1810:
In yet another move which surprised all observers, Louis XVII announced that his new Prime Minister would be a young administrator named Rene Malraux, who was only thirty-seven. Malraux was a prominent Reformist who had come to the King’s attention for a series of essays he had written on economic and political organization.
Louis XVII has emerged as a monarch who maintains a rather debauched and fun-loving court, but who is also fascinated by science and Enlightenment philosophy- “France’s answer to Charles II” according to some British observers. In asking an astonished Malraux to become Prime Minister, Louis XVII essentially tells him that he will supervise the internal reform of French government and the French financial system, but shall have no voice in foreign affairs.
Although he keeps his own counsel on the subject, the King’s long-term plan is to distract the Conservative faction with spreading French power and influence, while allowing the Reformists the time and resources they need to restructure French society along rational principles.
In Canton, the French merchant community has become firmly established after years of struggle. Although they are still officially barred from exporting goods into the country, a thriving black market exists. Specifically, the Chinese have developed taste for French wine. To assist in their Asian trade, French forces seize control of several ports and harbors along the Vietnamese coast, establishing French garrisons there.
New Edinburgh has now become a hub for British merchants attempting to gain access to the Chinese trade themselves. But in Canton, the French hire thugs to attack the few Englishmen or Scotsmen who are somehow able to establish themselves as merchants.
1811:
Quietly, Malraux holds a series of meetings with Talleyrand, retired for several years to a Bordeaux chateau. Talleyrand sees the promise in the young man and agrees to advise him on how to deal with difficult political matters.
Under Malraux’s leadership, a comprehensive series of reforms in enacted in the French taxation system. King Louis XVII is told that the nobility and the Church will have to be taxed, although at a much lower rate than the bourgeoisie and the peasantry. The alternative is eventual financial chaos and political turmoil.
As he is digesting this possibility, the king is delighted with the birth of a baby boy, who is given the name Henri. This news is very disturbing to the rest of Europe, since the heir to the throne of France also has a strong claim to the throne of Spain.
In the Balkans, there is considerable unrest among the Greeks and Slavic subject peoples under Ottoman rule. The recent conflicts with Austria and Russia have greatly weakened Turkish strength and many nationalists have begun agitating for autonomy, and some for complete independence.
Horatio Nelson dies as a result of fall from his horse. He is buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral.
1812:
King Louis XVII brings Talleyrand back into the fold, appointing him as Foreign Minister once again. The king’s goal remains the same: distract the conservatives and reactionaries with foreign adventures while supporting Malraux’s plan for comprehensive domestic reforms.
At the same time, King Louis XVII announces a massive plan for the reconstruction of the city of Paris. Work on a wide variety of public monuments, parks and massive fountains commences, doing much to beautify the city and providing work to the unemployed. Similar programs are launched in other French cities.
In Britain, many merchant interests are angered at the increasing competition from imported manufactured goods from the Dominion of America. For the time being, however, the issue is a minor one, since the goods are expensive to import and are generally inferior in quality to goods produced in Britain.
At the same time, French textiles are beginning to better compete with British textiles in the European market. French industrial technology is catching up with that of Britain, and the production of cotton in French India is overtaking that of the Dominion of America. Furthermore, New France is beginning to establish a cotton-growing business in the regions under their control south of the Ohio River.
1813:
Following Talleyrand’s suggestion, the French begin placing restrictions of the activities of Dutch merchants in their Asian territories. The Dutch retaliate by barring French traders from their territories. The Conservative faction of the French court is outraged and the issue is a major topic for the newspapers.
Behind the scenes, Malraux and his advisors draw up a plan for a system of local elected representatives, which would be responsible for the administration of towns and small regions. This would replace the established system of appointed such administrators directly from Paris. This is bound to outrage the conservative faction, which relies upon such appointments as part of its patronage system.
Many members of the Conservative faction confront Louis XVII, demanding that he dismiss Malraux, who they claim is trying to “destroy” France. The king stands by his man, however.
In Russia, the increasingly autocratic czarist court ponders its long-term options. With Austria weak and France the dominant power in Germany, attention again focuses on the Balkans, where nationalist agitation is increasing.
1814:
When the Netherlands refuses a French demand that its ships be allowed to victual at Cape Town, a French army enters the Duchy of Flanders, violating earlier Franco-Dutch agreements. Rather than cave in, however, the Dutch man their border fortresses and call upon Britain for aid.
Britain announces that it will come to the support of the Dutch if the French attack, although opposition politicians and newspapers call the Dutch “foolish” for creating the Cape Town controversy and playing into the hands of French reactionaries.
On August 1, the French army crosses the border into the Netherlands. Contrary to expectations, many of the Dutch fortresses fall rather quickly, or are quickly cordoned off from fast-moving French columns. Dutch efforts to break the dikes and flood the countryside, which had proven so effective a century earlier, are mostly unsuccessful.
The British declare war on France, although the opposition sarcastically wonders how long this “absurd series of wars” can continue. Although not obligated by treaty to do so, since France is the aggressor, the Holy Alliance declares war on both powers.
Talleyrand states clearly to King Louis XVII that this must be a knockout conflict; so long as both Britain and France are so powerful, the series of wars will never end. At the same time, the reforms of Malraux must be vigorously pursued.
Both the British and French fleets are evenly matched, although the quality of the French ships are somewhat better. For the first several months of the conflict, a number of large naval battles are fought in the English Channel, as the British attempt to send reinforcements and supplies to the Dutch and the French attempt to stop them. Although neither side can gain a clear advantage, the flow of British help to the Dutch is small.
1815:
Attempting to regain their losses from the last war and seeing the possibility of forming a grand coalition against the French, Austria declares war on the Holy Alliance, bringing with it a small number of allied German states who detest the French and hope to end French influence in Germany. Austrian armies mass for attacks into both Germany and Italy.
Russia mobilizes its armies but bides its time, wanting to see which side has the advantage before declaring its intentions.
In North America, the pattern of raiding on the periphery of its other’s territory resumes. The Dominion of America mobilizes its armies, which somewhat outnumber the regular French forces in New France.
As in the last war, a French expedition from India lands off western Australia an easily captures the undefended colony of New Edinburgh. Dutch-controlled Ceylon is similarly occupied, and French raids are mounted against Dutch trading posts in the East Indies.
In the Netherlands, the front stabilizes as Dutch resistance grows fierce. The French reluctantly adopt a strategy of attrition and slowly ground their way forward throughout the year, relying on artillery and sheer weight of numbers to make progress.
Malraux successfully pushes through his new taxation policy, over the opposition of the Conservative faction. Nobility and clergy are not required to pay taxes. While it is declared to be a unique wartime necessity, both Malraux and King Louis XVII intend for it to remain in place after the end of hostilities, t secure French finances and check the power of the Church and the nobility.
1816:
Although no Cork-like decisive naval battle has taken place, both sides have suffered heavy losses in a series of small engagements. Between the two, however, the British have had greater difficulty replacing their losses. The Royal Navy having been unable to repeat their dramatic successes of the previous war, the French adopt of policy of direct blockade of the British Isles. Rather than simply attempting to block British assistance to the Dutch, the French now intend to strangle the British Isles themselves into submission.
As the costs of war continue to rise, Whig politicians in Britain adopt a policy of outright opposition to the war. They continually ask why the British should be risking so much for the Dutch, a people often seen as little more than threats to British trade.
Austrian armies in Italy and Germany are blocked in their attempts to invade the territory of the Holy Alliance states, although the French do not have the resources to drive them back while engaged with the Netherlands.
In North America, a French naval expedition penetrates Chesapeake Bay and lands an army of 10,000 men in Maryland. The Dominion forces are panic-stricken and rush reinforcements to defend Philadelphia, abandoning a protected offensive against Canada while doing so. The French successfully occupy Baltimore and make raids into Virginia, while making no immediate move on Philadelphia.
In response to a request for further assistance from the Dominion Parliament, the British state that they must husband their resources to protect against a potential French attack on England itself. Despite the logic of their argument, the Americans are enraged at being left to their fate.
In October after a long siege, Amsterdam falls to the French. Rotterdam continues to hold out, but only just. The Dutch government relocates to the northern part of the country and pledges that it will continue the fight, although few are convinced that they will last very long.
The Royal Navy risks a major operation to reinforce Rotterdam and thus mount a counter offensive to recaptured Amsterdam. The French navy intercepts them at the Battle of Dover Strait. Although both sides suffer significant damage, the British fleet is compelled to abandon the operation and return home. While not the decisive engagement that the Battle of Cork was, it was a clear victory for the French and thus a political disaster for the British Tory government.
Russia, convinced by the capture of Amsterdam and Baltimore that the French have the upper hand, announces that it is joining the war on the side of the Holy Alliance. A few weeks later, the Russian army launches an offensive against Austria.
1817:
The French blockade of Britain is becoming increasingly effective and the British face economic meltdown. After a no-confidence vote results in the fall of the Tory leadership, the Whig Party takes power and enters into negotiations with the Holy Alliance. Talleyrand moves to immediately isolate Britain, the Netherlands and Austria from one another, declaring that the Holy Alliance will only sign a separate treaty with each individual nation and will not treat with them as a coalition. This time in a position of supreme strength, Talleyrand is able to do whatever he pleases.
On March 13, the Treaty of Dunkirk is signed. Its provisions include:
- Western Australia being transferred to French authority.
- Restrictions being placed on the military and naval forces of the Dominion of America and a regularization of its borders.
- British and Dominion traders being barred from exporting manufactured goods to French and Spanish colonies.
- Certain rights for Irish Catholics are to be protected.
Talleyrand is pressured by many to insist upon restrictions for British naval power, but he demurs from this approach, worried that it will keep the British from signing the treaty. In any case, he believes that with the economic disparity increasingly favoring the French, the British will no longer be able to keep up with French naval power in any event.
The Whigs sign the treaty, which in turn outrages the Tories. Political turmoil erupts in Britain and there is rioting in several cities and towns. In particular, the provisions for Irish Catholics cause immense controversy (as Talleyrand expected and wanted).
In June, after Rotterdam finally falls to the French, the Dutch are forced to sign a humiliating treaty themselves. The Treaty of Munster declares:
- Cape Town, Ceylon, and the Dutch East Indies are transferred to France.
- The Duchy of Flanders will again become an integral part of France and no military restriction shall be placed upon it.
- The Dutch will enter no alliance with any power other than France.
Despite the obvious fact that this treaty will make the Netherlands little more than a puppet of France, the Dutch have little choice but to sign it. France controls their entire territory and many state that the Dutch were lucky to avoid being annexed by the France outright.
In fall, following a series of defeats at the hands of both the Russians and the French, the Austrian sign treaties with both power that provide for border readjustments in Russian favor. All Austrian influence in Italy is ended and the peninsula becomes little more than a French satellite. In Germany, Austrian influence is similarly destroyed, with the states west of the Elbe coming entirely within the French orbit and those east of the Elbe falling under Russian influence.
By the end of 1817, France now stands undisputedly as the greatest power in the world, although many are beginning to cast worrying eyes towards the Russian Empire.
