America, the Coalition's Buddy - A Franco-American War Timeline

Allow me to first say that I am completely aware this is an extremely unoriginal idea. Although I can say that one of my first thoughts on alternate history came from reading about the incident that this timeline comes from in American History class. I hope I can make this interesting for all of you and turn this into a full fledged timeline. Anyways, on with the show.







America, the Coalition's Buddy
A Franco-American War Timeline







France was a crucial ally to the United States during her war for independence. However, the alliance was definitely a “enemy of my enemy” deal. When the war ended, the Americans feared France would not be compliant with American gains, specifically a U.S. with a border at the Mississippi River and fishing rights off Newfoundland. The American negotiators made sure France did not take away any gains from the U.S. by cooperating with Britain on some issues. However, France and the United States would continue to have cordial relations.

France went into a period of revolution (this was most likely inevitable, however French debts from the American War for Independence might have sped up the process) six years after they assisted America in theirs. One would think the U.S. and France would have better relations from this point on with France now giving the people a voice. However, relations were soon to turn sour.

France was to be invaded by a coalition consisting of most other European powers, in attempt to restore order. Do to the state of war, France became a Republic, but a brutal, authoritarian one. The U.S. had not paid back the loans it took from France, and she was obligated to help France against foreign aggressors. However, President George Washington choose to remain neutral in the conflict.

Neutrality would not last long though, as Jay’s Treaty would boost the relations between Britain, the leader of the Anti-French Coalition, and the United States. France’s foreign minister tried to get a bribe from the new President, John Adams, in order to establish a deal for cordial relations with France. This would become known as the XYZ Affair. To make matters worse, French privateers had been seizing American merchant vessels for the last few years.

Due to the dispute with France, President Adams would ask congress for a declaration of war against the country, outside of the new coalition formed against France, but unofficially allying with them. The congress would accept, and war would be declared by the United States against France on December 29, 1798.
 
Proceed with the timeline :)

It will be interesting to see if the USA and Britain work together?

Does the USA try to capture New Orleans and St. Louis? They belong to Spain until 1800.

Perhaps it is a very limited war with France with an outcome that USA is closer to Britain. Might mean no War of 1812. Star Spangled Banner butterflied away ...
Other timelines that include this have a larger North American war of USA against France and Spain. I do not think that it would be like this. In 1898, Louisiana (New Orleans and St. Louis) are Spanish. USA would probably limit the war to the seas, perhaps a few USA troops are used by British navy in the Caribbean. Maybe a few USA troops are sent to Europe.

A good question would be, would this war aid to unite the country or tear it apart as the two parties fight it out. I think that it would aid to unite the country as France would be seen as the aggressor and the USA was just sticking up for itself.

USA would probably still acquire Louisiana territory, but who knows with a better relation with the UK, does the USA acquire additional land years down the road in Maine (Aroostook War and Webster-Ashburton), Red River Area, Oregon Country, what is now western Canada ?????
 
Better relations with Britain is going to be one of the main features of this timeline. Who knows what this result in ;)

I actually already wrote the next part of the tl with Spain helping France against the u.s., I was just waiting to revise it tomorrow... I don't know if I want to remove that part if TTL though, early american aqusition of Louisiana is written into my early jot down of this.
 
Better relations with Britain is going to be one of the main features of this timeline. Who knows what this result in ;)

I actually already wrote the next part of the tl with Spain helping France against the u.s., I was just waiting to revise it tomorrow... I don't know if I want to remove that part if TTL though, early american aqusition of Louisiana is written into my early jot down of this.

So no war of 1812 means Andrew Jackson will have a better view on the British.

How do the pro French (Jefferson, Madison and Monroe) deal with the declaration of war against France?
 
Heres the next update. This timeline will be mostly written in a style that is not very detailed, mostly covering events in the Americans but with updates on whats going on around the world every 10 years or so.

Chapter 1: The First Year

France’s allies and puppets, including Spain, declared war on the United States shortly after. Despite this, the U.S. still had a numerical advantage. Many young American’s quickly enlisted in the Army and the Navy, which was being updated with new ships thanks to the help of Great Britain. France and Spain, meanwhile, had all their troops held up in Europe, and their colonies in the new world were sparsely populated.

The first military action of the war, not counting Naval engagements against privateers, was not until March, when American troops under Andrew Jackson arrived at the border with Spanish Louisiana, near St. Louis. A small battle would be fought, and the city would be put under siege. This would not last too long as St. Louis was a tiny town, and it would surrender later that month.

The U.S. would also send forces south to Baton Rouge, hoping to eventually capture New Orleans with the help of the navy. The Southern Front, as it came to be called, featured Spanish troops from New Spain, and even some from New Grenada. Spain could not spend too much troops, as garrisons were needed to keep revolutionary spirit low in their American colonies, and almost all extras were needed in Europe. America would later use this to its advantage…

The Southern Front would see the most American troops in battle, almost 2,000 young men, under the command of Revolutionary War veteran Henry Dearborn. After fighting a series of battles near the Mississippi river, Dearborn would lay siege to Baton Rouge, capturing the city in early April.

Meanwhile, the small United States navy would be fighting French privateers as far north as New Jersey. The United States would receive lots of cheap loans from Great Britain and her allies in order to improve her naval strength. Most naval battles off the U.S. coast would be draws or American victories, with no U.S. ships captured during the war.

The final front on the mainland would be the Florida front. This featured little actual fighting, it was pretty much just Americans marching from fort to fort in Spanish East and West Florida. America would control all of the main coastal forts in Northern Florida by June, however the southern peninsula was considered to sparsely populated (discluding the scary Seminoles) to bother taking.

New Orleans would fall to the Americans in June. The Americans had a small army, but the Spanish had one that was even smaller. Most of the main fighting in the Franco-American war would take place during these early months of 1799. However, the war would continue to drag on for almost 3 more years, and the Americans had plenty more in store for the Spanish and French.

The rest of the war would drag out far slower than the first months. The Spanish resorted to arming Indians in Louisiana to stir up trouble with American troops, which pretty much only occupied the land along the Mississippi. The Americans themselves could not muster enough troops to march and take New Spain. Aside from Indian raids, the fronts on the mainland would be very static for the later years of the war.

The Americans had found a way to take more territory from France and her allies. The growing American navy and the brand new American marines would, along with Britain, horas French and Dutch (the Netherlands being a puppet of France) islands in the Caribbean. The British, as a show of good faith, would transfer the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinque to the United States. This was a controversial move, but in the end it was decided a couple sugar islands would be worth a future island. The U.S. would land troops in Guyana and take the French portion of the land. The Dutch Antilles would also be taken, although that was just the start of something bigger…
 
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Could the USA make a thrust for Texas

British and American could also support separatists in the Spanish colonies.

Britain could also reward USA with meaningless land in what is today Minnesota, North Dakota, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan
 
I honestly can't see Dutch Guyana being passed over to the US. Why? 1) back then Dutch Guyana was both present-day Suriname and what would become British Guyana (and thus plain, regular Guyana) and thus amazingly valuable. 2) the British had a history in the region, having controlled Suriname for a while during most of the 17th century, producing tobacco, sugar, coffee and cotton there. So it wasn't a "useless strip of land" and the Brits knew it (also IIRC there had been gold found in that region by that time but I'm not too certain about that).

Guadeloupe I can see, though, since IOTL the Brits even gave it to the Swedes, of all nations.
 
I honestly can't see Dutch Guyana being passed over to the US. Why? 1) back then Dutch Guyana was both present-day Suriname and what would become British Guyana (and thus plain, regular Guyana) and thus amazingly valuable. 2) the British had a history in the region, having controlled Suriname for a while during most of the 17th century, producing tobacco, sugar, coffee and cotton there. So it wasn't a "useless strip of land" and the Brits knew it (also IIRC there had been gold found in that region by that time but I'm not too certain about that).

Guadeloupe I can see, though, since IOTL the Brits even gave it to the Swedes, of all nations.

What of the other French islands? With Martinique and St. Martin (even a smaller chunk of it, you might have enough territory for another state in the future.
 
I honestly can't see Dutch Guyana being passed over to the US. Why? 1) back then Dutch Guyana was both present-day Suriname and what would become British Guyana (and thus plain, regular Guyana) and thus amazingly valuable. 2) the British had a history in the region, having controlled Suriname for a while during most of the 17th century, producing tobacco, sugar, coffee and cotton there. So it wasn't a "useless strip of land" and the Brits knew it (also IIRC there had been gold found in that region by that time but I'm not too certain about that).

Guadeloupe I can see, though, since IOTL the Brits even gave it to the Swedes, of all nations.

I agree, if the USA gets a crumb from the British, why not on the NA continent?

Could be the more favorable border in Maine

Could be the Red River of the North drainage area, or at least USA keeps the Milk River area above the 49th parallel and gets the area below the 49th parallel,

Can the USA trade these areas?

Also, maybe the USA treks along the Sante Fe trail to take Spanish settlements in Nuevo Mexico. This might be more beneficial than Texas right now.

Or USA navy is able to land troops along the Texas coast

Also it would be cool to see a more friendlier USA and Britain relationship. Perhaps the border of BNA and the USA become non-militarized sooner.

With a successful war, what is the politics in the USA?
The Federalists are looking better for the election of 1800

What is the status of Hamilton vs Adams split? Do they reconcile the two parts of the Federalists?

Also, what is the status of the Alien and Sedition Acts? The Alien part of it maybe, the Sedition part, no way, hopefully Adams does not sign these or at least opposes the Sedition part.

Now the key for the USA, is how to end the war. How to bring about a peace with the French and Spanish. What are the true American goals?
 
I agree, if the USA gets a crumb from the British, why not on the NA continent?

Could be the more favorable border in Maine

Could be the Red River of the North drainage area, or at least USA keeps the Milk River area above the 49th parallel and gets the area below the 49th parallel,

Can the USA trade these areas?

Also, maybe the USA treks along the Sante Fe trail to take Spanish settlements in Nuevo Mexico. This might be more beneficial than Texas right now.

Or USA navy is able to land troops along the Texas coast

Also it would be cool to see a more friendlier USA and Britain relationship. Perhaps the border of BNA and the USA become non-militarized sooner.

With a successful war, what is the politics in the USA?
The Federalists are looking better for the election of 1800

What is the status of Hamilton vs Adams split? Do they reconcile the two parts of the Federalists?

Also, what is the status of the Alien and Sedition Acts? The Alien part of it maybe, the Sedition part, no way, hopefully Adams does not sign these or at least opposes the Sedition part.

Now the key for the USA, is how to end the war. How to bring about a peace with the French and Spanish. What are the true American goals?

MANIFEST DESTINY!!!!!!!
 
I will edit away America gaining Dutch Guiana and replace it with another Caribbean island, probably Martinique. Don't you all worry, the U.S. will be expanding into the North American continent. I have it all planned out. Politics during the war will be covered in a future update.

Anyways, here is something for y'all.

Interlude 1

John Adams had met with Francisco de Miranda starting in 1788, when he proposed American assistance in an independence movement for the Spanish Colony of New Grenada. At the time Adams had not wanted a war, not wanting to send his new country into battle with barely anything that could be considered an army or navy. But now Adams already had a war, and any way to further damage Spanish interests in the New World would be for the better of the United States.

“Send him in.” Adams asked his secretary. The Handsome Spaniard bowed to the President before taking his seat. “What happened to not wanting a war.” Francisco said, with almost no hint of an accent.

Adams responded, “Sometimes things can change in just a few months. Is your offer still up?”

“Indeed,” Replied the Spaniard, “ARe you willing to support an independence movement?”

“I’ve always wanted independent republics [1] in the Americas as opposed to Spanish rule. Now that the time is right, we can undoubtedly support your revolutionaries. This is of course, if you can assure me an independent New Granada would be an American ally.”

“We would be forever in your debt.”
“Very well,” Adams called his secretary over, “Get Mchenry [2] in here, we need to get some marines into New Grenada…”

[1] Adams assumes here that all peoples in the new world would want to follow the American example.

[2] OTL James Mchenry was replaced by a different secretary of war for political reasons, here he stays due to the war.
 

Rhand

Banned
Proceed with the timeline :)

It will be interesting to see if the USA and Britain work together?

Does the USA try to capture New Orleans and St. Louis? They belong to Spain until 1800.

In OTL, Spain was France's cobelligerent in the Franco-American War, so I think it's reasonable for the US to go after it.
 
Chapter 2:Finishing the War

American support of the New Granada independence movement (starting in December 1799) was a major point in the war. While it would mostly consist of weapons coming out of America and Britain, some American marines would land South of the Dutch Antilles and assist the rebels. This would be a small task force but would prove valuable in this theatre of the war.

The independence movement in New Granada caused Spain to clamp down on New Spain, Peru, and Rio del la Plata. While there were rebellions here, they would receive little support and died out after the end of the war freed up more Spanish troops.

Another area where Americans were considering to support an independence movement was Haiti. Haiti was rebelling on the island of Hispaniola and was a major pain to France. However, no support was given to the rebels, as they were all former slaves, and America was a slaveholding country.

With the support of many in New Granada, the country’s independence movement proved very successful, occupying half the land of the Spanish Viceroyalty by the end of the war. This theatre saw the use of guerilla tactics, and for the most part only the major battles around the cities would be recorded very well into history, and these were not most of the actual fighting.

Naval actions against privateers and the rebellion in New Granada were to continue till the end of the war until its end in 1802. A ceasefire would be put in place shortly before the war in Europe ended, and the Treaty of Kingston (named after the Jamaican city where it was signed) was signed shortly before the Treaty of Amiens [1]. On the French (her puppets) side, recognized American ownership of Guadalupe and Martinique, as well as all Dutch possessions in the Caribbean. On the Spanish side, Spain was forced to recognize the independence of the Republic of New Granada, under protection of the United States. The U.S. also received Louisiana [2] and East and West Florida.

[1] This treaty in the ATL gives all of Guiana to the British, as they took it with American help

[2] This includes the Texas region.
 
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and a map

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