I do like that this timeline is going for the (very plausible) angle of the CSA being a oligarchical banana republic that's barely holding together instead of the generic "what if fully functional state, but slavery!" angle that Timeline-191 and other timelines go for. It is a refreshing change of pace.
Cinco de Mayo
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I do like that this timeline is going for the (very plausible) angle of the CSA being a oligarchical banana republic that's barely holding together instead of the generic "what if fully functional state, but slavery!" angle that Timeline-191 and other timelines go for. It is a refreshing change of pace.
we’ll spend quite a bit of time with Carnarvon and co.in future updates, just need to draft some ideas first. I have a vague sense of where I’m going just need to fill in the interim
South America would be nice. Did the Paraguay War go the same way, or were they able to pull off the miracle of taking control of the river?
Went the same way, couldn't come up with an appropriate butterfly down there.
Would be nice to read a little more about South America in general
I've been pondering a few things with Brazil but I can make a short update on that I suppose!
The Southern Star: Brazil in the Age of Pedro II
"...European elites, ironically enough, viewed the Habsburg-ruled Mexican Empire with disdain in comparison to Brazil, which was feted as a rising world power and potential challenger to the United States for hegemony over the New World. For the European street, staunchly opposed to slavery, Pedro II's efforts to abolish the practice even despite the pressure of oligarchs who dreamed of repeating what the Confederate States had achieved made him a liberal hero; even socialists, effectively nonexistent in South America at this time, found much to celebrate. Pedro also journeyed to Europe and North America frequently, becoming an object of admiration and curiosity; indeed, in his later years he spent more time abroad than at home, leaving the day-to-day affairs of his Empire in the hands of his daughter Isabel. Having won the Paraguayan War and her position secure, Brazil was on the cusp of a major immigration wave, nascent industrialization, and even the development of a large navy to defend her interests in the South Atlantic and Caribbean. She was friendlier with her former metropolitan state of Portugal than most former colonies were with their old rulers, and on good terms with the United Kingdom, France, Spain and United States, the four naval powers that had any particular influence in the Western Hemisphere, and all four would in time invest in her economy to general degrees.
The golden age of Brazil in the late 19th century was, then, at hand..."
-The Southern Star: Brazil in the Age of Dom Pedro II
The golden age of Brazil in the late 19th century was, then, at hand..."
-The Southern Star: Brazil in the Age of Dom Pedro II
The Eaglet Takes Flight: The Reign of Napoleon IV 1874-1905
"...even in the first year of the Eaglet's reign, there was a sense that France had changed. The facts of the day had not changed much - Bazaine and MacMahon still held sway over a weak Cabinet and an even weaker National Assembly (which would be even further weakened by the Emperor's constitutional programme in but a few years), socialists still agitated in Paris and, increasingly, industrial towns like Lille, and the intrigues in neighboring Spain and Italy still commanded the attention of much of the public and government. But with a young and virile new Emperor on the throne, France felt different, and perhaps that was what mattered. Cabinet meetings were held daily rather than sporadically, and there was a verve to the country that had not been felt for seven long years, preceding the defeat in the Third Unification War. Historians and economists continue to debate free trade versus protectionism to this day, but consensus states that low tariffs and an encouragement of enterprise and investment in France during the 1870s helped it navigate the Great Depression quicker and more successfully than peer states - indeed, by 1874 the French economy was growing again and her banks, particularly Société Générale, emerged as nearly as dominant as London's financial institutions. Indeed, for the last quarter century of the 1800s, French infrastructure loans and investments would nearly exactly pace those made by London's older and more distinguished banks.
In the realm of foreign affairs, though, Napoleon IV found most of his interest. Despite his remarkable young age, the Eaglet was already possessed of grand visions, viewing a global empire as France's birthright and viewing the mistake of his father and grand-uncle not as one of lack of ambition but of poor aim. Rather than reshaping and dominating Europe, the Emperor sought to build on his father's overseas projects instead, envisioning a vast network of colonies, protectorates and client states in Asia, Africa and the Americas to support and underpin French industry. "Never again shall French blood be shed on French soil by foreign armies," he wrote in his diary in late 1874, well aware that men like Bazaine and Rouher still viewed a future confrontation with Germany, Spain or Italy as not just a likelihood but inevitability. "This blood shall not be shed for France shall be too peaceful and prosperous, and too secure in her European position, to feel the need to assert herself against her neighbors with lead when she can assert herself instead with coin....""
- The Eaglet Takes Flight: The Reign of Napoleon IV 1874-1905
In the realm of foreign affairs, though, Napoleon IV found most of his interest. Despite his remarkable young age, the Eaglet was already possessed of grand visions, viewing a global empire as France's birthright and viewing the mistake of his father and grand-uncle not as one of lack of ambition but of poor aim. Rather than reshaping and dominating Europe, the Emperor sought to build on his father's overseas projects instead, envisioning a vast network of colonies, protectorates and client states in Asia, Africa and the Americas to support and underpin French industry. "Never again shall French blood be shed on French soil by foreign armies," he wrote in his diary in late 1874, well aware that men like Bazaine and Rouher still viewed a future confrontation with Germany, Spain or Italy as not just a likelihood but inevitability. "This blood shall not be shed for France shall be too peaceful and prosperous, and too secure in her European position, to feel the need to assert herself against her neighbors with lead when she can assert herself instead with coin....""
- The Eaglet Takes Flight: The Reign of Napoleon IV 1874-1905
How the West Was Won: The Conquest and Settlement of the North American Frontier
"...though the Battle of Little Bighorn was inconclusive on the field itself, Custer's combined forces nevertheless were able to drive back the Sioux parties that outnumbered them with minimal losses to either side and by the end of the summer had scattered Crazy Horse's men. The flamboyant Colonel, followed closely along by Hungarian-born newspaper reporter and Liberal Missouri [1] legislator Jozsef Pulitzer, began to create a carefully-cultivated image as a military champion, a man who through hard work had built his way up in the army and unlike the corrupt Indian Office and bureaucratic generals overseeing the Native clearances was willing to go out into the field at get his hands dirty. Newspapers from San Francisco to New York, with Pulitzer's oft-embellished writing driving coverage, celebrated the Army's campaigns in the Dakota and Montana territories in the mid-1870s, with the more Indian casualties and the more flair and creativity given to the massacres, the better for readership. The soon-to-be General Custer, then, built his career on a foundation of Native corpses, his exploits written as much in their blood as in Pulitzer's ink..."
- How the West Was Won: The Conquest and Settlement of the North American Frontier
[1] Seeing as OTL Pulitzer's main skepticism of the Republican Party was their corruption, the Liberals become a natural fit for him here
- How the West Was Won: The Conquest and Settlement of the North American Frontier
[1] Seeing as OTL Pulitzer's main skepticism of the Republican Party was their corruption, the Liberals become a natural fit for him here
Butterflies would have come far too late to make that big an impact to tip it in Paraguay's favor, considering the disadvantages they faced.
Man, Custer alwaya does so much better in any ATL. Granted you can always do better than dying in battle,...
Logisticsofwar
Banned
Custer was a major general of volunteers in the civil war then demoted/made a Lieutenant Colonel in regular army after civil war
i am sad to report that I am not strong enough to avoid the grand CSA Victory TL tradition of a good old fashioned Custerwank
I'm thinking that having Theodore Roosevelt roughly fill the role of Hearst as a massive newspaper magnate could be a good option for him that's not just a variant on his OTL life.
But can you avoid the cliche Theodore Roosevelt want....
There's no way that Teddy Roosevelt wouldn't grow up to be an outgoing, larger-than-life man. Just having him invest his energies in creating a newspaper empire seems like an original enough spin on the man.
may have to steal this idea... I’d had something else (not the Presidency) in mind for TR but honestly this is better haha
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