Recently I've intrigued myself with the concept of having an alternate WW1 in which the major super powers are allied with eachother as follows
-Britian, Germany, Italy, Ottoman Empire
-France, Russia, USA
What happened to Austria-Hungary? Leaving A-H out is like
Hamlet without the Prince. Also Japan, which is a Great Power.
Help me create a series of events that lead to these alliances and them waring with each other. Not necesarily in that order.
What about this lineup?
-Britain, Germany, Italy, Ottoman Empire,
Japan
vs
-France, Russia, USA,
Austria-Hungary
I could envision the first group as the ruthless-imperialist powers.
Britain savagely represses Ireland, alienating the US, and is aggressive in Latin America, as well. (OTL Venezuela crisis, etc.)
Germany is OTL Germany.
Italy veers Fascist and is bloody-handed in Africa.
Japan anticipates the 1920s-1930s, seizes bits of China, etc, and is armed by Britain as OTL.
Turkey - butchers Slavs in the Balkans and Armenians in the Caucasus, propped up by Germany and the UK.
All these states are authoritarian and ostentatiously monarchist.
On the other side:
France is colonialist - but republican, and relatively egalitarian toward the "natives" - e.g. colonial peoples electing members to the Chamber of Deputies.
Russia - undergoes a revolution in 1906 or so - the ultra-reactionary "camarillla" stages the assassination of the insufficiently compliant Tsar, and get caught. With the throne vacant, liberal elements establish a republic. Traditional Russian-American friendship is cemented.
The US is republican, anti-colonialist (Open Door and Good Neighbor). At odds with Japan in the Pacific, anglophobic (Ireland!), francophilic.
Austria-Hungary - old Franz Joseph dies and Franz Ferdinand establishes a Triune Monarchy with proper representation for Slavic elements, and social-democratic government. (This is perhaps the most ASB, as A-H had massively dysfunctional politics.) Despite remaining a monarchy, A-H aligns with France/Russia/US because it has no colonies.