It is safe to say that avoiding, or rolling the proverbial Natural 20 and winning, the Italian War would have avoided the last few rounds in the Balkans. Of course the Young Turk coup probably did not help.Well,the title says it all. Help me,my althistorian friends.
Just to be clear, when you say 'early 1900s' do you mean just the 1900-1909 period or the early 20th century up to say the 1920s? The first is achievable but a bit more difficult whilst the second somewhat easier. If we have more time then the obvious solution is for the Ottomans to stay neutral during the Great War which neatly avoids the British fomenting the Arab Revolt and allowing them to maintain control of the Levant, Mesopotamia and Arabia plus playing both sides off against the other to get the Capitulations and possibly even some of their debts written off.Well, the title says it all. Help me, my althistorian friends.
IIRC didn't the Ottomans nearly surround and completely annihiliate the original Italian invasion force of 20,000 troops? The other powers were already getting a bit annoyed with the whole affair dragging on longer than expected so it might be something.It is safe to say that avoiding, or rolling the proverbial Natural 20 and winning, the Italian War would have avoided the last few rounds in the Balkans. Of course the Young Turk coup probably did not help.
That was not an option available to them; the Young Turks tried repeatedly to form an alliance with Britain, in 1908, 1909, then in 1911 during their war with Italy and finally in January 1913, each time with no success. The problem was that, as the British Foreign Secretary Viscount Grey told the Turks, the Ottoman Empire was as weak, unstable, and likely to draw the British into conflict (most probably with their new Entente partners) and completely unable to assist the British in any way; a liability, not an asset. The French wouldn’t consider any alliance that upset the Russians and the Tsar’s court were already mentally measuring out the rooms of the Sublime Porte for new furniture; their goal was Constantinople.Joining with the allies in WW1.
The Balkan Wars were a consequence of Ottoman weakness, not the cause of it.No Balkan Wars, or no WWI.
The Young Turk coup, if anything, came too late to save the empire; the reforms initially proposed by the Committee of Union and Progress (the Young Turks) were long overdue and obvious to all, unfortunately 1908 was just way too late, the rot in the empire ran too deep and was too clearly visible to opportunistic neighbours.Of course the Young Turk coup probably did not help.
Well,the title says it all. Help me,my althistorian friends.