Place In the Sun: What If Italy Joined the Central Powers? (1.0)

[Historymaster]

maybe hold your judgement until you read the actual story?
unless you have future telling capabilities

I have judjed what I have seen; I shall judge the developments when I see them, I only judged the facts as they have develped until now. I will be glad to be pleasently surprised thought.

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

They did, though I've heard the communists could of taken power if not then soon after but Lenin and co where unable to fully seize the opportunity shocked.
Russia during the years of 1917-1920 was extremely complicated, Ukraine for example the Ukrainian People's Republic become a brief thing then a civil war in Ukraine and the larger Russian civil war and Germany dissolved it.

It was a complete mess. I hope TTL will be marginally less convoluted but we'll have to see...

I have judjed what I have seen; I shall judge the developments when I see them, I only judged the facts as they have develped until now. I will be glad to be pleasently surprised thought.

Can't ask for anything more than that! Time will tell then...

 

[boredviewer1234]

One interesting thing, that could seem almost ASB is the Betar movement in Poland, a army of Polish and Eastern European jews trained by Poland coming to try to take over Palestine from the Ottomans I guess could serve as a strong test for the Pasha's successors, plus if you ''carefully'' study the scripture well enough one could say pieces of Mesopotamia belong to them, which could provide Poland a oil friendly colony.

Then again given the strong German Ottoman ties i'm not sure Poland would allowed to as well colonial as it tried in the interwar phase.

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

One interesting thing, that could seem almost ASB is the Betar movement in Poland, a army of Polish and Eastern European jews trained by Poland coming to try to take over Palestine from the Ottomans I guess could serve as a strong test for the Pasha's successors, plus if you ''carefully'' study the scripture well enough one could say pieces of Mesopotamia belong to them, which could provide Poland a oil friendly colony.

Then again given the strong German Ottoman ties i'm not sure Poland would allowed to as well colonial as it tried in the interwar phase.

Poland won't be flexing any colonial muscles ITTL. It doesn't even have connection to the sea while its military is German-dominated. Nor would Berlin even consider violating the Ottoman Empire's territorial integrity (at least as of TTL 1919)

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

Chapter Forty-Nine: The Republican Coup
​

"My participation in the Russian Civil War has received much attention. Indeed, future historians will likely- and I do not speak with inflated pride, there are many who would concur here- but they will likely judge me the Alexander of that conflict. Moreso than most, I fought for God and the House of Romanov because this was personal to me. Only I could claim such personal losses at the hands of the revolutionaries. I was fighting to avenge my wife."
-Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich, in a 1930 interview with a British reporter

"Regicide is the unforgivable sin! Europe had best sleep with one eye open, for who knows who the next monarch to fall will be? The Horde from the East may rise again soon..."
-Kaiser Wilhelm II upon hearing of the Republican Coup


Asking for an audience with the Prime Minister in the midst of such a crisis, Alexander Kerensky mused, was like asking for half an hour alone with God. Judging by the pleading and bribery he’d had to go through, a minute of Georgi Lvov’s time was worth more than pieces of gold. That he was only a lowly member of the Duma- and damned near a socialist at that- couldn’t have boosted his chances. Yet, here he was, sipping tea in Lvov’s antechamber while the sounds of battle raged outside. Two guards stood at the door to Lvov’s office; two more the doors through which he’d come. Kerensky’s jacket was rumpled from more pokes and prods in sensitive areas than any doctor had ever given him. Surely, half an hour with God would’ve required less security?

“Mr Kerensky, you may come in now.” He followed the attractive secretary to Lvov’s office. She pushed the ornate bell. “Come!” He walked in and sat down.

“Aah, Mr Kerensky.” The enormous beard masking the bottom half of Georgi Lvov’s face couldn’t hide the grey bags under his eyes and the creases of stress and worry. The Prime Minister’s suit was rumpled and he smelled of coffee and cigars. A hunted, crazed look lingered in his wide eyes. “What can I do for you? I do hope this is as important as I have been led to believe.” If you don’t make this quick, Kerensky translated, I’ll throw you out of my office. No, the audience with God would definitely have been easier.

“Prime Minister Lvov, the recent turn of events concerns me as much as you. The past four days have not been… have not been ones I’d repeat if given the chance.” Venturing out of his dacha had been an adventure even with bodyguards. “From what I hear, though, events may finally be starting to simmer down. You would know better than I.”

“Why, yes.” Lvov spoke slowly, as though fearful to admit as much. “Yes, Defence Minister Kornilov has told me his men are finally making headway against this damned insurrection. It is only a start- he himself admits as much- but the fact that you were able to come here today speaks volumes. Twenty-four hours ago…” Lvov shook his head. “But you are not here to congratulate me, are you? Speak your mind, then, and do it quickly for God’s sake.”

“Yes, sir. It is like this. Now that we have regained some control over the mob, Prime Minister, I believe we ought to display magnanimity.”

“Magnanimity?” Lvov raised an eyebrow, and suddenly Kerensky knew all that time and effort had been a waste. He had to try, though. “Yes, sir. Surely, neither you nor Defence Minister Kornilov wish to see a massacre on the streets. If we can bring this damned mob to heel through words, many lives will be saved.”

Lvov broke the silence. “Nyet. We cannot, Mr Kerensky, and I will tell you why. Backing down now would be a concession. Granting these revolutionaries the right to speak as equals with the Prime Minister would legitimise them. It would say that although they have broken the law, we continue to respect them. That they may say to myself and Her Imperial Majesty, ‘Now I know that we have committed treason and rebellion against yourselves, but that does not matter. We can have peace whenever we so choose.’ No. Treason and rebellion cannot and will not be tolerated.”

Kerensky glanced at his watch- 11:14 AM. He still had sixteen minutes left; what was there to lose? “And what, Prime Minister, will the consequences be otherwise? What will happen if we continue to sit on the mob, never turning an ear to their grievances? I am no expert, sir, but this seems like a recipe for endless revolution. Julius Martov will return (1) one day, and the people will listen to him. Why not emulate, say, Bismarck? He appealed to the workers, gave them what they wanted within the system, and-”

“Good day, Mr. Kerensky.” Lvov stood up. “I have far too much to concern myself with to listen to talk- from a man closer to the socialists than to me, no less- of negotiation with traitors.” He picked up the telephone. “Would you be so kind as to see Mr Kerensky out? Thank you.”

“Prime Minister.” Kerensky spat the title out like a vile curse, fighting to keep his anger down. “I hope that you are right. But if it turns out that you are wrong and I am right…” He shook his head. “You cannot say you have not been warned, sir.”

“A good job that’s a moot point, isn’t it?” Lvov’s secretary entered the room, escorted by two burly guards. A cry of ‘Down with the Tsarina!’ followed by the sound of a smashing bottle wafted in from outside. “Good day.” Prime Minister Georgi Lvov went back to work.

Conspirator number one: Alexander Kerensky​

* * *

“You are proposing treason.”

“What is your alternative, Alexander Ivanovich?” Alexander Guchkov shifted his weight uncomfortably. “That’s rather what I thought.” Kerensky smiled. “I have no doubt in my mind that the Prime Minister will not listen to reason. He might well have been a liberal in the era of Napoleon or of Metternich, but in this day and age he is of the same ilk as Nicholas.”

“Da.” Admitting as much made the War Minister visibly uncomfortable. “But how can you be so sure the mob will listen to you?” The suspicion in Guchkov’s eyes made clear what he was really asking.

“No, Alexander Ivanovich, to answer the question at hand I am not in secret discussions with whomever orchestrated this mess. In fact, I hate their guts as much as the good Prime Minister. However, I have a history of being on the left, nyet?” Kerensky had belonged to the moderate wing of the banned Socialist Revolutionary Party before the September Revolution, when his political instincts drove him to become an independent. “If the people will listen to anyone, surely it is a man who has been both a revolutionary and a loyalist at different times? Who else can claim to have one foot in both worlds?”

“Alexander Fyodorvich”, Guchkov said slowly, “under no circumstances will I have any hand in bringing Julius Martov and his ilk back to this country! I could give you a mile-long litany of grievances against this government but I would take Lvov over the rabble any day.”

“Do not worry, Alexander Ivanovich. What I propose is to remove Lvov by force and negotiate with the mob. If we can’t sit them down and work out our differences, revolution will hang over our heads like the sword of Damocles until eventually…” Kerensky brought his hand down in a chopping motion. “We can spill a little blood and break a few laws now, or we can end up like Paul Deschanel and Louis Marin.” Both men knew it was nothing short of a miracle that Russia had escaped France’s fate.

“And what of the Tsarina, and of her husband? Surely they will not accept our simply moving against the Prime Minister? Unless…” A horrified look crossed Guchkov’s face. “You cannot be thinking… not that?”

Kerensky smiled. “Now that you mention it, yes. I daresay the Martovists would have a harder time against the Russian Republic than against Auntie Xenia.”

“Auntie Xenia? Alexander Fyodorvich Kerensky, how dare you? I am a patriot…”

“So am I.” Kerensky raised a hand, speaking softly. “I am a Russian patriot too. I partook in politics during the Great War and supported the monarchy both in September 1916 and April 1918. This is not something from which I derive pleasure, believe me. But I fail to see an alternative. Georgi Lvov will end up inciting the mob to torch his office, even if he doesn’t know that yet. Stability can only come at the price of a republic. Besides”- Kerensky smiled cooly- “now that you are in on this, Alexander Ivanovich, I cannot have you discussing it elsewhere. Not committing would have… consequences.” The nuance wasn’t lost on Guchkov.

“I hate this”, muttered the War Minister. “Against my better judgement, I acknowledge your point. Very well, then- I accept. Who else is with us?”

“Enough people to ensure success- Defence Minister Kornilov is one. If we can capture the Prime Minister, arrest the Tsarina and her family, and broadcast our achievement to the people, we will have peace within a week, else you can call me Pridurok. (2) And of course, you would become the first War Minister of the Russian Republic.” Alexander Guchkov nodded wordlessly. What choice did he have? Nonetheless, he had a very bad feeling about this...

Conspirator number two: Alexander Guchkov​

* * *

The coup plotters met only once before pulling the trigger. Alexander Kerensky invited Alexander Guchkov, Pavel Milyukov, and Lavr Kornilov to his dacha on the night of 7 May. The situation in the capital had calmed down enough for travel to be more or less safe, but street battles continued day and night. Other cities were even more chaotic as they lacked the security measures Petrograd enjoyed as the capital. Kornilov, as Defence Minister, was responsible for the physical seizure of power. He’d given orders that day for the guards at the Winter and Tauride Palaces to be transferred into the fracas and replaced with hand-picked units which he knew to be loyal to him personally. Fortunately, he said, no one had questioned this. At the appropriate time, Kornilov would lead a suitable number of men into the Tauride Palace and arrest Lvov. This would be done at night to minimise fuss and catch the Prime Minister off his guard. Shortly before this, the Defence Ministry would issue orders to the Baltic Fleet to put to sea to avoid capture by the mob; this would prevent them from interfering with the coup. Shortly before dawn, troops would seize a radio station, and Kerensky could then proclaim the Russian Republic over the air. The most delicate bit, Kornilov said, would be arresting the Tsarina and her family. Xenia continued to hide in Pskov, and issuing orders to ‘secure’ her estate there would blow everyone’s cover. There was tremendous risk involved, Kornilov said, and he couldn’t promise success, but he agreed this was best for the country. Events would commence in 24 hours.

8 May 1919 began fairly normally. Fighting continued in the major cities and no one went to work, but that had become almost normal. Georgi Lvov had learned to function in a dysfunctional world. His morning was preoccupied with news of a failed attempt by striking Siberian oil workers to shut down production (the refinery was now under military occupation and the strikers in prison). The crimson tide of rioters was neither advancing nor receding, and the capital’s communications with the rest of the empire remained secure. Given that a week of violence hadn’t toppled the regime, Lvov was cautiously optimistic. He’d ridden out the worst of the storm, he told himself, and time and lead would suppress the rest.

The Prime Minister wasn’t unduly concerned when the Defence Minister telephoned.

Unlike Alexander Kerensky, Georgi Lvov had always respected Lavr Kornilov and knew he was a man to be reckoned with. Not only didn’t he mind giving him half an hour of his time, he assumed Kornilov knew what he was doing. The Defence Minister explained that the crisis had grown worse over the past few hours. “Revolutionaries”- he made sure to use the most charged word possible- had occupied two of the exits from the capital and needed to be eliminated immediately. However, the only available units were the Tauride Palace guards. They would be dispatched to clear the exits and replaced by fresh units half an hour later. Blind to Kornilov’s ulterior motive and assuming that if the Defence Minister said it it had to be true, Lvov consented. The guards moved out immediately to fight non-existent rebels on the other end of the capital.

The Prime Minister had just signed his own death warrant.

Half an hour later, at 2:30 PM, the new guards arrived. These were men of the 79th Rifle Division specially chosen for their loyalty to Kornilov (he’d once done the commander a good turn). Some of the men occupied the palace’s fearsome defences. Sandbagged machine-gun nests, twelve-feet-high rows of electrified barbed wire, and even fierce dogs on chains could keep any mob out… or loyalist infantrymen attempting a counter-coup. Meanwhile, another group of guards occupied key locations in the Tauride Palace. Soldiers occupied the offices of Duma delegates and the body’s meeting hall, detaining workmen and secretaries. The general strike and rioting had caused massive security increases, and seeing groups of armed men patrolling the hallways wasn’t unusual in the slightest. The workers were told there was an “emergency”, and that security mandated a “hold-in-place.” As always, a uniform and a gun worked wonders. Georgi Lvov heard the new men moving about but thought nothing of it. When a handsome captain led a platoon into his waiting room and asked the secretary very politely if he could speak with the Prime Minister, she agreed.

Twenty armed men entered Georgi Lvov’s office with intent to kill, rendering all that formidable security moot.

Lavr Kornilov had specifically ordered Lvov’s death after discussing it with his fellow plotters. Keeping the Prime Minister alive ran the risk of his escaping and rallying opposition to the coup, which could lead to civil war. Any convenient statement such as a resignation on grounds of ill-health could be forged and no one would be any the wiser. Removing him from the board, in addition to paralysing the monarchists, would help create a clean break. Thus, the last action the Prime Minister ever performed was standing up from his desk and extending a hand to the captain. A volley of fire killed him instantly, and his bloodied corpse fell to the ground. The screaming secretary met a similar fate moments later. Georgi Lvov was fifty-eight years old, and had been the last Prime Minister of the Russian Empire for two and a half years.

Meanwhile, the coup plotters moved against other targets in the capital. Kornilov’s deception ensured relative obscurity but there were still those who needed taking out. Like any politician, Georgi Lvov had a circle of devoted followers who would never accept a regime which had forcibly moved him from power. Then there were ardent monarchists who would fight to the death for the throne, even if they disliked Xenia. If these men were able to rally to the opposition Russia would be faced with civil war. With Petrograd in chaos, the units selected for the dirty work were able to hide in plain sight, often trading fire with rioters as they approached their targets. Amongst those marked for death was Nicholas II’s senile ex-Interior Minister Alexander Protopopov, as well as key figures in the All-Russian Zemstvo Union- the charity organisation had taken on a new political dimension and was a key power base of Lvov’s. Men of the 79th Division, indistinguishable from normal soldiers but for their insignia, knocked on doors with forged arrest warrants and executed their prisoners; the autopsies attributed the deaths to ‘mob violence’. Kornilov wasn’t a bloodthirsty man though, and limited the scope of the assassinations. Ironically, Alexander Dubrovnin had made his task easier. Many of the diehard reactionaries who loathed Xenia’s regime but would’ve fought to save her from a republic were in prison or executed after 15 April. This was fortunate, as aside from the 79th Division the plotters had relatively few guns and hunting down hundreds of reactionary noblemen would’ve been beyond them.

There would be time to sort out the wheat from the chaff… provided everything went smoothly today.

Lavr Kornilov had spent the past hour pacing his office like a caged animal. Not just his career but his life was at stake. What he was planning was nothing short of treason and he could expect a blindfold and a cigarette if he failed. Issuing the orders for the Baltic Fleet to put to sea gave him a pleasant distraction, but after that there was only cigarette after cigarette. Kornilov stared fearfully at the door, waiting for loyalists to burst in and arrest him for treason. When the telephone pierced the silence, it might’ve been a gunshot. His heart was climbing into his mouth as he answered. “Defence Minister Kornilov? I speak to you from the former Prime Minister’s office.” Suddenly, he felt like the condemned man who’s just received a wire from the governor. Kornilov ordered the two bodies covertly removed from the Tauride Palace and dumped in the Nevsky River before telephoning Alexander Kerensky.

Conspirator number three: Lavr Kornilov​

* * *

The most delicate part of the coup d’etat still had to take place. Since a fast car could reach Pskov from the capital in three and a half hours, Tsarina Xenia might know what had transpired by sundown. Kornilov initially wanted to go in without pretence. Xenia couldn’t be deceived; the guards at her estate answered to her alone and any attempt by Kornilov to order them would raise her suspicions. The plotters would have to enter her estate with guns blazing, but they’d have to take great care. If anybody on the estate escaped, they’d have an airtight case against Kornilov for treason. Since dead men told no tales, Kornilov ordered the unit tasked with seizing the estate to take no prisoners. Everyone- from the tsarina to the lowliest servant- had to die. His fellow plotters overruled him though. The guards would resist a massacre and while they might lose, they’d buy time for the tsarina to flee and raise the banner. As Kornilov himself admitted, even a single witness to Xenia’s murder escaping could unravel the whole plot. Instead, Alexander Guchkov proposed, the plotters should deceive the tsarina. If they could persuade her to return to Petrograd- perhaps with a forged plea from Lvov- they could then take her and her family prisoner without bloodshed. As the most senior member of the government among the conspirators, Guchkov believed himself best suited for this.
This was the plan enacted on 8 May; Guchkov and a squad of bodyguards (all of whom were fully in on the plot) were halfway to Pskov as Georgi Lvov breathed his last.
The Foreign Minister reached Pskov at seven PM as the north Russian sun slipped beneath the fur trees. Relatively little unrest had taken place in Pskov- one reason Xenia had chosen to flee there- and the streets were quiet as Guchkov’s car rolled through. He reached the Tsarina’s estate twenty minutes later and was stopped by the guards. “I have a telegram from the German minister in Petrograd”, he lied. “He has conversed with Prime Minister Lvov and must speak with Her Imperial Majesty immediately.” Guchkov branded a folded-up piece of paper, and his raised eyebrows reminded the guard who was the Foreign Minister and who was just a lowly sergeant. The Tsarina walked out a few minutes later. “Is it truly urgent, Alexander Ivanovich?”

“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.” Guchkov repeated the lie about the German minister. “He wishes for you to return to the capital as soon as possible to converse with himself and Prime Minister Lvov.”

Xenia sighed. “What of the situation in the capital? Have the rioters been quelled yet?”

“Largely, Your Imperial Majesty. In fact, Prime Minister Lvov, with whom I conversed before setting out, specifically declared it safe for you to return.” Guchkov gestured to his bodyguards. “As you can see, we will not travel alone. But it is already late, Your Excellency, and the drive to the capital will take at least three hours. It cannot wait until tomorrow, Your Imperial Majesty, lest we encounter trouble on the road. Night-time is safest because it’s quiet; during the day the situation might change.” Xenia frowned thoughtfully. Come on, woman, come on! If he couldn’t take Xenia out within a few hours, she’d get word of Georgi Lvov’s fate and that would be that.
“Well… very well.” Guchkov hoped his shoulders didn’t sag with relief too visibly. “Give me half an hour to get my things packed then you and I can set off.”
“You and I, Your Imperial Majesty? You do not wish to bring your husband and son?”

“Nyet. They have no need to return and I would not like to unduly endanger them.” Damn. Not being able to take the Grand Duke ensured he’d find out what happened eventually, while Prince Vassily was a potential future threat. Asking the Tsarina to take them would look too suspicious. “They can stay here with my bodyguards.”
Guchkov had to fight to suppress his grin. “Your bodyguards?” Perhaps this would work after all.

“Why, they will remain here, of course! You have your own security, Alexander Ivanovich, my family can stay with the men I trust. I will see you, then, in half an hour.”

* * *

When Guchkov’s armoured car stopped abruptly a little after ten PM, the driver diagnosed it as engine trouble. “What a pity”, said the Tsarina. “How far are we from the capital?”

“Another hour, Your Imperial Majesty, if God is kind.” The Russian Empire’s rural roads were nothing to boast about, while armoured cars sacrificed speed for security. “That’s after I get this… useless motor running.” He might’ve been part of an attempt on her life, but the driver wasn’t about to curse in front of his monarch. Guchkov laughed nervously. “Bit of a bastard, isn’t it?”, he said to the driver.

“Da, da. I say, Your Imperial Majesty, Foreign Minister, might I humbly make a request?” Xenia nodded. “I need to get under her with my toolkit to analyse the problem, but there might be something of an odour. Perhaps Your Imperial Majesty would be more comfortable waiting outside?” The driver eyed Guchkov for a fraction of a second. Everything was going according to plan.

“Da.” The Tsarina shrugged. “It is not raining, is it?”

“Nyet.” Guchkov nodded to the guard holding the car door. “I say, Your Imperial Majesty, perhaps you would like to walk a few paces and escape the odour?” Xenia nodded. It was a warm night by Russian standards. Guchkov’s breath hung in the air momentarily like a silver cloud, but he was warm enough. They were ages from even the smallest village and there were no other cars for miles. Only the chirping of insects and guttural curses of the driver broke the silence. Guchkov’s heart hung in his mouth. Do it, you fool! It is now or never! It was all down to him- no one else could pull the trigger. If he didn’t kill Xenia, the coup would unravel and he’d spend the rest of his life in prison. The only saving grace would be that that would be a measure of days. Kornilov managed to do it with Lvov, why can’t you do it here? Or perhaps Kornilov had failed in Petrograd, and at any minute loyalists would approach en route for Pskov to ensure the monarch’s safety- in which case he was doomed regardless of whether or not he killed the tsarina. Guchkov couldn’t help glancing nervously over his shoulder, as if the cavalry troop was only a hundred yards away.

“I do hope the ambassador will not think us rude.” Xenia politely covered an enormous yawn. “Even if we reach the capital before midnight I simply cannot see him till tomorrow. We ought to have waited till dawn.”

"Quite, Your Imperial Majesty.” You scumbag. Here was an innocent woman with a husband and children. What crime had she committed except being born to the wrong parents? She simply wanted to get on with her night and wake up tomorrow, no different from anybody else. And you want to plug her, you bastard. You want to leave a widower and seven motherless children in your wake. Having neither a spouse nor children, Guchkov didn’t know what that truly meant. He felt a strange power over this woman, like a lion who’s brought down its prey but not delivered the killing stroke. She has only as long to live as it takes me to make up my mind. Whether Tsarina Xenia’s life, from her youngest years as a child through school, marriage, family, and coronation, ended on this warm Russian night, without warning or mercy was, he realised, entirely up to Alexander Ivanovich Guchkov.

That evil knowledge felt good.

Guchkov’s pistol was tucked under the folds of his jacket- he’d filled it before setting out. Idly moving to face the Tsarina’s back, he retrieved it and flicked the safety catch. I’m sorry, Xenia.

The bullet which entered Xenia’s brain killed her before she hit the ground. Fragments of skull and brain and droplets of blood spattered against Guchkov’s suit. A red stain engulfed the Tsarina’s blue-grey dress and the dirt road. “God damn it”, muttered Guchkov, stepping aside so as not to get blood on his boot. He sighed. “Forgive me.” Not even he knew if he was addressing God, the late empress, or both. “Oi! Give me a hand with…” Guchkov couldn’t bring himself to describe Xenia’s body as "the mess". The driver walked over with a can of petrol. “Let’s take her to the woods, sir. Less noticeable that way.”

“Da. You… you take care of it. Here, have my lighter.” Guchkov walked back to the armoured car and collapsed in his seat, staring at the empty spot across from him. As orange flames shot into the black sky, Guchkov picked up a loose hair. It was all that remained of Tsarina Xenia Alexandrovna.

* * *

The security around the Tauride Palace made what came before look pathetic. Airplanes circled overhead, artillery was positioned on the palace grounds, and armoured cars patrolled the perimeter. Soldiers and cavalry combed through the crowd. It was no exaggeration to say that Alexander Kerensky wouldn’t have wanted to assault the palace with anything less than a well-equipped brigade. Given that you lied and tricked your way here, regardless of the Tsarina's formidable security, how much good will that really do you? Kerensky shook his head. It was a bit late for cold feet now. “Are we ready, gentlemen?” Alexander Guchkov to his left, and Lavr Kornilov to his right nodded. “Off we go, then.”

The wave of cheers surprised Kerensky and the sight of so many people momentarily scared him. Large congregations of workingmen and Russian officials, the past week had taught him, did not mix well. “Long live the new government!” “Down with Lvov!” reassured him. Kerensky knew that their relative obscurity protected the four plotters. Georgi Lvov and Xenia were hated for their failure to deliver to the people and heavy-handedness; Kerensky and Guchkov had clean slates in the public eye. Only Kornilov had a negative past with the public for deploying armed men against the innocent Petrograd proletarians, but he’d redeemed himself the previous evening with a directive to the entire Russian military. Prime Minister Georgi Lvov had resigned and an interim government would be formed as soon as possible. He’d then issued a further statement to the Petrograd garrison to stop fighting, and that representatives of the new government would address the people at nine AM the next day. Kerensky’s watch made it out to be 8:59. The people would get their new government, but it wouldn’t be the one they expected.

“Workers and soldiers of Petrograd! The sacrifices the people have made in property and blood are over. The killing is over. The consequences of the war, need and suffering, will burden us for many years. The hour of attempted compromise has passed. Our suggestions regarding an understanding were sabotaged, we personally were mocked and ignored. The enemies of the working class, the real, inner enemies who are responsible for the fate which has befallen the Motherland, have been defeated. They were the reactionaries, who upheld their demands until yesterday, as obstinate as they fought the struggle against substantial reform of the State. Reform of the constitution, a noble step though it was, did not suffice. The Prime Ministership of Georgi Lvov and reign of the so-called Tsarina Xenia Alexandrovna Romanova, brought about the same stagnation as ever. Noble in intent though the reforms of the late Mikhail Alexandrovich Romanov were, they conspicuously failed to solve the fundamental questions plaguing the Motherland because they did not address the root causes thereof. The fact remains that for too long, the nobility, the industrialists, and yes, the monarchy have been pitted against the interests of the workers and soldiers.

“Recent events have brought the conflicts of the past year to a climax. I will not attempt to deny that excesses of violence and of lawlessness were committed by the people during the mass General Strike across the empire, nor do I approve of such actions. However, in stark contrast to the reactionaries, I acknowledge them as expressions of popular will. As the anger of the people simmers like water, it is only natural that the steam from it would burn the hand of the one foolish enough to ignore it. I call upon the workers and soldiers of Petrograd to lay down their arms, and for their leaders to peacefully petition for redress of grievances. I pledge to you that the new government shall not be deaf to the concerns of the people, as the so-called liberal regimes of Mikhail Alexandrovich Romanov and Xenia Alexandrovna Romanova, in alliance with Georgi Lvov, were. This government shall march in step with the people, giving due weight to their concerns and to the concerns of socialist parties.

“The enemies of the people are finished forever. As of today, the eighth of May in the year nineteen-nineteen, I do hereby declare to the world, that they would acknowledge it, to the workers and soldiers of Russia, that they would rejoice in it, and to the enemies of the people, that they would fear it, that the Russian people have stood up. We, the Russian people, by our own inherent authority and the right of self-governance and of self-determination in all matters, do hereby renounce the rule of the so-called Tsarina, of all obligations to her person and to the imperial throne, and do declare the institutions of the monarchy and nobility null and void.

“The so-called Tsarina and her family have been placed under arrest. The people have won over all of them, in every field. Georgi Lvov has handed over the office of Prime Minister to myself, and I shall form a new government consisting of workers of all parties, centred around the men besides me. This new government may not be interrupted, in their work to preserve peace and to care for work and bread. Workers and soldiers, be aware of the historic importance of this day: exorbitant things have happened. Great and incalculable tasks are waiting for us. Everything for the people. Everything by the people. Nothing may happen to the dishonor of the Labour Movement. Be united, faithful and conscientious. The old and rotten, the monarchy has collapsed. The new may live. Long live the Russian Republic!” (4)

Comments?

1. No he won’t. See the Duck Bay conference.
2. The Russian for “jackass”.
3. One of the Brest-Litovsk negotiators, amongst other things, ITTL
4. About half of the credit here belongs to Phillip Scheidemann.

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

Regarding the last chapter:

It's a cliffhanger! I deliberately designed it this way so that all we see- for now- is the coup itself. Obviously, Xenia's widower husband the Grand Duke will have a... strong reaction. To Lenin and the Bolsheviks, this is a bolt from the blue, and they're going to need to do a lot of scrambling to figure out how to readjust their strategy in light of the changed situation. Also: note that in the first quote, reference is made to a "Russian Civil War". That should tell you how smoothly things will go here on out.

Also (and this will especially apply once we hit the Russian Civil War): the anti-Tsarists are an extremely broad coalition. Just as all one needed to be a member of OTL's White Movement was to be anti-Bolshevik (and so you had Romanov monarchists rubbing shoulders with Right SRs-- literally nothing in common save hatred of Lenin), here very disparate groups of people are united by one thing alone: being fed up with the Romanov Dynasty.

Basically, what I'm saying is please resist the urge to scream "ASB". I deliberately wrote this to end on a cliffhanger (or balcony-hanger as the case may be) with plenty of loose ends for next week's update to tie up!

-Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth

 

[TGW]

Ahhhh you trickster, you!

So, Lyov leaves us. Not going to say I will mourn his death in the same way as the previous Tsar, he seemed a slimy little so and so, ill-equipped to deal with power despite his desire for it. Regardless, it seems like another death rattle for Russia's stability. The Tsarina's death is sadder, in my mind. A whole bloody mess, which might as well be the title of Russia's entry in this story.

And that there's an upcoming event called the Russian Civil War in process alarms me greatly. If this is merely a prelude to that, then I see more blood ahead. Grand stuff all around.

 

[Prince Daemon Targaryen]

If the Bolsheviks still force a civil War, the Germans should simply get Ukraine under their thumb like they wanted to do. No better time

 

[President Earl Warren]

As much as I was previously rooting for Tzar Mikahail and Xenia... They were too unpopualr to actually work and now, with the bulk of Liberals siding with the Kerensky boys, the only people who will back them are the die hard reactionaries and proto Facists. The only people who can plausibly save Russia now from the curses of Facism or Communism is now Kerensky and Co. So... F to Xenia and Mikhail, Glory to the Republic

 

[JonKenobi]

Long live the Republic of Russia!

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

Ahhhh you trickster, you!

So, Lyov leaves us. Not going to say I will mourn his death in the same way as the previous Tsar, he seemed a slimy little so and so, ill-equipped to deal with power despite his desire for it. Regardless, it seems like another death rattle for Russia's stability. The Tsarina's death is sadder, in my mind. A whole bloody mess, which might as well be the title of Russia's entry in this story.

And that there's an upcoming event called the Russian Civil War in process alarms me greatly. If this is merely a prelude to that, then I see more blood ahead. Grand stuff all around.

Yes. I certainly feel for Xenia-- she didn't really want to be Tsarina and isn't the power-mad shrew the Republic will make her out to be. Had Nicholas not disgraced himself and Michael survived, she'd happily have remained in comfortable obscurity. Lvov, though... was kind of, if not asking for it, then tempting fate. If he'd been a bit smarter about negotiating with the General Strikers, Kerensky might've thrown his weight behind him.

Aah yes, Russia will have a Civil War ITTL... hopefully not as crazy and destructive as our world's but we'll have to see.

If the Bolsheviks still force a civil War, the Germans should simply get Ukraine under their thumb like they wanted to do. No better time

Indeed! Many Ukrainians would be receptive to such a thing provided the Germans play their cards right...

As much as I was previously rooting for Tzar Mikahail and Xenia... They were too unpopualr to actually work and now, with the bulk of Liberals siding with the Kerensky boys, the only people who will back them are the die hard reactionaries and proto Facists. The only people who can plausibly save Russia now from the curses of Facism or Communism is now Kerensky and Co. So... F to Xenia and Mikhail, Glory to the Republic

You're right about the Tsarist regime being too unpopular and ossified to get the job done. It now falls to the Republic to be the bulwark of defence against Communism-- whether or not it succeeds is of course another matter entirely.

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

Long live the Republic of Russia!

"The Empire will be reorganised into the FIRST RUSSIAN REPUBLIC... for a safe, and secure, society!"

In all seriousness, I'm glad you liked it. Kerensky has a lot of work that needs doing but he'll hopefully manage...

 

[Wildlife]

Is the new Russian government aware that by deposing the Russian monarchy and killing it's monarch they have just angered the monarchies of Europe and likely facing intervention by them similar to what happened when the French revolutionaries executed Louis XVI and his wife that lead to several coalition wars by European monarchies to restore monarchy to France OTL?

 

[Gabingston]

My approximate reaction to this update:

 

[Basileus_Komnenos]

Long live the Republic of Russia!

I don't know about that The rest of Europe is not going to look at this Russian Republic very kindly. Kaiser Wilhlem and the rest of Europe would likely be shocked at the assassination of a sitting monarch. Realistically I expect Germany to probably intervene again to restore the Romanovs allying with the monarchists. Britain might also join in with Pressure from the King. I no doubt expect Austria to also join in this new coalition with how Kaiser Karl was similarly killed at the hand of Revolutionaries.

Indeed! Many Ukrainians would be receptive to such a thing provided the Germans play their cards right...

Was Ukranian nationalism really a thing during this era? I feel like it became more of a thing after otl's WW1. The Ukranian state setup in otl was quite chaotic and unstable with part of it trying to rejoin the USSR. Though Ukrainian nationalism rose up later on in reaction to the harsh soviet policies and then intensified once Stalin initiated the Holodomir.

Is the new Russian government aware that by deposing the Russian monarchy and killing it's monarch they have just angered the monarchies of Europe and likely facing intervention by them similar to what happened when the French revolutionaries executed Louis XVI and his wife that lead to several coalition wars by European monarchies to restore monarchy to France OTL?

Exactly. Considering how Kaiser Karl was killed while in a Church by Revolutionaries, the rest of monarchical Europe is going to be outraged.

I don't see Sorelian France having much longevity in this climate either. With Europe generally becoming more reactionary as a backlash to fall of liberalism with WW1, to its later perversion (ie the clusterfuck in Russia and then the mess of the Danubian Civil War), Europe will be much more anti-Communist than in otl.

If anything the French right wing would be even more galvanized to try and stage a coup and might possibly ally with the Republicans like Clemenceau against "the greater evil."

My approximate reaction to this update:
View attachment 655008

Same. Great work @Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth!

 

[Gabingston]

What flag does the Russian Republic use?

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

Is the new Russian government aware that by deposing the Russian monarchy and killing it's monarch they have just angered the monarchies of Europe and likely facing intervention by them similar to what happened when the French revolutionaries executed Louis XVI and his wife that lead to several coalition wars by European monarchies to restore monarchy to France OTL?

I don't know.
If not, they'd best pray they never have to find out the hard way.

My approximate reaction to this update:
View attachment 655008

Haha, thanks! Yes, a bit of a mess isn't it?
Still, we'll have to see *just* how bad things can get...

I don't know about that The rest of Europe is not going to look at this Russian Republic very kindly. Kaiser Wilhlem and the rest of Europe would likely be shocked at the assassination of a sitting monarch. Realistically I expect Germany to probably intervene again to restore the Romanovs allying with the monarchists. Britain might also join in with Pressure from the King. I no doubt expect Austria to also join in this new coalition with how Kaiser Karl was similarly killed at the hand of Revolutionaries.


Was Ukranian nationalism really a thing during this era? I feel like it became more of a thing after otl's WW1. The Ukranian state setup in otl was quite chaotic and unstable with part of it trying to rejoin the USSR. Though Ukrainian nationalism rose up later on in reaction to the harsh soviet policies and then intensified once Stalin initiated the Holodomir.


Exactly. Considering how Kaiser Karl was killed while in a Church by Revolutionaries, the rest of monarchical Europe is going to be outraged.

I don't see Sorelian France having much longevity in this climate either. With Europe generally becoming more reactionary as a backlash to fall of liberalism with WW1, to its later perversion (ie the clusterfuck in Russia and then the mess of the Danubian Civil War), Europe will be much more anti-Communist than in otl.

If anything the French right wing would be even more galvanized to try and stage a coup and might possibly ally with the Republicans like Clemenceau against "the greater evil."


Same. Great work @Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth!

Thank you very much- glad you enjoyed it!

Kaiser Wilhelm certainly wants to intervene- regicide is an unforgivable crime in his book- but there are other factors to consider. Intervention in Russia would entail fighting on the level of a second Great War which nobody wants to see. Germany's budget is stretched thinly (to put it mildly) and no one's really eager for more sacrifices and belt-tightening. Intervention, then, is possible but not certain.

Then there's the "left flank" to consider. Absolutely everyone hates Sorelian France but Germany's hesitant to occupy it. Extending the present occupation headaches to all of France would be... unpalatable (to put it mildly) so an alliance with Georges Clemenceau is actually not out of the question. He could serve as a Vichy-esque figure; one who rules France on Germany's part.

I should mention that while Georges Sorel has been enthusiastic about his loathing for the Tsarina, he's also no fan of Alexander Kerensky or the "moderates". Full-throated communism or bust in his book!

With regards to Ukrainian nationalism, the OTL defeat in 1917 seems to have really galvanised it, and we see something similar in this world's 1916. So I think the conditions would be there for such a thing. (Actually, we've already seen two instances of Ukrainian nationalism flaring up: a brief, failed uprising just before the Treaty of Dresden and the unrest at the start of chapter 44).

 

[Kaiser Wilhelm the Tenth]

What flag does the Russian Republic use?

Same as OTL- white, blue, and red

 

[avernite]

Much as fighting a war in Russia would be expensive, that's not really what is needed here. Kerensky's government lacks a certain legitimacy, and there's no broad sweeping reforms to easily make that'll give him that.

So there will be a long hard slog to build a new Russia, and a single German division could probably be the difference between instant Czarist collapse and Czarist chance of victory. Of course, that could go worse if the Germans set up Ukraine - they have to look like the honorable enemy, not vultures picking at Russia's corpse.

 

[Wildlife]

Who the best claimant for monarchist Russia?