Of Droughts And Flooding Rains

[KaiserEmu]

Costa Norte is coming, I promise! But I had a flash of inspiration as to how to flesh this one out, so here is the wikibox for the Union of the North:

(Hence why I'm up so late.)

The Nordic Union, officially known as the Union of the North or by its endonym Norden, is a political and economic union of four member states and three autonomous regions, located primarily in Northern Europe (in addition to Greenland, geographically part of North America). The Union aims to ensure the free movement of people, goods, services and capital within its internal market and maintain relevance in the international community through a coordinated foreign policy and armed forces. It also maintains a single currency, the Nordic krone, managed by the Nordic Central Bank.

The modern Union of the North traces its origins to the Northern Community (NC), established by the Tampere Agreement of 1952. Over time, as pan-Nordic sentiment grew in the nations of the region and governments feared isolation within the context of the Silent War, the Union has expanded its powers by the addition of policy areas to its remit. The Northern Community was renamed the Nordic Union in 1989, when a common Nordic citizenship was established, coupled with the abolition of internal passport controls. In 2011, a series of referenda in the member states approved proposed changes to the structure of the union, which would create a pan-national legislature, with direct elections to the Union Assembly and executive power shared between a nominated Secretary-General and an (indirectly) elected President. It also approved the creation of the Army of the North, a common armed force between the four member states. The referenda were approved in all member entities and, as a result, a new Charter was ratified in 2012 which reconstituted the Nordic Union as the Union of the North, and created the various new bodies approved by the referenda.

Through its policies, the Union plays a significant role in global relations and defence. It maintains permanent diplomatic missions throughout the world and represents itself at the United Nations, the World Trade Organization and the G22. It is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, not allying itself with either the Commonwealth or League nations, however it has historically behaved in a more friendly manner towards Britain and its allies.​

 

[KaiserEmu]

Ah, some context for this "Silent War" we've been hearing whispers of. I'm assuming the Bergen Conference ended TTL's equivalent of WW2? Nice read!

Well, it can’t be silent if you’re talking loudly about it!
The Bergen Conference is kind of like an ATL Potsdam Conference, in that it finalised the post-war plan for Europe and set out aims regarding the war in the Pacific, and also that the main powers started to really hate each other. But obviously there are different key players on both sides, and so the result turned out differently.

And you know how I said I'd do Russia?
Well...
I had a bit of spare time and instead of working on what I said I'd do or answering questions, I made a map of Antarctica ITTL.

Antarctica is divided into ten different polities, with nine nations claiming portions, plus a Union of Nations mandate around the South Pole, administered directly by the UoN, similarly to Jerusalem. However, 18 nations operate bases on the continent, usually within the zones of friendly nations. They are as follows (countries with actual territory in bold):

• Australasia
• Japan
• China
• India
• France
• Poland
• Norway
• Brazil
• Colombia
• Canada
• Britain
• South Africa
• Germany
• Patagonia
• Ireland
• Peru(-Bolivia)
• Chile
• America

Large stars show major Antarctic bases; many of these now have permanent populations. Smaller stars are other scientific bases, sometimes staffed for only part of the year, and only for scientific purposes. A major base is also situated at the South Pole.

 

[KaiserEmu]

Yep, I'm still here. I'm sure you wish I was gone by now...

Monarchy is much stronger ITTL, especially in Europe, at least partly thanks to a lack of Soviets going around making everyone republican. So let's have a look at a few of these monarchs, shall we?

Now I constantly end up getting sidetracked, so I'd really appreciate some questions or suggestions or requests to a) keep me on track and b) prevent the thread from constantly dying and being revived - so if you have anything you want to say, fire away!

And because I spent way too long on it and I'm way too proud of it, here's a larger version of the coat of arms of Carpathia that I made.

 

[KaiserEmu]

Still alive.

 

[KaiserEmu]

The awkward thing is that I've just been working on the other end of the continent! But I'm quite proud of it, so here it is:

​

Not much explanation needed for this one; it's all in the article. I actually quite like this format, although it's a lot more work.

 

[KaiserEmu]

Not at this point, because he needs the Labour Party to win the election. After the election... probably.

So I've realised that all my talking about Australasian politics means very little without context. So here's some context: the last Australasian federal election. I've got a new computer, which uses a different default font, including for Wikipedia, so my apologies for the very thin font. I hope it's still readable.

The Australasian federal election of 11 March 2017 was held to elect members of the 43rd Parliament of Australasia. The incumbent, centre-left, Labour Party of Australasia, led by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, won a second term against the opposition centre-right Australasian National Party led by Opposition Leader Gladys Berejiklian, after Labour formed a minority government, with the support of the Australian Democrats and independent MP Cathy McGowan.

Labour won 95 seats in the 192-seat House of Assembly, two short of the number needed for majority government, resulting in a hung parliament. The balance of power was held by ten crossbench MPs, six from the Australian Democrats, two from the Rural Alliance, one from the First Nations Party, and one independent. After weeks of negotiation, both independent member for Waveroo Cathy McGowan and the Australian Democrats declared they would support the government on votes of confidence and supply. The resulting 102-seat margin allowed Labour to form a minority government and win a second term. One year in, however, the Australian Democrats withdrew their support for Labour, citing "gross mismanagement", "corruption on a record scale" and a "disregard for the Australasian people" as reasons for their decision. In response, Democrats MP for Klemzig, Tim Storer defected from the party, becoming an independent pledging confidence and supply to the Government.

Elections for seats in the Senate were held simultaneously in the Australasian Integrated Territories, in for 4 members of the 96-member chamber. However, as elections to the Senate do not carry constitutional force, Senators were appointed by the incoming House of Assembly in its first session. More than 16 million Australasians were enrolled to vote at the time of the election, as a result of Australasia's mandatory voting policy, turnout for the election was 93%. Preferential ballots were used for elections to the single-member seats of the House of Assembly, with varying methods used in Senatorial elections. The Lower House election and elections in the AITs were conducted by the Federal Electoral Commission of Australasia (FECA). The next election must be held before 4 April 2020.

-​

Questions? Comments? I-hate-its? Where's-that-thing-on-Russia-you-promised-s?
(I know, I'm getting to it. I really need to stop promising things though.)

 

[KaiserEmu]

Let me guess, Rudd stuffed up or swore some staffer. I'm not sure if you're doing political party inboxes but what is the run down of the political parties on the continent?

Here you go. I’ll start with Australasia.

Labour: The main party of the left. Currently led by Kevin Rudd, though maybe not for long. More left-wing than Australian Labor, but with a much stronger faction of social conservatives.

Democrats: Centrist, maybe leaning slightly to the left. Led by Malcolm Turnbull. Popular among the progressive urban/suburban population. Lost a few MPs who defected to support Rudd's government, but keeping their crossbench seats warm.

National: The main right-wing party. Led by Gladys Berejiklian. The party of low taxes, big business, and, depending on who you ask, social conservatism. Very much a broad church - are its foundations strong enough?

The Greens: Still strongly environmentalist and a fledgling party without Bob Brown kickstarting it. Not a significant force - yet.

Rural Alliance: The descendants of TTL’s infamous Country Party. Rural interests are first for them, and everything else is a long way behind. Their stronghold is New England, where an embattled Barnaby Joyce is Premier. They used to be strong in Capricornia (then Cooksland), but they don’t like to speak about the Joh era.

Australasia First: TTL’s right-wing nutjobs. Fiercely nationalist and conservative, their leader is Pauline Hanson following Winston Peters’ retirement.

First Nations Party: The FNP represents indigenous interests in Australasia. They’re strongest among the Maori population, but they also attract significant support from mainland Aboriginals and some whites.

There you go for Australasia. Still working on the others. I can put it into infobox form soon.

But, that leads me onto my next bit. I’ve finished many of the things I had in the pipeline for this and the MOTF, and my exams are over now, do what would you like to see? It can be anything from around the world, and I’ll see what I can do.

 

[KaiserEmu]

Here you go. A map of the provinces of Australasia, and their provincial capitals. After the above crisis' resolution, Cooksland was renamed to Capricornia.

The Federal Capital Territory is located on the border between New Wales and Flindersland as a way to resolve the New Albion-Hobart rivalry. A new city was planned and built immediately south of Nowra, named Victoria after the long-reigning ruler of the British Empire at the time, although its name has been controversial in recent years, with a strong campaign for an Aboriginal name to be adopted.

NOTE: As part of my retcons, Queensland's capital is now named Macquarie, as opposed to Moreton.

 

[KaiserEmu]

I'm on a bit of an election spree at the moment (for hopefully obvious reasons).

Given that there is not an election happening in Australasia this weekend (and besides, that would be far too large an undertaking for me to handle at this point), here's the map of the results of last Saturday's provincial election in New Munster.

New Munster elects their unicameral parliament using STV, electing five members each from eight electoral districts.

The main parties are as follows:

New Munster Labour Party (Rōpū Reipa o Te Waipounamu): Labour, but on a provincial level. Does most of the things you'd expect a labour party to do.
New Munster Party (Rōpū o Te Waipounamu): Centrist to centre-right. Formed after the reunification of New Munster Democrats and Nationals in 1996.
People's Party of New Munster (Rōpū Iwi o Te Waipounamu): A splinter party from the NMP. Economically left-wing and socially conservative, they mainly appeal to the rural population as an agrarian-populist party.
Green Party of New Munster (Rōpū Kākāriki o Te Waipounamu): Your garden-variety green party. Won a seat in the Legislative Assembly for the first time at this election.

And the map!
(The background colour of each electoral district shows the largest party in said district on first preferences.)

The election was a defeat for the incumbent Labour government, who after two terms and a series of unpopular policies, lost their majority in Parliament. However, the result was a hung parliament, with New Munster First holding the balance of power. After a week of negotiations, on Friday it was announced by Opposition Leader Gerry Brownlee that a coalition agreement had been reached with the NMP, and as such the NMP and PPNM would be forming the next provincial government of New Munster.

 

[KaiserEmu]

Why hello there. So obviously I took a break from the site over the recent summer (winter) break, and now I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things. I have a few news articles, wikiboxes and various other things lined up, but first, a long-planned update on the United Kingdom.

​

There are a lot of hints dropped through here if you look closely, so if you want to know more about something, let me know and I'll try to answer your questions!

 

[KaiserEmu]

Given recent events...​

Hong Kong is a constituent country of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, situated on the eastern side of the Pearl River estuary in southern China. It borders the Union of China to the north and west. With over 7.4 million people of various nationalities in a 1,104-square-kilometre (426 sq mi) territory, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated places in the world. Originally a sparsely populated area of farming and fishing villages, the territory has become one of the world's most significant financial centres and commercial ports.

Hong Kong became a colony of the British Empire at the end of the First Opium War in 1842. The territory, originally made up of only the island of Hong Kong, expanded over time to ensure its security, with the British Empire acquiring the Kowloon peninsula in 1860 and obtaining a 99-year lease over the New Territories in 1898. The territory was invaded and annexed by Republican China during the World War, following which the entire colony was ceded in perpetuity to the United Kingdom. Since the 1950s, spurred on by the change in the geopolitical situation in China of the early Silent War, Hong Kong rapidly developed from a colonial backwater into a rich and prosperous city. As the population grew and developed, and the process of decolonisation continued, various calls were made for the independence of Hong Kong, or its incorporation into one of the Chinas. In response, the territory was granted self-government in 1981, under which system almost all internal affairs were regulated by an elected Legislative Council, replacing the colonial-era legislature. As the city developed further, becoming one of the most prosperous parts of the United Kingdom, calls for its full integration into the UK under the Singapore Model grew, and eventually in 1994, Hong Kong became a constituent country of the United Kingdom, with a devolved Assembly granted wide-ranging powers to govern the region, including the abolition of functional constituencies and the phasing out of the Hong Kong dollar for the Commonwealth pound.

Modern Hong Kong is classified as an alpha+ world city, indicating its high level of influence throughout the world. It is one of the most significant global financial centres, and it hosts the largest concentration of ultra high-net-worth individuals of any city in the world. The city has the largest number of skyscrapers in the world, most surrounding Victoria Harbour. Hong Kong consistently ranks high on the Human Development Index, and has one of the highest life expectancies in the world. Although the city has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, there is severe income inequality.

 

[KaiserEmu]

So as you can see, I've made some more. To avoid incurring the wrath of the mods, I've put them all in one image.

1. British Hong Kong​
2. British Malta​
3. British Heligoland​
4. Christmas Island Territory​
5. British Andaman and Nicobar Islands​

Whaddaya think?

 

[KaiserEmu]

And I also have been going through a bit of a Blue Ensign phase, so have the following two flags, which are the first I’ve made as vector flags in Inkscape (plus a bonus fact, because why not):

Flag of British Singapore ​

In fierce competition with Hong Kong for the title of wealthiest overseas territory. Recently voted against independence.

Flag of British Sinai​

Primarily populated by what people from OTL would call Palestinians, known ITTL as Sinai Arabs due to the presence of the Jewish state to the north known as Palestine.

Tomorrow I plan to post my final retcon with some rather major changes in Asia. Why final? Because I’ve just started work on a proper world map like @Kanan or @AP246, which, while not being as good as either of theirs, should hopefully serve a similar purpose. But it’ll take a while, so ask away in the meantime, and I’ll do what I can.

 

[KaiserEmu]

A bit off topic but I’ve noticed the uk has some kind of high speed rail system?

Oh no, the train questions begin... now the excessively detailed lore comes out of the woodwork...

It does!

The aforementioned Northern Extension is from Liverpool to Newcastle (partly via the Woodhead route, which is still open ITTL), delayed due to redirection of funds towards, y'know, fighting a war.

Middlesex Junction is the name for what we call Old Oak Common ITTL.
Elizabeth II Airport is near Cublington.
Longeaton Parkway is at Long Eaton, halfway between Derby and Nottingham.

Most of the other place names should be clear enough.

The image used in the wikibox is adapted from one made by Paul Burkitt-Gray here.

 

[KaiserEmu]

And Auralia’s political parties.

Parti Socialiste-Démocratique: The dominant party of the left. Despite their name, they’re actually quite moderate, having been forced to the centre by the PVG.

Les Républicains: The main centre-right party. Notable for a large number of libertarians in the party.

Parti Impérial: Big-tent party, whose main aim is the return of the House of Bonaparte to Auralia. Thrust into the position of kingmaker at the last election, they’ve been promised a referendum on the issue.

Bloc Indigène: An indigenous rights party. They don’t do very well, because indigenous rights are quite advanced overall.

Parti Vert-Gauche: Left-wing party. Notable for their rather radical ideas about reducing inequality. On the rise recently, to the terror of the PSD.

Front Auralienne: Radical right-wing party. Doesn’t like anyone who isn’t white. Unfortunately that’s quite a lot of people in Auralia, so they’re lucky to get one seat.

Questions?

 

[KaiserEmu]

And for Tasmania. Tasmania’s politics are interesting because it’s quite split along linguistic lines.

Social Democrats/Sociaal-Democraten: Progressive left wing party. Gets their support from the southern Dutch-speaking population.

Liberal/Liberaal: The party of the left popular with northern Anglophones. Closely affiliated with the trade unions and socially less progressive.

Christian Democrats/Christen-Democraten: Centre-right party that gets its support from the Dutch part of the country, including a surprisingly high proportion of atheists. Not nearly as conservative as you might think.

Conservative/Conservatief: The party of the Anglophone right. Socially conservative, economically liberal.

Green Tasmania/Groen Tasmanië: Environmentalist party. Reached their zenith in the 90s and early 2000s, now trying to reinvent themselves as a catch-all left party. The only really successful cross-cultural party.

Freedom/Vrijheid: Super right-wing party for the Dutch population. Also quite libertarian.

Nationalist/Nationalist: Super right-wing party for Anglophones - very clearly, refusing to provide a Dutch translation of their name to the electoral commission, and policies including abolition of Dutch as an official language.

Needless to say, the last two parties don’t get much support.

 

[KaiserEmu]

Thought I should crosspost my MOTF entry here as well, a map showing South Africa’s first universal elections ITTL. If anyone wants to see the original, 9 MB (!) file, you can find it here.

Following the controversy of Ian Smith’s United National Party government, the 1977 election saw a landslide victory for Denis Worrall’s Liberal Party, promising to halt South Africa’s growing global isolation and adopt a path of reform, with the aim of universal suffrage by the next election. Worrall’s term saw widespread consultation with many groups, which eventually resulted in the drafting of a new constitution, which included:

• a guarantee of equal suffrage
• abolition of the provinces and their replacement with new states
• abolition of the South African monarchy and replaced it with a parliament-appointed Chief Executive
• the renaming of the cities of Robertsville and Watersridge to Tshwane and Gauteng, respectively.

The new constitution was then put to a referendum in 1981, in which all people groups could vote. The new constitution was approved by 78% of the voters, prompting the issuing of writs for a new general election for the next year, in which all South Africans would have the right to vote.

The 1982 election was South Africa’s first fully democratic election, without regard to race, wealth or gender. After the ratification of South Africa’s new constitution, which replaced the Union of South Africa with the Commonwealth of South Africa in 1981, South Africa’s first non-racial elections were held, with nine parties contesting the election. Incumbent Prime Minister Denis Worrall attempted to retain his position on a platform of continuing the reforms his party had begun. The election also saw record turnout, with millions exercising their new-found right to vote. Ultimately, Allan Hendricks won the election, becoming South Africa’s first non-white Prime Minister. Among his promises were fair wealth redistribution to improve standards of living nationally, and a National Reconciliation Commission. Entering into a coalition with the African People’s Party (led first by Oliver Tambo and then Nelson Mandela), Hendricks faced the challenge of reuniting a divided nation.

Review questions:
1. Based on the map above, identify geographic patterns in the distribution of votes for three parties.
2. Suggest why turnout was so high at the election.
3. What was a key reason for Allan Hendricks’ victory?
4. Which parties formed a coalition after the coalition?

 

[KaiserEmu]

I was bored.

Further exploration on History would be great. Was there an attempted Japanese invasion during WW2 or was Japan not even a belligerent in that war?

Japan fought on the side of the Allies in the alt-WW2. There was no fighting on Australian soil during that conflict.

This is interesting. Watched. Also what's up with Patagonialand?

The Commonwealth of Patagonia is a Dominion similar to Canada or Australasia. It is notable for its significant Welsh-speaking population.

Is North America different?

See above. Yes, it is, although it's not my area of expertise.

I'll do some stuff about Australasia first (for @Unknown and @TheKutKu, then some global history for @SaveAtlacamani and @ZeSteel. After that I'll do Kidulia (which I've left till last because I want to do it really well).

 

[KaiserEmu]

So this is what I've been working on recently:

The German Federation is comprised of sixteen federal states, which are co-sovereign with the federal government. The states have varying histories; the Kingdom of Saxony has existed since 1806, while the Free State of Franconia gained its independence from Bavaria in 2002. Most states trace their history or borders to the 1947 German constitutional referendum, which drastically reformed Germany in the aftermath of the World War.
The German states are notable for their heavy monarchical influence; eight have the position of Governor given to a German royal. Three more states are de facto monarchies, although monarchy has never been enshrined in those states' statutes.
All German states have parliamentary forms of government, many in the Westminster tradition, thanks to heavy British influence after the World War. Therefore the position of Governor is purely ceremonial and usually possesses only a few reserve powers; most power is wielded by the First Minister.
Each Governor holds a seat in the Chamber of States, along with a number of government officials from each state.​

 

[KaiserEmu]

I told you I had a map in the works, although I wasn't expecting it to be quite such a big one.

The Balkan Federation is a country in Southeastern Europe, located on the Balkan Peninsula. Its capital is Sarajevo, while the largest city is Belgrade. It is bordered by Italy to the northeast, Austria and Hungary to the north, Romania and Bulgaria to the east, and Macedonia and Greece to the south. Much of the country is mountainous or hilly, although there are some flat regions both inland and on the coast.

The Balkan Federation's history begins in 1918, when the treaties of Créteil and Orly after the Great Imperial allowed Serbia to annex the former Austrian provinces of Bosnia, Dalmatia and Croatia-Slavonia. In the interwar period, Serbia's militaristic government annexed both Montenegro and Albania and established the Empire of Yugoslavia, aiming to create a unified South Slavic state. The fierce repression under this regime ultimately resulted in the Autumn Uprisings of 1990, which eventually became a widespread insurgency across the Empire, with separatist groups clamouring for independence. In 1994, all opposition forces were united into the Balkan Federation, which promised greater independence, an end to national repression and greater self-determination.

Following the 1997 Serbian National Awakening, most nations recognised the Balkan Federation as Yugoslavia’s successor, although it still held out in eastern and western Bosnia and Dalmatia, resulting in the Bihać and Srebrenica Massacres of ethnic Bosniaks. Today, Yugoslavia holds out only in coastal regions and the Vrbas canton of western Bosnia.

The country is divided into 12 cantons, most with a predominant ethnic group (but with no discrimination permitted in favour of one group), although it only fully administers nine. Each canton elects a local government and members of the Federation’s legislature, the State Assembly. The executive, the State Council, is elected with equal representation afforded to the Federation’s six recognised constituent peoples: Albanians, Montenegrins, Serbs, Croats, Bosniaks and Magyars.

Despite the ongoing conflict, the Balkan Federation is increasingly popular with tourists, which augments its otherwise partially industrial and partially agricultural economy, one of the fastest growing in Europe. It is the newest member of the Union of Nations, having achieved admission in 2007.

Questions?