BigBlueBox
Banned
That’s a funny way of spelling “Wilson is impeached.”Then the American Army marches to Paris and holds it until a reasonable peace treaty is signed.
That’s a funny way of spelling “Wilson is impeached.”Then the American Army marches to Paris and holds it until a reasonable peace treaty is signed.
That’s a funny way of spelling “Wilson is impeached.”
It was ethnically German, and only under French rule because the French had conquered it a few generations earlier.
The Alsatians were hardly content in the German Empire, mind. They were a majority Catholic region in a Protestant dominated nation that proceeded to attempt to repress Catholicism (Kulturkampf) and resistance to rule from Berlin continued all the way to the eve of WWI, having a fair number of 'protester delegates' to the Reichstag "who refused to accept the fact that Alsace and part of Lorraine had been annexed by Germany. The protesters ordinarily renounced participation in the public affairs of the German Empire, and they now sought places in the Reichstag only because the Reichstag provided an excellent platform from which they could tell all the world that the German regime in Alsace-Lorraine was illegal" and with the Zabern Affair being an example of the poor relations between the Alsatians and the rest of the German Empire as late as November of 1913.
Alsace-Lorraine may have been linguistically majority German but they had bad blood with the German army (which was quite present there due to being the border with France) and with Berlin's policies. Whether they preferred being French citizens or not, the people of Alsace-Lorraine were not happy with being part of the German Empire and made it quite apparent over 4 decades, though they hadn't a choice of which country to stay in in any of the map adjustments from 1871 to 1945. Still, it's not as black and white as "the French were irredentist hypocrites and the Germans were wronged."
That means it took at around 20 years for the region to switch from trying to protest the situation to at least trying to make the best of it, which is not exactly a sign of enthusiasm towards being part of a nation. And Alsace-Lorraine continued to chafe under German rule and the German military for another 20 years (again, the Zabern Affair says rather a lot about the situation), that only being cut short by the World Wars.Pro-French parties stopped winning in Alsace-Lorraine in the 1890s. I have some Alsatian blood, and I see myself as a German-American, not a Franco-American.
That means it took at around 20 years for the region to switch from trying to protest the situation to at least trying to make the best of it, which is not exactly a sign of enthusiasm towards being part of a nation. And Alsace-Lorraine continued to chafe under German rule and the German military for another 20 years (again, the Zabern Affair says rather a lot about the situation), that only being cut short by the World Wars.
Even if you are of Alsatian descent partially, what you feel in the United States of America in the year 2019 doesn't bear much relevance to the feelings of the Alsatian people living in Alsace-Lorraine (and then Elsass-Lothringen) over 100 years ago had towards their nationality and relationship with their government.
Most people in the territory voted for a regionalist party in reichstag elections, and the are had a long history as part of the French state. Strategic decisions weighed heavier on AL weighed larger than ethnographic reasons, and the annexation was a function of domestic politics to a large degree. AL gave Germany control of the fortifications at Metz and Strasbourg, as well as access to iron in Lorraine and more distance between the Rhine and the French border.It was ethnically German, and only under French rule because the French had conquered it a few generations earlier.
The Alsatian region is one of the edge cases like Kashubians, Silesians, and Masurians that make life difficult for an ethnographer or an irredentist. Over time many of these groups maintained a distinct regional identity as part of a larger ethnic group (ex. Kashubians identifying as Poles), but this was a situation that was very much in flux.Pro-French parties stopped winning in Alsace-Lorraine in the 1890s. I have some Alsatian blood, and I see myself as a German-American, not a Franco-American.
So integral death of the American army by friendly fire and starvation.Then the American Army marches to Paris and holds it until a reasonable peace treaty is signed.
It was ethnically German, and only under French rule because the French had conquered it a few generations earlier.
I concur. Especially since French nationalism was more of a civic nationalism than an ethnic nationalism. The Alsatians considering themselves French meant they were French.The overwhelming majority of Alsatians considered themselves French. France had conquered Alsace 200 years before.
And internationalised the Vistula.IMO, they could easily have kept Saarland, Eupen-Malmedy and Memelland. They could have kept Danzig, too, if they paid for the construction of a seaport for Poland in the corridor area.
Not sure about Eupen-Malmedy. The Belgians were the clear victims in this, and the closest the Germans got to leaving the area was saying they would let the area be a demilitarized zone if they got the Belgian Congo.IMO, they could easily have kept Saarland, Eupen-Malmedy and Memelland. They could have kept Danzig, too, if they paid for the construction of a seaport for Poland in the corridor area.
Not sure about Eupen-Malmedy. The Belgians were the clear victims in this, and the closest the Germans got to leaving the area was saying they would let the area be a demilitarized zone if they got the Belgian Congo.
Still needed to throw them a bone. And their were some people who wanted land. Any land, really. They also expanded into German colonies during the war, but didn't move too far so they British didn't feel they had to try telling them no. I only post the link below to a propoganda map as it shows some of the losses the Austrian Netherlands made to the Prussians when it was handed over to the Dutch. I don't see the Belgians acting like the Serbs and annexing Luxembourg (as was down with Montenegro), and i doubt whatever their parliament was would be happing with gaining too many Flemings, even on the offchance the Dutch WERE willing to gain land from the Germans in exchange for their own centuries old land. The Dutch weren't fond of gettting any land from Germany after WWII either, besides for some hills they later sold back. If the Germans simply paid their reperations for all the damage they did to Belgium, and the Dutch where pressured into finally giving Rotterdam full access to the sea they would be happy. After all, they would then have a vested interest in the Germans rebuilding (not that they needed too, having quite before their own stuff got damaged) as they would hopefully see an increase in shipping. But yes, I recall the King of Belgium was once offered Luxembourg if he ceded land to France. Got a big fat no, of course. Better to keep to your own borders and not let neighbors nibble at you.Belgium did not want Eupen-Malmedy and was willing to sell it back to Germany in the 1920s, negotiations were, already, underway, but France intervened and stopped them.