Timeline (1648: Kingdom of the Three Sicilies)


 * 1625: Louis XIII of France and Anne of Austria have healthy twins. They grow up to be Louis XIV and, of France and Sicily respectivley.


 * 1640: The King sends Philip to the front line to lean military tactics and strategy. He leads a small force of French to several small victories.


 * 1645: 20 year old Philip is sent by Cardinal Mazarin (who was de facto ruler of France) to lead a French army 5,000 strong to train and assist a Neopolitan revolt against the Spanish. He succeds beyond all expectations, liberating the boot of Italy with a trained and diciplined Neopolitan army. By the end of the year he is ready for an invasion of Sicily.


 * 1646: Sicily is liberated from the Spanish. The people fall in love with Philip for freeing them form the cruel Spanish barons.


 * 1647: A join Franco-Sicilian force under Philip capture Sardinia from the Spaniards.


 * 1648: The Treaty of Westphalia. There are two notable changes from OTL.
 * One - The three liberated territories of Naples, Sicily and Sardinia, along with Malta, are to be ceeded to Philip for a large sum of money. He becomes the first ruler of the "Kingdom of Sicily" (encompasing all three lands). He also becomes Duke of Malta.
 * Two - In compensation, Spain also gets an expanded territory in the Netherlands and certain navigational and trade rights the the newly founded kingdom.



Philip sets up a temporary capital at Cagliari, were the bulk of his army was stationed after driving out the Spaniards. He begins to set up a beuorcracy using both French administrators and decent Italian ones that served under the Spanish.

The begin, and last well into the 1660's. Poland-Lithania is forced to ceed vast tracts of Southern  and Eastern Poland to Austria and Russia. Poland ceases to be a great power, and Prussia becomes independant.


 * 1649: Philip is finally crowned at Palermo. The day after he is married to Joan of Portugal.


 * 1650: Philip and Joan have their first healthy child, Philip II. King Philip insitutes programs to entice artists and scholars back to Sicily, maximise agricultural output, and to general modernise this backward part of Europe.


 * 1655: The Great Northern wars, fought between Sweeden and Poland-Lithuania, Denmark and Russia, begin. They last into 1662 and cement Sweedens undisputed mastery of the Baltic


 * 1655: Philip and Joan have their second healthy child, a boy named Henry (he is given the title Prince of Messina). For the first time in decades, Southern Italy becomes a net exporter of food.


 * 1658: Twin girls are added to the Royal family. Maria was to married to the future Duke of Wurttemburg, Wilhelm Ludwig. Elisabeth was to become the Duchess of Lorraine.


 * 1660: The final child, Louis is born. There are compications in berth and Joan is left barren. A group of art styles known collectivly as Sicilian Baroque gains prominece in Italy. In order to help run his country, Philip allows Jews back into his kingdom. Thousands come, refugees from wars in Poland.


 * 1670's: The Great Ottoman Crusades begin. The war lasts for thiry years and halts Turkey's expansion into Europe. the Ottomans are forced to ceed Transylvania and huge portions of land to Hungary, Morea to Venice, the Crimea to Russia and pay large indemnities to all three.


 * 1670: Philip II is married to Matilda of Salerno.


 * 1672: Henry is married to Catherine of Salerno.


 * 1673: The future King Henry I is born.


 * 1674: Simon is born to Henry and Catherine


 * 1676: Twins, Peter and Christina are born


 * 1679: Antione, prince of Naples is born.


 * 1680: Joan, the future queen of Poland is born.


 * 1690: Philip I dies. Philip II is Coronated.


 * 1695: The Catania Uprising. Peasants revolt over harsh Royal decrees. Philip II doesnt have the charm and grace with the people like his father did. The peasants demand a parliament. Philip grants one under the Treaty of Catania. In it Philip santions a Parliament whos de facto role was advisory. It did have to power, however to regulate to taxes and tariffs. It was composed of two houses. There was a fifty seat House of Nobles, over which the King personally personally presided and appointed. There was also a 115 seat House of Commoners. 10 of te seats were reserved for Catholic clergymen and 5 were reserved for the Jewish community, which had grown quite large since 1660.