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THE IMPERIAL FEDERATION

THE BEGINNING OF THE FEDERATION: 1919-1927

Although the Treaty of Versailles had ended the Great War, many were soon disillusioned by what they saw as a failure. Even Marshal Foch thought that another war would break out in 20 years. In Italy, the common people were angry with their politicians; they felt the bloodshed had not been worth the miniscule quantity of territory that Italy gained from participating. In Germany, many felt the treaty had been too harsh, and had humiliated them. Soviet Russia, meanwhile, was an unknown force; only time could tell how it would approach the world.

The first heartbeats of the Federation was probably with the foundation of the Imperial Movement in November 1919, which sought that the British Empire be run locally by parliaments while all the nations in it would convene at a united parliament for important affairs; war, treaties, trade etc. The movement believed that the British Empire would inevitably fall apart unless people within it were able to have some sort of self-governance while still owing allegiance to the King in London.

The movement grew rapidly, especially within the Liberal Party. It’s growth was helped by the perceived failure of the League of Nations; the USA had not joined as a member, and seeing as it appeared to be the Americans who were the future leading power in the world, it would be useless without them.

More and more MPs turned to the movement, both in Britain and in the Dominions. It’s birth can be said to have been on February 22nd 1921 when the Imperial Duties Act was passed in the British Parliament. Lloyd George had been forced by pressure within his own party to make such a move; if he didn’t, he could well be deposed at the next election. The act heavily increased duties on non-Empire goods. It was hoped that the dominions would respond positively to this move.

On March 7th 1921, King George V met with Canadian Prime Minister Arthur Meighen and asked him to put forward a similar act before the Canadian Parliament. Although Meighen believed in free trade, he knew that the act could benefit Canada greatly. He reluctantly abandoned his ideals and put the act before Parliament. By August, this pattern had emerged in every dominion.

Despite Lloyd George’s reservations, the act paid off and played a major role in his re-election victory in 1922. But then, a new challenge appeared to Lloyd George in the form of Ireland.

The Anglo-Irish Treaty was ratified in the same year, granting the Irish their own state; the Irish Free State. W.T Cosgrave became the first prime minister of the new state. However, Britain still kept a great measure of control over the Irish via the treaty; the Southern Ports were allowed to be used by British naval craft and Cosgrave had to accept the Imperial Duties Act. Ulster was also retained as part of the UK.

Nevertheless, the next Imperial Duties Act in 1923, restricted outside trade even more. This had a detrimental effect on the Irish economy and threatened to exacerbate anti-British sentiment in Ireland. However, the alternate road was one of economic isolation. Ireland, and the other dominions accepted the Act within the year.

Lloyd George finally retired in 1924, and a general election was called once more. Despite the Liberal’s popularity, the Conservatives, led by Stanley Baldwin won the election. Baldwin disliked the idea of the Federation, but he was the head of a minority government; he knew that if he tried to destroy the Federation, a Liberal-Labour coalition would defeat him at the next election. His situation was not helped by members of his own party, such as Winston Churchill, who loudly favoured the idea and could ditch him if he repealed the Duties Acts.

The Imperial Federation Act was brought before parliament on March 8th 1925. This was the act that would form the Imperial Federation. It was simultaneously brought before the Parliaments of every other dominion. The entire spring and summer was spent debating this piece of legislation until finally, the act was passed on September 8th 1925. Newfoundland, under heavy influence from the UK passed it on the 22nd.

Other dominions were less sure of the act. Prime Minister Mackenzie King, who had only recently come to power in Canada, called for a referendum on the act to be held in January 1926. Other countries simply debated the act in their own parliaments, including Australia, which narrowly passed the act on December 27th 1925 and New Zealand the next day.

The referendum in Canada resulted in a huge victory for the Federationists. 69% voted yes to the act and 26% no. Most of the opposition came from Franco-Canadians; Indeed, Quebec was the only state where the act did not receive a majority. On January 28th 1926, Canada passed the act.

This left Ireland and South Africa, who were far less enthusiastic about the Act. In Ireland, a deadlock had been reached over the Act. Fianna Fail, led by Eamon de Valera, vehemently opposed the act. Nevertheless, their opinions were thrust aside, and on March 1st 1926, Ireland reluctantly signed the act.

South Africa was led by James Barry Hertzog, an Afrikaner who despised Britain. This meant he did not look kindly upon the act. He announced that the National Party would oppose it in March, and was supported in this by the South African Labour Party. Only the South African Party, led by Jan Smuts, supported the Federation. As a result, Hertzog called a referendum in which federationism was defeated, despite gaining 44% of the vote. Hertzog rejected the Act on June 17th. This caused a crisis; some in the Dominions parliaments did not think it was a wise idea to start the Federation without South Africa.

Nevertheless, the show had to go on, and on September 1st 1926, King George V announced that the Federation would be formed on January 1st 1927, no matter what the South Africans thought. This went through, and on that day, the Federation was formed, and the first meeting was held in London.

THE PARLIAMENT OF THE FEDERATION AND THE FIRST ELECTION RESULTS: 1927

The Parliament was created on the same day as the Federation, and began its duties immediately. It ran along the lines of representatives, much like Members of Parliament. These were usually influential MPs from the main parties in that country’s parliament. However, a major point of contention was the fact that the head of government did not get an obligatory seat, and so might not appear at the Parliament. This became an early point of reform for the Parliament.

The head of the Imperial Federation was King George V, who was recognised by all states as the ruler of the Federation. The parliament had no head of government at the time. The seats were arranged not in the traditional opposition layout of the British Parliament, but instead in the newer hemicycle pattern. How seats were assigned by nationality became very controversial.

The seats were officially dispersed by ‘influence’. Britain, as the originator of the Empire, got 50 seats, the most of any countries in the Parliament. Canada and Australia both received 25. Ireland was given 15. The smaller and younger states of New Zealand and Newfoundland were allocated 10. Many Indians were angered that they were given no representation at the parliament, although they were officially represented by Britain.

‘Imperial Elections’ would determine the party, which would gain the most seats. They were shared out by percentage from the votes. At first there was no electoral pattern. Every country held its first elections on February 1st 1927, apart from Ireland, which held them on the 22nd.

The results of these elections are shown below:

BRITAIN
Labour Party – 23 seats
Conservative Party – 20 seats
Liberal Party – 6 seats
Independent – 1 seat

AUSTRALIA
Labor Party – 11 seats
Nationalist Party – 11 seats
Country Party – 3 seats

CANADA
Liberal Party – 14 seats
Conservative Party – 5 seats
United Farmers of Alberta – 3 seats
Progressives – 3 seats

IRELAND
Cummann na nGaedhael – 8 seats
Fianna Fail – 7 seats

NEW ZEALAND
Reform Party – 5 seats
United Party – 5 seats

NEWFOUNDLAND
United Newfoundland Party – 10 seats

THE FEDERATION EMERGES: 1927-1930

One of the chief areas of concern early on, for the Imperial Parliament was India. India had been given limited autonomy in 1919, as a diarchy, but this had disappointing results. By mandate of the king, the Imperial Federation Committee for the Self Determination of India (IMCOMIND) was established on March 5th 1927. This would play a key role in the politics of India over the next few years. The committee immediately set to work investigating the best course of action to be taken regarding Indian participation in the Federation. They were aided in this course by the election in November of the Labour party, who wanted to increase Indian autonomy. Ramsay MacDonald, the new prime minister, awaited the results of the investigation with interest.

The final product of this investigation was the draft of an act. This came to be known as the Government of India Act, 1928, and was put before the British and Imperial Parliaments on September 2nd 1928. The act aimed to give India representation in the Federation, and more autonomy. India would be granted 5 seats and would recruit a small army, to be known as the Royal Indian Defence Force (RIDF).

Conservative opinion was firmly against the act. When the act was sent to the House of Lords, they rejected it and this greatly concerned supporters of the act. Much to their disgust, a watered down version was put before Parliament in November, which would grant India 3 seats. It also removed any reference to an independent Indian army. The Westminster Parliament approved it and the Imperial Parliament voted to pass it, 86-49 on December 16th. And so it was that on Christmas Day 1928, the first Indian Imperial MPs took their seats in London.

More trouble had been brewing from opponents of the Federation. In October 1927, Prime Minister Hertzog of South Africa called for the Imperial Duties Acts to be repealed, although he failed to win much support for this. The Dail Eireann, the Irish Parliament, also saw a desperate gambit by Fianna Fail to pull Ireland out of the Federation in May 1928. This was squarely defeated.

But Hertzog had sealed his fate. On March 5th 1929, Hertzog raised a debate about the Federation. He did not expect what was to happen next. Jan Smuts began a scathing attack on Hertzog’s ‘myopic’ foreign policy, and was joined in this by many members of Hertzog’s own National Party. A good deal of them crossed the floor against him.

Two days later, shaken by the opposition, Hertzog called for a vote of confidence. He narrowly achieved a majority in his favour, but nevertheless felt that his position was in danger, and called for elections in October. In the election, Hertzog failed to win much support, and he was defeated by a South African Party-Labour Coalition. Jan Smuts became the new prime minister. In March 1st 1930, South Africa (having been granted 15 seats) was welcomed into the Imperial Federation.

By this time, two coalitions had formed in the Parliament. The Conservative Bloc, formed in December 1928 was made up of the right wing parties in the Parliament, while the Liberal Group, formed in June 1929, supported liberal ideals.

But it is now time to leave the Empire for a moment, to look at events worldwide…

AROUND THE WORLD: 1919-1930

Bitterness returned to the world after the 'failed' treaty was signed. Many countries felt their demands had not been satisfied and that they had been 'betrayed'. This feeling was especially prevalent in Italy, and it led to the demise of democratic government. Just a year after the treaty was signed, 1920, King Victor Emmanuel faced a coup d'etat led by Gabriele d'Annunzio which deposed him. The king without a kingdom fled to Austria, where he spent his final days until he died in 1944.

D'Annunzio immediately began a program of eroding Italy's democracy, and refused to call general elections. He also expanded Italy's army and navy. But all this was useless without having an actual enemy, and in 1924, the Albanian crisis broke out. D'Annunzio landed forces along the Albanian coast and even managed to seize the town of Vlore. However, Britain and France stood up to the Italians, and after 2 months of tense negotiation, Italy withdrew, humiliated. D'Annunzio was left to lick his wounds and make concillatory actions towards the dissapointed Italian people.

Japan also saw similar events. Several prime ministers reigned over the country, only to resign or be overthrown by the military. This pattern finally ended in 1929 when armed men broke into the office of Prime Minister Kiyoura Keigo and gunned him down. This may have been linked to the Prime Ministers plans to disarm bigger ships in the Navy, which was seen as a humiliation, but abided by international treaties Japan had signed.

Soviet Russia also took little action, with an internal power struggle leading to Trotsky becoming leader of the nation. For now, he looked westwards at the baltic states and Poland, coveting land for a larger Soviet Union.

In the USA, President Dawes, who became leader after Harding's sudden death in 1921, had ushered in a era of prosperity for America. He had not, however, made any moves to repeal prohibition, and was seen as soft abroad, where he urged that America should gain the friendship of Germany to ensure their own borders and that they would be able to stay out of foreign entanglements. Dawes was also incensed by the Imperial Federation which had done a good deal of damage to American businesses in the Empire. Nonetheless, when Dawes stepped down in 1929, he left a rich happy America, to be governed by his successor, Frank Lowden.

France saw a series of weak governments after Clemenceau's electoral defeat. This chain finally ended with the election of Aristide Briand in 1927 who promised to secure France's place in Europe. He did this by signing non aggression pacts with Italy and Germany who he saw as dangerous to France's future.

In Germany itself, a similiar situation occurred. No particular government was able to make an impact. Nevertheless, Germany's situation improved dramatically in the 1920's and Germany was soon on the path to becoming the industrial and financial heartland of Europe.

All this was cast aside in 1930...

BLACK FEBRUARY AND ITS CONSEQUENCES: 1930-1931

The stock market finally ended its gradual rise on February 17th 1930. Over the next five days, the situation got worse and worse. The public panicked and many shares were sold, which only exacerbated the already bad situation. It was also not helped by America's high tariffs. By October, Dow Jones was down to just 20 points, one of its lowest recordings since the 19th century. The fallout was devastating, not just in the USA but around the world.

In Germany, the economy was largely built on American loans. As a result, when this support was removed, the economy fell crashing down to the floor. Extremist parties gained far more of a following, with the Communist and National Socialists both making huge gains in that years elections. von Hindenburg, who had become President in 1926, declared martial law, and ordered the army to shoot down troublemakers. For the next few years, Hindenburg was more or less the dictator of Germany.

Italy hadnt escaped either. It's already fragile economy took a major blow, and voices calling for more extreme policies grew louder. D'Annunzio was forced to take a more assertive foreign policy, which resulted in a brief border war with Yugoslavia. It was clear that Italy had now been completely radicalised.

France's government, under Briand, collapsed because of the shock, and he was replaced with a right wing coalition led by Pierre Laval.

However, the Imperial Federation had not suffered as much as these countries. Out of the nations in the Federation, Canada took the worst hit, losing 20% of its GNP. Britain, Ireland and Australia also went through a small recession due to the crash. New Zealand was hardly affected at all, and South Africa was completely untouched, due to its isolation from other countries.

The Soviet Union also took little damage, as it had barely any trade relations with the outside world. Instead, the Soviet economy continued to grow, although collectivisation was limiting what progress could be made.

For Japan, however, this crash was the final blow to any political freedom in the nation. The military now exercised complete power, and begun planning to take Manchuria, rich in raw materials such as bauxite and coal.

The ultimate effect was the end of America's economic dominance of the world. It was now clear that New York would be superseded by London as the leading stock market in the world.

EVENTS IN THE FEDERATION AND THE CRISIS IN IRELAND: 1930-1932

Ever since its foundation, elections to the Imperial Parliament had been confusing and the schedule did not exist for them. Countries could hold them at different times. This was reorganised by the Imperial Election Act which set elections at January 1st 1931, and every three years afterwards.

The Emerald Isle was now going through a recession due to the crash, although this would be short-lived. This convinced Cosgrave even further that Ireland must remain in the Federation. However, in the 1930 election, Cummann na nGaedhael was defeated by de Valera’s Fianna Fail. The main reason for this was due to the recession, but de Valera decided to cut off his nose to spite his face. On November 15th, he demoted Ireland’s status in the Federation to ‘associate’ and repealed the Imperial Election Act. The fallout didn’t take long.

The Irish economy suffered even more, and de Valera became extremely unpopular for his policies. He called for a referendum on status in the Imperial Federation, which the Federationists won with 79% on January 14th 1931. De Valera resigned the next day. In the following election, Fianna Fail lost power and Cummann na nGaedhael were returned to power.

It was now decided that the Imperial Federation needed reform. But before we look at this, we must take a closer look at Japanese actions in China.

MANCHURIA IS CONQUERED: 1931-1932

On October 17th 1931, a fleet of ships was spotted off the coast of Lushun (Port Arthur). It was not long before the ships hit the beaches, and a huge mass of men scrambled out. These were marines of the Japanese Army, who had been tasked to take the key port for the Emperor and for Japan. They sweeped the city clean of resistance within a week.

At the same time, Japanese forces moved along the South Manchuria Railway towards Harbin and Changchun. Chinese resistance was scattered and ineffective, although the Chinese were not undetermined to defend their country. By the end of October, Manchuria had more or less submitted to the Japanese.

Immediately, this action sparked protest around the world. Frantic meetings were held in the League of Nations, where Japan was told it could not simply take Manchuria. Japan ignored the complaints of the League, and snubbed it by suspending its membership indefinitely on 12th December 1931.

In the Imperial Parliament, this also caused some panic. Australia and New Zealand were particularly frightened by the idea of Japan having an empire. They lobbied the Parliament for some sort of aid, some sort of resistance to Japanese aggression. Canada also, was concerned. Britain and South Africa regarded the situation with little but empty condemnations. Ireland, still an associate and thus little more than an observer, looked on without interest. The situation caused flaming rows in the Parliament, with Australia and New Zealand attacking British laxness over Japan. Finally, Britain agreed to transfer several light cruisers to the two nations over the next five years to strengthen their navies.

Nevertheless, little more than condemnation was given to Japan. The situation quickly lost attention as political crises in Germany and Italian military action took precedence.

REFORM OF THE IMPERIAL FEDERATION: 1932

Since it is founding, many had argued that the Imperial Federation needed to be reformed in some way. Many said that the Federation needed its own head of government to play some part in the running of the organisation. It was also argued that heads of government should have their own reserved seats. Thus, the Imperial Reform Act was put before Parliament in April of that year.

It was also joined by the Representation Act. For quite a time, politicians had been concerned that India could easily end up with 3 Hindus or 3 Muslims on all their seats. Therefore, this would grant at least one seat to a Hindu and one to a Muslim. Smaller changes were also made, but these were largely trivial.

In July, after 3 months of debate, the Reform act was signed by every state in the Federation except Ireland. The Representation Act was also signed a few days later, and both became official Federation law in August of the same year.

Meanwhile, in Ireland, the economic crisis had hit the country hard for its relatively weak economy. Cosgrave, now back in power, knew that if Ireland’s economy were to flourish, it would need help from the Empire, and so on October 30th 1932, Ireland rejoined the Imperial Federation as a full member. Ireland also promised to pass the Imperial Reform Act, although this was not actually done until 1941.

Perhaps the biggest reform was the creation of the position Chairman of the Federation. The first elections for this esteemed post would be held in December 1933. Both coalitions had already decided to participate as single parties for this election, which meant there would be two candidates. We shall return to this later, but first we must look at the deteriorating situation in China, and the spark that led to war in the Far East.

JAPAN ATTACKS CHINA: 1933-1934

On June 1st 1933, Japan wrote a communiqué to its ambassadors in several countries, lambasting Chinese ‘terrorism’. In the document, Japan accused Chinese guerrillas of destroying Japanese railways in Korea and Manchuria and said that these were ‘acting with the consent of the government’. Just a few hours later, while it was still dark, Japanese foot soldiers struck into the Jehol, and landed near Shanghai and Wenzhou. The Second Sino-Japanese war had begun.

China was largely unprepared; Kai-Shek had been too busy fighting warlords in Xibei San Ma and Yunnan to pay much attention to the Japanese threat, however serious it was. Consequently, when the Japanese did strike, the Chinese forces were unprepared and Peking was taken within the month. What happened next ushered in a new age of warfare.

On June 8th, Japanese bombers appeared over Guangzhou. Tons of bombs were dropped on the city, some of them incendiary. The city was alight, and thousands of civilians died. The actions were captured in newsreels of the time; dead bodies littering the city, refugees flooding the roads to escape from the chaos, ruins. All of these shocked an unprepared western audience.

But the action did not go ignored. The USA issued a statement of protest on June 2nd, as did the Imperial Federation. The latter, however, called an emergency conference for June 5th, and it was here that a more punishing line of action was adopted. The Federation agreed to place an embargo on Japan by a vote of 147-6. Japan still traded a significant quantity of goods with the Federation, so this was a blow to the economy. It further incensed Japan’s military rulers who began planning reprisal. To add insult to the injury, the Federation agreed to give monetary and military aid to China, the former via the Conversions Act (a piece of legislation that allowed China to trade for British weapons in its own money, rather than the pound sterling) and the latter via the new Lashio Road. The road funnelled supplies into China and proved to be the lifeblood of the Chinese military.

Other countries did not leave China unaided either. Trotsky had long been worried about Japanese militarism, and at this point he decided they had gone too far. The Soviet Union began supplying weapons and industrial supplies to China for very cheap prices. He also ordered the mobilisation of the Far Eastern Military District, but gave it strict orders not to attack. Nevertheless, this worried the Japanese who were forced to keep some forces along the borders with Russia and Mongolia.

Volunteers also flocked to the Chinese ranks, many of them Americans and Germans. The latter continued to aid China by training their army; Hindenburg, who by now had emergency powers and was practically dictator of Germany, saw a potential ally in the Chinese. The League took its usual course of action, but by this point, they were largely ignored.

The military campaign in China continued to favour the Japanese however. By the beginning of 1934, the Japanese had secured almost all of China’s coastline, as well as a frontline stretching from the island of Hainan, to the pivotal point at Changsha, and up to Xian. The Chinese soon took up defences in this area, and the Japanese were unable to advance any further. They had already been slowed by the Chinese blowing up their own dams and now they were unable to break through, and they were facing Partisan uprisings around the country. Japan switched to new tactics, trying to break Chinese morale. This involved brutal tactics such as murder, strategic bombing and atrocities. But this backfired, and actually encouraged the Chinese to fight on, knowing that if they surrendered, they would be given no quarter.

AUTONOMY FOR INDIA: 1933-1934

With the Far East turning alight, several Indian and British politicians put the most radical Government of India act yet before the parliament. It proposed an Indian Assembly would have some say in the governing of the country, although they would mainly be consulted for advice and approval. India would gain two more seats at the Imperial Parliament. In addition, at the behest of the British section involved in drawing up the act, Burma was to be separated from India and ran separately. Most importantly, Indians would be allowed, for the first time, to elect local officials.

The act was highly controversial. Many British members did not want to see India, the jewel in the crown, taken even more from British control. There was also the issue of Burma. Who would govern it now? Would it have seats at the Imperial Parliament? This issue also pressed hard upon the Parliament.

Through negotiation, the conservatives managed to obtain several amendments to the act that made it less damaging. The biggest change was that the Indian Assembly would be formed, but would only be able to give advice and was little more than an observer in what actually happened. But, India managed to make gains elsewhere. Instead of getting 5 seats, they managed to wind up with 8, which nearly put them at equal with New Zealand, part of the White Commonwealth. Burma was granted a single seat, after much debate, which would be occupied by the Governor appointed from London.

The act was finally approved in May 1934. It was a major step in Indian autonomy, although some of the more radical Indian politicians such as Mahatma Gandhi were disappointed. Gandhi was hoping for an independent India, but it was clear that India would probably only gain such independence slowly, and even then would probably remain in the Imperial Federation. Despite his hunger strikes and the Salt March he made in 1932, it was a fact that Indian independence still looked very distant.

EGYPTIAN INDEPENDENCE: 1918-1934

In Egypt, Britain faced a daunting challenge. Many Egyptians were nationalists and wanted to be rid of the British. Britain knew that if it wanted to keep any control over Egypt, they would either have to fight a bloody guerrilla war, or they could grant Egypt more autonomy. Wisely, the latter was chosen. In September 1924, Egypt was granted independence and was given control over almost all territory it claimed, apart from the Sudan, which it governed with the British and the Suez Canal which remained the site of a British garrison. King Fuad assumed power over Egypt.

Nevertheless, the new king struggled with his prime ministers. His constant attempts to interfere in parliament, and change the constitution increased anger towards him. In the elections of 1926, the Wafd party, a nationalist anti-royalist party won the majority of the seats. Fuad attempted to annul the election results, and Britain, seeing the nation fall apart, decided to step in. In 1927, Britain landed a division at Alexandria, and began a march on Cairo. The king was shocked at this action, and nearly abdicated. Instead, he signed a new constitution, which took more powers away from the king.

He needn’t have bothered interfering in the election, for afterwards, the Wafd party began to wane in popularity, and in 1930, the king was able to call an election which the Wafd Party lost to the Ittihad Party, which was pro-royalist. Britain began making moves towards making Egypt a dominion; after all, India was on that path which didn’t make it unique. In 1931, Egypt applied for membership in the Federation despite the Wafd Party’s loud protests. In 1933, this was approved and Egypt took its place in London with 2 seats (increased to 5 after the Representation Act was signed by Egypt). Egypt was able to participate in the first elections for Chairman of the Federation.

Although there would be many challenges to Egyptian membership from anti-Royalist parties, it was hoped that Egypt could be kept in the Federation by the economic boom it would produce.

IMPERIAL GENERAL ELECTION OF 1934 PART 1 - CANDIDATES AND POSITIONS: 1933

The parties that participated in the Election of 1934 all had different aims and different positions. At the outset of the election, both coalitions, and a few non-associated parties all searched for a candidate.

The Conservative Bloc found this candidate in the form of Winston Spencer Churchill. Churchill had called for a tougher stance on Japanese and Italian violations of treaties, and he had called for rearmament. Once considered a radical, and even a warmonger, he was now seen as correct by many. Churchill campaigned on a position of a more centralised empire, a tougher stance on aggression and a beginning to rearmament. He was also opposed to giving the Indians any more autonomy.

The Liberal Group found its own leader. Jack Lang, an Australian Labor Party politician, widely considered a radical for his economic policies which defied those of the government. Many liberals had little hope in Lang and some liberal parties even crossed the floor against him. From the beginning, Lang didn’t get any advantage.

Then there were the third parties. Fianna Fail was running, for example, alone with Eamon de Valera as its candidate. De Valera attempted to try and create an anti-federationist alliance with the Egyptians and some of the Indians, but this fell through because of his insistence on him being leader of the alliance. This was also weakened by the ‘abstentionist’ parties, who refused to take their seats at parliament, and thus could not argue in favour of their arguments.

Nationality also decided many of the issues. Churchill managed to alienate the Indians by refusing to grant them any more autonomy, and was also reluctant to negotiate with republican Irish parties. Lang, meanwhile, had such outlandish policies that the moderates, who would be vital to any victory, were sent into the arms of the Conservatives.

It would be an interesting election, and would certainly reveal many strengths and weaknesses of the Federation.

IMPERIAL GENERAL ELECTION OF 1934 PART 2 – THE ELECTION: 1933-1934

His mind was like a kind of extinct sulphur pit
-Winston Churchill on Jack Lang

Election debates began on November 30th 1933. Winston Churchill immediately went on the attack, criticising his opponents policies; he said in his first speech, pointedly ‘Is this a man you would trust with the Federation?’ Lang retaliated by accusing Churchill of being an enemy of the workers and a warmonger.

The MPs were encouraged to ask the candidates questions, and one of the main points was trade. Lang argued that tariffs needed to be higher to protect the Federation from being overrun by ‘Johnny Foreigners’ and their companies. Churchill defended the current tariff level and said that raising the tariffs any higher would be detrimental to both Britain and her allies.

Churchill sought the support of British political parties in particular, because he knew that they would make a huge difference to the results. The Conservatives and Liberals both supported him. Labour, which had recently lost office to Stanley Baldwin’s conservatives, was unsure. The National Liberals supported Lang because of his position on trade.

Another issue was Japan and Italy’s unprovoked aggression against China and Albania. Lang argued that a deal should be struck with the Soviets to counter their ambitions. Churchill, ever the traditionalist, looked to France and the US for aid, should a war break out. Australia and New Zealand were far nearer to Japan than Britain was, and Churchill said that if elected he would encourage military support and sales to the two nations. This was the deciding factor for many parties there. India, though close to Japan, was more interested in its self-determination. In particular, Gandhi encouraged Indians to support Lang.

The final results were made public on January 1st 1934

UNITED KINGDOM: 50 Seats:
Conservatives – 22 seats
22 for Conservative Bloc
Labour – 19
13 for Conservative Bloc
6 for Liberal Group
Liberal – 7
6 for Conservative Bloc
1 for Liberal Group
National Liberal – 2
2 for Liberal Group

Total =
Conservative Bloc - 41
Liberal Group – 9

CANADA: 25 Seats:
Conservatives – 14 seats
14 for Conservative Bloc
Liberals – 11 seats
9 for Conservative Bloc
2 for Liberal Group

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 23
Liberal Group – 2

AUSTRALIA: 25 Seats:
Labor – 13 seats
13 for Liberal Group
United Australia – 8 seats
8 for Conservative Bloc
Country Party – 3 seats
3 for Conservative Bloc

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 11
Liberal Group – 13

SOUTH AFRICA: 15 Seats:
South African Party – 10 seats
10 for Conservative Bloc
National Party – 4 seats
3 for Afrikaner Movement
1 for Liberal Group
Labor Party – 1 seat
1 for Afrikaner Movement

Total =
Afrikaner Movement – 4
Conservative Bloc – 10
Liberal Group – 1

IRELAND: 15 Seats:
Cumann Na nGaedhael – 8 seats
3 for Conservative Bloc
3 for United Irish Republic Alliance
2 for Liberal Group
Fianna Fail – 7 seats
6 for United Irish Republic Alliance
1 for Conservative Bloc

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 4
Liberal Group – 2
United Irish Republic Alliance – 9

NEW ZEALAND: 10 Seats:
Labour – 8 seats
7 for Liberal Group
1 for Conservative Bloc
Reform – 2 seats
2 for Conservative Bloc

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 3
Liberal Group – 7

NEWFOUNDLAND: 10 Seats:
United Newfoundland Party – 10 seats
10 for Conservative Bloc

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 10

INDIA: 3 Seats:
Independents – 3
3 for Liberal Group

Total =
Liberal Group – 3

EGYPT: 2 Seats:
Wafd – 1
1 for Egyptian Independence Bloc
Ittihad – 1
1 for Liberal Group

RESULTS:
Conservative Bloc (Winston Churchill) – 102
(Wins constituent nations of United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa and Newfoundland)
Liberal Group (Jack Lang) – 38
(Wins constituent nations of India, Australia and New Zealand; tied in Egypt)
United Irish Republic Alliance (Eamon de Valera) – 9
(Wins constituent nation of Ireland)
Afrikaner Movement (James Barry Hertzog) – 4
Egyptian Independence Bloc (Saad Zaghlul) – 1
(Ties constituent nation of Egypt

Winston Churchill was victorious. He now prepared for his first 6 year term.

THE IMPERIAL SEARCH FOR ALLIES – MIDDLE EAST/AFRICA: 1934

One of Churchill’s first moves as Chairman was to make gestures of friendship towards states in Europe and Asia that could help Britain. Churchill knew it would be beneficial to have strong allies to aid in what he saw as the ‘inevitable war’ with Italy and/or Japan. He first went on a tour of the Middle East and Africa, to meet the leaders of the nations there that could give Britain valuable aid.

First on the list was Cairo. Churchill was worried about the lukewarm, and even hostile reception the Federation had received from the Egyptian public. Many Egyptian nationalists resented Britain and wanted Britain to cede the Suez Canal Zone and the Sudan to Egypt. And so, on April 18th 1934, Winston Churchill met with King Fuad I of Egypt. Fuad expressed concern over Italian actions, pointing out the weak dispositions of British forces, and the lack of an effective Egyptian Army. Most of the Egyptian Army was militia, and much of it was in the Sudan.

Churchill stayed in Egypt for 3 days, and in this time he managed to secure an Egyptian promise to support the Imperial Federation if Italy attacked. In return, Britain was to move station more troops in Alexandria, and would aid Egypt if attacked. Britain also promised to give Egypt more control over the Sudan, but it would remain under Anglo-Egyptian condominium.

Next on the list was Baghdad. The ailing king, Faisal, was far more obstinate. Iraq had only gained full independence in 1930, and even then, Britain continued to control many parts of Iraq including the oil. Faisal questioned Churchill as to why Iraq should help Britain fight a ‘European war’. For 2 days, Churchill argued with the king. Finally, on April 23rd, Churchill reached a small agreement, after gaining the consent of Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin. Britain would cede small parts of Kuwait, along the border to Iraq. In return, Iraq would give support to Britain, and would join the Federation as an associate member. The last point was argued especially fiercely, but was agreed in the end, in return for widening Iraq’s coastline on the Persian Gulf.

On April 24th, Churchill arrived in Riyadh to meet King ibn Saud of Nejd. Churchill aimed to settle the border disputes between Oman, Yemen and Nejd. It was hoped that this would keep Nejd from aiding the Italians. The meeting concluded happily, with Nejd agreeing to hold a conference with the two states shortly, to delineate the border.

The next day, Churchill flew to Taiz, and meet the Sultan of Oman, Taimur bin Feisal and the King of Yemen, Ahmad bin Yahya. Bin Feisal was enthusiastic; he still felt he owed the British for aiding his sultanate against an internal revolt in 1915-1920. Feisal promised to declare war on Italy if it attacked Britain, and even offered to send a regiment of cavalry to aid the British. Bin Yahya more lukewarm, but also offered support to the British.

The final stop was Addis Ababa. There, he met Emperor Haile Selassie who had recently gained power. Out of all the parties involved, Selassie was the most concerned about Italy. He asked for Britain to aid his country if it were attacked and also asked for modern equipment to train his army with. Churchill promised to aid Abyssinia in any way that he had in his power.

On May 1st 1934, Churchill returned home. Next, it was clear he would have to secure allies against Japan as well.

REARMING THE FEDERATION: 1934-1937

Churchill began pushing for rearmament almost from day one. He urged for the RAF to be expanded, and also spoke favourably of expanding the Fleet Air Arm, pointing out its significance against large navies. He also pointed out that the China Station of the Royal Navy would need expansion to combat the new Japanese battleships. Most of the station comprised of lighter ships, and it was argued that the Japanese fleet would be able to easily destroy the force.

Baldwin was reluctant, still trying to seek some sort of agreement with Italy and Japan. However, d’Annunzio’s increasingly volatile tone encouraged him to begin rearmament. Several older ships of the Royal Navy were refitted and new ships were launched, including the Royal Navy’s latest carrier, the Royal Oak. Parts of the home fleet were moved to the Mediterranean and Pacific.

The Fleet Air Arm was equipped with new Shark biplanes. The RAF itself gained several new plane designs, including the Supermarine Hydra, the RAF’s brand new single seat fighter. As well as this, a Supermarine Sea Hydra was designed for use with the Fleet Air Arm. As Italy grew more and more aggressive, production was increased, and by 1937, these were in significant numbers.

The Army also had a great overhaul. It was reorganised, with new tanks being added to infantry division as support. The army was also expanded, due to more and more recruits rallying to the flag.

But Britain was not the only country rearming. The entire federation began rearmament in some way. Canada took similar steps to Britain, including acquiring licensing rights for several British fighter aircraft so it could build its own force from scratch. Australia and New Zealand were both given new cruisers to bolster their navies. South Africa increased its army in size, and also made a promise to Britain to fight the Italians in Africa, should war break out. Egypt also recruited more men, worrying it was in imminent danger.

Perhaps the most worrying behaviour was displayed by Iraq. Faisal had died in 1935, and his son Ghazi became king. Ghazi was passionately nationalist and anti-British. He soon began recruiting a larger army, and also was believed to have held talks with the Italians, much to Britain’s fury.

By 1937, the Federation was at an acceptable level of military size and equipment, but had still not reached perfection. It was hoped that when the new equipment was first fired in anger, it would prove effective against the enemy.

THE USA: 1930-1937

The prime scapegoat for America’s economic meltdown was, of course, President Frank Lowden. Lowden knew that his chances of being re-elected were slim to nil. Lowden decided to repeal tariff legislation, but by now, the world economy was shattered and there was little money to be made. Lowden nevertheless, stood for re-election in 1932.

Running against him was Huey Long. Long promised to relieve the recession and to create new jobs. Despite Long’s radical views, he won the election and set about work trying to fix America’s economy. On winning, he redistributed rich money to benefit those hit worst by the Depression and raised taxes on corporations to a unprecedented high level. This caused much controversy, with many accusing him of communist sympathies.

Long also attempted to abolish the Federal Reserve System. He accused it of being responsible for the collapse of the American economy and were it not for the powers of the Senate, could easily have done so. For the rest of his term, he wrestled his points with Senate, but failed to relieve the Depression which he had promised to end. Instead, he had merely deprived the rich of their money, and created an angry voter bloc against him. And as the election drew near, a new crisis broke out.

Long was found to have bribed several officials for certain purposes in his election campaign. When Congress discovered this, several members, under oath, accused Long of bribery and called for his impeachment. A lengthy trial proceeded, which lasted several months in early 1936. Eventually, on May 25th, Long was acquitted, but nevertheless, his reputation was ruined. He lost the 1936 election to the Republican candidate, Arthur Vandenberg. Whether America could completely recover from the mismanagement of the 1930s was questionable.

THE FINAL MONTHS OF PEACE: January 1st 1937-November 17th 1937

As 1937 opened, most of the world was still at peace, apart from China and Japan. The Federation was still preparing for war. Most saw a war in 1937 as unlikely. Their expectations were about to be proven wrong.

On February 4th, Gabriele d’Annunzio spoke to a crowd in Naples. It was here that he levelled an astonishing accusation for the first time. He claimed that Greece was funding partisans in Albania, and was actively encouraging resistance to Italian rule there. He also accused the Greeks of moving warships around the Dodecanese. He told the crowd that if Greece failed to end its behaviour, Italy would be forced to ‘punish impudent Hellas’

The United Kingdom objected to this, and, in April, guaranteed Greek independence to deter Italian aggression. D’Annunzio was outraged. He accused the UK of ‘sponsoring piracy of the most brutal kind’. He also announced his patience was wearing thin with the Greeks, who had denied the claims and refused to cede any territory as ‘reparations’.

Stanley Baldwin met with Greek Prime Minister Themistoklis Sophoulis and d’Annunzio on August 15th 1937 and tried to bring about an agreement between the two men but according to Baldwin’s memoirs, ‘Annunzio (sic) was continuously obstructive. When faced with the threat of war, he was characteristically fatalist, and seemed to believe destiny had already granted him her approval’. Unbeknownst to Sophoulis and Baldwin, d’Annunzio had already prepared a war plan for the invasion of Greece.

By October, tensions were running high. Several MPs levelled accusations at Baldwin of being weak and failing to take a tough stance on Italy. He was reluctant to declare war. Finally, on October 29th, he resigned, saying he had no choice. Sir John Simon, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, took power the next day and on November 6th, announced that if Italy invaded Greece, Britain would be at war. Simon contacted Leon Blum, the French prime minister, next. Simon was concerned that because a rift had formed between Britain and France, having begun in Laval’s premiership, France may stay neutral. Blum, after much procrastination, announced his support for the British position on November 10th and on the next day, Armistice Day ironically, extended his own guarantee to Greece. But d’Annunzio already had his mind set on conquest.

A last minute effort by President Vandenberg of the US to organise a peace conference in Zurich failed when d’Annunzio failed to arrive. On November 14th, Britain was put on a war footing, and Simon formed a war cabinet, which included the return of Anthony Eden to the Foreign Office. The next day, Churchill put forward a resolution before the Imperial Federation, suggesting each member break relations with Italy over the crisis.

Finally, on 17th November 1937, Italian mountain forces entered Greek territory and 19 years after the end of the first war, Europe was at war once again…

THE WORLD REACTS: 17th November 1937-20th November 1937

The Imperial Federation: Winston Churchill called an emergency meeting in London to discuss the Greek situation. At the beginning, he made a speech criticising Italy, and asking for all states in the Federation to declare war on Italy. He also announced that he had received a telephone call that morning informing him that Britain was already at war with Italy. Australia and Canada had already made similar declarations.

Within three days, the entire Federation had declared war on Italy, apart from Egypt, which only broke relations, and Iraq, which quit the Federation altogether. The latter’s actions caused much suspicion.

France: France also declared war on 17th November, and immediately begun mobilisation.

Germany: President Hindenburg announced neutrality.

USA: President Vandenberg declared neutrality, but also said he would be willing to mediate a ceasefire between the conflicting parties if asked.

Yugoslavia: Yugoslavia broke relations with Italy and mobilised its forces.

Other nations: Oman, Yemen and Nepal also declared war on Italy, while Bhutan severed relations. Switzerland announced neutrality, and warned that any soldiers entering its territory would be interned. Austria, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and Norway all announced their own neutrality.

THE FIRST ACTIONS AT SEA AND THE BATTLE OF OTRANTO: November 17th 1937-December 31st 1937

At the outset of the war, the Mediterranean Fleet began sailing towards the coast off Southern Italy, to disrupt Italy’s supplies. The Regia Marina knew this, and manoeuvred its ships to counteract this action.

First blood was drawn on the 21st November, when the HMS Talisman, a British destroyer of the class of the same name, was sunk by a group of Italian cruisers. For the next few days, neither side committed their forces to a large battle in the Mediterranean, instead preferring forays. Finally, on 4th December, several of the bigger ships of the Mediterranean fleet set out.

While moving around the straits of Otranto, they were encountered by an Italian heavy cruiser squadron, comprising of the Savoia, Bolzano and Perugia. These ships were protecting supplies to Albania, and consequently, to be used against Greece. Pitted against them was 4 British cruisers and 3 destroyers, the leader of which was the HMS Caledon. The Italian naval commander, di Rimini, could not see much of the squadron, and believed he was up against a weaker force.

The British ships opened fire, and for the next half an hour, shells were fired between each side with little or no effect. Then, 32 minutes into battle, the Perugia took a hit which took the engine out. More and more shells rained down on the hapless ship.

Rimini was now worried. He now saw that his forces were outgunned and outnumbered. He decided to fall back to a safe port. But, he instead fled with his flagship, the Savoia, and left the Bolzano to hold and buy time for the rest of the group. Meanwhile, Italian aircraft had now entered the fray, and began strafing the British squadron to draw them off. It was here that the HMS Stafford took a direct hit on a machine gun reel, which exploded. In minutes, the entire ship was alight, and sailors abandoned the ship.

Only this intervention saved the Bolzano from being sunk, but it did not save the Perugia. It was hit again, and this time, it turned, and sank. Many of the sailors drowned, while a few others were picked up later by Italian rescue ships.

Both sides now withdrew from battle. Otranto had been inconclusive, but it had certainly shown that British seapower was still alive. The Mediterranean fleet now took more precautions, and soon the mighty Royal Oak would arrive to support the forces in the Mediterranean.

ITALIAN INVASION OF EGYPT: November 17th 1937-December 20th 1937

On 19th November, Italian forces entered Egypt, and by the next day, had seized the small mud hut town of Sollum. Edmund Ironside, the commander of British forces in the Middle East, had already decided to pull back from the frontier and set up a new defensive line at Fuka. This meant that Sidi Barrani also fell without a shot being fired.

British forces in the area were weak. A single corps of three divisions were at Alexandria, while another division was at Suez, and another in Palestine. The Italians, under Bergonzoli, had 10 divisions. Ironside’s plan was to hold the line until the Australian and New Zealander forces arrived to reinforce him. Nevertheless, the Royal Warwickshire Fusiliers had lagged behind, and were still at Mersa Matruh when the Italians reached the town on November 28th. They faced a fierce onslaught, and on the 30th, became cut off from the other British forces. Ironside took a risk, and disregarding orders to stay put, launched an attack towards Mersa Matruh.

Evidently, the Italians had become overstretched. They were still being supplied from Tobruk, in Libya. Despite facing 5 divisions, Ironside’s single division managed to puncture a gap in the Italian lines, and force Bergonzoli to pull back several miles. On December 3rd, British forces met up with the Fusiliers once again. Nevertheless, the Italian offensive was restarted very soon, and it was now the British troops turn to be humbled. British forces withdrew from Mersa Matruh on the 8th, and were even beaten back from Fuka on the 13th. The Italians were now driving on El Alamein.

At this point, Egypt, under much British pressure, declared war on Italy. This added another 2 divisions to Ironside’s force, while a third was sent to the Sudan. Although the Egyptian forces were unexperienced, Ironside hoped to use his new numbers to his advantage.

On the 18th, Italian forces launched another attack towards El Alamein, but this time, failed to defeat the British. Ironside, now settled in for the winter and began devising plans of his own.

THE HORN OF AFRICA: November 17th 1937-December 31st 1937

The day after the war began, Italy executed its plan in East Africa. Italy invaded Abyssinia from Somalia and Eritrea. At the same time, Italian forces also entered British Somaliland and Djibouti. The Allies were taken by surprise. Most of the forces in East Africa were Kenyan and Sudanese colonials, who were not as well trained as British and Italian forces. The only British division was evacuated from Berbera in British Somaliland, as Italian forces entered the colony. French forces in Djibouti managed to hold parts of the capital.

By December, British forces had entered Abyssinia to defend it against further Italian advances. Much of the defensive terrain had already fallen to the Italians, although Addis Ababa was still in Allied hands. By the end of the month, the counterattack was already under way. Omani and British forces landed at Mogadishu, while the Kenyan colonials advanced into Italian Somalia. This took Graziani by surprise. He began to withdraw from much of Somalia, and decided to set up a new defensive line at Harar.

To divert British forces, Italian troops launched a small offensive into the Sudan towards Kassala. This was met by fierce resistance from Egyptian and Sudanese forces. Indeed, many Italian commanders were surprised at their courage and valour. They soon routed the lacklustre Italian offensive.

By this time, ANZAC troops were also arriving, and a South African division had already been fighting. It was no longer a matter of if Italian East Africa would fall, but when.

WAR IN NORTH AFRICA: December 20th 1937-April 1st 1938

The Imperial Federation had already begun planning a counterstroke across the Western Desert. Meanwhile, Italian forces launched their first attacks into French Tunisia, and by the new year, had defeated the French, who were now falling back to Algeria. Bergonzoli, overconfident in his triumph, attempted to assault Algeria itself, and his forces ended up in a fierce battle at Constantine. Soon, French tanks and infantry routed the Italian invaders, and Bergonzoli, after another offensive towards Bone, dug in.

By now, however, Australian, South African and New Zealander forces had arrived in Egypt, bringing the total strength to 9 divisions against Bergonzoli’s 13. A new offensive, Operation Sword, was launched on January 15th 1938, and quickly, the Italian lines shattered. At this point, The British also took another gamble. A division’s worth of troops were landed at Derna in Italian Libya. They took the town easily, but instead of striking out, were ordered to dig in and await the offensive from Egypt. This would prove to be a mistake.

Mersa Matruh fell to Federation forces on January 20th, followed by Sidi Barrani on the 26th. As the British forces approached Sollum, they soon ran into trouble. To breakthrough into Libya, they had to get through the Halfaya Pass, which was well fortified. Ironside threw all the force he could at the Pass, but with little result except high casualties. Meanwhile, the forces in Derna were being pushed closer and closer to the beaches once again.

Finally, Halfaya Pass was breached in March by a fierce Egyptian, Australian and British attack. Bardia soon fell on March 19th, and Tobruk was surrounded and captured on March 30th. The forces in Derna were able to break out, and in Algeria, British and Canadian forces were now assisting the French. The war was going grimly for the Italians, when astonishing news came from the Middle East…

DRAMA IN BAGHDAD: 17th November 1937-June 5th 1938

On hearing of the outbreak of war, Ghazi I dismissed his pro-British prime minister Nuri as-Said, and invited a group of Iraqi nationalists to form a new government. This caused much consternation in Britain, but not as much as Iraq’s subsequent departure from the Imperial Federation. An Indian division was redirected to Kuwait because of concerns of Iraqi belligerence.

On 21st March, without warning, Italian and Iraqi aircraft bombed the RAF airbase at Habbaniyah, and Iraqi forces began advancing into Kuwait. The next day, Iraq declared war on the allies. Immediately, several regiments of Omanis who were going to be sent to East Africa, were redirected to Kuwait, as well as a New Zealander division.

The Iraqi offensive in Kuwait had halted by April 2nd, with Kuwait City still outside Iraqi control. Ghazi became concerned; he had not counted on the Federation having so many troops in Kuwait, and now the tide was turning against him. As if this wasn’t unhelpful enough, Nejdian forces also allegedly intervened, entering parts of south-east Iraq. And on April 8th, the New Zealanders landed at Umm Qasr. The Iraqi position had become untenable, and their air force had been nearly completely obliterated by RAF bombing.

Basra fell on the 13th, and from here Federation forces travelled by the Euphrates, reaching Baghdad on April 30th. After a brief battle, an Iraqi officer emerged from the German embassy, and offered an armistice. On May 1st, this came into effect.

Iraq was forced to return all the territory granted to it by Britain during Churchill’s negotiations, with the exception of a small portion of land in the extreme north. It was also made to rejoin the Imperial Federation (this time as a full member, with 3 seats.) and to declare war on Italy, which it promptly did on May 17th. Faisal II became king of Iraq (Ghazi was found dead, having poisoned himself as Imperial forces entered Baghdad) and Nuri as-Said formed a new government.

Iraq made small contributions to the Imperial war effort for the rest of the war, such as the deployment of several infantry brigades in North Africa.

THE HORN OF AFRICA AND THE WAR AT SEA: January 1st 1938-August 1st 1938

Events in the Horn of Africa had gone equally badly. Although Graziani was confident that the Harar line was strong enough to hold for the winter, an Australian offensive on the flank of the line, soon destroyed his confidence in the line. By March, his forces had been repulsed from Ethiopia, and were left holding on to Eastern Eritrea, and parts of Djibouti.

Graziani did well in holding the port of Assab, his main base, but ultimately, was unable to do anything but await capture or death. His supplies were cut, his forces were surrounded and outclassed, and he was weary of the fighting. The destruction of his pocket began on April 2nd. Determined attacks by the French, Australian, Egyptian, British and Indian forces were causing him heavy casualties, and his lines were nearly undefendable. He had only 2 divisions left, out of his original 7.

Knowing he had lost, Graziani surrendered his forces on June 17th to avoid any more slaughter. Some fighting continued until Christmas, but this was done by unorganised guerrillas with no central command.

The war at sea had also gone very badly for the Italians. They had sent out another large fleet towards Greece on February 22nd, to challenge the British. This worked well, for very soon, aircraft from the Fleet Air Arm were bombarding the Italian ships. These aircraft came from the HMS Royal Oak. For the next week, the Italians fell back towards Italy, trying to lure the British into a trap. They did not expect that this would simply exacerbate their fate.

On the British side was the Royal Oak, 3 battleships, 9 cruisers and 25 destroyers. The Italians had sent out a large battleship/cruiser force, comprised of 13 ships. These were commanded from the RM Roma. They also had air support from the Italian mainland.

The battle took place on February 28th. The British fleet moved into the Gulf of Taranto and began bombarding the Italian fleet. The Regia Aeronautica soon made their presence known, and they drew first blood by sinking the HMS York, a heavy cruiser. The Fleet Air Arm, as well as RAF aircraft from Malta intervened, and a fierce air battle broke out over the Gulf.

However, the British took the advantage after this disappointing start. The RM Liguria soon sunk, and was followed by the RM Impero, one of the Italian battleships. By the end of the day, much of the Italian 1st Cruiser Squadron was at the bottom of the ocean, along with much of their battleship force. The Vittorio Veneto, escaped this fate, and headed back for port, badly scarred but still capable of battle.

The British had also suffered losses, including the HMS Prince of Wales, one of their battleships. But they were nowhere near as bad as those of the Italians. 76 British aircraft had been destroyed, and 166 Italian aircraft had also been destroyed.

Over the next few months, the Italian fleet was reduced further, including the sinking of the Vittorio Veneto on May 5th by air attacks and submarines. By August, the Italian fleet was devoid of battleships, and now was mainly a destroyer/cruiser force.

WAR IN NORTH AFRICA, GREECE AND THE DODECANESE CAMPAIGN: November 17th 1937-February 1st 1939

Throughout August, the North African pockets were destroyed and Balbo announced his resignation in response. He was replaced by Vittorio Ambrosio. However, the campaign was already lost. Sirte fell on September 8th 1938, and by November, Tripoli itself was in danger. The French had also pushed from the west, and the two forces met on December 6th 1938. Two days later, Italian forces in Tripoli surrendered, ending the North African campaign.

The Greek campaign had been a failure for the Italians. They had not been able to gain much ground at all, and in fact the Greeks had turned them back into Albania. Supported by British and Canadian forces, they ended the Italian presence in the Balkans on September 15th 1938.

The final campaign of the war began on January 5th 1939. British, Canadian and Greek troops landed on Kos and Rhodes in the Dodecanese. From here, they were able to land small forces to take each island from the Italians. When Rhodes itself fell on January 25th, a group of military officers in Rome broke into the home of d’Annunzio and shot him down. He died the next day.

By February 1st 1939, Italy had already begun peace negotiations, and on that same day, an armistice came into effect on every front.

THE TREATY OF ZURICH: 1939

In the time between the death of d’Annunzio and the peace negotiations, a new government had already come to power in Italy. King Victor Emmanuel had become monarch once more, and elections were held to decide who the new prime minister would be.

It was agreed relatively early on, that Eritrea must be ceded to Ethiopia, but the fate of Somalia was harder to agree on. Britain and Ethiopia both desired to own the colony, but in the end, it was Britain that gained it.

The Italian concession in Tianjin was given to China, although it was quickly occupied by Japan. The Dodecanese were ceded to Greece, apart from a small island to the east which became Turkish.

Libya was harder to solve. Britain and France both wanted it, and in the end, it was split into occupation zones. Britain took Cyreneica, France took Tripolitania, and Tripoli itself was put under international control.

Albania was restored to independence, except for the very south which was given to Greece.

Italy also had to face quotas on the tonnage in its navy to stop it from building another huge navy and challenging the British and French.

These terms were agreed to, and signed on October 17th 1939. By then, British attention had already shifted to the Imperial Federation, and to troubles in Palestine…

TROUBLE IN THE IMPERIAL FEDERATION: 1939-1940

The British were now facing problems with the Imperial Federation. India, Palestine, Egypt and Ireland had all become problems for the Federation, and the crises threatened to tear the Federation asunder. Churchill first acknowledged these problems on 1st May 1939. He was facing the end of his first 6-year term on 1st January 1940, and wanted to win re-election. He knew that although he had defeated Italy, and ended the threat in the Mediterranean, he could still lose if the new problems were not managed carefully.

India had played a major part in the war against Italy, and was now demanding more recognition. This came in July, when India was assigned 15 seats at the Imperial Federation, putting it on par with Ireland and South Africa. Burma also gained 4 more seats, giving it 5 in total. The Royal Indian Defence Force was also formed, with the Royal Indian Navy as an extension. It was hoped that this would placate Indian demands for now. Lord Linlithgow, the Viceroy of India resigned that same year, and was replaced by Adrian Carton de Wiart.

Palestine had been a hotbed of rebellion recently. In 1938, there had been clashes between Jews and Arabs over the allocation of certain lands. Britain had encouraged Jewish immigration, and was also being pressed to establish a state in Israel. Churchill, in accordance with John Simon, called for more forces to be sent to Palestine to put down the revolts and restore order.

Egypt was also a problem. King Farouk was proving obstinate and a difficult man to deal with. He had continuously demanded the Suez Canal Zone, and the Sudan as a price for Egyptian aid in the Italian war. The Federation turned down these demands.

Eamon de Valera had won power once again in Ireland. By now, he had realised that Ireland couldn’t afford to quit the Federation, and instead he went about undermining Edward VIII’s rule in Ireland. John Simon called him to London, and gave him a harsh word on his actions. Whether it would have any effect had yet to be seen.

THE IMPERIAL GENERAL ELECTION OF 1940 – PART 1 – CANDIDATES AND POSITIONS: 1939-1940

Between the two elections, much had happened in the politics of the Federation. India had gained a huge deal more influence, and Iraq and Burma had both gained their first seats. There were new parties and new coalitions.

The Conservative Bloc still existed, and Churchill once again stood for election. He argued that there was still much work to do, even though Italy had now ceased to be a threat to the Federation. He ran on a platform of conservative values and continuing to hold the Federation together.

The Liberal Group was also still in existence, although it had lost some support to the new Socialist Front. This time, the Liberal Group chose to run William Mackenzie-King, former Canadian Prime Minister, for election. He promised to continue the transition of India to independence, and to build a strong economy for the Federation.

The Socialist Front, led by Jack Lang, had formed in 1935 and enjoyed support from extreme left wing parties, as well as a few more moderate ones. They hoped to build a socialist Federation.

The Independence Bloc had also formed in 1938, made up mainly of Fianna Fail supporters, Afrikaners and Egyptian nationalists, along with some more radical Indians such as Chandra Bose. They ran on a pledge to disband the Imperial Federation. They were led by Eamon de Valera.

Finally, a smaller coalition known simply as Tradition had formed. It represented the farmers of the Federation.

THE IMPERIAL GENERAL ELECTION OF 1940 – PART 3 – RESULTS: 1940

The results were made public on January 1st 1940.

UNITED KINGDOM: 50 Seats:
Conservatives – 36 seats
28 for Conservative Bloc
8 for Liberal Group
Labour – 11
5 for Liberal Group
6 for Socialist Movement
Liberal – 3
3 for Liberal Group

Total =
Conservative Bloc - 28
Liberal Group – 16
Socialist Movement – 6

CANADA: 25 Seats:
Conservatives – 9 seats
7 for Conservative Bloc
2 for Liberal Group
Liberals – 15 seats
9 for Liberal Group
6 for Conservative Bloc
Progressives – 1 seat
1 for Liberal Group

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 13
Liberal Group – 12

AUSTRALIA: 25 Seats:
Labor – 8 seats
7 for Socialist Movement
1 for Liberal Group
United Australia – 12 seats
12 for Conservative Bloc
Country Party – 5 seats
5 for Conservative Bloc

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 17
Liberal Group – 1
Socialist Movement – 7

INDIA: 15 Seats:
Indian Congress Party – 9 seats
5 for Independence Bloc
3 for Socialist Movement
1 for Liberal Group
Federation Party – 6 seats
4 for Conservative Bloc
1 for Tradition
1 for Liberal Group

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 4
Independence Bloc – 5
Liberal Group – 2
Socialist Movement – 3
Tradition – 1

SOUTH AFRICA: 15 Seats:
South African Party – 12 seats
8 for Conservative Bloc
4 for Independence Bloc
National Party – 2 seats
2 for Independence Bloc
Labor Party – 1 seat
1 for Socialist Movement

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 8
Independence Bloc – 6
Socialist Movement – 1

IRELAND: 15 Seats:
Cumann Na nGaedhael – 5 seats
5 for Conservative Bloc
Fianna Fail – 7 seats
3 for Liberal Group
4 for Independence Bloc
Labour Party – 3 seats
3 for Socialist Movement

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 5
Independence Bloc – 4
Liberal Group – 3
Socialist Movement – 3

NEW ZEALAND: 10 Seats:
Labour – 9 seats
5 for Liberal Group
4 for Socialist Movement
Reform – 1 seat
1 for Conservative Bloc

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 1
Liberal Group – 5
Socialist Movement – 4

NEWFOUNDLAND: 10 Seats:
United Newfoundland Party – 10 seats
4 for Conservative Bloc
6 for Liberal Group

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 4
Liberal Group – 6

EGYPT: 5 Seats:
Wafd – 4
4 for Independence Bloc
Ittihad – 1
1 for Tradition

Total =
Independence Bloc – 4
Tradition – 1

IRAQ: 5 Seats
Ittihad – 5 seats
2 for Tradition
2 for Conservative Bloc
1 for Independence Bloc

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 2
Independence Bloc – 1
Tradition – 2

BURMA: 5 Seats
Burmese Union Party – 4 Seats
3 for Conservative Bloc
1 for Tradition
Labour Party – 1 seat
1 for Socialist Movement

Total =
Conservative Bloc – 3
Socialist Movement – 1
Tradition – 1

RESULTS:
Conservative Bloc (Winston Churchill) – 85
(Wins constituent nations of United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Burma, Ireland; tied in Iraq)
Liberal Group (William Mackenzie-King) – 45
(Wins constituent nations of New Zealand and Newfoundland)
Socialist Movement (Jack Lang) – 25
Independence Bloc (Eamon de Valera) – 20
(Wins constituent nations of India and Egypt)
Tradition (Joseph Hobart) – 5
(tied in Iraq)

THE INDIAN CRISIS – PART 1 – THE VOICES GROW LOUDER: 1940-1941

After the Imperial election, India was governed by an Independence Bloc government, in the Imperial Parliament. This was a major weakness in the British position in India, as even if all the parties in India were to form a coalition, they would still only equal the Independence Bloc. The Independence Bloc leaders wasted no time in putting forward another proposal for Indian independence before the Imperial Parliament. The Muslim League, who were a growing force in Indian politics, refused to sponsor it.

The new act called for an Indian Parliament, and for elections in India to elect the leader. This led to a furious row between Churchill and John Simon, due to Simon’s acceptance of the inevitability of Indian self-government. Churchill announced he would veto the act, and did so on February 12th 1940.

There was an outrage within the Indian section, and it looked as if protests in India may have turned bloody. However, Gandhi told his supporters to instead resist the British non-violently. This concerned John Simon, who was worried that a post-Independence India might simply quit the Federation. Simon urged Churchill to be reasonable with the Indians. Finally, in July of that year, the breakthrough came, and Churchill agreed to a watered down version of the act. Several federal governments were established in each state, and elections were to be held to elect these officials.

This was a disappointment for the Independence movement, but nevertheless, it was an important step forward. Of course, it wasn’t long before more trouble flared up, but this time it was from a surprising group.

The Muslims and Hindus had disagreed over the terms of the act, and it wasn’t long before events became violent. On September 15th, Indian police in Karachi opened fire on peaceful Muslim protestors, killing 23. The newspapers immediately attacked the police, and soon the Muslim areas of India had turned violent. De Wiart, the Viceroy of India, panicked, and declared martial law on October 1st. RIDF soldiers were deployed to the streets of Muslim areas, and a curfew was imposed.

By the end of 1940, it looked as if the Indian crisis would continue. While the diplomats continued to work out agreements, soldiers patrolled the streets of Karachi and Dhaka.

THE INDIAN CRISIS – PART 2 – AN INDIAN PARLIAMENT – 1941-1943

The troubles in India soon spread. Protests against the government occurred in Burma and Ceylon. Many pointed out the need for an Indian Parliament. Nevertheless, in 1941, the demands were unmet, and violence still occurred. Finally, Gandhi came up with his own solution. He went on a hunger strike to campaign for unity among Indians. The reason behind it was, either the Indians made peace, or their spiritual leader starved to death.

It worked, and the violence ended, to a large extent. By now, support for an Indian Parliament was growing more and more, and the new Labour government of Britain, led by Ernest Bevin, sought to give India independence. Churchill finally agreed to the new Parliament Act on April 5th 1942, creating an Indian Parliament. He knew that if he kept on any longer, he would split the Conservative Bloc, and lose the elections in 1946. This, he was not prepared to do.

However, old problems flared up again in 1942, when Muslim separatists attacked Indian patrols in what they considered, ‘their territory.’ Afghan tribes were also a nuisance, attacking across the northwest frontier and forcing Britain to keep some troops in India.

This was when the Indians finally demanded all out independence. On November 15th 1942, the Indian National Congress asked for formal independence immediately. When Churchill vetoed the act, strikes broke out across India. De Wiart had by now come to the conclusion that India could not remain British. He endorsed the act on January 6th 1943. He also met with several Indian leaders to try and strike out such an agreement.

Churchill finally saw that he had lost, and now had a choice between either going on refusing the demands, or bowing out to the inevitable…

THE INDIAN CRISIS – PART 3 – INDEPENDENCE: 1943-1944

On March 11th 1943, Churchill called an emergency conference of the Imperial Parliament, and asked for a vote of confidence from his own party, the Conservative Bloc. Large amounts of the Bloc simply abstained, but otherwise, he obtained a majority. But Churchill saw this as a defeat. On March 28th 1943, he amazed everyone by announcing his resignation from the position of Chairman of the Federation. He announced that his successor would be Australian politician, Robert Menzies. With Churchill’s resignation, the actual position of Chairman of the Federation perished too. It was replaced with the title Secretary General of the Imperial Federation.

On June 17th 1943, India held its first general election to decide who would become the first prime minister of an independent India. Sardar Patel won the election, with a majority. The Muslim League refused to recognise him as leader, and riots broke out in the Muslim areas again. Finally, on September 7th 1943, Menzies signed an act put forward before Parliament suggesting an independent Muslim state. This came to be known as Pakistan and Mohammed Jinnah was to become the first prime minister of this state.

In November 1943, De Wiart signed a document changing his position from that of Viceroy of India, to Governor General. The King also gave royal assent to the document giving India and Pakistan independence. Finally, on January 1st 1944, the British Raj ended, and two new states emerged from the old Indian Empire.

GERMANY: 1930-1945

By 1930, the Weimar Republic was in danger. After the crash, the National Socialists and Communists had both become powerful factions. Both sides clashed in the streets, and there were gunfights across Germany between the two sides. Von Hindenburg decided that if this continued, there would be civil war, and thus he gave himself emergency powers. The army was deployed onto the streets.

In 1931, the National Socialist leader, Adolph Hitler, who had been an obscure painter in Austria, was found dead, apparently having killed himself after his niece, Geli Raubal, died. Thus, Hermann Goering became the new leader of the party.

Until 1937, Hindenburg continued to rule Germany with an iron fist, but by now he was growing senile and could not run the country any longer. Elections for president and chancellor were organised. Bruning became the new chancellor of Germany, and the presidency went to Ernst Thalmann, a socialist. Germany began to recover, and by 1940, thanks to aid from other countries, was largely afloat once more, and continued the payment of reparations.

Goering saw that his opportunity was fading, and on September 17th 1943, attempted to launch a coup against the elected government. It failed, and the entire Nazi Party was either killed or thrown in jail indefinitely. This ended their threat to democracy in Germany.

PALESTINE, BURMA AND CEYLON: 1945-1947

Meanwhile, in Palestine, events continued to turn from bad to worse. The whole area was on the verge of civil war by the end of 1945. Meanwhile, to the north, the French were fighting a losing war to hold onto Syria and Lebanon. The British did not want to end up in the same position as them, and so, it was decided to create an Arab state. The area north of Nejd was granted independence on 20th December 1945, as the Kingdom of Hashemite Palestine. Palestine soon became a member of the Imperial Federation, with 5 seats.

Meanwhile, the Jews to the west of Palestine were still demanding their own state. Menzies was facing election in a few days, and on 25th December 1945, he took the decision to create the state of Israel, which also joined the Imperial Federation. This, however, did not end the bloodshed in the area.

In 1946, Egyptian forces crossed the border into Israel and rapidly overran the Negev. This was also matched by a Palestinian advance from the Western Bank into Israel. Britain, which had had previous arguments with Egypt over many issues, suspended Egypt from the Federation. Palestine was spared the same fate, but was warned.

The Royal Israeli Army, however, did well. It soon repulsed the Egyptian advance, although it was unable to take the Negev. They also succeeded in taking Jerusalem and holding it against Palestinian attack. Finally, in May 1946, a treaty was signed. Israel lost land in the Negev, including its access to the Red Sea, but ultimately, survived.

In the east, since India’s independence, Burma and Ceylon had been increasingly restless. The Imperial Parliament recommended that they also be given independence, and this was finally recognised, when, on January 1st 1947, Burma and Ceylon became independent states, the former with 10 seats, the latter with 5.

THE SUSPENSION OF PAKISTAN: 1947

The new Secretary General of the Imperial Federation, W.T. Cosgrave, who had led the Liberal Group to victory, did not have long to wait until a major crisis broke out. Cosgrave had already suspended Egypt, the year before, and had already created 8 reasons that could be used to suspend a country.

On December 11th 1946, Royal Pakistani Air Force officers had besieged the prime ministers home. Jinnah managed to escape by aeroplane, but nevertheless, the military soon took over Pakistan and voided the constitution. Cosgrave saw this as good reason to suspend Pakistan, but he failed to achieve a majority in Parliament, and as an opponent of veto powers, it would be hypocritical for him to veto the will of Parliament and force it through.

However, on March 2nd 1947, Pakistani forces entered the Indian part of Kashmir, and began hitting Royal Indian Air Force airfields in the area. India immediately called an Imperial Federation meeting and demanded that Pakistan be expelled. Cosgrave did not want to weaken the federation by completely expelling a member, and instead proposed suspension. The Parliament agreed this time, seeing the action as necessary to deter Pakistani aggression.

The Indians soon retaliated in their own way. Army units were deployed north and despite the fact that the Pakistani military had fortified the lines, they failed to hold back the Indian military. Finally, several Royal Indian Air Force raids were launched against Karachi and Lahore, and the military government reluctantly agreed to withdraw from the Indian parts of the Kashmir.

The failure had enraged the Pakistani people who felt that they had sacrificed more men for nothing. The military government now faced rebellions from its own people, especially the Balochs who were in particular opposed to the regime. Martial law was declared, and the entire country was on the verge of civil war.

THE CONSTITUTION OF BURMA: 1947

Meanwhile, the Burmese government had drawn up a constitution. Normally, this would have been an uncontroversial move, and King Edward VIII, the head of the Federation would almost certainly have accepted it. However, it soon became clear that this was not a normal constitution.

The Constitution had been authored by Prime Minister Tun Oke, and its main clause was the establishment of a Burmese republic. This would mean that Burma would have to leave the Imperial Federation. Cosgrave was concerned, and summoned Oke to London. There, he informed him that the Federation could not approve the constitution, and that it would be unwise to challenge Imperial rule in Burma. Oke was noncommittal, and flew back to Rangoon that night, prepared to fight for Burma’s right to become a republic if need be.

Cosgrave called for a vote on whether to use military force against Burma, and received a majority from every country apart from India, and Egypt, the latter having made a decision to abstain.

Japan looked on, interested. It’s own war with China was by now a complete stalemate, and Japanese forces had failed to defeat Chiang’s nationalists up to now. It was thought that Burma may perhaps be turned into an ally, and from there, a Japanese strike on India could destroy the Federation. This idea was endorsed by some of the more militaristic types in the Japanese government, but ultimately, the emperor rejected it.

France, under the rule of Albert Sarraut, was having its own problems in both Syria and Indochina.

By June 1947, Imperial forces were ready to strike into Burma, when, in the eleventh hour, one of Cosgrave’s ministry came up with an idea…

THE FRENCH WAR IN SYRIA AND LEBANON: 1945-1948

France, unlike the United Kingdom, had not federated its empire, and after the war with Italy, dissent against the French grew. Led by Hashim al-Atassi, a Syrian nationalist movement was born. Instantly, nations around Syria saw this as a threat. Turkey knew that Syria may contest their claims on Hatay. Israel was concerned about having another neighbour to fight. Britain did not want this to make an example to Iraq, which had already fought them once.

On September 2nd 1945, an uprising began across Syria against French garrisons in the area. Albert Sarraut, the Prime Minister of France, was stunned, and immediately ordered paratroops into the country to deal with the uprising. By October, nearly the entire country was under Syrian rebel control, and the uprisings had spread to Lebanon. Sarraut decided that an amphibious invasion should be launched to restore order. Sarraut also contacted Israel and Turkey and requested aid in this undertaking.

On December 11th, French forces landed at Tartus and Tripoli, and the next day at Latakia. The Syrian and Lebanese forces were swept aside quickly. Israel saw an opportunity, and invaded Lebanon to ‘end cross-border raids’. Secretary General Cosgrave fumed with anger, and threatened to suspend Israel from the Federation. As it turned out, Israel took little part in the following operations, other than holding a small amount of land in Lebanon.

By January 1946, French forces had entered Damascus, and Sarraut declared the rebellion over. He did not count on the Syrians beginning a guerrilla campaign against his forces. The first signs of this came in March when a French platoon was surrounded and destroyed near Aleppo. The French high command decided to tackle this problem by bombing guerrilla hideouts, but they failed to achieve a decisive victory anywhere. Their own Syrian allies were poorly trained and had little stomach for a fight. The Turks had failed to intervene.

By 1947, Sarraut had been replaced and Jules Moch, the new prime minister, had decided to end France’s commitments in the area. He installed a moderate government in Syria, and ordered French forces to pull back to Lebanon. The new government in Syria invited Hashim al Atassi to run for election, which he won in 1948 and became the first president of a truly independent Syria.

The French stayed slightly longer in Lebanon, finally withdrawing in March 1948, although the Israelis continued to occupy a ‘defensive barrier’ in the south.

THE SUDAN BECOMES INDEPENDENT: 1946-1948

As Egypt had been suspended from the federation, it was unable to make any of its arguments heard in the echelons of the Parliament. Farouk's rash decision, with the co-operation of his Wafd party prime minister, to invade Israel, had seemed good to the Egyptian cabinet, but they were dissapointed with the gains, and did not feel it was worth it for the suspension they got from the federation. On July 22nd 1946, Farouk abdicated, under pressure from the government, and his son Farouk II, became king. Farouk II was just two years old, which meant he was in a weak position from the start.

Meanwhile, Britain had taken it upon itself to 'caretake' the Sudan until Egypt's suspension had ceased. This had caused outrage among Egyptian nationalists, and the Prime Minister considered declaring war on the Federation. Instead, he bided his time, hoping that Egypt would be unsuspended if it waited. It soon became clear that Cosgrave was willing to do so, but after Egypt withdrew from the Negev and Gaza Strip. Prime Minister Hussein Siri Pasha instead sent an emissary to Cosgrave to try and negotiate a settlement whereby Egypt could regain its membership, and only give away part of the Negev.

By now, Britain had been facing some dissent in the Sudan, and it was decided to organise a new government for the country and leave. Sudan had already announced its intention to become a republic rather than stay as a monarchy, and so elections held in 1947 decided Muhammed Salih as the first president. Salih, although not a supporter of the Federation, agreed to remain within it only on the terms that Sudan gain 10 rather than 5 seats in the organisation, much to Cosgrave's dissapproval.

Egypt, meanwhile, agreed to cede Eilat, and a strip of land leading to it back to Israel. Hussein Pasha became widely unpopular for this deal, and it may have contributed to his loss in the 1950 elections. Egypt's suspension from the Federation formally ended on December 31st 1948.

THE SOVIET UNION ANNEXES THE BALTIC STATES: 1947-1948

After waiting for some time, Trotsky looked to the Baltic to expand the Soviet Union. He had several divisions of military districts in Central Asia moved by rail to the Estonian and Latvian borders. On January 7th 1947, he summoned President Johan Laidoner of Estonia to Moscow, and demanded he sign a treaty giving the Soviet Union access to the Baltic through the ports of Narva and Tartu. Laidoner was defiant, and refused Trotsky’s demands. Two days later, Soviet motorised infantry moved into Estonia, and defeated the country’s military in just 1 day. An Estonian puppet state was set up, which ceded the ports as well as several border zones, to the Soviet Union. Just two months later, the rest of the state was annexed too.

In May, Latvia received a similar proposal, and agreed to the terms in the naive hope that the Soviet Union would allow Latvian independence. Lithuania also agreed. However, in November, Soviet forces simply struck from the bases and defeated the Latvian and Lithuanian armies. In January 1948, all three of the Baltic states were incorporated into the Soviet Union.

The annexations sent shockwaves through Europe. Jules Moch and Ernst Thalmann, the Prime Ministers of France and Germany, met in Hannover that June and formally declared the European Security Zone. Poland, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Romania and the Netherlands also joined shortly afterwards. Trotsky realised that for his next move, he would either have to turn to Scandinavia, or to the Middle East.

THE AFGHAN CIVIL WAR BEGINS: 1948-1949

Trotsky’s attention would probably have next been caught by Finland, were it not for events in Afghanistan, the Soviet Union’s southern neighbour. An unstable situation had developed into a full-blown civil war. However, to understand this, it is necessary to look at Afghanistan’s history from 1919 onwards.

Amanullah Khan had become king of Afghanistan in 1919, and had begun reforms to bring the kingdom into the 20th century. However, the army did not like his ideas, and wanted to continue on as their ancestors had. In 1922, a rebellion in Herat ousted him from power and Habibullah Khan became the new king of Afghanistan. The new king was afraid that he could easily be overthrown in the same way, and brought in repressive measures to criminals, such as leaving them in suspended cages to die. In foreign affairs, he courted both Britain and the Soviet Union, and even managed to gain a contract from the Soviet Union for the construction of a small air force. Habibullah continued to rule until 1932, when Inayatullah Khan succeeded him.

Inayatullah’s reign was brief, and he was poisoned in 1934. King Mohammed Shah replaced him, and continued to rule Afghanistan in the traditional autocratic manner. By this time, a republican movement had begun to flourish in Afghanistan, and at first approached the king with suggestions for some form of limited democracy in 1943. The king disagreed, and by now had grown increasingly cruel. He had any dissent against his rule crushed. One of his favourite targets was Communists.

Trotsky had been concerned about Mohammed’s behaviour for some time, and he met with a group of leading Afghan communists, led by Mahmud Khan in 1946. He suggested they overthrow Mohammed and the new position could help dominate India. An insurgency was begun in 1947, around the Kandahar area, and soon this expanded all across the country.

Pakistan’s military ruler, General Asif Khan, was a rabid anti-communist and immediately ordered the Pakistani Air Force to bomb Communist hideouts in Afghanistan. He also renewed the state of emergency that had reigned since he had come into power. Khan was concerned that the civil war could spread into Pakistan, where he was already facing a civil war of his own. Britain and India were also concerned, and sent covert aid to the King. They agreed to sell Hydra and Wyvern aircraft to the King, and to help modernise his army. Thus, a proxy war between the Soviet Union and the Federation had begun.
1948 was marked by Communist victories. Kabul came under siege from Communist forces, and Jalalabad was taken, destroying the Afghan Army’s main headquarters. Humiliatingly, the Communists also launched operations in Pakistan, forcing the Pakistani army to fight on its own turf. Khan was so angered by this that he ordered Pakistani forces to enter Afghanistan to clear out enemy forces.

As 1949 began, the situation looked grim for the Afghan government. They had lost the north and west of the country, masses of men were deserting to join the Communists, and Afghanistan was running out of money to pay for British and French equipment. Cosgrave saw this, and decided to lift the embargo on Pakistan that had been put on it since the invasion of Kashmir. This came at a crucial point, as Pakistani forces were beginning to play a major part in the war. Meanwhile, diplomats attempted to organise meetings between Cosgrave and Trotsky to resolve the crisis before it exploded into a global war. But Trotsky avoided this, hoping to achieve total victory, and turning Afghanistan into a communist state.

THE COMMUNISTS TAKE A GAMBLE: 1949

Mahmud Khan was pleased with the advance of his forces. He was convinced that by the time 1949 was out, he would be in control of Afghanistan, and the Pakistanis would be beaten back. He did not count on increased Pakistani and Federation involvement. He also did not count on the Soviets being occupied elsewhere; Trotsky had been warned by one of his spies that Japan was planning an attack in the year. Khan still felt confident he could win, and prepared a major offensive to capture Kabul and sever the Afghan forces communication.

The attack began with heavy bombings of Afghan and Pakistani positions. Next, a determined offensive began in Kabul and around Ghazni in the centre and the borders of Pakistan. Asif Khan reasoned that if the Communists were attacking in the south, they will have moved forces from the north, and launched his own offensive against the Communists there. His predictions proved correct, and his forces marched into Feyzabad relatively easily. In fact, the advance only began to bog down near Kondoz. Khan’s own offensive had taken Ghazni, but he ordered it to be abandoned to protect his logistical centre at Mazar-i-Sharif.

Federation forces had also become involved. The British had begun using airbases in India and Oman to bomb Afghan positions, and the Special Land Forces (SLF) saw their first action, being dropped behind enemy lines and cutting enemy communications. By the end of the year, Kabul had been relieved, and the Communists were beginning to lose control. Trotsky contacted the British and asked for an agreement over Afghanistan. It was agreed that a meeting would be held on January 17th 1950 to determine the final fate of Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Asif Khan had begun to face increasing dissent from within his own forces, and began to withdraw some forces from Afghanistan to strengthen his position. His actions will be covered in another update. He instead increased air involvement, and even began strategic bombing on Communist held cities. This would lead to a cooling of Afghan-Pakistani relations.

THE KIEV CONFERENCE: 1950

Trotsky met with Cosgrave on January 17th as planned, and the two began to hammer out an agreement. Cosgrave wanted to make sure the Soviet’s did not gain a border with Pakistan, which Cosgrave was still interested in bringing back into the Federation. Cosgrave still thought of the area as the North-West frontier, which would have to be defended against both the Afghans and the Soviets if they were to triumph. Trotsky wanted to gain Afghanistan as an ally, and through it, be able to exact a measure of control over India and Pakistan. He also thought that it could be used as a gateway to Xinjiang, part of China under Communist influence, and Tibet.

The talks reached a deadlock early on. Trotsky was adamant that his position be made secure in Afghanistan, and thus demanded heavy influence over the new Afghan government. Cosgrave refused, and Trotsky, who was still concerned over Japan and did not want more enemies, relented to some extent. In the end, an agreement was made by which the king retained his position, but was forced to form a parliament, of which the Communists were given ½ the seats, and a pro-royal faction were assigned the rest. Mahmud Khan became the first prime minister.

Trotsky also made a more secret arrangement with the British. The Soviet Union would exact a sphere of influence over northern Afghanistan, including Mazar-i-Sharif and Herat, while Britain gained a sphere of influence in the south, particularly over Kandahar and Jalalabad. The Afghans were not told of this arrangement, and neither were the Indians or Pakistanis.
Both sides came away satisfied, and a truce came into place on March 1st 1950. Meanwhile, student rebellions and dissent had boiled over into revolution in Pakistan...

THE REGIME OF ASIF KHAN: 1947-1949

Although a triumvirate ran the country after the coup of December 11th 1946, Khan had fast become the leader, and by the end of 1947, ruled the country by decree. This accession was largely due to Khan shifting the blame for Pakistan’s military defeats in Kashmir on the other two members, and by renewing the state of emergency every 6 months, so he could continue to reign. When voted upon in Parliament, it was noticed that those who disagreed with him often mysteriously ‘disappeared’.

In 1948, Khan began a process of ‘de-Islamisation’, arguing that the Pakistani state should be run by the government, not by religious leaders. This angered many devout Muslims who soon began marches in major cities and even burnt effigies and portraits of Khan. In response, the army was deployed onto the streets and many leading mullahs and imams were killed or imprisoned. A movement known as the Free Balochistan Army was founded, and began bombings and assassinations of local officials, while much of the resistance to Khan remained underground.

Things got worse as Khan separated church and state completely in November 1948. This may have been the point where Khan was overthrown were it not for events to the north. Pakistan became actively involved in fighting communists within both its own borders and Afghanistan. The nation briefly united behind Khan to fight a foe they considered worse than him. However, as more and more Pakistani soldiers returned to their country in bodybags, Khan’s popularity took a major hit.

In May 1949, an entire regiment of Pashtun soldiers deserted, demanding better pay, and in response, Khan had it annihilated using air power. This simply led to more riots and strikes, and Khan soon declared a state of siege. He began to withdraw forces from Afghanistan to face the new civil disorder. Much of this army was placed under the command of Lt. General Saleem Rafiq, in what would prove to be a major mistake on Khan’s part.

THE SUMMER OF LEAD: 1950

Asif Khan's grip on the nation was becoming more and more loose. In January 1950, he suspended the consitution altogether. And in April, he announced he had been elected for another 5 years wirth 99.4% of the vote. Khan expected mild discontent. What he got was out of any proportion he could have predicted.

On May 1st 1950, 11 top generals met and agreed that Khan was destroying the nation from within. They decided to overthrow him, and very soon, 3 divisions had revolted and many key towns in Pakistan had fallen, including Quetta, Khan's hometown. However, very little of the air force joined the rebels, and consequently, Khan had British supplied bombers used to rip the enemy forces to shreds, with ground support. However, by now, Khan had lost popular support and faced a wave of strikes and protests.

On June 24th, Pakistani civilians broke into an armoury on the border with Afghanistan and armed themselves with guns and artillery. This spread across Pakistan, and on July 1st, Khan was shot dead and hung by his feet in Karachi's town centre. His regime ended, and now a power vacuum had come into being. Several generals fought for power over the year, but in the end, a British-sponsored minority government came to power, with the aid of the Communists, although it was an uneasy alliance. It was clear that Pakistan could still easily fall into the Communist sphere, which would be an incalcuable disaster for Britain.

Pakistan also re-entered the Federation in September, albeit with a new governor general, as the last governor general had died. Cosgrave lifted the suspension, and he was now able to turn his eyes towards other situations, and towards preparing an election campaign.

EMERGENCY IN THE FAR EAST: 1950

Meanwhile, disturbing reports had reached British authorities in Asia. According to documents found by Chinese intelligence and passed onto the British, Americans and French, Japan had constructed a war plan against the British, French and Dutch, and it was likely they intended to carry it out. The plan would involve striking into Burma and India, while other forces rolled into Burma, Malaysia, Indochina, Hong Kong and the East Indies. It was also possible that the Japanese could strike America, or the Soviet Union while doing this.

News of this soon reached the heads of government in the Federation, and loud demands were made by Australia and New Zealand for more British warships to be moved to Singapore and Hong Kong. The Indians and Burmese were also concerned by the apparent Japanese plan, and held talks with Britain over collective security in the East. Secretary General Cosgrave called for calm, but it was clear that the Federation was now unable to ignore the Japanese threat for any longer.

On June 1st 1950, the government of Japan demanded that the Federation close the Burma Road, and cease any aid to the Chinese. A similar demand was made of the French, who were supplying goods to China via their border from Indochina. In response, a meeting of the Imperial Federation was called to discuss the response. In a near unanimous vote, the Japanese demands were thrown out and the Federation made a defiant stand with the Japanese, under Prince Konoie. The French also made a similar stand.

On June 6th, President Dewey of the US called a conference over the tensions in the Far East. However, when the meeting adjourned the next day, Dewey informed his staff that the Japanese representatives were ‘fatalistic and uncaring over the possibility of war’. On June 9th, India, Australia and New Zealand mobilised their forces, followed by Burma, Pakistan and France within the next week. On June 19th, Cosgrave made his final phone call to the Japanese ambassador, and asked him to pass on a message to the Japanese government, calling for another conference. By the time this message reached the Japanese government, Japanese planes would already be over the South China Sea, flying south towards Malaysia...

MALAYA AND IT'S CONSEQUENCES: June 1950-February 1951

On June 19th 1950, Japanese aeroplanes struck Kuala Lumpur and Singapore indiscriminately. This was followed by airstrikes in Burma, including on the Burma Road, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Hours later, Japanese forces landed at Hue, French Indochina, and in Northern Malaya.

The Imperial Federation response was inevitable. Just 1 member voted against the declaration of war against Japan that followed, and soon, Imperial forces were on their way to the Far East.

Meanwhile, Japanese bicycle troops advanced south, taking the town of Alor Star, and Kota Bahru. By July, Japanese forces were outside Kuala Lumpur, and General Slim realised it would be impossible to hold his lines there. He ordered a withdrawal to Singapore, and also asked for more air support to delay advancing Japanese forces.

The siege of Singapore soon began, but the Japanese had little success. An attempted assault in October faced stubborn resistance, not only from British troops, but even from civilians who had taken up arms to defend their homes. Many of them had lost relatives in the Japanese airstrikes and were eager for revenge.

In January, the arrival of new British divisions, including armour, meant that a breakout was staged. The siege was over, and by February, British forces had liberated Malaya all the way up to Malacca. The navies also played a major role. After the initial landings, British aircraft carriers had arrived in Sumatra and Malaya, and they were now making life difficult for ships carrying munitions. It looked as if the army in Malaya could end up besieged itself.

European forces had also begun to arrive in the Far East. In the Dutch East Indies, Australian, Dutch and Belgian forces were fighting the Japanese invaders, while in Indochina, the French and even the Germans, in their first deployment since the Great War, were defending. Against such a large coalition, and with their surprise attack having been a blunder, Prince Konoie saw little chance of Japanese victory and officially resigned. He was succeeded by Senjuro Hayashi, now 75 years old.

Meanwhile, Imperial forces were also making good use of their new high command, a merger of all national commands. This meant their forces operated as if the Federation was in fact a single nation, and with such effectiveness also.

JAPAN'S NAVY IS HUMBLED: September 1950-August 1951

At the start of the war, Japan's navy had been the second biggest in the world, after that of the UK. However, many of its ships were battleships, constructed for a war more like the Great War than the current Pacific War. As a result, it performed poorly. At the battle of the Phillipines, 4 Japanese battleships were destroyed by British and French aircraft, at the price of just 20 bombers. This small setback was nothing compared to what was to follow however.

The Battle of the South China Sea is today remembered as the victory that marked the beginning of the end for the Japanese navy. On June 2nd 1951, the battle began as British, French and Canadian aircraft hit several Japanese ships. This was followed by British and French battleships bombarding the smaller ships of the Japanese Navy. The resulting battle lasted two days, and by the end of it, 3 of Japan's 7 aircraft carriers lay at the bottom of the ocean.

However, Japan did have some success. On January 6th 1951, the supposedly 'unsinkable' carrier, the Kaiyo, engaged and destroyed the British flagship, the HMS Vanguard. On hearing this news, British Prime Minister Robert Stanley is said to have fainted. Nevertheless, the Japanese victory was temporary. 4 days later, a huge French naval force engaged and destroyed the Kaiyo.

By June, Japan's navy was only capable of defensive missions, and Coalition forces were already landing on the Carolines, mostly Dutch and German. It was now clear that the war would not have good outcomes for Japan.

ISLAND HOPPING, THE WAR IN KOREA AND THE ATOM BOMB: June 1951-January 1953

By 1951, the Carolines were under attack from German and Dutch forces. Most of these islands fell rapidly, but on Truk, Japan's main base in the area, a bloody six month campaign took place. By the end, Japanese forces were running into battle with bombs tied to their uniforms, in a desperate last attempt to force the coalition out. Kamikaze attacks had also begun on shipping in the area.

In 1952, British, French, German, Dutch and Canadian forces landed in the Marianas, where some of the bloodiest battles of the war were fought. Indeed, the garrison on Saipan managed to hold out until the end of the war. The war turned these islands from peaceful beach islands into murderous graveyards. Finally, British, French, Canadian, Chinese, German and New Zealand forces landed on Okinawa. The battle continued until the end of the war.

Meanwhile, in Korea, an insurgency had begun against Japanese rule. There were actually two groups in the insurgency; a communist group led by Kim Chaek and a capitalist group led by Syngman Rhee. Both fought and hated eachother as much as the Japanese. Nevertheless, they created a major disruption for the Japanese, and by 1952, much of the Pyongyang area was competely offlimits to Japanese forces.

There was no end in sight when coalition forces landed on the Bonin Islands and Iwo Jima in November 1952. However, in that same month, the worlds first atomic bomb was exploded in Central Australia, by Britain. And on December 16th 1952, the town of Kagoshima was annihilated by such a bomb. Emperor Hirohito was shocked, and immediately dismissed Senjuro Hayashi and asked for peace terms.

Trotsky had died in 1951, but his successor, Bukharin, saw his opportunity to gain land at Japan's expense. On January 2nd 1953, Soviet forces attacked Japanese garrisons on the Kurils and in Sakhalin. The end had come for Japan, and they signed an armistice 5 days later.

THE ASIAN AND PACIFIC SECURITY ZONE: 1953-1963

The Treaty of Shanghai had included a clause calling for the establishment of an Asian equivalent to the ESZ. It was already known that there would be problems with this. China was reluctant to join any organisation with Japan as a member. Japan and Korea had many disputes. India and Pakistan had many disputes. Much of Asia was still under European control.

Nevertheless, in May, delegates from several Asian nations gathered to sign a declaration establishing the APSZ. It's founding members were India, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Macao, Holland, Britain, France, Thailand, Korea and Marianas. Britain, France and India were all assigned veto power. Pakistan walked out of the negotiations and Japan's membership was opposed by many members, especially Korea.

This also allowed for the deployment of ESZ and Imperial forces in these nations. France and Korea signed a treaty in 1954 allowing for the construction of a French naval base at Pusan, and an airbase at Taegu. Britain also secured treaties with Korea, in 1956, which allowed it to use naval and air facilities in Hamhung.

In 1955, Japan was finally admitted as a member. Japan was already hosting Imperial forces in Hokkaido, and at airbases throughout the nation, especially at Sendai and Fukokua. In 1957, Japan signed a treaty with Britain which allowed them to place nuclear armed Hydra II's on Hokkaido.

Britain had also began to move towards greater autonomy for its colonies in the region. In 1957, Malaya and Singapore were both granted independence from Britain, and joined the APSZ in 1958, along with Burma, Ceylon, Pakistan and the Phillipines. Canada joined the following year.

The nuclear race had created a divide between Britain and France. Traditionally disparaging the Anglo-Saxon race, France soon began a nuclear program of its own, and became the second nation to explode an atom bomb in 1956. Although allied with Britain, it began to exert an influence of its own in the Pacific, especially in Korea where it was allowed to position nuclear arms in 1961.

War was also endemic in parts of the Pacific and Asia. France faced a war in Indochina in the 1950s and 60's, which, much to the chagrin of the French, the ASPZ refused to support them in. Laos and Cambodia both gained independence in 1960, and Laos was admitted to the ASPZ in 1963. However, Cambodia fell under Communist influence, and became an ally of the Soviet Union.

The war in Vietnam continued until 1971, but in the Dutch East Indies, Holland was forced to maintain some presence until 1983. Nevertheless, for the time being, Holland was able to keep the East Indies under their control. Finally, China began to liberalise somewhat in the 1960's from near fascism to simple conservatism. It became an associate member of the ASPZ in 1962, but it would be some time before it assumed full membership privileges.

The Marianas plebiscite was also held in 1963, and ended with Japanese control being restored. However, the status of military bases on the islands was allowed to remain, and the plebiscite also had no effect on the status of Guam.

THE MUSCAT PACT, THE GROWTH OF THE ESZ, AND SOVIET RESPONSES: 1953-1958

The Middle East had proven to be unstable since the end of the war with Italy. Soviet influence in Turkey was seen as a major threat to British interests in the region, and Cosgrave suggested to the President of France, Pierre Laurier, that Turkey be admitted to the ESZ. Belgium had already been admitted to the pact in ESZ in 1950 to bolster European strength in Africa, and it was now believed the ESZ should serve as a counter balance to Bukharin's advances in Europe. In 1953, Norway, Greece, Spain, Portugal and Austria joined the ESZ. A Turkish application was rejected due to reasons of 'geography'. This worried both Britain and France deeply, and as a result, a new organisation was formed.

The Muscat Pact would help counter communism in Islamic nations. Britain, France, Oman, Yemen, Iraq, Egypt, Palestine, Turkey and Libya all joined the organisation followed by Sudan in 1954. Saudi Arabia rejected the Pact, as did Syria and Lebanon, both very anti-French, and already considered within the Soviet sphere of influence. Iran was also growing more and more anti-British.

Bukharin responded by denouncing the Pact as a 'secret capitalist alliance, formed solely to destroy the Soviet Union'. Comintern also began sponsoring coups in neighbouring nations, bringing Finland, Bulgaria and Mongolia under Communist control. These nations, along with Cambodia and the 'Indonesian government in exile' formed the Socialist Alliance.

By 1958, it appeared that the world was going through a chain of events similar to that before WW1... the dividing of the great powers into different camps.

Interlude - Society and Economy: 1920-1953

As the post war-recession came to an end, the boom years of the 1920s really kicked off. The stock market flourished, as people bought stocks on the NY Exchange in such companies as RCA and US Steel. New industries were born. It was a great time to be an American, but little did the people of the United States know that the 20th century would not be the American Century as so many had proposed, but another British Century, or, to be more precise, Imperial.

Britain itself only pulled itself out of recession in 1924, but after this, it managed to develop better trade relations with the Empire, rather than with Europe and America, and as a result, when the Crash came, it survived the fallout.

Cinema also became a major art form during the 1920s. At first the films were silent, and mostly American made productions. The 'talkies' truly began in 1928, when the very first completely sound film, a production of 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' was released in the US. By 1929, sound had spread to Britain, and by 1930 to France and Germany. In East Asia, it took significantly longer, and many Japanese films were silent as late as 1938.

The crash badly fragmented American society. It destroyed confidence in the economy, leading to a 13 year depression and the loss of financial supremacy. The Federation's economy had recovered by 1931, and by 1933, was undergoing accelerated growth. The completion of the Cape-Cairo Railway in 1942 also brought much prestige to the Federation. King Edward VIII himself actually was on the first full train journey on the railway.

Nevertheless, Britain did not escape completely unscathed. Particularly bad downturns were recorded in 1935-1936, 1944-1945, and 1949. However, the market usually recovered quickly.

Music had also become the domain of Britain. In the 1920s and 1930s, the most popular music was American Jazz. But during the 1940s, British crooners had begun to become well known among the US public.

The Imperial economy proved well up to the task of fighting wars. 1937-1939 and 1950-1953 were years of massive production of aircraft and tanks. By the end of the Pacific War, Britain was even beginning to develop its first jet fighters to replace the aging Hydra.

AFRICAN INDEPENDENCE: 1958-1968

Britain was losing interest in holding on to its African possessions. Increasingly, they were unstable and the fear was that if pushed too far, they may decide to break off links with Britain altogether. Thus, Britain began the process of withdrawal, beginning in 1958 with the independence of Sierra Leone. 1959 saw Zanzibar and Tanganyika become independent, and the rest are listed below:

1961: Nigeria
1962: Cyrenaica, Uganda
1963: Somaliland
1965: East Africa
1966: Nyasaland, Swaziland, Basutoland
1967: Ghana
1968: Southern Rhodesia

Labour Prime Minister Harold Parsons had been expecting to be able to quit these territories once independence was granted, but as British forces began to withdraw, bloodshed erupted in Nigeria and Somaliland. Parsons ordered forces back into the countries to help the government put down the insurgencies, in Nigeria by Soviet-backed Igbo tribes, and in Somaliland by a group known as the Independence Movement for Puntland. Harold Parsons would lose the 1964 elections to the Conservatives under James Castleton, who ordered increases in foreign aid to African Imperial Federation members, a move which no doubt helped maintain British influence in Africa. The Muscat Pact also offered help to the British, deploying Sudanese and Yemeni forces into Somaliland.

Bukharin of the Soviet Union had died in 1963, and his successor, Ivanov, was far more antagonistic in foreign policy than Bukharin. On January 25th 1965, the government of Uganda was overthrown in a palace coup by General Akiki Kigongo, a hardliner communist. Uganda withdrew from the Imperial Federation on February 2nd. Kigongo soon had pro-British elements in the country crushed and began a program of central planning. In addition, he raised tribal militias to harass political opponents, thus ensuring that the 1971 elections would be a sham.

In these new nations, the British Pound was considered to be the reserve currency, and could be used in many major department stores. Somaliland, Cyrenaica and Southern Rhodesia all decided to continue using the British Pound in 1968, the former two due to economic instability, and the latter to make exchanges to the South African rand more viable.

Britain still had not withdrawn from Africa completely however. The Gambia, Bechuanaland and Northern Rhodesia all remained under British colonial control, and would do for some time yet. Meanwhile, the wave of independence had also begun in the French, Spanish and Portuguese colonies of Africa...

INTERLUDE: Where Are They Now? – 1958.

Iosif ‘Stalin’ Dzhugashvli (1878 – C. 1930)
After Lenin’s death, a little known member of the inner circle known as Iosif Dzhugashvli attempted to seize power from Trotsky. He was incarcerated, and is believed to have died in prison, sometime around 1930.

Benito Mussolini (1883 - 1939)
A member of D’Annunzio’s cabinet, and one of the chief negotiators at the Treaty of Zurich. Hung himself after refusing to sign the treaty.

Adolf Hitler (1889 – 1931)
Austrian corporal, best known for his book Mein Kampf, written in 1924. Originally dreamed of being an artist, but was rejected by the Academy of Vienna. Despite the Nazi Party gaining some popularity, Hitler shot himself after his niece, Geli Raubal, committed suicide.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1948)
Vice presidential nominee in 1920 for the Democrats, and later ran in the 1932 primaries but lost to Huey Long. Was governor of New York from 1929 to 1933 and again from 1941-1945. Retired and died of polio in 1948.

Hideki Tojo (1884-1951)
Japanese general in the Pacific War. Attempted to seize power of Japan in a coup in the 1920s. Was killed in action in the Vietnamese campaign.

Winston Churchill (1874-1957)
Chairman of the Federation from 1940-1943 when he resigned. Remained in the Imperial Parliament until 1952. Also served as British Ambassador to the Soviet Union from 1950-1954 and helped negotiate a peaceful settlement to the Afghan Civil War. Died of a stroke, 1957.

Charles de Gaulle (1890-)
French general, served in the Libyan campaign in the war against Italy and played a minor part in the defeat of Japan in the Indochina campaign. Later, became famous for his unabashed French nationalism and calls for the war in Vietnam to continue. However, is still best known as C in C for ESZ forces in Korea from 1953 to the present day.

THE NUCLEAR RACE: 1953-1970

With the dropping of the atomic bomb on Kagoshima, a new age began. Prime Minister of Britain, Robert Stanley, announced that his country already had five atomic weapons, all of which could be loaded and dropped from planes within just a days notice. Both the ESZ and the Soviet Union were rocked by this announcement. Both began their own crash programs to develop a nuclear weapon.

It wasn’t long before France caught up with the British. An atom bomb was exploded by the French in the Southern Algeria Desert in October 1954. President Pierre Quentin immediately obtained permission from Germany and Poland to deploy nuclear bombs within their territory.

Britain had already moved on however. They now exploded a hydrogen bomb in January 1955, in the Central Australian Desert, followed a day later by another test in the Northwest Territories of Canada. The Soviet Union was deeply concerned by their position, as both of their enemies had developed nuclear weapons to which they had no retaliation weapon. It would be 1957 before the Soviets exploded their own atom bomb. Other countries now joined the atomic race. India, Japan, Brazil, Korea and the US all began programs of their own.

Until 1958, these bombs would have been dropped from planes, but now, a missile was developed to carry nuclear weapons, and by 1960, Britain and the Soviet Union would both have fully switched to this system. France would maintain its plane dropped bombs until 1963. The US became the fourth power in the race in 1959, exploding an atom bomb in New Mexico.

The world’s first conference on nuclear weapons was held in Madrid in 1960. France and the US both agreed not to target each other’s territory with missiles, and also to decommission all old bombs that were not capable of being launched from missiles. Britain signed the conference in 1962, while the Soviet Union would never sign it.

In 1962, Japan exploded its first atomic bomb, provoking a bomb scare by those distrusting of Japan, especially the Soviet Union which believed Japan would want to reclaim Sakhalin and the Kurils. Nevertheless, Japan pledged a no first use policy, and signed the Madrid Conference in 1967.

China exploded a bomb in 1966, and India in 1967, and thereafter, these countries (known as the Nuclear Seven) would remain the biggest nuclear powers. Below is included a count of nuclear weapons of each of the Nuclear Seven.

1953:
Britain: 5

1955:
Britain: 20-30
France: 6-12

1960:
Britain: 180-220
France: 150-190
Soviet Union: 140-210
USA: 125

1965:
Britain: 2,000
Soviet Union: 1,800
France: 1,400
USA: 1,300
Japan: 40

1970:
Britain: 10,000
Soviet Union: 8,900
USA: 6,700
France: 5,400
China: 700
India: 300
Japan: 200

THE SPACE RACE: 1958-1970

On August 5th 1958, President Edouard Girard of France announced on national television that France had put a small rocket shaped ‘satellite’ into space. It’s name, he continued was the ‘Libertie’, and it was transmitting radio waves back to Earth, which most radio stations should be able to pick up. British and American ham radio soon confirmed this. The major powers were shocked by this development.

Secretary General W.T. Cosgrave of the Imperial Federation, serving his final months before resignation, announced that ‘while the Federation has been working on a space program, this turn of events was not expected’. This proved to be true, as on September 17th, a small orb known as the Indefatigable I was launched by the Federation. However, by then, the French had outdone the Federation again. Just a day before, they had launched the ‘Egalitie’, which had as a passenger, a tabby cat named Achilles. On the same day as the Indefatigable was launched, the satellite returned to Earth, and Achilles was retrieved from the satellite alive.

The cat became a hero to the French media, and Cosgrave once again had to explain the Federation’s shortcomings in space. The USA soon launched a satellite of its own, the Columbus, into space. The space race now had three members.

Throughout 1959, more satellites were launched by all three powers. The Soviet Union also made a belated launch of its own satellite. Britain became the first power to launch a spy satellite into space, which the Soviets accused of photographing its nuclear facilities. The French also remained in the race, launching a communications satellite which managed to broadcast a speech by US President Geoffrey Appletree to a Parisian audience. It was now unclear as to who was leading the space race.

It became transparent on June 13th 1960, however, when it was announced that the Federation had launched the Invincible I, which carried a 28 year old Anglo-Indian, Richard Salisbury, into space. Imperial Federation Secretary General Pierre Trudeau bestowed the Medal of Imperial Valour, the Federation’s highest honour, on Salisbury. The US also launched a man into space, Glenn Allen, on December 11th 1960. However, in the months between the British and American launches, a tragedy has occurred.

On August 5th 1960, the launch of the Invincible II, carrying British pilot Kyle Fuller, failed. The rocket exploded on the launch pad, and soon the rocket was a flaming inferno. Fuller’s body was recovered. Trudeau and Prime Minister Harold Parsons both made speeches of condolence. However, it was Trudeau who, in typical fashion, tried to make some light of the incident. After commemorating Fuller’s death in the pursuit of the profession he loved, Trudeau promised ‘we shall go on and continue, in the memory of Fuller, and, by 1975, I feel sure that the Federation will have put a man onto the moon.’

At first, the audience was in shocked silence. Then, thunderous applause followed. Trudeau had laid down the gauntlet, and in the next few weeks, all three of the other powers announced their own intentions to launch their own moon programs. The race to the moon was on.

The Soviet Union soon took the honour of having the first object on the moon... a small probe was launched in the dying months of 1960, which crashed into the moon. France soon launched probes too, including the first probe to explore Venus. Britain showed more interest in launching probes onto Mars. More manned missions were also launched.

1961 was comparatively uneventful. The race continued as it had. The only new record to be broken was when the US launched a young woman into space, Sarah Jones on September 17th 1961. Otherwise, the powers continued on as they had.

In 1962, the USSR launched the first space station into the cosmos. However, the following mission to try and bring a spacecraft into the station failed, resulting in the deaths of the entire crew, and severe damage to the station itself. The following year, after the death of Bukharin and more launch failures, the USSR, now disinterested in the race, withdrew.

For the next 4 years, the race appeared to die off somewhat. Few new events occurred, as proxy wars and the nuclear race seemed to take precedence in people’s minds. Then, in 1967, the Federation announced it had launched its own space station, and would conduct several probe launches within the next few days. The race roared back to life, and in 1968, France claimed the honour of being the first nation to explore the dark side of the moon with a probe. Nevertheless, France’s own interest in the race was also beginning to wane, and they would make little attempt to follow up on this. It now appeared to be the Federation and the US who would be in the final race to the moon.

In 1969, a US spacecraft, the Minuteman, flew around the moon carrying 2 passengers. It looked as if the US would win the race. President Richard Parker announced that the US would land a man on the moon on April 26th 1970. It looked as if the race was over, and many began to wonder if Secretary-General Indira Gandhi had prepared a concession speech to read on the day. Then, the unexpected occurred.

The Federation announced its own launch on March 21st 1970, but did not disclose the details. Most thought this would simply be a simple copy of the Minuteman mission. However, they were wrong. On March 19th, it was announced that this was in fact the moon launch. And at noon, GMT, millions around the Federation gathered around their television sets to watch the landing. At 12:36 GMT precisely, the Brotherhood XI touched down on the surface of the moon. 3 minutes later, a young British pilot emerged from the cockpit, carrying the flag of both the Federation and the Union Jack. His name was Robert Accrington. As he took the first footstep ever made by man on the surface of the moon, he said ‘May this mission forever live on as a symbol of the ingenuity of man’. Minutes later, his co-pilots, a Canadian named Damon McIntyre and an Indian named Rajit Chandran joined him in planting the flags of the Federation, Britain, Canada and India into the surface of the moon.

President Parker of the US took the loss well, and made an honourable concession speech. At the end, he noted the US mission would still take place, and on April 26th, US pilot Michael Lister became the first American on the moon. The Stars and Stripes flew symbolically beside the Union Jack and the Federation banner.

IMPERIAL FEDERATION COMITTEES: 1927-1970

IMCOMIND (Imperial Committee on the Self Determination of India, 1927-1944): Was chiefly responsible for reforming India’s role in the Imperial Federation, and paved the way for and independent India. Disbanded after Indian independence, 1944.

IMCOMS (Imperial Committee on Slavery, 1927-): Contributed to the abolition of de facto slavery in parts of the British Empire in Africa. Now mainly a pressure group for stricter action against states that tolerate slavery.

IMARM (Imperial Council of Armed Forces, 1937-): Formed to co-ordinate the war against Italy. Has remained since to help co-ordinate Imperial forces.

IMDECOL (Imperial Council on Decolonisation, 1955-): Formed to supervise elections and transfer of responsibility in countries granted independence by Britain.

IMNUC (Imperial Council on Nuclear Arms, 1959-): A council to stop profileration of nuclear weapons, and to discuss nuclear treaties.

IMNUCP (Imperial Council on Nuclear Power, 1959-): A council to discuss the use of nuclear power.

IMARTS (Imperial Committee for the Arts, 1945-): Since 1945, has rewarded writers, film directors, actors and artists for works considered exceptional.

IMSPACE (Imperial Space Commission, 1958-): For the co-ordination and organisation of Imperial space missions.

THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM: 1958-1970

The ESZ proved to face difficult challenges after 1958. It had swelled to include most of Europe that could feasibly be added, and now, had even begun to recede; In 1959, Romania quit the ESZ and began to lean towards the Soviet Union. Hungary, previously isolationist, decided to attack while no-one could help Romania. On 15th February 1959, Hungarian forces pushed into Romania, and bombed the Ploetsi oil facility. A three month war broke out, which resulted in little gain for either side. Romania finally agreed to cede Northern Transylvania on May 18th, after a particularly brutal bombing raid on Bucharest. Romania was driven into the Socialist Alliance as a result.

The Muscat Pact did even worse. Licking its wounds, the ESZ decided to allow Turkey into the alliance (along with Ireland, although Ireland remained, primarily, an Imperial Federation member). As a result, Turkey left the Pact in 1960. In addition, British refusal to end support for Israel meant that both Jordan and Iraq quit the Pact in 1963. Despite the Trucial States joining in 1964, the Pact just could not hold together. Both Egypt and Sudan no longer had any interest in the Pact, getting all the benefits they needed from the Federation, and quit in 1964 and 1966 respectively. The remaining members, Kuwait, Trucial States, Yemen, Oman and South Arabia decided to discontinue the Pact and instead formed the Arabian Co-Operation Sphere, which came to have a practical monopoly on oil in the area very soon (although Federation oil companies continued to exploit the oil of these nations).

The real winner was the ASPZ. In 1960, Nepal, Tibet and Afghanistan all joined, and in 1966, newly independent North Guinea also joined. Even Leninist Mongolia began to lean towards joining the alliance. Nevertheless, challenges still faced the ASPZ, including border disputes between India and China, and the Xinjiang separatist movement.

As more and more African nations became independent, many began to swing towards the Socialist Alliance. In 1970, Chad, Tripoli, Fezzan, Gabon, Senegal and Mozambique had all joined the Socialist Alliance. A brief attempt to establish an ‘African Security Pact’ failed, and it appeared that most of the former French colonies would go their own way.

Even the Imperial Federation ran into trouble. Although Uganda was the only country to quit in Africa, the Federation also faced problems in Turkey, which had now gone over to the Europeans, and also with the Indo-Pakistani conflict, which was dangerously close to reigniting in 1969.

A new alliance was also born in this era, with very little fanfare. The US had begun to emerge from its isolationism, and decided to seek out allies in Latin America. Having signed a trade agreement with Brazil in 1961, and with Mexico in 1963, it sought to form an Americas Pact. On 17th February 1965, the US, Mexico, Brazil, Peru and Ecuador signed the Norfolk Pact. The alliance would grow very little in the 1960s, with many Latin American nations having hostile memories of ‘Yanqui imperialism’, but the alliance would come to play a major part in world affairs by the 1970s.

DECOLONISATION CONTINUES: 1970-1980

With Indira Gandhi having become Secretary General of the Imperial Federation in 1970, the wave of decolonisation continued. Only three nations in Africa were left under British control by 1970. In 1971, Bechuanaland became independent, but by now, decolonisation had begun in other parts of the world.

In the Caribbean, Britain decided to create one large country, which would have 15 seats at the Imperial Federation. The Caribbean Federation was granted independence in 1972, and gained Belize in 1974. Although unstable, strong leadership managed to hold together the Federation.

The Pacific also saw decolonisation. Wake was transferred to Canada in 1970, and in 1973, Nauru, The Solomons, The Gilberts and Palau all became independent. Tuvalu followed in 1974, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa in 1976 and Tokelau in 1980. The Marshalls were transferred to Japan in 1979. Almost all these nations stayed in the Federation, and even those that didn’t either remained associates or rejoined later on.

In Africa, trouble continued in Northern Rhodesia and the Gambia. By now, British forces were generally being replaced with Imperial peacekeepers in the Gambia, and thus, in 1978, the Gambia became independent officially. Even there, British forces would only completely leave in 1981. The Communists continued their program of violence and bombings in Northern Rhodesia. Prime Minister William Haywood announced his hope to have an independent Northern Rhodesia by 1985, and the end of British presence before the millennium, but even this seemed like a difficult objective.

THE NUCLEAR RACE: 1970-1983

More and more nuclear weapons continued to be built throughout the 1970s. Nevertheless, by 1973, efforts had begun towards nuclear disarmament. In that same year, British Prime Minister William Haywood announced a new nuclear conference in Cardiff. Britain, France, the US, Japan and China attended, while India walked out halfway through the conference and the Soviet Union refused to attend. An agreement was finally concluded on September 20th 1973 which agreed:
1. No nation will carry out nuclear tests in outer space or underwater
2. Reduction of long range nuclear weapons by ¼
3. Britain, France, America, Japan, China, the Soviet Union and India are the ‘Nuclear Seven’. It is agreed that no-one outside of these seven will be allowed to obtain assistance with nuclear weapons programs

Britain and the US agreed to the treaty immediately and ratified it the same year. China ratified in 1974, Japan in 1977 and France in 1981. Nevertheless, France continued nuclear testing in the Pacific, which angered the ASPZ so much that they declared arms sanctions on France until they backed down. From then on, France tested weapons underground, begrudgingly.

The treaty failed to prevent more states from constructing nuclear weapons. Korea became a nuclear power in 1974, Pakistan in 1978 and Germany in 1981 (to the furore of the ESZ). However, Germany agreed to sign the Madrid Treaty in 1982, but still refused to sign the Cardiff Treaty until the 3rd point was removed.

Following this treaty, the US proposed the Boston Treaty in 1978, which would place a cap on nuclear weapons at 30,000. All of the Nuclear Seven agreed to attend this treaty, with Ivanov, the leader of the Soviet Union having died the year before and been replaced by reformist Chenyenko.

The final document was signed and ratified by Britain, the US, France and Japan immediately. China signed and ratified in 1980. India signed in 1979, and ratified in 1981, while the Soviet Union signed in 1982, but never ratified the Treaty.
Nuclear Count:

1975:
Britain: 17,000
Soviet Union: 13,000
USA: 11,000
France: 8,700
China: 4,500
India: 3,900
Japan: 1,000
Korea: 20

1980:
Britain: 23,000
Soviet Union: 21,000
USA: 20,000
China: 12,000
France: 10,000
India: 8,500
Pakistan: 3,200
Japan: 2,000
Korea: 300

1983:
Soviet Union: 26,000
Britain: 22,000
USA: 20,000
China: 18,000
France: 12,000
India: 11,000
Pakistan: 7,000
Japan: 1,500
Germany: 1,200
Korea: 900

THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM: 1970-1983

The ESZ gained no new members from 1970 to 1976. Then, much to the surprise of France, Britain applied for associate membership, which was approved. However, in 1979, General Mehmet Dogulu overthrew the government of Turkey and announced the forming of an Islamic republic. The new nation left the ESZ, followed swiftly by Greece, disgusted at the ESZ’s inaction over the Cyprus dispute. It was genuinely feared that the ESZ was on the verge of dissolution.

The ASPZ gained a flood of new members from the newly independent British pacific areas. However, it was unable to attract Persian membership, and thus open the gate to the Middle East. With the exceptions of Bahrain and Indonesia, no Muslim state would join the ASPZ from 1970-1983.

The Imperial Federation also did well. After a brutal countercoup, General Kigongo of Uganda was overthrown in 1975, and thus Uganda passed back into the Imperial Federation. However, Northern Rhodesia remained an ongoing nightmare for the Federation.

It was in the Socialist Alliance that membership was most chaotic. The Alliance reached its peak strength in 1974, after which it began a rapid decline in its fortunes. By 1980, most of the African states which Ivanov had referred to as ‘the future of socialism’ had left, with the exception of Senegal. Chaos also reigned within the Soviet Union, where strikes and demonstrations were now regular occurrences, and with the death of Ivanov, there was no-one who could control them.
Finally, the Norfolk Pact began to expand very gradually. Cuba joined in 1974, Haiti and Guatemala in 1975, Argentina and Uruguay in 1976 and Colombia in 1980. The alliance was already considered to have overtaken the Socialist Alliance in importance.

And then, in 1983, chaos erupted in the Soviet Union.

WINDS OF CHANGE PART I – THE USSR CRUMBLES: 1983

In January 1983, inflation stood at an unprecedented 800% in the Soviet Union. The ruble was depreciating rapidly. Chenyenko repeatedly called for calm, but the fact was that he was now little more than a paper tiger. Parts of the army were mutinying against the Central Command, and as if to make things worse, Chenyenko received news that Mongolia had officially quit the Socialist Alliance, leaving only 4 members: The Soviet Union, Bulgaria, Finland and Senegal.

On February 2nd, Latvian border guards seized control of their posts and shortly afterwards, an interim government announced Latvian secession from the Soviet Union. Most of the Latvian forces in the Soviet Army also quit their posts and joined the newly formed Latvian Defence Force. Latvian Prime Minister Ozolins called for ESZ support. 8 days later, Lithuania followed their Latvian cousins in secession, and on March 1st, so did Estonia.

Chenyenko’s response was surprising to the West. He announced the USSR would take no action, and even commented that it may be for the best, given how the USSR had forcibly invaded those nations in 1948.

What Chenyenko didn’t realise was that his inaction had set off a chain reaction. Food riots now erupted in many parts of the USSR, and local police frequently did nothing to stop the protesters. In April, Georgia officially pulled out of the USSR, followed by Azerbaijan, Armenia and Dagestan. Finally, the hardliners had had enough.

On May 2nd 1983, tanks rolled up outside the Kremlin. Chenyenko was removed from the building and sent to a detention camp at Kola. The new government officially declared war on all the seceding republics, and ordered their forces into these nations. In response, the ESZ called an emergency meeting and authorised military action to defend the Baltic states.

WINDS OF CHANGE PART II – BLOOD AND STEEL: 1983

On May 3rd, German forces in East Prussia moved into the Baltic States, to help defend them against Soviet forces. For the first time since 1914, German and Russian forces were fighting each other. German and Polish fighters were moved into airbases at Kaunas and Riga, and soon took to the skies, ripping into any Soviet aircraft they encountered. To the north, Norwegian forces entered Petsamo, just three hours after Finland announced its departure from the Socialist Alliance.

By now, Finnish forces had also allegedly fired on Soviet troops, and had shelled Leningrad. To the south, Romania had also attacked the Soviet Union, no doubt seeking to conquer Moldova. By the end of the week, French and Italian forces had also arrived in the Baltic States, and the Soviet offensive had grounded to a halt. Cruise missiles rained down on Moscow and other major Russian cities. The hardliners decided it was time to teach the Europeans a lesson, and on May 15th, the order was sent to fire 4 nuclear missiles, at Paris, Berlin, London and Warsaw. However, instead of firing the missiles, the staff at the nuclear sites went on strike, and refused to provoke a nuclear holocaust. In fact, by that time, rioters had already broken into the Kremlin and captured most of the hardliner leaders.

The grisly image of the executed and mutilated leaders was soon shown on major news channels, and it was clear that the USSR was in no state to continue. On May 22nd, Ukraine declared independence, and an unofficial truce broke out all over the frontline, except in the new state itself, where a brutal civil war commenced over who would lead the nation.

WINDS OF CHANGE PART III – THE COLLAPSE CONTINUES: 1983

The entire country was in practical anarchy. Order had completely broken down and there was no official government. Inflation now stood at 3,000%. Looting was commonplace. All these were the sights of a dying nation. On June 1st, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan had had enough, and both seceded from the Soviet Union. By the time that same month was over, Ossetia, Tuva and Tajikistan had also broken off.

July 2nd marked the official end of the Soviet Union. Russia declared independence, and took with it Byelorussia and Kazakhstan. Kyrgyzstan and Siberia both seceded on that day. The Parliament of Russia then made an astonishing choice. They invited Vladmir Romanov, pretender to the throne of Russia, to return as constitutional monarch. Romanov accepted, and soon made his way to Russia on a plane from Mexico. Meanwhile, a Russian Prime Minister was ‘elected’, known as Alexei Sondolov, although the results of the election were dubious. Sondolov and his National Revival Party decided to allow for a policy of withdrawal, to allow for a stable Russian nation, rather than the chaotic mess it had become.

In August, Kazakhstan, Novgorod and Byelorussia seceded. However, this marked the end of the secessions. From here, Russia would be able to recover and eventually begin to reassert its influence over the former Soviet republics.

Confidence in the new Russian ruble had been revived, and banks were now beginning to reopen. Food prices began to fall. The Russian road to recovery had begun. However, conflict was still rife in neighbouring nations, and sometimes violence spilled over into Russian territory, although the new Russian army was usually able to deal with the intruders.

On October 1st, the Socialist Alliance came to an official end, with only Russia and Bulgaria having remained in the alliance. Very soon, Bulgaria would become engulfed in its own revolution. Responding to Imperial and ESZ criticisms, Sondolov held another election in which he won 67% of the vote, in far more believable circumstances than the previous election.

Some members of the National Revival Party suggested ESZ membership for Russia, but Sondolov was sceptical of joining the organisation which only 5 months ago had been firing missiles at Russian cities. What way Russia would go, only Sondolov could tell.

WINDS OF CHANGE PART IV – ROLLBACK: 1983-1984

Secretary-General Mitterrand of the ESZ now saw an opportunity for ESZ expansion. Already, the three Baltic states had applied for membership. Finland may also be a viable nation for membership, given how the people had recently thrown off years of Socialist domination. Ukraine would be much harder to bring into the ESZ, given how many Ukrainians were viciously anti-ESZ, and the current civil war. Byelorussia would be even less feasible, given its pro-Russian stance. The Caucasus states might be a possibility. Mitterrand then heard that the ASPZ was planning to admit Siberia and Mongolia to the organisation, and it was decided to admit the Baltic States. On January 1st 1984, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania officially became members of the ESZ. This also meant the integration of Baltic forces into the ESZ command structure. France had already shown interest in setting up military bases in Latvia, perhaps even positioning nuclear missiles there.

On the subject of nuclear forces, Russia now only had 8,000 missiles, with many others having gone to the new states such as Siberia or Ukraine, where they were decommissioned. Germany had also agreed to disarm its nuclear force, with the threat of Soviet invasion having disappeared, presumably forever.

Sondolov also decided to take an interventionist approach to foreign affairs. Signs that Greece and Turkey were gearing up for war were clear, and Sondolov decided to send foreign aid to Greece, in an attempt not only to be rid of the hostile Islamist state that was already interfering in former Soviet territory, but to bring Greece into a sort of sphere of influence with Russia. Many old T-78 tanks were sold to Greece at scrap metal prices, although the Greek High Command doubted they would stand up to Turkey’s tanks, most of which were given to them by Britain and France pre-revolution and were superior in most aspects.

Imperial policy on the whole affair was rather murky. Secretary-General Anwar Sadat decided to close down some older airbases in Japan, which he no longer saw the need for, although one or two airbases were maintained. Sadat’s attention was also fixed on the situation in Turkey. Greece received large amounts of aid from the Federation, as did Iraq and Syria, the latter being assigned aid to try and pull them into the Imperial sphere of influence. British and Australian forces were redeployed to bases in Northern Iraq, lest a war should break out with Turkey.

Greece itself was led by Prime Minister Ioniko Chatzi, a nominal isolationist, determined to keep Greece out of the ESZ, but also to keep Turkey down, and possibly Bulgaria too, should the violence in that nation spill over into Thrace. His main concern however, was ‘that son of a bitch Dogulu’. The two nations had nearly gone to war in 1981, when Turkey threatened to invade Cyprus. Now Dogulu appeared to be aiming at bringing Cyprus under Turkish control once again. Despite being deeply unpopular among the Kemalists who resented his destruction of Turkey’s secularism, it was known that Dogulu should be able to hold on, unless a war would break out...

THE RISE AND FALL OF DOGULU’S REGIME: 1979-1984

Dogulu had seized power in an unstable Turkey. After Kemal and Inonu, Turkey’s leaders had generally been incompetent and unable to hold together so many minorities in one country. In particular, the Greeks of Western Turkey, and the Kurds and Armenians in the East. Since 1951, a group known as the Kurdish Peoples Front had launched bomb attacks and hijackings of Turkish aircraft.

General Dogulu seized power and immediately suspended the constitution. He now declared Islamic law would rule over Turkey, and passed laws decreeing death sentences for ‘crimes’ such as apostasy. Public beheadings of blasphemers and criminals became commonplace. In addition, interest was made illegal, and all banks were forced to follow Sharia principles. Dogulu’s religious police made sure these laws were carried out. It wasn’t long before Dogulu could turn his attention abroad.

Dogulu soon began attacking Greece and Cyprus verbally, promising to crush them and restore Turkey’s ‘rightful power’. Greece began funding Ionian Greek partisans as a result, while Turkey funded Turkish militants on Cyprus. A proxy war of sorts had already begun as early as 1980. In 1981, Dogulu deployed parts of the Turkish navy off the coast of Cyprus, and threatened to invade the island to ‘free the oppressed Turks’. Greece immediately called up its reservists and agreed to place a division on Cyprus at the request of the government. Turkey did not expect Greece to react strongly, and backed down, but Dogulu was determined not to be humiliated again. Instead, he turned his attention to dealing with the Kurds and Armenian insurgents

By 1983, Dogulu’s reign had become even more autocratic. He had a new Islamic constitution written, and when Kemalists protested in Ankara, ordered soldiers to fire on them. Dogulu was on the verge of being in the face of a major revolution, and he thus decided to try and unite the nation by restarting the Cyprus dispute. On December 2nd 1983, Turkish forces landed on Cyprus and quickly defeated the Cypriot Army. In response, Greek aircraft hit airfields in Western Turkey, and Greek forces entered Turkish territory. Edirne was seized on the first day, and Greek marines landed on several small Turkish isles. Dogulu ordered his airforce up into the sky to eliminate the Greeks.

However, despite the Turkish Airforce having Hydras that were far superior to the MiGs the Greeks sent into the air, Turkey’s best pilots had been purged by the government. The well trained Greeks destroyed the Turkish force sent out to take them out, and even began bombing Izmir and Istanbul. Clearly, things were going badly for Turkey. Nevertheless, on land, Turkish forces were able to repel attacks towards Istanbul and a war of attrition had developed in the area.

That was until February, when Greek forces staged an amphibious landing around Izmir. Greek tanks soon rolled through the city, and Turkish forces had to be redeployed south to deal with this new menace. Meanwhile, full scale riots had erupted in many parts of the country, and it was clear that Turkey was falling apart. With Russia supporting Greece with equipment and money, while Turkey had no true allies, it was clear that the war was lost. On March 8th, Dogulu flew out of Ankara on his own private helicopter to Morocco, never to return. A new unity government signed a treaty with Greece that granted them all majority Greek areas in Western Turkey. The treaty was highly unpopular, but the alternative was a continued war with Greece which could not be won. The new Turkish government set about the search for allies...

THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM: 1983-1990

The ESZ finally began to expand in the 1980s. With the admission of the Baltic States in 1984, a wave of new countries applied to join the ESZ. In 1985, Yugoslavia and Romania were admitted, and in 1987, Turkey and Albania. Finland also became a member in 1990. Increasingly, the ESZ came into conflict with Russia. In 1986, Russia, Novgorod and Byelorussia formed a counterunion and pledged themselves towards a common currency. Both sides also came into conflict over the Caucasus nations and the Ukraine. Sondolov won re-election in 1988, and pledged himself towards rolling back European influence. A free trade agreement with the Russophile Ukrainian government in 1989 helped bring Ukraine back into the Russian sphere of influence, and were it not for the victory of the National Coalition in 1990, Ukraine would probably have entered the Eastern Union.

The ASPZ did better. Tuva and all the Central Asian states except Uzbekistan joined in 1985, and Russia had little interest in the ASPZ. Nevertheless, ASPZ forces were deployed to bases in Central Asia, especially in Kazakhstan.

The Imperial Federation and the Norfolk Pact both grew very little. The only nation to join the Norfolk Pact in this era was Haiti. However, the Caribbean Federation was leaning towards associate membership.

RUSSIAN ELECTION OF 1988 AND IT’S AFTERMATH: 1988-1991

In 5 years, Sondolov had brought Russia from the verge of ruin to a respectable regional power. By doing this, he had reformed the Russian state drastically, creating a free market economy and doing away with the planned economy of old. Regulation on banks was removed, allowing them to operate more freely, and from 1986-1988, the Russian economy grew massively; another 20% of its GDP was made in just 3 years.

However, many now felt that Russia was ready to reclaim some honour on the world stage. Sondolov’s National Revival Party stressed the need for a strong financial sector and for a stable economy, but the Party for a Greater Russia was disinterested in these policies and was eager to expand abroad. To appease some of the less nationalistic PGR voters, Sondolov had formed a customs union with Byelorussia and Novgorod. With these countries in the Russian sphere, Sondolov also planned to bring these states into economic subjection by encouraging them to peg their currencies to the ruble. However, this had not come to fruition by the time the election was held.

The 1988 election itself was a National Revival victory, but as they had won only 48% of the popular vote, they were forced to form a coalition with the Worker’s Party to prevent the PGR coming to power. To many Russians, who had bitter memories of Ivanov’s reign of terror, this was making a deal with the devil, and it would almost certainly ensure a PGR victory in 1993.
Sondolov didn’t even last that long however.

In February 1989, Inkomsbank, Russia’s main private bank, closed its doors precipitating a yearlong economic crisis that deposed Sondolov due to his unwillingness to work with his Workers Party allies. In January 1990, a second election was held, which gave the PGR a 54% majority, and allowed their candidate, Vasili Fedotov, to assume power. Fedotov immediately began a more aggressive foreign policy, and in August 1990, agreed to a deal which annexed Novgorod to Russia, thus ending that states existence after just seven years of independence.

Many major institutions were nationalised by the government, and national service was introduced. Finally, Fedotov sought to expand the Eastern Union, thus beginning a new Great Game in the Caucasus.

THE POWDERKEG – UKRAINE: 1991-1993

(Written in timeline format)

January 7th 1991: President Fedotov of Russia makes an angry speech condemning the Ukraine over its energy policy, which he claims steals Russian natural gas.

February 16th 1991: Operation FIREBAT I is carried out between ESZ and Ukrainian forces, against a simulated opponent. In response, Russia carries out military exercises of its own.

May 5th 1991: Aleksandr Zhukov, president of Ukraine, signs an accord with Russia, ending the gas conflict.

October 18th 1991: Operation FIREBAT II is carried out. Russia holds naval exercises with Greek forces in the Aegean.

April 7th 1992: Ukrainian forces open fire on Russian infantry supposedly violating the border. Seven Russians and three Ukrainians are killed. Fedotov calls for the annexation of the Crimea to Russia.

November 2nd 1992: Fedotov once again calls for the annexation of Crimea, and threatens to use force against the Ukraine.
November 16th 1992: Ukraine calls up reservists, puts forces on high alert. Poland partially mobilises.

November 21st 1992: Russia, Dagestan and Byelorussia all begin full mobilisation.

November 27th 1992: The ESZ calls up reservists, and encourages member states to begin mobilisation.

December 1st 1992: The Imperial Federation begins mobilisation. Secretary Generals John Major (of the Imperial Federation) and Kohl (of the ESZ) agree not to take unilateral action against Russia.

December 11th 1992: President Benjamin Dennett of the US announces his nation’s neutrality in the coming conflict and calls for the ASPZ and the Norfolk Pact to take the same steps.

December 19th 1992: President Dennett offers to mediate between Ukraine and Russia. His offer is turned down.

December 23rd 1992: A Ukrainian Chimera I is shot down by Russian SAM along the border. President Aleksandr Zhukov makes an address to the nation in which he warns war may be inevitable.

January 17th 1993: Russian special forces are believed to have entered Ukrainian territory.

January 26th 1993: The ESZ begins general mobilisation.

January 28th 1993: Ukraine, Georgia and Armenia begin general mobilisation.

February 2nd 1993: Hungarian Premier Zsofia Kovacs offers to mediate between Russian and Ukraine. Her offer is turned down.

February 22nd 1993: Russia gives a final ultimatum to Ukraine to turn over the Crimea.

February 26th 1993: Ukraine officially rejects the ultimatum

February 28th 1993: First air duels of the war.

March 1st 1993: Ukrainian forces advance into Byelorussian territory.

March 2nd 1993: Russia declares war on the Ukraine.

MARCH – ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE: March 1993

On March 2nd 1993, Russia and Byelorussia declared war on the Ukraine. At about 2AM local time, MiG’s flew over Kiev and other major Ukrainian cities and dogfights with the Ukraine Air Force commenced. Russian tanks and infantry also began to stream into Ukrainian territory. President Zhukov of Ukraine announced emergency evacuations of cities near the border, including Kiev, and within a couple of hours, ESZ missiles had landed on Russian cities, signalling their entry into the war, and European artillery soon began pounding Russian cities, such as Petrograd, from Finland. It was clear that Russia now had a major war on its hands.

Additionally, Russian forces began to advance into Georgia and Armenia. The ESZ called an emergency meeting in which it was agreed that Georgia, Ukraine and Armenia would all be allowed to participate in ESZ military meetings to allow for better co-ordination between forces. It also agreed that all three nations would be admitted to the ESZ after the war.
The next day, Imperial forces from Britain landed at Turku in Finland and Talinn in Estonia, ready to serve against the Russians. Already, heavy fighting was breaking out as a European offensive in the Kola Peninsula and near Pskov broke out. Russian forces fought bravely but were generally outclassed in these battles. By mid-March, Russian forces were in full retreat along the borders with the Baltic States.

In the Ukraine, Russian forces performed better. Kiev fell on March 18th and the drive south soon resulted in the fall of Poltava and Cherkassy. The Ukrainian government fled to Romania three days before. Meanwhile, European tanks began to roll into Ukraine to aid the government in holding back Russian forces.

Russian forces in the Caucasus had more success. Georgia was almost completely occupied by the end of March, and Russian forces had begun to advance into parts of Turkey. The Imperial Federation was now concerned that a Russian offensive south could drive into Iraq and threaten the Federation’s oil supply. As a result, ANZAC and Canadian forces that were originally going to aid the Ukraine were redirected to aid Turkey in holding back Russia. Turkey was also facing a renewed assault from Greece, and the ESZ decided to make an offer to neutral Bulgaria: if it entered the war against Greece, it would be given Thrace back. This proved to be an irresistible offer, and on March 21st, Bulgarian forces invaded parts of Greece and bombed Greek positions.

By late March, Fedotov was displeased. Ukrainian forces were holding the line and even pushing into parts of Byelorussia. Russian allies had been incompetent, with the exception of Greece. Fedotov began to push for the annexation of Byelorussia and Dagestan into Russia.

In addition, the Norfolk Pact was proving to be obstructive to Russian aims. Although they remained neutral in the war, they were openly critical of Russia and its objectives.

APRIL – RUSSIA STRIKES BACK: April 1993

On April 1st, Russian forces began a general counteroffensive on all fronts. Ordered by Fedotov to try and bring the war back into his favour, the offensive was highly successful at first against overextended ESZ forces. In the Ukraine, ESZ line broke, and Dnepropetrovsk fell to the Russians. However, the Russians did not dig in but instead carried on, and instead were faced with a counterattack which successfully wiped out all the gains they had made in the Ukraine.

Russian forces also pushed around the Pskov area, and into parts of Poland. However, newly arrived German and Polish divisions ensured that these gains were temporary, and by April 9th, the Russians were back in retreat.

In the north, Finnish, British and French forces were driven from the gates of Petrograd, but managed to hold the line just south of Viipuri. At this point, the ESZ and Imperial Federation’s worst fears were confirmed. Russian aircraft had dropped bombs filled with sarin on Allied forces. Gas masks were quickly deployed, and very few lives were lost, but nevertheless, it took its toll. Russia also launched bombing raids with chemical weapons, on Helsinki, Warsaw, Berlin and Sevastopol. The Allies responded in kind by bombing Petrograd, Smolensk and Moscow with chemical weapons.

Polish, German and Czechoslovak forces switched to the defence in the centre, and it was here that the poor quality of Russia’s Byelorussian allies was proven. Having been badly equipped and demoralised from the destruction of their homes and the deaths of their friends, many simply surrendered in the face of the enemy. When Minsk itself fell to the Allies on April 19th, Fedotov signed a declaration annexing Byelorussia, and within three days, the unoccupied parts of the nation had been transferred to Russian control. Russian forces soon launched counterattacks to regain lost territory, but these proved ineffective.

It was in the South that the Russians truly triumphed. On April 15th, Russian forces entered Iraqi territory, having pushed south through Turkey. They were met by fierce resistance from Australian, Canadian, New Zealander and Iraqi forces, but these proved to be incapable of stopping the Russian steamroller, and Mosul fell on April 19th. By the end of April, Baghdad itself was under attack from Russian forces.

Turkey was coming under heavy attack from two sides. Its lines in the east were breaking from the Russian assault, and they were only able to hold the line against the Greeks. However, Greece was beginning to suffer too. Crete had fallen to Canadian forces, and British forces had now landed at Salonika. Yugoslav and Bulgarian forces advanced south, meeting stiff resistance from Greek fortifications, but nevertheless, by May, the Greek lines had begun to crack.

The Norfolk Pact was increasingly worried by Russian successes, especially in the Middle East. It was now believed that if Iraq and Kuwait fell, Russian forces would move on into either the oilfields of Persia (British owned) or the Nejdian oilfields (US and British owned). ANZAC, Canadian and Iraqi forces had so far failed to hold back the Russians, and President Dennett decided to sign an agreement with the governments of Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and the Trucial States, allowing the US to base aircraft in their territory. Britain, usually hostile to the expansion of foreign influence in what it considered the ‘Imperial Gulf’, reluctantly overlooked the agreements. On April 22nd, the agreement with Kuwait was expanded to allow foot soldiers to be placed in Kuwait, and several divisions of US Marines were sent to the Gulf.

The ASPZ was also considering its options. Iran was seen as a major interest of the alliance, and if the Abadan oil fields were to fall, it could pose a major threat to the ASPZ’s oil supply. India was pushing for the ASPZ to take action, as was Pakistan (though more reluctantly). Japan and Korea also wanted to see action taken against Russia. However, the Central Asian states had close relations with Russia and did not want a war, while other nations remained disinterested.

MAY – STANDSTILL: May 1993

The war in the Ukraine was now one mainly of tank battles. The use of infantry was now considered too wasteful in the Ukraine area, where chemical weapons were being used more than on any other front. Although European forces succeeded in recapturing Poltava, the war had generally declined into attrition in the Ukraine. Both sides now focused on bombing and shelling each other into submission, as well as the occasional tank manoeuvre.

In the north, Allied forces pushed back, and had now reached the gates of Petrograd. Forces advancing from the Baltic States had reached the southern suburbs of the city, and now a siege began. It was believed that Fedotov himself was in Petrograd. The city would see some of the most vicious and bloody fighting of the entire war.

But the attention of the world, especially the US, remained fixed on the Iraq campaign. On May 4th, Russian forces entered Baghdad triumphant. The build-up of US forces was sped up by order of the President, and by May 10th, 50,000 US troops were in the Gulf. The USAF also began its first bombing raids on Russian forces in the area, with aid from British and Pakistani forces that were now arriving in Kuwait. On May 22nd, the Russians reached Basra, and the Allies began a ferocious battle to hold the city. That same day, the United States officially declared war on Russia, thus bringing the Norfolk Pact onto the allied side. US forces soon moved north to aid the defenders of Basra, and on May 28th, the Russians broke off the assault.

Greece finally broke in May. On May 9th, Greek officers broke into Prime Minister Chatzi’s room and shot him five times. The following day, an armistice was declared, and Greece was put under joint Anglo-French occupation.

The relief of this on Turkey’s western front meant that Turkish forces were able to be moved east. A renewed offensive, coupled with the rising of Kurdish insurgents meant that Russia struggled to get supplies to its army in Iraq, except by air. It became more and more likely that the Russian army in the south would be cut off and destroyed.

JUNE AND JULY – THE ADVANCE: June-July 1993

As June began, European forces edged nearer and nearer to Kiev. Most of the Ukraine had now been liberated from Russian occupation. A general retreat had begun in the area, and the use of chemical weapons also began to fall off as Russia ran out of sarin and tabun. However, a whole new weapon was about to be used.

On June 11th, three Russian nuclear missiles were fired, destroying the cities of Lodz in Poland, Stuttgart in Germany and Tabor in Czechoslovakia. The devastation was horrific, and in revenge, 5 missiles, three American and two British were fired, destroying the Russian cities of Archangelsk, Magnitogorsk, Kerch, Tsaritsyn and Gorky. Looting broke out across the affected areas, and there was a serious danger of revolution in parts of the 4 countries hit with nuclear missiles.

However, Russia’s industrial base had now been destroyed. An additional 20 nuclear missiles were fired at Russian nuclear depots, thus annihilating Russia’s nuclear capability. It was clear that Russia could now no longer win the war. On June 21st, the Tsar shot himself, to the complete surprise of Fedotov. But Fedotov himself was now surrounded in his bunker in Petrograd. On July 11th, he declared Russia a republic, and himself President, and 2 days later, he was killed by American and British soldiers. The Union Jack, the Stars and Stripes, and the flag of Finland were raised over the remains of his bunker.

It was now clear that the war in Iraq could not be won for Russia. On July 1st, the commander of the forces in Iraq surrendered the entire army group to the Allies. In addition, a new ESZ offensive drove into Georgia and Armenia liberating these nations from Russian occupation.

On July 14th, Kulikov was made the new President of Russia. He promised to carry on the war, but it was clear that Russia could not carry on. The battle for Petrograd raged on, but the Russian defenders were now cut off from food and were fighting a losing battle. Many civilians resorted to cannibalism to avoid starvation.

THE BITTER END AND THE PEACE OF RIGA: 1993-1994

August, and the last defenders of Petrograd fought on desperately. However, they now fought merely for their own survival. Kulikov himself was killed on August 8th by a sniper, and another new government came to power, led by General Ryzkhov. An armistice was signed on the 20th, and the war was over.

Negotiations for a peace treaty began almost immediately, at the capital of Latvia, Riga. It was now clear that Russia posed a threat to peace in the world in general, and that it must be partitioned to ensure peace in Europe. The final treaty was finally agreed to on November 19th. The terms are as follows:

• The Russian republic is dissolved. The independence of Byelorussia, Novgorod, Georgia and Armenia are all reinstated.
• The nations of Muscovy, Tver, Pskov, Suzdal, Ossetia and Kalmykia are to be created.
• The boundary of Europe is set as the Urals.
• Byelorussia will cede a large portion of land in the south to Ukraine.
• A European Reconstruction Committee will be set up to organise the repair and reconstruction of areas devastated and destroyed by the war.
• Greece will lose all territory in Anatolia to Turkey, Thrace to Bulgaria, and Cyprus to the United Kingdom. It will be occupied by Imperial forces for 5 years, and will not be allowed to join the ESZ until 1998.
• Ukraine will be admitted to the ESZ on Jan 1st 1994, Georgia and Armenia on Jan 1st 1995 and Bulgaria on Jan 1st 1997.

Talk Elections

General Discussion => Alternative History => Topic started by: k-onmmunist on April 13, 2009, 11:50:07 AM