The Co-Prosperity Sphere

[CountofDooku]

Chapter 578: The Axis Central Powers Kaisergipfel (Emperor/ Imperial Summit)

In Prague, the Two-Emperor's -City, the Axis Central Powers held summits (known as Kaisergipfel, literally Emperor or Imperial Summits) regulary and discussed their future plans and ideas for Europa, Africa, yes a whole world either directly ruled or dominated by them they hoped. This Kaisergiplel were clearly divided into various major topics, with one of the first ones dealing with territorial questions in Africa between the Axis Cenral Power member states. While there was some discussion about ressource rich areas or heavily populated ones, as well as access to the major rivers and thereby trade centers and points across the whole African Continent. This territorial and ethnic debates about who should rule what kind of land suddenly became much more heated as the Axis Central Powers discussed the fate of Europe during one of the later Kaisergipfel. Unlike in Africa, in Europe there were direct national and ethnic interests of the Nation States who made up the Axis Central Powers. For Example the German Empire planned to annex parts of Poland up until the Weichsel (Wista/ Vistual) for the province of Neuostpreußen (New East Prussia) and Warthe (Warta/ Varta) for the province of Südpreußen (Southprussia), known as East Posen in the earliest plans. The same was true vor German plans to annex the United Baltic Duchy, the Kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the United Kingdom of the Netherlands into the Greater German Empire. Even on the western border, the German Empire played with the idea to secretly annex further French Imperial land (Belgium/ Burgundia), however they were not alone with such megalomanic plans. In Exchange for this the French Empire was promised Catalonia from the Kingdom of Spain, that in return would get more Colonies from the Allies, yes the German even promised them to take all of Iberia, by annexing Portuga, to further help them reform their global American Empire either by outright annexation of the independent countries there, by forming Spanish Protectorates, or even a Letino Union or Block of some kind, like the Dominions in the British Empire. France meanwhile dreamed about getting parts of their territory lost to Germany and Italy back in Europe, expand their holdings in Africa (Egypt and Central Africa), America (French Canada and Lousianna), South Asia (India), Southeast Asia and even Oceania or Australia on expense of the British Empire.

At the same time Austria-Hungary planned on annexing parts of Poland (West Galicia) and have the rest of Poland, White Ruthenia and Ukrainia as well as Georgia as puppet states. Their plans for the vassals they already had in the Balkan Peninsula meanwhile were rather direct, as the Austrian-Hungarians tried to integrate these Balkan States into the United States of Greater Austria as their Empire. Against this the Kingdom of Greek and Bulgaria sought help from their fellow orthodox brothers in the Russian Empire and even the Neo-Ottoman Empire, as both were concearned with the growing Austrian-Hungarian dominance in southeast Europe, the Balkans and South Russia. The Italian Kingdom/ Roman Empire also tried to serve as a protector for Greece, as they hoped to regain their influence on the Balkan Peninsula back from Austria-Hungary his way. The main Italian goals however besides French and Spanish mainland territories, as well as their and the Allies colonies around the Mediterranean Sea, in the Middle East and East Africa to reeestablish the borders of the Ancient Roman Empire. The only Empire not making any demands for further Expansion was Russia, who'se Emperor hoped to regain more control, centralisation and stability, by forming a majorly Russian ethnic nation state, instead of further expanding. This opened the possibility for the German, Austrian-Hungarian, Neo-Ottoman Empires (as well as the Japanese and their Co-Prosperity Sphere) to carve out parts of the Soviet Union and the former First Russian Empire. The Neo-Ottomans further planned on taking much of former Russian Central Asia, mainly the majorly Mohammedan parts, while at the same time planning to annex Persia, the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt, parts of former China (East Turkestan) as well as the Mohammedan parts of British Raj/ India (later Pakistan). While adressing and discussing major issues and overlapping territorial claims and goals, the Emper Summit, Imperial Summit or Kaisergipfel did not adress secret plans of each Axis Central Powers member nation of not only outright annexing bigger pars of one another, but also in some chases resetteling the majority of the population and ethnic group living there in exchange for their own. Most of this plans (with the exception of the Neo-Otomans with the Armenian, Kurds or Arabs) however only included forced resettlement and temporary puing parts of these populations in Resettlement Camp (also known as Population Concentration Camps -PCC-, or Ethnic Concentration Camps -ECC-).

 

[CountofDooku]

I can’t stop amazing how good this timeline is, and how in the name of science you can write so many details in just one single day?

Thank you very much. I can write around 5 pages out of nothing in a day (when I have a holiday/ weekend or nothing else to do after work), but mostly it's just around 1-2, or when I do other stuff (family, friends and so) am ill or something like that.

For some of the longer, more detailed battles I use wikipedia for backup and parts of the text as long as it fits with the TTL. That clearly means changing some movements, ship names (allready sunk TTL) and changing maneuvers, taktiks and outcomes. However now we've finally reached a point TTL were things have gotten so much away from OTL, that most future ones will be written nearly 100 percent by myself, even if some overall events, plan and operation names might sometimes still remain. ;D

Also I believe the images help driving the story along too. ^^

Edit: we will also see more religious, cultural and even daily changes and influences later TTL (mainly in the form of sports, discounters and other stuff significant different then they evolved OTL, as Japan (Asia and Pacific) will be the major global economic and military powerhouse and superpower TTL (partly during the middle of TTL Cold War, even more so after it). ;D

 

[CountofDooku]

Because I have so many TL here right now, I will change the daily rythm a bit, meaning not everyday a update on this TL, but every week or two weeks a new chapter in every TL overall in hopes to quicker finish some of them (to then have more time on some of the others, or even start overall new ones). My Star Wars Clone Wars one will also have it's chapters moved to Devientart as a backup and to gain more reeders (that will likely take some ime too).

 

[CountofDooku]

Chapter 579: Third and Fourth Battles of Savo Island – Part 2

The Fourth Battle of Savo Island (known to the Americans as the Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal,Fourth Battle of the Solomon Sea or Battle of Sunday the 15th) begann on 14 October, when a force of two Kongo-Class Battleships (Kirishima and Haruna), four heavy cruisers (Atago, Takao, Maya and Chokai, four light cruisers (Nagara, Sendai, Minase and Otonase), eighteen destroyers (some of them survivors of the first night engagement like the Kirishima and Nagara) and further away (near the northern coast of Santa Isabel Island) for aerial cover, the carrier Hosho all lead by Kondo from the Atago. Approaching Guadalcanal trought the Indispensable Strait around midnight on 14 October, and a quarter moon provided moderate visibility of about 7 km (or 3.8 nmi; 4.3 mi). His opponent Admiral William Halsey Jr. meanwhile was low on undamaged ships and detached the new battleships Washington and South Dakota, of Wasp's support group, together with four destroyers, as TF 64 under Admiral Willis A. "Ching" Lee to defend Guadalcanal and Henderson Field. It was a scratch force; the battleships had operated together for only a few days, and their four escorts were from four different divisions, chosen simply because, of the available destroyers, they had the most fuel. The U.S. force arrived in Ironbottom Sound in the evening of 14 Ocober and began patrolling near Savo Island, staying outside of the reach of the Japanese coastal artillery and coastal guns there. Had Henderson Field still been intact, Admiral Lee would have ordered them to attack and destroy the Japanese position on Savo Island with a combined naval and air attack instead. His U.S. warships were in column formation with the four destroyers in the lead, followed by Washington, with South Dakota bringing up the rear. At 22:55 on 14 October, radar on South Dakota and Washington began picking up Kondo's approaching ships near Savo Island, at a distance of around 18,000 m (or 20,000 yd).

Kondo split his force into several groups, with one group, commanded by Shintaro Hashimoto and consisting of Sendai and four destroyers weeping along the east side of Savo Island, and two destroyers sweeping counterclockwise around the southwest side of Savo Island to check for the presence of Allied ships. The Japanese ships spotted Lee's force around 23:00, though Kondo misidentified the battleships as cruisers. Kondo ordered the Sendai group of ships, plus two light cruisers and eight destroyers, to engage and destroy the U.S. force before he brought the bombardment force of the Battleships and heavy cruisers into Ironbottom Sound. The U.S. Ships detected the Sendai force on radar but did not detect the other groups of Japanese ships. Using skilled radar targeting, the two U.S. battleships opened fire on the Sendai group at 23:17. Admiral Lee ordered a cease fire about five minutes later after the northern group disappeared from his ship's radar. However, the Japanese ships were undamaged and circled out of the danger area for now, fearing that their searchlights might only draw more American Navy attention and fire to them.

Meanwhile, the four U.S. destroyers in the vanguard of the U.S. formation began engaging both Ayanami and the Nagara group of ships at 23:22. Nagara and her escorting destroyers responded effectively with accurate gunfire and torpedoes, and destroyers Walke and Preston were hit and sunk within 10 minutes with heavy loss of life. The destroyer Benham had part of her bow blown off by a torpedo and had to retreat (she sank the next day), and destroyer Gwin was hit in her engine room and put out of the fight. However, the U.S. destroyers had completed their mission as screens for the battleships, absorbing the initial impact of contact with the enemy, although at great cost. Lee ordered the retirement of Benham and Gwin at 23:48. Washington passed through the area still occupied by the damaged and sinking U.S. destroyers and fired on Ayanami with her secondary batteries, setting her afire. Following close behind, South Dakota suddenly suffered a series of electrical failures, reportedly during repairs when her chief engineer locked down a circuit breaker in violation of safety procedures, causing her circuits repeatedly to go into series, making her radar, radios, and most of her gun batteries inoperable. However, she continued to follow Washington towards the southwestern side of Savo Island until 23:35, when Washington changed course left to pass to the southward behind the burning destroyers. South Dakota tried to follow but had to turn to starboard to avoid Benham, which resulted in the ship being silhouetted by the fires of the burning destroyers and made her a closer and easier target for the Japanese.

Receiving reports of the destruction of the U.S. destroyers from Ayanami and his other ships, Kondo pointed his bombardment force towards Guadalcanal, believing that the U.S. warship force had been defeated. His force and the two U.S. battleships were now heading towards each other. Almost blind and unable to effectively fire her main and secondary armament, South Dakota was illuminated by searchlights and targeted by gunfire and torpedoes by most of the ships of the Japanese force, including Kirishima, beginning around midnight on 15 November. Although able to score a few hits on Kirishima, South Dakota took 26 hits, some of which did not explode, that completely knocked out her communications and remaining gunfire control operations, set portions of her upper decks on fire, and forced her to try to steer away from the engagement. All of the Japanese torpedoes missed. Admiral Lee later described the cumulative effect of the gunfire damage to South Dakota as to, render one of our new battleships deaf, dumb, blind, and impotent. South Dakota's crew casualties were 39 killed and 59 wounded, and she turned away from the battle at 00:17 without informing Admiral Lee, though observed by Kondo's lookouts. The Japanese ships continued to concentrate their fire on South Dakota and none detected Washington approaching to within 9,000 yd (8,200 m). Washington was tracking a large target (Kirishima) for some time but refrained from firing since there was a chance it could be South Dakota. Washington had not been able to track South Dakota's movements because she was in a blind spot in Washington's radar and Lee could not raise her on the radio to confirm her position. When the Japanese illuminated and fired on South Dakota, all doubts were removed as to which ships were friend or foe. From this close range, Washington opened fire and quickly hit Kirishima with at least nine to twenty main battery shells and at least seventeen secondary ones, disabling all of Kirishima's main gun turrets, causing major flooding, and setting her aflame. Kirishima was hit below the waterline and suffered a jammed rudder, causing her to circle uncontrollably to port.

At 00:25, Kondo ordered all of his ships that were able to converge and destroy any remaining U.S. ships. However, the Japanese ships still did not know where Washington was located, and the other surviving U.S. ships had already departed the battle area. Washington steered a northwesterly course toward the Russell Islands to draw the Japanese force away from Guadalcanal and the presumably damaged South Dakota. The Imperial ships finally sighted Washington and launched several torpedo attacks, but she avoided all of them and also avoided running aground in shallow waters. At length, believing that the way had been cleared for the transport convoy to proceed to Guadalcanal, Kondo ordered his remaining ships to break contact and retire from the area about 01:04, which most of the Japanese warships complied with by 01:30. Ayanami was scuttled by Uranami at 2:00, while Kirishima capsized and sank by 03:25 on 15 November. Uranami rescued survivors from Ayanami and destroyers Asagumo, Teruzuki, and Samidare rescued the remaining crew from Kirishima. In this engagement, 242 U.S. And 249 Japanese sailors died. The engagement was one of only two battleship-against-battleship surface battles in the entire Pacific campaign of the Second Great War. Meanwhile the four Japanese transports had been beached themselves at Tassafaronga on Guadalcanal, and Tanaka and the escort destroyers departed and raced back up the Slot toward safer waters, unsure if more American forces were still in the area. The transports were attacked, beginning at 05:55, by U.S. aircraft from the carrier Wasp south of them and partly even by field artillery from U.S. ground forces on Guadalcanal. Later, destroyer Meade approached and opened fire on the unloaded Japanese forces beachhead and surrounding area. These attacks set one of their transpots afire and destroyed some of the equipment that the Japanese had not yet had managed to bring further into the Jungles. Still the majority of the 3,000 embarked japanese troops made it to Guadalcanal, and most of their heavy equipment, ammunition and food could be safet.

However the attack lead Kondo to order support from the carrier Hosho in early morning of 15 October, as many of his ships had either been damaged during the previous battle engagement or were by now running low on fuel and had to return. Therefore the japanese carrier Hosho started it's nine Mitsubishi A5M (Type 96) "Claude" fighters and six Yokosuka B4Y1 (Type 96) "Jean" bombers. It had only very limited numbers of aircraft, but Kondo believed they would be enough as a reserve cover force, as the japanese believed that the american carriers in the Pacific, had by now all been destroyed and sunk. Their opposing american aircraft carrier Wasp had previously been repaired in Hawaii and even replenished her lost aircraft and pilots, bringing it back up to a total aircraft group of 26 Grumman F4F Wildcats, 26 Douglas SBD Dauntlesses and 11 Grumman TBF Avengers. Hosho's Mitsubishi fighters were ordered to engage the American aircraft harassing the Japanese ships and at the same time watch out for the direction they were coming for, to locate the possible american carrier or nearby airfield. On paper it looked bad, as the Wasp had around 80 to 100 aircraft in total, counting reserves, while the Hosho had only 15 aircraft in total, 21. This meant that for every japanese plane, there were around four to six american ones. As Kondo was unsure if the american aircraft came from a landbased island airfield as suspected, or from a repaired, or newly build american carrier, his instructions remained quiet unclear and open to interpretation. Therefore Hosho's Yokosuka bombers waited with torpedo's ready to start in chase the american carrier was spotet, while the Mitsubishi shot down american fighters and bombers who in return shot down a few of them. Originally finally heading to torpedo a few remaining american ships, the Yokosuka bombers turned around when suddenly one of the Mitsubishi fighters managed to follow a damaged Dauntless back to the Wasp, spotting it's position and alarming the rest of the japanese forces in the area.

Immedietly Hosho started it's remaining reserve aircraft from both hangars, Mitsubishi fighters with bombs quickly added to them and Yokosuka bombers with torpedoes. When finally arriving at the Wasp, the american CAS shot down the majority of the japanese fighters and bombers even managed to avoid all topedo's fired at them while doing so. As a response to that Hosho send her remaining aircraft to sink the Wasp, loosing the rest of them to Wasp's anti-aircraft fire, or close-air-support. Kondo then ordered Japanese aircraft from New Malaita, Georgia, Bougainville and Rabaul to attack the Wasp too, angry that the planned japanese airfields on Choiseul and Santa Isabel were not finished yet, or lacked aircraft ready for such a operation at the moment. After fighting of another wave, Wasp headed south out of the dangerous ares, while Hosho remained unspottet. Unfortunatly for the Americans, Wasp was spottet by two Japanese submariens (I-19 and I-20) operating in the southern Solomon Sea/ northern Coral Sea and hit by torpedos that would lead to her destruction and sinking. Yamamoto was pleased with this outcome, as Kondo had managed to reinforce the Japanese on Guadalcanal, cripple or outright destroy the remaining american positions around Henderson Field, landing most of his forces safely. In the End the Americans lost 3 cruisers and 5 destroyers alongside their carrier, one of their battleships was heavily damaged, alongside 36 aircraft and 1,845 people. The Japanese overall lost 2 battleships, a heavy cruiser, 3 destroyers and 5 transports overall with 46 aircraft and around 1,900 soldiers in total. While a tactical Japanese victory, the two battles were a overall strategic victory for the Americans, as they could much easier replace their overall losses in ships (including carriers), aircraft and pilots then the Japanese were able to.

 

[skarosianlifeform]

Still, any battle that isn't a clear and obvious US victory is a moral Japanese victory, pushing the USA closer to white peace...

 

[CountofDooku]

Still, any battle that isn't a clear and obvious US victory is a moral Japanese victory, pushing the USA closer to white peace...

In the minds/ mindset of the Japanese and the C-PS for sure as they see the Western Allies as weak in mind and spirit, believing they are allready close to accept a white peace or a peace on their terms after all they archived in 1941 to 1942. However just liek OTL they are wrong (TTL partly) at least untill now.

 

[skarosianlifeform]

Anyway, I wonder how Soviet Union is doing right now...

 

[CountofDooku]

Anyway, I wonder how Soviet Union is doing right now...

Not that good after their last counter offensives failed or at least did not archive the aims they had. However they are far out of manpower (weapons and fuel is a whole other story) ...

 

[Jaenera Targaryen]

Anyway, I wonder how Soviet Union is doing right now...

Doomed; they've already lost the Ukraine, Leningrad, and the Caucasus. Plus, with no Generalplan Ost and Einsatzgruppen, a Tsar that's adopted German-style Constitutional Monarchy, and an end to the Stalinist police state, people are flocking to the Imperial banner.

 

[CountofDooku]

Doomed; they've already lost the Ukraine, Leningrad, and the Caucasus. Plus, with no Generalplan Ost and Einsatzgruppen, a Tsar that's adopted German-style Constitutional Monarchy, and an end to the Stalinist police state, people are flocking to the Imperial banner.

Not to mention "freedom" of religion and political activity in the Russian Empire to some extent.

Edit: Have 63 pages of notes for TTL at the moment (nearly half for after the Second Great War Stuff) so we will see a few side-/ filler chapters for not so much major stuff appear soon so I don't have to add all of that later with flashbags like in my Star Wars TL ... hope those chapters will still be fun to read/ write and give this world much more detail.

 

[Darksider166]

Is it possible that after the 2nd Great War, the Amur region will be a source of contention between Axis Europe and CPS Asia once they begin their cold war? I feel like once Japan and Germany start breaking away; Germany in an attempt to keep Russia in its sphere will begin fueling for Russia to reclaim Outer Manchuria or any Russian lands taken by Japan. But yet it would also be in Germany's best interests to keep a Russia that's weak enough to never challenge them, while also strong enough as a deterrent for Japan.

 

[Antonio Ferrari]

Still, any battle that isn't a clear and obvious US victory is a moral Japanese victory, pushing the USA closer to white peace...

Viet-cong strategy much?

 

[CountofDooku]

Is it possible that after the 2nd Great War, the Amur region will be a source of contention between Axis Europe and CPS Asia once they begin their cold war? I feel like once Japan and Germany start breaking away; Germany in an attempt to keep Russia in its sphere will begin fueling for Russia to reclaim Outer Manchuria or any Russian lands taken by Japan. But yet it would also be in Germany's best interests to keep a Russia that's weak enough to never challenge them, while also strong enough as a deterrent for Japan.

As Russia lost nearly all warm-water harbours during the Second Great War TTL they will want some of their former coast back for trade and fleet reasons, however Amur might not be the best opinion there. Actually any potential ressoruces found inside of the province are a much better and logical reason for wanting it back I assume, even more so if Japan and Manchuria build up the region industrial and infrastructual.

 

[CountofDooku]

Chapter 580: Imperial German Companies: Kaiserwerke

(the Logo of Kaiserliche Werke Deutschland (Imperial Works Germany), a fusion of the three major ship building companies of Kaiserliche Werke Kiel (Imperial Works Kiel), Kaiserliche Werke Wilhelmshafen (Imperial Works Wilhelmshaven) and Kaiserliche Werke Danzig shows the three major branches of Imperial German Shipbuilding; cargo ships, High Seas Fleet ships and cruise liners)

---
Originating from the imperial ordered fusion of Deutsche Werke (German Works), with the rebirth of the former Kaiserliche Werke Kiel (Imperial Works Kiel), Kaiserliche Werke Wilhelmshafen (Imperial Works Wilhelmshaven), Kaiserliche Werke Danzig (Imperial Works Danzig) -all fused to Kaiserliche Werke Deutschland (Imperial Works Germany), with another shipbuilding company, Germaniawerft (Germania Shipyards), the so called Kaiserliche Werften Kiel (Imperial Shipyard Kiel) became on of the major Imperial German shipbuilders one again during the Second Great War. Similar to their biggest competitor and rival Hapag in Hamburg and Lloyd in Bremen, both of these Kiel shipyards were heavily bombed and nearly put out of order. Similary to them, they lost most of their civil and navy tonnage to the Allied blockade and raids, leading to them opening up new works in Stettin, Danzig and Königsberg, where they were outside of the reach of Allied bombing raids so far. Despite this setback, the Kaiserliche Werke became one of the major constructors for the Imperial German merchant and military fleet after the End of the Second Great War. Their biggest rivals inside of the German Empire and thereby the Axis Central Powers were Lloyd-Hapag, who fused after the Second Great War and Teutonenwerft (Teutonic Yards, TW or TY), who originated out of Riga in the United Baltic Duchy (with their main Yards there as well as in Königsberg, Marienburg, Reval, Visby, Memel and Danzig). They were a naval branch of the military armor, weapons, tank and airplane manufacturer Teutonenstahl (Teutonic Steel. TS) the main producer of weapons for the Teutonic Order, that was partly even owned by the order itself. While Teutonic Yards dominated the Teutonic (Baltic) Sea trade and transportation till the Gotland disaster of the Prussia Königsberg, who was taveling from Gotenburg to Stockholm in 1976. Despite Lloyd-Hapag (L-H), who contested the Kaiserliche Werke Kiel (known to the majority of the population in common speech simply as the Kaiserwerke, or KWD) mainly in the Atlantic trade and military fleet construction, Teutonenwerft were their other major competitor until their crisis and end after the sinking of the Prussia Königsberg.

Afterwards Teutonic Yards fused with Imperial Works Kiel like Lloyd did with Hapag before. Both thereafter remained competing against one another, as they both build up the majority of the civil and military fleets of the German Empire, the United Baltic Duchy and other majorly German dominated states inside the Axis Central Powers, like the Kingdom of Norway and the Kingdom of Sweden. Their only other german speaking competitor were the Austria-Hungary (United States of Austria) based Ganz Works, Austro Naval Shipworks (ANS) and United Austrian Navalworks (UAN), who operated out of the German dominated Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Other competition for this shipbuilders and their civil and military transport capacity arose during the increasing technological advance of airplanes and air transportation during the Second Great War with the Deutsche Luft Hansa AG (German Air Hanse Corporation, DLH or GAH), Pan-Germania Airways (P-G A) and Gothic Airlines (GA) being their main competition in these reguards inside the German dominated states of Central Europe and the overall Axis Central Powers. Overseas the Imperial German Colonial Airlines (IGCA), the German African Airlines (GAA), Mittelafrica Airlines (MiAi, or MA) and Trans-Africa Air Transportation (TAAT) competet with them over the transportation between the German Empire and it's (majorly) African (and Central African) Colonial Empire. Not to mention all the other Axis Central Powers, British/ English, North American and mostly Japanese and Co-Prosperity Spher shipbuilding and airline companies that also competet with them in the new order and new era that would start after the Second Great War. Despite all this competition the Kaiserwerke remained a major company mostly thanks to it's heavy involvement building up the new Imperial German Hochseeflotte (High Seas Fleet) and the majority of the German Empire's new civil merchant fleet.

 

[CountofDooku]

Chapter 581: Second Battle of Henderson Field

The Second Battle of Henderson Field occurred on 20th to 26th October and begann after heavy Japanese bombardment by land, sea and air. The American defenses were allready weakened by then from the ongoing Japanese attacks and Henderson Field by then was not operational anymore and lacked nearly any American airplanes still usable against the coming Japanese storming of their defenses around Lunga Point and Henderson Field. The Japanese begann their attack from the western side of the defenses, where they had forced the Americans back from their outer defense parameter shortly before. The newest Japanese massive assault on Henderson Field started with ongoing Japanese attacks from mortar and artillery fire, ship bombardment of the shore and Japanese fighters and bombers dropping their payload on the already heavily damaged American defenses. The american Marines and other defenders often had nothing more left to defend themselves, thenquikly dug foxhles, or whatever was left of their original defensive parameter. They had however the fortune, that the Japanese believed them to be nearly completely beaten by now, havily underestimating the American moral and will to fight and survie, compared to the Japanese determination. This was mostly thanks to the quick and overwhelming Japanese victories against the Allies before, that gave both sides a false impression of their enemies and opponents. Like the Americans, British, Dutch and Australians before, who had underestimatd the Japanese armies and navies abilities, training and modernisation, the Japanese too showed that their earlier victories completely blinded them in regards of their own powers and abilities, as well as that of the Allies and Americans. Nowhere could this be seen clearer then during the Battle of Midway, the Battle of Amchitka, the Battle of Buna-Gona, the Battle of Malaita and the Battle of Guadalcanal, where the Japanese and the Co-Prosperity Sphere had their first major losses during the Pacific War, when their original advance was halted and stopped for now. Still the Japanese seamed to dominate at sea and air until now, so that they could inflict heavy causualities to American Fleets, that forced the Americans to back down and away from the Solomon Sea until their newly build ships were ready again and their own new airfields under construction (like at south Malaita and their new base at San Cristobal) could support further offensive operations against the strong Japanese base in the Solomon Islands.

The massive Japanese first charge lead to heavy casualities during the first attack, leading to a false sense of security among the defending American Marines. However the next Japanese attack was better coordinated and approched slowly, using much more cover, while being supported by the Japanese mortar and artillery fire from further inland. The American Marines defendet the best they could and in some areas this erupted in close-quarter fighting across the frontline in foxholes, trenches and even some parly destroyed or still standing american bunkers. The American defenses meanwhile were hammered by Japanese bombers, fighters and divebombers from nearby bases, as well as ship shelling of the beaches and bombardment from artillery and mortar fire, often leading to friendly-fire, as the Japanese were unsure of the current position and frontlines of friends and enemies. This massive Japanese assaults lead to their victory, as the Americans without own airplanes and focussed on fighting the Japanese airplanes attacking them, missed the low flying incoming eight transport planes and glyders that transported Imperial Japanese Naval Paratroopers (the Kūteitai), who landed (crashlanded mostly) directly in the middle of the former Henderson Airfield, right between the American frontline, their reserves and even the muddy tents, they were poorly living in ever since they had first landed on Guadalcanal. This airlanding resulted in chaos inside the American defenses and communications, as the fire and fighting from Henderson Field convinced many American Marines at the southern frontline and primere defences, that the Japanese had already broken trough and were overwhelming and overrunning their main base. Because of this some American defenders retreated into the base to fight off the Japanese breaktrought and stabilise their own frontline, not knowing that by doing so they would weaken the southern perimeter and only allow for the main Japanese attack to succeed. This chaos, the already weakened defenses, the destruction of Hederson Field and the massive Japanese assault from the west and souht on land, as well as from the north by sea and air forced the American forces on Guadalcanal to retread from Lunga Point and Henderson Field Base fighting to the east, to prevent getting fully encirced and annihilated by the Japanese forces.

The Americans used their own former eastern defences at Tenaru/ Tanaru and Red Beach, where they had fought of the eastern Japanese attack before as a defensive parameter for their overall retread and managed to reach Koli Point, were newer American defensive posiions were duck out in hope for a counterattack to retake Henderson Field and Lunga Point within the next weeks or months. Their main frontline supply now landed near Koli Point, however the nearby Jaanese naval and air superiority soon forced them further east to Tetere with the Balsuma River as the new eastern defense perimeter against a possible Japanese surrounding trouhg the Jungle. At the same time the Americans began with construction of a new base at Tasimbako/ Tsimboko supplied from Taira/ Taiva Point further east. With Japanese reinforcements landing at Tiaro Bay and Wanderer Bay in the south of Guadalcanal during the night after the Second Battle of Henderson Field, they started to march east, facing American patrols near Mount Popomanaseu and Mount Makarakomburi. This meant that roughtly one third of Guadalcanal was now firm in Japanese hands, a fact the Americans wantet to contest with the landing of new forces in the South East at Kaoka Bay. The overall Allied plan was to land more American reinforcements, but their forces in the area had to be split up between Guadalcanal and the nearby island of Malaita, where the Japanese invaded from north to south. Further American supplies, new Marines, heavy artillery, tanks and other equipment needed to build a new airfield in the east of Guadalcanal had to be split up because of this. The heavy American losses even meant that the so called Guadalcanal-Malaita Taxi the transport of american soldiers between one island and the other was established. This allowed the Allies to hold the Japanese advance with a superiority in numbers they otherwise had not because of their low reserves, or the still ongoing recruitment and training of fresh forces (alongside the priorisation of Europe First). The downside however was while these American Marines were elite, battle-hardened forces, far superior to the Japanese and Co-Prosperity Sphere Forces soon, they lacked much needed rest, sleep and pauses during the constant fighting and battles over Guadalcana and Malaita.

 

[CountofDooku]

Chapter 582: Basil's Ambitions

Basil the Embroidered, Vasyl Vyshyvani, the King of Ukrainia had a vision of a strong, modern and independent Ukrainian Kingdom. A Kingdom that should incorporate all of the Ukrainian people and giving them their freedom, a plan supported by the major Axis Central Powers; the German Empire and Austria-Hungary, mainly to weaken Russia after the war and establish a Ukrainian puppet state who'se independence would depend on them, giving them access to the Black Sea harbors and Ukrainian grain, coal and steel. However Basil had another vision, avision of a more independent and free Ukraine State and therefore he used the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) (Ukrainian: Організація Українських Націоналістів (ОУН), Orhanizatsiya Ukrayins'kykh Natsionalistiv) and it's moderats under Andriy Melnyk and his supporters in the OUN-M for a conservative and moderate government, enjoying support from the Ukrainain Greek Catholic Church as well as the newly formed Church of Ukrainia, the Germans and Austrians authorities. While Melnyk was at odds with the OUN idelogy as well as with the Church of Ukrainia, because of his own conservative Catholicism. Despite this controversity, Basil/ Vasil declared Melnyk the new Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Ukrainia in hoped that this would form a stable and strong conservative-moderate National Monarchist government for his new state.

Together Basil/ Vasil and Melnyk declared that the Eastern Crusade was a major liberation movement for all of Eastern Europe. They meet with delegates of Germany, Austria, the United Baltic Duchy, White Ruthenia and Russia in Minsk in October 1942 to discuss the future borders and relationships of their nation states in Eastern Europe. There they also formed the Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Royalist Nations (A.B.R.N.) a anti-bolshevik, anti-communist political organisation aimed to organise the hunt, judgement and even active guerrilla war against former Soviet Union Commissars, Red Army Officers and other supporters of the Communist Regime. Their conference and representatives was seen as a honest platform of a revolution and independence struggle against the Soviet Union and it's tyranny, even in part of the Allied Nations after the war. While the Axis Central Powers used the meeting and it's declaration of the Eastern Crusade as a war of liberation and imancipation, outlining their goal to abolish the Soviet Union and divide it into national monarchis states, many delegates, including the Red King Basil/ Vasil believed these goals with their whole hearts and had organised the event without any direct guidence or influence by Germany and Austria-Hungary (unlike Winston Churchhill believed).

However the Minsk meeting also proved that the Axis Central Powers and the ABRN were not as unified and close together then some believed or wished. Territorial disputes over borders, regions and areas depending on ethnic settlement, historical claims or modern ressources escalated quit a few times and the Ukrainian Independence Movement under Stepan Andriyovych Bandera (Ukrainian: Степан Андрійович Бандера, Polish: Stepan Andrijowycz Bandera), the head of the military wing of the Ukrainian Independence Movement. Born in Austrian Galicia on 1 January 1909, into a family of a Greek-Catholic priest Bandera had been a nationalist from early age on. When Austria-Hungary split up after the First Great War Galicia had been the short-lived West Ukrainian People's Republic, before being annexed by Poland and being subjected to extensive campaigns of Polanization. In this time Bandera became radicalised and when Polish authorities refused his request to leave for Czechoslovakia for studying, he enrolled in Lviv Polytechnic where he organized several nationalistic organizations. Imprisoned in 1934 and sentenced to death, his sentence was quickly commuted to life imprisonment. When Poland was partitioned by the German Empire and Austria-Hungary once again for protection of it's independence and membership inside the Axis Central Powers, Bandera was freed from prison and formed connections with German and Austrian-Hungarian military and government circles in favor od Ukrainian independence and helped organise the first OUN groups. Bandera felt betrayed when Basil/ Vasil was declared the new King of a independent Ukrainan Nation State (that much to his anger did not include Galicia that once again became a part of Austria-Hungary). Still Bandera cooperated with the new Ukrainian government and became a part of it's OUN coalition. Constantly he advocated for a Greater Ukrainian Nation State, one that would include Galicia (at least the Ukrainian East) as well as all other ethnic Ukrainian regions in Europe, making him a popular figure in the new state. A part of several Ukrainian Independence movements, the Ukrainian Liberation Council that had established the new state and the ABRN he was strictly anti-bolshevik and anti-communist, but felt neither Basil/ Vasil, nor Melnyk did enough for a independent Ukrainian Nation State that included all Ukrainian people.

Therefore Bandera supported Yaroslav Stetsko as his own factions candidate for the position of the Ukrainian Kingdom's Prime Minister, directly opposing Basil/ Vasil and Melnyk by doing so. His more radical part of the OUN was therefore advised by the Ukrainian Government to tone down, so that they would not downgrade their relation with the Germans, Austrian-Hungarians and nearly all surrounding Eastern European National Monarchist States like White Ruthenia, Romania, Russia and Austria-Hungary. To increase his influence again, Melnyk acively supported not only the establishment and the expension of the Ukrainian militia and army for the new state, but also it's more military wing, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (Ukrainian: Українська повстанська армія, УПА, Ukrayins'ka Povstans'ka Armiya, UPA) wih a yellow-blue flag instead of a blue-yellow one. They not only operated against the Red Army on side of the Axis Central Powers as a part of the Royal Ukrainian Army, that received 2.5 million marks for subversive activities inside the USSR alone. With parts of this money Bandera established his own guerrilla brach of the Ukrainian Royal Army, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. At the hight of their influence in 1944 they made up 20,000 troops of the 200,000 Ukrainian forces and guerrillas, fighing for their independent country across the eastern front. However not all of these guerrillas operated against the Red Army and the Soviet Union to fight for Ukrainian independence and self-determination alone, but also in other Ukrainian settled ethnic regions outside of the Kingdom of Ukrainia, were they even fought Axis Central Powers (like Austria-Hungari, White Ruthenia, Russia and Romania). Suddenly Bandera and his radicals were not welcomed anymore in the Urkaine and forced into exile, given to them by Germany that sought to decrease the Austrian-Hungarian hegemony and influence over the Ukraine with this group. In his German exile, Bandera was killed in Berlin, on 17 October 1959, for his continued agitation to influence Ukrainia on Germany's behalf and for his own politics and ambiions of a independent Greater Ukrainia. This contrast between his end goal of a independent Greater Ukrainia and the German ambitions of controlling such a nation state as a major buffer and puppet in southern east Europa lost Bandera many Ukrainian Exile Supporters inside of Germany over time.

 

[CountofDooku]

Chapter 583: The Kalmyk Connection

While the Allied Forces were fighting united against the Axis Central Powers and the Co-Prosperity Sphere on multiple frontlines, yes even alongside the Soviet Union's Red Army and the Comintern, their enemies lacked such a unified front. There wasn't even a bigger cooperation between the Axis Central Powers and the Co-Prosperity Sphere in overall global strategies and tactics. While there were some talks and overall defining of each others global goals and zones of interest, yes even a technologial exchange to some extend, that was mostly all that happened until the End of 1942. Mostly the German Empire and it's Military High Command saw this as a missed opportunity, while many of their Axis Central Power allies (with the exception of mostly Italy, Spain and France, who operated alongside Axis Central Powers, National Monarchist and Fascist Royalist groups and individuals, mainly in Africa and America) had not only no interest in such ideas, but outright believed that they did not need the help of any Co-Prosperity Sphere or other non-european country at all. On the other side the Japanese Empire was blinded by the same type of racist prejudice about the European and even about their fellow member in the Co-Prosperity Sphere, seeing themselve as far superior and destined to lead their continent (similar to the German view of Europe). This prevented both sides from even thinking about working closer together for a long time, until the Germans encouraged a new combined mission, when the first ones (Axis Central Power forces in India-Burma and Co-Prosperity Sphere forces in East Africa) had proven to be a success in their armed cooperation. So the German High Command and the German Government invited a Co-Prosperity Sphere delegation to the Kalmyk settled region of the Caucasus.

The Delegation was made up by Lam (Lama, or monk) Megetu Budang and diplomat Bede Khatagi send directly by Khan Demchugdongrub on behalf of the Mengjiang Khanate. Their main intention was to make contact with the Kalmyk people, who were Vajrayana Buddhists (or Northern Buddhism) like them and originally came from East Turkestan (known as West or Central Mengjiang inside the Khanate). Their main mission was to establish strong diplomatic relations, as Khan Demchugdongrub saw the Kalmyk people as mengjiang (mongolian) and therefore his legitimate claim on the extended territory of the great Genghis Khan. The Kalmyk were partly nomadic, partly settledand lived from cattle breeding, agriculture, including the growing of cotton and fishing. The Kalmyks had revolted against the Russians in 1926, 1930 and now under the Axis Central Powers Eastern Crusade again, leading to the deportation of 20,000 Kalmyks into the Siberian tundra in 1927. In 1930 only 200 Kalmyk soldiers defeated 1,700 Soviet ones, still their own Republic of Oirad Kalmyk, followed by a Soviet campaign that tried to convince the Kalmyks that they were not Mongolian. The Soviet Union also enforced collectivization of agriculture, forcing the Astrakhan Kalmyks to abandon their traditional nomadic pastoralist lifestyle and to settle in villages. All Kalmyk herdsmen owning more than 500 sheep were deported to labor camps in Siberia. Khan Demchugdongrub saw all of this as prove, that the Kalmyks still were deeply rooted in Mengjiang culturem tradition and religion, a far away brother tribe of the ones living in Mengjiang itself. Another part of the Delegation were the Tibetan send by the Dalai Lama (or more correct his advisers), made up by Lama (monk) Lhundup Gurung and Guru Youdron Shakabpa, who also followed the Vajrayana form of Buddhism and knew that the Kalmyk Buddhist tradition was by now closer to their own, then the Mengjiang (Mongolian) one. However unlike the Mengjiang Delegation, the Tibetan Empire one had no imperialist, or territorial ambitions, but spiritual ones, wishing to help out the Kalmyks with their Lama monks, so their Buddhist tradition could flourish once again.

The last part of the Co-Prosperity Sphere delegation were the Japanese, represented by the former buddhist monk and Kempeitai member Yasugami Tanakio alongside the diplomat Makino Kazutoshi. Yasugami Tanakio had been a member of the Mahayana Branch of Buddhism, that was dominent in the former eastern China (including the Chinese succession states formed by the Japanese Empire like Manchukuo, Yankokuo an others), Chosen (Korea), Vietnam and Japan (Nippon), also known as Eastern Buddhism. Yasugami Tanakio would use this mission to travel back incognito, over Afghanistan, British Raj, Tibet and Burma following the roots and taks of Buddhism in Asia to learn more about the rise and fall of Buddhism in this regions. Before this mission, he had been part of the Japanese State Shinto programm, that integated the Japanese Mahayana Buddhism into their network of government controlled and guided Shrines an Temples, in a attempt to unify cultrue, religion, tradition and state in Japan even more. As the only inhabitants of Europe with Buddhism as their natural religion, Yasugami Tanakio was fascinated by the Kalmyks, who before Buddhism had practiced shamanism. He learned that their clergy received their trainin either on the steppe, or in Tibet itself. The Kalmyk monasteries were active centers of learning, many operating out of felt tents, accompanying the Kalmyk tribes as they migrated. Upon completion of training, Kalmyk clergy dispensed not only spiritual guidance but also medical advice. As clergyman, the Kalmyk lamas enjoyed great political clout among the nobility and held a strong influence over the general tribal population. For many commoners, the only path to literacy and prestige was to join the Kalmyk monastic system. As a matter of policy, the Tsarist government and the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as later the Soviet Union government sought to elminate foreign influence of the Kalmyk people and to elminate their national, ethnic and religious identity, by baptizing, or deporting them. Despite these efforts the Kalmyk people still spoke a Mongolian (Mengjiang) dialect and were heavily influenced by their mengjiang-buddhist tradition.

With the help of the Co-Prosperity Sphere delegation, the Germans used the Kalmyk as collaborators and formed their own Kalmyk militia, when the German Amy Group South captured Elista, the capital of the Kalmyk ASSR. So the Axis Central Powers and the Co-Prosperity Sphere started a propaganda campaign with the help of anti-communist Kalmyk nationalists, white emigre, Kalmyk exiles and Kalmyk Buddhists. The Japanese, Mengjiang and Tibetans focussed mostly on restoration of the Kalmyk culture, traditions and religion, while the Germans were mainly focussed on a partly independent Kalmyk Republic within the Russian Empire, that had it's own militia to fight alongside the Axis Central Powers forces during the Eastern Crusade. To do so Kalmyk men were recruited and organized into anti-communist, anti-Soviet, anti-Red Army militia uis. Those Kalmukian Volunteer forces included the Kalmüken Verband Dr. Doll, Abwehrtrupp 103, Kalmücken-Legion, Kalmücken-Kavallerie-Korps, Kalmücken Brigade and the Kalmücken Elista Regiment. These Kalmyk units were extremely successful in flushing out and killing Soviet partisans. The Kalmyk military believed to prevent their people, wifes and kids to be deported by the Soviets too, making them one of the most fanatic and radical anti-communist, anti-Soviet an anti-Russian force during the Eastern Crusade. As the Eastern Crusade continued with growing lossed for th Axis Central Powers, the German Imperial Army even imposed forced conscription on anti-Soviet ethnic and religious groups like the Kalmyk, taking in teenagers and middle-aged men and as a result, the overall effectiveness of the Kalmyk units declined. On the other hand alarge numer of Kalmyks even chose to fight for the Soviets, remaining loyal to their county, fighting the Axis Central Power Forces, either directly alongside the Soviet Red Army, or with partisan resistance units behind the battlelines.

 

[skarosianlifeform]

The Khan wants to recreate the old Empire all the way to Caucasus ?

Fits with the grandiose megalomania of ACP and CPS plans.

Now, we need Norway demanding Vineland (from Canada) as "some Vikings landed here first". And also some pro-Axis Celtic nationalists that want to unite Brittany, Wales, Scotland, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Asturias (as well as England and France as occupied territories "historically Celtic"). Oh, and Spain should look at Sicily, while Italy eyes Aragon (because of the former dynastic union).

 

[CountofDooku]

The Khan wants to recreate the old Empire all the way to Caucasus ?

I wasn't joking when I called him TTL Mussolini before

Fits with the grandiose megalomania of ACP and CPS plans.

True there are some mighty ambitious plans (granted nearly none as megalomaniac as the Greater German Empire of OTL all the way to the Ural Mountains, but still...

Now, we need Norway demanding Vineland (from Canada) as "some Vikings landed here first". And also some pro-Axis Celtic nationalists that want to unite Brittany, Wales, Scotland, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Asturias (as well as England and France as occupied territories "historically Celtic"). Oh, and Spain should look at Sicily, while Italy eyes Aragon (because of the former dynastic union).

Maybe we will see some of this groups and even a few revivalists of some Pagan German, Italian, French, Ottoman, Persian and other cults, but most likely they will never gain a massive following and remain minority religions or some crazy sect/ cult of some madman TTL (maybe even including some Old Thule Nazi's or so we'll see)

 

[skarosianlifeform]

I read somewhere on the Internet (so, grain of salt needed) that Hitler planned to conquer Russia all the way to the Urals, and then having a "final battle" with the Anglo-US powers (where one side would destroy the other, using WMDs, and then either Germany would dominate or be rubble). Some Nazis also wanted to end with the destruction/subjugation of China and Japan (because anxieties about "the Asian races" procreating and progressing too much too fast).

Also, what about the original Mussolini ? How is he doing militarily and politically now ?