Austrians???

[Pangur Bán]

Occassionally, I read people calling for an Austrian civ. I don't think that I like the idea very much. Until 1945, everyone - including most Austrians - thought of Austrians as Germans, the same way that the Bavarians or the Saxons were. The Austrian Empire was essentially run by ethnic Germans, and up until 1866 they were seen as the major representatives of the German people. The enforced independence of Austria after the war, its exclusion from the re-unification in 1990 and the unfortunate correlation of Anschluss with Nazism will probably mean that it will never join up with the Bundesrepublik.

That it enjoyed its time among the Great Powers makes it a possible civ. But Austria IS and always has been essentially German. Austria is BY DEFINITION a sub-section of Germany. The fact the Bundesrepublik is also known as Germany seems to lead people to believe that this is enough to prevent Austria being part of the larger culturo-historical Germany. But Mozart and Freud are just as much a part of German culture as Beethoven and Hegel. So, I do not think that for general gaming purposes the Austrians should be a civ separate from the Germans.

 

[damunzy]

Not another civ-arguement.

I say let everyone have their own civ...it is a game and people are getting to hung up on real life. I say this is a good outlet for people to realize their ideas and they shouldn't let facts or logic or "real-life" get in the way of their fun.

I say we have a Purple People Eater civ!

 

[Parsifal]

I say...one Germany all the way!

 

[Kanadees]

The sixteen CIVs should exixt today as nations - Babilonians but no Turks? Romans but no Spanish? Egiptians today are actually Arabs. Aztecs but no Brazilians?

Give me your problems, I will make them bigger