Well, finals are mostly over and I now have a long weekend - so you know what that means - UPDATES!
So how does this version of the Great War effect us folks in Minnesota?
Well, one of the posters on *AH.com was named Fightin' Floyd, if that means anything to you...
Hey, Hobel? Can I haz timeline?
im in ur univers, messin with ur history
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From
Harder than Diamond: German Modernism and the Rise of Integralism by David C. Turrents [1978 Harvard University Press]
Chapter 3: The Continental War
.....now of course, one question that needs answering to deal with the origins of international right-wing thought is why, specifically, Germany and her allies won the Continental War. I think in light of everything we know today we can dismiss, for a start, the answers that come from the German propaganda machine. The official German answer lies in the 'natural valor inherent in German culture' and the 'decadent weakness of liberalism', but neither of those explanations hold much weight considering the course of the World War. Nevertheless something other than sheer weight of numbers and industry allowed the Central Powers to win the Continental War. By any reasonable measure the Entente armies outnumbered the CP's even when adjusting for the quality of, say, Russian troops. Their combined navies were certainly far superior. They had the CP surrounded on multiple fronts and while precise numbers are difficult to calculate, their arms industries were probably slightly superior. So with these advantages, how did they lose?
Most would agree that the victory of the CP came through some superior tactics, some fortunate timing, and the incompetence of some its enemies. To wit:
1) The willingness of French command to charge headlong into Alsace-Lorraine and therefore become trapped by the German offensive, as they had planned;
2) The failure of Britain to intervene in the war in a timely fashion, largely due to Ireland, thus dooming France;
3) Thus leading to the collapse of France, eliminating a front and allowing Germany to focus solely on the East;
4) The revolving door of leadership for the Hungarian rebels, who might have actually accomplished something if they could have agreed on anything;
5) The defeat of Russia, whose military leaders were of questionable competence [1], effectively ending the war.
Examining this one can see that the main reason for the Entente defeat was their own cascade of mistakes and structural failures. The German strategy was very risky, and could have ended in failure given, say, stronger Belgian resistance, or earlier British entry; but this did not stop the German establishment from concluding that, in fact, the German military machine was inherently better than all others, that triumph was the natural state of affairs, and that with such a defeat, no-one could ever effectually threaten Germany again. Germany had, to wit, contracted victory disease, and a nearly fatal dose of it in fact....
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December 5, 1915
We don't know what's happening anywhere anymore, not for certain - the Brits have most everything sealed up outside of Connacht and they're advancing further every day. I hope, I pray something can be done - a German victory on the Continent, a miracle in Mayo, whatever - but I fear that we have dark days ahead. Some of my colleagues want to flee - to Germany, some, or the United States, if either will take them, but I will not. I chose my course and I will stick to it. If we cannot fight in the open anymore then we shall retreat fully to the shadows, and we can make Britain pay dearly every second they tread on our soil. I am Prime Minister but if I must also be guerilla leader, then I eagerly
-From the journal of John Dillon. The text ends on this page, the last few pages are smeared and illegible. The very last written page has a blood stain on it.
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[1] The Russian generals TTL are better than OTL, but better is not the same as good.