The Russian Empire
The Coronation of an Emperor, The Establishment of an Empire
Royal Square is prepared for the on coming Coronation
The coronation of the first restored Tsar was set for the April 20th, but before then there was to be great changes and reforms to the reborn empire. Denikin quickly handed over the powers as head of government, politics had proven weary for the old general. The position of Minister General and first minister was abolished and the
''committee of Ministers'' replaced it, with the position of
Chairman of the ministerial committee becoming the new head of government position. Denikin was to become chief of staff, unseating Wrangel's short tenure and relegating him to chief of the army, partly out of respect of Denikin by the new Tsar and strings pulled between Denikin and the Tsar, also the ''establishments'' unease with the hegemonic ambitions of Wrangel. Nikolai Trubetskoy, the leader of the conservative faction and
Russian national Union Party was invited to take over as head of government. Wrangel's confidants rumoured that Wrangel's anger was fever pitch at gaining such power yet having little to no time to use it.
Military rule has now ended
Alongside this the decision was made in-regards to the Capital of the nation. Since Moscow had become the defacto home of government and most ministries now resided in the city and its historical value, Moscow was proclaimed the seat of government, all government ministries below the monarchy would be stationed in the city. Catherine's Palace in Moscow would become the home to both houses of the Duma and the Moscow Kremlin the official residence of the Monarch, official seat of the executive and the garrison of one of the restored Imperial Guard Regiment.
The Kremlin would become the iconic symbol of Russia along with Royal Square
Petrograd would revert its name to Saint Petersburg and would become the cultural and Royal capital of Russia. The Monarch would be based in the restored Winter Palace. The ''Royal Ministry'' which would be the ministry dedicated to the role of the Monarch in his role with in the troika of government would be based in the city along with the naval ministry and culture and arts ministry. The city would benefit from a massive modernisation, urbanisation and infrastructural program to repair the damage of the age of trouble and also as social experiment for the other Russian cities.
Mass construction projects begin in earnest in Saint Petersburg
In the former United States, outright anarchy reigned supreme across the nation. Federalist positions on the east coast became unattainable as battered New York remained the only federalist hold out between the warring CSA and the strengthening position of the AUS. Syndicalist Mexico under Pancho Villa seized Texas and Arizona from the rump United States, the very concept of a ''front line'' disappeared in the rapid skirmishes over the mid west. Reprisals became common place as all sides would enact attacks on local populations considered ''
hostile'' to them where ever they went.
Federalists round up ''suspected'' Union Staters to be executed in Oklahoma
The first lands to be returned to the legitimate rule of the Tsar was via voluntary integration from the Kazakhstan of Alash Orda. A breakaway Muslim state during the collapse of Imperial rule, Alash's main weakness was its large minority of Russians in control of the major industries and sectors of the economy. Upon the word of the return of rightful Imperial rule with in Russia proper, the ethnic Russian's on the Alash-Russian border made their move, they succeeded from Alash to the regional and federal governors of the Russian territories just across the border. When the Alash government moved to stop them, they were halted by general strikes and sabotage from the ethnic Russian population and mutinied. When the Russian envoy to Alash presented an ultimatum to the self declared ''Khan'' that his rule was over and that the Russian army was prepared to move across the border and end self rule. The Khan relented and signed over sovereignty to the Russian governors in-exchange for a favourable settlement to the ethnic Kazakhs and comfortable life for himself.
Russia WILL grow larger!
While this placated the majority of the now subjects to the Tsar, it did not curry favour with all of them, the Uzbeks, Urghurs and more fanatical Islamic follower sought to resist restored Russian rule and even proclaimed a Jihad to defend the lands of Muhammed from the infidels. A series of industrial sabotage and bombings reduced the productive capability of the region. Hard-line integration policies may have to be enforced to ensure continued Russian rule.
Large gains, small losses in comparison
Obviously the more fervent republicans and leftists opposed the return of the monarchy, poster campaigns and low key demonstrations were organised but were quickly quashed by the police, but it shows the Neo Bolsheviks were still active.
At least its more bluster than action
A major policy review committee on foreign affairs brought forth their findings and suggestions. Under the chairmanship of P. Sturve and filled with nationalistic officers and politicians, the committee was set up to guide were Russia should focus her efforts and focus in the world. From those tepid and ambitious gambles over the past year had shown Russia was eager to make its mark on the world, but the resounding decision of the committee was that Russia's immediate and main policy from beyond
her borders was to regain those borders. Russia would focus on the return to Russian rule of the borders of the Empire of 1920 just after the White Generals supported the Treaty of Breast Livtosk.
We must reclaim our true birth-rite!
The army was always improving its lot, new mechanised units began to be attached to infantry divisions and armoured car equipped Calvary battalions began to appear. The BT tank experiments were proving fruitful in trials and work for a more heavy ''siege tanks'' which were designed to be able to stand against enemy fire and pound hostile positions from in the open and demolish the enemy with sheer fire-power began to be developed. Tactical planning for these machines was the light BT tanks would hound the enemy, ''nipping'' their flanks and cutting them off as infantry surrounded their positions and the slower KV tanks would lumber into view and dell devastating punishment to the enemy as the infantry then moved in to mop up what remains. These advancements and machines were few and far between in the Russian army, but it was a sign of what the service branch could one day aspire to arm every division with. Also in keeping with the restoration all the previous Imperial Guard Regiments of the Household regiments, except the Volinsky Guard Regiment as its traitorous links to mutiny in Febuary 1917, traitor Guardsmen can never be forgiven. These regiments differed from other army ''guards'' divisions as these are the personnel guards of the Tsar.
The Tver Cossack Division armed with their first compliment of BA-10 Armoured Cars
The second round of committees of the foreign ministry had presented its even more advanced findings and suggestions to government, it argued as to were Russian efforts would best be spent in reclaiming rightful Russian land. Its suggestions was to regain the remainder of Central Asia, or the sprawling Caucasus regions and its many ethnic nationalities. The central Asian option won out as it presented newly discovered mineral and oil deposits and would extend a portion of Russia's borders to its 1920 borders it, did however have another few million potential aggressive muslims and little to no ethnic Russian population. It would become an experiment to the Russification policies being worked on in the bowels of government. When rhetoric began to take a stronger line against the Uzbeks, relations between the two nations understandably fell but Russia would be given a free hand in the region as no other major powers had influence or ambitions in the area.
Central Asia shall be reclaimed for Russia, undivisable!
The day of the 20th of April arrived and the nation and world braced itself for a restoration of one of the worlds greatest dynasty's to power. The event was to be staged in Moscow to show the cities new status. Tsar Kyrill began his holy procession to the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour , the procession route from the Kremlin was swamped with crowds, police, ORK agents, banners, soldiers on ceremonial parade, priests holding sermons and local shop owners trying to make some Rubles off the of the massive crowds who had arrived to observe the coronation.
Crowds swarming over Royal Square before the beginning of the procession
The emphasis on the events was one of patriotism, faith and stability, the Tsar was a break from the immediate past, but also a connection with a better past, it was a new start and old connection. The peasantry were ever present in their devotion to the Monarchy, the peasants viewed the Tsar as ''their little father'', God, Christ the Tsar was the peasants chain of hierarchy, the monarchy was soon to be on the side of the peasantry. It was the Tsar who abolished their serfdom, only to be betrayed by the aristocrats. It was the Tsar who reaffirmed their link with God as his word on earth and then to them. The city dwellers were divided, the syndicalist taint had swayed the minds of many of them and that the Tsar deepened the divide between the Proletariat and the capitalist classes that oppressed them. The majority of the Aristocracy and political classes were in favour of the Tsar's return as it reaffirmed their position, but they did harbour republicans with in their ranks. The Tsar was coming back to rule over a divided nation, but a nation ripe for the iron fisted rule of centralised monarchy.
At mid afternoon the Tsar, Emperor Kyrill formally coronated by the Patriarch to the cheers and adulation of the crowds outside the Church of Christ our Savoir, to his delight the Patriarch had announced that his predecessor the murdered Tsar Nicholas the II and his family had after a series of debates with in the church been glorified as Saint Martyrs and absolved of all sins. A deeply controversial decision with in the ecclesiarchy but the arguments for the glorification won out as the ''Tsar had been overwhelmed with evil forces that had flooded the world in his reign, but he had always held his devotion to faith and Russia as most important right up until the Bolshevik murders committed their crimes''.
Tsar-Martyr Nicholas II of Russia
The coronation is often held by historians to be the point when Russian left its 2nd time of troubles. Russia has dabbled with liberal democracy and republicanism and it failed, not just Russia had experienced this. Liberal democracy as a basis to form a state around, since the end of the Weltkreig Liberal Democracies had been deeply discredited over the ensuing years and was rapidly shrinking in number. First France and Belgium fell to German domination or home grown syndicalism, then the United Kingdom followed a similar fate. The United States vowed for military dictatorship and now civil war, Canada, Australasia and the commonwealth are rapidly moving to the right and away from the liberalism of before to police states, National France moved for Military Junta, Russia's own Liberal democracy was impotent and feeble and fell as soon as its pioneer died, the Netherlands, the last liberal democracy on the continent not in Scandinavia thrived under German protection but was able to resist Teutonic attempts to subvert their democracies until the Syndicalist took the rifles to over throw it. Only Scandinavia, the Pacific States of America and curiously the Japanese Empire and its Korean and Formosan puppets remain the sole liberal democracies in the world, and even then the Japanese models were unlikely to survive. As such the 20's and 30's were marked as the death of the Liberal democratic government, syndicalists triumphed it as another step towards the communist utopia, more right wing authoritarian states, as the vindication it was a weak system of government.
Global Political Systems of Government May 1937 Gold; the Russian Empire (developing ''Sovereign democracy''), Light Blue; Liberal Democracies, Green; Authoritarian Democracies or constitutional Autocracies, Brown; Limited military dictatorships and Junta's, unchecked autocracies, Orange; Absolute Monarchies, Grey; MittelEuropa authoritarian democracies, light Purple; Unchecked absolute autocratic regimes and military dictatorships, Red; Socialist, totalists and Syndicalists states