Map Monday: Colonisation of the Japanese Archipelago by Rubberduck3y6

In our timeline, Japan managed to maintain its independence even as the European colonial powers were gobbling up as much territory as possible. But what if it had succumbed to European territorial ambitions?

This is the "Colonisation of the Japanese Archipelago" by Rubberduck3y6. In this world it seems that the Tokugawa shogunate ended four years earlier due to a failure to modernize and European pressure. The Dutch, British and French all carve out spheres of influence, but a small area around Edo and Nagoya managed to maintain its independence before kicking out the Emperor and declaring a republic. Otherwise information about this alternate history is scarce.

There is a brief mention of "British Tartary". Wikipedia tells me that Tartary refers to territory in between the Ural Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. How the Hell did the British get there? Sadly I couldn't find any additional information on this timeline so I can only speculate about how such a place came to be. Otherwise the map is nice looking and the text doesn't have any major spelling and grammar issues. Good job, Rubberduck3y6.

Honorable mentions this week go out to "A Different Reality In These Splendid Islands" by Gian, "The Kingdoms of North America" by Zek Sora and "The Continent of Europe in 1450 AD shortly before the voyages of Nicklas Lund" by Rebecca "Upvoteanthology" Stirling.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger for Amazing Stories, a volunteer interviewer for SFFWorld and a Sidewise Awards for Alternate History judge. When not exploring alternate timelines he enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the day when travel between parallel universes becomes a reality. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and YouTube. Learn how you can support his alternate history projects on Patreon.

Map Monday: Aztec/Chinese Britain by Anekcahdep

Just like the Weekly Updates, how I write Map Mondays will be changing as well. They still will read the same and I will be making the final decision on what are the best maps of last week, but now I am taking your opinion into account as well. I will post maps that catch my fancy on Facebook and Twitter, so don't forget to follow me there if you haven't already. I share a lot of other stuff on social media that I don't always feature on The Update so that is another reason to follow me as well.

Anywho, once I see what people have to say about the maps I share I will make my decision on what map deserves the Map Monday crown. So congrats to Anekcahdep for his map of Britain divided between the Chinese and Aztecs:

I wish I could come up with a better title for the map, but Anekcahdep wasn't forthcoming about what he called it. Even the file name was just the map contest it was created for. Regardless, in this timeline Mohammed was never born and thus the Middle Ages never ended for Europe. The rest of the world, however, progresses rather rapidly and eventually China and the Aztec Empire begin to divide up the world, including the bickering states of Britain and Ireland. The Aztecs get Ireland, Scotland and northern England, while the Chinese take Wales and the rest of England.

What I like about this map is that it features a fun scenario that you don't see very often in alternate history. Timelines where Europe is divided up between non-European empires gives us a lesson in what colonialism is like that can't always be taught in the history books. If you want to read other timelines that show Europe being gobbled up by alternate imperialistic powers, check out Easternized World on the AltHistory Wiki.

Honorable mention this week goes out to SoaringAven's Ukrainian Crisis. If you want to submit a map for the next Map Monday, email me at ahwupdate at gmail dot com with your map attached and a brief description in the body of the email.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. Check out his short fiction. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.