Ares96:
French Revolution-punk!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1797. The year when Napoleon Bonaparte and his army raced across Northern Italy, moving from victory to victory and creating several free and
independent republics (at least on paper; in reality they were usually French client states). At the time, the executive body of the fledgling French
republic was called the Directory, consisted of five men chosen by a bicameral parliament which in turn was chosen by the people. It was starting to
look shaky, though, and any ambitious military man could potentially destroy this system in a military coup, which was the way in which it had been
instated. The French Army had an Aerostatic Corps, which deployed balloons for pre-battle reconnaissance, creating what was effectively the world's
first air force.
Most other nations than France, however, were staunchly monarchistic, and would not see a republic asserting itself in Europe. They believed firmly
in the Divine Right of Kings, and most of their subjects were frightened by the French imposters who claimed that ordinary men could rule a nation
and that royals were not special beings in any way. This was proven when, a few years down the line, a French Republican general-turned-
ambassador named Jean Bernadotte (the same Jean Bernadotte who would later become King Karl XIV Johan of Sweden) was assaulted by an
angry mob outside his embassy in Vienna. The Austrian Habsburg Monarchy was the largest of the Royalist nations, and was widely considered as
France's primal enemy. They accepted peace with France in October of 1797, ceding large swathes of lands to France and gobbling up most of the
old Republic of Venice. They were, however, still ready to go to war against the French at any suitable time.
So, what would happen in a world where the fears, hopes, dreams, and sentiments of this year continued until the present day? Let's look into a
world where Europe is divided sharply between republics and monarchs, where kings, dukes and princes reign more or less supreme in their
domains, where great gleaming balloons and airships fill the sky both in military and civilian versions, and where the French still celebrate the sans-
culottides and use the ten-day week (though with two 'weekends' of two days instead of a single three-day weekend). This is Revolution-punk World.
Looking at a map of Revolution-punk World on 1 Fructidor, Year CCXIX (known among royalists as August 23, 2011 AD), one can easily see how
divided this world is between republican and royalist nations. The Rhine and the Adige are heavily-militarised borderlands, where vast armies of both
factions are massed waiting for the inevitable great war. The French have just developed a new kind of light gas to fill airships with, making new
models of military airships able to carry much heavier weaponry related to their size. In response, the Army of the Federated Crowns of the Danube
(consisting of Austria, Hungary, Galicia, Croatia and Servia) have developed a new kind of stahlhengst (tank) gun, which can fire even cluster bombs
with remarkable neatness and accuracy (if cluster bombs can ever be seen as accurate). Technological progress has been going like this for over
two centuries; it's all one long arms race, with every other branch of technology a bit neglected. The world, therefore, can be said to resemble
interwar Great Britain in our world by social standard, though this world is of course far more technologically advanced than that. There have been
proxy wars between the French and the Austrians in the past century, although there has been no movement of armies within Europe since the
Treaty of Passau back in 1912, which ended the Five Months' War, an attempted revolution in the Swabian principalities which was brutally crushed
between the Austrian hammer and the Prussian anvil.
Now follows a brief summary of what life is like in each superpower as of Year CCXIX.
---
The French Republic is one of this world's three superpowers, the other two being the Federated Crowns, staunchly monarchistic, and the
monarchic but progressive and largely neutral British Imperial Federation. French people are usually very proud of their nation and its achievements,
almost to the point of arrogance; such feelings are only natural for people who have grown up hearing tales about the Revolution, the great
campaigns of Kléber, Bonaparte, Jourdan, Bernadotte and the other generals of the time, and the huge social advancement which has stemmed out
of these events. However, France has a lower population than the Federated Crowns, and so it has to rely on either colonial populations or high
maximum work hour limits. As it claims to be the 'bastion of freedom and social equality', this naturally can't be done to the metropolitans who
supported the Republic from birth to death.
Instead, it uses a system for its industry that is similar to that of the Royalist French Navy before the Revolution; criminals who have tried to subvert
the Republic suffer, instead of imprisonment, a punishment that can be most closely described as midway between community service and serving
time in forced labour camps. A few walled 'special industrial cities' exist in various places in France; these contain criminals who have been arrested
for anything from embezzlement of public funds to drug trafficking to political assassination. These criminals, or 'citizens undergoing special
reeducation' as the official term has it, live in a routine that consists mostly of industrial work (usually turning out armaments for the Republic's
military), but also of 'reeducation', which is done through various evening classes (every citizen gets to choose what classes to take, as long as he
gets in a certain amount of time each week. They're all either trivial matters or indoctrination through propaganda, so the difference is really one of
mere flavour). They are constantly watched by secret police; agents always move among them, all apartments are bugged, and all communication is
listened. Anything subversive or unorthodox is brutally cracked down upon.
Regular citizens, however, lead quite a good life. They usually have both telephones and teletext machines in their homes, there is little
unemployment, most of them own horstcars (with apologies to Jared for stealing the word), there is a social security net and state-funded pensions
for loyal workers, working hours are short by TTL standards (forty-eight hours a week is the maximum legal work hours; this is still less than a
British worker has to put up with, God forbid the Austrians), and homes are usually quite spacious and well-equipped. The government consists of a
Senate (a unicameral parliament formed from the Council of Ancients and the Council of Five Hundred by the government reform of 1881), which is
elected popularly every three years, two Consuls (again, this practice was adopted in 1881) who are chosen by the Senate and the regional
assemblies every three years (the election normally happens in early Brumaire, about two months after the Senate is elected) and preside over the
Senate as well as the council of ministers (there exists an informal separation of powers, where the Senior Consul takes care of the council of
ministers leaving the Senate presidium to the Junior Consul), and a high court whose judges are appointed by the Senate for nine-year periods and
all of whom can be impeached at any time by a majority vote in the Senate.
---
The Federated Crowns of the Danube consists of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdoms of Hungary, Galicia-Lodomeria, Croatia, and Servia. It's
commonly referred to as Austria by foreigners; calling it that in front of a Hungarian, though, may result in reactions ranging from an annoyed grunt
to an angry rant on why it's not just Austria anymore. It is certainly true that all of the kingdoms within the Federated Crowns were created out of
Austria, but these days all five nations are roughly equal in their level of autonomy (except for Hungary, which is slightly more autonomous than the
others). There is one ruler whose simplified title is X, by the Grace of God Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, of Galicia and Lodomeria, of the
Croats and the Serbs, Protector of the Danube and its Federated States, President of the Royal European Concert and innumerable ducal,
comital and other noble titles.
Currently that man is called Francis IV, and has reigned since 1986. He is a happy-go-lucky kind of monarch, who is happy with taking his huge
yearly appanage and leaving affairs of state to appointed ministers. This is a stark contrast to his predecessor Leopold XIV, who formed his own
opinion on almost all decisions, and would usually force his ministers (who were almost universally regarded as stooges) to execute his wishes
instead of doing what serves the interest of his peoples.
Francis scorned his authoritarian father on a level reminiscent of the early Hanoverian dynasty of Great Britain. He became widely known for his
sensuality and his penchant for large parties (or orgies, as some ungodly republican scum has referred to them), the activities on which would often
cause court scandals. After he met his wife-to-be, the young princess Maria Augusta of Saxony, who was known for her beauty, her strong Christian
faith and her marked contempt for republican ideas, he was a changed man, and stopped with his lavish ways. He now socialised only with his wife,
with whom he was (obviously to anyone who saw him) deeply in love, and a small circuit of friends, and his confessor.
When he ascended the throne, he was forty-two years old, but anyone who saw him would guess he was at least sixty. He was still a jolly
character, with remarkable wit and a penchant for throwing feasts, but he was also a very matured gentleman who enjoyed long airship cruises and
hunting sessions. His face was weathered by all the hunting trips, and his wit was turning into a more cynical kind. He left governing to a few hand-
picked politicians, most of whom have been in charge of the various ministries for Francis' entire reign.
A notable exception is the Hochwehlgeboren Count Friedrich Albert von Wolsfeldt-Pouilly, who was Minister for Internal Affairs from 1986 to 1993,
when his actions caused a scandal. He had namely used money from the treasury to buy several luxury items for himself, including a luxury
horstcar, several hand-tailored Italian tailcoats, and a year's consumption worth of fine Helvetian chocolate. The scandal this caused was enormous,
especially since his pay was so generous that he would have been able to buy these items with relative ease after just a couple of months. The
Emperor was furious at this act of embezzlement, dismissed the Count, and stripped from him the several manors and castles with fiefdoms that he
had been granted over the years of loyal service to both Francis and his father. He was replaced by Count Ferenc Szapáry von Muraszombat, a
Hungarian nobleman who had been showing economical talent as an advisor to Count Friedrich Albert.
The life of the average subject of the Danubian Emperor is by OTL standards quite a laborious one. Most industrial workers are forced by their
employers to work sixty-hour weeks for only about a thousand florins a week. The only day they have free from work is Sunday, and on that day
most of them go to church in the mornings to pray for the welfare of the Emperor and his Nations, to listen to sermons, receive the Holy Communion
and confess their sins. Sunday afternoons, however, are a leisurely time for the Danubians, and it is common to go on long horstcar trips (if they've
been lucky enough to be able to purchase a horstcar, that is) to visit relatives or take part in a communal activity of some sort. All Danubians, by
law, also have Holy Week, a week around Christmas and at least three weeks in the summer off from work, and although these vacations are
commonly spent around home or visiting relatives, the Dalmatian coast and the Carpathian Mountains are popular vacation destinations. Few people
can actually afford to go abroad, but among the rich the Sorrentine Peninsula has become immensely popular, essentially becoming TTL's Riviera.
---
The British Imperial Federation is a large compound of various different nations of greatly differing cultures, languages and goals. It was born out of
the British Empire in the 1930s, and seemed like a nice idea at first. However, over time it has become painfully apparent to everyone that not only
is there absolutely no cohesion of purpose within the Federation, there is also such a heavy bureaucracy that even applying for an increased pension
rate on your salary takes several weeks of slow processing. The federation consists of fifteen kingdoms: Great Britain, Ireland, Senegambia, the
Ivory Coast (sic), Sokoto, Nigeria, Benin, the Mahrata Confederacy, Central India, Carnatic, Greater Bengal, the Punjab, Malaya, Australasia, and
the Caribbean Federation. Each one of these kingdoms has its own government with a Parliament and a Cabinet, and they all have their own agenda
to set forth in the Parliament of the Federation, which is located in a fairly new building in Southwark, overlooking the Thames. The only unifying
factor is the King-Emperor, and he has almost no political power anymore. The Imperial Government, which in theory acts on behalf of the King-
Emperor, but which in practice makes decisions independently of royal authority, consists of the Parliament, the Federal Council (which consists of
the British Prime Minister and one representative each of all the other nations, and functions as collective head of government), His Majesty's
Federal Cabinet (whose members are elected by the Council for an unregulated term, but which in practice always ends when a new Council is
elected), and the Federal High Court.
The life of the average Brit is reminiscent of OTL Britain pre-1914. They have to work hard in factories for ten hours a day, and usually also
Saturdays, and pay is meagre. There are, however, several improvements; for example, there are now minimum wage and maximum work hour
regulations in place, and the sick and unemployed receive a small social welfare payment each week. Offtime pleasures are about the same as for
Danubians, except less horstcar travel and more activities within the nuclear family.
The United Provinces of South America was founded after a revolt in Spanish America, which in turn was caused by poor colonial management and
opportunism when Spain was divided by the Carlist Wars. The provinces of the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata declared their independence as the
United Provinces of South America at the Assembly of Year XXXIV, held in October of 1826. The republic that was founded was, however, almost as
dual-sided as the Spanish colonial management had been; however, the rebels were squabbling not over who should be leader, but over the amount
of autonomy that should be granted to its provinces. Eventually, at the Congress of Tucuman in 1827, the centralists (the faction that wanted strong
central government) wrote up a constitution on their own. According to this constitution, which was inspired by the strong presidential authority of
the United States, the nation was to be led by a series of directorates, each having authority over a single part of government and each managed by
a specialist in the field, who was given the title of Director. The Directors would also form a council, which was the highest government instance and
which was presided over by an elected official with the title of Supreme Director. There would also be a small legislative assembly, known as the
National Congress, which was composed of between three and six elected Delegates from each province. This assembly would approve or reject
laws put forth either by the government or by any Delegate, and these laws would apply for the whole nation.
This constitution was cheered along by the centralists, who believed a central government as strong as this to be the first step toward political
stability. The federalists, however, would not have any of it, and the decision that all laws approved by the National Congress should apply to all
provinces was especially unacceptable. The eastern provinces rebelled under the leadership of the Montevidean general José Gervasio Artigas, and
the government sent forth its army (consisting mainly of untrained militias who had fought against the Spanish during the revolution) to put down the
revolt. In 1829, the League of the Free Peoples was formed, and Artigas was declared to be its leader by unanimous approval of the constitutional
assembly. The League made some initial advances, but when the French declared support for the centralists and started sending supplies and
military advisors to them through the port of Buenos Aires (the only Atlantic port still loyal to the Supreme Directorship) and by balloon from port to
the troops, the Federalist morale dropped sharply, and the city of Córdoba, previously a stronghold of the League, fell in March of 1831. By
September, the Centralist general Carlos María de Alvear had taken Rosario.
This was when Brazil (which had been made an independent kingdom under a cadet branch of the Portuguese royal family ten years earlier)
declared war and started moving its troops into League territory, seeking to claim for itself the Eastern Missions and the Oriental Province. The
province of Paraguay, whose territory was directly threatened (although it had not been invaded yet) defected to the Centralists, and so did Entre
Rios, whose government was centered in Rosario at the time. In May, Alvear marched into Montevideo and captured Artigas, who was executed on
charges of high treason five days later. During the European winter months, Alvear's army, joined by many federalist troops who had just a month
earlier fought against the Supreme Directorate, turned north into Brazilian territory, capturing Porto Alegre in mid-July and approaching Desterro
by early November. Meanwhile, a second army, led by General José Rondeau, had fought its way up the Paraná, taking back the Iguazu Falls from
the Brazilians in August, and by November they had turned east and were advancing along the Uruguay toward Joinville. This move, which would cut
off the Brazilian army fighting Alvear from supply if successful, prompted defeatist feelings among the Brazilians, and when a republican revolt broke
out in the Northeast and in Maranhão at once, the Brazilians sued for peace.
The peace conditions granted were rather harsh. A definite border would be established between the two nations, and the agreed-upon boundary left
most old disputes in favour of the United Provinces. Independence would also be granted to a Juliana Republic, comprising the Brazilian provinces of
Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. During the peace conference, which was held in Joinville, the revolt in the north also grew, and therefore a
secret clause was added which would force the Brazilians to seek peace with the rebels, with the United Provinces as mediator, if the royalist
armies were pushed south of the São Francisco River. The treaty was signed on November 21, but only five days later, by the time the Platinean
delegation had reached Desterro on their return voyage, word arrived of the rebels indeed having pushed the royalist armies south of the São
Francisco, and a Brazilian delegation arrived in the city the day after. The delegation from the rebels arrived on December 6, and after a week of
negotiations a treaty was signed which gave the rebels independence. The newly established state, which was given the name of the Confederation
of the Equator, was to comprise the provinces of Grão-Pará, Maranhão, Piauí, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Pernambuco (except for its
western panhandle, which remained within Brazil, being ceded to Bahia), Alagoas, and the northernmost part of Goyaz.
An election was held in the United Provinces in September, and General Alvear was elected as Supreme Director. After a few months of political
doings in Tucumán (which had been named as the national capital in 1830, when the League of Free Peoples was still menacing Buenos Aires), he
set out on a campaign against the royalists who were occupying Upper Peru (which had been part of the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata, and was
therefore claimed by the United Provinces) in August of 1834. He took Charcas in January of the next year, and by April of 1835 he was in La Paz.
At this time, a revolt broke out in Lower Peru, which forced the royalists to send troops back to quell it. The Republic of Peru was declared in
August, and the Peruvian and Platinean armies met up just east of Cuzco in October. This meant that the Royalist armies were surrounded, and a
fleet was sent from Panama to evacuate the soldiers. This was largely successful, although the republicans took many prisoners of war. A royalist
invasion of northern Peru was repelled in April of 1836, and the rebels captured Guayaquil in August. This led to a signing of peace between the
royalists, Peru and the United Provinces. The treaty stipulated that Upper Peru and Chile, in their entirety, should be ceded to the United Provinces,
while the rest of the Viceroyalty of Peru should be transferred to the Republic of Peru.
The wars in South America were now largely over, and a long interval of peace subsided. The United Provinces steadily conquered the Gran Chaco
from its indigenous inhabitants, and republican revolts in New Granada were steadily being put down by the Spanish, but these did not count as
wars in the eyes of history. In 1862, New Granada was given the right of self-government, an act which lowered republican sentiment within the
viceroyalty, but not to the level the Spanish government in Madrid hoped.
This relative peace ended in 1876, when Brazil invaded and annexed the Juliana Republic. The United Provinces responded by invading and annexing
Peru, which though a republic had drifted away from the Platinean sphere and become an ally of Brazil's in all but name. This led to a declaration of
war from Spain and New Granada, who fought against the United Provinces for eighteen months. This war was lost by the Platinean army, and by
the treaty which was signed in Arequipa and ended the war the United Provinces was forced to cede a large part of northern Peru to the royalists.
The remaining parts of the former republic, however, was turned into provinces within the United Provinces instead of being set up as an independent
state.
After the war, the United Provinces' army was weakened, and the Brazilian annexation of the Juliana Republic was treated with only formal protests
and a refusal to recognise Brazilian sovereignty over Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. For several decades, the Juliana Republic was still
there on most Platinean (and other Republican states') maps, with a small text within brackets saying "(Occupied by Brazil)". The Julianan
government was "temporarily relocated" to Tucumán, and almost no actual citizens identified themselves as living in Juliana, instead calling
themselves (Southern) Brazilians.
During the 20th century there was mostly peace in Latin America. The Mexican Empire, which had been established after a revolt there, made
several incursions into Granadian Nicaragua, which, along with Costa Rica and Cuba, it still claims for itself, but these were repelled by local
militia and never erupted into full-scale war. The Supreme Director Bernardo Gomez, who ruled from 1943 to 1955, finally introduced women's
suffrage after pressuring from the French. The Brazilians, paradoxically, had already had this for ten years. Advances in technology were also made
during these years, with the first armoured reaction-engine airship flying from Tucumán to Mendoza in 1950. Stahlhengsts also saw use with the
Platinean army early on, being the first non-superpower to adopt it. The use of long-distance rocket bombs was pioneered by the Brazilians, but the
United Provinces was not far behind in its adoption.
In 2011, the situation is more tense than ever. The new Supreme Director, Agustin Schwartz, is convinced that his army is now almost as strong as
those of New Granada and Brazil combined; thus, with Equadorian aid, he should be able to actually defeat the royalists in open war. To this end,
he has sent several official telegrams to Brazil, demanding the release of the Juliana Republic as an independent state and damage payments to
both it and the United Provinces for the occupation.
---
On the 3rd of Fructidor in Year CCXIX, the inhabitants of Rio Grande will wake up to find some roaring sounds coming from far away, as of thunder.
However, as they look out of their windows, they will see where the sounds are actually coming from. They will see many buildings set in flames by
incendiary bombs, coming from airships with the blue-white-blue banner of the United Provinces on their side. They will see stahlhengsts with the
same flag, but some also with the yellow-white-green of the Juliana Republic. They will see Brazilian artillery pieces shooting volleys at the
stahlhengsts and into the hulls of the airships, and when they see these things, they will know what has happened. The war has finally begun.