Project Uber Alles 1887
For nearly four decades, the Deutsches Kaiserreich has stood as the dominant power of continental Europe—not a Prussian Empire, but a Greater Germany, forged in 1848 under the unlikely victory of liberal revolutionaries. At its heart sat a man of vision: Kaiser Frederick III, a reformist chosen over his reactionary relatives. He built a constitutional monarchy governed not by aristocrats, but by a powerful legislature: the Reichstag. Austria was absorbed into the new order, the Habsburgs driven into exile, and Germany became a bastion of cautious modernity.
But now, the clock is running out.
Frederick III lies dying. His health failing and his faith in the monarchy withering, the old Kaiser has made a final wish: upon his death, the monarchy is to be dissolved and replaced with a full parliamentary republic. It is a desperate act, meant to prevent the ascension of his son—Prince Wilhelm, a brash and volatile reactionary who believes in divine right, Prussian supremacy, and militarism. Wilhelm is already moving behind the scenes. Monarchist conspirators within the officer corps, Junker aristocracy, and traditionalist clergy quietly prepare for a “restoration” the moment the Kaiser exhales his final breath.
The Reichstag, Germany’s legislative heart, is split between reformers eager to fulfill Frederick’s wish and conservative deputies accusing them of treason. Liberal militias begin to arm in secret. Loyal regiments wait for orders. Civil war is not a question of if, but when.
Beyond Germany’s fracturing heartland, other forces stir. In Budapest, the exiled Habsburg court plots its return, scheming to retake Vienna and resurrect the Austrian Empire from the ruins of Greater Germany. Czech nationalists, long promised autonomy, now see a chance for independence—and are willing to fight for it.
Meanwhile, Poland, free from Russian occupation and newly restored as an independent state after decades of struggle, watches with bated breath. Its leaders eye the crumbling German colossus warily, ready to reclaim ethnic territories or perhaps even act as kingmaker in a new balance of power.
Across Europe, diplomats panic. Monarchies from Madrid to Moscow dread the fall of a crowned head. Republicans from Paris to Philadelphia cheer the dawn of a second Enlightenment. The world holds its breath.
The Kaiser still lives—but barely. The Project Über Alles begins.
Size: 450×360 (162000px)
Nations: 57
