HOME | DD
WannabeeCartographie — Alternate Map of Europe in 1895
#alternatehistory #cartography #maps
Published: 2021-03-22 06:20:09 +0000 UTC; Views: 30739; Favourites: 108; Downloads: 0
Redirect to original
Description
This map is part of a collaborative alt-history timeline called Roses, Tulips, and Liberty (RTL), with the point of divergence from our timeline being in 1656. Check out all the maps/flags/posts in this series on the project's subreddit: r/RosesTulipsAndLiberty .
This is a sequel to this map , but set 140 years later.
TLDR if you dont feel like reading the lore dump below: The Bourbons still rule Spain. France and Prussia gets defeated by a huge coalition in 1755. Especially Prussia, they get wiped off the face of the Earth. Bourbons dominate Europe now. Austrian empire goes big. Austria does everything it can to keep the Germans disunified. Italy does not unify. France, as usual, start two revolutions within 100 years that redrew the boundaries of Europe, but ultimately gets defeated. Twice. While Europe was busy, Sweden starts consolidating its power in the Baltic and starts a colonial empire (not pictured). Russia takes Crimea back from the Ottomans, and Britain also takes Egypt from the Ottomans.
--
(1/4)
A Broken Nation: The Isolation of France
A hundred and forty years ago, a four-nation coalition composed of Great Britain, Austria, Spain, and the Dutch Republic had defeated the Franco-Prussian alliance in the Great Silesian War (1750-1755). The resulting Treaty of Vienna imposed harsh terms against the French, which included the Dutch acquisition of a large portion of New France and the British acquisition of valuable French islands in the East Indies. Furthermore, it was the same war that permanently wiped Prussia off the European map. France survived the war but became isolated in a Habsburg-dominated Europe. This defeat had made France a pariah amongst the other European nations.
The economic and social aftermath led many of France's intellectual circles to start questioning the King of France's divine right to rule. He had brought so much ruin but very little prosperity. The peasants began to realize the vast social inequality within France, and the middle class was starting to get disenfranchised from their exclusion from political power. These factors led to social and political upheavals throughout the 1780s-1790s, known as the French revolution.
The revolution caused King Philip VII of France to flee to New France and re-establish his kingdom there. In Europe, Henri d'Anjou was proclaimed by the National Assembly of France as the new King of the French. Still, his rule was abruptly ended with his arrest after the assembly discovered that he had plotted with Austria to restore the pre-revolutionary order in France. The ancien regime was dissolved, and the National Assembly's leader, Austinu Spiga, proclaimed himself as the Director of the French Republic in 1795.
With a revitalized French, Spiga would then lead a campaign to export the revolution and its ideas to France's neighbors. Under his rule, the French subjugated the Dutch Republic, Austria, and the various German principalities, with the Russians' aid. The Dutch republic's fall directly caused the Autumn War (New Netherland Independence War) in North America in 1796.
However, France would face defeat at the Ottoman Empire's hands after an ambitious but unsuccessful French campaign to take Constantinople. The resulting treaty, also named the Treaty of Vienna, was signed in 1814. Despite France's defeat, the revolution had shaken up the old order of Europe and redrew its boundaries. A new state of the German Confederation was created, and the Kingdoms of Hanover, Saxony, and Pomerania were restored, with land larger than what they had before. A new kingdom was also made, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, out of the former Dutch Republic's various provinces.
The New Order of Europe
The aftermath of the Great Silesian War and the French Revolution had allowed for a new power dynamic to develop in Europe and the Americas.
The Two Kingdoms of France
Despite the restoration of the French monarchy, it was restored on unclear grounds, leading to two claimants to the throne:
(1) Philip VII, the King of France before his exile to New France in America; and
(2) Henri d'Anjou, King of the French appointed by the revolutionary National Assembly.
However, it is Henri d'Anjou that would be the de facto French King. Meanwhile, Philip VII, having established a base in New France, would continue styling himself as King of France. This rift between the two domains would cause them to become de facto independent from each other.
The New German Domains
The restored German domains of Pomerania, Saxony, Hanover, and the German Confederation would divide the German sphere. They would be in eternal competition with one another, much to the delight of the Austrian Empire, who'd like to keep its neighbors occupied and divided.
Spring of Nations
In the 1830s, the ideas of revolution had once again renewed interest in Europe. However, this renewed interest would not come from France, but from within the Spanish. Throughout the 1830s, various Latin American nationalist movements would be born, and led to the independence of several Latin American nations such as Colombia .
The Communard Revolutions
Communard Revolution of France (1872-1877)
New ideas of socialism (called communardism) had rocked France in the 1870s. Coming from France's intellectual circles, the concept of communardism would win over the French public's following and lead to the bloody murder of King Louis in 1873. The heir died shortly after due to a falling accident. With the Bourbon line dying out, the radical communard party Société des Amis de la République (often shortened to the Société) occupied the power vacuum. The party leader, Étienne Thévenet, declared the Communard Republic of France, espousing hardline communard ideals and rejecting all forms of religion and aristocracy. Thévenet envisions a united Europe that transcends racial and linguistic boundaries, united under the ideals of communardism.
As the first step to achieve this, Thévenet looks to the small principality of Belgique to the northeast. Belgique was a pre-dominantly French-speaking Wallonian principality and already had a growing communard movement within. Thévenet supported Belgique's communard insurrection in late 1874 with the French treasury, and the revolution became successful. Belgique was incorporated as a new département of France by Christmas eve of 1874. This chapter of the communard revolution is called the Christmas Uprising and is a regional holiday in the present-day French département of Belgique.
Great Britain began to grow worried about the new government's success. In 1876, attempts by the Société to spread the revolution to central Europe and the Italian states were made. Still, they were stopped by an alliance of European powers led by Austria and Britain. By early 1877, the radical Société des Amis de la République was removed out of power by the Parti Communard de France (PCF), a moderate Communard faction, with the support of Great Britain. The PCF established the Second French Republic and sought peaceful coexistence with the British and other European forces. This leads to a mending of relations between the British and France.
During the crisis, Great Britain was able to take some colonial possessions of the French in the Americas (Guadeloupe, Martinique, St, Barthélemy, and Martinique) and India (Karikal). However, the new government was allowed to keep its new département of Belgique, as was the will of the local Wallonian populace.
Loosely built on communard ideals, the new government would continue to lead in France throughout the 20th century.
Communard Revolution of Spain (1877-1878)
Despite the insurgency being quelled in 1877 in France, numerous members of the Société des Amis de la République (radical communard party of France) were able to escape to Spain. They met with leaders of the Sociedad de Comuneros (Society of Communards), the radical communard society of Spain, in Madrid. The Sociedad de Comuneros began plotting a coup against King Ferdinand VII of Spain, and was able to overthrow the monarchy in 1877 successfully. Ferdinand VII led a government-in-exile in the Viceroyalty of New Spain. With the support of the British once again, the new but weak government of Spain was dismantled, and Ferdinand VII was restored to the throne. Despite this, the aftermath of the Communard Revolutions in Spain is directly linked to the Independence of Mexico in 1881 and the independence of Peru .
More Minute Details
If you have made it to this point, great! I appreciate it! Now it's time to break down the timeline into the more minute details of the map.
Genoa is somewhat more of a colonial power in this timeline, with multiple ports in the Americas and in Africa.
However, Genoese supremacy in Italy is starting to get challenged by Venice in the late 19th century.
During the French revolution, the Ottomans had a powerful hand at the negotiation table. They were able to take Malta from the French, while the Maltese order was exiled to the Virgin islands in the Caribbean (see map of Caribbean here )
With the Ottomans being powerful, Austria and Russia aims to balance the powers in Europe, so they annex parts of Poland to prevent being overshadowed by the Ottomans.
Iceland and Greenland became British holdings in this timeline during the French revolution. In our original (real) timeline, the British took most of the Dutch colonial holdings. However, in this timeline, it is the Danes that suffer this fate for supporting the French.
Sardinia becomes independent after a revolt occurring right at the French's moments of weakness (they controlled Sardinia prior).
Also, here's a more comprehensive timeline of events
1814: End of the Augustine Wars. After the End of the War of the fourth coalition (1810-1814) In the Treaty of Vienna (1814) the Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed (with same borders as OTL Congress of Vienna),Turkey retains Crimea (and gains Malta) and gains some land from Austria, France is contained to its natural borders, Brandenburg is punished and their entire territory gets partitioned between the restored duchies of Hanover, Pomerania, and Saxony, An independent Confederation of minor German states is formed as a buffer between France and Austria, Russia forced to return territories gained from Poland. Austria, Russia, and the Ottomans become large powers after the war.
1830's: Spring of Nations originating in Spain and spreads throughout central and southern Europe. Eventually spreads to Latin America resulting in the independence of Colombia, Paraguay, Bahia & the Riograndense Republic and failed revolutions in Mexico & Puerto Rico. After the revolution is put down, many revolutionaries are shipped to the Americas and the Spanish empire abolishes slavery.
1830's: Partial Partition of Poland; with Russia, Pomerania, Saxony and Austria gaining territory.
1840: Beginning of the Great Game between Russia and Britain over influence in Central Asia
1850-1853: Spanish victory in the Dutch-Spanish War, led to the independence of South Tussenland and reinforced Spanish suzerainship of the Boer republics.
1850-1857: Anglo- French victory in the Canton War, creates the Kingdom of Canton in Southern China; dramatically weakens the Qing and gives France and Britain a series of treaty ports in China.
1864-1866: Swedish victory in the Scandinavian Wars which leads to the rise of Sweden as a regional power in the Baltic Sea. Sweden takes part of Sealand from Denmark to control the trade, Swedish-allied Hannover takes southern portion of Denmark and Norway becomes independent.
1872-1874: Anglo-Pomeranian victory in the Saxony-Pomeranian War. Saxony, who is landlocked through history, wants Pomeranian coast. They are backed by Sweden, who believe that having more German naval powers meant that no single German power would dominate the Baltic. Sweden-Saxony has great success in the war initially, but in a turn of surprise Britain, who is scared of the growing Swedish naval power, assists Pomerania. Pomerania-British alliance wins, and Pomerania takes a little land from Saxony.
1872-1878: Communard revolution in France ignites, and spreads to Spain. Spain is ruled by communards and results in the independence of the Mexican Empire and Peru. A separate Belgique communard revolution occurs and leads to unification with France (in 1874). The Communard attempts to spread to central Europe and the Italian states but is stopped by an alliance of European powers led by Austria and Britain. Eventually the radical Communard faction is kicked out of power by a moderate Communard faction that sought peaceful coexistence with the British and other European powers. This leads to a mending of relations between the British and France.
1870s-1880s: Russia strengthens its colonial efforts on the Pacific, leading to a more settled Pacific, and Alaska. There is also a short arc of a Dutch king in Russia, which could help them have a more extensive naval outlook on the pacific.
1877: Russia becomes suzerain of the Kingdom of Hawaii
1885: Russian victory in the Russo-Ottoman War (also known as the Balkan Wars). During the late 19th century Russia slowly strengthen it's economic and military power and after a series of revolts in the Balkans were put down harshly by Ottoman forces, Russia pledged support for independence movements in Serbia and Romania. This led to Russia retaking Crimea, Wallachia, Moldavia, Serbia gaining independence. Austria, who joined the war late, also annexes the upper left tip of the ottoman territory (but were promised more but didn't receive it from Russia).
1890: Start of the Ottoman reform period (whereas the Ottoman Empire modernized it's political, economic and military systems).
1893: End of the Great Game between Russia and Britain in Central Asia, with the creation of Serindia, a buffer state between Russia and the British Raj.
1895: Treaty of Amsterdam divides up Africa between colonial powers.
Related content
Comments: 4
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
👍: 1 ⏩: 0
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
👍: 0 ⏩: 0