A History of Kings (ATL Revolutionary Wars)

This is the rough draft of the timeline underpinning 'To Soar Like Icarus' (see the Writers Forum or AHF - in sig)

A History of Kings

George III
ruled Britain
oversaw victory in American Revolutionary War
1770s

French Revolution and Revolutionary Wars
Rise of a military genius atheist
The sack of Rome and murder of the Pope
1780s-90s

Papal conclave meets in Vienna
New Pope
Crusade against France
Splits the anti-French alliance
Britain doesn't want to be involved in a Catholic crusade
1790s

Over-stretch of France in conquest
Civil war in France
Emergence of the Deists
Uneasy peace, with a large France ensconced in Italy
1800s

Pope dies
New Pope talks less of Crusades
More of restoring balance of power
Re-involvement of Britain
Joint offensive to free Naples from out of Sicily
And to take Rome
1810

France strikes back
Defeat of Austria
Dissolution of the HRE
New German kingdoms
British forces annihilated in Naples
1811

Regency of Prince George
Mass popular dis-satisfaction
France under the Deists is seen as a reasonable and moderate power
Hatred for alliance with the Pope
Prince George faces opposition from below and from High Tories
High Tory opposition led by his brother, Ernest Duke of Cumberland

Britain breaks off alliance with continental allies
Repression of popular unrest
Collapse of Spain, makes humiliating peace with France
Russia comes to agreement with France

Deist France remains strong and in possession of Rome
Pope reigns from Vienna in a rump Austria
All Papal overtures to Paris are rebuffed

Growth of French empire
Further unrest in the American colonies
Renewal of popular unrest
Assassination of the Prince Regent
Death of Princess Charlotte in childbirth (%s play for a congenital defect)
Frederick, Duke of York now Prince Regent and heir, but has no issue
1817

Death of George III
Accession of King Frederick I (& Queen Frederica)
Austro-Prussian alliance
Tsar Paul dies, accession of Tsar Alexander I
1820

Renewal of the continental anti-French alliance, with Russia
Wars rage across the continent
Deist France and its client kingdoms defeat Prussia and Austria
Hungary broken off as an independent Habsburg power (Hungarian line)
Pope flees to Hungary as French troops enter Vienna
Special Conclave meets in Madrid
'Regency Council for the Vatican' formed

Outbreak of Anglo-French conflict in the Americas
Heavy tax rises and impressment
Social discontent flares again in Britain
Britain officially at war with France in Europe
French partition of Prussia benefits its allies
Austria comes to terms
Russia fights on
French armies enter Hungary
Pope flees into Russian Poland
Regency Council declare the Pope 'incapable'
New Pope elected by conclave in Madrid
Alexander imprisons the ex-Pope as a guest in Moscow

British armies suffer heavy defeats in the Netherlands and Hannover
French navy defeats a Royal Navy force off Britanny
Social revolution hits London
King Frederick flees to Oxford
Prince William, Duke of Clarence is cut down in London
Prince Ernest, Duke of Cumberland, heads North to rouse the Orange Lodges

French armies invade Russian Poland
French First Consul and Tsar Alexander meet before Warsaw
Franco-Russian peace agreed
The ex-Pope is handed over into French hands
Death of King Frederick I
1825

Accession of King Ernest I, ex Duke of Cumberland
Orange Lodges provide a bastion of support for the Royalist position
Reconquest of Southern England
Mass reprisals
Prince Augustus, Duke of Sussex sent out to the Americas to take charge

France offers peace terms to Britain
King Ernest I refuses
French Invasion Scare
Britain institutes a raft of emergency laws
French and British fleets clash on numerous occasions, with differing results

Ex-Pope dies in prison in Paris
Deist France has been rebuilding Rome in its own image these last 2 decades

French invasion of Britain
Mass popular unrest breaks out as the French land
Royalist forces struggle to contain the twin problems
London falls
Ernest and his family are taken in Buckingham
They are later executed without orders
French First Consul arrives in London
Adolphus Frederick, Duke of Cambridge capitulates to the French
He is made King Adolphus I as Britain enters the French system

In the Americas, loyalists proclaim the Duke of Sussex as King Augustus I
1830



Grey Wolf

The Union Ideal

The Union Ideal

Egypt remains under Mameluke rule

Augustus I (Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex) dies in 1843
He is succeeded as King in Exile by his son Augustus II (Augustus d'Este), dies 1852

ATL Augustus II (born 1794) has married and produced offspring
The Exiled line continues - King Augustus III (born 1830)

In Britain, Adolphus I (ex-Duke of Cambridge) rules as a French client
His reign sees home rule for Ireland and the removal of laws barring office to Catholics and Jews
A strong Deist current takes root in British society
There are frequent small rebellions - the rebels are either put down or flee to the Americas

Adolphus I dies in 1850 and is succeeded by his son George V (born 1819)

Across Europe, the grip of Deist France is constantly challenged
Hungary and Austria (rump) break free in the 1840s
Prussia (rump) in 1850
But the core of French hegemony remains the German kingdoms and the Italian provinces (ruled from Paris)

1855, the First Consul attempts to convert the office into a hereditary one
(He is not the first to try this, one failed due to the death of his heir, another because the hierarchy ignored his wishes and his heir was ineffectual and eventually guillotined)
Uprisings in the Netherlands (ruled as a French client kingdom) begin to snowball
George V sends his ally (suzerain) troops as aid
This causes an outbreak of civil disorder across Britain

King Augustus III seizes his chance
In clandestine agreement with Spain, and having acquired the tacit support of the Russian Tsar Konstantine I (son of Aleksandr I in the ATL), he makes his move
Royalist forces from the Americas land in Ireland, W Scotland and Devon, preceeded by battlefleets which clash with British forces in the first major clash of steam-powered ships of the line.

King George V realises his error, and recalls the army from the Netherlands
But too late
Royalist forces led by American commanders are converging
Dublin capitulates and Ireland goes over to Augustus
Scotland is raised and an American-Scottish force begins to march South
Edinburgh capitulates

British army forces, all that can be mustered within England, pin the Americans down in Devon but Royalist battlefleets take control of the Western Channel. Plymouth is blockaded, and Exeter taken.
American-Irish forces land in Wales
Long oppressed, the Welsh people rally to Augustus' cause seeing in him a saviour

The First Consul realises that the tables are turned
He makes agreement with his enemies within France
The Netherlands slips away as had Prussia, Austria before them
French forces cross the Channel to aid his ally in London

French naval forces clear the W Channel of Royalist ships
The Duke of York, Augustus' brother Prince Frederick arrives in Edinburgh
Scotland is declared a loyal kingdom in his brother's realm
Ireland soon follows suit with the parliament in Dublin making a similar declaration

French and British forces drive the Americans in Devon back into the sea
Some are evacuated to Ireland, but the maority die or surrender
Exeter comes under British siege
The French and British armies move North to deal with the armies coming out of Wales and Scotland

Spain declares war on France
A Spanish force lands in Sicily, another attempts a landing in Naples but is repulsed
Spanish armies clash with French in the Pyrenees

Tsar Konstantine moves against the Ottoman Empire
The Principalities are invaded, and a Greek uprising gains explicit support

Hungary, Austria and Prussia enact the Central Alliance
They begin to mobilise
Encouraged by Royalist agents, a popular rising in Hannover overthrows the puppet Oldenburg regime (part of the French client Kingdom of Oldenburg)
Popular meetings declare for King Augustus III

French and British forces clash with the American-Irish force and stop them in their tracks
The American-Scottish force advances as far as York

Sicily falls to Spain
A failed coup d'etat in Paris, sees the First Consul only just hold on to power
Deciding that Britain is the key, the First Consul cedes Italy to Austria and Spain
He makes concessions to the Netherlands
And dissolves the German League, leaving the German client kingdoms to looks for their own survival

A large French expeditionary force lands in England
Major battles occur around York, Leeds and Sheffield as the American-Scottish force attempts to push out of Yorkshire into the Midlands
They are held but at great cost, especially to the British forces
The French expeditionary force moves North, defeats a half-hearted prong from out of Wales, then hits the American-Scottish from the flank
Prince Frederick, Duke of York is killed in the fighting
The American-Scottish force pulls back

King George V announces an amnesty to any Scottish noble who surrenders
They begin to in dribs and drabs
After another French victory at Catterick, this becomes a flood
The American force sees its allies abandoning it and evacuates to Ireland
Soon followed by the American-Irish force from out of Wales

George V sees bloody vengeance enacted against those nobles who did not surrender, and against the cities and towns which went over to Augustus
The First Consul secures his position in Paris and secures the hereditary succession of his son
The Deist Republic of France is now renamed the Empire of Francia

With the defeat within England, the popular revolution in Hannover collapses
With Oldenburg weak, the territories are pulled apart by her neighbours

The Pope leaves Madrid and re-enters Rome
Rome is now a Deist city
Attempts by the Pope and his Spanish overlords to tear down monuments and rebuild Catholicism is met with a popular rising
Only a harsh repression by Spanish and Austrian troops keeps hold of Rome
The Pope decides to live with what exists, and to build a new Vatican beside it

Ireland remains a kingdom in Union with King Augustus III in the Americas
But it is more a drain on the Americas than a thorn in the side of Britain
King George V continues to rule from London
His purge of the aristocracy complete he institutes whole-hearted reforms of the nobility and the parliamentary system

The First Consul proves his policy by a sudden lightning campaign into the Netherlands
The House of Orange capitulates within three weeks
A separate Kingdom of Luxembourg is established weakening the House of Orange
But the rump Netherlands remains under their rule
But once again as a client of France - or Francia as it is now termed
1865


Grey Wolf

A Question of Empire

A Question of Empire

Britain, American Britain and France, as well as Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands continue to be colonial empires

Despite the various vexations suffered by the Netherlands they have retained the Cape Province, Ceylon and made inroads into Sumatra.

Terra Australis has Dutch, British, French and small Spanish colonial outposts but is mainly a patchwork of spheres of influence. Major cities exist on the coast, farming towns inland, then allied or subjugated Aborigine tribes in the interior.

Britain, France and the Mughal Empire neatly tie up India with sizeable but minority Portuguese settlements. Largely, the British East India Company rules itself, but has its suzerain in London

The Americas have seen American Britain (or Augustine Britain as some are calling it) abut the French interior (OTL Louisiana taken from Spain as a result of her defeat in the 1810s and now known as Missouri to its Frank rulers).
Florida remained British after the ARW, and is an important part of British America
De facto, Canada is divided between crown colonies ruled out of New York and the Hudson Bay Company. The entire Oregon Territory is formally a part of this organisation.
The Caribbean islands are also loyal to New York rather than to London

Spain remains dominant in South America, and within the North into California, Tejas, Nuevo Mexico and as far North as parts of Wyoming

A lot of the borderland is open, Indian country and the Indian Nations are deft at playing the three colonial powers off against each other

Portugal remains in Brazil but has created it a Vice-royalty with a member of the royal family as Viceroy

The rest of Africa remains largely open. The Dutch Cape province has expanded inwards, unofficial expeditions settling much of the Transvaal, Orange River area and into Bechuanaland. These are ruled as clients of the Cape Colony but are in effect largely independent
1870

Russia has taken the Principalities and see to an independent Greece and Serbia after its series of wars with the Ottoman Empire
Tsar Konstantine II (ascending 1870) pursues a virulent anti-Ottoman campaign
Domestically he follows the example of his father, grandfather and great-grandfather in further reducing the power of the Boyars and finally seeing off the last vestiges of serfdom

France has established close relations with the Mamelukes of Egypt, as well as with the Dey of Algiers and the Bey of Tunis in an effort to make herself dominant in the Mediterranean, bring about a blending of cultural traditions and gain natural advantages.

A Holy Alliance is created spanning Spain, Naples, the Papacy, and Austria
This Northern Mediterranean power is seen as a rival both by France, and by Russia

Tsar Konstantine II overcomes Russia's natural aversion to the Deist French
After all, the ruler is now known as Emperor of Francia and has begun to marry his sons and daughters into European royal families
A Russo-Frankish agreement is signed
1873

King George V is likewise marrying his three sons into the European dynastic system
George William, the Prince of Wales (born 1843) marries a Princess of Brunswick (declared a kingdom after the collapse of Hannover and Oldenburg and annexing much of their interior lands)
Adolphus Frederick, Duke of Cambridge (born 1846) marries an Austrian Archduchess
Charles Edward, Duke of Gloucester (born 1847) marries a daughter of the Frankish emperor

Russia launches its assault on the Ottoman Empire, crossing the Danube, sending forces through Serbia, and armies via the Caucasus
At the same time Francia strikes into Italy, defeating the surprised Austrians in the North
Mameluke armies, suborned by Frankish monies, move North into Palestine
A Frankish fleet puts into Algiers
The Holy Alliance declares war on the empire of Francia

King George V declares for his Frankish allies
Keeping a sizeable fleet and army in reserve to watch Ireland, he reinforces the Mediteranean fleet and sends a substantial expeditionary force

Russian armies smash through Turkish defences, taking Adrianople and laying siege to Constantinople
Serbian and Russian forces advance into Macedonia
Greece declares war and advances Northwards

Ottoman armies are crumbling before Mameluke advances from Egypt
Mameluke Baghdad also joins the fray, pushing North and effecting a union with Russian forces coming South out of the Caucasus
Years, decades even, of patient secret diplomacy appear to be paying off for the Russians

A combined Frankish-Algiers fleet defeats a Spanish force off Mallorca
Austrian forces land on the E Italian coast and cross to Rome in time to save it from a Frankish attack from the North

Unexpectedly in the middle of this the Emperor of the Franks (ex First Consul) dies
His son inherits the throne, inherits the war
He allows himself to be dominated by his father's Military Council, a body his father usually ignored
Under their influence, he launches a Frankish invasion of Sicily, tying down the majority of Frankish naval forces and all the available army reserves

The British force enters the Mediterranean and unites with the Franks at Sicily
Ottoman naval forces, uniting with Austrian squadrons begin to sweep the E Mediterranean of Mameluke and Tunisian ships. Soon they are in complete control
With Tripoli still cleaving to the empire, the Ottomans launch an attack on Egypt from both land and sea, in their rear
The Mamelukes turn back from their advance into Syria

1875
Russia takes Constantinople
In the East, Russian and allied forces drive the Turks back into central Anatolia
Albania declares itself independent
Montenegro declares itself a kingdom
Serbia and Greece carve up Macedonia
Russia establishes the client kingdom of Bulgaria
A Russian littoral along the Bulgar coastline connects the Principalities to Constantinople
Bulgaria in this ATL is OTL Bulgaria plus the Thracian Aegean outlet but minus a Black Sea coast

The collapse of Ottoman forces relieves the pressure on Egypt
The Mamelukes expel the Tripolitanians and come to an agreed peace
Syria rises in revolt against the Ottomans

Algiers and Tunis are goaded into declarations of independence by Francia
Francia and the Holy Alliance make peace
Savoy and Sicily are ceded to Francia

King George V gains nothing from the enterprise, save some battleready forces and experience
The general mood in Britain is one of veiled anger

1880
King Augustus III is assassinated in Boston
His eldest son, Augustus IV succeeds him at the age of 28
British agents are suspected of being responsible for the assassination
A wave of bombings occur across Ireland, also blamed on British agents

Within Britain, King George V is in a bind
The Frankish victory has left him with nothing to show for it
The young Frankish emperor does not appreciate the value of the British alliance
Ireland and across the seas British America remain strong and opposed to him
Although dubious, he sanctions a series of 'Black Operations' dreamt up by his Prime Minister

In British America, King Augustus IV begins to manoevre for the freedom to take on the man he views as the Usurper King
He is not the skilled politician that his father was
Attempts to gain an understanding with Spain fail
The whole episode serves to raise the hackles of the Frankish Emperor

1882
Whilst Augustus IV is still trying to sound out Russia (through contacts in Alaska), border disputes along the Ohio-Missouri border begin to spiral out of control
Unable to request mediation or suggest a measured response, due to the main thrust of his policy, Augustus IV is forced to watch as British America collapses into war with the Empire of Francia
Immediately thereafter, George V declares the time of reckoning is at hand
Britain launches a major invasion of Ireland and sends it main fleet to unite with the Frankish fleet
Within North America, the main Royalist army is tied down in a series of battles all along the Missouri frontier

Augustus IV's brother, Prince William Augustus, Duke of Kent and Richmond (VA) is the Governor-General for the British American West Indies
Ably defending his possessions against French forces enroute for Missouri's Southern coast, he makes a local agreement with the Spanish over defence and joint patrols
Unwilling to incite Spain, the Empire of Francia doesn't impinge on the Caribbean
William Augustus draws loans on his personal fortune and begins to train a high quality native army of West Indians, with its headquarters at Kingston in Jamaica

British America is being squeezed severely
Tax rises, appropriations and commandeering of property raise a high degree of social resentment
The armies are increasingly hard-pressed in the interior, and in Ireland
The navy is fighting a losing battle against blockade

The war, though is taxing Britain more heavily than Francia
Whilst Francia is fully mobilised and having to retain garrisons on Sicily and the frontiers, it can rely on its Algiers and Tunis allies in the Mediterranean, and the buffer zone of German kingdoms still remains intact although long since losing their formal client status
Britain, though, is bogged down in Ireland
The main cost of the blockade is falling to her
And there is growing social discord at the cost of what many see as a war of wounded pride

1884
'The Year of Calumny'
Startlingly, revolution breaks out both across British America and within Britain
Populist masses take over the cities and declare the war at end
In Britain, King George V is forced to flee London
In the field against the rebels, his eldest son, George William, Prince of Wales is killed in action
In America, King Augustus IV takes refuge in Richmond as New York falls to the rebels
Frankish forces storm the Ohio frontier

Prince William Augustus, Duke of Kent and Richmond is secure in the Caribbean
With France's full attention on pressing their advantage, he makes additional deals with the Spanish authorities, spending the Crown monies on food, ammunition, supplies and bribing officials
As a Frankish force enters Pennsylvania, threatening to cut British America in two, Prince William Augustus makes his move

The Frankish Empire has not remained ignorant of his plans
The agreements with the Spanish authorities
The monies exchanging hands
The readying of the navy and the establishment of a professional West Indian army
The purchase of supplies and victuals
Frankish ships stand to all along the American seaboard to intercept and destroy this maverick force

Prince William Augustus makes landfall in Cornwall
Behind him, ragtag remnants of a Frankish fleet are chasing his tail, desperately
Ahad of him, the British army is wracked by mutinies
King George V is in York, rallying Loyalist forces
The navy is in mutiny refusing to leave harbour
Ireland is gripped by a vicious civil war

Prince William Augustus advances on London from the South-West, his black and mulatto troops striking dread into native militia who lay down their arms in droves and swear allegiance to him
Rather without exactly intending it, Prince William realises he has usurped TWO kings, not only George V but his own brother
He enters London and has himself proclaimed Emperor of the Union at Westminster Cathedral, intending by so doing to allow an opening for both monarchs to continue in their positions beneath him

In Richmond, the unmarried Augustus IV kills himself upon receiving the news from London
Not only have Frankish troops reached the Atlantic coast, but his own brother has betrayed him

In York, King George V sees it as a sign of weakness, division amongst his enemies
Against the best advice of his military commanders, he presses the attack
Emperor William IV (taking over royal numbering) has united his West Indian force with a sizeable body of British volunteers
They meet the army of George V at Peterborough and annihilate it
George V, his second son the Duke of Cambridge, and his direct heir, the young Prince George of Wales (son of his deceased first son) all are slain

Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Gloucester, George V's third son flees to the Netherlands with his family
Emperor William IV declares a General Amnesty
In Dublin representatives of both sides meet in Dublin, and together with the Irish Parliament proclaim William emperor

William puts out peace feelers to Paris
In return for cession of the Ohio Territories, Frankish troops will leave British America and raise the blockade
The Peace of Calais seals the deal

The Union of Great Britain and the Americas is born
Emperor William IV is later crowned in Edinburgh, Dublin and New York
He issues a general amnesty to American rebels
But many of the more radical or heavily involved flee West into Frankish lands
A fair number of British American refugees exit Ohio and settle in the coastal colonies in their stead


Grey Wolf

Hopefully this is a bit different from normal timelines ?

Grey Wolf

funny how no one likes what i do

It looks good, I just haven't had a chance to read it in detail yet.

Paul Spring said:

It looks good, I just haven't had a chance to read it in detail yet.

Click to expand...

Thank you

I'll stop insulting conservatives now

Now that they're connected, I just need to go to bed

btw whatever happened to your R ?

Grey Wolf

hmmm.. its refreshing and different

It's pretty good.

this is good and all but we need more 20th century non worldwars related PODs instead of the medieval/age of exploration/industrial era PODs.

Straha said:

this is good and all but we need more 20th century non worldwars related PODs instead of the medieval/age of exploration/industrial era PODs.

Click to expand...

Well, why don't you write one. Don't harp about it.

Yeah, Grey, it looks good and is refreshingly different (God knows that there are way too many repeated TLs). Are you going to continue it?


David, I suspect straha is not only harping about a lack in less original TLs (since most have been done over and over again), but also about the apathy displayed to any original ones. I for one know that when I posted a POD thread concerning alternate planned operations from WWII, only a few souls even participated. I have a few ideas concerning, for example "what if the USA accepted Jamaican PM's offer to accept Jamaica into the Union, 1962 or 1963?" and "what if South Africa obtained Mozambique?" (which they had asked the Portuguese for in exchange for ex-German Tanganyika) or concerning various unions of nations in Africa (eg. Libya and Tunisia, Libya and Chad, etc.), but I don't know if I should waste the time, since the most likely response will be my crickets chirping, rather than active participation.

Sean Swaby said:

Yeah, Grey, it looks good and is refreshingly different (God knows that there are way too many repeated TLs). Are you going to continue it?


David, I suspect straha is not only harping about a lack in less original TLs (since most have been done over and over again), but also about the apathy displayed to any original ones. I for one know that when I posted a POD thread concerning alternate planned operations from WWII, only a few souls even participated. I have a few ideas concerning, for example "what if the USA accepted Jamaican PM's offer to accept Jamaica into the Union, 1962 or 1963?" and "what if South Africa obtained Mozambique?" (which they had asked the Portuguese for in exchange for ex-German Tanganyika) or concerning various unions of nations in Africa (eg. Libya and Tunisia, Libya and Chad, etc.), but I don't know if I should waste the time, since the most likely response will be my crickets chirping, rather than active participation.

Click to expand...

I'd participate in it

Straha said:

I'd participate in it

Click to expand...

Good, so when next I can find those books at my aunt's (or the history of those PODs on the net), then I can post it.

The collapse of the Mamelukes

1890
Ottoman successor states are in constant disorder, finding it hard to settle down
Syria is the centre of major intrigue, with Russia and France getting involved
Egypt descends into civil war
Russian naval forces and French naval squadrons make landings in N Egypt
An uneasy alliance is created
The Russo-French force enters Alexandria
The Mamelukes rally in Cairo
Other Egyptian forces in the coastal areas ally with the invaders
French forces make a remarkable discovery - The Stone of Wonder
(OTL Rosetta Stone)
Egyptologists had made major advances on their own, but this completes the pattern and breaks the code
Cairo falls
A native ally is installed as King, with Russia and France agreeing upon this, the latter more reluctantly than the former
Franco-Russian co-operation also allows for a settlement with Syria

King William IV Augustus is slowly mending the political fabric of the Union of Great Britain and the Americas
A unified Union Assembly is created in London, telegraph links and trans-Atlantic passenger transport making this a realistic possibility when in the last century it had not
National assemblies in England (for Wales also), Scotland, Ireland and the Americas, as well as at Kingston for the Caribbean
A unification of armed forces occurs more slowly - a Union army, with the ex-West Indian units becoming an elite, with British and American units added to this


British imperial interests had stagnated during the decades of conflict between Britain and the Americans
The existing colonial holdings had been secured, logisitics developed within them, modernisation and industrialisation proceed apace
During this while other powers have been expanding their power - the Netherlands has formal suzerainty over the new Boer states of South Africa, and through wars against the Zulus and the Baralong extended their power Southwards and Northwards. There are also inroads made into Matebele lands.
France has effective alliances across the entire Southern Mediterranean, and France and Russia are engaged in the Levant
There are even German kingdoms, Austria, and Denmark who are expanding their trading stations around the world.
Britain appears to be very much a backmarker in modern imperialism
King William IV Augustus sees the potential for 'New Imperialism' being a unifying and motivating factor across the Union

Grey Wolf

Very Interesting; Please continue.

As a question, what parts of north America are in british hands and in french ( sorry, gallic ) ones?

British territory is bordered by the Appalachians, then further South by the Ohio-Mississippi border. Until their loss to France, the Ohio territories North of the Ohio River and bounded on the West by the Mississippi were also British. See this map if it helps :-

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/shepherd/british_colonies_1763-76.jpg

Forget the date on it, the coverage is pretty useful for answering the question that you ask

French America is basically all the territory ceded in the Louisiana Purchase but named Missouri here (which is what the Americans named if after purchase anyway). To this they have added the Ohio territories from conquest

For Spain basically think the Spanish in Mexico, it extends North over Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California and parts of Southern Wyoming

The British also rule Canada, divided between crown colonies and the Hudson Bay Company. The whole of the Oregon Territory (OTL British Columbia plus Oregon and Washington state) is part of this

Russia is in Alaska

Hope this helps ?

Best Regards
Grey Wolf

Good work, Grey Wolf.

Well done Grey Wolf, I like it. I'm not sure if France would really want to change her name, and im having doubts about Europe's ability to withstand so many wars in 50 years, but i like it overall.

The Crisis of Belief

The Crisis of Belief

The opening of Egypt in the 1890s becomes a flood
And with it, so too with ideas
Ancient Egyptian religion, art, culture - their study aided by The Stone of Wonder
Mergings into a Theosophy like religion
Also, discovery of ancient Gnostic texts
The blossoming of Coptic tradition into the world
The 1890s sees a wave of new takes on religion sweep in from Egypt

Francia is largely a Deist country
Britain has a strong Deist streak; this is less pronounced in the Americas but there a patchwork of other Christian churches prevents the domination of any
They are all ripe ground for the 'New Religions' but here they do not undermine the social structure

It is not the same in the rest of Europe.
From Orthodox Greece or (Russian) Constantinople, across Muslim Albania or Catholic Austria, the influence of the new religious experimentation begins to undermine the church-state compact

1895
In Rome, the new Pope declares a 'Crusade Against Unbelief'
This is couched in martial terms tho it is intended to be an ideological war not a physical one
The first result is the Sardinian Uprising
Sardinia nominally part of the Frankish Empire, but has a high degree of local rule
Nevertheless, the official religion is Deist
And communities of Theosophites and Gnostics begin to set up in Cagliari, the main Frankish influenced city
Spurred by the Pope's words, the Catholic native aristocracy rise up and massacre foreign influences

The Frankish Emperor is forced to deploy the army to Sardinia and to use the navy to blockade it from the Papal States
A knock-on effect occurs with Sicily, less due to overt Frankish influences or imported religion, than to opportunists catching the idea from Sardinia and looking to free the island from Francia and set themselves up as independent
Austria and the Papacy supply money and arms to Naples to try to get its island back
With Naples suddenly at war with Francia, a wave of Catholic feeling sweeps across Italy

With Frankish armies putting down revolts in the North, the Pope acts to rid Rome of the large Deist community that has been living in uneasy co-existence since the Restoration
Papal soldiers drive Deists North over the borders into the Italian duchies
Frankish armies begin to penetrate into Central Italy, defeating native forces before they have time to properly gel

Mid 1896
Faced with the threat of Frankish armies on his door-step, the Pope calls for temporal allies
Soon, a new Holy League has formed uniting Austria, the Papacy and Naples
Francia finds itself officially at war with the Pope, as well as his allies
Frankish armies clash with Austrian forces in Lombardy
Neapolitan armies land in Sicily to help the rebels
The leaders of Sicily's rebellion realise they have just invited back their old masters who they definitely don't want
The Sicilian rebel alliance splits into three - those who will accept Neapolitan rule in return for getting rid of the Franks, those who will accept Frankish rule in return for getting rid of the Neapolitans, and those who will have nothing to do with either. Logically, this latter group is the most hounded and is forced to retire to remote fastnesses
Frankish and pro-Frank forces clash with Neapolitan and pro-Neapolitan forces

1897
The Pope issues a series of Bulls stating that the leaders of his allies are favoured by God and those who fight them are doomed in God's eyes
In Paris, the Frankish Emperor issues a symbolic Edict of Tolerance
The war becomes known as 'The War of Belief'

Russia is distracted by the drowning of the Tsesarevitch Konstantine in a shipping disaster in the Aegean
In addition, Russian armies continue to clash with the petty Anatolian Turkic states that have risen up, often unite then fall apart again, since the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.
Russia has formally annexed Ottoman Armenia, seen the rest of Eastern Anatolia go to its allies in Baghdad, and agreed no Syrian expansion North
Russian forces are currently engaged in securing the Eastern Aegean lands
An alliance with Pontus Greeks allows the establishment of the city state of Trebizond in the North

Papal bullying and Austrian intrigue finally pays off and Hungary, Bavaria and Wurttemberg join the Holy League
Francia finds itself faced with a Northern front as the German kingdoms begin to divide on religious grounds.
Frankish forces occupy the Kingdom of Luxembourg 'just in case'

The Netherlands, Hesse, Brunswick and Mecklenberg ally with Francia
Soon there is fighting raging across Germany, taking in even those states which sought to remain neutrral
Austria is forced to send troops to aid Bavaria and Wurttemberg, thus weakening its Southern front

Agitation within Spain to join the Holy Cause is immense
The Papacy was formerly based in Madrid
The Catholic church remains powerful
But the King and his advisors know that involvement in a European war could be disastrous
Spain renews its non-aggression Treaty of Friendship with the Union
King William IV is received publically in Madrid
Secretly Spain sounds out Britain about what would happen if Spain is dragged into war by the Pope
King William and his Prime Minister cannot give any guarantees
The situation is too complex

Theosophite, Gnostic and even Coptic communities are growing within urban Britain
There is a lot of sympathy for Francia on the basis of religion and freedom
But there is a lot of antipathy to Francia on imperiaistic gounds, esp in the Americas

Imperialism
- British 'New Imperialism' is largely confined to Africa
Mainly the expansion of British trading stations into the interior
And the establishment of new ones further South

In Egypt, the Franks are fully occupied with Europe and the Russians with Anatolia
A Mameluke counter-revolution occurs
Britain, in the interests of defending certain historical sites and Coptic communities steps in
The Mamelukes retake Cairo and reach agreement with the British

The Pope despatches a Papal Legate to Spain
Although defended by several Austrian ironclads, the vessel is intercepted and sunk by an Algiers fleet off the Balaerics
Algiers, a Frankish ally, has been supplying ships, men and monies without getting directly involved
But recognising the Vatican flag the admiral realises who is on board the ship
His actions bring Algiers, and in quick succession Tunis and Tripoli into the war on Francia's side

The Pope, reeling in a Rome under nightly bombardment from both Frankish forces to the North, and the Frankish navy to the West, issues another series of Bulls
In the wake of the death of his Legate, he widens the scope of the declared 'War on Unbelief' to a conflict to take in Muslims
With the Papacy and the Holy League already at war against Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli this appears to the Pope simply to be a confirmation of the existing situation

Austria suffers a massive uprising by Bosnian Muslims

In Albania, the Italian communities of Durazzo and Valona are slaughtered by Muslim mobs

An attempted coup in Madrid is beaten down by Royal Guards
The ringleaders include several bishops and a cardinal when all is unravelled
The Spanish King orders them put to death, realising that an iron fist is the only way to retain control of his country

In Rome, the Pope excommunicates the King of Spain
In the Americas, Papal agents begin to whip up discontent with the monarchy
Revolts break out from Buenos Aries to Mexico City to Monterrey in California

King William IV Augustus journies to Paris and is received by the Frankish emperor
Despite their age old rivalries, and current imperialistic differences, they reach an agreement
Francia withdraws its formal claim to a sphere of influence over Egypt in favour of Britain
Britain recognises Francia's claims to that over Syria
They agree to work together to try to keep Spain out of the war, and the revolts gripping Spanish America down
The Concorde of Paris, sees King William send the bulk of his fleet and the majority of his professional armies to Spanish America

Thus ends 1897

Grey Wolf