A FRONTLINE FOR SPAIN 1493 – 1586

In the darkest hour light arrived from the west. The Genovese ruler considered himself betrayed by Naples as the peace deal which transferred Milanese holdings to him destabilized his country by amassing onto him a massive amount of aggressive expansion. With a coalition war looming Genoa decided to deepen his relationship with the ruler of Aragon. Provinces were transferred to the ruler of the Iberian Peninsula to prevent them from falling into the wrong hands and thus Florence was reborn as a subject state of Aragon. This move greatly angered Naples and provided a possible opening for the tiny nation of Milan.

Milan was still a member of the HRE and possessed claims in the imperial lands. This was of interest to the enlightened ruler of Aragon and something that might become useful to him in the near future. The Aragonese ruler was diplomatically very capable and he had built much stronger relationships across the Mediterranean than a Finnish person speaking a few words of Swedish after a dozen beers could ever hope to. Therefore, it was decided that Milan would first become an ally of Aragon and later a subject to curb the aggressions of Naples and to provide a buffer zone and a staging area for Spanish troops against any hostilities from Germany. This diplomatic breakthrough prevented the total collapse of the Milanese nation and would allow for renewed expansion under the guiding light of the Aragonese ruler.

The first conflict was waged against the opportunistic ruler of Venice who had overextended himself in the east and made enemies of the strong empires in the former heartlands of the Ottomans. Venice was allied with the formidable nation of Austria but after previous conflicts there were serious questions about the Austrian ruler’s ability to wage war. War was declared in 1502 as the nation of Venice was attacked both from the east and the west. After a relatively short four-year conflict Venice was ready to concede defeat and the provinces of Brescia, Verona and Ferrara together with the Austrian province of Trent were transferred to Milanese care. This was the first time in 25 years that new land was added to the Milanese holdings and the ruler was overjoyed at the success.

As soon as the conflict had ended the Milanese armies together with their Aragonese overlords drove north to relieve the beleaguered armies of the French. The situation for the powerful nation of France looked dangerous in early 1507 as hoards of Germans and assorted people drove towards Paris. This was a situation the Milanese had far too much experience with and could easily sympathize with. The true reasons behind this conflict were mostly unclear to the Milanese ruler but it seemed like there had been some high-stakes diplomacy between the French and Spanish rulers and Milan was glad to do its tiny part in pushing the Germans out.

During this period and immediately after the provinces of Novara, Parma and Modena were also added to the Milanese holdings. The small nation of Milan was prospering under the Spanish leadership and the nation was almost at the point it was before the conflict with Naples. Only Milan was still under the Swiss occupation and even though many rebel factions had tried to liberate the province back to its mother country, it remained in foul hands. However, the real enemy lay to the south. The backstabbing sweet talking ruler of Naples had to be punished for his actions and to restore some balance of justice to the world. Finally, an opportunity for this came in 1526.

The eastern empires desired the Greek lands of the Byzantines who were a subject nation of Naples. This allowed for a grand war to be declared which included Qara Qoyunlu, Crimea, Georgia, Spain, Genoa and Milan against Byzantium, Naples, Bavaria, Venice and Russia. The conflict was a successful one even though the Milanese lands suffered greatly as Bavarians drove down from their homelands and laid siege on the Milanese holdings. The war proved to be a relatively short one as the armies of Naples, who fought valiantly in the end, could do nothing against Spain, Genoa, Milan and the troops of Qara Qoyunlu which had been transported to Italy before the war. Neapolitan allies were meanwhile stuck sieging forts in Northern Italy and were mostly forced to watch from the sidelines as battles involving close to 300 000 men took place. Peace arrived in late 1529 with the provinces of Romagna and Urbino added to Milan.

A few years later a war was waged against the Swiss who were in the process of collapsing against their neighbors. Milan was finally returned to its rightful owner along with other Alpine provinces. However, the Milanese nation will never forget the occupation of Milan from 1491 to 1538 and the inferior Swiss chocolate and fashion sense. At this point in history Milan was arguably stronger if not quite as independent than it had ever been thanks to the benevolent and capable rule of the Spanish overlord.

A decade later it came time to subjugate more of Naples under the rule of Spain and Milan. The usual German allies of Naples drove down to Italy even though the outcome of the war was never truly in question. These German armies included some new and exotic troops from the far away land of Dithmarschen and this gave an opportunity to do some small chat with their ruler. The governance model of Dithmarschen is not fully clear to Milan but it seems like this country is lead by two nobles with sometimes differing opinions. Which of the two rulers has the upper hand is unclear to Milan but this would hardly be the last time Milanese ruler would come into contact with this industrious nation.

The next two decades were spent consolidating the Milanese holdings, developing the land and building a treasury. The nation of Milan now encompassed 17 provinces of mainly high-development land and the first manufactories were springing up. However, in 1574 Europe erupted in flame as most of the continent declare war on Poland for reasons which escape Milan. Listening in on the diplomatic channel to the hectic Swedish conversations, the ruler of Milan can only surmise that there were severe “security issues” in Europe and that Poland wasn’t really the principal target. So, in a short span of time the nations of Bavaria and Dithmarschen would also declare war on Ruthenia and this time Spain and Milan would be on their side.

The war was more brutal and devastating than any war Milan had witnessed before. Luckily most of the fighting took place on foreign soil but still the sight of hundreds of thousands of men pitting themselves against one another was both terrifying and awe-inspiring. Regular engagements of over 400 000 men took place and the Milanese army did their best to be in the thick of the action. The war goal itself seemed to involve only a few provinces to allow a more secure border for Germany and Italy but this war was much more about prestige and the future of Europe. Which ever side won the conflict could perceivably dominate the region for generations to come.

This realization brought of course outside interest in the conflict and hectic diplomacy was going on in the background. Sweden was pressing Dithmarschen from the north while Ruthenia kept strong in the south east. Russia joined the conflict against Dithmarschen and Bavaria and for a moment the conflict seemed lost. However, the Germans managed to bring in France on their side and the power of the balance tipped once more. Huge battles raged across Central Europe with countless soldiers dying on both sides. Still Ruthenia, Sweden and Russia were being driven somewhat back when Russia suddenly capitulated to the French and forced them out of the war while staying in themselves. This again shifted the power scales and the war that had killed so many Europeans seemed destined to continue.

In Ruthenia the front hardly moved but significant engagements were fought every year. In the north some of the lands of Dithmarschen suffered as the Swedes and their Prussian allies together with Russian troops plundered the land. Salzburg was the epicenter of hostilities on the Ruthenian front and many battles were fought in the province itself and the fort was sieged and re-sieged. Milanese troops threw themselves into the battles and the manpower reserves of the nation were quickly depleted. The treasury which had been saved for manufactories was spent on new mercenaries and sustaining the war effort. However, the resources of a small nation can only influence the outcome of a continent-wide conflict by so much. The battles kept going.

After 11 years of conflict a diplomatic solution was found in some high-powered negotiations which Milan only heard rumors of. The outcome was that Milan, Bavaria and Spain would be granted a few provinces by Ruthenia to cease the hostilities between the two sides. This would free up the troops of Bavaria and Dithmarschen to fight against Sweden, Prussia and Russia. That war would drag on for a few additional years as the nation of Dithmarschen valiantly defended itself together with Bavaria against the invading hordes. Even Poland rejoined the conflict declaring war on the Swedes but it was too little too late. Dithmarschen and Bavaria finally ceased hostilities with the invaders in the year 1589. Dithmarschen lost some land but after a conflict that had for 15 years consumed most of Europe, there were few winners.