alternatehistory.com

Antonio Lopez was called by a lot of names. Dictator. General. Patriot. Power-Hungary. None of these where wrong. Mexico was down a lot of money. France and other countries wanted payment. The Pastry's War had caused lots of problems. The best way to gain money was to gain land. Texas was, well, Texas and had a track record of beating Mexico. California had a large population in the northern part of the country. The religious country of Deseret looked very ripe. When Mexico declared war on the Republic of Deseret, a chain of events occurred that seemed like the end to Deseret. But Brigham Young had other plans in mind.

Brigham Young was the prophet of the Mormon Church and former governor of the Utah Territory and state. Former Vermonter and early adopter of the Latter-day Saint faith, he was by no means stupid. Back in 1844, Joseph Smith had sent people to scout out the West to find a place of settlement. Although the Great Basin was chosen, Texas was among the places scouted and then governor and current president Sam Houston had taken a liking to the faith, although nowhere near joining it and would never join. Brigham Young knew this, and reached out to the President. Houston heard of the situation with Mexico and took sympathy. Fortunately for Deseret, many Texans also took sympathy to an aggressive Mexico. Californians saw this as a chance to expand down south to Baja California and the become a dominant North American force. When Mexico reached a small outpost called Phoenix, they where surprised to see a large army. After a prompt defeat, the three armies recaptured various settlements in northwestern Mexico. Texas held an offensive front into the Mexican homeland. Yucatan rebelled, and Dixie joined in the war capturing Veracruz. Santa Anna was surrounded in Mexico City, and surrendered. The terms where simple. Deseret annexed Sonora. Baja California joined California. Texas annexed four states: Chihuahua, Coahula de Zagaroza, Nuevo Leon, and Tamapliaus. Yucatan gained it's independence. Dixie gained the port of Veracruz. A semi-alliance between California, Texas, and Deseret was achieved.

Meanwhile, Dixie was suffering the fallout of joining the war. Although they gained the port of Veracruz, West Virginia had rebelled a successfully left Virginia. This left northern states feeling neglected. Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky left Dixie and formed the Confederation of the Cumberland. This devastated Dixie's economy, losing the most populous state. Unfortunately, Cumberland fared little better with the split. In order to finance the nation, Virginia's piece of the Delmarva peninsula was sold to Delaware. Much of the south was severely hurt. Louisiana's economy was crippled by the loss of New Orleans, and the government in Baton Rouge went bankrupt. Arkansas was in a similar situation. The nation knew it could not survive on its own. In 1855, leaders of Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana met in Little Rock to discuss a solution to their problems. Their solution: a merger. The Confederation of the Mississippi would have it's capitol in Little Rock, and they made it their goal to reclaim the troublesome city-state of New Orleans.

The Northeast was still in a transitional phase. The Hudson was in serious trouble after Manhattan left in the New England war, although it was called in the two states the New York Civil War. Manhattan, however, was doing well. It ditched the original name, Long Island, for Manhattan, the capitol. They regulated all trade on the Hudson River, just as New Orleans did on the Mississippi. They had defense pacts with New England and Delaware. They where pretty well set. Delaware began to grow in wealth and power as well. They now controlled 3 of the 10 largest cities in the former United States and had become the wealthiest nation in North America. New England was not in the same boat. They had made an enemy of Maine, and Vermont and Connecticut proved difficult to integrate. The Great Lakes was doing very prosperous. Chicago was on its way to becoming the nations crown jewel, its city on a hill. Everything from the Missouri River to the Ohio River was in their hands, more or less (Missouri and Delaware controlled small pieces of each).

A new political order settled over the continent. Most states had a two-party system. Throughout the South, the Democrat Party remained intact as the conservative faction, while the expansionist party, the Imperials, rose to power. The Republican Party was growing when the US dissolved, but in many northern states it grew to be very powerful, though the Imperials penetrated even there. Texas saw the conservative party, the Anglos, and the Imperial Party. California saw the same parties. Deseret saw the church-sponsored LDS Party, as well as the Imperial Party. Oregon was the only state where the Imperial Party did not have a foothold. Their, the expansionists where the Nationalists, while the conservatives where the Frontiersman. The Imperial Party became a dominant force, even in Mexico and European countries. They where seen as the party of power. Until a conflict of interest threatened them.