Blutland
1910
Foulois Accord
After the recent actions of the Tyro-Antari government against the Estalians on the small chain of Islands known as the Koringas Islands, discussion over who should own the predominantly Estalian Islands was brought into question. With an invitation to the Foulois Accords King Arnold Von Titanus called a meeting with a group of foreign advisors on the position that they should take.
Thirty six of the fifty possible advisors made way into the council room, it was not entirely uncommon for members to be missing. “Greetings gentlemen, I have called this meeting to discuss our current position in the Foulois Accord. Two of our rivals have been interlocked into a conflict over the Koringas and thus are seeking a diplomatic solution to the issue. Seeking neither of our potential enemies getting too strong the in the region I am seeking potential solutions to the problem at hand.”
An older gentleman and former General in the Blutlander Army during the war of Seven Kings spoke up “My lord, with the utmost respect I would rather die than see the damned Tyrians gain a single ounce of territory after so long oppressing our peoples. I say let the Estalians be ruled by Estalians like so many Blutlanders asked for nearly ten years ago.” Many shouted in agreement. The vulgar insults towards the Tyrians muffled by the shouts of support for the idea.
Somewhat controversially another man spoke up, a noble from the north from what was once known as the Duchy of Feuer, named Nikolaus Berkel, a former general for the Tyro-Antari who gained recognition for having his men turn on Duke Christoph III during the battle of Schwarz Bridge, thus earning a place as a high ranking noblemen within the Blutlander court once the war was over. “While I feel sympathy for the Estalians, they themselves do not hold Blutland in high recognition either, should we really be so quick to concede the entire Island to them? I say we split it between our two foes possibly turning them on eachother rather than ourselves.” Nods of recognition to the idea was given, however many advisors were displeased with the idea.
“So we let the Tyro-Antarians simply waltz into whatever land they please and claim it as their own? At this rate we might as well cede the entire kingdom of them as well. Not a single inch. That is what we were told during the war. Do you understand the meaning of those words Mr.Berkel? It means we don’t let give a damn inch of land to the Tyrians even if it means every last one of us lay dead on the ground. I refuse to accept giving them anything.” Victor Von Klienelseut shouted, cousin of the former king of Klienelseut, Duke Eduard II, he fought alongside his men on the battlefield as an enlisted infantryman. Not only did it help boost morale, but the prestige of his family house as well.
King Arnold Von Titanus, had given thorough thought on both sides of the argument presented. “While I do not like the rather distasteful attitude towards our nation by our cousins in the east I do feel that it would only be hippocritical of our people to turn our backs on the voice of the Estalians living in the Koringas Islands. Thus I shall propose that we send our diplomates with the intention of supporting the Estalians and whatever solution they bring. We do not want to sound too aggressive if the Estalians themselves do not wish to take the Island under their banner, but if they so chose then we shall support them in every way possible.”
Some grumbles could be heard in the council chamber, however many left with stern nods of approval. The king himself was still not entirely sure if this was the correct course of action, however he felt that it stood as a testament of his people's faith in their right to exist as a single unified people and their ambitions to fully liberate those still under Tyro-Antari rule and refer to themselves as citizens of Blutland.
Several hours after the council meeting was held, King Arnold von Titanus had selected five diplomats to travel to the Foulois Accord in his name under the conditions of working with the Estalians. The first diplomat was Klaus Ritschel, a rather young gentlemen at the age of twenty nine he had served in the 10th Blutlander Artillery Regiment during the war and had made a name for himself in politics working as a foreign diplomat and helping establish ties with foreign nations when Blutland officially announced its unionification. Wolf Schau was an easy second choice, easily the most experienced of the five he had severed as a diplomatic envoy for the Duchy of Vergesen to the Kingdom of Siedort when asking for assistance against the Tyrians, though he holds no anger towards them directly. Next was Roman Hettinger, a gentlemen raised by a small yet wealthy family in what was once known as the Kingdom of Klieneleut he sported a rather extravagant uniform and top hat, a man whose style matched his way with words. Peter Fleischmann was selected due to his close friendship with King Arnold von Titanus’ cousin Woldemar von Mummert, not truly being that outstanding in the world of politics but he certainly knew people in high places. Lastly was Hinrich Schantz, a rather old gentleman who once served as an advisor for King Arnold von Titanus before the unification of Blutland, he had thus began his service as a diplomat shortly after the war.
King Arnold discuss with Council over Koringas Islands, March 13th 1910
Fledgling Navy
After the war of seven kings the Blutland navy was lackluster to say the least, consisting mostly of out of date ironclads, commerce raiders, and other out of date technology, reconstruction of the once grand coalition fleet has begun. After years of budget delays due to rebuilding the war torn north, the king has decided the time has begun to focus on the country's military needs as well. One of the first ships of many to be built include the Blutlandia, a top of the line dreadnought expected to be the first of many ships to help protect anything from Blutland’s coasts to its overseas interests.
The planned construction of the Blutlandia had begun sometime last year, and is expected to be fully operational by the summer of 1910 alongside a single light cruiser, the Totermaan, and four destroyers, the Kleinerjunge, the Liebesmaschine, the Grobershlag, and the Herzog. Mike Schulz, future captain of the Blutlandia was quoted saying “The construction of the Blutlandia is the first step towards establishing Blutland as a world power.”
Mike Spitzer of the Spitzer and Franz Shipping has also stated “Me and Stephan couldn’t be happier working with our king to construct a fleet comparable to our cousins to the East. My son fought and died fighting for the freedom of Blutland and I feel as though this is also my way of honoring him.” Our reporters were unfortunately unable to interview Stephan Franz on his opinion of the move, however reports say that he couldn’t be happier with the current contract set up between their company and Blutland.
Blutlandia begins construction, 1909
Terrorists executed
On March 16th 14:00 Centran Standard, a man named Laurenz Katzen was arrested after holding a group of nearly forty people hostage at a train station and killing three security guards on duty. The man claimed to be the voice of the revolution and that the day marked the end of “corrupt and capitalistic society”. After an hour of demanding the people join him in revolution and calling for the death of King Arnold von Titanus police stormed the building.
Unfortunately during the ensuing firefight the man had killed nearly ten hostages before finally being captured. The next day on March 17th 8:00 marked the time when Katzen was hauled out of his small prison. According to eyewitness reports he was severely bruised and missing an eye, shortly before being blindfold, put up against a wall, and executed on the spot.
Some have argued that he should have been given a trial as a citizen of Blutland, and that the execution was a violation of his rights, however Captain Niko Wittgenstein, the police captain in charge of his execution, stated “According to Blutlandic law an enemy of the state is to be executed without trial or jury. The man called for the head of our King and those who serve him, he couldn’t have fit the bill better.” This did not stop the ensuing protest of nearly twenty people, however police were able to control the situation and disperse the crowd.
Image of Katzen’s execution, March 17th 1910
Colonial Garrison increased
After recent debate over increasing the already substantial garrison of men in the Serranthian colony, King Arnold von Titanus has issued a command to almost double its size. An increase from the rather substantial 50,000 men to nearly 100,000 men stationed within the colony. He claimed that the territory was “simply too large to have such a meager force defending it, and with Estalians, Zellonians, and Tyro-Antarians breathing down our back looking for a slice of the pie we can not trust to keep such a small force there.”
Some have argued that this is a rather aggressive act by the nation to establish its control over the native populations of Serranthia, however King Arnold von Titanus did not make a comment in regards to the issue.
King Arnold von Titanus, 1910
