Osman Reborn; The Survival of Ottoman Democracy [An Ottoman TL set in the 1900s]

[Ammonios]

I personally do not believe carriers to be a worthwhile investment for WW2.

In the Mediterranean land based airpower can reach you pretty much everywhere.

Post WW2 a few (one or two) carriers might be a good idea for mostly service in Indian Ocean.

I think Ottomans should focus on decent destroyers, some decent cruisers, a pair of new capital ships at most and submarines. As for numbers, something similar to OTL Italian Navy, Ottomans could probably do with a somewhat smaller navy as well.

Hello,

This works on a defensive level. Establishing coastal air bases equipped with fighters and bombers with torpedo-carrying capabilities should be enough to support the navy. If the Ottomans have to fight the Russians, the army and the air force are the best to take that fight to the Russians. If I recall correctly, the Ottomans have no extra-territorial ambitions with oil being their primary income earner. That factor is also important to any potential allies, so they will not hesitate to provide support if that resource is threatened.

 

[Gman]

Thats an informative post! @Gman based on the developments so far, what kind of fleet being prepared by the OE by 1940 (ttl's start date for WW2) would be most advantageous for the Ottoman State? Like i have stated multiple times in this thread naval matters is simply not my cup of tea, though i have done my best regarding them.

I think that the size and composition of the Ottoman Navy will be affected by several key factors. In no particular order of importance, these factors would be the: the size and overall strength of the Ottoman economy, the size and composition of other nations navies, the geopolitical interests of the Ottoman Empire, the geography of the Ottomans, and the political situation in the Empire itself and its rivals and/or neighbouring nations. Other factors will also likely play a role, so I may have missed some things.

For the size and strength of the economy, a larger economy obviously means more money from tax revenue to throw at the Ministry of the Armed Forces via a larger budget, which would allow for the acquisition of more ships of varying classes and functions, and also for more personnel to be employed. The future growth of the economy, especially after the end of the 1915-1925 economic boom, and whether any analogue to the OTl Great Depression occurs, and affects the Ottoman Empire, could affect how large the navy could grow.

For other nations' navies, the primary threat would likely be Russia in the Black Sea, and depending on how Ottoman-Italian relations develop the Italian Navy in the Mediterranean. The Russians OTL completed 6 dreadnought battleships, and in total began construction of 8 battleships (the 6 finished, and 1 of the Imperatritsa Mariya-class and the Imperator Nikolai I that were never finished) and 4 battlecruisers (the Borodino class that were never finished). With Russia not falling to revolution, winning WW1 and having a healthier economy, i imagine that they could complete the construction of these ships by 1925 and would carry on with other vessels. The Black Sea fleet would likely get between 25%-40% of all capital ships (depending on the Baltic and Pacific Fleet's need for warships) and so the Ottoman Navy would likely have to equal, exceed or other be of significant size (I'd guess 70% or more) of the Black Sea Fleet to help protect the Bosporus and offer a credible threat to it in the instance of war.

As the Italians were forced to cede their dreadnoughts at the end of World War One, and could only keep pre-dreadnoughts, they are starting from a more disadvantageous position and despite their economy stabilising recently, it is only a fraction of what Russia has. In addition with France and Danubia being close geographically the impetus for the Ottomans to respond to Italian naval developments isn't as strong as it is against Russia. The Italians could likely get a few battleships/capital ships in their fleet, but their smaller economy and local rivals (France + Danubia) lessens their threat.

The Ottoman Empire's political situation will depend on which political party is in power and their stance on the military, its' budget and overall use. The wider public opinion of the citizens of the Empire would also affect attitudes towards the Navy. In OTL I am aware of Ottoman citizen donations being used to purchase warships, so something similar to that may occur if jingoism/nationalism/patriotism really takes hold in the citizenry. Other countries political situations, such as popular support for larger military spending could lead to the Ottomans to raise their own expenditure on the navy as well.

For the composition of the Ottoman Navy, a balanced one would be best - basically what they currently have or are working towards. In terms of precise size, i would guess around 6-8 capital ships (maybe 10), 1-3 aircraft carriers (likely on the lower end due to their geographic considerations and lack of experence in constructing and operating carriers, and the time it takes to become proficient in carrier operations), 7-12 heavy cruisers (based on the size of the Italian and French cruiser fleets OTL while subject to the various naval treaties and factoring in the Ottoman economy), 15-20 light cruisers (same as heavy cruisers), around 50-80 destroyers (maybe on the lower end), submarines i am unsure of. Some of the older warships acquired in the 1910s would also likely have to be replaced by the 1930s-1940s on account of their age.

 

[Pio2013]

Talking about the sea, which are the prospects about the ottoman merchant & fishing fleet? With such a coastal lines and access to many fishing grounds & commercial lines, its something to follow - plenty of potential jobs to follow.

 

[Paul MacQ]

Are there any plans for the Ottomans to construct more battleships soon, seeing as Russia and Italy possess large fleets (or are actively expanding their existing fleets)? Also, I think that aircraft carriers would make sense for the Ottoman Empire, seeing as it has a rather lengthy coastline (Black Sea, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, rest of the Eastern Mediterranean) and area of interest with respect to its ocean-going trade.

As this is Sarthaka's timeline they ultimately decide what is featured/explored within it, but if they want some minor help or recommendations on the naval side of things then I would gladly offer some input.

Going Back to comments about Carriers in Post. Eastern Med and Persian Golf to support control of supply routes in Indian Ocean. Zero reason to have Carriers support operation in Black Sea Ionian and Aegean Waters far to tiny to risk a flight deck

Black sea as an example İnebolu North Coast Anatolia is less than 300km from Sevastopol. I would not like to risk Sinkable flight decks here. I do not think that at any point Black sea is much further than 400km from Anatolian coasts or places for Airstrips

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[EMT]

Considering the Russian Civil War is gonna be popping off and be incredibly messy, I see a lot of chances for the Ottoman Empire to set up allies or even a formal return of the Crimean peninsula to its fold depending on how it goes. Without the deportation of the Crimeans having occurred, there's definitely a window of opportunity where it'd be feasible for a Crimean Tatar republic to arise.

 

[Gokbay]

A Crimean Republic with good tatar representation is likelier than Ottoman annexation of Crimea. Ottomans getting territories Turkey got OTL after WW1 (+ some other bits, Batumi especially but maybe even Armenia since Armenians might prefer the Ottoman autonomous province over no explicit autonomy in Russia. Ottoman-Armenian relations are going pretty well ITTL) however is much more likely.

 

[Lord Khuzdul]

A Crimean Republic with good tatar representation is likelier than Ottoman annexation of Crimea. Ottomans getting territories Turkey got OTL after WW1 (+ some other bits, Batumi especially but maybe even Armenia since Armenians might prefer the Ottoman autonomous province over no explicit autonomy in Russia. Ottoman-Armenian relations are going pretty well ITTL) however is much more likely.

I'd imagine Ottomans might get almost all of Caucasus, either as direct annexation or as smaller countries in their orbit. Most of the region is a) Muslim, b) Turkic, or c) Armenian (well, everyone but the Georgians is at least one of the three) and all of these have many reasons to prefer the Empire to Russia.

 

[PhoenixFireX17]

For the fight in the Black Sea against the Russians, they will not need too big of a fleet.

First of all, as previously mentioned most to all of the Black Sea will be in range of air cover, something that the Ottomans have been shown to be somewhat of a pioneer in, ITTL.

Secondly, with little involvement in WW1 for the OE they do not have the Bosphorus and Dardenelles demilitarized. Meaning that the Russian Black Sea Fleet can essentially only get ships made in the cities on the Black Sea, of which I assume only Odessa, Mykolaiv and Sevastapol had the capibility to produce anything above a Destroyer. (if there were any other cities capable of producing anything at all.)

Thus even if the Russian Black Sea Fleet at the time would consist of (including older, near obsolete ships) 6-10 Battleships, 10-20 Cruisers and something like 50+ destroyers. The Ottomans would only really need a handfull of Cruisers to help patrol their own coast, alongside air patrol, with maybe up to 3 Destroyers per cruiser escort and a pair of Battleships to protect the straights.

Essentially any true naval action in the Black Sea outside of an opening gambit and some hit and run tactics is not likely.

 

[Lord Khuzdul]

For the fight in the Black Sea against the Russians, they will not need too big of a fleet.

First of all, as previously mentioned most to all of the Black Sea will be in range of air cover, something that the Ottomans have been shown to be somewhat of a pioneer in, ITTL.

Secondly, with little involvement in WW1 for the OE they do not have the Bosphorus and Dardenelles demilitarized. Meaning that the Russian Black Sea Fleet can essentially only get ships made in the cities on the Black Sea, of which I assume only Odessa, Mykolaiv and Sevastapol had the capibility to produce anything above a Destroyer. (if there were any other cities capable of producing anything at all.)

Thus even if the Russian Black Sea Fleet at the time would consist of (including older, near obsolete ships) 6-10 Battleships, 10-20 Cruisers and something like 50+ destroyers. The Ottomans would only really need a handfull of Cruisers to help patrol their own coast, alongside air patrol, with maybe up to 3 Destroyers per cruiser escort and a pair of Battleships to protect the straights.

Essentially any true naval action in the Black Sea outside of an opening gambit and some hit and run tactics is not likely.

The problem is, Ottoman air power is probably enough to keep the Black Sea clear of Russians, but I don't think Ottomans themselves know that.

Remember, at this point in history the threat posed by aircraft to naval vessels is poorly understood at best, and completely underestimated at worst.

It would be much more likely for the Ottomans to build up a fleet to counter the Black Sea fleet, only for it to spend the war patrolling the Black Sea coast and looking resplendent in the Golden Horn while the aircraft from Sinop turn the obsolete Russian ships into navigational hazards in Sevastopol harbor.

 

[PhoenixFireX17]

The problem is, Ottoman air power is probably enough to keep the Black Sea clear of Russians, but I don't think Ottomans themselves know that.

Remember, at this point in history the threat posed by aircraft to naval vessels is poorly understood at best, and completely underestimated at worst.

It would be much more likely for the Ottomans to build up a fleet to counter the Black Sea fleet, only for it to spend the war patrolling the Black Sea coast and looking resplendent in the Golden Horn while the aircraft from Sinop turn the obsolete Russian ships into navigational hazards in Sevastopol harbor.

Even if this were to happen, what would the Ottomans have lost? They'd essentially have a naval force strong enough to rival any save Britain if they pool their ships.

And considering the the way the Crimean peninsula is connected to the mainland, they could actually use the navy to force multiple landings in the area and then blockade the area till the end of the war. Assuming of course the army can setup/conquer some airbases.

Which means that the Russians would need to keep a sizable force in the area, just on the off chance that the Ottomans would try this, and an even larger force to contain them if they do land.

 

[Sarthak]

Chapter 61: Intensification

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Excerpts from ‘The Politics of the Zaidi Rebellion’

“……. The rebellion ongoing in Yemen made it clear to David Ben-Gurion that he would have to make sure that the political situation needed to remain stable in Yemen, lest he lost grasp over the political situation in Yemen as well. There were many actors in Yemen who would like to see the Ottoman Empire stumble as it walked against the rebels. Ben-Gurion did try and seek a proper political solution, trying to ally himself with the ambiguous and still unsure tribes in the region, but the tribesmen snubbed him. A Yemenite Jew was one thing that the notoriously anti-Semitic inner tribes had come to painfully tolerate, but an outside Jew who was an immigrant on top of that? He was to be snubbed in the views of these tribes. Ben-Gurion, politically apt as he knew that he had to act hard, fast, and with ruthless attacks against the rebels if he wanted to keep the similarly ruthless neutrals at their place.

the Jebel an Nabi Valley​

The greatest problem for Ben-Gurion and his political ambitions in Yemen was the fact that right out of Sana’a, southeast of the city, the Jebel an Nabi Valley (centered around Mt. Jebel an Nabi Shu’ayb) was in the hands of the rebels. The tribal rebels used the area well, with its crooks and crannies and its caves being used to its full effect to make sure that a full guerilla war could be conducted against the Ottoman governmental forces in the region. Though the Ottoman Army was slowly yet steadily moving against the other rebel controlled areas, the Jebel Valley remained an extremely tough nut to crack for the Ottoman government as no matter what, Ottoman troops were being evicted from the region without the army being able to do much about it. Ben-Gurion as such decided to do something about it. The Ottoman 18th Mountaineering Regiment’s Colonel Erim Pasha was sacked from command and given a new posting in Najd whilst Colonel Mehmet Nazim Bey was given command of the Ottoman 18th and 23rd Mountaineering Regiments and ordered by Ben-Gurion to take the Jebel Valley. At the same time, Ben-Gurion finally received confirmation that the 405 and 410 Aerial Squadrons of the Ottoman Air Force (officially established from the Ottoman Air Corps in 1923) would be partaking in the campaign against the Jebel Mountain Valley. On the 4th of April, 1925, the artillery pieces outside of Sana’a facing towards Jebel Valley began its bombardment followed by a blistering attack from two Ottoman aerial squadrons over the valley taking out rebel outposts. At the same time, under the cover of a blistering artillery and aerial bombardment, the two Ottoman regiments entered Jebel Valley with stiff resistance following immediately after. The Rebels were thrown out of Matnah with great difficulty and the greatest challenge of all came for the two regiments, scaling the massive Mt. Jebel an Nabi Shu’ayb as the rebels began to seek shelter in the mountain against the powerful joint artillery-aerial attack against them. The two regiments proceeded towards Al Masattah and then started to scale the grand mountain. The result was a massacre on both sides as brutal remote mountain fighting took place between the regiments and the rebels. But the two regiments were mostly composed of Ottoman Turkish and Pontic Greek troops from the Caucasian Mountains, regions known for being extremely mountainous and the two regiments slowly but surely managed to gain the upper hand. The continuous thunderous attack on part of the artillery and the air force gave the distinct upper hand to the Ottomans. On the 11th of April, after a week of fierce fighting that saw the Ottomans take 33% losses, Jebel Valley was liberated from the rebels and the Ottoman flag flew over Mt. Jebel an Nabi once more after more than a year. The political effect was instantaneous. Ben-Gurion had managed to successfully direct a military operation that saw a direct threat against Sana’a defeated and had shown that his leadership and administrative skills were up to the task of being a wartime governor. The neutral tribes were now forced into a corner as Ben-Gurion basically handed over an ultimatum asking the Al-Khawlan, Al-Qaramish and Al-Masajir tribes – the most prominent neutral tribes – to either side with the legitimate government of Yemen or be swept aside by the Ottoman army. The leaders of the tribe had little to no other choice after the bloody Battle of Jebel Valley. They accepted the offer (ultimatum) and their tribal levies soon joined the Ottoman army in action against the rebels.

Pro-Ottoman Militias in Yemen​

The defeat of the rebels at Mt. Jebel came right when the Ottoman Electoral Commission declared that the Ottoman Senatorial Elections were going to be held for the end of June, 1925, which certainly made the politics of the victory come to the forefront. All of the political parties in the Ottoman Empire were clamoring to try and use the victory against the rebels at Jebel to their advantage for the coming elections. The Liberal Union was however suffering from the instigator disease as many people in the Ottoman Empire deemed that the Liberal Union had been the party to instigate the Yemeni Rebellion against the Ottoman Empire. The Committee of Union and Progress did try to take advantage from the instigator’s disease afflicting the Liberal Union, but a huge loss diverted their attention. Pancho Dorev, the new leader of the CUP Party was killed when he was campaigning in Hejaz for the upcoming Senatorial Elections. His railway car was derailed in an unfortunate accident when he was returning from Hejaz to Transjordan. The loss of their new iconic leader who was charismatic for every sense of the word left the CUP headless during an importance time of electoral politics. The CUP hurriedly elevated Rupen Zartarian, a prominent pro-Ottoman Armenian politician and writer within the CUP to the leadership of the CUP political party. But Zartarian whilst completely willing to work as a politician within the auspices of the central government and under the party, was an unwilling political party leader, and this showed when he was willing to campaign, but unwilling to do more than just that.

Rupen Zartarian​

This situation was taken advantage off by the growing Ottoman Socialist Party. Gregorios Anagnost was nothing if not cunning now that he was in a position of power as the political head of the Ottoman Socialist Party. He quickly decided that an agreement needed to be arranged with the Ottoman Social Democratic Party which was splitting the leftist votes in the Ottoman Empire and arranged a meeting with Hamdi Bey, the leader of the Ottoman Social Democratic Party. Hamdi Bey was unwilling at first to entertain ideas of a party unification but soon it became obvious that Anagnost intended to keep his promises of adhering to strict Democratic Socialism and Social Democracy rather than socialism in the European sense of the word. This led to the May 27, 1925 unification of the Ottoman Socialist Party and the Ottoman Social Democratic Party to form the Ottoman Democratic Socialist Party (ODSP). Anagnost kept his position as leader of the new left-wing party, but Hamdi Bey was then made the deputy leader of the newly unified political party. This consolidation of the left-wing votes in the Ottoman Empire was a threat to all right-wing and centrist political groups in the empire and most of the politicians recognized that fact. Kozmidi Effendi, the leader of the Ottoman Democratic Party firmly and politely attacked the economic policies laid out by the OSDP’s manifesto believing that such nationalizations as intended by Anagnost were unfeasible and not in line with proper Ottoman economic policy. At the same time, Husrev Bey, the leader of another center-left wing political party – the Ottoman Progressive Party also denounced the large pacifist motivations of the OSDP, stating that pacification in the face of rebellion was not something that could be honestly encouraged. This was a heavy attack, in particular, Husrev Bey’s attack on the pacifist leaning OSDP had some credence attached to it, as some members of the party had denounced the continued military operations in Yemen. Anagnost was quick to backtrack on that, stating firmly and publically that the Ottoman Democratic Socialist Party did support the territorial integrity of the Ottoman Empire and supported the current government’s course of action in Yemen, as long as the suppression of the rebellion remained with the limits of the rules of war.

Despite the strong performance of the ODSP in the electoral campaigns throughout the country, the result of the Senatorial Elections surprised many.

Political Party	Senatorial Seats Won
Liberal Union	30
Ottoman Democratic Socialist Party	27
Committee of Union & Progress	26
Ottoman Democratic Party	18
Ottoman Progressive Party	6
Ottoman Nationalist Party	1
Poale Zion	1
Ottoman Party for Administrative Decentralization	1
Ottoman Greek Pressure Party	1
Independents	8

Source: Ottoman Archives 1920 – 1930

The Ottoman Democratic Socialist Party had successfully managed to become the second-largest political party in the Ottoman Senate, overtaking the CUP by one senator. The Liberal Union had lost two senators in the election and a seat fluctuation afflicted the entire political apparatus in the Ottoman Senate. The empire was industrializing and as a result, having a more left-wing electorate was to be anticipated, but at the time, no one really predicted the scale of the shift in the electorate. The empire had industrialized rapidly, yet at the same time, they believed that the electorate would shift in a slow and steady manner, which was evidently not the case. Furthermore, even though the parties had their differences, the Ottoman Progressive Party voted in favor of the ODSP’s candidacy for the Speaker of the Senate position and the Ottoman Democratic Socialist Party leader Gregorious Anagnost was able to use the OPP’s support to become the Speaker of the Senate bypassing the Liberal Union’s own candidate. The Ottoman Socialists were on the slow rise, and now, no one could deny that simple fact…….”

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Excerpts from The Rise of Imperial China by Wu Longmin

“……. The defeat of the Provisionary Republic of China by Imperial China in late 1923 proved to be the slow catalyst of power in China against the warlord coalition. The Chinese Civil War was about to reach its climax. The first warlord to meet his end would be Duan Qirui the Governor of Anhui, who was after the surrender of the republicans surrounded by the Imperial forces. The Anhui Clique as it became known fought on desperately but by the time they upped their level of commitment and support against the Imperial government it was far too late. This led to the image of perceived incompetence on part of Duan – who despite the dire situation was in fact doing pretty well for his small provincial warlord armies – and this emboldened Xu Shuzheng and Qu Tongfeng to intrigue and plot together. These two Anhui generals conducted a coup against Duan Qirui and then declared themselves to be the dual leaders of Anhui, who would lead Anhui to victory with the rest of the Warlord Coalition. Duan met an inglorious fate as he was drowned in a river after the coup. But Xu and Qu immediately began to have problems with one another. Qu favored a defensive dig in strategy against the Imperial forces whilst Xu favored a ‘solid defense is a solid offense’ tactic. This led to uncoordinated attacks and uncoordinated defenses all over Anhui as the two generals did what they pleased with their forces instead of cooperating with one another. 38-year-old General Chiang Kai-Shek who commanded the Imperial 5th Army against the Anhui Clique was ordered to move his 40,000 troops against Anhui from the south whilst 39-year-old General Yang Yuting, who commanded the Imperial 8th Army commanding 30,000 troops was ordered to clamp down on Anhui from the north. This double-pronged attack was supported by batches of modern artillery that Imperial China had bought from countries such as the United Kingdom, France, the Ottoman Empire, Germany, and Danubia. Ferocious fighting broke out, but the coordinated assault of Chiang and Yang managed to break through the uncoordinated Anhui Clique and by April 4, 1925, the Imperial Chinese forces managed to march on Wuhu, the provisional capital of the Anhui Clique. A two-week-long siege of the city brought about the destruction of the Anhui Clique as Chiang and Yang entered the city victorious and both Xu and Qu were executed for high treason against the Empire of China.

Imperial Chinese Troops marching against the Anhui Clique​

But while the two armies brought Anhui to heel, the other armies in the Empire of China had been gathering and preparing for what became known as the Great Northern Offensive and the Great Southern Offensive. Over a million men under the command of Marshal Li Jingling had been gathering in Northern China under the 3rd, 10th, 12th and 15th Imperial Armies to end the Northern Warlords once and for all. In the south, around 1.6 million Imperial Troops under the command of Tang Jiyao and around 160,000 Tibetan-Turkic troops under the command of the Panchen Lama were being assembled against the southern Warlords. This was to be the final strike in the Chinese Civil War. As Chiang and Yang arrived at Wuhu, the Hongxian Emperor gave permission to Li and Tang to initiate the Great Northern Offensive and the Great Southern Offensive.

The Great Northern Offensive

The Great Northern Offensive broke out with aerial and artillery operations taking place as bombing raids and artillery attacks took place all over the massive front. And all of a sudden, the 3rd Army attack Yan Xishan’s Shanxi forces and broke through them during the sudden Battle of Lingshi and the 3rd Army chased Yan all the way to the capital of Shanxi – Taiyuan. In Taiyuan, Yan had decided to stand his ground and fight against the invading Imperial forces, but this was not to be as on the 11th of April, 1925, a general pro-Imperial coup took place in Taiyuan, and Yan was killed during the fighting. The Shanxi government then declared for the Imperial Government in Beijing and submitted to the authority of the Hongxian Emperor and the Legislative Yuan of the Empire of China. This was a massive political and military victory for the Imperial Chinese and now with Shanxi on their side, the game was turning for the Warlords in the north.

Flag of the Bogd Khanate of Mongolia​

Guo Songling and Prince De still commanded Inner Mongolia and Manchuria, but the Imperial forces crossed the frontlines and began to push hard. The situation so dire that Prince De had to ask Bogd Khan, the leader of the Khanate of Mongolia for aid. But Bogd Khan was unwilling to act against China, with the Hongxian Emperor also intriguing in the court of the Khanate. This forced Prince De to withdraw from the western territories of Inner Mongolia to make sure that the forces of the Warlords in the North were not stretched out and so that they could create an effective resistance against the incoming imperial forces. The Imperial forces took Hohhot and Ulanqab on April 27 and 30 respectively and this was a devastating loss for Prince De and his Inner Mongolian fiefdom as he had basically lost all the urban areas in Inner Mongolia. He and Guo made a pact to continue fighting alongside each other in Manchuria and Prince De withdrew from Inner Mongolia with most of his troops and equipment, effectively handing over Inner Mongolia to the Imperial Chinese.

By this point, the Western Powers and even Japan could see where the tide was turning and the Japanese Government gave the order to the Japanese troops in Manchuria who were guarding the Japanese Manchurian Railway not to fire at the Imperial Chinese troops and Russia cut their funding of the Northern Warlords indefinitely. In order to restore economic stability in Northern China for French and British industries, the two colonial powers sent their Chinese naval station warships into Manchurian Waters and bombarded the small gunboat navy of Guo based in Yingkou. The coup de grace was the only real thing left for the Empire of China in the north. The last Qing Emperor, the Xuantong Emperor however pleaded with the Hongxian Emperor that his fourth cousin, Prince De be pardoned in the event of victory. The Hongxian Emperor was very reluctant, but decided to use the plead to his political advantage. He decreed that anyone willing to change sides in Manchuria would be pardoned by the Empire of China, and privately the Chinese government informed the Qing Dynasty residing in the Forbidden City that their request of pardoning Prince De had been accepted with the condition that the Prince live under House Arrest. In Manchuria, pro-Imperial forces rioted and demanded for an end to the war. Guo and De suppressed the riots with increasing desperation but when the Imperial Armies captured Shenyang on the 7th of June, 1925, the two warlords finally decided to surrender, bringing the northern theatre of the Chinese Civil War to an end and along with it the Great Northern Offensive.

The Great Southern Offensive

The Great Southern Offensive was much easier for Imperial China than what Beijing could have ever predicted. Governor Lu Rongting of Guandong and the Warlord of the South as he was called had died due to chronic heart problems in 1924 and this had led to a leadership crisis in Guandong and the Guandong Clique. Lu himself had been extremely competent and under him the Clique had fought and even won pitched battles against the Imperial Government but without him everyone was vying for power and not really focusing on the important front in front of them as 1.6 million Imperial troops crashed down upon them. Lu’s second son, Lu Xexian managed to take power as the Warlord of Guandong, but his power was largely nominal, as the generals became semi-independent feudal lords on their own in Guandong. This was the fundamental problem in the Warlord Hierarchy as everyone was more eager for their own power and their own advancement that not many looked at the growing threat right in front of them. This problem was only exacerbated by the fact that the Chinese Warlord for Sichuan Liu Xiang hated the guts of Lu Xexian and refused to send aid against the Imperial Chinese Armies even as the Imperial Chinese Armies neared Canton. From April 8 – May 29, Canton was involved in a brutal siege that took the lives of many troops and civilians, but with the resources of the city and the Guandong Clique running out, the city fell, and with it the Guandong Clique.

Imperial Chinese Troops attacking the outer defenses of Canton​

Sichuan and Yunnan were the only remaining Warlord States and both of the remaining Warlords knew that their time was quickly becoming numbered unless they did something. Tang Jiyao, the Warlord for Yunnan decided that he would be able to find a more comfortable life elsewhere and after ransacking the entire coffers of Yunnan, he and his family escaped from Yunnan in secrecy and into British Burma from where they traveled towards Thailand. They settled down in Thailand and their family – infamous in Yunnan to this day – continues to live there. With their leader abandoning them to their fate, the remaining heads of the Yunnan government surrendered and Liu Xiang decided to surrender on the 9th of June as well on the condition that his life was spared, which was granted by the Hongxian Emperor. With the end of the Great Northern and Southern offensives, the three-and-a-half-year-long Chinese Civil War had come to an end – ending with the victory of the Imperial government.

The Aftermath

The Chinese Civil War had been brutal and to those elderly people who were still alive then – they created many parallels between the civil war and the Taiping Revolt. The Chinese Civil War had seen over 5 million troops under Imperial garbs, around another 5 million under Warlord garbs and another 2 million under Republican garbs. Of the 12 million soldiers who fought against one another, around a tenth of them died in the brutal fighting and many more were wounded. In terms of the civilian population, whilst exact numbers are not available, around 8 million civilians are estimated to have been killed in the fighting. That brings the total deaths of the Civil War to around 9 million. This figure only captures the brutality that was the Chinese Civil War. In the thick of the fighting, it was every man for himself and every family for themselves as the Warlords and monetarily pushed Imperial mercenaries unleashed cruelty of all kinds on the civilian population.

The Hongxian Emperor of China​

The Hongxian Emperor and Prime Minister Tang Shaoyi knew that they would have to take time to rebuild the country and many defectors were pardoned so as to create a stable post-war situation. China was now hunkering down to recover from the devastating civil war. A decade of slow recovery that would eventually allow it to expel Imperial Japan from the Asian mainland……”

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Excerpt from ‘The Empire of Sports: Sports in the Ottoman Empire and Their Respective Histories by Michael Talbot

“……Cricket in the Ottoman Empire was introduced by British Ambassadors and Emissaries in the eighteenth century and while the game was never really outstanding in its popularity through of the Ottoman Empire’s history it remained relatively popular and well played in the Empire’s elites. In 1882 the first public Ottoman Cricket Club was opened in Constantinople by Arab Sportsman Sheikh Al-Islam. Al-Islam had been an Arab sportsman who had toured with the English Cricket Team against Canada and the United States in the 1870s and 1880s and after the tours, the man had returned to the Empire and founded the club. The club was very much an ‘all-elite’ club with members of the nobility and oligarchy only being allowed to play, despite Al-Islam’s efforts to spread the sport of cricket into the public domain. Certainly, his efforts did make Cricket more widely spread in the Empire, but not to the level that he would have hoped.

Cricket Match in Constantinople c. 1880​

In 1911, however that situation changed. During the Italo-Ottoman War, British Military Attaches were able to make the sport popular among some of the restive Ottoman soldiers who picked up on the sport, and soon the sport spread into the mainland Ottoman Empire. Military veterans of the war established the Salonika Cricket Club in 1912 and the cooperation between Salonika and Constantinople’s cricket clubs was perhaps the impetus for cricket to grow as a sport in the Ottoman Empire. As a rule of thumb, football remained the most widespread sport, but Cricket grew in popularity as well, as cricket grounds and cricket clubs began to crop up throughout the Ottoman Empire. The most interested of players in Ottoman Cricket were Ottoman Arabs and Ottoman Jews who took the sport like a fish in water. Turks, Greeks, Slavs also played the sport, but not to the intensity of the Ottoman Arabian and Jewish population. In particular British Jews who made up a good portion of the Jewish immigrant elite in the Ottoman Empire aided in the spread of the sport. In 1917 after the end of the Great War, the Ottoman Empire and the United Kingdom engaged in a friendly match against one another playing three test matches against one another. The Ottoman National Cricket Team was trounced by the more experienced English National Cricket Team which won all of the matches, but the fervor regarding the matches did a lot to spread the popularity of Cricket in the Ottoman Empire even more.

The English Cricket Team during the 1917 English Tour of the Ottoman Empire​

In 1918 the Ottoman Government created the Ottoman Board for Cricket (OBC) as the national directing board for Cricket in the similar manner as the football board which looked after football affairs. The stated goal of the OBC became to join the Imperial Cricket Conference that was at the time, an exclusive club of cricket playing nations in the British Empire. Only England, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and India had the right to play within the boundaries of the Imperial Cricket Conference. This was a restrictive policy on part of the ICC and this restriction had most certainly contributed to the death of cricket in the USA, where it had once been extremely popular. In 1919 another friendly series was held, this time between the Ottoman Empire and New Zealand with a 3 match test series against one another. This time, the Ottoman National Cricket Team played much better than in 1917 and managed to eek out one win, but still lost the series 2-1.

Lionel Tennyson​

Ottoman Cricket fundamentally changed when in 1922 they finally managed to win a cricket series, managing to win against Canada in a 2 match series, winning both of the matches under the captaincy of Abbas Saad. It was an important victory for the Ottoman Empire’s burgeoning interest in cricket no doubt. In 1923, the Ottoman Empire officially handed over a petition to join the Imperial Cricket Conference formally so that it could take part in the international cricketing tournaments which was shut off to it as a non-member. This was initially rejected by the ICC, but the ascension of former English Cricket Captain Lionel Tennyson, 3rd Baron Tennyson as the President of the ICC in 1925 fundamentally changed the dimension of cricketing relationships. Tennyson was highly critical of the restrictive manner of Imperial Cricket Conferences and believed that nations which could play cricket properly and on proper grounds could be afforded the membership. The formal regulation board of the ICC mentioned the need for a domestic first class cricket league as a prerequisite, but the Ottoman Board for Cricket blithely pointed that the Ottoman Vilayet League (established in 1921) was in fact a first class cricket league for the Ottoman Empire. Tennyson believed that alongside the candidacy of West Indies, the Ottoman National Cricket Team could be accepted as well, but some of the elder fashioned cricketer administrators opposed this move. It came down to the vote in the Board of Cricketing Commissioners in the ICC, but while the vote was narrow, the Ottoman National Cricket Team was accepted into the ICC alongside the candidacy of the West Indies. The dimension and scope of sports in the Ottoman Empire changed forever as a result…..” [1]

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[1] – Cricket was apparently growing in popularity exponentially in the OE from 1911 – 1914 but the WW1 and Greco-Turkish War kind of destroyed all progress made. The ICC also did discuss the entry of non-British empire cricketing nations in 1925 otl, which failed by 4 votes otl. With a more friendly OE and the Anglo-Ottoman Alliance, the vote is swayed in favor of Ottoman Cricket.

 

[Sarthak]

Thoughts?

 

[haider najib]

Thoughts?

You killed Yan xishan how could u

 

[sarahz]

Thoughts?

So are England actually touring as England here OTL lt was still badged as MCC Given Ottaman Femlnism will they pioneer Womens cricket. i can imaglne an Ottaman team might have some issues with the South Africans

 

[ZeroFrame]

Thankfully the Chinese Civil War is over. Hopefully China will rise out of the great tragedy and become a better country out of it. The only other thought is it looks like the ODSP is making massive gains. I hope they get into power and implement social democratic and democratic socialist policies.

 

[Pio2013]

Glad to hear the cricket taking root in ottoman lands. Personally i think about sports as a cultural bond, with the gathering of people, families and so on.

 

[Sarthak]

You killed Yan xishan how could u

Well you lose some and gain some!

 

[EmperorBuaya]

The Chinese warlords got what’s coming to them, now China can focus on its national developments which is a good thing.

Didn’t expect Ottoman cricket and honestly it’s quite true in RL until World War 1.

 

[Sarthak]

So are England actually touring as England here OTL lt was still badged as MCC Given Ottaman Femlnism will they pioneer Womens cricket. i can imaglne an Ottaman team might have some issues with the South Africans

Well, Women's Cricket will be taking off sooner than otl that's for sure, and at the moment, the Ottomans won't really have a problem with SA, the old motto 'not in sight and not in mind' that was true for all until the 1940s and 50s is going to be the unfortunate truth here.

 

[Sarthak]

Thankfully the Chinese Civil War is over. Hopefully China will rise out of the great tragedy and become a better country out of it. The only other thought is it looks like the ODSP is making massive gains. I hope they get into power and implement social democratic and democratic socialist policies.

Yes, i do intend to haev the ODSP gain power in the 1930s ittl. This will be an organic development of Ottoman politics after all.