1906: Alternative Divergence [AH][OOC-DEAD]

[Finland SSR]

Thoughts?

I told this you was going to be Haiti but on the Continent.

The War of the Atlantic was in the early 1700s, that's way too early for a free slave nation, imo. You'd be better off planting this backstory into the post-Guerin Civil War period, it would make more sense and be easier for Guyana to rebel and stay independent.

I mostly built up the current Swedish Empire from our own historical one. The Swedish Empire that was created in the 1611 by Gustav Adolphus. (Swedish Empire).

The Swedish Empire was only an empire in name, i.e. it was named that after the fact due to the territory it held, but the monarchs of Sweden remained Kings throughout the period. Your app seems to imply that they were actually crowned as Emperors and that Sweden's official title is Empire, not Kingdom.

[Remnants of Exilvania]

Also, I have noticed an issue that was unfortunately missed before - Gotland was part of the Polish-Lithuanian claim from the beginning, and it will remain there.

Got it.

---

For the most part this app is okay, but the history section is a little threadbare. In particular, I'd like to know how Sweden's present constitutional system came into existence, when and why the monarch of Sweden was restyled as an emperor, and when Sweden acquired its colonial territories precisely. At the moment you've got the outline of an alternate history, but it needs a bit more meat on its bones.

I mostly built up the current Swedish Empire from our own historical one. The Swedish Empire that was created in the 1611 by Gustav Adolphus. (Swedish Empire)

Most of Swedish history until then would have remained the same, except when the Kingdom of Sweden was first established the relationship between the Pope and King Gustav I wasn't broken and thus Sweden remained Catholic. Thus also, without the Thirty Year War Gustav Adolphus hadn't been killed and would have been had much more time to stabilize Sweden' territory even further.

Although following this periods Battle of Poltava between Sweden and the Rus - instead of going into decline, the stabilized Swedish Empire would have instead turned inward. Following these 'Napoleonic Wars' - Sweden had purchased Venezuela from the broke Spanish. While their colonies in Africa would have been gotten during this ATL Scramble for Africa.

As for the constitutional monarchy part - I took liberty with this Riksdag - I assume, it might have eventually evolved into the semi-constitutional system that it is now. Although still a bit depends on how the Rus' history will turn out - either it adopted this kind of system peacefully or after a military fighting gone awry - like with here in 1809.

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

No 30 years war? Dang it, and here I was hoping to temporarily outfit you with some northern german lands.

[The Felan Federation]

I mostly built up the current Swedish Empire from our own historical one. The Swedish Empire that was created in the 1611 by Gustav Adolphus. (Swedish Empire).

The Swedish Empire was only an empire in name, i.e. it was named that after the fact due to the territory it held, but the monarchs of Sweden remained Kings throughout the period. Your app seems to imply that they were actually crowned as Emperors and that Sweden's official title is Empire, not Kingdom.

True. But in this ATL - they hadn't declined that much, losing Finland yet keeping their grip on Norway and Denmark - due to Gustav surviving long enough to make the Sweds more 'stable' than in OTL.

[Kazarogkai]

Thoughts?

I told this you was going to be Haiti but on the Continent.

The War of the Atlantic was in the early 1700s, that's way too early for a free slave nation, imo. You'd be better off planting this backstory into the post-Guerin Civil War period, it would make more sense and be easier for Guyana to rebel and stay independent.

I mostly built up the current Swedish Empire from our own historical one. The Swedish Empire that was created in the 1611 by Gustav Adolphus. (Swedish Empire).

The Swedish Empire was only an empire in name, i.e. it was named that after the fact due to the territory it held, but the monarchs of Sweden remained Kings throughout the period. Your app seems to imply that they were actually crowned as Emperors and that Sweden's official title is Empire, not Kingdom.

oops I thought I had read the Anglo-Spanish war was in the mid 1700s preceding the war with France. My mistake.

The war must though must occur prior to the abolishment of slavery in Spain in 1796, at that point it wouldn't make much sense.

[Finland SSR]

The Swedish Empire was only an empire in name, i.e. it was named that after the fact due to the territory it held, but the monarchs of Sweden remained Kings throughout the period. Your app seems to imply that they were actually crowned as Emperors and that Sweden's official title is Empire, not Kingdom.

True. But in this ATL - they hadn't declined that much, losing Finland yet keeping their grip on Norway and Denmark - due to Gustav surviving long enough to make the Sweds more 'stable' than in OTL.

Sure, but they still wouldn't be an Empire officially unless you explain how the Swedish kings somehow got their hands on an Emperor title.

The War of the Atlantic was in the early 1700s, that's way too early for a free slave nation, imo. You'd be better off planting this backstory into the post-Guerin Civil War period, it would make more sense and be easier for Guyana to rebel and stay independent.


The Swedish Empire was only an empire in name, i.e. it was named that after the fact due to the territory it held, but the monarchs of Sweden remained Kings throughout the period. Your app seems to imply that they were actually crowned as Emperors and that Sweden's official title is Empire, not Kingdom.

oops I thought I had read the Anglo-Spanish war was in the mid 1700s preceding the war with France. My mistake.

The war must though must occur prior to the abolishment of slavery in Spain in 1796, at that point it wouldn't make much sense.

Spain abolishing slavery in 1798 was made by Jade, not me, and I'm willing to push that to a later date if you need it.

[Insaeldor]

Reservation

Nation Name: Federal Republic of Nova Tarragona
Territory: Green claim in and around where IRL Argentina is
#AltDiv (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)
*Note: Reservations will last for 72 hours. The OP board reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting reservations.

[Kazarogkai]

True. But in this ATL - they hadn't declined that much, losing Finland yet keeping their grip on Norway and Denmark - due to Gustav surviving long enough to make the Sweds more 'stable' than in OTL.

Sure, but they still wouldn't be an Empire officially unless you explain how the Swedish kings somehow got their hands on an Emperor title.

oops I thought I had read the Anglo-Spanish war was in the mid 1700s preceding the war with France. My mistake.

The war must though must occur prior to the abolishment of slavery in Spain in 1796, at that point it wouldn't make much sense.

Spain abolishing slavery in 1798 was made by Jade, not me, and I'm willing to push that to a later date if you need it.

That's rather kind of you in a weird... morbid way. Never the less I'm thinking of the rebellion occurring around 1775(same as the american war) due in part to Spain's rather weakened state. It would start off with a Slave Rebellion in Spanish Tobago which would after about 2 years be crushed by the Spanish. Before that though Solomon would depart and spend the next 10 years gathering up the local Maroons to wage war on Spain when they finally acted in 1787(around the same time as Haiti rebelled) facing intiial setbacks but eventually pushing through. The war would end sometime around 1800-1805 when Spain proper was under threat from France and needing the soldiers back home to fight off invasion were forced to give up in Guyana. Spain would upon the Spanish thrones flight from Spain abolish slavery soon after for fear that the war in Guyana would embolden the slaves in America.

Sound coolish? Sorry Jade for pissing on your doorstep. Also from the OP I would like to formally request a single day extension for my app/reservation to get things in order still working on some kinks and it's going to take a bit.

[Finland SSR]

Sure, but they still wouldn't be an Empire officially unless you explain how the Swedish kings somehow got their hands on an Emperor title.


Spain abolishing slavery in 1798 was made by Jade, not me, and I'm willing to push that to a later date if you need it.

That's rather kind of you in a weird... morbid way. Never the less I'm thinking of the rebellion occurring around 1775(same as the american war) due in part to Spain's rather weakened state. It would start off with a Slave Rebellion in Spanish Tobago which would after about 2 years be crushed by the Spanish. Before that though Solomon would depart and spend the next 10 years gathering up the local Maroons to wage war on Spain when they finally acted in 1787(around the same time as Haiti rebelled) facing intiial setbacks but eventually pushing through. The war would end sometime around 1800-1805 when Spain proper was under threat from France and needing the soldiers back home to fight off invasion were forced to give up in Guyana. Spain would upon the Spanish thrones flight from Spain abolish slavery soon after for fear that the war in Guyana would embolden the slaves in America.

Sound coolish? Sorry Jade for pissing on your doorstep. Also from the OP I would like to formally request a single day extension for my app/reservation to get things in order still working on some kinks and it's going to take a bit.

Sounds fine by me.

[Reverend Norv]

Sure, but they still wouldn't be an Empire officially unless you explain how the Swedish kings somehow got their hands on an Emperor title.


Spain abolishing slavery in 1798 was made by Jade, not me, and I'm willing to push that to a later date if you need it.

That's rather kind of you in a weird... morbid way. Never the less I'm thinking of the rebellion occurring around 1775(same as the american war) due in part to Spain's rather weakened state. It would start off with a Slave Rebellion in Spanish Tobago which would after about 2 years be crushed by the Spanish. Before that though Solomon would depart and spend the next 10 years gathering up the local Maroons to wage war on Spain when they finally acted in 1787(around the same time as Haiti rebelled) facing intiial setbacks but eventually pushing through. The war would end sometime around 1800-1805 when Spain proper was under threat from France and needing the soldiers back home to fight off invasion were forced to give up in Guyana. Spain would upon the Spanish thrones flight from Spain abolish slavery soon after for fear that the war in Guyana would embolden the slaves in America.

Sound coolish? Sorry Jade for pissing on your doorstep. Also from the OP I would like to formally request a single day extension for my app/reservation to get things in order still working on some kinks and it's going to take a bit.

France may also have provided arms and training to the revolt in its early stages, before Solomon started massacring white folks. Supporting democratic or quasi-democratic revolutions is sort of France’s bread and butter, and French aid would help to explain why it was so much more successful in round two.

[Kazarogkai]

That's rather kind of you in a weird... morbid way. Never the less I'm thinking of the rebellion occurring around 1775(same as the american war) due in part to Spain's rather weakened state. It would start off with a Slave Rebellion in Spanish Tobago which would after about 2 years be crushed by the Spanish. Before that though Solomon would depart and spend the next 10 years gathering up the local Maroons to wage war on Spain when they finally acted in 1787(around the same time as Haiti rebelled) facing intiial setbacks but eventually pushing through. The war would end sometime around 1800-1805 when Spain proper was under threat from France and needing the soldiers back home to fight off invasion were forced to give up in Guyana. Spain would upon the Spanish thrones flight from Spain abolish slavery soon after for fear that the war in Guyana would embolden the slaves in America.

Sound coolish? Sorry Jade for pissing on your doorstep. Also from the OP I would like to formally request a single day extension for my app/reservation to get things in order still working on some kinks and it's going to take a bit.

France may also have provided arms and training to the revolt in its early stages, before Solomon started massacring white folks. Supporting democratic or quasi-democratic revolutions is sort of France’s bread and butter, and French aid would help to explain why it was so much more successful in round two.

That sounds solid to me, albeit the training maybe not so much. The Maroons who formed the bulk core of the Rebellion would have probably been pretty solid fights in their own right, plus I think having France being so visibly involved might have been a bit awkward considering Solomon's ultimate desire to bring an end to European colonialism as a whole in the entirety of the america's. Still the weapons would be very appreciated. Ill work that all in.

Thanks everyone for the help and patience. Everything should be groovy by tomorrow afternoon at the latest. I gotta go to work soon so ya I gotta finish it up a little later.

[Of Leben]

I’d like to extend an invitation to Russia and Sweden to agree to a common history with Poland-Lithuania. It seems that Swedens histories are mysteriously devoid of any mention of us. Sweden becoming an empire would certainly not go unnoticed in Warsaw, and considering in that our history involves annexing the Baltics and Gotland, im Wondering how we create a history together.

[Pasong Tirad]

The Empire of Ethiopia (የኢትዮጵያ ንጉሠ ነገሥት መንግሥተ / Ye’ītiyop’iya Niguše Negešiti Menigišite)

Accepted! And if you do decide to go forward with that engagement we should talk about it, since there are a couple different princes that Woizero Zenebework could possibly be engaged to

It would be cool if my princess could marry your crown prince and a prince/princess of yours could marry my crown prince/princess, but that's far off in the distant future as my Empress is still pretty young. In any case, right now the Princess can be seen as a hostage to keep Ethiopian hands out of the southernmost territories of the ERE.

[The Felan Federation]

I’d like to extend an invitation to Russia and Sweden to agree to a common history with Poland-Lithuania. It seems that Swedens histories are mysteriously devoid of any mention of us. Sweden becoming an empire would certainly not go unnoticed in Warsaw, and considering in that our history involves annexing the Baltics and Gotland, im Wondering how we create a history together.

I would agree to that. Plus I left my own history barren since I didn't know how to fit you guys in.

But I agree we might need some common history made.

[Theyra]

Full Nation Name : Bengal Empire
Majority/Official Culture : Bengali
Territorial Core : India, Bangladesh and the western coast of Australia
Territorial Claim : Rest of Australia, Myanmar
Capital City : Dhaka
Population : 294,000,000


Government Type : Absolute Monarchy
Government Ideology/Policies : Traditionalism and Mercantilism
Government Focus : Protecting the empire from foreign threats, securing its sovereignty and taking land if the opportunity presents itself.
Head of State : Mahārāja (Emperor) Hiran Nagari
Head of Government : Mahārāja (Emperor) Nagari
Government Description : While the Bengal Empire is an absolute hereditary monarchy with house Nagari currently at its head. The Empire has a constitution of sorts in the Basic Laws of Bengal, outlining important tenets of the empire along with guaranteeing fundamental rights to its people. The succession of the throne is determined by the current emperor who picks who the heir is among his children. All children of the ruler can be picked, and if the current ruler dies before he picks an heir, then the designated Imperial Regent picks who they believe to be the best among the children.

Majority/State Religion : Buddhism
Religious Description : While Buddhism is the state religion and is followed by the majority of citizens of the empire. Religious tolerance is a long practiced tradition of the empire. People are allowed to freely worship what they want as long as it does not hinder the empire or harm other citizens.

Economic Ideologies : Capitalism with some key nationalization industries
Major Production : Agriculture products, manufactured goods, precious stones, textiles, and raw materials.
Economic Description : The economy is booming with goods coming in from the colonies in Australia and agriculture is still an important fixture. Manufacturing is on the rise, slowly replacing agriculture as a major industry and is the colonies in Australia thriving well under the various semi-autonomous imperial governors.

Development: Semi-Industrialize

Development Description : Some parts of India, mainly Bengal has fully modernized the rest of the empire is being modernized. Railroads are starting to cover the nation with two major railroads being done and connect each end of the empire to the other. Australia on the other is just starting the steps forward to being modernized and has a few railroads.

Army Description : The army of the Bengal Empire stands at 520,000 strong during peacetime with most of them being stationed in mainland India and the rest being stationed in Australia. The Imperial Reserves which are only brought up if the military needs them a number at 950,000. The grand total of the military is 1,470,000. The army is divided into three branches, the Imperial Army, Imperial Marines, and the Imperial Reserves. Which the army has the more units at 300,000 and the Marines making up the rest during peacetime. The Army is given priority to getting the better weapons and training while the Marines tend to be in the middle with the equipment and training when compared to the Reserves who have little training and use outdated weapons.
Army Weakness : Not enough modern weapons to supply the army with the up to date weapons being reserved for the most experienced units. Quantity vs quality
Naval Description : The Empire's navy consists of a large well-manned fleet that protects the trade routes from India to Australia along with other trade comes into their waters.
Naval Weakness : While capable against pirates and privateers, the navy has little experience dealing with a proper navy. They are in the process of updating the navy and still use out-of-date ships.
Further Military Description : N/A

National Goals : Preservation of the empire, securing allies and expanding their colonial empire.
National Issues : Growing public support for a more democratic government, religious tension between Buddhists and Hinduists
National Figures of Interest :
Maharani(High Queen) Jyoti Nagari
Heir apparent Maharajkumari(Princess) Karuna Nagari
General Dwarka Joyanto
Imperial Governor Yamuna Osmani
Imperial Governor Gopal Maitra

National Ambition/Aspirations : To become a major power in Asia and in the Indian Ocean.

History :

The history of the Bengal Empire started in the 12th century when the Pala Empire fell to internal rebellions, One of the rebels led by Vivek Acharya a local noble, created the Acharya Empire and claimed parts of the Pala Empire, becoming the new Buddhist imperial power in India. During his first years as emperor, Vivek focused on consolidating his hold over Bengal. Once then he focused on claiming lost Pala territory that was taken by the Sena dynasty and Chero dynasty during the collapse. By the late 12th century, Vivek had succeeded in conquering the lost territory and have taken down the Chero dynasty and weaken the Sena dynasty.

The 13th century would be marked by war when the Acharya Dynasty sought to expand their territory attacked the Pagan Kingdom to the east. Though a series of wars the Acharyas were unable to conquer, the kingdom and were soon assaulted by the Ghurid Sultanate and lost significant territory to them. As the Acharyas recovered from their losses and they sought to rebuild their forces. Fortunately, the Ghurid Sultanate had fallen to internal struggles, but a new power rose in its place, the Delhi Sultanate. This Sultanate under the Mamluk dynasty launched an invasion, and the Acharyas were able to hold them off, and the war would start a rivalry between the two powers.

The 14th century would be one of expansion with the Acharyas expanding into southern India. Either by invading their smaller neighbors or peacefully annexed smaller nations. Unfortunately their rivals the Delhi Sultanate would do the same, and soon India was split between them. Tensions between the two were tense and in 1365, the second Acharyas-Delhi war started and would later be known as "The Wars for India. By 1385 and after the third Acharyas-Delhi war, the Acharyas managed to come out on top and conquered vast amounts of land. Now with the Delhi Sultanate being weakened and in no state to challenge the Acharyas, the Acharyas focused on other pursuits.

In the 15th century under the rule of Empress Varsha Acharya saw a golden age of Bengal culture, arts and knowledge thrived. However, this proved to be short-lived after her death and her firstborn son, Harsha became ruler. Harsha proved to be a weak and corrupt ruler that caused corruption to take hold in the upper echelons of the government. Harsha's brother Bishwa grew tired of the corruption and tried to reason to his brother to stop the corruption but was instead throw out of court. Later Bishwa attempted a coup and failed which he managed to flee Bengal, and a civil war would start. The civil war lasted for three years and ended with most of the royal family dead and Delhi Sultanate taking advantage and conquering parts of the empire. One of the Acharyan generals Ishwar Nagari took the throne and purged the government of corruption. Realizing what an incompetent heir could do, he changed the succession law and degreed that only heirs deemed to be competent by the emperor could lead.

The 16th century was when the Nagari empire started to covet control of India. After losing territory during the civil war, the Nagari sent out to end the Delhi Sultanate once and for all. A long six-month war started, and in the end, the Delhi Sultanate was conquered. Now the Nagari Empire controlled the whole of India and the current ruler, Indra Nagari adopted the title of Mahārāja or high king. Along with giving himself a new title, he was a strong patriot and seeing Bengal now controls all of India. He renamed the Nagari empire to the Bengal Empire to show how mighty Bengal is.

With the subcontinent united under one banner in the 17th century, the royal court turned their attention towards across the ocean. Building up a large fleet to safeguard trade across their water and to explore. When they learned of a sizeable unclaimed land to the east, the Maharani(High Queen), seeing the potential of a colonial empire sent explorers to explore this land. They that while the Japanese have started to colonize the eastern half, the western half was still unclaimed and was ripe for the taking. Rather than to waste this opportunity, she ordered that the land be colonized and Bengal's colonial empire would begin. While that was going on, Indian traders expand their reach and established several trade posts in the Pacific and Africa.

The 18th century saw the Bengal colony of New Bengal grow to expand to the western coast of Australia. Bring new resources to the Bengal empire and when the colony came to border the Japanese territory. New Bengal was ordered to stop expanding along the border and stop expanding in general for now. Though that has not stopped colonists from expanding against orders and harassing the natives. A new imperial governor was installed to crack down on this and proved to be loyal and competent in his duties.

In the 19th century, the last Mahārāja died without naming a successor. While the imperial regent chose Bhavna as the new ruler, her brother Anik felt that he was better suited to be Mahārāja and quietly build up a faction of supporters in the empire. When he felt he was strong enough, he attempted to force Bhavna to abdicate the throne and give it to him. Despite the threat of death, she would not, and Anik had her killed. He then tried to take the throne by force and his younger brother Mihir took up arms to avenge his sister and civil war ensued. After fours years of bloody civil war, Mihir defeated Anik and had him executed for his treason and kinslaying, which Mihir took the throne and worked to repair the damage caused by the war. Now with the 20th century on the horizon with Mihir dead of natural causes. His son Hiran must take the reins of the empire and hopefully steer it in the right direction and be able to weather any storm that comes at the realm. It will be seen to what will happen to the Bengal Empire now.

RP Sample: Anno 2054

#AltDiv (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

[Turkducken]

Full Nation Name : República de Colombia, The Republic of Colombia, Gran Colombia (colloquially), Colombia (Casual Conversation)
Majority/Official Culture : Colombian (Officially) Bolivian (Unofficially)
Territorial Core : Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and the Galapagos Islands
Territorial Claim : The Amazon, the Western portion of Swedish Venezuela
Capital City : Bogotá (Politically) Cartagena (Economically)
Population : Twenty-Two Million (Most Self-Identify as Colombians, with a significant population of self-identified natives, and another significant Afro-Hispanic Population)

Government Type : A Constitutionally Federal Democratic Republic, A Bicameral Legislature, and a Federalized Judicial System
Government Ideology/Policies : Federalism, Universal Suffrage, Liberalism, Free Trade, Emancipation
Government Focus : Continuing the push towards the "Cultural Jumping Point", Naval Expansion, Procurement of European Favor, Promoting South American Stability, Promoting the spread of Federal Republicanism
Head of State : President Juan Anthony Bolivar
Head of Government : Chancellor Enrique Mateo de la Cartagena
Government Description : The Federal Government is comprised of thirty Federal States. Each of these states has one Representative in the National Congress, these are denoted as Senators, who are elected by the citizens within. Senators have no term limits and, legally speaking, have no process for removal or challenging democratically. Although the States Legislatures that send them to Congress are constantly changing, and strong support for removal by citizens of that State are considered when selecting Senators. The voting system within Colombia is based on early ideas of Proportional Representation. Rather than single candidates or parties winning outright, they are given a number of proportional seats based on the percentage of votes cast for them. These Representatives are selected by their parties and sent to join the National Assembly. Every Four years a Referendum is triggered and the legitimacy of the Assembly is questioned. All those who have seats within the Assembly are expected to either defend their positions or step down. The President is elected by a National Vote, and they preside over both Houses of the National Assembly. Constitutionally the President can only sign bills into law, after the bills have been approved by both Houses, and veto bills arriving at their desk. Although a veto can be overturned by a "plurality" of the National Assembly, in layman's terms fifty plus one. The Chancellor is elected by a National Vote, but only after the candidates are selected by the National Assembly. In Theory this is meant to reflect the winner of the National Election as a successful compromise between various parties and their supporters. The invention of Single Transferable Vote in Colombia has aided this. The voters are given multiple votes to cast for each nominee. With their first choice being prioritized over their latter choices, and so on down the list. If no candidate reaches fifty percent after the first round of voting, the candidate with the least amount of votes is eliminated and the votes recounted with those voters next choice getting their new votes. This continues until a fifty percent margin is achieved by votes. The candidate with the second most votes is appointed to Federal Consul, which is a ceremonial role, although they can observe both Houses when in session.

Majority/State Religion : None
Religious Description : Colombia is a Constitutionally mandated Secular State, no official religion can be established by the Federal Government. The strong influence of a few major players in the world have influenced the religious makeup of Colombia, while Catholicism is widely considered to be the majority, there are large communities of Buddhists, Chalcedoinian, the Reformed French Church, and a rather large conclave of Muslims. Atheism was accepted by Colombian disciples of the Enlightenment to be an intellectually superior religious declaration, and some societies exist within university grounds at Cartagena, Bogota, Buenventura.

Economic Ideologies : Developmental Capitalism (While not quite resembling the Modern equivalent, the building blocks are there)
Major Production : Fish, Sugar(Raw), Refined Sugar, Coffee (mostly raw, but some refined and canned goods), Cocoa, Silver, Copper, and a non-exported amount of Coal
Economic Description : Colombia has been slowly transitioning from a Post-Colonial Economy to a modern Industrial one. Although most of the country is still relatively isolated. The Coasts of Colombia are seeing the beginnings of Electrification, and enjoy modern conveniences in the forms of Railways and Telegrams. The two largest Deep water ports in Colomiba are those in Buenaventura and Cartagena, these are located on the Pacific and Atlantic respectively. Trade with European and American Powers is unrestricted, and competitively low tariffs and trade taxes ensure that goods are being transferred across the country to whichever port on whatever ocean. Most of the civilian population still participates in subsistence agriculture. Plantations are common in every state, typically ran by the descendants of the Spanish families who established them. Although Slavery is constitutionally banned, the politically and economically powerful Plantadors still maintain indentured servitude among the peasants in their spheres of influence.

Development: Semi-Industrialized
Development Description : While the great miracles of the Modern world are spreading across Colombia. The settled tribes in the country's interior do not yet see the benefits. Roads to the interior, with the except of the all important paved highway to Bogota, are unpaved. The pathways to some villages can't fit a horse and carriage down them, forcing the inhabitants to potentially walk miles back and forth to import and export goods. Education outside of the coast is minimal, with some volunteer work settling small schoolhouses in remote locations in the mountains and jungles. The two largest Universities in Colombia are the Universidad Nacional (National University) in Cartagena and the Escuela Militar de Cadetes General José María Córdova (José María Córdova Military School). The latter being named after José María Córdova a Hero of the war of Independence.

Army Description : The Ejército Federal de Colombia (The Federal Army of Colombia) has a standing peacetime army of 100,000 Men. While individual equipment can vary, most men are equipped with the Villavicencio 1890 Rifle (Derivative of the Springfield 1888 Model). The Army is mostly stationed around the coasts of Colombia, with a few key military installations in and around the two largest port cities of Cartagena and Buenaventura. Another 50,000 men serve under La Policía Militar Federal de Colombia (The Federal Military Police of Colombia), who can be considered something akin to a State Militia. The Federal Police enforce laws in the fringe of the various states, and are mostly used by the Governors of those States to settle conflicts with Native Tribes. Another 300,000 men are considered to be in Reserve.
Army Weakness : The Ejército Federal de Colombia is heavily dependent on individual funding and supply by the various States of the Republic. Depending on the values of the State Governments, the assembled troops from that state can be untrained or under trained, lacking basic equipment, and lacking adequate supplies. The officers of the assembled men tend to be politically appointed by the various Plantadors of the thirty states. Their experience leading and commanding men in the field varies wildly, and their loyalty is typically skewed to their benefactors. The Armed Forces are Voluntary recruitment only, and it is considered politically impossible to enforce conscription.
Naval Description : La Armada Federal de Colombia (The Federal Armada of Colombia) is split into two functional fleets. The Pacific Fleet is comprised of 6 Coastal Defense Ships, 1 Armored Cruiser, 3 Protected Cruisers, 8 Unprotected Cruisers. The Atlantic Fleet is comprised of 4 Coastal Defense Ships, 1 Armored Cruiser, and 10 Unprotected Cruisers. These fleets also have various non-combatant support ships. The first Battleship of the Colombia Navy is under construction, dry docked in Cartagena, foreign observers can note that it could be considered outdated by modern designs.
Naval Weakness : The Coastal Defense Ships are largely outdated wood hull vessels. They've been converted to a very early ironclad design, and their speed and maneuverability is impacted greatly. All of the Cruisers were constructed mid to late in the last century, as such they are comprised of all iron, and have steam and sail as their main method of propulsion. The Navy is often relegated to Brown-Water Patrols, as the Government of Colombia wishes to cooperate with the American Empire. Politically speaking, the Navy doesn't contest the waters of the American Empire, and only asks for freedom of trade movement through it's seas.

National Goals : Securing Uninterrupted Free Trade between both Oceans while acting as an emissary of that trade
National Issues :
Wealthy Plantadors: The Wealthy Plantation Families of Colombia have political and economic choke holds over local politics in most states. They abuse their power to maintain a form of Slavery on their lands, and are known to be arbitrary in struggles for power against the Government. They also maintain a large influence over parts of the Army, potentially being very dangerous to the future of the Federal Government.
Modernization: Large parts of the country are unconnected. They have no easy access to trade from outside of their village. The roads are unpaved and even traditional delivery by Post is hampered. Communication is poor outside of the Coast. Education is lacking outside of the coast, basic literacy is needed.
National Figures of Interest :
National Ambition/Aspirations : South American Unity, Democratization

History :
In 1803 a popular uprising in Cartagena failed to be fully quelled by the Spanish Colonial Military. Residents fought the military to a standstill in the streets, and it was only a few days after the brutal slaughter of a large portion of the civilian population that the uprising was stopped. However the instigators of this riot escaped, and fled into the interior of Colombia. These were wealthy members of the Spanish nobility in the Americas. Inspired by the Enlightenment thinkers of Europe at the time, they were mostly the descendants of white Spaniards, and as they spread their ideas to the native and second-class residents of the Spanish colonies a small resistance began to form. As the Enlightenment ideas of constitutional republics and democracy spread to the people, the movement for Independence became more diverse, tribes previously decimated by disease and conflict, united under a common banner. Citizens of various towns and cities met in secret to discuss these forbidden topics. New leaders, both political and economic, began to rise from this increased banner. Among them was Juan Salamanca, a freed slave.

Salamanca became a fierce voice for radical self governance and independence. He was a fiery impassioned speaker and people turned out by the thousands in the cities or hundreds in the country to hear him speak. He instilled a sense of revolutionary rigor in the people, and became a sort of symbol for the resistance. He negotiated radical peace agreements between some tribes of the colony, and smuggled himself in secret to other Spanish colonies in the Americas. This sort of stardom, and radical fire branding, made him infamous among the Spanish authorities. During a visit to the city of Maracaibo, in the neighboring region of Venezuela, the local authorities attempted to arrest the freedman. The resulting uprising is commonly remembered as the Battle of Maracaibo. The Spanish attempted to arrest Salamanca during an impromptu speech just outside of a local tavern. Both the bar goers and the crowd became unwieldy during the attempted arrest, a shot was fired in the crowd and a fight broke out between the assembled crowd and the Spanish soldiers. The tavern itself was destroyed in a fire caused during the brawl, while eighteen civilians and four soldiers lay dead in the street. Juan Salamanca evaded the authorities during the confusion, and the local members of the resistance managed to seize the city's armory. Maracaibo celebrated seventy-four days of Independence after the local authorities were ousted and the revolutionary government was installed. This was met with a brutal retaliation from the Colonial Government, who besieged the city in the latter half of 1808. While Venezuela would not be freed by the revolutionaries, it served as the breaking point for the rest of the Spanish colonies.

While Juan Salamanca would flee back into Colombia after the disaster at Maracaibo, another leader arose from the harsh crackdowns of the colonial government against the resistance. Simón Bolívar was the son of a wealthy Plantador. Educated in Spain, he briefly served in the Spanish Army as an officer, before being deferred from service to attend to his family's estate after his father's untimely demise. After the harsh crackdown on the civilians living in the Spanish Americas. Bolívar, who considered himself a student of the European Enlightenment, joined the Revolutionaries. Offering his skills as a military commander and a coincidentally impassioned speaker, he soon found himself elevated to leadership within the ranks of the revolution. Bolivar began to organize the more militant members of the Revolution into a European style force. Which upset some of the more radical members of the leadership, who thought that the big victory over the Spanish would come from mass mobilization of the peasants, not a decisive military victory. Juan Salamanca served as an intermediary between the two parties. While he himself was obviously far more radical than Bolivar, he saw the value in fighting the Colonial Government where they lived, and weighed the potential political effects of holding their own in combat against the Colonial Forces. Taking inspiration from the Peninsular War in Spain. Bolivar adapted his strategies around the more insurgent history of the Revolution. Both men and supplies were scarce, so they were organized into small infiltration units in the jungle and mountains of Colombia. From these positions they harassed the colonial forces and regularly stole supplies from camps and armories.

In the early 1810s, with the outbreak of a violent Civil War in mainland Spain, a portion of troops were withdrawn from Colombia to assist in the war against the Christino forces. This left the Colony's defenses slightly softened and Bolivar seized the opportunity to strike at the weakened government. In 1811 a combined force of 25,000 men, both volunteers from around the country and various tribal warriors, besieged the city of Bogota. The siege lasted a month and a half, without proper artillery and the terrain of thick jungles and mountains surrounding the city, it was a desperate attempt. Bolivar had to pull his forces out of the siege both from a lack of supplies and progress. However the impression still remained, the Revolutionary Forces had fought the Spanish on their own terms, and they were not destroyed nor did they officially lose the battle. Bolivar became a Hero overnight, and his army marched to the western coast of the country. They were met with enthusiastic recruits, favorable local governments, and a positively miffed Colonial Army. Battles raged across the countryside, Bolivar's swelling army accidentally encountering the Colonial Forces numerous times over the next year and a half. Bogota was eventually seized by popular uprising, and Bolivar's tired and struggling forces claimed it as their home. Revolutionary Leaders flooded to Bogota, and an interim government was established. They began to argue and establish the new laws and structure of the government. Bolivar meanwhile found his greatest ally in the Revolutionary State of Guyana. They eagerly supplied the Colombian's with much needed materials, and the interim government authorized payments to the revolutionary state; although these would never be delivered.

Independence came to Colombia uneventfully. The constant harassment combined with a lack of men and supplies, convinced the colonial government to withdraw militarily from the region of Colombia. Their forces concentrated in the other colonial regions of Peru and Ecuador, attempting to absolve themselves of humiliation. In the following years of 1815 and 1816 these regions were freed and joined the new Republic of Colombia. The Interim Government formed, with much arbitration and debate, into a federal democratic republic. A truly radical experiment that even the Guyanese hadn't seen. The abolition of slavery, universal male suffrage,
RP Sample: Times Are'A Changing,

Lance Faraday

Inseldorf Dockyards

A small stand had been prepared in front of the cargo ramps of the dock, a meager crowd had assembled comprised of dockhands and shipwrights. Lance was standing just aside the platform as the tubby union boss tried halfheartedly to get the crowd anticipated for his speech, he was nervous, sweating carefully contained under his suit he was roused from his thoughts when the union boss clasped him roughly on the shoulder, "Your on." he said as he passed by. Lance took large steps to the podium, wiped his brow, cleared his throat and began to speak. "H-H-Hello, as you know my name is Lance Faraday and I've been elected to serve you." He paused, the crowd silently stared at him, "I-um-I may not be the bold new ideas and so grand a scheme as my colleagues have, but I can promise you this, I will always be with the people. This means I support a healthy industrial environment, the blue collars are the backbone of our economy, so our are farmers, as well as our service based friends including government employees. This is why I support the formation of unions and the right of workers to strike, it is unreasonable to me that you would have to work hours and hours everyday only to take less pay from the owner, or to work overtime without compensation, just as the boss is the provider of jobs you the workers provide him with his." the crowd had warmed up a bit to this and seemed to like where this was heading.

"However, it is important that we not abuse our island without temperament, Mother Nature is kind to all of us but not if we abuse her. I believe it is possible to continue to have an industrial base as well as pursue environmentally friendly policies, this includes ending our dependency on oil and natural gas, I recognize the loss of jobs in the short term, but the amount of jobs from the construction of wind farms, solar plants, and nuclear fission will far outnumber the ones lost, and all save the last one require similar construction skills as building another derrick." Some in the crowd were paying full attention, others were at least being polite.

"I've gone over my time here, but if you would let me finish my last two or three points. As an island nation I think it would be prudent to maximize the efficiency of our Navy and Airforce, maybe some expansion of bases and dockyards, but we should primarily focus on having our troops at the smallest point with the largest rate of success. Secondly, much of the developed world suffers from a crisis of mental illness we need to invest in both pharmaceuticals and psychologists that can lessen the impact of these terrible diseases that effect many of us and our families, disproportionately so does it effect the lower class, inmates, and juveniles. The fight to treat this illnesses and to keep treatment affordable is one that we can fight in the capitol. Lastly, while some developed countries struggle with substance abuse, we should not let this scare us away from the largely 'harmless' cannabis plant, while every drug has negative side effects this includes tobacco and alcohol, but with no-one calling for an end to the use of those why should we continue to enforce penalties for such a similar drug? It would also be my hope to expand the agricultural base in the country, both for cannabis and other crops, to return to our more sustainable roots. To clarify allowing or passing a law that allows limited agricultural practices to be preformed both in urban and rural properties, people can save a dime or two by growing their own garden or by being an entrepreneur and starting a locally grown food place in the middle of downtown wherever."

The crowd clapped for the end of the speech, whether genuinely impressed or just trying to be courteous was unknown. "Thank you all for being here, and have a good day." he stepped off the stage smile growing upon his face, "That went rather well I think."

#AltDiv (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

[Tracian Empire]

Reservation

Nation Name: Federal Republic of Nova Tarragona
Territory: Green claim in and around where IRL Argentina is
#AltDiv (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)
*Note: Reservations will last for 72 hours. The OP board reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting reservations.

Accepted

[Tracian Empire]

(Image)

Full Nation Name : República de Colombia, The Republic of Colombia, Gran Colombia (colloquially), Colombia (Casual Conversation)
Majority/Official Culture : Colombian (Officially) Bolivian (Unofficially)
Territorial Core : Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and the Galapagos Islands
Territorial Claim : The Amazon
Capital City : Bogotá
Population : Twenty-Two Million (Most Self-Identify as Colombians, with a significant population of self-identified natives, and another significant Afro-Hispanic Population)

Government Type : Nominally a Democratic Republic, De Facto a Republican Dictatorship
Government Ideology/Policies : Liberalism, Free Trade, Emancipation
Government Focus : Becoming a Vital component to trade between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Increasing Internal and External Legitimacy.
Head of State : Chancellor
Head of Government : President
Government Description : On paper the Republic of Colombia is a

Majority/State Religion : Catholicism at around sixty percent, various tribal/native beliefs comprise the rest, with a tiny atheist minority among the Elite
Religious Description : As an officially Secular State, there is no officially recognized religion. Nor, legally speaking, can there be.

Economic Ideologies : Developmental Capitalism (While not quite resembling the Modern equivalent, the building blocks are there)
Major Production : Refined Sugar, Coffee (mostly raw, but some refined and canned goods), Cocoa
Economic Description : Heavily Agrarian, struggling to Industrialize after a fairly long history of Colonialism, a handful of factories along the coasts. Groundbreaking on rail systems is mostly underdeveloped, internal infrastructure is incomplete and most roads are unpaved. Slavery, while illegal constitutionally, still exists in a form of indentured servitude by the various plantation families.

Development: Semi-Industrialized
Development Description :

Army Description : [[Describe your nation's army in as much detail as you can]]
Army Weakness :
Naval Description : [[Describe your nation's navy in as much detail as you can]]
Naval Weakness :
Further Military Description : [[OPTIONAL]]

National Goals : Become the Vital method for transporting from the Atlantic to Pacific and vice versa. Construction of a country spanning rail system, capable of transporting goods from one side of the country to the other in a matter of days.
National Issues : Internal Machine Politics,
National Figures of Interest : [[OPTIONAL]] [[Are there any Mother Teresas or Moses that we need to know about?]]
National Ambition/Aspirations : Becoming the most stable Liberal Democracy in the World.

History : [[Can be in paragraph or bulletpoint timeline.]]
RP Sample: [[Either a link to a past post, or an example written right here.]]

#AltDiv (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

You can consider this as an accepted reservation, but make sure that your concept of Colombia will diverge from reality.

[Old Tyrannia]

The Swedish Empire was only an empire in name, i.e. it was named that after the fact due to the territory it held, but the monarchs of Sweden remained Kings throughout the period. Your app seems to imply that they were actually crowned as Emperors and that Sweden's official title is Empire, not Kingdom.

True. But in this ATL - they hadn't declined that much, losing Finland yet keeping their grip on Norway and Denmark - due to Gustav surviving long enough to make the Sweds more 'stable' than in OTL.

I'm sorry, but you don't seem to be understanding the problem. Throughout the Stormaktstiden, Sweden remained officially a kingdom governed by a king; at no point was the title "emperor" in use in Sweden, nor was Sweden formally styled as an "empire" in Swedish. The term "Swedish Empire" was always an informal historiographic term to refer to the period when Sweden's territorial extent was at its maximum. Even in your own app, you use the titles "king" and "queen" for past monarchs. You need to explain why Sweden is now formally styled as an empire, and why your current monarch is styled as emperor rather than king.

[The Felan Federation]

True. But in this ATL - they hadn't declined that much, losing Finland yet keeping their grip on Norway and Denmark - due to Gustav surviving long enough to make the Sweds more 'stable' than in OTL.

I'm sorry, but you don't seem to be understanding the problem. Throughout the Stormaktstiden, Sweden remained officially a kingdom governed by a king; at no point was the title "emperor" in use in Sweden, nor was Sweden formally styled as an "empire" in Swedish. The term "Swedish Empire" was always an informal historiographic term to refer to the period when Sweden's territorial extent was at its maximum. Even in your own app, you use the titles "king" and "queen" for past monarchs. You need to explain why Sweden is now formally styled as an empire, and why your current monarch is styled as emperor rather than king.

Hmm. Is it that hard of a thing to do? Beyond station stating that after conquering Norway and Denmark he crowned himself Emperir?

Dunno about what might be the big issue?

[Old Tyrannia]

:D

I'm sorry, but you don't seem to be understanding the problem. Throughout the Stormaktstiden, Sweden remained officially a kingdom governed by a king; at no point was the title "emperor" in use in Sweden, nor was Sweden formally styled as an "empire" in Swedish. The term "Swedish Empire" was always an informal historiographic term to refer to the period when Sweden's territorial extent was at its maximum. Even in your own app, you use the titles "king" and "queen" for past monarchs. You need to explain why Sweden is now formally styled as an empire, and why your current monarch is styled as emperor rather than king.

Hmm. Is it that hard of a thing to do? Beyond station stating that after conquering Norway and Denmark he crowned himself Emperir?

When who conquered Norway and Denmark? There's no mention at all of when the imperial style was adopted in your app.

Dunno about what might be the big issue?

Titles are Serious Business. When rulers have changed their titles historically, it had usually been to signal a significant ideological change or otherwise send a message out about the ruler's intention. You can't just call your ruler an emperor because you think it sounds cooler, that's a fairly significant historical change and we need to know when it happened and what the reason was. We care about the quality of the alternate history you have created for your nation and we expect changes from the original timeline to be explained and justified, not just brushed over.

[The Felan Federation]

:D

Hmm. Is it that hard of a thing to do? Beyond station stating that after conquering Norway and Denmark he crowned himself Emperir?

When who conquered Norway and Denmark? There's no mention at all of when the imperial style was adopted in your app.

Dunno about what might be the big issue?

Titles are Serious Business. When rulers have changed their titles historically, it had usually been to signal a significant ideological change or otherwise send a message out about the ruler's intention. You can't just call your ruler an emperor because you think it sounds cooler, that's a fairly significant historical change and we need to know when it happened and what the reason was. We care about the quality of the alternate history you have created for your nation and we expect changes from the original timeline to be explained and justified, not just brushed over.

Gustav Adolphus, the man who originally started the 'Empire' IRL. Since no Thirty Year War - he would have instead turned his attention towards the weakening Kalmar Union which was basically Denmark-Norway then.

Hmm. I see..

Would it be more sense for Sweden to remain a Kingdom then?

[SCP Institution]

Hey Felan Federation !

What do you think about an alliance between Anglo-Dutchmen and Scandinavians ?

[Intermountain States]

Application is completed

Full Nation Name : Grand Republic of Busang (Daebusang Minguk; 대부상민국, 大扶桑民國)
Majority/Official Culture : Although the founders of Busang were of Korean heritage and much of the culture were influenced by the cultures and tradition of Korea (such as hangul, which was used to write the founding documents of Busang's independence), there were already hundreds and thousands, if not millions, of those with non-Korean or mixed ethnicities, such as the Han Chinese or the various Native American groups etc. The Busangese cultural identity can perhaps be seen as a form of cultural nationalism in its view that there is no true Busangese race but a nation where men of different stock can be unified by a shared pride of the culture of Busang. This is not to say that Busang is a multicultural nation. While there are ethnic communities all over the country (but largely situated in the West Coast and in the Mississippi), immigrants are encouraged to take up Korean names, be versed in hangul, and observe Korean culture and holidays, including traditions original to Busang.
Territorial Core : Provinces of the Grand Republic
Territorial Claim : None so far
Capital City : Sinhan (Boise)
Population : 61 Million

Government Type : Federal Semi-Presidential Constitutional Republic
Government Ideology/Policies : Market liberalism, Social conservatism, National liberalism
Government Focus : Economic and territorial growth, improvement of relations among neighboring tribe and nations for expansion or for trade
Head of State : Chancellor Wang Jun-min
Head of Government : Vice-Chancellor Go Hui-song
Government Description : The government of the Grand Republic functions as a federal parliamentary republic. The bicameral General Assembly is lead by the Chancellor who is voted in by the lower house Chamber of Delegates. Delegates are directed elected by the public based on the districts. The National Court is the upper house consisting of representatives appointed by their provinces. The Chancellor’s Cabinet appointed by the Chancellor and confirmed by the National Court.

Majority/State Religion : No official religion
Religious Description : The people of the Republic practices a mixture of religions with the national government abstaining from having any state religion. The major religious organizations are Buddhism, Cheondoism, Christianity, and Taoism.

Economic Ideologies : Free market capitalism
Major Production : The vast lands of Busang is known for its agriculture, coal, gold, silver, lumber, and petroleum.
Economic Description : Busang is very resource rich with gold found in North Mansan and Daegok, coal in West Deolseong, and oil, silver, and fertile soil found in abundance all over the country. The General Assembly has taken a largely laissez faire approach to much of the economy, standing abide to the wu wei ideals for the sake of innovation and competition. That is not to say that the government has no involvement in the economy; regulations are put in place in addition to existing provincial regulations to ensure fair business practices
Development: Modern
Development Description : The Republic is blessed with the same technological base enjoyed by other Oriental empires along with an abundance of natural resources providing wealth to the nation.

Army Description : The Grand Republic Army is one of the most advanced military in North America, owing from competition with the Americans. Thanks to industrialization, the Grand Republic mass produces equipments for their military and the expansion of railroads allows them to transport troops quickly through the use of trains The creation of automatic weapons and mass production of weapons and ammunition created an army on demand. The Grand Republic Army is one of the largest in the continent with a standing army of 400,000 soldiers and field contemporary artillery, rifles, and squad support weapons.
Army Weakness : The reserved Provincial Forces, despite numbering in almost a million, is not as disciplined compared to the active force and with only putting down Native times American uprisings, have little experience in combat and may even rout. Reserve officers are not much better, most being graduates with family connections to the Grand Assembly or in state and local governments who use the easy opportunity of being an officer to climb social ladders, their ability to lead is doubted by many. In addition, many of the Provincial Guards have little access to the most recent of military equipments such as machine guns and bolt action rifles, still relying on repeating rifles and multibarreled guns of the 60s-70s.
Naval Description : While the Grand Republic Navy is by no means the greatest, the importance of the Navy is realized to the Grand Republic, who relies on the GRN to safeguard trade in the Pacific and in the Geong (Mississippi) River. The GRN is well funded with the use of contemporary vessels.
Naval Weakness : The navy is considered to be just adequate and ordinary compared to the navies of their neighboring states; there is really nothing to write home about for the Grand Republic Navy. Although officers in the Navy are selected by a competitive military examination and in theory, captains and admirals would advanced through merit and capabilities, most of those currently in the Navy have only seen combat experience against unruly bands of pirates rather than organized war fleets from other empires. In addition, it is not unheard of for some to receive officer position based on connection.
Further Military Description : While not part of any official military force, be it in the Army of the Grand Republic or the reserve Provincial Force, there is a tradition among the civilian populace which lies on the mass ownership of firearms, a tradition established by ambitious settlers to defend against the natives or to hunt animals and a tradition that won Busang’s independence from the Chuk-Jae-Do. While the military is well funded, there are plenty of everyday civilians willing to pick up their firearms to protect the Republic from invasions, must like the Righteous Army formed by their Joseon cousins.

National Goals : Consolidate the recently acquired Geunggang Provinces, strengthen trade access to Africa and Europe, and spread Korean cultural institutions throughout the New World, all under the values of the Cheonha Decree
National Issues : The eastern provinces are still filled with conflicts between the Busangin settlers and independent minded native tribals and European settlers.
National Figures of Interest : [[OPTIONAL]] [[Are there any Mother Teresas or Moses that we need to know about?]]
National Ambition/Aspirations : [[OPTIONAL]] [[Not really a set objective, but rather the big picture that your nation is drawing towards]]

History :
The 17th century was the time of colonization and it was never more true for Korea. Although the Koreans have already developed prosperous colonies in southeast Asia under the Chuk-Jae-Do system, interests were made eastward with the discovery of the North American coast by celebrated admiral Yi Sun-sin in 1610. Due to the Chuk-Jae-do being focused in Southeast Asia, a sub branch of the Chuk-Jae-Do called the Sae-Dael-Yuk was formed for establishing outposts and colonization of the new world, called Busang (after the mythological land of Fusang in Chinese legends). In 1631, the first Korean settlement in the New World was established at Gobuk, Cheonhae, and Punggaang. Daegok, Mansan, East and West Dolseong, and Inji were formed later in the early 1700s after Korean expansion eastward, initially treating the native tribes as tributaries before absorbing them (whether peacefully or violently) into the commanderies. The Commandery of Hongjeon (or Tejas by the Spaniards) was added as the result of the Chuk-Jae-Do's victory aganist Spanish forces in the mid 1700s.

The plentiful resources of the new continent were valuable to the Joseon government and efforts were made to develop the colonies with people from Joseon moving to the Commanderies of Busang for a chance of living a new life (or to pay off their debts). Industrialization took hold in the Commanderies of Busang, wealth reached the peninsula, and people from Asia flocked over to this New World. However, the Korean court has taken a “hands off” approach to governing the colonies and much of the colonies acted with near independence to the Joseon court and the Chuk-Jae-Do, regularly selecting their own officials from the populace to manage government functions for the colonies. The colonies that were given more liberty become more independent over time with a small but growing number of colonists seeing themselves identifying more with their colonies than with the Korean crown or the Chuk-Jae-Do as a whole. However, this was a minority view as much of the colonists still see themselves as dutiful subjects of Joseon.

In the early 19th century, the Chuk-Jae-Do was looking to expand its dominion over the colonies and set up new taxation systems and regulations. Most of the taxations were opposed by the colonists, who felt that the taxes they're burdened with only benefits the colonial authorities instead towards their colonial governments. During this period, the ideals of independence became widespread amongst a growing number of intellectuals, merchants, and officers living in the American colonies, forming an organization called the Independence Association that had members in the Ten Commanderies of the New World.

Later tensions between the Chuk-Jae-Do authority and the colonial governments had grown to which the commanderies sent delegates in Sinhan and formed the Provisional Assembly of the Five Commanderies to act as the greater representatives of the colonies. After months of debate and back-and-forth between Provisional Assembly and the Chuk-Jae-Do, the Provisional Assembly officially declared the commanderies’ independence from the Chuk-Jae-Do under the formation of the Grand Republic of Busang in 1832. The Provisional Assembly prepared for war, assigning Cheonhae delegate and experienced military officer Dae Song-su as the Supreme Commander of the Provisional Army.

War between the Chuk-Jae-Do and the Grand Republic lasted for five years, with much of the fighting taking place in the more populated areas of Cheonhae, Punggaang, North and South Mansan, and West Dolseong. Thanks to the political mastermind of Provisional Foreign Secretary Yang Hyun-jun (and the desire of the Korean Imperial Throne to curb Chuk-Jae-Do’s authority), the Grand Republic received backing from the Imperial Crown and eventually won its independence in 1839. The Provisional Assembly soon established political reforms, establishing a bicameral system of the reorganized General Assembly, institutionalizing the office of the Chancellor as an elected executive position, and with the support of the more influential liberals, a set of rights guaranteed to all men, including universal male suffrage. The General Assembly later appointed General Dae Song-su as the first Chancellor of the Grand Republic.

The Chancellorship of Dae Song-su from 1839 to 1854 were focused on territorial growth and major population increase. The Dae Song-su government promoted immigration, advertising its vast lands across Busang as ways for folks to come and settled eastward. Although this had brought large amounts of immigrants from East Asia, major increase in migration occurred during the North Mansan Gold Rush from 1848 to 1855 where hundreds and thousands of people scrambled to the trade focused North Mansan in hopes to gain wealth from the valuable mineral. This had quickly made North Mansan, already moderately populated, to the largest province in the Republic. New developments in Daegok brought forth a silver rush in the province, bringing more attention to the landlocked province, even while the North Mansan Gold Rush was still in full effect. Dae Song-su, after leading the country for 15 years, stepped down from his position, believing that he had accomplished his goal as the Republic's caretaker. He was succeeded by Vice-Chancellor Choe Kwang-jo, setting an unofficial guideline for future Chancellors in the country.

Choe Kwang-jo's chancellorship was from 1854 to 1866. Choe Kwang-jo's administration continued the policies of then-Chancellor Dae Song-su with using its wealth of resources and vast lands to encourage immigration. His administration, however, was known for his expansionist policies, diverting troop resources eastward to gain access to the Mississippi River. Coupled with the mobility of the Grand Army along with the implementation of newer weapons such as the gatling guns and the repeating rifle, the Republic was able to consolidate lands right near the Mississippi, although sporadic fighting were still common, taking years for the strip to die down. The lands near the Mississippi River ended up forming the provinces of North Geunggaang and South Geunggaang. Choe Kwang-jo's chancellorship ended in 1866 after the ruling Federalist Party lost to the opposition People's Party lead by In Seong-hyun, ending the 27 year domination of the Federalist Party and the rise of the People's Party as one of the major party besides the Federalists. In Seong-hyun's chancellorship lasted for nine years from 1866 to 1875. His administration was seen as being unnoteworthy, despite some legislative achievements such as implementation of civil rights for Native Americans and high tariffs. This has been the defining factors for successive Chancellors as many did not have such impact compared to the first two Chancellors.

As Busang enters the new century, a sense of optimism rises among the general populace. There were plenty of good reasons for the optimism: the Hongjeon province (Texas/Tejas) experienced a massive oil boom and trade running smoothly in the Pacific Ocean and along the Mississsippi and the Gulf Coast. Through its strong economy and previous military success, Busang has affirmed itself as one of the major powers in North America. With the election of Federalist leader Wang Jun-min as Chancellor in 1906, only the future could tell for this world whether or not the Grand Republic's fortune would continue.

RP Sample:
- It's like Alternate Divergence but made by the Cobalt Network and has set nations (Tales of Two Horizons II)
- War, what is it good for? (Back to 1935)
- Rednecks and post-apocalyptic America (Fallout: Damn Dirty South)
- Red Dawn but Asian (Crane Ascendent)
- Generic late 19th century Alt-history RP (Voice of a New Age)
- War, war never changes (Fallout: Republic of Dusts)
- Alternate history taken all the way (1900: Alternate Divergeance)
- Anime Vietnam Flashbacks (Operation Gatelord)


#AltDiv (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

[Tracian Empire]

When who conquered Norway and Denmark? There's no mention at all of when the imperial style was adopted in your app.

Titles are Serious Business. When rulers have changed their titles historically, it had usually been to signal a significant ideological change or otherwise send a message out about the ruler's intention. You can't just call your ruler an emperor because you think it sounds cooler, that's a fairly significant historical change and we need to know when it happened and what the reason was. We care about the quality of the alternate history you have created for your nation and we expect changes from the original timeline to be explained and justified, not just brushed over.

Gustav Adolphus, the man who originally started the 'Empire' IRL. Since no Thirty Year War - he would have instead turned his attention towards the weakening Kalmar Union which was basically Denmark-Norway then.

Hmm. I see..

Would it be more sense for Sweden to remain a Kingdom then?

Unless you can find a serious and conceivable reason for why one of your monarchs would have taken on the title, then yes, it would make a lot more sense for it to remain a kingdom.

[The Felan Federation]

Gustav Adolphus, the man who originally started the 'Empire' IRL. Since no Thirty Year War - he would have instead turned his attention towards the weakening Kalmar Union which was basically Denmark-Norway then.

Hmm. I see..

Would it be more sense for Sweden to remain a Kingdom then?

Unless you can find a serious and conceivable reason for why one of your monarchs would have taken on the title, then yes, it would make a lot more sense for it to remain a kingdom.

Alright. I edited myself back into a Kingdom. I shall try to add more meat - while also trying to work out a history with the Polish-Lithuanian and Rus Commonwealths. But for the moment Sweden is back as a Kingdom.

(Anything else that might need editing?)