My Fellow Alternate Historians

What should happen in the Great War


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Xen

Banned
I have a short history written about the effects of the Duke of Berry, Charles Ferdinand surviving his attack in 1820, up to the point of the Great War. Keep in mind what I have is mostly just points, and yes I reconciled some of history, so sue me :p Right now I am stuck and I need some advice in which direction to go.

A brief synopsis

In 1820, Prince Charles Ferdinand, the Duke of Berry attended a Paris Opera House and was mortally wounded when he was stabbed by a saddler named Louis Pierre Louvel, in TTL however he is stabbed and is able to recover after a couple of weeks. Just as in OTL, his wife gives birth to a son several months later who is known to history as the Count of Chambord.

In 1830 his father abdicates the throne in favor of his oldest son, who quickly follows suit, technically the throne is supposed to pass on to the 10 year old Count of Chambord who should have become King Henri V, but as history has written Louis Philippe used the opportunity to have himself crowned as King, this does not happen, Charles Ferdinand is alive and healthy, he has three sons and a daughter, and is very interested in becoming the King of France, at the age of 52 this is not a problem as he is quite adequate at defending his own position and does not need Louis Philippe. He is later crowned King Charles XI.

Charles XI is really no better nor is he any worse than Louis-Philippe and by the time of his death of natural causes in 1845 at the age of 67; France is in very similar shape as what it was in OTL. He is succeeded by his oldest son, who is crowned Henri V, and proves to be very unpopular. Three years later the 28 year old King is forced to abdicate and flee France for the safety of Austria, the home country of his wife. Rather than allowing the throne to pass to his brother Philippe, a second Republic was declared and the Bourbon family was exiled from France. The first and only President of the Second Republic was Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, and within four years the Second Republic would convert into the Second Empire, with President Bonaparte proclaiming himself Napoleon III, Emperor of the French.

After France suffered a humiliating defeat during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, hope for restoration of the Bourbon Monarchy was high, and was realized with the coronation of Philippe VII at Versailles in late 1871. Philippe had married Princess Alexandra of Bavaria in 1853 and had a son (Charles) and daughter (Anne) with her by the time of his coronation. Queen Consort Alexandra had suffered from several mental delusions, believing she had swallowed a piano made of glass and had developed an obsession with cleanliness. Queen Consort Alexandra died in Paris in 1876 at the age of 50, and was joined in death by her beloved husband ten years later.

Butterflies

Several butterflies occurred during the life time of King Charles XI of France.

The Mexican-American War commenced on schedule, but the post war treaty was different. Congress debated on annexing the entire Mexican Republic, with northern abolitionist in disagreement with the Mexican Annexation Bill, and southern expansionists in favor. The Mexico compromise of 1848 was reached, much of northwestern Mexico was annexed into the United States, and the Mexican remnant was divided into several smaller republics unable to pose a threat to the United States. While northern abolitionists were not very happy with this arrangement, nothing in the compromise stated the newly conquered territories would be slave states, or allow the expansion of slavery.

Brigham Young leads the first band of Mormon’s out of the United States and settles in Patagonia in Argentina, where they are at first welcomed by Buenos Aires. Over the years more Mormons join the Zion colony and establish the settlement of Provo as their colonial capital.

Following the Mexican-American War, Winfield Scott was elected President of the United States as a Whig in 1848, but failed to win reelection in 1852.

After the Anglo-American War and observing the Mexican-American War, Britain was a little more prepared for the Crimean War, winning a few more battles and forcing the Russians to come to terms in November 1855 (instead of February 1856). The Siege of Kars never occurred, and the British were victors in the Battle of Balaclava in 1854.

The Xianfeng Emperor in 1855 without an heir, the throne passed eventually to his brother Prince Gong who had manipulated his way to the throne. Shortly after his coronation he began to modernize China along many of the same lines later used by Japan during the Meiji Restoration.

The War Between the States


In 1860, the United States had elected its first Republican President Abraham Lincoln after eight years of Democratic rule by Lewis Cass and James Buchanan had done little to resolve the countries ills, with some historians believing Buchanan’s presidency actually expedited the War Between the States. Shortly after Fremont’s election South Carolina seceded from the Union and was followed by Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Florida and Texas. In February 1861, a provisional government of the Confederate States of America was formed with Preston Brooks as its first President. Brooks had no patients with the United States and its occupation of Fort Sumter in Charleston, SC.

John C. Lincoln was sworn in as President of the United States on March 4, 1861, shortly after his inauguration, he was telegraphed by President Brooks. Brooks went from congratulatory to openly hostile, telling President Lincoln he desired peace before demanding he withdraw from Fort Sumter in two weeks or face southern retribution. On March 19, 1861 the Confederate States opened fire on the Union Fort, killing three Union soldiers in the short battle. The following morning Fort Sumter was in Confederate hands and the Union troops inside had become the first POW’s in the new conflict.
In the north, those who had believed the south had the right to secede were now openly hostile to the Confederacy and demanded blood. President Lincoln was willing to respond in kind, calling for 100,000 men to bring the southern insurrection to an end, however shortly after his call to arms, Arkansas, Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina seceded from the Union and joined the Confederacy.

The Union at first performed poorly, with only victories in western Virginia to show for its efforts so far in the war. The first major defeat the Union suffered was at the Battle of Bull Run in July of 1861, when Federal troops under the command of General Irvin McDowell had victory snatched from them by the Southern Forces of P.G.T. Beauregard. It was also at this battle Thomas Jackson earned the moniker Stonewall. As a result, George B. McClellan was recalled from western Virginia to Washington D.C. to assume command of the capitals defenses.

General McClellan suffered a defeat at the Battle of Balls Bluff in October 1861, and had his career cut short when he died typhoid fever on Christmas Eve that same year. (He contracted the disease but survived it). Upon the death of the young Union commander, Ambrose Burnside assumed command of the Army of the Potomac, and proved himself to be not quite as incompetent as his predecessors.

President Brooks demanded General Robert E. Lee lead an invasion of Maryland, believing fully that Maryland would join the Confederate cause, and with Washington surrounded President Lincoln would have no choice but to accept an armistice. Lee’s invasion of Maryland was discovered by Union scouts. Burnside then forced Lee into a battle at Frederick, Maryland. After four days of fighting and after receiving continuous reinforcements from Washington, Burnside managed to defeat Lee in the bloodiest battle of the war thus far, and pursued him back across Virginia with the two armies engaging once more in the Third Battle of Bull Run, with the Union this time emerging victorious.

Burnside was declared a national hero, and received praise from the lowliest private to the President himself. In light of the Union victory at Frederick and Bull Run, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation declaring all slaves in the rebelling states are now freed men. The Proclamation assured Britain and France would remain neutral in the war. France did however take advantage of the situation to conquer Haiti, making it once again part of the French Empire.

In the south President Brooks became enraged and personally blamed the losses on Robert E. Lee, removing him from command of the Army of Northern Virginia. After Lee’s removal both Stonewall Jackson and Jeb Stuart refused to take command themselves out of personal loyalty to Lee, Joseph Johnston was given then given command. Johnston, while a competent officer, would prove to be very cautious, with the war in Virginia turning into a stalemate with neither Burnside nor Johnston able or willing to make the sacrifices needed to breakthrough.

The Union had fared much better in the west, capturing Vicksburg and New Orleans, effectively cutting the Confederacy in half, even worse for President Brooks, the territories of Sonora and Arizona were now occupied by Union troops from California. Aggravated at the slowness, and overly hesitant General Burnside, President Lincoln named Ulysses S. Grant as the Supreme Commander of the Union Armies. Aggressive like none other seen in the north or south, Grant began a series of assaults on southern strongholds, overwhelming them and earning himself the nickname The Butcher in Blue due to the deaths caused in his battles. Grant however was what the Union needed, in September 1863 began the Overland Campaign, overwhelming General Johnston and forcing him to take defensive positions around Richmond.

When the Union Army began approaching Richmond, President Brooks moved the Confederate Capital to Atlanta where he died of the croup in February 1864, and was succeeded by Vice President William Walker. The move of the capital and loss of the President proved to be severe morale blows to the Confederate soldier, and Richmond fell to the Union in late June of 1864. The war was now being fought in North Carolina, and eastern Tennessee, and to all but the most diehard fanatics in the south, the war seemed all but over. In the autumn of 1864, the south was dealt its final crippling blow with General Sherman’s march to the sea, razing Georgia, including the Confederate capital of Atlanta and capturing many prominent Confederate government officials including President Walker in the process. President Walker ordered the surrender of the Confederate Armies and a reconciliation of north and south, however not all Confederates recognized the legitimacy of the surrender, Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, the only member of the cabinet not to be captured was sworn in as the third President of the Confederate States in Montgomery, Alabama and vowed to continue fighting the war.

In the election of 1864, the Democrats ran Thomas Seymour on a platform of Victory without Revenge, while Abraham Lincoln struggled to win his parties nomination. Lincoln considered forming the Union Party and running as a third party candidate when it seemed as the party bosses were going to give the nomination to John C. Fremont, a last minute deal was however reached allowing Lincoln to retain the Presidency and take Fremont as his running mate. Seymour only won six states and lost the election.

In the spring of 1865, Union troops entered Alabama fighting a guerilla war with die hard Confederates along the way. President Davis was captured by Union troops trying to flee towards Florida. Unlike other Confederate government officials, Lincoln did not spare Davis, making him the highest ranking Confederate to be hung for treason. The American Civil War was finally over.

More Butterflies

Following the war, President Lincoln was assassinated while attending the play My American Cousin at Ford’s Theater by stage actor John Wilkes Booth. However, Lincoln had attended the play with Ambrose Burnside; the General lunged at Booth, managing to trip the actor as he leapt from the balcony to the stage, shattering his left leg in the process. Booth was promptly arrested and executed by Federal Troops after a show trial in Washington. Vice President John C. Fremont was sworn in as President of the United States, leading to a slew of conspiracy theories that continue well into the twenty first century.

A Radical Republican, Fremont promised to punish the south, and pushed for the passage of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth amendments to the Constitution. 40 acres and a milk cow were promised to former slaves at the expense of their former owners, and harsh conditions imposed on those who served the Confederacy either in government bodies or in the military. Many white southerners fled westward to the territories, far away from government reach. Carpetbaggers, freed slaves and European immigrants (mostly from Ireland, Italy and Poland) found a new home in the old Confederacy.

The Franco-Prussian War occurs on schedule and is more than less unchanged; Napoleon III is exiled from France and dies in London in 1872.

Unlike OTL, Prince Leopold does not reject the Spanish throne, and at the insistence of Chancellor Bismarck becomes the King of Spain. His rule is of course challenged by not only the Carlists but also by “Legitimists” (those who support the descendents of Isabella II).

Jenny Jerome and her new husband Lord Randolph Churchill divorces just three short months after their rushed wedding, a pregnant Jenny Jerome returns to her home in New York and gives birth to a son, Winston Churchill. Although she would later re-marry, Winston kept his fathers name.

Prince Imperial, pretender Napoleon IV marries Princess Beatrice in London in 1877 and remains with her and Queen Victoria. They have their first child, a boy, Prince Joseph Napoleon, though the name is not viewed favorably by many in Britain.

Archduke Rudolf is not murdered or commits suicide (depending on ones point of view); he is however married to Princess Anne of France (and daughter of King Philippe VII). They have three sons together Archduke Ferdinand, Archduke Karl, and Archduke Franz Ludwig.

Alliances begin to form in Europe which will ultimately pave the road to the First World War. France and Austria-Hungary formed an alliance in 1875; Russia joined the alliance in 1894. Germany formed an alliance with Italy and Spain in 1882 (Russia had temporarily been a member of this alliance before 1890), Romania, Britain, Portugal and the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers in the first decade of the twentieth century, subsequently Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece joined the Franco-Russian Alliance in 1907.

After the death of his wife and mother, Theodore Roosevelt joins the Army and is sent to Dakota Territories. He participates in the Indian Wars, describing the experiences as the greatest thrill of his lifetime.

The Empire of Brazil survives.

The United Kingdom forms the Protectorate of Hawaii, aggravating the United States. The Hawaiian Monarchy is maintained.

Anti-Spanish uprising in Cuba is unsuccessfully defeated, forcing Spain to acknowledge its own military weakness and the independence of Cuba. Spain begins to reform along Prussian lines.

Queen Victoria died peacefully in her sleep 1895; she was succeeded by her oldest son, King Albert I.

Mormon Independence War, gaining support from the United Kingdom, United States, Germany and France Mormons declare independence from Argentina and establish the Holy Republic of Zion. Polygamy is perfectly legal in Zion; Mormons from the world over begin journeying to their sacred homeland en masse.

Spanish Legitimists and Carlists join in union with the marriage of Infanta Mercedes to Carlist Pretender Jamie III. Jamie and Mercedes first child is a son, Prince Philip in 1900. It is agreed by both Legitimists and Carlists that Philip and his heirs are the only true rulers of Spain.

Mark Hannah is elected as the Vice President of the United States for William McKinley. Roosevelt is a relative unknown and newly elected Senator from New York.

McKinley is assassinated in Buffalo, New York in 1901 and is succeeded by Mark Hannah.

Tsar Nikolai II dies in 1901 of Typhoid Fever (?), shortly after his death his wife gives birth to Grand Duchess Anastasia. Nikolai is succeeded by his brother Tsar Mikhail II.

Mikhail II marries Princess Thyra of Denmark; they have five children together Grand Duke Nikolai (1903), Grand Duke Georgy (1904), Grand Duchess Catherine (1906), Grand Duchess Anna (1907) and Grand Duchess Xenia (1910)

President Hannah fails to win his re-election bid in 1904, losing to Democrat William J. Bryan, Bryan would go on to defeat Senator Joseph B. Foraker in 1908.

Senator Theodore Roosevelt having gained national prominence as the running mate of Foraker in 1908 barely wins the 1912 Republican nomination but goes on to defeat President William J. Bryan who is attempting an unprecedented third term in office. Roosevelt’s empty seat in the Senate is given to U.S. Congressman Winston Churchill.

With the entangled web of alliances covering Europe, war seemed inevitable, and eventually erupted due to a border dispute between the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. With both sides claiming the other as the aggressor, their allies followed through on their obligations. Russia was the first to come to its ally’s defense by declaring war on the Ottoman Empire, Germany declared war on Russia, prompting Austria-Hungary and France to declare war on Germany. The situation continued to spiral out of control and within two weeks Europe was at war.

My Dilemma

This is where I am at an impasse, the Great War is going to be unlike anything ever seen before, and is literally going to topple empires and leave millions dead in its wake. A British-German Alliance is certainly going to crush the Triple Alliance of France, Russia and Austria-Hungary, and outside of Europe we have a modernized Japan and China who has grievances with both sides, I do not plan on writing about a Sino-Japanese alliance declaring war on all of Europe and conquering the Pacific and Far East, they are both likely to be allied with the Central Powers. This is bad for Russia and France, Russia can kiss goodbye to the Far East, and France will not maintain Indochina. What about the America’s, the Empire of Brazil has survived and is probably more likely to ally with Britain than anybody else, but what of the United States? It seems to be Roosevelt’s nature to get involved in this war, but who does he side with? If he joins Britain, and Germany it seems like overkill and war between the United States and Britain seems unlikely.

For the US to conquer Canada seems so AH cliché, which is why I avoided having the south win the Civil War. What to do, what to do?
 

Sachyriel

Banned
Is Canada even it's own nation in your TL? I mean, sure, cliche or not, the US would probably want the Gold in the Yukon, Metals in the shield, prairie lands and probably the coastal island of Vancouver.

And why does America side with anyone in the European war in OTL anyway? Germany shot down a boat that had some Americans on it.

Maybe France does the same in ATL?
 

Keenir

Banned
have the US sit on the sidelines of the war until the tide of battles start to tip overwhelmingly in one direction. (if there's a prominent Neutral nation in Europe, the US can cite them as precedent and example for not being involved from Day One)

failing that, a US-UK-Ottoman alliance always wins.
 
Is Canada even it's own nation in your TL? I mean, sure, cliche or not, the US would probably want the Gold in the Yukon, Metals in the shield, prairie lands and probably the coastal island of Vancouver.

And why does America side with anyone in the European war in OTL anyway? Germany shot down a boat that had some Americans on it.

Maybe France does the same in ATL?

I agree. you want the US to go to war, get the French to shoot down a US boat, doesn't matter if it's tourist or arms dealers.
 
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