Compiled Historical Note Labelled 000-001
Introduction Entry by Prof. Daniels
First Siberian University of History
Written in March 2185.
—Prelude to the 3rd World War --
Looking back over the countless articles of historical evidence and numerous media clips that concern the era in question, it becomes very clear and apparent what the key catalysts of World War III were and the chronological order in which they took place.
Theoretically, the starting point dates back to the year 2018, where growing fear and paranoia over the seemingly constant threat of terrorist attacks, caused the country known as the United States of America, to split into 2 key religious movements. Coincidently, both stemmed from the widely popular Christian religion and both used select chapters of the bible as their foundations.
Through the collective accounts and articles, archived under 3-17a to 3-18b, we can clearly see that the first of the 2 key religions to grow to massive proportions was the End Time Thinkers. This particular movement, however, began gaining followers in a steady fashion at the turn of the century and, after the nuclear incident known as the Western Sun Fall (2017), the End Time Faith spread ferociously to the countries of Southern America and also throughout Africa.
It is clear that the Western Sun Fall refers to the detonation of several atomic devices along the San Andres Fault line, deep underneath San Francisco in February of that year but, it isn’t clear as to the factual cause of the incident. Most surprisingly, compared to evidence from newspaper articles dated a decade before Western Sun Fall, we learnt that the Muslim Religion wasn’t accused out of blind panic this time round. Through protective study of the surviving area and after close inspection of secret government maps, we theorise that the U.S. Army had, situated below the streets of the city, numerous military bases and surplus storage silos that stock piled vast numbers of nuclear missiles. We also believe that the Western Sun Fall incident was purely accidental and no evidence of foul play could be traced.
Taken from the final book of the bible, End Time thinking was structured on the idea that the rapture was approaching and that the final stages of the apocalypse were unfolding. With that in mind, the End Time Thinkers live recklessly and saw no problem in sin as they were always ready to accept the Lord and find salvation.
The second religion to rise was a rebirth, if you will, of the ridged ideology of the Puritan Christians that existed back in the famous witch burning era. Sprouting up from underground sects, dotted collectively along the Northern boarder of the States, it was strongly rumoured that Zealots practiced ‘brain washing’ techniques and even, Black Magik.
By 2020, the entire continents of South America and Africa were governed by an illegal army of End Timers, who imposed tight rules on their subjects. The countries above the United States were now under the tyrannical jurisdiction of the Puritans where as, the U.S. itself, was locked in a Holy Civil Struggle for power leaving the U.N. and centralised government powerless.
This was a grim time in the history of humanity and, due to the problems in the West, American soldiers stationed across the globe, were recalled back to the Home Land. This had a domino effect on the tensions in the Eastern European countries and business ties with America, dissolved away as the country and its economic status fell in on itself. The E.U. vowed to stay out of the conflict and closed it’s ties with the majority of the world. This continental self-isolation, proved to be a prosperous time for scientific advancement and discovery. In the early months of 2023, the E.U. senate bought billions worth of robonetic and nano-technology from Japan and spent a further billion on the construction on secret laboratories. This, in turn, allowed scientists the capability to produce deeper study into the science of war and, in the technological renaissance of 2024, frightening new weapons were crafted, such as the ‘Clean Bomb’ and the Stealth Missile.
The Clean Bomb was a smaller atomic device that created no radiational fall out but still produced significant damage to anything up to a 25mile radius. Also, much like the deadly Martian weapon detailed in H.G. Well’s ancient novel, The War of the Worlds, a Russian gun expert designed and built a real working heat ray. It was this disintegration device that became the primary weapon in the Titan Walker Division of the E.U. and played a key role in closing the war in it’s final months.
In 2025 the Puritan Following took the battle fronts to the sands of Africa and also deep into the jungle of the Amazon. It was clear that world domination was in their hearts. Over the course of the next 15 years, they slowly gained iron clad control over the whole of America (both the Northern and Southern continents) and the bulk of Africa. By 2041, after one final push, the End Time Religion was wiped from the face of the Earth and all its leaders and loyalists were executed publicly.
For a time though, there was a silent peace in the Puritan controlled countries and their War Machine had seemingly stopped its march. In this time, large cataclysmic tectonic movement ruptured the land around the ‘ring of fire’ (the edges of the Pacific Plate), caused monumental earthquakes and widespread volcanic activity. In brief, a large piece of the Pacific Plate sunk into the earth, taking with it vast areas of Australia and Taiwan. Now, through humanitarian aid, most of East Asia banded together to form the U.A.C. (Unified Asian Community). Much like George Orwell’s view of the future in his novel, 1984, the world was governed by 3 superpowers: The E.U. (European Union), the U.A.C. and the Puritans.
The peace, however, was short lived as discomfort grew as the Puritan Nation began moving millions of soldiers into North Africa. Because the E.U. and the U.A.C. were on relatively good terms, starting a crusade on 1, would result in starting war on both. The plan was to drive a wedge between the two and cut their communication by gaining political control over Southern Asia and Russia. Shortly before the Puritan Army advanced into South Russia, Pakistan and India, the U.A.C. invaded Alaska and started edging into Canada. It was this action that cost them their ally and invited open war with the Puritans. Foolishly, because of the trespassing of Russian soil, the Puritans had started war on the E.U. as Russia itself, was considered a member of Europe. The E.U. declared war on the Puritans for the breach of land and in turn, the Puritans declared war on the U.A.C. for the same reason. The Puritans were at war with both but none were working in conjunction with another.
Politically, this is how the war was fought right up until the final 3 years of the conflict. Officially, the war began when the U.A.C. entered into Alaska on November the 15th, 2059. A week after, on the 23rd, the Puritans moved northward and had triggered the conflict with the E.U. and beginning the 3rd global war.
88 years after, it is confirmed that on July the 12th, 2147, the E.U. and the remnants of the U.A.C. defeated the Puritans as they surrendered their territories to the allies. But, up until 2168, loyalist Zealots continued resistance and tried to spark an insurrection by spreading propaganda across the world.
This account I have written, does not document the sheer loss of human life in between the years of 2018 and 2168; not forgetting the death toll lowering significantly when the induction of robotic soldiers into the armed forces was instigated in the year of 2095, meant that less humans were needed in front line conflict.
In the years of the war, it is documented that several thousand battles and skirmishes took place across the globe and it seems that just over the world’s population was lost. Due to the excessive use of the Clean Bomb, in the Southward Push of 2099, vast areas of the Amazonian Rain Forest were incinerated and the countries of Brazil, Paraguay and Chile, suffered monumental infrastructural damage. The loss of life in this region is impossible to calculate.
Although I have only told a brief historical build up to the war itself and a few statistics and figures, I have missed out countless stories of soldiers, civilians and, even, androids caught up in the conflict. Over recent review of the accumulated texts, have we scholars managed to piece together a more, comprehensive case study of what it was like to serve in these times, achieved through diary accounts both written and recorded.
In this, we have discovered tales of heroes and peculiar loners, fascinating breakdowns in the human psyche and amazing stories of luck and outer worldly encounters. The 3rd World War has provided us with a vast chest of vital scientific information and psychological data but, sadly, only through tremendous pain, suffering and catastrophic loss and death.
—Notes End Here --
Prelude to the 3rd World War
This is a written document that is in the style of a historical note look back of the begins of World War 3, set in the not so distant future. I wrote this a little while ago now and it was originally intended to be a back story to some musical work. The events in this piece are entirely fictitious and I do not believe that World War 3 (if it will ever happen) will go down like this.
sssshuknowwho, 3 months ago
This is a refreshingly original way to weave a story. Very well done!
Lloyd Harvey in reply to sssshuknowwho’s comment, 3 months ago
Thank you very much.
Damian, 3 months ago
Great ideas Lloyd. It’d be cool to see some writing from some of the battles in this future.
Lloyd Harvey in reply to Damian’s comment, 3 months ago
Thank you. I did plan to write some more shorts and historical style rundowns of other aspects of my future war, but have been so pressed for time recently. If I do, I’ll add them here!