WI: Austrian unified German Empire in the 19th Century

With Habsburgs settled on thrones from the Rhine to the Balkans, and a Germany that is not ruled over by militaristic Prussians (probably means Napoleon III probably stays in power if there is no Bismarck in charge), there's a possibility that WWI is averted. Catholicism does play a bigger role than in OTL even if only in a protocol/ritual sense, and there is no Kulturkampf (although this would also mean the Emperor will be expected to be an even bigger protector of the Pope and Catholic rights when Italy takes Rome and the Papacy considers fleeing).

Errr...it was Austria that pratically started WW1. They asked for german guarantee because they didn't have enough power to fight Russia alone. If ITTL the austrians control an uber Germany, what prevents them from declaring war in the same way they did OTL?
 
Errr...it was Austria that pratically started WW1. They asked for german guarantee because they didn't have enough power to fight Russia alone. If ITTL the austrians control an uber Germany, what prevents them from declaring war in the same way they did OTL?

Highly likely WWI never happens or doesn't happen in the same way. In this OTL the Emperor of Germany (or his heir) - as opposed to a multi-national federated state like A-H - would probably not be making trips to a possibly never annexed Bosnia. If there is a German-Austrian centered state, or Habsburg super-state with Germany, by the time the 20th Century comes around I assume things on the ground (and the maps of the Balkans for that matter) wouldn't be the same as OTL.
 
Highly likely WWI never happens or doesn't happen in the same way. In this OTL the Emperor of Germany (or his heir) - as opposed to a multi-national federated state like A-H - would probably not be making trips to a possibly never annexed Bosnia. If there is a German-Austrian centered state, or Habsburg super-state with Germany, by the time the 20th Century comes around I assume things on the ground (and the maps of the Balkans for that matter) wouldn't be the same as OTL.

I just made an observation highlighting the bolded part because your logic doesn't follow. Regardless the existence of prussian militarism, Austria acted based on her own perceived necessity to do so in OTL. In this ATL why wouldn't Austria act the same way, given similar circunstances?
 
Depends on the organisation. Under the traditional Austrian leadership, it could devolve into a horrific mess even worse than OTL Austria, but it could also turn into the greatest superpower the world has ever seen. It really is between those two extremes, if it can stabilize, rest in peace UK and America.

Um....

To give you an idea, at about the start of the Great War, the US alone never produced less than roughly twice as much as Germany itself in key heavy industry categories like steel, iron, and coal. Combined with the UK, Germany was wildly outclassed (and survived mostly because of the extreme hesitancy on the part of the US to involve itself). Along with the Austrian lands you might see a world where alt-Germany is a clear leader on the UK alone, but paired with the 800-pound gorilla that was the US in the economic arena, this Greater Germany is still a lesser foe.
 
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