Rememberences of Map Contests Past

Falkanner:

The tension between the United Kingdom and the American settlers went back centuries, with historians showing the cultures diverging as early as the English Civil War. This tension came to the forefront following the French and Indian War, when Parliament imposed a series of taxes on the colonists to help Great Britain out of massive debt, and King George III issued a proclamation forbidding the colonists from settling past the Appalachian Mountains. This, along with a number of other grievances, led to an armed rebellion in 1775. After the revolt was put down in 1778, Parliament agreed to grant the colonies more autonomy, which worked for the most part. However, they could not entirely bridge the gap, and many smaller rebellions did break out in the following decades.

To escape what many percieved as foreign rule, American settlers moved west, further away from British authority on the coast. In the north, they moved into the Charlotina Colony. Charlotina was originally meant to be an Indian protectorate, but Great Britain gave greater priority to the colonists' satisfaction, and whites soon came to outnumber natives in the region. By 1820, both Upper Canada and Charlotina were under the control of a conservative, religiously-minded oligarchy. In the south, they moved across the Appalachian mountains and into the newly aquired Louisiana territory. Some even moved to Spanish Texas. The southerners tended to have more friction with the British Empire due to the British disapproval of slavery. As Parliament slowly tried to chip away at the institution, the southerners became more and more defiant, which led to the British being less lenient, creating a cycle of distrust.

In 1835, Parliament officially passed the Slavery Abolition Act, making slavery illegal across the empire. This was the spark that drove slaveowners to declare independence, leading to the second major American rebellion. However, this rebellion was different in that the North alligned with the British. The war was a slog, and in 1839, the UK and its loyal North American possessions were forced to come to a ceasefire with the pro-slavery rebels. While most of the rebels had been defeated east of the Mississippi, the loyalists failed in the isolated and heavily-armed West, and this newly independent territory called itself "New Virginia" after the first American colony. It became a destination for slaveowners who refused to let go of their assets, as well as those who simply rejected British rule. By 1850, the nation's population had doubled; and it only continued to grow.

In 1844, Texas (settled by Americans as early as 1805) threw off Mexican rule and joined New Virginia, giving the once landlocked country access to the sea. At the same time, pioneers from New Virginia began migrating to California, leading to that nation's independence in 1851. The UK, knowing that the colonies were still a political minefield, were reluctant to take any action.

As the Industrial Revolution came from across the water, Charlotina became the economic powerhouse of British North America. This worked in Britain's favor, as the colony had always been one of the most friendly toward London. Parliament felt comfortable letting Charlotina act like a proxy, and in 1865, all of Britain's North American holdings were consolidated into a confederation, with Detroit acting as a de facto capital.

In the early 1870's, as New Virginia began to take a more revanchist perspective toward their eastern neighbors. Louisiana, West Florida, and Tennessee had been brutally repressed since the end of the last rebellion, and many impoverished and marginalized folk felt that it was time for another rebellion -- one that might succeed in kicking out the British once and for all. The president of New Virginia at the time, John Hill Coke, couldn't have agreed more. However, he had missed his window. Under Charlotinian hegemony, the north of the BNA had become unified, wealthy, and accepting of British rule. The Deep South was now the only region where talk of secession was taken seriously. Nonetheless, Coke was determined to liberate this territory, and that would mean fighting the northern "traitors" as well. New Virginia militarized itself, conscripting en masse and stockpiling armaments from Germany.

In response, Parliament decided that New Virginia was an existential threat, and needed to be wiped off the continent. War had become a certainty.

In 1876, rebels in Louisiana attacked a British infantry regiment in Baton Rouge, marking the start of the Great American War...

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Guildencrantz:

Three generations have come and gone since the Americans attempted to liberate themselves from British rule the first time. By 1876, there had been multiple failed attempts to finish what the Patriots had started-the Democrats in the 30s, the Slaves in the 50s. But America has vastly changed since Paul Revere and company were hanged for treason-there is talk among the workers of liberation from crown and from capitalist. Inspired by the recent uprising in Berlin, railroad workers in Pittsboro, the beating heart of industrialization of America, took to the streets and wrested control of the Baltimore-Cuyahoga Railroad. They were soon joined by other radical workers and erected barricades all over the city. Workers all across the continent, united in discontent, rose up in solidarity, from the coal mines of the Wyoming Valley, to the docks of New Orleans, to the mills of New England, to the loggers of Vancouver, it seems as if the great-grandchildren of the 76 rebels have rekindled their desire for independence. Taking advantage of the chaos, the maroons of the South, mostly veterans of the 58-59 Slave Revolt, ride out of hiding and stir up dreams of freedom for their brothers and sisters.

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MotF 177: Ain't Big Enough for the Two of Us

The Challenge



Make a map of a region where two rivals share a substantial border.

Taniquetil:

The Imperial provinces of Valenwood and Elsweyr have never co-existed peacefully. Since the crisis of the Simulacrum, however, the homelands of the Bosmer and Khajiit have found themselves more at odds than ever. During Uriel VII's absence and imprisonment, the provinces warred amongst themselves. The Five Year War, fought between 395-399 of the Third Era, saw some of the most brutal fighting of this turmoil-filled time. Without direction from White-Gold Tower, the Legions stood by as wood elf and Khajiit slaughtered each other mercilessly in the arid wastes, razor-sharp mountains, and dense forests of the two southern provinces' mutual border.

Valenwood was accused of starting the war in early 395, when a party of Bosmer crossed the border and sacked the Khajiit capital of Torval. After several failed attempts at a response by the beleaguered Khajiit army (which had not seen battle of a significant kind since the conquests of Tiber Septim nearly four centuries prior), Valenwood's troops seemed poised to seize a great deal of the Tenmar Forests and controlled outright the plains and deserts of the western No-Quin-Al. Desperate for a reprieve, Elsweyr successfully negotiated a temporary truce, but broke it very shortly thereafter and fell upon the undefended village of Athay on the western side of the Xylo River, slaughtering hundreds of civilians. After the nearby town of Grenos was sacked as well, the tide of war had changed entirely; Khajiit forces - dispersed and loosely organized, yet no less effective - threatened even Valenwood's northern stronghold of Arenthia. With their forces scattered, the Bosmer of Vindisi, the only town standing between Arenthia and Elsweyr's armies, made the ultimate sacrifice, channeling the mythical Wild Hunt to repel the invaders. Consumed by bestial and arcane forces, they transformed into beasts larger and more powerful than even the strongest Senche-Raht of Anequina. Although Vindisi stopped the Khajiit in their tracks, its people did not recover.

Both nations, traumatized by unprecedented ferocity of fighting and dishonorable conduct by both sides, agreed to a truce in 3E 399. The Silvenar and other leaders of Valenwood (which had lost its southern islands and seen the vital port of Woodhearth destroyed in the concurrent War of the Blue Divide with Summerset), considered themselves lucky to only cede Athay, Grenos, and the west bank of the Xylo to Elsweyr, with some minor border adjustments in the south. Elsweyr, for its part, was only kept politically intact for the duration of the war by the calming influence of the Mane, the nation's spiritual leader. After the conclusion of the war and the restoration of Uriel VII to his throne, the kingdoms of Anequina and Pelletine again became fragmented in an unofficial sense, with much tension centered on the border town (and vital oasis) of Rabi-Ajo.

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Oliveia:

DECLINE OF GERMANIC RELATIONS POST-GREAT WAR
Following the victory of the Central Powers in the Great War, it appeared that Europe was destined for equilibrium. Western Europe was pretty much entirely left as part of status quo, while Eastern Europe saw herself split and strewn apart by Menshevik Russia having to give up the War. These Eastern states had pro-Germanic* governments set up (although the Central Powers really did not care for what government was installed unless if they wanted freedom from Germanic interests, leading to countries like the White Ruthenian Soviet State). However, the most important of these new states would be the Kingdom of Poland. This country laid herself out as a future catalyst for the deterioration of Germanic relations. Following the Treaty of Belgrade (the treaty that ended the Great War), both Austria-Hungary and Germany agreed to place Archduke Charles Stephen into power as King of Poland. The Kaiser used this peaceful period to begin what was then referred to the Project Pax Germanica, a colonial policy involving sending Poles systematically to labor camps and replacing them with Germans. This policy also applied to Poles in Polish-inhabited provinces in Germany. This policy triggered the creation of the Society of Polish Unity (SPU/TJP), a terrorist-activist group who tried to free Poland from Germanic influence. The most influential of these events would be the assassination of Charles Stephen and his son in 1924. This event split Germany and Austria-Hungary, with both sides trying to decide on an heir to the throne. Both countries began to challenge the others legitimacy, with propaganda heralding the Austro-Hungarians as the true heirs of Germany, with German propaganda displaying a proud, Bismarck-esque, caricature of Germany fighting against a clammy, conservative old man as an allegory for Austria. As both sides warily began to prepare for war, the people began to become disillusioned with their leaders, seeing them more and more as greedy and corrupt politicians who were spoiled by the times of war, and began revolting. Socialists rose in Berlin, proposing a German Soviet State or a German republican state. Hungarians rose against their Austrian masters, and Slavs likewise to their Hungarian masters. By the dawn of the third decade of the twentieth century, it had become unclear how long either nation would stand, and if War was on the horizon once more.

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Excelsior amuses us:

A House Divided
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This is 11454 Pruder Street, not to be confused with Pruder Way or Pruder Lane, home of the Bethersontons. Sharon and Anthony Bethersonton are currently in the middle of a divorce. This is the division of their house.

  • Blue: Tonyland (the garage). Sharon is not allowed in the garage, which is where Tony is currently sleeping. This also means that Sharon has to park her car on the driveway or on the street. Tony can only enter and exit the house through the back door to the garage and the garage door to the inside.
  • Green: Sharonistan. Tony is not allowed in Sharon's territories, which includes the kitchen, the main back door, the master bedroom and bathroom, the guest room, and the joint bathroom. Tony is only allowed in the kitchen once per day at exactly 6:13 AM to get all of his food for the day. He has to leave the kitchen by 6:25 AM, when Sharon wakes up. Sharon can only enter and exit the house through the back door.
  • Black: The neutral zone. Sharon and Tony are both allowed here at all times during the day, which includes the hallway, dining room, and main bathroom. Tony is only allowed to pass the central meridian to go to the kids bedrooms once per day, to say goodnight to the kids.
  • Red: No-fly zone. Neither Tony nor Sharon can use the front door or the area immediately inside the door. Neither party may keep their keys on the hook.
  • Disputed areas: The living room, the kids rooms, and basement. Both parties currently lay claim to these areas. According to the Good Friday Agreement, as negotiated by neighbor Tom, Tony can come in the living room when the Colts or Pacers are playing. Sharon can come in when The Bachelor and/or The Bachelorette and Game of Thrones are on. However, Sharon cannot come in if the Colts are playing Sunday Night Football at the same time as Game of Thrones. Similarly, Tony cannot come in if the Colts are playing Thursday Night Football or the Pacers are on against one of Sharon's shows. Tony is allowed to claim one more show at any time in the week since Sharon picked three shows, unless that show conflicts with one of Sharon's shows. Tony cannot pretend to suddenly care about baseball, hockey, or college sports to get more time in the living room. However, both parents can enter the living room in order to take parental action against a misbehaving child. Neither parent is allowed in the kids rooms except for the same reason or when they're at school. As for the basement, access to the stairs lies in the kitchen, which is held by Sharon, so Tony couldn't get in even if he wanted to. However, Sharon can't get in either because Tony changed the lock.
  • Outside: Tony is allowed in the backyard when the temperature is an odd number, Sharon when even. Temperatures must be sustained for at least three minutes. Access to the front yard is prohibited. Sharon must access the back door by going on the right side of the house, while Tony can go through the left side or the garage.
 
Tapreflex:

The Australia Crisis of 1960 was a century coming.

When British Australia (known internationally as Ulimaroa) struck gold in 1859, Chinese miners were quick to arrive to seek their fortune as any other immigrant. European Ulimaroans bemoaned their presence and believed them to be an economic and cultural threat. In 1860, Queensland passed legislation taxing Chinese workers and banning the emigration of their families, launching the precursors to the Preservation Acts. 3rd Viscount Canterbury, John Manners-Sutton, declared in a letter to Parliament that 'Providence has seen to it with good fortune that the Anglo-Saxon race shall wield authority over the Southern continent'. The New Canterbury Rebellion (1868) had racial overtones, with the rebel government executing Chinese and Afro-Americans as foreign agents. Over the next decade, limits on the entry of non-white immigrants increased. In 1884, with the English colonies of the Pacific fearing French invasion, the Imperial parliament passed the Federation of Ulimaroa Act. The act allowed for the creation of a Federal Council consisting of New Albany, South Australia, and Doleritia. Under this council, the Preservation Acts came into law, with the explicit goal of preserving Ulimaroa's Anglo-Saxon culture.

New Pale feared loss of autonomy, and opted out of federation. The landed class in North Australia and Queensland feared the curtailing of non-European immigration as Melanesians and Afro-American labor formed the basis of their sugar industry. The New Zealand and Fiji colonies had developed a separate identity away from Ulimaroa, and ultimately would not participate in any future federation. The advent of the refrigerator changed the game for North Australia and Queensland, with ranching magnates and farmhand unions working together to contest the power of the sugar interests. The ranchers tended to identify with the Ulimaroan identity, and both Queensland and North Australia joined the Federation of Ulimaroa in 1899. In 1900, in order to undercut the power of the sugar farmers, a quota of foreign labor was instituted which stipulated numbers well below the contemporary number of laborers. Around 300,000 Afro-Americans, Indians, and Melanesians were deported to Singapore, and the 50,000 remaining laborers came under constant fear of deportation. Aboriginal Australians would generally avoid the fate, though there are notable cases of entire aboriginal families being sent to Singapore. They would however, come under significant stress from rancher encroachment onto vital territory, disease, and communal violence. The Bureau of Health and Welfare consolidated powers from the previous institutions over the Ulimaroan populace, including powers of deportation, sterilization, and under certain criteria eradication.

The French half of Australia (Nouvelle Hollande) on the other hand, developed significantly differently. Nouvelle Hollande was always multi-ethnic, with the arrival of several West Africans on Bougainville's Fourth Voyage as well as American whalers who had set up shop in what is now Saint Malo. The French population was stagnant, and their own natural growth could not sustain a large colony. So the French utilized their Australian colony as a penal colony for the entirety of their colonial Empire, and exiled Fula Kings, Italian cobblers, Berber nomads, and Vietnamese soldiers would meet in the red soil of Nouvelle Hollande. They brought with them crops and practices suited to the rigorous landscape. Camels, hardy varieties of goats and cattle, sorghum, and peanuts have taken well to New Hollandese life, and form staples for the majority of the populace. Irish and Italian settlers would form the majority, though significant populations from West Africa, East Asia, and North Africa would arrive as well. French interest beyond penal colony and naval base was initially limited, with pearl-diving and whaling bases allowed to turn profit on the land. The primary arrangement of society saw independent naval bases lording over great plots of land, with the immigrants working fields to profit and feed the French Navy.

The Mutiny of 1854 saw the transfer of political power from the Navy to a native european landed elite. These New Hollandese elites would petition the 3rd Republic for representation in the Metropolitan Parliament, which in 1860, granted an MP for each colony. New Hollandese soldiers would participate in colonial struggles in East Africa, Southeast Asia and the Pacific, developing a collective sense of national identity. Ethnic violence was not infrequent, with clashes between the settlers and aboriginal people, French and non-French Europeans, Europeans and non-Europeans. Intense assimilationist programs were encouraged, however, and society began aligning more around a class-consciousness than a racial one, with different trade unions all working collectively against the primarily French and Italian upper class. Franchise and citizenship were extended to all New Hollandese men in 1879, with the first Japanese-Hollander being elected to French Parliament that year. A New Hollandese identity was created around the universal applicability of French culture, with New Hollandese culture incorporating several aspects of immigrant culture like siestas, brewing, and sorghum bread. The introduction of camels has allowed alternative avenues of life for many desert aboriginal people, and the French government has allowed them large tracts of (primarily desert) land. The New Hollandese school system and a subsidized public French course are the primary tools of assimilation, as most New Hollandese have an unwavering belief that anyone can be taught to be New Hollandese.

Anglo-French cooperation during the Great Eastern War and the Chinese Independence War led to the Australian Cooperation Council, with New Hollandese and Ulimaroan representatives seeking to work together on water management, immigration, military cooperation, economic development, and cross-border cultural ties. In 1920, with troubles in Hindustan causing an decrease in the supply of sugar, sugar farmers once again began to accrue political power in Ulimaroa, and the demand for foreign labor increased once more. The ACC passed an agreement allowing 40,000 laborers from Nouvelle Hollande to work in the fields of North Australia and Queensland. These laborers were primarily from the mixed race groups of Nouvelle Hollande (Gormie and Batare people, Irish-Malay/African and French-Aboriginal respectively). Over the next few decades, the borders began to open up between the two Australias, with as many as 470,000 New Hollandese laborers working in Ulimaroan agriculture in 1956. In 1958, there were close to 1.2 million New Hollandese in Ulimaroa, and around 980,000 Ulimaroans in Nouvelle Hollande.

However, following the Economic Downturn of 1959 and a decisive loss dealt to Ulimaroan and New Zealander troops in the Battle of Port Elizabeth in the Xhosa Revolutionary War, the Ulimaroan electorate shifted rightward. The Conservative Party had to track rightwards to keep from losing votes to nationalist and right-wing populist candidates. The ACC and New Hollandese came under fire by xenophobic elements in Ulimaroan society, and the Bureau of Health and Welfare began rounding up New Hollandese citizens for deportation. The New Hollandese embassy was attacked by mobs chanting 'Black swans, no Black Johns'. North Australian law enforcement refused to begin round-ups, remembering the economic disruption caused last time, and elements in Williamsborough are talking openly of secession. Clashes between Federal BHW agents and Pandoran police erupted in January 1960 over the arrest of Ulimaroan citizens of New Hollandese descent. In response, Nouvelle Hollande has quietly pressured repatriation of both New Hollandese home and Ulimaroans to their homeland.

On Friday, 26th of February 1960, Ulimaroan intelligence 'discovered' communications between Auguste and Williamsborough extending military aide and economic support to an independent North Australia. Ulimaroan PM John Welcoth sent Lord Ramsay from Bolton to Williamsborough with the Royal Armed Forces of Ulimaroa to stamp out secessionism in the North. Most of the international community believe the communique tto be falsified, and Nouvelle Hollande officially supports the territorial integrity of Ulimaroa. Nouvelle Hollande and Ulimaroa suspended the ACC, and have begun flyovers of border cities. Tensions are growing along 2,400 miles of border.


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Water123:

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The year was 1204.

Constantinople was now in Catholic hands. The Byzantine Emperor fled with his tail between his legs to his base in Nicaea. However, in a rather unprecedented move, the Pope kind of jutted into the whole situation. The pope demanded that he be allowed to help appoint candidates for ruler-ship in this new "Latin Empire." The Venetians, not wanting to upset the Pope, begrudgingly agreed.

The Pope appointed a series of people to help rule the Latin Empire. These people were not only relatively friendly to the Pope, but also a lot better stewards than the ones appointed OTL. This lead to the Latin Empire becoming a lot more centralized and powerful than OTL, which caused all kinds of butterflies.

The Fifth Crusade was a wild success with the new, stable Latin Empire. Egypt was overrun, and so was Jerusalem, with the Islamic armies absolutely crushed at the Battle of Sinai and the Battle of Galilee. Venice became one of the great powers of Europe, and soon further crusades were launched into Armenia and Syria. The Russian states, seeing that trade with Europe would now only really be viable if they converted to Catholicism, slowly came into the Roman fold as a way to one-up their rivals.

The first major butterfly, however, was an English victory in a war for the kingdom of France. For a period of around a decade, England was the strongest power in Europe, being able to even threaten Venetian trade at some points. However, after the death of the English king, the Angevin empire split into pieces, as the many sons of the emperor battled it out for supremacy. With papal permission, the Holy Roman Emperor swept into France, annexing most of it into the Empire to ensure peace. While this might have temporarily strengthened Holy Roman Imperial power, within a generation the ambitious dukes of the former French kingdom were trying their best to decentralize the kingdom. At the same time, major Christian incursions into northwestern Africa ensured that by 1524 there were no Muslim kingdoms on the North African coast. After completing the Reconquista, the Castilian kingdom released the Knights of Calatrava to Papal investigation, hoping that it would be dissolved and it's rich fortunes taken by the crown. Unexpectedly, the Pope allowed the Knights to not only continue existing, but to spearhead a Christian invasion of Morocco. The Knights of Calatrava soon found themselves in charge of Morocco after invading around the same time as an invasion from remnants of the Songhai empire.

In the Islamic world, the embarrassment of losing so many holy wars to the Christians lead to a massive series of popular uprisings in Arabia. A group of Turks ended up returning to their home in the Steppes, where they found themselves under pressure from the expanding Kartelevian kingdom, but most quietly assimilated into Byzantine, Armenian, or Latin society. The Omani, who had up until that point remained content to stay in Oman proper, made a significant amount of expansion, normalizing Ibadi Islam and actually defeating the Eighth Crusade.

Meanwhile, it began to rub shoulders with the aforementioned Kartelevian kingdom. With the Islamic states to the south of them were busy defending against the Crusades, Georgia expanded into the surrounding kingdom. For a while, it looked like Georgia would become the primary Caucasian power. However, Queen Rusadan of Georgia would not simply settle for that. She formed an alliance with the Alans, and eventually vassalized them as the Catholic Russians and Pechenegs made more and more incursions. After winning a pair of decisive wars, she began to expand into the wide, rather empty Steppes. Kartelevia still has problems with demographics, with there being simply not enough Georgians to fill their empire, but record food surpluses and peace are rapidly changing that.

Genghis Khan was slain in a duel against a rival, and while Mongolia was unified, it never would dream of the success it would have OTL. However, with no Mongol invasions, the Goryeo kingdom would have time to quietly build it's army, and when a massive succession crisis and famine rocked the Song dynasty, Goryeo launched a full scale invasion, eventually seizing the Chinese throne. This new Hong dynasty would both spread Korean culture into China, and Chinese culture into Korea. However, this mostly lead to both peoples being assimilated into each other, much to conservative's horror.

The Black Death occurs around the same time as OTL, paving the way for many of the aforementioned changes.

Meanwhile, in Europe, a Portuguese explorer would discover the Americas in 1435. With no real ability to colonize, Europe would slowly discover more and more of it before eventually Portugal lands colonists in Cuba. Making a deal with the pope, Portugal was able to claim the Lion's share of the Americas, invading and conquering the bickering Nahua kingdoms between 1450 and 1500.

In 1461, a Bohemian bishop, returning home appalled from the horrific excesses of the Papacy in Rome, decided that the only way to truly serve God would be if he started his own church that did not have that taint. Allegedly, in one night, said bishop completely rewrote a lot of the Catholic liturgy in Czech and in a more interactive way. This Neoliturgical church spread like wildfire across Europe. By 1521, several kingdoms had converted to this new religion.

In the Latin Empire, the Neoliturgical church became extremely popular. Greek Orthodoxy had finally been outlawed in 1391, but most Greeks chaffed under the rather opaque and alien Catholic liturgy, which had become even more skewed from the traditions they were familiar with over time. The Neoliturgical "Unified Churches" allowed them to both "have their cake and eat it too," and avoid becoming an Orthodox Christian, which was seen as an underclass. Eventually, even the Latin Emperor was forced to convert. This started the Duke and Count's War between the Latin Empire and pretty much all of it's neighbors. Eventually a full Crusade was called on the Neoliturgicals. However, the crusade failed miserably. The Holy Roman princes were too busy squabbling to send any troops, the Russian states were fighting each other, the Iberian states were fighting each other, and most of the states that did send troops sent their auxiliaries and reserves. In a

series of decisive battles, the Papal army was smashed, and so with it the crusader spirit.

With the effective end of the crusades, another group stepped out of the shadows. The Cathar movement was not quite as suppressed as OTL, allowing it to truly gain a following in southern France. With the failure of the crusade, this group officially broke ties on their end with the Catholic Church, and formed the "Mystical Church of the True Jesus." This church would spread even farther than Neoliturgicalism would. It basically was gnosticism lite, saying that the Bible was true and that you could get married and similar things, but you could also receive special revelations from God if you were a good enough Christian. Gender equality was also practiced. Mysticism spread through Europe, drawing away even more Catholics. By 1521, while not completely toothless, the Papacy was increasingly being seen as a relic of a bygone era.

The Dutch also had their own mini-reformation, converting to a kind of Arian Christianity who's complexities could fill an entire library.

Thus, the world stands as it is pictured. Colonization of America is beginning to really pick up the pace. An age of exploration was beginning. And overall, for Europe, the disparity between itself and the rest of the world was growing. For now.

On a small ship returning from Mexico, a priest was not able to stop coughing. He had been working with the natives for six months, who had fallen sick from some disease. He groaned and fell back into bed. He felt his head. Fever. He would have to send for a medicus when he arrived in Europe. He looked at himself in the mirror, and, to his surprise, saw a trickle of blood leave his ear. He felt it. It was real. He shook his head. Someone must have cursed him in Mexico too. Oh well, he thought to himself, sitting back down. Soon I will be home, with friends again, and things will be better. And little did he know, as he set foot in Galicia, that he would doom 70% of Europe.
 
NeonHydroxide:

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The Far Eastern Republic has its roots in the spring of 1920, as a provisional government was formed in Chita to fill the power vacuum caused by the withdrawal of Japanese and American occupying forces from the Amur region following the final defeat of Admiral Kolchak's White Army and the fall of Irkutsk to Bolshevik forces. Initially, both the Japanese and Bolshevik governments recognized the republic's sovereignty early on to act as a buffer state between them, but neither intended to leave the territory to the other. In April of 1921, the Japanese struck first by supporting a right-wing coup in the capital, which successfully seized control and established a military regime which signed official
treaties of mutual assistance with Japan, essentially transforming the region into a Japanese colony. The Soviet government, unwilling to go to war against Japan, was forced to accept the state's independence in the long term, though it revoked its official recognition in 1923, claiming it as occupied Soviet territory.

The nearly 3000 kilometer long border between the Soviet Union and the F.E.R. was for almost two decades one of the most militarized in the world, though this did not stop refugees and dissidents from escaping across the Baikal or via remote mountain passes, nor the odd Japanese intelligence agent from sneaking into Irkutsk. The Republic ended in 1945 with the Soviet declaration of war on Japan, after which the entire region was overrun within a few weeks and integrated immediately into the R.S.F.S.R., with the immigrant Japanese population who failed to escape being deported to Kazakhstan. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the former F.E.R. remained a part of Russia, though a significant secessionist movement remains to this day, with between twenty and thirty percent of the population in favor.
 
MotF 178: Why They Changed It I Can't Say

The Challenge

Make a map featuring a city which has undergone a recent name change.

ruth:
It was suggested I enter my recent map to the thread, and it seemed like a perfect fit! Enjoy.

San Francisco (桑港 Sōkō), officially the San Francisco Metropolis (桑港都 Sōkō-to), is the capital of the Pacific States of America. Consisting of 17 wards, 13 cities, 2 towns, and 5 villages, it forms one of the major municipalities of the San Francisco Bay Metropolitan Region, the second-largest metropolitan region in the Pacific States.

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Reagent:

This is a joint entry between myself and @Implied , the following text is courtesy of him:

The Fourth Shore:

- 1830: King George-Leopold I of Greece
- 1832: Establishment of the ruling Triumvirate comprised of King Leopold, First Minister Kapodistrias, and General-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Kolokotronis
- 1843: End of the Triumvirate with the death of Kolokotronis
- 1856: Expansion into the Thessaly region and purchase of the Ionian Islands following the Crimean War; Cyprus is also leased to the United Kingdom at this time
- 1861: Establishment of the Greco-Italian Friendship following Italian unification

- 1865: King Leonidas I of the Hellenes
- 1868: Prince Umberto of Piedmont, the future King of Italy is wed to Princess Maria of Greece, sister to King Leonidas of Greece
- 1878: Expansion into the Epirus region following the Russo-Turkish War, and establishment of an autonomous Cretan State within the Ottoman Empire
- 1880: Establishment of Italian Tunisia
- 1885: Berlin Conference guarantees recognition of Greek colonies in Africa if a de facto Hellenic presence exists, in line with the conference's establishment of "The Principle of Effective Occupation."
- 1890: Expansion into Western Macedonia following an outbreak of hostilities against the Ottoman Empire; the Cretan State's status is revised to vassalhood under Ottoman suzerainty with a Greek High Commissioner overseeing the island's administration
- 1900: Crown Prince Constantine of Greece is wed to Princess Sofia of Serbia
- 1904: King Constantine I of the Hellenes. A secret agreement between Greece and Italy trades recognition a hypothetical eventual annexation of the port of Vlorë and the island of Sazan in return for granting Greece sole rights to the region of Cyrenaica
- 1905: Establishment of the Principality of Crete in personal union with the Kingdom of Greece; Joint Greco-Italian invasion of Libya
- 1906: Establishment of Greek Cyrenaica
- 1907: Establishment of the Balkan League, Bosnian Crisis breaks out in response
- 1908: Bosnian Crisis is peacefully resolved

- 1910: Outbreak of the Balkan War
- 1911: Expansion into Central and Eastern Macedonia + Western and parts of Eastern Thrace, purchase of Dodecanese Islands from Italy, and unification with Crete following the end of the Balkan War. Establishment of the Italian-controlled Principality of Albania
- 1914: Outbreak of the First Great War
- 1915: War declaration against Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria "in defense of Serbia" after extensive negotiations with the Allies for compensation in the forms of the cession of Cyprus by the United Kingdom, as well as unspecified areas of Anatolia, including but not limited to the Holy City of Constantinople and the Anatolian Straits
- 1918: In order to enforce Greek claims in Asia Minor and against the Holy City of Constantinople, King Constantine I is declared King and Autocrat of the Hellenes; First Great War comes to an end
- 1919: Greco-Turkish War breaks out
- 1920: Successful coup carried out in Constantinople by an Orthodox paramilitary group sees the Holy City finally ceded to the Kingdom of Greece
- 1923: Wave of migrations from the defeated Whites faction in the former Russian Empire to the newly-liberated Orthodox Capital of Constantinople following their defeat in the Russian Civil War
- 1924: The Asia Minor Campaign is disastrously mishandled, resulting in a full retreat and subsequent armistice, accompanied by a population exchange; the Asia Minor refugees are largely resettled in Macedonia, Thrace, and Greek Cyrenaica. Greece is granted inland extension to her Cyrenaican colony at the expense of British Egypt, as compensation for Asia Minor losses and because Greece has previously protested on numerous occasions against Britain's perceived lack of interest in putting down the Senussi Insurgency operating out of the area
- 1925: The Asia Minor Disaster and the failure of the Megali Idea leads to an attempted scapegoating of the King by anti-monarchist factions, resulting in rising internal tensions that ultimately culminate in a national schism which erupts into a brief civil war
In its aftermath, an authoritarian, nationalist, monarchist regime is established

- 1937: Alexander I, King and Autocrat of the Hellenes
- 1939: Outbreak of the Second Great War
- 1941: Axis Occupation of Greece starts following a joint Bulgarian-German-Turkish invasion
- 1944: Axis Occupation of Greece ends following a joint Greco-Italian counter-invasion
- 1946: End of the "Long War" with Turkey when the Allied Powers pressure her into finally signing a Peace Treaty with Greece. Meanwhile, a civil war breaks out between pro- and anti-Communist factions following the nation's liberation from the Axis Occupation
- 1948: Civil War ends, authoritarian, nationalist, monarchist, anti-Communist regime is re-established; the colony of Greek Cyrenaica is turned into a full region within the Kingdom of Greece
- 1952: Expulsion of Egyptian Greeks following the Egyptian Revolution in light of standing Arab Nationalists resentment towards the perceived ongoing "colonisation" efforts being undertaken in Cyrenaica
- 1961: Cyrenaican Oil Fields discovered, prompting the first of a new set of migration waves to Greek Cyrenaica
- 1965: Establishment of Hellenic Repatriation Program; using oil funds, ethnic Greeks are welcomed back to their ancestral homeland, where the economy is beginning to experience an unprecedented boom due to the exploitation of Greek Cyrenaica's massive oil reserves
- 1974: OPEC oil embargo

- 1986: Ioannis I, King and Autocrat of the Hellenes

The full timeline can be found here: https://www.alternatehistory.com/forum/threads/the-fourth-shore.445392/


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Full image: https://www.deviantart.com/reagentah/art/The-Fourth-Shore-749278333
 
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The Tai-Pan:

This from a Civil War avoided TL I am working on. Douglas wins election in 1856. Many things happen but through luck, hard work, the Corwin Amendment and more then a little force, Douglas manages to avoid a full blown civil war. As part of the reconciliation that happens after the Southern Insurrection, the first Transcontinental Railway is built. After much debate, discussion and open vote-buying Congress decides on a Southern route through the Southwest. While ostensibly this is to avoid the high peaks and terrible snows of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, it is clear it is a sop to the powerful pro-slavery interests in Congress. Clearly they hope that this railway can export slavery to the Southwest, the last viable place for the 'peculiar institution' to grow. The pro-slavery propaganda already seems to be paying off as, in a patriotic fever, Prescott Arizona formally changes their name to Jefferson. It should be noted this isn't to honor Thomas Jefferson, but Jefferson Davis, the Senator who most strongly supported the Southern route for the railway. While the rest of the nation is rocketing toward emancipation and constitutional convention, the Southwest, at least, seems to have been won over by the railway.

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TapReflex:

The Three main migrations of the Cherokee to the land they would call Saquunoquisinvsv or the One Star Land:

1809-1815: The Diwali Movement, with Chief Di'Wali leading traditionalist Cherokee into Mexico under the pretenses of returning to a less agrarian-centric method of life.

1827-1834: Population growth, the End of the Slaver Wars (with confiscation and land clearances), and friction between the Westernized elite and the traditionalist populace at large encouraged many young Cherokee to join in the British invasion of Mexico, where many would settle to find cheap land. Together alongside Scottish veterans, British agricultural interests, and Tejano landholders, they would form the Republic of Fredonia.

1878-1883: The Fredonian Government bans the importation of labor from Asia, and begins contracting Cherokee laborers. This was the largest of the migrations with close to 58,000 Cherokee entering Fredonia.

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MotF 179: Third Place Ain't So Bad
The Challenge


Make a map depicting a "Third-World" or developing country which is better off than in our timeline.

The Restrictions

For this round, the POD of your map must be after 1945. Fantasy and science fiction maps are permitted as long as they meet all other requirements.
 
Olivea:

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THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA

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Following the end of the Second World War, the Slavic guerrillas who fought against Axis occupation headed the nation of Yugoslavia, led by Josip Broz (henceforth referred to by his common alias of "Tito"). Immediately, they created a socialist state in Yugoslavia. Tito's strategies were intriguing and complex, including what some refer to as the "Tito Side-Switch," where Tito received aid from Stalinist Russia and support in Yugoslav annexation of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania, which was achieved in the late hours of December 31st, 1949; this annexation was shortly preceded by the annexation of Greek Macedonia into the country, due to overwhelming socialist presence in the region. Following these excursions, as well as creating a puppet-state in Bulgaria (with British support) some years prior, Tito officially cut ties with the Soviet Union, forming the Non-Aligned Movement about a decade following this. Tito spent time preparing for his demise, while ensuring stability in Yugoslavia, and, upon his death in 1980, Lazar Koliševski came into power. Following his retirement in 1990, (the end of the Lazar Era, as it is known in Yugoslavia), the presidential terms drew shorter and the leaders became less communist.
However, tragedy soon struck in the Socialist Republic of Bosnia-and-Herzegovina, where radical militant groups began massacring Moslem Bosniaks in what would be referred to as the Bosniak War, where a massive insurgency occurred, headed by radical Orthodox-Serbian organizations. The conflict saw massive amounts of Croats and Moslems massacred or expelled from homelands, and the lingering threat of full civil war in all socialist republics within Yugoslavia. Following the end of the war in 1997 (the war beginning four years prior, but strong, centralized resistance was captured by Yugoslav forces two years into the war, with the second half mostly being guerrilla conflicts), a referendum was held to observe public opinion on a change in government to reflect on the end of the Cold War. The vote was generally agreed upon to evolve Yugoslavia into a democratic republic. These reforms saw Yugoslavia become a more "Scandinavian socialist" country, and saw the nation join the European Union just two months later. In order to aid re-population and reconstruction in the areas most affected in the Bosniak War, "safe zones" have been created for Moslems to repopulate (see the dotted regions within Bosnia-Herzegovina on the map above), and is projected to be lifted in 2001.

"FROM THE ALPS TO THE AEGEAN, TITO'S DREAM LIVES ON"
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NeonHydroxide:

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The United Arab Republic was established in 1958 as a union between Egypt and Syria. Although enthusiasm for pan-Arabism in principle was high across the near East, the first few years were rife with political tension. While the Egyptians were committed to the personal leadership of President Nasser (a hero across the region for his public and successful resistance to both the Soviets and West), the Syrians were more ideologically committed to Baathism in principle. Nasser's untimely death in 1961 threatened to tear the country apart, but after months of compromise, the situation stabilized into a single-party pseudo-democracy, dominated by the Baath party but with somewhat free local and party elections. Over the next two decades, the Republic welcomed more nations into its folds, both willingly and less so: North Yemen acceded in 1962 after the UAR-backed overthrow of its monarchy; Iraq and Libya joined in 1969 and 1971 respectively following Baathist coups; Sudan joined willingly in 1973, Tunisia was taken by coup in 1974, and Lebanon was integrated in 1976 following the UAR intervention in the 1975 civil war. Currently, the UAR is a major leader of the non-aligned movement, though it has moved closer to the Soviets in the past years due to American support for Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Iran.
 
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