Spanish Succession-Great Northern War alternate history questions (working on TL)

If Sweden won the Battle of Poltava and killed Peter the Great also able to successfully retreat from Russia, how long would Alexei, the less enthusiastic heir of Peter the Great fight on after his fathers death and Ottoman intervention on Sweden's behalf?

What if in 1701, Austria did not accept Prussia's elevation to Kingdom? Would Prussia allign with France, or would they even declare war, or fight in a separate declared war?

Would Denmark-Norway join the Spanish Succession War fully if Sweden did? How long until Russia would westernize and modernize to at least the extent pre GNW?

Since Karl XII is thought to be homosexual, and when asked to marry some women he declined, would he ever have children if he won and survived? Or would he just name a relative of his an heir?
 
What if in 1701, Austria did not accept Prussia's elevation to Kingdom? Would Prussia allign with France, or would they even declare war, or fight in a separate declared war?

The elector would likely have simply just refused to give the emperor his support. Or he might've anyway. He knew it was a reach. And everyone but the emperor thought it was a bad idea - principally Prince Eugen of Savoy - to say yes. But if the emperor had said no, it's not like Prussia-Brandenburg was the military powerhouse in 1700 that it was in 1740 that they can pose a credible threat to the emperor AFAIK. More likely, if Brandenburg sits out the WotSS she jumps into the Great Northern War with both feet.

As to Denmark-Norway getting involved because Sweden does, its likely, but not necessarily so. The irony is that the Swedes and the Danes might end up on the same side. Sweden had got nothing but heartache from her French alliance. No reason to keep an alliance that ain't working.

As to Carl's sexuality - asexual (like Liselotte)'s most likely. But thats reading back into history. He also wanted a marriage like his parents had had (ie a love match) IIRC.
 
The elector would likely have simply just refused to give the emperor his support. Or he might've anyway. He knew it was a reach. And everyone but the emperor thought it was a bad idea - principally Prince Eugen of Savoy - to say yes. But if the emperor had said no, it's not like Prussia-Brandenburg was the military powerhouse in 1700 that it was in 1740 that they can pose a credible threat to the emperor AFAIK. More likely, if Brandenburg sits out the WotSS she jumps into the Great Northern War with both feet.

As to Denmark-Norway getting involved because Sweden does, its likely, but not necessarily so. The irony is that the Swedes and the Danes might end up on the same side. Sweden had got nothing but heartache from her French alliance. No reason to keep an alliance that ain't working.

As to Carl's sexuality - asexual (like Liselotte)'s most likely. But thats reading back into history. He also wanted a marriage like his parents had had (ie a love match) IIRC.
I'm pretty sure that I read somewhere that Sweden and Brandenburg-Prussia had good relations, Brandenburg only joined against Sweden because of its weakness, they had no past hostilities except during Denmark's superiority over Sweden when Denmark and Brandenburg had an alliance. Less than 50 years before Sweden had gave Prussia its freedom, and before that Swedish-Brandenburg forces were fighting together against the Catholics. Sweden and Brandenburg partitioned Pomerania together, and also the Swedish Empires father; Gustavus Aldophus was married to a Hohenzollern,
 
A. Quite probably. If Charles asks for a white peace then Alexei will jump at the opportunity especially if he's also fighting the Ottomans. Doubly so if Charles can get Stanislaus to bring Poland into the war.

B. Frederick won't like it but while he might betray Austria, he might commit even more in the hopes of being rewarded after the war.

C. Denmark-Norway rejoined the war after Poltava weakened Sweden, so they'd only join the War of the Spanish Succession if Sweden looked weak, or they got sufficient assurances of aid from Britain and the Netherlands. Alexei was opposed to westernization, but I don't know whether he just hated the cultural changes or also wanted to reverse military and bureaucratic reforms too.

D. Could go either way. Louis XIV's brother fathered several children. Frederick the Great didn't. He would probably marry someone important after the war to secure an important alliance. Were there any eligible Hohenzollern girls? Such a marriage could help bring the Prussians into the war on his side.
 
D. Could go either way. Louis XIV's brother fathered several children. Frederick the Great didn't. He would probably marry someone important after the war to secure an important alliance. Were there any eligible Hohenzollern girls? Such a marriage could help bring the Prussians into the war on his side.

As stated above, Prussia was still a longway from being what she was a half century later. It was Friedrich Wilhelm I and Friedrich II who started the military traditions, not Friedrich I, who Friedrich the Great described in his memoirs "great in small things, small in great things". An indication that he spent more money on pensions for his courtiers than for wages for his soldiers is evinced by the reaction to FW's accession, where he cut the court expenditure by 3/4, closed his father's academy of the arts, the salon that his mother had held, basically strangled Brandenburg's cultural development by the windpipe in favour of it's army. Sold off his father's paintings, horded his father's silver plate as a stream of ready cash if the need arose, and reserved a few apartments in the palace for him and his family, basically shuttering the rest of it. The oberhofmeister announced to the courtiers "My friends, our good and kind master is dead. Our new one sends us all to the devil".

So, based on this analysis of FW's actions in the first few years of his reign, (the closures and abandonments) the Prussia he inherited wasn't the military machine he passed onto his son.

As to a Hohenzollern princess - Luise Dorothea, the elector's half-sister was the only option. The betrothal was sometimes offered in a modified form - her to Carl XII; Ulrika Eleonora to Friedrich Wilhelm. Of course, in the early 1700s FW wasted her and sent her to marry a cousin that was even more closely related to her than her half-brother (they were first cousins, her parents were first cousins, his parents were first cousins, all in their descent from the Great Elector's dad). She fortunately died in childbed (alongside the child), if she had ended up in Stockholm it might've been better, but only just, since her health was not sterling (part of why her father decided on a "domestic" marriage for her).

Another option for Carl to wed is his sister-in-law, the princess of Holstein, Marie Elisabeth. She's a bit older (b.1678) than Carl (b.1682) - although he begged to not marry her because she was “as ugly as Satan and with such a devilish big mouth" or Sophie Hedvig of Denmark (b.1677). The marriage to the Danish princess was blocked by the Gottorp party (chaired by the Queen Mother Hedwig Eleonore of Holstein), and came to naught, although Carl seems to have shown a vague interest in it.
 
As stated above, Prussia was still a longway from being what she was a half century later. It was Friedrich Wilhelm I and Friedrich II who started the military traditions, not Friedrich I, who Friedrich the Great described in his memoirs "great in small things, small in great things". An indication that he spent more money on pensions for his courtiers than for wages for his soldiers is evinced by the reaction to FW's accession, where he cut the court expenditure by 3/4, closed his father's academy of the arts, the salon that his mother had held, basically strangled Brandenburg's cultural development by the windpipe in favour of it's army. Sold off his father's paintings, horded his father's silver plate as a stream of ready cash if the need arose, and reserved a few apartments in the palace for him and his family, basically shuttering the rest of it. The oberhofmeister announced to the courtiers "My friends, our good and kind master is dead. Our new one sends us all to the devil".

So, based on this analysis of FW's actions in the first few years of his reign, (the closures and abandonments) the Prussia he inherited wasn't the military machine he passed onto his son.

Important in that Prussia bordered Swedish Pommerania, Saxony, Poland, and Austria. And while it wasn't a military powerhouse they weren't completely defenseless. Joseph I had to concede extra protections to the Protestants in Silesia in order to placate Charles XII, so a likely casus belli for him would be to liberate Silesia and either give it to Prussia or Poland.
 
Important in that Prussia bordered Swedish Pommerania, Saxony, Poland, and Austria. And while it wasn't a military powerhouse they weren't completely defenseless. Joseph I had to concede extra protections to the Protestants in Silesia in order to placate Charles XII, so a likely casus belli for him would be to liberate Silesia and either give it to Prussia or Poland.
Do you think Prussia would join if Sweden did? I feel like it would,
 
If Sweden won the Battle of Poltava and killed Peter the Great also able to successfully retreat from Russia, how long would Alexei, the less enthusiastic heir of Peter the Great fight on after his fathers death and Ottoman intervention on Sweden's behalf?

What if in 1701, Austria did not accept Prussia's elevation to Kingdom? Would Prussia allign with France, or would they even declare war, or fight in a separate declared war?

Would Denmark-Norway join the Spanish Succession War fully if Sweden did? How long until Russia would westernize and modernize to at least the extent pre GNW?

Since Karl XII is thought to be homosexual, and when asked to marry some women he declined, would he ever have children if he won and survived? Or would he just name a relative of his an heir?

If the Swedish army wins at Poltava (assuming the reinforcements that were defeated at Lesnaya just before are victorious and joins the main army), there's no need to retreat, instead it can resume its march on Moscow (it had in 1708, but diverted to Ukraine due to winter and a bad supply situation). If the Ottomans get involved and Karl XII can get Stanislaus to actually get serious, then the Russians will probably make peace.

Karl XII stated several times that he would not start an unjust war, but never end one without punishing those that started it either. Russia will have to pay some way - large war indemnities, perhaps backed up with Swedish occupation of Pskov, Fort Kola and Archangelsk until they are fully paid. If Alexei is ineffective, they might never be fully paid. Sweden can't hold Pskov in the long run, but keeping Archangelsk means all Russian trade must pass Swedish-held ports, which will give Sweden a steady tariff income (and Russia a reason for the next war).

Sweden would most likely also incorporate Courland in case of a victory.

Absent a Swedish defeat at Poltava, Denmark-Norway Lübeck-Hannover and Brandenburg-Prussia will most likely not declare war on Sweden. Denmark-Norway can make bank renting their armies to the Anglo-Dutch alliance as they (and Sweden) did in the 1680s and the did OTL between 1701-1709 - 10 000 Danes served under Eugen in northern Italy and 8 000 with the allied armies in Germany.

As for Karl XII, he was most likely asexual or at least low libido and very pious. He stated that he would marry for love once the war was over, and there were reputations of love affairs with young women at court before 1700, but it is uncertain how much was just rumours and gossiping for spies and ambassadors and how much was actually true. He might very well adopt his nephew Karl Fredrik has his hier and forego marrying at all - there were rumours that he intended to do that in 1716.

Karl XI and Karl XII maintained a very strong pro-Anglo-Dutch foreign policy. Karl XI had been furious that France treated Sweden as a client nation, making peace in Sweden's name and not consulting Sweden at all in the peaces of Fontainebleau, Celle and Saint-Germain 1679. Karl XII had no intention of siding with the French, which he also made clear when Marlborough visited his headquarters in Saxony in april 1707 (the allies were worried that Sweden would intervene on the side of the French in the War of the Spanish Succession after having defeated Poland-Lithuania and Saxony).

Sweden wanted to defeat Russia, and after that the country would be war-weary and wanting to recover, not join another war. Renting out its army (or at least the German garrisons, ~8 000 men) to the Anglo-Dutch alliance would be possible, though.
 
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