DBWI: German Prince Wilhelm doesn't die in an accident in 1880

CaliGuy

Banned
What if German Prince Wilhelm doesn't die in an accident in 1880?

Indeed, in our TL*, this allowed his younger brother Heinrich to become the German Kaiser in 1888 once both his grandfather and his father did. However, what kind of Kaiser would Wilhelm have been? Indeed, how exactly would he have differed from Kaiser Heinrich and how exactly would this have affected the course of history?
 
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CaliGuy

Banned
Here is a photo of Prince Wilhelm from shortly before his death in 1880:

tumblr_nacxz608Wh1qzjmo0o1_1280.jpg
 
Well, under Heinrich we saw the full transition to Constitutional Monarchy, but Wilhelm might have done the same for all we know. Of course, Germany also won the Great War against Britain, France, and Russia, with Italy and Austria joining Germany. Maybe better diplomacy on Wilhelm's part could get the British from joining the Entente? Of course, IMO Britain opposing Germany was inevitable; Germany by its very existence threatened their precious balance of power.
 

CaliGuy

Banned
Well, under Heinrich we saw the full transition to Constitutional Monarchy, but Wilhelm might have done the same for all we know. Of course, Germany also won the Great War against Britain, France, and Russia, with Italy and Austria joining Germany. Maybe better diplomacy on Wilhelm's part could get the British from joining the Entente? Of course, IMO Britain opposing Germany was inevitable; Germany by its very existence threatened their precious balance of power.
Yeah, maybe Wilhelm wouldn't have been as into naval expansion as Kaiser Heinrich was in our TL--thus making Britain less angry at Germany and thus less willing to fight against it.

However, in spite of Britain's entry into World War I, Heinrich really did an excellent job with his East-first strategy in WWI. Indeed, this allowed Germany to recruit large numbers of Eastern Europeans for its military and thus to be able to transfer some of its troops to the West. Plus, Heinrich overruled his generals in regards to launching USW--thus ensuring that the U.S. would remain neutral in WWI.

Would Wilhelm have been as smart in regards to all of this? I don't know, but it might not have mattered had Britain remained neutral in World War I.
 
Yeah, maybe Wilhelm wouldn't have been as into naval expansion as Kaiser Heinrich was in our TL--thus making Britain less angry at Germany and thus less willing to fight against it.

However, in spite of Britain's entry into World War I, Heinrich really did an excellent job with his East-first strategy in WWI. Indeed, this allowed Germany to recruit large numbers of Eastern Europeans for its military and thus to be able to transfer some of its troops to the West. Plus, Heinrich overruled his generals in regards to launching USW--thus ensuring that the U.S. would remain neutral in WWI.

Would Wilhelm have been as smart in regards to all of this? I don't know, but it might not have mattered had Britain remained neutral in World War I.
Well, the main thing was that the Kaiserliche Marine was really well implemented. It didn't try to challenge the RN worldwide because it didn't have to; its goal was to protect Germany's European waters from blockade, a job it did admirably when it bloodied the RN in the Battle of the Western Norwegian Trench.
 
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