Alternate History, WW2, Part 4
Alt-History…
World War II
Part 4
The Armistice and War’s End
In April 1945, FDR’s last words were, “The Center must hold.” He was referring to the central continents, surrounded on one side by the West, Nazi fascism; and to the East, the Imperial Dynasty. His Vice President, Henry Wallace aka… the Negotiator, took office a few days later. The US remained a bastion for freedom, individuality, and tolerance— though some would complain, it was nearly overcome with immigrants.
Diversity was its strength, others would claim. The ethnic and national remnants of displaced people from all across the world lived in enclaves throughout the Americas. It was a vast cultural mosaic and they held the memories of their origins alive in light of overwhelming force elsewhere.
At President Wallace’s disposal were the new atomic weapons, available for use in the summer of that year. He chose two targets: the first was Corvo, an Atlantic island about one square mile in size, the northernmost island of the Azores, and uninhabited. All the world was invited to watch, the Germans and Japanese especially. It was all but obliterated. A second demonstration, the following week, removed the Bikini Atoll from the map. Two months later, armistice talks began…
The Post War World
Hitler died in 1962, in his sleep, and at age seventy-three. With new leadership, there was a “softening” towards the conquered races. Ethnic groups and nationalities were no longer to be exterminated, but ‘should be placed in service of the Reich.’ And after a generation or so, some autonomy crept in. Administrators from other European nations stepped up to fill the sputtering bureaucracies. “Paris will always be Paris…” as it was famously said by General Rommel. London did not fare as well.
There were rumors of atrocities: death camps, slave labor, mass extermination, and sterilization on an industrial scale. Nothing was ever proven, and few believed the persistent stories. Such inhumanity was without parallel, most people would say. When it came to unmatched brutality, it was difficult to decide which were worse, the Nazis or the Japanese Empire. For at least a generation, the overlords were feared and loathed.
A terrible new truth did come to light as the years passed. Throughout the occupied lands, the first generation had been called collaborators; their descendants were labeled opportunists; and with the third generation coming of age, they were now considered the new elites, prosperous and wielding power, albeit under the oppressors’ direction.
Such was not the case in the Center as it came to be called. A diverse, vibrant culture remained— unruly and chaotic, but in the end still ruled by a semblance of democracy. The standard of living was certainly higher, though it was no less militaristic than the other two powers, and all seemed to be on a constant war footing.
To the East and West, both new empires suffered from the same basic problem. There were simply not enough Germans, nor enough Japanese to run things properly. The idea of racial purity had not worked out in practice. Many Aryans took wives of other races in Europe, the Ukraine and across Russia. And Japanese men did much the same in Asia. Three generations later, one’s social status usually depended on how much of a mix you were.
Note:
An excerpt from Red City, the fifth and final Tractus Fynn Mystery, to be published in May.
World War II
Part 4
The Armistice and War’s End
In April 1945, FDR’s last words were, “The Center must hold.” He was referring to the central continents, surrounded on one side by the West, Nazi fascism; and to the East, the Imperial Dynasty. His Vice President, Henry Wallace aka… the Negotiator, took office a few days later. The US remained a bastion for freedom, individuality, and tolerance— though some would complain, it was nearly overcome with immigrants.
Diversity was its strength, others would claim. The ethnic and national remnants of displaced people from all across the world lived in enclaves throughout the Americas. It was a vast cultural mosaic and they held the memories of their origins alive in light of overwhelming force elsewhere.
At President Wallace’s disposal were the new atomic weapons, available for use in the summer of that year. He chose two targets: the first was Corvo, an Atlantic island about one square mile in size, the northernmost island of the Azores, and uninhabited. All the world was invited to watch, the Germans and Japanese especially. It was all but obliterated. A second demonstration, the following week, removed the Bikini Atoll from the map. Two months later, armistice talks began…
The Post War World
Hitler died in 1962, in his sleep, and at age seventy-three. With new leadership, there was a “softening” towards the conquered races. Ethnic groups and nationalities were no longer to be exterminated, but ‘should be placed in service of the Reich.’ And after a generation or so, some autonomy crept in. Administrators from other European nations stepped up to fill the sputtering bureaucracies. “Paris will always be Paris…” as it was famously said by General Rommel. London did not fare as well.
There were rumors of atrocities: death camps, slave labor, mass extermination, and sterilization on an industrial scale. Nothing was ever proven, and few believed the persistent stories. Such inhumanity was without parallel, most people would say. When it came to unmatched brutality, it was difficult to decide which were worse, the Nazis or the Japanese Empire. For at least a generation, the overlords were feared and loathed.
A terrible new truth did come to light as the years passed. Throughout the occupied lands, the first generation had been called collaborators; their descendants were labeled opportunists; and with the third generation coming of age, they were now considered the new elites, prosperous and wielding power, albeit under the oppressors’ direction.
Such was not the case in the Center as it came to be called. A diverse, vibrant culture remained— unruly and chaotic, but in the end still ruled by a semblance of democracy. The standard of living was certainly higher, though it was no less militaristic than the other two powers, and all seemed to be on a constant war footing.
To the East and West, both new empires suffered from the same basic problem. There were simply not enough Germans, nor enough Japanese to run things properly. The idea of racial purity had not worked out in practice. Many Aryans took wives of other races in Europe, the Ukraine and across Russia. And Japanese men did much the same in Asia. Three generations later, one’s social status usually depended on how much of a mix you were.
Note:
An excerpt from Red City, the fifth and final Tractus Fynn Mystery, to be published in May.
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