Recently I got this idea of a cold war in the mid to late 20th century (like the original cold war) for a cold war between France-led block and a German-led block. So I decided how possible this idea is and if it isn't possible, how can I change it to make it possible.
The POD is in the early 19th century. My idea was that Wallonia (and perhaps Luxemburg) ended up French (and Flanders Dutch), thus increasing both the French population and the French industrial power. During the 19th and early 20th century Germany (or at least Prussia) and France fought a couple of wars. In these wars the borders shift somewhat and contested parts (like Luxemburg, Alsace-Lorraine, the Saarland) could change hands a couple of times, but in the end neither wins a complete victory. So there will be no situation like 1870, in which France loses horribly (or the oposite, a war in which Germany loses completely). The wars could also be colonial in nature. The end result is that when the atomic bomb is invented both countries realy dislike each other, but fearing the destructive powers of modern warfare, like the atomic bomb, both sides end up not wanting to go to war anymore. So a Cold War like situation arises.
Both sides have their own allies, like the USA and the USSR have. France is the head of an alliance that consists of southern Europe and Northern Africa, including Spain, Portugal, Italy (which I would love to split into a Northern Italy and Sicily), Greece, Morocco, maybe Algeria somehow (you probably need a very different 19th century colonialism and 20th century decolonisation), possibly extending to the eastern mediterranean so maybe including Egypt and Turkey (I must think of what to do with the Ottoman Empire.
Germany heads an alliance consisting of Eastern Europe, thus including Poland (with or without Posen, probably without, I don't see Germany losing it), Austria (not unified with Germany if possible and including Czechia) and Hungary, possibly including Denmark and Sweden.
I like to have some neutral countries at the border like the Netherlands and Switserland, kind of like how Austria, Yugoslavia, Finland and Sweden were neutral.
So, how possible is this? Mind you, I am willing to rewrite a large part of the 19th century history for it. For example different colonialisation. Different Italian unification, so that the Italian-French relationship doesn't sour, etc.
The POD is in the early 19th century. My idea was that Wallonia (and perhaps Luxemburg) ended up French (and Flanders Dutch), thus increasing both the French population and the French industrial power. During the 19th and early 20th century Germany (or at least Prussia) and France fought a couple of wars. In these wars the borders shift somewhat and contested parts (like Luxemburg, Alsace-Lorraine, the Saarland) could change hands a couple of times, but in the end neither wins a complete victory. So there will be no situation like 1870, in which France loses horribly (or the oposite, a war in which Germany loses completely). The wars could also be colonial in nature. The end result is that when the atomic bomb is invented both countries realy dislike each other, but fearing the destructive powers of modern warfare, like the atomic bomb, both sides end up not wanting to go to war anymore. So a Cold War like situation arises.
Both sides have their own allies, like the USA and the USSR have. France is the head of an alliance that consists of southern Europe and Northern Africa, including Spain, Portugal, Italy (which I would love to split into a Northern Italy and Sicily), Greece, Morocco, maybe Algeria somehow (you probably need a very different 19th century colonialism and 20th century decolonisation), possibly extending to the eastern mediterranean so maybe including Egypt and Turkey (I must think of what to do with the Ottoman Empire.
Germany heads an alliance consisting of Eastern Europe, thus including Poland (with or without Posen, probably without, I don't see Germany losing it), Austria (not unified with Germany if possible and including Czechia) and Hungary, possibly including Denmark and Sweden.
I like to have some neutral countries at the border like the Netherlands and Switserland, kind of like how Austria, Yugoslavia, Finland and Sweden were neutral.
So, how possible is this? Mind you, I am willing to rewrite a large part of the 19th century history for it. For example different colonialisation. Different Italian unification, so that the Italian-French relationship doesn't sour, etc.