WWI Alt Hist Turn Thread

Qing 1905-1906

The Tianjin Crisis

Dealing with the illegal occupation of Tianjin by Belgium, the Imperial Cadre Army, having grown from four divisions in 1904 to eight in 1905 (cadre army is mostly equal to European armies, with the best officers and supplies), pertaining to industrial growth in China is mobilized to deal with this crisis. The Beiyang Army, with six divisions is also mobilized from  their base in Baoding. The two armies total 14 divisions, or about 140,000 men. Yuan Shikai leads the land forces.

They are assembled around the port of Tianjin to prevent any further Belgian encroachment into China. Accompanying them, 250 pieces of modern artillery, ready to shell the Belgians at Tianjin.

A task force, formed from the four regional fleets are sent to Tianjin. They consist of five steel cruisers and seven steel gunboats, mining and blockading Tianjin. They are led by Sa Zhenbing, a prospective Chief Admiral.

The general command is at the hands of Zaixun, Prince Rui.

An ultimatum is issued to the Belgian defenders (Tadamichi Kuribayashi ):
1. Cease and desist the illegal occupation of Tianjin.
2. Lay down your arms and surrender to the cadre army.
3. Evacuate all civilians, Belgian or Chinese, out of Tianjin ASAP.
4. A national apology must be given by King Leopold himself.
5. A member of the Belgian royal family must visit China three months after the crisis and kowtow to the Emperor.

Zaixun delivers a speech to the radio, aimed at the Belgians:

"Valiant soldiers of Belgium,

Your nation has participated in an act of aggression against Qing China. It too has violated the sacred principle of national sovereignty by illegally occupying Tianjin and taking over rule there. It has incited the anger of millions of Chinese, and may spill the blood of thousands.

All of this was fueled by a false pretext: that the Belgians and the Qing were ever engaged in any form of negotiation and that an agreement was made to cede Tianjin. That never happened; the Belgian government sends you far away from home for a lie, nothing more.

I do not blame you for anything, but know this;

Your government has blood on their hands. They agreed to spill the blood of Chinese and Belgian soldiers after they landed on Chinese soil illegally. They will agree to spill the blood of Belgian civilians, should they not accept the ultimatum, evacuating the people of Belgium. They will be the ones holding the Belgian people hostage and killing them, not us.

Surrender, desert against your vile and illegitimate government. Desert against those who wish to kill you for nothing, for a lie."

A warning barrage of 50 artillery pieces is fired.

---

As the Tianjin crisis continues, domestic developments cannot be ignored. Rural industry flourishes, bringing the Qing closer to a state of self-sufficiency. Money remains to flow to these state sponsored rural industries, perhaps with less of a boom. Still, rural human resources are getting better, with specialization via guilds in industry ensuring increased efficiency. With the increase in supply, demand must be increased. Here, the Grand Council opines that by increasing the quality of life in the rural areas, demand could be increased.

The tax plan has been fully implemented now, everywhere in China. With the high land tax, more landowners plan to develop their land; those who fail to pay up land taxes have had their land confiscated and redistributed by the local village communes. Some allegations exist of state-sponsored incidents of forced land redistribution, where landowners vanish in a single night after reportedly seeing the central government's tax officials flanked with militias.

Political reorganization in the provincial level begins. Above village communes are counties which are led by a representative elected by village communes, being a government official with wages paid for from Beijing. The noveau riche are the most represented in these communes, with landowners holding significant but diminishing political influence. The peasants are strong but not significantly represented, though complaints do come to Beijing.

In regards to the development of infrastructure, the long work of surveyors have paid off; railroads become more standardized, rail and telegraph begins to enter rural areas, with makeshift stations being built in population centers affected by the railroads. Rolling for the program's general success.

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The work exceeds some expectations. With the assistance of previous planning, central China has been equipped with middling infrastructure, enough to support economic activity, but perhaps not large groups of soldiers traveling. Still, the more challenging areas of Sinkiang and Tibet are yet unreached by railroad and telegraph. By comparison, Mongolia is quite poorly developed due to its lack of potential economic importance.

Maintenance is relatively successful. With the county level now existing, engineers are assigned from Beijing to each country, ensuring the already-educated parts of the local populace's ability to maintain infrastructure.

The increase in infrastructure and plans for further modernization of the Qing Empire has brought the idea of a census in light of the Grand Council. It remains heavily in debate on how to conduct such census, especially whether to trust it to county and provincial leaders or to leave it at the hands of the central bureaucracy. Other provisions to relatively underdeveloped provinces are discussed.

Monetarily, the cities in China begin using paper money pegged to silver, with the rural areas still heavily using silver taels. Paper money is brought as a medium of exchange in the county level, including rural counties. Payments for services in the county bureaucracy must use paper money and not silver.

Reforms are introduced in the judicial system, namely the streamlining of police work. All judicial matters are deferred to the Board of Punishment, soon to be renamed the Board of Justice. The Five Wards are at last given under the authority of the commander of the Gendarmerie, with commands to combine all the different police forces into one. Armies cannot interfere in police work, with a clear separation of duties, the police dealing with internal threats and the military dealing with external ones unless changed by the Emperor and his Grand Council. No distinction is made between the location or perpetrator of a crime other than mandated by the legal code, mainly including Han values, with more Han values to be added. Manchus have the same rights in court as Hans, as any other ethnicity.

The Jǐnyīwèi of the Ming Dynasty is reestablished, now serving as an intelligence agency responding to both internal and external threats. The Guangxu Emperor has given them sweeping authority in this regard.

In naval matters, Fuzhou and Jiagnan shipyards continue being built, expected to finish next year. Before the modern shipyards are revealed, Western-educated engineers draft plans for a new, modern, class of cruiser, the Ning Hai class. They are planned to be larger and more heavily armed than the average cruiser but faster, able to outrun battleships but outfight cruisers. Rolling for the quality of said design.



The ambitious designs prove to be disappointing. The program continues still, if out of desperation. Another naval issue is the protection of ports. In light of the illegal occupation of Tianjin, the Qing government toys with the idea of building large caliber guns as forts in ports. Over 14 for success?



Neither Qing industry nor technology are enough to build these naval guns.

In the cadre army, recruitment stops for doctrinal improvement. After using western drill with western-trained officers, the cadre army focuses on developing a culture of NCOs and espirit de corps. Large formations and parades give way to training of smaller units led by NCOs in a variety of combat situations.

Resistance is presented to some of the racial policies planning to unite China culturally. A figurehead must be used, and quick. As such, the Prince Zaitao is betrothed to Soong Ai-Ling, worlds different from the prince. Her father being a Methodist businessman with a revolutionary streak further highlights the risks of this match. Charlie Soong is promised influence in government by a seat in the Grand Council. After Soong Ai-Ling finishes her education in the USA, the Prince Zaitao will marry as soon as possible.

In other news, a boy is born from the Prince Chun, named Puyi. He might serve as the prospective heir to the throne, taken under Cixi and the Prince Yikuang for education with the Guangxu Emperor, of rboth child and man have much to learn about rule.
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Planes it is! After government spies have gone into our neighboring country of France (JapaneseGamer5USA), they've seen planes that have two sets of wings. The locals have called them the French word for bird. The Spanish attempt to at least get a plane off the ground. After almost the entire year, a test is run in December (1-3 = It didn't leave the ground, 4-6 = It flew about 300 feet (100 m), 7-9 = It flew about 600 feet (200 m), 10-12 = 1000 feet (350 m)):
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sorry pal, no tanks in 1906

日本の帝国1906 (Empire of Japan 1906):

The time has finally come for Indochina. Within a few months of the new year, Macau is able to hold 100,000 soldiers and it is full to capacity with troops for the invasion. Finally, on the day of the operation's start, a squadron of battleships and another of destroyers sails for Hue and Tourane to eliminate the naval resistance there before the troops arrive. Rolling to see how well they do:

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The squadrons nearly completely destroy all enemy ships and coastal defenses in Hue and Tourane's harbors. Next, the troops move in; 2 divisions of 60,000 soldiers, each escorted by several submarines and a battleship, move in to seize the cities, with a dozen ganhikokis and plenty of machine guns to overpower the French and Vietnamese. Each division will need a 7 for success:

Hue:

Tourane:

The defenders in Hue manage to repulse the Japanese, inflicting 3,000 casualties, but the troops are able to come ashore just south of the city mostly intact. Tourane, however, is secured with only 1,500 casualties, cutting off the main port in Annam. The troops near Hue try again, with 10,000 troops from Tourane shipped north to replenish their losses. They need a 6 to take Hue now:



Hue falls, securing the seat of the Imperial Palace of the local Nguyen Dynasty. The king and his family manage to escape, however. 60,000 troops are sent from Taiwan to join those in Tourane, and the two divisions of troops now begin to move north and south on Annam's coast. The next target in the north is Đong Hoi, and Quang Ngai in the south. Now that the ganhikokis are able to fly, they do extra morale shock to the enemy, and a squadron of ships accompanies each division to give plenty of coastal fire. Both targets need a 7:

Đong Hoi:

Quang Ngai:

Đong Hoi is secured with barely a hundred casualties, and the troops were able to advance to Ron as well. Quang Ngai manages to hold out, costing the Japanese 2,500 casualties. Another attempt is made, only needing a 6:




Again, Quang Ngai manages to hold out, costing the Japanese another 2500 casualties. But now the Japanese generals are getting pissed off, and a third attempt is made, with the soldiers ordered to hold nothing back. Only a 5 will secure the city now:




Quang Ngai is finally overrun. 50,000 more troops are sent to Tourane to start going through the already conquered areas and put down any French/Vietnamese resistance. In the north, the next planned target is Dien Chau (needing a 6 to succeed). Meanwhile, the larger southern force is planning a long march down the coast; a 2/3 means absolute failure, 4-6 means all up to Quy Nhon falls, 7-11 means all up to Tuy Hoa falls, and a 12 will take Tuy Hoa itself:

Dien Chau:

South march:

Dien Chau's attackers are defeated with 3,000 casualties, while the southern force is halfway to Tuy Hoa. An effort to rally the troops in the south is made to capture Tuy Hoa, while another attack on Dien Chau is performed. Both will need a 6 to work:

Dien Chau:

Tuy Hoa:

Both cities are captured. Dien Chau is the last major settlement on the north coast of Annam, so the northern forces turn inland, focusing on Thanh Hoa next. In the south, another final march down the coast is organised, with the goal being Cam Ranh. Both shall need a 6 to fall:

Thanh Hoa:

Cam Ranh:

Both attacks are greatly successful, with Thanh Hoa falling with a few hundred casualties and the remainder of the north Annam coast is secured. In the south, Cam Ranh falls with only 200 Japanese casualties, and the troops march a dozen more miles south as well. Finally, the advances are stopped for the year; the remainder of Annam will be captured next year, with the 225,000 Japanese troops to now function as peacekeepers in the occupied land. The Vietnamese people are granted greater autonomy than they were allowed under the French rule in order to calm them, and they are to be given seats in the Diet next year when the rest of Annam is captured. 

Military

The Japanese Army size is increased to 600,000 standing men, with plans to have 800,000 troops by  next year. Some troops are to be given public works projects to complete, so that all that manpower isn't completely removed from the Japanese economy. The Japanese government expresses some interest in developing an armored car like several Western nations have been, but plans are postponed until next year, when there will be more spare cash and scientists.
175,000 troops in Japan
225,000 troops in Annam 
100,000 troops in Korea
100,000 troops in Macau


Economy

Much economic efforts are diverted to repairing war-damaged Annam. Modernization efforts are to be postponed until all of Annam is captured. The status quo is kept in other areas, including with Manchuria and American development.

World 

Japan has no opinion regarding the partition of Serbia, but it watches the situation in "Belgian" Tianjin with interest.

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The USA sends its Secretary of State

Greece 1907


Political: A divide is made between the Kosmat majority and the Parliamentist minority about the implementation of the Kosmat system. The people seem to not care as long as they are not as poor as they once were. Every man was requested to be trained for a month in order to understand guerrilla warfare if they must use it. Joshua is still angry at the now dead king for planning to overthrow him and he outlaws the mourning of him. not out of cult of personality. not much else can go here.



Society: Fashion is implemented by the people. Socialist movements are ignored by the people because of the fact of the plans working well. The roll for the Birth Campaign is now (Dear god please do no allow another Sparta to happen.) hUzA7WS0 The population rises by 70K/The people hold no real care towards the new system except on what the politicians say in the debates (i.e. now grab her by the you know what will not be tolerated.)


Economy: The railroad projects are given more funding and repair projects in Sparta are put into place. More schools are to be build in major cities and 3 out in rural areas. Funding for the ports are made and the tax returns are cut for now and Greece wishes to pay off the debt more frequently. Overall the nation is prospering under the rule of the Kosmat.
 

Events: Not much happens that is noticeable on a global scale.


Naval Doctrine: The number of Marines is brought to 9 thousand by the end of the year as to make sure the defense of the Peninsula is maintained.  The Dreadnought program is funded some more and a submarine development campaign is started to make submarines capable of greater feats of defense and offense. 1 sub is made along with a Spartam class 1 Dreadnought. Continuation of coastal defenses is made.


Land Doctrine: We produce 3K more machine guns and a couple hundred amoured cars (If that is possible.) A focus on Elitism in the army is made as Greece does not have the man-power pool of say the Ottoman Empire. A roll on how many men join this year is put and every one point is a thousand men 
5 thousand men decide to join the army and are put into forts. men are trained with machine guns. Varies also Decides the Spanish Wine is great and requests another bottle from Spain.

Air Doctrine:  200 more planes are made and something called a Zepplin is theorized about. It would required a large balloon and a deck with guns or used as a supply/ troop drop. The Fauneral regularly trains the men in maneuvers in the case they must fight head to head with other planes.


Research: A heavy armoured car is researched and requires a 7 as we have intelligence as we have made a lighter version  An advanced very if I might add armoured car was made and would be ready for war. Also Better planes with better engines and bigger fuel tanks would be researched.  Amazing. I forgot to mention the goal was more or less 8 (Even if you say it was 9/10 I still get it.) So I overall got more than expected on both.



Live Debates About X Topics: Debates about the Crisises and the Kosmat System go on with no real end. The people were allowed to view all of them. (Opinions will be posted in World In Flames Large Addition.)
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