Common and Overdone before 1900 What Ifs?
- Thread starter SirSpecko
- Start date
John Fredrick Parker
Donor
I wouldn't complain about these being overdone; if anything, the typical "What if the loser ___ major war was the winner?" or "What if __ empire lasted longer?" cannot be understood a single question. Really, the question in these cases is "What if the peace was arrived at differently?" or "What if ___ evolved differently?", which of course, in any given conflict, can be imagined in countless ways, each of which would alter history in their own distinctive way. As an example, here are some Civil War ideas.
Something something the US absorbs more/all of Mexico. Like that horse hasn't been beat enough already.
Napoleon winning at Waterloo. I've never really understood the fascination with that one; he had little real chance of winning the war even with a victory that day.
The War of the Sixth Coalition (e.g., Russia, Leipzig) is IMO the real "what-if" to ponder about Napoleon. That, or him never overthrowing the Spanish Bourbons.
The War of the Sixth Coalition (e.g., Russia, Leipzig) is IMO the real "what-if" to ponder about Napoleon. That, or him never overthrowing the Spanish Bourbons.
US annexes Canada/Mexico
US w/o West Coast
Gran Colombia-wank
No US Civil War
Thirteen Colonies remain with the Crown
Independent Texas/Louisiana/Quebec/California
US w/o West Coast
Gran Colombia-wank
No US Civil War
Thirteen Colonies remain with the Crown
Independent Texas/Louisiana/Quebec/California
The most boring and overdone what if are basicly what ifs that either make the USA or the British Empire larger. Both are/were so large that making them even stronger doesn't change anything interesting. So, northern Mexico and Canada are American, yeah America still is the number one superpower. So Indonesia and all of Oregon are British. The British still rule the waves in the 19th and early 20th century. Nothing is changed.
We need more of this!
Not enough good California Republic TLs (actually I can only think of one, and that didn't last very long.)
Deleted member 67076
Ive seen a lot of ones about Prussia's performance in the mid 1700s.
Whoa, I've rarely seen this before. Can you swing a link to some of these?
Whoa, I've rarely seen this before. Can you swing a link to some of these?
Not just "Confederate Victory" ... all those ones with European Intervention.
Especially where the US always still wins
Anything to do with the US civil war
Granted, it's an American board but seriously. Especially the obsession with Confederate victories annoy me - I'm so sorry, but Forrest winning a skirmish in 1862 or the confederacy introducing more Gatling guns in 1861 probably won't change anything. Get over it.
US- or Brit-wanks
It's not the timelines as much as the implications. Guess what country is always a war-torn hell-hole led by incompetent dictators just waiting to be conquered by the US? Mexico! Subhumans the lot of them.
I'd love to see a timeline where the US does indeed conquer Mexico, only to get bogged down in an endless insurrection they will eventually lose - parallel to the U.K. in Northern Ireland.
And speaking of the U.K. they will always be the premier superpower and will always have an unbeatable navy. The French, republic or empire is a matter of flavor, will always end up a political mess, the Germans will either fail to unite or eventually lose a war to the English (bonus points for the English winning a land war with Germany/Prussia by using their navy somehow).
And of course the colonies will eventually realize how awesome the British Empire was all along and begin enjoying being colonized. I've never seen more colonial apologists than the ones arguing for the British Empire. Sure, they would violently oppress people and play ethnic groups out against each other in ways that have led to gruesome civil wars and atrocities. But they build a really good railway system in India, and you can't put a price (in human lives) on that!
Granted, it's an American board but seriously. Especially the obsession with Confederate victories annoy me - I'm so sorry, but Forrest winning a skirmish in 1862 or the confederacy introducing more Gatling guns in 1861 probably won't change anything. Get over it.
US- or Brit-wanks
It's not the timelines as much as the implications. Guess what country is always a war-torn hell-hole led by incompetent dictators just waiting to be conquered by the US? Mexico! Subhumans the lot of them.
I'd love to see a timeline where the US does indeed conquer Mexico, only to get bogged down in an endless insurrection they will eventually lose - parallel to the U.K. in Northern Ireland.
And speaking of the U.K. they will always be the premier superpower and will always have an unbeatable navy. The French, republic or empire is a matter of flavor, will always end up a political mess, the Germans will either fail to unite or eventually lose a war to the English (bonus points for the English winning a land war with Germany/Prussia by using their navy somehow).
And of course the colonies will eventually realize how awesome the British Empire was all along and begin enjoying being colonized. I've never seen more colonial apologists than the ones arguing for the British Empire. Sure, they would violently oppress people and play ethnic groups out against each other in ways that have led to gruesome civil wars and atrocities. But they build a really good railway system in India, and you can't put a price (in human lives) on that!
The Franco-Prussian War being ended with even more territorial annexations by Prussia/Germany. From all of Lorraine (plus Alsace, of course) to Alsace-Lorraine plus most of the French colonial empire (which at the time was rather small, mind you), I've seen it all. And all of that leads to a massive Germany-wank like the world has never seen (of course I'm sarcastic here).
Also yes: super-successful CSAs, even bigger British Empires and surviving Roman Empires of any kind are way too common. Same with stupid ways to preserve the First French Empire.
Also yes: super-successful CSAs, even bigger British Empires and surviving Roman Empires of any kind are way too common. Same with stupid ways to preserve the First French Empire.
Anglosphere wanks are common, but that's to be expected when like 60%* of the userbase on this site is Murrican
*which actually is low relative to the rest of the internet**
**I may or may not be making this figure up out of thin air.
*which actually is low relative to the rest of the internet**
**I may or may not be making this figure up out of thin air.
Timeliness whose focus spans the entire world or a continent. Where are the timeliness with a more detailed focus on a smaller scale, like on a non-US-or-UK country focus or even centered on a single city?