Trade Wars, Word Wars and Real Wars
Peace was never an option it seems for 1914. With tensions spiked in January, they continued to rise without any attempts to truly halt them. Whilst Italian invitations to Carnevale were well received, it was considered by many to simply be a half offer to bring tensions down by bringing heads of state together. The war games that many nations had begun to host and plan sent a very different message across Europe.
The month opened with a deeply serious and troubling event. Though French police finally stepped in to halt the more violent behaviours of the protestors in Paris and to keep a safe screen between them and Embassy, it was for naught. For a few days the embassy was a buzz of activity, then nothing. Nobody was going in or out of the Embassy anymore. Rumours began to spread that the staff had made a daring escape which set off a sad and violent chain of events. Despite the best efforts of Police, the idea that the staff had fled engaged them. Soon clashes between French Police began to break out, when a protestor was stuck and felled by officers attempting to protect themselves, everything kicked off. On the 6th February protestors surged the police line striking them down and stormed the embassy. It was empty. The enraged mob set about destroying the building in their anger and soon a fire had broken out. More police began to arrive to try and quell the mod, but it was too late. The fire swept through the old embassy building and soon began to spread to other buildings. Clashes between police, the Gendarmerie nationale and mob turned bloody and rapidly. Over the space of three days, though the Brigade des sapeurs-pompiers de Paris were left alone by all side so that they could get the fire under control, the mod and police forces classed for days. It took the mobilisation and deployment of the Paris Garrison to get the mod under control. But the 11th, 33 buildings and the embassy were but ash with many more damaged. 112 citizens lay dead alongside 23 police officers, 11 Gendarmerie and 2 men of local garrison forces with many more on both sides badly injured.
Whilst Paris fought itself, the Balkans came together in Athens this month. When London officially stepped away from contesting Athens, representatives from Russia, Serbia, Montenegro and Romania flocked to the Greek capital. The agreement signed on the 9th February created a new power plock in Europe. The Balkan League as it was now called, was nothing to scoff at. With Russian backing and the sturn lessons learnt from the Balkan Wars made the alliance one with a terrifyingly powerful military capability if left unchecked to develop. A reaction to this new alliance was instant. The Ottoman Empire who had sat out the events of January were swift to make moves of their own. Now fearing the possibility of a new war in the Balkans officially joined the Triple Alliance on the 12th. Bulgaria soon signed its own alliance with Austria-Hungary on the 23rd. The chain of alliances was only getting messier. Spain even got stuck into the thick of things in making the alliance web worse, joining the Triple Entente on the 16th and signing a separate alliance with France on the 18th..
Tensions were only made worse as a trade war broke out this month following diplomatic clashes between the United Kingdom and the signatories of the Stockholm Agreement. From the 15th to 17th, the signatories all issued a full trade embargo upon the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom retaliated in turn with its own embargo and by closing the Suez Canal and all territorial wars to shipping from the Stockholm Agreement. The effects were instant. Whilst the flow of goods to Germany suffered a minor stutter, the shortfall was quickly picked up by her allies. With expansions to the Berlin Stockexchange under way, it was clear that Germany was looking no worse for wear. However; Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands began to feel a pinch straight away. Norway, who had long standing trading ties with the United Kingdom throughout its history as a kingdom, member of a union and now as an independent state. The sudden ending of trade ties was met with loud outcries across the nation. With the reduction of tariffs on one another, Government income had taken a downwards movement. Now with the loss of the large amount of trade done with the United Kingdom and the tariffs that came with it. Large numbers of factories and businesses that had seen what they considered a safe supply chain now broken. The shipping routes were now fastly longer increasing the time and costs of moving goods. The rushed choice to follow their ally Germany was not looking good, and whilst importing from Germany was an option, Germany was clearly not going to be able to cover all their losses without hurting herself. The halt of food important from the United Kingdom saw an immediate climb of prices, worrying many. The United Kingdom too saw a minor scare with the loss of raw material imports. How the Nordic nations will cope is anyone’s guess, but with the new Government in Britain reopening trade lanes, but not trade, there looks to be a chance to settle the issue in sight.
The Nordic nations were not the only nations feeling an economic pinch. With tensions spiking and multiple nations signing full blown free trade agreements or lowering tariffs across the board, the nations of Europe had begun to experience an unexpected fall in their economies. Without regulation on the movement of goods, without the tariffs or taxes that came with their movements, everyone was left feeling a bit unsure of themselves. The movement of excess goods and often needed goods began to flow in and out of nations, turning the balance of payments on their heads. Whilst all leading economists say the effects are only temporary, the people did not know or understand what was happening. Does a run on the banks looms?
Unrest also raised its ugly head in other nations. In Spain, the new military government faces its first serious issue. With the proposed reforms to the army in an effort to curb the ever worsening officer to soldier rations (which currently stand at 1:10) they had unwittingly trodden on a minefield of issues. The current government was a military dictatorship, backed by the power of the King but most important, backed by the Army they commanded. How can a military government last when it loses the support of said military? This was the issue now pressing Spain with many officers that faced being stood down declaring outright mutiny. The mutineers were led by a young officer by the name of Franciso Franco and were demanding an audience with the King to hear their grievances. Norway saw a surprising episode in Parliament that caught the nation by surprise. In a fiery speech given by a member of Parliament, he called upon the arrest of Queen Maud for treason. Stating that as the United Kingdom is the clear foe of Norway, Queen Maud’s ties as sister to King George made her an enemy of Norway. Nobody knew what to make of this rouge and very out of order speech.
On the 20th February 1914, following previously unnoticed unrest in Southern Albania, Northern Epirus declared itself independent. Two days later, Greek troops, under invitation from newly proclaimed President Georgios Christakis-Zografos, entered the region and placed it firmly under greek control. As an ethnically greek region of Albania, the move to split was less a shock as it was a simering issue to many. The occupation of the region by Greek forces though, caught many off guard. The troops there though, did not stay long. It was to be the following chain of events in the Balkans that were to light the powder keg.