The Last Hurrah of the Bismarck
is a AlternateHistory.com timeline written by teddy lives. The "Bismarck" is the pinnacle of the battleship design, with awesome firepower, beefy armor, all while still sprinting through the seas at over thirty knots. Based on the Montana-class, she would have be the most powerful battleship had it been built in World War II, let alone the time period she and her crew find themselves in. She, along with her crew from 1958, are brought by Alien Space Bats to a certain day and place in 1912.
During the sinking of the RMS Titanic.
Luckily, the proximity of the Bismarck to the Titanic allows the rescue of all the passengers and crew. However, the fact that a totally unknown super-battleship exists is a major cause for alarm for all the Great Powers of the world. Europe is a powder-keg, and while Bismarck may not have lit the fuse, she has certainly shortened it.
With the crew seemingly given a mission by God to avoid the slaughter of World War One, they must try to avoid the war, or at least prepare for it so that Germany is not crippled in victory. Yet, they are not Germany. The German Empire seeks to become the hegemon of Europe, but Europe is a web of alliances and pacts, and nobody sees another way but war. With the massive technological improvements and historical knowledge offered by the Bismarck's crew, they surely will not make disastrous mistakes, right?
The timeline is active, with updates on a bi-weekly to monthly basis.
This work provides examples of:
- Ace Pilot: While they're not aces yet, future ace pilots are inducted into the newly created Luftstreitkräfte.note
- Assassination Attempt: Learning of the murder of the Romanovs in the Bismarck's time, Wilhelm II strongly presses for the assassinations of the Bolsheviks. The German government, fearful of a communist Russia, orders the deaths of Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin, Sverdlov, and other prominent Bolsheviks. While successful, Russia takes notice.
- Broken Pedestal: The younger members of the Bismarck's crew hold the WWI generations in high regard. However, when meeting them in person, in their time period, they realize they're still men, and made their own mistakes.
- Cool Ship: It's in the name. The whole point of the timeline, and the main motif too.
- Chummy Commies: The SPD. They're socialist, but don't advocate for a revoultion; they support democratic processes in Germany
- Subverted with August Bebel, who has an "accident" for Knowing Too Much after disclosing future events with Lenin. Between choosing for the good of Germany vs. the good of the revolution, he chose the revolution.
- Deadly Gas: This is before World War One, after all. Besides the agents produced or used OTL (chlorine, phosgene, lewisite, and mustard), the Bismarck's crew also brought the recipe for sarin.
- Gilded Cage: As the secret of the Bismarck's origin may bring ruin to Germany if revealed, the crew are under a very tight leash, confined to ship and the port. Especially true after the kidnapping of Helmut Graf
- Gun Porn: The ASB gave the Bismarck's armory thirty H&K G3s, twelve Remington 870s, twenty-four MP-34s, enough Walther P-38s for the entire crew, and most importantly, eight each of RPG-7s, MG 1A1s, and 8 cm mortars.
- Gunboat Diplomacy: Subverted. During the Graf Crisis, King George V invites Kaiser Wilhelm II and Tsar Nicholas II to avoid war. The Kaiser is tempted to bring the Bismarck as a message, but decides it's too provocative.
- Kidnapped from Behind: Helmut Graf, an Oberleutnant zur See onboard the Bismarck, has a chloroform rag held over his mouth and is kidnapped while going to the Bismarck. Later revealed to be the work of a rogue Okhrana cell.
- Lower-Deck Episode: Tons and tons of instances. Not every section is focused on geopolitics, revolutionary reforms, or the Kaiser's court. There are sections dedicated to crew interactions, everyday life, and the changes to life after the arrival of the Bismarck.
- Not all lower deck episodes are positive. There's grief over lost family and friends left in 1958, friction between the crew, battle scenes from the view of a soldier and even a deadly arson in gruesome detail.
- Realpolitik: In the age of great powers in Europe, Germany needs competent allies. Italy, in the opinion of the Bismarck's crew, is worse than useless and likely disloyal too. However, the German government still sees the use for Italy, at least for the time being.
- Shown Their Work: The author does
- Sliding Scale of Alternate History Plausibility: It's an ASB timeline, but it immediately becomes a Type I timeline. This could be considered a political TL, rather than a military one common in this setting. The author meticulously details each main character's emotions, and their actions reflect their feelings.
- Torture Is Ineffective: Helmut Graf is kidnapped, and is tortured to pry the origins of the Bismarck. He doesn't break, and eventually kills himself by drowning in his own blood. A rogue Okhrana cell was responsible.
