2021 Turtledoves - Best Early 20th Century Timeline Poll

[Gwrtheyrn Annwn]

Place In the Sun: What If Italy Joined the Central Powers?; @Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth

Of Lost Monkeys and Broken Vehicles; @Lascaris

A Day in July: An Early 20th Century Timeline; @Zulfurium

Der Kampf: The Rise and Fall of the Austrian Führer; @Tanner151

The Rainbow. A World War One on Canada's West Coast Timeline; @YYJ

Feeble Constitution - A Red-and-Green Russia 1917 Timeline; @Salvador79

Osman Reborn: The Survival of Ottoman Democracy [An Ottoman TL set in 1900's]; @Sārthākā

The North Star is Red: a Wallace Presidency, KMT Victory, Alternate Cold War TL; @TastySpam

Sir John Valentine Carden Survives; @allanpcameron

The Forge of Weyland; @Astrodragon

Crimson Banners Fly: The Rise of the American Left; @PyroTheFox

Det som går ned må komme opp-An Alternate Royal Norwegian Navy TL; @CV(N)-6

Of Poets and Supermen Volume I - The Drums of War; @Persephone

The March of Time -20th Century History; @Karelian

Twilight of the Valkyries: A 20 July Plot TL (Redux); @LumineVonReuental

The Spirit of Salamis- A Short Allied Victory in Crete TL ; @phil03

A Lusophone World; @Lusitania

 

[Nerdman3000]

Uh @Gwrtheyrn Annwn, The North Star is Red: a Wallace Presidency, KMT Victory, Alternate Cold War TL appears twice in the poll.

 

[Gwrtheyrn Annwn]

Uh @Gwrtheyrn Annwn, The North Star is Red: a Wallace Presidency, KMT Victory, Alternate Cold War TL appears twice in the poll.

So it does. Well, it seems I can't edit that so I guess you can just vote for it twice now.

 

[Nerdman3000]

So it does. Well, it seems I can't edit that so I guess you can just vote for it twice now.

Isn’t that kind of cheating, since multiple votes can be used for the poll? Maybe a mod like @CalBear or @Ian the Admin can fix it?

 

[Gwrtheyrn Annwn]

Isn’t that kind of cheating, since multiple votes can be used for the poll? Maybe a mod like @CalBear or @Ian the Admin can fix it?

I'll see what I can do.

 

[Sarthak]

Guess I'm gonna make a blurb again

Osman Reborn: The Survival of Ottoman Democracy [An Ottoman TL set in the 1900s]

In 1683, the Ottoman Empire reached the Zenith of its power, stretching from Algiers to Alexandria, from Beirut to the Holy Cities, from Baghdad to crimea, and from Angora to the outskirts of Vienna itself. However those days are by 1911 long gone. One the mightiest Islamic empire the world had ever seen, the Ottoman Empire was a weak nation, experimenting with democracy. And during this time, the Italians strike, hungry to gain Libya as their colonial project. However........an old saying goes that A Tiger, no matter how old, can still pounce. The Ottomans may be an ailing tiger, however they still have strength hidden beneath its muscles. As the Italians land in Libya, the Ottomans push back and using canny diplomatic moves, the Ottomans come out victorious in the Italo-Turkish War, prompting the balkan states to remain neutral and not start the balkan wars. As Ottoman democracy consolidates in the country, and a true multiparty democracy is born in the nation, an ailing tiger is soon being nursed back to full health. However all is not well. The spectre of conflict looms over the european continent, and the Ottomans want no part of it. However even if the Ottomans don't want war, war is coming for the Ottomans. And this is the story of how the Ottomans survive.

 

[CV(N)-6]

Det som går ned må komme opp-An Alternate Norwegian Navy Timeline

When Norway cuts defense funding even more than it did historically in the early twenties, the Navy finds itself struggling to keep the ships it feels like it needs in commission while maintaining these same ships. This leads to chain of events kicked off when several members of the Stortinget, Norway's Parliament, are aboard the old armored ship Norge just in time for her to embarrassingly burn out a bearing on one of her propeller shafts. This small group begins a new movement as a result, focused on making sure Norway has a fairly modern, well maintained military to defend herself. It takes a while, but when German ships are reported entering the approaches to a number of Norwegian cities, they have succeeded; Norway's military is in far better shape to repel an invasion than it was even during the previous World War. Norway just has to hope that's enough to keep her free from the onslaught of Nazi Germany.

 

[Zulfurium]

A Day in July: An Early 20th Century Timeline

ADiJ is a timeline which explores the explosive consequences of Lenin and Stalin dying during the calamitous July Days of the Russian Revolution. It follows the rapid development of shifting configurations of ideology, partisanship and policy as the Great War rages and the butterflies from events in Russia begin to tear across the rest of the world with both great and terrible consequences. New leaders rise to power and old powers face extermination as everyone scrambles to find their role in the creation of a new world order.

A particular emphasis of the timeline has been an exploration of less explored parts of the world, from the political wrangling, coups and intrigues of South America and the reverberations of changing colonial policies in Africa and the Middle East to ambitious Chinese and Japanese ideologues and thinkers seeking to ensure that their states will rise to prominence out of the darkness of the preceding century. In America the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and nativist tendencies threaten to undermine the internationalist, progressive order established first under Theodore Roosevelt, but which has since spread across both Democratic and Republican parties. In Russia a welter of political factions from across the political spectrum vie for supremacy while in Europe the horrors of the Great War give way to a broadly constructive effort seeking to create a better, safer interntional order despite lurking ambitions, hatreds and jealousies.

The timeline explores the ideological, political, social and cultural underpinnings of the new world born out of the Great War and the people who call that world their home.

 

[YYJ]

The Rainbow. A World War One on Canada's West Coast Timeline

August 1914. The Empires of Germany and England declare war. The west coast of Canada is defended by a single obsolete cruiser, HMCS Rainbow. The Royal Navy handed over defence of the Dominion to the Government of Canada in 1905, but successive national governments were unable to settle on a naval policy or procure any modern warships. Admiral Graf Maximilian Von Spee’s East Asiatic Squadron, based in the German colony in Tsingtao, China vastly overpowers any available Canadian naval forces. The war starts with the light cruisers SMS Nürnberg in Honolulu, and Leipzig off Mazatlan, Mexico. The province of British Columbia is in a panic.

In our timeline, the panic proved to be unwarranted, as the two light cruisers were ordered to the central Pacific to meet with Von Spee’s main force, and headed south to victory at the Battle of Coronel, then defeat at the Falkland Islands. In our timeline the closest the Kiaserliche Marine came to Canada was Leipzig cruising just north of San Francisco.

But what if the two cruisers were ordered east and north to engage in commerce warfare on the industrially significant and highly exposed west coast of Canada…

A sample:

Aug 3, 1500 hours. Esquimalt Naval Dockyard.

True to their word, the group spearheading the purchase of the submarines did return to Lieutenant Pilcher’s office. This time the participants included Premier McBride, and the Maritime Surveyor Logan, but no representatives from the Government of Canada. In fact, no one in the room represented Canada, the ostensible submarine buyer. Pilcher himself was a British citizen and a Royal Navy officer. Were they a committee? Or a conspiracy? Pilcher was not accustomed to this free-flow entrepreneurial style of military procurement.

“Did you notice that this morning the Daily Colonist published a picture of the Leipzig, next to an article on the relevant International Law regarding the bombardment of undefended ports?” said Premier McBride. “That should help soothe the nerves of the local population.”

Logan used Pilcher’s telephone to contact the Seattle shipyard’s representative Paterson. Pilcher talked with McBride and his team, while Logan interjected with updates, phone earpiece crooked against his shoulder. Pilcher was making a point about how he needed actual authorization to take action, when Logan shouted “575 thousand dollars each!”

Logan, open mouthed and incredulous, looked to McBride. McBride scowled and shook his head – No.

Logan started to offer a counter proposal, then recoiled and pulled the phone away from his ear. Across the room, the men could hear the tinny voice from Seattle asserting “This is no time to indulge in talk of that kind and I will not listen to it! If you do not care to take the boats you do not need to take them!”

Logan managed to placate Paterson enough to keep him on the line, while casting helpless glances over to McBride.

 

[Karelian]

The March of Time: - 20th Century History

A TL covering the 20th century from January 1900.
Fin de siècle Great Power politics, diplomacy, technology and warfare.
Age: Seven years, 11 months, 2 weeks and counting.
+ 850 pages and 215 updates later this TL has already reached TTL year 1908, progressing slightly faster than real life.

So, to recap: the POD is in 1900. It is now 1908.

In those eight years, the Ottoman Sultan has been assassinated, the Russo-Japanese war (probably) averted, the Kaiser has abdicated, the Qing have been replaced by another dynasty, the Entente is undergoing severe birthing pains, Sweden-Norway has disintegrated into civil war, and there's a threat of general war and revolution in northern Europe- and all that is just the highlight reel.

The timeline may only update occasionally, but it certainly covers ground.

 

[Lascaris]

Since it seems to be advertising time...

"It is perhaps no exaggeration to remark that a quarter of a million persons died of this monkey’s bite." Sir Winston Churchill The World Crisis, Vol. 4 on the death of king Alexander of Greece, to the bite of a herbivorous monkey in a country where monkeys exist only as imported pets.

So thanks to slight changes a few months earlier, Alexander fails to meet his monkey. Liberals win the October 1920 Greek legislative elections, Venizelos remains firmly in control, Greece remains firmly allied to Britain (and France) and the last conflict of the Great War ends with the defeat of the Turkish nationalists in 1921 and the treaty of Chantilly.

Fast forward to 1930-31. The Near East has been, mostly, at peace for nearly a decade. Greece has done mostly well, but will it keep doing so? Turkey, nominally still a monarchy, is recovering with every passing year and not forgetting her defeat. In the League city of Constantinople Mustafa Kemal is bidding his time and pulling his strings. The rest of the world, by now plunged in economic crisis, has been mostly but not quite the same. What shall happen next? Stay tuned for the next instalments...

Of Lost Monkeys and Broken Vehicles

 

[allanpcameron]

Sir John Valentine Carden is considered one of Britain's best armoured vehicle designers in the 1930's. He was tragically killed in an air accident in December 1935, which meant that his initial designs for the first generation of British tanks, the A11 Matilda Infantry tank, A9 and A10 cruiser tanks were completed by others, and frankly, weren't very good. The Valentine was an off-shoot of the A9/A10 design and was reasonably successful, for a British tank, which isn't really saying very much.
Imagine then, Carden gets off the plane alive and actually designs the tanks mentioned, so that they aren't quite so bad as they were. His alternative design for the Valentine is actually quite a good tank for its day. So, if the British go to war with slightly better, and slightly more tanks, what happens? Good question! Come along and find out.
There's a lot of very good work in the list to choose from. If you feel mine is worth a nod, I thank you. If not, thanks for voting, all the authors really appreciate your support.
Allan.

 

[phil03]

The Spirit of Salamis- A Short Allied Victory in Crete TL​

As indicated by its name the TL explore one of the greatest missed opportunities for the Allies during WWII: the Battle of Crete.

In May 1941, following its victory in the continental Balkans, the Wehrmacht sought to eliminate the last Allied beachhead in the area, Crete, through an ambitious airborne assault. Case Merkury, as the attack was codenamed was profoundly flawed as the German plans showed a thorough arrogance and underestimation of the Allied garrison of the island, the Creforce and made much the same mistakes then Market Garden would commit three years later. Moreover, the Germans also happened to operate on extremely bad intelligence in this instance, as the numbers General Freyberg had at his disposal proved far greater then the German estimates and the inhabitants far more hostile to the Axis then the Wermacht had feared.

As a result the first day of Mercury proved calamitous for the Germans. Two of their three assaults on the three airfields of the island were sent reeling back with heavy looses. The third assault, on the greatest and westernmost airfield of the island, Malemme, also paid a bloody toll but ended up faring better. The hearth of the battle ended up being Hill 107, as the New Zealand 22nd Batalion fought a desperate actions to hold the one line of defence of Malemme airfield, altough the Germans attackers themselves had greatly suffered and were getting exhausted. Faithfully, late in the day the commander of the 22nd, Ltn Colonel Andrew, reached out to his own superior; Brigadier Harghest, in charge of the overall defense of Malemme, and asked for the authorization to retreat. A political appointee plagued by health issues and therefore ill suited to his role, Harghest made by the fatal mistake of accepting. As they were already considering retreating, the German forces in the sector found the way to Malemme open in front of them. The possession of Malemme airfield proved the lifeline the Germans sorely needed, as they held it against all counterattacks and used it to bring to Crete the supplies and reinforcements needed to avoid a disaster and ultimately conquer the island. That is what happened world,

In the world of the Spirit of Salamis Harghest has a hearth attack and is thus removed from the picture at a critcal juncture and Lieutenant Colonel Freb Baker, a professional soldier, is named Acting Brigadier. Thus, when he the call of the 22nd is received ITTL Andrew get the answer he should have received OTL: any retreat is strictly forbidden under pain of court martial and while an immediate counterattack is impossible due to the Luftwaffe's mastery of the air a counterattack will be launched at dusk. As a result Malemme does not fall and the Germans did not recover from their early reverses, the Battle of Crete ending up being the first great German land defeat of the war.

If any of the above has attracted your attention please join us in seeing, through excerpts of ITTL's books, articles and memoirs, General Bernard Freyberg (ITTL future Field Marshall Freyberg, Viscount of Malemme) and the men of the Creforce win the great victories that should have been theirs in OTL as well as explore a brand new side theaters of the war; the Aegean, and the butterflies further affield.

If you believe the TL is worthy of it please consider leaving a vote and, if not, I do encourage you to read and vote for some of the other great TL having been nominated.

 

[Tanner151]

Der Kampf - The Rise and Fall of the Austrian Führer​

This is set in a world where Hitler's Austrian citizenship is discovered when he tries to volunteer for the German Army in 1914. This is a story where Hitler does not become the Führer of the German Reich, but rather the Austrian State. It details his rise to power. Currently 20 chapters in and in 1919 with the butterflies already flapping their wings.

---------
​

“A plague has been loosed upon the continent and it comes in the form of a failed Austrian artist.”

-George Lloyd, Head of the House of Lords, 1939
​

"With the outbreak of war between the United Kingdom and the Japanese Empire, I advise we remain steadfast and monitor the situation. Our friends in the Kuomintang are eager for more advisors, machine tools and heavy equipment in the joint efforts to modernize their country and military. It is my belief, Herr Generalfeldmarschall, that we should provide these to ensure they do not fall victim to Japanese aggression, or worse, the Communists. Please relay my suggestions to the Chancellor at your earliest convenience."

-Lieutenant General Alexander von Falkenhausen, advisor to Chiang Kai-shek, 1940​

“The Germans were an ever-present threat, especially after the restoration, but little did I know that the true threat to Europe would come not from the Berlin but rather Vienna.”

-Brigadier General Charles de Gaulle, Commander-in-Chief Armée d’Afrique, 1941
​

"They think they have broken us but this is a lie spread by their silver tongued propagandists. Breslauer and Pavolini tell their people that we are defeated, that we have been "relocated." Lies upon lies. Hear me, my comrades! Today I promise you that our people and our faith will survive this war! I promise to you, my brothers and sisters, that we shall march into Belgrade and cast down the Kruckenkreuz and reclaim our homeland!"

-Marshal Josip Tito, Leader of the Yugoslav Partisans, 1944​

+ + +
“In history there are the defeated and the victor, the conquered and the conqueror, the vanquished and the triumphant. In the Great War our beloved country was defeated by the poor leadership of the Hapsburgs, the ethnic conflict that divided us so terribly into petty squabbles, and the Judeo-Bolshevik forces that sabotaged our nation from within while besetting upon us from without like locusts.

For Austria to not only return to but supersede its former position of power in Europe it must unite the lands of the former empire under the rule of Vienna. Not as an empire ruled by bluebloods and so-called ‘products of high breeding’, as one’s birth into the aristocratic ranks does not gift one strength or credential as so many have erroneously believed throughout history, but rather one’s blood of superior racial stock tempered by war and the struggle against the forces that seek to undermine our nation and its people. Territory once lost must be returned, whether by force of arms or strokes of a pen.

United under the principles and goals of the Party, this Movement shall seize the reins of power and right the wrongs of the past whilst ensuring our dominance in a Europe currently laden with undesirables and damnable ideologies. Only through the cleansing fire of Social Nationalism can we rise like a phoenix from the ashes and reclaim our position as a great power in the world."

-Preamble to The Struggle, Adolf Hitler​

Prologue
Request Denied
August 1914
Munich, Bavaria
German Empire​

“Your request is denied.”

He stood there, dumbstruck, as the seated lieutenant looked up from his official papers and shrugged.

“Denied?” he muttered angrily, tiredly. “How, why?”

The Bavarian Army leutnant leaned forward, fingers crossed with a disappointed look on his face.

“Mein herr, you were denied enlistment into the Bavarian Army for two reasons. One is your health. You are as thin and pale as a ghost, good sir, and I doubt you could carry an infantryman's kit into the field without collapsing either from the weight or heart attack. On health grounds alone you would be disqualified from service.”

The Bavarian enlistment officer snorted, either clearing his nose or in contempt.

“The second reason is that you are Austrian, sir. The Austro-Hungarian Empire is an ally of Germany and therefore you, a citizen of said nation, cannot join the armed forces of the German Empire.”

“I will not join an army of mongrel races. I want to join the brave men of Germany!” An idea struck him, “I will write a petition! I will… I will go to another recruitment center in Germany. Bavaria may have denied me, but the Fatherland is hungry for soldiers! Surely one will allow me to enlist. Surely one will take me in.” Desperation seized him as he stood before the seated officer. A manic look befell the sickly man from Austria, causing his dark blue eyes to dart about the room, as if searching for an answer that refused to reveal itself.

The Bavarian officer leaned back into his chair, a scowl upon his face. Behind the sickly disheveled man stood dozens of other men, far more healthy in appearance and more controlled in manner, awaiting to enlist and fight for King and Kaiser. They shuffled impatiently and many stared daggers at the dark haired Austrian who was delaying their patriotic duty.

“Sir, you attempted to enlist in the Bavarian Army six months ago. You were denied then, just as you are denied now. Nothing has changed.”

The dejected man slammed his hands down on the wooden table separating the two men. “Everything has changed! The world is at war! Soon enough the armies of empires will march across Europe, Africa and Asia. Nations will fall whilst others rise, and glory and honor will be for those who dared to fight in this war, it being the greatest endeavor Mankind has ever faced. We are brothers, you and I. German, Austrian, two sides of the same coin. Our language is the same, our love for Germany is the same. Don’t let pedantics of birth and nationality dilute the German blood that flows through my veins. I may be an Austrian by birth but I am a German by blood. I deserve a chance to fight for the Vaterland and for its people. It is my right. ”

The officer raised an eyebrow, minutely impressed with the passionate fervor of the man before him… but orders were orders, the rules and regulations in place must be followed. Not even an impassioned Austrian could bend the rules.

“I’m sorry, but the answer is the same. You are denied entry into the Bavarian Army and will continue to be denied based on your poor health and foreign citizenship. Neither the Bavarian Army nor the German Army will accept you into its ranks. I, as military representative of His Majesty Ludwig III of the Kingdom of Bavaria and Kaiser Wilhelm II of the German Empire, bid you farewell.”

The Austrian slumped, his soul sapped of its energetic will. He turned and walked out of the recruitment office, eyes downcast at the concrete floor, unable to even look at those men who would go on to fight for Germany.

Germany, the Fatherland he never had. A nation of Germans for Germans, a place he could call home and a country he had come to love in his months of living in Munich. He had hoped that with the outbreak of war the requirements for enlistment would have lowered. But he was wrong, and now he was defeated. What was he to do? He had only a couple of Goldmarks in his pocket, the remnants of his family inheritance, his clothes were worn thin, rough, and patchwork. He had not showered in days and his stomach rumbled from hunger, a minor pain wracking his abdomen.

Grimacing, he turned to walk… somewhere. He didn’t know where to go anymore.

“Hey, you!” called a voice from behind, coming from the recruitment center. The Austrian turned, excited, thinking that at last the officer had come to his senses. But instead of the portly mustachioed officer, a man about his age with dark hair and eyes approached him, a friendly smile on his face.

He noticed the gentleman’s expensive clothes and top hat, and the way he walked, assured as if nothing would ever deny him or be out of reach. The Austrian could almost smell the wealth coming off of the man. While he detested the wealthy elite, many of whom were Jews, he nonetheless smiled and tried to present a friendly face. It was after all what he did to help sell his art down in the Kunstareal.

“Hello,” said the rich man as he neared, holding out his hand. “I must say I loved your speech back there. Really fired up the flames of patriotism in myself! Well done, well done indeed!”

“Oh, umm, thank you. Much obliged, herr-”

“Walter Schulz at your service!” The man took off his hat and gave a small bow while smiling.

Good God, he is like the theatre in the flesh, he thought sardonically.

“Herr Schulz. Thank you for your kind words. They have lifted my spirits somewhat.”

“It’s a damn shame you weren’t admitted. We could use you in the Army. Like you said, you might be an Austrian by birth but you’re a German by blood. And it’ll be that same noble blood that sees our two countries emerge victorious in the months ahead.”

“Thank you, that means a great deal to me,” he said, truly touched by the man’s comments. A brief silence existed between them, the nearly-penniless Austrian not knowing what to say and the rich German having spoken his piece.

“Well I’m sure you’re busy, Herr Schulz, and I must be off as well. I have… other matters to attend to.”

Schulz’s eyes flicked over his appearance and a look of pity flashed over the well-to-do German’s face.

“I see, yes, of course, I’m sure you are quite busy.” Schulz went for another handshake but with the opposite hand, it having emerged from his pocket. The Austrian shook it awkwardly, eager to end this odd meeting, and felt something in the man’s palm slip into his. He looked at it and saw a fifty Goldmark banknote. His eyes widened and he stared up at the taller man.

“I-” his tongue felt stiff and dry so he swallowed. “I don’t know what to say other than thank you.” The relief and honesty in those words poured forth with conviction.

“That’s more than enough for me. While you may not be able to fight for Germany directly, perhaps you could do so in another way by joining your nation’s army. Our countries share the same enemies after all. You would still be fighting for Germany, if indirectly. I overheard your comment about fighting beside mongrels races, but better to fight beside the Slav and Magyar then to not fight at all, eh?”

The Austrian nodded, realizing the truth of the words.

“Use that,” Schulz gestured towards the banknote, “to eat a hot meal, stay in a comfortable hotel tonight, and take a first-class ticket to Vienna.”

A tear formed in the Austrian’s eye that he was quick to blink away. “Thank you so much, this… this has saved me.”

Schulz nodded, understanding. As the German turned away, bidding farewell with a wave, he stopped mid-turn.

“I apologize, mein freund. I never asked your name.”

“Ah, the fault is mine, I forgot to give it. My mind is a whirlwind of emotion.”

Schulz laughed. “I’m sure it is. So what is your name?”

The destitute, dejected, recently elevated from impoverished by the fifty mark banknote painter from Austria scratched his cheek and locked his blue eyes with Schulz’s hazel.

“My name is Adolf Hitler, pleased to make your acquaintance."

 

[Astrodragon]

The Forge of Wayland

In the early 1930's, Britain led the world in the tactics of armoured warfare with the Experimental Armoured Force.
However in 1934 the annual exercise was rigged against the tanks by the General in charge, and as a result it seemed to show the tanks were containable and that they could stop working on the exercises. This also crippled tank development as there was no clear idea of what would actually be needed.

In this timeline, the general responsible was in a car accident, and so the replacement didn't rig the exercise. The tanks did a lot better, and it showed that their concepts were viable and would work, although a lot more work needed to be done.

The annual exercises and development of doctrine continued, as well as improvements in the tactics for stopping tanks (which are now seen as something rather dangerous). With a much clearer idea of where they were trying to go, tank development was more focussed. Instead of building huge numbers of light tanks (even in OTL the Army considered them worthless, but with no clear idea of where they were heading they got bought), they built fewer, but more capable, medium tanks. No increase in the budget, just spent differently.

By 1939 they have a decent armoured division almost ready to deploy, and a tank industry in more sensible shape. Needing the mediums earlier meant that Vickers (the only real tank company in Britain) got in early, and there was less spreading of tank designs and manufacturing around companies with no experience. Sadly Nuffield is still involved.

So the BEF has a better armoured element than OTL, and quite a few butterflies are now drying their wings all over France.
The armoured force tactics are basically a development of what they were doing in 1933, refined by the later exercises and a realisation that new infantry weapons need to be dealt with.

 

[Lusitania]

A Lusophone World

The 20th century witnessed two great wars that destroyed the old world order of the European dominance in world and the emergence of the two great super powers USA and Soviet Union. The European colonial powers weakened by wars and beset by the new political pressures of the superpowers released their colonies much to the benefit of superpowers who swooped in to take advantage of European retreat. The lone European nation who tried to resist the decolonization push was Portugal who hanged on till the mid 1970s when internal and external pressures finally forced a change in government and decolonization. The result was several Portuguese speaking countries who have struggled with poverty, civil war and lack of development.

The Lusophone World takes readers to a world where different Portuguese leaders and individuals embark on “radical” actions and policies to develop and modernize Portugal and its “overseas provinces” to become a modern and developed country. The trick will be for the Portuguese to keep the super powers at bay while a Portuguese Federation takes shape and is able to unite the various regions into a single unified country.

The TL starts in the early 20th century and covers the century’s major events, along the way the Portuguese will forge new alliances and influence events to reshape the world (not always in their favor) but ones which will influence future events. Therefore hope you as reader take the time to explore a different part of the world and people.

 

[Salvador79]

Feeble Constitution - A Red-and-Green-Russia 1917 Timeline

My first post-1900 TL explores the consequences of an earlier institutionalisation and a re-constitutionalisation of the Russian Revolution.
As the title alludes, the federation of (mostly) democratic successor states of the Russian Empire, and much of Eastern Europe, too, has come to be under a very strong political / ideological influence of Narodnichestvo, the Russian variety of left-agrarian populism, and similar movements in other European countries.

Much of the TL is in the shape of fictitious newspaper articles, but I have come to flesh out a lot in between in authorial notes, maps, election charts etc.
I am not really good at military stuff and fleshing out characters of alternate politicians, hence my TL primarily explores the consequences of the PoD on political conflicts, emerging states and, first and foremost, ideological developments.

So far, we have seen Stalin pulling his strings to install Trotsky as party leader, who goes to become the celebrated liberator of Kronstadt but then loses an election, a Green Internationale who wants to build roads for motorised individual traffic across the whole countryside, and a few other weird things. More will hopefully come as time allows.

 

[Persephone]

Seeing as how I'm nominated, I might as well give a blurb and do some shameless self-promotion.

Of Poets and Supermen Volume I - The Drums of War

Thanks to the delay of the 5th Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party for a few weeks, the 1907 Tiflis Bank Robbery occurs before a resolution determining whether the RSDLP will continue the use of so-called "expropriations"—armed robberies of government offices and private businesses to acquire revolutionary funding—can be voted on, leading to a resounding Bolshevik victory when the Congress votes on it. As a result, western socialism maintains its more militant edge into the Interwar Period. The Great War remains roughly the same, though a few individuals who died in OTL live through the war and the League of Nations ultimately doesn't form thanks to Woodrow Wilson suffering from an earlier stroke that results in the US Delegation to Versailles being led by vice-president Thomas R. Marshall.

Following the Treaty of Versailles, the butterflies start to fly, with a host of divergent political ideologies and movements coming to power throughout Europe and Asia, while the US begins a rapid retreat into isolationism as the British Empire desperately attempts to hold onto their colonial positions in the face of political upheaval. In the Soviet Union, the revolutionary bandit Simon Ter-Petrosian—better known as Kamo—takes his place as Lenin's protégé and puts his own theories about the spread of global Communism into practice. While the horrors of the Great War aren't repeated, a series of more regional conflicts between countries nevertheless take place in their stead.

In terms of pacing, the TL's a bit slow to update due to my personal life taking precedence, it's still something I put a great deal of time into. I try to tell the story through a healthy mix of traditional POV narrative storytelling and textbook-style excerpts. For ease of access, I'm planning for this first volume to cover events in the tumultuous decades between 1920 and 1950 or 60, then continuing the story as a second volume in a separate thread. Currently, I'm in the process of revising some sections so they're more plausible, but so far we've seen the beginnings of Kamo's rise to power in the Soviet Union and the Kingdom of Italy's rapid spiral into a tripartite civil war thanks to mismanagement of the Red Biennium and the Fiume Expedition. If I can help it, we'll go all the way up to the present (or as close as I can as possible), but that depends on how much free time I have. Feel free to check it out if you want!

 

[Driftless]

What is the cutoff date and time for voting?

 

[BiteNibbleChomp]

What is the cutoff date and time for voting?

March 9, around midnight GMT

- BNC