How many of the refugees from South Africa who fled to Rhodesia were white/coloured/Indian refugees and how many are Christian Africans who fled the country to escape the Neo-Kemitist regime's policies on religion?
For Want of A Sandwich - A Franz Ferdinand Lives Wikibox TL
- Thread starter MaskedPickle
- Start date
What happened to Tehran ITTL for Shiraz to be Iran's capital for a while before being returned to Tehran?
Botswana War
The Botswana War (also known as the Botswana Campaign) was a military conflict involving the Republic of Botswana and the invading forces of Azania, that resulted in the complexe annexation of Botswana by Azania. It is now considered as a continuity conflict from the South African Civil War and part of the Azanian Wars.
Botswana had been an independent country since 1976, joining the Commonwealth upon its creation, and was considered a black-majority prosperous democracy, especially as compared to neighbouring South Africa. Nevertheless, the instability and the influx of refugees created by the South African Civil War led to a military coup in 1988, led by General Mompati Merafhe. Established as a strategic position for the Coalition of Freedom, Botswana was subject to a low-intensity war starting in August 1995, when Azanian irregulars were spotted in the southern area of the country. The military buildup in Botswana, along with the continuing conflict with the Boerestaat and the Inkhata Rebellion, prevented at first an escalation of the war.
The war entered its second phase with the fall of Springbok on August 21, 1998. Now given free reins at home, Peter Mokaba decided to pursue his dream of a Pan-African Union, starting with the immediate neighbours of the fallen South Africa ; the Azanian Army was redirected towards Botswana, starting a full-scale invasion of the country and inaugurating the Azanian Wars that would last to our days. The Coalition forces managed to slow down the Azanians for a year, but the overextended front, ranging from Kalahari to Mozambique, led to a total collapse of the lines by winter 2000, with the nation of Botswana coming to an end with the fall of its capital, Gaborone, on April, 14 2000. The following day, Azanian Mwalimu Mokaba fled in the captured capital and proclaimed the formal annexation of Botswana by Azania, calling it “the first step to the dream of an united Black master race”.
The fall of Botswana was celebrated among Black supremacists and Pan-Africans, with spontaneous demonstrations sparking in Liberia or Kongo, while in the Western world, the neo-pyrism advocated by Azania became an evil in the likes of islamism. The event cemented the Coalition of Freedom and its support by Western nations, as the conflict continued in Kalahari, Mozambique and Rhodesia.
The Botswana War is also notable for its terrible human cost, with the tenth of Botswana’s prewar population killed during the conflict, either as military or civilians, and as the third of its population fled to neighbouring countries, fearing Azanian repression, further destabilizing the economy of the region.
The fate of the Indian South Africans was dire, as Bharatavarsha remains a closed country, some refugees were able to make it to Bengal or Dravida Nadu, others were killed. As of the Christian Africans, they form part of the current waves of refugees.
Northern Iran was annexed by Russia during the Great European War, prompting the Iranians to relocate to Shiraz, as Tehran was too close to the border.
Unfortunately Azania‘s conquests have probably lead to a lot of racism against blacks in the west, not unlike the unfair mistrust that happened in OTL against the Japanese. At least this time America’s not shipping an entire race off to interment camps citing national security as an excuse.
Are there any non-African countries Azania has reasonable relations to much like how North Korea IOTL has ties to the likes of Assad's Syria, the Islamic Republic of Iran, or Zimbabwe (including training elements of the Zimbabwean military)? I will assume Bharatvarsha and Peru are amongst the 70 countries who recognize Azania at the very least.
Country profile - Aden
Aden is a country in the Middle East, bordered by the Hashemite Empire in the north, west and east and the Aden Gulf in the south.
History
One of the oldest cities in the Middle East, Aden was sold to the British by the Sultanate of Ahej in 1838 and secured by Royal Marines on 19 January 1839 : the port’s situation on the tip of the Arabian Peninsula was tantamount for securing the road between the Suez Canal and India, securing cargo between the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa and allowing for British trade between the Suez Canal, Mumbai and Zanzibar. The country became a settlement governed from India, then a Crown colony in 1937 ; in the same time, the Suez Canal was opened, Italian influence in Eastern Africa and Yemen increased, India and Egypt became independent and the Arabs were unified under the Hashemites. But when the Hashemites overwhelmed the Arab Emirates, Southern Arabia and Yemen in 1963, they knew they had to stop at Aden ; as the British had conserved their control of the Suez Canal and of various states surrounding the Indian Ocean, they knew that London would go to war to protect one of their last jewels. In 1965, the Hashemite Empire came to an agreement with Great Britain, acknowledging British control over Aden in exchange for annexation of Southern Arabia ; London responded by granting independence to the harbour on 30 November 1967, as part of the Commonwealth, a small country of little more than 1,100 km2, not counting Socotra, occupied by British forces as part of the Free City of Aden.
Keeping a strong British military presence, both to keep the Hashemites at bay and to ensure the continuity of trade throughout the area, the new city-state soon fell under the iron grip of former trade unionist turned politician Abdullah al-Asnag, who had driven away from his Pan-Arabic and Neo-Syndicalist views to establish a dictatorship over Aden, with British reluctant support and taking advantage of the troubles in neighbouring Hashemite Arabia, taking advantage of a continuing state of emergency. Al-Asnag was overthrown in 1986 by General Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, leader of the small Adenite Armed Forces, with British support, as London had grown tired of al-Asnag’s bad press ; Hadi had an ally in the presence of former al-Asnag associate Ali Salem al-Beidh, and followed him into proclaiming a Republic in 1994, with Hadi taking the Presidency and al-Beidh the Prime Ministership ; in spite of this change, Aden remained within the Commonwealth, as the Adenite leadership was still aware of the need of British credits and protection.
Nevertheless, wanting to spare costs, the Clarke government announced in 2005 their resolution to close the military garrison in Aden within two years ; al-Beidh, who had assumed all powers in Aden since Hadi’s retirement in 2004, reacted by leaving the Commonwealth, as the last British troops left Aden in 2007. Now the prey of Hashemite irredentism, al-Beidh tried to build up his military arsenal, but the decline of Aden was initiated, as Somalia invaded their small dependency of Socotra Island in 2014, without firing a single shot. This defeat along with tax raises and mandatory conscription led to al-Beidh’s overthrow in 2018 by a popular revolt, giving rise to a new Constitution. But the fortunes of Aden look dire, in the face of pan-Arabist terrorist activity and Hashemite saber-rattling.
Political situation
A free city in the likes of Brussels, Abu Dhabi or Zanzibar, Aden has been independent since 1967, a Republic since 1994 and has had its current Constitution since 2018 and the popular revolt that toppled longtime Prime Minister Ali Salem al-Beidh, abolishing the Prime Ministership altogether. Since 2018, executive powers are vested in the presidency, occupied since 2016 by General Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, a former associate of the al-Beidh regime and responsible for the military buildup, elected to a seven-year mandate by the Shura Council, the upper house of the Adenite Parliament, alongside the House of Representatives, elected on universal suffrage in rules inspired by the Westminster system. The judiciary system is a mixture of British common law and Islamic law.
Even if the 2018 Revolution allowed for the rise of efficient multi-party democracy, the current electoral system doesn’t allow for the rise of other parties than the Aden National Party, that has ruled since 1986. Also, since independence, due to the existential threat posed by the Hashemite Empire, Pan-Arabist parties have been forbidden on the charge of high treason ; due to that, Pan-Arabist organizations, such as the Liberation Front of Greater Yemen, have resorted to terrorism, such as in 2000 against the British military presence or in 2020 against the port of Aden.
Social situation, population
With 3 million people and counting, with almost half of its population aged under 25, Aden is among the most densely populated countries of the world ; apart from its majority Qahtanite Arab population, descending from the clans that inhabited ancient Lucky Arabia, and ancient populations such as the Yemenite Jews and Christians, Aden has welcomed a growing Asian and African diaspora, interested in the labor of the blooming port. Sunni Islam is the religion of most Adenite citizens, with the Constitution providing for freedom of cult, while the society remains divided according to the clanic proportions that can be seen throughout the Arabian Peninsula. In spite of official discourse that has stressed the unique history of Aden and its differences from the rest of the Arab World, most Adenites feel Arab.
The wealthiness of the port of Aden have allowed to a certain high quality of living within Aden itself, providing for excellent universities, hospitals , education and social infrastructures, but the lack of diversification for the Adenite economy, due to the country’s small size, along with the burden of military buildup led by the late al-Beidh administration, led to massive protests throughout the city in 2018 and finally the disposition of the government ; if democracy has been encouraged in Aden since, many of its inhabitants feel Arab at heart and see the future of the Free City to be within the Hashemite Empire in a few years.
Economy
As the main reason for its very existence, the commercial port of Aden is also the main fixture of its economy, with most of the country’s surface being devolved to its maintenance and development, hinterland like embankment ; even if the golden days of British India and of the Suez Canal are far behind, Aden remaining among the world’s busiest ports, behind Shanghai, Singapore, Qingdao, Rotterdam and Antwerp, being at the center of trade routes between the Middle East, the Indian Ocean, Eastern Africa, India and the Suez Canal. As the cornucopia of the city-state, being Aden’s largest employer and state-owned since the 1990s, the harbour has also proven as a poisoned chalice, as the small country failed to diversify its economic sectors, due to its small size and after unsuccessful searches for oil deposits along the coast, while only a small fraction of the country’s population has been truly benefitting from the port’s wealth, the majority being confined to labor, in light of ever growing migrations. The disruption of world trade after the Wuchang pneumonia also led to a new halt to the trade in the area, provoking a collapse of the Adenite pound (indexed on the British pound) and provoking more riots.
Military
Once heavily dependent on the British garrison, Aden has made efforts to build up its military since the British withdrawal in 2007, keeping in mind its neighbouring of the powerful and heavily nationalist Hashemite Empire. Nevertheless, since the 2018 Revolution, mandatory conscription and national service have been abolished by the government given its impopularity, and experts consider Aden as having a “lame duck military”, not enough equipped nor trained in light of a potential Hashemite invasion ; the takeover of Socotra by Somalia saw no action from Aden, due to its unpreparedness. Nevertheless, the Adenite Navy is noticeable, even if its missions are limited to protection of trading ships and cargos against piracy in the Gulf.
Culture
Owing to its multi-millenial history, more than a century of British presence and its situation at the crossroads of the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, Aden can boast of a decent cultural heritage, such as its Zoroastian Temple, the Cisterns of Tawila dating back to the pre-Islamic era, its mosques and other British heritage ; the country can also boast of an unique multicultural demography, such as its sizeable Yemenite Jewish community and Afro-Arabic community. Nevertheless, due to recent Pan-Arabist terrorist activites (2000 terrorist attack against British barracks ; 2020 Aden Harbour attacks), tourism has stalled, along with reviews that have pointed the lasting consequences of unbridled economic development for the trading harbour.
History
One of the oldest cities in the Middle East, Aden was sold to the British by the Sultanate of Ahej in 1838 and secured by Royal Marines on 19 January 1839 : the port’s situation on the tip of the Arabian Peninsula was tantamount for securing the road between the Suez Canal and India, securing cargo between the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa and allowing for British trade between the Suez Canal, Mumbai and Zanzibar. The country became a settlement governed from India, then a Crown colony in 1937 ; in the same time, the Suez Canal was opened, Italian influence in Eastern Africa and Yemen increased, India and Egypt became independent and the Arabs were unified under the Hashemites. But when the Hashemites overwhelmed the Arab Emirates, Southern Arabia and Yemen in 1963, they knew they had to stop at Aden ; as the British had conserved their control of the Suez Canal and of various states surrounding the Indian Ocean, they knew that London would go to war to protect one of their last jewels. In 1965, the Hashemite Empire came to an agreement with Great Britain, acknowledging British control over Aden in exchange for annexation of Southern Arabia ; London responded by granting independence to the harbour on 30 November 1967, as part of the Commonwealth, a small country of little more than 1,100 km2, not counting Socotra, occupied by British forces as part of the Free City of Aden.
Keeping a strong British military presence, both to keep the Hashemites at bay and to ensure the continuity of trade throughout the area, the new city-state soon fell under the iron grip of former trade unionist turned politician Abdullah al-Asnag, who had driven away from his Pan-Arabic and Neo-Syndicalist views to establish a dictatorship over Aden, with British reluctant support and taking advantage of the troubles in neighbouring Hashemite Arabia, taking advantage of a continuing state of emergency. Al-Asnag was overthrown in 1986 by General Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, leader of the small Adenite Armed Forces, with British support, as London had grown tired of al-Asnag’s bad press ; Hadi had an ally in the presence of former al-Asnag associate Ali Salem al-Beidh, and followed him into proclaiming a Republic in 1994, with Hadi taking the Presidency and al-Beidh the Prime Ministership ; in spite of this change, Aden remained within the Commonwealth, as the Adenite leadership was still aware of the need of British credits and protection.
Nevertheless, wanting to spare costs, the Clarke government announced in 2005 their resolution to close the military garrison in Aden within two years ; al-Beidh, who had assumed all powers in Aden since Hadi’s retirement in 2004, reacted by leaving the Commonwealth, as the last British troops left Aden in 2007. Now the prey of Hashemite irredentism, al-Beidh tried to build up his military arsenal, but the decline of Aden was initiated, as Somalia invaded their small dependency of Socotra Island in 2014, without firing a single shot. This defeat along with tax raises and mandatory conscription led to al-Beidh’s overthrow in 2018 by a popular revolt, giving rise to a new Constitution. But the fortunes of Aden look dire, in the face of pan-Arabist terrorist activity and Hashemite saber-rattling.
Political situation
A free city in the likes of Brussels, Abu Dhabi or Zanzibar, Aden has been independent since 1967, a Republic since 1994 and has had its current Constitution since 2018 and the popular revolt that toppled longtime Prime Minister Ali Salem al-Beidh, abolishing the Prime Ministership altogether. Since 2018, executive powers are vested in the presidency, occupied since 2016 by General Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, a former associate of the al-Beidh regime and responsible for the military buildup, elected to a seven-year mandate by the Shura Council, the upper house of the Adenite Parliament, alongside the House of Representatives, elected on universal suffrage in rules inspired by the Westminster system. The judiciary system is a mixture of British common law and Islamic law.
Even if the 2018 Revolution allowed for the rise of efficient multi-party democracy, the current electoral system doesn’t allow for the rise of other parties than the Aden National Party, that has ruled since 1986. Also, since independence, due to the existential threat posed by the Hashemite Empire, Pan-Arabist parties have been forbidden on the charge of high treason ; due to that, Pan-Arabist organizations, such as the Liberation Front of Greater Yemen, have resorted to terrorism, such as in 2000 against the British military presence or in 2020 against the port of Aden.
Social situation, population
With 3 million people and counting, with almost half of its population aged under 25, Aden is among the most densely populated countries of the world ; apart from its majority Qahtanite Arab population, descending from the clans that inhabited ancient Lucky Arabia, and ancient populations such as the Yemenite Jews and Christians, Aden has welcomed a growing Asian and African diaspora, interested in the labor of the blooming port. Sunni Islam is the religion of most Adenite citizens, with the Constitution providing for freedom of cult, while the society remains divided according to the clanic proportions that can be seen throughout the Arabian Peninsula. In spite of official discourse that has stressed the unique history of Aden and its differences from the rest of the Arab World, most Adenites feel Arab.
The wealthiness of the port of Aden have allowed to a certain high quality of living within Aden itself, providing for excellent universities, hospitals , education and social infrastructures, but the lack of diversification for the Adenite economy, due to the country’s small size, along with the burden of military buildup led by the late al-Beidh administration, led to massive protests throughout the city in 2018 and finally the disposition of the government ; if democracy has been encouraged in Aden since, many of its inhabitants feel Arab at heart and see the future of the Free City to be within the Hashemite Empire in a few years.
Economy
As the main reason for its very existence, the commercial port of Aden is also the main fixture of its economy, with most of the country’s surface being devolved to its maintenance and development, hinterland like embankment ; even if the golden days of British India and of the Suez Canal are far behind, Aden remaining among the world’s busiest ports, behind Shanghai, Singapore, Qingdao, Rotterdam and Antwerp, being at the center of trade routes between the Middle East, the Indian Ocean, Eastern Africa, India and the Suez Canal. As the cornucopia of the city-state, being Aden’s largest employer and state-owned since the 1990s, the harbour has also proven as a poisoned chalice, as the small country failed to diversify its economic sectors, due to its small size and after unsuccessful searches for oil deposits along the coast, while only a small fraction of the country’s population has been truly benefitting from the port’s wealth, the majority being confined to labor, in light of ever growing migrations. The disruption of world trade after the Wuchang pneumonia also led to a new halt to the trade in the area, provoking a collapse of the Adenite pound (indexed on the British pound) and provoking more riots.
Military
Once heavily dependent on the British garrison, Aden has made efforts to build up its military since the British withdrawal in 2007, keeping in mind its neighbouring of the powerful and heavily nationalist Hashemite Empire. Nevertheless, since the 2018 Revolution, mandatory conscription and national service have been abolished by the government given its impopularity, and experts consider Aden as having a “lame duck military”, not enough equipped nor trained in light of a potential Hashemite invasion ; the takeover of Socotra by Somalia saw no action from Aden, due to its unpreparedness. Nevertheless, the Adenite Navy is noticeable, even if its missions are limited to protection of trading ships and cargos against piracy in the Gulf.
Culture
Owing to its multi-millenial history, more than a century of British presence and its situation at the crossroads of the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, Aden can boast of a decent cultural heritage, such as its Zoroastian Temple, the Cisterns of Tawila dating back to the pre-Islamic era, its mosques and other British heritage ; the country can also boast of an unique multicultural demography, such as its sizeable Yemenite Jewish community and Afro-Arabic community. Nevertheless, due to recent Pan-Arabist terrorist activites (2000 terrorist attack against British barracks ; 2020 Aden Harbour attacks), tourism has stalled, along with reviews that have pointed the lasting consequences of unbridled economic development for the trading harbour.
Germany has both an European Community (much less developed than OTL, it's more like a Super-Zollverein or a Super-ALENA) and the Reichspakt, a military alliance. It comprises much of Germany's allies and former colonies.
It does. Anti-Africanism has a long history, first created by Liberia and now by Azania. By now, Muslims are being the popular scapegoat.
Actually, much of these countries are developed Asian countries such as China, Korea or Indochina. Why ? Because capitalism make strange bedfellows, and the riches of Southern Africa are something to behold; plus, they feel like the Afrikaners were guilty and deserved what they got, and they don't care much about Africa.
But yeah, do the Peruvians and/or Bharatvarshans recognize Azania?
I take it MIS is TTL's equivalent to the United Aircraft Corporation, so to speak, assuming MIS stands for "Mikoyan-Sukhoi"? Also, is Wong Aeronautics based on any Chinese aviation stuff IOTL? Finally, as the non-Africans are all dead or already fled, I assume most people who have fled Azania in recent years are (underground) Christians/Muslims amongst the African population?
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@MaskedPickle I'm very sorry to ask here but I am wondering if you ever plan to make your previously suggested "A Huge Sucking Sound" timeline from here a reality: https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...ould-i-do-after-a-giant-sucking-sound.419122/
Here's your description of it that you posted back in June of 2017: "Donald Trump decides to run in 1988 and wins. Expect it as a spiritual successor and some sort of reboot to a Giant Sucking Sound. Featuring f*cked up Latin America, a hardened Soviet Union and a stronger Europe."
It did reach 47 votes in the poll you posted, just two shy of being tied for first place with this timeline. I just want to know if you will either reboot A Giant Sucking Sound or start this new A Huge Sucking Sound once this timeline reaches its conclusive end. I vaguely remember reading that you said you plan to complete the top three finishers from the poll eventually and that you also plan to make yearly updates to A Giant Sucking Sound. I don't mean to add any pressure onto you, I know how difficult life must be right now with COVID and work. Please know that this is all coming from a fan who greatly looks up to you and your work (A Giant Sucking Sound is my favourite timeline on this site but as a Canadian I wished you specified some things some more like how Thomas Mulcair became PM by the time of Ross Perot's funeral in 2019)
Here's your description of it that you posted back in June of 2017: "Donald Trump decides to run in 1988 and wins. Expect it as a spiritual successor and some sort of reboot to a Giant Sucking Sound. Featuring f*cked up Latin America, a hardened Soviet Union and a stronger Europe."
It did reach 47 votes in the poll you posted, just two shy of being tied for first place with this timeline. I just want to know if you will either reboot A Giant Sucking Sound or start this new A Huge Sucking Sound once this timeline reaches its conclusive end. I vaguely remember reading that you said you plan to complete the top three finishers from the poll eventually and that you also plan to make yearly updates to A Giant Sucking Sound. I don't mean to add any pressure onto you, I know how difficult life must be right now with COVID and work. Please know that this is all coming from a fan who greatly looks up to you and your work (A Giant Sucking Sound is my favourite timeline on this site but as a Canadian I wished you specified some things some more like how Thomas Mulcair became PM by the time of Ross Perot's funeral in 2019)
1916
January, 1
Income tax is introduced in France.
January, 13
President of Mexico Victoriano Huerta dies; he is succeeded by Pascual Orozco.
January, 15
Bergen, in Norway, is victim to a great fire, destroying 300 buildings in the City Centre.
January, 17
Manuel Estrada Cabrera is re-elected President of Guatemala.
January, 18
Oklahoma votes to ratify the Eighteenth Amendement to the United States Constitution, making its adoption official and allowing women’s suffrage throughout the United States.
January, 26
The Uprising Act is passed by the United Kingdom Parliament : “all activities tantamount or in favor of fomenting violent action against His Majesty’s Government and the territories of the Crown” are to be prosecuted with very harsh penal measures. In territories concerned with martial law, the habeas corpus is to be suspended.
February
An islamist revolt starts against Serbian and Italian occupation in Albania.
February-March
Guizhou, Guangxi, Guangdong, Shandong, Hunan, Shanxi, Jiangxi and Jiangsu declare their independance in opposition of Yuan Shikai’ self-proclaimed Empire, while the National Protection Army, led by General Cai E, routs the Imperial Armies.
Throughout Mexico, major cities, such as Monterrey, Quérétaro, Guadalajara and Puebla revolt against the dictatorship of President Orozco and defect to the Convention.
February, 3
The Russian and Serbian governemnts announce the bethrothal of Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna, second daughter of the Czar, to Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia; the announcement is rushed due to pressures from the Serbian governement in light of the situation in Europe.
February, 5
The Cabaret Voltaire opens in Zurich, Switzerland.
February, 11-18
As the Summer Olympics are to be held in Berlin, the German Olympic Committee organizes a winter sports week with speed skating, figure skating, ice hockey and Nordic skiing in Garmisch and Partenkirchen, setting the trend for the organization of the Winter Olympic Games.
February, 14
Riots erupt against Irish residents in Liverpool.
In French Indochina, supporters of jailed rebel, mystic and self-proclaimed Emperor Phan Xich Long revolt throughout Cochinchina. The revolt is put down by the French.
February, 22
Phan Xich Long is executed by French authorities.
March-April
The Anglo-Sudanese expedition reaches Darfur.
March, 4
The Land Tax Reform Act is adopted in the United Kingdom, changing land taxes and tariffs in the United Kingdom, according to the Conservative Platform of 1915.
March, 6
Former Mayor of Cleveland (OH) Newton D. Baker is appointed United States Secretary of War, succeeding Lindley Garrison.
March, 15
Antonio José de Almeida succeeds Afonso Costa as Prime Minister of Portugal.
March, 16
The United States Government announces it won’t recognize Pascual Orozco as the legitimate President of Mexico.
March, 17
Saint Patrick’s Rising - A Irish Republican Provisional Government, led by Eoin MacNeill, declares the independance of Ireland from the British Crown in a proclaimation in Dublin. The Irish Republican Army is established.
March, 18
The British Cabinet declares martial law in Ireland and send order to send 50,000 soldiers under the Ireland Peacekeeping Army, under command of General Douglas Haig.
March, 22
The Hongxian Emperor abdicates and becomes again President of China Yuan Shikai, in light of the victories of theNational Protection Army. Xu Shichang becomes Premier of the Republic of China.
April, 5
The Ireland Peacekeeping Army lands near Dublin.
April, 23
Duan Qirui becomes Premier of the Republic of China.
April, 27
Prime Minister of Australia Andrew Fisher resigns due to a motion of non-confidence iniatiated by Billy Hughes, who succeeds him as Labor Leader and Prime Minister.
May, 1
The Ireland Peacekeeping Army enters Dublin without a battle ; the Irish Republican Army and the Provisional Government have retreated in good order to Connaught.
May, 5
Two companies of Marines land at Santo Domingo, in the Dominican Republic, beginning the American occupation.
May, 7
Dominican President Juan Isidro Jimenes Pereyra resigns in light of a rebellion by his former Secretary of War Desiderio Arias.
May, 12
British Prime Minister Bonar Law begins a week-long visit of Ireland and reitirates his will for a lasting martial law until “all terrorists are purged”.
May, 15
Santo Domingo is occupied by US Marines.
May, 17
General Felix Diaz lands in Yucatan and organizes a National Reorganizer Army ; after several defeats in Oaxaca and Chiapas, he becomes a mere warlord in war-torn Mexico but creates further turmoil for the Orozquista forces.
May, 22
El Fasher, capital of the Sultanate of Darfur, is taken by the Anglo-Sudanese Expedition.
June, 1
John Hessin Clarke is confirmed as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.
June, 6
President of China Yuan Shikai dies.
June, 7
Li Yuanhong succeeds Yuan Shikai as President of China ; the reality of power is held by Premier Duan Qirui.
June, 7-10
Republican National Convention : Senator Elihu Root (New York) and Senator William Borah (Idaho) are nominated respectively for President and Vice-President in Chicago, Illinois.
June, 9
The Progressive faction of the Republican Party walks out of the Republican National Convention in protest.
June, 11
The Count of Ramonones succeeds Eduardo Dato as Prime Minister of Spain.
June 14-16
President Woodrow Wilson and Vice President Thomas R. Marshall are nominated by the Democratic Party for re-election at the Democratic National Convention in St. Louis, Missouri.
June, 18
Colonel General Helmuth von Moltke the Younger, Chief of the German General Staff, dies, aged 68. He is replaced by Minister of War Erich von Falkenhayn. General Paul von Hindenburg, retired, becomes Minister of War.
June 26-28
Progressive National Convention : Governor Hiram Johnson (California) and businessman John M. Parker (Louisiana) are nominated respectively for President and Vice President in Chicago, Illinois.
June, 31
Khenifra falls to the French colonial troops in Morocco, putting an end to the Zaian War.
July, 1
The Social Democratic Party of Finland wins a majority at the local Parliament.
July 6-22
The Games of the VI Olympiad are held in Berlin, Germany. Germany wins the most gold medals, while the United States win the most medals.
July, 6
Dominican rebel leader Desiderio Arias flees the Dominican Republic after several defeats against the US Army.
July, 9
An assassination attempt on Argentine President Victorino de la Plaza fails.
July, 14
The Damas Manifesto is read aloud at the Cabaret Voltaire in Zurich ; it sparks the birth of the Negativist Movement, calling into question all bourgeois aesthetics and art values.
July, 17
In Mirdita, Albania, northern Christians proclaim their own separate Republic and ask for Serbian protection.
July, 19
The city of Oulu, in Finland, burns.
July, 22
Anarchists try and fail to assassinate James Rolph, the Mayor of San Francisco.
August
Deodato Manuel Ramos, head of the rebels in Parana State, is captured by the Brazilian Army, putting an end to the Contestado War.
August, 3
Crown Prince and Regent Alexander of Serbia marries Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna of Russia in Belgrad, Serbia.
At the same time, Todor Aleksandrov, leader of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, proclaims the annexation of Vardar Macedonia in Radovis.
August, 7
Suffragette Mary Richardson tries to assassinate King George V in Edinburgh, mortally wounding Prince Albert.
August, 8
The Lord Chelmsford is appointed Governor-General of Canada.
August, 9
Prince Albert, second son of King George V, dies of his wounds in Edinburgh.
August, 15
Manuel Franco succeeds Eduardo Schaerer as President of Paraguay.
August, 16
The Uprising Act is extended to suffragettes.
August, 29
The United States Congress votes the Jones Act, acting as a Constitution for the Philippines and creating a fully elected Philippine legislature.
September, 1
Alfredo Baquerizo succeeds Leonidas Plaza as President of Ecuador.
The Keating-Owen Act is voted by the United States Congress, prohibiting the sale of products of child labor.
September, 4
Afonso Costa suceeds Antonio José de Almeida as Prime Minister of Portugal.
September, 5
Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich Romanov marries his cousin, Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, eldest daughter of Czar Nicholas II. Olga is second in line to the Russian throne.
Intolerance, a movie by David Wark Griffith, premieres in the United States.
September, 8
The United States Tariff Commission is established.
September, 11
Rejecting Russian offers to mediate, Serbia declares war on Bulgaria over the Macedonian Uprising, triggering the Fourth Balkan War.
September, 18-October, 12
Serbian-Bulgarian War, Battle of Morava : Bulgaria defeats Serbia, and the battle sees the first military use of landships on the Bulgarian side.
September, 21
Elections in Canada : Incumbent Prime Minister Robert Borden increases his majority and returns as head of a Conservative governement.
September, 23-October, 23
Serbian-Bulgarian War, Battle of Ovche Pole : Bulgaria defeats Serbia.
September, 27
Notaras Incident : the Notaras, a cargo vessel voguing from Sebastopol to Piraeus under Greek flag, is stopped and detained by Ottoman customs at Gallipoli; the ship illegally contains large caches of illegally purchased Russian weapons, including pieces for a Russian landship. The whole crew is detained by Ottoman authorities under suspicion of weapon smuggling for the Greek Army.
September, 28
Notaras Incident : the Greek government asks for the release of the Notaras’ crew.
September, 29
Notaras Incident : The Ottoman Empire launches a criminal investigation upon the weapons found aboard the Notaras.
September, 30
Notaras Incident : Russia denies having purposedly offered undeclared weapons to Greece.
October, 1
Ramon Maximiliano Valdes suceeds Belisario Porras Barahona as President of Panama.
October, 3
Elections are held to the newly created Philippine Senate.
October, 4
Notaras Incident : Greek Prime Minister Eletherios Venizelos makes a speech in front of the Parliament, advocating retribution should the Notaras crew not be returned safely to Greece.
October, 5
Antonio José de Almeida succeeds Afonso Costa as Prime Minister of Portugal.
October, 7
Notaras Incident : Greece offers a week-long ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire to release the Notaras’ crew; else, the detention of Greek citizens would be considered as an act of war by the Greek government.
October, 8-October, 18
Notaras Incident : anti-Greek pogroms happen throughout the Ottoman Empire due to the Greek ultimatum.
October, 9
Field Marshal and Governor-General and Korea, Count Terauchi Masatake, becomes Prime Minister of Japan, succeeding Prince Okuma Shigenobu.
October, 10
Notaras Incident : the United Kingdom warns Germany, Russia, Greece and the Ottoman Empire that the opening of the Dardanelles’ Straits, even in case of war, is a major concern for the British government.
The Rikken Doshikai, the Chuseikai and the Koyu Club merge and establish the Kensaikai, a new opposition party in Japan.
October, 10-November, 4
Serbian-Bulgarian War, Battle of Kosovo : Bulgaria defeats Serbia and Montenegro.
October, 11
Mehmed Talaat Pascha becomes Great Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, replacing Said Halim Pascha.
Otto, King of Bavaria from 1886 to 1913, dies.
October, 12
At the end of a very bitter election, Hipolito Yrigoyen is elected President of Argentina, the first hailing from the Radical Civic Union.
Russia mobilizes troops alongside the Russian-Ottoman border.
October, 14
Greece declares war upon the Ottoman Empire.
October, 15
The Ottoman Empire closes the Dardanelles’ Straits to all ships, of any nationality.
October, 16
Greek-Ottoman War : Constantinople, capital of the Ottoman Empire, is bombed.
Due to the passage of universal suffrage, an anticipated election takes place in Belgium, seeing a Liberal breakthrough : Paul Hymans succeeds Charles de Broqueville as Prime Minister.
October, 17
Germany declares its neutrality on the Greek-Ottoman conflict.
October, 18
Trabzon Incident : during an anti-Greek pogrom in Trabzon, rioters flanked by Turkish soldiers storm the Russian Consulate where ethnic Greeks had taken refuge. The Russian consul is lynched and killed during the storming.
October, 19
Trabzon Incident : the Ottoman Empire proposes financial compensation and free crossing of the Dardanelles to Russia.
October, 21
Trabzon Incident : Czar of Russia Nicholas II delivers his infamous “Third Rome Speech” where he stresses the strategic and symbolic importance of Constantinople for Russia and the despicable attitude of the Sublime Porte.
October, 23
Trabzon Incident : during a speech to the Reichstag where he outlines the risk poised by a Russian-Ottoman War to the Bagdadbahn and German economic interests, German Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg is heckled by SPD parliamentarians.
October, 24
Trabzon Incident : Bonar Law stresses in the House of Commons the risk of a major European war.
October, 25
Trabzon Incident : France officially assures Russia of its support.
Birth control activist Margaret Sanger is arrested in Brooklyn, nine days after the opening of a family planning and birth control clinic, due to a law prohibiting distribution of contraceptives in the State of New York.
October, 26
Trabzon Incident : Germany warns against any steps taken by the Russian Army in Armenia and threats made to the Bagdadbahn works.
October, 27
The SPD imposes the vote of a motion of non-confidence against Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg who resigns, the day he was poised to ask for parliamentarian rallying for protection of the Bagdadbahn.
October, 28
SPD leaders Friedrich Ebert and Hugo Haase ask the Kaiser for the appointment of a Social Democrat Chancellor, the maintaining of peace and an enactment of the Erfurt Program.
October, 29
IPP MP John Redmond is arrested in front of Westminster Palace while he was calling the Cabinet to rescind martial law in Ireland.
The Russian Ambassador in London assures Great Britain that, in the event of a Russian-Ottoman War, control of the Dardanelles would be offered to Greece should the Ottoman Empire be defeated.
October, 30
Greek-Ottoman War: Serbia and Bulgaria declare their neutrality.
Feng Guozhang is elected Vice President of China.
October, 31
Greek-Ottoman War: A French military mission arrives in Athens.
November, 2
German Kaiser Wilhelm II refuses the SPD’s demands and asks Zentrum leader Georg von Hertling to form a new government.
November, 6
France partially mobilizes in Lorraine, at the French-German Border. The French government assures its Belgian counterpart it has nothing to fear from their troops.
November, 7
United States presidential election : President Woodrow Wilson (Democrat) is re-elected in landslide against Elihu Root (Republican) and Hiram Johnson (Progressive) ; Democrats hold both houses of Congress.
November, 9
Greek-Ottoman War: Nicholas II meets representatives from Armenian nationalist parties Dashnak, Armenakan and Huntchak.
November, 10
Greek-Ottoman War: US President Woodrow Wilson proposes to mediate on the Russian-Ottoman Conflict.
November, 11
Nicholas II announces his cousin, Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich, will assume overall comandment of the Russian Army.
November, 12
Germany evacuates personnel on the Bagdadbahn works.
November, 13
Russia partially mobilizes.
Emiliano Zapata defeats and kills General Pablo Gonzalez in San Cristobal de Las Casas, in Mexico.
November, 14
Greek-Ottoman War: Russia gives a two-day ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire to cede to Greek territorial claims and to give full independance to Armenia and autonomy to Christian minorities within the Empire.
November, 15
Georg von Hertling becomes Chancellor of Germany, forming a Zentrum/FVP/KP/NLP government.
Henryk Sienkiewicz, Nobel Prize in Literature 1905, dies in Vevey, Switzerland, aged 70.
November, 17
Russia declares war upon the Ottoman Empire.
November, 18
Chancellor von Hertling’s general policy declaration in front of the Reichstag stresses the economic and national interest Germany has on the Bagdadbahn and affirms any move against its outline would prove an act of war against Germany territory.
November, 19
Russian-Ottoman War: Russia invades Armenia.
November, 20
Serbian-Bulgarian War : the Bulgarian Army enters Skopje.
November, 21
Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria-Hungary dies ; he is succeeded by his nephew, Franz Ferdinand, who takes the titles of Emperor Ferdinand II of Austria and King Ferdinand VI of Hungary and immediately affirms his loyalty to the German-Austro-Hungarian alliance.
November, 24
Germany mobilizes.
November, 25
Germany offers France to cede to Germany military redoubts in Toul and Verdun during the duration of a Russian-German conflict, in exchange for no war.
In a referendum, Uruguay adopts a collective presidency system, establishing a National Council of Administration of nine members that would replace the office of President of the Republic, based on the Swiss executive.
November, 26
Austria-Hungary mobilizes.
November, 27
Germany declares war upon Russia and Greece, trigerring the Great European War.
November, 28
Great European War: Austria-Hungary declares war upon Russia and Greece. Germany takes Kalisz, Czestochowa and Bedzin in Russian Poland.
November, 29
Great European War : Battle of Libau. Russia defeats Germany.
Alexei Bobrinsky becomes Prime Minister of Russia, replacing Piotr Bark, viewed as to much of a germanophile.
A military government under Captain Harry Shepard Knapp is installed in Santo Domingo.
November, 30
Great European War : the United Kingdom declares its neutrality.
December, 1
French missionnary and Berber expert Charles de Foucauld is murdered in his fortress in Tamanghasset by bandits.
December, 2
France mobilizes. An attempt by SFIO leader Jean Jaurès to wage a general strike fails due to massive enthusiasm for the war in the French populace.
December, 3
Great European War : France declares war upon Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. The date is generally considered as the official beginning of the Great European War.
Russia invades East Prussia.
December, 4
Great European War : Austria-Hungary attacks Kielce and Lublin.
Maximilian Hussarek von Heinlein replaces Karl von Stürgkh as Minister-President of Austria, who has been sacked by the new Emperor; similarly, Field Marshal Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf is removed from his position as Chief of the General Staff, replaced by the Emperor himself. Count Istvan Tisza, Minister-President of Hungary, insists he won’t resign to comply to his King.
December, 6
Great European War : France invades South Alsace.
Russia fully mobilizes.
December, 8
Great European War : Mulhouse falls to French troops.
Gaston Doumergue returns as French President of Council of a Grand Coalition government, the Union Sacrée (Holy Union) concerning parties from the whole spectrum, except the SFIO, as leader Jean Jaurès has declared his opposition to the war.
December, 10
The Nobel Prize for Physics is attributed to Max Planck (Germany) ; Chemistry goes to ira Remsen (USA) ; Emile Roux (France) wins in Medicine ; Per Hallström (Sweden) receives the Nobel Prize for Literature. The Peace Nobel Prize is not attributed due to the Great European War.
Great European War : the Germany takes back Mulhouse.
Serbian-Bulgarian War: The Bulgarian Army enters Nis.
December, 11
Great European War : Russia defeats Germany at Stalluponen.
December, 14
Great European War : Russia defeats Austria-Hungary at Gumbinnen.
December, 14-December, 21
Great European War : Battle of Morhange. Germany beats France.
December, 15
Great European War : Dogubeyazit and Köpruköy (Ottoman Empire) fall to Russian troops.
December, 17
A general election is held in New Zealand : William Massey (Reform) is re-elected as Prime Minister.
December, 20
Great European War : Battle of Krasnik. Russia defeats Austria-Hungary.
December, 21
Great European War : after the defeat at Morhange, French troops decide to retreat in good order behind the Meuse River.
December, 21-December, 28
Great European War : Battle of Allenstein, Russia narrowly defeats Germany.
December, 21-January, 7
Great European War : Battle of Lemberg. Russia defeats Austria-Hungary and occupies the city.
December, 24-December, 25
Great European War : Belligerants observe a Christmas truce.
December, 28
Great European War : Germany retreats in good order behind the Vistula River.
December, 29
The Stock-Raising Homestead Act is passed by the United States Congress for settlers seeking 640 acres of public land for ranching purposes.
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is published by James Joyce.
December, 30
Tax reform in France : income tax rates goes to 10 %.
December, 31
The Lucknow Pact is passed between the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League : the “garam dal”, or the hot extremist faction, composed by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai and Bipinchandra Pal, against cooperation with the British, wins a majority in light of the events in Ireland. The moderates, led by Gopal Krishna Gokhale, gets into his own way.
Income tax is introduced in France.
January, 13
President of Mexico Victoriano Huerta dies; he is succeeded by Pascual Orozco.
January, 15
Bergen, in Norway, is victim to a great fire, destroying 300 buildings in the City Centre.
January, 17
Manuel Estrada Cabrera is re-elected President of Guatemala.
January, 18
Oklahoma votes to ratify the Eighteenth Amendement to the United States Constitution, making its adoption official and allowing women’s suffrage throughout the United States.
January, 26
The Uprising Act is passed by the United Kingdom Parliament : “all activities tantamount or in favor of fomenting violent action against His Majesty’s Government and the territories of the Crown” are to be prosecuted with very harsh penal measures. In territories concerned with martial law, the habeas corpus is to be suspended.
February
An islamist revolt starts against Serbian and Italian occupation in Albania.
February-March
Guizhou, Guangxi, Guangdong, Shandong, Hunan, Shanxi, Jiangxi and Jiangsu declare their independance in opposition of Yuan Shikai’ self-proclaimed Empire, while the National Protection Army, led by General Cai E, routs the Imperial Armies.
Throughout Mexico, major cities, such as Monterrey, Quérétaro, Guadalajara and Puebla revolt against the dictatorship of President Orozco and defect to the Convention.
February, 3
The Russian and Serbian governemnts announce the bethrothal of Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna, second daughter of the Czar, to Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia; the announcement is rushed due to pressures from the Serbian governement in light of the situation in Europe.
February, 5
The Cabaret Voltaire opens in Zurich, Switzerland.
February, 11-18
As the Summer Olympics are to be held in Berlin, the German Olympic Committee organizes a winter sports week with speed skating, figure skating, ice hockey and Nordic skiing in Garmisch and Partenkirchen, setting the trend for the organization of the Winter Olympic Games.
February, 14
Riots erupt against Irish residents in Liverpool.
In French Indochina, supporters of jailed rebel, mystic and self-proclaimed Emperor Phan Xich Long revolt throughout Cochinchina. The revolt is put down by the French.
February, 22
Phan Xich Long is executed by French authorities.
March-April
The Anglo-Sudanese expedition reaches Darfur.
March, 4
The Land Tax Reform Act is adopted in the United Kingdom, changing land taxes and tariffs in the United Kingdom, according to the Conservative Platform of 1915.
March, 6
Former Mayor of Cleveland (OH) Newton D. Baker is appointed United States Secretary of War, succeeding Lindley Garrison.
March, 15
Antonio José de Almeida succeeds Afonso Costa as Prime Minister of Portugal.
March, 16
The United States Government announces it won’t recognize Pascual Orozco as the legitimate President of Mexico.
March, 17
Saint Patrick’s Rising - A Irish Republican Provisional Government, led by Eoin MacNeill, declares the independance of Ireland from the British Crown in a proclaimation in Dublin. The Irish Republican Army is established.
March, 18
The British Cabinet declares martial law in Ireland and send order to send 50,000 soldiers under the Ireland Peacekeeping Army, under command of General Douglas Haig.
March, 22
The Hongxian Emperor abdicates and becomes again President of China Yuan Shikai, in light of the victories of theNational Protection Army. Xu Shichang becomes Premier of the Republic of China.
April, 5
The Ireland Peacekeeping Army lands near Dublin.
April, 23
Duan Qirui becomes Premier of the Republic of China.
April, 27
Prime Minister of Australia Andrew Fisher resigns due to a motion of non-confidence iniatiated by Billy Hughes, who succeeds him as Labor Leader and Prime Minister.
May, 1
The Ireland Peacekeeping Army enters Dublin without a battle ; the Irish Republican Army and the Provisional Government have retreated in good order to Connaught.
May, 5
Two companies of Marines land at Santo Domingo, in the Dominican Republic, beginning the American occupation.
May, 7
Dominican President Juan Isidro Jimenes Pereyra resigns in light of a rebellion by his former Secretary of War Desiderio Arias.
May, 12
British Prime Minister Bonar Law begins a week-long visit of Ireland and reitirates his will for a lasting martial law until “all terrorists are purged”.
May, 15
Santo Domingo is occupied by US Marines.
May, 17
General Felix Diaz lands in Yucatan and organizes a National Reorganizer Army ; after several defeats in Oaxaca and Chiapas, he becomes a mere warlord in war-torn Mexico but creates further turmoil for the Orozquista forces.
May, 22
El Fasher, capital of the Sultanate of Darfur, is taken by the Anglo-Sudanese Expedition.
June, 1
John Hessin Clarke is confirmed as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.
June, 6
President of China Yuan Shikai dies.
June, 7
Li Yuanhong succeeds Yuan Shikai as President of China ; the reality of power is held by Premier Duan Qirui.
June, 7-10
Republican National Convention : Senator Elihu Root (New York) and Senator William Borah (Idaho) are nominated respectively for President and Vice-President in Chicago, Illinois.
June, 9
The Progressive faction of the Republican Party walks out of the Republican National Convention in protest.
June, 11
The Count of Ramonones succeeds Eduardo Dato as Prime Minister of Spain.
June 14-16
President Woodrow Wilson and Vice President Thomas R. Marshall are nominated by the Democratic Party for re-election at the Democratic National Convention in St. Louis, Missouri.
June, 18
Colonel General Helmuth von Moltke the Younger, Chief of the German General Staff, dies, aged 68. He is replaced by Minister of War Erich von Falkenhayn. General Paul von Hindenburg, retired, becomes Minister of War.
June 26-28
Progressive National Convention : Governor Hiram Johnson (California) and businessman John M. Parker (Louisiana) are nominated respectively for President and Vice President in Chicago, Illinois.
June, 31
Khenifra falls to the French colonial troops in Morocco, putting an end to the Zaian War.
July, 1
The Social Democratic Party of Finland wins a majority at the local Parliament.
July 6-22
The Games of the VI Olympiad are held in Berlin, Germany. Germany wins the most gold medals, while the United States win the most medals.
July, 6
Dominican rebel leader Desiderio Arias flees the Dominican Republic after several defeats against the US Army.
July, 9
An assassination attempt on Argentine President Victorino de la Plaza fails.
July, 14
The Damas Manifesto is read aloud at the Cabaret Voltaire in Zurich ; it sparks the birth of the Negativist Movement, calling into question all bourgeois aesthetics and art values.
July, 17
In Mirdita, Albania, northern Christians proclaim their own separate Republic and ask for Serbian protection.
July, 19
The city of Oulu, in Finland, burns.
July, 22
Anarchists try and fail to assassinate James Rolph, the Mayor of San Francisco.
August
Deodato Manuel Ramos, head of the rebels in Parana State, is captured by the Brazilian Army, putting an end to the Contestado War.
August, 3
Crown Prince and Regent Alexander of Serbia marries Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna of Russia in Belgrad, Serbia.
At the same time, Todor Aleksandrov, leader of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, proclaims the annexation of Vardar Macedonia in Radovis.
August, 7
Suffragette Mary Richardson tries to assassinate King George V in Edinburgh, mortally wounding Prince Albert.
August, 8
The Lord Chelmsford is appointed Governor-General of Canada.
August, 9
Prince Albert, second son of King George V, dies of his wounds in Edinburgh.
August, 15
Manuel Franco succeeds Eduardo Schaerer as President of Paraguay.
August, 16
The Uprising Act is extended to suffragettes.
August, 29
The United States Congress votes the Jones Act, acting as a Constitution for the Philippines and creating a fully elected Philippine legislature.
September, 1
Alfredo Baquerizo succeeds Leonidas Plaza as President of Ecuador.
The Keating-Owen Act is voted by the United States Congress, prohibiting the sale of products of child labor.
September, 4
Afonso Costa suceeds Antonio José de Almeida as Prime Minister of Portugal.
September, 5
Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich Romanov marries his cousin, Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, eldest daughter of Czar Nicholas II. Olga is second in line to the Russian throne.
Intolerance, a movie by David Wark Griffith, premieres in the United States.
September, 8
The United States Tariff Commission is established.
September, 11
Rejecting Russian offers to mediate, Serbia declares war on Bulgaria over the Macedonian Uprising, triggering the Fourth Balkan War.
September, 18-October, 12
Serbian-Bulgarian War, Battle of Morava : Bulgaria defeats Serbia, and the battle sees the first military use of landships on the Bulgarian side.
September, 21
Elections in Canada : Incumbent Prime Minister Robert Borden increases his majority and returns as head of a Conservative governement.
September, 23-October, 23
Serbian-Bulgarian War, Battle of Ovche Pole : Bulgaria defeats Serbia.
September, 27
Notaras Incident : the Notaras, a cargo vessel voguing from Sebastopol to Piraeus under Greek flag, is stopped and detained by Ottoman customs at Gallipoli; the ship illegally contains large caches of illegally purchased Russian weapons, including pieces for a Russian landship. The whole crew is detained by Ottoman authorities under suspicion of weapon smuggling for the Greek Army.
September, 28
Notaras Incident : the Greek government asks for the release of the Notaras’ crew.
September, 29
Notaras Incident : The Ottoman Empire launches a criminal investigation upon the weapons found aboard the Notaras.
September, 30
Notaras Incident : Russia denies having purposedly offered undeclared weapons to Greece.
October, 1
Ramon Maximiliano Valdes suceeds Belisario Porras Barahona as President of Panama.
October, 3
Elections are held to the newly created Philippine Senate.
October, 4
Notaras Incident : Greek Prime Minister Eletherios Venizelos makes a speech in front of the Parliament, advocating retribution should the Notaras crew not be returned safely to Greece.
October, 5
Antonio José de Almeida succeeds Afonso Costa as Prime Minister of Portugal.
October, 7
Notaras Incident : Greece offers a week-long ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire to release the Notaras’ crew; else, the detention of Greek citizens would be considered as an act of war by the Greek government.
October, 8-October, 18
Notaras Incident : anti-Greek pogroms happen throughout the Ottoman Empire due to the Greek ultimatum.
October, 9
Field Marshal and Governor-General and Korea, Count Terauchi Masatake, becomes Prime Minister of Japan, succeeding Prince Okuma Shigenobu.
October, 10
Notaras Incident : the United Kingdom warns Germany, Russia, Greece and the Ottoman Empire that the opening of the Dardanelles’ Straits, even in case of war, is a major concern for the British government.
The Rikken Doshikai, the Chuseikai and the Koyu Club merge and establish the Kensaikai, a new opposition party in Japan.
October, 10-November, 4
Serbian-Bulgarian War, Battle of Kosovo : Bulgaria defeats Serbia and Montenegro.
October, 11
Mehmed Talaat Pascha becomes Great Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, replacing Said Halim Pascha.
Otto, King of Bavaria from 1886 to 1913, dies.
October, 12
At the end of a very bitter election, Hipolito Yrigoyen is elected President of Argentina, the first hailing from the Radical Civic Union.
Russia mobilizes troops alongside the Russian-Ottoman border.
October, 14
Greece declares war upon the Ottoman Empire.
October, 15
The Ottoman Empire closes the Dardanelles’ Straits to all ships, of any nationality.
October, 16
Greek-Ottoman War : Constantinople, capital of the Ottoman Empire, is bombed.
Due to the passage of universal suffrage, an anticipated election takes place in Belgium, seeing a Liberal breakthrough : Paul Hymans succeeds Charles de Broqueville as Prime Minister.
October, 17
Germany declares its neutrality on the Greek-Ottoman conflict.
October, 18
Trabzon Incident : during an anti-Greek pogrom in Trabzon, rioters flanked by Turkish soldiers storm the Russian Consulate where ethnic Greeks had taken refuge. The Russian consul is lynched and killed during the storming.
October, 19
Trabzon Incident : the Ottoman Empire proposes financial compensation and free crossing of the Dardanelles to Russia.
October, 21
Trabzon Incident : Czar of Russia Nicholas II delivers his infamous “Third Rome Speech” where he stresses the strategic and symbolic importance of Constantinople for Russia and the despicable attitude of the Sublime Porte.
October, 23
Trabzon Incident : during a speech to the Reichstag where he outlines the risk poised by a Russian-Ottoman War to the Bagdadbahn and German economic interests, German Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg is heckled by SPD parliamentarians.
October, 24
Trabzon Incident : Bonar Law stresses in the House of Commons the risk of a major European war.
October, 25
Trabzon Incident : France officially assures Russia of its support.
Birth control activist Margaret Sanger is arrested in Brooklyn, nine days after the opening of a family planning and birth control clinic, due to a law prohibiting distribution of contraceptives in the State of New York.
October, 26
Trabzon Incident : Germany warns against any steps taken by the Russian Army in Armenia and threats made to the Bagdadbahn works.
October, 27
The SPD imposes the vote of a motion of non-confidence against Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg who resigns, the day he was poised to ask for parliamentarian rallying for protection of the Bagdadbahn.
October, 28
SPD leaders Friedrich Ebert and Hugo Haase ask the Kaiser for the appointment of a Social Democrat Chancellor, the maintaining of peace and an enactment of the Erfurt Program.
October, 29
IPP MP John Redmond is arrested in front of Westminster Palace while he was calling the Cabinet to rescind martial law in Ireland.
The Russian Ambassador in London assures Great Britain that, in the event of a Russian-Ottoman War, control of the Dardanelles would be offered to Greece should the Ottoman Empire be defeated.
October, 30
Greek-Ottoman War: Serbia and Bulgaria declare their neutrality.
Feng Guozhang is elected Vice President of China.
October, 31
Greek-Ottoman War: A French military mission arrives in Athens.
November, 2
German Kaiser Wilhelm II refuses the SPD’s demands and asks Zentrum leader Georg von Hertling to form a new government.
November, 6
France partially mobilizes in Lorraine, at the French-German Border. The French government assures its Belgian counterpart it has nothing to fear from their troops.
November, 7
United States presidential election : President Woodrow Wilson (Democrat) is re-elected in landslide against Elihu Root (Republican) and Hiram Johnson (Progressive) ; Democrats hold both houses of Congress.
November, 9
Greek-Ottoman War: Nicholas II meets representatives from Armenian nationalist parties Dashnak, Armenakan and Huntchak.
November, 10
Greek-Ottoman War: US President Woodrow Wilson proposes to mediate on the Russian-Ottoman Conflict.
November, 11
Nicholas II announces his cousin, Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich, will assume overall comandment of the Russian Army.
November, 12
Germany evacuates personnel on the Bagdadbahn works.
November, 13
Russia partially mobilizes.
Emiliano Zapata defeats and kills General Pablo Gonzalez in San Cristobal de Las Casas, in Mexico.
November, 14
Greek-Ottoman War: Russia gives a two-day ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire to cede to Greek territorial claims and to give full independance to Armenia and autonomy to Christian minorities within the Empire.
November, 15
Georg von Hertling becomes Chancellor of Germany, forming a Zentrum/FVP/KP/NLP government.
Henryk Sienkiewicz, Nobel Prize in Literature 1905, dies in Vevey, Switzerland, aged 70.
November, 17
Russia declares war upon the Ottoman Empire.
November, 18
Chancellor von Hertling’s general policy declaration in front of the Reichstag stresses the economic and national interest Germany has on the Bagdadbahn and affirms any move against its outline would prove an act of war against Germany territory.
November, 19
Russian-Ottoman War: Russia invades Armenia.
November, 20
Serbian-Bulgarian War : the Bulgarian Army enters Skopje.
November, 21
Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria-Hungary dies ; he is succeeded by his nephew, Franz Ferdinand, who takes the titles of Emperor Ferdinand II of Austria and King Ferdinand VI of Hungary and immediately affirms his loyalty to the German-Austro-Hungarian alliance.
November, 24
Germany mobilizes.
November, 25
Germany offers France to cede to Germany military redoubts in Toul and Verdun during the duration of a Russian-German conflict, in exchange for no war.
In a referendum, Uruguay adopts a collective presidency system, establishing a National Council of Administration of nine members that would replace the office of President of the Republic, based on the Swiss executive.
November, 26
Austria-Hungary mobilizes.
November, 27
Germany declares war upon Russia and Greece, trigerring the Great European War.
November, 28
Great European War: Austria-Hungary declares war upon Russia and Greece. Germany takes Kalisz, Czestochowa and Bedzin in Russian Poland.
November, 29
Great European War : Battle of Libau. Russia defeats Germany.
Alexei Bobrinsky becomes Prime Minister of Russia, replacing Piotr Bark, viewed as to much of a germanophile.
A military government under Captain Harry Shepard Knapp is installed in Santo Domingo.
November, 30
Great European War : the United Kingdom declares its neutrality.
December, 1
French missionnary and Berber expert Charles de Foucauld is murdered in his fortress in Tamanghasset by bandits.
December, 2
France mobilizes. An attempt by SFIO leader Jean Jaurès to wage a general strike fails due to massive enthusiasm for the war in the French populace.
December, 3
Great European War : France declares war upon Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. The date is generally considered as the official beginning of the Great European War.
Russia invades East Prussia.
December, 4
Great European War : Austria-Hungary attacks Kielce and Lublin.
Maximilian Hussarek von Heinlein replaces Karl von Stürgkh as Minister-President of Austria, who has been sacked by the new Emperor; similarly, Field Marshal Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf is removed from his position as Chief of the General Staff, replaced by the Emperor himself. Count Istvan Tisza, Minister-President of Hungary, insists he won’t resign to comply to his King.
December, 6
Great European War : France invades South Alsace.
Russia fully mobilizes.
December, 8
Great European War : Mulhouse falls to French troops.
Gaston Doumergue returns as French President of Council of a Grand Coalition government, the Union Sacrée (Holy Union) concerning parties from the whole spectrum, except the SFIO, as leader Jean Jaurès has declared his opposition to the war.
December, 10
The Nobel Prize for Physics is attributed to Max Planck (Germany) ; Chemistry goes to ira Remsen (USA) ; Emile Roux (France) wins in Medicine ; Per Hallström (Sweden) receives the Nobel Prize for Literature. The Peace Nobel Prize is not attributed due to the Great European War.
Great European War : the Germany takes back Mulhouse.
Serbian-Bulgarian War: The Bulgarian Army enters Nis.
December, 11
Great European War : Russia defeats Germany at Stalluponen.
December, 14
Great European War : Russia defeats Austria-Hungary at Gumbinnen.
December, 14-December, 21
Great European War : Battle of Morhange. Germany beats France.
December, 15
Great European War : Dogubeyazit and Köpruköy (Ottoman Empire) fall to Russian troops.
December, 17
A general election is held in New Zealand : William Massey (Reform) is re-elected as Prime Minister.
December, 20
Great European War : Battle of Krasnik. Russia defeats Austria-Hungary.
December, 21
Great European War : after the defeat at Morhange, French troops decide to retreat in good order behind the Meuse River.
December, 21-December, 28
Great European War : Battle of Allenstein, Russia narrowly defeats Germany.
December, 21-January, 7
Great European War : Battle of Lemberg. Russia defeats Austria-Hungary and occupies the city.
December, 24-December, 25
Great European War : Belligerants observe a Christmas truce.
December, 28
Great European War : Germany retreats in good order behind the Vistula River.
December, 29
The Stock-Raising Homestead Act is passed by the United States Congress for settlers seeking 640 acres of public land for ranching purposes.
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is published by James Joyce.
December, 30
Tax reform in France : income tax rates goes to 10 %.
December, 31
The Lucknow Pact is passed between the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League : the “garam dal”, or the hot extremist faction, composed by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai and Bipinchandra Pal, against cooperation with the British, wins a majority in light of the events in Ireland. The moderates, led by Gopal Krishna Gokhale, gets into his own way.
Well, rather not, it's a private company, evidently the result of an association between Mikoyan and Sukhoi. As of Wong Aeronautics, it's also a fictional private company.
As of the recent exiles, yes, they are underground believers and recent opposition figures, or just civilians who fled the hellhole.
Well, I have been wondering some much about this lately.
First, I must say that I have been working on the Franz Ferdinand timeline since 2017, and that all plans have been delayed since. I have a lot to do in real life, such as looking for a new job, writing a novel in French totally disconnected from alternate history and I have plenty of other alternate history projects, ranging from Clovis to Charles De Gaulle. This current timeline demands a lot of time and work, I do it for free, but I still intend it as a leasure and pleasure project, an exercice in worldbuilding and writing.
As of Perot, I must admit that this is now a decade-old project, and that I have already explored it to the best of my abilities ; it still has a lot of defects and things that I wouldn't have done now, but it's behind me, and I want to move on. I have neither the time, the patience or the will to return to an old project of mine, I want to explore other worlds, other timeframes and other points of divergence.
If you wish to read the timeline, you're welcome ; if you want to see what I am up to, you're also free.
Anyway, thank you for this very kind message, should you want to discuss it further, you're welcome.
I totally understand and wish all the more luck to you! Thanks for your response and I hope everything goes well for you! I honestly can't believe that A Giant Sucking Sound is over 10 years old but then again I only read it in 2019.
Country profile - Dahomey
Dahomey is a country in Western Africa, bordered in the north by Mali, in the west by Togoland, in the south by the Gulf of Guinea and in the east by Sokoto and Odudawa.
History
Only conquered by the French in 1894, the Dahomey colony, formed by the reunion of the kingdoms of Allada, Porto-Novo and Abomey, was among the spoils of victory of the Treaty of Tours in 1920, joining the German colonial empire. The idea was to reinforce the importance of the Togoland colony, strengthening German positions over the Gulf of Guinea and providing an efficient buffer between British Gold Coast (now Ashante) and Nigeria (now Sokoto, Odudawa and Biafra).
The German colonization was quite uneventful, molded on the policies applied on neighbouring Togoland, even if the authorities in Berlin never thought of merging the two little colonies, given that the cultural outline of Togoland and Dahomey were different ; having Catholic and Protestant missionaries spreading the civilization along with the German language, the governorship in Cotonou relied on the traditional kings of Abomey, that had been defeated at great cost by the French, along with their Fon subjects, concentrating development on the coast and Abomey, with extensive German naval bases being maintained in Porto-Novo, Cotonou and Ouidah. In the northernmost part of the country, French influence from Mali remained. Thanks to Dahomeyan participation during the World War, Dahomey was included in the 1946 Dar-es-Salaam Pact, being promised independence within 25 years of cooperation with Germany. Due to agitation in neighbouring Liberia and Mali, however, and the small size and lack of self-reliance on the country, Dahomey only acceded to independence in 1977, as a full member of the Reichspakt and a constitutional monarchy, the Kings of Abomey becoming ceremonial heads of state and Abomey aristocrat and dentist Justin Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin serving as the country’s first President of Council, reflecting German colonial policies.
As German military and economic presence remains to this day, as in neighbouring Togoland, the Kingdom of Dahomey was not without troubles, due to the ethnic strife that was the legacy of “divide to rule” policies : in 1986, in the aftershock of the 1983 economic crisis, a peaceful revolution allowed the drafting of a new Constitution, monitored by Auxiliary Archbishop of Cotonou Isidore de Souza, who served as President of Council, that removed all discriminatory laws and access to suffrage. The democratic experience was cut short by a series of three military coups and counter-coups in 1988, giving rise to a military dictatorship by General Ferdinand Amoussou, with German support, that restored the prior Constitution and reintegrated Dahomey within the Reichspakt ; the monarchy, in turn, was on the verge of collapse due to a succession dispute in 1989, resolved with German ingerence.
Amoussou allowed a democratic transition in 2001 under German pressure but Pan-Africanist sentiments, quite strong in the northern country, led to a new series of troubles in 2013-2014, culminating with the assassination of President of Council Marie-Elise Gbèdo and an attempted military coup ; since 2014, the Conservatives, led by Sébastien Ajavon, have controlled the country in a pro-German foreign and internal policy.
Political situation
Under its Constitution (adopted at independence and restored in 1990), Dahomey is an unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The reigning King is Dah Sagbadjou Glele, descendant of the Kings of Abomey and elected by Dahomeyan aristocrats in 2018 ; as a tribute to the traditional authority of the king and its historical significance, the capital of the country remains in Abomey, the ancestral seat of the kings, even if the little city only serves as an administrative center formed around the royal palace, as Cotonou’s importance remains tantamount.
The king only has ceremonial powers, as executive and legislative powers are entrusted in the President of Council, leader of the majority party in Dahomey’s National Assembly, the country’s parliament ; judiciary powers are inspired by German law, mixed with Dahomeyan old traditions. Sébastien Ajavon, a Fon billionaire who made his fortune in the food industry, known as “the chicken king”, who also made his fortune in real estate and media ownership, has served as President of Council since 2014, his mandate being renewed with a supermajority in the 2019 general elections. Avajon belongs to Union for Future Dahomey (Union für Zukunft Dahomey), a conservative big tent party that had been founded by former military strongman Ferdinand Amoussou to support his own rule. The social-democratic Democratic Renewal Party serves as the official opposition, with the Pan-Africanist Congress of Agrican Democrats having been dissolved due to political pressure. Avajon’s rule has been described by foreign commentators as a “corrupt and autocratic sham democracy”, with revelations in 2017 in German newspaper Der Spiegel proving its relations with organized crime, the corruption of most of his activies and cronies and the extrajudicial killings of opponents and rivals, his rule being only enforced by German support ; the scandal was efficiently suppressed in Dahomey and Avajon remains the strongman of Dahomeyan politics.
Social situation, population
The majority of Dahomey’s 9 million population lives in the southern country, mostly in the coast, with Cotonou and Porto-Novo leading the economy and drawing a large sway of rural migrants, while 42 ethnic groups form the outline of the country, with Fons forming the ruling and majority population, and Yorubas, Dendis, Bariba, Fulas in the North. The Constitution of Dahomey acknowledges Fon, Yoruba, Fula and Bariba as official languages along with German that serves as the country’s vernacular language. Due to the troubles plaguing Sokoto, southern Dahomey became the seat for a large Sokoto diaspora, living in the slums surrounding Cotonou.
The few riches of the country, along with social development, are confined to the Fon majority, living in the central and southern country ; neglected during German colonization and after independence, the north remains backwards, with illiteracy, infant mortality, malaria and poor infrastructures remaining endemic. This enduring rift has led to deep animosity within Dahomeyan society, with northern populations being subjected to Pan-Africanist influence, allowing to a breakthrough of Pan-Africanist guerillas and Neo-Kemetic conversions, all repressed by the government in Abomey. Christianity, deeply encouraged by German missionnaries, is the country’s largest religious denomination ; Islam is more present in the north, while traditional religions, such as Vodun (the spiritual ancestor of Caribbean Voodoo) was repressed by German and later Dahomeyan authorities, with Ouidah, the religion’s spiritual center, being monorited ; Vodun had been pointed out by Germans as a “barbarian cult” as they also suspected its practioners of harbouring Pan-Africanist feelings.
Economy
Offshore exploitation of oil around Sémè, started during German colonization, proved unprofitable and was halted in the 1980s, and so Dahomey’s economy remains underdeveloped, relying on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, wood exploitation, German military presence and tourism, with Cotonou serving as the country only hub for foreign trade and exports, with the country’s only seaport and only international airport. The economy remains under German control, with Germany being the main economic partner of Dahomey, on a lesser level than neighbouring Togoland, the other big partner of Dahomey.
Military
As a member of the Reichspakt, Dahomey allows for the presence of a strong German military naval base in Cotonou, in a 99-years-lease from Germany, that constitute, along with Lomé and Sao Tomé, the main frame of the German West African Fleet of the Reichsmarine. Attempts at reducing German influence during the de Souza era were abandoned but the subject remains controversial in Dahomeyan politics. The Dahomey Armed Forces are deeply inspired by Prussian military traditions, equipped with German gear and mostly controlled by Fon military officers ; since the days of the Amoussou military regime in 1988-2001 and the defeat of the attempted coup in 2014, the Dahomeyan Army retains a reputation of a kingmaking force in politics.
Culture
Due to its lack of natural resources, Dahomey focused its economy of tourism and the promotion of its superb culture, celebrating the still reigning kings of Abomey, its folk traditions such as dances, music and cuisine and its lush landscapes ; modern artists have received major international recognition, such as Georg Adéagbo, Meschac Gaba or Romuald Hazoumè, and the music scene in Cotonou remains renowned throughout Africa. Due to German influence, a cultural rift has nevertheless being created between a cosmopolitan, Fon-dominated and German-influenced South and a underdeveloped, French- and Liberian-influenced Fulani, Bariba and Yoruba north.
History
Only conquered by the French in 1894, the Dahomey colony, formed by the reunion of the kingdoms of Allada, Porto-Novo and Abomey, was among the spoils of victory of the Treaty of Tours in 1920, joining the German colonial empire. The idea was to reinforce the importance of the Togoland colony, strengthening German positions over the Gulf of Guinea and providing an efficient buffer between British Gold Coast (now Ashante) and Nigeria (now Sokoto, Odudawa and Biafra).
The German colonization was quite uneventful, molded on the policies applied on neighbouring Togoland, even if the authorities in Berlin never thought of merging the two little colonies, given that the cultural outline of Togoland and Dahomey were different ; having Catholic and Protestant missionaries spreading the civilization along with the German language, the governorship in Cotonou relied on the traditional kings of Abomey, that had been defeated at great cost by the French, along with their Fon subjects, concentrating development on the coast and Abomey, with extensive German naval bases being maintained in Porto-Novo, Cotonou and Ouidah. In the northernmost part of the country, French influence from Mali remained. Thanks to Dahomeyan participation during the World War, Dahomey was included in the 1946 Dar-es-Salaam Pact, being promised independence within 25 years of cooperation with Germany. Due to agitation in neighbouring Liberia and Mali, however, and the small size and lack of self-reliance on the country, Dahomey only acceded to independence in 1977, as a full member of the Reichspakt and a constitutional monarchy, the Kings of Abomey becoming ceremonial heads of state and Abomey aristocrat and dentist Justin Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin serving as the country’s first President of Council, reflecting German colonial policies.
As German military and economic presence remains to this day, as in neighbouring Togoland, the Kingdom of Dahomey was not without troubles, due to the ethnic strife that was the legacy of “divide to rule” policies : in 1986, in the aftershock of the 1983 economic crisis, a peaceful revolution allowed the drafting of a new Constitution, monitored by Auxiliary Archbishop of Cotonou Isidore de Souza, who served as President of Council, that removed all discriminatory laws and access to suffrage. The democratic experience was cut short by a series of three military coups and counter-coups in 1988, giving rise to a military dictatorship by General Ferdinand Amoussou, with German support, that restored the prior Constitution and reintegrated Dahomey within the Reichspakt ; the monarchy, in turn, was on the verge of collapse due to a succession dispute in 1989, resolved with German ingerence.
Amoussou allowed a democratic transition in 2001 under German pressure but Pan-Africanist sentiments, quite strong in the northern country, led to a new series of troubles in 2013-2014, culminating with the assassination of President of Council Marie-Elise Gbèdo and an attempted military coup ; since 2014, the Conservatives, led by Sébastien Ajavon, have controlled the country in a pro-German foreign and internal policy.
Political situation
Under its Constitution (adopted at independence and restored in 1990), Dahomey is an unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The reigning King is Dah Sagbadjou Glele, descendant of the Kings of Abomey and elected by Dahomeyan aristocrats in 2018 ; as a tribute to the traditional authority of the king and its historical significance, the capital of the country remains in Abomey, the ancestral seat of the kings, even if the little city only serves as an administrative center formed around the royal palace, as Cotonou’s importance remains tantamount.
The king only has ceremonial powers, as executive and legislative powers are entrusted in the President of Council, leader of the majority party in Dahomey’s National Assembly, the country’s parliament ; judiciary powers are inspired by German law, mixed with Dahomeyan old traditions. Sébastien Ajavon, a Fon billionaire who made his fortune in the food industry, known as “the chicken king”, who also made his fortune in real estate and media ownership, has served as President of Council since 2014, his mandate being renewed with a supermajority in the 2019 general elections. Avajon belongs to Union for Future Dahomey (Union für Zukunft Dahomey), a conservative big tent party that had been founded by former military strongman Ferdinand Amoussou to support his own rule. The social-democratic Democratic Renewal Party serves as the official opposition, with the Pan-Africanist Congress of Agrican Democrats having been dissolved due to political pressure. Avajon’s rule has been described by foreign commentators as a “corrupt and autocratic sham democracy”, with revelations in 2017 in German newspaper Der Spiegel proving its relations with organized crime, the corruption of most of his activies and cronies and the extrajudicial killings of opponents and rivals, his rule being only enforced by German support ; the scandal was efficiently suppressed in Dahomey and Avajon remains the strongman of Dahomeyan politics.
Social situation, population
The majority of Dahomey’s 9 million population lives in the southern country, mostly in the coast, with Cotonou and Porto-Novo leading the economy and drawing a large sway of rural migrants, while 42 ethnic groups form the outline of the country, with Fons forming the ruling and majority population, and Yorubas, Dendis, Bariba, Fulas in the North. The Constitution of Dahomey acknowledges Fon, Yoruba, Fula and Bariba as official languages along with German that serves as the country’s vernacular language. Due to the troubles plaguing Sokoto, southern Dahomey became the seat for a large Sokoto diaspora, living in the slums surrounding Cotonou.
The few riches of the country, along with social development, are confined to the Fon majority, living in the central and southern country ; neglected during German colonization and after independence, the north remains backwards, with illiteracy, infant mortality, malaria and poor infrastructures remaining endemic. This enduring rift has led to deep animosity within Dahomeyan society, with northern populations being subjected to Pan-Africanist influence, allowing to a breakthrough of Pan-Africanist guerillas and Neo-Kemetic conversions, all repressed by the government in Abomey. Christianity, deeply encouraged by German missionnaries, is the country’s largest religious denomination ; Islam is more present in the north, while traditional religions, such as Vodun (the spiritual ancestor of Caribbean Voodoo) was repressed by German and later Dahomeyan authorities, with Ouidah, the religion’s spiritual center, being monorited ; Vodun had been pointed out by Germans as a “barbarian cult” as they also suspected its practioners of harbouring Pan-Africanist feelings.
Economy
Offshore exploitation of oil around Sémè, started during German colonization, proved unprofitable and was halted in the 1980s, and so Dahomey’s economy remains underdeveloped, relying on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, wood exploitation, German military presence and tourism, with Cotonou serving as the country only hub for foreign trade and exports, with the country’s only seaport and only international airport. The economy remains under German control, with Germany being the main economic partner of Dahomey, on a lesser level than neighbouring Togoland, the other big partner of Dahomey.
Military
As a member of the Reichspakt, Dahomey allows for the presence of a strong German military naval base in Cotonou, in a 99-years-lease from Germany, that constitute, along with Lomé and Sao Tomé, the main frame of the German West African Fleet of the Reichsmarine. Attempts at reducing German influence during the de Souza era were abandoned but the subject remains controversial in Dahomeyan politics. The Dahomey Armed Forces are deeply inspired by Prussian military traditions, equipped with German gear and mostly controlled by Fon military officers ; since the days of the Amoussou military regime in 1988-2001 and the defeat of the attempted coup in 2014, the Dahomeyan Army retains a reputation of a kingmaking force in politics.
Culture
Due to its lack of natural resources, Dahomey focused its economy of tourism and the promotion of its superb culture, celebrating the still reigning kings of Abomey, its folk traditions such as dances, music and cuisine and its lush landscapes ; modern artists have received major international recognition, such as Georg Adéagbo, Meschac Gaba or Romuald Hazoumè, and the music scene in Cotonou remains renowned throughout Africa. Due to German influence, a cultural rift has nevertheless being created between a cosmopolitan, Fon-dominated and German-influenced South and a underdeveloped, French- and Liberian-influenced Fulani, Bariba and Yoruba north.