I think that a Paris Commune having Paris, Lyon, Lorraine, Alsace, French Flanders and Belgium would Steamroll the rest of France. You basically have all the french industry and steel producing regions in one nation, with nothing for the kingdom of France or the kingdom of Occitania except the coal and iron production of the center of France.
It is likely Paris would outstrip the other two no problem, France and Occitania might very well end up very poor nations ITTL
Right - new map has Ireland as part of UK as well as some parts of Africa and Pacific islands as Empire.
I am looking at a POD were Britain is a mercantile country (very similar to Greece now), it has a huge merchant navy (along with a supporting Royal Navy) but very little in way of Empire.
The English explore, but do not conquor (basically the idealised European power - bringing the possitives of international trade with out the colonial overlord.)
Their history would have been seperate to that of France, so I guess that this would mean an initial POD of no Battle of Hastings (or at least the Bastard looses), this could also link to having Iceland rather than Denmark controling it.
Im liking the Battle of Hastings idea (although its a much earlier POD than I was looking at but still its something to consider). I dont think that could be the exact POD to make this map possible but butterflying the battle away (or butterflying the outcome) is definitely in the cards
Two problems I have with the map. One is the Netherlands does not have the Maluku Islands or the spice islands. These were one of the two core territories of the Dutch in Indonesia (the other being Batavia/Jakarta) and probably the most profitable of all of them. Giving the Portuguese (and later Brazil) the small Sunda islands (like Flores, Timor, Bali, Lombok) seams reasonable, giving them the spice island is a very big difference. It would cost the Dutch a lot of money. which leads me to the second point.
The Dutch are completely overstretched. I do not think small Netherlands can control such a big part of India, Birma, south east Africa and Australia next to Sumatra and Java. If you want to give the Netherlands all of this, you realy need to expend it, for example giving it Flanders or parts of Germany. Or else remove south east India and a large part of Australia from Dutch control (just give the Dutch west autralia for example).
Besides that. I don't think that the smallish France can colonise such a big part of Africa, without a mediterranian coastline or Paris (the core of France). Also I find it unlikely that Britain can get such a big part of Polynesia or New Guinea or New Zealand without a big base, like India. In your scenario Britain is just a small colonizing country. Just give them the part of Africa and only a couple of polynesian islands.
My advise: Unify France (why did you break it up anyway?) and give France the Dutch part of India (maybe let the Dutch keep a small part near Sri Lanka), Eastern Australia (give the west to the Netherlands) and New Zealand. Give France, Germany, Brasil and maybe the Netherlands some of British Polynesia.
You make some good points regarding the islands, I returned the ones you mentioned to the dutch, as for the Dutch homeland id like to not break off parts of Germany or France if I can help it, that means cutting down the dutch empire (or possibility giving it more of India so they can use it as a base of operations like Britian did OTL)
In terms of French Africa my idea was that France was once a great power but for some reason struck up a civil war, leaving three separate french states and a rump monarchist government to watch over the former french holdings in Africa (with the rest of the former french colonial empire picked off by the Dutch, British, and Portuguese). Im sure thats ASB but I'm trying to avoid the typically used colonial giants (Although a mainly mercantile Britian is a nice way around that, perhaps a similar deal could be cut for France?)
Ive gone ahead and Split up British Polynesia,
Liking the modifications. I know that Venice held those territories briefly, but with a strong Ottoman Empire Cyprus would have been nigh impossible to hold. Morea is difficult too, but I think you trimmed it to a point of being managable. I also like Germany a bit better now that you elaborated a bit, though I'd say that would be a nation with allot of regional autonomy, and would only work with a butterflied Prussian dominance in northern Germany and nobody strong enough to fill the void. That is certainly possible mind you, just stating some things needed for it to happen. France being divided would have to be along lines where each group has something that the others lack in order to prevent being steamrolled, and at least with those borders the Paris commune would be far and away the most powerful. Do you have a specific time frame for the PoD in mind, at least the century to help us get a feel for the nations we're working with?
If I may meke a suggestion for helping cut down the Brazillian space filling empire, why not make Aragon have a colonial empire. If it seems too difficult without an Atlantic port, give them Navarre, since there were plenty of opportunities for them to hold it IOTL. They were considerably more powerful and populous then Portugal, even moreso with their Italian and Sicilian lands, and would likely have similar colonial ambitions to Castille and Portugal as well.
Also, why not make Greenland independant? Sure they don't have much strength, but nobody wants their land either. Have them as an independant protectorate of the Russian Empire, Britan, or Denmark and that would make considerably more sence.
Just so you know, I do love a good many ideas. Independant Aragon, Japanese Colonial Empire, and French flavored America.
Prussia would definitely have to be cut down to size perhaps Austria retains Silesia or Prussia ITTL is just Brandenburg territory, either way it shouldn’t be too hard to curb Prussian dominance (chances are Germany will be Austrian dominated with the crown being that of a Hapsburg and all). As for Germany itself the autonomy of member states would be huge, more of a country of countries with a emperor binding them.
Sorry I cant offer you a more definite area of POD (but I was originally thinking a 16th century POD).
Im really liking the idea of a Argonese colonial empire, ive gone ahead and given them Navarre, id like to hear your thoughts on where they’d colonize.
A good point in Greenland ive made them a Russian protectorate
Well if you have a reforming Qing dynasty, why not go with their 1689 borders in Manchuria and their 1820 borders elsewhere? As for Vietnam, it probably should be independent. (At least in the north, you could maybe go creative and have Rattanakosin control the south)
I must say my expertise in Asia is limited ive gone ahead and made some adjustments, let me know what you think and ill try to adjust things accordingly
I do see where the brazil thing comes from, the portugese royals going into exile in brazil and never returning. where brazil becomes the defacto follow up of portugal.
I have to agree with pompejus, there is no way the netherlands could get all of this without the moluccas and the other east-indian things that are brazilian here. i think new-gunea would be dutch too.
Instead of making australia new-holland, maybe they have new zealand and some australian things on the aussie east coast. Although the netherlands looks heavily overstretched we don't know what the composition of the republic is, maybe the colonies and the motherland are united as one country.
so the dutch republic might not be purely european, but global (i could see that being true for at least NL+south-africa+ australia/nz, and maybe later the rest.
an option to get the netherlands this colonial big would be a dutch-burgundy that keeps existing, it would pretty much be the dutch republic + purple paris region.
in south-america, if dutch guinea still exists as a whole, the netherlands probably also has several islands in the caribean
edit: i doubt that in a world that creates a map like this the yugoslav kingdom would exist, i expect at least a seperate serbia
Southeast Asia sure is a headache it seems, but I think your idea of the dutch in new zealand rather than australlian is a much more feasible plan.
That Dutch global government idea is pretty promising could you elaborate? Are you thinking de facto independent dutch “colonies” or perhaps British dominion style of government
Its hard to see but in South America the dutch do have some islands
Shame I liked Yugoslavia, perhaps just a greater K. of Serbia then?
What font did you use for the map?
Brush Script MT