An Alternate History of the Netherlands

[The Kiat]

This is from my Alternate History of the Netherlands, that I wrote last year. I'm still working on various other parts of the world. Right now I'm starting my chapters on the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics. Keep in mind this is only the 1st Edition. That means you don't have to nit-pick it to death.

This is actually chapter 2. The first chapter deals with the history of the provences before 1568, and has no alternate history in it, so I did not include it.


II) The Forty Years War
(1568-1609)
Prelude to Rebellion
In the first years of Habsburg dominion, the Netherlanders barely noticed Spanish
Overlordship. In fact Charles V was born in Ghent, and spoke fluent Dutch, French, Castillian1 and
some German. In 1506, he gained lordship of the Burgundian states, among which included all the
Dutch provinces. Subsequently in 1516, he inherited several titles, including the King of Aragon,
King of Castile and Leon, which soon faced full political union as the Kingdom of Spain. In 1530,
he reached the pinnacle of power when he was elected the Holy Roman Emperor. However, it was
not to last. A combination of events, including funding the Habsburg’s world-wide empire, and
religious turmoil in Germany would soon lead to revolution.
The Protestant Reformation
By the 1560s, the Protestant community grew in influence across Northern Europe. Dutch
Protestants, after initial backlash, were generally tolerated by local authorities. Their wealth made
them influential, and in a society based on trade and commerce, both freedom and tolerance were
essential. Local lords were far more interested in wealth than conforming to Spanish law. They were
a vital minority, but a minority nonetheless. In 1560, the majority of Netherlanders still follow to
path laid down by the Holy Church.
With little to no regard for Dutch customs, Charles V believed it his duty to battle
Protestantism, which under Spanish and Church law was considered heresy. His son, Philip II, struck
out at the heretics far harsher than Charles V. By Phillip’s reign, the situation escalated to the point
where Spanish soldiers were sent in to crush what Phillip viewed as Rebellion, and restore the
authority of the Church to the Netherlands. The harsh measures led to increasing grievances, where
local government had embarked on a course of coexistence. With the arrival of the Inquisition, Spain
proved it was not interested in coexistence or tolerance.
The Dutch Protestants compared their humble values favorably against the luxurious habits
of the ecclesiastical nobility. The Protestant movement initially emphasized such virtues of modesty,
cleanliness, frugality and hard work. The so-called Protestant work ethic helped drive the
Netherlands, even the Catholic citizens, into the world-striding Dutch Commonwealth of Nations
of later centuries. Biblical stories of fishermen, ship builders and other humble occupations resonated
among the seafaring Dutch. The moral elements of the Reformation represented a challenge to the
Spanish Empire.
Taxation
The provinces of the Netherlands have grown into wealthy and entrepreneurial regions within
the Habsburg’s private empire by the middle of the Sixteenth Century. Neighboring states often
turned coveting eyes towards the provinces, Flanders in particular caught the attention of French
kings for decades. Its wealth would make it a welcome addition to the French state. During the reign
of Charles V, Spain blossomed into a world-wide empire, with territories not only across Europe,
but engulfing most of the New World.
Control and defense of these lands were hampered by the very size of the Spanish Empire.
Spain also had to face rivals who were more than eager to take a piece of its empire for themselves.
Both Spain and France were locked into near continuous conflict in the Italian Wars, and Spain also

2
French word, translates as ‘beggars’

must contest the Turks across the Mediterranean. For wars were waged in holy spirit across the

heretical states in Germany. These wars impacted Spain’s treasury severely, and the Netherlands
were forced to pay dearly to support them.
The provinces viewed these wars as unnecessary, or flat out harmful, as they were waged
against important trading partners. No consideration was given to the markets built up in
Amsterdam, Flanders or Antwerp when it came to Spain’s ‘divine’ right to spread the faith. By 1571,
Spain imposed a ten percent sales tax on all land within the Netherlands. Harsher measures would
soon follow. It was becoming increasingly clear that the Netherlands were not the provinces they had
been beneath Burgundy rule, but rather viewed not much differently than its colonies.
Centralization
By the later Middle Ages, most of the administrators in the Netherlands were not the tradition
aristocracy (the old families), but rather stemmed from non-noble families that worked their way into
power over the previous century (the new families). Under the rule of Burgundy, the provinces
enjoyed a degree of autonomy in appointing its own governors and councils. Thus the Netherlands
represented a loose confederation of high independent-minded citizenry.
Spanish rule changed much of this. The Kings of Spain set out to improve their empire by
increasing the authority of the central government in matters concerning taxation and laws. It was
a policy which caused great suspicion among the Netherlands’ nobility and merchant classes. An
example of Spain’s takeover of power occurred in 1528, when Charles V supplanted the council of
guildmasters in Utrecht and replaced it with a regent answerable only to him. Under the regency of
Mary of Hungary, tradition power had for a large part been stripped from the governors of the
provinces and from the Dutch nobility, whose members were being replaced by Spanish jurists in
the Council of State.
Phillip II went even further in appointing members to the Dutch Staaten-General, placing his
confidante, Granvelle, as head of the assembly, and furthermore he appointed Margaret of Parma as
Governor of all the Netherlands. By 1558, the situation grew worse, and the provinces began to
openly contradict the Spanish King’s wishes. Many of the Staaten-General withdrew, including the
Count of Egmont, Count of Horne and William of Orange, until Granville was recalled. Phillip II’s
responded with even sterner oppression.
During the same time, religious protests increased in spite of the oppression and inquisition.
In 1566, four hundred members of the high nobility petitioned the governor to suspend persecution.
Count Berlaymont called the petition and act of gueux2, a name taken up as an honor by the
petitioners, soon called Geuzen. Margaret accepted the petition, and sent in to Spain, for the King’s
final verdict.
Uprising
The atmosphere in the Netherlands grew tense following the bad harvest of 1565, and
economic difficulties caused by wars in Northern Europe. Hunger, hardship and the rebellious
preaching of Calvinist leaders brought tensions to a boiling point. In August of 1566, a Calvinist
mob stormed the church of Hondschoote in Flanders. This one incident sparked a massive iconoclast
movement, where Calvinists raided churches and other religious centers, destroying all statues and
imaged of Catholic Saints they could lay their hands upon.
The number of vandals was likely small, and their exact background is debated, but local
authorities did little to rein in the enthusiastic iconoclasts. Their action drove the Dutch nobility into
two camps. One camp, lead by William of Orange, opposed the destruction. Others, most notably
Henry of Brederode, openly supported the movement, a dangerous statement in a world were a word
from the Spanish Governor could cost you your head.
Before the petition of the Guezen could even be read, Phillip II knew he lost control in the
troublesome provinces. He had little option but to send an army to suppress the rebellion. On August
22, 1567, Fernando Alvarez of Toledo, the 3rd Duke of Alba, marched into the city of Brussels at the
head of an army numbering ten thousand strong. The ‘Iron Duke’ entered the Netherlands with
unlimited power and replaced Margaret as governor. Alba took harsh measures and quickly
established a series of special courts to judge all in opposition to the king.
The Blood Council
Alba established a tribunal which was soon known by the locals as the ‘Blood Council’ or
‘Blood Court’. During his six years of governorship, thousands of people were brought forth to these
courts, convicted and executed. The exact number of the condemned is not known, the Dutch claim
eighteen thousand, while the Spanish history only recorded a few hundred. No matter the cost, the
Duke of Alba failed in his quest. Instead of quelling the rebellion, his measures helped fuel the
unrest. He unwittingly became the instrument of future independence of the Seventeen Provinces.
His ruthless ‘justice’ extended beyond the Protestant trouble makers. He had both Lamoral,
Count of Egmont, and Philip of Montmorency, Count of Hoorn imprisoned. Both were very popular
leaders of the dissatisfied nobility, and both were Catholic. Nonetheless, Alba condemned both as
traitors to the crown without benefit of a trial, and sentenced them to death. On June 1, 1568, six
days before the deaths of Egmont and Hoorn, twenty-two noblemen of Brussels were simultaneously
beheaded. Deaths ordered by an overlord, rather than judged in court, sparked a wave of outrage
across the Netherlands, both Protestant and Catholic alike.
The Duke of Alba entered the Netherlands with the explicit goal of crushing the rebellion.
Instead, he managed to unite what should have been a very volatile sectarian conflict. Instead of
gathering the support of the majority of the Netherlands, he managed to drive even the most loyal
of Spain’s supporters into the rebels camp. The Staaten-General met at Dordrecht, minus the Spanish
appointees, and openly declared against Alba’s government, and marshaled beneath the banners of
the Prince of Orange.
William of Orange
Willem van Oranje, Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht and Friesland, was born into
the House of Orange on April 24, 1533. In his day, he was widely known as William the Silent, so
much so that William Shakespear wrote a play by the same name though William the Silent dealt
mostly with the exploits of Earl of Leicester, a favorite of Queen Elizabeth I, and his campaign
against the Spanish in the Netherlands. In Tudor England, a writer could not live long unless he was
on the Queen’s good side.
The Prince of Orange came from the castle of Dillenburg in Nassau, in present day Germany.
He was the eldest son of the Count of Nassau and Juliana of Stolberg-Werningerode. Unlike many
across the mostly Catholic low countries, William was raised a Lutheran. By principle, this made
him a target in the eyes of the Holy Inquisition. William’s rise to power started in 1544, when his
cousin, the former Prince of Orange died without an heir. William inherited his cousin’s title and
vast estates throughout the Netherlands. Because of his young age, Charles V (both King of Spain
and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire) served as regent until his was fit to rule.
In order for the Lutheran to gain his rightful lands from his regent, he had no choice but to
study beneath Mary of Hungary in Brussels. Charles V insisted that William receive a Catholic
The Greatest being,





3 of course, the Queen of England.

education. In Brussels, he was taught foreign languages, such as Spanish, and received military and

diplomatic education. On July 6, 1551, William married his first wife, Anna of Egmont, a wealthy
heiress of her father’s lands and title.
In the same year of his marriage, William was appointed captain in the cavalry. Despite the
taint of Lutheranism that would haunt him during Phillip II’s reign, William rapidly grew into
Charles V’s favor, and became commander of one of the Emperor’s armies by the age of twenty-two.
Both marital education and experience in the Holy Roman Empire would serve William well in his
future struggle for Dutch Independence. When Charles abdicated, it was on William’s shoulder the
former Emperor leaned as he stepped down in favor for his son, Phillip. When standing there,
watching his father abdicate, did Phillip know then man by his side would one day become Spain’s
second greatest enemy of the Sixteenth Century3?
Phillip II’s relations with William remained positive in William’s early years. It was Phillip
who appointed William as Stadtholder of Holland, and thus greatly increased his political power.
The year before, tragedy struck his life. His first wife died on March 24, 1558. Though a personal
tragedy, the death of Anna permitted William to take another wife, and sire more children, one of
which would be the founder of a dynasty.
William, brought up a Lutheran and given a Catholic education was a strong proponent of
religious freedom. Like those to follow, he believed that one’s religion was a private matter. In deed,
he was very dissatisfied by the growing persecution of Protestants throughout his provinces.
Ironically, the persecution angered the Catholic population more so than the intended targets. Those
who were assumed to be loyal to Spain grew in opposition to foreign rule.
On August 25, 1561, William married for a second time, this time to an ill-tempered woman
known as Anna of Saxony. It is generally believed that William married Anna to increase his power
and gain influence over the German states of Saxony and Hesse. William did gain more power, but
more importantly, the Netherlands gained one of their greatest leaders when Anna gave birth to their
first son, Maurice.
During the Blood Council, William was one of the thousands summoned to stand in
judgement before the Iron Duke. He failed to show, and was subsequently declared an outlaw, his
lands seized immediately afterward. As a popular leader in the Staaten-General, William emerged
as leader to the armed rebellion against Spain. In pamphlets and letters spread across the
Netherlands, William called attention to the right of subjects to renounce their oath of obedience if
their sovereign refused to respect their rights.
William raised an army to battle the Duke of Alba, containing of mostly German
mercenaries. Contingents of his army, lead by his brothers Louis and Adolf, engaged and defeated
a Spanish army of three thousand at Heiligerlle in Groningen. The Battle of Heiligerlle marks the
start of the Forty Years War. The victory turned into a hollow one. Instead of pressing the campaign
onward, William ran short of funds and his army disintegrated. Armies raised by his allies were
handily defeated and destroyed by the Duke of Alba.
William went into hiding as soon as the initial fires of rebellion died out. He was only one
of the grandees still able to offer resistance. With his ancestral lands of Orange, in Breda, remained
under Spanish occupation, William moved his court to Delft, in Holland. Delft would remain
William’s base of operation until his death, in 1584.
Brielle
On March 1, 1572, Queen Elizabeth of England ousted thousands of Dutch exiles within her
own nation. She walked a fine line in regards to Spain, and could not afford to provoke Phillip II.
Though Spain was distracted by wars against the Turks, they were still more than a match for
England’s small army. To appease Phillip, she had little option but to kick out the Gueux. The
ejection forces the beggars to return home.
Under the command of Lumey, the Gueux captured the unguarded town of Brielle. By
grabbing a toe hold in the northern Netherlands, the rebels let the Protestants populace know the time
to rebel had returned. As far as morale was concerned, Brielle turned out to be an important victory.
In reality, it was little more than a token defeat of a nonexistent occupying force. Cities across
Zeeland and Holland quickly renewed their support for the rebels. The most conspicuous absence
in support came from Amsterdam itself.
With rebellion back in swing, William of Orange came out of hiding to take command. In
July of 1572, the Staaten-General assembled in Dordrecht, and agreed to recognize William as
Governor-General of the Netherlands. It was agreed upon that William would share his new found
power with the Provinces. Sharing of power eventually metamorphosed into the separation of powers
soon to be the cornerstone of the United Provinces.
However, by declaring for the Protestants, the Gueux handed William an assortment of
problems. The minority Calvinists were bent on converting all of the Netherlands to their way of
thinking. Meanwhile, the Catholic Dutch maintained no permanent allegiance, instead wanting to
simply eject the Duke of Alba and his army of Spaniards and mercenaries. A majority of the Dutch
were reluctant to rebel at all. Though they were no fans of Spain, they still wished to live their lives
in peace and earn a decent income. By making an enemy of Spain, merchants had difficulty in
trading abroad. William was the key figure in directing the various factions to a common goal.
It is doubtful that William would have been successful if not for an outside enemy to unite
all the Dutch. Tension between Calvinists and Catholics threatened to tear apart the rebellion. No
matter how hard William tried to convince the masses he was fighting for nationalism, the fanatical
Calvinists would quickly open their collective mouths and insert their collective feet. William had
little choice but to work with the Calvinists, since they were fighting the Spanish harder than any
other Netherlander. As with much during the Forty Years War, it was not what the Dutch leaders
said, but what the Spanish did that strengthened the unity between Provinces.
The Spanish Fury
Being unable to squash the rebellion, the Duke of Alba was replaced in 1573, by Luis of
Requesnes. Requesnes came to the Netherlands with what he considered a policy of moderation. He
would punish rebels, but cease harassment of those who would swear loyalty to the King. His policy
was poorly managed, and by the time of his death in 1576, moderation was swept from the table.
What struck William’s army years before, now struck the Spanish. In 1575, because of wars
abroad and at home, Spain declared bankruptcy. The inability to pay their army, particularly their
mercenaries, would have dire consequences for Spanish rule in the Netherlands. Mutinies followed
lack of pay, and on November 4, 1576, troops from the Spanish Tercois entered the wealthy port of
Antwerp.
Tired of fighting numerically superior rebels without their salary, the mercenaries decided
to ‘pay themselves’ by looting Antwerp. The out-of-control army indulged in a wave of violence that
claimed some eight thousand lives and untold quantities of lost property. For three days, the
mercenaries pillaged, plundered and looted anything not nailed down. For locals, the Sack of
Antwerp became a reference point in their lives. Antwerpers soon began to refer to events in their
lives as ‘before the sacking’ or after it.
Instead of crushing the rebellion, the mutinous army managed to turn even the harshest critics
of the rebellion into its most adherent followers. The most reluctant of Dutch took up arms and
pledged to fight together against the Spanish. Those provinces and cities still loyal to Spain were
quickly alienated by the carnage seen at Antwerp and joined the rest of the Netherlands in open
rebellion. In one single act of greed and brutality, the modern Dutch state was born.
The Pacification of Ghent
Following the Spanish Fury, the Provinces of the Netherlands negotiated an internal treaty,
in which all Dutch put aside their religious difference to combat the foreigners who so ravished their
lands. William of Orange was instrumental in forming the alliance, and more importantly, of finally
pushing the religious question out of public domain. The declaration was also the first major
expression of Dutch national self-consciousness.
To make this work, William allied himself with the most powerful of southern nobles, the
Duke of Aerschott. Aerschott himself was no fan of William, and was opposed to the rebellion up
until the Sacking of Antwerp. What he wanted more than to see William’s downfall, was the
restoration of the old privileges and his rights, both revoked by Phillip of Spain. In order to achieve
his goals, he teamed up with William. William’s ultimate ambition, a United Netherlands strong
enough to resist Spanish domain, was nearing a reality.
The Pacification of Ghent, aside from making religious tolerance law, also called for the
expulsion of all Spanish armed forces and restoration of local and provincial prerogatives. If Phillip
II did not take a simple petition well, such a bold declaration infuriated him. Who were these Dutch
upstarts, to make demands of their anointed king? Answering the only way he knew how, with a
heavy hand, he sent Alessandro Farnes, the Duke of Parma, to crush these traitors. The Duke of
Parma was appointed Governor-General, the same title held by the Prince of Orange. Clearly the
Netherlands were not large enough for the both of them. Aided by a shipment of bullion just arrived
from the New World, the Duke of Parma formed his army and set out to destroy the Dutch rebellion
Oath of Abjuration
In Sixteenth Century Europe, it was not conceivable that a country could be governed by
anyone other than high nobility, if not a king, so the Staaten-General sought out a suitable
replacement for their current ‘king’ Phillip of Spain. They first courted Elizabeth of England, but in
1581, she was in no position to displace Phillip II. Spain still eyed England, and would jump at the
slightest provocation to invade the island nation and destroy it Protestant institutions. Thus,
Elizabeth rejected the offer of protectorship.
With one rejection on its list, the Staaten-General turned to Elizabeth’s one-time suitor, the
Duke of Anjou. The younger brother to the French King accepted the offer, under one condition; the
Netherlands must denounce any loyalty to Phillip II. In 1581, the Oath of Abjuration was issued, in
which the Netherlands proclaimed the King of Spain did not uphold his responsibilities to the Dutch
population and thus no longer accepted as their rightful ruler. In other words, on July 22, 1851, the
Provinces declared independence.
Anjou did not stay long in the Netherlands. He was, naturally for a French noble, deeply
disturbed by the limited influence and power the Staaten-General was willing to grant him. The
French were accustomed to rule by edict, and in a sense were little different from Spanish. Both
believed strongly that their right to rule was divine, and that God anointed them ruler over all their
subjects and their lives. After some attempt to increase his power via a coup, the Duke of Anjou was
rapidly ridden out of the Netherlands, losing any chance of ever being King.
A third, and obvious choice presented itself. Many of his followers and allies suggest that
William himself take up the crown of the United Provinces of the Netherlands. William considered
the offer, but put it on hold for the time being. The alliance between provinces was shaky at best, and
William’s opponents might use it as a chance to move against him. He could ill afford to have the
rebellion turn in on itself.
After Spain was defeated? William was unsure even then. If he became King, how many of
the Provinces would follow him? Catholic nobles were suspicious since he was born a Lutheran.
Protestant nobles were suspicious because he obtained a Catholic education. Lastly, the Calvinists
were suspicious because he himself was not one of them. Though he was not King, he was still seen
as head of the rebellion. As such, the King of Spain placed a bounty on his head, one that many were
intent on collecting.
Fall of Antwerp
By 1584, the King of Spain was through playing games with the rebels. He called upon the
Duke of Parma to restore ‘peace and orthodoxy’ to his Netherlands. Parma met various Dutch militia
in battle after battle, defeating the untrained men with ease. In the first half of the 1580s, Parma tried
to force William into a decisive battle, where he could tear out the heart of the rebellion. IN July of
1584, Parma led his army to encircle the focal point of resistance, Antwerp.
Less than a decade earlier, Antwerp faced the wrath of mutinous Spaniards. Thousands of
Dutch were slaughtered in the ensuing sacking, and hundreds of houses put to the torch. At the time,
Antwerp was not only the largest Dutch city, but also the financial, cultural and economic center of
Sixteenth Century Netherlands. Its trade even eclipsed Amsterdam, granary of the north.
Parma’s first act was the construction of a bridge across the Scheldt River, to isolate Antwerp
from the growing Dutch Navy. After the Spanish Fury, rebels flocked to Antwerp, transforming it
into the capital of the Dutch rebellion. By taking the city, Parma hoped to break the will of the rebels
and force them back into the Spanish fold. After a year long siege, the city surrendered.
After the siege, Parma kept the bridge across Scheldt in place, blocking all traffic and trade
to the port. Protestants were forced to leave town before the fall, to keep ahead of the Inquisition.
They were not the only ones to leave. Tens of thousands fled northward, reducing Antwerp’s
population from nearly one hundred thousand down to forty thousands. What was the golden century




of Antwerp came to an end on August 17, 1585.


Assassination


William continued his struggle, now with a twenty-five thousand crown reward on him. In

what was to be his last year, William married for a fourth and final time, this time to Louise of
Coligny, a Huguenot. She bore him one child, Frederick Henry, future king. William, himself, given
up the idea of becoming king. He had enough trouble already. The Duke of Parma’s campaign
threatened to break his alliance. Many Catholic communities, seeing Spain back on the rise, wavered
in their loyalty. Wavered, but did not break. Too many times the Spanish broke the Dutch Catholic’s
hearts, and they were not about to trust them again.
William’s demise came from the hand of Balthasar Gerard. When William was declared an
outlaw, back in 1581, Gerard decided to travel to the Netherlands and collect on the bounty. He
served in the army of Luxembourg for two years, hoping to get close enough to take a shot at
William. Alas, the two armies never joined, and in 1584, Gerard left the army. He presented the
Duke of Parma his plans, but the Duke was hardly impressed, but permitted the would-be assassin
to go ahead.
In May of 1584, Gerard presented himself to William as a French Nobleman, and presented
him with the seal of the Count of Mansfelt. This seal would permit forgeries of messages of
Mansfelt. William sent Gerard back to France, to pass the seal to his French allies. Gerard returned
in July, having bought pistols on his return voyage. On July 10, he made an appointment to meet
William in his residence, in Delft.
What happened next altered the course of Dutch history, and is, in fact the first recorded
assassination of a head of state by a fire arm. It would not be the last. Gerard shot William in the
chest at close range and fled. According to official reports, Williams last words were said to be “My
God, have pity on my soul; my God, have pity on this poor people”. The assassin failed to flee Delft
before his apprehension and imprisoned. His fate was the same as to befall anyone who committed
regicide.





Earl of Leicester


By 1585, the Staaten-General signed the Treaty of Nonsuch with England. As per the treaty,

Elizabeth I sent an army numbering six thousand to do battle with the Spanish. She found appeasing
Phillip II now impossible, and decided it best to beat him over there than in her own backyard.
Leading the English Army was Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester. Long since a favorite of the
Queen, and rumored to be her lover at one point, Leicester remains a controversial character in Dutch
history. It was not the first time Leicester was the center of controversy; years earlier, his wife was
found dead at the bottom of a stair case. Though the death was ruled accidental, his closeness to the
Queen, and the vacant Kingship, made her death more than a little convenient. He spent the
following years laying low and out of sight.
Leicester was offered the Governor-Generalship, though he could not rule with a free hand.
His Queen forbade him from making any agreements with Spain without her consent. Further more,
he did not share the secular values laid down by the Pacification of Ghent. He immediately sided
with the Calvinists, drawing distrust from everyone else. He also butted heads with Stadtholders and
nobles across the Netherlands when he tried to strengthen his own power by robbing the Provinces
of theirs. He was not the first to make this error, but he would be the last.
Leicester proved to be a poor commander, hardly worthy of a staring role in William the
Silent. Nor did he understand the delicate balance between trade and war. The Dutch, by 1586, were
fully committed to independence, however this was by no means an abandonment of commerce.
Within a year of his arrival, the Earl of Leicester lost the support of the Staaten-General and
population at large. He returned to England, after which the Staaten-General was unable to find any
other suitable regent. This was not the way either government envisioned an Anglo-Dutch Alliance
to begin.





The Spanish Armada


The turning point in the Forty Years War came in August of 1588. Under the command of

the notorious privateer, Sir Francis Drake, a fleet of English and Dutch ships defeated the Spanish
Armada at the Battle of Gravelines. Finally tired of the resistance offered by the Protestant Queen
of England, Phillip II assembled a vast armada, consuming most of Spain’s treasury, for an invasion
of the island nation.
At the command of twenty-two warships and one hundred eight converted transports, the
King appointed the Duke of Medina-Sidonia. He was to sail to the Netherlands and ferry the Duke
of Parma’s army across the sea. Twenty thousand Spanish and mercenary soldiers awaited the
Armada at Dunkirk. In May, Medina-Sidonia set sail from Lisbon on what he expected to be an easy
conquest. After all, the English Army was pathetic in comparison to Spain’s.
Following a running fight, and a night attack by fireships in July, Medina-Sidonia was forced
to take the Armada into port. He chose Gravelines in Flanders as a base to reform his scattered fleet.
Its proximity to the English coast made it as good a spot as any to embark Parma’s army. Parma was
taken by surprise by the Armada’s choice of ports, and required six days to bring his troops up for
embarkation.
Those six days gave England enough room to maneuver. In that time, Drake learned more
of the Armada’s strengths and weaknesses through a series of skirmished in the Channel. What they
learned gave Drake the edge. Spanish guns were very unwieldy and their crews poorly trained, a far
cry from the Royal Navy. Spain preferred to board enemy ships and fight them hand-to-hand. In this
way, Spain held the upper hand.
Drake was not about to allow the Spanish to close in for boarding. His own strengths lay in
cannon fire. On August 8, Drake lead the fleet of English and Dutch vessels into battle. With its
superior maneuverability, the English provoked the Spanish into firing while they stayed out of
range. Once the Armada expended their heavy shot, Drake moved in for the kill, firing repeated
broadsides into the enemy ships. Though only eleven of the Spanish ships were sunk or crippled,
Drake cancelled the Armada’s plans to embark Parma’s army. Medina-Sidonia left port and set sail
towards home. Both English and Dutch ships hounded the Armada across the North Sea, but in the
end, rough seas and not rough marines destroyed the Armada. Upon returning to Spain, it is reported
the Phillip II responded by saying ‘I sent my ships to fight against the English, not against the
Elements.’





Maurice of Orange


In looking for a new commander for the rebellion, by 1587, the

Staaten-General turned to twenty year old Maurice of Orange. Born on
November 14, 1567, to William’s second wife, Maurice inherited his
father’s leadership abilities, though not his serial monogamy. Maurice
never married, though he did father two illegitimate children. At the age
of sixteen, when his father was gunned down, Maurice inherited his
titles and lands (though the latter were still occupied).
The borders of the United Provinces are largely defined by the
campaigns of Maurice. Was it his genius that lead the Dutch nation to
independence or fiscal burdens placed on Spain by the loss of its naval
investments? What can be said is, that it was Maurice who organized
the rebellion against Spain into a coherent and successful revolution. In
the early 1590s, Maurice lead the rebel army to victory in sieges against
Breda, Steenwijk and Geertruidenberg.
Following campaigns chased the demoralized Spanish army across much of the Netherlands,
driving them from Groningen, Holland, Zeeland and Friesland by 1595. Spain experienced setbacks
before in the Dutch revolt, and figured this would be no different. Sooner or later, the Provinces
would bicker and divide themselves, where the Spanish could move in and reassert itself. This grand
illusion was forever shattered in 1600, at a town called Nieuwpoort.





The Battle of Nieuwpoort


On July 2, 1600, Maurice of Orange met the Spanish Army, commanded by the Archduke of Austria,

near the city of Nieuwpoort. By mid-June, Maurice managed to raise an army of over ten thousand
men. Again the Spanish army faced mutiny, one that made it impossible for a relief army to be raised
by the Archduke. The only way to keep the army together was the promise of free plunder. The
workings of a second Spanish Fury were on the drawing board.
The desire of freedom outweighed greed, and in the end, Maurice managed to drive the
Spanish from the field of
battle, a rare feat in the
Sixteenth Century, but
soon to become all too
common during the
Seventeenth. Dutch lines
of communication were
stretched to vulnerable
limits, forcing Maurice to
withdraw as well.
Spanish strength along
the Dutch coast was
sapped by the battle,
paving the way for a
future campaign against
Dunkirker pirates.
Following the
battle, the Dutch were
finally able to dismantle the bridge Spain built fifteen years earlier to block Antwerp trade.
Nieuwpoort offered another turning point in the war. Never again could Spain threaten the northern
Provinces. Further more, Spain’s stranglehold on the south was now in danger. Maurice portrayed
the next nine years as a campaign to liberate all the Netherlands from Spanish hands. In truth, the
northern Provinces view eliminating threats to trade as a notch above freeing their own brethren, and
nearly forced Maurice to halt his campaign, five years later.





The Dunkirkers


Pirate nests plagued Dutch trade all through the Forty Years War. Instead of destroying the

pirates, as was the Spanish King’s responsibility to the Netherlands, he encouraged it. Such actions
were understandable after the Oath of Abjuration, but not before. Since the defeat of the Spanish
Armada, the Dutch navy grew from a gaggle of converted merchant ships into a force that rivaled
any on the sea. Even England’s Royal Navy was second to that of the Netherlands. Pirates on the
open seas were little threat to the Dutch Navy, were they would meet untimely ends very quickly.
In order to root out the pirates, the army must march on Dunkirk and its surrounding regions
to burn out the nests. In 1606, that was precisely what Maurice set out to do. With an army of eleven
thousand men, Maurice attempted to force the pirates into battle on the field. Instead, most fled from
the sight of a large army descending upon them. Maurice sent detachments to hunt down the pirates,
and set into motion of literally smoking them out. Each pirate den his army stumbled upon was put
to the torch, and each pirate found mercilessly cut down. By October of 1606, the Dunkirker threat
was destroyed, and the southern Netherlands free for commerce to once again thrive.





Liege


Out of all the Provinces, only Liege maintained loyalty to Spain. Despite the Spanish Fury,

the Bishopric could not bring itself to turn on who they saw as Defender of the Faith. Its location
right smack in the middle of the southern Provinces, Liege could not be bypassed or ignored.
Luxembourg alone was completely cut off from the rest of the Netherlands by Liege.
In 1608, Maurice already had the bulk of the remaining Spanish army bottled up under siege
in the city of Brussels, former capital of the Spanish Netherlands. The Staaten-General was not
content with having a huge hole in its new nation. While the Siege of Brussels was nearing its final
days, the Staaten-General ordered Maurice to deal with Liege. Against his better judgement, Maurice
divided his forces, and lead seven thousand infantry and cavalry into the Bishopric of Liege.
He did not fear Papal retribution. The fact that the Netherlands was already home to many
Protestants made them suspect. His only real concern was that the Spanish commander in Brussels
might rally his forces and break out. If they did, and linked up with the Spanish army assembling
near Mons, they could threaten all the southern Provinces. By now, the King of Spain knew keeping
all the Netherlands under his thumb was all but impossible. Instead, he was forced to focus on the
Catholic region, hoping it would stay true to the faith. This goes to show how little Spain understood
the revolution. Religion was never the top concern (with the possible exception of the Calvinists),
but the right of the people to decide their own fate.
The Bishop of Liege failed to muster any army worthy of the name. When Maurice arrived
in Liege, the Bishop commanded barely one thousand men, most of them mercenaries. He knew the
sell-swords would not fight to defend the church. When the battle turned against them, they might
very well run. Though Liege stayed loyal to Spain after ‘the fury’, they lost any trust for mercenaries.
The Bishop knew any battle would end in defeat, and loss of power.
Instead of fighting, the Bishop decided to cut a deal with Maurice and the Staaten-General.
Under the white flag of truce, the two met between the lines of armies. It was here, that the Bishop
saw just how puny his own force was in comparison. The Bishop agreed to join the United Provinces
under one condition; he would stay in power. Maurice could not agree to this, for the Staaten-
General was a forum where faith did not belong. His father dedicated his life to the very concept of
freedom of religion.
The Bishop could not stomach being part of such a ‘godless’ state, but he could not fight
either. Martyrdom did not appeal much to him, the Bishop thought he would be more use to God
alive, and leading his flock. In the end, with much convincing to the Staaten-General, Maurice
managed to strike a compromise. Liege would become part of the United Provinces, and the Bishop
would stay in power, but only as spiritual leader. For the interim, Maurice would select a regent to
rule as secular ruler. It was not until the end of the Forty Years War would Liege’s government be
settled.





Surrender at Mons


Much to Maurice’s fears, some of the defenders of Brussels managed to escape the siege and

link up with remaining forces massing at Mons. By the end of 1608, Brussels had little choice but
to surrender. Some of the Spanish soldiers cast off their uniforms, deserted and simply merged with
the crowds. There was no love for Spain in Brussels, and many deserters were turned in by locals.
In response to their actions, Dutch authorities tired them as spies, and hung more than one.
With Brussels secure and Liege now conforming to Staaten-General, Maurice of Orange had
only the enemy ahead. The last bastion of Spanish authority within the Netherlands lay in the city
of Mons. Ironically, the last battle of the Forty Years War was fought upon what is now French





Though in personal union, both nations g
4 overned their colonies separately.


territory. At the time, it lay within the reaches of the low countries, and would eventually be ceded

to the French in the Eighteenth Century.
The Duke of Parma assembled his army outside of Mons. He considered holing up in the city,
but unlike Brussels, he knew no reinforcements were waiting. To the Duke there was great honor in
dying in the field of battle, but none to be gain by starving to death. His six thousand soldiers faced
Maurice and some ten thousand infantry and two thousand cavalry. Parma was badly outnumbered,
but he still would fight the battle on his terms. He would utilize what cavalry and artillery remained
in hopes of punching a hole in Maurice’s lines.
The Prince of Orange outgunned Parma as well as outnumbered. He would not give Parma
the opportunity to turn his few remaining guns upon Dutch forces. Shortly after seizing a modest hill
near the battlefield, Maurice ordered all his guns to open fire on the enemy, who had yet to organize
into lines. The hour long bombardment disrupted the Spanish forces, driving some of the less reliable
men and units to desert the field. Parma quickly ordered his own men to cut down any who retreated
without his command.
Parma still hoped to rally his army into one glorious charge, but Maurice would not have it.
He was not about to lose, not this close to victory. Shortly after the guns fell silent, Dutch heavy
cavalry charged forward, catching the disorganized Spanish forces and scattering them. Behind the
horsemen, thousand of soldiers marched forward, mopping up any and all Spanish pockets of
resistance remaining. The excellent execution of this early combined-arms assault rolled up the last
Spanish presence in less than an hour.
Mortally wounded during the fighting, the Duke of Parma had little choice but to parley. He
sent his emissaries under the flag of truce to meet with Maurice. Over two thousand Spaniards died
that day, but the survivors were surprised by Maurice’s leniency. Like all Dutch, he wanted the
Spanish gone more than anything else. The enemy were disarmed and escorted to Dunkirk. Here they
were herded on board ships and sent home. Their arrival in Seville was a message to the Spanish
King, a message declaring it was time to negotiate. For all intent purpose, the war at home was over.





Victory Abroad


In the middle of the Sixteenth Century, Phillip inherited the throne of Portugal. Both nations

were soon brought into personal union, and the King wasted no time in using Portuguese resources.
Their army left something to desire, but their navy, and their trade routes to the east, added to Spain’s
power4. By a technicality in the Treaty of Tordelles, Portugal laid claim to a large stretch of eastern
South America, Brazil. It was a land, that by 1600, the Dutch decided to take for themselves.
By the Seventeen Century, sugar was all the rage in Europe. The Portuguese turned vast
swaths of Brazil into sugarcane fields, bringing them nearly as much wealth as the gold sent to Spain.
A variety of food and luxury crops were grown in the wide expanses of Brazil, a colony many times
larger than the United Provinces. The Dutch population grew over the past century, forcing them to
rely upon importation of food to prevent famine. Brazil offered more than enough land for the Dutch
to farm, plus it would remove any dependancy on importation of grain from foreign states.





Ernst van Bohr


Born in 1561, little is known about one of the Netherlands’ most famous admirals. Bohr

found himself a sailor by the age of sixteen. In 1588, he commanded one of the Dutch ships during
the engagement with the Spanish Armada. During the battle, Bohr earned the reputation as a reckless
leader, willing to throw himself into the line of fire to obtain victory. Unlike many Dutch, Bohr had
little interest in business. He lacked the patience to gradually earn wealth, and preferred the glories
of conquest over the subtleties of trade.
By 1602, Bohr rose to the rank of Admiral, commanding 18 ships, led a raid on Aviliz, on
the Spanish mainland. For twelve days, his sailors and marines occupied the Spanish port. Bohr
resupplied his fleet courtesy of the Spanish, and looted both silver and gold before abandoning the
city. The Netherlands were interested in freedom, not overthrowing the Habsburgs. Whomever
headed the United Provinces would have their hands full trying to govern the Provinces, much less
occupied territories that have no desire to be ruled by the Dutch.
Bohr’s biggest acclaim to fame was as Conqueror of Brazil. In 1604, he landed eighteen
hundred men in the Brazilian port of Salvador. No resistance to speak of was offered, and the only
combat within the town came from a lone colonist mistaking patrolling Dutch for game. After
assembling his force in Salvador, Bohr threw off his admiral’s hat and took up the mantle of general.
He lead his small army towards Recife, to battle the Portuguese garrison stationed there.
The Battle of Recife, future capital of Brazil, occurred on May 8, 1604. Bohr now lead only
one thousand men. Five hundred were left to hold Salvador, while nearly three hundred already
succumbed to tropical disease. Portugal mustered only a few hundred colonial militia to combat a
vastly larger invasion fort. Bohr’s five cannon helped decide the outcome before the battle even
began. Militia charged into a volley of fire, falling before they could come into range of sword and
spear.
Bohr wasted no time in fortifying his new conquests. Months passed before word of the fall
of Recife reached the Iberian Peninsula. Spain could spare little in combating the Dutch in distant
Brazil. However, they were deeply concerned that the Dutch would not be satisfied with Brazil. They
might very well make a grab at Mexico or Peru, both rich in gold and silver. Fear of losing their
bullion supply was the primary motivating factor in the King’s decisions to engage the Dutch across
the Atlantic. A small armada of thirty-one ships and three thousand men were assembled in Seville,
with the explicit goal of eliminating Ernst van Bohr. In early 1605, the Spanish and Portuguese set
sail for Brazil, meeting the Dutch fleet off the coast of Natal.
Unlike the much larger battle with the Spanish Armada, the Battle of Natal ended far more
decisively. Twenty-seven Dutch ships encountered thirty-one ships early in the morning of March
15, 1605. After a two day battle, the Dutch all but destroyed the combined fleet. Bohr proved once
again a master admiral, while the Spanish and Portuguese failed to achieve any cohesion. Using one
of the oldest strategies in the book,
Bohr managed to divide the enemy
fleet, and destroy it a few ships at a
time. In the end, the only reason any
Spanish ships escaped was due to
exhaustion of ammunition and
powder on the Dutch side. For his
actions, the Staaten-General awarded
Bohr land in Brazil, and the title
Count of Natal.





Battle of Cape Verde


When the Dutch began their

rebellion, their could scarcely hope to
gain their freedom from the masters
of Europe. By 1608, not only was that goal inevitable, but the Dutch were on their way to empire.
The biggest losers of the Forty Years War were not the Spanish, but rather Portugal. September 15,
1608, sounded the death nail of the Portuguese Empire. What remained of the Portuguese Navy,
twiddled down by attrition by the Dutch across the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean, were ambushed
twelve kilometers southwest of Cape Verde.
The Count of Natal, Grand Admiral of the Netherlands, led his battle hardened fleet in an
attack against the Portuguese remnants. Natal divided his fleet into three sections, each crossing the
‘T’ at the appropriate time. After the first cross, Portugal’s ships scattered, and became easy pickings
for the Dutch. Had the Portuguese Navy held formation, it would likely have fought its way through
the battle and managed to reach home. As it happened, the ships were sunk to the last, guaranteeing
Portugal’s colonies would sit on the negotiating table.





The Treaty of Calais


In mid 1609, the belligerent parties of Spain, the Netherlands and England, along with

observers for Portugal, met in the town of Calais. After surrendering at Mons, two months earlier,
a general armistice was agreed upon. Spain lost too much in retaining such a small piece of territory.
Portugal lost far more, and they were not even the Dutch’s real enemy. Spain had the option of
continuing the war, but after Mons, there was no real hope at victory. The Dutch Navy was too
powerful, and any attempt to land would be disastrous. Overland routes were off the table, for France
was at war with Spain as well.
The first order of business was decided by the end of the first day; Spain would recognize
Dutch Independence. That much was never in doubt. What came into doubt was the future of
colonial possessions. The Dutch had no interest in Spain’s holding, but demanded Portugal surrender
all of its remaining colonies and trading posts to the United Provinces. Fleets in the Indian Ocean
either captured or destroyed posts along the African coast, conquered Ceylon and virtually drove the
Portuguese out of India.
Brazil was already home to hundreds of Dutch colonists looking for new opportunities, along
with the new Count of Natal. Portugal resisted the idea, but Spain gave them no say in the decision.
If they did not cede their colonial possessions, the Dutch would continue the war and leave Portugal
in ruins. Some in Portugal dreamed about putting a native king back on the throne, and losing their
empire would only strengthen Spain’s position.
Spain was already looking forward to political unification of Iberia, and surmised it could
take back Brazil at a later date. For now, it must rest and recuperate. In return for Portugal’s colonies,
the Dutch agreed not to interfere with Spanish shipping, and would allow what would now days be
called ‘favored trade status’ with Spain, by lowering tariffs on Spanish goods. Considering the
amount of wealth that would flow out of the East Indies and Brazil, the United Provinces could
afford to wave a few import fees.
Spain was forced to give up one of its possessions, however, to England. In 1604, the English
managed to capture Manilla and its harbor. Once entrenched in the Philippines, England decided they
would not give it up. Manilla offered an excellent harbor from which to center English trade in the
Far East. England gobbled up many Portuguese trading posts in West Africa, along with their slave
trade. Portugal’s final indignity came with the dismantling of its colonial companies, and end of its
commercial enterprise. As far as Portugal was concerned, whether the war continued or ended, they
were lost.
The Treaty was finalized by November, and signed by all parties. The Staaten-General
ratified to treaty only after an hour’s worth of debate, when all sides praised the treaty. On November
17, 1609, the United Provinces of the Netherlands were officially born. With the war against Spain
over, the real challenge began; governing diverse provinces, and just what to do with all the colonial




spoils of war.

[The Kiat]

Here's what the world looks like in 1624. More or less.

[The Kiat]

And here are the United Provinces of the Netherlands at the time of Independence. I still have a bit of touching up to do on this map. :D

[The Kiat]

III) The United Province of the Netherlands
(1609-1648)
The Dutch State: Kingdom or Republic?
By the start of 1610, the Staaten-General faced its first post-war crisis; just what sort of
government would govern the United Provinces. Many opted for the more traditional approach,
declaring that no nation could exist without a King. The idea of a kingless state was not unheard of;
many of the mercantile republics of Italy, such as Venice and Genoa, did find without any king. In
fact, the Netherlands won their independence without any sort of monarch, or singular Head of State.
Many in the Protestant north called for the United Provinces to be a republic, governed by the
Staaten-General itself.
It was a sound plan, and the perfect way to preserve provincial rights1. However, those same
rights threatened to tear the newly freed nation apart. Some sought such a loose confederation, that
a neighboring province was not even obliged to help another if that one was invaded. The thought
of a kingdom without a king did not set well with the Catholic south. They opened up the case once
again for kingship, and sought out suitable candidates across Europe.
A foreign king was enough to repel most Provinces from the idea. One too many foreigners
ruled the Netherlands. In the end, the Staaten-General did something unprecedented in most
European nations. They voted on the matter. Seven Provinces were for Republicanism, seven were
for Monarchy, while three abstained from voting. Liege was holding out for which side would
respect the Bishop’s position, while Limburg and Brabant remained undecided.
They could be brought to vote for Monarchy, but not for a foreign king. If one would assume
the as-of-yet unbuilt throne, he must be through-and-through Dutch. All voters knew the issue must
be settled quickly. With Spain out of the Netherlands, there was no longer an outside force holding
the Provinces together. Without a common goal, the Netherlands would splinter and decay into civil
war. The Duke of Brabant stood up before the Staaten-General at the height of the crisis, and
declared that the Provinces needed a symbol of unity, and only a king could bring that. Who would
be king, his fellow nobles asked. ‘Would you pick James of England and Scotland?’ ‘Or perhaps the
Prince of Hesse?’ ‘Maybe the Tsar of Russia?’ ‘Or just maybe you want the crown for yourself.’ In
his heart, the Duke might have been tempted, but he stood before the jeers and spoke. “Not I. There
is only one man I can think of who all of the Provinces would stand behind.’
King Maurice I
The classic definition of compromise; a decision that nobody likes, but everyone could live
with, though Maurice of Orange did not fully fall into this category. He had his supporters in the
Staaten-General, as well as his opponents. One of those opponents was in fact, the Duke of Brabant.
Why did the Duke nominate a rival? For starters, he knew all the Dutch would never accept himself
as king. Maurice was popular with the people. He was the one leader that the Dutch press claimed
single-handedly drove the Spanish from the Netherlands.
His opponents agreed to make Maurice king simply because Maurice did not want the job.
His apparent lack of ambition sat well with Provinces looking to preserve their rights. Maurice
would be king, but a constitutional one, answerable before the Dutch parliament. In most ways, he
would have even less power than the King of England, James I. However, the nobles did not take
Maurice’s wishes into account. Had his father lived long enough, the assembly would have insisted
William become king. As their heir to his lands and titles, not to mention his legacy in creating a free
Netherlands, Maurice was the natural choice.
At first, like his father, Maurice refused the offer. Commanding a combined Dutch army,
with the Spanish breathing down their necks, was hard enough. Ruling an entire nation of Dutch,
each with their own opinion, and without outside threats, struck him as an impossible task.
Throughout the year 1610, the United Provinces remained without a king, a grew increasingly
divided. Hollanders wondered why they should listen to Luxembourgers. Zeelanders refused to speak
with Flanders. And the Calvinist were lighting fires under everyone who was not a Calvinist.
By 1611, seeing the disunity of the nation he fought so hard to create, Maurice relented and
accepted the crown. Though the United Provinces would have a secular government, it was the
Bishop of Liege who crowned Maurice on March 14, 1611. When asked by what name he would be
known, Maurice contemplated taking up the name of his father. In a sense, William the Silent is the
patron saint of the Dutch state, and Maurice decided he was not worry of the name William I.
The Coronation was an attempt by one of Maurice’s enemies to curry favor with the new
king. And true to his word, Maurice never interfered in the spiritual affairs of Liege or its Bishop.
Maurice was crowned Maurice I, King of the United Provinces of the Netherlands before he had a
palace from where to reign, or the country as a whole even had a permanent capital.
The Capital
Much debate raged about where the Staaten-General should convene. Naturally, each
Province decided it was the best place to from where to manage affairs of state. The Staaten-General
failed to agree upon anything, how could they possibly decide which Province would have the honor
of hosting them. Some called for a rotational schedule, each year the assembly would meet in a new
Province. The cost of shipping the government from city to city exceeded the noble’s plans.
As his first act as king, Maurice I was asked to decide where the assembly should met. After
all, he was king, and would preside over the Staaten-General, and how could he be expected to lead
a nation if he could not decide from where to lead. Amsterdam was his first choice, given the
importance of the trading center, especially after the damage sustained to Antwerp. Maurice struck
down the idea quickly, not wanting to give too much power to the city.
Throughout 1611, he sent commissions to various cities across the Provinces. They would
scout the city, determine its suitability to house a growing governing bureaucracy. Several cities were
on his first list, and systematically Maurice crossed each one off his list. After months of
investigation and study, Maurice settled upon a town just north of Delft, his own home. The new
capital of the United Provinces. By 1618, all the institutions of government would move into its new
home in the Hague. The Hague turned out to be an agreeable location, a place the Staaten-General
convened many times, dating back to 1584.
The New Staaten-General
In 1612, the Staaten-General itself received an overhaul. Established during the Fifteenth
Century, the Staaten-General was supposedly a tricameral establishment. After the Pacification of
Ghent, the clergy lost all its political power, though its chamber continued to exist despite
secularism. Clergy combined with nobility easily outvoted the Third Estate, despite the fact the
former represented about one percent of the population.
Even after the United Provinces became a Monarchy, Republicanism would not die. In
various parts of the Provinces, the people took it upon themselves to elect mayors, militias elected
commanders, and even Maurice was elected, same as his father before. The concept of democracy
terrified the Stadtholders. The very idea of the ‘ignorant masses’ having their say on subjects beyond
their comprehension was appalling.
Upon abolishing the clergy’s Estate2, the Staaten-General was reorganized into two
Chambers. The First Chamber, or to use an English term, ‘House of Lords’, would consist of the
Stadtholders and Lords of the Provinces. They would control affairs of State and the Provinces.
Declaring war, ratifying treaties, setting tarriffs and budgeting for the year, none of these the nobility
would trust to the commoners. However, what was the point in gaining freedom, if the populace
lacked self-determination. The Second Chamber, a house of the people, would consist of electorates,
whom would serve for five years, from the Provinces and cities represented within the Staaten-
General. They would decide upon laws concerning the daily lives of the people.
Elections
The first elections for the Second Chamber occurred in April of 1613. Unlike today’s
elections, these early elections ranged from bribery to drunken brawls. The average Netherlander was
hardly qualified to run for office, nor did they have the resources to compete with the merchants who
would naturally fill the niche as community leader in the Seventeenth Century United Provinces.
Out of the two hundred Chambermen, only a handful were farmers, fishermen and artisans. Thirty
lawyers and doctors grabbed seats in middle-sized cities.
The big cities, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Antwerp and so on, fell into the hands of wealthy
merchants and shareholders of overseas trading companies. Campaigning in the early days was a
rather straightforward affair, and seldom involved candidates explaining why they were the right
choice to represent the people. More often than not, those running for office would enter a pub and
buy everyone a round of beer, and reminded the constituents of their name as they down their mugs.
Most of the time, many of the merchants won by default. In the case of Rotterdam, Frederick
van Haarlem was both well known and respected, a natural born leader. The average Netherlander
looked up these merchants as living symbols of success. The wealthy merchant is considered
pinnacle of a mercantile society, a goal that every man who spoke Dutch strove. In contrast, most
merchants wanted a say in government, especially laws passed concerning tariffs and taxation.
Not every city had a clear cut leader. Amsterdam was renown for some of the most violent
election campaigns in Dutch history. Two of the largest companies in the world headquartered in
Amsterdam; the Dutch East India Company, and the South Atlantic Company. Both were formed
during the twilight days of the Forty Years War, in order to better manage the new colonies the
United Provinces would acquire.
In most elections during the Seventeenth Century, both companies expended large amounts
of capital to buy votes. In the beginning of the United Provinces, suffrage only extended to landowning
men over the age of twenty-five. If anybody attempted to buy every vote in the Twenty-first
Century, an era of universal suffrage, would bankrupt even the mighty East India Company.
Candidates competed in pubs, markets and churches for the attention of the voters. Supporters
flocked to their favorite, and the elections became so divisive that it wore away at lifelong
friendships.
One of the bloodiest elections was the Election of 1628. Supporters of both East India and
South Atlantic representatives were so divided that they no longer ate at the same inns, or drank at
the same pubs. On the night of February Twenty-seventh, the two crowds spilled out into the street
at the same time. Each group spent the evening drinking in pubs on opposite sides of the street, and
by nightfall were far from sober. At first, the confrontation was nothing more that an exchange of
taunts and insults, until somebody in the South Atlantic camp fired into the opposing crowd.
More than a few Dutch were armed when near the docks in Amsterdam. It was a rough
neighborhood, prone to mugging, theft and impressment. After the initial exchange, three of the East
India supporters lay dead, and four more wounded. That did not stop the South Atlantic camp from
descending upon them with fist and foot. After beating the opposition, the South Atlantic voters
moved on to set fire to East India pubs. The confrontation soon turned to a riot, with non-voters
entering the fray, looting shops that either side already trashed. Some South Atlantic supporters even
approached East India ships, threatening the cargo. The ship’s captain called out his marines to drive
off the mob. In those days, the Dutch East India Company was not the world power it is today, but
their soldiers were well trained and many veterans of the Forty Year’s War.
The riot died down by morning, but by nightfall, enough alcohol filled the voters to ignite
the riot once again. The Count of Holland called forth his militia to put down the riot. Out of the
numerous issues dividing the Dutch; religion, class and regional pride, nobody ever expected the
election of two company’s candidates came close to sparking civil war. Holland’s own provincial
assembly passed numerous laws to control elections, including establishing of a city constabulary
for Amsterdam. Constables tripled their patrols during election time, and had authority to break up
any night-time meeting exceeding more than three persons. The law is still technically on the books,
but need for police monitoring of elections long since grew obsolete.
The Dutch East India Company
In 1602, the Staaten-General granted a twenty-one year monopoly to the Dutch East India
Company (VOC). The VOC had its beginnings in the various trading companies during the Sixteenth
Century. At the time, a company was little more than a group of investors gathering together, pooling
resources, and funding a trading expedition to the Far East. In 1596, a group of Dutch merchants
decided to circumvent the Portuguese monopoly. A four ship expedition, lead by Cornelis de
Houtman made contact with Indonesia. On Banten, the main pepper port of western Java, the Dutch
clashed with both Portuguese and natives. Over the course of the voyage, conflict claimed nearly half
the crew, however, the expedition returned to the Netherlands with enough spices for an impressive
profit.
Normally, this would be the end. The investors would liquidate the company and take their
profits. At the time, trade routes were constantly threatened, and investors were not willing to risk
their gains by pressing their luck on another expedition. In the case of the VOC, the profit was so
much, the investors decided to not liquidate, but rather fund another, larger expedition in 1598.
Again expeditions were funded for 1599, and 1600, though eight ships were lost, the expedition
earned a four hundred percent profit for the lucky investors.
In 1603, the first Dutch trading post in Indonesia was established in Banten. By 1605, the
Portuguese were driven from the East Indies by superior Dutch firepower. Another post was
established in 1611, at Jayakarta, named Batavia after the legendary founders of the Dutch nation.
The trading post thrives and grew, fortified by 1619, and eventually transforming into the modern
day Javanese capital of Jakarta. A year earlier, the VOC established their own Governor-General to
enable firmer control of their Asian affairs.
Though the modern VOC is the most powerful and wealthiest corporation in the world, its
first incarnation’s power exceeded it. The monopoly granted to it by the Dutch government gave the
VOC the right to not only establish its own navy, but to mint its own coins, sign its own treaties and
even form its own military alliance. Over the span nearly two hundred years, up to the American
Revolution, the VOC competed, and occasionally engaged in open warfare, with the British East
India Company. Only after Chittagong fell in 1782, did the VOC dominate India. Ironically, after its
greatest victory, the VOC faced bankruptcy and an uncertain future.
Guilders
In 1602, the most influential currency in the history of humanity came into existence; the
Dutch Guilder. At its inception, one Guilder divided into twenty Stuiver, which divided into eight
Duit, and again into sixteen Penning. The complex arrangement of fractions still gives accountants
nightmares. In today’s world, with decimalization virtually everywhere, it is difficult to contemplate
just what the Staaten-General and the Dutch banks were thinking when the Guilder was first
introduced. The only non-decimal system widely used is the clock, and that came out of twenty-four
was divided by twelve, six, four, three, two and one, and easily understood system that even the
Ancient Egyptians understood.
However, King Maurice was not an Egyptian, and he did not have time to waste on complex
numerical equations pertaining to financial transactions. The fractions had to go, and as his first
edict, he commanded the Staaten-General do something about it. Maurice proposed the
decimalization of currency well over a century before the metric system came into use. Instead of
twenty, eight and sixteen, the new currency would be divided into either; ten Decs, one hundred
Cens, and one thousand Mils. For the new names, the average Netherlands simply supplanted to old
name, fore example, a Dec was called a Stuiver.
An issue this big required both Chambers to vote. The First Chamber insisted currency was
the domain of the state, while the Second Chamber insisted it was the people who must suffer any
changes. The chancellor of the Second Chamber demanded that his King have the issue voted on by
both chambers. In England, if anyone from the House of Commons made demands from James I,
they likely ended up in more trouble than they dreamed possible. Maurice I might not have been
pleased by his chancellor’s tone, but he did see the legitimacy in his argument.
The nobility passed the law swiftly through the First Chamber, with only a few opposing. In
the Second Chamber, the Act of Standardization of the Guilder hit a roadblock. Both the Banks and
the Companies owned many members of the elected government. Changing from tradition
denominations into this radical decimal system would take years and cost both parties a fortune. The
banks would suffer the most. They already minted coins of carefully measured quantities of silver
and gold. TO have a Stuiver all of a sudden worth twice what it was, made no sense, neither did the
sharp drop in value of the Penning. The same chancellor who demanded the vote, also opposed it.
He was a well known for living deep in the Bank of Amsterdam’s pockets.
By April of 1613, the King forced the issue before the Second Chamber. He called for a vote,
where a simply majority of fifty percent plus one would pass the bill. He pleaded for the
representatives to vote yes, if for no other reason than a future standardization would cost far more
than on now. Three days passed in which each representative took the floor and gave his reason that
his colleagues should vote either yes or no. In the end, the yes vote won by fifteen votes, though it
would be many years before the new currency completely phased out the last.
King Frederick I
On April 23, 1625, the United Provinces lost their King. Maurice’s death was sudden and
shocking, when on a horse ride early in the morning, his horse was spooked and threw him to the
ground, breaking his neck. For his day, Maurice lived a long life, and for his times, it was indeed a
very eventful one, but his death threw the United Provinces into somewhat of a constitutional crisis.
Who would succeed Maurice to the throne?
Maurice had two children, both to mistresses and both illegitimate. By law, only an offspring
born to a wife was permitted to inherit their father’s holdings. Maurice had no such heir. Some in
the Staaten-General called for the Provinces to become an elected monarchy, such as the Vatican or
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. That begged the question, who would be nominated, and by
whom. After various votes in the Second Chamber, especially the Act of Standardization, none of
the members of the First Chamber wanted a king who was owned by either the Bank of Amsterdam
or the VOC.
The search for an heir did not last long. The Staaten-General approached one of Maurice’s
still living half-brothers, Frederick Henry. Born to the fourth wife of William the Silent, about six
months before his untimely death, the younger Prince of Orange happened to be the protégée of
Maurice. Trained in arms by his older brother, Frederick Henry proved himself nearly as good a
general as his brother, commanding elements of the rebel army during the Dunkirk campaign and
again at Brussels and Mons. While in the First Chamber, he proved himself a superior politician and
statesman. Best of all, Frederick Henry was married, to Amalia of Solms-Braunfels, just months
before his brother’s death. He would provide what Maurice could not, a legitimate heir to the throne
and the start of a royal dynasty that prevails even today.
After Maurice was entombed at the family mausoleum in Delft, Frederick Henry was
crowned King Frederick I by the Bishop of Liege. What started out as a way to curry favor soon
turned into a tradition spanning the history of the United Provinces. Every monarch, with the
exception Maurice II, would be crowned by the Bishop in the cathedral at Liege.
Land Reclamation
One of Frederick I’s acts happens to be the one with the longest ranging consequence.
Centuries before, Hollanders, Zeelanders and various Dutch cities across the Netherlands battled
against great rivers and swamps. Over the course of decades, marshes were drained, rivers dammed
and the mighty North Sea held back. By the time of Frederick I, all the land above the sea was dry
and utilized. Frederick I decided to go farther.
The County of Holland decided to go farther than simply holding the sea back. They would
push the North Sea outwards. In the first act of land reclamation, less than a square kilometer of the
sea was blocked off by sea walls and dikes, then systematically drained. Their attempt to claim more
living space cost years worth of effort and funding. The Netherlands would grow over the centuries,
one of the few countries to literally expand its boundaries.
The Thirty Years War
In 1618, war boiled over in the Holy Roman Empire. Protestants in the Kingdom of Bohemia,
concerned their religious rights would be revoked in the face of their new king, took up arms in
support of the Protestant contender Frederick V, elector of the Palatinate. Normally, a conflict within
the bordering, and disunited Empire would cause the Hague no grief. However, by 1636, France
invaded the Empire in its quest to destroy the Protestant Reformation. A hundred years too late to
make a difference in the spiritual future of Central Europe, all the invasion did was disrupt trade
along the Rhine River.
The United Provinces would not go to war over another nation religious turmoil, but it would
wage war to defend trade. When French, along with a contingent of Spanish mercenaries invaded
Luxembourg, and laid siege to the city, the Staaten-General declared war upon France. Frederick I,
learned much from his brother in the art of war, and broke the siege within two weeks, driving the
French across the Rhine.
Simply expelling the French was not enough to satisfy the Provinces. As long as France
remained poised along the Rhine, it would threaten inland Dutch trade. It was feared that Spain,
recovered after its defeat decades earlier, may use some of the Habsburg holdings in Germany as
springboards of invasion. In 1641, Frederick lead the Dutch army across the Rhine, attacking the
Spanish and French at their stronghold in Koln.
After three months, Frederick forces Koln to surrender. As part of the conditions of
surrender, the Spanish were expelled from Germany, and the French were forced across the Rhine.
The future king, Louis XIV would be content at the Rhine, for he would declare that same river the
natural boundary of France, and launch several invasions of the southern Provinces. The Thirty Years
War ended in 1648 with the Peace of Westphalia. The United Provinces received no territorial gain,
but their trade along the Rhine remained secure until England passed the Act of Navigation in the
1660s.
The Colonies
At the same time Holland was expending so much effort to capture a small piece of the sea
floor, the rest of the Dutch people spread across the globe. Colonies taken from the defunct
Portuguese Empire were immediately put to use by enterprising Netherlanders. Sugar from the New
World, spices from the Indies, and grain from North America and South Africa, were soon flooding
into ports such as Amsterdam.
All the imports were not so beneficial. With the acquisition of Brazil, and Angola, the socalled
Dutch Empire inherited one of humanity’s greatest banes; slavery. During the Seventeenth
Century, Amsterdam had the dishonor of being the biggest port of slavery in Europe. More slaver
ships were registered in the United Provinces than any other nation. The same Dutch who fought
forty years for their freedom were quick to subjugate and exploit.
Brazil
In 1605, following the successful invasion of Brazil, merchants in Amsterdam formed the
Dutch South Atlantic Company. The initial goal of this company was to ship massive quantities of
sugar, white gold, into Dutch ports. In the following year, the Staaten-General granted the South
Atlantic Company a twenty-year monopoly on all trade in Brazil, along with the responsibility of
administrating the colony in Brazil and Angola.
An ocean apart, both colonies share a common thread. Though Angola was not fully
exploited until the Nineteenth Century, its people were already victim to profit-seeking companies.
The largest, and most lucrative crop in Brazil, sugar, required an enormous amount of manpower to
cultivate. Indentured servants from the Provinces, which served farms and plantations in New
Amsterdam well, did not flourish in the tropical climate. Too many would-be colonist from Northern
Europe fell victim to the Brazilian jungle.
Logic dictated that the only people who could survive
jungle climate, were jungle men. Most of the natives in
coastal Brazil were already dead, or severely depleted due to
diseases brought in from Europe. Like the Europeans had little
defense to Yellow Fever, the natives had no defense to Small
Pox. In an event that would repeat itself across the Americas,
more than half the native population would die with each
outbreak.
Portuguese plantations solved the problem by
importing workers from Portuguese possessions along the
western African coast. After the Treaty of Calais, the largest
producers of slaves fell into English control. In order to
expand newly established Dutch sugar, tobacco, cocoa, coffee
and later cotton, plantations, the South Atlantic Company, as
well as transporting their goods to market for a reasonable
profit, were more than happy to import labor.
Slavery made the South Atlantic Company very wealthy, and eventually lead to its downfall.
The life of a slave, began in tribal Africa. When tribes waged war, they, like the Romans, Greeks and
various ancient Mediterranean societies, would enslave the defeated foe. As such, battles tended to
be fierce, since the loser, assuming they were not lucky and killed outright, were in for a long and
painful life.
After conquest and enslavement, the victorious tribe would march their captives down to the
coast, to one of the various trading posts. Luanda served as the South Atlantic Company’s trading
hub for Angola. Thousands of slaves encountered the first day of the rest of their lives here. In
exchanged for their own brethren, the slavers would receive fabrics, iron tools, weapons and luxuries
found nowhere in southern Africa. In today’s world it is impossible to fathom trading one’s fellow
man for a simple iron hatchet.
To maximize profits, and with no consideration to their cargo, the Company crammed as
many slaves into cargo holds. Often there was just enough room for a slave to lay down. No more
than five hundred millimeters would exist between one bunk and the next. Each morning, handlers
would enter the foul holds, filled with the stench of death, and check on the cargo. Often slaves did
not survive the night. Those were unshackled and unceremoniously tossed overboard, into the
waiting jaws of shark. There was always sharks.
With the dead disposed of, the live were kept living. When a slave refused to eat, handlers
would go as far as knocking out their teeth and forcing gruel down a tube and into their stomachs.
For over a month, slaves endured the inhuman conditions. The lucky died, the rest arrived at port,
where the true suffering began. Paraded before auctions, with as much consideration as a prize horse
or bovine, slaves were bid upon. Female slaves faced an especially miserable life, subject to the
whims of their new owners, and worse yet, their slave drivers.
The Dutch populace where blind to this suffering before monks exposed it during the early
Eighteenth Century. Before the Enlightenment, it was doubtful any of them would care about the
suffering across the ocean. As long as their houses were filled with previously unknown luxuries,
coffee, chocolate and sugar, they were content. As long as the population was content, the Second
Chamber felt little motivation to change.
A more pressing matter was what to do with thousands of Portuguese colonists. For the most
part, the European population consisted of mostly men, who would marry native woman. It was
roughly the same proportion as Spain in Mexico and Inca. Portuguese did not venture to Brazil to
start over or raise families, they did so to grow rich, return home then settle down. The United
Provinces, under the command of Governor van Bohr, Count of Natal, left a sizable army in the
colony.
The question as to what to do about so many men who were hostile towards Dutch rule
remained at the top of the Count’s list of concerns. The Dutch came to Brazil, not only to grow rich,
but to start their lives over. Many were displaced by the Spanish during the Dutch revolution, and
later by the Thirty Years War. Most found their ports of call in Natal, Recife, Salvador and
Mauristadt. The opened shops, started farms, and brought with them comforts from home, including
tulips.
Over the course of decades, the Portuguese Question essentially solved itself. With years, the
Dutch-speaking population outnumbered the Portuguese. In order to do business, the Portuguese had
little choice but to learn Dutch (or hire a translator). When Dutch woman arrived, the Portuguese
quickly remembered some of the comforts of home. They intermarried with the newcomers, and
were subsequently assimilated.
New Amsterdam
In 1609, under contract with VOC, Henry Hudson set sail to the New World in search of a
shortcut to the Indies. Whomever could find the fabled Northwest Passage would have a decisive
advantage in the spice trade. Sailing the Halve Maen (Half-moon) past Manhattan Island, what
Hudson found was not a passage across the continent, but many tribes of natives along with a wealth
of fur. Hudson named the waterway the Mauritius River, in honor of the hero of the Forty Years
Wars.
Upon arriving home, Hudson did not return with new of a passage, but rather a land wealthy
in beavers. At the time, beaver pelts were prized in Europe, because the fur could be ‘felted’ to make
waterproof hats. In following the following year, 1611 to 1614, expeditions surveyed and charted
the region between the thirty-eighth and forty-fifth parallel. These expeditions entitled the charters
to a five year monopoly as per the rules set down by the Staaten-General. Several trading posts were
established, the furthest one Fort Orange, now the city of Albany, near the modern day state borders
of New Amsterdam and the Iroquois Confederacy.
Fort Amsterdam, established in 1615, quickly grew into the city of New Amsterdam.
According to legend, the Dutch purchased Manhattan Island from the natives for sixty guilders worth
of beads. At the mouth of Mauritius River, it was a normally ice-free harbor throughout the year. As
well as hordes of trappers, the New Amsterdam Company soon opened land on Manhattan to settlers
from back home. The first families arrived at Fort Amsterdam in 1624, followed by a second wave
of families the following year.
The early years of the colony, trade with the natives dominated the economy. As they would
in Angola, the Dutch would trade common items of the United Provinces for the goods they sought.
In this case, instead of enslaving hundreds of thousands of humans, business led to the extermination
of the beaver throughout the region. By 1626, the colony elected its first governor, Peter Minuit.
During the building of New Amsterdam, the Mohawk-Mahican war further north forced many
settlers in Upper New Amsterdam down to the easily defensible island. With the threat of Indian
wars spreading to the city, New Amsterdammers built a wall of stone and clay. In the process, they
failed to predict expanding population. Within a decade, built up area appeared north of the wall. The
wall was hence demolished, but its existence gave name to one of the wealthiest streets in the world;
Wall Street.
By the 1640s, the beaver population in the Mauritius River Valley thinned to the point where
profits of the colony became threatened. A timber mill was built upon Governor’s Island, in hope
that lumber could supplement some of the lost income. By 1648, settlers expanded beyond New
Amsterdam to found neighboring settlements of Haarlem, Staaten Island, and vast orchards sprout
along the banks of the river.
Wheat from Long Island and apples and pears from Nassau poured through the port of New
Amsterdam and were soon shipped eastward across the sea. In the case of the fruit, it was quickly
fermented and transformed into brandy, the only practical way to transport fruit in the day. With the
devastation waged across Germany during the Thirty Years War, where nearly thirty percent of the
population was wiped out, the Netherlands were desperate for food. Brazilian colonists were more
interested in cash crops than foodstuffs. New Amsterdam profited greatly by Brazil’s greed. By the
First Anglo-Dutch War, New Amsterdam spread its borders to encompass all the lands between the
Delaware and Connecticut Rivers, right smack between two English Colonies; Plymouth and
Virginia.
Ceylon
In the waning days of the Forty Years War, the Kandyan Kings of Ceylon found themselves
subject of the Portuguese King. Portugal brought with them their culture, and imposed both language
and religion upon. Ceylonese nobility were educated by Portuguese teachers. The Kandyan court had
Portuguese advisors. Portugal arrived claiming to come in peace; the naivete of the natives made it
possible for the foreigners to become the masters.
The Ceylonese were very unhappy about losing their freedom and lands to the Portuguese.
When Dutch ships arrived in force in 1607, the natives thought them as nothing more than more
foreigners. When the Dutch landed and communicated with the King of Kandy for an alliance
against the Portuguese. King Rajasinghe immediately seized at the chance to rid his land of his hated
masters. With much of the Portuguese Navy depleted from battling the VOC and other Dutch traders,
defending their holding on Ceylon proved impossible. By 1609, the Portuguese were out, and the
VOC had in their hands a treaty with the Kandyan King, paving the way for trade and eventual
colonization.
The natives preferred the Dutch infinitely over the Portuguese. Where the Portuguese came
to impose their ways, the Dutch were simply interested in trade. As per the Treaty of Kandy, the
VOC would defend the Kandyan people from foreign invasions, in return for exclusive rights to
export native spices. The influx of many Netherlanders concerned the natives at first, but once it was
made known the Dutch would respect the native ways, the newcomers were tolerated.
Most of these newcomers, totaling two thousands, hailed from Antwerp. During the Thirty
Years War, the French never gained a foothold in the Netherlands, but they managed to raid
repeatedly. Their favorite target was Antwerp. Thousand of Netherlanders died in the raids, and
thousands more fled, some to Brazil, some to New Amsterdam, and some to the East. The sad saga
of the Antwerp Diaspora would continue until the Seven Years War, in the middle of the Eighteenth
Century.
From the port of Columbo, the VOC not only administered Ceylon, but also various posts
on the Indian Mainland taken from the Portuguese. Chiefly among these was the Port of Goa. The
Dutch would do little to India until the following century, the settlers preferring Ceylon and Formosa
over the crowded subcontinent. Trade did bloom, and with the space of two decades, the VOC
gained a monopoly over all trade in southern India.
Java
In 1603, the VOC established its first
trading post on the island of Java. Their sole goal,
which they achieved within two decades, was
complete domination over the cinnamon trade.
Cinnamon, a popular spice in Europe, made it
possible for trading expeditions to return with four
or more times the amount of profit required to fund
them. Such wealth would make any measure worth
the risk.
In 1604, the VOC did battle with the British
East India Company, killing many sailors.
Competition between the two companies would continue to be brutal, leading to the Amboyna
massacre, where ten English, and ten Japanese sailors were arrested and tried for treason by the
VOC. How one could commit treason against a company it did not even work for was never made
clear. The English were not the exclusive target of attack. In 1619, Governor-General Jan
Pieterszoon led a force of nineteen ships to storm Jayakarta, burn out the natives, and establish
Batavia atop the ashes.
Java was never a popular destination for settlers during the Seventeenth Century. Its
tormenting heat and endemic disease kept all but the merchants away. The VOC established posts
all along the Javanese coast, using these to dominate trade. They saw little reason to conquer the
interior, when they could just control the access ports for trade. The VOC gained its cinnamon trade
and soon carried the spice to Dutch ports and beyond.
Formosa
In 1624, the VOC established the first European settlement upon Formosan soil. After
establishing Tayoan City, the VOC discovered that no legitimate nation existed on the island. The
VOC used the aboriginals to hunt the Sika deer that inhabited the island, eventually leading to its
disappearance in the wild. Hides of the Sika were valued as leather by samurai in construction of
their armor.
The purpose in colonizing Formosa was to open up trade with both China and Japan. In
construction of Fort Zeelandia, and further cultivation of mulberry plantations, the VOC imported
large number of Chinese workers from Fujian province. The Dutch further employed the Chinese
to work sugarcane fields and rice paddies. The sugar they exported to China and Japan, the rice they
used to feed Formosa.
The VOC ruled the island like a legitimate government. It set up a system of taxation for the
natives, which in turn paid for building of an infrastructure. The VOC schools taught a romanized
script of the native language. While the VOC employed Chinese, the VOC Dutch employees hired
on many native woman and children to work as servants in their growing manors in both Tayoan and
the new posts at Taipei.
Pirates operating out of the South China Sea plagued Ming, Manchu and various European
traders for decades. The first attack on a VOC fleet, three ships, was also their last. The VOC
amassed ships from as far as Ceylon into a fleet of nearly one hundred ships, manned by well trained
sailors and marines. From 1641 to 1644, the VOC cleared out the pirates, island by island. Over the
ensuing decades, pirates around the world soon learned to avoid the VOC flag.
Dutch culture influenced the natives, but native cultures from Capestaat to Formosa
influenced the United Provinces. The VOC valued merit over any family connections in the
Netherlands. VOC ships hired sailors from their colonies, sometimes for lifelong employment,
sometimes just for the voyage to the next port. Over the course of three decades, Buddhist monks
from Ceylon worked their way across the Dutch Empire. Upon arriving in the United Provinces, the
first Buddhist temples were built just outside of Amsterdam. Their monasteries would soon expend
from the fjords of Norway into the mountains of Sardinia.
Rising Power in Europe
With control over a large portion of trade between Europe and the outside world, the United
Provinces were soon on the rise. Their army was still no match for the full might of France of
Sweden, but their wealth gave them influence over many princely courts. The Netherlands preferred
to expand through trade and negotiating. During the course of the 1640s, Frederick I opened up a
series of negotiating with Christian IV and the Kingdom of Denmark-Norway.
Union of Kopenhagen
A treaty of alliance between Denmark-Norway was Frederick I’s goal near the end of his life.
The growing power of Sweden threatened Dutch trade in the Baltic. Sweden’s navy was no match
for the United Provinces, at least not for the time being. By allying with Denmark-Sweden, Frederick
hoped to contain Sweden. With bases in the Danish Isles, the Dutch could strike at Swedish positions
across the Baltic Sea.
Just weeks before the death of Frederick I, his only son, William, was wed to the daughter
of the Danish King, Christina of Denmark. The ceremony was a happy one, soon followed by a
sorrow. In August of 1647, Frederick I died of natural causes. He worked most of his later life away,
often before sunrise until after sunset. Frederick is known as the hardest working king in Dutch
history. Since William was legitimate, he immediately ascended the throne.
When asked which name he would take, he chose his own, but he refused the addition of The
First. William hailed his grandfather, William the Silent, as the spiritual first king of the United
Provinces. The new king was crowned King William II. His reign was short with little to distinguish
himself. He opposed the Treaty of Münster, only to be overruled by the Staaten-General. In 1650,
a smallpox outbreak spread across Holland, eventually working its way into the Hague. William II
died of smallpox, just one week before the birth of his only son, also named William.
Smallpox infections spread across Europe, infecting Kopenhagen as well. Princes Frederick
and George were killed by the epidemic. Though some nationalistic groups in modern Denmark
claim that it was Dutch assassins that in fact killed George, using the outbreak as a cover. With
Christian IV’s other son, Christian killed in another war with Sweden, all of the princes were dead
without heirs. The only candidate available according to Danish law was Christian’s grandson,
William. Upon his death, William was crowned King William I of Denmark-Norway, along with his
previous title, William III of the United Provinces. With his mother as regent, the United Provinces
and Denmark-Norway entered a state of personal union.

[Snowman23]

Amazing work. I Like the history book format, how you foreshadow things with ease. Keep up the good work!

[The Kiat]

Why thank you, I'm glad somebody appreciates my work.


Amazing work. I Like the history book format, how you foreshadow things with ease. Keep up the good work!

[The Kiat]

For those who might be curious, there really was a raid on the Medway, and the 2nd Anglo-Dutch War is the only war I can think of off the top of my head that the Royal Navy ever lost. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raid_on_the_Medway



IV) The Anglo-Dutch Affair
(1650-1702)
King William III
Many princes are destined to become kings before they are born, few actually obtain the title
before birth. Such is the case with King William III, though he was not called that until after his
official coronation fifteen years later. Throughout his life, William III would be the Dutch monarch
most closely tied with England. Two wars would be waged against their neighbors across the North
Sea (though Princess Christina was regent through the first war), followed by an alliance through
marriage, ending with William III landing in England and installing his English wife as Queen.
By the age of fifteen, Princess Christina died, leaving young William an orphan. Much debate
raged within the Staaten-General as what to do next. Was William too young to take the throne?
There was some discussion as to appointing a regent until William proved himself capable of taking
the crown. That begged the question who would decide when he was worthy? None of the Second
Chamber were for keeping William from his rightful throne. A few in the First mused over being
regent themselves, and perhaps king.
In the end, it was William’s other holding, the Kingdom of Denmark-Norway that decided
the issue. Nobility ranging from Kopenhagen to Oslo to Bergen refused to accept any Netherlander
the Staaten-General appointed as their regent. William would be their king. Before the Danes could
crown him, the Dutch coronation went forward in Liege, and William III was crowned king of the
United Provinces of the Netherlands, and the King of Denmark-Norway. His first act as King would
be to wage was against the English and Scottish in the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
Portuguese Restoration
In the second year of William II’s reign, Portugal declared independence from Spain. For
eighty years, both Portugal and Spain shared the same king, and following their defeat during the
Forty Years War, Spain pressed for full political union. Without its vast colonial holding or wealth
in the spice trade, Portugal was powerless before annexation. It was not until the end of the Thirty
Years War, and another resounding defeat for Spain did the Portuguese make their move. As soon
as the war ended, Portuguese nobles placed Joao IV on the throne in Lisbon.
Portugal was not looking just to regain its status in the brotherhood of nations, but to reclaim
its once glorious empire as well. Even if they defeated the Spanish, Portugal was still no match for
the Dutch Navy. In decades past, Portugal held an alliance with England, and upon reclaiming its
throne, it reactivated that alliance. It was Portugal’s hope that the English Navy could defeat the
Dutch, and allow them to regain at the very least, Brazil.
Joao IV did declare was on the United Provinces, though the English held back for the
moment. England had its own problems at the moment, and by 1649, a change in government was
at hand. Charles I was recently executed, and Oliver Cromwell’s ‘Commonwealth’ was on the rise.
The Commonwealth had no use for Iberian problems. After all, why should English blood be spilt
for a bunch of Catholics. Puritan England would just as soon add rich Brazil to its own domain.
Portugal’s ambition was not to be. By 1653, Spain all but crushed the rebellion, forcing Joao
IV into exile, and eliminated many of the Portuguese nobles who sought to break from Spain.
Ironically, by then England and the United Provinces were already at war with each other, alliance
or not. Never again would the Portuguese flag wave above the Iberian peninsula. Many Portuguese
fled across the ocean, escaping Spanish retribution, to the only part of the world were their language
Act of Navigation
By the middle of the Seventeenth Century, the United Provinces possessed the largest trading
fleet in Europe, which more vessels than most other nations combined. Their maritime based
economy gave them a dominate position in Europe. France could invade, but the United Province
could close borders, seal trade and strangulate the economy of any nation that may wish to make her
an enemy. They profited greatly from the spice trade, and in the colonies taken from Portugal. More
over, because of civil war in England, the Dutch were gaining significant influence over England’s
own colonies in North America.
With Oliver Cromwell and his Commonwealth victorious, England’s Royal Navy was a force
on the rise. During the English Civil War, the United Provinces supported Charles I and the Royalist,
and were subsequently outraged by the Commonwealth’s act of regicide upon Charles’s execution.
Therefore, Cromwell considered the Dutch an enemy. More precisely, considered William II an
enemy.
Upon William’s death, relations changed. The Staaten-General recognized the English
Commonwealth, though they refused to expel many Royalist exiled in the Netherlands. The fact that
it was the Staaten-General, and not the infant King who made the recognition only encouraged the
English. In January of 1651, a delegation of nearly two hundred fifty English appeared in the Hague,
to negotiate the conditions on where the United Provinces might unite with the Commonwealth.
Decades before, the Dutch declared that never again shall they be ruled from a foreign
capital, though negotiations did drag on for weeks. The English were quite upset upon learning, that
after so much effort, the Dutch never had any intention on political union. The delegation left in
June, rather disappointed they reported the Dutch as untrustworthy, and a threat to English security.
The fact that the United Provinces had no interest in that little island off their shores never entered
into the equation. Why would they want to invade a place as atrocious sounding as York when they
could stay comfortably in elegant, and classy Amsterdam.
Continuing trouble with the Royalist, and French support there of, prompted England’s
parliament to issue letters of reprisal against French ships and French goods on any neutral ships.
The United Province might not wage war over territory, but it most certainly would if its trade
interests were threatened, and most of the ‘neutral’ ships happened to be Dutch. To further
antagonize the Dutch, Parliament passed the Navigation Acts in October of 1651.
Simply put, the Navigation Acts were a declaration of war in all but name. It ordered that
only English ships, or ships from the originating country, could import goods to England, thus
eliminating any middleman. This measure was almost exclusively aimed at the trade-orientated
Dutch, and to put it simply, the Dutch have too much trade and the English were resolved to take it
from them. Take it they did. Many privateers and ships of the English Royal Navy used the Acts as
a pretext to seize Dutch ships. The English went even as far as to demand that all ships in the English
Channel and North Sea dip their flag in salute to English ships. It was one too many insults for a
Netherlander to stand.
Maarten Tromp
May 29, 1652, English General-at-Sea Robert Blake commanded a fleet that encountered
another Dutch fleet commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Tromp. As per Parliamentary
demands, Blake waited for the Dutch to dip their flag in salute. When Tromp did not comply swiftly
enough to satisfy Blake, the English ships opened fire, starting the brief Battle of Goodwin Sands.
Tromp managed to escort his convoy to safety, but lost two ships in the preceding battle. Born in
Den Briel in 1598, Maarten Tromp was the son of an officer in the fledgling Dutch Navy. At the age
of nine, Tromp went to see with his father, and was present at the Battle of Gibraltar.
Tromp was captured twice, once when he was twelve, when pirates killed his father, and
again when he was twenty-two, this time by Corsairs of the Barbary Coast. Both times Tromp was
sold into slavery in Arab markets. The first time he was freed by pity, the second time he impressed
the Bey of Tunis greatly with his maritime skills, that the Bey set him free. Between his times in
slavery, Tromp supported his mother and sisters by laboring in the Rotterdam shipyards.
In 1622, Tromp was commissioned into the Dutch Navy as a lieutenant. He spent much of
his tenor battling pirates in North Africa. HE rose through the ranks, achieving his Admiral ranks
by 1637, when Lieutenant-Admiral van Dorp was removed for incompetence. His first years as
Admiral were spent blockading Dunkirk and combating a resurgence of pirates plaguing the Dover
Strait.
On July 10, 1652, England formally declared war on the United Provinces. In the opening
months of war, the English targeted Dutch merchant ships. Any ship sailing alone would not stand
a chance. As Admiral, Tromp gathered a fleet of ninety-six ships to do battle with the English
privateers. At the Battle of the Kentish Knock, the Dutch attacked the English fleet near the mouth
of the Thames, but were beaten back with the loss of too many men.
The loss was a minor setback for the Dutch, but the English perceived that the Dutch were
near defeat, so diverted twenty of their warships to the Mediterranean. This division of forces lead
to the English defeat by Tromp during the Battle of Dungeness, and further to the destruction of the
English Mediterranean fleet in 1653.
Blockade of the United Provinces
In February of 1653, the English were ready to challenge the Dutch again. In one of the
turning points in the First Anglo-Dutch War, the English defeated the Dutch during the three day
battle, and drove them from the English Channel. For the first time since its formation, the United
Provinces were not the dominate navy in European waters. The defeat made it clear to the Staaten-
General that they were not invincible.
By March 1653, the Dutch sent delegates, peace feelers, to London. After such a resounding
victory, the English Parliament was no longer motivated for a peaceful solution. Why negotiate when
they could conquer. Their desires to conquer were stillborn. With the exception of an invasion of
Long Island by colonist in Massachusetts and Connecticut, land battles were not an equation in the
war. Colonist managed to conquer two-thirds of Long Islands, the parts not inhabited by Dutch
settlers, and even kept their new conquest after the war’s end.
In June, the English were again victorious at sea. Following the two day long Battle of the
Gabbard, England drove the Dutch out of the North Sea. With North Sea and English Channel
closed, the United Provinces found themselves cut off from their colonies, and more importantly,
from their trade. Following the battle, England set up a blockade of the Netherlands, a land
dependent on agricultural imports.
With trade disrupted, the Dutch economy collapsed, and famine spread across the Provinces
for the first time in decades, if not centuries. The Hague sent out more delegates, growing desperate
for a peaceful resolution, but again they were rebuffed. Cromwell became more interested in
punishing the Netherlands than negotiating. With little choice, the already battered Dutch fleet was
forced to attempt to break the blockade.
The Battle of Scheveningen
After pushing the Dutch out of the North Sea, the English set up a blockade of one hundred
twenty ships under the command of General-at-Sea George Monck. Any Dutch merchant ship that
attempted to slip past the blockade was captured, its cargo confiscated. In a sense, Monck turned out
to be one of the most successful pirates in history. Not only did he acquire a large amount of booty,
but his blockade led to wide scale unemployment and starvation in Dutch cities.
On August 3, 1653, Admiral Tromp put to sea in the Brederode with a fleet of one hundred
ships at the island of Texel, were another twenty-seven ships under the command of Witte de Withe
were trapped by the English. Once the English spotted Tromp’s fleet, they turned their attention away
from de With, allowing his ships to escape, and later join Tromp.
August 10, the English fleet engaged the combined Dutch fleet off Scheveningen. The battle
was short and fierce, with each fleet moving through each other four times, inflicting much damaged.
Maarten Tromp was killed early in the battle, by a sharpshooter in the rigging of, reportedly, William
Penn’s ship. His death was kept secret from the rest of the fleet, for fear of demoralizing. Morale
aside, by the afternoon, the Dutch already lost twelve ships and many more were simply too damaged
to continue the fight.
In the end, morale broke anyway and a large group of ships, all under the command of
merchant captains, broke formation and fled north. De With attempted to assert order and rally the
ships, but to no avail. He was limited to covering their retreat as far as Texel. However, damage was
not one-sided. The English, too, suffered many casualties, and lost many ships to damage. So many,
that the fleet was forced to give up the blockade and return to port for refit and repair.
Scheveningen was a battle were both sides could honestly claim victory. The English won
the day on the tactical field, defeating the Dutch fleet, and hurting them more than they were hurt
in turn. However, the United Provinces set out with a simple strategic goal; lifting the blockade. That
was exactly what the fleet accomplished, and the Dutch claim a strategic victory. Either way, it was
the last major battle of the war.
Treaty of Westminster
Over the course of the war, Oliver Cromwell continued to call for political union between
the Provinces and the Commonwealth. He targeted specifically the northern provinces, with the large
proportion of Protestants. Unfortunately for the English, they were largely Calvinist, and untrusting
to anyone who was not them. At least with the Catholics in the south, the Calvinist were dealing with
fellow Netherlanders. Cromwell never did understand the nature of Dutch nationalism.
Cromwell, a little disappointed, set down a peace proposal of twenty-seven articles, two of
which were unacceptable; all Royalists were to be expelled, and the personal union with Denmark-
Norway was to be ended. Again, Cromwell failed to grasp reality; the Dutch king was only four, and
no four-year-old would give up what was his. Cromwell was forced to accept peace minus two
articles, and in April 1564, the Staaten-General accepted the proposal. On May 8, 1654, the Treaty
of Westminster was signed.
It was truly an inconclusive victory where the English managed to gain two-thirds of Long
Island, the two-third not inhabited by enterprising Dutch settlers. However, peace of not, the
commercial rivalry between the two nations was not solved, and hostilities continued between
colonial companies of the two, both of which had navies and armies of their own. The East Indies
were still fought over, with the Dutch companies based in Batavia, the English ones in Manilla.
Humiliation of the Treaty of Westminster, which still had the Navigation Acts in place, along
with the loss of trade only fueled bitterness in the Dutch people. There would be peace, for now, but
because of no decisive victor, a second war between the English and Dutch was in the making.
Naval Buildup
As soon as the ink on the Treaty of Westminster was signed, the Dutch were already
launching an aggressive shipbuilding program. The Staaten-General were well informed about the
battles at sea, and decided the lack of Ships-of-the-Line was a key role in the United Provinces
failure to obtain victory. They learned hard lessons, and learned them well. Over the following
decade, leading up to the second war, the United Provinces built more than a hundred ships
dedicated exclusively to war.
Before hand, Dutch warships were little more than merchant ships overhauled and heavily
armed, and susceptible to far more damage. Inexperienced commercial captains also proved the weak
link in Dutch fleets. Thousand of sailors passed through the naval academies in Amsterdam,
Rotterdam and Antwerp, where a strict discipline and respect for the chain of command was
impressed upon them.
The Staaten-General were not the only ones humiliated by the treaty. Thousands of sailors,
once believing Dutch mariners best in the world, were infuriated by the humiliation and burned for
revenge. Not just revenge for themselves, but they saw it their duty to avenge the insults against
national honor. One such officer, a veteran of the First Anglo-Dutch War would rise to leadership
and become the most famous admiral in Dutch history.
Michiel de Ruyter
Michiel de Ruyter was born in 1607, in the waning days of the Forty Years War. Little is
known about de Ruyter’s early life, except he likely started his life as a sailor around the age of
eleven. Such early starts in lifelong careers were not uncommon during the Seventeenth Century.
Only today, when one must attended higher educations for the better part of a decade to obtain
something that was once apprenticed does such a young start seem odd, even prodigy-like.
The name de Ruyter came from the Dutch word ‘ruyten’ which more-or-less translates into
‘to raid’. De Ruyter was known for this as his work as a privateer, and later on for hunting pirates.
During the First Anglo-Dutch War, de Ruyter quickly rose to the rank of Admiral. He commanded
a small reserve fleet at the Battle of Plymouth, winning the battle against English Admiral Ayscue,
a raider of Dutch merchantmen.
A year before the outbreak of a second war, de Ruyter clashed with the English off the West
African coast. One of the articles of the peace treaty involved dipping the flag in salute, one that de
Ruyter always ignored. Like many sailors, he never forgave the insults postulated in the treaty. Like
many, he spent ten years preparing revenge. De Ruyter continued his raids, expanding his territory
into the Carribean. In April 1665, he hit Barbados, followed up by a large scale raid on the pirate den
of Port Royale, Jamaica.
March 4, 1665, war officially broke out between England and the United Provinces. The two
were evenly matched once various considerations were taken into account. Though England boasted
a population twice that of the Provinces, a majority of them fell into the category of broke peasants.
The Dutch offset this by a large middle class population. Another factor was the end of the
Commonwealth. By 1660, the Stuarts were restored to power. By 1665, the United Provinces’s king
finally took the throne. At fifteen, William III might lack the life experience of Charles II, but he
hungered to avenge the wrongs against his Kingdom.
The first encounter between English and Dutch fleets occurred at the Battle of Lowestoft, on
June 13. Though the resounding defeat was the worst in Dutch history outside of the Battle of Java
Sea centuries later, England failed to capitalize on their own momentum. English victories back
home were offset by Dutch victories in the Americas. De Ruyter continued to be the bane of English
trade.
Four Days Battle
On June 11, 1666, one hundred fifty ships from the English and Dutch navies met near North
Foreland for the longest battle in naval history. Eighty-four Dutch ships, commanded by de Ruyter
faced seventy-nine ships under the command of Monck. England was under the impression that a
French fleet would soon join the Dutch, and acted first to split the forces. The rumor of French
intervention prompted Monck to send a squadron of ships to defend the Strait of Dover.
As a result, the Dutch vastly outnumbered the English, yet de Ruyter could not bring the
battle to a speedy conclusion. The first encounter between the two navies, Monck targeted the Dutch
fleet anchored near Dunkirk, commanded by Admiral Cornelis Tromp, hoping to cripple his force
and even the odds. Monck tried to force his enemy onto the hazardous Flemish shoals. The Dutch
center, commanded by de Ruyter arrived in time to prevent the younger Tromp’s squadron from
being knocked out of action.
Once the Dutch forces formed up, minus a few mishaps of Inexperienced commanders
colliding with their neighbors, the English brought out a weapon the Dutch were unaware of. They
fired hollow brass shells, filled with highly combustible materials. The shots were devastating to the
Dutch, however, lucky for the Dutch, the English fleet had few of these shells due to high cost of
production.
Mock retreated on the first night, but the ships of Admiral Harmam drifted into the Dutch
lines and were suddenly set ablaze. It was a tactic that dated back to the battle against the Spanish
Armada, but did not break the Dutch the same way it did Spain. On the Morning of the second day,
Monck attempted to destroy the Dutch by a direct attack. After all, the Dutch during the First Anglo-
Dutch War scattered when beaten, why should they not during the Second?
Before the attack could commence, de Ruyter preempted him, by crossing the English line
and severely damaging several ships. After a first pass, the red flag was raised, signaling an all-out
attack by the Dutch. The ensuing melee caused much devastation between the two fleets. Tromp was
forced to transfer his flag four times due to damage caused by his own overzealous assault. De
Ruyter held such an advantage in numbers, he sent several ships to escort both damaged and captured
ship back to port.
During the second night and the third day, the English retreated westward, with the Dutch
in pursuit. Unlike the Battle of Scheveningen, the Dutch captains held rank and the ships held
formation. Several English ships were cut off from retreat, and were forced to surrender or be sunk.
Even Admiral Ayscue had to surrender to Tromp when one of his men struck the flag. It was the first
and last time an English Admiral was captured at sea.
Where the third day was the biggest disaster in the history of the (English/British) Royal
Navy, the fourth day could only be worse. Several ships joined Monck, with fresh sailors and a hold
load of ammunition. But these few newcomers were not enough to turn the battle, even with de
Ruyter’s force shrunk. Many of the English ships engaging in the battle from day one were already
out of powder. It was not lack of planning, but rather the English gunners proved more efficient than
their Dutch counterparts, and thus extended their ammunition faster.
The English continued their retreat, but several stragglers were boarded, captured and later
added to the (Dutch) Royal Navy. With his own ships damaged, though still packing powder, de
Ruyter called of pursuit once the English vanished into a fog bank. He would not press his luck and
turn victory into a disaster. Though many historians call the Four Days Battle inconclusive, it is
certain that after the battle, the English had little chance of forcing their peace on the Dutch.
St. James Day Battle
August 5, English and Dutch navies clashed again near North Foreland, this time they
outnumbered the Dutch by one ship. That one ship made it possible for the English to secure victory.
It was not a decisive victory, but it did keep de Ruyter from landing Dutch Marines on English
shores, at least for the time being. That was de Ruyter’s intention, to land and destroy the English
ships while they were under repair.
The English discovered the Dutch sailing into position and engaged them before the Dutch
could form ranks. The English scattered many of the Dutch navy, sailing from banks of fog like
banshees. The surprise was enough to break the momentum of the Dutch. For most of the day, the
two fleets attempted to gain advantage of wind against their foe. By the next morning, the losses
were light; England lost one ship, the Dutch two.
However, by now, de Ruyter discovered his position was hopeless and ordered a general
retreat. Many of the ships were already scattered and retreated on their own, leaving the Dutch
Admiral with a mere forty ships. The English were still in fair shape, and if their Admiral, the Prince
of the Rhine, had chose to, he likely could have rolled up de Ruyter and crippled the Dutch.
However, he was satisfied by simply humiliating the Dutch Navy.
The Brazilian Expedition
In late 1666, the English considered capturing the Netherlands’ most vital trading post in
North America, New Amsterdam. After some consideration, the English Admiralty decided why
have a trading post when you could have all the sugar. The planned for an invasion of Brazil, similar
to the one lead by van Bohr decades earlier. However, unlike the Portuguese, the Dutch were well
prepared for attack against their colonies. Without them, they would have no commodities to trade.
In the Battle of the Amazon Delta, Dutch Admiral, the Count of Natal, lead a small fleet of
seventeen warships against a much larger English fleet. However, out of the twenty-six ships, more
than half were transports, carrying soldiers and supplies needed for the conquest and occupation of
Dutch Brazil. Natal used the strong currents of the Amazon, which extended far into the Atlantic,
to carry his force quickly across the English formation. In one pass, the Dutch crippled two English
warships, weakening their ability to defend the transports.
Due to the river’s currents, several hours were required to reposition the Dutch fleet. Natal
took a gamble on this attack, for it permitted the English enough time to sail out of reach, and
perhaps land on the northern coast of Brazil. As it were, Natal took this into consideration, and
instead of sailing an arc, decided to intercept the English, knowing they would rush for land.
Five hours later, Natal made another pass at the English, pounded them with broadsides,
knocking three more ships out of action, one of which was captures. One Dutch ship was sunk in the
course of action. With even less protection for essentially defenseless transports (they could defend
themselves against Dutch Marines, but why board them when you could sink them?) The English
Admiral opted for retreat.
The Raid on Medway
After having his first attempt thwarted, de Ruyter launched a second attempted landing in
England, again English ships in dock were his target. Instead of attempting a one-shot attack, de
Ruyter divided his forces, sending the ships of Denmark-Norway north to attack Scottish ports. The
Scots were not happy with their own union with England. De Ruyter’s northern force, commanded
by Danish Admiral Eirikson, feigned an attempted landing in Yorkshire, which would divide the
island. He escorted a number of armed, and unoccupied Danish transports to complete the deceit.
Upon hearing a force scouting near York, Charles II ordered Monck to defend the Yorkshire
Coasts. Only when the English were committed to the voyage did de Ruyter move into position. He
took a trick from the English book and sailed out of the fog. With sixty-two Ships-of-the-Line, de
Ruyter entered the Thames River unopposed. The few English ships on station sailed to engage the
Dutch. Only when the fog was blown away did the English see the size of the Dutch fleet. Their
target was not York after all, it was London. The remaining English ships sailed up the Thames to
bring word of invasion.
With no fleet in sight, several aging merchantmen were sunk in the Thames, an attempt to
block any further advance. De Ruyter unloaded some fifteen hundred marines, under the command
of the Baron van Ghent. Local English lords called forth militia, knights and anyone who could hold
a pike. Their attempt to stop a battle-hardened contingent of Dutch Marines failed miserably. Many
of the English peasants fled at the sight of the Marines’ first shot.
Further calls-to-arms rang across most of south-eastern England. Charles II prepared for his
own flight from London should it come to that. Reports brought to the English King gave him the
impression that fifteen thousand Netherlanders were marching on the capital. Lucky for them, the
Dutch were on their way to Kent. The call-to-arms fell on mostly deaf ears. England faced financial
troubles after the Brazilian debacle, and many of the sailors and some soldiers have not been paid
in months, thus were not overly motivated to risk their lives. As far as they were concerned,
whatever was to happen, the cheapskates deserve it.
Five days passed before the Dutch reached Chatham, due to some trouble in landing and
navigating the shoals. Alarms were sounded at Chatham Shipyards. Some of the smaller Dutch ships
sailed up the Medway on June 12, and commenced attacking English defenses around a large chain
spread across the river. Marine artillery opened up on the shipyard shortly afterwards. With little
defense in the shipyards, and few sailors to man those ships in drydock, the Dutch Marines advanced
after a minimal bombardment.
Dockworkers and shipwrights fled at the sight of Marines. What few militiamen were around
merely fired a few shots for the honor of King and Country before retreating. The Marines did not
give pursuit, their orders were clear. As soon as the defense was clear, they turned on the shipyard.
Once the chain was clear, many vessels of de Ruyter’s fleet sailed into dock. As soon as the
gangplanks were lowered, Dutch sailors helped themselves to everything that was not nailed down.
The following day, a general panic struck London. Rumors flew around without restraint. The
Dutch were in the process of loading a French army in Dunkirk, and planned to ferry them across
the sea. The populous of London were feeling especially vulnerable after the fire that gutted their city
a year earlier. The wealthy boarded up their houses, loading their valuables and headed off to their
country estates, hoping to escape the full-scale invasion they believed imminent. There was no
French army, and the French were not even involved in the war, aside from the occasional mercenary
or sailor.
By June 14, the Dutch were through plundering the shipyard. Cannons, shot, powder, salted
beef and fish, bullion, coins and anything shinny swiftly vanished from the shipyards and warehouses
along the wharf. Drydocks were flooded and English ships towed away by the Dutch. The English
flagship, HMS Royal Charles was towed away by de Ruyter as a personal trophy. Dutch sailors and
marines manned the captured vessels, often with skeleton crews. Any ships that could not be taken,
had their hulls breach and packed full of tinder, before set ablaze. The drydocks themselves were set
ablaze, and the piers torched. De Ruyter would not leave a single ship, not even a rowboat, for the
English to use.
The raid on the Medway was one of the most brilliant victories in the history of the United
Provinces. Sixteen English warships were stolen right out of drydock, and two dozen more were
scuttled. It was the Seventeenth Century equivalent of destroying the aircraft on the ground. England
could not recover from the raid, and it soon was forced to sue for peace. Charles II still feared
invasion. Upon leaving English waters and returning home, de Ruyter is known to have said to the
Count of Holland, “Had I known landing would be so easy, I would have brought an army.” For his
part in the raid, and leading the Dutch to victory in the war, Michiel de Ruyter was granted the title
of Marquess of New Amsterdam, along with an estate on Manhattan and lands along the Mauritius
River. If the Dutch did invade instead of raid, they might very well have eliminated England once
and for all, perhaps even transforming it into another colony.
Treaty of Breda
The treaty was signed in the city of Breda, by England, United Provinces and Denmark-
Norway on July 31, 1667. It brought a swift end to the Second Anglo-Dutch War, an end that favored
the Dutch victors. The humiliation of Westminster was finally avenged. By the time negotiations
began, de Ruyter virtually controlled the seas surrounding Britannia. Despite their decisive victory,
William III insisted on lenient terms. He did not want England to spend the next ten years plotting
its own revenge.
The first order of business was the repeal of the Navigation Acts, allowing the Dutch to
import goods to England and its colonies. Furthermore, the United Provinces secured a worldwide
monopoly on nutmeg and cinnamon, forcing the English to give up their operations in the East
Indies. The war bankrupted England, and another article of the treaty allowed for England to take
out loans from the Bank of Amsterdam along with other Dutch banks at low interest rates, a subject
introduced by certain members of the Second Chamber.
The Treaty of Breda did more than end a war, it reversed the face of European Alliances. An
amendment to the treaty was hammered out by personal representatives of both William III and
Charles II, in which, in return for Dutch support of England against its other enemies, Charles II
promised his then five year old niece Mary, to William III. Another ten years would pass before
Mary would make her matrimonial voyage to the House of Orange’s estate in Delft. With the signing
of the treaty, it would seem that trade and commerce would be safe for the foreseeable future.
However, with the passing of Charles II, his son James II would take the throne and immediately
begin to welch on England’s end of the deal, and in a generation, the Dutch would return to England.
Rising Tensions
Upon taking the throne, shortly after Charles’s untimely death following the Treaty of Breda,
James II of England tried to back out of many aspects of the Treaty of Breda, including the marriage
alliance. A converted Catholic, James II was opposed to having his daughter merry a Protestant king.
The House of Orange, along with the United Provinces, was divided between both Catholic and
Protestant, yet like the Provinces, it managed to exist without tearing itself apart. William III was
a private Protestant, believing his own faith had no business in the affair of the state. The King of
England was having the opposite problem with his own parliament; he was only allowed to take the
throne as a private Catholic.
Only fear of a Third Anglo-Dutch War, and complete dismantling of England’s overseas
empire, forced James II to relent. In 1677, he boarded his daughter Mary on one of the finest ships
in the English Navy for a one-way voyage to the United Provinces. The marriage of William and
Mary was widely celebrated across the United Provinces and William’s other kingdom, Denmark-
Norway. It was seen not only as a marriage between two people, but between two nations. Any
offspring of the two would potentially be King of three nations.
After two miscarriages, Princess-consort Mary soon conceived and gave birth to her and
William’s only child, Johann Willem, in 1678. Again, the United Provinces celebrated, as did
Denmark-Norway, though William I of Denmark-Norway did not address the nobility of Denmark
as often as William III of the United Provinces addressed the Staaten-General. He ruled the distant
nordic kingdom through a viceroy. However, in England, James II did not welcome the birth. He
secretly hoped for the couple to be childless, for now a Netherlander was in line for the English and
Scottish crowns.
Tensions were further heightened when France’s Sun King, Louis XIV, turned his eyes
towards the southern Provinces. Before he claimed that the Rhine River was France’s natural
boundary with the rest of Europe. Only fear of complete blockade, especially following the
resounding victory of the Dutch during in 1667, prevented the French from carrying out their designs
against the Netherlands. It did not, however, protect various other states along the Rhine.
When war with France appeared inevitable, William III called for his allies across the North
Sea to raise an army. As King of Denmark-Norway, William easily raised an army of Danes.
However, England was its own country, with its own King. James III refused the pleas, and went as
far as to declare the alliance null and void. He claimed that any agreement signed under duress
(especially after the Medway raid) was no longer binding.
William could have had James II simply eliminated, for the English King had enough
enemies in parliament. However, by 1687, James II already had a son and heir, so removing him
would only put another James on the throne, this one with plots to avenge his father’s death. Instead,
William III hatched a plan with key nobles of the Firsts Chamber. Not only would he removed James
II from the English throne, but would also install his wife, Mary as Queen of England.
The Glorious Revolution
By 1688, James further alienated the United Provinces by forbidding any Englander or
Scotlander (not that the Irelanders had much choice to begin with) from serving in the Dutch army.
He demanded that many English and Scottish mercenaries be released from service. In total, only
one hundred fifty British returned home.
William III knew if he was going to move against James, he would have to do so fast. The
French were already preparing to launch an attack into Flanders, and likely aimed at Antwerp once
again. In September, the French began to seize Dutch merchantmen in French ports, an act of war
in the eyes of the Staaten-General and Dutch trading companies. A Dutch fleet of some eighty
warships was assembled to escort thirty thousand men and five thousand horses across the narrowest
sections of the North Sea.
Following the Second Anglo Dutch War, the English Navy shrunk drastically. With debts
to pay off, the funding for more ships simply did not exist. It left England in the position of secondrate
naval power for the next century. Twenty years later, the Dutch did not particularly fear
interception by England’s now decrepit fleet. Nonetheless, the Dutch ships made a thorough pass
through waters between the Provinces and Britannia before allowing the invasion force to set sail.
Though they suffered through bad weather, they finally made landfall on November 5,
disembarking in Torbay, near Brixham. Using lessons learned from the small-scale raids of the last
war, the landing went without incident. To his surprise, William was greeted with a show of popular
support. William already declared before the Staaten-General and in letters to England’s parliament
that he had no desire to take the crown for himself, and that it was his wife, and England’s rightful
Queen, who would sit upon the throne.
The question has been asked, why did William become William III of England? England and
Scotland spent a better part of the Sixteenth Century locked in civil war. At the center of these
struggles, was religion. Always. William III was a Protestant, as per Danish law. Only a Protestant
could take the throne of Denmark-Norway, and in that realm, he had to publicly admit his faith. The
United Provinces has a strong secular tradition. What one believes is one’s own business, whether
they be Catholic, Protestant, or one of the small, but growing Buddhists population.
England simply made their faith too public, going as far as to persecute those who did not
view the same world view as the majority. In fact, it was a tyranny of the majority in that respect. To
a monarch from the Netherlands, England was simply more trouble than it was worth. Religion aside,
it cost the United Provinces a great deal of capital to raise such a large army, and would cost even
more to occupy a nation that might not want to be occupied.
Again, before the crowds in Torbay, William renounced any claim to the English crown.
England should be ruled by an Englander, thus Mary will be Queen. The crowds did not listen. James
II was so detested, they were pleased to have anyone but him on the throne. As soon as his army was
organized, William marched inland with eighteen thousand soldiers and three thousand cavalry, the
rest fanned out to scout and to hold their landing sites.
Dutch and English armies met on the Salisbury plains on November 19. Almost immediately,
James begin to loose any support in his army. Only a few skirmishes, in which English actually won,
around Salisbury spilled any blood. The rest of the ‘battle’ consisted of desertion, along with anti-
Catholic rioting in London. Hearing of desertion, the English commander, Lord Cornbury, ordered
the English Army to retreat. Many soldiers deliberately straggled, just to desert. On the 24th, one of
James’s chief commanders, Lord Churchill, defected to William’s side. Two days later, James own
daughter, Princess Ann, went over to the Dutch.
By early December, enough of the English Army deserted James, that his wife, and the Prince
of Wales both fled to France. James attempted to flee the next day, however was captured by
fishermen on December 11. With chaos reigning in London, rioting and looting ruling day and night,
many members of Parliament welcomed the arrival of the Dutch Army, with King William III at its
head. Parliament itself extended an invitation for William to take the crown. After his attempt to flee
his won country, no Englander was likely to follow the rule of James II ever again.
William politely refused, and upon entering London, sent word back to Delft, summoning
his wife to London. By the middle of December, with the Army effectively disbanded, England
declared for Mary. Many in the English Government debated as to James II’s fate. William
interceded on behalf of his father-in-law. If James wishes to leave, then there was no reason why they
(England in general) should prevent it. On the 23rd, James boarded a ship in Kent and set sail to
rejoin with his wife in France.
Mary arrived in London on January 3, 1689, to much jubilation. Not only did her arrival
prevent another round of religious violence, but she permitted Parliament to pass the Exclusion Act,
banning any Catholic from taking the English crown. William was staunchly opposed to the law on
principle, however not only was he not the King of England, but he was not even English. This was
his wife’s nation, and Mary II decided nobody like her earlier namesake, Mary I, should ever be
allowed to take the throne. Many Dutch politicians could not help but feel that by effectively banning
a whole religious sect from public service, that they have betrayed the ideals of the Pacification of
Ghent.
However, Mary was not put on the throne for sake of English personal freedoms, but rather
to bring England into compliance with their alliance. War with France was at hand, and the whole
adventure into England was launched because William III feared that under James II, England might
just side with Louis XIV against the United Provinces. It is called the Glorious Revolution, but there
was nothing glorious about it.
The Nine Years War
With Mary II reigning in England and Scotland (with William as Prince-consort), William
III prepared to face the French. War with France was a long time coming. After the Thirty Years
War, France began to gobble up small states surrounding her, gradually making her way towards the
Rhine River. Lorraine, parts of the Saar Valley, and even Strasbourg fell under the sway of Louis
XIV. The Catholic Sun King believed that the southern Provinces would welcome the selfproclaimed
Defender of the Faith with open arms.
He could not be any more wrong. He failed to understand that what a Catholic Netherlander
loved more than his faith was his freedom. In the 1680s, the inhabitants of the United Provinces were
the freest people in all of Europe. Gone were the days a feudal lord ruled a village with an iron fist.
Instead, the Dutch effectively governed themselves on a municipal level. They elected mayors,
councilors and even attended public forums, where the public, not any one lord, would decide what
laws and ordinances should be passed.
On a provincial and national level, law-abiding citizens were mostly left alone by officials.
The Dutch determined that the best way to contribute to society was by making a profit. The only
regulating before the age of Napoleon came in the form of regulating trade
between the Provinces.
Delegates to the Staaten-General did their best to prevent their neighbors from growing to powerful.
Tax collectors were a necessary bane, a functionary to keep the nation alive, and taxation was kept
to a bare minimum, just enough to balance the Staaten-General’s books3.
France, on the other hand, the state was everywhere. Louis XIV ruled his kingdom with all
the restraint as a Roman Caesar. He claimed divine rights as an excuse for his despotism. In France,
lords still presided over their lands, and their serfs. The French people could not up and leave as they
pleased, for they were bound by custom and law to the land of their birth. Nor were they allowed
independent thought. Anyone who did not conform with the Vatican faced repression, expulsion, and
on occasion, extermination.
In the Edict of Nantes, Louis dispersed all Protestant communities within his realm.
Huguenots fled to England, the United Provinces, and Germany, bringing with them tales of the
brutality of France’s monarch. In total, two hundred thousand French Protestants fled the
persecution. Tens of thousands of these refugees found their way into Dutch colonies of New
Amsterdam, Brazil, and the VOC’s supply depot of Capestaat. Huguenots were essential in founding
the city of Willemsbourg, in southern Brazil on the site that was once the French colony of
Henryville, and the Portuguese town of Rio de Janeiro4.
The Nine Years War began in September of 1688 when Louis commanded Marshall
Boufflers to invade the Rhineland. Phillippsburg fell on October 30, followed by Mannheim,
Oppenheim, Worms, Heidelberg, and the fortress city of Mainz. One city refused to surrender to the
thirty thousand man army, and in return, when Coblenz fell, Boufflers ordered it reduced to ashes.
By 1689, Louis was master of the Rhine, and a direct threat to Dutch trade throughout the ancient
Holy Roman Empire. Even before France rose to this position, they were already impounding Dutch
merchantmen in French harbors. That alone compelled William to undertake his landing in England
and force the ally into supporting him. If not for such premature seizures, it is entirely possible that
a French invasion could have taken the United Provinces by surprise, and with James II refusing to
help, it would have dire consequences on the (alternate) history of the Netherlands.
Louis hoped for a quick victory. With the Holy Roman Empire along with the Habsburgs,
fighting Turks in the East it should have been easy. The impact on Emperor Leopold had the
opposite effect. He recalled army under the Electorate of Bavaria from the Ottoman Front to defend
southern Germany. The French failed to prepare for such an eventuality. Realizing this would not
be a brief and decisive parade of French glory, Louis resolved upon a scorched-earth policy in the
Rhineland.
In March of 1689, Louis selected the cities intended for destruction, starting with Heidelberg.
The Count of Tesse torched the city, and on march 8, Montclair leveled Mannheim. Both
Oppenheim and Worms were destroyed by the end of May. In June, the Elector of Brandenburg,
aided by the Dutch commander, Menno van Coehoorn, besieged Kaiserwerth, and forced it
capitulation on the 26th. Charles, the Duke of Lorraine, commanded an army of sixty thousand men,
resolved on retaking Mainz. The town yielded on September 8, followed by the surrender of Bonn
one month later.
Mons
On May 12, 1689, William III signed the Grand Alliance with the Emperor, with the lofty
goal of forcing France back into pre-Thirty Years War boundaries, thus depriving Louis XIV of all
his gains. After his losses across the Rhineland, Louis turned France’s attention towards the city of
Luxembourg. The Duchy of Luxembourg had the misfortune of standing at a crossroads between
great European powers. Luxembourg often appeared out of place in the United Provinces. It lacked
the wide-scale commercial success of the other Provinces, and was considered by others as a
backwater, a place of quaint little villages and rustic inns.
Backwater or not, it was one of the United Provinces, and an attack on it was an attack on
the other sixteen. It was the first city to fall under the guns of Louis XIV, but by far not the last. It
held out against siege until 1691, when the Dutch Army, under the command of the Duke of Brabant,
lifted the siege and drove the French from the Duchy. As with anywhere in the southern Provinces,
the French came forth claiming to be liberators, to free the cities from the oppression of the heretics.
The same was declared at Mons, in 1690. The French, under the command of recently
humiliated Boufflers, invested the city with forty-six thousand men. What little defense the city
could muster was easily brushed aside. Boufflers marched down the avenues of Mons as if he were
the liberator, though not a single Netherlander was safe from his wrath. The first to go where the
small population of Buddhists living in the city.
Since the VOC established colonies on Ceylon and Formosa, the peoples of the East were
free to travel west, as long as they proved useful to the company. Upon arriving in the United
Provinces, monks set forth into the Netherlands, establishing temples in every major city, along with
Monasteries in the countryside. Their goal was not to convert the locals, though they would teach
to those who wished to listen, but rather to learn all they could about this new land. They studied
Europe’s religions, literature, science and arts. Every so often, a monk would return to the East,
bringing the treasure of knowledge with him.
The French simply declared the peaceful monks, and any Netherlander who followed their
path as heathens, showing them no mercy. Hundreds of monks were slaughtered in Mons when they
attempted to nonviolently resist the invasion. Every other Buddhist who could not flee north were
given the choice between embracing the Christian God, or meeting that same god in person. Some
relented, paying lipservice to the Church, but a few remained defiant to the end, and learned that
French were as tolerant under Louis XIV as they were under Charlemagne.
The next to suffer were both Protestant and Jewish populations in Mons. The Jews resisted
especially hard, for the United Provinces were the only nation in all of Europe that accepted them
as citizens and not aliens. This was their home, and they would fight for it. Those who did not follow
both Buddhist and Protestants north, were killed mercilessly. All the bloodshed enraged the Catholic
population. They were faithful to their Church, but these were their neighbors being killed. Though
the Dutch people pride themselves on tolerance (as well with their business savvy) there were always
extremist within a society. These were the only ones to welcome the French with open arms.
Antwerp Under Fire (Again)
After the fall of Mons, the French Army continued its march northward, to the city of
Antwerp. Antwerp only recently began to recover from the siege during the Thirty Years War, and
before that the Dutch Revolution. The city never regained the glory it knew under the Burgundians,
but by 1691, it was just starting to grow into a (minor) commercial center. The locals knew they
could not overshadow the colossus that is Amsterdam, but they did not desire such. They only wish
to live profitable lives.
Their profits were cut short again in the spring of 1691. Two Dutch armies, one under the
command of the Count of Holland, another commanded by Tomas vas Leir, numbering some sixteen
thousand men-at-arms, holed up within the city and surrounding areas. Instead of launching a direct
assault against fortified strongholds, the French set up a parameter to the south of Antwerp, laden
with dozens of cannon. Boufflers was content to starve the Dutch into submission. He could not
threaten them, for tales of the atrocities committed within Mons only fueled the resolve of the
citizens and defenders.
The siege was only in its second week when it was broken by the King of the United
Provinces. William was quite delayed in returning home when James II landed in Ireland and
provoked the Irish to rebel. Too many men died and too many resources were expended in keeping
his wife’s Kingdom from disintegrating. When William landed, a scant six kilometers down river
from Antwerp, he was not alone. Tens of thousands of Dutch and English soldiers were under his
command.
The following battle ended in near disaster for the French. Boufflers attempted to hold
ground against William’s landing, but in the end, he was forced to sound a retreat. Upon returning
to Mons, the French left three thousand of their own dead on the battlefield, seven times as many
than the Dutch lost. Though France’s ambitions were stalled in the north for the time being, they
engaged and defeated boat Spain and Savoy along the Mediterranean. As much as any Netherlander
loathed to admit it, Spain must be kept in the war. If they let them lose, France would turn those
forces north.
Anglo-Dutch and French forces clashed repeatedly in the County of Namur. Each battle
lacked the decisive edge needed to bring the other side to the negotiating tables. By 1693, Louis XIV
had four hundred thousand men in the French Army (at least on paper). Such a large army required
large amounts of funding, and France faced an economic crisis. Topped off with crop failures and
famine in 1694, France was teetering on the brink of collapse.
Before the Grand Alliance would offer reasonable terms in its peace proposal, William III
decided to go on the offensive. By April of 1695, Namur was cleared of all French forces. Mons held
out against all attempts at liberation, offering the French a minimal toehold on the United Provinces.
William failed to remove the French forces by the time all sides sat down for negotiations at
Ryswick. The Staaten-General wished to continue the war until all of the Netherlands were free, but
Spain was ready for peace, as was the United Province’s ally, England. The cession of Mons started
a tragic chapter in that city’s history. For more than a century to follow, the city would change hands
until finally being rewarded to France during the Congress of Vienna.
Treaty of Ryswick
Though called a treaty, it was anything but. At most, it was but a cease-fire, one that would
last until Spain fell into dynastic crisis in 1701. The parties involved in the Nine Years War met in
Ryswick, near the Hague. By the terms of the treaty, Louis was allowed to keep Alsace and
Strasbourg, but forced to give up all claim to Luxembourg. In order to curry favor with Spain (over
the upcoming succession question) France evacuated all of its gains in Catalonia. Lastly, though still
sheltering James II, who escaped from Ireland, France recognized Mary II as the rightful Queen of
England.
Emperor Leopold was the only holdout on the treaty. He desired a continuation of war, to
strengthen his own claim to the Spanish Throne. His initial resistance was weakened by the fact that
he still was at war with the Ottomans, and could not face France alone. He signed the treaty, and
netted a sizable accretion of power. His own son was named King of the Romans, and the chief
candidate for the Polish-Lithuanian Throne.
The treaty was signed in October, 1697. The United Provinces, knowing this was a temporary
peace at best, increased the size of garrisons and expanded fortifications in the southern Provinces.
The biggest question of the day, the of Spanish succession, was not discussed at Ryswick. Perhaps
if it had been, war might have been prevented. Within three years, the Spanish King would be dead,
and the Grand Alliance would plunge Europe back into war.

[The Kiat]

Here's the flag of the United Provinces of the Netherlands from my pdf notes. The picture file appears to excede my upload limit.

[Snowman23]

Cool, keep it up. A Very good read. Liked the foreshadowing of the Battle of the Java Sea...:eek:

[The Kiat]

V) The Changing Face of Europe
(1702-1763)
Spanish Succession
In 1700, only three years since the end of the Nine Years War, Charles II of Spain died,
bequeathing all his possessions to Phillip, Duke of Anjou, and grandson of Louis XIV. The only
other option than Phillip V, was the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, the Austrian Habsburg cousin
of Charles II. As early as 1668, Leopold agreed to a potential partition of Spanish territory between
the Habsburgs and Bourbons. However, Phillip was not a party of the agreement, and disregarded
treaties of partition.
Louis’s advisors made the case of accepting the Partition Treaty of 1700, as opposed to
risking war by claiming the whole of the Spanish Empire. Arguments within the French court
brought forth the idea that war with Austria was inevitable. They would have to fight for their slice
of Spanish territory. Upon this revelation, the advisors stood down, leaving the decision effectively
in the hands of Louis XIV. On November 24, 1700, Louis declared the Duke of Anjou the new King
of Spain, and contrary to partition treaties, Phillip claimed all the inheritance.
The prediction of war came to fruition. Charles II was a Habsburg, and thus his dominion
belonged to the family. Austria could not tolerate a Bourbon on the Spanish throne. Early in 1701,
Austria, and the Holy Roman Empire, declared war upon the Bourbons. With the Grand Alliance still
in effect, Louis cut off both England and the United Provinces from Spanish trade. The Oranges
might not care which other family sat upon Spain’s throne, but they do care when their Kingdom’s
trade it threatened.
Could the United Provinces have stayed out of the War of Spanish Succession? Perhaps. By
1701, the English were prepared to recognize Phillip V. That alone might have prevented war,
however, the Dutch still had an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire. National honor would be
infringed by backing out. It was an early lesson, and warning against entanglement with future
alliances. With Europe’s less enlightened nations constantly at war, the Dutch will simply decide that
alliances are bad for business.
King Johann I
Born August 4, 1678, Johann Willem Oranje, was the only child of William III of the United
Provinces and Denmark-Norway, and Mary II of England and Scotland. He was born in a position
that could potentially inherit all four thrones. By the age of twenty-four he did inherit the thrones of
the United Provinces and Denmark-Norway. However, the English-Scottish throne was already
promised to Mary’s sister, Anne. That was fine for the Netherlander; Britannia was more trouble than
it was worth.
Upon the death of William III, Johann I inherited more than realms. War already exploded
across Europe, with the Netherlands placed directly between two large adversaries; one an ally
another an enemy. It was not the first time the Provinces were in this position, nor would it be the
last. The United Provinces were situated on a location ideal for trade and horrible for land-based
defenses. During the War of Spanish Succession, the Dutch would enhance and expand fortifications
in the southern Provinces. It was an undertaking started by William III, and would end with William
IV.
Almost immediately upon taking the throne, Johann had to contend with Louis XIV declaring
war on the Provinces. The Dutch Navy was already active in the English Channel after Louis cut off
trade, but the real combat did not begin until 1704. From their hold in Mons, the French launched
another invasion of the southern Provinces. It was a two prong attack; one heading east into the
Empire via Luxembourg, the second an assault against Antwerp, on a virtually identical course as
during the last war.
William III predicted the French would attack Antwerp again. At the mouth of the Rhine,
Antwerp was sort of an obsession for Louis XIV and his descendants. Though the city recovered
from the Dutch Revolution, it fell under attack by the French repeatedly during the Eighteenth
Century. It is believed the Louis hoped to use Antwerp as an anchor of sorts, to press the French
frontier on to the Rhine. If this happened, ten of the United Provinces would fall under French rule.
Invasion of the South
The attack on Antwerp was almost doomed from the start. Using the same roads as they had
a decade earlier, the French doomed themselves to concentrated defenses constructed by the Dutch.
Several fortresses sprang up since the last French foray, and lack of advance scouting (say scouting
months or years beforehand) led the invaders into a brick wall.
Dutch cannons commanding the roads leading to Antwerp cut down ranks of French soldiers
with grapeshot. The Duke of Vendome ordered charge after charge against Dutch position. He hoped
to break the Dutch, but instead only depleted his own ranks. The attack on Antwerp was not a total
loss for Louis’s army. Detachments of cavalry flanked the fortresses to raid Antwerp and its docks.
After the Nine Years War, almost all Dutch trading companies diverted their shipments from
Antwerp to better protected ports, such as Rotterdam, Middleberg and Amsterdam.
Little was taken, however that did not prevent the French from setting fire to the docks. With
much of Antwerp’s manpower down the road thwarting the French, fire quickly spread across the
city. If not for a freak storm off the North Sea, along with three days’ worth of rain, it is entirely
possibly Antwerp’s history would have ended in 1704. As it happened, two more wars would pass
before Antwerp was effectively abandoned.
The Siege of Luxembourg turned out to be a more complicated battle than the meat-grinder
south of Antwerp. For ten months the French lay siege to the city of Luxembourg, and again had yet
to breach the walls. The walls around Luxembourg were not the monstrosities seen during the
Middle Ages, but were well proofed against cannon. The siege was lifted early in 1705 by a German-
Dutch-English combined army lead by the Duke of Marlborough.
Blenheim
The reason for an English Duke to lead an army to Luxembourg’s safety came from a burning
desire to keep the Austrians in the war. They were, after all, one of the two parties that started the
twelve year long conflict. The Staaten-General wished for the Duke to stay in the Netherlands,
perhaps in an attempt to regain Mons. Ignoring the wishes of the Dutch, Marlborough lead the army
into southern Germany.
The goal of march was to prevent the Franco-Bavarian armies from marching on Vienna. In
the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century, it was common practice to end a war by taking the
opposing side’s capital. This often lead to the side that lost suing for terms. To prevent Austria, and
thus the Holy Roman Empire, from capitulating, Marlborough would link up with another army lead
by Eugene and block the French.
The Anglo-Dutch-German forces met the French and Bavarians under the command of
Tallard at Blenheim. The Battle of Blenheim is said to be the turning point of the War of Spanish
Succession. Marlborough won a resounding victory, turning Tallard back and effectively knocking
Bavaria out of the war. By 1707, France was one ally short.
However, the French potentially had another ally waiting to board. In the far north, Sweden
was at odds with Denmark-Norway and Russia in a grand war waging for control of the Baltic. The
Swedish King, Charles XII, had to chose between Denmark-Norway and Russia. Sweden was not
the behemoth it is today, and thus could only afford to fight one enemy at a time. In 1705, the
pressed the issue with the Danish. With Johann I still King of Denmark-Norway, he would be forced
to divide his armies between two enemies. Overall, the Swedes had no quarrel with the Dutch,
especially since the Dutch could close the Baltic Sea with ease.
Act of Union
Johann I was willing to come to the aid of his other kingdom in the event of war with
Sweden, however, the Staaten-General put a price on the help. The Dutch, a largely middle-class
mercantile people, spent the last fifty years supporting the poorer Danes. Nobility in Denmark-
Norway racked up large debts by taking out loans from Dutch banks. In total, Amsterdam and the
Hague effectively owned Kopenhägen and Bergen.
When war with Sweden loomed on the horizon, Danish nobility pleaded to their King,
Johann, to come to their aide. Since William III took the Danish throne, many Dutch have called for
unification between the two nations. In 1705, pro-unification factions ceased their opportunity. They
would allow soldiers and sailors of the United Provinces to protect Denmark-Norway only if the
Danes accept full political union, thus Danish and Norwegian defense would become Dutch defense.
The idea was resisted in noble circles in the Nordic states. Denmark had a long, proud
history, dating back to the Vikings. At one point, Danes ruled the North Sea, and Norwegians
expanded as far as the New World. They were not the only Vikings; the Swedes extended to the east,
called the Rus by the natives, they effectively invented Russia. Denmark-Norway spent the years
dating back to the Second Anglo-Dutch War in a downward spiral. If not for the Dutch, perhaps
Sweden would have absorbed part of, or even all of, the Danish Kingdom.
Negotiations for unification spanned most of 1705. When the deal looked to be faltering, the
Staaten-General added a clause that no indebted noble could refuse. If they two kingdoms became
one, then not only would defense be united, but so would debt. Large amount of debt would be
forgiven once the Treaty of Unification was signed and ratified. Some historians have accused the
Staaten-General of buying Denmark-Norway. Perhaps they are correct, for on August 15, 1705, the
Danish nobility gave in to Dutch demands. The Staaten-General quickly ratified the treaty.
September 3, 1705, went down in Dutch history, ranking as high as 1609, and 1887, in the
annuals of the United Provinces. Signing the treaty was the first step. Over the next three years,
reforms swept through Denmark and Norway. Danish nobles, some but not all, were forced to move
to the Hague in order to take their rightful place in the First Chamber. Danish and Norwegian
representatives took their place, though not as welcomed as the nobility, in the Second Chamber.
The Act of Union was not the unification that England and Scotland would enjoy during
1707. Instead, it was less unification and more annexation. The United Provinces changed little, yet
Denmark-Norway was forced to adapt to ways alien to them. The Staaten-General went as far as to
appoint governors to former Danish provinces, ‘in order to expedite the transition to a more
democratic society’. The transition lasted for a century, until the Age of Napoleon and later the
Congress of Vienna.
Danes soon found themselves second-class citizens within their own lands. Dutch companies
moved in to take the place of old Danish establishments. Norway itself was treated more along the
lines of Brazil or New Amsterdam than an equal Province. In 1738, William IV bestowed the title
of Grand Prince of Norway to his first born, and has continued to be the title for the heir-apparent
until the present day.
The Act of Union was not the only groundshaking change to strike the United Provinces in
the first decade of the Eighteenth Century. Only a few years after unification, the Dutch people were
presented the horrors of their own colonial institutions, and the consequences would topple one of

the most powerful companies in Dutch history.
Fall of the Dutch South Atlantic Company
Founded in 1605, the Dutch South Atlantic Company was granted a monopoly on trade in
the South Atlantic, and contracted to administer the colonies in Brazil and Angola. Brazil was a
jewel in the Dutch Empire’s crown, producing nearly every luxury crop the New World has to offer.
Angola remained a backwater for centuries, viewed as little more than impenetrable jungle. At first
glance, it had little to offer the Dutch. However, the South Atlantic Company found one resource in
Angola, a resource the plantations in Brazil desperately needed; manpower.
For a century, the South Atlantic Company monopolized Brazilian Slave Trade. How a nation
like the United Provinces, the freest in Europe at the time, could have more slave ships registered
beneath its flag than any other nation is a bit of a paradox. The Dutch people claimed to embrace
democracy and love freedom, yet allowed hundreds of thousands of people to be enslaved in its
distant colonies. As long as coffee, sugar and tobacco flowed into Dutch ports, the people were
content to turn a blind eye to slavery. All except one group.
One of the most sacred principles of the Buddhist monks and followers was to cause no harm.
For decades, monks struggled against the institution of bondage, though they managed little more
than protests in Amsterdam, the largest home to slavers in the world. To the average Netherlander,
the ways of the East were curiosities, though not taken serious by the mainstream. In 1700, only one
percent of the population of the United Provinces were Buddhists, and none of the members of the
Staaten-General followed the path of the Buddha.
Change had not happened, even after decades of attempting to expose the Dutch people to
the truth of slavery. In 1708, a group of adhered monks of the Western Buddhist Templar1, bored
several ships bound for Angola. They arrived in Luanda at roughly the same time. Donning
disguises, the monks managed to land jobs as sailors on three slave ships destined to Natal and
Salvador. According to the monks’ own principles, violence is forbidden. However, in the light of
what they viewed as the most terrible of man’s crimes, these monks used limited force in order to
take over all three ships. The captain and anyone who refused to cooperate, were lowered into boats
while the ships were still along the African coast, and it is not known whether any of them survived.
Months after the hijacking, all of Amsterdam was surprised by the arrival of three ships laden
with slaves. Though it housed the most slave ships in terms of registration, few of them ever
ventured to the United Provinces. The monks brought prominent leaders of the community onto the
ship to see the real cost of cheap sugar. Hundreds of slave crammed into the hold, with barely
enough room to move. Many were suffering from malnutrition, and many more died, despite the
monks’ efforts to keep them alive.
The South Atlantic Company demanded authorities arrest these ‘pirates’, which was precisely
what the city watch did. The monks knew the risks of hijacking ships, especially company ships, and
accepted the fate handed down by local judges. All were sentenced to prison, and more than half
were executed for the crime of piracy. It pleased the South Atlantic Company, but even in death, the
monks still managed to complete their mission.
The damage was done, and all of Amsterdam knew about the conditions in slave ships,
conditions no human should ever have to endure. Soon after, pamphlets rose up all across the
Provinces, preaching the evils of slavery and condemning the slavers. The South Atlantic Company
was not without options. Seeing how all the pamphlets and books were printed and published by the
Buddhist Templars, the Company attempted to turn its fellow Christians against them.
They were heathens, foreigners with their godless religion. Yes, Buddhism is without gods,
and the Buddhists are quite proud of their faith. The South Atlantic Company called for to every lawabiding
and god-fearing Netherlander to rise up and cast out the non-believers. The Company did
all it could to place the Religion card, and rally the population into an anti-Dharmic frenzy. They
reasoned that even the Church would aid them in doing God’s work.
The South Atlantic Company made the same mistake that both Louis XIV and Oliver
Cromwell made in dealing with the Provinces. Instead of unleashing a storm against all things
Buddhists, the Dutch people instead turned on the Company. How dare these businessmen, these
same people who profit off the misery of their fellow man violate the most sacred of all Dutch
percepts. In going against the Founders’ wishes and the Pacification of Ghent, the South Atlantic
Company managed to united all the faiths of the United Provinces against them.
By 1609, the whole Catholic community was behind the Buddhist Templars. Though they
do not share the same faith, they share the same language, the same food, and, with the exception
of the first monks to arrive, the same blood. The Bishop of Utrecht himself stood up before his
congregation and condemned the practice of slavery, declaring it an affront to Gods. Though the
Vatican agreed, on principle anyway, they made no official stance one way or the other.
Soon churches held rallies, Catholic, Lutheran and even Calvinist, against the evils of
slavery. The people soon began to act with their pocket book along with their voice. Brazilian sugar,
coffee and tobacco were boycotted in favor of the VOC or England’s American Colonies. It might
cost more, but to force a man into servitude– was that not what the Dutch fought against when they
rebelled against Spanish rule?
With the public so ardently against the South Atlantic Company, shareholders began selling
off their holdings. It soon became better (and more profitable) to invest in a venture that did not
involve chattel labor. Share prices fell, profits bottomed out, and by 1710, the Dutch South Atlantic
Company was forced to declare bankruptcy. Never before or since has the public of any nation
toppled such a large corporation, and never before had a boycott (including the American boycott
of British goods preluding the American Revolution) been so absolute.
However, the company’s fall was not the end. The people, and churches, continued to rally
around abolition. They started asking the same questions that historians ask today; how could a
nation built on person freedom allow for another person to be held in bondage. When public opinion
blows one way, the elected official bend to the wind. Delegates in the Second Chamber began to
debate the slavery issue in earnest, and not just because an election was rapidly approaching. In 1711,
Johann I, made on of his last decrees. He called for the Staaten-General to abolish the practice of
slavery throughout all of the United Provinces’ holdings and colonies. Before the King’s untimely
death, the United Provinces became the first European nation to outlaw slavery.
As for the South Atlantic Company, when it went bankrupt, it folded shortly afterwards. The
Staaten-General, and King Johann I, seized the lands after the monopoly was revoked. Brazil and
Angola both became crown colonies, soon subject to governor-generals and other official appointed
at the whim of the Hague. In Brazil, slavery was phased out over the next decade. Those slaves that
did not leave the plantation to build farms and homes of their own, were issued wages and paid rent.
It was similar to the estate system in feudalism, except these workers could leave whenever they
pleased. Prices rose, but not so much as to topple the large farming interests in Brazil. With the end
of slavery, indentured servitude saw a sharp rise, as a way for the relatively few poor of the United


Provinces to afford their way to a new life.

Oddly enough, the biggest winner over abolition were not the slaves, but rather the VOC. The
Dutch East India Company backed both the Buddhists Templars and all the protestors throughout
1709-10. They donated to rallies and churches, and pressed for their representatives in the Second
Chamber to act. They even managed to secure the release of the monks who started the whole
abolition movement. 1709 saw the fall of one Company and the security of another.
However, companies were not the only ones rising and falling in 1709. To the United
Provinces’ north and east, to regional powers were locked in a titanic struggle in the northern branch
of the War of Spanish Succession. By the same time as the Dutch slaves saw manumission, Eastern
Europe saw the fall of one empire and the rise of another in the Great Northern War.
The Battle of Poltava


One the Act of Union between the United Provinces and Denmark-Norway was finalized,
Charles XII of Sweden had little choice but to turn his attention away from the North Sea and throw

Sweden’s full might against the Russian Bear. From the time between 1705 and 1709, Sweden
fought Russia with less than stellar effort, and Charles failed to bring the war to conclusion before
the Summer of 1709. The war itself was started mostly over the establishment of Petrograd, a
Russian city in Swedish Baltic territory.
In 1709, the Swedish armies marched through the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and
attacked Russia along its souther border. The reason for such a round about invasion came from
negotiations between Charles XII and the Cossacks. In return for their freedom, the Cossacks would
ally with Sweden against their own hated oppressors. However, the invasion was not without its
problems, one involving a thousand soldiers and a pillaged stockpile of vodka.
On June 28, 1709, Tsar Peter personally lead the Russian Army to lift the Swedish siege
around the town of Poltava. At the start of the battle, the Russians held a three-to-one numerical
advantage. Peter pressed the attack, believing he could quickly roll up the Swedes. He was not totally
oblivious to Sweden’s plans, but believed a second army, under the command of General Roos, was
some three days out. In reality, they were only three hours away. The Swedes at Poltava held off the
Russian advances long enough for a second Swedish army of equal size to march on Peter’s flank.
Trapped between two armies, the Tsar ordered a frontal assault against the army closest to Poltava.
It had been battered for three hours and must be low on ammunition.
What happened after the charge occurred is not quite clear. What is known is that an
anonymous Swedish solider, firing in a volley, managed to pierce the Tsar’s chest, and toppling the
great Russian leader in his saddle. The shot went clean through his heart, killing Peter in a matter
of minutes. With the Tsar dead, the Russian charge faltered. The Russians were unsure how to move,
or who was even in charge. Their hesitation was all the Swedes required. In the space of another
hour, ten thousand Russians lay dead, and twenty more thousand wounded and now prisoners. The
ensuing chaos caused by the Tsar’s death allowed the Swedes a route.
Upon hearing of the turn of events, Charles recalled the armies north and personally launched


an assault on Petrograd. The city, filled with Russian Bouyars who built homes in the city by Peter’s
command, was sparely defended and fell before the day was out. Charles contemplated burning the
city, but decided it might be a useful port after all. Following Petrograd, the Russian Army, put up

one last act of resistance at Novgorod.
Against the Swedes alone, the Russians could have still won. However, Charles used the
Cossacks, sending them to attack the Russian’s flanks. Russian lines collapsed and the road to
Moscow was open. Moscow did not fall as much as it was sacked. For days, Swedish and Cossacks
alike took whatever they desired. Without a Tsar or even a Regent, it was unclear who to negotiate
with. Lack of negotiators did not detour the King of Sweden. The power vacuum presented a golden
opportunity. In the Spring of 1710, Charles XIII walked into St. Basil’s Cathedral, and walked out
as Tsar Charles I. He cemented his control over Russia by emancipating the serfs and removing
Russian nobility from its land. In return for helping them free their brethren in the south, the
Cossacks swore an oath of undying loyalty to Tsar Charles and the Swedish Royal Family. In the
following three centuries, the Cossacks were at the forefront of Sweden’s wars.3
King William IV
In the trailing days of the war, King Johann I road into the southern Provinces to inspect
defensive positions built throughout Liege, Artois and Luxembourg. Tragically, the King never
reached his first destination. When crossing the Hollands Diep one stormy afternoon, rough waters
capsized the ferry upon which he road. The King, along with most passengers, drowned attempting
to escape the sinking ship.
His death came months after the birth of his first child, Anna Charlotte, and just weeks before
the birth of his heir, Karel Hendrick. His mother served as regent until Karel reached fifteen years
of age, when the Staaten-General would allow him to ascend the throne, though he was King in title
since his birth. It was not uncommon for future Dutch monarchs to be born after their predecessor
met untimely fates.
He was crowned William IV, King of the United Provinces of the Netherlands in 1726, by
the Bishop of Liege, like all but one of the monarchs, Maurice II. He considered taking the regal
name of Karl I. It would have set well with the new Provinces of Norway and Denmark. However,
he opted William, in honor of his grandfather. In 1734, he married Anne of Great Britain, daughter
of George II, thus extending the Anglo-Dutch alliance, much to the detestment of Dutch businessmen
and politicians.
They attempted to block it, and even succeeded in denying Anne any sort of title. She was
unofficially known as the Princess-Consort. However, William made the case that if a man could not
decide who he would marry, then were the Provinces really free. Under normal circumstances this
is true, however by a Dutch King marrying into the new royal house of Britain, the British could very
well drag the Dutch into another one of its wars with France. For the early years of William IV, the
Netherlands enjoyed peace, but knew it would not be permanent.
Peace of Utrecht
By 1713, Europe’s Great Powers have had enough of war. Deficits had risen, and Spain even
went bankrupt in the course of a war to determine its King. The only nation not to end up broke were
the United Provinces. Austria and the newly formed United Kingdom took out loans from large
banks in Amsterdam. Though war has often been described as ‘bad for business’, the world’s largest
banks often profit greatly from them. Without loans, waging modern war would be next to
impossible.
In the end, the nations of Europe recognized Phillip V as King of Spain. The Bourbons took
control of the Spanish throne, but not all of its territory. Milan and Naples were ceded to Austria.
Furthermore, Gibraltar and Minorica ended up in British hands. The Bourbons were also forced to
give up land in exchange for the new throne. The United Provinces regained Mons, along with trade
concessions in France’s colonies. France also ceased its support for the Stuart pretenders to the
British throne.
With the Peace of Utrecht, the wars to prevent French domination of Europe during the
Seventeenth Century finally came to an end. With Bourbons on both thrones, Spain and France
remained allied for the remainder of the century, however with the loss of so much land, Spain lost
much of its power and was reduced to a second-rate nation. It was so broke, that during negotiations,
the King of Prussia offered to purchase one of Spain’s American colonies. Strapped for cash, Phillip
V agreed to sell Prussia the Viceroyalty of Rio del la Plata. The war that saw Spain’s final downward
spiral, also saw the rise of the German states.
Austrian Succession
By 1740, succession crisis struck Europe again, this time in the Central Europe. Upon the
death of the last Archduke of Austria, his daughter, Maria Theresa attempted to succeed him as
Queen of Hungary and Bohemia, Archduchess of Austria and Duchess of Parma. Her plan was to
succeed to the hereditary Habsburg domains, while her husband, Duke Francis I of Lorraine, would
be elected Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. The issue of succession was greatly complicated by
Salic law, which prohibited any female descendant from inheriting the throne.
The matter came to a head when Prussia’s King Frederick II launched an invasion of Silesia,
using a variety of minor unsettled dynastic claims as a pretext. More over, being a woman, Maria
Theresa was viewed as a weak ruler, and one better replaced by a strong male heir, such as Charles
Albert of Bavaria. The war between Austria and Prussia started merely over the possession of Silesia.
However, with France as an ally of Prussia, and the United Kingdom supporting Austria, other
powers were soon drawn into a war that had little to do with succession.
Due to William IV’s marriage to Princess Anne, the United Provinces were honor bound to
enter the war on the side of both British and Austrians. The Staaten-General drug its feet in declaring
war, but not it declaring defense. It allowed William IV to call up militia and send the standing army
into the southern Provinces, probable invasion route of the French. He was also allowed to deploy
the Royal Dutch Navy. As soon as the Navy went to sea, the navies of the companies, most notably
the VOC, followed. Declared war or not, they would defend company assets from any aggressor.
Once France joined Bavaria against Austria, the United Kingdom declared war upon France.
Again, the Staaten-General did not get half way through its deliberation when word of a French
declaration of war reached the Hague. Unlike previous wars, France did not immediately invade the
southern Provinces. Instead, it linked up with its Bavarians allies and attacked Austria. This gave the
United Provinces an opportunity to move first. The attack would not come across the border, but
rather on the island-kingdom of a trading partner in the middle of the Mediterranean.
The Sardinian Expedition
In mid-1741, a Dutch expeditionary force of some twelve thousand soldiers, the largest
overseas landing until the British land in Rhode Island in 1776, landed on the shores of Sardinia.
Under the command of Hendrick van Soot, the army’s objective was to secure the United Provinces’
position in Mediterranean trade, and secondary to aid a long standing trading partner. Like the United
Provinces, the Kingdom of Sardinia was once ruled by Spain. When the Netherlands launched their
revolution, Sardinians did the same. Unlike the Dutch, Sardinia did not succeed, at least not the first
time. It was not until the end of the Thirty Years War that Sardinia gained its independence.
When Buddhist monks hitched a ride across the ocean in the VOC’s ships, many of them
took a liking to the island nation. Monasteries dot the hills of Sardinia, mixing with Benedictine and
other such Catholic abbeys. While on the island, both religions shared ideas and learned from each
other. Many European monks were fascinated by the East, while many Ceylonese monks were
equally fascinated by the West. The two brands of Monasteries even managed to find some equal
grounding in their faiths, mainly; peace, compassion and love.
However, the Catholic kings of France did not look too kindly on the Sardinian Buddhists.
A few of the locals, a lesser percentage than of the Dutch, converted to the alien faith. Kings of Spain
and France were loath to tolerate apostates, and where Spain was inept, France was capable. By the
End of the Austrian Succession, the only Buddhists in the Mediterranean would be under Turkish
rule, where the Turks simply taxed different religions instead of trying to stamp them out.
Though some of the soldiers in Soot’s expedition where no doubt Buddhists, they were still
Dutch, and still very nationalistic. They were here not to aid their spiritual brethren, but in defense
of their homelands. In the United Provinces, commerce is the homeland. Sardinia was the leading
exporter of olive oil to the Netherlands, and a top supplier of wine. France had a vaster supply of
wine, but continuous designs on the Rhine River made trade with the French difficult.
French soldiers, along with seven thousand Sicilian allies, made their own landing further
north, at modern-day Oristano. Dutch forces marched north from Arborea to force a battle with the
Franco-Sicilian invasion. The fact the French landed at all was planned in advance. Soot believed
that defeating the army on land and forcing it to surrender would strip France of prestige. He did
correctly predict the invading army would be trapped; no French admiral would dare meet the Dutch
navy in open combat.
However, the rest of his strategy was flawed from day one. Soot failed to trap the French, and
each time he attempted to engage them, the French would slip away. He continued to pursue French
and Sicilians, not realizing he was being lead into a trap. While the Dutch Navy dominated the
world’s oceans, the Dutch Army was no better or worse than the European average. The further away
from the Dutch navy he could be led, the easier Soot would be to defeat.
In October of 1741, the Franco-Sicilian Army engaged the Dutch on the banks of the Tirso
River. What resulted was an unmitigated disaster, and taught in the modern Commonwealth Military
Academies as what not to do. Soot lead his own army into a valley ambush, with the French on one
slope, the Sicilians on the other. Worse yet, the Dutch were cut off from retreat less than an hour
after the battle began. In the end, Soot was forced to surrender, to rather generous terms. The Dutch
would be disarmed, and allowed to leave the island.
After Soot left the army, it was the United Provinces who lost face. Such an easy defeat only
emboldened the French, and led them to invade the southern Provinces with even higher morale. The
disaster on Sardinia also allowed the French to sever trade between the two nations. Furthermore,
the French removed Sardinia’s King and installed his cousin, a man more friendlier to the Christian
cause. Giovanni I remained King until his own untimely death in 1744, which lead to civil war on
the island. During the ‘French reign’ and following into the civil war, French forces on the island
persecuted the local Buddhists, often giving them the choice to convert or die. Most of the island’s
Buddhist population fled Sardinia to the New World, settling on land between Baltimore and
Philadelphia.
The Southern Provinces
The Dutch people waited for an invasion, waiting until 1746, when the French launched their
invasion. Instead of trying to take back Mons, the French moved along a different route, invading
Liege. The French defeated a combined army of the United Provinces and Lorraine at Raucourt, near
the city of Liege. The loss of Liege shook the Staaten-General. For the first time in over a century,
the Dutch failed to turn back an invasion. Old Provincial tendencies began to resurface, with each
of the members of the First Chamber wondering if their Province would be next.
The French handed the Dutch its biggest political crisis since the Revolution and until
Napoleon. Strong Kings and common causes served well in the past to hold the nation together.
While the nobles squabbled, the French struck again, this time north towards Maastricht. A victory
here would allow the French to invade the northern Provinces. None of the northern Provinces had
faced foreign invaders since the Spanish, over one hundred fifty years before.
Though he was not as good a general as previous kings, William IV rallied militia from
Holland, Zeeland, Brabant and Gelderland, along with twenty thousand regular soldiers and marched
towards the Maas River. William faced the French Marshall on the banks of the Maas, early morning
on September 27, 1747. William decided to make a forced march through the night, in hopes of
catching the French while they were just starting to stir. He was often criticized for attacking a
sleeping enemy, to which he could only reply that chivalry was not a luxury the United Provinces
had in 1747.
In truth, the French were not asleep. They were just sitting down to breakfast when lines of
orange uniformed soldiers bared down upon them. William, though not a great general, had able
commanders beneath him. They convinced him to make a sweeping attack, one to trap the French
with their backs to the Maas. After a full day of battle, no conclusion was drawn, and by nightfall,
the French commander decided to attempt to withdraw during the night. His attempt to cross the
Maas nearly ended in disaster. The Marshall and many of his key officers managed to escape, but
twenty thousand French soldiers were trapped between the Dutch and the Maas, and were forced to
surrender.


Despite this partial defeat, the French were not forced from Dutch territory. When

negotiations began in 1748, the French refused to settle for anything less than Mons. French
delegates knew there was no way the United Provinces would surrender Liege, and entire Province,
so decided to settle for Mons. With that city fortified and manned by the French Army, should war
come again, the French would be poised to strike. The Staaten-General had little choice but to
surrender the city, not knowing if they could muster a second Miracle on the Maas should the French
decide to renew the attack.
New Antwerp
During the 1746 Invasion, the French launched a small punitive expedition towards Antwerp.
Since the days of Louis XIV, the French developed an obsession with the old trading center. After
several wars, sieges and sackings, Antwerp ceased to serve any traders except the locals.
Nonetheless, the French reached the city and set it to the torch. They could not reach the Hague or
Amsterdam, so they would settle for destroying Antwerp.
For many Antwerpers, 1746 was one attack too many. Inhabitants began to flee the city in
droves, leaving it heavily depopulated. Better destination were plenty, and many of the Antwerpers
fled to New Amsterdam and Brazil, Brazil being the most desirable choice. Over the past century,
Brazil accepted refugees from every corner of Europe. Huguenots from France, dispossessed nobility
from fallen Russia, Catholics from Britain and even serfs escaping the Portuguese provinces of
Spain.
However, the East India Company offered many of Antwerp’s inhabitants an alternative for
relocation. For over a century, the VOC ruled the island of Formosa and profited vastly from trade
with both China and the isolationist island nation of Japan. In that time, natives and imported
laborers from China sufficed to work the VOC’s tea plantations, silk production along with rice
farms and sugar fields. However, the workers came from the mostly peasant lot and offered little in
the way of skilled labor4.
Thousands of Antwerpers were offered the chance to start over, to become the thriving
middle class on Formosa. The VOC wished to create a market a little closer to the source Carpenters,
artisans, merchants and shipwrights were all granted land in the VOC’s new colony, in exchange for
work. The VOC offered generous loans to all who wish to travel, all of which were paid off before
the end of the colonist’s third year. The VOC did not want to exploit the displaced Antwerpers, but
rather use them for the betterment of the company.
In 1752, the first colonists arrived at a small bay southwest of Taipei. They did not find
paradise, but nor did they find mosquito-infested swamps, similar to the ones dotting the Brazilian
landscape. Instead they found a relatively flat land, already stripped of its form forests. Little in the
way of game lived in the area, and for the first year, colonists were forced to rely upon the Company
for its foodsources5.
At first, the colonists did little more than the workers already on the island, that is grow
crops. Obtaining jobs from the Company was difficult; manager and foreman positions were already
filled with able natives and Chinese. To the colonists’ surprise, most of the employees already spoke
Dutch, passable if not fluently. To some of the colonists, it was starting to look like they were duped
by the VOC.
However, after only two years, the Dutch did what they did best, reclaim. The land stripped
of forests soon blossomed with mulberry and tea. Looms powered by water wheels soon churned out
excessive quantities of silk bolts. The colonists even learned to like rice, the only food crop grown
extensively. As with everywhere else they colonized, the Dutch introduced the tulip to Formosa. The
locals, who were already settled into their own homes, soon found room for turban-shaped flower.
Most of the assimilation went the other way; the Dutch became Formosans.
By 1763, when Antwerp’s population fell to twenty thousand, New Antwerp was home to
twice as many. Where Dutch headed west to get rich off sugar, they headed east to get rich off tea.
The Dutch themselves were not big tea drinkers, cafes in the United Provinces served far more
coffee. However, their old enemy and ally, the United Kingdom, simply could not get enough of the
drink.
Along with becoming the tea-producing center of Formosa, New Antwerp also became its
shipyard. At first, the immigrants wished to build the same types of ships they always built, sloops
and the like, that is until shipwrights fully inspected VOC ships. The ships that transported the
colonists were mostly of European design, sailed by Dutch crews. They were ships that seldom made
cargo runs across the Indian Ocean, preferring to transport lighter loads instead. The VOC freighters
dwarfed most of what sailed in European waters.
The freighters borrowed heavily from Chinese ship designs. The biggest difference between
the two designs lay in compartmentalized hulls. At first, the shipwrights considered the bulkhead
cumbersome, and a waste of space. That is, until they saw one in action. Off the coast of New
Antwerp, many shipwrights and dockhands watched as a lumbering VOC freighter ran aground on
a small coral reef. Seeing the large gouge in the hull, the colonists assumed the ship would sink in
short order and prepared to send out rescue parties. The seasoned shipwrights were astonished to see
the ship not only survive the impact, but sail into harbor without even listing. When they inspected
the ship, they discovered the same bulkheads they complained about saved the ship. A few sailors
downed in the flooded compartment, but the ship and its cargo largely survived.
New Antwerp thrived in the latter half of the Eighteenth Century, and served as a beacon for
many in the southern Provinces hoping to escape any future French invasions. Brewers from Hainaut
introduced hops to the island, and farmers from Flanders brought cattle and cheese. What was
commonplace to the Dutch was absolutely exotic to the nations of East Asia. Traders from China
and Korea traded in New Antwerp, and the VOC saw to it these commodities were exported to
nations around Formosa.
The Enlightenment
It is often said that the Enlightenment arrive a century too late for the Dutch. Ideas of science
and liberty spread throughout the British Isles and the newly formed Swedish Empire in the middle
of the Eighteenth Century, over a century after they were accepted in the Provinces. However, while
New Antwerp blossomed, the United Provinces saw a refinement of their own ideas of liberty.
To a Netherlander around 1750, liberty simply meant they could travel unmolested, worship
as they please and even elect their own delegate (crocked or not) to speak for them in the Staaten-
General. By 1750, that was no longer enough to satisfy the masses. Netherlanders soon wanted the
right to petition the King and the Staaten-General directly. Though they had the right to protest, local
constabulary forces often curtailed the masses, fearing a riot could break out. Netherlanders did not
want the right to riot, just to assemble peacefully.


Liberty was not just a generalized subject. Printers and publishers wanted to print without
having the Staaten-General looking over the shoulder. More than one newspaper in the Provinces

was shut down when it made known its blunt opinion of policies made by the Hague. At the time,
publishers in both Amsterdam and New Amsterdam spoke of the right to print whatever they wished,
short of bald-faced lies.
Liberty was not just spoken of by the well-to-do. The wars with France during the Eighteenth
Century put a drain on Dutch society, created a dip in the middle class. It was not so much a class
of poor, but rather what would today be optimistically called ‘lower-middle class’. The commonfolk
as it were. Whereas businessmen and merchants had the means, the less fortunate of the Netherlands’
larger cities wanted a piece of the action. In the cities, it was the Companies that dominated politics,
and often crowded out the poorer man.
The masses of Amsterdam, Utrecht and Brussels wanted to have their own say. They wanted
that every man, no matter his income, should have an equal say in the future of the community.
Equality was the song of the typical United Province pub. They reasoned ‘are we not the same,
created by the same creator?’ Why should income decide one’s place in Eighteenth Century United
Provinces. It was a difficult transition in a mercantile society, where the golden rule is; he who has
the gold makes the rules.
Equality in vote and rights would not be fully achieve until Post-Napoleonic Europe, nor
would the rights of printers or the right to assemble peacefully. The Post-Napoleonic Constitution
would borrow much from the American Bill of Rights. For the time being, liberty would have to
wait. What would not wait was advancement in the sciences.
By 1750, concepts of gravity and motion were already widely understood6. Universities
popped up across the United Provinces like mushrooms after a storm. By the same year, the United
Provinces sported the highest literacy rate in all of Europe. With the concepts of caste long since
abolished, even the simplest of farmers desired to elevate himself in society. In a society where
competition is the norm, a man required every advantage he could muster. The inability to read
prevented that same man from gaining more profit that he otherwise would have. Without the
potential to advance, it is doubtful that the United Provinces would ever have become the power they
are.
Astronomy was a boon to the United Provinces, the top exporter of quality optics in Europe,
from the invention of the telescope until today. Little did early astronomers, such as Galileo and
Huygens that the simple invention they used to observe Jupiter and Saturn would one day orbit Earth
and see galaxies at the edge of space and time. An entire industry of precision instruments took up
three percent of the work force in Groningen. Inventions from around the world, primarily China,
found their way into the markets and universities of the United Provinces. Compartmentalized hulls
was already explained, and gunpowder and the magnetic compass are already known, however less
known Chinese inventions, such as the blast furnace, cast iron and advancements in agriculture were
all adapted by the Dutch. The United Provinces used each of these inventions to give it an edge over
its own competitors, one of which refused to leave the Dutch alone.
King William V
In 1751, William IV died when his oldest son and heir was but thirteen. Unlike previous
young monarchs, Willem Batavius Oranje was old enough to make decisions and understand what
happened around him. However, Dutch tradition stipulates a King must be at least fifteen years of


age. His mother, Anne of Great Britain served as official regent for the first two years of his reign.

Unofficially, William was already calling the shots, and the regent mostly passed along his
command.
Instead of taking a British wife, William V took Wilhelmina of Prussia as hid bride, the sister
of Wilhelm II of Prussia7. The marriage represented a reversal of alliances, where technically Prussia
was now an ally of the United Provinces, where it was an enemy during the War of Austrian
Succession8. The Staaten-General blocked any attempt at a formal alliance between the two states.
After being dragged into two wars by their ‘ally’ Britain, the Dutch decided they were better off
alone and neutral. Neutrality was far better for business.
Unfortunately, the marriage did not occur until 1767. By the time William V reached his
eighteenth birthday in 1756, Europe was at war again. At the time, they were still allied with the
British, and once the United Kingdom declared war on France, the French King automatically
declared war upon the Dutch. It was this blind automation that prompted William’s decision to
forego a British wife.
Seven Years War
The war between the British and French actually started in 1754, in North America. Both
British and French colonist fought extensively for control over the Great Lakes region. The Dutch
hoped the war would be contained, but by 1755, the Staaten-General knew war would be around the
corner. After the previous defeat, the Dutch plotted revenge. In a way, the campaigns of the Seven
Years War were an Eighteenth Century replay of the Second Anglo-Dutch War. Both came after
humiliating defeats, with Dutch soldiers and sailors eager to redeem national honor.
When war was declared, the Dutch Army and Navy was in position. Though they could not
act until the Staaten-General, or the French as it were, declared war, they could move into position
by edict of the King. As soon as the declaration reached the Dutch fleet, Admiral Cornelius van der
Moor acted. William V personally told Moor that he should enact the plan as soon as word reached
him.
What was the plan? It certainly was not a head-on charge at Mons as the French predicted.
Instead, Moor landed twenty thousand soldiers at the mouth of the Seine River. When word reached
Versailles, the French King made the same mistake as James II, he believed it was an invasion
headed directly at Paris. Orders went out recalling the French Army at Mons, along with forces along
Rhine frontier.
Was it an invasion? No, Moor landed his force as a feint, an attempt to draw off the French
from the Dutch border, and it worked. Moor’s ‘invasion’ force maneuvered along the French coast
for two days before embarking. By the time the French realized it was a rouse, William V not only
sent the army to retake Mons, but pressed further to lay siege to Calais. After declaring war, the
French quickly found themselves on the defensive.
France could sparsely rely on its own allies to help defend France. The Seven Years War saw
the rise of Prussia, and its own defeat against Austria, and a half-hearted struggle by Sweden. Neither
nation, though large enough to stomp out Prussia could contend against the greatest military mind
of the day, Frederick the Great, future brother-in-law of William V. Sweden dropped out of the war
by 1758, allowing the Prussians to once again invade Silesia. Austria called to France for aid, and
France was forced to give up any plans against the United Provinces for the time being.
French Amazonia
When war was imminent, the Staaten-General and William V decided that this would be the
final war. Like other European powers, France drew much of its wealth from overseas colonies and
trade in sugar and spice. Fur from Quebec and sugar from French Amazonia filled the coffers in
Versailles, and funded consecutive invasions. Dutch colonists joined with British colonists and
regulars in the invasion of Quebec, which was largely a British affair.
The Dutch focused on the lands north of Brazil. For a century and a half, the Dutch occupied
the Brazilian coast and largely ignored the Amazon Basin. There was nothing but impenetrable
jungle, disease and headhunters along its banks. No markets, and no profits. However, the French
laid claim to the Amazon River and all the land it touched. This brought them into conflict with
Dutch colonists, who only extended at most two hundred kilometers from the coast.
The French did nothing with the Amazon, instead focusing their colonization effort on the
area around Cayenne. The city of Cayenne produced the majority of France’s sugar, more so than
the Carribean islands under their rule. The Dutch have never been particularly interested in a few
small islands, but Cayenne and its wealth drew the attention of entrepreneurs. In Eighteenth Century
Dutch society, there was no such thing as too much wealth.
Brazilians had their eyes upon Cayenne since well before the Seven Years War. During the
War of Spanish Succession, little French activity occurred within Dutch reach. By the Austrian War,
the United Provinces were in too desperate a straight to send an expedition. By 1756, all that had
changed. The Staaten-General sent thousands of soldiers to reinforce the Brazilian militia. Early in
1758, enough men and ships were massed in both Recife and Natal that action was possible.
The Brazilian governor-general appointed the Duke of Pernambuco as General of the
Amazonian Expedition. Pernambuco left Recife at the end of January and sailed up past the Amazon
delta with more than seven thousand soldiers. The amount seemed ridiculously small in comparison
with grand battles of Europe, but more than sufficed for the action at hand. In truth, the French had
only enough soldiers to keep the restless natives at bay, and foolish as it seemed, the Governor of
French Amazonia never anticipated an attack by the Dutch. Why would Brazil attack Cayenne? Do
they not already have enough land?
To the Brazilians, and the Staaten-General, Cayenne was not about land, but about beating
the French down so badly that they could never threaten the United Provinces again. A pipe dream
perhaps, for France had several times the population of the Netherlands, though far more dispersed
than their Dutch counterparts, whom even then lived on top of each other. For all the land that was
in Brazil, Netherlander middle-class were not quite wealthy enough to acquire it.
By April of 1758, Cayenne was under the control of Pernambuco. After firing a few shots
for French honor, the Governor surrendered to the vastly superior invasion force. Controlling
Cayenne was parallel to Controlling New Orleans or Quebec. Controlling either city left the occupier
effectively in control of Louisiana and New France respectively. Only a scattering of towns and large
plantations accounted for the rest of South America’s French population. By surrendering Cayenne,
the French Governor in essence ended French colonial activities in South America.
Treaty of Petrograd
By 1763, France was beaten to a standstill. All of its mainland colonies in the New World
were under foreign occupation, and the Dutch still held on to Calais. Austria was forced to sue for
peace against its German cousins to the north, which meant France was on its own. The French King
desired to hold on to some colonies, and knew if he continued the war he would lose them all.
Sweden hosted the peace negotiations in the city named after the last of the Russians Tsars.
By 1763, the Swedish King merged his titles to Sweden and Russia, becoming the first Emperor of
Sweden. For dropping out of the war early, Sweden only had to part with some of it Pomeranian
holdings, which was fine, because the Swedes were not interested in them anyway. Why fret over
some Baltic coast when they had vast steppes still in need of colonization.
The United Provinces pressed for harsh terms against France, including limiting the size of
its army and navy. It was willing to trade some concession (not Amazonia though) including Mons
for future security. However, the United Kingdom was more interested in building a better future for
itself than for Europe. George II’s envoys dominated the talks. Though France lost many of its
colonies, it was better than what the Dutch were preparing to offer.
In conclusion, the Dutch were awarded French Amazonia and the city of Mons. The British
partitioned Louisiana between itself and long time ally of the French, Spain. To this, the Dutch were
opposed. In principle they were opposed to anything that elevated Spain. The British were not
content with the vast emptiness of the American plains. They annexed all of New France, booting
the French from American shores for good.
France was allowed to keep its large army, one that it could no longer afford. The Staaten-
General was pleased that France would not be able to invade Dutch soil for quite some time,
however that did not equate trust. As soon as Mons was formally in Dutch hands, Dutch soldiers
fortified it, along with the southern Border. If– when war came again, they wanted to be prepared.
Though the government worried, the people rejoiced. As far as they were concerned, the hated
enemy was vanquished, and the people could get back to the business at hand. With new acquisitions


and one enemy out of the way, business was looking good.

[The Kiat]

Here's the world in 1713.

[The Kiat]

Again, forgive the footnotes. I forgot to remove them while transfering this from the PDFs. Now here is a second map, this one of the world in 1763.

[Philip]

Again, forgive the footnotes. I forgot to remove them while transfering this from the PDFs.

Well, since you are using copyrighted material to make your map, it is only appropriate that you give some credit.

[The Kiat]

Ah, but I'm not selling anything, am I. But thank you for pointing out that embarrasing detail.


Well, since you are using copyrighted material to make your map, it is only appropriate that you give some credit.

[Snowman23]

Nice job, loving this, cant wait to see how the rise of America goes into this....:)

[The Kiat]

America's early years will be a bit strange (and a challenge to engineer a war around it) without New Amsterdam.

VI) Revolutions
(1763-1815)
The Indian Ocean
By 1763, the Indian Ocean was rapidly on its way of becoming a Dutch lake. The VOC ran
colonies from southern Africa to India all the way to the Australian coast. Peace might have came
to Europe, but in the middle of the Eighteenth Century the VOC sought new markets. New markets
might as well mean new conquests. In the preceding century and a half, the VOC managed to expand
its Portuguese conquests. French, Danish and Venetian trading posts were gradually muscled out of
southern India, with France being the last to be ousted in 1763.
Only the VOC was pleased by the monopoly on foreign trade in southern India. A number
of princely states, most notably Mysore, were not pleased by the lack of choices. Though the VOC’s
prices were not extortion, they were higher than they would be with competition. A few states closed
their borders to the Dutch, but most simply sought out new traders. In response, the VOC simply
conquered the states, and installed more complacent princes and kings.
Like many trading companies of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, the VOC wielded
powers comparable to that of nations. The VOC’s royal monopoly authorized it to sign treaties, raise
armies, levy taxes and even wage war. What started as a small band of sailors and Ceylonese soldiers
soon grew into a large, well-organized mercenary force. When veterans of Europe’s wars grew
restless in peace, the found employment with their national trading companies. The VOC was no
different.
The VOC hired the best soldiers they could find in Europe (though the Amsterdam-based
company steadfast refused to hire Spanish, and later French soldiers). Upon establishing itself in
southern India, the company began to hire local talent. At first, they only hired locals as guides and
translators, but after the VOC’s first conference gave the VOC a new problem; what to do with the
prisoners of war? The task of disarming and pacifying conquered states strained the VOC’s
resources, and occupying the state was simply not profitable.
In 1643, the governor-general of the East India Company proposed to the shareholders that
the VOC simply hire the soldiers it just defeated. Who better to fight Indians than other Indians. He
reasoned they were accustom to both land and disease, and hiring local armies would save on
shipping Europeans half way around the world. Thus started the VOC tradition of employing those
it just vanquished.
One today might wonder what would compel a pre-commonwealth Indian from allying with
foreigners against their own nation and people. What one must keep in mind is that many of the
soldiers were conscripted, and if paid, it was very little. The VOC offered, in some cases, seven
times the salary of a soldiers, and up to twice the annual average income. The allure of better pay and
constant work convinced more than a few defeated foes from switching sides. Truth was, the VOC
exploited regional rivalries. It would be like Napoleon hiring Austrians to fight Turks, or Spaniards
to fight Sardinians.
Aside from greater pay than conscripts and the opportunity to battle old adversaries,
employment by the VOC offered Indians the possibility of advancement. In the Hindu states of the
south, caste was everything. The idea of advancement, to elevate one’s position on the social ladder
was very foreign indeed, and many Indian employees relished the idea. Change was not welcome by
everybody, however. For centuries upon centuries, those of the highest castes, such as the Brahmans,
ruled with occasional impunity.
In 1767, Mysore began to push back the tide of VOC influence in its region. For a century
and a half, the VOC operated trading posts on Mysore’s coast, acting as middleman between the
Indian state and foreign buyers. When the VOC began to enact its own tariffs and taxes on Mysore,
and Mysoran King was not pleased. Several dozen tax collectors were killed by Mysore, their heads
delivered to the local VOC headquarters at Goa. It took some time for word of the ‘massacre’ to
reach Amsterdam, but when it did, the VOC gave the only response available; it declared war.
The Dutch-Mysore war was short, but still the bloodiest conflict in southern India during the
Dutch Raj. Thousands of VOC employees lost their lives, while tens of thousands, if not hundreds
of thousands of Indian were killed, either in combat or famine that followed. Native lords took their
own taxes of food and gold, and when the VOC overran an estate, the vaults and granaries were
taken as spoils of war. Indian employees, particularly those from states hostile to Mysore, looted
markets and burnt fields.
The VOC had little regard for the Indians. If Indian killed Indian, that was not their concern.
When the United Provinces took direct control over India in 1800, the anti-Dutch mentality gave
future governor-generals fifty years of headaches. It took even longer to undo the damage inflicted
by the company. When the VOC emerged victorious, the King of Mysore was put to death, and a
distant cousin installed on the throne, one that might be more agreeable to VOC policies. By 1771,
the government and courts of Mysore answered directly to the Governor-general on Ceylon.
Some of the spoils of the Mysore conquest came in the forms of precious and semi-precious
stones found across the Indian sub-continent. Before the invasion, Netherlanders only had the faintest
idea about sapphires and emeralds. Afterwards, the demand for gemstones drove the VOC, and later
the Dutch Raj, to expand its sphere of influence throughout India. It also lead to the downfall and
near destruction of the VOC, following its prohibitively expensive conquest of British-controlled
Bengal during the 1780s.
Cape Colony
One of the backwaters of the Dutch world and the VOC’s commercial empire oddly enough
lay at the most strategic point in the spice trade; southern Africa. Kapenstadt was founded by the
VOC in 1617, as an agricultural colony to stock its ships with the food required for long journeys.
The VOC hired farmers and other adventurers across the United Provinces with the promise of free
land. The first settlers brought with them tried and true crops, such as wheat, barley and grapes (all
of which doubled for alcohol productions). The following decades saw the arrival of more exotic
crops.
Potatoes from the New World, oranges and limes for battling scurvy, and even attempts to
plant sugar. These attempts were quickly squelched by the VOC. The colonists were paid to produce
food, not cash crops, and besides, Cape Colony was not the ideal environment for sugar cane. Much
protest came out of the issue. “It is my land, and I will grow what I like,’ to which the VOC replied
that no, you are our employees and you will grow exactly what we tell you to. Instead of a second
Brazil, the Cape became Holland, Flanders or even Limburg transplanted on the opposite side of the
world, complete with dairy farms, but minus the liberty.
Cape Colony was unique in the VOC’s holdings. It was the only mostly exclusive
Netherlander department that was ruled like a private fief. The colonists considered the VOC tyrants
of the worst kind, sons of Spain and not true Netherlanders. The VOC really did not care what the
colonists thought, as long as they grew what they were suppose to, and since the company held a
complete monopoly on the colony, what it said went.
By the start of the Eighteenth Century, many of the colonists had enough of the VOC’s
dictates and upped and moved further inland. Since the company saw little of interest in the interior
of southern Africa, it was reasoned that was the perfect place to escape. Word of the South Atlantic
Company’s fall angered the colonists further. Former slaves now had more right than Dutch citizens,
it was an outrage. Attempts to send word to the Hague failed, since again the VOC controlled the
lines of communication. Anyone foolish enough to attempt sending word were eventually discovered
and fined.
Up to a hundred families departed Kapenstaat for the bush and for freedom from the
domineering VOC. The families, known across history as Boers, took upon the Boer Trek across
three hundred kilometers of wilderness before reaching rivers and watering holes in the highland.
The first Boer Trekkers left Kapenstadt in August of 1768, after suffering a century and a half of
VOC rule. With the abandonment of Antwerp, the VOC had more than enough settlers to replace
the lost ones. However, after 1768, the VOC cracked down on the colonists, and made every attempt
to prevent emigration to the interior.
The Boers lived life in the bush far freer than on the cape, but far harsher. Gone were the
luxuries brought in by the VOC, and gone were the luxury crops grown for them. Boers brought with
them their sheep and cattle, along with corn and wheat, and a few tomatoes. Not only did their
livestock provide food, but wool and cattle hide powered the tanning and weaving industry the Boers
built up.
The first hundred families settled in roughly the same area, founding a new town,
Johannesbourg, named for the king at the time of the Trek. The town was little more than a
collection of shops and farms clustered around a watering hole. After the first year, 1708, each of
the families lost at least one member to the hazzards of the bush. If not for the effort to establish
positive relations with the Bushmen, it is not likely that the first Boers would have survived.
The community established around Johannesbourg struggled to survive for years to come.
More Boers made the move, adding numbers to the town. Throughout history, population increases
were often viewed as improvements. However, Johannesbourg lacked resources to support the
growing community. Trade with the Bushmen supplemented what could be grown on farms and
ranches. Boer homes were nothing like the plantations in Brazil and Ceylon or orchards of New
Amsterdam. They were subsidence level farming, with simple houses built of stone with dirt floors.
In comparison with the rest of the Dutch Empire, the Boers lived in poverty.
When Johannesbourg reached saturation level, Boers branched out to other watering holes
and rivers, establishing new towns. Each of these towns, once stable, took to electing their own
leaders, village chiefs or town mayors. Trade between towns soon brought the Boer communities
closer together, closer to nationhood. Within a hundred years, three Boer republics were established;
Johannestaat, Transvaal and Nieu Oranje.

Turmoil in North America
1
While the Boers were struggling on the opposite side of the Atlantic, the New
Amsterdammers were thriving. Trade with the American colonies and the Iroquois Confederacy,
along with the United Provinces made many of the inhabitants of New Amsterdam wealthy. Where
a Boer might live in a shanty, even the poorest of New Amsterdammers lived with wooden floors.
The city of New Amsterdam, close to fifty thousand by 1770, was nearly as crowded as old
Amsterdam.
The city occupied only the lowest fourth of Manhattan Island, with little motivation to
expand. The island, once heavily forested, was mostly stripped, its wood shipped off to Europe, now
was covered in a sea of wheat and orchard. Apples and pears, along with tobacco plantations on
Long and Staaten Islands flooded the city’s market place, along with fish from the Mauritius River
and furs from the Iroquois.
Wars in the southern Provinces drove many from Hainaut, Flanders, Artois and Luxembourg
drove many of those Provinces’ citizens from fleeing to a better life. Those who could afford
plantations and the paid labor required to run it, left for Brazil. The middle class left for North
America, to join many other Europeans looking for freedom from fear and violence that racked
Europe during the wars of Louis XIV.
By the decade of the 1770s, New Amsterdam was in the most unique position for observing
the American Revolution. The city itself could be considered the key to the conflict, and aside from
raids during the Anglo-Dutch Wars, New Amsterdam largely avoided war. The fact that the Dutch
controlled access to the Mauritius River was one of the reasons the Americans were not swamped
in 1776. Had the British had control of New Amsterdam, the outcome of the American Revolution
and world events may have drastically altered.
The Mauritius River divided rebellious New England from the rest of the colonies. The center
of the Revolution until 1776 was the city of Boston, one that fell to Washington’s army without a
shot in 1775. A second army, one lead by Arnold, secured Fort Ticonderoga. Washington’s army was
nearly cut off in 1776, when an army of twenty thousand British soldiers and German mercenaries
landed in Rhode Island and threatened to trap Washington in Boston.
Without access to the Mauritius River, the British were incapable of preventing Washington
from crossing over into Pennsylvania and safety. To get around New Amsterdam, the British began
to build a fleet upon Lake Champlain. After driving the Americans out of Canada, Arnold took it
upon himself to build his own fleet to stop the British. During the Battle of Valcour Bay, Arnold’s
fleet of virtual rafts was all but destroyed, yet he delayed the British long enough that they were
forced to turn back before the winter set in. During the winter of 1776, Washington crossed the
Mauritius River to attack a Hessian garrison at White Plains, just north of the border.
The British effort fell apart in 1777. Though Burgoyne launched a second, more successful
invasion of the Iroquois Confederacy. The plan was to have Howe’s army link up with him and
destroy the army in the north, under the joint command of Arnold and Gates. Instead, Howe indulged
his own quest for glory by sailing south to attack Philadelphia, the rebel capital. The northern British
army nearly defeated the Americans in Iroquois land, if not for the actions of Arnold. Burgoyne was
forced to surrender at Saratoga. When Gates attempted to accept the surrender, Burgoyne refused to
surrender to any general with a uniform cleaner than his own. He would only surrender to the one
that defeated him.
Recognition
Much of the history of the recognition of the United States lay with Benjamin Franklin’s
exploits in the French court. For the purpose of Dutch history, the focus will be more on John
Adams’s quieter mission to the Hague. Despite being dragged into several wars by an alliance with
the British, the Dutch were not eager in engaging them in war. Much anti-British sentiment dwelled
in the southern Provinces, those ravished by wars with France.
Trade with Great Britain itself was at a minimal. The British had their own merchant fleet,
and a combination of tax-breaks for the British and tariffs on everyone else made Dutch good,
though generally higher in quality, too expensive to the relatively poorer British citizenry. Despite
sentiment and trade obstructions, there was no real reason to recognize the American’s
independence, despite strong trade ties with the colonies, unless the rebels can prove themselves
capable of victory.
Though the French were eager to get back Quebec, Dutch recognition came only when the
American’s forced the surrender of an entire British army. Oddly enough, John Adams first heard
of the victory of Saratoga from Dutch diplomats and not his own people. Word of the victory quickly
spread down the Mauritius River to New Amsterdam, then across the Atlantic as soon as the first
trader set sail for home. Recognition came in April of 1778, but Adams had yet to secure an alliance.
Word that France allied with the Americans made some members of the Staaten-General hesitate.
After so many wars, being allied with France was unthinkable.
When the alliance did come, in the summer of 1778, it came from a source very far away
from the American Revolution. It was the VOC that pushed the alliance through their members of
the Second Chamber and lobbied for the King and First Chamber to declare war upon Britain. The
VOC had no interest in the United States. What it did have a great interest in were the British
holdings in Bengal. After defeating the Moguls, the British gained dominance over the area. The
British East India Company, the British counterpart of the VOC, was the greatest threat to VOC
preeminence. When war was declared an the Anglo-Dutch alliance finally broken, it was not
America that was the battlefield, but Bengal.
Bengal
The only significant Dutch action in the Americas came from New Amsterdam. A small army
lead by the Marquis of New Amsterdam linked up with an American force led by Arnold to drive
the British from Connecticut. This action not only liberated an entire state, but freed New
Amsterdam from threat of attack. The real Dutch action came not from the national army and navy,
but from a private one. The VOC invested much capital in building a fleet and raising an army both
in the United Provinces and in India. Throughout Bengal and adjacent regions, the Indians were
developing their own Anti-British attitude.
It was not until 1779, did the VOC have sufficient forces in place to invade Bengal. The first
regiments landed in March of 1779. VOC ships wasted no time in attacking British ships. Losses in
trade in 1779 alone drove the British East India Company’s profits so low that bankruptcy was
inevitable. They petitioned both Parliament and King for assistance against the invasion. Word of
British losses provoked many natives in India to rise up against company rule. Little did they realize
they would be trading one corporate master for another.
British control over the land was forever broken on June 15, 1779, when VOC soldiers
decisively defeated the British at Dacca. The battle was one of the few cases of two rival
corporations actually coming to blows over a competing market. Never again would companies
wield so much power as they did at the Battle of Dacca. The battle marked the end of British East
India Company, and the deficit raked up by the VOC marked the beginning of its own decline,
though it would eventually recover, but not to its nation state-like status.
Following the battle, company officials surrendered all assets in Bengal to the VOC. It would
be three years before the British would react to the shock to their own economy. Britain’s Royal
Navy set sail for India in 1782, with fifty ships and enough soldiers to hopefully drive the Dutch
from Bengal. Tragically, the fleet never reached Bengal. It was intercepted by VOC and Dutch ships
off the coast of Ceylon. The Battle of Jaffna marked the end of British control over India. British
access to its colonies in the Philippines and trade with China was greatly restricted by the Dutch for
twenty years following the peace treaty.
Treaty of Paris (1783)
In 1782, The British met with the Americans, French and Dutch delegates in Paris to end the
war. By then, the British were all but defeated in America and India, and the French were too well
entrenched in Canada to drive them out. To compound difficulties for the British, the three nations
insisted on an allied peace. Many in Parliament were regretting not negotiating with the Americans
in 1776, for in 1783, the British were going to lose big.
In the end, Britain automatically recognized American independence. For the French, victory
was far from complete. They could not be driven from Canada, but they could not secure all of their
lost territory. The British held fast in Arcadia, and the French had no hope of regaining Louisiana,
not without a war with Spain. In the end, France settled for regaining Quebec. As for the Dutch, the
rewards were far richer. The United Provinces walked away from the American Revolution the sole
European power in India. As with all of its Indian Ocean possessions, administration of Bengal was
left to the VOC, as were all the riches that could be reaped.
The French Revolution
As a direct result of involvement in the American Revolution, France experienced its own
revolution. By the late 1780s, tens of thousands of French were fleeing famine northward into the
United Provinces. At first, it was believed the vanguard of a peasant army bent on conquering
Flanders. Instead, the peasants were only interested in acquiring enough wheat to feed themselves
and perhaps passage to overseas colonies. Brazil was, after all, built upon the labors of refugees from
all corners of Europe.
By 1789, the French Estates General was summoned for the first time in living memory.
However, it was the old Three Estates of France, with the Nobility and Clergy, about one percent of
the populations, able to outvote the other ninety-nine percent. However, the French learned not only
remember the values of the American Revolution, but have themselves been discussing and debating
the ideals of liberty and the enlightenment.
During the revolutionary year of 1789, nobility and clergy renounced their privileges and the
old Estates General fell, to be replaced by a unicameral National Assembly. The assembly forced
Louis XVI to sign away power after power as the once absolutist state was elevated to the level of
constitutional monarchy. Before long, Louis had enough an attempted to organize his own coup
against the National Assembly, with the help of his in-laws, the Habsburgs. Upon hearing of this,
the King was eventually arrested and put on trial. By 1791, the King was found guilty of treason and
executed, transforming France into a kingless state. Shortly after, the Reign of Terror began.
Most Dutch considered themselves safe from France’s problems, but by 1792, almost every
monarch in Europe was at war with France. The Dutch opted to stay neutral, and as long as its
shipping was not threatened, they were content to let their rivals reduce each other to second- and
third-rate powers. It did not work according to their wishes. The first Dutch to feel the force of the
Revolution were in Flanders and Artois, were a revolutionary army invaded the United Provinces.
The invasion spread Revolutionary ideas, including reforming the Staaten-General. For the
most part, the Dutch wanted only to reform the Second Chamber, to abolish the practice of buying
votes, to end dynastic politics and to give the vote to every man. The companies, especially the VOC,
opposed this idea, for it would take away their power. In the waning years of the Eighteenth Century,
governor-generals and boards of shareholders have grown more autocratic, greedier, and for the only
time in its history, placing the VOC before the United Provinces.
Revolutionary France was not content to wait for the Dutch to reform itself. In 1793, the
French Republic once again declared war against the United Provinces. For the most part, the Dutch
expected repeats of previous invasion. However, the new France proved to be merit-based in its
selection of officers and generals. In May of 1793, the Duke of Luxembourg was systematically
defeated by the new corp of French generalship. By the end of the year, France’s National Assembly
was calling for union with the Dutch Provinces.
Rise of an Emperor
Each nation has its pivotal moment, when everything that happens is either before or after.
For the United Provinces, that moment was Napoleon. The United Provinces managed to stay free
from Napoleon’s control, mainly because of British activity in the Mediterranean and the Austrians
in Italy. France sent several expeditions into Dutch territory following its occupation of Luxembourg.
The Dutch made several of its own attempts to dislodge the French. For the most part, Napoleon,
Emperor in 1804, was content to leave the Dutch and their banks alone, with the exception of the
strategic crossroads of Luxembourg. It was vital to his wars in Germany.
Before the campaigning season ended in 1804, Napoleon grew displeased by the Dutch and
their resistance. He lead an invasion, at the head of a quarter of a million men, and easily crushed
the Dutch at Limburg, Mons and finally crushing the army at Arnhem, in the northern Provinces,
opening the road to Amsterdam. For the first time since the Dutch Revolution, the United Provinces
were not only defeated in the north, but left completely defenseless before a foreign invader. The
Dutch inability to stop the French was not a deficiency of its own officer corp, but rather the fact they
faced Napoleon, the greatest general in European history, and the only man who took on the world
and nearly won.
By March of 1805, Amsterdam was in French hands, and Napoleon was marching on the
Hague. King William V, too old for combat in 1805, learned of Napoleon’s terms; France would
annex the lands south of the Rhine, and the remaining United Provinces would become a vassal of
the French Empire. When Napoleon began his march, members of the Staaten-General were already
loading their ships and preparing to flee.
The King wished to stay and fight the invaders to the death. It was only the intervention of
his son and heir that convinced the King he must seek exile for the time being. There was no hope
of defeating Napoleon, and should he fall into French hands, it would be a disaster for the Dutch.
Just because the Dutch government was going into exile, did not mean it planned to just give its
capital to the French. Before evacuating, William V ordered dikes and levies along the Rhine River
and the North Sea breached. The floods inundated the land, slowing Napoleon’s advances, allowing
enough time for the Dutch government to escape.
Exile
When fleeing the advancing French Grande Armee, the Dutch did not flee aimlessly. Several
destinations were proposed. Britain was first proposed due to its proximity, but no self-respecting
Netherlander would ask an Englander for sanctuary, even if it was the only nation holding its own
against Napoleon. New Amsterdam was offered up, but quickly rejected due to a legal technicality.
Technically, the United States were still allied with France, though a great rift developed during the
Reign of Terror and the tens of thousands executed, not to mention seizure of American ships trading
with the British.
New Amsterdam was too much a security risk for the House of Orange, nor did it have
enough manpower to allow for the Dutch to rebuild its forces. The only destination with enough
wealth, enough population and sufficient infrastructure to support the Dutch Empire was Brazil. July
27, 1805, King William V debarked his ship in the city of Recife. For the next ten years, Recife
would serve as capital to the United Provinces and all Dutch colonies.
William’s first, and last act before his death, was to consolidate Dutch forces in Recife. He
ordered couriers to each of the colonies, calling forth men and ships to arms. Even in exile, the Royal
Navy was still more than capable of blockading France. France was effectively cut off from its own
colonies, and again the British occupied Quebec along with Haiti. Though the Provinces were
occupied, the Dutch still managed to cut off France’s entire import-export economy. Blockade was
but a mere inconvenience to France, which by 1806 was the master of western Europe. However, not
all Dutch escaped to Brazil. Many remained home, to resist the French occupation and terrorize the
collaboration government.
Batavian Republic
Once in command of the low countries, Napoleon expanded his legal code to include not only
the Provinces annexed to France, but the seven remaining ones. Along with new laws, the northern
Provinces were combined into a new nation in the image of France; the Batavian Republic.
Revolutionary Netherlanders found positions in the new government, abolishing titles and handing
the powers of government into a National Assembly based in Amsterdam. What nobility remained
in the Netherlands soon found itself under assault from a milder form of the Terror. The Count of
Holland was one of the nobles put to death for ‘crimes against liberty’.
Though the Dutch Revolutionaries declared the new republic, in truth they had little power.
For the most part, the Dutch National Assembly did as Napoleon commanded. The Dutch people,
living in the light of liberty long before the French ever considered overthrowing its own despots,
found the Batavian Republic tyrannical. The Revolutionaries said that to save liberty, they must
sacrifice liberty, though the repression was not as severe as the later German occupation.
To control the population, internal passports were issued in 1807. The attempts were largely
ineffectual; the guards appointed to border crossings were conscripts and resentful of the Batavian
Republic. They made only a lukewarm attempt to enforce the laws. Nor did they attempt to thwart
the resistance. The terrorizing of collaborators was the primary cause of the passport laws. To
compound matters, the Batavian Army was stocked with either sympathizers to the resistance, or full
fledged members.
By 1810, the French had enough of Dutch insolence. Napoleon dissolved the Dutch National
Assembly, and placed his brother, Louis as Regent of Batavia. When Louis called forth a new
Assembly, it was stocked with members personally picked by the Regent. The Batavian Army was
dissolved. Louis instead commanded two divisions of French reserves to police Batavia.
Furthermore, he levied an almost suffocating level of taxation upon the nominally low-taxed Dutch
people.
What was simple acts of resistance under the National Assembly became full blown
‘insurrection’3. Louis’s heavy-handed response only added fire to the raging fury. With rebellion in
his rear, Napoleon was forced to divide his forces on the eve of his invasion of Sweden, with dire
consequences to the Emperor4. To quell the uprising, entire cities were put to the torch. Country
village and towns were not the only ones to feel the flame. March 20, 1813, was the day Rotterdam
was put to the torch following the assassination of Louis’s general Montier.
The Empire of Brazil
Across the Atlantic, while the Provinces suffered beneath both puppet rulers and foreign, a
new Staaten-General was formed in Recife. Though the First Chamber remained largely unchanged,
minus the inclusion of Brazilian peerage, the Second Chamber took on a whole new dimension. The
members that did manage to escape, few had ever left the United Provinces, and even fewer had ever
set foot in Brazil before 1805. As with tradition, members of the Second Chamber must be elected
from the populace. Since the fall of the South Atlantic Company, Brazil has been ruled directly from
the Hague. It had little experience in self-rule or elections, or so the Netherlanders believed.
When it came to democracy, the Brazilians did not look east, but rather north, to the United
States of America. To them, the words ‘all men are created equal’ held more value than to a
Netherlander, who took liberty for granted. By 1806, more than a third of Brazil’s population were
descendant from slaves brought over from Angola during the Seventeenth Century. Again, few
members of the Second Chamber (or the First for that matter) had ever seen a black man before
arriving in Brazil.
Before Napoleon, Brazilians were contemplating their own revolution. The Americans had
it right ‘no taxation without representation’ nor should a people be ruled without their consent from
across the ocean. However, with the Dutch Government in exile, the Brazilians had the perfect
opportunity for reform. If the government was to be in Recife, then there shall be Brazilians in it.
Unlike the Americans, the Brazilians never felt ill towards the Dutch King, their King. When
William V arrived in Recife, the Brazilians welcomed him with all the respect a monarch commands.
When the Staaten-General attempted to return to business as usual, the Brazilians soon felt
as if their own King was not leading their nation, but rather occupying it. Brazilians at first
demanded equal representation in an assembly upon their own soil, but when their words were
ignored, they began to demand their own government, separate from the Hague. Again, the Staaten-
General ignored them. The Netherlanders looked down upon the Brazilians as unsophisticated
children, the colonists needed guiding from the parent nation.
After two centuries of ‘guidance’ the Brazilians decided they could stand on their own.
Amsterdam and the Hague were not the only cities in which words of liberty were discussed in cafes
and pubs. Citizens in Recife, Mauristadt and Natal organized nation-wide strikes and protests. At
the head of this quasi-rebellion was former professor at the University of Pernambuco, Johann
Valckenaer.
Like many American revolutionary leaders, Valckenaer was born to a well-to-do family in
the city of Salvador. He was well educated, traveled, charismatic, and above all, he genuinely cared
about the ills of his fellow countrymen. He tried to lead a non-violent protest, not wanting to spark
the level of violence seen in the American colonies. He loved his country and king, and had
misgivings about striking during a time when the mother country was beneath foreign heels, but if
the Dutch aristocracy and merchant-class wanted Brazil’s help in their war, then they were going to
give Brazil the respect it deserved.
Valckenaer made no attempt to declare independence, and invested much energy in stopping
the extremist factions from tearing a rift between Brazil and the United Provinces. If Brazil was to
lead the Dutch fight against Napoleon, then in must do so as its own nation, separate from the Hague
but not from the King. He petitioned William Frederick, the heir-apparent, to hear his grievances.
He shall be king of Brazil the same as the Provinces, but the Brazilians wanted to handle their own
affair, without interference from the Hague. More to the point, if the Dutch were to stay in Brazil,
then they must form a government of Brazilians.
To prove his sincerity, Valckenaer organized a coronation, paid for by Brazilians for their
new monarch. On November 30, 1806, William Frederick became King Maurice II of the United
Provinces and Brazil. Valckenaer declared that the title king was not great enough. If the upstart
Corsican declared himself an emperor, and if the Austrians and Swedes have an emperor, then so
shall the Brazilians elevate the House of Orange to imperial levels. Maurice II of the United
Provinces became Maurice I, Emperor of Brazil.
King Maurice II
Upon taking the thrones of the United Provinces and Brazil, Maurice went to work on
forming a new government. The Brazilian Staaten-General shall be independent of the United
Provinces in all affairs internal, however, it would still be a realm within the Dutch Empire. Brazil
also adopted the first written constitution within the Dutch world. Since 1609, the United Provinces
operated under an unwritten, sacred agreement on how to govern a realm of seventeen independent
states. Brazil would be united from the get go, and the Brazilian drafters of its constitution borrowed
heavily from the United States.
The Staaten-General was to be divided into two chambers. The first chamber shall be called
the Senaat, and its members will either be hereditary nobles of the Brazilian provinces, such as the
Count of Natal and Duke of Pernambuco, or otherwise elected by provincial government to represent
their own interests in Recife. The second chamber, called the House of Electors shall be elected from
districts within the provinces for terms of two years. Senators, if inherited, will be in for life, where
as elected officials shall hold office for six year terms.
Unlike the United States Constitution, Brazil’s made specific articles addressing the
monarchy. Brazil shall be in personal union with the United Provinces, and its ruler shall be
bestowed the title of Emperor. Brazil was an empire in the continental sense; it controlled a large
portion of South America. With Spain so weak from its own involvement in the Napoleonic Wars,
Brazil could have annexed any of the Spanish colonies it desired.
The head of the Brazilian government, and representative of the Emperor, who assuredly
would return to the Hague eventually, would be bestowed upon a Prime Minister, one Johann
Valckenaer. He would be the first of Brazil’s many Prime Ministers, elected by the Brazilian Staaten-
General, which would do so at the Emperor’s blessing. Unlike future Prime Ministers of future
Dutch realms, the length of time required to send message across the Atlantic in the early Nineteenth
Century prohibited any sort of direct control by the Hague. To rectify this, the Emperor would travel
to Brazil and reside within his palace in Recife on a regular basis; once every five years according
to the bare minimum requirements of the Constitution.
Brazilians
Whereas the Brazilian Constitution would be groundwork for the future Dutch Constitution,
the foundation of the Empire drastically altered the way Brazilians conducted business. Before the
Staaten-General fled the Hague, the Brazilians had little in the way of self-determination. City
councils and town halls about covered it. The provincial and overall colonial government was
handled first by the South Atlantic Company, then directly as a Crown Colony.
Before 18065, the average Brazilian lived a political life far different than the average
Netherlander. Though both lived in a largely middle-class society, the Brazilian people had no say
in how their nation was ran. On the other hand, the Netherlander could petition for their
representatives in the Staaten-General, or failing that, simply replace him at the next election.
Brazilians had no such option; they policies were decided thousands of kilometers away.
The mother country, through its governor-generals and bureaucrats, governed and taxed
Brazilians without their own consent. When the United Provinces declared themselves to be home
of the freest people, obviously they did not consider citizens in the colonies as ‘its people’. To a large
extent, colonial citizens were not Dutch. They were Ceylonese, Indian, Javan and Chinese. Only
colonies in the New World, whose indigenous population surrendered to European diseases when
Portugal ruled Brazil, could claim to be truly Dutch.
Governing conquered peoples without consent was one thing, but after suffering for over a
century under Spanish suzerainty, the Dutch in Brazil could not understand why their own cousins
across the sea now govern them as such. In truth, colonial rule was far less brutal as that of Spain.
Brazilians could come and go as they pleased, to trade in goods, and (provided it was not overtly
subversive) in ideas without duties or occupying soldiers looking over their shoulder. Nor did they
have to fear the inquisition. Brazil was as divided in issues of religion as the United Provinces,
though geographically opposite; in Brazil it was the Protestants who lived mostly in the south, and
Catholics mostly in the north.
It took a series of agreements for cooperation
against Napoleon to drive for Brazilian selfdetermination
and independence. King
Maurice II and the exiled members of the
Staaten-General knew that 1806 was not a
year to be battling kinsmen. Some might
argue that Brazil owes its independence to
treaties signed under duress, for without
Brazilian support, the United Provinces could
not hope to free itself, and the entire Dutch
colonial empire could have potentially
disintegrated. Even after 1815, the Staaten-
General of the United Provinces respected and
acknowledged the Staaten-General of Brazil.
Waterloo
By 1813, and after the disastrous invasion of
Sweden, it was clear to all European nations
that France’s strength was all but sapped, its
manpower bled nearly dry. It was when the
Grande Armee retreated from Swedish
territory that the powers of Europe, allied and
opposed to Napoleon, joined together in one
final coalition to topple the would-be
Emperor. In late 1813, Maurice II landed an
army of fifty thousand Netherlanders, New Amsterdammers, Brazilians, Ceylonese and even some
Formosans, landed on the shores of Zeeland.
Regent Louis of Batavia met the invasion south of Delft, home of the House of Orange, with
forty thousand of his own soldiers. Most were French, and loyal to Louis. The remainder were
auxiliary units, in lieu of Ancient Rome. Their loyalty was questionable, and they were placed in
front of the more loyal French. Sandwiched between their own people and the hated oppressors, the
march of the Batavian Auxiliaries is on of the tragedies of Dutch history. Those that attempted to
surrender or switch sides were mercilessly gunned down by the French behind them. The few that
believed in the Revolution and willingly faced Maurice II, were gunned down by their own kinsmen.
Out of the seven thousand Auxiliaries, it is estimated that fewer than one hundred survived.
Louis Bonaparte was indeed a ruthless and effective regent, but he did not inherit the genius
of his brother. His army was routed within a day, Louis himself captured. Two days later, Maurice
II rode into Delft, and later the Hague at the head of his victorious army. To great him, the populace
of both cities draped every building within the city both Dutch Flags and orange banners. At one
point, the Hague was awash in the color orange. Banners produced an orange colored sky, and
endless ranks of soldiers produced a river of orange uniforms. For days afterward, Netherlanders
celebrated their liberation, and dealt retribution to collaborators.
It was not until January 4, 1814, that Maurice rode his army into Amsterdam. Several
regiments were sent to each of the Provinces, to flush out any self-proclaimed Batavians and to
reestablish to rule of the House of Orange and the Staaten-General. Several months passed before
the whole of the Netherlands were under Staaten-General control, and that the heirs of the Provinces
were back in their homes. Not all were welcomed either; the Duke of Limburg was forced to abdicate
in favor of his nephew, who stayed behind and lead resistance within Limburg.
While the Provinces were brought back under Dutch rule, the Swedes led an army that
marched down the avenues of Paris. Napoleon had been toppled, and exiled to the island of Elba.
For a moment, it appeared as if the Wars of Napoleon were over. But only for a moment. Napoleon
soon escaped exile and returned to his throne in Paris. After the disastrous campaigns of 1813 and
1814, it was unlikely Napoleon would return France to the height of its power, but no nation was
willing to take the chance.
Napoleon was corralled once again, this time on June 18, 1815, at the town of Waterloo in
Brabant. For the entire day, Britain’s Duke of Wellington battled Napoleon to a stand still. Up until
the last moment, it appeared as if Napoleon might escape to fight another day. Though the British
and other English speakers give the credit of victory to Wellington, it was really more the arrival of
Maurice II and the Dutch Army in the late afternoon, followed by the Prussian Army that forced a
final surrender from Napoleon. One of these opponents he could defeat, but not the combined might
of all three.
Napoleon was exiled again, this time to the British island of St. Helena in the South Atlantic.
There was no pretense of a miniature imperium as was on Elba. This time, Napoleon was a prisoner,
and would spend the rest of his days under the watchful eye of British masters. The Dutch offered
up their own navy, sending a ship to patrol the waters for weeks at a time. Napoleon escaped once,
and nobody dared a repeat of Elba. After more than twenty years of warfare, Europe was ready for
some well earned peace.
Congress of Vienna
After Napoleon’s second fall, the powers of Europe met in Vienna to redefine the borders
of nations. For the Dutch, there was little gained, and plenty lost. For the final time, the question of
Mons was addressed. The Congress decided that the city would stay under French rule, to which
King Maurice II consented. Mons had been under French ruled for two decades, and he was not
ready to wage war against all of Europe for just that city. Furthermore, Denmark was granted
independence from the United Provinces, and a distant cousin of the last Danish king, Christian IV
was put upon its throne. Denmark did not, however, receive Norway. The Grand Principality of
Norway remained under Dutch rule. To this day, heirs to the Dutch throne are called Grand Princes
of Norway.
The war set other nations on the coarse of ascendance. Prussia, a second-rate kingdom in the
Eighteenth Century was now in virtual command of the northern German states. A North German
Confederation was established with Prussia at its lead, the predecessor for the modern-day German
Empire. Germany was not an immediate concern to the Dutch people and government. The decision
to restore the House of Bourbon was initially opposed by the United Provinces. However, after
seeing just how chaotic and uncontrollable republican France turned out to be, it was agreed that a
constitutional monarchy would be in the United Provinces’s best interest.
With the House of Orange restored to the United Provinces, and ruling Brazil, and a new
order in post-Napoleonic Europe, the stage was set for an expansion unlike any to come before. The
organization known as the United Provinces was about to go global in a way it had never managed,
even after two centuries of colonialism. With the fall of the French Empire, a golden age of
imperialism would consume the Nineteenth Century and much of the world around it.

[The Kiat]

The world in the aftermath of the Revolution-- American being implied. Anyway 1783.

[The Kiat]

North America in 1783. I'm surprised nobody's complained about the borders being so similar to our own timeline.

The pink areas are those in dispute. The U.S. and U.K. could not completely resolve the issues of the Red River Valley or northern Upper Massachussets. The area will be fought over during the Second Anglo-American War (1812-15).

Looks like Greenland needs a bit of detail work done to it.

[The Kiat]

And a rough idea what South America would look like in 1824. Including the Austrian Antilles and the British moving into Patagonia.

[The Kiat]

A note: Dutch involvement in the American Revolution might not seem that plausable considering the United Provinces were allied with the British for almost a century. The Dutch were loyal allies, despite neutrality being good for business, and the British kept dragging them into wars that did not serve Dutch interest. However, alliances fade and politics shift. The involvement in the war, though New Amsterdammers had good relations with the Eleven Colonies, had less to do with helping American and more to do with expanding Dutch interests in India. They (be it the King, Staaten-General or the VOC) saw an oppertunity to remove the British from India and took it. Such changing of sides was somewhat common in OTL during those days.

[DuQuense]

Your world map show New Orleans being American, while your NA map shows it as Spanish. Clarification please.

IOTL it was the Spanish in New Orleans that attacked east and took Florida, Here with N.O. being British, I can't see the Spanish being able to take it.

The French retaking Quebec, means a resumption of the traditional anti French feeling in the Colonies.

?Will the British set up their Penal colony in Australia ITTL?

[The Kiat]

Yes, I know the world map is not the best, but thank you for pointing out that detail. But yes, N'Orleans is in the same hands in 1783 as in OTL. And I completely forgot about Botany Bay. So I updated it, and one of these years I'll even make a really good map of the world.


Your world map show New Orleans being American, while your NA map shows it as Spanish. Clarification please.

IOTL it was the Spanish in New Orleans that attacked east and took Florida, Here with N.O. being British, I can't see the Spanish being able to take it.

The French retaking Quebec, means a resumption of the traditional anti French feeling in the Colonies.

?Will the British set up their Penal colony in Australia ITTL?

[The Kiat]

VII) Empires


(1815-1900)
Constitution of the United Provinces
At the beginning of 1816, great and drastic changes hit the government of the United
Provinces. Upon hearing more details of the Brazilian Constitution, and the liberties it granted its
citizens1, the Dutch people began to demand change and reform within their own realm. After
suffering under the Batavian Republic, then under its Regency, the Dutch people were in no mood
to suffer injustice beneath its own king and parliament. If a bunch of colonists in Brazil were granted
vast liberties, then why should the Provinces not receive the same. It did not matter that Brazil was
its own nation, they were still colonists in
the eyes of the Dutch, and the United
Provinces were the mother country.
Where the mother country leads, the
colonies should follow, not the other way
around.
Borrowing from his experiences
in Recife, Maurice II, King of the United
Provinces of the Netherlands and
Emperor of Brazil, called forth a
constitutional convention for the
Netherlands. Rulers of each of the
Provinces, along with the most respected
of intellectuals across the nation, met in
the King’s Palace in Delft. They would
not suffer the months of summer heat that hit Philadelphia in 1787, but would rather wrap up the
convention within as many weeks. Again, the first written Constitution of the United Provinces
borrowed heavily from the Americans.
In contrast, the Dutch over-emphasized Provincial rights. The Provinces had governed
themselves for the past two hundred years, there was no way any of them planned to surrender
sovereignty to a stronger central government. However, where as before Napoleon the Netherlands
were confederated, Post-Napoleonic United Provinces grew into a tighter federated bond of
provinces. The Staaten-General was given slightly more power to regulate commerce between the
Provinces. At the time, it did not seem that big a change, but with the coming of the railroad, the
Staaten-General would soon make its voice heard in a wide range of standardizations under the
‘Commerce Clause’.
The greatest changed to the Staaten-General came to the Second Chamber, now called the
House of Electorates. For two centuries, the lower house of the Staaten-General consisted of many
members who essentially bought or bribed their way into power. After the convention, the
Electorates came into power by more legal and legitimate means, and were now chosen by a total
male suffrage above the age of twenty.2 No longer could wealthy merchants and powerful companies
decide the fate of the Dutch people.
The First Chamber, as in Brazil it too is called the Senaat, consisted of hereditary rulers of
the Provinces along with other peers of the realm. It was not open to election, nor to new members
without its own consent. As with the old Staaten-General, the Senaat handled matters concerning the
Provinces, and the House handled matters concerning the people. Sometimes such matters were at
odds, especially in the arena of taxation and tariffs.
As a Mercantile nation, the United Provinces earned between sixty and eighty percent of its
revenue from a series of tariffs and customs, all of which were designed to protect homegrown
business and domestic goods. Protectionism has always been a way of economic life in the
Netherlands. Any foreigner attempting to import their own goods into the Provinces would be forced
to pay a hefty fee. Various customs were imposed upon merchant ships trading through Dutch ports,
or even if they happened to be just passing through. Throughout the entire history of the United
Provinces, the average Netherlander never had to pay more than ten percent of his income to the
government, though companies faced higher taxation.
The 1816 Constitution gave the King more power. Before, the Kings of the United Provinces
served as an anchorage, a means to unite the Provinces. Now, the Kings and future Queens would
be executive monarchs, another concept borrowed from the United States. Where the Americans
would elect their chief executive on a four year basis, the Dutch would inherit their executives, each
groomed from birth to serve as head of state. Unlike other constitutional monarchies of Europe, the
Dutch King did not have the power to dissolve his parliament. The Staaten-General faced elections
every five years, and then only the people could dissolve it.
A third branch of government, introduced to the Netherlands for the first time, balanced the
power between Staaten-General and the new executive King, and would keep either from getting too
powerful. The Supreme Court of the United Provinces would insure constitutional law was not
violated. Independent courts were a new addition to Dutch judiciary system. The judges in the
Supreme Court were nominated by the King, but confirmed by the House of Electorates. Provincial
courts worked on a similar principle, though they were nominated by the lord of the Province, and
confirmed by the Provincial Assemblies.
Industrialization
The United Provinces received a new government at the dawning of the Industrial
Revolution. Starting in Britain decades before, the steam engine finally made its way to the
Netherlands. For much of its history, mills were powered by winds blown off the North Sea or from
the currents of tidal estuaries. These limited industry to specific areas of specific Provinces. The first
steam engines were not introduced to Holland or any other coastal Provence, but to Luxembourg.
The Duke of Luxembourg smuggled two engines out of Great Britain. The British monopoly on
steam power ended and ushered in a new age in Luxembourg.
Industrialization greatly increased productivity within Luxembourg, but it came at a cost.
Large quantities of coal were mined from the once pristine province, and the woods were replaced
by forests of smokestacks. Endless streams of black smoke blotted out the sun, and filled the lungs
of the citizens. Industrialization also improved efficiency at the cost of employment. Thousands of
Luxembourgers found themselves in a situation that was seldom known in the Provinces;
unemployed.
Shifts in supply and demand allowed for the owner, the company to lower its own wages.
Though wages were never cut, they seldom rose, and when they did it was at below inflation levels.
The price of living in Luxembourg was rising, but relatively speaking, income shrank. Textile mills,
once few in Luxembourg, now dominated the landscape. Close proximity to iron mines and coal
deposits allowed for Luxembourg, and later Liege and Limburg to become the steel production
center of the United Provinces, and a territory coveted by both France and later the German Empire.
The steam engines were put to use in Holland and Zeeland not as engines of industry, but
rather to power a system of pumps to both regulate water levels in the maritime Provinces and to
pump large quantities of water out of new closed off areas. Steam increased the size of several
Provincial economies (at a great cost to its people) but it literally increased the sizes of Holland and
Zeeland. For centuries, the Dutch reclaimed land from the sea, but at small parcels at a time. With
steam, large strips of land were risen from the shallow depths.
In some cases being at the bottom of a salt water sea, these new plots of land were not the
best places to build new farms. Instead, they were used for urban expansion. As industry stripped
jobs from other Provinces, Limburgers, Luxembourgers and various others from the southern
Provinces made their way north. Though factories started to run on constant steam as opposed to
sporadic winds, there was a shortage of menial laborers in Holland. Long since the commercial
capital of Europe, Amsterdammers, and Hollanders in general, avoided the dangers of factory work.
And dangers were plentiful. Machines powered by steam could move twenty-four hours a
day, and often did. Seldom did the early machines need to stop, and only when something broke. The
Industrial Revolution created a sort of community rush. Owners of factories were only interested in
producing more, and outproducing their rivals across the North Sea. Though the United Provinces
were protected by tariffs, Dutch businessmen soon discovered other nations followed suit. In order
to export their merchandise to Britain, which at the time was equally protective, factories had to cut
cost.
Life was not pleasant in the United Provinces during industrialization. It was the lowest point
in respect to quality of life since and after 1609. In Holland, such a demand for labor existed that
anyone available over the age of eight were employed in the textile mills of Holland, almost all
economic refugees from the southern Provinces. The work was long, twelve hours shifts, and
exceptionally hazardous, especially for the youngest of workers. The children were made to crawl
beneath the looms and mechanical weavers to retrieve scraps of wool, cotton and even silk. Working
in the mills gave little and took much, including fingers and whole limbs.
The Industrial Revolution produced more than mechanical monsters, and replaced more than
just human workers. In 1822, the first railroad was constructed from Amsterdam to the Hague, not
only replacing horse-drawn carts, but threatening both canal and shipping interests across the nation.
Unlike the mangling behemoths of the dimly lit factories, Netherlanders did lobby again the
railroads. The shipping giants of the Netherlands, and owners of its various canals lobbied heavily
against the railroad, claiming it would not only wreck the national and Provincial economies, but
threatened the very tradition most sacred to the Dutch people; seafaring. With railroads, who would
need ships? To some extent it was a success. Brabant’s Provincial Assembly passed legislation
limiting both size and speed of the railroad engines.
One byproduct of steam power literally lit the roads to Amsterdam. IN the 1870s, the first
electricity producing engines were operation in Holland. With the invention of the lightbulb, the
demand for electricity soon increased. For decades, coal-fired power plants gave the Netherlands its
power and choked its skies with soot. It was not until the beginning of the Twentieth Century that
hydroelectric plants began to appear. For a nation that spent much of its existence building dams and
dikes, hydroelectricity was a logical jump. Unlike many nations, including Brazil, the United
Provinces did not need to dam rivers. More than enough water flowed between the North Sea and
English Channel to permit tidal-generated power.
New Amsterdam Referendum
While industrialization began to strangle the lives of Netherlanders, New Amsterdammers
were looking for revolutionary change of their own. In 1824, eight years after the official
independence of Brazil, New Amsterdammers began to decide it was time for their own selfdetermination.
For the past two hundred years, the colony was ruled by the Hague and by New
Amsterdam’s own nobility. Town halls were the extent of self-rule in the colony, and those could
easily be overruled by the Marquis.
In the eight years following Brazilian nationhood, New Amsterdammers organized and
lobbied the Hague for the right to decide its own fate. By 1824, Maurice II agreed that if any Dutch
colony3 wanted self-rule, then it should be subject to referendum. While addressing the Staaten-
General, the United Provinces faced its first constitutional crisis; which chamber would decide if
referendums would happen? The Senaat was in charge of Provincial affairs, and the possible
independence of a colony fell into that category. However, it would be the people who voted in the
referendum, so the House of Electorates claimed jurisdiction.
The five justices of the Supreme Court heard the cases of both chambers, and ruled that both
did have jurisdiction in the case of referendum. In such a case, the King’s plan must pass both First
and Second Chambers of the Staaten-General. It passed the House with a large margin, but stalled
in the Senaat, whose concern was the loss of the colony could upset their own Provincial economies,
since products from New Amsterdam would now be subject to tariffs. Also, with the loss of
Denmark in the Congress of Vienna, the United Provinces consisted of eighteen Provinces, an even
number. When the vote came up, it was divided nine to nine, and under the Constitution, it was up
to the head of the Senaat, the King, to break the tie. Thus referendum passed, barely.4
In May of 1824, New Amsterdam was presented with three choices; 1) they could stay a
crown colony of the United Provinces, with all the privileges bestowed upon Dutch citizens,
including the right to elect its own assembly; 2) it could become a realm within the empire, sharing
the same status as Brazil, in personal union with the United Provinces; or 3) it would be granted
complete independence, and would face the world alone, sink or swim.
The third option was least popular. In 1824, New Amsterdam’s economy and trading sectors
were far closer tied to the markets of Boston and Philadelphia than Amsterdam and Recife. It shared
common interests with the Americans and its economies so closely tied, that any tariffs levied by the
Hague would cause much harm to New Amsterdam’s livelihood. The colonists lived a mixture of
new urban and frontier lifestyle known throughout the United States. Though the entire Mauritius
River valley was now farmland, along with lands along the Delaware and Connecticut rivers, much
interior land remained forested, however it too was under the control of logging interests. For their
own interests, they harvest only sectors of the forest at a time.
Because most of the New Amsterdammer’s livelihood came from surrounding states, a writein
option appeared on the referendum, one the Staaten-General did not authorize; 4) Full political
union with the United States and statehood. According to the United States Constitution, any new
state simply required a constitution of its own and a republican form of government. The fourth
option took fifty-three percent of the vote in the 1824 Referendum, more than a simple majority, thus
eliminating any run-off vote.
Before the results even reached the Hague, New Amsterdammers went about constructing
their future state government. The government was indeed republican, but the Dutch in general had
no long-term experience in anything resembling a presidential republic, and up until 1816, were
ruled mostly by a parliament with the blessing of the King. Thus New Amsterdam’s constitution
constructed the only parliamentary republic within the United States, with only the most minimal
of separations of power required by law. Thus the ‘governor’ position was filled by a First Minister,
who was both head of state and head of government, and by a unicameral parliament, which both
made and enforced laws. The courts were kept separate.
Word reached Washington long before it reached the Hague. In a way, this accelerated the
process; since shortly after the Staaten-General learned of the unauthorized results, negotiators from
the United States, an important trading partner of all the Dutch, arrived. There was little to negotiate;
New Amsterdam made its choice, and the King swore to honor the results of the election. To go back
on the King’s word, the Staaten-General would bring shame to the House of Orange, not to mention
damage Dutch credibility around the world. Some in the Staaten-General wondered if statehood was
not the whole plan all along. History has shown that the United States would not hesitate to send its
own citizens to colonize another nation, then shortly after annex that nation; such as was with the
case of Texas– and New Amsterdam was a far more strategic gem than Texas could ever hope to be.
On October 18, 1824, the rule of New Amsterdam changed from King Maurice II to President
John Adams II5. On that date, the newly minted Parliament of New Amsterdam took over power ,
and was admitted as the 24th state. As a result from admission into the Union, one of New
Amsterdam’s most famous offices was abolished. Federal law prohibited any title of nobility, and
since the days of Michiel de Ruyter, New Amsterdam’s Provincial head was the Marquis of New
Amsterdam. The de Ruyter family held that position until admission, where Marquis Edwin was
given the choice of either renouncing his title or leaving the state. Titles were but a concept, but the
business ventures the de Ruyter family ran in New Amsterdam were not. Edwin chose profit over
title, and renounced his Marquisette, but was still the head of what is now known as Ruyter
Enterprises.
Fall and Rise of the VOC
Due to its war of conquest in Bengal, by 1800, the VOC was in deep debt and forced to
declare bankruptcy. As a result, in order to pay for the debt, the company was forced to cede all of
its colonies to the United Provinces, thus making Kapenstaat, Ceylon, India, Java, Formosa, Hainan,
Mozambique and the other Indonesian holdings, Crown Colonies of the United Provinces of the
Netherlands. With bankruptcy, shareholders began to sell their shares, forcing the VOC to auction
off its fleet and salvage whatever of value that could be used to payoff the investors. Trading posts
were closed, shipping lanes dried up, and before the year was out, its royal monopoly revoked. The
VOC looked on the verge of vanishing into the ashes of history.
The company did not fold. While most investors pulled out, a few of the employees, most
notably the naval officers, bought many shares, now virtually worthless. The VOC was left with
these officers and life-long employees and seven seaworthy ships to rebound from it collapse. Most
in Amsterdam simply wrote off the VOC, declaring it would never rebound. With Napoleon ripping
up the continent at the time, it was an easy assumption. With Napoleon doing just that, few even
cared about the company that made Dutch domination of trade possible.
The new Board of Holders met in VOC headquarters in Amsterdam, one of the few VOC
assets still in company hands, to plan their future. With only seven ships, the VOC was now a small
fish in a large ocean. Where once the very mention of the VOC sent pirates running for their lives,
now the seven ships had to face both predation from pirates and vengeance from various other
companies the VOC once stepped upon. It was an uphill battle, and might have been a lost cause if
not for one man; Maarten Minuit, the head of the new VOC.
Minuit decided the company should return to its origin mission; the spice trade. Though it
could never hope to acquire a monopoly, there was plenty market to go around for cinnamon and
nutmeg, commodities that made the VOC powerful to begin with. For the first few years of the
Nineteenth Century, business was difficult. Former colonies were now flooded with a variety of
ships, ranging from trading companies to private merchants. No longer could the VOC buy spices
at their own prices. They were forced to bid the same as the rest of them, and compete over a limited
supply of spices.
However oppressive VOC practices were, the company did not lose at of its ‘friends’. A
number of old contacts in both Ceylon and India aided the rebounding VOC, managed to grant them
access to goods before other merchants, and, with the assistance of kick-backs, were able to cut some
corners for them. Bribery is a far cry from the practice of conquest the VOC once employed. The
bribes could only advance them so far. No longer could they expend large amounts of capital in
buying politicians and official, nor where they a pseudo-nation on to themselves.
When railroad made its first appearance in the United Provinces, the VOC was only up to
eight ships, the latest a derelict they discovered floating off the coast of Angola. They stood to lose
just as much as any shipping company. Bad enough to actually have to compete with other oceangoing
cartels, but now this new fangled railroad threatened to reduce their share of the market even
further. However, the VOC did not join those same shipping and canal interests in their lobbying
crusade against the rail.
In 1835, Minuit convinced the Board of Holders to put everything on the line, in effect put
the entire company up as collateral for a fifteen million guilder loan from the Bank of Amsterdam.
With that many guilders, Minuit convinced the rest of the shareholders that instead of lobbying
against the railroad, they should purchase the entire line. It was a gutsy move. During the 1830s, it
was not even known if the railroad would be a reliable means of transport or just some passing fad.
When word of the acquisition reached papers and markets across the United Provinces, the VOC’s
final days were predicted.
Much to everyone’s surprise, Minuit not only made the railroad work, but by 1840, had the
lines extended as far as Bruges and Arnhem. Within ten years, the company managed to pay off the
loan, and afterward climb its way back to the top of the financial world. By 1843, the VOC had
grown to the point where it was forced to reorganize. The maritime functions of the VOC would still
go by that name, however the railroad division was named VOC Rail.
VOC Rail expanded its operations to ever corner of the Dutch world. By 1850, thousands of
kilometers of railroad were laid across the Provinces, Brazil, South Africa, Ceylon, India, Java and
Formosa. The rail made it possible for the VOC to squeeze its small time and local competitors out
of the trade. In areas with little water access, the railroad allowed the VOC to exploit areas
impossible to reach by ship. Not only that, but as locomotive engines improved in efficiency and
performance, it rendered mule trains and horse caravans obsolete. With one engine pulling a dozen
cars, VOC Rail could ships the same amount of merchandise as a thousand horses.
The gamble to purchase a once unknown quantity paid off for the struggling VOC. By 1850,
the company rose back on to the Amsterdam Stock Market, and investors began to pour money into
the company. VOC’s success shifted the lobbying of other companies away from the railroads back
to the VOC. For merchants and traders around the world, their ultimate nightmare was coming true;
the VOC was returning from the dead.
With improvements of steam engines, it became possible by the 1850s to install the engines
on ships, producing the first self-propelled ocean-going vessels. As it was in the Seventeenth
Century, the VOC capitalized on any new invention or idea that could earn it profit. In 1854, the
VOC established a new division; VOC Cruise. VOC Cruise was built around two shipyards
purchased in the 1840s and the development of steamers. For decades afterward, VOC ships retained
their sails. The wind was free after all, however it was not always convenient. When the winds
failed, steam could take over.
In response to the advent of steam, the VOC established a string of coaling stations around
the world. To increase its profit even further, the VOC sold its excess coal to any ship that ventured
into its stations. VOC Cruise shipped not only freight with the power of steam, but passengers as
well. The same year the division was established, a Rotterdam-to-Recife passenger service, with
travel time of days as opposed to weeks with only sail.
Further inventions out of the United States added to the VOC’s wealth. By the 1870s, VOC
Comm sowed telegraph cables from the Provinces to Brazil, to Kapenstaat, all the way to Ceylon.
The telegraph network cut transit time for information from days (and weeks for Ceylon) to a matter
of minutes. Word of rebellion in India could reach the Hague before the rebels themselves even knew
what was happening. However, it would take days to weeks to traverse the distance. The opening
of the Suez Canal cut transit time to India dramatically. Again, by the 1870s, the VOC owned a sixty
percent share of the early information market.
The Nineteenth Century saw a dramatic turnaround for the almost vanquished company, but
its expansion and acquisitions of the Twentieth Century would send it to the top of the market. By
the start of the Twenty-first Century, the VOC would be an over six hundred billion guilder
company.6
Dutch Raj
After the first collapse of the VOC, the United Provinces inherited India along with other
colonies around the Indian Ocean. By the 1820s, India consisted of a network of crown colonies and
allied principalities spreading across southern and eastern India. Between 1820 and 1880, the Dutch
extended their Indian Empire both north and westward, either bringing states into alliance and
vassalage or outright conquering them. Those that submitted or allied themselves with the Hague
enjoyed a degree of autonomy. Those that resisted, did not.
The Indian people did not enjoy the liberty long since established in Ceylon. Ceylonese
natives owned their own plantations and manors along with descendants of VOC officials and of
later Dutch colonists. For two centuries, the Dutch and Ceylonese existed as mostly equal. In 1837,
a level of self-rule was established within the colony in the form of a Colonial Assembly, with both
natives and those of Dutch ancestry allowed to vote for the Colonial Assembly, though the
Governor-General of Ceylon was still appointed by the Staaten-General. It was not until 1911, that
non-land owning Ceylonese were enfranchised.
Though close together, Ceylon and India experienced different colonial existence. Ceylon, a shining beacon of liberty. India was a land kept under the domination of
the Dutch, with the only free natives being the allies. The Ceylonese owned their own land and ran
their own businesses. The Indians were largely overseen by Dutch colonists and officials. The only
common thread between the two lay in the fact that the mother country never interfered with native
religions. The Hindus and Muslims of Bengal appreciated this one fact, as opposed to the British
attempts at conversion.
Poverty was a rarity on the island of Ceylon, but it was the norm on the subcontinent. Large
slums sprouted around Goa, Mumbai, Dacca and Calicut, much like mushrooms after a storm. Work
in India involved mostly the extraction of various resources from the island; harvesting fields,
working the mines and serving on Dutch estates. During the middle of the Nineteenth Century,
English-style villas were all the rage in India. Any colonist with fashion sense would erect such a
manor as soon as possible, including the rose hedges. However, the Dutch did add their own little
touches to these villas, most notably in the form of tulips. Where Netherlanders colonized, that
particular flower followed.
The Dutch Raj was an era of unification in India. Over the millennia, various empires spread
across India, the most recent being the Mughals. Under these empires, the Indian peoples continued
to speak their own languages and keep their cultural identity. The Dutch Raj offered India a common
language for the first time in its history. Previous empires offered little incentive to speak the
conquer’s language, but with the Dutch, if any of the native wished to communicate with the newest
Raj, they would have to speak the foreigner’s language, for they refused to speak the natives’.
Despite their distrust, at best, of foreigners, the natives were forced to concede that Dutch was a
handy common language in a land with at least a dozen major languages of its own.
The Dutch unification of India was not all about conquest and exploitation. During the
Nineteenth Century, India began to develop a sophisticated infrastructure, strengthening trade and
facilitating economic growth, though mostly for Dutch benefit. VOC Rail laid tracks across India
as fast as the indigenous populace could work. The VOC imported foremen and managers, but left
the remedial work to the underpaid natives, though railroad workers received more pay than the
average Indian.
During the Dutch Raj, tens of thousands of Netherlanders immigrated to the colony. With
unemployment reaching unbearable levels back home, the Hague was more than happy to send the
less fortunate to India. When a colonist arrive, they were granted a lot of land approximating one
square kilometer. With India already heavily populated, the only way colonists could receive land
was at the expense of the natives. Millions of Indians were displaced and dispossessed. In order to
support themselves, some were forced to work for the same colonists who displaced them, and work
their former lands at a sub par wage.8
The same land once grew rice, wheat and other foods for the native population. Colonists
were not interested in growing vast quantities of food stuff. Old fields of wheat and rice were
ploughed under, replaced with tea. Innovations in the United States in the 1790s allowed for easy
separation of seed from cotton, allowing cotton to become an economically viable option. Cotton
was the new cash crop, and Nineteenth Century India was dominated by growing more and more of
it. However, cotton depleted the soil, and soon colonists were forced to move to fresh lands, and
displacing more natives.
Obsession with cotton lead to a series of famines across India. Colonists grew enough
produce to feed themselves, but belatedly disregarded the native situation, transforming their
previous farmed land into cash crops destined only for European consumers. The Famine of 1858
was the greatest tragedy in Dutch history. The biggest tragedy of the famine was how a people who
prided themselves on their freedom could oppress and starve the native population. Some historians
have proposed the famines were orchestrated, as a means to control the population. A hungry people
were a weak people, and a weak people could not rise up against its oppressors.
By comparison, Ceylon was paradise. Rebellion was rare and the middle-class was on the
rise. For the most part, plantations and estates were divide by various trading families from previous
centuries. However, quite a few of those employees were the natives of Ceylon. Unlike the Indians,
native Ceylonese did quite well for themselves. Their plantations were not stocked with the leaching
cotton, but rather with fields of cinnamon. Though many other crops were produced on Ceylon,
cinnamon was its most important cash crop. European demand for the spice had never wavered in
two centuries.
The colonial capital of Colombo began a transformation into Amsterdam East. Colombo was
the trading center of the entire Indian Ocean. Merchants from Dutch colonies in Indonesia to the east,
and Ottomans and free Arabs in the west, all made the voyage to trade their goods in the Ceylonese
capital. Netherlanders were more than happy to take these same goods back to the United Provinces,
for a substantial profit.
Where profit is earned, banks as sure to follow. The Bank of Colombo was established in
1839, shortly after limited self-determination was instituted. With a steady bank, money was loaned
and new businesses began to sprout across the city. The most prosperous of Colombo’s citizens
could afford to abandon the crowded apartment flats of the city proper, and build luxurious mansions
on the outskirts of town. These estates were reminiscent of estates in Britain or America more so
than the Provinces. Though the Dutch were a well-to-do people, not many were wealthy, and in a
land with high concentration of populations, large estates were a very expensive investment.
Labor was imported from India at cheaper prices to maintain the estates. It was not just the
colonists that brought in foreign workers, but the natives did as well. When native wages rose too
high, Ceylonese simply went abroad, searching for the desperate, those who would work for halfwages.
To an extent, the natives were assimilating to the ways of the colonists. Assimilation was not
a one-way avenue. The colonists took to eating native cuisines, adopting some native dress and even
adopting native architecture, producing a unique Oriental-Dutch hybrid design.
The adaptation on Ceylon caused little unrest on the island, where as India was always a
hotbed for turmoil. Indians who were subjects of the Princely States fared even worse than their
direct-ruled counterparts. In the crown colonies, Indians were subject to Dutch law and, though
treated like second-class citizens, were citizens of the Dutch empire nonetheless. However, India was
a vast land, and administrating the entire colony was difficult under the best of circumstances.
Decades would pass before quality of life would rise to acceptable levels.
King William VI
Born Willem Frederick George van Oranje on December 6, 1792, young William’s life was
spent in the turmoil of the French Revolution and exiled to Brazil. In 1815, William lead a division
of Dutch soldiers in the campaign of liberation, including the final victory at Waterloo. In 1816, he
was married to Princess Paulina of Sweden. Unlike times in the past, the Staaten-General did not
view this as grounds for alliance. Sweden had an uneasy peace with its Ottoman neighbors in the
south, and had little in the means of competition on its Far Eastern border.
On October 7, 1840, Maurice II died after a long struggle with what is believed to be lung
cancer. Maurice II was know for his fondness of Brazilian tobacco. William returned to the tradition
of being crowned in Liege. It should be noted that Maurice II was the only Dutch monarch not to be
crowned in Liege, though a ceremony was preformed their after Maurice’s return from exile. William
kept his name, a long standing tradition in the Netherlands, and was crowned King William VI.
William VI’s reign was short, lasting only nine years, though it was no uneventful.
Industrialization in the southern Provinces caused an increase in poverty, an ailment once considered
foreign. With nothing to do, no work to be had, and little food to be eaten, the unemployed were
desperate. Desperate people do desperate things. Several textile mills in Upper Gelders and Namur.
Venlo in Upper Gelders was held by exploited workers. The workers made no demands and seemed
content to destroy the mills and execute the owners. The Worker’s Uprising of 1843 is widely noted
by Karl Marx when he developed his own theories of socialism.
The Count of Upper Gelders called forth his own militia, and demanded assistance from the
Hague. William VI traveled to Venlo at the head of a small army, only eight thousand. He had hoped
to end what could only be called an uprising peacefully. He met with ‘leaders’ of the uprising in an
attempt to negotiate. Negotiation was impossible, because the workers had no demands. No demands
aside from destroying the mechanical monstrosities and returning the Province to the way it was in
the days of their fathers.
As it is widely known, progress can not be reversed. Seldom can it be stopped. Even if laws
were passed banning technology, history has taught us that there will always be those who will
simply ignore laws, and nations have their own leaders that will disregard the law whenever it suited
their purpose. With no grounds for negotiation, William was forced to unleash his army to crush the
uprising. Over two thousand workers were killed.
The ‘Venlo Massacre’ weighed heavily upon William, and the people never forgave him for
his action, nor did they let him forget. The newly freed media condemned the action, and
independent presses published pamphlets calling for everything from his removal from the throne,
to his removal from life on earth. In 1849, William VI became the only Dutch monarch to abdicate
his throne. He stepped down in favor of his brother, Alexander, and left the Provinces in a selfimposed
exile. He spent the rest of his life with his wife and her family in Stockholm.
King Frederick II
Born Alexander Frederick van Oranje, Frederick II took the throne on September 5, 1848,
as soon as the Staaten-General ratified the Act of Abdication. His rule was one of the only stretches
in Dutch history that peace dominated the political landscape. The United Provinces had not fought
against a European opponent since 1815. His reign saw a slowdown in expansion in India, leaving
the interior states of India and tribal lands on the upper Indus River to be dealt with by his successor.
After the violence in Venlo, Frederick II went out of his way to promote peace and
prosperity. Moved by the atrocious conditions under which the Venlo workers suffered, he pushed
for the Staaten-General to create and pass laws protecting the worker, protecting his people. In his
mind, the British were impoverished; the French were impoverished; the United Provinces were
suppose to be free of poverty. For two centuries it was a rarity, but the facts of industrial life changed
the whole plan. It was now a land ruled by the law of supply and demand. Mechanization increased
productivity while decreasing labor, and that created a surplus of workers, and that the owners and
capitalist fully exploited to their advantage.
Factory owners around the United Provinces petitioned against any such laws. They claimed
that to pass these laws, the government would be interfering in another of the Netherlands’ sacred
institutions; commerce. The Staaten-General went out of its own way to avoid interfering with the
economy, aside from placing import tariffs, standardizing currency and the gauges of rail. The
capitalists convinced many that by passing the laws, they would force prices upwards, and that it was
the capitalists that had the people’s best interest in mind; that being lower costs, and passing those
savings onto the consumer.
In reality, costs were cut, but factory owners simply pocketed the profits and continued to sell
at prices comparable to pre-industrial prices9. There were two things Frederick II loved; peace and
liberty. He viewed poverty as another means to subjugate the people. Even in a nation as libertyminded
as the United Provinces, Frederick was seen as a liberal. His critics expanded beyond just
factory owners. Various bankers, one of th cornerstones of the Dutch economy, went as far as
charging him with attempting to nationalize the banks.
These charges caused a rush on many banks throughout the United Provinces, one of the
leading factors of the recession during the 1850s. Times were rough during the 1850s, but not nearly
as bad as two hundred years prior, when the English blockaded the low countries coast during the
First Anglo-Dutch War. It was bad enough, however, to see ninety-three percent of the House of
Electorate loose their job in the election of 1856.10 The 1850s were a time of great change Europe;
two monarchies were toppled, and revolution was rampant across Germany and the Balkans. For a
time, it was doubted that the House of Orange could survive the crisis.
Revolution did not come to the United Provinces, at least not violent revolution. The Staaten-
General did pass some of the King’s recommendations, including limiting work to eight hours a day
per worker. If a factor ran twenty-four hours a day, then it must hire three shifts worth of workers,
thus lowering unemployment. The Worker’s Safety Act was one of the most progressive measures
passed in the 1850s, if not the entire century. It was the first act that dictated what a company could
and could not do to its employees. Injuries in the textile mills decreased, as did poverty in the
surrounding area. Though the quality of living stayed below its pre-industrial levels, it did steadily
increase over the next three decades.
Formosa and Hainan
On the other side of the world, industrialization was in full swing in the Dutch colonies of
Formosa and Hainan. Over the past two hundred years, Formosa grew from a wild island inhabited
by aboriginals into the most advanced territory in all of East Asia. Though it would not be until the
1840s that the steam engine made its way to Formosa, the descendants of the Chinese workers
quickly adapted it to increase productivity in their own textile mills.
Throughout it history, Formosa struggled to keep up with European and later American
demands for silk. The fabric was both luxurious and highly prized from royalty to aristocracy right
down to the lowliest of shopkeepers. Formosa was a land that produced many desirable commodities.
Porcelain coffee cups were in demand in Amsterdam’s cafes. The original natives of Formosa, once
they learned how to make porcelain, produced some of the most elegantly designed pottery in the
world. It was not long after Dutch colonization that Formosan vases were as prized as their Ming
counterparts.
Formosa shares many similarities to Ceylon. Chinese immigrants and natives both thrived
along side their Dutch colonial rulers. Until 1800, the island was sole domain of the VOC, and the
company was far more interested in productivity than any ridiculous racial ‘theories’ that came out
of Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Europe. The only significant enclaves of ethnic Dutch on the
island were around Taipei and New Antwerp. When a wave of Dutch nationalistic colonialism
spread out after Napoleon, Formosa simply assimilated any of those such colonists into its unique
culture.
By 1850, all the different peoples of Formosa considered themselves Formosan, and not Han
or Dutch. When recent immigrants asked about the native Formosans, those of Dutch ancestry
simply told them they were looking at a Formosan. Some tension existed between the long-time
Formosans and the recent arrivals from the Provinces. The newcomers attempted to press their new
ideals upon the locals, and were appalled by some of the local customs. The biggest shock came in
the form of sushi and sashimi. Both dishes were not native to the island, but after decades of trade
with the isolated Japanese, some of their cuisines were exported along with their silver and copper.
Newcomers were often disappointed by their own crop failures. Like many Europeans, they
brought along their familiar produce. Their attempts to spread wheat across the island failed, as did
their attempt to introduce sheep. Wool? This is Formosa, we grew silk here. The newcomers were
accustomed to seeing silk as a luxury, one they could afford back home, but not in sufficient
quantities to cloth themselves. Imagine their surprise when they finally discovered that most
Formosan dress was made from silk.
Between 1850 and 1880, waves of newcomers gradually assimilated into the established
Formosan society. They ate their rice, wore their silk and worked in citrus groves and mulberry
orchards. Of the various ideas imported by the newcomers, one caught on quickly. Instead of waiting
for shipments of steel to arrive from the United Provinces or Brazil, several enterprising newcomers
established their own series of steel mills around the island. By 1880, Formosa was the fourth highest
producer of steel; behind Brazil, the United States and the recently established German Empire.
To the south of Formosa and China itself lay the small island of Hainan. In 1664, the VOC
captured the island from the Manchu Dynasty ruling China. The Manchu had little interest in the
island, and offered little resistance against the annexation. In truth, internal turmoil more than
disinterest kept the Manchu from responding, that and the fact that the VOC’s private navy was more
than capable of cutting China off from external trade.
The VOC did little with the island. It was made a trading center for southern China, and
numerous Chinese worker were brought in to work the tea plantations. By 1667, the Dutch ruled the
seas, and the only way the English would get their tea was through Dutch traders. Throughout the
Nineteenth Century, Hainan remained a predominately agrarian economy, more a colony of Formosa
than the United Provinces.
Attempts to establish sugar plantations on Hainan met with marginal success. Sugar was
always in demand in Europe, but with Brazil, Formosa and the Indonesian colonies supplying sugar
for the Dutch, it was an unwise move to enter an already crowded market. Very few colonists from
the United Provinces made the move to Hainan until the Twentieth Century, though by then the
natives spoke as much Dutch as they did Cantonese.
The Indonesian Colonies
Of all the colonies in the Indonesian Reaches, Java has always been the most critical to the
Dutch economy. Java and the rest of Indonesia share an analogous relationship with Ceylon and
India. Java was always the island of liberty, and by 1850, was not only the heaviest populated island,
but also the densest. Where many of the larger islands remained primeval jungles, Java was
transformed to a cornucopia of the spice trade.
Spices were the original reason for venturing to the East Indies. If not for the lure of
cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg and ginger, then most likely Europe would have left them alone. Java had
its own thriving culture when the Dutch arrived, and VOC conquest of the island did little to change
that. The native Javanese simply took what they saw was great about the foreigners and made it their
own. VOC employees were forced to make do with what was on the island. Though Javanese
restaurants became all the rage in Twentieth Century Europe and America, the food was not enjoyed
by the first colonists, who viewed it as very foreign.
When the VOC centered its trade around the cities of Batavia and Jakarta, secondary
businesses moved in. Where ever trade is centered, it takes little time for the bankers to appear. By
1850, the Bank of Jakarta was the largest such bank in the East Indies, handling accounts across
Indonesia, and as far as the British colonies in the Philippines and the French in Indochina. With
large flows of capital moving through its ports, Jakarta grew like no other colonial city.
At a time when Manilla, Saigon and Sydney were nothing but simple houses and dirt roads,
Jakarta boosted the largest paved roads in the region. More than fifty percent of the city’s roads were
paved with cobblestone and flagstone. The roads were reminiscent of ancient Rome’s highways, and
just as sturdy (amazing considering the level of rainfall Jakarta receives in comparison with Italy).
Though wood was plentiful throughout the region, houses in Jakarta was built from mason and stone,
materials impervious to termites.
When steam arrived in Java, it was not used immediately for factories. The island dealt
mostly with exports of produce, not production. Instead, the city boasted one of the most advanced
water and sewer systems of the Nineteenth Century. On an island where tropical disease was an
annual occurrence, the Javanese (both native and colonists) invested in pumps that would force waste
water to flow away from the city, and often directly into the sea. Nearby swamps, endemic with
malaria, were systematically drained by the new pumps, and its land quickly settled with an influx
of Dutch, German and even Swedish colonists flocking to the eastern Land of Opportunity.
The other islands in the regions did not fare as well as Jakarta. Up until the 1800s, the VOC
and the Dutch left them largely alone. The only contact with natives was in the form of business,
with Javanese trading goods imported from Europe and elsewhere to acquire rare commodities of
Sumatra and Borneo. Most notably was the wildlife itself. There was always trade in hide, tusks and
horn from the wildlife of Sumatra, but with the advent of menageries and later zoos, Sumatra became
an attraction for zoological collections. Rare animals of Sumatra, such as tigers, tapirs, orangutans
and the sun bear were captured from the wild an hauled off to mid-Nineteenth Century zoos across
Europe and the Americas.
Around the same time that zoos grew in popularity, Formosa was in the midst of
industrialization. In the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, coal and iron were dominate, but in Indonesia,
the Formosans found an abundance of minerals. First and foremost was gold, not a very useful
building material before the digital age, but sought after nonetheless. Much of the gold mined on
Borneo found its way into the vaults of banks on Java and Ceylon.
For the interest of Formosa, copper, tin and nickle were extracted from Sumatra, and tin, then
later bauxite came from Borneo. With both islands, the United Provinces established colonies
dedicated to rubber plantations. Rubber was rapidly becoming a vital resource in industrialization.
Everything from hoses to tires to seals were made from the extract of the rubber tree. Coconut
plantations also sprung up along the coast of Borneo. Coconuts proved popular in Dutch markets
during the 1890s, but were far less useful than rubber or tin.
Not all of Borneo was conquered during the 1880s and 90s. The Sultanate of Brunei
maintained a degree of independence, though like many princely states of India, it was a vassal to
the Hague. The Sultan turned to allying himself with the Dutch in Java because he feared invasion
by the British or French more than Dutch overlordship. The Sultanate was largely independent in its
own internal affairs. In return, they offered anchorage to the Royal (Dutch) Navy, and after the
discovery of oil under the Sultan’s domain, exclusive rights were given to Royal Dutch Shell, and
its later incarnation VOC Shell.
Farthest of the Indonesia holdings was New Holland. New Holland was not an island of
itself, but rather part of a continent. In 1751, colonists trying to escape the wars in Europe and the
tyranny of the VOC established the town of Perth, on the continent’s western shore. At the time,
Australia was known as the southern continent, as it was believed to be connected to Antarctica.
Further exploration, including the discover of Tasmania and what would become New Zeeland
disproved that theory.
Perth was not intended to be a haven for traders or a land of cash crops. It was a simple
experiment in transporting a piece of old Holland to New Holland. On this most arid of continents11,
the need for dikes and levies did not exist. The Perth river was a very seasonal river, but offered
sufficient irrigation to support the colony. The wheat and corn farms augmented the nutritional
intake of the colonists, which derived much of its food from the sea. The colony would not be
agrarian but rather pastoral. Sheep by the hundreds were imported to what seemed an empty
continent, and Perth developed a small wool and textile trade.
Constant vigilance was required to guard the sheep against the wild dogs of Australia,
believed to have arrived from early southeast Asian traders, at least two thousand year ago. To range
with the herds, the colonists naturally brought horses, but these animals did not far so well in the arid
landscape. One colonist, whose name has been lost to history, stumbled upon the idea of importing
camels. The beasts served Arabs well, and were the backbone of the ancient Silk Road, surely they
could handle Australia’s sandy landscape. Camels did all too well on the continent; a handful
escaped into the night in the early years, and their offspring soon spread across the continent,
browsing where the indigenous wildlife did not.
The VOC made no attempt to take control of New Holland. They saw little profit in the small
time wool outfit, especially when they were making millions of guilders in trading of silk. During
the Age of Napoleon, the British seized the colony. Their pretext was to defend their own Australian
colony against the potential of the French gaining a foothold in New Holland. With the Congress of
Vienna, the British returned New Holland to the Dutch, who for the first time, took direct control
over the colony.
Unlike so many other colonies, New Holland’s was not a story of conquest. A few natives
did live in Australia. The aborigines were as wild as the marsupials that occupied the continent. They
had little of value, and more over, had little concept of land ownership. Owning nothing of interest
and having no territorial conflicts, the New Hollanders were content to leave the aborigines alone.
Until 1860, the colonists clung to the Australian coast.
In 1861, sheep herders in the interior stumbled across a dry river bed. At the bottom of this
bed, one of the ranchers notices something shimmering in the light. What he found sparked the New
Hollander gold rush. Once word spread, much faster thanks to steam-powered transportation,
prospecting veterans of the American West flocked to Australia, along with adventures from Brazil,
Europe and China. Impact on the Aborigines was nearly disastrous.
The Americans were the most ruthless of the bunch. They treated the Australian natives even
worse than they did their own Indian population. Americans, along with Europeans, often shot down
who bands of Aborigines, who happen to be currently residing on land rich in gold. Native
populations plummeted as the plundering of the land, along with introduction of new diseases, took
their toll. Many British Australians simply brought their own practice of extermination to the Dutch
sector of the continent. Along with the miners, came the scoundrels, the thieves, and most damaging
to the native culture, the missionaries.
New Holland had not government of its own, and the governor was appointed by the
Governor-General of Indonesia. Jakarta had its own interests, mainly seeing that as much of that gold
as possible ended up in the Bank of Jakarta’s vaults. The original colonists of Perth were soon
overruled by outside interests. Their own exodus from New Holland was a long time coming. Before
Napoleon established the Batavian Republic, the Staaten-General decided that the coasts of New
Holland made for an ideal place to ship prisoners, an idea copied from the British. Though the
United Provinces had far fewer criminal elements than the United Kingdom, exporting some of the
vagrants and debtors was seen as desirable.
The New Hollanders, in 1862, began to pack up and leave for New Zeeland, a land itself that
was pacified during the 1840s. They continued their pastoral lifestyles, this time uninterrupted by
the discoveries of precious metals or gems. However, some New Hollanders found a way to fight
back to influx of miners. When a gold rush occurred, it was not the prospectors who grew rich, but
the merchants that traded with them. Many traders packed carts in Perth for the barest of minium
prices, rode inland to the mining camps, and charged ten to twenty times the price they paid. The
miners, rich with gold, did not feel the least bit sorry about paying ten guilders for an apple, thirty
for a sack of flour. That combined with the inevitable rift-raft of mining camps, gambling and
prostitution, ensured that few miners left New Holland rich. Indeed, few left period, opting to settle
the land, instead of shelling out fare for the voyage home.
Abyssinia
By 1852, many traders and merchants, along with captains of every ship under the flag of the
United Provinces, were desperate for a short cut to the Indies and all their riches. From Europe to
India, the only possible shortcut lay across the Sinai, in the Ottoman Empire. A resurgent VOC
proposed building a railroad across the isthmus, ensuring shorter passage to the Orient. Shorter
passage, and a larger cut of the profit.
In contrast to the VOC, investors from Britain and the United Provinces, along with a joint
financial adventure by the Banks of Amsterdam and England, proposed cutting a sea-level canal right
across the land. At first, the VOC attempted to oppose the plan, by convincing the Turks that this
would cut off their African territories from their Asians ones. Only after some debate within the
Board of Holders, did the VOC decide to invest in the plan. If they were wrong, then they lost some
investment but could still build their rail. If they were right, they would own a twenty-five percent
share of the Suez Canal.
The Anglo-Turkish War of 1852-54, saw Egypt wrested from the control of the Ottoman
Empire. While still staying strong in the Balkans, where it only had an Austro-Turkish War every
generation. The borders changed little, a kilometer south here, a few north there, only to be reversed
by the next war. North Africa was another matter. Aside from the area in which a canal would be
built, the Dutch had little interest in North Africa. France and Spain spent considerable resources
nibbling away at Ottoman control, and with the lose of Egypt, that left only Libya in Ottoman
control. That province would be lost by 1901, to the Italian Federation.
After two years worth of surveying, the ground breaking of the Suez Canal occurred on
November 14, 1856. For twelve years, labors native to Egypt under the supervision of British and
Dutch engineers excavated the short cut between India and Europe. Relations between laborer and
supervisor were cordial, but the tension between Dutch and British waxed and waned between 1856
and 1868. At the start, there was much debate as to who should be in charge. The British were further
down the road in industrialization and invested half of the capital. On the other hand, who in Europe
knew more about diverting water than the Dutch.
The entire project was nearly derailed in 1863. When the succeeding states of the United
States invaded Virginia and defeated the Union army at Manassas, on Union soil, the British took
steps to recognize the Confederate States of America and prepared to intervene on their behalf. The
Dutch, who always had strong commercial ties with the United States bluntly informed British
ambassadors in the Hague that if the British intervene on behalf of the Confederates, then the Dutch
and Brazilians would intervene on behalf of the Americans.
With a regional civil war threatening to spill over on to the global theater, Emperor Napoleon
III attempted to mediate a settlement between the two warring factions in America. France’s own
relations with the United States were occasionally strained and at the time they were not particularly
close. In truth, France had more to gain by Confederate independence in that they could acquire
concessions for cotton. Further more, the French, though not a party to the Suez Canal, had an
interest in seeing the canal open. With the American War of Succession peacefully resolved, the
British and Dutch continued work on the Suez Canal, albeit at an accelerate rate. Both parties would
be happiest if the canal opened as soon as possible.
The opening of the Suez Canal brought a boom to a long forgotten Dutch outpost. At the end
of the Forty Years War, the United Provinces absorbed all of Portugal’s colonial possessions. During
the last decade of the war, Dutch privateers and raiders destroyed most of Portugal’s trading posts
along the eastern coast of Africa, except for one. For centuries, Mogadishu was of little importance
to the VOC or the Dutch Empire. With the opening of the canal and shifting of world trade route,
Mogadishu saw an exponential increase in traffic.
The sleepy trading post soon boomed to a population of fifty thousand. Traders of all variety,
mostly Arabs, immigrated to the port. With commerce, piracy was often to follow. The Horn of
Africa was infested with pirates by 1870, all of which that preyed upon Suez traffic. The British were
based around the canal itself and for the most part out of range of pirate raids. The Dutch continued
their own battles with piracy for years, until thousand of pirates raided Mogadishu.
The Raid on Mogadishu galvanized the Dutch, and in 1871, the Staaten-General had an army
of fifty thousand raised in the Provinces and Brazil, along with summoning the largest Dutch fleet
since the Raid on Medway. Thousands of Dutch soldiers poured ashore in Somali lands, crushing
pirate nests and occupying the surrounding lands. In order to stop piracy, the Staaten-General
decided it best to occupy and annex the entire coast of the Horn of Africa. With no coast, the pirates
lacked bases of operations.
King Theodore of Ethiopia sent his own army to battle the Dutch soldiers along the Eritrean
coast, claiming it as his own. Negotiations broke down before they even started when the Dutch
delegates informed Theodore that his inability to control the pirates meant he waved the rights to the
land. The First Abyssinian War was a short, victorious war, and by December of 1871, the Dutch
were in complete control of the coast, though the Ethiopians were granted access to the sea along
with a Dutch monopoly on its trading.
Within seven months, Theodore rejected the treaty and called up his army. With telegraph
wire connecting all parts of the Dutch Empire, King Frederick II was not pleased. The King was the
one who insisted on lenient terms towards the Ethiopians, and felt personally betrayed. Before the
Staaten-General could act, the King ordered the Dutch army in Abyssinia to strike first. The Second
Abyssinian War lasted for two years, in which tens of thousands of Netherlander and Brazilian
soldiers died, mostly of disease setting in after wounding. The Chief of Staff, Colonel Piet Guilder,
was the highest ranking death, and his demise came not from bullet or disease, but from the bite of
a cobra he happed to step upon.
By 1875, King Theodore was in exile in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, a nation with
a large Orthodox population, and the Kingdom of Ethiopia dismantled. In its place, Ethiopia, Eritrea
and the Somali lands were untied into a single entity; Abyssinia. It was also the only Dutch colony
not dominated by Europeans. Aside from the city of Mogadishu, and various coffee plantations in
the Ethiopian highlands, the natives were left to their own devises.
The native governed themselves, under the watchful eyes of colonial ‘advisors’, and policed
themselves, again aided by various Dutch colonial units. They taxed themselves, and with all
colonies, a percentage was diverted for the Hague. Overall, Abyssinia behaved more like a Indian
princely state held in vassalage than a rebellious province under armed occupation. The influx of
Dutch goods drastically changed the region’s economy, but its political and cultural identity
remained largely unchanged, until the Hague took a more direct control over the colony during the
years leading up to the Great War.
King Frederick III
When Frederick Willem Julius van Oranje took the throne on October 7, 1880, he inherited
a recently growing problem in southern Africa from his father. In 1824, the Staaten-General of the
United Provinces passed the Homestead Act, which granted Netherlanders the right to a square
kilometer of land in Kapenstaaten and territory beyond, provided they worked to improve the land13.
The influx of colonists were generally welcome in the city of Kapenstaat, but met with hostility when
they traversed into the interior.
Since the 1730s, Boers had steadily been leaving Kapenstaat for new lands free of VOC
interference. By 1830, the Boers established a series of quasi-states in southern Africa; Transvaal,
New Orange, Natalia and Johannestaaten. The republics as they called them were barely a
government in the modern sense. They possessed little power, and served mainly as a means to
mediate disputes and collect revenue for the general improvement of the land for all its inhabitants.
When th newcomers arrived on the Veld, they quickly raised fences, ploughed under grasses,
dug irrigation and general disrupted the Boer’s primarily pastoral lifestyles. True, the Boers did grow
produce, but they lived a semi-nomadic lifestyle similar to the natives of the region. Their tendency
to move about was another reason while the Boer governments were marginally effective.
Homesteaders simply ignored the Boer governments and banded together for protection. When Boer
herders entered a new township, the homesteaders greeted them not with open arms, but loaded ones.
Along with new technology and different agriculture, the homesteaders brought with them
an alien concept of race, that was largely absent in Eighteenth Century Kapenstaat. To the
newcomers, the European Race was superior, and because of the ways of natural selection, were the
fittest to rule. The Boers had their own tensions with the natives, such as disputes over grazing land,
and even a war of conquest in Natalia against the Zulu, but never did they view the natives as
inferior, different perhaps, but just as human as themselves. During VOC rule, more than sixty
percent of the Boers were male, and with limited Dutch woman about, the men took native wives.
Along with wives, the Boers adopted several other aspects of native life, such as clothing and
lodging. The conservative full wool dressings of the United Provinces were ill suited to the Veld
(except perhaps during the nights when temperatures plummeted in the arid land). Out of necessity,
they abandoned wool and took to wearing thinner cloth similar to the natives, though European
modesty still existed and most of the Boer’s bodies were covered.
With New Amsterdam now an American state, Kapenstaaten became the choice location for
emigrants departing the Provinces. India promised riches, but southern Africa offered a new start.
Most of the newcomers came from the southern Provinces, escaping from the industrial monster
consuming the workforce. However, if not for the efficiency of industrialization, far fewer
Netherlanders would have made the journey to new lands.
By 1880, conflict between the Boers and homesteaders was inevitable. The wave of
newcomers gradually reduced to a trickle, but the homesteaders multiplied at the same rate as the
Boers. When homesteaders matured and left home, they consumed more land and drove Boer
livestock to the further corners of the Veld. Homesteaders fired the first shots as new arable land
became scarce and competition increased.
Driving off the livestock was not enough, the homesteaders began to round up the livestock
or just destroy the Boer’s herds. In response, the Boers defended their herds with a ‘shoot first and
forget the questions’ attitude. Though they may have shared mostly peaceful relations with their
fellow humans, most Boers owned a firearm of one sort or another, for hunting game or driving off
predators. One encounter the homesteaders had not experience was that with a lion. Boers were quite
familiar with the largest of Africa’s cats.
Further to the desire for land, came the discovery of resources. Near Kimberley, miners from
Kapenstaat came across diamonds in a layer of coal there were extracting. At first it was just a few
gems, little did the miners know they stumbled upon the largest source of diamonds ever found. The
miners and more over the mine owners, attempted to keep the discovery secret, but to little avail.
Though diamonds do not spark the imagination they way gold would15 it still captured the attention
of enough adventurers to flood the Veld with more strangers. If the invasion of prospectors was not
bad enough, the mine owners added insult to injury by taking the diamonds and running. To the
Boers, any mineral found under common lands belonged to all the peoples of Transvaal and the
profits should be shared clans and family, both white and black. It would be only after the Boer Wars
that Transvaal would gain control over the diamonds, and establish the Kimberley Mining Company
to further exploit the resource.
Isolated shooting and retaliation bloomed into full-blown civil warfare, starting in Transvaal
in 1881. An army of hundreds of homesteaders cross the Vaal River, attacking Boer and native
villages for a depth of seven kilometers, driving both human and cattle away, and clearing the land
for horticultural usage. For the most part, such attacks were isolated to a single village and had not
yet been cleared to this extent. Word of the raid spread to Pretoria, the then center of government for
the nation of transients, and word went out calling for the Boers of Transvaal to go commando.
In the days before the Boer Wars, commando was simply what the Boers called patrols.
Along with taxes, the Boer men over the age of fourteen donated one week out of the year to patrol
the countryside around their settlements. For the most part, these were anti-predator patrols, intended
to drive off lions and leopards. Occasionally, though defeated years before, the Zulu would mount
raids against the Boers and their allies.
In 1881, thousands of Boers were called forth for commando, but not just to patrol. The
Boers planned on driving these newcomers south of the Vaal and back into New Orange. However,
word spread from the New Oranje side of the river to the town of New Orange. The Orange Boers
called forth their own commando, to patrol the southern side of the river. In the following weeks,
thousands of homesteaders were driven between the two rag-tag armies. Many escaped, but upwards
of thirty percent of the homesteaders were killed. Their corpses were left to the hyena as a warning
against further homesteader incursions.
Instead of heeding the warning, homesteaders sent word for assistance to Kapenstaat, asking
for protection against the marauding bands of Boers. The moment the colonial government
intervened, six years of brutal warfare followed. At first, the Boers just wanted to keep the
homesteaders from seizing their grazing lands, but when it was clear Kapenstaat favored the
homesteaders, calls for full independence rang out across the Veld. Dutch forces in southern Africa
were, though far more than the Boers could muster, not nearly enough to quash the rebellion.
The Boers were severely outnumbered, but knew the terrain and environment so well, they
could almost blend in with the background. The lacked uniforms, and often tied brush and grass to
their clothing, further camouflaging into the Veld. In contrast, the Royal Armies of the United
Provinces and Brazil, along with colonial brigades wore the same bright orange uniforms issued to
them during the French Wars. Though they dirtied quickly and blended in better with the savanna
than forests of India, they were still obvious. The fact that Dutch still used the tactic of marching
hundreds of soldiers abreast only made them easy targets for Boer sharpshooters.
The Dutch easily captured what passed for capitals in all the Boer Republics, but against
conventional wisdom, the Boers did not capitulate or sue for peace. They continued a guerilla war
in the wilderness. Though fewer in numbers, they scored casualties in higher proportions to their
adversaries. It is estimated that nearly twenty thousand Dutch were killed during the Boer Wars,
without forcing a single Boer army to surrender. What Dutch commanders failed to realize at the
time was that the Boers had no ‘armies’ in the European sense. Their bands were one thousand at
the most.
At first, the war was popular back home. The press in the United Provinces sold the war as
an attempt to reincorporated lost cousins back into Dutch society. The fact the Boers did not want
incorporation was beyond comprehension. Surely they would welcome the luxuries from across the
empire and the advances absent to them during the past one hundred fifty years. As the years drug
on, as townships fell and the Dutch death toll rose, the lack of foreseeable end wore on the public
opinion. Though the Senaat, who was primarily in charge of declaring war, was never up for
reelection, the House of Electorates were, and as the war drug on, they would receive the blame.
They pressed for a negotiated end.
The Dutch Commonwealth of Nations
Negotiations began on-and-off in 1886. Dutch generals tried to lay terms for surrender on the
Boers. The Boers, under the command of Erik van Delft, continued their stance that the Boers would
not surrender. Negotiations went nowhere in 1886 and as 1887 started, King Frederick III stepped
in. He ordered the army to cease operations and only fire in self defense. Frederick suggested that
perhaps they should take the same approach with the Boers as they did the Brazilians; personal
union.
The Boers agreed to the self-governing status but refused to have a king. For decades, their
republics were ruled by assemblies and presidents, all of which were elected. The Boers did not like
the idea of having somebody in power who could not be removed, a throwback to memories of VOC
rule. It was van Delft that made his own proposal, via telegraph, to Frederick III. The Boers would
be ‘self-governing republics within the commonwealth’. His five words changed the history of the
Dutch empire.
When the idea of Commonwealth came before the Staaten-General, it met with resounding
support. Though the American Revolution long since passed from living memory, the effect on the
British did not. If the Boers continued their rebellion and succeeded in winning independence, it
might prompt India, the Indonesian islands and Abyssinia from declaring independence. It was but
a minor alteration to personal union plan. The Boer Republics would remain in commonwealth with
the United Provinces and Brazil, though they would not have a monarch.
The idea further developed into a league of Dutch states, all equal in status, bound together
by common language, currency and market. Each member state would send their own delegation to
meet in Amsterdam at least once a year. By 1888, delegates from Brazil, the United Provinces and
the Boer Republics met to draw up a charter for the commonwealth. The member states need not be
in personal union with the United Provinces, but the Dutch monarch would be recognized as the head
of the commonwealth. This the Boers could agree to. Since the Commonwealth Charter declared that
the Commonwealth Assembly would decide a common foreign policy, the Boer Republics were
technically protectorates of the Commonwealth. As was the case, their texts referred to the reigning
monarch as either Lord of Lady Protector.
In effect, the Dutch Commonwealth was an imperial federation. After the Boer Republics
achieved statehood, Kapenstaaten soon followed. It was the only state that did not fight against the
Hague or Recife during the Boer Wars. After its admission into the Commonwealth, it was soon
discussed that perhaps other colonies should be granted statehood. Ceylon, Java and Formosa were
at the forefront of possibility, and would all achieve statehood within sixty years, along with several
other, less outstanding colonies.
With the potential to achieve autonomy, the colonies began to strive to improve their own
infrastructure and governments. Like most political innovations of the Dutch during the Nineteenth
Century, it stemmed from American ideals. Ironically, it was the United Provinces and their method
of preserving Provincial powers that drove framers of the American Constitution to federation, along
with the diverse nature of each of the original eleven states. The formation of the Dutch
Commonwealth of Nations is the key factor for preserving Dutch unity to the present day, unlike
disintegration enjoyed by British, French and German colonial empires.
Competition
In the 1820s, the first (literally the first) of the United Provinces experienced a complete
collapse of its colonial empire. The Latin American nations of Mexico, Grand Colombia, Peru,
Chile, Bolivia and Paraguay were under the heel of the Spanish Empire for three centuries. The
atrocities committed in the Provinces during Spain’s rule there paled in comparison to Latin
America. In the New World, conquistadores committed wholesale genocide against the indigenous
population, destroying their cultures and pillaging two continents.
Napoleonic rule of Iberia weakened Spain to the point it could no longer hold on to its
colonies. In 1810, Grand Colombia declared independence, with Mexico following the next year.
Though Mexico’s first rebellion was crushed, Grand Colombia had the privilege of superior
revolutionary commander. Simon Bolivar lead Grand Colombia to freedom, then pursued Spanish
colonial rule into Peru, Chile and Bolivia, the latter named in his own honor.
The Dutch welcome independence of Spanish colonies. If not for destroying their long-time
enemy, then for opening new markets stocked with millions of consumers, all willing to purchase
Dutch goods. During Spanish rule, Spain forbade any foreigners from trading in its colonies, though
it could never fully keep out determined Dutch smugglers. When Spain was driven from their former
colonies, Dutch traders of all types rushed in to fill the vacuum. Them, along with their British and
American counterparts effectively destroyed the Spanish export trade.
Revolution was not simply relegated to the colonial world. In 1848, a wave of revolutions
broke out across Europe. The United Provinces had its share of unrest in the 1840s, but that paled
in comparison to what happened across Germany, in France and Spain. Again the French monarchy
was abolished and replaced with the Second Republic, which was in turn replaced by the Second
Empire, and replaced again after the Franco-Prussian War16 with the Third Republic. Spain received
its First Republic when the reigning King, Carlos IV, was deposed in autumn of 1848. Ironically, the
Spanish King spent the rest of his life exiled in Flanders.
The toppling of the last Bourbon monarch sent ripples across France’s colonial possessions.
Quebec in particular was hit hard. At first, the Québécois welcomed the deposing of the king. At last,
they hoped they would be treated as one amongst equals as the revolutionaries were fighting for.
When Quebec was not elevated to a Department of France, it was a let down. When the new republic
treated it even more like a colony that the former king, that was the final straw. If Quebec would not
be equal, then it shall be separate. In 1851, Quebec declared its independence. To the world’s
surprise, France did little to stop it. At the time, France had its own internal conflicts to deal with.
When Louis Napoleon declared himself Napoleon III, he granted Quebec’s independence in return
for a free trade treaty with them. France would reap the economic benefits of a colony without
having to control it, and should the new Republic of Quebec fail, then France would be their to
‘assist’.
In 1861, France had its eyes further south. In April, tens of thousands of French soldiers
landed on the shores of Mexico, keen to collect on the debt Mexico had been either unwilling or,
more likely, unable to pay. When the Mexicans surrendered, Napoleon III decided to replace its
republic with a constitutional monarchy. As the Emperor, he chose an Austrian cousin, Maximilian.
The Mexican Emperor was an inept leader, and faced the firing squad in 1867. In response, France
invaded again, and this time it did not change the government, but abolished it completely. Mexico
joined Algeria and Indochina as French colonies.
Even the British managed to climb back from the pit they entered after losing not only India,
but the American colonies. During the 1820s, British nationals launched a land rush on the
unclaimed lands south of Rio de la Plata, to which the Prussians did not protest. The land was cold
and barren, and the British were welcome to Patagonia. It was a regret of later German Emperors
when Patagonia wool began to take up much of Europe’s market.
To replace India, the British managed to wedge themselves in between the Dutch Raj and
Siam. Their conquest of Burma was a relatively short affair, unlike their conquest of East Africa.
Again the British managed to wedge themselves between two states, Dutch South Africa and
Abyssinia. East Africa gave them not only a strategic presence both north and south of the Suez
Canal, but helped stretch their influence across central Africa. Though Britain’s star was once again
on the rise, it would always be second-rate compared to the United Provinces and its stars.
Berlin Conference
Following the Boer Wars, the United Provinces entered into a monumental agreement with
other European powers. The sole purpose; to carve up Africa. In 1884, European empires sent
delegates to Berlin. Germany, Britain, the United Provinces, Austro-Hungary, France and Spain
divided the continent into their own private playgrounds. Germany and Austria were both new to the
colonial game and were granted the smallest portions. The Dutch received nothing new, only insured
the Boer Republics, Angola, Mozambique and Abyssinia stayed within their sphere of influence.
The British stretched their empire across southern and eastern Africa, following both the
Congo and Nile rivers. They expanded their holdings in western Africa, taking up the southern half
of West Africa. The northern half was annexed to Algeria and left under the direct rule of Paris.
France also gained suzerainty over Madagascar. The Germans were sandwiched between British
West Africa, Central Africa, and Egypt-Sudan. The Austrians gained a small section of western
Africa, which upon its independence, would make up the states of Nigeria and Biafra. Spain’s big
keep was Morocco. Along with Puerto Rico, the Marianas, Marshalls and Caroline Islands consisted
of what remained of their once world-straddling Empire.
The Berlin Conference marked the last terrestrial burst of colonialism. After Africa was
carved up, there was no land on Earth, save frozen Antarctica, that could be divided between
European World Powers. With no more room to expand, conflict was inevitable. Two major wars
would be fought by Europeans in Africa during the Twentieth Century. No matter the victors, it was
the Africans who lost. Europe’s drawing of borders cut tribes in half and contained mortal enemies
into the same colony. This marked the end of peace in Africa. Even after the next two world wars,
Africa would be rocked by violence during decolonization and waves of nationalism in the newly
independent nations.
King William VII
Two years after the Berlin Conference, Frederick III’s health began to decline. By 1888, his
son, Willem Maurice van Oranje took up the role as regent. He ruled in the name of his father.
Frederick’s body might be ailing him, but his mind was still sharp. He made certain his son did not
take the throne until after he died. He resisted pressure from his own family and the Staaten-General
to abdicate and allow his son to rule as King. All in good time was his response. Not until January
of 1891 did Frederick finally relinquish the throne and his own life. Four days after his death, his son
was crowned King William VII.
William VII was a strong believer in the principles of European expansion. He believed that
it was his people’s natural right to rule over the less fortunate, to guide them, to lift them from the
‘squaller of ignorance’. Until his reign, Angola and Mozambique were largely left alone by Dutch
interests. Limited logging went on across the two colonies, as did big game hunting. Some
prospectors, veterans of gold and diamond finds in the Boer Republics, headed north to search for
minerals. The jungles of Angola left its mineral rich regions inaccessible, and the technology to
effectively drill off-shore had yet to be invented.
William convinced the Staaten-General to open up land in both the colonies for settling, the
same as India and southern Africa. According to the Homesteader Act of 1824, Angola and
Mozambique were already open for colonization. However, with more agreeable lands in reach,
Netherlanders had little interest in Angola. Fisheries dotted the coast of Mozambique, but that was
as far as colonization went, fishers. William went further to plead with the Dutch citizenry, with
marginal success. In a strange twist of fate, some of the first colonies the United Provinces took were
the last to be colonized.

[The Kiat]

The world in 1850. Yes, the Ottoman Empire is still going strong, because there is no Russia to nickel and dime them to death.

[The Kiat]

Africa after the Berlin Conference.

[The Kiat]

A prelude to the next chapter. Earth in the year 1900. Note Japanese Kamchatka.

[Snowman23]

Nice. Its amazing what no Russia does! We Have the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and a strong China, Ottoman Empire, and Japan. Only thing I will boo is the CSA existing. Hopefully one of the world wars finishes them off :D

[The Kiat]

The C.S.A. will be explained in the American Chapters. It is very different, such as no Virginia succeeding, which in turn leads to events that start a 3rd Anglo-American War. I must admit my American Chapters are not written as well as the core of this ATL, and I tend to focus more on American and less on Confederate-- but I'm getting ahead of myself here.

Nice. Its amazing what no Russia does! We Have the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and a strong China, Ottoman Empire, and Japan. Only thing I will boo is the CSA existing. Hopefully one of the world wars finishes them off :D

[The Kiat]

I forgot about this one. It's a rough map of New Amsterdam before it joined the United States. The land north of it would be the State of Iriqoius (sp?).

[Snowman23]

I forgot about this one. It's a rough map of New Amsterdam before it joined the United States. The land north of it would be the State of Iriqoius (sp?).

Iroquois :cool: And cool map. So i would live in the state of New Amsterdam...sweet...

[The Kiat]

My original European maps are too big to be uploaded, so I used motifake to bypass that and make them smaller.

Orange: United Province
Red: United Kingdom
Yellow: Republic of Spain
Dark Red: Italian Federation
Teal: French Republic
Gray: German Empire
Blue: Kingdom of Sweden
Dark Green: Ottoman Empire
Other Green: Austro-Hungarian Empire
Purple: Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth


I've got Europe for 1789, 1812, 1815, 1913, 1920, 1939, 1941, 1948 and 1989. I'll run these through motifake.com when I have more time.

[DuQuense]

To the south of Formosa and China itself lay the small island of Hainan.Actually Hainan is over 90% as large as Taiwan [33500 v32200]

[The Kiat]

So it is. Boy, do I look stupid. Well, Hainan is still small compared to many other islands :D

Actually Hainan is over 90% as large as Taiwan [33500 v32200]

[The Kiat]

I found some time (thanks to insomnia) to make the maps of Europe fit, so here's 1789.

[The Kiat]

Another one.

[The Kiat]

Orange: United Provinces
Light Green: Sardinia
Purple: Austria
Dark Green: Ottomans
Yellow: Spain
Teal: France
Red: British
Gray: Prussia
Blue: Sweden
Pink: Poland-Lithuania

[The Kiat]

VIII) Alliances
(1900-1916)
Taking Sides
By 1901, the start of the Twentieth Century, European nations were steadily moving towards
one camp or another. On one side, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Sweden and the Confederate
States of America banded together by 1910 to form the Quintuple Entente. The Entente evolved out
of a British-Confederate pact dating back to the mid-1860s, adding both Spain and France to their
alliance after German tromped the French during the Franco-Prussian War. A strong Germany
dominating Central Europe was seen as a threat to Britain. Sweden was convinced to sign on in 1910
when it found itself in direct competition with Germany over the Polish-Lithuanian throne.
Germany formed its own alliance to face off against the Anglo-French hordes on its western
frontier. Austro-Hungary and Italy were allied with Germany, forming what would be called the
Central Powers by 1900. The fourth member, the United States of America, reluctantly signed an
alliance with Germany in 1905. Since the days of George Washington, the United States made it
policy not to get entangled with European affairs. However, like Germany, the United States were
in the center of the continent, trapped between foes. Since the Confederates made no quarms about
signing alliances with America’s oldest nemesis, the United Kingdom, the Americans had little
choice but to seek outside aid. This was all too clear after the disastrous Third Anglo-American War
of 1882-85.
The United Provinces were allied with neither side. Instead, they formed the Dutch
Commonwealth with their own allies. Nominally neutral, the Commonwealth would not hesitate to
engage in warfare should their interests ever be threatened. As far as European wars were concerned,
the Dutch long since learned of the profit of neutraility. They also learned what happened when they
aleigned themselves with a foreign power, as was the case with Britain during the Eighteenth
Century.
The fourth component lay in the aging and ailing Ottoman Empire. They were non-aligned
but far from neutral. Given tensions that occasionally rise in the Balkans or on the Black Sea, the
Turks could quickly find themselves at war with either the Austrians or the Swedes, or both. The
Entente and Central Powers both had the Turks in consideration should war between the two
alliances erupt. Both sides will use every diplomatic tool in their arsenal to get the Turks to declare
war on their opposite number.
Neutral nations factored little into international policy before the Great War. The Latin
American nations were of no real consenquence, nor was Siam. By 1910, China’s Manchu Dynasty
came to an end, and China plunged into a warring states period. The Polish-Lithuanian
Commonwealth’s own stance of neutrality made for an excellent buffer zone between Sweden and
Germany. The only real contender was that of Japan. By 1910, they had considerable colonial gains
in Korea along with Kampchatka. Though the far northeastern reaches of Asia were frozen on their
best of days, they were rich in mineral wealth. The Japanese brought Korean laborers into the deadly
environment by the tens of thousands, many of which never saw home again.
Arms Race
Germany and Britain played a dangerous game in the build up of arms during the first decade
of the Twentieth Century. This build up is primarily what allowed the World Powers to wage war
between 1913-16. Though it was not the casus belli, it did allow many nations to expend the surplus
of ammunition stockpiled during the decade. The German High Seas Fleet spent twenty years trying
to elevate itself to the level of the Royal (British) Navy with little success.
In 1905, the British severely upset the balance of naval power by deploying the HMS
Dreadnaught. It was a battleship unlike any before, an all big-gun warship. Its three hundred
millimeter guns could easily blast lesser warships out of the water. The launching of the Dreadnaught
Class battleships did more than drive the Germans into a production frenzy. This new type of
warship was of great concern to the Dutch Commonwealth.
By 1907, the Brazilians built their own ‘dreadnaught’, the HMBS Emperor of Brazil. Its main
turrets sported three hundred fifty millimeter guns, and was the first of many Brazilian and
Netherlanders dreadnaught to be built by the start of the Great War. The Commonwealth expended
a great deal of capital in building newer, more powerful ships.
The Americans added a new
dimension to the arms race in 1903,
with the advent of the first functional
flying machine. Though the United
States Army saw the airplane as little
more than a novelty, both Germany and
the Britain saw its potential for
intellegence gathering. The Dutch took
longer catching on. It was not until 1907
that the Fokker Aeronautical Company
was established, and in that same year
they only produced six airplanes. Hardly
enough to cover a globe spanning commonwealth.
By 1913, the year the Great War erupted, both Germany and Britain supported an impressive
military infrastructure. Both were equally matched in aircraft, however the High Seas Fleet only
operated half as many vessels as the Royal (British) Navy. Furthermore, the British could call upon
their own self-governing colonies, their own ‘commonwealth’. Though pale in comparison with the
Dutch, the British could rely upon the Australians, Canadians, Filipinos and the Patagonians.
Germans had fewer colonies, and those were mostly inhabited by natives. They invested most of
their colonial efforts in Rio del la Plata, north of Patagonia; and Kaiserwilhemland, north of
Australia.
The rest of Europe did not sit back idly as the two giants armed themselves. France kept up
a steady pace, though always behind the both. The one disadvantage to its republican government
was that France was always at the mercy of its people. Austro-Hungary too build up its forces, but
its army was segeregated between the various ethnic and national groups within its borders. As we
will later seen, a less-than-fully integrated army was not a good army. Sweden used a similar
practive, though only concerning its more elite forces, the Cossacks for example.
The Italian Federation spent more of an effort on its navy and its own air force. Its own
expansion into Libya, coupled with the fact the nation was a series of islands and a peninsula made
the maritime forces more valubale. Italy’s northern frontier sported one of the most formidable
defensive barriers in the world; the Alps. Spain was forced to deplete its own resources in a navy to
rival the Italians. Long gone were Spanish days of glory, the last of their American colonies liberated
and their Pacific possessions lost in the wake of the Spanish-American War.
Across the Atlantic, it was the United States who built a military to be reckoned with. With
enemies to the north, south and on the Pacific, the Americans poured their vast economic might into
a two-ocean navy along with an army that could take on both British and Confederates
simultaneously. Though humiliated during the Third Anglo-American War, the Americans built
themselves back up, allying with Germany and adopting much of its Prussian institutions. The army
was not the only one to benefit from foreign ideas. For decades, the Americans had hired Dutch
captains and admirals to teach at the Naval Academy in Baltimore. Importing the discipline of the
mightiest army in Europe, and the mightiest navy in the world, the Americans regained their
confidence, especially in the wake of the triumphed victory over Spain.
The Confederate States strained themselves to keep up with the Americans, though they
could never afford an army or navy as mighty. They were forced to rely upon British intervention
and support. They long since adopted British tactics and discipline, and this aided them against the
Americans during the Third Anglo-American War. The real advantage of the Confederates lay in the
fact that they would almost certainly be fighting a defensive war. Extensive fortifications combined
with knowledge of the terrain made attacking the Confederate States a challenge.
With the armies and navies built, and contenders itching for a fight, all that was needed was
a spark to ignite the tension and plunge the world into a war unlike any before; a war to end all wars.
Canals
By 1913, the world saw two more canals, these linking Atlantic and Pacific. The northern
one was built by the French in the colonial Mexican department of Nicaragua. Though not the
shortest possible route from the Carribean to the Pacific, Lake Nicaragua offered a convenient gap
to allow for shipping. All that was require was a bit of dredging and some locks to connect the lake
with both oceans. In 1879, the French began construction of the Nicaragua Canal.
Though completed first, its construction took far longer than the Panama Canal. The French
spent twenty-six years working on their colossal project. IN truth, the French simply supervised,
planned and designed the canal. Tens of thousand of their colonial ‘citizens’ toiled in the jungles of
Central America, upwards to thirty percent dying during the time of construction. By annexing
Mexico, France’s canal opened several years before the American’s project. Since the Confederates
were allied with France through Britain, the French monopoly on canals was viewed as a threat to
American national security.
In 1899, a year after the tremendous victory over Spain, and six years before the Nicaragua
Canal opened, the United States pressured Grand Colombia to sell the province of Panama to the
Americans. The province was quickly annexed to the state of Costa Rica1. The Isthmus of Darien
offered the shortest distance between the Carribean and the Pacific. It was the ideal choice for a
multi-lock canal, but the Americans could not afford the project alone. They spent until 1903,
searching for fiscal support.
Their strongest ally, Germany leant them support, however their arms race with Britain
consumed too much of the budget. Though Germany would assist in the defense of the Panama
Canal, they could ill afford to help pay for it. The Dutch, on the other hand, were friends but not
allies, and were interested in a short cut to the Pacific. Though the Commonwealth had no holdings
in the eastern Pacific, various Dutch interests saw they could profit from the amount of traffic that
would flow through the canal. It also gave Dutch ships an alternative to paying the French or taking
the long way around.
The two canals in Central America were vital to the war efforts of both alliances, though
neither side attacked their opposite’s waterway. The Panama Canal was protected merely by the
Dutch interest. Interfering with Commonwealth shipping was the surest way to get the Dutch
Commonwealth into the Great War, and the Dutch long since learned there was little profit in war.
During the Great War, each of the world’s greatest canals were given a wide berth by all the
belligerents.
King of Ceylon
By 1911, Ceylon were ready to take its place a nation among equals. Its economy flourished
over the past fifty years, though industrialization was minimal. The Ceylonese established its own
Staaten-General, which held its initial session on September 3, 1907. Though it formed its own
government and written its own constitution, the Ceylonese Staaten-General entered a debate
whether or not to petition for admittance. For the Commonwealth’s part, the Commonwealth
Assembly had to accept the petition. The Boer Republics were concerned that Ceylonese admittance
might disrupt the balance of power between the Republicans of South Africa and the Monarchists
of Brazil and the United Provinces.2
A minority of politicians on Ceylon wanted to establish a republic, but the majority were in
favor of personal union with the mother country. In 1910, an island-wide referendum voted
overwhelmingly for the creation of a monarchy, and the Staaten-General made quick to ratify the
vote and elect Frederick III to be Frederick I, King of Ceylon. In January of 1911, Ceylon was
granted the status of a realm within the commonwealth.
Given its location, Ceylon was the natural overseer of India, which the Indians were keenly
aware of. Since the establishment of the Dutch Commonwealth, the land owners and vassals sent
India into a crash course of modernization. The elite of India would do anything to not become a
colony of the upstart Ceylonese, even if it meant reforming the system that gave them power. IN
1894, princes and governors of the Indian provinces met in Delhi, a city conquered only thirty years
prior, to form a provisional self-government for the colony.
Up until the Delhi Conference, India was ruled directly from the Hague, and the Staaten-
General appointed governor-generals over the provinces not under the rule of allies. Even the allies
obeyed the commands of the Staaten-General, else they would lose all power they still retained. By
1894, though India was still sunk in poverty, the elite were determined to gain statehood for India.
The issue of whether or not India would be a single nation was not much of one. Apart, the provinces
and principalities were weak, and easily picked off (which was how the Dutch managed to conquer
the sub-continent in the first place), but united they could stand up to any power, even their colonial
master, the United Provinces of the Netherlands.
Before the dawn of the Twentieth Century, the Indians managed to slap together a coalition
government, which representatives from each of the princely states and provinces. The initial Indian
Staaten-General was the first unicameral parliament in the Dutch world. This did not sit well with
the Hague. The Netherlander Staaten-General was determined that each parliament within the
Commonwealth should be made in its own image. Though there was some opposition in the House
of Electorates, India clearly fell under a matter of state and not the people. The Senaat, seeing the
determination exported from India, decided to ‘aid’ their counterparts in India.
In 1905, the Staaten-General wrote a constitution for India, not to debate or discuss, but to
simply accept. For the most part, it differed little from the Brazilian Constitution, including installing
Frederick as the Emperor of India. The decision of republic or monarchy was stripped from India,
which had not officially been granted self-determination in the first place. It is fortunate for the
Dutch Commonwealth that India’s elite took the task of forming a state upon themselves. If India
had remained a colony like the Indonesian islands of Formosa during the Second World War, it is
entirely possible it would have followed them on the path to republic, or perhaps severed all ties
from the Netherlands with the act of declaring independence.
Establishing democracy in a country that was still largely illiterate proved a daunting
challenge. For decades, Commonwealth authorities struggled against election fraud throughout the
provinces, or states as India soon called its own divisions. The Indian House of Electorates, between
1911 to 1941, was largely populated with Electorates that cheated their way into power. Unable to
read, the voters had only the word of attendants to take for whose name they checked. Furthermore,
those same Electorates blocked attempts at universal education; a literate voter might not vote for
them.
Such liberties and irresponsibility made many in the Commonwealth Assembly skeptical as
to whether or not India was ready for admittance. Delegates from Brazil, and of course Ceylon,
argued that the more mature colonies, Java and Formosa, should be admitted before India. In April
of 1911, the Assembly deadlocked on the vote, leaving the decision in the hands of the head of the
Commonwealth and the tie-breaker; Frederick III.
Frederick was more than ready to have another jewel in his crown. He placed his one vote
in favor of India, and on May 1, 1911, India achieved the status of realm within the commonwealth.
To the average India, little changed. They were still poor, dispossessed and had little in the way of
say in their lives. They would not see the fruits of statehood for decades to come. To them, the
illusion of having a say in their government did not outweigh the near famine conditions across the
countryside. Land was still owned by a minority who were more interested in cash crops than
growing food.
Sadly, these same land owners were the largest block of India’s House of Electorates. Land
reform bills were also blocked, as the minority, the legitimately elected Electorates struggled for the
betterment of their country against the rural aristocracy. It took a war with Japan, when the peasantry
rose up for promises of liberation by the Japanese to force the Indian Staaten-General to change.
Most of this change was a combination of improved education, and a wave of assassination of
landing owning elite by the poorly paid laborers under their employment. Had reforms not occurred,
it is entirely likely that when the People’s Dynasty took power in China, that the masses in India
would have transformed India into the Commonwealth’s only communist member.
War Clouds
In 1913, King Gunther II of the Litho-Polish Commonwealth died. Unlike other monarchies,
the Lithuanians and Poles elected a king after the previous one died or retired. The Kings were either
domestic, or came from German or Swedish states, with the occasional candidate from Austria. In
early 1913, there was a debate within Litho-Poland as to who should take the throne. The choice was
narrowed down to two candidates, one Swedish and one German.
The German choice happened to be the cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm II, while the Swede was
the brother of King Charles XVII. With each election, the two choices were tied, and with no end
in sight, the Kaiser decided to act. Since the previous king was a German3, the German Empire felt
it was entitled to have one of its own ruling over the nation to the east. Furthermore, Litho-Poland
always offered the perfect buffer between the two Empires. The succession crisis caused much alarm
across Europe, and France, Britain and Italy called up partial mobilizations of their military base.
France in particular feared German ambitions, as it was humbled by Prussia fifty years prior.
Their fears and concerns were well justified. On June 22, 1913, several German divisions
crossed the frontier, and the Kaiser made his intentions public; Germany would break the deadlock
and install a German on the Litho-Polish throne. Both Britain and France gave Germany an
ultimatum, withdraw or there will be war. Sweden did not bother with warnings. On June 23, the
Swedish Empire declared war on Germany. Days later, as alliances were activated, virtually all of
Europe and North America were plunged into war.
Though Frederick III personally condemned the Kaiser’s violation of Litho-Polish selfdetermination,
the Staaten-General of the United Provinces made no public declaration aside from
absolute neutrality. Historical memories of the devastation to the Provinces during the Napoleonic
Era stood united with public opinion; no war for the Dutch. Various Dutch arms manufactures and
dealers were pleased by neutrality, which meant they could sell to both sides, and they did.
Brazilian ordinance factories went into overtime trying to keep up with demand of both
British and German colonists in South America. Not only did shells and bullets cross the border, but
so did volunteers. Brazil was home to several mercenary companies, and legions of youth eager for
adventure. In both cases, war fulfilled their desires. Though as part of the Commonwealth, Brazil
was neutral, it would do nothing to stop its citizens from joined the German, or less often, the British
armies. The government would do nothing, but the people were free to make their own foolish
decisions. In the words of Electorate Maarten Helm (1st District, Cayenne), ‘if somebody wants to
go off and join the (German) army, than that’s their business’.
Despite Dutch individuals entering the war, the warring powers gave the Dutch
Commonwealth a wide berth. As the preeminent military power on the planet, nobody dared to
antagonize the Dutch and risk driving them into their enemies’ camp. Even when the Germans
declared unrestricted submarine warfare against the British Isles, U-boat captains went out of their
way to avoid firing on any ship flying orange-white-blue. However, once the British merchantmen
figured this out, they simply re-registered their own ships under the banner of the United Provinces.
The city of Luxembourg saw its own share of action, though not in the belligerent way. Being
so close to the front, the city was often overflown by squadrons from Germany and their British
rivals. The French steered clear of Dutch territory and pressured Britain to do the same. The British,
however, saw that if Germany was going to overfly Luxembourg, then they had the right to intercept
them over the Duchy. Intercept them they did, but not in the air.
The dawn of air combat was filled with chivalry and honor, not too different from the
Knights of medieval Europe (though pilots did not butcher the peasantry indiscriminately).
Discipline was tight around the combatant’s own aerodromes, and lacked in the way of
entertainment. Beer was plentiful, but tightly rationed do to the war effort. Dutch breweries had no
such limitations. In fact, their business was thriving in the wake of Germany exports drying to a
trickle.
Often after patrols, both German and British pilots would land at the airport at Luxembourg
in search of unauthorized rest and relaxation. There was one pub at Luxembourg Airport in 1913,
but by 1916, dozens of pubs, bars, casinos and even the odd brothel materialized around the airport,
and several airstrips cleared around the city. For the citizens of the city, the war was actually good
for business. At first, the Luxembourger officials turned a blind eye to the occasional landings, but
as word about Luxembourg spread, the locals soon faced the prospect of both Germans and British
ending up at the same pub.
The city police force was tripled around the airfields, but to little avail. While in neutral
territory, the two opposing forces had little interest in fighting, and more so in fraternizing. They
traded stories about combats, about home life, and even the odd bottle of booze from each respective
nation. British scotch was highly prized by the Germans. There was plenty of card playing to be had,
and again the officials made absolute certain no cheats were permitted access to casinos. With a de
facto truce in effect, the last thing anyone wanted was for bad blood to be spilt.
When the stories were told and the songs sang, the pilots would bid farewell, wishing the
other luck in a may-the-better-man-win spirit. A few pilots would even seek out worthy opponents
to challenge in the skies over the trenches. The Luxembourgers strained their resources to prevent
the war from coming home, but lack of identification made prevention of landing difficult. Many
aces visited Luxembourg, with even one report in September of 1914 that the legendary Red Baron
landing his bright red tri-plane at Luxembourg Airport. Needless to say, no British pilot dared to
challenge him to an airborne duel.
Hermann Overkirk
Though neutral, the Dutch public was still interested in how the war progressed. Newspapers
across the Provinces, and the whole of the Commonwealth related the exploits of armies, generals
and even the common soldier. For the Dutch media, gaining access to the front was difficult. The
French wanted no part of the idea, and there was little love-loss between Britain and the Netherlands.
Even Germany was wary of reporters, fearing they were either spies or would accidently pass along
valuable information to spies. The only nation that openly welcomed Dutch reporters was the United
States.
In fact, the United States, after a century of humiliation, was more than eager to show the
world its power. Reporters imbedded at the front, or near it, gave the war in North America excellent
documentation, as was the case with Brazilian reporter Hermann Overkirk. Overkirk managed to get
himself attached to the 1st Army along the Ohio Front, and to the offices of its commanding officer,
John ‘Black Jack’ Pershing.4 His reports gave readers across the Commonwealth a detailed account
of the horrors of modern warfare.
Throughout 1913, a static line developed within the Confederate State of Kentucky. It was
not until 1914, at the Battle of the Tennessee River that the initial dead lock was broken. Over a year
leading to the battle, Overkirk wrote and wired his stories of despair back home. One side would
shell the other side all week, in vein hope of smashing a hole in the line. When the dust cleared, and
the attackers ‘went over the top’, the defenders would crawl out of their well fortified subterranean
homes, take up machine guns, and mow down the attackers. When the attackers retreated, the
defenders attacked, only to get cut down by the attacker’s machine guns once they were safely back
in their trenches. Tens of thousand of lives were thrown away in these futile charges, that seldom
managed to take the first line of trenches.
At Tennessee River, the first use of chlorine was documented in the American Theater.
American soldiers rolled out canisters of the lethal gas and opened them as the wind blew towards
the enemy. This being the first use of modern chemical warfare, the Confederates had no defense
against the low laying gas. Once the gas dissipated, American soldiers were already jumping into
Confederate trenches, finishing off the still withering forms of their enemy. It was hardly the charge
for glory the French were so obsessed over during the Eighteenth Century. Instead, warfare became
an efficient tool in the industrialized world.
In 1915, before the Commonwealth was drug into the conflict, Overkirk wrote the most
preposterous story to ever see publication. He stood within view of the front, invited by Pershing,
who wanted the world to witness this great breakout. What he saw, nobody believed at first. He saw
large, noisy, armored beasts crawling across no-man’s land. ‘Armored cavalry’ they were called.
This was an allusion to the desire to open a gap in the lines for more traditional cavalry to route the
enemy as they had in previous wars. Horses stood little chance against machine guns, as was most
devastatingly learned by the Cossacks in the Eastern Theater. The Americans gained several
kilometers of front before the Armored Cavalry all suffered mechanical breakdowns.
The Van Der Weld Incident
Despite re-registry, the nations at war continued unrestricted submarine warfare, this time
targeting any ships entering their foe’s waters. The Staaten-Generals of all the Dutch states, along
with the Commonwealth Assembly told Dutch companies and merchants that they would enter
combatant’s territorial waters at their own risk. Once it was clear the Royal (Dutch) Navies would
not protect any other nation’s trade, the fear of reprisal diminished and Dutch freighters were soon
sank along with the rest of shipping.
However, the Commonwealth made it perfectly clear that it would not tolerate attacks on its
nationals while in Commonwealth or international waters. Within British, American or German
water were one thing, but the Dutch considered international water vital to their trade and commerce.
As many nations have learned throughout history, the quickest way to get the Dutch involved was
to threaten their commercial empire. However, the Dutch Commonwealth claimed a territorial water
limit of twenty kilometers, while most international treaties limited it to sixteen point one kilometers
(ten miles). In this case, territorial claims often overlapped, such as with the United Provinces and
Germany, Brazil and British Guyana, and so on.
It was also in these disputed zones, while the war was in its third year of stalemate, that one
of the greatest controversies of the Twentieth Century occurred. In the waters between Germany and
the United Provinces, at a point where coasts angled and the Dutch expanded their claims into
German waters, did the Dutch finally get drawn into the conflict. The Kapenstaaten freighter Van
Der Weld sailed, destined to Bremen, and behind it a submarine tracked. As soon as the Van Der
Weld entered what the international community considered German waters, the submarine sped into
an attack run.
From all account, the Van Der Weld was struck in the forward hold. Since the ship was
carrying ammonium nitrate to sell to the Germans, the ships erupted into a monestrous fireball,
killing all on board, and through pieces of the hull some twenty-five kilometers distance. The
explosion was so powerful, that the HMS Grendal, a United Province destroyer not only spotted it,
but felt the concussion. At once, the captain of the Grendal, Simon van der Hague, ordered his ship
to pursue the submarine in Dutch waters. With primitive radio equipment, the Grendal sent word
to near-by Dutch ships to coordinate in a sub round up.
In the afternoon of July 3, 1915, a squadron of two Dutch destroyers and three frigates, force
the Swedish submarine Narwhal to beach itself on a German beach opposite the bay from the
Province of Ommelanden. The Dutch captured the submarine and detained its crew. When word
reached the Hague, the Staaten-General went into a frenzy, an emergency session of the
Commonwealth Assembly was called, and Frederick III stormed the Swedish embassy demanding
to speak with the ambassador. When the ambassador refused to see him, the King had the embassy
closed, Swedish nationals expelled from the country, minus the ambassador, who would speak with
the King.
The meeting lasted for a few minutes, for with each protest from the Swede, the King’s anger
grew. When the ambassador finally acknowledged Swedish submarines operated in that area of
German waters, Frederick rebutted by saying it was Dutch water, and by sinking a Boer freighter in
Dutch waters, Sweden had doomed itself to a war it could not win. With those last words, the
ambassador from Sweden was unceremoniously expelled from the United Provinces.
Since international affairs are decided by the Commonwealth as a whole, the Netherlander
Staaten-General was understandably frustrated. The best it could do, was for the hereditary members
of the Senaat to call up the militias of their respective Provinces. The VOC, was not tied to any state
formalities, and its fleet was put on alert, though it took some time. It was not until all ships made
port could they learn that the Dutch Commonwealth was now at war. Even during unrestricted
attacks, the belligerents avoided attacking any ship that waved the orang-white-blue with big bold
black VOC labeled across them. Only property of the VOC could wave that flag, and nobody could
register under them. Even if they could, it was not likely that the VOC would give the ships back.
On July 17, 1915, as soon as he representatives could either be round up, or in the case of
Brazil, sail in, the Commonwealth Assembly made the monumental decision. For once, there was
little debate and no rivalries. What happened in the United Provinces could happen everywhere else
if the Swedish menace was not confronted. In one of their few unanimous votes, the Commonwealth
declared war upon Sweden.
The Dutch Commonwealth at War
Shortly after, Sweden did as predicted, and demanded their allies declare war upon the Dutch.
France, Spain and the Confederates declared war only two days after the Commonwealth. The British
were slower, for they had to debate. Britain relied upon imports of food stuffs to feed its population,
unlike its allies. With the Dutch at war, not only was Britain in real danger of strangulation, but there
was always the possibility of invasion. The Americans and Germans could never pull off such a feat,
but the Dutch proved they could land troops on British soil, even if only for a raid. The British
relented to foreign pressures and joined their allies in declaration of war, at the same time recalling
much of its navy from the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
With France’s declaration of war, the Dutch enacted a modified version of War Plan Violet.6.
Instead of invading France itself, for the United Provinces had not nearly enough soldiers to do so,
they instead allowed over two hundred thousand armed Germans to march through the Ardennes and
outflank the Entente’s trench network. What resulted was the largest retreat in the Western Theater
of the Great War, even larger than the evacuation of Gallipoli. The Germans gains nearly fifty
kilometers of land, and drove French and British soldiers completely out of Alsace-Lorraine.
The Dutch kept a mostly defensive stance against the French. Instead, the bulk of their forces
massed in Norway, and launched an invasion of the Swedish homeland. Along with soldiers from
the United Provinces, colonial brigades from Iceland and a division of the Royal (Indian) Army
participated with the invasion of Sweden. Germany tried in 1913 to invade the Swedish mainland
from staging areas around Kopenhagen, with little success, though it did prevent the Swedes from
launching a seaborne invasion of Pomerania.
With the Commonwealth fully blockading all Swedish access in and out of the Baltic, the
Dutch invasion gained far more ground than the Germans. The invasion followed the rail from
Trondheim to Stockholm, and managed to draw off any Swedish reserves along the Eastern Front.
Even with that, the Germans failed to achieve a breakout in 1915. Had the Dutch Commonwealth
been united militarily as it was with international affairs, the Dutch might very well have knocked
Sweden out of the war within a month.
Instead, other Commonwealth members fought their own wars on their own fronts. The
Brazilians supported German gains in Rio del la Plata, fighting the ground war exclusively in South
America. The Royal (Brazilian) Navy was another matter. It battled both British and French in the
Carribean, and even cut off Britain from its Patagonian beef supply. The introduction of
Commonwealth navies into the war shifted the balance drastically. Once the Dutch drove British
warships from the North Sea, the German High Seas Fleet was then free to enter the Atlantic. Even
together, they were unable to close off Britain completely from the outside world. The Royal
(British) Navy controlled the English Channel throughout the war.
However, Brazilian activities in the South Atlantic, and the Dutch in Abyssinia closing the
Suez, drew British and French ships away from their relatively weaker ally, the Confederate States.
Left alone to face the United States, the Americans easily blocked the Confederate coast. As was
predicted by all parties involved, the Dutch navy altered the balance in favor of its temporary allies.
However, the Dutch Army was another matter. European powers thought little of the United
Provinces’ army before the war began. Surely it could defend its home from invasion, but the Dutch
have no fought a ‘real’ foe in a century,7 how could they be expected to meet the standards of France,
Britain and Germany?
Not only did they meet those standards, but in the case of France, they surpassed them. Dutch
involvement along the Western Front was minimal, but the four divisions that followed the German
flanking attack rolled over French fortifications with little difficulty. As one could easily assume,
the first target of the Dutch invasion was the city of Mons. The Dutch long since abandoned any
claim to the city, and after a century under French rule, the city was thoroughly French. However,
there was a certain matter of pride on the part of the Staaten-General that the city should fall.
In August of 1915, the Dutch army under the command of Field Marshall Albert van
Meinrad, encircled and laid siege to the city. The French had only a minimal garrison in the town,
the majority of soldiers along the Dutch border were already diverted to the Western Front. Failure
to foresee Dutch intervention nearly cost the French the way in the summer of 1915. The Fall of
Mons after a three week siege was but one of the many downturns in French fortunes during the year.
Far worse was the loss of Verdun during the spring, and the months spent throwing soldiers against
the Maas River to retake it. The only reason France stayed in the war was because both Britain and
Spain backed her up.
On a more personal note in respects to the House of Oranje, one of the junior officers under
van Meinrad’s command just happened to be the Grand Prince of Norway. After Frederick III’s
brother died, his son, the King’s nephew, inherited the title of Grand Prince and was now in line for
succession. As with Dutch tradition, only the males of the core branch of the House of Oranje
ascended the throne. Frederick Henry van Oranje lead a company of men during the Siege of Mons.
Tragically, during the storming of Mons, Frederick Henry took a bullet to the chest, puncturing a
lung. For two weeks it was uncertain whether he would survive or not. The bullet was removed, but
Frederick III, along with all of the United Provinces were kept in the grip of suspense before
Frederick Henry made his partial recovery.8
Frederick Henry’s younger brother, Mandrick van Oranje was not so lucky. He served in the
Royal (Dutch ) Navy, as a lieutenant aboard the battlecruiser Half-Moon. On patrol in the North Sea,
the Half-Moon entered into combat against two British ships, the Resolution and Excelsior, a
battleship and heavy cruiser respectively. The Excelsior received heavy damage and was force to
retreat from battle. Resolution lost the function of its forward turret, but not soon enough to prevent
armor piercing rounds from its other guns from penetrating Half-Moon’s magazine, and destroying
the ship with one thunderous explosion. All but three on board the Dutch ship were killed, and those
three spent the rest of the war in a POW camp.
End Game
By 1916, all the combatants, save the Commonwealth, were worn down from over three years
of fighting. The end of the war came not from a decisive victory or total defeat by foreign foes, but
its started from within. In February of 1916, the Austrians occupied the Turkish city of Belgrade. For
centuries, the Serbs were either subjugated by Austrian or Turkish masters. Like all the nationalities
in the Balkans, except the masters, the Serbs were tired of living under heals. They were tired of
servitude, of taxation, of conscription, and most of all, of poverty.
Karl Marx long since predicted an uprising of the proletarians against the bosses, the
industrial giants that ground them down during the Industrial Revolution. Though the Balkans were
just starting to industrialize during the 1910s, Marx’s predication could not have been further off.
The first people’s uprising came not in the industrialized West, but in the colonial Balkans. To the
Serbs, and all others, that was exactly how they felt; as either colonies of Vienna or Constantinople.
For two decades, an underground of intellectuals and nationalists thrived throughout the
Balkans, striving for homelands of their own. Their diminutive size failed to make them safe. Each
time one of these ‘Marxists’ spoke out, the appropriate authorities cracked down. In Belgrade,
February of 1916, what would soon be called the Serbian People’s Party saw that Austro-Hungary
was weakening. They could also see that the Turks were as well, for them made no attempt to retake
the city since 1914. With both giants of the Balkans exhausted, the Marxists organized the masses
and instigated a general uprising against the Austrians.
Within three days, the Austrians crushed the uprising utterly. However, their squelching of
the Belgrade Uprising can be compared to stomping out a fire. If one is not careful, one might just
kick embers everywhere. That is what happened in Belgrade. Many Marxists fled either to Sarejavo,
or across the front lines into Bucharest and Sofia. Upon arriving in these cities, the Marxists agitated
local Nationalistic and Marxists underground movements. By March, more successful uprisings
shatter control over these three provincial capitals. On March 21, Bulgarians and Rumanians
declared their independence from the Ottoman Empire. Bosnia broke away from Austro-Hungary
the next day.
The uprisings were all part of a widespread, organized revolution, extending even into the
armies of Austro-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. Ethnic divisions and regiments deserted their
respective armies, and in some cases turned against their former masters. The Balkan Revolution
spread across the entire Balkan peninsula in two months. By June, the Austro-Hungarian Empire
disintegrated, collapsing under over a century of pent up ethnic and nationalistic rage. In response
to its fragmentation, the Kaiser was forced to divert several divisions from the Western Front to
secure German Austria, and prevent the Revolution from spreading into Germany.
The Ottoman Empire lasted only six weeks longer than the Austrians. While the Balkan
provinces rose up against the Turks, so did Armenians, Kurds and Arabs in the eastern extend of the
Empire. The Turks fared worse, for their capital, Constantinople fell to a joint Greco-Bulgarian
invasion. The Turks attempted to land and retake the city, but the newly established Greek People’s
Republic rebuffed the landing.
The Revolution did not stop with the Balkans. Smaller cells were located within the Litho-
Polish Commonwealth and the Swedish Empire. To a lesser extend, a revolutionary fever swept
through Munich, causing the Kaiser to send negotiators to Stockholm. With the Revolution brewing
within both combatant’s borders, the German and Swedish Empires signed a cease-fire, effective
August 2, 1916.
In the West, this act was seen as betrayal of allies, and an opportunity for the Western Entente
to drive into Germany before German reinforcements arrived along the front. The timing of the
decision forced the French to abandon their troop rotation. Up until then, French soldiers spent one
week on the line, and were rotated to the rear for a week. In effect, France had two Grande Armies.
These shifts were morale boosters and kept their soldiers in fighting shape, but the shortage
prevented France from breaking through. Starting in August, the troop rotations stopped, and after
a week ‘on the line’ soldiers who would have been due for rotation were still in the trenches.
When a large offensive was in the makings, the French might delay rotations, but they never
cancelled them. Dissent grew in the ranks, and when the order to ‘go over the top’ finally arrived,
the French soldiers refused to go. The French Mutiny effectively spelt the end of the Great War on
the Western Front. Germany seized on the opportunity and sued France for a truce. With their
soldiers up in arms against their own Generals, France had little choice to accept this or face a
possible German breakthrough and advance on Paris, and France would loose the war. The
politicians knew they would loose some territory, but not as much as they would should Paris fall.
On August 29, the cease fire between France and Germany went into effect, and the French
ordered British and Spanish expeditions to leave their territory. By now, France knew about the wave
of Red Revolution and decided to crack down on any left-wing movement in the area. Italy also
entered a unilateral cease-fire with France. Instead, they diverted soldiers to occupy the Slovenian
Socialist Republic. With Europe out of the fighting, former Confederate President Woodrow Wilson
sent delegates to all warring parties with peace proposals. All were accepted within days of
receiving, except the Americans. The Bull Moose himself, Theodore Roosevelt held out for three
weeks, to see if Pershing could take Montgomery. He did not, and the ailing President, on the last
year of his last term, decided to end the war before he left office.
Versailles
In October of 1916, Entente and Central Powers, along with the Dutch Commonwealth met
at the Palace of Versailles, south of Paris. The successor states of the Ottoman Empire were invited,
but only Armenia, Kurdistan, Turkey and the Arab Republic accepted. The Balkan states were still
struggling for power, nor had they been recognized by the capitalistic nations of the world. After
three years of war, Europe and North America were ready for peace on nearly any terms.
For Europe, the terms were simple. Virtual status quo ante bellum. With the exception of
shifts in the Franco-German border, no land between surviving combatants changed hands. Even the
United Provinces forewent annexing Mons. Nations retained their colonies with original border
integrity, minus some portions of Canada. For the most part, the Great War was fought to a stand
still, with few gains and fewer winners.
The only real winner to emerge from the war was the United States. After a century of
humiliation in the face of the British, the American finally defeated them. By the end of the war, the
front lines in Canada were on the verge of collapse.9 At Versailles, they demanded concessions from
the British, to which the surviving Central Powers seconded, as did the Dutch Commonwealth. The
British realized they could not afford to fight the Americans every other generation, and decided to
push for a permanent peace treaty. In return for peace, the United States got back northern Maine,
the Red River valley, and the lands between the Forty-ninth parallel and Columbia River. Further,
the northwestern border was extended along the continental divide of the Rocky Mountains up to the
fifty-four forty boundary, the original northern extent of the Oregon Country. Britain and Canada
ceded these lands, along with the Bahamas and for the first time in history, an Anglo-American
peace treaty was signed at Versailles, and ratified in Congress just days before Roosevelt retired.10
The Confederates were the only clear losers of the war. If not for Roosevelt’s ailing health
and planned retirement, he would have pressed the war until the Confederate States of America were
destroyed. In his diaries, published in the 1980s, Roosevelt repeated confessed his desires to restore
the union. In the end, the Americans restored the legitimate governments of Cuba, Kentucky and
Durango, along with acquiring land from Arizona and Virginia, turned into Jefferson and Lincoln
territories respectively. The Confederates were bankrupt and broken at war’s end, but that did not
stop Wilson from pushing for world peace.
His proposal included establishing the League of Nations, an institution were nations can
solve their disputes in civilized manners. The League had little power to enforce the resolutions it
passed, and that was the reason for its eventual failure. Ironically, it was the Confederate Senate that
rejected joining the League. Every other power joined, however the Dutch Commonwealth opted out,
preferring its own international organization over the League, though they would be willing to work
with the international community.
To resolve the question of Polish Succession, which started the Great War, the Poles and
Lithuanians decided to abolish their own monarchy. At the start of 1918, the Republic of Poland-
Lithuania was born. Kurdistan, Armenia and the Arab Republic were all recognized an admitted into
the League. Turkey refused to join for several years due to this recognition. As for the Austro-
Hungarian Empire, the German Empire was permitted to annex German Austria. As for the other
provinces, now plunged in civil wars of their own,11 the League attempted to organize a peacekeeping
force, but no nations would contribute soldiers, save Turkey, who wanted to regain control
over the Balkans.
With the Great War ending, the Dutch Commonwealth entered a sort of Golden Era. Between
the world wars, Dutch wealth was unmatched, and with nations ruined by the Great War, they
supplied much of the industry and capital needed to rebuild. Companies like the VOC reached new
heights, and what started as a puny collection of quarreling provinces along the North Sea reached
the status of the world’s first Superpower.

[The Kiat]

Here's a flag from my PDF notes. It's the flag of the Brazillian Empire I made in photoshop. The picture itself is too big a file to upload, so I used the note. I suppose I could remake it in paint, but I just worked yet another ten hour day and really don't feel like remaking the flag.

[The Kiat]

And one last map for today. This one is of Europe in the aftermath of the Great War. The dark red in the Balkans it the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics which is established in 1920. In the near east, there is Turkey, Armenia and Kurdistan. And Germany scooped up German Austria and Bohemia in the wake of the Balkans Revolution that ended the Great War.

I know the map says Europe, 1939. There are no territorial exchanges between 1920 and 1939. There is a change between 1916 and 1920, and that would be Germany's annexations above, and the Italian Federation taking Slovenia.

[Snowman23]

Awesome. Like the complete change between the OTL and TTL WWI. Can we have a map of North America though? :)

[The Kiat]

Of course, when I post the American Chapters.

Awesome. Like the complete change between the OTL and TTL WWI. Can we have a map of North America though? :)

[The Kiat]

Here are the Dutch War Plans. I'll go into some detail at a later date.

Dutch War Plans

War Plan Rose: War against the United Kingdom

War Plan Violet: War against France

War Plan Tulip: Invasion to liberated the United Provinces

War Plan Lilac: War against Spain

War Plan Daisy: War with Sweden

War Plan Pansy: Oversees rebellion

War Plan Fuschia: War with Japan

War Plan Marigold: War with China

War Plan Ivory: War with a minor overseas power

[Snowman23]

Nice, just like the US plans. War Plan Pansy was quite funny :D

[The Kiat]

Hey now! Pansies are tough little flowers.

Nice, just like the US plans. War Plan Pansy was quite funny :D

[The Kiat]

From my notes files, my timeline's version of the Zimmerman Telegram:

The Zimmerman Telegram
On May 22, 1913, a telegram arrived at the War Department in Philadelphia from the
German Foreign Minister, Charles Zimmerman. The six page message stated that the German
Empire was preparing to invaded the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to resolve the succession
crisis. Poland-Lithuania was at the time an elective monarchy. The previous king, Gunther II died
in April of that year, and the Polish-Lithuanian parliament proceeded through the process of electing
a new king. Since Gunther II was a cousin to Kaiser Wilhelm II, the Germans believed the next king
should also be a German. Their candidate was the brother of Wilhelm II, Heinrich. Some in Poland
believed the Germans were getting too powerful and put forth a Swedish candidate, Erik Gustav,
cousin to King Charles XVII.
Germany’s outlined their plan in the telegram stating they would invade Poland-Lithuania
and instal Heinrich on the throne. This would obviously mean war with Sweden, which was part of
the Entente. Since the United States was Germany’s strongest ally, the Kaiser decided to warn
Roosevelt so that the United States could be prepared in case general world war broke out. Because
of this telegram, the U.S. Army quietly mobilized during the month of June and began to move up
units to the front. When the alliances were activated, and Congress declared war on June 25, the
Americans were in a position to move against their enemies before the British in Canada and the
Confederates were fully mobilized. This telegram is often credited for allowing the United States
to be the closest thing to a victor in this otherwise status quo ante bellum war.
Today, the telegram is on display at the Museum of American History in Philadelphia.

[The Kiat]

Before I post the next chapter, I'd like to try an explain the rise of fascism. The National Socialists do rise to power, though it's clearly different than in our unvierse. This causes a split in Germany, and World War II in Europe is tied in with a German civil war.


A Word on International Fascism
The fascist movement actually began in the Italian Federation with the Italian Fascist Party.
Established in 1919, fascism is an authoritarian and highly nationalistic ideology that is venomously
opposed to communism. The movement was never popular, and remained confined to the southern
half of the Italian peninsula until World War II. International Fascism actually began in Munich, and
moved to Nuremberg during the 1920s in the guise of Germany’s National Socialist party. The name
is a bit misleading, and caused the German Army to investigate it, believing it might have ties to the
International Brotherhood of Workers. This turned out to be opposite of the truth, nevertheless, the
Army sent one of their corporals to investigate, and the rest is history. Upon hearing of Corporal
Hitler’s ‘defection’ to this party, German Army intelligence simply shrugged and said “how much
trouble can one corporal cause?”
The National Socialists were a highly nationalistic organization whose main message is that
the German soldiers were betrayed during the Great War when the government made a status quo
ante bellum peace after Germany was clearly winning the war. Their message goes on to say that
without victory, millions of Germans had died in vain. When Hitler took control, the message
extended. Not only did he blame the aristocracy for the betrayal, but also the Slavs. It was the Balkan
Revolution that effectively ended the Great War. Some psychologist believe it was this Revolution
and the destruction of his homeland, the Austro-Hungarian Empire that drove Hitler to develop a
pathological hatred towards Slavs, and lead to the ‘final solution’ of the Slavic problem. However,
it was not the anti-Slavic ideology that lead the National Socialist to power, but rather the idea of
change, of replacing those born into high office with those who have the competence to fill those
roles, that lead to the National Socialists being elected into majority in 1932. When the Kaiser was
forced to name Hitler as Chancellor, Hitler was already making plans to remove the German
emperor. It was the coup in 1933, that forced the Kaiser, much of the aristocracy, officers loyal to
the Kaiser, and anyone who was anti-fascists to flee Germany. Most re-established the Imperial
Government in exile in Rio del la Plata.
The National Socialists were not content with just controlling Germany. They reached out
across borders to usurp control of other authoritarian causes. One such place they found was the
Confederate States of America. During the 19th Century, millions of Germans emigrated to America.
Most settled in the United States, but following the tightening of relations between the Americans
and the Kaiser during the latter decades of the 1800s, and the alliance at the start of the 20th Century,
those opposed to the Imperial Government opted to settled in the Confederacy. The Confederate
Bund started out as simply a German-Confederate organization. Because of its ties to the Fatherland,
the Bund quickly fell into the control of the National Socialists in Nuremberg. The Bund was
effectively a satellite organization. However, its message of nationalism and racial superiority lead
it to power in the Confederacy around the same time the National Socialists took control in
Germany.
The Bund was nothing more than a tool. When the Confederates allied themselves with
Fuhrer Germany, they believed they stood a chance of regaining what was lost during the Great War
and former Southern Glory. This was a delusion the Confederates ate up with enthusiasm. Despite
the fact that Fuhrer Germany aided the Confederacy with weapons and technical aid, the National
Socialists saw the Bund as cannon fodder. When war came, the Americans would back the Kaiser
and aid in restoring the monarchy to Germany. To stop this, or at least slow it down, Hitler would
use the Bund. The Bund bought the Fuhrer only an extra year. In the Confederacy, upon learning that
the Bund, and its puppet masters in the National Socialists, had betrayed the Confederacy, many ex-
Confederates joined the ‘American Foreign Legion’ to payback Fuhrer Germany for its betrayal.
During Fuhrer Germany’s occupation of much of Europe, branches of National Socialism
were established in Aquitaine, Italy and Norway. Other fascists parties associated, but not ruled by,
Nuremberg appeared in the form of the Turkish Rebirth Party and the Ba’ath Party. These nations
supplied mercenaries to fight on the Eastern Front during World War II. Vassal states established
in the ruins of the Balkan Union were also controlled by the National Socialists, and participated in
the war against Sweden. Though the Swedes are considered Aryan by the National Socialists, the fact
that they tolerate and even inter-breed with the Slavs of what was once Russia made Hitler view
them as half-breeds, racially inferior and even traitors to the Aryan Race.
Only one fascist party was established and never had ties to the National Socialist. This was
the Unity Party in New Grenada, which held control of the country during the 1940s and 50s. Spain
also bordered on fascism, however it is considered more absolutism, since the absolute monarchy
was restored for a period of nearly twenty years.

[The Kiat]

IX) Commonwealth
(1917-1946)
Reform
During the Great War, the lack of cohesion in Commonwealth Armed Forces greatly distress
King Frederick III. How was the Commonwealth suppose to survive a serious threat if each nation
had its own army, navy and now air force, along with independent chains of command. In 1918,
Frederick launched his own campaign to fully integrate the Commonwealth’s military. The various
Staaten-Generals around the Commonwealth resisted the idea, arguing their militaries were internal
affairs. However, the King argued that since the Commonwealth had a united and common foreign
policy, including declaring war, then it should have a common and united military.
The King had his allies across the Commonwealth. The King always has allies. No matter
the state, whether it be Brazil, Transvaal, India or even the United Provinces, there were always those
Electorates and Senators that looked toward their common monarch (though minus the monarch part
in the Boer Republics) for leadership. Though political parties were illegal in some states, that did
not stop ‘monarchist’ organizations from forming.
More nationalistic elements opposed these so-called Monarchists. They claimed that by
integrating the Commonwealth’s armed forces, they would be stripping the member states of their
sovereignty. First the military, then taxes and domestic laws. Where would the Commonwealth
Assembly stop? Until all the members were reduced to colonies of the Hague? The King had no
desire to strip his kingdoms and empires of their status as realms. Brazil and Ceylon would keep
their own academies, and all the states would have their militias, but the Commonwealth as a whole
could not afford to have its armies divided along national lines.
The United Provinces were in favor of it, if for no other reason than it gave them a vast
number of recruits to use in defense of the Provinces. That alone made the proposal suspect.
Brazilians had little desire to be stations in the Provinces, and the Indians certainly did not wish to
defend their former overlords. Strangely enough, all the Boer Republics were in favor of integration.
The Boers might have been a powerful voting block, if they could ever agree on anything. During
the Great War, Kapenstaaten refused to send soldiers to aid Johannestaaten in beating back British
raids. If all the states were to pool their military manpower, then perhaps they could better defend
Commonwealth members.
When the vote came up before the Commonwealth Assembly, there were eight in favor, and
India and Brazil opposed. Though against it, once the Act of Integration and Armed Forces Reform
was passed, they grudgingly abided by it. By 1920, the Commonwealth established a common chain
of command, with the King at the top, and various generals stations around the world. It was not
until 1922, that the actual armies began to pool their resources, and merged into new divisions.
The 1st Royal Guards Division, based in the County of Holland,and under the command of the Count,
lost half of its Netherlander manpower, and saw it replaced by an influx of Brazilian, Ceylonese,
Boer and Indians soldiers. Thanks to Frederick’s ‘If One Falls, the Next Will Follow’ propaganda
campaign, not all soldiers were dissatisfied by the monumental shuffling of up to two million men
at arms throughout the 1920s.
The navies had an easier time of integrating. Aside from shuffling of crews on board the
ships, and transfer of those ships, the only cosmetic change was that the nations flag was lowered
to second place, and the Commonwealth flag fluttered at the top. Also, gone was the HMS, to be
replaced by DCS (Dutch Commonwealth Ship). Unlike the armies, the navies’ territorial boundaries
were the oceans of Earth. Brazilian and Ceylonese ships could sail into each other’s harbors just as
easily as they could Amsterdam or Rotterdam. Integrations of Commonwealth forces lasted until
1935. Frederick III saw his visions of a united Commonwealth Armed Forces fulfilled just shortly
before his own death.
Kingdom of New Holland
By 1919, the colony of New Holland grew substantially from its gold rush days. Gone were
the mining camps, the saloons and the outlaws. When the gold was either depleted or taken over by
companies, the rift raft eventually blew out of town, looking for the next big strike. Gold was again
discovered in American and northern Canada, and the adventures chased after it. Gold changed
everything in New Holland. Before its discovery, the inhabitants were content just herding their
sheep and living the simple life.
After its discover, New Holland’s economy rapidly expanded and transformed the backwater
province of the Indonesian colonial department into a separate entity. Revenue from mining was
spent to build roads and rails, to provide water and irrigation and generally improve the colony. It
had been a long standing Dutch philosophy stating government’s only real duty was to instigate
public works, roads, aqueducts and so on. That was precisely what New Holland did, and its standard
of living surpassed the rest of Indonesia, with the exception of Java.
By the end of the Great War, in which many New Hollanders fought with Indian and
Ceylonese divisions against the British in both India and Australia. Fighting in their own backyard,
the New Hollanders felt they earned their right to be a full member of the Commonwealth. New
Holland was no longer satisfied with the limited self-determination granted to them by the United
Provinces. They now demanded full self-governing as a realm within the empire.
In late 1918, delegates met in Perth to draft a constitution for New Holland. For the most
part, these delegates were the higher ranking New Hollander officers along with a few influential
members of the rural society. The prospect of the military writing a constitution left many in the
Hague unsettled. After hearing about the convention, the United Provinces send their own delegates
to oversee the writing, to ensure the constitution was up to Commonwealth standards.
To the observer’s surprise, the New Holland Constitution was far more progressive than any
other. It called for equal rights for all inhabitants of New Hollands, European and Aboriginal, citizen
and resident alike. It went even further, making New Holland the first member of the Dutch
Commonwealth to insure universal suffrage for all citizens over the age of nineteen. Universal
suffrage in New Holland would have ramifications across all Commonwealth members across the
decade of the 1920s.
Satisfied that the New Hollanders exceeded expectations, the observers returned home,
bringing with them the petition to join. In July of 1919, summer in the Hague yet winter in Perth, the
Commonwealth Assembly approved New Holland’s admittance into the Commonwealth and
bestowing to it statehood, full self-governing and making it another realm within the empire. The
biggest debate within the constitution convention was what to make New Holland. There was little
desire for a republic and much love for the King. Some believed New Holland was too small to be
a Kingdom and proposed adopting a Principality, yet Frederick III was not a man to take a demotion.
September 7, 1919, Frederick visited Perth in a tour of the Indian Ocean, and was crowned King of
New Holland by its own Staaten-General.
Amendments
The biggest change in Commonwealth society, for all the states (except India, which was
later in following) was giving women the franchise. For most of the history of the United Provinces,
it was only the men who could vote, and not until the post-Napoleonic constitution that it was
guaranteed in writing for all men. Women began to wonder that since they were citizens as well, why
could they not vote? After New Holland became a fully independent member of the Dutch
Commonwealth, the female population of other states looked on with envy as their counterparts on
the Australian continent passed their votes.
Between 1920 and 1926, each member, with the exception of India, passed amendments to
their constitution allowing for universal suffrage, starting with the United Provinces in December
of 1920. India, given its deeply patriarchal history and conservative nature, has always been one of
the slower members to progress with the rest of the world, but not without resistance from the
Princes and Mullahs scattered across the subcontinent.
In the United Provinces, a series of colonial acts were passed, granting more self-governance
to the colonies. By the time Frederick took the additional title of King of New Zealand in 1922, it
was clear to those in the Hague that all the colonies would one day gain independence and
membership into the Dutch Commonwealth. The Dutch believed it better to give the colonists the
tools and experienced advisors to make it possible. For the most part, the colonies welcomed selfgovernance.
They did not have full control over their own internal affairs, still having a governorgeneral
appointed by the Staaten-General, and still subject to taxation from the Hague.
Iceland; the Nineteenth Province
By 1927, the future status of the closest of the United Provinces’ colonies, Iceland, came into
question. Originally settled over a millennia ago by Vikings from Norway, the island was inherited
by William II after the death of the last Danish King in the Seventeenth Century. For centuries, the
Dutch gave little regard to the possession, using it as an excellent fishery and before the advent of
petro-chemicals, for whaling stations.
When Denmark regained its independence after the Congress of Vienna, the United
Provinces held on to the island, along with Norway. However, Norway was one of the United
Provinces immediately after the Act of Union in 1705, while Iceland remained a colonial possession,
with no self-determination or regional government to mention. Its proximity to the Hague made it
easy to control every aspect of the island’s management directly, without the need to appoint a
governor-general.
Along with no consent over their own rule, the Icelander also lacked any say in the issue of
taxation. Though low in population, Iceland paid its share of taxes to the mother country. Though
the quantity of taxes were low, the key fish tax impacted the lives of everyone on Iceland. By the
time distant New Zealand obtained independence, the Icelanders were looking forward to their own
future. Should they not be independent.
Iceland lacked the population, even compared to the five hundred thousand inhabitants of
New Zealand, to ever hope to remain a viable nation. If the Dutch did not rule over it, then only a
matter of time would pass before the British or Swedes took possession of the island. Its location in
the North Atlantic, along with Greenland and the Province of Norway gave the United Provinces a
half-ring around Britain and a stranglehold on the much larger Swedish Empire. The Staaten-General
would not give up control over Iceland.
The Icelanders could not very well stop eating fish, however, they boycotted any imports for.
Since Commonwealth ships were nearly exclusive in importing
commerce onto the island, 1927 became a year of shortage in Iceland. With only fifty thousand
inhabitants, Iceland could not hope to even scratch the Commonwealth’s economy, however traders
were vexed enough by the boycott that they went to the Hague and petitioned the Staaten-General
to force open the door.
To do so would likely cause the volcanic island to erupt into violence. With the exception
of the Boer Wars, the Dutch nations have evolved without bloodshed. The current members of the
Staaten-General were not about to be the first to revoke the sacred Dutch right to protest. However,
they could not simply appease the Icelanders, for concern it might encourage other colonials to start
their own embargoes. Iceland might not mean much to the economy, but if Formosa or Java did the
same, it might prove problematic.
It was Otto, Duke of Bergen,3 who came up with the proposal in the Senaat. His own
Province, Norway, was once a simple crown possession until it was admitted as a Province. Grant
it, Denmark-Norway was an entire nation in personal union with the United Provinces, and
Provincial status was stipulated in the treaty, whereas Iceland was but an island in the Atlantic. Otto
proposed that Iceland should either be made a Province or annexed by Norway. The annexation was
immediately rejected by every other member of the Senaat. For three hundred years, the First
Chamber of the Staaten-General struggled to ensure no Province became overwhelmingly more
powerful than the rest.
Before the decision could be made, the issue of who would represent Iceland in the Senaat
was raised. Would Otto take the additional title of Duke of Iceland? No member of the Staaten-
General would approve that. There was nobody qualified to take on such a title. The King might
bestow it upon one of the generals or admirals during, but the Great War produced no Ernst van Bohr
or Michel de Ruyter.
It was the Regent of Liege who came up with an acceptable compromise. The Bishopric of
Liege had no hereditary ruler. Thanks to the deal made between the Bishop and Maurice van Oranje,
Liege was eventually permitted to elect a regent. Perhaps Iceland should be the same. Whether the
regency would be for life, or a limited term would be left for the Icelanders to decide. In 1927, the
Staaten-General agreed to make Iceland the second nineteenth Province. The Icelanders, however,
took an additional two years to form a government, elect a regent and gain admittance into the
United Provinces.
Succession Crisis of 1936
Near the end of his reign and life, Frederick III took one last title under his belt; the King of
Abyssinia. For the most part, following the toppling of Emperor Theodore Abyssinia changed little.
By 1935, only a small percentage of the population came from the United Provinces, and they bought
up land to build coffee plantations. The Abyssinians resented the foreign conquest and occupation,
yet reaped the benefits of improved trade and infrastructure.
Frederick’s coronation in the Staaten-General building in Mogadishu represented the King’s
last voyage overseas. It is not known exactly what the King died from, but it is believed to be from
complications of tropical diseases. Frederick managed to outlive his brothers, and their sons, the last
one dying indirectly from wounds received during the Great War. By 1935, the question of who
would succeed Frederick to the throne was up in the air. One faction of the Senaat supported
bringing a distant cousin into the core of the House of Oranje. Very few were in favor of simply
declaring the House of Oranje extinct.
When the King finally died in early 1936, the United Provinces’ Staaten-General continued
the debate, as did the Brazilians and Indians. The Boers cared little who their ‘lord protector’ was
since that position was little more than ceremonial. The real power laid in the hands of the elected
officials. Ceylon held off debate, waiting to see what the United Provinces would do. The decision
of who would be head of the Commonwealth was not in the hands of the largest members, but its
smallest.
Days after the King’s death, the New Holland Staaten-General nominated Frederick’s only
surviving child, Juliana, to become Queen of New Holland. New Zealand followed suit in March.
Before Juliana could accept, she would have to receive the approval of her own Staaten-General.
Though Salic succession was not law in the Provinces, it was long standing tradition. Juliana was
beloved by the people and had the full support of the House of Electorates, but this was a matter of
state not the people, and thus the responsibility of the Senaat.
Over the course of the Spring of 1936, the Staaten-General was eventually won over to
Juliana. By then, Ceylon and Brazil offered their crowns to her as well. In August 1936, Juliana took
the crown and became the first Queen of the United Provinces. She was not Empress of India until
late December, due to opposition of the native princes. In fact, she was almost crowned Princess of
Java before Empress of India.
Java gained its own independence in January of 1937. While the debate for the monarch
raged in national assemblies, the Commonwealth Assembly debated to status of Java. Should it be
admitted as a single island, or should it be grouped with the rest of Indonesia. New Holland already
broke away from the archipelago, and without Java, the islands were far poorer– that is until the
discovery of petroleum around the island.
Java had less oil than Borneo or Sumatra. The Sultan of Brunei struck a deal with the VOC’s
new division, VOC Oil. VOC Oil started off as Dutch Royal Shell in the early 1900s. Like with rail
and steam, the VOC risked large sums of capital on unproven technology. When they bought Shell
in the 1920s, it was still unknown if automobiles would run on petrol or electric. Inventors in Edison
Labs in New Amsterdam continued to improve battery technology, making it almost on par with the
inefficient engines. VOC’s own automotive division, VOC Auto, made headway in improving the
efficiency of early Twentieth Century internal combustion engines.
They bet on gasoline and diesel as the fuel of the future. During the late 1930s, the gross
colonial production of the remaining Indonesian islands doubled before 1940. The islands welcomed
the reign of Juliana with high hopes for its future. Future division of the islands was put on hold until
they developed to the point to be granted the status of a realm within the empire. However, Juliana’s
reign did not start on a completely positive note. Enemies of the Dutch Commonwealth began to
rebuild after the devastation following the Great War.
New Enemies
While the Dutch Commonwealth experienced an economic boom along with Germany,
Sweden, Britain and the United States during the 1920s and 1930s, several other nations faced
turmoil. The French economy was heavily taxed by the Great War and the loss of Alsace-Lorraine,
that coupled with the Balkans Revolution saw the rise of extreme rightist and nationalistic parties,
though never to the extent that hit Germany.
The Republic of Spain faced a major downward spiral during the 1920s. Weak central
government and the loss of the Great War prompted various nationalities of the Iberians Peninsula
to rise up. In 1921, Portugal rose up for the first time if fifty years. The rebellion in Lisbon and Porto
was violently crushed by the Spanish Army. Catalonia and Grenada rose up in 1922, followed by
Asturias in 1923. All three were crushed, though Catalonia managed to gain temporary
independence. The Spanish Army was weaken severely by the uprisings and the aftermath of
Versailles.
In 1924, the Basque, original inhabitants of Iberia predating Rome, rose up and declared
independence. Again the Spanish Army attempted to crush the uprising. However, the Basque
learned from the earlier uprisings, and spent years planning their rebellion. In the Pyrenees, near the
French border, the Spanish Army was defeated by the rebel Basques. The Army faced a near
complete defeat at the hands of the Basque four weeks later.
By 1925, the Basque Republic was established, and the Spanish parliament entered into
negotiations with the rebels. Furthermore, Spanish politicians pushed forward a new constitution,
this one allowing autonomy for all nationalities. These concessions were more than a cadre of junior
officers within the Spanish Army could stand. In their eyes, the reason the Basque defeated the
Spanish Army was not do to will of the soldiers, but ineptitude of the commanding officers. Generals
and colonels in Spain were, for the most part, political appointees.
Some officer, lead by Don Carlos de Vega, approached the eldest member of the exiled
House of Bourbon, Carlos Bourbon, offering to restore the Bourbons to the Spanish throne. In the
eyes of the junior officers, restoration of the monarchy would be the first step to restoring Spain’s
greatness. And by installing Carlos as King, the junior officers would gain his favor, not to mention
advise him and help remake the Spanish Army into a fighting force to make the Duke of Parma
proud.
August 8, 1925, the junior officers simultaneously stormed the parliament building and the
Spanish High Command. Members of parliament were all placed under arrest and removed from
office.The generals who brought so much disgrace to the country were unceremoniously shot. Many
of the parliament were sentenced to hard labor in prison, while the rest fled to France and the Italian
Federation. On August 15, after the mass executions and sentencing, the officers roused the bishop
in Madrid, ordering him to crown the new king.
That evening, King Carlos V restored the monarchy, and on the advisement of the junior
officers, he abolished parliament. Condemnation of the rebirth of absolutism rang out across the
continent, and further fueled the fires of revolution in the Balkans, and gave leftist parties in each
country a new target to blast. As for the junior officers, they were promoted by the King of Spain and
formed a Council of Generals to advise the new absolute monarch. Their first act was to crush the
Basque Republic with such force, tens of thousand of refugees fled into France and across the
Atlantic.
Spain’s example of extremism was understandable, but the turn in Germany was as shocking
in the 1930s as it is today. With the advent of the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics, and their
support or revolutionary parties across Germany forced the Kaiser to crackdown on any party with
even the slightest hint of leftism in its name. For one German Party, it was a boon. With the name
National Socialist German Worker’s Party, the NSDAP came into the crosshairs of German military
intelligence. With each other suspect party the Army sent infiltrators into party ranks.
The soldier chosen was an Austrian born Corporal who, many psychologists now believe,
already developed a pathological hatred for the Slavs following the Balkan Revolution. Reportedly
he left Austro-Hungary to avoid conscription into the multi-ethnic army, only to enlist in the German
Army in 1913. When he attended a National Socialist meeting, he stood up to challenge the party
founder, Anton Dressler. Dressler in turn debated Hitler and in turn, the Corporal agreed more with
the party’s stance enough to join the party. Upon returning his report that the National Socialist were
anything but socialist, Hitler would not re-enlist5 and devoted his energy into the party.
By 1923, Hitler managed to knife and claw his way to the top of the party. His hard-hitting
tactics and hate-filled speech drew thousands upon thousands to the party, however Dressler,
disgusted by how the party deviated from his initial goals, left the party. Fearing reprisal from the
party’s new leader, Dressler was one of the first to flee Germany, spending his exile in Switzerland
until his death. For the most part, Hitler spoke what the average veteran thought; that Germany
should have won the war. That it was betrayed by the Slavs, and by the aristocracy. That Germany
was built upon old houses, and without any new blood, the government has grown stagnant. And
most of all, by accepting a status quo ante bellum peace, the German ‘elitists’ allowed nearly two
million Germans to die in vain.
In the 1920s, the Germany Empire expanded democracy, allowing multi-party elections in
the lower house of the Reichstag. In a way, it was an emulation of both the United Provinces and the
United States. More over, so was the upper house, and the Kaiser and the nobility were loath to give
the people too much power. By 1933, they would regret permitting elections on a nation-wide scale.
The National Socialist steadily rose during the election of 1928, though it did loose steam following
scandals surrounding the party leadership.
The Kaiser worried about this party in particular. Not because of its charismatic leader; the
Kaiser made the mistake of thinking Hitler as a joke. What he feared was that ninety percent of the
Army, Navy and Air Force were National Socialist voters, if not outright party members. If the
National Socialist ever get a majority, then this Austrian upstart could have the full backing of the
armed forces.
As it turned out, the Kaiser’s concerns were justified. In 1933, when the National Socialists
finally gained the majority, with nearly sixty percent of the Reichstag’s seats. The Kaiser was forced
to name Hitler the chancellor. By 1934, the National Socialists were already hard at work.
Opposition parties were banned, the upper house of the Reichstag purged, the Enabling Act giving
full power to the new head of state, the Fuhrer, and the Kaiser along with the few loyal officers in
his armed forces were already setting up a government in exile in Rio del la Plata, accompanied by
as many elder statesmen and enemies of the party that could make the journey.
Within five years, the National Socialists purged their nation and put Fuhrer Germany on the
track towards war. By September 1939, the country was ready for war. One of the party’s favorite
topics was that of the perceived Slavic betrayal. It was not just the Slavs that brought the downfall
of Austro-Hungary, but those of Poland-Lithuania. By abolishing the monarchy, it removed the main
cause of the Great War and any hope of Germany controlling the nation. By all rights, the National
Socialists declare, Poland should be under German rule. On the eve of war, Fuhrer Germany signed
a pact with the Swedish Empire, granting them Lithuania in turn they do not interfere with the
conquest of Poland.
Before the National Socialists could launch World War II,
Hitler knew he would have to

keep Kaiser Germany’s allies, namely the Americans, occupied. The National Socialists had little
sympathy there, but the Confederates embraced much of its nationalistic and racial beliefs. In 1928,
several National Socialists infiltrated Confederate political circles and started the Confederate Bund,
officially intended for German immigrants to the country.
However, the rhetoric of revenge against the Yankees and returning the Confederacy to its
glory days rang too loud, and seldom in any language but English. The Confederate Bund was
nothing more than the North American wing of the National Socialist party. The Confederate Bund’s
rise to power far outstripped the NSDAP, and by 1934, the Confederate Bund not only dominated
the Confederate congress, but also the Presidency of the Confederate States in the form of Anthony
Bedford.
The Bund moved fast to consolidate its power. With a written constitution, the only way it
could keep its hold was through amendments, that must be ratified by the states. The first such
amendment was to repeal manumission. The Manumission Amendment became law in the 1890s
and was designed to abolish slavery by massive compensation to the land-owning aristocracy. By
repealing this amendment, the Bund reopened the institution of slavery. The tenant farmers and field
hands were instantly the legal property of their employer, and millions of Africans in the
Confederacy were soon forced back into slavery.
An amendment eliminating the one-term for President failed, and with the invasion of Poland
on its way, Fuhrer Germany could ill afford to loose the Bund’s grip on Confederate power. Using
both Confederate and German arms, the Bund in effect launched a coup against its self. Martial law
was declared and voting postponed until ‘the crisis passed’. The crisis in question naturally being
a slaver uprising in Georgia. Such a power play was dangerous, for the Confederate armed forces
swore their allegiance to the constitution, not any party or man.
However, in 1939, the Confederate Army and Navy were too busy planning the invasion of
the United States. Bedford was a bit of a megalomaniac, and had dreams of a Greater Confederate
States, including all the land lost during the Great War, along with tradition southern states such as
Missouri, Maryland and Delaware. Confederate Admirals and Generals were appalled by the idea
of waging war with a nation several times more powerful than them and openly opposed the plan.
Only one general, George Patton, had confidence it could be done, but only if they could knock the
Union out of the fight within six months. Afterwards, the United States would be fully geared for
war and unstoppable.
Invasion of Poland
On September 1, 1939, Fuhrer Germany launched its invasion of the Republic of Poland-
Lithuania. Its pretext, and they did indeed invent one, was that Polish artillery fired upon German
positions inside Germany. It is entirely possible that the Poles did fire, but not likely until after
German soldiers marched across the frontier. Word of the invasion spread fast in the world of
wireless transmissions, and being a member of the Entente7, the two remaining members, Britain and
France, were immediately asked upon for assistance.
Britain declared war on September 3, along with its own miniature Commonwealth. France
took longer, not declaring war until September 5. Despite Hitler’s continuous saber rattling
concerning Poland-Lithuania, neither Britain nor France were prepared for war. British ships sortied
from Scapa Flow, but the carrier HMS Eagle and HMS Hermes could not enter the Baltic Sea until
after negotiations with the United Provinces.
The Dutch Commonwealth declared itself neutral in this war as it had with the last. They
permitted free access to and from the Baltic, provided Dutch ships were not harassed. Queen Juliana
and virtually every member of the Staaten-General knew that with its three neighbors at war, it was
only a matter of time before Dutch neutrality was violated and the Commonwealth would be drawn
into another war. Two Commonwealth divisions were pulled from Brazil, adding another forty-three
thousand men in the defense of the Provinces. Further entrenchment and improving old fortifications
were implemented, with a higher percentage of defense spending in the 1940 budget.
When Warsaw fell after three weeks, an emergency session of the Commonwealth Assembly
was called. Generals wanted to know just how the Germans managed to overrun the Poles so swiftly.
When the Germans forced a treaty upon the Poles that partitioned Poland-Lithuania, it was
speculated that perhaps Sweden would ally itself with the Fuhrer. The Axis Pact was always a
concern in the United Provinces; hardly any organization Spain was a part of escaped their notice.
The Berlin-Madrid axis, along with the Japanese Empire and the Confederate States were
problematic enough, but to add the sheer mass of Sweden behind it, and they might very well
overwhelm the world.8
The delegates from Brazil proposed increasing the garrisons in the United Provinces, to
defend against invasion. Queen Juliana was opposed to such measures, and not just because of the
financial strain it would put on the Provinces. Germany had never been an enemy of the Dutch. They
allied with Prussia in various wars against France, and the Provinces were once part of the Holy
Roman Empire, an essentially German institution. As a result, the bulk of the defenses were built
along the border with France.
Juliana did consent, however, that the Commonwealth fleet based out of Oslo and Rotterdam
should actively patrol the North Sea. If for no other reason than to not be caught in port because of
attack. To this, Juliana reminded her delegates yet again that Germany is not their enemy. Still, there
was prudence in keeping the fleet a mobile and thus harder to hit target of ‘enemy’ aircraft. Unlike
many other navies, which viewed aircraft as a mere scouting tool, the Commonwealth Navy built
itself several aircraft carriers, to escort the big guns.
In November, the emergency session of the Commonwealth Assembly came to an end with
little fruition. Little did Juliana know that her decision to allow the fleet to patrol indeed saved the
Commonwealth Navy from utter destruction. War was in the air, but not on the minds of
Netherlanders. Christmas was near, and families would be gathering. It was a time of celebration,
and to give thanks for peace and prosperity. What the Dutch people did not realize was this would
be the last they would see of peace and liberty for five long years.
Operation Arctic Thunder
With the exception of the British attempting to fight their way through the Denmark Straits,
the Germans launched no immediate attack after their conquest and partition of Poland-Lithuania,
not even as much as a single aircraft raid. For the time being, it was believed that Hitler only wanted
Poland and nothing further, though in his own political auto-biography, he ranted excessively about
destroying Slavo-Communism. Again, the leaders of the Entente failed to take Fuhrer Germany
serious.
The Silent War ended on April 1, 1940, with German bombers pounding Norwegian cities
from Oslo to Bergen, followed by an airborne assault against Oslo. This attack startled both France
and Britain, as they did not then comprehend the reason for attacking the United Provinces of
Norway. In later years, during the war with Sweden, the Germans would use bases in Norway to cut
off the Swedes from trade.
Following the invasion, an emergency session of the Commonwealth Assembly was called,
though would be delayed by a day due to the time it would take Brazilian delegates to fly via airship
to Amsterdam. Queen Juliana immediately ordered the fleet in the North Sea to move on Norway,
to first stop any further invasion, and secondly to destroy the paratroopers occupying Oslo.
Commonwealth ships in the North Sea came under immediate fire by U-boats, with the loss of one
cruiser (traveling alone) and several other ships were damage.
Before the Commonwealth could officially declare war, some fifteen German divisions
crossed the frontier. First to fall was the town of Oldenzaal, closest to the German border. The city
put up no resistance and panzers simply rolled through the town continuing onward into Drenthe.
The Lord of Drenthe ordered the Provincial militia to take to the field immediately. Only minutes
after the first German soldier crossed the frontier, hundreds of airplanes hit serval Dutch cities, from
Rotterdam to Luxembourg.
The worst hit city was that of Liege. The attack was such a surprise, that bombs were falling
before either the Regent or Bishop of Liege knew the Germans crossed the border. However, the
Regent did deploy some air defenses after hearing about the attacks across Norway. The meager airdefense
battalion did little against German bombers. After the wave flew over, much of the city was
burning, and the ancient cathedral, the same place where coronations of Kings (and Queen) took
place.
By April 5, German forces entered Maastricht, sweeping aside the Provincial garrison, and
by nightfall the same day, a second prong of the invasion took the ruins of Liege with little difficulty.
When attempting to advance on Amsterdam on the 6th, the Hollanders breached several levies and
dikes, flooding the fields and seriously impeding German advances. This did not stop a northern
flanking maneuver from Drenthe, taking Harlingen and nearly cutting Amsterdam off from the North
Sea.
On April 7, four days after the invasion of the low countries began, Germans surrounded
Amsterdam with one thrust from the north, and another two divisions quickly bypassing the flooded
fields. The Hague fell on the night of April 7, completely encircling Amsterdam, which surrendered
the next day. Within five days, the northern Province fell into the control of Fuhrer Germany. As
soon as the Hague fell and Amsterdam surrendered, the Germans pursued escaping Dutch officials
to Middleberg in Zeeland.
It was here that the House of Oranje boarded the battleship DCS Prinz van Oranje, bound
to Recife. It was a repeat of the Napoleonic War, where the Dutch royal family again were forced
into exile. German generals were under orders to capture the Dutch queen and head of the
Commonwealth, and this pursuit delayed actions in the southern Provinces. At 0100, on April 8,
1940, the Prinz van Oranje left port, escorted by three cruisers and eight destroyers and the (light)
aircraft carrier Rotterdam.
When the Kaiser fled Germany in 1934, most of the High Seas Fleet went with him, leaving
Fuhrer Germany to rebuild its navy. The Fuhrer had no carriers, one battleship and three
battlecruisers, along with ten cruisers, and dozens of submarines. Only two U-Boats were in place
to intercept the royal entourage, both sunk quickly by leading destroyers. The greatest threat to
Juliana’s safety came from the air.
JC-13s from the Rotterdam fought off many of the German aircraft, but the light carrier could
only field twenty fighters. The Luftwaffe came after them with over a hundred aircraft, though many
were level bombers. And those missed the target. Dive-bombers faired worse, for they were viewed
as the greatest threats. Dutch fighters downed many of them, but not without the loss of a cruiser,
the DCS Maas.
A few of the German bombers flew low, equipped with torpedoes. Two torpedoes sunk a
destroyer, and three more were dead on for the Prinz van Oranje. One torpedo hit the ship at the
bow, but proved to be a dud. A second missed, but the third proved to be quite live. The third
torpedo was intercepted by the destroyer Trident, which passed in front of the torpedo, taking the hit
for the Queen. The ship was struck amidship, split in half and sank quickly. Only seven survivors
made it to British shore.
While the royal family made its escape, fighting continued in the southern Provinces.
Luxembourg was overwhelmed on April 5. Namur fell on April 7, and those German divisions
linked with the force out of Luxembourg, and continued into France along with several divisions that
entered the Duchy of Luxembourg after the city fell. All of the United Provinces were under German
control by April 10, with the exception of Brussels.
Commonwealth and German forces fought fiercely around the city. No matter the valor of
the Commonwealth soldiers, the Germans were slowly pushing them back into the besieged city.
Germans spared little in the way of artillery and aircraft to neutralize Brussels; the bulk of their
forces storming through France. The people of Brussels suffered greatly during the siege and latter
during occupation. During the siege, every able-bodied Netherlander in the city pitched in to help
in the defense, from building breastworks to cooking for the soldiers. No matter its defiance,
Brussels fell seventeen days after the invasion started, on April 22.
The Other Ocean
A month after the Germans launched their assault against the United Provinces, the resourcestarved
Japanese moved against Indonesia. In order to secure a supply line to the oil rich islands, they
first landed soldiers on Formosa and Hainan. With millions of soldiers already based in China, the
Japanese had a nearly inexhaustible invasion force after they won control of the Strait of Taiwan.
The bulk of the Commonwealth Pacific fleet was based around Java, and the few ships in Formosa
were sunk or disabled while still in port.
Commonwealth forces only numbered some five divisions on the island, far more than the
initial invasion. However, with control of the seas and air, the Japanese continued to funnel
reinforcements and resupplies. Formosa held out far longer than the United Provinces, Taipei, the
final holdout, surrendering on September 8. Hainan faired worse, surrendering after three weeks of
heavy fighting. On both islands, the Japanese attempted to present themselves as liberators.
But liberators to what? Japan said ‘Asia for the Asians’, but the Chinese on both islands long
since considered themselves Dutch. They spoke the Dutch language, adopted Dutch personal names,
and knew nothing but Dutch liberty for centuries. For being liberators, the Japanese were quick to
suppress any dissent on the island. When the Formosans attempted to protest Japanese policy on food
rationing, the crowds were met not with reassurances but the rattle of machine guns.
The Japanese Navy and Army were very divided, so much so that it was a wonder they
advanced as far and as fast as they did. With the Army gaining much glory, the Navy set out to best
them. The Japanese Navy sought out and found the Commonwealth fleet in the Java Sea. In what
would be the first case of naval warfare without ships actually seeing each other, Japanese carriers
launched an attack against the Commonwealth.
Under the command of Admiral Karl
Doorman, the Commonwealth had only one
carrier, and it was stocked with mostly fighters.
Fighters that happened to be obsolete compared
to the legendary ‘Zero’, and were easily swept out
of the skies by veterans of three years worth of
war with China. Even with the fighter cover
effectively destroyed, the Japanese bombers first
targeted the fleet’s lone carrier, the DCS Delft. It
is unknown whether or not the Japanese knew the
significance of the carrier’s name, and by sinking
it that they committed a grievous insult to the House of Oranje. If they did, it is doubtful they even
cared.
With their air cover destroyed along with a carrier and a destroyer, the Commonwealth fleet
moved closer to Java, in hopes of air cover from the island. The air fields were the first targets of the
Japanese air forces. Many of the fighters were destroyed on the ground, leaving the island vulnerable.
The only thing Doorman managed to accomplish was to back his fleet against a wall. They might
not maneuver against a surface fleet, but the Japanese did not intend to slug it out with guns.
Instead the fleet was destroyed by two more air attacks. Admiral Doorman went down with
his flagship, the battleship DCS William IV. Only after both navy and air forces were destroyed on
March 16, 1941, did the Japanese begin to land soldiers on the island. The island’s defenses and
morale were both eliminated in two weeks, with the garrison surrendering on April 1, 1941, one year
after the Commonwealth was plunged into war.
The Bermuda Conference
On September 15, 1940, American, Commonwealth and Kaiser German diplomats met on
Bermuda to discuss the course of action during the war. An alliance between the three was signed,
‘for the duration of hostilities’. Since Spanish captured Cape Verde, the Dutch lost any hold in the
eastern Atlantic. There was great concern that the Fuhrer Germans could use airfields on the island
to bomb targets in Brazil.
Brazil’s industrial capacity was several times that of the United Provinces. Loss of the mother
country hit morale, but destruction in Brazil might cost the Commonwealth the war. The Dutch
wished to make taking back those islands the top priority, for it would also allow a blockade of the
North Atlantic. The Commonwealth planned further invasions of the Azores and Canaries. For
defeating Spain, the Commonwealth would need assistance from the Americans, whose only
industrial output exceeded any one Commonwealth member (but not the Commonwealth as a
whole).
The Kaiser wished to win his nation
back, but to do that, they would need the
assistance of Britain, if for no other reason than
as a base to invade Europe. To reach Britain,
they would have to push the Spanish out of the
Atlantic. Both the Dutch and Americans agreed
that Spain would have to be completely knocked
out of the war. With the question of France
hanging in the air, it was known that
Commonwealth and Kaiser forces alone would
not suffice. To win back Europe, they needed
America’s help.
However, America was busy on its own continent, fighting the Fuhrer’s puppets, the
Confederate Bund. Unlike Japan or Spain, Hitler never considered the Confederates true allies. He
knew enough about the Americans to know that after the Great War, they were unchallenged in
North America. Their involvement in Europe would tip the scales against the Axis. In order to keep
them out of the war, the Confederate Bund would cause as much damage to America’s infrastructure
and perhaps prevent them from entering the European war, even after the inevitable United States
victory. What he did not know, was that Congress and the President both decided the only outcome
of the North American war would be full restoration of the Union.
That alone would keep the bulk of American forces busy for the duration. However, the
Commonwealth knew the Americans could not aid against Spain and German until after the
Confederates were defeated. That would be the first point of the Bermuda Conference: 1) the
Confederate States must be defeated first. Next; 2) Spain must be knocked out of the war. Lastly,
Germany would be liberated. The Americans and Kaiser wished for a Germany-First strategy before
moving against the Japanese. However, with so many Commonwealth citizens under Imperial
occupation, the Dutch could not afford this. They would fight both Japan and Germany at the same
time.
The Commonwealth immediately pledged support against the Confederates, only to be rebuffed by
their American allies. Since the goal was restoration, there could be no foreign soldiers on American
soil, north or south. The Dutch did, however, manage to cut off the Confederate invasion force on
Cuba, but respected American wishes and would not land soldiers or sail into the territorial waters.
By the end of 1941, after less than two years, the Americans destroyed the Confederate States, and
began to allocate soldiers for operations against Germany.
Battle of the Atlantic
In March of 1942, Commonwealth plans for the North Atlantic were drastically accelerated
by attacks from Cape Verde. The raid consisted of only a handful of German long-range maritime
bombers, and did little damage. However, the Commonwealth Assembly in Recife believed this to
be a trial run. Though little damage occurred, beach side houses were destroyed and one bomb hit
near the VOC Steam shipyard’s dry dock, the fact the bombers could reach Brazil with impunity
might just encourage the Germans to produce more of these four engine bombers. When hundreds
of bombers appear in the skies of Recife, Salvador, Mauricistadt, Natal and Cayenne, then the
Commonwealth Assembly was sure significant damage would occur.
It was with much advisement that Queen Juliana ordered War Plan Lilac, as the operation
to take back Cape Verde was called. Commanding the Commonwealth Atlantic Fleet, much rebuilt
thanks to Brazilian and Ceylonese shipyards, was none other than Admiral Dirk Jan van Natal,
veteran of forty years service in both Commonwealth and Royal (Brazilian) Navies. He was renown
as a submarine captain during the Great War for his daring and subterfuge. His most famous exploit,
one that earned him the Brazilian Medal of Merit and promotion to full Commander was the attack
on the HMS Behemoth, a British dreadnought. To this date, the submarine Kingfisher is the only
submarine known to sink a battleship.
His fleet consisted of two new carriers, the Michel de Ruyter and Maarten Tromp, along with
battleships Prinz van Oranje, King Maurice I, and the Duke of Luxembourg, eight cruisers, twenty-one
destroyers. The Commonwealth Marines delivered six regiments, numbering some eighteen
thousand men. The Marines were not embarked on typical transports, but rather the armed freighters
of the VOC. Some of these modified transports either held heavy guns, depth charges, and in one out
of every six cases, a flight deck with four fighters. Since the days of its conception, the VOC had a
habit of arming its merchantmen and manning its own private navy.
The VOC had a personal stake in the Atlantic Expedition. After all, it was its shipyards that
were bombed. VOC contracts with the Commonwealth required ships to be delivered before
payment. To loose a shipyard to enemy bombing would severely crunch the company’s bottom line.
Unlike many modern corporation, the VOC was fiercely nationalistic. In times of national crisis, the
company would put the benefit of the Dutch people over its own profit margins. Though the VOC
was known for high quality ships, it could not produce them fast enough to meet demands. Thus the
Commonwealth was force to further contract with shipyards around the world.
In particular, American shipyard prospered after the fall of the Confederates. VOC
shipwrights frowned upon the average quality of American ships. However, they were deeply
impressed at the rate the Americans pumped out cargo ships, much faster than the enemy could ever
hope to sink. As with in the past, when the VOC saw a good idea, foreign or not, it would adopt it
for its own use. America’s production-line ship building was adapted, but with such a proud
maritime tradition, the VOC refused to put numbers above quality. After the war’s end, the VOC’s
ship building department was forced to shut down several yards around the world due to the massive
excess of second-hand freighters.
On April 7, 1942, the Commonwealth fleet launched preliminary air attacks against the
German-built airfields in Cape Verde. In fifteen minutes, all the long-range bombers were destroyed
on the ground, and one of Spain’s two carriers was sent to the bottom of the Atlantic. A second
carrier, the King Philip II, was damaged, but remained afloat. With enemy air cover eliminated, a
second air raid was called off in favor of a more traditional approach.
Before landing could occur, Admiral van Natal wanted the Spanish fleet swept aside. Since
its war with America, Spain’s place on the oceans of the world was no longer what it use to be. On
board the Prinz van Oranje, van Natal lead the fleet into battle. With Commonwealth ships in sight,
the Spanish admiral attempted to scuttle his wounded carrier, with little success. Commonwealth
cruisers fought of their Spanish counterparts, sinking three of the four. The Prinz van Oranje pulled
up along side the King Philip II. Marines from the carrier boarded the damaged carrier. It was the
last time a boarding at sea would occur in naval warfare. To this day, the hull of the King Philip II
can be viewed on the grounds of the Commonwealth Naval Academy in Recife, as the largest trophy
ever taken.
Remaining Spanish ships were forced to retreat to the Canary Islands while Commonwealth
ships began to bombard positions in the Cape Verde islands. The Spanish quickly abandoned most
islands, focusing their defense in the port of Bohrstadt. They planned to wait for reinforcements, but
when the Spanish fleet attempted to sortie from the Canaries, Commonwealth carriers launched
attacks, sinking the remaining cruiser, two destroyers and six troop transports and cargo ships. For
all intent purpose, the Spanish Navy ceased to be a factor in the war.
The Fuhrer German Navy refused to send what few surface ships it possessed in defense of
Spanish bases in the Atlantic. Nor could it afford any soldiers to aid in defense; seventy-five percent
of the Fuhrer’s resources poured into the war against Sweden. The rest was required to hold down
the Balkans and western nations under German control. Nor did the National Socialists fully trust
their own soldiers. There was still admiration for the Kaiser, who by law was the head of the German
Empire. Not only where there resistance movements across occupied Europe, but in the heart of
Germany as well. There was a great concern German soldiers, or even whole units might defect.
Less than three days after Cape Verde was fully under Commonwealth control, a joint
Commonwealth-Kaiser German invasion force landed on several of the Azores islands. With the
Azores under control of the Commonwealth, Dutch B-8s and B-9s would be able to strike cities and
bases on the Atlantic coast of Spain. In the Azores, the Spanish Navy was absent from battle, though
several U-boats were in the vicinity of the islands, and took shots at the invasion fleet. On
Commonwealth cruiser suffered damage, but at the cost of four U-boats. German-built radar stations
in the islands warned of the Commonwealth fleet, allowing the submarines to put to sea. It was
hoped by Admiral Baron van Voorst (van Natal still in Cape Verde, organizing an island-hope to the
Canaries) to strike those boats while still in port. The more U-boats that could be sunk in port, the
fewer that would harass Commonwealth, and other Allied and Entente ships later.
Spanish General Morgan de la Sona held out for a week, before his garrison was surrounded
in the highlands. When van Voorst offered terms, de la Sona ordered his artillery to fire one shot
each, for the honor of the Spanish Army, before accepting terms. Before surrender took place,
Spanish guns were packed full of concrete and pushed into the ocean. De la Sona was methodical
in destroying anything the Dutch or Germans could use against his homeland.
The Canary Islands resisted far harder than any other outlying Atlantic possessions. It is said
that King Carlos ordered the garrison to defend the islands to the last. There was no hope of a
garrison on an island, facing a foe with maritime supremacy in holding out. Spain knew the next
logical target was North Africa, and hoped to gain enough time to fortify the Moroccan coast. They
received far less time than hoped. Landings in the Canaries took place on July 12. Spain spread their
own garrison across all the islands, but the Commonwealth bypassed most, focusing only on taking
harbors. Carrier-based aircraft and battleship guns neutralized small airfields and coastal defense
guns across the islands. Many Spanish soldiers spent the remainder of the war on what van Natal
called ‘a prisoner-of-war camp ran by the enemy, for the enemy.’
With the Atlantic swept clean of Spanish presence and bases, the U-boat menace shrunk
drastically. Bombers and destroyers continued constant anti-submarine patrols in the Greenland Sea.
Without the High Seas Fleet, Fuhrer Germany could not hope to get past the British on the North Sea
and capture Iceland. Bombers from occupied Norway did strike at Iceland, but caused little damage.
The range and weather were extreme enough to limit the payload. From Hitler’s stand point, striking
taking Iceland. His lack of naval strategic insight prevented Britain
from being cut off, along with Sweden, and possibly cost the world-wide fascists plot the war.
Operation Torch
By November of 1942, the Americans afforded to spare only three divisions for the invasion
of North Africa. Called ‘Operation Torch’ by the allies, it called for three landing along the
Moroccan coast. Spain expended significant resources to build up fortifications along the Atlantic
Coast of Africa. They knew that a direct invasion of Spain was unlikely, for bases in Africa would
threaten the allies’ flanks. What they did not realize was just how much the allies would outnumber
them.
Because of Berlin’s promises, the King and the rest of Madrid written off the Americans as
a factor in the war. They would be to busy trying to hold down the Confederate States. Another error
on the Axis behalf was overestimating the usefulness of the Confederate Bund. Far from uniting the
Confederate States, the Bund managed to drive the Confederate people further away, much to the
point that it was a coup on behalf of the Confederate Army that removed them from office. Feelings
for reunification were higher than anticipated in the south, especially after the betrayal Confederates
believed by both the Bund and Fuhrer German.
The Kaiser’s own forces would equal seven divisions, including one armored division under
the able General Erwin Rommel. As soon as bases in Morocco were secured, the Kaiser’s air force,
commanded by Hermann Goering, would relocate from Rio del la Plata. The Commonwealth would
throw several more divisions against North Africa, however, the initial landing called for three
divisions, one for each landing zone. Only after port facilities were secured would the rest make the
journey across the Atlantic.
Landings began at pre-dawn hours on November 11, after several hours of nighttime
bombardment. The effectiveness of the shelling was less than hoped for, but Admiral van Voorst was
confident that the Spanish received little sleep. Commonwealth forces landed near Casablanca, but
lack of Spanish fortifications along the coast allowed the Dutch to move faster than planned.
However, what they did not realize, was that it was Spain’s plan to wait until the enemy gained a toehold
before throwing them back into the sea.
Commander of the landing force, General Izaak Reijinders, used the lull in the Spanish
response to immediately thrust inland. His actions are what spared the Commonwealth invasion the
casualties suffered by the Kaiser’s Army further south. The Germans were nearly thrown back into
the sea, and probably would have, had the Spanish in Casablanca not called for reinforcements. The
invasion received assistance from the Arabs native to the land. Nobody ever asked them if they
wanted the Spanish to rule over them, and they did not.
General uprisings by the Arab population preceded allied advances across the Atlas
Mountains and into Algeria and Tunisia. By the time Commonwealth forces broke through the
Atlases, Spanish organized resistance collapsed, to be replaced by brutal civil war between colonists
and natives. Americans fought to subdue both sides and insure a degree of stability during the
occupation. Commonwealth forces simply secured their supply lines and bypassed out-of-the-way
destinations. If the Americans wished to waste time in dealing with Spain’s mess, then let them. As
for the Dutch, they drove on to Tunis, which fell in April 1943 by a joint attack from east and west.
Spanish Knockout
During the summer of 1943, Sicily and Sardinia were liberated from Spanish occupation.
Much to the annoyance of his Axis partner, Carlos V was forced to ask Fuhrer Germany for aid
against the Allies and Entente. Despite the ideological clout of the government in Berlin, many
generals insisted that they reinforce Spanish holdings. From Sardinia, their enemies could either
attack Italy, southern France or strike at Spain itself. Hitler ordered addition divisions into Italy,
believing it was the next target.
On October 12, he was proven wrong. A joint Commonwealth-American-German-British
invasion force struck the Balearic Islands. The British landed on Minorica, the others on Majorca.
Though not officially allied with the Allies, Britain agreed with the Bermuda Conference and the
necessity to knock Spain out of the war before turning their full attention to Germany. The
Commonwealth had the potential to eliminate Spain all on its own, if not for the Japanese menace
in the Pacific. The fact that any of the Axis members lasted as long as they did is testimony to their
coordinated attacks on the Dutch Commonwealth as a whole.
On December 22, 1943, the Allies pressed harder, landing sixty thousand soldiers on the
Catalonian beaches north and south of Valencia. Upon hitting Spain Proper, it was learned there was
a great disparity between colonial soldiers and those fighting for their homeland. Spanish resistance
proved far fiercer than anticipated. Much so, that before Madrid fell in April of 1944, the Allies
poured in over three hundred thousand soldiers, tanks and guns. The war in Spain was a slow but
steady chipping away at various rings of fortifications on the road to Madrid.
Madrid fell on May 7, 1944, exactly one month after the Americans and Italians launched
their own invasion of the Italian mainland, and almost a month before the invasion of Normandy.
The war in Spain did not end with the toppling of King Carlos V and establishment of a provisional
government. Three days after the King’s removal, Two German armies crossed the Goranne River
into Spanish-occupied Aquitaine. Hitler’s invasion of Spain drew away much needed soldiers from
the decisive battle on the English Channel.
War Plan Tulip
On June 6, 1944, the largest invasion in the history of warfare took place, when several
divisions of Commonwealth, American, British (and Britain’s ‘Commonwealth’) and Kaiser German
soldiers crossed the English Channels and landed at Normandy. Preceding the invasion by several
hours were 43rd Commonwealth Paratrooper Division, and the American 101st Airborne (known as
the Warbling Turkeys), which captured key bridges and positions inland of the beaches.
For a week, the Allies and Entente struggled against the remaining Axis in Normandy.
Victory was not a foregone conclusion during this crucial week in June. Even as late as June 17, the
Fuhrer German counterattack drove the Kaiser’s forces back several kilometers. It was not until the
first week of July that Normandy was fully liberated and the invasion beachhead was secure. This
says much about the Dutch Commonwealth’s military might, launching the largest invasion ever
during the same time when fighting ripped through Indonesia, with landings on Sumatra in August
of 1943, and Java in January 1944. Unlike the Spanish, the Japanese did not surrender and seldom
gave ground.
The invasion of Normandy was but a modified version of War Plan Tulip. Tulip was the code
name given by the United Provinces to the United Provinces. It involved invading their own nation
to liberate it from foreign occupation. The plan originated from the Napoleonic War, and the fact that
such a small, coast-hugging nation would always be at the mercy of larger opponents. The Dutch
could close shipping to any nation, but if that nation was willing to take the economic impact, there
was little the Provinces could do without Commonwealth reinforcements.
During the planning stages of the invasion of Europe, Commonwealth General Conrad
Hendrick van Semarang, designed a two-prong invasion of northern Europe. Normandy was the first
part, one that involved all the Commonwealth’s temporary allies. Van Semarang was unique
amongst commanders in Europe, for he was the only Muslim general in the entire theater. Born on
Borneo, in a town near the Brunei border in 1892, van Semarang served with distinction during the
Great War along the Maas.
Though born on Borneo while the island was still undergoing Dutchification, van Semarang
considered himself every bit as Dutch and Ceylonese, Brazilians and even the Netherlanders himself.
While others from his town found work for Dutch Royal Shell, and later VOC Oil, van Semarang
decided to serve his King (and later Queen). His patriotism prompted a second, Commonwealth-only
phase of the invasion. This part of War Plan Tulip called for the direct invasion of the Provinces, and
freeing them from years of brutal occupation.
Life During Occupation
The Occupied Provinces (all but Iceland were under Fuhrer German control) suffered the
most severe crackdown on liberty since the nation’s founding, over three centuries previous.
Newspapers were shutdown, radio stations placed under the control of the German Army. Military
governors were placed in power over each Province. Most of the Provincial rulers went into exile
with the rest of the Staaten-General and the Queen. Only the Countess of Artois missed the boat.
Countess Jeanette had the means to escape, but refused to leave while her subject suffered under the
Fuhrer’s occupation. For her troubles, the Germans placed the Countess under house arrest, and
General von Beck attempted to rule the County of Artois in her name. The Artoisers did not buy the
farce.
Occupational authorities heavily rationed goods that the Dutch people long since took for
granted. Sugar and coffee were confiscated for use by the Germans, leaving little to none for
Netherlanders. At first there was protest, for it was a long standing Dutch tradition to speak out at
perceived injustices. For their troubles, the occupying authorities threw them into the one of many
detention centers erected around the Provinces. For the native-born Netherlanders and
Commonwealth citizens, the occupation was a major inconvenience, and a source to spark resistance.
For the tens of thousands of Balkan refugees, it was far worse.
Though they were Austro-Hungarian or Ottoman by birth, they were Netherlander by choice.
For when their countries were destroyed by revolution and to be replaced by the Marxists Balkan
Union, many found it easy to embrace their new nation; for their old one was dead. When Albanians,
Croatians, Crimeans and so on first arrived, they were held in suspicion, and not fully accepted.
However, when a far more violent foreign invasion occurred, all the Dutch people united behind
their nation. At first, many could not understand why these first-generation Netherlanders were being
carted away. They have committed no crime, violated no occupational mandate, done nothing to
warrant their singling out by the Germans. The only clue to pop up in 1940, was the term Slav.
Ironically, these immigrants were the most fanatical of the Dutch Resistance. By 1941, after
‘Slavic’ round-ups were taking place for many months, there was not a single Balkan immigrant who
was not connected to the resistance. By then, most of the people who spoke Serbian, Slovakian,
Polish, and other Slavic tongue as their first language were already vanished, relocated to unknown
destinations. It was a war on culture as it was on nations, but why attack these people, they were not
any of those nationalities, they were Dutch.
It was the same story all over occupied Europe, the Slavs vanished from their adopted homes.
Hitler’s true ambitions were made clear during Operation Stormbird in late 1940, the invasion of the
Union of Balkan Socialist Republics. The ‘communist menace’ was all but destroyed by early 1941.
Despite the devastation, no refugees from the Balkans appeared on distant shores. It was as if the
Germans went through great lengths to seal the Balkan border.
This was all very traumatic to the refugee community, but the Dutch Resistance had higher
priorities than to fight the Germans on the other side of the continent; such as fighting them in their
own home. At first, the resistance did everything it possibly could to make the occupation force’s
stay in the United Provinces as difficult as possible. Some actions were of downright defiance to the
Germans, such as on the night of February 5, 1941, some brazen Netherlanders managed to infiltrate
a German airbase near Lier, steal sugar from the pilot’s mess, dump it into the fuel tanks of the
pilot’s planes, and just to make absolutely certain the Germans knew who was responsible, the
perpetrators rose the orange-white-and-blue banner of the United Provinces over the airfield.
Needless to say, those Germans responsible for security that night were severely punished.
Any and all attempts at normalcy the Dutch people attempted to create failed. Netherlanders
continued to tend the fields and work the factories. The United Provinces faced a partial economic
collapse during the Occupation Years. Many foreign speculators who made fortunes on the
Amsterdam Stock Market, sold off their shares and commodities the day Germany launched its
attack. When they fled the United Provinces, they took with them the largest single-day transfer of
wealth in Dutch history. Companies were ruined and the banks of Amsterdam faced a run.
The Bank of Amsterdam, a bank that weathered centuries of economic ups and downs, would
sooner face a world-wide depression than what the Germans did to that institution. To fund the
German war machine, Hitler ordered the banks plundered, billions of guilders in gold and silver were
stripped from the financial capital of the world and shipped east across the Wesser. The Fuhrer
Government did not stop with the banks, cultural artifacts were pillaged, including some of the
greatest works of van Gogh.
For a nation that long since depended upon trade for its survival, German occupation of the
ports and harbors found many traders and merchants instantly out of work. Larger traders, with
offices in other Commonwealth states, would survive the occupation, but the small, individual trader,
a long standing Dutch tradition, was wiped out before New Year’s of 1941. Many factories were
taken under the control of occupational authorities, and put to use for the German war effort. Many
loyal Netherlanders quit rather than build bullets and bombs for the enemy.
Despite the nationalistic spirit of the Dutch people, so strong it drove many to go hungry
rather than assist conquerors, the Netherlands faced the same bane as all occupied nations;
collaboration. When not harassing the Germans, the Resistance targeted any and all that overtly aided
the Germans. Workers in factories were spared the retaliation, for there were still families than
needed feeding, but those who worked with and for the Gestapo were often found in the morning,
quite dead.
Though many individuals would rise up against the occupiers, the Resistance did its best to
keep a low profile. It specialized in both sabotaging the enemy, and aiding fellow Netherlanders left
unemployed and destitute by the occupation.13 It was not until the middle of 1944, that the Dutch
Resistance rose up against the occupiers. During the Battle of Normandy, which the Dutch
Resistance heard about only after the invasion took place, the Resistance blew up several rail lines
and bridges, preventing Germans from rushing reinforcements across the Rhine and into France.
For their deeds, the occupational authority cracked down on all the Provinces. Thousands
were arrested in raids. Those not executed immediately as ‘terrorists’ were deported to the east, to
the same places the ‘Slavs’ went. Only days after declaring the Dutch Resistance destroyed, Gestapo
leader, Reinhardt, was gunned down in his car while it drove through the streets of Wilstract in
Groningen. In response, the town of four thousand was raised to the ground, with over half of its
population killed in the town’s destruction.
As bad as life was for Netherlanders, it was far worse for Formosans and Javans. The
Principality of Java was never fully subjugated by the Japanese. Though they occupied ports,
airfields and coastal area, but never the interior. They were only interested in controlling the island
and seas around it, for the even larger oil fields of Sumatra and especially Borneo. Though Japan
would continue to proclaim Asia for the Asians, they simply could not spare the resources to bring
Java into full compliance, at least not while fighting multiple enemies on multiple fronts.
Formosa, however, was another story. As was stated earlier, when the Formosans attempted
to protest the Japanese the same way they would the Commonwealth, the Japanese replied with the
rat-tat of machine guns. That was just the start. To the Dutch, race meant little, but to the Japanese
it meant everything. Those ‘racially’ European, were interned in camps across the island. However,
after centuries, and mostly Dutch male colonization, there was little that could be called ‘white’.
What the Japanese did not understand was that ‘race is skin-deep, but nations go to the heart’. The
racially Asian, i.e. those whose ancestors came from southern China, considered themselves
Formosans, and ‘as Dutch as the next man’.
While the Europeans were interned, the Japanese, claiming to liberate the Chinese, repressed
them with the same vigor as they did on mainland Asia. Japanese nationalism in turn sparked Dutch
nationalism for all the islanders. The love of nation was so strong, that one monk gave up obtaining
Nirvana this lifetime for the sake of his country. Like most Buddhist monks, Singhanda Mantama
attempted to resist Japanese occupation through non-violent means, including civil disobedience.
The Japanese would crush any and all disobedience, and further retaliate by destroying several
Theravada temples, along with Catholic and Protestant churches.
Born in India, Mantama, like most Indians, was at first suspicious of the Dutch. Unlike
Ceylon, Java and Formosa, who were made Dutch over the course of centuries of colonization and
assimilation, India was conquered in a relatively short time. Aside from southern India, which was
inherited from Portugal following United Provinces’ independence, the rest of the subcontinent was
brought under Dutch rule by military force between 1783 to the 1870s. Some Indian states allied
themselves with the Dutch, and thus kept their own languages and cultures (though Commonwealth
culture would slowly filter in). The states brought into compliance by force, in turn had the Dutch
language, law and customs forced upon them. This odd arrangement makes India the most
cosmopolitan of Commonwealth states, and the most prone to instability.
Mantama grew up in northern India, in the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains. Even as
recent as the 1930s, when Mantama left India for Formosa, India was still backwards compared to
the rest of the Commonwealth. Because of its diversity, India was always the slowest Dutch nation
to adapt. Industrialization, which occurred in the United Provinces, Brazil and Formosa during the
Nineteenth Century, is still occurring in India of the Twenty-first Century. However, Mantama did
not leave in search of a better life, but in search of Enlightenment.
His quest for Enlightenment came to an end when Japanese bombs began to rain near his
monastery in 1940. His, along with the Formosans’ world, was turned upside down when the
Japanese overran the island, and forced the Commonwealth surrender. Though the politicians
surrendered, many of the Commonwealth soldiers went to ground and fled to the hills, to continue
to fight against the occupiers. However, unlike the Germans, the Japanese were not about to tolerate
any dissent.
When one of Mantama’s fellow monks went to the Japanese authorities in protest over the
seizure of rice from farmers without compensation, the Japanese guards ran him through with
bayonets. Monks that tried to block traffic with their bodies were simply ran over. Another, refusing
to bow to ‘savages’ was beaten to death by a Japanese patrol. It was these events that forced other
monks to realize they would have to fight back with force.
Knowing he could not stop the violence, Mantama endeavored to control and direct the
violence. His strategies in luring Japanese patrols into traps and minimizing Dutch deaths, improved
his own standing within the resistance. By 1943, Mantama was effectively the head of the Dutch
Resistance on Formosa. With each ambush, the Japanese were forced to increase size of patrols, until
entire platoons were patrolling the streets of Taipei and New Antwerp.
Killing of Japanese soldiers did not go without reprisal. The Japanese resorted to random
executions, adding that to policies of forced labor, reeducation, so-called comfort girls and genocide.
Each murder in the sake of retaliation weighed heavily on Mantama. Perhaps it was his
consciousness, but Mantama never made a decision lightly. He would prefer to have no killings at
all. His reluctance brought much criticism against him by the more radical resistance cells. They
wondered why should they not strike at the enemy. Nobody asked the Japanese to come to Formosa,
they just forced their way in, and it was the resistance’s job to drive them out.
It was not until the dawn of 1945, when a Commonwealth-American joint invasion loomed
over the horizon did Mantama unleash the resistance upon the Japanese. As soon as bombs fell and
smoke cleared, the resistance slipped into damaged barracks to slit the throats of any surviving
Japanese. Nor was it until Commonwealth soldiers set foot on Formosa did the resistance wheel out
artillery and a few tanks hidden away in the hills. If not for Mantama’s temperance, various
resistance cells might have piddled away resources until they had nothing to face the occupiers on
the day of liberation.
Liberation
In October of 1944, the second stage of War Plan Tulip unfolded as the Commonwealth
landed an invasion force almost the same size as the Normandy operation in Zeeland, north of
Middleberg. Middleberg was not the first choice of cities to be liberated, but Queen Juliana insisted
the invasion plans be changed. It was the port she left her homeland years before, and she wished
it to be the first city to be free, and the port of her re-entry.
After months of fighting in France, and the liberation of Paris, Allied and Entente armies
were still short of the borders with Artois and Flanders. Fuhrer Germany managed to dig in a static
line of defense, similar to the trenches seen during the Great War. The prospect of fighting another
prolonged war of attrition gave the allies dread. However, with the Commonwealth now in full
control of the North Sea and all seaborne routes into Europe, trenches would not stay static for long.
Germany did not anticipate a second invasion of northern Europe. By the middle of
November, Zeeland was all but liberated, and Commonwealth forces were now on both sides of the
mouth of the Rhine. Any hope of keeping the Dutch, or any other ally, on the far side of the river.
Germans began to retreat from their positions in France and consolidate further inland. Bridges
across the Rhine soon became the heaviest fortified positions in all of Europe.
Fuhrer Germany managed to hold this line until April of 1945, when the Commonwealth
provided a breakout along the Rhine. The Hague was cleared of occupational forces on May 7, 1945,
with Delft liberated one day later. Whilst be forced from Amsterdam, the Germans attempted to
breach levies and dikes all along the Holland coast. Only two breaches occurred, and those were
patched within a week. The Queen condemned the actions of the Fuhrer German government, but
as she and the world would soon learn, these were far from the most heinous crimes of the Fuhrer
regime,
Along the Eastern Front, Swedish soldiers liberated the first of the internment camps in
eastern Europe in February of 1945. These were not typical prisoner camps, for neither enemy soldier
or criminal were in these camps. What the Swedes found were tens of thousands of emaciated people
crammed in filthy bunkhouses. Worse yet, incinerated were discovered with the remnants of many
enemies of the Fuhrer state. This was one of the camps of the Fuhrer German’s ‘final solution to the
Slavic question’.
It was not until March of 1946 that the Fuhrer Germans were fully beaten in the west. An
army under the command of Field Marshall von Manstein, numbering some three hundred thousand,
surrendered to the Kaiser’s Field Marshall Rommel along the banks of the Wesser. For all intent
purpose, Germany west of the Elbe was liberate and back under the Kaiser’s rule. On April 20, 1946,
Cossacks of Sweden stormed the Reichstag in Berlin, and rose the Swedish flag over the last bastion
of National Socialism.
It is said that when the Kaiser returned to his palace in Berlin, and saw the city in ruins, he
fell to his knees and wept. For all the devastation in Europe, one can not forget that at the core of
World War II was a German civil war. For years, German fought fellow German, all of them subjects
of the Kaiser. So many of his people died in the conflict, and so much stress ate away at the Kaiser’s
health, that he died just over a year after the war’s end.

[The Kiat]

Europe in 1941.

The dark gray is Fuhrer Germany and lands directly occupied by them.
Light gray are puppet states, which are as follow:
Brittany
Aqauitaine
Burgundy
Rhoneland
Norway
Italy
Croatia
Greece
Light green denote German sattlelites, which are;
Hungary
Romania
Bulgaria
Crimea

[The Kiat]

Here's what the world looks like after WWII. It's not in color yet. As you can see, China is still in the middle of a warring states period. Inevitably (like the dialectic always says) the People's Dynasty will be established.

[Snowman23]

Awesome chapter, just I think you should have fleshed out the Pacific more, and the American front as well. Very good, enjoying this very much so! :)

[Snowman23]

Bump because of awesomeness

[The Kiat]

Bump indeed... after I finish the U.B.S.R. chapters, I plan to work on the Great War. As for the Pacific, I suppose I could work up a battle or two. Of course, I have my other 'time line' to work on. Not really AH unless you count that these humans on other worlds are descendents of Atlantians... long story and one that certainly has nothing to do with the Dutch.

There's one thing I want to say about this butterfly effect (other than it's utter nonsense. Nothing short of Mothra is going to alter planetary climate patterns). It's called the Many-Worlds Interpertation of Quantum Theory (you don't need to point out that I can't spell. I already know that). In a nut shell, the theory states that every outcome that is physically possible happens. If that's the case, then there is a parallel universe somewhere where all of our timelines are happening... as long as they don't violate the laws of physics. Ok, I grumbled enough for one day.

[The Kiat]

King/Queens of the United Provinces of the Netherlands
1. Maurice (1611-25)
2. Frederick (1625-47)
3. William II (1647-50)
4. William III (1650-1702)
5. Johann (1702-11)
6. William IV (1711-51)
7. William V (1751-1806)
8. Maurice II (1806-40)
9. William VI (1840-49)
10. Frederick II (1849-80)
11. Frederick III (1880-91)
12. William VII (1891-1936)
13. Juliana (1936-80)
14. Beatrix (1980- )

[The Kiat]

Titles of Beatrix van Oranje (year when title was established)


Princess of Oranje (pre-1609)

Queen of the United Provinces of the Netherlands (1611)

Empress of Brazil (1807)
Protector of the Boer Republics (1888)
Queen of Ceylon (1911)
Empress of India (1911)
Queen of New Holland (1919)
Queen of New Zealand (1922)
Queen of Abyssinia (1935)
Princess of Java (1937)
Queen of Formosa (1947)
Royal Sovereign of Hainan (1947)
Royal Sovereign of Indonesia (1947)
Queen of Angola (1955)
Queen of Mozambique (1955)







The title Protector and Royal Sovereign means that said member states of the Dutch Commonwealth of Nations recognize the monarch as head of the Commonwealth, but not as their direct monarch.

If you read any inconsistancies between these posts and the chapters, let me know.

[The Kiat]

Europe in the aftermath of World War II.

[The Kiat]

I redid the flag of the United Provinces of the Netherlands with good ol' fashion Paint.

[The Kiat]

Here's the Empire of Brazil. I think there's too much white and not enough blue and orange. What do you think?

[The Kiat]

The Empire of India (kind of a cheap recreation, huh?).

[The Kiat]

And lastly (for today's flags) New Holland.

[The Kiat]

I've attached a write up on War Plan Rose (the map I made was, once again, too big to be uploaded). The Dutch plan to invade Britain called for clearing the North Sea, landing in Yorkshire, and cutting the island in half. It's a different approach than the standard cross-channel invasion route.

[Snowman23]

Very interesting. I love the History Book Approach, I might have to steal it for a timeline if I ever get the follow through to do one......

[The Kiat]

Here's the last of the core chapters. After this, I'll start posting the American Chapters. I guess the point in Decolonization is to display how the other European empires fell apart, while the Dutch managed to hold together.


X) Decolonization

(1946-21st century)

Reconstruction
The rebuilding of Europe began with a restructuring of Central Europe. Though the Kaiser
was not responsible for the Fuhrer’s act, Germany was made to pay anyway. Germany lost the
provinces of Denmark and Austria, both granted independence as result of peace treaty. Denmark
adopted a republican government, while Austria, to the shock of many, reinstated the Habsburg
monarchy in a new Kingdom of Austria.
The Balkan Union was restored to its borders and government, but after years of brutal
occupation that involved cultural and ethnic extermination, coupled with nationalistic puppet-states,
made the restored Balkan Union a short affair. By 1948, the Balkan Union dissolved, and forty years
of Balkan Wars followed. Between 1948 and 1989, borders changed, nations were destroyed and
reborn, and the Habsburgs attempted to rebuild their long lost empire, with little success.
To the United Provinces, the years following the war were spent attempting to recover the
looted treasures of the world’s premier bank. Through transactions, most of the gold ended up in
banks in Switzerland, the financial rival of the Dutch. After years of negotiating, bargaining, and the
Commonwealth threatening to invade Switzerland to take back its gold, much of the looted treasure
was returned to Amsterdam. Rebuilding the United Provinces’ economy took much longer than the
negotiations. Fortunately, other Commonwealth states were able to aid in reconstruction of the
mother country. For other European powers who leaned upon their colonies, reconstruction lead to
decolonization.
For Japan, which surrendered to the United States after the use of atomic bombs (which the
Commonwealth did not build its first atomic bomb until 1948) and threatened invasion by
Commonwealth armies. The question as to how to deal with Japan came down to the two powers
that bore the brunt of combat, the United States and Dutch Commonwealth of Nations. The Dutch,
naturally wished to install its own government in Japan, with Hirohito deposed and Juliana
proclaimed Empress of Japan. The United States went more for a liberal constitution and
denunciation of the Emperor’s divinity.
The fact that the war in Europe still raged in September of 1945 ultimately lead to the
Americans having their way. The Commonwealth’s resources were soon directed back to Europe as
soon as Java and the colonies were free of Japanese occupation. The Commonwealth would deal
with its own problems before dealing with other’s. However, rebuilding Japan’s destroyed
infrastructure came from loans from abroad. The VOC managed to monopolize the importation of
raw materials to Japan until the 1960s.
The VOC experienced an unparallel expansion in operations during the postwar years,
namely because it was one of the few transport companies to survive the war in one piece. Its usage
of armed transports and private navy assisted in its survival, were its unarmed competitors were
either destroyed, nationalized for the duration at great loss or sold for scrap. With liberty ships now
flooding the market, many business son faced a drop off in prices and new shipping ventures started
up. The smaller ones could not handle the drop in revenue, but the VOC, with multiple revenues,
took the postwar years in stride.
However, there was not a recession as there was in the wake of the Great War. World War
II was a total war between nations. The full industrial capacity of many nations was converted to the
war effort with little to no consumer goods being produced. No luxuries were produced, but full
employment generated much income for households, and the soldiers that did not gamble or drink
away their salaries had six years worth of income saved up and ready to spend. The Brazilian
economy, barely damaged by the war boomed the most, but surprisingly, the American economy
exploded, even after reabsorbing devastated states during the Full Restoration of the Union.
The United Nations
When a body of Allies and Entente members met in San Francisco in April of 1942, little did
they know they would be creating an international body that would not only resolve conflict, but
create much tension in nation-states over national sovereignty. Nominally the Commonwealth would
confront foreign affairs on a unified basis. However, the Commonwealth Assembly agreed that they
should enter the United Nations as separate entities. It was not a dissolution of the Commonwealth,
but in the U.N. each member gets one vote. If the Commonwealth entered as a single member, they
would received only one vote, as opposed to eleven in 1942. In that same year, the Commonwealth
accounted for nearly half the members of this new United Nations.
The Queen endorsed the idea, hoping the U.N. would offer the world a place for nations to
resolve differences without resorting to destroying each other. If World War II was any indication,
another world war would likely destroy human civilization. Better to mediate with words than atom
bombs. Unlike the League of Nations, the U.N. Charter allowed for resolutions to be enforced by a
multi-national task force.
The first postwar challenge for this new international assembly was rebuilding of a shattered

world. Though the Bank of Amsterdam was reeling after the war, the Bank of Colombo was still




enriched with gold. Ceylon lead an effort, with the other surviving economies, such as the United
States and Brazil, to organize a ‘world bank’ to assist bankrupt and ruined countries to rebuild.
Naturally, these donor states expected the loans to be paid in full, with a modest interest.
The United Nations also established a war crimes tribunal for Fuhrer Germany, Spain and,
especially, Japan. In a way, this established a double-standard, and the only ‘criminals’ to be charged
were those who lost the war.1 The Tribunal attempted to try various members of the Confederate
Bund, particularly concerning renewed slavery, but the United States declined. As far as they were
concerned it was an American affair and Americans would deal with it. In the end, most of the
surviving Bund elite were hung following the Richmond Trials.
The Kingdom of Formosa, States of Hainan and Indonesia
In 1947, after their dedication to the Commonwealth during World War II, Formosa, Hainan
and the islands of Indonesia were to be granted status of realm within the empire. The islands of
Indonesia opted to be admitted as a single member, and a parliamentary republic. They would have
no monarch, but would recognize the head of the Commonwealth as their royal sovereign. The same
status as parliamentary republic was bestowed to Hainan.
Formosa, on the other hand, decided to accept Juliana as their Queen. On July 13, 1947, the
Kingdom of Formosa was declared. Formosa, despite the devastation caused by months of
attempting to liberate Japan, was the most industrialized nation in East Asia, after Japan’s industry
was all but destroyed from above. Formosa also proved to be the most factional, politically speaking,
of the Commonwealth members. Though political parties were against the Commonwealth Charter,
that did not stop fraternities and voting blocks from forming.
Though the government in Taipei could agree on little, the choice for first Prime Minister
was almost unanimous, that would be a monk by the name of Mantama. Universally seen as the
liberator of Formosa, Mantama was the most popular Prime Minister in the history of the
Commonwealth. When he stepped down after one term, the people nearly rioted. When he died, in
August of 1969, Formosa came to a stop and mourned for a week.
Formosa benefitted much from the reconstruction of Japan. In 1946, Japan had no
functioning steel mills or foundries. All the iron and steel going into Japan came from Formosa.
Some Formosans refused to trade with the Japanese, even with the significant profits they could gain
via the World Bank. Many who suffered under Japanese occupation wished the Japanese to suffer.
Mantama convinced many factory and smelter owners to take the World Bank up on the offer. The
way he phrased it, rebuilding Japan would strengthen Formosa’s depressed economy, and by buying
Formosan steel and machinery, Japan was in a way paying reparations they would otherwise never
pay.
In the wake of the war in East Asia, many of the rival warlords and states of China simply
no longer existed. The two largest forces competing for ‘the throne’ were those of Mao and Chaing.
The Chinese Nationalists under the command of Chaing faced the brunt of the Japanese onslaught,
and likely would have ruled China if not for the Japanese invasion. But Chaing was weakened by
seven years of war with Japan. Though the Communists under Mao did fight side-by-side with their
Nationalist brothers, the alliance ended as soon as Japan surrendered. After four years of fierce
fighting, Mao succeeded and driving Chaing into exile, and in 1949, the ‘People’s Dynasty’ was
established, as Queen Juliana called it. Many of the Nationalists attempted to flee to Formosa, but
the Formosans refused to absorb nearly a million refugees, and unwanted immigrants. The
Nationalists were hence dispersed across the Pacific, from the Philippines, all the way to Canada and
Grand Columbia. As a result of restoring the Union, the United States closed its borders to all
immigration, until it could get its own house back in order.
By rebuilding Japan, and even dealing with China after the communist take-over, Formosa’s
own economy skyrocketed, overtaking many European states in the 1960s. It was not until Japan was
rebuilt and China beginning its own industrialization during the 1980s did Formosa slip to third
place in Asia and the Pacific. It battled Japan in production of microprocessors into the 1990s, and
today is still tied with Japan in production of the world’s premier electronics.
France
France’s colonial empire effectively ended the moment Japan seized Indochina and Spain
Algeria. France was no longer able to defend its colonies, and more importantly its inhabitants. For
decades, tensions were mounting throughout its colonies, and by leaning heavily on the colonies for
its own reconstruction, France pushed its colonies over the edge. By 1950, the colonies began to
view themselves no longer as French, but as exploited.
The first to break away was French Indochina. Lead by Ho Chi Minh, the Indochinese
rebellion lasted from 1945 to 1954. In a way, it was simply an extension of the war against Japan.
Ho lead the resistance against Japan, but when France came in to reassert itself, it simply swept the
Viet Minh aside. During the war years, Vietnamese, Laotian and Cambodian nationalism rose in
response for Japan’s repression.
Before France’s defeat at Dien Bien Phu, Algerians rose up against their former colonial
masters. Unlike Indochina, whose nationalities were merely fighting for independence, Algeria faced
a wave of religious extremism that included bombs of hotels, buses and subways in Metropolitan
France. France’s reaction to Algeria was far harsher than in Indochina. Algerian rebels attempting
to surrender were shot on sight, for fear of extremists wearing explosive jackets lined with metal
splinters. More than one ‘rebel’ trying to surrender blew himself up while ‘surrendering’ to French
soldiers. Many Algerians within the Foreign Legion were expelled from the Legion and from France.
Rebellion in Mexico was far more civil than in Algeria. When France withdrew from Algeria,
over a hundred thousand French settlers and their allies left with them, many of these went to French
enclaves in Mexico, despite the rebellion. The French colonized along the Gulf Coast and Pacific
Coasts of Mexico, leaving the interior to the locals. However, just as in Algeria and Indochina,
France attempted to ‘civilize’, that is impose their laws and customs, the natives. However, unlike
the other colonies, France experienced a moderate success in Mexico, where French is now spoken
as often as Spanish.
However, France stripped Mexico of much of its natural wealth, especially after oil was
discovered in the lands surrounding the Gulf of Mexico. A sharp disparity between the haves and
have-nots lead to revolution in the mid 1950s, after nearly ninety years of French rule. With the fall
of the Balkan Union, international socialism moved its headquarters to China, and it was the Chinese
smuggling arms to Marxists rebels in Mexico. Like with Vietnam, when Mexico freed itself from
French rule, it soon fell to communism, the same fate of many former colonies.
Germany
When Mexico rose up against France, the long standing colony of Rio de la Plata rose up
against Germany. In order to rebuild the Empire, the Kaiser ordered many of the colonies in Africa
and South America to contribute to reconstruction. Much of German Central Africa was
undeveloped with minimal infrastructure, meaning that even in the Twenty-first Century, the
successor states have beneath their soil a deep reserve of mineral wealth.
Rio de la Plata, however, was nearly as developed as Germany itself. During reconstruction,
nearly one hundred percent of mineral output and manufactured goods were shipped to Germany,
leaving little to nothing left for the colonists. Not only that, but taxes were raised by the colonial
government as were subsidies to the fatherland. Unlike the Eleven Colonies, Rio de la Plata was a
case of Taxation In Spite of Representation. When recession hit the colony, the German colonists
had enough.
On the nights of September 17 and 18 of 1959, the colonial government, comprised of mostly
politicians hand picked by the government in Berlin, was overthrown and the Republic of the River
Plate was declared. What followed was six years of war between Germans, much to the heartache
of Kaiser Frederick Wilhelm. This colonial civil war, were one third of the population was for
independence, one third against and one third indifferent, tore apart the River Plate almost as
effectively as World War II did Germany itself. In fact, it was that same bloody war that allowed for
the Republic’s independence. Germany simply could not afford to hold them under their thumb,
while dealing with rebellions in Africa. By the year 2000, Germany’s only colonial possessions were
the Marshall Islands, Carolina Islands and Kaiserwilhelmland.
The British Commonwealth
The British Commonwealth of Nations, a pale impersonation of the Dutch Commonwealth,
only worked as far as the citizens were Britanified. Canada, Australia and Patagonia, along with
various islands stayed within Britain’s association of states, unlike Britain’s former African colonies
and Burma. The Burmese were the first to break away, starting their war in 1947. For over a decade,
Burmese waged a guerilla war against the British, often crossing the Indian border to launch their
attacks.
Though the Commonwealth Assembly tried to work out a deal between Burmese and British,
India’s own national guard did take part in the war, mostly shooting any rebels who crossed the
border. On March 5, 1951, several villages on the Indian side of the border were raided by Burmese
rebels, prompting the Indian Staaten-General to threaten invasion of Burma. They further reiterated
that land the Dutch took, they seldom gave back.
The use of the name Dutch by India was obviously an attempt to get the Commonwealth on
their side. India has always been the odd man out in the Dutch Commonwealth. Forced into the
United Provinces’ colonial empire, language and customs and they even had their own constitution
forced upon them. Abyssinia was also conquered, but unlike India, it created its own government,
as opposed to the Staaten-General back in the Hague.
The Commonwealth did keep up the pressure on Britain to resolve the Burma Crisis, while
at the same time, Queen Juliana blessed the Indian Staaten-General’s plan for a limited invasion of
Burma, in order to root out rebels and bandits along the border. In 1952, the British forced many of
the rebels into the very path of Indian invasion, hoping to crush the rebellion. For the next two years,
the Burmese Liberation Front fell silent.
When violence flared up again in 1955, the United Nations stepped in to mediate between
rebels and Britainers. In 1956, a U.N. peacekeeping force, including thousands of Indian soldiers,
occupied the country and began disarming rebels and taking over functions of the British. There was
sporadic violence into 1957, but for the most part, the peacekeepers did just that; kept the peace until
a nation-wide referendum at the end of the year. The Burmese voted overwhelmingly for
independence, and by 1958 the Republic of Burma was established, with the U.N. staying until 1960
to insure a smooth transition in government.
The British Empire continued to fade during the 1960s, with the loss of most of their African
colonies, the last, Kenya, achieving Independence in 1971. Rebellion and revolution in Central
Africa created a crisis of refugees for Abyssinia and Angola. The Commonwealth closed the borders,
and after the events in Burma, patrolled it vigilantly. For the most part, the Dutch stayed out of
British and African affairs. The only exception being in Egypt, which won its freedom in 1952.
Because Dutch interests still owned part of the Suez Canal, the Commonwealth was forced to strike
a deal with the new government in Egypt. Simply put, as long as traffic was not impeded through
the Suez, then the Commonwealth had no reason to meddle in Egyptian affairs. Though the Dutch
Empire was now a Commonwealth of Nations, the Dutch were still a mercantile people whose power
was based on trade and commerce.
Dutch Africa
With revolution and rebellion racing across other European possession during the 1950s and
60s, Queen Juliana confronted the Staaten-General with the fact that the United Provinces still had
two colonies in Africa; Angola and Mozambique. With other Africans rebelling against their
masters, it was foolish to believe Dutch Southern Africa would not join them. The United Provinces
had never lost a colony to violent means, and Juliana was not about to be the first monarch to loose
one.
Angola and Mozambique were some of the first possessions of the Netherlands, but some
of the last to be colonized. By 1950, only seventy years had passed before Netherlanders began to
homestead in these colonies. Over the centuries before colonization, the Dutch made sure tribes
allied to them came out on top during brutal tribal wars. Many of these tribes benefited to Dutch
trade after slavery was abolished. Since the Dutch often refused to speak any other language, the
natives were forced to learn Dutch in order to trade. Between 1710 and 1880, Dutch merchants
slowly but steadily assimilated the natives into Dutch culture.
Despite their Dutchification, both Angola and Mozambique had little in the way of selfgovernment
in 1950. As with India, the Staaten-General of the United Provinces took it upon itself
to design and appoint a government to both colonies. Angolans embraced the new government, but
were hostile to the appointees. What was the point in self-determination, if one self could not
determine who would be in office? All were assured this was a temporary messure, and elections
would be held in 1955.
True to their word, elections were held in both Angola and Mozambique in 1955. Towns and
provinces of the lightly inhabited colonies went to the polls to chose their represtentivies in the new
Staaten-Generals in Mauricestadt and Sofala. Not only could they decide who would speak for them,
they also voted in colony-wide referendums to determine the future of both colonies. Again, the
Staaten-General of the United Provinces wrote constitutions for both colonies, granting them the
status of realm within the empire, and establishing Angola and Mozambique as constitutional
monarchies, with Juliana as their Queen..
The only other choices were status quo and full independence. Nobody wanted the status quo;
the years after World War II were the ‘Years of Progress’ were the world marched ahead.
Independence won thirty-three and forty percent respectively. However, there were no constitutions
for these republics, and news of violence in decolonized states overpowered any resentment the
republicans who lost the election might have felt. While colonies, the people were both prosperous
and happy. The only difference in being kingdoms were that both states would now control their own
internal affairs. With the independence of Angola and Mozambique, the United Provinces’ only
remaining colony was the frozen wasteland of Greenland.
The Balkan Wars
Though all the World Powers had a part in the Balkan Wars, siding with one state or another,
the Dutch kept their participation limited to keeping trade open between the outside world and the
oil well of Armenia and Kurdistan. When the Balkans exploded into warfare, the heirs of the
Ottoman Empire, Turkey, saw an opportunity to rebuild its own empire. Their invasion of Greece,
though at first successful, was turned back with assistance of the VOC.
VOC Oil had large shares in the oil trade across the Black Sea, both in extracting and
transporting the fuel of industrialized civilization. The VOC sold several of its World War II vintage
destroyers and frigates to Greece, and was further contracted to train the fledgling Greek Navy.
However, the Board of Shareholders decided that repelling Turkey was not enough. In order to
secure the Bosporus, they decided it best for Greece to control both banks of the strait.
By 1955, the Ottoman’s humiliation was complete. Greece controlled the Asian side of the
Bosporus extending several kilometers inland. With such a defeat, Turkey turned inward and like
the Balkans, was wrapped up in civil war. Unlike the Balkans, Turkey experienced a total collapse,
and it still considered a failed state to this date. Though not supported by the VOC, Greece used
much of the talent and equipment purchased from the company to wage war against its northern
neighbors, ending with the annexation of Macedonia.
Socialism
During the 1960s, the World Powers experienced revolutions of their own, albeit far more
peaceful than their colonies. For the Dutch people, a nominally mercantile society, socialism was
revolutionary. Unlike many capitalistic countries, the United Provinces’ companies thought of their
nation before their profits. Never had a company, with the possible consideration of the South
Atlantic Company, ever go against national interest, and not just because the Staaten-General could
revoke their license or monopoly.
By 1963, the Dutch Worker’s Party won several seats in the House of Electorates. The
Worker’s Party is believed to have had its origins in the form of Balkans fleeing the chaos that was
1950s southeastern Europe. Their first act was to introduce several bills aimed at protecting the
worker. Protect them from what? The rest of the Staaten-General asked that very question. Workers
in the United Provinces were far from exploited, and factories would just as soon employ honest and
loyal Netherlanders for three times what cheap foreign labor might go for.
Among the proposals, the socialists wanted a mandatory minimum wage, thirty hour work
weeks so that four shifts could be enacted instead of three, two weeks of paid vacation a year, and
allow unrestricted unionization. Instead of gaining worker’s support, many Netherlanders were
suspicious about the proposals. Why take thirty hours when they now receive forty hours? That
would involve a reduce in pay. The socialists claimed it was to increase employment, but the United
Provinces had next to no unemployment. With strict tariffs on imports, the Dutch people bought
mostly Dutch products, and with Germany still rebuilding itself, many of the products went across
the border.
If anything, these changes would entice Germans to cross the border and take jobs from
Netherlanders. Some enterprising Netherlanders, when this law was passed, simply took two shifts
a week, and actually reduced the number of employees required. As for minimum wage, the wage
proposed and passed was far less than the average wage of the Netherlander. The idea of a minimum
wage was more of an ideology for International Socialism Inc. Every other country had them, so why
should the United Provinces be exempt.
The most popular of the laws was that of paid vacation. A majority of employers did not offer
paid vacation, though workers could take leave with sufficient notice. To now have two weeks of
relaxation without worrying about missed paychecks, that was a boon. It was also the only Worker’s
Law to not be repealed in the 1980s. As for labor unions, those existed in the United Provinces since
the turmoil of industrialization in the mid-Nineteenth Century. They were a bane in the existence of
factory and mill owners, but they also kept them honest, and the unions took credit for making the
United Provinces the country with the highest standard of living in Europe (perhaps not without too
much exaggeration).
Several other laws were proposed, but rejected immediately. These included universal health
care, unemployment insurance, and an idea borrowed from Britain and Canada; social security. It
was a kind of government-ran retirement plan. In order to afford such programs, the United
Provinces would have to do something it rarely does; raise taxes. Most of the nation’s income comes
from tariffs and duties, with just the minimum of taxation upon the people. Universal health care was
voted along party lines, socialists for it and everyone else against. The idea of government as helping
hand will always be foreign in the very Provincial minded Provinces. The Dutch people have long
standing traditions of self-reliance. After all, a people who required a helping hand could never have
colonized the far corners of the globe.
VOC Stars
Out of World War II came many new technologies; radar, jet engines, nuclear weapons and
above all, rocketry. Rocket scientists existed in the United States and Sweden as early as 1920. The
American rocket scientist Robert Goddard developed function liquid fueled rockets. In Fuhrer
Germany, rocket science was put to the forefront in the last three years of the war. London faced the
brunt of ballistic missile attacks. Though primitive, the V-2 was the grandfather of all modern
rocketry.
During the 1950s, rocketry advanced to new levels. Soon the potential for reaching Earth
orbit came to the attention of not only Staaten-Generals across the Commonwealth, but the VOC.
Much of the dream of space flight was that of exploration, but the VOC saw another potential. Radio
transmissions on Earth were limited by climatic conditions and geological features. However, with
satellites in orbit relaying signals, VOC Commonwealth (the telecommunication branch) could soon
reach anywhere and everywhere on Earth.
The VOC was the largest company to develop rockets, but they were constrained by tight
budgets were nation-states were not. On August 2, 1957, the first artificial satellite was launched,
not by the VOC, not even by the Dutch, but by Sweden. Sweden preempted the German attempt by
several weeks. When Germany tried to rush its launch, a malfunction caused the rocket to explode
on its launch pad, damaging most of the Peenemunde launch site.
The first Dutch satellite was not launched until 1959, from a launch site along the equatorial
coast of Brazil, near Cayenne. It was not until 1967 that VOC Stars had its first telecommunication
constellation orbiting Earth. Later, more advanced communication satellites were launched into
geosynchronous orbit during the 1980s, allowing the VOC to take a thirty-one percent share of the
telecommunication industry, by far the largest in the world.
By the 1990s, the VOC and its departments were netting six hundred billion guilders. The
American magazine ‘Time’ declared in 1996, that the VOC was the world’s first trillion dollar
corporation. Not bad for a company that started out as nothing more than a spice venture in the start
of the Seventeenth Century. The Commonwealth itself had an impressive space program, though not
as profitable as the VOC’s.
The United Provinces were the second nation to put a man into orbit, right behind Sweden.
The Americans were playing catch up, only having sub-orbital flights at this time. Their astronaut,
Alan Shepard, beat both Sweden’s Yuri Gargarin and the Provinces’ Henri Winkleman to the edge
of the atmosphere, but American’s rocket of 1961 lacked the power to reach orbit. However, this did
not stop American president John Kennedy from challenging the rest of the world, after Sweden’s
orbital flight, to put a man on the moon and return him to Earth by the end of the decade. The phrase
‘end of this decade’ it a bit ambiguous, since mathematically, the decade did not end until December
31, 1970.
As it turned out, this safety net was not required. On July 21, 1969, the United States beat
Sweden, the Commonwealth and France to the moon, when astronaut James Lovell became the first
man to walk on the moon. However, where America’s interest in Luna waned, the Dutch interest was
never stronger. In 1983, the VOC established Fort Recife on the moon, a research station, primarily
dedicated to leaning the value of lunar minerals.
Many of today’s modern electronic devices can be dated back to the space race. In 1957, the
typical computer was the size of a house and held laughable amounts of memory. By 1967, the
computer was now the size of a box, but with still limited memory. It was all thanks to the
development of the microprocessor. Though Formosa produces the bulk of the Commonwealth’s
components, much of the research of electronics, and physics takes place at the Indian Institute of
Technology. What was once the most backwards member of the Commonwealth, at the dawn of the
Twenty-first Century, is it leading developer of cosmic contraptions.
Queen Beatrix
Born on January 31, 1938, Beatrix grew up in partial exile. Her first memories of Delft were
not until the Royal Family returned home following the success of War Plan Tulip. She is unique
among Dutch monarchs for several reasons. The first being that she was the first Princess (or Prince)
of Oranje to attend public universities, in both The Hague and Recife. She was also the first to have
a Masters Degree, hers in international law. An appropriate field of study for one who would
eventually become the head of the Dutch Commonwealth of Nations.
During her college days, Beatrix studied abroad, in Paris, Baltimore, Arborea and even
spending one quarter studying in the American city of Atlanta. It was there during the days of the
Kennedy administration that she came face to face to a world that puts race above nation. She was
blasted by critics in America for her quote ‘race is skin deep, but the nation is in the heart.’ The
Dutch people have always considered themselves Dutch first.
Her notions of a color-blind society struck hard many of the civil rights leaders in the
American south. During the 1960s, those who were enslaved during the Confederate Bund’s reign
faced an uphill struggle against the white southern society. Despite national laws against
discrimination, those laws were barely enforced in the southern states until the 1970s. Beatrix left
Atlanta wondering if Brazil or the Boer Republics could have ended up this way had her
predecessors governed differently.
Beatrix was crowned on April 30, 1980, not after her mother died, but rather after Juliana
abdicated. It was not the first time a Dutch monarch voluntarily relinquished the throne, but Juliana
did not do so in disgrace. After more than forty years as Queen and Empress, Juliana simply decided
it was time to retire. At forty-two years of age, and eighteen years of service within Dutch
government, Beatrix was crowned the Queen of the United Provinces of the Netherlands, Empress
of Brazil, Lady Protector of Kapenstaaten, Transvaal, New Oranje, Natalia and Johannestaaten,
Queen of Ceylon, Empress of India, Queen of Abyssinia, Princess of Java, Royal Sovereign of
Indonesia and of Hainan, Queen of Formosa, and of both Angola and Mozambique.
The Information Revolution
During the 1980s, developments in the United States, Sweden, Britain and the
Commonwealth revealed a new network of information, the internet. Its ancestor was created in the
United States, as an information network for the War Department. The technology was classified,
but not top secret. Nor was it terribly complicated, for several other nations introduced their own
defense networks.
The internet does more than bring people closer and make Earth a smaller place, it also
revolutionized the way giant banks do business. No more do shipments of gold and silver have to
sail across seas and ride the rails. In an instant, electronic impulses deliver credit to any bank in the
world. Oddly enough, the Bank of Amsterdam was one of the last banks to go electronic. Age old
traditions of hard currency are too deeply imbedded into the bank’s psyche.
Again, workers face a crisis as computers and robotics streamline production and increase
office efficiency. Today there was concerns about robots overrunning the world, or worse yet,
unionizing. Two hundred year prior, workers voiced the same concerns over machinery, and to some
extent it was true in the beginning. But as history can prove, the Dutch people will adapt and thrive
with the changing world.
One new technology, magnetic levitation, has only recently been introduced to the Counties
of Holland and Zeeland. A Middleberg-Amsterdam line, with a maglev car capable of three hundred
kilometers an hour, is the first in what will be many new high-speed commuter routes across the
United Provinces and all of Europe. Already similar lines are up in Sweden, Germany, France and
China, with a Philadelphia-New Amsterdam line in the United States slated to be operation by 2010.
The Changing World
However, there is a far greater
concern than cybernetic revolt, and that is
of dwindling fuel. In th first decade of the
Twenty-first Century, the world has hit
what is known as peak oil production.
There are alternatives to petroleum based
fuels, but as with the shipping companies
in face of the railroad, many petro
companies are fighting against fuel-cell
technology. It will put them out of
business they claim. Perhaps, but so will
the depletion of oil. More over, fuel cells
will not alter the climate in the same way
as the burning of fossil fuels.
As a nation at and below sea level, the United Provinces are deeply concerned about climate
change and inevitable sea rises. Even if all fossil fuel consumption were cut today, the ocean will
still rise by a meter. Billions of guilders are going into improving, modernizing and even expanding
the system of dikes and levies that keep the Provinces relatively dry. The VOC, as always, is not only
looking to the future of its profits, but the benefit of its country. Several model fuel-cell vehicles are
already in test markets across the Provinces.
Gasoline is but a minor irritant compared to two centuries of burning coal. Whereas oil will
be gone by the 2050s, there is still enough coal to burn for centuries. Many European nations have
the technology to offset coal, with nuclear, hydroelectric and even wind. The biggest producer of
coal-borne carbon dioxide is the still industrializing China. As a nation of over a billion, the energy
demands are astronomical. If China is unable to find a solution other than coal, then the United
Provinces, and the Dutch Commonwealth, may have no option but to destroy the hundreds of coalfired
plants across China. As a fellow nuclear power, it is unlikely China will sit by and let their
power plants be destroyed.
Physicists in Formosa and China are operation an experimental nuclear fusion reactor. By
fusing hydrogen into helium, this new source of power produces no pollutants, and harnesses a fuel
that is nearly inexhaustible in the universe. By taming the power in the heart of the sun, the
Commonwealth, and perhaps all of humanity. Optimism aside, a commercial fusion reactor is still
a decade away, but the prototypes produce far more power than they consume.
Perhaps with these new technologies, the Dutch people can continue their tradition of trading


and colonizing, this time beyond the boundaries of Earth’s atmosphere and into a limitless future.

[The Kiat]

The chaos that is Africa in the year 2000.

[The Kiat]

A little something from my notes. Since I'll be starting the American Chapters soon;

U.S.S. Valcour Bay
The Valcour Bay, one of the most hard-hitting ships of World War II, was laid down in at the Haarlem Ship Yard on September 9, 1936. Its registration was CV-6, and it was the second of five Yorktown class carriers, the first dedicated carriers in the United States Navy. The ship’s construction was delayed do to labor problems in the shipyard, but it was finally commissioned on August 5, 1938. The ship was at first fitted out with only forty aircraft, half its design compliment. By the outbreak of war in Europe, the compliment was doubled. Valcour Bay was at first intended to fight the Fuhrer German forces and aid in America’s goal of restoring the Kaiser to Germany. However, on March 25, 1940, when war was declared on the Fuhrer, the Japanese strike against Oahu made the navy reshuffle their plans. On April 1, the navy shelved their plans and turned to face the Confederate States of America.

During 1940, the Valcour Bay cruised threw the Bahamas, intercepting convoys bound for the Confederacy. Its planes aided in anti-submarine patrols, sinking several enemy U-boats. During the brief Battle off Bimini, on October 8, 1940, bombers off Valcour Bay and Enterprise sank the C.S.S. Florida and Sonora, along with one cruiser and two destroyers. In late 1940, and early 1941, Valcour Bay launched missions against Confederate forces in Cuba. The Battle of Guantanamo was the last naval battle in the American Theater, resulting in the destruction of what remained of the Confederate Navy’s surface force. Conservative admirals in the Confederacy failed to see the vital role air power now played in naval warfare, and by the time they realized the potential, the end was near.

On March 20, 1941, Valcour Bay participated in Operation Overlord, the American invasion of the Confederate Gulf Coast. The Confederacy was defeated within two months, but even before the final surrender on May 8, Valcour Bay and Lexington (CV-8) sailed through the Panama Canal and were on their way to San Diego. The first action the ship saw in the Pacific was at the Battle of Maui Strait, on August 1, 1941. During the fight, Hawaiian dive bombers hit the Valcour Bay, damaging an elevator and taking the ship out of the fight for months. During that battle, Captain Ray Spruance was injured from exploding windows on the bridge. He was lucky; the U.S.S. Wasp was sent to the bottom of the sea between Maui and Hawaii.

The Valcour Bay returned to combat in time to take part of the Battle of Molokai. The ship was only slightly damaged by a lone torpedo during this indecisive battle. The losses off Molokai included the Lexington and Hornet, along with two Japanese carriers. However, it was a loss Japan could not afford in the eastern Pacific. By the start of 1942, it was forced to abandon its puppets on the island of Hawaii in order to focus on fighting the Dutch. The carrier supported a joint invasion of Hawaii by the Republics of Maui and Kauai, which forced the Hawaiian king to come to terms.

At the start of 1943, Valcour Bay’s previous captain was promoted to Admiral, and replaced with Captain Vincent Santoni. He commanded the ship for the rest of its career. His first fight was at the Battle of Eniwok, on October 22, 1943. The Japanese fielded no carriers in this battle, but did send bombers from bases scattered across the Marshall Islands to destroy the Americans. With seven carriers in the task force, the defenses of the Marshall airfields were depleted. Valcour Bay did receive damage from shore batteries during the battle, but not enough to take the ship out of the war.

The final naval battle of the war occurred on June 14, 1944, during the Battle of the Philippine Sea. Japan’s remaining five carriers were thrown into battle with an American fleet comprising of three times as many carriers, and pilots far more trained. By this time of the war, Japan has lost its experienced pilots, and stood no chance. During the Great Mariana Turkey Shoot, pilots from Valcour Bay were credited with downing seventy-two Japanese aircraft, both carrier and land based. Sky-Raiders off the carrier sank the Japanese carrier Hiryu along with the battleship Ise. Operation Round Hammer was the high point of the ship’s carrier.

It all came to an end during the Battle of Formosa. Though the Japanese no longer had any aircraft carriers, they still had hundreds of airplanes stowed away on Formosa to meet the invasion force. They also began using a new tactic, one that first appeared during the Philippine Sea; the kamikaze. These Wind of the Kami poured out of caves during November of 1944, hitting American and Dutch naval assets with little warning. Though the pilots lacked skill, they did not need it for crashing into their targets. On such target was Valcour Bay. On November 15, one kamikaze crashed into the ship’s flight deck and punched into the hanger bay, where fully armed and fueled aircraft went up in flames. The resulting explosion actually broke the ship in half, sending it to the bottom in less than an hour. Santoni, and two thousand other sailors and fliers, went down with the ship.

The valcour Bay legacy continued even after World War II. In 1983, a Gettysburg class super-carrier, the CVN-69 was named Valcour Bay. The Valcour Bay was the last American carrier to be sunk during World War II, and one of the highest loss of life in naval history. With its demise, Saratoga and Enterprise were the only two of her class to survive the war. The former was made a target in a nuclear test and the latter hosted the Japanese surrender and is now a museum ship in Bremerton, Washington.

[The Kiat]

Another flag, this one of the Kingdom of Abyssinia.

[The Kiat]

Kingdom of Angola.

[The Kiat]

Now the Kingdom of Ceylon.

[The Kiat]

Here's a preview to the American Chapters, for those who might actually care.


Benedict Arnold
Born in Norwich, Connecticut on January 14, 1741, Benedict Arnold IV was one of only two
children of Benedict Arnold III to survive to adulthood. The other was his sister Hannah. Early in
his life, his father was a successful merchant, enrolling his son in a private academy on the fast track
to Yale. By the time he was fourteen, the family business declined and there was no longer any funds
for schooling. His father’s failing health prevented him from training in the family business and
instead he was apprenticed to a cousin of his mouth, who worked in general merchandise and
apothecary.
In 1756, Arnold enlisted in the colonial militia to fight the French during the Seven Years
War. He saw battle in skirmishes with the French in the Iroquois Confederacy. After leaving the
militia in 1759, Arnold went into business as a pharmacist and book keeper in New Haven. He
earned enough profit to buy back the family homestead his father sold to cover his debts. A year
later, he resold it and used the earning to purchase three merchant ships. He brought his sister to New
Haven to run the pharmacy while he took command of his ships and began trading goods from Nova
Scotia to Barbados.
The Sugar Act of 1764 and Stamp Act in 1765 put pressure on his business and Arnold took
to smuggling out of defiance for these outrageous taxes. His action as a smuggler eventually lead to
his entry into the Sons of Liberty and even the Free Masons. He married in 1767, to Margaret
Mansfield, daughter of a business associate. She gave birth to three sons before dying in 1775.
Arnold never remarried after that. Arnold did use his marital connections to the Sheriff of New
Haven to shield himself from creditors.
Arnold was a captain in the Connecticut Militia when war broke out in 1775. He proposed
to the Committee of Safety that he lead an expedition to capture Fort Ticonderoga and the guns
within. His own contingent linked up with the Green Mountain Boys before the assault. Arnold and
Ethan Allan had a severe conflict of personalities, and the fact that Allan was credited for capturing
the fort was a severe slap in the face for Arnold. Arnold’s next act was a march thought the Upper
Massachusetts wilderness towards Quebec. The December 31, assault on Quebec failed, and Arnold
withdrew to Lake Champlain.
It was on this very lake that Arnold saved the Revolution. The British were on the north end
of the lake, transporting and reassembling ships for an attack. On the south end of the lake, Arnold
used all his nautical skills to transform himself in Admiral Arnold. His fleet was little more than a
dozen armed rafts, and was completely destroyed in the Battle of Valcour Bay. However, his action
caused the British commander, Carleton, to take pause and delayed the advance south until spring
of 1777.
Arnold’s greatest victory took place in October of 1777 on the fields around Saratoga. After
a march through the mostly hostile Iroquois Confederacy, the British faced off against a Continental
Army under the nominal command of Horatio Gates. When Arnold saw that Gates was not utilizing
the army, and was in fact pulling his forces back, the two general broke into argument. Arnold was
confined to his tent for the duration, and order he ignored. When Gates ordered the army into retreat,
it was Arnold who rode forth and rallied the Continental Army. From there, he led the army in a
charge against British bastions. He led the army to victory, but not without suffering a grave wound.
While laying in the hospital tents, fighting to save his leg, he was informed that Burgoyne was
insisting on surrendering to the general who bested him. Gates tried to block him, but officers loyal
to Arnold lead the British General to the tent, where he offered his sword in surrender.
After the crippling wound, Arnold was not the rider he once was. He spent a year recovering
at Fort Arnold on the Mauritius River. During the campaigning season of 1779, Arnold led several
thousand men and joined with the Marquis of New Amsterdam in the liberation of New Haven.
When he returned to his hometown, Arnold learned that the British have seized most of his assets
and he would have to start again. After two slights at the hands of Congress, Arnold resigned his
commission and started over.
He would have stayed there, if not for George Washington. In early 1781, Washington
traveled to New Haven with an offer. After Gates surrendered the Southern Branch of the
Continental Army, Washington needed a fighting general. Arnold at first would have nothing to do
with it. He refused to shed one more drop of blood for an ungrateful Congress. However,
Washington offered him command of the Left Wing of the Continental Army, answerable only to
him. After a few days of contemplation, Arnold took him up on the offer, and was there at Yorktown
when Cornwallis surrender.
After the war ended, Arnold returned home and rebuilt his business. His interest in politics
did not really take hold until after the Constitutional Convention. In 1794, he was elected to
Congress as representative, and served three terms before running for governor of Connecticut. He
easily won that election and served until 1806. As with his service in the army, Arnold stepped on
the toes of politicians. Many in Connecticut did not like Arnold, despite his popularity with the
masses. They sought to remove him from office, but not opponent could beat him. Instead of a direct
approach, the Connecticut state assembly elected Arnold to the United States Senate and finally
removed him from New Haven.
Arnold served as Senator until his death in 1814. He died much the way he lived; too proud
for his own good. In September of 1814, with the British marching on Washington, most of the
Congress had fled the city. Only one Senator remained. When soldiers tried to convince him to flee,
Arnold reportedly said “I have never gave one inch of American soil during the last war, and I’ll be
damned if I start now”. He took the rifle from one and sent him along, and ordered the other two to
stand their grounds. In a short exchange with British pickets, Arnold was gunned down at the age
of 73, ending an illustrious and legendary career.
Arnold was buried with full honors by the British before they burned the Capital Building.
After the Second Anglo-American War ended, his body was exhumed and returned to the family plot
in New Haven. In 1827, fifty years after Saratoga, a statue of Arnold was erected on the spot where
he reportedly fell. The Arnold legacy continues today, with each generation of his descendants
serving in the United States Army, the second most famous Arnold being WWII general Clive
Arnold. Arnold had towns across the nation named after him, along with the world’s premier
Military Academy along with a George WashingtonClass carrier.

[The Kiat]

A little cut and paste from my PDFs, and here's one of America's fighters during World War II.

P-58 Firebat


Crew: 1
Length: 13.6 meters
Wingspan: 11.1 meters
Max speed: 790 kph
Range: 3,000 km
Ceiling: 13.5 km
Armament: 4, 20mm cannon
up to 2,000 kg payload
First flight: 1942
Introduced: 1944
Built: 2,500

The Firebat was the United States Army Air Corps’ premier fighter during the later years of
World War II. It is one of the few swept-winged piston engine fighters to ever be built. The airplanes
saw nearly exclusive combat in the skies over Europe. The aircraft was designed to serve as escorts
to the B-23s and B-27s that bombed targets within Fuhrer Germany. Its role as an air superiority
fighter was only surpassed with the advent of jet-powered aircraft developed in Fuhrer Germany to
shoot down the bombers. Even then, against the primitive jet fighters, the Firebat still held its own.
For every 10 P-58s shot down, 7 jets were downed. It is fortunate that the Fuhrer did not order the
development of jet fighters in 1942 instead of 1944.
Along with escort duty, the P-58 saw action in close-air support. In the ground attack role,
P-58s shot up rail and other infrastructure targets with unguided rockets. It helped smash the Wesser
Pocket in early 1946. The aircraft was phased out following the war, and none remained in service
by 1950. The P-58 was highly maneuverable and very able fighter; however, with the advent of jet


technology, a piston-engine fighter could no longer compete on the world stage.

[The Kiat]

And one more, this one from the 1970s.


A-9
Sledgehammer

Crew: 1
Length: 16 meters
Wingspan: 17.2 meters
Max speed: 830 kph
Range: 500 km
Ceiling: 12 km
Armament: 1, 20mm chain gun
8,000 kg of ordinance
First flight: 1966
Introduced: 1969
Built: 1,250

The A-9 was introduced into the United States Air Force in 1969, as an anti-tank, antiinstallation
attack platform. The Sledgehammer is rated to carry iron bombs, laser-guided bombs,
air-to-surface missiles and even Mk-12 tactical nuclear bombs (50kt). It was built to replace aging
prop-driven and first generation jet powered ground-support aircraft. The A-9's cockpit in encased
in titanium armor, and the overall airframe was over-engineered. This armoring cost the aircraft
speed and range, making its speed not much greater than the last of the piston-engine fighters of
World War II. What it lacked in speed, it made up with bringing its skilled pilot home. The A-9
could even lose one engine and return home. During the Mexican Intervention, one such aircraft
came home with a dead engine, and half a wing missing.
The A-9 was designed to fight in a war against a major power. However, its first taste of
combat came in the Drug War of 1978-79. During that brief conflict, the A-9 was credited with
killing no less than three drug cartel bosses in northern Mexico. It later participated in the Mexican
Intervention during the 1980s, patrolling the one hundred mile zone south of the American border.
The A-9 was so successful in its anti-armor role, that when one faction in Mexico’s civil war
attempted to enter the zone, it was completely destroyed from the air before American Armored
Cavalry could arrive on the scene.
The aircraft continued to be in service up into the 21st Century. The Joint Strike Fighter
project is slated to develop a replacement for the A-9, as well as other American aircraft built during
the 1970s.

[Snowman23]

Very nice. Can you give some details on a Dutch ship or class maybe? :p EDIT: Love the A-10 spin-off. Sledgehammer, great name. Where are you getting the pics, you photoshop them yourself?

[The Kiat]

No. There really was a YA-9 back in the 70s, it was one of the two planes that went into a contest to select a ground attack plane. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_YA-9 As for the first one; that's just an F-84 with a propeller. I remember watching on Wings (documentary that used to be on Discovery Channel.. yeeeaarrsss ago) that a turbo-prop aircraft broke the sound barrier, or came close, in a power dive. This might have been the one. I poke around for experimental, prototype or other odd airplanes and pirate those pics. As for a Dutch ship, what type should I make? A CV? A BB? A BBG? Maybe one of the VOC's modern ships.

Very nice. Can you give some details on a Dutch ship or class maybe? :p EDIT: Love the A-10 spin-off. Sledgehammer, great name. Where are you getting the pics, you photoshop them yourself?

[The Kiat]

One more flag for today; the Kingdom of Formosa.

[Snowman23]

As for a Dutch ship, what type should I make? A CV? A BB? A BBG? Maybe one of the VOC's modern ships.

I think a modern VOC ship or a Dutch CV would be cool. Personally I'm just a naval buff especially alternate navy stuff so that's just me..

[The Kiat]

And now, for your viewing pleasure, I start the American Chapters. They will not be as well done as the core timeline. This is because I inteded these chapters as a sort of appendix, to explore the impact of a Dutch Empire on the United States. And the Revolution was a real mess without a New York. Again, parden the odd gaps, I transfer the chapters from the PDFs I made of them



XI) Union
(1775-1861)
Colonial Rebellion
Following the end of the Seven Years War, and temporary expulsion of France from North
America, tensions began to rise between the United Kingdom and her American colonies. To
London, it seemed only logical that the colonies help pay for the war that protected them. However,
Americans are funny when it comes to taxation; they simply do not like it. During the 1760s, and
early 1770s, various taxes were introduced to help offset the cost of waging war in the New World.
Not only did London attempt to tax her colonies, but struggled to control who they could trade with.
In 1770, the cities of Boston and Philadelphia were doing as much trade with the Dutch in New
Amsterdam as they were with London. This trade impacted the profit of British merchants. Though
it was an important market for the United Provinces, the American colonies were hardly vital.
The American justification for refusing to pay taxes was the famed quotation ‘no taxation
without representation’.1 London gradually reduced and repealed most taxes, with the exception of
the tax on tea. In eventual response to this final tax, several patriots dressed as Mohawks, likely lead
by Samuel Adams, boarded ships of the British East India Company on December 16, 1773, and
proceeded to dump ten thousand pounds worth of tea into Boston Harbor. In response, London
passed a series of laws now known as the Intolerable Acts, which effectively disbanded
Massachusetts’s government and closed the harbor of Boston until the British were compensated for
the loss of tea.
By 1775, tensions in New England grew to the point were the British Army deployed


contingent in Boston and the surrounding countryside. On April 18, 1775, British general ThomasGage sent seven hundred soldiers further inland to seize militia stores in Concord. Before the British

were to depart Boston, patriots within the city managed to get word out, warning the militia of the
regulars’ advance. The first shots of the Revolution were fired in Lexington, on the following day.
It is unknown who fired the first shot, but is largely believed to have been a militiaman, since the
British Regular Army held far more discipline.2
The militia retreated before regular fire, but bough militia in Concord enough time to
organize. The Regulars were stopped on the North Bridge over the Concord river, and after a short
and fierce fight, were forced back, and eventually returned to Boston. This victory gave the
Americans a false sense that the war could be resolved by Christmas, a common enough mistake
throughout the history of the world. More over, these two small engagements kicked off the
Revolution and was in effect the dawning of United States history.3
The Continental Army
Before the Second Continental Congress, the eleven colonies were forced to raise their own
militias and generally fend for themselves. With continued encroachment on liberties in
Massachusetts, other colonies believed that it was only a matter of time before the fate befell them.
It was believed that a united front against the Mother Country could only improve their odds. In
order to build a common defense, the Continental Congress established the Continental Army on
June 14, 1775. To command this new army, Congress appointed a Virginian plantation owner,
perhaps to bring the southern colonies into the cause, George Washington. At the time, the choice
was somewhat of a dubious one. Washington fought two battles during the Seven Years War, and
was victorious in neither. With hindsight, it is easy to see that Washington was the perfect choice,
not only because he was a leader of men, but because when he had power, he let it go and returned
home. Few in human history were strong enough to resist the lure of power.
Washington was appalled after his first tour of the ‘army’ by what he saw, and more over,
by what he did not see. The Continental Army was camped out around Boston, as if to lay siege.
However, it had no artillery to bombard Regular positions. The closest stockpile of cannon were
located at the British fortress of Ticonderoga, within the Iroquois country. Washington dispatched
Connecticut Brigadier General, Benedict Arnold, and a small contingent to attempt to capture these
guns.
Arnold was met part way by one Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys. When
Ticonderoga fell without firing a shot, it was Allen who stole the glory. In fact, the hardest fighting
was between Arnold and Allen, as to which one of them was really in command. Benedict Arnold
was a fighting general, a brilliant tactician, and as undiplomatic as possible. His habit of stepping
on the toes of his fellow generals and various politicians would dog him for the rest of his life.
After bringing the guns back to Boston, Gage was amazed to wake up and see numerous
cannon aimed at his garrison. Upon the realization that these rebels were at a total advantage, Gage
had little choice but to evacuate the several thousand Regulars along with numerous loyalist families
to British strongholds in Nova Scotia. It is not known whether or not Gage ever discovered that
though Washington had the cannon, he lacked the powder to use them.
Invasion of Canada
Following the ‘victory’ at Boston, the Congress invited the French-Canadians to join them
as the twelfth colony. The invitation dated back to 1774, but the Québécois responded to neither

invitation. Though they were not pleased by British rule, that did not mean they were sympathetic




to the patriot cause. For the most part, apathy reigned in Quebec. Congress authorized General Philip
Schuyler to command an invasion of Canada and drive the British from the continent. General
Arnold, who was passed over for the command, went to Boston to convince Washington to send him
and a support force to aid in conquering Canada.
As it turned out, the initial invasion, and capture of Montreal was done under the command
of Richard Montgomery. Schuyler dropped out of the invasion to confer with the Iroquois, to attempt
to bring them over to the patriot cause. Though it did most of its trading through New Amsterdam,
the Indian nation did have extensive commercial ties with the colonies, more so that with Britain
herself, so they had little reason to join the British. However, the tribal leader decided, for the time
being, this was a white man’s war, and opted for neutrality.
Montreal fell on November 13, with little resistance. Montgomery expended much of his
resources laying siege to Fort St. John, between September and November of 1775, before it finally
capitulated ten days before Montreal. Leaving a force to defend the new holdings in Montreal,
Montgomery soon began his own march down river to join up with Arnold in an assault on Quebec.
For his part, Arnold took the difficult road in reaching Canada. A march along the Kennebec River
in Upper Massachusetts4, through unbroken wilderness. Though his army experienced many
hardships on the march and was not in the best of fighting conditions upon arriving on the banks of
the Saint Laurence, the assault on Quebec would still go forth.
On December 31, 1775, on the day before enlistments expired, Arnold and Montgomery
launched a joint assault against Quebec. During his own assault, Montgomery was killed by
grapeshot, and Arnold later wounded in the leg. The British General, Guy Carleton, pursued the
retreating Continentals, breaking a make-do siege laid upon Quebec by reinforcements in the spring




of 1776. The Continental Army retreated across Lake Champlain. During spring and summer of
1776, both sides were locked in an arms race, attempting to build a fleet, one to conquer, the other
to defend. Arnold and Carleton would meet in combat again on the lake in the autumn of 1776.
Declaration of Independence
Debate raged in Congress since the capture of Boston and retreat from Canada into the
summer of 1776. Some wished for reconciliation between colonies and Mother Country. Others
wished for complete separation from Britain. Gradually, the faction favoring independence won out.
By July 1. 1776, Congress assigned a committee to draft the Declaration of Independence. On this
committee were the likes of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and the Immortal Benjamin, were given
the task of writing the declaration.5 At the time, the declaration was considered to be little more than
a footnote in future histories, and was delegated to the junior member of the committee, Jefferson.
On July 3, the Congress voted to accept the declaration. In the words of Benjamin Franklin,
‘we must hang together or we will most assuredly hang separately’. It was not until the next day that
the declaration was signed by all the colonies’ delegates. By signing this blatant act of sedition, each
representative knew he was a wanted man. Many lost land and property as a result. Two even lost
their lives. News of the Declaration of Independence spread across the colonies, reaching Boston just
days before the British landings.6 On July 15, twenty thousand soldiers, including five thousand
Hanoverian and Hessian mercenaries landed in Connecticut. Patriots road day and night, reaching
Boston, warning Washington that he was at risk of being trapped with his back against the sea.
Washington’s army began its march westward, intercepting the British along the Connecticut
River. Much to Washington’s horror, his own army left the battle prematurely. Rather than risk a
total route, and destruction of the Continental Army, Washington was forced to organize a retreat,
abandoning New England for the time being. It is one of the tragic ironies in American History, that
one of Washington’s most brilliant plans was that of evacuating his army. Trapped against the
Connecticut River, the British were in no hurry to dispatch the rebels. In fact, William Howe,
General commanding the British forces, decided to let his own army get a good night’s rest before
ending the rebellion. During the night, dozens of Americans volunteered to stay behind and keep the
fires in camp burning, to fool the British, while Washington and his remaining army escaped across
the Connecticut. By the time Howe realized what had happened, the Continental Army reached a safe
distance.
Valcour Bay
Aside from Howe’s own invasion, a second invasion from Canada was in the works. This
one would travel down Lake Champlain, then the Mauritius River. They would have to build their
ships on the river, since the Dutch in New Amsterdam refused to allow the Royal (British) Navy
access to the river. Two things stood in the way of the British plan to dominate the Mauritius; 1) lack
of a fleet on Lake Champlain; 2) Fort Ticonderoga stood between them and the Mauritius Valley.
Arnold fell back to Ticonderoga after the disaster that was Quebec. Only the lack of a British
fleet allowed his army to escape. Some general might retreat further, accepting the impossibility of
their position, but not Arnold. Before the Revolution, he was a pharmacists and book seller in New
Haven. After the Stamp Act, Arnold did what many traders did; became a smuggler. He had a great
deal of experience in maritime affairs, much more so than any of his soldiers. During the spring and
summer of 1776, Arnold oversaw the construction of a small fleet, little more than armed rafts by
Dutch or British standards.




The Champlain arms race ended on October 11, 1776, off Valcour Island. Arnold chose this
narrow spot on the lake to diminish British advantages. The battle itself was a complete loss to the
Americans; the British virtually annihilated the small fleet. So bad was the damage to Arnold’s
flagship, the Congress was ran aground and burned to deny it to the enemy. It was not a surrender,
for Arnold left the flag flying even as he lead his army back to Ticonderoga. One might expect the
British to gain an easy victory, but Carleton was a veteran of the Boston campaign, and knew the
rebels were formidable. Being October, it was too late in the year to lay siege to the fortress, thus
Carleton opted to make winter camp at the north end of the lake. His cautiousness and Arnold’s
audacity saved the patriot cause in this greatest battle of that nobody has heard.
Crossing the Mauritius
Washington’s shrunken army camped on the opposite shore of the Mauritius, within Iroquois
country during December of 1776. This was the Revolution’s bleakest hour. Come January,
enlistments would expire and the demoralized Continental Army would disband itself. Supplies were
short, pay was back and victory appeared a distance dream; the soldiers had little incentive to remain.
Washington knew that he must score a victory or the Revolution would fizzle out before spring were
to arrive. He saw his chance in a small Hessian garrison at White Plains.
On December 25, Washington lead his army in a daring crossing of the ice choked Mauritius,
and an all-night march through the cold over many kilometers7. It was at dawn of the 26th that
Washington initiated the attack against the German mercenaries. The Hessians, for their part, were
so complacent, that they had yet to recover from their Christmas celebration. Some soldiers were
hung over and all were taken by surprise when the Continental Army attacked. The battle was over




before the Hessians could organize, and their commander died shortly after the garrison surrendered.
A second battle was fought further east, this against a garrison of Hanoverian soldiers
camped near Deerfield. These soldiers were not as drunk, but the attack did catch them off guard.
Again, the Germans were defeated. After the victory, Washington and his army retreated to a highly
defensible position for Winter Quarters.8 These two small victories were enough to force the British
back closer to Boston and New Haven for the rest of the winter. More over, it was a morale boost
and convinced many soldiers to re-enlist. Because of Washington’s boldness, the British would have
to wait until 1777 to crush the rebellion.
The Fall of Philadelphia
In the summer of 1777, the British had a grand plan to crush the rebellion. It also had two
separate commands with little to no communication between the two. The grand plan was that one
army, under William Howe, would march west from Boston, while another army under John
Burgoyne would march south from Lake Champlain, and together they would sever New England
from the rest of the colonies. The ancient plan of divide-and-conquer may even have trapped the bulk
of the Continental Army between the two British armies and crush it.
However, that was not to be. During the 18th Century, the glory would come to the man who
conquered the enemy capital. That was Philadelphia and a notable distance from New England.
Without consulting with his counterpart in Canada, Howe boarded most of his army into transports
and sailed down into the Chesapeake Bay. Forts Washington and Lee blocked the Susquehanna River
south of Philadelphia, forcing the British to attack overland. The Continental Army faced the British

repeatedly, attempting to slow down the British.




At Brandywine Creek, Washington attempted to make a stand, only to have the militia break
and run. The Americans were driven back, and Philadelphia fell on September 23, 1777. Congress
fled the city ahead of the British, setting up a temporary capital in York, Pennsylvania. When the
rebel capital fell, patriots fled and loyalist cheered the entry of the redcoats. Though the capital’s loss
was not a strategic blow to the Revolution, it would impact diplomatic efforts in the Hague and
Paris, making it more difficult for foreign governments to recognize the United States.9
Howe attempted to pursue Washington further. The Americans stopped the British advance
at Germantown. The battle itself was only a marginal victory for Washington, but it did signal an end
to campaigning in Pennsylvania for 1777. Howe was in no great hurry to leave his own comfortable
winter quarters in the occupied rebel capital. As for the Continental Army, they would spent their
winter at Valley Forge, where one of America’s first German friends would help put the army in
Continental Army. The Baron of Steuban not only drilled the Continental Army through the winter
at Valley Forge, but later served as Washington’s own chief-of-staff.
Saratoga
While Howe was capturing Philadelphia, Burgoyne battled his way through rebels in the
north. Ticonderoga fell without much of a fight, when the British hauled artillery up the aptly named
Mount Defiant, forcing the rebels to surrender. After Lake Champlain was secured, the army began
its slow march south through the Iroquois Confederacy. The Six Nations wished to retain their
neutrality, but the incursion of thousand of British soldiers put a drain on the land. Though they had
supply trains, British soldiers still foraged, taking both game and crops as they traveled. British
commanders even went as far as to demand provisions from the Iroquois, in return for protecting the
Indians from ‘colonial expansion’.
It is still not clear which specific incident precipitated violence, but what is known that some
insult sparked an Iroquois war party to attack a British patrol. The British, in turn, retaliated, bringing
the Six Nations of the Iroquois into the Revolution on the Patriot cause. Though the Indians were
vastly outnumbered, they were aided by many patriot frontiersmen in obstructing and delaying the
British advance. Toppling trees and collapsed bridges slowed Burgoyne’s advance to only a couple
of miles a day. This allowed the Continental Army enough time to meet the British advance.
Congressional favorite, Horatio Gates, was appointed commander of the Northern
Department of the Continental Army, over the head of Arnold, who had fought the British in the
north for two years. Arnold was put under the command of Gates, whom he considered inept, despite
Gates’s own experience as a soldier in the British Army before the Revolution. Unlike Arnold, Gates
was not the fighting general his soldiers loved. The appointment of Gates caused a great deal of
conflict between Gates and Arnold, and the two often quailed.
The British were slowed an Bennington, but not stopped, and they clashed with the
Continental Army under the command of Schuyler and Arnold. The battle was a delaying action. The
two sides clashed again at Freeman’s Farm on September 17. Gates was content to do nothing, but
Arnold made his own move against the British. The battle bled the British, who were getting low on
ammunition and supplies, forcing Burgoyne to withdraw to Saratoga.
Upon hearing that Arnold acted unilaterally, Gates relieved Arnold of command and confined
him to quarters, on the eve of the second battle. Burgoyne launched his own attack, in a desperate
bid to reach Albany before winter set in, on October 7. The Battle of Bemis Heights nearly turned
into a disaster for the Patriot Cause. Though outnumbered by October, the British assault was strong
enough to break the will of some militia units, causing them to flee.
Gates believed the battle would be lost if he did not act. His order was for his army to retreat,
however an orderly retreat was difficult to manage. Some units broke and ran from charging British
cavalry. If not for Arnold disobeying orders, the battle might well have been lost. Instead of staying
confined to quarters, Arnold raced to join the battle. Seeing his own countrymen retreating, Arnold
charged forth, rallying them. Given the choice between running away or at the enemy, the
Continentals chose to follow Arnold instead of Gates.
Arnold personally lead the charge up Breymann Redoubt. Though seriously wounded in the
leg, and taken out of the fight, the Continentals following him took the redoubt, and turned the
course of the battle. Facing innumerable casualties, Burgoyne opted to retreat northwards toward
Ticonderoga. Having the battle turned for him, Gates lead the army to outflank and cut-off the
British plans of escape. Trapped, Gates attempted to demand unconditional surrender of the British,
which was flatly refused. The British would sooner fight to the death. The British would accept the
plan to be disarmed; taken into captivity, and marched to Boston to be returned to Britain, under the
promise they would never fight in America again.
On October 17, after much negotiation, Burgoyne lead his army out of camp and surrendered.
However, he refused to surrender to Gates, despite the fact it was he who was negotiating. From his
own reports, Burgoyne learned that Gates sounded a retreat. Burgoyne would surrender only to the
man who bested him. After much arguing, an aid sympathetic to Arnold lead Burgoyne to Arnold’s
temporary quarters.
At the time of surrender, Arnold was fighting another battle, this against the surgeons to keep
his leg. Arnold vaguely knew what happened outside the hospital, and believed Gates would steal
all the credit. Much to his surprise, on the morning of the 17th, a Redcoat General entered his tent
and offered Arnold his sword. Arnold accepted and acknowledged the terms of the surrender.
Though he was clearly the Victor of Saratoga, it did not stop Gates from receiving credit. Arnold and
part of his army would spend winter quarters in Albany, Arnold healing and promoted to Major
General. Congress would reward Gates’s ‘contribution’ by appointing him Commander-in-Chief of
the Southern Department of the Continental Army.
Recognition
Britain’s European enemies, always seeking to exploit a weakness from any of its rivals took
a vested interest in the American Revolution. The French, in particular. After losing Quebec to the
British and Amazonia to the Dutch in 1763, Louis XVI was eager for revenge. However, in 1775,
there was no evidence that this Revolution would succeed. In fact, most of the French King’s
advisors predicted it would fail in 1776. It took a great deal of effort on behalf of the Congress to
convince France to back them. Thus they sent Benjamin Franklin to Versailles.
The Dutch, who have eyed Britain’s possessions in India for decades. Though they had been
allies since 1688, the United Provinces were drawn into several wars because of their British allies.
When Britain attempted to enlist Dutch support in crushing the colonial rebellion, the Dutch refused.
Much of New Amsterdam’s trade was with the colonies, and war would severely disrupt trade. The
Dutch King, King William V saw his nation’s alliance with the British to be more a liability than an
asset. The southern Provinces suffered greatly during the wars with France during the 18th Century.
Upon the surrender of an entire British Army, Louis XVI saw his own chance to avenge the
losses of the Seven Years War. In Early 1778, the French signed an alliance with the Americans.
French funding and military assistance were sent to America as quickly as possible. The Dutch
recognized the United States on June 12, 1778, and with that signed an alliance of their own, at the
cost of their century-long alliance with the British. The alliance with the United States had little to
do with trade in America, though that was essential to New Amsterdam. Instead, the United
Provinces saw this as a chance to gain restitution for their sacrifices in Britain’s wars; namely




Bengal.
Unofficially, French subjects were serving in the Continental Army in a mercenary fashion.
It is often pointed out that the British recruited numerous German mercenaries for their war in the
Americas, and just as often overlooked that Congress hired a few of their own. The most famous was
Washington’s own aid-de-camp, Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis of Lafayette. Lafayette came into
the service of the Continental Army during Howe’s campaign to capture Philadelphia. He was
wounded at Brandywine, and the young French noble braved the same miserable conditions at Valley
Forge as his American comrades
The Iroquois Confederacy allied themselves with the United States officially after the Dutch.
Unofficially, they had already battle the British during the Saratoga Campaign. For their allegiance
to the Patriot Cause, the Six Nations signed a treaty with Congress guaranteeing their own
independence, and security to their own lands. The Iroquois gave immediate assistance to the
Continental Army still camped in its lands.
The first joint campaign between American and any of its allies came in April of 1779, when
a Dutch army under the command of the Marquis of New Amsterdam, numbering some three
thousand, linked up with another army under the command of Arnold, and marched on Connecticut.
The goal was to drive the British out of New England. Arnold had a vested interest in this campaign;
his home being New Haven. Allied and British forces clashed at New Haven, the last outpost of
British occupation in New England10.
Though still partially-crippled, Arnold managed to lead his army from the front. On May 2,
1779, the British commander of New Haven surrendered to Arnold. Once the city was in American
hands, Arnold tended his resignation. He was crippled in service of his nation, his leg wound at
Saratoga never heeling properly, and was passed over numerous times for promotion. Adding insult
to injury, Congress always had difficulty paying its soldiers and officers. This was too much for the
proud Arnold to take. Once in New Haven, he tried to pick up the pieces of his shattered business
and get on with life.
The Southern Strategy
With France and the United Provinces in the war (Spain declared war upon Britain in 1779),
the British knew that they would not be able to hold on to all their colonies. The French managed
landings in the Saint Lawrence and achieved what Arnold could not; capturing Quebec. Liberation
of New France caused a rift between the fragile alliance. The Count of Estaing, a French Admiral
and commander of France’s expeditionary force, refused to move south to aid the Americans in New
England. Taking back Quebec, and Montreal, cost the French dearly, and they would risk the British
retaking it.
Since the British already knew they would loose territory at the peace table (though not as
much as they would when the Dutch capture Bengal), George III, took the advice of his generals and
ordered the forces in the Americas try and hold on to the colonies loyal to the crown, namely the
southern ones. In addition, with France in the war, much of the resources pumped into North
America was diverted to save the precious sugar isles. London could afford to lose New England,
but not Jamaica, the Bahamas or any of the lesser Antilles and their sugar production. And Louis
XVI had his eyes on those islands.
Throughout 1780, the Southern Strategy worked well. Augusta and Charleston were in
British hands by 1779, and the Southern Department of the Continental Army was forced to
surrender at Camden. The loss of an entire army threatened to leave the southern colonies in the




hands of the British, if not for the guerilla war launched by the likes of Nathaniel Greene in North
Carolina and Virginia. The loss also forced Washington to march south to fill the gap. New England
had little to fear from the British, with the Dutch navy operating out of New Amsterdam and French
control of Quebec.
However, due to Gates’s11 ineptitude at Camden, Washington knew he would need fighting
generals to aid him in defeating the British army under the command of Lord Cornwallis. He made
a personal detour to New Haven to convince his greatest fighting general to once again take up the
Patriot Cause. Arnold managed to rebuild part of his business, which had a great deal of trouble in
trading in the Caribbean, as the British kept trying to capture his ships, and lived a bitter life of his
own. He kept track of the war, and felt both vindicated and disgusted by the surrender at Camden.
Arnold believe that if he were there, it would have been Cornwallis who would have surrendered.
Though he swore never to put on the uniform again, and never to bleed one more drop of
blood for a government that did not appreciate him, Arnold was hard-pressed to resist Washington’s
offer. Washington offered Arnold command of the entire left wing of the Continental Army,
answerable only to himself. Washington waited three days, as long as he could afford to be absent
from his army. On the last day, Arnold agreed to the commission.
By October of 1781, Cornwallis’s army was trapped in Virginia with both the Continental
Army, and a French army under the command of Rochambeau trapped the British on the York
Peninsula. Cornwallis had every intent to withdraw by sea, however, the French fleet battled the
British and forced the evacuaters to themselves evacuate, trapping Cornwallis. Between September
28 and October 19, the allied armies laid siege to the trapped British.
On October 17, with many of the surrounding redoubts in American or French hands, and
supplies dwindling, Cornwallis sent two officers under the white banner of truce into the American
camp to negotiate a surrender. The surrender occurred on October 19, as eighty-five hundred British
soldiers and two hundred artillery pieces were taken into American custody. Cornwallis attempted
to surrender his sword to Rochambeau. The French General indicated that it was Washington who
should surrendered. Washington himself refused, and indicated to one of his generals, Benjamin
Lincoln, whom the British humiliated at Charleston. Lincoln accepted the surrender, and with that,
the war in America grinded to a halt.
The Treaty of Paris (1783)
For nearly two years, the belligerents spent negotiating an appropriate peace. A change in
Britain’s government in 1782 delayed the peace process even further. Attempting to sell the treaty
to Parliament added to that delay. Britain was expected to grant the American colonies
independence, this was a foregone conclusion even before the sides sat down at the tables. However,
the United States, France and United Provinces would only settle for an allied peace. France
demanded Quebec to be returned to it, and the Dutch planned on keeping Bengal and become the
masters of India.
Other matters at hand concerned American fishing rights along the Grand Banks, and
America’s border extending as far as the Mississippi River. Spain expressed concern over this, since
it still controlled the western half of the former New France. Should America grow too powerful,
they might just expand into Spain’s colonial concessions. Those who would really be threaten by
such a move would be the Indian Tribes not allied with the United States. Indian allies would keep
their land, where as any who opposed the expanding settlements would be simply brushed aside.
The treaty was signed on September 3, 1783, formally ending the world-wide war. The treaty
was not completely in the favor of the newly independent United States. As per one of the
stipulations in the treaty, Congress was to pay reparations to loyalists, most of which fled to British
Canada, and Caribbean colonies. The treaty was not ratified by Congress until January of 1784. One
important note, during negotiation, many officers of the Continental Army met and discussed
marching on Philadelphia, to ‘influence Congress’. This was the sort of action predicted by many
in Europe, for revolutions seldom ended without civil war. If not for the intervention of Washington,
who steadfast refused to take control of government; ‘I did not fight to remove George III so that I
could become George I’. When he entered the plotter’s lodge and stood before them, planning on
reading a letter from Congress, he paused to retrieve his glasses. ‘Gentlemen, you will permit me to
put on my spectacles, for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service of my country’.
Washington’s simple actions shammed the officers into giving up the idea of marching on Congress.
The First Republic
In 1777, the Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation, a system of
government for the United States. The Articles laid the responsibility of the common government
solely in the hands of Congress. The First Republic was little more than a loosely knit confederation
of sovereign states who only agree to mutual defense and free passage of its citizens between each
state. The states were in fact eleven independent republics.
Flaws were apparent from the beginning. The Articles offered one vote for each state, though
the state could have as many as seven delegates. This favored the smaller states, and left the more
populous ones at a disadvantage. In order to amend the Articles, the vote must be unanimous,
making it very inflexible. It also pressed the states to give up their Western Land Claims, finally
making it law in 1787. This caused a great deal of trouble for Virginia, who claimed the entire Ohio
Valley.




This largest flaw was that Congress was denied the right of taxation. States levied their own
taxes, and if they were feeling generous, would donate a portion to the central government. Within
ten years of its creation, many American statesmen knew the government was at risk of collapsing
if these flaws were not corrected. Attempts to amend the articles were short lived as Rhode Island
continued to block any changes. At the Annapolis Convention in 1786, five states (Massachusetts,
Pennsylvania, Virginia, Connecticut and New Hampshire) called for a Constitutional Convention,
to replace the Articles of Confederation wholly.
On May 25, 1787, the ten states (Rhode Island abstained) plus delegates from the Iroquois
Confederacy12 met in the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. Presiding over the Convention
was George Washington, a man that all the delegates respected. For four months, Federalists, lead
by Alexander Hamilton of Connecticut argued with anti-federalists, consisting of mostly southern
delegates over the finer points of the Constitution.
There was a great deal of effort to make the Executive Branch into a monarchy with
Washington as King. Washington refused, time and again. Some adjustments would have made the
office President-for-Life, which was little more than an elected monarchy. A four year term was
settled upon, so that the electors could remove any man who did an inadequate job. Duties of the
President were largely designed with Washington in mind. Few Presidents since had been worthy
enough to fill Washington’s shoes.
The Congress was redesigned, somewhat along the lines of the Staaten-General of the United

Provinces.



The lower house, the House of Representatives, would be elected by popular vote and

proportioned by population, thus favoring the larger states. Each would serve for two years. To
placate the smaller states, a Senate was created, in which the state assemblies would elect Senators
to represent the interests of the states. Each would serve six years.
A Supreme Court was created, in which seven Justices would be appointed for life (pending
good behavior) by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Each three branches of government
were specifically designed to impede the growth of power in any other. A series of checks and
balances was believed to preserve the new republic, and thus far has managed. The final draft was
settled upon on September 25, 1787, and went to the legislatures of the eleven states.
Pennsylvania attempted to ratify it first, but was beaten by Delaware (December 7, 1787) but
was second to do so (December 12, 1787).Connecticut followed (December 18, 1787). Georgia was
the 4th ratifier (January 2, 1788) followed by Massachusetts (February 6, 1788) and New Hampshire
(March 9, 1788). When Maryland became the 7th ratifier (April 28, 1788) the Constitution was the
law of the land, and preparation were made for the first federal elections.
South Carolina (May 23, 1788) and Virginia (June 25, 1788) where the last to ratify it that
year. In 1789, North Carolina ratified the Constitution (December 21, 1789). Last of the Eleven
Colonies was tiny Rhode Island (May 29, 1790). The Republic of Vermont was admitted into the
Union on March 3, 1791. After much deliberation in Congress, the Iroquois Confederacywas
admitted as the 13th State on November 15, 1791.
The First Presidency





George Washington was the
only man to ‘run’ unopposed for the
office of President when he was
elected unanimously by the Electoral
College in 1788. He was not elected
as much as the office was designed
with him in mind, then thrust upon
him. He took the Oath of Office at
the Pennsylvania State House on
March 20, 1789. Philadelphia would
serve as capital until the new Federal
City, located on neutral territory
between Maryland and Virginia
could be opened– or at the very least, the critical federal buildings completed.
One of the first tests for the Second American Republic came from the western counties of
Pennsylvania. After fighting a revolution supposedly over taxation, it came as quite a shock to many
whiskey distillers that Congress passed a tax on whiskey. Instead of paying, most of the western part
of the state rose up in protest, bordering rebellion. In order to make it clear that the Constitution was
the supreme law of the land, President Washington lead ten thousand soldiers of both the small
federal army and various militia into western Pennsylvania to put down the ‘Whiskey Rebellion’.
He has been the only president to ever personally lead an army while President.

Some interstate matters also tested the new nation. White settlers from the other states




continuously attempted to migrate into the State of Iroquois, much to the displeasure of the state’s
largely Indian population. The Iroquois state assembly attempted to pass laws restricting
encroachment on their lands, but these were struck down as unconstitutional. Iroquois representatives
introduced legislation to Congress concerning making lands in the Ohio Valley cheap, while at home
increase various ‘property’ taxes. Since most of the Six Nations’ people did not believe in land
ownership, they were exempt. These tactics, plus the bitter coldness of the Iroquois winter,
persuaded many settlers to move westward. This brought them into conflict with Indian tribes of the
Great Lakes region. The Federal Government would exempt their allies15 from colonization, but
turned a blind eye when an enemy tribe was invaded.
Externally, relations with Revolutionary France were strained at best. The United States,
more specifically its merchants, were trapped in the war between Britain and France. Any ship
heading to British port was seized by the French, and any ship heading into France was seized by the
British. This reached a head during the Jefferson Administration with Congress passing the Embargo
Act, forbidding trade with other countries. This hurt American industry far worse than Europe.
Jeffersonian Age
Elected in 1800, Jefferson was the first President to reside in the presidential mansion in the
new capital. The city of Washington, in what was called the District of Columbia, would serve as
the nation’s capital for another eight decades. In its day, it was widely condemned for being built on
a swamp, in hindsight, it was a very appropriate location for what would be a stagnate government
in future decades.
Jefferson’s election also ushered in America’s first foreign war. During the Adams
Administration, Congress and the President found it more practical to pay off the pirate states of
Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli, nominally under Ottoman overlordship. As the year went by, the ‘tribute’
continued to rise, when in 1803, it would have measured twenty-five percent of the annual budget.
By then, it was decided that it was cheaper to build and maintain a large navy than to pay extortion.
Some American ships sought to cheat by sailing under an orange banner. After the Dutch raised the
city of Algiers during the 18 Century, the Barbary pirates avoided th any ship under the Dutch flag.
By 1810, the Barbary threat was largely suppressed by actions against Algiers and Tunis by
the navy and a march on Tripoli by the marine corps. The three states signed treaties with America,
basically guaranteeing the right of passage on the sea and the freeing of all American sailors captured
by the pirates.
Overseas wars were not the United States’ only means of expansion. In 1803, after relations
between America and France normalized, Jefferson sent an envoy to Paris to negotiate the
purchasing of New Orleans. With that city under American control, farmers in the Ohio Valley and
all lands west of the Appalachians would have free access of the Mississippi River. Jefferson and
Congress authorized spending as much as ten million dollars to buy the strategically important city
(less than what was used to purchase the entire island of Cuba).
France, under Napoleon’s control, was strapped for cash to finance its wars against the
European empires. Napoleon knew he could not control all of Louisiana while fighting on
Continental Europe, and he had no way of preventing the British from taking it. He raised the price
to twelve million, but instead of the city, he offered the Americans the whole of Louisiana. Better
to sell it to friends than to be forced to cede it to enemies. Despite the fall of the monarchy, the

French



remembered the lessons of the Seven Years War, and the loss of New France and French

Amazonia to her enemies.
It was a great surprise when the envoys returned and presented the agreement to Congress.
There was much debate as to even if this purchase was legal. Jefferson went as far as to draft a
constitutional amendment to allow the country to purchase new land. In the end, the Louisiana
Purchase was deemed constitutional, eliminating any need for amendments, and doubled the size of
the young nation. As to what the United States purchased, it was not known. Several expeditions
would be sent forth to chart this land. As for what to do with it, there was a proposal to render the
land a vast Indian reservation, a place to deport tribes hostile towards the Federal Government.
The Second Anglo-American War
Less than thirty years after officially achieving independence, the United States, now eighteen
(the addition of Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio and Louisiana by war’s declaration) faced off against
its former mother country over rights to the highseas. During its own war with Napoleon, the Royal
(British) Navy filled its ranks by impressing sailors. Often these were United States citizens. Britain
ignored the diplomatic protests, since its own laws do not recognize the right of its own citizens to
switch national allegiance.
Furthermore, enemy tribes in the Ohio Valley put up considerable resistance against Federal
and allied Tribal armies. The British armed many of these tribes via Canada, though when confronted
with the accusation, they staunchly deny it. The British did arm the Indians, and with good reason.
London’s plan was to create a buffer zone between its Canadian colony and the expansionist United
States. After its acquisition of Louisiana, the British grew wary of the Americans.
Tensions continued to rise until 1812, when war hawks in Congress and a few general
decided the only way to keep the Indians from attacking settlers was to cut-off their trade with
Britain, i.e. invade Canada. Since the British have occupied Quebec for the better part of the
Napoleonic Wars, the liberation of Quebec was also of national importance. This much was agreed
upon, but as for annexing Canada– that was not so clear cut. Canada of 1812 was largely populated
by exiles from the former eleven colonies (loyalists) and their decedents.
Siting both Indian attacks and harassment of the American merchant marine, President
Madison stood before Congress and asked for a declaration of war, which he received on June 18,
1812. Despite attacks on commerce, all of the New England delegates voted against the war.
Bringing the full wrath of the British Navy was far worse than the occasional harassment on the high
seas. A full scale blockade would cripple the New England economy.
The Great Lakes
Almost from the beginning of the war, Britain’s meager forces in Canada successfully swept
the Great Lakes region clear of the United States Army. Detroit fell within weeks of the declaration
and Fort Dearborne fell without even firing a shot. So disastrous was the army’s actions that
Congress immediately began to regret the war. Ohio’s own militia refused to leave the state to pursue
the war, and in some cases, the militia even refused to leave their home towns. With the United
States Army in retreat, enemy tribes only felt more encouraged to drive back the wave of settlers.
Attempts to cross the Niagra River into Canada met with Disaster. Again, the militia refused
to cross the river. Their responsibility was to their homes. The Iroquois militia proved completely
unreliable to the regular Army. Indian military doctrine was incompatible with the European model
of the Army. The Iroquois would only attack head on if they were certain of victory, otherwise they
would remain hidden, launching hit-and-run attacks when the opportunity provided itself. When the
British, in turn, cross the river into Iroquois, the Indians’ guerilla tactics frustrated any attempts for

a British advance.




The only reason the war was not lost in the first few months was because the bulk of Britain’s
armed forces were waging a war in Europe against a far more dangerous opponent than the upstart
American nation. Against Napoleon, the British would field armies of tens of thousands. Only a
fraction of that could be afforded for the war in American, and even that proved effective against the
poorly trained United States Army.
The real bright spot of the whole Great Lakes Theater came from the Navy. Dutch officers
were hired to instruct at the Naval Academy in Baltimore. On September 10, 1813, Great Lakes
squadrons of both American and British origin clashed upon Lake Erie, near Put-in Bay off the Ohio
coast. Under the command of Oliver Perry, the Americans scored a decisive victory over the British,
effectively driving them from the lake. It was only the Army’s inability to capitalize on this victory
that caused the war to drag on into the disastrous year of 1814.
The Sacking of Washington
With Napoleon in exile, the British could afford to send its veteran soldiers to fight in





America. The British were eager to end the war swiftly, sensing tensions between the victorious
allies in Europe, and thus headed to the source of the problems. Five thousand soldiers landed on the
Maryland shore of the Chesapeake Bay. With much of the United States Army in the north, the
British marched mostly unchallenged towards the city of Washington, meeting only militia units
along the way, and easily scattering them.
During the 18th Century, capturing the enemy’s capital usually spelled victory for the attacker.
It was here the British hoped to dictate their own peace terms, which called for annexation of land,
and independence for many of Britain’s own Indian allies. Though these terms would be reduced by
war’s end, it was a sign of confidence from the British that the war would soon be over.




On August 24, 1814, the British met an American Army of some 650 regulars and a few
thousand militia at the town of Blandenburg, outside of Washington. The battle was decided even
shortly after it began. As with many battles in the Second Anglo-American War, the militia18 broke
and ran before the disciplined British. Of the 650 regulars, eleven were killed and over one hundred
captured. The rest retreated to Washington to aid in defending the evacuating government.
On the night of August 24, the British entered the city of Washington, and took the capital
building and presidential mansion, but not totally unopposed. Of all of Congress, one Senator from
Connecticut refused to flee. When three soldiers attempted to convince him to leave, he was reported
to say ‘I never gave one inch of American soil during the last war, and I’ll be damned if I start now’.
The Senator was none other than Benedict Arnold.
At the age of 73, the position of Senator was the last in a long line of occupations for Arnold.
After the Constitution was ratified, Arnold ran and served one term as representative. Afterwards,
he ran for Governor of his own state and won. Just as with his army days, Arnold had the habit of
stepping on the toes of professional politicians. His opponents in the state assembly sought ways to
remove him. He was popular amongst the people, so it was unlikely he could be voted out of office.
When Connecticut’s Senate seat became open, the assembly saw a way to rid themselves of Arnold.
They elected him to represent the assembly in Washington, and continued to do so until, as one
assemblyman put it ‘he retires for good or dies’.
When the British advanced upon the capital, Arnold took the rifle from the youngest soldier
and told him to go aid the others



escape. The other two soldiers he ordered to stay and fight. They

could have fled, but the sight of an old man ready to take on the British Army shamed them into
staying, though they knew the outcome. After a brief shootout, the three defenders were gunned
down by the British. Afterwards, Arnold was recognized by the British commander (how exactly still
remains unclear) and ordered his men to give him a burial fit for great soldier. Afterwards, they
proceeded to have a mock session of Congress were they voted to burn down the building.
The Hartford Convention
On October 10, 1814, delegates from Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island
and Massachusetts met in Hartford to discuss a way to get out of the war. Some critics condemned
the convention as an attempt by New England to secede from the Union, though it was an option in
the eyes of the commerce-orientated New Englanders. At the convention, five constitutional
amendments were proposed. 1) Prohibiting trade embargoes lasting over sixty days; 2) Requiring
two-thirds votes in Congress for declaration of war, admission of states or interdiction of commerce;
3) Removing the three-fifths clause to the Constitution. The clause gave southern states more
representation than they deserved since it counted slaves as three-fifths of a citizen, even though they
were legal property; 4) Placing a limit on the office of the President for one term; 5) Presidents must
be from different states than their predecessor.20 None of these amendments were ever passed, but
the potential of New England seceding and making a separate peace with Britain was enough to
convince Congress and the President that it was time to negotiate.
Treaty of Ghent
By December of 1814, the two belligerents decided it was time to end the war. Napoleon had
returned to France, and Britain was facing troubled relations with Russian at the Vienna Congress,
so the British removed several of their demands. Especially after the Americans, even after losing
their capital to flames, made it clear they would never except such terms. However, they would have
to give up some land to achieve peace.
Britain’s terms were not terribly harsh, and after the treaty was signed, the British would
respect America’s right to trade on the highseas. However, the British used the peace talks to settle
disputes in territory between America and the Canadian colony. The United States would cede the
northern portion of Upper Massachusetts (present day Maine) along with the Red River Valley (in
present day Minnesota).
In return, the British would cease interfering with American trade and no longer impress its
citizenry. The treaty was signed, and later ratified by a humbled Congress. Three weeks after the
treaty was signed, a battle between British and American armies at New Orleans ended with the
British trapped within the city. The siege of the British army was lifted upon hearing the news of
peace. The United States would spend decades rebuilding their wounded economy and shattered
pride.
Manifest Destiny
Following the Second Anglo-American War, many American grew into the idea of a nation,
at the very least, spreading from the Atlantic to the Pacific. This idea would have been very alien to
the Founding Fathers of the previous generation. In fact, Thomas Jefferson did imagine a day when
American were everywhere, but he did not like the idea of America herself being everywhere. The
expansionistic fervor went by the name of Manifest Destiny. The first victim of this Destiny were
tribes who made themselves enemy of the Federal Government.
These tribes were expelled from their ancestral land and exiled across the Mississippi River
into a vast Indian reservation on the border with New Spain. What the Indians did there was their
own business. As for their former land, it was opened up to settlers. Settling the newly conquered
lands was vastly increased with the Homestead Act. The land was basically free provided that the
settlers could ‘improve’ it.
Treaty of Adams-Onis
Bands of the Seminole tribe made war upon Americans on the American-Floridian border.
The Indians quickly learned of the border and that the United States Army would not cross it. They
would raid and pillage, then cross back into Spanish Florida. It was not until Andrew Jackson, hero
of New Orleans, took command that circumstance changed. During his first command of the cavalry,
he pursued the Indians to the border. The Seminole expected the Americans to stop at the border, and
were quite surprised when they continued to pursue them back to their village.
Tensions between the United States and Spain were something Spain wished to avoid. With
its own colonial empire in rebellion, it could not afford to expend the effort to defend Florida.
Instead of war, negotiations started over the cession of Florida. The United States annexed West
Florida before the Second Anglo-American War. Florida offered little to Spain, and since keeping
the Americans out of it would be impossible, the decision was made to surrender the colony.
The Treaty of Adams-Onis, ratified in 1819, not only ceded Florida to the United States, but
also sold the island of Cuba as well. The island was purchased for $8.7 million. For almost seventyfive
percent of the price of Louisiana, the Americans purchased an island a fraction of the size. Spain
was desperate for the cash, same as France, especially after the Napoleonic Wars and a multi-front
colonial rebellion in New Spain, New Grenada and Peru. After ratification, both Florida and Cuba
became American territories, and states (1845 and 1851 respectively).
New Amsterdam Statehood
In 1824, the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam held its referendum. The New
Amsterdammers were given three choices; 1) Stay a colony; 2) Statehood in personal union with the
United Provinces; 3) Full Independence. A four option was selected by the majority of voters;
admission into the United States. By the 1820s, New Amsterdam did as much trade with the United
States as it did with the mother country.
For the Americans, New Amsterdam was a strategic location at the mouth of the Mauritius.
The Erie Canal was already under construction, offering a passage from the Great Lakes to the
Mauritius River, bypassing British controlled Canadian waters and the French controlled Saint
Lawrence Seaway. However, the output terminal would be in Dutch controlled New Amsterdam.
Once the canal was opened, New Amsterdam would become the center of Trade for eastern North
America, making it extremely valuable to whomever controlled it.
The New Amsterdammers, felt more and more culturally connected to the Americans than
their own nation of origin. New Amsterdam’s admission into the Union was swift, only a few weeks
after the referendum passed. The United Provinces and United States signed a treaty turning the
colony over to the Americans. According to American laws, hereditary titles were revoked, causing
the Marquis of New Amsterdam to become a private citizen. Though the de Ruyter family lost their
title, they continued to thrive. Their trading business evolved into the present day Ruyter’s
department stores scattered across the eastern United States and Quebec.
New Amsterdam was admitted as the twenty-fourth state, and still is the only state to possess
a Parliamentary Republic as a state government. Per the Constitution, any member of the United
States was required to have a republican form of government. Whether it be presidential, semipresidential
or parliamentary was never specified. The state still lacks the defined separation-ofpowers
seen at the federal level and every other state.
National Reforms
During the 1820s, the United States faced a power struggle. Not between men or branched
of government, but of ideas. Nationalism clashed with regionalism. In the south, the people
considered themselves citizens of the states as opposed to the Union. So strong was regionalism, that
in 1828, the Nullification Crisis threaten to start civil war. South Carolina, in response to trade
regulations, attempted to succeed from the Union. Only an overwhelming response from the Jackson
Administration kept South Carolina as a State.
After decades of debate, the United States finally adopted a central banking system. Leading
up to the Federal Reserve, banking was the responsibility of state-chartered banks. Each of these
banks printed a hodge-podge of paper currency. The currency could be exchanged at the banks for
its worth in gold, however, the length of travel required to trade in the currency lead to devaluing of
currency in proportion to distance. After so many miles, the paper currency was effectively
worthless. Carrying enough gold to pay one’s bills was not always the most practical of methods.
In Congress there was great concern that these private banks could not provide the country
with a uniform and standard currency. Two attempts to establish a national bank had failed, and a
successful bank would not be chartered until after the War of Succession. Other reforms were taking
place during the 1830s. One involved the penal system, and instead of executing criminals, the idea
of reforming them arose. By the use of strict discipline and religious indoctrination, it was hoped to
cure the person of his criminal habits. Even to this day, a similar system it used in American for most
offenders, however instead of spiritual awakening, prisoners are often taught marketable skills in
hope that work might keep them out of trouble. It met with mixed success, and the Federal and
States’ prison system is still clogged with long-term and life-term offenders, and those who simply
will not reform.
For the beginning of the nation, education was left as a local affair. Massachusetts was the
first state to adopt a state-wide education system, with standardized curriculums. With the rapid
industrialization of New England, a great deal of skills learned for generations of farming were of
little use. New specialized fields erupted across the country requiring extensive education. By the
end of the 19th Century, each state in the Union required at least eight years within public education,
and literacy rates were many times higher than a hundred years previously.
The Mexican War
In the 1820s, the newly independent nation of Mexico opened the borders to its state of Texas
to American settlement. However, in order to immigrate, the settlers were required to convert to
Catholicism and learn Spanish. The settlers promised to do so, but quickly forgot their promise.
Texas is considered to be one of the first filibusters. There is little doubt that those who settled in
Texas had no intention in staying part of Mexico. The Texas Revolution is just as much settler
plotting as it was Mexico’s inability to assimilate the influx of settlers. Tension between the
government and settlers came to a head in 1835 when the Texans declared independence.
The Texan Revolution was a short and bloody affair. The first came on March 5, 1836, with
the storming of the Alamo. Almost all the defenders were killed during the assault, but a handful
were taken wounded, but still alive. According to Mexican accounts, Davie Crocket was among
those captured and later executed. It is entirely possible, but no evidence exists to support the claim.
The second incident came with the surrender of the garrison at Goliad. After handing in their
arms, Mexican General Santa Anna ordered all the defenders executed. Both massacres were fresh
on the mind of the Texans at the Battle of San Jacinco on April 21, where a Mexican Army three
times the size of the Texans was defeated, and Santa Anna captured. In exchange for his life and
freedom, Texas would be recognized as independent. When Santa Anna took this before Mexico’s
Congress, the treaty was promptly rejected, leaving Texas unofficially independent.
Nine years later, when Texas’s petition to join the union was accepted, Mexico accused the
United States of invading its territory. Further complicating the issue, the Texans recognized the
Grande River as Texas’s southern border, whereas Mexico’s maps showed the Black River as its
border. Near the Gulf of Mexico, the distance was minute, but on the western edges, the Grande
River border doubled the size of Texas.
After Texas was admitted into the Union, American cavalry began to patrol the Texan
claimed area. It was inevitable, but they encountered a patrol from the Mexican Army. Shots were
fired and the American public reacted venomously. American blood spilled on American soil. By
1846, Congress declared a state of war with Mexico.
The war was rather one-sided. Despite the fact that Mexico had a far larger army, the United
States army was packed with veterans of numerous Indian wars. Nationalistic fever swelled the
American ranks. Two armies invaded Mexico from the north. One advance force under the command
of John Fremont captured northern California, establishing the twenty-six day long Californian
Republic. Within months, the Mexican Army was ejected from New Mexico, a land Congress
repeatedly offered to buy.
By 1847, American soldiers landed at Veracruz, defeating Santa Anna outside of the city of
Mexico. The last resistance to American conquest came from the Mexican Military Academy, the
‘Halls of Montezuma’. United States Marines easily defeated the cadets, who fought to the last.
Within a year of the war’s start, American generals and diplomats were in the city of Mexico
dictating peace terms.
Debate in Congress raged over whether or not to annex the entire country. Those who wanted
all of Mexico argued that American blood was spilt in conquest, thus the land was now American.
Opponents to the All-Mexico claimed that it was an attempt of the southerners to extend slavery and
expand their own power base. In the end, it was a racial question that preserved Mexico. Congress
could not agree on bringing so many people of Indian-decent and non-English into the Union.
The Treaty of Hildago-Guadeloupe forced Mexico to recognize the annexation of Texas,
along with the Grande River boundary. Further, it would sell all of California, New Mexico, Sonora,
Chihuahua and Durango to the United States for twenty million dollars. This conquest expanded the
United States to the Pacific Ocean.
The Oregon Treaty
While tension and war loomed with Mexico, the United States collided with its old nemesis,
the United Kingdom. The debate between the two came over the boundary of the Oregon Country.
Britain and America both claimed all of it, and some in Congress were ready to go to war over the
54-40 boundary. However, memories of the disaster of the Second Anglo-American War, coupled
with the fact the nation was already in a war with Mexico, lead to a compromise. The land would
be divided along the 49th parallel, though the British still claimed the Columbia River as a boundary
as well, which would resurface during the Third Anglo-American War.
Disunity
Though national pride had been restored after the resounding victory over Mexico and
conquest of a vast amount of new land, the victory also brought disunity. In 1850, the biggest debate
in Congress was whether or not these new acquisitions would be free or slave. Slave holding settlers
in Texas were already poised to move into Sonora and Durango, to open up the rest of the southwest
to exploitation.
The south was not the only place feeling pressure to be on the move. Revolutions in Europe
during the year of 1848, followed by famine, forced many refugees from Ireland, Germany and even
Spain to move to America. These immigrant, for the most part, settled in the industrializing north,
offering the factory owners their own source of exploitable labor. Unlike slaves, there seemed to be
a never-ending stream of immigrants, and best of all, the owners did not have to invest much into
their care.
The immigrants were not equal in their own rights. The Germans, many from middle class
families, sold their German possessions and arrived in country with their own source of money. The
Irish were looked upon with suspicion, largely because of their poverty and their faith. Catholics
arriving in predominantly protestant New England were not always as welcomed as they were in
New Amsterdam. On the other hand, capitalists tended to favor the Irish, for they would labor hard
for less pay. The waves of immigration pushed many established American families to take up their
roots and move west, to leave the problems of the East Coast behind.
However, the problems followed, whether the settlers willed it or not. In 1850, California was
admitted into the Union as a free state. Congress passed what has become known as the Compromise
of 1850, which stated the territory conquered from Mexico would leave the issue of slavery up to
popular sovereignty. With many southerners already in Durango, Chihuahua and Sonora, that they
were admitted as slave states (in 1862, 1855 and 1854 respectively). The rest of the Mexican Cession
waited longer for statehood. This likely rose from the fact that the four states already admitted
already had a resembling of government, which required little modification to forge a working
constitution.
Kansas
Kansas Territory was a vision of things to come for the United States. In 1854, the KansasNebraska
Act extended popular sovereignty to all western territories. In theory, they could all be
admitted as slave states, provided enough southerners could flood the territory. In the case of Kansas,
many from New England settled alongside those from the South. Tensions between slaveholders and
abolitionists quickly boiled over from fist fights into shootouts. Bleeding Kansas was but a prelude
to a greater civil war that loomed on the horizon.
With popular sovereignty, the population of Kansas quadrupled in a matter of years. In the
territorial assembly, a slave-holding majority was elected to serve in Lawrence. So angered were the
‘free-soilers’ that they set up their own parallel government in Topeka. The city of Lawrence was
sacked by anti-slavery settlers on May 21, 1856. The civil war in Kansas was quite unlike the wars
between the states. Kansas had more in common with African civil wars during the late 20th Century,
with massacre followed by massacre. Roving gangs waged war upon each other and anyone who
opposed their views.
Dred Scott
On March 6, 1857, the Supreme Court was dragged into the growing crisis. A slave by the
name of Dred Scott was taken by his owner from Missouri (a slave state) to Illinois (a free state).
Scott lived with his owner in the free state for an extended period of time. When his master died,
Scott sued the widow for his freedom on the grounds that slavery was banded in Illinois and thus he
was a free man.
Years before, the Fugitive Slave Act forced free states to return runaway slaves to their
owners. It was another case of southern ways forced upon the other states. This uncompromising
nature of Southerners is what would eventually lead to the War of Succession and eighty years of
disunited states. Scott was freed, but the case was appealed until it landed in the Supreme Court. The
Court ruled that Scott being freed was the same as the state seizing property without due process.



The ruling only strengthened anti-slavery sentiments in the north and further expanded the
rift already existing between the states. Northerners began to see a pro-slavery conspiracy to control
the Federal Government. Accusations flew back and forward until it all came to a head in the
Election of 1860 and the Administration of Abraham Lincoln.
Filibuster
While many Americans moved westward, some moved south. One such American was a
mercenary by the name of William Walker. He and a band of outlaws invaded the Mexican state of
Nicaragua in hopes of taken over the government. Why Nicaragua? It has been suggested that
Walker had hopes of using the geography of the state to build a trans-oceanic canal. His forces seized
control of the state in 1851.
For two decades, the southern states of Mexico; Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Honduras and
Guatemala have tried to break away from Mexico. Their rebellion in the 1830s, around the same time
as Texas, was crushed. Though the locals did not like the politicking in Mexico City, that did not
mean they would support foreign invaders. By 1853, Walker was driven from Nicaragua into Costa
Rica. In this border state, he found more support and less enthusiasm from Mexico’s army to defend.
Walker succeeded in taking over Costa Rica, declaring independence in 1854. Like Texas,
Costa Rica’s Congress immediately voted for annexation by the United States. With turmoil in the
United States between north and south, Costa Rica’s admission into the Union was delayed for years.
The State of Costa Rica was not admitted until after the War of Succession, after slavery was banned


by Constitutional Amendment.

[The Kiat]

For another round of amazing flag: The State of Hainan.

[The Kiat]

State of Indonesia.

[The Kiat]

Principality of Java. Ugly, huh?

[The Kiat]

Kingdom of Mozambique. Anyone getting tired or orange, white and blue?

[The Kiat]

Kingdom of New Zeeland. I'll add the Boer Republics later.

[The Kiat]

I want to point out a major difference between the Dutch in this universe and in our universe. As you know, those in our universe are rather liberal. In this universe, the Dutch are very serious, very formal and very business-like. It's like comparing hippies to professionals.

[The Kiat]

I've been thinking about creating generation stories for this timeline. I know one of the families I'd write would be the royal family. I'd also work on the Bohr and Ruyter families. I'm not sure what other type of families to include in it. Any suggestions on whose lineage I could write about?

[The Kiat]

First of five Boer Republic Flags; The Republic of Johannestaaten.

[The Kiat]

2nd Boer Republic; Republic of Kaapenstaaten.

[The Kiat]

Republic of Natalia.

[The Kiat]

Republic of Nieu Oranje.

[The Kiat]

And the final of the Dutch flags (I hear cheering out there). The Republic of Transvaal.

[The Kiat]

XII) Nations
(1861-1900)
Succession
Upon hearing the results of the Election of 1860, the State Assembly of South Carolina voted
to dissolve its union and seceded on December 20, 1860. By February of 1861, Mississippi, Florida,
Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas all voted to succeed from the Union. At first South Carolina
set itself up as an independent state, but when more states withdrew, they met in Birmingham,
Alabama to form the Confederate States of America.
On April 12, 1861, after Lincoln refused to withdraw federal soldiers from Fort Sumter in
Charleston Harbor, the South Carolina militia opened fire on the island garrison. Two days later, the
garrison surrendered the fort and withdrew to the north. When Lincoln called for seventy-five
thousand volunteers and ordered the army to crush the rebellion, several more states seceded;
Arkansas on May 6, Tennessee on May 7, North Carolina on May 20, Sonora on June 21, and
Chihuahua on July 5. Virginia’s assembly narrowly defeated the vote, as did Durango. Cuba did not
even contemplate secession.
The initial campaign against the Carolinas met with failure as Union General McClellan
failed to crush the Army of the Carolinas. McClellan’s failing was that he was too cautious a general,
the opposite of a fighting general. His failures only served to enrage Lincoln. In Tennessee, the
Union Army under the Command of Ulysses Grant managed to defeat the Confederate invasion of
Kentucky and pursue them to Nashville.
Both sides had generals with their own virtues and failings. However, absent of this civil war
was on Robert Lee, who resigned as superintendent of the military academy at Fort Arnold. Though
he considered himself Virginian first, and though Virginia was still in the Union, Lee could not bring
himself to enter a war that pitted brother against brother. He was condemned by both sides. The
Confederates accused him of being a Yankee sympathizer, Americans accused him of being a
Confederate sympathizer. Either way, it is now widely believed that had Lee took sides, it could have
decided the war.
As it was, the war was effectively decided in April of 1862, when the Army of the Carolinas,
under the command of Thomas Jackson, invaded Virginia. He met, and resounded defeated
McClellan and the Army of the Potomac at the Battle of Manassas. Manassas was a disaster for the
Union, and its army was nearly destroyed in the process. This one victory was all that the British
required to go forth to recognize the Confederacy. Britain’s chief interest came in the form of cotton,
which it had in Egypt but the Confederates had in even great supply until the 1880s.
On July 3, 1862, the British Parliament recognized the Confederate States of America and
signed an alliance against the Union. This move was parallel to the Franco-American alliance of
1778. What was not parallel was the fact that the Dutch did not react so well to Britain’s interference
in an internal American affair. The Dutch government simply declared that if the British would
intervene on behalf of the Confederates, than the United Provinces and Brazil would intervene on
behalf of the Americans.
Seeing the War between the States threatening to spill over onto a world stage, it was
France’s self-proclaim Emperor, Louis Bonaparte (Napoleon III) who moved to mediate peace
between the governments in Washington and Birmingham. By January of 1863, the Union saw itself
split in half, and the Confederate States of America gained their independence, along with the Indian
territory and New Mexico territory, which they renamed Arizona Territory.
Following the disastrous War of American Succession, a thirteenth amendment was passed,
banning slavery in the United States. To keep Virginia, Durango and Kentucky, along with other
border states in the Union, a clause allowed for the federal government to reimburse the slave
owners, much to the disgust of the rest of the nation. Though it was seen as basic tax relief for
wealthy Southerners, the Amendment did achieve the goals of the abolitionists.
The Frontier
Another driving force for settling the west came in mineral wealth. Gold and silver, most
importantly gold, was discovered in California, Colorado and Idaho. Hundreds of thousands of
Americans, and various other nationalities. As with most gold rushes, it was not the miners who
became wealthy but the traders who sold their goods at inflated prices. Why not charge ten times for
an apple or pound of flour in a camp where most of the miners had more than enough gold to spare.
For the Americans, many Indian nations resisted their westward expansion. The largest of
the plain’s nations, the Souix, found themselves allied with the Americans. In return, they were
granted a vast track of the Midwest along the border of Canada. In the 1890s, it was admitted as the
State of Lakoda. Several other tribes joined the Souix in Lakoda and continued their traditional
ways.
Many tribes, in Colorado and Nevada were swept aside by the settlers and ranchers that soon
filled the west. These tribes found refuge in Confederate Arizona, where they were welcomed by,
armed by and pointed the way north by the Confederacy. Raids into Colorado and Kansas were a
continued irritant until the Great War. However, the raiding was not one way. The Confederates had
less love for Indians, which they considered only slightly above their own slaves in status, and
simply drove many off their lands. Following the end of its War with the North, the government of
Georgia expelled the Cherokee westward into the Indian Territory.
Tribes such as the Apache were driven off prime ranching lands and found refuge in the
United States. The Americans did the same as their Confederate counterparts; arming and aiding
Indian resistance against the White Man’s Government. Not even massacres dissuaded either
government from the assistance. When accused by one side, the other simply denied it had anything
to do with the raid.
Along with border-raiding Indians, the Wild West of both America and Confederacy was
filled with lawlessness and anarchy. Often, the territorial government extended no further than its
capital, and the Army did little beyond its own forts. It was from the lawlessness that the American
tradition of Vigilantism was born. It was not born for love of government, but rather it was a
necessary evil, a means to control the criminal elements in cow towns and mining camps.
The Confederate West was most wild in the Indian Territory, which was opened to white
settlement in the late 1880s. Open warfare erupted with the Indians exiled to Indian Territory,
renamed Oklahoma by its white settlers. However, most warfare was one-sided, with Indian villages
burned out. By 1900, most of the Indians were assimilated into the rigid structure of southern society.
The Third Anglo-American War
Tensions rose and fell over the Indian warfare along the two American Nations’ borders.
Tension grew between Federal and State governments over rising power of Washington. Freeing the
slaves, despite manumission, sparked seditious movements in Virginia. The Confederates saw this
resentment against Washington and sought to exploit it. Many nationalists in Birmingham considered
the Confederacy incomplete without Virginia.
Confederates sponsored movements in Virginia with the goal of overthrowing the pro-Union
government in Richmond. Other movements pushed for referendums in Kentucky, Cuba and
Durango, all supported by Birmingham. One such referendum was introduced to Kentucky in 1876,
and was defeated by a safe margin. Legal measures were not the only ones taken by pro-Confederate
Virginians. In April of 1882, the Union government of Virginia was overthrown, and the
conspirators declared Virginia’s union with the Union was dissolved. Within a month, Senators and
representatives from Virginia were meeting in Birmingham.
The overthrowing of the Virginian government was seen as a direct-action by the
Confederacy, causing the United States to declare war on the Confederate States. Three days after
word rushed across the Atlantic, the British declared war upon the United States. This time, the
Dutch were unable to come to America’s assistance, they attention focused clearly on rebellions in
southern Africa.
The United States Army was still twice the size of the Confederate Army, same as during the
war between the states. Furthermore, years of battling Plains Indians made them a battle-hardened
army. However, fighting tribal wars was far different than fighting an enemy training in European
style of warfare. Unlike the United States, the Confederates were not hesitant in aligning themselves
with a foreign power. The Confederate Army and Navy were both trained by the British, including
planing out future wars in advance. The Americans simply fought the war as it unfolded.
Cuba was the first to fall to the British-Confederate alliance. The Royal (British) Navy
blockaded the island, and ferried both Confederate and British soldiers to the island, to defeat the
few American garrisons on the island. The last to fall was Guantanamo Bay, on August 7, 1883. The
American Army was further driven from Virginia after the Battle of the James River on October 1,
1883. Suffering great casualties, the Army of the Potomac withdrew to Alexandria, where it
withstood a joint Confederate-British siege of that city and Washington until early 1885.
Fighting in Durango was short, for neither side spared much in the way of resources to battle
in this southwestern state. Its government peacefully changed hands as pro-Union politicians were
fired and pro-Confederate ones elected. There was brief concern that the French may intervene on
the Confederate’s behalf, causing the Americans to divert soldiers and ships to Costa Rica, to defend
against any possible invasion from French Mexico. In truth, the French had far more problems in
their continuing campaign to pacify the Mexican populace, one that would continue until they finally
departed Mexico in the 1950s. Between assimilating the Mexicans into French ways, and putting
them to work on the Nicaragua Canal, the French had nothing to spare to aid their own partial allies,
the British.
The only action Britain took alone against the United States was in a long disputed area of
the Pacific Northwest. Though the 49th parallel was the nominal border, there were still many British,
and newfound Canadian, leaders who believed that the rightful border of the far west should be that
of the Columbia River. On March 7, 1883, Royal (British) Navy sailed into Puget Sound and did
battle with the American ships in port. By April, Royal Marines had seized control of Seattle. By
February 21, 1884, the British Army crossed south of the Columbia and captured Fort Astoria.
Aside from the lands west of the Columbia River, the British made no further intrusion into
American territory. Within the states of Cuba, Durango, Kentucky and Virginia, a series of statewide
civil wars were fought. The pro-Confederate forces, though largely outnumbered by pro-Union
and neutral factions, were better equipped and trained. Furthermore, the state militias were home to
a majority of secessionists. Even after these states were ‘allowed’ to secede, violence continued

onwards until the dawn of the 20th Century, resulting in states that were less free than America.
By early 1885, Britain and the Confederate States forced the United States to the peace table.
After three years of war, American forces were completely on the defensive in Kentucky and
Virginia. As per the Treaty of Boston2, the above mentioned states were allowed to join the
Confederacy. Confederate government instituted laws that created a system of internal passports in
the newly admitted states. In some cases, what could only be called secret polices were established
to keep the dissident members of society into check. However, in the case of Cuba, which never had
slavery under American watch, many of the black citizens were allowed, in fact encouraged by the
C.S.A. to depart for the Union. Because Virginia was now a Confederate State, the American capital
retreated permanently to Philadelphia.
The British, for their assistance, took the lands west of the Columbia River. With Seattle in
their possession, coupled with their protectorate over Hawaii, the British were able to check
American advances into the Pacific. Despite officials statements, the British were wary of a United
America. They saw the United States as a rival, with a potentially unlimited industrial capacity.
For the second time in over twenty years, the United States took a critical hit to their national
pride. The only outstanding victories in the Third Anglo-American War came in the Wild West.
American cowboys, lawmen and outlaws fought of constant Confederate (and their Indian allies) raid
into Nevada and Kansas. In return, a band of two thousand frontier’s men managed to capture Santa
Fe in Arizona Territory. However, the fall of Santa Fe was more of a sacking than a conquest. The
city was looted by apparently drunken cowboys.
National Reforms
Following the disastrous defeat of the Third Anglo-American War, the United States was
confronted by a recently united Germany. Their own victory over the French in 18753 left Germany
the preeminent power in Continental Europe4. Germany had much in common with the United
States. Like the Americans, the Germans were surrounded by rivals and enemies; France in the west,
and the Swedish Empire in the east. In the event of war, it was highly likely that either nation would
come to the aid of the other, just as the British would aid the Confederates.
Unlike the United States, whose army consisted of mostly militia and poorly trained
volunteers, the German Empire had a powerful, professional army. Again, unlike the United States,
Germany lacked many native resources to support a first-rate world power. Germany expanded its
colonial empire, from its 18th Century colony o Rio de la Plata, into Africa and the Pacific during the
19th. The United States had no need for a colonial empire, for it already had the resources within its
own borders.
In 1887, the German ambassador approached the State Department with the proposal of an
alliance. The Germans required raw materials, and the Germans knew that America required more
order and discipline in its society. The Democrat Majority in Congress saw the advantages of an
alliance, however, traditions of isolationism brought much debate. The recently established Socialist
Party was against the alliance and apparent militarization of the United States. Many compromises
would be reached as German methods were adapted to American society.
Once the alliance was ratified, a series of laws were passed during the 1890s aimed at
strengthening America. In 1891, the American Draft Act, in which all men over eighteen years of
age, regardless of color, must serve two years within their state’s militia (later National Guard). The
goal of conscripting the population into the part-time army was that in the event of a major war,
America would have a vast pool of trained men in which it could call upon. Conscription into the
regular army could only happen, by law, in the event war was declared.
Training of the militia would be done by the regular army and its German drill instructors (at
least until enough American sergeants could be trained as D.I.s). Militias would receive the same
basic training as the regular army, and would be required to serve and train one week per month.
They would also be called up in the event of emergency. Not only would America have a pool of
reserves, but a sense of national pride would be ingrained into most of America’s men. Further laws
were passed allowing women to take many of the non-industrial jobs that men would fill during
peace time.
In 1892, the Rationing Regulatory Act passed by a narrow margin. It allowed for strict
rationing when war is declared and, if need be, the temporary nationalization of key industries during
the same period. These acts were favored by the Socialist Party, however they wished to extend
government control over industry to all times. They used this debate to further their own causes.
The Socialist Party began back in the 1870s, during a second wave of industrialization in the
United States. The divide between haves and have-nots vastly increased during this time, as did
ramped exploitation of the workers. Attempts to unionize and strike by miners in Pennsylvania were
usually put down by violent means. Some radical miners supported the overthrow of government.
The majority turned to the newly formed Socialist Party to advance their causes.
Between 1864 and 1886, the United States was effectively a one-party state, with a constant
Democratic presence in the Presidency and dominance of Congress. Following the Third Anglo-
American War, and the Democrat’s rather jingoistic response, many of the American voters turned
away from them. The Republican Party did not survive Lincoln on a national scale, though it still
thrives in the Midwest to this date. The Depression following the Treaty of Boston caused the
Socialists to meteorically rise on the national stage.
Another byproduct of the war was a wave of immigration into the United States, from the
Confederate States. With the expansion of the land-owning aristocracy, small farmers left Texas and
Oklahoma to try their luck in Kansas and Nebraska. Many of the immigrant families would have
decedents that would deeply impact the history of the 20th Century. Names such as Eisenhower.
The Spanish War
The first test of the United States Army’s German-style training came in 1898. For a decade,
the last Spanish colony in the Americas, Puerto Rico, waged a war of independence. Atrocities upon
Atrocities were reported by journalists covering the war on the island. The sensationalist journalism
did much to sell papers, and though the Spanish did execute rebels, it was far from the genocidal
campaign reported. However, the fact that a colonial power was so close to the United States (not
counting French rule in Mexico) outraged many in the public. Many felt it was America’s duty to
liberate its fellow republic.
The debate in Congress and the streets was about whether America could defeat Spain. After
two lost wars, the damage to America’s confidence remained. Many thought a quick war would do
much to restore national pride. Furthermore, many in the government, including future President
Theodore Roosevelt, believed in using the war in Puerto Rico as an excuse for a wider campaign to
seize control of the Marianas. The United States already had control over Midway and Wake, both
as coaling stations. The Marianas would extend American interests into the western Pacific.
America did, already, have interests on Puerto Rico. With Cuba under Confederate control,
and many other islands in British hands, Americans held a sizable investment in Puerto Rico. With
war tearing the island apart, sugar interests were hurting. Several American ships were sent to patrol
the waters, to keep an eye on interests. Some claim that certain elements in power were attempting
to incite a war. Whether this was true or not matters little, since on April 3, 1898, the U.S.S. Maine
blew up off the coast of the island. The cause was a coal fire near the magazine, but at the time, the
most plausible cause was a Spanish mine. As a result, three weeks later, Congress moved to declare
war on Spain.
On May 1, Commodore Dewey, based in the German port of Tsaingpo, in China, received
orders for his squadron and its marines to attack the Marianas and land on both Guam and Saipan.
The small Spanish fleet based at the islands, mostly antiquated ships, were all but destroyed after a
three hour battle. The Spanish governor of the Marianas surrendered to Dewey on June 12, 1898,
after a short land campaign on Guam.
The war on Puerto Rico lasted for three months, most of the time was spent assembling the
United States Army in Baltimore and New Amsterdam, and sailing down to the island. The Spanish
fleet at Puerto Rico was trapped at San Juan for the duration, except for one sortie on June 4, where
it was beaten back by American cruisers. Eighteen thousand Americans aided (rather ordered around)
the rebels and defeated the ten thousand man Spanish garrison.
The war was an excellent test for the new reforms in the United States Army. Not counting
the Indian Wars, the Army performed with better efficiency than any previous war. It also suffered
proportionally fewer casualties, most of which were from tropical disease. The war was quick and
victorious, and restored much of America’s pride to its people. The material rewards from the war
came in the form of the Mariana Islands. The Spanish War was a test run for the Army, many lessons
learned here would be applied to the two-front war that would break out fifteen years later.
The Cult of Lincoln
During his lifetime, Abraham Lincoln was vilified. Such character assassinations followed
his death in 1866, and continued until after the Third Anglo-American War. By 1899, the
intellectuals in academia began to reevaluate Lincoln’s contribution. His stance against the
Confederacy and the British was considered visionary by 1900. He went from demonized to deified
in the view of the public. Buildings, ships and cities were renamed in his honor. Even the capital of
Nebraska, McClellan, was renamed Lincoln. His stance against the Confederate States would inspire
future fights against the Confederacy.

[The Kiat]

North America after the civil war. A real change in America does not come with the Dutch Empire, but starts in 1861, when Virginia does not secede from the Union.

[The Kiat]

North America in 1885, after the Third Anglo-American War. And by now the French have turned Mexico into a colony like Algieria and Indochina.

[The Kiat]

I know the whole Patton thing was not very original, but oh well.


XIII) World Powers
(1900-1946)
Roosevelt Years
When Roosevelt became president, after McKinley was killed at the 1900 World’s Fair by
an anarchists (the first president to be assassinated), he credited Lincoln in started the struggle
against Southern Imperialism. If not for his stance, the southern states would be dictating the affairs
of the entire country. During his first two terms (1900-1908) Roosevelt would build the country
towards the war he knew was approaching. The United States joined the arms race that consumed
a sizable amount of resources of both Britain and Germany.
Though he was a Democrat, Roosevelt fought against the large trusts that had a stranglehold
on the nation’s economy. Monopolies in coal, steel, oil and rail were broken during his presidency.
Though he was very aggressive in foreign affairs, he was the first president to be progressive
domestically. Roosevelt’s history on fighting political corruption and business interests date back
to his time as New Amsterdam Police Commissioner, and later governor of New Amsterdam. After
his short bout in the Spanish War, Roosevelt returned to New Amsterdam to continue his fight.
Enemies within his own party conspired to rid themselves of him, and thus the Democratic Party
gave him the Vice Presidency in hopes of keeping him quiet.
Once in Philadelphia, Roosevelt did not stop fighting against both corruption and big
business. Roosevelt’s fight against trusts was not so much out of compassion for the little guy, but
he believed that strategic resources in the hands of a few went against National Interests.
Furthermore, he was all for competition, and having the better business win. A wave of scandals
within the Democratic Party during his presidency stemmed from those very trusts that were broken.
Dozens of representatives and governors were financed by the likes of Standard Oil and JP Morgan.
In 1903, Roosevelt traveled to New Grenada (the first president to leave the country while
in office) to negotiate the purchase of Panama. To prove how serious he was on the matter, he was
accompanied by the United States Navy’s Carribean Squadron (based out of Port Lincoln, formerly
Port Limon). Thousands of soldiers poured into Costa Rica to make the clear impression upon
Colombia that Roosevelt would not take no for an answer. On October 8, 1903, the United States
purchased Panama from New Grenada for fifteen million dollars. The acquisition was annexed to
Costa Rica, and the United States entered a joint-venture with the Dutch Commonwealth in the
construction of the Panama Canal1 (to rival the Entente controlled Nicaragua Canal).
Roosevelt, from his time in Montana, was keenly aware that the wild areas of America were
rapidly vanishing. Though he did not establish the first National Park (that would be Yellowstone
in 1871, he vastly expanded the concept of conservation in America. His views on equality in the
law continued to push him out of Democrat favor. He even pushed a Constitutional Amendment
through Congress that gave the vote to all men. He reasoned that if a man (black or Indian) could
shed blood for his country, then he should vote for who ran the show. This by no means meant
Roosevelt was color-blind.
By 1908, Roosevelt felt that he accomplished his mission and was set to retire. He hand
picked his successor,2 William Taft of Ohio, his vice president. He believed Taft capable of
maintaining the new status quo, but lacked the initiative to alter it. Roosevelt was proven wrong
when Taft led the Democratic Party back to its business of supporting big business. They even rolled
back many of the reforms Roosevelt championed. When 1912 came around, Roosevelt decided to
run for a third term, and re-establish his legacy. When he tried to gain the Democratic nomination,
he was quickly shot down.
Instead of giving up, Roosevelt left the party with many like-minded individuals and formed
the Progressive Party. With no serious contender on the Socialist ticket, it was a fight against
Roosevelt and Taft. With tensions rising in Europe, Roosevelt’s hard-line against America’s enemies
clinched the election for him. In 1913, the Progressive Party took the presidency along with New
England governorships, Senate seats, and sixty-three seats in the House of Representatives.3
The Zimmerman Telegram
On May 22, 1913, a telegram from German Minister Charles Zimmerman arrived at the War
Department in Philadelphia. The election of a new king of Poland-Lithuania, between the cousin of
Kaiser Wilhelm II and the brother of King Charles XVII, was deadlocked for several weeks. Each
time the vote came up, the German and Swede were tied. Growing in frustration, Germany, from
where the previous Litho-Polish King originated, believed strongly that the House of Hollenzoren
should retain the crown. In the Zimmerman Telegram, German’s main ally4 was given notice that
if the deadlock was not broken within a month, Germany would decide for them and install a
German on the throne.
With war appearing imminent, Roosevelt ordered the army and reserves mobilized. The
mobilization was made over the course of the month, and never were more soldiers called-up at any
given time to draw the suspicion of Britain, Canada or the Confederacy. All three began a partial
mobilization as the crisis unfolded. However, they did not have their units in place, as did the United
States Army. By June 18, two million American soldiers were in position along the Potomac, Ohio,
Colorado and Columbia Rivers, along with the Great Lakes. On June 20, the American fleet sortied
from Port Lincoln and Baltimore, both headed for Cuba.
For fifteen years, the War Department had planned for a future war with its traditional
enemies. On June 22, the German Army invaded the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in an attempt
to install a German on the throne. The next day, Sweden declared war upon Germany. Over the next
four days, alliances were activated5. On June 25, Congress declared war on Roosevelt’s
recommendation and War Plans Red and Gray were initiated.
The Great War
On June 26, 1913, in the early morning hours, the United States Army moved out against
both Canada and the Confederacy on multiple fronts. At 06:00, the 2nd Army crossed the Potomac
northwest of Alexandria. Confederates caught out in the open were destroyed by a six hour long
artillery barrage at fortification on the Confederate side of the river. Two bridges were captured in
tact that morning, allowing for the rapid deployment of over one hundred thousand men. The city
of Alexandria was abandoned in favor of fortifications further south. An attempt by the Confederates
to cross the river into Maryland met with only partial success. They captured several square
kilometers of land south of Washington but failed to capitalize and were quickly bogged down.
In the north, the 4th Army crossed from Detroit into Canada, and began a march up the York
Peninsula. British and Canadian ships sortied and laid siege to Fort Mackinaw. On July 2, the United
States Great Lakes fleet engaged the British. The use of torpedo boats crippled two British
battleships and sank a cruiser. American battleships finished off one of the enemy battleships and
forced the second to retreat across Lake Huron. The Battle of Fort Mackinaw was the first large scale
battle of the war, and by far not the last.
Americans advanced only three kilometers into Ontario before meeting heavy resistance.
Trenches were dug by both sides, and the war in Ontario met with an early stalemate. On a positive
note, part of the American 5th Army marched out of Lakoda at crushed the British garrison in the Red
River Valley, a piece of land lost during the Second Anglo-American War. The 7th Army marched
north out of Maine, almost following Arnold’s route of invasion from 1775, and reached the border
of Quebec by July 15. The British withdrew most of their army around a series of fortifications in
Nova Scotia, designed to allowed the Royal Navy to operate on the American side of the Atlantic.
Overall, the Royal Navy had little to fear from the Americans. One-on-one, the British could
handle either the Americans or the Germans. The Admiralty’s greatest fear6 was that the Germans
might break out of the North Sea and link up with the American Atlantic Fleet. With a vast colonial
empire to protect, the Royal Navy in the North Atlantic concentrated on keeping the supply lines
between Canada, Britain and Patagonia open, especially Patagonia. Beef from the South American
colony feed the island and its expedition forces.
As the sun continued to rise over America, the 1st Army crossed the Ohio River in multiple
places (yet failing to capture a single bridge). United States Navy gunboats were concentrated
enough to keep the Confederates at bay as the army made a mad dash across the river. The city of
Louisville was quickly cut off and put under siege (from which it surrendered on August 7). Under
the command of John ‘Black Jack’ Pershing, the 1st Army proceeded inland, meeting fierce
Confederate resistance during the Battle of the Tennessee River (July 3, 1914-October 21, 1914).
The battle was typical of the Great War; one army would rush the enemy trenches, be beaten back
and pursued, once back in their trenches they would gun down the enemy and start the attack anew.
The battle ended with the Confederate Army running out of reserves and forced to give kilometer
by bloody kilometer to the American advance. It is estimated that over two hundred thousand
casualties (of which over twenty percent died) resulted from this battle, making it one of the
bloodiest fought in North America. Tennessee River was also the first battle in North America to see
the use of Chlorine.
Along the Colorado front, the 8th Army advanced into Arizona, taking Yuma on the first day.
The Confederates placed little in the way of defenses along the Colorado River. However, an
amphibious assault from California to Durango met with far more resistance. Catching the
Confederate Pacific Fleet in Sinaloa, part of the American Pacific Fleet, along with three German
cruisers which happened to be in San Diego when war was declared, fought the Confederate fleet
for three days. The Confederate Navy was forced to withdraw north, further into the Gulf of
California. By 1914, with tracks of the Durangan coast secured, the Confederate Pacific Fleet found
itself bottled up for the duration of the war.
In the Pacific Northwest, the American 3rd Army crossed the Columbia River in multiple
locations. The main thrust came from Portland and was directed northward. Several secondary
thrusts crossed the river east of the Cascade Mountains at Richland, Georgetown, Wenatchee and
Brewster. Each of these diversionary strikes were aimed at passes through the Cascades, though none
ever expected the brigades to reach their targets, it was hoped that threat of a cross-mountain
invasion of Seattle would draw of Canadian and British soldiers, too few of which were already in
the area.
Due to the British Fleet in Vancouver North, Seattle and Pearl Harbor, and the Confederate
Fleet in Sinaloa and possibly the French out of Mexico, the War Department drew forth a plan to
drive the British from the Hawaiian Islands. As soon as war was declared, the majority of the
American Pacific Fleet sailed for Hawaii, along with four brigades of marines. On August 3, the
Americans met a combined force of British and Hawaiian ships off the coast of Maui. The Battle of
the Maui Strait, Americans lost as many capital ships as the British. However, after losing their lone
cruiser, the Hawaiian fleet, under the command of the Hawaiian Crown Prince, withdrew his fleet
to Kona.
With the withdraw of the Hawaiians, the British tried to escape to Pearl Harbor. However,
upon hearing of the plight of the Confederate Pacific Fleet, and France’s neutrality in the North
American Theater, the British Admiral, Lord Dunbar, decided to move the fleet to Manilla and
regroup, as opposed to risking entrapment in Pearl Harbor. The British garrison on the island put up
a gallant fight, but by September, after the Hawaiians sued for terms, the British garrison on Oahu
surrendered. The Hawaiian and British soldiers were marched off to prison camps, and the
Americans made no attempt on any other of Hawaii’s islands.
Attrition
During 1914 and 1915, no great gains were made in North America, at least not as great as
the explosive conquests of 1913. Along all fronts, British and Confederate forces were slowly ground
away, and the United States Armies relentlessly pushed forward. That is not to be said the Entente
was without its own success. For each two kilometers the Americans took, they were pushed back
by one. In some places, the front did not advance for months on end.
The advent of armored cavalry, the ‘tank’ as the British called them, offered severe setbacks
for America’s allies in Europe. However, due to U-boat and U.S. submarine activity, few tanks
reached Canada. The Confederates built their own models, using British blueprints. Several of these
tanks were released along the Potomac Front, pushing the Americans back several kilometers from
the Rappahanock. In the Battle of Fredericksburg, the seven tanks managed to drive a wedge in
American lines and allow limited Confederate advance, before the last tank was knocked out by
artillery.
American tanks soon found their way to the battlefield in early 1915. These twenty-man
lumbering behemoths were first sent to the Great Lakes Front, in an attempt to breakthrough British
lines. Success was limited, as the last of the large tanks broke down some five kilometers away from
the previous front. American forces captured several lines of Canadian trenches, only to confront
secondary trenches behind those.
Chemical warfare was also introduced during the Great War. The 1st Army launched a
barrage of chlorine canisters against the front north of Frankfurt. Such was the carnage, that a minor
breakthrough did occur, only to be halted some twelve kilometers northwest of Lexington. Similar
attacks were launched all along America’s fronts, and when word reached Europe, Germany was the
first to copy the tactic.
Along the Columbia Front, 1915 saw great advances. America soldiers captured Olympia and
were slowly closing in on Tacoma. Further south, Durango was back under American control, and
its pro-Union government was reinstated. Western Arizona was fully under American control by the
end of 1915, as was the island of Cuba. Amphibious landings in Cuba occurred early in the war in
June of 1913. However, attempting to supply the Army in Cuba met with much hazards as it
included sailing along Confederate Waters from Baltimore to Havana. Submarines, raiders and even
airplanes took their toll on American convoys.
The attrition all changed after the Van der Weld incident, when a Swedish submarine sank
a Dutch ship in waters the United Provinces claimed as its own. With Dutch entry into the war, the
British ships aiding the Confederacy were quickly recalled to Britain to due everything in its power
to prevent a blockade. With the Royal Navy defeated in the North Sea, the German High Seas Fleet
was able to make it to the Atlantic.
However, it was not Dutch entry into the war that tipped the scales in favor of peace. Instead,
it was several revolts within the aging Austrian and Ottoman Empires that brought about peace.
Fearing the Red Revolutions would spread across their nations, the Germans and Swedes were first
to agree to a cease-fire. Britain and France both saw this as a means to secure peace without losing
face. However, France would be forced to give up land for peace; namely Alsace and Lorraine.
Theodore Roosevelt, nearing the end of his third term, wanted nothing more than to destroy
the Confederate States. However, his health was failing and his allies talking peace with his enemies.
He decided America too would seek peace, and preferably before he left office in 1917. The Treaty
of Versailles was just the start of his legacy. In the treaty, Union governments would be restored to
Durango, Cuba and Kentucky. The western half of Arizona would be annexed by the United States
as Jefferson Territory, as would the northern portion of Virginia, as Lincoln Territory.
America was the only clear winner in a war where everyone else settled for status quo ante
bellum. For the first time in fifty years, the American people could hold their heads high. The
tradition enemies to both north and south had been defeated. The Confederate economy was in tatters
and its military capacity broken. Victory over the Confederate States was only part of Roosevelt’s
legacy, the greater part came with finally achieving peace with the British.
The Anglo-American Permanent Peace Treaty
Ratified only days before Roosevelt retired, the Peace Treaty reset relations between the two
mightiest of English-speaking nations. The treaty had nine major points. 1) The northern border of
the United States would have both northern Maine and the Red River Valley restored to the Union.
The border would follow the 49th parallel to the Continental Divide, where it would then extend
north to include all of the previous Oregon Country territory.7 2) The Great Lakes would be
demilitarized.
3) Canada would be guaranteed right of passage through Québécois controlled waters. 4) The
Grand Banks fishery would be neutralized, allowing fishing vessels from signatory nations free
access. 5) Cession of the Bahamas to the United States in exchange for twenty-five million dollars.
6) Free Movement of nationals across the U.S., Canadian and Québécois borders, including
extradition. 7) Rights of citizens in ceded territories would not be abridged. 8) Open (but not free)
trade between the United States and British Empire. 9) A pact of non-aggression between signatory
nations.
The treaty was so ground-breaking that it earned Roosevelt the Nobel Peace Prize
(posthumously). No longer would the American people need to worry about the British trampling
their rights again. America proved itself strong enough to take its place among the nations of the
world. The United States did join the League of Nations (a product of another Peace Prize winner,
Confederate President Woodrow Wilson), but the Confederacy chose instead to turn inward. As its
main ally Britain had signed a peace treaty with its main enemy, the Confederates felt betrayed and
grew isolationistic.
In addition to the Anglo-American Treaty, the United States had its own separate peace with
the Kingdom of Hawaii. The debate raged shortly in Congress as to the fate of the island nation.
Some advocated outright annexation of the island. With occupation of several former Confederate
states and territory from Canada, there were too few soldiers to cover suppressing a hostile native
population in the middle of the Pacific. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Navy wanted to
secure Pearl Harbor as a base for the Pacific fleets. Securing just the harbor from a landscape of
hostile peoples did not strike the Army as a good use of its own resources. As a compromise, the
island of Oahu was annexed, with much of its native populace deported to other islands. Honolulu
being the capital of Hawaii caused the kingdom to disintegrate. Maui and Kauai declared
independence from Hawaii and soon sided with the United States. With the British gone, Hawaii
itself turned to the Japanese for aid.
Economic Boom and Bust
Following the initial decline in economic performance following the release of so many men
from arms, the United States’ economy rebounded as its trade spread to former enemies and
expanded in the markets of allies. By 1930, only the Dutch Commonwealth exceeded the American
economic might. The Great War broke, or at the very least damaged, many economies. Entire
countries, such as the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires simply vanished, to be replaced by
a largely impoverished Union of Balkan Socialist Republics.
The United States used its new World Power status to begin projecting its own power, mostly
in the Caribbean, in several interventions. The most significant of the interventions came in New
Grenada between 1925 and 1929. American forces aided local governmental forces in crushing a Red
Revolution, and protecting local oil interests. With France draining Mexico of all of its resources,
New Grenada, along with local supplies, accounted for America’s strategic reserves. Several
companies were even allowed into the Confederacy to drill for oil in Oklahoma and Texas.
The Confederate States suffered a near complete economic collapse following the Great War.
With millions of casualties, including nearly a million able-bodied men dead, the Confederacy was
short on labor. So much so, its own black underclass began to fill positions once considered whiteonly
work. Losing the war nearly bankrupted the country, and crippled industry. Once the war ended,
factories began to close, and hundreds of thousands were without job. This, coupled with the
demobilization of its entire army and navy, resulted in a decades long depression.
Many solutions rose to solve problems in the Confederate States, including its own native
socialist movements. One such movement arose from the German immigrant population within the
Confederacy, at first called the German-Confederate Bund, later shorted to simply the Confederate
Bund. It was an extreme right-wing organization, branching off the National Socialist movement in
Germany. The same bitterness that filled the German public because of its lack of victory filled the
Confederate people because of their defeat. America’s ally and enemy did have one major similarity;
both nations were ran by an aristocracy, a fixed class put into place by birth instead of merit. The
Bund promised to remove them and place only those worthy of the position.
Shifting Alliances
In 1932, the National Socialists were voted into power in the German Empire, and within a
year, they had seized control of the entire country, forcing the Kaiser and his allies into exile. A
second German government was established in Rio de la Plata. The Fuhrer German government
withdrew from its former alliances, and instead allied with Spain, under the newly restored Bourbon
Monarchy. The Berlin-Madrid Axis severely shifted the balance of power in Europe, along with
Sweden withdrawing from the Entente.
The Confederacy joined the Axis in 1936, and began to import large quantity of arms from
its new allies. The Confederacy was largely agrarian in its economic base, even by the 1930s.
Because the Manumission Amendment was repealed, slavery soon returned to the fields, and even
the factories. All the white men were required for the new Confederate war machine. It was obvious
to all, except the Bund ideologues and loyalists that the Confederate States could never stand up to
the United States by 1940.
American aircraft, tanks and ships, along with ammunition were all domestically produced.
The industrial sector, once confined to the north, was by 1940, spread out across the entire country.
By the same year, it was already outproducing every country, again with the exception of the Dutch
Commonwealth, in industrial output. At quickest estimate, only six months would be required to
shift over to a war-based economy.
The Confederates hoped that Japan, a member of the Axis Powers by 1939, would divert
significant resources from any Union assault. Japanese ships and soldiers based on Hawaii were
poised to strike at Maui, Kauai, and Oahu. However, the Japanese focused most of their navy against
the Dutch in Indonesia, Formosa and Hainan. The United States was but a secondary target to them,
one they would be happy the neutralize.
What the Bund did not realize was that they were nothing but cannon-fodder for Fuhrer
Germany. The National Socialists determined that the United States, backing the Kaiser’s forces, was
the greatest threat to its objectives, even greater than Sweden. It was hoped that the Confederacy
could keep the Americans busy for two years, while the Fuhrer Germans secured control over
Fortress Europe. Confederate President Nathaniel Bedford, was but a pawn for greater powers.
The Greater Confederacy
The Bund’s plans were to establish a ‘Greater Confederate States of America’, comprising
of lands lost during the Great War, along with traditional southern states (Missouri, Maryland and
Delaware). Bedford was so convinced victory was possible, and so focused on his dreams, that he
ordered the Confederate Army to draw up plans to defeat the Union. Much to his ire, most of the
generals told the president it was impossible. All save one.
Though George Patton also believed victory difficult, he knew the Union would take at least
six months to gear up. When war was imminent in Europe, the Confederate Army began to move
into place. Patton’s plan was a three-prong invasion of the United States. The Eastern Army, which
he would lead, would drive on Philadelphia. The Central Army would take Chicago, the great rail
hub on the United States. The Western Army would drive out across Jefferson and into California,
targeting the naval bases in San Diego and San Francisco. A fourth army would invade Cuba and the
Bahamas.
On September 1, 1939, Fuhrer Germany invaded the Republic of Poland-Lithuania. Quickly
the Entente declared war upon Germany. The Kaiser’s own navy sailed for Britain to aid its longtime
enemies in retaking its homeland. The United States began to gear up for war, although
Socialist President Franklin Roosevelt wished to exhaust all possibly diplomatic avenues before
asking Congress to declare war.8 The last route of diplomacy would be closed on March 25, 1940.
The North American Theater of War
On March 25, the Japanese based on Hawaii launched their assault against Pearl Harbor.
American warships were either sunk or crippled in the shallow harbor. Japanese soldiers began to
land on Maui the next day. The sneak attack precipitated a declaration of war on Japan. However,
it was not until April 1, that war would reach the people’s homes. At dawn of April Fool’s Day,
Confederate bombers hit targets along their extensive frontier with the Americans. Every plane in
the Confederate Air Force was launched against Union targets.
Of the initial targets, Cuba was hit hardest. Half the American aircraft were destroyed on the
ground, and several ships were sunk in Santiago Harbor. The Confederate invasion force, under the
command of General Holland ‘Howling Mad’ Smith, landed on Cuban shore on the following day.
American forces on the islands, consisting of the 4th Marines, under the command of Colonel Marion
‘Duke’ Morrison, were pitifully small and forced to wage a guerilla war against the Confederate
Marines. For several months, Morrison frustrated Smith’s attempts to secure the island, until several
Army divisions, under the command of Dwight Eisenhower arrived to relieve the Marines.
Despite initial gains, Patton’s army quickly bogged down across Maryland. Since the
Confederate Air Force failed to destroy the American Army Air Corp (it did, however, destroy units
along the border, but that did not stop reinforcements from flying in), Confederate Panzers were
targets of dive bombing and staffing runs. Partisans across Maryland made Patton’s advance more
dangerous, for both Confederate and American alike. Any soldier captured was taken prisoner. Any
civilian taking shots at the advancing Confederates was in turn shot on sight.
The Marylanders’ lives were not spent in vein. Each minute they held up Patton was another
minute General Clive Arnold had to prepare his own defenses. He already predicted the route Patton
would take, and set up his own defenses in wait around a small Pennsylvania town called Gettysburg.
On July 1, 1940, the two armies clashed for an epic three day battle. Arnold’s use of M-18 tank
destroyers bled the Confederate Armored Corp dry by the second day. Still, on the third day, Patton
ordered one last charge against American positions. In June of 1940, very few had ever heard the
name Gettysburg, but after Patton sounded the retreat, it was known to every American.
Compared to Patton’s invasion and fighting withdraw, the other two prongs of invasion were
rather anti-climatic in scope. The thrust towards Chicago failed to even advance beyond Kentucky.
American defenses, under the command of General Omar Bradley, were prepared shortly after the
Great War. Though they were seldom updated, it was sufficient to slow the Confederate advance
while the reserves and National Guards were called up for active service. The only attempt to cross
the Ohio was at Paducah, and it was easily turned back by determined brigades of Illinois’s National
Guard, and the Navy’s brown water fleet.
The western invasion fared even worse. It did succeed, however, in reaching California, for
their was little in the way of settlement or defenses in Jefferson. However, when the Confederate
vanguard crossed the Colorado River near Yuma, the bridges were blown behind it. The Confederate
Army was scattered and destroyed between June and September of 1940, in a series of skirmishes
along the California-Jefferson-Sonora borders. Fighting out west quickly devolved into decentralized
guerilla warfare, before the United States 4th and 8th Armies could gather at Las Vegas and drive
southeast.
The American counter-offensive slowly picked up steam, gradually driving the Confederates
back across their starting positions by January 1, 1941. Though the war was far from over, there was
some debate in both the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Congress as to how to proceed. Do they attempt
to negotiate an end to the war. The scale of devastation across the invaded territories almost nullified
any argument for status quo ante bellum. The fact that Americans were rounded up and even
enslaved by the Confederates (most chiefly by the Bund’s political officers) turned even Democrats
into Hawks.9
The Bermuda Conference
On September 15, 1940, delegates from the United States, the Dutch Commonwealth, and
the Kaiser met on the island of Bermuda to discuss a grand strategy for winning the war. Also there,
lesser delegates from Quebec, the United Kingdom, Italian Federation and even Free French (those
these later four would have only minor say in this first international conference of allies). The United
States was fully committed to seeing the Kaiser restored to his throne in Berlin. The United
Provinces agreed, but only because it would removed the Fuhrer’s forces occupying the United
Provinces. However, the United States could not throw its full weight against the Axis, not while
fighting Japan and the Confederacy. Especially the Confederacy. America and the Kaiser both agreed
upon a Germany-first approach after the Confederacy was defeated. However, the Dutch
Commonwealth had too many citizens under Japanese occupation to ignore that theater the way
Germany could.
To this end, one point of the Conference was that the defeat of the Confederate States of
America, the weakest Axis partner, was top priority. This would free up American resources to
confront the foreign wars. When the Kaiser and Queen Juliana attempt to pledge soldiers to this end,
the Americans refused. Days before the conference, Roosevelt met with top members of Congress
to formulate their own plan.
War with the Confederates was a generation event, and each generation it grew more
destructive. Roosevelt was determined that his nation should not have to go through another interstate
war in another twenty years. Unconditional surrender was called for, and the only peace treaty
would be the full restoration of the Union. This being said, the Americans wished to keep it a clean
fight, and felt foreign intervention might drive the Confederate States to even higher degrees of
resistance.
Invasion of the Confederate States
By January of 1941, all the fighting in North America was happening with Confederate
borders. The fighting was so fierce in the west, that Arizona and Chihuahua attempted to seek
separate peace, despite the Confederate Constitutions allocating international negotiation to be done
only by the Confederate Congress. When this happened, the Bund, and its secret police, seized
control of both state governments, placing them under the direct control of Birmingham. Despite the
western states’ perceived treason, the Confederates were always strong on the rights of the State, and
to have the confederate government interfering sparked opposition to the Bund.
When Texas tried to secede from the Confederacy, in order to save its own citizens from the
destructive war, the entire Texan State Assembly and Governor’s office were taken out an shot by
Bund officers. The Bund was looking less and less like a return to glory and more and more like an
instrument of repression. Even some of the Confederate Army’s top generals began to seek ways of
ending the war, that might mean turning on their own government.
This was far from an endorsement of Union occupation. The Confederate States had been
independent for almost eighty years, and preferred to clean up is house by itself. However, even
before Operation Overlord, the Confederate army knew that peace would likely only be achieved
after removing the Bund from power. Between January and March of 1941, three separate attempts
were made on Bedford’s life. The Confederate President acted less like a president after each
attempt, and more like an autocrat. On February 23, the Confederate Constitution was suspended.
During the early weeks of March, the Confederate Army believed it would be possible to
force the Union into a negotiated peace if they could simply dig in and make the war a repeat of the
Great War. Even then, Bedford would still have to be removed. He refused anything less that
ascendancy for peace. On March 19, the Confederate Army was stretched to its limits in Tennessee,
Virginia, Oklahoma and Texas. If they could hold these fronts, then the plotters’ plot can come to
fruition.
What happened the next day dashed any hopes of a negotiated peace. On March 20, 1941,
Operation Overlord was initiated, when one hundred thousand soldiers, under the command of
General Eisenhower, landed on the Gulf Coast between Mobile and Tallahassee. The primary
objective of Overlord was to secure the port of Pensacola. After the city fell, two weeks into the
fight, a rapid advance on Confederate Highway 10 to Jacksonville succeeded in cutting Florida off
from the rest of the nation.
Overlord was the beginning of the end for the Confederate States. Though American supply
lines were spread thin. Bradley’s army broke through defensive lines in Tennessee and drove into
Alabama, taking the Confederate capital of Birmingham on April 18. Eisenhower and Arnold linked
up in northern Georgia during mid-April, bottling up Patton and the remainder of the Army of
Northern Virginia in Atlanta.
Shortly after the fall of Birmingham, the Bund government ordered the army to disband and
take the fight into the hills, to make the Americans pay for each mile they take. Had the plan to
devolve the war into a guerilla war succeeded, the occupation of the Confederate States would have
been a bloody affair, and pacification might well have taken an extra twenty years. Before the order
could be issued, several Confederate generals confronted Bedford and his cronies, arresting and
removing them from their offices.
From April 25, onward, the Confederate generals attempted to negotiate a cease fire with the
Americans. Roosevelt made it clear to the successful coup that there was nothing to negotiate, the
Confederate States much surrender without condition. Each day they delayed, more devastation was
met upon Confederate cities. The junta gave a general order for all Confederate soldiers to lay down
arms. The order went out on May 5, after two weeks of trying to remove the most dangerous of Bund
officials still in power. Hundreds of mid-level bureaucrats went to ground, and were not all rounded
up until well into the 1950s.
The last holdout, Atlanta, surrendered on May 8, 1941. When Patton surrendered to Arnold,
he made it clear that he was laying down arms to spare his soldiers, and if it were just him, he would
fight until he bled his last drop of blood. Despite the fact that Patton was the architect of the

invasion, he was not charged in the Charleston Trials
. In exchange, he went into exile, promising

never to return home. At first, he stayed in New Grenada as an advisor, but when the Balkan Wars
erupted, he hired himself out to the Greeks as their chief-of-staff.
Despite the war in America ended with the surrender of Atlanta, years would pass before the
Confederate States were dismantled and the Union restored. The first Confederate State to be
readmitted, Louisiana, was not so until 1947. Confederate state governments were suspended, the
entire area was put under martial law, and the process of ‘de-bundification’ commenced. The United
States Army would swell to ten million during the whole war, but over four million were required
to hold the Confederate states. In order to augment these losses, Congress voted for the formation
of the American Foreign Legion. The Foreign Legions allowed former Confederate soldiers a way
to American citizenship, in exchange for service in Europe11 or the Pacific.
The Pacific Theater of War
While the conquest of the Confederate States was under way, the United States lost the
Marianas, Wake and Midway to the Japanese. Their only major holdout in the Pacific, Oahu, was
under siege for over a year. Americans could fight but a delaying and holding action during the first
thirteen months of the Hawaiian Islands Campaign. The Japanese also possessed a minimal force in
the island, comprising solely of its navy. A carrier battle group along with several battalions of
special landing troop.
The American and Japanese navies battled each other in a long war of attrition over the
islands. The Battle of Maui and Battle of Molokai saw the lost of three American carriers (the
Lexington, Hornet



and Wasp) where as the Japanese only lost two carriers. However, the loss in

trained pilots and crews hurt the Japanese far worse than any material losses. The Americans held
the material advantage, able to outproduce the Japanese in ships. Though the George Washington
class carriers were still a year from coming off line, the defeat of the Confederacy allowed the
transfer of five carriers to the Hawaiian Islands (the Enterprise, Yorktown, Saratoga, Ranger and
Valcour Bay



).

The Japanese began their withdraw from Hawaii in early 1942, though not completely due
to American successes in the islands. Mounting losses in their war against the Dutch forced the
Japanese to divert forces and abandon its ally. Without the Japanese Navy, the Hawaiians on Oahu
surrendered to the Americans and their allies. A joint invasion involving both Kauai and Maui forced
the Hawaiian king to come to terms with the other islands and the Americans. Kauai and Maui were
responsible for occupying Hawaii while the Americans moved westward.
During 1942, both Midway and Wake were brought under American control with the
minimal of resistance. Wake was abandoned by Japan, and Midway only had a listening post. Neither
islands were considered worth holding when the whole of Indonesia was in contest. Significant more
resistance was found in the Marshalls and Gilberts, both German possessions. To retake the
Marianas, the United States Navy activated War Plan Yellow, which called for taking stronghold
after stronghold until the way to the Marianas were secure.
Japan’s strategy against the Americans was similar. It called for a war of attrition across the
Central Pacific, before a decisive naval battle off the Marianas. This battle did happen in June of
1944. The Battle of the Philippine Sea saw the destruction of what remained of the Japanese Navy’s
capacity to wage war, losing several hundred aircraft and six carriers. Though they were quickly
defeated at sea, on land, the Japanese claimed the lives of ten thousand American soldiers in the
three months it took to reconquer Guam, Tinian, Rota and Saipan.
America undertook joint invasions of Formosa and Okinawa with the Dutch Commonwealth
in November 1944 and April 1945 respectively. With each battle across both islands, the death toll
steadily rose. The closer to Kyushu the Allies marched the harder the Japanese fought. After the
bloodbath of Okinawa, planners for the invasion of Japan knew that the invasion force would be up
to their neck in blood; their own.
Over the course of the war, several nations raced to develop a fission weapon. America was
ahead of other nations in its own Atomic Bomb program, and the first such fission device was tested
in the Nevada desert on July 15, 1945, yielding some twenty kilotons of TNT. The first actual bomb
was dropped on the city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. A second bomb detonated over Nagoya
three days later. One hundred fifty thousand Japanese were killed in the attacks, and on August 15,
the Japanese Emperor announced to his people they must face the unthinkable (he never used the
word surrender in his speech. On September 2, the Japanese surrendered in Tokyo Bay on board the
carrier Enterprise.
The European Theater of War
America’s first major engagement in the European Theater actually took place in North
Africa. American forces, under the command of Eisenhower, joined British, German and Dutch
contingents in Operation Torch. No Americas remained behind to garrison the liberated colonies,
and again took place in the invasions of both Spain and Italy. Two hundred thousand Americans took
part in the war to liberate Italy, with only a few tens of thousand fighting in Spain.
The largest invasion involving Americans (though not the largest American invasion of the
war) took place on June 6, 1944, from the shores of the nation’s long time enemy, Britain. A Dutch
lead invasion of Europe, using modified parts of the Dutch War Plan Tulip, landed on the shores
of Normandy. Taking part in the invasion was the 101st Airborne Division, the Warbling Turkeys.
In this division was the 231st National Guard Regiment, out of Iroquois. The regiment consisted
almost solely of Indians, who went into battle in a more traditional manner. Instead of bayonet, they
brought along tomahawk. It was a practice that many non-Indian regiments embraced.
The 101st spearheaded many other American campaigns, including the Ardennes, crossing
the Rhine, and aiding the Kaiser’s forces in forcing the Fuhrer’s forces to surrender in the Wesser
pocket. Overall, the European Theater saw proportionally fewer casualties than North American and
the Pacific. The Japanese did not surrender, and the Confederates hated their American cousins far
more than any German (no matter his faction) could. The war in Europe, the last theater, ended when


Berlin fell to the Swedes on April 20, 1946.

[The Kiat]

The United States after the Great War.

[The Kiat]

North America after the Restoration of the Union.

[The Kiat]

M-18
Badger

Type: Tank Destroyer
Crew: 5
Armament: 76 mm anti-tank gun
.30 caliber machine gun
Armor: 25 mm
Range: 80 km
Produced: 20,000
Introduced: 1939
Manufacturer: General Motors

The M-18 was the premier tank destroyer during World War II. It won a contest between
three competing designs for a fast, self-propelled anti-tank gun. The M-18 saw action in every theater
of the war and was used by United States, Kaiser Germany, United Kingdom, Canada, Dutch
Commonwealth and Australia. The tank destroyer itself was very lightly armored, and the turret was
not enclosed. Anything larger than a machine gun could puncture the armor, and any soldier crazy
enough to climb a tree could drop a grenade right into the turret. Its main strength was its speed. The
Tank Destroyer corps’ motto was “shoot and scoot”, referring to the tactic of deploying the M-18,
firing off at most four rounds, then moving to a new location before the enemy can locate it.
The M-18 was a favorite of American General Clive Arnold, as he used them with great skill
during the Battle of Gettysburg, tearing up Patton’s armored forces. The Badger would roll right
down south all the way to Atlanta. The M-18 proved effective against Spanish and Fuhrer German
armor in North Africa, and again in northern France. The M-18 was also deployed in the Pacific, but
lack of any armored opponents on the islands reduced it to the roll of self-propelled artillery and antipillbox
duty. Casualties in the M-18 were not as great as found in other armored vehicles. Its agility
saved it from many direct hits, and the lack of an enclosed turret allowed crews to escape burning
vehicles.
After the war, a great number of M-18s found their way to the Balkans to participate in the Balkan Wars. The United States sold several hundred of them to Greece.

[The Kiat]

War Plan Red
War Plan Red is one of the United States’ color coated war plans. This particular color was
given to the British Empire. The bulk of any war against Britain would be fought in Canada, however
the navy would have to contend with the Royal Navy. When these plans were drawn up in the 1890s,
it was hoped that the German Empire would also declare war on Britain, dividing the Royal Navy.
At no time were there any plans to invade the British Homeland. However, the influx of American
and Dutch Commonwealth soldiers during 1942 and 1943 was called by Britain’s high command
‘Operation Red Rose’.

Operations
Bahamas: Naval force will engage and clear the Bahama Islands of any Royal Naval forces.
Marines would land and take control of Grand Bahama.

Oahu: In the Pacific, the United States Navy would strike at the Royal Naval base in the
Kingdom of Hawaii. After defeating the Royal Navy, Marines would unload on Oahu
and secure Pearl Harbor.

Nova Scotia: U.S. Navy will sortie against the anchorage at Halifax. U.S. Army will march up
through Maine and assault and capture the city by land.

Great Lakes: U.S. Great Lakes Fleet will battle Royal Navy and Royal Canadian Navy in attempt
to secure the lakes. Lake Huron and Lake Erie are essential to allow an invasion of
the York Peninsula. Objective of the U.S. Army is to take York and Toronto.
Secondary objective; get Quebec involved in the war, in order to close the St.
Lawrence to the British.

Red River: U.S. Army to retake the Red River Valley and press north to cut Canada’s
transcontinental railroad.

Columbia: Multiple crossing of the Columbia River by the U.S. Army. Main thrust will be out
of Portland, with objectives of Seattle and Vancouver North.

[The Kiat]

Battle of the Tennessee River
One of the bloodiest battles of the Great War occurred in western Tennessee between July
3, to October 21, 1914, between the United States of the Confederate States. The origin of this
campaign occurred the previous year, when war was declared, and the United States First Army
crossed the Ohio River into Kentucky. The drive through western Kentucky met with little
resistance, for the Confederates were not fully mobilized by the time the U.S. declared war. The
crossing of the Ohio was done completely by boat and barge, with the United States Navy’s brown
water fleet holding off Confederate gunboats. Though not fully prepared for war, the Confederates
managed to destroy ever bridge crossing the Ohio River. The 14th Division, 1st Army entered the city
of Paducah without opposition only two days after the war started. By the time the 1st Army reached
the Tennessee Border, they ran into Confederate fortifications. Attempts in September of 1913, to
dig out the entrenched Confederate Army of the Ohio met with over ten thousand American soldiers
dead. The 1st Army dug in a few kilometers south of the Kentucky-Tennessee border and waited.
For the “Big Push”, 1st Army commander, General John ‘Black Jack’ Pershing (called ‘Black
Death’ by the Confederates) brought forth the 14th Infantry Division and 21st Cavalry Division
(dismounted) to the front lines in Benton County to spearhead the assault. Commanding these
divisions were Lt. Generals Newton Baker and Samuel Arnold respectively. Both generals served
in the Spanish War, along with Pershing, during the invasion of Puerto Rico. Baker distinguished
himself by winning the Congressional Medal of Honor, while Arnold was the heir to the Arnold
Legacy, stretching back to Benedict Arnold of the Revolution and Second Anglo-American War. On
the Confederate side, the Army of the Ohio in the vicinity of the Tennessee River had two divisions;
the 31st South Carolina and 12th Sonora, commanded by Major General James E. Sylvester III and
Lt. General Robert Samson respectively.
On July 3, 1914, the United States army massed some forty thousand soldiers on a stretch of
trenches five kilometers wide. In that same sector, the Confederates had only half. At 06:00 hours
local time, over a thousand pieces of artillery, ranging from 75mm field guns to a 250 mm battery,
opened up on this thin section of the front. For three days, several thousand tonnes of high explosive
and shrapnel rained down on Confederate lines. General Pershing hoped the intense bombardment
would rip the heart out of Confederate defenses. In his headquarters, kilometers behind the line, the
Dutch War Correspondent, Hermann Overkirk wrote that soldiers believed the push would be as
simply as walking across No-Man’s Land and jumping into the enemy trenches.
On July 6, at 08:00 the whistle was blown, and tens of thousands of American soldiers went
over the top and charged into No-Man’s Land. Not only had the bombardment failed to destroyed
the Confederate lines, it also failed to even break the barbed wire obstacles. When the offensive
reached half-way to Confederate trenches, Confederate machine guns opened up on the advance.
Thousands of American fell in that first advance. Some soldiers dug in, while others retreated. With
a general retreat in order, the Confederates went over the top in hopes of running down the
Americans before they re-entered their trenches. They failed, and fell by the thousands as well.
On July 7, a second bombardment, this one lasting from 21:00 to 06:30 on July 8. This time,
Pershing held off the advance until after the Confederates poked their heads up. At 06:50, the
bombardment started back up, catching many Confederates manning their machine guns. This
second bombardment stopped after fifteen minutes, after which Americans went over the top again.
This time, Americans entered the Confederate trenches, capturing the first two lines. An assault
against a third line was broken, but the Americans held the second line. On July 9, the first
reinforcements, the 103 Nevada National Guard Brigade, rd the first of several brigades that would
be thrown into the grinder.
Two more advances, on July 15, and July 24, managed to push the front line southward by
almost a total of one kilometer, at the cost of ten thousand American and seven thousand
Confederate casualties. A third assault on August 4, was broken by Confederate artillery, which was
followed by a Confederate attack that retook a section of the front, one hundred meters deep. The
front remained static for most of the month of August while both sides brought up reinforcements
and munitions. During this lull in the battle, both sides raided and counter-raided each other’s lines.
Above them, American and Confederate aircraft dueled at altitude of hundreds of meters. On the
Tennessee River itself, the brown water fleet pressed against Confederate defenses and gunboats.
On September 3, 1914, Pershing ordered a new weapon deployed. In the early morning hours,
dozens of canisters of chlorine were opened above the trenches, the gas carried southward by a
breeze. One hour after the gas attack, General Arnold’s 21st Cavalry (dismounted) lead an assault of
fifty thousand men along a several kilometer wide stretch of the front line. A majority of the
Confederate defenders were incapacitated or killed by the Chlorine, which allowed Arnold to break
through the lines and push further south. His attack was not a route, however. The effects of the
chemical weapons were not as wide-spread as originally planned. Confederate artillery slowed the
advance, but not before it punched through to a depth of ten kilometers.
On September 8, more Chlorine was deployed, and this time the breakthrough reached as far
as Camden, the county seat for Benton County. The advance was once again stopped, this time only
one kilometer short of Camden. When the Americans attempted a third chemical attack on
September 27, the Confederates have already deployed counter-measures. They wore crude gas
masks, an idea borrowed from the Western Front in Europe, where Germany was also using chemical
weapons. The Americans were so surprised by Confederate resistance, that the Confederate actually
managed to push them back two kilometers.
The last big push of the battle occurred on October 12. Again chlorine was used, along with
two days worth of bombardment. By this time, Pershing had seriously depleted his war stocks and
knew he could make only one last push before the winter began to creep upon his army. On October
14, seventy thousand Americans went over the top, and, with the help of a rolling barrage from
artillery, managed to sweep over the Confederate lines. On October 15, the 124th New Hampshire
Brigade along with elements of the 14th Infantry Division, entered Camden. The bombardment of the
city was so severe, that Confederate General Samson was wounded during the attack. He was unable
to be evacuated from his position and fell into American hands that day. Attempts by medics to save
him failed, and Samson died the following day.
The offensive did not stop until it was ten kilometers south of Camden. By October 19, the
Americans were exhausted, and Pershing made the decision to halt the advance and dig in. On
October 21, he called a halt to all offensive operations. He would spent the winter of 1914-15
replenishing both his army and its weaponry. The battle cost some one hundred thirty thousand
American casualties (of which twenty percent died). A further seventy thousand Confederates were
recorded as casualties during the Battle of the Tennessee River.
As a result of the battle, the United States Army was firmly entrenched in western Tennessee
and in control of the lower Tennessee River. The Confederates were never able to dislodge Pershing
from his gains. The overall objective; cutting the Confederacy into two, was never achieved during the Great War.

[New Patomic]

That took quite awhile to read.. but I must be honest, and frank. This was one of the... the.. timelines I enjoyed most reading :D I do love the Greater Greece, and a expanding America even if it did have to take a lot of losses in the start. Wonderful Timeline!

[The Kiat]

Why thank you. As for Greece, right now I'm working on the Union of Balkan Socialist Republic chapters (this appendix will only be two chapters) where I'll explain how Greece got so big.

That took quite awhile to read.. but I must be honest, and frank. This was one of the... the.. timelines I enjoyed most reading :D I do love the Greater Greece, and a expanding America even if it did have to take a lot of losses in the start. Wonderful Timeline!

[The Kiat]

Disclaimer: The attitudes of Americans in the AHN Universe results from experiancing 80 years of division, coupled with being held down by Britain on numberous occasions. The Progressive Party, while progressive in some policies, is also a fiercely nationalistic/patriotic party with protectionist views. The Socialist Party takes the place of the Democrats in our Univers, and the Democratic Party takes the place of the Republicans. That being said, this extrapolation of the United States between 1950-2000 doesn't necessarily reflect the views of the author. So here's the last of the American Chapters.


XIV) Restoration
(1946-onward)
Reconstruction
Bringing the Southern states back into the Union proved to be a far more formidable
challenge that first believed. Some in Congress wondered if it was even worth the effort. With the
exception of the Bund, whose surviving top members were either executed or sentenced to long
terms in prison, the southerners kept their own political parties. The Democratic Party, who was far
more socially conservative than either Progressive or Socialist, saw many prominent southerners
joined its ranks. This caused much discontent among the fiscal conservative Democrats, who broke
away to form the Libertarian Party in the 1970s.
The level of poverty in the south, coupled by the devastation inflicted by a short and brutal
war, forced the loyal Union states to subsidize reconstruction for decades. Another issue to address
were millions of recently re-liberated slaves. In the 1930s, the Manumission Amendment was
repealed by the Confederate Congress, as the Bund reinstated slavery, and though it lasted for less
than a decade itself, it is still the source of tensions between black and white in the south to this day.
Northerners feared a black diaspora, were black refugees would flood northern cities. Many
blacks did migrate north during the war, after the Confederate surrender, to take over factory
positions abandoned by potential men-at-arms. Many of the Confederate blacks flooded black
American neighborhoods, especially in Haarlem after war’s end. The industrial cities of the north
also saw an increase in black population. There was a great concern over the fact that they might not
assimilate into American society. These fears were unfounded, for the black southerners proved to
be more loyal and cooperative than their white counterparts.
All white men within former Confederate states were subjected to loyalty tests. Those who
served in the American Foreign Legions were already American citizens, but the civilian populace
proved far more difficult to administer. If anything, it was Dixie, not former slaves, that took decades
to assimilate into the fusion of European and West African (along with native influence) that
comprised American culture. This was most extreme when southern Representatives and Senators
returned to the capital. In 1950, as a symbol of reunification, the capital returned to the city of
Washington.
In 1952, the southerners fielded their first candidate for United States President, South
Carolina statesman Strom Thurman on the Democratic ticket. Though he carried the southern states,
he was easily defeated by Progressive candidate, Dwight Eisenhower. Despite not winning a single
electoral vote from the southern states readmitted at the time, Ike still had a plan to reunite the
nation. His pet project was called the Interstate Highway and Commerce Act. When passed in
Congress, the act allowed for the construction of a network of freeways to allow rapid transportation
of military and commercial traffic across the country. In twenty years, over ten thousand miles of
freeway were laid down across the restored United States.
In reunited the nation, the Progressives continued with their closed border policy. With the
task of integrating millions of former Confederates at hand, the nation could not afford to allow an
influx of immigrants. The most extreme of hard-core confederates were former Bund hold outs,
along with a new fraternity of southerners. Called the Ku Klux Klan, the pro-white anti-black
brotherhood started out as a social club, but soon devolved into a violent, terrorist organization, that
still plagues the south.
The Great Society
In 1960, the Socialists returned to the White House (quite literally the first presidents to
return to the presidential mansion since the 1880s). On the top of their list of objectives was a
program called the Great Society. In principle, the program was designed to bring unity back to the
nation. In reality, it conflicted with Progressive goals of assimilation. It also reopened the borders,
in hope of enriching American culture with an influx of foreigners.
Immigrants brought with them many of the problems of their former homelands. Immigrants
from the former Balkan Union were under suspect, for concern, even with the Socialists, that they
might bring their violence with them. No such ethnic war erupted in the urban jungles of Boston,
Philadelphia or New Amsterdam. Most put aside any age-old hatred and tried to build a new life in
a far more peaceful land.
Similar instability in Latin America sent hundreds of thousands fleeing north in the United
States. After ninety years of French rule, Mexico was once again free. Like many former colonies,
it quickly plunged into civil war as factions, many driven by the drug trade, vied for power. Many
fled north, and were welcomed by the Kennedy administration as refugees escaping potential
retribution. However, many of the Mexican refugees refereed to themselves as exiles and made no
attempts to join American society. A small percentage of the refugees were gang-connected and were
responsible for introducing Latin American drugs into America’ inner cities.
On a positive note, the Kennedy Administration put forth the plan to land a man on the moon.
Several other nations joined in the race to the moon, most importantly Sweden and the Dutch
Commonwealth. Though the Americans were not first in space, they were first to land on the moon.
On July 20, 1969, American astronaut James Lovell was the first man to walk on the moon.
However, unlike the Dutch, the Americans quickly turned inward, where as the Commonwealth
established Fort Recife on Luna.
In 1964, Kennedy was killed in an automobile accident in Martha’s Vineyard, and his vice
president, Lyndon Johnston became the first southerner to take the presidency since the 19th Century.
He furthered the Socialist policies in unrestricted immigration. With the border now wide open,
cities along the southern border faces a spike in crime as Mexican drug lords extended their reach
into Houston, Los Angeles and Sinaloa.
Not even Johnston’s attempt to rid the nation of poverty could save him in 1968, when his
own party passed him over for nomination, instead choosing Robert Kennedy for the ticket, who won
by a clear margin. However, his policies were the party’s and he did not fare better in cleaning up
the rapidly deteriorating cities. In 1972, the American voters rejected the Socialists, and picked
Democrat Richard Nixon as president, who swore to clean up the mess. Instead, the Democrats, who
were always supported by big business, left the borders open to cheap immigrant labor. Little
changed, and in 1976, America decided it was time for a change.
The New America
The change came in the Progressive Party candidate, James Dean. Dean was best known to
his nation for his acting career following the end of World War II. Dean was far too young to have
served in the war, so instead he took on various anti-Confederate roles in movies about both the
Great War and World War II. Many of the socio-political problems within the United States were
blamed on the southerners, especially Johnston. One such conspiracy theory of the day stated that
border policy was directly controlled by the remaining land owner in the south, as a means to procure
cheap labor.
Like all Progressives, Dean was progressive on social issues, but very nationalistic, and
believed America should stay American, and this could not happen while the front door was left
open. Once in office in 1977, Dean ordered tens of thousand of soldiers to the southern border to
close it, and sent the Justice Department to find and deport the millions of illegal immigrants in the
country. The Progressive Party controlled numerous state assemblies, and during the backlash of the
Seventies and Eighties, amended constitutions to make English the official language. This meant that
all government business must be transacted in English, and English only. Further laws were passed
at the national level imposing tariffs and many imports, much to the free-traders in the Democratic
Party dismay.
By sealing the border, Dean took away post-colonial Mexico’s only outlet for dissension. The
Mexican government, through it various lobbies tried to fight the Progressive’s plans. This angered
Dean to no end, the fact that a foreign nation was so intrusive into America’s internal affairs. In reply
to the demands, Dean was heard saying that the United States had battled and defeated many of the
World’s greatest powers, and were not about to take any (guff) from a pipsqueak, post-colonial
dump. Unfortunately, this was said while in a meeting with Mexico’s ambassador. During the tense
exchange, the ambassador proclaimed that Mexico will take back the lands that were stolen. In
response, Dean told him that if Mexico tried, then he would take the other half of their country away,
and they would have no country at all.
Open borders were more than just an influx of people. In the 1970s, the great problem in
American cities was crime. Crime fueled by the trade of narcotics. Drugs from Mexico, New
Grenada and Bolivia flowed across the border between 1965-1975 almost unimpeded. The anti-drug
agencies created during the Nixon administration could do little since the cartels were too heavily
armed. Worse still, corruption was so rabid in Mexico, that the cartels bribed police, politicians and
even units of the Mexican Army. On the night of August 12, 1978, one such run of drugs, escorted
by ‘bought’ units of Mexico’s army, crossed the border in Durango. The convoy was intercepted by
the U.S. Army and a firefight ensued. The convoy was destroyed, but two American soldiers were
killed.
The fact that American blood was spilled defending American land outraged the people.
Dean ordered an immediate response. Units of the Army based in Costa Rica, Durango and Texas
crossed into Mexico on search-and-destroy missions, in an attempt to wipe out the drug trade along
its border. Dean even went as far as to ask Congress to declare a state of war. The tensions and
bloodshed served as a way to root out those immigrants (that came here legally) that had any loyalty
to ‘their country’. More than half the first-generation citizens who were born south of the border
supported Dean. They did not wish to see any ‘reconquest’ and moved to America to become
American and pursue the American dream, and above all, to escape the corruption and poverty of
Mexico.
War was not declared, but that did not stop the War Department from setting up ‘policing
zones’ one hundred miles within the border. Aside from destroying the drug cartels and rooting out
corrupt officials, the zones were used to resettle deportees and set up a economic climate to keep
them there. So successful were the zones, that when Mexico finally descended into civil war (without
the outlet of dissent) in 1979, these zones were the only peaceful part of the country. With the old
regime deposed, various factions fought for control of Mexico until 1992.
Dean’s actions were not without price. While speaking before a crowd in San Diego during
his campaign for re-election, Dean was gunned down by a survivor of the Mexican drug cartel. On
March 1, 1980, James Dean was the second American President to be assassinated. The backlash southwest was consumed by anti-
Mexican fever. States that still allowed Spanish as a second language were quickly amended2. This
period in the early 1980s was the only time the United States saw emigration, as hundreds of
thousands fled to South America and even Spain.
America Today

At the dawn of the 21
st Century, the United States still maintains its closed border society,

and allows for some of the highest tariffs in the world, though tariffs with friends (such as Germany
and the Dutch Commonwealth) were relatively low. Its industrial might is second to none, and its
military might only exceeded by the combined output of the Dutch Commonwealth. Though the
nation remains at peace and isolates itself from international affairs, dwindling resources around the
world will eventually force it into conflict with other world powers as the 21st Century drags onward.

[The Kiat]

VOC Star of the Ganges
Type: Destroyer
Class: VOC Destroyer
Manufacturer: VOC Yards
Crew: 210
Built: 1996
Power: Gas Turbine
Range: 12,000 km
Armament: 1, 150mm deck gun
26 cells, VLS
2, Mk-4 ASM
2, 20mm PDS

　
The Star of the Ganges is the third of five of the VOC’s Model 1993 Destroyers built by VOC Yards for use by VOC Freight. The Dutch East India Company has the largest privately-ran military in the world, including the 14th largest navy. The Star of the Ganges is not designed to carry cargo, which is the VOC’s main business. Its purpose is to escort VOC convoys through dangerous trade route around the world. The Star of the Ganges is based in Kapenstaat, and serves as escort on the Kapenstaat-Recife trade route, which hugs the coast of Africa. In the Gulf of Guinea, the Ganges, along with VOC frigates and corvettes, fought off a pirate attack on the VOC convoy on April 17, 2004. A second attack occurred seven months later. During this engagement, the Ganges discovered the location of a pirate cove on the border of Nigeria and Biafra. The Star of the Ganges and two frigates broke off from the convoy and destroyed the pirate base of operations.
Like all VOC Model 1993s, the Star of the Ganges carries a sing 150mm auto-cannon on its forward deck. It also carriers 26 cells of Vertical Launch System, which is armed with multi-purpose missiles. MPMs are capable of downing aircraft, destroying land-based defenses and damaging other ships to an extent proportional to their armor. For real ship-to-ship battle, the ship has a dual anti-ship missile launcher located at its stern. As of 2009, no VOC destroyer has yet used it in battle, but the VOC believes in having ships that can hold their own in a standup fight.. To defend against attacks, each side of the ship is covered by a 20mm point-defense chain-gun.

[The Kiat]

<yawn> Here's yet another map. This one is the company banner of the VOC (Dutch East India Company).

[The Kiat]

Here's a list of American Presidents. Sure the names are the same, but that doesn't mean the genes are.


Presidents of the United States
1) George Washington 1789-97 n/a
2) John Adams 1797-1801 F
3) Thomas Jefferson 1801-09 DR
4) James Madison 1809-17 DR
5) James Monroe 1817-25 DR
6) John Q. Adams 1825-29 DR
7) Andrew Jackson 1829-37 D
8) Martin van Buren 1837-41 D
9) William Harrison 1841 W *
10) John Tyler 1841-45 W
11) James Polk 1845-49 D
12) Zachary Taylor 1849-50 W *
13) Henry Fillmore 1850-53 W
14) Franklin Pierce 1853-57 D
15) James Buchanan 1857-61 D
16) Abraham Lincoln 1861-64 R
17) George McClellan 1864-73 D
18) Ulysses Grant 1873-77 D
19) Rutherford Hayes 1877-81 D
20) Clarence Grayfell 1881-89 D
21) Grover Cleveland 1889-93 D
22) Ernst van Tiller 1893-97 D
23) William McKinley 1897-1901 D !
24) Theodore Roosevelt 1901-09 D
25) Howard Taft 1909-13 D
26) Theodore Roosevelt 1913-17 P
27) Eugene Debs 1917-25 S
28) Robert LaTollette 1925-29 P
29) Herbert Hoover 1929-33 D
30) Franklin Roosevelt 1933-45 S *
31) Harry Truman 1945-53 S
32) Dwight Eisenhower 1953-61 P
33) John Kennedy 1961-64 S *
34) Lyndon Johnston 1964-69 S
35) Robert Kennedy 1969-73 S
36) Richard Nixon 1973-77 D
37) James Dean 1977-80 P !
38) Eugene McCarthy 1980-81 P
39) Ronald Reagan 1981-89 L
40) George Bush 1989-93 P
41) William Clinton 1993-97 S
42) Ross Perot 1997-2001 L
43) Al Gore 2001-05 P
44) Michael Badnarik 2005-09 L
45) Barrack Obama 2009- P

F- Federalist DR- Democratic-Republican D- Democrat W- Whig R- Republican
P- Progressive S- Socialists L- Libertarian
*- died in office
!- assassinated

[The Kiat]

Over 2000 views! This has nothing to do with the AHN Universe, I just thought I should announce it. :D

[The Kiat]

Now for the first half of the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics. Like the American chapters, this is an appendix to the main AHN Universe. I haven't gone into too much detail, just exploring life in the Balkans.



XV) Balkan Union
(1916-1948)
Balkan Revolution
The Great War pushed two ancient empires to their breaking points and beyond. It is
highly unlikely that the Balkan Revolution would have been successful had the Austro-
Hungarian Empire and Ottoman Empires not have already bled themselves white. This single
event altered the face of Europe more drastically than any event in centuries. Out of the ashes of
two ancient empires came the experiment in communism.
Causes
The causes of the Balkans Revolution are many, and stretch out decades before the last
year of the Great War. Chief among them is the partition of the Balkan Peninsula between the
Austrians and the Ottoman Turks1. Nationalistic and Pan-Slavic sentiments alone would have
inevitably lead to uprisings, as it had during the 19th Century. During the same century, the
doctrines of Marx and Engels reached across Europe. Marx always predicted that the socialist
revolution would take place in the industrial west.
Though industrialization barely reached the Balkans at the beginning of the 20th Century,
suppression of the workers was not the reason communism took hold. For three centuries, the
bulk of the Orthodox Balkans were held under the thumb of Muslim Turks. Though some
peoples, such as in Bosnia and Albania, eventually converted, the majority of the Balkan people
were subject to the Jizya (religious tax for non-Muslims) and oppression that came about as
result of the rise of nationalism during the 19th Century. In response to rebellions in Greece in
1848 and Serbia in 1878, entire towns and cities were depopulated, their inhabitants forcefully
relocated, and in rare instances, enslaved. Along with slavery, forms of serfdom were still found
in the Balkans up to the eve of the Balkan Revolution.
Reforms following the Napoleonic War sought to spread a uniformity across the Ottoman
Empire. Before the reforms, the Orthodox and Catholic populations were governed by their own
codes of law, using their own languages. The reforms sought to standardize laws across the
Ottoman Empire, as well as imposing Turkish as the sole official language. In many cases, the
Ottoman government tried to force assimilation.
North of the Danube, problems leading to the Balkan Revolution were opposite of the
Turks. The Austro-Hungarians Empire lacked any cohesion, to the point that its army was
comprised of ethnic units. Outside of Austria and Hungary, the majority of the Empire was
impoverished, with taxes ruining the provinces. In both cases, the subject populace were treated
as less than the ruling ethnicities. This inequality is also a leading contributor to the Balkan
Revolution. Marxism’s supposed doctrine of equality and of a classless society appealed to the
educated in the Balkans.
During the Great War, these subject populations found themselves fighting and dying for
their rulers in Vienna and Constantinople. The Ottoman Empire joined the Great War by
declaring war on both Austro-Hungarian and Swedish Empires on September 7, 1914. With its
entry, the war in the Balkans became a three-way struggle, with the Balkan peoples caught in the
middle. The peasants under both Austrian and Turkish rule were conscripted and found
themselves fighting over their own land for foreigners. The Austrians overran much of Serbia by
the start of 1915. Belgrade was fought over in three separate battle between the Ottoman’s entry
into the war and the Belgrade Uprising.
Like the French Revolution, the Balkan Revolution was formulated not by the masses of
peasantry, but rather by the middle class and educated. In these circles, Marxism was all the rage,
with talks of abolishing classes and privileges and turning their respective empires into socialist
federations of equals. Some nationalist cells simply wished to break away from their long time
overlords and not look back. In the underground movements that formed since the start of the
20th Century, the Marxist infiltrated all but a handful.
The founder of the Union of Balkan Socialists Republics is a Serb named Peter
Karadordevic. Born in Belgrade on June 29, 1844, into a minor functionary family, Karadordevic
had no want. In 1870, he spent several years in Paris, where he was introduced to the
philosophies of Karl Marx. The idea of a classless society appealed to him. The middle class of
the Balkans were enthralled by socialism, and they would eventually form the bureaucracy of the
Balkan Unions.
Karadordevic served in the French Army during the Franco-Prussian War. After the
defeat of France, he left the army and returned to his homeland to ferment revolutionary fever.
He called for a Serbia ruled by Serbians. His participation in the 1895 Revolution saw his
family’s estates seized by the Turks and himself exiled. He returned from exile in Vienna in 1903
under the alias of Mrkonjic, where he founded the Serbian People’s Party. From 1904 to 1916,
the Party was outlawed by the Ottoman Empire, with suspected members facing imprisonment
and even being sold into slavery.
With the Great War sending millions of young Europeans and Americans to an early
death, the loosely confederated International Brotherhood of Workers began to take action. Their
propaganda brought more members into their ranks, and angered the lower classes. The I.B.W.
created a class division across Europe, strongest in the Balkans. The idea of wealthy industrialists
and arms manufacturers pushed corrupt governments to wage war in order to increase the
shareholder’s profits feed the conspiracy machine. The poor, certainly the non-German or non-
Turkish poor began wondered why they were fighting.
For the Slavs of the Balkans, the question was why was brother fighting brother in the
name of non-Slavic peoples. The image of the Red Revolution as a Pan-Slavic device would play
into the future of the Union, and its demise, along with some of the great atrocities of the 20th
Century. The first shots of this Slavic socialist revolution would take place in Belgrade, on the
border between empires.
Belgrade Uprising
By February of 1916, both the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian Empire battled to the point
of exhaustion. Since its fall in 1914, the Turks made no serious attempt to retake Belgrade, which
they called Dar al Jihad. The city fell to an Austrian assault shortly after the Ottoman Empire
declared war upon them. Its situation, on the Danube River, which in turn served as border
between the two dilapidated empires made it contested in the centuries past. The land of the
Serbs was long since divided between the two empires, and during the Great War, Serb fought
Serb in the armies of opposing Empires.
With both Empires war weary, the leader of the Serbian People’s Party, Peter
Karadordevic, sensed an opportunity to throw out the hated Austro-Hungarians and secure for the

peace-loving peasants and workers
2 of Serbia their freedom. Karadordevic and his fellow Serb
Revolutionary, Dusan Simovic spent the last months of 1915, smuggling in arms and caching
ammunition in the neighborhoods of Belgrade. They each headed a division of the Serbian
Worker’s Liberation Army, with several thousands in each division.
On February 12, 1916, the first blow of the Balkan Revolution was thrown in Darcal
neighborhood, when a cell lead by Gravilo Princip, launched a grenade attack on Austrian Field
Marshall Oskar Potiorek, killing him and the other passengers of the staff car. Within an hour, a
bombings killed patrolling Austrian soldiers, and destroyed their post office, killing the Post
Master. Simovic lead an assault against the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army’s headquarters, capturing
the building and massacring its occupants.
By February 15, Belgrade was under the control of S.W.L.A. and the victors began to dish
out revolutionary justice. Any person in Belgrade suspected of collaborating with the Austrians
was summarily executed. In some estimates, over 5,000 Serbs were victims of this justice in the
few days Belgrade remained ‘free’. The revolutionary army quickly degraded into a mob,
attacking any institution, business or even building that represented the old order of the Sultans
or Habsburgs, including the Ottoman built University of Belgrade. The University was raised and
captured professors were executed as collaborators and traitors.
Belgrade’s liberty was short lived. After hearing of the uprising and assassination of the
Army’s Field Marshall, that the Austrian General Chief of Staff Count Franz Conrad von
Hötzendorf, released reserves from the Ottoman Front for immediate redeployment to Belgrade.
By March 3, 50,000 Austrian soldiers, including many Croatian, Slovakian and Bosnian units,
had the city encircled. After two days of siege, the Austrians stormed Belgrade.
Knowing immediately that holding off the attack was impossible, Karadordevic ordered the
S.W.L.A. to scatter, and continue the struggle in the countryside. Of the estimated 13,000
revolutionaries, only 3,212 are known to have escaped. The two leaders of the uprising where among
the escapees. Simovic escaped across the border in Sarejavo, and Karadordevic escaped across the
front lines (some said smuggled in a coffin), down the Danube and into Sofia. It is from these two
cities that revolutionary flames were fanned.
Fanning the Flames
The seeds of two more uprisings, more succesful uprisings, hatched on March 15, 1916.
When Karadordevic and Simovic reached their respective destinations, they contacted cells of
revolutionaries that were poised to act once Belgrade was free. Pieces were moved into place. By
the time similar uprisings were in place across the Balkans, the Belgrade Uprising was thoroughly
crushed. On March 13, Karadordevic contacted the Bulgarian People’s Army, ordering the uprising
to take effect. Simultaneously, Simovic launched the uprising in Bosnia.
In the early hours of March 15, the Bulgarian People’s Army and Bosnia Liberation Front
launched attacks against the garrisons of Sarejavo and Sofia. The Turkish garrison in Sofia was
massacred after their surviving high ranking officer surrendered. During the uprising, Albanian units
in the garrison switched sides, descending on their Ottoman overlords. The success of the Sofia
Uprising sparked off rebellion across Bulgaria and Wallachia. In the streets of major towns, Ottoman
governors and mayors were victims of Revolutionary justice.
By March 19, the lower Danube was completely under the control of the Revolution. The
Bulgarian People’s Army and Wallachian Liberation Army decisively defeated an Ottoman army at
Serevin, near the Serbian border. The Austro-Hungarian Army attempted to exploit this rebellion,
which caused the uprising in Sarejavo to succeed. Serbians in Sarejavo linked with surviving units
of the Serbian Worker’s Liberation Army, and spread the revolution into Zenica and Tuzla.
On March 21, 1916, in Sofia and Bucharest, Revolutionaries declared independence from the
Ottoman Empire, establishing the Bulgarian and the Wallachian People’s Republics. On March 22,
the Bosnians declared independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Bosnian Socialist
Republic entered into an alliance with Wallachia and Bulgaria, and launched an invasion into Serbia.
Both Austrian and Turkish armies inside Serbia were trapped by the invading Revolutionaries.
Bulgarian units in the Ottoman Army rose up, killing their Turkish officers and captured much of
the artillery.
Ante Trumbic, leader of the Croatian Socialist Army, captured Zagreb on March 28. He was
a colonel in the Austro-Hungarian Army, and a member of the International Brotherhood of Workers.
Once Bosnia declared its independence, Trumbic and his Croatian legion mutinied along the Balkan
Front and marched on their homeland. Along with thousands of soldiers, a Croatian squadron flying
Petrel D. IVs based in occupied Serbia joined Trumbic’ mutiny.
Greek Mutiny
While ethnic units were defecting and mutinying in piece meal, on April12, the entire Greek
contingent in the Ottoman armed forces rose up against the Turk. Revolutionaries in Athens,
Thessaloniki and even Constantinople drove the Turks out, forcing the Sultan across the Bosporus.
Soon after, the Greeks declared independence with the Revolutionaries declaring a Hellenistic
Socialist Republic. In the Ottoman Navy, Greek officers and sailors took control over several ship,
including the Battleship Sultan Selim (which was renamed Leonidis).
Ottoman loyalist, under the command of Turkish Admiral Musha Seydi Ali intercepted the
mutineers at their assembly point off the coast of Rhodes. Under the command of Pavlos
Konstantinos, a high ranking member of the Greek Communist Party, two Revolutionary battleships,
four cruisers and seven destroyers engaged a Loyalist force of nearly double the size. Key to winning
the battle, Konstantinos credited the defection of several ships during the battle. The Crimean
executive officer of the Turgut Reis seized control of the battlecruiser during the middle of the fight
and turned its two hundred fifty millimeter guns on Seydi’s flagship, killing the admiral and
effectively breaking the back of the Ottoman Navy. Since the ethnic content of the Ottoman Navy
had a disproportionally high number of Greek and Crimean sailors, the surviving Turkish ships were
held up in port while the Ottoman government commenced purging it of revolutionary elements.
Fragmentation
By May 1, 1916, the armies of the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian Empire were in an
advanced state of decay. Forces were pulled away from the fronts to deal with ethnic uprisings and
revolution. The state of Austria was in crisis by May 4, when a combined force of the Hungarian
Revolutionary Army and the Croatian Socialist Army crossed the frontier into Austria Proper. Loyal
Austrian soldiers were pulled from the front with the Ottomans (who had their own problems) and
from the Swedish Front (who took advantage of the Revolution to push into Crimea and Moldova).
Two events prevented Vienna from falling to the Revolutionaries. One was the fact that
discipline within the Hungarian and Croatian armies were poor, and the soldiers took to pillaging
towns and seeking revenge for centuries of oppression. The second factor was that the Kaiser saw
the writing on the wall and ordered units of the German Army to occupy German Austria along with
Bohemia, to prevent the Revolution from spreading into Bavaria. At this point, the Germans had no
intention on reconquering the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Instead they sought to contain the
revolutionary plague well outside the Fatherland.
By July, the situation within the armies of both empires is utter chaos. No longer do the Turks
or Austrians have an army. Austrian and Turkish units within their respective armies have abandoned
the front lines and have retreated into their heartlands to defend their homes and families from the
vengeance the repressed people tend to deliver. The newly formed Hungarian army, under the
command of Revolutionary Zoltan Tildy, has even stepped beyond the Balkans and made incursions
into Poland-Lithuania.
End of Empires
With the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the German Empire relocated its own
soldiers from the Eastern Front (since Sweden was having its own problems with Revolutionary
incursions into the Ukraine) to hold on to German Austria and Bohemia. The German Empire would
annex both of these territories. The German Army would clash with Croatian forces under the
command of Ivan Mestrovic. Mestrovic was born in Split in 1883. Through most of his early life,
he dabbled in the arts, and even trying his hand at sculpting.
In 1905, his career was cut short when he found himself conscripted into the Austro-
Hungarian Army. Like many Croatians, he resented having to serves masters in Vienna, even if he
would not have minded attending art academies there. It was while in the army that he met Ante
Trumbic. It was from Trumbic that he became enthralled by socialism and the ideas of classless
society, though he was never a member of the I.B.W. His Revolutionary zeal grew during the Great
War, and more so when the Ottomans entered the war. He saw the injustice of his people dying for
aristocratic elites and arms dealing capitalist in Vienna.
When the Revolution came, Mestrovic found himself thrust into a position of authority. It
was not a position he wanted; after all, he only wished to be an artist. However, it was a position that
he excelled. Mestrovic was not so much a tactician as a leader of men. He lead by example and his
fellow Croatians would follow him into battle. He also had sense enough to listen to his inferiors in
rank, especially since they knew more about tactics than he. One of his advisors had even attended
the Military Academy in Vienna.
With charisma to lead and sense to listen, Mestrovic is known as one of the greatest
Revolution. His victory over the German Army while at Graz. The Croatians took the city on July
17, after defeating a weak Austrian garrison. On July 30, the German Army sent a division against
the Croatians defenses. The Croatians captured enough machine guns to turn back the German
assault, forcing them into their own network of trenches. For the moment, it appeared a new front
would form during the Great War.
Cease Fire
On August 2, 1916, German, Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth agreed to
a cease fire in order to combat the Revolutionaries within their respective territories. The Austro-

Hungarian Empire ceased to exist by August, and the Ottoman Empire received its final nail with
the Janissary Massacre at Skopje on July 28. The last of the Janissaries in the Balkans were holed
up in Macedonia, surrounded by Greek, Albanian and Serbian armies. Upon breaching the defenses
of Skopje, all Turkish soldiers were killed by the Revolutionary Armies. No quarter was given, nor
asked for, as the Janissaries fought to the last man. Those too wounded to fight were bayoneted
where they fell.
When German annexations were recognized in the Treaty of Versailles, the Croatians
withdrew from Austria and returned to their own frontiers. Croatia itself was starting to come apart
with tensions between Serbs and Croats living within its borders. In Bosnia, fighting was already
happening. Once the last of the Austrian holdouts surrendered3, Serbs, Croats and Bosnians began
fighting for control of the country.
While Balkans were fighting Balkans, the outside world looked towards the Balkans with a
land-rush mentality. The threat of outside invasion did little to curb the violence. It was not until the
Italian Federation invaded Slovenia, annexing the country in 1918, that made the Balkan nationalities
to pause and take notice. At the start of 1919, the Balkan states knew that socialist states would have
to work together, or they would be picked off one by one.
Congress of Belgrade
During March and April of 1920, Belgrade hosted a convention of leaders from throughout
the Balkans. Presiding over the convention was the man who started the Revolution; Peter
Karadordevic. Rapidly approaching eighty years of age, his health was further taxed by keeping the
unruly Balkans under control. It was through his force of personality that the Congress of Belgrade
occurred at all. Despite the clear threat from outside powers, the Balkan nations could not come to
consensus on how to approach it. Nationalist wanted to create a loose confederation, or even just an
alliance. Karadordevic had other ideas. His faction of the Congress moved for political unification
of the Balkans into what would nominally be a federation of socialist republics.4
His staunchest ally in the Congress was the Croatian Ante Trumbic. Near the end of the
Congress, he gave a speech that clearly outlined that if the Brotherhood of Workers did not hang
together, they would most certainly hang separately. Furthermore, he was a Croatian, and
Karadordevic was a Serbian. If Serb and Croat could put their histories aside for the cause of
progress of man, then any nationality in the Balkans could. It was with this Congress that the nation
of Balkans was established.
On May 1, 1920, the delegates signed the Articles of Federation, a document that forged a
union between the Balkan states. It was on May Day that the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics
was founded. This is not to say that the Congress was without debate. Many resisted unifying the
Balkans and surrendering their sovereignty to Belgrade. The loudest of the opposition also failed to
show up the day following their anti-union speeches. It is believed that the I.B.W. quickly purged
these delegates; the first of many purges that would plague the communist Balkans.
After the articles were signed, and quickly ratified by the communist parties in their
respective nations, the new Supreme Soviet elected its first Premier, none other than the General-
Secretary of the I.B.W. Peter Karadordevic. His reign was short lived; in late 1920, he suffered a
massive stroke, and shortly into 1921, the first Premier died, leaving a power vacuum that threatened
to tear the Union apart. Ante Trumbic quickly found himself promoted (self-promoted) to General-
Secretary, and Premier of the UBSR.
The Karadordevic legacy was more than uniting fractured peoples. His pet project;
government control over food supply, is credited for diverting famine on more than one instance
during the 1920s and 1930s. The plan called for the state to purchase excess grain while prices were
low, and stockpile it. When prices rose or production dropped, the excess grain was dumped on the
market, thus controlling prices. State control over farms, and collectivization of said farms was also
hoped to maintain high productions. Though the process of collectivization caused shortages, it was
the Ministry of Health that prevented famine from ravaging the Balkans.
Industrialization
More damaging to the populace of the Balkan Union than collectivization, was that of crash
industrialization during the late 1920s and ‘30s. To industrialize, the I.B.W. virtually enslaved the
people it claimed to liberate. Under the regime of Trumbic, the first step in industrialization was
undertaken. To build factories, one must be able to deliver raw material to the factories. With this
in mind, Trumbic designed plans to improve, or rather create, an infrastructure uniting all the Balkan
nations. Tens of thousands of kilometers of rail and road were laid down between 1922 and 1927.
To supply the road gangs with a constant stream of workers, Trumbic ordered a series of purges to
weed out counter-revolutionary elements.
The first to be sent to forced labor camps were everybody who benefitted under the old
regime. Oddly enough, this included the very middle class that supported the Revolution to begin
with. Anybody with ties to the old regime’s administration were immediately sentenced to hard
labor. Tax collectors were simply shot. Some of Trumbic’s own comrades found themselves in labor
camps. Dusan Simovic was sentenced in February of 1940, and would have likely died in the work
gangs, if not for World War II.
Conditions in the road gangs were brutal for even the healthiest of individuals. One stretch
of highway through the Carpathian Mountains became known as the Road of Skulls, for the numbers
of workers who died during its construction. During the winter of 1925, on a road that would connect
the Transylvanian BSR with the Wallachian BSR, some twenty thousand workers died of exposure.
Some of the dead’s only crime was being born to parents who worked for the Ottomans.
No matter how bad the road gangs were, the miners suffered even worse. Those sentence to
the mine seldom lived to see freedom. In the coal mines of the Bulgarian BSR, a tight quota system
was in use. Those who did not meet their quota of coal did not receive their quota of ration. When
they did meet their quotas, the quotas were often increased due to mine management believing the
miners could worker harder. Similar quota systems were used in the forestry gangs of the Hungarian
BSR.
By 1927, steel mills sprung up across the Balkans like mushrooms. Workers who toiled in
these mills lived longer lives and received better treatment, but it was just as hazardous as the mines.
Safety inspection was unheard of, and when workers suffered injury they were removed and
replaced. In the Novi Sad Iron Works, an average of one worker per week was killed during 1928.
Oil production was not as hazardous on average, but an explosion at the Ploesti fields claimed the
lives of some three thousand workers on September 11, 1929.
Five-Year Plan
Trumbic’s first five-year plan called for the full scale industrialization of the Balkan Union.
Before the Balkan Union was founded, some ninety percent of the Balkan population worked in
agriculture. The first five-year plan in 1922, called for this to be reduced to fifty percent by 1932.
The forceful relocation of hundreds of thousands of peasants further disrupted food production. To
compensate, the second five-year plan called for mass production of agricultural machinery to
replace the lost workers. Though production dropped, government food rationing prevented famine
from taking hold. The time between 1922 and 1932 were a lean time for the Balkans.
Furthermore, Trumbic called for the production of steel to reach one million tonnes by 1932.
Coal and oil would both reach two million by the same year. Electricity was planned to be in fifty
percent of Balkan homes by 1932, but this quota fell short. In 1932, a purge of the Ministry of
Energy removed some of the Balkan’s more capable administrators. Dams were built across the
Balkans, leading to a further displacement of peoples. These were rounded up and sent to training
camps, were they would be trained in industries such as steel, fabric and machinery.
The third five-year plan, 1932 to 1937, called for a five hundred percent increase in the
production of agricultural machinery. By 1936, each collective farm had at least one tractor. The
tractors were of poor quality, and a trained mechanic had to be provided by the state. Upon learning
of the design flaw in the Model 1931 Tractor, Trumbic purged the entire design board of Mikail-
Grosniv Industrial Bureau. Along with farming equipment, the production of automobiles was to
increase by two hundred percent.
In the same five-year plan, Trumbic called for the establishment of a military-industrial
complex in the Balkans. Before 1932, the Balkan Union had no armor, a few Great War aircraft,
some rusting ships based in the Greek BSR, and only limited manufacture of bolt-action rifles.
Several bureaus were established, chief among them was the Belgrade Arsenal. The Belgrade
Arsenal was expected to deliver fifty thousand pieces of artillery by 1937. It exceeded it quota by
one-point-three percent.
Trumbic’s death in 1938, disrupted the fourth five-year plan. During the months of July and
August, members of the I.B.W. vied
against each other for power. The
position of Premier devolved into a
more ceremonial role, where a new
premier would be elected out of the
Supreme Soviet once every two years.
The real power remained the generalsecretary.
By 1939, Ivan Mihailou,
from the Macedonian BSR, seized
control of the Party. His reign would
be the shortest. That same year,
Fuhrer Germany invaded Poland-
Lithuania, igniting World War II..
Life under the New Regime
For the peasant in the Balkans, the Balkan Union offered some improvements in their quality
of living. By 1940, electricity and indoor plumbing were in a majority of towns and all the cities.
Some of the positive acts of the I.B.W. is to enact universal education in two dozen languages across
the entire Union. Education became mandatory, and the literacy rates tripled from 1920 to 1930.
Along with education, the state provided health care. Before the Revolution, most Balkans relied
upon folk remedies and superstition to combat ailments. By 1940, modern medical care was
universal, albeit a generation behind the rest of Europe.
For the average Balkan, the State and the Party was everywhere. The State not only planned
the economy, but the way its people would live out their lives. Religion, which is diverse in the
Balkans, was suppressed for that very reason. Churches and mosques were seized by the states and
converted into schools, courthouses and even offices for the secret police. The Haiga Sofia in
Constantinople became the headquarters of the Red Navy. With ancient beliefs suppressed, the
people only had the state to look to for guidance.
For food and other daily supplies, the average Balkan was forced to wait in queues for hours
just to get their weekly ration of meat or dairy, or even for a new pair of shoes. The same waits
accompanied a Balkan no matter where they went. If they wished to visit the doctor, they had to wait
in line. If they wished to ride the rail, the same. A Balkan spent much of their life waiting. The rest
was spent worrying. They dared not complain, for nobody was certain whether the person in the next
flat was an informant. The secret police ran off anonymous tips. Sometimes the threats were real,
but more often or not, they were imagined by the informant, and the state (especially under Trumbic)
was more than willing to believe the worse. A Balkan’s life was a mixed blessing compared to their
parents; a higher standard of living, but quite possibly, a shorter life.
Pre-war Year
The Union of Balkan Socialist Republics was still a third-rate military power by 1940.
Despite Trumbic’s attempts to force industrialization, the Union still lacked the industrial power to
match any of the world powers in military hardware production. The Belgrade Arsenal produced
more than enough artillery pieces to defend the frontier, however, ammunition production was
lagging due to Trumbic’s purges. The practice of mass executions of entire departments do to lack
of satisfactory work was halted by Mihailou. He saw the logic in keeping experienced hands, even
if they do error from time to time.
At the start of November, 1940, the Red Navy had refitted the ships captured during the
Balkan Revolution. Only a handful of new ships were built, no larger than a destroyer. Trumbic did
not believe any war would be a naval war. Instead, he focused industry on Army production. This
includes the Macedonian Tank Works, which produced some seven thousand Red Star tanks. The
Red Stars

were of high quality, the Red Army lacked the tank doctrine to use them properly. The
Tank Works survived World War II, despite air raids from all sides, and continued to produce tanks
for all sides during the Balkan Wars.
At the time of World War II, the Balkan Union’s GNP was a third of that which Fuhrer
Germany possessed. Multiple embargoes against it hurt its economy. It did have trade with
Kurdistan, Armenia and the Arab Republic. BY 1940, it also had diplomatic relations with most
countries, the notable exceptions being lack of ambassadors from Madrid and Berlin. Its largest
export was the Revolution itself. Advisors from the Balkan Union were embroiled in the Chinese
Civil War, supply Mao with weapons and aiding in combating other factions and the Japanese.
Overall, by the time of the German Invasion, the Balkans were finally starting to climb out
of the dark ages and join the modern world.
Operation Krusader
On November 30, 1940, the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics was introduced to modern
warfare. The National Socialists in charge of Fuhrer Germany were extremely anti-Slavic, and
viewed the Balkans as an area for Germanic colonization. They further saw Communism as the
enemy of all mankind, and the Revolutionaries traitors who prevented Germany from prevailing
during the Great War. In the morning of November 30, thousands of aircraft crossed the border and
bombarded every major city within a thousand kilometers of the northern border. Budapest suffered
severe firestorms on the nights of December 2 and 3, reducing five square kilometers of the city to
ash and rubble.
By December 1, over two hundred thousand Fuhrer German soldiers and S.S. crossed the
northern frontier. Three main thrusts were in the works; one to Budapest, one to Zagreb and a third
to Bratislava. Zagreb was the first to fall, on December 8, when the 1st Panzer Group (12th Army)
rolled into the city with minimal opposition. Bratislava was declared an open city and occupied on
December 10. Budapest was a tougher nut for the Germans to crack. Two divisions of the Red Army,
under the command of Vladka Macek, denied the city to 5th Panzer Division and the 2nd SS Division
Das Reich

for two weeks. During this period, the city suffered continuing aerial bombardment,
despite already having its heart burned out days before.
The Battle of Budapest was a vicious fight, with Fuhrer German forces leveling entire city
blocks to dislodge the Red Army. The city in ruins finally fell on December 23. During this same
period, three German divisions had the capital of Belgrade surrounded and under siege. The Siege
of Belgrade lasted between December 13, 1940 to January 7, 1941, when the city surrendered. Most
of the higher echelons of the I.B.W. melted away into the population. A number of them were
captured, including Ivan Mestrovic, who died in the Kotor concentration camp in 1942. Once in
Fuhrer German hands, the city of Belgrade was renamed
Prinzeugenestadt, and the SS went to work preparing the
general vicinity for future German colonization. During
1941-1942, over a hundred thousand people were deported
from the city to the camps.
Battle of Pristina
The Closest the Red Army came to stopping the
Fuhrer Germans came on January 28, during the Battle of
Pristina. Two German armored divisions squared off against
three armored divisions of the Red Army, in what came to be
known as the largest tank battle of Operation Krusader. The
Red Army, lead by General Nikos Zachariadis, blunted
several drives by the Germans during the course of the
morning. One counterattack even managed to push back a
panzer brigade several kilometers.
In the end, what decided the battle was not the quality
of armor or armor tactics, but control of the air. The Luftwaffe dominated the skies over the Balkan
Union. Stuka divebombers, obsolete as they were, still we more than capable of knocking out Balkan
tanks. Most Balkan tanks were taken out this way. Once the Germans were clearly in control of the
battlefield, Zachariadis ordered a general retreat, after which, what tanks that could not be hidden
were scuttled. The battle offered the last great resistance of the Red Army, and the Fuhrer German
forces, after the battle, continued into Greece, taking Athens.
Surrender
The last holdout of active resistance in the Balkan Union was at Sofia. The city fell to the
enemy on February 27, 1941. With it, the Balkan Union was under the control of Fuhrer Germany.
On March 1, the Balkan government officially surrendered to the Reich, thus ending the existence
of the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics. Those officials attending the surrender were put under
arrest and either shipped off to prison camps or shot. The Balkan Union was dismantled in short
order.
Croatia, Bosnia and much of Serbia was organized into a puppet state, along with Greece.
The former was slated to be colonized by Germans after the war ended, and after the area had been
ethnically cleansed. “Non-Slavs”, at least by National Socialist reckoning, were organized into
independent vassals. The states of Hungary, Bulgaria, Dacia and Crimea were created, and locals
of the fascist persuasion were placed in power. The states were nominally independent, and in
control of internal affairs. However, these junior partners answered directly to the Fuhrer in respect
to World War II. During the invasion of Sweden, all four of these states participated, along with
mercenaries from Turkey and the Arab Republic.
The Fascists in command of the vassals were ultra-nationalistic in attitude, many were
exiled from their homelands after the Balkan Revolution. When restored to their nations, and placed
in power, they began to purge their nations of communists. The blood letting the commenced was
on the same scale as post-Revolution purges. All non-nationalities within the nations were expelled,
and in some cases, sent into concentration camps. The fact that, on a genetic scale, that all the
Balkans had Slavic blood in them to some extent did not factor into the Fuhrer’s Final Solution to
the Slavic Problem. The National Socialists had doctrine that appeared to target Slavs for arbitrary
reasons.
The Camps
A large portion of National Socialist doctrine revolves around an anti-Slavic attitude. The
Great War effectively came to an end with the Balkan Revolution, with no clear cut winner. This
was one of the tools the National Socialist used to come to power; they claimed the Slavs betrayed
them, cost them victory. Slavs were seen as the enemy of the Aryan. Their racial doctrine had no
scientific evidence backing it, and it sounded crazy. However, to the SS, this doctrine was no joke.
It was as real to them as gravity and thermodynamics is to the modern reader.
At first, the solution to the Slavic Problem was to enslave many and expel the rest. Centuries
before, they migrated into Europe from the East, and to the east they would be sent again. However,
The East, was under Swedish control, and they had no desire to accept millions of refugees.
Besides, there was a large Slavic population in Sweden, and the National Socialists saw it as their
destiny to claim the wheat fields of the steppes for further German colonization. The possibility to
expel the Slavs all the way east of the Urals was discussed, but found infeasible for the immediate
future.
The Fuhrer demanded results, and demanded them immediately. The Slavs would be
removed from the land, but where would they be stored? The first concentration camp was opened
north of Srebrenica, which was home to fifty thousand Slavs and other undesirables. The idea of
mass extermination was not at first visited. Instead, the Slavs would be reduced to slavery, as per
the racial order dictated by National Socialism. To the Fuhrer, that was all the “under-men” were
good for. Labor camps were constructed within the boundaries of Germany, near mines and
factories, where the Slavs would be used for menial labor. This would free up more “over-men” for
the fight against Sweden.
A second camp was opened in Macedonia, nominally under Bulgarian control. However,
the Fuhrer Germans seized control of the monestrous Macedonian Tank Works, and put Slavs to
use building new tanks for the Fuhrer. All the industrial giants of Germany were quick to jump at
the prospect of free labor. Hundreds of thousands of Slavs in labor camps across Europe were
worked to death building weapons for the Fuhrer and his henchmen.
Labor camps were just the beginning. In early 1942, a new camp was constructed five
kilometers south of Treblinka. This camp had little in the way of forced labor. The healthy and able
bodied prisoners were separated from the rest. The laborers were loaned out to companies as free
labor. The rest went into gas chambers. Millions of Slavs were killed in this fashion, their corpses
sent into the ovens, along with other enemies of the Reich. The first people to go to the death camps
were Communist Party officials, including the Revolutionary, Ivan Mestrovic. After the party
leaders, came functionaries. After them, any village or town that displayed the least bit of resistance
was depopulated and deported to the camps.
Aside from America’s Manhattan Project, the camps were the best kept secret of the war.
Allied forces knew of the existence of large complexes throughout Poland-Lithuania and the
Balkans, but it was not until the Swedes liberated some of these locations that they knew what was
really going on. Believing they were factory complexes, two of the camps; Vojno and Gabela were
bombed by the United States Army Air Corp in May and July of 1943 respectively. Thousands were
killed in the raid, and in the case of Vojno, the railways leading into the camp were reduced to scrap
iron and splinters.
Resistance
Even before the mass murder of the Slavs, Balkans resisted German occupation and the
puppet vassals. The International Brotherhood of Workers melted away into the crowd after the
Balkan Union fell. Most of these were part of the original Revolutionary cells back in 1916. New
cells were formed. However, these cells were not all communistic in nature. Many cells drifted
towards the inherit nationalism that plagues the Balkans. These cells attacked their neighbors just
as readily as they attacked the occupiers.
Chief among the resistance leaders was Joseph Tito. Born in Kunrovec, Croatia in 1892,
Tito participated in the Balkan Uprisings. He was a young officer in the Croatian Socialist Army,
serving under Trumbic during the capture of Zagreb. He spent the immediate years after the
formation of the Balkan Union as a party official in the Croatian Soviet. During the Trumbic Years,
he was elevated to the Supreme Soviet of the Union, as were many of Trumbic’s fellow Croatians.
He was part of Croatia’s representation during every Party Congress between 1936-1940. When
Fuhrer Germany invaded the Balkan Union, Tito melted away into the Croatian countryside, along
with units of the broken Red Army.
Tito’s partisans began their attacks against the occupiers in mid 1941. Their raids were
minor at first; small unit patrols vanishing, road side bombs knocking out trucks, even one stunt
were a partisan smuggled a fine, itchy powder into a laundry frequented by the Germans. Tito’s
campaign picked up in pace when his partisans assassinated Reinhard Heydrick in Split, on August
4, 1943. In retaliation, the SS deported more than sixty percent of the city’s population to camps
scattered across the Balkans.
His reign of terror did succeed in dragging more soldiers into the Balkans to pacify the
region, soldiers that could be headed for the Eastern Front. Partisans were some of the first outside
of the SS and inner circle of the National Socialists to learn of the existence of the camps. Once it
became clear that his countrymen were being butchered by the thousands, Tito ordered general
attacks against any and all SS personnel. Any SS man captured would be swiftly executed. He
shifted his attacks away from the German Army and on to servants of the Fuhrer.
The greatest blow against the Slavic Genocide came on May 18, 1944, when Tito personally
lead a raid against a train stuffed full of Croats and Bosniaks destined for Treblinka. More than five
thousand people were crammed into a couple dozen cattle cars. Many died during the escape, but
the surviving adults were recruited into Tito’s army. Again, the SS retaliated for this attack. They
massacred four thousand men, women and children outside of Sarejavo, dumping their corpses into
a pit and setting it ablaze.
Aside from Marshall Tito, another of the old guard lead resistance, Zoltan Tildy. Instead of
fighting Fuhrer Germany directly, he remained in his homeland of Hungary, and did battle with the
vassal Fascist Government installed by the Fuhrer. Tildy’s campaign did not have the magnitude
of bloodshed that Tito knew, but he did prove successful in throwing a monkey wrench into the
Hungarians works. His raid on the Hungarian Air Force’s Szolnok, and destruction of numerous
fighters warranted this comment from an analysis in the RAF; “Monkey wrench nothing, Tildy
threw the whole monkey into the work.”
Reprisals within the Hungarian state were nowhere near as brutal as within territories
directly occupied by Fuhrer Germany. In truth, the Hungarian Secret Police were amateurs when
compared to the Gestapo. Many were quietly sympathetic with the resistance. There were no longer
any overt communists within Hungary’s government. Like in the occupied territories, the vassals
also purged themselves of I.B.W. members, handing them over to Fuhrer Germany, as per the onesided
treaties the Fuhrer forced upon his vassals.
Liberation
The liberation of the Balkans began in August of 1944, with the Swedish invasion of
Crimea. After fighting Fuhrer Germany, his vassals and mercenaries for three years, the Swedish
Army finally managed to bleed them white. Leading the drive into Crimea were Sweden’s legendary
armored cavalry, the Cossacks. The Crimean vassal lasted only twenty-three days against the
Swedish invasion, before capitulating. On the twenty-first day, when victory was all but assured,
the Crimean people rose up in a spontaneous rebellion, ousting the hated Fascists. The leader of this
Fascists state, Revik Gzorny, was lynched in the courtyard of the People’s Court in Sevastopol.
Though Crimea fell easily, the Fuhrer German Army constructed elaborate fortification across
Dacia.
Bulgaria was the next vassal to fall. On January 17, 1945, the government in Sofia fell, and
was replaced by the Bulgarian Socialist Party. On January 20, the Bulgarian Balkan Socialist
Republic joined the Swedes in their drive through the Balkans. Greek partisans joined the
Bulgarians in liberated Constantinople from the Fuhrer’s grasp. Closing the Bosporus effectively
cut off any pockets of German resistance along the Black Sea. Falling the liberation of
Constantinople, Turkey recalled its own mercenary contingent, and in fact declared war upon Fuhrer
Germany on March 2.
By April of 1945, the Red Army came out of hiding in force. Before, they were but
partisans, bloodying the Fuhrer wherever possible. With Swedish forces grinding through the
Balkans, the Red Army retrieved all the heavy equipment if had cached away, including more than
two hundred surviving tanks5. The Red Army struck south through Greece, and met German armor
in what could only be called a reverse battle of Thermopylae. It was the Greeks who charged into
the now widened pass, breaking the garrison and driving on Athens. No front line soldiers of the
Reich were based within Greece since the fall of the Balkan Union. This fact was what allowed the
reborn Red Army to achieve victory.
Hungarian Uprising
By June of 1945, the Swedish Army crossed the Carpathian Mountains into Transylvania,
at the time occupied by Hungary. With the Swedish Army rolling over the Fuhrer’s Hungarian
vassals, the Hungarian people seized the moment and rose up against the installed government.
Tildy lead his partisans in the most overt action of his carrier as a guerilla; a full scale assault on
Budapest. His attack was premature, and broken by the Germans garrisoned in the city.
Though the attack on the capital failed, the general uprising succeeded in taking control of
the countryside, while the Fascists remained in command of the major cities. Partisans hit each
convoy that ventured between cities, massacring the soldiers and looting their supplies. City by city
fell to Swedish sieges, unable to resupply do to partisan activity. Tildy linked up with the 55th Kiev
Infantry and 5th Cossack Armored Cavalry south of Budapest, and attempted to take the city again
in late September. Though the Hungarians fought fiercely to take back their capital along side the
Swedes and the Cossacks, it was not Tildy who accepted the surrender of the German garrison on
October 3. It was Ivan Drenekovich, commander of the 5th Cossacks.
Liberating the Camps
The true horror of World War II, was not on the battlefields, were over ten million soldiers
were killed. It was not even in the cities across Europe, North America and the Pacific, were tens
of millions were killed in sieges and air raids. It was in the concentration and death camps scattered
across Eastern Europe. When soldiers go into combat, they accept the fact they could die. When
civilians die during the battle, they are collateral damage6. When they were placed in the camps, it
was murder on an industrial scale.
The first camps liberated were a shock to the Swedish Army. Tens of thousands of
emaciated inmates, tens of thousands more dead. The Swedish Army was no stranger to atrocities
committed by the SS. Hundreds of villages across the Swedish steppe were raised and massacred,
but to see industrialized murder on an assembly line, not even the most scared Cossack could
imagine it possible. Many Cossack villages and towns were depopulated, causing Cossacks to
disregard the Swedish Army’s rules on prisoners when regarded any captive with the skull-andcross-
bones of the SS.
Perhaps it was just one camp. Perhaps the Swedes stumbled upon a prison camp for political
prisoners. Two more months fighting in the Balkans, and a dozen more camps were liberated. Along
with the camps, the largest of which was Treblinka with over one hundred thousand inmates, the
Swedish Army discovered mass graves across the countryside. Swedish officials carefully
documented the camps and captured SS documents. The SS was methodical about keeping records.
Executed inmates were written down with inhuman accuracy. The job was too big for the Swedish
Army to handle alone. The Red Cross rushed to the Balkans in the wake of Swedish advances,
attempting to save those who were not beyond hope. It is estimated that nearly seven million Slavs
were killed in the camps.
When partisans and remnants of the Red Army liberated their first camp, the Balkans no
longer gave quarter to the Fuhrer’s henchmen. Any soldier, whether regular army or SS, were killed
on sight. The Balkans took out revenge upon the Fuhrer Germans. A contingent of Serbian
partisans, under the command of General Stephan Filipovic, launched their own attack against a
Swedish ran POW camp. The Swedish guards stood back helpless, as eight thousand Serbs
slaughtered every prisoner in the camp.
Most Balkan units and partisans remained in the Balkans, hunting down German holdouts
and collaborators. Filipovic’s Brigade followed the Swedish Army northwest, raiding into Austria
and Bohemia, taking their revenge to the German people. On the march north, the Swedes liberated
more camps, this time labor camps. Hundreds of thousands more Balkans were liberated from these
camps, and thousands more SS men captured. Freeing the prisoners slowed the Swedish Army’s
advance, but the fate of Fuhrer Germany was sealed by 1946. It was the Cossacks who spearheaded
the final thrust into the heart of the Reich, raising the Swedish flag over the ruins of the Reichstag
on April 20, 1946.

[The Kiat]

I know, it's not the most realistic rendition of the Fall of Berlin, but oh well.

[The Kiat]

I'm starting to make almanac-like entries for the various member states of the Dutch Commonwealth, as well as other nations and sub-national entities. If you see something missing, let me know. Or if you just want to see more detail on something.


United Provinces of the Netherlands
Population: 31,977,714
Language: Dutch (official); Friesian, Walloon, German and Norwegian (secondary)
Religion: 42% Catholic, 40% Protestant, 2% Buddhist
Area: 562, 718 km2
Capital: den Hague
Government: Constitutional Monarchy
Head of State: Queen Beatrix
Divisions: 19 Provinces; Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Gelderland, Overijssel, Friesland, Drenthe, Ommelanden, Brabant, Limburg, Liege, Luxembourg, Namur, Flanders, Artois, Hainaut, Groningen, Norway, Iceland
Industries: Automotive, agricultural equipment, aerospace, shipyards, military hardware, electronics, software, electrical equipment, banking
Crops: Grains, potatoes, pears, dairy, tulips
Resources: Fish, oil, methane
Currency: Guilder (0.603 = 1.000 $US)
GNP: $ 3.013 tin
Per Capita: $ 94,221.86
Import: Beef, grains, wool, cotton, oil, steel, coal, heavy and light metals, general food stuff
Export: Ships, aerospace, luxury automobiles (Maas Auto Works), agricultural equipment, military hardware, electrical equipment, computer software
Trade: Other Commonwealth Members, United States, Germany, Sweden
Life Expec: 81.2 years
Education: Universal, compulsory education; 56% of primary and secondary schools are privately operated. 46% move on to higher education. 10% of that moves on to doctorate.
Literacy: 99.7%
Military: Part of the Dutch Commonwealth of Nations. United Provinces home base for the 1st Fleet, 1st Air Force, 4th and 6th Division, and Commonwealth High Command.
Conscript: No

[Snowman23]

VOC Star of the Ganges
Type: Destroyer
Class: VOC Destroyer
Manufacturer: VOC Yards
Crew: 210
Built: 1996
Power: Gas Turbine
Range: 12,000 km
Armament: 1, 150mm deck gun
26 cells, VLS
2, Mk-4 ASM
2, 20mm PDS

　
The Star of the Ganges is the third of five of the VOC’s Model 1993 Destroyers built by VOC Yards for use by VOC Freight. The Dutch East India Company has the largest privately-ran military in the world, including the 14th largest navy. The Star of the Ganges is not designed to carry cargo, which is the VOC’s main business. Its purpose is to escort VOC convoys through dangerous trade route around the world. The Star of the Ganges is based in Kapenstaat, and serves as escort on the Kapenstaat-Recife trade route, which hugs the coast of Africa. In the Gulf of Guinea, the Ganges, along with VOC frigates and corvettes, fought off a pirate attack on the VOC convoy on April 17, 2004. A second attack occurred seven months later. During this engagement, the Ganges discovered the location of a pirate cove on the border of Nigeria and Biafra. The Star of the Ganges and two frigates broke off from the convoy and destroyed the pirate base of operations.
Like all VOC Model 1993s, the Star of the Ganges carries a sing 150mm auto-cannon on its forward deck. It also carriers 26 cells of Vertical Launch System, which is armed with multi-purpose missiles. MPMs are capable of downing aircraft, destroying land-based defenses and damaging other ships to an extent proportional to their armor. For real ship-to-ship battle, the ship has a dual anti-ship missile launcher located at its stern. As of 2009, no VOC destroyer has yet used it in battle, but the VOC believes in having ships that can hold their own in a standup fight.. To defend against attacks, each side of the ship is covered by a 20mm point-defense chain-gun.

Very interesting. What is the pic of in real life?

[The Kiat]

I must admit: I can't remember. I think it's a modern Dutch frigate, but I'm not sure.

Very interesting. What is the pic of in real life?

[Archdevil]

I must admit: I can't remember. I think it's an Arliegh Burke class destroyer, but I'm not sure.

It's a Dutch Zeven Provincien class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Zeven_Provinci%C3%ABn_class_frigate) frigate.

[The Kiat]

It's a Dutch Zeven Provincien class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Zeven_Provinci%C3%ABn_class_frigate) frigate.


I stand corrected. It is the HNLMS De Ruyter. Why thank you for pointing that out.

[The Kiat]

I had this idea in a dream. You heard me correctly, I dreamed up an alternate Florida. Looking at the population for Florida in our universe, I've extrapolated that they would move to the State of Cuba for the same reason in the AHN Universe. So the old folks would retire in Cuba instead of southern Florida, which was sparesly inhabited to begin with. That means no Miami. Anyway, here's an almanac entry for Florida.



State of Florida
Statehood: March 3, 1845; readmission: May 12, 1948
Population: 7,301,410
Area: 170,304 km2
Capital: Tallahassee
Largest City: Jacksonville
Crops: Citrus fruit, tropical fruit, sugar, tobacco, corn, tomatoes, strawberries
Resources: Timber
Industry: Agriculture, tourism, aerospace
Florida was admitted to the Union on March 3, 1845 as the 27th State. Its union with the United States was short as it seceded on January 10, 1861. Florida served as a strategic location for the Confederate States of America, and held several naval bases, as well as shipyards in the panhandle. Western Florida saw Operation Overlord in 1941, where the United States launched an assault against the Confederacy’s soft underbelly. Following the dissolution of the Confederate States of America, Florida was one of the first former Confederate States to be readmitted to the Union.
Today, Florida is demographically split between the populous north and vacant south. The largest city in southern Florida is Fort Lauderdale, home to the 61st Armored Dragoons, with a population of 43,102. Most of southern Florida is given over to the Everglades National Park. Northern Florida holds 6.5 million of the state’s inhabitants along with the bulk of its agriculture and industry. Heavy industries, such as the aerospace giants, Lockheed, Convair and Boeing-Martin employ tens of thousands of workers in the Jacksonville-Gainsville area, as do Lockheed owned shipyards in Pensacola.

[The Kiat]

I completed a new version of my post-Great War map of Europe.

[The Kiat]

A made another flag (gasp). This one is the State of New Amsterdam.

[The Kiat]

And one of the city of New Amsterdam.

[The Kiat]

Another map remake, this one just before the Great War in Europe. I think it's better than my previous Europe, 1913.

[The Kiat]

Two things; 1) The AHN Universe has more than 2500 views. Yay! 2) Here's some of the points of the Anglo-American Permanent Peace Treaty of 1917.


Anglo-American Permanent Peace Treaty

The peace treaty between the United Kingdom and the United States ended an on-again, off-again state of warfare between the two nations since the days of the Revolution. Following the cease fires that swept across the world in 1916 following the Balkans Revolution, the United States and Britain attended the peace conference at Versailles, as well as a separately in Halifax to work out a separate, lasting peace. The British recognized that the United States was the dominate power in North America and they would have to do business with them. The Americans, with honor satisfied in their victories during the Great War, also sought to end the belligerence within the Anglo-sphere. Both sides recognized that peace would benefit all. Several disputes between the English-speaking powers were resolved with Permanent Peace Treaty. The points of the treaty are as follow:

　
1) The northern border of the United States would have both northern Maine and the Red River Valley restored to the Union. The border would follow the 49th parallel to the Continental Divide, where it would then extend north to include all of the previous Oregon Country territory.
2) The Great Lakes would be demilitarized.
3) Canada would be guaranteed right of passage through Québécois controlled waters.
4) The Grand Banks fishery would be neutralized, allowing fishing vessels from signatory nations free access.
5) Cession of the Bahamas to the United States in exchange for twenty-five million dollars.
6) Free Movement of nationals across the U.S., Canadian and Québécois borders, including
extradition.
7) Rights of citizens in ceded territories would not be abridged.
8) Open (but not free) trade between the United States and British Empire.
9) A pact of non-aggression between signatory nations.

The United States Senate ratified the bill on February 28, 1917, and President Theodore Roosevelt signed the bill the next day, one of the last bills he signed into law.

[vitemajoren]

I am curious about one thing, if Denmark was a part of
the Netherlands there would be no Swedish-Danish wars
in the period 1645-1658 and consequently no treaties of
Brömsebro and Roskilde, so Sverige would not control
Värmland-Härjedalen, Skåne, Halland, Bohuslän, Blekinge
and Gotland, in short eastern Denmark.

[The Kiat]

I am curious about one thing, if Denmark was a part of
the Netherlands there would be no Swedish-Danish wars
in the period 1645-1658 and consequently no treaties of
Brömsebro and Roskilde, so Sverige would not control
Värmland-Härjedalen, Skåne, Halland, Bohuslän, Blekinge
and Gotland, in short eastern Denmark.


A good question. Denmark-Norway did not enter into political union with the United Provinces until 1705. The period you described would also cover the First Anglo-Dutch War, where the United Provinces were not able to help Denmark-Norway. Personal Union did not occur until William III reached his Majority (15 in this case) and took both thrones, that would be 1665, and in time for the Second Anglo-Dutch War. I must admit that I have not explored the impacts of the AHN Universe on Sweden as fully as I would like yet (in other words, I didn't even think about the war you described). But, with ties to a naval power like the Dutch, the Swedes would be a little more careful in going to war with the Danes. The Dutch can do a lot worse to Sweden, like cut off its maratime trade.

I hope that answers you question... somewhat any way.

Anyway, in 1705 there was unification, which meant Sweden was not divided between Denmark-Norway and Russia during the Great Northern War, and thus turned its full attention to Russia. Charles XII did not set out to conquer Russia, but in 1711, with the Tsar dead and Moscow under Swedish control, he saw an oppertunity and seized the crown.

[The Kiat]

Fort Recife

Fort Recife was humanity’s first outpost on another world. In 1983, the VOC inaugurated the first component of its research station on the surface of Luna. Fort Recife consists of several inflatable structures erected on the surface of the Ocean of Storms, connected by accordion passages and buried beneath a meter of lunar regolith. The purpose of the station was to learn the industrial potential that the VOC could harvest from the surface of the moon. The first module was home to four astronauts for three months. A second and third inflatable habitat was added in 1985. Construction was completed in 1988, with a fifth module. It was at this point that Fort Recife received its first researchers; geologists, chemists and a metallurgist. The base is currently home to thirty researchers who stay on six month tours of duty. In twenty years of operation, there has only been one death recorded at the base; a geologist named Hans Vjrenrik, who has the massively bad luck of standing outside precisely where a micrometeor struck, puncturing his helmet and killing him instantly. Despite the inherit risk of living in space, the Dutch Commonwealth has expressed interest in acquiring rights to Fort Recife and expanding it. These negotiations are still ungoing.
Life in Fort Recife is very spartan. Crew members are allocated ten square meters for their quarters; enough room for a bed and a desk. Meals are eaten communally in a cafeteria. There are no dedicated cooks in the base, but some residents do know the art. Some food stuffs are shipped in at great cost from Earth, but Fort Recife does have extensive aeroponic facilities, and grows its own vegetables. Plans to expand the base to include fruit-producing plants, along with the honey bees required to pollinate them are on the drawing board for Commonwealth expansion. The base is powered by solar cells during the Lunar day, and by a radio-isotope thermal generator during the equally long Lunar nights.
In the decades to come, the VOC has plans of constructing industrial sites on the moon, using Fort Recife as the nucleus. The main interest in industry is the harvesting of Helium-3 from the lunar regolith. Extracting light metals from the moon’s surface will facilitate construction of the sites and a mass driver. Through the course of the 21st Century, Fort Recife will become the seed for the first city on the moon.

[vitemajoren]

A good question. Denmark-Norway did not enter into political union with the United Provinces until 1705. The period you described would also cover the First Anglo-Dutch War, where the United Provinces were not able to help Denmark-Norway. Personal Union did not occur until William III reached his Majority (15 in this case) and took both thrones, that would be 1665, and in time for the Second Anglo-Dutch War. I must admit that I have not explored the impacts of the AHN Universe on Sweden as fully as I would like yet (in other words, I didn't even think about the war you described). But, with ties to a naval power like the Dutch, the Swedes would be a little more careful in going to war with the Danes. The Dutch can do a lot worse to Sweden, like cut off its maratime trade.

I hope that answers you question... somewhat any way.

Anyway, in 1705 there was unification, which meant Sweden was not divided between Denmark-Norway and Russia during the Great Northern War, and thus turned its full attention to Russia. Charles XII did not set out to conquer Russia, but in 1711, with the Tsar dead and Moscow under Swedish control, he saw an oppertunity and seized the crown.

fair enough however in the last war 1657-58 the king Karl X was with the
army in Poland and when the Danes declared war he marched with the army through Germany and enter Jylland from the South, he knew he had to end this war swiftly because the enemies were gathering. This was during the winter so he made a very bold decision, he took the army
and marsched over the ice, artillery,cavalry and all. The ice ofcourse
prevented the Danish and the Dutch navy from interfering and when the army stood outside Copenhagen he dictated terms to Fredrik. In short
the Danes lost half of Denmark. he tried to finish off the Danes 6 months later and there was this huge battle in Öresund between the Swedish
and Dutch fleet. a very bloody battle, the dutch flagship Brederode
was captured and then recaptured and then captured again.
The battle in it self was a draw but the supplyconvoy managed to get through to Copenhagen so it was a Dutch strategic victory.

[vitemajoren]

All this talk about trade, sugar and Vereenigde Oost-Indische
Compagnie makes me want to play Port Royale 2 again!

[The Kiat]

fair enough however in the last war 1657-58 the king Karl X was with the
army in Poland and when the Danes declared war he marched with the army through Germany and enter Jylland from the South, he knew he had to end this war swiftly because the enemies were gathering. This was during the winter so he made a very bold decision, he took the army
and marsched over the ice, artillery,cavalry and all. The ice ofcourse
prevented the Danish and the Dutch navy from interfering and when the army stood outside Copenhagen he dictated terms to Fredrik. In short
the Danes lost half of Denmark. he tried to finish off the Danes 6 months later and there was this huge battle in Öresund between the Swedish
and Dutch fleet. a very bloody battle, the dutch flagship Brederode
was captured and then recaptured and then captured again.
The battle in it self was a draw but the supplyconvoy managed to get through to Copenhagen so it was a Dutch strategic victory.


Do you have any links to webpages that talk about this? If so, let me see them so I can investigate this and try to figure out how the SevenTEEN Provinces would impact this event, or if they would.

[vitemajoren]

I will try but I think that it is mostly in Swedish, I do not
know what languages you are fluent in or your native one,
but I will try.

[vitemajoren]

Try this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_across_the_Belts
and if you have any further questions I will gladly help.:)

[The Kiat]

Here's the banner of the House of Oranje.

[The Kiat]

Another map I went back and did more work on. It's North America in 1950 (did I already repost this?).

[The Kiat]

A new, modern class of battleship for the Commonwealth Navy. The picture is one I made-- wish I could find a descent design program that doesn't require a degree in CAD to operate.


King Maurice I class Guided-missile Battleship
Type: BBG
Manufacturer: Recife Arsenal
Crew: 750
Produced: 2007
Built: 4 planned
Length: 260 m
Power: Gas Turbine
Range: 11,000 km
Armaments: 2 x 2 200mm chain gun turret
4 x 1 20mm PDS
30 X 4 VLS (40 multipurpose, 40 anti-ship, 40 anti-sub)
40 x 4 VLS (anti-air)
Speed: 50 kps
Cost: 1 bin Guilders
Ships: King Maurice I, Prinz van Oranje, Queen Beatrix, Empress of Brazil

The King Maurice I class battleships are the second generation of guided missile battleships. It is also the first class to employ the expensive 200mm chain guns. These are half the size of older battleships guns, but make up for that by firing between 60 and 100 rounds per minute, either of high explosive or armor-piercing sabot. These multi-barrel chain guns are also why each BBG will cost slightly over one billion Guilders. The missile compliment of the BBG consists of 160 SAMs, 40 ASMs, 40 Anti-sub, and 40 MPM. The multi-purpose missile have no moving parts in the warhead. Instead, the tip of the missile carries several tungsten darts, that will slam into their targets at hypersonic speeds, punching through aircraft, armor and concrete, destroying with kinetic energy.

The BBG is designed for naval supremacy and not short bombardment. The MPMs and shells from the chain gun can destroy land-based targets, but this would only be after naval threats were eliminated, and in support of cruisers equipped with ground attack missiles, or the future Arsenal Ships that are planned to be built by 2020. The new class of BBG is also highly automated, requiring fewer crew to man them.

[The Kiat]

A brief account of the...

Battle of the Java Sea

By March of 1941, the Dutch Commonwealth was facing defeat in the East Indies. The Japanese were already in control of the ports on Sumatra and Borneo, and sought to add Java to their Empire, along with the oil fields of the East Indies. The Japanese had spent the previous month pounding away at airfields on Java, and managed to destroy the dry dock facilities in Jakarta. The Commonwealth Navy in that part of the world was not as high as in the Atlantic, where the bulk of the Commonwealth Navy was massed in Brazil, participating in the Battle of the Atlantic. Limited Commonwealth Naval forces were divided between Ceylon and Jakarta, the forces on Formosa being destroyed in 1940.
The Commonwealth fleet, under the command of Admiral Karl Doorman, with his flag on the DCS William IV. Accompanying him, the battlecruiser Tanhausen, the carrier Delft, along with cruisers Java, Delphi, and Flores and five destroyers. Commonwealth carrier doctrine stress air cover over the fleet to allow the big guns to enter range of the enemy. As such, the Delft carried fighters and scout planes, and had no ability to project its power beyond the horizon. This tactic proved effective against Fuhrer Germany, but only because their navy was shriveled since the bulk of the German Imperial Navy supports the Kaiser.
The Japanese Navy, on the other hand, utilized air power in ways that European and American navies had not considered. The Japanese used carrier-based air craft in the Hawaiian Campaign, along with attacks on Formosa and British Luzon. The British Far East fleet was destroyed in Manilla Bay by the Japanese Navy. The Japanese fleet, under the command of Admiral Takeo Takagi, from his flagship the Hiryu. Hiryu was accompanied by the carrier Soryu, along with battleship Yamashiro, cruisers Tone and Takeo along with five destroyers. Behind this fleet was the invasion force of one carrier, four battleships, seven cruisers and a mess of destroyers, along with twelve thousand soldiers.
The Commonwealth fleet maneuvered along the north shore of Java, never moving one hundred kilometers away from the shore, and its additional air cover. The Japanese fleet moved down the Makassar Strait, into attack range on March 16, 1941. At 0500, both Japanese carriers launched a risky night-time attack against the Commonwealth fleet. The fighters and bombers would have returned long after sunrise. Accompanying the attack, two hundred Japanese medium bombers took off from bases on Borneo, and struck diversionary attacks at airbases surrounding Jakarta, cratering the runways. Additional air strikes severely damaged the port, making it virtually impossible, or at the very least impractical for the fleet to make call. It is not known precisely, but is believed that Doorman considered this the main attack of the day, and he ordered half of his fighters to intercept the Betty bombers.
At 0820, the first wave of 10 Japanese torpedo bombers struck at the Commonwealth fleet. Three were downed by anti-aircraft fire, and four more by the remaining air cover. However, the torpedo bombers drew the too few fighters down low, while Japanese dive bombers struck at the fleet. At 0826, the first of the Vals struck the Delft. Minutes later, bombs struck the DCS Tanhausen, knocking out its forward turret. A second attack from above hit the Delft at 0831. This strike knocked out the carrier’s elevators and destroyed the bridge superstructure. A second wave of torpedo bombers homed in on the carrier at 0837, destroying its rudder and rupturing its bow. The end of the Delft did not occur until 0903, after the first Japanese attack had departed, when fires raging through the carrier engulfed an armory, setting off numerous one hundred millimeter anti-aircraft artillery. At 0910, the surviving senior officer ordered abandon ship. A destroyer running along side the carrier during the battle also sunk, as result of taking two torpedoes intended for the Delft.
Doorman now had no choice but to retreat closer to Java, and hope that it had enough fighters to provide air cover. Two destroyers broke from his fleet to rescue survivors of the doomed carrier, while the rest of the fleet steamed towards the southwest. The few fighters that Java managed to get airborne, were outclassed by the Zeros when the second attack arrived at 1411. While the Commonwealth fighters were picked off by the zeros, Kate torpedo bomber homed in on the King William IV, while Vals attacked the battlecruiser. The damaged Tanhausen was hit by four more bombs, the last of which penetrated the aft deck and into the magazine. With one tremendous explosion, the Tanhausen broke two-thirds of the way to its stern at 1418. The rest of the ship sank within ten minutes, with most of the crew on board.
At 1422, torpedoes ripped open the starboard hull of the King William IV, causing the battleship to list severely. Java exploded in a giant fire ball at 1426, and Delphi was crippled by repeated attacks. The Japanese ended their attack at 1431, with two additional destroyers on fire, and the King William IV further damaged by addition bombs. Admiral Doorman was killed during the last bombing run, when the bridge was strafe, and then toppled by a bomb impact below it. The King William IV capsized at 1541. By night fall, when it was clear no further attack was on its way, Captain Hans Vermen of the DCS Flores took command of the fleet, and ordered the survivors of the disastrous battle to be retrieved by night fall. Following sunset, the remainder of the fleet limped eastwards towards Ceylon, since Jakarta’s port facilities were no longer able to take on the ships.
The Battle of the Java Sea was the first naval battle in history were the fleets never actually saw each other. The battle also shattered Commonwealth carrier doctrine, and propelled the Commonwealth to design and produce its own carrier-based bombers and attackers. The battle also allowed the Japanese to land on Java, and occupy Jakarta. Like the other major islands of the archipelago, the Japanese were easily able to control the cities and oil fields, but failed to pacify the rest of the island, though not from lack of effort. The Commonwealth Navy was out of the East Indies for the better part of a year, until the first of the Ernst van Bohr class carriers were launched. Commonwealth ground forces did not return to the islands until 1944.


　

[The Kiat]

I've taken more time to make a better rendition of the new King Maurice I class BBG. As for the next half of the UBSR chapters, that will be up as soon as I'm done writing it.

[The Kiat]

Behold, the Dutch soldier of the 18th Century; the mighty Orange Coat.

[The Kiat]

Modern Dress Uniform for the Dutch Commonwealth Army. Yeah, orange, I know, real original. :rolleyes:

[The Kiat]

Here's another American aircraft of World War II.


P-54 Tomahawk
Type: Pursuit Plan

Crew: 1
Length: 13.85 m
Wingspan: 13.8 m
Range: 1,100 km
Speed: 780 kph
Ceiling: 11 km
Armament: 2 x 30mm cannon
2 x 20 mm cannon
1,000 kg bomb load
First Flight: 1941
Introduced: 1942
Manufacturer: Douglas
Built: 2,000
The Tomahawk is unique amongst fighters of World War II because of it pusher and puller
propeller layout. The aircraft had two engines, one at each end of the aircraft. It was designed to be
a long-range interceptor. It proved adapt at this role, and served the United States Army Air Force
well defending against Fuhrer German and Spanish attacks in North Africa. However, its greatest
strength came in anti-armor roles. The Tomahawk, with its heavy guns, proved adept at tank busting in the Mediterranean theater.

[The Kiat]

And what timeline would be complete without the Olympic Games?

The Olympics

In the 1880s, the ancient Olympic games of Greece saw a resurgence. The first of the new Olympic games was scheduled to be in Athens in 1892, however an insurrection in Greece caused the Turks to close their borders, forcing the games to relocate to Rome. The Olympic Games have become the one time that various nationalities can come together in peace during the violence of the 20th Century. It also saw massive city works and the construction of some of the world’s most famous modern monuments. The 1972 Rome games saw many of the Ancient Roman monuments either restored or rebuilt (including the colosseum). The 1988 games in Perth saw the construction of Olympic Stadium, the largest retractable roof stadium in the world. But there did not all end happily. In 1980, two bombings disrupted the Olympics in Damascus. The 1916, 1940 and 1944 games were cancelled due to world wars.

1892: Rome, Italian Federation
1896: Athens, Ottoman Empire
1900: Paris, France
1904: London, United Kingdom
1908: Stockholm, Sweden
1912: Brussels, United Provinces
1916: N/A
1920: Madrid, Spain
1924: Chicago, USA
1928: Recife, Brazil
1932: Warsaw, Poland-Lithuania
1936: Nuremberg, Germany
1940: N/A
1944; N/A
1948: Helsinki, Sweden
1952: New Amsterdam, USA
1956: Sydney, Australia
1960: Tokyo, Japan
1964: Geneva, Switzerland
1968: San Diego, USA
1972: Rome, Italian Federation
1976: Novgorod, Sweden
1980: Damascus, Arab Republic
1984: New Dehli, India
1988: Perth, New Holland
1992: Athens, Greece
1996: Jacksonville-Gainsville, USA
2000: Amsterdam, United Provinces
2004: Seattle, USA
2008: Beijing, China
2012: Cairo, Egypt

[The Kiat]

Ecke-117
Type: Light Bomber
Crew: 4
Length: 14.9 m
Wingspan: 18.1 m
Range: 2,000 km
Speed: 447 kph
Ceiling: 8 km
Armament: 7 x .50 machine guns
1 turret
1,500 kg payload
First Flight: 1937
Introduced: 1939
Manufacturer: Ecke
Built: 7,500
Ecke-117 bomber proved inadequate to endure the duration of World War II. It served in the Commonwealth Navy as a land-based torpedo bomber, and in the Commonwealth Air Force as a light bomber. In the latter, the Luftwaffe proved adept at shooting them down, and they lacked the range to strike from Brazil into Europe. By the time Commonwealth forces had retaken Cape Verde, newer, harder hitting bombers were already rolling off the assembly line. The Ecke-117 was, however, converted into a night-fighter, with radar equipment packed into its bomb-bay.
The Commonwealth Navy had let luck with the bomber. It could out-range anything the Japanese had on board their carriers, but its slow speed made it easy prey for the Zeros. This is not to say the Ecke-117 did not have its share of kills; far from it. The old bomber is credited with sinking at least five Japanese destroyers in the opening days of the Pacific War. By 1943, the bomber was phased out of Commonwealth Naval service and replaced with smaller, carrier-borne torpedo bombers.

[The Kiat]

JC 13

Type: Carrier-borne Fighter
Crew: 1
Length: 8.1 m
Wingspan: 10.5 m
Range: 1,800 km
Speed: 495 kph
Ceiling: 9.1 km
Armament: 4 x .30 machine guns
First Flight: 1935
Introduced: 1936
Manufacturer: VOC Air
Built: 1,200

The JC 13 was the second of the Commonwealth Navy’s carrier-based fighters to be produced. It was designed with experiences in the 1930s in mind, and nearly obsolete by the time World War II broke out. They served well enough against the Luftwaffe during the first year of the war, and covered the Royal Family’s evacuation to Brazil after the Fuhrer Germans had overran the United Provinces. This was partly due to the fact that the Luftwaffe send Stukas to attack the Commonwealth fleet, which were even more dated than the JC 13. In the Pacific, the JC 13 was simply brushed aside by Japan’s Zero. Experiences against the Zero aided in designing a replacement fighter, which took the place of the JC 13 during the latter half of 1942. A number of JC 13s were sold to Kurdistan and Armenia, where they remained in service until after World War II.

[The Kiat]

Here is what the Pacific looked like before the outbreak of World War II.

[The Kiat]

Here's a much better map of the world around 1900. Took me a few hours to make it <whew>.

[Sapiento]

JC 13

Type: Carrier-borne Fighter
Crew: 1
Length: 8.1 m
Wingspan: 10.5 m
Range: 1,800 km
Speed: 495 kph
Ceiling: 9.1 km
Armament: 4 x .30 machine guns
First Flight: 1935
Introduced: 1936
Manufacturer: VOC Air
Built: 1,200

The JC 13 was the second of the Commonwealth Navy’s carrier-based fighters to be produced. It was designed with experiences in the 1930s in mind, and nearly obsolete by the time World War II broke out. They served well enough against the Luftwaffe during the first year of the war, and covered the Royal Family’s evacuation to Brazil after the Fuhrer Germans had overran the United Provinces. This was partly due to the fact that the Luftwaffe send Stukas to attack the Commonwealth fleet, which were even more dated than the JC 13. In the Pacific, the JC 13 was simply brushed aside by Japan’s Zero. Experiences against the Zero aided in designing a replacement fighter, which took the place of the JC 13 during the latter half of 1942. A number of JC 13s were sold to Kurdistan and Armenia, where they remained in service until after World War II.

Is the picture your creation?

[The Kiat]

Is the picture your creation?

I wish! I found it on the Pics of Aircraft Thread. You wouldn't believe how few aircraft with Orange markings I can find. I wouldn't mind editing to have the round house (like the RAF, but with orange in white in blue).

[The Kiat]

MTW-73

Type: Main Battle Tank
Crew: 4
Armament: 105 mm rifled gun
2 X 9mm machine guns
Range: 200 km
Produced: 8,000
Introduced: 1973
Manufacturer: Macedonian Tank Works

The MTW-73 is one of the most recognizable armored vehicles in the world. It was designed during the Greco War when the Third Balkan Union was looking for a way to slow or even turn back Greek forces in Macedonia. At the conclusion of the war, Greece annexed Macedonia and took control of Macedonian Tank Works. The MTW-73 first rolled off the assembly line to be greeted by Macedonia’s new masters. The Greeks adopted the tank, and completely replaced their obsolete armored forces. The MTW-73 was not only capable of stopping the Greeks, it was also capable of going toe-to-toe with any American, German or Swedish tank of the 1970s.
Greece produced an excess of the armored vehicle, and during the 1980s began to export it throughout the Balkans. The tanks saw a great deal of action during the wars that Serbia waged against her neighbors, on both sides of the conflict. Some of the tanks were purchased by the Arab Republic and Egypt and later Dafar and Chad. The tank has since been replaced within the Greek Army, but still sees action as second-hand models are purchased for wars in post-colonial Africa.

[The Kiat]

Ernst van Bohr Class Aircraft Carrier

Introduced: 1942
Manufacturer: Recife Shipyards
Type: Strike Carrier
Compliment: 80 aircraft
Crew: 2,200
Arms: 4 x 2 150 mm guns
25 x 20 mm cannon
30 x .50 machine guns
Built: 7
Ships: Ernst van Bohr
Maarten Tromp
Michael de Ruyter
Cornelius Tromp
Prinz Mandrick
Medway
Karl Doorman

The Ernst van Bohr class carrier was designed and built in response to the Japanese naval air threat. With the loss of one carriers and destruction of a tasks forces in the East Indies, it became clear that carriers were for more than just air cover. The loss of the Delft made it clear that the Dutch Commonwealth must have an over-the-horizon strike capability to neutralize Japanese carriers. The new class was so successful that none were sunk during the course of the war, and only the Medway was damaged during the liberation of Formosa. The carriers continued to serve in the Commonwealth Navy until the 1950s, when jet aircraft supplanted piston engines.

[The Kiat]

I completed a modern map of the United Provinces, but could not fit Norway or Iceland on to it. The provinces that are states or regencies have an elected provincial head, while the others are hereditary. These heads of provinces are also members of the Senaat, along with other herdeitary peers who do not have their own provinces.

[Sapiento]

I wish! I found it on the Pics of Aircraft Thread. You wouldn't believe how few aircraft with Orange markings I can find. I wouldn't mind editing to have the round house (like the RAF, but with orange in white in blue).

Could you place a link to this thread, please? Thanks.

[The Kiat]

Could you place a link to this thread, please? Thanks.

Here it is: http://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=65971

[The Kiat]

Here is the second half of the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics. Enjoy!

II) Balkan Wars
(1948-1989)
Restored Union
On May 1, 1946, the International Brotherhood of Workers reinstated the Supreme Soviet and met in Belgrade for the first time since 1940. Many of the previous party members and representatives were absent from the Soviet, including Revolutionary Ivan Mestrovic. The first order of business for the Party was to regain control over the Balkans. After the war ended, violence still rocked the Balkans. Brigands and highwaymen roamed the Balkan Union. German occupation brought nationalism back to the surface after a generation of I.B.W. suppression. Not only did the Red Army have to battle brigands, but they were forced to battle nationalistic militias staffed with partisan veterans of the occupation.
The first order of business was to clean their respective houses. Untold numbers of Balkans collaborated with the Germans and their vassals. In Wallachia alone, fifty thousand people who took part in the Dacian Government were executed by 1948. The ideological pull distracted the government from more pressing matters; such as repairing the Union. The infrastructure, which was not the best in the world to begin with, was utterly destroyed by two invasions. Industry was in shambles, and would take as long to rebuild as it took to construct in the first place.
The Balkan Union also found itself constrained by the presence of Swedish soldiers. The Kingdom of Sweden is none to thrilled by the ideals of the International Brotherhood of Workers. Before the war, the I.B.W. made itself quite a nuisance in the regional parliaments of the Ukraine. Some nationalistic elements within the Union saw the Swedes as the new occupiers. Attacks on Swedish convoys took place during 1946 and 1947 through the Carpathian Mountains. These nationalistic elements did not stop with just attacking foreigners.
In the Bosnian Balkan Socialist Republic, tension between the Serbs and their Croat and Bosniak neighbors boiled over in 1947. The rise of the Serbian National Front, a hold out resistance band from World War II, began to raid over the border into Bosnia, burning Bosniak villages in northeast Bosnia. Bosnians naturally retaliated, and this set into action a vicious cycle, that would not come close to ending until the 1990s. The National Socialists’ goal of destroying the Balkan Union was rapidly coming true, though not by direct actions. It was the occupation, which lead to rise of nationalism, that inevitably spelled the end of the socialist experiment.
The Serbian Coup
On August 14, 1948, the Serbian National Front, lead by Mikhail Igorvik, stormed the Supreme Soviet in Belgrade, supported by Serbian Generals within the Red Army. The coup removed the Macedonian Mihailou from power and placed Igorvik as the new General-Secretary of the I.B.W. Non-Serbs within the Supreme Soviet were arrested. Igorvik drew up plans to replace the Supreme Soviet and all the Party Congress with Serbs and Pro-Serb Balkans. The coup was two years in the making.
During the years of 1946 and 1947, violence in Bosnia slowly spilled over into Croatia and Montenegro. Attacks against locals by Serbs resulted in attacks on Serbs. In response to this, the Serbian B.S.R. sent in policing forces to defend its people. Order within the Balkan Union was never restored to the level pre-1940. This resulted in many dissatisfied people within the Union, especially in Serbia. As the heartland of the Balkan Union and birthplace of the Revolution, Serbians believed they should have the largest say within the Union.
It goes without saying that other nationalities disagreed with the Serbians. Instead of having endless open debates in the Supreme Soviet, the people resolved their problems by breaking bottles over each others’ heads. Reaction to the coup was almost predictable as the Supreme Soviet was discharges. On August 17, Crimea and Greece seceded from the Balkan Union. As it became clear that the coup has effectively turned the U.B.S.R. into a Serbian Empire, more states left the Union. Bulgaria joined on August 24, followed by Galicia on September 1, and Slovakia on September 12. Croatia attempted to secede, but Igorvik ordered it flooded with Red Army units loyal to Serbia.
On December 25, 1948, the survivors of the coup met for the final Party Congress of the First Balkan Union. Due to failures of the Party, and the Serbian Coup, the survivors voted to disband the Balkan Union. Better to be independent states than provinces under the thumb of the so-called Serbian Empire. Most I.B.W. would work to turn their own nations into socialist states. Not all were in favor of giving up. A faction of the Congress lead by Tito swore to fight on until Igorvik was removed from power and the Balkan Union restored.
Uncivil War
The first of many war in the Balkans erupted with the Serbian invasions of Bulgaria, Transylvania and Hungary. With the dissolution of the Balkan Union, Serbia inherited a disproportionally large amount of the Red Army, which Igorvik did not hesitate to wield. Belgrade intended to force those states back into compliance. Their attempts failed. The Serbian Army’s advances into Bulgaria and Transylvania stalled, while they were ignominiously thrown back from Hungarian territory. The chaos was followed on September 7, 1949, when Slovakia invaded Galicia.
Neighbor began fighting neighbor across the Balkans. Serbia soon found itself fending off a Hungarian invasion, while Greek and Macedonian militias skirmished across their border. No where was the violence more appalling than in Bosnia. Bosnia was the most ethnically diverse of the Balkan states; home to Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs, along with smaller enclaves of Montenegrians and Albanians. If blood lines were not enough, the Bosniaks were Sunni, Croats Catholics and Serbs Orthodox. Nothing is guaranteed to make a civil war utterly uncivil than adding theological differences to the mix.
Following battles in Bosnia came the inevitable massacre. Croats slaughtered Serbs, Serbs slaughtered Bosniaks, and Bosniaks retaliated against both. Entire villages simply vanished from the map overnight. Bosnia suffered a case of total war that almost rivals the brutality of World War II. Each side was nearly as efficient as killing off the others as the SS was in their running of the camps. The worst such massacre between the First and Second Balkan Unions occurred on May 7, 1952. The total ethnic cleansing of the Lasva Valley of its Bosniak population by the Croats. Officially, Croatia condemned the action, but recently circumstantial evidence suggests otherwise. During the assault, all the Bosniaks were expelled, with over four thousand men separated from the masses, taken to a shallow ravine and shot. The massacre was covered up by earth movers shortly afterwards.
By October of 1949, Hungarians were on the outskirts of Belgrade. A bulk of the Red Arm deserted, while the rest were either trapped in the city or on Serbia’s other frontiers battling Transylvanians, Bulgarians and now Croatians accusing Serbia of supplying the Serbs in Bosnia. The Igorvik government toppled on October 30, when Igorvik was killed by his own secret police. The Head of Internal Security, Frederick Gimbovik, took the reigns of government, immediately suing for terms with the invaders.
With the Serbian frontier secured, Hungary turned around an invaded Transylvania on November 20 of that same year. With so much of the Transylvania Army in Serbia, the Hungarians drove a hundred kilometers into the nation before stopping. The war would carry on for another two years, with no clear victor. Tragically, this particular conflict in the general Balkan Wars was a repeat of the Great War, with thousands upon thousands of soldiers dying in a no-man’s land between fortifications. The war ended in cease fire only after Poland-Lithuania invaded and annexed Galicia in 1951.
Further east, Moldova and Crimea fought fiercely over large tracks of arable land sitting between the Dniester and Prut rivers. The Crimean-Moldovan War lasted for seven months during 1953. Like so many of the Balkan Wars, this one ended inconclusively with the death of fifty thousand soldiers. Crimea did make gains, partly because it was supplied by Sweden. During October, the last month of the war, negotiators from the VOC sat down with both sides and mediated a truce. Violence along the Black Sea threatened company trade routes with Armenia and Kurdistan.
Sarejavo Conference
In May of 1953, Joseph Tito called together delegates from across the Balkans to attend a conference in Sarejavo. The goal of this conference was to re-establish the Balkan Union and write a new constitution. Many states declined or refused to even acknowledge the invitation. Of the Balkan states; Bosnia, Croatia, Wallachia, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Albania and Crimea sent delegates. Two weeks into the conference, the Albanian delegates withdrew as it became clear the new constitution would not benefit them. Albania wanted control over Kosovo, which held many Albanians within its borders, but Tito refused to allow any transfer of territory.
The Second Balkan Union came into existence on August 21, 1953, with Sarejavo as its capital. It immediately saw itself at war with Serbia. This was partially a blessing in disguise, for it forced the Croats and Bosniaks of Bosnia to put aside their differences and unite against the Serbians and Serbs within Bosnia. Tito used all of his political clout to try and stop the violence within Bosnia, with limited success. He did start commissions to investigate the massacres, and even brought several Croats, including those involved in Lasva Valley, to justice. This caused some Croats within Bosnia to see Tito as a traitor, for he too was Croatian.
Serbia was forced to withdrawal any support for its fellow ethnics within Bosnia, as it became apparent that they faced a war on two fronts against the restored Balkan Union. Bulgarians and Crimeans were more than happy to engage in war against those whom they blame for the fall of the first Union. Despite pleas for vengeance, Tito had plans beyond the narrow views of his comrades. He wanted to restore all the Union, and to expand the I.B.W. to places it had never held influence. He orders embassies sent to the Middle East and East Asia. He did succeed in establishing ties with the People’ Dynasty in China, as well as with rebels in Indochina and Mexico.
The Tito Plan also called for rebuilding the Union’s shattered industry and infrastructure. This was only partially enacted, and only insofar as warfare was concerned. The People’s Air Bureau opened in 1955, in Wallachia and produced several models of aircraft that saw action across the Balkans and later in post-colonial Africa. Sadly, the standards of living within all the Balkans fell below their pre-World War II levels. Poverty spread across the Union. Coupled with constant warfare, this lead to a Balkan Diaspora.
Belgrade Council
In response to the restored Balkan Union, Serbia, under the command of Gimbovik, called for delegates to attend their own conference. In 1956, a Belgrade-lead Balkan Union was established, with Serbia, Hungary and Transylvania joining. Zoltan Tildy has reservation about joining Belgrade, but unlike Tito, Gimbovik did promise transfer of territory. The Belgrade Council was not a Union in the same way as the Balkan Union, but rather an alliance of convenience. The year it was founded, Hungary threw its weight behind Serbia in a full-scale invasion of Bosnia.. In return for their aid, Hungary would be awarded parts of Slovakia, as with Transylvania. The Transylvanians will be compensated with lands in Wallachia.
Sarejavo fell under siege during the first four months of 1957. The city was completely cut off from the outside world, with the exception of the air waves. The rest of Europe heard the pleas for help come out of the Bosnian capital, but none lifted a finger to come to their aid. Bosnia was just not strategically important. The United Nations did impose sanctions against Serbia and Hungary, but with no avail. The governments in Budapest and Belgrade did not feel the sanctions, but the people did. It was the Balkan people that suffered the most, and sensing the ineffectiveness of the sanctions, they were withdrawn in 1959.
Thousands were killed during the Siege of Sarejavo, including General Stephan Filipovic, and the city itself was left in ruins. When the Serbians did finally capture the city, it was of little use to the conquerors or the vanquished. Following the Fall of Sarejavo, Crimea withdrew from the Balkan Union and switched sides, allying with the Serbians. This defection effectively dissolved the Second Balkan Union. Despite this betrayal, Tito did not give up on restoring the Union. He did, however, withdrawal to Croatia and lead the Croatian Red Army in defense against Serbian incursions.
The Belgrade Council did not last long after their victory over the Balkan Union. In 1958, Slovakia was partitioned between Hungary, Austria and Poland-Lithuania. Slovakia called for aid with its former allies, but all they received were humanitarian aid from Croatia. The aid was quickly intercepted by the Hungarians. Though Serbia wished to continue their campaign against Croatia, Tildy decided that Hungary has warred enough for the time being. Hungary withdrew from the Belgrade Council in 1959. Serbia withdrew three weeks later. The Belgrade-lead Union fell after only three years.
Greco-Wars
While the Balkans burned in the flames of war, Turkey came under the control of the ultra-nationalists. The new Turkey had dreams of restoring the glory of the Ottoman Empire, along with the land lost in 1916. With the Balkans in turmoil, Ankara thought it would be an easy conquest. The first act of the brief Turkish Invasions was the near disastrous invasion of Rhodes. Though the Greeks garrisoning the island had no reason to expect attack, they reacted quickly to the surprise. Of the Turk’s air assault, twenty percent of the bombers were downed by the few surface-to-air missiles and obsolete turbo-prop P-58s. The Turkish Air Force’s bomb sights were jokes, and most of the bombs fell a foul of the Greek fortifications. However, hundreds of civilians were killed during the bombardment.
Three torpedo boats, relics from World War II, intercepted the Turkish invasion force. Though all three boats were destroyed, they were not before they released their torpedoes, destroying a troop transport and destroyer. Ten thousand Turks poured ashore to do battle with the roughly fifteen hundred Greek soldiers based on the island. The landing itself resulted in over a thousand Turks killed. Even after the Turks were in control of the city, surviving Greek soldiers carried out guerilla warfare against the invaders. In response, the Turks began executing Greek civilians for each of its own soldiers killed.
More successful, or rather less disastrous, was the crossing of the Bosporus by the bulk of the Turkish Army. Through October to December of 1953, the Turks placed Constantinople under siege, damaging much of the city. During the siege, over twenty thousand civilians were killed, and untold ancient building destroyed. The dome of the Haiga Sofia collapsed under the bombardment of Turkish artillery. The Turkish Invasions never reached inland in the Balkans, and were reduced to raiding along the Aegean and Black Seas.
At the time, the Greek government, under the control of Nikos Zachariadis, saw Turkey as a major threat. It was with some relief in January of 1954, when George Patton arrived in Athens and offered his services. The former Confederate general exiled himself from his homeland following the Confederacy’s destruction. For the previous ten years, he served as a military advisor to the government of New Grenada. Upon hearing about the Turkish attacks on Greece, he resigned his post and traveled to Greece. It is believed that his fondness for Mediterranean history and of Ancient Greece that prompted him to aid in resisting the Asiatic Hordes.
Patton was accepted as advisor and made a general in the Greek Army. His first plans called for the relief of Constantinople. After planning the invasion of the Union more than a decade previous, Patton was astonished by what he considered the stupidity of the Turk’s plan. To begin with, their navy could not hope to defeat the Greek Navy, despite controlling the waters around Constantinople. The Turks also had limited ability to engage in strategic bombings. Even then, they still targeted symbolic buildings, such as the Acropolis in Athens.
The Greeks lifted the Siege of Constantinople by forcing the Dardanelles, at high cost to their navy, and cutting off almost half the Turkish Army. Before the Turkish invasion force could even surrender, the Greeks landed one hundred thousand of their own soldiers on the Ionian Coast of western Turkey. In turn, the Turks attempted to evacuate their army in Europe to thwart the invasion.
One more nail in the Turkish coffin came with the intervention of the Dutch East India Company. The Turkish Invasions severely disrupted trade in the Aegean Sea, much so that the VOC was concerned that oil from Armenia and Kurdistan might be cut off. The VOC assessed the situation and decided their company would be best served if Greece was in control of the sea. The VOC began overtly supporting Zachariadis with arms shipment at a reduced price, and even escorting Greek merchantmen with their own private warships. By April of 1954, the Turkish Navy ceased to exist as a functional branch of their military.
It was not until late 1954 that the Ankara Government collapsed, turning Turkey into a failed state. Even more than fifty years after their war with Greece, Anatolia is still ruled by petty warlords and factions of the Ottoman Mafia. On January 1, 1955, Greece officially annexed the west coast of Anatolia. This was not the end of Greco expansion. While Greece did work to consolidate its new holdings, its attention soon turned to the state which called itself Macedonia. Being part of Greek history, Zachariadis decided that any state which calls itself Macedonia should be under Greek control. It was more than historical; the fact that a large armor production facility as well with other military-industrial infrastructure existed within Macedonia did factor into his equation.
In 1969, the Greeks went to war with the Third Balkan Union. The war was slow going, lasting for four years and claiming two hundred sixteen thousand dead. The war concluded in 1973, with Greece annexing Macedonia. Only three days after the treaty was signed, the long standing Greek President Zachariadis died. General Andreas Papandreou replaced him as President until 1981, when elections were finally enacted.
The Turbulent Sixties
Turkey was not the only outside power to invade the Balkans. In 1962, Sweden launched its own invasion of Crimea. Crimean bandits had spent the previous year raiding into Sweden, burning farms in the Ukrainian steppes and finally sacking Petrelogorod, a town of three thousand along Sweden’s Sea of Azov Coast. The attack took the world by surprise, as over a thousand Swedish aircraft struck at targets across the Crimean Peninsula in simultaneous strikes. Such an awesome show of air power had not been seen since the blitzes of World War II.
The Crimean military was all but crippled in the first day of the war. The Swedish Army, spearheaded by two Cossack Armored Divisions rolled over what few Crimean soldiers remained. They reached Sevastopol only eight days after the war began, despite the poor road conditions. The Democratic Republic of Crimea had little choice but to cede the Crimean Peninsula to Sweden, thus removing Crimea as a player in the Balkans. Afterwards, Crimea remained an economic dependent to Sweden to this very day.
Again, the Turks were not the only ones with dreams of restored empires. In 1960, the Habsburgs, restored as Kings of Austria, looked to expanding their own borders once again. Not satisfied with the portions of Slovakia they carved off for themselves, the Austrians invaded Hungary in attempts to reclaim its throne as well. The war was a fruitless exercise in maneuver and counter-maneuver, with battles comprising of long-range artillery duels. Two months into the war, the Kaiser mediated a peace between the two belligerents, with Austria gaining only three square kilometers of land at the cost of nine thousand dead.
Serb Conquests
After the collapse of the Belgrade Council, the Serbians were up to their old bag of tricks again; plotting to found a Serbian Empire on the ashes of the Balkan Union. As with every attempt, Serbia began its expansionism at Bosnia’s expense. Though this new wave of invasions lacked the ethnic violence of previous wars, it still ripped up what little of the roads and rails the Bosnians managed to repair since the fall of the Second Union. Bosnia itself fell under Serbian control from 1961 to 1963.
The Bosnians themselves, Bosniaks and Croats, were not content to let Serbia keep and even colonize their homeland. Resistance movements hampered Serbian occupation and administration. Despite previous levels of violence, the Serbian Army did not instigate massacres against the Bosnian population. They did, however, impose martial law under draconic conditions, including internal passports and identification cards. Those who lacked papers were arrests and held for long periods. Those who violated curfew were often assumed to be part of the resistance and shot on sight.
Despite lower levels of violence, the Serbians did precede to deport Bosniaks from regions bordering Serbia. The Serbian government planned to move Serbs within Serbia closer to the border with the motherland. This ethnic redistribution caused serious disruptions to supply, and even allowed near-famine conditions in some of Bosnia’s cities. Most of the resources were expended in transporting peoples and making the demography of Bosnia, something that met with Belgrade’s approval.
In Kosovo, the Serbians decided to redistribute the demographics, but not in the same way as Bosnia. In Kosovo, Belgrade decided that it was time to expel the Albanians. The ethnic cleansing brought numerous protests from Albania, but protests were all they were. Albania attempted to garner United Nations support, despite the fact that no Balkan state was a member of the UN. The UN did, in fact, pass a resolution condemning Serbia’s actions, but made no attempt to stop them. By 1963, more than forty percent of the Albanians were refugees within Albania.
Serbo-Hungarian War
In May of 1963, Hungary once again went to war against Serbia. It was not that they supported the Bosniaks or Albanians, but rather they could see the writing on the wall. There was concern in Budapest that the Serbians might turn their eyes towards Hungary. The Hungarians struck at the relatively undefended eastern border of Serbia, breaching their defenses after only three days of brutal fighting.
On June 4, 1963, the Hungarian 3rd Division rolled into Belgrade, virtually unopposed. When news of the city’s fall reached the Serbian colonies, the Bosniaks and Croats of Bosnia and Albanians living within the Serbian border, rose up in revolt. The uprisings were almost as abrupt as the original Balkan Uprising. So forceful were they, that Serbian units in Bosnia withdrew to the firmly Serb-held areas. On June 9, the Serbian government fell.
Terms for peace were rather lenient. Hungary had no interest in occupying Serbia, but demanded that it withdrawal from Bosnia and Montenegro, the former racked by civil war un 1971. There was no terms concerning Kosovo, which was a province within Serbia. Thus, the Serbians continued their cleansing. However, having much of their power broken, Albania went to war against Serbia. There was no declaration, but units of the Albanian army crossed the border to protect ethnic Albanians, and did manage to push Albania’s border several kilometers into Serbia.
The Third Balkan Union
At the start of 1968, with the better part of a violent decade behind them, Joseph Tito once again tried to restore the Balkan Union. He called for all Balkan States to send delegate to a conference in Zagreb. Fewer delegates arrive, and even less agreed to a new constitution, this one authorizing more power to the executive branch. Of the ten states that attended, only Bosnia, Croatia, Albania, Wallachia and Macedonia ratified. The Third Union was weaker than the previous two, and infrastructure in Bosnia was all but shattered.
Tito’s first Five Year Plan of the Third Union called for linking all the states by road and rail. Hundreds of millions of dollars were spent in rebuilding Bosnia alone. The Third Union was almost a failure from the beginning. In the 1970s, they fought a losing war against Greece, where all of Macedonia was annexed by them. Further Greek air strikes into Bosnia and Albania severely damaged industry and infrastructure that had already seen two decades worth of on-again, off-again warfare. The plus side of the conflict saw that outsiders were getting involved within the Balkans.
During the Greco War, the Italians sent in a small expeditionary force into Albania to prevent the spread of Greek influence. The Italian Federation was already wary of Greece following their crippling blow against the former Republic of Turkey. Greek shipping began to overlap on Italian interests, and pirates were even operating out of the many islands in the Aegean Sea, targeting mostly Italian ships. They wisely avoided any ship waving the VOC banner. Thought Italy did not declare war on Greece, it did fight several small naval engagements against pirates and Greek patrol boats, along with landing a regiment in Albania to keep the Greeks from gaining any holds on the Adriatic coast.
The idea that Greece, despite its regional power, was ever a threat to the Italian Federation is somewhat of a misnomer. The Greek Navy consists of relics from World War II and earlier, with a few modern mods, while the Italian Navy had five guided missile cruisers and even an aircraft carrier. Italian nationalism played a role as well, for the Nationalist Party, with its ultra-nationalistic views, was playing on the Greek menace to gain votes. It did gain a coalition majority in Italy’s parliament, and went about trying to ‘rebuild the glories of Rome’. They did in part, restoring Ancient Roman structures in time for the 1972 Olympics, and even completely rebuilding the Flavian Amphitheater, the legendary Roman Colosseum.
In the end, Italian intervention, albeit light, did not stop Greece from achieving its goals. By 1973, it was in control of the relatively intact industrial base of Macedonia. For two decades, Macedonia managed to avoid much of the Balkan Wars, mostly because it was a primary arms manufacturer in the region. This became doubly important following embargos and sanctions against the various states in the region. Greece had little to no interest in supplying any of its northern neighbors, and instead used the industrial pygmy to help rebuild its own country. Greece joined the United Nations in 1976, the first of the Balkan states to do so. Hungary followed in 1979.
Assassination
On January 17, 1979, Joseph Tito, the General-Secretary of the Balkan Union, was scheduled to give a speech outlining his new Five Year Plan in Sarejavo. The plan called for the completion of the public works and repair to the regions’ damaged roads and rails, along with expanding the production of consumer products. He was to speak in front of the Sarejavo Copper Works, a state-ran business that once produced copper plating and wiring, but was not retooled to produced cooking ware and hand tools.
His speech was not to be. At 9:16, only fourteen minutes before he was scheduled to make his appearance, Tito worked his way through the crowds outside of the factory. Though many of the International Brotherhood of Workers claimed to be ‘of the people’, Tito was truly the People’s General-Secretary. When he encountered one Pavel Minkail, he offered his hand and called the man comrade. In return, Minkail produced an Austrian-era pistol and fired three shots into Tito. The first two shots missed anything vital but the third shot entered his chest and ripped through his heart. Tito died only minutes later, while his personal guards and some of the local workers tried to get him to medical attention. As for the assassin, the instant he fired off his rounds, three of Tito’s guards drew their own weapons and gunned him down. Tragically, not all shots found their target in the crowd, and two other workers were wounded.
Tito’s death rippled across the Third Balkan Union. Days after his assassination, senior members of the IBW began fighting for control of the Party and the Union. It was not open civil war, but two of Tito’s senior party allies did vanish, and neither was Croatian. By November of 1979, Croatian Statesman Andre Marik was in control. He placed fellow Croatians in key positions in the government and military. Non-Croatian Generals were purged from the service. In response, the Union began to fracture. It began with Albania withdrawing in January of 1980, followed by Wallachia in March. Wallachia did not so much as secede as it was taken control of from within by the Ceausescu Junta. By April, the Third Union was dissolved, and Croatian forced moved to occupy Bosnia while Albania split.
The Romanian Empire
On January 7, 1980, the Romanian Nation was founded by a military junta commanded by Nicolae Ceausescu. Romania was first established by simultaneous coups in Transylvania and Moldova. The Romanian National Front was a nationalistic movement with occult undertones. The society saw the Romanian people as the lost children of Rome and Byzantium. They also traced their alleged roots back to mythological times, and had racial views not unlike the National Socialists of forty year earlier. The fact that the original Roman genes had long since been replaced by genetic Slavs did not even factor into their racial superiority dogma.
A third state was added to Nation when Wallachia seceded from the Balkan Union, following a pro-Ceausescu coup. On May 8, 1980, the three states, under the same guiding hand signed the Treaty of Unification, establishing Romania as a state. The state was not to be a socialist republic, or any republic at all. Ceausescu saw himself as Caesar reincarnate, and on June 19, he declared himself Tsar Nicolae of the Romanian Empire. It was the first monarchy to be established since the Habsburgs took the throne of a restored Austria.
Romanian plans for empire were evident from the beginning. On February 14, 1981, the Romanians Army, with the Tsar in personal command, invaded Bulgaria. Factions sympathetic to Romanian goals did exist within the Bulgarian government, and even moved to press for union with the new state. The vote did pass Bulgaria’s lower chamber of parliament, but was blocked by the upper chamber. When the Romanians crossed the border, they would cross as liberators, freeing the people from the tyranny of the minority.
Romania’s invasion of Bulgaria has to be the most bloodless conquest of the Balkan Wars. For the most part, the Bulgarian Army did not resist and their Air Force remained grounded. Romanian infantry marched into Sofia on February 20. It is now known that a Fifth Column was planted the year before by Ceausescu and his followers. Many in the government were appointed by a pro-unification president. When the Romanians crossed the border, no orders were issued calling for the Army to fight.
It soon became clear that it was indeed a Tyranny of the Minority. However, it was not in Romania’s favor. The minority were the pro-unification faction. The bulk of Bulgaria’s masses were against Romanian occupation. The Tsar had hoped to add Bulgaria’s industrial capacity to his own, but wide-scale strikes broke out in late 1981, that brought the Bulgarian economy to a halt. When the Tsar attempted to use his army to end the strikes, full scale rioting engulfed Sofia for three days. It was only after additional army units were flown in from Romania that the rioters were dispersed, and an addition week was required to extinguish the fires.
Strikes continued into 1982 and 1983. Ceausescu was forced to import Romanian workers to take over the industry, causing a worker shortage within his own kingdom. By 1984, Romania’s position in Bulgaria was no longer practical to hold. The Tsar had some concerns about other Romanian state attempting to secede, but with enough of his own people in position, Romania remained united. By June 29, 1984, the last of the Romanian soldiers left Bulgaria, and it was "granted" its independence from Bucharest.
The occupation of Bulgaria put severe strains on the Romanian economy. Ceausescu worried that the withdrawal might be seen as a weakness and exploited by his neighbors. Over the next five years, the annual budget for the Romanian Military rose to 37% of Romania’s income. The Tsar began to show signs of mental instability in 1987, when he declared before parliament that not only would Romania have an army to rival Greece, but it shall have one to rival even Sweden. As Army and Air Force grew, civilian spending power declined. By 1989, the last year of the Empire, more than forty percent of the nation’s inhabitants lived below the poverty level. Food and supply shortages popped up in every city, and the nation’s children began to go hungry.
The final straw came in October of 1989. With deficit spending at its end, the Tsar began to make cuts to support his bloated army. Cuts from education, healthcare and unemployment. To this, the people of Bucharest rose up and stormed the palace with the same force as the French had in 1789. Fighting broke out across Bucharest, with Ceausescu’s diehard supports fighting elements of the army that would rather see him deposed. His madness over the previous two years prompted many in the higher levels of the military to begin plotting his downfall. They feared that with all his spending on the army, that the Tsar might actually be foolhardy enough to start a war with Greece, or God forbid, Sweden. In either case, the international community would be against them, and in the end Romania would lose. A defeat would spell the end of the new unified nations.
On October 8, the fighting in the palace was over, when General Michael Romani captured the Tsar and put him before an impromptu people’s court. After finding him guilty of treason against the people in a half-hour trial, Ceausescu was taken into the courtyard and shot. Several more executions followed, including the murder of his sons and heirs. The next month filled Romania with the 20th Century pastime in the Balkans; endless purges. By December, the monarchy was abolished and a military dictatorship installed until such time as elections can be arranged. This period lasted until Romania joined the Fourth Balkan Union. They applied for admission on the last day of 1989.
The Serbian Empire
Romania was not the only country with dreams of empire. Once again, Serbia rose up and took notice at her neighbor’s lands. As a rule of thumb in Balkan regional dynamics, it appears mandatory for Serbia to grab the land around her once per decade. However, Serbia did not start out to become a monarchy. Instead, this empire was ruled by the Communist Party of Serbia with goals of a Greater Serbia. No longer did Serbia desire, nor contain the ability to, rule all of the Balkans.
The Unification of the Serbian people began in 1982, with Serbia’s intervention in the growing Bosnian Civil War. By the 1980s, the ethnic distribution of Bosnia was divided sharply, with the Serbs living in the provinces bordering Serbia. Croats attempt at taking total control of the country forced a stream of Serb refugees to flood into Serbia. The humanitarian plight was just the justification Belgrade required to invade Bosnia without turning the international community against them. Though it was not as if Serbia required either justification or support. For once its invasion of Bosnia was not condemned.
For two years, Serbia pressed its way into Bosnia, and once again the country was torn apart by warfare. Croatia pressed back against Serbian advances, retaking city’s occupied by the Serbians, and lashing out against the populace. In the case of Banja Luka, retaken by Croats on May 19, 1985, the Croats executed hundreds of Serbs and Bosniaks. Among the dead were dozens of Croats declared collaborators. When the town was again taken back by Serbia, on July 25, the atrocity was exposed to the world.
In response to the massacre, Belgrade decided to take a more direct approach to the Croat problem. On August 29, two divisions of the Serbian Army crossed the border into eastern Croatia. For three years Croatia and Serbia fought along a static front. The war would have continued to this day, if not for the fall of the Croatian government. Milan Kucan, follower of Tito back in the 1970s, lead a coalition that came to power in Zagreb. Peace talks between Croatia and Serbia lead to a division of Bosnia that exists to this day.
The Treaty of Split effectively partitioned Bosnia. The Serbian portion of the country was fully integrated into Greater Serbia. After 1993, when Serbian Premier Slobodan Milosevic staged a coup against the parliament and declared himself Emperor, or Tsar of Serbia, Serbia began a full scale effort to expel not on Bosniak and Croats, but also all Albanians from the portions of Kosovo under Belgrade’s control. Albania attempted to prevent the expulsion, but to little effect. Serbia of the 1990s was far stronger than the Serbia of the 1970s. The Serbian Empire survived the turn of the century, with Tsar Slobodan still in power as of 2009. The part of Bosnia under Croatia’s control accepted the Bosniak refugees and became the cornerstone of the Fourth Balkan Union.
The Fourth Union
The current incarnation of the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics came into life on December 8, 1988, when Croatia, Bosnia and free Montenegro signed the Zagreb Accords. Bulgaria ratified the Accords on December 19, becoming the fourth member. Following the toppling of Ceausescu from the throne, Romania joined the new Union in 1989. Romania’s revolution and ascension to the Fourth Union often marks the end of the Balkan Wars. The 1990s, despite ethnic cleansing in Greater Serbia, was the first regional peace in fifty years. The Balkan Union also acts as an effective counter to the Serbian Empire, forcing a balance of power in the Balkans.
With peace, albeit a cold peace, in effect, the Balkan Union began rebuilding once again. This time, the outside world took an interest in the Union, despite it being a communist state. China, under the People’s Dynasty, is the biggest investor in the Union, followed by Sweden and Italy in a distant third. In 1994, Greece hosted a general peace conference for all the Balkan states. The Athens Pact, negotiated over a five month period, finally settled borders between all the Balkan states. The Pact also guarantees the movement of ethnicities out of states where they are majority and into their ethnic homelands. This last piece was inserted by Serbia as a condition for them to sign. It also permits their acts of purification in a legal sense.
The Balkan Union became the third of the Balkan States, after Greece and Hungary, to join the United Nations in 1996. As per Union wishes, a UN peace-keeping force of five thousand international soldiers patrol the border with Serbia. Even a company of Austrian soldiers were welcomed by General-Secretary Kucan personally. The Austrian tour of duty lasted between 1998-99, with no repeat to this date. For the most part, the peacekeepers consisted of UN members without power projections; such as Kurdistan, Chile and even Vietnam.
Foreign investment within the Balkan Union has risen to twelve billion dollars by 2005, with much of it going into developing the Ploesti oil fields, which suffered from lack of proper maintenance during the Empire-era in Romania. Further investment rebuilt the roads in Croatia and Bosnia. France and Britain signed free trade agreements with the communist state, and began to outsource some of their industries to the cheaper labor of the Balkan Union. The I.B.W. appreciated the irony of the ‘capitalist fat cats’ own greed being used to power the Worker’s State’. The Balkan Union even hammered out an agreement with the VOC, for use of the Union’s Black Sea ports in exchange for technical support and modernizing facilities on the Romanian and Bulgarian coasts. The VOC uses these new ports as a base to protect the oil flowing out of Armenia.
The Balkan Union’s future remains uncertain. Despite two decades of peace, the concentration of ethnicities in ethnic homelands could still tear the Union apart. Attempts to expand the Union have thus far failed. Kucan extended membership offers to Hungary, Albania and even Greece. In response, Tsar Slobodan accused Kucan of attempting to surround Serbia, and such an arrangement would not be tolerated by Greater Serbia. Some say a war between the Union and Serbia during the 21st Century is inevitable; only time will tell.

[The Kiat]

Here's a map of the Aegean Sea and Eastern Med circa 1990.

[The Kiat]

A far better map of the world in 1920. Almost publish worthy.

[The Kiat]

I present the world as it would appear in 1946, following World War II's conclusion.

[The Kiat]

Now here is what the modern world looks like.

[The Kiat]

:o Oops, looks like I didn't color in all the islands I was suppose to on the map above. :o

Well, here's another modern uniform I slapped together: the Dutch Commonwealth Air Force.

[The Kiat]

And the Dutch Commonwealth Navy.

[The Kiat]

I'd like to make an amendment to the Maurice I class battleship. I've re-worked the rate of fire for the chain guns to be closer to 200 rounds/minute. And that is two turrets with two chain guns. 800 200mm shells in one minute, a lot of hurt. And now, I present the AHN's version of the American super carrier (Nimitz class).

Gettysburg Class Carrier
Introduced: 1983
Built: 7
Power: Nuclear
Ships: Gettysburg, Maui Strait, Yorktown, Valcour Bay, Franklin Roosevelt, James Dean, Dwight Eisenhower
The Gettysburg class CVN is basically the Nimitz equivalent in the Alternate History of the Netherlands Universe. It has the same aircraft compliment, same crew, same engines, same dimensions. It does, however, have addition point defense.

[Snowman23]

Are the USA and United Provinces allied like OTL US and UK?

[The Kiat]

Are the USA and United Provinces allied like OTL US and UK?


The Dutch Commonwealth has a common foreign policy. It's kind of like an imperial federation. Officially, the Dutch Commonwealth is neutral. This stems from the Anglo-Dutch alliance that started with the marriage of William III to Princess Mary and ended with the American Revolution. The English/British kept going to war with France and dragging the Dutch into it. Since then, the Dutch have decided neutrality is good for business.

Historically, the United Provinces, and later the Dutch Commonwealth have had close trade relations with the US. It's kind of a favored nation status. The Dutch did declare was on the Entante during the Great War, but did not ally with the Central Powers. Again, the Dutch cooperated with Americans, Germans and British in defeating a common foe during WWII. There was even a joint DC-US liberation of Formosa and invasion of Okinawa. Now the United States' only steady ally is the German Empire, and they have a non-aggro treaty of peace with the British. And there are no international alliances like NATO in the AHN Universe.

So to give you the short answer; no, the Dutch Commonwealth is not allied with anybody. They are sufficiantly powerful enough, and have a large enough control over oceanic commerce that they don't need to.

[The Kiat]

Java Class Guided Missile Cruiser
Type: CGN
Manufacturer: Raj Iron Works
Crew: 450
Produced: 1963
Power: Two Nuclear Reactors
Range: Unlimited
Armaments: 1 x 150mm turret
1 x 2 Forward ASM launcher
2 Anti-Sub missiles
4 Ground Attack missiles
3 x 2 SAM
2 PDS
Speed: 56 kps
Cost: 200 min Guilders (1963 price)
Ships: Java, Flores, Delft, van der Weld, Recife, Natal, Taipei, Mumbai, Griffon
The Java class cruiser was the first of the Dutch Commonwealth Navy’s ships to be nuclear powered. During the early 1960s, the Naval High Command had a desire for an all nuclear navy to match the American and Swedish programs of the late 1950s. However, the pursuit of nuclear power proved to be excessively costly. Eventually, it was determined that no advantage stemmed from having nuclear powered cruisers and destroyers, and subsequent generations reverted to gas turbines for lower cost maintenance. In the 21st Century, only carriers and all submarines are nuclear powered.
The Java class cruisers saw little action in warfare. Only the Natal ever fired its weapons in anger. During a patrol of the Aegean Sea, the Natal and three destroyers intercepted pirates, destroying them. Then located the pirate base and destroyed it in a joint-operation with the Greek Navy. During the 1970s, conventional CG were designed to replace the Javas, and the last was retired in 1989.

[The Kiat]

At the moment, I can't decide if I want to write chapters on the VOC, the Great War, or create a future chapter of the main AHN book (something like 2000-2090). Any suggestions? Until I figure that out, I'll keep adding little tidbits I think up.

George Washington Class CV
Built: 15
Served: 1942-1960s
Ships: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Abe Lincoln, James Monroe, Teddy Roosevelt, Benedict Arnold, Essex, Intrepid, Zachary Taylor, Tennessee River, Lexington II, Fredericksburg, Everett, Grover Cleveland

The George Washington class CV is the AHN Universe’s equivalent of the Essex class carriers of World War II. They served in the Pacific against the Japanese, not losing a single ship during the war. However, the Abe Lincoln was severely damaged by Kamikaze during the landings on Formosa, and the T.R. was crippled during the Battle of Okinawa. Both ships were repaired and returned to service following Japan’s surrender. The ships were retired during the 1960s, half were sold as scrap, the G. Washington and Everett serve as museum ships while the B. Arnold and Tenn. River were both used as target practice, research by the USN to find weak points in the design and improve upon naval architecture and engineering. True to her name, the Arnold took several hits from anti-ship missiles and sub launched torpedoes before finally sinking in the Bahamas. Today, the wreck is visited by scuba divers from around the world (despite dangers of UXO) and is one of the largest artificial coral reefs yet made.

[Hanzo]

Future chapter FTW!
Also, lol'd at Crimean state without the actual Crimea anymore. Wonder how long that'll last...also Serbia is surrounded! Quite the paradox to otl communism in the Balkans, I like it :D

[The Kiat]

Future chapter FTW!
Also, lol'd at Crimean state without the actual Crimea anymore. Wonder how long that'll last...also Serbia is surrounded! Quite the paradox to otl communism in the Balkans, I like it :D


Yeah, Crimea; see what happens when you don't play nice with the Swedes? I suppose it could become a failed state, or join the new Balkan Union. As for Serbia.. they had the habit of waging wars on their neighbors, so their neighbors continues to band together, again and again.

As for future chapters.. they'd be future history, but with the PoD before 1900. Ah, the legalese is going to drive me mad...der.

[The Kiat]

King William VI class BattleCruiser

Type:BC
Manufacturer: VOC Yards
Crew: 1,500
Produced: 1951
Built: 5
Power: Diesel
Range: 13,000 km
Armaments: 3 x3 300 mm guns
10 x 2 150 mm secondaries (removed)
2 PDS
16 ASM
16 Ground Attack Missiles
8 SAM
Speed: 60 kph
Cost: 100 min Guilders
Ships: King William VI, Prinz van Oranje, Majesty, Queen Juliana, Princess of Java

The King William VI class battlecruisers were the last big gun ships built by the Dutch Commonwealth. The ships were designed just following World War II, and the engineers did not take into account new technologies. The battlecruisers were equipped with a formidable array of AAA and excellent radar-controlled gunnery. Just how obsolete these ships were was not fully understood until the mid 1950s, when guided-missile ships began to come on line, and could sink big gun ships well over the horizon. The King William VI class was refitted during the 1960s. The secondary guns were removed and replaced with anti-ship missiles as well as cruise missiles capable of hitting targets well inland. The ships were replaced during the first decade of the 2000s by the new
King Maurice I class BBG.

[The Kiat]

Half-moon class Guided Missile Battleship

Type: BBGN
Manufacturer: Royal Arsenal
Crew: 920
Produced: 1974
Built: 2
Power: 2 nuclear reactors
Range: Unlimited
Armament: 48 VLS
4 SLCM
8 ASR
6 PDS
24 SAM
Speed: 53 kph
Cost: 800 min Guilders
Ships: Half-moon, King William III

The Half-moon class was the first all-missile ships produced by the Dutch Commonwealth. They are also the only battleships in the DCN to be nuclear powered. These reactors are so costly and time consuming to maintain, that only two of the ships were ever built. These are slated to be replaced some time in the 2020s. The ships have yet to see any combat, and usually serve as flag ships for tasks forces and fleets. The ships themselves have proven to be technological flops. Aside from being costly to maintain, they do not add much speed (and are in fact, slower than some conventionally powered ships). Lack of guns is criticized by the traditionally minded DCN, mostly because in their view battleships should have at least one turret. This lead to the development of high caliber chain guns for the next generation of BBG.

[The Kiat]

Admission to the Union

1) Delaware (DE): 12/7/1787
2) Pennsylvania (PE): 12/12/87
3) Connecticut (CT): 12/18/87
4) Georgia (GE): 1/2/88 (12/15/1952)
5) Massachusetts (MA): 2/6/88
6) New Hampshire (NH): 3/9/88
7) Maryland (MD): 4/28/88
8) South Carolina (SC): 5/23/88 (7/13/1947)
9) Virginia (VI): 6/25/88 (12/6/1946)
10) North Carolina (NC): 12/21/89 (6/13/1952)
11) Rhode Island (RI): 5/29/90
12) Vermont (VT): 3/3/91
13) Iroquois (IQ): 11/15/91
14) Kentucky (KY): 6/1/92 (4/7/1926)
15) Tennessee (TN): 6/1/93 (4/5/1953)
16) Ohio (OH): 3/1/1800
17) Louisiana (LO): 4/30/12 (10/10/1955)
18) Indiana (IN): 12/11/16
19) Mississippi (MS): 12/10/17 (6/14/1958)
20) Illinois (IL): 12/3/18
21) Alabama (AL): 12/14/19 (6/14/1958)
22) Maine (ME): 3/15/20
23) Missouri (MR): 8/10/21
24) New Amsterdam (NA.): 10/18/24
25) Arkansas (AK): 6/15/36 (2/15/1949)
26) Michigan (MI): 1/27/37
27) Florida (FL): 3/3/45 (5/12/1948)
28) Texas (TX): 12/29/45 (12/29/1951)
29) Iowa (IO): 12/28/46
30) Wisconsin (WI): 5/29/48
31) California (CA): 9/9/50
32) Cuba (CU): 7/14/52 (7/18/1919)
33) Sonora (SO): 6/6/54 (8/21/1949)
34) Chihuahua (CH): 5/5/55 (7/17/1950)
35) Minnesota (MN): 5/11/58
36) Oregon (OR): 2/14/59
37) Kansas (KS): 1/29/61
38) Durango (DU): 6/7/62 (12/26/1919)
39) Nevada (NV): 4/12/64
40) Nebraska (NB): 3/1/68
41) Costa Rica (CR): 8/12/69
42) Colorado (CD): 8/1/76
43) Lakoda (LK): 11/2/89
44) Montana (MO): 11/8/89
45) Washington (WA): 11/11/89
46) Idaho (ID): 7/4/90
47) Wyoming (WY): 7/10/90
48) Utah (UT): 1/4/96
49) Lincoln (LN): 12/15/1921
50) Jefferson (JE): 7/22/23
51) Cascadia (CS): 8/15/33
52) Oklahoma (OK): 12/7/51
53) Arizona (AZ): 1/30/59

Territories
53) Oahu (OA)
54) Bahamas (BA)
55) Marianas (MX)

State (Postal Code): Admission (readmission)

[The Kiat]

Short Bio- ‘Duke’ Morrison
Born Marion Morrison in Winerset, Iowa, on May 26, 1907, Duke Morrison was to become the hardest fighting Marine Corps General to come out of World War II. The nickname Duke came from his childhood in California with a dog named Duke. When walking his dog, Morrison often passed a firehouse, were the firefighters called the dog Little Duke, and Morrison Big Duke. Given the lack of manliness attributed to Marion, Duke Morrison seldom used his given name. Morrison was an athletic youth, spending his years in High School playing football. He applied and was accepted to the United States Naval Academy in Baltimore in 1925. He spent his years at the Academy playing football as well, on the winning team in three out of four Army-Navy games. Morrison graduated and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the Marine Corps.
Morrison made Captain in 1933 during his tour of duty in Grand Colombia. He received the Bronze Star for his actions in a skirmish between a Marine patrol and Venezuelan Rebels, where he braved machine gun fire to drag a wounded comrade to safety. He served two more tours during 1934 and 1936. Morrison was a Lieutenant Colonel in 1940. He was based on Cuba and was the XO for the 4th Marine (Brigade) of the 2nd Marine Division. Rapid promotion during the 1930s came through his natural leadership skill and personal courage during combat. With war looming, a shortage of high ranking personnel prompted his promotion.
Through most of 1940, Morrison and the 4th Marines fought the Confederate invaders in a guerilla war across the interior of the State of Cuba. Following the initial invasion of Cuba, Morrison took over command of the 4th after the regiment's CO was killed in action. They managed to delay and frustrate Confederate Marine General Holland ‘Howling Mad’ Smith until reinforcements under Brigadier General Eisenhower reached the island. Months after Holland surrendered, on March 20, 1941, Morrison, and the whole 2nd Marine Division took part in Operation Overlord, the invasion of the Confederate Gulf Coast.
Upon the Confederate Surrender, Morrison was promoted to Colonel and given command of the 9th Marines. He and his unit were transferred to the Pacific and took part in the Hawaiian Island campaign. The 9th fought on Oahu, Maui and took part in the invasion of Hawaii, assisting the Mauians and Kauaians in taking Kona. Following the Hawaiian Islands, the 9th took part in liberating Wake. The Battle of Wake was a four day slugfest where virtually the entire 3,000 man garrison was wiped out at the cost of five thousand Marine casualties. Among them was Morrison, who received a Purple Heart for the shrapnel wound his received in the shoulder.
Morrison spent several weeks recovering. He was promoted to Brigadier General in 1944, and given command of the 5th Marine Division in time for the invasion of Formosa. The 5th Marine Division took 40% casualties trying to pry the Japanese out of a network of caves and bunkers the Japanese built to hold the island. Morrison was nearly killed when a sniper’s bullet grazed his helmet. Following the Liberation of Formosa, Morrison began training his division for the upcoming invasion of Japan. Given the loses on Formosa, Morrison was no optimistic about the invasion, or living to see victory. That was rendered mute in August of 1945 when Japan surrendered.
Morrison continued to command the 5th Marine Division during its tour of occupation on Kyushu. In 1948, he was pointed commandant of the new USMC base on Hilton Head, South Carolina. Hilton Head was home to a CSMC base, taken over by the United States after the Confederacy surrendered. Morrison fought hard against the decision by Truman to integrate the militaries of the United States and the former Confederacy. His quest to keep Southerners out of "his Corps" nearly cost him his career.
When Eisenhower was elected in 1952, he named Morrison to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. There, Morrison served as advisor to Ike for most of his presidency. Morrison retired from the Corps in 1959, after thirty years of service to his country. He retired to his childhood home in California, living out the remainder of his days, occasionally acting as a consultant to Hollywood studios on various war movies produced during the early 1960s. Morrison died on July 1, 1964, after a year long struggle against lung cancer. Morrison was an avid smoker, and even during treatment he refused to kick the habit.

[The Kiat]

Another short biography, this time James Dean.

Short Bio- James Dean

James Dean, the 37th President of the United States, was born on February 8, 1931 in Marion, Indiana. His family moved to the Los Angeles area of California during Dean’s childhood. In 1948, Dean enrolled at the Santa Monica College, majoring in law. A year later, he transferred to UCLA, where he began to study drama as well. So enthralled was he by acting, Dean dropped out of college in 1951 to pursue acting as a full-time career. He played bit parts from 1952 to 1954, when he was cast in the staring role of Rebel without a Cause, the classic war movie from MGM about Confederate holdouts after the C.S.A. surrendered. Dean played one Lieutenant Stanford, who, along with the 71st Mountaineers were charged with rooting out all Confederate resistance.
Other starring roles were in East of Eden, All’s Quiet on the Ohio Front, and Long Road to Gettysburg, where he played the part of Steven Chamberlain, a sergeant whose squad held off a Confederate charge up Little Round Top. Dean was nominated for an Oscar for his roll, but failed to win. This was his last staring role, for in 1963 he took up direction. In 1958, he married his long time on-again, off-again girlfriend, Angela Pier. Dean’s career in directing was short. His switch came because he grew tired of being jerked around the set like a puppet.
The turmoil of the 1960s, and especially the Great Society. Dean was always a nationalist at heart, like most Americans who were old enough to remember a time before Restoration. The fact that the Socialists were opening the borders to all comers galvanized Dean into politics. He was elected mayor of his hometown of Cholame, California in 1966. He joined the Progressive Party, who welcomed him with open arms. The Progressives are the most nationalistic of America’s parties and Dean’s movie roles of the staunch American battling the Confederate only caused his appeal to grow.
In 1970, he was elected to the State Assembly in Sacramento as a Progressive. He served one term before running for Congress in 1974, and winning. In the House of Representatives, Dean was one of the most outspoken Progressive, constantly butting heads with the establishment. Many Socialists and even some Democrats often referred to Dean as a ‘Rebel without a Clue’. Dean’s call for the Federal Government to take care of Americans first, last and only rang true with much of the population, who were tired after a decade of increased crime (much of which was linked to the drug trade). He declared that the Socialists cared more about appeasing foreigners than keeping America American. He declared the Democrats were more interested in helping their corporate buddies make a quick buck than in keeping Americans employed.
In 1976, James Dean ran for President under the Progressive Party. He fought a hard primary against his major contender, Walter Forwell, a twenty-year veteran of Congress. Dean constantly pointed out that Forwell was in Congress for twenty years, and has not changed a thing. He clinched the primary during the debate in Milwaukee, where he gave his famous ‘Neighborhood’ speech. In that speech he told the voters about the neighborhood where he grew up, about neighborhoods were all honest and loyal Americans grew up. Then he gave accounts of the inner-city neighborhoods of Los Angeles, Houston and Port Sinoloa, where drug dealers and Cartel men would move into nice, suburban neighborhoods, and be followed by the gangs, the muggers, vagrants. How the policies of the Socialists and Democrats were causing a rot, a cancer in the heart of America.
He took this same message with him during the general election. The Socialist candidate, Martin Freeman, was a non-contender. Nixon was Dean’s main opponent, and Dean blew him wide open with accusations of selling out America’s future so his corporate masters can rake in higher profits from cheaper labor. The election was close, with the entire south going Democrat. The Socialists carried New England. Dean managed to squeak by with 300 electoral votes, becoming the 37th President of the United States. After being sworn in, his first act was to draw up an executive order ordering police, local, state and federal, to remove all the illegal immigrants from American Territory. He was even ready to use the Army if need be.
With a Progressive Majority in Congress, Dean managed to push through a bill that closed America to immigration until 2007, thirty years hence. The closing of borders was justified to allow America to turn the new immigrants into Americans. Several protests from Mexico and its Embassy were rebuffed by Dean, often with insults being exchanged. Relations between the United States and post-colonial Mexico reached a new low on August 12, 1978, when a corrupt platoon of the Mexican Army escorted drug runners across the border in Durango. During the night, they exchanged fire with border patrol. The U.S. Army responded to the attack, and all but wiped out the drug convoy at the cost of two dead soldiers. Dean stood before Congress two days later, saying that "American blood has been spilled on American soil", and called for Congress to declare a state of war with Mexico.
The Declaration was defeated, but this did not stop Dean. Since the Army was attacked within the border, he believed himself well within his Constitutional rights to send the Army and Marines in anyway. During late ‘78 and ‘79, the United States smashed Mexico’s military and set up a policing zone some one hundred miles inside of Mexico’s borders. Within these borders, the Cartels were almost killed to the last man. Very few escaped as the Drug Cartels and Militias were not part of the Mexican state, and thus no surrender was excepted. Many Mexican soldiers did surrender, just to escape the corruption from within their own society. With the border closed, and no outlet for dissent, Mexico was plunged into civil war shortly afterwards. Ironically, the policing zone proved to be the safest place within Mexico during the 1980s.
Dean’s actions against drugs and Mexico did not go without a response. On March 1, 1980, a surviving member of the Nuevo Leon Cartel, Diaz Santos, gunned down James Dean during a Progressive Party rally in San Diego. The assassin was killed by the Secret Service and Dean was rushed to the hospital, where he was declared Dead on Arrival. James Dean was the second American President to be assassinated. His death sparked an outlash from the average citizen against Mexico and all things Mexican. Hundreds of thousands of legal Mexicans within the United States fled south to escape the violence against them. This same backlash also cost the Progressive Party the White House in the 1980 election.

[The Kiat]

Another short bio, this one about a Dutch hero.

Short Bio- Ernst van Bohr
Little is known about the early years of one of the United Provinces’ most famous and celebrated admiral. He was born in the year 1561, though which month is not clear, and was born in Utrecht. The earliest records of van Bohr came when he was recorded as a sailor on board a Dutch ship at the age of 16. Most of his life was spent on the seas, either as a privateer or a sailor within the Dutch navy.
In 1588, he commanded one of the Dutch ships during the engagement with the Spanish Armada. During the battle, Bohr earned the reputation as a reckless leader, willing to throw himself into the line of fire to obtain victory. Unlike many Dutch, Bohr had little interest in business. He lacked the patience to gradually earn wealth, and preferred the gloriesof conquest over the subtleties of trade.
By 1602, Bohr rose to the rank of Admiral, commanding 18 ships, led a raid on Aviliz, on
the Spanish mainland. For twelve days, his sailors and marines occupied the Spanish port. Bohr resupplied his fleet courtesy of the Spanish, and pillaged anything of worth not nailed down. Bohr’s biggest acclaim to fame was as Conqueror of Brazil. In 1604, he landed eighteen hundred men in the Brazilian port of Salvador. No resistance to speak of was offered, and the only combat within the town came from a lone colonist mistaking patrolling Dutch for game. After assembling his force in Salvador, Bohr threw off his admiral’s hat and took up the mantle of general. He lead his small army towards Recife, to battle the Portuguese garrison stationed there.
The Battle of Recife, future capital of Brazil, occurred on May 8, 1604. Bohr now lead only
one thousand men. Five hundred were left to hold Salvador, while nearly three hundred already succumbed to tropical disease. Portugal mustered only a few hundred colonial militia to combat a
vastly larger invasion fort. Bohr’s five cannon helped decide the outcome before the battle even began. Militia charged into a volley of fire, falling before they could come into range of sword.
Bohr wasted no time in fortifying his new conquests. Months passed before word of the fall of Recife reached the Iberian Peninsula. A small armada of thirty-one ships and three thousand men were assembled in Seville, with the explicit goal of eliminating Ernst van Bohr. In early 1605, the Spanish and Portuguese set sail for Brazil, meeting the Dutch fleet off the coast of Natal. Unlike the much larger battle with the Spanish Armada, the Battle of Natal ended far more decisively. Twenty-seven Dutch ships encountered thirty-one ships early in the morning of March 15, 1605. After a two day battle, the Dutch all but destroyed the combined fleet. Bohr proved once again a master admiral, while the Spanish and Portuguese failed to achieve any cohesion. Using one of the oldest strategies in the book, Bohr managed to divide the enemy fleet, and destroy it a few ships at a time. In the end, the only reason any Spanish ships escaped was due to exhaustion of ammunition and powder on the Dutch side.
Following the Conquest of Brazil and Netherlander independence, the Staaten-General bestowed on van Bohr the title of Count of Natal, with estates to go with it. After decades in war, van Bohr finally retired from the navy to his plantation and duties as count. He took control of his county in 1612. It was as the Count of Natal that van Bohr earned a dark blight on his reputation. He requisitioned land from the dispossessed Portuguese colonists, and other property; chiefly slaves. His ownership of nearly a thousand slaves to work his sugar plantation has brought him under much critcism as of late. He lived twelve more years as count, before dying in 1623. His title and lands were inherited by his eldest son, Maarten.

[The Kiat]

A little something about the American Theater of World War II.

Operation Overlord

On March 20, 1941, Operation Overlord was initiated, when one hundred thousand soldiers, under the command of General Eisenhower, landed on the Gulf Coast between Mobile and Tallahassee. The primary objective of Overlord was to secure the ports of Pensacola and Mobile, to allow addition forces to land. After the cities fell, a week into the fight, a rapid advance on Confederate Highway 10 to Jacksonville succeeded in cutting Florida off from the rest of the nation. The genesis of Operation Overlord came at the very start of the war, when Confederate General George Patton was tearing up the Maryland countryside. To turn the tide, the Joint Chiefs believed that a second front must be established far to the south of Patton.
The choice for the Gulf Coast was not the most obvious choice. Hitting the Carolinas from bases in the Bahamas would have had the same effect. However, such an attack was obvious, and defenses were far more formidable. The option to strike at the ‘Soft Underbelly of the Confederacy’ was made in June of 1940, and planning the invasion would fall to a Brigadier General named Dwight Eisenhower. At the time, Ike, as he is affectionately known, was rushing to Cuba to bolster defenses there and to defeat Holland Smith’s invasion force. Once Cuba was freed from Confederate occupation, addition American forces were funneled down south.
At first, it was not known if such an invasion would be needed. After the Battle of Gettysburg, Patton’s army was in a slow but steady retreat. The Americans would win the war, it was only a matter of time. But with war raging in Europe and the Pacific, President Roosevelt demanded the Confederates be beaten for good, and as expediently as possible. By January of 1941, the 101st Airborne Division (the famous Warbling Turkeys) along with 17th, 21st, and 8th Infantry Divisions had already joined the 2nd Marine Division in training for the amphibious invasion. Ike chose Pensacola as a primary objective because of its port facilities, as well as Mobile because of the Confederate Navy’s remaining assets holed up there. Southern Florida was out of the question, since it was mostly uninhabited, and New Orleans was too far of a stretch to risk a cut supply line.
The invasion port departed from Havana on March 17. With one hundred thousand soldiers and their transports came seven battleships, three carriers, sixteen cruisers and thirty destroyers, plus hundreds of frigates, corvettes, mind sweepers and other auxiliary craft. On the night of March 19, the 101st took off from airbases in Cuba and were dropped behind the invasion beaches in southern Florida and Alabama. Their goal was to secure several key points on Confederate Highway 10, and to prevent Confederate reinforcements from hampering the landings.
Reaching the coast was the easy part, and the transports had total surprise on their side. Blackouts were only imposed in the two cities and all along the coast. Twenty kilometers in land, and there might as well not even be a war waging. Confederate AAA was slow in catching on, but fifteen minutes after the first paratroopers had landed, the sky was aflame with flak and tracers. Many transports were too badly damaged to return to Cuba, and a few even managed to land on the highway.
The invasion struck the Confederacy as a total surprise. No Confederate plans ever existed to battle an invasion of their Gulf Coast. Apparently the Bund believed their navy would thwart any such attempt. When the fleet came within range of the coast at 0300 on March 20, they let loose a bombardment that lasted for three hours. The three carriers, Valcour Bay, Lexington and Yorktown provided sufficient combat air patrols to thwart the few Confederate bombers that tried to hamper the invasion. Battleships California, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Utah, Idaho, Lakoda and Indiana ceased firing at 0600. They would remain with the rest of the fleet to provide artillery support for the invasion.
At 0600, three division set out to their respective beaches. The 21st Division landed on the western most beach, code-named Coffee, and began their drive towards Mobile with minimal resistance. On the middle beach, code-named Cocoa, the 17th Division met serious resistance along the beaches from a few Confederate Marine units, as well as local wielding hunting rifles. Various local private militias went out to meet the 17th on Cocoa Beach. Out of the five thousand that did, only seven survived. The eastern most beach, code-named Sugar, was taken by the 2nd Marine Division and secured after an hour of fighting local militia. The Marines marched largely unopposed towards Pensacola. The 8th Division was held in reserved, and released at 1100 to Cocoa Beach.
By the next day, all three beaches were secure, and the infantry were moving towards their objectives. The 8th gave aid to the Marines in taking Pensacola, which fell on March 26. The 101st and 17th pushed towards Mobile, which fell a day earlier than Pensacola, but at a much higher cost in men. The USN moved its fleet towards Mobile once the beaches were secure, leaving behind a screening force to defend the beachheads. The battleships of the USN pounded the city, the harbor and what remained of the Confederate Navy from March 22 to 24. Units of the Iroquois Regiment of the 101st captured the Confederate Naval Academy in the late morning hours of March 23, tearing down the Confederate flag and raising Old Glory over the academy. The students put up a valiant effort to defend, but after two hours of fierce fighting, the Commandant decided to spare his students and surrendered the academy.
On March 30, reinforcements over Infantry, Armored and Artillery began disembarking at the two ports. This second front hastened the fall of the Confederacy, but more over taught the Americans about how to operate an amphibious invasion. These same lessons would be used again by Eisenhower during the invasion of North Africa, Spain and of Fortress Europe. Marine Corps landings would be used as template for their amphibious operations against the Japanese. In the eyes of the Marines, the Japanese would put up far fiercer resistance than did the Confederates on March 20, 1941.

[The Kiat]

I'm going to throw a few notes on the Cossacks onto the thread. Cossacks in race cars..:D

Cossacks

The Cossacks became an essential part of the Swedish Army during the Great Northern War, when they sided with Charles XII against Tsar Peter. Upon defeating the Russians and taking the crown for his own, Charles ended serfdom and stripped the bouyars of their lands. The Cossacks were freed, and swore undying loyalty to the Swedish crown. They fought valiantly in the wars of the 18th Century, and against Napoleon in the early 19th Century. The horsemen were cut to pieces during the initial days of the Great War, when attempting to ride forth into German machine gunfire. The Cossacks were relegated to reserves, in the event that a breakthrough allowed cavalry to roll up the lines.
With the changing face of war during and following the Great War, the Cossacks gave up their warhorses for armored cars and tanks. The new Cossack Armored Cavalry fought the Fuhrer Germans and their allies during World War II. Many Ukrainian Cossacks were victims of the National Socialists. After such a massacre was discovered near the Volga, the Cossack General declared that they would retreat not a step further. In disregard to orders, the Cossacks blunted the German drive on the Volga. The General in question did not survive the battle to face disciplinary reactions. Four Cossack Armored Divisions were in the spearhead of the Swede’s counter-offensive, climaxing with the 1st Cossack Armor storming Berlin, and dismounted tankmen raising the Swedish flag over the Reichstag.
Today, the Cossacks still serve the Swedish Crown. All Cossack men volunteer for service, and serve in their respected Armor Division for at least one tour of duty. Horse riding is still popular in the towns on the steppe where the Cossacks live, but mechanized transportation has largely supplanted any applications. Whereas Cossacks could once ride by the time they could walk, they are now able to drive a car by the age of ten, and are adept mechanics. They know their cars and tanks as well as they know their horses. When not at war, the most skilled Cossacks participate in various races around the world, including the Jacksonville 500.
Cossack society is a warrior society. Their communities value bravery, honor and loyalty. One’s honor is so important in Cossack communities, the slightest insult can spark off a feud. They view not taking revenge as weakness, and this sometimes brings them into conflict with Swedish law. Cossacks also have problems when dealing with the more liberal elements of Swedish society, including pacifists. With so little war involving Sweden at the dawn of the 21st Century, there is serious question about keeping Cossack Armored Divisions. What is the point in a warrior society when there are no wars to fight?

[The Kiat]

I have a new map that goes with Chapter 3. It's the Dutch Empire around 1650.

[The Kiat]

A did a little work with exchange rates and came up with this.

Currencies

Dutch Guilder: The currency used by the entire Dutch Commonwealth. 1 Gldr = 1.6 US $
Pound: Used by Britain, Canada and Australia.. 1 Pd = 0.96 US $
Mark: Used by the German Empire, Austria, Denmark and Switzerland. 1 Mk = 0.78 US $
Franc: Used by France, and an assortment of African countries. 1 Fr = 0.60 US $
Krona: Used by Sweden. 1 Kr = 0.83 US $
Lira: Used by the Italian Federation. 1 Lr = 0.32 US $
Dinar: Used by the Arab Republic, UAE, Kurdistan, Kingdom of Arabia and Egypt. Exchange rate varies by country.
Yuan: Used by China, Kamchatka, Korea and Indochina. 1 Yu = 0.01 US $
Yen: Used by Japan. 1 Ye = 0.01 US $

The Dutch Guilder is the common currency of international trade, and the strongest in the world.

[Dathi THorfinnsson]

A did a little work with exchange rates and came up with this.

Currencies

Dutch Guilder: The currency used by the entire Dutch Commonwealth. 1 Gldr = 1.6 US $
Pound: Used by Britain, Canada and Australia.. 1 Pd = 0.96 US $
Mark: Used by the German Empire, Austria, Denmark and Switzerland. 1 Mk = 0.78 US $
Franc: Used by France, and an assortment of African countries. 1 Fr = 0.60 US $
Krona: Used by Sweden. 1 Kr = 0.83 US $
Lira: Used by the Italian Federation. 1 Lr = 0.32 US $
Dinar: Used by the Arab Republic, UAE, Kurdistan, Kingdom of Arabia and Egypt. Exchange rate varies by country.
Yuan: Used by China, Kamchatka, Korea and Indochina. 1 Yu = 0.01 US $
Yen: Used by Japan. 1 Ye = 0.01 US $

The Dutch Guilder is the common currency of international trade, and the strongest in the world.

??? The British pound is LESS than a US dollar? Wow, that's a change.

[The Kiat]

??? The British pound is LESS than a US dollar? Wow, that's a change.


Yeah, in the AHN Universe, the British just weren't the Imperial Giants they were in ours.

[The Kiat]

I can't believe I haven't posted this one yet. It's a prototype flag for the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics. I'm still working on putting 16 stars in it.

[The Kiat]

A flag for Kamchatka. Maybe it should have a bit more red in it, being a socialist state and all. While I'm at it, I might want to delete the airplane.

[The Kiat]

Over 5000 views!!! Yay! That makes me feel so good about myself. :D No, nothing new to add, just thought I'd share that with you.

[Rocky Racoon]

This is a pretty cool timeline since it removes the traditional clichés that beset the Netherlands in the world of alternate history, so a huge thumbs up from me. The concept of James Dean becoming President of the United States also adds to my satisfaction - the "Rebel without a Clue" line was a classic. I'm surprised though those accusations that Dean was a bisexual haven't run riot among the American populace upon his assassination. Surely, such would have ensued at least through the means of unauthorised biographies.

[The Kiat]

This is a pretty cool timeline since it removes the traditional clichés that beset the Netherlands in the world of alternate history, so a huge thumbs up from me. The concept of James Dean becoming President of the United States also adds to my satisfaction - the "Rebel without a Clue" line was a classic. I'm surprised though those accusations that Dean was a bisexual haven't run riot among the American populace upon his assassination. Surely, such would have ensued at least through the means of unauthorised biographies.



Why thank you. I'm glad you liked it. Concerning James Dean... well what makes you think he had the same.. uh... orientation in the AHN Universe as he did ours? :confused: I think I'll just leave that a big unknown. He still had the same defiant attitude, just against anybody who doesn't like America as opposed to authority in general.

[Theodoric]

I completed a modern map of the United Provinces, but could not fit Norway or Iceland on to it. The provinces that are states or regencies have an elected provincial head, while the others are hereditary. These heads of provinces are also members of the Senaat, along with other herdeitary peers who do not have their own provinces.
Why is Flevoland connected with the mainland? Is this different from OTL?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/Satellite_image_of_Flevopolder%2C_Netherlands_%285 .48E_52.43N%29.png/800px-Satellite_image_of_Flevopolder%2C_Netherlands_%285 .48E_52.43N%29.png
Also, why is the southern part of it part of the Utrecht province? That doesn't match the OTL infratructure or culture at all, where it's basicly one giant suburb of Amsterdam, if a bit further away.

[The Kiat]

There has been a bit of redistribution of land over the centuries. Plus, the Reclamation is more advanced in the AHN Universe. In our Universe, the Dutch Republic went extinct and came back as the Kingdom of the Netherlands. I'd argue the Provincal borders are what they are largely because of the continued existance of the UP.

[The Kiat]

JC 40 (Model 2012)
Type: Carrier-borne Stealth Fighter/Bomber
Crew: 1
Length: 15 m
Wingspan: 11 m
Range: 1500 km
Speed: 1900 kph
Ceiling: 12 km
Armament: 20 mm chain gun
6 internal weapon slots
Room for 4 external hard points
First Flight: 2012
Introduced: 2016
Manufacturer: Suriname
Built: 4,000
The JC 40 served the Commonwealth Navy well for nearly fifty years, until it was retired in 2063. It served with distinction in the Iberian Intervention and Third Anglo-Dutch War. The aircraft made for an adequate fighter but really shone in ground and naval assault. The JC 40 was the first fighter in the world to incorporate voice recognition into its systems. The fighter also possessed limited artificial intelligence and was capable of returning to base in the event the pilot was incapacitated.

[The Kiat]

Kingdom of Sweden
Population: 173,145,932
Language: Swedish, Russian (official), Ukrainian, Latvian, Cossack, Finnish
Religion: Swedish Orthodox Church (state)
Area: 15,957,123 square kilometers
Capital: Stockholm
Government: Constitutional Monarchy
Head of State: King Peter II
Divisions: 73
Largest Cities: Petrograd, Novgorod, Kiev, Volgograd, Gustavadolfustadt
Industries: Mining, oil, industrial equipment, aerospace, automotive, military hardware, electronics, software, forestry
Crops: Grains, potatoes, root crops, livestock
Resources: Oil, methane, coal, metals, gems, timber
Currency: Krona (1 = 0.83 $US)
GNP: $ 4.713 tin
Per Capita: $ 27,219.81
Import: Produce, textiles
Exports: Minerals, automotive, computer hardware and software, lumber, steel
Trade: Dutch Commonwealth, Poland-Lithuania, United States
Education: Universal, compulsory education. 92% Graduation rate from secondary schools.
Literacy: 98%
Military: 2 million man army, 3rd Largest Air Force, limited blue water navy
Conscript: Yes, 2 year compulsory service after the age of 18.

[The Kiat]

A quick not on assimilation:

Swedish Orthodox Church

The Swedish church is an evolution of the Russian Orthodox Church following the Swedish seizure of the Russian crown. It is a mostly Orthodox Christian sect with a great deal of influence from Lutheranism. The birth of this branch of Orthodoxy has its beginnings in the later 18th Century when King Charles XV of Sweden converted to Orthodoxy, and changed Swedish laws to allow all of his subjects. The reasoning for his conversion was to bring the King closer to his Russian and Ukrainian subjects. It caused much stir amongst his native and Finnish subjects. With so many language barriers, the King sought a way to unite all his subjects, and religion was the only other option.
As more Swedes converted, more Lutheran teachings were being absorbed by the new church, and accepted by the Patriarch of Moscow. By 1870, the new Swedish Orthodox Church was proclaimed, with its religious center in Moscow. By the start of the 20th Century, it was declared Sweden’s state religion. Its conception and continued existence shows that though Sweden might control the Russian lands politically, Russian culture seeped back to Stockholm, gradually assimilating the ruling people.

[The Kiat]

231st Iroquois Regiment
The 231st Regiment, National Guard was formed when the state militia took on the official title of National Guard. The Iroquois militia was split into two regiments, the 231st and 171st. During the Great War, the 231st was called up to fight against the British in Canada. They participated in the liberation of northern Maine, and spent the duration of the war in trenches in New Brunswick. The regiment returned to inactive duty in 1917. It was mobilized again in 1940, following Japanese and Confederate attacks on American installations. During World War II, when the Army was seeking volunteers for new airborne units, the entire 231st Regiment stepped forward an volunteered. It is still questionable if it truly happened as stated, but what is not in doubt it that the 231st became one of the four regiments in the 101st Airborne Division. They saw action during Operation Overlord, and in campaigns in Europe. Following the end of World War II, the 231st stayed on active duty as part of the 101st Airborne. In the following decades, they saw action during the Mexican Intervention. The entire regiment is known for their love of hand-to-hand combat, and preference to using the tomahawk over the bayonet. This practice is not unique among Indians, for many American Army and Marine units are armed with tomahawks instead of combat knives.

[The Kiat]

Almanac-Brazil
Population: 187,921,412
Language: Dutch (Official), Portuguese
Religion: 46% Catholic, 43% Protestant
Area: 8,734,447
Capital: Recife
Largest Cities: Recife, Fredericksbourg, Natal, Cayenne, Salvador
Government: Constitutional Monarchy
Head of State: Empress Beatrix
Divisions: Provinces, 29
Industries: Automotive, shipyards, aerospace, heavy industry, military hardware, mining, forestry, agriculture
Crops: Coffee, sugar, tobacco, cotton, tropical fruit, grains
Resources: Minerals, Gold, Precious Gems, Timber, Fish
Currency: Guilder (0.603 = 1.000 $US)
GNP: $ 5.181 tin
Per Capita: $ 27,570.03
Import: Clothing, electronic software, beef
Export: Steel, Iron, Copper, Metals in General, Lumber, Cotton, Coffee, Tobacco, Sugar, Automobiles, Industrial Equipment
Trade: Other Commonwealth Members, United States, Patagonia, Grand Colombia
Life Expec: 77.4 years
Education: Universal, compulsory primary and secondary school. 27% are privately owned.
Literacy: 98.2%
Military: Part of the Dutch Commonwealth of Nations. Home base for 2nd Fleet, 2nd and 3rd Air Forces, along with 14 divisions
Conscript: No

[The Kiat]

Fate of the Austro-Hungarian Navy
Following the Balkan Revolution and end of the Great War, what would become of the Austro-Hungarian Navy was a serious question. By annexing German Austria and later Bohemia, the German Empire claimed a great deal of the Austrian ships. However, several warships were seized during the Revolution by Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia. When the Italian Federation annexed Slovenia, they captured only a few of the ships. The rest were scuttled in the Adriatic Sea. The ships under the control of Croatia and Bosnia were handed over to the Union of Balkan Socialist Republics. Only one battleship and three cruisers ever ended up in the hands of the Kaiser. Those Austro-Hungarian ships not captured by mutinies remained in the hands of loyalists, and too were scuttled in the northern Adriatic rather than be surrendered to the Balkan Union, or to Austria’s German cousins. Today, many reefs have developed among the wreckage scattered in an arc stretching hundreds of kilometers south of Venice.

[The Kiat]

Columbia Gorge Dam
Construction on the Gorge Dam began in 1937. Its goal was to create a lake to irrigate the entire Columbia Basin, and to generate electricity for the whole state of Washington. The dam was built only a kilometer upriver from Georgetown, where one of the many railroads cross the Columbia River. Today, Interstate 90 passes over the dam, and a man-made lake stretches all the way into Cascadia. There was some opposition to constructing the dam. The locals opposed it because it displaced them. Hundreds of square kilometers of orchards would be lost as well. The United States Army had limited opposition to it, since it would flood a number of Great War cemeteries that were scattered along the former American-Canadian border. The dam was completed in 1943, and power generated by it added to the war effort by 1944.

[The Kiat]

Battle of Fredericksburg

From the start of the Great War until well into 1915, the Potomac Front slowly crawled from Alexandria to the north bank of the Rappahanock River. Here it stalled in 1914, when an attempt to bridge the river by the VII Corps failed, with the loss of twelve thousand lives. In March of 1915, as part of the spring time offensive, the III Corps and XI Corps, under the command of General Clarence White Water, was tasked with bridging the river at Fredericksburg. White Water was born in the state of Iroquois and graduated from Fort Arnold in 1885. Like all Great War Generals, he participated in the Spanish War and fought on Puerto Rico.
Opposing White Water, was the Central Corps of the Army of Virginia, under the command of A.H. Stevenson III, the son of a wealth plantation owner and Senator from Georgia. On conclusion of the war, Stevenson was expected to take his father’s place in the Senate while A.H. II retired to running the family estate. At his command were some one hundred fifty thousand soldiers to oppose the Americans’ two hundred seven thousand.
At 0400, on March 21, 1915, White Water ordered a four hour bombardment of enemy installations and trenches on the south bank of the Rappahanock. Along with high explosives and chlorine, a new weapon, mustard gas, was used to soften up the Confederate defenses. The lingering affects of mustard gas caused minor blistering to the first wave of Americans, who crossed the river in hundreds of rafts, at 0815. The Confederates were far from obliterated, despite having some twenty thousand shells land on a length of the frontier no more than two kilometers in width.
After the end of the first day, and the loss of ten thousand American soldiers wounded and killed, White Water managed to secure a beachhead a kilometer east of Fredericksburg. Through the night of the 21st and all of the 22nd, Americans bombarded Confederate positions while engineers threw up several pontoon bridges. Barges delivered heavier equipment, such as the newly developed tank. American tanks were little more than giant rhomboids with tracks and cannon and machine guns pointing out of several openings. Seven of these tanks were delivered to White Water to use in breaching Confederate lines and pushing further in land.
On the 24th, the tanks lead the assault against Confederate trenches. The first line of trenches was overran with minimal difficulty; the Confederate soldiers panicked and flew at the sight of these land ironclads. Secondary and tertiary trenches were captured, at the loss of two tanks. Both broke down due to mechanical failure. One that failed was targeted and destroyed by Confederate batteries. The tanks proved effective weapons of terror, but the early models left a lot to be desired for combat. By March 29, the last tank broke down and was destroyed by Confederate barrages.
On April 1, the Stevenson attempted to organize a counteroffensive to "drive the Yankees back into the river". The Confederate attack failed, and allowed the Americans to gain several hundred more meters of ground. White Water launched attacks on the city of Fredericksburg on April 2, April 3 and April 4. The first two assault were repulsed, with thousands of American casualties. The third attack breached the city’s defenses. From April 5 to April 8, street fighting claimed thousands of more lives on both sides. Artillery from American and Confederate batteries reduced much of the city to rubble in attempts to destroy their opponents. Civilian deaths in the Battle of Fredericksburg are inconclusive, but it is believed nearly 30% of the city’s remaining population perished.
General White Water called an end to the offensive on April 15, when severe rains hampered advancement. At the end of the nearly month long battle, the United States took the town of Fredericksburg and expanded the front in that area some five kilometers south of the Rappahanock River, securing the crossing and pushed Confederate guns far enough south to prevent them from destroying the pontoon bridges that connect the new front with the rest of American occupied territory. On the Confederate side, thirty thousand soldiers were killed, and twice as many more wounded. The Americans lost sixty thousand dead, most during the crossing and storming of Fredericksburg.

[The Kiat]

Battle of Chancellorsville

On the morning of February 18, 1916, at 0230, hundreds of Confederate guns along the Potomac (or more accurately the Rappahanock) Front opened up upon American trenches. The first offensive of 1916 went to the Confederate States, and the government in Birmingham demanded that the Yankees be pushed back across the river that they crossed the previous year. At the command of the dwindling Army of Virginia, A.H. Stevenson III, discovered a relatively soft spot in the American lines at Chancellorsville, a town west from Fredericksburg. Chancellorsville fell to the Yankees the previous fall, and attempts to retake it before rain and snow made offensives impractical failed miserably.
During the winter of 1915-16, the Confederates stockpiles a majority of their industrial output of ammunition along the Potomac Front, in hopes of doing exactly as Birmingham commanded. With entry of the Dutch Commonwealth into the war against the Entente, it was only a matter of time before the Central Powers were victorious. Knowing they could no longer win outright, the Confederate government intended to hold as much land as possible.
After two days worth of bombardment, at 0800, on February 20, some eighty thousand Confederate soldiers went over the top and charged into the lines south of Chancellorsville. Unlike the early days of the war, the soldiers had no illusions that the Americans would have been wiped out in the bombardment. Sure enough, machine guns soon began to mow down advancing Confederates. However, unlike early attacks, the Confederates now had their own tanks. After pushing the Americans back several lines of trench-works, American tanks soon arrived on the battlefield to match Confederate Armor.
This early armored battle proved a disaster for both sides. With sufficient firepower and inability to maneuver, both sides effectively annihilated each other. The tanks accomplished their task, and punched a small whole in American lines, allowing Confederates to regain several hundred meters of front, at the cost of tens of men for each meter. The following day, the Confederates launched a second early morning assault, this time without tanks for support. The Americans were ready for it, and blunted the wave of Confederates against their new front-line trenches. Confederates managed a well organized retreat. The Americans attempted no counterattack.
On February 26, the Confederates commenced a second, day-long bombardment of American positions around and even in Chancellorsville. The city sat only two kilometers behind, and served as a supply depot for this section of the front. However, knowing the Confederates were on their last leg, General White Water ordered American forces to fall back north of Chancellorsville during the second bombardment. He would make the Confederates come to him, throwing themselves on a new network of trenches and fortifications constructed on the northern and eastern outskirts of the city.
Much to the Confederate soldiers’ surprise, on February 27, it appeared that the bombardment did in fact kill all the Yankees. Only a few Confederates were killed during the mad dash across no-man’s land, killed by mines and unexploded shells littering the field. The town itself was abandoned, its inhabitants refugees fleeing north to where the war was already a bad memory. White Water ordered the town to be zeroed in by American artillery during the second Confederate bombardment. As soon as Stevenson’s forces moved into the city, they were subjected to bombardment. Those Confederates the made it north of the city, ran into a wall of pill boxes and trenches, cutting them down in the hundreds. American aircraft joined in on the attack, strafing Confederate ranks advancing on the new front line.
The Battle of Chancellorsville ended on February 28, when Confederate soldiers retreated to lines south of the town. Chancellorsville was soon reduced to ruins as it remained no-man’s land for the duration of the war. Thus marked the final offensive of the Confederate Army along the Potomac Front.

[The Kiat]

I have a facebook page (and a my space, which I don't use much) that includes An Alternate History of the Netherlands, and other works. I just have to let the whole world know what a genius I am. :rolleyes:

[The Kiat]

Battle of Maui Strait
On August 3, 1913, the United States Pacific Fleet encountered a combined fleet of the Royal Navies of the United Kingdom and of Hawaii. Plans for the battle date back more than a decade. In the event of war, with the British to the north and west, and Confederates to the south, there was a good chance the United States could have its Pacific Coast blockaded. This would cut off America from its few colonies in the Pacific, but more importantly, to a large portion of its commerce. While offensives drive into Canada and the Confederacy, a third attack would head westward and drive the British off Oahu. With a base at Pearl Harbor, the British were in the perfect position to destroy American commerce.
At the command of the Pacific Fleet was forty year Naval veteran, Admiral Frederick Ruyter flying his flag from the USS California. Along with the California, seven more battleships; the Ohio, Iroquois, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Maryland, Idaho, and Kansas along with twelve cruisers and twenty destroyers, along with ten thousand Marines. Facing him with eight battleships and four battlecruisers, along with ten cruisers, sixteen destroyers and five Hawaiian destroyers was Sir Edmund Ralley.
The two fleets made their first pass at each other at 1003, a little more than two kilometers off the coast of Maui, between that islands and Hawaii. Gunnery during the first pass was poor, with less than ten percent of the shells finding their targets. This was still enough to damage the HMS Revenge, and sink two British destroyers, one American destroyer, and the USS Portland. Each American and British battleship suffered near misses, with straddling shots causing buckling in the hull.
After the first pass, both fleets attempted to outmaneuver the other, coming at another pass at 1036. The USS Ohio lost its number two turret during the exchange, and two more American cruisers were knocked out of the battle. Not sunk, but damaged enough they were forced to drop out of the fight. On the British side, the Lion was dead in the water and a cruiser listing severely. The cruiser capsized at 1044.
The third pass occurred at 1101, with more minor damage to big guns. Kansas was reduced to 2/3 speed as one of its boilers was flooded. The HMS Majesty lost power, and could no longer turn its turrets. The British battleship withdrew from the battle to rescue survivors from the first two passes. Even when ships were not giving broadsides, they were still exchanging fire. Before the fourth pass, the HMS Vendetta took four hits, one puncturing its forward hull and blowing off five meters of its bow.
The fourth pass, 1149 hours, was the climax of the battle, where Ruyter managed to "Cross the T". In the exchange, British guns could fire only a few rounds, two of which breached the Ohio’s hull. In the British lines, three battleships were further damaged, and the HMS Warspite simply exploded as a three hundred millimeter round penetrated its magazine. Wounded, Ralley ordered the British fleet, badly damaged, to retreat to Pearl Harbor. He had no intent of staying there, for it would be a bottleneck for his own fleet when the Americans arrived.
Instead, he would evacuate British nationals from the island and retreat to Manilla to repair the fleet. Before he could make good his escape, Ruyter ordered destroyers to close in and launch torpedoes on the dreadnaughts. A squadron of American destroyers closed in on the retreating ships and unleashed their payloads. Four destroyers were damaged, with one crippled, but in exchange, the Majesty broke in half, and a cruiser joined her.
To cover his retreat, Ralley ordered a torpedo run by his own destroyers. Three British destroyers were lost, but in exchange, the Maryland lost its forward turret, and the main British Fleet was able to successfully withdrawal to Pearl Harbor. Ralley is often criticized for giving up the battle, but had he pressed the attack, he could very well have lost the Royal Navy’s entire Pacific fleet. That fleet was required to defend the Philippines, Australia and Malaysia, and attack the Americans in the Marianas along with German Marshals and Kaiserwilhemland, and have sufficient forces to defend British holdings in the Pacific against possible Dutch attacks.
By August 5, the British evacuated their nationals from Oahu, leaving behind a rearguard force of Royal Marines and ships too damaged to survive the voyage across the ocean, to aid the Hawaiians. During the months of August and September, the Americans conquered Oahu, sending the Hawaiian royal family fleeing to the island of Hawaii.

[The Kiat]

World Cup
Year: Host- Winner
1930: Uruguay- Italy
1934: Italy- Sweden
1938: Brazil- Brazil
1950: France- Italy
1954: U.S.A.- United Provinces
1958: G. Colombia- France
1962: Sweden- Austria
1966: Italy- Italy
1970: River Platte- United States
1974: Kurdistan- Brazil
1978: Spain- Ceylon
1982: Japan- Spain
1986: U.P.- Italy
1990: Canada- Germany
1994: India- Germany
1998: Australia- Italy
2002: Greece- Sweden
2006: Germany- Angola
2010: Transvaal- N/A

[fernerdave]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Frans_Hals%2C_De_magere_compagnie.jpg/500px-Frans_Hals%2C_De_magere_compagnie.jpg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Frans_Hals,_De_magere_compagnie.jpg)

De Magere Compagnie (completed 1637), which depicts a company of schutterij (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schutterij), a voluntary city guard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_guard) or citizen militia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Militia) in the medieval (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Ages) and early modern (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_modern_period) Netherlands (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlands). Frans Hals (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frans_Hals) was commissioned to create this, but he was unable to complete it after three years, and the company hired Pieter Codde (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pieter_Codde) to finish it. Group portraits such as this of schutterij were known as schuttersstuk, and were popular among the guards themselves.






thoughtyou might like this...

[The Kiat]

That's mighty thoughtful of you.

[The Kiat]

State of Cuba

Statehood: July 14, 1852
Population: 22,314,555
Area: 110,861 km2
Capital: Havana
Largest City: Havana
Crops: Tobacco, coffee, pineapples, tropical fruit
Resources: Timber, oil,
Industry: Tourism, medical, biotechnology

Cuba was purchased along with Florida from the Spanish government in 1819. It was admitted to the Union as a slave state in 1852, but did not secede upon the election of Abraham Lincoln. Cuba remained in the Union during and following the War Between the States. During the Third Anglo-American War, Confederate sympathizers rose up and overthrew the state government, and invited the C.S.A. to ‘liberate’ them. Following 1885, Cuba remained a Confederate State until the Great War. In 1914, after fighting their way through the Bahamas, American forces landed on the island, and drove the Confederates from it. At the end of the war, the Union Government was reinstated in Cuba, and Cuba was readmitted to the Union in July of 1919. During the first weeks of World War II, Confederate Marines landed on Cuba and attempted to take the island, only to be delayed by American Marines long enough for reinforcements to force their surrender. Cuba acted as a stepping stone for the invasion of the Confederate Gulf Coast.

Today, Cuba is home to over twenty-two million Americans, nearly half of them over the age of sixty. It is the most popular destination for retiring workers, and this influx of old folks helps spur Cuba’s economy. It drove a great deal of research into medical technology, and even started a biotech boom in the 1990s. Cuba exports a few tropical cash crops, along with oil off its shore, however the bulk of its income comes from retirees and tourists.

[The Kiat]

Ram III
Type: Main Battle Tank
Crew: 3
Armament: 150 mm main gun
2 x 12.7 mm machine guns
4 Anti-Tank Missiles (optional mod)
Armor: Classified
Range: 300 km
Produced: 8,000
Introduced: 2014
Manufacturer: Mumbai Auto Works
The Ram III served for thirty years as the Dutch Commonwealth’s front-line main battle tank. Its crew of three consists of a driver, gunner and commander. Each of the fifty 150mm rounds (sabot, HE, incendiary) are automatically loaded. The tank served well during the Third Anglo-Dutch War (2039-2042) near the end of its lifespan against the more advance British tanks. Following the war, the Ram III was relegated to secondary duties, replaced by the Ram IV.

[The Kiat]

Here's a Halloween treat for you; the first of the Future Chapters to An Alternate History of the Netherlands.

XVII) Supremacy
(2009-2043)
Dawn of the New Millennia
As with the two previous centuries, the Dutch people entered it the commercial power of the world. The combined industrial output of the Dutch Commonwealth surpassed any individual nation of Earth. However, with current growth trends, this will not be the case for the rest of the 21st Century. At its current rate of growth, China is projected to surpass the United States in the 2030s and the Dutch Commonwealth by the middle of the century. The rise of China back to the same peaks it has held in the past is cause for concern in the United Provinces and other members of the Commonwealth.
At the start of the 21st Century, the planet’s resources have reached the point of maximum crunch. Steel, aluminum and oil productions neared their peaks, and with the growing industrial appetite of the People’ Dynasty, it was clear as day that there would not be enough to go around. The most pessimistic of economists project that easily obtained resources would be depleted by the 22nd Century at current rates of consumption.
Ramped consumerism threatened to drain Earth of the resources required to sustain current industrial outputs. The start of the 21st Century was a time of great uncertainty as World Powers grew and the world itself effectively shrank. Like with spices four centuries earlier, entrepreneurs looked outward for new sources of minerals wealth to power the industrial mechanisms of Earth. First among them was a relatively new branch of the VOC, VOC Stars. By the middle of the century, a space rush was underway.
The Information Revolution
Communication technology in the 1990s under went a rapid change. At the start of the decade, communication involved telephones and fax machines connected via copper cables. By 2000, wireless technology miniaturized to the point were cellular telephones were smaller than the human hand, and portable computers could communicate with each other across the world via the communication satellite constellation. Such revolutionary change in technology had serious impacts on society and politics. And the way nations waged war.
The Dutch Commonwealth was one of the many participants in an arms race in the early Twenty-First Century, eerily reminiscent of the same arms race the precluded the Great War. Instead of building larger and more battleships, the aim in this race was to produce a smarter weapon. By 2010, the Commonwealth had produced missiles that could hit a target anywhere in the world with a meter of where it aimed. New laser-guided missiles were capable of penetrating a window in the side of a building.
The advance computing technology went a long ways to automate much of modern warfare. The Commonwealth Navy refit all of its older ships with new Central Intelligences, a system to link all the weapons of a fleet to a single button. Coupled with communication and observation satellites, for the first time in history it was quite possible for the Dutch Monarch to personally control the entire battlefield. Queen Beatrix never exercised her right to command a battle, for no major conflict involving the Dutch Commonwealth occurred during her reign.
Widespread information networks extended the collective knowledge of humanity to the masses. For the first time in history, anything anybody could ever want to know was only a mouse click away. Despite its beneficial use, networks were given over to entertainment. This boasted software companies world-wide, lead by the American corporation Microsoft. Microsoft was one of the few companies in history to actually cause a foreign product to take the number one position in sells within the Dutch Commonwealth.
Peak Oil
By 2010, the oil reserves of Earth hit their peak production. Following this year, oil supplies would continue to drop until not a drop was left. With its demand in fuel and plastics production, oil was one of the key strategic resources in industrialized society. The Dutch Commonwealth’s supply was secure via its members, the Principality of Java, State of Indonesia and Kingdom of Angola. The United Provinces had its own supply of oil off shore. Large deposits were discovered in the North Sea during the 20th Century, causing both the United Provinces and the United Kingdom to an oil rush.
Around the world, the rush to develop alternative fuel sources was in full swing during the start of the 21st Century. In the United Provinces, the electric car gained a great deal of popularity. Being such a relatively small nation, and with an extensive rail network already in place for inter-provincial travel, the demand for long-range vehicles was low. Further more, the streets in the United Provinces were designed centuries ago with humans and horses in mind, and would not support the larger automobiles of the United States, Germany or Brazil. The largest cars in the United Provinces were designed to hold five passengers. With birthrates hitting an all time low, just barely remaining in the positive, large, family vehicles had no market in the Provinces.
In Brazil, and other members of the Dutch Commonwealth, advances in fuel cell technology gradually replaced gasoline engines. However, it did not replace the need for oil. Much of the hydrogen extracted was done so from hydrocarbon sources. It slowed the demand of oil, but only enough to extend the supply a decade at the most. Not all of the world’s oil supply was under the control of the World Powers, which would lead to new wave of colonialism and interventions.
War of Arabian Unification
In 2010, when the King of Arabia, Abdul bin Selim al Saud, decided on a change in trade policy, he peaked the ire of the World Powers. No longer would Arabia accept paper currencies. With oil supplies limited, the King decided he would only accept gold, silver and other precious metals for oil. Since the World Powers depended on their own gold stockpiles to back up their currencies, such an arrangement was untenable.
Dutch Commonwealth involvement in the War of Unification was limited. The United Arab Emirates, former protectorate of the Dutch, and regional friend, were backed up by a Commonwealth task force sent from Ceylon, along with two regiments of Commonwealth Marines, once the situation in the Kingdom of Arabia exploded. The fact that these forces were in place meant the Commonwealth knew of the plans for revolution.
Despite low taxes and free education, the Arabs within the Kingdom were not all happy with the House of Saud. Many wished to overthrow the King. Of these, a majority wished union with their brothers in the north. A fringe group sought to establish a theological state over the Muslim heartland. Over the past decade, agents of the Arab Republic’s Ba’ath Party have infiltrated into the Kingdom of Arabia, establishing branch parties and even Fifth Column movements. Along, the Republic could not hope to tackle the Kingdom.
However, Damascus had help in the form of France and the United States. These were the two largest customers of the Arabian Peninsular, and neither were about to part with the gold. However, neither had sufficient domestic supplies of oil. In the case of France, virtually no domestic oil. The United States reached peak oil back in the 1980s, and were scrambling to take control of the Gulf of Texas, and would alter take control of Mexico and its oil supply, was starting to run out.
In 2010, the two World Powers backed the Arab Republic and the Ba’athists in the Kingdom in their move to topple the Saudis. The Revolution was violent, cumulating with the massacre of the royal family, and short. Within three weeks, the Ba’athists were in control of the Kingdom, and called for a referendum for annexation to the Arab Republic. To win over some of the Kingdom’s nationalists, the referendum technically called for unification and the formation of the United Arab Republic. During the chaos of revolution and unification, which passed with some 61% of votes in favor, the U.A.E., backed by the Commonwealth, seized for themselves vast tracks of the south-east corner of the peninsula for themselves. Being mostly empty lands, an arrangement was made between the Emirates and Republic, or more precisely, between the Commonwealth and the Republic’s powerful backers. Once the United Arab Republic was formed, the oil began to flow to foreign markets, paid for by foreign currency.
Demographic Bomb
By 2010, almost half of the population of the United Provinces, New Zeeland and New Holland, and nearly thirty percent of Brazil and the Boer Republics were nearing the age of retirement. When they ceased working, the industrial output of all countries named would sag. With retirement approaching, the Count of Zeeland, in an address to the Staaten-General warned that ‘a demographic bomb was about to explode’. When they retired, the strain on businesses that paid pensions to lifelong workers would severely cut into their profits. A few even warned of economic depression when the demographic bomb detonated.
The Dutch were not the only people who were affected by the demographic bomb. However, the German Empire and United Kingdom depended on income taxes for a substantial portion of their income. In 2010, only 10% of the United Provinces’ budget was derived from income taxes. A bulk of their revenue still came from tariffs and corporate taxes (albeit small compared to other nations). Further concerns on how one was going to pay for the medical care of millions of Netherlands who were no longer productive citizens grew within the Senaat.
The mass retirement did cause a downtown in the global economy as demands for luxury goods decreased by five percent. Factories need not lay off workers since the numbers retiring exceeded the numbers that would have required termination. However, profits did suffer as many businesses, which had life-long contracts with workers now retired, including pensions and insurance. The increasing life expectancy added to the percentage of Netherlanders no longer contributing to society.
There were some calls within the House of Electorates for the Dutch Government to provide financial security for its older citizens. Similar social programs were already enacted in India and Formosa since the 1980s, and in Ceylon and Abyssinia during the 1990s. However, the United Provinces, Brazil and especially the self-reliant Boers, resisted such movements within their own government. For the Boers, it was hardest, since their whole governments were elected by the people. There was no maximum age limit for voters.
During the second decade of the 21st Century, something happened in the United Provinces that never happened before; the private sector demanded health. The Dutch have never been a people with any use for welfare or any other sort of ‘Socialism’, despite experiments back in the 1960s. However, with such a large percentage of Netherlanders approached retirement age, businesses required aid to prevent themselves from imploding under the benefits and pensions that would be delivered to life-long employees. Though businesses would not get all they required, the Staaten-General reluctantly agreed to broker loans to keep these companies afloat.
King William VIII
Born Willem Alexander van Oranje on April 27, 1967, served in the Senaat in his capacities as the Grand Prince of Norway, and on the United Provinces’ Olympic committee, securing the 2000 Olympics for Amsterdam, until December 21, 2012, when Beatrix, reigning for thirty-two years collapsed and was rushed to the hospital in Delft. She was announced dead on arrival from cardiac failure. The Dutch press picked up on the irony of their queen dying on the same day the ancient Mayan calender cycle ended.
William VIII graduated from the Naval Academy in Recife in 1989, the same year that the Balkan Wars died down. He rose to the rank of Commander, and was serving as Executive Officer on board the DCS King Maurice I, when news reached him that he was now King and would be crowned as soon as he returned to the United Provinces. William was first crowned Emperor of Brazil, when his ship returned to port in Recife, capital of Brazil. During the year of 2013, he traveled to each of the monarchies in personal union with the United Provinces and received their crowns as well.
On the issue of supporting business during the demographic bomb, King William VIII was on the opposite end of the debate from the Staaten-General. He did not wish to lend a single guilder to companies that dug their own holes. Regarding retirement, the King declared that is was the responsibility of the individual to prepare for their own jobless future. He further pointed out that the United Provinces, or any other member of the Dutch Commonwealth could not withstand the stress upon their budgets to support such a large class of nonproductive citizens. The people work their whole lives to make the world a better place for future generations, not so that they can twiddle their remaining years away.
In running his countries, William VIII had the cold heart of an accountant. He saw costs and benefits, and pushed the ordeal of the person from his mind. To survive the demographic bomb without crippling the United Provinces’ economy, he had to solve problems with his mind, not his heart. It was what the world needed, not what it wanted. Other countries faced similar crises. When Spain attempted to subsidize its retiring class, its entire economy collapsed as less than 40% of the population were able to be employed. The resulting chaos on the Iberian Peninsula was the first international crisis the new king had to face.
Iberianization
In 2015, the federal government in Madrid collapsed, and other states went the way of the Basque Republic during the 1980s. Catalonia was the first to secede, followed by Leon. Soon the Republic of Spain ceased to exist, and a dozen smaller states materialized, vying for power. In the case of Portugal, whose dictator proclaimed he would rebuild the former glories of his nation, it never existed long enough to establish embassies. On September 11, 2015, the Dutch Commonwealth landed an expeditionary force in Portugal. Air strikes on Lisbon on the following day killed the would-be king, and eliminated his inner circle. The second attempt at Portuguese Restoration was eliminated before it even began.
The invasion of Portugal was preceded by two months worth of piracy and terrorist attacks on Dutch interests. The dictator, a former Spanish General named Luis Ramalo, declared that he would restore what was taken from his country centuries before. This was a boast the William VIII and the Staaten-General took very seriously. Ramalo was nearly removed from the picture before he even started, when on July 19, the Portugese Navy sent two frigates to intercept a VOC convoy. Destruction of VOC property prompted the company to draw up plans to retaliate. It was only William’s intervention that prevented the VOC from raising Lisbon to the ground as a nest of pirates.
Portugal offered little resistance to the Dutch invasion, and was completely under the control of the United Provinces by the start of 2016. The Staaten-General voted to annex Portugal directly, along with lands on the southern shore of Iberia. Andalusia agreed to sell land near the Strait of Gibraltar that the Commonwealth could use to preserve its Mediterranean trade routes. Dutch expansion in Iberia continued when it took Asterias as a protectorate, to prevent it from falling to the French.
The French invaded the lands formerly known as Spain nearly as soon as the Spanish Parliament dissolved itself. Its occupation of Aragon was complete by February of 2016, and it looked westward to establish bases on the Atlantic. Italy was another player in the Iberianization of Spain, when it invaded Catalonia, reducing the state into an Italian colony. The collapse of the Spanish state was celebrated in the more nationalistic circles within the United Provinces, as the final destruction of an age old enemy.
Dwindling Resources
With more than two centuries of industrialization behind it, civilization soon came up against a barrier. The majority of resources required to maintain such a civilization that were easily obtained were nearly depleted. To gain more iron to feed the steel industry, mines must be dug deeper, and in more remote locations. Sweden had an advantage that none of the Commonwealth Members possessed; vast tracks of Siberia rich in mineral wealth. For the Dutch, mines in Brazil, New Holland and India were expanded, and new sources sought. These new veins were not as rich, and profits margins would shrink. More over, though resources gradually dropped in availability, demand continued to rise.
With over a billion inhabitants, China was the fasted growing consumer of steel, and most every other metal, in the world. The Indian Empire was in a close second, with its manpower potentials finally realized after a century of struggle. The United States, with its own resources dwindling and no sign of its industrial base weakening, also sought new sources of raw material. Despite its peace treaty with Britain, Americans looked northward to untapped sources in Canada.
Not all looked to their neighbors for new sources of material. William VIII looked up and outward. When showed the content of a near-Earth asteroid, he exclaimed that single rock had enough iron to supply the world’s steel industry for half a year. The reality that the nearly endless supply of metals in space would be the wave of the future. It would not solve the immediate fuel crisis, but it would be enough to allow society to continue. In 2025, an American mission to an Earth-crossing asteroid brought back samples of nickle, iron and even traces of gold.
The thought of hundreds of tonnes of gold being mined in space horrified Amsterdam’s financial community. Gold was valuable because it was rare. Flooding the market with new sources of gold would devalue the world’s currency. Many bankers were reluctant to authorize loans to any space-mining operation. Instead, they invested on underwater mining. Aside from oil and methane from the North Sea, several mining companies began to tap deposits of bauxite discovered off the coast of Brazil. With more exploration, veins of iron, chromium and bauxite were also discovered in less than fifty meters of water off the coast of Brazil.
City Beneath the Wave
With the opening of several mines off the coast of Cayenne, the first under water city was established in 2033. The city of Atlantis was little more than barracks, cafeteria and a supply store built from containers that were hauled out to the mines and sunk to the sea floor. Air locks connected the containers to the shaft mines. Space agencies and private companies seeking to establish themselves in space, invested in this land rush beneath the sea. Technology developed to allow humans to survive under the sea would also benefit those seeking to leave Earth all together.
The output of Atlantis was meager in comparison to open pit mines in Sweden and the United States. Despite its low but steady output and marginal profits, Atlantis proved it was possible to tap the sea floor. Within ten years of Atlantis’s opening, dozens of submarine colonies and thousands of colonists called the land beneath the Atlantic home. America’s frontier mentality allowed the Americans to take the lead in sea floor colonization. By 2050, over a hundred communities lived beneath the waves of the Gulf of Texas and the Carribean Sea, production ranging from mining to oil to aquiculture. A great deal of tourism spread through these cities, and as New Orleans was gradually reclaimed by the sea, the bulk of settlers came from that drowned city.
In the North Sea, the United Provinces did not look to settle the sea floor. Instead, they brought the sea floor to them. By 2030, the Ijsslemeer1 was nothing but a memory and Amsterdam was connected to the North Sea via a network of channels and artificial canals. In Friesland, the West Friesland Islands were connected to the mainland as the water was pumped out of newly reclaimed lands. In comparison with other European nations, the United Provinces paid a proportionally higher amount of their budget on infrastructure, mostly in the form of maintaining sea walls and levies against an increasingly angry sea.
Fuel of the Future
On September 17, 2033, the first commercial fusion reactor came on line in Mumbai, India. Where the United Provinces and Brazil already had an established power network, focused their attention on increasing efficiency and prevent power loss along the transmission lines. India’s power hunger increased nearly as fast as China, with projections in 2030 that a new coal-fired or fission reactor would have to be opened every two months in order to feed the demand.
A decade long research project from the University of Mumbai, funded by the Indian Government and energy companies, such as the VOC, set its goal of making fusion power economically viable. Since the dawn of the 21st Century, fusion reactors were online around the world. However, these experimental reactors seldom broke even in energy production, and when they did, they failed to generate enough power to be useful. In Mumbai, the researchers set their goal at a 50 MW generator.
Professor Hermann Vandjirasik, born some fifty years earlier, lead the project. He was not so much a brilliant engineer as an excellent salesman. He was the one who procured the funding for the fusion reactor, while those beneath him dealt with design and construction. On December 7, 2032, the reactor was turned on for the first time, and reached a 43 MW output. This deficiency delayed its official activation by several months.
Its eventual activation added only a minor amount of power to India’s total consumption. However, its design soon spread around the world and fifteen fusion reactors were operational by 2040. Another hundred were online before the middle of the century. Replacing thousands of coal-fired and oil plants would take decades, and that was not counting the continued increase in demand. Plans in India, Abyssinia, the Boer Republics and Brazil called for the fossil fuel powered plants to be replaced by fusion and even solar satellites, when their lifespans ended. Until then, which some coal-fire plants were designed to last a century, the would continue to add to the Carbon Dioxide content of the atmosphere.
Lunar Expansion
By 2030, some two thousand persons lived in an expanded Fort Recife. With fusion power around the corner, serious investment was put into extracting Helium-3 from the lunar regolith. Fusion fuels on Earth were limited, and once all of Earth’s power was generated by fusion, a large supply of hydrogen and helium isotopes would be required. Some dreamers saw the Outer Planets as an endless supply of fuel. Among these, even the most optimistic dreamers knew such plans would be a century away at the very least.
The initial limitations to colonizing the moon came from the cost of reaching orbit. Once in orbit, reaching Luna was relatively simple. In 2021, Lockheed-Convair produced a prototype Heavy Lifter. It was the first truly reusable spacecraft, not requiring any of its hull to be replaced for at least one hundred launches.2 It was also the largest rocket ever built. The Heavy Lifter had both the size and general shape of the Great Pyramids at Giza. The engines were so powerful, that upon launch, the Heavy Lifter would melt its own launch pad. The space craft is redesigned to have dozens of smaller engines instead of five larger ones. This allows for it to take-off and land at more ports, and allows for more backup in case an engine failed.
The Heavy Lifter’s true benefit came from its fuel efficiency. A Heavy Lifter was proven capable, in 2024, of taking off Earth, flying to Luna, landing, loading cargo, taking off for Earth and landing again without the need to refuel. Its only drawback was that it carried so much fuel that it limited its cargo capacity. Only fifty tonnes of cargo could be carried into and out of space one the first Heavy Lifters. The biggest gain off the Heavy Lifter was that it reduced launches by a factor of five.
For the first time, it became economically viable to launch tourists into space. Once that market opened, and enough entrepreneurs invested sufficient capital, space hotels began to spring up in low Earth orbit. The moon was still a ways off for any tourist who wished not to take a one way flight to the research colonies upon its surface. Space-based industry was not as successful as the scientific and entertainment ventures. It boiled down to cost. Why would a Netherlander, or any person, but a high quality product made in space, when they could purchase an adequate product made on Earth, for a fraction of the price.
Industry on the Moon was more local consumption than exportation to Earth. The research colonies, funded either by universities or private ventures, extract sufficient hydrates from the lunar regolith and polar regions to supply their own needs. Immigration to the moon was a rarity during the 21st Century. The only way anybody managed to voyage to Luna, was to join the communities growing there. Fort Recife was established in the late 20th Century, in search of new sources of metals and energies. By 2020, some five hundred people lived in the vastly expanded colony. The arrival of plasma torches on the moon allowed the colony to go underground. Manmade tunnels and caverns spanned two square kilometers around the surface installations.
In 2005, the first American colony on the moon was established by the Gates Foundation. The Foundation was created by Bill Gates, founded of Microsoft, and dedicated to progress in technology and expansion of humanity into new frontiers. These frontiers were not always physical ones, such as the sea floor and space; it also included new fields of sciences and new technologies, such as genetic engineering and nanotechnology. Gatestown started out as seven habitat modules landed in the Sea of Tranquility, not far from the Apollo XI landing site. The site was not chosen solely for patriotic sentiment; it was believed that tourism would eventually leave low Earth orbit and reach out to the moon. Any American who visited Luna would no doubt wish to visit that first landing.
The first child born on the moon was born in Gatestown in 2016 to a couple of Italians astronauts. The birth of children on a new world made colonization real. Some concern existed on whether or not the child would be able to return to Earth because it was born on Luna. It was only the worst case scenario, though evolving on Earth, the human species are well adapted to survive in its climate. The first natural born Lunars did not grow tall in low gravity3, but did have under-developed skeletons. With extensive conditioning, they were capable of returning to the homeworld, though none chose this course of action.
A third nation established a research colony upon the moon by 2020. The German Empire founded Braunstadt in early 2010. It was smaller, and far more spartan than either American or Commonwealth city. However, it was built at the south pole, where solar cells could be left in perpetual sunlight, and higher concentrations of water was defused from the regolith. Braunstadt was not as much a research station like Fort Recife or Gatestown. When Braunstadt was inaugurated, it immediately began exporting high quality aluminum and titanium back to the Fatherland.
Fierce Competition
By 2030, newly industrializing countries were looking to expand their borders, the same way European nations did two centuries before. The largest menace to stability came from the every-hungry industry of China. In 2029, the Chinese invaded Korea after a revolution the previous year toppled its former Beijing-friendly communist regime. Much protest came from around the world, and the United Nations voted to condemn the act of aggression. However, since the most powerful countries in the world never signed the Outer Space Treaty, and overtly have laid claims on the moon the UN lacked the authority and prestige it once possessed.
In response, the People’s Republic of China, along with the reinstated People’s Republic of Korea, Indochina, Burma and Kamchatka, withdrew from the United Nations. China began treating its minor allies as colonies. The most aggressive act was the annexation of Sakhalin from Kamchatka. China moved operations into the Sea of Ohkost, in search of oil and methane deposits beneath the sea floor. Such actions forced Japan to begin arming its oil platforms and beef up patrols in the seas to its north.
The Dutch Commonwealth viewed China’s expansion with suspicion and caution. Indonesia and Java were still producing oil, and gas deposits between Hainan and Formosa might also tempt the Chinese to look south. It would not be the first time; the Japanese did the exact same thing nearly a century earlier. Sweden took far more drastic actions, by sealing its long frontier with China. Not all the resources in Siberia were depleted, and hundreds of thousands of Swedish soldiers moved into the area to see that those resources go to Stockholm, not Beijing.
Sweden also fought a series of short wars against its southern, Turkish neighbors, seizing tracks of lands and immediately exploiting them. This drew further international condemnation, which caused Sweden to leave the United Nations. With two of the largest countries no longer members, many began to wonder if the UN was about to go the way of the League of Nations. The rest of the World Powers seldom heeded UN resolutions if they impeded their own progress.
Riga Conference
With the world’s oil supply dwindling, and hydrogen economy still in its infancy, the World Powers met in Riga on April 15, 2038, to divide the rest of the world’s oil amongst themselves. None of the countries that would be divided were invited. China would receive rights to drill in Kamchatka. Sweden the same in Central Asia. The United States was given a free hand in the Carribean, which is took full advantage of when it invaded Mexico in 2040. The French were granted rights to West Africa, the Germans granted rights to whatever supplies remain in the Balkans. Canada had sufficient reserves to supply the whole of the small British Commonwealth. The Dutch required no divisions, for Indonesia and Angola gave sufficient supplies to the Commonwealth and the North Sea directly to the United Provinces.
All nations agreed to share the Middle East, declaring the whole area a neutral zone. The Dutch Commonwealth abided by this, withdrawing supporting units from the United Arab Emirates to India. The UAE, United Arab Republic, Kurdistan and Armenia established the Petroleum Export Commission to regulate the remaining flow of petroleum to the World Powers. Antarctica was declared off limits. The United Provinces was at the forefront of this declaration, not so much because of environmental concerns as to the concerns of causing the ice cap to break, sea levels to rise, and flooding of the United Provinces. By 2038, the United Provinces had invested significantly in a sea wall defensive network.
The Riga Conference was the final nail in the coffin of the United Nations. When the UN Council voted in favor of a resolution denouncing the Conference, all parties to it withdrew membership. Without the funding and support of the World Powers, the UN became little more than a meeting room, now in Geneva, where minor countries could complain about how the big boys ignore them at best. The final session of the United Nations was held on August 30. 2039. Almost immediately upon its disbanding and disappearance of peace keepers, a dozen small wars broke out in Africa and South America. In the latter case, Brazil was able to restrain its neighbors. However, Central Africa exploded in violence, and the West African nations of Biafra, Nigeria and Benin were invaded by France.
These wars were local, and based more on ancient ethnic hatreds than hard economic reasoning. Massacres became so routine during the 2040s that the world’s news networks no longer bothered reporting on them. Africa plunged into a new dark age, with refugees trying to flee north across the Sahara, east to Abyssinia, and south to the stable southern Africa. Wars among the World Powers also became a reality, after nearly a century of peace between them. One point of the Riga Conference that was never, truly resolved was the rationing of the North Sea’s hydrocarbon supplies.
The United Provinces claimed access to the whole area, as did the British. The Conference did grant it to the United Provinces, but did not grant it exclusive rights. The British and Dutch governments attempted to demarcate the sea, dividing the sea floor between the two powers. However, with Norway part of the United Provinces, the British believed the Dutch were relieving and unfair slice of the oil pie. In March of 2039, the two nations met at Calais, in an attempt to permanently divide the North Sea. The British already had to colonies on the sea floor, some ten kilometers and seventeen kilometers off its shores respectively. Seatown, the latter of the two, sat near the straight of Dover, and close enough to the continent that it would fall under Dutch influence.
To the British, surrendering one of their expensive, underwater colonies was not an option. To the Dutch, allowing a maritime rival to have its fingers in the United Provinces’ pie, was equally unacceptable. Tensions between the two nations peaked in April as the British began to drill in an area clearly marked as Dutch. Their platform tapped the Dutch oil field via slanted drilling. This way, the British stayed on their side of the proposed line, while still tapping the fuel its own island economy required. An emergency summit held in Bremen failed to resolve the issue, as King William VIII told Britain’s own William IV, that only by ceasing operations could the crisis be resolved. Both Williams left Bremen without resolving the issue. Both also knew that war was imminent.
The Third Anglo-Dutch War
In response to the diagonal drilling, the VOC, on September 11, 2039, sent the VOC Golden Hind, a frigate, along with several hovercraft, to seize the oil rig and shut it down. Acting without consent or even informing the Staaten-General, the VOC acted to save its own oil wells. There was little resistance on the platform, and it fell without casualties. In London, Britain’s parliament was in an outrage. The fact that sovereign British territory was under foreign occupation was enough to galvanize the often disagreeable assembly to action. Royal Marines struck back at the VOC, only to be repelled.
One week after this failed attack, the VOC had sealed the well and destroyed the platform, before retreating back to its own platform. This act of piracy on the high seas caused the United Kingdom to recall its ambassadors to the Dutch Commonwealth. By Christmas, the Dutch had closed their embassies in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. By the start of 2040, oil companies were fighting each other on the North Sea, using their own security or hiring mercenaries to defend their assets and attack their competition. These attacks did not always cross borders. To rival British petroleum giants, BP and the North Sea Corporation, traded their own shots over an oil field off the coast of Scotland. On the Dutch side, the VOC regulated the minor Dutch drillers, who had little choice but to sell what they extract to VOC Oil.
On January 12, 2040, London sent an ultimatum to the Hague; cease piracy in the North Sea in forty-eight hours, or we will do it for you. It was a similar warning the Dutch sent to the former Emperor of Ethiopia in the 19th Century, when pirates threatened trade through the Suez Canal. Unlike that ancient African kingdom, the Dutch were in a position to stand up to British threats. There were already calls in the Staaten-General to police the North Sea, but the fact that the British, an age old rival, was making demands, had an opposite effect on the Dutch people.
Two days passed without incident. Then the third. On the fourth day a BP tanker crossed the demarcation line and was fired upon by a Dutch oil platform. The tanker suffered only slight damage and no loss of cargo. For London, this was the final straw. On January 18, the United Kingdom and its own miniature commonwealth declared war upon the United Provinces. The Royal Air Force wasted no time in attacking Dutch platforms near its sector of the North Sea. Attacking Dutch platforms in Dutch water sparked a similar declaration from the Dutch Commonwealth. After more than three centuries, a Third Anglo-Dutch War had begun.
Raid on Scapa Flow
During the first two weeks of the war, the Royal Navy massed at its anchorage in Scapa Flow. The Royal Air Force had already sank three empty Dutch tankers and disabled four of their drilling platforms. Skirmishes between patrol boats happened on a daily basis, with casualties adding. The Commonwealth High Command knew that if the Royal Navy sortied into the North Sea, the losses would be tremendous. On February 1, King William VIII approved a plan of attack on the Royal Navy’s primary base of operation. The Commonwealth Navy hoped to completely clear the Royal Navy from the North Sea in a single afternoon.
The Commonwealth fleet, consisting of two aircraft carriers, two battleships, four cruisers and a dozen destroyers, along with three submarines scouting ahead, set sail from Rotterdam on January 30. The 1st Fleet, stationed in the United Provinces, went to full alert once the ultimatum was delivered. The High Command knew that the Commonwealth would not abide by demands of foreign powers, and that war would result. Nearly a century of peace between the European powers had not dulled their responses, however, the Commonwealth Navy spent the past decades battling pirates around the world. Not since World War II, had the Dutch Commonwealth Navy been involved in a major fleet-vs-fleet engagement.
The initial assault came in the form of over one hundred multi-purpose missiles launched from the DCS Prince of Oranje and King William III. The missiles were smaller than anti-ship missiles, but still caused considerable damage to the British anchorage. Two cruisers were destroyed outright, along with three destroyers and demolished the tank farm. Fires from burning petrochemicals obscured Scapa Flow from a follow up attack by aircraft off the DCS Karl Doorman. The air raid succeeded in destroying an addition cruiser and gutting an older British carrier in dry dock.
Despite damage caused to the British fleet and facilities, the raid on Scapa Flow was not the outstanding success that Dutch media announced. Commonwealth casualties were limited to a handful of aircraft shot down. British casualties, on the other hand, numbered over two thousand dead and as many wounded. The Royal Navy was not knocked out of the North Sea and the High Command had desired. Their ability to attack Dutch platforms was limited, but not halted. Two days later, the Royal Navy sortied and destroyed three oil rigs off the coast of Norway.
Battle of Spurnhead
The next time the two fleets met was on October 17, 2040, off the Yorkshire Coast. The Commonwealth fleet sortied in hopes of neutralizing British assets in the area and clearing the sector for furthering War Plan Rose. Admiral Count William van Holland hoped to force the Royal Navy into a single decisive battle, similar to those sought by the Royal Navy against the Germans during the Great War. Unlike that early 20th Century war, the Battle of Spurnhead was fought mostly over-the-horizon, with little visual contact.
At 0843, the Commonwealth Navy detected the lead elements of the Royal Navy steaming south. The first volley of anti-ship missiles were fired from a pair of leading Dutch destroyers. Most of the twenty missiles were shot down, with only one scoring a hit on a British destroyer. The Ajax had a ten meter hole punched in its hull, but remained afloat, albeit out of the battle. The British responded with its own missile salvo, sinking one of the Commonwealth destroyers.
The main fleets did not engage each other until 1042, when a squadron of JC-40s commenced a low-level attack against the Royal Navy. The JC-40, a stealth aircraft, was not detected until hands on the HMS Royal Oak’s flight deck spotted them visually. By then, the fighters were within anti-ship missile range. Each of the eight fighters carried a pair of short-range anti-ship missiles. Though most were shot down, two did score hits on the Royal Oak, including one that set off secondary explosions beneath the carrier’s flight deck, and blew off the forward twelve meters of the hull. The Royal Oak lost its ability to launch its own aircraft, which was van Holland’s intent.
At 1200, the Commonwealth launched a two hundred missile barrage at the Royal Navy. Ninety percent of the anti-ship missiles were downed by the British, with the remainder damaging most of the ships. Three hit the Royal Oak, gutting the ship and causing it to capsize. A British cruiser was blown apart when a warhead detonated within its own arsenal. After this barrage, van Holland saw victory just over the horizon.
At 1220, the Royal Navy launched its own missile barrage. Commonwealth ships shot down a higher percentage of British missiles, but not before six of them zeroed in on the DCS Prince of Java. The guided-missile battleship snapped in half, sinking with only fifteen survivors. Other Dutch ships suffered damage, including all the remaining battleships, and the catapult of the Maarten Tromp. At this point, van Holland could have pressed the attack and won. He would have lost more than the lone battleship, but it would have ended the war after only a year of conflict.
Instead, van Holland decided to cut his loses. From satellite and high-altitude reconnaissance, the Admiral knew the British were as badly hurt as he. Though their carrier was sunk, van Holland was in range of the Royal Air Force’s own bombers. The Commonwealth had with it two carriers and enough air power to secure air superiority in the immediate vicinity of the fleet, however the Royal Air Force could put up over two hundred aircraft. At 1240, van Holland ordered the fleet to withdraw deeper into the North Sea and areas were the Commonwealth Air Force could cover it.
Battle of Flamborough
More than a year passed before the main fleets of the British and Dutch Commonwealths met again in battle. Following the indecisive battle off Spurnhead, the air forces of both sides exchanged fire, raiding each others’ space and targeting airfields and other strategic military targets. With advance and accurate "smart" weapons, neither side suffered many civilian deaths. Secondary raids against armament factories and shipyards resulted in little stoppage for the Commonwealth war effort. With so much of its industrial power in Brazil and now India, the British could only hope to launch carrier-borne raids against such targets, with too high a cost to their own ranks.
On July 27, 2041, Admiral van Holland against sought to force the Royal Navy into a clearly decisive victory. More over, the Duke of Brabant had assembled an army of three divisions to make the initial landings of War Plan Rose. To invade Britain, the North Sea must become a Dutch lake. Following previous attacks, the Royal Navy in Britain’s home waters was somewhat reduced. One carrier and four cruisers were all that stood in the way of van Holland’s fleet of two carriers, two battleships and now seven cruisers. British Admiral Lesley Birken had hopes of striking the Dutch before they were ready. His hopes were quickly dashed.
Flying at wave-top levels, over one hundred anti-ship missiles, launched by the Commonwealth fleet, intercepted the Royal Navy some four kilometers off Flamborough Head at 0740. The missiles flew under radar, that coupled with the fact they were made from a slightly radar-absorbent material, made their early detection impossible. When the Royal Navy finally detected the missiles, they were less than a minute from impact. Anti-missiles and point-defense weaponry chewed through most of the missiles, as was custom in modern naval engagements, but as before, some breached the defenses. Four missiles struck the carrier, HMS Resolution, causing the ship to break into three pieces and quickly sink in the shallow waters.
All four cruisers were damaged by the initial attack, but none sunk. By the time their fires were under control, and weapons back on line, the Commonwealth Fleet was already in visual range. A rarity in the 21st Century, the two fleets engaged in close-range combat, using missiles and guns. The Commonwealth, with their two hundred millimeter chain guns had a decisive advantage over the Royal Navy’s cruisers. Three of the cruisers were chewed to pieces by a stream of 200mm shells hitting them two each second. The fourth cruiser was sunk by missiles while trying to escape, along with an addition four destroyers. For the first time in its history, the United Kingdom’s home fleet was destroyed, paving the way for invasion.
Raids
On August 2, following the victory at Flamborough Head, the 2nd Commonwealth Fleet, out of Brazil, launched an attack against the British Naval Base at Plymouth. Aircraft off the Michael de Ruyter and Prince Mandrick succeeded in destroying docks, and most of the shipyard, including a cruiser and two frigates nearing completion. Addition damage was done to Britain’s merchant fleet at dock, including two container ships left as burning hulks.
On August 8, the Royal Air Force retaliated with a large-scale attack on Amsterdam. Two hundred fighters flew over the city, causing havoc for the better part of an hour. The Commonwealth Air Force intercepted a number of the British fighters, and further numbers were downed by air defenses, but not before causing significant damage to the network of shipping canals that connect now land-locked Amsterdam and its facilities to the open sea. The shipyards in Amsterdam were completely destroyed. A few dikes were breached during the attack, flooding portions of the city. Most distressing of all, the Royal Air Force destroyed the four hundred year old VOC headquarters, killing a number of the Company’s executives.
Smaller raids continued for the remainder of August. The surviving executives of the VOC wanted to launch their own attack against government and financial targets in London, but were prevented by the Commonwealth High Command. The government made it clear that if a corporation attempted to take off from Dutch territory and attack civilian targets, not a single VOC fighter would be allowed to land. The High Command pushed ahead the time table for War Plan Rose, if for no other reason than to neutralize British airfields.
War Plan Rose
On August 15, 2041, an armada of hundreds of ships were spotted through the morning fog off the Yorkshire Coast. With the Royal Navy swept from the North Sea, the century-and-a-half war plan was finally activated. The initial landings of three Commonwealth Army divisions, under the command of the Duke of Brabant, Simon Meinkeil and Abdul Rajisiva, were virtually unopposed. A small observation post near the city of Bridlington surrendered at 0812, some forty-two minutes after the first Dutch soldier stepped foot upon British soil.
Unlike the raid on Medway, almost four centuries before, this invasion force had no intent on settling for the destruction of a shipyard. Its purpose was conquest. The first contact between Dutch and British land forces came on August 17, when a British armored battalion encountered the Armor of Rajisiva southeast of York. The skirmish was brief, ending with twice as many British tanks lost than Dutch. Commonwealth helicopters accounted for a majority of the armored kills.
Royal Air Force airfields in Yorkshire were pounded from the outset of the invasion until August 22, when the last field was in Dutch possession. The Royal Air Force ground crews put up a valiant fight, but where ill equipped to deal with full scale invasion. The city of York was declared open by its inhabitants, and fell to the Commonwealth on August 22. With the capture of proper port facilities in Yorkshire, the Commonwealth had two hundred thousand men ashore by the end of the month.
Dutch armor lead the spearhead across the island of Britannia. As was called for in the original War Plan Rose, the island was cut in half, England separated from Scotland. Dutch tanks rolled into Liverpool on October 3. The British were slothful in countering the invasion, for many in London believed the landings in Yorkshire were a sham, an attempt to draw British land forces north from a real invasion directed at London itself. This delay of full redeployment allowed for the United Kingdom to be cut in half. The Commonwealth did launch raids against targets around the Thames River, to foster this belief from Britain’s Generals.
During the winter months, little advance was made by the Dutch. This was partially do to the uncharacteristically abysmal weather of the winter of 2041-42. The previous decades saw much of the climate warming, with limited snowfall. The Commonwealth’s invasion force did not anticipate the blizzard that struck the island in November, and brought their drive southwestward on London to a halt. If not for this freak storm, the Commonwealth might have ended the war by Christmas. Instead, it drug on during the winter, with the Dutch making slow gains and the British digging in.
An attempt to cut off Commonwealth supplies was made in December, by a joint British-Canadian fleet sailing from Halifax. This fleet met up with the Commonwealth 2nd Fleet throughout the month of December, battling each other in the choppy North Atlantic. The advance of this fleet prompted Commonwealth Marines to land and secure the wrecked base at Scapa Flow, denying the British any access to the North Sea. The British-Canadian fleet lost only a destroyer in the month of combat, but expended sufficient ammunition to force it to return to Halifax. The Commonwealth suffered damage to the de Ruyter and an addition destroyer. Neither side attacked with the same ferocity of the engagements in the North Sea.
Battle of Oxford
By the start of February 2042, the weather had improved to the point where Dutch armor could continue its advance on London. By this date in the war, the British had organized an impressive ring of defenses around the capital. Blocking the advance of Rajisiva, was Field Marshall Bernard Vernon and the British Armored Corps. Vernon outnumbered Rajisiva in tanks and armored-personnel carriers, however by February, the Commonwealth Air Force achieved air superiority over central Britain.
The two forces met each other outside of Oxford on February 7, 2042. The British foresaw an easy victory, planning to ambush the Dutch tanks north of the city. However, the Commonwealth learned of this ambush from an observation satellite in low orbit. It was launched at the start of the year, and the British did not detect it until three days after the armored engagement, when they promptly shot it down. In mid-morning of February 7, some one hundred sixteen Commonwealth aircraft took off and converged on the British armor, carefully concealed just inside the suburbs of Oxford. The proceeding fight was a slaughter, with two hundred tanks destroyed from above, including the command center and Vernon. Leaderless, the British Armor Corps were in a state of confusion when Rajisiva attacked at noon.
The armored stage of the battle saw British tanks forced back into the suburbs of Oxford. Over the next two days, most of the British tanks were either destroyed, crippled or spent of ammunition and abandoned. The armored assault on Oxford was one of the largest catastrophes in British history, and only the beginning of the Battle of Oxford. One February 12, Commonwealth Armored Dragoons entered the city. Dismounting from their APCs, these dragoons fought the British defenders house-to-house and at a great loss to their own. Four thousand Commonwealth soldiers were killed taking the city.
As the suburbs fell into Dutch hands, the British fell back into the city proper, forcing the Dutch to conquer the city one block at a time. Despite widespread use of precision ordinance, Oxford suffered thousands of civilian casualties. The British media decried the attack on Oxford, and the world through its various news networks, received their first look at urban combat in the mid 21st Century. After decades of being feed footage of precision strikes, the public was appalled to see war up close and personal. Despite the outcries, both the Hague and London sent more soldiers into Oxford.
The British were forced to admit defeat by the start of March as the last of their forces were driven out south of the city and sent packing to Reading. With the fall of Oxford, the British government knew that it was only a matter of time, and a great deal of lives, before the Commonwealth banner flew over Buckingham Palace. The Dutch were not interested in annexing the island or reducing it to a colony. Nor did William VIII wished for the British people to suffer hardships. Two weeks after the fall of Oxford, Britain’s King William IV sent envoys to the Hague to seek terms to cession of hostilities.
Other Theaters
The Third Anglo-Dutch War was not limited to the North Sea. In shipping lanes across the North Atlantic, both sides used commerce raiders to break the other’s economy. A few minor fleet engagements happened over the vast stretches of the ocean. British ships operating out of Canada and Bermuda even launched raids against northern Brazil, the largest raid hitting Cayenne and damaging the war industry there. An attempt to shut down the Suez Canal by the British met with dismal failure and brought condemnation by the Egyptian government. The British dared not attempt the same with the Panama Canal, which though the Dutch had a large stake of it, was clearly in American territory.
Aside from Britain, land battles also took place on the Australian-New Holland frontier. The Outback offered wide tracts of territory, some of it ideal for armored engagements. An engagement between armored dragoons of both nations occurred at Schmidten Springs, twenty kilometers inside the border of New Holland. The British and Australians won this engagement and occupied the small town. The New Hollanders fought the Third Anglo-Dutch War almost entirely on the defensive, trading desert for time.
A more dangerous theater of war took place hundreds of kilometers above Earth’s surface. Since there was no British installations or colonies on the moon, Luna was in no danger of turning into a battlefield. Low Earth Orbit was unique in the war, for it suffered no loss of life. Instead, the war was fought by satellites and anti-satellite missiles. The Commonwealth deployed small boosters in orbit, that would attach themselves to British satellites and deorbit them. The British would fire missiles from aircraft in the stratosphere and completely obliterate Commonwealth spy satellites. The complete destruction of orbital devices was denounced by other spacefaring nations. When a satellite was reduced to hundreds of pieces of debris, each one of those pieces was a threat to other orbital installations. Large, rotating space stations (one operated by Sweden and another by the United States) were high enough above Earth to avoid the shooting gallery of micro-meteors, but other stations were not so safe. A German space station was abandoned when it became clear it would pass through a debris field, which punctured the station. The Germans safely deorbited their space station, which splashed down in the Indian Ocean.
Treaty of Leicester
During April of 2042, British and Commonwealth delegates met in Leicester to spell out the terms of Britain’s surrender. The Dutch were relatively lenient in terms, wanting little from the British. They did not demand reparations from the British, nor cession of land. The Commonwealth had only three demands from the British; 1) The United Provinces will receive exclusive rights to the resources of the North Sea; 2) The Royal Navy will be limited in size of to the Commonwealth’s 1st fleet by a ration of 3:2 in favor of the Dutch; 3) England itself would be occupied for a period of ten years. The Commonwealth would not send occupation forces to Scotland, Wales or even Cornwall.
The Treaty did not assign guilt for the war. Nor did the VOC have their own wish to bill London for damages to company property. The three terms were simple, and the Commonwealth made it clear that if the British did not sign, the war would continue and His Majesty would not be so generous with his next set of terms. Britain’s Parliament debated the issue for two weeks, before reluctantly agreeing to terms. The Commonwealth Assembly4 ratified the treaty after only an hour. On April 30, 2042, the Treaty of Leicester was signed, bringing the Third Anglo-Dutch War to an end. Occupation duty in England was light, and the British offered no resistance. Nor did they prove to be particularly helpful to the occupiers. Instead, they endured and patiently waited for the Dutch to return home.

[The Kiat]

Here's what the world might look like in 2050. Including occupational zones for World Powers to extract the oil they still require.

[Northstar]

Here's what the world might look like in 2050. Including occupational zones for World Powers to extract the oil they still require.

Why is England ringed in Orange?

And that bit of North-Western Spain?

I haven't read the TL, I just get attracted by paperclips and bright colours.

:)

[Aussie Guy]

Why is England ringed in Orange?

And that bit of North-Western Spain?

I haven't read the TL, I just get attracted by p