Chapter 415
1921
Manhattan
Foreign Minister Woodrow Wilson would give his first speech in office with a call for the world to "outlaw" war by forming a "League of Nations" which would govern international affairs between nations. Initially, there was little interest among the international papers. What reason for such an organization? After all, had not wars been relatively rare in recent years?
The great powers of Europe - France and Russia - had not sought to expand their borders against smaller defenseless powers. America had not sought to invade Tithookeaskoya or California despite the likelihood of victory. China had not sought to conquer southeast Asia (though they did dominate it). The Marathas had not sought to invade the Durrani Empire. The Spanish Empire kept Central and South America peaceful.
Only Western Africa, where the assorted tribes, warlords and petty states fought for control over the pestilential region faced significant unrest.
However, Wilson believed that many past wars could have been easily prevented if a proper system of global oversight and mediation existed. So many lives were lost over petty insults, diplomatic missteps and misunderstandings over the centuries. It was bad enough when lives were lost when nations had a REASON for war, even worse when there was none.
Naples
For two long months, the King of Italy would travel the length of Southern Italy in hopes of regaining the affection of the southerners. The Parliament in Rome continued to dither as arguments for invading the threatened seceding territories warred with calls for discourse (and a minority actually seemed happy at the thought of being rid of the southerners).
The initial hope of the King that his actions would spur at least some sort of unity in Rome had faded amid the feuding factions.
At least the "conclave" or whatever the southerners called themselves this week in Naples proved no less contentious. The King would often sit among his subjects as they discussed the future. Giuseppe would be amused at the obvious discomfort of the reactionaries and radicals, the separatists and unificationists.
Among the leading pro-Independence (though not necessarily anti-monarchial) leaders in Naples was Marco de Bonaparte, the descendant of the revered General who fought against the Spanish, would use his influence to protect the King while in Naples. If nothing else, the King's death by violence would put the Neapolitans in a poor light. Bonaparte still hoped for a peaceful compromise and took a leading part of the convention to determine the people's future.
Pune
The past decades had seen enormous advancement of the Maratha Empire in technological, financial and other factors. However, the social reforms remained quite far behind.
Village life remained quite the same as a thousand years before. Education remained scarce. Many in the countryside were happy with this state of affairs. Taxes were lower than generations prior on the peasantry and the advent of new industries in the cities allowed the government to leave the country peasants to themselves.
However, this was slowly changing as country peasants started demanding more and more educational opportunities.
In the cities, the University students were agitating for political reform. Studying western technology inevitably led to studying western political science. Most denizens of the Maratha Empire (whether they called themselves "Marathas" or "Indians" or etc) had never experienced any form of democracy and the lure of social equality would swiftly take hold among the Maratha youth.
Nanking
Like in the Maratha Empire, the Chinese middle and lower classes (with strong support from upper classes as well) desired political reform. By nature a conservative people, the movement towards greater political representation was slow as democracy was regarded as a peculiar Western phenomenon and best left to the barbarians.
Those advocating reform, when not arrested, were often mocked by the officials as being "Christians" or "dogs".
China had been the wealthiest nation on earth for most of the last two thousand years and it seemed ludicrous to advocate change to ape the westerners. The British drug peddlers had been ejected, the Russians cast out of the north, the Marathas had been humbled (well, that was the OFFICAL story of the last war) and local states from Nippon to the Joseon Kingdom to parts further south seemed happy enough to bow to the Dragon.
Why change?
However, the surge in population over the past century would begin to strain the Chinese Empire and many of the same social problems affecting the Marathas and most other modernizing nations would bring structural friction to Chinese society as long-established cultural mores would conflict with modern technology and industry as well as the rapid proliferation of ideas brought about by an increasingly literate society.
Manhattan
Foreign Minister Woodrow Wilson would give his first speech in office with a call for the world to "outlaw" war by forming a "League of Nations" which would govern international affairs between nations. Initially, there was little interest among the international papers. What reason for such an organization? After all, had not wars been relatively rare in recent years?
The great powers of Europe - France and Russia - had not sought to expand their borders against smaller defenseless powers. America had not sought to invade Tithookeaskoya or California despite the likelihood of victory. China had not sought to conquer southeast Asia (though they did dominate it). The Marathas had not sought to invade the Durrani Empire. The Spanish Empire kept Central and South America peaceful.
Only Western Africa, where the assorted tribes, warlords and petty states fought for control over the pestilential region faced significant unrest.
However, Wilson believed that many past wars could have been easily prevented if a proper system of global oversight and mediation existed. So many lives were lost over petty insults, diplomatic missteps and misunderstandings over the centuries. It was bad enough when lives were lost when nations had a REASON for war, even worse when there was none.
Naples
For two long months, the King of Italy would travel the length of Southern Italy in hopes of regaining the affection of the southerners. The Parliament in Rome continued to dither as arguments for invading the threatened seceding territories warred with calls for discourse (and a minority actually seemed happy at the thought of being rid of the southerners).
The initial hope of the King that his actions would spur at least some sort of unity in Rome had faded amid the feuding factions.
At least the "conclave" or whatever the southerners called themselves this week in Naples proved no less contentious. The King would often sit among his subjects as they discussed the future. Giuseppe would be amused at the obvious discomfort of the reactionaries and radicals, the separatists and unificationists.
Among the leading pro-Independence (though not necessarily anti-monarchial) leaders in Naples was Marco de Bonaparte, the descendant of the revered General who fought against the Spanish, would use his influence to protect the King while in Naples. If nothing else, the King's death by violence would put the Neapolitans in a poor light. Bonaparte still hoped for a peaceful compromise and took a leading part of the convention to determine the people's future.
Pune
The past decades had seen enormous advancement of the Maratha Empire in technological, financial and other factors. However, the social reforms remained quite far behind.
Village life remained quite the same as a thousand years before. Education remained scarce. Many in the countryside were happy with this state of affairs. Taxes were lower than generations prior on the peasantry and the advent of new industries in the cities allowed the government to leave the country peasants to themselves.
However, this was slowly changing as country peasants started demanding more and more educational opportunities.
In the cities, the University students were agitating for political reform. Studying western technology inevitably led to studying western political science. Most denizens of the Maratha Empire (whether they called themselves "Marathas" or "Indians" or etc) had never experienced any form of democracy and the lure of social equality would swiftly take hold among the Maratha youth.
Nanking
Like in the Maratha Empire, the Chinese middle and lower classes (with strong support from upper classes as well) desired political reform. By nature a conservative people, the movement towards greater political representation was slow as democracy was regarded as a peculiar Western phenomenon and best left to the barbarians.
Those advocating reform, when not arrested, were often mocked by the officials as being "Christians" or "dogs".
China had been the wealthiest nation on earth for most of the last two thousand years and it seemed ludicrous to advocate change to ape the westerners. The British drug peddlers had been ejected, the Russians cast out of the north, the Marathas had been humbled (well, that was the OFFICAL story of the last war) and local states from Nippon to the Joseon Kingdom to parts further south seemed happy enough to bow to the Dragon.
Why change?
However, the surge in population over the past century would begin to strain the Chinese Empire and many of the same social problems affecting the Marathas and most other modernizing nations would bring structural friction to Chinese society as long-established cultural mores would conflict with modern technology and industry as well as the rapid proliferation of ideas brought about by an increasingly literate society.