AlternateUniverse question - Enlarging a country, pros and cons?

I've been creating an Alternate Universe that's a Fictional Earth (although important historical events still have to happen such as Henry VIII and his six wives, JFK Assassination, man on the moon, Adolf Hitler etc.)?

So far I'm toying with the idea of an expanded United Kingdom, larger geographical area, with the iconic United Kingdom shape (our world's one) running parallel to it.

I'm making this United Kingdom 3,689,425 sq km (although that expands to 3,931,920 km² if you include the original size one).

What would be the pros and cons of the country being larger, and how could this affect these four factors:

• Geography

• Weather

• Transport

• Trade/Economics

This is the setting I've designed so far, for a very Alternate History, and I'd appreciate any advice on expanding it.

Physically larger? Like the island literally occupies more square km than it does now? I can't think of what dramatic changes that might entail other than a bit more room for people to live. Weather, I suppose, although you'd need a meteorology degree and a supercomputer if you wanted to precisely model that out.

Edited by Fighteer on Jan 19th 2019 at 4:58:04 AM

^ Well if we assume the "new" British Isles are simply multiplied by dimensions, then assuming no assumptions about its geography and geology being any significantly different. Couple that with the expansion happening north by west (otherwise it joins the mainland), and the biggest change climate and weather wise is on the average the British Isles become a tad drier because storms from the sea will rain themselves out more than it does in reality before it re-enters the North Sea and rejuvenates. Similarly, the inlandmost areas will be much hotter in summer and much colder in winter because the ocean is a moderating influence.

Alternatively if the geology and geography changes in such ways as say Scotland being twice as high in elevation to match being twice as big dimensionally, you'll end up with desert or steppe climate Oop North beyond the highlands owing to rain shadow. Conversely, since the Scottish Highlands are now much higher, their windward sides become much wetter, they'll likely become temperate/subarctic rainforests. (Snowforests?)

In either case, it can have a blocking or mitigating effect regarding western storms hitting the Benelux region of Europe, Germany and Scandinavia. Similarly, such expansion will almost assuredly block or mitigate the effects of the North Atlantic Drift. (Meaning the aforementioned regions may now be much colder than they are.)

Edited by MajorTom on Jan 19th 2019 at 6:15:21 AM

Also, is this all at once in one group of islands? Or is this a global empire?

Because at its height, The British Empire controlled over 35,000,000 sq km of land. About 10 times what you're proposing.

It's a group of islands, a sort of Pastiche of Game of Thrones multiple islands, although the setting itself hasn't quite been determined yet (the era, anyway, I'm indecisive on that!)

Just letting you know that I have almost this exact same issue of "what kind of effects would a larger [X country] have" in Moonflowers—I'm making fairy-Ireland about twice as big as the usual one (plus reversed cardinal directions, and the Esker Riada is a gigantic river instead of a ridge).

I'm so glad that fairy-Ireland's 'roided-out hills/mountains on the West/East coast WOULD have a drier steppe climate because of all the rain shadows.

Edited by Sharysa on Jan 25th 2019 at 11:14:13 AM

Just Great Britain, or the whole UK? I imagine that embiggening the Six Counties would have some interesting ramifications on Irish politics, and that's not even getting into the Falklands and Gibraltar.

Edited by eagleoftheninth on Jan 29th 2019 at 4:21:51 AM

The whole United Kingdom as in England, Wales and Scotland, basically, with Ireland (the island) remaining the same size (no change for Northern Ireland except for the addition of four new islands off the coast that are politically part of Northern Ireland, one only accessible from the Donegal side in the Republic, so an enclave or exclave?), but an additional island next to the iconic shape of the United Kingdom with other towns and cities and new counties not found in our world (accessible via a bridge or ferry).

Edited by Merseyuser1 on Jan 31st 2019 at 12:38:04 PM

More possibility of multiple kingdoms popping up over time. More land means more distance between whoever controls the outlying territories and the capital, meaning more possibility of people breaking off and starting their own countries and actually being able to keep them. And depending on if more land also means more natural resources, it would also affect trade and geopolitics with the mainland.