Peace and Prosperity

Close relations with the Swedish crown had long been a deterrent to potential enemies of Hesse-Kassoulet but as the century moved on and the might of Swedish arms diminished this was no longer the case. The majority of neighbouring Landgraviates and Principalities only resolved to be peaceful due to the Landgraf's great skill at diplomacy, his generosity and his hospitable nature.

So generous and hospitable is the  Landgraf that his parties and masquerade balls which are known to continue upwards of a week (many of honoured guests often have to be carried to their awaiting coaches or admitted to the state infirmary for a short rest) are famous all over Europe, so famous in fact that many of the gifts presented to the Landgraf to obtain an invite, are more valuable than the cost of hosting the parties! It has been the your Chroniclers painful duty on a number of occasion to attend such parties and balls, in an official capacity of course, and I can confirm that lurid does not adequately describe the events!

Shrewdly the Landgraf and his diplomats make it their business to use the backdrop of the festivities ias an opportunity in which to hold those important negotiations of a diplomatic nature which ensure that an equitable, very equitable for Hesse Kassoult, peace is maintained within our sphere of influence. Some have suggested that my notations of the perverse and bohemian activities of our royal guests keep the Landgraf readily supplied with points of barter should they at some later date (sober) become disenchanted with these negotiations and seek to dishonour their treaties. In particular I speak of those Duchies, Principalities and Frie Stadts in league with the ever greedy Ambassadors of the Wholly Roman Empire. It is with some pride that I can confirm that through these careful negotiations that war has be unknown in our lands for over a decade even though most of Europe has been embroiled in one conflict or another in that time. 

THE ANNUAL APRIL 1st  MASQUERADE BALL, THE GREAT BALLROOM IN UPPENDUFSK

Hesse Kassoulet and the new capital Uppendufsk has remained free from the conflicts plaguing under the new reign yet our troops have served in many of them, the Hesse Kassoulet tradition of providing battalions for hire remains as strong as it ever has been.  Despite providing man power in exchange for gold it must be noted that our diplomats and spies work slavishly behind the scenes to bring warring parties to agreement, that Hesse Kassoulet seeks to pursue peaceful means to disagreements is in its own interests, for doing so has made the Province prosperous and kept the citizenry from grievance.

The central location of Hesse Kassoulet has made it a vital link in the through trade of goods and it is on the back of this and our continuing peace that many merchants have made it their base of operations and our largest cities thriving hubs of commerce. The Landgrafs relationships, forged in his youth, with Turkostan Bey's and Pasha's make the Hesse Kassoulet commercial cities central for trading goods from the East. Great rivers bisect our lands and a chain of lakes, like inland seas, link us with our Germanic neighbours to the East. A system of canals long forgotten and overgrown are rumored to be rebuilt once again linking river to river and river to lake. Our western border provides access to the trading ports of the Neverlands via the Spritz and Evian rivers. Good roads lead northward to the Balsamic Sea Ports of Swedish Pomerannian, Badpinscher, Schelwig-Schnauzer and Hesse-Dachshundstadt and Mucklinberg via Handover and Prusha

The old capital, Kassoulet, home of the Landgrafs mother and busy port on the river Severnupp

To the south lies the Raugraviate of ze Tittanmuff, an exhilerating land of dense forests, mountains and wild untamed tracts of moor land all abundant in wild life both profitable and dangerous! Mile upon mile of dense forests little inhabited except for sawyers, jager and exiles from the Austeriche and Wholly Roman empires. Towns and villages exist only as trading hubs for furs, lumber and way stations for merchant trains bringing goods from the Venutian Republic and the floating Port of Venuce via the Arsperol River. The Tittanmuffs forests are dark and foreboding places but present the shortest route to Hesse Kassoulet and thus makes the few routes through them popular with the trading caravans and the caravans very popular with well armed bandits. To make safe the passage of the caravans the larger hamlets and towns of the Tittanmuff are garrisoned and the roads patrolled daily. Beyond the Raugraviate southern borders lay Hess Darnsocks, Bratvaria,  Austeriche and the seat of the Wholly Roman Empire none with whom we welcome with open arms.