AHC: Re-unite the Virginias after the OTL ACW

Just like it says. Create circumstances to have Virginia and West Virginia as a whole state again even after West Virginia's statehood gets Supreme Court approval.
 
Maybe the war drags on longer and/or reconstruction is far more radical, with Virginia being dismantled as a separate state, and being completely integrated into West Virginia?

It seems very unlikely, but I suppose it could be done.
 
Maybe the war drags on longer and/or reconstruction is far more radical, with Virginia being dismantled as a separate state, and being completely integrated into West Virginia?

It seems very unlikely, but I suppose it could be done.

In that instance, would the capital remain in Richmond?
 
As I understand it, the West Virginian's resented the Tidewater aristocrats. A difference in economy, immigrant culture, as well as isolation from the capital, made the idea of an independent West Virginia as old as 1776 (with it being called the slightly more original Westsylvania). Even now West Virginia is full of old people and coal, with Virginia being the more diversified one.
 
Extremely difficult to virtually impossible. The problem is how the war ends. If the North wins then it is hard to see why they would punish loyalty and reward treason. If the South wins (Very difficult in and of itself) it very well may have to give up WV and quite likely TN to get the peace treaty. Even if not Virginia is dealing with a population that is very hostile to it, in an extremely good defensive position due to the mountains, and as well trained in fighting as any other state. Even RE Lee gave up on WV very early in the war.
 
Extremely difficult to virtually impossible. The problem is how the war ends. If the North wins then it is hard to see why they would punish loyalty and reward treason. If the South wins (Very difficult in and of itself) it very well may have to give up WV and quite likely TN to get the peace treaty. Even if not Virginia is dealing with a population that is very hostile to it, in an extremely good defensive position due to the mountains, and as well trained in fighting as any other state. Even RE Lee gave up on WV very early in the war.

The thing is that the US constitution requires the consent of the state involved before it can split. Clearly Virginia never gave that consent* during the Civil War, and I dont know if they ever formally did after. So, the SCOTUS could, theoretically, deny the existance of WV.

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* I understand the official handwavium is that a rump body of Virginians claimed to be the actual state government, and agreed to it, but imo thats of highly dubious validity.
 
One could use the approach I do in Communist Confederacy - OTL West Virginia is treated as a continuation of the state of Virginia. As part of the 'Reclamation', when the rest of the state is taken back from the Confederacy, county by county they are admitted back to the state when deemed sufficiently 'loyal'.

Similarly, perhaps in an alternate reconstruction, when pulling out, as opposed to giving up the entire south, they reorganize certain areas to be of more Unionist support - among them, is the state of Virginia, where a miniature reconstruction is instituted via integrating it into the strongly Republican West Virginia, where as a compromise to West Virginia, it will be done incrementally, and on their terms, to allow for a state that is not so utterly dominated by the tidewater planters. This results in many changes - the capitol is moved to Stanton for one example, but the end result is a unified, unionist, and entirely altered Virginia.
 
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