Prussia - A Kaliningrad Story (Post WWII USSR Timeline)

[Neoteros]

As a brief overview, they've made several contributions to Prussian society, particularly the development of Buddhist teaching. The Koryo-Saram, especially, had greatly interacted with the Mongols, switching to Tibetan Buddhism under the influence of the lamas sent to the West Baltic. Other than that, though, they're quite a small community. I will cover them in greater detail in a special.



I've posted this some time ago. The Korean chapter will come up in time. Just... not for a few months, maybe. I'm been aiming for a fortnight release for my TLs. >_>

How... how the hell did Tibetan Buddhist lamas reach the West Baltic and turn Buddhism into an influential religion in former East Prussia?

This is like a Crusader Kings II game gone wild.

But hey, Protestant Christians became a very cult-ish and influential minority in South Korea in just a few decades in OTL so anything can happen I guess.

 

[Remitonov]

How... how the hell did Tibetan Buddhist lamas reach the West Baltic and turn Buddhism into an influential religion in former East Prussia?

This is like a Crusader Kings II game gone wild.

But hey, Protestant Christians became a very cult-ish and influential minority in South Korea in just a few decades in OTL so anything can happen I guess.

Lamas were exiled to the West Baltic during the Soviet era, though most were simply executed or forced to play Soviet stooges right off the bat. Also, it's still very small compared to Christianity and Islam, so don't mistake it for video game mechanics.

 

[Neoteros]

Lamas were exiled to the West Baltic during the Soviet era, though most were simply executed or forced to play Soviet stooges right off the bat. Also, it's still very small compared to Christianity and Islam, so don't mistake it for video game mechanics.

How many Muslims are there in the new Prussia? And, in a scale from Albania to Afghanistan, how big of a deal is religion for them? Considering the half century of Soviet rule in a corner of Europe made multiethnic by decades of social engineering, the local Muslims might be as secularized as your average Jewish person living in Europe, following Muslim dietary restrictions out of a sense of cultural belonging but engaging in liberal amounts of haram behaviour otherwise.

Non-denominational Islam and Quranism might become quite popular in a country such as Prussia, also owing to the relatively small size of the Muslim population - it'd be easier for the local Muslims to make themselves heard if they got together regardless of their sect, and some of the more egalitarian/progressive Muslims might try to make the belief that Mary was a prophet on par with her son Jesus much more popular:

Female prophets [edit]

Most mainstream Sunni scholars agree that prophets were males only.[34] Still, some like Ibn Hazm, Qartubi, Ibn Hajir, and al Ash‘ari thought that the verses that mention angels speaking to Mary are proofs of her prophet hood.[35][36] Also, Ibn Hajir interprets the Hadith "Many among men attained perfection but among women none attained the perfection except Mary, the daughter of `Imran and Asiya, the wife of Pharaoh." He said perfection is prophet hood in turn his claim that Mary and Asiya were prophets.[37]

The presence of a relatively progressive and well-organized Muslim minority in the heart of Europe could do wonders to counter post-9/11 Islamophobia, and progressive Muslims elsewhere would be able to look to Prussia as an example, instead of having to be overshadowed by their more conservative brethren.

 

[Remitonov]

How many Muslims are there in the new Prussia? And, in a scale from Albania to Afghanistan, how big of a deal is religion for them? Considering the half century of Soviet rule in a corner of Europe made multiethnic by decades of social engineering, the local Muslims might be as secularized as your average Jewish person living in Europe, following Muslim dietary restrictions out of a sense of cultural belonging but engaging in liberal amounts of haram behaviour otherwise.

Non-denominational Islam and Quranism might become quite popular in a country such as Prussia, also owing to the relatively small size of the Muslim population - it'd be easier for the local Muslims to make themselves heard if they got together regardless of their sect, and some of the more egalitarian/progressive Muslims might try to make the belief that Mary was a prophet on par with her son Jesus much more popular:



The presence of a relatively progressive and well-organized Muslim minority in the heart of Europe could do wonders to counter post-9/11 Islamophobia, and progressive Muslims elsewhere would be able to look to Prussia as an example, instead of having to be overshadowed by their more conservative brethren.

Most Muslims in the Soviet Union were Central Asians and Tatars, and AFAIK, they paid more attention to their Turkic identity than Muslim one, even today. Tajiks are probably the closest you'll get to orthodox Sunnis. But yea, it's a lot like Russian Muslims IOTL, fairly secularised, though there will still be religious and irreligious among their community too.

As for how many, my census puts it at around 5-10% (125,000-250,000). I don't have the Excel sheet at the moment, so I'll get back to you tonight.

As for Non-Denominational Islam and Quranism, it comes down to personal choice. Mosques are still Sunni or Shi'ite run, but there is probably a small number of Muslims who adhere to no branch. And any alternative discourse on theology would still be in the small minority, though not stamped out (unless it actually pose a threat to national security). I feel having a model for Europe to follow would work well in learning how to integrate their own Muslim communities. Much as I hate to say it, but the only countries that had thus far managed that are Russia and Ukraine, and that came with a significant use of repression behind the tolerance.

Religion as a whole is something I'd explore in time. From my census, it's pretty obvious Orthodox Christianity is going to be at least 2/5ths of the population and a clear majority. But Catholicism (Roman and Eastern Churches) and Protestantism are fast catching up.

 

[Remitonov]

This is turning out to be my longest chapter in parts yet. :V

_________________________________​

Kärkkäinen Residence, Kärkkäinen Collective Farm
Gorbatovka, Svetlogorsky District, West Baltic Soviet Socialist Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Night, October 13, 1986

Violett Immergarten. An odd name if he ever heard one. An East German migrant like many of the tens of thousands who came to the West Baltic, Violet was not exactly an odd sight in the West Baltic, as Iiro told Nikolai. What was odd was her being on his collective farm. While Iiro was normally pretty compliant with worker assignments from Kaliningrad (most of whom were Russians), hers came directly from Moscow, a suspicious assignment that was best left unchecked.

Seated at the dinner table, Boyarov felt a bit ill at ease sitting in front of the girl, much less in Iiro's home. Watching her take off her gloves with her teeth, the former policeman was astounded as he saw gleaming metal underneath. A chromed, bony skeleton where flesh and blood were supposed to be, her prosthetic hands had a Victorian-style, science fiction feel to it. It was almost fascinating to look at, although, his interests were tempered by the idea that acquiring such advanced technology would have certainly required the loss of fully-functioning limbs.[1]

"I'm sorry," he spoke to Violett, trying not to stare at her titanium hands, "where did you get these?"

Strangely, the girl did not appear offended, much less feel anything at all. Looking at her hands, she answered almost robotically, "from the Albertina's bioengineering department. I'm not sure how they were able to build this. It's fairly crude in operation, though."

"I thought the Kaliningrad State University was a humanities-based college," Boyarov queried, "since when did it delve into engineering?"

"For quite some time, actually," Iiro commented, "started out as a Pedagogical Institute in the late 40s to 60s, and then shortly after its promotion to a university, it got its first engineering and science faculties. There's just a lot of students here, though getting in is quite hard if you're from outside the West Baltic."[2]

Frowning a bit, the policeman remarked, "I can see why..."

It was not hard to see why he was sent here, after everything he did...

"Now then," Iiro offered the two to dig in, "shall we? The cook makes the best meatballs."

_________________________________​

Front Gate, Kärkkäinen Collective Farm
Gorbatovka, Svetlogorsky District, West Baltic Soviet Socialist Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Night, October 13, 1986

Pacing out towards the entrance to the farm, Nikolai tried to put his thoughts together in order. Amidst the deluge of information poured by the enthusiastic collective director, his impression of the young Violett struck him as a mystery. He did not get much out of their meeting that night, but at the very least, he got to know a little of her life with Pajari.

"So, how did you manage to play the kantele," he recalled asking her, "I'd think trying to play it with prosthetic hands would be... difficult."

"I don't," was her answer, the image of her rubbing her hands in concealed anxiety flashing before him, "I use a synthesizer instead."

"A synthesizer," he queried, raising his eyebrow.

"A modified Polivoks analogue synthesizer," she answered, "I recorded the notes played from the kantele into the synthesizer with Mr Pajari's help. He would play the note in increasing steps, and I'll have it linked to each specific key. I may not be able to strum, but I can still configure a score with the synthesizer. That way, he could teach me how to play songs without worrying about my technique. I felt it was cheating, but he didn't seem to mind."

Looking up at the bright moonlight, Boyarov felt a deep melancholy sinking in. He was quite a naughty boy when he was young, and often paid little attention in his father's music lessons. As he grew up, he felt scorn over his father's attempts to impress his skills on him, the son disdaining the humble life of a poet for the exciting thrill of crime-busting and delivering justice. It was also a career with dangerous implications, where a simple phrase over natural beauty could be seen as an attempt to hearken to the pre-communist past. It was such trumped-up charges that resulted in his father's arrest, and Nikolai was specifically given the task to prove his loyalty to the state, at the risk of joining him in god-knows-where.

Bowing his head as he tried to withhold his tears, he tried hard to put that scene away from his mind. The eyes of his broken father, the quiver in his voice... He could not take the strain anymore. In the end, Nikolai scorned everything that had transpired in his life. His betrayal of his father, his shattered dreams as a policeman, the infectious corruption of the agency he had tried his best to work in... In the end, it all came down to nothing, all because he tried to be nosy and expose the Militsiya's shady work to the equally corrupt Politburo.

"You were right, father..." he uttered, weeping in vain, "you were right..."

"Penny for your thoughts, Nikolai Utrovich?"

Rubbing his tears out of his eyes instinctively, Nikolai could see Iiro at the door, giving a slightly sorry smile at his predicament. Giving a sad chuckle, the former policeman remarked, "you saw?"

Shrugging, Iiro answered, "everyone here has secrets, Boyarov. It's not my business to probe. Sorry if we wasted your time. Truth be told, we really have no idea where Mr Pajari went. He was getting along so well with the collective kids until he just went up and left. He left a note apologizing for any inconvenience he may have caused, but he never told us where he went."

"Yea, Violett told us earlier," Nikolai relented, "you really think she knew?"

"She was the closest to Pajari, so I assumed she would," Iiro admitted, "guess I was wrong. Again, sorry for wasting your time."

"No..." Nikolai went, "I should be the one to apologize. You've had to entertain a weepy stranger all day, not me."

"True," Iiro quipped with a smile, "but it's quite refreshing to meet new people. Why don't you stick around? Maybe he left some clues, or might still be around town? Or did you have anything on to attend to?"

Stroking his chin, Nikolai did not feel too sure about troubling him. But ultimately, the rent at the Baltic Sun finally convinced him. Putting on a brave front, he answered, "no, nothing at all. I'd be happy to. If you need help, I'm game."

"Great," uttered the director with a large grin, "because I really do need more help~."

_________________________________​

Music Hall, Kärkkäinen Collective Farm
Gorbatovka, Svetlogorsky District, West Baltic Soviet Socialist Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Morning, October 17, 1986

Day 5, and still no clue to Pajari's whereabouts. While Nikolai had spent the time looking for Aamu in town, no one seemed to have any idea who or where he was. Perhaps, he feared, that the elderly poet was no longer around. But even then, even a grave marker would suffice as some closure, even if he had dreaded that outcome.

Leaning on the side of the wall as he listened to Violett singing along with the kids, Nikolai could not help but feel drawn in. Her Russian was fine, if choppy due to her accent, and her Finnish was passable at best. But she seemed to have taken the time to get the lyrics right, playing on her synthesizer with her metallic arms. The more he thought about her, the more tempted he felt to find out more. A cripple would not simply come to the West Baltic to get a special prosthesis.

"What the hell happened to her," he grumbled, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Curious," Iiro dropped in, stepping beside the policeman, to his surprise, "why not ask her?"

"Don't be silly," Nikolai refused, "that's private. It's not polite to ask such things."

"Well, you are... or were, a policeman," Iiro remarked, "don't you find it the least bit fishy?"

Grimacing a bit, Boyarov did sense something amiss with the girl. The arms seemed too advanced to be given to just any person, so what made her stand out? Pulling his hair back, he grumbled, "does everyone in this damn town have secrets?"

"You'd be surprised," Iiro admitted, toning down his joking demeanour, "the kind of people here? They all have something to hide."

Iiro's change of expression was... unexpected. For some reason, the director had dropped his tomfoolery for a moment, leaning against the wall beside him. Looking up at the ceiling, he seemed deep in thought, his mind swirling in reminiscence outside Nikolai's ear.

"Svetlogorsk, the town built on the ruins of a German spa retreat," Iiro said, "everything here is built on lies. The town, the West Baltic... Sometimes, it's hard to tell what is the truth. But sometimes, the best way to obtain the truth is to ask honestly. That's what makes us different from the Muscovites. We revel in the truth exposing our lies. If you speak sincerely, then the truth will open up."

Squirming a bit at his words, Nikolai queried awkwardly, "that sounds a lot like dating advice to me."

Bursting out in laughter again, the strange director declared, "it probably is. I can't really tell, myself!"

With Violett and the farm kids eyes fixed on the hapless lad, Nikolai could only wonder what mess had he just gotten into...

OOC Notes:

1. Probably a leap of faith, trying to put prosthetic technology somewhat ahead of its time. If anyone wants to correct me, let me know.
   
2. OTL's Kaliningrad State University (or currently, the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University), otherwise known as TTL's Immanuel Kant State University of Kyonigsberg. OTL, the university is heavily focused on humanities, and lacked an engineering faculty. Here, due to the influx of migrants (voluntary and involuntary) into the West Baltic, an engineering faculty has been founded which last to TTL's present. Its beginnings as a Pedagogical Institute is IOTL, though, from 1948 to 1967.

Cast:

• Colonel (ret.) Nikolai Utrovich Boyarov (CV: ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリア)
• Iiro Kärkkäinen (CV: 燭台切光忠)
• Violett Immergarten (CV: ヴァイオレット・エヴァーガーデン)

 

[EmperorBuaya]

That was interesting. Does that mean the prosthetic technology will be more advanced in this timeline than OTL? :3

Is there any more secrets of Svetlogorsk you want to share with us~?

 

[Remitonov]

That was interesting. Does that mean the prosthetic technology will be more advanced in this timeline than OTL? :3

Is there any more secrets of Svetlogorsk you want to share with us~?

There will be more, though I should probably elaborate on the situation of the Finnic groups a bit more.

 

[EmperorBuaya]

Which reminds me, since we've already covered East Asia, Europea, Middle-East and Africa so far. At least what you've covered on this TL. What's Prussia relationship with the countries of Indian subcontinent, particularly Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka?

Will there be curries in Prussia itself? :3

 

[Remitonov]

Which reminds me, since we've already covered East Asia, Europea, Middle-East and Africa so far. At least what you've covered on this TL. What's Prussia relationship with the countries of Indian subcontinent, particularly Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka?

Will there be curries in Prussia itself? :3

Given Soviet relations with India, there's definitely some level of affinity towards them. The Hare Krishna has a branch in Kyonigsberg, and Hinduism has been growing among non-Indian Prussians. Other than that, current relations with the countries in the subcontinent range from cordial to friendly.

And yes, there are. :3

 

[Bookmark1995]

Given Soviet relations with India, there's definitely some level of affinity towards them. The Hare Krishna has a branch in Kyonigsberg, and Hinduism has been growing among non-Indian Prussians. Other than that, current relations with the countries in the subcontinent range from cordial to friendly.

And yes, there are. :3

Most places will regard Prussia as a curiosity more than anything. The idea of Russians and other Eurasians forming a national identity around the history of their Prussian predecessors will fascinate the world for many years. I can imagine American politicians having a affinity toward Prussia as another fellow "melting pot" nation.

I imagine the only nation with any real animosity toward Prussia is Putin's Russia. I imagine Putin being annoyed at being deprived of an important port, but more importantly, their prosperity under the EU yoke challenges the notion that European integration is bad for the Russian people.

 

[Remitonov]

Most places will regard Prussia as a curiosity more than anything. The idea of Russians and other Eurasians forming a national identity around the history of their Prussian predecessors will fascinate the world for many years. I can imagine American politicians having a affinity toward Prussia as another fellow "melting pot" nation.

I imagine the only nation with any real animosity toward Prussia is Putin's Russia. I imagine Putin being annoyed at being deprived of an important port, but more importantly, their prosperity under the EU yoke challenges the notion that European integration is bad for the Russian people.

You should see the kind of noise Zhirinovsky and other like-minded nationalists makes ITTL. The idea that Stolypin is a subversive and a traitor equal only to Gorbachev is prevalent among Russian nationalist circles, and his rehabilitation in the late 80s was subject to a lot of controversy. The main argument was that, without him, Kaliningrad would have remained part of Russia, and while that's true to an extent (and certainly true in our own, ASB-written timeline), few knew or cared that there were many others who were interested in the project for their own ends, mainly the Tonchev brothers (Vladimir and Valeriy). Stolypin may have left the basic conditions for a secession in place, but that was not his intention. There was a lot that happened in the 80s that were simply beyond his, or anyone's control. Blaming him was, to sum up, just an easy excuse to brush away the complex situation that led to an independent, European Prussia.

In the years [after the collapse of the Soviet Union], 'Prussia' has become a byword for treason in Putin's propaganda machine. Our brothers and sisters in Prussia, all of whom are free to prosper outside the party of crooks and thieves, are being demonized as 'race traitors' to the Russian people. But I say they do the Russian people justice. They smashed the power of the oligarchs, and they prove that a righteous, rich and free Russia can be a reality. What has one million Russians done right that one-hundred-and-ten million Russians did not? One only needs to look at the Kremlin to find out.

 

[Remitonov]

Next time, on Prussia: A Kaliningrad Story:

"...Mission Control, this is Yeo. Zvezda 1 has landed..."

Progress is still slow, but I do plan on finishing this chapter next post (and the omake).

 

[Das Amerikan]

Next time, on Prussia: A Kaliningrad Story:

"...Mission Control, this is Yeo. Zvezda 1 has landed..."

Progress is still slow, but I do plan on finishing this chapter next post (and the omake).

MOON PRUSSIANS

 

[TimTurner]

MOON PRUSSIANS

The PRUSSIANS have landed!

 

[The Forty-Eighth Rōnin]

So Space Marines for real?

 

[Remitonov]

So Space Marines for real?

Don't worry, that's a no. For a story that could have Space Marines, just look at my Mecha Kaiserreich timeline, though we're not there yet. :3

 

[Das Amerikan]

So Space Marines for real?

BATTUL BRUVVAS

 

[Halo117]

You it is really weird that I don't get alerts when new chapter are coming up. It is not just thread but on Purple Days, But I don't speak german and many others. Am I the only one that is experiencing these issues?

 

[Remitonov]

You it is really weird that I don't get alerts when new chapter are coming up. It is not just thread but on Purple Days, But I don't speak german and many others. Am I the only one that is experiencing these issues?

Maybe your alert preferences aren't set to get thread alerts? Or you might not have this on your watch list?

 

[Halo117]

Maybe your alert preferences aren't set to get thread alerts? Or you might not have this on your watch list?

I have put ALL these thread that I follow on alert and watch list yet don't get notification until AFTER I visit them again