WI WWI Ends in A Stalemate

The year is early 1919. Europe has been at war for more than four years, and millions of young men lay broken and bleeding over the charred countryside.

Germany teeters on the brink, edging toward a nation-wide famine while nationalist and Communist militias battle in the streets. Russia has been draped in Bolshevik Red and is in the midst of a civil war. Austria-Hungary has practically splintered apart after the sudden death of Charles I, with the Czechs and Poles in open revolution.

France and England are shattered; there has been bloody food riots in Hull and Bristol, the French Army has mutinied, and citizens are clamoring for peace. Across the Atlantic the United States watches silently, fearing the worst but refusing to become involved in a European war.

Exhausted and resigned, the major powers of the Great War come to the bargaining table seeking to stop the hemorrhaging, despite the fact that there is no clear victor.

What happens next?
 
Perhaps something like the armistice that created the accpeted borders of Israel in 1949? All combattants pause in place in 1919 and by the time things settle down the armistice lines are accepted as the defacto new borders.
 
Has russia been defeated? I'll assume so and the stalemate is in the west.

I'd say the peace would see western borders return to pre-war. I'm thinking in the east that many of the independent nations would have kept their independence. Poland would have been a smaller state without any german bits, for example. I also think that it would have resulted in either a very different WW2 or no WW2 at all. NAZIism would have never risen, and if germany had a free hand to support Ukraine etc independence, the communists might have lost the revolution.
 
Has russia been defeated? I'll assume so and the stalemate is in the west.

I'd say the peace would see western borders return to pre-war. I'm thinking in the east that many of the independent nations would have kept their independence. Poland would have been a smaller state without any german bits, for example. I also think that it would have resulted in either a very different WW2 or no WW2 at all. NAZIism would have never risen, and if germany had a free hand to support Ukraine etc independence, the communists might have lost the revolution.
There were some plans in Germany to turn the territories they took from Russia in some puppet states (Poland, Lithuania, Curland, Livony) in order to avoid giving back them to Russia.
 
Perhaps something like the armistice that created the accpeted borders of Israel in 1949? All combattants pause in place in 1919 and by the time things settle down the armistice lines are accepted as the defacto new borders.

That sounds more like the DMZ between North and South Korea, than Israel, but yes I could see World War I ending like that.
 

yourworstnightmare

Banned
Donor
Perhpaps Germany might be forced to sacrifice Alsace-Lorraine, but is allowed to get some colonial compensation in Africa (parts of Belgian Congo)? Germany would probably also be allowed extend her influence East and establish puppets on former Russian territory. Germany might also be forced to give up parts of their Pacific Empire to Japan, and thier part of New Guinea to the Dominion of Australia.

Dunno about border changes in the Balkans and Middle East. Austria would probably not expand.
 

Germaniac

Donor
In order for the Germans to give up alsace-lorraine (a territory of theres for close to half a century) They would want MittleAfrika. Britain aint giving up the rhodesias. The French and the British would be forced to recognize all new estern nations.

In Germany to appease the revolutionaries wilhelm abdicated to his son. Germany would then demobilize, Too keep those troops busy, give land to returning german troops. This would alleiveate the problems with troops coming home to no jobs and allows for the "colonization" of eastern europe for the germans. Turning the east into german puppets is well worth alsace loraine (which would have to be demiliterized. Germany wanted it so it would have a border past the rhine). They would also begin sending what amounts to "Freikorps" to russia to fight back the communist scourge. Eventually, with german support, the white russians take back the nation.

Russia, with the support of Germany, fights back the communists. A contingent of German support is the naming of Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich as tsar and a dual-house parliament in the model of germany. There is still discontent but a growing desire to industialize by both the people and the government begins to stablize the nation.

In France The People, the Army, and even polititions are revolting. Everyone is infuriated and the French government cannot handel it. A series of revolts breaks out, the British contigent completely withdraws, the people refuse to support another war. after a few years and even more dead a republican government is once again established with a far left coalistion ruling it.

In Italy - Revolution is on the verge until the Military takes control of the government, follow basicly the same path as mussolini

In Britain - The government is able to take the blows of the people and does not fall to revolution. Except of course in Ireland. The Irish have a island wide revolt after the murder of all the "consirators" of the easter rising. The People refuse to allow yet another war and eventually give in to a free irish nation.

Austria-Hungary - complete collapse nothing can save it. Nationalist groups rise up specificly against the hungarians ( a bit more opressive). Austria becomes seperate under the emperor it contains austria southern tyrol and carinola. Sudentenland is annexed by the german empire. Czech, Slovak, Croation and the rest of serb lands gain a national territory.

Ottomans - Germany dont want to see there empire fall apart. but things happen. Germany supports the rising turkish national movement, and a king in iraq. The berlin-vienna-Istanbul-bagdad-kuwait(now a german territory) railroad is completed. Germany now has an outlet to the indian ocean and future oil
 

yourworstnightmare

Banned
Donor
If the Austrian government reform quickly the Empire might be saved, if they don't Habsburg rule is doomed.

I am wondering about borders between nations like Serbia and Bulgaria and Greece and Bulgaria too. Another possibility is the Austrians are forced to release Bosnia as a puppet nation, won't appease the Serbs forever, but a Bosnian nation is little better than total Habsburg opression of our brothers.

Peace without France getting Alsace- Lorraine is impossible, only chance is a German total victory.
 
If the european powers are exhausted then I believe that even the french would have to accept the fact that they will not be getting Allsace-Loraine back. I could see the Geramns having to withdraw from Northen France and all of Belgium thus withdrawing to the 1914 borders.
I could see the restoration of Serbia and Montenegro and for Romania receiving back some of its territory. As far as the land in the east I doubt if the western allies would have the Germans restore it to a communist government. Thus the Germans would have to be willing to grant independence to them, although I expect that Imperial Germay would dominate them.
 
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