1692 Hurmu internment crisis
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| 1692 Hurmu internment crisis | ||||||||
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| Part of Second Elwynnese Civil War | ||||||||
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| Belligerents | ||||||||
 Hurmu
|  Elwynn and Amokolia
|  Raspur Pact
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| Units involved | ||||||||
| 51st Ter Div
| AMEAHL
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In early 1692 AN, the 51st Territorial Defence Division of the Union Defence Force, deployed in Hurmu as part of the Allied Reconstruction Mission in Hurmu, was amongst the Elwynnese forces to join the rebellion against the Court of the Princess. In accordance with international norms, the government of Hurmu was obliged to demand that the mutinous Elwynnese troops surrender their arms and accept internment for the duration of hostilities in their home country. The refusal of the 51st Division, having now transferred its allegiance to the Self-Defence Forces of Elwynn and Amokolia, to accede to this demand precipitated a diplomatic crisis that threatened the neutrality, security, and territorial integrity of the newly independent Hurmu nation.
The spread of the mutinies in Elwynn soon reached the UDF garrisons in the Southern District of Hurmu, with news reaching the Hurmu authorities of loyalist UDF officers being forcibly detained by the rebellious soldiery, scuffles breaking out of inside the cantonments of the 51st Division, and the expulsion of Raspur Pact officers from joint missions which the Elwynnese troops had been participating. Tentatively it was decided, on the night of 18.III.1692, that a delegation of the Senate and the Cabinet, headed Plenipotentiary Jan Spiik and Minister Ty Zem, would be dispatched to confirm the reports of the defection and to negotiate the internment of the defecting troops if this proved to be the case.
Preliminary negotiations
The commander of the 51st, Generalmajor Axel Holmquist, received the Hurmu delegation coolly. Born in Cimmeria to parents of Norse ancestry, Holmquist had been privately disaffected with the regime of Kamilla Winther since the N&H coup of 1688 in Normark. Ironically, as a Norse member of the officer corps, he had been shielded from the more rigorous scrutiny which the Panopticon Department had lavished upon those Elw commanders who had found their careers side-lined or terminated since the commencement of Winther's contentious second term in office. All he had witnessed had left him with a dim view of the international order in which Elwynn had found itself, and of the "neutrality" of Hurmu. It was for that reason fortunate that no members of the House of Osman or the Honourable Company were included in the delegation he received in the squat red brick and adobe bungalow that served as his living quarters and office. To their mild consternation, his guests soon noted that there were sappers presently engaged in stacking sandbags against the interior and exterior of the structure, knocking out window frames to create gun-loops, and engaged in the excavation of foxholes around the building - work that was being replicated around almost every building in the cantonment and along the external perimeter.
With no great enthusiasm, Holmquist had felt obliged to provide tea for his guests, having found it was a more or less inescapable part of discussing any matter with the folk of Hurmu. Tea, biscuits, and strained pleasantries dispensed with, it was Ty Zem who reproached Holmquist for bringing Elwynn's civil war to Hurmu's shore. Untroubled by this, Holmquist had answered that the legitimacy of the separatist cause, and the temper of his men, had left him with no choice but to match the actions of his comrades in Elwynn proper. Jan Spiik chose the moment to deplore the "tricky situation" that this now placed Hurmu in. Holmquist, whilst his facial expressions did not necessarily accord with the words that he spoke, answered that he fully sympathised with the difficulties that the Hurmu would now face. Ty then sought to take the opportunity to raise the question of how the internment of the defecting formations would be handled, for the duration of hostilities, in order to maintain the honour of both parties. Holmquist responded sharply, in a manner that suggested that the entertaining of such a thought had yet to occur to him and would not now be countenanced either. The response was stated so bluntly that Jan's teacup rattled obtrusively in its saucer as he attempted to pick it up for another sip. Recovering his composure after returning the cup and saucer to the desk, Jan then enquired as to what solution to the present "dilemma" was to be proposed instead.
What Holmquist set forth to his interlocutors was that, in spite of his gratitude, and the gratitude of his men, for Hurmu's courtesy in hosting them during their long deployment, it was the unanimous resolve of himself, his officers, and his men, that they should return to Elwynn at the earliest opportunity - via whatever means - so as to join their comrades in the defence of their homeland. Any assistance that the Government of Hurmu could facilitate in that regard would, he nonchalantly informed them, be greatly appreciated. Jan and Ty in response merely glanced at each other. If their opposite number was serious in what he stated as his intention, they both briefly felt the same shared sensation of the world falling away beneath them where they sat.
Ty was the first to reply. Even, he began, if a sufficient quantity of ships or aircraft could be chartered to allow for the repatriation to occur, how far did the General presume his forces would be allowed to travel, before the nearest Raspur Pact formations would engage them with every force at their disposal? Holmquist merely answered that what happened to them once they were outside Hurmu territory was their own concern but that while they were within Hurmu territory it was for the government to ensure their protection, as a neutral power. Jan answered that they would guarantee the safety of the Elwynnese troops so long as they were on the territory of Hurmu, but could not do so whilst they remained under arms. Holmquist's sharp retort was that there could be no question of his men laying down their arms whilst Hurmu swarmed with Aldurian, Benacian, and Sanaman troops. The 51st would lay down its arms, only for so long as would be required to negotiate their repatriation to "Free Elwynn", and only once the Raspur Pact had evacuated its forces from Hurmu. It was Ty who snapped back, that Hurmu would not dismantle its security guarantees in order to remove a threat to its security. Holmquist jabbed a finger accusingly at Jan in response - demanding to know whether that was what the Hurmu government officially considered him and his men to be.
Chastened and disconcerted by the accusations abruptly levelled against him by his interlocutor, sought hurriedly to extricate himself from what was escalating towards a confrontation there and then. Attempting to extricate himself, and ignoring Ty Zem's furious stare, Jan Spiik sought to strike a conciliatory tone, burbling somewhat about how the Government of Hurmu had always acted, and would continue to act, with the utmost good faith towards its friends and partners who had played such a crucial part in protecting Hurmu during the transition to independence. That said, he continued, it would not be possible to give an undertaking that the Government would accept Holmquist's proposal, as a decision with such significant ramifications for the safety of Hurmu could not be made without the consent of the Senate. Holmquist nodded and remarked that he did indeed understand the predicament. But even though Holmquist's expression was calm as he spoke those seemingly reasonable words, the eyes, Jan Spiik would later note, had lost none of their earlier fury.
Suddenly and abruptly noting the time, Holmquist thanked Jan Spiik for taking the trouble to come out and discuss the matter in person. A car and an escort would be arranged to take Jan back to the capital to continue his deliberations. Holmquist then remarked, with a disconcerting shift into a cheerful tone, that he'd be much obliged if a response, indicating an acceptance of his proposal, could be communicated to him within twenty-four hours of the present moment. Jan Spiik was just about to respond to say that he would try his utmost when Holmquist cut him off mid-sentence by remarking that, in the meantime, it would be his distinct pleasure to arrange for the minister - meaning Ty Zem - to have an extensive tour of the facility as a guest of the 51st. Ty had no sooner risen to his feet to unburden himself of some furious objections when a side door burst open and in marched two subalterns, with submachineguns levelled at the hip and pointed at the visitors. In shock, both raised their hands in mute terror. Ty was quickly seized and hauled out of the room, his indignant protests not withstanding, while rough hands, belonging to someone who had entered the room unseen during the tumult, gripped Jan by his shoulder and hurriedly turned him about - bundling him out of the building and onto the improvised drill square where a land rover was already awaiting. As Jan was frogmarched towards the vehicle, Holmquist stepped out onto the veranda of his bungalow and called out after him that a quick response would indeed be appreciated - "for everyone's sake".
His meaning was clear enough.
