We are gladdened by your generous offers, and accept.
By funding, we meant to say that our immediate funding needs were rather...acute. As in, it would be some time before we could pay for weapons shipments in a meaningful way. Is that acceptable to the USS, in the light of our needs to further international syndicalism, etc etc etc?
Certainly. Deferred payments, subsidies, and generous credit terms are available to members of the Internationale (the real one, not that Western pretender the APR set up) but given your close relationship with Syria, we can extend the same to you.
A Cuban independence march takes place in Santiago, Cuba
Continuing over from last year, the struggle for Cuban independence remained a hot button issue, not just on the island of Cuba but also across the Caribbean and in Spain. Spanish student and left wing independence organizations continued their peaceful protests and demonstrations, while right wing militias and political organizations spoke of violence and revolution with increasing fervor. While both were able to mobilize large groups of demonstrators and supporters, a great deal of the Cuban public was skeptical of independence, particularly a full, broken off independent Cuban state abandoning its ties to the Spanish Republic.
Regardless of the images appearing on television screens and newspapers, the reality one the ground was one of a divided people unsure of where to go. While independence was a popular notion among a great deal of Cubans, and had been since the turn of the century, not everyone was so welcoming of a post-Spanish future, particularly with the proximity of the Confederacy. Nationalists wanted independence but a great many of them also respected Spanish cultural and political ties, others had little love for Madrid but saw Richmond as a much bigger threat and that alone was enough to get them to support a continued Spanish presence on the islands.
Radicals on the other hand, left or right, wanted the Spanish out immediately, but even then they were divided on support for the Confederacy. Arch-Catholic conservative nationalists and falangists had little problem with the Confederacy, seeing them as a possible source of support for any eventual anti-syndicalist regime that they would like to prop up in Cuba. Authoritarian-Syndicalists and other radical wings of the international leftist movement were far less interested in peace with the Confederacy, seeing them as enemy's of the highest order, often working on Syndicalist fanaticism and anti-Confederate sentiment that has become common place (and even corner stone) in the Cuban national conscience.
So when radical student groups (usually Authoritarian Syndicalists, Anarcho-Syndicalists, Anarchists, etc) commenced causing trouble, it became a major issue for the island's government. With a Confederate-backed right-wing insurgency picking up steam in the countryside (and with rumored training camps in South Florida), many felt that the situation was rapidly getting out of control. Spain wasn't interested in allowing its crown jewel leave its sphere so suddenly, and certainly without general agreements.
When a bomb attack kills over a dozen Spanish soldiers on patrol outside of Santiago and the Spanish military goes wild, looking for the perpetrators is very much looking for a red needle in a red haystack, arresting leaders and getting into scuffles with radicals, both left and right. Until they got involved with a group of radical anarchists protesting Spanish "imperialist repression". Rocks and beer bottles were thrown, salsa music was blaring and suddenly eight students were gunned down in the streets. The radical left looked on with the hopes that this would radicalize the population and shift a significant amount to their cause.
They were wrong. Instead a resounding majority seemed to be supportive of the attacks on the radicals; both on the left and the right. The most popular thing the Spanish government had done in Cuba since the land reforms of the Cortes Generales touched the island nation. So-called Democratic Syndicalists had no problem seeing rabble rousing anarchists get blown away - tired of the constant abuse, friction and accusations of being "class traitors" from those further on the left. Non-syndicalist portions of the country were also supportive, even the far-right Patriotic movement in the countryside released a public missive praising the rough treatment of the anarchist students.
The attack on Spanish military forces allowed Madrid to focus on undercutting support for leftist nationalists. Arresting anarchists, pro-Moscow syndicalists and others "openly engaging in a rebellion against the peace and stability of Cuba" severely undercuts their organization and support in the weeks leading up to the independence referendum. The jails are swelling with alleged anarchist bomb throwers, rioters and "counter-revolutionaries" which gives Madrid the appearance of strength (if not unanimous support among the Cuban public) in the face of crisis. Havana uses the opportunity to launch a pro-Spanish campaign, hailing them as the guaranteers of peace and stability in Cuba.
Sustained firearms violence, clashes between the left, right nationalists, pro-Spanish nationalists, and the shadow of Richmond looming over the process, leads to the island to vote to go independent, but sustain heavy ties with Spain. With much of the opposition either in the jungle (and occasionally attacking voting sites and anti-rightist demonstrations) or in jail, its legitimacy is called into question by the Exile community in South Florida and the Confederate government. The Spanish government claims victory, stating that the Cuban people have "determined their way forward", claiming that while the referendum in and of itself had a low turn out, and those leading the opposing campaigns were severely undercut, it was a matter of national security and state sovereignty being threatened in the face of violence, while also (rather convincingly) demonstrating that no actual voter fraud had been committed.
One thing can be certain; Cuba is a society divided. Cuba's first free elections will only confirm that.
Summary:
Political violence escalates in Cuba, by both the far right and far left.
However, the Spanish are able to give the appearance of being guranteers of law and order, as well as independence (the irony is not lost on anyone) in the face of Confederate influence.
Far-leftist student movements radicalize, quickly find they aren't nearly as popular among their own student bodies, much less the general public. Mass arrests of radical leadership and organizers openly supported by the general public, both on the left and right.
That leads to the Cuban people opting for political independence while maintain their strong economic and military ties with the Spanish Republic.
However, many complain that thanks to the violence of the Patriotic movement (currently hiding out in the Cuban jungle and, reportedly, South Florida), the violence of the government and the mass arrest of so many key left-wing full independence activists, the Cuban people were robbed of a fair chance to vote for their independence.
The very legitimacy of the referendum is being called into question by some (mostly Confederate backed right-wing organizations and ostracized far leftists on the island), however most of the Cuban public really is supportive of continued Spanish backing, fearing the Confederacy's history of meddling in Latin America and Caribbean affairs.
Regardless, the referendum has demonstrated the divided state of Cuban society, as now conservatives, liberals, syndicalists and others will be participating in open elections.
-The long-banned Romanian Socialist Party still had several warehouses full of old uniforms and patches. Lacking patches of their own, Romanian syndicalists used old socialist symbols and patches for their uniforms until they could implement standardized uniforms of their own.
The Treaty of Iasi, signed in 1961, brought an end to the Hungarian-Romanian War. It was a relatively moderate peace, and largely reflected the improved Romanian negotiating position brought about after the intervention of Bulgaria and the Union of Sovereign States on Romania's side. The peace was not particularly unpopular in Romania, the Romanian public as a whole was weary of conflict and even the Romanian military was hesitant about a continued war, Hungary had the second-largest army in the entire Balkans (and the largest if one excluded Turkey, which was geographically located mostly in Asia Minor), and though Romania received extensive support from the USS and Bulgaria, it still nonetheless had fairly significant shortages in its military stocks. Though it had successfully concealed news of the shortages within the Romanian military until the peace of Iasi was signed.
Now, however, Romania looked towards reconstruction and its coalition government turned to the offer of support from the USS. The USS had dealt with Romania in good faith so far so while they were regarded with wariness, they were trusted. And Romania was in little position to refuse their aid. However, as it turned out, the USS' offer of aid had strings attached. How deeply these strings went became quite apparent fairly quickly...
The USS had not been pleased with Romanian actions of late, and the formation of a coalition government between Syndicalists and Falangists only added an ideological component to the growing rift between Moscow and Bucharest. The USS, for its part, kept this anger quiet, for fear of arousing suspicion from the Romanians. They continued to act as the generous benefactor, striking deals with the government and proposing high-level meetings to arrange for a generous reconstruction program sponsored, funded, and furnished by the USS. Being in no position to refuse or distrust the USS, the Romanians agreed. Members of the coalition government, even the Falangists, had little hesitation and believed that they needed this aid package from the USS to rebuild.
The representatives of the USS, flanked by armed guards that they ostensibly brought for their protection, actually arrested the Falangists and other Romanian nationalists opposed to the USS on the spot. But the depth of this betrayal became even more clear when many of the Romanian Syndicalists who had also come to meet with the USS not only tacitly allowed agents of the Union to arrest the Falangists, but many of them even joined in and ordered their own guards to detain the Falangists as well. The wartime coalition of Falangist and Syndicalist was not wholly popular, and even those who were wary of the USS realized it would be better to have a seat at the negotiating table than to stand against them and lose everything. And this was only the beginning.
With higher levels of Falangist leadership arrested, this paralyzed their ability to respond, because next, the USS and its Romanian supporters embarked on a widespread purge of the Romanian military, law enforcement, and much of the government. Any constituency that could mount a conceivable opposition was targeted: either for arrest or, if necessary, for assassination. The Romanian Syndicalists for their part lacked the same ruthlessly-effective intelligence apparatus or professional special operations units that the USS made use of, but they had inroads into leftist organizations at every level of Romanian society, and were most crucially of all able to mobilize massive popular support: not merely to weaken the Falangists in Romania, but also to legitimize their actions. The Romanian public was largely caught unaware by this violent change of course, and outside of hardline Falange supporters and Romanian nationalists, most Romanians weren't inherently opposed to syndicalist rule, so, hoping in good faith that what was being done was for ultimately for the best, the Syndicalists were able to win the will of the people.
Within four intense months, it was all over. Romanian history would ultimately come to know this event simply as "The Division" (O Divizia in Romanian) representing the full and radical split of the Syndicalist-Falangist coalition that governed Romania and ushered in Syndicalist political dominance. The Romanian Syndicalist Republic was proclaimed from Bucharest in the spring of 1961, and promptly signed a wide range of agreements with the USS for reconstruction aid, military support, and extensive USS basing rights on the Romanian coast and within the country itself...
Results:
The USS makes good on longstanding influence within Romania and launches a coup against the government.
The unity brought about by the Hungarian-Romanian War evaporated after the Treaty of Iasi and Syndicalists ultimately supported the USS for fear that the Falangists would move against them if they didn't.
The USS negotiated high-level agreements with the Romanian government that included offers of extensive reconstruction aid and military support. Being in no position to refuse, Romania agreed.
However, this was a trap, and the USS used it to arrest high-ranking government officials as well as key leaders of the Romanian Falangist Party.
Romanian Syndicalists play a more low-key role, however their support is crucial in forming a local opposition and more importantly in winning the support of the Romanian public.
The Syndicalists are victorious, the military and law enforcement are purged of anti-Syndicalist elements, Falangist leaders are imprisoned, and the Syndicalist Republic of Romania is declared and quickly signs treaties to bring itself under the umbrella of the Union of Sovereign States.
In 1961, Falangism went through a time of change, what with the integration of National Syndicalism and the beginning of the Internationalist movement. France, as a center for both Falangism and National Syndicalism, was hit hardest by this shake up.
The National Syndicalist question was already answered for most of France- they would be integrated into the party, and some policies from their platform would be adopted. One such idea was the Gaullist salute, which began as a sign of loyalty to the National Syndicalist Workers Party, and spread through France as the closeness between Falangist and Nationalist grew. It became a sign of French patriotism, which was reaching an all time high.
Shortly after the general elections, the coalition was finalized and the National Syndicalist Workers Party was officially no more. Full integration with the Falangists had been completed, with the vast majority of its members supporting the move. The True Phalange was now made up of almost 80% of the population of France.
The die hard Syndicalists of the party were outraged, and most decided to join the slowly growing National Confederation of Labour (NCL), a National Anarchist party that was made up of many different minority groups. This lead to an uptick in NCL support and radicalization. The Falangist government was unsure of what to do. Banning the party might lead to them becoming martyrs, while allowing it to stay alive might strengthen them. They decided to simply monitor the situation, for now.
Two French Football teams salute Jacques Massu, who is watching from the stands
In 1961, after the federal elections took place and the Falangist party and National Syndicalist party formed a coalition and won a smashing victory, Jacques Massu became President of France (Head of Government) while De Gaulle became the Prime Minister (Head of Goverment). At first, it seemed like the Falangists, who made up a majority of the nation, were utterly appalled that a National Syndicalist could be in such a high level of government. As time went by, however, these fears that they had been infiltrated passed. De Gaulle's radical Leftist ideals had been mellowed out by then. His official endorsement by President Massu also helped calm the fear of resurgent Syndicalism. These two men and their burgeoning personal friendship were seen as one of the last pushes for integration between the Falangists and National Syndicalists.
While the many nationalist and militarist policies of the National Syndicalists meshed well with the Falangists, the country was divided over economics and foreign policy. France was, at first, unsure of the role of internationalism in Falangism. De Gaulle, leader of the National Syndicalists, had been a proponent of French isolationism during the first years, however in the early 60s it now seemed that French nationalism was threatening to spill out the seams. With the Falangists taking over the country, they now looked to other nations and their burgeoning movements as a sign of hope. All the people of France could agree, though, that in all matters France was to come first.
Massu (looking rather serious) and De Gaulle (smiling like an old friend)
The economy, stupid
During the Bourbon years, France had both been dependent on German exports and had been forced to sell products to Germany at very low prices. The French economy stagnated, then deflated. After the rise of the new France, however, things began to change for the better. German influence had been crippling, but German investment had been a boon, and the nation was left with a stable economic base to improve on when left to its own devices.
While the Falangists supported neither capitalism nor socialism, they could agree that there was a definite role that the government should play in the economy. A small role or big role, however, was the question. They decided, first of all, that private individuals should not be discouraged from making a profit, and that all citizens had the right to private property- there was to be no kind of radical Socialism in France. They supported limited nationalization, as well as the creation and management of government businesses, but agreed that in France corporations should be mostly privately owned. Nationalization included banks and other credit organizations, in order to combat "the usury of radical capitalism".
The RC4. A nice economy car. Buy one today!
The new economic and social climate in the State of France changed everything. Productivity increased to levels that had never been seen before. As production in France expanded, naturally so did consumption. The consumer economy in France exploded, with more common amenities in the French household then ever before. One of the fastest growing sectors was the auto industry, with Renault-Citroën being the mainstay thereof. In a few years, they had put millions of cars into France, at reasonable prices. The government encouraged industrial growth with healthy investment into the private sector as well as public ownership and nationalization of certain companies.
With the planned industrial growth came the realization that France would need more workers to fill its factories. The Falangist government encouraged population growth, with regular speeches from De Gaulle, Massu, and other important revolutionaries and government figures reminding the French of their duties- Travail, Famille, Patrie. Work, family, fatherland.
At the end of 1961, France was confronted by the fact that under the Falangists, there had been a moderate growth in the economy, which was still gaining steam.While it was no economic golden age, it was an improvement over the 40s and 50s. There was still a lot of work to do, and a long way to go.
As the French economy expanded, its hunger for resources grew. Oil, in particular. Construction of pipelines from Africa, especially Algeria, has begun. The large, mostly unexploited reserves of natural gas and oil, have helped lower gas prices and have allowed the country to become more motorized. More people are driving cars than ever before. This has also had an effect on the military forces. The lower price of fuel for tanks, planes, ships, and other vehicles has helped to lower the cost of training exercises.
The Syndicalist Threat
The people of France were outraged when they heard news of the USS takeover in Romania, and their purge of the Falangists. It certainly helped that their situation mirrored that of Romania's so well- a coalition of Syndicalists and Falangists, that hoped to unite in order to lead the country forward. But sadly, an outside power stepped in to crush their efforts! A sad day for both Romania and Europe. The underhanded backstabbing of the USS drew in a lot of support for the International Falangists, who supported the fight for Falangism and the Third Way no matter what country or people they were. If the Syndicalists were supporting their cause in other nations, it seemed only fitting that France should support its European brothers and sisters in their fight for freedom. And why not stop there? There was Syndicalism too, in America, in Asia, even in Africa... In any case, fear of Syndicalism grew in France, despite the Far Right having an iron grip over the State. It wasn't their country they were worried about. It was their neighbors. Fortunately, they said, our great Generals, Massu and De Gaulle, will build the military up bigger and better than ever before. There would be no worrying about foreign invaders, or domestic upstarts. For now, at least.
Summary
The Falangists and National Syndicalists fully integrate in France. Almost 80% of France now call themselves Falangists. Some aspects of National Syndicalism are brought into the fold, while most are discarded.
Die-hard Syndicalists are funneled into the new National Confederation of Labour, increasing their radicalization
De Gaulle was appointed Prime Minister by President Jacques Massu. Fears that De Gaulle would run the country into the ground are found baseless. The two men have formed a personal relationship, which further Falangist-National Syndicalist relations
Economic growth has increased, about 2-4%. There is still a lot of varying degrees of poverty, but the middle class has begun to become healthier and wealthier. There's a larger consumer market and a hell of a lot less unemployment.
Sydicalism creeps over Europe, and the French people are uneasy about it. Support for Internationalist Falangism grows.
From: The State of France
General Statement
The free people of France condemn the backstabbing that has recently occurred in the East. The USS and their Syndicalist allies have lied to the Romanian people! And in doing so, they took their freedom away. The Union of Sovereign States- even their name is a lie. Romania no longer has sovereignty. Neither does the Kingdom of Ukraine. How much longer will the people of Europe stand for this?
To: State of France @BulldogCommisar From: Tsardom of Bulgaria SECRET
"Normally we would have preferred to see Balkan affairs kept within the Balkans, yet with Italy's recent actions it seems we have no choice.
Gentlemen, Bulgaria is not a revolutionary power. We are not some bastion of syndicalism, a stooge of Moscow that will dance to their every whims. Nor do we serve Berlin either. We wanted to secure the freedom and independence of Bulgaria from the Germans, and the USS seemed like the best choice to keep the Germans from marching in and re-establishing their dominance. As it turned out the Germans were a bit busy to do that. As it also turned out, the Russians (unsurprisingly) did not turn out to be the allies we hoped them to be when Greece attacked us. Now the Hungarians advance on one front, the Greeks on another, and Bulgaria teeters on the edge.
I would not be so vain as to demand that you throw in your lot with Sofia, but we would like to request whatever material and financial support you can provide. Support Bulgaria, and you can strike against the Germans and their allied interests in Hungary, to prevent the Balkans from once again falling under their sway. Support Bulgaria, and you can strike against the Syndicalists in Greece and Italy, the ones who are a threat to you as well, and prevent the Balkans from becoming a bed of leftist radicalism that marches to the tune of the USS.
That is all we ask of you. Hopefully you shall see the sense on this course of action."
Some time ago, you sent us this request- what folly it was to not reply in earnest. With Italy and the USS advancing on Europe, we now see what a mistake we have made. There is no time to lose. We must talk.
Wow... The USS sure as hell isn't holding back. I'm telling you now, they aren't satisfied with just Romania. They are just going to keep pushing and pushing. We need to talk.
By the early '60s, private and industrial power consumption was growing fast and new power stations would have to be build to cope with demand. Domestic light and heavy industry was expanding at an increasingly faster pace and electrically powered consumer goods, such as radios, have transformed from a luxury to a common household item for all but the poorest of Bangladeshi society.
For decades, the People's Republic of Bangladesh has relied upon coal as its main power source. Coal was in ready supply, thanks to Bengal's large coal fields and mining had steadily expanded over the last decades, even during the 'Return to the Fields' policies following General Fahd's coup twenty years ago. Coal provided more than 80% of Bangladesh's power production, but the existing power plants were often older designs, lacking in capacity, fuel efficiency and reliability when compared to more modern models. Unsurprisingly, most experts and politicians favoured modernization of existing plants and building of new power stations as the strategy to increase the nation's power production capability. It was the conservative, most reliable way forward. But some factions of the party and the government favoured other approached, for a variety of reasons.
A distant second to coal power was hydroelectric power. While rivers crossed the landscape and the first hydroelectric power station in India had been build in Bengal nearly 70 years ago, the local topography made Bangladesh ill-suited for large hydro power station. Most of the population and industry was situated in the lowlands and coastal areas where artificial lakes and dams were not an option. An expansion of hydroelectric power production was only floated as an idea to develop the Himalaya regions. Besides making use of local resources to boost regional industry and infrastructure, dams and hydro power stations were seen as impressive monuments to modernisation and national power by engineers and several younger officers and party members.
In a similar vein, plans were proposed to strengthen Bangaldesh's reputation, industry and scientific community by building the first nuclear power station on the subcontinent. The proponents marketed their idea as a prestige project, that would solve the nation's energy problem for decades to come and serve as a symbol of victory for bengal syndicalism. Additionally, the physicists advocating the project tried to gain the military's support by making (overly optimistic) promises of civilian nuclear power allowing Bangladesh to easily develop nuclear weapons. While atomic bombs were often seen as an expansive and not yet battle tested weapon with dubious practical applications, the large, infantry-heavy armies of Hindustan, Mughalistan and China would, theoretically, provide ideal targets for such weapons. The old elite controlling the government was less convinced. To them, nuclear power seemed like just the vanity project favoured that led to the fall of the old government.
In the end, he nuclear faction swayed enough of the generals that the government agreed to evaluate the possibility and costs of a nuclear power plant, however it was given a low priority compared to the expansion and modernization of existing coal power stations. Also, the possibility of obtaining a small stack of atomic bombs from the USS was to be secretly evaluated.
Greetings, comrades. We wish to inquire whether you'd be willing to assist us in building our first nuclear power station. Currently, we're in the early planning and evaluation stages and our current time table calls for the first industrial reactor to become operational within the next two decades.
Confidential
Also, we were wondering about the possibilities of you selling us a few atomic bombs? Given our most likely adversaries rely heavily on unprotected infantry, even a few such devices could have an enormous impact in any future war.
We have heard that you are in the market for new energy resources? The CSA is one of the world's foremost energy exporters, with oil, gas, and coal reserves in abundance.
Indeed. We would be interested in expanding trade between our nations, as we are also looking for new markets for our finished goods and industrial products. Perhaps an arrangement can be reached?
Sovereign-1 Sovereign-1 lifts off from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, carrying cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin into orbit
Coming six years after the first USS satellite launch, the space program of the Sovereign Union has produced another milestone - the first human in space. On November 14th, 1961, The spacecraft Sovereign-1 blasted off from the launch site at Baikonur in Kazakhstan, carrying 27 year old test pilot Yuri Gagarin into orbit. The spacecraft made it to low orbit and made nearly a full orbit of the Earth on a flight lasting approximately 2 hours, ending with a successful landing about 300km west of the initial launch site.
The USS Space Agency has captured the imaginations of citizens across the Union, and has received a budget increase to continue the manned spaceflight program. Comrade Gagarin is received as a national hero in Moscow and presented a medal of honor personally by Vohzd Morozov.
"Now, I love my White brothers and sisters, surely I recognize that they, just as we, are sons and daughters of the Lord, our Father, and Jesus died on the Cross for them, just as he did for us. And I believe in the Brotherhood of Man, but tell me brothers, sisters, would you consider a man who lynched you a brother? Who called your father boy? Who deny you a ballot? I believe in the brotherhood of all men, but I don't believe in wasting brotherhood on anyone who doesn't want to practice it with me. Brotherhood is a two-way street..."
Born in the state of Georgia in the Confederate States of America, Malcolm Little was the fourth of five children. Thanks to his older brother's, James Little, involvement with the underground Afro-Confederate nationalist movement the Black Legion (and supposed ties with black nationalist and anti-Confederate Marcus Garvey of Jamaica), his family was constantly under assault from various groups of white vigilantes and eventually the local chapter of the "Concerned Citizens Council", who burned down the family home and killed two of Little's four brothers and sisters (including James) and forced the family to flee to Kentucky, where his father (a Georgian sharecropper) turned to mining to take care of (what was left) of his family.
With the encouragement of his brother, James before his death, Malcolm would go on to discover the ideology that had resulted in such tragedy for his family. While initially having grown cruel and hateful towards Whites and Confederate society (he would write long, personal screeds and had a bevy of anti-Confederate, anti-White manifestos by the time he was 15, against what he saw as a white dominated society and a corrupt, "plantocratic" Confederate government, often times mentioning the American, British and Russian revolutions positively), Little would eventually join the church and became an ordained Baptist minister, studying theology (one of the few avenues of higher education available to Blacks in the Confederacy) with plans to eventually open his own seminary.
Little spends time with his childhood friend, the "Louisville Whip", Kentucky-born boxer Cassius Clay, in 1960
However, almost nothing is known about him between his 25th birthday in 1950 and his sudden "reemergence" in 1958 following the Mobile Negro Labor Riots in May of that year. At some point he was showing interest in joining a local black Baptist church, and suddenly he vanishes, slipping through the cracks of the Confederate intelligence community, only to reappear eight years later in order to organize a strike - composed primarily of Afro-Confederates and a small amount of sympathizing White Confederates. The Mobile Negro Dockyards Union, considered illegal by both Mississippi state and National laws, is quickly assaulted by the Mobile Police and their friends in the CCC. Outnumbered, outgunned and out of their minds, the Negro Labor Riots aren't really much of riot, as they are a massacre. The experiences would weigh on Malcolm Little for some time. And of course, this was the first time his name rang fire alarms in Confederate COIN circles and in Richmond.
The smooth talking, intelligent and charismatic man, apparently just as quick with his words as he is with his gun, spends the next two years in and out across the Confederacy, popping up wherever there was trouble. Black riots in Tulsa, Oklahoma, labor riots in Louisville and a successful (as in, no protesters were executed in the streets) "Afro-Confederate Unity" protest in Richmond, calling upon blacks across North America to rise up against their oppressive societies. By 1961, he's - begrudgingly - a household name for most, however very little is known about him, often times reduced to nothing as a scapegoat and villain by the Confederate government and news media. But when he declares the formation of the "Organization of Afro-American Unity" a Pan-Africanist movement demanding human rights for Afro-Americans across North America, decrying the blatant racism in the Confederacy and Jefferson, as well as the "insidious and odious shroud" of bigotry in the American Popular Republic (indeed, while officially tolerant of all races, blacks still maintained high levels of unemployment and many labor unions discriminated against them, leading to segregation) and Canada.
"Brother Malcolm" calls upon the OAAU and the Afro-Confederate communities in the South, to band together and "destroy white supremacy". Little would write the following on the organization's mission statement:
Restoration: "In order to release ourselves from the oppression of our enslavers then, it is absolutely necessary for the Afro-American to restore communication with Africa."
Reorientation: "We can learn much about Africa by reading informative books."
Education: "The Organization of Afro-American Unity will devise original educational methods and procedures which will liberate the minds of our children. We will ... encourage qualified Afro-Americans to write and publish the textbooks needed to liberate our minds ... educating them [our children] at home."
Economic Security: " ... it was realized that the Afro-American constituted the largest homogeneous ethnic group with a common origin and common group experience in the Confederate States and, if allowed to exercise economic or political freedom, would in a short period of time own this country. We must establish a technician bank. We must do this so that the newly independent nations of Africa can turn to us who are their brothers for the technicians they will need now and in the future."
Not only that, but the OAAU would work in a "defensive role, according to the needs of the Afro-American community". Despite having been involved with riots and violent labor actions, Little has denounced Syndicalism, as well as offensive actions against civilian populations. For all their attempts to smear him, the Confederacy can not yet find a single instance of Little murdering anyone or outright inciting violence. While his rhetoric is confrontational and stand offish, Little has stated on numerous occasions that he rebukes "ideologies of murder and hatred". However he does say Nat Turner has been one of his "lifelong heroes".
Take that as you wish.
Summary:
The OAAU, a Pan-Africanist and black nationalist organization that hopes to span the North American continent, has been born in the Confederacy.
Its leader is a charismatic and enigmatic figure named Malcolm Little.
Using a mixture of Christian beliefs, anger at the Confederate government by a growing number of destitute and oppressed blacks and his fiery and powerful oratory skills, Little attracts a great following and a good deal of supporters.
While the Whigs despise the movement and call for its destruction, along with a good deal of White Confederates, a surprising amount of whites have demonstrated some sympathies with the organization's cause.
Opening Salvoes
The new phase of what was becoming known as the Great Balkan War was more contentious and actively-fought than ever before. The entry of Italy into the war changed the conflict dramatically, and put a substantial increase in manpower onto the Syndicalist side. Greece's Hellenic Army had been performing acceptably on its own in the war, but even surrounded by enemies, Bulgaria was still a very serious threat to the Greeks: which Bulgaria outmatched in nearly every way from manpower, to industry, and to the amount of tanks, aircraft, and artillery that it had in the field. The only field in which Greece was indisputably superior to the Bulgarians was in its navy. However, the Great Balkan War was a land conflict, and naval warfare was rarely much more than an augmentation to more decisive campaigns on land. Still, the first phases of the new stage of the war were naval in nature. Shortly after the Italian declaration of war, the Italian Workers' and Peasants' Navy mobilized in the Adriatic and moved to cut off the tiny Bulgarian fleet in Montenegro. As the majority of the Bulgarian navy, the least-funded branch of the Bulgarian military, resided in the Mediterranean Sea (followed closely by the smaller but better-funded Black Sea fleet), Bulgarian naval doctrine for a war in the Adriatic emphasized a defensive posture and little more than a series of holding actions or harassment attacks to chip away at the inevitable naval superiority that would be established by the Italians and their Greek allies. Thus, the Bulgarian Navy set sail for the Mediterranean... if they could break out of the bottleneck of the Adriatic Sea, the Adriatic fleet would be free to harass Greek vessels with impunity, and more importantly would link up to the larger Med fleet. The Bulgarian Adriatic fleet was small but Greece's naval advantage was one of its few complete advantages over Bulgaria, so the Adriatic fleet could not be allowed to enter the Mediterranean...
The Battle of the Strait of Otranto thus commenced as elements of the Italian Workers' and Peasants' Navy and the Democratic Navy of Greece encountered a breakout attempt in the Strait of Otranto. The Italians had entered the war late and with some haste, the Hellenic Navy was also fighting in the Aegean, thus both sides greatly outmatched the Bulgarians, but had less than they might have otherwise. The Bulgarians were singularly focused on their breakout attempt, and thus they reached the strait before either of their two major enemies at sea had a chance to deploy ships to counter them. In the end, however, in what would be the largest naval engagement in the Adriatic since the Great War, it would not be naval power that triumphed, but airpower. The Strait of Otranto and its strategic passes were heavily-guarded by the Italian Air Force. The Bulgarians had a smaller naval opposition than they had expected, but in small, closely-confined maritime straits, airpower had an extraordinary advantage. The heavier ships such as cruisers and destroyers were attacked first, and took the brunt of the damage from Italian attacks. Realizing that their position was near hopeless, and that retreat would mean annihilation, the Bulgarians nonetheless forced their way through with heavy losses, having only a skeletal force available to link up with others in the Mediterranean. The Bulgarians were strategically victorious, having achieved their goal of breaking out of the Adriatic, but their losses were appalling and the small but significant Adriatic fleet had lost all but one of its heavy ships: only the hardy destroyer Cyril remained afloat to link with the Mediterranean fleet, and even she had suffered significant damage. Thus, Bulgaria in the Adriatic won a deeply Pyrrhic strategic victory but a tactical defeat: as the battered remnants of its fleet could offer little real support in the Mediterranean aside from hit-and-run attacks on unguarded merchant shipping. Now, however, the Adriatic was an Italian lake, and Hungarian and Italian ships moved in to establish a blockade of Montenegro, enforced jointly by fleets of both countries as neither side fully trusted the other, and both doubtless intended to take Montenegro if they got there first.
The Fall of Albania
While the Italians dealt with the Bulgarians at sea, it was their army that engaged in the bulk of the fighting, Unlike the case of the Battle of the Strait of Otranto which was in a strategic sense a defeat, there was no ambiguity whatsoever to the Greco-Italian invasion of Albania. The Greeks had already inflicted serious conventional defeats on the Albanians at Epirus, and though Albanian partisan resistance was fierce and drew in a large number of the Hellenic Army's military forces, the presence of the Italians simply allowed the Greco-Italian armies to crack an egg with a hammer. Albania's army was fierce but underequipped and could not answer the substantial conventional advantages that their enemies had. They were constantly hammered back. Even at the Battle of Tirana, the bloodiest engagement of the Albanian Campaign where both the Italian and Hellenic Armies took far heavier casualties than expected, the Albanians simply could not hold back the torrent arrayed against them. The fall of Tirana was the end of the Kingdom of Albania, and the government was captured attempting to flee northward into Montenegro. With no alternative, the leadership capitulated and the national government surrendered unconditionally. Conventionally, Albania's war was over, though partisan attacks continued unabated, drawing in substantial amounts of Italian troops as an occupation force. Italy had only entered the war this year, and was still bringing its full resources to bear, thus the planned invasion of Montenegro had to be called off until the Albanian partisans could be suppressed and the larger Italian manpower brought to bear.
The Hellenic Army, for its part, was far smaller than the Italian Army, and also could not afford to be bogged down in Albania. However, the Greco-Italian Alliance allowed for the Italians to do the heavy lifting in Albania while the battle-hardened Hellenic troops used in Albania could be moved eastward to do battle in Bulgaria where the real fighting was happening...
War Without End
Hungary, triumphant in Belgrade, now stood poised to invade the remainder of Serbia. The Bulgarians were intensely vulnerable, but they could not simply abandon Serbia which flanked Bulgaria itself. However, facing enemies on all sides, the Bulgarians could not gamble on a potentially-destructive offensive and thus had to wage a defensive conflict. And they knew that sooner or later, a major offensive was coming...
Hungary's General Istvan Halasz in the fall of 1961 launched the record-breaking Halasz Offensive. It was the largest single military campaign conducted in the Balkans since the end of the Great War, and the largest ever conducted in Hungary's history as an independent nation since the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Halasz Offensive, as many large military campaigns of its like, was a blunt instrument and aimed to simply and absolutely destroy the Bulgarians and drive them before the conquering boots of the Hungarian Army. Southern Serbia was rougher terrain than the north but the Hungarians were finally fighting a war as they had wanted to fight one and they had every intention of winning rather than bumbling as had been done in Romania. The Halasz Offensive was so large, in fact, that Bulgaria had to draw troops back from other outlying parts of the country to defend it.
The long-vulnerable Bulgarian territories in Thrace were the primary place from which Bulgarian manpower was drawn. The Bulgarians still had to keep huge garrisons at the border of Edirne to prevent a possible Turkish invasion, but militarily, Thrace could be forfeited to protect the heartland of the nation, whereas Serbia couldn't. Consequently, however, depleted Bulgarian garrisons found themselves facing an increasingly difficult defensive war against the Democratic Army of Greece, which was now bolstered by the 40,000-strong veterans of the Albanian campaign. Greece engaged in defensive warfare in Salonika: bolstered by good terrain and enormous popular support from the Greek people there, but on the Aegean coast and in Macedonia, they went on the attack. The Aegean coast was populated largely by Greeks, and the Bulgarians engaged in ruthless atrocities to force the Greeks into fearful submission as they had ever since they had gained their new territories, but this only set the resolve of the populace against them, and more importantly, the brutal paramilitaries who were tasked with carrying out these harsh policies could easily fight against unarmed women and children, but did not fare well against professional soldiers who knew how to shoot back at them. This was precisely what happened when the Greeks invaded the Aegean coast. Bulgarian troops, many of whom had been transferred to halt the Halasz Offensive, could not withstand this assault and were beaten back in Thrace. The Greeks held the momentum in the Aegean littoral, and Bulgarian efforts at this stage would be a rectification of defeats and holding actions, rather than any grand reversal.
The Halasz Offensive was fiercely surging through Serbia, leading to the bloodiest fighting the war had seen thus far as Hungarian and Bulgarian troops fought primarily, but the Italians participated lightly in the air war as a co-belligerent, realizing that keeping Bulgaria distracted by the Serbian campaign gave Italy a freer hand to prepare for an invasion of Montenegro. Thus a small contingent of the Italian Air Force fought alongside the Hungarians in the skies above Serbia. A small but notable contingent of Confederate aircraft also saw action, early in the year, they mostly fought against the Greeks and their Italian allies on the Aegean coast, however as the true threat to Bulgaria's survival in the war emerged, most of the Confederate fighters were diverted northward to lend their aid to the Bulgarians in Serbia. The Confederates had some of the best aircraft to take to the skies in the war, matched only by the advanced designs (and pilots) provided to Bulgaria by the USS.
Greek pilots had the most hours in the cockpit of any nation in the war and the most ferocious mindset. The Greeks operated on a "fly until you die" basis with many pilots frequently refusing offers of retirement or honorable discharge even after having flown a prerequisite number of heavy combat missions. The highest-scoring ace of the war (thirteen confirmed kills in dogfighting, real number likely far higher) was Georgios Onassis, a Thracian Greek who had fled to Athens to escape Bulgarian rule, the Confederate participants had the advantage in technical designs and advanced tactics. In a brief moment of history that would later inspire the famous Confederate war film Wings over the Mediterranean, Georgios Onassis engaged the famous Confederate ace, Joseph "Flyin' Joe" Thatcher, in the skies over Thrace. It was the longest dogfight known in the war and both men were excellent pilots. History would ultimately remain undecided as to whether it was a technical failure or simply being outmaneuvered that caused his defeat, but ultimately Flyin' Joe took a hit to the left wing and went down. Amazingly, despite being unable to properly bail out and falling nearly 400 feet into the Aegean Sea, Mississippi's Flyin' Joe got out of his plane, swam back to shore in nothing but his pilot's kit, and promptly reported to the nearest Bulgarian airbase to get right back into the air.
War on Every Side
The Halasz Offensive was joined by the smaller but equally-driven Ivancic Offensive, commanded by the Croatian general Miroslav Ivancic: invading Bulgaria proper from Hungarian positions in Romania. The Ivancic Offensive was smaller and faced heavier resistance, as it was fighting to invade Bulgaria proper, not merely an outlying portion of Bulgarian territory. However, the distraction provided by the Ivancic Offensive was enough, and the Halasz Offensive succeeded in finally smashing the Bulgarian defenses in detail, coupled with northward assaults by the Greeks who were taking advantage of Bulgarian weakness to press on to Macedonia. Halasz faced an unprecedented breakthrough, and now had two choices: he could press forward to Bulgaria proper and possibly capture Sofia, or move on Montenegro and take it before the Italians could mount an offensive. As there was no Italian threat of a march on Bulgaria, Halasz ultimately decided on the latter, and pressed forward to smash the entrenched defenders of Montenegro, who were cut off by blockade on every side. They fought fiercely but in futility, the Hungarians had outpaced the Italians, and decided checked their advance northward by securing themselves in Montenegro. Angry at their defeat, but preferring to surrender to fellow monarchists rather than Syndicalists, the Bulgarians gave the Hungarians their surrender.
However, Halasz's decision had consequences elsewhere, splitting his forces made him unable to drive into Bulgaria proper, and though Serbia had been conventionally won, Bulgaria itself remained largely untouched, and the Ivancic Offensive had been decidedly checked in the north.
The Aegean had fallen to Greece, and Bulgaria had been pushed back in nearly every front on the west, though Bulgaria itself remained intact. Many belligerents in the war against Hungary had achieved what they had set out to gain: with only minor setbacks compared to hard-won but significant victories. The war could be ended at this stage, even the victors had taken heavy losses, and even the tempting notion of taking Sofia invited the significant possibility of intervention by either the USS or the Turkish Republic...
Results:
The new phase of the war shifts the momentum decisively in favor of the anti-Bulgarian co-belligerents.
Greco-Italian invasion brings about the collapse of Albania.
Montenegro remained intact, however Hungary's offensive was able to put enough pressure on it that the Hungarians were finally able to take it, beating the Italians to the vital strategic region.
The Greeks have retaken their Aegean coast, though Macedonia is wracked by fierce partisan conflict and is less decisive.
Bulgaria has suffered defeats but it remains militarily intact, moreover the possibility of intervention in a continued conflict is a possible deterrent to Bulgaria's enemies.
To: Hungary and Greece @Kurtov@KnightofTempest
From: Iranian Ambassador
I believe I speak not just for myself but also on behalf of Turkey's interests when I ask you to clarify your intent with this war and that you seek to not enlargen your borders further at the expense of your neighboring states.
To: Hungary and Greece @Kurtov@KnightofTempest
From: Iranian Ambassador
I believe I speak not just for myself but also on behalf of Turkey's interests when I ask you to clarify your intent with this war and that you seek to not enlargen your borders further at the expense of your neighboring states.
I don't think we can really do point #5. While we can make the attempt, that sort of thing really isn't up to the Bulgarian government. At least the 'levels' part of it.
No to the non-aggression pact, and...we'll pay you a *low* indemnity, as a token gesture to meet your symbolic statement about widening the war.
I don't think we can really do point #5. While we can make the attempt, that sort of thing really isn't up to the Bulgarian government. At least the 'levels' part of it.
No to the non-aggression pact, and...we'll pay you a *low* indemnity, as a token gesture to meet your symbolic statement about widening the war.
Is there a Reason you say no to the Non-aggression Pact? It would show us you are committed to peace instead of setting up for another round 2 or 3 years down the road.
Is there a Reason you say no to the Non-aggression Pact? It would show us you are committed to peace instead of setting up for another round 2 or 3 years down the road.
We simply do not see it as necessary. There are plenty of other issues Bulgaria needs to handle such as the economy. Besides, surely the Hungarian Army has not been devastated to the point where it could not protect Hungary within a couple years?
We simply do not see it as necessary. There are plenty of other issues Bulgaria needs to handle such as the economy. Besides, surely the Hungarian Army has not been devastated to the point where it could not protect Hungary within a couple years?
Head of State: President of Republic Adriano Braga
Head of Government: First Citizen to be elected later this year
Type of Government: De jure Constituional Republic, De facto Syndicalist Republic
Population: 9,353,000 people
Capital: Lisboa
Other Major Cities: Oporto, Braga, Faro, Funchal, Setúbal, Ponta Delgada, Guimarães, Evora, Portalegre, Coimbra, Aveiro, Bragança, Viseu, Viana, Vila Real.
Domestic:
- State visits are being scheduled to the APR and Brazil this year by First Citizen João Soares.
- Country keeps walking along the reforms of the previous years lead to a small economic
Economic Status:
- Decent
Military
- The military is a fully professional force. It benefits from consistent training with his fellow Internationale partners Britain, America, Spain and the USS. However it has been cut back a bit since Portugal lost his colonial provinces to the Brazilians. (No love lost ther although Portugal had planned on granting independence eventually either way as fellow Syndicalist Nations)
Army:
50,000 Active Soldiers
150,000 Reservists (can be moblized)
200 Light Tanks
25 MBT's
Various assorts of other vehicles/support
Navy:
4 Cruisers
13 Destroyers
7 Submarines
25 Patrol Ships
Air Force:
250 Fighters
175 Bombers
200 Training Planes
Alliances, Agreements, Pacts, and Trade:
Member of the IADS
Trade Agreements with other IADS Members and other nations
Camaradas our congratulations in your sucessful war against the Imperialist Bulgarians. While it's terrible Romania has fallen into the axis of Moscow it might be possible to bring Greece and Albania now on our side.
Falangist Brothers. We know that the pair of you have issues stemming from the last war, but Hungary offers mediation of your dispute. We must all stick together in the face of Syndicalism.
Falangist Brothers. We know that the pair of you have issues stemming from the last war, but Hungary offers mediation of your dispute. We must all stick together in the face of Syndicalism.
Has realpolitik died in its home nation? Germany is surrounded on three sides by Syndicalists. We only seek to see your position strengthened. . .but I suppose that was asking for too much.
Has realpolitik died in its home nation? Germany is surrounded on three sides by Syndicalists. We only seek to see your position strengthened. . .but I suppose that was asking for too much.
