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Curiously enough, it took me a while to find the current Republic of Moldova on this map. The country labeled "Moldavia" as shown is only about 50% of the old P

Curiously enough, it took me a while to find the current Republic of Moldova on this map. The country labeled "Moldavia" as shown is only about 50% of the old Principality of Moldova - from the 14th century until 1812 it used to extend about the same amount to the east - called Basarabia - and well into what this map labels as the Russian empire. And while the depicted Moldavia region joined others to create the modern day Romania, its eastern part, Basarabia, only managed to rejoin Romania for 20 years in the late 19th century, and 20 years in the early 20th century, before being annexed yet again, until it finally became the modern Republic of Moldova. In the process, 50% of the native Romanian population was purposefully displaced. The side effects of this occupation are very much felt even today. Moldovans still struggle with their national identity. Politicians frequently engage in bike-shedding and love to stir up 'state language' controversy to detract from real economic issues, corruption and poverty. There's enormous Russian influence over the region and interests to keep the country busy being poor and in turmoil. These days I fear that if Russia invades Ukraine, they won't stop at the border with the Republic of Moldova, they'll annex Basarabia like they did in 1812 and again in 1940, to restore the 'glorious' Russian empire of the 19th century.

leto_ii 5y ago
> they'll annex Basarabia like they did in 1812 and again in 1940, to restore the 'glorious' Russian empire of the 19th century How far into Ukraine do you think they would manage/are likely to go? Odessa oblast has some Russian ethics, but I'm not at all sure they are enough to allow for the kind of dynamics that took place further East. And if Russia can't/doesn't want to hold Odessa, it will definitely not go as far as Basarabia.
- reducesuffering 5y ago
  The previous Iron Curtain territory (there was a reason for it). They'd like to push control up to the Carpathian mountains to give a huge military power concentration boost. Their legitimate completely flat border from Estonia to the Sea of Azov is a tough dispersal in bad times. This would only happen under worst case scenario of global disarray.
- optymizer 5y ago
  With the caveat that my knowledge of Ukraine is rather weak (I've only been to Kiev once), my best guess it that they won't be able to conquer all of it - Ukraine is huge, so eventually I think it would be split it into two parts. Within Ukraine there's a decent divide between those who are pro Russian in the south and those who would like to retain the Ukrainian language and culture, mostly in the north, so it wouldn't surprise me if Russia manages to retain the southern part, but ends up having trouble with North-Western Ukraine. That said, this isn't a game of Civ and I hope the Ukrainian people won't have to go through that horror.
deleted 5y ago
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spijdar 5y ago
Interesting, thanks for drawing attention to the partitioning of Moldavia. I have a superficial understanding of the medieval history of the regions of Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania, and their various annexations by their warring neighbours again and again, but wasn't aware of just how much post-Soviet/Russian Empire conflict still seems to be stirring, especially in Bessarabia.

leto_ii 5y ago

> they'll annex Basarabia like they did in 1812 and again in 1940, to restore the 'glorious' Russian empire of the 19th century How far into Ukraine do you think they would manage/are likely to go? Odessa oblast has some Russian ethics, but I'm not at all sure they are enough to allow for the kind of dynamics that took place further East. And if Russia can't/doesn't want to hold Odessa, it will definitely not go as far as Basarabia.

reducesuffering 5y ago
The previous Iron Curtain territory (there was a reason for it). They'd like to push control up to the Carpathian mountains to give a huge military power concentration boost. Their legitimate completely flat border from Estonia to the Sea of Azov is a tough dispersal in bad times. This would only happen under worst case scenario of global disarray.
optymizer 5y ago
With the caveat that my knowledge of Ukraine is rather weak (I've only been to Kiev once), my best guess it that they won't be able to conquer all of it - Ukraine is huge, so eventually I think it would be split it into two parts. Within Ukraine there's a decent divide between those who are pro Russian in the south and those who would like to retain the Ukrainian language and culture, mostly in the north, so it wouldn't surprise me if Russia manages to retain the southern part, but ends up having trouble with North-Western Ukraine. That said, this isn't a game of Civ and I hope the Ukrainian people won't have to go through that horror.

deleted 5y ago

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spijdar 5y ago

Interesting, thanks for drawing attention to the partitioning of Moldavia. I have a superficial understanding of the medieval history of the regions of Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania, and their various annexations by their warring neighbours again and again, but wasn't aware of just how much post-Soviet/Russian Empire conflict still seems to be stirring, especially in Bessarabia.