British Intervention in the Corsican Crisis 1768-1806

This is my first ATL. Any criticism is welcome.

P.O.D. is the British intervention in the Corsican Crisis in 1768-69. It led to an independent Republic of Corsica that never fell under the influence of France. The British were the first to recognize the new Republic and enjoyed a privileged relationship with the island. Carlo Buonaparte, an attorney, was named Corsica’s representative to London in 1777. Once his son was old enough, Representative Buonaparte enrolled the young Napoleon in the prestigious Eton College in 1781. Once there, he is befriended by a young Arthur Wesley, third son of the Earl of Mornington. Both are lonely at Eton; young Buonaparte because of his strong Corsican accent and young Wesley because of lack of family money. Becoming the very best of friends, the two quickly become the most promising students in the history of Eton. Scandal rocks the kingdom (1785) when the marriage of George, Prince of Wales to commoner (and Catholic) Maria Fitzherbert is made public. Prince George leaves Fitzherbert at his family's insistence (and after Parliament dangles a few enticing annuities in his direction). A murderous Fitzherbert kills the young Prince of Wales with a knife to his neck after he preposes to continue their sexual relationship, without a marriage. Fredrick assumes the title of Prince of Wales and heir apparent. After graduation (1787), the two friends part ways, Wesley buying a rank in the 73rd Regiment of Foot and Buonaparte entering the Royal Military Academy in Woolwich. George III is incapacitated due to a temporary mental illness and Prince Fredrick assumes the post of Regent. Wesley and Buonaparte cross paths again in 1793 in the Flanders Campaign under Fredrick, Prince of Wales. Lt. Colonel Wesley distinguishes himself in the Battle of Boxtel, allowing the Coalition forces to retreat unhindered. The young artillery Captain Buonaparte also distinguishes himself in the successful Siege of Dunkirk, despite the woeful unpreparedness of the Prince’s forces. Dunkirk is lost a week later, however, by this unpreparedness. Captain Buonaparte was less than discrete in his criticism of Fredrick and this led to the absence of a well-deserved promotion. His criticism was not entirely in vain, however, as the criticism reached Fredrick’s ears and Captain Buonaparte was instrumental in changing the organization of the British Army. Buonaparte was promoted to Lt. Colonel and given command of his own regiment. Buonaparte’s regiment is attached to the force readying for deployment to the West Indies, but a storm forced the fleet back to port. It is during this time that Napoleon falls in love with the newly widowed Lady Anne Wesley, his best friend’s sister. Receiving the blessing of Arthur, the young Lt. Colonel promises to marry the young woman upon his return to England. A few months later (1796), the force is sent to Calcutta, to expand the territory of the British East India Company. Now-Colonel Arthur Wellesley (using the ancient spelling of his family name) is also in this force (with the 33rd of Foot). Lt. Colonel Buonaparte is promoted to Colonel during the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1798). In 1802, Colonel Wellesley is promoted to Major General and given command of British forces fighting the Maratha Empire. He brings Colonel Buonaparte with him as is his right to select his own subcommanders. Together, Wellesley and Buonaparte convincingly defeat the Maratha at the battles of Assaye and Argaum. In 1805, the two officers applied for, and were given, permission to return to England, having spent almost eight years in India. Their departure from India coincided with the end of Lord Mornington’s (Wellesley’s older brother and Governor-General of India) term of governorship. Both were made Knights of the Bath (Wellesley for his service in India and Buonaparte for his part in restructuring the British Army) and Buonaparte was promoted to Brigadier. In the thirteen years since the French Revolution, Robespierre and the others of the Reign of Terror have been killed and the Directory, headed by Jean François Rewbell, is the dominant power in France. This timeline’s France does not enjoy the same successes in war as the OTL France does, mostly because there is not a general to match Napoleon, and does not control Italy or any parts of Austria. In 1799, Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyès, with the support of the army, overthrows the Directory and establishes the Consulate. A chance meeting with George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel lays the groundwork for the first socialist regime in the world. France is transformed into a state ruled by the proletariat and, as a result, all overseas colonies revolt against the fractured elite (the territory of Louisiana was sold to America at three cents an acre in order to pay for the war against the Second Coalition). The countries of Austria, Prussia, Great Britain, and other parts of Germany attempt to put a stop to the dangerous ideas emanating from France at this time. The Second Coalition failed for mostly the same reasons as the first, rather than any great generalship from the French side (1800-1804). Understanding that continued war against the assembled European armies would eventually in disaster for France, Sieyès consolidates his rule instead of continuing hostilities. As a result, the British Navy, under Horatio Nelson, remains in the English Channel to protect against a French invasion. In 1806, upon returning to England and marrying Kitty Pakenham, Wellesley reenters politics becoming Chief Secretary of Ireland, under the Duke of Richmond, while Buonaparte, marrying Lady Anne Wesley (Lady Anne Buonaparte) remains in the army and is asked to draw up plans to defend against a French invasion. The kingdom is shocked when George III suffers another bout of mental illness and dies from self-inflicted wounds. The Prince of Wales assumes the throne as Fredrick I on September 14, 1806.

I'd to extend this to the present day. If anyone has any ideas on what happens next, they'd be welcome as well.
 
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Glen

Moderator
Good start. I would like more on Corsica, not just using it as an excuse to get Boney as a Brit, though....
 
Give William Dellinger here our plaudits!

You have made a French Screw, and set a Monster loose in India. You are awesome:D.
 
Very interesting. The only thing I'd mention is that British law and culture doesn't really allow for the removal of an heir to the throne just because they married a commoner. Yes it would be a scandal and there would be uproar, and yes it could split the royal family and create a very dicey situation, but George would have to do far more than that to be removed from the succession. Indeed, the Act of Settlement stated that the only way someone could be removed from the succession (apart from dying, obviously) was to convert to Catholicism.
 
Forgot to mention she was a Catholic. British law forbids (at the time) the spouse of a Catholic from being anywhere near the line of succession. Sorry for not putting that in there.
 
Forgot to mention she was a Catholic. British law forbids (at the time) the spouse of a Catholic from being anywhere near the line of succession. Sorry for not putting that in there.

The marriage act requires royal permission for any British Princes to marry. If they don't have permission then the marriage is considered void. This is what happened originally with Maria Fitzherbert. The marriage was considered not to have existed because George had married her secretly and without the permission of his father and the privy council (who would've never given permission anyways). George wouldn't be removed from the succession; given his nature he'd make a proper marriage in due time, especially when Parliamentary Annuities are dangled in front of him.
 
What happens if Fredrick is King, Arthur Wellesley is Commander of all British forces with Napoleon as his second in command, and Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson is running around in the Atlantic, what does this mean when the upstart former colonies start picking a fight in 1812?
 
Fantastic idea, however as others have mentioned there is the Catholic problem-Napoleon was born a Catholic and as such would be inelligible for a Kings Commission until the Catholic Emancipation Act in 1822- I feel really bad about this as I do like the premise a lot as well. Just ignore what I've just said and be encouraged that your premise is excellent and your writing and enthusiasm for the subject good too. Thumbs up.
 
Fantastic idea, however as others have mentioned there is the Catholic problem-Napoleon was born a Catholic and as such would be inelligible for a Kings Commission until the Catholic Emancipation Act in 1822- I feel really bad about this as I do like the premise a lot as well. Just ignore what I've just said and be encouraged that your premise is excellent and your writing and enthusiasm for the subject good too. Thumbs up.

By all accounts he wasn't a very strong Catholic though. He could just convert and take Anglican Communion.
 
well yes....he could...and then get ostracised by his beloved Mother? Sadly I think not. He couldn't do that. (he was a real mummys boy)
 
What happens if Fredrick is King, Arthur Wellesley is Commander of all British forces with Napoleon as his second in command, and Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson is running around in the Atlantic, what does this mean when the upstart former colonies start picking a fight in 1812?

If it was to occur, and I can't see the French republic lasting as long so it may not, it sounds like a very bad time for the US.

Steve
 
well yes....he could...and then get ostracised by his beloved Mother? Sadly I think not. He couldn't do that. (he was a real mummys boy)

From what I've read about his mother, she was very practical and down-to-earth. I don't think it's inconceivable to believe that she would have seen the advantage in having her son convert to the Anglican Church, especially if he was to be schooled at Eton. And besides that, having such open relations with a predominately Catholic nation could easily cause British law to change earlier than OTL.

So I don't think it's an insurmountable problem. But I could be wrong.
 
Its ok, but more focus on the actual scene in Corsica would be good. And rather than covering such an immense period of time and space in a bit of text, it would be good to flesh it out into a longer TL. Theres good material there.

Of course, I would dispute that Napoleon is absolutely destined to be a great general on the basis of chaos theory, but thats part of the ever continuing butterfly debate and we shouldnt go into that.
 
Napoleon may not be absolutely destined to be a great general, but in this TL certain factors ensure that he will, his friendship with Arthur Wesley being one of the most prominent.

Next installment coming soon. Give me a few more hours.
 
OMG are you a serious a British invasion of Russia, I'm sorry but I think this is ASB I just do not think Britain has the strength at all to invade the country and btw what land in central Asia did Britain take
 
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