The Story of a Party 2.0
- Thread starter Utgard96
- Start date
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What did you do to my state
Im questioning why the more Unionist part of the state, much less STL is somehow part of the CSA Missouri.
But the northern parts of the state, except for St. Louis, were the ones that practiced plantation agriculture, and the location of most of the secessionists. It was in the Ozarks that Unionist sentiment ran highest.
That is one of the reasons Grant was able to secure the city so quickly and use it as his base of operations.
I talked with Emperor-of-Scandinavia and CaliBoy1990 about it; the proposal by South Californians to secede from the state succeeds, and the area is now the territory of Colorado (the area isn't quite populous enough for statehood yet).
*Bump*....because this TL deserves a second chance.
Sorry guys. I've been busy with other stuff the last few weeks, which is why I haven't been able to update in a while. However, I graduate tomorrow, and after that I should be able to work on this for quite a while.
Thanks. I hope to be able to update soon.
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You'll be pleased to know that I've finished the next update. Please point out if you see any errors or unrealistic aspects of the events. I'm aware that the update seems a bit "Ameriwankish", but I think the expansion is justified; Seward was an expansionist IOTL as well, once saying "Give me only this assurance, that there never be an unlawful resistance by an armed force to the ... United States, and give me fifty, forty, thirty more years of life, and I will engage to give you the possession of the American continent and the control of the world."
I'm also putting some pictures in this update, since someone (I can't remember who) asked for that. So without further ado, here it goes.
I'm also putting some pictures in this update, since someone (I can't remember who) asked for that. So without further ado, here it goes.
Story of a Party - Chapter XV
Expanding Concerns
"Give me only this assurance, that there never be an unlawful resistance by an armed force to the United States, and give me fifty, forty, thirty more years of life, and I will engage to give you the possession of the American continent and the control of the world."
- William Henry Seward
***
From "Deconstruction and Reconstruction: A History of the Postbellum United States, 1862-1924" by Walker Smith
Abrams Publishing, Philadelphia, 1956
"The election of William Seward to the presidency initially meant only surprisingly small changes in interior policy; both Fremont and Seward were radicals, and the same group of radicals still held control of Congress. As such, the measures to support the freedmen and remove ex-Confederates from political power continued, and the various white supremacist groups continued to attack both freedmen and the army of occupation.
Instead, it was in foreign policy that the fundamental changes came; Seward was an avowed expansionist, and his administration would see the biggest territorial expansion since that of James Polk. Their ambitions also began in the same place - Oregon."
***
English Channel, off Bretagne
July 21, 1864
The Alabama made its way through the waters of the English Channel, rolling slightly due to the windy weather. Less hardy men might succumb to seasickness in such conditions, and indeed, quite a few of the newer seamen onboard the Alabama had, but William Myers, the middle topman, had seen many years at sea in his life, and he was used even to the heavier rolling at the top of the mast. He had handled sailing through storms where the ship had nearly capsized, and he was confident that he could handle this one.
As he picked up his telescope, William heard a faint sound in the distance. When he lifted his head up he saw another ship moving toward the Alabama, and looking at it through his telescope he saw a Union flag at its stern. The signal lamp was flashing. He picked up his codebook and read the signals. It said: "YOUR SHIP AND ITS CREW ARE CONTRABAND OF WAR STOP PLEASE TURN YOURSELVES OVER AND ACCOMPANY OUR SHIP BACK TO UNITED STATES STOP USS WABASH."
***
The CSS Alabama.
***
From "Deconstruction and Reconstruction: A History of the Postbellum United States, 1862-1924" by Walker Smith
Abrams Publishing, Philadelphia, 1956
"After it had been captured, it was discovered that the CSS Alabama had been built for the Confederates by a British shipbuilder, John Laird Sons & Company. The United States government immediately pressed for damages, citing the British government's letting the Alabama sail as a violation of British neutrality. The British Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston, held that this was not so, even though public opinion in Britain was against the Alabama's release, and the disputes over the so-called "Alabama Claims" began.
The disputes continued well into 1865, and when William Seward entered office, territorial claims began entering into the situation. Charles Sumner, who chaired the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, originally wanted to ask for $2 billion, or the ceding of the whole of Canada, but even Seward realised that this was not to be. Instead, he decided to ask for the annexation of British Columbia and all British-held land west of the Western Continental Divide to the United States, in exchange for which he would drop the matter of the damage payments entirely. Lord Palmerston was reluctant to do this, but he passed away during the negotiations, leaving Lord Russell with the Premiership, and control of the settlement. Russell, although agreeing with Palmerston on the issue of the Alabama's release, did not want to risk war with the United States, and so agreed. The treaty, which was signed in Washington on May 4, 1865, stipulated that the United Kingdom would cede British Columbia, including Vancouver Island, and those parts of the Northwest Territory within the Pacific watershed, with the exact boundaries to be decided by arbitration on a later date, to the United States. Additionally, American fishermen were granted access to the waters of British North America.
This was seen as too light by others in his time, and it still baffles historians why he did not ask for monetary damages, but when seen in a wider perspective, Seward's asking the British to cede Columbia seems more reasonable. Seward wanted to bring the entire Pacific coast under U. S. control, and in combination with the Alaska Purchase, he succeeded in doing this."[1]
***
From "Juàrez and Maximilian: The French Intervention in Mexico, 1860-1863" by Henry Stafford
Herschel Krustofski [2] Memorial Press, New York City, 1987
"After the French withdrawal, Mexico was in a battered state. The national treasury was nearly empty, and Juàrez found himself in dire need of money to rebuild the battered countryside [3]. When President Seward entered office in the United States, an opportunity came along.
Seward pursued a policy of peaceable expansion, and strived to put as much as possible of the Pacific coastline under American control. He approached the Mexican government in the spring of 1866, offering to purchase Baja California and parts of Sonora and Chihuahua for $15 million. Juàrez decided to accept Seward's bid, despite the relatively low selling price, because of the sheer size of the problems faced by his nation's economy, and because he hoped to be able to negotiate the boundaries of the purchase area.
The border eventually settled on was the Rio Conchos up until the bend south in that river, after which it followed a parallel line straight from that point until meeting with the Rio Yaqui, and then that river to its mouth [4]. This was viewed on as a suitable compromise; Seward supported it because it would bring further Pacific coastline into the American fold, and Juàrez was pleased that enough of Sonora and Chihuahua was left in Mexico to make the area a viable province on its own."
***
A map of the purchased area.
***
From "The Great Land up North: The History of Laurentia" by Sir Robert Borden FRS FRLS KL [5]
Dalhousie University Press, Halifax, Nova Scotia, 1933
"During the 1850s and early 1860s, across the British provinces in North America, pressure for confederation increased. In the Province of Canada, the system of government was becoming untenable, with tensions between the English of Canada West and the French of Canada East rising. The equal number of MPs from both sides caused a complete deadlock in Parliament, and as the year 1864 began, the colony was under its eighteenth government, with Sir John Macdonald [6] co-premiering for Canada West for the fifth time [7]. The capital was in Toronto, after having moved back and forth between Toronto and Quebec four times; this alone shows the political instability caused by the union of the two colonies. The inhabitants of both sides wanted to separate, and the West Canadians wanted to be able to expand into the prairies, as the thin strip of arable land surrounding the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence had mostly been settled. As such, in 1864, a Great Coalition had been formed between all major parties in Canada, in order to make reforms to the political system; the removal of the deadlock in these matters meant that reform could now proceed, and Macdonald made plans for a conference in Kingston to discuss confederation between all British colonies in North America.
John Alexander Macdonald, Premier for Canada West.
The Maritimes were also becoming increasingly interested in union; these provinces had far more in common with each other than they had with the other colonies, and they originally wanted a union between only the Maritime provinces. As such, when a Conference opened in Fredericton in May of 1864, the talks included only the four Atlantic colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland [8]. However, fear of domination by Nova Scotia, by far the most populous colony, led the delegates from the smaller colonies to ask Canada to join in the negotiations [9], a proposal which was enthusiastically accepted by Macdonald's government. The Canadians, unfortunately, would not be able to arrive in time, and so the Fredericton Conference went along without the Canadians; however, Macdonald's plan for a Kingston Conference that would include all of the colonies would also go through.
The result of the Fredericton Conference was that a memorandum was drafted, citing 'the need for political reform in order to secure the future prosperity of our respective provinces' and, as a result of this need, calling for 'a centralised government including all of the British colonies in North America, providing for the common welfare of its provinces, defending them from all military threat, and securing for all time peace and prosperity for all North America'. The memorandum carried clear overtures not only to Macdonald, but also to the Hudson's Bay Company, which still ruled over Rupert's Land, whom they wanted to give up their sovereignty over the area and open it up for settlement. Among the other things agreed upon were the preservation of the monarch as head of state, who would act through an appointed governor-general, and the construction of a railroad between Montreal and Halifax to prove east access between the provinces.
The Kingston Conference was scheduled for March of 1865; in the meantime, preparations were undertaken by the governments of all the provinces, and Macdonald corresponded with the Queen and Prime Minister Lord Palmerston, asking for Britain's stance on the matter. The Queen and Prime Minister both wrote to Macdonald that they watched the negotiations with interest for now, but Palmerston's letters were slightly less unilaterally enthusiastic. He wanted to send observers to the Kingston Conference to ensure that British interests were being maintained, and warned that 'the link your Provinces share with our Nation must not be severed, lest we may require to intervene more directly in the situation', which meant, for the layman's benefit, that the Queen must remain as head of state and British traders must enjoy the same privileges in North American ports. Macdonald reluctantly accepted Palmerston's request to send observers, and with this, the Conference opened on March 21.
The delegates at the Kingston Conference. Macdonald seated, fourth from left.
The primary issue to be solved was how the new unified parliament was to be composed. There were initially strong arguments for a British-like system with a House of Commons and House of Lords; however, with Canada having precious little nobility, this quickly fell flat. Instead, it was decided to model the new upper house on the American Senate, with a number of members for each province that were appointed by the provincial governments. This proved popular, but the various provinces disagreed bitterly on how many senators would be chosen from each province. Canada was divided between population-based and equal representation, but all of the Maritimes continued to push for full equality. A compromise was reached, whereby there would be a minimum of three senators per province and a maximum of eight; this, while not exactly what anyone had wanted, was acceptable, and the conference moved on. It was quickly settled that the suggestion of the Fredericton Conference for a single Governor General of all the provinces was acceptable, and that the Montréal-Halifax railway would start construction as soon as possible.
However, there was still dissent among the delegates from Prince Edward Island. They wanted three things that the Convention was initially against; firstly, they wanted a minimum of six MPs elected from their province at all times; secondly, they wanted a ferry link to the mainland; and thirdly, they wanted an appropriation of $200,000 to buy out the various absentee landlords that still controlled much of the island's valuable farmland. The Convention agreed to the second point and, after a while, to the first one (after the Newfoundlanders insisted upon the same rule), but it still would not appropriate the money to the province. The PEI delegation, therefore, continued to refuse to accede. That was when news arrived from London that Palmerston had died, that Lord Russell was now Prime Minister, and that British Columbia had been signed away to the Americans. The prevailing mood changed from quiet optimism to grimness and determination, with a side of panic, as everyone realised that the Americans were still a threat. When a telegram [10] arrived from London to the effect that the British Government was willing to buy out all the lands on Prince Edward Island owned by their nationals in absentia, the small island province agreed to join, and after a while, so did Newfoundland. Macdonald's aims had succeeded; the new nation would include all of British North America, save for Rupert's Land, which was still in a state of transition. There would be a democratic, representative form of government, but the ties to Britain would not be severed.
The name of the new country became, as the Conference went on, a point of contention. Initially, most of the Convention, especially the Canadians, wanted the new country to be called 'Canada', with Thomas D'Arcy McGee commenting: "Now I would ask any honourable member of the House how he would feel if he woke up some fine morning and found himself, instead of a Canadian, a Tuponian or a Hochelegander?" referring to two of the more outlandish names suggested by others. However, with more of the other British provinces being included, the Maritimes started disagreeing with this name, which they believed was not representative of the entire new nation. Some now wanted the country to be called 'New Albion', and the Economist in London printed an article favouring the name 'Anglia' or 'Northland'. These, however, were either seen as too vague or too rooted in their British heritage. When the name 'Laurentia' was suggested, however, many of the delegates supported it, as it was a geographical and not a political term, and since it could refer either to St. Lawrence Bay, St. Lawrence River, or the Laurentian Shield, it could refer to the entire nation. The name was adopted by the Conference on May 16, two days before it adjourned, with all the questions on the agenda being solved.
In the summer and autumn of 1865, transatlantic communication was febrile, as Her Majesty's Government and those of the Laurentian provinces negotiated the formal creation of the new nation. Macdonald, in his writings, referred to it throughout as the 'Kingdom of Laurentia'; however, this use was repudiated by the Colonial Office, who were concerned that creating a new kingdom in the Americas would be considered as a slight by the United States. From then on, Macdonald started using the term 'United Provinces' to refer to the Laurentian nation, and this usage stuck.
Queen Victoria. The British watched the process of Confederation with interest, and the Queen happily gave her assent to the bill forming Laurentia.
In February of 1866, nineteen delegates from the North American provinces traveled to London, where they met the Queen and the British Government, who still held final say over the matter, to negotiate formally the creation of Laurentia as a separate realm. The British North America Act was given Royal Assent on April 14, and was quickly passed by both Houses of Parliament. The new British crown realm of the United Provinces of Laurentia was established, and Queen Victoria appointed Viscount Monck, who had previously served as Governor General of Canada, as the first Governor General of Laurentia. The Province of Canada was split into two; Canada East became the new province of Quebec, whereas Canada West retained the old province's name. Ottawa, including Gatineau and several other small towns nearby, was spun off as a new capital district, and in the first federal elections of the new nation, John A. Macdonald was elected with a large majority as the nation's first Prime Minister…"
***
[1] IOTL, Seward wanted to do this, and considered the Alaska Purchase to be the first step in achieving control over the Pacific Coast. Here, he is able to pursue his expansionist goals, and decides to ask for land cession instead of, like Grant, demanding monetary reparations.
[2] Named for Herschel Krustofski, a Jewish-American political writer and journalist who did much to improve US-German relations in the wake of the First European War. He was killed by an autowagon bomb planted by radical anti-Semites as he was visiting London in 1921.
[3] ITTL, the French try to gain control of Mexico almost like OTL, but since the US finishes its civil war much earlier, they are forced to leave earlier. They still take Mexico City, however, and this allows them to negotiate a settlement whereby only some of the defaults are recognised.
[4] This means that Guaymas and Hermosillo, but not Chihuahua, are within the United States now.
[5] Fellow of the Royal Society, Fellow of the Royal Laurentian Society, Knight of the Order of Laurentia.
[6] John Alexander Macdonald. Not to be confused with John Sandfield Macdonald, his Liberal counterpart.
[7] Co-premier because, of course, there had to be a French one as well.
[8] In OTL, Newfoundland wanted to participate in the Charlottetown Conference, but they weren't notified soon enough to participate. Here, that's not a problem.
[9] IOTL, it was Macdonald who approached the Maritimes to join.
[10] The first transatlantic telegraph cable, like OTL, was put down in 1858.
Expanding Concerns
"Give me only this assurance, that there never be an unlawful resistance by an armed force to the United States, and give me fifty, forty, thirty more years of life, and I will engage to give you the possession of the American continent and the control of the world."
- William Henry Seward
***
From "Deconstruction and Reconstruction: A History of the Postbellum United States, 1862-1924" by Walker Smith
Abrams Publishing, Philadelphia, 1956
"The election of William Seward to the presidency initially meant only surprisingly small changes in interior policy; both Fremont and Seward were radicals, and the same group of radicals still held control of Congress. As such, the measures to support the freedmen and remove ex-Confederates from political power continued, and the various white supremacist groups continued to attack both freedmen and the army of occupation.
Instead, it was in foreign policy that the fundamental changes came; Seward was an avowed expansionist, and his administration would see the biggest territorial expansion since that of James Polk. Their ambitions also began in the same place - Oregon."
***
English Channel, off Bretagne
July 21, 1864
The Alabama made its way through the waters of the English Channel, rolling slightly due to the windy weather. Less hardy men might succumb to seasickness in such conditions, and indeed, quite a few of the newer seamen onboard the Alabama had, but William Myers, the middle topman, had seen many years at sea in his life, and he was used even to the heavier rolling at the top of the mast. He had handled sailing through storms where the ship had nearly capsized, and he was confident that he could handle this one.
As he picked up his telescope, William heard a faint sound in the distance. When he lifted his head up he saw another ship moving toward the Alabama, and looking at it through his telescope he saw a Union flag at its stern. The signal lamp was flashing. He picked up his codebook and read the signals. It said: "YOUR SHIP AND ITS CREW ARE CONTRABAND OF WAR STOP PLEASE TURN YOURSELVES OVER AND ACCOMPANY OUR SHIP BACK TO UNITED STATES STOP USS WABASH."
***
The CSS Alabama.
***
From "Deconstruction and Reconstruction: A History of the Postbellum United States, 1862-1924" by Walker Smith
Abrams Publishing, Philadelphia, 1956
"After it had been captured, it was discovered that the CSS Alabama had been built for the Confederates by a British shipbuilder, John Laird Sons & Company. The United States government immediately pressed for damages, citing the British government's letting the Alabama sail as a violation of British neutrality. The British Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston, held that this was not so, even though public opinion in Britain was against the Alabama's release, and the disputes over the so-called "Alabama Claims" began.
The disputes continued well into 1865, and when William Seward entered office, territorial claims began entering into the situation. Charles Sumner, who chaired the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, originally wanted to ask for $2 billion, or the ceding of the whole of Canada, but even Seward realised that this was not to be. Instead, he decided to ask for the annexation of British Columbia and all British-held land west of the Western Continental Divide to the United States, in exchange for which he would drop the matter of the damage payments entirely. Lord Palmerston was reluctant to do this, but he passed away during the negotiations, leaving Lord Russell with the Premiership, and control of the settlement. Russell, although agreeing with Palmerston on the issue of the Alabama's release, did not want to risk war with the United States, and so agreed. The treaty, which was signed in Washington on May 4, 1865, stipulated that the United Kingdom would cede British Columbia, including Vancouver Island, and those parts of the Northwest Territory within the Pacific watershed, with the exact boundaries to be decided by arbitration on a later date, to the United States. Additionally, American fishermen were granted access to the waters of British North America.
This was seen as too light by others in his time, and it still baffles historians why he did not ask for monetary damages, but when seen in a wider perspective, Seward's asking the British to cede Columbia seems more reasonable. Seward wanted to bring the entire Pacific coast under U. S. control, and in combination with the Alaska Purchase, he succeeded in doing this."[1]
***
From "Juàrez and Maximilian: The French Intervention in Mexico, 1860-1863" by Henry Stafford
Herschel Krustofski [2] Memorial Press, New York City, 1987
"After the French withdrawal, Mexico was in a battered state. The national treasury was nearly empty, and Juàrez found himself in dire need of money to rebuild the battered countryside [3]. When President Seward entered office in the United States, an opportunity came along.
Seward pursued a policy of peaceable expansion, and strived to put as much as possible of the Pacific coastline under American control. He approached the Mexican government in the spring of 1866, offering to purchase Baja California and parts of Sonora and Chihuahua for $15 million. Juàrez decided to accept Seward's bid, despite the relatively low selling price, because of the sheer size of the problems faced by his nation's economy, and because he hoped to be able to negotiate the boundaries of the purchase area.
The border eventually settled on was the Rio Conchos up until the bend south in that river, after which it followed a parallel line straight from that point until meeting with the Rio Yaqui, and then that river to its mouth [4]. This was viewed on as a suitable compromise; Seward supported it because it would bring further Pacific coastline into the American fold, and Juàrez was pleased that enough of Sonora and Chihuahua was left in Mexico to make the area a viable province on its own."
***
A map of the purchased area.
***
From "The Great Land up North: The History of Laurentia" by Sir Robert Borden FRS FRLS KL [5]
Dalhousie University Press, Halifax, Nova Scotia, 1933
"During the 1850s and early 1860s, across the British provinces in North America, pressure for confederation increased. In the Province of Canada, the system of government was becoming untenable, with tensions between the English of Canada West and the French of Canada East rising. The equal number of MPs from both sides caused a complete deadlock in Parliament, and as the year 1864 began, the colony was under its eighteenth government, with Sir John Macdonald [6] co-premiering for Canada West for the fifth time [7]. The capital was in Toronto, after having moved back and forth between Toronto and Quebec four times; this alone shows the political instability caused by the union of the two colonies. The inhabitants of both sides wanted to separate, and the West Canadians wanted to be able to expand into the prairies, as the thin strip of arable land surrounding the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence had mostly been settled. As such, in 1864, a Great Coalition had been formed between all major parties in Canada, in order to make reforms to the political system; the removal of the deadlock in these matters meant that reform could now proceed, and Macdonald made plans for a conference in Kingston to discuss confederation between all British colonies in North America.
John Alexander Macdonald, Premier for Canada West.
The Maritimes were also becoming increasingly interested in union; these provinces had far more in common with each other than they had with the other colonies, and they originally wanted a union between only the Maritime provinces. As such, when a Conference opened in Fredericton in May of 1864, the talks included only the four Atlantic colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland [8]. However, fear of domination by Nova Scotia, by far the most populous colony, led the delegates from the smaller colonies to ask Canada to join in the negotiations [9], a proposal which was enthusiastically accepted by Macdonald's government. The Canadians, unfortunately, would not be able to arrive in time, and so the Fredericton Conference went along without the Canadians; however, Macdonald's plan for a Kingston Conference that would include all of the colonies would also go through.
The result of the Fredericton Conference was that a memorandum was drafted, citing 'the need for political reform in order to secure the future prosperity of our respective provinces' and, as a result of this need, calling for 'a centralised government including all of the British colonies in North America, providing for the common welfare of its provinces, defending them from all military threat, and securing for all time peace and prosperity for all North America'. The memorandum carried clear overtures not only to Macdonald, but also to the Hudson's Bay Company, which still ruled over Rupert's Land, whom they wanted to give up their sovereignty over the area and open it up for settlement. Among the other things agreed upon were the preservation of the monarch as head of state, who would act through an appointed governor-general, and the construction of a railroad between Montreal and Halifax to prove east access between the provinces.
The Kingston Conference was scheduled for March of 1865; in the meantime, preparations were undertaken by the governments of all the provinces, and Macdonald corresponded with the Queen and Prime Minister Lord Palmerston, asking for Britain's stance on the matter. The Queen and Prime Minister both wrote to Macdonald that they watched the negotiations with interest for now, but Palmerston's letters were slightly less unilaterally enthusiastic. He wanted to send observers to the Kingston Conference to ensure that British interests were being maintained, and warned that 'the link your Provinces share with our Nation must not be severed, lest we may require to intervene more directly in the situation', which meant, for the layman's benefit, that the Queen must remain as head of state and British traders must enjoy the same privileges in North American ports. Macdonald reluctantly accepted Palmerston's request to send observers, and with this, the Conference opened on March 21.
The delegates at the Kingston Conference. Macdonald seated, fourth from left.
The primary issue to be solved was how the new unified parliament was to be composed. There were initially strong arguments for a British-like system with a House of Commons and House of Lords; however, with Canada having precious little nobility, this quickly fell flat. Instead, it was decided to model the new upper house on the American Senate, with a number of members for each province that were appointed by the provincial governments. This proved popular, but the various provinces disagreed bitterly on how many senators would be chosen from each province. Canada was divided between population-based and equal representation, but all of the Maritimes continued to push for full equality. A compromise was reached, whereby there would be a minimum of three senators per province and a maximum of eight; this, while not exactly what anyone had wanted, was acceptable, and the conference moved on. It was quickly settled that the suggestion of the Fredericton Conference for a single Governor General of all the provinces was acceptable, and that the Montréal-Halifax railway would start construction as soon as possible.
However, there was still dissent among the delegates from Prince Edward Island. They wanted three things that the Convention was initially against; firstly, they wanted a minimum of six MPs elected from their province at all times; secondly, they wanted a ferry link to the mainland; and thirdly, they wanted an appropriation of $200,000 to buy out the various absentee landlords that still controlled much of the island's valuable farmland. The Convention agreed to the second point and, after a while, to the first one (after the Newfoundlanders insisted upon the same rule), but it still would not appropriate the money to the province. The PEI delegation, therefore, continued to refuse to accede. That was when news arrived from London that Palmerston had died, that Lord Russell was now Prime Minister, and that British Columbia had been signed away to the Americans. The prevailing mood changed from quiet optimism to grimness and determination, with a side of panic, as everyone realised that the Americans were still a threat. When a telegram [10] arrived from London to the effect that the British Government was willing to buy out all the lands on Prince Edward Island owned by their nationals in absentia, the small island province agreed to join, and after a while, so did Newfoundland. Macdonald's aims had succeeded; the new nation would include all of British North America, save for Rupert's Land, which was still in a state of transition. There would be a democratic, representative form of government, but the ties to Britain would not be severed.
The name of the new country became, as the Conference went on, a point of contention. Initially, most of the Convention, especially the Canadians, wanted the new country to be called 'Canada', with Thomas D'Arcy McGee commenting: "Now I would ask any honourable member of the House how he would feel if he woke up some fine morning and found himself, instead of a Canadian, a Tuponian or a Hochelegander?" referring to two of the more outlandish names suggested by others. However, with more of the other British provinces being included, the Maritimes started disagreeing with this name, which they believed was not representative of the entire new nation. Some now wanted the country to be called 'New Albion', and the Economist in London printed an article favouring the name 'Anglia' or 'Northland'. These, however, were either seen as too vague or too rooted in their British heritage. When the name 'Laurentia' was suggested, however, many of the delegates supported it, as it was a geographical and not a political term, and since it could refer either to St. Lawrence Bay, St. Lawrence River, or the Laurentian Shield, it could refer to the entire nation. The name was adopted by the Conference on May 16, two days before it adjourned, with all the questions on the agenda being solved.
In the summer and autumn of 1865, transatlantic communication was febrile, as Her Majesty's Government and those of the Laurentian provinces negotiated the formal creation of the new nation. Macdonald, in his writings, referred to it throughout as the 'Kingdom of Laurentia'; however, this use was repudiated by the Colonial Office, who were concerned that creating a new kingdom in the Americas would be considered as a slight by the United States. From then on, Macdonald started using the term 'United Provinces' to refer to the Laurentian nation, and this usage stuck.
Queen Victoria. The British watched the process of Confederation with interest, and the Queen happily gave her assent to the bill forming Laurentia.
In February of 1866, nineteen delegates from the North American provinces traveled to London, where they met the Queen and the British Government, who still held final say over the matter, to negotiate formally the creation of Laurentia as a separate realm. The British North America Act was given Royal Assent on April 14, and was quickly passed by both Houses of Parliament. The new British crown realm of the United Provinces of Laurentia was established, and Queen Victoria appointed Viscount Monck, who had previously served as Governor General of Canada, as the first Governor General of Laurentia. The Province of Canada was split into two; Canada East became the new province of Quebec, whereas Canada West retained the old province's name. Ottawa, including Gatineau and several other small towns nearby, was spun off as a new capital district, and in the first federal elections of the new nation, John A. Macdonald was elected with a large majority as the nation's first Prime Minister…"
***
[1] IOTL, Seward wanted to do this, and considered the Alaska Purchase to be the first step in achieving control over the Pacific Coast. Here, he is able to pursue his expansionist goals, and decides to ask for land cession instead of, like Grant, demanding monetary reparations.
[2] Named for Herschel Krustofski, a Jewish-American political writer and journalist who did much to improve US-German relations in the wake of the First European War. He was killed by an autowagon bomb planted by radical anti-Semites as he was visiting London in 1921.
[3] ITTL, the French try to gain control of Mexico almost like OTL, but since the US finishes its civil war much earlier, they are forced to leave earlier. They still take Mexico City, however, and this allows them to negotiate a settlement whereby only some of the defaults are recognised.
[4] This means that Guaymas and Hermosillo, but not Chihuahua, are within the United States now.
[5] Fellow of the Royal Society, Fellow of the Royal Laurentian Society, Knight of the Order of Laurentia.
[6] John Alexander Macdonald. Not to be confused with John Sandfield Macdonald, his Liberal counterpart.
[7] Co-premier because, of course, there had to be a French one as well.
[8] In OTL, Newfoundland wanted to participate in the Charlottetown Conference, but they weren't notified soon enough to participate. Here, that's not a problem.
[9] IOTL, it was Macdonald who approached the Maritimes to join.
[10] The first transatlantic telegraph cable, like OTL, was put down in 1858.
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Liked reading this new chapter of yours Ares96. I look forward to reading more chapters of this ATL of yours. Also, I would like to know how long US President Seward will be in office in order for him (and if possible his successors) in expanding the USA? Will the USA expand further in the Caribbean (maybe acquire Cuba, Puerto Rico, Danish Virgin Islands, etc.), then to Central America (especially when building either the Panama Canal, or the Nicaragua Canal, or the Tehuantepec Canal Route [in Mexico], or all of them), and then into the Asia-Pacific region (such as Guam, Saipan, American Samoa, the Philippines, etc.), then expand even into South America, and maybe even re-annex Liberia in Africa? Also, will US President Seward (later in his administration) and his successors take a more hardline stance in defending African-American rights and cracking down dissent in the South even further, thus causing Southerners (especially former Confederates) to leave for Brazil or some other country in South America? Please let me know your answers to each of my questions. Anyway, I hope to hear from you very soon. Thank you.
I look forward to reading more chapters of this ATL of yours. Also, I would like to know how long US President Seward will be in office in order for him (and if possible his successors) in expanding the USA? Will the USA expand further in the Caribbean (maybe acquire Cuba, Puerto Rico, Danish Virgin Islands, etc.), then to Central America (especially when building either the Panama Canal, or the Nicaragua Canal, or the Tehuantepec Canal Route [in Mexico], or all of them), and then into the Asia-Pacific region (such as Guam, Saipan, American Samoa, the Philippines, etc.), then expand even into South America, and maybe even re-annex Liberia in Africa? Also, will US President Seward (later in his administration) and his successors take a more hardline stance in defending African-American rights and cracking down dissent in the South even further, thus causing Southerners (especially former Confederates) to leave for Brazil or some other country in South America? Please let me know your answers to each of my questions. Anyway, I hope to hear from you very soon. Thank you. Liked reading this new chapter of yours Ares96.
Thank you. It's always nice to know.
Seward will be a one-termer, and he won't be able to focus on expansion for much longer. That's all I'm going to tell you.
Yes, no, yes, and no, respectively. Also, the US already has a protectorate over Nicaragua.
Yes. The 19th century won't be pretty if you're a Southerner.
Please let me know your answers to each of my questions. Anyway, I hope to hear from you very soon. Thank you.
You're welcome.
Damn. Seward is a political genius. I mean, wow. Certainly the Republican Party of this ATL is looking very promising/favoredly with winning the war and expanding along the entirety of the Pacific coastline. When i first read the 'cede Canada' i seriously thought you were going to do it, but glad that you didn't Just British Columbia.
So expansion into the Caribbean and Pacific is next.
So expansion into the Caribbean and Pacific is next.
He was one of the sharpest minds of the Republican Party, and not just in his imagination. But this is foreign policy, which I see as his forte; also we must remember that this is "Higher-Law" Seward, most radical of radicals. Once he turns to face the occupied South (which is inevitable), shit may freely move toward the fan.
Yes, it's still looking good, isn't it?
That'd have been too Ameriwankish, and the British would never agree - it's like suddenly ceding Ireland. British Columbia, however, is a forested backwater where most people were either republicans who wanted to join America or actual Americans who had come for the gold rush.
Not in Seward's time.
Well it is often said...or at least i like to think it is, that Lincoln's cabinet in OTL were some of the sharpest and most intelligent people of that era regardless. Seward though was certainly brilliant.
True that. Stanton and Chase were certainly some of the best of their kind.
Story of a Party - Chapter XVI
Dov'è la Vittoria?
"I have discovered the art of deceiving diplomats; I tell them the truth, and they never believe me."
- Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour
***
From "Political and Military Encyclopaedia of the 19th Century"
Harvard University Press, 1947
"EXPEDITION OF THE THOUSAND: Common name given to the expedition, led by Giuseppe Garibaldi, by which the rebelling island of Sicily was conquered from the Bourbons and unified with Italy. The campaign started on May 9, 1860, when Garibaldi left Genoa with a thousand and forty-nine volunteers. The expedition made landfall on the island on the 13th, and started engaging the various Bourbon garrisons almost at once. Many Sicilians were opposed to Bourbon rule, but were afraid to actually rise up; however, Garibaldi's arrival was enough to send them into open revolt against the government. The Bourbons had almost 20,000 troops on the island, and defeating them with a small force of young volunteers armed with rusty rifles that could've seen service in the war against Napoleon would normally have been a great challenge. However, the popular uprising against the Bourbons, coupled with the incompetence of the military leadership, caused the Bourbon rule to collapse quickly. After a bloody struggle, Palermo fell to the rebels on June 10, and many of them joined forces with Garibaldi's expeditionaries; by the end of July, the entire island was under Garibaldi's control. Garibaldi proclaimed himself as dictator of Sicily, and on August 15 marched north across the Straits of Messina, with the objective of capturing Naples and bringing about the end of Bourbon rule; this proved to be more a triumphal march than a campaign, as Bourbon rule collapsed upon itself almost everywhere, and when Garibaldi entered Naples on September 5, he was hailed as a hero. The Bourbons massed their forces for one final counter-attack, which happened at Capua on September 29. Garibaldi won this battle, although outnumbered, but he suffered heavy casualties, and his plans for marching on Rome were checked."
***
Garibaldi and King Victor Emmanuel meeting at Teano, October 1860
From "Risorgimento: The road to Italian unification, 1789-1866" by Emilio Marconi
Translated into English by Junius B. Walker
Popolo d'Italia Printing Company, 1987
"After the Battle of Capua, Cavour really began to sit up and take notice. If Garibaldi marched on Rome and deposed the Pope, Sardinia might lose the support of the French, which was sorely needed in order to avoid Austria taking further military action. To this end, he ordered the Sardinian army to occupy the Papal territories outside of the Latium, and to meet up with Garibaldi outside Naples. This happened, and Garibaldi and King Victor Emmanuel met up outside Benevento on October 20. Two weeks later, a plebiscite was held; an overwhelming majority voted for joining Sardinia. However, this plebiscite would not have met modern standards, as the vote was no secret, and Sardinian soldiers in the area were allowed to vote as well. When the Sardinians captured Gaeta, the last remaining Bourbon holdout, King Francis II fled to Vienna, where he and his wife lived the rest of their lives in exile.
With all of Italy except Venetia and the Latium being part of Sardinia, the name of the country was changed to the 'Kingdom of Italy'. The Statuto Albertino remained as the country's constitution, with a few changes to representation; although outdated by today's standards, this constitution was quite liberal for its time, with an elected Chamber of Deputies to whom ministers of state were in all but name responsible. [1]
Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, served as Italy's first Prime Minister. Picture taken in early 1861.
With the exceptions of Venetia and Latium, Italy was now one country. Six months after the end of the Expedition, Cavour set about negotiating the removal of the French troops from Rome. He traveled to Nizza [2] in June of 1861, where he met with Napoleon III; it was decided that the French would withdraw from Rome over a timespan of three years, during which period the Pope was to strengthen his own forces. Although the Pope, who was not present, protested vociferously, the Convention of Nizza was made public on July 3. Taking this as a sign that the government was planning to take Rome, Garibaldi, assisted by Mazzini, planned a second expedition to take the Eternal City, and set out from Genoa on April 21, 1862, travelling to Palermo, where he gathered volunteers for a march on Rome. The royal garrison at Messina, following standing orders, blocked Garibaldi's passage, and so he decided to take the direct route. Sailing out of Milazzo, his two thousand redshirts reached Gaeta on July 16.
The royal army, which anticipated his landing somewhere in Calabria, was caught by surprise, and as Garibaldi marched on Rome there were none but the French to resist his march. However, as the withdrawal had only just begun, the French outnumbered the redshirts sixfold, and they were under orders to defend Rome; as such, General Cristophe de Lamoricière, the French commander, set out of the walls of Rome on July 21. Garibaldi, upon hearing this, stated that "I will either march into Rome victoriously, or my blood shall stain the Walls of Aurelian". Although Garibaldi had fought many times against considerable odds, this was too hard a challenge to overcome. Still, he led the charge against the French troops, but fell in battle, being shot twice in the chest and once in the neck. Giuseppe Garibaldi, the "Sword of the Alps" and the architect of the Two Sicilies' downfall, was dead. Although the Italian government formally distanced themselves from his last act of war, they still honoured their fallen hero, and despite his wishes for a simple funeral and cremation, gave Garibaldi a state funeral in the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin.
The Battle of Mentana would be Garibaldi's last, and occupies a special place in Italian history.
When news of Garibaldi's death reached Rome, he became a martyr to the people there, who rose up in open revolt against Papal rule. The French and Papal garrisons in the city moved to crush the rebellion, but the Pope, never one to sit idly by and watch his people get slaughtered, called upon the military to stand down, and approached the Italian government to negotiate Rome's joining the Kingdom.
Representatives of the King and the Church met in the Lateran Palace on October 4, and on Christmas Day the Lateran Treaty was signed by the Pope and King Victor Emmanuel. By its terms, the Pope was able to keep temporal power over the Leonine City [3], and was also allowed to use the Lateran as his personal residence. The Papacy was also given a yearly payment of three and a half million lire to compensate the loss of territory.
The unification of Italy was now complete, excepting Venetia, and Cavour, now the unified Italy's first Prime Minister, set about organising the laws and standards of the new kingdom. This was no easy task, and when he collapsed in his office of a stroke on February 4, 1863, it was long overdue. He did not die, but was taken to a bed, where, two days later, he had another, more powerful stroke. He died on the morning of February 7, surrounded by his family and the high political figures of Italy, including the King. His final words were "L'Italia è fatta. Tutto è a posto" ("Italy is made. All is safe.")."
***
[1] The word of the Statuto states that the ministers are responsible to the king and the king alone; however, as it was impossible to govern without the support of the parliament, the ministers became responsible to the parliament by convention - this convention was so strongly established that in 1925, Mussolini had to promulgate a law reaffirming that he was not responsible to the parliament.
[2] Nice IOTL; it remains Italian long enough ITTL for the name to stick.
[3] The Leonine City is, roughly, the Vatican, plus the area around the Castel de Sant'Angelo.
Dov'è la Vittoria?
"I have discovered the art of deceiving diplomats; I tell them the truth, and they never believe me."
- Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour
***
From "Political and Military Encyclopaedia of the 19th Century"
Harvard University Press, 1947
"EXPEDITION OF THE THOUSAND: Common name given to the expedition, led by Giuseppe Garibaldi, by which the rebelling island of Sicily was conquered from the Bourbons and unified with Italy. The campaign started on May 9, 1860, when Garibaldi left Genoa with a thousand and forty-nine volunteers. The expedition made landfall on the island on the 13th, and started engaging the various Bourbon garrisons almost at once. Many Sicilians were opposed to Bourbon rule, but were afraid to actually rise up; however, Garibaldi's arrival was enough to send them into open revolt against the government. The Bourbons had almost 20,000 troops on the island, and defeating them with a small force of young volunteers armed with rusty rifles that could've seen service in the war against Napoleon would normally have been a great challenge. However, the popular uprising against the Bourbons, coupled with the incompetence of the military leadership, caused the Bourbon rule to collapse quickly. After a bloody struggle, Palermo fell to the rebels on June 10, and many of them joined forces with Garibaldi's expeditionaries; by the end of July, the entire island was under Garibaldi's control. Garibaldi proclaimed himself as dictator of Sicily, and on August 15 marched north across the Straits of Messina, with the objective of capturing Naples and bringing about the end of Bourbon rule; this proved to be more a triumphal march than a campaign, as Bourbon rule collapsed upon itself almost everywhere, and when Garibaldi entered Naples on September 5, he was hailed as a hero. The Bourbons massed their forces for one final counter-attack, which happened at Capua on September 29. Garibaldi won this battle, although outnumbered, but he suffered heavy casualties, and his plans for marching on Rome were checked."
***
Garibaldi and King Victor Emmanuel meeting at Teano, October 1860
From "Risorgimento: The road to Italian unification, 1789-1866" by Emilio Marconi
Translated into English by Junius B. Walker
Popolo d'Italia Printing Company, 1987
"After the Battle of Capua, Cavour really began to sit up and take notice. If Garibaldi marched on Rome and deposed the Pope, Sardinia might lose the support of the French, which was sorely needed in order to avoid Austria taking further military action. To this end, he ordered the Sardinian army to occupy the Papal territories outside of the Latium, and to meet up with Garibaldi outside Naples. This happened, and Garibaldi and King Victor Emmanuel met up outside Benevento on October 20. Two weeks later, a plebiscite was held; an overwhelming majority voted for joining Sardinia. However, this plebiscite would not have met modern standards, as the vote was no secret, and Sardinian soldiers in the area were allowed to vote as well. When the Sardinians captured Gaeta, the last remaining Bourbon holdout, King Francis II fled to Vienna, where he and his wife lived the rest of their lives in exile.
With all of Italy except Venetia and the Latium being part of Sardinia, the name of the country was changed to the 'Kingdom of Italy'. The Statuto Albertino remained as the country's constitution, with a few changes to representation; although outdated by today's standards, this constitution was quite liberal for its time, with an elected Chamber of Deputies to whom ministers of state were in all but name responsible. [1]
Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, served as Italy's first Prime Minister. Picture taken in early 1861.
With the exceptions of Venetia and Latium, Italy was now one country. Six months after the end of the Expedition, Cavour set about negotiating the removal of the French troops from Rome. He traveled to Nizza [2] in June of 1861, where he met with Napoleon III; it was decided that the French would withdraw from Rome over a timespan of three years, during which period the Pope was to strengthen his own forces. Although the Pope, who was not present, protested vociferously, the Convention of Nizza was made public on July 3. Taking this as a sign that the government was planning to take Rome, Garibaldi, assisted by Mazzini, planned a second expedition to take the Eternal City, and set out from Genoa on April 21, 1862, travelling to Palermo, where he gathered volunteers for a march on Rome. The royal garrison at Messina, following standing orders, blocked Garibaldi's passage, and so he decided to take the direct route. Sailing out of Milazzo, his two thousand redshirts reached Gaeta on July 16.
The royal army, which anticipated his landing somewhere in Calabria, was caught by surprise, and as Garibaldi marched on Rome there were none but the French to resist his march. However, as the withdrawal had only just begun, the French outnumbered the redshirts sixfold, and they were under orders to defend Rome; as such, General Cristophe de Lamoricière, the French commander, set out of the walls of Rome on July 21. Garibaldi, upon hearing this, stated that "I will either march into Rome victoriously, or my blood shall stain the Walls of Aurelian". Although Garibaldi had fought many times against considerable odds, this was too hard a challenge to overcome. Still, he led the charge against the French troops, but fell in battle, being shot twice in the chest and once in the neck. Giuseppe Garibaldi, the "Sword of the Alps" and the architect of the Two Sicilies' downfall, was dead. Although the Italian government formally distanced themselves from his last act of war, they still honoured their fallen hero, and despite his wishes for a simple funeral and cremation, gave Garibaldi a state funeral in the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin.
The Battle of Mentana would be Garibaldi's last, and occupies a special place in Italian history.
When news of Garibaldi's death reached Rome, he became a martyr to the people there, who rose up in open revolt against Papal rule. The French and Papal garrisons in the city moved to crush the rebellion, but the Pope, never one to sit idly by and watch his people get slaughtered, called upon the military to stand down, and approached the Italian government to negotiate Rome's joining the Kingdom.
Representatives of the King and the Church met in the Lateran Palace on October 4, and on Christmas Day the Lateran Treaty was signed by the Pope and King Victor Emmanuel. By its terms, the Pope was able to keep temporal power over the Leonine City [3], and was also allowed to use the Lateran as his personal residence. The Papacy was also given a yearly payment of three and a half million lire to compensate the loss of territory.
The unification of Italy was now complete, excepting Venetia, and Cavour, now the unified Italy's first Prime Minister, set about organising the laws and standards of the new kingdom. This was no easy task, and when he collapsed in his office of a stroke on February 4, 1863, it was long overdue. He did not die, but was taken to a bed, where, two days later, he had another, more powerful stroke. He died on the morning of February 7, surrounded by his family and the high political figures of Italy, including the King. His final words were "L'Italia è fatta. Tutto è a posto" ("Italy is made. All is safe.")."
***
[1] The word of the Statuto states that the ministers are responsible to the king and the king alone; however, as it was impossible to govern without the support of the parliament, the ministers became responsible to the parliament by convention - this convention was so strongly established that in 1925, Mussolini had to promulgate a law reaffirming that he was not responsible to the parliament.
[2] Nice IOTL; it remains Italian long enough ITTL for the name to stick.
[3] The Leonine City is, roughly, the Vatican, plus the area around the Castel de Sant'Angelo.
Well... I find the solution to the Alabama "crisis" interesting (I know I've read a few suggestions in WIs about a British Columbia purchase, but I've never seen it in a TL before) AND I find Italy's unification to be also very interesting. Giribaldi as a matyr might actually be "practical" for Italy in the long run, since after the Italian unification Giribaldi became rather un-active, so having him being remembered solely as a military hero and matyr (instead of a military hero and grumpy old man) he becomes an aspiration for Italian commanders, leading to a stronger Italy.
EDIT: Oh and the Seward Purchase is sweet as well. Makes sense to add Baja California to South California (and rename it Colorado. When did that happen by the way?)
EDIT: Oh and the Seward Purchase is sweet as well. Makes sense to add Baja California to South California (and rename it Colorado. When did that happen by the way?)
Thanks. I came across the idea reading about the expedition IOTL (apart from the dates, it's almost all OTL; however, Garibaldi did land in Calabria, and was stopped by the army), and Garibaldi swearing to "enter Rome as a hero or die on the way".
Well, I read about it on Wikipedia, and I thought it was interesting. Of course, the Canadians (Laurentians, I suppose) aren't liking it. They will resent the loss of their outlet to the Pacific, and start looking elsewhere for territory to make up for it.
Oh, and just a small thing on the side - although I never mentioned it in the update, along with British Columbia, Seward asked for and got a border revision in Maine; the Laurentians, looking as they are to build a railway between Montreal and Halifax, aren't fond of this, although it's more of a nuisance than the outrage of losing BC, and they can probably obtain a concession to build the railway across Maine if they ask nicely.
Yes, indeed - a staple moral question in Italy ITTL, for politicians and military men alike, is "Would Garibaldi approve?" ("Garibaldi arebbe sostenere questo?"; that's my best guess based on Google Translate, so it may be very wrong indeed). It's sort of similar to "Would the Founding Fathers like this?" in OTL America
Well, it's usually referred to as the Sonora Purchase, to differentiate it from the Alaska Purchase (which Seward also made; two major land purchases within half a term is considered rather rash in a time of crisis, and serves to empty the state coffers). As for Colorado, that happened in 1861. A group of settlers, led by Andres Pico, moved to secede from their state. Since the Tehachapi Mountains, which separate the Central Valley from the southern valleys, were considered nigh-on impassable - the first road across that was more than an an ox trail was built in the early '20s, if I'm not mistaken - this proved a major separating barrier between the two parts of the state. The move succeeded, with the state legislature approving it, and since the secession crisis wasn't going on (ITTL, the states were already out by that time, and the war was in full swing), Congress gave the bill their approval. It's still just a territory, but that will most likely change fairly soon, what with the first transcontinental railroad ending in San Pedro (actually at Wilmington, but it's considered a part of San Pedro).
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