A Loyal City on the Hill - The Commonwealth Wank
- Thread starter VT45
- Start date
Has the Virginian border passed the Missippi or is Louisiana a thing in this world?
VT45
Banned
I'm having some trouble exporting the final version of the map, but I'm hoping to have it out in a couple days. In the meantime, if you guys wanna use this map as a base to help me draw provinces, I'd appreciate the help. I have a couple ideas for some provinces, but I'm open to suggestions.
VT45
Banned
Here we go! Sorry about the delay. I fixed the problem and now I present to you the final map of the nations of North America. Feel free to ask any questions you might have about any of these countries and I'll be happy to answer them. Next on my list is a province map of New England, and I'll then start in on a province map of Columbia, since I've already had some ideas on the provinces (at least in the east).
The Saratoga Campaign, our POD
VT45
Banned
I can’t do much for graphics right now, but I thought I might do some text stuff to go over where exactly the PoD was and how things had changed.
In November of 1776, Lord Howe sent a letter to Lord Germain, the Secretary of State for the Colonies, outlining his plan for an ambitious campaign to take the Hudson Valley and split the rebellious colonies in twain. History would remember this as the Saratoga Campaign. Lord Germain approved of the plan and sent instructions to Howe and Burgoyne, telling them that the plan would begin on 14 June of the following year.
In the interim, Howe had cooled on the idea and thought he should focus more on capturing the rebel capital of Philadelphia. He wrote to Burgoyne informing him of this, and within a few weeks received back a scathing reply, threatening a formal complaint to Germain should he deviate from the plan, effectively forcing Howe’s hand. Begrudgingly, Lord Howe began marching a force of 16,000 men north from New York on 14 June.
Lord Howe reached Newburgh on the 25th and took the town with very little effort. Poughkeepsie fell 3 days later. The people of New York trembled. For it was at point Burgoyne appeared on the rebel frontier and laid siege to Fort Ticonderoga. It fell on the 3rd of July. It was clear that their aim was Albany, and all rebel forces that could be spared made their way with all haste to the Hudson Valley. Some reinforcements under Horatio Gates met Howe at Germantown, but succeeded only in delaying him.
As Burgoyne began moving into Vermont, Howe began closing in on Albany and cutting it off from the rest of the rebel forces. The Siege of Albany began on July 20th with shelling of the city beginning at sunrise. The city held out for three weeks before surrendering to Howe’s forces. With that, the colony of New York was considered to have officially surrendered, with the governor being forced to recall all representatives from the Continental Congress. A few members of the New York delegation, most notably Philip Schuyler, were able to escape and took refuge in New Spain, before setting sail for Europe. The Schuyler family eventually settled in St Petersburg. Many of the other delegates however were arrested and held for the duration of the rebellion.
By the end of September, Howe and Burgoyne had joined forces in Saratoga, leading to a decisive victory for the loyalist forces. Together, they spent the rest of 1777 pacifying the rest of New York, before proceeding through New Jersey to take Philadelphia in early December. They settled into winter quarters in Philadelphia, with Washington at Valley Forge. Meanwhile, word had reached France of the success of the Saratoga Campaign, the surrender of New York, and the capture of Philadelphia. Unimpressed, Louis XVI stated he could not in good faith support the American rebels. Franklin was expelled from court. He was found dead in Paris a month later.
Over the course of the winter of 1777-1778, a staggering 90% of the rebel forces succumbed to the cold, lack of provisions, communicable diseases, or outright deserted. By spring, Washington saw the writing on the wall. He proceeded to Philadelphia with his senior officers under a flag of truce, and surrendered to Lord Howe. The Continental Congress officially surrendered that summer.
In November of 1776, Lord Howe sent a letter to Lord Germain, the Secretary of State for the Colonies, outlining his plan for an ambitious campaign to take the Hudson Valley and split the rebellious colonies in twain. History would remember this as the Saratoga Campaign. Lord Germain approved of the plan and sent instructions to Howe and Burgoyne, telling them that the plan would begin on 14 June of the following year.
In the interim, Howe had cooled on the idea and thought he should focus more on capturing the rebel capital of Philadelphia. He wrote to Burgoyne informing him of this, and within a few weeks received back a scathing reply, threatening a formal complaint to Germain should he deviate from the plan, effectively forcing Howe’s hand. Begrudgingly, Lord Howe began marching a force of 16,000 men north from New York on 14 June.
Lord Howe reached Newburgh on the 25th and took the town with very little effort. Poughkeepsie fell 3 days later. The people of New York trembled. For it was at point Burgoyne appeared on the rebel frontier and laid siege to Fort Ticonderoga. It fell on the 3rd of July. It was clear that their aim was Albany, and all rebel forces that could be spared made their way with all haste to the Hudson Valley. Some reinforcements under Horatio Gates met Howe at Germantown, but succeeded only in delaying him.
As Burgoyne began moving into Vermont, Howe began closing in on Albany and cutting it off from the rest of the rebel forces. The Siege of Albany began on July 20th with shelling of the city beginning at sunrise. The city held out for three weeks before surrendering to Howe’s forces. With that, the colony of New York was considered to have officially surrendered, with the governor being forced to recall all representatives from the Continental Congress. A few members of the New York delegation, most notably Philip Schuyler, were able to escape and took refuge in New Spain, before setting sail for Europe. The Schuyler family eventually settled in St Petersburg. Many of the other delegates however were arrested and held for the duration of the rebellion.
By the end of September, Howe and Burgoyne had joined forces in Saratoga, leading to a decisive victory for the loyalist forces. Together, they spent the rest of 1777 pacifying the rest of New York, before proceeding through New Jersey to take Philadelphia in early December. They settled into winter quarters in Philadelphia, with Washington at Valley Forge. Meanwhile, word had reached France of the success of the Saratoga Campaign, the surrender of New York, and the capture of Philadelphia. Unimpressed, Louis XVI stated he could not in good faith support the American rebels. Franklin was expelled from court. He was found dead in Paris a month later.
Over the course of the winter of 1777-1778, a staggering 90% of the rebel forces succumbed to the cold, lack of provisions, communicable diseases, or outright deserted. By spring, Washington saw the writing on the wall. He proceeded to Philadelphia with his senior officers under a flag of truce, and surrendered to Lord Howe. The Continental Congress officially surrendered that summer.
The Peace of London and the Great Compromise
VT45
Banned
I don’t know who reads both this thread and the one in the pre-1900 forum so I figured it’d be good to continue to keep cross posting stuff. And if anyone wants to see graphics or infoboxes on anything mentioned just let me know.
Upon receiving word of the surrender of the American rebels, Lord North was ready to make an example of the traitors. He wanted to come down as hard on the colonies as Pelham had on Scotland in the aftermath of the Battle of Culloden 30 years before. If not harder. He wished to see all members of the Continental Congress shipped to Britain to have their heads summarily mounted on pikes on London Bridge. He wanted to revoke colonial charters. He wanted to confiscate all weapons in the colonies, melt them down and turn them into statues glorifying George III. This approach had the wholehearted support of the king and some of North’s most ardent supporters, but few others. It was met in parliament with shock and horror, with the Rockinghamites threatening a vote of no confidence if North didn’t soften.
In the end it was decided that it was better to compromise than rule by fear and oppression. They obviously did not accept the Declaration of Independence, but went over the Olive Branch Petition with great scrutiny, as well as other documents outlining their grievances and reasons for rebellion.
Members of the Continental Congress were summoned to London, and were put on trial for sedition and treason. Most were found guilty, with about half eventually being executed. Washington’s head was displayed on London Bridge as a cautionary tale to others. However, the remarkable thing was that several were merely imprisoned, or in the case of John Adams and a couple others, pardoned outright in light of “previous services rendered to the empire.” It would be these men that would negotiate the Great Compromise.
First and foremost, it was decided that the political barriers between colonies needed to be strengthened, so that such a large number of colonies could never band together again in defiance of the crown. The American colonies were divided into four circles, similar to those in the Holy Roman Empire, and these served as the basis of the dominions that emerged in the next century.
Next the British government agreed to respect the autonomy of the colonial governments, but at the same time they had to acknowledge their subservience to London. However, to quash the idea of no representation in parliament, each of the circles would choose a commissioner to advise the Secretary of State for the Colonies on matters and how they effect their circles, as well as to advocate for the people of their circles. This was also the only legal form of inter-circle interaction, as this would become the forum for colonies to also try to influence each other and also resolve disputes between each other. These commissioners would be voted on by their colonial assemblies and approved by the royal governors and viceroys.
Eventually these institutions would grow and change into a standard form of imperial government and would be extended to every colony.
Upon receiving word of the surrender of the American rebels, Lord North was ready to make an example of the traitors. He wanted to come down as hard on the colonies as Pelham had on Scotland in the aftermath of the Battle of Culloden 30 years before. If not harder. He wished to see all members of the Continental Congress shipped to Britain to have their heads summarily mounted on pikes on London Bridge. He wanted to revoke colonial charters. He wanted to confiscate all weapons in the colonies, melt them down and turn them into statues glorifying George III. This approach had the wholehearted support of the king and some of North’s most ardent supporters, but few others. It was met in parliament with shock and horror, with the Rockinghamites threatening a vote of no confidence if North didn’t soften.
In the end it was decided that it was better to compromise than rule by fear and oppression. They obviously did not accept the Declaration of Independence, but went over the Olive Branch Petition with great scrutiny, as well as other documents outlining their grievances and reasons for rebellion.
Members of the Continental Congress were summoned to London, and were put on trial for sedition and treason. Most were found guilty, with about half eventually being executed. Washington’s head was displayed on London Bridge as a cautionary tale to others. However, the remarkable thing was that several were merely imprisoned, or in the case of John Adams and a couple others, pardoned outright in light of “previous services rendered to the empire.” It would be these men that would negotiate the Great Compromise.
First and foremost, it was decided that the political barriers between colonies needed to be strengthened, so that such a large number of colonies could never band together again in defiance of the crown. The American colonies were divided into four circles, similar to those in the Holy Roman Empire, and these served as the basis of the dominions that emerged in the next century.
Next the British government agreed to respect the autonomy of the colonial governments, but at the same time they had to acknowledge their subservience to London. However, to quash the idea of no representation in parliament, each of the circles would choose a commissioner to advise the Secretary of State for the Colonies on matters and how they effect their circles, as well as to advocate for the people of their circles. This was also the only legal form of inter-circle interaction, as this would become the forum for colonies to also try to influence each other and also resolve disputes between each other. These commissioners would be voted on by their colonial assemblies and approved by the royal governors and viceroys.
Eventually these institutions would grow and change into a standard form of imperial government and would be extended to every colony.
New England provincial map - The Lower Nine
VT45
Banned
I apologise for the long absence, but I couldn't really progress without a high res provincial map. But I'm glad to say that after several months of slaving over a hot QGIS file, I've finally got one. Ladies and gents, I present to you the map of the lower nine provinces of New England, which I can use to start in on the elections. Once we reach the 1950s, I can add in Newfoundland.
VT45
Banned
To the east of those you have Michigan, Westmoreland, and Ohio from north to south. Then east of there is Allegheny. Upstate New York was made a separate province for the Iroquois, but that didn’t last long. It hasn’t been majority Iroquois since the 1830s or so, but it’s still called Haudenosaunee. And then finally you have New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
VT45
Banned
And since @Riley Uhr told me he'd been waiting for years to see a Columbian election, and now that I have the resources to model one, I'm starting on the process. The first part: seat allocation. And with that, I give you the 98 federal ridings of the province of Superior.
