The Union Forever: A TL
- Thread starter Mac Gregor
- Start date
I like the design, if someone could soften the edges a bit. The emblem kind of clashes with the field, but that's common.
Indeed, can someone clean this up?
And yes, like the flag of Maryland (which is the same ITTL) it has a "bottony" as seen below.
Sorry about bothering you with what is, really, "ancient history", but, after re-reading the early sections, I have two Civil War questions. Firstly, when Georgia and North Carolina seceded from the CSA, did their ordinances of secession immediately return them to the Union, or were the states independent for a few days? Secondly, what's the reputations of Lee, Mclellan, and other major Civil War generals?
Great questions frustrated progressive.
1) When Georgia and North Carolina seceded from the CSA they became independent states.
2) Lee is usually considered the best of the Southern generals for his victories at Culpepper Courthouse, Brandy Station, and Rappahanock Station during August, 1862; his masterful 200 mile withdraw after the Battle of Warrenton including the victory at the Battle of Lynchburg; and his valiant if ultimately futile defense of Danville, Virginia from October 1862 to May 1863.
McClellan is not a well known general outside of Civil War buffs but does get credit for rebuilding the Army of the Potomac after its defeat at Manassas and devising the plan for the ultimately successful Peninsula Campaign.
Who is the best Union commander of the war? This is a point of contention. Most would say Edwin V. Sumner or John Sedgwick, but this might be simply because they were in command of the Union's largest army. Uylsess S. Grant is another good choice having captured Forts Donnellson and Henry, won victories at Shiloh, Vicksburg, and Jackson, Mississippi and chased PGT Beauregard into Alabama before capturing his army at the Battle of Selma.
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Thanks again, Macgregor.
Just a heads up, I want to vote for this for Turtledove next year, if you don't mind.
Thanks for your support. I would be honored if you voted for this TL. Honestly, I would just like to get nominated (unlike last year
).
Micronesia joins the Union
Here is a short update to tide everyone over through Thanksgiving. Cheers!
Micronesia joins the Union
On November 22, 1988 Micronesia became the 57th state to join the Union. Composed of no fewer than 1,871 islands, Micronesia incorporated the Marianas, Marshal, Palau, and Hortense Islands.[1] Although it stretched across 2,600 miles of the Pacific Ocean, it held only half a million citizens. Like its sister state Pacifica, Micronesia delegated considerable autonomy to its counties. Having seen an extensive military buildup during the war, Micronesia had the highest military to civilian ratio in the United States. President Peatross was present at the statehood ceremony in the capital city of Dedodo on the island of Guam. During his remarks, President Peatross mentioned that the addition of Micronesia to the Union illustrated America’s commitment to peace and development in the Western Pacific an unsubtle reference to the growing threat of China and the Technocratic Union.
Micronesia joins the Union
On November 22, 1988 Micronesia became the 57th state to join the Union. Composed of no fewer than 1,871 islands, Micronesia incorporated the Marianas, Marshal, Palau, and Hortense Islands.[1] Although it stretched across 2,600 miles of the Pacific Ocean, it held only half a million citizens. Like its sister state Pacifica, Micronesia delegated considerable autonomy to its counties. Having seen an extensive military buildup during the war, Micronesia had the highest military to civilian ratio in the United States. President Peatross was present at the statehood ceremony in the capital city of Dedodo on the island of Guam. During his remarks, President Peatross mentioned that the addition of Micronesia to the Union illustrated America’s commitment to peace and development in the Western Pacific an unsubtle reference to the growing threat of China and the Technocratic Union.
Flag of the State of Micronesia, the rising sun symbolizes Micronesia's place as the eastern most territory of the United States
[1] The Hortense Islands are OTL's Caroline Islands . They are named after Hortense de Beauharnais, Napoleon III’s mother.
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I'd guess more so than Hawaii, given the relatively smaller amount of settlement - the military presence is a cultural transmitter, and there's also a longstanding Filipino presence in the Marianas, but there wouldn't be plantation agriculture and imported labor on the scale of Hawaii. Micronesia might actually be even more indigenous-oriented than OTL, since I don't think there was a period of Japanese rule and settlement ITTL - was there?
Indeed, Micronesia is the smallest state by land area. The bottom five in land are are..
Pacifica: 7,197 sq km
Delaware: 5,047 sq km
Guadeloupe and Martinique: 2,834 sq km
Rhode Island: 2,678 sq km
Micronesia: 1,889 sq km
Give me some time to do a population calculation. As far as native culture goes, French colonization certainly had some effective in the major cities, but overall I would say a little stronger than OTL.
"Major cities" is a relative term in Micronesia, and there would be a lot of variation island to island. Vanuatu IOTL might be a model. The French settlers were concentrated on a few islands where they were the majority (there weren't very many, but a little goes a long way on small Pacific islands), and they also brought in Chinese and Vietnamese workers who set up small businesses after their contract terms ended. So ITTL, islands/island groups like Chuuk or Pohnpei are likely to have hybrid cultures, which the US military and tourism would make more so, while the more peripheral ones - Yap, say, or some of the outlying Marshalls - would retain much more of their roots. The amount of population movement between islands would also affect cultural transmission, but I suspect there wouldn't be much until recently.
Right you are. There are no major cities in Micronesia and it does vary considerably from island to island.
1988 Presidential Election
1988 Presidential Election
At the start of the year, President Andrew Peatross looked like a shoo-in for a second term. However, as events often have it, troubles at home and abroad soon eroded his support and emboldened his rivals.
The Recession of 1988
Easily the biggest obstacle to Peatross’s reelection was the 1988 recession. While America and the world had been riding high on a booming post war economy a sharp downturn in February plunged the nation into the worst recession since the Panic of 1976. Most economists primarily blamed foreign factors like the coup in Mesopotamia but others thought that Peatross’s protectionist policies had hampered international trade. By the summer, unemployment was nearing 9% and fuel prices were reaching record highs. Smelling blood in the water, Republicans soon coalesced around the young congressman from Illinois, Abraham Lincoln IV.
Abraham Lincoln IV
Abraham Lincoln IV was born on October 6, 1944 in Norfolk, Virginia. His father Abraham Lincoln III, then a Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy, moved his family often as his job dictated. When hostilities broke out against Peru and Bolivia in 1949, the family moved back to Illinois. Tragically, Abraham Lincoln III was killed a few months later when his ship the USS Cuba was torpedoed. The death of his father greatly affected young Abe who would lionize him for the rest of his life. Following in his footsteps, Lincoln attended the U.S. Naval Academy and was commissioned as a naval aviator in 1966. The tediousness of military life however failed to live up to Lincoln’s expectations and Lincoln left active service four years later. While studying law at Harvard, a family tradition, Lincoln met Gwen Scrivener and they married soon after graduation. With the enormous name recognition of his family, Lincoln easily gained placement in a successful Chicago law firm. Having remained in the naval reserve, Lincoln was recalled to active duty in late 1978 as war loomed in the Pacific. Due to a shortage of qualified pilots, Lincoln was able to get a flight assignment aboard the USS Manifest Destiny. In 1980, Lincoln briefly saw action against the Japanese during the Bonin Island Campaign at the Battle of Chichi Jima.
Once back in Chicago, Lincoln threw himself into Republican politics easily winning a congressional seat in 1982. Despite accusations of inexperience, Lincoln joined Ohio governor Bobby Wentz as the Vice Presidential candidate on the Republican ticket. While the Republicans ultimately lost the election, it catapulted Lincoln to national stardom. During the Peatross presidency, Lincoln would become the face of the insurgent wing of the Republican Party that wished to take a tougher line with China.
The Campaign
During the campaign, President Peatross stressed his record of paying down the national debt, reducing it from 87% to 66% of GDP in just four years, and protecting American manufacturing jobs. However, the recent economic troubles made these achievements ring hollow with voters. Lincoln maintained that Peatross’s protectionist stance was blunting economic recovery. On foreign policy, Lincoln stated that Peatross had not done enough to protect democracy in Asia allowing China to undermine the war’s hard won gains. Peatross attacked Lincoln’s youth and lack of executive experience. Third parties were less prevalent than during the previous election, but the environmentalist Ecoist Alliance re-nominated Tracy Harlow and gained a respectable following. The growing concern about China and the Technocrats all but obliterated Jarrod Baumgartner and his American Technocratic Party’s campaign.
The Results
As expected, Peatross did well in much of the conservative South and the industrial Northeast and Midwest. However, Democrats failed to carry California and Texas in large part due to young voters pulling for Lincoln and his Texan running mate Governor Palmer Lockwood. In the end, the Republicans won with 48.2% of the popular vote and 333 electoral votes making Abraham Lincoln IV at 44 the second youngest president in American history after Vernon Kirkman.
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