1917 Bavarian News

[Kaiser Kirk]

The Katowice Kourier
December 28th, 1917

Earlier this month, with a quiet border and gentle snows, the Count gave the majority of the border guards leave during the winter holidays.  This appears to have coincided with a series of Ukrainian raids timed to catch dissidents at known locations. Despite the efforts of Ukrainian border patrols, increased numbers of their citizens have fled, crossing the border into the County. 

Authorities say that those with relatives within the County will not be expelled. Reports are the border villages, predominantly of Polish stock, have been generous and willingly been housing most of the refugees. The relocation system developed over the fall will be reactivated in the new year.

The Ukrainian consul has reportedly complained to the Count and Duke Wettin regarding the circumstances, a complaint which rumors indicate was met rudely and with a countercomplaint.


The Munich Messenger
January 2, 1917

The news of a Romanian declaration on the Netherlands, limited to areas outside of Europe, reportedly stunned many high officials. The Romanians had lodged no complaints against the Dutch, nor have they cited legitimate causes for war. 

The Trade ministry has  announced the cessation of trade with Romania for the duration. This will be a minor hit to the Friuli dockyards.

The Munich Messenger
January 3rd, 1917

The War Ministry announced a partial mobilization.  Widely expected since the increase in alert status last summer, this brings over three-quarters of the Heer to fully mobilized status. The Marine and Luft Brigades have also been brought to full readiness.

Warehouses and hotels in Bavaria are being requisitioned as the Army of the Hesse is moved to winter quarters near Nuremberg.  Similar provisions are being made for the arrival of the Confederation's 1st  Cavalry Corps in Silesia, while additional sheltered facilities are arranged to house the Confederations 2nd Army.

The Breslau Bugler
January 6th, 1917

The Duke is reportedly outraged and threatening action over yesterday's incident, when Ukrainian Hussars, following the tracks of refugees, wandered over the border and assaulted a village east of Woschnik. Unlike most of the border, there is no river to serve as demarcation and snow flurries limited visibility. Border patrolmen did note the passage of the Ukrainian troops, and alerted headquarters, prior to intercepting the Ukrainian riders themselves. 

The 1/II Uhlan Brigade responded from Woschnik.  The Ukrainian troops had reportedly been convinced of their mistake and disengaged by time the Uhlans arrived.   The Uhlans were unaware of this and, seeing the flames of several buildings, engage the Ukrainian company, which retreated at high speed across the border.  5 military casualties, 12 civilian deaths and 30 civilian wounded are reported.

This occurs on the heels of an incident two nights ago, when stray rounds fired during a Ukrainian raid crossed the river and struck onlookers in a village southeast of Georgenberg.

The Breslau Bugler
January 7th, 1917

The Ukrainian ambassador has reportedly offered a formal apology for the events in Silesia and promised his nation shall pay indemnities. In addition, a Bavarian scout pilot, forced down in a storm last month, has been released from "observation" as the Ukrainians declare him medically fit.

[Kaiser Kirk]

The Munich Messenger
January 11th, 1917

Wire Service News from the Peace Conference in Japan is promising as all parties have appeared and appear willing to discuss matters. The notable exception is our Dutch allies, who have surprised all by not appearing. This matter was clarified later by the Dutch pronouncement that their representative is over due and presumed lost.

The Breslau Bugler
January 15th, 1917

The Heer reports the arrest of Brigade General Zawadzki and eight others of the Quartermaster service, XXVIII Corps, Glogow.  Brigade General Zawadzski is charged with theft of military supplies. On Mobilization, the armories of the XXVIII corps were found to consistently understocked, with empty storage crates recorded as containing munitions in the last inspection. In some cases those inspections occurred just weeks prior to mobilization. Sources within the Army of Schliesen headquarters indicate the missing arms would be sufficient to outfit a brigade or two.

The Munich Messenger
January 18th, 1917

PEACE.
The Wire Service News reports that the Dutch government has accepted unfavorable peace terms from the Deutscher Kaiserreich Brandenburg.  The Dutch government has suffered questions about it's stability in recent days, and may yet fall.  Official word from the belligerents on various sides has not been heard, but the presumption is this means peace will descend on the world once again.

The sudden Dutch declaration of war, with it's evident lack of preparation, accompanied by poor diplomatic efforts led to an inconclusive end.  The Dutch are allied to our Kingdom, and the war threatened to include our nation. Our Kingdom, and the East Sea Confederation, demonstrated our commitment to the Leipzig treaty, but were successful in excluding war from Europe.

The Munich Messenger
January 21st, 1917

The Heer has announced that the army will return to a peacetime footing over the next several weeks (1).

(1) Which means I'll be preparing a different SIM for the 5 months left.

[Borys]

In game, OOC

(1) Which means I'll be preparing a different SIM for the 5 months left.

I believe that what had been done, cannot be undone ...
Borys

[Sachmle]

In game, OOC

(1) Which means I'll be preparing a different SIM for the 5 months left.

I believe that what had been done, cannot be undone ...
Borys

I'm not sure on that Borys. When this started in September, 3 months into 2/16 I was offered by the Mods to correct my Budget to war footing for the remaining 3 months. I chose not to, but the offer was made. I'd presume that Kirk can go off war budget for the remaining 5 months of this HY if he chooses under that same idea.

[Guinness]

When I've been in this spot before, I had a "war budget" sim report. So I took the line items for maintainence, etc. for Army and Navy from that, divided it by 6 (to get it from 6 month's cost to 1) and then when I'd prepped the full "peach budget" sim report for the same period, I added in that extra cost under my military budget. I hope that makes sense.

Of course, if your one month of extra spending keeps you over the line for a peacetime military budget, you might be in trouble, but PM the mods and we'll discuss.

[Kaiser Kirk]

It's easier for me *not* to prepare a new budget.

But I do believe somewhere it's mentioned that you can't mobilize for a couple of weeks and use that to justify war footing. Which is pretty much what Bavaria did.

What Guinness describes is the annoyance I'll need to go through. So if I don't...good.

Edit: On the other hand, I suppose Bory's means the Hapsburgs aren't standing down at war's end either? Which means we would be reticient as well.

[Borys]

Ahoj!
It's up to the Mods.
I personally believe that one draws up a budget based upon the situation on January or July the 1st. And then it's set in stone.
I will, of course, stand down. But this will be reflected in the 2/1917 budget.

Borys

[Kaiser Kirk]

The Munich Messenger
January 25th, 1917

The Commerce ministry announced that with the signing of the Peace treaty in the Dutch-Siam war, that the Article IV strategic trade sanctions effecting nations hostile to the Netherlands will be discontinued. (2)

The Heer announced that an agreement has been reached with the East Sea Confederation to hold a series of military exercises (3).  A total of four exercises are in the process of planning, each will involve roughly six Bavarian army corps at a time, and a comparable number of ESC army corps.
Exercises are to be held in training grounds in Pomerania followed by Hesse-Darmstadt, in the mountainous ESC province of Härjedalen and concluding in Silesia.

The exercises are to last a month each, with the troops being in service slightly longer to allow for transport.  The exercises shall be occurring from February to late June, and are expected to allow both cooperative and opposed exercises and evaluation of tactical concepts. Extensive live fire exercises are planned (4).  Air units will attend to allow better evaluation of their possibilities and employment.

The Heer also confirmed that the reconnaissance craft in the air force not committed to the exercises will spend the remainder of their time conducting a photo survey of Greater Bavaria and Schweiz.   The aerial photography will be used to make a first ever comprehensive set of modern military maps of the Realm, and planemetric versions will be made available for public usage. (5)

(2) Pretty much all back to normal, except we will be looking for a new oil supplier.
(3) Since we're mobilized, might as well make use of the opportunity. Also provides a nice background for finishing the Line infantry tech (ESC) and Specialist (Bavaria). 
(4) I'll be modifying my SIM to deduct ammunition. I expect each corp will fire off a weeks worth, so about 1/24 ton per artillery point.
(5) This is what I was going to do in HY1/1917 before the Dutch war interfered.

[Kaiser Kirk]

The Munich Messenger
February 1st, 1917

Generalfeldmarschall Prince Leopold, commander of the Army of Hesse, announced yesterday afternoon that he will not be participating in this Springs military exercises with the East Sea Confederation.

The Prince has decided to retire from active service.  The Prince, the senior commander in the Heer, has been rumored on the verge of retirement for the past four years, and has chosen the occaission of his upcoming 71st Birthday to step down(1).  King Lugwig IIIs staff have already begun arrangements for a formal birthday dinner to celebrate his brother's retirement.

On the morning of the 9th, the Generalfeldmarschall will hold one last review of the Army of the Hesse, from his temporary headquarters here in Regensburg, after which his nearly 56 years of service will end.

There is some speculation as to what, if any honor King Lugwig III can bestow on his younger brother, as Prince Leopold already holds the highest rank, and won Bavaria's highest honor over 40 years ago. It has been noted that Prince Leopold only holds the Knights Cross to the Military Order of Max Joseph, and some feel that this should be raised to Commanders Cross in recognition of his service, however the Grand Cross would be unexpected.

In retirement the Prince, and his wife of 44 years, Archduchess Gisela of Austria , are expected to return to Munich.

(1)OTL he retired in 1913, was called back up in 1915, replacing Mackensen, commanding the counter to the Brusilov offensive and finally replacing Hindenberg as Supreme Commander of the Eastern Front, retiring in 1918 after the signing of Brest-Litovisk.  A credit to the Bavarian War Academy, much like many members of the family.



The Friedrichshafen Flier
February 15th, 1917

The aeronauts participating in the Caldera Cup departed the seaplane base at Grado today. Two teams, each with two aerocraft, are traveling abroad to make the best show of it. Herr Dornier will lead the engineering support team.

A Military delegation, led by Generalmajor Prince Karl will accompany the teams. Subsequent to the contest the GeneralMajor will tour the scenes of the recent war in South East Asia. The GeneralMajor will be accompanied by Rear Admiral Souchon  and a aviator of the Luftstreitkräfte, Capt.  Otto Kissenberth. It is understood that faculty from the Kriegsakademie will accompany the delegation.

The Munich Messenger
March 1st, 1917

The Palace announced that the King has settled on a Chancellor for the College of Tropical Agriculture under construction in the Principality of Accra.  In a suprise decision, King Lugwig III has appointed his sister, the Princess Theresa, aged 67.

The Princess is well respected in the Scholastic community, and has considerable experience in the wilds of South America. The Princess is a capable ethnologist, zoologist, botanist, travel writer and leader in social care.  Having won recognition as a South American Anthopologist, the Princess has been awarded an Honorary Doctorate, as well as honorary membership of the Munich Geographical Society and  Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities. Lastly, she is a corresponding member Berlin Entomological Society.

The Trieste Times
April 15th, 1917

The two newest vessels in the navy, the Tern dispatch ship, and the Lachs fleet tender, were formally commissioned today. The two support vessels displace over 12,000 tons, exceeding the displacement of the entire navy less than a decade before. 

Nearly deserted after the troubles of 1906 saw the loss of Hapsburg works, the dockyards have been humming for the past several years.  Much of the work has gone to provide simple support vessels for the fleet of Glorious France, Bavaria's ally of Eld. With over 30 vessels built for France to date, and two more on the ways. With five vessels under construction for the Marine, work also continues for other countries, with orders from neighbors in the Mediterranean to the shores of the Orient. 

[Kaiser Kirk]

The Munich Messenger
April 20th, 1917

The Kammer der Reichsräte, after repeated delays, convened as High Court to consider the Duke of Friuli's requests for rulings on several matters pertaining to the Treaty of Venice.

The Duke set forth several legal points to ponder regarding the extent of the Duchy's autonomy. The Duke cautioned that he believed some of the points would be declined, while some would be found acceptable. These included the Duchies ability to
A. Raise Military Forces
B. Issue Currency
C. Form contracts or Treaties with Foreign powers.
D. Incorporate International Companies
E. Provide for a Merchant Marine.


After  review of the treaty, clarified that the Duchy was answerable solely to the Greater Kingdom of Bavaria and Schweiz, and only subject to the Constitution and such laws as the King and Senate pass. Outside of those strictures, the Duchy was free to pass and enforce laws within its bounds.

The High Court noted that the Constitution reserved raising an army for the Greater Kingdom, restricting other states to a "Ceremonial Guard Brigade". The constitution also reserved such matters as issuing currency and forming binding international agreements to the Greater Kingdom.

The High Court, on question by the Duke, did concede that as neither the Constitution nor Senate had reserved the right to maritime warships, the Duchy could field armed ships under it's own control. The High Court also noted that as the right to declare war rested with the King or Senate, any such armed ships could not initiate a war.

The High Court examined the consideration of allowing International companies to incorporate, and found no grounds to disallow such an endeavor, noting that by doing so they became subject to the laws of the Duchy.

The High Court initially balked at the flagging of Merchants. Members voiced opinions that traditionally this extended limited sovereignty over said merchants, and would commit the Greater Kingdom.  The Duke, displaying his native cunning, argued that the High Court had in fact already ruled in his favor. The Duke then continued, explaining that gracing a merchant ship with the Friuli flag merely was a form of corporate incorporation, just as in the prior point of law. Those vessels so flagged  would be corporate assets registered and regulated by the Laws of Friuli, and as they had not chosen to register with the Greater Kingdom, there were no obligations incurred. The Duke continued, observing that the only Senate law regarding Merchantmen allowed the riverine Duchies to regulate their vessels, and only addressed those vessels registered under the laws of the Greater Kingdom specifically. 

The High Court debated the matter, deciding that the Marine, as a Senate – created body-  could exercise police powers if needed, or the aforementioned Friuli armed vessels could, should they be built. After much discussion, the High Court conceded that the registry of mercantile vessels was indeed a type of incorporation, and such would be considered corporate assets regulated by the Duchy in which they were incorporated.

The full  Kammer der Reichsräte then entered the High Courts decisions into record, and took up a proposal by Frederick II of Saxony.  His Grace had noted that there had long been issues of protocol regarding discussion of "The King", which was confused by the presence of three Kingdom within the Greater Kingdom. While Prinzregent Luitpold ruled, this issue was moot, but once King Luwig III was crowned there were several instances of confusion, particularly when King Lugwig III was visiting Wuttemberg or Saxony, as to which King took precedence.  His Grace opinined that the growing  practice of referring to the three Kingdoms as Grand Duchies was deeply unsatisfactory, and as such he proposed that henceforth the King of Greater Bavaria and Schweiz be referred to as the "High King". After a spirited discussion, his suggestion was adopted.

The Breslau Bugler
May  28th, 1917

Location : East of Oppeln, Duchy of Silesa

Despite the distant murmur and pall of dust that accompanied the preparations for the Silesian Exercises, there were few soldiers to be seen on the path towards the observation post.

Two men walked along the path, talking. One man is older and distinguished, the other of middle age and vibrant. Both wearing uniforms marking them as generals. A pretty young red haired woman trails behind taking notes.

Generalfeldmarshall King Frederick Augustus II : "Well Generalluetenant von Hutier , it is my understanding that your Kommando did extraordinary work in the Scandinavian exercises.  The High command is said to be quite pleased. However, given the design of your Brigade, it was unexpected."

Generalluetenant von Hutier : "Yes your Grace, I have had several inquiries from the War Academy regarding my assault formations.  The Brigade was of course meant for raids and disruption of the enemy rear, providing a training school for the Heers snipers.

These are still the primary missions, but I wished to develop means of penetrating enemy lines so that the Kommando squads can wreck havoc in the opposing rear.  What I found was we can infiltrate the opposing position, then exploit local firepower superiorities in a short burst to rupture the opposing defenses, and then maintain the pressure forward.   This creates the breach. It is a simple matter of seizing initiative, then using firepower to multiply mass at the point of attack.

The additional Bergmann Mgs my Kommandos have are far more portable, which means that in hilly terrain, such as Skandanavia, they can still be used to exploit opportunities more readily than Maxim 08 Companies can. Further, it appears that by maintaining the initiative, we can deny the opposing force the opportunity to concentrate and recover.

I expect our efforts here in Silesia will be far less effective, as the wide open terrain favors the Maxim 08, and does not hinder the transport of artillery. However, we have already prepositioned squads in the opposing rear to disrupt supplies and eliminate key personnel and facilities. This was really the key focus of my Brigade in the beginning, after all."

Generalfeldmarshall King Frederick Augustus II : "Really? And why would they not be caught ? I"

Generalluetenant von Hutier : "Unfortunately, war is never without casualties, it is almost certain some of the Kommandos will be caught. This, and the discovery that there are more present, is almost certain to distract and disrupt the opposing forces, tying up troops in the rear with garrison duty, in addition to any direct disruption. Highly useful in any circumstance where the Heer has had to withdraw in the face of the foe. "

Generalfeldmarshall King Frederick Augustus II : "I understand that a Wuttemberg Gebirgsjäger battalion did manage to gain the advantage on your Brigade in the mountains. What occurred?"

Generalluetenant von Hutier : "The Wuttemberg troops had an extremely aggressive Captain who took control when the Colonel got lost. Very careful about his positions on defense, he used the machine gun companies right by the front lines, moving them up with his mountaineers, he gained the high ground and enfiladed our rear. The Kommandos were supporting some ESC troops, but were dispersed in that terrain. The Captain was able to leapfrog his machine gun batteries, defeating the elements in detail in the restricted terrain. The blocking forth both barred reinforcements and retreat. Really it was a simple matter that he was able to deploy most of his men in advantageous positions, while the terrain left "Blau" side strung out and only able to engage with a partial force at any one point. I would say that young man should be tracked for higher command. "

Generalfeldmarshall King Frederick Augustus II : "I admit I am intrigued."  Ahh, <motions ahead> are those the men?"

Generalluetenant von Hutier : "Yes your Grace as you requested some of the men that performed particularly well up north. These are among my best.  I suppose I should caution that because they operate in extremely small teams, I have encouraged informality. I want each man to consider the best means of reaching the objective and then suggest it to the team commander, who will decide. As a result, one of them lets his men call him by not just his first name, but also a use name. "

Generalfeldmarshall King Frederick Augustus II <shocked> : "I would think that would set a horrible precedent, the men must respect their officers, not debate them !"

Generalluetenant von Hutier : "Your Grace, these men operate in teams as small as  four, far from support. Not every team can have an officer, and must be able to operate if the officer falls. Maintaining Morale in the face of losses,  and the ability to alter the plan to achieve the goal are priorities. As a result I can not rely on a model where the men do not think for themselves on how to achieve that goal, nor can I rely on one man to think of and assess all the variables involved. Some adjustments must be made. "

Generalfeldmarshall King Frederick Augustus II <troubled> : "Your argument is good, but I remain disturbed at the implications for greater discipline.  We will restrict this practice to this unit, and if it shows signs of undermining matters we will address it <spying soldiers ahead at the observation post> Ahh, are these the troops?"

Generalluetenant von Hutier : "Yes your grace"

<Troops stand to attention. Except one, garbed in shaggy cloth, their field uniforms are clean, their gear carefully tended. They stand at attention>

Generalfeldmarshall King Frederick Augustus II walks down the line, inspecting the men, stopping the third man in his peculiar garb , stopping to examine the next man's Bergmann MG, then halting at at the last man, a tall man well built man with longer black hair, bluntly cut along his brow. Brilliant blue eyes blaze from a deeply tanned face. He stands easily at attention, radiating a quiet sort of power. Alone among the troopers his sleeves are rolled up, exposing his sinewy forearms.

The King regards him carefully and returns to the first man, a Major.

"Major, what is your name?"

The man says "Major Geddon sir!"

"I see, unusual, where are you from and what is your given name?"

"Major Arnold Geddon Sir, from Tirol "

"Do you have one of these usenames I have heard of?"

"Yes Sir, it is Arny Sir."

"I see. <moves to the next man>  and you Luetenant, what is your name and from where do you hail?"

"Luetenant Johann Bauer, Canton of Bern, Schweiz, sir."

"Very good. <moves to the next man>  and you Oberschütze, what is your name and from where do you hail, and for heavens sake what are you wearing?"

The man responds in badly accented German, "Fingal MacUmaill is me name your lordship, and I hail from the Gaelic territories of the Netherlands. At home, we kept the game from the poachers, something of a "Ghillie Dubh", ye might be saying,. Wearing this here garb, we ghillies can lie in wait and catch the rascals...Sir!"

"Well, welcome to our Kingdom, I look forward to a demonstration of your odd clothing."

<moving to the next man> "So, Oberluetenant, what is your name and from where do you hail?"

" Oberluetenant Gottfried von Berlichingen , from the Kingdom of Saxony Sir. The men call me "Götz" ."

"Very good then" <moving to the next man>  "And you Feldwebel?"

"Feldwebel, Johannes Rammesbogen, of Wuttemberg, Sir. "

"Unusual name, from the Schwarzwald I presume?"

"Yes Sir"

<regarding the last man> "And you, Oberfeldwebel, you do not seem to be of our stock, what do men call you, and from where do you hail?"

"Oberfeldwebel Konan Sir,   Konan the Bavarian. "

"Really, you do not look it. So, Generalleutnant, I asked for you to bring your best shot, so which one of these men is this Schütze ?"

"Actually Sir, none of them. The best shot in the brigade is Sonja here"

<The King turns in wide eyed amazement towards the stunning red headed secretary, who smiles and curtsies.>

"Sonja Perchta Lisowski at your service"

[Kaiser Kirk]

June
The Karlsruhe Times
June 21st

Princess Julianna, Dowager Grand Duchess of Baden, hosted her traditional Sonnenwende  ball.

In addition to her son, the Grand Duke of Baden and his wife, there were many other notables present. These ranged from the King of Wurttemberg and wife, to the now retired Generalfeldmarshall Prince Leopold of Bavaria and his wife, to luminaries from French Alsace across the Rhine.

The star of the ball was the Princess Vicktoria, Daughter of Frederick III of the DKB. The Hohenzollern Princess is in the Kingdom on special dispensation to see her relatives in the old country, including her Aunt Princess Julianna. Princess Julianna is said to be delighted to see her niece for the first time in over 40 years.

The Munich Messenger
June 30th

The Heer announced a series of reforms in the Table of Organisation and Equipment for the Gebirgsjaeger Korps, and similar reforms in the Kavallerie and Marines.

Primary alterations will include the adoption of new weapons and changes in tactical approach.

Each Battalion will be afforded a  new machinegewher platoon featuring eight guns of the Bergmann MG-15nA type.  While the Bergmann is not as versitle as the Maxim, the MG-15nA is substantially more portable, will allow greater firepower at the point of attack.  

A similar philosophy is behind the pending addition of the Bergmann MP 18 at the platoon level to the Brigade of Marines.  Firing 9mm parabellum rounds at a high rate, the weapon should prove highly useful in the confines of a ship or the built up regions of a port.

Marksmen troops will be armed with SIG's selbstlader Karabiner M1915 (1).  
Other changes will include the procurement of new fieldguns, relying on more recent technology and metallurgy.

July

July 10th
The Russian Steppe

Max Obermaier climbed the top fence of the stockyard and gazed about in satisfaction. The wide open rangelands of the southern Russian steppe are particularly suited to cattle, but with little domestic infrastructure to support the mercantile utilization and marketing of this particular source of Russian Capital.

Herr Obermaier clambered down the fence and ambled past the hard working Russian laborers. Striding out into the newly graded road he looked about for his Russian superior. The road vanished to the east, a cloud of dust marking the location of the MAN tractor building the road. Turning, he gazed west, where the road arrowed toward the Black Sea and the docks.

This road, and the canals the French were digging, would help make the inland areas accessible. The Docks in the eastern Black sea region allow the export of live cattle, meat, hides and subproducts. Inland areas support large numbers of cattle, but surpluses are small in any given region. Prior to winter, there is much wastage as portions of herds are slaughtered to reduce systemic stress in winter months.

To allow these ports to operate efficiently and competitively, a means of allowing these surplus cattle to be collected, sorted and processed had to be arranged. That was what Herr Obermaier was so pleased with, as the roads and stockyards the Franco-Bavarian investments were helping create would make that possible.

Proper utilization of brands, collection points and collective marketing will allow this. Feedlots will be important in this process, with grain feeding in the final weeks after collection raising the value of the cattle, as well as offsetting the stressful conditions of shipborne transit. Those same ships could return with more Russian grains, or foreign goods, to enrich the lives of these peoples.  

August

August 5th

Trieste naval dockyards

Felix Funke, Generalinspekteur der Marine, strode down the dockyards with his grandson. The lad, just 5, insisted on pestering him with questions. For what seemed the 27th time that day, he felt a tug on his coat.
"Yes Rudolph?"
"What are they doing" asked the five year old, pointing down into a drydock.  There, in the middle of the dock was a 15m torpedo boat taking form, with a dozen skilled workers...playing cards
"They are taking lunch I believe".
"Aren't they making a boat just like that in the other one?"
"Yes, we are building eight for export, those are just two."
"Why do they build such a little boat in such a big place?"
"Where else would they build it?"
"Why not just build them all here? Wouldn't they fit?"
Stunned, the  Generalinspekteur der Marine stared at his grandson....

August 12th
The Free City of Trieste voted today to take donations towards the construction of a Mushroom class minesweeper. Thirty of the class, along with several larger vessels,  have been built for Glorious France, providing much employment for the citizens of Trieste, as well as those in the Duchy of Friuli.

[Kaiser Kirk]

September 1917

The Munich Messenger
September 3rd
The College of Tropical Agricultural, located in the Principality of Accra, opened its doors for the first session today.

Chancellor Princess Theresa of Bavaria has assembled an eclectic staff, drawn from Bavarian engineers and agriculturalists, Gran Columbian professors, settlers from the former Dutch Kongo, and from Linden University in Holland.   Students include Bavarians, citizens of the Gran Columbian Kongo, and citizens of the Principality of Accra.  King Lugwig III has directed the Chancellor that there was to be no segregation by race in this College, as « In Afrika, their homeland, respect must be given to their status and traditional knowledge. Crops know not who tend them, we shall not care either. » Ironically, the language of instruction is French, as it is broadly known.  While the original intention had been to draw on the knowledge the Dutch had gleaned in Kongo, which Gran Columbia graciously agreed to participate in, the chancellor has stated her intention to expand the staff to include French instructors from the adjacent Côte d'Ivoire.

September 8th
The Duke of Friuli announced today to the Udine City council that Friuli was not to be outdone by Trieste and would also undertake to raise donations to fund an additional Mushroom class minesweeper.

October 1917

The Munich Messenger
October 17th 1917

The legislature returned from their traditional recess, commencing in August and extending through Oktoberfest.

As always, the Fall session of the Kammer der Reichsräte opened with heralds formally announcing the entrance of the members. High King Lugwig III led the entrance, and was followed by King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony.

An audible gasp issued from some members of the Kammer der Abgeordneten, present in chambers when the Herald's proclamation included the ancient Wettin titles of "King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and Duke of Warsaw".  While ancient titles to vanished lands are included on occasion as an embellishment, they had not been used by the Wettins since the mid-1700s coup and subsequent partition of the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth among the Prussians, Hapsburgs and Ukrainians.

The Ukrainian ambassador is said to have left shortly thereafter. The border difficulties with the Ukrainians have substantially subsided in past months, and the Ukrainians are said to have pulled back from the border this spring.

King Wilhelm II of Wurtemberg was followed by Grand Duke Friedrich II of Baden, and Grand Duke Ernest Louis of Hesse, followed by the various Dukes, Princely counts and representatives of Free Cities. No further unusual use of titles occurred. 

The first order of business was the Dowager Grand Duchess of Baden requested and the High King endorsed the submittal of a bill to the  Kammer der Reichsräte.  After some lively discussion, the bill was passed.

The bill allows for recognition of  DKB passports to be valid within the Greater Kingdom. Visas are required and have several restrictions.
1.Visas will be issued for no more than six months,
2.There must be a relative within Greater Bavaria and Schwiez who sponsors the Visa
3.No more than 100 visas will be issued per year.

Due to the lack of direct diplomatic relations, Visa requests routed through Hapsburg or Italian embassies will be considered.

[Borys]

IC
The Habsburg Auslaender Ministerium confirms that it will provide its Good Offices to DKB-Bavarian contacts

[Kaiser Kirk]

October

Maykop, Russia

Herr Heinrich Hencky climbed through the trap door and stood atop the  tower of the old Cossack fortress. Pivoting on his heel, he looked to the south, he could just make out the nearest of the forbidding peaks of the Caucaus mountains as they rose out of the plains to tickle the sky. Casting his gaze Southwest, the additional height of the turret proved again insufficient  to spy the Black Sea, nearly 100km away.  However, he could easily make out the forbidding line of clouds sweeping in from that body, the grey blurred terrain below them advertising that rain was already falling there.  He had heard of Russian mud, and hoped it would prove better here.

Looking north, he could see the progress the French engineers were making on the oil fields. Found in 1911, the Russians had only just started developing the region. The backers in Strasbourg felt this field, so close to the Black Sea, would be perfect for development. A scattering of derricks betrayed where oil had already been tapped, exploration teams eagerly sought more. The Russians had insisted on a refinery, to avoid the embarrassment of exporting oil, while importing its products.

French expertise, married to Wurttemberg's best machines and pugnacious Russian labor had exceeded expectations. The Russian in charge of overseeing this project spoke fluent French, which greatly eased matters. Several of the workers turned out to speak an odd type of German, calling themselves Wolgadeutsche. Henrich found the language facilitated training, but many of the Russians proved most adaptable.

Now, with the rains and snows comming, we would see if those elevated roadbeds would pay off.  Scraped by steam shovels from the surrounding ground, the soil had been carefully compacted in lifts, ensuring each was firm. Gravel wrested from the hills was liberally applied to facilitate drainage and cap the surface. Similar to many railroad beds but less labor and material intensive, in theory, the road prism would shed water into the lower lying terrain, avoiding becoming a morass themselves. Even in snow, the location of the road would be more obvious than not.


November
Trieste Tattler
November 3rd 1917

The Duke of Friuli joined the Mayor of Trieste at the the completion ceremony today. The French Tender, yet unnamed, which has been fitting out for several months was declared complete by her builders, having passed her trials with flying colors.

The tender represents the last of thirty three French auxiliaries built in Trieste and Monofalcone over the past several years. While the docks now hum with work from such exotic locales as the Mughal Empire, and four cruisers are taking form for the Realm, the French order came at a time the docks were underutilized and have been a valued source of employment.

In recognition of that fact, the two dignitaries engaged in a contest, one which the Duke proclaimed successful. The City of Trieste started the fund raising battle, but the Duchy of Firuli capitalized on its population base to easily surpass the City, indeed the excess money the Duchy raised shall be used to top off the City's efforts.

At the end of the ceremony, the Duke signed the contracts, commissioning the construction of a further two Mushroom Class minesweepers, to be named Trieste and Aquileia and presented to Glorious France as a gift.

[Borys]

OOC
Great to see the STT and the Monfalcone yard working three shifts to provide warships to the world's fleets!
Borys