Silent Night: Maxwell's View, Part 2

Maxwell's View, Part 2

Lunch in the grand salon was as luxurious as the setting, and as luxurious as one would expect on a British Airways vessel. The room buzzed with conversation, as the passengers sat at large round tables and got to mingle with their fellow travelers. Waiters slipped in and out silently, refilling drinks and taking away plates. The sound of cutlery clinking on porcelain had died down as conversation increased. Those seated seemed in no hurry to get up and leave their new companions. The Maxwells were seated at a table with a retired couple from London, the husband had been a mid-level banker, and served in the War, along with a newly-married couple who had postponed their honeymoon until Christmas, and finally a middle-aged reporter from America, who was stationed in London and had been asked by his paper to cover the 30th Anniversary ceremonies. Jack had asked the reporter, Gary Smithfield, why he hadn’t taken an airplane. Yes, airships still ruled, but most industry experts agreed that the airplane would overtake it, and a ticket on an American-built DC-3 would be cheeper and quicker. 

“Oh I know that,” he’d said, “and Lord knows the paper didn’t pay for my passage today. I decided to use some vacation time and money and splurge a little. Grew up fascinated by airships, and I take any opportunity I can to sail on one.”

Jack had chuckled and commented that his youngest son Tom would really get along with the reporter. The whole table had laughed lightly at that. Tom himself just beamed, and went off on a short ramble about how wonderful airships really were. Jack had also traded a few stories from the war with the older gentleman at the table, Hiram Winters. Winters had been in a unit that had accompanied the French troops to Paris, one of the few British Christmas Army units that hadn’t marched on Strassburg in January of 1915, like Jack’s own unit. 

“Was such a wild time, when we entered Paris. Every building was draped either in the tricolor, our truce banner, or in socialist red. We still couldn’t quite believe it when we found out that Juares had been able to take control during the chaos and proclaim the world’s first socialist state.”

“The first of many, thankfully.” Samantha chimed in. Jack himself had grown up in a politically moderate family of Old Liberals, whereas Samantha’s parents had been radical Labour members. She’d grown up having regular trips to Red Paris, and actually served as university representative to the founding of the ISLP, but had mellowed some with age and marriage to a political moderate. But only some.

“You younger ones are more adept in this new world of socialism than I, Mrs. Maxwell,” Winters had said, “though I cannot deny the benefits that it has brought to quality of life as a whole on this continent, or at least where it’s been allowed ot take root. And no matter my personal qualms, I would take David Landsbury’s government, or his fathers, over that of America’s Thurman any day. No offense meant to present company.” Winters had nodded apologetically to Smithfield.

“Oh none taken. I grew up in Chicago, even if I work for a New York paper now, and many say that Chicago is as red as Paris.” The table chuckled. “I sure didn’t vote for Thurman.”

As there conversation had gone on, the Maxwells learned that the new bride, Sara Giles, had an uncle who had been part of the Christmas Army and stayed in Strassburg when the fighting ended. Her and her family had visited Strassburg for many a Christmas, and the holiday itself and a Strassburg Christmas in particular, held a special place in her heart. 

“We had wanted to marry at Christmas, but decided we didn’t want to wait quite that long. George did propose on Christmas though.” She had smiled at her husband and then leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

Jack commented, “I have a friend, Harry, who stayed in Strassburg too. I read a report at work a few months back, and apparently it’s estimated that 1/3 of Strassburg’s population is made up of Christmas Army emigres and their families and descendants, and throughout all of Alsace-Lorraine it’s believed to be somewhere between 1/5 and 1/8 of the entire national population. Hard to imaging such a cosmopolitan nation in the heart of Europe like that.”

“Sounds almost like a miniature version of America, with all those immigrants moving to make a new life in a new home.” Smithfield said.

“Somewhat,” Sara chimed in, “though different, too. It’s still not quite the melting pot that America is, or is supposed to be. But my uncle says they’re trying to change that, making a truly new people out of all the emigres and locals alike.”

“I read in the Times that the Congressional Republic has really been pushing the learning and use of that constructed language, called…..oh, Esperanto, I think?”

Byron piped up at this. “I heard that from one of my teachers at school. We have an Esperanto club, and they’re discussing adding a formal course of it next year.”

“What a brave new world we are in.” commented Mrs. Winters. She didn’t look so thrilled, more resigned. 

“I’m not sure just how new,” Jack said. “With all the noise coming from Germany over the conflict between the ISLP and the Junkers, we could find ourselves in quite an old world very quickly.”

George Giles tried to sound optimistic, showing the naivety of someone born after 1914. “Surely it won’t get as bad as that. It’s like old Landsbury said, this is the Century of Peace. We’re all going there to celebrate that very event now. The Junkers will back down. The Kaiser will keep them in line as he has for the past three decades.”

“One can hope, young man, but one should also be careful to not let wishful thinking cloud reality.” That was Mr. Winters.

Before Giles could offer a rebuttal, an announcement came over the intercom. “Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now approaching Paris. You should be able to see the city from either of the promenades, and the dining salon. We will be stopping briefly at Juares Memorial Aerodrome before continuing on to Strassborg.”

With that, the lunch conversation broke up, and the group joined many of the other passengers who wanted to look out and gawk at the French capital. Early fears after the Revolution that the new government would completely remake Paris in their own socialist image had been largely unfounded. The great palaces had been kept and in some cases restored. The Eiffel Tower was still the icon of the city. The only major addition to the center of the city was the Palace of the People, built at the site of the old Tuileries Palace. No one could deny that this building, the center of the new socialist regime, did stick out a bit. It was built in the new Art Moderne style that many within the socialist movement loved. It’s streamlined designs and lack of ornamentation were in stark contrast to much of the city. 

The Palace of the People’s main structure faced the Seine, flanked on either side by smaller wings. in the courtyard facing the river stood a large statue of Juares, father of the Revolution, carrying a red banner. The building was decked out in red banners of the French Socialist Party, along with the modified tricolor of the People’s Republic. As the passengers looked down on the city, the pianist in the salon began to play “La Marseillaise.” 

Before long, the aerodrome was in sight, and the ship began to descend to the Earth. “Ladies and Gentlemen, please return to your seats. We will be landing at Juares Memorial Aerodrome shortly. We will be on the ground for approximately half an hour to take on passengers, before we resume our flight to Strassburg. Thank you for your cooperation.”

With that, the salon emptied quickly. The Maxwells waved goodbye to their table companions, who had seats on the other side of the ship. Jack had enjoyed the conversation. You never knew who you’d meet while traveling. To him, it was one of the best parts of making such a trip. 

It was after 1:30 in the afternoon when the Limited moored at the aerodrome, and after taking on two dozen or so more passengers, a mix of British tourists in Paris and native French, the vessel was aloft before 2:30. The passengers were informed once in the air that they were right on schedule and should arrive in Strassburg by 6:00 pm. The weather was getting overcast, and they should expect a light snow in Strassburg overnight. The children were excited about the snow, especially Tabitha, who frequently said that snow was her favorite part about winter and Christmas time. 

The rest of the flight passed uneventfully. Jack took Tom to explore the ship a bit more, but they weren’t offering tours of the interior of the ship on this flight, so there was only so much to see in the passenger section. It got cloudy and hard to see much of the scenery below about an hour after Paris, so the rest of the flight the family sat reading their various books and magazines, and also played a round of canasta with cards that Samantha had packed. Her own parents had loved the game and she’d shared that with the children when they were old enough to learn how to play. Finally, at a quarter till 6, the announcement that they were beginning their descent into Strassburg International Airport chimed over the intercom. Tom cheered, as did several others of various ages in the passenger cabin. Soon the ship escaped the clouds, and they could all see the lights of the airport and the city beyond. Searchlights waved through the evening sky, finding the ship and locking on, helping the landing crews bring the gentle giant back down to the ground. The ship was then guided into an awaiting hangar, where the passengers would finally disembark. 

As the Maxwells went down the gangway stairs and on to the hangar floor, they were directed to an entrance hall that would presumably take them to the main terminal and ultimately out of the airport. Jack chuckled mildly to himself as they went through the door. Above the door there was a large sign that said “Bonvenon al Strassburg!” Yes, he thought to himself, Esperanto is definitely alive and well in the capital of Europe. He just hoped that the language of peace would spread its influence east and keep Germany from shattering modern day “Pax Europa.”

As they emerged into the main terminal, all thoughts of gloom and war faded from memory. Everywhere imaginable, evergreen garland and twinkling fairy-lights decorated the space, and several large Christmas trees filled the center of the hall, as passengers came too and fro. Somewhere in the hall, out of immediate view thanks to the travelers and Christmas trees, a choir sang Christmas carols. And, prominently displayed at either end of the main terminal hall, the flag of the Congressional Republic of Alsace-Lorraine: A white banner, with a single red and single gold stripe at the bottom (added to represent Lorraine), a simplified Christmas tree in the center, and three red stars in the upper left-hand corner of the flag.There had been some discussion after the Peace of 1915, which established the Congressional Republic, as to whether or not a new flag should be adopted that was different from that used by the Truce Army. However, since much of the Truce Army leadership had stayed in Strassburg and helped set up its new government, the flag of the truce fighters was kept. 

Silent Night: Maxwell's View, Part 1

An aside from the Author:
 So, I realize it has literally been ages since I've posted anything on this blog. A mix of travel and work (lots of work), and other mundane "life" things kept me from writing much, and when I did write it was a lot of odds and ends and nothing complete enough to post here. 

FINALLY, this past Christmas break I finally had some downtime to start this little project, a first-person perspective set thirty years after the events of the previous 7 posts. Set in 1944, we see the Maxwell family of London embark on a vacation to Strassburg to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Christmas Miracle. This is the first in what I hope to be at least a 3-5 post series showing a little snapshot of what the world has developed into in a world where World War 1 ended at Christmas, 1914, instead of dragging on for four more bloody years. 
I also am looking at another project to get me back into writing and posting on here regularly. But more on that later. For now, enjoy the first installment of "Maxwell's View"

Maxwell's View, Part 1

Jack Maxwell took one last glance at the hallway mirror. The tie was straight, his shirt and jacket looked presentable. HIs short brown hair was slicked back. He sighed a tad as he saw the grey hairs creeping in around his temples. Forty-seven this year, he could hardly believe it. Sometimes Jack felt as though it was just yesterday that he was that bright-eyed and eager young recruit on a boat crossing the Channel to France. How the world had changed since 1914.

He glanced at his wristwatch. Nearly 8:00 in the morning. As he turned to call out for his wife, Samantha, she appeared coming down the stairs, flanked by their nine-year-old son, Tom. She wore a fashionable blue dress, with her blonde hair done up in a side bun, the latest fashion from Paris. Despite the doomsday sayers, the socialist revolution had not snuffed out the French capital’s central place in the world of fashion. Her blue eyes sparkled a little as they met his. He was once again struck, as he often was, that he must have been the luckiest man on earth. 

“Hello there sweetheart. Everything ready to go?” She asked, as Tom went passed them both and into the parlor, where his older sister Tabitha and brother Byron sat waiting. Thirteen-year-old Tabitha sat reading the latest copy of London Girl Magazine, reading about the latest fashions, movie stars, and the most recent gossip about crown princess Elizabeth. Tabitha’s dark blonde hair was in a long, stylish braid, similar to what the crown princess herself sported. Where Samantha’s hairstyle came from Paris, Tabitha’s had been made popular by the Kaiser’s daughters and imitated by much of the lady royals in the British court. Byron sat in one of the arm chairs in the quaint little parlor, the spitting-image of his father. The sixteen-year-old was reading the new and best-selling novel by J. R. R. Tolkien, Andor’s Quest. Telling the story of a young wizard’s quest to master his newfound powers at the same time as he had to try and fight evil and restore balance to the world, the book had become immensely popular since it’s publication a few months ago, and Byron and all his friends had really taken to it. It wasn’t Jack’s cup of tea, but he preferred this interest to the comic books coming from America. 

Pointing to the suitcases stacked by the door, Jack answered his wife, “We are all set. The cab should be here any minute to take us to the train station.”

At the mention of their impending departure, Tom perked up and shouted “We’re flying on an airship! I can’t wait!” Jack chuckled. His youngest son was fascinated with the graceful giant of the skies. He had a mobile of famous German and British zeppelins in his room. He’d been so excited when Jack had told the family he’d set up a trip to Strassburg for Christmas this year aboard the R132 Strassburg Limited. 

Jack and Samantha both chuckled at their son’s outburst. Just then, a horn beeped outside, announcing the arrival of their taxi. “Byron, come help me with the luggage!” Jack called out to his son. Before picking up any bags himself, Jack grabbed his fedora hat of the rack on the wall, and looked at his wife for approval. She smiled and went to straighten it out. She then kissed him before she herded Tom and Tabitha out the door. Byron had already grabbed some of the bags. Jack grabbed the rest and followed his family out of their townhouse. On the street, the black cab sat waiting. The driver got out and opened the boot and starting helping Byron with the bags. Jack took his handful of bags to the curb then went back up and locked the house. On the front door hung a big evergreen wreath with red ribbon wrapped about. Most of the other houses on the street were similarly decorated for the upcoming holiday. No snow, however. The weather had been cool and wet, but no snow was expected until New Years Day, and by then the Maxwells would be back in Great Britain. 

With the house locked up and the bags secured in the boot of the cab, Jack piled in with the rest of his family and they were off to Victoria Station. The railway hub was bustling with Londoners going to and fro. Like the Maxwells, many were starting their holiday journeys, as it was a mere two days before Christmas Day. The station was decked out in garland and ribbon and even twinkled with fairy lights. Jack had read that in America that more and more people were decorating their own private homes with those lights. As of yet, the trend hadn’t crossed the Atlantic, but as with so many things, it was probably only a matter of time. 

A porter helped the Maxwell’s with their luggage, and in no time they were waiting on the platform for their train. A newsboy came by shouting the day’s headlines. “EXTRA! ISLP Considers General Strike!“ “German Junkers Crack Down!” and “30th Anniversary of the Christmas Miracle!” Jack paid a boy for a copy of the Times to read on the train. Moments later their train came into the station to carry them to the newly completed King George V Airport outside London. The new state-of-the-art facility replaced the hodgepodge of smaller airports that had serviced the airplanes and airships that flew in and out of the British capital. The train ride took about 45 minutes, and the train arrived directly at the airport (one of the first airports in Europe to boast direct train service). More porters came and took their luggage away to be loaded up on the airship. The Maxwells walked into the main terminal and checked in at the British Airways counter. They were directed out from the central terminal out to the primary airship departure hangar. At this point, Tom is about to burst from excitement. He finally broke from his mother’s hand and ran to the window. “I can see the airships! I can see them they’re so big!” Jack smiled at his son’s enthusiasm. 

When they actually entered the massive departure hangar, Tom wasn’t alone in his awe at the huge sky ships. All of the Maxwells were impressed by these huge machines. Uniformed British Airways officials directed them to the lowered stairs that had been lowered from the bottom of the ship. Several other passengers were already queued up and waiting to board. Jack and his family got in line. He noticed from the corner of his eye that their luggage was being loaded onto the ship via a lift platform further to the back to the ship. They wouldn’t need it until they got to Strassburg, as the flight was only 8 or so hours. It could actually be made in less time, but the Strassburg Limited took the scenic route over Paris. And unlike the larger trans-oceanic vessels that flew from Europe to America and elsewhere, this ship didn’t have private cabins. It was designed for same day travel and so was set up more like a train cabin, with individually assigned seats, with lounge and dining spaces as well. Jack handed the tickets to the agent at the bottom of the stairs, and then he and his family ascended into the ship. This entire trip had been organized by the War of 1914 Memorial Foundation, which provided a way for veterans to attend the annual celebrations in Strassburg each year, and the foundation always provided good seats on transportation and nice accommodations in the “City of Peace.” This trip proved to be no exception. The seats were set up like a train berth, two comfortably upholstered benches facing each other with a table in the middle, with a wonderful window to look out at the world below. The passenger areas of the ship were all done in the popular Art Nouveau style, with flowing and fanciful lines and patterns seeming to dance about the rooms. Once they were settled, Tom begged his father to take him exploring. Jack agreed, and the two got up, and Byron decided to join. Samantha and Tabitha had started talking about the latest news, styles, and gossip that his daughter had read about in The London Girl and agreed to stay with their seats. 

Tom walked slightly ahead, eager to see each part of the ship he could before take off. Jack planned to find out if he could get his son access to see the non-passenger sections before they landed if possible. Byron kept pace with his father, and started asking him about the articles in the Times. 

“Do you really think Socialist Labor will call for a general strike?”

“It’s possible. They’ve called for an emergency meeting of the European-wide Party Congress to discuss the matter in one week, the first friday after Christmas.”

“How bad could things get if that happens?” Byron had an inquisitive mind, and for all that he loved to read his fantasy novels, he payed more and more attention to world events.

“Could get very bad. We’ve never had a Federation-wide general strike before. The last large general strike happened in the mid-twenties during the Tory Twilight, when it looked like a bulk of the Landsbury reforms might get dismantled. France joined that strike along with Denmark and Ireland, but the ISLP didn't come about ’til 1930.”

“Why are the Junkers fighting back so much?”

“The same reasons the Tories did here. Germany is basically following the same path we did, they’re just further behind because of how much slower they’ve been to adapt to change and how much further behind they were at the start after 1914. The Junkers don’t want to lose their place in society, the power they’ve held for so long.”

“So they’d plunge the whole of Europe into chaos rather than share power with the workers?”

“It could be worse than that.”

“How could it be worse than the whole European economy at a stand-still?”

“War.” That one word answer struck Byron hard. It was unfathomable to someone his age. There had been no real conflict in Europe since 1914. A few minor clashes, mostly internal revolts as the ideas of socialism spread from France, but nothing on the scale of the Last Great European War. 

“War? Over a general strike? Surely that’s not on the table Father. Why would Frederick IV make war over this? Wasn’t he the great man of peace after 1914?”

“His hands will be tied if the Junker-controlled Reichstag want war. And if Prime Minister Landsbury and First Consul Perrot publicly support the general strike, they will want war.”

“I hope you’re wrong.”

“So do I son. War is ugly, and it’s something I hope you don’t have to see for yourself to find out.”

At this point, Tom came back to join them. they'd walked through the passenger seating areas, the interior shops, the library and now were at the grand dining salon. The two level room was breath taking. It was the full width of the ship, and flanked on either side by floor to ceiling windows that allowed for some amazing views of the world below. Like the rest of the ship’s interior, the room was ornately decorated in the popular Art Nouveau style. At one end of the room was a large clock being held by the statue of a goddess, and at the other a beautiful mural showing a graceful airship floating above Strassburg at Christmas time. As Jack and his sons milled about the dining room, an announcement came over a nearby loudspeaker: “Attention passengers, please take your seats, we will be taking off shortly.”

With that, Jack escorted his two sons back to their seats. Shortly thereafter, a chime rang out, and ship began to move forward, out of the hangar and into the openness of the tarmac.  Tom was glued to the window, but the whole family watched eagerly as the Strassburg Limited glided out of the hangar. The chimes sounded again, and a voice crackled from the overhead speaker: “Up ship!” 

And with that, the silver giant began its ascension into the sky. Tom practically squealed with glee. Jack noticed that both Byron and Tabitha both looked excited as well, though they tried to hid that fact and show themselves to be more mature than their youngest sibling. Soon the airport began to shrink away, looking like little more than a tiny diorama, like something you’d see at the science and industry museum. In no time, the ship was headed south east towards the continent. As the Maxwell’s gazed out their window at the passing landscape below, another announcement came over the speakers, “Ladies and Gentlemen, we have now reached our primary cruising altitude, and you are free to move about the cabin. It is now 10:20 a.m. We have clear skies ahead, and we should arrive in Strassburg just after 6 p.m. British Airways and the crew of the Strassburg Limited hope that you have a pleasant flight.”

While Tom stayed glued to window, the rest of the family quickly settled in to the flight. Samantha pulled out the latest romance novel she was reading. Byron pulled out his Tolkien novel, and Tabitha got her magazine back out. Jack quickly re-immersed himself back in the Times he’d bought at the train station. The main pages were of course totally focused on the growing possibility of a general strike and what some were already calling this generation’s Sarajevo Crisis, though Jack silently prayed they were wrong. Having read those articles, his attention turned to the international section. American President Horace Thurman was bellowing support for the German Junkers in the face of what he called “continued socialist aggression.” Thurman had just won a comfortable reelection to a second term in November, and for better or for worse Europe would have to deal with the hard-line anti-Socialist Democrat for at least four more years. Thurman alarmed Jack, as he alarmed many good British and European socialists. He’d taken the presidency in 1940 as a bit of a shock. America had become increasingly isolationist in the 1920s and 30s, following increasing European integration and international involvement. He’d been able to draw away enough support from the Republican party to prevent the insurgent Progressive-Socialist party from taking the White House, and in the past four years had cracked down hard on PSP activity and labor rights that had been granted during previous administrations, claiming to be “cleansing America of Euro-socalist ideology.” Thurman seemed to stand for the opposite of everything that the nations of the European Congress had been working for the past thirty years. What was worse, Thurman had started a massive build up of the American armed forces and seemed to be abandoning isolationist tendencies of the previous decades. 

America wasn’t the only place with less than happy news. Russia was growing more and more unstable, something that Jack and his colleagues at the Interior ministry weren’t to surprised by. After the War of 1914, Czar Nicholas II had managed to stave off crisis by issuing a series of reforms between 1916-1929, when Russia became a fully constitutional monarchy with a true power-sharing structure between the Czar and the Duma. But there was still a great gulf between the rich and poor, and Russia still lagged pitifully behind Western Europe in industrialization. And ever since Nicholas II’s death in 1936, there had been growing unrest. The International Socialist Labor Party was but one voice in the cacophony of left-wing parties demanding reform, and far from the most radical. And Czar Nicholas III’s health was poor. If the Czar died it was unlikely that his young son Michael would be able to save the monarchy. Some feared revolution, though Jack personally didn’t know if that wouldn’t be a good thing. It had worked in France, after all. 

Elsewhere in the world, Japan was continuing to consolidate it’s empire in East Asia, at the expense of China and the European powers. Jack suspected that if the Germany situation didn’t explode within the next six months that the next Imperial Congress would be directly addressing the situation when it gathered for it’s next pentennial meeting in Toronto this summer. Australia was continually screaming about increasing Japanese aggression and encroachment, and Hong Kong was also worried. For that matter, if the trend continued India may start feeling the pinch. Most expected Japan to slow it’s territorial appetite now that China had essentially capitulated, along with former European colonial holdings that had briefly gained their independence in the 1920s.  The watchword for the Pacific was appeasement. Jack personally wondered if that was the wisest choice, but knew that Britain, and indeed the Empire as a whole, to say nothing of the European Congress, would not willingly get involved in a drawn out conflict with Japan. 

Jack looked up from the paper and sighed quietly to himself, as he looked at his children, especially Byron. His eldest son was nearly the same age he had been when he went off to fight in France. It seemed like a lifetime ago. The world was so different then. And until recently, Jack had believed that the world his children would grow up to enjoy would be the one of peace that he and his comrades had fought to achieve thirty years ago. Now, it seemed as if the idea of making the 20th Century the “Century of Peace” that George Landsbury spoke of after the signing of the Strassburg Treaty in 1915 might have just been a pipe-dream after all. For the sake of his children, he hoped not. 

Having had enough of world events for one day, Jack folded his paper and decided to lean his head back and take a nap before lunch. 

To be continued...

The Airship Legacy - Part 18 (Final)

Click here for Part 17

Part XVIII: The Second Great War, 2005

            As the year 2005 began, the news from the frontlines of the Second Great War was not good if you were living and working in the Allied capitals of Berlin, London, Washington, Vladivostok, or Tokyo. China had defeated Japan in Korea. The Russians had pushed the Europeans into Poland. Moral among the troops and civilians was starting to drop. It was in this climate that German Chancellor Lehmann agreed to meet with President Doughty in Washington in February of that year.

            The Washington Conference, which was also atteneded by the Foreign Ministers of the United Kingdom, East Russia, and Japan, would ultimately change the outcome of the war. At this meeting, those present were told about Germany and America’s “secret weapon,” the atomic super-bombs. Both countries now proposed to use these weapons to force Russia and China to end the war. The debates were heated. There was serious concearn of contamination if too many of the bombs were used. In the end, the Conference decided that there would be three bombs used. One on the Chinese city of Harbin, one on Volvograd, and one on Archangel. Some had pushed for using the bombs on larger cities or national capitals, but this idea was dropped. Chancellor Lehmann successfully argued that such an action would likely cause major problems after the war as these countries attempted to rebuild.

- Franks, Dr. Hugo, The Atomic War, Berlin: Humboldt University Press, 2019.

            2004 had been a year of setbacks for the American forces in Siberia. Initially, the Americans had been able to push the Imperials back to Lake Baikal, and were bombing Irkutsk in anticipation for a planned invasion later that year.  However, with the Chinese occupation of Khabarovsk, all plans for Irkutsk were scrapped. Khabarovsk was placed under siege, which would last into 2005. The city would finally fall back into Allied hands on January 29, 2005. The cost was heavy. An estimated 150,000 American lives were lost in the Siege of Khavarovsk.

            With the supply line resecured, attention once again fell on the city of Irkutsk. Planning was slow and cautious. The Chinese were still harassing the Trans-Siberian Railway, and bombing Vladivostok. The War Department decided that the invasion of Irkutsk would begin on July 1. The commanders on the ground were worried about pulling so many troops from the boarder with China, fearing that the Chinese might be able to come in and cut the supply lines again. However, the War Department mysteriously assured them that that would not be a problem, with no further explanation.

            All was revealed, however, on the morning of June 26^th. An American rocket was launched from a submarine in the Pacific, and at 4:22 a.m. local time, the first atomic super-bomb ever to be used slammed into downtown Harbin, in the square infront of the main trainstation. The central part of the city was utterly obliterated. Of the urban population of approximately 4 million, it is believed that nearly 1 million died within the first hour after the attack.

-Newton, Dr. Kyle. Drive to the West: The Western Front of the 2^nd Great War. Los Angeles: UCLA Press, 2021.

China Issues Cease Fire!

Tokyo, June 27- In the wake of the atomic attack on the city of Harbin, the Chinese government has announced a cease fire with the Allied Forces. Chinese authorities are reporting that nearly 2 million people have been killed in the Harbin area, and some think that this count could continue to climb. The Chinese Army has been pulled back from the front lines since the cease fire was issued in order to assist the survivors in Harbin. There are calls for the Chinese President to resign.

            In Korea, the Chinese are on the retreat, announcing they were pulling out of the peninsula. About two hours after the Chinese left Busan, Japanese forces landed and occupied the city. The Japanese Royal Armed Forces announced that they hope to liberate the whole of Korea within a mater of weeks.

-“China Issues Cease Fire!” The New York Times, June 27^th.

            At the beginning of 2005, with added troops from Italy and France, the Russians were finaly pushed out of Polish territory. British and Polish troops liberated Vilinus on January 27^th, and the Germans began to heavily bomb Minsk on February 7^th. Slowly but surely, the Russians were giving up ground to the Allies. Minsk would finally fall on May 17^th, at the cost of nearly 300,000 German lives. By the beginning of June, the British front was in Estonia, and the War Ministry was hopeful that that country would be liberated by the end of July, and that, with any luck, the war could be over by early 2006.

            Then the big game changer came. The Night of the Atoms. At about the same time that the American rocket launched from the Pacific, two German rockets flew across the skies of Eastern Europe. At 10:29 p.m. local time, the first German atomic super bomb hit the city of Volvograd. The second bomb hit Archangel minutes later, at 10:33. Between the two bombs there was nearly 5 million people dead within the first day.

            The Russians were shocked. In the chaos following the bombs, the Allied forces surged forward. The German/Polish force was now surrounding Smolensk, and the British/Polish force had crossed out of Estonia and were headed towards Petrograd. Russian Prime Minister Yalinkov vowed to avenge the destruction of Volvograd and Archangel. Despite this, the Russians continued to loose ground. In the Pacific, theater, the Americans took Irkutsk on July 7^th. Smolensk fell on July 23^rd. Moscow and Petrograd were being bombed daily.

            Yulinkov’s vow would prove to be shortlived. A British bomb slammed into the Russian Executive Offices in Petrograd on August 6^th, 2005. The Russian Prime Minister and two senior cabinet members were killed, including the head of the Prime Minister’s secret police. Czar Vladimir II called for a cease fire with the Allies on August 8^th, which was accepted on August 9^th.

-Rutherford, Dr. Thomas. Our War in Russia. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2022.

The War is Over!

Washington, August 11- The Second Great War has finally come to an end. With the death of the Russian Prime Minister 5 days ago, the Imperial Government’s resolve to continue the war quickly unravled. The War came to an end in Europe on the 9^th, and the Imperial Government asked for a cease fire with the United States, Eastern Russia, and Japan yesterday, which was approved over night by the governments of those countries.

            With the guns falling silent, the spotlight will now shift towards the diplomats. Already, people are discussing what the new boarders of Russia will be, how much reparations they will be forced to pay, and if some of Russia’s leaders would be forced to stand trial for their part in the war. Some want the Russians to stand trial for the estimated half a million American troops that are dead, along with nearly one million European troops.

            But all that will come later. For now, people across the country are jubilant, glad that what many are calling the worst war in history is now over. Families are now waiting eagerly for their loved ones in uniform to return home.

-“The War is Over,” The Washington Post, August 11, 2005.

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Part XVII: The Second Great War, 2003-2004

“We Have Taken Minsk!”

Minsk, January 9- The War Ministry has announced that Allied Forces have finally taken the Imperial Russian city of Minsk. This is the first real movement of the war since November, when the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius was liberated by British and Polish forces. The War Ministry states that it is the goal of the armed forces to push the Imperial Russians out of the Baltic States before the onset of summer, and begin to threaten the Imperial capital of Petrograd. Germany plans on pushing for Moscow by the end of the year, in hopes that the war can be ended before the end of 2003.

            This appears to be the only front that has seen any action so far this year. In the East, winter is still in full swing and American and Vladivostokian commanders do not believe they will be able to push west against the Russian Empire until March.

-“We Have Taken Minsk!”, The Times (London), January 10, 2003.

Korea in Revolt

Tokyo, February 26- Japanese officials have confirmed that communist rebels in Korea have risen up in the southern city of Seoul, proclaiming the so-called “People’s Republic of Korea.” The Dominion of Korea, which has essentially been independent of Japan since reforms passed in the late 1970s, has called upon Japan for assistance. This will likely draw Japanese troops away from the war in Russia. The Korean government in Pyongyang, which has so far been officially neutral in the conflict to the north, has officially closed the border with China, causing many observers to conclude that the Koreans that China may be nominally behind the uprising in southern Korea.

-“Korea in Revolt,” The Washington Post, February 27, 2003

            The Korean Civil War, which is generally considered a minor theater of the wider Second Great War, is considered a major reason why the wider war lasted nearly into 2006, instead of ending in 2004 like many at the time thought it would. When the revolt began in Seoul on February 26^th, the American, East Russian, and Japanese forces had been preparing for a surge towards the city of Chita, which they planned on staring in mid-March. The Korean conflict derailed these plans. Japan pulled most of their resources in Russia to the south, requiring the Americans to send additional troops to sure up the Aldan Line. The Japanese Air Force began bombing rebel positions in Seoul on March 3^rd. This action was decried by China, and on March 10^th the Chinese government recognized the legitimacy of the People’s Republic of Korea, and declared war on the Dominion of Korea on the same day.

            Chinese forces crossed the Korean border on March 17^th, and bombed Pyongyang the following day for hours. The Japanese Navy battled their Chinese counterpart for the first time on March 29^th, as the bulk of the Japanese Navy entered in force to the Yellow Sea. The Battle for the Yellow Sea lasted nearly a month, ending in a Japanese victory on April 25^th. By mid-May, the Japanese Navy had established a successful blockade of Bo Hai Bay, regularly bombarding the city of Dalian. In addition, the Japanese launched a successful raid of Shanghai on May 19^th, destroying much of the harbor. By June, the Japanese had also blockaded the Yangtze River, crippling commerce in Northern China.

            While the naval war was going well, on the Korean Peninsula, however, China had the upper hand. On April 18^th, Pyongyang fell to Chinese forces, sending the Dominion of Korea into a panic. Although the government of the People’s Republic of Korea had been forced out of Seoul by the Japanese by the end of March, the rebel army was now pushing to get back into the city.

-Kim, Dr. Jong Il. The Korean Civil War. Pyongyang: Peninsular Press: 2019.

            With the fighting in Korea, the Spring Offensive of 2003 was delayed by several months. American and East Russian forces finally began to push forward towards Chita on May 20^th, instead of the originally planned date of March 10^th. The Imperial Army put up a strong defense of the city, and the Allied forces would be fighting for the city for most of the summer. Farther north, the American and Republican forces crossed the Aldan River in a drive for the city of Yakutsk. Defenses were much weaker here, and the city was under Allied bombardment by mid-July. On August 1^st, Vladivostokian forces liberated the city.

            Fighting was still fierce in Chita, however, but with Yakutsk in Allied hands, more troops were available for the fight. The city first fell on September 9^th, but would briefly be retaken on September 18^th. Ultimately, the city would be retaken on September 28^th. By the time winter set in, the Western Front had stabilized about 20 miles west of Chita, to the disappointment of American war-planners, who had hoped to be on the shores of Lake Baikal by winter.

-Newton, Dr. Kyle. Drive to the West: The Western Front of the 2^nd Great War. Los Angeles: UCLA Press, 2021.

Russians Retake Minsk

Warsaw, July 3- After weeks of fierce fighting, the Imperial Russian Army has retaken the city of Minsk. In addition, the Russians have been able to make serious gains towards the Polish border, nearly obliterating the Polish forces. The German Army is the main reason that the Russians haven’t crossed back into Poland. In Latvia, there has been little success. The Allied forces have yet to take the Latvian capital, and in some places have lost ground

-“Russians Retake Minsk,” Frankfurter Zeitung, July 4, 2003. 

            One of the best kept secrets of the late 1980s and early 1990s had been the research and development of atomic super-bombs by the United States and Germany. America began first, under orders from the Bush administration, which wanted to develop the bombs in order to use them in the Iran War. Germany secretly learned of this development and started research of their own. The first detonation of an atomic weapon occurred on November 3, 1990 on a small American-controlled atoll in the South Pacific. Germany would detonate their own in August of 1991.

            For the Americans, however, this development would come too late for use in the Iran War, since President Bush was forced to end American involvement in the war in March of 1991. After that time, atomic-weapons research was slowed down considerably for most of the decade. In the later years of the Clinton administration, as conflict in Russia seemed more and more likely, the U.S. government began secretly building more atomic super-bombs to have in case war came. Germany began to do so as well once the Lehmann government came to power in 2001.

            When war in Russia came in 2002, some in the American government (those generals and few politicians with the highest of security clearances to know about the existence of America’s secret weapon) immediately pushed for their use to prevent a long, drawn out war, but President Doughty refused. He told the Joint Chiefs of Staff that the atomic super-bombs were to be a last-resort weapon. The Germans made the same decision.

- Franks, Dr. Hugo, The Atomic War, Berlin: Humboldt University Press, 2019.

            By the end of 2003, over half of the Korean Peninsula was under Chinese control, with the government of the rebel Korean forces having temporarily relocated to Pyongyang, though they vowed to return to the “people’s city” of Seoul. The government of the Korean Dominion had fled south to Busan, which was more easily defended by the Japanese. Despite many losses at sea, the Japanese Navy ruled the Yellow Sea, and Northern China chaffed under the blockade.

            In February of 2004, China began a strong push to the south, taking Seoul on February 20^th, which was loudly celebrated by the communists, who returned to Seoul on the one year anniversary of the start of the revolution on February 26^th. By April, most of the Peninsula under Chinese control, with the Japanese controlling only Busan and about 75 square miles surrounding the city. On April 19^th, the Dominion government began to evacuate to Japan, and on May 9^th, Busan fell to Chinese forces, and the People’s Republic declared victory over the “capitalist lackies of the Japanese.”

-Kim, Dr. Jong Il. The Korean Civil War. Pyongyang: Peninsular Press: 2019.

Khabarovsk Retaken by Chinese

Vladivostok, June 2- The American War Department has announced that the key railroad city of Khabarovsk has fallen once again to Chinese forces. Now that China has forced Japan out of Korea, the Chinese Army has once again turned it’s attention back towards East Russia. In addition to retaking Khabarovsk, the Chinese Air Force has drastically increased its bombing efforts on Vladivostok, leading to many dramatic air battles between the Chinese and American air forces.

-“Khabarovsk Retaken by Chinese,” Frankfurter Zeitung, June 3, 2004.

            During the first half of the Second Great War, there was little good news coming from the Eastern Front, especially in 2003 and 2004. Minsk, after initially falling to allied hands in early 2003, was back in Russian hands by that summer. Although Lithuania was liberated before the end of 2002, the allied commanders had failed to liberate Latvia by the end of 2003, and in February 2004, the Russians pushed the Allies back into Lithuania. On March 17^th, the Imperial Army launched a massive push to the west that would set the Allied war effort back for months. On April 1, Vilnius fell back into Russian hands, and On April 14^th, the Russian army crossed the Polish/Belorussian border into Poland. There was palpable panic in Warsaw that the Russians might be able to take the city before the summer was over.

            It was at this point that France, Italy, and Turkey declared war on the Russian Empire, and waves of fresh troops arrived on the Eastern Front, halting the Imperial advance by the beginning of July. However, Allied Forces were unable to push the Russians back very far, and by the time the winter set in, the front line was still inside Poland.

-Rutherford, Dr. Thomas. Our War in Russia. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2022.

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Part XVI: The Second Great War

            When war initially broke out, the United States was actually non-commital towards the conflict. President Boren and the socialists did support the East Russian Republic, but popular opinion was extremely wary of fighting in a foreign war. Boren did what he could, getting Congress to approve the near unrestricted sale of weapons to the Republic and pass a full embargo on the Russian Empire, and to expel most Imperials from the country. And the Boren Administration had not entirely given up on the diplomatic option, with diplomats working, both formally and informally, trying to end the war before it mushroomed out of control.

The Empire made early advances into the Republic, bombing much of the rail networks and moving well past Lake Baikail. By mid-May, things were looking bleak. To make matters worse, following failed negotiations between Beijing and Vladivostok, the Chinese Republic declared war on the Eastern Russians on May 2, gaining promises of increased territory from the Imperial Russian government.

 Germany, though threatening war, had yet actually act, and most of the European powers were waiting on the Kaiser. The events of June 12, 2002, would drastically alter the events of the conflict, and make it grow into what would become know as the Second Great War.

-Samuels, Dr. Lewis. Blood and Ice: The Second Great War, 2002-2005. Georgetown, Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2022.

            “….and I’m Frank McCaully, and this is an ANN Breaking News Update. We are going live to our correspondent Amanda Sasser, in Berlin, where there has been a report of a violent explosion in the heart of the Reichscapital. Amanda, can you hear us?”

            “Yes Frank, I can hear you. I’m standing in Pariser Platz, not far from the American Embassy and the famous Brandburg Gate, and as you can see behind me, a huge plume of smoke is rising from Unter den Linden Strasse, where an expolsion, believed to have originated in the subway tunnels underneath the streets, ripped into traff…” Amanda receives a piece of paper with new information, and looks stunned.

            “Amanda, what is is?”

            “F-frank, according to his report, President Boren’s motorcade was on Unter den Linden at the time of the explosion, and it appears that this bomb was targeting the President. He had arrived in Berlin last night and was staying that the City Palace with the Kaiser, and was headed to the Chancellory to meet with Chancellor Lehmann this morning when the bomb went off.”

-Broadcast from June 12, 2002, ANN Archives, New York City, New York.

PRESIDENT DEAD: RUSSIANS TO BLAME!

BERLIN, JUNE 12- President Boren, on an emergency trip to Germany to discuss with our allies about what options existed concerning the conflict in Russia, was killed by a terrorist bomb that exploded in the subway tunnels as the President’s motorcade passed on the street above. Initial evidence uncovered by German and American security agents points to Imperial Russian involvement, possibly being a hit ordered by the Russian Prime Minister himself. German Chancellor Heinrich Lehmann stated that Germany would likely declare war on Russia within the next 72 hours, as soon as the Reichstag could be convened and vote. Germans are outraged that the Imperial Russians have perpetrated this dastardly murder on their territory. Since the bombing, hundreds of people have been laying flowers outside the American Embassy in Pariser Platz in honor of America’s slain leader.

            Vice President Samuel Doughty was in Lakehurst, New Jersey, attending the dedication ceremony of the National Airship Historical Center, where the original U.S.S. Eagle is one of many older airships that are now on display to the public. In an eerie throwback to the 1974 assassination of President Hubert Humphrey, Doughty was sworn in as President in the same lounge that President Kennedy took the oath of office following Humphrey’s death. In address to the nation last night, President Doughty swore to avenge the murder of our fallen leader, and to come to the aide of the East Russians. Congress is expected to vote on a declaration of war later today.

-“President Dead: Russians to Blame!” The Washington Post, June 13, 2002.

RUSSIAN WAR CONSUMES GLOBE

LONDON, JUNE 20- In the wake of the assassination of American President Daniel Boren, the Russian War has consumed most of the Globe. America and Germany declared war on Russia on June 13^th. Poland, Denmark, and Finland declared war on Russia on June 16^th. China declared war on the American-led coalition on June 17^th. Japan Declared war on China on June 18^th after Chinese warships fired on a Japanese passenger ship that had left Vladivostok bound for Tokyo. And today, the British parliament voted to declare war on the Russian Empire in a near unanimous vote. The Prime Minister and other members of the government have requested that the Commonwealth Executive Council meet in an emergency session, with the hope that the entirety of the British Commonwealth would stand in solidarity against the Russian Imperials and declare war. It is expected that Iran, Iraq and possibly Pakistan will ally with Imperial Russia. For the first time in nearly a century, it looks as like the world could be dragged into a second Great War.

-“Russian War Consumes Globe,” The Times (London), June 20, 2002

Imperial Troops Take Yakutsk

Vladivostok, July 11- The Imperial Russian Army has taken the East Russian city of Yakutsk, on the Lena River, in yet another victory in the Russian War. As it stands now, the Imperials have completely overrun the Republican defenses along the Lena River and are driving towards the next defensive line at the Aldan River. The Vladivostok Army has suffered heavy losses during this fighting, and the East Russian government is crying out for aid. The city of Vladivostok has been under almost daily bombardment from Chinese aircraft flying out of Harbin. The Chinese have attempted to take the city of Khabarovsk, on the Amur River, but have been pushed back past the border.

            The single positive note from the war so far has been that the Imperial naval base on Sakhalin Island has been captured during a joint East Russian/Japanese assault, ending the Imperial Navy’s presence in the Pacific. Nearly half of the American Pacific Fleet is expected to arrive in the Sea of Japan within the month to alleviate the burden on the Japanese and Republican navies.

-“Imperial Troops Take Yakutsk,” L. A. Times, July 12, 2002.

Warsaw Bombed!

Warsaw, July 20- The fighting of the Russian War has finally spread into Europe. For weeks, the German and Polish navies had been blockading the Baltic Sea, and had sank several cargo ships attempting to leave the Russian Empire. However, until today that was the only real confrontation. That changed in the early hours of the morning, as Imperial Russian bombers, likely flying out of Minsk, flew over the Polish border and bombed central Warsaw, damaging the Polish parliament building and many other buildings. Hundreds are feared to have been killed. At the time of print, there was still no word on the whereabouts of the Polish President and his family, and a bomb did strike the Presidential residence.

            Chancellor Lehmann has assured the German people that the German and Polish armies will be moving against the Russian Empire “as soon as humanly possible.” There is a fear that the Imperial Russians may try and invade some of the Baltic states and take back territory it controlled during the era of the Imperial Baltic Federation. There have been reports of troops massing on the border with Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. Those nations have declared a state of emergency and have called up their reserve forces.

-“Warsaw Bombed!”, Berliner Morgenpost, July 20, 2002.

Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia Fall

Warsaw, July 30- The Imperial Russian Army has poured over into the three former Imperial Baltic states, quickly wiping out the defense forces of all three nations. The attacks began two days ago, beginning with the bombings of the major cities in these countries, along with bombings of the main military installations. The Russian Navy engaged the German and Polish navies, breaking the blockade and then attacking the port cities of these nations. To make matters worse, the Russian Army is still on the move, and Polish authorities fear that Russians are moving towards the Polish border, possibly to invade Poland itself.

-“Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia Fall,” The Times (London), August 1, 2002.

Khabarovsk Falls to China

Vladivostok, August 9- The East Russian Authorities have confirmed that the Chinese Army has taken the city of Khabarovsk, on the Amur River, cutting off the rail lines that link Vladivostok to the rest of the country. There is now a air of panic beginning to spread in the East Russian capital, with their main army having been pushed back to the Aldan River Defense Line, and the Imperial Russian Army looking poised to break through soon. Farther south, the Imperials have reached the city of Chita, and with the fall of Khabarovsk, it is feared that Chita will fall soon.

            The silver lining in the conflict is that American troops will soon arrive in East Russia, and the War Department stated that they feel confident that these fresh soldiers will be able to take back Khabarovsk and at least stabilize the frontline at the Aldan Line before the onset of winter.

-“Khabarovsk Falls to China,” The Washington Post, August 10, 2002

            The first summer of the Second Great War was considered, overall, a victory for the Imperial Coalition. The Russian Empire had taken Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia at the end of July and had crossed the boarder into Poland on the 2^nd of August, disrupting German and Polish plans to invade the Russian province of Belorussia on August 4^th. The Allied forces were on the defensive in Europe, as well as in the East. China took Khabarovsk on August 9^th, and were encroaching on Vladivostok as well. The Imperial Russians had taken Yakutsk early in the war, and on August 20^th they took the city of Chita. There was a real fear that East Russia would fall before winter if things did not change quickly.

            Luckily, the first American forces arrived in Vladivostok on August 10^th, with the full force arriving in the country by August 22^nd. In the last major advance of the summer, the American and Republican forces launched an attack on Khabarovsk on August 30^th, the city was taken from the Chinese in mid September.  And with American troops augmenting the Republican ranks on the Aldan Line, the Imperial Russians were not able to make any more territorial gains in East Russia.

            In the West, the Allies were able to push the Imperial Russians out of Poland by mid-August, with German and Polish troops crossing into Lithuania and Russian Belorussia in September. By mid October, the Allies were laying siege to Minsk. British troops arrived in Poland on October 22^nd, and with this the Allies were able to make a powerful enough surge to take the Lithuanian capital from the Imperial forces on November 3^rd.

-Price, Dr. Henry, Great War of the 21^st Century, London: New British Press, 2018.

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Part XV: War Clouds Loom

            From 1998 thru early 2001, Czar Vladimir II was able to keep Andre Yulinkov and the RNC in check. However, in April of 2001, Yulinkov got the break he had been searching for. His security agents discovered that the Czar had been having an affair with a women in Moscow, and that he had fathered two children by this women. At this point, Yulinkov blackmailed the Czar into taking a hands-off approach to governing, and allow the RNC to turn the pressure back up on East Russia. In less than two years, thanks to this information, Russia would drag the world into war.

-Plaks, Dr. Jeffry, History of Modern Russia, Cambrigde, MA: Harvard University Press, 2011.

YULINKOV REISSUES DEMANDS

PETROGRAD, MAY 3- Russian Prime Minister Andre Yulinkov announced today that the Imperial Russian Government was rejecting the plan outlined in the 1998 London Agreement, and that the Vladivostok Republic had 1 year to fulfill the other items of the “Petrograd Demands” that had originally been issued in 1997. The Russian Foreign Minister announced today that by May of 2002, East Russia must reduce it’s military to 1/3 of it’s current size, allow for the construction of two more military bases for Imperial use, and devalue the Republican Ruble to ¼ it’s current value.

            Outgoing Prime Minister Margret Roberts, who announced last month that she would retire at the end of the year, expressed shock and outrage at the announcement from Russia. “The United Kingdom, and the other members of the 1998 Five Party Talks put forth great effort to make a plan for peace in Russia, and today the fascist Yulinkov has cast aside these plans in what could only be called warmongering.” In the United States, President Boren, who was a leader in coming up with the London Agreement, expressed his severe disappointment at the news, and has called on Imperial Russia to change its course of action to prevent conflict from erupting.

            So far, the Vladivostok Democratic Republic has not responded to these renewed demands, and many experts think that President Yuri Medinov may choose to ignore what amounts to an ultimatum, and try and get the members of the ’98 Five Party Talks to get Imperial Russia back to the negotiating table.

-“Yulinkov Reissues Demands,” The Times (London), May 4, 2001.

ZENTRUM TAKES REICHSTAG

BERLIN, JUNE 9-The Zentrum Party, headed by Heinrich Lehmann, has taken control of the Reichstag for the first time in nearly a generation, beating out the Monarchist Party. Having a clear majority at 59%, with the support of the Social Democrats and the Greens as well, Lehmann, the great-grandson of Hugo Eckener, will take office later this month as Chancellor of the German Empire. Kaiser Fredrick Wilhelm II offered congratulations to Lehmann and his fellow Zentrum Party Members.

        Some now wonder what this all means for German-Russian relations, since the Zentrum Party has been a vocal advocate of recognizing the independence of East Russia. This is all the more of a touchy situation now that the Imperial Russian government has reissued the “Petrograd Demands,” which has placed an ultimatum on the Eastern 8government to comply within one year or possibly face military action, which has been decried by the Zentrum Party, along with many leaders around the world.

-“Zentrum Takes Reichstag,” Berliner Morgenpost, June 10, 2001.

INTERNATIONAL SPACE CONFERENCE PLANNED

CAPE CANVERAL,  JULY 6- Today the American Space Exloration Agency announced that ASEA, the Imperal Rocket Force of Germany, and the British Space Agency plan to hold an international conference in Berlin in November to discuss the possibility of future joint ventures in the exploration of space, such as an international space station (or stations) in orbit around Earth, and possibly Mars as well, along with a more concerted effort at Lunar and Martian colonization.

            The idea for an international space conference, and possibly an international space organization, has been around since the 1970s, but, apart from the Frankfurt Treaty conference of 1990, there has been little in the way of joint efforts in space. President Boren stated on the campaign trail that he wanted to see a meeting between the major world space agencies to try and establish real cooperation between the space-faring nations on issues like colonization and space travel in and around Earth. Such efforts had been blocked during the Republican administration of George HW Bush, and President Clinton was focused on ending the war in Iran and issues at home.

-“International Space Conference Planned,” The New York Times, July 7, 2001.

RUSSIA CONFERENCE SET FOR WARSAW

PETROGRAD, SEP 3- The Imperial Russian Government has reluctantly agreed today to an offer made by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Poland, and the United States to try and solve the issues between the two Russian states, which look more and more like they could be spriling towards war. The Imperial Foreign Ministry announced this afternoon that the Russian Empire will agree to meet in Warsaw for talks with East Russia and the 5 neutral nations in April of next year, just a month ahead of the May 2002 deadline.

            Despite attempts at being optomistic, there are many in His Majesty’s government that are very doubtful that this new conference will be able to solve the problems arrising in Russia. Thomas Rutherford, a professor of political science at Oxford and considered an expert on Russia and frequently used as a consultant by the government told the Times that “A lasting agreement at Warsaw seems highly unlikely. Prime Minister Yulinkov and the RNC are hell-bent on restoring the entirety of the Russian Empire as it was before 1917, and the mere existance of an independent East Russia flies in the face of their party agenda. For awhile Czar Vladimir II seemed to have reigned in Yulinkov and his cronies, but that has apparently ended.”

-“Russia Conference Set for Warsaw,” The Times (London), September 4, 2001.

PROTESTER SHOOTING FLAIRS VIOLENCE IN EAST RUSSIA

VLADIVOSTOK, OCT 12- What began as a peaceful protest to the Imperial Russian demands on the East Russian state turned violent when two pro-Imperial gunmen opened fire on the unarmed crowd that had gathered outside the Presidential Palace, killing 5 protestors before police standing nearby apprehended the shooters. This attack enraged the populace of Vladivostok, and large scale riots ensued across the city. Within hours,  thousands upon thousands of people marched loudly throught the streets and converged on the consulate of Imperial Russia, overwhelming police guards that had been set up outside. The protestors ended up storming the gates of the compound, at which point Imperial guards opened fire on the rioters, further enraging the crowd.

            Eventually, Imperial secuirty and Vladivostok police were able to push the rioters out of the consulate compound and initially disperse the crowd, but not before protestors were able to set fire to part of the consulate compound. And although the crowds have dispersed, the city is still simmering, and government has put into effect a dusk-to-dawn curfew, and have put up road blocks around the district where the Imperial Russian consulate is located to prevent rioters from attacking this part of the city.

-“Protestor Shooting Flairs Violence in East Russia,” L.A. Times, October 13, 2001.

            The Berlin International Space Conference in November of 2001 was the start of a new era of mankind’s exploration of space. The governments of Germany, America, and Britain had decided that continued competition between their space programs was doing more harm than good. What was needed was cooperation. With this attitude in mind, the delegates from the American Space Exploration Agency, Germany’s Imperial Rocket Force, and the British Space Agency gathered in the capital of the German Empire on November 4, 2001 and would be in session for nearly two weeks.

            Many decisions were made during the deliberations between policy makers and scientists. The meeting was dubbed in the press as the “Congress of the Minds”. In the end, the Conference drafted the “Berlin Space Treaty”, which was submitted to the representative governments for approval. Germany signed first in December 2001, with America in January of 2002, and Britain in February of the same year. The BST created the International Space Council, which would consist of three members from each member agency, and would help direct all joint operations. The BST also created the International Colonial Authority, which was placed in charge of all human colonies on the Moon and Mars. The ICA would be made up of two delegates from each member agency.

            The ISC met for the first time at it’s temporary headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, on April 3, 2002. A basic ten-year plan was established as a framework for the ISC, with various joint missions being discussed. However, the events of the following month in Russia would overshadow the ISC and it’s mission for several years, with the outbreak of war putting space exploration on the back burner for a good portion of that decade.

-Hanes, Dr. Samuel. The Birth of International Space Exploration. New York City: Atlantic Press House, 2014.

WAR!  YULINKOV USE CONFERENCE AS DECOY

WARSAW, APR 20- The Warsaw Conference, now it it’s fifth day, has come to an abrupt end. During today’s deliberations between Germany, Britain, France, Poland, the United States, Imperial Russia, and East Russia, news reached the Vladivostok delegation, made up of the East Russian President, Foreign Secretary, and several other members of the East Russian government, that Imperial troops had crossed the boarder in the Baikal region, bombing military outposts and rail lines. Imperial Russian Chancellor Yulinkov left the city shortly after the news was announced, and the East Russian president announced an hour later that “a state of War now exists between the two Russias.”

            Chancellor Lehmann gave the Foreign Ministry orders to dispel the Imperial Russian ambassador and embassy staff in Berlin, and that the military should begin to make preparations for war. It is widely expected that a formal declaration of war by the German Empire against Imperial Russia will be made by the Reichstag once the Chancellor and the rest of the German delegation return home.

            As the sun set, the American Vice President departed aboard the U.S.S. Eagle II, and will also have the East Russian President and delegation with him as well, since the faster route home is now a war zone. A military escort is being given to the American airship that generally carries the U.S. President.

            At the time of print, it is still unclear whether or not the United States or Great Britain will declare war on Imperial Russia, though it seems likely. France has stated that for now, they will remain neutral. Poland has closed their boarders with Imperial Russia and dispelled the Imperial Russian ambassador.

-“War! Yulinkov Uses Conference as Decoy!” Frankfurter Zeitung April 21, 2002.  

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