Ha! I pity the fool who thinks he has the chance! Go off to Hawaii with your dear friend Victor and drink yourself away in your misery, you oaf!
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Rough day for Belauof. He finds out his pipe-dream love is for naught and then gets rolled. Maybe he should head down Hawaiin way.
And that picture of Vickie-B has a striking resemblance to Kate Hepburn and even more to Cate Blanchett (alomost one and the same after The Aviator.)
And though not officially a part of your update, I found your summation of Canada's friends and such very well done. It gave a perfect picture of the situation.
Only one quibble (hope you don't take it bad) - in this:
And that picture of Vickie-B has a striking resemblance to Kate Hepburn and even more to Cate Blanchett (alomost one and the same after The Aviator.)
And though not officially a part of your update, I found your summation of Canada's friends and such very well done. It gave a perfect picture of the situation.
Only one quibble (hope you don't take it bad) - in this:
Too many uses of the word month. You could have probably just left it out of the second sentence altogether. Hope you don't mind the slight critique, but everything else in this is done so well, so it was a surprise to see that.
I think Belauof needs to lower his sights somewhat. He missed a trick not speaking to that blonde actress.
Is he insane, he might as well think that a socialist would have a shot at marrying the Princess, the young rogue!
agreed. with her sister's choice made, Joséphine should just marry her Eitel and pull off an "Edward" (vacate the throne.) after all, little sister would have a good man to assist her in what little duties she would have...RossN said:
this "option" would still give Canada additional choices should disaster strick her sister and husband's children...
It's largely unconvincing that there would be no fight over a possible Romanov marriage. Again, the situation is quite similar to Britain in the Great War, where, despite a general hostility towards Germany since Wilhelm II came to the throne, many British Liberal intelligentsia were horrified at being thrown into a fight on the same side of Russia. Even despite national and ethnic grievances, you still can't escape from the deep suspicision that Russia was viewed with in the west, ever since, arguably, the early 19th century, if not earlier, when Russian troops were used to subdue revolts in Eastern Europe. There was a really quite strong impression of Russia which is not incomporable to the way it is still stereotypically viewed to this day - as a backwards, illiberal, undemocratic place full of strange practises and political violence. There might be a strong anti-German streak in Franco-Canadian politics, but that does not automatically lay the foundations for a pro-Russian one.
You're also underestimating how much Russia was scrutinised in this period, with, ironically enough, a particularly severe wave of Pogroms beginning exactly in 1903, and lasting until about 1906 - which managed to even be reported at some length in the New York Times:
So Russia wasn't some kind of Middle Kingdom Mk II. There's also the upcoming problem of the 1905 revolution, which will only serve to bring Russia's problems into sharper focus. It might also be worth taking a moment to examine the potential uproar George V considered possible as a result of giving the Romanov's asylum in Britain after the February revolution - and that was just over a possible grant of asylum!
The Conservatives would probably be quietly supportive of any marriage to the Romanovs, cementing, as it would, a stronger national relationship with Russia, and confirming Great Power pretensions, but to the Liberals - many of whom, Parnell included, had so recently been opposed to Monarchy altogether - it really would be anathema - and God only knows what sort of fuss the Socialists would kick up. The fact that Canada has arguably been more strongly linked into the Western mainsteam than it was in RL only strengthens the problem here.
The remedy for this, if the marriage has to absolutely go ahead, would be a strong PR campaign at distancing Michael from his homeland, and a fairly extended engagement perod aimed at getting the people acustomed to him, which he should be fairly aggreeable to, considering his liberal sympathies - But for now, all the Canadian political class and public knows of him is coloured by his origin - it would be a difficult process, fraught with political problems.
Tbh, it would be best to call the whole thing off. There's little reason for Josephine to marry a Romanov when she can marry someone much more eminently suitable such as Manuel; it also ultimately makes no sense for the Liberals to go bananas over Eitel and then be quite happy when Michael comes along - indeed, the reaction against a percieved re-introduction of an authoritarian court should be even stronger.
You're also underestimating how much Russia was scrutinised in this period, with, ironically enough, a particularly severe wave of Pogroms beginning exactly in 1903, and lasting until about 1906 - which managed to even be reported at some length in the New York Times:
The New York Times said:
So Russia wasn't some kind of Middle Kingdom Mk II. There's also the upcoming problem of the 1905 revolution, which will only serve to bring Russia's problems into sharper focus. It might also be worth taking a moment to examine the potential uproar George V considered possible as a result of giving the Romanov's asylum in Britain after the February revolution - and that was just over a possible grant of asylum!
The Conservatives would probably be quietly supportive of any marriage to the Romanovs, cementing, as it would, a stronger national relationship with Russia, and confirming Great Power pretensions, but to the Liberals - many of whom, Parnell included, had so recently been opposed to Monarchy altogether - it really would be anathema - and God only knows what sort of fuss the Socialists would kick up. The fact that Canada has arguably been more strongly linked into the Western mainsteam than it was in RL only strengthens the problem here.
The remedy for this, if the marriage has to absolutely go ahead, would be a strong PR campaign at distancing Michael from his homeland, and a fairly extended engagement perod aimed at getting the people acustomed to him, which he should be fairly aggreeable to, considering his liberal sympathies - But for now, all the Canadian political class and public knows of him is coloured by his origin - it would be a difficult process, fraught with political problems.
Tbh, it would be best to call the whole thing off. There's little reason for Josephine to marry a Romanov when she can marry someone much more eminently suitable such as Manuel; it also ultimately makes no sense for the Liberals to go bananas over Eitel and then be quite happy when Michael comes along - indeed, the reaction against a percieved re-introduction of an authoritarian court should be even stronger.
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An important point I feel, is that unlike either Britain or the US in 1900 (and for that matter France and Germany) Canada has almost no Jewish population.
Here are the historical Jewish populations (in 1900). Mainland (historical) Canada has a slightly higher population than in OTL, about 6.9 million as of 1905 (OTL Canada had 6.01 million at that time), so it seems fair to compare the two. Yet Imperial Canada has no Jewish POP's at all, far short of 25,000 people it would have in real life. (An annoyance - I'm Catholic but semitophile and I would have liked the chance to include a different - but still 'Western' - view of things away from the catholic francophone - protestant anglophone axis.)
I also haven't noted any Russian or Polish immigrants - most of the trickle is Spanish.
Now this is certainly not to ignore the horrible practice of the pogroms themselves. I am ashamed to say even my own country took part in this in 1904 ("The Limerick Pogrom"). Far less is it to accuse Jewish immigrants of stirring up anti-Russian feeling (though it would have been very understandable if they did).
Surely though the story of the mistreatment of Russian Jews would be a much bigger scandal in London or New York, with their large Jewish populations, than in Montreal. I imagine the 'Irish Question' would have been little reported in America had there not been a heavy Irish presence there.
The same could also be applied to Poles (of which Imperial Canada also has none).
Of course none of this would completely negate the Russian Imperial image, but it would presumably, reduce it.
Here are the historical Jewish populations (in 1900). Mainland (historical) Canada has a slightly higher population than in OTL, about 6.9 million as of 1905 (OTL Canada had 6.01 million at that time), so it seems fair to compare the two. Yet Imperial Canada has no Jewish POP's at all, far short of 25,000 people it would have in real life. (An annoyance - I'm Catholic but semitophile and I would have liked the chance to include a different - but still 'Western' - view of things away from the catholic francophone - protestant anglophone axis.)
I also haven't noted any Russian or Polish immigrants - most of the trickle is Spanish.
Now this is certainly not to ignore the horrible practice of the pogroms themselves. I am ashamed to say even my own country took part in this in 1904 ("The Limerick Pogrom"). Far less is it to accuse Jewish immigrants of stirring up anti-Russian feeling (though it would have been very understandable if they did).
Surely though the story of the mistreatment of Russian Jews would be a much bigger scandal in London or New York, with their large Jewish populations, than in Montreal. I imagine the 'Irish Question' would have been little reported in America had there not been a heavy Irish presence there.
The same could also be applied to Poles (of which Imperial Canada also has none).
Of course none of this would completely negate the Russian Imperial image, but it would presumably, reduce it.
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RossN said:
I'm not really sure what this is meant to prove. Are we saying that because Canada has no Jewish population to speak of, the progroms would have been unreported, and would not have caused serious outrage? Probably the opposite; countries with small, assimilated Jewish populations often had a substantially lower toleration of anti-semetism than elsewhere, or at least, there was no political capital to be made out of anti-semetism by nationalists.
The pogroms may not have been extensively covered in Canada, but they would have been reported, and they would have gone to affirm the already-pre-existing views of the liberal middle class and the liberal political establishment, and those of the Socialists. And then we have the up-coming revolution, (See Bloody Sunday', etc) and the Russo-Japanese war. It's a really, really bad in history for Josephine to consider marrying a Romanov.
Vincent Julien said:I'm not really sure what this is meant to prove. Are we saying that because Canada has no Jewish population to speak of, the progroms would have been unreported, and would not have caused serious outrage? Probably the opposite; countries with small, assimilated Jewish populations often had a substantially lower toleration of anti-semetism than elsewhere, or at least, there was no political capital to be made out of anti-semetism by nationalists.
The pogroms may not have been extensively covered in Canada, but they would have been reported, and they would have gone to affirm the already-pre-existing views of the liberal middle class and the liberal political establishment, and those of the Socialists. And then we have the up-coming revolution, (See Bloody Sunday', etc) and the Russo-Japanese war. It's a really, really bad in history for Josephine to consider marrying a Romanov.
I guess it's that the pogrom victims would have been faceless stastics in a way they wouldn't be elsewhere, which wouldn't engage the public as much - what is the differences with other opressed people anywhere. The Jewish population is so low - in the dozens if that, that the Jews become faceless in a way. The Dreyfuss Affair might have provoked more comment, simply because of it's francophone element but it's a little distant for Canada. (Though point taken about small assimilated populations - that's definitely the case in 20th century Ireland.)
Besides Michael really is the best potential consort - Karl and Manuel will historically prove themselves incapable of keeping their thrones - at least Michael could blame it on his brother!
Point taken though.
Damn I'm really snowed under with college work until Thursday, so I don't think I'll be able to work until then. Sorry guys.
Keep up the commentary, suggestions and thoughts though. It's a big help.
Keep up the commentary, suggestions and thoughts though. It's a big help.
Ok, I'm back at last. Really sorry about the delay, but you know how college is.
Hmm a lot of berating poor Belaouf over his poor choice in falling for Victoria-Beatrice. No sympathy for unrequited love guys?
coz1: Now that you mention it it Victoria-Beatrice/Tatiana does look like Kate/Cate... Kind of a (entirely appropriate) royal elegance and beauty.
Oh and thank you for the critique, I'm delighted that people are paying attention! I'm afraid that I usually write at the end of the day, so I'm a bit tired and more likely to make mistakes. I'll try and be more careful in future!
Again sorry it took so long, I hope you enjoy this latest entry.
Part 67: Origin
1898
Dzughashvili wandered the Seminary halls, lost in thought, his vestments swaying around him like autumnal leaves swept up by a sudden breeze.
For 4 long years he had studied and served and prayed in this barren place, and he sometimes believed he would be stuck here forever. Oh it was the only place for a clever Georgian to go to rise in Tsarist Russia, but it meant a life in disguise, under one mask or another. Atheist. Socialist. Criminal. Who would think to look at him, that genial young Dzughashvili, so quiet and friendly had a dark side?
Above: Dzughashvili
Yet it was there alright, that cold, calculating edge that lurked werewolf like beneath the skin. The part that somehow, somewhere kept a list of every slight, every kick or curse or stare that someday would be repaid manyfold. For Dzughashvili knew with the unshakable conviction that his brothers reserved for God that the only real way to immortality was through power. Power of your own life and those around you. Otherwise you'd be nothing.
Which was why he started to studying, secretly at first, the revoloutionary doctrines and consort with low fellows in smoke filled rooms where blood and anarchy were the wild shouts of the day. A change was coming, he could feel it in his bones.
But what role for Dzughashvili in this brave new world?
It was through his cotacts that he first met the Canadian in the basement of a cobbler in Tiflis. At first he was certain that it was an Okhrana trap, but then what could they want with a simple trainee priest?
Who turned out to be the Canadian who pushed a photo of a man, that Dzughashvili would later learn to be the Emperor of Canada and looked at him with dark eyes.
"My dear Joseph, if one third of what your comrades say about you is true, I believe you are exactly the man we are looking for..."
Hmm a lot of berating poor Belaouf over his poor choice in falling for Victoria-Beatrice. No sympathy for unrequited love guys?
coz1: Now that you mention it it Victoria-Beatrice/Tatiana does look like Kate/Cate...
Kind of a (entirely appropriate) royal elegance and beauty. Oh and thank you for the critique, I'm delighted that people are paying attention!
I'm afraid that I usually write at the end of the day, so I'm a bit tired and more likely to make mistakes. I'll try and be more careful in future!Again sorry it took so long, I hope you enjoy this latest entry.
Part 67: Origin
Above: Tiflis Theological Seminary
1898
Dzughashvili wandered the Seminary halls, lost in thought, his vestments swaying around him like autumnal leaves swept up by a sudden breeze.
For 4 long years he had studied and served and prayed in this barren place, and he sometimes believed he would be stuck here forever. Oh it was the only place for a clever Georgian to go to rise in Tsarist Russia, but it meant a life in disguise, under one mask or another. Atheist. Socialist. Criminal. Who would think to look at him, that genial young Dzughashvili, so quiet and friendly had a dark side?
Above: Dzughashvili
Yet it was there alright, that cold, calculating edge that lurked werewolf like beneath the skin. The part that somehow, somewhere kept a list of every slight, every kick or curse or stare that someday would be repaid manyfold. For Dzughashvili knew with the unshakable conviction that his brothers reserved for God that the only real way to immortality was through power. Power of your own life and those around you. Otherwise you'd be nothing.
Which was why he started to studying, secretly at first, the revoloutionary doctrines and consort with low fellows in smoke filled rooms where blood and anarchy were the wild shouts of the day. A change was coming, he could feel it in his bones.
But what role for Dzughashvili in this brave new world?
It was through his cotacts that he first met the Canadian in the basement of a cobbler in Tiflis. At first he was certain that it was an Okhrana trap, but then what could they want with a simple trainee priest?
Who turned out to be the Canadian who pushed a photo of a man, that Dzughashvili would later learn to be the Emperor of Canada and looked at him with dark eyes.
"My dear Joseph, if one third of what your comrades say about you is true, I believe you are exactly the man we are looking for..."
DON'T STOP THERE!!! TELL US WHY STALIN KILLED THE EMPEROR!!! Anyway, I imagine Stalin takes a very different route to power, not involving Trotsky at the least.
Curious and curiouser, good way to leave us hanging RossN.
Maybe Stalin as the first Socialist PM of Canada! :rofl:
*rocks back and forth waiting for the next update*
Maybe Stalin as the first Socialist PM of Canada! :rofl:
*rocks back and forth waiting for the next update*
A most dastardly cliffhanger, RossN. And well done. It was not occuring to me that Russia may still follow their historical path and thus the new marriage may turn out the last good thing that happenes to the Romonovs.
It was not occuring to me that Russia may still follow their historical path and thus the new marriage may turn out the last good thing that happenes to the Romonovs.
Okee, I see Russia going downhill.....
And going back a little, I have to agree with Ross: It's incredibly easy to ignore a problem when it's not happening to you. If there are few Jews in his Canada, then people simply are not going to react. Remember that history is overflowing with incidents where if the 'good' guys had awakened to the problem just a little sooner they could have stopped something really 'bad' from happening....but because they weren't the ones in trouble...
And going back a little, I have to agree with Ross: It's incredibly easy to ignore a problem when it's not happening to you. If there are few Jews in his Canada, then people simply are not going to react. Remember that history is overflowing with incidents where if the 'good' guys had awakened to the problem just a little sooner they could have stopped something really 'bad' from happening....but because they weren't the ones in trouble...
Okay again sorry about the delay, college is heavy going these days.
Enjoy!
Part 68: The French Connection
Above: Dzughashvili, 1899
Fittingly it all began in France as Dzughashvili soon discovered.
The Third Republic was a house built on quicksand, paranoid over a restoration, be it Royalist or Imperial. It was the later that dominated fears, especially since the mid 1880's - what Frenchman could forget that the rightful heir to the eagles ruled in Montreal, a constitutional liberal empire that lay like a dagger pointing at the Republics heart? There were Bonapartist riots in 1884 and again in 1886, which though easily supressed shook radical France to it's core.
It was a group of disillusioned French would be revolutionaries who met up with their Russian counterparts after the Two Emperors (Russo-Canadian) Alliance of 1886. The Russians were initially little bothered by this, but with the success of the liberal empire in Canada the fear began to grow that Napoleon might influence his good friend Nicholas into reforming his own throne - and whither the Revolution then?
All of this might have come to naught if it hadn't been for a certain group of Canadians who had an interest in changing the current regime...
1899
The good thing about Joseph Dzughashvili (or so the Canadian said to the Frenchman) was that he was a true believer in the cause - though possibly not as much as he believed in Joseph Dzughashvili, was an unknown and had no scruples about killing whatsoever despite gaining no paticular pleasure for it. A man too much in love with murder for it's own sake was... unreliable. Far better one who saw it as just another job.
The Canadian, the Frenchman and the Russian (they never revealed their names, at least not to Dzughashvili) had situated themselves in a house in Quebec City where they, and Dzughashvili, waited for... well something. Orders presumably. Certainly the plan had long since been finalised and Dzughashvili was as profficent with a pistol as he was ever likely to be.
Occasionally other men would visit, French speaking men, though whether native speaker or foreign student, Francophone Canadian or Frenchmen it was impossible to tell. The only clue the Georgian was able to determine was that some at least were soldiers or former soldiers: no officer born ever quite lost that learnt rigidness, no matter how civilian his suits.
Eventually towards the end of the year orders (presumably) came through. Sosso (as Dzughashvili decided upon as an alias) was to enter Montreal at the last week of December, staying at a boarding house, then do the deed and escape, where, within any luck he would make it across the border and to safety before he could be caught. The night before 'Sosso' left for Montreal the four men drank a toast to their enterprise.
Of the four two would not live to see 1901. Alexei Romodanovo would be killed in New York in February victim of an apparent mugging that went awry. Pierre Durand died in a house fire in Lyon in April.
Dzughashvili on the other hand reached Buffalo and ran to Earth. No more would be heard of him for several years.
And the fourth man, the Canadian? Well Étienne Daly was far from finished in his work.
Above: Étienne Daly
Enjoy!
Part 68: The French Connection
Fittingly it all began in France as Dzughashvili soon discovered.
The Third Republic was a house built on quicksand, paranoid over a restoration, be it Royalist or Imperial. It was the later that dominated fears, especially since the mid 1880's - what Frenchman could forget that the rightful heir to the eagles ruled in Montreal, a constitutional liberal empire that lay like a dagger pointing at the Republics heart? There were Bonapartist riots in 1884 and again in 1886, which though easily supressed shook radical France to it's core.
It was a group of disillusioned French would be revolutionaries who met up with their Russian counterparts after the Two Emperors (Russo-Canadian) Alliance of 1886. The Russians were initially little bothered by this, but with the success of the liberal empire in Canada the fear began to grow that Napoleon might influence his good friend Nicholas into reforming his own throne - and whither the Revolution then?
All of this might have come to naught if it hadn't been for a certain group of Canadians who had an interest in changing the current regime...
*
1899
The good thing about Joseph Dzughashvili (or so the Canadian said to the Frenchman) was that he was a true believer in the cause - though possibly not as much as he believed in Joseph Dzughashvili, was an unknown and had no scruples about killing whatsoever despite gaining no paticular pleasure for it. A man too much in love with murder for it's own sake was... unreliable. Far better one who saw it as just another job.
The Canadian, the Frenchman and the Russian (they never revealed their names, at least not to Dzughashvili) had situated themselves in a house in Quebec City where they, and Dzughashvili, waited for... well something. Orders presumably. Certainly the plan had long since been finalised and Dzughashvili was as profficent with a pistol as he was ever likely to be.
Occasionally other men would visit, French speaking men, though whether native speaker or foreign student, Francophone Canadian or Frenchmen it was impossible to tell. The only clue the Georgian was able to determine was that some at least were soldiers or former soldiers: no officer born ever quite lost that learnt rigidness, no matter how civilian his suits.
Eventually towards the end of the year orders (presumably) came through. Sosso (as Dzughashvili decided upon as an alias) was to enter Montreal at the last week of December, staying at a boarding house, then do the deed and escape, where, within any luck he would make it across the border and to safety before he could be caught. The night before 'Sosso' left for Montreal the four men drank a toast to their enterprise.
Of the four two would not live to see 1901. Alexei Romodanovo would be killed in New York in February victim of an apparent mugging that went awry. Pierre Durand died in a house fire in Lyon in April.
Dzughashvili on the other hand reached Buffalo and ran to Earth. No more would be heard of him for several years.
And the fourth man, the Canadian? Well Étienne Daly was far from finished in his work.
Above: Étienne Daly
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Good lord, can it be? This is a startling revelation. It is unfornunate not all of them died.