This is the prelude to the creation of the true sequel to The World Upside Down and is going to be the official history for that NES. This thread will be updated at least one chapter every few days. I appreciate all criticism and assistance in the creation of this thread.
To many people today, Havana brings to mind paradise, a tropical haven to escape from the cares of the world and to relax upon a beach. For others it is an economic metropolis, a place where business is done and trade passes through. Few in the modern era realize that little more than a century ago, Havana was only barely a city, under the occupation of the Spanish Empire and in a state of open revolt. Havana acts as a suitable representation of the world over the past century. Havana has transformed itself from a pre-industrial cesspool of disease and filth to a modern center of industry.
As stated, in the 1890s, Havana languished as the pearl colony of a dying empire. Decades of turmoil and unrest had taken its toll and gained the notice of the islands powerful neighbor to the north, the United States of America. The so-called yellow press of the time called for the American nation to go to war to enforce the Monroe Doctrine and to liberate the Cuban people. When the USS Maine exploded in Havana Harbor in 1898 while in the region to protect American business and interests, many argued for war. President William McKinley was quick to respond with his famous statement that a few lumps of misplaced coal are hardly causes for war. Cooler heads ultimately prevailed and a conference was called at the small Spanish town of Aviles, led by .
The Treaty of Aviles has gone into history as one of the most significant treaties signed not only at the time, but to the present day. Under heavy pressure from the French and German governments, who were both anxious to prevent American involvement in European affairs and wars, Spain folded to the United States, ceding control of Cuba to the American nation. Spain also pledged to end claims, influence, and expansionism within Central and South America, forced to abide by the terms of the Monroe Doctrine. As an addition of insult to injury, Spain was forced to pay funds to compensate any property damage caused by Spanish military forces while suppressing the Cuban rebels. The Treaty of Aviles would catapult the United States not only onto the European stage, but the global one.
It would be at this meeting Aviles that a friendship was formed that would shake the world. Two famous and powerful men would meet and forge an alliance which would turn the world upside down.
The first of these men, Kaiser Wilhelm II, was the absolute ruler of the newly established German empire. Born in 1859, a grandson of the British Queen Victoria, Wilhelm II was the quintessential German aristocrat. With his fathers death in 1888 after a mere ninety days of leadership, Wilhelm II was coronated emperor of the German nation. Under his rule the German military was modernized and a navy was built from scratch. The new Kreigsmarine was his victory in Germany, as over a dozen new battleships entered into service. Domestically radicalism had begun to subside in the nation and the conservatives stay dominant. German industry had boomed under his rule, and production was beginning to reach and surpass the United Kingdom and United States in some fields. Wilhelm II was also often considered to be outspoken and often intimidating to those who surrounded them. Brash statements often caused frequent embarrassment internationally, particularly with the neighboring nations of Belgium and France. This personality alienated him from the multiple Chancellors of Germany from Bismarck to his wartime Chancellor, von Bulow. Wilhelm II would arrive at Aviles as a mediator, though many modern historians believe he merely used the opportunity to build ties with the Spanish in the hopes of creating a second front in a possible war with France.
Theodore Roosevelt was born just a year apart of the Kaiser, in 1858. Born into old money from multiple family successes in the United States over hundreds of years, Roosevelt was driven by the desire to help improve and strengthen his country in the eyes of the world. Serving in the Department of the Navy, Roosevelt first came to the nations attention with his flamboyant speeches at the Aviles Conference. At this time he was in the station of Assistant Secretary of the Navy and was sent to the conference by President McKinley as mostly an afterthought. Prior to and following the explosion of the USS Maine, Roosevelt was one of the most outspoken advocates of war with Spain to bring America onto the world stage. At the Aviles Conference, Roosevelt would ultimately be given credit for the ensuing treaty which granted control of Cuba to American authorities.
Wilhelm II and Roosevelt would meet multiple times during the course of the conference and they took an instant liking to each other. Both viewed their respective nations in a similar light and both believed that their nations were destined for greatness through expansion and warfare. After the signing of the Aviles Treaty, Roosevelt would accept Wilhelms invitation to hunt throughout German Africa with the Imperial hunting party. Following Roosevelts return to the United States in early 1900, he was offered the position of Vice President in order to appease the more radical Manifest Destiny types within the Republican Party. President McKinleys death by an assassins bullet almost immediately after the election left Theodore Roosevelt the nations youngest President.
Early in 1901, a series of visits were made by heads of states between Washington and Berlin. The rise of nationalism and the cordial relationship between Roosevelt and Wilhelm II led to a motley collection of ambassadors meeting in seclusion at President Roosevelts summer home at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Representatives from Russia, Germany, the United States, Argentina, and an assortment of weaker powers met and a revolutionary agreement was made to attack and divide the land and wealth of the mighty British Empire.
For nearly a century prior to the Portsmouth Conference, it was said that the sun never set on the British Empire. The British government possessed holdings around the world from every continent. Throughout the nineteenth century, the British Empire stood firmly against other nations which attempted to compete with it economically or politically. In 1901, Britain dominated not just its plethora of colonies, but economically it reigned supreme over China and most of South America. Britain used its economic strength to prevent the influence of newer industrial powers such as Germany and the United States. At sea, it was said that the Royal Navy ruled the waves, and the British used their fleet often to intimidate other European powers and indigenous peoples. On land, the British had recent established the worlds largest volunteer army as the Boers of South Africa raged against the British establishment for independence.
All of these facts were realized by the ambassadors who met at Portsmouth in 1901. The wealth and strength of the British Empire were apparent to those who viewed it, and all recognized the empire as the sole global superpower. The harsh voice of President Roosevelt would eventually shatter resistance, leading to the onslaught of the Great War. Roosevelt argued that indeed the British Empire was vast, but because of that, its forces were spread thin. He argued that the empire was economically powerful, but only due to its reliance on many of the nations at the conference. Finally he said that the British fleet was large, but the combined fleets of Germany and America were larger. In a stirring speech, Roosevelt said, the British have spent their time robbing the world of its wealth and prosperity. They have become weak and decadent with their wealth, and have left it undefended for our taking. United we stand, and divided we fall, together we will triumph over the might of Britain.
History of the Modern World
Prelude: A Meeting at Portsmouth
Prelude: A Meeting at Portsmouth
To many people today, Havana brings to mind paradise, a tropical haven to escape from the cares of the world and to relax upon a beach. For others it is an economic metropolis, a place where business is done and trade passes through. Few in the modern era realize that little more than a century ago, Havana was only barely a city, under the occupation of the Spanish Empire and in a state of open revolt. Havana acts as a suitable representation of the world over the past century. Havana has transformed itself from a pre-industrial cesspool of disease and filth to a modern center of industry.
As stated, in the 1890s, Havana languished as the pearl colony of a dying empire. Decades of turmoil and unrest had taken its toll and gained the notice of the islands powerful neighbor to the north, the United States of America. The so-called yellow press of the time called for the American nation to go to war to enforce the Monroe Doctrine and to liberate the Cuban people. When the USS Maine exploded in Havana Harbor in 1898 while in the region to protect American business and interests, many argued for war. President William McKinley was quick to respond with his famous statement that a few lumps of misplaced coal are hardly causes for war. Cooler heads ultimately prevailed and a conference was called at the small Spanish town of Aviles, led by .
The Treaty of Aviles has gone into history as one of the most significant treaties signed not only at the time, but to the present day. Under heavy pressure from the French and German governments, who were both anxious to prevent American involvement in European affairs and wars, Spain folded to the United States, ceding control of Cuba to the American nation. Spain also pledged to end claims, influence, and expansionism within Central and South America, forced to abide by the terms of the Monroe Doctrine. As an addition of insult to injury, Spain was forced to pay funds to compensate any property damage caused by Spanish military forces while suppressing the Cuban rebels. The Treaty of Aviles would catapult the United States not only onto the European stage, but the global one.
It would be at this meeting Aviles that a friendship was formed that would shake the world. Two famous and powerful men would meet and forge an alliance which would turn the world upside down.
The first of these men, Kaiser Wilhelm II, was the absolute ruler of the newly established German empire. Born in 1859, a grandson of the British Queen Victoria, Wilhelm II was the quintessential German aristocrat. With his fathers death in 1888 after a mere ninety days of leadership, Wilhelm II was coronated emperor of the German nation. Under his rule the German military was modernized and a navy was built from scratch. The new Kreigsmarine was his victory in Germany, as over a dozen new battleships entered into service. Domestically radicalism had begun to subside in the nation and the conservatives stay dominant. German industry had boomed under his rule, and production was beginning to reach and surpass the United Kingdom and United States in some fields. Wilhelm II was also often considered to be outspoken and often intimidating to those who surrounded them. Brash statements often caused frequent embarrassment internationally, particularly with the neighboring nations of Belgium and France. This personality alienated him from the multiple Chancellors of Germany from Bismarck to his wartime Chancellor, von Bulow. Wilhelm II would arrive at Aviles as a mediator, though many modern historians believe he merely used the opportunity to build ties with the Spanish in the hopes of creating a second front in a possible war with France.
Theodore Roosevelt was born just a year apart of the Kaiser, in 1858. Born into old money from multiple family successes in the United States over hundreds of years, Roosevelt was driven by the desire to help improve and strengthen his country in the eyes of the world. Serving in the Department of the Navy, Roosevelt first came to the nations attention with his flamboyant speeches at the Aviles Conference. At this time he was in the station of Assistant Secretary of the Navy and was sent to the conference by President McKinley as mostly an afterthought. Prior to and following the explosion of the USS Maine, Roosevelt was one of the most outspoken advocates of war with Spain to bring America onto the world stage. At the Aviles Conference, Roosevelt would ultimately be given credit for the ensuing treaty which granted control of Cuba to American authorities.
Wilhelm II and Roosevelt would meet multiple times during the course of the conference and they took an instant liking to each other. Both viewed their respective nations in a similar light and both believed that their nations were destined for greatness through expansion and warfare. After the signing of the Aviles Treaty, Roosevelt would accept Wilhelms invitation to hunt throughout German Africa with the Imperial hunting party. Following Roosevelts return to the United States in early 1900, he was offered the position of Vice President in order to appease the more radical Manifest Destiny types within the Republican Party. President McKinleys death by an assassins bullet almost immediately after the election left Theodore Roosevelt the nations youngest President.
Early in 1901, a series of visits were made by heads of states between Washington and Berlin. The rise of nationalism and the cordial relationship between Roosevelt and Wilhelm II led to a motley collection of ambassadors meeting in seclusion at President Roosevelts summer home at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Representatives from Russia, Germany, the United States, Argentina, and an assortment of weaker powers met and a revolutionary agreement was made to attack and divide the land and wealth of the mighty British Empire.
For nearly a century prior to the Portsmouth Conference, it was said that the sun never set on the British Empire. The British government possessed holdings around the world from every continent. Throughout the nineteenth century, the British Empire stood firmly against other nations which attempted to compete with it economically or politically. In 1901, Britain dominated not just its plethora of colonies, but economically it reigned supreme over China and most of South America. Britain used its economic strength to prevent the influence of newer industrial powers such as Germany and the United States. At sea, it was said that the Royal Navy ruled the waves, and the British used their fleet often to intimidate other European powers and indigenous peoples. On land, the British had recent established the worlds largest volunteer army as the Boers of South Africa raged against the British establishment for independence.
All of these facts were realized by the ambassadors who met at Portsmouth in 1901. The wealth and strength of the British Empire were apparent to those who viewed it, and all recognized the empire as the sole global superpower. The harsh voice of President Roosevelt would eventually shatter resistance, leading to the onslaught of the Great War. Roosevelt argued that indeed the British Empire was vast, but because of that, its forces were spread thin. He argued that the empire was economically powerful, but only due to its reliance on many of the nations at the conference. Finally he said that the British fleet was large, but the combined fleets of Germany and America were larger. In a stirring speech, Roosevelt said, the British have spent their time robbing the world of its wealth and prosperity. They have become weak and decadent with their wealth, and have left it undefended for our taking. United we stand, and divided we fall, together we will triumph over the might of Britain.