Napoleon's World

Modern Day
It is present day (2009) and the global situation is as follows; the United States is enjoying an economic boom unseen since the mid-1970's, and has enjoyed ten years of peaceful race relations since the rise of Civil Front leader Christopher Rock in the late 1990's, who now serves as New Jersey's Senator. President Jay Leno, fresh off a successful reelection, is working on new poverty-fighting measures and clean-fuel initiatives to help spurn the next decade of economic growth in the United States.

In Asia, the economic powers of China, Korea and Japan are still trying to recover from the massive crash in 2002 that ended fifteen years of unfettered prosperity on the eastern Pacific Rim. The bottom of this economic depression may have been reached in summer of 2008, as signs point to a slow but noticeable recovery in Japan's economy, which is the most flexible of the three. Still, leaders in Tokyo, Hanseong and Peking fear that the worst of this slump may not yet have come in this "Lost Decade."

And across the Atlantic, the new Emperor Julien of the French Empire, having inherited the throne from his father Maurice in 2006, continues to manage and consolidate his powers, watching over the greatest empire the world has seen since the time of Rome - and probably will ever see.

Point of Divergence and Basis of World
In 1813, Napoleon emerges from winter quarters at Borodino, swiftly defeats Tsar Alexander's forces outside of Moscow and then marches north to Petrograd, where he devastates the still-powerful Russian army. The Tsar falls in battle at Petrograd, making the battle the symbolic end of the Russian Empire, although many Russian nobles would flee to Siberia and Alaska and form somewhat powerful governments there, known as "exile states" by the condescending French Empire.

In the fall of 1813, having completed his bloody scour of southern Russia and the Ukraine, Napoleon invades Austria from the East, taking Emperor Franz by surprise and defeating him in a quick succession of battles. Napoleon turned his attention south in spring of 1814, conquering northern Italy with a decisive victory at Malena and later a bloody slaughter of retreating Neopolitan and British forces at Bologna. Napoleon rode into Rome unopposed, raising the French flag over St. Peter's Basilica. In May of 1814, with the Peninsular War in full swing, the Duke of Wellington was killed in the Battle of Toledo and the British were later crushed at several battles near the Portuguese border. Portugal sued for peace in September of that year and was stripped of all colonial possessions excluding Brazil.

In late 1814, Napoleon began designing his Invasion of England, which was executed in what became known as the Forty Days Campaign in early 1815. The Battle of Hastings stymied British forces and Britain formally surrendered thirty-one days later once London was fully under French control.

From there on out, the age of began. Napoleon and his descendants would continuosly consolidate power; some through violent purges, others through instruments and policies of fairness and unity. Today, the French Empire is the world's superpower, competing only with the rival military powers of America and China.