[RFC-DoC] Vive la France

This is a story of a game that was played long ago, back in the days of RFC-DoC 0.81, but which I never got around to telling.

My goal was a Domination victory as France.



The story will feature numerous ups and downs, and warfare on all continents.

After the collapse of Roman Empire in the West, Gaul was broken into numerous independent lordships. One of these lords was Clovis, Rex of Paris.



Though both treachery and force, he managed to subdue almost all former Roman Gaul.



He and his successors maintained good relations with the court in Constantinople.



By the 10th century, a cultural renaissance of sorts was happening in France. The Library in Paris, established by the royal decree of King Louis VIII, had collected all knowledge available to French scholars at that time, while the architects of Aquitaine had revived the old Roman art of building Amphiteaters.



The Byzantine Emperor had established the Exarchate of Venetia.



The 11th century was known as "the century of chivalric customs" in reference to the birth of chivalric culture in Aquitaine.



Pierre Abelard's natural philosophy had laid the groundwork for further discoveries both in spiritual and in material realms.



Relations with Byzantium continued to improve.



11th-century France saw further development of medieval technologies.



That's what Europe was like in the middle of the century:



King Louis IX was very pious, building churches in all towns subject to him.



It was also during his reign that Brittany was incorporated into the French kingdom.



In 1075, he laid claim to the title of the Holy Roman Emperor. Since the existing emperor disputed this claim, Louis had to rely on his army to enforce it.

Clap, clap, clap.
Keep it uup

Will he take down all of Germany, or shall the Holy Roman Emperor first take Rome?

Or will he unleash a torrent of rage and, in sequence, destroy Spain, England, the Vikings, China, Arabia, and Byzantium before he makes an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire before stabbing them in the back and becoming the sole ruler of the universe?

trexeric said:

Or will he unleash a torrent of rage and, in sequence, destroy Spain, England, the Vikings, China, Arabia, and Byzantium before he makes an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire before stabbing them in the back and becoming the sole ruler of the universe?

Click to expand...

One thing is certain. HE is the state. And he will definitely find a way to conquer the sun.

destroy Spain, England, the Vikings, China, Arabia, and Byzantium before he makes an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire before stabbing them in the back and becoming the sole ruler of the universe?

Click to expand...

You'll see.

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For a small price, the kings of Iberian peninsula agreed to support the French Roi's claim.



French forces advanced to Lotharingia.



Foolishly, the German generals decided to counterattack the French territory, rather then deal with the army next to Frankfurt.



After prolonged bombardment by siege engines, the elite members of French knightly orders charged into the city.



And French pikemen easily defeated the scattered counterattacking German knightly forces.



One of French generals, Charles Martel, settled down in Bordeaux. The traditions of his leadership would not be forgotten.



The forces in Hannover were weaker.



Armies loyal to the French king had no problems entering the city.



The proud Emperor in Wien, however, refused to submit and recognize himself to be a French vassal.



So French armies pressed on.



In the year 1165 AD, Nicole Oresme had founded the first medieval university in Paris.



Meanwhile, since French armies were exhausted, peace was made with the German king.



The Pope refused to recognize the French king as the lawful Holy Roman Emperor. So le Roi led an army to the Papal realm. Resistance of the Pope's Lombard allies was fierce.

Poor Venice...you dared to mess with the Roman Empire, and this time it had the strength to go south and get ride of you.

Note: There was never such thing as the Byzantine Empire. One: they never called themselves that and 2: neither did anyone else. EVERYONE, from the Arabians, to the Spanish, to the English called them the Roman Empire.

Byz freaks gon byz

Damn, how did I miss this? Wonderful work as usual Lone Wolf.

Initial campaigns against Rome were unsuccessful. French armies were forced to retreat.



News reached France about Eastern Europe being invaded by a strange people called "Mongols".



While the Byzantines launched a campaign in Mesopotamia and Azerbaijan:



In 1215, French armies returned to Rome with a vengeance.



Other kingdoms were willing to engage in beneficial transactions with the French court.





The German Emperor's remaining lands were gobbled up by the Dukes of Russia and the Emperor of Constantinople:



And Rome was finally in French hands. The Pope was forced to recognize the primacy of France over other European realms.



In 1235 AD, Notre Dame, the greatest church of Western Europe, was build in Paris. It was build on the backs of hundreds of nameless labourers, who were much mourned by later leftist historians.



The King of France, Charles IV, wanted all Italy for himself. With the Papal blessing, he attacked Byzantine possessions in Italy. The troops of Byzantine exarch had managed to capture Rome for a while, bringing back memories of Justinian's times. Unfortunately for the Romaioi and fortunately for the French, these memories were not to last for long:



Soon, Southern Italy was brought to French control, as well.

Keep up the good work. This is interesting

I say you take the other two Romes (Moscow and Istanbul) before Napoleon.

Interesting, cant wait to read more.

After Central Italy was subjugated, it was the turn of Romagna and Venetia to acknowledge French rule.



That event, while making no sense, is certainly useful.



The Byzantines refused to abandon Venetia and recaptured it. The fighting was bloody and brutal, and many compared the ensuring devastation with the one that followed Justinian the Great's Gothic War.



While all that happened, Rene Decartes founded another academy in Aquitaine.



Finally, Venetia was subjugated for good.



Diplomatic contacts were established with the Mongol people.



Rise of Turks in Anatolia was devastating to the Byzantine Empire.



And the Emperor of Constantinople agreed to sign a peace treaty.



Meanwhile, the French court under king Charles V sponsored naval exploration in order to find the way to India.



And, sure enough, the explorers had finally found land. It was, however, strangely different from usual descriptions of India. Nevertheless, Admiral Etienne de Crecy had decided to conquer it.



Charles V died soon after hearing the news about his admiral's New World conquests. His military experience will be remembered in Bordeaux.



After a long period of battles, siege and political intrigue, during which some natives joined de Crecy, French conquerors finally captured Tenochtitlan, or Mexico, as they called it. Chief Itzcoatl was executed by de Crecy, but his nephew Axayacatl fled to the north, from where he continued to lead the anti-French resistance.



And in this day, the Christians of France had won the bloody battle of Mexico. The blood of savage heathens and good Christians alike was spilled during the battle, and the streets of the great savage city were awash with blood. Yet, the victory of the Cross over the barbaric human-sacrificing religions of the savages and the execution of villainous Itzcoatl was celebrated by Christians from Paris to the cold wastes of Scandinavia

-From de Crecy's account of the Battle of Tenochtitlan.



Itzcoatl. A post-Conquest Mexican drawing.

Now eat Russia and Byzantium. And digest Turkey and Spain. And while your at it, chew on some English and Muslims.

trexeric said:

Now eat Russia and Byzantium. And digest Turkey and Spain. And while your at it, chew on some English and Muslims.

Click to expand...

OM NOM NOM NOM!

caps

Byzantium, undermined by both the French and the Turks, collapsed into squabbling principalities. The Emperor still existed, but his authority was limited to Constantinople and environs.



Mexican resistance proved to be a tough nut to crack, with the Aztecs adapting captured European weaponry.



So the French signed peace with the Aztecs, leaving them in control of the North.



The Incan expedition had more success. The Sapa Inca sent an army to meet the French -



But it was decimated by the French Musketmen.



Meanwhile, France gained control of Austria.



The French Empire remained stable, despite all her conquests.



The Sapa Inca's heir accepted French overlordship in return for keeping some amount of control over his realm.



A new palace was ordered to be built in Hanovre.



France had her own holy kings.



Who still added more land to the Empire, conquering Serbia.

Good, now stuff some more cities into the gaping maw of the French Empire!!!

The Emperor of much-diminished Eastern Roman empire received the news of scouting French knights next to the City with stoicism. He knew that his imperial remnant wasn't going to last for long.



Far away from Constantinople, Japanese Shogun received news of strange people with superior seafaring skills being spotted next to his realm. He liked the beef they had to offer, and so, a mutually profitable trade agreement was signed. However, the Shogun, after hearing tales about French power, refused to open his realm's borders for further trade.



In 1472, the Byzantine capital fell to the French. The Spanish duke who also attempted to capture the City was enraged when he saw French banners over the old Theodosian walls, but he understood well the dangers of opposing the French.



The same year, the ruler of West Africa travelled to Paris. All professors from the University of Paris were eager to learn the knowledge Malinese brought with them.



On the Balkans, French armies pressed on, annexing the Lord of Athens' territory.



Few French kings paid much attention to the semi-independent cities of Netherlands. Their organization into an independent Republic was an unpleasant surprise. England had provided the Netherlands with enough weapons so that fighting them would be undesirable.



In fact, trade with England continued.



The Spice Islands also proved to be a lucrative new market for French goods. French aristocrats who presided over trade with Far East got enormously wealthy.



Here's what French cartographers knew about the world in the beginning of 16th century.

Good, good, and congratulations on the victories in the Balkans. Especially Constantinople, considering the Spanish were also after the city. Now, go taste testing on some Spanish, English, Dutch, Russian, and Turk cities, and pick your favorite. Or favorites. Either is great.