Chapter Summaries

The chapter described East Africa’s road-transport advantages before following pilot He Xin and copilot Frederick as they approached Baoji Suburban Airport on the Northwest Air Route. Baoji’s growing importance as a safe aid hub for the Far East Empire left He Xin speculating that East Africa might eventually provide it with aerial support.

• Tefu Textile Factory loaded cotton-padded clothing onto trucks bound for Mombasa, where the supplies would be shipped by sea.
• The narration explained how East Africa’s vehicles, paved roads, and expressways had helped its road transport surpass that of other major powers.
• On September 12, 1938, He Xin flew with Frederick toward Baoji Suburban Airport and identified the city using a German navigation marker.
• He Xin explained that Baoji had become a key endpoint of the Northwest Air Route, delivering East African aid onward by highway and railway while avoiding the danger of Xi’an’s frequent Japanese bombings.
• Frederick admired Baoji’s city walls and said he hoped to visit Xi’an, while He Xin predicted that East Africa might someday provide aerial support to the Far East Empire.

He Xin and Frederick arrived at Baoji Suburban Airport, where Waboll warned them that a Japanese reconnaissance plane had exposed the airport to possible air attack. Waboll advocated air defenses and a Far East Empire air force for the Northwest, while He Xin offered to help if permitted.

• He Xin, Frederick, and the other pilots landed at Baoji Suburban Airport and were welcomed by Waboll, who arranged for them to rest in new dormitories.
• Waboll explained that Baoji lacked housing and basic services, while He Xin said the war had brought the city both hardship and an opportunity to develop.
• Waboll told He Xin that a Japanese reconnaissance plane had circled Baoji and said the airport might become a target.
• Waboll proposed strengthening airport defenses and forming a Far East Empire air force for the Northwest, and He Xin agreed that air defenses were urgently needed.
• He Xin said he would be willing to join the Far East Air Force if allowed, then told Waboll that his aircraft had carried textiles for the Far East Empire.
• Waboll recognized the urgent need for winter clothing in Baoji and at the front, while He Xin worried that the supplies might not be used properly.

Clayton led two East African transport planes to Yan'an and dropped supplies for the Northwest Armed Forces before flying on to Shule Airport. The soldiers verified the aid and sent the clothes, radios, generator, and antibiotics to headquarters, where the commanders welcomed them and praised East Africa.

• Clayton warned his crew to complete the Yan'an supply drop quickly and then return to Shule Airport.
• The transport planes reached Yan'an, where residents initially mistook them for Japanese aircraft before recognizing the parachuted cargo as aid from Rhine Country.
• Director Zhang and Xiao Li inspected the deliveries and identified cotton-padded clothes, three radios, a hand-cranked generator, and antibiotics among the supplies.
• Northwest Armed Forces soldiers loaded the cargo onto carts and brought it to headquarters, where commanders welcomed the shipment and praised East Africa's support.

Director Liu received East African cotton-padded clothes at the Northwest Armed Forces' garment factory, where workers would alter them for the soldiers. In Mombasa, Zhao Bosheng won support from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce for a citywide fundraiser and proposed using East African aid routes to send support to the Far East Empire.

• Director Liu welcomed a delivery of East African cotton-padded clothes and planned to alter them to fit Labor Party soldiers while using the saved cotton to make more garments.
• Director Liu and a soldier discussed Rhine Country's wealth and military strength as they compared its clothing and resources with Japan's.
• Zhao Bosheng proposed a fundraising drive in Mombasa to support the Far East Empire, and chamber members approved the idea.
• Zhao Bosheng told the chamber that East African officials supported the fundraiser and were building the Central Asia Highway to carry aid to the Far East Empire.
• Zhao Bosheng reassured skeptical members that East Africa's aid efforts, air route, and pro-Far East Empire news coverage showed its support for their cause.

Ernst and Crown Prince Friedrich discussed East Africa’s regulation of overseas Chinese fundraising and the government-backed “Aid China” fund, which covertly supported the Far East Empire while maintaining a public appearance of neutrality. They also considered how Japan and Germany’s wars could shape East Africa’s plans to expand its influence in Asia and Europe.

• Crown Prince Friedrich told Ernst that overseas Chinese organizations had been ordered to report their activities and that fundraising would be supervised by the Imperial Government.
• Ernst warned that donations could be misappropriated by East African officials or the Far East Empire government, and stressed the need for oversight and reporting channels.
• Crown Prince Friedrich explained that East Africa had announced an “Aid China” fund to direct donations toward the Far East Empire’s war effort.
• Ernst said East Africa would monitor Japanese spies and publicly describe the government-organized fund as a civilian effort to preserve the appearance of neutrality.
• Ernst and Crown Prince Friedrich discussed how a prolonged European war could give East Africa an opportunity to extend its influence, while a German victory over the Soviet Union could prevent outside powers from intervening.

Ernst and Crown Prince Friedrich discussed how East Africa and America could steer the European war without confronting each other directly, while using the conflict to weaken Europe’s colonial powers. They planned to strengthen aid to the Far East Empire and draw Japan deeper into the war, leaving the Central Asia Highway and direct material support as key tools.

• Crown Prince Friedrich argued that East Africa should wait until Europe was engulfed in war before moving against Britain and France’s overseas interests, while Germany and Japan weakened them in Europe and the Southern Seas.
• Ernst warned that Germany was powerful enough to threaten Europe and potentially rival East Africa and America, so Britain, France, and especially the Soviet Union needed to fight it.
• Friedrich proposed supporting the Soviet Union and using the Central Asia Highway as a future channel for contact and trade, while Ernst said the immediate priority was drawing Japan further into the war.
• Ernst and Friedrich discussed the limited capacity of East Africa’s air routes to the Far East Empire and anticipated that the Central Asia Highway would become a major aid route before the end of the year.
• Friedrich proposed using the Aid to China fund to buy supplies in East Africa and distribute them directly to anti-Japanese forces, limiting government embezzlement while generating orders for East African factories.

Ernst and Crown Prince Friedrich discussed protecting the Central Asia Highway and the Far East Empire’s northwestern supply route from bandits and Japanese air attacks. Ernst proposed relying on Afghanistan’s government where possible and strengthening the Far East Empire’s air force with East African aircraft and training, leaving plans to coordinate with the Far East Empire.

• Ernst urged connecting the Central Asia Highway quickly and removing obstacles along routes through Afghanistan and the Far East Empire’s northwest.
• Crown Prince Friedrich warned that securing the highway could require armed intervention and that Japanese aircraft might attack the northwestern air route.
• Ernst said East Africa should wait to see whether Afghanistan’s government could control local tribes before intervening.
• Ernst proposed using donated Chinese funds to supply military aircraft to the Far East Empire and train its pilots.
• Crown Prince Friedrich suggested Western Regions Province as a safe site for pilot training, and Ernst directed him to coordinate with the Far East Empire government and offer older East African aircraft.

In October 1938, Piłsudski and Poland’s senior officials debated Germany’s proposal for a large Axis military exercise in Poland. Reiz urged cooperation against the Soviet Union, but Sosnkowski warned that Germany posed the greater threat and could claim Polish territory in a future settlement.

• Piłsudski told Poland’s officials that Adolf had proposed a large-scale Axis military exercise in Poland, possibly involving several hundred thousand people.
• Reiz suggested the exercise targeted the Soviet Union and argued that Poland should cooperate with Germany.
• Sosnkowski opposed Reiz, warning that Germany’s threat to Poland had surpassed the Soviet threat.
• Sosnkowski recalled Germany’s postwar territorial gains in Eastern Europe and argued that Poland could again be forced to surrender land if the great powers fought to a draw.
• Sosnkowski warned that Britain and France would likely protect their own territories and buffer states, leaving Poland to bear the cost of a settlement.

Sosnkowski warned President Piłsudski that Germany posed a growing danger to Poland despite their alliance, while Reiz argued that Germany needed Poland and that the Soviet Union was the greater threat. The discussion left Piłsudski persuaded that the Soviet Union was unlikely to attack, while Poland needed to watch Germany closely and could not count on Britain or France for help.

• Sosnkowski explained that the Low Countries and Denmark were valuable strategic and economic prizes that Britain, France, and Germany would resist losing, while Poland mattered less to them.
• Sosnkowski argued that Germany’s likely path of expansion lay eastward and that Poland and West Ukraine were vulnerable, citing Adolf’s hostility toward Slavs and Jews.
• Reiz rejected Sosnkowski’s fears, arguing that Germany had no reason to take Polish land and that the Soviet Union was Poland’s true enemy.
• Sosnkowski conceded that the Soviet Union was hostile but said German strength made a Soviet attack unlikely, so Poland should focus on Germany instead.
• Piłsudski agreed that the Soviet Union was unlikely to provoke Germany, and Sosnkowski warned that Britain and France might abandon Poland rather than risk their own interests.

Sosnkowski warned Poland’s leaders that a German-Soviet war could leave Poland devastated or caught between the two powers, while Poland lacked the strength to control its own fate. The leaders debated whether to seek independence or remain close to Germany, and the chapter ended with Germany wary of Poland’s possible ties to foreign powers.

• Sosnkowski explained that Soviet Union’s industrial and military growth had narrowed its gap with Germany and made a long, destructive war likely.
• Sosnkowski warned that Poland could become a battlefield if Germany and Soviet Union fought to a stalemate, while either victor might threaten Poland afterward.
• President Piłsudski laid out the three dangers Poland faced: a stalemate, a German victory, or a Soviet victory.
• Reiz argued that Poland’s ruling class had more to fear from a Soviet victory and insisted that Poland had to follow Germany because it lacked other options.
• Sosnkowski urged Poland to control its own destiny, but Reiz pointed to Germany’s overwhelming power and oversight of Poland’s military.
• The chapter described Poland’s efforts to build ties with Italy and Germany’s concern that Poland might collude with Britain, France, or other outside powers.

Poland’s leaders debated Germany’s proposed joint military exercises and decided to strengthen ties with the United States and East Africa as a diplomatic safeguard. In Berlin, Adolf used Japan’s gains in the Far East to press for German expansion, planning to defeat France first, leave Britain intact for the time being, and eventually confront the Soviet Union with Japanese support.

• Sosnkowski urged President Piłsudski to seek closer relations with the United States and East Africa, arguing they could shape a future European war.
• President Piłsudski made closer ties with the United States and East Africa a major diplomatic priority and agreed Poland could not refuse Germany’s proposed military exercises.
• Adolf praised Japan’s capture of Jiangcheng and its territorial gains, insisting Germany must start its own war preparations by the following year.
• Göring argued that Japan could help Germany contain the Soviet Union, and Adolf agreed Japan’s army and navy could serve German interests.
• Adolf said Germany would attack France first, delay a confrontation with the Soviet Union, and avoid fighting Britain until later so East Africa and the United States could not seize British colonies.
• Adolf planned to invite Britain and other countries to observe the Axis military exercises in Eastern Europe to test Britain’s attitude and lower other nations’ guard.

Ernst and Crown Prince Friedrich reviewed East Africa’s growing population and its advantages in a future war as Germany staged a huge military exercise near the Soviet border. They discussed East Africa’s plans to outlast the Axis and protect its lead in nuclear research, ending with Ernst proposing secret measures against German scientists if Germany began developing nuclear weapons.

• Germany and its Axis allies launched a massive military exercise along the Soviet frontier, prompting Soviet border troops to mobilize and Germany to invite European dignitaries to Warsaw.
• Crown Prince Friedrich reported that the Empire’s population exceeded 230 million and its colonial population surpassed ten million, while Ernst explained how population growth supported economic and military strength.
• Ernst argued that East Africa’s unified population could give it an advantage over the divided Axis powers and predicted Germany and the Soviet Union would go to war.
• Ernst warned Friedrich to monitor Germany’s nuclear research and accelerate East Africa’s own program; Friedrich said intelligence showed Germany had no relevant facilities and lagged in radioactive-material research.
• Ernst said East Africa might secretly kill German researchers and blame another country if Germany’s nuclear work threatened its plans, and Friedrich agreed they would remain vigilant.

Adolf used the Axis military parade in Warsaw to present Germany’s strength as a defense of European peace while signaling hostility toward the Soviet Union. The parade impressed the crowds and foreign observers, deepened Soviet fears, and left Chamberlain hoping German forces would turn east rather than west.

• East African diplomats feared Germany’s pursuit of nuclear weapons would make East Africa’s costly war preparations meaningless.
• Adolf arrived in Warsaw, greeted Piłsudski, Benito, and Chamberlain, and reassured the British prime minister that Germany sought peace with Britain.
• Adolf denounced unnamed eastern enemies in his speech, prompting cheers from the crowd and anger from Soviet intelligence officers watching the parade.
• The Axis flag formations and infantry marched past the reviewing stand, with Germany’s disciplined troops outshining Italy and most other participants.
• German tanks, artillery, and aircraft displayed the country’s military power, impressing Chamberlain and the crowds while Benito resented Italy’s lesser prominence.
• German, British, French, and Soviet media presented the parade in sharply different ways, with the Soviet Pravda warning that Europe’s balance of power had been shattered.

As dignitaries gathered at Wilanów Palace in Warsaw for a dinner, Polish and German officers prepared security amid fears of Labor Party members and anti-German nationalists causing trouble. Lieutenant Poltov sent Captain Wacowski to patrol, then went to report to German Colonel Morse, whose command oversaw the Polish guards outside the palace.

• Lieutenant Poltov warned Captain Wacowski that security at Wilanów Palace had to prevent any suspicious person from approaching the gathering.
• Poltov explained that Soviet-backed Labor Party members and extreme nationalists were active in Warsaw and might target the event.
• Poltov and Wacowski discussed Polish workers' grievances, nationalist resentment toward Germany, and the risk of political violence.
• Wacowski pledged to protect the palace, and Poltov promised to treat the guards to drinks if the operation went well.
• Poltov sent Wacowski on patrol and went to report to Colonel Morse, the German officer commanding the Polish security personnel outside the palace.

Second Lieutenant Poltov faced strict German security checks before reporting to Colonel Morse, while Adolf and the leaders of Britain, France, and Italy discussed the Warsaw military parade at Wilanów Palace. Chamberlain redirected Benito’s call for German-Italian leadership toward confronting the Soviet Union and publicly identified Germany, the Soviet Union, the United States, and East Africa as the world’s superpowers.

• A German guard stopped Second Lieutenant Poltov, checked his documents, searched him, and took his sidearm before he reached Colonel Morse to report.
• Adolf asked Chamberlain and Boncour how they viewed the Warsaw military parade, and both praised Germany’s strength and standing in Europe.
• Benito argued that Germany and Italy deserved a greater role in shaping Europe’s order.
• Chamberlain praised Germany and Italy, then urged the free world to unite against the Soviet threat and said Germany was the only European superpower.
• Chamberlain named Germany, the Soviet Union, the United States, and East Africa as the four strongest countries in the world.

Adolf and Benito pressed Chamberlain to recognize Germany and Italy’s leadership and grant them a larger share of European and colonial interests. Adolf then demanded German leadership in the Middle East, leaving Chamberlain weighing whether to trade British influence there for pressure on the Soviet Union.

• Adolf argued that Germany would take on greater responsibility only if its status and interests matched its strength.
• Benito demanded that Britain and France recognize Axis leadership and provide Germany and Italy with compensation in the division of interests.
• Adolf said Germany wanted hegemony over Central and Eastern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean, along with leadership in the Middle East.
• Chamberlain realized that German control in the Middle East could threaten Britain’s influence in northeastern Africa and South Asia.
• Adolf justified Germany’s Middle Eastern ambitions as a way to encircle the Soviet Union, leaving Chamberlain to consider what British interests he might concede.

Adolf and Benito pressed Britain and France to grant Germany Middle Eastern influence and military bases in exchange for confronting the Soviet Union. Chamberlain offered economic concessions and bases, which Adolf tentatively accepted while insisting that Persia and Kuwait remain part of the deal.

• Chamberlain agreed that Britain might sacrifice some Middle Eastern interests for European peace and asked Adolf to specify Germany's demands.
• Adolf demanded influence in Persia, Kuwait, the Strait of Mandeb, Syria, and Lebanon, as well as a military base in Cyprus.
• Bonnet and Chamberlain challenged the demands, arguing that several locations were not needed to contain the Soviet Union.
• Chamberlain offered Germany economic access in Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine and one military base in each of the Strait of Mandeb and Cyprus.
• Adolf accepted part of Chamberlain's proposal but demanded more locations to choose from and insisted that Germany's claims to Persia and Kuwait could not be dropped.

Adolf and Chamberlain negotiated German access to the Red Sea, Kuwait, and Persia, with Germany securing three Red Sea bases and oil investment rights in Kuwait. Chamberlain warned that East Africa held the decisive influence in Persia, leaving Adolf resentful and preparing to approach East Africa while Britain hoped to keep the two powers apart.

• Adolf and Chamberlain agreed to limit Germany to three bases along the Red Sea shipping lanes.
• Adolf secured permission for German enterprises to invest in Kuwait's oil, while Chamberlain refused to surrender Kuwait or allow German troops and bases there.
• The chapter described the balance of naval power in the Persian Gulf, where East Africa and Britain dominated and the Ottoman Empire had limited capacity.
• Chamberlain told Adolf that East Africa had greater influence than Britain in northern Persia and that Germany would have to deal with the East Africans.
• Adolf privately cursed East Africa but told Chamberlain that Germany would contact it if Britain did not obstruct German moves in Persia.
• Chamberlain regretted that Germany and East Africa were not falling into conflict, fearing their combined power would further threaten British interests.

Benito demanded that Britain and France recognize Italy’s claims to interests in North Africa, arguing that Italy deserved a voice as a Mediterranean power and threatening war when Bonnet objected. Chamberlain saw a chance to preserve peace by pressuring France to make concessions, leaving the negotiations focused on Italy’s demands.

• Chamberlain confirmed that Germany’s principal demands in the Middle East had been settled, but Benito insisted that Italy’s interests must also be discussed.
• Benito invoked Italy’s alliance with Germany and its influence in the Mediterranean to demand respect as a decision-maker in European negotiations.
• Benito demanded that France yield Libya, Tunisia, and parts of Algeria, along with concessions in other disputed North African territories.
• Bonnet condemned Italy’s demands and threatened war, but Benito said Italy would fight if France chose that course.
• Bonnet rejected Benito’s claim that North Africa belonged to Italy because of ancient Rome, while Chamberlain considered whether France could be pressured to concede territory for the sake of peace.

At the Warsaw banquet, Chamberlain and Boncour accepted that Britain and France would compromise with the Axis powers, while France set limits on what it would concede. After further negotiations, France surrendered Libya and agreed to joint administration of Tunisia, and the Warsaw Pact established the Axis powers as Europe’s dominant force.

• Chamberlain calmed Benito and Boncour, urging France to consult Daladier before making a decision.
• Adolf warned Boncour that France needed to decide quickly, and Boncour agreed to report the discussion to Daladier.
• Chamberlain told Boncour that Britain and France should appease Germany to encourage a German-Soviet war.
• Daladier and the French cabinet authorized concessions but ruled out surrendering Algeria and Morocco.
• Boncour negotiated France’s withdrawal from Libya and joint administration of Tunisia with Italy, and Benito accepted the terms.
• Britain, France, Germany, and Italy formally established the Warsaw Pact, excluding the Soviet Union and making the Axis powers dominant in Europe.