Concert of Europe: Gameplay Thread

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

xKingLouisXV

This treaty has been extended to Poland, country that now becomes ally to the Kingdom of France, Russia and Austria.

xKingLouisXV

x Augustus III

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

I'm asking Spain for clarification. Are they still in alliance with France or not?

It's not an either or thing with France and Britain, I think.

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

From His Royal Majesty, Adolf Fredrick, King of Sweden:

My court has been presented with dangerous and provocative information regarding Prussian warmongering and ambition on our own borders. Prussia's clear violation of the good faith of diplomatic negotiations is so brazen and contemptible that I will be forced to withdraw my support for the planned summit in Hanover that had been discussed. And, while I will not be releasing Prussia's actions to the public at this time, let it be known that they are a nation not to be trusted.

Best,
Adolf Fredrick, King of Sweden

Statement from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth:

While my court is deeply saddened to hear of this most unfortunate development, we believe that it would be a disaster for a great many European nations if the Hanover summit fell through before peace negotiations even began.  For this reason, Poland-Lithuania would be willing to send diplomats to Hanover to ensure that Sweden's disappointing withdrawal from the aforementioned summit does not derail the negotiations.  We believe a world war is not in any nation's interest, least of all during such times as those we live in today.  It is my sincere hope that cooler heads will prevail and that all other participants will publicly reaffirm their commitment to seeing the Hanover peace summit move forward despite this unfortunate setback.

Augustus, third of his name, King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

Statement from Warsaw:

Poland-Lithuania remains as it always has, resolutely devoted to seeing our Lord's peace spread throughout European Christiandom.  It is my sincerest hope that at the end of all this bloodshed, there will yet be a day when that dream will be realized and all the ill-gotten gains of small, wicked men shall be returned to their rightful owners.  However, that day can never come while men such as France's so-called "Holy King" sits upon a golden throne in the monument to Mammon known as Versailles while his own people starve in the streets. 

Before this tragic war began, there were some in my court who advised against entering into an alliance – or indeed even negotiating – with France.  Like most, I'd heard the profane tales about the decadent court of that nation's "holy" King of Sin and yet I did not believe them.  How could such vile infamy be true?  What heathen could be so wicked?  Surely such barbaric acts must be some wretched fiction spread by France's enemies.  Those were simpler days...days when a man could be forgiven for thinking his neighbor's word still meant something.  Mayhaps it was naive to think such a man as the so-called "Holy King" would remember what our Lord says about baring false witness. 

Alas, today I am listening with new ears: the ears of a man who, having seen the truth with his own eyes is left with no other course of action except to accept it.  My court has recently learned that the Prussian attack upon Saxon and Polish lands was the direct result of a black and ruthless scheme to drag the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth into an unnecessary and manufactured war.  Who would commit such a crime against the peace-loving peoples of Europe?  None other than Louis XV of France, a man who has proven himself to be a rank scalawag of the blackest order.  As a result, it is all to clear who the Poland-Lithuanian commonwealth's true enemy is: those French villains who conspired to drag our nation into a senseless war. 

We will not dance like a puppet on the so-called "Holy King's" strings.  The Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth – effective immediately – demands that all Russian troops withdraw from Polish lands.  The Tzar has previously indicated that his men would withdraw upon request and now comes the time for him to prove himself to be a man of his word.  We have received the same assurances from Austria. 

Prussia has proven themselves a most unexpected friend to the Polish people by bringing this infamous scheme to light, but a friend all the same and we are a proud nation...one which stands by its friends.  As for our newfound enemy, that most unholy scoundrel Louis XV, I fear there is no choice but for Poland to declare war upon France.  While we have as yet no proof that Austria was a party to this scheme it raises questions...questions which could easily be laid to rest if Austria will join us in forcefully condemning this wicked scheme.  If not, I fear there will be little choice but to respond accordingly.

Augustus III, King of the Polish-Lithuanian Confederation

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

Regarding Poland:
I now recognize Stanislas Leszczynski the rightful king of Poland and I now officially support the rebellion against this anti catholic Augustus.

The Polish people will not meekly submit to France's efforts to install a colonial puppet-ruler upon the Polish throne nor will they be deceived by the infamous rogue who dances like Nero with a golden fiddle at Versailles while Frenchmen starve on the streets of Paris.  Is this the work of a true Christian and man of our Lord?  No.  It is the work of a corrupt man who has grown fat as a hog whilst living off the sweat, toil, and tears of French Christiandom.  The "Holy King" of Sin claims I am anti-Catholic and yet I have always been (and indeed shall remain) a erstwhile champion of the Church.  Was it this so-called anti-Catholicism that drove France to ally itself with the Polish crown only to reverse itself like some throughly debauched craven the moment it became politically expedient?  Or maybe...just maybe...it was that the "Holy" King of Sin knows that I am a resolute champion of the Catholic Church and cares far less for the fate of European Christiandom than he does for installing some minion upon the Polish throne.  Was there ever such a black heart as that Louis XV?  Nay, for the man – if he can be called such after his cowardly nature has been so spectacularly brought to bare – plainly hath no heart.

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

January 1757
George II of Great Britain

A Proclamation From Kensington Palace

His Majesty the King has warned for many years the dangers of the pretenders of the Stuart line. It was in Divine benevolence that His Majesty the King and the dearly beloved King George I chose to allow them to live in a modest, Christian life in Europe. In recent months it has become clear that the Stuarts had no plans to live that modest, Christian life and were still intent on overthrowing the good family of the House of Hanover that have ruled the Kingdom of Great Britain for decades. This is why, in his wisdom, His Majesty the King demanded the handing over of the Old Pretender's son, the one Bonnie Prince Charlie, to end the Stuart line and to diffuse the tensions across Europe. It was further in his wisdom that His Majesty the King, seeing no moves by the King in France to hand over the Stuart heir, began the current war in Europe, to protect the British homeland from traitorous rebels. His Majesty the King had hoped that the recent successes of the British Army, Royal Navy, and Her loyal allies would have led the King in France to hand over the traitorous Stuart brood. Sadly, the King in France and His Pompousness the Pope in Rome have not seen the winds of enlightened Protestantism blowing across Europe.

The rebellion in Ireland is a direct result of instigation by the King in France and His Pompousness. The Catholics, who have made a life of swearing allegiance to Rome rather than the Crown, are not a loyal breed. His Majesty the King made many efforts to allow them to live peaceably alongside the good Protestants of the Kingdom. Many Catholics in the realm, especially those in England, Scotland, and Wales, have been good and loyal subjects for many years now. Even Her Majesty the Queen was once a Catholic but, in order to be a loyal wife and faithful subject, she converted to the Church of England as a sign of loyalty. Many of His Majesty the King's allies in the current war in Europe are of the Catholic faith, but recognize the danger in such blind loyalty as His Pompousness vainly demands. The current events in Ireland show that there is something in the Irish breed that makes them untrustworthy and less loyal than rats; when coupled with the plague of Catholicism, they can never be good subjects.

The perpetrators of this rebellion in Ireland will not receive the King's Peace, nor be offered the promise of safety and protections ever again. All Catholics in Ireland who wish to preserve their well-being must convert to the Church of England and commit the following oath to an officer of the British Army or become subject to imprisonment, torture, severe fining, banishment, and even death for their continued disloyalty. Violation of the Oath is punishable by death and death alone. Good and loyal Catholics across the realm are encouraged to take the same oath, to assure His Majesty the King of their continued loyalty.

His Majesty the King grants letters patent to create His Royal Highness Prince William, the Duke of Cumberland as Duke of Leinster in the Peerage of Ireland and all lesser title associated with it.

His Royal Highness Prince William is also appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.

Any man who presents the head of both James Stuart the Old Pretender or Bonnie Prince Charlie to His Majesty the King will be rewarded handsomely with titles, land, and wealth beyond the dreams of peasants.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Statement from Warsaw:

Whatever disputes we may have with France, Poland-Lithuania remains as firmly committed as ever to the church and the cause of our oppressed brothers in Christ.  This statement is an outrage against all of European Christiandom and the Polish-Lithuanian Confederation demands its immediate retraction and an apology for the wicked slander which has been hurled at the Holy See.  I have to believe this statement was the result of some grave misunderstanding as surely no man could be so foolish as to profane His Holiness' office by writing such foul blasphemies.  I can only hope that this statement is some vile forgery, perhaps even the foul product of yet another sickening scheme by the Holy King of Sin.  We condemn in no uncertain terms this infamous declaration, demand its immediate withdrawal, and pray that the Lord will bless the King of England with the wisdom to clarify this most disconcerting statement.  No Polish-Lithuanian blood shall be spent on a war against our Irish brothers in Christ.  These are good Christian men who must not be punished for the acts of a few radicals.  The cause against which we fight is French greed and megalomania.  It is my sincerest hope that this remains true of the English King as well...

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

The following statement is to be distributed in all the nations of Europe, particularly within Catholic communities, regardless of said nation's alignment (flood the streets with as many copies as possible):  

A statement from the Holy See:

My brothers, we find ourselves at a crossroads within the history of European Christiandom.  There can be no middle ground nor any declarations of neutrality during such times as these.  All Catholics throughout Christiandom face a choice: Will they stand with the Lord and their brothers in Christ or do they stand with Satan?  Make no mistake, this is a holy war and we must be the victors.  The very fate of European Christiandom hangs in the balance.  Even here in the Holy See, I can see a thick cloud of sulfur hanging over the city of London.  I hereby charge the false King of England, George II, with anti-Christ.  The foul, loathsome blasphemies of this twisted, bloodthirsty monster are as infamous as his genocidal war upon Irish Christiandom.  Indeed, there are even stories that this cold, reptilian savage hides a forked tail beneath his pants and that his "hair" is in fact a wig designed to hide two small horns.  What's more, it is known that the British soldiers raping the Irish countryside have been feasting upon the blood of Catholic schoolchildren.  The George II himself wears a serpentine smirk every night, as he has an Irish newborn ripped from its mother's breast and baked into a meat pie.  Such evil cannot, must not be permitted to go unanswered.  The good Christians of Ireland have launched a holy war against this tyranny and it is our scared duty – from the richest prince to the poorest beggar – to support our Irish brothers in their war against tyranny.  Though we walk through the darkest valley, let us fear no evil.  Indeed, since we are facing an army of darkness, let us be the warm light of day.

As for George II, this inhuman beast...this Lucifer of London, must be brought to justice.  He has fallen upon the good Christian peoples of Europe with his four horseman: Frederick the False of Prussia, Augustus the Arrogent of Poland, Mustafa the Murderous of the barbarian hordes, and Fickle Frederick V of Denmark.  Already, the good Christian people of Poland have risen up against the tyrant Augustus.  However great a victory this may be, only one serpent has been decapitated.  It falls upon every man in Europe who would call himself a true Christian to fight until the dragon lies dead upon the streets of London.  To those who have seen foreign armies enter your lands, I call upon you to fight these Godless heathens in every street, in every alley, and in every building.  Let the Prussians, English, and the rest know that no place shall be safe for soldiers in Satan's army.  We must give no quarter and show no mercy.  To those Kings who have not chosen a side yet call themselves Catholics, I say to them that now is the time to prove themselves to be true men of faith.  To those who fear death, I say that you have no cause to fear for martyrdom awaits.

His Holiness, Pope Benedict XIV

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

Apologies to everyone (especially Spamage), but I'm afraid I'm gonna have to drop out   While I've really enjoyed this game, I don't know that I can give it the attention it deserves for RL reasons, so it wouldn't be fair to you guys for me to stay in.  Best of luck everybody (especially the Irish NPC, show those Godless English heathen who really runs Ireland)!