Great Powers in 1900
1. Polish-Lithuanian-Hungarian Commonwealth - The Russia of this universe. Absolutely massive, poorer infrastructure the further from Buda you get and a steamroller once it gets going. However, it is difficult to get going due to the squabbling nobles of different ethnicities which leads to the occasional civil war. In theory an electoral monarchy, but it's like the HRE with the Jagiellonians guaranteed to win. It holds a hegemony over the Russian statelets and is archrivals with Bohemia. Again, to emphasise how massive it is, it stretches from Dalmatia to Belarus.
2. Burgundy
Based around Belgium, and parts of France and Germany, Burgundy has been the centre of innovation for centuries. It is where the system of capitalism first emerged, eventually leading to the Industrial Revolution. The Agricultural Revolution also took place there. They were the main rival of Portugal and the Berbers during the Age of Disovery, holding OTL Newfoundland down to Virginia, (before losing it to a rare Portuguese-Berber coalition) Quebec, Alaska down to Mexico, most of the Pacific, Indonesia, half of Australia, parts of India and portions of the West African coast. This TL's equivalent of the Protestant Reformation happened here too. They are heavily industrialised but don't have a large population compared to France, the HRE and the Commonwealth, meaning they have to be allied to either France or the HRE.
3. Bohemia-led Holy Roman Empire
The Imperial Crown alternates between the Luxembourgs and Wittelsbachs, dependant on the ever changing allegiance of the Habsburgs. The Wittelsbachs ittl converted to Protestantism and have close relations to their fellow Protestants in France and Burgundy. Their power base is in Bavaria and the Protestant Rhineland. The Luxembourgs went through an inter-family civil war during tfl's equivalent to the Thirty Years' War but the Catholic faction came on top. Their power base is in the east, where their realms of Bohemia (including Moravia and Silesia) and Brandenburg (including Pomerania) are. Both major families are enemies of the Commonwealth, but especially the Luxembourgs. The Habsburgs, who are Arch-Catholics as OTL, sometimes gain the Emperorship. They rule Austria and a scattering of Italian territories, so their power base is in the South-West of the Empire and in Italy.
4. Portugal
During the Medieval Period, they ended up controlling Galicia, Extremadura and the far eastern parts of Leon. This greater population base, as well as the fact that Spain is divided between Aragon, Navarre, Castille, Leon and the Berbers, means they are more successful than OTL. They are the premier naval power of the world and controlled the territory between the Mississippi and the sea (besides Quebec) down to Tennessee and South Carolina), vast swathes of Africa, including all of Southern Africa, Ceylon, parts of India, Indochina, Taiwan, the Philippines, the other half of Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, the western coast of South America and Patagonia. They have since lost their American territories, which became independent. They have declined since the Industrial Revolution, but are still a force to be reckoned with, especially on the water. Their fierce rivalry with the Berbers is still going strong.
5. France (my reuse)
With no Norman Conquest due to English history taking a different turn, they centralise earlier and forge an alliance with the Commonwealth, once it emerges, against the HRE. Most of French history from the 1300s-1800s is spent at war with all or part of the HRE. They convert to Protestantism here, and nonconformists movements similar to the Baptists, Methodists and Puritans emerge. They get heavily involved in the Thirty Years' War and eventually go bankrupt, leading to a revolution where the army and the Estates General overthrow the King. The Capetians end up as Kings of Sicily (including Sardinia and Corsica). A military-dominated Parliamentarian regime then takes over, and spends a lot of time at war with the Habsburgs, and occasionally the Luxembourgs and the Pope, in Italy. After a Napoleon equivalent rises to power in Italy, they agree to establish spheres of influence in Italy with Austria. There is also a liberal revolution and democracy is established. Despite that, there are often coups and periods of military rule. They control Algeria, Tunisia and parts of Central Africa. On land, they are one of the strongest powers and alternate alliances with the Commonwealth and the HRE.
6. Berber Sultanate
Controlling Mauretania, Andalusia and the Balearics, they are the second strongest nation on the water. Operating in both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, their naval battles with Portugal, Venice, Genoa, Sicily, Byzantium and the Commonwealth have been the stuff of legends. They control the Deep South, Newfoundland, the Caribbean, everything from Alaska to Panama, Colombia/Venezuela/Guyana, Brazil and Rio de la Plata. The Andes swap hands between the former Portuguese colonies and the Berber colonies (which are more like Dominions now). They don't control much of Africa outside their home turf, but they do have parts of India and Malaya. They are much more invested in the American colonial game. They have also struggled since the Industrial Revolution and don't have a sizable population but are very much still a great power.
