Bavarian News 1913

[Kaiser Kirk]

December 13th, 1912
With yesterdays passing of Princeregent Luitpold after a long illness, a ripple of shock passed through the Kingdom. The Princeregent has ruled for the past 26 years, and for many is the only ruler they have known.

The Princeregent ruled first in the name his nephew  King Ludwig, and then in the name of the Kings brother and successor King Otto.  In 1886 the Ministers of King Ludwig procuring a proclamation of insanity.  The tragic and mysterious death of King Ludwig immediately thereafter placed his brother, King Otto, on the throne. King Otto was declared legally insane in 1875, 11 years before his ascension.

Princeregent Luitpold's years have been known as the Prinzregentenjahre and a flowering of art and culture in Bavaria. Princeregent Luitpold reign was known as a relatively liberal one.  After the events of 1906, the Princeregent fell ill, and Bavaria turned inward focused on welcoming the peoples of her recovered territories. 

With the Princeregent Luitpolds passing, his son Prince Lugwig becomes Princeregent for King Otto. Princeregent Lugwig is well known for his interest in agricultural pursuits.
Princeregent Lugwig and his wife, Archduches Maria-Theresa of Austria-Este have 13 children.  Some have called for the deposing King Otto and Prince Lugwig assuming the throne, but with Legislature not currently in session, no bill to that effect may be introduced.

Princeregent Lugwig has made it known that the title of Elector will transferred to his brother Leopold. The Princeregent has appointed Georg von Hertling as Prime Minister. Herr Hertling is leader of the largest party in the Landstag, and a former professor of Philosophy.

January 1st, 1913

A wintery pass along the Swiss-Italian border.

A lonely guardshack stands beside a wrought iron gate barring passage along the road.
An elderly man, nattly dressed in the uniform of the Border Guard wades through the snow to the guard shack. Taking a shovel, he laboriously clears the drifts from the gates path and swings them open.  Stopping to rest, he unstoppers a hip flask and drains its contents. Mustering his strength, he repeats the feat with a second flask. Invigorated, he returns to the guard shack, pausing to flip the sign from "Closed" to "Open" .

January 1st, 1913
New Years Ball, Nymphenburg

The PrinceRegent addressed the assemblage with an impromptu speech.

My Countrymen, the past years have seen our Kingdom shuttered from the world, locked in a wintery isolation of our own creation. In the legacy of 1906 we saw bitter foes in all directions, plotting to destroy our realm. The treaties of 1909 were the beginning of the thaw, as our largest neighbors recognized our rights. The past years have seen the days grow longer as the light of prosperity rose over our peaceful and prosperous land. The long winter has claimed the life of our prince regent as its toll, but the snows have gone, and spring has come to our land.

Now is the time to tend to our garden, to make sure that all the peoples of our realm, not just those of German descent, are welcomed and safe in their homes. With care we may find the blasted lands around us can be tended and become a source of great bounty. Now is time to look to the far fields for plowing to sow the future of our land, to find the far orchards to deliver the low hanging fruit.   However we must not neglect our own garden, not only to weed out the undesirables, but more importantly to ensure that the flowers, vegetables and grapes all thrive in unison.

Looking pleased with himself, the PrinceRegent departed. 

Onlookers lapsed into a quite murmur of confused discussion, trying to establish what the PrinceRegent actually was talking about. Several voiced concerns that perhaps the madness that afflicted Ludwig and Otto was afflicting other members of the family.

February 1st, 1913
Prime Minister Hertling released a statement to the press today:
The past decades have seen the Kingdom detached from the greater world, isolated by choice. The world moves by without us, and the time has now come to reach out to the world and revitalize our relations with other nations. Noblesse oblige demands that our Kingdom reach out to others. 

As such we are including in this years budget a provision for Foreign Aid.   The new Nation of Greece, torn from the Ottomans, and has been traumatized by the war. Greece is the ancient seat of our civilization, the home of Philosophy, a nation where our largess will be of merit in establishing a viable independent realm. We will be looking as well at other opportunities to extend our goodwill to others.

[The Rock Doctor]

8 July 1913

The Bavarian Minister for Foreign Affairs receives the following letter from a countryman abroad:

Dear Minister,

I have been travelling in and around the city of Accra in recent months, looking at the prospects of developing cocoa plantations here.  I have had occasion to meet with a number of other gentlemen from the Kingdom engaged in much the same activity.

This past Tuesday, I had occasion to meet with an advisor to Takye Obilie, the ruler of Accra, in the Gold Coast of Nigeria.  Herr Akuofo and his colleagues have noticed the proliferation of Bavarian entrepenuers in the region, and have watched as we examine potential investment opportunities here. 

Herr Akuofo mentioned that a government delegation from overseas visited this area several years back, examining business opportunities, but never followed up.  There was some disappointment in Accra about this, as it was thought that the nominal central government in Lagos had done something to deter these foreigners from investing in the local economy. 

Herr Akuofo expressed the view that Accra sees economic development as a priority not shared by the central government.  To this end, he asked whether I thought the Kingdom would establish a diplomatic presence in Accra, with an eye towards enticing Bavarian investments here.  Given that Accra is only a semi-autonomous portion of Nigeria, I replied that the Kingdom might contemplate establishment of a Consulate here, as a means of complementing our consulate in Lagos, and recommended that he write to yourself for this purpose.

From my own perspective, there are substantial agricultural and perhaps mineral resource opportunities in this region.  Establishing an early position here could be profitable for the Kingdom, provided that care is taken not to disrupt the relationship between Accra and Lagos.

Sincerely,

August Pfannkuch, President
Pfannkuch Imports

[Kaiser Kirk]

The Bavarian news...short form[/b]

Spring

Prinzregent Lugwig departed Munich today by railroad, riding in the royal coach. Accompanying him on the trip are Cardinals von Stammler and von Bettinger. The Cardinals have been called to Rome for the Papal Conclave.  Prinzregent Lugwig, a devout man, has chosen to accompany them and hopes to be among the first to pay his respects to the new Pope.

The Trade Minister has announced a deal with the United Norman Kingdoms whereby they will provide technical assistance in some fields in exchange for subsidized Bavarian naval construction on their behalf (1)

The Foreign Minister departed today for a trip to Rome.

Summer

The Foreign Minister and Trade Minister departed today for Arnhem, in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.  The Ministers shall be discussing matters regarding the Rhineland with representatives of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the East Sea Confederation.
The Parliament voted to continue foreign aid efforts to assist the peoples of war torn Greece, as well as efforts to expand trade in certain Rumanian and overseas markets.

The Naval Ministry announced the promotion of Captain Franz Hipper to Kommodore in operational command of the Bavarian navy.

The Bavarian(3) Landtag voted today to depose King Otto and appoint King Lugwig. Prinzregent Lugwig rejected the proposal. The Prinzregent stated that the King rules by right as the guardian of the people, and not at the leisure of the parliament.

The Prinzregent continued by saying that in ancient times Kings of many states were chosen by electors, and it is to a College of Electors that such a weighty decision should be referred. The Prinzregent referred to the fact that for over 800 years a College of Electors functioned, and that Pope Urban IV recognized that by immemorial custom seven princes had the right to elect the King. In 1806 there were, at last count, 10 electors. Of these, seven (4) occur within the bounds of Greater Bavaria and Switzerland. Ancient tradition would recognize the rights of these seven in matters of this sort. New Electors should be added to recognize Tyrol-Firule, Schwiez and Schliesen.

Fall
The Greater Bavarian Senate ratified an amendment recognizing a modern College of Electors.  The traditional Electors of the Holy Roman Empire form the core of the body, but it has been expanded to include a separate Elector for Rhine Palantine, a Protestant Elector, Electors for Tyrol-Firule, Schwiez,  and Schliesen, bringing the total to 12.  Some note that control of Bavaria, Palantine, Tyrol - Firule grants the Wittelsbachs three Electorships, but the lower house is expected to confirm the bill.

Prince Leopold and his family, accompanied by their nieces Helmtrud Marie Amalie, Princess of Bavaria  and Gundelinde Maria Josepha will be touring Italia. The family have departed by rail in the royal coach.  They are expected to visit Venice, Genoa and Rome prior to ending  their tour in Naples visiting the Princes niece,  Princess Maria and her husband Prince Ferdinand, Duke of Calabria.

The Ministry of War announced a series of minor alterations in deployments, altering the stationing of Corps from those established in 1908. (2)

The Foreign Minister left today for a conference with representatives of the Netherlands and the East Sea Confederation.

Winter

The Foreign Minister and Prince Leopold have departed for Rome to participate in talks.

The College of Electors has voted to Depose Prince Otto.  Prince Otto was declared legally insane in 1876 and has been found unfit to rule. His cousin, Prince Lugwig is next in line to the throne.

The College of Electors has declared Prince Lugwig to be King Lugwig III of Greater Bavaria and Switzerland.

The Foreign Ministry has announced that, in light of expanding trade opportunities, a new consulate will be opened in Afrika, in the city of Accra. The consulate will compliment the diplomatic personal already present in Lagos, and directly interface with our merchant community in Accra.

The Ministry of War announced the intention of establishing a localized Landwehr based in each Duchy.  The exigencies of 1906 resulted in regiments from different lands being Brigaded together and deployed to far reaches of the Kingdom, in departure from the normal practice.  This pattern has persisted to the current day.  The new Landwehr will return to the pattern of troops living in garrison among the people from which they are drawn, which is expected to make the Landwehr a more attractive posting for draftees.

At a Christmas coronation, Prince Lugwig was formally raised to King Lugwig III of Greater Bavaria and Switzerland. Cardinal von Stammler of Luzerne presided.  In celebration, the time between Christmas and New Years has been declared a holiday.

(1) a way of presenting the Tech for Naval materials deal Blooded and I made.

(2) HY2 1913 is when I got my map sorted out and figured out deployments. Notable changes were No corps in Basel (per treaty) or in Saxon-Arnhalt (East Sea Confed), a few more in Saxony/Silesia, and removal of a Corps from Treviso on the Italian border.

(3) This would be the parliament of the Principality of Bavaria, not the legislative body of the Kingdom of Greater Bavaria and Switzerland.

(4) the seven being.
Duke of Saxony
Duke of Bavaria and Count Palantine of the Rhine
Spiritual Elector of Regensberg
Duke of Wurttemberg
Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel
Margrave of Baden
Duke of Salzburg/Wurzburg.