Peace In Our Time - The Modern Day
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The Neutral world
The last 30 odd years have been mostly calm for this world. With the only wars occurring in Central Africa.
Portugal underwent a mini revolution after their falling out with Brazil and the loss of trans-Africa and Goa. They are geographically limited to the North Atlantic now. Brazil has of course annexed trans-Africa as 12 states, as fully integrated as those in South America.
The US annexing the Dutch Caribbean as a state (the locals asked for it, I swear!) has kind of alienated the Netherlands in particular and Western Europe in general. They are determined not to let the same happen to Madagascar. To the delight of Moscow, Luxembourg has even freely elected a socialist government.
Most of the uncontrolled land as of the last map was in the Sahara desert, but since then the relevant countries have established a few stations to prove what’s theirs, and formally demarcated their boundaries. Ubangi lost a war with Turkey over Sudan. They had to mellow a bit after that and acknowledge their borders but are still an authoritarian communist state that has managed to bully some of their neighbours into a “federation”.
*Nigeria is independent but a part of TTL’s Nordic union, who recolonized the area after the ASB event.
Somalia is America’s least popular region for settlers, and it will be decades more before any of the territories there have prospects of statehood. Around the world however population growth rates have slowed, driven primarily by changing economic conditions after most of the good agricultural land had been settled. There is still free land available in many countries though if you are willing to move far from home.
A few American states have subdivided into more, and many more new territory states have been admitted. There are many regional independence movements in America, though only a few with support beyond the fringe in somewhere like Texas OTL. The most interesting is in Australia, where a coalition of wealthy and libertarian minded ranchers controlling properties bigger than some North American US states have amassed considerable sway among the rest of the population and are advocation secession and a halt in tax payments going back to Washington. That the federal government has payed to build almost all infrastructure on the continent is conveniently ignored.
In the USSR the last 30 years have been peaceful and fairly prosperous, as the adoption of computers has enabled a significant increase in the efficiency of the centrally planned economy. Politics remains locked in a dictatorship of the communist party but life for the people has continued to improve.
The Soviet-American rivalry has intensified a bit over the last 30 years, though fortunately there have never been any tense stand-offs. It’s more a matter of economics and national pride. America has technically surpassed the Soviet Union in land area after establishing effective control over all her claimed territories baring Antarctica. And in the new millennium took the crown as the most populous country in the world. This competition mostly turned into extravagant spending in things like public works projects. Who has the fastest trains, the longest bridges, the deepest tunnels. That kind of thing, and Space Exploration.
Spaceflight over the years happened a similar amount to OTL, but with fewer humans and a greater focus on robotic exploration. There was no early jumpstart with a Cold War Space Race but the technology did pick up later on, and today satelite communications are a vital part of most countries infrastructure. America has a semi-reusable roughly falcon class rocket. Moscow uses an upgraded (expended, but cheaply mass produced) design of the Soyuz booster, which started off remarkably similarly to the one from OTL. Brazil, Turkey, The Netherlands (in partnership with Western Europe), Indonesia, and Iran all have more rudimentary satalite launch capabilities. The two superpowers both have small LEO space stations but that’s as far as people have yet ventured from the Earth. Probes on the other hand have returned samples from the Moon, Mars, several asteroids and comets, and last year even Ganymede. There have been orbiters sent to every planet and even a flyby of Eris, along with a greater spread of rovers and atmospheric samplers. The split of interplanetary missions is roughly 70/30 favouring America, with both having been to the closer destinations. Meanwhile a nearly Webb class American space telescope was launched in the early 2010’s and has been bringing in some juicy data. While the Soviets operate something Hubbleish. Talks of a joint mission manned to the moon have been on and off for a decade and aren’t going anywhere fast.
The Allied world
Lets talks about the Brazil crisis. In 1989 the blockade was dragging on and the Indian colony was in a full fledged famine. As the French blockade dragged into its fourth year and global public opinion shifted further into their favour Indian officials felt they had to do something. In the winter of 1970 a large fleet of humanitarian ships, unarmed and carrying only food and basic supplies set sail for Brazil, intending to run the blockade and gambling that they would not be fired upon.
When they reached the claimed French waters they were intercepted by the blockade, who demanded the turn away or be sunk. They pressed ahead.
When given the order to sink hundreds of unarmed famine relief vessels several French captains mutinied, and hundreds more seamen in-subordinated and refused to follow orders to fire, or deliberately missed.
In the end about a third of the Indian fleet was sunk while the rest was able to sail onwards as the French vessels let them by or left to chase down the mutineers. The blockade was broken. All this was broadcast live over television from the Indian side.
In France this caused a crisis that within a year would lead to a small civil war and the secession of several regions, the downfall of the current government, and the establishment of the Seventh republic.
On the 11th of March 1990 the South American regions of France would declare independence as Les États-Unis d'Amérique. Named after a country from before the ASB event that few in the colonies were old enough to remember but was spoken of as a place of incredible riches and prosperity. They federated with greater autonomy for each state and rebelled in part out of anger at the French government for betraying their interests by failing to enforce its claims to Brazil. The republics of Madagascar, Philippines, and New Caledonia would declare independence over the next year. In 1991, after failing to bring the overseas provinces back into the fold the core French regions in Europe and Africa north/west Africa would endure yet another revolution.
France since the Brazil crisis has undeniably fallen to third place in the global great powers, behind the British Empire and China.
China has opened up a little to her neighbourhood since our last update but still has a mostly inwards looking perspective. In many ways she is a world onto herself. The return of the treaty ports in 1997 made obvious the economic truth that China had surpassed the old European masters and could no longer be pushed around. Though still outnumbered and out produced by the British Empire when taken as a whole, a comparison to France is not even worth making anymore.
It’s not a coincidence that the former British colonies and dominions bordering China have all pursued full independence. Same for the French Philippines.
The British Empire has changed again. After the Golden Circle colonies secured full integration and representation in London within a decade they had advocated for the remaining crown colonies, like the Indian and Pacific Ocean islands, and a few other small regions that were left after East Africa graduated to a dominion to get the same treatment, which they indeed got.
Canada has grown into a country of well over 100 million people that rivals France economically. South Africa made the transition to a full franchise and it involved the dissolution of the old states who fought the transition into far less autonomous regions. Australia is a quite a powerful place in its own right but with less independent attitudes and it has actually flirted with the idea of integration into the United Kingdom, if they would be willing to swallow them.
The pride of the Empire is the ISS, or Imperial Space Service. The ISS is a collaborative effort between the UK proper (the lead partner obviously), Canada, Australia, South Africa, Bengal, NZ, and the dominions. In the 1990’s British engineers were able to crack a horizontal take off and landing reusable spaceplane (think Skylon) which could deliver 10 tons of material to Low Earth Orbit. As the saying goes, LEO is halfway to anywhere in the solar system. Later second and third generation spaceplanes split into two classes. The Nelson class Orbital freighter, which could lift over 50 tons in one flight and the Victoria class passenger craft capable of carrying over 100 people, also used for high speed travel on earth, these planes can and do transport people between every major city in the Empire in under an hour.
These spaceplanes, however suited for escaping Earth’s gravity well are not good for long range in space operations. On orbit assembly of several space stations and long range vessels has built an off-earth economy. Multiple asteroids have been captured and brought into near earth orbits for mining. There is the beginning of a city being built on the moon, multiple research stations on mars, and human explorers have reached as far as Saturn on return trips. Obviously the solar system is much better understood TTL, and the construction of large telescopes on the dark side of the moon and elsewhere has enabled us to peer outwards into the universe with incredibly high resolution. Even confirming extrasolar life based on atmospheric bio-signatures. The thick icy shells of the Jovian ocean moons have so far resisted penetration but an effort is underway to drill through the 10+ km of Europa that should reach the internal ocean in another 10 years, and possibly find alien life within our own solar system
China is the the second global power, and just recently cracked the code and had a successful test of their own spaceplane, having previously relied of traditional expendable rocketry. They already had a space station but haven’t really tried to compete with the ISS.
France and India have some traditional orbital access capabilities for lifting satellites and flag waving explorers but they just can’t come close without a spaceplane
The Axis world
So, about that war... Rome won. It was bloody and dragged on until 1997, when Japan finally accepted peace terms. Millions died at sea, millions more on the beaches of a thousand contested shores, tens of millions died in the Chinese war of independence.
Japan started the war with the larger navy but was in other ways disadvantaged. Rome had the freely offered economic support of most post-german states, while Japan could only plunder the military districts in China over and over again. The Roman core around the mediterranean was also naturally sheltered because the Mediterranean could be closed effectively, unlike the open Pacific.
Japan took an early advantage in the conflict with the conquest of Madagascar, the Indus basin, and incursions into the Persian gulf to disrupt the roman energy industry. South Africa was put under siege from land and sea, cut of from contact with the rest of the Roman Empire and isolated for years.
The larger and more efficient Roman economy took time to gear up for the war but eventually hit its stride in 1992 and began taking the fight back to the Japanese. In the first half of the war the Romans, unable to achieve naval superiority resorted to building transcontinental roads to reach the Japanese forces occupying their provinces. In 1992 retaking the Indus province by land and in 1994 reaching Cape Town via a secret trans African highway built through the jungles and lifting a 5 year long siege.
In January 1995 Rome made their first major naval landings, retaking Madagascar and conquering Sri Lanka from the Japanese. After that the Japanese fleet was forced out of the Indian ocean and back into the Pacific. Future landings would parts Australia, Java and southern Malaya while isolating the bengal colonies from the rest of Japan.
The occupied Chinese population in the military districts became agitated and unrestful once they found out about the outbreak of war. Sabotages and terrorist attacks increased and they were not at all supportive of the war effort. The Chinese Imperial State was Rome's first ally against the Japanese from day 1 of the conflict. They received air support until a road could be built to deliver armour which reached them in late 1995. With Rome's assistance the CIS was able to rouse the military districts to open rebellion by 1996, thus the history books tell that while Rome beat japan on the sea and in the air, China freed herself.
In 1996 California fell to a trans continental land attack originating from roman Louisiana. The Pacific Northwest would remain in Japanese hands for the time being.
By the last years of the war almost all the post german-states had formally declared war to Japan in solidarity with Rome. But more importantly the innovation engine of the roman economy was delivering results. Primitive targeting computers, ultra long range missiles, and in 1996 the first nuclear weapons.
After their tactical use in the Philippines proved more difficult than expected the strategic bombardment of Honshu was ordered. Over a period of 6 months 22 nuclear weapons were detonated near or over Japanese cities (three missiles went off course) and missed any major targets. After a short civil war between those who wished to make peace and those who wanted to continue the fight the pacifists offered their conditional surrender to Rome, which was accepted.
After the war Japan could keep its Pacific island territories but would withdraw from the continental mainlands, which came under Roman occupation. China demanded they be kicked out of Asia entirely and successfully removed Japanese political control, but ethnic Japanese settler states remain in Bengal, Siam, and Malaya along with along the sea of Okhotsk. Any Japanese who didn't manage to evacuate were killed in a bloodbath following the withdrawal of the IJA from China.
The 25 years since the war have seen global peace and the rise of the of the Roman unipower. The Roman Empire accounts for over 60% of the Axis world's economy, and has sole control of nuclear weapons and space launch capability in the modern day. China is vast but poor. Japan rebuilt from the war but barely has an army as they haven't dared the Roman limitations placed on their ability to rearm. Without a foreign occupation their culture remains stuck in the past, and the government still pledges loyalty to and Emperor who hasn't been seen since the end of the war. It's generally accepted that he perished in the nuclear attack on Tokyo, but some claim he escaped. In fact the Japanese royal family escaped to New Zealand under disguise where the Emperor lives out his last years now, but as a dirt poor sustenance farmer.
The Japanese settler colonies did come under Roman occupation, and the eight of them that are now independent still permit roman legions on their territory. Those in North America have undergone a cultural change somewhat parallel to OTL postwar Japan while those in southeast Asia are somewhat more resentful and remain mostly demilitarized. Okhotsk was mostly ignored and has withered on the vine, it's populating dropping to under half of its prewar high.
In northern Europe the neoHanseatic League has united most of the post-German states.
the one roman use of Nuclear Weapons since the war has been to destroy a "german" secret research facility in the Ural mountains also trying to develop them. The last NAZI government there quickly accepted all terms of the Roman ultimatum to avoid having their cities plastered as well.
After the war Rome developed the ability to launch into earth orbit out of the technology from their nuclear missiles. A spaceport in East-Africa has launched a few dozen satellites and recently the first man into space, fuelling dreams of one day claiming the moon and planets in the name of Rome
This is a sequel to THIS POST in the previous map thread. Again, inspired by the original 1939 ISOT map by a creator I couldn't find after all these years.
