The 2020 Mid-terms in the Republic of the British Isles

[James G]

The 2020 Mid-terms in the Republic of the British Isles


April 2020 sees elections take place for seats in the National Assembly. Britons from across the Isles go to the polls to vote for all twenty-five seats of the Federal Senate – the country’s parliament’s upper house – and half of the seats in the Chamber of Delegates where a further one hundred and twenty-five members of the lower house are elected to join the others elected two years beforehand. The holder of the Presidency and the other Delegates had been elected back in ’18 and would be again in ’22.

These mid-terms are naturally regarded as a vote of confidence in the president halfway through his four-year term despite him not being up for election personally. His party, the Unionists, has complete control of the Senate and is in a coalition within the Chamber. Keeping the Senate is thought likely but there is the belief that the Unionists – in partnership with the National Republicans – are on course to be removed from control of the lower house by the Democrats. The Democrats, who’d lost the presidency two years before, plus both the Senate and the Chamber, are resurgent now. They don’t believe themselves that they could retake the Senate – public statements aside – but are after the Chamber and were out to win it outright or, if not, then form a coalition there with smaller parties like the Greens or the People’s Alliance if they have to rather than work with the National Republicans.

Voting takes place on April 4th. For all citizens of the republic which stretched across the Isles and across to several scattered islands beyond, casting their ballot was mandatory on penalty of civil forfeiture. Despite this, turnout was at ninety-five per cent (down three per cent on the ’18 election) and there are an extraordinarily high number of spoiled ballots too. Electronic counting machines tallied the numbers of votes cast and within only minutes of the polls closing, the results are announced.


For the Federal Senate with the twelve federated regions and one ‘special’ seat:
[Previous composition of the Senate was that 13x have Unionist senators, 9x Democrats, 2x National Republicans and 1x Independent. All of these are contested.]

Seat #1 for Central England – won by the candidate from the Democrats, pick-up
Seat #2 for Central England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #1 for Eastern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #2 for Eastern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #1 for London – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #2 for London – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #1 for Northern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, pick-up
Seat #2 for Northern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #1 for Northern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #2 for Northern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #1 for Scotland – won by the candidate from the National Republicans, no change
Seat #2 for Scotland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #1 for Southern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #2 for Southern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #1 for Southern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #2 for Southern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #1 for The Islands – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #2 for The Islands – won by an Independent candidate, no change
Seat #1 for Wales – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #2 for Wales – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #1 for Wessex – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #2 for Wessex – won by the candidate from the Unionists, pick-up
Seat #1 for Western England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change
Seat #2 for Western England – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change
Seat #25 (a ‘top-up’ seat) – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

The Unionists keep the Senate with a net gain of +1. The Unionists now have 14x senators, the Democrats have 9x senators, the National Republicans have 1x senator and there is 1x Independent senator.


For the Chamber of Delegates across the Isles:
[Previous composition of the Chamber was that 118x have Unionist delegates, 87x Democrats, 28x National Republicans, 7x Greens, 6x People’s Alliance and 4x Independents. Half of these are contested this time around.]

Central England (36) – Delegates post-election are 22x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 3x National Republicans, 1x People’s Alliance and 1x Independent
Eastern England (27) – Delegates post-election are 12x Democrats, 9x Unionists, 2x Independents, 1x National Republican and 1x Green
London (45) – Delegates post-election are 27x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 4x People’s Alliance, 3x National Republicans and 1x Independent
Northern England (39) – Delegates post-election are 21x Unionists, 14x Democrats, 2x National Republicans and 2x Greens
Northern Ireland (7) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats and 3x Unionists
Scotland (23) – Delegates post-election are 12x Democrats, 5x Unionists, 4x National Republicans, 1x People’s Alliance and 1x Independent
Southern England (24) – Delegates post-election are 11x Unionists, 8x Democrats, 3x National Republicans, 2x Greens and 1x Independent
Southern Ireland (8) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats, 2x People’s Alliance, 1x Unionist and 1x Green
The Islands (4) – Delegates post-election are 2x Democrats, 1x Green and 1x Independent
Wales (8) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats, 2x Unionists, 1x National Republicans and 1x Independent
Wessex (11) – Delegates post-election are 5x Democrats, 5x Unionists and 1x National Republican
Western England (18) – Delegates post-election are 9x Unionists, 6x Democrats, 1x Green, 1x National Republican and 1x Independent

No party wins an absolute majority. The Democrats have 120x delegates (up 33), the Unionists have 86x delegates (down 32), the National Republicans have 20x delegates (down 8), the Greens have 8x delegates (up 1), the People’s Alliance have 7x delegates (up 1) and there are a record-breaking 9x delegates of Independents (up 5).


The Senate remains in Unionist hands and the president is of their party. However, the loss of the Chamber, especially where there was a vote collapse in both Central England and Eastern England, and a wipe-out for them in Southern Ireland and The Islands, sting the Unionists badly. However, the Democrats have only scored a partial win. To control the Chamber they are short of a majority and need to seek a partner.

Rather than a coalition, a confidence-&-supply deal is struck with the Greens and there is enough support from many Independents to keep the Democrats in power through the next two years in case of by-elections. Not even considering working with the National Republicans and fearful of the populist People’s Alliance – whose vote share smashed that of the National Republicans but ended up with a third of their seat numbers –, the Democrats and the Greens can govern through the Chamber of Delegates. Senate approval and presidential veto both matter though.

Politics through the Republic of the British Isles (often known simply as ‘the Isles’) will remain complicated post-election. Damn those pesky voters!



‘The Isles’ consist of mainland Britain and the island of Ireland in addition to the Faroes Islands, Gibraltar, Iceland as well as other traditional parts of the British Isles such as the smaller ones like the Channel Islands and Mann. All of these have representation in the National Assembly with the federated region of The Islands including many but others attached elsewhere. There are very few territorial possessions of the republic elsewhere in the world.
There is no monarchy. The president is the head of state. Legislative power is split between the Senate and the Chamber with the latter having more of that yet needing the support of the former to do anything real. Seat of government rests in London in New Whitehall.
The Unionists are a centre-right party; the Democrats are on the centre-left. The National Republicans are further to the right with the People’s Alliance over greatly to the left; the Greens are also centre-left whereas Independents come from generally the political left too though not always. Smaller parties are aplenty but only recently has one of them, the People’s Alliance, managed to break into gaining seats in the National Assembly.

[lordroel]

Jan 25, 2019 19:40:14 GMT James G said:

The 2020 Mid-terms in the Republic of the British Isles



April 2020 sees elections take place for seats in the National Assembly. Britons from across the Isles go to the polls to vote for all twenty-five seats of the Federal Senate – the country’s parliament’s upper house – and half of the seats in the Chamber of Delegates where a further one hundred and twenty-five members of the lower house are elected to join the others elected two years beforehand. The holder of the Presidency and the other Delegates had been elected back in ’18 and would be again in ’22.



These mid-terms are naturally regarded as a vote of confidence in the president halfway through his four-year term despite him not being up for election personally. His party, the Unionists, has complete control of the Senate and is in a coalition within the Chamber. Keeping the Senate is thought likely but there is the belief that the Unionists – in partnership with the National Republicans – are on course to be removed from control of the lower house by the Democrats. The Democrats, who’d lost the presidency two years before, plus both the Senate and the Chamber, are resurgent now. They don’t believe themselves that they could retake the Senate – public statements aside – but are after the Chamber and were out to win it outright or, if not, then form a coalition there with smaller parties like the Greens or the People’s Alliance if they have to rather than work with the National Republicans.



Voting takes place on April 4th. For all citizens of the republic which stretched across the Isles and across to several scattered islands beyond, casting their ballot was mandatory on penalty of civil forfeiture. Despite this, turnout was at ninety-five per cent (down three per cent on the ’18 election) and there are an extraordinarily high number of spoiled ballots too. Electronic counting machines tallied the numbers of votes cast and within only minutes of the polls closing, the results are announced.





For the Federal Senate with the twelve federated regions and one ‘special’ seat:

[Previous composition of the Senate was that 13x have Unionist senators, 9x Democrats, 2x National Republicans and 1x Independent. All of these are contested.]

Seat #1 for Central England – won by the candidate from the Democrats, pick-up

Seat #2 for Central England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Eastern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Eastern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for London – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #2 for London – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for Northern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, pick-up

Seat #2 for Northern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Northern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Northern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for Scotland – won by the candidate from the National Republicans, no change

Seat #2 for Scotland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for Southern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Southern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Southern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #2 for Southern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for The Islands – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #2 for The Islands – won by an Independent candidate, no change

Seat #1 for Wales – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Wales – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Wessex – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Wessex – won by the candidate from the Unionists, pick-up

Seat #1 for Western England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Western England – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #25 (a ‘top-up’ seat) – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

The Unionists keep the Senate. The Unionists have 14x senators, the Democrats have 9x senators, the National Republicans have 1x senator and there is 1x Independent senator.



For the Chamber of Delegates across the Isles:

[Previous composition of the Chamber was that 118x have Unionist delegates, 87x Democrats, 28x National Republicans, 7x Greens, 6x People’s Alliance and 4x Independents. Half of these are contested this time around.]

Central England (36) – Delegates post-election are 22x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 3x National Republicans, 1x People’s Alliance and 1x Independent

Eastern England (27) – Delegates post-election are 12x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 1x National Republican, 1x Green and 1x Independent

London (45) – Delegates post-election are 27x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 4x People’s Alliance, 3x National Republicans and 1x Independent

Northern England (39) – Delegates post-election are 21x Unionists, 14x Democrats, 2x National Republicans and 2x Greens

Northern Ireland (7) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats and 3x Unionists

Scotland (23) – Delegates post-election are 12x Democrats, 5x Unionists, 4x National Republicans, 1x People’s Alliance and 1x Independent

Southern England (24) – Delegates post-election are 11x Unionists, 8x Democrats, 3x National Republicans, 2x Greens and 1x Independent

Southern Ireland (8) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats, 2x People’s Alliance, 1x Unionist and 1x Green

The Islands (4) – Delegates post-election are 2x Democrats, 1x Green and 1x Independent

Wales (8) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats, 2x Unionists, 1x National Republicans and 1x Independent

Wessex (11) – Delegates post-election are 5x Democrats, 5x Unionists and 1x National Republican

Western England (18) – Delegates post-election are 9x Unionists, 6x Democrats, 1x Green, 1x National Republican and 1x Independent

No party wins an absolute majority. The Democrats have 120x delegates, the Unionists have 87x delegates, the National Republicans have 20x delegates, the Greens have 8x delegates, the People’s Alliance have 7x delegates and there are (a record-breaking) 8x delegates of Independents.





The Senate remains in Unionist hands and the president is of their party. However, the loss of the Chamber, especially where there was a vote collapse in both Central England and Eastern England, and a wipe-out for them in Southern Ireland and The Islands, sting the Unionists badly. However, the Democrats have only scored a partial win. To control the Chamber, they are short of a majority and need to seek a partner.

Rather than a coalition, a confidence-&-supply deal is struck with the Greens and there is enough support from many Independents to keep the Democrats in power through the next two years in case of by-elections. Not even considering working with the National Republicans and fearful of the populist People’s Alliance – whose vote share smashed that of the National Republicans but ended up with a third of their seat numbers –, the Democrats and the Greens can govern through the Chamber of Delegates. Senate approval and presidential veto both matter though.

Politics through the Republic of the British Isles (often known simply as ‘the Isles’) will remain complicated post-election. Damn those pesky voters!





‘The Isles’ consist of mainland Britain and the island of Ireland in addition to the Faroes Islands, Gibraltar, Iceland as well as other traditional parts of the British Isles such as the smaller ones like the Channel Islands and Mann. All of these have representation in the National Assembly with the federated region of The Islands including many but others attached elsewhere. There are very few territorial possessions of the republic elsewhere in the world.



There is no monarchy. The president is the head of state. Legislative power is split between the Senate and the Chamber with the latter having more of that yet needing the support of the former to do anything real. Seat of government rests in London in New Whitehall.



The Unionists are a centre-right party; the Democrats are on the centre-left. The National Republicans are further to the right with the People’s Alliance over greatly to the left; the Greens are also centre-left whereas Independents come from generally the political left too though not always. Smaller parties are aplenty but only recently has one of them, the People’s Alliance, managed to break into gaining seats in the National Assembly.

Nice James G.

[James G]

Jan 25, 2019 19:42:29 GMT lordroel said:

Jan 25, 2019 19:40:14 GMT James G said:

The 2020 Mid-terms in the Republic of the British Isles



April 2020 sees elections take place for seats in the National Assembly. Britons from across the Isles go to the polls to vote for all twenty-five seats of the Federal Senate – the country’s parliament’s upper house – and half of the seats in the Chamber of Delegates where a further one hundred and twenty-five members of the lower house are elected to join the others elected two years beforehand. The holder of the Presidency and the other Delegates had been elected back in ’18 and would be again in ’22.



These mid-terms are naturally regarded as a vote of confidence in the president halfway through his four-year term despite him not being up for election personally. His party, the Unionists, has complete control of the Senate and is in a coalition within the Chamber. Keeping the Senate is thought likely but there is the belief that the Unionists – in partnership with the National Republicans – are on course to be removed from control of the lower house by the Democrats. The Democrats, who’d lost the presidency two years before, plus both the Senate and the Chamber, are resurgent now. They don’t believe themselves that they could retake the Senate – public statements aside – but are after the Chamber and were out to win it outright or, if not, then form a coalition there with smaller parties like the Greens or the People’s Alliance if they have to rather than work with the National Republicans.



Voting takes place on April 4th. For all citizens of the republic which stretched across the Isles and across to several scattered islands beyond, casting their ballot was mandatory on penalty of civil forfeiture. Despite this, turnout was at ninety-five per cent (down three per cent on the ’18 election) and there are an extraordinarily high number of spoiled ballots too. Electronic counting machines tallied the numbers of votes cast and within only minutes of the polls closing, the results are announced.





For the Federal Senate with the twelve federated regions and one ‘special’ seat:

[Previous composition of the Senate was that 13x have Unionist senators, 9x Democrats, 2x National Republicans and 1x Independent. All of these are contested.]

Seat #1 for Central England – won by the candidate from the Democrats, pick-up

Seat #2 for Central England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Eastern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Eastern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for London – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #2 for London – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for Northern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, pick-up

Seat #2 for Northern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Northern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Northern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for Scotland – won by the candidate from the National Republicans, no change

Seat #2 for Scotland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for Southern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Southern England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Southern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #2 for Southern Ireland – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #1 for The Islands – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #2 for The Islands – won by an Independent candidate, no change

Seat #1 for Wales – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Wales – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #1 for Wessex – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Wessex – won by the candidate from the Unionists, pick-up

Seat #1 for Western England – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

Seat #2 for Western England – won by the candidate from the Democrats, no change

Seat #25 (a ‘top-up’ seat) – won by the candidate from the Unionists, no change

The Unionists keep the Senate. The Unionists have 14x senators, the Democrats have 9x senators, the National Republicans have 1x senator and there is 1x Independent senator.



For the Chamber of Delegates across the Isles:

[Previous composition of the Chamber was that 118x have Unionist delegates, 87x Democrats, 28x National Republicans, 7x Greens, 6x People’s Alliance and 4x Independents. Half of these are contested this time around.]

Central England (36) – Delegates post-election are 22x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 3x National Republicans, 1x People’s Alliance and 1x Independent

Eastern England (27) – Delegates post-election are 12x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 1x National Republican, 1x Green and 1x Independent

London (45) – Delegates post-election are 27x Democrats, 10x Unionists, 4x People’s Alliance, 3x National Republicans and 1x Independent

Northern England (39) – Delegates post-election are 21x Unionists, 14x Democrats, 2x National Republicans and 2x Greens

Northern Ireland (7) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats and 3x Unionists

Scotland (23) – Delegates post-election are 12x Democrats, 5x Unionists, 4x National Republicans, 1x People’s Alliance and 1x Independent

Southern England (24) – Delegates post-election are 11x Unionists, 8x Democrats, 3x National Republicans, 2x Greens and 1x Independent

Southern Ireland (8) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats, 2x People’s Alliance, 1x Unionist and 1x Green

The Islands (4) – Delegates post-election are 2x Democrats, 1x Green and 1x Independent

Wales (8) – Delegates post-election are 4x Democrats, 2x Unionists, 1x National Republicans and 1x Independent

Wessex (11) – Delegates post-election are 5x Democrats, 5x Unionists and 1x National Republican

Western England (18) – Delegates post-election are 9x Unionists, 6x Democrats, 1x Green, 1x National Republican and 1x Independent

No party wins an absolute majority. The Democrats have 120x delegates, the Unionists have 87x delegates, the National Republicans have 20x delegates, the Greens have 8x delegates, the People’s Alliance have 7x delegates and there are (a record-breaking) 8x delegates of Independents.





The Senate remains in Unionist hands and the president is of their party. However, the loss of the Chamber, especially where there was a vote collapse in both Central England and Eastern England, and a wipe-out for them in Southern Ireland and The Islands, sting the Unionists badly. However, the Democrats have only scored a partial win. To control the Chamber, they are short of a majority and need to seek a partner.

Rather than a coalition, a confidence-&-supply deal is struck with the Greens and there is enough support from many Independents to keep the Democrats in power through the next two years in case of by-elections. Not even considering working with the National Republicans and fearful of the populist People’s Alliance – whose vote share smashed that of the National Republicans but ended up with a third of their seat numbers –, the Democrats and the Greens can govern through the Chamber of Delegates. Senate approval and presidential veto both matter though.

Politics through the Republic of the British Isles (often known simply as ‘the Isles’) will remain complicated post-election. Damn those pesky voters!





‘The Isles’ consist of mainland Britain and the island of Ireland in addition to the Faroes Islands, Gibraltar, Iceland as well as other traditional parts of the British Isles such as the smaller ones like the Channel Islands and Mann. All of these have representation in the National Assembly with the federated region of The Islands including many but others attached elsewhere. There are very few territorial possessions of the republic elsewhere in the world.



There is no monarchy. The president is the head of state. Legislative power is split between the Senate and the Chamber with the latter having more of that yet needing the support of the former to do anything real. Seat of government rests in London in New Whitehall.



The Unionists are a centre-right party; the Democrats are on the centre-left. The National Republicans are further to the right with the People’s Alliance over greatly to the left; the Greens are also centre-left whereas Independents come from generally the political left too though not always. Smaller parties are aplenty but only recently has one of them, the People’s Alliance, managed to break into gaining seats in the National Assembly.

Nice James G .

It is something I am considering working on more. A map would be a good start then some history with a POD to make this happen.

[James G]

The reign of Edward VIII and Britain’s role in the first stage of the Second Great War

In 1936, King Edward VIII was under pressure to abdicate the British throne. He refused to do so leading to political chaos within the nation and across the Empire too. Edward’s government resigned and a King’s Party was formed in Parliament. Public support was there for him especially when Edward went through the pretence of making himself a ‘man of the people’ and appealing to the public over his political detractors. Edward married his American fiancée, who had been the problem, the next year. They would have no children and his eldest brother, and thus his brother’s children, were looked upon as his heirs.

Britain’s position with regard to the spread of German influence through Europe under Hitler was that Germany was in the main correct in what it was doing. This view wasn’t shared by neither France, the Soviet Union nor the smaller countries in Hitler’s way. Edward had good relations with Hitler: they weren’t friends but neither were they against each other. War came in 1939 with Poland being invaded by Germany and suffering a quick defeat. France entered the conflict yet this led to a semi-frozen conflict with France unable to act against Germany. Britain stayed neutral and traded with Germany during this. Such actions led to a coup attempt within Britain during April 1940. The insurrection was put down before it could get anywhere. It came on the same day as the Soviet Union joined the war where it attacked Germany in Poland and the French finally went on the offensive too. Germany was assailed by a two-front war but Britain remained aloft from the conflict. Within months, Germany had turned the tide: British supplies helped regardless of Hitler’s pronouncements that this was a German-only effort. The Soviets were held in Poland while the French were driven back into Belgium and across the Rhine. Defeat came for the French and an armistice was signed by the end of August. The Soviets fought on despite being pushed back far into their own country. Moscow fell to Hitler’s forces in the summer of 1941 and afterwards, following Stalin’s assassination, the Soviets did what the French had done and signed an armistice. That year also saw Denmark and Greece come under German control with Hitler having allies in Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Spain and Yugoslavia too. Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and Switzerland all remained neutral as did Britain plus the Irish Free State.

German domination of much of the continent with their own forces and the activities of its allies led to problems with the ‘great understanding’ that an Edward-led Britain had with Hitler. Hitler’s allies in Italy and Spain acted against Empire interests. The Empire was weakened since Edward had won out over the politicians in ’36 with the big white dominions of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa going off on their own but amongst those who remained, Edward reigned over that smaller empire. Losses of Gibraltar, Malta and African holdings too as Hitler’s allies tried to expand weren’t on. The ripping apart of the French Empire where the Berlin-Madrid-Rome axis took parts of that clashed with Britain’s trade and influence as well. Edward and Hitler met in Paris in late 1941 to sort these differences out. They clashed in a personal spat which would affect their empires. Britain started to rollback its economic and trade ties with Germany and so a response came from Berlin. Weapons were sent to Irish terrorists, support was given to those engaged against intrigue against Edward’s rule and Portugal came under German-Spanish military pressure.

March 1942 saw war erupt in Iberia and through the Atlantic Islands of both Iberian countries. Britain and Portugal fought first Spain before the Spanish were joined afterwards by Italy and then finally Germany. On land, the Axis was victorious and overran Portugal within two months. At sea, naval forces of the British Empire won out where the Azores and Madeira were secured plus the Canary Islands seized. Spanish Morocco was also taken. However, Gibraltar was lost to the Spanish and Malta besieged by Italy. Anglo-German naval clashes moved away from the initial conflict zone to throughout the high seas. In May, German forces entered the Netherlands to ‘secure the peace’ and defeated a British effort to get troops there in time. An air campaign started from occupied Belgium and France against Britain was expanded from Dutch airfields too. Edward rallied his people and a second coup attempt against him from within (one supported by Germany) which then failed before it could start due to the German air attacks changing minds at the last minute. There were troubles with Irish terrorists though and this led to an ‘Irish element’ of what would become the later Operation Sea Eagle.

Hitler had built an invasion army. It started to go over the English Channel by sea and air in September. Much of the Royal Navy was elsewhere at the time. Sea Eagle met initial success on the Kent coast and there was a (stalled) landing made in Sussex. Paratroopers and naval landing troops hit airfields and invasion beaches where there were few fixed defences. German troops arrived elsewhere in the British Isles too with landings of raiding parties put into the Irish Free State to distract Britain’s home defences. The Germans were ashore in Southern England and started to make their advance forward. Their supply lines were fast in trouble though when the Royal Navy turned up: the Germans were only just starting to bring in their heavy equipment. On the day that the Germans won the Battle of Canterbury, the Royal Navy won the Battle of the Channel. Germany’s armies inside the British Isles were completely cut off. An October counter-offensive through Kent saw the Germans pushed back to the coast. Over on the island of Ireland, British forces advanced to clear the Atlantic-facing coastline of German lodgements. Clashes occurred with Irish Free State forces and Edward declared that Dublin was in-league with Berlin. A personal bug-bear of his had been the Irish-attitude toward his rule and this was revenge. British forces started to overrun the Irish Free State and did so with ease… on the battlefield though, not behind the lines. In November, the last German positions in Kent and those also scattered through Sussex too were all taken by British forces. The majority of Hitler’s huge army built for the invasion had failed to reach Britain and those who made it over at the start of Sea Eagle were overcome.

1943 started with British designs to strike north and south to secure territory. There were Germans in the Channel Islands and on the Isle of Wright. Denmark, quasi-occupied by the Germans, had control of the Faroe Islands and Iceland. Edward decreed that those islands would all be taken and Irish guerrilla resistance subdued before a ‘political solution’ could be sought within the Irish Free State. Hitler was now the #1 enemy of all Britons, Edward further told the British people, while seeking to erase any memories of his cooperation with the German leader while German overrun much of the continent. During Sea Eagle and the subsequent Battle of Britain, wartime measures had been enacted across the UK where martial law was in-place. Arrests were made of suspected foreign agents and there were the detentions of alleged traitors too. Many of Edward’s opponents were locked up with others executed. Those arrested and killed covered a wide-range of people from political figures to ordinary people. The King got away with this at the time. He’d gone too far though and now, aiming for a third time lucky, his opponents were going to move against him and his dictatorial rule. Britain’s armed forces spent the late winter and early spring fighting victorious battles to take the Faroes, Iceland and the Isle of Wright while being forestalled in retaking the Channel Islands. War with Germany looked likely to be expanded into Norway too with naval battles in Norwegian waters occurring and accusations from London that Berlin had influence in Oslo. British moves there drew away German efforts to strike elsewhere against Britain into Cyprus or to assist the Italians in taking Malta or marching on Cairo. In many ways, Edward was having Hitler march to his tune as far as the war was going. Should things carry on, the outcome of the war looked favourable to Britain. Defeat off the Channel Islands occurred though where the Royal Navy suffered a strong reversal. German aircraft sunk a carrier and two battleships; their U-Boats sunk another battleship and took down a battlecruiser too. It was a major defeat. Edward sought to remove much of the Royal Navy’s leadership in March ’43. This was the defining moment for the end of his kingship. His enemies were numerous and determined. They took advantage of his actions against the Admiralty and a third coup d’état was launched. This one saw his successful, but violent, removal from power.

[lordroel]

Jan 25, 2019 22:45:01 GMT James G said:

Jan 25, 2019 19:42:29 GMT lordroel said:

Nice James G .

It is something I am considering working on more. A map would be a good start then some history with a POD to make this happen.

Well we do have some good map makers on the forum, but it seems most of them have not been around lately and i cannot make a good British map if my life depends on it.

[James G]

Jan 26, 2019 14:45:46 GMT lordroel said:

Jan 25, 2019 22:45:01 GMT James G said:

It is something I am considering working on more. A map would be a good start then some history with a POD to make this happen.

Well we do have some good map makers on the forum, but it seems most of them have not been around lately and i cannot make a good British map if my life depends on it.

I can do simple maps. I've been looking for a good base map all day and once I have one, I can knock something up.

[kyng]

Nice start !

Just one question, though: since Scotland is generally one of the most left-wing parts of the UK these days, how did they get a National Republican senator? (Of course, when you have over 80 years' worth of history to fill, anything could have happened which makes Scotland more right-wing in this world, so I'm sure there's a perfectly plausible explanation!)

[James G]

Jan 26, 2019 17:57:06 GMT kyng said:

Nice start !

Just one question, though: since Scotland is generally one of the most left-wing parts of the UK these days, how did they get a National Republican senator? (Of course, when you have over 80 years' worth of history to fill, anything could have happened which makes Scotland more right-wing in this world, so I'm sure there's a perfectly plausible explanation!)

Ah, it's a very different Scotland like a very different British Isles! My thinking there would be that these National Republicans often pull surprises out of the hat. Their senators, unlike their Delegates, are really quite the independent strong personalities with public appeal to suit local circumstances breaking with national party affiliation: often successful populists. A voice in this country's Senate really matters for the party too and they would have pulled out all the stops. 

There is a lot of world-building I have planned here. It will go back and forth from the present day to the past to show this country which I created. 

[James G]

The Battle of Britain sites in the federated region of Southern England

Canterbury

The town of Canterbury was fought over through September and October 1942 in a series of three battles between British and German forces. It was left destroyed by these fights. The first battle occurred at the high-water mark of Operation Sea Eagle where German paratroopers, their Fallschirmjager from Goering’s Luftwaffe, seized it from British reservists and irregulars tasked to – in effect – hold and die but only managed the latter. British regulars with the 3rd Infantry Division (who’d fought in previous months through Portugal) struck several weeks later, following the German disaster at sea, yet failed in their mission to retake the town from those dug-in Fallschirmjager. The final fight occurred much later, as the Germans were being rolled-up through eastern Kent and falling back. Infantry units of German Army regulars who’d made the crossing before the sea-route was shut had taken over from the paratroopers and sought to hold onto the ruin of Canterbury after weeks upon weeks of hostile shelling and also explosions to aid fortifications. A much larger British Army force surrounded them and beat them into the centre of the pocket formed. These occupiers surrendered rather than fight to the end. The order from Hitler for not a step back and no capitulation was ignored.

For many long years post-war (the Second Great War and the British Civil War), Canterbury was left the ruin that it was. Its population was barely a few thousand and they lived on the edges. There was no effort to clean up the mess and tackle the dangers with rested inside from unexploded munitions and structural damage of the last remaining buildings. It was only during the late-Fifties where new life was breathed into Canterbury. The Government of the day made it a national priority to address the issue of Canterbury and other Kent locations which had been destroyed during the Nazi invasion. Canterbury would never be what it was but it would be something else. The site of such a great battle back during ‘42 was wholly rebuilt. The ‘new town’ meant starting again and that was the case. A planned community was built with spacious housing, light industry and transport links. It was a huge undertaking and went far over-budget as well as being completed many years too late. Finished it would be though, no matter what. The politics demanded that there be a new Canterbury and one was built. A problem came though with finding people to live here once finished. The past residents had long moved far away and no longer had any connections to Canterbury. East Kent remained an economic dead-zone in many ways. Incentives were offered and some progress was made. What really gave life to what could fast have become a ghost town where everything was shiny and new but empty was the Paris Agreement of 1960 with the French State where Anglo-French relations were restored fully. Almost a quarter of a century of those being in the toilet were suddenly blossoming. Trade opened up fast between France and the Republic of the British Isles. Canterbury, just back from the coast, was quickly transformed by that event.

In the modern era, Canterbury is booming. It has outgrown the planned ‘new town’. The Thames Estuary Airport is nearby. Tourists come to Canterbury. The university is one of the fast-growing in the country. The motorway which runs nearby brings goods lorries up past Canterbury while the town provides a strong service industry for that trade but also many other aspects of the national economy too. In the middle of Canterbury, where the rebuilt cathedral is, there is one of the country’s largest war memorials too. This is one constructed in 1994 and is far different from others seen elsewhere through the Battle of Britain sites. It has little triumphalism and focuses on the dead instead: all of them (Germans) rather than just the British casualties. This stands in stark contrast to the others which can be seen elsewhere in the Southern England region.


Sandwich

There is triumphalism in the other scattered war memorials throughout East Kent from Whitstable to Margate to Broadstairs to Ramsgate to Deal to Dover to Folkestone. These coastal towns were all fought over through September 1942 when the Germans were on the march after landing and aiming to gobble up Kent before heading for London. Eventual victory won at each of them in memorialised where all the focus is on their liberation when victory was won. The dead come as an afterthought. Local movements among activists have repeatedly petitioned the regional assembly in Reading, and the National Assembly in London, to address these issues but these have come to nought.

Then there is Sandwich. This small town isn’t on the shoreline of the English Channel though the beaches not that far away did see German infantry in assault boats, reinforced by Gebirgsjager (mountain infantry troops in an airmobile role) who flew into the captured RAF Manston, within it during the invasion’s first day. Sandwich was held by the Germans at the end of Sea Eagle where the Germans eventually surrendered on November 3rd. Their operational headquarters was here when the British Army delegation arrived to see that surrender occur. There were tanks with the Guards Armoured Division – a wartime command which covered itself in glory – only a few miles away at that point after they had defeated German motorised infantry and the only tank regiment of the German’s 7th Panzer Division which had made it across the Channel. The offensive from Ashford to reach the coast had been mainly formed of infantry units from the Territorial Army after so many of Britain’s regulars were shattered elsewhere (or overseas) but the Guards Armoured Division had been the British tank component. They had driven this far and handed a general named Rommel his behind. At Sandwich, the Germans had given in. Here their defeat is celebrated with an immense monument.

It was at Sandwich, where it was elsewhere, that the British Armed Force then under Crown control fought the invaders. The Guards Armoured Division was made up of many Foot Guards units, those of Household Troops. Regular troops were attached to the Territorial Army units with the 42nd, 48th and 51st Infantry Divisions also. They were thus present in the drive on the coast which came out of Ashford as well. Among them were units which had strong royal connections. The names of these sub-units – for example the King’s Regiment, the Royal Berkshire Regiment and the Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders – are omitted from these memorials. In Civil War memorials elsewhere in the country, where there were equally celebrated battles, there is mention of (for example) the ’11th Regiment’ & the ’26th Regiment’. In Sandwich, with Second Great War monuments, there is no such thing. Post-war Britain, before it became the nation which it now is, rid itself of all mention of royalty and anything associated with that. This went further of course away from memorials and British Army units – the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy had many changes – too.

Before the surrender at Sandwich, the town was also the site of a massacre committed by invading German forces. Sea Eagle had been designed by German planners to push over many forces quickly before the Royal Navy showed up with the belief that those ships would be overcome though a ‘disruption’ would occur first: the Germans hadn’t foreseen an utter disaster which the Battle of the Channel had become where their forces were cut off to be subsequently lost. Into Kent came those two parachute divisions, that mountain division, an infantry division which took part in the beach assault, another infantry division with motorised transport and part of that panzer division. There were also smaller units aplenty of combat troops including Brandenburg commandos (they took Dover Castle but failed to capture the Port of Folkestone before it was blown by demolitions) and the Panzer-Grenadier Regiment Großdeutschland. The latter were part of the German Army and certainly not SS troops though they behaved like such when fighting around Sandwich before the surrender. This regiment had been fighting towards Faversham after advancing along the northern coastline of Kent before being suddenly pulled back after the naval engagements in the Channel and held the line southeast of Canterbury while the Guards Armoured Division pushed across the North Downs from Ashford. They were withdrawn again towards the end, leading to Canterbury being surrounded, and dispatched to defend the Sandwich headquarters when British tanks closed in there. In reaching there, the troops of the Großdeutschland fought against British irregulars and specially-raised light raiding parties sent forwards. The German troops took casualties from these actions. In response, they killed prisoners taken and shot civilian hostages long held. Close to five hundred deaths occurred by these firing squads. A monument in Sandwich commemorates ‘heroes’ slaughtered here and mentions the ‘justice’ given to the Großdeutschland regiment as well.


Shoreham by sea

Kent wasn’t the only battlefield during Sea Eagle. The Germans put troops into the Irish Free State – Brandenburg commandos alongside Irish republican terrorists who had a bad time there and led to the eventual fate of an independent Ireland being subsumed back into Britain – as well as more raiders sent up the coast of East Anglia as well. These were both distraction efforts. The landing on the Sussex coast of the English Channel was no such thing. From Worthing, through to Brighton and then to Newhaven, a second front was opened alongside the Kent landings. German Army infantry in assault craft, more Gebirgsjager to be airlifted in post assault and glider infantry for an airborne landing took part. Only the three divisions in the first wave made it into Sussex. What the RAF managed to achieve in impeding the assault and then the Royal Navy’s approach saw German attention turn to throwing everything they had at Kent. The supposedly war-winning strategy with a two-pronged assault was abandoned.

Shoreham is between Worthing and Brighton. In 1942, there was RAF Ford here. This was a fighter base not far from the beaches. Glider-borne troops with the 22nd Air-landing Division achieved success in arriving here and taking the facility (in Kent the 2nd Parachute Division had taken RAF Manston but the 1st Parachute Division had failed to secure either RAF Hawkinge nor RAF Lympne) with haste. Landing craft coming onto Sussex beaches had been attacked from the air though leaving the already-scattered glider troops in trouble. They received that reinforcement from the mountain troops (many of those being Austrians) by airlift yet the amphibious landings either side of them failed to hold onto either Worthing or Brighton when the British 7th Infantry Division launched simultaneous counterattacks to secure each. Stuck in the middle, the Germans had Shoreham and an airhead but nothing else. Pinned down, the Germans held on. Into October, they fought among the ruins which became Shoreham. The RAF used heavy bombs to pound them while fewer and fewer Luftwaffe airdrops of supplies got through. Eventually, when they refused to give in and the British Army had enough of the losses they were taken, Shoreham was gassed. Still, it held out. Only when the Germans were finally dug-out with extra reinforcements – a Territorial Army division – arriving and a wave of naval shelling from warships lined-up offshore, did the position finally collapse and prisoners were taken.

There wasn’t much left of Shoreham afterwards. The nearby area was badly damaged yet Shoreham was much like Canterbury in being nothing but ruins after a sustained period of static fighting. For many years, Shoreham was left untouched. It was marked out as a military site and closed to civilians. Nothing was done. Nothing has been done since. Shoreham has been given over to nature. Right here beside the English Channel in an area where space is often at a premium for development, Shoreham sits empty. There is emptiness where there could be so much more. To many, Shoreham is a scandal of incompetence. Different governments have done nothing about it. There was always something else of more importance than clearing up and then rebuilding here. Neither Reading nor London consider it a priority. Military patrols sometimes catch vandals or other criminals aiming to sneak past the fences: they face punishment for entering a forbidden zone. Local rumours speak of chemical contamination from Shoreham and the problems that supposedly causes the wider area but that is the height of silliness. Chlorine and mustard gas, plus plenty of napalm supported by tens of thousands of high-explosive shells, were all that was used. All that there is at Shoreham is a national embarrassment when it comes to the inactivity of the Republic of the British Isles in addressing the issue of the empty patch of coastline.



German forces for the Kent landings:
1st & 2nd Parachute Divisions – parachute drops
3rd Mountain Division – airlift
6th Infantry Division – beach assault
7th Panzer Division – one regiment gets ashore
10th Infantry Division – motorised, part ashore
German forces Sussex landings:
1st Mountain Division – airlift
22nd Air-Landing Division – glider assault
9th Infantry Division – beach assault

UK Army in the south in September 1942:
Guards Armoured Division
1st Infantry Division
3rd Infantry Division
4th Infantry Division
7th Infantry Division
42nd TA Infantry Division
44th TA Infantry Division
48th TA Infantry Division
51st TA Infantry Division
Ireland mission:
6th Infantry Division
53rd TA Infantry Division
Nationwide defence mission:
5th Infantry Division - East Anglia
43rd TA Infantry Division - Southwest
49th TA Infantry Division - East
50th TA Infantry Division - Northeast
52nd TA Infantry Division - Scotland
Deployed overseas:
1st Cavalry Division – Egypt
2nd Infantry Division – Spanish Morocco
8th Infantry Division – Spanish Morocco
Royal Marines Division – Azores and Canaries