A very valid question.... If it does come to that, it will be interesting. I still have way high infamy and no one will be my ally, so if some combination of nations do decide to come against me, I'll have to fight them all off alone.
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A very valid question.... If it does come to that, it will be interesting. I still have way high infamy and no one will be my ally, so if some combination of nations do decide to come against me, I'll have to fight them all off alone.
May 1906 - May 1916 AD, Part Three
Republics and Radicals - Political Revolutions after the Great War
According to its leaders, the Great War was supposed to bring about worldwide peace. On one side, Kaiser Albrecht and his fellow monarchs promised a return to the stability and order of a world without upstart democracies attempting to overturn the time-tested, divinely ordained order of the world. On the other, Presidents Klavan and Ojakaar proclaimed a new world in which the various peoples of Europe could be free to govern themselves in line with democratic principles and experience a new era of freedom and enlightened liberalism. It was ultimately the Democratic Entente, led by Estonia under the leadership of Janus Ojakaar, which prevailed and had the opportunity to bring about the promised liberal utopia.
Unfortunately, the great era of peace and prosperity that Ojakaar had promised never came to be. The nations that participated in the Great War had expected a calm, peaceful Europe working together to rebuild and grow toward unprecedented prosperity. What they got instead was a Europe struggling to recover from the ravages of five years of total war, beset by poverty, political unrest, and ethnic tensions. And in many cases, much to their surprise, it was the countries on the winning side of the Great War who suffered the most.
Andalusia was the first nation to see postwar violence. Upset with King Felipe's failure in the war, dissident groups saw an opportunity to rise up while the kingdom's military power was severely diminished by the provisions of the Treaty of Orleans. Both communist revolutionaries and anarcho-liberal agitators took to the streets to rise up against the monarchy, but their progress was extremely limited. While Germany had been gutted and harshly neutered by the treaty, Andalusia had remained territorially intact save for the loss of its African colonies. The King's army and police force retained enough military strength to keep the peace. While certain regions saw significant violence, all of it was eventually suppressed by Felipe's soldiers. Though the aging King had lost the Great War, he was able to hold on to his secure position as a proper monarch. Similarly, Emperor Anushiruvan III of Persia and Emperor Deaglan of the Celtic Empire -- all of whom were on the losing side of the Great War -- were able to weather small amounts of political turmoil and saw their reigns remain stable.
Among the victorious nations, however, things were far more tumultuous. Arabian President Jibrail al Ayad had expected a massive surge in public support when he reclaimed Constantinople, the center of the Orthodox Christian world, from Germany in the settlement of the war. Instead, he found that support for his government was crashing as communist ideas spread rapidly through the country. Al Ayad, despite being democratically elected, was targeted as a representative of the "old" order -- wealthy, Orthodox, and rooted in tradition -- that the growing communist movement sought to destroy and remove. The first few years after the Great War were largely peaceful, but by 1910, the country had descended into nonstop violence.
The economic strain of sustaining the Great War had stretched Arabia's lower classes to the limit, and Arabia's difficulty in protecting its borders against Persian and Andalusian aggression had jaded its middle and upper class citizens to the government's effectiveness. Labor strikes led by communist groups across the country began to shut down Arabian industry, prompting al Ayad to dispatch military forces to hunt them down. To his great dismay, however, many of his soldiers refused to fight the communist revolutionaries, and instead defected by the tens of thousands to support their cause. By 1912, pockets of communist resistance had established strongholds in Egypt, Jerusalem, Anatolia, and the east. Attempts by both the government forces and smaller groups of anarcho-liberal rebels failed, and the communist ranks swelled as the territory under its control expanded.
Initially, these communist forces were regionalized and had only limited communication with one another. Ibrahim Jaziri, the charismatic leader of Arabia's formal communist party, had rallied forces around Anatolia and the Near East, and his troops were responsible for pushing loyal government forces back toward Constantinople. At the same time, fighters in Egypt had coalesced around Femi Kamal, an African-descended Egyptian writer known for his cut-throat rise through the party ranks and his uncompromising dedication to revolution. He had been a vocal opponent of Arabia's participation in the Great War, and had gained considerable support from African communists who wanted no part of a war they saw as distinctly Greek and Anatolian.
In spite of their differing origins, as the revolution progressed, these disparate groups began to coordinate more closely with one another. Soon, both Jaziri and Kamal were in western Anatolia working together to coordinate the final blow against the government.
By the spring of 1914, communist forces had surrounded the restored capital in Constantinople, and naval forces loyal to the cause had established a blockade around the city to choke out the last loyal soldiers fighting to hold the capital. After Jaziri delivered a rousing speech to his officers, communist soldiers stormed into the ancient city and overran the last holdouts of the government, killing President al Ayad and paving the way for Arabia to become the first nation in the world to have a successful communist revolution. Kamal and Jaziri would have to learn to work together to build their new regime, but Arabia was on the fast track to a historic success for the red movement.
While Arabia was drifting to one extreme by embracing the long-desired success of the communist revolution, Vijayanagar spent the postwar decade drifting in the opposite direction toward a different kind of authoritarian government. Nearly every belligerent nation from the Great War had to deal with large numbers of veterans coming home from the front and attempting to assimilate back into civilian life. In many countries, they began to form into so-called "free corps," which often became at least partly related with different political movements. Vijayanagar had several of these organizations form in the aftermath of the Great War, and all of them shared similar virtues and values: militarism, Hindu nationalism, and a will to empire.
For a time, their agitation was limited to occasional fights in cities and rural spaces against rival communist groups. The government attempted to pull them back into line, but the anarcho-liberal regime that occupied power found itself unable to motivate its people to organize sufficiently to respond to the threat of the free corps. As a result, as civil unrest grew throughout India and the government struggled to contain communist violence, the free corps began to step into the role of freelance security forces to pacify unrest. Thanks to their effectiveness at putting down their communist enemies, the free corps gained significant popularity among the people, especially in more rural areas where safety was otherwise scarce.
The Free Corps also caught the eye of a man from southern India with grand political ambitions: Hardip Kohli. Though Kohli had not fought in the Great War, his father had, and his reputation among many military veterans made it easy for him to endear himself to them. Kohli's brand of radical Hindu nationalism, which called for a militaristic regime focused on reclaiming and "purifying" the nation's Hindu and ethnic Indian identities, resonated with the leaders of the most prominent free corps. In the early 1910's, most of the largest free corps coalesced into the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, or RSS, and began to act as the paramilitary arm of Kohli's Indian National People's Party. A combination of the RSS' popularity and the positive reception to Kohli's increasingly fascist writings led to the party growing rapidly in size, and by 1914 it was Vijayanagar's second largest political party.
In 1914, Kohli made a move to seize governmental power and overthrow the anarcho-liberal regime that had been in power since before the Great War. The RSS mobilized in force and was joined by tens of thousands of civilian volunteers who armed themselves against the government. Their uprising made rapid progress, but the instability of the country was noticed by Vijayanagar's neighbors in Persia. When the Persians invaded and successfully occupied large portions of northern Vijayanagar, Kohli blamed the weakness of the radical left-wing government -- and people listened. No longer believing that their current government could protect them, the people of Vijayanagar threw their support behind Kohli eagerly.
In early 1915, after the Persian invasion had crushed what remained of the lefist government military, Kohli established himself as the Sarvocch Neta - Supreme Leader, in Hindi -- of the Indian Empire and formed a new government under his political party with the RSS serving as a capable and deadly secret police.
Arabia had risen up and forged the world's first communist state. Vijayanagar had stood firm and reforged itself into a fascist empire. In the Balkans, nearly all of the democratic states forged by the treaties of the Great War slowly gravitated toward more authoritarian governments, with many of their leaders ruling for life and wielding significant executive power. Only a handful of states managed to hold on to proper democratic and republican forms of government, but even they were forced to contend with frequent demonstrations that often turned violent.
The world was no longer at war, but it was certainly still in flames.
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Arab-centric communism and Indo-centric fascism make for two highly surprising and very interesting developments. Interesting trying to imagine what repercussions this would have for the likely spread of other such revolutions and coups. Will communism be tainted in Europe as an “Arab” ideology? Will fascism of the Indian Empire be looked at as an overzealous, anti-European corruption of French-style “national conservatism”? Hard to say, I suppose. The massive divergences in colonialist practices will have made their various divergences to what will in a few decades become race theory. Obviously Vicky will give little indication, but I’d find it an interesting question to consider all the same.
Well, Arabia and India are lost. Would be really ironic if Estonia was forced to team up with their enemies from the First Great War against communists and fascists...
Wow, Persia. I bet that you'll live to regret that move...
Wow, Persia. I bet that you'll live to regret that move...
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Kind of. I suppose. Estonia is prospering like crazy, and remains one of the wealthiest and most powerful countries on the planet. But it has no allies, lots of infamy, and all of the democracies it created in the Balkans have turned into presidential dictatorships within a decade of the treaties. The world situation is not moving in the way they intended.
Ouch, it hurts seeing the democratic world order Estonia fought so hard to achieve fall apart so throughly after the war. There’s a dark irony in the Compact nations defeated in the war have managed to remain relevielg stable while the Entente nations and the countries they liberated are in the process of falling to authoritarian Communism and Fascism now. At least Estonia Itself is doing alright at least.
I suppose Arabia being stretched thin over three fronts during the Great War may have helped create the conditions for a communist revolution. As for India, I'm hoping they get aggressive and poke the Chinese tiger. I want to see if China is as strong as their military points suggest or if its all just manpower.
I like how you just threw an image of Italy in revolt yet again at the end of the update. How many rebellions have they experienced at this point?
I like how you just threw an image of Italy in revolt yet again at the end of the update. How many rebellions have they experienced at this point?
I suppose Arabia being stretched thin over three fronts during the Great War may have helped create the conditions for a communist revolution. As for India, I'm hoping they get aggressive and poke the Chinese tiger. I want to see if China is as strong as their military points suggest or if its all just manpower.
I like how you just threw an image of Italy in revolt yet again at the end of the update. How many rebellions have they experienced at this point?
A lot. A whole freaking lot.
What a great update! And Persia sure does seem to have poked the (militant fascist) bear.
May 1916 - Jun 1921 AD, Part One
France Ascendant - Laurent's Visions of Empire
The founding of the new French nation was a turbulent process that led to half a decade of civil war as varying factions fought against one another for the right to determine what sort of state a reborn France would become. Ultimately, it was the proto-fascist government of President Henri Laurent and Grand Marshal August du Galle that claimed victory, forging an authoritarian European state that was quick to turn to war in an effort to use foreign scapegoats to build national unity. A swift and utterly one-sided invasion of Germany restored Alsace-Lorraine to French rule in 1915, and the victory helped to build support -- and fear -- for the Laurent government.
Wrapping himself in the mantles of radial patriotism and violent revanchism, Laurent preached a grandiose and often bombastic doctrine of French excellence and supremacy. Laurent and du Galle also made frequent displays of the National Guard's martial prowess, playing to their steamrolling of Germany to prop them up as an unstoppable fighting force. In their vision, France was a rising global power on an unstoppable course to the top of global politics. To reach that height, however, anyone standing in the way of France had to be defeated.
In 1920, Laurent stirred his people up for war once again.
This time, his focus was on the Breton Peninsula. The region had been left to the Celtic Empire in the peace treaties following the Great War, with most involved parties -- including many French representatives -- arguing that Brittany was only conquered by France shortly before its destruction, and that Celtic heritage was far more prevalent there than French. But for Laurent, Brittany was no different than Alsace-Lorraine -- it was land that rightfully belonged to France, and it had been denied to them by the manipulations of the Great War's leaders. France could not be whole, he declared, until its borders were completely restored. Grand Marshal Du Galle prepared the National Guard for war, and President Laurent issued his formal declaration of war to the Celtic Empire in May of 1920.
The National Guard had increased greatly in size since the conquest of Germany, with patriotic fervor continuing to drive enlistment to new heights. But the war with Germany had been a simple affair of bullying a defeated nation -- the Celtic Empire had survived the Great War largely intact, and had a proper army of its own with which to defend itself. It also had allies; Emperor Deaglan was backed by Emperor Anushiruvan III of Persia and the newly-crowned King Miguel IV of Andalusia. In making his war declaration, President Laurent had pitted France against three nations at once -- two of which were Great Powers.
The National Guard wasted no time in mobilizing. Hoping to overwhelm his multiple enemies quickly, Grand Marshal du Galle divided his forces into three forces to launch simultaneous operations against the Celtic Empire and its allies. In the south, du Galle tasked a promising General, Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, with marching over the Pyrenees and invading Andalusia, striking the nation preemptively in hopes of preventing them from sending meaningful reinforcements. A second force, led by du Galle himself, marched directly into Brittany to swiftly occupy it and fortify it against any Celtic reinforcements. A final division, headed by General Gaston-Henri Billotte, was to stage a diversionary landing on the southern coast of Albion to draw Celtic forces away from the attack on the peninsula.
Despite facing three-to-one odds, the French military met multiple early victories. As the navy sailed into the English Channel, Celtic ships stationed at Plymouth rushed out to meet them. A force of 32 ships, led by Vice Admiral Francois Darlan, swiftly defeated his Celtic rival, allowing his ships to lock down the channel and deny his enemies the ability to transport supplies without traveling around Albion entirely. A similar battle occurred off the northern coast of Andalusia, also ending in a French victory.
Brittany had always been very lightly garrisoned by the Celtic Empire, with its defense mostly falling to local Breton militias with some oversight by Irish officers. Some Andalusian troops arrived to attempt to help hold the line, but Grand Marshal du Galle's ruthless military efficiency utterly overwhelmed them. A string of sieges quickly oppressed the entire peninsula, while Emperor Deaglan worked to gather his forces to attempt a counterattack.
To the south, General de Tassigny made short work of Andalusia. As French mobilization brought newly massed conscripts to reinforce the core of his force, de Tassigny stretched his reach out across Iberia, sweeping aside the Royal Army with a level of ease that shocked the attackers just as much as the defenders. Even de Tassigny himself remarked in his memoirs that while he had expected to defeat King Miguel's men, he had never expected it to happen so quickly and so efficiently. By 1920, over three quarters of the country was under French occupation, and King Miguel withdrew from the war effort.
Andalusia's withdrawal was a severe blow to Deaglan's efforts to persevere against the French, and thanks to the great distance between them, the Persians never committed any troops to help the cause. In June of 1921, Emperor Deaglan reluctantly agreed to peace in exchange for acknowledging French sovereignty over Brittany. For the second time since its inception, France had challenged a European rival and won. But this time it had done so against two powerful and thriving nations, winning the war in a decisive and convincing fashion. The momentum allowed Henri Laurent to continue to build his popularity, and the increasing power of the National Guard made it easier to suppress any opposition to the 40-year-old dictator. France, he promised, was truly prepared to rise to a new and greater height than ever before in history.
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Huh, well this is a surprising turn of events. I'm starting to feel like maybe liberating France from Compact control might have been an mistake after all. Well, with Arabia, India and France becoming authoritarian regimes, the seeds are being set for an interesting and subversive WW2 in HOI4. Who knows, maybe Estonia will have to side with its former enemies in Germany, Andalusia and the Celtic Empire in beating back Totalitarian forces from their former allies, now that would be an interesting twist.
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It seems they start to overreach. Likely their next aggression will prove to spark another powder keg.
I'm not rooting for the radical French nationalists to invade Germany and take over Belgium, but that northeast border could be neater. Just saying.
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It would be!
Just as a heads up -- I'm planning on stopping my playthrough somewhere between 1926 and 1930, to allow a few years to shape things up and make some small adjustments as necessary to the HoI4 conversion prior to beginning that. So we will have a few additional posts here, but we are actually almost at the end of the V2 leg of this wild journey!
I'm more surprised by the French navy somehow besting the Celtic one than by the conquest of Brittany and Andalusia being overrun.
Yeesh, that French unitarian tradition is really starting to drag Western Europe down into the gutter. Can’t be long until WW2.
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