So far we know that Albion is a semi autonomous colony of the Afriban empire and that Mali is another power, there was a Balkans campaign and the natives of Albion seem to practice some kind of pagan religion. Anyone care to speculate as to how this TL came about and what the rest of this world might look like?
The World of Noughts and Crosses
- Thread starter The Vet
- Start date
The time scale seems to be in the early Medieval period so perhaps a worse version of the Black Death but not as severe as the years of Rice & Salt.
I'll offer this - the POD is Maghan I is not deposed by his Uncle in 1341 and instead becomes as popular as his father Mansa Musa thanks to the tutelage of his uncle Suleyman.
Reports reach Mali in the late 1340s of a disastrous plague which has decimated Europe including Moorish Spain. Maghan and Suleyman construct a fleet which in 1355 makes the journey north and lands near Algericas to find a largely depopulated countryside.
Over the last two generations successive African fleets move north and east through western and central Europe whose population has been reduced by three quarters as a result of the Black Death.
The survivors are in no condition to resist the African invaders and in 1370 an African/Moorish fleet sails up the Thames and conquers an almost deserted London.
As happened with the Norman Conquest three hundred years earlier, the surviving English are made second class citizens in their own country and over the next 30 years the Africans move into Wales, Scotland and eventually Ireland renaming the new Imperial province Albion.
As with Islamic Spain, the controlling power shifts between different African powers and after a major war in Africa in the early 18th century Albion passes from Mali to Songhai. A new elite takes over in a violent upheaval among the ruling class and the new Songhai elite impose the Nought and Cross system.
Influences from India and elsewhere become more prevalent by the dawn of the 21st Century as widespread migration takes place.
I'll offer this - the POD is Maghan I is not deposed by his Uncle in 1341 and instead becomes as popular as his father Mansa Musa thanks to the tutelage of his uncle Suleyman.
Reports reach Mali in the late 1340s of a disastrous plague which has decimated Europe including Moorish Spain. Maghan and Suleyman construct a fleet which in 1355 makes the journey north and lands near Algericas to find a largely depopulated countryside.
Over the last two generations successive African fleets move north and east through western and central Europe whose population has been reduced by three quarters as a result of the Black Death.
The survivors are in no condition to resist the African invaders and in 1370 an African/Moorish fleet sails up the Thames and conquers an almost deserted London.
As happened with the Norman Conquest three hundred years earlier, the surviving English are made second class citizens in their own country and over the next 30 years the Africans move into Wales, Scotland and eventually Ireland renaming the new Imperial province Albion.
As with Islamic Spain, the controlling power shifts between different African powers and after a major war in Africa in the early 18th century Albion passes from Mali to Songhai. A new elite takes over in a violent upheaval among the ruling class and the new Songhai elite impose the Nought and Cross system.
Influences from India and elsewhere become more prevalent by the dawn of the 21st Century as widespread migration takes place.
Deleted member 82792
It's certainly more original then Man in the High Castle.
I have to say, that trailer looks really cool. I like that they've made changes more than just putting black actors as the people in power. It would absolutely break my immersion if London was exactly the same, except for different flags and names on government buildings.
MaxGerke01
Banned
A large scale historical African presence in modern Europe-very interesting idea. BTW based on books-you learn something new everyday.... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noughts_&_Crosses_(novel_series)
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I also appreciate it, since it seems miles ahead of White Man's Burden, a film that attempted the same idea in 1995....
This feels vaguely right-wing authoritarian, to be honest. It's kind of ominous, like the book Victoria.
I think that was the point. The idea was to show how the right-wing authoritarianism , especially for colonial states or apartheid South Africa, was received by the people who lived in those countries. The idea of being a second-class citizen within your own country. I definitely look forward to finding out about Victoria...
That looks absolutely awful. Visually it looks like any movie set in OTL.
It is, only the race roles of the film are reversed, and yes Travolta does ham it up worse than Nicholas Cage ever could...
Consider it a drinking game film or something for Riff Tracks/ MST3K. The fact that there is no explanation for the changes, only makes the film that much weirder...
I don't think there's any reference to other parts of the world in the novels or the tv series. Rather like trying to guess what happened to China or Russia in "The Handmaid's Tale", we have to resort to speculation.
It seems possible that in the absence of a European colonisation, Africans could well move beyond their continent and establish contact with India and China. The Chinese might have wondered what happened to the Europeans with whom they had traded briefly before the Black Death.
The Chinese treasure fleets would doubtless have met the African Empires as they did in OTL and recognised another Imperial power. Assuming Zheng He's voyages ended with him, however, how and in what way does America get "discovered"?
One possibility is Scandinavian refugees fleeing African incursions might have discovered or re-discovered Vinland in the 1400s (aided by those who had survived on iceland).
Another is Russian settlers pushing east cross the Bering Strait (as they did in OTL) and move down through Canada into North America which in time becomes part of the fourth great world empire.
We also don't know if the Africans are able to move into the Middle East, perhaps taking over the mantle of leadership of Islam.
So, by 1750, you have a African, Indian, Chinese and Russian Empires dominating the globe with only Japan, South America and parts of what we would call the eastern seaboard beyond the reach of these powers. We can speculate on conflicts in the Middle East between African and Indian Empires and between the Chinese, Russians and Indians in Asia.
It seems possible that in the absence of a European colonisation, Africans could well move beyond their continent and establish contact with India and China. The Chinese might have wondered what happened to the Europeans with whom they had traded briefly before the Black Death.
The Chinese treasure fleets would doubtless have met the African Empires as they did in OTL and recognised another Imperial power. Assuming Zheng He's voyages ended with him, however, how and in what way does America get "discovered"?
One possibility is Scandinavian refugees fleeing African incursions might have discovered or re-discovered Vinland in the 1400s (aided by those who had survived on iceland).
Another is Russian settlers pushing east cross the Bering Strait (as they did in OTL) and move down through Canada into North America which in time becomes part of the fourth great world empire.
We also don't know if the Africans are able to move into the Middle East, perhaps taking over the mantle of leadership of Islam.
So, by 1750, you have a African, Indian, Chinese and Russian Empires dominating the globe with only Japan, South America and parts of what we would call the eastern seaboard beyond the reach of these powers. We can speculate on conflicts in the Middle East between African and Indian Empires and between the Chinese, Russians and Indians in Asia.
I just found out about this.
If they can do this, then they can certainly make a Lion's Blood television/digital series.
If they can do this, then they can certainly make a Lion's Blood television/digital series.
What I would be wondering would be why the Africans would want to invade Northern Europe. Why would they want to gain control over such a vast tract of land that has an alien climate and few resources that would be of any use to them at the time? Was there some sort of shift towards a more combative Islamic theology that wants to conquer more land as it did in the 600s and 700s among the Moors?
MaxGerke01
Banned
Do the books or series depict the African presence in Europe outside of England and if so where ?
Have just finished all six epsiodes. I was surprised and what a decent job the BBC did. Ok, at some points it was clearly filmed in South Africa, but I did enjoy it more than I thought I would. It was probably helped by the fact that I had not read or even heard of the original young adult book it was based on. I had less of an open mind say regards the adaption of "SS-GB" from 2017 & the adaption of "War of the Worlds" last year because I wasn't comparing it to the book.
We didn't learn much about the world outside "Albion" or even outside the capital city, but the way that the series ended, it was certainly left open for a second series, and from what I have read and seen the ratings have been good, although it has probably been helped by the fact that the BBC put all six episodes on the I-Player, at the same time and by the fact of more people are watching stuff at home on lock-down like myself. It is also good that the BBC have produced now three "alternate history" series in the past three years (and yes I do consider "War of the Worlds"-alternate history).
We didn't learn much about the world outside "Albion" or even outside the capital city, but the way that the series ended, it was certainly left open for a second series, and from what I have read and seen the ratings have been good, although it has probably been helped by the fact that the BBC put all six episodes on the I-Player, at the same time and by the fact of more people are watching stuff at home on lock-down like myself. It is also good that the BBC have produced now three "alternate history" series in the past three years (and yes I do consider "War of the Worlds"-alternate history).
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