How would things have played out if Wilhelm was less of a glory hound and listened to Bismarck?
>germans do not relinquish their alliance with Russia
>ties are strengthened with Britain as Bismarck might've wanted them
>France remains at bay and isolated in accordance to Bismarck's strategy
>Austria-Hungary free to eat up Bosnia and Serbia now that friendship with Russia is secured
>France now seeking after new friends and chooses to ally with Belgium
>trouble in Belgian Congo requires of Belgian citizens to be conscripted to put down the fighting
>against all odds, the few Belgian contingents fight back the millions of Congolese Rebels and their Tanzanian allies
>Belgium realizes that they have a certain skill in this
>back in Europe, Germany declares war on France, claiming that its Tanzanian colony rebelled due to French and Belgian interference
>much to everyone's surprise, Belgian troops prove their might again and take Berlin in less than a week
>France struggles to keep up the pace but they nonetheless take Vienna, while Belgian troops advance on Moscow
>Belgium sees France as a hindrance and consumes them too
>most of Europe, and colonial Africa, is now Belgian
>XXI century: a fascist Belgium rules from the shores of Brest to the coasts of Archanglesk
>>1284689
Gold
>>1284689
Well you veered off a bit toward the end but I think the Serb/Russian thing wouldn't necessarily be nullified and France + Britan + Belgium is an alliance I can't help but see as inevitable
>>1284674
>if it weren't for Bismarck King Wilhelm would have annexed Bohemia, Moravia and Austrian Silesia after 1866.
>No alliance with A-H
>Let Russia and A-H fight it out over Serbia
>Move in when A-H collapses
>Unite all germanic peoples under one flag
>>1284689
The Belgian king was reportedly so shocked at these developments that he donned his helmet backwards after rising from his seat.
>>1284710
Thanks! Indeed, with all the seriousness I tried to infuse at first into my text, I was doubtful of how genuine it would be that the Russians would more revere their alliance with Germany, than their strong Slavic pride from that time. Also, I've always been a strong believer that the alliance with Germany that Russia was tied to was nonsensical, for Russian foreign policy from the time was to conjure for themselves a new road to the Mediterranean sea, now that the ottomans had closed the Bosphorus to them. Historically, they hoped to ensure that for themselves by allying with Serbia, that bordered the sea, and even within this alternate version, I'm sure that this sort of foreign policy would preside.
As for Britain allying with France had they not been angered by the arms race competed against Germany (started by Wihelm II if my memory serves me correctly), it's too hazy for me to say whether they'd have allied with France regardless. Britain has always sought to hinder any "top dog" in Europe, so by all means, they'd seek to repel Germany, but even at the cost of allying with France and renewing them as the new top dog Europe has? All I'm saying is that Britain could've easily veered to neutrality and let Europe sort itself out had Wilhelm II not been this idiotic.
And lastly, Belgium are sissies. Neutral even when invaded in August. And that carried over to WW2 when they were such sissies that they opposed that the Maginot line be built against their borders. I'm not certain we'd have been able to convince them to ally to us.
>>1284722
There are reportedly rumors that the Belgian King will finally hold a ceremony in which he discloses that he is the clone of Leopold II.
Seriously though, Leopold II was so cunning that if he could amass for small Belgium the largest colony in Africa, I wouldn't put it past him to also amass the largest european empire ever with minuscule Belgium.
