AHC: Grossdeuschland post 1866

[Mirza Khan]

Your challenge, should you choose to accept it: make Austria (excluding Hungary and Galicia) part of the German Empire. The POD must be after 1866 but before 1914.

[Emperor-of-New-Zealand]

Damn I was thinking about the 1848 Hungarian Revolution as a way to kickstart German nationalism (e.g., perhaps sour from their loss of Hungary, the Austrians begin a regime of brutal Germanisation of them and Bohemia and support Pan-Germanism).

But alas, that idea shall have to remain in my head. Perhaps something to do with the Franco-Prussian War? After OTL's Germany unites it spurs a wave of nationalism across Europe - the French, sour from their defeat, begin loving all things France, the Germans of Austria-Hungary start rousing for more rights than the other ethnicities, and the Hungarians start to get really pissed off. Eventually we get a very early form of ultra-nationalism in Austria and Hungary that causes the empire to implode - the Kaiser intervenes and takes Austria and Bohemia as his spoils, deposing the Hungarian Hapsburgs and putting a Hohenzollern on the Hungarian throne.

Not only do we have Austria as a part of Germany, but we have the beginnings of a German-ruled Eastern Europe .

All of this is, of course, spitballing because it's not within my area of expertise, but I don't think it's that implausible.

[yourworstnightmare]

Secret German- Russian treaty. No German- Austrian rapprochement. Germany and Russia invade AH. Russia get Gailizia and Bukovina, Germany get Austria, Bohemia- Moravia and Austrian Silesia, Italy get some useless pieces for the lulz, and the Kingdom of Hungary- Croatia is created.

[Monty Burns]

Sane German leadership, avoiding confrontations. Essentially Bismark-like politics continue well into the 20th century. Internal problems of AH cntinue and get worse. At some time, the Germans get the impression that keeping AH alive is to expensive, Germany negotiates the partition of AH and gains Austria, Bohemia, Moravia, Austrian Silesia, Krain - and Italy as a loyal ally.

[yourworstnightmare]

Originally Posted by Monty Burns

Sane German leadership, avoiding confrontations. Essentially Bismark-like politics continue well into the 20th century. Internal problems of AH cntinue and get worse. At some time, the Germans get the impression that keeping AH alive is to expensive, Germany negotiates the partition of AH and gains Austria, Bohemia, Moravia, Austrian Silesia, Krain - and Italy as a loyal ally.

Yes, but we also need a less Catholic- phobic Germany.

[SavoyTruffle]

Originally Posted by yourworstnightmare

Yes, but we also need a less Catholic- phobic Germany.

Like a Bismarck far more willing to embrace realpolitik to the point where Kulturkampf wasn't an option?

The hardest bit is that Bismarck was a Prussian first, German second.

[Monty Burns]

Originally Posted by yourworstnightmare

Yes, but we also need a less Catholic- phobic Germany.

Ture, that could be a problem - but this problem should diminish with time. If AH partitions in 1920, I can imagine that the catholic majority isn't that much of a problem for Germany if the German-Austrians are pleading to join Germany.

[Mirza Khan]

Originally Posted by yourworstnightmare

Yes, but we also need a less Catholic- phobic Germany.

Yeah, thats probably the main problem this TL would have to overcome.

Any way to make Austria experience a revolution after 1866? Say, they help France in the Franco-Prussian war, and subsequently get invaded by Prussia/Germany, which hands several major defeats to the Austrians. This prompts uprisings across the empire-Hungary declares independence and Polish nationalists take power in Galicia. In Vienna, radicals take to the streets and proclaim a "Republic of Germany" as the Hapsburgs flee the city, and Bohemia experiences running battles between Czechs and Germans. Bismark responds to this disorder the only way he can think of-pressing the invasion and occupying German Austria and Bohemia. Meanwhile, Russia invades Galicia and snuffs out the Polish nationalists before "their" Poles get ideas, and the two cooperate in insuring that Hungary comes under the control of its safely conservative aristocracy.

In the end, the incipient revolution in Central Europe has been defeated, but all notions of an Austrian state have likewise gone out the window. Bohemia and German Austria are absorbed into the German Empire, Hungary gets Hohenzollern prince as its new king, and Russia gets Galicia for their trouble.

Remotely plausible?