The Conflict
Prelude
During their expansion in the 1330s, the Regerdam Trading Association came upon a type of cloth named Eiban. More durable than normal linen and far more flashy if worked correctly it was an immediate hit in Richardia and gave the RTA an edge over their great rival, the Hohenberg Trade Company.
However, the profits of the Eiban trade were limited by its origins. While it was almost impossible to grow it anywhere in the known world, the fertile valleys of the Ladonian principality were home to more than ninety percent of its production. While the principality, itself part of the Rhendorian Empire, arguably sat on a goldmine, the rest of its economy was woefully underdeveloped to compete on an international stage. To protect their vulnerable industries their levied heavy tariffs on anything exported and imported, trying to grow their economy, financed by their Eiban production.
This situation was unacceptable to the RTA, which had hoped to use the Eiban trade to finally surpass the HTC and become the dominant trading group of the Richardian Republic. As such, a delegation was sent to the royal court to negotiate a trade agreement. Initial negotiations were successful, making the council of the RTA overconfident. They instructed their lead negotiator to buy one of the trading city on the Ladonian coast. This was supposed to be an essential part of the agreement, giving the RTA direct access to the Rhedorian Empire. Additionally, they announced to the public that they were on the cusp of securing massive amounts of Eiban, as well as permanent supply. This made many in the Republic ecstatic, driving up their share price massively.
However, this ecstasy was misplaced. As none of the negotiators had bothered to read the rules the Empire was built upon they were starstruck when their request to buy a city was immediately denied. This was due to those rules forbidding the sale of any imperial territory without the explicit approval of the Emperor. Obtaining this approval was a long and tedious process, one for which the RTA did not have enough time.
Any delay of the Eiban deliveries would effectively kill the boom the RTA is currently experiencing, dooming any of their chances to beat the HTC. Thus, they had to act with speed and secure Eiban supply for the Republic. The only way they thought possible, was war.
While the negotiations were still running, more warlike members assembled a small group of warships outside the city of Coblan. The idea was to overwhelm the cities defenses and secure a beachhead, serving as a staging ground, should the Ladonians not accept their demands after a show of force. The attackers themselves were disguised as Ladonian traders, to prevent any suspicion from the local guards.
The initial attack proved to be disastrous. Underequipped and overconfident the attackers were beaten back quickly, without causing any significant damage. This put the RTA into an incredibly fragile situation. While they could at first deny their involvement and blame it on rogue groups, the truth would slip out and damage their reputation. Even more, a successful end of the negotiations would become impossible, dooming their attempt to overtake the HTC. Thusly, their next move became evident. They had to double down on their mistake. Soon after the message of the defeat arrived in the capital, the RTA brought their case before the Stadtholder. They petitioned him to aid in their conquest of Coblan, arguing that the failure to assert Richardian strength would be interpreted as weakness by its many enemies, encouraging attacks and revolts on the fringes of its territory. Additionally, securing a continuous supply of Eiban would provide a source of wealth for the Republic, enabling it to surpass its own rival, Uphratus.
Their plea fell on open ears with the Stadtholder. He was in a weak position due to some court intrigue and saw a military expedition as an acceptable way to bolster his own prestige and strengthening his own position.
As such, Admiral Elsanne Molbak was dispatched to conquer Colbag and the surrounding countryside for the Republic and prepare a defense against the Ladonians trying to reclaim their land. To achieve this mission, she was given command of the third fleet and the sixth army.
The loss of Coblan and its Eidan farms to the Richardians was a heavy economic burden to the Ladonian Principality, as one of their more important trading harbors, as well a significant share of the lucrative Eidan trade was now controlled by the Richardians. Additionally, the Principality had lost several thousand competent soldiers, severely weakening them in the eternal power game that is the Empire, without anything to show for it.
Although the Richardians, more specifically the Hohenberg Trading Company pledged to pay for any damages caused by the war, as well as the pensions for the wounded and for the spouses of the dead, the Ladonians resented the Richardians for utterly humiliating them.
The immediate aftermath also saw the Ladonian Prince appealing to the Rhedonian Emperor to assert his position inside the empire once more, as to provide more protection to its peripheral parts.
While the following decade devastated the Ladonian treasury, the influx of goods and the emergence of trade opportunities by being forcefully opened to the Richardian market lead to impressive growth, quickly allowing most Ladonian merchants to recuperate their losses. Additionally, the Richardians showered the nobility and the prince with massive gifts, as to ensure their continued cooperation. While this cooperation at first wasn't enough to heal old wounds, it made some of the Ladonians ask, if it wasn't better to permanently throw in their lot with the Richardians. This position was further strengthened by the failure of the emperor to throw out the Richardians.
The trade brought by the Richardians and the influx of money and immigrants from their vast empire lead to the principality becoming wealthier than ever before, contributing more taxes to the imperial treasuries than almost any other part of the Empire. Much of the newfound wealth was spent on elaborate defensive networks, equally directed towards the Richardians and the rest of the Empire.
With the year's old wounds healed and even more of the Ladonian nobility and merchants declared their open support for seceding from the Empire and openly allying themselves with the Richardians. During one of the many civil wars of the Empire, the prince saw his opportunity and unilaterally seceded from it. Due to the Imperial Army being bound in the civil war the then Emperor Gustav von Brückberg could only watch as one of the wealthiest principalities vanished and with it, the treasury bled. However, when the civil war was over, the emperor marshaled his men and marched on Ladonia, leading to the second Richardian expedition into the Rhendorian Empire.
Comments