Rule Britannia!

[Anaxagoras]

1969:
Unwilling to allow the British Empire sole access to space, other nations begin launching satellites as well. Over the course of the year, the United States, Russia and Japan launch their initial satellites, with France soon to follow. Germany, comfortable in its alliance with France, declines to participate. Most of the satellites launched are scientific experiments or experimental communications satellites.

The Imperial Defense Committee releases a secret report on the possibility of creating atomic weapons. Although they conclude that it is theoretically possible, they emphasize that the cost would be immense. The members of the Imperial Parliament who are briefed on the subject order the report to be highly classified, as “it would be against all human morality to develop such monstrous weapons.” At the same time, Her Majesty’s Secret Intelligence Service is quietly ordered to monitor other nations for any hint that they are developing such weapons.

With a newly-elected center-right government, France proposes to the other members of the European Defense Organization that they expand from a purely military sphere into an economic and political sphere as well. Discussions are held between member states concerning a number of issues concerning this idea. Many grumble that France simply wants to reshape the alliance into a French-dominated Confederation.

British military forces in Egypt have completed their withdrawal, while a number of British military and air bases have been set up in the Suez Canal Zone. Egypt signs a mutual defense and assistance treaty with the British Empire, with the understanding that Egypt can call upon British assistance in the event of domestic turmoil.

1970:
A British robotic probe becomes the first man-made object to photograph the far side of the Moon. All space-faring nations are preparing robotic probes to explore the Moon, Mars and Venus, including many joint projects between nations. Space science becomes a popular subject. The Royal Society is given jurisdiction over the space program of the British Empire.

Under the principle that “gentlemen do not read one another’s mail,” a treaty is signed between space-faring nations pledging that satellites designed to spy on the territory of other nations shall not be launched.

Many technical schools and universities in the United States and Continental Europe report with alarm at a so-called “brain drain” to the United Kingdom, which is seen as having superior science and technology programs. Similarly, universities in India are gaining a reputation as the best civil engineering schools in the world.

Egypt’s enters into negotiations with the other member states of the Middle Eastern Security Area to create a loose federation to be allied to the British Empire, though strictly maintaining its sovereignty.

Two new Dominions are created: West Africa and East Africa. West Africa comprises the territory of Nigeria and also has jurisdiction over other scattered Imperial territory along the West African coast. Eastern Africa comprises Northern Rhodesia, formerly German East Africa, Kenya and Uganda.

In the Imperial Cup, held in Cape Town, India wins over Scotland 4-2. The Scots had been the underdogs and the very fact that they got to the championship was a source of pride for many Scots; the SNP made much play of it.

[David bar Elias]

Quite interesting.

How will the Empire deal with the appearence of HIV/AIDS? I reckon Africa as a whole is much more developed, and can deal with the coming crises better, but I wonder if the impact will be acknowledged sooner.

Keep it up. I look forward to reading more.

[Constantinople]

How developed is India compared to 1970's OTL?

[birdy]

cool installment

[Tyr]

Under the principle that “gentlemen do not read one another’s mail,” a treaty is signed between space-faring nations pledging that satellites designed to spy on the territory of other nations shall not be launched.

Sure, I bet they will all agree to that one- weren't most spy satalites IOTL claimed to be something quite innocnet anyway.

Quite interesting.

How will the Empire deal with the appearence of HIV/AIDS? I reckon Africa as a whole is much more developed, and can deal with the coming crises better, but I wonder if the impact will be acknowledged sooner.

Keep it up. I look forward to reading more.

Who is to say it would appear?
With such large butterflies its likely a certain villager in the backwoods wouldn't get bored and 'chat up' a certain chimp.

[Anaxagoras]

Originally Posted by Constantinople

How developed is India compared to 1970's OTL?

More so than IOTL.While Britain has become the leading high-tech center of the Empire (and the world, for that matter), India is quickly emerging as the industrial heartland. With Imperial Preference still in place, the whole Empire can be seen as one big economy. Economically speaking, Britain is New York and California, while India is Ohio and Michigan.

[Anaxagoras]

The Empire in 1970:
It is a good time to provide a general assessment of the British Empire as it existed in 1970.

Politics:
In addition to the United Kingdom, there are ten Dominions: Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, India, South Africa, Malaya (which includes north Borneo), Palestine, West Africa and East Africa. Each Dominion has its own parliament, which has authority over all matters of purely local concern.

The Imperial Parliament in London has jurisdiction over foreign policy, defense and trade issues. The United Kingdom elects 100 seats to the Imperial Parliament, India 50, Canada 40, Australia and South Africa 30 each, and the remainder 20 each. This is not done on the basis of population, but on the “overall influence on Imperial institutions.”

It is likely that the United Kingdom will always dominate the Imperial Parliament. Although various coalitions could theoretically create a government without British representatives, in practice this is seen as impossible. The head of government has always been the leader of the largest British party in the Imperial Parliament. Despite occasional grumblings, particularly from Indian representatives, there is little support for changing the status quo.

The so-called “White Dominions” (Canada, Australia and New Zealand) along with the United Kingdom, have two major parties (one left-of-center and one right-of center) and a scattering of smaller parties. New Zealand also has a major party made up of members of the Maori minority. The Indian Raj, the Dominion of South Africa and Palestine have parties largely based on ethnicity and/or religion.

Military:
Each Dominion maintains several independent regiments, each with its own distinct history and traditions. The overall leadership of the military is coordinated by the Imperial General Staff in London, supervised by the civilian Committee on Imperial Defense. The United Kingdom and the Indian Ray provide the bulk of the regiments, and several British regiments are stationed in other Dominions.

Similarly, each Dominion pays for several warships, all coordinated by the Admiralty in London. The Royal Navy has major fleets in every ocean: the Home Fleet based in Portsmouth, the Mediterranean Fleet based in Malta, the Indian Ocean Fleet based in Bombay and the Pacific Ocean Fleet based in Singapore. Smaller squadrons are scattered throughout the world.

The Royal Air Force is made up of squadrons contributed from each Dominion. Although technically a separate service, it falls under the jurisdiction of the Imperial General Staff. The warplanes flown by each Dominion are of the same design, although aeronautical companies from different Dominions have developed different aircraft. The Avenger, the Empire’s main air superiority fighter, was developed in the United Kingdom, while the Hammerer, the Empire’s main ground attack aircraft, was developed in India.

The Imperial General Staff and the Admiralty are made up of high-ranking officers from all Dominions. In the IGS, each Dominion is represented in more or less the same fashion as in the Imperial Parliament. The Admiralty, however, is completely dominated by British officers.

Economy:
London is the financial center of the Empire. The “Square Mile” in the City of London is the location of the London Stock Exchange and the location of most major companies. In addition, Britain is the center of technological development, the services industry, and remains a powerful industrial player. Scotland is the scene of numerous research labs and technical universities and thus has gained a niche as the center of the Imperial computer industry. Glasgow remains one of the main ship-building centers in the world.

The Indian Raj, with its vast pool of cheap labor and a steadily-rising education rate, is the industrial center of the Empire, producing the majority of its manufactured goods. The Bombay Stock Exchange is the second largest in the Empire. It is also a major agricultural exporter.

Other Dominions have efficient mixed-economies, although many are highly dependent on agriculture. Australia is often referred to as the “breadbasket of the Empire” as it exports huge amounts of grain and cattle. South Africa is the source of raw materials on account of its mining industries (it also produces the best wine in the Empire, although Australia and New Zealand are beginning to compete). Canada is the most economically diverse of all Dominions, with industry, finance and agriculture all playing important roles.

Because of Imperial Preference, there are no trade barriers whatsoever between Dominions. The resultant free-trade zone has, in effect, become an economy removed from the remainder of the world. Obviously, there is extensive trade between Dominions and nations outside the Empire, but Dominions within the Empire are always seen as more attractive trading partners. This has caused a lot of grumbling from other nations, particularly the United States, and has in turn caused them to seek trading partners other than the Empire.

The pound sterling issued by the Bank of England is the common currency of the Empire. The largest multinational bank in the Empire is the Rothschild Bank, which has major establishments in every Dominion and is also a major investor in several large-scale projects.

Because the Empire is the dominant political force in the Middle East, it has easy access to the world’s largest oil reserves. This gives it a geopolitical and economic advantage over Continental Europe, which has no domestic oil supplies of its own. Russia and the United States (so far) have relied mostly on their own domestic production.

Culture:
The Empire has a wide variety of different musical genres. The industrial towns of northern England have seen a number of unorthodox musical acts emerge in recent years, with Western-style music being infused with African and Indian influences to produce truly unique musical styles. Classical music remains popular.

Indian food is, by far, the most popular cuisine in the Empire, although British and Irish beer remain the beverages of choice. Others have noted the steady rise in wine consumption among the higher-classes in Britain, with South African, Australian and New Zealand wine being favored over French and Italian due to its lower price (which is a consequence of Imperial Preference). Another major British cultural export is the pub; nearly every town in every Dominion has a pub, and they are the most common sights for local political meetings.

The Empire is utterly football-mad. Every four years, the Empire nearly comes to a halt to watch the Imperial Cup, played in a different Dominion every year. It is pointed out with some smug satisfaction that England has never actually won the Imperial Cup, although its team is always ranked very high. The Dominions do not bother to compete in football competitions outside of the Empire, which are seen as dull and irrelevant.

[Constantinople]

Was there ever a British Invasion?

[Tyr]

Doesn't look it- that was far from a certainty historically and the pod is pretty far back.
I guess with the empire being more inward turning we don't get rock and roll (if it even develops) and show the Americans how to do it properly.
Sounds like he's saying we're a bunch of lardy dahs listening to classical and ethnic music


I'm not so sure of the football mad comment he made. The POD was just in WW1. I really doubt that would be early enough to turn India away from cricket. Canada and Australia have their own forms of football much more popular there too. South Africa could be interesting football wise though, with earlier black power it could become a very good football team indeed (the whites mainly sticking to rugby and the blacks football)

[David bar Elias]

Culturally, Great Britain itself sounds a little like the Britain from Tony Jones's Monarchy World after the devasating second world war.....young people probably dress in Indian, Middle Eastern, and even African garb. Overall, it seems that the Empire, the USA, and Continental Europe are more conservative than OTL. I doubt something like rock will come around soon. For that to happen in the British Empire, you'd need more social upheavil.

[Constantinople]

Yay! A conservative europe!
Well what I am really interested in is the condition of the OTHER european colonies.

[Anaxagoras]

[quote=Leej]I guess with the empire being more inward turning we don't get rock and roll (if it even develops) and show the Americans how to do it properly. Sounds like he's saying we're a bunch of lardy dahs listening to classical and ethnic music [quote]

No, no. Two things are important in the development of musical genres: technology and culture. Rock and roll developed in Memphis, Tennessee, because of the cultural fusion of country/bluegrass with Delta blues and jazz, while needing at the same time the development of musical recording and transmission technology.

In this particular case, British influence on modern rock and roll has the same technology as IOTL, but the cultural influences are very different. IOTL, the best music in Britain (and the world) came out of Liverpool and Manchester between the 50s and 80s, but in many cases it was a reflection of the dillusionment with the world that was indirectly due to Britain's general post-war decline.

ITTL, Britain hasn't declined, so the cultural influences are very different and consequently the music will be very different. There is still the general antiestablishment attitude among the youth, but rather than the angst and anger we see in punk and New Wave, a major contributing influence is a fusion with Hindu-style music (which, interestingly enough, is happening IOTL these days).

As far as the continued popularity of classical music, I would attribute this to the fact that the Victorian/Edwardian values of 19th and early 20th Century Britain were not shown to be a cruel joke, as seemed to happen IOTL, but were seemingly vindicated by the continued and expanded success of the Empire. The past is still appreciated and cherished, rather than looked on as something not worth keeping around, as often seems the case IOTL.

[Anaxagoras]

Originally Posted by Constantinople

Yay! A conservative europe!

Not really. Not any more than IOTL, anyway.

Originally Posted by Constantinople

Well what I am really interested in is the condition of the OTHER european colonies.

IOTL, imperialism collapsed because the Europeans nations were too weak following the world wars to maintain their colonies. Also, they lost confidence in themselves and lost their sense of mission. At the same time, the colonized peoples felt strong enough to rise up and overthrow their masters. Since WWI was only half as long and half as bad ITTL, and WWII never took place at all, this cultural sift never really took place.

But a lot of changes obviously did happen. The European nations saw the success the British have had and have tried, on a certain level, to copy it. In general, the other European colonies are self-governing, with the colonizing power having control over its foreign and defense policies, and trading rights.

When I get the chance, I'll write up a more specific summary of what happened with the other European colonies.

[M.Passit]

Love the 70's summary of the Empire. So, with Imperial Preference going strong, what' happenned to S.America? I remember that you write somewhere that the Brit won't invest thare much compare to OTL., so this will mean that the U.S. will invest more down there? or the economic of S.America will do worse OTL? How's Japan and China doing, will we see any rapproachment anytime?

[Constantinople]

I would think Europe would be a little more conservative, what with most countries having a monarch and no WWII, and no holocaust and no communism...

[Pax Britannia]

Putting all the historical stuff aside ........India and Scotland are shit at football. How the hell did they beat England?

[Anaxagoras]

Originally Posted by Pax Britannia

Putting all the historical stuff aside ........India and Scotland are shit at football. How the hell did they beat England?

The POD is 1915. I admit that it would require quite a few butterflies, but stil...

And, patriot that I am, I'm putting my money on Scotland for the 2008 Euro Cup!

[Wendell]

I like these updates. Can we get a map update soon? What's the status of the many British held islands around the world ITTL?

[Anaxagoras]

1971:
With a new influx of African representatives to the Imperial Parliament, funding for a series of investment and development projects is allocated to much of British African territory. Called the Orkar Scheme, after the Nigerian MIP who was one of the main proponents of the project, it involves a massive rural electrification effort (including the construction of vast amounts of hydroelectric projects), education initiatives to foster small businesses, massive investment in transportation infrastructure and a variety of public health projects. The states goal is to raise the standard of living for African subjects of the Empire to the same level as those in the “White Dominions.”

Many people in Britain and the White Dominions are skeptical as to whether this is a practical project, but few are openly opposed to it. The only real opposition comes from Indian MIPS, who feel that similar funding should be provide to the Raj.

In the Russian Empire, laws are passed placing further restrictions of the economic activities of Jews and Muslims. This is seen as part of an increasingly strident nationalism within the Russian Empire. The Muslim population of Central Asia is growing increasingly restive.

The Arab League is founded in Cairo, under the symbolic leadership of King Hussein, the Hashemite ruler of Arabia. The members of the League include all the Arab nations within the Middle Eastern Security Area. Although technically a loose confederation, the League has relatively little power over the member states.

[stevep]

Originally Posted by Anaxagoras

1971:
With a new influx of African representatives to the Imperial Parliament, funding for a series of investment and development projects is allocated to much of British African territory. Called the Orkar Scheme, after the Nigerian MIP who was one of the main proponents of the project, it involves a massive rural electrification effort (including the construction of vast amounts of hydroelectric projects), education initiatives to foster small businesses, massive investment in transportation infrastructure and a variety of public health projects. The states goal is to raise the standard of living for African subjects of the Empire to the same level as those in the “White Dominions.”

Many people in Britain and the White Dominions are skeptical as to whether this is a practical project, but few are openly opposed to it. The only real opposition comes from Indian MIPS, who feel that similar funding should be provide to the Raj.

In the Russian Empire, laws are passed placing further restrictions of the economic activities of Jews and Muslims. This is seen as part of an increasingly strident nationalism within the Russian Empire. The Muslim population of Central Asia is growing increasingly restive.

The Arab League is founded in Cairo, under the symbolic leadership of King Hussein, the Hashemite ruler of Arabia. The members of the League include all the Arab nations within the Middle Eastern Security Area. Although technically a loose confederation, the League has relatively little power over the member states.

Sounds like things are coming to a boil in the Russian state. Are we seeing widespread Jewish emigration and if so where are they going to? Also possibly increasing Muslim resistance aided by their brothers to the south. Looks like there could easily be another big clash.

Steve