10/20/30 years war

[DominusNovus]

First of all, yes, we do spend too much time on wars on this board.

Anyway, get a major (official) war that lasts either 10, 20, or 30 years, give or take a year, as plausibly as possible. You get a C for 10 years, B for 20, and an A for 30. Anything more than 30 and you get a D for being a brown-noser.

Have at it.

[Archangel Michael]

The 'Great War' TL of mine lasts 14 years, so that's a C.

[chrispi]

I'll take the C.

My Tory America TL has a Ten Years' War (1803-1813) in Europe (that, unfortunately, has Bonaparte as a minor French colonel.) Basically, the Ten Years' War involves German nationalism and the attempt to form an all-German (but Prussian-dominated) Empire.

In summary, there is a German Empire, but it is headed by a Hanoverian.

[DominusNovus]

Originally Posted by chrispi

I'll take the C.

My Tory America TL has a Ten Years' War (1803-1813) in Europe (that, unfortunately, has Bonaparte as a minor French colonel.) Basically, the Ten Years' War involves German nationalism and the attempt to form an all-German (but Prussian-dominated) Empire.

In summary, there is a German Empire, but it is headed by a Hanoverian.

Forgot to mention that it has to be a 20th century (or 21st, but that's harder, consdiering we're only 3 years into it) war.

[tom]

Does the Vietnam War qualify, depending on how you date it?

[Diamond]

In my Second Carthaginian Timeline, there is a 25+ year war between the Empire and her central/south american colonies, called the Oceanic War. This isn't until the late 1800s though, so it'll be a while before you can read about it.

[DominusNovus]

Originally Posted by tom

Does the Vietnam War qualify, depending on how you date it?

heh, vietnam was the reason I added the (official) part to my proposal.

[aktarian]

Originally Posted by DominusNovus

Forgot to mention that it has to be a 20th century (or 21st, but that's harder, consdiering we're only 3 years into it) war.

GW1 lasts 2 more years. No big POD needed.

Soviet occupation of Afghanistan lasts 3 more years. No big POD needed.

But you have longer than 10 year wars. Lebanese civil war. 1975-89. Israeli occupation of Lebanon (1978/82/85-2000).

Also you can likely find some civil wars in Africa that lasted for more than 10 or 20 years.

[Tyr]

It isn't just a technicality with the Korean war it actually has lasted all this time, a cease fire was signed though the peace treaty never was.
World War 1 lasted until the 70s when it was discovered that Andorra was still officially at war with Germany- there is your major war lasting for 30 years+ :P

[David S Poepoe]

For the most part I think it unlikely that wars upon a global scale will last longer than 5-6 years, as an estimate. National finances would prohibit lengthy wars as nations go bankrupt. As with Japan during the Russo-Japanese War there are financial endurances that may lead to defeat even if ones armies are victorious. It would be a war of attrition, both of manpower and national wealth.

[Grey Wolf]

Originally Posted by DominusNovus

First of all, yes, we do spend too much time on wars on this board.

Anyway, get a major (official) war that lasts either 10, 20, or 30 years, give or take a year, as plausibly as possible. You get a C for 10 years, B for 20, and an A for 30. Anything more than 30 and you get a D for being a brown-noser.

Have at it.

Well, I assume we are looking at things after the Revolutionary/Napoleonic wars ?

The Crimean War has possibilities - if the British and French had agreed a plan for 1856 then how long would it have gone on ? If Prussia and Austria and Sweden had become involved in Europe, and the USA overseas, then a whole new series of wars could occur even if Russia is effectively beaten

Grey Wolf

[Grey Wolf]

Originally Posted by Grey Wolf

Well, I assume we are looking at things after the Revolutionary/Napoleonic wars ?

The Crimean War has possibilities - if the British and French had agreed a plan for 1856 then how long would it have gone on ? If Prussia and Austria and Sweden had become involved in Europe, and the USA overseas, then a whole new series of wars could occur even if Russia is effectively beaten

Grey Wolf

Quoting myself, lol ! The reason I give such prominence to the Crimean War is that plans were afoot to take the war into 1856 on the one hand, and had the decision been made then this decision would in effect mean that Britain and France had committed to the dismemberment of Russia. Thus, with the prospects of peace dashed the war could drag on to conclusions that are very difficult to foresee. I know I have tried in several different threads, and I know the controversy it can throw up especially over the position of Prussia (Austria already had an alliance with Britain and France) but IMHO there is much potential to both globalise and extend this war. It would certainly make a good novel !

Grey Wolf

---Posting this a second time as the site went down first time round...

[Coriolanus]

Grey Wolf, could you tell us more about a ten year Crimean War, and the plan the UK and France had to extend the war?

As for other conflicts, what about WWII slogging on for another four years? Maybe Germany has an extra ally or two?

[Archangel Michael]

As for other conflicts, what about WWII slogging on for another four years? Maybe Germany has an extra ally or two?

Here's a TL where WWII started in 1937, and the TL is currently at July, 1948. Eleven years.

I'm currently working on a TL for a fifty years war fought following the ACW.

[Tetsu]

I had a dream of an ATL last night, one which the Roman Empire somehow didn't fall. Rome and China became the big world hegemons, and fought a twenty year world war in the late eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries. (The war, I believe, ended rather anticlimatically when both sides developed nuclear weapons at the same time and a few Roman and Chinese cities burned in a nuclear hellfire.) I don't have a lot of details on the war itself, because it wasn't what the dream focused on. But the dream took place somewhere around 1950, and Rome was still kind of recovering. So it must have been bad.

[Grey Wolf]

Originally Posted by Coriolanus

Grey Wolf, could you tell us more about a ten year Crimean War, and the plan the UK and France had to extend the war?

1856 was to see a major offensive in the Baltic, the involvement of Sweden who had now signed a definite alliance with the offensive powers. Britain had built a massive fleet of narrow-draught gunboats etc. The idea was to invade Finland and destroy Kronstadt

The problem was that this was to be in association with another front - and that is what the British and French could not agree on. Britain, with her focus on destroying Russia's threat in Central Asia wanted the new front to be in Circassia (Caucasus) whereas Napoleon III dreamt of a revived and independent Poland.

This idea of Poland might be seen as a threat to Austria, but in this period I don't think so. In 1862 when the Polish revolution broke out, the hope in Vienna was that an Austrian Archduke would assume the throne of an independent Poland, and effect a union of the Russian part of Galicia in close alliance to Austria. Maximilian (of Mexico fame) was to have been offered such a throne. But in 1862 Russia crushed the revolutionaries.

Thus, in order to continue OTL's Crimean War into 1856 you need to find a compromise between Britain and France to continue the war. Once you have done that, you can begin to look at other effects

By 1856 Britain and the USA had broken off diplomatic relations, the USA was close to the Russian Empire and it is expected that if the war continues the USA will enter. Its not as much a losing proposition as it seems - the USA's war will largely be against Britain.

In addition, the ultimatum from Austria which brought an end to the Crimean War was directed against Russia. Russia's acceptance met with British and French disagreement. If Austria had not been aware of this latter effect, it is unlikely they would have made the ultimatum to Saint Petersburg - i.e. if Russian acceptance would not have been acceptable to Britain and France, then Austria would not have sent the ultimatum. Instead, Austria would have found itself bound to Britain and France in its alliance, and as 1856 opened it would have had to enter the war.

Grey Wolf

[Straha]

my WWIII/WWIV(its often considered one war) last from 1975-2002. giving us... a 27 year long war. WWIII/WWIV has sides changing.

[Linkwerk]

OTL- "officially" the Korean war has never ended. 50 years!

[DominusNovus]

Originally Posted by Linkwerk

OTL- "officially" the Korean war has never ended. 50 years!

Isn't it official a police action or something like that?

[Linkwerk]

oh, damn- you got me there