[DIPLOMACY] There but for the grace of God...

After his resounding victories over the Imperial menace, King Andrea Doria found it pertinent to seek support from those who either opposed the HRE, or truly feared God as any good Catholic should:

 

To my brothers and sisters in faith,

Today I do not address you as a King, but as one humbled by the power of God. I wish that I could take claim for my current situation - that I could say with confidence that it was my brilliant strategy that has held off the imperial menace for so long.

But I cannot.

I see the great force of the Holy Roman Empire flee, and think "there, but for the grace of God, goes Liguria." It could have been, nay, it should have been the brave men that fought to defend this Kingdom fleeing from battle that fine day.

Yet it was not.

Instead, it was a force many times our own who had sustained such grievous losses. It was a force who outnumbered us ten-to-one that fled into the night. It was truly us who emerged righteous from that valley, that dreaded field of battle, and could say with confidence that God smiled upon us.

Yet this "Holy" Roman Emperor pretends to supersede the wisdom of the Almighty, who believes even still that it is his right to subjugate us who have been blessed by the Vicar of Christ himself. Even as God has made clear his divine preference as we emerge victorious from the slaughter, he marches onward to Genova, ready to destroy this most pious of Kingdoms.

So I ask of you, my brothers and sisters in faith, let be known your outrage! Make heard your voice! Tell this would-be emperor that he does not know better than the Almighty, and that he has no right to put us down! Make it heard by pen, by sword, by coin! Send us your aid, your letters, your prayers! For we will not go softly into this good night! We will fight!

There can be no triumph without loss. No victory without suffering. No freedom without sacrifice. But we will weather this and yet more still, until we secure our place, and show that no man can ignore the will of God!

To all those who fight under the name of Maximilian, I wish you no harm. If this letter, or the acts of the Divine, have spoken to you, make your peace known to me, withdraw your forces, and no ill will be wished upon you. We wish for peace, not war. We want prosperity, not destruction. We want the blessings of our Lord, not the death of our people. And we know that we are not alone in this wish.

So please, my brothers and sisters, hear my plea. Listen to my words, and see the acts of God. Their is righteousness in our cause, and no man can take that from us.

And to my brother in faith, Maximillian. One day, you may triumph on the field of battle, for your strength and resolve is never in doubt. But against the judgement of the Eternal, there is no Victory, and you will be judged by your actions from here until the end of Eternity. Tread with caution, and with God.

 

Yours in Faith,

Andrea Doria I

King of Africa and Liguria