Here is another installment of the timeline.
ADDITIONS TO EARLIER SEGMENTS OF THE TIMELINE
1895, The Far East--Sino-Japanese War. Japan thoroughly defeats the decrepit Chinese Empire. China is forced to cede Taiwan and recognize Japanese sovereignty over Korea.
1895 onward, China--Following the defeat of China by Japan in the 1895 war, European powers respond with a policy they call "carving up the Chinese melon." Following the partitioning of Africa among European powers, they now turn their sights to what they see as a terminally weak Chinese government. European powers and the United States begin to scramble for "spheres of interest," which involve holding leases for all railway and commercial privileges in various regions. The Russians get Port Arthur, the British get the New Territories around Hong Kong, the Germans get a leasehold in Shantung, and the Americans get nothing. Having missed the Chinese boat, the Americans insist on an "open door" policy in China in which commercial opportunities are equally available to all European powers and the political and territorial integrity of China remains untouched.
1898, The Far East--In China, the "Hundred Days' Reform", launched by emperor Guang Hsu to modernize China, fails when the mother of the emperor, Tsu Hsi, has him arrested and confined in the Forbidden City.
1900-1910, Civil War in China-- The Chinese imperial court responds to the threat posed by the foreign "spheres of influence" by giving aid to various secret societies. One of these is the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious Fist, also known as the Boxers. In 1900, the Boxers rise in rebellion throughout China. The Dowager Empress Tsu Hsi orders the Imperial Army to support the Boxers, and because the European powers are distracted by the Great War, the Chinese are able to expel the foreigners from almost all of China by the end of 1901. Britain is able to hold onto Hong Kong, and Japan to it’s conquests in Manchuria, but the rest of the European enclaves are over-run. The Dowager Empress, however, does not long savor her victory, for the Boxers, having expelled the European foreigners, then turn on the Imperial Government itself. Empress Tsu Hsi is dragged out of her palace and hacked to death, along with the Emperor Guang Hsu and the crown prince, Pu Yi. The Forbidden City is burned to the ground, and anarchy reigns supreme. This ushers in a period of civil war which engulfs the whole country as various bands of Boxer rebels and generals of the former Imperial Army vie with each other for supremacy. Millions die in the violence across the country, including a couple of insignificant university employees in Beijing, Chief Librarian Li Ta-chao, and a professor of literature, Chen Tu-hsui. Also killed is a young student in Hunan Province named Mao Tse Tung. By 1910, one warlord has emerged supreme...Yuan Shikai. Yuan establishes an authoritarian military dictatorship over most of the country.
1912, China--Song Jiaoren and Sun Yat-sen found the Kuomintang Party.
1912 onward, The Union--Ever since the end of the Great War, the Temperance Movement has been picking up steam in the United States. In the aftermath of the U.S. defeat in the war, the demoralized public embraces religion with fervor, which feeds the political power of the Temperance Movement, which is largely church-based. By 1912, the movement is demanding a Constitutional amendment prohibiting the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcohol, and the power of the movement becomes evident during the 1912 Presidential race, when the issue becomes one of the hot issues of the campaign. President Taft opposes the proposed amendment, and his Democratic challengers favor it. Only Taft's popularity, buoyed by his success in ending the post war Depression and national sympathy following the assassination of President Theodore Roosevelt (whom Taft succeeded in office) ensures his victory over his opponents. The Temperance Movement has met a temporary defeat, but it will be back...
1915, Germany--Albert Einstein publishes the General Theory of Relativity.
1916, China--Yuan Shikai dies. China once again falls into chaos.
1916, The Union--The Temperance issue once again raises it's head in the Presidential election held this year, but the popular President Taft wins, so the Temperance Movement is forced to wait yet again.
1917, China--Sun Yat-sen and the Kuomintang establish a new government in southern China. However, it has only tenuous authority in most of the country.
1917, Austro-Hungarian Empire--Leo Szilard is drafted into the army, where he serves as a Lieutenant of Artillery.
1917, The Ottoman Empire--In the aftermath of the Great War, which revealed grave deficiencies in the Ottoman military, and perhaps more importantly, in the government of the empire, a movement arose within the Army for reform of both institutions. Lead by Mustafa Kemal, a young and energetic Turkish officer who had distinguished himself in the Great War, these officers lead a military coup in early 1917 and seize control of the government. Ultra-conservative Sultan Abdul Hamid II is forced to abdicate in favor of his brother, Mehmed Vahdettin (whose older brother, Mehmed Resad, is viewed as too conservative by the rebels and not allowed to assume the throne), who takes the throne as Sultan Mehmed V. While they leave the Ottoman Sultan as the official (albeit figurehead) Head of State, the rebels force the Sultan to agree to a constitution, which calls for an elected national legislative assembly and a bill of rights. The government would be managed by a Prime Minister, elected by the national legislative assembly. Only ethnic Turks living in the Turkish homeland of Anatolia are to be given the right to vote...basically the new Constitution will apply to Anatolia itself, but not to the provinces, which will continue to be ruled by governors appointed by the central government.
1917-1919--Researchers in several countries nearly simultaneously develop interrupter mechanisms to allow machine guns to be fired through the spinning propeller of an aircraft without hitting the propeller blades. This allows the development of true fighter aircraft for the first time.
1918, The Ottoman Empire--Elections held. The new National Assembly selects Mustafa Kemal as the first Prime Minister under the new constitution. Kemal immediately initiates reforms for the military, and begins seeking means in improve the economy of the Ottoman Empire.
1918, Texas--Since occupying the remainder of Mexico in 1905, Texas has faced a continuing problem with rebellion and banditry in the conquered territories and has been taking ever harsher measures to suppress it, including the use of poison gas, dropped by air onto Mexican villages which are suspected of harboring guerillas. Besides condemnation by the United States and the Confederacy, Texas’s ally, Great Britain, has repeatedly condemned the use of poison gas on civilians, but Texas has ignored the pleas for moderation by the British. The alliance between the two nations is not broken, but it is very strained.
1918 onward, Russia--The support given by Leon Trotsky to the government of Tsar Mikhail II during the recent attempted Bolshevik coup has not gone un-noticed, and the new Prime Minister is, with the Tsar's support over the next several years, to make great strides toward his goal of a socialist Russia. What gradually emerges in Russia is a hybrid state, capitalist for the most part but with many socialist features designed to protect the workers, such as trade unions, a social-security-type old-age pension plan, etc. Trotsky also pushes the industrialization of Russia and seeks out foreign investment which greatly boosts the economy. Of course, all this increases the resources available for Russia's military, which grows accordingly in size and power.
1920, Britain--Rutherford speculates on the existence of the neutron at the Royal Society.
1920, The Ottoman Empire--Prospectors working on the orders of Prime Minister Kemal discover oil near the city of Kirkuk, in the province of Mesopotamia. After negotiating with several nations, Kemal signs a pact with Great Britain for development of these resources. Petro-money begins flowing into the coffers of the Ottoman Empire, allowing a complete and thorough overhaul of the military, as well as many programs to industrialize the country and reform the backwards aspects of Turkish society so as to bring the nation fully into the Twentieth Century.
1920, The Union--For the third straight time, the Temperance issue has dominated the national Presidential elections, and this time, it carries the election for the Democratic Party, sending Alfred E. Smith to the White House. Smith promises to make passage of a Constitutional amendment mandating alcohol prohibition the first priority of his Administration.
CONTINUED, 1921-1940...
1921, The Union--On March 4, at Philadelphia, D.C., Alfred E. Smith is sworn in as the Twenty-Sixth President of the United States, and James M. Cox is sworn in as Vice President. As promised, within thirty days after taking office, President Smith introduces a draft amendment prohibiting the production, importation, transportation and sale of alcoholic beverages within the boundaries of the United States. Strangely, the amendment does not ban USAGE of alcoholic beverages. By the end of the year, Smith has persuaded Congress to adopt the amendment, and it is submitted to the States for ratification.
1921--Confederate Elections: Breaking with tradition, Vice President DuBois declines to run for his own term as President, saying "I don’t think this country is ready for a black President just yet." And so, instead, the Liberty Party nominates Thomas Clark Rye of Tennessee for President and Ruffin G. Pleasant of Louisiana for Vice President. The State Sovereignty Party nominates Eugene Talmadge of Georgia for President and Thomas E. Kilby of Alabama for Vice President. The charismatic Eugene Talmadge, a renowned "stump speaker" in his native State, quickly outshines his rather lack-luster opponents, and the State Sovereignty ticket handily defeats their opponents in the general election.
1922, Europe--The Ottoman Empire, which has viewed the growing rapport between Germany and Russia with alarm, joins the London Pact.
1922, The Confederacy--On February 22, at Washington, C.D., Eugene Talmadge is sworn in as the Twelth President of the Confederate States of America, and Thomas E. Kilby is sworn in as Vice President.
1922--The Oklahoma War. Popular opinion in the Confederacy has been inflamed by reports that Texas is committing atrocities in Oklahoma, where, like in Mexico, the Native American residents are in rebellion against harsh Texan rule. Unlike the situation in Mexico, where although the Confederacy deplores the atrocities being committed, it does not feel it has any historical duties on behalf of it’s people, Oklahoma was, at one time, a territory of the Confederacy, and there are many in the Confederacy who feel that the Confederacy has a duty to protect the people of Oklahoma. Swept along by a tide of public opinion, the new President, Eugene Talmadge, issues an ultimatum to Texas...withdraw from Oklahoma, or face war with the Confederacy. Texas calls on it's British ally for support, and Britain (which is unhappy about the brutality being practiced by Texas in it's conquered territories) does some half-hearted diplomatic sabre rattling. This encourages President William Pettus Hobby of Texas to refuse the Confederate demand, and President Talmadge asks the Confederate Congress for a Declaration of War. The Congress takes only one day to vote in the affirmative, and so the war begins. Britain, although it does not immediately issue an ultimatum, takes an increasingly belligerent tone in it's diplomatic messages to the Confederacy. It looks for a while like Britain may enter the war on the side of Texas, but then the United States (although remaining technically neutral) begins massing troops on the Canadian and Texas borders. This which serves the dual purposes of tying down large Texas forces which would otherwise have been committed to the struggle against the invading Confederate armies as well as giving Britain pause. Meanwhile, Confederate armies, lead by armored divisions equipped with the new, and until now secret battle-wagons and closely supported by squadrons of fighter and bomber aircraft, slash rapidly through Texas forces in Oklahoma and begin driving into Texas itself, piercing the vaunted Alamo Line in several places. Despite urgent pleas from Texas, Britain does not take the final plunge, and contents itself with condemning "Confederate and Yankee aggression." Left in the lurch by his British allies and seeing the spectre of total defeat before him, President Hobby of Texas sues for peace, and President Talmadge of the Confederacy agrees to a cease fire in July 1922. After a couple of months of negotiation, a treaty is signed at Washington, C.D., on September 22, 1922, ending the war. Oklahoma is formally ceded the Confederacy. Texas also agrees to pay an indemnity of $10 billion dollars to the Confederacy which will be used to repair the damage done in Oklahoma since it was occupied by Texas in 1902. President Talmadge declares that a plebiscite will be held within a year to determine if Oklahoma wishes to join the Confederacy as a State, or if it wishes to once again resume it’s former status as an independent nation.
1922, The Union--President Smith's Prohibition Amendment is ratified and becomes law. The production, importation, transportation and sale of alcoholic beverages is now banned everywhere within the borders of the United States.
1922 onward, The Union--The Prohibition Era. As in OTL, the amendment to ban the production, importation, transportation and sale of alcoholic beverages in the United States proves completely unenforceable, especially since the amendment does not ban USAGE of alcoholic beverages. Since demand is not reduced...and indeed, increases as people who normally would never have taken a drink now flock in droves to illicit taverns for the "thrill" of doing something "risky"...the laws of economics take hold and suppliers step up to fill the demand. Most of these suppliers are members of the Irish, Jewish, and Italian street gangs which have flourished in Northern and Western cities since the mid-19th century, and as a result, the gangs are infused with obscene amounts of ill-gotten bootleg money which they use to bribe police and city officials to look the other way and ignore their activities. Indeed, the money is so plentiful that in some cities, gang bosses actually gain virtual control by using their wealth of influence the outcome of local election. All of this greatly increases the power of the local gangs. At first, the gangs fight bloody wars for control of bootleg money, but under the influence of men like Charles "Lucky" Luciano and Meyer Lansky, they begin to link up and join forces, and organized crime is born.
1922 onward, The Confederacy--Although no Prohibition Amendment will ever be passed in the Confederacy...several individual Confederate States have passed Prohibition Laws which apply within their own borders, but unlike in the Union, the prevailing political culture is strongly against the practice of special interest groups using the national government as a means to coerce the people of other States...the passage of the Prohibition Amendment by the Union also impacts the Confederacy. Confederate brewers and distillers (and those industries which directly or indirectly support them) experience an economic boom as the Confederacy (along with Canada) becomes the major supplier of alcoholic beverages for the thirsty consumers of the United States. Indeed, as cross-border bootlegging reaches huge levels, there are actually a few skirmishes between U.S. Prohibition agents caught in the act of hot pursuit of bootleggers across the international border and Confederate border police, and relations between the Union and the Confederacy actually begin to chill over the issue.
1923 onward--The recent performance of Confederate armored divisions, closely supported by aircraft, in the Oklahoma War has sent shock waves through the military establishments of the world. Some countries, such as the United States, Britain, and Germany, had already been experimenting with armored fighting vehicles based on the caterpillar tractor, but none were close to operational deployment of such a vehicle. All of the major powers now devote a significant portion of their military budgets to getting their own versions of the battle-wagon in service as quickly as possible.
1923, Oklahoma--The plebiscite to decide the future status of Oklahoma is held, and voters overwhelmingly vote to join the Confederacy as a State. The Confederate Congress acts on this expressed will of the people by the end of the year. The Confederate flag now has fourteen stars.
1923, China--In this year, President Sun Yat-sen of China asks for help from Tsar Mikhail II of Russia in liberating and unifying China. Tsar Mikhail, seeing a door opening for increased Russian influence in China, provides arms, equipment and military advisors who train the Kuomintang army. With Russian help, the Kuomintang will crush it's opponents, chiefly the warlords which have held sway in different parts of China since the death of Yuan Shikai in 1916, within three years.
1924, Elections in the Union--The Democrats renominate President Smith and Vice President Cox. The Republicans nominate Charles Evans Hughes of New York and William Dennison Stephens of California. Hughes and Stephens decry the recent stance of the U.S. in the Oklahoma War, arguing that President Smith was wrong to "endanger the lives of American boys on account of Rebels and Red Indians." In a surprise upset, Hughes and Stephens defeat the incumbents by a wide margin, indicating a strong inclination toward isolationism among the U.S. population.
1924, The Ottoman Empire--Sultan Mehmed V dies, and is succeeded by his first cousin, who reigns as Sultan Abdul Mejid II. Like his predecessor, Abdul Mejid II is a figurehead constitutional monarch, but he works closely with the Prime Minster, Mustafa Kemal, to further the development of his empire.
1925, The Union--On March 4, at Philadelphia, D.C., Charles Evans Hughes is sworn in as the Twenty-Fifth President of the United States, and William Dennison Stephens is sworn in as Vice President.
1925, China--Sun Yat-sen dies of cancer. Leadership of the Kuomintang passes to General Chiang Kai-shek.
1926, China--Chiang Kai-shek signs a treaty of military alliance with Russia, aimed at Japan. China becomes effectively a partner in the Dual Alliance.
1927-1936, The War of Austrian Devolution--In early 1927, the Hungarian Diet declares the secession of Hungary from the Quintuple Monarchy. Emperor Karl declares the secession to be illegal, and calls on the other peoples of the empire (the Czechs, Poles, Germans, and South Slavs) to rally behind the monarchy. Instead, all except the Austrian Germans also declare their secession from the Habsburg realm, and reports of massacres of various ethnic minorities begin to filter out of the secessionist states. Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, declaring himself the protector of the German minorities in these areas (and also seeing an opportunity to gobble up some territory) begins mobilizing his military and declares his intention to intervene in order to "restore order." He is supported in this by his ally Tsar Mikhail II of Russia, who holds that Russia is the protector of the Slavic peoples of the region (and who also sees an opportunity for territorial aggrandizement). The nations of the London Pact issue a joint statement which declares their total opposition to any German or Russian intervention in Austrian affairs. Kaiser Wilhelm and Tsar Mikhail ignore this quasi-ultimatum, and on April 5, 1927, German and Russian troops cross the borders of the Habsburg empire. Emperor Karl, seeing this intervention for the naked territorial grab that it is, denounces this foreign interference in the internal affairs of his realm, and appeals to the London Pact for aid. Kaiser Wilhelm, in response, sends German troops into Vienna, where they narrowly miss capturing Emperor Karl, who escapes across the border into Italy. The London Pact issues an ultimatum...withdraw from Habsburg territory by April 10, or face war. Kaiser Wilhelm and Tsar Mikhail haughtily refuse the ultimatum, and on April 10, the London Pact declares war on the Dual Alliance.
In North America, Texas, holding true to it's alliance despite some bitterness over British inactivity in the Oklahoma War, also declares war on Germany and Russia. Texas's participation will not be huge...a small contingent of Texas divisions will be transported to Britain, where they will take part in the British cross-channel invasion of France in June 1934, and Texas will supply oil and beef to the beleaguered British. The other three American republics...the United States, the Confederate States, the Republic of Texas, and the Republic of Deseret...all declare their neutrality in the burgeoning European struggle. And in the Far East, Japan...which is still having some border issues with Russia and which is eyeing the German colonies in the East Indies (with their valuable resources of rubber, oil, and other vital materials) with greed...declares it’s allegiance to the London Pact and declares war on Germany and Russia. In response, President Chiang Kai-shek of China declares war on Japan.
The war will be unlike any which have been fought before, as what in OTL would be called "blitzkrieg" tactics (combined arms tactics based on the use of armored vehicles supported by aircraft) are used by all sides. Germany and Russia initially have the best of it. German panzers sweep into France and northern Italy, and Russian armored divisions sweep into the Ottoman Empire's European possessions. Other Russian divisions advance into the Ottoman Caucasus territories. France, which has only a small armored force, is effectively knocked out of the war within a month and forced to surrender. The British, who had landed an expeditionary force in France to support their ally, is forced to withdraw it back to Britain. Italian resistance, supported by another British expeditionary force, is stiffer, however, and the Germans are held at the Po River. The Ottomans also give a very good account of themselves, and Russia finds it's thrust into the Balkans and the Caucasus blunted as well. They will also be re-inforced by the British, and a see-saw campaign of thrust and counter-thrust ensues will will consume the next several years.*For the most part, the German and Russian armies will dominate the European continent, with the British, Italians, and Ottomans clinging precariously to the peripheries.*
One interesting "side-show" takes place in the Ottoman provinces of Arabia, Mesopotamia, Syria and Palestine, where German and Russian agents intrigue with the local Arab chieftains, inducing them to rebel against the Ottomans by promising them their own independent states after the war. The most successful and famous of these is Oberst Thomas Lorenz, Imperial German Army, who gathers together an alliance of several powerful Arab tribes which conducts a brilliant hit-and-run guerilla campaign against the Turks, blowing up Turkish railroad lines, attacking and wiping out isolated garrisons, and destroying oil wells and pipelines. Lorenz adopts native dress and mannerisms, and is somewhat of a "media hog," and thrilling tales of his exotic exploits will delight (or appall) readers around the world. He will go down in history as "Lorenz of Arabia," and a major multi-million dollar epic motion picture will eventually be made about his life and exploits.*
Another side-show operation takes place in Africa, where British and Italian troops mount operations to invade and conquer Germany's colonies. However, Germany's colonial troops, under some very resourceful commanders, put up a fierce resistance, and some of the colonies are still not totally secured by the end of the war.*
In the far east, Chinese and Russian armies invade Manchuria, where they meet fanatical resistance by the Japanese. Despite being hugely outnumbered, the "plucky Japs," as they come to be called in the world's press, aided by British troops (and later by United States troops, transported from the West Coast in 1934), dig in and are never expelled from Manchuria during the entire war.
At sea, the Royal Navy effectively blockades the German coast, bottling up the High Seas fleet. Only one major naval engagement will occur in the European Theatre, resulting in severe damage to the German High Seas fleet when it tries to sortie into the North Atlantic in March 1928. The Germans will not repeat the experiment, and the High Seas fleet is confined to port for the remainder of the war. The Germans and their Russian allies counter the British blockade with unrestricted submarine warfare against Britain, aiming to starve the British into submission. This causes much resentment among neutral powers, especially the United States and the Confederate States. Most of the major naval engagements on the high seas during the war will be between the German and Russian Pacific fleets and the fleets of Japan and Britain for control of the German colonies in Indonesia. In the end, the outnumbered German fleet is defeated, and a combined Anglo-Japanese-Anzac force will occupy the German colonies by the end of 1929.*
*
In the air, the war sees major and ominous innovations. The rigid airship fleets built up by most nations after the Great War prove to be much less successful in this war than in the last, as fighter aircraft prove an effective counter to them. Strategic bombing of cities and industrial centers is carried out on a large scale by Britain, Germany, Russia, and Italy. Hundreds of thousands die, but the campaign does not significantly impact the fighting ability of any of the warring powers. Land-based aircraft also harry shipping near the coasts of the warring powers, not causing large amounts of damage, but indicating...to some who have eyes to see...the potential of aircraft as the naval weapon of the future. Another related innovation, which will not see action in the war, is made when the British successfully land an aircraft on the deck of a warship in 1931.*
The turning point in the war comes in 1932. On February 15, a German submarine sinks the Confederate liner S.S. Robert E. Lee, en route to Britain. Over 1,000 civilians perish in the icy waters of the North Atlantic, and Confederate public opinion is outraged. The very next month, the U.S. liner S.S. Atlantic Star is sunk by another German submarine. 1,300 civilians drown. The combined effect of these two atrocities create a wave of "war fever" in both the Union and the Confederacy. Resisting popular pressure for as long as practicable, Confederate President Albert Cabell Ritchie finally is forced to ask for a declaration of War against Germany and Russia in July 1932, which Congress grants. President Charles Evans Hughes of the U.S. refuses to back down from the "keep us out of war" position on which he was elected, but nevertheless, begins holding discussions with Confederate President Ritchie with the aim of coordinating joint action if necessary. Hughes declined to run for another term in the 1932 U.S. election, and riding a wave of war fever, stoked by yet another high-casualty sinking by a German submarine, war-hawk Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected in a landslide in November 1932. President Hughes, bowing to the inevitable, asks Congress for a Declaration of War against Germany and Russia in mid-November 1932. The U.S. Congress grants his request, and by the end of 1932, both the U.S.A. and the C.S.A. are at war with Germany and Russia.*
U.S. and Confederate troops begin arriving in Britain by March of 1933...just in time for Franklin D. Roosevelt's inauguration....and the navies of the two American republics join those of Britain and Italy in battling German and Russian submarines in the Atlantic. In June 1934, British, Texas, U.S. and C.S. troops land on the French coast and begin an advance which will clear the Germans out of France and then, in mid-1935, cross the Rhine River into Germany itself. Despite fanatical German resistance, the allies make their way slowly and painfully toward Berlin. Meanwhile, British, Italian, and Ottoman troops also advance northward in Italy and the Balkans, preventing the Germans and Russians from reinforcing the newly opened Western Front. In January 1936, Tsar Mikhail II of Russia...seeing that Germany is doomed...decides to get the best deal he can for himself and secretly offers peace. After conferring, the London Pact powers accept the offer, stipulating only that Russian troops withdraw to Russia's pre-1927 borders. Tsar Mikhail accepts the stipulation, and in April 1936, Russia drops out of the war.**
The news that Russia has abandoned the fight leads Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany and President Chiang Kai-Shek to also sue for peace in May 1936. The London Pact advises Wilhelm and Chiang that they will grant an armistice, provided that all German troops are withdrawn to Germany's pre-1927 borders and all Chinese troops are withdrawn from Manchuria. Wilhelm and Chiang agree, and an armistice is declared on June 1, 1936. It is agreed that allied military forces will remain where they are...including those occupying a large section of Germany...until a final peace treaty is agreed upon. The war is over.
1927, Hungary--During the crisis leading up to the War of Austrian Devolution, Leo Szilard is recalled into the Hungarian Army. He is killed later that year resisting the invasion of Hungary by Russian troops.
1927, Confederate Elections--The State Sovereignty Party nominates Vice President Thomas E. Kilby for President and Cameron Morrison of North Carolina for Vice President. The Liberty Party nominates Albert Cabell Ritchie of Maryland and Thomas William Hardwick of Georgia for Vice President. The Liberty Party ticket of Ritchie and Hardwick in a close election.
1928, The Confederacy--On February 22, at Washington, C.D., Albert Cabell Ritchie is sworn in as the Thirteenth President of the Confederate States of America and Thomas W. Hardwick is sworn in as Vice President.
1928, Elections in the Union--The Republicans renominate Charles Evans Hughes for President, but Vice President Stephens declines to run for a second term, and John Calvin Coolidge of Massachusetts is nominated for Vice President. The Democrats nominate Franklin D. Roosevelt (cousin of former President Theodore Roosevelt) of New York for President and Percival Proctor Baxter of Maine for Vice President. The public responds to the Republican campaign slogan, "He kept us out of war," and President Hughes wins a landslide victory.
1929, The Union--On March 4, at Philadelphia, D.C., Charles Evans Hughes is sworn in for his second term as President and John Calvin Coolidge is sworn in as Vice President.
1932, Elections in the Union--President Charles Evans Hughes having declined to run for a third term, the Republicans nominate Frank D. Fitzgerald of Michigan for President, and Ralph Owen Brewster of Maine for Vice President. The Democrats once again nominate Franklin D. Roosevelt for President, but this time nominate David I. Walsh of Massachusetts for Vice President. The big issue in the election that year is the issue of U.S. neutrality in the war then raging in Europe and Asia. The Republicans favor continued neutrality, but the Democrats, citing several high-profile sinkings of American merchantmen on the high seas by German and Russian submarines and other "insults to American honor," argue for a declaration of war. In a hotly contested race, the Democratic ticket of Roosevelt and Walsh carry the election by a wide margin.
1932, Britain--James Chadwick discovers the neutron.
1933, Confederate Elections--The Liberty Party nominates Vice President Thomas W. Hardwick as it's candidate for President, and nominates Earle C. Clements of Kentucky for Vice President. The State Sovereignty Party nominates John Wellborn Martin of Florida for President, and Angus W. McLean of North Carolina for Vice President. The Liberty Party ticket of Hardwick and Clements wins by a wide margin.*
1933, The Union--On January 5, Vice President John Calvin Coolidge dies while in office.*On March 4, at Philadelphia, D.C., Franklin Delano Roosevelt is sworn in as the twenty-sixth President of the United States, and David I. Walsh is sworn in as Vice President.*
1934, The Confederacy--On February 22, at Washington, C.D., Thomas W. Hardwick is sworn in as the fourteenth President of the Confederate States of America, and Earle C. Clements is sworn in as Vice President.*
1934, Italy--Enrico Fermi bombards uranium with neutrons and unknowingly achieves the first nuclear fission. It will only be several years later when German scientists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassman confirm that nuclear fission is a reality.
1936, Elections in the Union--The Democrats renominate President Roosevelt and Vice President Walsh. The Republicans nominate Hubert Simms of Maine for President and Wilford Langley of Minnesota for Vice President. Riding a wave of public elation over the successful conclusion of the recent war, the Democratic ticket of Roosevelt and Walsh win by a wide margin.*
1937, The Union--On March 4, at Philadelphia, D.C., Franklin Delano Roosevelt and David I Walsh are sworn in for their second term as President and Vice President of the United States.**
1937 onward, The Union--President Roosevelt's jubilation at winning his second term is short-lived, however, as the economy of the United States, in common with many countries in the immediate post-war period, goes into a steep decline. It doesn't reach the level of a full-out Depression, but does qualify as a deep recession. Unemployment rises sharply, as does inflation, creating much misery among the population. Roosevelt's attempts to boost the economy by pumping government money into it (in the form of subsidies for business and "make-work" projects for the unemployed) fail.* Another issue which is causing much debate in the Union is Prohibition. It has become evident that the Prohibition Amendment has completely failed in it's purpose, and has caused many unforeseen side effects, the rise of organized crime chief among them. The Republican Party makes this an issue, advocating repeal of the Prohibition Amendment, and this will influence the outcome of the next election.
1937 onward, The Confederacy--The Confederacy, too, is experiencing rising unemployment and inflation in it's economy. President Hardwick's attempts to stimulate the economy via tax incentives to business fail.
1937 onward, Texas--Texas, unlike it's neighbors, is experiencing somewhat of a boom. Rising prices have increased the profits from Texas exports of oil, petrochemical products, and beef. Many people from the more economically depressed areas of the U.S. and the Confederacy emigrate to Texas during this period, swelling the population of Texas.*****
1937, Stockholm, Sweden--A peace conference to formally end the War of Austrian Devolution is held in Stockholm. The United States and Confederate States form a united front at the conference in favor of a "just and lasting peace." Their representatives try to moderate the demands made by various powers, and they push the concept of "self-determination" for the minority populations of Europe, seeking to defuse the "time-bombs" which could explode into renewed conflict later. The final document to emerge carries the following provisions...
--Germany to withdraw to it's pre-1899 borders. The governments of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg are to be reconstituted.
--Russia to withdraw to it's 1927 borders (Russia was never invaded by London Pact armies during the war, and so is in a better bargaining position than Germany).
--The independence of the Polish, South Slavic, Czech, and Hungarian states which had seceded from the Habsburg Empire in 1927 are recognized. Emperor Karl will remain as ruler of Austria (the German portion of the former Habsburg Empire) only. Polish lands taken by Germany in the Great War are to be ceded to the new Polish State. The Hungarian State is to keep the conquered territory of Romania, which was absorbed by the Habsburg Empire after the Great War.
--German colonies in Africa are divided between Britain and Italy. France, although formally a London Pact member, surrendered early in the war and is essentially left out in the cold by her allies and gets none of her former colonies back.
--Japan takes control of the German colonies in the East Indies (Indonesia). China is to withdraw from Manchuria, which is to be returned to the full control of Japan.
--The fate of Germany's colonies in South America causes much discussion and dissension at the conference, as Britain, the U.S., Texas, and the Confederacy all put in claims. The three American republics take a united stand against the expansion of British territory in the Americas, and Britain reluctantly relinquishes it's claim. The U.S. also bows out, as the South American colonies are a long way away, and the general feeling among the U.S. population is tending, by this time, once again toward isolationism. In the end, the colonies are awarded to the Confederacy, as public outcry against the atrocities committed by Texas in Mexico and Oklahoma lead most nations to adopt a "anyone but Texas" attitude.
1937-1938, Germany--In the aftermath of the lost war and the harsh peace terms imposed at Stockholm, revolution breaks out in Germany. However, the revolutionaries are strongly divided between Marxists who want to create a socialist state and ultra-nationalist right-wingers who want to maintain the economic status quo, but seek the overthrow of what they believe is an "effete" monarchy which has lead the nation to disaster. Because of this, the Kaiser is able to rally the majority of citizens, who are neither Marxists nor ultra-nationalist right-wingers, behind the monarchy, and crucially, the Army remains loyal to the government. And so, after some bitter fighting in many German cities, the revolution is crushed, and Wilhelm II remains on the throne of Germany.
1939, Elections in the Confederacy--Vice President Clements having declined to run for his own term as President, the Liberty Party nominates Harry Flood Byrd of Virginia for President and Oscar Kelly Allen of Louisiana for Vice President. The State Sovereignty Party nominates Harvey Parnell of Arkansas for President and Robert Archer Cooper of South Carolina for Vice President. In a close election, the State Sovereignty ticket of Parnell and Cooper carry the election.*
1939, Germany--Kaiser Wilhelm II, whose health has rapidly deteriorated largely due to depression he has suffered since the end of the War of Austrian Devolution and the loss of Germany's overseas empire, dies. He is succeeded by his son, who reigns as Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm I. The new Kaiser, who was a popular Crown Prince, works to unite the country and heal the wounds created during the recent abortive revolution, and in this he will be very successful. He also institutes political reforms, giving increased power to the elected Reichstag and accepting a reduced role for the monarch in the government. He will also seek closer relations with France and other European powers who are growing increasingly suspicious of Britain, which is seen as the big winner in the recent war.
1939-1941, The Persian War--Another power which was essentially left out in the cold during the recent peace conference at Stockholm was the Ottoman Empire, and this has created much resentment among the Turks. Having been denied what they consider to be the fair spoils for their participation in the War of Austrian Devolution, the Turks turn their eyes eastward, toward the decrepit state of Persia, which holds rich oil reserves. In September 1939, the Ottomans declare war on Persia, and Turkish armored columns cross the border. They slice through ineffective Persian resistance, and by the end of the year have taken the Persian capital of Tehran. The Shah, Reza Pahlavi, flees the country. But it will take another two years of hard fighting before the entire country is subdued. The British government protests the Turkish aggression, but assured by the Ottomans that their oil concessions in Persia will not be affected by the change in government, the British do nothing more.
1940, The Confederacy--On February 22, at Washington, C.D., Harvey Parnell is sworn in as the fifteenth President of the Confederate States of America, and Robert Archer Cooper is sworn in as Vice President.*
1940, Elections in the Union--President Roosevelt runs for a third term, but David Walsh declines to run again for Vice President. Instead, Lloyd C. Stark of Missouri is selected by the Democrats to run for Vice President. The Republicans nominate Herbert Henry Lehman of New York for President and Franklin S. Billings of Vermont for Vice President. Public dissatisfaction with the post-war economic downturn and Republican support for the repeal of the Prohibition Amendment leads to a narrow Republican victory in the election. **
