"Io Mihailŭ, Împĕratul Românilor" - A Michael the Brave Romania Wank
- Thread starter Zagan
- Start date
Zagan
Donor
ATTENTION: I am sorry, but the latest map has some coloring errors (some purple areas should have been magenta). I will correct and re-upload it tomorrow. The legend is correct.
EDIT: The initial map had a flaw due to the color reduction from 24 to 8 bits per pixel PNGs. To correct it, I had to change the Color Purple to Horizontal Hatches, as it was too similar to Color Magenta and the two similar Colors became undistinguishable on the 8 bit per pixel PNG. Thank you for your understanding. I will be more careful next time.
CORRECTED.
EDIT: The initial map had a flaw due to the color reduction from 24 to 8 bits per pixel PNGs. To correct it, I had to change the Color Purple to Horizontal Hatches, as it was too similar to Color Magenta and the two similar Colors became undistinguishable on the 8 bit per pixel PNG. Thank you for your understanding. I will be more careful next time.
CORRECTED.
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Zagan
Donor
Thank you. I tried really hard to make the story coherent and balanced and I will continue to do so.
Of course. I live in Romania and I am a Romanian citizen of Aromanian ethnicity (my grandparents immigrated to Romania from Greek Macedonia).
In TTL, the Habsburgs lost their HRE and central European territories in the German Civil Wars which culminated with a United German Empire under the House of Wettin and lost the Iberian Empire during the Spanish Civil War at the end of the Second European War to the House of Braganza.
So the Habsburgs do not rule anywhere anymore. Good riddance (they were always enemies of Romania, both in TTL and in OTL).
Zagan
Donor
Now, that we are done with the maps (for now...), get ready for the penultimate chapter: War in the Orient. Coming soon...
So, the plan:
- Chapter 63: War in the Orient
- Chapter 64: Overview of the World 50 Years after the POD (probably not the actual title)
- Epilogue (?), end of Part One
- Continuing with Part Two (1651 - Present)
- Spin-Offs: At least one ASB Spin-Off already sketched...
Stay tuned!
So, the plan:
- Chapter 63: War in the Orient
- Chapter 64: Overview of the World 50 Years after the POD (probably not the actual title)
- Epilogue (?), end of Part One
- Continuing with Part Two (1651 - Present)
- Spin-Offs: At least one ASB Spin-Off already sketched...
Stay tuned!
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I.63. War in the Orient
Zagan
Donor
"I decided to go for the heart of the Beast."
Empress Iulia, The Last Crusade, 1651
Empress Iulia, The Last Crusade, 1651
War in the Orient
From the minutes of the Romanian History Conference under the high aegis of the Academy of Romania, Constantinople, Romania, 1923
Although the Romanians had many foes during the ages, no one was as dangerous and pervasive as Islam, which has continuously plagued us from the 14th century up to the present day.
If, from the early Tatar and Ottoman invasions to the apogee of the Ottoman power at the end of the 16th century, Islam had the upper hand and our future looked grim, the rise of the powerful centralized Romanian State under Emperor Mihai I turned the balance heavily in our favour and, in less than half a century, we managed to throw the Muslims out of the sacred soil of Europe and push them deeper and deeper into the Orient. [...]
In the 17th century alone, Romania fought no less than five major Holy Wars against Islam:
- The First Anti-Ottoman Crusade (1622 - 1624), in which Romania more than doubled its territory and secured its independence and international status as a Great Power and an Imperium;
- The Second Anti-Ottoman Crusade (1629 - 1630), in which the Ottoman Empire was severely battered and Romania and its allies got their first footholds in the Orient;
- The War in the Orient (1645 - 1652), in which Constantinople was reclaimed for the Christendom and the last Ottoman remnants were finally destroyed;
[...]
Romanian - Ottoman relations before the War
After the devastating defeats suffered in the latest two wars against the Christians, the Ottoman State was in total disarray, having lost more than half of its territory, population and resources.
With the economy, military, demographics and internal cohesiveness of the Ottoman State in free fall, the Sultan in Constantinople and the Pashas from Angora, Damascus and Baghdad realized quite clearly that the only possible way to deal with their Christian neighbours was to make sure not to provoke them in any way.
During the 1630's and the early 1640's, the Ottomans resisted to increasingly blatant Romanian and Greek provocations and humiliations, hoping to avoid another Christian invasion until such time when the Ottoman State might get stronger.
In the end, all the restraint showed by the Ottomans did not stop Iulia who was determined to invade the Ottoman State even under a made up pretext.
1632 - 1638 and 1641 - 1643
Various Muslim uprisings in the Holy Land and Lebanon against the Romanian Colonial Authorities (and the Lebanon Maronite ruling clique) were harshely dealt with by the Romanian Army.
Although the neighbouring Ottoman State of Levant obviously sympathised with the plight of their coreligionaries, it did not directly help them (the rebels might have received help from private Levantine citizens, not from the State of Levant itself).
Romania insisted that the rebels were funded and helped by the State of Levant and perpetuated a bellicose stance against the Levantines.
October - December 1641
When Emperor Mihai suffered his last stroke and passed away two months later, an elaborate plot framed a group of captive Muslim rebels who were said to have escaped and then attacked and wounded the Emperor.
As if that wasn't enough, Iulia's knife wound was framed as yet another Muslim conspiracy against the Romanian Imperial Family.
Of course, both purported attacks were linked to the State of Levant despite it vigurously defending its innocence.
January 1642 Ultimatum
A harsh ultimatum was delivered to the Ottoman State asking that:
1. The Marmara Demilitarized Area, the Asian shore of the Dardanelles, Sinope and several areas at the Lebanon and Holy Land - Levantine border to be annexed by Romania;
2. Romania be permitted to send policemen in the Levant to investigate and arrest the groups purportedly involved into the Holy Land and Lebanon uprisings as well as the attacks against Emperor Mihai and Crown Princess Iulia.
3. The Ottoman State accept responsability for the anti-Romanian activities, issue a full apology, vow to never again interfere into the Romanian Colonies' affaires, pay a huge indemnity and drastically limit its army and navy.
Obviously, the Ultimatum was concieved to be impossible to abide to.
The Ottomans stalled as much as possible by slowly negotiating its contents. The negotiations were difficult and in fact completely pointless as the Ottoman State was no more a centralized entity, the Sultan having little authority in Turkey and almost none in the Levant.
After several months during which the Romanians were in no hurry due to the continuing war in the West, the Sultan accepted to cede most of the requested territories, to allow the presence of Romanian policemen in the Levant to investigate but not to arrest the suspects, full responsability and an apology, albeit pending the result of a bi-partite investigation and flatly refused to pay any indemnity (because they really lacked any money) and to limit its already undersized armed forces.
Romania threatened with war but failed short to actually declaring it. The situation remained very tense.
1642 - 1643
With the Second European War underway, Romania did not invade the Ottoman State at that time, but continued its anti-Ottoman and anti-Muslim activities.
Inside Romania's borders, a continuous anti-Muslim propaganda resulted in widespread attacks, evictions and pogroms against the local Muslim inhabitants.
In less than two years, the Muslim community from Romania was almost completely annihilated by extrajudicial killings and forced emigration, plummeting from just over 100,000 to less than 3,000 people.
December 1642
Romania invaded the defenceless Marmara Demilitarized Area with a whole legion and promptly annexed it to Romania as another regular Province.
Almost all of the local Muslim inhabitants (around 40,000) were evicted to Turkey.
The Romanian Army stood once more at the Osman Line, a mere 20 miles from the walls of Constantinople and the Romanian Navy was free to roam the Sea of Marmara for the first time in history.
Neither the Sultan nor the Pashas said anything.
1643
The Romanian and Greek forces from the Holy Land and Mikrasia probed the Levantine and Turkish defences by launching several short incursions into Ottoman territory. Despite some small skirmishes with local Ottoman forces, no full-scale war erupted.
Iulia wanted war, but her generals had convinced her to wait until the end of European War, as Romania lacked the human and material resources to fight a two front war at that stage.
The Iberian capture of Iulia put the plans for the invasion of the Ottoman State on hold for the foreseable future.
March - June 1645
The Second European War had ended and Iulia and most of her armies had returned to Romania.
Romania was ready to strike the beleaguered Ottoman State.
July - August 1645
Without any further warning, the Romanian and Greek armies invaded the Ottoman State from the Holy Land (38,000 Romanian Colonial forces), Mikrasia (63,000 Romanians and 79,000 Greeks) and over the Marmara (115,000 Romanians).
The opposing forces consisted of around 100,000 Levantines and 10,000 Mesopotamians in the Levant, 80,000 Turks at the Greek border and another 80,000 Turks and 10,000 Mesopotamians on the Asian shore of the Sea of Marmara.
The 70,000 men defending Constantinople were barricaded at the Osman Line and inside the City of Constantinople itself, prepared for an invasion that never came.
A few weeks later, 25,000 Armenians and 10,000 Georgians invaded Turkey from the East, faced only with small and scattered Turkish forces.
September 1645 - November 1646
The Ottoman armies defending the Southern shore of the Marmara were defeated and forced to retreat towards Angora.
The Romanian forces from the Marmara War Theatre linked with those from the Mikrasia War Theatre and trapped a small Ottoman army on the Aegean shore, which surrendered after an extremely bloody battle.
It would have been much better to simply starve them into submission, but with hindsight everything seems easier.
The Romanians advanced on the Southern Marmara shore all the way to Nicomedia (İzmit), from where they pressed straight on towards the Black Sea, bypassing the Nicomedia Peninsula (Kocaeli) and trapping almost 20,000 Ottomans there.
Constantinople was thus completely surrounded, with its vital link to Turkey severed by Romanian-held territory. No more food and military supplies would ever again arrive in the besieged Capital.
In Southern Mikrasia, the Ottomans managed to repulse the invasion and even advanced around 40 miles into Greek territory.
They were however called back to the defence of the Capital after the Marmara disaster, their hard fought gains being for nought.
The Turks had to remove at least 20,000 soldiers from the Western Turkish front and send them Eastwards to fend off the Georgian - Armenian invasion.
The Levantine War Theatre saw a string of Ottoman victories culminating in the Ottoman occupation of Lebanon and most of the Holy Land, up to the outskirts of Jerusalem which was saved with great losses only by a fierce Romanian defence.
November 1646 - February 1648
The War proceeded slowly on all fronts: stubborn Romanian defence in the Holy Land, small but steady gains towards Angora in Turkey and a tight siege of the starving Ottoman Capital.
In the East, the Armenian front collapsed and the Turks thought to spare several armies and invade Armenia, but wisely decided not to, as all soldiers were needed to fend off the superior Romanian forces.
The Romanian and Greek casualties had climbed to almost 50,000 while the Ottomans had lost around 100,000 soldiers and at least twice as many civilians.
March 1648
A massive and sudden Romanian attack obliterated the Ottoman defenders of Angora and took the city by force in a swift and marvellous military operation.
The Pasha and the whole Turkish government was captured and killed and Angora was thoroughly sacked and then set aflame.
The battered remnants of the Turkish armies surrended and signed a general capitulation of the whole Turkish State and Armed Forces.
The only Turkish forces which disobeyed the surrender order were those trapped in the Nicomedia Peninsula. They choose to shift their allegiance to the Constantinople Sultan on the other side of the Bosphorus.
Peace of Angora
Turkey was separated from the Ottoman State and was partitioned into:
- the Southern shore of the Dardanelles (0.23%, annexed to Romanian Proper and joined to the Marmara Province);
- Asia Minor (5.62%, new Romanian Colony);
- Sinope (0.02%, new Romanian Colony);
- Cilicia (16.50%, Greek Colony);
- Pontus (6.82%, annexed to Armenia, which acquired a Black Sea coast this way);
- Cappadocia (8.27%, Armenian Colony);
- Nicomedia (0.77%, de facto and later also de jure annexed to Constantinople, under the direct jurisdiction of the Sultan);
- the rest (67.90% or 40.60% of OTL Turkey) became a Romanian Protectorate.
Romania was to remove its army from the Protectorate of Turkey at the end of the war.
April 1648
With the fall of Turkey, the last hope for Constantinople and the Ottoman Sultan vanished.
The Sultan sued for peace.
Iulia's conditions were incredibly lenient and a Peace Treaty was signed in less than a month.
4 May 1648
Peace of Constantinople
- The territorial changes in Turkey are recognized by the Sultan;
- The Nicomedia Peninsula is annexed to Constantinople;
- Turkey, the Levant and Mesopotamia are separated from the Ottoman State, which is restricted to Constantinople (including Nicomedia Peninsula);
- The Ottoman State is renamed the Principality of Bosphorus (Constantinople + Nicomedia), a Romanian Protectorate reigned by the Sultan;
- Freedom of religion and equality in front of the law are guaranteed in Bosphorus;
- No more than one thousand Romanian soldiers and ten warships will be stationed in Bosphorus at any time;
- Empress Iulia will be crowned in Constantinople and the Sultan will swear allegiance to her;
- The siege will be lifted and sufficient amounts of food will be provided immediately;
- Hagia Sofia will be turned back into a Christian Orthodox Church;
- The Patriarchy of Greece will be relocated in Constantinople;
- other less important provisions.
It is still unclear why Iulia decided to keep the Sultan, even as a figurehead.
Some historians argue that the main motive was a desire to keep the status of Constantinople somehow ambigous and not open the can of worms which could have resulted from its annexation to either Romania or Greece (with even Sarmatia as a possible claimant).
Another reason might have been Iulia's reluctance to destroy the city or its inhabitants with an invasion or a prolonged siege.
Keeping Constantinople as the Capital of a symbolic Empire of the Orient with herself as Empress was considered the best solution at that time, even if that would create some problems in the future.
10 June 1648
Iulia entered Constantinople in triumph with 1000 Legionnaires and was crowned Empress of the Romans by the Romanian and Greek Patriarchs in a splendid ceremony.
The (Eastern) Roman Empire was proclaimed resurrected and claimed all its former territories.
Later that day, the Sultan pledged allegiance to Iulia who smiled at him but said nothing.
June - July 1648
The events in Constantinole shocked and enraged all the European Powers.
The Great Powers Council voted a resolution condemning the proclamation and called for Iulia to rescind it.
Britannia, France, Italy, Germany and Russia even went so far as to vaguely threaten Romania with war over the matter.
18 August 1648
Reason finally prevailed and Iulia relented.
The Roman Empire was renamed the Empire of the Orient and Iulia's new title became Empress of the Orient.
Iulia's full title was thus: Iulia Imperatrix Romaniae, Basileus Autokrator of the Hellenes and Empress of the Orient.
Any more unpleasantries were thus averted and Iulia could continue her Crusade unimpeded.
Everyody was happy, because at that time titles and names were very, very important.
September - December 1648
With their back finally secured, the Romanians and their allies turned South to crush the Levantines and free Lebanon and the Northern part of the Holy Land.
140,000 allied troops crossed the border into the Levant, facing sporadic opposition from the Levantine rearguard. The Levantine and Mesopotamian armies started to redeploy to the North to face the threat.
While the Romanians would have probably won the war anyway, it was no longer necessary, as Persia entered the war to get her part of the spoils.
Probably more than 100,000 Persian soldiers crossed the border into Mesapotamia advancing virtually unopposed to the Tigris River, while the bulk of the Mesopotamian army was fighting the Romanians in the Levant.
By the time the retreating Mesopotamian Expeditionary Corps from the Levant retreated to the Eufrates, Baghdad fell to the Persians and Mesopotamia sued for peace.
The Persians refused the Mesopotamian peace offer and continued the war occupying most of the country.
January 1649
With the Christian Armies approaching Damascus and the Persians creeping closer and closer to their Eastern border, the Levant asked for an armistice.
Iulia accepted.
Lebanon and the Holy Land were promptly vacated by the Levantine armies and the Romanian Colonial Administration was reinstated.
February - March 1649
A Peace Treaty was signed by the Christian coalition and Persia on one side and the Levant on the other side. Romania was (for a very short period of time) at peace.
Peace of Damascus
- Mesopotamia is annexed by Persia with the exception of a sliver of territory at its Western border which is annexed by the Levant;
- The Levant cedes its coastal regions with the Ports of Tartus and Latakia to Romania to be administred as the Colony of Syria;
- The local Muslim population of Syria will be permitted to continue living in the Colony;
- The Levant is a Romanian Protectorate;
- The Arabian Province of Arabia Petraea will be annexed to the Levant with Romanian military assistance in order to shield the Romanian Colonies of the Holy Land and the Sinai from Arab incursions and to provide the Levant once more with Sea access;
- No Romanian armies will be maintained in the Levant after the end of the war against Arabia.
In this way, Romania closed the Eastern Mediterranian to the Muslims (with the exception of neutral Egypt) and drove a wedge between the Levantines and the Arabs creating a lasting enmity between them.
Romania was the master of the Orient. Turkey and the Levant were no longer credible threats, the Ottomans were almost completely gone and Mesopotamia had all but disappeared.
The only remaining Muslim Powers in the Orient were Persia (friendly towards the Europeans), Egypt (neutral and sandwiched between Romania and Italy) and the Arabian Caliphate which was going to be invaded during the following months.
September 1649
A coalition formed of Romania (70,000), Greece (25,000), Armenia (12,000), Georgia (7,000), Levant (45,000) and Persia (80,000) invaded Arabia from the Northwest and from the East.
October 1649 - April 1650
The invading armies seemed slowed down only by the enormous distances invlolved, the harsh unforgiving desert and the ever-lengthening supply lines.
The 50,000 strong Arabian army avoided major battles and retreated Southwards, fighting only occasional skirmishes.
May 1649
Persia had secured Qatar, Bahrain, and several islands and headlands in the Persian Gulf, and Arabia
Petraea was already occupied by the Western Allies.
The coalition began to crack because:
- Persia and the Levant were satisfied with their gains and unwilling to fight anymore against their fellow Muslims only for future Christians gains;
- The Arabs were correctly underlining the very unpleasant and troublesome fact that Christian armies were marching towards Medina and Mecca;
- Greece and especially Armenia and Georgia had absolutely nothing to gain from the war and loyalty towards Romania could only get them so far but not any farther;
June 1650
Persia signed a separate Peace Treaty with Arabia, keeping their gains, and exited the war.
July 1650
The Levant stopped all military actions against Arabia and signed a secret Treaty in which Arabia forfeited the Province of Arabia Petraea.
The Levantine Armies began to retreat behind the new border.
August - November 1650
War fatigue was already overwhelming.
Romania and Greece had been at war since 1641 and had lost hundreds of thousands of men during the decade of continuous war.
Georgia and Armenia had already called home most of their forces leaving behind only token forces of one thousand soldiers each.
To make things worse, an ongoing typhus epidemic had just been joined by a much deadlier plague outbreak. Since the invasion of Arabia, more soldiers had succumbed to disease than warfare and the morale of the armies was beginning to break under the tropical Sun.
December 1650
The opening of the Sinai Canal provided the Romanians with a formidable boon -- fast and secure ship access to the frontlines, providing:
- delivery of much needed food, ammunition and various other supplies;
- the possibility to remove the sick and the injured to the safety of Sinai;
- fresh troops deployed quickly wherever needed;
- a much faster advance Southwards.
The war seemed to finally come to an end. Victory seemed near and the troops' morale rised again.
January - September 1651
The Romanian Armies (by now mostly deserted by all their allies) continued their relentless march Southwards (To the Indian Ocean, the final frontier of our Empire, as Iulia used to proclaim to her soldiers).
October 1651
40,000 war-hardened and elated Romanian soldiers were camped at the outskirts of Medina, faced by around 25,000 Arabs ready to defend their Holy City.
Persia and Egypt warned Iulia to stay away from Medina and Mecca. Italy and Germany warned Egypt to mind its own business.
Iulia did not care anyway. She was drunk with glory. In less than 11 years, she had conquered more land than her illustrious grandfather in a lifetime! She already considered herself among the greatest conquerers of the World, on par with Alexander, Caesar and Augustus!
Let the Persians and Egyptians attack me if they dare to! I will simply conquer them as well! Nothing and nobody can stop me now! Only if this annoying pain subsides...
The War in the Orient was approaching its final phase.
24 November 1651
Iulia's pain in the lower right side of her abdomen was getting sharper and she started to find it increasingly difficult to ride. She couldn't go on like that. She decided to finally seek medical attention.
Iulia: "So, Doctor, please tell me straight, what's wrong with me? Can I get rid of this debilitating pain?"
Doctor: "I am very sorry to say this, but I am pretty sure that Your Majesty is suffering from appendicitis."
I: "I see... I am going to die, am I not?"
D: "I am afraid that this is correct."
I: "Is it possible to attempt an opperation?"
D: "The appendix can be removed, of course, but the patient will almost surely succumb to the resulting infection."
I: "What about Cristina? She had her uterus successfully removed... If perfect cleanliness is rigurously maintained..."
D: "Your Majesty, while the uterus is mainly clean, the intestine is the antithesis of cleanliness. Our hands and instruments may be clean, but the contents of the intestine surely is not."
I: "How much do I have to live?"
D: "A few days, at most, from the moment it ruptures."
I: "And when will it rupture? Or did it already?"
D: "Oh, no, it is not yet ruptured. The pain will be greater than anything Your Majesty had ever encountered. It cannot be missed."
I: "How much?!"
D: "I don't know, Your Majesty... It can be days, it can be weeks..."
I: "I see. Thank you Doctor... For answering me truthfully. Now I know what I have to do... You are excused."
25 November 1651
Instead of continuing the siege, the Romanians charged at Medina's walls and broke into the city by the sheer force of their numbers.
Iulia rode her horse in the first line of the attackers, leading her soldiers in battle.
Medina fell to the Romanian onslaught.
But no soldier was rejoicing, as their beloved Empress and Commander in Chief lay motionless on a white sheet in the field hospital with her skull blown apart by a shell explosion.
Doctor: "Your Majesty... What have you done...?"
Iulia: "It is better like this... I die the way I lived... Heroically... I am tired now. I am going to sleep a little... Please tell Cristina and Maria that I loved them more than anything in this World... Except my country... And Granddaddy... Do tell them..."
************
Iulia closed her eyes and remained silent, breathing scantily.
A Military Priest gave her the last communion.
In the early hours of 26 November 1651, in Medina, the heart of Arabia, the Empress of Romania, Greece and the Orient, Iulia, the greatest warrior the Romanians have ever had, died peacefully in her sleep, proud and content of herself and her Country.
R.I.P. Iulia (1615 - 1651)
The Romanians will never forget you and, despite any slander you may receive, you were the Greatest Empress and the Greatest Warrior ever born in the midst of the Romanian Nation, a true romantic heroine seamingly ripped from an antic tragedy and pasted onto our meagre World.
February 1652
The War in the Orient was finally over with an armistice between the Arabian Caliphate and the Romanian Empire signed near the outskirts of Mecca.
While the hostilities stopped and the Romanian Army leaved Arabia, no Peace Treaty was ever signed.
Romania was once again enjoying peace and prosperity under the quiet and enlightened reign of Empress Maria.
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Zagan
Donor
1. Chapter 63. War in the Orient
[100%, already posted]
Whew! Long war, long chapter...
Iulia just had to die, sorry about that (I feel sorry for her as well
).- Did I miss anything? Is there something wrong?
Although I had previously said that the current map marathon is over, I will post one more map today, as I feel that it is necessary.
Map: The decline and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire.
2. Chapter 64. Half a Century after Mihai's Dream
[70%, will post in two or three days]
This will be the last Chapter of Part One (besides the Epilogue, which is something completely different).
It is an overview of Romania, Europe and the World, 50 years after the POD and it will be followed by some tables and other data.
- Do you want anything in particular to be included / mentioned here?
As I have always told you, I am open to suggestions and I do requests and cameos if appropriate.
More questions later.
3. Epilogue. [Epilogue Title Secret]
[100%, will post this week]
A little bizzare surprise...
I hope I will not get any ASB cries, as this is meant as some kind of parable and not actual TL content.
No questions here, yet.
4. Part Two. [Title not yet settled]
[Concept ~50%, Writing ~5%, will start next month, probably]
The progression will be more rapid, with each update covering several decades of peace or a whole war, with the exception of the most interesting sections.
The rest of the World (besides Europe) will get its share of attention.
Romania will actually lose a war (strange, huh?).
- Title ideas for Part Two, please...
- Should I continue this chapter structure or is it something else more appropriate?
- Should this be continued in this thread or linked from another thread?
More questions later.
5. Spin-Off #1 (ASB). The Thirteenth Cycle.
[Concept ~50%, Writing ~15%, will start when the main TL will get to the appropriate point in time (not very soon)]
Some kind of ISOT (not a very regular one).
Will discuss more when getting to it.
A link will be posted in this thread (the ASB Spin-Off will be obviously located in its own thread in the ASB Forum).
No questions here, yet.
6. More Spin-Offs (some ASB, some NOT). [No Titles yet].
[Concept ~10% for about three of them, no writing yet]
Nothing more to say here.
- Any Spin-Offs ideas?
More discussion at the appropriate time.
Thank you.
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Sorry, English is not very good. It's an awesome timeline, really well done. Can you show/mention/post a map the way the colonies of the Great Powers were divided after the war in your overview?
Zagan
Donor
Wow! Your first post in AlternateHistory.com was in my timeline!
Your English is can be understood and that is what matters. I am not an English native speaker myself and I do make mistakes. Nobody will attack you here over spelling or grammar. Post with confidence.
Thank you for your praise.
Yes I can make a World map with the colonies. I will do it soon.
Map #50. Decline and Dissolution of the Ottoman Empire
Zagan
Donor
Decline and Dissolution of the Ottoman Empire
1602-1650
1602-1650
Note: The scale of this map is different (Google Maps Zoom 6) from that of the previous maps (Google Maps Zoom 7). You can superimpose them in a layered graphic editor by doubling this map or by halfing the others.
Legend:
Red + Orange + Yellow + Green + Cyan + Blue: The Ottoman Empire at its greatest de jure territorial extent, after the Peace of Pressburg (1602), including areas under nominal suzerainty - Romania, Slovakia, Georgia, Tatars, Circassians, Berbers, etc
Magenta: Muslim or Muslim-controled areas besides the Ottoman Empire in 1602 (Morocco, Sahara, parts of the Sahel, parts of Somalia, Socotra, the center of the Arabian Peninsula, Oman, Persia Proper, Persian Armenia, Persian Caucasus, parts of Turkestan)
Blue: Areas lost after the Tatar War (1604) - The Black Sea Steppe (to Poland-Lithuania / Sarmatia)
Red + Orange + Yellow + Green + Cyan: Ottoman Empire (1604 - 1622), including areas under nominal suzerainty
Cyan: Areas under nominal Ottoman suzerainty - Romania, Slovakia, Georgia, Tatars, Circassians, Berbers, etc (1604 - 1622)
Red + Orange + Yellow + Green: Ottoman Empire Proper (1604 - 1622)
Cyan + Green: Areas lost after the First Anti-Ottoman Crusade (1626) - Oran, Algiers, Constantine, Tunis, Tripoli (to Iberia), Slovakia (independent), Northern Hungary (to Slovakia), Croatia (independent), Romania (independent), most of Ottoman Europe (to Romania), Greece (independent), Crimea, Azov, Transazovia, Circassia, Abkhazia (to Sarmatia), Georgia (independent), most of Northern Caucasus (to the Cossacks / Russia), Central Armenia, Eastern Mesopotamia (to Persia)
Red + Orange + Yellow: Ottoman Empire (1626 - 1630)
Yellow: Areas lost after the Second Anti-Ottoman Crusade (1630 - 1635) - Egypt (independent), Arabia (independent), Batumi area (to Georgia), Western Armenia (to Armenia), Cyprus, Eastern Aegean Islands, Chalcidic Peninsula, Mikrasia / Ionia + Lycia (to Greece), Ottoman Thrace, Thasos, Samothrace, Lebanon, the Holy Land, Sinai (to Romania)
Red + Orange: Ottoman Empire / Ottoman State (1636 - 1645) - Constantinople, Marmara Demilitarized Area, State of Turkey, State of the Levant, State of Mesopotamia
Orange: Areas lost after the War in the Orient (1648 - 1649) - Marmara Demilitarized Area, Dardanelles, Asia Minor, Sinope, Syria (to Romania), Cilicia (to Greece), Pontus, Cappadocia (to Armenia), most of Mesopotamia (to Persia), the Levant (independent / Romanian Protectorate), Turkey (independent / Romanian Protectorate)
Red: Ottoman State / Bosphorus (Constantinople + Nicomedia) in 1650, the last domain of the Sultan (itself under Romanian Protectorate)
Vertical Hatches: Successor States of the Ottoman Empire / Ottoman State - Bosphorus (Romanian Protectorate), Turkey (Romanian Protectorate), Levant (Romanian Protectorate), including Western Mesopotamia and Arabia Petraea, Egypt (fully independent), including Cyrenaica, the Sudan, the African Red Sea Coast, Arabia (fully independent), including Hejaz, Yemen, Oman, most of the Persian Gulf Western Coast, Central Arabia
This is the last "Territorial Evolution Map" before Part Two.
However, I will post a Colonial Map (whole World, big scale - Google Maps Zoom 5 or even Zoom 4), because I was kindly asked to.
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Zagan
Donor
You can find all the recent maps (Territorial Evolution Maps, based on Google Maps), full size, in one piece, uncropped and full color (24 bit per pixel) at Postimage.org in my Maps Gallery.
Individual links to the full images:
- Europe (Zoom 7); Plain & Labeled;
- France (Zoom 7);
- Germany (Zoom 7);
- Iberia (Zoom 7);
- Italy (Zoom 7);
- Romania (Zoom 7);
- Sarmatia (Zoom 7);
- Ottoman Empire (Zoom 6);
- World (Zoom 5); Plain & Labeled.
Just click on the Download Original Image Button to get it!
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Zagan
Donor
As it has been described in the TL text (last chapter mainly) and drawn on the last map, basically YES.
To be more specific, the Ottoman Empire was replaced by the Ottoman State in 1630, after the Second Anti-Ottoman Crusade (1626 - 1629).
The Ottoman State (1630 - 1649) contained:
- Constantinople (and its environs) under the direct control of the Sultan;
- Marmara Demilitarized Area;
- State of Turkey (autonomous under a Pasha);
- State of Levant (autonomous under a Pasha);
- State of Mesopotamia (autonomous under a Pasha).
In 1649, the Ottoman State was disolved.
- Constantinople + Nicomedia (from Turkey) = Principality of the Bosphorus, Romanian Protectorate, the sole territory reigned by the former Ottoman Sultan;
- Marmara Demilitarized Area + Asian coast of the Dardanelles = Romanian Province of Marmara,integral part of Romania Proper;
- Turkey = Partitioned between Romania, Greece, Armenia and a rump Turkey (~68% of the original), Romanian Protectorate, under a Pasha (competely separate from Constantinople);
- Levant + Western Mesopotamia + Arabia Petraea = Levant, Romanian Protectorate, under a Pasha (competely separate from Constantinople);
- Mesopotamia = Disolved, partitioned between Persia and Levant.
Now, about the Marmara Province:
1. It is very small (the smallest Romanian Province);
2. It must not be confused with the adjacent and much greater Asia Minor Colony, where the Muslims are allowed to stay;
3. Its population was only about 60,000 with about 80% Muslims, which have been evicted like the other Muslims from Romania Proper;
Constantinople has NO Navy. Romania has total control over the Bosphorus, Marmara, Dardanelles and Aegean.
Again, Marmara is not a Colony, but an integral Province.
The entrance in the Black Sea is the Bosphorus.
Constantinople + Nicomedia (Principality of Bosphorus) is not a Colony, but a Protectorate.
I hope that all is much clearer now.
What's happening in Asia? At this point I figure the butterflies would be having an effect.
Zagan
Donor
Yes. There are differencies from OTL in the other Continents as well.
West Asia (Anatolia, Arabian Peninsula, Persia) and North Africa (Morocco, Barbary, Egypt) have been generously talked about and shown on maps.
The rest of Asia, Subsaharan Africa, the Americas, Australia and Oceania have been talked about and mapped less, but not completely ignored (the discussion was mainly about the European Colonies). Antarctica is untouched (too cold for the butterflies, I presume).
There are two contributions by @zeppelinair about Korea.
More detailed information about Asia and the rest of the World (except Europe and the Mediterranian) will be available in Part Two (soon, as Part One is near its finish line).
A Colonial Map of the whole World will be posted very soon.
These maps superimposed over google maps are nice to look at but somehow crowded.
If they are from layered graphic files, could you be so nice to provide plain maps, at least for the whole Europe map? I mean, without the google maps background. Oh, and some in map labels would be fine instead of the lengthy legends.
Thank you and don't get mad at me. I did not mean to criticize, the maps are fine as they are. It is just a little request. Please.
Amber
P.S. The thousandth post in this thread, keep it up!
If they are from layered graphic files, could you be so nice to provide plain maps, at least for the whole Europe map? I mean, without the google maps background. Oh, and some in map labels would be fine instead of the lengthy legends.
Thank you and don't get mad at me. I did not mean to criticize, the maps are fine as they are. It is just a little request. Please.
Amber
P.S. The thousandth post in this thread, keep it up!
Zagan
Donor
Thanks.
I'll do the plain Europe map, as it is rather easy and fast (of course the original is layered, I'm not that crazy).
I'm not mad at you, why should I be? Please ask anything whenever you feel the need to.
And my answer is the thousandth reply in the thread. ;-)
And this map which is almost ready will have a plain version as well.
It should one second to remove the google maps layer and less than an hour to label both of them...
Map #51. Europe in 1650
Zagan
Donor
Europe in 1650
Legend:
CAPITALS: Fully Independent Countries
Title Case: Countries and Territories in various degrees of dependency to other Countries
1. Hungary (Romanian Protectorate, Administered by Romania)
2. Croatia (Romanian Protectorate, Administered by Romania)
3. Dalmatia (Romanian Protectorate, Administered by Romania)
4. Bosphorus / Constantinople + Nicomedia (Romanian Protectorate, Administered by Romania)
5. Asia Minor (Romanian Colony)
6. Sinope (Romanian Colony)
7. Syria (Romanian Colony)
8. Lebanon (Romanian Colony)
9. Holy Land (Romanian Colony) + Jerusalem (Special Status)
10. Sinai (Romanian Colony)
11. Canal Zone (Romanian Colony)
12. Cilicia (Greek Colony)
13. Cappadocia (Armenian Colony)
Next: World Map!
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