[FONT="]OOC: Stay tuned for the sequel, "Ich Bin Ein Hamburger".
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[FONT="]The initial, seemingly minor point of divergence for this timeline is a random Russian serf catching a nasty case of tuberculosis and dying. However, before his death, he passes on the disease to several people. One of these people is the land-owner and serf overseer. Eventually, after 6 months of going around, the tuberculosis reaches Nicholas, Tsar of Russia on January 12, 1848. The disease leaves the Russian leader incapacitated and bedridden for the next two years.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The timing of the Tsar’s illness could not have been more ominous. Just a few days later, a revolution breaks out in the Two Sicilies. The people have risen up and are demanding democracy and liberty. Many other nations across Europe are stricken with revolution as well: France, Prussia, Austria, Hungary and the Balkans just to name a few. When news of the Tsar’s illness reaches Poland, they revolt as well; believing that Russia’s weakened leadership at this time may result in a greater chance of any revolution in Poland being a success, they rise up.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Throughout 1848 and 1849, Austria is wracked with revolution, both in Vienna and in the Hungarian territories. Due to increased strife on the home-front due to the revolutionaries being emboldened by the incapacitation of Russia, the “Gendarme of Europe”, the Hungarian diet withdraws its regiments earlier than in our universe, thereby weakening military commander Josef Radetsky’s position against Sardinia in the First Italian War of Independence.[/FONT]
[FONT="]One of the most interesting cases is the revolution in Germany. After establishing a parliament in Frankfurt and writing up a constitution that, among other things, declares freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, suffrage and weapons ownership as rights, the parliamentarians go before the King of Prussia, Freidrich Wilhelm IV, and offer him a crown – the crown of the German Empire. Friedrich did not want to accept the crown initially; his pride as a Prussian and his stiff reactionary tendencies made him question the idea of uniting Germany under a crown crafted by the lower and middle classes rather than the aristocracy and nobility.[/FONT]
[FONT="]However, the weakness of Russia at this time, and by extension that of Austria, was a factor he was forced to take into account. Had Russia and Austria still been strong, he could merely have turned down the crown on the basis that Russia and Austria would intervene to preserve the balance of power in Europe. He could not make such an excuse now. Additionally, he also came to the conclusion that, if he, as German Emperor, could establish his Prussian influence throughout the German states, he could completely neutralize Austrian influence in Germany once the revolutions came to an end.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Thus, history reaches a turning point of what later generations would see as mammoth proportions. Somewhat begrudgingly, the King of Prussia accepts the crown of the Frankfurt Parliament. Though, in order to ensure the co-operation of the most potent force in Prussian politics, the landed aristocracy known as the Junkers, Freidrich Wilhelm seeks guarantees of their land rights within Prussia before accepting the crown. The parliament agrees to this condition.[/FONT]
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As the Frankfurt Parliament is being established, the Schleswig War breaks out. The Prussians move to support the Schleswig-Holsteinian forces. FW IV's acceptance of the German crown from the Frankfurt Parliament comes at a critical point in the war, and other German countries begin to join with Prussia in the war against Denmark. This, combined with solid Prussian leadership, turns the tide of the war. After seeing the solid performance of the Prussian-led German forces against Denmark, Württemberg and the Bavarians also decide to join forces with this new German state.
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[FONT="]The initial, seemingly minor point of divergence for this timeline is a random Russian serf catching a nasty case of tuberculosis and dying. However, before his death, he passes on the disease to several people. One of these people is the land-owner and serf overseer. Eventually, after 6 months of going around, the tuberculosis reaches Nicholas, Tsar of Russia on January 12, 1848. The disease leaves the Russian leader incapacitated and bedridden for the next two years.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The timing of the Tsar’s illness could not have been more ominous. Just a few days later, a revolution breaks out in the Two Sicilies. The people have risen up and are demanding democracy and liberty. Many other nations across Europe are stricken with revolution as well: France, Prussia, Austria, Hungary and the Balkans just to name a few. When news of the Tsar’s illness reaches Poland, they revolt as well; believing that Russia’s weakened leadership at this time may result in a greater chance of any revolution in Poland being a success, they rise up.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Throughout 1848 and 1849, Austria is wracked with revolution, both in Vienna and in the Hungarian territories. Due to increased strife on the home-front due to the revolutionaries being emboldened by the incapacitation of Russia, the “Gendarme of Europe”, the Hungarian diet withdraws its regiments earlier than in our universe, thereby weakening military commander Josef Radetsky’s position against Sardinia in the First Italian War of Independence.[/FONT]
[FONT="]One of the most interesting cases is the revolution in Germany. After establishing a parliament in Frankfurt and writing up a constitution that, among other things, declares freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, suffrage and weapons ownership as rights, the parliamentarians go before the King of Prussia, Freidrich Wilhelm IV, and offer him a crown – the crown of the German Empire. Friedrich did not want to accept the crown initially; his pride as a Prussian and his stiff reactionary tendencies made him question the idea of uniting Germany under a crown crafted by the lower and middle classes rather than the aristocracy and nobility.[/FONT]
[FONT="]However, the weakness of Russia at this time, and by extension that of Austria, was a factor he was forced to take into account. Had Russia and Austria still been strong, he could merely have turned down the crown on the basis that Russia and Austria would intervene to preserve the balance of power in Europe. He could not make such an excuse now. Additionally, he also came to the conclusion that, if he, as German Emperor, could establish his Prussian influence throughout the German states, he could completely neutralize Austrian influence in Germany once the revolutions came to an end.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Thus, history reaches a turning point of what later generations would see as mammoth proportions. Somewhat begrudgingly, the King of Prussia accepts the crown of the Frankfurt Parliament. Though, in order to ensure the co-operation of the most potent force in Prussian politics, the landed aristocracy known as the Junkers, Freidrich Wilhelm seeks guarantees of their land rights within Prussia before accepting the crown. The parliament agrees to this condition.[/FONT]
[FONT="]
As the Frankfurt Parliament is being established, the Schleswig War breaks out. The Prussians move to support the Schleswig-Holsteinian forces. FW IV's acceptance of the German crown from the Frankfurt Parliament comes at a critical point in the war, and other German countries begin to join with Prussia in the war against Denmark. This, combined with solid Prussian leadership, turns the tide of the war. After seeing the solid performance of the Prussian-led German forces against Denmark, Württemberg and the Bavarians also decide to join forces with this new German state.
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