Ventis Ferrum: Dupleix's Success and Beyond
- Thread starter Drex
- Start date
Ah, so now Lauenburg is Hanoverian, Swedish Pomerania is Prussian, and Prussia no longer has East Frisia and the Münsterland...
Who did end up getting Luxembourg and Münster anyway? Both areas were pretty prestigious, it'd be interesting to know which noble families managed to snag those titles.
Who did end up getting Luxembourg and Münster anyway? Both areas were pretty prestigious, it'd be interesting to know which noble families managed to snag those titles.
Honestly, I didn't specify because royal families are far from my specialty, and considering the myriad of princes that lost their thrones during the reshuffling of borders from 1795 to 1811 it's kind of difficult. I'll be writing this reply as I do research.
Münster would have to have a new monarch given it has been secularized, I originally considered placing the grand dukes of Berg but they're Napoleonic so no deal. Going further into Berg they had been in a PU with Bavaria since 1777, but the natural line died up in 1799 leaving two branches, the Zweibrücken line (which would inherit the Electorate of Bavaria) and the Birkenfeld line, whose current representative at the time was Wilhelm, who was awarded the tittle "Duke in Bavaria" in compensation. So how about we make him Grand Duke of Münster instead? It would also sort of compensate Bavaria for their losses at Ratisbon.
As for Luxembourg, it belonged to the Austrians prior to the Treaty of Campo Formio, so a Habsburg candidate would be a likely option. The last governor of the Austrian Netherlands that can work as a reference would be Charles, Duke of Teschen, who happens to be the son of Leopold II, and his brother Ferdinand would eventually become Grand Duke of Tuscany. The current emperor of Austria, Francis II, had two children at the time, Francis (future emperor) and Franz Karl (father of Maximilian of Mexico), the first is not an option while the second is only nine years old and would need a regency council. Considering this, I'm inclined to hand the throne of Luxembourg to the Duke of Teschen, but again, I'm far from an expert on succession laws so any ideas of recommendations?
Chapter 33: Taming the Tiger
~ Chapter 33: Taming the Tiger ~
During a period of almost 20 years the French East India Company was effectively a sovereign state independent from France, both in terms of orders and in terms of supplies, since the moment Suffren refused to recognize the republican government in Paris. Despite his obesity and multiple health issues, Suffren was an energetic man that managed to keep French India under a tight grip until his death in 1803. Suffren had named an admiral as the next governor, however the British used the influence they had gained with the company during Suffren’s rule by acting as intermediaries to secure their own candidate for governorship, the young, unexperienced, and manipulable Pierre François Étienne Bouvet de Maisonneuve. Bouvet had some experience in the navy, but was not a skilled politician [1], and didn’t know the intricate web of alliances and interests that was the Indian subcontinent in the 1800’s.
Bouvet would quickly fall out of favour with Tipu Sultan, ruler of Mysore, for not offering support at a time when the Hyderabadi state was on the brink of collapse following Asaf Jah III’s disastrous siege of Nagpur in 1806. Bouvet would not protest the 1807 Hyderabad Treaty that allowed British troops to garrison towns in Hyderabad, a treaty that effectively turned the state into a British protectorate as Nasir-ud-Daulah, the new nizam (still underage, the government was controlled by a regent, Chandu Lal), was forced to raise taxes to pay off the debt the state had assumed under his predecessor. The tax increase led to a revolt that was supported by anti-British officers and courtmen, that proclaimed Mir Alam as the new regent and expelled Chandu Lal from the palace [2]. He was able to escape and reach the head of the British delegation in Hyderabad, who quickly turned his forces to the palace, forcing Mir Alam and a kidnapped Nasiru-ud-Daulah to flee west towards Shahpur. Mir Alam called for help from the French East India Company and Tipu Sultan. The ruler of Mysore took the young monarch under his wing and negotiated with the Nawab of the Carnatic in secret to bring them into the war without consulting their French overlords. News of the kidnapping of the monarch reached the British in 1809, and in May of that year a Royal Navy squadron appeared in front of the harbour of Mangalore to pressure Tipu Sultan to hand over the king, to which Tipu Sultan refused, beginning the Second Anglo-Mysore War [3].
Bouvet would quickly fall out of favour with Tipu Sultan, ruler of Mysore, for not offering support at a time when the Hyderabadi state was on the brink of collapse following Asaf Jah III’s disastrous siege of Nagpur in 1806. Bouvet would not protest the 1807 Hyderabad Treaty that allowed British troops to garrison towns in Hyderabad, a treaty that effectively turned the state into a British protectorate as Nasir-ud-Daulah, the new nizam (still underage, the government was controlled by a regent, Chandu Lal), was forced to raise taxes to pay off the debt the state had assumed under his predecessor. The tax increase led to a revolt that was supported by anti-British officers and courtmen, that proclaimed Mir Alam as the new regent and expelled Chandu Lal from the palace [2]. He was able to escape and reach the head of the British delegation in Hyderabad, who quickly turned his forces to the palace, forcing Mir Alam and a kidnapped Nasiru-ud-Daulah to flee west towards Shahpur. Mir Alam called for help from the French East India Company and Tipu Sultan. The ruler of Mysore took the young monarch under his wing and negotiated with the Nawab of the Carnatic in secret to bring them into the war without consulting their French overlords. News of the kidnapping of the monarch reached the British in 1809, and in May of that year a Royal Navy squadron appeared in front of the harbour of Mangalore to pressure Tipu Sultan to hand over the king, to which Tipu Sultan refused, beginning the Second Anglo-Mysore War [3].
British East India Company ships blockading Manglaore
Tipu Sultan departed immediately with an army of 60.000 men towards Hyderabad accompanied by Mir Alam. The Governor-General of India, Francis Rawdon-Hastings [4], had prepared for an offensive and had gathered 40.000 men in and around the city of Hyderabad and ordered his soldiers to prepare defensive positions as he could not risk a pitch battle as most of the reserves of the BEIC army were in the north and around Nagpur, predicting that Tipu Sultan would drag his puppet Maratha emperor into the conflict, despite British court intrigues to convince Baji Rao II to betray the Mysorean sultan. Thus, the British East India Company faced a coalition of Indian states spearheaded by Tipu Sultan. Tipu Sultan reached Hyderabad in December of 1809 and opted to lay siege to the city, knowing that Carnatic troops with French artillery were coming from the south. Once they arrived, Tipu Sultan launched barrages of artillery and rockets, but these barrages were not as effective as they were in Settanapalli back in 1761.
Further north, once news of the Maratha entry into the war were public the British launched an assault towards Nagpur. The Maratha authority in the area was weak, and the territory was effectively ruled by the King of Gwalior, who could not muster enough forces to protect all of his realm. BEIC forces under Sir David Baird marched from Delhi into Rajasthan, where the local princes switched allegiances to the British, and then turned east towards Gwalior, capturing the city in March of 1810. Back in Hyderabad, a group of French engineers deployed without the consent of Governor Bouvet created a series of tunnels and filled them with gunpowder, blowing up the southern corner of the defence lines and permitting the Indian troops to storm the fort, capturing Hyderabad after a bloody battle and restoring Nasir-ud-Daulah to the throne [5]. Rawdon-Hastings retreated further west to shorten his supply lines, while Mir Alam launched a purge of pro-British administrators and began to target civilians that traded with them.
Further north, once news of the Maratha entry into the war were public the British launched an assault towards Nagpur. The Maratha authority in the area was weak, and the territory was effectively ruled by the King of Gwalior, who could not muster enough forces to protect all of his realm. BEIC forces under Sir David Baird marched from Delhi into Rajasthan, where the local princes switched allegiances to the British, and then turned east towards Gwalior, capturing the city in March of 1810. Back in Hyderabad, a group of French engineers deployed without the consent of Governor Bouvet created a series of tunnels and filled them with gunpowder, blowing up the southern corner of the defence lines and permitting the Indian troops to storm the fort, capturing Hyderabad after a bloody battle and restoring Nasir-ud-Daulah to the throne [5]. Rawdon-Hastings retreated further west to shorten his supply lines, while Mir Alam launched a purge of pro-British administrators and began to target civilians that traded with them.
The storming of Hyderabad
Elsewhere, the call to arms issued by the Maratha Empire only fractured the empire even more. Since the death of Madhavrao I the empire had decentralised and lost effective control over many areas. Now, agents coming from Pune were asking for money and soldiers to fight in a war many of the local rulers had nothing to do with. The high expenses of the campaign made many government officials to question whether it was worth it to support Tipu Sultan and his puppet in Pune, Baji Rao II, the son of Raghunathrao who in turn was considered a puppet of the British. For the moment the plot remained underground, waiting for the moment Mysorean power faltered. That time came soon, when the British reorganized their forces and came back to Hyderabad after securing Orissa. The second siege of Hyderabad would be shorter than the first one, as Rawdon-Hastings brought reinforcements to match Tipu Sultan’s army and the walls of the city had not yet been rebuilt. During the confuse battle for the city Indian BEIC troops captured Mir Alam when he was trying to flee with the king, executing the regent.
This British could not continue their offensive due to the heavy losses incurred and a skillful counterattack by the Mysorean ruler at the Battle of Devarkadra on February 18th 1811. However, at that time, a major event happened in Europe that altered the Indian conflict, that event being the restoration of Bourbon rule in France. As soon as news spread of the current state of the FEIC, Louis XVIII dispatched the Comte Dupuy to Pondicherry to take hold of the situation and replace the incompetent Bouvet. As soon as he arrived he realised that France’s bid for supremacy on the Indian subcontinent was over, and that the best course of action would be to try to salvage as much as possible. Thus, he approached his British counterpart, reaching an agreement that would see both companies forming a temporary alliance against Tipu Sultan, who had accepted the vassalage of the Nawab of the Carnatic [6].
This British could not continue their offensive due to the heavy losses incurred and a skillful counterattack by the Mysorean ruler at the Battle of Devarkadra on February 18th 1811. However, at that time, a major event happened in Europe that altered the Indian conflict, that event being the restoration of Bourbon rule in France. As soon as news spread of the current state of the FEIC, Louis XVIII dispatched the Comte Dupuy to Pondicherry to take hold of the situation and replace the incompetent Bouvet. As soon as he arrived he realised that France’s bid for supremacy on the Indian subcontinent was over, and that the best course of action would be to try to salvage as much as possible. Thus, he approached his British counterpart, reaching an agreement that would see both companies forming a temporary alliance against Tipu Sultan, who had accepted the vassalage of the Nawab of the Carnatic [6].
The second siege of Hyderabad
The FEIC forces were quick to assemble under Dupuy, and when the monsoon epoch ended most of the Carnatic had been reconquered by the French, opening yet another front for Tipu Sultan, and stripping the Nawab of most of its lands. In the Maratha capital, following Dupuy’s arrival and entry into the war, the anti-Mysore faction staged a palace coup that ousted Baji Rao II and replaced him for Yashwantrao Holkar, Maharaja of Indore, but he died shortly after. Daulat Rao Sindhia, who was loyal to the Peshwa, revolted against the usurpers, signing a peace deal with the British that saw his territories in Nagpur reduced to half of their pre-war size in exchange. Many statelets in Central India sided with Daulat Rao Sindhia for protection, while others defected to the British, thus effectively reducing the Maratha Empire to the lands ruled from Pune [8].
With this grim prospect ahead, Tipu Sultan sued for peace. The British insisted on harsh terms, but Dupuy sided with Tipu Sultan against the British, limiting their gains to an effective protectorate over Hyderabad, the annexation of fortified ports along the Maratha coast, trading privileges with the empire, and the cession of the port of Calicut from Mysore itself, which also lost a chunk of land in the northeast to Hyderabad. The defeat of Tipu Sultan is exposed by many Indian scholars as the moment when European domination of the subcontinent was unavoidable, a yoke most Indians would have to suffer for another century [9].
With this grim prospect ahead, Tipu Sultan sued for peace. The British insisted on harsh terms, but Dupuy sided with Tipu Sultan against the British, limiting their gains to an effective protectorate over Hyderabad, the annexation of fortified ports along the Maratha coast, trading privileges with the empire, and the cession of the port of Calicut from Mysore itself, which also lost a chunk of land in the northeast to Hyderabad. The defeat of Tipu Sultan is exposed by many Indian scholars as the moment when European domination of the subcontinent was unavoidable, a yoke most Indians would have to suffer for another century [9].
Eurasia in 1811, after the Congress of Ratisbon and the Second Anglo-Mysore War. America not displayed, read the Note below
[1] - He would turn to politics after the death of his wife IOTL, being a deputy and Grand Officier of the Legion of Honour.
[2] - Chandu Lal was proclaimed regent after a palace coup, how ironic.
[3] - The Franco-British War in India during the American Revolutionary War is considered as the First Anglo-Mysore War.
[4] - IOTL promoted to Governor-General in 1813. Butterflies.
[5] - A throne he never lost since this war was over who would be regent, but whatever. Nasir was 15 at the time yet his ability to rule continued to be denied. Also the whole siege is definitely not a reverse siege of Seringapatam.
[6] - Raja Sahib II, Raja Sahib died shortly before the outbreak of the war. This character is made up.
[7] - I originally planned to oust him and have any of his sons take power. Turns out, he had none. He adopted a son in order to somewhat continue the dynasty, some Nana Saheb, but he was born in 1824 so no deal. The issue with monarchies in ATL’s is that those governments trend to be single-person centred, and that often limits what you can do with them.
[8] - The western part of the OTL Indian state of Maharashtra and parts of Karnatka.
[9] - Foreshadowing.
[2] - Chandu Lal was proclaimed regent after a palace coup, how ironic.
[3] - The Franco-British War in India during the American Revolutionary War is considered as the First Anglo-Mysore War.
[4] - IOTL promoted to Governor-General in 1813. Butterflies.
[5] - A throne he never lost since this war was over who would be regent, but whatever. Nasir was 15 at the time yet his ability to rule continued to be denied. Also the whole siege is definitely not a reverse siege of Seringapatam.
[6] - Raja Sahib II, Raja Sahib died shortly before the outbreak of the war. This character is made up.
[7] - I originally planned to oust him and have any of his sons take power. Turns out, he had none. He adopted a son in order to somewhat continue the dynasty, some Nana Saheb, but he was born in 1824 so no deal. The issue with monarchies in ATL’s is that those governments trend to be single-person centred, and that often limits what you can do with them.
[8] - The western part of the OTL Indian state of Maharashtra and parts of Karnatka.
[9] - Foreshadowing.
Note:
Hey there, long time no see. I was busy with projects and exams, but I finished all of them this thursday, so I began to work on this chapter here. I'm glad the Napoleonic Wars arc is over, however I noticed that I trend to overextend myself with wars, they make most of the plot of the timeline and, after slogging through a lot of battles and campaigns, they are very tiring to write. So from now on I'll try to cut back on the military side of things and try to make chapters that can make the rhythm of the TL much quicker, albeit no way near the first ten chapters that cover almost half a century. Also, you may have noticed the map only shows Eurasia. Why not showing America if it is the second major divergence of the TL? Well, because it includes Latin America. And with TTL's Spain being stronger and way more stable (the moderate Charter of Seville butterflies away most of the intestine fights of post-Napoleonic Spain. This TL is pretty much a Spainwank), Latin America is going to change. A lot. Most TLs do not really go over South America, it is usually portrayed as Empire of Brazil, Gran Colombia, Peru-Bolivia and La Plata. We won't do that here, TTL's South America is going to be a mess, and in the next chapters we're hoping right on that bandwagon. Properly researching that time period is a pain in the ass, but I will try to cover it like I did with India, hope you guys like it.
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The SpainWank part looks interesting, on the other hand he asked me how screwed USA can be without it being too big a screw.
I was just wondering about this timeline yesterday! Good to see that things will happen in South America and great update on India.
Glad seeing this TL back, as for the Spain part, from what I've read, the colonies were already in state of unrest and deep disatisfaction with the mother country, I can see the Spaniards holding more areas than otl, but places like Mexico and Peru and to a lesser extent Venezuela and Colombia are lost causes already.
I don't recall asking that, but I doubt the US can be screwed more than it already is : )
I started writing this chapter yesterday, what a coincidence.
Using the term "colonies" as a whole may be a bit misleading. The ones that were dissatisfied with the current situation were for the most part the criollos, as they were still considered lesser than the peninsulares and excluded from power if there were people from mainland Spain in the queue, the overall lack of representation and influences from the American and French revolutions don't help either. Another main cause of the dissatisfaction was the way trade operated with America. Across the Empire, trade could be done with foreign powers, but it always had to go through a Spanish intermediary, which made imports more expensive and cut into the benefits of those exporting from the Americas. Spanish colonies had interacted freely with other powers, mostly Britain by the right of "asiento", which consisted on a British ship being able to trade directly with the Spanish Americas, albeit it was limited to a single ship per year and this right was prohibited later in the 18th century.
The peninsulares are somewhat loyal, but their loyalties fluctuated wildly, siding with whatever side could gain the upper hand. Most of the natives and the mestizos were royalist and comprised the bulk of the Spanish armies in the Americas, sometimes perviving as royalist guerrillas for more than a decade in Peru and Chile. As for the territories, Mexico and Peru are far from lost causes. IOTL, there were rebellions in Mexico from the beginning (Grito de Dolores), but they failed to gain a lot of traction and were quickly reduced to guerrillas contained on the mountains of the south, albeit the Spanish could never finish them off. Mexico only broke off from Spain once news arrived of a coup d'état that imposed a liberal constitution on Spain (Trieno Liberal), which freaked the conservative elites of Mexico to the point that they broke off in order to remain under a conservative state. The First Mexican Empire was pretty much New Spain with a different flag. As for Peru, there were some revolts in Cuzco and in OTL Bolivia, but those never breached past cities rebelling or proclaiming short-lived republics. As a matter of fact, Peru was so loyal it had to be taken from Spain by force with simultaneous attacks coming from the Pacific and the northern Andes, exhausting the royalist army until it had to capitulate at Ayacucho, and even after that the Spanish still held on to several enclaves.
Chapter 34: A Nation of Two Hemispheres
~ Chapter 34: A Nation of Two Hemispheres ~
As the dust settled over Europe following the defeat of Napoleon and the futile resistance of the Second French Republic the new and old polities of the continent faced the new challenge of liberalism, a collection of ideologies and thoughts that overall pursued a reduction in absolutist power, implementing a constitutional regime to limit the government and make it responsible to the law, curb the influence of the church, and foment and protect the concept of private property, among others. Liberalism was split between moderates, that sought to introduce changes in the system by reforming the system, and radicals, that intended to topple the current form of government through a revolution and implement their new system by force, with moderates being a clear majority in the first decades of the 19th century, as most European states had already embraced somewhat liberal ideas, especially through their prime ministers [1].
However, no country had its institutional foundations as altered as Spain following the end of this turbulent period in Europe. Spain had been a quasi-absolutist monarchy prior to the war, with a very powerful monarchy but with prime ministers capable of pushing reforms if the monarch did not disapprove them, with the country having several liberally-oriented PM’s through the late 18th century, such as the Count of Floridablanca or the Count of Aranda [2]. Spain then went through a confusing period during the French Revolutionary Wars, initially siding with the First Coalition and fighting the French, only for then, under the new PM Manuel Godoy, switch sides and ally with the republican French regime against their common enemy of Great Britain. While parts of the government were enthusiastic about the war, the military was more cautious, avoiding large engagements fearing a repeat of the Battle of Apalachee Bay, thus Spain’s navy avoided the tragic fate of its French counterpart at the Battle of Trafalgar [3].
Seal of the Junta of Seville, future Supreme Central Junta of Spain and Indies
Politically, however, Spain was pretty much another puppet state of France, allowing imperial troops to enter its territory in order to invade Portugal, who refused to abide by the Continental System. The French troops stayed for longer than expected, and Napoleon captured the Spanish Royal Family altogether, forcing Ferdinand VII to abdicate back on his father (who in turn had abdicated on him a month ago at Aranjuez), and then Charles IV abdicated on Napoleon, who passed the crown to his brother Joseph. French abuses in Spain also triggered a major uprising against the occupiers, with this uprising being the first domino in the chain that would result in the collapse of Napoleon’s empire in 1810. Despite the eventual victory, Spain now was de facto a republican regime with no monarch to sit on the throne, with the government falling on the hands of local “Juntas” that coalesced in the city of Seville the form the Supreme Central Junta of Spain and the Indies, the organ that would act as Spain’s effective government for the duration of the war [4].
The Supreme Central Junta signed a treaty of alliance with Britain under the presidence of Floridablanca, being succeeded by the Marquis of Astorga when he passed away. The junta was legitimised by Castaños’ victory at the Battle of Valdepeñas, and they proceeded to call for the formation of Cortes in order to form a proper government in the name of the exiled Ferdinand VII. Through 1809 and 1810 the Cortes worked on elaborating a constitutional text that would be the basis of the future Spanish legal framework, that text being published on June 18 of 1810, nicknamed as the “Charter of Seville” or as “La Marcelina” [5]. This constitution featured a bicameral parliament, with a Chamber of Deputies elected by a skewed and convoluted male suffrage method, and a Senate, whose members were appointed personally by the king. The issue of sovereignty was a tough point to discuss, ultimately agreeing that sovereignty fell both on the monarch and the nation, understanding that nation as “Spaniards of both hemispheres” which in theory granted fully equal rights to the citizens of the Americas compared to those of the Peninsula. It was the responsibility of the CoD to name the prime minister, however it had to be ratified by the king, and if three candidates were rejected, the king had the power to name one by himself, skipping any other procedure, which would result in power abuses once the monarchy came back [6].
The Supreme Central Junta signed a treaty of alliance with Britain under the presidence of Floridablanca, being succeeded by the Marquis of Astorga when he passed away. The junta was legitimised by Castaños’ victory at the Battle of Valdepeñas, and they proceeded to call for the formation of Cortes in order to form a proper government in the name of the exiled Ferdinand VII. Through 1809 and 1810 the Cortes worked on elaborating a constitutional text that would be the basis of the future Spanish legal framework, that text being published on June 18 of 1810, nicknamed as the “Charter of Seville” or as “La Marcelina” [5]. This constitution featured a bicameral parliament, with a Chamber of Deputies elected by a skewed and convoluted male suffrage method, and a Senate, whose members were appointed personally by the king. The issue of sovereignty was a tough point to discuss, ultimately agreeing that sovereignty fell both on the monarch and the nation, understanding that nation as “Spaniards of both hemispheres” which in theory granted fully equal rights to the citizens of the Americas compared to those of the Peninsula. It was the responsibility of the CoD to name the prime minister, however it had to be ratified by the king, and if three candidates were rejected, the king had the power to name one by himself, skipping any other procedure, which would result in power abuses once the monarchy came back [6].
"The truth, the time and the history", a 1800 painting by Goya employed as an allegory of the Constitution
By the time the Charter of Seville had been promulgated, the Napoleonic wars were coming to an end. Napoleon wanted to close the Spanish theatre so he could focus on the rest of the Coalition, signing the Treaty of Valençay with the captured Spanish monarch, promising him a safe return to Spain under whatever conditions he desired. However, Napoleon’s death in November of that same year truncated the return, and Ferdinand only returned to Spain when an army unit under Platinean colonel José de San Martín stormed the palace of Valençay and liberated the king from his “captivity” [7]. Ferdinand was taken to Madrid, where he was “compelled” to ratify the Charter of Seville as the law of the land, without him being able to organise any sort of resistance or coup against the government [8].
While the situation seemed stable in the peninsula, that was not the case in the Americas. Liberal influences had grown over the year, with British lodges and freemasons extending pro-independence ideas across many criollos, deeply dissatisfied with the preferential treatment peninsulares were given. The viceroyalties of the Spanish Empire were not able to trade on their own and always had to act through Spanish intermediaries if trade was to be conducted with third parties, which further antagonised the merchant classes with the Spanish government. When the Spanish monarchy was virtually decapitated following the Aranjuez Mutiny and the Bayonne Abdications, one of the main pillars that kept the Empire together fell, with many groups in America taking profit of the complete chaos that was mainland Spain until 1809 to begin to act independently and form their own Juntas, not always recognizing the authority of the Junta of Seville, but still recognizing Ferdinand VII as a monarch, albeit it was common for these juntas to masquerade independence attempts with loyalty to an absent king.
One of the first regions to experience turmoil was New Spain, where the Spanish had introduced a special tax in 1804, the “Vales Reales”, which drove many individuals to bankruptcy and debt, with the Spanish government itself going into further debt as most of the money gathered with this tax was given to either the French or the British, as Spain had not yet picked a side. When the Spanish monarchy fell, the viceroy José de Iturrigaray was not convinced of the authority of the Junta of Seville and tried to maintain a neutral position while recognizing Ferdinand as king, crowning him in absentia on August 13 1808 [9]. However, groups spread news that Iturrigaray’s push for New Spanish autonomy was actually a plot to proclaim himself King of New Spain. On the night of September 15 a group known as “Ferdinand VII’s patriots” tried to capture Iturrigaray by waiting for him at the vieroyal palace, however the viceroy’s wife noticed strange movements near the palace and convinced Iturrigaray to turn back, thwarting the coup with the help of liberals like Juan Francisco Azcárate. Iturrigaray would be influenced more and more by the liberals, distrusting the conservative New Spanish elite as he saw them as the force behind the attempted coup, yet Iturrigaray would never claim New Spain to be independent or Ferdinand VII not to be its ruler [10].
While the situation seemed stable in the peninsula, that was not the case in the Americas. Liberal influences had grown over the year, with British lodges and freemasons extending pro-independence ideas across many criollos, deeply dissatisfied with the preferential treatment peninsulares were given. The viceroyalties of the Spanish Empire were not able to trade on their own and always had to act through Spanish intermediaries if trade was to be conducted with third parties, which further antagonised the merchant classes with the Spanish government. When the Spanish monarchy was virtually decapitated following the Aranjuez Mutiny and the Bayonne Abdications, one of the main pillars that kept the Empire together fell, with many groups in America taking profit of the complete chaos that was mainland Spain until 1809 to begin to act independently and form their own Juntas, not always recognizing the authority of the Junta of Seville, but still recognizing Ferdinand VII as a monarch, albeit it was common for these juntas to masquerade independence attempts with loyalty to an absent king.
One of the first regions to experience turmoil was New Spain, where the Spanish had introduced a special tax in 1804, the “Vales Reales”, which drove many individuals to bankruptcy and debt, with the Spanish government itself going into further debt as most of the money gathered with this tax was given to either the French or the British, as Spain had not yet picked a side. When the Spanish monarchy fell, the viceroy José de Iturrigaray was not convinced of the authority of the Junta of Seville and tried to maintain a neutral position while recognizing Ferdinand as king, crowning him in absentia on August 13 1808 [9]. However, groups spread news that Iturrigaray’s push for New Spanish autonomy was actually a plot to proclaim himself King of New Spain. On the night of September 15 a group known as “Ferdinand VII’s patriots” tried to capture Iturrigaray by waiting for him at the vieroyal palace, however the viceroy’s wife noticed strange movements near the palace and convinced Iturrigaray to turn back, thwarting the coup with the help of liberals like Juan Francisco Azcárate. Iturrigaray would be influenced more and more by the liberals, distrusting the conservative New Spanish elite as he saw them as the force behind the attempted coup, yet Iturrigaray would never claim New Spain to be independent or Ferdinand VII not to be its ruler [10].
José de Iturrigaray, Viceroy of New Spain (1803 - 1810)
[1] - A bit of a flashback here. TTL’s first ministers and prominent figures of government are not those of OTL. For starters, Austria’s victory in the War of the Fifth Coalition results in von Stadion never presenting his resignation, thus the ultra absolutist von Metternich is not Austria’s foreign minister. In Prussia, more liberal figures are in power as the government depuration following vom Stein’s letter never happened. Russia, meanwhile, has not seen Mikhail Speransky fall out of grace as thoroughly as he did, but the Tsar still used him as a scape-goat. Nikolay Rumyantsev will continue to be the Chairmen of the Committee of Ministers and Aleksey Arakcheyev isn’t as prominent of a figure.
[2] - Aranda is an interesting figure. Following the US declaration of independence he correctly predicted the expansionist policies of the country, and also recommended turning Spain into a sort of confederal monarchy, where the sons of Charles III would be sent to the Americas to become kings of New Spain, New Granada, and Peru-La Plata, all united with Spain in a larger framework. This TL does a good job portraying this idea.
[3] - This mean’s Spain’s navy is stronger ITTL. Britain’s navy was also slightly weaker compared to Spain and France to begin with, with the Bourbon Alliance enjoying more success during the Seven Years’ War and the American Revolutionary War. The Battle of Apalachee Bay also served as a catalyst to reform the Spanish Navy ITTL.
[4] - ITTL Spain does way better in the Peninsular War. The Battle of Ocaña never happens, and thus the French can’t enter Andalusia again. This means the Supreme Central Junta survives, thus Cortes are never called in the besieged city of Cadiz, and the OTL Constitution of 1812 is never drafted. This creates a massive ripple effect later on.
[5] - After Saint Marcellinus of Rome, whose saint day is June 18. The OTL Constitution of 1812 is similarly nicknamed “La Pepa” for being promulgated on Saint Joseph’s day (Pepa is a female Spanish name, a shorter version of Mary Joseph / Maria José).
[6] - The Charter of Seville is more moderate than the OTL Cadiz Constitution. The Cadiz Constitution established a single-chamber government without royal appointees, the sovereignty resided exclusively in the nation, and the king was reduced to a figurehead, essentially a civil servant. Obviously, this moderate text is way more palatable for Spanish conservatives.
[7] - Yes, that same José de San Martín that was key in the independence of the southern half of Spanish America. He was a soldier in the Spanish Army until 1810, participating in the Battle of Bailén both IOTL and ITTL. Also, with the different position of forces, San Martín never meets James Duff, a scotsman that introduced him to pro-independence American circles. As for Ferdinand, he wasn’t a captive at all, his estance at Valençay was nothing short of a lengthy vacation.
[8] - The Manifest of the Persians and the Valencia Proclamation have been butterflied away. Ferdinand still despises this form of government, believing in the divine right of kings to rule, however TTL’s Spanish political landscape is more moderate overall, so he has to swallow that pill.
[9] - The same day Cortés took over the Anáhuac, that day marking the birth of New Spain.
[10] - This doesn’t mean later governments in Mexico City will continue this trend.
[2] - Aranda is an interesting figure. Following the US declaration of independence he correctly predicted the expansionist policies of the country, and also recommended turning Spain into a sort of confederal monarchy, where the sons of Charles III would be sent to the Americas to become kings of New Spain, New Granada, and Peru-La Plata, all united with Spain in a larger framework. This TL does a good job portraying this idea.
[3] - This mean’s Spain’s navy is stronger ITTL. Britain’s navy was also slightly weaker compared to Spain and France to begin with, with the Bourbon Alliance enjoying more success during the Seven Years’ War and the American Revolutionary War. The Battle of Apalachee Bay also served as a catalyst to reform the Spanish Navy ITTL.
[4] - ITTL Spain does way better in the Peninsular War. The Battle of Ocaña never happens, and thus the French can’t enter Andalusia again. This means the Supreme Central Junta survives, thus Cortes are never called in the besieged city of Cadiz, and the OTL Constitution of 1812 is never drafted. This creates a massive ripple effect later on.
[5] - After Saint Marcellinus of Rome, whose saint day is June 18. The OTL Constitution of 1812 is similarly nicknamed “La Pepa” for being promulgated on Saint Joseph’s day (Pepa is a female Spanish name, a shorter version of Mary Joseph / Maria José).
[6] - The Charter of Seville is more moderate than the OTL Cadiz Constitution. The Cadiz Constitution established a single-chamber government without royal appointees, the sovereignty resided exclusively in the nation, and the king was reduced to a figurehead, essentially a civil servant. Obviously, this moderate text is way more palatable for Spanish conservatives.
[7] - Yes, that same José de San Martín that was key in the independence of the southern half of Spanish America. He was a soldier in the Spanish Army until 1810, participating in the Battle of Bailén both IOTL and ITTL. Also, with the different position of forces, San Martín never meets James Duff, a scotsman that introduced him to pro-independence American circles. As for Ferdinand, he wasn’t a captive at all, his estance at Valençay was nothing short of a lengthy vacation.
[8] - The Manifest of the Persians and the Valencia Proclamation have been butterflied away. Ferdinand still despises this form of government, believing in the divine right of kings to rule, however TTL’s Spanish political landscape is more moderate overall, so he has to swallow that pill.
[9] - The same day Cortés took over the Anáhuac, that day marking the birth of New Spain.
[10] - This doesn’t mean later governments in Mexico City will continue this trend.
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This new Constitution can make that the Creoles are not so relegated?
In theory, both peninsulars and Americans are the same, this may mean that the more the empire is liberalized and the more people can vote, it is possible that mestizos also vote.
So maybe this will happen at the end of the 19th century, I wonder what will turn out in the end.
On the other hand there may be other changes such as: Ferdinand has a son or Isabel is born before.
The first is preferable to avoid the Carlist wars.
In theory, both peninsulars and Americans are the same, this may mean that the more the empire is liberalized and the more people can vote, it is possible that mestizos also vote.
So maybe this will happen at the end of the 19th century, I wonder what will turn out in the end.
On the other hand there may be other changes such as: Ferdinand has a son or Isabel is born before.
The first is preferable to avoid the Carlist wars.
The Constitution is very vague on that regard, it limits itself to saying "Spaniards". So the interpretation is very lax, meaning everybody has the same theoretical rights (yes, even natives), but that same laxness means there is no definition of what groups should be given what in practice. The creoles are still going to be relegated at first, and them being the main proponents of independence, the Spanish are going to favour the mestizos more, at least for a time. Right now the vote is not based on caste but on possessions and richness, so natives and mestizos that hold a title can vote.
Ferdinand is going to have a couple butterflies and yes, he will have a son, the same from the previous iteration of this TL.
Chapter 35: The Rifts of the Empire
~ Chapter 35: The Rifts of the Empire ~
The second major disruption in Spanish America happened in the Rio de la Plata, where Francisco Javier de Elío, governor of Montevideo, rejected the authority of viceroy Liniers, accusing him of being a French puppet and conspiring to land French forces in Buenos Aires [1]. This line of thought was also supported in Spain, where the Junta of Seville realised that he had not been confirmed as viceroy of Buenos Aires, and thus sent Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros to be the new governor. However, when Cisneros arrived in the summer of 1809 the situation had changed drastically. A group of prominent Peninsulares, headed by the mayor of Buenos Aires, Martín de Álzaga [2], had launched a coup d’état that deposed Liniers on January 1st [3]. A new government composed exclusively of Peninsulares taking the form of a Junta presided by Mariano Moreno and Julián de Leyva, with the title of viceroy falling on the oldest active official, that being Pascual Ruiz Huidobro.
Ruiz refused to recognise Cisneros a viceroy and he stated that he would act as interim viceroy until the government of Spain had been completely restored. Cisneros, mad at this insubordination, turned to the Junta of Montevideo, presided by an equally angry de Elío, who submitted to Cisneros as he was proclaimed Viceroy in Montevideo. This double government caused a civil war within the Viceroyalty between the Montevideo and Buenos Aires governments. The Buenos Aires government was supported by the Peninsular city militias, mostly composed of Galician, Basque and Catalan troops as well as the Corrientes Hussars, while the forces of Cisneros were smaller, albeit he controlled the navy. Buenos Aires was also a powderkeg, as the power of the criollos had been crushed by the coup d’état, and many expected that a victory of the Montevideo faction would restore the balance or even tip the scale in favour of the criollos.
Pascual Ruiz Huidobro, self-proclaimed Viceroy of La Plata
With two competing governments on each side of the Río de la Plata, the interior of the viceroyalty exploded in anarchy without clear instructions. Some supported the government of Ruiz, while others preferred to follow the orders of Cisneros, acknowledging the Supreme Central Junta of Spain and Indies as the legitimate government of Spain acting in the name of his majesty Ferdinand VII. Other cities and local governments proclaimed their own juntas inspired by the successful Chuquisaca Uprising that had deposed the president of the Royal Audiency. Those city-scale uprising are often grouped under the historical term “Republiquetas” [4], with some lasting several years until order could be restored by Spanish troops coming from Peru, resulting in the effective annexation of Charcas and Upper Peru into the Viceroyalty of Peru, stripping La Plata of almost half of its territory [5].
Ruiz intended to crush the anarchy in the north and was forced to rely increasingly on criollo militias and power brokers, while employing the Peninsular troops for garrison duties. In order to finance a new army for the expedition up north he increased taxes, further alienating the Buenos Aires citizenship from the new government. Álzaga refused all petitions from the merchants to allow free trade with other powers, being an opponent of free trade himself, and considering an act that would undermine his control. The price of bread increased through the summer of 1809 to 1810, as reserves were stockpiled for the army and the cereal and meat-producing provinces north of the Rio de la Plata were under Cisneros’ control, while the intermittent blockade of Montevideo’s navy further reduced supplies. Further north the governor of the Province of Paraguay, Bernardo de Velasco, sided with Cisneros and sent an army down the Paraná.
Throughout 1809 and 1810 the situation worsened for the royalists, as new government juntas sprang up in New Granada, with the most powerful ones being proclaimed in Quito, Cartagena, Caracas and Santa Fe de Bogotá. However the most relevant act of 1810 would be the uprising of the members of the Querétaro Conspiracy in October 1st in the New Galician town of San Juan de los Lagos [6], headed by priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and the commander of the Queen’s Dragoons, Ignacio Allende, also receiving support from relevant figures like Mariano Abasolo. The conspirators initially pledged allegiance to Ferdinand VII, quickly gathering an army of 100.000 men that [7], despite taking horrendous casualties, defeated the Spanish under Torcuato Trujillo near San Juan del Río, seizing the towns of Querétaro and Valladolid. A hastily assembled defence led by Iturrigaray himself was defeated at the Battle of Santa Cruz del Monte on December 8, where Iturrigaray himself was captured by the rebel cavalry. The viceroyalty passed to general Félix Calleja del Rey, the most respected commander in the Viceroyalty, but he could do little to stop Hidalgo and Allende from taking Mexico City, retreating towards Veracruz with hopes of receiving reinforcements.
Ruiz intended to crush the anarchy in the north and was forced to rely increasingly on criollo militias and power brokers, while employing the Peninsular troops for garrison duties. In order to finance a new army for the expedition up north he increased taxes, further alienating the Buenos Aires citizenship from the new government. Álzaga refused all petitions from the merchants to allow free trade with other powers, being an opponent of free trade himself, and considering an act that would undermine his control. The price of bread increased through the summer of 1809 to 1810, as reserves were stockpiled for the army and the cereal and meat-producing provinces north of the Rio de la Plata were under Cisneros’ control, while the intermittent blockade of Montevideo’s navy further reduced supplies. Further north the governor of the Province of Paraguay, Bernardo de Velasco, sided with Cisneros and sent an army down the Paraná.
Throughout 1809 and 1810 the situation worsened for the royalists, as new government juntas sprang up in New Granada, with the most powerful ones being proclaimed in Quito, Cartagena, Caracas and Santa Fe de Bogotá. However the most relevant act of 1810 would be the uprising of the members of the Querétaro Conspiracy in October 1st in the New Galician town of San Juan de los Lagos [6], headed by priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and the commander of the Queen’s Dragoons, Ignacio Allende, also receiving support from relevant figures like Mariano Abasolo. The conspirators initially pledged allegiance to Ferdinand VII, quickly gathering an army of 100.000 men that [7], despite taking horrendous casualties, defeated the Spanish under Torcuato Trujillo near San Juan del Río, seizing the towns of Querétaro and Valladolid. A hastily assembled defence led by Iturrigaray himself was defeated at the Battle of Santa Cruz del Monte on December 8, where Iturrigaray himself was captured by the rebel cavalry. The viceroyalty passed to general Félix Calleja del Rey, the most respected commander in the Viceroyalty, but he could do little to stop Hidalgo and Allende from taking Mexico City, retreating towards Veracruz with hopes of receiving reinforcements.
Capture of the Alhóndiga de Granaditas, Guanajuato, by the Mexican rebels
The new government in Mexico City reorganised itself in the form of a Junta, dubbing itself the Supreme National Junta of Septentrional America [8]. In their first legal act they expelled the Peninsular administrators from the government, replacing them with criollos and even some mestizos. The new junta took advantage of the antagonism towards Iturrigaray, who had exploited his time as viceroy to grow richer out of taxpayers’ money, rallying liberal elements and even conservatives. Within a year the Junta had drafted a constitution (Constitution of the Anáhuac), inspired by the Charter of Seville, that officially proclaimed the independence of Septentrional America, in the form of a centralist republic, with separation of powers and a tripartite government that rotated its presidency each four months.
The claims of Mexico City over so much territory would never be realised, as parallel uprisings had taken place elsewhere. The most notable of them was the Louisianan Revolution. Louisiana, while under the administration of Count of Hédouville, was theoretically a colony of Napoleonic France, but in real terms it behaved like a sovereign state, signing lucrative trade deals with the American republics, especially with Virginia, as their control of the Ohio River granted them leverage of upstream trade, and they required an amicable government in New Orleans to keep trade uninterrupted. During this period, extending from 1801 to 1808, Louisiana had attracted many political exiles, merchants and settlers from the Americas and even Europe, with the ideas of the French Revolution rooting deep in the colony. The Spanish takeover was a return to the monarchist regime, with the Spanish governor, Manuel Caballero y Masot, derogating all of the laws and acts passed by Hédouville.
Once the Napoleonic Wars ended and the Second French Republic was crushed in a wave of White Terror, many promiment revolutionaries and administrators fled France towards the Americas, initially following the example of Jean Victor Marie Moreau [9]. Chief among those “émigrés” was Bernadotte, who had rejected a proposal by Napoleon to name him governor of Louisiana in 1802 [10]. Bernadotte soon took notice of the situation in the colony, and began to organise a plot thanks to an extensive net of contacts in the Americas provided by Adrien-Nicolas Piédefer, Marquis of La Salle. As soon as he gathered enough supporters and supplies, Bernadotte launched a coup in New Orleans on April 23 1811, deposing Caballero without complications and proclaiming the Republic of Louisiana, with the fur traders and trappers of the Upper Mississippi supporting the Republic. The new state stylised itself after the First French Republic, adopting revolutionary colours and raising a militia commanded by Bernadotte himself, with funds provided by American merchants. New Orléans quickly signed an alliance with Georgia, in no small part due to the country’s francophilia following Moreau’s arrival, and also to secure the eastern border, as Georgia claimed West Florida from Spain.
The claims of Mexico City over so much territory would never be realised, as parallel uprisings had taken place elsewhere. The most notable of them was the Louisianan Revolution. Louisiana, while under the administration of Count of Hédouville, was theoretically a colony of Napoleonic France, but in real terms it behaved like a sovereign state, signing lucrative trade deals with the American republics, especially with Virginia, as their control of the Ohio River granted them leverage of upstream trade, and they required an amicable government in New Orleans to keep trade uninterrupted. During this period, extending from 1801 to 1808, Louisiana had attracted many political exiles, merchants and settlers from the Americas and even Europe, with the ideas of the French Revolution rooting deep in the colony. The Spanish takeover was a return to the monarchist regime, with the Spanish governor, Manuel Caballero y Masot, derogating all of the laws and acts passed by Hédouville.
Once the Napoleonic Wars ended and the Second French Republic was crushed in a wave of White Terror, many promiment revolutionaries and administrators fled France towards the Americas, initially following the example of Jean Victor Marie Moreau [9]. Chief among those “émigrés” was Bernadotte, who had rejected a proposal by Napoleon to name him governor of Louisiana in 1802 [10]. Bernadotte soon took notice of the situation in the colony, and began to organise a plot thanks to an extensive net of contacts in the Americas provided by Adrien-Nicolas Piédefer, Marquis of La Salle. As soon as he gathered enough supporters and supplies, Bernadotte launched a coup in New Orleans on April 23 1811, deposing Caballero without complications and proclaiming the Republic of Louisiana, with the fur traders and trappers of the Upper Mississippi supporting the Republic. The new state stylised itself after the First French Republic, adopting revolutionary colours and raising a militia commanded by Bernadotte himself, with funds provided by American merchants. New Orléans quickly signed an alliance with Georgia, in no small part due to the country’s francophilia following Moreau’s arrival, and also to secure the eastern border, as Georgia claimed West Florida from Spain.
Flag of the Republic of Louisiana
To the west, Juan Bautista de las Casas deposed the Spanish governor of Texas for a brief time before royalist forces regrouped and captured him, executing de las Casas at Monclova, as northern Mexico was still controlled by the royalists. However, the remaining rebels headed west towards Louisiana and America, securing funds and men for a renewed expedition, now under the command of Virginian pioneer and experienced Indian fighter John Gordon. The expedition defeated the forces of governor Salcedo at the Battle of San Antonio de Béxar in early 1813, proclaiming Texas as an independent republic soon after, with John Gordon acting as temporary president, inviting many American settlers and pioneers into the country with the hope of turning the young republic into an extension of Angloamerica, an act that received sporadic complaints from the Hispanic Texans, as the collapse of Spanish authority had resulted in an increase of Comanche raids. Both Texas and Louisiana were unpopulated and peripheral territories, with the Spanish attempts at a reconquest of America focused in the richer and more populated Mexico, mostly ignoring the two northern republics, while the Mexicans had their hand fulls with Spain so their attempts at projecting authority north of the Nueces River never materaliased.
[1] - Those were all lies, Liniers would always be loyal to the Spanish crown. Also, due to the different timing of the British invasions , Liniers ascended to the post of Viceroy in 1808 and not in 1807, with him being less popular due to the second British invasion never happening. When news of Liniers’ proclamation reached Spain the country was already in chaos.
[2] - Álzaga is an interesting fella. Despite arriving at Buenos Aires being only eleven, without a single coin and only speaking Basque, he managed to create an arms emporium in the city thanks to his natural leadership skills, IOTL he created a “shadow army” under the nose of British occupation forces, and forced the capitulation of William Beresford.
[3] - A successful “Asonada”. This happened due to the alternate British invasions, that never saw Cornelio Saavedra rise to prominence, thus he did not stop the coup, keeping Liniers in power and making the criollo faction way more powerful. Saavedra not rising to prominence also butterflies away OTL’s May Revolution of 1810.
[4] - Little Republics in Spanish. IOTL they were mostly confined to OTL Bolivia, however ITTL they extend to the Argentinian Andes.
[5] - This annexation would not be formally acknowledged by the Spanish until many years down the line.
[6] - IOTL the conspiracy was uncovered by a mailman. ITTL due to the alternate government in Mexico City and the criollo faction being more powerful, the conspiracy goes by and begins as planned.
[7] - A slightly larger army than the 80.000 men that fought in the OTL Battle of Monte de las Cruces. Like OTL, though, most of the army is composed of unexperienced natives that followed Hidalgo with barely any weapons.
[8] - A name similar to the OTL Junta of Zitácuaro. The term “Septentrional America” refers not only to the lands of New Spain but all Spanish possessions north of Panama, including Louisiana, the Caribbean, and the claims on the Oregon Country.
[9] - Who left for Georgia, he couldn’t go to the US since the Union does not exist anymore, training and modernising the army of the small republic. When he heard news of Napoleon’s death he returned to France, where he was granted the title of Marshal of France by Louis XVIII.
[10] - This happened both IOTL and ITTL, with him refusing to accept due to Napoleon not wanting to give soldiers, settlers and funding to the colony.
[1] - Those were all lies, Liniers would always be loyal to the Spanish crown. Also, due to the different timing of the British invasions , Liniers ascended to the post of Viceroy in 1808 and not in 1807, with him being less popular due to the second British invasion never happening. When news of Liniers’ proclamation reached Spain the country was already in chaos.
[2] - Álzaga is an interesting fella. Despite arriving at Buenos Aires being only eleven, without a single coin and only speaking Basque, he managed to create an arms emporium in the city thanks to his natural leadership skills, IOTL he created a “shadow army” under the nose of British occupation forces, and forced the capitulation of William Beresford.
[3] - A successful “Asonada”. This happened due to the alternate British invasions, that never saw Cornelio Saavedra rise to prominence, thus he did not stop the coup, keeping Liniers in power and making the criollo faction way more powerful. Saavedra not rising to prominence also butterflies away OTL’s May Revolution of 1810.
[4] - Little Republics in Spanish. IOTL they were mostly confined to OTL Bolivia, however ITTL they extend to the Argentinian Andes.
[5] - This annexation would not be formally acknowledged by the Spanish until many years down the line.
[6] - IOTL the conspiracy was uncovered by a mailman. ITTL due to the alternate government in Mexico City and the criollo faction being more powerful, the conspiracy goes by and begins as planned.
[7] - A slightly larger army than the 80.000 men that fought in the OTL Battle of Monte de las Cruces. Like OTL, though, most of the army is composed of unexperienced natives that followed Hidalgo with barely any weapons.
[8] - A name similar to the OTL Junta of Zitácuaro. The term “Septentrional America” refers not only to the lands of New Spain but all Spanish possessions north of Panama, including Louisiana, the Caribbean, and the claims on the Oregon Country.
[9] - Who left for Georgia, he couldn’t go to the US since the Union does not exist anymore, training and modernising the army of the small republic. When he heard news of Napoleon’s death he returned to France, where he was granted the title of Marshal of France by Louis XVIII.
[10] - This happened both IOTL and ITTL, with him refusing to accept due to Napoleon not wanting to give soldiers, settlers and funding to the colony.
This is a disaster, I doubt very much that Texas will survive independently, probably barely and if Mexico stabilizes they send a small force to subjugate them. Louisiana was conquered and returned to the Spanish fold before, so I guess that will be another target as well.
Postscript: what happened to Brazil?
Postscript: what happened to Brazil?
Is this like a Fredonian Rebellion-type deal that precipitates the modern Texas, or is this the start of the actual Republic of Texas?
The only change in Brazil as of now is that Carlotism (the idea that Carlota Joaquina, wife of prince John of Portugal, should be proclaimed queen in La Plata) is less popular than OTL. Otherwsie, Brazil is identical.
More like the second case, this Texas is now incredibly weak, but both Spain and Mexico simply can't devote the resources to take care of it right now. The more time it is independent the stronger the state will get, and an alliance with the Columbian nations is very likely.
Ah, so Texas has a few decades' headstart on independence than the OTL Republic and previous iterations of VF!Texas
Chapter 36: Andean Rebellions and a Mexican Bloodbath
~ Chapter 36: Andean Rebellions and a Mexican Bloodbath ~
As the year of 1811 came to an end the situation in Europe had calmed enough for the Spanish to rearrange their forces and begin plans to launch expeditions to the rebellious American provinces. When news came of Allende and Hidalgo’s takeover of New Spain, one of the richest parts of the empire, immediate action was taken to relieve the forces of Félix Calleja, cornered in Veracruz. The Spanish mustered a force of 20,000 men in the port of Cádiz commanded by Brigadier General Sebastián de la Calzada, that departed in January of 1812 [1]. In Mexico, general Allende had secured control of most of the viceroyalty south of Zacatecas, and had theoretical control of the north, or at least the military forces in the region were not openly hostile, with the figure of Hidalgo keeping the many “misiones” of the north in line thanks to his religious fervour. Allende then proceeded to descend from the Mexican Plateau towards Veracruz with hopes of forcing Calleja to capitulate, which would hand over New Spain to the rebels, as he was the highest Spanish authority present in the viceroyalty. Calleja retreated to the fortress of San Juan de Ulúa, where he was besieged in January of 1812, as the rebels lacked artillery and gunpowder to penetrate the strong defences of the fort [2].
In late March the Spanish fleet barraged Mexican positions near Veracruz and landed the invasion force. The force was still disorganised after the landing, so Allende decided to attack the Spanish right then and there before they could recompose and be a more serious threat. Gathering a large force consisting of tens of thousands of mostly-native followers, he launched an attack at the Spanish, surging from the forest of the Arboleda de San Ramón, some six kilometres south of Veracruz. The battle consisted in an endless charge of rebels against the Spanish lines, with the Spanish infantry hampered by the lack of gunpowder as a large quantity had been soaked during a landing accident, resorting to swords and bayonets to stave off the assaulting horde. Eventually, the morale among the natives plummeted and Allende had to stop the attack, leaving both sides tired, battered, and with almost no supplies. Despite the over nine thousand dead or wounded on his side [3], Allende had stopped an immediate reconquest of Mexico.
Battle of the Arboleda de San Ramón, near Veracruz
As thousands died in the coasts of the Gulf of Mexico, the revolution spread to the rest of Spanish America. The government juntas in South America, initially at least feigning loyalty to the Spanish king [4], had turned into revolutionary governments. On March 2nd of 1811, the Junta of Caracas rebranded itself as the National Congress of Venezuela, proclaiming independence in July, with Francisco de Miranda acting as chief of state. However, this Republic of Venezuela would be short-lived, as the government was so unpopular it took only an initial force of 230 Spaniards commanded by Domingo de Monteverde to overwhelm the new regime within a year, restoring Spanish rule.
In New Granada the situation was a bit different. The rebels had successfully gained control over much of the kingdom, especially along the coast and the Andes, where each province had formed its own independent government. Eventually, most of the provinces coalesced under a federal structure to form the United Provinces of New Granada, except for the provinces of Chocó, Mariquita, and Cundinamarca, which followed a more centralist view. To the north, the Spanish still controlled the provinces of Santa Marta and Riohacha, while the city of Pasto to the south was a royalist stronghold [5]. When a dispute arose between Cundinamarca and the United Provinces, both governments went to war, with the conflict lasting for a year until both sides realised they had a common enemy in the Spanish forces, with Antonio Nariño, leader of the State of Cundinamarca, becoming commander of the armies tasked with defending the United Provinces from any invasion attempt from Peru, as the Spanish had secured Quito after suppressing two separate attempts at forming a separate government. Nariño opted to advance south and conquer the province of Popayán, taking the capital and continuing in a rush towards Pasto. After a lengthy march during which royalist guerrillas launched constant attacks, Nariño had reached the city of Pasto, but his forces had been so depleted that the local Pastusos were enough to dismantle his army and even capture Nariño himself. With an imprisoned Nariño, the United Provinces took over Cundinamarca in a swift campaign, unifying the rebellious territories.
In New Granada the situation was a bit different. The rebels had successfully gained control over much of the kingdom, especially along the coast and the Andes, where each province had formed its own independent government. Eventually, most of the provinces coalesced under a federal structure to form the United Provinces of New Granada, except for the provinces of Chocó, Mariquita, and Cundinamarca, which followed a more centralist view. To the north, the Spanish still controlled the provinces of Santa Marta and Riohacha, while the city of Pasto to the south was a royalist stronghold [5]. When a dispute arose between Cundinamarca and the United Provinces, both governments went to war, with the conflict lasting for a year until both sides realised they had a common enemy in the Spanish forces, with Antonio Nariño, leader of the State of Cundinamarca, becoming commander of the armies tasked with defending the United Provinces from any invasion attempt from Peru, as the Spanish had secured Quito after suppressing two separate attempts at forming a separate government. Nariño opted to advance south and conquer the province of Popayán, taking the capital and continuing in a rush towards Pasto. After a lengthy march during which royalist guerrillas launched constant attacks, Nariño had reached the city of Pasto, but his forces had been so depleted that the local Pastusos were enough to dismantle his army and even capture Nariño himself. With an imprisoned Nariño, the United Provinces took over Cundinamarca in a swift campaign, unifying the rebellious territories.
Antonio Nariño, leader of Cundinamarca
The last territory that underwent a revolution in the first years of the decade was Chile, where a junta had been proclaimed in Santiago in September of 1810. Chile was another royalist stronghold, with the Junta initially being very pro-Spanish, but revolutionary ideas began to seep into the Chilean aristocracy that composed most of the Junta’s members. The nascent Chilean government was soon overridden with coup attempts and regional divisions, especially between the cities of Santiago and Concepción. Hardcore royalist tried to overthrow the Junta commanded by Tomás de Figueroa and failed, only for independentist figures to launch their own coup in 1811, suceeding in expelling the royalists from the assembly. The Junta drafted a constitutional text that recognised Ferdinand VII as King of Chile, but on the other hand stated that no orders coming from outside the Captaincy General would be implemented and that Chile was sovereign to engage in diplomatic relations with third parties. Fearing an imminent declaration of independence, the Viceroy of Peru, Fernando de Abascal, dispatched an expedition to Chile that culminated in the Battle of Rancagua in 1814, that crushed the rebellion and restored Spanish rule [6].
However, the Spanish rule of Chile soon grew impopular once the Viceroy of Peru deposed Osorio as Captain General, replacing him with Casimiro Marcó del Pont, who replaced any sort of local power representation with peninsular Spaniards and criollos from Lima, while also creating a parallel judiciary administration that severely punished the lightest of crimes. Del Pont even ignored direct orders from Spain to pardon those who had supported the rebellion, breaking all ties with the locals. While he was a capable administrator, his intransigency in regards to local representation ultimately resulted in a new local rebellion that successfully overthrew Del Pont in 1819, as the Spanish forces were preoccupied with other territories [7].
However, the Spanish rule of Chile soon grew impopular once the Viceroy of Peru deposed Osorio as Captain General, replacing him with Casimiro Marcó del Pont, who replaced any sort of local power representation with peninsular Spaniards and criollos from Lima, while also creating a parallel judiciary administration that severely punished the lightest of crimes. Del Pont even ignored direct orders from Spain to pardon those who had supported the rebellion, breaking all ties with the locals. While he was a capable administrator, his intransigency in regards to local representation ultimately resulted in a new local rebellion that successfully overthrew Del Pont in 1819, as the Spanish forces were preoccupied with other territories [7].
Last stand of the Chilean Patriots at the Battle of Rancagua, 1814
[1] - IOTL the Spanish expedition to New Granada was composed of an initial force of 10,000 men. The number here is higher, Mexico being more important, and the Spanish navy being way better off.
[2] - The fortress remained in Spanish hands until 1825 IOTL, outlasting the rest of the viceroyalty by four years.
[3] - Most of those wounded during the battle would die shortly after due to infection and tropical diseases.
[4] - An act known as the “Mask of Ferdinand VII”. By pretending to be loyal to the king they could continue their rule claiming legitimacy while drifting slowly but steadily towards independence, without angering a mostly-royalist population.
[5] - IOTL Pasto rebuffed many attempts by the rebels to take the city, resisting for years due to its isolated position from the rest of what would become Colombia.
[6] - This is OTL. I initially toyed with the idea of altering the expedition by not having Royalist general Antonio Pareja catch the illness that led to his death and the temporary stop of the Spanish reconquest, then I realised his disease was actually caused by the generalised mood, being more psychological in nature.
[7] - This rebellion is a slightly butterflied version of the Chilean uprising during San Martín’s campaign across the Andes. That campaign never happens ITTL, La Plata is in a state of anarchy with no central government, and provinces acting as countries of their own.
Note: Yes, another long hiatus. I don't feel like writing that much, especially about Latin America, I think I have explained this already a couple posts back.