The better French performance in India has effects for the FEIC, mainly as Choiseul does not see the company as an expensive, unwanted endeavour, and does not abolish the company's monopoly on trade beyond the Cape of Good Hope. IOTL the average French trading fleet in the 50 year period after 1720 was of 11 ships, a number which has increased to around 17 by the 1770's ITTL and the most valuable asset of the company are still the precious metals and some textiles they can obtain from Chandernagore. The company had a bad time in the 1770's as a famine struck the Deccan in both timelines, but by that time it had already been abolished IOTL. When it was reopened it issued 40,000 shares of stock at a price of 1,000 livres each, so its value was around fourty million livres that, with the extra territory and influence held by France on the subcontinent, I'd say that the value of the FEIC would be around 70-90 million livres. That's surely a boon for French finances, but a good chunk of it is employed on building more trade and war ships, while the main economic malaises of France (most cities not paying the taille, the nobility barely having taxes such as the vingtieme etc.) persist, and with France in a better economic situation, the nobility is even less supportive of change.
Ventis Ferrum: Dupleix's Success and Beyond
- Thread starter Drex
- Start date
Could we possibly see Nova Scotia joining the union if France manages to pressure the British enough? A more successful rebellion would be interesting to see in what they can win more of the Brits.
Nova Scotia already joined the Union, they took part in the Second Continental Congress, arriving late (as did the Georgians), but arriving, and with their delegates signing the Declaration of Independence.
Chapter 7: The Way the Wind Blows
~ Chapter 7: The Way the Wind Blows ~
The United Kingdom never expected the colonial conflict to gain as much momentum as it did, bringing France into a declared war against the United Kingdom, sure, the British were aware someone was sponsoring the rebels and providing them with supplies, but threatening a war on France while having zero allies on the European continent would not be a wise move, for it could also drag in France’s ally, Spain. The Spanish were helping the rebels as well, either by directly supporting them from Louisiana or using subsidiaries such as the Roderigue Hortalez & Co corporation, which supplied the rebels in 1776 with tents, muskets, gunpowder, artillery, cannonballs and enough clothes to dress 30,000 soldiers. Spain had already defeated Portugal while the British were busy and forced them to concede Sacramento and colonial outposts [1] and they would even join the First League of Armed Neutrality to resist British seizures of cargo from neutral ships. With their hands empty, Spain declared war on the United Kingdom in June of 1779. A year later, the Dutch would also find themselves fighting the British. Being at war with three other powers at the same time, George III deprioritised the American theater, focusing instead on keeping the sugar plantations of the Caribbean and the resources from India in British hands, as those regions were the richest of the empire and necessary to pay for the campaigns.
It is no surprise that the Anglo-French War of 1778 was initially focused on the Caribbean, where the French rapidly blockaded the islands of Jamaica and Barbados, causing famine on the islands and stopping sugar cane and other products from reaching Europe. In September 1778 De Buillé struck the island of Dominica, located between French-held Martinique and Guadeloupe, capturing the island in a quick blow as no major British ships were present, a fact that was corrected when reinforcements under William Hotham arrived and attacked the island of Saint Lucia without much success [2]. Both sides would receive reinforcements through 1779 but a section of the British fleet under Byron departed to protect a convoy from Saint Kitts, leaving French admiral d’Estaing with a free hand in the Caribbean and he captured Saint Vincent and Grenada, but could not capture Barbados.
The French would then shift their focus north, as the British had advanced from Florida and captured Savannah, recruiting roughly a thousands locals after threatening them with having their properties confiscated, but almost half of them would defect at the Battle of Brier Creek, cornering the British into Savannah after an attempt to capture Charleston failed in June. When the French arrived in September (arriving early and risking encountering a hurricane) they sailed south to Savannah and met with the forces of Benjamin Lincoln to siege the city and Brigadier General George Garth surrendered on October 12, affecting the British morale once news reached London [3]. Prior engagements with British troops in the area had prevented John Maitland’s troops to reach Savannah before the truce ended, and Maitland retreated through the interior and then swung south towards Florida, defeating an American force close to the Ogeechee River and reaching the safety of Saint Augustine on October 28.
The Siege of Savannah. D'Estaign would be wounded in the battle and was unable to resume command
The disaster at Savannah made the British change their focus. Initially they planned to retake the south, convinced by exiles who had contacts with Secretary of State for America, George Germain, that the south was ripe with Loyalist sentiment [4], but after the loss of Savannah and the desertion of many local recruits, that proved not to be the case. As America was deprioritised more and more with the naval pressure of the Franco-Spanish navy, only the leftovers of British power were used in America, and with the south lost for good, the British focused on the central colonies using New York as their main base. The south, after 1778, would be mostly spared from the war and would develop as trade with France and Spain supplanted former British trade. As the north bled, the south prospered, and the frictions between both areas were already becoming apparent as the war came to a conclusion years later [5].
The only active area of the southern theater would be Florida. The former Spanish colony was exchanged for British-occupied Havana at the Treaty of Paris, and the Anglo-Spanish border was placed at the Mississippi river. The Spanish would come to resent this agreement and when the American colonies rebelled, supplies started to arrive through the Mississippi under cover, until Spain declared war on the United Kingdom on June 21 1779. The governor of Louisiana, Bernardo de Gálvez, upon hearing of British plans to attack New Orleans, launched a preemptive campaign that defeated the British at Fort Bute, Baton Rouge and Natchez, clearing the Mississippi of British forces (in conjunction with George Clark’s Illinois campaign) and capturing several forts despite being in a numerical disadvantage.
The British were determined not to lose Florida, and dispatched a fleet under Georges Brydges Rodney to intercept the Spanish, encountering a Spanish fleet under Antonio González de Arce that had separated from the main body of the fleet led by José Solano y Bote, at Apalachee Bay [6]. At dawn on March 12, Rodney’s ships were in position to shoot at Spanish ships and vice versa. It was then when he saw clearly that his numerical inferiority was close to two Spanish ships for each British ship (17 Spanish vessels against 9 British), but in any case it was already a greater risk for the British to try to escape than to face the Spanish squadron, so Rodney decided to attack to try to prevent this squad from assisting the latest of Gálvez’s campaigns, this time against Pensacola. To the advantage of the English, the Spanish squad was divided in two groups tactically ill-prepared for combat (over half of the fleet were transports) and the crew consisted of badly trained sailors, while the British maintained a clear and precise line formation. Rodney ordered his fleet to pass between the two groups, which would optimize the use of his ships' guns, while preventing the Spanish fleet from being able to use all of theirs. At all times the fleet maneuvered in order to prevent the Spanish ships from escaping towards Havana.
The Battle of Apalachee Bay
News of the unexpected victory spread like wildfire and raised British morale at a critical point, with the bells of London ringing for days. Rodney was elevated to the status of national hero for his daring action, while the defeats of other commanders, such as Nelson, were brushed under the rug, despite Rodney’s victory ultimately being in vain as Gálvez took Pensacola nevertheless. For the Spanish, Apalachee was a critical point that showed how outdated their ships were compared to the copper sheathed British ships. Pedro González de Castejón, the Spanish Secretary of the Navy resigned, and was replaced by the reformist Francisco de Borja y Poyo, who would reinforce the drill and discipline of the navy in the years to come, increasing the training time and pushing for new recruits from companies such as the Guipuzcoan Company [7]. The outdated Spanish navy would experience a resurgence under his rule, but changes would take years to materialise, and the Royal Navy, despite having to struggle all across the globe, proved to be the most effective navy of the war.
[1] - Hence, why I said before that Britain has no allies in the continent, the war goes as IOTL.
[2] - OTL the Battle of Saint Lucia was a British victory as HMS Ariadne spotted the French fleet and Admiral Barrington could prepare his smaller fleet for a French attack.
[3] - George Garth was to replace Augustine Prévost as commander of the garrison of Savannah, but was captured IOTL. The Franco-American force could not capture Savannah IOTL, and that was a morale boost for the British, as sir George Clinton wrote “I think that this is the greatest event that has happened the whole war”. Oh, and Casimir Pulaski survives the battle ITTL.
[4] - Most of those who contacted Germain had the intention of recovering their plantations first, British interests second.
[5] - You know where this is going. Will I be able to make it look like the rest of the TL considering it’ll be mostly politicking? I don’t know.
[6] - Naval butterflies. IOTL the Spanish convoy of 12 warships plus transports avoided the British fleet.
[7] - That exercised a monopoly on Venezuela both IOTL and ITTL.
[1] - Hence, why I said before that Britain has no allies in the continent, the war goes as IOTL.
[2] - OTL the Battle of Saint Lucia was a British victory as HMS Ariadne spotted the French fleet and Admiral Barrington could prepare his smaller fleet for a French attack.
[3] - George Garth was to replace Augustine Prévost as commander of the garrison of Savannah, but was captured IOTL. The Franco-American force could not capture Savannah IOTL, and that was a morale boost for the British, as sir George Clinton wrote “I think that this is the greatest event that has happened the whole war”. Oh, and Casimir Pulaski survives the battle ITTL.
[4] - Most of those who contacted Germain had the intention of recovering their plantations first, British interests second.
[5] - You know where this is going. Will I be able to make it look like the rest of the TL considering it’ll be mostly politicking? I don’t know.
[6] - Naval butterflies. IOTL the Spanish convoy of 12 warships plus transports avoided the British fleet.
[7] - That exercised a monopoly on Venezuela both IOTL and ITTL.
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Wonderful update! I like the politicking, usually there is very little of it in AH.
Please have Spain recapture Gibraltar ITTL, they came so close to doing so a few times that it's honestly frustrating to read about how insanely lucky the British were.
Please have Spain recapture Gibraltar ITTL, they came so close to doing so a few times that it's honestly frustrating to read about how insanely lucky the British were.
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I'm not a fan of politicking at all, but I have to go through it, specially for what I intend to do with the US. Regarding Gibraltar, turns out that the fleet that almost got destroyed at Apalachee Bay would later be tasked with stopping British supplies to Gibraltar IOTL so, not very likely. This is not to say that Spain won't capture Gibraltar at a later date, thou.
USA: "I need some help!"
*France joins the war.*
USA: "Much better, thanks!"
*Spain joins the war.*
USA: "The more the merrier!"
*USA is losing the war.*
USA: "Wait, what?"
Spain: "I'm HALPING!"
Chapter 8: The Fourth Carnatic War
~ Chapter 8: The Fourth Carnatic War ~
The name “American Revolutionary War” can be a bit misleading to the span of the conflict. While it is true that most military actions took place in the North American continent and its environs, it was not the only active theater of the war, as the four great powers involved (Great Britain, France, Spain and the Netherlands) had possessions spanning the whole globe, from Spanish Alta California to the Dutch Spice Islands. Out of the many places where opposing forces could meet, India was the most important one as it exported to Europe resources such as cotton, saltpeter or precious metals among others. The balance of power in the subcontinent had been altered during the Seven Years’ War, as Britain became the most prominent European power after annexing Bengal and the Northern Circars, with France second holding the Carnatic and some forts to the north. The pro-French Nizam of Hyderabad had been deposed by Asaf Jah II and Mysore, first under the regency and then under the leadership of Hyder Ali had expanded rapidly in the southwest.
Hyder Ali sensed weakness in the Maratha Empire after their crushing defeat at the Third Battle of Panipat, and attacked the Marathas. His efforts backfired and he was defeated on the battlefield at Rattihalli, although the internal disputes between the Peshwa Madhavrao I and the regent Raghunathrao prevented a full conquest of Mysore and Hyder Ali even gained some territory in Sira and the lands of Nayakas of Keladi. On February 5 1766 Madhavrao and Asaf Jah met at Kurumkhed, establishing an alliance between the Maratha Empire and Hyderabad. The British also tried to gain the Peshwa’s favour in exchange for conquering Mysore, but Madhavrao rejected the offer. Hyder Ali countered the Hyderabad-Mysore alliance by strengthening bonds with the Nawab of the Carnatic Raja Sahib [1] and his French protectors, thus solidifying French influence over the tip of the subcontinent. After arranging a meeting with the British and securing their neutrality, Hyder Ali marched on Calicut and to avoid the humiliation of surrendering, the Zamorin [2] committed self-immolation.
To the north, the British had secured Bihar and Odisha after the Battle of Buxar, and liquidated the remnants of Mughal power on the subcontinent, opening the gates of the Ganges valley. Buxar also crushed the rising power of the Nawabs of Oudh, reducing them to British puppets whose only use was to serve as a shield against the recovering Maratha Empire, that years later would march on Delhi and turn the remains of the Mughal Empire into a vassal state [3]. Further south the British had secured control of the Northern Circars through a diplomatic meeting with the Nizam of Hyderabad [4], feeling like a British puppet and despising them despite the agreement, Hyderabad turned to the Marathas, trying to establish a power block outside of European machinations.
Hyder Ali, sultan of Mysore
This was the signal Hyder Ali was waiting for, and when Hyderabad broke with the British, Ali attacked the Hyderabad-Maratha alliance in 1768 with French assistance. The war did not go as well as Hyder Ali expected, and despite obtaining some initial victories he had to sue for peace after the Battle of Ranibennur. The French were unsure of what to do, as the enemies of their ally were also enemies of the British, but betraying Hyder Ali would be dangerous and could cause him to flop to the British, forcing France to fight a two-front war in the Carnatic. Thus, governor de Bussy chose to maintain its relations with Mysore, this time offering military advisors such as Monsieur Raymond [5] and selling them European guns, hoping to prop up Mysore for a renewed conflict against the British. This would prove vital to France during the American Revolutionary War.
The Maratha revival would be cut short by the early death of the Peshwa and the autonomous territory he had leased to his strongest warriors started to act more independently, turning what had been a centralised empire into a messy confederal structure that his brother, Narayan Rao, would have to deal with. He did not have much time to do so as he was quickly assassinated and Raghunathrao (Madhavrao’s regent) crowned himself as Peshwa until Narayan had a posthumous son, Madhavrao, who was the legal monarch. A council of twelve men led by Nana Phadnavis was plotting to oust Raghunahtrao, and the latter turned to the British signing the Treaty of Surat, which was later repealed, however as Nana Phadnavis offered a trading port to the French in exchange for cooperation, the British retaliated.
Regarding the balance of forces in the subcontinent, the British were clearly superior to the French, so the French perspective consisted on being aggressive against the British and taking the war to their own turf if possible, as well as looking for alliances and pacts with as many Indian states as possible, a feat which was done quickly as the Marathas were at war with the British already and Hyderabad was also happy to join if they could gain back the Northern Circars. Governor-General Bussy, once learning that war had been declared, pondered his options. A quick assault on Madras would clear the Carnatic of British forces, however the town had been fortified heavily since 1761 and the fleet of the FEIC was still inferior to what the British company had in Madras alone, so he requested naval reinforcements to be sent as soon as possible to India. The French side had enough troops to face the British on the open field thanks to the contributions of Mysore and Arcot. At the first major land battle of the war, at Settanapalli, Hyder Ali released a new type of weapon, iron-cased rockets, that decimated the British forces [6].
Mysore rockets hitting British infantry at the Battle of Settanapalli
The British situation looked desperate. They faced a coalition of three powers in Europe (France, Spain and the Netherlands, although they would join later) and another triple coalition in India (Marathas, Mysore and Hyderabad). When a large British garrison was trapped and forced to surrender Wadgaon, Governor-General Warren Hastings panicked and ratified the Treaty of Wadgaon, throwing the cause of Raghunathrao to the lions and even handing him to the Marathas in exchange for an acceptable peace [7] which saw the British holdings on the outskirts of Bombay handed to the Marathas. The victory over Britain would not save the empire, and the Marathas would be seen as traitors by Hyder Ali, and he would begin plotting an invasion of the Maratha Confederacy. Before that, Hyder Ali collaborated with Raja Sahib and de Bussy to lay siege to Madras in 1780 and capturing it again after a bloody siege in October, as the heavy rains and bombardment had destroyed most of the town’s gunpowder reserves, with the remaining forces evacuating the fort as Indian troops of the Army of Madras fought to the last man.
French naval reinforcements finally arrived under the leadership of the bold Admiral Suffren with a fleet of 23 ships [8] and crushed Johnstone’s fleet at Porto Praia, forcing the British to abandon their plans to attack the Dutch Cape Colony, and meeting there with a Dutch fleet of 8 ships at Saldanha Bay [9], then sailing to India. Suffren’s arrival changed the balance of power and he decided to sail to Bengal and stir up trouble in the heart of the British Indian Empire, defeating the British fleet close to Visakhapatnam and sinking four British ships while only suffering the loss of a single ship. Bussy would contract disease and die shortly after Visakhapatnam and being the highest authority remaining, Suffren was confirmed as the new Governor-General of French India. Using skillful diplomacy he convinced Hyder Ali not to attack the Marathas and to focus instead on expelling the British from Kerala, a feat at which he succeeded. Suffren would continue to fight the British, preventing them from recovering Madras or alleviating the French siege of Negapatam, which fell on December 18 1782 after a protracted siege.
French naval reinforcements finally arrived under the leadership of the bold Admiral Suffren with a fleet of 23 ships [8] and crushed Johnstone’s fleet at Porto Praia, forcing the British to abandon their plans to attack the Dutch Cape Colony, and meeting there with a Dutch fleet of 8 ships at Saldanha Bay [9], then sailing to India. Suffren’s arrival changed the balance of power and he decided to sail to Bengal and stir up trouble in the heart of the British Indian Empire, defeating the British fleet close to Visakhapatnam and sinking four British ships while only suffering the loss of a single ship. Bussy would contract disease and die shortly after Visakhapatnam and being the highest authority remaining, Suffren was confirmed as the new Governor-General of French India. Using skillful diplomacy he convinced Hyder Ali not to attack the Marathas and to focus instead on expelling the British from Kerala, a feat at which he succeeded. Suffren would continue to fight the British, preventing them from recovering Madras or alleviating the French siege of Negapatam, which fell on December 18 1782 after a protracted siege.
Suffren meeting Hyder Ali at his palace in Mysore
[1] - Chanda Sahib’s son. I could not even find when Sahib was born and thus I can’t really estimate when he would die.
[2] - The hereditary title of the kings of Calicut.
[3] - All of this is OTL, the Marathas really bounced back after Panipat.
[4] - A meeting that happened IOTL but Asaf Jah II refused British demands even if the British offered way more than what he was getting from the Nawabs of Arcot. Here, he is receiving nothing from Arcot, and he accepts the British offer, out of economic desperation.
[5] - That OTL served the Nawabs of Hyderabad.
[6] - Military use of rockets precedes the V-1 by a LOT, these were also used IOTL at the 1780 Battle of Pollipur. Rocket technology is going to advance faster ITTL.
[7] - IOTL he rejected the treaty as Goddard had no authority to sign it and the Anglo-Maratha war continued. It resulted in a status quo antebellum.
[8] - Eight more ships than IOTL.
[9] - This fleet was captured almost in its entirety by Johnstone at the Battle of Saldanha Bay IOTL.
Note: Indian politics are very complicated and messy, I spent hours searching across different wikipedia pages (yes that's main main source) on states, leaders and military campaigns and trying to check if the other pages had at least a small detail on that, or would even contradict each other. Sometimes I only found vague references so I'm not sure if parts of this will make sense. Anyhow, Indian history is far from my speciality so excuse any mistakes or things that look silly, but please mention them in this thread.
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Honestly excellent updates as always, hopefully the French can fill the Indian vacuum as well as the Brits did.
Chapter 9: The Fallen Sons of the Revolution
~ Chapter 9: The Fallen Sons of the Revolution ~
With the South lost and the remaining British forces bottled up in East Florida and the Bahamas, the American Revolutionary War shifted north after the Siege of Savannah. Prior to the siege the British had been preparing a force in the Northeast after securing the Nova Scotia peninsula and the key port of Halifax, then establishing a new base at Penobscot Bay, then part of Massachusetts, to protect Nova Scotia from American privateers. The state of Massachusetts replied by fitting an expedition to liberate the area, but the American fleet was decimated in a naval battle and the expedition was thrown back. With that base secured, British and Loyalist forces cleared the rest of Nova Scotia and forced the Assembly to flee to Boston. In July 1779 British forces briefly captured Stony Point, New York, only to be recaptured by an American charge led by “Mad Anthony” Wayne.
In 1780 British forces began to assemble in the city of New York and marched north, defeating the Americans at the Battle of Young’s House and clearing most of the Hudson valley after Benedict Arnold, the commanding officer at West Point, defected to the British [1] and abandoned the fortification to Henry Clinton’s forces British forces under von Knyphausen also landed in New Jersey from Staten Island, obtaining a victory at Connecticut Farms in Mid-June and von Knyphaused successfully crossed the Hobart Gap across the Watchung Mountains, receiving reinforcements in June commanded by Clinton himself, descending upon the town of Morristown. To the north, the British also advanced up the Hudson and in a secret meeting representatives of the Vermont Republic agreed to change sides and become a British Colony if they were separated from New York [2]. The British gladly accepted and marched forces from Quebec, laying siege to Saratoga, however anti-British Vermontese guerrillas would continue to harass them for the duration of the war.
At Morristown, George Washington was commanding an army of 9,000 men that was reinforced by Nathanael Greene’s 2,000 men contingent for a total of over 12,000 men (including militia). On the opposing side, general Clinton was commanding a force roughly of the same size. Washington opted to hold the line against the redcoats, and the first assault at Morristown was repulsed with heavy casualties for both sides. The British dispatched a cavalry regiment to scout the areas for possible openings and found one to the south of Washington’s forces, spending most of the day launching half-hearted attacks and artillery volleys at the Americans to keep them in place while the Queen’s Rangers under John Graves Simcoe outflanked the Americans. The Battle of Morristown would be a disaster for the Americans, as when the British launched their second (serious) charge of the day, Simcoe appeared from the flank and the Americans were caught in a crossfire [3]. The American army was shocked and lost cohesion quickly, and Washington responded by advancing and rallying troops, taking active part in the battle. His bravery stopped a complete rout, but in the chaos of the battle Washington was shot in the chest and fell from his horse. Seeing their great leader fall unconscious, the Continental Army disbanded and the British captured over 4,000 prisoners. The American rebels had received a huge blow with the death of their Commander in Chief during the battle.
George Washington rallying the troops moments before his death at the Battle of Morristown
With Washington dead, the rebels had to look for a man to fit in his boots, and the chosen one was Horatio Gates, the victor of Saratoga. Gates was not as charismatic as Washington but he was a great administrator and had a good deal of military experience, which was what the Continental Army needed, albeit he was a tad too conservative in battle and there was a certain aura of mistrust around him for taking part on the Conway Cabal to undermine the Good General, however his behaviour at Washington’s funeral in Mount Vernon on September demonstrated that the man had a deep respect for the general, or at least he pretended to, as he still hated Washington even after his death for taking way too much merit in his opinion. Meanwhile, Clinton’s victory at Morristown opened the Delaware river to British attack, and American resistance under Greene was defeated again at the Second Battle of Trenton. The Continental Congress was forced to abandon Philadelphia and retreat to Baltimore as the city fell to the redcoats on August 17. Reinforcements had to be brought in from the south as the French under Rochambeau were bottled up in Rhode Island [4].
In the Caribbean and the Atlantic, the Franco-Spanish fleet was achieving victories such as the capture of Tobago or the naval victory of Martinique. The most relevant action was the capture of a British convoy of 48 ships [5] by Spanish admiral Luis de Córdova y Córdova. This was a disaster for the British finances, driving many bankrupt in London and raising war insurance rates to intollerable laters. Truth being told, as 1780 was drawing to a close, no matter Clinton’s victories in America, the war was ruining Great Britain, as revenue from the Caribbean was growing more scarce by the day, Madras had fallen yet again and the Franco-Spanish-Dutch fleet was beginning to gain superiority in the Atlantic, even more after the Battle of Narragansett Bay in which the French fleet escaped the bay and the comte de Grasse defeated Thomas Graves at the Battle of Gardiners Bay [6].
The French fleet engages the Royal Navy during the Battle of Gardiners Bay
Rochambeau’s forces marched west accompanied by New England militias and faced Benedict Arnold’s redcoats at the Battle of Whitney Farms. The French force, composed of professional soldiers and backed by local militias that had an excellent knowledge of the terrain, defeated Arnold and pushed on to New York, capturing Arnold in a stroke of luck and judging him in Boston, finding Arnold guilty of high treason and executing him by hanging on August 27 1781. Clinton abandoned Philadelphia upon hearing of Rochambeau’s advance and the Battle of Gardiners Bay, and Horatio Gates, with a mostly Virginian army, advanced north and liberated Philadelphia, continuing to march up the Delaware hoping to meet with Rochambeau.
The marquis of Rochambeau judged the fortifications of New York too difficult to assault at the moment and began building up his forces for an assault up the Hudson river, leaving a mostly militia force as a screen that managed to defeat a superior British force at Thornwood. Rochambeau managed to cross the Hudson and lay siege to West Point, as the British war effort in the Atlantic coast was collapsing due to the lack of supplies and reinforcements, but decided to turn south after capturing West Point on September 1781 to meet with Horatio Gates and plan a siege of New York that would deal with the British for good.
Such a decisive battle would never happen and the only military action on the North American continent was the subjugation of Vermont, which was reincorporated into the state of New York. As lord North’s government fell after a motion of no confidence, the new Prime Minister Shelburne began to open peace negotiations. By 1782 negotiations were taking place in Paris between the United States, Great Britain, France and Spain. After many discussions about where borders should be and what colonies should be exchanged, a final treaty was signed in July 1783 [7].
The marquis of Rochambeau judged the fortifications of New York too difficult to assault at the moment and began building up his forces for an assault up the Hudson river, leaving a mostly militia force as a screen that managed to defeat a superior British force at Thornwood. Rochambeau managed to cross the Hudson and lay siege to West Point, as the British war effort in the Atlantic coast was collapsing due to the lack of supplies and reinforcements, but decided to turn south after capturing West Point on September 1781 to meet with Horatio Gates and plan a siege of New York that would deal with the British for good.
Such a decisive battle would never happen and the only military action on the North American continent was the subjugation of Vermont, which was reincorporated into the state of New York. As lord North’s government fell after a motion of no confidence, the new Prime Minister Shelburne began to open peace negotiations. By 1782 negotiations were taking place in Paris between the United States, Great Britain, France and Spain. After many discussions about where borders should be and what colonies should be exchanged, a final treaty was signed in July 1783 [7].
American representats during the Paris Peace Conference. The British delegation refused to be painted
Regarding territorial exchanges, in North America, the independence of the fourteen colonies was recognised by Britain with their territorial integrity intact, except for the island of Cape Breton, which had to be given to the United Kingdom as they would not accept undisputed access to the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (Saint John’s island was detached from Nova Scotia in 1769 and remained British). The territory awarded to the fourteen colonies was extended west to the Mississippi river and north to the Great Lakes, while Spain gained West and East Florida (as well as recovering Minorca), with its northern border still undefined [8]. In the Caribbean, France was awarded the islands of Dominica, Tobago and Grenada [9], while also recovering the French colony of Senegal, key to importing slaves to the Caribbean. In India the only territorial change between European powers was the British cession of the Guntur district in the Northern Circars to France, and a restriction to the fortifications of Madras. The rest of the colonies and possessions occupied during the conflict were given to the respective owner. The treaty also states that the British were to retreat from their occupied fortifications in the United States, something they would never do.
[1] - Arnold thought about defecting in 1780, but with the war mostly active in the south he was a bit worried. Here he has information from John André that the British advance up the Hudson is serious, and Henry Clinton offers him a larger sum of money than IOTL.
[2] - ITTL the negotiations of the Haldiman Affair are successful and Vermont switches sides, permitting British troops from Quebec to march down the Hudson and sever New England from the rest of the colonies.
[3] - I took inspiration from the Battle of Springfield for this, concretely the action at Galloping Hill Road.
[4] - Both IOTL and ITTL Rochambeau refuses to abandon the French fleet at Narragansett Bay, delaying his operations.
[5] - 55 ships IOTL.
[6] - TTL’s equivalent of the Battle of the Chesapeake.
[7] - IOTL the treaty was signed on September 3 1783, here negotiations start earlier and as a result the peace treaty.
[8] - Earlier proposals such as that of French foreign minister Vergennes, intended to keep the US confined east of the Appalachians while everything north of the Ohio would remain British, and everything south of the river would be a native confederacy under Spanish protection. Spanish minister Aranda would claim everything west of a line going south from Lake Erie for Spain, a proposal that was also rejected.
[9] - France wins more in the Caribbean as an alternate Battle of the Saintes does not so well for the British as IOTL.
[1] - Arnold thought about defecting in 1780, but with the war mostly active in the south he was a bit worried. Here he has information from John André that the British advance up the Hudson is serious, and Henry Clinton offers him a larger sum of money than IOTL.
[2] - ITTL the negotiations of the Haldiman Affair are successful and Vermont switches sides, permitting British troops from Quebec to march down the Hudson and sever New England from the rest of the colonies.
[3] - I took inspiration from the Battle of Springfield for this, concretely the action at Galloping Hill Road.
[4] - Both IOTL and ITTL Rochambeau refuses to abandon the French fleet at Narragansett Bay, delaying his operations.
[5] - 55 ships IOTL.
[6] - TTL’s equivalent of the Battle of the Chesapeake.
[7] - IOTL the treaty was signed on September 3 1783, here negotiations start earlier and as a result the peace treaty.
[8] - Earlier proposals such as that of French foreign minister Vergennes, intended to keep the US confined east of the Appalachians while everything north of the Ohio would remain British, and everything south of the river would be a native confederacy under Spanish protection. Spanish minister Aranda would claim everything west of a line going south from Lake Erie for Spain, a proposal that was also rejected.
[9] - France wins more in the Caribbean as an alternate Battle of the Saintes does not so well for the British as IOTL.
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I wonder what effect Nova Scotia would have on the slavery issue? NS adds one more to the free state collum. Then again, the U.S. split up in the TL this is a replacement for, so we might end up with the U.S. splintering up in this TL as well.
Oh, actually its the British who are going to take land. You'll see in later chapters.
They did not evacuate the forts until after the 1795 Jay Treaty IOTL. There's a difference between retreating 12 years later and never retreating.
Indeed, Nova Scotia's existance changes things. It gives the northern states an extra vote at the Congress of the Confederation, thus making it a 9 vs 5. Also, this raises the 2/3 majority needed for stuff like admissions to 10 states instead of the 9 of OTL so decission making is going to be harder. Regarding slavery, Nova Scotia is against that peculiar institution, and their vote further pressures the south on the issue. And you hit it right with the last part. As a minor spoiler Washington's successor is not as reliable as he is.