| Challenge: African and South American GP | |
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| Topic Started: May 12 2014, 02:40 PM (164 Views) | |
| Simon Darkshade | May 12 2014, 02:40 PM Post #1 |
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Nefarious Swashbuckler
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The challenge for today is to create fully viable Great Powers on the level of Italy or Japan in Africa and/or South America by 1920. Starting date is up to you, but bonus marks will be available for innovation. A Great Power is defined here in broad terms as having a population of 40+ million, a GDP of over $120 billion, a domestic arms industry and the ability to operate dreadnoughts, the capacity to field a WW1 type army of over 2.5 million and a functioning (to some degree) industrialized economy. |
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| Basil Fawlty | May 12 2014, 05:30 PM Post #2 |
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Post Tenebras Lux
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British colonization of and extended investment in Argentina strikes me as one possible way to grow it well beyond historical levels, but whether it would be a full fledged Great Power is another question. I'm not sure Ethiopia is viable as a powerful independent African country. Even if the population and resource constraints can be gotten past, the wealthier it is, the more tempting a target it becomes. Egypt is probably the best candidate: a well established civilization with a long cultural history, potentially high population, and good economic growth with the trade through Suez and across the Middle East. It also had some superb leadership early in the 19th century. |
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| Petar | May 12 2014, 07:56 PM Post #3 |
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The General
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Brazil under Pedro II and with a continued monarchy could be a viable option. |
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| Basil Fawlty | May 12 2014, 08:13 PM Post #4 |
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Post Tenebras Lux
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With better management and the absence of the lost decade of the 1890s, Brazil could possibly have had a GDP in the 30-40 billion range by the 1910s, which would put it on par with Belgium. It is difficult to see that translating to near Great Power status, though. |
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| Jacapo | May 12 2014, 11:15 PM Post #5 |
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I cant see anyone doing it in south america save Brazil - Unless that is you can work out some sort of ex-spanish superstate that forms in the 1820's or thereabouts. Egypt is the most likely African nation to do it, as they had the capacity to gobble up more of the Ottomans. If you can avoid the defeat of the greek campaign and instead have Ali capture the Levant and anything east of Anatolia, while later expanding south past sudan into the Ethiopian territory, you are on a very good start. Crete would be added in the Ottoman war. An earlier 1840s resurgent French Empire would be eager to throw it's weight around and would prevent any large scale great power intervention in the area while a great jockeying for power occured in Europe. The Great powers gradually accept the Egyptian takeover of Ottoman territories outside of Anatolia and Europe in the wake of the Crimean war, but they all insist sans russia that the rest of the ottomans should be kept together. Germany forms shortly after Wilhelm I gains the throne after the wars of 1866. The Franco Prussian war ends in stalemate. Not sure of the exact specifics from after this point, but I'd imagine no more territory would be needed to be conquered, but the nation should focus on staying out of conflict and building proper infrastructure and industry. You could make an argument for England offering eastern Anatolia to Egypt during WWI for their assistance. Needless to say a lot would have to go their way to even begin to approach great power status, but I would call it plausible for a 1920 great power. Edited by Jacapo, May 13 2014, 04:48 PM.
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8:39 AM Jul 11