Agissez à votre guise! Counani Republic lives on

http://www.guianas-geographic.com/a...epublic-of-counani-the-man-who-would-be-king/

In 1886, a bunch of French explorers won a vast swath of territory at a card game, between France and Brasil. They then proclaimed independance, creating a republic for the bagnards, the misfits, the escaped slaves... claiming no rule except for everyone to do what they wanted as long as they did not infringe on other people's freedom.

Jules Gros said:
La seule loi du pays sera celle-ci : Agissez à votre guise tant que votre liberté ne portera pas atteinte à celle d’autrui. Pas de codes, pas d’administration, pas de paperasses. Je ne veux rien de tout cela

The first President for life was housted by a cabale after managing to get some English investors in, who then got out when they realised the country wasn't recognised by anyone.


So my question is simple really: the land has resources, including gold, what if they managed to live on? Getting investors in to develop and extract, paying for an army and weapons, could they have survived? Would it have changed anything in the grand scheme of things?

Have fun with it!

ob_200119_counani-carte.jpg
 
My guess is that this isn't viable in any scenario. The Guyanas were a disease-ridden cesspool with poor transport options, little reason for anyone to move there beyond the occasional gold or rubber boom.

As a whole, they were best known for prisons.

Maybe if they went deep enough into Brazil and took over the whole inland rubber area, and France or some foreign power supported the idea, maybe but doubtful.

Brazil or America or any number of powers could put an end to it.

I think the late 19th century is too late for freebooters.

The location is interesting though. I've often thought that Guyana/Northern-inland Brazil might have been a good location for US expansion.
 
My guess is that this isn't viable in any scenario. The Guyanas were a disease-ridden cesspool with poor transport options, little reason for anyone to move there beyond the occasional gold or rubber boom.

Well at the time, there was a rubber boom and there was a gold rush in 1894. Actually, the whole region is currently living another one, so there were opportunities.
Plus, at the time, malaria treatment had been discovered after Indochine. There were also quite a few inhabitants already, between the people from Cayenne and slaves escaped from Brasil.

I doubt the US could do anything here. Why the hell would they go against France at this time? That's just asking for trouble. Plus it wasn't covered by the Monroe doctrine as this was a border dispute between France and Brasil
 
Well at the time, there was a rubber boom and there was a gold rush in 1894. Actually, the whole region is currently living another one, so there were opportunities.
Plus, at the time, malaria treatment had been discovered after Indochine. There were also quite a few inhabitants already, between the people from Cayenne and slaves escaped from Brasil.

I doubt the US could do anything here. Why the hell would they go against France at this time? That's just asking for trouble. Plus it wasn't covered by the Monroe doctrine as this was a border dispute between France and Brasil

I was thinking the US could expand earlier. For instance, France sells French Guyana at the same time as Louisiana.

Also, the Netherlands, forced allies to France, might sell their Carib territorires to the US (at least Dutch Guyana) to the US as Britain would eventually take them anyway. Also they might need the cash to pay Bonaparte's extortions. Maybe Bonaparte may push for the move to get his hands on the cash?
 
I was thinking the US could expand earlier. For instance, France sells French Guyana at the same time as Louisiana.

Also, the Netherlands, forced allies to France, might sell their Carib territorires to the US (at least Dutch Guyana) to the US as Britain would eventually take them anyway. Also they might need the cash to pay Bonaparte's extortions. Maybe Bonaparte may push for the move to get his hands on the cash?

Well, the Republic was established in 1886, so I don't really see the link with Nappy selling Guyana to the US? That's quite a bit after :)
 
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