Bavarian Rhapsody: The Wittelsbach Restored

[Curt Jester]

Prologue
Bavaria, Weimar Republic, May - June, 1919
​

On May 3rd, 1919, the remainder of the loyal German Army and a group of Freikorps, joined by the popular Rupprecht, Crown Heir of Bavaria and future Head of the House of Wittelsbach [1], begin the march into Bavaria in order to end the Socialist regime that had propped itself up there. This ensemble altogether is recorded to be almost 40,000 men, with 30,000 being Freikorps, and the other 9-10,000 being the 'White Guard' of the German Army. The socialists don't put up much of a fight; still, many die in the street battles that plague Munich, and at the end of the fights, around a thousand people are rounded up and summarily executed on accounts of treason [2]. These people range from actual Socialist government members to supporters of the Soviets, to random people mixed up in the fighting that were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. The leader of the Socialist regime, Eugen Leviné, is taken and shot in courtyard in front of the Munich New Town Hall. The people of Bavaria celebrate in the streets, viewing Rupprecht as their liberator, and call for the Wittelsbach family to return to the throne. The leaders of these Freikorps, men such as Hermann Ehrhardt and Franz Ritter von Epp [3], along with the Crown Heir himself, declare the Bavarian Council Republic over, as well as (due to a push from Rupprecht) proclaiming Bavarian independence. They decide to hold a plebiscite to determine the future of their unrecognized nation.

News reaches the other nations of Europe, as well as the United States, of this declaration. Politicians of Germany (outside of Bavaria) and Austria are outraged, while the French government almost immediately publicly announces support for the new Bavarian nation (and secretly throw a party - a non-unified German state is a dream come true!). Other nations are uneasy with the news, however do not make any noise about it.

On June 8th, 1919, the results of the plebiscite show an overwhelming amount of the Bavarian people wish for the return of the monarchy. The former King, Ludwig III, turns down the offer, formerly abdicating in support for his much more popular son. On the 11th, the Crown Heir is brought back to Munich, and crowned as Rupprecht I, King of Bavaria. The French and British both recognize the nation; France being more than happy to watch Germany fall apart, and the British feel rather receptive to a German royal family outside of those pesky Hohenzollerns. Almost as soon as he is crowned, the new King is whisked away by the leaders of the Freikorps who helped him regain his title. They lock the King, as well as themselves into isolation in the Munich Residence (the residence of the Wittelsbach family) for four days. When they finally emerge, they come out with a fully written constitution, signed by all parties necessary, and June 16th is proclaimed 'Constitution Day'. The "Verfassung des Freistaates Bayern" [4] is based off of the United Kingdom's constitution. The new King of Bavaria looks forward to the bright future looming ahead, as well as the great amount of problems he, and his country, will face.


[1] IOTL he had gone into exile in Tyrol in fear of the communist Government. ITTL he rides along with the Freikorps and therefore the people of Bavaria view him as their liberator - which isn't much of a stretch based on how popular the Wittelsbach were back then.
[2] This is only a few hundred more than OTL, and this is due to the soldiers fighting harder, due to having a figure to rally around.
[3] These two both helped lead the fight IOTL, with Epp eventually joining the Nazis and Ehrhardt becoming one of their targets! ITTL neither of those things shall happen.
[4] "Constitution of Bavaria". As literal as you can get.

 

[Avrorrange]

How are they going to govern that small Bavarian enclave away from Bavaria proper,and why are the Austrians outraged?

 

[Curt Jester]

How are they going to govern that small Bavarian enclave away from Bavaria proper,and why are the Austrians outraged?

That'll be addressed in the next couple of updates, and the Austrian outrage comes from the popular opinion in Austria at the time being unification with Germany... and now there's a big fat independent Bavaria shaped wall between Germany and Austria.

 

[Hörnla]

How are they going to govern that small Bavarian enclave away from Bavaria proper,

The Palatinate is not that tiny and since the return of Alsace-Lorraine to France, they are not landlocked by the rest of Germany. Besides, it is French occupied anyways.

Considering that Germany is still under France's heel, Berlin will certainly be forced to an agreement which allows the Bavarians transit rights.

Other questions:
-would this Bavarian development trigger similar discussions in Württemberg and Baden?
-what effects might this have on Karl I's prospects in Austria?

 

[RyuDrago]

How are they going to govern that small Bavarian enclave away from Bavaria proper,and why are the Austrians outraged?

Or it seceded of its own to stay within Germany - always if it will still exists a Germany -, or it accepted to follow Munich, and Weimar will ate the proverbial leaf for fear the French will intervene.

One wonders how the Austrian painter will move in this scenery...

 

[Avrorrange]

Or it seceded of its own to stay within Germany - always if it will still exists a Germany -, or it accepted to follow Munich, and Weimar will ate the proverbial leaf for fear the French will intervene.

One wonders how the Austrian painter will move in this scenery...

He'll probably leave.The ideology of this Bavaria is similar to the Nazi party at it's earliest form.Now,I wonder if the Austrians would be interested in forming a South German federation with Bavaria instead(seeing how the treaty of Versailles only restricts joining Germany,and that the entente might see this as a way of forming a solid bloc to counter Germany),or is the concept of monarchy too discredited even with the change of a dynasty?

 

[RyuDrago]

He'll probably leave.The ideology of this Bavaria is similar to the Nazi party at it's earliest form.Now,I wonder if the Austrians would be interested in forming a South German federation with Bavaria instead(seeing how the treaty of Versailles only restricts joining Germany,and that the entente might see this as a way of forming a solid bloc to counter Germany),or is the concept of monarchy too discredited even with the change of a dynasty?

Personally, I don't think the Austrian will be excessively elated over a perspective of federation with the Bavarians - above all for pride. Great Germany was fine, but become subservant to Munich... hmm probably not.

 

[vital.peacekeeper]

As the time goes by, will Bavaria try to annex Austria?

 

[RyuDrago]

As the time goes by, will Bavaria try to annex Austria?

Why should they use a direct use of force, I mean, on what claim Bavaria could legitimate an attack over Austria in front of all of Europe? Besides I don't think in proportion of respective forces and geographic assets Munich will be able to annex entirely Austria. It's quite the overextension.

 

[Iserlohn]

Ooh, this has potential. My views on the two biggest problems currently at hand, the Bavarian Palatinate and Austria, are pretty simple. The Palatinate is essentially lost to Munich, though to whom it will be passed on... An independent Rhenish Republic, annexation by Germany (either as its separate state or as part of Prussia) or a LoN mandate under French control (even if that's just temporary). All of those are valid options. Austria of course is furious due to their prospects of unifying with Berlin are now ruined unless the new Bavarian regime falters, which, seeing how popular is at the moment, is extremely unlikely.

I'm definitely subscribing to this, I really want to know how this will turn out.

 

[Devvy]

Really interesting, subscribed

The "Verfassung des Freistaates Bayern" [4] is based off of the United Kingdom's constitution, and likewise restricts the Monarch's role in politics.

Just to ask; if it's based off the British unwritten constitution, then the monarch's role in politics is unlimited (and only limited by custom and the need to cater to the public). Or is it Swedish-style, which formally limits the monarch's powers (I think)?

 

[Tom Colton]

Did any of the dominions have constitutions at this point?

 

[Avrorrange]

Ooh, this has potential. My views on the two biggest problems currently at hand, the Bavarian Palatinate and Austria, are pretty simple. The Palatinate is essentially lost to Munich, though to whom it will be passed on... An independent Rhenish Republic, annexation by Germany (either as its separate state or as part of Prussia) or a LoN mandate under French control (even if that's just temporary). All of those are valid options. Austria of course is furious due to their prospects of unifying with Berlin are now ruined unless the new Bavarian regime falters, which, seeing how popular is at the moment, is extremely unlikely.

I'm definitely subscribing to this, I really want to know how this will turn out.

Austria won't unify with Berlin regardless,given the upcoming Treaty of Versailles wouldn't allow it anyway.

 

[Curt Jester]

(Weimar Republic, in 1919, just before Bavarian independence.)

Part I
Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, June 1st, 1919
​

Gustav Ritter von Kahr [1], newly elected Prime Minister of Bavaria, sighed as he ran towards the conference room. He had exactly half a minute before being late, and that really would not look good on his behalf. This job was honestly more stressful than he'd ever imagined; when his Bavarian People's Party was brought into power (not in short because of their pro-monarchist leanings), he hadn't expected an easy job to come to him. But he hadn't expected so much running around either! He was a politician, for Christ's sake, not an athlete!

Usually, he wouldn't be in such a hurry. But the meeting he was twenty seconds until being late for was one of the most important ones he would have in his career - the one with the French ambassador. René Massigli [2], he was called, and apparently this man had done quite a bit of homework on German politics and politicians. King Rupprecht had him arrange a meeting with just the three of them, in order to try and create good Franco-Bavarian relations, as well as to help Bavaria's standing with the international community (as they had only declared independence in May, they were not invited to the Peace Conferences, and Kahr made sure everyone knew it was a primary goal to have some sort of representation.)

With five seconds to spare, Kahr entered the conference room and sat down at the table beside Rupprecht. Massigli sat across from the two of them, and watched as Kahr gasped, trying to catch his breath. A smile of amusement played on the ambassador's lips before he spoke.

"So," Rupprecht announced suddenly, "We were discussing before you walked in, was the idea of a military alliance between our great nations, in case of a German attack."

Kahr nodded in understanding; the Weimar Republic was very hostile towards Bavaria; politicians from northern Germany disliked the idea of a non-total unification. Kahr's plan was to use this to Bavaria's advantage.

"That sounds splendid, although not what I am worried about. I worry about reparations on the nation - forcing any reparations on a newborn nation can be quite taxing."

"Prime Minister, what are you proposing I do about the situation?" The Frenchman raised a brow.

"I'm proposing that at the Peace Conference, your representatives paint Bavaria as the German Empire's first victim [3]. We were coerced into joining the Kaiserreich, unable to say no. We shift the blame to Prussian militarism. We ask that the international community establishes a blank slate with our nation, and we use the Republic's hostility towards us in our favor that way." Kahr leaned back in his chair, watching the reactions of the two other men. Massigli looked at him with what seemed to be respect, while King Rupprecht sat silently, looking at Kahr. "We can use the hostility of the Weimar government towards our independence as proof of that fact. That Prussian ambition is to blame, and Bavaria didn't want to be mixed up into all of it. Which, large and large is true."

It might've been Prussia in charge, but Bavaria wasn't an unwilling participant; however, based on how much of the war the international community had placed on Junkerism and the Hohenzollern family, Massigli didn't find it too much of a stretch to paint Kahr's little picture. And it was certainly in his best interests to do so - the French government was almost unanimous in the idea of propping the Bavarian state. It was wholly in their interest to set up a sort of quasi-vassal in Germany, and anything that made reunification less likely was something they would try accomplish.

Massigli smiles as he tells Rupprecht and Kahr that the two of them can plead their own case, as they've both been invited as part of a delegation to the next Paris Peace Conference, taking place on the 28th. The two are ecstatic: this means official recognition from the international community.

The meeting wraps up with some key points of the Franco-Bavarian alliance, including a de-occupation of the Bavarian Palatinate by France, with the main stipulation being that Bavaria keeps it de-militarized.

Paris, France, June 28th, 1919
​

The Peace Conference, in the eyes of King Rupprecht, is a success.

The other nations heavily accept Bavaria as a victim; the two terms main Bavaria had to deal with were that it had to 'refrain from directly or indirectly compromising independence' and that it had to limit it's standing army, which could be no more than 40,000 troops. The first was in it's benefit; it placed the final nail in the coffin of reunification with Weimar. The second was taken badly, although at the moment the Royal Bavarian Army only had little over half of that - around 15,000 altogether, plus a good 6,000 members [4] of the Freikorps who stayed in Bavaria after the other members of the group left. The Royal Bavarian Army was in the process of inviting as many of them as possible to their ranks.

Another key point of the meeting is that Germany gives full transit rights to Bavarians through Baden and Württemberg to the Palatinate. This is mostly the work of the French delegation, which to the other representative's chagrin, vocally supports the new Kingdom. Germany was hit hard; with full war blame and complete destruction of the air force. The army and navy were heavily gutted, with the army being allowed to have 80,000 troops, and the navy only able to have up to 15,000 men. Many German bases were destroyed, and their aircraft were to be handed over to the newly formed League of Nations. The Rhineland was to be de-militarized by all parties, and Alsace and Lorraine officially annexed onto France.

They were just finishing up a section of the treaty that gave Bavaria a fifth of the dismantled German Airforce [5] when the meeting is interrupted with news of protesting in Württemberg. The people of the former Kingdom, which had always had close ties with Bavaria, were in the streets, some protesting peacefully and some rioting, calling for unification with Bavaria and succession from the greater Germany. No one knows who started the riots, although many suspect that the Bavarian government had something to do with it. The people of Württemberg declare that they too are a victim of Prussian militarism, and that the southern German states shouldn't be piled in with the northern ones. Prime Minister Kahr suggests to the Conference that the people should decide with a vote, as it would be the democratic thing to do. Despite protest from the German delegation, the rest of the League agrees, and a referendum is to be held. The conference was scheduled to re-adjourn in one weeks time.

The Württemberg Referendum tops the conference off with a large 64% majority supporting seceding from Germany and joining Bavaria. Württemberg transitions from being a lesser German state into being an equal member of the newly established Federal Kingdom of Bavaria-Württemberg [6] (still called Bavaria in short). The people of both are overjoyed; the people of Württemberg glad to escape the penalties of Versailles, and the people of Bavaria that another 'victim of Prussia' has been rescued.

However, the actions of Bavaria have sparked something greater in central Europe; with the restoration of the Wittelsbach family, several other noble families that had been ousted from power begin to toy around with trying to force a restoration. The Hapsburgs, exiled from Austria and currently in Italy, plan to make an appearance at the treaty conference in Paris and plead their case as well. Along with this wave of Monarchism lies an angry and vastly smaller Weimar Republic, who has it's eyes set on the Federal Kingdom. [7]


[1] IOTL the first Minister President of Bavaria, and I don't feel as him being PM is much of a stretch; the party he started was pro-Monarchist, and he was a staunch anti-Nazi.
[2] An actual French diplomat who, IOTL, helped deal with Germany.
[3] Basically taking a leaf from post WW2 Austria's book.
[4] Most of the RBA was demobilized after the Council Republic, to the point that it /was/ Freikorps that did most of the work retaking it. There were 9,000 or so members of the loyal German/Bavarian Army who helped, and i'd guess with their return and establishment of the Kingdom others would return as well. With the Freikorps, well most of them left, however the Ehrhardt Brigade (which numbered around 6,000) stayed, with Hermann Ehrhardt a supporter of the Monarchy, integrating the Brigade into the army of the Kingdom (with himself still in charge, of course). His reason for doing this is because the Freikorps are being slowly disbanded under Entente urging.
[5] 1/4th is 677 frontline aircraft, 14 airships, and 46 balloon detachments. I cannot decide if this is too wanky or not, I vastly limited the amount of aircraft, but if it's too wanky or unrealistic I will take it out.
[6] I don't know if Federal Kingdom is an okay term to use or not.
[7] I'm toying around with a Hapsburg restoration as well, maybe leading to a Austro-Bavarian alliance block (definitely not going to unify the two though).

 

[Curt Jester]

Really interesting, subscribed

Just to ask; if it's based off the British unwritten constitution, then the monarch's role in politics is unlimited (and only limited by custom and the need to cater to the public). Or is it Swedish-style, which formally limits the monarch's powers (I think)?

Ah, I didn't know this. I changed it, thanks man!

As the time goes by, will Bavaria try to annex Austria?

No, they won't. Bavaria, as well as the House of Wittelsbach, has no link to Austria, except a rivalry with the former ruling family. They're trying to appease the Great Powers at the moment, and putting themselves as peaceful victims of Junker militarism. Attacking a sovereign nation negates all of that, especially so soon after WW1, and will be taken as 'those naughty violent Germans!'

They won't unite with Austria either, as neither Munich or Vienna want to bow to the other.

Anyways, thank you all for the interest! It really does motivate me, and for that you all have my gratitude.

 

[Samuel Von Straßburg]

The main piece missing for now for Bavaria is Baden. I am surprised that they did not leave with Wurttemberg.

Also I really like the premise of this TL and I hope you keep up the good work!

Subbed

EDIT: If not unification wit Austria perhaps a Benelux style agreement. Also what about the Prussian county in the middle of Wurttemberg.

 

[rjd1997]

Holy crap this looks awsome! I'll definantly be reading this!

 

[HonestAbe1809]

I don't think it's unreasonable for the Hapsburgs to restore the Grand Duchy of Austria. The victorious Entente is lumping most of the blame onto Germany anyway. Honestly I hope the succeed, because it'd butterfly away the fatal illness that Charles contracted in Spain in '21.

 

[New Yorker]

Was the Wurttemberg family restored, too?

 

[Tom Colton]

Interesting developments. May I ask how the Freikorps Oberland is doing right now?