Forged in Blood And Steel

-----------------------------

If there are spelling mistakes, please let me know.

Leave a comment; support is always appreciated.

I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see.

-------------------------------

POV of Estonian representative

15-December-1921

German influence in Estonia was becoming impossible to ignore. Once the preparations for the drought ordered by the Herzog had been completed, the Baltic Construction Company had concentrated its operations in Estonia to begin its urbanization and subsequent industrialization. Previously, German influence had only been evident in cities such as Narva or in the island settlements, where the Germans had begun investing heavily to erase the memories of the British occupation. Now it was becoming noticeable everywhere.

Construction had recently begun on towns and cities, accompanied by the customary German heavy-handedness. Many people had been forcibly removed from their homes and taken to the region’s famous German settlements, which stood empty for the moment. Tens of thousands had been compelled to settle there temporarily, with scarcely any warning and considerable police involvement.

The main purpose, however, was to demolish old Estonian villages and take the first step toward providing Estonia with proper cities, unlike those Russian towns laid out solely for Russians. The entire project had been undertaken for the Estonian population and, of course, to accommodate the many Germans and members of other communities arriving under the immigration policy still in effect throughout the Duchy, which was bringing so many people into our settlements.

Some settlements where the construction company had undertaken separate projects were already complete. Now, however, hundreds of thousands of the company’s workers had arrived, accelerating construction to such a degree that places once occupied by small villages of a few dozen inhabitants had become towns of spacious homes equipped with electricity, running drinking water, gas, and sewer service. Yet all of this had provoked considerable discontent.

Previously, they had not acted so harshly during construction, but now, with a house being built every hour, displacing people had become unavoidable if the company was to meet its objectives. Naturally, my constituents did not appreciate this, but there was little to be done. Ultimately, the sooner construction ended, the sooner they could return to their new homes.

"Well, we have finished here. This town for three thousand inhabitants is complete and has everything necessary for farming, although fishing will be its principal occupation, preserving its origins as a small fishing settlement where most residents earned their living from that trade. The former inhabitants will be settled here, along with people from nearby fishing villages whose land was considered unsuitable for construction. The local fishing cooperative will therefore have several boats available so they can continue their trade" said one of the Baltic Construction Company’s administrators, handing me the final construction report.

"When will the residents arrive, then? It is important that I be here when they do. We do not want to cause further resentment among people being forced to move and leave their homes yet again after being driven out of their former dwellings" I said, looking at the administrator.

"As I have already explained, those houses were not fit to remain standing. Those wooden dwellings were not good enough to provide the local population with acceptable living conditions. We therefore decided to demolish and rebuild the entire village. As for the residents, they should arrive today at the local station, which is already complete and connected to the railway network centered on Narva" the administrator replied, making a few notes in his ledger.

"Excellent. I will make sure I am present to try to soothe tempers a little. What about the police detachment that was supposed to arrive to maintain order in this town?" I asked one of the German officers present.

"It is on its way. The men come from the Estonian islands, whose inhabitants are currently among the strongest supporters of the Herzog’s government. They can therefore be trusted and should remain loyal and obedient in carrying out their duties, at least for the moment. There will be about twenty policemen in this town, which should be more than enough to maintain order. So, if you wish to have photographs taken for your future political campaign, you have permission, since that serves the government’s interests" the German officer said.

"It is the most sensible course, in truth. The notion of an independent Estonia cherished by some of my constituents is misguided. What happened to the Finns has demonstrated that. They chose independence, made no effort to maintain good relations with the Germans, and fell under Russian rule again. Now Russia is suffering one of the worst droughts ever seen, and who knows what would be happening if the Herzog had not allowed food shipments through. That would be our fate if the Russians returned to reclaim these lands" I replied.

"Exactly. Few understand it, but without our protection, the Russians would surely have recovered all the territories of those new countries by now without any difficulty. That would have been very bad for everyone except the Russians, who now have the Finns to oppress" the German officer said.

"Speaking of Finns, I have received word that the government intends to settle Finnish immigrants in this area. Many are fleeing Russian persecution of republicans and socialists. A great many people are escaping because, shall we say, the Russians do not mind killing a few innocent people if it means ensuring they eliminate anyone who might have participated in overthrowing the former tsar or in the civil war" the company administrator said, pointing out several figures in his ledger.

"Ah... There should be no difficulties, provided, of course, that they do not come expecting us to support the Finnish cause. That is something we could not permit. If they begin agitating for support for their countrymen across the sea, we will find ourselves in trouble. It would add to the discontent already entrenched among the Estonians of this district and could lead to more serious disturbances" I replied, looking at the administrator.

"Well, our work here is finished. We must keep to our schedule, since we still have another thousand houses to build before the end of the year. I must return to my post, as must all my workers, so only the civil administration staff will remain to recruit new officials for the local town hall" the company administrator said, closing his ledger and placing it in a suitcase before rising and taking his leave with a tip of his hat.

"Good. Everything is ready. The doctors are on their way, along with teachers who speak Estonian and German and the managers of the four state-owned companies that will be established in the area. Everything is in place for people to arrive, settle in, and begin fishing as before" the German officer said.

"Thank you, then. Who will serve as the provisional mayor? Will an effort be made to appoint a trustworthy Estonian?" I asked the German.

"A junior officer will hold the position temporarily. We will try to find a local man, but naturally, one of those most sympathetic to the Herzog’s government... Ah, I almost forgot: the Herzog has approved a gift for most of the Duchy’s citizens" the officer said, moving toward a briefcase.

"What sort of gift are we talking about?" I asked, tilting my head as I watched the German open the briefcase.

"As I understand it, many food companies, particularly those raising cattle, chickens, pigs, and rabbits, have seen their livestock numbers grow far beyond expectations. Apparently, the breeding methods recommended by the Herzog have produced far more births than anticipated. Feeding so many animals, however, threatens our food exports. A large portion of the surplus animals, of various ages, has therefore been ordered slaughtered, and these meat ration vouchers have been prepared. Animals are already being slaughtered so that every citizen can receive a ration of approximately nine kilograms of assorted meat" he said, showing me the vouchers.

"Ah... Well, I must say rabbit and bacon are welcome, but will this include beef and chicken?" I asked with interest.

"Beef, pork, chicken, and rabbit. A little of everything, since we do not want to devote more land than the economic plan allows to feeding surplus livestock. So earn yourself a few votes in the next congressional election by distributing them yourself. One per adult. They can redeem them at the refrigerated meat depot built near the railway station, although they will have to wait for the live animals to arrive, be slaughtered, and have the cuts that buyers do not want removed" the officer said.

I took the food vouchers and thanked the officer for the gesture. Then I began preparing for the arrival of the settlement’s former inhabitants.

The policemen arrived first and quickly took charge of the local police station, along with the various guard posts scattered around the more central parts of town. They also brought motorcycles to patrol the streets.

The administrative staff arrived next, consisting of German and Estonian officials who took on several important duties to assist the mayor, along with the doctors who established themselves in the clinic. The shortage of rural doctors was one of the latest complaints brought before the Herzog, and he had addressed it. Until then, doctors had only been available in the larger cities, forcing everyone to travel there for treatment or turn to someone who knew how to remove foreign objects and stitch wounds.

Fortunately, the problem had been addressed quickly through the establishment of small clinics that at least made basic medical care readily available. Anyone needing something like a transfusion still had to travel to the larger cities to seek out surgeons, but at least there were now people capable of administering first aid or treating minor illnesses.

Before the residents arrived, a livestock truck pulled up at the local slaughterhouse. Some of the animals were taken to nearby farms to provide livestock for the holdings that would supply the town with food.

Finally, the first train arrived carrying the Estonian residents and their suitcases. The German officials were already at their posts, where they had all the families line up and began issuing property deeds to replace those for the homes taken from them some time earlier, immediately restoring their ownership of a house.

I also began handing out the vouchers to the heads of households, one for every adult in each family, so they could collect their meat from the refrigerated depot nearby. The effect was immediate. People were delighted when told what they could receive. Until then, shortages had been apparent in the meat rations, which consisted of nothing but bacon and rabbit. The other animals had been kept for milk or egg production and breeding, since the aim was to increase their numbers.

Distribution continued as people made their way to their homes and quickly began settling into their new circumstances, although the occasional man earned a blow from a police baton for protesting angrily against the whole affair.

Throughout the day, I took part in the Herzog’s efforts to keep the population calm and reasonably content while he protected us from Russian aggression, a threat that loomed again whenever anyone proposed independence. Unfortunately, under the present circumstances, independence meant ending up under another country’s rule.

While returning to Narva on my way to the next settlement that would be handed over to its original inhabitants, I received word that the establishment of a state investment fund had been approved. Each month, it would receive thirty percent of the profits from oil sales by the Baltic Duchy’s company in the Middle East. The company had recently discovered enormous new deposits and was extracting the liquid without pause to sell it.

Apparently, every citizen would be entitled to receive a share of the fund upon turning seventy. That was a rather advanced age, although the intention seemed to be to provide assistance to those who reached it. I would have to incorporate that news into my speeches to ensure that my constituency reelected me in the next election.

-----------------------------

If there are spelling mistakes, please let me know.

Leave a comment; support is always appreciated.

I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see.

-------------------------------