Update 7: July 1, 1894 - December 31, 1894
Global changes
Q3-Q4 1894:
Spoiler :
Peace negotiations between the Union of North America and the British Royal Commonwealth (representing also its ally, the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont) were well on their way when the news of the joint North-American and Mexican intervention in the Gran-Colombian Civil War broke out. For the British delegation, this looked like the Union’s attempt to establish complete dominance over the New World - a geopolitical risk that the government of Lord-Protector Strange just couldn’t accept at that point. Soon, the Commonwealth and Sardinia-Piedmont announced that they join Portugal-Brazil in its war against Mexico and the Union as a part of the Transatlantic Alliance. Meanwhile, the Free Boer Republic, which participation in a war against Great Britain lacked potential for any significant gains from day 1, used that chance to declare war on Portugal-Brazil and Sardinia-Piedmont and start a war for their African colonies.
Prolonged and expanding wars and ever-growing stakes are forcing remaining members of the Transatlantic Alliance to mobilize their populations and economies to a greater degree, matching their British allies. Meanwhile, the Republic of Gran Colombia is experiencing extreme war weariness, seeing most of its territory occupied and war-ravaged. The only nations that are formally in the state of war that evade the stress of mobilization are the Ottoman Empire and Qajar Persia, as the triumphant occupation of the Shahdom occurred before either of the nations had a chance engage their mobilization timetables. Finally, the government of Quebec issued a demobilization executive order, as war seems to be finally leaving North America. (Portugal-Brazil adopts “Military mobilization (mid term)”, “Economic mobilization (mid term)”, removes “Military mobilization (short term)”, “Economic mobilization (short term)”, Sardinia-Piedmont adopts “Military mobilization (mid term)”, “Economic mobilization (mid term)”, removes “Military mobilization (short term)”, “Economic mobilization (short term)”, Gran Colombia adopts “Military mobilization (long term)”, “Economic mobilization (long term)”, removes “Military mobilization (short term)”, “Economic mobilization (short term)”, Quebec removes “Military mobilization (short term)”, “Economic mobilization (short term)”, Mexico adopts “Military mobilization (short term)”, “Economic mobilization (short term)”)
The Antofagasta-Atacama Ultimatum of Gran-Paraguayan caudillo President Francisco Solano Lopez briefly put South America at the brink of yet another war. Yet, to many observers’ surprise, President Luna of the United Communes folded to the Gran-Paraguayan demands and gave up the communal provinces of Atacama and Antofagasta in favor of the Chile-Patagonian Free State, a known Gran-Paraguayan puppet. With the loss of collective property, the Union of North America also lost some influence in the region, which naturally passed to Gran Paraguay, as Chile-Patagonia’s protector. (Region South Andes Region: Chile-Patagonia gains +7% Regional Influence, Gran-Paraguay gains +3% Regional Influence, Communes of the Andes loses -7% Regional Influence, Union of North America loses -3% Regional Influence)
Mexico’s declaration of war against Portugal-Brazil could have been just an opportunistic power move, had it not been for one miscalculation by President Porfirio Diaz. Ever since the days of the First Atlantic War, the United States of Mexico were one of the biggest investors in the British economy, having stakes in a plethora of corporations across the entire Royal Commonwealth. As Great Britain stepped in to protect its Portobrazilian allies, a domino effect was automatically triggered, leading to a mutually painful and chaotic nationalization of Mexican assets across the nation.
(Region Ireland-Scotland gains -0.5% Regional Growth Fluctuation, British Royal Commonwealth gains +2% Regional Influence, Mexico loses -2% Regional Influence)
(Region England-Wales gains -1% Regional Growth Fluctuation, British Royal Commonwealth gains +4% Regional Influence, Mexico loses -4% Regional Influence)
(Region Ganges Region gains -0.75% Regional Growth Fluctuation, British Royal Commonwealth gains +3% Regional Influence, Mexico loses -3% Regional Influence)
(Region Central India gains -1% Regional Growth Fluctuation, British Royal Commonwealth gains +4.17% Regional Influence, Mexico loses -4.17% Regional Influence)
(Region Australia-Oceania gains -1.25% Regional Growth Fluctuation, British Royal Commonwealth gains +5% Regional Influence, Mexico loses -5% Regional Influence)
(Region Mesoamerica gains -3% Regional Growth Fluctuation, Mexico gains +6.4% Regional Influence, British Royal Commonwealth loses -6.4% Regional Influence)
As the independent left-wing regime fell in Liberia, thousands of North-American officers and dozens of high-level advisers became prisoners of the Royal Commonwealth. While most of them would remain just that, prisoners, some of them broke under pressure and ended up cooperating with their captors, giving Great Britain some valuable intelligence and expertise. (Liberia: -32.5 IC, British Royal Commonwealth: +10 IC)
A similar event took place in Gran Colombia, where many hundreds of Mexican and North-American advisers were captured by the Portobrazilians after the Republican government collapsed, and all North-American assets were seized or destroyed. (Gran Colombia: -31 IC, -115 EC; Portugal-Brazil: +10 IC, +45 EC)
Despite a political crisis in Lima, supporters of President Luna argued that the United Communes’ leader was simply buying the nation time to modernize for its showdown with Portobrazilian imperialists. Modernization of the army and various aspects of social life indeed followed the territorial transfer, although many modernization programs failed due to a severe lack of manpower in the mobilized and war-weary nation. (Communes of the Andes adopts “Classicism and the Enlightenment”, “Corporate ethos”, “Nationalism and imperialism”, “Existentialism and modern ethics”, “Psychoanalysis”, “Nihilism and moral relativity”, “Modern archeology and anthropology”, “Transnational crime and law”, “Cartels and economic crime”, “Oligarchy and political corruption”, “Zamburak and mounted fire support”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Maskirovka and military camouflage”, “Auftragstaktik and command-by-initiative”, “Nihang and military sabotage” for -19 HC, -127 IC, -293.5 EC)
What helped to mitigate the Andean political crisis was the arrival of loads and loads of North-American aid, represented by huge financial loans, import of coal and food, waves of volunteers, stacks of industrial patents, and groups of economic and military advisers. However, given how the war with Portugal-Brazil is progressing, in the future this flow of support might shrink, if the enemy succeeds at blockading the seas. (Communes of the Andes: +400 HC, +300 IC, +300 EC; Union of North America: -400 HC, -300 IC, -300 EC)
Another case for the Union of North-America being the “Arsenal of Fraternity” was made in the fall of 1894 when the State Department announced a program of materiel lease to the Centroamerican government in hopes it could use the gained resources to break the political deadlock. (Centroamerican Federation: +10 MC; Union of North America: -10 MC)
The arrival of North-American equipment did help to fix several budgeting problems in Centroamerica, and before the year’s end the State Department of the UNA had gained what it wanted: a commitment from the Centroamerican Collective Council to create a home-born counterintelligence and state security service. (Centroamerican Federation: +1 Mission (-10.8 HC, -17.1 IC, -25.6 EC, -1.9 MC))
In the heart of the Monroe Conference Bloc, the Union of North America was shifting gears from war to its less bloody extensions - politics, espionage, and economy. (Union of North America: +7 Missions, +3 Enterprises (-121.5 HC, -162.6 IC, -327.7 EC, -155 MC), -8 Cors (-maintenance))
These changes were just one facet of the changes sweeping through the Union, as so-called Fouracre Reforms were reshaping the country’s education system, trade policy, and economic paradigms. (Union of North America adopts “Protectionism”, “Specialized education”, “Egalitarian democracy”, “Startup economy” for -2768.3 HC, -1171.21 EC)
The political fiasco of President Stone and the so-called Stone Democrats in the Confederate elections was predated by a burst of the industrial stock bubble in the Fort Lauderdale engine-driven exchange, when it became obvious that industrial production in the country was way behind any bull-market predictions. That meant the government had to indiscriminately cut its military discretionary spending, leaving only a small fraction of once powerful Confederate force still standing. (Confederate States of America: -7 Corps, -4 Squadrons (-maintenance))
Trying to incentivise Southron have-not’s to move to Breckinridge, “lame duck” President Stone attempted to remove several entitlement welfare policies before leaving the office to his successor, Stand Watie Jr. However, the horrendous state of economy meant that senators from the Stone Democrats faction were not confident they could hold on to their mandates during midterm elections if they were deprive the population of unemployment subsidies amid economic crisis. At that point, it should’ve been clear that the CSA had to find some other incentives for the people to move to the New Heart of Darkness, as Breckinridge is popularly known, but a partial frugality reform still succeeded at taking away tax-funded pensions from the First Atlantic War veterans, likely saving some money for the treasury, but cementing Stone’s reputation as the enemy all Dixie patriots. (Confederate States of America removes “Veteran pension” for -178.76 EC)
While the collapse of industrial stock prices hurt the CSA’s home economy, it didn’t stop the vibrant Dixie society from undergoing a series of technological innovations and developments, covering a wide variety of areas, from Icarian utopism to license-to-kill agent training to modern combat tactics and techniques. Yet, the shortage of manufactured goods crippled the Confederacy here as well, as many industrial construction methods and tools were not introduced due to a severe shortage of supply. (Confederate States of America adopts “Environmentalism”, “Social messianism and utopian thought”, “Kingsmen and license-to-kill agents”, “Job shops”, “Judo and hand-to-hand combat training”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Maskirovka and military camouflage”, “Dispersed combat tactics”, “Port strike”, “Unrestricted commerce raiding and submarine warfare” for -203.25 HC, -199.5 IC, -292.5 EC, -6 MC)
A series of bets between a Transpacific industrialist Anatoly Demidov and his Dixie friends, “robber barons” Crawford Charles Wynn and William Bryant Archer III, turned into a peculiar social experiment, as several factories manned with freed black slaves were organized in the Vankuversky Krai. Besides thoroughly entertaining their past masters and current employer, this outsourcing contract also benefited both of the involved nations, especially as the CSA struggled to meet its home demand for manufactured goods. (Pacific Directory: +100 HC, +80 IC, -20 MC; Confederate States of America: -100 HC, -80 IC, +20 MC)
More direct and simplistic trade treaties were signed between the Confederate States of America on one side and Italian and Turkish manufacturing concerns on the other, providing the CSA with the manufactured goods it so desperately needed. (Confederate States of America: -560 EC, +50 MC; Italy: +60 EC, -5 MC; Sublime Porte: +500 EC, -45 MC)
The collapse of industrial stocks on the Fort Lauderdale stock exchange solicited a desperate plea by President Stone’s “lame duck” cabinet to its newfound ally, the Shogun of Japan, for economic relief. The latter one was happy to purchase Confederate bonds, thus providing the CSA treasury with an influx of cash. Simultaneously, the Japanese economy benefited from a massive brain leak that saw many capable (and recently unemployed) Southron clerks and engineers looking for employment in the Tokugawa domain. (Confederate States of America: -250 IC, +542 EC; Tokugawa Shogunate: +250 IC, -542 EC)
Unlike the CSA, the North German Federation is not experiencing a crippling economic depression, but that doesn’t stop Japanese zaibatsu corporations from acquiring a surplus of talent from the North-German labor market. (Tokugawa Shogunate: +100 IC, -220 EC; North German Federation: -100 IC, +220 EC)
Recent growth of the State of Deseret had been largely fueled by an unlikely source of support: the Heavenly Kingdom of China. However, as Chinese economy itself starts suffering from a manufacturing shortage and lack of educated experts, Taiping diplomats turned to yet another unlikely benefactor: the North German Federation. Since any spiritual arguments of taking care of fellow Christians were invalid for the North-Germans, a complex loan contract was signed by the end of the year with a 12.5% interest rate and a return date in 4 years. (North German Federation: -30 IC, -30 MC; Deseret: +30 IC, +30 MC)
However, even with the North-German support, the Deseret public works, state apparatus, and army were overly bloated, and by the end of the year the nation was forced to disband much of its assets in order to be able to return the North-German loan in the future (going well beyond the original plan to disband just some army units). (Deseret: -3 Missions, -2 Enterprises, -1 Corps (-maintenance))
War against the British Royal Commonwealth and expansion of influence into the Portobrazilian and Dutch East-Indies seem to be turning into a prolonged struggle, making Shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu authorize an unprecedented expansion of the country’s intelligence and counterintelligence apparatus. (Tokugawa Shogunate: +10 Missions (-169 HC, -233 IC, -360 EC, -85 MC))
The grand rearmament of the Japanese military continued in the second part of the year 1894, as the Shogunate’s army and navy adopted technologic innovations that had recently showcased themselves in the battlespaces of Europe and North America. One of the most unique of these innovations was introduction of the ancient ninjutsu training into the drills of army sabotage units styled after the infamous Indostani nihang operatives. (Tokugawa Shogunate adopts “Statistical theory”, “Social messianism and utopian thought”, “Nihang and military sabotage”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Telescopic sights and modern sniping”, “Trench raiding”, “Telemobiloscope and early naval detection”, “Anti-torpedo maneuver”, “Compound engine steamers”, “Decoy vessels”, “Dynamo and electrified ships” for -191.5 HC, -147 IC, -357 EC, -42.5 MC)
The Army of the Third Empire attempted to also follow the Japanese suit, sometimes almost blindly, as Tokugawa military advisers were obediently followed in the re-equipment of the Imperial engineers and logistical branch of service. Had it not been for some internal reviews, the Konbaung dynasty might have even paid for some of the equipment and training it already possessed. However, when the time came to assess the nation’s ability churn out the necessary equipment and, more importantly, provide adequate specialists for the tasks, much of the reform was cut down and postponed until better times. (Third Burmese Empire adopts “Judo and hand-to-hand combat training”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Specialized troops” for -123.75 HC, -15 IC, -75 EC)
While the Konbaung dynasty is struggling to outfit its army to the top world standard, the huge Sikh Khalsa Army is engaging in an ambitious re-equipment and retraining program that seeks to improve inter-unit coordination, air reconnaissance, and operational mobility. (Indostan adopts “Aerodynes and heavier-than-air flight”, “Army inter-branch cooperation”, “Stud farms and horse-powered mobility”, “Airship reconnaissance”, “Zamburak and mounted fire support” for -105 HC, -90 IC, -292 EC, -74 MC)
The war against Great Britain has already swollen the size the Khalsa Army, and now its turn of the Raj’s intelligence service and war-time engineering corps to expand. (Indostan: +3 Missions, +3 Enterprises (-86.1 HC, -70.5 IC, -188.4 EC, -94.8 MC))
Rumors swirl that Lord-Protector Strange is losing his grip on power, being forced by the recent humiliating defeats to share more power with a so-called “Round Table,” a clique of pragmatic lords that have persuaded the moody “Protector of the Queen” to leave the legacy of much idealized First Atlantic War behind and allow much needed reforms in the Secret Ward and the Royal Army. (British Royal Commonwealth adopts “Cultism and self-devotion”, “Corporate ethos”, “Socialism and class consciousness”, “Judo and hand-to-hand combat training”, “Maskirovka and military camouflage”, “Zamburak and mounted fire support”, “Stud farms and horse-powered mobility”, “Field trenches”, “Trench raiding”, “Defence in depth”, “Specialized troops”, “Women’s battalions” for -753.5 HC, -75 IC, -440.75 EC, -8 MC)
Due to its relative isolation from the world markets, China was not hit by the Fort Lauderdale stock market crash as hard as other countries. However, it did experience an almost simultaneous isolated event, nicknamed in the Heavenly Kingdom’s state-run press as the “vertigo from triumphs.” With the rate of the country’s industrial development strongly overpredicted by the Divine and Heavenly analytical engines, the ambitious rearmament program of the Taiping army exhausted China’s industrial capacity, forcing the Heavenly Chancellery to aggressively disband troops and squadrons in an effort to stabilize the annual plan. However, even that measure didn’t save some of the government agencies and subsidized consortiums from being temporarily shut down. (Taiping Mandate: -2 Missions, -2 Enterprises, -7 Corps, -5 Squadrons (-maintenance))
The wave of innovations and societal change in the Ottoman Empire has amounted to a truly tectonic shift in the role of women, ranging from opening Ustün Kadın athletic exercise clubs for women (a surprisingly drastic change for a highly traditionalist Middle-Eastern society) to an actual enfranchisement of women in politics. (Sublime Porte adopts “Female suffrage” for -358.51 EC)
Modern social thought that has originated in different parts of the world is finding its way to the Ottoman State, bringing in the latest and best (the worst?) with it. The good part is, along with controversial ideas, the Sublime State’s universities are opening their doors to new fields of abstract science that were pioneered on the Pacific shores.(Sublime Porte adopts “Cultism and self-devotion”, “Social messianism and utopian thought”, “Statistical theory”, “Modern archaeology and anthropology”, “Manga, comics, and sequential art”, “Nihilism and moral relativity”, “Kompromat and modern blackmail”, “Kingsmen and license-to-kill agents” for -150.5 HC, -189 IC, -248.5 EC, -21 MC)
As the old generation of stratocrats is rapidly losing its positions in the state apparatus of the Ottoman Empire, the national focus shifts toward forces of soft power projection, while the naval construction and repair programs are suffering visible cuts. (Sublime Porte: +6 Missions, +2 Enterprises (-117.4 HC, -142.6 IC, -282.4 EC, -109.4 MC), -2 Squadrons (-maintenance))
The steady growth of the Ottoman heavy industry and lack of overbearing demand has created an advantageous market situation for the Sublime State, as it benefitted from a multitude of lucrative arms deals with several warring nations across the world. (Sublime Porte: +415 EC, -45 MC; Indostan: -285 EC, +25 MC; Free Boer Republic: -130 EC, +15 MC)
Startled by the Ottoman aggression against Persia now escalating into a full-blown invasion, the Khedivate’s military started an ambitious rearmament program, hoping to safeguard the nation against a potential hostile action by the increasingly chauvinist Sublime State. (Egypt adopts “Nihang and military sabotage”, “Auftragstaktik and command by initiative”, “Maskirovka and military camouflage”, “Mobile gun shields”, “Fortified districts”, “Barbed wire”, “Trench raiding”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Judo and hand-to-hand combat training”, “Indirect artillery fire”, “Telescopic sights and modern sniping”, “Port strike”, “Standardized shipbuilding practice”, “Decoy vessels”, “Echo-locating devices”, “Telemobiloscope and early naval detection”, “Unrestricted commerce raiding and submarine warfare”, “Dazzle camouflage”, “Saturation attack”, “Dynamo and electrified ships”, “Anti-torpedo maneuver”, “Compound engine steamers” for -90.5 HC, -160.5 IC, -284.5 EC, -49.5 MC)
Egypt wasn’t the only nation that observed the Ottoman adventurism in Iran with a weary eye. The Directorial Assembly of Russia accepted a series of discretionary changes to the budget, reinforcing both Russia’s Committee of State Security (KGB) and the Black Sea Fleet. (Directorial Russia: +2 Missions, +2 Squadrons (-54.4 HC, -69.8 IC, -109.6 EC, -78.2 MC))
Meanwhile, a much more transformative milestone was passed in the first post-summer break session of the Uchreditelnoye Sobraniye of Russia, as women were allowed to vote and hold office across the Directory. (Directorial Russia adopts “Female suffrage” for -520.59 EC)
Some of the most promising innovations find their way to Directorial Russia, where they’re digested and put to the national service. As such, a secret, semi-independent spy agency known as Nochnoy Dozor (the Night Watch) was formed to copy the infamous British Kingsmen, and Japanese judo techniques were analyzed and put to the Directorial Army’s service (labeled as “sambo,” an acronym for Russian “self-defence without weapons”). Meanwhile, Russobalt factories see the first mass use of portable power tools outside of Mexico, and the Black Sea Fleet just received its first pocket battleship, RDS Izmail. (Directorial Russia adopts “Kingsmen and license-to-kill agents”, “Portable power tools”, “Judo and hand-to-hand combat”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Pocket battleships” for -106.5 HC, -122 IC, -30.5 EC, -81 MC)
With its technologic sector flourishing and engineering tradition becoming well-known far beyond its borders, Russia leverages its rich talent pool and a vast data vault of patents to secure lucrative international trade contracts in a variety of fields. (Directorial Russia: +500 HC, -680 IC, +1525 MC; Indostan: +230 IC, -700 EC; Communard France: -500 HC, +200 IC; Hungary: +150 IC, -375 EC; Austria-Bavaria: +100 IC, -250 EC; Taiping Mandate: -200 EC)
While recent Russian pressure made the Popular Assembly much more acceptive of government welfare policies, the Siberian army continues evolving away from conventional forms of military recruitment toward exploitation of private security companies known as ChOP’s (from Russian for Chastnoye Okhrannoye Predpriyatiye). (Siberian Popular Assembly adopts “Mercenarism”, removes “Professional military recruitment” for -203.09 EC)
For years, the libertarian policies of the Popular Assembly were viewed as barriers on the way of modernization of the Siberian society and state. Yet, with the Transsibirian Railway connecting the vast country to European Russia, the opposite was proven true, as a wave of reforms driven by private initiative is bringing a wave of innovation to Siberia. (Siberian Popular Assembly adopts “Manga, comics, and sequential art”, “Information economy”, “Positivism and futurism”, “Fast food industry”, “Psychoanalysis”, “Cultism and self-devotion”, “Modern anthropology and archaeology”, “Vetting and espionage”, “Kompromat and modern blackmail”, “Statistical theory”, “Science fiction”, “Liquid-propellant rocket engine”, “Blowlamp brazing and soldering”, “Vulcanization of rubber”, “Job shops”, “Dreisines and velocipedes”, “Dirigible airships”, “Machine guns and belt-fed weapons”, “Magazines and clips”, “Auftragstaktik and command by initiative”, “Battalions of Death and shock troops”, “Women’s battalions”, “Paramilitary organizations”, “Trench raiding”, “Telescopic sights and modern sniping”, “Maskirovka and military camouflage”, “Field hospital system”, “Stud farms and horse-powered mobility” for -104.75 HC, -74.25 IC, -169.5 EC, -42.75 MC)
Nothing showcases the meteoric rise of the Pacific Directory under Chief Director Volya’s energetic leadership better than the recent expansion of the directorial state apparatus, Board of Scientific Affairs, and diplomatic corps. Shockingly for such a small nation, Transpacific intelligence agencies are now going to be virtually on par with the Secret Ward of the vast British Royal Commonwealth, as their Fishermen (analysts, investigators, and recruiters) and Whalers (field agents) start to become known around the world. Meanwhile, the Directorial Army has doubled in size, forming both an expansive garrisoning force and elite Spetsnaz troops. (Pacific Directory: +6 Missions, +1 Corps (-136.6 HC, -155 IC, -230.9 EC, -28.1 MC))
With its open migration policies and wide access to untapped deposits of various natural resources, the Pacific Directory has become an immigration magnet, in which the East, the West, and the New World mix in a strange amalgam of Russian customs, Cossack opportunism, native tolerance, and Oriental organization. This dynamically developing society is naturally promoting an economy, in which any social or economic roles is for the taking by the most fit, opportunistic, and shrewd. (Pacific Directory adopts “Cultural assimilation”, “Open class economy” for -125.89 HC, -58.79 IC)
Reflecting this status of the world hub of immigration and opportunity, Transpacifica makes mile-long strides in virtually all areas of society, law enforcement, abstract sciences, industrial equipment, military operations, and shipbuilding. (Pacific Directory adopts “Social messianism and utopian thought”, “Kompromat and modern blackmail”, “Meteorological balloons and weather forecasting”, “Kingsmen and license-to-kill agents”, “Job shops”, “Blowlamp brazing and soldering”, “Job shops”, “Direct electric current”, “Downcycling”, “Trench raiding”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Zamburak and mounted fire support”, “Judo and hand-to-hand combat training”, “Nihang and military sabotage”, “Moving barrage”, “Stud farms and horse-driven mobility”, “Anti-torpedo maneuver”, “Compound engine steamers”, Decoy vessels”, “Dynamo and electrified ships” for -37.25 HC, -44.75 IC, -88 EC, -11.5 MC)
Transpacific goods of all varieties continue to flow into Europe as it recovers, the Transsiberian Railway bringing in canned seafood, hardwoods, coal, furs, ivory, various industrial and precious metals, and, for the first time, large amounts of Transpacific-made industrial equipment and guns. Hungarian wines and Krone, French immigrants and cured beef, German and Swiss patents and literature, Baltic movies and directors, and Italian war surplus (predominately artillery, but also including both factory equipment and excavators postmarked for Little Pompeii) all make their way back along the Great Siberian Way. (Pacific Directory: +150 HC, +234 IC, +26 EC, -44 MC; Communard France: -140 HC, +56 EC; Hungary: +40 HC, -328 EC, +17 MC; North German Federation: -110 IC, +22 MC; United Baltic Duchies: -34 IC, +51 EC; Switzerland: +50 HC, -10 IC; Italy: +195 EC, -15 MC)
Another nation that clearly enjoys its shining manufacturing economy and uses it for lucrative export contracts is Republican Italy. Besides the CSA and Transpacifica, the Heavenly Kingdom and Indostan became importers of Italian machine tools and steel. (Italy: -15 IC, +300 EC, -10 MC; Taiping Mandate: -130 EC, +10 MC; Indostan: +15 IC, -170 EC, +10 MC)
Despite all ethical criticism the kleptocratic Italian government receives from more conventional European regimes, its economic policies are greatly beneficial for the country, encouraging innovation-driven private enterprise to the benefit of the nation. (Italy adopts “Startup economy” for -626.06 HC)
North-American expatriate, one Dr. Jones has become a face of German archaeology, as stories of scientific adventure capture imagination of European audience. North-Germany also becomes a beacon of pan-nationalistic futurism as the Federation’s culture blossoms. (North German Federation adopts “Social messianism and utopian thought”, “Modern archaeology and anthropology” for -156 HC, -78 IC, -65 EC)
Despite its authoritarian political tendencies, Polish Sanation is starting to display its more attractive side to the ordinary Poles, encouraging a greater level of social and economic mobility with a number of safety nets for Polish nationals, as well as promoting Polanization as a resurrected gens-natione construct of ancient Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. (Poland adopts “Contest mobility”, “Cultural assimilation”, “Open class economy”, “Solidarist economy” for -831.81 HC, -70.40 IC, -80.05 EC, -69.35 MC)
Modernization of Polish industry and applied environmentalism under the Sanation policies goes hand-in-hand with branching out of Polish cultural thought, abstract sciences, and law enforcement awareness in different fields. (Poland adopts “Social missianism and utopian thought”, “Kompromat and modern blackmail”, “Modern archeology and anthropology”, “Statistical theory”, “Blowlamp brazing and soldering”, “Job shops”, “Explosives in mining and demolition”, “Downcycling”, “Land and water conservation” for -39 HC, -24 IC, -69 EC, -22 MC)
Polish factories continue churning out machine tools and industrial products for the world, helping the country negotiate profitable agricultural contracts, as well as attracting various types of labor migrants from multiple nations across the globe. (Poland: +500 HC, +140 IC, +140 EC, -55 MC; Communard France: -500 HC, +25 MC; Maghreb: -140 EC, +10 MC; Mexico: -140 IC, +20 MC)
Polish national leadership seems to realize that the collapse of the Hungarian sphere of influence in Eastern Europe has created an opening for the Polish soft power to promote the nation’s new geopolitical status as a regional hegemon. To achieve that, foreign embassies were greatly expanded, its intelligence agencies received additional funding, and several state-funded industrial enterprises were opened. (Poland: +4 Missions, +2 Enterprises (-94.8 HC, -102.2 IC, -211.4 EC, -85.4 MC))
Friendly relationship between the two Germanies continue expanding, as the Federation’s vibrant culture and intellectual tradition continues flowing south, and Austrobavarian well-managed industry fuels North-German drive for innovation. (North German Federation: -500 IC, +100 MC; Austria-Bavaria: +500 IC, -100 MC)
Denmark-Norway is getting comfortable with the liberal economic concepts trickling down to its society from the North German Federation. However, in an attempt to underline its national sovereignty, the royal cabinet has passed (and local Landthings approved) a series of racially biased regulations that close the Danish and Norwegian markets to colonial migrants from North-German African and Chinese possessions. (Denmark-Norway adopts “Eugenic regulations”, “Economic liberalism” for -56.4 HC, -33.71 EC)
The United Baltic Duchies is finally updating its constitution to explicitly pass executive and legislative power to a Landtag (or council) of appointed bishops and hereditary dukes. Meanwhile, the economic fabric of the society is moving toward a down-to-earth libertarian view of labor and success. (United Baltic Duchies adopts “Economic mutualism”, “Anarcho-capitalism”, “Workhouses”, “Executive committee”, “Federate state” for -7.5 HC, -96.57 EC, -6.65 MC)
The Domnitor of Romania, elderly Alexandru I Cuza, passed away calmly in his sleep this year. His son, energetic Ioan Cuza, didn’t share his father’s reactionary obsession with romanticised past and took it upon himself to re-establish the Domnate as a modern European realm. This, of course, necessitated rebuilding of the country’s army and navy, albeit of a much smaller size than before. (Romanian Domnate: +1 Corps, +1 Squadron (-31.8 HC, -6.9 IC, -25.5 EC, -24 MC))
Ioan I Cuza’s reforms finally allowed Romania to pass from near-Medieval views on taxation, administrative division, branches of power, and economic policies toward a more mainstream and up-to-date European standards. (Romanian Domnate adopts “Regional state”, “Minimal wage regulations”, “Labor safety regulations”, “Unemployment benefits”, “Military draft”, “Free trade”, “Laissez-faire economy” for -109.38 HC, -1.95 EC, -100.54 EC, -37.94 MC)
In the Swiss Confederation,a constitutional addendum was added, stating that all candidates at canton-wide elections have to be judge-appointed. This was the biggest conclusion of the Federal Council, along with a set of regulations that clarified the nature of relations between the cantons, as well as Confederation-wide trade policies. (Switzerland adopts “Confederate state”, “Authoritarian democracy”, “Mercantilism” for -19.79 HC, -36.12 IC, -24.64 EC, -4.36 MC)
The Italian “smuggling scandal” was a strong enough motivation to make the Illyrian king sign an order creating the first modern counterespionage service in the Triune Kingdom. (Illyria: +1 Mission (-10.8 HC, -14.9 IC, -23.3 EC, -1.3 MC))
The creation of the secret police force was just the more visible part of the changes taking place across the country. Overflowing with foreign aid (mostly from all the Russias), the Illyrian dynasty reformed the nation along the lines of South-Slavic ethnocentrism with a pragmatic lean toward the plemstvo (Croatian military nobility). (Illyria adopts “Estates-based service”, “Professional military recruitment”, “Ethnic nepotism”, “Dirigist economy”, “Mercantilism”, “Economic statism”, “Neo-feudalism”, “Stratocratic government”, “Regional state”, “Political police”, “Cultural assimilation” for -42.45 HC, -46.92 IC, -42.31 EC, -15.57 MC)
Greece is overfilled with two kinds of people: Italian “know-it-all” consiglieri that tell the locals how to run things and homegrown fedora-wearing self-labeled libertarians who like to explain to everyone how things can run themselves without much human intervention. In the fall of 1894, the both groups started running out of money due to a lack of demand for those kinds of advice, so they finally got back to work that actually pays and generates value. Meanwhile, those of them who failed to do so, ended up leaving for more promising lands where their qualities, they hope, would be valued (Greece converts 30 IC for 39.17 EC)
(Greece: -30 IC; Taiping Mandate: +10 IC; Deseret: +10 IC)
As dreamy as it sounded, the libertarian paradise promised by the Greek government still turned out to be vulnerable to domestic and international crime. That prompted a creation of an actual police force and an actual intelligence agency (both mostly consisting of private security firms). (Greece: +1 Mission (-9.4 HC, -14.3 IC, -25 EC, -0.1 MC))
As Zanzibar was getting overtaken by the North-German capital, the Sultan of Oman hurried to formalize the federate state organization in hopes that a succession crisis doesn’t cause the country to split into two separate realms. (Oman adopts “Federate state” for -6.04 HC)
Another vulnerability of Oman that the Zanzibari expansion of Ostafrika Gmbh illustrated was its lack of means to compete over markets in a non-military manner. To remedy this, the Sultanate expanded its diplomatic and trade arms at the expense of the land military force. (Oman: +1 Mission, +1 Enterprise (-19.8 HC, -16.1 IC, -47.9 EC, -14.4 MC), -2 Corps (-maintenance))
As the Muslim ruling dynasty of Abyssinia has expanded to the limit allowed by its superior neighbors, Egypt and North-German Ostafrika, the monarchy now turns to controlling its own, mostly Christian population. (Abyssinia: +1 Mission (-6.4 HC, -12.4 IC, -21 EC))
Military innovations are slowly trickling down to Abyssinian highlands from Egypt, mostly improving the nation’s logistical capabilities to a level expected from an indigenous African nation. (Abyssinia adopts “Field trenches”, “Bicycle-riding and ski infantry”, “Stud farms and horse-driven mobility”, “Supply train regiments” for -28.5 HC, -19.5 EC, -1.5 MC)
While Abyssinia is working on its internal security, the Mahdist movement of Sudan continues arming its supporters in hopes of penetrating Central Africa with a Jihad of true believers. (Mahdi State: +1 Corps (25.2 HC, -2.8 IC, -10.8 EC, -0.6 MC)
Among the advisers sent to the petty kingdom of Buganda by Ostafrikan trade company, there was a gifted individual of German-Chinese descent that taught the king about the ancient Chinese Nongjia philosophy that once allowed warring kingdoms of China to overcome their poverty and strife. Impressed by these teachings and influenced by his sister, the king agreed to restructure the realm along more humanitarian and communal lines of agriculturalism. (Buganda adopts “Nongjia agriculturalist economy”, “Multiculturalism”, “Minimal wage regulations” for -2.67 EC, -0.55 MC)
Despite all reforms, the kingdom of Buganda is still too short agricultural supply, as the nation’s African ambitions force too many men to serve in the king’s levy. That demand created a supply when Maghrebi merchants started to direct their caravans to the heart of Central Africa. (Buganda: +17 HC, -0.75 MC; Maghreb: -17 HC, +0.75 MC)
Toucouleur emir Sidou I Tall has been replaced by his Egyptian-educated nephew Madani Ahmadu Tall, who went on to declaring that the holy realm of Toucouleur peoples has to wake up from its slumber and bring its Islamic values in line with the demands of time, starting a major wave of reforms across the empire. (Toucouleur Empire adopts “Economic statism”, “Labor unionism”, “Employment equity”, “Open class economy”, “Prohibition”, “Seniority pension”, “Veteran pension”, “Art endowment”, “Organized labor protection” for -73.38 HC, -0.91 IC, -68.44 EC, -0.32 MC)
“El Presidente” Francisco Solano Lopez of Gran Paraguay died peacefully in his sleep on September 17, 1894, surrounded by fame and reputation of the only South-American caudillo that could live to see his dictatorship turn into a true empire. Less than a week later, his son Juan Francisco Lopez was “elected” to be a president for life. Immediately after giving his credits to his magnificent father for creating the empire, Lopez Jr. went on to announce a grand series of reforms aimed to modernize his father’s creation, the Republic of Gran Paraguay. (Gran Paraguay adopts “Cultism and self-devotion", "Social messianism and utopian thought", "Hisbah and venture capital", "Mass culture and popular art", "Traditional art and culture”, “Socialism and class consciousness”, “Biologism and evolution theory”, “Modern archeology and anthropology”, “Constitutionalism”, “Kompromat and modern blackmail”, “Blowlamp brazing and soldering”, “Vulcanization of rubber”, “Synthetic materials”, “Downcycling”, “Water and land conservation”, “Dreisines and velocipedes”, “Judo and hand-to-hand combat training”, “Stud farms and horse-powered mobility”, “Zamburak and mounted fire support”, “Bicycle-riding and ski infantry”, “Field hospital system”, “Penicillin and antibiotics”, “Trench raiding”, “Field trenches”, “Defense in depth”, “Fortified districts”, “Mobile gun shields”, “Maskirovka and military camouflage”, “Dispersed combat tactics”, “Paramilitary organization”, Women’s battalions”, “Paddle steamers”, “Compound engine steamers”, “Dynamo and electrified ships”, “Sea lane interdiction”, “Unrestricted commerce raiding and submarine warfare”, “Amphibious operations”, “Decoy vessels” for -505.75 HC, -82.5 IC, -524.75 EC, -49.5 MC)
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erhaps, in an effort to appease the public before the upcoming elections, President Stone’s administration attempted to make the “private rails” more accessible to the lower classes of the society, mostly via personal deals with the Democrat Party donors. However, the success of that program was limited and shortliving, as most railway owners were prominent industrialists, mostly interested in improving their distribution and supply networks. As for passenger transportation, it remained mostly aimed at the upper middle and rich classes of the society, as the most geographically mobile; after all, the slavery-based economy of the Confederation leaves little need for the cheap workforce to travel - at least, from their employers’ perspective. Despite this shortcoming, the expansion of the “private rails” continued at a good speed, particularly helped by the state effort to standardize the quickly growing network. (Regional quest progress: 48.62%, Confederate States of America losses: -3.3 HC, -0.75 IC, -8.93 EC, -7.28 MC)
