Chapter Summaries

Alidinar warned East African officers that Britain would pose a danger, but Farsheng ordered him imprisoned while East Africa waited for the British advance. British Second Lieutenant Johnson marched toward Fashir expecting an easy victory, then arrived to find East African flags flying over the city.

• Alidinar told the Hera Regiment staff officer that East Africa would face trouble if it could not deal with Britain, but the officer dismissed his warning and defended East Africa's strength.
• Farsheng ordered Alidinar and the other prisoners locked up and said the regiment would wait in Fashir for the British.
• Two days later, British Second Lieutenant Johnson led more than two thousand troops toward Fashir and wondered why Darfurian harassment had faded.
• Johnson and his deputy Charlie discussed their superior weapons and expected to reach Fashir before dusk.
• Johnson's force reached Fashir at four in the afternoon, where Johnson saw East African flags flying above the eastern gate.

Johnson reached Fashir with British, Indian, Egyptian, and Sudanese troops, only to find East African soldiers controlling the city gate. He demanded to speak with their commander, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Johnson suspected Alidinar had defected to East Africa and led his troops toward Fashir.
• Johnson accused the East Africans at the gate of crossing into Darfur and provoking Britain.
• The East African soldier Jokic asked Johnson which unit he belonged to.
• Johnson identified himself as deputy commander of the British Garrison in Sudan and demanded to speak with the East African commander.

East African commander Farsheng faced British deputy commander Johnson in Fashir and claimed Darfur had withdrawn from Sudan and become an East African protectorate. Johnson left confronting Farsheng’s superior firepower, while Alidinar remained imprisoned and East Africa’s control of Darfur was secure for the moment.

• Farsheng met Johnson and argued that Darfur had withdrawn from Sudan and accepted East African protection.
• Johnson demanded to confront Alidinar, but Farsheng claimed the sultan had gone to East Africa to recuperate.
• Johnson threatened Farsheng, and British troops aimed their guns at him.
• Farsheng pointed out East African machine guns and artillery covering the British troops and warned Johnson against opening fire.
• Johnson recognized that East Africa’s Seventh Infantry Regiment could rival the British forces in Khartoum, especially if joined by the regiment stationed in Jezira City.

Johnson's forces withdrew from Fashir City rather than risk fighting East Africa, leaving Britain to pursue the Darfur dispute through diplomacy. In Rhine City, Ernst prepared to reject Britain's protests over Darfur while pressing ahead with the plan to exile eight hundred thousand Black people into West Africa.

• Johnson rebuked an Egyptian officer who questioned the retreat and said Darfur's future had to be negotiated with London and East Africa.
• Ernst learned that Britain and France had protested East Africa's actions in Africa, with Britain chiefly objecting to Darfur and France asking about refugees in West Africa.
• Ernst ordered that all eight hundred thousand Black people be sent out within two years, using landing sites beyond Togoland when possible.
• Ernst told his subordinate to explain that East Africa had made Darfur a protectorate without knowing its prior ties to British Sudan.
• Ernst decided East Africa would deny further ambitions in Sudan and wait for pressure from Germany to force Britain to drop the Darfur issue.

East Africa began relocating villages in the Great Lakes Region ahead of construction of the Xingguo Reservoir. As Yablon Village’s residents departed, they discussed the reservoir’s effects, while the chapter explained its role in East Africa’s water security and lakeside development plans.

• Mayor Majin and Company Commander Tarolin arranged for Yablon Village’s residents to check their belongings before leaving the reservoir area.
• The villagers boarded a government convoy and left Yablon Village as the relocation began.
• Liu Hande questioned the value of the reservoir, and village chief Herag explained its benefits for water retention, farming, industry, electricity, and climate regulation.
• The chapter explained that East Africa planned the Xingguo Reservoir early to minimize resettlement costs and support future development of the Great Lakes lakeside economic belt.

The East African government resettled Yablon Village’s residents in Anton Leo Town, where new urban-standard housing and employment had been arranged. The chapter explained that the settlement work was part of the long-planned Xingguo Reservoir project, whose construction preparations had begun during the Third Five-Year Plan.

• Tarolin led the Yablon Village residents to Anton Leo Town, where he said they would likely become citizens of Jinga City.
• Town staff assigned each household a newly built home with water and electricity and explained that residents would work on the remaining farmland, at the Anton Leo Town state farm, or in Jinga City.
• The chapter explained that Xingguo Reservoir was modeled on the Owen Reservoir and would raise Lake Victoria’s water level by nearly three meters.
• East Africa had begun Xingguo Reservoir preparations during the Third Five-Year Plan, including new embankments, resettlement sites, and hydrological observation stations.

The chapter explained East Africa’s Nile River strategy, centered on the Xingguo Hydroelectric Power Station and a network of dams that would capture water for East African development. It left Egypt and Sudan facing greater dry-season shortages, with Egypt’s future dependent on limiting population growth and securing the Blue Nile’s supply.

• East Africa planned Xingguo Reservoir, which would add 200 billion cubic meters of usable freshwater and generate electricity for Jinga City.
• East Africa launched more than twenty related water projects, including the Jezira City water-retaining dam and the Kagera Hydroelectric Power Station.
• The chapter described how East Africa’s dams and diversions would reduce White Nile flows downstream, worsening dry-season shortages in Egypt and Sudan.
• The narrator explained that East Africa aimed to use the captured water for farms, cities, industry, and improved Nile navigation within its borders.
• Ernst wanted Egypt to control population growth and stabilize the Abyssinian Empire to protect its Blue Nile supply, rather than grow rapidly and send refugees toward Europe or East Africa.

In April 1916, engineer Robkets supervised plans to expand and modernize Kampala’s Bell Port ahead of rising lake levels from Xingguo Reservoir. The chapter described East Africa’s ambitions for Great Lakes shipping and the heavy machinery that made its construction projects possible, while noting the immense human cost of the canal and waterworks programs.

• Robkets directed workers to clear silt and deepen Bell Port before Xingguo Reservoir began storing water.
• Robkets outlined plans to expand Bell Port, add container cranes, and upgrade its logistics system to serve Kampala for decades.
• East Africa’s National Canal Plan was described as linking the Great Lakes to the Indian Ocean and eventually the Atlantic.
• The chapter stated that millions of black slaves had died in East Africa’s water-construction projects and that future projects would increasingly rely on citizens.
• Robkets’s team used heavy equipment, including hydraulic excavators, which had become practical after years of development.

Robkets and his student observed hydraulic excavators and other machinery transforming construction at Bell Port. Robkets then discussed the competition among Great Lakes cities as provinces planned to develop ports, energy resources, and industrial centers.

• Robkets watched workers pump water from the construction area and use excavators and transport vehicles to remove silt and soil at Bell Port.
• Robkets and his student reflected on East Africa’s rapid industrial growth and how machinery had changed engineering work.
• Robkets urged his student to gain practical experience and said completing Bell Port’s expansion was their priority.
• Robkets wondered whether North Great Lakes Province could use the Great Lakes Economic Belt policy to challenge Kisumu’s regional dominance.
• North Great Lakes Province planned to develop Kampala and Entebbe as a twin-city center and build an oil, gas, and chemical industry cluster.
• Prussia Province planned to develop Kisumu, while Great Lake Province backed Mwanza and Kagera, intensifying competition among Great Lakes cities.

Svit reported on infrastructure and water projects in the Great Lakes Region, and Ernst discussed how using water from the Ethiopian and East African Highlands could support development in the northern provinces. The chapter left East Africa poised to use its control of major rivers and water sources to shape relations with neighboring countries.

• The chapter described the central region’s economic importance and the government’s plans to diversify Bohemia and Lorraine beyond heavy industry.
• Svit told Ernst that thirteen ports were under construction or renovation and that transport routes and hydropower projects were progressing in the Great Lakes Region.
• Svit explained that water projects would ease shortages in Nile Province and Turkana Province and make northern agricultural and industrial development more feasible.
• Ernst approved using water from the Ethiopian and East African Highlands to establish ecological zones and develop Nile Province and Turkana Province.
• The chapter outlined how East Africa’s control of upstream water sources could affect Egypt, the Kingdom of Southern Germany, and future neighboring states.

Svit and Ernst discussed East Africa’s nationwide hydropower expansion under the Fourth Five-Year Plan, which aimed to make hydroelectricity at least a quarter of the country’s power supply by 1920. Ernst described how new dams would reduce reliance on coal and support East Africa’s growing industry, while the chapter ended with the challenges and importance of industrializing the densely populated Great Lakes Region.

• Svit said the Fourth Five-Year Plan would expand hydropower and reduce coal consumption, while Ernst’s plan targeted hydroelectricity at least 25 percent of national power output by 1920.
• East Africa began more than a hundred large hydropower projects, including the Xingguo, Lebo, and Selamu Hydroelectric Power Stations.
• Ernst said East Africa generated more than 60 billion kilowatt-hours annually, but demand from industry, transport, military, and civilian life continued to grow.
• Ernst argued that hydropower would reduce costly coal imports and free coal for steel, metallurgy, and chemical production.
• The chapter described how East Africa’s rivers offered extensive hydropower potential, while the middle Congo River’s gentle terrain favored shipping between Kinshasa and Kisangani city.
• East Africa’s population was concentrated along the coast and in central regions, and industrializing the Great Lakes Region remained a major challenge that could bring the country close to the industrialization levels of Britain and Germany.

In June 1916, a Kingdom of Dalmatia patrol searched the Macedonian border for Serbian forces while Tarolin sensed they were being watched. After the patrol moved on, a Serbian scout emerged from hiding and headed north to gather intelligence for the Kingdom’s planned counterattack.

• Makarić complained about the summer heat as Taros recalled the hardships of clearing forests in Neretva.
• Tarolin heard a suspicious sound, ordered his soldiers to prepare for battle, and warned them not to lower their guard.
• A hidden Serbian scout watched the Dalmatian patrol leave and narrowly avoided being discovered.
• The scout concluded that the Austro-Hungarian Empire might have sent its main forces to the Russian front and continued north to confirm his suspicion.

Tarolin noticed signs that a Serbian scout had crossed into the forest and led his squad in pursuit. The Dalmatian soldiers caught the scout and began taking him back toward camp.

• Tarolin ordered his squad to return to the earlier stopping point and spotted grass and a fresh leaf that suggested someone had passed through.
• Tarolin followed the tracks south to north along an overgrown path and led his squad downhill after the intruder.
• Tarolin heard the scout ahead and split his soldiers into three groups to surround him.
• The Serbian scout fled when the Dalmatian soldiers came within thirty meters, but they caught and pinned him down after a five-minute chase.
• Tarolin identified the scout by his Mosin-Nagant, ordered him tied up, and assigned Makarić and Wiesen to guard him.

Moss interrogated Serbian operative Gerlovski and concluded that Serbia was preparing a new offensive against the Austro-Hungarian forces. He ordered increased patrols around Bitola as the Serbian threat grew amid uncertain loyalties across the Balkans.

• Antalier told Moss that Gerlovski was a Serbian former company commander who had likely been probing Austro-Hungarian strength.
• Moss discussed the continuing Serbian guerrilla threat and ordered patrols to watch the Greek and Albanian borders for infiltrators or attacks.
• Moss judged that the Serbian government-in-exile was likely preparing a major move after months of rearming with foreign support.
• The chapter described how Bulgaria's entry into the war and supplies from East Africa and the United States had strengthened the Central Powers' position.

At Edineț, Austro-Hungarian General Klee urged Bulgarian General Maklov to commit more troops to the campaign against Russia, arguing that Russian unrest and military decline could bring the country down. Maklov acknowledged the danger of a war of attrition, while East Africa continued to wait for the United States to enter the war before choosing a side.

• Klee told Maklov that the Central Powers held the advantage against Russia and should seize all of Moldova and intensify their offensive into Ukraine.
• Maklov cautioned that Russia’s vast territory and population could sustain a prolonged war, and he explained that Bulgaria had joined the campaign in hopes of gaining southern Moldova.
• Klee cited anti-war unrest in Russia and urged Bulgaria to strike before Russia recovered, warning that Bulgaria shared the Central Powers’ fate.
• Maklov admitted that a prolonged eastern war would leave the Central Powers in a difficult position against Britain and France.
• The narrator noted that East Africa’s choice depended on the United States’ entry into the war, since both nations joining the same camp could decide the conflict.

In July 1916, the Greek merchant vessel Rollingen arrived in Odessa, where surging trade reflected Russia’s growing pressure on the Eastern Front and its increased orders from East Africa. The chapter leaves East Africa using neutral middlemen to sustain European trade while expanding into markets beyond Europe.

• The Rollingen entered Odessa as shipping traffic and trade with East Africa reached record levels.
• Captain Rollingen and First Mate Carola discussed Russia’s battlefield setbacks and Greece’s ambitions in the Balkans.
• The chapter explained that Greece’s wartime economic recovery relied on neutrality and its role as a middleman for East African trade.
• East Africa welcomed neutral carriers and redirected trade toward Asia, Africa, and Latin America to reduce its dependence on Europe.

Cary and Captain Rollingen waited for a berth in Odessa and discussed Russia’s mounting military crisis and the Ottoman Empire’s growing strength. The Ottoman Empire had not yet entered the fighting, but it was preparing its army and waiting for an opportunity to strike Russia.

• Cary asked Captain Rollingen when the Rollingen could dock, and Rollingen estimated they would wait another six hours because Odessa’s port was congested.
• Cary and Rollingen discussed how outdated cargo handling and limited port equipment slowed trade, while East Africa’s container system worked best within its own upgraded ports and transport network.
• Rollingen described how the Austro-Hungarian and Bulgarian offensive had threatened Odessa and Kyiv and strained Russian supply lines.
• Cary and Rollingen suspected corruption had kept imported military supplies from reaching the Russian front, and Cary cited Russia’s shortage of rifles despite its mass mobilization.
• Cary warned that the Ottoman Empire might attack if Russia weakened further, while the Ottoman Empire continued expanding its forces, hiring East African instructors, and buying weapons.

At the Russian Army’s southern front near Vinnytsia, Roavsky urged his fellow soldier Karltichev to join an organization opposing the war and the commanders who wasted soldiers’ lives. Karltichev rejected the plan as a certain path to death, leaving Roavsky’s attempt to recruit him unresolved.

• Karltichev and Roavsky discussed their dwindling chances of surviving the war and returning to Buryat Village.
• Roavsky condemned the war, the Russian Empire’s leaders, and the soldiers’ sacrifices, while Karltichev warned him to stop speaking treasonously at the front.
• Roavsky revealed that he wanted Karltichev to take his fate into his own hands and join the organization he supported.
• Karltichev acknowledged Roavsky’s grievances but refused to risk joining, arguing that the organization’s plan would lead to certain death.

Roavsky joined Ilya’s plan to lead a mutiny against the Russian Army in Vinnytsia, despite failing to persuade his fellow townsman Karltichev. After three shots signaled the operation, Ilya’s troops entered the city and clashed with loyalist soldiers, plunging Vinnytsia into chaos.

• Roavsky failed to persuade Karltichev to join the mutiny and warned him to stay safe.
• Ilya told Roavsky that the operation would begin at six the next evening and assigned him Third Company.
• Roavsky gathered more than thirty supporters and informed them of the plan.
• Three gunshots signaled the operation, and Ilya led over a thousand Russian soldiers carrying a Red Flag into Vinnytsia.
• A Russian officer ordered his troops to fire, and the mutineers returned fire as street fighting erupted.
• Ilya’s forces swept through the city toward its center, while frightened citizens hid in their homes.

Ernst discussed Russia’s growing instability and arranged plans to invite members of the Russian Royal Family to East Africa, then considered East Kalimantan’s development and the future of the Hohenzollern family overseas. He left the royal invitation postponed until the end of the year and proposed establishing a Hohenzollern kingdom in the Nanyang region as a safeguard for the dynasty.

• The Russian government executed Ilya and twenty-five others for treason after suppressing the Vinnytsia mutiny, while Nicholas II ordered investigations and increased front-line supplies.
• Ernst warned Friedrich that Russia’s war and social tensions could drive the empire toward revolution, and he asked him to invite Crown Prince Alexei or several of Nicholas II’s princesses to East Africa.
• Ernst stopped Friedrich from arranging the invitation immediately and told him to wait until the end of the year.
• Friedrich reported that unrest in East Kalimantan had largely ended and that East Africa was developing the region while relocating settlers there.
• Ernst proposed that his younger son inherit East Kalimantan and that East Africa establish overseas Hohenzollern kingdoms to secure the family’s influence and provide a dynastic escape route.