Timeline: The Peshawar Lancers

[TheLastKnight]

Timeline-The Peshawar Lancers
​

I enjoyed SM. Stirling's The Peshawar Lancers quite a bit. However, there were elements that I didn't like and I felt that there was much worldbuilding that was missed or just not done. Such things like a surviving United States of America, German refugees and less of a British-wank. So lets begin and see what happens. If any wish to help with pictures or especially maps, please let me know.

The Fall and the Exodus
Europe Part. 1
​

Recordings of the Lessons of Professor Charles Sharpe Esq.
Prince Albert Library
Imperial University of Delhi

"Take your seats. Take your seats."

Shuffle of students taking their seats. Notebooks are heard opening

"Remember, questions will be answered at the end of my daily lecture. That means you, Mr Patni."

Students laugh quietly.

"2025 has been an important year for the Raj. A new Padishah sits on the Lion Throne and the sun has not set on our empire. An Angrezi princess has wed the crown prince of France. However, how did we get here? On October 3, 1878, a meteor shower devastated the Northern Hemisphere, resulting in the world changing forever. The empires of Europe had spread to every corner of the world. The dying Ottoman Empire was at risk of losing its Balkan provinces to the advancing Russian armies and Bulgarian partisans. The rising United States of America had finished the most devastating war in that republic's short history. The Confederates either taking pardons or escaping to Latin America. Dai-Nippon had also begun its cultural and societal reformation under Emperor Meiji. The Second French Empire had been extinguished by the Bismarck's German empire of iron and blood."

Professor Sharpe breathes deep.

"Now we know what came after. If you have forgotten, I suggest you go to the Cathedral and stare at the painting of St. Disraeli staring out at the last ships leaving the British Isles. Ireland shielded much of Albion from the worst of the waves created by the meteors striking the Atlantic. France, Spain, Morocco, Portugal and the United States were not as lucky however. Some of the oldest and greatest cities along the Atlantic were quite literally wiped off the face of the map. If you turn to page 134 of your textbook, you will see Adam Sanford's portrait of the sun rising on a devastated Washington D.C. The image of the Congress building gutted by the waters have become almost a pseudo-religious symbol to the New America. D.C. to this day is still a swampland. A reminder of what had happened and what the Americans had overcome. However, I'll come back to the Americas in a later date. Right now, we are discussing Europe."

"Britannia rules the waves! Indeed that statement was true in 1878-1880 when the Exodus began. The royal family, of course had already left along with much of the "Ten Thousand" families. With much of the aristocracy, royalty and gentry being the first evacuees, it also became clear that the families of soldiers and those with particular skills were needed. Luckily our merchant marine was largely intact. But after two years, the rationing system finally broke. Much of the government had left. Disraeli himself, stayed behind of course.

On continental Europe, it was almost sheer chaos. Much of Germany was wiped out with surviving enclaves either on the coast or in the Alpine regions. Constantinople was directly hit by a meteor, devastating the heart of the Ottoman Empire. Even after the Fall, the winters became long. Agriculture was almost impossible. Those surviving governments that could flee, did.

France was in turmoil before the Fall even happened. Emperor Napoleon III had abdicated after his capture by the Germans at Sedan. In the wake of that abdication, a new provisional republic had been established. Paris had been spared the destruction of the Fall, but much of the country suffered. The government itself was unsure of what its path should be. President MacMahon knew that his cabinet was split between factions that felt that they should stay on the mainland while others thought that retreating to French Algeria was more acceptable. MacMahon tried to moderate the radicals in his cabinet by suggesting a new seat of power at Marseilles. When the prime minister was killed by mobs in Paris, MacMahon appointed one Louis Phillipe Albert; the Orleanist claimant to the French throne, as prime minister. MacMahon had felt if one man could unite the French exiles, it would be a future King Phillipe VII. It turned out he was right. MacMahon would later die of exhaustion and his cabinet would unanimously elect Prince Phillipe as President of France and Prime Minister. He however, didn't claim the throne right then. Instead he organized the surviving French fleets to rendezvous with the Mediterranean Fleet and begin evacuating survivors to French Algeria, Tunisia and French West Africa.

The royal family of the Netherlands were killed when a meteor struck Amsterdam. With chaos around them, the Dutch military took action and evacuated as many as they could. This was not as organized as the British exodus or even the French. Many Dutch would die on the ships before they finally arrived in the Dutch East Indies.

On the Iberian peninsula, Portugal was destroyed; gone in a single day. Coastal Spain had been destroyed by the tsunamis, but much of the population still survived in Catalonia, Andalusia and the Castilian heartland. The Fall had become the great crisis that King Alfonso XII had to overcome. He had only recently been enthroned when the nascent Spanish Republic failed. His Christmas Day speech is still studied today and I suggest you all find a copy and read it. He swore by All Mighty God, he would not abandon Spain. While he believed in the Spanish liberal monarchy, he took power in the form of a royal dictatorship and surrounded himself with military and intellectuals who were able to regain control of much of the country. Even when Madrid burned, and he had to relocate to Valencia, Alfonso was able to keep Spain afloat."

The professor sips his water.

"It is almost ironic that while the greatest powers of Europe were falling or relocating to their southern colonies, the least of the great powers thrived. The Kingdom of Italy was still young. Born out of the various Wars of Independence, the people of Italy had more loyalty to their cities or communities then to the royal government in Rome. Only one meteor struck south of the Alps and it hardly did any damage to Italy itself. Geography saved Italy. The Italian Army marched to the Alpine passes and essentially locked them from outsiders. While other European powers fled to their colonies, Italy looked to expand at their expense. Many from the Po River valley would have to leave for warmer climates further south. So to solve this, King Umberto I was a militarist at heart. He dreamed of an Italian empire across the Mediterranean. He used his time well. Malta was seized immediately. But Rome ignored the formal complaints from London. The British weren't going to go to war in the Mediterranean for islands while they were evacuating the Home Islands. Umberto conscripted many of the northern Italians into his growing military and begun construction of a fleet of warships. Those who couldn't serve were sent to work on farms in Sicily and Southern Italy. In 1881, Umberto ordered the Italian military to make its move. He intended to take advantage of the chaos in the former Ottoman Empire. The Regia Marina landed soldiers in Libya. Tripoli and Benghazi fell within hours of the Italians landing. Controlling the coastal regions wasn't difficult for Italy, but the desert interior became difficult. The Tuareg tribesmen raided Italian garrisons. The war lasted two years but soon, Libya became part of the Italian empire. After the decade of fierce winters, those that came from the north could return to northern Italy, but many chose to relocate to the Fourth Shore as Libya had been called. Even after the Fall, southern Italy and Libya are more densely populated then the Po River Valley."

​

 

[TheLastKnight]

The Fall and the Exodus
Europe Part. 2
​

"The German Kaiserreich was only a mere seven years old when the Fall began. The Hohenzollern empire was freshly forged in "blood and iron". Chancellor Bismarck ruled with the blessing of Kaiser Wilhelm I and the Prussian military elite. This was a nation that went from a region of squabbling disunited princes, to the strongest continental power in Europe. London feared that in time, the Kaisers would think that Europe wouldn't enough. Whether for good or ill, we as historians can only speculate. Germany suffered more then any other European nation. It seems that Germany was the epicenter of the meteor strike on October 3. Berlin was destroyed in the first wave. The unity of the Kaiserreich was shattered in moments. The Hohenzollerns were wiped out. Kings, grand dukes and princes began to look to their own borders and to their own people. Entire army units carved out their own fiefdoms and turned on each other. Warlordism plagued Germany. Soon enough with the winters setting in and starvation becoming rampant, Germany became a battleground. It was similar to the environment caused by the Thirty Years War. Roving armies of hungry soldiers and mercenaries burning and pillaging. Indeed, it was a dark time. But there was light in the darkness."

"Along the coast of the North Sea were the cities of the Hansa; a confederation of surviving cities including Lubeck, Kiel, Konigsberg and Wismar. These four cities were able to come together and provide aid to one another in the form of goods and soldiers."

An arm goes up.

"No questions till after the lecture."

"Please, Professor. Just one question."

"Hmm, alright. What is the your question, Miss?"

"Miss Anika Singh, Professor."

"Go on, Miss Singh."

"How did these cities survive in the heart of Europe while the rest of the continent either destroyed itself or fled south? What was their secret?"

"There was no secret. Many of the larger German cities were either destroyed in the opening moments of the Fall or were abandoned in the coming winters. What made the Hansa different was simply cooperation and geography. Jutland stuck out as a shield against any tsunamis in the North Sea. But while the cities worked with each other, they worked against any who moved on them. They took only the land they needed to sustain themselves and could easily defend. And then there was the old German Navy. The German Navy wasn't very large but what ships they did have in the Baltics were seized and used to transport soldiers and goods between the cities. But there were also measures taken that were necessary for the time. Many people were forced to leave the cities if they didnt have a skill that could help the Hansa survive the winters."

"But there wasn't just the Hansa that kept the torch of German civilization alive. For many of you know, a German Reich exists to this day. But this is the realm of the artistic Catholic Wittelsbachs, not the militant Hohenzollerns. Much of Bavaria had been spared from the Fall. The King of Bavaria, Ludwig II was considered an eccentric dreamer. The Fairy Tale King was a common nickname for him. Strangely, one would imagine a man like that would break in the harsh times they found themselves in. But Ludwig surprised many when he begun to build redoubts in the Alpine regions of his kingdom. All out of his own pocket, not the royal treasury. The Bavarian Army built forts and fortified towns along with greenhouses. He then ordered the government to retreat from the lowlands. Much of the population of Bavaria fled to the mountains and soon joined with the survivors from the fallen Habsburg empire. From this mountain kingdom, Ludwig and the Bavarian people outlasted the storm that had come. When warlords and later cannibal savages marched on the Alps, the Bavarian Army threw them back. And once they were able, Ludwig's descendants began the "Reconquista" of Germany. Where the old Kaiserreich was belligerent and warlike, this new German Empire is a center of art, culture, and wonderous architecture. The core of the German Empire is centered on the Catholic majority southern provinces while colonies have been established along the Rhine and west of the Oder. The blue and white flag flies once more over Munich and a Wittelsbach is Kaiser of Germany.

 

[TheLastKnight]

The Fall and the Exodus
The British Empire
​

"As I said earlier in class, "Britannia rules the waves." That was indeed very true when the Fall began. The British refugees left for the Cape Colony, India and Australia. Some felt that the more British Australia should be where the government and royal family set up a new capital. However, India was instead chosen as it was the largest colony in terms of population and geography. As Victoria said when the government asked her about her capital, she simply replied "I am the Empress of India."

"So the first capital of the New Empire or simply the Raj was the city of Calcutta. But Calcutta's position in wetlands made Victoria I choose instead to move the capital to the city of Delhi. Delhi was an excellent choice as it was the capital of previous Indian empires, such as the Sultanate of Delhi, and the Mughal Empire. But the birth of the New Empire didn't come around until the Second Mutiny. From 1878 to 1890, rebellions broke out across India. Rumors had spread that vital grain supplies were being shipped to Great Britain. Which wasn't true. The government had already counted Great Britain lost. However the long winters in the Northern Hemisphere had made crop yields in Northern India fall, while south of the Deccan, the yields were enough. But like wildfire, once the rumors spread, there was nothing stopping the Mutiny. The million and a half hungry mouths from England didn't help either. Soon enough, the Sirkar or government controlled the major cities, the Punjab and Rajputana. Many of the princely states stood with Delhi alongside the Kings of Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan stood with the Sirkar as well. These three Himalayan kingdoms had brought their people south from the mountains to escape the cold. The King of Nepal brought with him crucial Gurkha regiments that soon became some of the most fearsome formations in the Raj. Prince Edward even was gifted his own Gurkha unit for his personal protection. This soon led to a tradition of Gurkhas serving as the personal bodyguards of the Imperial family.

The Second Mutiny was a bloody affair to say the least. Three quarters of the population of India died either from starvation, disease or from warfare. The Afghan invasion of Punjab came next on the heels of the Second Mutiny. The Emirs of Kabul thought that they could re-establish the Afghan empire. The provinces of Punjab and Baluchistan were their targets. Those provinces devolved into a great three-way conflict, between mutineers, British loyalists and the Afghans. The Afghans weren't as technologically advanced but they were united. That unity went a long way while the Empire was fighting a massive civil war. The mutineers didn't have such unity. They were fighting for survival or for the secession of their own home provinces. They would only come to each other's aid if they absolutely felt like it. The British Indian Army was able to crush the southern mutineers first and relieved the Siege of Delhi. British, Marthas, Sikhs, Rajputs and others were forged into a great nation-army and soon began to push the mutineers back. In 1882, Victoria I died and with that, her son Prince Edward became the next King-Emperor of the British Empire. He had decided to wait till after he had freed all of India before he would be coronated. Before the last mutineer enclaves had surrendered in Bengal, the Afghans had begun to settle into their new conquests. They hadn't had been their long before His Imperial Majesty's Army crossed into the Indus River Valley and swept aside any Afghan force sent against it. The Afghans were fierce skirmishers but against a modern army with artillery, cavalry, armored cars and smokeless rifles; they stood no chance.

Edward was coronated in Delhi. The original plan was to give him the traditional British titles, but that idea was changed last minute. Edward was crowned as King-Emperor, Padishah and Kaiser-i-Hind. This act solidified his rule before the people as it showed that even if the British Isles were reclaimed, Edward and his descendants would remain in India. As the last embers of the Second Mutiny were being snuffed out, Edward began the reorganization of his empire. A new landed gentry known as the sahib-logs were established across India. Much of the land had been left empty, so new landholders were needed, and the sahib-logs would also make a rich supply of recruits for the Army and Navy. The princely states were gifted seats in a new House of Lords within the Raj Parliament. Railroads were built across India in an effort to make communication and travel easier.

While Edward reorganized India into the modern Raj, he also made changes to the other surviving British colonies. He appointed viceroys to his most important colonies. Australia, the Cape, British Malaya, and the West Indies were made viceroyalties with the right to have their own armies, parliaments and colonies. The Persian Gulf emirates, the Kingdom of Madagascar and the sultanates of Oman and Zanzibar would become vassal states of the Raj. The Kingdom of Burma would become a major sore to the Sirkar in Delhi. But after the reform of the Empire, the Raj led a campaign to bring an end to the Burmese threat. Originally, the Raj considered annexing Burma, but annexation was out of the question as the Raj was still recovering. So after Burma surrendered, Edward met with King Thibaw Min and offered to keep him on his throne so long as Thibaw accepted a protectorate over Burma. The king accepted it as he was fearing the growing power of the Siamese kingdom to his east.

 

[jhonstar]

continue with more of this story

 

[TheLastKnight]

The Fall and the Exodus
The Russian Empire
​

"Now as we know, Western Europe fleeing to their colonies or to their southernmost provinces was not the only legacy of Europe. The greatest rival to the old British Empire and one of the chief powers of the world today is the Holy Empire of All the Russias. It is said Russia is a mystery wrapped in an enigma, and that is true even for today. Modern Russian philosophy dictates that Russia is not an ethnicity or even a nation, but a holy covenant in Orthodox Christianity. The Tsar is not just a monarch of a great state, but the legal head of the Church. The Tsar appoints the Patriarchs and has at his command, a holy order of neo-knights known as the Order of Saint George. There is no Duma or parliament to balance the Tsar's power either. A true autocracy wrapped up in holy collars. War between the Raj and Holy Russia would have come long ago, had it not been for the border nations of Afghanistan and Persia. Our agents from the Political Service and the Okhrana play out the Great Game in those countries. But Holy Russia is a formidable opponent. The Caliphate has faced off with the Tsar's armies in the Balkans and the Caucasus Mountains, and the Polish horsemen of the Wild Fields have warred with the Cossacks on many occasion."

"After the Fall, the old Russian empire was devastated. Much like Germany, it was shattered like glass. But the Russians also had to contend with the fiercest winters they had ever seen. The ice was so thick that one could walk across the Volga, the Don, and the Dnieper rivers. A meteor had destroyed much of St. Petersburg, killing much of the Romanov family. However, the Tsar's brother Nicholas had been in the Balkans commanding the Russian Army of the Danube. The war with the Turks was over, but he was protecting the new states of Romania and Bulgaria from further Ottoman attacks. But it wasn't Grand Duke Nicholas that had the touch of destiny. It was his son, Nicholas the Younger."

"The Russians had seen what happened when the meteor struck Istanbul as they were only in nearby Adrianople. Grand Duke Nicholas listened to his military advisors and abandoned the Balkans, and marched his army back to Russia. This was no small feat. Grand Duke Nicholas had almost 200,000 men in the Balkans. So he sent word to his generals to begin the march to Ukraine, while he ordered the Black Sea Fleet to begin ferrying as many as they could back to Crimea and South Russia. He sent his son, Nicholas the Younger with the army, while he took a ship home. This would turn out to be his folly. Like Emperor Frederick Barbarossa on his way to the Holy Land, Grand Duke Nicholas drowned when his ship sank."

"Now, what I am about to say is not part of the historical record, but is considered part of the mists of myth. You will hear stories like these from exiles fleeing Holy Russia. Nicholas the Younger was leading his army across the Danube towards the Wild Fields of Ukraine. However his forces were under constant attack from bandit lords and starving masses of the desperate and the lost. A nun who had dreamed of a way to cross the river had been brought before him. When her prophetic dream proved to be correct, Nicholas commanded she be given the best food. Soon enough she had more dreams that proved to be correct. In later years, this nun and other women like became the first of the Sisterhood of the Dreamers."

A student raises their hand. "Professor, isn't the Sisterhood supposed to be an urban legend?"

"Yes and no. The Sisterhood absolutely exists, but as a religious order of female advisors to important officials from the Church, the military and to the Tsar himself. But the belief that they are seers and oracles from the past, is indeed a fabrication. However as historians, we must keep an open mind. I have a colleague in the Political Service, and all I can say is that from what stories he has told me, Okhrana agents have a foresight that borders on the supernatural. As if someone has told them which choices are the most advantageous. But it could more that the Okhrana is one of the oldest secret services and Holy Russia makes up for its lack of technological advancement on the battlefield, with focusing on a second-to-none secret service.

"Nicholas the Younger arrived in Crimea when he heard of the death of his father. The young man was devastated. But he was the last Romanov, and while he mourned in private, Nicholas took over the responsibilities of a new monarch. The boy wasn't like his father. He had a good mind for warfare, he was charismatic and he would promote based on merit then on nobility. He was coronated in front of his army. Legend says that the men dropped to their knees as he took his oath before God. Communications had been disrupted across the empire, so Nicholas relied on messages borne by Cossack horsemen to organize the Russians. The north had become uninhabitable, so many fled south. Tsar Nicholas II gave a terrible order, but I'd imagine for a man in his position, it was the lesser of two evils. He commanded that his armies protect what they can hold; mainly South Russia, Crimea and Tatarstan in Central Asia. At first, he allowed some people to come to his sanctuary, but soon, he decided that for Russia to survive, he had to sacrifice those coming south. It was horror equal to the Second Mutiny. Nicholas established his court at Tsaritsyn and his armies battled with Russians coming south. This was not a war with disciplined lines and exchanges of prisoners. It was a war of survival. Nicholas and his generals were shaken at the measures that they had to take to protect the remnants of the Russian empire."

"The leaders of the Orthodox Church came up with an idea of having priests act as pillars of inspiration and fear to Nicholas' soldiers. Soon enough, priests were assigned to military units from regiment size and up. Their responsibilities originally were merely to speak verses from the Bible, absolve the soldiers of murdering fellow Russians and sometimes execute dissidents within the army. This gave the Church incredible power. Eventually, priests would be sent to villages, towns and cities and preach to the people. This soon created an extremist form of Orthodox Christianity, as the Church believed that the Fall was God's punishment on Man, much like the Great Flood. This had a powerful effect on the people. After many years, Holy Russia has survived and even reclaimed much of its old territories. The old nobility of boyars had been re-established and act similar to our own sahib-logs. Moscow is once again, a mere frontier town, and the Volga, Don and Dnieper are once again the great roadways of a growing Russian empire. The khans of Tatarstan had tried to revolt and regain their independence, but Nicholas II and his descendants have solved that by settling Russians and Cossacks in Central Asia. What I have told you is the official history of Holy Russia. Not much is known of the great Rus, but that's why we are historians. We look into the mysteries of history and bring them to light."

 

[TheLastKnight]

The Fall and the Exodus
The Fortunate Nations
​

"The Fortunate Event. A term I want you all to remember. This is the term for the Fall in the Far Eastern empires. China and Dai-Nippon were able take advantage of the fall of the European empires and become some of the great powers today. Dai-Nippon expanded its influence across the Pacific and Indochina, while China was able to modernise and eventually become the Raj's greatest rival. I'll discuss how each survived the Fall and ended becoming the great powers they are today"

"China under the Manchu Qing dynasty had fallen behind Europe in terms of modernity, but the Fall certainly saved the Dragon Throne. The Qing were forced to abandon their outer provinces of Manchuria, Mongolia, Tibet, and the Western Regions. The Great Wall was manned and became the northern border of the empire. The capital remained in Peking. But while the empire was able to fall back, the population of China was too large to be stable in a time of extreme famine. Soon enough, the provinces outside of Peking began to become home to bandit-warlords and corrupt governors who were more interested in their own affairs than in the diktats of the imperial court. The Forbidden City soon became isolated as harvests in the fertile river provinces were being withheld from the Dragon Throne. Rebellions and uprisings were common in the late Qing period and the fact that the Qing emperors were seen as foreigners by their majority Han subjects guaranteed that a massive rebellion would break out. The scars of the Taiping Rebellion were still healing. Eventually in 1888, a series of rebellions broke out over the accusation that the Qing princes were withholding stores of rice from the provinces. Such accusations were not true, as the imperial stores were simply empty."

"The Great Revolt of 1888 was at first, just a series of provinces that had broken away from the central government and ruled themselves as warlord states. This was very similar to the Second Great Mutiny here. But eventually, the rebels began to organise under the slogan "Down with the Qing" Eventually rumours began to spread across China that the rebels wished to have the descendant of Confucius, the Duke of Yansheng crowned Son of Heaven. Whether the Duke had anything to do with the rebels became a moot point. The rumour was accusation enough for the Dowager Empress Cixi. Foreseeing her anger, the Duke fled Peking just before imperial soldiers arrived at his home. The Duke met up with rebels in his home city of Qufu. With no choice, he claimed the Mandate of Heaven and declared himself the Zheng Emperor of the Lu dynasty; taking the name of the ancient state where Confucius was born. Alongside the rebels, many governors and even military units defected to the cause of the Lu dynasty. Many did this, claiming not wishing to harm the descendant of Confucius himself. The Duke himself led his growing army from Qufu, north to Peking. As he marched, anti-Qing sentiment rose more and more. This sentiment led to more joining his cause. Battles were being fought all across China between Qing loyalists and rebel forces."

"The Lu forces under the Zheng Emperor eventually met a Qing army on the road to Peking. While the Lu forces were outnumbered two to one, the defection of Han regiments to the Lu cause caused the Qing loyalists to break. The Battle on the Road was considered a crucial battle of the entire Lu rebellion, and the turning point for the Qing loyalists. The night before the Lu forces arrived at Peking, Li Hongzhang, the Viceroy of Zhili launched a coup with elements of his Anhui Army. He arrested the Dowager Empress, the Guangxu Emperor and much of the Imperial court. His forces soon spread across Peking, arresting officials loyal to the Qing and battling regiments that refused surrender. By morning however, the city of Peking belonged to Li Hongzhang. He sent word to the Zheng Emperor to come to the Forbidden City and take his place on the Dragon Throne."

"After his coronation, the new Emperor of the Lu Dynasty placed the surviving members of the Qing under house arrest. The Guangxu Emperor, being a minor was allowed to live the life of a Qing prince. For his part in ending the war, Li Hongzhang was made Grand Chancellor of China and was tasked by the Zheng Emperor to modernise China and prepare for the eventual return to the "abandoned territories". Under Li Hongzhang, the Zheng Miracle began. The Chinese Empire began to modernise at an alarming rate and the power of Peking became feared once again. By the time the Zheng Emperor died in November of 1919, a new administration was created based on merit, schools and universities were established, railroads began to snake across the country and new military reforms were initiated. While the Imperial Chinese Navy is no match for our own navy or even the Imperial Nipponese Navy, the Imperial Chinese Army is considered one of the largest, most powerful forces in the world. The Dragon had finally awoken."

"Dai-Nippon probably benefited the most from the Fall. Emperor Meiji had to order the evacuation of the island of Hokkaido, but even with that, Dai-Nippon expanded as the rest of the world receded. The cold of winters kept Dai-Nippon from its ambitions in Korea and Siberia, so Emperor Meiji looked to the Pacific for the expansion of the empire. The first came when Filipino rebels rose in the Spanish East Indies. The Spanish authorities continued to act in the name of the King of Spain, even though none had heard word from Madrid since the Fall. The Nipponese began to send aid to the Filipino rebels in the form of weapons, food and even advisers. Meiji even supported an intervention. While the Philippine War of Independence raged, in the year of 1883, a Nipponese task force arrived in the Port of Manila, the capital of Spanish Philippines. Nipponese Army units landed across the city and seized key points, including the Governor-General's Palace. The Spanish East Indies Squadron surrendered after the Nipponese task force opened fire on them. With the fall of Manila, the Spanish colonial government surrendered to the Nipponese and the Filipino rebels. The Philippine Republic was established with its first president being Carlos Aguinaldo, a former governor and rebel general. In exchange for their assistance, Dai-Nippon is allowed a naval base in Manila, various trade agreements and Nipponese military advisers to train a Philippine Army. The colonial government also gave the Caroline Islands, the Marianas Islands, Palau and Guam to Dai-Nippon in the surrender terms. The southern island of Mindanao was given its independence from the Philippines and was placed under the protection of the Nipponese Empire. The sulatanates across Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago created a federation of monarchies with an elected Sultan of Sultans."

"The Nipponese navy began to send ships across the Pacific, including Hawaii. The Kingdom of Hawaii was key to the control of the Pacific, so Edo made the protection of Hawaii a priority. In 1881, the King of Hawaii, David Kalakaua, arrived in Edo and was able to make a successful marriage arrangement of his niece, Princess Ka'iulani to Prince Yamashina Yorihito, a member of a cadet branch of the Imperial family. Prince Yamashina Yorihito would eventually become prince consort of Hawaii when his wife ascended the throne as Queen in 1893. The Nipponese were able to get a naval port in Pearl Harbour, and eventually made Hawaii a protectorate. Many Nipponese would even emigrate to Hawaii, eventually having a large economic and cultural impact on the small kingdom. As the winters became less fierce, the Nipponese began to claim many islands in the North Pacific such as the recolonisation of Hokkaido, and the capture of Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands and the Aleutians in former Alaska.

 

[Whiteshore]

The royal family of the Netherlands were killed when a meteor struck Amsterdam. With chaos around them, the Dutch military took action and evacuated as many as they could. This was not as organized as the British exodus or even the French. Many Dutch would die on the ships before they finally arrived in the Dutch East Indies.

Speaking of which, at this point, Aceh and Bali were not yet subdued by the Dutch, so, would the Dutch still absorb them or would they stay independent ITTL? On that note, considering Germany is a Bavaria-centered dealie, will we get to explore what became of what was once Austria-Hungary (along with Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Romania, the latter two newly independent) in the future?

 

[TheLastKnight]

Speaking of which, at this point, Aceh and Bali were not yet subdued by the Dutch, so, would the Dutch still absorb them or would they stay independent ITTL? On that note, considering Germany is a Bavaria-centered dealie, will we get to explore what became of what was once Austria-Hungary (along with Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Romania, the latter two newly independent) in the future?

The Raj looks at the Dutch East Indies, or the future Batavian Republic as a buffer state against Edo. So the Raj assists Batavia in assimilating the rest of the Indonesian islands. The Batavian Republic will organise itself in a similar fashion to the Raj, so native monarchs serve as members of the upper house and as hereditary governors. Bali is divided into nine kingdoms, so the Dutch will use that to gain a foothold on the island, while the Sultan of Aceh will be given a great deal of benefits and gain much influence within the Republic. I want to go back and do an entry about the formation of the Batavian Republic and its role in future wars with Nippon.

Oh I absolutely intend to explore the Balkans very soon. I find that the Balkans are an incredibly important region in the Peshawar Lancers timeline, especially with the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The Balkans and the lands around the Ottoman Empire like Persia and Egypt will most certainly take advantage of that, while the Arabs will use their new found freedom from Constantinople to establish a new Caliphate.

 

[Whiteshore]

Oh I absolutely intend to explore the Balkans very soon. I find that the Balkans are an incredibly important region in the Peshawar Lancers timeline, especially with the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The Balkans and the lands around the Ottoman Empire like Persia and Egypt will most certainly take advantage of that, while the Arabs will use their new found freedom from Constantinople to establish a new Caliphate.

On that note, would the Caliphate be under the Hashemites or the Saudis?

 

[Whiteshore]

Neither. The Caliphate will be held by the Rashidi. That being said, the Saudis and the Hashemites will be making trouble for the growing Rashidi Caliphate.

Especially with the brand of Islam that the Saudi Royal Family promotes through their alliance with Wahhabi clergy and all that.

 

[TheLastKnight]

Especially with the brand of Islam that the Saudi Royal Family promotes through their alliance with Wahhabi clergy and all that.

As I am doing more research and yeah how the Caliph in the book is described along with his relationship with the clergy, I am going to change my mind and make it a Saudi caliphate. The Caliphate of Damascus seems too fanatical to be Hashemite or Rashidi. The Saudis would make more sense. But I like the idea of the Hashemites claiming to be the true caliphs from the safety of Cairo.

 

[Whiteshore]

As I am doing more research and yeah how the Caliph in the book is described along with his relationship with the clergy, I am going to change my mind and make it a Saudi caliphate. The Caliphate of Damascus seems too fanatical to be Hashemite or Rashidi. The Saudis would make more sense. But I like the idea of the Hashemites claiming to be the true caliphs from the safety of Cairo.

Maybe Egypt in contrast to the Mega-Saudi Arabia which is the Caliphate is the center of secular Arab nationalism or adopt a national identity based on Pharaonism as their ideology?

 

[TheLastKnight]

Maybe Egypt in contrast to the Mega-Saudi Arabia which is the Caliphate is the center of secular Arab nationalism or adopt a national identity based on Pharaonism as their ideology?

Oh absolutely. I will elaborate more when I get to the Middle East, but yes, Egypt will look more to its Pharaonic past as well as work with more moderate Muslim powers such as Iran, and Oman to counter the Caliphate. Which is why the title of sultan isn't taken up by the Egyptian monarch. The Caliphate will covet Egypt for its wealth and control of the Sinai, while Egypt wishes to restore its ancient empire in the Levant and Syria.

 

[Whiteshore]

Oh absolutely. I will elaborate more when I get to the Middle East, but yes, Egypt will look more to its Pharaonic past as well as work with more moderate Muslim powers such as Iran, and Oman to counter the Caliphate. Which is why the title of sultan isn't taken up by the Egyptian monarch. The Caliphate will covet Egypt for its wealth and control of the Sinai, while Egypt wishes to restore its ancient empire in the Levant and Syria.

On that note, secular Arab nationalism vs Pharaonism could be the main political dynamic in Egyptian politics, with all that.

 

[TheLastKnight]

The Fall and the Exodus
The Eagle of Liberty
​

"Now, we move away from the Old World and discuss the happenings in the New World. The United States of America was quickly becoming a great power. It had recently fought a great civil war with its southern states and had come out stronger then before. When the Fall happened, the meteors shattered that unity and the tsunami waves crashed into the East Coast, decimating the American government and many of its oldest cities. Most of its great institutions were also on the East Coast. The long winters and the meteor strikes rendered the northern states almost uninhabitable. It is ironic that to save Liberty, a military government was established to hold the fragile Union together. However, from the ashes, the Eagle of Liberty arose and was created anew."

"The man considered "the saviour of America" turned out to be its most controversial military officer. General William Tecumseh Sherman was serving at his post in St Louis in the centre of the United States when the Fall happened. When cables from the East confirmed the destruction of Washington D.C. and the death of the President, the Commanding General of the US Armies jumped into action. He was perfectly situated in a central location and St Louis was a hub of transportation by both rail and water travel. The first thing that was needed was a restructure of the surviving elements of the United States. Many of the southern states were still led by highly unpopular Reconstruction governments, and the West was still lightly populated by Americans. General Sherman had been spending his years in St Louis, waging war on the local native tribes. He worried about any pro-Confederate movements trying to re-establish the rebel governments."

"General Sherman would divide the surviving United States into various military regions led by military governors whom the state governors would report to, as well as raise emergency forces to put down rebellions. The saving grace to this was that the US had a large numbers of veterans from the Civil War, so Sherman could call on skilled officers and disciplined former soldiers. Sherman would be the military governor of the Midwest himself, while others took control of other regions. The Pacific Military District was the only region governed by a naval officer, Rear Admiral Christopher Raymond Perry Rodgers. But the most controversial choice for military governor was former Confederate general, James Longstreet who was given command of the Trans-Mississippi Military District. Even though some of Sherman's own advisers disagreed with Longstreet's appointment and reinstatement to the US Army, he remained firm that the old cavalryman would be able keep Texas, Louisiana, the Indian Territory and Arkansas under control. Sherman would be proven right in that case. Longstreet proved to be a creative military governor. He raised forces from both former Union and Confederate veterans, including former slaves and black Union soldiers. The Texas Rangers were granted the right to track and arrest fugitives across Longstreet's military region. Longstreet also sat down with the tribes of Indian Territory. The chiefs under fellow former Confederate soldier, Chief Allen Wright of the Choctaw Nation wished that their territory be accepted as a state for Native Americans. Allen Wright agreed that the new state of Oklahoma would indeed keep the peace that Sherman was trying to establish. Longstreet took this to Sherman and he, while he agreed to most of the terms, he declined statehood as he stated that only Congress could bring a new state into the Union. While disappointed, Allen Wright's delegation was happy that the US Army would remove their forces from Indian Territory and allow the tribes to govern themselves. The various tribes even established their own military forces to defend the territory while a council of chiefs was established in the new capital of Sequoyah."

"Many of the southern states across the Mississippi, however, wouldn't be quiet. Many Lost-Causers saw the Fall as the chance to re-establish their confederacy of states and perhaps even slavery itself. Bushwhacking became the form of warfare that these rebels would employ. Many military governors couldn't trust their southern raised units for fear of sympathies with the rebels. Sherman held an ace card as the Americans would say. Northern refugees. The survivors of the northern states were coming south or west in droves. Many would enlist or re-enlist into the Union Army and were sent to the Deep South. The Atlantic Military Region centred on Virginia, and the Carolinas were generally peaceful. However, the Gulf Military Region, the Appalachia Military Region and the Mid-Southern Military Region were aflame with bushwackers. Sherman and his contemporaries refused to call what was happening a second civil war, but modern historians do refer to this period as the Second American Civil War. Unlike the first, this war had no great battles of line infantry, artillery and cavalry. This was a war of the shadows, assassins and raiders. One infamous example was when bushwackers seized the Mississippi State Capitol and murdered the governor, the lieutenant governor and most members of the state government. The bushwackers then declared the Free State of Mississippi. Within a few days however, Union forces laid siege to Jackson and either killed or arrested the bushwackers."

"Only two years after the Fall, former President Ulysses Grant would sail into San Francisco. Sherman would have his former commander-in-chief take a train to St Louis. The former president had made himself known of the happenings in the United States. He had been in Asia during the Fall and had wanted to return earlier, but there were no ships to take him. The Nipponese government eventually sent Grant back home. General Sherman sent word to all the state governments and asked them to send delegations to St Louis. These state delegations voted to give Ulysses Grant the powers of the president. When the delegations voted almost unanimously for Grant, Sherman gave Grant his sword and offered himself up for arrest as he had gone against the Constitution. Grant offered Sherman back his sword, and pardoned both Sherman and all the Union officers. Sherman would continue on as Commanding General and Secretary of War. President Grant asked the state governments to send representatives to a new Congress in St. Louis. Many states had their first elections since the Fall, while others such as the Deep Southern states, their representatives had to be appointed by the state governors. However, with this new Congress, President Grant began to restore civilian rule. Grant began by abolishing the military governors' powers over the state governors. The military regions were however, kept until the rebels were dealt with. James Longstreet would later successfully serve as governor of Louisiana. Oklahoma would also be granted statehood by the new Congress, and Allen Wright would be named Oklahoma's first state governor. It would not be the last native state established by St. Louis. This act was another example of what the new America was becoming. The Fall had allowed many of America's minorities to have larger populations across the country. This led to the United States becoming more multicultural. German was replaced by Spanish as the second largest language in the country, to the point where entire states have Spanish majority speakers. The Reconstruction governments held on, under the guns of the Union Army. This would lead to Black Americans having more representation. South Carolina in 1900 would elect the first black governor of the United States. The military would also be subject to desegregation under President Grant's successor and the first elected president by popular vote, Arthur MacArthur Jr. in 1887. We will come back to the United States as its neighbours and how they handled the Fall also heavily affected the United States itself. "

 

[Michael B]

We will come back to the United States as its neighbours and how they handled the Fall also heavily affected the United States itself. "​

If you read Appendix 3 you will see that the entire North American continent is claimed by the British Empire. No states, presidents, etc.

 

[TheLastKnight]

If you read Appendix 3 you will see that the entire North American continent is claimed by the British Empire. No states, presidents, etc.

Oh I know, but it was something that always bothered me. This is my take on a more realistic Peshawar Lancers universe. Ive already made changes before this one, like hyper Orthodox Russia, a Kingdom of France instead of Napoleon and a surviving German state.

 

[Whiteshore]

The military would also be subject to desegregation under President Grant's successor and the first elected president by popular vote, Arthur MacArthur Jr. in 1887.

Will his descendants by any chance be infamous for their egoistical behavior, considering Douglas MacArthur's OTL record and all that?

 

[TheLastKnight]

Will his descendants by any chance be infamous for their egoistical behavior, considering Douglas MacArthur's OTL record and all that?

I have considered a future David MacArthur for this universe with similar behavior as his OTL version.

 

[modelcitizen]

Good fun! I subscribe.