Cavendish in Downing Street, Gandhi in Pretoria: A TLIAW

The premise of this timeline, is that with a different government to the Disraeli ministry of 1874-1880 of OTL, Britain pursues a different foreign policy, particularly in regards to South Africa, and spends the resources and troops used during the Afghan War of 1878-1880 on the First Boer War resulting in a different outcome, particularly for the development of South Africa. While the actual timeline begins in the 1870s, the POD is in 1861 and the successful recovery from typhoid fever of a certain German consort...

POD
Many theories have surrounded the rather miraculous recovery of Prince Albert, from the depths of typhoid which had seemed to consume him. While some of these have bordered on the ludicrous (if anyone has read the Prince's diaries they'll realise the long held view of some sort of spiritual awakening is ridiculous), the real reason is that the Prince possessed a remarkably strong immune system and had been in strong health prior to his illness. His survival was a boon to both the Queen and the Royal Family, while also providing good news to the British Liberals who saw Albert as a moderate holder of their views. Albert's recovery allowed him to take the Prince of Wales, on a tour of Germany that would also impact upon the childhood development of a future monarch...
 
The Election of 1874

William Gladstone was smiling. For the first time in its fifteen year history, the Liberal Party had been able to afford to field candidates in all of the British constituencies: and while it had been expensive (thankfully the party grandees had provided enough money this time) and they had won. While their majority had been reduced the fact was they had won a second election in a row. Gladstone had a mandate to continue cause of Liberal government. Even better was the news, that Disraeli had been forced out of the Tory leadership for losing two elections in a row. [1] That was suicide, he thought to himself wryly: Disraeli, for all his flaws, was the most capable of the Tories, and his loss was most definitely the Liberals gain. While the sudden collapse of the party in Ireland was worrying, he knew it was a result of the increased demand for change amongst those disillusioned with London's direct rule. Certainly something would have to be done about the Irish, but that could wait.

The European situation was also interesting. The surprise triumph of the Liberals in Germany during the 1860s [2] had resulted in that new nation becoming very similar to his own. [3] The Kaiser's son and grandson both showed pronounced Liberal tendencies: while they had made an error in annexing the Alsace, the liberalism of the next in line to the throne was encouraging. While he found firm alliances distasteful, there was something pleasing about having a central bulwark against the French and Russians: neither of whom could be trusted. [4]

Finally there was the issue of the cabinet: and this was going to be most interesting....

[1] Disraeli resigns as Conservative leader following the election defeat, in which the Tories had failed to make any real gains. However it was assumed that his resignation had been the result of wanting to jump before he was pushed...
[2]The Liberals had managed to take control of Prussian politics in the 1860s under the charismatic leadership of Georg von Vincke and had forced Bismarck to reduce the scope of much of his domestic ambitions. As a result when the Empire of Germany is formed in 1871, its constitution is similar to the one of 1849, though it contains enough conservative legislation to appease the Junkers.
[3] The German system of government was fully modelled on the Westminster system, though German elections were held under universal manhood suffrage for men over the age of 25, and were held under the two-round system.
[4] Gladstone was wary of a revenge driven France's plans for Europe, while the Russians were long viewed with suspicion over their expansionist policies in Central Asia.
 
Colour me interested :)

Nice to see old Albert, living longer. Hopefully he can knock some sence into the 3 young heirs (Ed, Bill and Nick) forcing a more liberal Europe.
 
The Saxe-Coburg-Gothas: A Minor House as Kings of Europe

While Prince Albert, was certainly the most famous of the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha's in the United Kingdom, he was far from the only member of the family to hold a position of royal power. His older brother Ernest II of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha had accepted the nomination to the Greek throne in 1862 [1] and had allowed Albert and Victoria's second son Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh had taken up the Ducal throne [3]. Since Ernest was childless, and the Great Powers would never accept one of his British nephews as King of Greece, he had nominated his cousin Prince August who had children. [2]

The Belgian branch of the family also found itself becoming monarchs of large new lands. In 1866, following the forced abdication of Alexander Ioan Cuza, Philippe, Count of Flanders accepted the offer of the Romanian throne, and he and his wife Alexandra of Denmark [3] moved to Bucharest. By the end of the decade the family was holder of five distinct territories: Belgium, Greece, Romania and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.

The new broadening of the family, also had an impact upon Albert's own family. Albert-Edward had begun to modify his behaviour since his father's near death, and marriage to the sensible German Anna [4] had begun to modify some of his behaviour. The couple soon found themselves, raising a young family [5], and while Albert-Edward continued to gamble, his womanising was much reduced.

[1] Ernest II of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha ascended the Greek throne as Alexander I. He proved to be rather popular amongst the Greeks, given his liberal tendencies and attempts to learn the Greek language.
[2] IOTL, father of Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria.
[3] Yep, its all change in marriages as well monarchs.
[4] Princess Anna of Hesse and by Rhine, was Queen Victoria's initial choice to marry the Prince of Wales. ITTL his desire to improve relations with his parents following his father's survival, means he accepts her wishes and marries Anna.
[5] By 1874, the couple had seven children: Albert (b. 1864), twins Anna and George (b. 1865), Louise (b.1867), Victoria (b. 1868), Charlotte (b. 1869) and Alexander (b. 1871)
 
Since Ernest was childless, and the Great Powers would never accept one of his British nephews as King of Greece, he had nominated his cousin Prince August who had children.

Would the Greeks, who are made up of mainly Greek Orthodox, want a Catholic heir? Or has August Victor Louis of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha married into a protestant family?
As IOTL, King George thought a marriage with a Russian grand duchess would have to re-assure his subjects on the question of his future children's religion.
 
Would the Greeks, who are made up of mainly Greek Orthodox, want a Catholic heir? Or has August Victor Louis of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha married into a protestant family?
As IOTL, King George thought a marriage with a Russian grand duchess would have to re-assure his subjects on the question of his future children's religion.

Since the POD is 1861, he will still have married the Catholic Clémentine of Orleans. However I was planning for Alexander I (Ernst) and the Greek Royal Family to convert to the Greek Orthodox Church, and marry the various children into the Russian royal family. I was thinking of marrying Phillip (second in line to the throne) to Grand Duchess Maria of Russia (Alexander II daughter.) I feel the Greeks would view Ernst as king positively since he was related to the British Royal Family and was on good terms with them.
 
Since the POD is 1861, he will still have married the Catholic Clémentine of Orleans. However I was planning for Alexander I (Ernst) and the Greek Royal Family to convert to the Greek Orthodox Church, and marry the various children into the Russian royal family. I was thinking of marrying Phillip (second in line to the throne) to Grand Duchess Maria of Russia (Alexander II daughter.) I feel the Greeks would view Ernst as king positively since he was related to the British Royal Family and was on good terms with them.

But Ernest II of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1861, was 43 and still childless, when does he and Princess Alexandrine of Baden, have children?

So your saying August and Clémentine of Orleans, convert from Catholicism to Orthodox?
Why not just have 17, year old, Prince Philipp of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, named heir or even Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (OTL Ferdinand I of Bulgaria) who is 13 years old, adopted fully by Alexander I, as heir and raised orthodox.
 
Ah I should have clarified that: I was referring to the children of August Louis Victor (who by 1862 had four.) Having Phillip as heir would probably work better actually, so thank you for raising that for me.

I'll still have the Greek royals convert (for appearance if nothing else.)

Hopefully Philippe of Belgium as Phillip I of Romania is slightly less of a headache :)
 
Footnote Redux

Alexander I of Greece, following discussions with his family agreed to nominate his cousin August Victor Louis' son Phillip as his heir, with his cousin's family moving to Greece in 1863.

Prince Albert and Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh would visit the newly crowned King of Greece in 1864 as part of the agreement which returned the Ionian Islands to Greece.
 
Ah I should have clarified that: I was referring to the children of August Louis Victor (who by 1862 had four.) Having Phillip as heir would probably work better actually, so thank you for raising that for me.

I'll still have the Greek royals convert (for appearance if nothing else.)

Hopefully Philippe of Belgium as Phillip I of Romania is slightly less of a headache :)
I am the worse for not clarifying what I mean, I seem to believe that if I know what I am talking about, everyone else must do :)
Philip / Alexander II would be brilliant as Greek King.

Alexander I of Greece, following discussions with his family agreed to nominate his cousin August Victor Louis' son Phillip as his heir, with his cousin's family moving to Greece in 1863.

Prince Albert and Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh would visit the newly crowned King of Greece in 1864 as part of the agreement which returned the Ionian Islands to Greece.

Brilliant :) could the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha become the 20th Century version of the Habsburgs?
 
Not sure about the Habsburgs but they'd probably be similar to the Danish Royal Family, who seemed to have ties to just about everyone.
 
The New Cabinet: Gladstone's Second Ministry (1874)

First Lord of the Treasury and Leader of the House of Commons-William Ewart Gladstone
Lord Chancellor-Lord Selborne (Roundell Palmer)
Lord President of the Council-Lord Hatherley (William Wood)
Lord Privy Seal-Viscount Halifax (Charles Wood)
Home Secretary-Henry Austin Bruce
Foreign Secretary and Leader of the House of Lords-Earl Granville (Granville Leveson Gower)
Secretary of State for the Colonies-Earl Kimberley (John Woodhouse)
Secretary of State for War-Edward Cardwell
Secretary of State for India-Duke of Argyll (George Douglas Campbell)
Chancellor of the Exchequer-Walter Bagehot
First Lord of the Admiralty-George Joachim Goschen
President of the Board of Trade-Hugh Childers
President of the Local Government Board-John Bright
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster-Chichester Fortescue
Postmaster General-James Stansfeld
Chief Secretary for Ireland-Marquess Hartington (Spencer Cavendish)
Vice President of the Council-William Forster
 
Conservative Changes

The fact that the Liberals had won, had not come as a massive surprise to those within the Tory party who felt Disraeli had simply been papering over the cracks that had dogged the party since the days of the Earl of Derby. What had come as a surprise to those both within and outside of the party, had been the selection of the man to replace Disraeli. Most, including editorials from The Times, Telegraph and Manchester Guardian had expected the Marquess Salisbury, long the dominant figure of the party in the Lords to assume the mantle of leadership.

It was however, Stafford Northcote, Disraeli's ally and a former aide to Gladstone who was selected, with Salisbury seen as too hardline to appeal to the voters (and given that 67% of men could vote, this was an actual concern.) Northcote was an affable man, and was perfectly capable as a leader, though he was seen by some of the more radical members of the party as being wedded to the old guard. Regardless, the old rivalry between the Liberals and the Tories was going to develop a new edge to it.
 
Initial Moves: The Liberal Government 1874-1876

Gladstone's government continued many of their policies from their preceding time in office. The first of these, and the act that would cause much controversy amongst the Tories, was the full implementation of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act, which abolished the judicial functions of the House of Lords. [1] The bill established the High Court and the Court of Appeal, which replaced the judicial functions of the House of Lords, which had long been viewed as full of incompetent judges who owed their position to their father's peerage. [2]

Cardwell's continuance as War Secretary, allowed for the further professionalisation of the army, and further regiment restructuring. [3] More importantly, for Gladstone, was the appointment of Walter Bagehot as Chancellor: while continuing Gladstone's policies in order to maintain a surplus, he rejected Gladstone's plans to abolish income tax. [4] Bagehot's dictum in regards to central banking and its response to financial panic, would come to dominate the party's financial programme. [5]

Gladstone's government, following the Elementary Education Act of 1870, decided upon the creation of the Board of Education, which would be a cabinet position to oversee the expansion and management of education within Britain. The Board of Education Act was passed in 1875, and the new body had William Edward Forster appointed as it's first President. [6] The new body, would oversee an expansion in the provision of education, with elementary education extended to all children up to the age of thirteen, with the Elementary Education Act 1876. [7]

Gladstone, who had legalised trade unions, passed the Factories Employment Act, which granted limited protection and workers rights. [8] Gladstone also repealed the Licensing Act of 1872, aware of how controversial and harmful to the Liberal cause it had been. [9] Civil service reform continued, with the Northcote-Trevelyan Report finally, fully implemented (in part thanks to Grenville's marshalling of the House of Lords, which finally established Her Majesty's Civil Service as a unified body, while maintaining strict procedures to prevent patronage. [10]

In Foreign Policy, meanwhile Gladstone's government pursued closer relations with Germany, under Chancellor Rudolf von Bennigsen [11], and established closer trade links with both Germany and the United States under new President Samuel Tilden. [12] In 1876, Gladstone hosted former President and current Radical leader Abraham Lincoln at Downing Street, as part of the latter's European tour. [13] Gladstone's governmental policy of business as usual would begin to find itself sorely tested...

[1] As Gladstone had proposed before his election defeat in 1874 IOTL.
[2] The judicial functions of the House of Lords were removed from its power regarding England, and were gradually eroded in regards to Scotland and Ireland.
[3] Based on OTL Childers Reforms: since Cardwell is going to be in office much longer, there will be further restructuring in regards to the British Army.
[4] Walter Bagehot was opposed to some of Gladstone's laissez-faire economic policies, and his central banking dictum would help drag Britain out of the painful recession of 1873.
[5] We begin to see a shift away from Gladstonian Liberalism, particularly in regards to economic affairs in the 1880s.
[6] Since education is being further expanded by the Liberal government, they create a cabinet department to oversee it: Forster's appointment as President of the Board of Education was seen as a natural development, given his role in the 1870 act.
[7] The same as OTL Elementary Education Act 1880, just implemented five years earlier.
[8] This is as close as Gladstone was going to come to implementing some of Disraeli's social legislation. Limited worker's rights was still an improvement on the horrific factory conditions of the preceding decades.
[9] Blamed by Gladstone for causing hostility towards the Liberals due to its reduction in alcohol sales and causing in some case riots.
[10] The full implementation of the report has long been regarded as one of Gladstone's greatest moments: Grenville's role in unifying anti-Tory Lords allowed for its passage, and by 1876 Britain had a unified (if unwieldy) civil service.
[11] Bennigsen, had replaced Mommsen as Chancellor in 1874 following the latter's appointment in 1871, and was one of the leading moderate liberals, most famous for his successful effort in keeping Hanover neutral in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. The National Liberals were similar to Gladstonian Liberalism, though they were more pro-military.
[12] Samuel Tilden became the first Democrat to win the White House since James Buchanan in 1856, defeating the incumbent Ulysses S. Grant in a long and bitter campaign. Tilden was an surprising winner given Grant's popularity and the Southern Democrats dislike of him and his opposition to slavery. Regardless Tilden pursued a policy that aligned himself with Gladstone, since he reduced tariffs and promoted trade with British aligned Canada. However the overall Democratic majority meant America's blacks were looking at an immediate negative future...
[13] Lincoln, who had served as President from 1861-1869, was fully disillusioned by the widespread corruption of Grant's administration, and had resigned from the party in 1871. The following year he formed the Radical Party out of former Radical Republicans and disillusioned mainstream Republicans and Northern Democrats. Lincoln, was elected Illinois Senator in 1872, and he and his party came third in 1876 (polling strongly.) His tour of Europe in 1876 was undertaken in order to promote his ideas overseas.
 
The Eastern Question and the entry of the Russian War Machine

By the mid 1870s, the Great Powers of Europe, found themselves preoccupied with the fate of the Ottomans, and the Christian subjects living within its territory within the Balkans. The situation was not helped by the Ottoman state's declaration of bankruptcy. [1] The uprisings in both Herzegovina and Bulgaria, rapidly increased the seriousness of the situation, as the League of Emperors (Austria-Hungary, Germany and Russia) urged the Sultan to implement reforms in the province's effected. [2] When this broke down, Europe found itself needing strong figures to curtail the bloodshed. They found it in Gladstone and Bismarck. [3] Gladstone, had initially been willing to accommodate the Ottomans: this view would swiftly change in 1876, when following the overthrow of several Sultans [4] the nature of Ottoman brutality against rebels in Bulgaria reached European ears. [5]

The Constantinople Conference, attended by representatives of the various Great Powers, proposed several things: an autonomous Bosnia-Herzegovina (with the southern portion going to Montenegro), and a autonomous (though virtually independent) Bulgaria. The Ottoman's utter refusal to consider the second option (though they granted assent to Bosnia's autonomy) ended the conference on a sour note, and their refusal resulted not only in Russia declaring war, but also earned the enmity of Gladstone, who had viewed Bulgarian statehood as a noble aim, following his utter revulsion at the Ottoman's actions within the province. [6]

Southern Europe was about to find itself in a brave new world...

[1] As a result of which they had to dramatically increase taxes in the Christian provinces, which increased anti-Ottoman sentiment.
[2] The Andrássy Note, which encouraged reform and autonomy within the Ottoman Empire.
[3] Gladstone was, unlike the Disraeli government of OTL, anti-Ottoman, and was repulsed by their actions in Bulgaria. His government, while not wanting to increase Russian control in the Balkans has a different approach to the Ottoman Empire. Bismarck, while no longer chancellor, was the Germans diplomatic weapon and headed up their Foreign Ministry.
[4] Abdulaziz and Murad V were both deposed in 1876, finally succeeded by Abdul Hamid II.
[5] One of the reasons behind Russia's declaration of war.
[6] While aware of Russia's designs in the Balkans, Gladstone viewed Bulgarian independence as a suitable aim, given the atrocities inflicted by the Turks.
 
Would They call it the "Constantinople" Conference, after years of it being known as Istanbul for years, this would be more of an insult.
 
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