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World War III | ||
The world as of 1965, prior to the start of the Third World War. | ||
The world as of 1965, prior to the start of the Third World War. | ||
Time | ||
Previous | World War II | |
Concurrent | Chinese Civil War | |
Next | Second American Civil War | |
History | ||
Beginning | 1965 | |
End | 1969 | |
Place | Entire world | |
Outcome | Stalemate: none of the sides had any real net gain or loss of terratory | |
Major Battles | First Battle of Leningrad, Battle of Tokyo, Second Battle of Leningrad | |
Combatants | ||
Allied Nations | Soviet Union | Empire of the Rising Sun |
Commanders | ||
• President Howard T. Ackerman † • Field Marshal Robert Bingham |
• Premier Anatoly Cherdenko • General Nikolai Krukov † |
• Emperor Yoshiro † • Prince Tatsu † |
Strength | ||
Casualties | ||
• Military Dead: over 10,000,000
Civilian Dead: Over 10,000,000 |
• Military Dead: over 10,000,000
Civilian Dead: Over 10,000,000 |
• Miltary Dead: over 6,000,000
Civilian Dead: Over 4,000,000 |
Civilian casualties | ||
• Estimated 21 million civilian casualties
• 5 major cities completely destroyed |
World War III was one of the bloodiest conflicts in entire history of mankind, with millions of lives lost on all sides. Massive military funding of research and development led to rapid technological advances, resulting in a technological boom.
The Causes
WWIII was, in more ways then one, simply the continuation of World War II, though whereas World War II was mostly only global because of how far the USSR stretched, World War 3 would be far more expansive. After Joseph Stalin Took command of the USSR, he industrialized the country and oversaw one of the greatest population explosions in history after driving it to the right, and turned it into a dictatorship, in hopes of conquering Europe, and eventually, the world. During his initial attacks on the nations of Europe in 1949, the desperate nations of Europe signed a treaty that formed the Allied Nations. The newly formed Allies were able to push back the Soviets, though nether side could gain victory, forcing the two sides to sign a peace treaty. Escalating tensions formed during this peace, the Allies on edge and wary for another war.
Meanwhile, Emperor Yoshiro came to power in 1931, and with him came the rise of the notion of "divine destiny", and the belief that the Empire was destined to rule the Earth. It was under his rule that Japan underwent a dramatic change. In the thirty years under his rule, the Japanese army grew a hundredfold and continued scientific research yielded highly advanced and mobile mecha divisions capable of taking on the hardiest of tanks from the West. It also resulted in a massive buildup and modernization of the Imperial Navy, resulting in one of the most formidable navies in the world, with ships as small as Yaris, to the massive Floating Fortresses. By the 1960s, the Empire was a ticking time bomb, just waiting for the right time to explode.
The Chinese Civil War was also a particularly great source of tension between the two sides. Both sides sent equipment, weapons and sometimes even troops there to assist their sides in winning the war while the Empire clandestinely tested many weapons in deadly experiments on the Chinese mainland. As a result, it was not unheard of to see Allied Defenders engaging with Soviet Conscripts in the fields of China during the Civil War. With full-blown war already occurring on one front, tensions in the 1960s rose to an all time high, making it not a matter of if, but when, the next World War would start and who would start it. All that was needed was a spark.
European Theatre
War Breaks
Main Article: Invasion of Poland
As it turned out, that spark came sooner than later. On January 5, 1965, a B-8 Thrush was shot down over the Soviet Union, giving the Soviets the excuse it needed to declare hostilities against the Allies. Within two days, the already mobilised Soviet army had crossed the border into Poland. The war had begun.
Pacific Theatre
Aftermath
Although claimed to be a (very Pyrrhic) Allied victory, the truth was that no surrender document was ever signed. All three sides signed a ceasefire due to economic and military collapse from 4 years of prolonged war and destruction. In total, almost 26 million troops lost their lives, and just as many civilians perished, bringing the total to an unpleasant 50 million
Impact
The Allies were the least affected by the war, but even they took a massive beating, with the average national GDP dropping 25%. They suffered over 10 million civilian casualties in the war, mostly due to carpet bombing raids by the Soviet Union on Allied cities and brutal Japanese occupation policies. Additionally, the Allies have 3 cities which have nearly been razed to the ground; Geneva, Paris and London. New York also suffered significant damage to Lower Manhattan, while Normandy is still a barren wasteland soaked in toxic Desolator Defoliant, and will likely remain that way for decades to come. The Allied military suffered considerable losses amounting to 10 million KIA, 1/7th of its pre war strength. In total, the Allied armed forces suffered the loss of over several hundred divisions, and 28% of the Allied fleet was sunk. In the post World War III world, many parts of Europe, especially Central Europe, have required the presence of conyards to rebuild. Most notably, a study conducted has found that 1 in 4 West Berlin households cannot afford to support themselves and will require a bailout.
The Empire was badly hit by the war. Its economy was severely hit, with its GDP dropping by 35%. Their casualties amounted to 7 million military personnel and 3 million civilians, which might seem minimal when compared to the other factions. However, their army had suffered nearly than 25% manpower losses, with 70% of all mecha divisions and 50% of their navy destroyed. Tokyo also suffered significant damage during the Battle of Tokyo, and Hiroshima suffered severe damage from Dreadnought bombardment. Most importantly, the royal line in the Empire was extinguished, with both Yoshiro and Tatsu KIA within a year of each other with the new Emperor Kamina having to publicly prove that he was a direct descendant of Amaterasu to achieve social peace. Post war, the Empire has resorted to obtaining help from the Allies to get back onto its feet. Its recovery has been miraculous, with its GDP doubling in the few months after the war, and almost all damage done to Tokyo and Hiroshima repaired. However, outside of the main cities, one can still see the untold devastation brought by the war, villages destroyed, fields cratered by explosions and husks of Mecha Tengus strewn everywhere.
Compared to the others, the Soviet Union managed to scrape by relatively well, suffering a 30% drop in GDP. Leningrad and Odessa have both been wiped off the face of the Earth and will never be the same again. In addition, Moscow and various other cities have been severely damaged and will require many years of restoration. With 10 million military and 10 million civilian casualties (many of them from Odessa), the Soviet Union and its close comintern allies were hit hard. Infrastructure wise, the Union was severely hit. Many of the inter-city railroads were destroyed, and many of their power plants were destroyed; with numerous cities having to run on military power generators.
However, with the miracle of modern construction technology, the damages are being repaired and are being repaired quickly.