This is perhaps my longest running TL (still not finished), though I still recognize that it is not it's final incarnation (I screw up in a few places, especially early on, but meh). The basic premise isn't so much a Napoleon-wank, but it is a world in which Napoleon is able to secure a peace for his Empire (though it by no means lasts). And the earliest change isn't even in France (per se), but in the USA. Basically, Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence is not sent to France as ambassador, and is a leader at the Constitutional Convention, but his proposal for a new constitution falls through, and it spirals from there...
A Similar But All To Different World
The year is 1787. Delegates from the several states of the fledgling United States gather in secret in Philadelphia to discuss the weakness of government and trade, both internal and foreign. George Washington, war hero and now pseudo-politician has been chosen to preside over the convention. After weeks of deliberation and a near coming to blows between the delegates of South Carolina and Massachusetts, the convention concludes to not accept the "Jefferson Proposal," but accept a compromise, resulting in the 1787 Articles of Confederation. The changes are mild at best, giving the Congress just a tad more power, specifically the power to mint a national currency (though the states may still issue their own).
Jefferson, extremely displeased, left the convention immediately, looking at Washington's chair, with the sun emblazoned upon it and remarks, "It pains me now to note that the sun upon that chair, that sun which was to be our dawn, is but our very own sunset. The state is not saved." He later accepted the Presidency of the Congress in 1802, and held the seat for 3 years.
During Jefferson's tenure as President of the Congress, Napoleonic France, viewed as either a scourge of or shining liberator of Europe reacquired Louisiana from the new (Napoleonic dominated) Spanish government. Napoleon knew that he could make a killing off the sale of the land, and attempted to sell it to the United States. Jefferson strongly supported this, believing that the border would lead very close, if not directly to, the Pacific Ocean, thus allowing the US to sit pretty by building a canal/widening the river to the Pacific. However the deal got caught up in numerous scandals and fear-mongering campaigns, most notably the fear that Britain would wage war if such a deal went through, as France the England were at war at the time. Finding no buyers, Napoleon soon gave up when his focus turned more and more to the battles in Europe. The French colony, however, was seeing a small influx of both American settlers in the North as well French and European settlers and refugees.
With the purchase a no-go, Jefferson sought out the men responsible for ending the sale. Numerous ties with Southern estates soon caused an uproar across the nation, and in 1805, fearing that "the North is more than willing to fight to bring about their own needs over those of the nation in general," the United Coalition of Southern States is formed. The Congress searches long and hard to raise an army, but finds numerous states either blocking access to their militias or outright saying that they too would secede if conscription occurred. Thus, Jefferson's prophecy came to be and the nation had forever divided itself.
Meanwhile, in Europe, Napoleon sets about reorganizing the Holy Roman Empire. Using the blocs that had been gripping the German states for centuries, he toyed with and moved against them until, in 1807, he was successful in having himself crowned Holy Roman Emperor (though the HRE now lacked Prussia, the Netherlands and Austria). This is now seen as an early attempt of Napoleon's at reviving a new (French) Roman Empire, as seen with his inauguration as King of Rome in 1810.
With the successes at home and across the continent, he now was now able to successfully end the Napoleonic Wars (in France, they are referred to as the French Ascension Wars) in 1812 with the Battles of Truro and Gibraltar. Britain, while winning both battles, failed to stop the French landing of troops on British soil. While the French fleet was only able to get a few hundred men on the ground, this so disheartened the British that a peace treaty was quickly signed. The Peace of Cherbourg officially ended the Continental System, which was failing and also hurting all of Europe, while recognizing British superiority of the seas (except for those controlled by another country) and French domination of Europe.
Peace in Europe, however, only lasted until 1836. Napoleon, having died of lung cancer in 1825, had left his nation to his son, Napoleon II, later called Napoleon the Proud.
While bright like his father, Napoleon the Proud was also extremely over-confident. In 1836, the Russian delegation that had just arrived in Paris failed to bow to the young Emperor in a timely manner (in actuality, they were simply walking up the stairs to visit the man, and failed to see him at the top in time, he was so surrounded with guards). He immediately ended relations with Russia, and rallied the French, Italian, German and Polish armies for war. Britain remained neutral but favored Russia, as they sought to renew and strengthen trade in Eastern Europe.
The war began on April 11, 1836 outside Bialystok. While officially a French victory, the losses were high due to Napoleon II micromanaging the battle down to the team. The war continued on in similar fashion for several months until the infamous Battle of Smolensk. The losses to the French side were so large that it is estimated that 1 in every 8 men were killed in action. The Russian losses were much lighter, and it is estimated that only 1 in 15 Russians died in that battle. Reasons cited by many historians about the war and the period over why the Russians suffered much less is seen as two things: a reformed army based on the Napoleonic model, and better battlefield positions, particularly the cannon emplacements.
Forced to contend with either pushing his army forward and face a revolt, or fall back and try and salvage what he could but lose face in Europe, Napoleon II pushed. His next battle, the Battle of the Dnieper, finally broke the French morale, and the army revolted. Napoleon II was placed under arrest by his senior officers and taken back to France as fast as possible. A hasty peace treaty was signed in which Russia gained the Polish corridor and Poland under a sphere of influence. Napoleon II never rallied the French and allied forces for the rest of his reign and lived under a technical house arrest, being barred to leave his estates except under heavy guard.
In America, the United States, facing internal disarray and heavy political infighting, held another Constitutional Convention in 1812. The "Revised Jefferson Proposal" was accepted within days, and a Bill of Rights penned by New Yorker James Van Dijk was added the next week. The United States soon saw prosperity as the new Constitution, while flexible, definitively established Federal superiority in many aspects.
1812 is also a year that marked a new nation on the continent, the Republic of Louisiana. It was stabilized through Yankee investment, and, indeed, so many Americans moved there, that a province was named after Jefferson himself (and is still the province with the highest percentage of American-Louisianians). The two republics have been fond of each other since the get-go, and a common saying amongst many peoples is "...as close as man from New York and New Orleans" when referring to two people's friendship.
A Similar But All To Different World
The year is 1787. Delegates from the several states of the fledgling United States gather in secret in Philadelphia to discuss the weakness of government and trade, both internal and foreign. George Washington, war hero and now pseudo-politician has been chosen to preside over the convention. After weeks of deliberation and a near coming to blows between the delegates of South Carolina and Massachusetts, the convention concludes to not accept the "Jefferson Proposal," but accept a compromise, resulting in the 1787 Articles of Confederation. The changes are mild at best, giving the Congress just a tad more power, specifically the power to mint a national currency (though the states may still issue their own).
Jefferson, extremely displeased, left the convention immediately, looking at Washington's chair, with the sun emblazoned upon it and remarks, "It pains me now to note that the sun upon that chair, that sun which was to be our dawn, is but our very own sunset. The state is not saved." He later accepted the Presidency of the Congress in 1802, and held the seat for 3 years.
During Jefferson's tenure as President of the Congress, Napoleonic France, viewed as either a scourge of or shining liberator of Europe reacquired Louisiana from the new (Napoleonic dominated) Spanish government. Napoleon knew that he could make a killing off the sale of the land, and attempted to sell it to the United States. Jefferson strongly supported this, believing that the border would lead very close, if not directly to, the Pacific Ocean, thus allowing the US to sit pretty by building a canal/widening the river to the Pacific. However the deal got caught up in numerous scandals and fear-mongering campaigns, most notably the fear that Britain would wage war if such a deal went through, as France the England were at war at the time. Finding no buyers, Napoleon soon gave up when his focus turned more and more to the battles in Europe. The French colony, however, was seeing a small influx of both American settlers in the North as well French and European settlers and refugees.
With the purchase a no-go, Jefferson sought out the men responsible for ending the sale. Numerous ties with Southern estates soon caused an uproar across the nation, and in 1805, fearing that "the North is more than willing to fight to bring about their own needs over those of the nation in general," the United Coalition of Southern States is formed. The Congress searches long and hard to raise an army, but finds numerous states either blocking access to their militias or outright saying that they too would secede if conscription occurred. Thus, Jefferson's prophecy came to be and the nation had forever divided itself.
Meanwhile, in Europe, Napoleon sets about reorganizing the Holy Roman Empire. Using the blocs that had been gripping the German states for centuries, he toyed with and moved against them until, in 1807, he was successful in having himself crowned Holy Roman Emperor (though the HRE now lacked Prussia, the Netherlands and Austria). This is now seen as an early attempt of Napoleon's at reviving a new (French) Roman Empire, as seen with his inauguration as King of Rome in 1810.
With the successes at home and across the continent, he now was now able to successfully end the Napoleonic Wars (in France, they are referred to as the French Ascension Wars) in 1812 with the Battles of Truro and Gibraltar. Britain, while winning both battles, failed to stop the French landing of troops on British soil. While the French fleet was only able to get a few hundred men on the ground, this so disheartened the British that a peace treaty was quickly signed. The Peace of Cherbourg officially ended the Continental System, which was failing and also hurting all of Europe, while recognizing British superiority of the seas (except for those controlled by another country) and French domination of Europe.
Peace in Europe, however, only lasted until 1836. Napoleon, having died of lung cancer in 1825, had left his nation to his son, Napoleon II, later called Napoleon the Proud.
While bright like his father, Napoleon the Proud was also extremely over-confident. In 1836, the Russian delegation that had just arrived in Paris failed to bow to the young Emperor in a timely manner (in actuality, they were simply walking up the stairs to visit the man, and failed to see him at the top in time, he was so surrounded with guards). He immediately ended relations with Russia, and rallied the French, Italian, German and Polish armies for war. Britain remained neutral but favored Russia, as they sought to renew and strengthen trade in Eastern Europe.
The war began on April 11, 1836 outside Bialystok. While officially a French victory, the losses were high due to Napoleon II micromanaging the battle down to the team. The war continued on in similar fashion for several months until the infamous Battle of Smolensk. The losses to the French side were so large that it is estimated that 1 in every 8 men were killed in action. The Russian losses were much lighter, and it is estimated that only 1 in 15 Russians died in that battle. Reasons cited by many historians about the war and the period over why the Russians suffered much less is seen as two things: a reformed army based on the Napoleonic model, and better battlefield positions, particularly the cannon emplacements.
Forced to contend with either pushing his army forward and face a revolt, or fall back and try and salvage what he could but lose face in Europe, Napoleon II pushed. His next battle, the Battle of the Dnieper, finally broke the French morale, and the army revolted. Napoleon II was placed under arrest by his senior officers and taken back to France as fast as possible. A hasty peace treaty was signed in which Russia gained the Polish corridor and Poland under a sphere of influence. Napoleon II never rallied the French and allied forces for the rest of his reign and lived under a technical house arrest, being barred to leave his estates except under heavy guard.
In America, the United States, facing internal disarray and heavy political infighting, held another Constitutional Convention in 1812. The "Revised Jefferson Proposal" was accepted within days, and a Bill of Rights penned by New Yorker James Van Dijk was added the next week. The United States soon saw prosperity as the new Constitution, while flexible, definitively established Federal superiority in many aspects.
1812 is also a year that marked a new nation on the continent, the Republic of Louisiana. It was stabilized through Yankee investment, and, indeed, so many Americans moved there, that a province was named after Jefferson himself (and is still the province with the highest percentage of American-Louisianians). The two republics have been fond of each other since the get-go, and a common saying amongst many peoples is "...as close as man from New York and New Orleans" when referring to two people's friendship.
) so I might not update this for a bit...