I highly doubt that the Tsarists would recognise Belarus as a separate nation - some 70% of its populace speaks Russian as a first language, and at this point you can add a significant number of Jews to that, both of which make for a very small proportion of the populace speaking Belarusian. Which, in itself, was not considered a separate language before 1917, only a particularly rustic accent.
The Union Forever: A TL
- Thread starter Mac Gregor
- Start date
Why might I ask? I'm not sure that the Russian's would be keen on just giving away Moldavia even to an ally.
I agree on Belarus, lets keep them part of Russia proper. Also, good call Reagent on the northern Caucasus. Can someone add them to the map? I also agree on moving Ukraine's border to the east.
Given that Moldavia is more ethnically Romanian, it would make sense to do so. After all, the area's main language is just Romanian written in Cryllic.
I have no doubt that Ukraine and Belarus will be very Russified, but it does not interfere with the Ukrainian and Belarusian nationalism. I'm more interested in the fate of Asian borderlands Russia as Russian can colonize and russifyi North Manchuria, Kazakhstan and north Kyrgystan without demographic catastrophe first half of the XX century. Russian share of the population in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan will be at least 40% and several-million Russian likely will live in Northern Persia, (OTL Russian actively migrated to Persia in the early XX century). Russian will likely be a significant part of the European population of Algeria (Russia and France quickly make friends after the Great War against the German hegemony)
I have been doing a little research and the whole Romanian v. Moldovan/Moldavian thing is really interesting. I reckon that the region (lets just call it Bessarabia to keep it simple) is speaking Romanian with a lot of Russian influence and using the Cyrillic alphabet. I think it would be political suicide for the current Russian government to cede Bessarabia to Romania as their conservative opponents are already accusing them of "giving away the empire". Also in OTL, the USSR's desire to regain Bessarabia during the 1940s illustrates that their is certainly a desire to keep the region. I think the most likely outcome is that Bessarabia just becomes an autonomous region within the IEF.
Was that 70% number the same back then? I could have sworn I read that it was a post Soviet trend to end the use of the Belorussian language and that Belarorussian outside of Belarus had a way higher rate of speaking the language?
Maybe the butterflies that form the whole basis of TTL want Bessarabia to be part of Romania. You know how much you wanted the butterflies to control TTL.
BTW, what exactly was TTL's POD?
I don't see any reason, why would Russia give away Bessarabia. It not be anything unpopulated far away Alaska.
And POD is general McClellan's fatal riding accident before battle of Antienam.
Those few autonomous areas on Caucasus are good idea. But Ingushia should be part of Chechnya. Ingushian language became independence language on 1920's. It is very possible that same not happen in TTL.
Anyway, how independence rajs of India (Hyderabad, Mysore and Travancore react for expansive India? I think that they might ask protection from United Kingdom and Commonwealth.
Very interesting. I hadn't thought about Russians living abroad in Persia. I'm not so sure there would be that many Russians living in Algeria as France and Russia aren't super close ITTL. What do you think about the North Caucasus regions in Reagent's map?
Mysore, Travancore, and Hyderabad in particular are extremely worried about expansionist India. In Hyderabad, the monarchy is waging a low grade war against REP backed insurgents. All three are seeking an offical guarantee of their independence by the British Commonwealth.
I don't see how it 'makes sense' for an Imperial Russia to give away land. Makes sense in the 'would create an ethnically homogeneous land' sense, perhaps, but it doesn't make sense in a 'would Russia do this' sense.
Questions Russian demography without Bolsheviks were discussed at the ФАИ many years. Russia is a major source of immigrants to the European colonies the Americas and Australia. I do not think that France which has demographic problems will prevent immigration of Europeans in Algeria (probably Poles are the main ethnic group which will travel to Algeria). Russia could annex the territory inhabited by the Russian minority (Northern Persia, Tuva, Mongolia) when the share of the Russian population in the region will reach 33%.
North Caucasus regions in Reagent's map is ASB, because modern OTL borders in the Caucasus were formed in the Soviet period
So you are saying that Russian immigration would be more without the Bolsheviks? Although ITTL Russian standard of living isn't as high as the USA or most of Western Europe I would think it was probably higher than OTL's USSR.
Also, could you post what you think the Caucasus boundaries would be, as I still think they would have autonomous regions?
True. In Russian Empire is much better standard of living than in USSR so from Russia not leave so much people as in OTL. And Russia is democracy and probably for its minorities much better place to live than USSR. And if I am not wrong Great War was last notable war where Russia participated. And it had troops in Chinese and Hungarian Civil Wars.
Russia ITTL could best be described as a flawed democracy and would probably rank as "partly free" on OTL's Freedom House index. There are multi-party elections but the monarchy, military, and the security apparatus still wields a lot of power and the judiciary has a reputation for corruption. And yes, Russia hasn't been involved in a major conflict since the Great War but did participate in the Hungarian Red Revolt and in a limited capacity in the Chinese Civil War. They have also had some small operations fighting insurgents in their central Asian territories.