A House Divided-An American Timeline
- Thread starter Superman
- Start date
Hi, this is my first post on the this board.
I want to say that I discovered this whole forum via Googling plausible scenarios for the South winning the American Civil War and found this thread. I'd love to be able to write an alternate history of my own, but unfortunately I don't know enough about history to come up with something believable. Plus, my creative talents are in music and graphic design, not writing (though I did try my hand at it in high school).
Just saying thanks, and I'll be looking forward to the next update.
Sorry for the interruption...we know return you to your regularly scheduled programming (hopefully).
I want to say that I discovered this whole forum via Googling plausible scenarios for the South winning the American Civil War and found this thread. I'd love to be able to write an alternate history of my own, but unfortunately I don't know enough about history to come up with something believable. Plus, my creative talents are in music and graphic design, not writing (though I did try my hand at it in high school).
Just saying thanks, and I'll be looking forward to the next update.
Sorry for the interruption...we know return you to your regularly scheduled programming (hopefully).
The Second Confederate-American War
Tillman, President of the Confederate States
Confederate troops in Cuba
[FONT="]Struggling to keep the economy afloat, the Confederate government could no longer afford to maintain its massively bloated military. The Confederate States was also becoming increasingly isolated from the rest of the world, particularly its northern neighbor. The United States had been preparing for a Confederate-American War since the end of the Confederate War of Independence, and had come up with War Plan Grey shortly after the Confederate conquest of Cuba. The American war plans were put on hold due to the Chicago Commune and other Collectivist strikes that hit the nation in the 1890s, creating the illusion that it was a weak country. Seeing his window of opportunity for a quick and easy war with the United States rapidly closing, President Tillman blamed the US for the increase in “Negro rebellions” that had occurred since the Economic Collapse of 1896. Accusing the Union of arming and aiding the rebels, Tillman demanded immediate reparations from the Union, at the risk of war. When the American government obviously denied any involvement in the rebellions, Tillman used this excuse to declare war on October 8, 1896, a move which many later historians attribute to the deterioration of his mental health. [/FONT]
American troops in Cuba
[FONT="]The American Navy also blockaded the Confederate States’ Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, keeping the Confederate Navy busy, preventing foreign aid from coming through, and occupying many of the Confederacy’s most important cities. The Battle of New Orleans, in January of 1897, saw the United States win a decisive victory against the Confederacy, and captured the mouth of the Mississippi. By fall of 1897, much of southern Louisiana, as well as the Gulf Coast, was occupied by the United States.
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Devastation in Virginia
Devastation in Virginia
[FONT="]On the Northern Front on the mainland, an initial attempted Confederate invasion of the Union was halted by stiff resistance encountered in the Appalachian Mountains. The Confederate invasion was repelled, and a Union counterattack soon followed. The Battle of Washington, waged in and near the former capital of the formerly united nation, lasted for three months. In that period, the city constantly changed hands between the two sides, but was firmly in American hands by March of 1897. Under the command of Colonel (later General) Thomas Wilson, the Virginia Front of the war progressed relatively quickly, though with high casualty rates for both sides until the arrival of the Army Air Corps. Using modified hot-air balloons and other lighter-than-air craft, the Air Corps were the first ever “air force” used in combat, and established aerial supremacy for the American forces. Richmond was aerially bombarded several times, and the Air Corps allowed for ground troops to make it to the Rappahannock by early 1898. The Rappahannock was no challenge for the Air Corps, and was crossed by the US Army shortly afterwards. As the US Army neared Richmond, President Tillman and the Confederate government fled to the relatively safer location of Montgomery, Alabama. Richmond fell to the US after the Battle of Richmond in October 1898, and the rest of the state of Virginia soon followed.[/FONT]
[FONT="]In the West, the US Navy had captured the Mississippi River, and much of Arkansas with it. Nearly all of Louisiana had fallen to the Union, and the Confederacy was reduced to a rump state concentrated in the Deep South. Now, to cripple the Confederacy for good, Union troops invaded Texas. Most of the desert regions in the west were easily captured, but the heavily populated, eastern parts of the state experienced heavy fighting between the Union liberators and the Confederate defenders of the region. Finally, after months of warfare, the capital city of Austin finally fell to American forces. Nearly all of Texas was now under American occupation, and a temporary military government was established. The Confederacy was now on its last legs.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Finally, in 1900, the Confederate military simply stopped fighting. Facing a far superior adversary that had the advantage in numbers, technology and equipment, and even food, they knew that they couldn’t possibly win. Many Confederate squadrons surrendered to Union forces without a fight, and some even joined the American Army. Slave revolts were increasing in intensity, and the remnants of the Loyalist Confederate forces were stretched incredibly thin. It appeared that America would soon be reunited, after all. However, this was not to be, as the Confederate government finally accepted a conditional surrender in June, 1900. Texas and Cuba would become independent American protectorates, and Virginia, Arkansas, and Louisiana were to be placed under permanent American occupation, as military territories with the eventual possibility of reapplying for statehood. The rest of the Confederacy was to remove Tillman from office, never engage with the United States in a military confrontation, and abolish slavery by 1920 if it was to keep its independence. The defeated Confederacy was forced to reluctantly accept these conditions, and the new government immediately got to work on rebuilding their devastated nation.[/FONT]
Are there any pro-Union political parties within the Confederacy gaining popularity?
Welcome to AH.com! And thanks for reading. I hope you enjoy it.
Not exactly, but anti-Americanism isn't as high as it used to be.
Not the end. I'm working on an update, but I'm busy with school now, sorry.
very interesting timeline , i do wonder if this United States , will Enter WW1 and WW2 much sooner in this timeline , and the impact it will have on Space exploration in the far future . Cant hardly wait for the next update .
Thanks. Butterflies are likely to prevent the world wars as we know them, but I am working on the next update.
The Rise of Equalism
An example of segregation-A "black" boy uses an inferior water fountain reserved for "coloreds"
Though the Confederacy was much worse in its racism, “blacks” and other “minorities” still faced heavy discrimination in the rump-United States. Many states barred “blacks” from voting or running for office, and though slavery was banned, there were fewer laws protecting “black” workers than there were for their “white” counterparts. “Minorities” in the United States were often unable to move upwards on the socio-economic ladder, and perpetually remained in poverty.
The Republican elephant, the official symbol of the Republican Party
Equalism as an ideology was heavily connected to and derived from the Jeffersonian belief of liberalism that was enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. “All men are created equal” was first an unofficial slogan used by the various factions of the Equalist movement, but was soon adopted as an official motto. The Equalists supported equal rights for “blacks” and all other “minorities” within the United States, and wanted the federal government to enforce social equality. Much of the “white” base of the Equalist movement was formed by the surviving Radical Republicans and their ideological successors. As a result, the Equalists ingrained themselves into what was left of the Republican Party and brought new life into the GOP.
Born from the ashes of the dying Radical Republican faction, the Equalist movement initially drew most of its support from the West and Border states, as many people in those places either had nothing to fear from “minorities” being granted equal rights or had personally seen the horrors of racism and slavery. Like their predecessors, the early Equalists were seen as dangerous radicals by the majority of Americans, and connected to collectivists and Marxists. They were often overshadowed by the Democrats, Progressives, and moderate faction of the Republicans, and struggled to break free of the negative perception the public at large had of them.
American journalist and prominent Equalist Lewis Kent
Thanks.
And no, I've never actually seen that show or Avatar, either. It was an alternative name for socialism that I never used for anything, and thought that it would work well here.
Also, I know that the Republican Party wasn't called the GOP and didn't have the elephant mascot until the 1870s IOTL, but assume that that little part had a butterfly net.
Blut und Eisen – The Unification of Germany
[FONT="]Unlike many of the other European Great Powers of the early 20th Century, Germany had been a collection of independent states for the majority of its existence, and had only existed as a unified nation since the 1870s. [/FONT]
[FONT="]The majority of Germany had previously been part of the weak and ineffective Holy Roman Empire for centuries. The declining Holy Roman Empire was finally put out of its misery after its defeat in the Napoleonic Wars by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte of France, and was replaced by the similarly ineffective German Confederation. The Confederation was initially dominated by the Austrian Empire, but Austrian dominance was challenged by the rising power of Prussia. The rivalry between Prussia and Austria led to the question of whether the Kleindeutschland (Lesser Germany, excluding Austria) or Großdeutschland (Greater Germany, including Austria) solution would be implemented.[/FONT]
[FONT="]King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia suffered a stroke and was incapacitated in 1857, leading to his brother Wilhelm ruling Prussia as Prince Regent. Under Wilhelm and his advisors, the Prussian army was reorganized, making it a significantly more efficient and powerful force. After the death of his brother in 1861, Wilhelm was crowned King of Prussia, and appointed Otto von Bismarck as the Minister-President of Prussia. Bismarck, a conservative, promoted a strong Prussia in charge of a Germany under a Kleindeutschland solution, with a pragmatic foreign policy. [/FONT]
Otto von Bismarck, first President of Germany (1866-18XX)
[FONT="]The first test for Bismarck’s vision for a unified Germany occurred when Christian IX the ascended to the throne of Denmark and attempted to annex the predominantly German duchies of Schleswig and Holstein in violation of the London Protocol of 1852, which protected the independent status of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg. In response, the German Confederation, led by Prussia and Austria, invaded Denmark. The Danish Army was no match for the unified German forces, and by mid-1864, Denmark had surrendered control over the disputed territories to Prussia and Austria.[/FONT]
[FONT="]However, the alliance between Prussia and Austria was short-lived. Nearly as soon as the war ended, delegates from both Austria and Prussia argued over who the rightful owner of the duchies was. In an effort to force Austria to recognize Prussian ownership of the duchies and dominance in Germany, the Prussian government entered into a mutual defense pact with the new nation of Italy, hoping to contain and pressure Austria. Desperate for its own allies, Austria reached out to many minor German states, as well as its “natural ally”, France. However, Napoleon III, currently fighting two transatlantic wars, refused to get involved in a third conflict, one much closer to home. The Austrian government, surrounded with enemies and allied to nobody, caved in, and accepted Prussian ownership of the duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg. Without firing a single bullet, Bismarck had managed to manipulate events and publicly display Prussian dominance over Germany. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Austria’s apparent weakness drove many minor and mid-sized German states towards Prussia. In 1865, at the Congress of Berlin, Bismarck proposed a new, federal constitution for the German Confederation. The reformed Confederation would involve closer economic ties, a unified military and mutual defense, and a single government. Notably, the Confederation was to exclude Austria. Despite complaints over Prussian dominance, most delegates at the Congress found it an acceptable proposal as it offered protection from the imperialistic tendencies of Napoleon’s France or potential revanchism from Austria while still allowing the governments of the various German states a large degree of control over local affairs. On December 6, 1866, with King Wilhelm as the Emperor and Bismarck as its Bundespräsident, the new German Federation was born. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Unlike many of the other European Great Powers of the early 20th Century, Germany had been a collection of independent states for the majority of its existence, and had only existed as a unified nation since the 1870s. [/FONT]
[FONT="]The majority of Germany had previously been part of the weak and ineffective Holy Roman Empire for centuries. The declining Holy Roman Empire was finally put out of its misery after its defeat in the Napoleonic Wars by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte of France, and was replaced by the similarly ineffective German Confederation. The Confederation was initially dominated by the Austrian Empire, but Austrian dominance was challenged by the rising power of Prussia. The rivalry between Prussia and Austria led to the question of whether the Kleindeutschland (Lesser Germany, excluding Austria) or Großdeutschland (Greater Germany, including Austria) solution would be implemented.[/FONT]
[FONT="]King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia suffered a stroke and was incapacitated in 1857, leading to his brother Wilhelm ruling Prussia as Prince Regent. Under Wilhelm and his advisors, the Prussian army was reorganized, making it a significantly more efficient and powerful force. After the death of his brother in 1861, Wilhelm was crowned King of Prussia, and appointed Otto von Bismarck as the Minister-President of Prussia. Bismarck, a conservative, promoted a strong Prussia in charge of a Germany under a Kleindeutschland solution, with a pragmatic foreign policy. [/FONT]
Otto von Bismarck, first President of Germany (1866-18XX)
[FONT="]The first test for Bismarck’s vision for a unified Germany occurred when Christian IX the ascended to the throne of Denmark and attempted to annex the predominantly German duchies of Schleswig and Holstein in violation of the London Protocol of 1852, which protected the independent status of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg. In response, the German Confederation, led by Prussia and Austria, invaded Denmark. The Danish Army was no match for the unified German forces, and by mid-1864, Denmark had surrendered control over the disputed territories to Prussia and Austria.[/FONT]
[FONT="]However, the alliance between Prussia and Austria was short-lived. Nearly as soon as the war ended, delegates from both Austria and Prussia argued over who the rightful owner of the duchies was. In an effort to force Austria to recognize Prussian ownership of the duchies and dominance in Germany, the Prussian government entered into a mutual defense pact with the new nation of Italy, hoping to contain and pressure Austria. Desperate for its own allies, Austria reached out to many minor German states, as well as its “natural ally”, France. However, Napoleon III, currently fighting two transatlantic wars, refused to get involved in a third conflict, one much closer to home. The Austrian government, surrounded with enemies and allied to nobody, caved in, and accepted Prussian ownership of the duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg. Without firing a single bullet, Bismarck had managed to manipulate events and publicly display Prussian dominance over Germany. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Austria’s apparent weakness drove many minor and mid-sized German states towards Prussia. In 1865, at the Congress of Berlin, Bismarck proposed a new, federal constitution for the German Confederation. The reformed Confederation would involve closer economic ties, a unified military and mutual defense, and a single government. Notably, the Confederation was to exclude Austria. Despite complaints over Prussian dominance, most delegates at the Congress found it an acceptable proposal as it offered protection from the imperialistic tendencies of Napoleon’s France or potential revanchism from Austria while still allowing the governments of the various German states a large degree of control over local affairs. On December 6, 1866, with King Wilhelm as the Emperor and Bismarck as its Bundespräsident, the new German Federation was born. [/FONT]
The flag of Germany incorporates colors from major German states other than Austria, with the Prussian eagle symbolizing its dominance
[FONT="]The unification of nearly all other German states had isolated and humiliated Austria. However, Austria remained a major power, one that was seen as a potential counterweight to Germany in the future. France, having ended its involvement in the War of Southern Independence, sought closer relations with Austria in an effort to contain Germany. In June 1867, French and Austrian representatives met in Paris and signed the Entente Cordiale, establishing an alliance aimed at containing Germany. In October of 1867, French and Austrian representatives secretly met with Italian representatives in Vienna to discuss Italian involvement in a potential Entente-German war. Despite being allied to Prussia, the Italians did not want to face a two-front war against both France and Austria, and ended the alliance. [/FONT]
[FONT="]German unification had also caused Austrian elites to fear that German nationalism would cause Austria to be absorbed into Germany. As Austria was still recovering from the Franco-Austrian War and appeared weak in the after refusing to go to war against Prussia, many ethnic minorities within the empire took the opportunity to revolt. Hungary, which had been fighting for independence for decades, rebelled instantly. Fortunately for the empire, cooler heads prevailed. Prominent Hungarian leaders, such as Ferenc Deak and Gyula Andrassy, negotiated with the Austrian elites to come up with a compromise that would be acceptable to nearly all parties. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Though Deak had initially been a proponent of full independence, he went along with the compromise, which reformed Austria into a federation modeled off of both the United States and Germany. New internal divisions were drawn, one for each prominent ethnic group within Austria (Germans, Hungarians, Czechs, Croats, Bosnians, and Serbians). The various “states” within the new Austrian Federation would retain internal autonomy, but would maintain a common currency, foreign policy and military, and shared heads of state (the emperor) and government (the prime minister), with a single, transnational Austrian identity promoted over ethnicities. The reforms also called for a more democratic form of government, modeled off of the United Kingdom, and military reforms to be more powerful and effective, ironically inspired by Germany. By 1880, Austria had returned to being one of the feared Great Powers of Europe.[/FONT]
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The flag of the Austrian Federation
The flag of the Austrian Federation
Mostly the same as in OTL so far. I hope to get to them soon, though.
It is free. It's just not independent.
You're a Germanophile, right? How do you feel about this Germany?
It looks OK. I like how it was born early, but they was no great German victory over France, and they is some Austrian Federation.
What about the Ottomans? I feel they won't like the new Austria.