Alternate WWI: Part 1 - Pre-War Dynamics

     I know I've been leaving you hanging on the Sesame War, but I guarantee you that Part 4 will come out soon. With that clear, welcome to Part 1 of my alternate First World War. The alliances will be very different here. Let's go, Enotitans! Also, please read until the end for a very important announcement.

    In 1866, the Austro-Prussian War was fought. (That happened in real life.) After that, Austria and Prussia (later the German Empire) both competed to become the superior Germanic nation. 

    Then, in 1870, the Franco-Prussian War was fought. (This was also a real war.) But since the French leader was Napoleon III, we actually have Great Britain joining on the side of Prussia here, making for our first fictional event. The Treaty of Normandy was signed a year later, giving Alsace-Lorraine to the newly formed German Empire, and Brittany to the United Kingdom. Later that year, the Germans and Brits signed the London Pact, which was like the real Entente Cordiale, but for Germany and Britain. 

    France and the newly formed Austria-Hungary were now both terrified at this new alliance. They were already wary of Germany's power, and now they were in an alliance with Great Britain. So France and Austria-Hungary signed a counter-alliance called the Treaty of Paris. Fearing Germany as well, Russia joined in 1879. 

   Fearing Russia's decision, the Ottoman Empire joined the London Pact on January 17, 1880, hoping to protect their remaining Balkan territories. Seeing this as an attempt to retake them, Greece signed the Treaty of Paris a day after Turkey joined the London Pact. This led to the first fictional war here, the Great Balkan War. (The real First Balkan War was similar.) Here, Greece looked to get more Ottoman land, as well as to liberate the Romanians and Slavs from Ottoman rule. Austria-Hungary, another member of the Treaty of Paris, declared war on the Ottoman Empire later in 1880. 

    After the Great Balkan War, the Treaty of Paris emerged victorious. Yugoslavia was created earlier than in reality (though Bosnia and Slovenia were ceded to Austria-Hungary), Romania, Albania, and Bulgaria achieved independence, and Thrace (the last European part of Turkey) was carved up between Greece and Bulgaria. These new countries also joined the Treaty of Paris, leaving the London Pact in danger.

    The London Pact looked to Ethiopia, the last standing African nation. However, Italy had plans to invade Ethiopia as early as 1879. (They planned to invade at the dawn of the century.) So, in 1900, they signed the Treaty of Paris as well, and declared war on Ethiopia. (This was the beginning.) Ethiopia's allies in Germany, Great Britain, and Turkey then declared war on all members of the Treaty of Paris. This led to France, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Yugoslavia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Greece declaring war on all members of the London Pact. 

    The war fronts were the Western Front (the Franco-German border), the Eastern Front (Russia's western border), the Black Sea Front (Russia and Turkey), the Caucasian Front (also Russia and Turkey), the Balkan Front (Turkey's western border), the Ethiopian Front (Italy and Ethiopia), and a bunch of other fronts in Africa. This really was more of a world war than the real First World War was. 

    Let's review the alliances. The London Pact had Great Britain, Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and Ethiopia. The Treaty of Paris had France, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and Yugoslavia.

    Before we leave, this is the very important announcement that I mentioned at the start. The president made an excuse that if he can appoint me, he can also fire me. So he became dictator, and we split from the state to form the Enotitan Republic. We also changed our flag to be without the crown, and we changed our anthem to be to the tune of the anthem of East Germany. (Lyrics will be added later.) Enotitans, I am calling you to support us in our revolution. (You can actually say this is a civil war.) Whatever this is, here's my declaration of war:



    We'll visit the war fronts when Part 2 arrives. We'll have to check on the "neo-Sesames" and how Sesame Street was stopped from coming back. See you there!

The Library of Enotita

Historical Facts: The 1867 Compromise and the Austro-Hungarian Empire

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     Okay. I think I gave you the end before the beginning, because this is about the rise of Austria-Hungary. If you didn't read the last article , that's on the fall of Austria-Hungary. But, I didn't know I would post on this. So, let's go!     Let's look at Austria in 1867. The previous year, they lost a war to Prussia and Italy. After Prussia defeated Austria, the other German states dependent on Austria had an uncertain future. (This would be resolved after the Franco-Prussian War.) But Austria also had an uncertain future. After losing wars, you would generally have a bad economy. Austria was no exception. And Austria already had many ethnicities in their empire. As I said in the last article, Austria had many minorities. In fact, I'll list just some of the most significant minorities in the Austrian Empire: Czechs Slovaks Poles Ukrainians Romanians Hungarians Serbs Croats Slovenes Italians     If this doesn't sound too complicated to you, think ...
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The Ager Centralis Enotitae and Pecunia - Enotitan Finance Guide

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The first ever bill issued by the Ager Centralis. This bill is for one Pecunia.      Almost every country has a currency. You have the dollar, peso, euro, pound, and much more. However, we did not have a currency. This is bad, because the economy is very vital to every country. That's why we established the Ager Centralis Enotitae (Latin for Enotitan Central Bank). From now on, Enotitans can use the Pecunia, our new currency.      To start, open an account at any branch of the Ager Centralis. (Currently, there are only branches in Olsen, the main state.) Present the teller any valid Enotitan government ID. Following that, give the teller any bill from any currency. After around 10 minutes, it will be converted and transformed into a Pecunia for the initial deposit.      You can use the card in Enotitan shops. You can buy souvenirs, food, or even use it to receive salary. (Enotitan companies besides government agencies do not exist at the mome...
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Historical Facts: American and Japanese Rule in the Philippines

     This was based on Reader's Digest: The Story of the Filipino People - Parts 6 and 7 ( Under the Stars and Stripes  and The Japanese Occupation ) by Milagros C. Guerrero and Ricardo T. Jose.      Now that I think about it, I would call the Spanish occupation "the first storm," the American occupation "the second storm," and the Japanese occupation "the third storm." The "between the storm" parts would be 1898 - 1901 and 1935 - 1941.  Part 1 - The Second Storm (1901 - 1935)     After the Philippine-American War, the United States turned the Philippines into a colony. They gained it in the Treaty of Paris along with Puerto Rico, Cuba, and some other islands. The Americans needed to keep it away from Spain, France, and Germany.      Under Spanish rule, the Filipinos were taught Catholicism. But the Americans were mainly Methodist (a sect of Protestantism). American missionaries were sent to the Philippines, although most ...
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