that I intend to keep up our most peaceful relations. The prayers of my people are with your noble soldiers.

[appleciders]

Duke Arnulf of Bavaria to Hadúr Zoltán
Um, no.

[appleciders]

So is anything holding up those updated stats?

[Cyclotron]

Yes, my suddenly chaotic life. Please bear with me. I have the rush of work pre-spring break hanging over my head; I'll be able to attend to this soon.

[appleciders]

Ok, then, I'll go ahead and begin the plotting.

Duke Arnulf of Bavaria to King Conrad I of Germany
With the threats of Hadúr Zoltán hanging over my head, I believe the time has come to consider how best to repel his assault. Letting the Magyar forces break their charges against stone walls might be a good plan.

[appleciders]

Bavarian Orders (Complete):

I sent the Regensburg and Eppenstein levies and the Magyar Border Guard on the campaign to Vienna. Reorganize these armies into new armies: First Regiment, which will contain all the medium spearmen (1,200 medium spearmen), Second Regiment, which will contain all the archers (800 archers), and the Third Regiment, which will contain all the light spearmen and Angonmen (300 Angonmen and 200 Light Spearmen). The First Regiment will be commanded by Freiherr Visloff der Kroat, the Second by Otto von Nordgau, and the Third by Gunnulf von Villach. For those soldiers who'll be ready to join active service this turn, equip them with the bows being made at the moment and bring them into the Second Regiment. The Fourth Regiment is merely a renaming of the Salzburg Levy, (500 Light Spearmen, 200 Medium Swordsmen) which will remain in Bavaria guarding the Bohemian border.

Put 300 denarii towards finding salt deposits in the Salzburg area and building a salt mine there. I certainly hope the area has significant deposits, or I'll feel silly and be in some trouble financially, but salt would be wonderfully helpful. If there's no salt in the Salzburg area, look elsewhere, but somehow I think it's there.

Seize the land that used to belong to Luitpold von Frelsing and hold it in trust as a prize to be won by the general of mine that most distinguishes himself during the campaign against the Magyars. In the meantime, manage the land as part of my own demense.

Put an additional 100 denarii towards infrastructure, farming tools for peasants, and other generally helpful economic measures.

Put 50 denarii towards continued scouting, spying, and general information-gathering against the Magyars.

Construct 200 pavises and 200 more bows using 200 denarii from iron. Distribute the pavises amongst the troops in Vienna.

Offically shut the Bavarian/Bohemian border to immigrants. I realize I don't have the troops to really enforce this, but maybe the gesture will make a slight dent.

Encourage the Slavs already over my borders to settle on my demense. Allow them to farm on unsettled land, and even clear some of my forested land to farm. Also, send some of them to my unsettled land in Carinthia to do the same thing.

Call up two more general to fill out my three to have available, since I'm keeping the one I haven't selected ready to be called up.

[Micha]

Great update, much to be discussed! I´ll be back to my home comp at around Tuesday... Sorry if I´m delaying things..

[Cyclotron]

Well, it's good to hear I'm not the only one holding things up. I've just returned home from college; I should have time to finish the update and give Micha a PM tomorrow.

On a cool positive note, bipolarbear has informed me that he would like to take up Swabia in about a week and a half or so, so we may finally fill up all our duchies!

[Micha]

Yay! We welcome Duke Morgan Freeman of Swabia... ( ?)

[appleciders]

That's probably unavoidable . Yay for full NESes! Also Yay for updates! On the whole, it's well timed for me; the show I was involved with closed yesterday.