POD: Davis' wife dies in 1847. Davis stays in the military and remains healthy.
Jefferson Davis seemed destined for military leadership. On his first day of battle in the Mexican American War Davis single handedly captured twenty enemy soldiers. A few months later he lead a small force which successful scattered the forces of none other than the infamous General Santa Ana. The following day he defeated Mexican forces at Buena Vista even though he was wounded early in the fighting and his forces were outnumbered three to one.
Immediately after the battle at Buena Vista a letter caught up with Jefferson Davis giving him the tragic news of the death of his wife, Varina. Davis fell into a deep emotional slump. When he returned to Washington DC he found the social life politics required to be unappealing. Without Varina the whole thing seemed empty and only saddened him further.
He inquired if President Polk's offer of generalship was still open. Polk, of course, answered in the affirmative.
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In OTL Davis declined Polks offer to be a general. Also in OTL Davis contracted herpes during the war and this advanced into neuralgia which often left him blind and bed ridden for weeks at a time. Several times it brought him to the brink of death. In ATL the encounter where he contracted herpes is butterflied away.
I don't really have a timeline in mind for this. It was just a thought that came to mind. What next?
Jefferson Davis seemed destined for military leadership. On his first day of battle in the Mexican American War Davis single handedly captured twenty enemy soldiers. A few months later he lead a small force which successful scattered the forces of none other than the infamous General Santa Ana. The following day he defeated Mexican forces at Buena Vista even though he was wounded early in the fighting and his forces were outnumbered three to one.
Immediately after the battle at Buena Vista a letter caught up with Jefferson Davis giving him the tragic news of the death of his wife, Varina. Davis fell into a deep emotional slump. When he returned to Washington DC he found the social life politics required to be unappealing. Without Varina the whole thing seemed empty and only saddened him further.
He inquired if President Polk's offer of generalship was still open. Polk, of course, answered in the affirmative.
----
In OTL Davis declined Polks offer to be a general. Also in OTL Davis contracted herpes during the war and this advanced into neuralgia which often left him blind and bed ridden for weeks at a time. Several times it brought him to the brink of death. In ATL the encounter where he contracted herpes is butterflied away.
I don't really have a timeline in mind for this. It was just a thought that came to mind. What next?