English Canada/French Carolina: A Timeline

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Gabingston

Gabingston

What I've gathered from the polls thus far:
  • The Republicans win the Dutch Civil War
  • South Africa becomes an independent Republic
Things that I find likely:
  • Western Australia remains a Dutch colony
  • The new Dutch Republic would likely be some sort of federal republic similar to OTL's United States
  • The Dutch federal capital will be in The Hague
  • In order to not favor the Catholic South nor the Protestant North, the Republic will be secular with no state religion
 
Gabingston

Gabingston

I'm gonna make a slight change to La Floride.
In other posts, I've stated that Ville-Marie (Wilmington, NC) was the largest city in the colony, with Port Armand (Charleston, SC) in second place. However, realizing just how geographically advantageous a location Port Armand/Charleston is in, I've decided to make Port Armand the largest city, with New Orleans in second and then Ville-Marie in third. I'm also renaming Port Armand to Richelieu, since both names come from the same person and I just prefer the name Richelieu for a city over Port Armand. Richelieu/Port Armand will also be the largest city by quite a large margin, I'm guessing around 20,000 people, with New Orleans at 10,000 and Ville-Marie at 5,000 (La Floride is overwhelmingly agricultural).
 
Part 30: La Floride in the Early 19th Century
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    • Gabingston

    Gabingston

    Part 30: La Floride in the Early 19th Century​

    The French colony of La Floride, located in the Southeast of North America in 1800 was no longer just some outpost on the other side of the ocean, but growing into the most integral and profitable colony of the French Colonial Empire. The port city of Richelieu was a thriving port city of 22,000 that was the designated trade hub with the motherland, exporting tobacco, rice, wood and indigo while importing… people . By this point, Richelieu had imported over 100,000 African slaves over its history, by far the largest slave trading post in mainland North America, and nearly half of the city’s population was of African descent, many of whom were enslaved (but with a large free POC community). Richelieu was also the de facto political capital of the colony, as the Governor-General’s Mansion was located in the city. The second largest city in 1800 was New Orleans, basically the Richelieu of the Gulf Coast with a population of 10,000, while Ville-Marie was the third largest at 6,000 residents. Otherwise, the vast majority of the population lived in rural areas and small towns of no more than 1,000 people located in rural areas.

    With the French economic state improving after it’s low point around 1790, more Frenchmen now had the means to try their luck overseas, as well as the Crown recruiting settlers from downtrodden populations like orphans and Cagots. By 1810, an average of 1,000 Frenchmen per year were immigrating to La Floride, a number that would spike in 1816 and 1817 due to food shortages, before falling back to 1,500 by 1820, and would only continue to rise as sailing technology continued to improve.

    Anyway, in 1804, a severe hurricane struck the Atlantic coast of La Floride, killing around 500 people (many of them slaves) and causing significant damage to the city of Richelieu, followed by an outbreak of yellow fever that killed hundreds more. Despite that, Richelieu grew to 35,000 people by 1810 and 55,000 by 1820. Another major natural event were a series of earthquakes between 1811 and 1812 that struck along the Mississippi River, but there were only a handful of fatalities since it struck in a lightly settled area. A quite severe hurricane struck New Orleans in 1812, followed by a yellow fever outbreak (similar to the 1804 Richelieu hurricane mentioned earlier).

    The Early 19th Century was also the time when settlers began to move west of the Appalachian Mountains, with the Grand Vallée in particular receiving many settlers. In order to secure French control over the Northern route into the Grand Valley, Fort Savoie was established. In 1819, the White population of La Floride passed the million mark, with the White population as of 1820 being 1,040,000, with a Black population of 665,000 (39%), including about 90,000 Gens de Couleur Libre, or Free People Of Color (The Black proportion of the population is set to decline significantly over the 19th Century, as the Floridian government pursues a program of Blanchement, namely by encouraging loads of European immigration). I’ll do another update on French Florida soon, but I’ve got to get to work on my Dutch Civil War update, so I’ll leave it at that for now.
     
  • Index
    • Resource Guide V1: British America Locations
  • Index
    • Gabingston

    Gabingston

    EC/FC British America Locations​

    Laurentia:

    • Kirkeston (OTL Québec City)

    • Three Rivers (OTL Trois Rivières)

    • Mount Royal (OTL Montréal)

    • Brellington (OTL Montmagny)

    • Wolf River (OTL Rivière-du-Loup)

    • Mactan (OTL Matane)

    • Gaspay (OTL Gaspé)

    • Williamstown (OTL Sorel-Tracy)

    • Chauenigan (OTL Shawinigan)

    • Cheltenham (OTL Donnacona)

    • Riverbend (OTL Repentigny)

    • Falton (OTL Chambly)

    • Rockford (OTL Drummondville)

    • Arabasca (OTL Victoriaville)

    • Shecootimee (OTL Chicoutimi)

    • Moose Point (OTL L’Orignal)

    • Pine Falls (OTL Portage-du-Fort)
    Nova Scotia:

    • Saint John

    • New Falkirk (OTL Truro)

    • Pesacid (OTL Windsor)

    • Riversbend (OTL Moncton)

    • Naymche (OTL Amherst)

    • St. Andrews (OTL Charlottetown)

    • Machias

    • Conasamuc (OTL St. Andrews, New Brunswick)

    • New Inverness (OTL Miramichi)

    • Nipisigy (OTL Bathurst)

    • Annestown (OTL Summerside)

    • Halifax
    Commonwealth of America:

    • Fort Catarockway (OTL Kingston)

    • Fort Odawa (OTL Ottawa)

    • Fort Toronto

    • Fort Niagara

    • Fort Stuart (OTL Detroit)

    • Lake Pibago (OTL Lake Champlain)

    • Fort Ticonderoga

    • Fort Michilimackinac (OTL Mackinac Island)

    • Fort Bawitigong (OTL Sault Ste. Marie)

    • Fort Lakesend (OTL Duluth)

    • Fort Sandusty (OTL Sandusky)

    • Fort Gaminstigwea (OTL Thunder Bay)

    • Fort Cumberland (OTL Pittsburgh)

    • Fort Kensington (OTL Parkersburg)

    • Petawawa

    • Belleville, ON

    • Ochaway (OTL Oshawa)

    • Portage (OTL North Bay)

    • Erie, PA
     
  • Index
    • Resource Guide V1: French Florida and New Spain Locations
  • Index
    • Gabingston

    Gabingston

    EC/FC French Florida and New Spain Locations​

    French Florida:
    • Rochelle (OTL Beaufort)

    • Chatoca (OTL New Bern)

    • Ville-Marie (OTL Wilmington)

    • Port Saint-Michel (OTL Georgetown)

    • Richelieu (OTL Charleston)

    • Nouvelle-Charlesfort (OTL Parris Island)

    • Marennes (OTL Washington, NC)

    • Baie-des-Crevettes (OTL Sneads Ferry)

    • Île-Saint-Simon (OTL St. Simons)

    • Fort Caroline (OTL Jacksonville)

    • Port Sainte-Lucie (OTL Port St. Lucie)

    • Saint-Pierre-des-Chutes (OTL Rocky Mount)

    • Fort-Saint-Esprit (OTL Mobile)

    • Fort Bilocci (OTL Biloxi)

    • Baye Sainte-Rose (OTL Fort Walton Beach)

    • Saint-Germain (OTL Savannah)

    • La Balize

    • Fort Jolliet (OTL Columbia)

    • Fort Frontenac (OTL Augusta)

    • Fort Ocmulqui (OTL Macon)

    • Fort Palluau (OTL Columbus)

    • Fort Toulouse (OTL Wetumpka)

    • La Nouvelle-Orléans

    • Baton Rouge

    • Natchitoches

    • Fort Rosalie (OTL Natchez)

    • Fort De L’Assomption (OTL Memphis)

    • Fort Crevecoeur (OTL Port St. Joe)

    • Fort Saint-Pierre (OTL Vicksburg, MS)

    • Port Saint-Hyacinthe (OTL Baytown)

    • Port Des Bras (OTL Freeport, Texas)

    • Saint-Denis (OTL Fayetteville)

    • Boischeville (OTL Raleigh)

    • Hocquart (OTL Camden, SC)

    • Mûreposte (OTL Knoxville)

    • Rocheville (OTL Chattanooga)

    • Havre D’Esprit (OTL Tampa)

    • Zarazote (OTL Sarasota)

    • Post du Rapides (OTL Alexandria, LA)

    • Opelousas

    • Petit Manchac (OTL Lafayette, LA)

    • Calcasieu (OTL Lake Charles)

    • Rondinville (OTL Shreveport)

    • Pinède (OTL Pine Bluff)

    • Rivière Acansa (Arkansas River)

    • Rivière Pekitanoui (Missouri River)

    • Dubreil (OTL Claiborne, AL)

    • Bienville (OTL Selma)

    • Saint-Louis (OTL St. Louis)

    • Fort Padoucas (OTL Paducah)

    • Rivière Caquinampo (Tennessee River)

    • Saint-Denis de Chisafocque (OTL Jackson, MS)

    • Mission Saint-Dominique (OTL Fulton, AR)

    • Saint-Thérѐse de Quainco (OTL Waco)
    New Spain

    • San Diego de Alcalá (OTL San Diego)

    • San Francisco de Asis (OTL San Francisco)

    • Rio Bravo (Rio Grande)

    • San Antonio de Valero (OTL San Antonio)

    • San Xavier del Bac (OTL San Xavier, AZ)
     
  • Index
    • Resource Guide V1: Australia and South Africa Locations
  • Index
    • Gabingston

    Gabingston

    EC/FC Australia and South Africa Locations​

    British Australia:

    • Port Jackson (OTL Sydney)
    New Holland:

    • Fort Vlamingh (OTL Fremantle)

    • Nieuw Utrecht (OTL Guildford)

    • Duidgje (OTL Toodyay)

    • Regensbaai (OTL Albany)

    • Leeuwin (OTL Augusta)

    • Vassestad (OTL Busselton)

    • Leschenshaven (OTL Bunbury)

    • Peronstad (OTL Rockingham)
    Terre-Bourbon:

    • Louisport (OTL Port Adelaide)

    • Tadagne (OTL Adelaide City Center)

    • Nouvelle-Salerne (OTL Hallett Cove)

    • Nurlongue (OTL Port Noarlunga)

    • Pataouille (OTL Glenelg)

    • Petit-Fourches (OTL Gawler)
    South Africa:

    • Port Natal (OTL Durban)
     
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    • Gabingston

    Gabingston

    So, by a 7-2 margin, you guys wanted Alaska to stay Russian ITTL.
    The question I have is... how could this happen?
    Russian Alaska was based on the fur trade and Orthodox Missions, with very few Russian settlers. In order to get to Alaska from European Russia, you first have to go 800 miles east to cross the Urals, then traverse over 3,000 miles of Siberian wilderness to get to Okhotsk, which was only ice-free for less than half of the year, then sail around Kamchatka and across over 2,000 miles of the rough North Pacific... just to get to another frozen wasteland on the other side of the world. See the problem?
    As of 1867, when the Alaska Purchase occurred IOTL, there were only around 2,500 Russians in Alaska, and that includes those of mixed Russian-Native blood. I don't see there being many more Russians make the long, long journey to Alaska ITTL. It'd be easier to go to New Zealand than to get to Alaska, even from Saint Petersburg, since one could take ocean currents the whole way once you got to the Atlantic, while it'd take just as long to cross Siberia, plus the trip across thousands of miles of sea.
    Let's say that Alaska stays Russian until gold is discovered. While I'd assume there be thousands of Russians that would go to Alaska during the gold rush, they'd be at least matched, more likely overwhelmed by the Anglo-Americans. This is what happened in California, as the local Mexicans were swamped by Anglo settlers looking to strike it rich, and that's what'd happen in Alaska as well. Leave your thoughts on if Alaska stays Russian (or rather Russian Speaking) until the present, or if someone else (likely the Commonwealth of America) gains control. I held a vote, so I'm not just gonna go against it without your input.
     
    Part 31: Abolition In America
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    • Gabingston

    Gabingston

    Part 31: Abolition in America​

    We return to the Commonwealth of America to see how things shake up in the land of the free, which as we will see is soon to fully live up to that title. As I’d mentioned in a previous post, the peculiar institution of Slavery was increasingly being seen as a relic of a bygone age in the Commonwealth of America. Only the provinces of Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and Kentucky allowed Slavery, and even in those provinces the institution was becoming less influential. Unlike in the French colonies to the south where Slavery was at its peak with the cotton boom of the Mid 19th Century, Slavery north of the Roanoke had clearly passed its prime, even if cotton was being produced in some parts of the country. As soon as the Commonwealth was declared, there were talks about abolishing Slavery in the commonwealth, with Pennsylvania declaring all those born after 1780 to be free (although children born to slave mothers were indentured servants until age 28). Laurentia followed in 1782, Connecticut and Rhode Island in 1784 and Nova Scotia in 1785 also passed gradual abolition laws. Massachusetts completely outlawed Slavery in 1783, and New York began gradual abolition in 1799. Finally, New Jersey began abolition in 1804, leaving only Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky and Delaware as Slave Provinces. However, these were the provinces that had most of the slaves in the first place, especially Virginia, in which 40% of the population was enslaved.

    In 1833, the British Parliament back in London outlawed slavery across the British Empire. However, that abolition did not apply to the Commonwealth, as America had its own separate Parliament. With most of the provinces being anti-slavery, the American Parliament could likely push through a slavery ban, but knowing that it could lead to civil unrest and even a civil war, the Americans opted for a more gradual solution for emancipating the 1,000,000 slaves in the Commonwealth. All children of slaves born from January 1st, 1835 would be born free, while slave owners would get compensation for freeing slaves born before that date. Thus, the Emancipation Act of 1834 was passed by the American Parliament, beginning the process of nationwide abolition that would play out over the following decades.
     
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    • Douggernaut777

    Just found the TL, really enjoying it so far!

    I would think that Russia can't really hold onto Alaska successfully. It's way too far away to control successfully so I can't imagine Russia not wanting to sell it off or something to the Commonwealth.
     
    Gabingston

    Gabingston

    Douggernaut777 said:
    Just found the TL, really enjoying it so far!

    I would think that Russia can't really hold onto Alaska successfully. It's way too far away to control successfully so I can't imagine Russia not wanting to sell it off or something to the Commonwealth.
    Click to expand...
    The thing is, I held a vote on it, and a solid majority wanted Russia to keep Alaska. However, as I've mentioned, I do find it quite implausible (even though I did have a Russian Alaska in another series I did for a little while).
     
    Dante

    Dante

    Gabingston said:
    The thing is, I held a vote on it, and a solid majority wanted Russia to keep Alaska. However, as I've mentioned, I do find it quite implausible (even though I did have a Russian Alaska in another series I did for a little while).
    Click to expand...

    Gold was discovered in Alaska in 1848 in OTL, what if it gets discovered way earlier in TTL? Maybe this would be enough for Russia to make more of an effort to settle and hold on to Alaska? The problem with Russian Alaska is that it was kind of an afterthought, Russia had plenty of undeveloped lands way closer to home that would be way easier to colonize and exploit.
     
    Gabingston

    Gabingston

    Dante said:
    Gold was discovered in Alaska in 1848 in OTL, what if it gets discovered way earlier in TTL? Maybe this would be enough for Russia to make more of an effort to settle and hold on to Alaska? The problem with Russian Alaska is that it was kind of an afterthought, Russia had plenty of undeveloped lands way closer to home that would be way easier to colonize and exploit.
    Click to expand...
    My point exactly. I'd also assume that any wave of Russian settlers during the gold rush would likely be surpassed by Anglo-Americans, thus Alaska becomes a Russian Texas.
     
    Part 32: Dutch Civil War
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    • Gabingston

    Gabingston

    Part 32: Dutch Civil War​

    First of all, I have to say thank you to Pompejus for giving me so much information on the Dutch Republic and what was going wrong at the time. Thank you very much, it was a great help to me. Also, if I seem unreasonably favorable towards the Catholic, just know that I myself am one. Now, onto the actual update.

    Ever since the 1581 Dutch Revolt against the Spanish, the Netherlands had been one of the few republics in a mainly monarchist Europe. The Dutch Republic was organized into seven Provinces, each of which had their own regional parliament that had representatives from the cities and countryside of the province. There were two other subdivisions within the Republic. First, there was the Drenthe, an area that was considered too minor to be a full province. The other category were the Generality Lands, which had no regional parliament and were governed directly from The Hague. These areas were primarily Catholic and conquered after the formation of the Republic.

    The head of state was the Stadtholder, who wasn’t quite a king, but could hold quite a bit of power if he was competent enough. On the other side, there were the regents, who wanted to keep their autonomy and prevent too much centralization. There were also the colonies, which were run by companies that weren’t state run, but held quite a bit of influence in the government. The VOC was in decline by this period, so the government seized direct control of the Cape Colony in the Early 19th Century, encouraging Dutch and Northern European settlement in the Cape Colony.

    By the turn of the 19th Century, the Republic had become incredibly corrupt and inept, leading to a revolt in 1802, which was swiftly put down.

    However, the flames of rebellion, while diminished, weren’t extinguished, and after the annexation of Flanders in the Franco-Austrian war of the Early 1830s, the embers of rebellion exploded into a burning fire.

    With decades of corruption and incompetence in the government, the Dutch public slowly came to the conclusion that the republic had failed, and that a change was needed. Over time, two main camps emerged in the conflict over the future of the Netherlands. First, there were the Monarchists. Citing the examples of France and Britain, they stated that moving towards a Constitutional Monarchy would bring stability to the Netherlands. On the other side, there were the Republicans, who favored reforming the Republic into something more representative.

    The Netherlands during the 1820s and 1830s were ruled by Stadtholder Willem VI. While he had some positive qualities (the Dutch economy was pretty strong up until the Franco-Prussian war), actions he took lead to destabilization of the Dutch Republic. William was a strong Calvinist, which made him unpopular in the mainly Catholic south, not helped by the required teaching of the Reformed faith in school. When the Netherlands annexed Flanders in 1833, it was given no regional parliament, rather being ruled from The Hague. William was also quite an ambitious figure, and had dreams of being more than just Stadtholder. So, in 1835, he proclaimed himself King William I of The Netherlands, which needless to say did not sit well with many parts of the country. Protests in the underrepresented Catholic regions of the country quickly turned into calls for revolution, with the Southern Catholics finding themselves in an awkward alliance with the growing Middle Class and the established Upper Class. On the side of the monarchy were the Working Class in the North, as well as some of the Northern upper class.

    I’m not going to go into the details of the war, as I don’t know the specifics of what it’d look like. The war began in Late 1835 and lasted up until Early 1838. It claimed about 100,000 lives, or around 2% of the Dutch population at the time (just a wild guess). The bigger population loss was the wave of emigration from 1839-1846, during which about 200,000 Dutchmen packed their bags for the Commonwealth of America, the newly independent Republic of South Africa and the Dutch colony of New Holland. The peace negotiations declared that Willem VI would be President of the Dutch Republic until his death, as a consolation to the losing side (Willem died on December 12th, 1843, BTW December 12th is my birthday ), with elections being held afterwards. After Willem’s death, the President would serve a five year term, being able to run for reelection as many times as he wants. The legislature was divided into two houses, one which gave each of the provinces 5 seats, and the other houses distributed 100 seats to each of the provinces by population. Arguably the most important aspect of the new Republic was that, in order to minimize tensions between Protestants and Catholics, did not declare a state religion. However, provinces were allowed to designate a religion, which went to the advantage of Catholics in the South and Calvinists in the North.

    Meanwhile, in the land of the blessed rains, the Cape Colony found that this was the perfect time to realize their dreams of independence. So, on March 1st, 1837, the Republic of South Africa was declared, with its capital in Kaapstad. In contrast to the new Dutch Republic, South Africa declared the Reformed faith its official state religion, with other faiths being allowed complete freedom, but not benefitting from tax dollars or public education. With the Netherlands unable to do anything about it due to the civil war, they reluctantly accepted South African independence, as long as Dutch ships were still allowed to dock in South African ports. Between 1840 and 1845, about 50,000 Dutch immigrants arrived in South Africa, most settling along the coast (especially in and around Kaapstad), but a significant minority venturing out into the hinterland. Meanwhile, about 20,000 Dutchmen arrived in New Holland during the 1840s, mostly settling along the Coastal Plain. Most of the remaining 130,000 Dutch emigres from that time period went to the Commonwealth of America, particularly the New York City area, which even after 200 years had a notable Dutch influence.

    A new era was dawning upon Europe, and indeed The World, and those republican ideals were not to remain limited to the Netherlands for too much longer… I really hope I didn’t screw this up too much.
     
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