I'll get more into the internal economies and politics of the states shortly.
Diary of the Doofus King II (1850 - )
- Thread starter Alt History Buff
- Start date
I'll get more into the internal economies and politics of the states shortly.
May, 1854
The southern banks of the Potomac
The Potomac was, contrary to popular belief, never truly a barricade. Even the thirty miles or so from the shortened front line from the Blue Ridge mountains to the mouth of the Potomac was simply impossible to garrison even with the force of 100,000 men available to the Army of Northern Virginia. Instead, the Federals by necessity resorted to the concept of a flexible defense based around numerous strongpoints. When the Union bridged the river, the Federals would counterattack with all their might. Of course, the Federals had to deal with fact that the enemy would be able to flank them from the Blue Ridge mountains that separated the rest of Virginia from the Shenandoah. However, this was a double-edged sword for the Union as it was difficult to maintain an attack from the mountains due to the difficulty in maintaining a supply line.
All of this, General Ludwig Von Der Tann viewed with equanimity. The Hessian-born Bavarian had served multiple masters over the years but had spent much of his recent career under the French flag, often in Africa, against the last vestiges of the Moors. Von Der Tann had witnessed the filling of the great lakes of North Africa, the locks draining into the seas, the flowering of the deserts. Many engineers scoffed at the projects but Von Der Tann gave credit where credit was due. The most lifeless place on earth now swarmed with fish, leopards, hippos, even alligators (of crocks, the German couldn't remember the difference). The shores of the Bonaparte Sea in western Africa were a wonder to behold. Villages had been displaced on an annual basis, always pushed further and further back. He'd witnessed gangs of tens of thousands of African men building canals in all directions, bringing water to the desert for irrigation projects. So important was manpower than reportedly the Emperor was purchasing the slave peoples of the French West Indies (at a bargain price as he'd announced an end date to the institution) and shipping them BACK to Africa to work these projects. Why not put half a million people to use instead of letting them languish on some pox-infested island with dying sugar plantations? With the advent of steam power, moving entire populations would be simply a matter of will. A few hundred (or a few thousand) voyages from west to east would ironically reverse the flow of history for these peoples and provide a stable population to labor upon the Emperor's great works.
Still, the German was getting tired of sitting around Africa waiting for another raid from the disappearing mountain Moors that were almost extinct. When the Emperor was solicited by his cousin, the King of Spain, for using the ever more redundant African Legion in the American war, the Emperor reportedly shrugged and approved without any real comment. At least in this case, the expenses for thousands of men would be bourn by the Spanish for a few years, rather than the stretched French public. Rumor had it that the Emperor was forming an "Asian Legion" as well to help deal with the uppity Chinese but Von Der Tann could not countenance such a swift return to French service without losing honor. Besides, fighting Americans was probably more respectable than fighting Wogs.
Ludwig Von Der Tann
Still, the German wasn't impressed with what he saw of the Americans. There was no way that Napoleon I would have allowed months to pass after reclaiming the state of Maryland and the Capital of Washington DC to finish off the Federal States of America. Outnumbering the rebels over four to one, Von Der Tann thought the Americans should have been in Charleston by now hanging the slavers (Von Der Tann kept his political opinions to himself, quite prudently) from the nearest tree. Any European nation would have dealt with the insurgency with more alacrity, even accounting for the Spanish presence. The FSA was down to about five states and two half-states by now, though the southerners continued to prattle on about their natural superiority to the "shopkeepers" of the north. It amused the German to humor these "southern paladins". By the best he could see, honor was about all they had going for them as they lacked industry, railroads, ships, gun-smiths and just about anything else required for war.
Commanding the 15,000 French, Spanish and other troops affiliated with the 85,000 or so many Army of North Virginia, the German wasn't convinced of the FSA's chances, despite the baffling sloth of the northern states. By the middle of May, the German would no longer have to wait.
Charleston
President James Bonham was livid. Alabama and Georgia continued to refuse to release their troops for service in Louisiana (what was left of it) and Virginia (what was left of it). Did they not realize that, should those states fall, that the FSA was finished? Most of the other states failed to provide much more. North Carolina had refused to extend further credit to the central government as the currency, only five months from its creation, had collapsed to a tenth its face value. Lacking any gold reserves to cover the nominal sum, no sane person would accept it as tender. Bonham was forced to order all FSA Governors to simply confiscate any needed supplies - grain, corn, meat, hemp, rice, cloth, etc - and hand over the nearly worthless banknotes. That command was all well and good until the governors refused to rob their constituents in such a manner and then had the audacity to decry Bonham's betrayal of the "Federal dogma" by assuming so much power in the central government.
Did these fools not realize that a few years of such policies would prevent an eternity of northern subjugation? He doubted Seward would offer the southern states a better deal when Unionist troops and their hordes of runaway slaves in arms arrive in Charlotte, Montgomery and Savannah.
Having lost a third of his country after promising a swift victory over the previous summer, Bonham was increasingly strained by the rising list of defeats. Victories, at best, proved to be stalemates, losses resulted in permanent occupation of FSA territory. Attempting to put a positive spin on the matter was proving ever more difficult.
Then, the previous week, President Seward announced the annexation of Texas and Coahuila by plebiscite and the looming statehood of Western Virginia and Eastern Tennessee/Western North Carolina under some god-forsaken names. It was an abomination.
Bonham knew that any further defeats, especially in Virginia, would spell the end of the FSA. The economy was shattered with the loss of the Mississippi, the new currency worthless, the states becoming ever more restless against the "radical South Carolinians" who got them into this mess. Entire plantations were being emptied of slaves as the chattel departed into the night, never to be seen again. Even if the war ended today, thousands of leading families would be ruined.
Rumor had it that dozens of FSA-registered ships were being used to sell the remaining slaves of the south, especially the western states, to Cuba at a great discounts as some of the propertied class sought to retain what value they could for their slaves before Union armies arrive.
Bonham knew that the nation's fate would be decided by summer. He ordered all local armies to resist and, if possible, strike back.
With all of his political capital, the President called upon the Spanish for one last strike, hoping an unexpected attack from a quiet corner would suitable upset the Union before the fall elections. Maybe, just maybe, enough opposition politicians might enter office in Congress to force a peace.
It was a longshot.
But so was the FSA.
Washington DC
President Seward had given the orders. No army in the nation would remain still while others fought. Seward realized that the sporadic war was to the southern advantage. Seward had the numbers. It was time he used them.
Hooker (Louisiana), Taylor (west Tennessee), McDowall (Kentucky), Johnston (Eastern Tennessee) and Garibaldi (Maryland) were ordered into battle to crack the brittle outer shell of the Federal egg.
Let the war end by fall.
The southern banks of the Potomac
The Potomac was, contrary to popular belief, never truly a barricade. Even the thirty miles or so from the shortened front line from the Blue Ridge mountains to the mouth of the Potomac was simply impossible to garrison even with the force of 100,000 men available to the Army of Northern Virginia. Instead, the Federals by necessity resorted to the concept of a flexible defense based around numerous strongpoints. When the Union bridged the river, the Federals would counterattack with all their might. Of course, the Federals had to deal with fact that the enemy would be able to flank them from the Blue Ridge mountains that separated the rest of Virginia from the Shenandoah. However, this was a double-edged sword for the Union as it was difficult to maintain an attack from the mountains due to the difficulty in maintaining a supply line.
All of this, General Ludwig Von Der Tann viewed with equanimity. The Hessian-born Bavarian had served multiple masters over the years but had spent much of his recent career under the French flag, often in Africa, against the last vestiges of the Moors. Von Der Tann had witnessed the filling of the great lakes of North Africa, the locks draining into the seas, the flowering of the deserts. Many engineers scoffed at the projects but Von Der Tann gave credit where credit was due. The most lifeless place on earth now swarmed with fish, leopards, hippos, even alligators (of crocks, the German couldn't remember the difference). The shores of the Bonaparte Sea in western Africa were a wonder to behold. Villages had been displaced on an annual basis, always pushed further and further back. He'd witnessed gangs of tens of thousands of African men building canals in all directions, bringing water to the desert for irrigation projects. So important was manpower than reportedly the Emperor was purchasing the slave peoples of the French West Indies (at a bargain price as he'd announced an end date to the institution) and shipping them BACK to Africa to work these projects. Why not put half a million people to use instead of letting them languish on some pox-infested island with dying sugar plantations? With the advent of steam power, moving entire populations would be simply a matter of will. A few hundred (or a few thousand) voyages from west to east would ironically reverse the flow of history for these peoples and provide a stable population to labor upon the Emperor's great works.
Still, the German was getting tired of sitting around Africa waiting for another raid from the disappearing mountain Moors that were almost extinct. When the Emperor was solicited by his cousin, the King of Spain, for using the ever more redundant African Legion in the American war, the Emperor reportedly shrugged and approved without any real comment. At least in this case, the expenses for thousands of men would be bourn by the Spanish for a few years, rather than the stretched French public. Rumor had it that the Emperor was forming an "Asian Legion" as well to help deal with the uppity Chinese but Von Der Tann could not countenance such a swift return to French service without losing honor. Besides, fighting Americans was probably more respectable than fighting Wogs.
Ludwig Von Der Tann
Still, the German wasn't impressed with what he saw of the Americans. There was no way that Napoleon I would have allowed months to pass after reclaiming the state of Maryland and the Capital of Washington DC to finish off the Federal States of America. Outnumbering the rebels over four to one, Von Der Tann thought the Americans should have been in Charleston by now hanging the slavers (Von Der Tann kept his political opinions to himself, quite prudently) from the nearest tree. Any European nation would have dealt with the insurgency with more alacrity, even accounting for the Spanish presence. The FSA was down to about five states and two half-states by now, though the southerners continued to prattle on about their natural superiority to the "shopkeepers" of the north. It amused the German to humor these "southern paladins". By the best he could see, honor was about all they had going for them as they lacked industry, railroads, ships, gun-smiths and just about anything else required for war.
Commanding the 15,000 French, Spanish and other troops affiliated with the 85,000 or so many Army of North Virginia, the German wasn't convinced of the FSA's chances, despite the baffling sloth of the northern states. By the middle of May, the German would no longer have to wait.
Charleston
President James Bonham was livid. Alabama and Georgia continued to refuse to release their troops for service in Louisiana (what was left of it) and Virginia (what was left of it). Did they not realize that, should those states fall, that the FSA was finished? Most of the other states failed to provide much more. North Carolina had refused to extend further credit to the central government as the currency, only five months from its creation, had collapsed to a tenth its face value. Lacking any gold reserves to cover the nominal sum, no sane person would accept it as tender. Bonham was forced to order all FSA Governors to simply confiscate any needed supplies - grain, corn, meat, hemp, rice, cloth, etc - and hand over the nearly worthless banknotes. That command was all well and good until the governors refused to rob their constituents in such a manner and then had the audacity to decry Bonham's betrayal of the "Federal dogma" by assuming so much power in the central government.
Did these fools not realize that a few years of such policies would prevent an eternity of northern subjugation? He doubted Seward would offer the southern states a better deal when Unionist troops and their hordes of runaway slaves in arms arrive in Charlotte, Montgomery and Savannah.
Having lost a third of his country after promising a swift victory over the previous summer, Bonham was increasingly strained by the rising list of defeats. Victories, at best, proved to be stalemates, losses resulted in permanent occupation of FSA territory. Attempting to put a positive spin on the matter was proving ever more difficult.
Then, the previous week, President Seward announced the annexation of Texas and Coahuila by plebiscite and the looming statehood of Western Virginia and Eastern Tennessee/Western North Carolina under some god-forsaken names. It was an abomination.
Bonham knew that any further defeats, especially in Virginia, would spell the end of the FSA. The economy was shattered with the loss of the Mississippi, the new currency worthless, the states becoming ever more restless against the "radical South Carolinians" who got them into this mess. Entire plantations were being emptied of slaves as the chattel departed into the night, never to be seen again. Even if the war ended today, thousands of leading families would be ruined.
Rumor had it that dozens of FSA-registered ships were being used to sell the remaining slaves of the south, especially the western states, to Cuba at a great discounts as some of the propertied class sought to retain what value they could for their slaves before Union armies arrive.
Bonham knew that the nation's fate would be decided by summer. He ordered all local armies to resist and, if possible, strike back.
With all of his political capital, the President called upon the Spanish for one last strike, hoping an unexpected attack from a quiet corner would suitable upset the Union before the fall elections. Maybe, just maybe, enough opposition politicians might enter office in Congress to force a peace.
It was a longshot.
But so was the FSA.
Washington DC
President Seward had given the orders. No army in the nation would remain still while others fought. Seward realized that the sporadic war was to the southern advantage. Seward had the numbers. It was time he used them.
Hooker (Louisiana), Taylor (west Tennessee), McDowall (Kentucky), Johnston (Eastern Tennessee) and Garibaldi (Maryland) were ordered into battle to crack the brittle outer shell of the Federal egg.
Let the war end by fall.
The nose around the Federals' neck tightens. 
So does that mean that Napoleon II's crazy plan to create giant lakes in the Sahara actually worked?
So does that mean that Napoleon II's crazy plan to create giant lakes in the Sahara actually worked?
Late May, 1854
Northwestern Mississippi, between the Yazoo and Mississippi Rivers
The Yazoo basin was once full of functional plantations. Now hordes of Negroes spilled west from Mississippi and Tennessee to the freedom of Arkansaw. The Union Army under the dogged Joseph Hooker had carved off a slice of Mississippi, just as other armies had seized portions of most state in the FSA. Only Georgia and South Carolina remained untainted. Even Alabama had lost some of its northern boundaries where the Union sentiment of the mountains switched allegiance to General Johnston.
Hooker's force consisted of 35,000 Union troops, augmented by over 6000 Negro "auxilleries" which mainly were labor battalions. Opposing him was his nemesis, P.T. Beauregard, with 30,000 men, the remnant of the once proud Army of Louisiana.
Hooker moved south once again, towards the final remnant of Federal Louisiana, the city of Baton Rouge.
Lawrenceburg, TN, southwest of Nashville
General Joseph Taylor was still smarting as his humiliating defeat at Franklin and had worked tirelessly to regain control over his beaten army. Now augmented back to 32,000, Taylor's Army of Arkansaw marched eastward again through western Tennessee to evict Fannin's army from that state and chase them all the way to the Gul if necessary.
Springfield, TN, north of Nashville
For the past months, General Irving McDowall had slowly consolidated the Army of Kentucky into a viable force. Too often, its best troops had been pulled from the Tennessee front for other theaters: Western Virginia, Western Tennessee, even as far as the Confederation of the North.
Removed from a Corps command of the Army of the Potomac, some might have viewed being passed over for the foreigner Giuseppe Garibaldi as being an affront. But McDowall had a war to fight and commanded an army of 30,000.
He'd been ordered to work in tandem with General Taylor, preferably cutting off the Army of the Cumberland from retreat. Of course, he'd have to defeat Fannin first.
Knoxville, TN
It's about god-damn time! Thought General Albert Sidney Johnston. The Kentucky-man was quite beside himself with impatience. Despite nominally commanding the second largest Union Army at 48,000, the force was so spread out garrisoning western Virginia, Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina, that he could only form up 20,000 at best for a united force. His Army of Appalachia only needed a target.
March west to aid in crushing Fannin in Central Tennessee?
March east to assist in the eviction of the FSA from the remainder of Virginia?
His orders proved to be quite shocking and, to Johnston's mind, very overdue in their cunning.
Johnston emerged from the hills of Appalachia not east or west, but south, where no Federal Army really existed to oppose it.
Northern Virginia
Under the command of Giuseppe Garibaldi, the Union Army made surprisingly good progress in the initial stages of the summer campaign. With months to spy upon the rebels, the Franco-Italian had a good idea of the Federal defenses. Given full command of all local forces, Garibaldi's army measured nearly 125,000. Garibaldi knew that he would have the advantage of the initiative as the enemy could not localize their forces in defense. Garibaldi would be able to pick his avenue to attack, hopefully avoiding the teeth of the enemy defenses.
Sinaloa, American Protectorate
Robert E. Lee was getting mighty tired of his new subordinate, Colonel George McClellan. The man's constant whining for more "illustrious" positions in the eastern theater grinded upon his commander. Did Lee not give up his own country, as he referred to Virginia?
Fortunately, his other subordinate, Colonel Edwin Kirby Smith of California, was less grating. His father was a judge from Connecticut and the younger man was born in Minnesota.
With eight thousand men at his disposal, Lee knew that assaulting the Spanish again before Guadalajara was flatly impossible. Virtually ever part of the Republic of Mexico was under Spanish control. However, an odd nullity now existed. It was an epic task to campaign in these mountainous and desert wastes. Such campaigns were almost impossible to supply for long without a local population of adequate size to provide food, lodging and other necessities. Even with a larger force at hand, the Spanish did not seem interested in marching northward to reconquer the breakaway provinces of Durango, Sinaloa, Sonora and Nueva Vizcaya. Though they claimed to be countries, Lee refused to give any such recognition. These were lands of bandits and would-be kings.
Fortunately, he had over seven thousand additional troops throughout these lands attempting to restore order, finding friendly natives whom could assist in forming some sort of government in the anarchies. Oddly, it was easier than previously thought. Virtually none of these lands had formed any concept of participatory democracy and many peasants were shocked to find the Americans offering full suffrage for all males. This formed a base of support that no other group had. The Americans also arrived bearing trade hereto unknown for years and repeatedly offered assistance against the Apache and other violent tribes whom had plagued the area for years.
Oh, there were some bandits, warlords and "nationalists" decrying the arrival of the "Gringos" but most of the population were either indifferent or supportive to these latest powers-that-be. The Americans brought hard currency, which was happily gobbled up by local farmers. Most had seen their livestock and corn pilfered for years, or even decades. Promises were made of extending the reach of railroads, though most of the Latins did not know what this was.
The American officers, McClellan would prove most effective in this role, organized political meetings to form governments in these states. Men whom had known nothing but oppression were being given political power by these gringos. Local taxation was left entirely in the hands of these new governments. The governments were offered the potential for statehood though there was no shortage of opposition merely on grounds of language and religion. The clergy were among the most strident but few cared for them anymore. They had lost their power years ago, their lands confiscated by dozens of regimes. Representatives were sent to America's capital to discuss the idea of statehood.
The land most interested was the one longest occupied by the army. Seeing the need for local cooperation, the Union officials ordered all respect to the local traditions. By the summer of 1854, Sonora had voted to become a self-governing Territory of the United States until such time as the government would vote for statehood. Enticing promises of investment were offered. Gringos and escaped slaves from New Spain in the south and Louisiana to the East arrived in the lightly populated areas.
Though war raged among them, these remote territories knew their first significant peace in decades, protected by Robert E. Lee's army.
Monterrey, Nuevo Leon
General Fremont's communications with General Lee had increased recently as the Spanish had ceased most of their raids. The damage to Monterey, Tampico and Laredo had been great and fully entrenched the locals' hatred of the Spanish even as the Confederation of the North formally was abolished by mutual consent. Texas and Coahuila (60% and 40% Anglo or Negro, by this point) were already preparing for formal statehood. Now official territories (not Protectorates) of the United States, these lands had seceded from the Confederation of the North. The remaining two bodies, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas, had ceased even pretending to have a unified government years ago.
Fremont, like his counterpart Lee, had dispatched officers throughout these lands to shore up local support with an eye for future annexation. Representative governments were formed, the un-enfranchised former masses becoming the base of their support along with those whom admit that American military power was the only thing keeping the Spanish barbarians from the gates. Oh, there were a few would-be warlords but they were easily enough dealt with. The locals had quite enough of Kings and Presidents. American gold trumped promises by this point. The Leonan and Tamaulipan forces slowly disintegrated as they were no longer funded and the soldiers returned home. Additional reinforcements from America replaced these troops. Even the Coaluinans and Texians largely went home, their forces becoming the bedrock of support for the local pro-American governors ensuring little resistance to annexation.
Much of Fremont's support came from escaped Negroes from New Spain. Even before Seward made it official policy, Fremont had welcomed Negroes from the assorted plantations of New Spain into his ranks, knowing they would prove most loyal indeed not to mention diligent. By mid-summer, the forces in southern Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon reached over 12,000, mostly American and freemen, with another 6000 spread through the northern reaches. It was not a massive force but the Spanish could hardly concentrate their own forces as the Republic of Mexico remained in unrest and Robert E. Lee's force kept much of the Spanish (and French) forces occupied.
In the end, no army in the Latin states was powerful enough to march through the mountains and wastes against another. The assorted forces merely stood behind their borders and waited.
Northwestern Mississippi, between the Yazoo and Mississippi Rivers
The Yazoo basin was once full of functional plantations. Now hordes of Negroes spilled west from Mississippi and Tennessee to the freedom of Arkansaw. The Union Army under the dogged Joseph Hooker had carved off a slice of Mississippi, just as other armies had seized portions of most state in the FSA. Only Georgia and South Carolina remained untainted. Even Alabama had lost some of its northern boundaries where the Union sentiment of the mountains switched allegiance to General Johnston.
Hooker's force consisted of 35,000 Union troops, augmented by over 6000 Negro "auxilleries" which mainly were labor battalions. Opposing him was his nemesis, P.T. Beauregard, with 30,000 men, the remnant of the once proud Army of Louisiana.
Hooker moved south once again, towards the final remnant of Federal Louisiana, the city of Baton Rouge.
Lawrenceburg, TN, southwest of Nashville
General Joseph Taylor was still smarting as his humiliating defeat at Franklin and had worked tirelessly to regain control over his beaten army. Now augmented back to 32,000, Taylor's Army of Arkansaw marched eastward again through western Tennessee to evict Fannin's army from that state and chase them all the way to the Gul if necessary.
Springfield, TN, north of Nashville
For the past months, General Irving McDowall had slowly consolidated the Army of Kentucky into a viable force. Too often, its best troops had been pulled from the Tennessee front for other theaters: Western Virginia, Western Tennessee, even as far as the Confederation of the North.
Removed from a Corps command of the Army of the Potomac, some might have viewed being passed over for the foreigner Giuseppe Garibaldi as being an affront. But McDowall had a war to fight and commanded an army of 30,000.
He'd been ordered to work in tandem with General Taylor, preferably cutting off the Army of the Cumberland from retreat. Of course, he'd have to defeat Fannin first.
Knoxville, TN
It's about god-damn time! Thought General Albert Sidney Johnston. The Kentucky-man was quite beside himself with impatience. Despite nominally commanding the second largest Union Army at 48,000, the force was so spread out garrisoning western Virginia, Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina, that he could only form up 20,000 at best for a united force. His Army of Appalachia only needed a target.
March west to aid in crushing Fannin in Central Tennessee?
March east to assist in the eviction of the FSA from the remainder of Virginia?
His orders proved to be quite shocking and, to Johnston's mind, very overdue in their cunning.
Johnston emerged from the hills of Appalachia not east or west, but south, where no Federal Army really existed to oppose it.
Northern Virginia
Under the command of Giuseppe Garibaldi, the Union Army made surprisingly good progress in the initial stages of the summer campaign. With months to spy upon the rebels, the Franco-Italian had a good idea of the Federal defenses. Given full command of all local forces, Garibaldi's army measured nearly 125,000. Garibaldi knew that he would have the advantage of the initiative as the enemy could not localize their forces in defense. Garibaldi would be able to pick his avenue to attack, hopefully avoiding the teeth of the enemy defenses.
Sinaloa, American Protectorate
Robert E. Lee was getting mighty tired of his new subordinate, Colonel George McClellan. The man's constant whining for more "illustrious" positions in the eastern theater grinded upon his commander. Did Lee not give up his own country, as he referred to Virginia?
Fortunately, his other subordinate, Colonel Edwin Kirby Smith of California, was less grating. His father was a judge from Connecticut and the younger man was born in Minnesota.
With eight thousand men at his disposal, Lee knew that assaulting the Spanish again before Guadalajara was flatly impossible. Virtually ever part of the Republic of Mexico was under Spanish control. However, an odd nullity now existed. It was an epic task to campaign in these mountainous and desert wastes. Such campaigns were almost impossible to supply for long without a local population of adequate size to provide food, lodging and other necessities. Even with a larger force at hand, the Spanish did not seem interested in marching northward to reconquer the breakaway provinces of Durango, Sinaloa, Sonora and Nueva Vizcaya. Though they claimed to be countries, Lee refused to give any such recognition. These were lands of bandits and would-be kings.
Fortunately, he had over seven thousand additional troops throughout these lands attempting to restore order, finding friendly natives whom could assist in forming some sort of government in the anarchies. Oddly, it was easier than previously thought. Virtually none of these lands had formed any concept of participatory democracy and many peasants were shocked to find the Americans offering full suffrage for all males. This formed a base of support that no other group had. The Americans also arrived bearing trade hereto unknown for years and repeatedly offered assistance against the Apache and other violent tribes whom had plagued the area for years.
Oh, there were some bandits, warlords and "nationalists" decrying the arrival of the "Gringos" but most of the population were either indifferent or supportive to these latest powers-that-be. The Americans brought hard currency, which was happily gobbled up by local farmers. Most had seen their livestock and corn pilfered for years, or even decades. Promises were made of extending the reach of railroads, though most of the Latins did not know what this was.
The American officers, McClellan would prove most effective in this role, organized political meetings to form governments in these states. Men whom had known nothing but oppression were being given political power by these gringos. Local taxation was left entirely in the hands of these new governments. The governments were offered the potential for statehood though there was no shortage of opposition merely on grounds of language and religion. The clergy were among the most strident but few cared for them anymore. They had lost their power years ago, their lands confiscated by dozens of regimes. Representatives were sent to America's capital to discuss the idea of statehood.
The land most interested was the one longest occupied by the army. Seeing the need for local cooperation, the Union officials ordered all respect to the local traditions. By the summer of 1854, Sonora had voted to become a self-governing Territory of the United States until such time as the government would vote for statehood. Enticing promises of investment were offered. Gringos and escaped slaves from New Spain in the south and Louisiana to the East arrived in the lightly populated areas.
Though war raged among them, these remote territories knew their first significant peace in decades, protected by Robert E. Lee's army.
Monterrey, Nuevo Leon
General Fremont's communications with General Lee had increased recently as the Spanish had ceased most of their raids. The damage to Monterey, Tampico and Laredo had been great and fully entrenched the locals' hatred of the Spanish even as the Confederation of the North formally was abolished by mutual consent. Texas and Coahuila (60% and 40% Anglo or Negro, by this point) were already preparing for formal statehood. Now official territories (not Protectorates) of the United States, these lands had seceded from the Confederation of the North. The remaining two bodies, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas, had ceased even pretending to have a unified government years ago.
Fremont, like his counterpart Lee, had dispatched officers throughout these lands to shore up local support with an eye for future annexation. Representative governments were formed, the un-enfranchised former masses becoming the base of their support along with those whom admit that American military power was the only thing keeping the Spanish barbarians from the gates. Oh, there were a few would-be warlords but they were easily enough dealt with. The locals had quite enough of Kings and Presidents. American gold trumped promises by this point. The Leonan and Tamaulipan forces slowly disintegrated as they were no longer funded and the soldiers returned home. Additional reinforcements from America replaced these troops. Even the Coaluinans and Texians largely went home, their forces becoming the bedrock of support for the local pro-American governors ensuring little resistance to annexation.
Much of Fremont's support came from escaped Negroes from New Spain. Even before Seward made it official policy, Fremont had welcomed Negroes from the assorted plantations of New Spain into his ranks, knowing they would prove most loyal indeed not to mention diligent. By mid-summer, the forces in southern Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon reached over 12,000, mostly American and freemen, with another 6000 spread through the northern reaches. It was not a massive force but the Spanish could hardly concentrate their own forces as the Republic of Mexico remained in unrest and Robert E. Lee's force kept much of the Spanish (and French) forces occupied.
In the end, no army in the Latin states was powerful enough to march through the mountains and wastes against another. The assorted forces merely stood behind their borders and waited.
The nose around the Federals' neck tightens.
So does that mean that Napoleon II's crazy plan to create giant lakes in the Sahara actually worked?
I don't think it was a question of if the lakes could be built, more of a matter of if they were sustainable as fresh-water lakes or if salinity could be stabilized by an outflow.
Also there was the question if this was worth the enormous investment to France.
The Latins States in 1854. Note the conquest of the Republic of Mexico to the south of Sinaloa and Durango.
This does not show the status of the United States Civil War.
June, 1854
Madrid
King Ferdinand VII of Iberia had had quite enough. He'd been forced to kite checks without adequate gold reserves and his lenders were already demanding payment, money he did not have. His bump in popularity over the reconquest of the vile Republic of Mexico was already waned. At terrible expense, he had waged war to recover the lost lands of New Spain. Well, even without additional reinforcements, it was likely the Americans would be able to hold the northern lands without any real trouble. Indeed, given the sheer quantity of soldiers America was raising over the past year and a half, the now-defunct Republic of Mexico, not to mention the rest of New Spain, would likely fall under a vengeful American counterstrike once the rebellion was crushed, as appeared likely, in their renegade states. Florida's loss would be a given, and possibly Cuba and Puerto Rico.
The Spanish colonies of the Americas' south - Granada, Peru, Chile - were growing restive, irritated at Spain's failure to provide subsidies as promised for their participation in the war.
Ferdinand thought it ironic that his ancestors had assisted America in their independence and, three generations later, he attempted to do so with a portion of America's population. However, France and Britain were plainly not interested in intervening on Spanish behalf. Britain remained sore over their dispute over Patagonia, though that nation appeared more interested in the far east.
For now.
Seeing the Federal States of America as a sinking ship, Ferdinand's advisors seeking peace on the best possible terms. The defunct Republic of Mexico was, by far, the most valuable of the lost territories of New Spain. The Confederation of the North states were barely worth possessing and the northwestern states (Sonora, Vizcaya, Sinaloa, Durango) possessed nothing of value.
Honestly, Ferdinand's motivation in intervening with the secessionists wasn't even reclaiming New Spain, but to create a barrier to the remainder of the Spanish Empire. America had provided an inspiration to independence movements throughout the Empire and the severing that nation would, he thought, put a stop to this nonsense. It was inevitable by the constant affronts to Spanish Sovereignty in Florida and Cuba would go on until those lands were lost.
It was a good idea, he was certain. It just didn't really work. Spain could not possible dispatch enough troops to the Federal States of America to measurably affect the war. Even the 15,000 present in Virginia were superfluous.
Perhaps most embarrassing was the poor performance of the Spanish Navy. Oh, they had a nice raid on Baltimore. But that was countered by defeats off of Florida and Cuba. The American Navy had been a joke only a few years before but some determined upgrades to steam-ships with armor gave the Americans a new advantage, previously undreamed. So daring were the Americans that they actually sailed a fleet past Florida, Cuba and the entire FSA coast to conquer New Orleans (this was the event that truly caused Ferdinand VII to lose faith in the FSA, even though guarding the seas was nominally Spain's job).
Construction in that nation dwarfed Spain, which could barely produce a few ships a year. Ferdinand had been reduced to ordering ships from Britain and France, though he was already in arrears with his neighbors, whom considered Spain's Empire as something of a joke. Both quietly told the Iberian that his nation's interference with their own valuable trade with America was not to be disrupted by piracy or wide-scale blockades, not that Spain was really capable of the latter (or possible the former).
America was winning, but it hadn't won. Once the FSA fell, what was to happen to Spain's Empire? Was it destined to be plucked by America one possession at a time or to see her colonies rebel at American prodding?
No, Ferdinand would not allow this. He must make the best deal possible while he could. But American knew that they were winning as well. He must strike and strike hard. HIs advisors had made a daring recommendation. Some stated it was foolhardy but the stubborn Seward had not responded well to his quiet emissaries.
Very well. It was time to roll the dice and hit America hard. It may not knock them out but it could extend the war and remind his adversary that Spain was not living off of past glory.
Ferdinand VII just prayed this last was not a pipe dream.
The Chesapeake
So much of the American fleet, at least the best portions, had been shipped to New Orleans or dispatched to the southern coasts to harry FSA/Spanish trade. Though Spain had won a great victory a year prior, that seemed very long ago.
Months ago, the Spanish King's emissaries had quietly approached President Bonham regarding a daring raid. Enchanted, Bonham approved and guaranteed the whole of the available FSA Navy, for what that was worth. Many ships seized at independence from the American Navy remained in harbor, lacking crews or modern guns. But a few had been properly decked out and others purchased from Europe (much to America's outrage at the sales). It was not enough for a proper sea-going flotilla but combined with the Spanish modern ships?
For the first time, the FSA sailed as a real fleet. The best of the Spanish fleet, including virtually all their newer ships, had been summoned from the West Indies. As a result, eighteen relatively modern ships of various sizes escorted fifteen troop transports of 5000 North and South Carolinians into the Chesapeake. For the second time in the war, the Union had been caught unawares in the same area.
They burst through the modest American defenses and sailed up the Potomac where only a handful of River Monitors had ruled without southern opposition. The allies disgorged their soldiers at the American capital.
When the FSA had controlled Maryland and Washington DC, they had set up powerful defensive fortifications...to the north of the city. As their backs were to Virginia, it seemed pointless to fortify the southern approaches. When the United States reclaimed the city, they had full control of the River and the Bay, therefore nullifying any need to further build up the defenses. All resources were pushed slightly west where the massive armies were gathering and, by the end of May, had crossed the Potomac, seeking to crush the Army of Northern Virginia.
Most of the leadership of the army, including Winfield Scott, had relocated west where they could better control the situation. Indeed, most of the military had never truly reoccupied the city, deeming it "silly to have the head of the snake within shooting range of the enemy". Instead, the main offices of the army and navy were in Baltimore.
The mint and the Treasury offices remained in Philadelphia. The greater portion of the functioning government in the Capital was mainly the President and Congress, a political move if there ever was one. It was planned that, by the next election, the actual bureaucracy would return to the Capital.
Washington, a shell of a town even months after its recovery, remained largely laid bare from the River. It simply never crossed anyone's mind that the nominal capital could be assaulted.
The Spanish and Federals took due advantage. Their forces tore into the capital with a fury, making no pretense of conquest, just sheer destruction. Union forces were hardly far away and some units rapidly responded piecemeal, though this took all attention away from the massive battle taking place to the south. Within twelve hours, the allies were boarding their ships on the Potomac, preparing to retreat before the gathering Union regulars and militia pouring in from the countryside, or the Union Navy arrived in force.
Behind them, the Spanish left a burning city including the Presidential Mansion, Library of Congress and other key buildings. The President and Congress was forced to flee. Most of the outer suburbs had been spared as the Spanish and Federals lacked the time to assault them. However, the fires were spread by the hot summer's drought even long after the Spanish had retreated. Indeed, over 3/4's the destruction had occurred in the days after the attack as embers were cast through the city, causing further damage.
The nation was in an uproar, wondering how the capital, nominally protected by 10,000 troops, had sustained such an attack. It would later be determined that General James Ledlie, whom had command of the local forces, had been drunk on duty and failed to offer any leadership whatsoever upon learning of the invasion beyond ordering what was left of his General Staff to flee the city. Later that summer, Ledlie would be court-martialed and sentenced to death for dereliction of duty, though this would later be commuted to five years imprisonment by Presidential Order. He would be pardoned two years later but later die of alcoholism at the public shame of being the most pilloried Union soldier of the war.
Beyond being an expensive embarrassment, the raid almost completely disrupted the summer assault by Garibaldi as thousands of Union troops were recalled to deal with a threat that no longer existed. General Scott was so livid that he cursed the President in public and was forced to resign. All of this occurred even while the battle waged.
Madrid
King Ferdinand VII of Iberia had had quite enough. He'd been forced to kite checks without adequate gold reserves and his lenders were already demanding payment, money he did not have. His bump in popularity over the reconquest of the vile Republic of Mexico was already waned. At terrible expense, he had waged war to recover the lost lands of New Spain. Well, even without additional reinforcements, it was likely the Americans would be able to hold the northern lands without any real trouble. Indeed, given the sheer quantity of soldiers America was raising over the past year and a half, the now-defunct Republic of Mexico, not to mention the rest of New Spain, would likely fall under a vengeful American counterstrike once the rebellion was crushed, as appeared likely, in their renegade states. Florida's loss would be a given, and possibly Cuba and Puerto Rico.
The Spanish colonies of the Americas' south - Granada, Peru, Chile - were growing restive, irritated at Spain's failure to provide subsidies as promised for their participation in the war.
Ferdinand thought it ironic that his ancestors had assisted America in their independence and, three generations later, he attempted to do so with a portion of America's population. However, France and Britain were plainly not interested in intervening on Spanish behalf. Britain remained sore over their dispute over Patagonia, though that nation appeared more interested in the far east.
For now.
Seeing the Federal States of America as a sinking ship, Ferdinand's advisors seeking peace on the best possible terms. The defunct Republic of Mexico was, by far, the most valuable of the lost territories of New Spain. The Confederation of the North states were barely worth possessing and the northwestern states (Sonora, Vizcaya, Sinaloa, Durango) possessed nothing of value.
Honestly, Ferdinand's motivation in intervening with the secessionists wasn't even reclaiming New Spain, but to create a barrier to the remainder of the Spanish Empire. America had provided an inspiration to independence movements throughout the Empire and the severing that nation would, he thought, put a stop to this nonsense. It was inevitable by the constant affronts to Spanish Sovereignty in Florida and Cuba would go on until those lands were lost.
It was a good idea, he was certain. It just didn't really work. Spain could not possible dispatch enough troops to the Federal States of America to measurably affect the war. Even the 15,000 present in Virginia were superfluous.
Perhaps most embarrassing was the poor performance of the Spanish Navy. Oh, they had a nice raid on Baltimore. But that was countered by defeats off of Florida and Cuba. The American Navy had been a joke only a few years before but some determined upgrades to steam-ships with armor gave the Americans a new advantage, previously undreamed. So daring were the Americans that they actually sailed a fleet past Florida, Cuba and the entire FSA coast to conquer New Orleans (this was the event that truly caused Ferdinand VII to lose faith in the FSA, even though guarding the seas was nominally Spain's job).
Construction in that nation dwarfed Spain, which could barely produce a few ships a year. Ferdinand had been reduced to ordering ships from Britain and France, though he was already in arrears with his neighbors, whom considered Spain's Empire as something of a joke. Both quietly told the Iberian that his nation's interference with their own valuable trade with America was not to be disrupted by piracy or wide-scale blockades, not that Spain was really capable of the latter (or possible the former).
America was winning, but it hadn't won. Once the FSA fell, what was to happen to Spain's Empire? Was it destined to be plucked by America one possession at a time or to see her colonies rebel at American prodding?
No, Ferdinand would not allow this. He must make the best deal possible while he could. But American knew that they were winning as well. He must strike and strike hard. HIs advisors had made a daring recommendation. Some stated it was foolhardy but the stubborn Seward had not responded well to his quiet emissaries.
Very well. It was time to roll the dice and hit America hard. It may not knock them out but it could extend the war and remind his adversary that Spain was not living off of past glory.
Ferdinand VII just prayed this last was not a pipe dream.
The Chesapeake
So much of the American fleet, at least the best portions, had been shipped to New Orleans or dispatched to the southern coasts to harry FSA/Spanish trade. Though Spain had won a great victory a year prior, that seemed very long ago.
Months ago, the Spanish King's emissaries had quietly approached President Bonham regarding a daring raid. Enchanted, Bonham approved and guaranteed the whole of the available FSA Navy, for what that was worth. Many ships seized at independence from the American Navy remained in harbor, lacking crews or modern guns. But a few had been properly decked out and others purchased from Europe (much to America's outrage at the sales). It was not enough for a proper sea-going flotilla but combined with the Spanish modern ships?
For the first time, the FSA sailed as a real fleet. The best of the Spanish fleet, including virtually all their newer ships, had been summoned from the West Indies. As a result, eighteen relatively modern ships of various sizes escorted fifteen troop transports of 5000 North and South Carolinians into the Chesapeake. For the second time in the war, the Union had been caught unawares in the same area.
They burst through the modest American defenses and sailed up the Potomac where only a handful of River Monitors had ruled without southern opposition. The allies disgorged their soldiers at the American capital.
When the FSA had controlled Maryland and Washington DC, they had set up powerful defensive fortifications...to the north of the city. As their backs were to Virginia, it seemed pointless to fortify the southern approaches. When the United States reclaimed the city, they had full control of the River and the Bay, therefore nullifying any need to further build up the defenses. All resources were pushed slightly west where the massive armies were gathering and, by the end of May, had crossed the Potomac, seeking to crush the Army of Northern Virginia.
Most of the leadership of the army, including Winfield Scott, had relocated west where they could better control the situation. Indeed, most of the military had never truly reoccupied the city, deeming it "silly to have the head of the snake within shooting range of the enemy". Instead, the main offices of the army and navy were in Baltimore.
The mint and the Treasury offices remained in Philadelphia. The greater portion of the functioning government in the Capital was mainly the President and Congress, a political move if there ever was one. It was planned that, by the next election, the actual bureaucracy would return to the Capital.
Washington, a shell of a town even months after its recovery, remained largely laid bare from the River. It simply never crossed anyone's mind that the nominal capital could be assaulted.
The Spanish and Federals took due advantage. Their forces tore into the capital with a fury, making no pretense of conquest, just sheer destruction. Union forces were hardly far away and some units rapidly responded piecemeal, though this took all attention away from the massive battle taking place to the south. Within twelve hours, the allies were boarding their ships on the Potomac, preparing to retreat before the gathering Union regulars and militia pouring in from the countryside, or the Union Navy arrived in force.
Behind them, the Spanish left a burning city including the Presidential Mansion, Library of Congress and other key buildings. The President and Congress was forced to flee. Most of the outer suburbs had been spared as the Spanish and Federals lacked the time to assault them. However, the fires were spread by the hot summer's drought even long after the Spanish had retreated. Indeed, over 3/4's the destruction had occurred in the days after the attack as embers were cast through the city, causing further damage.
The nation was in an uproar, wondering how the capital, nominally protected by 10,000 troops, had sustained such an attack. It would later be determined that General James Ledlie, whom had command of the local forces, had been drunk on duty and failed to offer any leadership whatsoever upon learning of the invasion beyond ordering what was left of his General Staff to flee the city. Later that summer, Ledlie would be court-martialed and sentenced to death for dereliction of duty, though this would later be commuted to five years imprisonment by Presidential Order. He would be pardoned two years later but later die of alcoholism at the public shame of being the most pilloried Union soldier of the war.
Beyond being an expensive embarrassment, the raid almost completely disrupted the summer assault by Garibaldi as thousands of Union troops were recalled to deal with a threat that no longer existed. General Scott was so livid that he cursed the President in public and was forced to resign. All of this occurred even while the battle waged.
That fool Ferdinand. Not only does he send troops to help the Federals, but his own army burns the capitol. This won't cow the US or force it to the table, he has only made the US more angry, and he definitely wont like the outcome.
The Gods truly has given Spain to the pits of Xibalba with this.
Has the South not grow tired of the Spanish and others being in the South all this time?
Has the South not grow tired of the Spanish and others being in the South all this time?
Ferdinand is a fucking idiot. Remember my phrase "Don't fuck with Seward" in my earlier post? Well now I'm officially trademarking it since it seems like we're going to be using it for half of the timeline. Seriously, what kind of dumbass just burns an enemy's capitol with little strategic value besides prolonging a war you admit you're going to lose anyways and will push you further into debt. I bet Ferdinand was just going to move the borders at pre-war times and conquer Florida. Now though, Seward is not going to rest until Spain is driven all the way from the Western Hemisphere. Expect Spain to be Public Enemy Number 1 and basically for the Spanish to be treated like the Nazis of 19th century America. Since Ferdinand decided to burn the White House I wouldn't be surprised if later in the 20th century during a war with Spain, an American soldier "accidentally" lights the Royal Palace on fire. I'm just surprised Ferdinand's son isn't trying to plan a coup to stop all this madness. #DontFuckWithSeward
Recall at this time that Washington was already half flattened by the siege and was only about the 18th most important American city in the first place.
Also note that the FSA cooperated in the attack and it was no doubt an effective distraction to the attack along the Potomac.
It's not goign to save them. If, somehow, somehow, they win independent, they just collapse into their own civil war and the Union will watch with the up-most of fun, and then move back in.
June 1854
Northern Virginia
The initial phases of the Battle of Alexandria went fairly well. Though the Potomac was a barrier, it was not insurmountable. The Union had not totally wasted the spring. Hundreds of rafts and barges were constructed for easy transfer of the supply and artillery trains. In many places, the infantry and cavalry did not require any transportation, they could merely wade across with their powder held high above their heads. The FSA lacked the manpower to hold a forty mile front. Instead, they opted for a defense in depth, preferring to react to incursions.
To the east lay the key cities of Alexandria and Richmond, which lay nearer the coast. General Richard Guyan, the fortyish English mercenary commanded a Corps of 10,000 soldiers in the Army of Northern Virginia. For two decades, the soldier had fought in various wars, including rebellions by Pro-Legitimasts in Portugal, Anti-Bonapartes in Italy and Nationalists in Hungary. None had ended well. Ever since arriving on these shores, the soldier had wondered if he'd chosen the wrong side here as well. As best he could tell, the war was effectively about slavery, a subject the Englishman was, at best, indifferent towards. His own nation had already set along the path of abolishing the practice in their own colonies.
But mercenaries did not have to care about their home nation's policies. They only had to fight for their paymaster. However, the FSA hadn't exactly been forthcoming with their gold, only the script which were widely derided as worthless the day it was issued.
But a job was a job and his prior military experience went a long way in a nation where not major wars had been waged for well over a generation. Still, he found the FSA soldiers moderately clever, if inexperienced. The African Legion and the Spaniards and their Imperials? A similar mixed bag. The good news was that the Union was no more experienced that the rebels.
His subordinate Charles Henningsen had been given a Division in the Virginia Army (each state maintained at least their own nominal forces, something Guyan considered insane). There were plenty of openings as the FSA's President seemed to enjoy sacking Generals on a whim. As best he could tell, neither that Joseph Johnston nor Thomas Jackson deserved to be relieved. The old men, Samuel Cooper and David Twiggs, now commanded the Army of Northern Virginia after Francis Dade, the Virginian, fell off his horse, braining himself on the ground. He lived and, hopefully, would lead again as his temporary replacements proved to be massive step-downs in Guyan's opinion. Ludwig Von Der Tann commanded the Spanish and French forces, the latter at least experienced. Yet another Corps was commanded by William Travis, a South Carolina political appointee whose command position aroused anger among the professional officers.
Guyan thought Cooper and Twiggs too passive, letting the "Yankees" set the tone. The "Union" (the Federals considered themselves "Americans" so always used "Union", "Yankees" or "Bluebellies" to describe the northern states) was allowed to cross the river in force, breaching the defenses before the southerners reacted. Within days, the entire defensive line west of Alexandria was forced to be abandoned. Guyan was utterly disgusted. Much of the army fell back, consolidating their forces throughout eastern Virginia.
Finally, the enemy attacked five miles west of Alexandria. The first assaults were easily parried, the attacked oddly feeble. General Von Der Tann was forced to endure a pitched battle with nearly two divisions comprised almost entirely of Germans under the command of yet another exiled German Revolutionary, General Shimmelfenning. Garibaldi, like the German, was an experienced soldier on the continent attempted multiple flanking maneuvers attempting to reach Alexandria, the Federals fell back, bit by bit, making the Union pay for every step.
Still, the enemy seemed ungodly cautious for some reason. Only later did the Englishman learn of the assault on Washington that sapped badly needed divisions from the Union Army. This, however, did not relieve the situation overall. The huge Federal Army was proving too difficult to control by the bureaucrats Twiggs and Cooper. Their only saving grace was the Americans (the Union, Guyan reminded himself) had never before attempted to command an army the size of those waged in the Napoleonic Wars of Revolution and proved equally cumbersome.
The end result was the Federals falling back towards the east, nominally leaving the door open to the south. However, the Union could hardly just march by Alexandria, Fredericksburg, Petersburg and Richmond and leave their supply lines free to be cut. They needed to deal with the great army first. The cities were well fortified and defensible to siege. The Union would spend a month attempting to cut them off but nimble Federal cavalry prevented an easy severance of the southern approaches. Alexandria, opposite Washington, was already besieged. Fredericksburg was being flanked as Garibaldi did not wish to attack that town directly. Unfortunately, bypassing the city meant that the southerners had an avenue to counterattack.
If anything, the whole situation was simply more confused.
Kentucky and Tennessee
Irving McDowell's forces crossed into northern Tennessee, even as Joseph Taylor marched on Nashville from the west. Torn in two directions, General James Fannin opted for the greater threat and faced off against Taylor first.
At the Battle of Franklin, the Union absorbed the first of Fannin's counterattacks after gaining the high ground. Fannin sent his abrasive North Carolinian subordinates, Braxton Bragg and John Bell Hood in a series of frontal assaults that drained his army dry. Joseph Taylor's counterattacks drove Fannin back north. Hoping to find a better place to make his stand against the two armies, Fannin was horrified to find that McDowell had managed to flank his 5000 man force defending the city of Nashville and enter the town limits from the east. With his best high ground lost, Fannin knew that the state was lost. Every day, additional reports of stronger Union naval forces along the Cumberland were threatening to cut off the entire state. If Fannin did not act, his army could be lost, along with any hope of the Federal States of America. The FSA simply could not absorb the loss of an entire Army. Even losing a state would be mild in comparison.
Of course, by this point, Fannin had long seen the writing on the wall. He knew Seward's will to put an end to the FSA and suspected the Union would follow him at least long enough to get the job done. Fannin had ordered his agents to procure the services of every ship it could find along the southern ports of the FSA. As Union Armies approached, tens of thousands of Negroes fled north each week, wiping out the core to plantation wealth. Perhaps worse, it was usually the most valuable and productive younger workers that were fleeing, leaving the aged, feeble and children behind. Most of the remainder barely made enough to feed themselves. Raids from Union areas burned crops to the ground, cut off transportation and generally made life unlivable in the western states (the East would soon learn this lesson). Often the value of a plantation's slaves outweighed the land by several orders of magnitude. Seeing the inevitability of losing their livelihoods regardless of the conclusion of the war, many plantation owners opted to sell, sell, sell, at any price in order to save SOMETHING.
Fannin purchased slaves by the thousand, often as shockingly low prices. He, in fact, abandoned hundreds simply because they were worthless. Ships sailed on permanent milk runs to Cuba, Veracruz and even the British and French islands. Emperor Napoleon II still required a workforce for his projects in Africa and, at 200 dollars a head, it was actually cheaper to import them from America than march them up through West Africa. The British colonies of Hispaniola, Jamaica, Barbados and others, had nominally only 4 years left before the manumission of slavery. However, that was usually the lifespan of most slaves anyway and the price for human flesh was lower than ever, a money-making proposition even at the depressed rates for sugar and rum. Many West Indian planters were pleased with the low rates and knew that an indeterminate "apprenticeship" period after the nominal end of slavery would maintain the status quo for at least a few years on those who survived the next half-decade (barely half would). Given that the American south was at least partially accustomed to West Indian diseases and the slaves were already "broken in", it was not that bad of an investment.
By Fannin's estimates, he'd moved over 25,000 Negroes just on his own initiative. The south as a whole had already shipped out over 100,000 of a population of 1.5 million slaves. Over 150,000 more had fled north. Valuable soldiers that could have been sent to the front lines were forced into policing roles trying to stem the flow.
As a result, no one had been ready for Albert Sidney Johnston.
Alabama
Northern Alabama was somewhat Unionist in temperament. More hilly than the more populous south where plantation were common, the north was considered uncouth and "non-gentlemanly" Albert Sidney Johnston had finally been unleashed from his mountainous prison. Unfortunately, it was impossible to truly supply an army from the Appalachians. That did not bother Johnston. He would live off the land. Johnston came down from the highlands and carved through Alabama en route to Montgomery. The government scrambled to form a defensive force capable of repulsing his 20,000 soldiers whom "travelled light", never stopping for a single day, living off the land.
Baton Rouge
Technically, Vicksburg was the western border of the FSA by this point but the Union had bypassed it after conquering the rest of northwestern Mississippi between the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers. Vicksburg was now surrounded and the bulk of George Hooker's army swung towards the last Federal sliver of Louisiana. Augmented by fresh troops, including 6,000 Negroes, his army of 40,000 met P.T. Beauregard's army of 31,000.
The Louisianan was confident. He had not been defeated yet on anything remotely resembling equal terms, especially by Hooker. The armies clashed north of Baton Rouge. For three days, the battle swung back and forth, casualties mounting on both sides. With one final desperate move, Beauregard ordered his subordinate William Walker to flank the enemy lines. Unknown to him, Hooker had dispatched General Richard Taylor to do the same. The two armies met almost by chance along a narrow country lane that opened up into a handful of small farms.
With the battle cry of "For the Union and Zackary Taylor!", the Union forces smashed Walker's army.
Hours later, several Negro regiments cut a hole in the center of Beauregard's line, much to the General's horror.
The Army of Louisiana was broken, taking 6000 casualties versus 5000 for Hooker's forces. They retreated eastward into Mississippi, abandoning Louisiana.
Northern Virginia
The initial phases of the Battle of Alexandria went fairly well. Though the Potomac was a barrier, it was not insurmountable. The Union had not totally wasted the spring. Hundreds of rafts and barges were constructed for easy transfer of the supply and artillery trains. In many places, the infantry and cavalry did not require any transportation, they could merely wade across with their powder held high above their heads. The FSA lacked the manpower to hold a forty mile front. Instead, they opted for a defense in depth, preferring to react to incursions.
To the east lay the key cities of Alexandria and Richmond, which lay nearer the coast. General Richard Guyan, the fortyish English mercenary commanded a Corps of 10,000 soldiers in the Army of Northern Virginia. For two decades, the soldier had fought in various wars, including rebellions by Pro-Legitimasts in Portugal, Anti-Bonapartes in Italy and Nationalists in Hungary. None had ended well. Ever since arriving on these shores, the soldier had wondered if he'd chosen the wrong side here as well. As best he could tell, the war was effectively about slavery, a subject the Englishman was, at best, indifferent towards. His own nation had already set along the path of abolishing the practice in their own colonies.
But mercenaries did not have to care about their home nation's policies. They only had to fight for their paymaster. However, the FSA hadn't exactly been forthcoming with their gold, only the script which were widely derided as worthless the day it was issued.
But a job was a job and his prior military experience went a long way in a nation where not major wars had been waged for well over a generation. Still, he found the FSA soldiers moderately clever, if inexperienced. The African Legion and the Spaniards and their Imperials? A similar mixed bag. The good news was that the Union was no more experienced that the rebels.
His subordinate Charles Henningsen had been given a Division in the Virginia Army (each state maintained at least their own nominal forces, something Guyan considered insane). There were plenty of openings as the FSA's President seemed to enjoy sacking Generals on a whim. As best he could tell, neither that Joseph Johnston nor Thomas Jackson deserved to be relieved. The old men, Samuel Cooper and David Twiggs, now commanded the Army of Northern Virginia after Francis Dade, the Virginian, fell off his horse, braining himself on the ground. He lived and, hopefully, would lead again as his temporary replacements proved to be massive step-downs in Guyan's opinion. Ludwig Von Der Tann commanded the Spanish and French forces, the latter at least experienced. Yet another Corps was commanded by William Travis, a South Carolina political appointee whose command position aroused anger among the professional officers.
Guyan thought Cooper and Twiggs too passive, letting the "Yankees" set the tone. The "Union" (the Federals considered themselves "Americans" so always used "Union", "Yankees" or "Bluebellies" to describe the northern states) was allowed to cross the river in force, breaching the defenses before the southerners reacted. Within days, the entire defensive line west of Alexandria was forced to be abandoned. Guyan was utterly disgusted. Much of the army fell back, consolidating their forces throughout eastern Virginia.
Finally, the enemy attacked five miles west of Alexandria. The first assaults were easily parried, the attacked oddly feeble. General Von Der Tann was forced to endure a pitched battle with nearly two divisions comprised almost entirely of Germans under the command of yet another exiled German Revolutionary, General Shimmelfenning. Garibaldi, like the German, was an experienced soldier on the continent attempted multiple flanking maneuvers attempting to reach Alexandria, the Federals fell back, bit by bit, making the Union pay for every step.
Still, the enemy seemed ungodly cautious for some reason. Only later did the Englishman learn of the assault on Washington that sapped badly needed divisions from the Union Army. This, however, did not relieve the situation overall. The huge Federal Army was proving too difficult to control by the bureaucrats Twiggs and Cooper. Their only saving grace was the Americans (the Union, Guyan reminded himself) had never before attempted to command an army the size of those waged in the Napoleonic Wars of Revolution and proved equally cumbersome.
The end result was the Federals falling back towards the east, nominally leaving the door open to the south. However, the Union could hardly just march by Alexandria, Fredericksburg, Petersburg and Richmond and leave their supply lines free to be cut. They needed to deal with the great army first. The cities were well fortified and defensible to siege. The Union would spend a month attempting to cut them off but nimble Federal cavalry prevented an easy severance of the southern approaches. Alexandria, opposite Washington, was already besieged. Fredericksburg was being flanked as Garibaldi did not wish to attack that town directly. Unfortunately, bypassing the city meant that the southerners had an avenue to counterattack.
If anything, the whole situation was simply more confused.
Kentucky and Tennessee
Irving McDowell's forces crossed into northern Tennessee, even as Joseph Taylor marched on Nashville from the west. Torn in two directions, General James Fannin opted for the greater threat and faced off against Taylor first.
At the Battle of Franklin, the Union absorbed the first of Fannin's counterattacks after gaining the high ground. Fannin sent his abrasive North Carolinian subordinates, Braxton Bragg and John Bell Hood in a series of frontal assaults that drained his army dry. Joseph Taylor's counterattacks drove Fannin back north. Hoping to find a better place to make his stand against the two armies, Fannin was horrified to find that McDowell had managed to flank his 5000 man force defending the city of Nashville and enter the town limits from the east. With his best high ground lost, Fannin knew that the state was lost. Every day, additional reports of stronger Union naval forces along the Cumberland were threatening to cut off the entire state. If Fannin did not act, his army could be lost, along with any hope of the Federal States of America. The FSA simply could not absorb the loss of an entire Army. Even losing a state would be mild in comparison.
Of course, by this point, Fannin had long seen the writing on the wall. He knew Seward's will to put an end to the FSA and suspected the Union would follow him at least long enough to get the job done. Fannin had ordered his agents to procure the services of every ship it could find along the southern ports of the FSA. As Union Armies approached, tens of thousands of Negroes fled north each week, wiping out the core to plantation wealth. Perhaps worse, it was usually the most valuable and productive younger workers that were fleeing, leaving the aged, feeble and children behind. Most of the remainder barely made enough to feed themselves. Raids from Union areas burned crops to the ground, cut off transportation and generally made life unlivable in the western states (the East would soon learn this lesson). Often the value of a plantation's slaves outweighed the land by several orders of magnitude. Seeing the inevitability of losing their livelihoods regardless of the conclusion of the war, many plantation owners opted to sell, sell, sell, at any price in order to save SOMETHING.
Fannin purchased slaves by the thousand, often as shockingly low prices. He, in fact, abandoned hundreds simply because they were worthless. Ships sailed on permanent milk runs to Cuba, Veracruz and even the British and French islands. Emperor Napoleon II still required a workforce for his projects in Africa and, at 200 dollars a head, it was actually cheaper to import them from America than march them up through West Africa. The British colonies of Hispaniola, Jamaica, Barbados and others, had nominally only 4 years left before the manumission of slavery. However, that was usually the lifespan of most slaves anyway and the price for human flesh was lower than ever, a money-making proposition even at the depressed rates for sugar and rum. Many West Indian planters were pleased with the low rates and knew that an indeterminate "apprenticeship" period after the nominal end of slavery would maintain the status quo for at least a few years on those who survived the next half-decade (barely half would). Given that the American south was at least partially accustomed to West Indian diseases and the slaves were already "broken in", it was not that bad of an investment.
By Fannin's estimates, he'd moved over 25,000 Negroes just on his own initiative. The south as a whole had already shipped out over 100,000 of a population of 1.5 million slaves. Over 150,000 more had fled north. Valuable soldiers that could have been sent to the front lines were forced into policing roles trying to stem the flow.
As a result, no one had been ready for Albert Sidney Johnston.
Alabama
Northern Alabama was somewhat Unionist in temperament. More hilly than the more populous south where plantation were common, the north was considered uncouth and "non-gentlemanly" Albert Sidney Johnston had finally been unleashed from his mountainous prison. Unfortunately, it was impossible to truly supply an army from the Appalachians. That did not bother Johnston. He would live off the land. Johnston came down from the highlands and carved through Alabama en route to Montgomery. The government scrambled to form a defensive force capable of repulsing his 20,000 soldiers whom "travelled light", never stopping for a single day, living off the land.
Baton Rouge
Technically, Vicksburg was the western border of the FSA by this point but the Union had bypassed it after conquering the rest of northwestern Mississippi between the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers. Vicksburg was now surrounded and the bulk of George Hooker's army swung towards the last Federal sliver of Louisiana. Augmented by fresh troops, including 6,000 Negroes, his army of 40,000 met P.T. Beauregard's army of 31,000.
The Louisianan was confident. He had not been defeated yet on anything remotely resembling equal terms, especially by Hooker. The armies clashed north of Baton Rouge. For three days, the battle swung back and forth, casualties mounting on both sides. With one final desperate move, Beauregard ordered his subordinate William Walker to flank the enemy lines. Unknown to him, Hooker had dispatched General Richard Taylor to do the same. The two armies met almost by chance along a narrow country lane that opened up into a handful of small farms.
With the battle cry of "For the Union and Zackary Taylor!", the Union forces smashed Walker's army.
Hours later, several Negro regiments cut a hole in the center of Beauregard's line, much to the General's horror.
The Army of Louisiana was broken, taking 6000 casualties versus 5000 for Hooker's forces. They retreated eastward into Mississippi, abandoning Louisiana.
What hope Fannin? OTL South had better hope of winning the war. And it's kind of pointless with the lost of Louisiana.
And Richard Guyan, when mercenaries are not paid, they don't fight. So...really the wrong side.
And Richard Guyan, when mercenaries are not paid, they don't fight. So...really the wrong side.
I got to say that now I despise Jim Fannin now even more than Lamar. Your "country" is on the verge of collapse and as a military leader you instead spend your time making money by selling slaves by the tens of thousands instead of being liberated. After the Civil War ends, Seward should hang him as a war criminal. Glad to see though that Louisiana has been conquered as well as Tennesee. While the Virginia attack may have faltered it looks as though Johnson is about to save the day.
By the way why did Bonham sack both Johnston and Jackson? They're two of the Feds best generals and the CSA never relieved anyone for failing OTL even when Sherman was cutting through Georgia.
Yes it may be a brillitant tactical move but in the end Spain's situation only got worse. Ferdinand could've made a somewhat satisfactory peace with the United States and focus on Spain's finances. Instead he's made Seward so pissed off that he's going to go on a crusade to liberate Spanish America. He should realize by now that there is no way to save the FSA unless Skippy the Alien Space bat himself intervenes.
By the way why did Bonham sack both Johnston and Jackson? They're two of the Feds best generals and the CSA never relieved anyone for failing OTL even when Sherman was cutting through Georgia.
Yes it may be a brillitant tactical move but in the end Spain's situation only got worse. Ferdinand could've made a somewhat satisfactory peace with the United States and focus on Spain's finances. Instead he's made Seward so pissed off that he's going to go on a crusade to liberate Spanish America. He should realize by now that there is no way to save the FSA unless Skippy the Alien Space bat himself intervenes.
