The Union Forever: A TL

[Lalli]

Arthur I. Boreman (1823 - 1895)

Arthur Inghram Boreman was born in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania in 1823 but his family moved to Virginia when he was four years old. Boreman read law with his older brother and later participated to politics of Virginia. Boreman wasn't abolotionist but he opposed secession of his home state on 1861. In May 1861 Boreman was elected to Second Wheeling Convention. The convention declared being pro-Unionist and there was too some talk about separation of some western counties as its own state. But this discussion evetnually faded off when Unionists captured state capital Richmond in June 1862 but surrending of general Robert E. Lee in April 1863 was final nail for any serious discussion altough for separation was some support decades after civil war. Soon Boreman begun support president Lincoln's emancipation and re-integration plan.

Virginia was re-admitted to the Union soon after end of the war and Arthur I. Boreman became first Republican governor of Virginia. He acted as governor to 1868. Boreman begun quickly achieve Lincoln's PERU plan and during his governorship slaves were finally emancipated and Boreman too provided some reparations for former slave owners. But Boreman wasn't supporter of Black civil right issues altough he gave some protection laws for blacks. He too supported reconstruction projects and tried attract people move to Virginia. During Boreman's governorship Virginia recovered from civil war faster than many other Southern States. Boreman became quiet popular governor.

In 1868 former general and commander of Union forces John Sedgwick picked Boreman as his running mate in presidential election. Boreman couldn't get Virginia to Republicans but elections proved that the party had strong foothold in the state. During Sedgwick's presidency Boreman supported fully Sedgwick's politics. In 1876 Sedgwick's presidency was reaching its end and Boreman announced his candidacy. It wasn't very easy when some major Republican politicians were suspicious with Southerner candidate so soon after civil war. Boreman anyway won his candidacy. Boreman too won in his home state Virginia and this was first time when any southern state went to Republican presidential candidate.

Boreman faced already during his first months in office serious challenge. In Spanish owned Cuba has been war several years and relationships between United States and Spain weren't good. In May 1877 war finally break out between the countries. American navy was pretty poor condition but finally United States got victory over Spain and got Cuba and Puerto Rico. Victory over Spain helped Boreman win 1880 election. On Boreman's second term there was much of speculation over gold reservers and it is estimated that these speculations led to Panic of 1883. Altough recession was short-lived, it was pretty severed and Boreman couldn't answer for the crisis.

After his presidency Boreman retired from politics and returned to Richmond where he later wrote his memoirs. Boreman died from heart attack in 1895.After Boreman were named Boreman (OTL Billings, MT), capital of state of Absaroka, Arthur I. Boreman High School in Richmond and Boreman Presidential Library. Boreman was critised that he didn't enough with Panic of 1883 but nowadays economists are in conclusion that there wasn't much to do anyway and Boreman did what he could. Nowadays Boreman is remembered as supporter of settling of the West and conqueror of Cuba and Puerto Rico.

 

[Lalli]

Samuel J. Randall (1828 - 1890)

Samuel J. Randall was born in 1828 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Unlike his father and paternal grandfather, Samuel J. Randall didn't go study law. Instead he went to business and then politics. In 1851 he married Fannie Agnes Ward and them had two daughters and one son. Firstly Randall was member of Whig Party but when it dissolved Samuel and many other his family members joined to Democarats. He stepped to Pennsylvanian politics in 1850's. Randall too served in Pennsylvanian militia in early days of civil war.

In 1862 Randall was elected to US House of Representatives from Pennsylvanian 1st Congressional District. When Randall took his place in Congress (In 1860's congressional term begun on December of next year) civil war was over and emancipation and reconstruction had begun. Randall took very anti-Lincolnian and anti-Republican politics. He systematically opposed almost every Lincoln's reform and his emancipation and reconstruction politics and stated that this is dangerous politics and will lead to "Republican tyranny". But despite that Randall disagreed in many issues with Republicans, he found some agreement with economy politics. In 1870's he opposed strongly purchase of Santo Domingo and was against American-Spanish War. After war he demanded that Cuba and Puerto Rico should be protectorates which would gain full independence in future. He didn't want any more ground for Republicans.

Randall was through 1860's and 1870's rising star of Democratic Party. In 1880 presidential election Randall was Democrat president candidate Thomas S. Bayard's running mate. But president Boreman won this election. In 1884 Democratic Party nominated Randall as candidate and he defeated his opponent James G. Blaine and so he was first Democrat in White House in 24 years. Randall was re-elected in 1888. Randall's presidency was quiet uneventful. On domestic issues he was very isolationist and didn't intervene to European issues. On economic side him had pretty same politics what had his Republican predecessors. Randall favored small government and he let states deal quiet freely with civil right issues and female suffrage. Randall's presidency was pretty much marked by some political scandals. Randall himself died suddenly from heart attack while him had lunch with his cabinet members in February 2, 1890 being third US president who died in office. Randall is buried to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

 

[Zoidberg12]

Alexander I (1876-1947)

Alexander I in 1910

Alexander I in 1940

King Alexander I of Serbia was born on April 16, 1876 in Belgrade, Serbia. His father was Prince Milan of Serbia (1854-1900) and his mother was Princess Natalie of Serbia (1859-1944). Growing up, he was educated in the cities of Belgrade, Nis and Kragujevac by a series of private tutors and Serbian Orthodox religious teachers. As a child, Alexander led a mostly sheltered life, and was groomed to be heir to the Serbian throne. On September 30, 1894, the eighteen year-old Prince Alexander married Nikolina Lunjevica (1873-1950), a daughter of the Serbian administrative officer Panta Lunjevica (1840-1887). The couple had three children; Princess Katerina (1895-1984), Prince Milan (1897-1906) and Prince Paul (1901-1919). His first son Milan died of scarlett fever and his second son Paul died of a congenital heart defect.

On November 19, 1900, his father King Milan I of Serbia died suddenly at the age of 46. As a result, the 24 year-old Prince Alexander became King Alexander I of Serbia, and he would rule the Kingdom of Serbia for a total of forty-seven years, the longest reign of any modern Serbian monarch. Without a doubt, the proudest moments of his reign came during and after the Great War. On October 23, 1907, the Serbian government of King Alexander I and Prime Minister Nikola Pašić (1845-1928) declared war on the Ottoman Empire and thus entered the Great War. During the Great War, Serbia suffered greatly at the hands of the Imperial Entente, as Serbia was wedged between the larger and more powerful Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires. At the Battle of Pristina, beginning on October 27, 1908, the Serbs lost about 38,000 men over the course of two days. The Serbian capital of Belgrade then came under siege by the Ottoman Turks in December, 1908. During the Siege of Belgrade, the city underwent serious damage, until Russian forces arrived to relieve the city in May, 1909. Thus, the Siege of Belgrade ended in a Serbian victory. By the end of the war in 1910, Serbia would emerge victorious with the rest of the Allied Powers. By the time that the ink was dry on the treaties of the Great War, including the Treaty of Copenhagen, which dealt with Austria and the Treaty of Bern, which dealt with Hungary, the territorial size of Serbia more than tripled. Serbia now encompassed parts of Vojvodina, including the important city of Novi Sad, the former Austrian region of Bosnia and Herzegovina and lands gained from the Ottoman Empire such as the Kosovo Vilayet and Macedonia. These new territories made Serbia the most populous nation in the Balkan Peninsula, as well as a new regional power in the Balkan Peninsula.

In the years after the Great War, during the 1910s and 1920s, King Alexander I strove to unify the Kingdom of Serbia by promoting a strong Serbian and Orthodox Christian identity upon the nation. This worked well with the majority Serb population, but the nation’s minority communities of Bosniaks, Albanians, Macedonians and Croats often suffered as a result of their discrimination and marginalization. Many from these ethnicities were segregated from ethnic Serbs in cities, were kept out of high level government and high paying jobs, were often prevented from joining the army and had their languages suppressed by the Serbian language in public life, government institutions and schools. As a result, many people from these groups emigrated overseas, especially to the United States, Canada, Latin America and Australia.

On August 28, 1920, King Alexander’s only surviving child Princess Katarina married Crown Prince Mirko of Montenegro, the future King Mirko I of Serbia and Montenegro (1879-1968), who was the eldest son of Nikola I of Montenegro (1841-1928). With that, Crown Prince Mirko of Montenegro became heir to the Serbian throne, preventing a possible succession crisis.

Throughout the 1920s, a series of population exchanges occurred between Serbia and Hungary. After anti-Magyar riots broke out in Novi Sad in October, 1923, King Alexander I decided to meet personally with King Francis II of Hungary in an effort to prevent any conflicts between their two nations. King Alexander I and King Francis II meet personally in Debrecen, Hungary in November, 1923. During their meeting, the two men got along quite well, and the solution of population exchanges was agreed upon by both monarchs. These population exchanges, often disorderly and violent, mostly ended by 1928. It was also during the 1920s and 1930s that tensions rose between the Kingdom of Serbia and the Kingdom of Croatia. During this time, a number of anti-Croat pogroms took place in Serbian Bosnia. These pogroms only ended after the Serbian army restored order and arrested the main instigators. A state of war almost broke out between Serbia and Croatia on a few occasions, but calmer heads prevailed and war was always averted, as King Alexander did not want to see any blood shed over what he saw as a pointless conflict. In June, 1930, King Alexander I met personally with the Habsburg King Tomislav II of Croatia (1872-1952) in the Croatian capital of Zagreb, and the two got along well enough. On July 1, 1930, it was agreed upon between the two monarchs that population exchanges would occur between Serbia and Croatia. These population exchanges, often disorderly and violent, largely ended by 1936. Most ethnic Croats in Serbian Bosnia and the rest of Serbia immigrated to Croatia or immigrated overseas, though many also decided to stay in Serbia.

In spite of these ethnic conflicts, throughout the almost five decade reign of King Alexander I, a lot of progress was made within the Kingdom of Serbia, with a growing economy, increasing trade with its neighbors, increasing industrialization, new public works programs, new roads and infrastructure, new education programs and one of the best electrification programs in Europe thanks to the inventor, electrical and mechanical engineer, physicist, futurist and later the Serbian Minister of Science Nikola Tesla (1856-1942).

On the night of December 28, 1947, King Alexander I died of an aneurysm in his bedroom at the Royal Palace in Belgrade at the age of 71. As he was dying, he was surrounded by numerous private doctors and nurses. His funeral, a massive mourning, was held in Belgrade on January 10, 1948. He was succeeded as King of Serbia by his son-in-law King Mirko of Montenegro, who became King Mirko of Serbia and Montenegro.

 

[Zoidberg12]

Manuel II (1906-1972)

King Manuel II in 1960

King Manuel II and Queen Emilia in 1968

King Manuel II was born as Manuel of Braganza on August 21, 1906 in St. Anton, Austria, Austria-Hungary. He was the eldest son of Joseph Ferdinand of Braganza, the future King Ferdinand IV of Portugal (1883-1959) and Princess Isabella Maria of Bourbon-Parma, the future Queen Isabella Maria of Portugal (1886-1971). After the Great War broke out in 1907, his immediate family moved to Oviedo, Asturias, Spain. When Manuel was ten years-old in 1916, his family returned to their ancestral homeland of Portugal. When Manuel was not even thirteen years-old in 1919, his uncle became King Ferdinand III of Portugal (1882-1949), and he himself became Infante Manuel of Portugal. Throughout his formative years, both in Spain and in Portugal, he was raised by his parents and educated by numerous private teachers to have conservative views and was raised as a devout Roman Catholic, in spite of his father’s numerous extramarital affairs. Infante Manuel attended Balliol College, Oxford from 1924 to 1928. He was educated in religious studies, literature, philosophy, among other subjects. He returned to Portugal after the completion of his studies, and he soon divided his time between different palaces in Aveiro, Porto, Lisbon and Madeira Island.

On September 1, 1938, he married Emilie Chevalier (1916-1996), a Swiss heiress and socialite, at a Roman Catholic ceremony in Lausanne, Switzerland, and she would become the future Queen Emilia of Portugal. Since Ms. Chevalier was a commoner, any heirs that the couple would conceive would be ineligible to be an heir to the Portuguese throne. In spite of this, the couple had no children. Unlike his uncle, Infante Manuel/Manuel, Prince Royal/Manuel II was a faithful husband, and he was personally disgusted by his uncle’s affairs, although he could never go public about them, and he was sometimes paid by his uncle to keep quiet about these affairs. After the untimely death of King John VII (1907-1953), his father ascended to the throne as King Ferdinand IV of Portugal. As a result, Infante Manuel became the heir to the Portuguese throne as Manuel, Prince Royal.

King Ferdinand IV died of a pulmonary embolism on September 29, 1959. As a result, the 53 year-old Manuel, Prince Royal became King Manuel II of Portugal. His coronation, one of the largest in modern Portuguese history, took place in Lisbon on March 6, 1960. The reign of King Manuel II, which lasted for thirteen years, saw the continuation of much of his predecessor's conservative, traditionalist and often authoritarian policies. His reign also saw some minor communist and nationalist colonial insurgencies in Angola and Mozambique during the 1960s, a strengthening of diplomatic ties between the Kingdom of Portugal and the Kingdom of Spain, the death of the much-beloved Queen Mother Maria Josephina in 1960, the signing of a non-aggression pact with the Republic of Indonesia in 1970, the death of the much-beloved Queen Mother Isabella Maria in 1971 and a new series of nationalist insurgencies in the colonies of Angola, Mozambique and Guinea during the early 1970s.

In his private life, King Manuel II was a mostly private yet friendly and devoutly religious man. It should be noted that he was quite a social man and he very much enjoyed the company of others, especially his close friends, and he often enjoyed public functions, public religious rituals, festivals and holidays, but he hated intrusions into his public life by strangers and by both the domestic and foreign press. In spite of the fact that he had no children, he very much enjoyed children and he spent some time during his reign assisting and spending time with children in Catholic orphanages. He was also an art lover, an art collector, a lover of American and European movies and a fan of association football, and he personally funded a number of art museums, music conservatories, film studious, television stations and sports stadiums throughout Portugal and her colonies, albeit mostly in metropolitan Portugal.

King Manuel II died of bladder cancer in his bedroom in Belém Palace in Lisbon, Portugal on November 29, 1972. He was 66 years of age at the time of his death. His funeral was held in Lisbon on December 12, 1972. His younger brother Infante Manuel Nuno, Duke of Porto succeeded him as King of Portugal as King Manuel III (1908-1989).

 

[Lalli]

David B. Hill (1843 - 1910)

David B. Hill was able to avoid civil war. In 1860's he educated law in Harvard University. He entered to politics immediately after he had finished his studies as member of Democratic Party. He was elected as mayor of New York City in 1873 and he served in the office to 1877. He was pretty popular mayor. He balanced budget of the city and hired more polices. Crime rates were on its lowest level since end of the civil war.

In 1878 Hill was elected to US House of Representatives. In 1880 Hill was asked run as governor of New York but he refused stating that he is more intrested to be in Washington than in Albany. Already being as mayor of NYC he was very critical towards politics of Republican presidents John Sedgwick and Arthur I. Boreman. But he agreed with many things with Republican over economic issues.

In 1884 congressman Samuel J. Randall picked him as Randall's running mate. Randall won the election and Hill became first Democrat vice president in 24 years. Only at age of 41 years him became too one of youngest vice presidents of United States. Hill supported Randall's politics loyally. Hill even got nickname "Randall's Poodle". In Republican-owned magazines was even antic where Randall is walking poodle whom has Hill's head.

In 1890 Randall suffered fatal heart attack and so David B. Hill became 20th president of the United States only at age of 46 being youngest US president by then. During Hil's presidency economy boosted which is later called as Roaring 90's. Hill's presidency was pretty uneventful. During his presidency Utah was admitted to the Union, United States annexed Kingdom of Hawaii and begun construction of Nicaraguan Canal. Hill was pretty popular president thanks of rising economy and keeping the country outside of conflicts. Hill could had easily to win 1896 election but he surprisingly refused. After his presidency Hill returned to New York City where he acted as law advisor of local politicians rest of his life. But he too commented much of politics. He critised strongly Robert Todd Lincoln's decision running third term and Hill even proposed amendment for term limitations. During the Great War Hill supported capturing of French colonies in Americas but opposed sending troops to Europe. Hill died only three months before end of the war from kidney failure in New York City.

Nowadays Hill is mostly quiet forgotten president. Historians see him being quiet mediocre president. While he helped secure position of United States and made some economic reforms, he too ignored several problems on economy which eventually led to recession during Custer's presidency. Hill was too critised that he mostly ignored rising of French Empire.

 

[Lalli]

Isabel I (1846 - 1921)

Isabel I was oldest daughter and heir of emperor of Brazil Pedro II (1825 - 1894). After deaths of her brothers Isabel became heir apparent and she got title princess imperial of Brazil. Deaths of his sons affected to emperor Pedro II greatly. He felt great personal sorrow and eventually lost his faith to future of Brazilian monarchy. Pedro II didn't believe that woman could rule very patriarchal Brazil. Pedro II anyway decided educate his daughter and future ruler of the nation. But education didn't went very well. Pedro II didn't teach for future empress how to rule. So Isabel was totally unprepared to high office. But despite that the emperor didn't care about education of his daughter, he anyway loved her. On 1870's princess Isabel participated to politics. She helped to push gradual abolishment of slavery forward and it was finally abolished in 1887.

In 1864 Isabel married French nobleman count of Eu Gaston of Orléans (1842 - 1922). It lasted anyway pretty long before Isabel became pregnant, which just increased the emperor's hopeless for future of Brazilian monarchy. Isabel was pregnant in 1871 and 1873 but both of them ended to miscarriages. Finally in 1876 she gave health baby boy Alfonso (1876 - 1961) and in 1879 another boy, Pedro (1879 - 1962).

In 1894 Pedro II died from stroke and so Isabel I ascended to imperial throne. Brazil had formed close relationships with Empire of France since 1880's but Brazil was already on 1890's pretty divided between pro-American (mostly republicans) and pro-Frrench (mostly monarchists) factions. The empress had just balance between these groups. When Great War breakout on 1907 Isabel I decided keep country neutral altough it continued trading raw materials and agricultural products to France. This frustrated greatly pro-American and republican faction and damaged relationships with United States and United Kingdom. Prussia too didn't like about contiuing trade. Pro-French faction was annoyed that empress was unwillingful mobilise army and join to the war. Isabel just stated that she doesn't want send young men to their deaths. Pressure to making decision just increased when United States joined to the war in 1909. United States demanded that Brazil should end all trade with France and France demanded that Brazil should declare war to United States. Soon Brazilian trade begun to be on deep problems and its relationships with United States worsened. But the empress was unable make clear decision. Finally on August 4, 1909 in Rio de Janeiro happened military coup and imperial family was enforced flee from the country. Imperial family too lost their citizenship and all their property.

Deposed empress Isabel I and her family moved to Lisbon, Portugal where they got asylum from Isabel's distant cousin king Carlos I (1863 - 1916). Former empress spent rest of her life in small mansion nearby of town of Estoril. There she died in 1921. As new claimant for Brazilian imperial throne became her older son Alfonso. During next decades it has widely discussed reasons of the coup and fall of monarchy. In modern day historians are in conclusion that reason was pretty much on Pedro II's shoulders. He didn't educated his daughter and heir well enough for future challenges so empress Isabel was totally unprepared take the nation under her leadership. But partially reason lies too on Isabel herself. Historians believe that she was too idealistic and didn't think that her politics might has some consueqences. In 1996 government of Brazil restored citizenship for Isabel's descendants but they didn't get their property and titles back. Her remnants were too interned to imperial crypt in Rio de Janeiro In Brazil is small monarchist group but support for this is very low. Polls made in 2015 shows only 3 - 5 percent support for restoration of monarchy.

 

[Lalli]

Robert Todd Lincoln (1843 - 1924)

Robert Todd Lincoln was Abraham Lincoln's oldest son and his and Mary Todd Lincoln's only child who survived to adulthood. During civil war Lincoln studied law in Harvard and then he practised law in Springfield, Illinois. In 1870 he married Frances Adeline "Fanny" Seward (1844 - 1916), who was daughter of former state of secretary William H. Seward (1801 - 1874). Them had three children: Abraham Lincoln II (1872 - 1954), Edward Todd Lincoln (1874 - 1957), and William Seward Lincoln (1877 - 1936).

In 1872 Lincoln was elected to US House of Representatives. He supported president Sedgwick's politics and was one of most notable rising Republican politicians. In 1877 Lincoln became secretary of war to Arthur I. Boreman's cabinet. It was very challenging office for Lincoln. Only bit over two months after inaugration of president Boreman United States was in war against Spain. But American army was in sorry state. It was undermanned, military budget was low, and that army what federal government had, was fighting against Indians on mid-west prairies. Him had cooperate with secretary of the navy Nathan Goff Jr. (1843 - 1920) and commander of US army major general and veteran of civil war William T. Sherman (1820 - 1894). They all three with support of president Boreman were able make army more effective and better. They too called some former generals of CSA back to service. Size of army was increased dramatically. These all accomplishments helped Americans win war against Spain and to capture Cuba and Puerto Rico. Lincoln helped to develope American military. He served as SecWar to 1881 serving only Boreman's first term and despite that Boreman hoped that Lincoln would had served second term too. Instead that Lincoln returned to his home state. He was elected to US senate in 1882. There he served as president pro-tempore to 1885. In 1888 Lincoln was elected as governor of Illinois. As governor Lincoln achieved several social reforms speciality towards blacks and women. He too achieved several construction projects, one of most notable being Lincoln Mausoleum, which is today probably most known landmark in the state. Lincoln was one of most popular governors in history of Illinois and he served on the office three terms.

During George Armstrong Custer's presidency United States fell to deep recession and soon Lincoln felt that things must to fix. Lincoln was too frustrated that Democrats have ignored rise of militarist France and weakened position of United States. Lincoln decided run against Custer on 1900 presidential election. Lincoln has been in politics almost 30 years so he was very known name in Republican Party. Of course his name of his famous father too helped with running for presidency. Lincoln easily secured his candidacy in party convention. Lincoln won easily unpopular Custer with his progressive and even radical ideas, famous last name, and fact that Custer just wasn't only bad president, he was too bad campaigner.

First major act of Lincoln and Republican majority congress was repeal Custer's protection tariffs which had damaged greatly foreign trade. After repealing Custer's disastrous protectionism Americans could now buy cheaper foreign products and this made foreign trade easier. Congress too passed several public work initatives which created thousands of new workplaces. Lincoln too continued development of American navy and army. In 1901 Cuba gained statehood despite protests of Democrats. The state was strongly black majority, Catholic and Spanish speaking. Whilst Anglo-American relationships were good since civil war, Lincoln and his secretary of state William McKinley helped to create even closer relationships. During Lincoln's first term begun rise first wave of civil right movememnt. Ths wasn't ignored by Republicans and they begun pass several new laws which increased rights of blacks and eventually gave suffrage for women by 1915. Lincoln's first term too saw completion of canals of Nicaragua and Panama. Tensions between United States and France were too rising. United States anyway begun create closer relationships with Prussia and Russia.

Robert Todd Lincoln won easily second term. In 1905 Congress passed but not yet ratified 14th amendment which secured rights of all citizens of United States. In 1905 Arizona and New Mexico gained statehoow and whole contingious United States was filled only by states. During Lincoln's second term international situation was very tensed and finally in 1907 the Great War break out. United States took strongly pro-Coalition neutrality and put several limits for trade with France. In 1908 Lincoln announced seeking third term. This was something what any president hadn't done earlier and it is much speculated why he did so. Lincoln himself stated that he want secure intrest of United States on global war. Lincoln anyway secured his candidacy on Republican National Convention in Nashville, Tennessee. Him had anyway drop his vice president Nathan Goff Jr. and pick lesser known Republican politician Andrew Johnson Jr. (1852 - 1932). Lincoln won third term on 1908 general election. In February French official leaked highly classified Napoleon-Hanotaux Letters where emperor Napoleon IV described new French dominant world order. This was serious threat for intrest of the United States and so in March United States declared war to France and Austria-Hungary. Greatly improved American navy captured quickly French colonies in Americas and some French Pacific islands. Japan was dropped from war when United States enforced peace between Japan and Russia. Lincoln too sent troops to Europe and Austria-Hungary and France were succesfully defeated by December 1910 ending the Great War. Lincoln too allowed blacks serve in all branches of military forces which later has markable part of rise of Second Civil Right Movement.

In February 1911 begun Confedence of Brussels where Lincoln went personally to give adress for United States being first president who travelled to foreign nation while being in the office. In harbor of Antwerpen happened serious incident which was almost fatal for Lincoln. Bonapartist Jacques Guillou (1878 - 1911) tried assassinate president but bullet missed the president and local police shot Guillou on the spot. This incident anyway didn't scare Lincoln and he travelled to Brussels where he gave adress stating that whilst France was clear agitator of the war, it shouldn't punish too harshly and European countries should secure democracy and peace on the continent. Lincoln succesfully too de-mobilised army and secured status of Great War veterans.

In 1912 Robert Todd Lincoln abided his pledge on 1908 acampaign and didn't seek fourth term. In 1913 March he left the office and retired from politics after service in several offices during forty years. He returned to his Springfield home and wrote his memoirs and two books about Great War. Lincoln anyway commented often domestic and foreing politics. He died in his Springfield home in 1924 at age of 81. He was buried to nearby of Lincoln Mausoleum next of his wife Fanny Seward who died on 1916 from breast cancer.

Nowadays Robert Todd Lincoln is one of most respected and well-known presidents in history of the United States. During his presidency United States became real world power and Lincoln achieved several laws which improved rights of women and minorities. He too made several reforms on economic issues and military. On 1999 Harper's Weekly listed him as one on most important person on 20th century.

 

[Lalli]

There is bios for presidents Wood and Doner made by me and partially by Mac Gregor.

Leonard Wood (1860 - 1921)

Leonard Wood was born in Winchester, New Hampshire on October 9, 1860. Wood enlisted in the U.S. Army and participated in several campaigns against Native American tribes during the 1880s. His exemplary service earned him an appointment to West Point and later an infantry officer’s commission. From 1893 - 1897 Wood was stationed in the newly acquired territory of Hawaii rising to the rank of colonel. From 1903 - 1906 he acted as military advisor to the governor of the Nicaraguan Canal Zone.

After the United States entry into the Great War, Wood was promoted to Lieutenant General and became Third Army commander in General James F. Bell’s American Expeditionary Force. Wood proved himself to be an able commander and scored several victories against the French near Metz and Nancy. After the war, Wood served as Commandant of West Point and then briefly as the United States Army Chief of Staff before being recruited by the Republican Party to run for Governor of New Hampshire in 1916. Although hesitant at first, a special plea by his friend President Theodore Roosevelt eventually convinced Wood to run for office. Although a successful governor, Wood declined to seek reelection in 1918.

During the 1920 Republican National Convention in New York City, Wood made it known that he would not be opposed to his name being considered. After several ballots, Wood eventually emerged victorious after sufficient support failed to materialize around then Vice President Jacob R. Alexander of Oregon. During the general election, Wood and his running mate Missouri Senator Nelson R. Doner bested their Democratic opponents. Wood’s time as the nation’s 24th president was tragically cut short on August 27, 1921 when Emmett Scott Drager, a unemployed schizophrenic dockworker, opened fire as he was giving a speech at Norfolk Naval Base in Portshmouth, Virginia. Wood's assassination, the first in American presidential history, deeply shocked the country. Although having only occupied the White House for a few months, Wood’s legacy includes passing the Veteran Relief Act and creation of the Department of Territorial Affairs.

Nelson R. Doner (1864 - 1943)

Doner was born on January 4, 1864 only six months after end of the Civil War in Jefferson City, Missouri. His father was the local business man Samuel Doner (1837 - 1899) and his mother, Caroline Thompson Doner (1840 - 1923), was a teacher at a local girl’s school. Doner had four siblings, three of whom survived to adulthood. Receiving a good education and a quick study, Doner soon began working for his father in the family dry goods business. When Samuel Doner died in 1899, Nelson took over and amazed a small fortune after franchising his stories throughout the Midwest. In 1908. Doner used his wealth to mount a successful bid to become mayor of St. Louis as a Republican. Four years later he was elected to the U.S. Senate. In the Senate, Doner became an ardent supporter of Theodore Roosevelt's policies.

In 1920, Doner was selected to be Leonard Wood’s running mate. After an uninspiring few months as vice president, Doner was sworn in as the 25th president following Wood’s assassination on August 27, 1921. Doner became the first president from Missouri and the first bachelor president since James Buchanan (1791-1868). Although Doner enjoyed a brief period of support following his predecessor’s death, the good will quickly evaporated after the economy slid into recession . During the 1922 mid-term elections, Democrats gained majorities in both houses of Congress, effectively ending Doner’s nascent push to expand civil rights. Furthermore, Doner's presidency was besmirched by several scandals. One of these involving the sale of government land in Laramie led to talk of impeachment, but charges never went forward.

In 1924 Doner lost the reelection to Harold K. Abercrombie, ending 24 years of Republican control over the White House. After the presidency, Doner returned to Missouri where he perused several philanthropic endeavors. Doner died in 1943 of a brain hemorrhage at the age of 79. He is buried in his home town of Jefferson City. Arguably, his best known legacy are the Doner’s department stores which can be found throughout the United States and Canada to this day.

 

[traveller76]

This has been reviewed and approved by Mac Gregor.

Arvind Verma (1932-)

Biographical information

Arvind Verma was born in Lahore, Punjab, British India, the fourth out of five children. His father and mother owned a local newspaper which he worked at while growing up. He enrolled in a local municipal school and later in the Krishna D’Cruze College after which he obtained a Master's Diploma in Engineering (MIE) specializing in Civil engineering. Between 1970 and 1975, he taught at Ananth Yash Rao College of Engineering in Byculla as a teacher of civil engineering. It was during his time in college that he became involved in student and then local politics against the authoritarian government of the Harshad Nanda and its treatment of various ethnic and religious minorities and critics of the regime. Under the pen name Musafir (Traveller) he began to draw and write articles critical of official corruption after the new government nationalized large parts of the economy. He would be arrested in 1976 on an unrelated charge by the ASA (Internal Security Commission) and would spend four years at a labor camp. Due to his Engineering degree, he would receive better treatment and rations than some prisoners but would use them to help others. With the end of the REP regime in 1979 and the end of the Asian-Pacific War Arvind would be released with other political prisoners in 1980.

Political and Social Life

During his time in the labor camp, Arvind would lose faith in his Hindu upbringing and would become an agnostic. He became a major supporter of the Democratic Party of India and worked on local campaigns in the 1980 elections. In 1984 he would be elected as a Member of Parliament for the Valsad Constituency. He would also marry Drishti Amita Tamboli the same year. During the administration of Sharma Preeti (1984-1992) and the Hindu People’s Party, he would become the face of the parliamentary opposition. Despite his criticism of the HPP both he and the Prime Minister would remain on good terms. When the PM decided to not run again in 1992 he personally visited her home and thanked her for her service to the country. In 1992 the Democratic Party campaigned on a promise of economic liberalization and clean government after a series of corruption scandals started to hit the HPP in 1990. The DPI would gain a majority and soon would form a grand coalition with the All Indian Socialist Party. Arvind would be elected as the third Prime Minister of the Republic in 1992.

Economic Liberalization and India Together (1992-1996)
One of the first actions of the new administration would be the reduction of business regulations, what was called the License Raj and the privatization of government-owned industries. While certain industries such as defense, utilities and transportation would be majority owned by the national government the remaining companies would be listed on the local and international stock exchanges. In an agreement with the AISP, a priority would be given for local cooperatives to purchase facilities from the government. Government contracts would be opened to competitive bidding which would cut into the traditional patronage networks. With the international success of the film Svachchhand by director Behram Mehta, the Prime Minister would award all the cast and creators with national awards in 1994. The PM would also unveil India Together (Bhaarat Ek Saath), a program to increase local language instruction in school and religious tolerance across the county to combat the Hindu nationalism (Hindutva) of the previous administration. The program would also encourage various castes and tribal groups to become involved in local government and economic programs.

Reelection and the Charm Offensive (1996-2000)
With a rising economy and increased registration of voters, the DPI and AISP would easily win in the 1996 election. Using this the Prime Minister would begin a series of state visits, named the Charm Offensive to all neighboring states to encourage trade and diplomatic relations. The most famous of this would be the visit to the Commonwealth of Madras in August 1996. The image of the two state leaders shaking hands would be one of the pictures and stories of the Year. He would also visit Persia but an attempt to visit Bengal would be declined by the Technocratic government. Verma would also travel to several European countries such as the United Kingdom, France and Germany and the United States to encourage investment in the growing economy.

The Third Election and Retirement (2000-2002)
Economic growth in India would begin to stall in 2000 and the coalition between the AISP and DPI would fracture over foreign investment in the economy. Challenges by the Ecoist League and HPP would whittle down the majority the DPI had in what many regarded as a close election. Facing a possible vote of no confidence and declining health, the PM would announce new elections in 2002 and that he would step down from office. Arvind Verma would once again become a private citizen in 2002

Private Life
Arvind would write an autobiography called Vidharmee (Heretic) in 2005 and continued to write several books about his political life. He is still married to Drishti and has three daughters, Devi, Sulabha and Isha and continues to work as a fundraiser for humanitarian causes.

OOC: The picture is of film actor Amrish Puri

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio was mostly written by me with some changes and edits by Mac Gregor, who has also approved of it. I'll also go back to some of my other bios and edit any conflicting information.

Leopold III (1889-1968)

King Leopold III of Hungary was born as Archduke Leopold on September 10, 1889 in the Austrian city of Klagenfurt. He was the eldest son of Archduke Francis of Austria, the future King Francis II of Hungary (1867-1932) and Archduchess Julia of Austria, the future Queen Julia of Hungary (1870-1969). As a toddler, he was mostly raised by his mother and a number of different governesses, as his father had been serving in the Royal Hungarian Honvéd. After, his father returned home from the Honvéd in 1893, the young Archduke Francis grew closer and closer towards his father, and the two would share something of a lifelong bond. Growing up, his first language was German, although he was also taught the languages of Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, Slovene, Romanian, English, French, Spanish and Italian, and as a result he was a polyglot during his adult life.

After the Great War broke out in 1907, the eighteen year-old Archduke Leopold received a commission and was posted to a cavalry unit in the Austro-Hungarian Common Army. He served on the Italian front and fought bravely in the Isonzo River campaign, in spite of the fact that the campaign held several defeats for the Austro-Hungarian Army. After the surrender of Italy on February 5, 1908, the young Archduke Leopold was stationed on occupation duty in Venice. In his later years, he remembered fondly his days in Venice and he enjoyed the touring the city and visiting its many attractions. The only thing he remembered negatively was nasty looks from Italian civilians, which is why he preferred touring Venice in privately-acquired civilian garb. In later years, it was alleged that he frequented prostitutes in cities outside of Venice such as Padua and Treviso, although this was never confirmed. In 1910, he fought against the Prussian armies invading Austria including at the Battle of Vienna. After his father became King Francis II of Hungary in December, 1910, he became Crown Prince Leopold of Hungary and he lived with his father in Buda Castle, the new residence of the Hungarian Royal Family. After the Hungarian Revolution of 1916, he fled with the rest of his family to Vienna and helped to set up a government in exile for the Kingdom of Hungary. He then fought with the Hungarian Royalist Army against the Hungarian Red Army throughout the summer and autumn of 1916. He distinguished himself bravely during the Battle of Budapest where he led the royalist contingent alongside German and Russian troops. After the defeat of the Hungarian Communists, Crown Prince Leopold then spent the next two decades splitting his time between the army and various government postings.

In 1914, Crown Prince Leopold married Princess Marguerite of Belgium (1896-1990), the younger sister of the future King Albert I of Belgium (1894-1963). The couple would eventually have a total of seven children, three sons and four daughters; Crown Prince Ferdinand, the future King Ferdinand VI (1916-2007), Princess Charlotte (1918-2003), Prince Miklos (1919-2006), Princess Anna (1920-1997), Princess Elisabeth (1922-2002), Prince Felix (1923-2013) and Princess Monika (1925-1991). Throughout his time as Crown Prince and King of Hungary, he maintained good relations with numerous European monarchs and noblemen such as Kaiser Friedrich IV of Germany (1895-1988), King Albert I of Belgium, King Carlos IX of Spain (1892-1978), among others.

After his father King Francis II died on September 3, 1932, the 43 year-old Archduke was crowned as King Leopold III of Hungary on September 17, 1932. His 36 year-long reign saw a considerable rise in living conditions throughout the kingdom with the building of new highways, railways, and housing. Politically, Leopold III was a conservative and curtailed political liberalization. Leopold III also strove to cast him and his family as loyal Hungarians while still maintaining close ties to the German Empire.

After years of failing health, King Leopold III died of heart failure in Buda Castle in Budapest on December 27, 1968 at the age of 79. His eldest son Crown Prince Ferdinand succeeded him as King Ferdinand VI of Hungary.

 

[Mac Gregor]

Alfred Dreyfus (1859-1935)

Born in the Alsace town of Mulhouse to a family of Jewish background, Dreyfus followed in his father’s footsteps and entered into the textile business after finishing his studies. At the outbreak of the Great War, Dreyfus attempted to gain a commission in the French Army but was rejected by the Imperial government. While officially the cause for his rejection was due to his age and employment in a vital industry, Dreyfus personally suspected that anti-Semitism may also have been a factor. During the war Dreyfus amassed a small fortune producing uniforms for the French Army. Following France's defeat, Dreyfus used his wealth to lobby heavily for Alsace-Loraine to remain in France during the 1912 referendum. For his services Dreyfus was appointed as Deputy Minister of Commerce and Industry by President Marcel Ames. In 1935, Alfred Dreyfus died in his sleep at the age of 75.

 

[Mac Gregor]

Charles George Gordon (1833-1910)



Born in London to a military family, Gordon joined the British Army in 1852. As an army officer Gordon first saw action during the Crimean War where he participated in the Siege of Sevastopol. In 1860, Gordon volunteered to serve in China during the Taiping Rebellion under Fredrick Townsend Ward’s “Ever Victorious Army.” Following China, Gordon was posted to a number of oversea assignments in India and Africa. Due to the growing tensions between the British and French Empires, in 1884 Gordon was tasked to take a small force from Mombasa and “travel to the headwaters of the Great Nile River laying claim to such territories as might benefit Her Majesty’s Government.” Over the next two and half years, Gordon pushed as far north as the city of Malakal on the banks of the White Nile. Already a household name in Britain for his exploits in China, Gordon’s African triumphs were celebrated by newspapers and dime novels around the world. In recognition of his services Queen Victoria knighted Gordon and appointed him as the first Governor-General of the Upper Nile Region. Gordon would remain as Governor-General until 1897 before returning to England. When Britain entered the Great War in February of 1909 the 76 year old Gordon offered his services to the War Office but was politely turned down due to his age. Undeterred Gordon made his way back to the Upper Nile Region where Governor-General Milton Sweet employed him with raising a force of local auxiliaries for the planned invasion of French Sudan. Over the next year “Gordon’s Army”, as it became known, scored an impressive series of small scale victories over the French and their local allies. On January 24, 1910 however Gordon was wounded in a skirmish near Sennar and died a few days later after fighting the subsequent infection. Per his instructions, Gordon was buried in Africa in the colonial capital of Juba. In the years following the war there was a grassroots movement in Britain to rename the Upper Nile Region in honor of Gordon, which was officially changed to the Colony of Gordonia in 1917 by an act of Parliament.

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio has been approved by Mac Gregor.

Ferdinand V (1942- )

Prince Ferdnando in 1978

King Ferdinand V in 2010

King Ferdinand V was born as Infante Ferdinand on January 17, 1942 in Belem Palace in Lisbon, Portugal. He was the eldest son of Infante Manuel Nuno, Duke of Porto, the future King Manuel III (1908-1989) and Princess Joséphine Caroline of Belgium, the future Queen Josephina Carolina of Portugal (1909-1992). One of Infante Ferdinand’s first public appearances came when he was only seven years-old when he attended the funeral of King Ferdinand III on December 30, 1949. Over two months later, the eight year-old Infante Ferdinand attended the coronation of his cousin King John VII (1907-1953). Throughout his formative years, the young Ferdinand would attend numerous public functions, including religious ceremonies, diplomatic visits and the funerals of John VII, his grandfather Ferdinand IV (1883-1959) and his uncle Manuel II (1906-1972) and the coronations of Ferdinand IV and Manuel II. Growing up, Infante Ferdinand was educated at numerous different boarding schools throughout Portugal, Spain and Germany. After reaching adulthood, Ferdinand attended the University of Coimbra from 1960 to 1964. While at university, he studied the subjects of history, political science and philosophy, among others. In the summer of 1964, at the age of twenty-two, Infante Ferdinand gained a commission in the infantry of the Portuguese Army. After six years of dedicated and loyal service, he was honorably discharged from the Portuguese Army in 1970.

On November 29, 1972, after the death of his uncle King Manuel II (1906-1972) and the ascension of his father to the throne as King Manuel III, Infante Ferdinand became Ferdinand, Prince Royal, though he was more colloquially known as “Prince Fernando”. In 1975, Prince Fernando regained a commission in the infantry of the Portuguese Army and was subsequently sent as an officer to Portuguese Angola. In August, 1976, the United Republic of India under Harshad Nanda (1912-1979) launched a surprise invasion of Goa and the other Portuguese possessions in India. As a result, Portugal was brought into the Asia-Pacific War and the side of Great Britain, Portugal's longtime ally since 1386, and the rest of the British Commonwealth. During the war, Portugal sent several divisions to fight in India and maintained a sizable garrison on Timor to defend against the Imperial Japanese Army. Not long after the outbreak of war, Prince Fernando was appointed by his father King Manuel III to lead a Corp of Infantry not far from Indian-occupied Goa. During the war, Prince Fernando gained considerable military experience leading troops in India during the Asia-Pacific War, and the Prince Royal would become a war hero, as he distinguished himself in many battles against the Indians. After the war ended, he resigned from the army and returned home to Portugal in September, 1980.

On October 24, 1981, over a year after returning home to Portugal, Prince Fernando married Alexandra, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom (1958- ), the daughter of Prince Victor Alexander of the United Kingdom (1923- ) and a niece of King Edward VIII (1921-2008). Princess Alexandra would eventually become Queen Alexandra of Portugal. The couple would have four children; John, Prince Royal (1992- ), Duarte, Duke of Porto (1996- ), Maria, Duchess of Coimbra (1998- ) and Miguel, Duke of Braga (2001- ). Shortly before their marriage, Princess Alexandra converted to Roman Catholicism and as a result gave up her offspring’s rights to the British throne under the 1701 Act of Settlement.

After years of increasing political instability in Portugal, on November 22, 1982, the Portuguese Civil War (1982-1985) began and the Portuguese Royal Family fled to the Azores and established a de facto capital in the city of Ponta Delgada, the largest city in the Azores islands. During the Portuguese Civil War, Prince Ferdinando became internationally famous for leading the Portuguese Royalist armies. By the end of February, a hastily assembled armada of 25,000 men and three dozen ships formed in the Azores and Madeira. Prince Fernando wished to strike back as soon as possible to prevent the rebels from consolidating their position. On March 5, 1983, the ad hoc task force landed in southern Portugal near Portimao. Prince Fernando was able to quickly head inland and within a few weeks was forty miles away from Lisbon. However, his advance quickly ground to halt after the rebels put up a strong defense at the Battle of Montemor-o-Novo. The front line soon began to stabilize, but both sides were plagued by guerrillas operating behind their lines. In a letter to his father King Manuel III, Prince Fernando regretfully stated that it might take months or even years to recapture the entire country. In 1983, after much argument, Prince Fernando convinced his father King Manuel III and his government to evacuate the last remaining Royalist forces from the Portuguese colonies stating that; “We can have Portugal or Africa, but we cannot have both.” In just a matter of weeks after the Portuguese withdrawal, rebel movements seized control of both Angola and Mozambique.

In 1984, Royalist Portuguese forces retook the cities of Porto and Braga. By December, 1984, Prince Fernando was preparing for the final assault on the heavily defended Lisbon. Unfortunately for the Royalists, pro-Republican guerrillas and partisans still roamed the countryside, thus making it difficult for Fernando to concentrate his forces. Finally, on May 9, 1985, at a meeting in Dublin mediated by the British Commonwealth, representatives from the Front for Democracy met secretly with Royalist representatives. After two weeks of negotiations, on May 23, 1985, an agreement was reached; Manuel III was to be reinstated as monarch, Prime Minister Miguelito Luiz Fernandes (1916-1985) would be dismissed from office and forbidden to return to metropolitan Portugal, all rebels who swore allegiance to the Portuguese Crown would receive a pardon, those who refused would be allowed to emigrate to any other nation unmolested and free and fair elections for a new parliament and a constitutional convention were to be held by the end of 1987. Great Britain guaranteed these terms and agreed to act as a peacekeeper until a new government could be established. After inter-rebel infighting in Lisbon during the Noite das Granadas and the subsequent British intervention, the fighting had ceased on June 3, 1985. After almost three years of brutal fighting that tragically divided the Kingdom of Portugal and her people, the Portuguese Civil War finally came to an end. After months of debate, the Kingdom of Portugal adopted a new constitution on November 22, 1987, five years to the day after the beginning of the Portuguese Civil War. To mark this important moment in the history of Portugal, a new flag of the Kingdom of Portugal, allegedly designed by Ferdinand, Prince Royal, was adopted on November 25, 1987.

After an almost seventeen year-long reign, King Manuel III died on October 29, 1989. As a result, Ferdinand, Prince Royal became King Ferdinand V of Portugal. His coronation, the first be televised live on Portuguese television, took place in Lisbon on February 12, 1990. During his first three months as King of Portugal, from October, 1989 to January, 1989, King Ferdinand V oversaw the withdrawal of the last British and British Commonwealth peacekeepers from Portugal, thus illustrating Portugal’s transition from a deeply conservative and authoritarian monarchy to a relatively stable constitutional monarchy. His reign, which has lasted for almost thirty years and continues to this day, has seen numerous events and developments, such as Portugal engaging in equal trade with all the major European alliances, the Portuguese neutrality in both the European and Global alliance system, the Portuguese elections of 1990, which saw the election of the centrist Liberal Party Prime Minister Cristóvão Antonio Tavares (1936-2016), the election of the first female PMs in the parliamentary elections of 1992, the death of the Queen Mother Josephina Carolina in 1992, the election of the first Social Democratic Party Prime Minister Nuno Ribiero (1946- ) in 1994, the death of the Queen Mother Frederica Maria in 1999, the diplomatic recognition of the new post-IEF nations of Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Chechenia, Dagestan, the Democratic Union of Turkish Republics and Manchuria, the celebration of his Silver Jubilee on October 29, 2014, among other events. Over the years, King Ferdinand V was been internationally lauded for his continuation of the liberalization of Portugal. After his death, his eldest son John, Prince Royal, born on September 1, 1992, will become King John VIII of Portugal

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio has been approved by Mac Gregor.

Alexander I (1851-1929)

King Alexander I of the Netherlands was born as Prince Alexander of the Netherlands in The Hague on August 25, 1851. Prince Alexander was the third and youngest child of King William III (1817-1887) and Queen Sophie of Wüttenburg (1818-1876). His oldest sibling was William, Prince of Orange (1840-1876), who was the heir to the Dutch throne. His second oldest sibling was Prince Maurice of the Netherlands, who died a year before he was born at the age of six. Unlike his older brother William, who was a womanizer and drinker, Alexander was a disciplined, intellectual and well-read individual. After the sudden death of his older brother William, Prince of Orange from typhus and alcoholism on September 22, 1876, the 25 year-old Prince Alexander became the new heir to the Dutch throne and the Prince of Orange. While saddened by the death of his older brother, Alexander was ready to accept the responsibilities of being the new heir to the Dutch throne.

On September 23, 1885, Alexander, Prince of Orange married Infanta Marie Anne of Portugal (1861-1938), the daughter of the late Portuguese pretender and former King Miguel I (1802-1872), in a lavish Dutch Reformed ceremony at the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam. Shortly before the marriage, Infanta Marie Anne converted to the Dutch Reformed Church in an effort to make the marriage more amicable. Infanta Marie Anne would eventually become Queen Marie Anne of the Netherlands. The couple would have the following children; King Alexander II (May 22, 1878-October 12, 1938), Princess Alexandra (June 14, 1881-September 6, 1965), Princess Wilhelmina (August 23, 1884-July 14, 1964) and Princess Sophia (October 4, 1885-November 22, 1894).

On December 29, 1887, after suffering from a number of serious illnesses over the last few years, King William III died from kidney failure in Het Loo Palace in Apeldoorn, Netherlands at the age of 70. As a result, the 36 year-old Alexander, Prince of Orange became King Alexander I of the Netherlands. His coronation took place in Amsterdam on March 23, 1888. The reign of Alexander I saw numerous developments in modern Dutch history, such as the new economic booms in the Dutch East Indies, the increased immigration of Dutchmen overseas, the tragic death of his nine-year old daughter Princess Sophia from typhus in 1894, the neutrality of the Netherlands in the European Alliance system, the worsening of relations with Great Britain over the issue of the Second Boer War in 1906, the election of the first Dutch Prime Minister of the Social Democratic Labor Party (Sociaal Democratische Arbeiderspartij) Barend Jansen (1877-1966) in the general election of 1927, among others. On July 26, 1898, he survived an assassination attempt in Rotterdam by the Dutch anarchist Floris Pierson (1872-1898). King Alexander survived the assassination attempt uninjured, while Pierson was immediately gunned down by two Dutch infantrymen who were amongst those protecting the King during his visit to the city of Rotterdam.

During the Great War (1907-1910), King Alexander I, as well as the independent and liberal-minded Prime Minister Pieter Cort van der Linden (1846-1933), supported maintaining the neutrality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the aforementioned global conflict. Personally, King Alexander I was himself sympathetic towards the Kingdom of Prussia, which Alexander called “a Germanic friend and cousin of the Dutch kingdom.” While the king feared a unified German state, he feared a French Empire that was dominant over Europe even more than a unified Germany. He personally distrusted the British Empire over their treatment of the Boers in South Africa, but he preferred the liberal and democratic British over the authoritarian and autocratic French Empire. He also feared that a victorious French Empire would eventually take over the Netherlands in much the same way that France took over the Netherlands in 1795 during the French Revolutionary Wars.

During the Great War, the Netherlands, much like the Scandinavian kingdoms of Denmark and Sweden-Norway, traded openly with Great Britain, the Second French Empire, Prussia and the Russian Empire, as well as with the British and French colonies in Africa, the Americas and the Pacific, making the Dutch nation, empire and economy even wealthier in the process. The Dutch government and Dutch Red Cross also assisted and temporally housed a number of German war refugees that flooded from Germany and Prussia into the neutral Netherlands.

During the 1920s and the last years of Alexander’s reign, the Kingdom of the Netherlands grew closer diplomatically and economically to the German Empire, which would set the precedent for Netherlands joining the AES with Germany in the 1960s. King Alexander I and Kaiser Wilhelm II (1859-1941) meet personally numerous times in the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland throughout the 1910s and the 1920s, and two men were pubically known to enjoy each other’s company.

In September, 1923, King Alexander I suffered a minor heart attack while spending a weekend vacation in Delft. After this heart attack, King Alexander’s health continued to worsen. After over half a decade of failing health, on September 28, 1929, Alexander I of the Netherlands died of a heart attack in his sleep in Het Loo Palace in Apeldoorn, Netherlands at the age of 78. His funeral was held in Amsterdam on October 6, 1929. He was succeeded as King of Netherlands by his eldest son King Alexander II, who would rule the Netherlands for the next nine years.

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio has been approved by Mac Gregor.

Kian Hawkins (1870-1960)

Kian Hawkins in 1910

Kian Hawkins in 1952

Kian Hawkins was born on August 18, 1870 in the town of Yeovil in the English county of Somerset. His father was William Hawkins (1840-1920) and his mother was Mary Hawkins (1831-1895). He also had two older siblings, Jan P. Hawkins (1859-1865) and Arthur Hawkins (1860-1867)*, both of whom died of scarlet fever before his birth. After his birth, the Hawkins parents feared their new son Kian would also die. Nonetheless, the young Kian grew up as a healthy, energetic and often rebellious child.

When Kian was a toddler, his family became gradually wealthier through a series of fortunate investments. The family then moved to Hammersmith, London in 1878. As a child, Hawkins was an avid reader of numerous subjects, such as history, warfare, nature, religion, among other topics. As a child, he was educated at a number of different boarding schools in and around Greater London. In 1884, when he was only fourteen, Hawkins travelled with his family to Alexandria, Egypt, Jerusalem in Ottoman Palestine, Constantinople and Athens. During this trip, Hawkins learned a lot about the history of the Middle East, the history of the Abrahamic religions, the history of the Classical world, among other things. In the years after this trip, the young Hawkins gained a fascination with ancient civilizations, the Abrahamic religions and the cultures of the Middle East. After reaching adulthood, Hawkins attended Christ Church in Oxford University from 1888 to 1892, where he majored in classical studies. After his graduation, Hawkins worked as an archeologist with Sir Arthur Evans (1851-1944) in Crete and Ottoman Palestine. In 1894, he returned home to London. Soon after his return home, in 1895, Hawkins wrote and published his first book, In the Land of Gods and Kings, a book detailing his travels as a teenager throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean and his archeological findings in Greece and the Middle East. In writing this book, Hawkins was able to cope with his depression over the recent death of his mother. Over the next two years, Hawkins continued working as an archaeologist in Palestine, Egypt, Greece, Libya, Algeria, Italy and Spain. Hawkins also read the Bible, the Torah and the Quran and became an amateur religious scholar. In terms of his religious beliefs, Hawkins, despite being raised an Anglican, followed no specific religion as an adult and claimed to believe “not just in the existence of Jehovah but it all the deities of the past and present nations, be it Amun, Zeus or Odin.” After years of working as an archeologist, in 1897, Hawkins enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry. He served in the British Army for two years until 1899. He then served in the reserves for a number of more years. On October 20, 1899, Hawkins married Larissa Montgomery (1876-1948), the eldest daughter of the Rt Rev. Henry Hutchinson Montgomery** (1847-1930) at a ceremony at St. Georges Cathedral in London. The couple then moved into a modest flat in Lambeth, London. The couple remained happily remarried and had no children. Hawkins spent the next seven years continuing to write books and articles for numerous journals and magazines. By his 30th birthday, he could understand in varying degrees the languages of Latin, Greek, Arabic and Hebrew.

In 1906, soon after the outbreak of the Second Boer War, Hawkins re-enlisted the British Army, re-joined the Somerset Light Infantry and fought in numerous battles against the armies of the Boer Republics. By the end of 1908, Hawkins had attained the rank of Major. After Great Britain joined the Great War in 1909, Major Hawkins was transferred from the Limpopo Valley in South Africa to the colony of Malta. In the previous year of 1908, the Hashemite armed forces in the Hejaz under Sayyid Hussein bin Ali (1853/1854-1931) joined the Coalition against the Entente and proceeded to attempt to drive the Ottoman Turks from Arab lands. In March, 1909, Hawkins, as a man with who spoke fluent Arabic and had an intimate knowledge of Arab culture, was chosen by the British Military High Command to act as an envoy from the British to the Hashemite Arabs and to personally assist the Arab rebels in their fight against the Ottoman Empire. On March 6, 1909, Hawkins left Valletta, Malta on a steamer bound for the Trucial States in the Arabian Peninsula. Hawkins arrived in Abu Dhabi over a week later and after that travelled inland to the lands of Hashemite Arabia. Hawkins subsequently arrived in the Hashemite Arab lands towards the end the month. Hawkins, along with his Prussian/German counterpart Theophil Schoenfeld (1872-1944), made a name for himself by adopting Arab costume and customs in order to gain the trust of the Hashemite rebels. In the subsequent months, aid from Prussia, and later the British Empire and the United States of America, eventually allowed the Arabs to start gaining ground against the Ottoman Turks. On June 15, 1909, with Hawkins’ help, the important Arabian port of Jeddah was captured. The Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina would also fall into rebel hands on September 21, 1909 and October 15, 1909 respectively. By March 20, 1910, Arab forces had driven the Ottoman Turks completely out of the Arabian Peninsula. By the end of the Great War on December 9, 1910, the Hashemite Arabs conquered most of the Arabian Peninsula. During the peace negotiations in Brussels throughout 1910 and 1911, Hawkins, Schoenfeld and Sayyid Hussein bin Ali all made public their desire to see a large Pan-Arab state, “stretching through Syria, the Levant, Mesopotamia and the whole of the [Arabian] peninsula” in the words of Hawkins. Such a thing never came to pass due to the fact that the Ottomans still solidly occupied the ethnically divided Levant and that the British wanted to annex Mesopotamia, mostly so that the British Empire could have control over Mesopotamian oil reserves. This was much to the frustration and anger of Hawkins, but he eventually resigned himself to these facts.

After the treaty negotiations ended, Hawkins served with the British army in Egypt from December, 1911 to September, 1912. Hawkins then served as a military advisor to the armies of the Kingdom of Mesopotamia from September, 1912 to October, 1916. During his time in Mesopotamia, General Hawkins lamented the high level of sectarian tension within the newly formed nation. In 1914, he petitioned the British government to partition Mesopotamia into two new nations, a Shitte nation of “Iraq” and a Sunni nation of “Anbar.” British Prime Minster Herbert Henry Asquith (1852-1930) and the Mesopotamian government both rejected the plan. Thus, such a plan never came into fruition. Hawkins also befriended King Aqil I of Mesopotamia (1879-1959), and was also friends with the Mesopotamian Prime Minister Adil Hussein (1875-1940). Throughout his time serving in the Middle Eastern theater of the Great War and in Mesopotamia, Hawkins wrote a number of articles for different British newspapers such as The Times of London, The Manchester Tribune and The Birmingham Guardian, as well as fiction and non-fiction stories for British magazines such as The Trafalgar Magazine and The Weekly Reader.

After his time in Mesopotamia, Hawkins served as the British ambassador to Greece and was friends with the Greek king Constantine I (1869-1935) and the Greek Prime Minster Konstantinos Theodorakis (1871-1952). He then served as the British ambassador to Italy and then to Spain. In 1925, after so many years living abroad, Major Hawkins returned to England and moved into an a small home in Portsmouth, Hampshire. He was also paid a stipend by the British government for the next twenty years. In 1932, the 62 year-old Hawkins, along with his wife, bought a small cottage in the Kentish countryside, just outside of Royal Tunbridge Wells. He then took up numerous hobbies and personal pursuits, such as continuing to write books, landscape and still-life painting, hunting, fishing, among other activities.

Beginning in the 1930s, Hawkins spent the last three decades of his life living in a mostly private manner. During the Ottoman Civil War (1937-1943), Hawkins briefly came out of his life of private retirement and donated much of his money to charities that assisted with Ottoman war refugees. Hawkins even personally attended and spoke at numerous charity fundraisers in London and other major British cities. As a septuagenarian and octogenarian, throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Hawkins suffered from rheumatism and back problems. Nevertheless, he continued with his hobbies. The death of his wife in 1948 left him deeply saddened for many months, but he eventually recovered emotionally. In 1955, he was interviewed by the British Movie-News Company, a British newsreel company established in 1903. The interview was shown in movie theaters throughout Great Britain, and the interview was met with much praise and interest from the British public. In 1957, journalist and future film director Arnold Emerson (1926-1992) met with Hawkins and interviewed him for the British news magazine The Monthly Mirror. In the interview, Hawkins approved for a film based on his life to be made. During the last years of his life, the ailing Hawkins was attended to by numerous different caretakers and nurses.

On August 18, 1960, Hawkins celebrated his 90th birthday at his home with most of his friends and family. A month later, on September 16, 1960, Hawkins slipped into a coma. Thirteen days later, he finally died at the age of ninety on the afternoon of September 29, 1960. On his deathbed, he was surrounded by his two private nurses, the Kent native Camilla Dawkins and the Cypriot-born Julia Antonakis. A small public funeral was held in Tunbridge Wells on October 8, 1960. He was then buried in a local cemetery. His cottage was inherited by Nelson Nuttall (1917-1990), the son of a family friend, and Nuttal subsequently turned his home into a museum dedicated to his life. In 1970, ten years after his death, the British and Canadian-made film Hawkins of Arabia was released to theaters across the world. The film was directed by the aforementioned Arnold Emerson, who personally met and interviewed Hawkins in 1957. In the film, Kian Hawkins was played by the Shakespearean-trained British actor Christopher Donaldson (1929-2004), and Donaldson won numerous awards and nominations for this role.

* = According to Ancestry.com, William, Mary, Jan and Arthur Hawkins all existed IOTL, although details on them are scarce.
** = The OTL father of WWII general Bernard Montgomery.

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio has been approved by Mac Gregor.

Conrad I (1896-1952)

Conrad I in 1924

Conrad I of 1948

King Conrad I of Bohemia was born on June 5, 1896 as Prince Conrad of Prussia in the Marmorpalais in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia. Prince Conrad was the second eldest son of Wilhelm, Prussian Crown Prince, the future Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany (1859-1941) and Princess Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein (1858-1926). As a child, the young Conrad grew up in Berlin, Potsdam palace and other surrounding areas. Growing up, Prince Conrad was educated in the fields of German history, music theory and philosophy and was also taught the languages of Latin, English, French and Russian. Much of Prince Conrad’s childhood and formative years were during the Great War (1907-1910), which broke out when Pirnce Conrad was only eleven years old. The war formed his views on many things, such as his views on militarism, pacifism, politics, among other things.

In December, 1909, during Operation Vorschlaghammer or Sledgehammer, Prussian and American armies invaded Bavaria and Austrian Bohemia. Thought the early months of 1910, the Prussian and American armies continued advancing into Bohemia. By March 1, 1910, American-Prussian forces had occupied as far as Plzeň, Krusovice, Roudnice and Jicin. Soon after, the Bohemian campaign degenerated into a stalemate. Finally, on July 3, 1910, one day after the climactic Battle of Vienna, Emperor Maximillian II abdicated from the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. His eldest son Archduke Joseph (1865-1943) was proclaimed by some Hapsburg royalists to be Emperor Joseph I, but he personally refused the title and office. As a result, on that same day, Professor Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (1850-1940), Mayor of Prague Karel Baxa (1863-1937) and other Czech statesmen proclaimed the independence of the Kingdom of Bohemia from the Austro-Hungarian Empire in Wenceslaus Square in Prague. Karel Baxa was made the interim Prime Minister, while the position of monarch was left vacant. Throughout the rest of 1910, there was much debate over the name of the new nation. Some suggested names were Czechia, Bohemia-Moravia, among others. In the end, the name of Bohemia was decided upon as it was a linguistic continuation of the medieval Kingdom of Bohemia, which also included the historical region of Moravia and which only existed on paper as a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

On October 12, 1911, the Kingdom of Bohemia was officially recognized with the signing of the Treaty of Brussels. On December 8, 1911, the first Bohemian elections were held, and in these elections the conservative and pro-monarchist Baxa was elected prime minister over the liberal and republican Masaryk. After his loss in the elections, Masaryk returned to teaching at Charles University. Over the next few months and into 1912, the Bohemian government and Bohemian regency council debated over the nationality of the new monarch of the nation. The Bohemian politicians and people, both Czech and German, overwhelmingly rejected the idea of a Hapsburg monarch, as they resented their former Austrian masters and wanted to be rid of them as much as possible. After much debate, on July 1, 1912, it was agreed upon that the second-born son of Kaiser Wilhelm II, the teenaged Prince Conrad of Prussia, would become the new king of Bohemia, as this would allow for a strengthening of diplomatic ties between Germany and Bohemia. Thus, at the age of sixteen, Prince Conrad became King Conrad of Bohemia. Anton Hutnik (1880-1969), a prominent Czech nationalist politician and the Mayor of Brno, became regent of the kingdom. His coronation took place in St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague Castle on September 12, 1912. Soon after becoming king of Bohemia, Conrad I was educated at Charles University in Prague from 1913 to 1917. After Conrad finished his studies at Charles University in June, 1917, Hutnik’s regency ended.

Even as a teenager, Conrad understood the responsibility of becoming the king of a new nation. While and after studying at Charles University, he decided to educate himself on the Czech nation, people, language, culture and traditions, and he almost immediately fell in love with the Czech nation of Bohemia and its culture, traditions, music and food. He even converted to Roman Catholicism in 1915. By his mid-thirties he was all but fluent in the Czech language. After almost a decade on the throne, on August 15, 1920, King Conrad I married the Oxford-educated Czech socialite Martina Svobodová (1897-1963) in a Roman Catholic ceremony at St. Vitus’ Cathedral. Throughout their reign, the couple enjoyed a happy marriage and always loved each other. They had the following children; King Conrad II (1923-1987), Prince Wenceslaus (1926-1996) Princess Eva (1930-2014) and Princess Gabriela (1938- ).

Conrad I’s reign as King of Bohemia saw the formative years of the newly independent kingdom. His reign saw the rebuilding of the infrastructure, cities and towns of Bohemia in the aftermath of the Great War, the establishment and training of the Bohemian Armed Forces in 1915 with the help of German and Russian military advisors, the establishment of the Bohemian River Flotilla in 1918, the continued industrialization of Bohemia, the beginning of the state funding of numerous Sokol gymnasiums in 1926, the suppression of both the Bohemian Communist Party (Česká komunistická strana/ Böhmische Kommunistische Partei) led by Bedřich Ledecky (1880-1948) and the proto-corporatist Czech National People’s Party (Česká národní lidová strana) led by Janek Kučera (1885-1944) during the 1920s and 1930s, the growth of the Bohemian film industry during the 1930s, the establishment by the Škoda Works of the Škoda Auto company in 1933, the celebration of the Bohemian Silver Jubilee in 1937, the continued immigration of Czech people overseas to the United States, Canada, Latin America and Australia, the celebration of the 750th anniversary of the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1948, among other events. During his reign, the Kingdom of Bohemia also increased its already existing diplomatic, economic and cultural ties with the German Empire, in spite of the fact that Kaiser Wilhelm III (1895-1988) and his younger brother King Conrad I personally shared something a lifelong sibling rivalry, although somewhat paradoxically, the two also got along very well at the same time.

After almost forty years as King of Bohemia, King Conrad I died of throat cancer in his private residence in Prague Castle on June 17, 1952 at the age of 56. His funeral was held in Prague on June 24, 1952, and he was succeeded as King of Bohemia by his eldest son Conrad II.

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio has been approved by Mac Gregor.

Juan IV (1939-2018)

King Juan IV was born as Infante Juan on June 26, 1939 in Madid, Spain. He was the eldest son of Carlos, Prince of Asturias, the future King Carlos IX (1892-1978) and his second wife the Austrian, Swiss and Belgian-raised Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Parma (1901-1986). He was also the Legitimist claimant to the throne of France as King Jean II. He was also the nephew of King Juan III (1884-1943), although Juan IV only had vague memories of his uncle, as his uncle Juan III died when he was only four years old in 1943. After the death of his uncle and the ascension of his father as king, the four year-old Infante Juan became Juan, Prince of Asturias and the heir to the Spanish throne.

As a child, Infante Juan was, just like his father, educated by Jesuit teachers in a number of different Roman Catholic schools throughout Spain. In his adolescence, in the footsteps in his father, he read a lot about Spanish history, European history, classical history, military history, music theory, astronomy, among other such subjects. After reaching adulthood, Juan, Prince of Asturias was educated at Complutense University of Madrid from 1957 to 1962. After graduating from university, Juan, Prince of Asturias settled into a life of athleticism, relaxation and public service. On September 1, 1965, Juan, Prince of Asturias married Princess Gabriela of Bohemia (1938- ), the youngest daughter of the late King Conrad I of Bohemia (1896-1952). Prince Juan met Princess Gabriela in the summer of 1960 while she was vacationing in Mallorca in the Balearic Islands and while he himself was temporarily living in a villa on the island. The couple had the following children; King Carlos X (1966- ), Infanta Anna Maria (1967- ), Infanta Juana Maria (1969- ) and Infante Rodrigo Alfonso (1972- ).

On March 31, 1978, his father King Carlos IX died at the age of 85. As a result, Juan, Prince of Asturias became King Juan IV of Spain. The coronation of King Juan IV took place in Madrid on April 20, 1978. Soon after the beginning of this reign, from June 10 to June 25, 1978, the 16th Summer Olympiad was held in Seville, and Juan IV presided over the opening ceremonies of the games. However, these were to be an Olympics rife with scandal. With the majority of the world’s population involved in the ongoing Asia-Pacific War, many nations, such as India, Japan and Venezuela, declined to send any athletes to the games. In addition, pro-democracy demonstrations disrupted several of the events, thus making the games, in the opinion of many international observers and in the words of Harper’s Weekly journalist Lawrence Kowalski (1943- ); “the worst Olympics in memory.” Beginning in July, 1978 and during the last years of the Asia-Pacific War, and with the personal approval of King Juan VI and Prime Minister Hernando Enrique Plaza (1927-2001), the Spanish government sent a battalion of volunteer soldiers to fight with the army of their metaphorical Iberian cousin of the Kingdom of Portugal in their colony of Gao against the forces of the United Republic of India. After almost two years of heroic fighting alongside the Portuguese armies, the Iberian Division returned to Spain via A Coruña and returned to a hero’s welcome in May, 1980, shortly after the end of the war.

On November 24, 1982, the deeply conservative Carlist government of the Kingdom of Spain under King Juan IV vowed to help the exiled Portuguese regime regain control of mainland Portugal. In spite of this, many average Spaniards sympathized with the Portuguese revolutionaries and their grievances, as they too chaffed under an authoritarian, monarchial rule. After a month, the Spanish government ordered a general mobilization of the Spanish armed forces in an effort to bolster the small Spanish Army for what was hoped would be a quick march on Lisbon. Unfortunately for King Juan IV and Prime Minister Emilio Sagasta (1928-1993), events would soon spin out of their control.

On January 7, 1983, as the Spanish Army was mobilizing, soldiers of a reserve unit mustering near Toledo mutinied against their officers, refusing to take up arms to suppress the Portuguese revolutionaries. News of the mutiny in Toledo only exasperated the various protests and strikes that were then engulfing the country. Madrid quickly dispatched Colonel Vito Rolando Vazquez (1938- ) of the 64th Cataphract Brigade to bring the rebels to heel. However, as a member of the Phoenix Society (Sociedad de Phoenix), a secret brotherhood of reform minded army officers, Vazquez was deeply committed to political change. Seizing the initiative, Vazquez and most of his soldiers joined the mutineers and began marching north to Madrid. On February 11, 1983, Vazquez and his forces reached Madrid. Five days later, on February 16, 1983, the Spanish court decamped by helicopter to Seville where troops loyal to the crown had already crushed an uprising. On February 18, 1983, Vazquez and a number of dissident groups including socialist, pro-democratic and technocratic groups, and even some monarchist groups wishing for a legitimist Bourbon restoration, announced the formation of the Second Spanish Republic in a live televised address.

Over the next month and half, the Spanish Royalist and Republican forces fought each other across Spain as the two belligerents scrambled to secure key terrain and major population centers. The Republicans were aided by various Basque, Catalonian and other separatists who wished to craft a better position for themselves in a new and democratic Spain. By the end of March, the rebels had captured a swath of territory in the northeastern part of Spain although sizable pockets of Royalist troops remained such as those in the army’s garrisons along the Pyrenees Mountains. Meanwhile, the Royalist and Carlist government operating out of Seville had sent in reinforcements from Spanish Sahara and planned for an offensive in the spring to regain control of rebel-held Spain.

In April, 1983, in the provisional capital of Seville, King Juan IV appointed Xavier Felicaino de la Rosa (1920-2015) Generalissimo of the Royalist forces. Five months later, in September, 1983, the Royalists launched a brutal assault against the coastal city of Valencia. After two weeks of fighting, it was the devastating fire of the Royalist navy that forced the Republicans out of their urban barricades. Video footage of Royalist troops executing captured Rebel fighters caused outrage around the world as did similar videos of Republicans hanging civilians deemed to be helping the Royalists. While the Republican Rebels lost ground in southern Spain, by the end of 1983 they managed to capture nearly all of the Royalist garrisons along the Pyrenees and the French and Andorran border.

The year of 1984 proved to be the bloodiest year of the Spanish Civil War. For the Royalists, German equipment including assault rifles, vehicles, and helicopters allowed them to retake Leon in February, 1984. However, this would prove to be the high water mark for the Monarchists. In April, 1984, the Republicans mounted a large offensive in the center of the country and captured Avila, Zamora, and Salamanca, thus splitting the country in two. In September, 1984, an attempt by the Monarchists to push back the Republicans ended in failure thanks in part to Franco-Italian supplied MC-9 anti-cataphract missiles. Rebel guerrillas continued to gain strength and by the end of the year had made communication and resupply extremely difficult for the Royalists. The rebels even managed to regain Valencia. On October 17, 1984, the Moroccan Army invaded the Spanish royalist-held colonies of Tangiers, Cueta, Melilla, and Spanish Sahara with the secret approval of the Republican Rebel government. While King Juan IV tried to play off this setback as ultimately inconsequential, the loss of Spain’s North African territories had as large effect. Tangiers was not only an important shipping center but also had several military depots and currency reserves crucial for the war effort. Monarchist efforts to retaliate proved futile.

As the year of 1985 began, the Republicans had regained the momentum against the Royalists. By the autumn, the Royalists under the command of Generalissimo Xavier Felicaino de la Rosa were reduced to the regions of Andalusia, Murcia, parts of La Mancha, the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands. In November, 1985, the Republicans finally captured Murica after three weeks of bloody street-to-street fighting. On March 28, 1986, the Republicans launched their offensive towards Seville, finally capturing the city on April 5, 1986. Cordoba fell by the end of April. Seeing the writing on the wall, the Royalists decided to flee as the Republicans arrived at Seville. With German assistance, King Juan IV and his ministers decamped for Palma in the Balearic Islands. Other Royalists, both military and civilian, escaped to the Canary Islands. By May, 1986, the Republicans had finally secured all of mainland Spain.

As the Republicans lacked any kind of real navy, seizing the Royalist-held Canary and Balearic Islands proved to be beyond their reach. As a result, a ceasefire went into effect on June 13, 1986. The Republican government in Madrid and the Royalist/Carlist government in Palma de Mallorca both refused to recognize each other and to sign a comprehensive peace treaty. Thus, the establishment of “Two Spains” would prove to be an annoyance for many foreign governments in the subsequent years, as they had to decide which Spanish government to recognize. The nations of the Turin Pact, the LAR and the British Commonwealth recognized the Republic of Spain, while the nations of the AES and the Orthodox Council recognized the Kingdom of Spain. In spite of the unresolved issue of the legitimate Spanish government and a peace treaty to officially end to the Spanish Civil War, most international governments were just happy and relieved to see the bloodshed in Spain come to an end. Out of the prewar Spanish population of 39 million, up to 900,000 had been killed during the Spanish Civil War (1983-1986) and three to four million had fled abroad, mostly to the United States, Canada, Latin America, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

In the years after the end of the Spanish Civil War, King Juan IV continued to consolidate his government’s control over the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands. Over the next thirty-two years of his reign, King Juan IV would prove himself to be a competent yet difficult monarch of the Kingdom of Spain. The most significant event of the latter part of his reign was the strengthening of ties between the Kingdom of Spain and the German Empire and the other nations of the AES. King Juan IV made a state visit to Berlin in July, 1990 and met personally with Kaiser Wilhelm III of Germany (1941- ), leading to some tension between the AES and the Turin Pact. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, the issue of the two Spains would lead to low-level tensions between the AES and the Turin Pact. Throughout the 2000s, and 2010s, numerous attempts to solve the “Two Spain Problem” by the Turin Pact, AES, British Commonwealth and the LAR came to nothing. It was also during the latter part of his reign that the Balearic and Canary Islands became tourist hotspots for the central and eastern European elite and important ports-of-call for the German military, especially the German High Seas Fleet. The Balearic and Canary islands also became a hotspot for German, Scandinavian, Dutch, Belgian, Czech, Slovakian, Slovenian, Hungarian, Croatian, and later Polish and Baltic tourists, bringing in a lot of money into the economy of the small kingdom.

Starting in 2017, King Juan IV was in noticeably poor health, and according to leaked reports he was allegedly near-death, although the Royal Spanish press denied it. The following year, on August 24, 2018, after over forty years on the Spanish throne, King Juan IV died in his bed in Palma de Mallorca at the age of 79. His eldest son Carlos, Prince of Asturias succeeded him as king of Spain, thus becoming King Carlos X. While some in the Republic of Spain celebrated the death of King Juan IV, many used his death to make light of the economic stagnation that had gripped the nation for much of the last two decades. Some even postulated that the ascent of the younger and somewhat more progressive King Carlos X might one day lead to an eventual reunification of the two Spains.

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio has been approved by Mac Gregor.

Milan I (1854-1900)

King Milan I of Serbia was born as Milan Obrenović on August 22, 1854 in Mărășești, Moldavia, where his family had lived in exile ever since the 1842 return of the rival House of Karađorđević to the Serbian throne. Shortly after his birth, his parents divorced. On 20 November 1861, the seven year-old Milan's father died fighting the Ottoman Turks near Bucharest as a foreign mercenary in the Romanian Army. As a result, his mother Marija gained custody of the young Milan. However, soon after her husband’s death, Marija became the mistress of Romanian ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza, and thus became uninterested in her children from her first marriage. As a result, Milan was legally adopted by his cousin Prince Mihailo Obrenović III (1823-1868) of Serbia, who had returned to reigning as Prince of Serbia since his return to the country in 1860.

On September 12, 1868, shortly after Milan's fourteenth birthday, Prince Mihajlo Obrenović III was assassinated by the Radovanović brothers, who were angry at the prince introducing absolutism into the Serbian government. As the prince had no male heirs, a new heir needed to be found. After a coup d’etat against the Serbian government was launched by the soldier and politician Colonel Milivoje Blaznavac (1824-1874) on September 24, 1868, the young Prince Milan was installed as the new prince of Serbia. As Prince Milan was only fourteen years of age at the time, a regency was established under the coup leader Colonel Blaznavac. On 22 August 1872, upon turning 18 years-old, Prince Milan was declared of age, and as a result he then took the government of Serbia into his own hands. On September 19, 1875, twenty-one year-old Prince Milan married the sixteen year-old Natalie Keschko (1859-1938), the daughter of the Romanian-Russian colonel Petre Keșco (1830-1865) and the descendent of Romanian nobility. The couple had only one son and child, Prince Alexander, the future Crown Prince Alexander and King Alexander I of Serbia (1876-1947).

On March 24, 1879, after quite a few years of ethnic and religious tensions in the Balkan Peninsula and in Ottoman Europe, the Russian Empire, the self-declared protector of all Slavic peoples, declared war on the Ottoman Empire, thus beginning the Russo-Turkish War of 1879. On July 6, 1879, when it seemed clear that Russia was winning the war, the Principality of Serbia under Prince Milan declared war on the Ottoman Empire and fought alongside Russia against the Ottoman Turks. After almost nine months, the war ended in a victory for the Russian Empire and her allies of Serbia, Romania and Montenegro and in a defeat for the Ottoman Empire. On December 30, 1879, with the signing of the Treaty of Athens, the Principality of Serbia was internationally recognized as independent from the Ottoman Empire.

On June 9, 1883, less than four years after the end of the Russo-Turkish War of 1879, the Kingdom of Serbia was established when Prince Milan of Serbia elevated himself from the status of Prince of Serbia to the status of King of Serbia. King Milan I ruled the Kingdom of Serbia for the next seventeen years, during which tensions between the surrounding powers of the Russian Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire threatened to consume the tiny, backwater kingdom. Nonetheless, the Kingdom of Serbia continued to remain at peace throughout the reign of King Milan I of Serbia, and avoided siding with any major power against another and participating in any wars. On January 10, 1892, King Milan I adopted a new and slightly more liberal constitution for the Kingdom of Serbia. In spite of this, Serbia was still by no means a fully-democratic constitutional monarchy.

Throughout his reign, King Milan devoted a large amount of government funds and tax money to the improvement of Serbian infrastructure, communications and the development and exploitation of natural resources. However, the cost of these projects, increased by the King’s personal spending and by government corruption, led to high taxation and by extension a huge amount of resentment amongst the average people of Serbia. In his personal life, King Milan I was a notorious womanizer and unfaithful husband. His mistresses included Clarita “Clara” Jerome Frewen (1851-1930), the sister in law of British statesman Lord Randolph Churchill (1849-1907) and Artemisia Hristić (c.1860-1925), the Greek wife of a Serbian diplomat.

After a peaceful and mostly uneventful reign, King Milan I of Serbia died suddenly from a heart attack in his residence in Belgrade on November 19, 1900 at the age of 46. As a result, the late king's eldest son and successor Crown Prince Alexander became King Alexander I of Serbia.

 

[Zoidberg12]

This bio has been approved by Mac Gregor.

Frederick Eaton (1856-1878)

Frederick Eaton, a Medal of Honor recipient of the Spanish-American War (1877-1878), was born on September 23, 1856 in Los Angeles, California, United States of America. He was the only son of the Connecticut-born Benjamin Smith Eaton (1823-1900) and Helena M. Josephine Eaton nee Hayes (1827-1859), both of whom were the members of a prominent family who were some of the founders of the city of Pasadena, California. As a young adult, Eaton was a radical republican and a huge admirer of former President Abraham Lincoln (1809-1887). As a teenager and young adult, Eaton taught himself engineering. In 1875, when he was only nineteen years of age, Eaton became the superintendent of the Los Angeles City Water Company.

In October, 1877, Eaton was forced to resign from his office as superintendent of the Los Angeles Water Department, as he was drafted to fight in the Spanish-American War. Eaton was then sent on an army train from Los Angeles, California to Tampa, Florida. Eaton was then sent to an army training camp outside of Tampa. After his training was complete, Eaton served in the 9th U.S. Infantry Regiment as a part of the 3rd Brigade under Brigadier General David S. Stanley (1828-1903) and then took part in the seaborne invasion of Cuba, the Siege of Santiago and finally Stuart and Custer’s Overland Campaign.

On June 21, 1878, during the final assault of Havana, Private Eaton, only twenty-one years of age, volunteered himself to be in one of the forward columns that were going to advance on the city and its Spanish garrison. When the full-frontal assault on Havana began, Eaton displayed immense bravery in the charge against the Spanish garrison. According to his Medal of Honor citation, at one point, during the urban fighting in Havana, Eaton and his comrades in arms advanced on a group of Spanish rifleman in a narrow street, and as the Americans and Spaniards were fighting, Eaton lunged towards the Spanish riflemen and shot seven times at the men with his own Smith and Wesson rifle. During this firefight, Eaton was shot three times in the chest by an unknown Spanish soldier. After the American soldiers got a hold of the street, Eaton was taken to a nearby military hospital. The next day, on June 22, 1878, Eaton died, three months and one day before what would have been his 22nd birthday. As a result of his bravery under fire, Eaton was posthumously given the Medal of Honor on September 1, 1878. After the end of the Battle of Havana, Eaton was buried in the newly-established Havana Military Cemetery. His Medal of Honor was originally displayed in the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales in Havana and is now displayed in the Havana Military Museum.

 

[Mac Gregor]

So we have a first here on The Union Forever, Zoidberg12 and Lalli both submitted bios on Gustaf V with a day of each other. I have done my best to merge the two. Thanks to both of you for your support. Cheers!



Gustaf V of Sweden (1858-1920)

Gustaf V of Sweden was born Gustaf, Duke of Värmland on June 16, 1858 in Drottningholm Palace in Ekerö, Stockholm County, Sweden. He was the first-born son of Prince Oscar, the future King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway (1829-1908) and Princess Sofia of Nassau (1836-1912). He had the following siblings; Prince Oscar Bernadotte (1859-1956), Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland (1861-1949) and Prince Erik, Duke of Närke (1866-1946). On December 18, 1872, after the death of his uncle King Charles XV and IV of Sweden and Norway, the fourteen year-old Gustaf became Crown Prince and heir to the thrones of Sweden and Norway. On September 30, 1882, he married Princess Victoria of Baden (1862-1928) in the city of Karlsruhe in the Grand Duchy of Baden. Princess Victoria of Baden, who would became Queen Victoria of Sweden, was the great-granddaughter of the deposed King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden, thus the aforementioned marriage united the reigning House of Bernadotte and the former Swedish dynasty of the House of Holstein-Gottorp. The couple had three children; Charles XVI of Sweden (1885-1959), Prince Oscar, Duke of Södermanland, the future King Oscar III (1887-1970) and Prince Charles, Duke of Västmanland (1890-1962). On February 26, 1908, King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway died at the age of 79. As a result, Crown Prince Gustaf became King Gustaf V of Sweden and Norway. His coronation took place in Stockholm, Sweden on March 25, 1908.

Throughout his twelve year-long reign, King Gustav V ruled as a near autocratic monarch, due to Sweden-Norway being one of the most conservative nations in Europe at the time. During the Great War (1907-1910), under King Gustaf V and Conservative Party Prime Minister Arvid Lindman (1862-1934), the Kingdom of Sweden-Norway traded openly with Great Britain, the Second French Empire, Prussia and the Russian Empire, making the Swedish-Norwegian nation and economy even wealthier in the process. After the war, Sweden-Norway was one of first nations to recognize the German Empire and the two monarchies quickly formed a close and enduring relationship.

During King Gustav V’s reign, Sweden was dominated by mostly conservative governments. All of this changed in 1917, when during the elections of 1917, the Liberals won a slim majority in the Swedish Riksdag. As a result, the Liberal party leader Axel Andersson (1871-1956) became Prime Minister of Sweden, much to the personal chagrin of King Gustaf V.

On July 2, 1920, while touring the city of Gothenburg with a royal entourage, King Gustaf V was assassinated by a deranged anarcho-communist named Björn Lind (1895-1920), who, after hurling a grenade at King Gustaf V, was promptly gunned down by the royal guards. King Gustaf V was then sent to a nearby hospital, where after hours of operations, he died later that day at 62 years of age. After his tragic assassination, the Swedish and Norwegian peoples went into a state of intense mourning. Prime Minister Andersson ordered a large-scale crackdown on all communist and anarchist groups in both Sweden and Norway. The funeral of King Gustaf V was held in Stockholm, Sweden on July 10, 1920 and also in Olso, Norway on July 14, 1920. After Gustaf V's death there were allegations that he was a closeted homosexual following the posthumous publication of several private letters to his private secretary. However, the royal court has denied such claims and there is some debate about the letters' authenticity.