A German alternate history book from 2005 by SF grandmaster Wolfgang Jeschke. Known as Das Cusanus Spiel [sic] in the original, and translated into English since 2013/14.

Starting around the year 2050, Europe is a hellhole or pretty close at least: Global Warming has expanded the deserts, the seas are rising; many refugees try to go to Europe (many Bangladeshis and such in fact have been settled there, either in container cities or their own villages); several fascist movement like the ASEN, the Praetorians or the KKK derivate KICOB try to fight them; the French nuclear power plant in Cattenom has blown up and irradiated huge parts of Central Europe, as far as Poland; the EU has crumbled, states like e.g. Bavaria have proclaimed independence, for better or for worse; and oil has practically run out (although technology isn't dead yet).

In this world, the Italian botanicist Domenica Ligrina is hired for a very special mission…

• 1460: Nicolaus Cusanus, supported by the pope, founds a new research institute, the Accademia Romana. Which will be lead by scientists like Regiomontanus, Leonardo da Vinci, Giordano Bruno and Kepler in the future.
• 1467: The Accademia has to flee to Milan, where they got support from the Sforza.
• 1478: The gunmaker Corbinian Seeshaupter invents the “Brennkreisel” (burning spinner), a primitive but working engine. Also called a “mechanical slave”.
• 1480: Genua joins the Italian Alliance between Venice, Milan, Savoy, Florence, Monferrat and Naples.
• 1486: Giovanni Caboto discovers Terranova for Genua.
• 1492: The Sapienza invents primitive rockets which can be used for war.
• 1494: Italian Alliance defeats French invaders under Charles VIII.
• 1620: Counter-reformation fails.
• 1672: First mechanical calculation engine built.
• 1676: Constantinople reconquered by Christians.
• 1682: Second Holy War: Turks defeated; Aleppo, Damaskus, Jerusalem, Cairo taken.
• 1705: Suez Canal finished.
• 1752: First airship (“Glory of Glasgow”) crosses the Atlantic.
• 1763: First motor airplane, “Skylark of Massachusetts”.
• 1780: New England gains independence, thanks to their Arrow airplanes.
• 1825: Seas rising - Gay-Lussac suspects that excessive burning of petroleum is the reason.
• 1845: Breakthrough of electric computers. Ada Lovelace is involved.
• 1871: Maledives flooded.
• 1886: First nuclear power plants built by Thomas Alva Edison.
• 1906: After the San Francisco earthquake, two Maxwell power plants destroyed. Radiation disease spreads.
• 1909: German empire sends four men to the moon - but the flight back fails, all of them die.
• 1914: First Paneuropean conference.
• 1918: European unification decided, Winston Churchill celebrated.
• 1923: German nationalists protesting the European unification beaten, leaders Hitler and Ludendorff killed.
• 1933: United States of Europe formally founded in Versailles.
• 1936: Generals Francisco Franco and Benito Mussolini retreat from Morocco / southern Italy.
• 1945: Europe's president Charles de Gaulle declares Europe a fortress, an arc that'll carry European culture into the future.

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