Post by Leopold I von Habsburg on Oct 5, 2016 20:16:50 GMT
His Imperial Majesty had risen at 0500 as he did every morning, and by 0700 he was at his desk dealing with matters of state and, more importantly, matters of war. Since waking, he had not felt right - something was making his skin crawl. Was if the recent military defeats at the hands of the French, was it simply his old age? He abandoned his desk and, as if he were off to war himself, marched through the Gardens of the Hofburg out into the open streets of Vienna, to the amazement of his those around him, and his Imperial Guard now chasing after.
"Sire, sire, where are you headed?", to which he replied "God, the Lord almighty, calls me once more. My place is in his house, not my own!".
His adjutant stopped and watched the 63 year old march as if 21 down the main road, the wet mud splashing his Imperial gown. Suddenly, the grey clouds began to part, and a thin ray of light shone down onto Leopold, and to the amazement of Leopold's adjutant, this golden ray of light, in a sea of dull grey and black, followed the Kaiser almost perfectly as he marched towards the grand church of Vienna.
(OOC: the perfect theme to accompany Leopold's march would be Wagner's 'Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg: Prelude', particularly as he climbs the steps into the church: www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EdqNsrwdmE)
While he prayed for guidance, a rider appeared in the church. He bowed his head, and uttered, "Sire, the Lord forgive us, the Ottomans march on Hungary"
Leopold rose, he took the dispatch, and placing it over the candle he had lit setting it a flame, muttered "let justice be done; let these steps be their last"
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A message is sent out the Empire:
I Leopold the First, Kaiser of the Holy Roman Empire, protector of Christendom in Germany, King of Hungary, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, the Archduke of Austria, a common and humble man before God, the Lord almighty, hereby on this day, as of this moment, in the name of the church, in the name of civilisation, I call on the Holy Roman Empire to support Austria and Central Europe proper against invasion and destruction at the hands of the Ottoman invaders from the south. By the grace of God, let us be one force, and let justice be done. This is not a war for some foreign crown. It is a war in the defence of culture, of our history, of our future; it is a war in the defence of our God given right to life and glorious existence as followers of his faith. In the name of the Imperial Crown, in the name of God the one true Sovereign, let the Empire rise up and storm break loose
Footnote: these units will only be used to fight the non-christian Ottoman invaders, and not our Catholic counterparts, the French and Spanish