Bourgougian Blitz

Bourgougian Blitz
Part of the Red Monsoon
(clockwise from top left) Bourgougian soldiers during the Battle of Ouvrard, Carlosian APCs in the streets of Arceneaux, jet fighters dogfighting over Bourgougia, a torpedo detonates beside the CN Marshal, Carlosian soldiers during an amphibious assault on the Bourgougian coast, Agostinian infantry clash with Bar and Acrarian troops
Date 17 March – 25 August 1987 (1987-03-17 – 1987-08-25) (161 days) Location Carloso, Bourgougia, Agostinia Result Carlosian-Agostinian victory Status quo ante bellum Collapse of Bourgougia Victory liberated Luttenried invade and annex Îles Perlegrise
Belligerents
Carloso Agostinia	Bourgougia Barssois Acrary
Supported by: Vizkigeric Orticuria Côte D'Émeraude	Supported by: State Union
Commanders and leaders
Adrian Miotasis Tómas Contador Salvador Águas Mateus Alcantara Roldão Dieudonné	Régis Lemaigre  Léonard Joubert Élie Boutroux Jean-Charles Celice William Rochefort Gérald Michaux Charles Rodier Ladislas Trouvé Paul Clérisseau Jules Didier Alistair Malraux Thomas McIntyre
Units involved
1st District Army 3rd District Army 7th District Army 10th District Army 1st Infantry Army 2nd Infantry Army	1st Field Army 2nd Field Army 3rd Field Army 5th Tank Army Expeditionary Division
Strength
Total: 1,200,000 1,000,000 200,000	Total: 920,000 800,000 100,000 20,000
Casualties and losses
Moderate	Heavy
At least 20,000 civilians killed. Colossal damage done to Bourgougian and Victorian infrastructure

The Bourgougian Blitz (17 March – 25 August 1987) was a short but intense military conflict that was fought primarily between Carloso and Agostinia against Bourgougia, who were aided by forces from Barssois and Acrary. It broke a period of relative peace and calm in Musgorocia following the conclusion of the Emergency War in 1951, with a newly resurgent Bourgougia, which had been under the control of a communist military dictatorship since 1964, seeking to press its claim on the densely populated Carlosian exclave of Victory, located on the border with Côte D'Émeraude. Victory had fallen under the control of Carloso after a war between the two countries in the 1790s. As dictator of Bourgougia, Régis Lemaigre prioritised the country's remilitarisation to realise this objective. The war began on 17 March when the Bourgougians simultaneously had Carlosian President Jair Moran assassinated by special forces and launched a massive, devastating assault on the almost defenceless Victory.

With only a token Army garrison and a small, mostly unarmed police service to defend the city, Victory was quickly overrun by the Bourgougian forces. Some units refused to surrender, performing guerrilla operations against occupying forces for the remainder of the war from the city's high-rise buildings and skyscrapers. The Bourgougians devastated the city with artillery and rocket fire before they invaded, causing catastrophic damage and killing thousands of civilians. When news of the attack reached Madrigal, Moran's successor, Adrian Miotasis, immediately declared a state of war between Carloso and Bourgougia, Agostinia following up with its own declaration several hours later. As Carloso began to mobilise and move a large portion of its military to the front line along the Bourgougian-Agostinian border, an intense air war raged in the skies above. At the same time, the belligerents' opposing navies clashed at sea, seeking to achieve naval superiority in the Musgorocian Ocean. Carloso gradually gained the upper hand, delivering a crushing blow against Bourgougia when they attempted to seize the Carlosian overseas territory of Mediator in a decisive battle.

In May 1987, Carloso and Agostinia began their counteroffensive, pouring into north-west Bourgougia with a force of over 800,000.Having exhausted many of their most capable aircraft during the initial few weeks of the air campaign, Bourgougia lost air superiority to the Carlosians, and was forced to retreat further and further into the country's interior. However, towards the end of the month, the combined offensive stalled when Barssois and Acrary entered the war on Bourgougia's side, resulting in a brutal war of attrition that would last for many weeks. Simultaneously, Carloso's naval superiority was shaken when several prominent warships were sank at the hands of Bourgougian submarines.

Seeking to break the stalemate, in July Carloso launched a daring amphibious assault on Victory, successfully liberating the city. This opened up another front in the war, Carlosian and Agostinian forces making huge gains into southern Bourgougia. Forced to divert more of their units to defend the more economically important parts of the country, efforts by Bourgougia and its allies to defend the north west began to collapse. By mid August, Carlosian forces were within 30 kilometres of the Bourgougian capital. With growing unrest at home, Acrary withdrew all its forces, followed by Barssois. The war ended on 25 August 1987 when elements of the Bourgougian Army staged a coup against Lemaigre's government, executing him and agreeing to a ceasefire with Carloso and Agostinia.

The Bourgougian Blitz has since been regarded as a watershed moment in Carlosian history, and would later have profound ramifications on the country's politics and foreign policy. A whole generation of future politicians; including current President Cárlos Tobón, would be deeply affected by their experiences during the Blitz and would come to grow in power and influence in the 2000s, culminating in the Corrective Revolution of 2010. After the conclusion of the Blitz, and then the Luttenrieden invasion and annexation of the Îles Perlegrise, Bourgougia quickly spiralled into a brutal decade-long civil war that would leave over five million dead. The collapse of Bourgougia also contributed to the fall of the communist regime in Barssois in 1991, and helped ignite the Acrary Civil War. The Blitz precipitated a decade of almost constant civil war; known as the Millennium Crisis, in many parts of Musgorocia as the continent's communist regimes faced open revolution and ever increasing demands for democratisation. Carloso would become involved in many of these armed struggles, either directly or indirectly. Internationally, the Blitz was regarded as part of the wider Red Monsoon, a conflagration of loosely related conflicts between communist and anti-communist governments and their proxies throughout the 1980s, lingering into the 1990s.

Diplomatic relations between Carloso and Bourgougia continue to be very poor as a result of the Blitz. A formal peace treaty between the two countries was never signed. Victory would eventually be granted independence by the Carlosian government in 1995 following a local plebiscite. Successive Bourgougian governments have maintained their claim over the city-state, while Carloso continues to have a large military presence along the Bourgougian-Agostinian border. Largely due to its historical significance, the Blitz is a popular subject of literature, video games, television and film.

Background

Main article: Emergency War

Following the conclusion of the Emergency War and the defeat of Synarchist Bourgougia in 1951, Carloso became the unquestioned superpower of the Musgorocian continent. While the country quickly rebuilt and experienced a prolonged economic boom, the rest of the continent remained devastated by years of military conflict. Aided by various extra-continental forces, the feeble democratic regimes in Bourgougia and Barssois were overthrown in communist military coups in 1964 and 1966 respectively, enjoying extensive popular support. These also precipitated coups in Acrary and Frontiere. These new regimes succeeded in rebuilding the cities and countryside through vast public works schemes, beginning a phase of rapid industrialisation as they sought to match the economic output of Carloso once more.

Initial phase

War in the Musgorocian Ocean

Bourgougian frigate La Rocque explodes after being crippled by an anti-ship missile.

Carloso rallied its naval forces alongside a small unit of Agostinian frigates and submarines, assembling one of the largest armadas that the continent had ever seen. Three nuclear-powered aircraft carriers were dedicated to conducting operations against Bourgougia, alongside the plethora of cruisers, destroyers and submarines.

Knowing they were outnumbered and outgunned on the naval front, the Bourgougians resorted primarily to hit-and-run tactics, attacking Carlosian warships with anti-ship missile batteries if they strayed too close to the coast. Their extensive submarine force managed to pick off a number of Carlosian frigates, patrol boats and even a handful of destroyers.

Battle at Mediator

Seeking to take the pressure off of forces closer to home, Bourgougia launched a surprise attack on the Carlosian overseas territory of Mediator.

Collapse of Bourgougia

Luttenried invasion

Luttenrieden Invasion
Date 1 – 28 September 1987 Location Bourgougia Result Luttenrieden victory Treaty of Gualiza; Luttenried annexes Îles Perlegrise Luttenried aborts invasion of the Îles Amirales and Îles Leclerc due to Carlosian intervention
Belligerents
Common Territories Luttenried	Bourgougia Diplomatic support: Carloso
Commanders and leaders
Ulrich Hildebert	Léonard Joubert
Casualties and losses
Low, approximately 400 killed or wounded	Heavy, between 5,000 - 15,000 killed

Background

On September 1st, exactly one week after the ceasefire had been signed between Carloso and Bourgougia, the Holy Duchy of Luttenried, assisted by TECT, invaded Bourgougia's southern-most islands in an unprovoked surprise attack. Completely caught off-guard due to the war (which had just entered a ceasefire seven days prior) and the country's spiraling collapse, Bourgougia was not only ill prepared for another war but also too fractured to put up significant resistance to the invaders. Luttenried and Imperial forces not only out numbered the few Bourgougian units stationed on the islands, the technological and equipment stockpile differences resulted in the decimation of what remained of Bourgougia's air and naval forces in the region.

Throughout the six month conflict, Luttenried and the Empire watched as the conflict unfolded nearby without showing support for either side. Although neutral, both Luttenried and Imperial forces revealed decades later that they conducted several intelligence operations and continuously ran surveillance missions against both sides of the conflict; this was excused at the time by the Empire as "gathering information and data pertaining to the security of an Imperial subject," and also "safeguarding the sea lanes connecting Luttenried with the Mainland." Luttenried, however, refrained from making any excuses. In accordinace with long-standing geopolitical goals, Luttenried often eyed potential oppertunities to expand its control over nearby territories. Seeing the nearby conflict as an opportunity, Luttenried's leadership began drafting two sets of war plans by June in the event either side began to dramatically lose the conflict. In "War Plan C" Luttenried explored the scenario that Carloso lost the war to Bourgougia and its allies. In that scenario, Luttenried would move to seize the Sanander, Mediator, and Sur Lisceard Islands if they had not been taken by the Bourgougia faction as a result of the conflict; later edits to the War Plan included plans to take the islands regardless if the Bourgougian faction was assessed to be vulnerable militarily, which would also included capturing Bourgougian faction islands as well. "War Plan B" focused on the scenario that Bourgougia failed to achieve victory in its offensive war, losing the war to the superior Carloso faction. Outlined in the original declassified War Plan, War Plan B was entirely centered on capturing all of Bourgougia's southern islands through a swift naval/marine and airborne campaign set to occur during pre-planned "military exercises." Largely due to the belief Bourgougia would in fact lose the war in the long-run, Luttenried later altered Warplan B extensively to include minimal, secondary, and ideal goal posts. The purpose behind these goal posts is that Holy Duke Ulrich Hildebert was given one condition by Emperor Charles II in return for approval to condone the war: Luttenried must prove it could succeed with limited Imperial support and in doing so would limit its losses and make significant gains to warrant the conflict going even further - minimal losses in exchange for maximum gains. Luttenried's minimal goal for success was the capture of the Îles Perlegrise Islands Viveiró, Loujedo, Valdeazores, Mongat, Acebes, Penilla, Alburquerque, Bujalaro and Monfrontino which were all located in close proximity to Luttenried. Once temporarily part of the old Crusader State, Luttenried desired to retake these islands and reestablish the Holy Marquess of Klingewalde as a buffer-state between mainland Luttenried and the Musgorocian continent; aside from the historical claims to the islands, Luttenried also wanted the islands for political reasons (namely power leveraging) and economic interests (the islands are believed to have oil and gold deposits, as well as having a tropical climate perfect for tropical agriculture industries). Luttenried's secondary goalpost was the capture of all the islands while the ideal goalpost was either securing a beachhead territory on the mainland, or even annexing all of Bourgougia itself into the Holy Dukedom. When the tides had began shifting in Carloso's favor, Warplan B was officially adopted in mid July. As a result, Luttenried, along with Imperial forces stationed in the Holy Duchy, began immediate preparations for the invasion of Bourgougia.

Luttenried Invasion

Using two military drills categorically scheduled in early April, Luttenried moved forces and equipment to bases and ports located as close to Bourgougia as possible. Although likely suspicious of Luttenried actions, Bourgougia and its allies gave no hint of preparing for potential conflict with Luttenried. In the early morning hours of September 1st, in the pitch black of night, elements of the Holy Duchy Navy and Air Force, alongside elements of the Imperial Navy and Air Force, began an initial bombardment of all nine islands nearest to Luttenried. Between ground and ship-based aircraft, Luttenried/Imperial forces dropped over ten thousand tonnes of bombs while naval ships launched over one hundred cruise missiles; the opening air campaign against Bourgougia lasted approximately four hours and occurred in three waves of attack throughout all of Bourgougia's southern islands. The initial wave targeted air defenses, communication systems and significant military infrastructure, military sites and formations, military equipment, docked warships, air fields and their stored combat aircraft, and an extensive hunt of any surviving warships and submarines not sank during the Blitz. As the attacks happened, Bourgougia air and sea defenses quickly went online during the start of the initial attack wave. While air defense engaged targets it could detect, the few anti-ship missile launchers made themselves ready to engage vessels once the attacker was identified; over a dozen warships of varying class size managed to escape the opening wave of missile strikes and attempted to sail towards known strike vectors in search of their attackers. As planned, the second wave of missiles and aircraft focused on surviving elements of Bourgougia's air defenses, air force, and navy foolish enough to blare their radars and other electronic/radiation equipment. Described as a slaughter by testifying Luttenried pilots, the second wave was so devastating that all of Bourgougia's air defenses were either quickly silenced or went dark before they too were taken out; only about a dozen combat planes were able to properly sortie and organize into formation, several of which were brought down during the first two hours while the survivors flew northeast in full retreat; all warships able to escape the initial wave were targeted with extreme prejudice by aircraft and submarine hunt groups, leaving no surviving warship aside those already docked in the mainland whom were spared for now. A third and final bombardment in near day break prior to marine landings utilizing only aircraft targeted any remaining strategic targets not hit, including enemy ground forces that had begun to assemble throughout the early morning hours and defenses that were beginning to be dug. Spanning four hours, over five aircraft carriers with three dozen ships, and approximately five hundred planes from the mainland, "Operation Just Return" had only just begun.

Elements of the Luttenried Maritime Forces (Luttenried Seekorps) began combat operations on the first three major islands (Viveiró, Loujedo, and Valdeazores) just before sunrise around five in the morning local time. A Corps. sized unit was activated during the War Planning phase since (even in modern times) combat units are typically organized into regiments with the highest administrative unit being divisions; unlike the Empire, Luttenried still has little need for permanent Corps. sized units in modern warfare. Luttenried meticulously selected which units would form the reactivated "1st SeeKorps," choosing to use only permanent divisions with extensive training and outfitted with the newest equipment available. 2nd SeeDivison, 5th SeeDivison, 12th SeePanzer Division, and 18th SeeDivison made up the bulk of the 1st SeeKorps; supporting regiments were formed from existing units to provide additional assistance on and off the battlefield, including numerous support regiments, two military police regiments, a special forces group, and several artillery/air defense regiments. Using both amphibious assault vessels and aircraft from the mainland, Luttenried was able to quickly land marines on all three islands, largely due to the complete destruction of enemy defenses and suppression of all lines of communication. Luttenried assault companies targeted ports and airfields in the initial hour of the marine landings, enduring sporadic and often times highly unorganized local forces attempting to defend the strategically important infrastructure. Quickly secured, reinforcements were able to quickly arrive due to Luttenried's close proximity to the islands, resulting in numerous regiments being fully deployed by late morning. During that time 1st SeeKorps rushed to secure strategic points of interest, including settlements, power & water facilities, important terrain, and important road networks. By mid afternoon, most of all three islands were in the hands of 1st SeeKorps. Local forces, whom only received minimal reinforcements at this time, retreated to secured areas in order to regain their strength. Unable to properly counterattack the enemy, Bourgougian units rushed to build new defensive positions before advancing units of 1st SeeKorps would arrive. In many scenarios defenders were too late, being overrun by the speedy mechanized/armored marines forming the spearhead of the assault. Meanwhile on Viveiró, the largest island, defenders had limited success in holding their positions throughout the day; chiefly due to the garrison's larger size and inventory of equipment, the defenders were noted to have fought ferociously as if it were their last stand. Nightfall on the first day spelled doom for the Bourgougia defenders whom lacked any night-fighting capabilities other than search lights and flares. Valdeazores, the smallest and nearest island to Luttenried fell late into the night with Bourgougia defenders surrendering before totally being overrun. Loujedo, the second largest, would also fall in the early morning hours of day two, similarly surrendering but having elements overrun whom refused to surrender. Meanwhile on Viveiró, defensive lines were broken in numerous locations with several Bourgougian units completely surrounded and overrun. Shattered, defenders were forced to retreat and reestablish new lines of defense with surviving forces throughout the night and into day two. Day three, after being cornered in the north on all sides but the sea, the Bourgougian defenders surrendered, securing the minimal goalpost for Operation Just Return.

While the war has waged for almost four days in the southern-most islands, Bourgougia was reeling still from the war with Carloso. As the much smaller islands nearby had been taken within hours due to having almost no military presence, Bourgougia itself made efforts to reinforce what islands had not been invaded yet. In order to avoid being bombed, Bourgougia used civilian vessels (often with civilian and refugee human shields) as transports for soldiers and equipment sent from the mainland. Prior efforts at using military aircraft and vessels were met with disaster. Bourgougia by this point had lost almost all of its fixed-wing aircraft due to the war with Carloso and now the campaign in the south - if its air force survived at all, it was said to have been on life support. Bourgougia had no warships left to send that could survive leaving port, and the only hope left were the few aircraft they could muster along with its ground forces defending the remaining islands. Both the Empire and Luttenried were well aware of the civilian cargo ships and their uses, but refrained from firing on them to avoid public outcry. Luttenried, as the aggressor, was focused on pacifying the local populations and could not afford such a blatant slaughter of perceived civilian targets. As preparations for the next phase were happening, reconnaissance of Gualiza, the next closest island, revealed that Bourgougia had spent the past few days digging in and preparing for a fight. Estimates between ten to fifty thousand combatants were believed to be present along with several dozen tanks and many more armored vehicles and artillery pieces. Given that information, commanders and Holy Duke Ulrich fully expected the fight to take Gualiza would be significantly costly and more so bloody. It was clear that although lost, their war with Carloso did grant the Bourgougians valuable experience when dealing with near-peer adversaries; this was evident by the layout of forward positions, complicated trench networks, and the creation of numerous lines of defense even on such small landmasses. Remembering the conditions put upon him to allow this conflict to happen, the Holy Duke ordered a significant bombardment of the island before the next phase to begin. He believed that killing enough soldiers and destroying their equipment would either entice a retreat, or soften the island up enough to attack. Thus, on day ten of Operation Just Return, the Holy Duchy's Air Force and Navy, alongside the Imperial Navy, began strike missions against the island of Gualiza and its surrounding minor islands. Approximately five thousand tonnes of bombs were dropped on the island, targeting troop concentrations, defensive structures, storage sites, make-shift fortifications, and any equipment in the field that could be taken out. In some daring raids, Holy Duchy corvettes and frigates came within gun range of the islands in order to lure out any possible anti-shipping batteries and artillery guns that had survived; while firing at least three hundred shells during their missions, only two attempts to fire on the vessels occurred using field guns - no ship was signifigantly harmed and numerous targets reportedly destroyed. Post-bombardment reconnaissance indicated that although significant damage had been sustained, defender troop numbers had continued to swell, even throughout targeted strikes on newly arrived groups. The Luttenried Air Force estimated that between one and twenty thousand casualties occurred in the bombardment, including the destruction of three dozen tanks and over one hundred armored vehicles were destroyed. However, the amount of personnel on the island grew from an estimated fifty thousand maximum to eighty thousand, indicating enemy forces were resupplying and reinforcing faster than they could be bombed during the bombardment. This report, declassified along with other documents pertaining to Operation Just Return, suggested that the only measure that could reverse the flow of troops was either taking the island with overwhelming marine forces using significant support assets, or begin unrestricted bombardment of civilian targets being used to shield enemy combatants. Even though Bourgougian sources later admit to fooling Luttenried observers in how many forces survived the bombardment, there was little doubt at the time of defeating the oncoming invading marines. This left Luttenried two options: Escalate the conflict, or seek its end. Whichever came sooner, cleaner, and according to the conditions placed on the Holy Duke.

Treaty of Gualiza

Operation Just Return received its first and largest setback on day eighteen of the Operation when the Carlosian government sent a formal letter to the Holy Duchy. Although never released to the public, the Carlosian letter was noted by historians as a complaint regarding Luttenried and Imperial actions, condemning the offensive and threatening to militarily intervene on the side of Bourgougia if Operation Just Return continued any further. Luttenried, through later revealed documents, was astounded that Bourgougia's most hated enemy would come to its aid, believing that if anything Carloso would celebrate their communist rival's downfall. Although tempted to test their resolve on their threats, cooler heads in both Luttenried and TECT made the decision that now was the time to settle for what had already been achieved; facing Carloso in open conflict risked bringing down the entire continent with them, bringing a major conflict both sides likely didn't desire. Thus on day twenty of Operation Just Return, the Holy Dukedom sent a "white peace" offer to the Bourgougia government. Although refused at first, negotiations behind closed doors alongside the Carloso and Imperial governments reached a settlement six days later. The Treaty of Gualiza was signed by Bourgougia, Luttenried, TECT, and Carloso on September 28th, 1987, twenty-eight days after the conflict had begun. Although Luttenried and the Empire sued for peace, Bourgougia refused any peace deal that failed to include the return of its islands that were being occupied, even if they lacked the ability to retake them in the present time. Thus, to end the war at least for the time being, both sides agreed to a ceasefire that officially ended active fighting. Included in the Treaty was an official lifetime to the Treaty, September 28th, 2010, or twenty-three years; although the set date had passed, both sides have continued to observe the Treaty's conditions. Begrudgingly, Bourgougia agreed to the handing over of the occupied islands with the condition that civilians would not be harmed and allowed to migrate from occupied islands if desired to. Furthermore, although Luttenried refused to pay for the islands in any way, it did agree to pay the costs related to any migrating civilians or those seeking compensation within the islands who desired to stay if their loved ones or property had suffered in the conflict; innocent civilian travel would be agreed to on both sides with only security and safety restrictions applied. Along with these conditions, several other smaller conditions were ratified in the Treaty before being signed, including the return of all captured prisoners or remains and Bourgougia's official recognition that the islands were still its territory "under occupation."

During the conflict, Luttenried reported approximately around four hundred killed and wounded during the marine ground combat phases of Operation Just Return, although the Bourgougians claim to have scored an estimated "thousands" of enemy KIA along with "dozens" of destroyed armored marine vehicles. Between the Empire and Luttenried, only a dozen armored vehicles were reportedly lost or disabled in the field, largely due to terrain difficulties but some damaged by the enemy; although no aircraft or warship were lost, there were several reports of damaged or crashed (and recovered) helicopters due to weather or enemy action. Bourgougia claims to have sunk several Luttenried warships, including the HDS Burchard aircraft carrier (CVN) and shot down over two dozen fixed-wing fighters in air-to-air combat. Although proof refuting these claims is widely available, including the HDS Burchard remaining in reserved status to this day, Luttenried has refuted the claims as being "unsound in logic or evidence" by citing recorded internal documents and displaying extensive fake footage and pictures used by Bourgougia's communist party propaganda wing to fool its citizens. Bourgougia, on the other hand, was estimated to have lost between five and fifteen thousand troops as KIA according to the Luttenried Armed Forces Ministry; although imperfect, the Ministry also cited many thousands more as wounded alongside captured or missing-in-action. According to the Ministry, this was largely due to the significantly accurate and widespread bombardment of Bourgougia islands throughout the conflict, which was largely credited to Luttenried/Imperial air superiority. Furthermore, Luttenried reported it sank fourteen enemy vessels, shot down or destroyed over four dozen aircraft with more potentially damaged, and over three hundred vehicles/pieces of equipment destroyed. Although not possible to identify how many were wounded, Bourgougia has stated that over fifty thousand people were affected by the conflict, including those whom were wounded or killed "fighting for the revolution." Bourgougia has refuted Luttenried reported numbers, saying they were inflated or deflated "just like their egos." In the aftermath of the conflict, the Treaty of Gualiza largely decayed in the following years, technically voiding in 1991 when the Bourgougia government collapsed, beginning a series of successive-government takeovers that persist to this day. The Treaty's binding policies legally ended in 2010, no longer forcing any conditions on either party. According to the Holy Duchy Foreign Affairs Ministry, the agreement with Bourgougia "... although observed, is no longer binding due to the collapse of the other signing body, the full integration of the Klingewalde Islands, and the political landscape of Bourgougia itself." After the 2010 end-date was reached, both sides silently agreed to continue observing the spirit of the Treaty rather than its language. Successive governments in Bourgougia have promised a return of the islands taken from them, through military force if required. Aside from coast guard related incidents, these threats have yet to be acted upon. There has yet to be an official peace agreement signed between the two sides. Bourgougia continues to be committed to the return of its territory no matter what and Luttenried has expressed in recent years that it is "no longer within the Holy Duchy's interests to extend an open hand to the Bourgougians."