Alternative History
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Flag of Germany (1867–1918)1914 Incident Ensign of Austro-Hungarian civil fleet (1869-1918)
General
  • Point of Divergence
  • Timeline
  • OTL vs. ATL
History
Lists
Wars


NOTE: This is where I keep my thoughts for the ATL laid out. Check the pages under "History" for a more formal history.

1910s

1914

  • June 28: Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, is assassinated by Serbian nationalists.
  • July 28: Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia.
  • August 2: Montenegro declares war on Austria-Hungary in defense of Serbia.
  • August 25: Belgrade, capital of Serbia, is captured by Austro-Hungarian forces.
  • August 29: Bulgaria declares war on Serbia and Montenegro.
  • September 16: Germany surrounds Paris, after a successfully enacted Schlieffen Plan.
  • September 18: France surrenders to the Central Powers.
  • September 19: Belgium and the United Kingdom sign peace with Germany. The Western Front is closed.
  • September 20: The joint offensive into Russia, including Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Bulgaria, begins.
  • September 30: The treaty closing the Western Front is signed. France gives some colonies to the Central Powers, and Germany is allowed to expand its High Seas Fleet.
  • October 16: The Eastern Front settles into a stalemate. Tens of thousands of soldiers are killed.
  • October 22: Serbia and Montenegro surrender. They are annexed into Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria.
  • November 9: Russian lines are broken in the Eastern Front, and large advances are made by Central Forces.
  • December 14: German, Austro-Hungarian, and Bulgarian forces achieve a victory at Smolensk, with over ten thousand Russians being killed or captured.
  • December 15: Russia surrenders to the Central Powers and Bulgaria.

1915

  • January 22: The treaty officially ending the now-called 1914 Incident is signed, de jure dissolving the Triple Entente, making small Russian territorial concessions to Germany and Romania. The territory that Prussia ceded to Russia in 1815 is to be given to Prussia.
  • March 29: Vast protests and serf revolts begin in Russia.
  • May 12: The serfs are freed in Russia, and actions to decrease poverty begin. A tough transition to democracy starts to occur over the next few decades.
  • October 3: War is declared jointly by Bulgaria and Greece on the Ottoman Empire in an attempt to drive them completely out of Europe, after a demand for territory is rejected by the Ottomans. Greece and Bulgaria were at odds after the Second Balkan War, but were able to put aside tensions to jointly fight the Ottomans out of Europe. This starts the Third Balkan War.
  • October 10: The first offensive begins to enter Eastern Thrace. Little resistance is put up as the Ottomans prepare to secure the northern side of the Sea of Marmara.
  • October 13: Austria-Hungary offers supplies and soldiers to Greece and the Bulgaria. It is accepted, but is leaked, angering the Ottomans, who cut off trading with Austria-Hungary.
  • October 25: Bulgaro-Greek forces begin into Ottoman resistance approximately twenty kilometers from the coast of the Sea of Marmara. Advance slows to a near stalemate.
  • October 30: The Ottomans score a victory at Tekirdağ, although casualties are approximately equal on both sides. Bulgaro-Greek forces retreat several kilometers until they can hold back the Ottomans.
  • November 9: Bulgaria wrestles control of the Bosphorus strait from the Ottomans, although several ships are lost. This allows an amphibious invasion of the Black Sea coast of Thrace by Bulgaria.
  • November 14: Bulgaro-Greek forces take control of Tekirdağ after a second battle, although with heavy losses and relatively few Ottoman casualties. Most of Thrace has now been taken.
  • November 20: The Ottomans agree to a cease-fire to negotiate an end to the war.
  • December 21: The Treaty of Bucharest is signed. Greece will receive the southern part of Eastern Thrace, and Bulgaria will receive the northern part. The only exception is the north side of Istanbul and small amounts of territory outside, which will remain an Ottoman territory. In exchange, Greece and Bulgaria agree to pay a cost of approximately $11 in 2012 US dollars per square mile.

1916

  • February 19: Democratic reforms increasing the power of the Reichstag and decreasing the power of the monarchy in Germany are put into effect.
  • June 10: Anti-Austrian demonstrations in Belgrade are put down by police.
  • November 7: Woodrow Wilson narrowly wins re-election, bolstered by a growing economy in manufacturing.
  • November 21: Franz Joseph I of Austria dies. This throws the already unstable Austro-Hungarian Empire into chaos. Inexperienced Charles I takes the Austrian throne and attempts to hold the collapsing empire together, though independence movements are beginning to rise.
  • December 1: Desertion rates in the Austrian army begin to increase greatly.

1917

  • January 16: Regions across Austria-Hungary begin to peacefully protest and demand independence, until violence begins on February 10.
  • February 10: Serbia makes the first move, and declares independence from Austria-Hungary, beginning the Collapse of Austria-Hungary.
  • February 11: Bosnia and Montenegro declare independence. Austria begins to send its forces, some of who are deserting due to low morale and wanting for independence of their region, to put down the revolutions.
  • February 16: Serbian revolutionary forces enter Bulgaria, who soon agree to help Austria in putting down the revolutions.
  • February 25: The Serbs score a major victory over Bulgaria and Austria-Hungary in the south.
  • February 27: Russia secretly begins sending military aid to the South Slavic regions in an attempt to speed up the progress of revolutions.
  • March 1: Galicia declares independence.
  • March 5: Bulgaria withdraws forces from Serbia, due to frustration from the newfound strength of the Balkan countries.
  • March 10: Austria-Hungary concedes victory to Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia, who become independent countries.
  • March 11: Hungary withdraws from the personal union to concentrate on their own revolts, as most of the revolts are within Austrian territory. Leftist movements continue to gain strength in the collapsing empire.
  • March 26: Aided by Russian military supplies, Galicia is able to hold off offensives by Austria.
  • April 4: Austria concedes independence to Galicia.
  • May 2: The Congress of Budapest convenes between the states of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, which are Austria, Hungary, Czechia, Galicia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, and Montenegro. Bulgaria also attends. Several of the states that had not declared independence earlier are attending in attempt to gain their own land. In the end, all are successful.
  • May 30: The Congress of Budapest announces that it has decided the borders. Borders are similar to Europe in OTL 1919, with these major exceptions: Austria has Italian territory not lost in OTL WW1 and other fringe territory, as well as Sudetenland. Hungary controls all of its former territory except for Croatia, and Slovakia, which keeps it a powerful state, albeit landlocked. In addition, a parliament is to be established in Hungary, which was demanded to represent minorities within the country.
  • September 12: Austria announces its intention to join the German Empire. Wilhelm II and the democratic government react rather positively to the idea, especially with Sudetenland coming into the empire and Habsburg dominance being out of the question.
  • September 17: Negotiations begin between Austria and Germany. The idea of a Kingdom of Hesse being created and the Kingdom of Hanover being recreated is demanded by Austria. Baden, Bavaria, Hesse-Darmstadt, Saxony, and Württemberg react very favorably, but is opposed by Prussia, who owns most of the territory.
  • September 18: The next day of negotiations occurs. Austria, Baden, Bavaria, Hesse-Darmstadt, Saxony, and Württemberg continue to push hard for the change. They claim that since Prussia gained all of the land that was taken from Russia after the 1914 Incident, they should give up land they took over from fellow Germans as well. Saxony also wants the Province of Saxony within Prussia to transfer to their control.
  • September 19: A compromise is reached. In exchange for Sudetenland becoming an "imperial territory", like Alsace-Lorraine, Austria will be allowed to join the German Empire as a Kingdom. The province of Hanover become the Kingdom of Hanover, ruled by the House of Hanover, while the Darmstadt branch of the House of Hesse will take control over the Prussian province of Hesse and independent Hessian territories (Hesse-Darmstadt) to become the Kingdom of Hesse. The southern part (with Anhalt serving as the division line) of the Prussian province of Saxony will be returned to Saxony. In addition, the two Mecklenburg duchies will be merged, and the Thuringian duchies will be merged into one electorate, Thuringia. Some of the duchies resist but no military conflict occurs.
  • September 20: The United Kingdom, France, and Russia express their shock at the deal, which brings 8 million more people into the German Empire, and demand Austria remain separate. Germany and Austria refuse.
  • September 21: Armies begin to be mobilized. Hungary and Italy jointly announce their support for Germany.
  • September 23: Following negotiations with Germany, Britain retracts its demand and cancels mobilization, but France and Russia continue to demand that Austria remains independent. War appears to be unlikely, due to the neutrality of Britain. Shocked by the loss of support from Britain, France demands that Britain help them in a war against Germany. This would turn out to be one of the greatest blunders of French diplomacy in the 20th century, and one of the foreign policy successes of the aging Wilhelm II.
  • September 24: Grossed by the aggressiveness of France, George V flatly refuses. This causes a deterioration in French relations with the United Kingdom.
  • September 26: Russia cancels mobilization and calls off the situation after negotiations with Germany.
  • September 29: France and Germany cancel mobilization. War has been averted, but not without consequences. The opinion of British citizens and lawmakers has turned against the French.
  • December 1: The territorial changes in Germany are announced to be completed, with Austria, Hanover, and Hesse being fully integrated.

1918

  • January 27: British elected officials vote to sever the entente cordiale with France, to the chagrin of French officials.
  • April 8: Germany and the United Kingdom sign a "science and innovation" agreement. The agreement was created and advocated for by Wilhelm II, as another foreign policy success. The agreement has British military scientists show off tank technology while German military scientists demonstrate U-boat technologies. France and Russia do not make a formal reaction.
  • May 24: Several Ethiopian traders are murdered in Eritrea after they are charged with smuggling and tax evasion. Zewditu I of Ethiopia demands that Italy pay compensation for the killed traders. Italy refuses to do so.
  • May 25: Italian troops begin to raid Ethiopian villages "to find smugglers".
  • May 28: War is declared by Ethiopia on Italy. Germany and Hungary offer non-military help to Italy but decline to declare war.
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