In any hypothetical scenario of Napoleon dominating Germany, Italy and Spain which is what he wanted to accomplish. What happens to the German, Italian and Spanish populations? I only ask because the French aimed to incorporate and assimilate their territories in Europe and abroad, but Napoleon's aim was to create an empire without borders in Europe.
Had Napoleon been successful he would have likely presented himself as the heir to Charlemagne in a revived Frankish Empire without the trappings of feudalism that caused the collapse and fragmentation of Charlemagne’s Empire. Napoleon could have supplanted the Continental System with a sort of United European economy centered around the Franc. As industrialization rolls around France in possession of the Rhineland and it’s Iron ore deposits wil likely surpass Britain. With the other economies of Continental Europe tied to France’s they’ll likely industrialize at similar rates.
France doesn’t experience the demographic collapse of otl and maintains a high birth rate due to the high morale under a victorious Bonapartist France, the lack of manpower being depleted through Napoleon losing and coming back again, and access to more resources thanks to the Rhineland. The Walloons and Flemish will likely be assimilated into French culture and be more Francophone thanks to them being integrated into France. Belgium in otl broke away from the Netherlands because they were closer to Catholic France in culture than the Protestant and more Germanic Netherlands.
Anyone got any ideas? Still think the French will colonise Savoy and the Rhine.
I don’t think they’ll colonize Savoy. Savoy was historically under French influence with Occitan and Italian people under it. The Third French Republic forcibly united France’s language along the lines of the Parisian dialect of French as the standard of the French National language. One of its policies was to restrict languages in schools to French.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_policy_in_France
Under Napoleon, I don’t think this is likely to occur. After he showed himself proclaimed himself as a stabilizing influence and later proclaimed himself emperor, many monarchists and peasants in Southern and Northwestern France who were generally pro-monarchy supported him. Many emigres also returned to France. The French Kings didn’t really have a strong position on languages spoken, and Napoleon would likely maintain something similar to avoid needlessly alienating them. The other francophone populations in the Rhineland will be integrated into French culture with their local dialect being treated as another French dialect.
What happens to the German, Italian and Spanish populations?
The Italian populations and German populations keep their language and culture. Even in Napoléon’s Illyrian provinces he let the local people keep their language with French as the official administrative language. Napoleon’s Empire will be a multiethnic language. And things like German nationalism kicked in as a result of anger at Napoléon over his occupation and conscription of German troops. Depending on the circumstances of Napoleon’s victory, this might be butterflied away or neutralized easily.
Let’s say Napoleon if he really wants Spain, waits till all his other foes either negotiate a peace with him or are too weak to rebel. Perhaps Napoleon successfully negotiates an alliance with Russia as he almost did. Talleyrand purposely sabotaged talks and convinced Alexander to go against Napoléon. Maybe Napoléon doesn’t bring him along or better yet discovers his treason and has him executed. If Napoleon and Tsar Alexander form an alliance, Napoleon could likely invade the Ottoman controller Balkans.
Another option if the alliance isn’t established is if Napoleon forced the Tsar to fight him. Here he sticks to his original objective and takes land for Poland by getting Lithuania for it. Maybe he can stage an uprising of native Poles within Russian lands and uses it to beat the Russian army. The Tsar would be forced to withdraw from Central Europe. Maybe he gets Sweden and the Turks to help him invade Russia which forces the Russians to fight on the field.
In regards to Spain Napoleon would then be free to invade it. Maybe Napoleon seeing the vast scale of his empire resolved to take only Calonia and maybe Navarre for himself. Maybe with his personal presence on the field he crushed all revolts. Perhaps Ferdinand usurps his father and his incompetence leads to revolts in Spain. This chaos could be used by Napoleon to place his relative on its throne. Assuming Joseph is now King, he would likely institute a Bonapartist Government in Spain with rifts given to the populace.
In regards to Italy, the Kingdom of Rome was based on the Medieval HRE Kingdom of Italy. Napoléon I made his son as it’s King for the heir to rule. The Southern half would be led by Murat. It’s likely that any liberal revolutionaries would be crushed by France due to its vast wealth and intact army. Napoleon II would likely focus on consolidating his father’s empire. He would likely grant noble and army positions to bother Germans and Italians in reward for their loyalty. Napoleon II before his untimely death was regarded to be very intelligent, charismatic, and had a passion for the army. Napoleon II had a very close friendship with Sophie of Bavaria. Napoleon II might marry a German princess which would emphasize the universal nature of the French Empire. Napoleon’s II being trained by his father means that France would be stable enough to confederate its vast client states and territories into another Universal Empire along the lines of the HRE at its height. The Bonaparte cult of personality and massive propaganda wit Napoleon portraying himself as a Roman Emperor. will help in that regard.