Well, in WMiT 1.0, the Southron republics maintained some degree of democracy before the RU conquered them, so CoCaro maintaining its sanity fits with that.
"What Madness Is This?" Volume I: The Union Forever
- Thread starter Napoleon53
- Start date
And it's still lurking, still in the background.
*Rusty Bunker rubs hands gleefully*
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Look, I'm not saying we're God's chosen nation, but can ya rule it out?
*Jingoisms in Carolinian*
Nah, just his successor.
Also, I'm just waiting for Murica1776 to get on and see his favorite faction get the coverage it deserves, lol. I pictured it being in my head like the part of the LEGO Movie when Benny the Spaceman is told he can finally build a spaceship. lol
What? No, I'm not smiling while listening to Hark the Sound, that's you! Ok, there might be some truth to Napo's image.
In all seriousness, I loved what you did with it! It seems more fully realistic with the direction you took it, lol. And let me tell ya, Gamble, Bunker, and the Office of Public Virtue are great. The perfect bunch of folks to
Since I have nothing further to add, I just want to say again how much I loved this chapter! I shall stand by my beloved Moon and Stars until it is unfortunately thrown into the gaping maw of the Yankee Apostate Empire. Hark the Sound!
CHAPTER 52
CHAPTER 52
GEM OF THE WEST
Queen Leopoldine I, House Chevrolet-Bonaparte, of the Kingdom of California
GEM OF THE WEST
Queen Leopoldine I, House Chevrolet-Bonaparte, of the Kingdom of California
Many years have passed since I roamed the hills
in the golden glow of sunlight
As the darkness grows all around me now
I love you with all my might,
California!
- Excerpt from the Royal Anthem of California sung by the Californian Royal Army as they engaged the first Union attackers of the Great World War, 1911
in the golden glow of sunlight
As the darkness grows all around me now
I love you with all my might,
California!
- Excerpt from the Royal Anthem of California sung by the Californian Royal Army as they engaged the first Union attackers of the Great World War, 1911
California was a delicate entity when it was first forged from the aftermath of the Louisiana Accords. It was born from the ashes of the horrifically despotic Mexican Empire of Iturbide the Mad and was a completely artificial entity. Through hard work from Jerome Bonaparte's daughter, Queen Mathilde Laetitia I and her trusty "Black Hand," the Duke of Morny, California began to take its place as a proper territory of the worldwide Bonapartist empire. The Queen's husband, a native Quebecois architect named Pierre Chevrolet, passed away in 1885. Between them, they had four children. Fortunately for California unlike Greece a female could indeed inherit the throne, and the heir to the throne was Leopoldine Mathilde Chevrolet-Bonaparte, born 1840. The other siblings were Napoleon Alfonse Jean-Marie Chevrolet-Bonaparte (b. 1841), Jerome Damien Chevrolet-Bonaparte (b. 1843), and Donatienne Catherine Chevrolet-Bonaparte (b. 1845). Jerome Damien would die at age 5 of measles. Napoleon Alfonse would join the Californian military and would serve as Grand Marshal of the Royal Californian Army when the Great World War erupted in 1911. Donatienne would be married off to a wealthy Irish-born oil baron, Cassius Fitzroy. But Leopoldine would inherit the throne, assuming the title of queen in 1893 after her mother's death at age 73. Leopoldine would be 70 herself when the Great World War arrived. In the meantime, she was actually married to her own cousin, Senan Andrew Napoleon, great-grandson of Joseph Bonaparte and younger brother to Dominic II of Ireland. Leopoldine and her husband would, in-turn, have two children of their own, Maximillien Joseph Chevrolet-Bonaparte and Andre Valerian Chevrolet-Bonaparte.
FAMILY TREE OF THE ROYAL FAMILY OF CALIFORNIA
Jerome Bonaparte (1784 - 1860) - Catherina of Wurttemburg (1783 - 1835)
Children: Mathilde Laetitia
Mathilde Laetitia (1820 - 1893) - Pierre Chevrolet (1815 - 1885)
Children:
Leopoldine Mathilde (1840 - 1915)
Napoleon Alfonse Jean-Marie (1841 - ? )
Jerome Damien (1845 - 1850)
Donatienne Catherine (1845 - 1930)
Leopoldine Mathilde Chevrolet-Bonaparte - Senan Andrew Napoleon Bonaparte (1835 - 1912)
Children:
Maximillien Joseph (1865 - 1940)
Andre Valerian Chevrolet-Bonaparte (1870 - 1961)
This inbred Catholic royal family was just the sort of thing to disgust the Republican Union, and California always knew it was a huge target in the event of hostilities. Upon the death of the Duke of Morny in 1894, Napoleon Alfonse fancied himself the new Black Hand of the Queen and Grand Marshal of the Royal Army. In the aftermath of Caesar Napoleon IV's dramatic rise to power and his bellicose temperament, the new Black Hand warned his sister the queen that California was vastly under-defended and would quickly fall to Union forces in a war. Using this information to his advantage, Napoleon Alfonse procured funding from the Royal Treasury and began to create the Black Hand Line across the plains, a series of static fortifications, hidden artillery, bunkers, and grinder nests to fend off Yankee incursions.
But that's getting ahead of things. As most historians will tell you, California before the Great Gold Rush of 1855 was a nation barely capable of paying its debts. But the explosion of immigrants looking to strike it rich made the nation's population explode by millions. People came from as far away as India, desperately looking to start a new life in the Bonapartist realm. As the population began to expand eastward, a new problem would rear its head, however. The Native American tribes, most notably the Navajo and Apache, were incredibly fierce and protective of their lands, as they had seen what had befallen their brethren in the Republican Union.
Californian cavalry battle Navajo warriors in this painting (circa 1860)
The situation continued to escalate with the native tribes and the overflow of foreigners began to break down society into a wild no-mans-land. This would not stand. The Duke of Morny created the Rurales, a national para-military force, to patrol the country. At last, with the advent of coffee grinders, the last hostile tribes to the east began to surrender. In the end, they were allowed citizenship and were allowed to stay within designated reservations where they would be left alone if they followed the law and fought for California in the advent of a Union invasion. The hostilities between Californians and Native Americans occurred during the Ghost Dance War of 1885, when some five thousand natives under Running Dog, a Navajo Shaman, launched a murderous campaign across the Sierra Nevada. The Royal Army quickly put them down and executed Running Dog. The inglorious end to the independence of the Native American peoples had arrived.
Meanwhile, back in the capital of Monterrey, law and order was firmly established. The miners were all tax-paying citizens and the riches they earned were taxed in an orderly fashion by the government. Saint Jacques, called San Diego by the Spanish-speaking citizens, was quickly growing into a very large city in the south. To the north, Yerba Buena was a bustling city of trolleys and beautiful street designs. The finest goods from all across the Empire would land in Yerba Buena and from there would meet the demand for luxuries from the growing middle class. There was an absolutely massive Irish population in Monterrey and Yerba Buena, mostly made up of Inferiors who had escaped the Republican Union's persecution. There were also plenty of other political dissidents hiding in the Kingdom from the tentacles of ORRA and RUMP. One example was some of the RU High Command who had backed Gideon Claywell instead of Custer during the Blonde Beast's rise to power. These former American officials now enjoyed the protection of the Queen and Henry G. Washington, a direct descendant of George Washington's son William, was one of them. Henry Washington would eventually become the Kingdom's ambassador to Gran Colombia, among other things.
California was not an absolute monarchy. Instead, it was a parliamentary system. In 1850, a series of "Federal Provinces" were created out of the nation, with eight altogether. Members of the Lower House, the House of the People, were elected ever four years based on population while members of the Upper House, the House of Notables, were selected by the monarchy itself with input from the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister was selected by the monarch and approved by the Lower and Upper Houses. The Prime Minister could be removed from office by the monarch or by the Lower and Upper Houses. The Prime Minister mostly carried out the bidding of the queen and sought to accomplish her policies. One notable exception is Porfirio Diaz, the first non-European to become Prime Minister and the only PM to hail from the Californian Unitarian Party. Diaz was born in Mexico but had lived in California since the days of the Gold Rush. After not striking it rich mining he joined the armed forces and later became one of the first Spaniards to sit in the Upper House of Parliament. While he sought to maintain good relations with the monarchy as PM, he also was not afraid to advance the cause of the lower classes and the Spanish speaking majority of the country. Thanks to Diaz coming out of retirement as one of the Grand Marshals of the Royal Army during the outbreak of the Great World War, the Spanish-speaking population flocked to the colors and rallied for the war effort. They were determined to make the Yankees pay for every step they took.
- LIST OF CALIFORNIAN PRIME MINISTERS -
Conservative Party
Liberal Party
Californian Unitarian Party
Members of the Californian Foreign Legion man a grinder during a revolt in India
Former Prime Minister Porfirio Diaz in uniform as a Grand Marshal of the Royal Army (1911)
View of the Black Hand Line along the Californian-Union border
Photo taken in Monterrey's Chinaville
- Jacques Forestier (1840 - 1848)
- Gilbert Guillaume Bourdillon (1848 - 1860)
- Benjamin Fontaine (1860 - 1863)
- Leon Martel (1863 - 1867)
- Arthur Francois Bonhomme (1867 - 1880)
- Porfirio Diaz (1880 - 1886)
- Jose Marie Dennel (1886 - 1894)
- Mathis Philbert Romilly (1894 - 1903)
- Come Gaetan Lesauvage (1903 - 1908)
- Ferdinand Perrot (1908 - ? )
Conservative Party
Liberal Party
Californian Unitarian Party
Members of the Californian Foreign Legion man a grinder during a revolt in India
Former Prime Minister Porfirio Diaz in uniform as a Grand Marshal of the Royal Army (1911)
View of the Black Hand Line along the Californian-Union border
Photo taken in Monterrey's Chinaville
Shot taken from an aeroship flying over Saint Jacques (circa 1911)
Ballroom dancing in the Prince Napoleon Hotel, Yerba Buena (1911)
Gendarmes of Monterrey (circa 1900)
The Royal Palace in Monterrey (1900)
Newly drafted Californian troops answer the call to the Bear-and-Eagle Banner shortly before the outbreak of the World War (1911)
In this photo taken shortly before the Great World War began,
Prime Minister Ferdinand Perrot (center) shares a light moment with a native chief (far right),
Conservative Party leader Pierre Napoleon Rose (right) and Californian Propaganda Minister Nicolas O'Hara (foreground)
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Wow, CoCaro is a place of stability. However, I could see the Normanists roaring back if there is a massive economic collapse or something.
California is just how I pictured it, an armed camp. Custer must be both salivating and worried massively. Enough to secure an arrangement with Campbell and Splendidfaith to control the Pacific
California is just how I pictured it, an armed camp. Custer must be both salivating and worried massively. Enough to secure an arrangement with Campbell and Splendidfaith to control the Pacific
Next chapter I'll probably do either Churchill finally and what's been going on in England or maybe cover Scandinavia and Norway and such, since Norway is an American puppet.
My creative juices have just been flowing today. I'm discovering so many cool ways to set up the Big One. It's so much fun... or at least as much fun as setting up a fictional Edwardian Armageddon can be. lol
^Literally me writing this TL.
^ Literally George and Michael Custer starting Armageddon
My creative juices have just been flowing today. I'm discovering so many cool ways to set up the Big One. It's so much fun... or at least as much fun as setting up a fictional Edwardian Armageddon can be. lol
^Literally me writing this TL.
^ Literally George and Michael Custer starting Armageddon
It's my main hobby. Lol I also think you can really tell when an author is really enjoying writing, and I think it shows with this TL superhard.
C'mon California show the RU whose boss. I would love the idea of California creating Irish and Chinese shock troops to help fight off the RU. Imagine the last thing a dying RU soldier sees is a pissed off Chinese soldier driving a bayonet through him, he would certainly be confused.
Also loving this build up, can't wait to see what the English are doing and how the NordReich is reacting to all this (I'm imagining all the other Empires being children fighting each other whilst the NordReich is a teacher waiting for them to stop fighting before he starts breaking them up).
Also loving this build up, can't wait to see what the English are doing and how the NordReich is reacting to all this (I'm imagining all the other Empires being children fighting each other whilst the NordReich is a teacher waiting for them to stop fighting before he starts breaking them up).
How could I forget, seriously I imagine any RU General that loses to the Californian Internationals will likely be left a gun by his higher ups. I'm expecting the RU to lose quite few officers from suicide or after battle purges.
God forbid California fall. I'd never thought I'd rooting for an independent California in any timeline, but please Lord keep California alive as a bastion of sanity. Of course we know that not to be the case...
Admiral Halsey
Banned
Still rooting for the Union awakening to sanity in the end and screaming and begging for forgiveness into the void they have caused.
That would make The Madnessverse like some cosmic horror story, have them do it at the end after the exterminated everyone they despise as the Union crawls on it's hands and knees begging the afterlife for forgiveness.
Vuu
Banned
Nah, make it so that at the end, omnicide occurs, everyone wakes up in the afterlife and comes to their senses. A voice says loudly:
"Now THAT was a bad simulation. Like, the worst one I ever played. I even like the one where I go sicko mode and try to genocide half of Europe and lose more!"
Another voice speaks up: "Seriously, Burr? I know that in the last one I kinda threw you a tricky one, but that's no reason to fuck over all the Irishmen because I spawned as one!"
"How the hell did this even happen? I spawned late, the last thing I saw that I was in some desert and then some dude shot me with a spinny gun! Sucks. Let's go into another one."
Eh, I don't think California falls completely. This is the ITTL WWI we're talking about. Slow advances. I could see them being forced to cede much of their territory like OTL Utah and western New Mexico, then finished off in the WWII analogue with Steele.
Custer seems more preoccupied with Canada