So...brief update on Dutch history. I've made the Queen my foil and a bit more powerful.
1. Constitution of ~1890 not adopted, Queen has a bit more power.
2. Queen still hosted the 2 Hague conventions.
3. The Queens OTL "Ethical Policies" have meant more development in DEI, which is pegged at the same per capita factories as Bahrat.
4. Kongo & Ubangi-Shari belong to the Dutch Queen because when the world opinion turned against the atrocities of King Leopold (of Belgium) personal reign (i.e. inspired Konrad's Heart of Darkness, Casement Report), the Queen volunteered to take it on. Her Household troops (6 regiments) liberated it, her personal fortune was poured into it, and the SANTA treaty meant SAE funds let it bloom. The Kongo is organized semi-constitutional Monarchy, with tribal allegiances translated into a feudal structure of Duchies and baronies. Rubber trees and Quinine plantations also established. Tribal disputes are in extreme cases settled by judicial massed armed combat, using pre-gunpowder melee weapons and armor.
5. By personal fortune, I refer to the general OTL belief that Queen Wilhelmina was the world's first female Billionaire prior to WWII due to investments in such things as Royal Dutch & Shell as well as other investments. There is some reason to believe estimates were overdone, and the family dispersed the wealth later, but in Wesworld, she is not only Queen of 3 Kingdoms, but has an immense personal fortune, and is commander in chief of the armed forces. As original timeline, there is a “Raad van Staat”- a Queen’s council of experts that quietly advises. Unlike OTL there is also a "Queens Investigative Service" that started as a trade monitoring service and has expanded to a more MI6 role.
6. During WWI it was decreed the Dutch were neutral in Wesworld. In WW Bahrat was friendly with the Germans, threatened the Brits, then took the Andaman islands from the Dutch, who’s superior fleet was elsewhere. To explain this, I’ve indicated that as in OTL, they were blockaded by the Brits for being the ‘Port of Germany’. As a result the Dutch are paranoid and militant . Here, I had Hrolf’s (?) agreement that the Queen brokered a deal with the Kaiser whereby Belgian cities could request Dutch troops take over the policing role, separating the German troops and Belgian populace, as a result the Belgians came through the war with fewer reprisals to outrage the world, and the Germans freed up rear area troops, while the Dutch got back for being blockaded. Further, the OTL Queen felt an obligation to those of Dutch descent, so this works will with the Flemish. This also formed the basis for warmer feelings that led to 10 below.
7. In the boundary shifts post WWI, the Dutch funded displaced German to colonize both Suriname and the depopulated Kongo. Thus mining expertise for Katanga. 6. They are very Pro-Monarch (the Liberator) and Pro Dutch/SAE (the developers). Due to the Duchy structure, and the colonizing of the depopulated areas, and the mining funds subsidizing the rest, there is little friction.
8. Due to the Asir incident, the oil development in Saudi Arabia has been by Royal Dutch & Shell, not American firms. This also led to the Dutch involvement in both Saud and Yemen, where 4 Dutch engineering battalions have been at work building infrastructure since ~1938. This includes a Yemen-Riyadh road.
9. Bahrat funded insurgency groups in DEI, this ended in the mid 1930s after short insurrections included some actions leading to public backlash. This also coincided with the advent of the Dutch TIDE policies and the "Sons of India" (real group) claiming credit for shooting the Queen at a university opening. Shades of Teddy Roosevelt, she finished the speech, then sought medical attention. The failed insurrections, the withdrawal of Bahrati support, and the adoption of TIDE has resulted in a peaceful DEI. Since ~1936 TIDE sets a path for development, education and gradual democratization of the DEI.
10. After a series of stories that saw the Crown Prince of Belgium marry the Dutch Princess, followed by him having a tragic horse accident, the civil government collapse in scandal, followed by the Belgian economy collapsing, Dutch aid, the historic death of the king, the wesworld search for a suitable successor, the Belgians chose the Queen, to the delight of the Flemish and deep misgivings of the Walloons.
11. The Dutch princess Juliana has gone on to remarry, this time the Kaiser’s grandson.
12. In news reports over time, you can note “Ethnic” names in positions of authority – there are Kongo and Malay names as officers and ministers. That is quite deliberate.
So, just a short recap of some bigger points in Dutch history in WW.
This post has been edited 1 times, last edit by "Kaiser Kirk" (Dec 4th 2012, 7:35pm)