Second Great War: Difference between revisions

The sudden alignment of Burgundie with its First Great War allies caused alarm among Caphirian leadership, requiring the [[Ten Year Plan (Caphiria)|Ten Year Plan]] to be expanded dramatically to account for the possibility of global, rather than Occidental, war. Like with its ongoing and planned engagement with nationalists in Dericania, the expanded Ten Year Plan opened relationships between Caphiria and nationalists in [[Alshar]] and [[Audonia]], the heartland of Burgundie's overseas empire. Caphirian leaders reasoned that, if sufficiently supported, a general uprising in Alshar and Audonia could take years for Burgundie to put down, and that Burgundie would first act to preserve its empire rather than the territorial integrity of [[Cartadania]] and [[Pelaxia]]. Accordingly, Caphiria began to provide clandestine arms and funds to Alshar and Audonia beginning in [[1930]] in addition to [[Dericania]].  

Caphirian leaders felt blindsided by Burgundie's alignment in Sarpedon, requiring further corollaries to be added to the plan. Although [[Fiannria]] had not engaged with Sarpedonic geopolitics in a meaningful way, its position as the third major power within the [[Holy Levantine Empire]] merited attention in the plan. Accordingly, Caphiria began to open secret negotiations with [[Faneria]] regarding a military alliance in the event of a general war in the Occident. Faneria, who had been badly beaten in the [[Fourth Kin War]] in the 1880s, sought to regain lost territory and defeat its long time nemesis. Caphiria began to provide some funds and materials to Faneria, but by [[1931]] its resources were limited as it had obligations in Dericania, Alshar, and to its own military in rearmament.

The uprising occurred strongest in the [[Lapody|Lapodard]] speaking portions of Dericania, and by the end of April 1934 roughly two thirds of modern Lapody were in the hands of forces loyal to the Deric Republic. Pro-Imperial forces were more successful in the [[Rhotia|Rhotian]] speaking portions of Dericania in the first months of the war, resisting total state collapse in many places for several months; despite this, the uprising was strong and numerous here as well. The scale of the uprising surprised Imperial authorities, and the intended 2 April deployment of the Royal and Imperial Army was insufficient in scope to combat the entire uprising. A general mobilization was proclaimed in [[Urcea]] on 10 April. The forces immediately available and en route to Dericania were halted in western Rhotia, both to secure the border of Urcea as well as to reevaluate where forces were most needed. Burgundie would eventually require significant aid. The first of the Deric principalities to collapse was [[Hollona and Diorisia]], whose elector fled to [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]] in early May. As of late April, [[Fiannria]] was still actively involved in the distribution of arms and funds to the Republican Front.

The proclamation of a unified Deric state caused significant concern in [[Vilauristre]], causing [[Burgundie]] to issue an official proclamation denouncing the Deric Republic on the afternoon of 29 March. The proclamation did not, however, commit Burgundie to any particular course of action; though the Derians were sworn enemies of the Burgoignesc people, the nation was completely unprepared for war and traditionally maintained a very small military presence in [[Levantia]] vis a vis its overseas possessions. Despite this semi-neutral position, the relative weakness of Burgundie at the moment of the uprising as well as historic enmity led Derian militias, particularly from Lapody, to begin small incursions into eastern Burgundie on 4 April. In some places, the incursions took the form of a disciplined military occupation, but in most places it was paired with atrocities against ethnically [[Bergendii]] civilians. On 8 April, the Great Prince met with senior advisors from the [[Army of Burgundie]] who told him the small [[Army_of_Burgundie#Metropole_Forces|Metropole Forces]] would not be able to retain control of most of the country and that it would take time to redeploy its considerable colonial forces from [[Alshar]] and [[Audonia]]. Accordingly, they were pulled back to a defensive position within the [[Belrac caldera]] with [[National Gendarmerie of Burgundie|National Gendarmerie]] forces joining them, functionally conceding the northernmost part of the country to the advancing Republican Front forces. On 9 April, the Great Prince issued a formal request to Emperor [[Brian IV of Urcea|Brian VIII]] asking for Imperial forces to intervene. The Emperor granted this request and, with the approval of the [[Government of Urcea|Urcean government]], redirected [[XII Corps (Urcea)|XII Corps]] of the [[Royal and Imperial Army (Urcea)|Royal and Imperial Army]] from western Rhotia to eastern Burgundie, arriving there within a matter of days. XII Corps and the small Metropole Forces managed to solidify the defenses of the caldera and expand outward from its passes, reclaiming some of northeastern Burgundie. On 10 April, the Great Prince ordered the gradual redeployment of the [[Army_of_Burgundie#Foreign_Legion|Foreign Legion]] to Levantia, intended to be rotated out gradually in order to avoid the appearance of weakness in its colonial possessions. These redeployments were discovered by [[Daxia]]ese intelligence beginning in July 1934, and such redeployments later in the year would inaugurate the [[Second_Great_War#Burgoignesc_weakness|beginning of the Eastern Theater of the war]] in September. A general mobilization was declared in Burgundie also on 10 April. On 20 April, Urcea and Burgundie signed the Pact of the Sea of Istroya, referred to as the "Istroya Pact", which pledged common cause in this war and also allowed for later integrations of the militaries and economic apparatuses of both countries. After the war, this Pact would form the basis of the [[Levantine Union]].

Almost immediately after the beginning of fighting, it was patently obvious that many of the rebels were armed with forces manufactured in [[Caphiria]], with many even being surplus Caphirian military arms. After two weeks of debate, on 14 April the [[Government of Urcea|Urcean government]], in consultation with the Emperor and Imperial Diet, proclaimed a formal embargo of all trade goods coming in and out of the [[Holy Levantine Empire]] from Caphiria. The [[Royal Navy (Urcea)|Royal Navy]] was deployed to form a blockade around [[Dericania]] and Burgundie. Caphiria issued several formal protests, both on the grounds of disruption of legitimate trade as well as for accusations against its national honor. Notably, the embargo did not cover Caphirian traffic to [[Zaclaria]] given the official neutrality of both countries, enabling continued supply to parties who would eventually be combatants in the Eastern Theater. The Royal Navy's interdiction efforts were largely successful even as smugglers occasionally managed to continue to land crates of supplies in and around [[Alba Concordia]]. The embargo forced Caphiria to direct arms and funds to [[Faneria]], who would then direct them across the [[Vandarch]] into [[Hollona and Diorisia]]. The sudden influx of arms and resources into modern day Rhotia greatly weakened the Imperial cause there.  

The new northern supply line created an inadvertent diplomatic crisis that would slightly undermine Caphiria's plans in Levantia. Fiannrian intelligence reported, as of around 1 June 1934, that Caphirian arms and resources were flowing into its chief rival, Faneria. Fiannrian leaders understood the purpose but also were concerned that plans for another Kin War were afoot, delaying Fiannria's decision to declare independence from the Empire and halting the supply of Fiannrian arms and ammunition to Derian rebels. The Fiannrian supplies ceased not only due to the realization that Fiannria may need the Empire's continued existence in the event of war with Faneria, but also due to need for itself to rearm. Historians believe that Caphiria had no intention to spark a northern war, and that Faneria was intended purely as a pass-through; the record shows, however, that Faneria did indeed retain a significant amount of arms and ammunition intended for the Derians for itself. In light of clear Fanerian rearmament, Fiannria pivoted to a state of declared neutrality and that it would not recognize the Deric Republic "unless so recognized by either the Holy Levantine Empire generally or Urcea and Burgundie specifically", but also that it would not render aid to the Empire. These maneuvers effectively ended Fiannrian support for the Derian cause and laid the groundwork for the eventual opening of the northern theater of the war.

Early fall 1934 saw the war expand, first to the detriment of allied forces with the opening of a theater in [[Alshar]] and [[Audonia]] in late September 1934. However, closer to the current theater of fighting, two major participants would enter the war. In the summer, [[Fiannria]] adopted a position characterized by historians as a "nervous neutrality", backing away from its previous support for Derian rebels while keeping Urcea, Burgundie, and the Holy Levantine Empire at arms length. Meanwhile, [[Faneria]] had been mobilizing in secret, partly using arms and supplies from [[Caphiria]] intended for the Derians. Years earlier, Caphiria and Faneria had concluded a secret alliance in the event of Fiannrian intervention in Dericania, an agreement Faneria had incorrectly read to mean a "{{wp|Blank_cheque#In_politics|blank check}}". Given Fiannria's diplomatic isolation, it believed that Imperial forces, who were also otherwise distracted, would not intervene in the event of a war between Faneria and Fiannria. Additionally, Fanerian nationalists had attributed the nation's loss in the [[Fourth Kin War]] as a unique weakness of the nation's ruling monarchy. Accordingly, by October 1934, it appeared the perfect window of opportunity had arisen. Without declaring war, on the morning of 13 October 1934, Fanerian forces crossed the border and launched a surprise invasion of Fiannria. The Fiannrians were caught completely by surprise with many of their border forces routed or encircled and subsequently captured. The "Fifth Kin War" had begun.  

The ramifications for the invasion were significant. The Fanerian ambassador was personally summoned to meet with Caphirian leader [[Galdo Bertocca]] and [[Magasevetus]] on the evening of 13 October, and according to eye witnesses the ambassador was lambasted by both men for nearly four hours. While Caphiria was confident that Faneria could defeat Fiannria alone, the preemptive invasion of the Fanerians would likely have the effect of unifying, rather than further dividing, the large powers within the Holy Levantine Empire. These fears came true nearly immediately on 15 October, when Fiannrian officials submitted a request to [[Emperor of the Levantines|Emperor]] [[Brian IV of Urcea|Brian VIII]] for protection and Urcean intervention. The Emperor and Urcean leaders held an all day conference with Burgoignesc officials on 16 October and reluctantly agreed to offer the support to Fiannria, and the latter signed an agreement with Urcea and Burgundie jointly on 17 October. Fiannria refused to sign the more deeply integrated Istroya Pact, instead opting for a looser military alliance. The Tripartite Agreement would form the basis for the [[Levantia and Odoneru Treaty Association]] that would be signed in the coming years. Urcea, Burgundie, and Fiannria jointly declared war on Faneria on 17 October. Fanerian leaders expected Caphiria to honor their secret alliance, and were extremely disappointed to learn that Caphiria would not join the conflict for several months.

Although the war had settled into static lines in [[Dericania]] by the end of December, the situation would not remain static for long. The sudden [[Second_Great_War#Caphiria_makes_its_move|entrance of Caphiria into the war]] on 17 January required a withdrawal of six of Urcea's fifteen deployed corps in Burgundie and Dericania as of the middle of January, greatly weakening the pro-Imperial forces in the region. The diversion of forces led to both conscription in Urcea as well as a shift in focus to more qualitative, rather than quantitative, military approaches for the first half of [[1935]]. The [[1st Armored Division (Urcea)|1st Armored Division]], attached to [[XII Corps (Urcea)|XII Corps]] for defense of Burgundie, was once again shifted north to modern day northwestern Lapody, where the Derian nationalists had no real answer for its offensive and counteroffensive capabilities.

The invasion of Lariana would also have unintended consequences on the eastern theater of the conflict. Urcea had been preparing a three-corps sized Oriental Expeditionary Force (OEF) at the request of [[Burgundie]] to help provide enough manpower across [[Alshar]] and [[Audonia]] in order to allow the Burgoignesc to go over into the offensive. The OEF was officially canceled on 6 February and instead slated to redeploy to Urlazio. In order to meet the needs of the Burgoignesc, however, Urcean diplomats [[Second_Great_War#Fiannria_and_Urcea_swap_places|reached a novel solution]]. Urcea induced [[Fiannria]] to deploy its garrison forces in [[Soirwind]], which were considerable, in support of Burgundie. The influx of Fiannrian manpower by March would stabilize the far eastern front.

In late winter and early spring, the nationalists waged a large scale offensive in mid-March as the mud began to dry. Earlier Imperial successes had led to extensive and often exposed lines running from the landward facing side of Burgundie to the Finnan border. By 20 March 1935, Corcra sat at the tip of the largest Imperial salient. Several large skirmishes across the lines on 21-22 March convinced senior Imperial generals that the forces there were likely about to be cut off. The political importance of holding the city, the nominal seat of the Empire, required the decision to withdraw by approved by the Emperor himself. Though the [[Imperial Diet]], Imperial [[Cort_de_Antics#Armory_College|Armory College]], and most other institutions and offices of the Empire had been evacuated to [[Urcea]] by January 1935 ahead of the Republican Front's winter offensive, it still held significant symbolic value to the war effort and maintenance of the Empire. Emperor [[Brian IV of Urcea|Brian VIII]] thus hesitated until the early morning hours of 23 March to consent to issue the order; Imperial forces consequently struggled to escape the salient and only did so barely. On 25 March, Republican Front forces entered Corcra to applauding crowds. The statue of the Emperor outside the Imperial Palace was smashed, though Republican Front forces successfully managed to prevent wider looting of the Palace's "Derian national treasures."

As of 2 January [[1935]], it was evident to leadership in [[Caphiria]] that the [[Ten Year Plan (Caphiria)|Ten Year Plan]] was proceeding more or less exactly as envisioned. The [[Urcea]]n [[Royal and Imperial Army (Urcea)|Royal and Imperial Army]] was nearly entirely tied down in [[Dericania]] putting down the [[Deric Republic|Deric Republican revolution]] there. Its primary allies, [[Fiannria]] and [[Burgundie]], both faced existential threats in [[Levantia]] and abroad. It appeared the moment had arrived to execute the primary thrust of the Plan, the invasion of [[Lariana]]. Caphirian forces had been preparing for some time in [[Urlazio]] and were ready to begin an offensive. The decision to launch said offensive was ultimately tied up in several assumptions. At this point in the fighting, Caphirian leaders viewed it as basically assured that Urcea would not fight to reclaim Lariana if it were overrun. Additionally, though the Ten Year Plan had accounted for them being included in the war, Caphiria did not believe [[Cartadania]] and [[Pelaxia]] would intervene on behalf of the allies. The reasons for this are hotly debated among historians and unclear in correspondence and surviving official documents from the time, but it appears that both [[Galdo Bertocca]] and [[Magasevetus]] believed that the greatly weakened Burgundie presented too much of a risk to Cartadania and Pelaxia. Additionally, it seems that Caphirian intelligence had determined neither nation were mobilizing despite officially being at war in [[Alshar]] and [[Audonia]] with [[Daxia]], suggesting that their political and social will to support Burgundie was lukewarm at best. Accordingly, Caphiria deviated from the Ten Year Plan and deployed many forces intended to protect its western border in Urlazio instead, hoping that the additional concentration of forces would allow Lariana to be overrun quickly.

With its forces in place and decisions made, Caphiria formally declared war on the Kingdom of [[Lariana]] - but not [[Urcea]] - on 17 January 1935, beginning its invasion the same day. This declaration was considered a diplomatic ruse in order to portray Urcea and Burgundie, who would clearly declare war on Caphiria in response, as the aggressors in the coming conflict. Urcea and Burgundie obliged on 18 January, and Caphiria declared war on both on 20 January. The entrance of Caphiria into the conflict precipitated the beginning of commitment to total war and mass mobilization in Urcea, including conscription; these measures had been implemented in Burgundie a month previously. After significant internal political debate, [[Cartadania]] and [[Pelaxia]] jointly declared war on Caphiria on 25 January, honoring their treaty obligations. This declaration caught Caphiria by surprise, requiring the offensive operations in Lariana to halt after a week as portions of its offensive force would be diverted to Caphiria's western border, precipitating a total reorganization of forces. On 27 January, [[Vachena]] joined Caphiria and declared war on all the allies, expanding the northwestern front of the war in Sarpedon.

Due to the [[Second_Great_War#Burgundie_falters|ongoing military crisis]] in [[Burgundie]] beginning with the general Derian uprising in spring [[1934]], Burgundie required large numbers of men redeployed to Levantia. These redeployments, staged in such a way as to appear to be cycling men and arms out for normal duty, managed to evade detection until July 1934, when [[Daxia]]ese intelligence services managed to deduce that garrisons throughout Burgoignesc eastern possessions were drastically reduced. At the 2 August meeting of the Nationalist Association of the Orient leaders, the Daxian delegates presented their findings and argued that it was the perfect time to strike, especially given the divided attention of the Burgoignesc. The Association Council reached a split decision, with the Council resolving to reinvestigate the matter next month to see how the situation in Dericania unfolded. Undeterred, the Daxian government informed [[Venceia]] that the Council had, in fact, resolved to go to war, and that urgent supplies of arms and money were required. Throughout August, large shipments arrived in [[Zaclaria]] from [[Caphiria]] and were distributed among the various parts of the Association by Daxian agents, with a plurality of resources being taken by the Daxian themselves. On 20 August, the Daxian government determined to launch a secret program of mobilization, as the government decided it would go to war against Burgundie alone if the Council refused.  

Although stretched thin on land, the complete lack of a Derian naval force combined with the supremacy of the [[Urcea]]n [[Royal Navy (Urcea)|Royal Navy]] in and around [[Levantia]] ensured that [[Burgundie]] had a plethora of naval assets to dispose of by the time war in the east broke out in September 1934. Accordingly, a massive share of Burgundie's naval forces were diverted from the Occident and locations abroad to the [[Middle seas region]], with a portion of those committed to keeping sea lanes between [[Levantia]] and the east open for both commerce and military purposes. By late October 1934, sufficient operational strength had been mustered to allow the [[Navy of Burgundie]] to begin offensive operations in various places, as well as stationing small flotillas around its coastal strongpoints to provide heavy artillery support. A major portion of the navy's offensive capacity were sent in the first week of November to [[Ayermer]], where it destroyed a smaller force of [[Daxia]]ese ships and lifted the month-long siege of the island. On 14 November, a Daxian defeated a Burgoignesc force to a draw near Salarive, requiring additional ships to move to the south Middle seas area to ward off the Daxian navy. For the remainder of 1934 and early 1935, the Daxian and Burgoignesc navies largely skirmished without a decisive engagement. The arrival of [[Royal Navy (Urcea)|Royal Navy]] ships at [[Antilles]] plus additional Urcean ships guarding the sea lanes gradually allowed the Navy of Burgundie to shift more of its ships to the combat theater.

The formal entrance of [[Second_Great_War#Caphiria_makes_its_move|Caphiria into the war]] on 17 and 18 January 1935 necessarily invited action against [[Zaclaria]] by allied forces, although in the initial phase of the conflict the Caphirian protectorate attempted to remain neutral. The end of Caphiric neutrality allowed both the [[Navy of Burgundie]] and [[Urcea]]n [[Royal Navy (Urcea)|Royal Navy]] to begin interdicting Caphirian trade and supply to the east, seriously disrupting the flow of arms and materiel to the Nationalist Association. Many of these ships were flagged as Zaclarian, and the sudden seizure and occasional sinking of Zaclarian-flagged ships induced the country to issue several formal diplomatic objections before eventually declaring war on Urcea and Burgundie on 10 February 1935.  

Zaclaria entering the eastern war essentially amounted to a Caphirian eastern escalation of the conflict. Caphirian military assets stationed in Zaclaria, as well as the native [[Zaclaria#Military|Zaclarian military]] greatly expanded [[Audonia#Daria|Daria]] as a theater of conflict. Together with belligerent [[Umardwal#Modern_period|Umardwal]] which recently seized a Burgoignesc possession, the Caphiro-Zaclarian forces posed a serious threat both to Burgoignesc interests in nominally neutral [[Bulkh]] as well as the Burgoignesc islands of [[Chaukira]]. Despite Daria becoming a warzone, the entrance of Caphiria and Zaclaria into this theater became a net positive for Burgundie, as it induced Urcea to commit a significantly larger portion of the [[Royal Navy (Urcea)|Royal Navy]] to the eastern theater of the war. By late February 1935, the allies established naval supremacy in the sea lanes between east and west. The large Levantine naval presence in the east, although largely comprised of older ships, required the [[Daxia]]ese navy to end its skirmish policy, instead shifting to a policy of opportunistic engagement with select segments of the Levantine navies.