[Infinite Worlds] "In spite of a nail" worldlines

[Michael Thayne]

The Infinite Worlds setting has so-called "high inertia" worldlines where history runs in parallel to Homeline's in bizarre ways, in spite of being very different in other ways. For example, the United States exists, but it's populated by sapient lizards. This thread is not about those worldlines.

Instead, this is about worldlines where, in spite of a seemingly major divergence, history quickly gets "back on track" and only minor changes happen in the long run. For example, perhaps on Rome-8, Julius Caesar heeds warnings about the assassination plot against him. The plotters flee the city, leading to a second civil war, which concludes with two battles at Philippi in 42 BC. Unfortunately, Caesar's subsequent invasion of Parthia—which he had been planning before his assassination in Homeline's history—ended in disaster, sparking doubts about his leadership among Romans who had until then supported him. Eventually, Octavian—who had been staying in Rome acting as his uncle's representative while Caesar was off in the east—accused his uncle of plotting to convert territories that by rights belonged to Rome into the personal possessions of his (now multiple) illegitimate children with Cleopatra. Octavian won the ensuing civil war, and from that point forward Rome-8's history was almost indistinguishable from Homeline's, aside from minor differences in the worldline's literary tradition (for example, Cleopatra's role in Dante's Inferno is signicantly enlarged, given that she, in Dante's opinion, brought about the downfall of a once great Italian leader).

I'd love to see what other worldlines people can come up with along similar lines.

[RyanW]

The Normandy Invasion fails to gain a foothold, but the war is still a German defeat by Spring of 1946. Following the Paris Airlift, the long and steady resistance to Soviet dominance led to the collapse of the Berlin Pact in 1982.

Ultimately, the extra ~7 years of post-Soviet recovery pretty much balances out the extra impact of a Europe encompassing Soviet bloc. By the time of the 9/4 terror attacks, everything is weirdly (almost) on schedule.

[TGLS]

In Watergate-3, Richard Nixon didn't bother to impede the investigation of the Watergate scandal. Nixon's reputation was tarnished, but he did not resign and was not impeached. The main difference is Nixon's reputation is far better.

On Centrum-Epsilon, the White Ship disaster still happened, but then Henry I had another son and the Anglo-French world empire emerged anyway. Centrum is divided as to whether nuclear civil war will result in a second Centrum or not. It's only one year away...

On Claiborne, the Bay Islands were settled by the English in the 17th century, and held it to the modern day. Nothing much seems to have changed because of this.

On Camelot-4, Julian the Apostate smashed the Persian capital before returning back to Constantinople. His religious reforms did not last for long past his death, and his son took the name Constantine III to try and restore relations with the Church. Named for a post-Roman King in Britain named Artorius.

[thrash]

The late Loren Wiseman has an essay in his Grognard collection (and ultimately in JTAS Online) dated 24 April 2004 (pp. 190-191). In it, he cites a real-world example of a potential divergence point (a siege of Antioch) that current historians can't agree on what actually happened. He goes on to say,

What if every alternative spawns two or more alternate universes. Further, what if there is only a limited amount of “continuum” available for alternate universes, and when two universes become effectively identical, they recombine . . . in a literal application of the phrase “In a hundred years, who’s gonna care?” Major differences would take hundreds or even thousands of years to “merge.” But minor changes might take less time. And you end up with a single present, and multiple pasts.

I think of it like virtual particles: universes are constantly being created and consumed. This greatly helps stem the proliferation of technically alternate universes where the only difference is that one photon was measured passing through the left slit rather than the right. Only major events spin one universe far enough from another to persist for macroscopic time, and even then are subject to re-merging at a later date.

[PTTG]

Titan-3 After the Titanic struck the berg, she sank far more slowly and the nearby ships responded to her signal flares and radio in a timely fashion. Only 101 lives were lost, among them Thomas Andrews, who was last seen traveling down to inspect the damage from within.

Despite only 1/15th the total casualties, the fact that the number was over a hundred and included the ship's own architect resulted in much the same fervor. Within a few decades, it was much the same.

(In Titan-1, the ship didn't sink despite the impact, resulting in widespread negligence of safety measures, and in Titan-2, the radio equipment was nonfunctional, and all hands were lost.)

In Null-Chamberlain, the man actually did live, but never achieved much of anything and appears as a footnote in his family's genealogy at best. As a result, a fiery Welshman of little note in our history ultimately became Prime Minister in '35-'40. He profoundly despised Germans, though his grandmother was French and as a boy he had spent vacations in the Paris countryside.

Hitler's early probing into re-militarizing the Rhineland was rebuffed with British aid. This was done despite Edward VIII's reservations, which ultimately lead to the Welshman's resignation. Nonetheless, the Nazi regime collapsed into internal recriminations.

The Spanish civil war sputtered out after initial clashes. Conflicts between the USSR and Germany remain relatively local, as the German government remained too dysfunctional to properly organize a serious campaign. The USSR would later also assist China in rebuffing Japanese invasion.

Western Europe saw little conflict outside of Spain. The Americas saw continuing US Banana wars, but was otherwise placid for decades. (American economists believe that this extended peaceful period was the primary trigger to end the great depression.)

Nonetheless, many of the institutions of the modern world somehow came into place over the 50s and 60s, from the cold war and space race to the UN. What's different is that conventional militaries are a quarter of what they are in OTL, and there's a massive gap in history called 'the boring '40s.' Present date is 1990.

[cptbutton]

I am recalling an alternate history novel "The Burning Mountain" about the 1946 invasion of Japan. A thunderstorm destroys destroys the first atomic bomb before the Trinity test, so the Bomb is delayed. Operation Olympic invades Kyushu and sets up for Operation Coronet, the invasion of Honshu. But bad weather blunts Allied air power and the invasion bogs down.

So the atomic bomb is used anyway* and the Emperor orders a surrender.

So the same ending, except of course for a million or so extra dead people.

* And the cruiser that delivered it to the airbase is sunk by a Japanese submarine.

But assuming the Soviet Union didn't grab Hokkaido and all of Korea, things might converge in a few decades.

[cptbutton]

Originally Posted by cptbutton

But assuming the Soviet Union didn't grab Hokkaido and all of Korea, things might converge in a few decades.

Or maybe the Korean War is from UN support of a Korean rebellion.

[PTTG]

About 75 years ago, a bored cabalist visited a 1968 echo and offered a few dozen people the power to travel back in time to 1924.The offer was placed in a few newspaper classifieds, couched as job offers as research assistants for an eccentric inventor. Of course, only those with an ideological axe to grind were selected.

The 'assistants' were grouped in teams of three or four and shown a few relatively simple magical illusions to convince them that the time travel was real, before being told to prepare for the main expedition. To a man, they set off to change history, mainly by sapping various political figures.

With nearly every major fascist dead before attaining power, much of the politibiro likewise, and Mao poisoned, plus many figures among the Allies as well, one would be excused for assuming that the "past" world line would see a different outcome. No such luck. WW2 happened on schedule and the present date is now 1998. Most politicians have different names and all have different faces, but apparently this would keeps on its appointed path just fine.

The time travelers are nearly all passed away, though a few of them wrote books. One or two might still be alive, albeit in his 90s.

The cabalist, one presumes, must have been terribly disappointed.

[Dalillama]

Originally Posted by PTTG

About 75 years ago, a bored cabalist visited a 1968 echo and offered a few dozen people the power to travel back in time to 1924.The offer was placed in a few newspaper classifieds, couched as job offers as research assistants for an eccentric inventor. Of course, only those with an ideological axe to grind were selected.

The 'assistants' were grouped in teams of three or four and shown a few relatively simple magical illusions to convince them that the time travel was real, before being told to prepare for the main expedition. To a man, they set off to change history, mainly by sapping various political figures.

With nearly every major fascist dead before attaining power, much of the politibiro likewise, and Mao poisoned, plus many figures among the Allies as well, one would be excused for assuming that the "past" world line would see a different outcome. No such luck. WW2 happened on schedule and the present date is now 1998. Most politicians have different names and all have different faces, but apparently this would keeps on its appointed path just fine.

The time travelers are nearly all passed away, though a few of them wrote books. One or two might still be alive, albeit in his 90s.

The cabalist, one presumes, must have been terribly disappointed.

I had a similar, less elaborate idea, in which Adolf Hitler caught a bullet in WWI, the Communists had more electoral success in the interbellum, and a junta of military officers staged a coup, leading to prison camps less explicitly dedicated to mass murder, a few million fewer deaths therein, and nothing much else changing at all.

[Proteus]

Originally Posted by PTTG

In Null-Chamberlain... Western Europe saw little conflict outside of Spain. The Americas saw continuing US Banana wars, but was otherwise placid for decades. (American economists believe that this extended peaceful period was the primary trigger to end the great depression.)... There's a massive gap in history called 'the boring '40s.' Present date is 1990.

The American Civil Rights Movement would likely have been far different without WWII, as would the history of feminism, not to mention treatment of Jews and the foundation of Israel. You might have modern-looking institutions but a much more regressive society.