The Torch of the Mediterranean: A Socialist Republic of Italy Kaiserreich AAR

[Soulstrider]

Another great update

[Davisx3m]

Russia is angry!"!!

[MercZ]

@Milities: Considering his animosity towards them though, old habits die hard. Hopefully his personal feelings won't matter much to the rest of the Anarchists in France though.

@Soulstrider: Thanks

@Davis: Yes, and a fearsome beast it is.

Victories and Losses

Our demands are most moderate – We only want the earth!

The aftermath of the Congress left in its wake a visible division between the BGT Chairman Makhno and his Italian counterparts. Over the next few days the newspapers of both nations blamed the other for being divisive, and naturally conflicts over Anarchism and Marxism arose again due to Makhno’s polemics against Bordiga.

To most observers, the most apparent change that took place was the lack of military cooperation between the two nations. Italy was solely focused on its border with Austria while France was wrapping up its operations in Spain and fortifying its eastern borders. Despite the plans of an integrated command of Syndicalist forces, there was little development in this direction despite it being discussed with much detail among the military leaders of the two nations.

It was more or less a strained period between Italy and France. France now had to deal with an Italy that was a much more stronger and powerful nation, not one that was wholly reliant on France for its needs.

Another embarrassment for Italy came when France declared that its country was clean of any possible moles or infiltrators, and pointed to Italy as the “probable” source of the mole. The newspapers of course took the opportunity to use it to launch criticisms of the internal structure of the Italian government.

Grieco in his capacity as Director for the SDDR, was already looking high and low for potential “traitors” who were operating within the government. This occupied much of that agency’s attention, and coordination was done with the intelligence office in an attempt to make its work easier.

During these months the men and women of the SDDR became a common sight in Italy as they scoured the cities and countryside for potential suspects. There was a lot of finger pointing over which department was suspect, and there were often opportunistic accusations thrown towards potential rivals.

The case had been under investigation since Gallo’s report to the intelligence office. Even before then there were suspicions that people who were involved in the so-called “Exodus” and escaped from the wrath of the Republican Guard had found their way back into certain positions to cause damage again. There were also considerations taken that this was more than likely a joint effort with the mafia during the sabotages of the war with the Federation.

Could they have anything to do with sabotage in the American Civil War? There could have very well been an intersection of their interests in Italy and the United States.

Security swept across the military and political institutions as they attempted to find out if any one had been abusing their position. A line of questioning began with Italo Balbo, the commander of the assault on Rome, over accusations of irregular conduct during the operation. Balbo refused any insinuation that he was intentionally stalling attacks, but claimed that there were supply problems which he assumed to be related to the economy straining under war time footing. Balbo claimed that there should be plenty of evidence within the departments to support his story.

This claim was investigated and proved, though opened up a whole other batch of questions. Inquiries revealed that supplies that were sent to the front lines were redirected or suspicious cases of mismanagement by various departments, and it was at those that agents of the SDDR investigated.

It was discovered that within the port cities were supplies were sent for the Combined Syndicates, there were a number of odd “accidents” where supplies were lost or destroyed. Within intelligence and police departments, information regarding operatives who requested information relating to the American Civil War and Red Army supplies were requested by the SDDR.

International media spoke of the “terror” that was sweeping across Italy, most of which in turn cited the “émigrés” living in Austria spinning fantastic tales for the citizens of the world to eat. There may have been some truth to this- the populace was intimidated by the security sweeps but rumors of deaths and disappearances were complete fabrications from the Committee to Free Italy in Venice.

In mid-June, a number of arrests were made, particular out of the Palermo branch for the Sicilian Republic. The men were accused of, among other things, treason and sabotage. The trial opened up against nearly 167 individuals, though the supposed “ringleaders” were the following: Roberto Farinacci, Giuseppe Bottai, Emilio de Bono, Luigi Federzoni, Giuseppe Alessi, and Achille Starace. All, with the exception of Emilio de Bono, were relatively unknown figures working within the departments or syndicates, but together were suspected of being able to sabotage the flow of supplies within the nation during the Anzio Crisis and the unification war with the Federation, and presumably were able to discover the location of Combined Syndicates cells by their members who were in the intelligence directory.

The elderly People's Army officer, Emilio De Bono, dressed in garb for the "Society for Democratic Rebirth"

De Bono was the biggest surprise however, being a respectable officer within the Red Army, only served to further proclamations that people like De Bono who represented the “old” Italy were suspect in their loyalty. The court trial produced evidenced seized from residences that indicated their role in the so-called “Plan for Democratic Rebirth”, a document referring to a means to overthrow the republic and merge it with the Federation. These were to take steps such as exploiting on food shortages to cause an uprising on the government, assassinations of officials carried out by the mafia (which included the attempt on Mussolini’s life during the events of the Fourth Congress of the Greater Syndicalist Union), and interfere with the operations of the International Brigade in the United States. This was all done with the end goal of eventual unification with the Federation and a restoration of the Italian monarchy.

The news was quite sensational among the public, though their interest in the case was interrupted with a spree of mafia retaliation attacks on SDDR offices and Republican Guard as the trial moved closer to verdict. This was mostly an act of being backed in to a corner on the part of the mob, and only provoked the Republican Guard to react with a fierce response.

Shoot outs between the police and mob became daily occurrences. Syndicates had to arm themselves to fend off raids by the mob for supplies and forcible recruitment. It was a serious period of disorder as people took cover from running street battles and bombings as the mafia made its last stand against the Republic [1].

It was in this atmosphere that Director Grieco departed for the office in Naples where the trials were taking places as well as to have a better idea of the violence gripping the south.

As the passenger train carrying Grieco and much of his staff passed Gaeta, an explosion knocked the train off the rails and assaulted by masked gunmen. Security on the train, led by the National-Syndicalist affiliated Cesare Maria De Vecchi, attempted to hold off the relentless assault on the train until reinforcements from the Republican Guard could aid them. In the process de Vecchi and 10 others were killed, and Grieco suffered significant injuries. The explosion and ensuing crash was estimated to have killed about 35 other passengers.

The wreckage of the train outside Gaeta

By the time the Republican Guard arrived and the last of the mafia disappeared, residents of nearby settlements were already there attempting to free people from the smoldering train wreck.

The previous anti-mafia plans had taken their tolls on the mob. But what had really wrecked them were the end of their markets in the United States and the growing stability of the Republic. The final act of Unification and the collapsing American Union State sealed their fate. As the trial of the Society for Democratic Rebirth was taking place, the mafia was crushed and beaten into oblivion. For the most part though, the ensuing encounters with the Republican Guard continued to push the mafia into hiding.

It happened very quickly. What had been a problem since the beginning of the Republic had in the past eight years slowly been fought against, and with the successes of syndicalist forces in the United States, the revenue sources of the mafia was squeezed dry. In a way, the civil war in the United States was as much a liberating experience for Rome as it was for Chicago.

Grieco was taken to a hospital and made his way to Naples where he entered into the prosecution of the Society for Democratic Rebirth. The trial would go on for a month after that, with guilty charges handed to the accused and with it varying degrees of imprisonment ranging from three years to twenty. The mafia attacks began to scale down and much of their operations were being shut down and the black market beginning to be closed.

For all intents and purposes, the mafia had played its last game. Major leaders like Vito Cascioferro remained at large though now fled into hiding. They would no longer present the same threat to the Republic they had in years past.

As Italy was fighting its internal problems brought about by unification, another group of people rose up against oppression of their own. The revolutionaries in India had mentioned previously their contacts within Indochina and their attempts to aid resistance movements in the German colony of Vietnam. While this failed to materialize any revolts in the nation of Myanmar as the Bharitya Commune had hoped, but it made a successful smuggling route to Vietnamese liberation movements. On July 15th, the Germans found themselves with a full-scale uprising in its colony.

Already occupied with a tense war against Japan, the Germans opted to send a small group of elite marines to bolster that of the already existing colonial garrison. What they lacked in numbers they made up for in weapons at the very least, and with the training of the marines to back them up, the colonial garrison could destroy the rebels.

The nations of the Syndintern joined the movement formed by the Bharitya Commune to support the young Vietnamese state and declare its intentions for Germany to recognize the right of self-determination to the natives.

Whether the Vietnamese could win was a different matter. Some felt that they would be able to do so with their nationalistic sentiment behind them, while others questioned if it was possible for the syndicalist factions within the independence movement to assert itself over the others resisting German colonialism. That would remain to be seen.

Meanwhile, Beria and his Transcaucasian Socialist Republic ran into its inevitable conflict with the Russian Empire. Entering into August the TSR’s repression of the monarchist movement in its borders prompted Russia to issue a warning against the fledging nation. When the monarchists were still harassed, Russia used it as a pretext to open war against the small nation on August 2nd.

The nations of the Syndintern issued condemnations against the act of aggression- though they were alone in the world for it. For their part every nation ceased trade with the Russian Empire, but it really affected the Russian Empire little due to its other trading partners. The Commune of France was not in the position to aid the Mensheviks militarily- more so out of a pragmatic recognition that a war with Russia would be destructive for the Syndintern at this point.

Italy could do little but stand by and watch. For the Anarcho-Syndicalists in particular, it represented a passing of the last fragment of the Russian Revolution. While they were by and large pro-Bolshevik, the Mensheviks were still a close ally to the Syndintern.

The conquest did not take too long. Within three days Tibilisi was captured and only a handful of the leadership narrowly escaped the blockade in the Black Sea. Beria was not among them, and he disappeared after that.

And with that, the Russian Empire annexed Georgia and repressed the monarchists there demanding an independent Kingdom of Georgia. For Italian papers, it was merely a confirmation of what they had said before- no honor among thieves [2].

It appeared though the jubilation of Russia’s extension to its former Caucasus territories was a bit too much for some. Tsar Kyril Romanov died on September 18th in his palace at Petrograd, and was succeeded by his son, Vladimir.

The succession met little to the Syndintern- no real change would take place in the aggressive way the nation was acting. If anything, Marshal Denikin’s sway over the new Tsar might be even greater than he had over the former. It goes without saying that the fact he had technically “ruled” Russia longer than his father did made an impression on the new Tsar, and moved Denikin to a real power behind the throne.
The Union of Britain, until that point largely quiet beyond its participation in the Phalanstere International, was moved to action by events in the island of Iceland.

The Kingdom of Denmark, still suffering from economic woes even after slashing its spending, hesitantly decided to grant independence to Iceland and withdraw its operations from the island. While Iceland had already developed an economy and governance of its own thanks to home rule, it was still going to have to deal with the loss of an important source of revenue. Put into a deadly and uncertain world, the new nation of Iceland was approached by the Canadians for a lucrative deal for oil.

The agreement offered to Iceland a reliable supply of oil in exchange for recognition of Canadian rights in the market- essentially a preferred status. The government, looking for ways to preserve itself, agreed with out issue on October 11th .

The deal was not popular with the working class of Iceland, in particular those who worked in the fishing industries, as the fuel agreement gave Canada exclusive rights to its fishing waters off the coast of Greenland which many of the fishermen in Iceland used.

In the coming month the fisherman took strike action across the island, freezing much of the commerce and sabotaging oil shipments where they could. Talks were made of a larger demonstration in the capital of Reykjavik in the following month to force the government to renegotiate or cancel the agreement all together.

On November 24th, the fishermen of Iceland converged on Reykjavik and marched to the seat of government, where they were met by police and elements of the military. After claiming the fishermen had endangered the lives of the police, shots were fired and the demonstration turned into a riot that engulfed the island for the next few days.

On November 28th, acting on a request of help from the government which allowed Canada military access to Iceland in the future, the forces of Canada made plans to deploy troops to help put down the demonstrations in the city. The Union of Britain, having already inserted spies to ensure Iceland’s neutrality, reported back to their superiors that the first signs of Canadian dominance over Iceland were making itself clear.

In London, the CTU entered into an extraordinary session over a possible move by the monarchists in Canada potentially making their first step at “liberating” the home isle. The decision was made to move elements of the Republican Navy to blockade Iceland to prevent any further “interference” in Iceland’s affairs. By December 3rd, the blockade was in effect.

This raised the tension significantly between the two enemies as control over the North Atlantic became a key strategic issue to the two. Fuel and supplies were prevented from entering the island nation which raised the stakes. On December 20th, as unrest gripped the island, the government chose to cancel its first elections until the protests dissipated.

This was not received well by the opposition, who stormed out in protest and joined the ranks of the demonstrators. Members of the Popular Unity Party and the Nationalist Party agitated the demonstrators into a fury, and on December 23rd the demonstrators stormed the main building of the government. On December 24th, Canadian troops responded and attempted to take back the city, but were met by Union of Britain marines. This was the first major conflict between the Republican and Monarchist forces since the days of the revolution.

The Union of Britain found itself to have grossly under estimated the amount of soldiers the Canadians would send to aid the troubled government. Despite the welcome from the demonstrators, the Union of Britain found itself defeated by the Canadians and evacuated the island. Within a few hours, the blockade around the island was lifted and Canada swept up the demonstrators on the island and asserted itself in the North Atlantic.

The Canadian press termed it the “Miracle of Christmas”, referring to how the conflict had taken place across December 25th, and lauded its victory over the “godless dictators” in the Union of Britain. Certainly, an act of divine intervention much of the papers stated, claiming the Canadian forces were outnumbered by “hordes of traitors”.

It was a propaganda victory for Canada and a black eye for the Union of Britain. The monarchists now controlled a vital route and military rights in Iceland to potentially launch attacks on Britain itself. The CTU entered into deliberations over the defense of the home isles and training the populace to fend off its assaults. Delegations were sent to Chicago hoping the Combined Syndicates would agree to help the Union of Britain in an event of a war with Canada.

The Entente’s victory in Iceland was however decreased a bit by developments in a former partner, South Africa. After a victory by the National Party at the polls earlier that year, the new government set about in elevating in the European-descended citizens to privileged positions at the expense of the African and Asian citizens. The most controversial of these laws involved restrictions on marriage, separating ‘coloured’ persons to a different representative body, and finally the Pass Laws Act segregating society based on race.

These laws, particular the Pass Laws Act that was voted in that October, provoked protests by the population and created a crisis for the young government. Attempts at putting the demonstrations down ended in failure as protests continued unabated. Unwilling to go back on the new laws, the government responded with force.

Arrests were made against the Labor Party, in particular members who advocated “radical” social ideas. Demonstrators died by the thousands, but on December 26th, when the Entente was fresh off its victory over the Union of Britain, the government of South Africa fell to demonstrators and was replaced by a “National Unity” government, attempting to incorporate all aspects of the populace- African, Asian, Indian, and European. Two major figures of the Labor Party, Yusuf Dadoo and William H. Andrews, took top positions in the new government.

They Syndintern welcomed the news. It would be even better if the government would radicalize itself and aligned towards them- but of course it had to deal with its own significant internal issues. At any rate, it was good news none the less.

As the year closed and Italy looked to the next year, a curious event took place on its border with Switzerland. There had been rumors, sent by its spies operating in Switzerland, that two German citizens had escaped across the border to Switzerland, which refused to turn him into the authorities of the Empire, some days before. These two figures had now appeared on the Italian end of the border on a late night on December 28th, and after a talk with border guards there, were whisked way into a local office of the Foreign Affairs ministry. From there the two Germans put on a train to Rome, and few citizens of the town of Como noticed the strange affair.

One citizen who happened to be awake at the time, working as a street cleaner, said that the two were a couple, though the male had a distinctive look. As he recounted to a the Milan branch of La Repubblica, “The guy seemed to be a middle-aged fellow, maybe in his 50s. Had a mustache and the weirdest hair I’d ever seen. I think he even stuck his tongue out at me! That’s a fellow I’d recognize again if I ever saw him”.

__________________________________________________ ____

[1] In the decades after, the mafia became a popular subject of movies in Italy. They were at times even romanticized, particularly in the period that they were in the decline and “fighting back” against the progress of modernity. Such movies were often blasted by the government and a few were even out straight banned for “offending” the victims of mafia attacks, though it did not deter the popularity of the genre.

[2] Recalling the Russian Empire’s war with the Don Cossack Union and its subsequent execution of Petr Krasnov and suppression of the Cossacks loyal to him.

[Barón Rojo]

Einstein?

[Davisx3m]

Stupid Russians

[Viden]

Einstein?

My first thought was "Red Hitler", but that seems a more probable option.

[Nikolai]

Einstein, selling out to the red regime? I thought he was a democrat. Great news for the Italian comrades' nuclear ambitions.

[Onni_Manni]

He's just going to the winner's side

[MercZ]

I think the answer is obvious as to who the guest was. The bit about Hitler honestly didn't cross my mind and while it would have been amusing, Hitler died in the KR world serving in the Eastern Front. It may be recalled that his memoirs were published in Germany as a propaganda tool earlier in this AAR.

@Nikolai: Einstein's political evolution may have been different in this time line, but in our time he was actually a socialist. This article may be enlightening to gauge Einstein's beliefs.

Relativity

All the marvels of science and the gains of culture belong to the nation as a whole, and never again will man’s brain and human genius be used for oppression and exploitation.

The German scientist’s sudden arrival in Italy caused a stir in all sectors of that nation. Italy had just come off a catastrophic last stand by the mafia and the Society for Democratic Rebirth, and now found itself dealing with a major international incident.
For what purpose did this German scientist leave his own nation? Was he sympathetic to the aims of syndicalism? Could it be a convoluted spy plot of Mitteleuropa?

What exactly was Albert Einstein doing?

The major question laying on everyone’s mind though, at home and abroad, was- why Italy? There was nothing particularly special about Italy in Europe, at least compared to nations like the Commune of France and the Union of Britain who were much more industrious and committed to scientific development than Italy could ever be.

It was the newspapers who eventually got the major scoop, despite attempts by the government to enforce a media blackout on the scientist until a plan of action could be determined by the Council of the Republic.

The staff is pleased to present our readers with an exclusive interview with Dr. Albert Einstein, the German defector who arrived in Italy a few weeks ago. We hope this will be an enlightening read for everyone.

Liberazione: Thank you for joining us Dr. Einstein.

Einstein: It is my pleasure. I think it is time to put some rumors to rest.

Liberazione: Let us get to the first question much of Italy, and indeed the world, is wondering- why did you leave Germany?

E: I left because the atmosphere in the German Empire was becoming too hostile for someone like me to work in. Ever since the GDVP [1] secured a majority in the Reichstag, the atmosphere has become hostile towards people like me.

L: In what way?

E: One of the many laws the GDVP passed concerned those with suspected “Leftist” affiliations or sympathies. Even groups that were hardly socialist but rather supportive of Republican principles found themselves targeted. Essentially any group they considered to be “unpatriotic” and “Un-German”. For my part I had been an apolitical man, finding that many of the political groups in Germany did not really represent my ideas. However, I was targeted by the legislation that accused me of being an ardent supporter of the SDP, the radical section of the Spartacists much less!

L: And were you?

E: While I had shared some interests with the ideas of the Social Democrats, I was not an ardent supporter of the party much less backing the radical sections of that group.

L: What effect did these laws have on your work?

E: My rivals in the country exploited the new laws to force me out of important research groups and even strike my name from important research papers. In time I found that I was becoming ostracized in the community- my rivals had sidelined me with the law and others were afraid to work with me on account of fears of getting observed by the government.

L: Has this occurred with other figures in your country?

E: Indeed. Besides the obvious political targets, people in all sectors of life found themselves being questioned about their political beliefs and their faith to the crown. Many of us had little concern for these things beyond just living our lives, but the GDVP had created an atmosphere of paranoia that seeped into every corner of life in Germany. Much worse they were exploiting anti-Semitic attitudes within the society to help further their drives, viewing people like myself a fifth column for a future French invasion.

It has only been the presence of the Kaiser who has tempered these idiotic witch hunts, but I believe even he is afraid of potential saboteurs within his kingdom and is willing to turn a blind eye to the activities of the GDVP.

L: And why Italy? Why to our nation? Why not to France or Britain? Or those of the Entente? Or even neutral nations?

E: Truthfully, I see little difference in the positions of the nations of the entente with those of Mitteleuropa now. They are both becoming increasingly withdrawn and allowing to be overtaken with hatred to fight the great “enemy”, the International if you will. Unaligned nations are currently drifting towards the major blocks and the only ones with significant scientific power are Japan and Russia- and neither of those are appealing to me. Much less easy to escape to. As for why I picked Italy, I do not plan on staying here permanently, but joining friends who currently work in the universities and laboratories of the Combined Syndicates.

I know the government of Italy will be willing to accommodate my request and grant me passage to the Combined Syndicates in time. I fear that the Commune of France may have prevented me from doing so, and that the Union of Britain would have done the same thing on account of its rivalry with Canada.

L: What will you be doing in the mean time? Obviously you are aware that the Combined Syndicates is still in the midst of a war with the American Union State and the MacArthur government.

E: Yes, and the fine workers at the foreign affairs office told me much of the same thing. They are willing to let me depart for that nation once the civil war ends. The fact that they were willing to even acknowledge the request at least shows me that they have considered the request more than the French would.

L: As the war in America is not quite over, what is your plan in the meantime?

E: Well, since I’m in Italy I might as well visit the sites, which I’ve been told have been well preserved by the government. I have also been invited by Dr. Enrico Fermi to lecture as a physics professor and help with some research into the early phases of nuclear physics. I can’t think of anything better I could do to help repay the hospitality of the people here.

While Italy was not happy with its newspapers publishing the accounts of Einstein, it was tempered by the fact that the Commune of France was not pleased with the statement of Einstein regarding his fear they would have kept him contained and restricted his movements. The Commune of France did not like Italy appearing to be the more open of the two, though in reality France was probably the more “open” of the two on account of the policies of Makhno’s Anarchist block.

But there was only so much the French could present. It could not get around the fact that Einstein had said what he said, and it gave a boost to Italy, the otherwise ignored and ridiculed partner of the Syndintern.

France’s attention wasn’t on Einstein for long however. The war in Spain wrapped itself up in favor of the Syndintern-aligned FAI revolutionaries. For France this meant another faithful ally in its upcoming war and more importantly preventing a war from opening up on its vulnerable southern border.

It was shortly after the publication of the Einstein interview that the Syndicalist forces finally squashed the remnants of the Carlist forces holed up in the northwestern regions of Spain.

With the end of the Kingdom just a few months earlier, the syndicalists found themselves the uncontested power in Spain. However, there were still internal divisions among them, some with Anarchist-affiliations and others with more orthodox syndicalist or even Marxist persuasions. The latter two had significant followings in the major cities such as Madrid and Barcelona, and presented a threat to the anarchist-dominated leadership of the Syndicalist forces.

Those that did not toe the line of the anarchist leadership were sidelined or threatened, leading to some deciding to depart for the Union of Britain and Italy. Others acknowledged the new order in Spain and renounced their former credentials in favor of preserving the revolution.

The direction of the syndicalists was no doubt influenced by the Commune of France desiring another strong Anarchist member in the Syndintern due to both Italy and the Union of Britain’s political developments. This duty would require the young FAI to focus inwards however, and thus ambitions of joining its revolution with anarchists in Portugal were put aside until conditions were more stable domestically.

The victory of the FAI was not unnoticed by other powers in the region. Germany had before quickly occupied the important city of Gibraltar to maintain its interests in the Mediterranean, and the government of National France followed this up with occupations of Spanish Morocco. Thus the FAI found itself reduced to Spain proper and the Canary isles.

In the Americas, the pro-Syndicalist forces in Brazil and Bolivia were not doing too well in their fight against the Mitteleuropan-aligned La Plata. The desire for “revenge” against La Plata for wars earlier that decade carried the momentum initially for the two nations was petering out, and they now found themselves having to deal with the possibility of another humiliating defeat. No doubt La Plata was helped tremendously with the direct intervention of Mitteleuropa in the war, providing valuable air support for the La Plata forces.

La Plata had so far managed to occupy the Brazilian province of Porto Alegre, an important route into striking into Brazil’s occupied cities along its coast. Bolivia was only just barely holding its own border, and it was doubtful it would be able to present much help if Brazil’s southern regions were overrun. The Syndicalist nations were all very concerned with this development, but were not able to do much for its allies beyond supplies and volunteers.

In Central America, the war in Honduras began to heat up as the government acknowledged that the rebels were indeed a threat to the nation, and so the Honduran Civil War began in earnest.

Honduras was confident it would defeat the rebels with no problems, while Centroamerica continued to provide what support it could for the rebels, whose support was strongest in the countryside. This was a realization of Centroamerica’s proclamation in the last Congress in Italy when they declared they would unite the region starting with working with the exploited farmers in Honduras.

It would be up to Centroamerica to make it successful however. Honduras would not give up with out a fight and it was likely the rebels would not be able to hold back the full wrath of the military, which would open up the possibility of Centroamerica intervening in the war- and with that its rival the United Provinces.

Further north in the Americas, the Combined Syndicates were making good progress against its enemies. The American Union State was on its last legs following the fall of Atlanta and MacArthur’s Junta was reduced to insignificant holdings in the Midwest. The American Union State also had to deal with uprisings within Texas as citizens there began to push back against forced conscriptions of its people in Long’s last ditch defense against the advancing Syndicalist forces.

MacArthur found himself in desperate straits as well. While the American Union State had quit fighting it, MacArthur found that he was being squashed between the forces of the Combined Syndicates and the Pacific States. MacArthur’s attempts to reason with the PSA to join with the remnants of his military to fight against the “greater evil” of the Combined Syndicates fell on deaf ears as the PSA forces rolled further into what remained of his territories.

Italy was concerned with the Papal volunteers who were still fighting with the doomed AUS forces, who were apparently unfazed by the fact that their state had fallen almost a year ago. If the reports from Gallo were accurate, they were unaware of events occurring outside of the American Civil War and thought that news of the Federation’s demise was nothing more than a trick to demoralize them.

More importantly for Italy though, who exactly was the commander of these Papal forces? That remained the last puzzle in the mafia and Society for Democratic Rebirth’s attempted overthrow of the Italian People’s Republic.

The Italian contingent in the war was performing admirably, with the Garibaldi and Mazzini divisions participating in key battles against the American Union State during the fall of Atlanta. The war would come to an end in time, and soon those would return to Italy with valuable experience to be used in the future war, the storms of which were already gathering in Europe.

In the Balkan Wars, the Mitteleuropan-backed Bulgaria found itself on the retreat against advancing forces of Serbia and Iron Guard Romania. A drive by Serbia resulted in the capture of the Bulgarian capital of Sofia and the disruption of supplies to Bulgarian forces. Furthermore Bulgaria was then cut in too, resulting in even more supply problems and leaving Bulgaria scrambling as it began to withdraw forces from its Greek border in an attempt to break the pocket which had isolated a good number of its forces on the Romanian border.

Germany was not pleased with developments in the Balkans but as none of the parties involved were Syndicalist-aligned, the potential of a Bulgarian defeat was not too damaging. The main problem would be securing a route for the Ottoman forces in the event of war in Europe, which would be difficult without persuading the new powers that would come out of that conflict.

In the Far East, Germany’s Qing ally was unable to hold back progressively stronger Japanese assaults on its territories. Despite a direct German intervention with armed forces and air support, the Qing lost all access to the sea and was pushed into its interior regions. Germany’s holdings in south China were yet to be attacked directly by Japan, and it was here a number of German forces managed to retreat as Qing forces fell back.

Germany was also intervening in unrest in its Vietnam colony as rebels attempted to liberate themselves from colonial subjugation. Germany deployed elite forces along with militias drawn from local collaborators, and these were backed up by a significant air presence that the rebels had little change of standing up to.

The Syndintern watched these developments carefully. A victory in Vietnam would be a great boost to Syndicalism’s appeal among national liberation groups, but it would be a hard fought war on the part of the Vietnamese revolutionaries.

The Italians received their package from the Phalanstere [2] in late February that year, getting significant aid from both the Union of Britain and the Commune of France. While this aid was intended for Italy when it was still confined to the south, it was sent regardless to help with more efficient production of natural resources. Italy gratefully accepted this, particularly due to improvements in energy production it direly needed.

These components were quickly deployed and constructed by Italy, and its increases in industrial production were much appreciated. However Italy had yet to achieve the energy independence it desired, and was still reliant on French power to keep its country running. It began to explore further into oil refining and the potentials of nuclear power to see if its reliance on France might be reduced.

The German Empire was following developments of the Phalanstere since it was initiated. It was not too concerned with its effects on nations such as Mexico and Centroamerica whose participation in a war with France was highly doubtful- but it was more concerned with the aid being given to Italy. Italy was indeed the weak link in the Syndintern’s borders with Mitteleuropa, and the International was doing what it could to shore up that weakness.

Germany set out on improving its members where it could too. The depression that started three years ago was showing signs of abating though Germany put a high value on ensuring economic recovery and improvement. This was in no doubt due to its hopes that those benefiting from its generous investments would be able to raise and support larger armies in a war against France.

March saw the formal creation of the RED led by TE Lawrence in the Union of Britain. The organization had been recruiting and training for much of the year following its announcement at the Rome Congress, and was now at such a state to become a force of its own. The members of the RED were kept secret however, as was its exact location, in order to avoid alerting Germany to the true purpose of the RED.

Entering into April, the Combined Syndicates was making good gains against its enemies in the Civil War. The American Union State was pushed into Texas, a territory which it found little support in, while the forces of MacArthur attempted last stand at Cheyenne, Wyoming. On April 15th, the forces of the Combined Syndicates defeated MacArthur at Cheyenne and the remains of the United States passed from the United States to the Combined Syndicates.

General MacArthur and what remained of his junta quickly made their way northwards to the Canada where they were granted refuge by the King. From Canada MacArthur formed a government-in-exile where it refused to acknowledge developments in the Civil War and maintained it was the legitimate government. For its part most of the world followed suit and refused to recognize the Combined Syndicates, much less the collapsing American Union State, as the rightful government of America.

The Combined Syndicates was very much emboldened now with its imminent victory. It was aware that much of the world would refuse to recognize the new government for some time, so it sought to improve its relations with other members of the Syndintern the best way it could.

On April 18th, Nenni’s office in the Foreign Affairs ministry received a letter from the Combined Syndicates. He quickly took this to the office of President Togliatti, who was in a meeting with Gramsci and other members of the Council of the Republic.

Reading through the short announcement quickly, Togliatti passed it along to Gramsci who did the same and passed to the other officials in the room.

“So I see the Americans want to host their own congress”, said Togliatti once the letter made its way around the room, “No doubt this will be a risky move on their part”

“What should we have to worry about?”, said Grieco, “I’m sure the Americans have the war in their favor anyways. There isn’t anything going on in its core territories, most of the fighting is out west”

“We must not forget though the presence of Canada”, said Berneri, “there is no guarantee the Canadians might not decide to strike Chicago and get rid of us then and there”

“We had a Congress fine in Paris”, said Gramsci, “and we were within striking distance of German forces”

“True”, said Berneri, “But there is still the matter of the Civil War itself. There is no telling if the PSA would decide to declare war against the Combined Syndicates. While I am confident that our allies in the Combined Syndicates would be able to deal with that threat easily, they do not need the burden of a civilian event on their hands”

“They probably are aware of all these factors”, said Nenni, “This is more a demonstration, I believe, to the world that they are the legitimate government in America now. Being able to host such an event while fending off a war would show its confidence in protecting its industrial core where much of the Congress will probably be held”

“At any rate”, said Togliatti, “This will greatly upset the French. They had already planned for another congress in Paris, though a much smaller affair than the previous ones. Never mind Makhno’s issues with Reed after he put down the Anarchist insurrection in Cleveland.”

Togliatti got up from his chair and paced around the room, and took a look out the window out into the city of Rome. Turning back towards the gathered officials he announced,

“Why not go? I’m sure we are not going to have many problems there and any way to interfere with Makhno’s dominance in the International is a good thing in my book. If anything the Combined Syndicates might be our way of breaking France’s control of the organization”

And so the invitation was accepted and plans made to send a delegation to the next Congress. Italy was encouraged further when the Union of Britain, Spain, and Mexico accepted the invitations, which prompted other, smaller nations to accept as well. It was only by April 28th, mere days before the Congress, that the French put aside their pride and finally accepted the invitation to the Congress.

________________________________________

[1]As mentioned in earlier chapters, this is the Greater German People’s Party (Großdeutsche Volkspartei). The party’s platform took a hardline stance against both the “internationalist” danger of socialist groups as well as the “liberal” notions of parties who opposed the heavy intervention in the economy by the crown. It was fiercely nationalist and loyal to the monarchy, and its surprise victory in the Reichstag elections led to it finally implementing many of its extreme policies repressing opposition political groups and creating a hostile environment towards intellectuals, socialists, democrats, Republicans, and anyone else considered an enemy of the German people.

[2] The Phalanstere International was formed between the Union of Britain and the Commune of France to deliver technical aid and material to other syndicalist nations in order to make them more stable and economically sound. This was also with the presumption that nations like Italy would be able to field an army of their own to fight in a future war.

[prodigiousbstrd]

New update, nice.

[Davisx3m]

Yaaaaaaaaaay

[Razgriz 2K9]

More good news from the front I hear.

chalk up a victory for Syndicalism.

[Van5]

Neat

[Soulstrider]

Nice update.

You probably already know this still it doesn't hurt saying that the Spanish joining the war event is "bugged" and you will need to make a slight edit to the event.

It was pretty annoying for me when the war happened.

[Kryten]

Any chance for an update anytime soon? (Long time lurker here)

[KotoR45]

Just wanted to say that this awesome AAR made me get DH and Kaiser Reich. Keep up the good work

[MercZ]

Ach, it seems in my table of contents I left out an entire chapter. I've fixed that, so "Victories and Losses" is no longer forgotten. Not sure how that happened

@Razgriz: In some places. In eastern Europe, South America, and the Far East, things are looking pretty bad. For me really, it's good the ACW went the way it did.

@Soulstrider: Yeah, thanks for telling me. I will make sure of that- I have already done some edits myself to ensure things flow smoothly, as well as some cosmetic things like the Germans occupying Gibraltar.

@ Kryten: I do these on roughly a weekly basis, give or take two days. So this one is about on time, but I apologize for the delay.

@Kotor: Really? That is good to hear- I'm certain the Darkest Hour and Kaiserreich teams would be glad to hear that.

The Chicago Congress

People think they have taken quite an extraordinarily bold step forward when they have rid themselves of belief in hereditary monarchy and swear by the democratic republic. In reality, however, the state is nothing but a machine for the oppression of one class by another, and indeed in the democratic republic no less than in the monarchy.

The main problem with the American congress was transportation. Reliable Trans-Atlantic flight with airplanes was still being attempted, and though some flights were successfully completed- notably one by the French themselves just a few months earlier, it was not seen as safe enough to carry the European delegations to the Combined Syndicates of America.

Airships had already been flying between the city of Boudreaux to Atlantic City for some time, usually ferrying high level personnel from the International Brigades between Europe and America. However, there were concerns of safety with using the airship to carry high-level members of the government.

Instead, a naval ship was used to carry the delegates from the Commune of France to America. The voyage would take nearly five days, which was a disappointment for the American organizers as they had hoped the delegates would arrive on May 1st. It was only France’s reluctance to the plan, having accepted their invitation finally on April 28th that delayed the departure of delegates from Europe.

The location of the Congress also meant that it would be difficult for those without adequate means of transportation to reach the Americas. However, most of the nations of the International outside of Europe had already sent some delegates to the Commune of France sometime before anticipating another Congress.

The most notable absence would be those from Russia. The reintroduction of the internal passport system made travel in and out of the Russian Empire nearly impossible, and it would be doubtful members of the New Bolsheviks would be able to leave the country. Recent developments in Georgia would also mean that the Congress would be without Beria for the first time since the Paris Congress.

Already much had happened since he last Congress in Rome. The destruction of the Transcaucasus Socialist Republic and the solidification of a reactionary order in the east, once that could possibly rival that in Germany, was very troubling to the members of the International. Germany herself was already gearing towards the war that would come on the continent, though the near-collapse of the Qing Empire after the fall of Beijing was a cause of worry for Germany.

The Combined Syndicates would surely be a game changer. Even with just the industry in the Midwest, the nation was already rivaling the Union of Britain. Unified, with all the industry of the former United States under it, the Combined Syndicates could very well become the most powerful nation in the Syndintern, if not the world.

It was making promising gains in the Civil War and by the end of the year, the war would certainly be over. It was so sure of this that it was confident it could hold a Congress without any harassment by their enemies. This was certainly the case, as by early May the remaining American Union State forces were falling back into Texas in the face of a massive Combined Syndicates drive into the region.

Gramsci was chosen to lead the delegation again, as he did with the London Congress two years before. Again, he would take major figures of the House of Commons as well as representatives from the major ministries of the republic.

The new guests would be Albert Einstein and his wife, who had requested to go to America when they sought refuge in Italy. This request was honored by Rome, and with them went a small delegation of scientists led by Enrico Fermi, who wished to see what developments were being made in the Free University of Chicago [1].

The ship carrying the delegates arrived in New York Harbor on May 6th much to their surprise. They had anticipated landing near Atlantic City, rather than approaching New York City itself. This was an intentional act by the organizers of the Congress- for the first time many of them- as well as the journalists travelling with them- saw the ruins of Manhattan. The decisive conflict that saved the Combined Syndicates had taken place over two years ago, and the city still showed scars of that conflict. They could not seem much from where they were, but it was clear that many of the buildings were still wrecked and burned out skeletons of their former self. It was possible to see some activity in the city, what was known to be later salvage, clean-up, and construction crews.

Nearly all this time after the conflict, there was still significant rubble to be cleared, buildings to be taken down, and even subways that remained caved in. The Holland Tunnel was still flooded and unusable, as the repair crews were taking their job cautiously and slowly to salvage the tunnel as best they could.

As a correspondent with Avanti! remarked in his article sent back to Italy:

As the ship entered New York City’s harbor, we all saw for the first time what effects the Civil War had on that city.

No matter how much you think you know about it from news reports, it takes seeing it in person to get a grasp of what happened. I feel that even my article will do little to convey what it is we saw and what we felt.

New York City had excited the imaginations of people in Europe and all around the world. It was featured in many works of art, it was the destination of many of our cousins who immigrated in hopes of a better life. It was that shining city on the sea, the face of what could have been the future. It was the beacon of capitalism; one that the bourgeoisie hoped would soon spread into the Old World.

What we saw was its remains. The sad, burnt out buildings looked like a mockery of what the city once was. I can only think of the damage rained down upon Anzio as a possible comparison of what had happened in New York. Within that city many lives were lost, including Italian volunteers, who successfully managed to hold back a fierce assault by the MacArthur Junta to sever the Combined Syndicates only connection to the outside world.

The massive bombing campaign undertaken by the military government was initially hidden from the international press, with only syndicalist nations reporting on what happened. The government initially claimed it was a result of a “terror” campaign undertaken by the “violent mobs” that had taken control of the city.

It was only by September of 1937 that MacArthur reluctantly admitted what the US government did in New York, but justified the action to a press conference later,
“We did what we had to do. Just like a doctor who has to remove a tumor to prevent a cancer from spreading, we had to destroy the only lifeline the socialists had to the outside world to prevent them from spreading”

The Italian delegation onboard the ship were all aware of the steep costs the Italian contingent in the International Brigades suffered, and they were all touched by it in some way or another. Some wondered why they would even be fighting such a war in the first place.

I approached Gramsci for a comment, who had so far remained silent. He simply remarked,

“What happened in New York is only a taste of things to come. This is the face of modern warfare; one that we will all become acquainted with very soon”

Landing in the ports of Jersey City across from New York City, the delegates were greeted by Floyd B. Olson [2], the foreign minister of the Combined Syndicates. The Italian delegation was also met by Vito Marcantonio and Fiorella LaGuardia[3], who led a small group of Italian-Americans (at least those friendly to the Syndicalists) to meet with Gramsci and the others.

The delegations were later escorted to a waiting train that would take them to the capital of the Combined Syndicates, Chicago.

The train passed through Pennsylvania and into the industrial Great Lakes region, and from the carriages the delegates could see that even the heartland of the Combined Syndicates did not escape from the civil war. The train passed by the ruins of many little towns and the remains of battlegrounds that scarred the countryside. Forests were burned clean of their greenery, and many ruins of farmers’ cottages dotted the landscape with their stone chimneys. What should have been a vibrant landscape in the midst of spring looked like a land ravaged by a plague. Even some of the bridges they passed were merely temporary ones built by revolutionary forces to replace those that had been destroyed.

This region had seen two major pushes- the first coming simultaneously with MacArthur’s assault on New York City that was halted at the Battle of Decatur and the other when full-scale combat began between the Combined Syndicates and the American Union State.

Olson described the campaign to the passengers, which was transcribed by a journalist from the British Broadcasting Cooperative:

“What you see all around you is the price the forces of reaction are willing to pay in order to prevent our victory. They were willing to put this whole place to the sword in order to destroy the revolution”, said Olson motioning out the window.

Walking towards the back of the carriage to Daniel Guerin, the leader of the French delegation, he told him, but loud enough for everyone to hear:

“Take note of this, Guerin, and I hope you might talk some sense into the warmongering coming from Paris currently. This is what we’ll see Europe turned into before it’s all over.”

Turning back around he went to the middle of the carriage and told us about the bombing campaign undertaken by Curtis LeMay, or “Bombs Away” LeMay as the Monarchist press refer to him as.

“The American Union State, like MacArthur before him, knew we were weak against air. We did not receive significant defections at all from many of the armed forces, save for a few officers and National Guard regiments. The America First Party had sympathizers within the military who joined their new nation when the civil war broke out”, he said looking around at the passengers of the carriage, “LeMay was one of these, and he advocated for a massive bombing campaign to wreck our capabilities in fighting the war”

Olson began to raise his voice and show emotion, something no one expected from the skilled orator.

“He put the whole region to the sword. This campaign began in earnest in September of 1937, mere months after we had repulsed MacArthur from the region. His bombing divisions leveled many of our industrial centers and killed many people. We suddenly found ourselves having to deal with problems in production and recruitment. Even small towns that we left alone that did not want to get involved in the war found themselves targeted because they were still trading with us”

“For many days these cities were engulfed in firestorms as a result of the bombings. We’re still unclear as to the toll of the destruction, but as you can see from out there”, he said motioning out the window once more, “It is a scar that will stay with us for some time”

Olson did not expand on much regarding the war until the train neared Chicago. As the signs of devastation in the areas surrounding the city, and in particular in South Chicago, became apparent, Olson began once more:

“Running alongside the bombing campaign was a push by armored divisions led by General Patton. They ripped through our defenses that were still reeling from LeMay’s bombing runs, and he was able to push right here into Chicago. From November until March of the following year our forces fought this battle, with much of the fighting centered on the neighborhoods of South Chicago”

“This is the cost of the defense of Chicago”, said Olson as they passed through the wreckages of houses and armored vehicles. Artillery even struck our administrative buildings within downtown Chicago forcing President Reed and the rest of the government underground.”

“By the sheer will of the workers here, was Patton finally pushed back”, said Olson pointing out the wreckage of a tank in the distance, “Much of South Chicago was destroyed, but the revolution was preserved. The failure here opened up our drive into the Carolinas as the American Union State was reeling from this defeat.”

“This is what Oliver Law referred to in the Rome Congress when we had fortified and secured our core regions. We chose not to reveal the details of the American Union States’ near victory and the cost we had in defeating them so as to not cast a shadow over the unification of Italy”, said Olson looking towards Gramsci and the Italian delegation, “We know the importance of our revolution in the spirits of many of those who desire freedom and a genuine change in the world, and how it has motivated them to join the International Brigades. We know we could have not achieved what we could without the help of our friends in the International”

A ruined building in the south side of Chicago

On May 8th, the train carrying the delegates from New York arrived in Chicago, where they were welcomed by President Reed and the Secretary of the Continental Chamber of Syndicates, Max Shachtman. They were given a parade by the various unions and organizations of Chicago, more or less a make up of what was planned to be a May 1st rally. Closing the show was a demonstration by the International Brigades aerial aces and fireworks over Lake Michigan.

Chicago in the 1930s

On May 9th, the Fourth Congress of the Third International began in the Industrial Workers of the World hall in Chicago. Reed opened the meeting with a speech thanking the delegates for their attendance.

I welcome you all to Chicago and the Combined Syndicates, and the beginning of the Fourth Congress of the Third International.

Three years ago in Paris I asked for help from the nations of the International when the revolution came, and I was touched to see the enthusiastic response to it from the gathered delegates. When the reaction of the bourgeoisie came down upon us, you all rallied to our help as you promised.

The International Brigades must be one of the greatest, if not best, example of solidarity between workers we will ever see. Gathered from France, the Union of Britain, Italy, Mexico, and many more places, volunteers came from all over to help us in the revolution.

This was a revolution fought tooth and nail by the workers of the Combined Syndicates. I will not try to posture and show us as the “good guys”, but rather those with the support of the people. All factions involved have done their share of bad, but no one said a revolution would be a peaceful one. From my experience with Lenin and the Bolsheviks, I know this to be the case.

This revolution has demonstrated to the world the ferocity of the bourgeoisie, who have seen what gains they made against the monarchies of old steadily rolled back in the years after the Great War. Backed into a corner as they were, it was not surprising to any of us that they would shed all of the false pretenses of stability and peace and lash out at the discontent people of the United States with all its force, in the form of General MacArthur.

Come November of this year, it will be three years since the people of Chicago rose up in rebellion against the military intervention to arrest members of the Combined Syndicates of America. The self-styled “Chicago Commune” was only a prelude to something bigger, one that would soon cast down the old society and from its ruins a new society would emerge. The significant obstacles presented by MacArthur were overcome, and now his cronies and the rest of the old elite have fled to Canada and elsewhere. The end of the American First reactionaries is at hand as they fail to consolidate their control in the region.

We withstood our enemies in New York, in Decatur, and in Chicago. We have defied all odds an captured Washington D.C. and Atlanta, and are enemies are on the run. Our victory is assured, and we have much of that to owe to you, our fellow members in the International. This is the finest example of what our organization could be.

The end is near for the old order, but there is still much to be done. The monarchists in Canada or their protectorate in New England will not tolerate our existence, nor will the business elite of the Pacific States. We should not expect them to anyways, for we are the harbingers of their fate.

All around the world is once again converging; the unresolved questions of the Great War and the Russian Revolution are making themselves apparent again. War will soon be upon us, and it will be up to the International to finally bury the forces of reaction.
The International serves as the body under which the workers from around the world are united in their cause. We are the last line of defense against the encroaching forces who wish to throw this world back in to the days of the Ancién Regime.

Under the torch of socialism we shall relight the beacon of hope here in America to the world, and join with our fellow brothers and sisters in the struggle to spread freedom.

Workers of the World, Unite!

The first day of the Congress was mostly concerned with the American Revolution. With the revelation of the extent of the American Union State’s near victory over the Combined Syndicates, doubts were raised over how they would be able to deal with a similar drive from the north in Canada. Worse still, the Pacific States of America could very well throw its lot in with Canada if a war erupted between the Combined Syndicates and Canada.

There was also concern over how the Combined Syndicates would be able to consolidate its power in peacetime and assert the new order over the land. It goes without saying that there was resistance to the Combined Syndicates and what it stood for among supporters of the America First in the South. A. Philip Randolph, in his briefing to the delegates about the challenges in the region, touched upon the volatile tensions over the Combined Syndicates’ plans to integrate society and end the oppressive Jim Crow laws.

The end of the day was given to Latin America. Mexico thanked France and Britain for the developmental aid and lauded its increases in industrial productivity. Brazil and Bolivia gave a dourer outlook, explaining their war with Argentina- which was backed by Mitteleuropa, was proceeding poorly and bogged down into a stalemate dominated by trench warfare.

Centroamerica explained its plans with Honduras, within which it had supported a rebellion. However, much to their disappointment, the rebels were pushed back into the Chopan mountains by the Honduran military. After a long siege, the rebels were defeated and survivors fled across the border into Centroamerica.

Centroamerica felt that Honduras was an important part in checking the United Provinces’ ambitions in the region, especially after their annexation of Panama. As such, the Centroamerican delegate explained, Centroamerica chose to declare war on Honduras in support of the rebels.

Meetings on May 10th were given to Spain and their plans for the revolution. The Federación Anarquista Ibérica had asserted itself over the former holdings of the Kingdom of Spain and like the Combined Syndicates with its own resistors, had to deal with the supporters of the old monarchy and the Carlists. The FAI had also lost Gibraltar to Spain and the entirety of its African territories, the important of which consisted of its Morocco holdings which were occupied by National France. With the exception of the Canary Islands, the FAI only held Spain proper.

It could not do much with Spain’s former African holdings nor did it have much desire to- however it recognized that that Germany’s control over Gibraltar would be a concerning one. Hoping to disrupt Germany in its Morocco colony, the FAI announced it would support rebellions there opposing the colonial administration.

The FAI also indicated that the successful revolution in Spain excited anarchists and other revolutionaries in neighboring Portugal. The FAI brought up its sister organization in Portugal, the UAP [4], which had already been organizing demonstrations against the Estado Novo regime in Portugal following the market collapse in Berlin.

The FAI hoped that such a demonstration would escalate into a revolution and overthrow the regime, and the anarchists of Portugal would join those of Spain in a union, achieving the Iberian ambitions of the organization.

The next day discussion turned towards Europe and the fortification of the defensive line covering the German and Belgian border where potential attacks came through. The Union of Britain signaled it would be willing to aid the Commune of France when war came, but had yet to join the military alliance between Italy, France, and Spain.
Gramsci gave an update on their own operations along the Austrian border and their expectations in an event of a war with Austria. Italy was confident it could hold back assaults from Austria, but doubtful it could outlast the combined Austro-Hungarian resources unless pressure. As such, preventing a stalemate on the French front would be essential in preventing the Italian front from losing in a battle of attrition. He also noted how great of a help the Phalanstere International’s industrial aid was in constructing essential factories and improving resource gathering.

No update was given from the Russian revolutionaries aside from news of the Russian Empire close to annexing the state of Alash-Orda. It was unclear where Russia would turn its direction next in securing its former sphere of influence.

On May 11th, the floor was opened to various groups from Africa and Asia. The foreign minister of the revolutionary government in South Africa, Alfred Xuma, thanked the nations of the International for their quick recognition of the new government and essential trade links. He explained the ambitions of South Africa as one of being a vessel for the ‘liberation’ of all African peoples living under colonial rule, and become the first member of a future “African Union”. He singled out Mittelafrika, though recognized a conflict with that entity was unreasonable at that point.

Rather, citing the potential for instability in the Portuguese homeland, the leadership targeted the vulnerable colony of Mozambique. Xuma explained that the government demanded that Mozambique be turned over to South Africa earlier that year in January. Unsurprisingly, Portugal rejected and South Africa declared war to take the colony by force.

By the time of the Congress the war was still continuing, but Portugal was unable to hold back the forces of South Africa, losing stretches of south Mozambique in the process.

Turning to the Middle-East, Kurdish revolutionaries trained in Italy said that their contacts in the region saw that there was still discontent with Ottoman authorities long after the failed rebellion, though loyalities were still split between progressives led by Qazi Mohammad and the old tribal establishment that Sheikh Barzinji represented. Arab representatives updated that like the Kurds, there was discontent with Ottoman authorities but they had to deal with their loyalties split between the Hashemite or Muhammad Ali dynasties, of Hashemite Arabia and Egypt respectively. Turkish representatives discussed the difficulties of workers in the Industrial regions of Anatolia, with many of their unions being broken up and repressed, leading some to enter into radical organizations to seek a solution.

In the Far East, Taiwan gave statements of various groups. Revolutionaries in Vietnam were facing a fierce retaliation by elite German marines and massive air bombings, one of the few success Germany was facing in that region as the Qing Empire was close to defeat at the hands of Japan. In Japan proper, trade unions were facing legal restrictions in the aftermath of the Niigata riots.

The next few days of the Congress dealt with specialized areas. There were sessions on security and policing, where the Combined Syndicates asked for help in combating organized crime that had flourished under prohibition in the United States and were causing problems for them in the Great Lakes region. Military officials met with their Combined Syndicates counterparts to give ideas on a war with Canada and the Pacific States of America. Officials from the Commune of France agitated for full membership of the Combined Syndicates in the International, in particular the military wing, though no concrete results emerged from that.

The most significant event was the scientific summit at the Free University of Chicago, where Albert Einstein finally met with J. Robert Oppenheimer, who he hoped to work with in advancing science. The summit discussed advancements made so far in nuclear physics, and also confirmed that Germany and Austria-Hungary were also looking into that field with interest.

The Campus of the Free University of Chicago

There was however fierce debates emerging again as scientists became concerned if their work would be used by the military for applications into war, instead of peaceful purposes as some of them hoped. Others, taking a more hawkish position, were fine with such a proposition. In the end, the Italian delegation was left alone in their concern for such a possibility, though they were joined by individual members of other nations, most of whom were from the Combined Syndicates.

In the following days, smaller groups were sent across the safe regions of the Combined Syndicates to inspect agriculture, cultural programs, and factories, to give advice to the Combined Syndicates as to what were the best choices available to them to improve and make the most of their resources.

The Congress met most of their objectives and ended on May 25th, wrapping up with another parade as the delegates boarded the train for the port in New Jersey. As they were leaving thetrain and boarding their ship once again, Olson interrupted them with important news- the American Union State had finally fallen and the American Civil War had drawn to a close.

______________________________________

[1] This was previously simply known as the “University of Chicago”. After the revolution in Chicago, the University was seized and made public, affixing “Free” to the name of the institution. This was more of a psychological blow on account of the
university’s origins from John D. Rockefeller and its reputation for “bourgeois” culture.

[2] Floyd Bjørnstjerne Olson was the son of a Norwegian-Swedish family and climbed to prominence in state politics of Minnesota. Sympathizing with the aims of the Combined Syndicates of America, he became a vocal supporter of unions and demanded the nationalization of infrastructure and key industries. He became targeted by MacArthur’s National Security Act and was jailed, though broken free by revolutionary trade unionists following the declaration of the Combined Syndicates of America.

[3] Like Olson, these two were arrested during the MacArthur security sweep and imprisoned in a jail in Georgia. When the American Union State was created, all the political prisoners apprehended by MacArthur were kept in custody. It was only when the Combined Syndicates had invaded Georgia that Marcantonio and LaGuardia were freed.

[4] União Anarquista Portuguesa, or the Portuguese Anarchist Union. The organization was closely affiliated with the CNT-FAI in Spain before the revolution.

[Kryten]

Yesssss, new update!

[Aliasing]

Hello, I'm John Mca-Aliasing
and I approve of this update

[Barón Rojo]

It was only by September of 1937 that MacArthur reluctantly admitted what the US government did in New York, but justified the action to a press conference later,
“We did what we had to do. Just like a doctor who has to remove a tumor to prevent a cancer from spreading, we had to destroy the only lifeline the socialists had to the outside world to prevent them from spreading”

These reactionaries and their 'iron surgeons'.