Deutsche Welle - German News

[Lynneth]

The first aim of the southern Doctors was to stabilize the patient, which turned out to not be too difficult. Perhaps it was someone deliberately not doing the absolute most he could, perhaps it was too little experience or some entirely other reason.
Regardless of that, once the young Martens was stabilised, they began working on repairing whatever damage he had, using the advanced genetic technology of the GDR to regrow any organ as needed. Aside from the links, nearly everything could be replaced, though they would incorporate any specialised implants tha were scheduled to be given to him into the operations. After all, they had brought better equipment, which resulted in lesser complications. Why not do that, as well?
But even then, it could take weeks until they were completely done with everything...Unless they were thrown out for some reason. Although he could possibly regain consciousess after the first week or so.

[Kaiser Martens]

It was found out that the younger Martens was quite resilient. As most knew, in medicine, some people would react differently from others to the same treatment. The Chancellor seemed to react favorably ever since stability had returned to Germany. It was as if healing the political scene of the land had resulted in his body to be more willing to heal. Old Martens noticed this and left after a while, and would come back to visit now and then.

On the seventh day, the young one awoke and made brief statements to the press. Just a few phrases, but enough to stir and then calm down the masses. Later on, when he was recovered, the new ellections took place.

The result on the first factor was that Democracy had been abolished in favor of the local variant of Meritocracy. The only political groups which managed to get proper support - the second factor - had been largely the Martencists and to some degree the RatComs. Although it had been expected that the new Force would return to plain old Martencism, this did not really happen. The RatCom party never reformed, and the rest of the parties - Martencist included - also dissappeared once that they were no longer needed. But the new Government was not going to be formed only by the winning Martencists. Many former RatComs had in fact been included in the new Government, so even though that the system had become again a Meritocracy, and to public opinion Martencist, it was a modified Martencism - called by some the next step of evolution - which involved RatComs and their policies to some degree. A reasonable compromise had been established. The Althing would continue to exist as an institution, although with a lower amount of members. The Aesir had return to the political scene too.

Everything was as it should be now. The only odd thing was that the Chancellor was no Kaiser. Some already were pushing for it, stating that seeing a Chancellor in a centralized non-democratic Germany had unwanted reminiscences of the past. But the young Martens said that it was not the time to think about titles but instead about policies. He'd set his reconstruction plan in motion.

The unification plebiscite was yet to take place.

[Lynneth]

Young Martens would have to spend three more weeks in hospital after waking up. On the sixth day of the third week (20 days later), he would be allowed to leave, under the condition that he didn't strain and exert himself too much.
Later, one of the doctors would say that 'He recovered much more quickly than anticipated; Quite resilient, the man.' when asked about the swift recovery.

Once the deed was done, the GDR doctors removed their equipment from the hospital and, together with the NPA division, returned back to the GDR. Border guards were reduced to normal peace-time levels, civilians left for their homes. Soon, the border would be silent again, as before.

And the GDR would watch their northern neighbours.

Edited March 25, 2010 by Lynneth

[Kaiser Martens]

The Chancellor would thank GDR and the Doctors personally. It was an unexpected favor, but in the end, he guessed that against a common enemy - corruption - it was no wonder to receive that aid.

Things would get better for Germany soon. Plan Munin would be set in motion. In less than a year, the Technological Level would rise from a poor 300 up to 1600 - putting Germany back in the map of modern nations. Sure, no cutting edge technology, but it would no longer stagnate badly and growth would exist. It would also be combined with the purchase of over one hundred million Nordmarks worth of Infrastructure, to make the country once more competitive. The economy would close again, although not to the nordland-era extremes. It was clear that the classical Martencist protectionism had been influenced by pro-growth RatCom inspired measures. The new technology would be used to make society better, however, appliances such as the bracelets seemed to be ommited.

The German Governments had discussed for some time terms for reuniting the country. The projects would be presented soon (with several variants and options), would be discussed by the people, and the referendum to decide the ultimate fate of Germany would take place...anytime now, as the economy, society, politics and even military stabilized.

[Kaiser Martens]

Record time recovery. From an all-time low of estimated 8k strength, in the second phase of the recovery plan, this would grow up to 29.

Martens spoke,

"We are still far from the goal. The Technology shippings will arrive in another twenty days and then we will be up to worldy standards once more. Once that we have this, it will be safe to further invest in Infrastructure. When everything is then finally stabilized, standard growth will be able to happen without the need for emergency measures. The best for Germany is yet to come."

[Karl Martin]

Lorelei Shimazu, Envoyé extraordinaire et ministre plénipotentiaire, was sent to Berlin as the Burgundy ambassador to Deutschland, with Justine Kataoka as a naval attache..

Edited March 31, 2010 by Karl Martin

[Kaiser Martens]

When Karl Martin von Hohenzollern's role in the stabilization of Germany was fully understood, and taking into consideration his very reasonable management of Elsass-Lothringen which led to its reincorporation into the German Realm, it was decided that he would be granted the title of King of Prussia, a title which had last been held by Tanzband, who eventually quit not to be heard of again. The House had remained without a head ever since. The title is in fact honorific only, as Royalty does not have any specific power. A palace with a moderate amount of land had been given to him personally, although it remains still under German Sovereignty, it was the Government's way of thanking him for the support.

The economy continued with its stable, slow growth and the Armed Forces continued to be refitted with proper equipment, after much of the old forces had fallen to lack of maintenance. On the civilian realm, new roads and train infrastructure is being built to connect the German territories, with special focus on the Elsass-Lothringen zone, Luxemburg and the small amount of territory once belonging to Deutscher Bund, to bring them up to par with the rest of the German Territories. Train fares have decreased in order to allow the population to move around more freely, and the education budget rose 5%.

[Kaiser Martens]

[b]GERMANY A FIRST WORLD NATION![/b]
[i]Widespread Celebrations[/i]

And on this day, the Chancellor has proudly announced that Germany has at last reached the status of a full-fledged First World Nation, when its technological assets increase in order to meet those requirements and even beyond.
At the same time, the infrastructure has raised by one thousand points, and is scheduled to reach pre-democracy standards in further years of steady growth.

Martens has mentioned that this was possible due to the stabilization of Germany, and that from now on, the country will be able to properly stand up for itself without needing to rely on foreign nations, at the same time, it will be more qualified to give better medical attention and education to its citizens.

"This is the culmination of a goal, however, we are not stopping here. Our economic and technologic expansion plans shall continue well beyond our current mark. Let us break our records."

[Centurius]

"We are happy to see our friends in the North being so prosperous."

[Kaiser Martens]

[i]News from the North[/i]

German development continues, in its best growth since the first Silver. Periodically the Government stockpiles resources and then invests them back on the land, and technology continues to grow well past the First World minimum standard, as if to be "on the safe side" and improve beyond any reasonable doubt. In the next year, the nation will officially surpass the power which it had before the last problems. The next "record" after that will only be the nation's maximum strength ever, which is a long, long ways away. But they're determined to reach it.

In other news, the reintegration of Low Germany - Former Netherlands - continues without problems, but a very large state funeral has been held for the assasinated house of Orange-Nassau, and later several mourning days were issued by the chancellor to mourn Adelheid, Paladin of the Franks, killed by revolutionaries. Additionally, Karl Martin, head of the Hohenzollern house was suspiciously eyed after the Orange Deaths implied that he himself was heir to their house as well. But the Government said that, in spite of recognizing this, royalty would not be granted power in Germany once more, and that it would be disrespectful to their memory to make an issue out of this, even if the one man holds several crowns. Ironically, many crowns at once, but no kingdom at all.

Research and development in the Army continues as well as in the Airforce. The brand new Enhanced Raptors have been deployed very successfully in the East, and the Chancellor has announced that Germany enjoyed complete air superiority. Because of this, the German bombers, together with the missiles, continue to do their job without being impeded. The new Kriegsmarine has also been deployed successfully and employed to provide support for the ground troops, however, no naval battle proper has taken place, as the Russian navy is wholly disabled.

The fight near Königsberg and Riga continues, and all of Germany's troops are being mobilized to ensure a swift end to the fight. Several units have been issued with the new Einherjar Armor and the new A8V Wotan MBT, enjoying a great battle record, but the majority of the troops have not received this yet. Industry is working around the clock to make more equipment for the east.

The negotiations with Denmark continue in order to recover Northern Germany, but are, reportedly, advancing very slowly. Still, the Chancellor claims that things are so far working well - it is merely the speed that is lacking.

[Kaiser Martens]

[b]Negotiations Completed Successfully[/b]
[i]Ancestral Home Regained![/i]

[img]http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/4467/newgermany.png[/img]
A gaze to the New Germany (Iceland not in picture)

With Vega's insane leadership out of the way, Germany and Denmark have been able to sit down and discuss the longstanding hostile situation among both nations. The brand new Danish Government spoke to the Chancellor, with mediation from France to come to an understanding. Germany was granted half of its old claims over Denmark, the rest having been taken back, and has granted a Baltic portion of territory to make up for this. A path will also be built from Denmark to Southern Germany, exclusively for their use: a highway, and a planned city will be built at the Danish Baltic by Germany in order to accomodate their population best.

Some have complained that the change of policy is no good: Only achieving half of what wanted, while needing to sacrifice another territory. Some view this as unacceptable and continue to state that Germany should battle. But most people are simply thrilled to regain one of the most important territories for Silver Germany, and a massive reunion celebration took place at Hamburg. Many people cried in joy as they were no longer dependant on Denmark. The home of the Martens Family is again under their rule. Things look better and better.

Additionally, three massive civilian ships left Amsterdam recently: The Great Longships, they were called. A sort of German "ark" containing a very large amount of citizens, culture, animals, plants, technology...ment to be self-sufficient. One of the ships has sailed to Niflheim in order to populate it, while the other two ships will sail throughout the world, one headed for South Africa, and one for Northern America, becoming nomads.

[Kaiser Martens]

[b][u]Germany continues its stunning development[/u]
[i]New territories at hand?[/i][/b]

At the same time that Germany continues to increase its Technological and Infrastructural indexes throughout the entire land, further developments take place. Recently, Germany has decided to annex Brussels after a long period of quietness in the region. Only a minority have complained, and have thusly been paid to re-settle in France, out of Government funds. The construction of the Danish City continues slightly ahead of schedule in spite of the bad weather as of lately.

Today, Silesians and German Belarussians have requested membership into Germany, have requested to join again. However, the Chancellor, concerned by the legitimacy of the plebiscites held there by the previous governments, has stated that in the next ten days, plebiscites would take place to determine the fate of the two regions.

The war against Paulist Russia is ongoing and successful. After the surprise attack, they managed to push all the way to Königsburg. However, under Martens the Elder's leadership, the people of Königsburg annihilated the invading army while Army Group Riga, deployed navally, cut them off from reinforcements. In the end, the massive Germany army, with a number of upgraded units, moved forth en masse and are now fighting at St. Petersburg to put an end to the Paulist Regime, with Tsar Justinian's support.

[Kaiser Martens]

[b]The end of the War
And the addition of Valkurheim[/b]

The war has ended in the far East with the German-Justinianist capture of Petersburg. The war has been an astounding, resounding victory for Germany and now further teams have been dispatched to help the reconstruction, especially at Petersburg which was the most damaged. For these efforts, Chancellor Martens has been granted the Order of St. Andrew by Tsar Justinian, which he now displays with great pride. Never before have Germany and Russia been closer and friendlier.

The three Longships continue their actions...the one at Nebelheim continues with its regular business, but now, the other two have arrived to Amerikanisches Reich and South Africa, for tourism.

The German War chest and Technology continue to grow steadily.

[Kaiser Martens]

[b]A far reaching decision
And the life of our Ratsherr[/b]

Ever since the successful German Merger, the Northern German army managed to update its armed forces to the same standards, in fact, the same equipment - only manufactured by Northern Factories - than the south. Today, the only outwardly sign of any difference is the choice of the Odal Rune in favor of the Iron Cross for most Army Equipment. However, economic growth seemed to slow down once that the armed forces modernisation was complete. The reason cited for this was that, in fact, the economy did not slow down at all, instead it so happened that the Government decided that it was the time to stockpile a massive warchest which may eventually be needed.

"We had been running on few reserves in our struggle to recover, and we got past our previous strength by far. Now it is time to safeguard what we gained before moving on."

Indeed, as the north and south synchronize, it all starts to feel like one country again, and it seems that a time of harmony is at hand. With the new Althing of Specialists formed, now Ratsherr Martens has had time to, at last, enjoy himself and possibly think about his future. He has been seen publically strolling and having a good time with Ingrid Magnusdottar von Glücksburg, heir to the wholly powerless Danish and Norweigan Thrones. The press already speculates as to what the outcome may be, but he has been seen happier than ever, in what seems to be a spring for Germany at large.

The only shadow, the only dark cloud over this all was the cancellation of the German pact with the Southern American Giant once that it was discovered that it had deliberately genocided a number of Tahoean citizens. However, before the situation wholly deteriorated, a peaceful solution has been found in the region, which for a moment, seemed about to spawn further warfare.

Edited June 30, 2010 by Kaiser Martens

[Kaiser Martens]

[i][b]At the low lands
A gift is offered
[/b][/i]

Ratsherr Martens gave a brief speech at the Temple of Nehalennia, some kilometers southwest of Amsterdam to a large group of people, veterans from the previous German and Nordlandic wars which had been unable to obtain some type of Government support to make up for their wounds and disabilities, many of which had been considered not apt to this due to having served under the Visarist Regime. He announced the change of the old policy, and will recognize their needs and promptly provide prosthetics and rehabilitation where needed, in some cases, financial assistance as well.

"It is not our place as rulers nor citizens to discriminate against those who fought to protect us, regardless of how right or wrong the leadership may be. These are not to blame. We cannot make scapegoats of them. Now our Government is also, able to use part of the funds to help them - in the past, we barely had enough to sustain ourselves. As the economy recovers, it allows us to improve society. We forgive, and although we do not forget, we have the capacity of moving on."

Shortly thereafter a ceremony was held at the temple, for the Goddess to bless German prosperity. Ingrid von Glücksburg also assisted to announce the creation of the Baltic University in the far east and six more schools and factories in Iceland, to bring those territories up to par with the living standards of the rest of Germany.

"Although our name is Germany, we are more than just that. There are other parts of our lands which at different times have and haven't been a part of our heimat. Because of these changes, they were often neglected. We will not do that anymore."

To finalize, a small military parade showing the new equipment adopted from the south has been seen by the Temple. The Northern Economy continues to be steady, as it continues to gather more and more concealed resources and money to extend its survivability.

[Kaiser Martens]

[b]Large scale preparations in Northern Germany
Ongoing for a long time - now intensifying[/b]

It has been no secret that Nordheim had once been the most militarized nation in the world in relative terms, and that soon with the creation of Northern Germany this militarism spread to what once had been Prussia. Ever since, the country has had monthly mandatory military training sessions, which some people deem to be excessive, especially in the south. But this tradition has gone on. Now however, that Northern Germany continues to amass large amounts of war reserves ranging from the most complex types of Cruise Missiles to simple medical aid, priorities seem to be modified.

Now that the armed forces have been fitted with the upgraded southern-created, northern-built equipment, large scale construction of deposits and concealed strongpoints is ongoing. Indeed, just about everywhere in Germany, underground depots of varying scale seemed to be constructed. Other small strongpoints were also built, although in reality, nobody but the Ratsherr seemed to know exactly how much was being stored and where. Citizens were given supplies and ammunitions, and it seemed as if the North prepared itself and its civilian population for militarization and large scale war.

At the same time, military exercises were undertaken by the Northern Army Groups at Nordheim, in the mountains section. The Nordlandic troops were most used to flat terrain and to deep winters, but now they were trying to add mountain experience for the offense and defense, while testing out their new weapons. This is widely seen as a response to Slavic military exercises, but the Ratsherr has not confirmed nor denied this, merely saying that the forces had their own agendas which are not simplistic reactions to what a neighbor may do.

While this all took place, a Citizen's military parade - a militian parade - was held at Hamburg, and afterwards the Ratsherr announced the construction and remodelling of several schools and hospitals throughout the North.

"As I promised, our raising of a proper war chest is now accompanied by developments to better protect and serve all Germans. In the future, approximately in one year, we will be in a position to continue the regular infrastructural growth as is expected, and we will then have enough to safeguard our every gain. Hail VDL."

[Kaiser Martens]

[b]At the white sausage equator
Artificial unity?[/b]

Germany has been united for a fairly long period of time now. But is it really as united as it seems to be? Ever since the distant past, a characteristic typical of all Germanic peoples has been infighting and a lack of political unity. We have the cases of Denmark, Sweden and Norway which split up in spite of speaking practically the same language, and we also have the Belgian and Nederlandish cases. Austria is also well known as well as the Helvetians, but do these feelings carry on today? It would seem so, at the "Weisswurstäquator". The term, known already since before the Silver, was used humorously to contrast the cultures of Southern and Northern Germany.

The term is not a creation of modern nor postmodern society either. The line had been known for a long time - on the south, Austrian, Bavarian and other southern cultures had been more prevalent, while on the north, Prussian influence and other northern cultures had been dominant. Even before then, existed the dialect line - Speyerlinie dividing the dialects of North and South. Certain sectors in Northern Germany used to speak indeed something so close to Dutch, that it led some to not considering Dutch a language, and for some time, in English, Dutch and German had been used interchangeably. Nowadays, there are also the enduring German stereotypes. The current stereotypes are in the south, the yodelling, fat beer-drinking Bavarians, and in the north, the Prussian overly militaristic obsessive men - both at once incredibly innacurate in most senses but accurate in a few.

The line had once dissappeared during the ruling of our Kaiser Martens, and during the ruling of Magnhild, but regretfully Visari's failures caused for the line to appear once more. This led to wars in which the South attempted to seize the North, which was just barely able to resist. Yet the North was not simply "Germany" anymore. The Nordlanders and the Northern Germans had by then mutated into something else. They had mutated into a union which reached even farther than the Memel and the Maas. These are called the "New Germans". Formerly known as the Dutch, disillussioned over and over again by their poor leadership, its poor choices and wars, willingly having joined Northern Germany for good at the tune of the Hamborger Veermaster and the Kaperfahr Fahren. And then the far Eastern German Districts, once vast Slavic territories, abandoned by its former owners. The Iceland, recovered and re-populated by the descendants of the Icelanders which arrived to Germany in the Silver Times when the land had been taken over by Celts. And at last, Nordheim, home of the Aesir, home of the old Nordlandic Guard, but also home of the German minorities. The Slavic, Celtic, Japanese, Italians and Middle Easterns forming their own batallions.

Is it because of this that nowadays the Nordlandic and Low German speaking North cannot seem to see eye to eye with the formerly-communist high-german south? Is it because of this that it feels like a mere conglomeration of unrelated lands ala Magna Europa unlike one unified front? Is it because of this that the South has been having issues with different left-wing demonstrators, while the North remains steadfast? Indeed, years and years of fighting against Communists in the near and distant past have conditioned every Prussian and every Saxon to eye a red banner with discomfort and even hostility. The cultures, the ways of life, the religions - are they really that different that they will not be able to come together? Or is this problem only a result of Southern unstability? The only thing that seems to have changed in the North since the merger is the extreme upgrading of technology and the accumulation of massive resources for a...defensive? war, tickling the world nervously just after the Berlin Guards had managed to dismantle the old Slavorussian offensive. One may say that more of a merger it seems to be two countries with a MADP using the very same banner.

What is ahead for Germany? The Government has yet to make comments about this, and instead focuses on everyday tasks, trusting that with time, eventually, the cultures will become one and undistinguishable. They do not seem to want to deal with the subject. After all, the country is one of the strongest in the world, and has to work hard to keep up with its very high standards. Each side seems happy to let the other coexist. Perhaps this is the harmony that Europe needed, among similar yet different parts. Even though third parties may be eager to destroy Germany, I trust that no matter what, the unity of the people will be the strongest, most decisive factor in the upcoming years, until for good, our fate is sealed: Brüderlich Zusammenhält.

[i]-Nordenstern[/i]

[Kaiser Martens]

[b]Southern Victory!
And nothing new on the Western Front[/b]

Our troops march on Wien and München as victory is achieved after a dramatic turn of events in the Southern Front. Germany is again unified, although will not remain the same: Switzerland has managed to obtain its territory, the clain accepted by Germany. The status of Slovenia and Croatia is still disputed, some say it will be a protectorate, some independent, while others that the Slavic Federation will absorb them. A plebiscite is not wholly out of the question.

Nothing new on the Western front: Ongoing battle in Strassburg, where our outnumbered soldiers and Slavorussian reinforcements do their best to fight. If Strassburg is lost, France will have recovered de-facto the territory which they wanted, but how will the victory in the south affect this, now that Germany can mobilize to stop the French actions with full strength?

In other news, a large amount of Southern VDL loyalists and Anti-Vega Danes have been assembling in Germany under Tyr Baldursson von Lübeck [i](Vince)[/i], who fought throughout the conflict behind enemy lines against the Reds. By popular support, he has been given the title of Ratsherr to workside along Ratsherr Martens, being the new face of the "Southern" part of Germany though ironically also that of the Far North.

What will happen next? Odin knows.

--------------

In other news, a large amount of brand-new Kriegsmarine ships have been deployed across Northern Germany. They have been manufactured since before the war had started, and could only be made available now. They will be joining the rest of the Kriegsmarine deployed on the Northsea in the next few following days to consolidate german coastal protection. Two new Admirals have been fielded for the occation: Fleischer and Gunnarson.

----------------
Corvettes: 9
Der letzte Mann
Reval
Bremerhaven
Merseburg
Brattahlid
Scaldholz
Uppsala
Donnarsbaum
Baduhenna

Landing Ships: 9
Farö
Harald von Norden
Erik Segersäll
Widukind
Pjotr Wrangel
Silberaufstand
Aesirmacht
Hansaflotte
Övernordvind

Battleships: 8
Asgaard
Danske Holger
Svearike
Noregr
Kalmar
Stockholm
Nordland
Asentreuer

Cruisers: 7
Siegfried
Beowulf
Gneisenau
Blücher
Krijgsvolk
Untaufbar
Bjornson

Frigates: 7
Alamanni
Alarik
Rommel
Rejkjavik
Kaiser Barbarossa
Heimdall
Wodan

Destroyers: 7
Florian Geyer
Furor Teutonicus
Doppeladler
Hildebrand
Pier Donia
Wilhelm van Orange
Elsass-Lothringen

Submarines: 6
Jörmungand
Wolfgang Fredericksson
Preussen
Grossdeutschland
Lübeck
Amsterdam

Aircraft Carriers: 6
Silver Bayern
Silver Österreich
Nordvind
Mjöllnir
Danzig
Feuervogel

Edited August 4, 2010 by Kaiser Martens

[Bacharth]

[size=5]Defensive Network on multiple fronts complete[/size]
[size=2]The German-Sicilian border, previously a long, lightly defended alpine border, has recently undergone changes to ramp up the defensive capabilities. Anti-tank, anti-infantry, and anti-aircraft defenses have been built into the mountains, creating a stealthy and effective way to defend such a mountainous region. Work is also being started to link up the defensive positions in a tunnel system through the Swiss mountains, much like the Norsvean system that was planned, but never finished. In the non-mountainous border regions, pillboxes and other assorted defensive positions were created in case of a southern invasion. Most roads crossing the border have been blocked as well, by man-made rockslides or other ways to physically block the road with excessive amounts of large stones or cement blocks, allowing only one road in between the two nations. Minefields and Czech Hedgehogs have been laid in the flat areas where infantry could invade from. [/size]
[size=2]
[/size]
[size=2]Iceland has also been seen as a weak point in the Germanic defensive system. So, defensive structures have also been created there. Czech Hedgehogs, Minefields, and Anti-naval defenses have been placed to defend the parts of Iceland that can be landed on, considering most of the sea border is impossible to invade from. The parts that are have been physically blocked, by blocking the beaches or the roads leading to the coasts, to make landing on Iceland nearly impossible. Icelandic citizens have also been hard at work constructing factories and other amenities to try to make them more self-sufficient. [/size]

[Kaiser Martens]

[u]The Great Reconstruction[/u]
[i]Wien[/i]

Before the grand reconstruction of Wien takes place, ironically, destruction in Germany must continue: Several damaged skyscrappers have been demolished in this broken ruin of a city. Afterwards, it was announced that a very large package would be granted to Wien and other formerly Red Areas in order to rebuild them. Save for Communist Monuments, they would be rebuilt in the same manner as before over a period of two years. As the reconstruction of Elsass-Lothringen comes to its end, this even greater project begins. Historical buildings will be restored, other buildings will be new, but Wien's original style is to be preserved.

"We can't rob the city of its identity, and we cannot leave it in ruins either. Now this is priority one."

----------------

Secondly, the Koryo unofficial "ambassador" or "Military liaison" was invited to review the current Germanic Union Factbook, rebuilding and fortification schemes to voice his opinion as well as to pick up experience that can be used in his country. The General Staff minus Martens were there: "What do you think? We're as tough as a diamond now..."

[Kankou]

The military liaison, Major Shirokime Gakei, had spent most of [i]her[/i] time being guided through all the different bases and fortifications throughout the Union. The thousands of pages of notes had been compressed into a crisp series of report, on which she would give a presentation.

"First of all, thank you for allowing this audience. It has been a great honor for me to be able to see the inner workings of the oldest and greatest fighting force this world as ever seen.

For the first presentation, I would like to focus on the navy. The Kriegsmarine is unique among the navies of the world in that it is comprised almost entirely of submarines. While this would be disasterous for most, it is the best kind of system for a continental empire like the Germanic Union. The main regions of action would be the East and the German, with the Adriatic as a potential but relatively peaceful area. The enclosed and relatively deep environment of the East is an ideal place for submarine warfare, and the role of the German is mostly to maintain the lines of communication with Island.

All in all, given the choke points between the open sea and the inner waters of the Union, there is no particular need for anti-submarine ships, since aircraft is sufficient. In addition, the Union does not face the danger of being resource-starved from blockages, leading to the unnecessity of large surface ships. The only surface ships that are needed are landships for amphibious assualts and the frigates to protect the landing ships. All of this adds up to the large submarine force of the Kriegsmarine. The structure of the Kriegsmarine is near perfect. However, I have suggestions concerning the locations of the bases.

Currently, Königsberg is the home base of the Kriegmarine. This is possibily the worst place possible for a submarine navy given the characteristics of the Frisches Haff. Average depth equals 2.7 meters and maximum depth excluding the artificially dredged navigable channel is 5.2 meters. Even the dredged channel is just over 10 meters, and the cannel needs permanent maintenance dredging. To put a submarine means it will only be exposed before reaching the East, not something any logical military would want. In addition, the next best harbor, Gotenhafen, is a very populated area, not ideal for a submarine base. In my humble opinion, Libau would be the best place for moving the home base to. It is a relatively small city with a population less than 100,000 people, very isolated, and has one of the largest military infrastructure in the East. Originally the home port of the Russian/Soviet Baltic Fleet, the various defences from the massive batteries to the large submarine bases, its central position in the East makes it the ideal location of the Kriegmarine home base."

Edited October 14, 2010 by Kankou

[Kaiser Martens]

"We may decide to instead move to Thonnarsburg, formerly known as Perungrad. The place was designed from the ground up to be a base, although eventually it was abandoned when Nordland's navy was no more. We do not want to be based in the farthermost baltic area though, so we are also considering making a new base somewhere in Slesvig or Jutland, so as to be reasonably close to Iceland but not outright exposed like our Amsteram forward base."

[Kankou]

"With all due respect, Thonnarsburg has the same problem as Gotenhafen. The entire Danziger Bucht, with Dreistadt at the center, is ideal for a surface navy, but there is too much traffic for a concealed submarine base. However, since Thonnarsburg is a pure military base, I believe we can split the Eastern Fleet between Libau and Thonnarsburg. Libau should be the main port of the SSBNs, since the relative inacivity around the area would ensure the strategic assets of the Kriegmarine are safe.

For the blue-water navy, I suggest Frederikshavn. Due to its advantageous proximity to the entrance to the Baltic Sea and the deepness of the port, it is ideal for the aircraft carrier. Also, the strategic location of being on the east side of the Jutland means the ships can be safe from hostile forces.

I have made a map of the suggested main naval bases. Major cities such as Amsterdam and Hamburg has been avoided, and I have suggested Kiel as the location of the High Command, given its location as the lik between the German and the East Sea."

[IMG]http://i911.photobucket.com/albums/ac318/kousenkankou/Maps/GermanNavalBasePlan.png[/IMG]


OOC: I notice that Luxemburg and Südtirol are not part of the Union.

Also, located Martenshaven at Triest, since it was the most important German city that is in RL Italy. Hope this suggestion helps.

[Kaiser Martens]

"Now that Denmark is no more, Kiel or even for irony Lübeck may be a suitable base more or less at the center of the operations theatre. We will conduct further research and look into this. Hmm. Other doctrines call for the splitting of the navy in many pieces, so that it cannot easily be preemptively-stricken there where it sits, at least for the Surface Units."

OOC: Also Luxemburg is a part, although the map may be wrong, of the union.

Edited September 24, 2010 by Kaiser Martens

[Kankou]

"I had made a list of the fleets based on their home ports. In the cases of when there are two numbers, the later stands for the minimum number of ships that needs to be placed in the fleet."


[quote][b][u]Kiel[/u][/b]
8/3 SSN


[b][u]Frederikshavn[/u][/b]
1 Carrier
13/8 SSN
2 Frigate
9/4 Landing Ships

[b][u]Wilhelmshaven[/u][/b]
1 SSBN
7/2 SSN
1 Frigate
2/1 Landing Ship

[b][u]Den Helder[/u][/b]
7/2 SSN
1 Frigate
2/1 Landing Ship

[b][u]Thonnarsburg[/u][/b]
8/3 SSN
1 Frigate
2/1 Landing Ship

[b][u]Libau[/u][/b]
3 SSBN
12/7 SSN

[b][u]Martenshaven[/u][/b]
5/0 SSN[/quote]

"If there aren't any questions, I shall proceed on to the next briefing."