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1861

Americas - As in any cold war, each side had there chosen leaders. As the Deep South, West, and mid-Atlantic allied behind President Seward of the Third Republic of the United States of America (3-USA), the Upper South, Trans-Mississippi, New England, and the Midwest allied behind Emperor Stephen I of the Great Lakes Empire. Of course, 3-USA looked a lot better than the GLE, so Stephen I made a power play. He changed his countries name to the American Empire, a move that was very popular within his alliance. Much else happened besides name changes and politics. The Mexican Empire had gained land, but in order to keep up his momentum, something drastic had to happen. Benito Juarez decided to make a visit to King Kamehameha III of Hawaii. Mexico threatened to invade the islands. This rallied up the people of Hawaii. Benito Juarez failed his diplomatic visit, and got measles while there. His country invaded the big island in June. California, Oregon and Deseret issued an ultimatum to Mexico: Stop or War. Mexico stopped fighting. Juarez wrote in his journal on the subject: The Mexican Invasion of Hawai'i was about the stability of our nation and preserving our relationships with the Imperial Alliance. If Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna had not allied with the Imperials, our country would be in a better situation. I wish to stick with reforms, but Congress says war. And I must oblige. Speaking of, Santa Anna was not faring well. Thrown out of his home country, no other country in the Americas would accept him. He was exiled to the bayous of Mississippi, where he died of Malaria in 1877. In the upper Anglo-America, Canada had risen in prominence. It was the largest country in North America, but it had other problems to worry about. First off the bat was Quebec. With there independence, Atlantic Canada and Interior Canada where separated. This was not good for anyone. However, troubles did not end there. Canada was a member of the Parisian League with Quebec since it's independence, and its neighbor, the American Empire, looked ripe for blood. A constant militia force had to be kept near Detroit and in the Manitoba region to ensure no invasion would happen. President McDonald had to insure this. From the seat of government in Toronto, a constant threat was to the West. Canada was not the only nation under pressure. Manhattan was between a rock and a hard place. After Hudson was annexed by Delaware, which later became 3-USA, Manhattan was stuck between a up-and-coming empire of New England and a nation of whom part of was an enemy of Manhattan. Residents of the five boroughs only saw the Parisian League as a cold comfort. If a World War broke, Manhattan would be sacrificed to combat the empires along the former Ohio and Vermont borders. President Seward took advantage of this, and made room for a Manhattan annexation. New England leaders, especially President Henry Wilson, where shocked that they where denied the West Connecticut Province. They demanded to President Seward that they get the province. Of course, President Seward refused to co-operate. There was very little Wilson and the New Englanders could do. Ultimately, they decided upon a better alternative: invading Maine. They invaded Maine in September, quickly reaching Portland and Augusta. Mainers responded by retaking the cities. The rest of the war was a standoff at the old border, which resulted in the white peace in the Treaty of Bangor, ending the Second New England War of Conquest.
Europe- Although much had happened in recent years in Europe, the scene had gone quiet. The world was mostly at peace (word of the Second New England War of Conquest didn't reach the continent until late December.) The Berlin-Hague Affair and the Magreb's independence dominated the headlines of the London Times and other newspapers for months, with some new regarding events in America. The biggest event of consequence was the admittance of China to the Imperial Alliance and Japan to the Parisian League. There where some revolts, one in Barcelona and one in Dublin, but that was about all.

1862

Americas- Since the Cumberland's secession from Dixie, the South had remained quiet. However, two leaders in the Cumberland and Dixie changed all this. President Jefferson Davis and President John Bell had an issue. Davis thought that the secession ordinance issued by John Bell could not be put into action, as the Dixie Constitution recognized the nations of Dixie, Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia as joining the Confederation. By this, the Cumberland Secession was illegal because North and South Carolina where the same state as recognized by the Constitution. Davis stated that a state-wide vote had to of been called. With all of South Carolina in North Carolina's Secession vote, the Dixie Supporters would have won. This started a diplomatic crisis. With West Virginia part of 3-USA, Davis recognized that, "to avoid the scourge of rebellion, those of West Virginia rejoined the Third United States to avoid coming in conflict with Cumberland. Therefore, our fair nation of Dixie recognizes the Third Republic of the United States of America's control over the region. However, we must not allow our counties and cities to decide the future of our states. By this statement, a war started between the two that threatened to ripe both nations apart. In November, Dixie troops captured Chattanooga, Charlotte, and Wilmington. However, this came at very high loss of life. Both sides realized Napoleonic tactics would not work. A standstill was reached that lasted into 1867.
Europe- Europe remained remarkably quiet, like much of America, in shock of Davis's war in America that threatened to explode. The violence in America got European leaders to sign a pact that alliance members would not go to war with each other until 1868, known as the Treaty of Lyon.

1863

Americas- As the land war in the South came to a halt, the naval war started in earnest. The primary shipbuilding port in the South was in Norfolk, Virginia. The second largest was in Mobile. Each side built up a new ship, called an ironclad. This event lead to a variety of naval battles along the coast of the Carolina's. However, the real matter was in the statehouses in Jackson (which became Dixie's temporary capitol after Charleston seemed vulnerable) and Richmond. Dixie's Congress voted to revoke the Recognition of the Confederation of the Cumberland, citing the clause that Jefferson Davis had exposed. Meanwhile, Richmond built a compelling case: the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions of 1798 and the Nullification Crisis of 1830. Each stated that a or the states had the right to nullify laws enacted by the Federal Government. State governments did not change over. Therefore, because North Carolina was an independent state in Dixie, it had the right to seceded. They sued Dixie, with the case becoming known as Bell v. Dixie, which of course came to no meaningful end. Meanwhile, in the shadows, President Allen of Mississippi, President Houston of Texas, President Seward of 3-USA, Emperor Stephen I of the American Empire, and other American officials began secretly supplying arms to both sides. No side excepted a war on their own hands, and whoever won the war in the south would become the dominant nation.
Europe- As the standstill held in the American South, European interests turned elsewhere. The first underground subway system opened in London, and the obsession with the London subway led to subways opening under every major European city, from Lisbon to St. Petersburg. A new leader also came to power in Europe. Prussian President Otto Von Bismarck was a member to the Prussian Elite before becoming the most powerful man in Prussia. He led to the unification of Austria and Prussia under himself in July, making himself Emperor of the German Empire.