I bid you good tidings and hope this message finds you well. This is to report that the progress in construction of Uxeau-de-Bordeaux is almost completed and we are finilasing the additional infastructure and security fence against the local wildlife. The security in the settlement itself and in its vicinity is supported by the corporate security of MAE. However, aiming at the establishment of the Barony in the future and on the professional protection it might require in a new world, I would like to request the permission of the Enclave to institute the Baronial Guard - a single regiment of 500 troopers to act as the backbone of the future Baronial Army, Navy, and Gendarmerie. MAE and me have achieved some progress in recruiting people while on Quillan and now I would like to fulfill my promise to them to become the marines they deserve to be.
We did not seek anyone's approval on Quillan except for the local population when creating the Baronial Armed Forces. Now we are living on Enclave's core world generously opened to us and we would like to ensure the legality of our moves. If the request above is appropriate, I would also kindly to ask of Enclave's trainers for the troops, as the Enclave can surely brag about its second to none soldiers and instructors of the Royal Army to learn from.
As of now while we are still not found to be affiliated with the Enclave, we would like to keep benefiting such status quo as much as possible for our mutual benefit, hence the Baronial Guard would primarily be entrusted with the police and protection duties of the territories and surroundings of Uxeau-de-Bordeaux. Should, however, Bordeaux be attacked or Enclave find extreme need in the troops, they will be at your disposal.
I hope my request is not audacious and would find understanding with the military command of the Enclave. I am looking forward to your reply.
Je vous prie d’agréer l’expression de mes sentiments distingués,
Baron Fabian Montluc
Battleship La Riche, Roussillon System
18. Février, 743 AGS
Sender:Prévôt Viviane Dior, La Maréchausée de Gaule. Recipient:Baron Fabian Montluc. Topic:Your situation
Monsieur,
I've had a short discussion with Maréchal Laroux on the matter. We cannot allow any independent military or paramilitary units to operate within Enclave territory. We need a strict chain of command and everyone fulfilling their role. Nobility having private armies is ending up being a current duchy of Burgundy that considers it possible to be a part of traitorous Confederation. Until we win this war, this approach won't change.
it doesn't mean that your request is being declined. You are allowed to have your own security on the ground with light weaponry up to assault rifles. In space up to a gunship. And of course, we will train you the said 500 troopers to secure your operations. Your investment in Bordeaux is truly appreciated. The newly formed unit will have enclave officers at command after training, it will be stationed at your desired location to ensure your personal security as well as security of the colonists. It will be a part of the central Bordeaux ground forces command, so it's coordinated and well informed about coming potential threats.
I think that our suggestion is the most reasonable and won't be questioned by the other officers. I hope you will see a good reason behind this by yourself.
Attachments:
Honneur et patrie,
Viviane Dior
Prévôt des Maréchaux
La Maréchausée de Gaule
Sender:Colonel Maximilian Saint-Just Recipients:Baron Fabian Montluc Message Type:Video Encryption Strength:Absolute
Bonjour, Baron!
It is a pleasure to hear about your progress regarding Uxeau-de-Bordeaux. I'm looking forward to the completion ceremony, however spartan it will be, given the Enclave's current predicament. For the time being, I understand that your corporate security is already fulfilling the intended role of the Baronial Guard, albeit on a smaller scale. Therefore, I only welcome your request to have them train under our officers.
You can rename your corporate security to Baronial Guard. Of all requests, that is the easiest to grant, because it is just a matter of terms. That is, until your Guard grows beyond its initial state and size. Once it happens, we'll need to get back to this topic again.
While on Bordeaux, the Guard's primary duty will be focused on policing Uxeau-de-Bordeaux and the surrounding territories assigned to it. I understand that your people from Quillan would find additional motivation in protecting their own homes and loved ones. That extra bit of motivation is something we can use.
All Guardsmen will receive the same training as Enclave troops. We haven't established a proper academy yet, so members of the Guard will attend various Enclave planetside and spaceborne facilities. Escadron XXII "Les Révélateurs" even maintains a few holo-VR training hubs aboard our vessels.
The training will be done on rotational basis: 3-month tour of duty, one company at a time. To offset that, the Enclave's own troops will secure the perimeter of Uxeau-de-Bordeaux and adjacent areas against Gaian raids. That way, your people would be able to focus on enforcing the law, even while their numbers are limited.
After the training is complete, our instructors will suggest those who have demonstrated the best results for officer positions. However, the ultimate decision will be left to you.
Exchange program will be established: after the training of your Guard is complete, we'll periodically ask for a platoon to be deployed in other areas and aboard our vessels. A single exchange won't last longer than two weeks. This will ensure better coordination during potential emergencies.
For coordination with the Enclave Command, we shall permanently dispatch a few of our officers to Uxeau-de-Bordeaux. They won't interfere in day-to-day operations of the Guard, but shall command our own people assigned to the perimeter.
In case of an emergency, such as a large-scale attack on Enclave territories, the Guard shall respond to Enclave Command represented by our officers in Uxeau-de-Bordeaux.
Our officers may periodically assume command of individual Guard companies for short periods of time. This will ensure that the Guard always keeps to the high standards expected of the Royal troops during emergencies.
I hope you'll find these terms acceptable during your stay on Bordeaux. The eventual Baronial Navy, Army, and Gendarmerie are an entirely different topic though. Before that happens, we'll need to have a talk about their jurisdiction and command hierarchy in relation to the Enclave. That's something best left for a later date. As I told Monsieur Raza, it's too early to skin a bear that is yet to be caught.
In service to the Crown,
Colonel Maximilian Saint-Just
It is pleasure receiving a message from you again. The recent developments bring our cooperation closer which is a good thing.
The terms kindly provided by you are agreeable. I do concur that the strict subordination is a must should the Enclave with limited resources to withstand the numerous enemies we are facing. Hence, I see no issues with the regiment being de jure under command of the Enclave. We would welcome Enclave officers in our ranks either as companies' commanders or as instructors, and would gladly learn from their experience. My being a retired Royal Officer, I do know how greatly the troops would benefit from a good and strict chain of command practiced in the Royal Army.
The only request on our side would be to have our own Colonel to command the regiment. We need some higher officers of our own to ascertain that running the troops would be possible should the Enclave's personnel be required elsewhere and further on in colonial conditions where it would be impossible to rely on vast Enclave's support.
This regiment, albeit the base for what I ambitiously referred to as "Baronial Navy" previously, is still only a 500-men strong regiment that is a speck equipped with personal weaponry and a few combat exoskeletons compared to multi-million Royal Army of the Enclave with the most advanced heavy weaponry and artillery. Certainly, the creation of the Navy would be discussed with you in full details but we are far away from that point and currently my ambition is to increase the size of the contingent to two regiments, although it is already a problem as we still need to receive MAE staff and refugees from Quillan who have not yet arrived planetside.
Availing the opportunity, I would like also to inform you that MAE will construct a factory on production of ground military vehicles and other combat equipment. Previously on Quillan this kind of production was not needed, however here, on Bordeaux, the Enclave and my retinues can benefit from tanks and artillery to use against the Gaians and especially hazardous fauna. I suppose, you would not have objections to this, as most of the production is bound for Enclave's needs.
It is always pleasure dealing with you and receiving reasonable terms from your side.
Je vous prie d’agréer l’expression de mes sentiments distingués,
Baron Fabian Montluc
Battleship La Riche, Roussillon System
18. Février, 743 AGS
Sender:Prévôt Viviane Dior, La Maréchausée de Gaule. Recipient:Baron Fabian Montluc. Topic:Your situation
Monsieur,
there won't be "your colonel" I'm afraid. I hoped that I did put that very clear. No private armies or units aside of basic corporate self-defense against pirates and raiders. No alternative chain of command. The Enclave will ensure global security on the planet Bordeaux and in the whole entirety of our space. I am strongly opposing this and if you will indeed try to appoint "your" officers I will have to push to review all other deals with MAE. This includes your very presence to begin with. That's the red-line for me and I would not advise you to cross it.
Attachments:
Honneur et patrie,
Viviane Dior
Prévôt des Maréchaux
La Maréchausée de Gaule
Transmission Source Private - Direct Communique to Enclave Defense Authority personnel
CC: Baron Fabian Montluc
Transmission Location: Issoudun Shipyard|| Heavily Secured || Video Feed Active
Mademoiselle Dior, I appreciate the heavy-handedness, however it is not needed here towards one of our fine Baron's. These are no doubt the same threats that had made Monsieur Montluc leave the Confederacy to begin with, and I personally value his and his corporations dedication towards the renewal of the Kingdom - as should you. This security force, Baronial Navy, whatever we want to call it only means to compliment our own forces without directly conscripting them into the Enclave's over all military force. Not to mention the need to appoint one of their own is merely to keep things familiar. It could take weeks, or even years for one of our own to be viewed as trustworthy enough by the regiment's personnel. Though do understand that I know where you're coming from, Mademoiselle Dior - and I wholeheartedly agree to keeping it in house.
Which is why, I would like to propose a simple solution to this problem that both parties seem to see themselves in, without the need to further any escalation. If the Baron doesn't mind, I would like to personally appoint Commandant Catherine Leonne to be the colonel of your security forces. She is one of my top ranking officers of my Royal Guard, and has served me and my family exceptionally during her service to the Crown. Her dedication, and loyalty is unquestionable in these trying times. I feel her appointment would both satisfy the need of keeping things in house, as Mademoiselle Dior bluntly puts it, and the presence of a Royal Guard officer will surely inspire men and women to follow her lead.
Your reaction, despite being understandable, displeases me.
The whole point of the Baronial Guard is to be the reaction force that is easily ready to respond to small challenges. I do see the point in Enclave's officers as commanders of the platoons or companies, but I see little point in the Baronial Guard if we have no chief of our own as it would render it just another regiment of multi-million Enclave's army with all the bureaucratic procedures required to deploy the regiment. If we need to kill a dangerous animal of especially big size that we have witnessed in the vicinity of Uxeau-de-Quillan - we should be able to dispatch te Guard to do so, not to plea to the Enclave to allow to dispatch it. This would simply defeat the very purpose of Baronial Guard.
As I said, I understand your point of view, although I expected more rationality and flexibility from you given the miniscule scope of the suggested Baronial Guard. Perhaps, you want to avoid the precedent, yet so far in your rigorousness you resemble that very Confederation that made us leave Quillan in the first place. Now you are talking about the revision of our presence here, reminding us of the Confeds even more. We will go with your requirements and not appoint the Colonel. However, Baronial Guard has no point in its current view, I will see it to be re-organised back into corporate security with Chief Security Officer at its head. Them buind civilian personnel in this case, shall not be considered an issue for the Enclave. Certainly, we will not employ the military-grade equipment in this case and heavy weaponry but it at least will provide us with the flexibility we need to deal with security issues within the corporation and Uxeau-de-Bordeaux. So you can be assured there will not be issues with chain of command.
I am concerned, however, that the red line is such a miniscule matter reflects the Maréchausée as less open to cooperation and unwilling to see our perspective. You ask much of us, as with the case of Roussillon and upgrade of the ship there, while not contributing much to our development by proper policy fostering our growth, curtailing some of our initiatives. This poses our investments at risk as right now we do not have such a stable income that we enjoyed before due to being limited by Enclave's diplomacy, and thus investing heavily in projects while not having guarantees of our interests taken into consideration is a financial liability. Speaking in your words, we might want to review our cooperation and joint projects as well. Mind, we are loyal followers of the King, His name thrice blessed, but we cannot contribute to the King's case should we be at disadvantage and not developing. We came to the Hebrides to help the Royal cause and to flourish, not to be limited and stagnating.
The matter of the Baronial Guard is not that important for me and MAE, so any result is appropriate to us. Yet we do see a pattern of diplomacy that concerns us and puts to questions our plans for development in Enclave's territories. If this pattern continues, MAE would stagnate and would not be able to make profits and/or be useful for the Enclave, not being able to manufacture and design new equipment and technology, be they military of civilian. Please, keep this in mind when considering our requests.
Je vous prie d’agréer l’expression de mes sentiments distingués,
Baron Fabian Montluc
Battleship La Riche, Roussillon System
18. Février, 743 AGS
Sender:Prévôt Viviane Dior, La Maréchausée de Gaule. Recipient:Baron Fabian Montluc. Topic:Your situation
Monsieur,
diplomacy is not our concern. Our concern is the war effort. We are fully responsible for the security of your incomes and developments in controlled space. We are providing it. We are professionals in different fields and if we want to succeed it's better for us all to do what we are good at and not try to interfere in operations in areas where we are not happen to be experts. I am sure you wouldn't want me to lecture you on shipbuilding, imagine how it would even look like. Your inputs on the matters of organization of military units and chain of command look about the same.
You are not going to convince me and my point stands. You may contact and talk to Maréchal Laroux on that matter, her orders override mine.
Attachments:
Honneur et patrie,
Viviane Dior
Prévôt des Maréchaux
La Maréchausée de Gaule
Reference to technocracy here is not applicable: neither I personally build ships nor you personally decide the military organisation. Mind, if we refer to technocarcy then we find Maréchausée being a military police, the law enforcers, but not the organs deciding on which law to implement. Certainly, as the police you can find the institution of the Guard as something breaching the law, but you certainly are not the authority coming up with the policy of how to treat irregular troops - that is up to the Enclave's ad I hear you loud and clear, though, and hence will disband the Baronial Guard and re-integrate the personnel in the corporate security. There should be no issues with that, and I will not consider the institution of the Baronial Guard until the proper Barony with the appropriate jurisdiction is established. This discussion has borne no fruit and I consider it ended.
As for, Your Royal Highness, I do appreciate your intervention. As you can see, however, there will be no need of your personal officer that You kindly offered. We will preserve the structure of corporate security for now and will surely seek your advice once the expertise of experienced Royal officers would be of need.
Je vous prie d’agréer l’expression de mes sentiments distingués,
Baron Fabian Montluc