Gloire à la France: An EU3 Magna Mundi AAR

[NickTheNick]

Welcome to my Europa Universalis III Interactive AAR for France. This is my first AAR.

Here I will post my complete journey with the French nation as I attempt to grow it into an empire to be reckoned with. I am playing EU3 with the Magna Mundi Ultimate mod (the most recent version). For people unacquainted with the mod, it is a huge overhaul of EU3 that drastically increases the detail, immersion, and historical accuracy, whilst also increasing the general difficulty. That description does not do the mod justice, so just check it out online if you want to know more. For people unacquainted with Europa Universalis III, search it up too. We'll be following the nation of France from 1466 onwards, as we try to forge the French legacy, consolidate our power, colonize the world, and most importantly, dismantle (or destabilize) the Holy Roman Empire.

Please, if you have any questions, comments, compliments, or complaints post now, I don't want to be alone here.

 

[sophie]

France? meh.

 

[NickTheNick]

Well I've done multiple. I just finished playing as the Netherlands, and before that I played Russia. Both were great, but I felt France calling me this time. I look forward to the unique events the mod adds for France, since it is one of the nations the modders recommended to play.

 

[NickTheNick]

Gloire à la France: An EU3 Magna Mundi AAR

Prologue:

The Hundred Years War (1349-1454)
The War of Cambray (1457-1458)
The Décret Renaissance(1461-1466)
​

 

[sophie]

Well I've done multiple. I just finished playing as the Netherlands, and before that I played Russia. Both were great, but I felt France calling me this time. I look forward to the unique events the mod adds for France, since it is one of the nations the modders recommended to play.

Whether or not you have played as other nations in the game doesn't change the fact that choosing France for your AAR is very meh.

 

[Maniacal]

I don't really care what he plays (as long as it is not Byzantium) as long as he posts screenshots and doesn't constantly restart the AAR for no good reason.

 

[ZeletDude]

I am reading this.

 

[NickTheNick]

Prologue


The Hundred Years War (1349 - 1454)

A detachment of French knights prepare for battle on the morn of the battle of Agincourt


Defeat and Despair


The defeat of the French at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 had been devastating in all respects. Huge swaths of French nobility had been slain or captured on the battlefield, and of those who fled, their opinions of Charles VI's legitimacy dropped dramatically. Henry V's victory established himself as the rightful heir to the French throne, which was then further ratified by the signing of the Treaty of Troyes in 1420. It seemed like all was lost for the glorious Kingdom of France. However, salvation came in the form of a peasant woman, Joan of Arc. The heroic breaking of the siege at Orleans, and the subsequent cessation of the Burgundian offensive gave new hope to the defeated French people. Suddenly, a door had been opened to throw off the English shackles and to win the war. The French, led under the recently coronated Charles VII de Valois, reconquered much of Normandy, Picardie, and Perigord, and soon it was realized that the tables of war had turned. With the last of the English forces driven back to Gascony, and a small garrison still held up in Calais, it was clear to King Charles that a final campaign was necessary, to finally drive the invaders out of France.


Campagne de la Gascogne


At the dawn of spring, 1453, a feast was held for the nobles of France at the Louvre Palace in Paris. King Charles VII, accompanied by his experienced generals, Jean Bureau and J. de Xaintrailles, presented the dukes and lords attending the banquet with the Campagne de la Gascogne. They proposed the creation of a more professional army, and as a result a centralisation of military organisation, drawing power out of the hands of the nobility. Although many opposed the new plan initially, the thought of twelve thousand English men looming to the south eventually appeased them into acceptance. After gaining the support of the nobles of the realm, King Charles VII de Valois launched the campaign, in an effort to reclaim the southern Gascon regions. Jean Burea was dispatched, along with 15,000 knights, levies, and men at arms, to engage the English Army of Scotland, led by Henry VI Lancaster. Afterwards, the 12,000 strong Armée du Nord sent northwards, under the leadership of Xaintrailles, to secure the port of Calais. Finally, Charles VII took control of the remaining 8,000 men and marched to Normandy, to prevent any further English landings. With the French armies back on the march, and the English commanders actually awaiting the attack with anxiety, stability is restored amongst the people, and many rejoice in the renewed offensive. Merchants again open their stores, life returns to the streets of towns and hamlets, and some already begin celebrating the French victory over the English.

A portrait of Jean Bureau, as painted by Francois Villon

A glimpse of the French alliance during the Campagne de la Gascogne


​

 

[NickTheNick]

The Hundred Years War (1349 - 1454)

The Battle of Bayonne

English scouts succeeded in spotting Jean Bureau's army well before they neared the English forces. Within several days, King Henry evacuated Gascony and moved his troops south to Armagnac, where they laid siege to the town of Bayonne. They made sure to scorch and demolish all the farms and granaries in behind them as they left, killing any peasants that opposed their actions. Upon Jean Bureau's arrival with the Armée de Flandres, no food or supplies remained to feed the hungry army, and no shelters remained for rest. Determined not to succumb to the English game of attrition, the French army continued through Gascony, placing small garrisons at any intact towns along the way. In King Henry's haste, he had left a trail of sacked hamlets in his wake, and Jean Bureau was able to use these to trace the Army of Scotland's path. Another week passes, and this time, the English failed in spotting the French army as they approached; so it was with surprise that the English woke up on September 20th, 1453, to find the French army within one kilometer of them, and closing. Although Henry's initial instinct was to again turn tail and run, strong opposition from his nobles forced him into submission. The English army mustered together, and the two forces prepared for battle.

French knights crash through the English lines at Bayonne

However, the English army faced a fatal flaw. The night before, the English archers had left their longbows exposed, and a torrential downpour engulfed the night. Although many gradually awoke and hastily unstrung their bows to preserve the desiccation of the strings, the damage had been done. As the battle progressed, the French knights charged the infantry lines as they had in Agincourt, but as the longbowmen loosed their volleys, the arrows barely covered half the distance to the knights, and the French remained unscathed. The knights quickly closed the gap and crashed through the English lines, dealing devastating damage to the ranks of infantry. Reports claim that "many were trampled under merciless onslaught of the French chevaliers". After several hours of repeated charges and retreats by Jean Bureau's cavalry, accompanied by some minor assaults by the French footmen, countless bodies of English men lay slain. A mass route engulfed the army, and French knights took pursuit of the fleeing men. Within minutes, the entire Army of Scotland lay dead, whilst the French only faced minor casualties. However, amidst the fray of battle, Henry VI and two of his bodyguards had escaped. This resulted in major repercussions for the English people, who now saw their King as a cowardly leader, unfit of being the successor to Henry V.

The Treaty of Paris

The crushing French victory at Bayonne signalled the beginning of the end for the English. Several weeks earlier, the Armée du Nord, under the leadership of J. de Xaintrailles, had successfully captured the port of Calais in twenty days, a remarkable display of generalship. Furthermore, the Duke of Burgundy declared war on England one month after the battle, hoping to take advantage of their suddenly vulnerable position. With civil unrest at home due to his cowardly escape, and foreign threat abroad from the combined Franco-Burgundian armies, King Henry finally agreed to discuss peace negotiations with Charles VII. On January 1st, 1454, after several days of intense discussions, King Henry Vi signed the Treaty of Paris, finally revoking the English claim to the French throne, and recognizing Charles VII as the legitimate ruler of France. Furthermore, he agreed to cede all mainland provinces, comprising Gascony and Calais, back to French control, in addition to some monetary concessions. It was finally the end of the century long conflict between the French and the English. Charles VII, J. de Xaintrailles, and Jean Bureau were hailed as heroes, and celebrations erupted in the cities of Paris, Toulouse, and Lyons as townsfolk told and retold the valiant tales of the Siege of Calais, and more importantly, the Battle of Bayonne. The woes of the past were gone and people hoped for an age of peace and stability to refresh the nation. The festivities culminated in the second, grander coronation of King Charles VII, which marked the official recognition of his legitimacy as monarch.

However, all was not over. Duke Philippe III of Burgundy had joined the war separately from France, and although the Treaty of Paris had meant victory for the French, the war still continued for Burgundy. This would not bode well as the years passed, for the Burgundian Duke felt betrayed that France and her vassals had signed a treaty without his consent, leaving him alone in the war...

Henry VI and Charles VII come to an agreement for the terms of the Treaty of Paris

France after the Treaty of Paris


​

 

[Dachs]

What version of MM is this? Seems pretty old.

 

[NickTheNick]

What version of MM is this? Seems pretty old.

Magna Mundi Ultimate v 1.26

 

[NickTheNick]

Isn't that the most recent one?

 

[NickTheNick]

Whether or not you have played as other nations in the game doesn't change the fact that choosing France for your AAR is very meh.

Well those were the reasons that it is not meh for me.

Why do you find France meh? Too easy? Done too much?

 

[Dachs]

Isn't that the most recent one?

I dunno, that looks like the vanilla map and I'm 95% sure that the MMU team updated the map from vanilla.

 

[W|M]

I also have MMU, and (strangely) it does still use the vanilla map.

 

[NickTheNick]

I dunno, that looks like the vanilla map and I'm 95% sure that the MMU team updated the map from vanilla.

Well when I play without the mod, just regular Heir to the Throne, the map looks really different, and in my opinion, worse.

 

[Joecoolyo]

I dunno, that looks like the vanilla map and I'm 95% sure that the MMU team updated the map from vanilla.

Magna Mundi was never ported to Divine Wind due to work on the actual game.

So it still uses the HTTT map.

 

[W|M]

It uses a map mod? I assumed it used the HttT vanilla map because it's so terrible, even compared to vanilla DW.

 

[Yeekim]

You are a lucky weasel, Nick.

In my own MMU experience, the only way for France to get these provinces from England is to longwait them. Apparently Burgundian DOW and problems at home made the English relent this time.

Anyway, great choice of mod. I would wish you luck, but as France what you really need is self-restraint.

 

[Jos Ballenbak]

You know it's true!

Spoiler :

http://althistory.wikia.com/wiki/France_(Zombies_2010)