The Vulture
Banned
Okay, I just caught up with this, and I'd like to congratulate Robert on an imaginative, well-researched TL. Subscribed.
I'll slink back into my shadows now.
I'll slink back into my shadows now.
Go South, Young Man: President Abraham Lincoln, CSA
- Thread starter robertp6165
- Start date
I'd just like to throw my two cents in here about the earlier discussion about how ASB it was for anti-slavery Lincoln to be a pro-slavery MS senator.
It isn't, given an 1816 POD, but I'll regretfully add that with a POD occurring when Lincoln is only seven years old, this Abraham Lincoln might as well be John Q. Southron from South Alassippi: he has probably zero similarity in thought or action or OTL's Abe Lincoln, and is just an amusing name slapped onto a completely unrecognizable character.
That said, the time line remains interesting.
Well, that may be true, but it may not, too. I would argue that since Lincoln is still raised by the same family, after all, albeit in a different cultural setting, and that, to some extent, will play a part in molding his character and opinions. His father is moderately more successful than in OTL, but not enough to really change how Abe feels about him, or affect his own drive to be successful. Living in rural Mississippi, he's probably not got any more access to public education than he had in Kentucky, Indiana, or Illinois, and he will have had to educate himself, as he did in OTL. So a lot of things remain pretty much the same, while others will be much different. The resulting Lincoln will therefore have some of the characteristics of the OTL version, but not others.
GETTING READY FOR ANOTHER UPDATE...
ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS TO EARLIER SEGMENTS OF THE TIMELINE
January 1862...Upon hearing of the declaration of war, the Governor of California, Leland Stanford, had called for volunteers to fill a brigade California troops to defend the State. The task of organizing this Brigade is given to James Henry Carleton, who is commissioned as a Colonel of California Volunteers.
February 1862--The Seward Administration decides to create an army, the nucleus of which will be regular U.S. Army troops which are already stationed on in California, Oregon, and Washington Territory, to be commanded by Brigadier General Edwin Vose Sumner, who had replaced Brigadier General Albert Sidney Johnson when that officer resigned in April 1861 upon hearing of the secession of Texas. This new Army of the Pacific, as it will be called, is intended to operate against the British in the Pacific Northwest and secure the British Crown Colony of British Columbia [1] for the United States.
March 1862--It is decided to include the brigade of California Volunteers, then being raised on the authority of Governor Stanford, which were then training at Camp Stanford near San Francisco, in Brigadier General Sumner’s Army of the Pacific.
April 1862--The Seward Administration, with the loss of the S.S. Athena demonstrating that the British blockade has effectively cut the Union off from the supply of California gold and Nevada silver, orders that wagon trains be organized, beginning at Council Bluffs, Iowa and going across the plains to Denver, Colorado, where they will meet with wagon trains coming from California and Nevada carrying bullion. The wagon train from Council Bluffs will take the bullion back east, while the wagon trains from California and Nevada will return west to get more bullion. Once the gold and silver bullion has been brought back to Council Bluffs, it will be loaded on trains and brought to the mints and depositories of the East. It is hoped, in this way, to have the flow of gold and silver into Union coffers restored within no more than a year.
May 1862--In the United States, the loss of the S.S. Athena and the gold bullion it carried to a British blockading ship in March of 1862 has had a major impact on financial markets. The United States had quickly, shortly after war was declared, been forced to issue paper currency called “Demand Notes” to cover the expenses of funding the war effort and paying employees, including soldiers in the field. These notes were redeemable for gold or silver coin, on demand, at the offices of the Assistant Treasurer at Boston, New York, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and at the Depository of Cincinnati.
The fact that the notes were redeemable in gold and silver had created a great deal of confidence in their value, and the notes had circulated on a par with gold coin for several months. However, the law creating the “Demand Notes” had been passed on the understanding that the gold bullion carried by the S.S. Athena would be available to back them. When the loss of the Athena became known, there was a panicked rush to redeem the notes before the supplies of specie to redeem them ran out (actually, there was enough specie on hand to redeem those which had already been issued, but fear created by newspaper reports of the loss of the Athena led the majority of the population to believe otherwise, despite government protestations to the contrary).
Afraid that the available supply of specie was about to disappear as people began hoarding gold and silver coin, the Federal Government suspends specie payments in May 1862. The value of the Demand Notes plummets, throwing the Union economy into chaos.
In Philadelphia, the U.S.S. New Ironsides, a broadside ironclad frigate, is launched. It will not be ready for action until August, however. A second identical vessel, to be called the U.S.S. Devastator, is immediately laid down. Due to certain lessons being learned during construction of New Ironsides, construction of Devastator will be somewhat quicker.
June 1862--The Dakota War of 1862 breaks out as the Santee Sioux, secretly armed and encouraged by British agents from Canada, rebel against the whites of Minnesota. [2] Hundreds of white men, women, and children are massacred and several towns are put to the torch in the first month.
The California Brigade has completed it’s training and is considered combat-worthy. General Sumner orders it to Fort Nisqually, on Puget Sound in Washington Territory. There it will join with various Regular Infantry, Cavalry, and Artillery units sent to Washington earlier, as well as volunteer regiments raised in Oregon and Washington Territory, for operations against British Columbia. Because of British naval forces known to be in the area around Vancouver Island, the brigade is sent by sea, escorted by the small U.S. Navy squadron based at San Francisco, to Fort Vancouver on the Columbia River. It then marches overland to Fort Nisqually.
In place of the “Demand Notes,” the United States government begins issuing “United States Notes,” which are not backed by gold or silver but are required, by law, to be accepted as legal tender for most debts. The Legal Tender Act which creates the notes does provide that the notes be receivable by the government for short term deposits at 5% interest, and for the purchase of 6% interest 20-year bonds at par, with the promise that the government will pay the interest on the bonds in gold and silver coin. However, this all depends on the success of the Seward Administration’s scheme of using wagon trains to get the gold and silver flowing from California and Nevada again. And it is by no means certain that this will be successful. The value of the United States Notes will fluctuate wildly, therefore, as time goes on.
July 1862--The Dakota War continues in Minnesota. The Sioux, better armed due to British support, are more successful in their revolt. The town of New Ulm falls to the Sioux, and all of its inhabitants are slaughtered. Fort Ridgley is placed under siege. Minnesota Militia are ambushed and decimated when they attempt to march to the relief of both places.
Governor Stanford of California, concerned that the State has been largely denuded of troops, orders another brigade of California Volunteers to be raised for service within the State only.
August 1862--President Seward finally sends a couple of small divisions of Union troops (about 10,000 men in total), taken from the armies at forming at Detroit and Chicago, to deal with the Sioux in Minnesota. They are commanded by Major General Irvin McDowell, who has been sent here after being removed as commander of the Army of the Hudson.
The Army of the Pacific, now numbering about 7,500 men, has concentrated at Fort Nisqually. However, supplies for a sustained campaign have not yet been accumulated there. That process will take some time, and winter will set in before it is completed. In the meantime, cavalry units from the army, including the 1st California Cavalry and the 1st Oregon Cavalry, probe British defenses along the border, skirmishing with British and Canadian troops who were surprised to learn that the United States and Britain were at war. The Pacific Northwest is such an isolated area that the news hadn’t gotten there yet!
September 1862--The Union army in Minnesota, under General McDowell, succeeds in defeating the Sioux under Little Crow. Most of the rebellious Sioux are killed or scattered. Most of the survivors flee to Canada, where they are protected by the British.
Governor James Douglas of the Crown Colony of British Columbia is stunned to find out that he is at war with his American neighbors to the South. He orders militia raised for the defense of the colony. Unfortunately, as there are only about 12,000 people living in British Columbia at that time, the number of militia he can hope to raise is quite limited, and he also faces the problem that he has precious little in arms and provisions with which to equip and sustain them. He also sends a desperate call for reinforcements both to the military commanders in Canada-proper and by sea to Britain herself. Unfortunately, it will be many months before any assistance might be received.
October 1862--Following the suppression of the Sioux rebellion in Minnesota, General Winfield Scott suggests that the forces gathered there for that purpose become the nucleus of a new Union army, for the purpose of undertaking operations in the western colonies of British North America. This force becomes known as the Army of the Great Lakes.
President Lincoln, concerned by the relative inactivity of the Anglo-French army in Canada, and not wanting the Confederacy to be left saddled with the primary responsibility of fighting Great Britain’s war against the Union on land, insisted that, as one of the terms of the Treaty of Alliance between the Confederate States. Great Britain, and France signed in September 1862, the Franco-British forces in Canada must begin offensive operations against the United States in the Spring of 1863, to be coordinated with those of the Confederate States. Lord Palmerston dispatches a message to Field Marshal Sir Colin Campbell, commanding in Montreal, informing him of this fact. Field Marshal Campbell, whose previous instructions had been simply to defend Canada, strenuously protests these new orders, arguing that he does not have sufficient forces to go on the offensive, but Palmerston is adamant. Campbell obediently begins planning for offensive operations in the Spring. Palmerston also orders Admiral Milne to supply troops and ships to cooperate with a Confederate attack on Washington, D.C.
November 1862--U.S.S. Devastator is launched in Philadelphia. A third identical vessel is laid down in Philadelphia. It is to be known as U.S.S. Ticonderoga.
December 1862--U.S.S. Retribution is launched at New York, and U.S.S. Bunker Hill is launched at Boston.
[1] At that time, British Columbia was bounded on the east by the Rocky Mountains, and on the north by the Simpson and Finlay Rivers. It thus did not include as much land as the present day Canadian province of British Columbia. It also did not include Vancouver Island or the Queen Charlotte Islands, both of which were administered as separate Crown Colonies at the time.
[2] In OTL, it began in August 1862. In the ATL, with British aid and encouragement, it starts two months early, will be more destructive, and will prove more difficult to put down.
ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS TO EARLIER SEGMENTS OF THE TIMELINE
January 1862...Upon hearing of the declaration of war, the Governor of California, Leland Stanford, had called for volunteers to fill a brigade California troops to defend the State. The task of organizing this Brigade is given to James Henry Carleton, who is commissioned as a Colonel of California Volunteers.
February 1862--The Seward Administration decides to create an army, the nucleus of which will be regular U.S. Army troops which are already stationed on in California, Oregon, and Washington Territory, to be commanded by Brigadier General Edwin Vose Sumner, who had replaced Brigadier General Albert Sidney Johnson when that officer resigned in April 1861 upon hearing of the secession of Texas. This new Army of the Pacific, as it will be called, is intended to operate against the British in the Pacific Northwest and secure the British Crown Colony of British Columbia [1] for the United States.
March 1862--It is decided to include the brigade of California Volunteers, then being raised on the authority of Governor Stanford, which were then training at Camp Stanford near San Francisco, in Brigadier General Sumner’s Army of the Pacific.
April 1862--The Seward Administration, with the loss of the S.S. Athena demonstrating that the British blockade has effectively cut the Union off from the supply of California gold and Nevada silver, orders that wagon trains be organized, beginning at Council Bluffs, Iowa and going across the plains to Denver, Colorado, where they will meet with wagon trains coming from California and Nevada carrying bullion. The wagon train from Council Bluffs will take the bullion back east, while the wagon trains from California and Nevada will return west to get more bullion. Once the gold and silver bullion has been brought back to Council Bluffs, it will be loaded on trains and brought to the mints and depositories of the East. It is hoped, in this way, to have the flow of gold and silver into Union coffers restored within no more than a year.
May 1862--In the United States, the loss of the S.S. Athena and the gold bullion it carried to a British blockading ship in March of 1862 has had a major impact on financial markets. The United States had quickly, shortly after war was declared, been forced to issue paper currency called “Demand Notes” to cover the expenses of funding the war effort and paying employees, including soldiers in the field. These notes were redeemable for gold or silver coin, on demand, at the offices of the Assistant Treasurer at Boston, New York, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and at the Depository of Cincinnati.
The fact that the notes were redeemable in gold and silver had created a great deal of confidence in their value, and the notes had circulated on a par with gold coin for several months. However, the law creating the “Demand Notes” had been passed on the understanding that the gold bullion carried by the S.S. Athena would be available to back them. When the loss of the Athena became known, there was a panicked rush to redeem the notes before the supplies of specie to redeem them ran out (actually, there was enough specie on hand to redeem those which had already been issued, but fear created by newspaper reports of the loss of the Athena led the majority of the population to believe otherwise, despite government protestations to the contrary).
Afraid that the available supply of specie was about to disappear as people began hoarding gold and silver coin, the Federal Government suspends specie payments in May 1862. The value of the Demand Notes plummets, throwing the Union economy into chaos.
In Philadelphia, the U.S.S. New Ironsides, a broadside ironclad frigate, is launched. It will not be ready for action until August, however. A second identical vessel, to be called the U.S.S. Devastator, is immediately laid down. Due to certain lessons being learned during construction of New Ironsides, construction of Devastator will be somewhat quicker.
June 1862--The Dakota War of 1862 breaks out as the Santee Sioux, secretly armed and encouraged by British agents from Canada, rebel against the whites of Minnesota. [2] Hundreds of white men, women, and children are massacred and several towns are put to the torch in the first month.
The California Brigade has completed it’s training and is considered combat-worthy. General Sumner orders it to Fort Nisqually, on Puget Sound in Washington Territory. There it will join with various Regular Infantry, Cavalry, and Artillery units sent to Washington earlier, as well as volunteer regiments raised in Oregon and Washington Territory, for operations against British Columbia. Because of British naval forces known to be in the area around Vancouver Island, the brigade is sent by sea, escorted by the small U.S. Navy squadron based at San Francisco, to Fort Vancouver on the Columbia River. It then marches overland to Fort Nisqually.
In place of the “Demand Notes,” the United States government begins issuing “United States Notes,” which are not backed by gold or silver but are required, by law, to be accepted as legal tender for most debts. The Legal Tender Act which creates the notes does provide that the notes be receivable by the government for short term deposits at 5% interest, and for the purchase of 6% interest 20-year bonds at par, with the promise that the government will pay the interest on the bonds in gold and silver coin. However, this all depends on the success of the Seward Administration’s scheme of using wagon trains to get the gold and silver flowing from California and Nevada again. And it is by no means certain that this will be successful. The value of the United States Notes will fluctuate wildly, therefore, as time goes on.
July 1862--The Dakota War continues in Minnesota. The Sioux, better armed due to British support, are more successful in their revolt. The town of New Ulm falls to the Sioux, and all of its inhabitants are slaughtered. Fort Ridgley is placed under siege. Minnesota Militia are ambushed and decimated when they attempt to march to the relief of both places.
Governor Stanford of California, concerned that the State has been largely denuded of troops, orders another brigade of California Volunteers to be raised for service within the State only.
August 1862--President Seward finally sends a couple of small divisions of Union troops (about 10,000 men in total), taken from the armies at forming at Detroit and Chicago, to deal with the Sioux in Minnesota. They are commanded by Major General Irvin McDowell, who has been sent here after being removed as commander of the Army of the Hudson.
The Army of the Pacific, now numbering about 7,500 men, has concentrated at Fort Nisqually. However, supplies for a sustained campaign have not yet been accumulated there. That process will take some time, and winter will set in before it is completed. In the meantime, cavalry units from the army, including the 1st California Cavalry and the 1st Oregon Cavalry, probe British defenses along the border, skirmishing with British and Canadian troops who were surprised to learn that the United States and Britain were at war. The Pacific Northwest is such an isolated area that the news hadn’t gotten there yet!
September 1862--The Union army in Minnesota, under General McDowell, succeeds in defeating the Sioux under Little Crow. Most of the rebellious Sioux are killed or scattered. Most of the survivors flee to Canada, where they are protected by the British.
Governor James Douglas of the Crown Colony of British Columbia is stunned to find out that he is at war with his American neighbors to the South. He orders militia raised for the defense of the colony. Unfortunately, as there are only about 12,000 people living in British Columbia at that time, the number of militia he can hope to raise is quite limited, and he also faces the problem that he has precious little in arms and provisions with which to equip and sustain them. He also sends a desperate call for reinforcements both to the military commanders in Canada-proper and by sea to Britain herself. Unfortunately, it will be many months before any assistance might be received.
October 1862--Following the suppression of the Sioux rebellion in Minnesota, General Winfield Scott suggests that the forces gathered there for that purpose become the nucleus of a new Union army, for the purpose of undertaking operations in the western colonies of British North America. This force becomes known as the Army of the Great Lakes.
President Lincoln, concerned by the relative inactivity of the Anglo-French army in Canada, and not wanting the Confederacy to be left saddled with the primary responsibility of fighting Great Britain’s war against the Union on land, insisted that, as one of the terms of the Treaty of Alliance between the Confederate States. Great Britain, and France signed in September 1862, the Franco-British forces in Canada must begin offensive operations against the United States in the Spring of 1863, to be coordinated with those of the Confederate States. Lord Palmerston dispatches a message to Field Marshal Sir Colin Campbell, commanding in Montreal, informing him of this fact. Field Marshal Campbell, whose previous instructions had been simply to defend Canada, strenuously protests these new orders, arguing that he does not have sufficient forces to go on the offensive, but Palmerston is adamant. Campbell obediently begins planning for offensive operations in the Spring. Palmerston also orders Admiral Milne to supply troops and ships to cooperate with a Confederate attack on Washington, D.C.
November 1862--U.S.S. Devastator is launched in Philadelphia. A third identical vessel is laid down in Philadelphia. It is to be known as U.S.S. Ticonderoga.
December 1862--U.S.S. Retribution is launched at New York, and U.S.S. Bunker Hill is launched at Boston.
[1] At that time, British Columbia was bounded on the east by the Rocky Mountains, and on the north by the Simpson and Finlay Rivers. It thus did not include as much land as the present day Canadian province of British Columbia. It also did not include Vancouver Island or the Queen Charlotte Islands, both of which were administered as separate Crown Colonies at the time.
[2] In OTL, it began in August 1862. In the ATL, with British aid and encouragement, it starts two months early, will be more destructive, and will prove more difficult to put down.
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Another Addition and Correction...
ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS
October 1862 onward--The declaration of war by the Confederacy forces the Seward Administration, which had planned to take the offensive into Canada in the Spring of 1863, launching simultaneous thrusts by the Army of the Hudson, the Army of Lake Erie (being raised at Buffalo, New York), the Army of Illinois (being raised at Chicago), and the Army of Michigan (being raised at Detroit), to reconsider that plan. Given the relative inactivity of the Anglo/French army in Canada proper, the administration will begin to move troops to the Union’s southern border, just as they transferred troops to Minnesota to deal with the Sioux, weakening the forces assigned to face Canada. And the situation in Maine will demand more men as well. By the spring of 1863, the armies deployed against Canada will have largely been gutted to fill the needs of other theaters.
The recruitment and training of additional troops is also running into severe problems. The financial crisis which is running rampant through the Union economy, caused by the loss of access of California and Nevada specie, the ongoing British blockade, and the increasing inability of the Union to sell its bonds either domestically or to foreign buyers (a side effect of the specie issue and the blockade) is making it very difficult to purchase the arms and equipment it needs from either domestic or foreign suppliers. Furthermore, it has meant that even paying the troops in the field has become very problematic. The military situation of the Union is looking increasingly dire to any objective observer.
Unfortunately, President Seward is not an objective observer. He views the Confederate declaration of war as a stab in the back which must be avenged…up until it actually occurred, he was still operating under the delusion that the people of the South would eventually rally behind the Union in it’s war against “Perfidious Albion.” Now, like any delusional person whose delusion is challenged, he is reacting with a mixture of shock, grief, and outrage. Furthermore, he views the inactivity of the main Anglo-French army in Canada as a sign of weakness. Surely, he reasons, if the Union doesn’t provoke them by attempting another invasion of Canada, they will sit idly by while he deals with the Confederates, and eventually they’ll get tired of the war and go home. The coming year will amply demonstrate the folly of that belief.
ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS
October 1862 onward--The declaration of war by the Confederacy forces the Seward Administration, which had planned to take the offensive into Canada in the Spring of 1863, launching simultaneous thrusts by the Army of the Hudson, the Army of Lake Erie (being raised at Buffalo, New York), the Army of Illinois (being raised at Chicago), and the Army of Michigan (being raised at Detroit), to reconsider that plan. Given the relative inactivity of the Anglo/French army in Canada proper, the administration will begin to move troops to the Union’s southern border, just as they transferred troops to Minnesota to deal with the Sioux, weakening the forces assigned to face Canada. And the situation in Maine will demand more men as well. By the spring of 1863, the armies deployed against Canada will have largely been gutted to fill the needs of other theaters.
The recruitment and training of additional troops is also running into severe problems. The financial crisis which is running rampant through the Union economy, caused by the loss of access of California and Nevada specie, the ongoing British blockade, and the increasing inability of the Union to sell its bonds either domestically or to foreign buyers (a side effect of the specie issue and the blockade) is making it very difficult to purchase the arms and equipment it needs from either domestic or foreign suppliers. Furthermore, it has meant that even paying the troops in the field has become very problematic. The military situation of the Union is looking increasingly dire to any objective observer.
Unfortunately, President Seward is not an objective observer. He views the Confederate declaration of war as a stab in the back which must be avenged…up until it actually occurred, he was still operating under the delusion that the people of the South would eventually rally behind the Union in it’s war against “Perfidious Albion.” Now, like any delusional person whose delusion is challenged, he is reacting with a mixture of shock, grief, and outrage. Furthermore, he views the inactivity of the main Anglo-French army in Canada as a sign of weakness. Surely, he reasons, if the Union doesn’t provoke them by attempting another invasion of Canada, they will sit idly by while he deals with the Confederates, and eventually they’ll get tired of the war and go home. The coming year will amply demonstrate the folly of that belief.
My God is this a mess for the Union. Fighting the British, French, Canadians, Confederacy and even the damn Sioux indians. talk about fracturing and dividing the Union.
Interesting idea. Loving it. Subscribed.
Interesting idea. Loving it. Subscribed.
I'm glad to hear you are both enjoying it. I am still working on the update...I just about have it ready to post. In the meantime, here is a map...
Another Addition...
November 1862--The mid-term Congressional elections are held in the United States. Although up until quite recently, it had looked like the Republicans might lose their majority in Congress due to general public disgust with the Seward Administration, by the time the elections are held, this has radically changed due to the entry of the Confederate States into the war. Instead of losing their majority, the Republicans end up with a larger majority than they had previously enjoyed. President Seward no longer has to worry about interference from Congress as he prosecutes the war.
November 1862--The mid-term Congressional elections are held in the United States. Although up until quite recently, it had looked like the Republicans might lose their majority in Congress due to general public disgust with the Seward Administration, by the time the elections are held, this has radically changed due to the entry of the Confederate States into the war. Instead of losing their majority, the Republicans end up with a larger majority than they had previously enjoyed. President Seward no longer has to worry about interference from Congress as he prosecutes the war.
You know, I had an idea for a story with a confederacy founded by Lincoln, but in my story the confederacy was anti-slavery and then in World War II the north was full of Nazis who were trying to fight against communist Canadians. But that was all okay because the story was about Deadpool.
The British should go for getting Oregon and the Confederacy should get their claims in the treaty
The Update is Finally Here!
PART FIVE: THE DECISIVE YEAR-1863.
January 1863--In Maine, forces of American raiders…mainly Maine volunteer and militia regiments full of men experienced in living in the severe winter conditions of northern Maine, have been harrying the British supply line between their winter encampment at Lincoln, Maine and their supply base at Frederickton, New Brunswick. As time has passed, these raids have become more and more effective. British supply trains…already severely slowed by the snow drifts through which they must pass to get to their destination…are now being captured and burned with distressing regularity. Hunger is beginning to stalk the British army at Lincoln.
Meanwhile, the Emperor Napoleon III, upon hearing of the Confederate declaration of war, had argued with his British allies over whether or not they should send troops to fight alongside the Confederates. The British, especially the Duke of Cambridge, are strongly against the idea. But Napoleon decides to act on his own, and a division of French troops lands in Virginia in January 1862. It’s not a huge commitment…Napoleon can’t really afford a huge commitment to the Confederacy, already having contributed a corps to the defense of Canada and also having become involved in Mexico…but it is met with wild enthusiasm by the press in the Confederate States. The French division, commanded by General Francois Achille Bazaine, joins the Confederate Army of Virginia, under General Joseph E. Johnston, which is encamped at Manassas Junction.
U.S.S. Devastator is commissioned at Philadelphia.
In Russia’s Polish territories, unrest has been building up since 1861. Increasingly harsh Russian responses have caused Britain and France to take an increasingly hard line with regard to the Russians, and war has threatened to break out on some occasions. However, the involvement of the two western powers in a war with the United States has absorbed resources which make it significantly more difficult for them to contemplate another anti-Russian intervention as they had carried out during the Crimean War. Therefore, it has become clear to those organizing the unrest in Poland that, as long as the war in American continues, outside intervention on the side of the revolutionaries is very unlikely. In meetings held in late 1862 and including one held in January 1863, dissidents are unable to come to an agreement on forming a provisional government, and the situation in Poland does not explode into revolution at this time. [1]
February 1863--In what will, in OTL, one day become the Canadian province of Manitoba, tensions are rising. The Metis, the mixed blood descendants of French fur trappers and native women, form the majority of the non-Indian population of the region around the Red River Settlement, and live primarily by hunting buffalo to supply pemmican to the fur trappers of the Hudson‘s Bay Company. The Red River Settlement is strategically important as it serves as the link between the provinces of Canada proper to the east, and the crown colony of British Columbia to the west. The Metis around the Red River Settlement have, over the past decade, become ever more resentful as more and more settlers from Canada have come west to settle in the area, threatening both their culture and their livelihood. Many Metis also own land in the region, but do not have clear title to it, and feel threatened as Anglophone settlers begin to stake claims on land in the region. Among the more disgruntled of the Metis is a charismatic young man named Louis Riel.
The only British troops stationed in the area as a frontier constabulary…100 men of the Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment…have been withdrawn to the east, to join their regiment in the armies facing those of the United States. With their departure, Riel comes to the conclusion that the war between Britain and the United States might provide an opportunity for the Metis to establish an independent homeland for themselves…with Yankee help…and manages to convince a large number of other Metis to support him in this effort. He then sets off on a dangerous winter trek in mid-January of 1863, arriving in General McDowell’s headquarters at St. Paul, Minnesota on February 10th. Riel promises that if the Americans will support Metis independence and send troops into the Red River valley region, the Metis will seize the strategic posts at Upper and Lower Fort Garry and hold them until the Yankees can arrive.
General McDowell is skeptical of the plan, but telegraphs it to President Seward. Seward, a firm believer in Manifest Destiny, sees the opportunity to possibly seize the prize of British Columbia…part of the Oregon Country which had been claimed by the United States prior to the Oregon Treaty of 1846...if the Metis rebellion can succeed in cutting off support from Canada, and decides to support the plan. He orders General McDowell to take the Army of the Great Lakes into the Red River valley as soon as the spring thaws make travel to the region feasible. Riel returns to his home to prepare for the rebellion.[2]
U.S.S. New Ironsides and U.S.S. Devastator leave Philadelphia and descend the Delaware River to confront the British blockading squadron outside Delaware Bay. The Battle of Delaware Bay takes place on February 21. The Anglo-French blockading squadron there is composed of wooden vessels, with no ironclads in support. New Ironsides and Devastator sink two British blockading vessels (both wooden steam frigates) and one French vessel (a wooden sailing frigate) and drive the rest away from the bay, breaking the blockade there. They then proceed to Chesapeake Bay, where they plan to engage the Anglo-French blockading fleet there as well. The blockaders at Chesapeake Bay are also mostly composed of wooden British and French warships, but they are reinforced by the French ironclad La Gloire and the Confederate ironclad ram, the C.S.S. Virginia.[3] The ensuing struggle at Chesapeake Bay on February 23 will go down in history as the first clash between ironclad vessels.
The New Ironsides and the Devastator ignore the wooden component of the blockading fleet, and head straight for La Gloire, which at the time was the only ironclad present (the Virginia was still at it’s base on the Elizabeth River, and only entered the battle later, steaming to the sound of the guns). The Union vessels quickly prove they are more than a match for La Gloire, whose armor is repeatedly penetrated by the 11-inch Dahlgrens of the two Union vessels, charged with 30 lbs of powder and firing wrought iron solid shot at close range. La Gloire’s own battery of 6.5-inch rifles proves totally incapable of penetrating the armor of the Union vessels.[4] Finally, a shot from Devastator will pierce her boiler, causing a huge explosion and leaving La Gloire as little more than a burning wreck.[4]
But New Ironsides herself, her commander fixated on La Gloire, is rammed by the Virginia, which, having only just reached the scene of the battle from her base on the Elizabeth River, crashes into her side at full speed. The New Ironsides begins to rapidly take on water and sink. The Confederate vessel, however, finds itself in a quandary, however, as her ram becomes stuck in the side of the sinking Union vessel. While the Confederate ironclad struggles to free itself from its sinking victim, the U.S.S. Devastator, having finished off the La Gloire, comes around and begins pounding the Virginia with it’s heavy guns. The Devastator is firing from a longer range than that at which she engaged La Gloire, and that, combined with the sloped casemate armor of the Virginia prevents any penetrations. But a number of Virginia’s iron plates are severely cracked, and two of her gun ports are rendered inoperable when heavy shot hit their protective iron shutters, jamming them shut. Finally, the Virginia manages to pull itself free of the New Ironsides, and its commander, concerned by reports that his own ship is taking water in the bow (where its ram was ripped off while it was pulling itself free of it’s victim), uses its superior speed to withdraw from the fight, fleeing to the safety of its base on the Elizabeth River.
The other British and French warships, shocked by the withdrawal or destruction of their supporting ironclads, attempt to continue the fight, but after Devastator reduces the H.M.S. Donegal (a Conqueror-class steam ship of the line mounting 101 guns) and the H.M.S. Orlando (a Mersey-class steam frigate) to flaming hulks, the rest of the blockaders flee the area. It has been a resounding, if costly, Union naval victory. It will prove short-lived, however.
March 1863--Despite the fact that winter still holds the region around Buffalo in it’s icy grip, on March 10, the aggressive Major General Ulysses S. Grant, whose 80,000-man Army of the Niagara has been less reduced by transfers to other armies than some of the others, probes the British defenses along the Niagara River. He finds them very formidable, and his forces are repulsed. There is no other major action on the Canadian front this month.
The Confederate Army of Virginia, 120,000 men under the command of General Joseph E. Johnston, advances across the Potomac River. It meets the Union Army of the Potomac, 90,000 men commanded by Major General Joseph Hooker (who had commanded a Division within General Grant’s army at Buffalo before being transferred, in December 1862, to take command of the new army forming to face the Confederates in Virginia). At the Battle of Frederick on March 16, the Confederate army inflicts a severe defeat on the Union force, which retreats into the defenses of Washington. The Franco-Confederate army assaults the works around Washington on March 20, but is repulsed with heavy losses. General Johnston orders siege operations to begin.
But by this time, the Federal Government has already abandoned the city. For the time being, the U.S. Hampton Roads Squadron, spearheaded by the U.S.S. Devastator, controls Chesapeake Bay and the sea approaches to Washington, and President Seward uses the opportunity provided by this fact to escape by sea, first to Baltimore, and then to Philadephia, along with most of Congress. He orders General Hooker to hold out as long as possible while Seward puts together a relief force.
Seward makes his escape just in time, as on March 25, Admiral Milne, at the head of a strong Anglo-French naval force spearheaded by the British ironclads, H.M.S. Warrior and H.M.S. Resistance, and the French ironclads Invincible and Magenta, appears in Chesapeake Bay. The Anglo-French fleet is joined by the Confederate ironclad, C.S.S. Virginia, recently repaired after the first Battle of Chesapeake Bay the previous month. The Devastator leads the Hampton Roads Squadron, consisting of the U.S.S. Minnesota, U.S.S. Cumberland, U.S.S. Congress, and U.S.S. Roanoke, out to meet them. The result is a foregone conclusion. The Devastator does some damage to Invincible, but is pounded to pieces by the 68-pounders of the Warrior and Resistance from beyond the effective range of it’s own 11-inch Dahlgrens, and is forced to strike its colors within an hour. The Union wooden vessels are all either sunk or captured shortly afterward.
With complete control of Chesapeake Bay, Admiral Milne begins landing a force of nearly 40,000 British and French soldiers and marines the next day. This force marches overland to Baltimore, while a large portion of the Anglo-French fleet sails to confront the seacoast forts defending the city. Baltimore falls on March 31. The Anglo-French land forces then move to join the Franco-Confederate army besieging Washington.
Meanwhile, the Confederate Army of Kentucky, 90,000 men under the command of General Albert Sidney Johnston, faces the 70,000-man Union Army of Ohio, under Major General Don Carlos Buell, across the Ohio River. There is little action in this theater, but some skirmishing takes place as both sides send raiding parties across the river to harass each other.
At Paducah, Kentucky, the 80,000-man Confederate Army of Missouri, under General P.G.T. Beauregard, is facing a Union army forming at the strategically important river port of Cairo, Illinois. This 80,000-man army is led by Major General Henry Halleck, who, despite President Seward’s dislike, has been given this important command during this time of extreme crisis. Beauregard is supported by a Confederate fleet led by four ironclads…C.S.S. Louisiana, C.S.S. Mississippi, C.S.S. Arkansas, and C.S.S. Tennessee, all of whom are equipped with imported British engines and smoothbore 32-pounder and 64-pounder guns, as well as Confederate Brooke 7” Rifled guns…as well as a number of gunboats and rams converted from river steamers. These vessels are met, on March 17, by a Union river fleet consisting of ironclads built by James Eads at St. Louis, and some specialized rams converted from riverboats. The Confederate ironclads are more heavily armored than their Union counterparts (4” of armor as opposed to 2” for the Union vessels, which were only armored to withstand the fire of field artillery, not heavy guns), and their flat-bottom design and powerful engines give them great mobility in the waters of the Ohio River. The C.S.S. Louisiana is lost after being rammed three times by Union rams making suicide runs at her, and some of the wooden Confederate vessels are lost as well. But the other Confederate ironclads devastate the Union fleet. The ironclads Cairo, Benton, and Louisville are sunk, while the Carondelet and St. Louis are badly damaged and forced to surrender. The Union rams Queen of the West and Essex are also sunk. Only the ironclads U.S.S. Mound City and U.S.S. Cincinnati escape, retiring to the safety of the port of Cincinnati, Ohio.
With the control of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers thus secured, the Confederate Army of Missouri is transported across the Ohio River on March 20, and meet General Halleck’s Union Army of the Mississippi outside Cairo on March 22. Halleck’s troops inflict a sharp defeat on the equally green Confederates, and Beauregard retires back across the Ohio. Each side loses around 5,000 men in the engagement.
In the Pacific Northwest, the Union Army of the Pacific marches north from Fort Nisqually, it’s objective: New Westminster, the capital of the Crown Colony of British Columbia.
In the Sandwich Islands, the British Expeditionary Force being assembled there primarily from Indian troops, along with some formations diverted from Australia, China, and New Zealand, sets sail for the American West Coast. It numbers almost 40,000 men, and is commanded by Lt. General Sir Hugh Rose.
U.S.S. Retribution is commissioned at New York, and U.S.S. Bunker Hill is commissioned at Boston.
April 1863--On the Ohio River, the Confederate ironclads Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee finish off the Union ironclad fleet, capturing the Union vessels Mound City and Cincinnati after a short fight on April 8. This give the Confederates complete control of the Ohio River, and on April 10, General Johnston’s Army of Kentucky crosses into Ohio. Major General Don Carlos Buell’s Army of Ohio meets them in battle near Cincinnati on April 14. The result is a two-day battle which costs the two sides nearly 15,000 men each. Buell abandons the field on the night of April 15, slipping away toward the State capital at Columbus, where he hopes to find reinforcements. Johnston’s Confederate army occupies Cincinnati.
Meanwhile, the Confederate Army of Virginia, with it’s Anglo-French allies, continues the siege of Washington. It is learned that President Seward and the government have abandoned the city. It is decided that the value of eliminating the Union Army of the Potomac more than justifies continuing the siege. And so, the siege goes on. British, French, and Confederate artillery pound the city mercilessly, and food supplies in the city begin to dwindle.
General Beauregard spends the month reorganizing his army at Paducah, Kentucky, following it‘s defeat the hands of General Halleck‘s Union army the previous month. He also receives reinforcements, bringing his army to a strength of over 100,000 men.
General Grant’s Union Army of the Niagara makes another attempt at a crossing of said river, but is repulsed again with heavy losses. Major General McClellan’s 70,000-man Army of Michigan, based at Detroit, crosses into Canada on April 10 near the town of Sandwich and begins advancing inland. However, they meet heavy resistance by British and Canadian forces assigned to defend the area, and their advance is halted near the mouth of the Thames River, within 30 miles of their starting point, on April 12. McClellan digs in, as do the British, and no further major action occurs on this front during the month of April.
Meanwhile, the main British Army in North America, based at Montreal under the command of Sir Colin Campbell, is ready to begin operations against the United States. The combined British and French expeditionary force under Campbell’s command now numbers well in excess of 250,000 men. Of these, he has deployed strong garrisons to Quebec, Montreal, Toronto, Kingston, and other significant towns in Canada East and Canada West (the subdivisions within the Province of Canada during that period), and also stationed small armies, numbering 50,000 and 40,000 respectively, opposite the U.S. armies based at Buffalo, New York, and Detroit, Michigan. After detaching all these troops, he has a force of about 120,000 which forms his main field army at Montreal.
Campbell moves south on April 15, heading toward Plattsburgh, New York. His army is accompanied by a fleet of gunboats which screens his movement from the waters of Lake Champlain. At Plattsburgh, he encounters the Army of the Hudson, under Major General William T. Sherman. Sherman, whose army has been severely weakened by transfers of troops to the new armies being formed to face the Confederate threat in the south, now is in command of less than 80,000 men. Sherman is hoping for a naval miracle, to be provided by a fleet of newly-constructed gunboats. The most powerful of these is an ironclad gunboat, called the U.S.S. Thomas MacDonough, converted from a side-wheel steamer and armored with two layers of 1-inch thick iron plates. The Second Battle of Lake Champlain, fought on April 22, does not go as Sherman had hoped, however. With the exception of the ironclad, the Union vessels are poorly built of green wood, and they leak like sieves. They are quite lightly armed compared to their British counterparts, and they lack a leader of the caliber of Lieutenant Thomas MacDonough, who led the victorious American forces at the First Battle of Lake Champlain in 1814. The British vessels easily dispatch the wooden gunboats, capturing or destroying all but two, and then gang up on the ironclad. It’s thin iron plates prove all too vulnerable to a close-range pounding by heavy British guns, and the MacDonough is forced to surrender as well. With the defeat of his naval forces, General Sherman is left with little choice but to abandon Plattsburgh. He retreats down the traditional Lake Champlain to Lake George to Hudson River invasion route, with the Anglo-French army in pursuit.
Elsewhere, the harsh winter is also finally ending in Maine, where the British army under General Burgoyne has endured a terrible winter in their winter quarters near Lincoln, Maine. The British army receives reinforcements from Frederickton, New Brunswick, bringing it’s strength up to over 100,000, and begins pushing south, resuming it’s march toward Bangor. On April 16, it collides with the Union Army of Maine, under Major General Pope, near the town of Milford. The Army of Maine has also been reinforced, and Pope has had all winter to train his 95,000 green troops and turn them into something resembling soldiers. The Yankees are holding a strong defensive position on the south side of one of the many tributaries which feed into the Penobscot River. General Burgoyne orders an assault. The attack is a disaster. By the end of the day, almost six thousand redcoats die in front of the Yankee entrenchments, and at least that many more are wounded. Less than five thousand Yankees are killed or wounded during the engagement.
But John Fox Burgoyne is known for his coolness and nerve, and so, he does not panic or overreact to the scale of the defeat he has suffered. Instead of retreating, Burgoyne’s army entrenches itself while the cavalry tries to find an undefended or lightly defended ford. They find one on April 21, and Burgoyne’s army slips away under cover of darkness, leaving campfires lit to give the impression that the British are still encamped opposite the Yankee defenders. Major General Pope wakes up the next morning to find the British gone, and shortly afterward receives reports that British troops are marching around his flank and into his rear. He orders a withdrawal to Bangor. The two armies arrive at Bangor on April 30. Both entrench, and the Siege of Bangor begins.
The British expeditionary force from the Sandwich Islands lands at Santa Cruz, on the northern side of Monterey Bay, south of San Francisco, on April 10. The British establish a base of operations at Santa Cruz over the next few days, and then march on San Francisco itself, arriving on April 18. Governor Stanford calls up the California militia to meet the British threat, but it will take some time for the militia to respond. He also sends a telegram to President Seward, advising him of the landing of a large British force near San Francisco, and calling for reinforcements to be immediately sent. However, it will be even longer before any help can be expected from outside California than it will be for the California Militia to be called up and organized for action.
Upon hearing of the British landing in California, President Seward’s blood runs cold. He knows that his entire scheme to prevent the economic collapse of the Union and to continue to finance the war effort depends on the reestablishment of the flow of gold and silver from the West. If the British are able to seize the gold and silver of California and Nevada, it will be nothing short of a disaster. But there is little he can do. California is too far away for Union troops from the East to effectively intervene, even if they could be spared from the fighting there. Seward desperately telegrams the Governors of Oregon, Colorado Territory, Nevada Territory and Utah Territory, asking them to send whatever troops can be raised as quickly as possible to the assistance of Governor Stanford in California.
For the time being, the California Brigade, stationed at Camp Stanford near San Francisco, and the regular and volunteer troops garrisoning the forts at the Presidio, Fort Point, and Alcatraz Island, are the only defense of the city. The commanding officer of the California Brigade, Colonel James West, knowing that his troops have no chance of victory against the overwhelming British force facing them, orders his troops to join the defenders inside the forts. This brings the garrisons of each installation up to full strength, and the forts will present difficult nuts to crack. Indeed, Fortress Alcatraz, with a garrison of over 500 and 85 cannon, by itself is a formidable obstacle, and the Presidio and Fort Point are only somewhat less imposing, despite being armed with less than half their planned complement of cannon. The British forces capture the city itself, and then begin siege operations against the forts. The Royal Navy’s Pacific Squadron supports the operation by sealing off San Francisco Bay and bombarding the forts from the sea. In the meantime, the gold reserves at the San Francisco mint are seized by the British, and a force of 10,000 men is detached to secure the gold and silver fields of California and northwestern Nevada.
In the Red River Settlements (Manitoba), Louis Riel and the Metis begin their rebellion. Upper and Lower Fort Garry are captured without firing a shot. At the same time, Major General McDowell and the Union Army of the Great Lakes begin their advance on the Red River Settlements. They leave St. Paul, Minnesota on April 20.
Elsewhere, U.S.S. Retribution, supported by several wooden warships which had found refuge in New York harbor and also by several monitors, attempts to break the blockade of New York. They are met by an Anglo-French fleet including the British ironclads H.M.S. Black Prince and H.M.S. Defense, and the French ironclad Normandie. Once again, the Monitors prove themselves nearly useless in the open sea, and after one of them capsizes after being rammed by H.M.S. Defense, the rest retreat into the sheltered waters of the harbor. The British and French wooden vessels square off against the Union wooden warships, and their superior numbers and firepower make short work of most of them. One, the U.S.S. Kearsarge, manages to escape into the open sea, where she will operate as a commerce raider until several weeks after the end of hostilities. The main event of the battle proves to be the match between the U.S.S. Retribution and the three enemy ironclads. Like her sister ship La Gloire, the Normandie will find it’s battery of 6.5” muzzle-loading rifles to be ineffective against the sloped iron armor of the Retribution. She will bravely close to nearly point-blank range in an attempt to penetrate the Union ironclad, fail to do so, and leave the fight after being penetrated by two of Retribution’s 11-inch Dahlgrens.
But the Defense and Black Prince will prove a different matter. The 110-pounder Armstrong Rifles of the British ships prove much more effective than the French rifled guns against the sloped armor of the U.S. warship. Although none of their shots penetrate, many of the Retribution’s plates are cracked, and large splinters from their oak backing lash through her gun deck, killing many of her crewmen. The 68-pounder smoothbores of the British ships prove even more effective, with several shots actually penetrating Retribution’s armor from a range of as much as 500 yards, well outside the effective range of Retribution’s own 11-inch Dahlgrens against the armor of the British vessels. The British ships don’t escape unscathed, however. While the Captain of Black Prince wisely stays out of the Retribution’s effective range, the Captain of the Defense makes the mistake of attempting to ram the Retribution, necessitating closing to within the effective range of the Dahlgrens, and the Captain of Retribution, seeing his 11-inch wrought iron shot bouncing off the high-quality armor of the British vessel, orders his guns loaded with 60-pound powder charges [5]. The Retribution’s shot, propelled by these higher charges, cause significant damage, including two penetrations of the Defense’s armor by Retribution’s shot. But this is not enough to turn the tide. Finally, one of the 68-pounder shots fired by Black Prince penetrates Retribution’s boilers, setting off a catastrophic explosion and releasing scalding steam which kills or maims dozens of her crew. With that, the Retribution lowers it’s flag in surrender, and is taken, under tow, as a prize to Halifax. The Anglo-French blockade of New York is not lifted.
May 1863--The Confederate Army of Kentucky, under General Johnston, moves north from Cincinnati. It’s initial target is Columbus, Ohio. It finds the Union Army of the Ohio entrenched there. Johnston orders siege operations begun.
The Confederate Army of Missouri, under General Beauregard, once again crosses the Ohio, and once again meets the Union Army of the Mississippi in battle outside Cairo, Illinois. The Second Battle of Cairo is a Confederate victory, and the Army of Missouri occupies Cairo a few days later. Major General Halleck is killed in the action, and is replaced by Major General John McClernand. The remnants of his forces cross the Mississippi at take position at St. Louis, Missouri. There they join other Union forces which are being raised for the defense of the St. Louis area under the command of Brigadier General Franz Siegel.
The Confederate Army of Virginia and it’s French and British allies continue the siege of Washington. By mid-May, starvation is running rampant in the city, and Confederate, French, and British artillery have pounded much of the city into ruins. Finally, Major General Hooker bows to the inevitable. He surrenders the city, and his army, on May 20, 1863. The Union Army of the Potomac marches into captivity in Confederate P.O.W. Camps shortly thereafter, and the allied army begins moving toward Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, at Philadelphia, President Seward, with the Governor Pennsylvania, has managed to cobble together a force of nearly 100,000 for the defense of the city. Most of these are raw militia, but it’s the best that can be managed.
In Maine, the siege of Bangor continues throughout the month. Elsewhere in Maine, the British army occupying Portland begins sending out detachments to raid the surrounding country. Governor Israel Washburne opposes them with militia, with very little effect. He calls for reinforcements, but the Seward Administration considers Maine to be a sideshow theater of the war, and very little aid is forthcoming. Serious talk begins in the Maine Legislature about the possibility of making a separate peace with the British.
In New York, Field Marshal Sir Colin Campbell continues to pursue the Army of the Hudson down the Hudson River corridor toward Albany and New York City. In the years since 1777, when a British army attempted an invasion by the same route, the region has seen much development, and many good roads and even railroads now make movement much easier. As a result, the British army advances much more rapidly than it’s 1777 counterpart. General Sherman does everything he can to slow the Anglo-French army down, entrenching at every defensible position he can find and holding it until the larger enemy force slips around his flank and forces him to retire. But by the end of May, the Anglo-French army has pushed the Yankees all the way to Albany, where Sherman, under pressure from President Seward, has decided to make his stand. Field Marshall Campbell orders siege operations begun.
The Union Army of the Niagara under General Grant, and the Army of Michigan under General McClellan, both continue operations against the British forces opposing them. Neither of them makes headway. Finally on May 30, President Seward orders General Grant to abandon his attacks on the Niagara front and move, with his army, to the relief of Albany.
The Union Army of the Great Lakes, after much difficulty, reaches the Red River Settlements on May 30, where it occupies Upper and Lower Fort Garry. Communication between the eastern and western British colonies in America is cut off. The possibility that the British colonies in the far west will receive help from the east is now virtually nil.
In the Pacific Northwest, the Army of the Pacific sends out detachments to occupy the various forts operated by the Hudson’s Bay Company in British Columbia. Once again, little resistance is met. By the end of the month, all of the Colony of British Columbia is effectively under Union control. Major General Sumner, unfortunately, does not realize what is going on in California, there being no telegraph line running into Washington Territory at this time.
June 1863--The news of the British invasion of California, and imminent seizure of the gold and silver fields, which, up to now, had been successfully squelched by the Seward Administration, is leaked on June 4. The first shipments of gold and silver across the plains had arrived in the East earlier this year, buoying the value of the Union’s paper currency and encouraging patriotic citizens to risk buying Union bonds again. Now, the news from California causes an immediate financial panic. The value of the Greenback falls nearly to zero, and despite the legal tender law, many merchants other businesses refuse to accept them any longer.
By this time, even the most die-hard Republicans in Congress know this war cannot be won. Congress passes a resolution which states that no more war appropriations shall be approved until the Seward Administration agrees to seek honorable peace terms from the enemy. Seward, seeing no other way, agrees to these terms.
Seward sends a message to General Johnston, whose army is advancing on Philadelphia, asking President Lincoln for a Cease Fire while peace terms are discussed. President Lincoln receives the message on June 8, and communicates the offer to Admiral Milne, who sends a fast steamer to London, with Lincoln’s suggestion that the offer be accepted. Lincoln, meanwhile, orders the Confederate armies to halt in place while the response of the British and French governments is awaited. The governments of Britain and France, worried by developments in Poland and Germany and anxious to get out of the war, agree. A ceasefire goes into effect on June 25, effectively ending the conflict. Peace negotiators will soon be meeting in Geneva to work out final details of a treaty.
However, in the days leading up to June 25, some action does occur. Major General Grant’s Army of the Niagara, transported via the Erie Canal, arrives outside Albany on June 10. Grant attacks the Anglo-French army on June 11. General Sherman, hearing the sound of the guns, also attacks. The attack is successful, and the Anglo-French army is forced to retreat from it’s entrenchments around Albany and retire back up the Hudson Valley. This victory is hailed throughout the U.S.A., but the joy it brings is shattered by the news of the fall of Bangor, Maine, the next day.
The British reach Virginia City, Nevada, on June 20 and seize the Comstock mines. Fort Point and the Presidio, at San Francisco, fall to the British Army under General Rose on June 21, leaving only Alcatraz Island in American hands. But the fortress there is largely in ruins, pounded mercilessly by the guns of the British Pacific Squadron. Although the garrison there will repel a British landing attempt on June 23, San Francisco, for all intents and purposes, is fully under British control.
The British army defending the Niagara front, finding it’s opposition gone, joins the force facing Major General McClellan’s Army of Michigan. The combined British force launches a major assault and McClellan is forced to withdraw back to Detroit on June 24.
[1] Of course, in OTL, a Polish rebellion did break out in January 1863.
[2] Many thanks to MacCaulay, whose idea the Metis rebellion was.
[3] The ATL C.S.S. Virginia is not the same vessel as the OTL C.S.S. Virginia, which was built upon the burned out hulk of the U.S.S. Merrimac. The ATL C.S.S. Virginia is more similar to the OTL C.S.S. Albemarle than to the OTL Virginia, being constructed with a flat bottom which permits her to operate in much shallower water than the OTL Virginia was capable of. She is propelled by a powerful imported British-built steam engine which gives her a top speed of 12 knots, and carries a mixed battery of British 68 pounder smoothbores (the same guns which made up the majority of the battery of the Warrior-class ironclads), mounted three on each side, and Confederate-produced Brooke 7” rifled guns (one at each end, on a pivot mount allowing it to fire forward or to either side). She is covered with five inches of iron on her front and four inches on each side.
For comparison, in OTL (and in the ATL) the La Gloire was armed with thirty-six 6.5” rifled cannon, was protected by a belt of 4.5” armor plates, and had a top speed of 11 knots. The New Ironsides had 4” of iron plating, was armed with fourteen 11” Dahlgren smoothbores, two 150-pounder Parrot Rifles, and two 50-pounder Parrot Rifles, and had a top speed of 8 knots.
[4] Tests conducted by the U.S. Navy in May 1862 clearly demonstrated that 11-inch Dahlgrens, firing 30 lb charges, could nearly routinely penetrate more armor than was carried by La Gloire at close range. The 6.5” rifles of the La Gloire, however, were later proven not to be effective against armor and were replaced by the French Navy with heavier guns as a result. The disparity of effectiveness would also have been increased by the respective hull designs of the ships…the La Gloire was a conventionally built, straight sided vessel, while the New Ironsides had sides which sloped inward, somewhat similar to those of a Confederate casemate ironclad. Because of it’s sloped sides, it’s armor would have been more effective than its thickness would indicate. Finally, the guns of the La Gloire were also mounted poorly…the gunports were placed slightly too close to the waves, and too close to each other, making a crowded workspace for the crew, which would have reduced her effective rate of fire. All in all, in every area except speed, the New Ironsides was more than a match for La Gloire.
[5] British armor was greatly superior in strength to American and French armor of the time, being made of single 4.5” thick rolled iron plates, tongued and grooved together. American and French armor of the time was composite armor, consisting of layers of thinner plates of rolled iron (in the case of American armor, several layers of 1” thick plates, bolted together). The composite armor was much weaker than the solid British armor plating. While an 11-inch Dahlgren firing a 30-pound charge did reliably, during tests in May 1862, penetrate targets composed of up to 6 inches of composite iron armor backed by up to 20 inches of wood, it is unlikely it would have penetrated solid British armor of the same thickness. However, an 11-inch Dahlgren firing wrought-iron shot propelled by 60-pound charges would likely have done so.
PART FIVE: THE DECISIVE YEAR-1863.
January 1863--In Maine, forces of American raiders…mainly Maine volunteer and militia regiments full of men experienced in living in the severe winter conditions of northern Maine, have been harrying the British supply line between their winter encampment at Lincoln, Maine and their supply base at Frederickton, New Brunswick. As time has passed, these raids have become more and more effective. British supply trains…already severely slowed by the snow drifts through which they must pass to get to their destination…are now being captured and burned with distressing regularity. Hunger is beginning to stalk the British army at Lincoln.
Meanwhile, the Emperor Napoleon III, upon hearing of the Confederate declaration of war, had argued with his British allies over whether or not they should send troops to fight alongside the Confederates. The British, especially the Duke of Cambridge, are strongly against the idea. But Napoleon decides to act on his own, and a division of French troops lands in Virginia in January 1862. It’s not a huge commitment…Napoleon can’t really afford a huge commitment to the Confederacy, already having contributed a corps to the defense of Canada and also having become involved in Mexico…but it is met with wild enthusiasm by the press in the Confederate States. The French division, commanded by General Francois Achille Bazaine, joins the Confederate Army of Virginia, under General Joseph E. Johnston, which is encamped at Manassas Junction.
U.S.S. Devastator is commissioned at Philadelphia.
In Russia’s Polish territories, unrest has been building up since 1861. Increasingly harsh Russian responses have caused Britain and France to take an increasingly hard line with regard to the Russians, and war has threatened to break out on some occasions. However, the involvement of the two western powers in a war with the United States has absorbed resources which make it significantly more difficult for them to contemplate another anti-Russian intervention as they had carried out during the Crimean War. Therefore, it has become clear to those organizing the unrest in Poland that, as long as the war in American continues, outside intervention on the side of the revolutionaries is very unlikely. In meetings held in late 1862 and including one held in January 1863, dissidents are unable to come to an agreement on forming a provisional government, and the situation in Poland does not explode into revolution at this time. [1]
February 1863--In what will, in OTL, one day become the Canadian province of Manitoba, tensions are rising. The Metis, the mixed blood descendants of French fur trappers and native women, form the majority of the non-Indian population of the region around the Red River Settlement, and live primarily by hunting buffalo to supply pemmican to the fur trappers of the Hudson‘s Bay Company. The Red River Settlement is strategically important as it serves as the link between the provinces of Canada proper to the east, and the crown colony of British Columbia to the west. The Metis around the Red River Settlement have, over the past decade, become ever more resentful as more and more settlers from Canada have come west to settle in the area, threatening both their culture and their livelihood. Many Metis also own land in the region, but do not have clear title to it, and feel threatened as Anglophone settlers begin to stake claims on land in the region. Among the more disgruntled of the Metis is a charismatic young man named Louis Riel.
The only British troops stationed in the area as a frontier constabulary…100 men of the Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment…have been withdrawn to the east, to join their regiment in the armies facing those of the United States. With their departure, Riel comes to the conclusion that the war between Britain and the United States might provide an opportunity for the Metis to establish an independent homeland for themselves…with Yankee help…and manages to convince a large number of other Metis to support him in this effort. He then sets off on a dangerous winter trek in mid-January of 1863, arriving in General McDowell’s headquarters at St. Paul, Minnesota on February 10th. Riel promises that if the Americans will support Metis independence and send troops into the Red River valley region, the Metis will seize the strategic posts at Upper and Lower Fort Garry and hold them until the Yankees can arrive.
General McDowell is skeptical of the plan, but telegraphs it to President Seward. Seward, a firm believer in Manifest Destiny, sees the opportunity to possibly seize the prize of British Columbia…part of the Oregon Country which had been claimed by the United States prior to the Oregon Treaty of 1846...if the Metis rebellion can succeed in cutting off support from Canada, and decides to support the plan. He orders General McDowell to take the Army of the Great Lakes into the Red River valley as soon as the spring thaws make travel to the region feasible. Riel returns to his home to prepare for the rebellion.[2]
U.S.S. New Ironsides and U.S.S. Devastator leave Philadelphia and descend the Delaware River to confront the British blockading squadron outside Delaware Bay. The Battle of Delaware Bay takes place on February 21. The Anglo-French blockading squadron there is composed of wooden vessels, with no ironclads in support. New Ironsides and Devastator sink two British blockading vessels (both wooden steam frigates) and one French vessel (a wooden sailing frigate) and drive the rest away from the bay, breaking the blockade there. They then proceed to Chesapeake Bay, where they plan to engage the Anglo-French blockading fleet there as well. The blockaders at Chesapeake Bay are also mostly composed of wooden British and French warships, but they are reinforced by the French ironclad La Gloire and the Confederate ironclad ram, the C.S.S. Virginia.[3] The ensuing struggle at Chesapeake Bay on February 23 will go down in history as the first clash between ironclad vessels.
The New Ironsides and the Devastator ignore the wooden component of the blockading fleet, and head straight for La Gloire, which at the time was the only ironclad present (the Virginia was still at it’s base on the Elizabeth River, and only entered the battle later, steaming to the sound of the guns). The Union vessels quickly prove they are more than a match for La Gloire, whose armor is repeatedly penetrated by the 11-inch Dahlgrens of the two Union vessels, charged with 30 lbs of powder and firing wrought iron solid shot at close range. La Gloire’s own battery of 6.5-inch rifles proves totally incapable of penetrating the armor of the Union vessels.[4] Finally, a shot from Devastator will pierce her boiler, causing a huge explosion and leaving La Gloire as little more than a burning wreck.[4]
But New Ironsides herself, her commander fixated on La Gloire, is rammed by the Virginia, which, having only just reached the scene of the battle from her base on the Elizabeth River, crashes into her side at full speed. The New Ironsides begins to rapidly take on water and sink. The Confederate vessel, however, finds itself in a quandary, however, as her ram becomes stuck in the side of the sinking Union vessel. While the Confederate ironclad struggles to free itself from its sinking victim, the U.S.S. Devastator, having finished off the La Gloire, comes around and begins pounding the Virginia with it’s heavy guns. The Devastator is firing from a longer range than that at which she engaged La Gloire, and that, combined with the sloped casemate armor of the Virginia prevents any penetrations. But a number of Virginia’s iron plates are severely cracked, and two of her gun ports are rendered inoperable when heavy shot hit their protective iron shutters, jamming them shut. Finally, the Virginia manages to pull itself free of the New Ironsides, and its commander, concerned by reports that his own ship is taking water in the bow (where its ram was ripped off while it was pulling itself free of it’s victim), uses its superior speed to withdraw from the fight, fleeing to the safety of its base on the Elizabeth River.
The other British and French warships, shocked by the withdrawal or destruction of their supporting ironclads, attempt to continue the fight, but after Devastator reduces the H.M.S. Donegal (a Conqueror-class steam ship of the line mounting 101 guns) and the H.M.S. Orlando (a Mersey-class steam frigate) to flaming hulks, the rest of the blockaders flee the area. It has been a resounding, if costly, Union naval victory. It will prove short-lived, however.
March 1863--Despite the fact that winter still holds the region around Buffalo in it’s icy grip, on March 10, the aggressive Major General Ulysses S. Grant, whose 80,000-man Army of the Niagara has been less reduced by transfers to other armies than some of the others, probes the British defenses along the Niagara River. He finds them very formidable, and his forces are repulsed. There is no other major action on the Canadian front this month.
The Confederate Army of Virginia, 120,000 men under the command of General Joseph E. Johnston, advances across the Potomac River. It meets the Union Army of the Potomac, 90,000 men commanded by Major General Joseph Hooker (who had commanded a Division within General Grant’s army at Buffalo before being transferred, in December 1862, to take command of the new army forming to face the Confederates in Virginia). At the Battle of Frederick on March 16, the Confederate army inflicts a severe defeat on the Union force, which retreats into the defenses of Washington. The Franco-Confederate army assaults the works around Washington on March 20, but is repulsed with heavy losses. General Johnston orders siege operations to begin.
But by this time, the Federal Government has already abandoned the city. For the time being, the U.S. Hampton Roads Squadron, spearheaded by the U.S.S. Devastator, controls Chesapeake Bay and the sea approaches to Washington, and President Seward uses the opportunity provided by this fact to escape by sea, first to Baltimore, and then to Philadephia, along with most of Congress. He orders General Hooker to hold out as long as possible while Seward puts together a relief force.
Seward makes his escape just in time, as on March 25, Admiral Milne, at the head of a strong Anglo-French naval force spearheaded by the British ironclads, H.M.S. Warrior and H.M.S. Resistance, and the French ironclads Invincible and Magenta, appears in Chesapeake Bay. The Anglo-French fleet is joined by the Confederate ironclad, C.S.S. Virginia, recently repaired after the first Battle of Chesapeake Bay the previous month. The Devastator leads the Hampton Roads Squadron, consisting of the U.S.S. Minnesota, U.S.S. Cumberland, U.S.S. Congress, and U.S.S. Roanoke, out to meet them. The result is a foregone conclusion. The Devastator does some damage to Invincible, but is pounded to pieces by the 68-pounders of the Warrior and Resistance from beyond the effective range of it’s own 11-inch Dahlgrens, and is forced to strike its colors within an hour. The Union wooden vessels are all either sunk or captured shortly afterward.
With complete control of Chesapeake Bay, Admiral Milne begins landing a force of nearly 40,000 British and French soldiers and marines the next day. This force marches overland to Baltimore, while a large portion of the Anglo-French fleet sails to confront the seacoast forts defending the city. Baltimore falls on March 31. The Anglo-French land forces then move to join the Franco-Confederate army besieging Washington.
Meanwhile, the Confederate Army of Kentucky, 90,000 men under the command of General Albert Sidney Johnston, faces the 70,000-man Union Army of Ohio, under Major General Don Carlos Buell, across the Ohio River. There is little action in this theater, but some skirmishing takes place as both sides send raiding parties across the river to harass each other.
At Paducah, Kentucky, the 80,000-man Confederate Army of Missouri, under General P.G.T. Beauregard, is facing a Union army forming at the strategically important river port of Cairo, Illinois. This 80,000-man army is led by Major General Henry Halleck, who, despite President Seward’s dislike, has been given this important command during this time of extreme crisis. Beauregard is supported by a Confederate fleet led by four ironclads…C.S.S. Louisiana, C.S.S. Mississippi, C.S.S. Arkansas, and C.S.S. Tennessee, all of whom are equipped with imported British engines and smoothbore 32-pounder and 64-pounder guns, as well as Confederate Brooke 7” Rifled guns…as well as a number of gunboats and rams converted from river steamers. These vessels are met, on March 17, by a Union river fleet consisting of ironclads built by James Eads at St. Louis, and some specialized rams converted from riverboats. The Confederate ironclads are more heavily armored than their Union counterparts (4” of armor as opposed to 2” for the Union vessels, which were only armored to withstand the fire of field artillery, not heavy guns), and their flat-bottom design and powerful engines give them great mobility in the waters of the Ohio River. The C.S.S. Louisiana is lost after being rammed three times by Union rams making suicide runs at her, and some of the wooden Confederate vessels are lost as well. But the other Confederate ironclads devastate the Union fleet. The ironclads Cairo, Benton, and Louisville are sunk, while the Carondelet and St. Louis are badly damaged and forced to surrender. The Union rams Queen of the West and Essex are also sunk. Only the ironclads U.S.S. Mound City and U.S.S. Cincinnati escape, retiring to the safety of the port of Cincinnati, Ohio.
With the control of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers thus secured, the Confederate Army of Missouri is transported across the Ohio River on March 20, and meet General Halleck’s Union Army of the Mississippi outside Cairo on March 22. Halleck’s troops inflict a sharp defeat on the equally green Confederates, and Beauregard retires back across the Ohio. Each side loses around 5,000 men in the engagement.
In the Pacific Northwest, the Union Army of the Pacific marches north from Fort Nisqually, it’s objective: New Westminster, the capital of the Crown Colony of British Columbia.
In the Sandwich Islands, the British Expeditionary Force being assembled there primarily from Indian troops, along with some formations diverted from Australia, China, and New Zealand, sets sail for the American West Coast. It numbers almost 40,000 men, and is commanded by Lt. General Sir Hugh Rose.
U.S.S. Retribution is commissioned at New York, and U.S.S. Bunker Hill is commissioned at Boston.
April 1863--On the Ohio River, the Confederate ironclads Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee finish off the Union ironclad fleet, capturing the Union vessels Mound City and Cincinnati after a short fight on April 8. This give the Confederates complete control of the Ohio River, and on April 10, General Johnston’s Army of Kentucky crosses into Ohio. Major General Don Carlos Buell’s Army of Ohio meets them in battle near Cincinnati on April 14. The result is a two-day battle which costs the two sides nearly 15,000 men each. Buell abandons the field on the night of April 15, slipping away toward the State capital at Columbus, where he hopes to find reinforcements. Johnston’s Confederate army occupies Cincinnati.
Meanwhile, the Confederate Army of Virginia, with it’s Anglo-French allies, continues the siege of Washington. It is learned that President Seward and the government have abandoned the city. It is decided that the value of eliminating the Union Army of the Potomac more than justifies continuing the siege. And so, the siege goes on. British, French, and Confederate artillery pound the city mercilessly, and food supplies in the city begin to dwindle.
General Beauregard spends the month reorganizing his army at Paducah, Kentucky, following it‘s defeat the hands of General Halleck‘s Union army the previous month. He also receives reinforcements, bringing his army to a strength of over 100,000 men.
General Grant’s Union Army of the Niagara makes another attempt at a crossing of said river, but is repulsed again with heavy losses. Major General McClellan’s 70,000-man Army of Michigan, based at Detroit, crosses into Canada on April 10 near the town of Sandwich and begins advancing inland. However, they meet heavy resistance by British and Canadian forces assigned to defend the area, and their advance is halted near the mouth of the Thames River, within 30 miles of their starting point, on April 12. McClellan digs in, as do the British, and no further major action occurs on this front during the month of April.
Meanwhile, the main British Army in North America, based at Montreal under the command of Sir Colin Campbell, is ready to begin operations against the United States. The combined British and French expeditionary force under Campbell’s command now numbers well in excess of 250,000 men. Of these, he has deployed strong garrisons to Quebec, Montreal, Toronto, Kingston, and other significant towns in Canada East and Canada West (the subdivisions within the Province of Canada during that period), and also stationed small armies, numbering 50,000 and 40,000 respectively, opposite the U.S. armies based at Buffalo, New York, and Detroit, Michigan. After detaching all these troops, he has a force of about 120,000 which forms his main field army at Montreal.
Campbell moves south on April 15, heading toward Plattsburgh, New York. His army is accompanied by a fleet of gunboats which screens his movement from the waters of Lake Champlain. At Plattsburgh, he encounters the Army of the Hudson, under Major General William T. Sherman. Sherman, whose army has been severely weakened by transfers of troops to the new armies being formed to face the Confederate threat in the south, now is in command of less than 80,000 men. Sherman is hoping for a naval miracle, to be provided by a fleet of newly-constructed gunboats. The most powerful of these is an ironclad gunboat, called the U.S.S. Thomas MacDonough, converted from a side-wheel steamer and armored with two layers of 1-inch thick iron plates. The Second Battle of Lake Champlain, fought on April 22, does not go as Sherman had hoped, however. With the exception of the ironclad, the Union vessels are poorly built of green wood, and they leak like sieves. They are quite lightly armed compared to their British counterparts, and they lack a leader of the caliber of Lieutenant Thomas MacDonough, who led the victorious American forces at the First Battle of Lake Champlain in 1814. The British vessels easily dispatch the wooden gunboats, capturing or destroying all but two, and then gang up on the ironclad. It’s thin iron plates prove all too vulnerable to a close-range pounding by heavy British guns, and the MacDonough is forced to surrender as well. With the defeat of his naval forces, General Sherman is left with little choice but to abandon Plattsburgh. He retreats down the traditional Lake Champlain to Lake George to Hudson River invasion route, with the Anglo-French army in pursuit.
Elsewhere, the harsh winter is also finally ending in Maine, where the British army under General Burgoyne has endured a terrible winter in their winter quarters near Lincoln, Maine. The British army receives reinforcements from Frederickton, New Brunswick, bringing it’s strength up to over 100,000, and begins pushing south, resuming it’s march toward Bangor. On April 16, it collides with the Union Army of Maine, under Major General Pope, near the town of Milford. The Army of Maine has also been reinforced, and Pope has had all winter to train his 95,000 green troops and turn them into something resembling soldiers. The Yankees are holding a strong defensive position on the south side of one of the many tributaries which feed into the Penobscot River. General Burgoyne orders an assault. The attack is a disaster. By the end of the day, almost six thousand redcoats die in front of the Yankee entrenchments, and at least that many more are wounded. Less than five thousand Yankees are killed or wounded during the engagement.
But John Fox Burgoyne is known for his coolness and nerve, and so, he does not panic or overreact to the scale of the defeat he has suffered. Instead of retreating, Burgoyne’s army entrenches itself while the cavalry tries to find an undefended or lightly defended ford. They find one on April 21, and Burgoyne’s army slips away under cover of darkness, leaving campfires lit to give the impression that the British are still encamped opposite the Yankee defenders. Major General Pope wakes up the next morning to find the British gone, and shortly afterward receives reports that British troops are marching around his flank and into his rear. He orders a withdrawal to Bangor. The two armies arrive at Bangor on April 30. Both entrench, and the Siege of Bangor begins.
The British expeditionary force from the Sandwich Islands lands at Santa Cruz, on the northern side of Monterey Bay, south of San Francisco, on April 10. The British establish a base of operations at Santa Cruz over the next few days, and then march on San Francisco itself, arriving on April 18. Governor Stanford calls up the California militia to meet the British threat, but it will take some time for the militia to respond. He also sends a telegram to President Seward, advising him of the landing of a large British force near San Francisco, and calling for reinforcements to be immediately sent. However, it will be even longer before any help can be expected from outside California than it will be for the California Militia to be called up and organized for action.
Upon hearing of the British landing in California, President Seward’s blood runs cold. He knows that his entire scheme to prevent the economic collapse of the Union and to continue to finance the war effort depends on the reestablishment of the flow of gold and silver from the West. If the British are able to seize the gold and silver of California and Nevada, it will be nothing short of a disaster. But there is little he can do. California is too far away for Union troops from the East to effectively intervene, even if they could be spared from the fighting there. Seward desperately telegrams the Governors of Oregon, Colorado Territory, Nevada Territory and Utah Territory, asking them to send whatever troops can be raised as quickly as possible to the assistance of Governor Stanford in California.
For the time being, the California Brigade, stationed at Camp Stanford near San Francisco, and the regular and volunteer troops garrisoning the forts at the Presidio, Fort Point, and Alcatraz Island, are the only defense of the city. The commanding officer of the California Brigade, Colonel James West, knowing that his troops have no chance of victory against the overwhelming British force facing them, orders his troops to join the defenders inside the forts. This brings the garrisons of each installation up to full strength, and the forts will present difficult nuts to crack. Indeed, Fortress Alcatraz, with a garrison of over 500 and 85 cannon, by itself is a formidable obstacle, and the Presidio and Fort Point are only somewhat less imposing, despite being armed with less than half their planned complement of cannon. The British forces capture the city itself, and then begin siege operations against the forts. The Royal Navy’s Pacific Squadron supports the operation by sealing off San Francisco Bay and bombarding the forts from the sea. In the meantime, the gold reserves at the San Francisco mint are seized by the British, and a force of 10,000 men is detached to secure the gold and silver fields of California and northwestern Nevada.
In the Red River Settlements (Manitoba), Louis Riel and the Metis begin their rebellion. Upper and Lower Fort Garry are captured without firing a shot. At the same time, Major General McDowell and the Union Army of the Great Lakes begin their advance on the Red River Settlements. They leave St. Paul, Minnesota on April 20.
Elsewhere, U.S.S. Retribution, supported by several wooden warships which had found refuge in New York harbor and also by several monitors, attempts to break the blockade of New York. They are met by an Anglo-French fleet including the British ironclads H.M.S. Black Prince and H.M.S. Defense, and the French ironclad Normandie. Once again, the Monitors prove themselves nearly useless in the open sea, and after one of them capsizes after being rammed by H.M.S. Defense, the rest retreat into the sheltered waters of the harbor. The British and French wooden vessels square off against the Union wooden warships, and their superior numbers and firepower make short work of most of them. One, the U.S.S. Kearsarge, manages to escape into the open sea, where she will operate as a commerce raider until several weeks after the end of hostilities. The main event of the battle proves to be the match between the U.S.S. Retribution and the three enemy ironclads. Like her sister ship La Gloire, the Normandie will find it’s battery of 6.5” muzzle-loading rifles to be ineffective against the sloped iron armor of the Retribution. She will bravely close to nearly point-blank range in an attempt to penetrate the Union ironclad, fail to do so, and leave the fight after being penetrated by two of Retribution’s 11-inch Dahlgrens.
But the Defense and Black Prince will prove a different matter. The 110-pounder Armstrong Rifles of the British ships prove much more effective than the French rifled guns against the sloped armor of the U.S. warship. Although none of their shots penetrate, many of the Retribution’s plates are cracked, and large splinters from their oak backing lash through her gun deck, killing many of her crewmen. The 68-pounder smoothbores of the British ships prove even more effective, with several shots actually penetrating Retribution’s armor from a range of as much as 500 yards, well outside the effective range of Retribution’s own 11-inch Dahlgrens against the armor of the British vessels. The British ships don’t escape unscathed, however. While the Captain of Black Prince wisely stays out of the Retribution’s effective range, the Captain of the Defense makes the mistake of attempting to ram the Retribution, necessitating closing to within the effective range of the Dahlgrens, and the Captain of Retribution, seeing his 11-inch wrought iron shot bouncing off the high-quality armor of the British vessel, orders his guns loaded with 60-pound powder charges [5]. The Retribution’s shot, propelled by these higher charges, cause significant damage, including two penetrations of the Defense’s armor by Retribution’s shot. But this is not enough to turn the tide. Finally, one of the 68-pounder shots fired by Black Prince penetrates Retribution’s boilers, setting off a catastrophic explosion and releasing scalding steam which kills or maims dozens of her crew. With that, the Retribution lowers it’s flag in surrender, and is taken, under tow, as a prize to Halifax. The Anglo-French blockade of New York is not lifted.
May 1863--The Confederate Army of Kentucky, under General Johnston, moves north from Cincinnati. It’s initial target is Columbus, Ohio. It finds the Union Army of the Ohio entrenched there. Johnston orders siege operations begun.
The Confederate Army of Missouri, under General Beauregard, once again crosses the Ohio, and once again meets the Union Army of the Mississippi in battle outside Cairo, Illinois. The Second Battle of Cairo is a Confederate victory, and the Army of Missouri occupies Cairo a few days later. Major General Halleck is killed in the action, and is replaced by Major General John McClernand. The remnants of his forces cross the Mississippi at take position at St. Louis, Missouri. There they join other Union forces which are being raised for the defense of the St. Louis area under the command of Brigadier General Franz Siegel.
The Confederate Army of Virginia and it’s French and British allies continue the siege of Washington. By mid-May, starvation is running rampant in the city, and Confederate, French, and British artillery have pounded much of the city into ruins. Finally, Major General Hooker bows to the inevitable. He surrenders the city, and his army, on May 20, 1863. The Union Army of the Potomac marches into captivity in Confederate P.O.W. Camps shortly thereafter, and the allied army begins moving toward Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, at Philadelphia, President Seward, with the Governor Pennsylvania, has managed to cobble together a force of nearly 100,000 for the defense of the city. Most of these are raw militia, but it’s the best that can be managed.
In Maine, the siege of Bangor continues throughout the month. Elsewhere in Maine, the British army occupying Portland begins sending out detachments to raid the surrounding country. Governor Israel Washburne opposes them with militia, with very little effect. He calls for reinforcements, but the Seward Administration considers Maine to be a sideshow theater of the war, and very little aid is forthcoming. Serious talk begins in the Maine Legislature about the possibility of making a separate peace with the British.
In New York, Field Marshal Sir Colin Campbell continues to pursue the Army of the Hudson down the Hudson River corridor toward Albany and New York City. In the years since 1777, when a British army attempted an invasion by the same route, the region has seen much development, and many good roads and even railroads now make movement much easier. As a result, the British army advances much more rapidly than it’s 1777 counterpart. General Sherman does everything he can to slow the Anglo-French army down, entrenching at every defensible position he can find and holding it until the larger enemy force slips around his flank and forces him to retire. But by the end of May, the Anglo-French army has pushed the Yankees all the way to Albany, where Sherman, under pressure from President Seward, has decided to make his stand. Field Marshall Campbell orders siege operations begun.
The Union Army of the Niagara under General Grant, and the Army of Michigan under General McClellan, both continue operations against the British forces opposing them. Neither of them makes headway. Finally on May 30, President Seward orders General Grant to abandon his attacks on the Niagara front and move, with his army, to the relief of Albany.
The Union Army of the Great Lakes, after much difficulty, reaches the Red River Settlements on May 30, where it occupies Upper and Lower Fort Garry. Communication between the eastern and western British colonies in America is cut off. The possibility that the British colonies in the far west will receive help from the east is now virtually nil.
In the Pacific Northwest, the Army of the Pacific sends out detachments to occupy the various forts operated by the Hudson’s Bay Company in British Columbia. Once again, little resistance is met. By the end of the month, all of the Colony of British Columbia is effectively under Union control. Major General Sumner, unfortunately, does not realize what is going on in California, there being no telegraph line running into Washington Territory at this time.
June 1863--The news of the British invasion of California, and imminent seizure of the gold and silver fields, which, up to now, had been successfully squelched by the Seward Administration, is leaked on June 4. The first shipments of gold and silver across the plains had arrived in the East earlier this year, buoying the value of the Union’s paper currency and encouraging patriotic citizens to risk buying Union bonds again. Now, the news from California causes an immediate financial panic. The value of the Greenback falls nearly to zero, and despite the legal tender law, many merchants other businesses refuse to accept them any longer.
By this time, even the most die-hard Republicans in Congress know this war cannot be won. Congress passes a resolution which states that no more war appropriations shall be approved until the Seward Administration agrees to seek honorable peace terms from the enemy. Seward, seeing no other way, agrees to these terms.
Seward sends a message to General Johnston, whose army is advancing on Philadelphia, asking President Lincoln for a Cease Fire while peace terms are discussed. President Lincoln receives the message on June 8, and communicates the offer to Admiral Milne, who sends a fast steamer to London, with Lincoln’s suggestion that the offer be accepted. Lincoln, meanwhile, orders the Confederate armies to halt in place while the response of the British and French governments is awaited. The governments of Britain and France, worried by developments in Poland and Germany and anxious to get out of the war, agree. A ceasefire goes into effect on June 25, effectively ending the conflict. Peace negotiators will soon be meeting in Geneva to work out final details of a treaty.
However, in the days leading up to June 25, some action does occur. Major General Grant’s Army of the Niagara, transported via the Erie Canal, arrives outside Albany on June 10. Grant attacks the Anglo-French army on June 11. General Sherman, hearing the sound of the guns, also attacks. The attack is successful, and the Anglo-French army is forced to retreat from it’s entrenchments around Albany and retire back up the Hudson Valley. This victory is hailed throughout the U.S.A., but the joy it brings is shattered by the news of the fall of Bangor, Maine, the next day.
The British reach Virginia City, Nevada, on June 20 and seize the Comstock mines. Fort Point and the Presidio, at San Francisco, fall to the British Army under General Rose on June 21, leaving only Alcatraz Island in American hands. But the fortress there is largely in ruins, pounded mercilessly by the guns of the British Pacific Squadron. Although the garrison there will repel a British landing attempt on June 23, San Francisco, for all intents and purposes, is fully under British control.
The British army defending the Niagara front, finding it’s opposition gone, joins the force facing Major General McClellan’s Army of Michigan. The combined British force launches a major assault and McClellan is forced to withdraw back to Detroit on June 24.
[1] Of course, in OTL, a Polish rebellion did break out in January 1863.
[2] Many thanks to MacCaulay, whose idea the Metis rebellion was.
[3] The ATL C.S.S. Virginia is not the same vessel as the OTL C.S.S. Virginia, which was built upon the burned out hulk of the U.S.S. Merrimac. The ATL C.S.S. Virginia is more similar to the OTL C.S.S. Albemarle than to the OTL Virginia, being constructed with a flat bottom which permits her to operate in much shallower water than the OTL Virginia was capable of. She is propelled by a powerful imported British-built steam engine which gives her a top speed of 12 knots, and carries a mixed battery of British 68 pounder smoothbores (the same guns which made up the majority of the battery of the Warrior-class ironclads), mounted three on each side, and Confederate-produced Brooke 7” rifled guns (one at each end, on a pivot mount allowing it to fire forward or to either side). She is covered with five inches of iron on her front and four inches on each side.
For comparison, in OTL (and in the ATL) the La Gloire was armed with thirty-six 6.5” rifled cannon, was protected by a belt of 4.5” armor plates, and had a top speed of 11 knots. The New Ironsides had 4” of iron plating, was armed with fourteen 11” Dahlgren smoothbores, two 150-pounder Parrot Rifles, and two 50-pounder Parrot Rifles, and had a top speed of 8 knots.
[4] Tests conducted by the U.S. Navy in May 1862 clearly demonstrated that 11-inch Dahlgrens, firing 30 lb charges, could nearly routinely penetrate more armor than was carried by La Gloire at close range. The 6.5” rifles of the La Gloire, however, were later proven not to be effective against armor and were replaced by the French Navy with heavier guns as a result. The disparity of effectiveness would also have been increased by the respective hull designs of the ships…the La Gloire was a conventionally built, straight sided vessel, while the New Ironsides had sides which sloped inward, somewhat similar to those of a Confederate casemate ironclad. Because of it’s sloped sides, it’s armor would have been more effective than its thickness would indicate. Finally, the guns of the La Gloire were also mounted poorly…the gunports were placed slightly too close to the waves, and too close to each other, making a crowded workspace for the crew, which would have reduced her effective rate of fire. All in all, in every area except speed, the New Ironsides was more than a match for La Gloire.
[5] British armor was greatly superior in strength to American and French armor of the time, being made of single 4.5” thick rolled iron plates, tongued and grooved together. American and French armor of the time was composite armor, consisting of layers of thinner plates of rolled iron (in the case of American armor, several layers of 1” thick plates, bolted together). The composite armor was much weaker than the solid British armor plating. While an 11-inch Dahlgren firing a 30-pound charge did reliably, during tests in May 1862, penetrate targets composed of up to 6 inches of composite iron armor backed by up to 20 inches of wood, it is unlikely it would have penetrated solid British armor of the same thickness. However, an 11-inch Dahlgren firing wrought-iron shot propelled by 60-pound charges would likely have done so.
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Ok. I know that is AU and all but i just have to question the army troops and their capacity: I mean, i know the Union, the British and the French could field armies of over 100000+ but the Confederacy? Even in OTL the Confederates were always outnumbered between 2-1 or even 3-1. They never had the amount of resources or numbers of troops to even compete with the Union.
Also, wasn't their population in OTL like seven million, but half were actually slaves??? And of the remaining half, about a third of them were of recruitment age???
Anyway, besides that. Great timeline. Love seeing how this ACW is manifesting itself. The Union is totally screwed, in my opinion. With invasions by Britain and France, they seem a little stretched thin.
Totally enjoying this.
Also, wasn't their population in OTL like seven million, but half were actually slaves??? And of the remaining half, about a third of them were of recruitment age???
Anyway, besides that. Great timeline. Love seeing how this ACW is manifesting itself. The Union is totally screwed, in my opinion. With invasions by Britain and France, they seem a little stretched thin.
Totally enjoying this.
1) The only Confederate Army whose strength is stated to be in excess of 100,000 is the Army of Virginia, and that includes a French Division under Major General Bazaine. The other armies are stated to number 90,000 (Army of Kentucky) and 80,000 (Army of Missouri) respectively.
2) The strength of the Army of Virginia at 100,000 (minus the French Division of about 20,000) is not far off from what the Army of Northern Virginia numbered in OTL in the Spring of 1862 (about 90,000 just prior to the Seven Days Battles).
2) The Armies of Kentucky and Missouri are a good bit larger than their OTL counterparts at this time (the Army of Mississippi and the Army of the West), but there is good reason to think that in the ATL such levels could have been achieved.
A lot of the Confederacy's inability to field large armies was due to the inability to supply them with weapons and equipment. In the ATL, the Union blockade has been broken, and the the Confederacy thus has access to all the British and French weapons and equipment that money can buy. And because the British and French have broken the Union blockade, the Confederates also have ready access to markets to sell their cotton. This, in addition to the loans which the British gave as part of the treaty which brought the Confederates into the war, means the Confederates had all the money they needed to buy anything they need to equip their armies.
Historically, the Confederates put between 800,000-1,000,000 men into uniform during the war. They weren't able to put all of them into the field at once due largely to the supply problems which I previously spoken of. Given the elimination of those supply issues, having them double the strength of the ATL equivalent of the Army of Tennessee and quadruple the strength of the ATL equivalent of the Army of the West is not at all implausible. After all, the three armies together only number 270,000 (not including the French troops in the Army of Virginia), which is well less than half the total they fielded during the war. Given access to equipment, they certainly had the manpower.
They are indeed stretched thin. And given that the Union is now under blockade, all the handicaps which the Confederates faced in OTL are now afflicting the Union's efforts to arm and equip their troops.
I'm glad you are enjoying it.
Sounds messy, Huck. Don't they frown on that type of thing in military school?
I'm glad you're enjoying it.
Sounds messy, Huck. Don't they frown on that type of thing in military school?
Quite the opposite actually. It's supposed to make homesickness not as bad.
interesting timeline, , but what about litlle green Men ? are you going to let that timeline die?
So to summarise the various theatre's
British Columbia: US win
Manitoba: US/Metis win
California: British Win
American Mid-West:??
East Coast: Confederate/French win
Maine: British Win
Canada: draw/minor British win
Sandwich Island: British occupied
With the US being forced to the table they obviously aren't going to get anything. Hawaii is now going to be a British Colony and the CSA independent. Past that it grows less clear, I can't imagine the US would handover or Britain would really want California and the Metis are going to be crushed in the long run.
But what are the British going to do about Maine, they what some visible gains and clearly the Cabinet thinks the Mainers would like to British, but annexing them to Canada could cause some serious problems down the line as I suspect they don't actually want to be British. However making Maine independent won't really work either, for one its too small to really function and the British will know full well that like Austria in 1919 it will want to return to the US as soon as it is able.
British Columbia: US win
Manitoba: US/Metis win
California: British Win
American Mid-West:??
East Coast: Confederate/French win
Maine: British Win
Canada: draw/minor British win
Sandwich Island: British occupied
With the US being forced to the table they obviously aren't going to get anything. Hawaii is now going to be a British Colony and the CSA independent. Past that it grows less clear, I can't imagine the US would handover or Britain would really want California and the Metis are going to be crushed in the long run.
But what are the British going to do about Maine, they what some visible gains and clearly the Cabinet thinks the Mainers would like to British, but annexing them to Canada could cause some serious problems down the line as I suspect they don't actually want to be British. However making Maine independent won't really work either, for one its too small to really function and the British will know full well that like Austria in 1919 it will want to return to the US as soon as it is able.