MotF 115: Weird World War II

Krall

Banned
Weird World War II


The Challenge
Make a map showing the second world war in an alternate timeline which is radically different from our own Second World War in some manner

The Restrictions
There are no restrictions on when your PoD or map may be set. Fantasy, sci-fi, and future maps are allowed, but blatantly implausible (ASB) maps are not.

"World war" is defined as a military conflict (either one conflict, or numerous directly related conflicts) that immediately involves and affects most of the world.

If you're not sure whether your idea meets the criteria of this challenge, please feel free to PM me.

---

This round has been extended; the entry period for this round shall now end when the voting thread is posted on Sunday the 3rd of May.

---

THIS THREAD IS FOR ENTRIES ONLY.

Any discussion must take place in the main thread. If you post anything other than a map entry (or a description accompanying a map entry) in this thread then you will be asked to delete the post. If you refuse to delete the post, post something that is clearly disruptive or malicious, or post spam then you may be disqualified from entering in this round of MotF and you may be reported to the board's moderators.

Remember to vote on the previous round of MotF!
 
Last edited:
The Russian Undoing - An Altered World

attachment.php


The World of 1910

The First Great War: 1904-1907

It began in 1904, when the Russian Baltic Sea Fleet moved through the North Sea in an effort to support the Far East Fleet, their arrival date expected to be somewhere in May, 1905. However, an encounter would come to bring very different results than expected. British trawlers were sighted by one of the ships, and, in response to a rumor spreading throughout the Russian Navy that a Japanese Fleet detachment had been sighted in the North Sea (although it never clarified how they would get there), they fired on the British ships under the command of Admiral Zinovy Rozhestvensky. Casualties taken by the British extremely alarmed the government, and finally and investigation was proclaimed. However, Tsar Nicholas II demanded that it be called off as he wanted the fleet in the East as soon as possible. But the British refused, saying it was absurd that the Russians mistook British ships for Japanese ships in the North Sea. A British escort was in place to bring it to British ports, but the Tsar notified the Admiral to make haste to Japan. When the British escorts saw the Russian ships splitting from the group, a warning shot was fired. But whether a nervous gunner or some miscommunication caused it, we may never know, as the Russian ships fired back, blowing up a British cruiser. Thus would begin one of the first battles of the war, and following that, a declaration of war by the British government.
The effects of this on the other European nations would vary depending on the circumstances. For example, France was forced to join the war on Russia’s side, but postponed until 1905, whereas Germany also waited until 1905, but not because of any treaties, simply because it wanted to see how the initial war played out until finally joining on Britain’s side. The Ottoman Empire, seeing a chance to expand and enact revenge on their northeastern neighbors, declared war on Russia as well, but not so much as friendliness with the United Kingdom and more of territorial expansionism. Austria stayed in a state of neutrality, albeit a hostile one towards Russia, who recently had been stirring up trouble in the Balkans. China, meanwhile, was tearing itself apart as Republicans and Loyalists battled it out in the cities and farms of the nation.
In three long and bloody years, the First Great War would finally end in defeat for Russia and their allies, while also altering the map of the world as well.
Territorial Changes:

German Empire - During the Treaty of London, this nation used its occupation of much of the Russian territory to its advantage, absorbing most of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia while making a puppet of Poland. Alsace-Lorraine was annexed, and some of French Equatorial Africa was taken. Why not all? Germany was not a major colonial power, and saw no reason to take away French territory in Africa as it would not hurt them directly in any way, but on the mainland it was a different story.

British Empire – Not having much too gain save for an increased trade monopoly in the Suez Canal, the British Empire took only French Somaliland, and mercifully let the French keep their African empire. Along with that, they took full puppetization of Persia in an act of prevention against possible Russian attacks against the British Empire.

Republic of Ireland – Declared its independence in 1906 with the support of France and Russia when they still could, taking the entirety of Ireland with them. But now with both of their allies weak, and tensions with the United Kingdom increasing, they have nowhere to look when the going gets rough.

Kingdom of Italy – After the encouragement from Germany to follow suit of them and join the war against France and their Russian ally (although it would mainly just be France), the Italians took the French province of Côte d'Azur, or French Riviera in English. They like to brag about how brave they were, but they didn’t do this without a little help.

Republic of Finland – Independence was achieved, and a little expansion was made during the First Great War.

Ottoman Empire – Because of their loyalty (and being on the winning side), they attained the Russian Caucasus provinces of Georgia and Azerbaijan, as well as Crimea. But, this only goes to increase the amount of already upset minorities within the Ottoman Empire. How this will work out has yet to be shown.

Japanese Empire – It began consolidating its empire in China into a single state known as the “State of Manchukuo”, proclaimed as a buffer state against future Russian and Chinese Republican attacks. It contains partially Manchuria and Mongolia. Meanwhile, a part of Vladivostok is also under Japanese control, much to the disdain of the Russian Empire, who seeks to return it to its rightful place.

Qing Empire – Following the First Great War, this nation fell to further European perversion, being occupied by multiple nations, the worst being Japan. Now, it is a simply a rump state in the east following the successful Chinese Revolution of 1907, which ended only with European intervention that prevented the Republicans from reaching the palace gates. It continues to be exploited by the colonial powers, and has the threat of the Republicans to the west.

The Eve of the Second Great War: 1910-?


It is now 1910, and grudges and overbearing treaties not only continue to show, but increase as time goes along. The Russian Empire looks to return its former territories back to their homeland, and regain the honor of the previous Russian Empire. However, it will be difficult to do this, as pro-democratic riots have been raging since the last war, and could possibly be supplied by the German Empire. This has resulted in a few massacres, such as the St. Petersburg Massacre, which killed many, including a man by the name of Vladmir Lenin, who, according to resources, was a "man of the people", and now the Tsar has the threat of a full-blown revolution on his hands. The Japanese, extremely pleased with the fact they got away with such a great expansion, looks to the south in hopes of continuing its conquest, which threatens not only to bring the United States into the next Great War but force the British to switch sides as well, which would not be good for Japan. The Republic of China is getting friendly with the Russian Empire due to their common enemies, and an alliance may be in place for the future. Plus, the French have realized this, as they have ceded a portion of their Chinese territory with ports to the Republicans, who promise to forgive any previous grudges held, but time will tell whether they speak the truth. France is rearming and corresponding with Russia for a joint attack on Germany when the time comes, and possibly Austria, as the two have been strengthening bonds since the end of the First Great War due to a grudge against Russia for stirring even more trouble in the Balkans. The Ottomans have to deal with a surge of minorities, as nationalist movements plague the Balkans to the Caucasus. Ireland is nearing war with the U.K. at every passing moment, and with it looking like no one will be able to help in the near future, maybe independence wasn’t the best choice. Thus, this is the world about to enter a Second Great War, and the origin point seems to be getting closer and closer…
 
Last edited:
EasternConflict

If the Japanese were to have invaded the Siberian territory of the Soviet Union in early Spring of 1941 the German attack , Operation Barbarossa, would been successful.
 
Rise and Fall of the Radicals
Of Commies, Fundies and Surgies

POD: 1859

Histories by State, buildup inspired by ChaoticBrilliance:

Confederate States of America (1861-...):

Originally, a state that never seemed plausible. Or if, then as a failed state with continuous rebellions, uprisings and revolutions. But this was not to be after the British, the French, and the Prussians, with whom the British had allied, supported the CSA rebels. The Union had to concede defeat after a crushing defeat of President Abraham Lincoln in the 1864 election, commonly attributed to failures in the war against excellent generals of the South. Also, Mexico had come to the help of the CSA after the latter requested it, in return for being granted access to the Pacific.
In the 1870s-1890s, the CSA, a state built on the idea of slavery and on the idea of states' rights, did indeed have problems. Massive ones, with dissenting states and slaves rising up repeatedly. The Mexican states, though, stabilised the balance and brought Latinos up to the rank of whites. And border skirmishes, more fought like petty wars, with the USA brought Confy (as an equivalent to "Yankee") control to all of Missouri and to North Kentucky. This was only possible because the one point where all citizens of the CSA could agree was on going to war with the USA. The fact that the Mormons were successfully recruited by the CSA and started one of their first uprisings in a timely manner (which got the state of Utah reunited with the Nevada territory) didn't help the USA.

Nevertheless, the peculiar institution hurt the economy and industry of the CSA more and more. And as nearly everything was a matter of the states, §12 of the CSA constitution was scrapped and slavery was put into the hands of the states. After slavery was abolished by state after state (the last one to do so was, fittingly, Georgia who had first seceded, in 1902), the CSA had an identity crisis. A deep one, this was.

But in 1902, just after the state of Georgia had abolished slavery, young and charismatic Gregorio P. Arrondo, the most decorated general not to have seen the Civil War, was elected. He was of the newly strengthened Christian Radicals, and he steered the CSA onto a course of identifying with Christian ideals.

An alliance with Christian Germany, which had succeeded in reaching a Großdeutsche Lösung with Austria, and had managed to puppetise Hungary, came to be, and the United Kingdom, their old ally, joined them anyway. And then, in 1914, the First World War came.

After years of trench fighting, Germany turns to another, more subtle method: they supported Marxist-Zhrakovist rebels in Russia and succeeded in inciting a civil war, which brought them to a Brest-Litovsk-like treaty, recognising the independence of Baltica, Poland, and a rather big Finland. Britain, in the middle of the war, changed sides, which caused Canada to do the same back to the CSA.

But after the war, the tactic came home to roost and the CSA turned staunchly aginst the "godless Reds in Berlin". But this was not to last. In 1932, stock markets crashed and a vast depression began. It was worse in the USA than in the rather more agrarian, self-sustainable and, in a way, "socialist" (i.e. not big-business-dominted) CSA, but also many CSA citizens, mainly the black (and poorer white) underclass, were hit. And when radical communist Karl-Heinz Freiherr von Traben-Trarbach tried to shoot President-Elect George R. Lee (yes, a fictitious son of Robert E. Lee), the CSA was suspected to be on the brink of Proletarian revolution. But George R. Lee was not shot, and soon enough, "Risorgimentistas", French "Résurrection nationale", Ottoman "New Liberation Party", British "Radical nationals" and American "New Freedom" parties were in power. Well, the Risorgimentisti, with failed unifier Giuseppe Garibaldi as their hero, had already been uneventfully in power for nearly a decade, but now, the new nationalists are the new threat. Diverse countries are annexed or partitioned, among them the "buffer state" of Belgium, and on May 5, 1939, war comes to Europe.

The "New Nations Compact" or "Surgies" as they are colloquially called, lost the war, and they were mostly partitioned or dismembered.
together with Canada, the CSA occupied areas of the USA and, within a few years, formed several puppet states. All the states which are in the CSA's sphere of influence are Iran-like theocracies, although they are pro forma all democratic. Imagine the Tea Party governing a totalitarian state...

United States of America (1776-1950):

The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 was the beginning of the end for the USA, which was only to exist for another ninety years. Lincoln made many mistakes in the war, but these are often overblown as most of the loss is to be blamed on Lincoln's generals more than on Old Abe himself. And ever since his crushing defeat of 1864, there were many smaller wars. Britain was always allied with the CSA and, as disunited as this state may have been, it was united when it was to go against the Yankees. These small wars brought CSA control to Northern Missouri and the rest of Kentucky, and, maybe more importantly, they time after time stymied the reforms that POTUS after POTUS tried to implement. And during the third such war, when the CSA managed to bring West Virginia into it's fold, the Mormons of Utah rose up for the first time, wanting to go independent and were supported by the CSA in this endeavour. The USA, now a thoroughly militarised and bitter society didn't take kindly to this and united the State of Utah with the Nevada territory.

WWI was thoroughly lost by the USA's alliance, and on the USA, some of the harshest trety restrictions were placed: The Lake Corridor was to connect Canada and the CSA and divide the US in two, harsh reparations were demanded, and the size of the army and navy limited. the Great Lakes, for example, were fully demilitarised.

United Kingdom (1707/1801-1950)

Kingdom/Empire/Republic of France (987-1950)

Vereinigte Europäische Arbeiterrepubliken (VEAR) (1918/1921-...)

Kingdom of the Seven Sicilies (or: Heptarchy) (1815-...):

United Russian Soviets (URS) (1916/1919-...)

Heavenly Christian Empire of China (1861-...)

WWII-Scenario.png
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Though victorious in the last Great War, Germany was starved and greatly weakened, falling to a radical socialist revolution led by the Spartacus League and the Front of Socialist and Communist Revolutionaries. The German monarchy and nobility, as well as most wealthy Germans fled to the newly established satellite states of Eastern Europe,where they continue to hold dominance. The former Kaiser now rules as monarch of Ruthenia and is biding his time for a return to a land he considers his.

Austria-Hungary collapsed in the aftermath of the Great War and it's pieces were pulled apart by revolutionary and nationalist movements. Austria and the regions of Bohemia and Moravia were annexed by Germany as autonomous workers republics while the Federation of Hungarian Soviets has risen as the largest and most powerful of these post-Imperial countries. Fearing Communist takeover, the nationalist groups of Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro and Albania agreed to form a new federation of states to guard against the spectre of Communism. The Kingdom of Yugoslavia is born.

Across Europe, revolutionary and radical movements take hold as much of the continent is under economic duress following the end of the Great War. It is not just Socialists and revolutionary workers movements that have seen an upsurge in popularity. Fascists and nationalists have also seen an uptick in support, especially in Bulgaria and Romania, as Socialist movements continue gathering support. France, Spain and Italy are under the control of nominally democratic Socialist governments dominated by Popular Front organizations. The former governments of these countries have fled to Free French Algeria.

Europe is not the only place where revolutionary sentiments are rising. The Great Depression has proven a fertile ground for revolutionary movements, principally those in the long oppressed colonies. In India, the Revolutionary Communist Workers party has begun a bloody uprising against British colonial rule and has swept across large swathes of British India and is gaining traction in the rest of the country as ever more people sign on its program of land redistribution, workers democracy and an ending of feudalism and the grip of the caste system. Revolutionary left-nationalist groups in South-East Asia, Africa and the other parts of the world have also gone into open revolt, the most surprising of which is the Perth Workers Directive, which has taken control of the Southwestern corner of Western Australia. Even closer to home for the British, the French Workers Republic has sponsored a fresh wave of IRA attacks, culminating in the declaration of the Irish Workers Republic in Cork. By the end of the year, it is estimated that the entire island will be liberated from British rule.

It is now 1937 and the world is on the brink of another bloody war. The Socialist states of Europe have unified under the umbrella of the Communist International (CI) and have continued to fund liberation and revolutionary movements throughout the colonies of the imperial powers, much to the disdain of the latter. The British and Free French governments have, on more than one occasion, threatened direct military action and war should CI funding of revolutionary movements continue. Tensions between the German-dominated states cleaved from the Russian Empire and the Russian Democratic Republic are growing by the day and secret talks between Russia and Germany have emerged, which detail that Russia is prepared to go into an alliance with the Communist Internationale in order to regain some of the territory lost as a result of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Meanwhile in the United States, the revolutionary Workers Party has just won a thumping majority in both Houses of Congress and has won the previous years Presidential election, much to the chagrin of established political powers. Their policy has been short and to the point. Abolish capitalism. The United States is still a nominally capitalist country but has begun drifting towards the Communist International, culminating in the heads of the United States and the CI signing a treaty of Mutual Assistance, Understanding and Friendship, agreeing to mutual defense in the case of counter-revolutionary or imperialist danger, increasing trade and trading information and knowledge freely between them.

* States outlined in red were those won by the Workers Party in the 1936 election

iJmxLMg.png
 
Partition of Germany

Is a gif okay?
Also: I don't know how to size down the gif that has higher quality... it's too big... :(
Ethnic map for the last 3 slides 1945 - 1965 - 1985

4HpOb8.gif

alternate_german_partition__gif_by_zalezsky-d8rc6fl.gif
 
Last edited:
A fairly standard worlda-style map, with a QBAM for the closeup of Central Europe.

It is 1892, and it has been a little over twenty-five years since the Germanic War (or the Great European War, depending on if you include the Spanish Intervention and the Servian Uprising) divided Europe into two opposing, armed camps, capping off a decade which came to be known as the Bloody Sixties (with wars in both Americas, Europe, and China starting and finishing in the decade). The natural result of the aggresive expansion of Prussia under Chancellor Otto von Bismarck (1815 - ???[1]), the war came after Prussia provoked Austria into war throughout 1865-66. So when Prussia and its lackeys in the Confederation declared war on Austria, nobody was surprised to see the nascent Italian kingdom follow suit. No, the real surprise was the resistance of Hannover and the intervention of France. [2] After the destruction of a Prussian army and the capture of the heir to the throne Friedrich Wilhelm at Koniggratz, a rout set in which saw the Prussians defeated later in the year at Kattowitz and the Austrians besieging Breslau. To the south, the Italians took Trento but failed to break through the impressive Austrian fortifications, bleeding themselves on a fruitless campaign. And in central Germany, the Confederate states held out (although Hannover was occupied) until a French army decimated the Prussians at Mainz and the Bavarians held off forays through Thuringia. By March of 1867, the Prussians and Italians had been forced to the table.

The territorial losses codified in the Treaty of Schonbrunn were not as unkind as they could have been, given Prussia's aim to incorporate the entirety of the German Confederation (save for Austria) into their sphere of influence. As it was, the loss of Upper Silesia and territories north of the Ruhr was not taken well, and the French annexation of Luxembourg and Moselleland and Baden's annexation of Hohenzollern were taken as slaps in the national face. Further south the Italians got off only maringally better, receiving a slice of Lombardy but forced to acquiesce to an Austrian-aligned Venetian state and the continued existence of a French-dominated Papal State. In the centre of the German Confederation, several Prussian-allied states were reduced in size and demilitarised, parcelled out as rewards for loyal Austrian allies.

More contentious were the reparations: Austria demanded over half a billion vereinsthaler in reparations, and the lesser German states were to be awarded a similar amount. While these terms were not insurmountable, the loss of Upper Silesia and much of the Rhineland took the wind out of the hitherto-booming Prussian economy, and resentment at the depression which followed in Prussia was directed at Austria, France, and Catholics in general.

After 1867, Austria and France agreed to a German Staatsverband - a loose federation - of the allied German states which would sit in Frankfurt and act as a curb on Prussian vergeltungspolitik. Additionally, Prussia was permitted to build a rail corridor through Waldeck and Lippe-Detmold to maintain ties with the Rhineland. That this provides a useful pressure point for the Franco-Austrian entente is lost on nobody, and Prussia maintains sizable garrisons along the line.

Prussia has also behaved as many feared since the Peace, allying with Russia to dangle a sword of Damocles over the Austrians. With the Hungarians' attempts for autonomy stymied since the German Austrian victories in the Germanic War, this is rather effective.

But perhaps not effective enough; with mainland Europe rather neatly divided between the Franco-Austro-German and Prusso-Russo-Italian blocs and Britain, Turkey, and the Spanish republic [3] watching with detached interest from the sidelines, the situation's stability is quite deceptive. Napoleon IV took over from his father (who wisely abdicated; even beating the Prussians couldn't make him popular) in the early 1870s and has worked to build France's industry (all that Saarland coal helps), military, and colonial empire. In Austria, Franz Josef's recent death has put his son Rudolf on the Imperial Throne, where he must deal with increased Hungarian and Slav demands for representation at the Imperial level [4], and German-Austrian demands for liberal reforms. What worries his ministers is that, as a liberal pro-Hungarian, they might get just that...

Russia, rapidly industrialising under Alexander II with Prussian assistance (if the Russians should decide to pay the Prussians back in hidden armaments factories, what can the Prussians do to stop them?), smells blood in the water at all this. Turkey would have been ripe for plucking if the meddlesome Catholics hadn't gotten involved; if a crisis arose in Austria it might distract them from the Bosphorus long enough to have a go at it - despite British insistence that such a state of affairs not come to pass.

Far to the east of Turkey, of Russia, of distant and rebellious Kashgar, and north of the colonial wars in Indochina and the Indies, an industrialised Japan is champing at the bit to launch its own attack on China. A casus belli, figure the Emperor's advisors, should be easy enough to manufacture in Korea or Taiwan or on the high seas; the question is how to do so when the Europeans are too distracted to interfere with Japan's plans.

Finally, on the other side of the world, America hungrily eyes Cuba, where the constantly-simmering revolt might just make a short, sweet war a possibility, and the towards the Philippines which lie isolated at the end of Spanish supply lines in the Pacific.

And on this lovely summer's evening in Pressburg, a radical Hungarian nationalist is about to fire a pistol at Empress Stephanie, setting the match to the tinder...

[1] When the tide turned on Prussia Bismarck decamped with a sizeable amount of gold, muttering something about South America as he did so. The result of the War of the Triple Alliance may or may not have had something to do with that.
[2] Nappy III decided to snub Bismarck at Biarritz, causing further ill will with Prussia in doing so.
[3] France wasn't keen on having a Savoyard or a Hohenzollern on the throne, and decided after the dust from the Intervention had settled that perhaps a continuation of the interim republican government was the least reprehensible option.
[4] No Ausgleich here, baby.

1892.png
 
Last edited:
Is the Grass Really Greener?
by DPKdebator

The year is 1936. Just twenty two years earlier, a war broke out in Europe over the double assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and an attempted attack on Paris, France. On one side of the war was the Triple Entente- France, Austria-Hungary, and Russia. Supporting them were Spain, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire. On the other side was the Kaiserlich Alliance- the UK, Germany, Italy, and Portugal. Supporting them were Greece, Serbia, Romania, and Portugal.

But how did such a world like this come to be?

The main PoD is that Frederick III doesn't get laryngeal cancer. He reigns until 1907, when he dies of old age. Under Frederick, Germany and Britain become close friends and sign the Kaiserlich Alliance in 1892 (alongside Italy). Another result of this is a more liberalized German Empire.
On the short end of the stick is France. Still bitter from losing Alsace-Lorraine in 1871 to the newly formed Germany, she was trying to find an ally. Britain and Italy were not possible due to their alliance with the evil (in France) Germany. Eventually, a deal is struck with Austria-Hungary and Russia, with the Triple Entente alliance being signed in 1895. Both alliances attempted to attract smaller countries- Portugal, Greece, Belgium, and the many minorities in the Russian Empire were pro-Alliance; while Spain, Bulgaria, and the Boers aligned themselves with the Entente. Various incidents occurred during this period that some feared would bring all of Europe to war, most notably the Balkan Wars, which saw the Greeks, Serbians, Bulgarians, Romanians, and Albanians drive the Ottoman Empire out of Europe, except for eastern Thrace. 'What was the powderkeg that would make Europe explode?' was a thought in many European minds.

“One day the great European War will come out of some damned foolish thing in the Balkans.” - Otto von Bismarck

This saying is accurate for this world too, but another factor came into play as well. On June 28th, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were assassinated by members of the Black Hand, a Yugoslav and more specifically Serb nationalist group that sought to kick Austria-Hungary out of the Balkans, while visiting the city of Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The next day, a group of French-Flemish nationalists were caught trying to launch a massacre in the streets of Paris. The latter would not lead to any declarations of war, but would influence certain decisions made. Shortly after Franz Ferdinand's death, Austrian officials discover the Black Hand is behind the slaughter. Austria-Hungary sends ten demands to Serbia and Montenegro, and gives them two weeks to accept... or be invaded. Serbia only agrees to six of the demands and Montenegro only agrees to four, so on July 16th, Austria-Hungary launches a surprise attack on Serbia and Montenegro. Russia stays neutral because the attack is an offensive against her Slavic brothers, but France gives Austria full support. Germany and the UK demand France backs down, but refuses and on August 7th they declare war. Russia is now sucked into the war due to the Allies declaring war on an Entente member, so Russia declares war shortly after.
The same camps mentioned above joined the war, too, plus the Ottoman Empire joined the Entente to try and get territory back from Greece. France decides its only way to get into Germany deeply is to cut through Belgium and Luxembourg. When both refuse to let French troops in, France invades these countries. Most fronts of the war are painfully slow, with the Iberian, Western, Central (Austria, Bohemia, Venetia, Bavaria, etc.), and North African fronts having trenches dug into their soil. Very little changes in controlled territory are made in these areas for most of the war.
The Eastern Front is a different story. German troops were able to overpower their Russian counterparts, which suffered from outdated equipment and poor supply amounts, as well as the Germans promising various ethnic groups their independence. The Balkan Front was a front of constant change, with offensives coming from both sides. The Pacific Front is often neglected in history books, but the Japanese put valiant effort into fighting the Entente for little reward in return. The Germans and British did lots of fighting in this front as well. Another front in the war was the Patagonian War, as it was called. In 1916, Argentina launched an invasion of Chile in hopes of annexing the country. Wisely, Peru and Bolivia stayed out despite their claims on Chilean territory. The British supported the Chileans, with a sub-war that lasted a little bit under a year seeing Argentina cede southern Patagonia with the British, who also purchased part of it from Chile. The United States joined the war in 1917 when the French sent a telegram to Mexico detailing an invasion of the United States in return for more land, lost during the Mexican-American war in 1848. Outraged, American "doughboys" made their way to the fronts and turned the tide against the Entente. France was the last to surrender, which happened in May 1919.
What about the peace, you ask? Oh, you mean "peace". The Treaty of Bonn was signed in September 1919, which oversaw the destruction of the Entente:
(NOTE: British pounds are used as an "international" currency in the Treaty)

France had to cede Brittany, Calais, and Normandy to Britain, the last one as a protectorate; French Flanders and other border territories to Belgium; territories ceded by Monaco in 1861 were returned; Alsace-Lorraine was enlarged and a "military frontier" was created; Occitania was released and given most of its territory, Marseilles was made a LoN Free City; billions of pounds were owed; and France's army was not only confined to a number of 75,000 but they had to stay within a certain territory. Their navy and air force could not exceeed 10% of Britain's number. All colonies except northeastern Algeria and part of the Ivory Coast were ceded to various powers. French Catalonia and Basque Country were given to those respective nations. Savoy and Nice were ceded to Italy.

Austria-Hungary fared just as worse. Austria could only keep its core territory minus Vorarlberg and part of Tyrol, but also including South Tyrol, a smidge of Sudentenland, and part of Carniola. Hungary is composed of OTL Hungary plus southern Slovakia. Also, Czechoslovakia, Istria, and Croatia-Slavonia had to be released as nations. Galicia (including the Ukrainian part) was ceded to the German vassal of Poland; Transylvania was given to Romania; and lots of pounds had to be paid.

Bulgaria had to cede southern and western territories to Greece and Serbia, and also had to cede Dobruja to Romania; plus a fee of about 1 million pounds.

Some say the Ottoman Empire fared the worst. All territories besides central Anatolia were given to other countries or granted independence. Even the capital, Constantinople, was ceded as an international protectorate. However, they had much less debt to owe than France did.

Spain fared much better than France. It had moderate territorial losses, losing the Basque country, Catalonia (which got Northern Catalonia too), Spanish Guinea, most of the Spanish Sahara, and Galicia+Asturias+some neighoring regions to Portugal. Half a million pounds in debt were owed.

The initial peace between Germany and (the recently turned republican) Russia saw the creation of Poland, Lithuania, Belorussia, and the United Baltic Duchy as vassals, the cession of Osel and other islands to Germany, Aland to Sweden (which was neutral in the war), a rump pro-German tsarist state, the independence of Ukraine (which soon split into the royalist Ukraine and republican Don-Ukraine), plus the independence of Armenia, Finland, and Karelia. Bessarabia was ceded to Romania, too. About 100,000 pounds in debt were owed.

The Russian Civil War broke out in 1918, shortly after peace with the Germans. For Russian factions, there were not two, not three, but yes, FIVE main factions fighting. These were the rump tsarist state, the Novgorod Republic (based in Nizhny Novgorod unlike its predecessor), the rump Russian Republic and vassals, the tolerant Siberian Federation with its vassal Tannu Tuva, and the Union of Soviet Siberian Republics plus its ally the Moscow Soviet. Non-Russian contenders were Finland, Karelia, Alash Republic, Turkmenistan, Turkestan (which forcefully incorporated Tajikistan), the Transcaucasian Union, Armenia, Don-Ukraine, Japan, and Norway.

BaUmdaw.png


Fast forward to 1936. France is ruled by neo-Napoleonists, who wish to see France returned to its former glory. Joined by them is Italy and Japan, who felt betrayed after the peace, and Spain, who wishes to regain its lost territories.
The leader of France is Michael Bernard, who, like Adolf Hitler, is willing to take risks to expand his territory. He is able to persuade Germany to cede the military frontier, and to have the independent Basque Country partitioned, however his next step is where war comes. In 1939, he demands Occitania cede the Loire Hills region to gain access to the Herault Strip. Like OTL (but inversed), war is declared on France, but nothing happens besides a tiny German offensive into Lorraine.
In early 1940, though, the French State launches a massive offensive into the Low Countries and Germany...

-description a WIP, other maps are below-
rVqym9K.png

Europe in 1939.
IIY404f.png

The Second Entente at its zenith in 1943.
 
Last edited:
POD: Second Boer War is averted

With the outbreak of the First Great War in Europe, the Boer states were presented an opportunity. For the past decade, the British government had been encroaching on both nations sovereignty, demanding greater rights for the Uitlanders of the territory, and various railroad concessions. Now, with British armies occupied in Europe, the Boer States could forever throw off British influence, and liberate the Cape and Natal from British control. Accordingly, the Orange Free State and Republic of South Africa opted to join the Central Powers. The British could not spare any significant force to defend her South African possessions, instead relying on Anglo South Africans, and the ANZAC corps from Australia and New Zealand to oppose the Boers. While much of northern Natal, Mafeking, and Kimberley fell to the Boers, their advance soon stalled, as the Boers were put on the defense, resting their ultimate fate on the war effort of the remainder of the Central Powers. While Russia capitulated to the Central Powers in 1917, the other Central Powers themselves collapsed in 1918, leaving the Boer States alone. In addition, Lord Balfour had promised the Africans of the Boer states "majority governance after a reasonable period of time" prompting a number of uprisings and strikes of natives within the Boer States. As American troops began to arrive in British Cape Colony in late 1918 to bolster the allied effort, the Boers were left in a conundrum as to how to proceed. Some generals advocated an all or nothing gamble to throw out the Allies, but the civilian government (with agreement from renowned general Jan Smuts) recognized the futility in this, and accepted defeat to prevent more blood from being spilled needlessly. Thus, in January of 1919, the Boer Republicans would be the last of the Central Powers to surrender. The British and Americans promptly occupied the territories and abolished the Boer Republics, replacing them with the mandate of Transorangia.

Within the new mandate, a low level guerrilla war begun, with a number of extreme Boers hoping to expel the British, lest "their land" be handed over to the Africans. Boer guerillas attacked African villages, prompting retaliatory actions from various African groups. The net result of this was a migration of some Boers from more isolated areas, to areas of greater European concentration like the Witwatersrand. These Boers were joined by some conservative Cape Dutch (while much of the Afrikaner population had remained loyal, the Cape Colony Government viewed them as a fifth column and passed certain discriminatory measures against them) and even a few Germans from South-West Africa (now annexed to the Cape). As the decade concluded, violence began to escalate between Africans and Boers, with the latter demanding a "Vrystaat" for the Afrikanners, separate from African lands. The groups advocating for a separate Afrikaner state were disunited, ranging from far-right seperatists, to more moderate influences like the well-respected Jan Smuts. The British remained resolute against this demand. The 1930s would be marked by a continuing escalation of violence, with previously ethnically mixed areas becoming homogenized. A number of White settlers from other nations moved into Transorangia (including 50,000 Dutch Jews fleeing Anti-Semetism who the British government let in at the behest of Jan Smuts) and largely sided with the Boer demands for a separate state (the settlers were not supportive of Afrikaner nationalism, but did not want to live in a state dominated by Africans, as the mandate was slated to become). The British government would continue to maintain their position of opposition against the "Vrystaat", but events in Europe would soon force their hand otherwise.

A resurgent nationalist Germany was quickly showing itself to be a threat to European security. First, in taking German populated territory and voiding treaties, and then invading non-German territory. The Second Great War would be started when Germany invaded Poland in 1939 and the United Kingdom and France came to Polish aid. In a move that would send shock-waves around the world, Germany successfully invaded France and forced a capitulation from them in 1940 during a period of 6 weeks. The new British government under Winston Churchill remained resolute against the German (now joined by the Italians and a number of Balkan nations) threat of invasion (which never materialized), and began seeking new allies. This offered an opening for the Boer nationalists in South Africa. While some Boers sought to stage a revolt and ally with the Germans, others pursued a more prudent course. Jan Smuts secretly negotiated with Churchill, to guarantee a Boer state in return for the Boers raising military regiments to fight with the British. The British for their part saw this as a win-win situation, given that it reduced the likelihood of a Boer revolt (as Smuts was a popular figure nearly all of the Afrikaner population trusted), and provided manpower for the fight against Fascism. Jan Smuts made a plea for Boers to sign up to fight the Nazis (and managed to get Far-Right groups to agree not to cause problems for the duration of the war). The Boers would raise a number of regiments which would serve with distinction in many theaters of the Second Great War, including against the Italians in East Africa, in North Africa, in Sicily and Italy, and an elite corps of Boer soldiers even participated in the landings at Pas de Calais to liberate Europe from the Nazis. At the conclusion of the Second Great War, Prime Minister Churchill announced his support for a separate Boer state (but with no border commitments), which was met with euphoria from the Afrikaners of Transorangia, and horror from the African population there.

Violence began to pick up after 1945, with the Africans (now being covertly supplied by the Soviet Union) trying to scare the Boer civilian populace to flee the mandate. By 1948, the violence was reaching extreme levels, and neither side was able to come to a compromise. The British decided to quit themselves of the situation, and put forward a partition plan. The Afrikaners, while hoping for more territory, accepted the partition plan (secretly, most believed that accepting the partition now would leave them in a better position to acquire further territory in the future) while the Africans denied the plan (as the Boers had gotten some of the most valuable land while being under 30% of the population). Jan Smuts declared the establishment of the "Afrikaner Vrystaat", and the Boers soon faced off against the African states also established in the partition (and Basutoland, Swazi Kingdom, and Bechuanaland, who engaged the Boers in support of their ethnic brethren). The Boers, although being landlocked, were able to obtain weaponry from the outside world through a sympathetic Natal (which was dominated by a reactionary White minority). The newly established State of Israel provided material aid and support for the Boers as they were in a similar position just a year ago, and were forever grateful for Jan Smuts advocating for the taking in of Jewish refugees fleeing extermination (when few in the Western World were willing to do so). The "Afrikaner Vrystaat" gained quite a bit of territory from neighboring African states before a ceasefire was declared.

Much of the African population within the new boundaries of the "Afrikaner Vrystaat" were expelled or fled on their own accord. Similarly, the White population remaining in African territory was expelled or left to the Vrystaat. African Nationalist movements across the Continent expressed solidarity with the African states that had fought the wars, and demonized the White populations of territories (accusing them of trying to create their own White States). While this had little immediate effect, as soon as decolonization hit Africa, European populations were expelled from African nations almost as soon as they were granted Independence or Majority rule (with few exceptions, notably the Cape). Most of these Europeans returned to their native country when possible, though more conservative and poorer White settlers moved to the Vrystaat, which accepted them with open arms. In the 1973, the White minority government of Natal collapsed. Much of the White population fled to the Vrystaat which soon committed a decent portion of their army into Natal, which then much of northern Natal (which had a historic Boer population) and a corridor to the sea. The African states which had lost to the Vrystaat in 1949 (and were now under Soviet influence, while the Vrystaat was under American influence) saw this as an opportunity to strike and regain their territory, while KwaZulu (the successor of Natal) tried to regain the sea corridor. The 1973 war was a disaster for the African States, which were defeated in a course of 6 weeks (the Afrikaner Vrystaat occupied even more territory). A few years later, Israel and the Vrystaat (in a joint program) successfully developed and tested nuclear weapons in secret. White settlers moved into these occupied lands to secure the Vrystaat's claim to the area. The African States tried in vain to combat the Vrystaat, and eventually realized the futility of that effort. In their "historic compromise", the African leaders of bordering states agreed to accept the "1949" borders" and even a corridor to the sea, provided the other land was returned. The Vrystaat rejected these terms, but did agree to put some areas of occupation under African control.

Today, the Vrystaat has still not vacated the "occupied territories" and has continued settlements deemed illegal under international law. Many African states still do not recognize the "Vrystaat" diplomatically. Attempts by the native Africans in occupied territories to express their democratic desire have been suppressed violently. Many European nations (who historically backed the Vrystaat due to siding with the Capitalists during the Cold War) are currently distancing themselves from the Vrystaat. Politically, the Vrystaat is one of the most right-wing democracies in the Western world (while rights are denied to Africans in occupied territories, Africans living within the Vrystaat's borders passing a certain wealth qualification are able to vote). While being economically moderate as far as Western democracies go, the Vrystaat is very socially conservative. Many far-right Europeans and Americans have been moving to the Vrystaat in recent years, as the Vrystaat to them remains a bastion of "true Christian values". The official language of the Vrystaat is Afrikaans, though English, Portuguese, and French are commonplace and recognized on some level (due to the presence of settler refugees from Natal, Rhodesia, and British Africa; Angola and Mozambique; the Belgian Congo and Algeria respectively).

At many College Campuses around the world, student organizations are encouraging disinvestment and embargo of the Vrystaat (and Israel). The below poster was created by one of these student organizations.

motf_115__weird_world_war_ii__thumbnail__by_reagentah-d8s0kt8.png
 
Top