God Save These American States

[Virginia Liberal]

Fort Green Rock at the start of the battle

During

after black equals destroyed

 

[Virginia Liberal]

The Mattabesset Gap Campaign

To the south the Duke of New England faced an easier situation than Childs did here the Fortifications were anywhere from five to ten miles behind the river. This meant that his army was able to cross with only minor opposition. He now swung his army south around the southern flank of Ragged Mountain and into the Mattabesset Gap. This was one of the weaker points in the Connecticut line. The gap bas guarded by two batteries of Field artillery on Owl’e lair cliff and Small Clif on Ragged Mountain as well as two batteries of field guns and a brigade of Infantry on Timberland Hill in the Center of the gap, to the south was Fort Craig but its guns didn’t bear of the Mattabesset Gap. This meant that the Battle for Mattabesset Gap was a short affair as the Vermonter Infantry brigade fought a delaying action to allow the two batteries of gus to withdraw off of Timberland Hill.

Once he thought the Metacomet Ridge and the Connecticut line there was little to impede his army’s march. He would engage with Vermonter forces at Southington and Cheshire Village. These Vermonter Forces were made of the 21st West Connecticut Infantry Brigade and the two batteries of field guns that had been run off of Timberland Hill in addition to several Companies of Home Defense militia that Brigadier General Laurance Holland was able to rally to his command. Still with little more than a brigade all he could do was delay and send runners for help. After the battle of Cheshire Village Wellesley had to make a choice: he could keep heading south and attack New Haven or he could turn west and head toward the Housatonic River. New Haven was the Principal port of the Republic of Vermont but it was also heavily defended where as if he could cut the New Haven Northern and New York Railroad (1) he would effectively cut one of the two rail links connecting the Republic of Vermont with the Federal Republic of America. He chose to aim for the town of Derby where the track crossed not only the Housatonic River but also the Naugatuck River. He would reach the eastern banks of the town of Seymour on April 18th he was shocked to find *Lieutenant General Ronald Staunton and the 55,000 strong Vermont Expeditionary Force deployed on the hills to the east of town. The stage was set for the battle of Seymour.

The battle of Seymour began at 1200h when Wellesley committed his men to the attack. His attack had three elements A divisions would deploy west along Bladens River to prevent a Federal Flanking attack on his right flank. Meanwhile his cavalry brigade and infantry divisions would attack the Federal Right (eastern) flank, simultaneously four Infantry divisions would attack the Federal Center which was the lowest point in their line. The first of the attacks made contact with the federal center at 1235h while the Flank attack did not engage the enemy on the hill till 1325h The federals fought hard but in a contest where the fire power was close enough to even with both sides armed with breech loading rifles. The federals gave a good fight but the weight of numbers was able to break though their center Staunton was able to rally about have his men in a C near the town and a second cluster of Federals Held out on the hill, however the New Jersey Guardsmen in the center broke and ran. Wellesley had his men surround both groups of Federal troops. The smaller group on the hill would manage a breakout and retreat to the south during the night however Staunton and his men were not able to do likewise. Staunton and his 15,000 men would surrender at dawn on April 19th. Operating in enemy country Wellesley would simply parole the federal soldiers and destroy their arms before marching south to Derby where his men would burn the bridges there before marching north for the planned link up with Childs’ army.

Events were not in a vacuum however and while Wellesley and his men burned bridges at Derby to the east Lieutenant General Zachary Taylor and the Commonwealth Army of New England were already marching. Taylor guessed that the New English army would not linger on the coast but turn north with the home of rolling up the Connecticut line all together. So he left a brigade to reinforce the Vermonters defending New Haven and started marching. So just four days after the Battle of Seymour was fought the Second battle of Seymour would be fought.

The Second battle of Seymour began on April 25th when Wellesley and his men approached the town to once again find their path blocked this time by soldiers under the Commonwealth of American States Flag of all things, “weren’t they supposed to be busy everywhere else?” Wellesley thought as he deployed his men for battle once more. This time attacking north across Bladens River in. This time however his men were tired from close to a month of constant marching and battle. Wellesley began his attack at 1300h aiming once again at the enemy’s center in hopes of repeating his earlier success. However this time his men ran into a hail of led as the Commonwealth soldiers and their revolving rifles gave each soldier the fire power of at three soldiers armed with single shot weapons. By 1500h he had called off the attack and began shifting men towards the east. At 1800h he would launch his Flank attack and succeed in escaping with his army largely intact to the east. He would have his army march back toward the Mattabassett Gap. He arrived back at the Mattabesset Gap at 1130h on April 28th to find that it had been occupied by Vermonter troops. His tired men would have to fight their way east which they did starting at 1300h. The Second battle of Timberland Hill would be a Victory for Wellesley and his army who marched back to Manchester and dug in around their bridge head.

The Campaign consisted of four battles three of which had been New English Victories. Wellesley had succeeded in destroying the Road and Rail bridges over the Housatonic and Naugatuck Rivers at Derby. However he had not been able to sever the Conicutect line from resupply nor had he been able to link up with Childs’ Northern Army and threaten the Vermont Capital. The Campaign had cost him a total of 1,500 men killed, 3,200 men wounded and 1,800 men missing. However, he still held a bridge head over the Connecticut River. For the Allied American forces the campaign had shown that the Connecticut line was not impregnable, and the Army of Vermont and what was left of the Federal Army’sVermont Expeditionary Force would spend the next month fortifying the Mattabesset Gap . The VEF had suffered the most in the campaign; it had been reduced from an army of 55,000 men to just over 25,000 men and was now commanded by Major General Daniel Fickelstine of New Jersey. Taylor’s Commonwealth Army of New England returned to New Haven having only lost 300 men killed and 600 wounded at the Second Battle of Seymour.

1. The New Haven and Northern Railroad has a monopoly on the Railroad Industry in the Republic of Vermont as mentioned in the earlier update. However they didn’t merge all their conquered competitors into one company instead adding their name to acquired lines. So the New Haven and New York Railroad became the New Haven Northern and New York Railroad.
2. * denotes a Brevet Rank

American Block Commanders during the Spring Campaigns in New England

 

[Virginia Liberal]

 

[Virginia Liberal]

View attachment 550339
FRA Cities and States

View attachment 550081
FRA Railroads

View attachment 550082
Commonwealth of American States (Continental) Cities and States

View attachment 550083
Commonwealth of American States (Continental) Railways and cities

The island states and South carolina's African Holdings are still in progress


View attachment 579706
British North America Cities

View attachment 579707

View attachment 606752

British North America Railroads

Blow up of the Crown Republic of New England in the Works

Up dated my Maps Post with New England detailed out

 

[Virginia Liberal]

Next update takes us across the Atlantic to France

 

[Virginia Liberal]

London, England

King Richard IV and Viscount Goderich the Prime Minister as well as other members of the Cabinet were meeting on the Quebec issue as the Former Governor of the Crown Colony of Quebec explained the events that had occurred in the Crown Colony since the start of Hostilities in North America, and presented the Quebecois Declaration Independence. It was Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby Secretary of State for the Colonies who spoke frist. "Your Majesty, if I may?" When Richard nodded the Earl continued "Before all this started, we were talking about the future of the North American Colonies. The New Albion proposal, in a way this kills that but I would say let the Quebecois have their Crown Republic if they want. The New English experiment has proved a success in my eyes." Secretary at War James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn chimed "But only after the current conflict is finished. Also only if they participate in said conflict. If the Frogs in Quebec want autonomy then they can earn it. The other option is for us to send a couple of Corps over there to sit on them and hope that the Americans don't take advantage of our weakness much less the French here in Europe." Richard weighed the information finally he said "So we have a plan. Goderich, can you get the needed legislation though the parliament or do I need to lead on this? '' Goderich thought for a minute "It will be closer than I like but as long as it is known that it has the Crown's blessing and backing it should pass, your majesty". With that the meeting ended. On May 21st the Quebec Dominionship act passed the Parliament. Of course no sooner had they figured out how to deal with the Quebec problem then news reached London of the Irish Rebellion in the south pacific and the French Crown’s proclaiming Charles Edward Stuart, the Duke of Albany the King of the Kingdom of South Erie; presenting yet another brushfire for the British to deal with.

New Dublin, New South Erie

At the State house in New Dublin in New South Erie a meeting was taking place. Over forty years ago the Irish Population had been exiled to the rugged and beautiful land at the ass end of nowhere. Now the Irish were ready to try and cast off their hated English oppressors once and for all. Aengus O'Connell, John Shanahan, Paddy McGlinchy, and Frank Kelly the leaders of the Irish Freedom Party were meeting the French Admiral Fabien LaRue.
The Admiral along with the Southern Squadron of the French Pacific Fleet had engaged the Royal Navy’s Small South Pacific Fleet stationed at New Dublin driving off the few ships that they didn’t send to the bottom. Then he had landed a Regiment of French Royal Marines who along with a Rising by the Irish Freedom Movement had quickly secured both of the Islands that made up the South Erie Islands. Along with those few Marines the French had brought muskets and ammunition for the Irish Rebels.

Now the admiral along with the leaders of the Irish Revolutionaries were negotiating what type of state the Irish would be able to set up and Defend. The French offered to recognize the new Irish State and make it a protectorate of the Kingdom of France. In return France had two conditions; the first one was that France be allowed to station ships in the Irish State as well as men they promised to keep it to a minimum except in time of war. The second was that the Irish state be a Constitutional Monarchy. This at first confused the Irish they were not keen to trade a King in London for a King in Paris. Then the French confused them even more when the French admiral laughed “No, No, King Louis doesn’t seek to add the Irish Crown to his own. No. His Majesty asks that you raise Charles Edward Stuart, the Duke of Albany the Jacobite heir to the throne of England, Scotland and Ireland.” The Irishmen talked it over with each other. To raise the house of Stuart to any throne would be a sore spot to the British and their Hanoverian kings. It would be a way to spit in the British eye. “That may be possible, as long as he is willing to accept the powers that we would be willing to give him. We won’t promise much to, us Irish have long grown tired of Lords and Kings.” Aengus O'Connell said after the discussion was complete. LaRue nodded the throne titles and a good allowance is all that my king asks. I will say that the more important his son in law has the more gracious he and France will be in dealing with your new Irish State.” The meeting would continue for the rest of the month however LaRue and his fleet had to leave to engage the British elsewhere.

In July LaRue and his fleet returned to New Dublin. The Admiral found him and his men welcomed by the government of the Kingdom of South Erie. This Irish had created a Constitution and formed a provisional government until elections could be held the following year. The Irish Constitution created a Constitutional Monarchy, however the monarch held little power. The Monarch was the one who summoned the Parliament and oversaw the results of parliamentary elections, the monarch also could dissolve the parliament however this triggered a snap election to take place within three months. Lastly the Monarch was the commander in chief of the Armed Forces of the Kingdom of South Erie, in that role the monarch had to be the one to ask the parliament to declare war on another nation. The power of the government was vested in the parliament. The Parliament was made up of two houses, the House of Commons was made up of 120 seats and the Senate which was made up 60 seats. The Premier who had the executive authority in the government was elected by the house of commons.

Flag of the Kingdom of South Erie

Normandy

The developments in North America had Robbed the Duke Of Mann of any Reinforcements his opponents didn't have that problem the French had brought to another whole army to challenge him. The Duke of Mann had made the decision to withdraw from Saint-Lo, even if he had all of his 330,000 men up with him he would be outnumbered by at least 100,000 men by what his cavalry was telling him. Besides he didn’t have his whole force with him at Saint Lo only about half of it. So He was pulling back to the defenses he had been building with the rest of his army all winter. If he had gotten the Reinforcements he might have thought about a phush on Paris even then he would have been outnumbered. No he would pull back to his defensive line just south of Cherberg. There behind defensive works he and his Army of Normandy would just have to hold the line until Britain finally found men to send to reinforce them, or peace came.

To the south both The Duke of Normandie and Lafayette were moving north with their armies. On April 7th the engaged the British rear guard at Saint Lo. It would be a brief fire fight with the British pulling back before they could be cut off. The British would make another stand at Carentan and Lessay on April 10th, and Bricquebec on April 13th. Valognes on April 14th. All of these would be short skirmishes but they serve their purpose of slowing down the French advance. However, on April 16th the French would converge on Cherbourg. Hoping that their numbers would allow them a quick victory the two Armies would commit to a heavy assualt, with both armies committing 11 divisions to the attack. The attacks begin at 1300h after a morning long bombardment. However the French soon. Find the English English defenses tough to break. The British having concentrated field gun batteries though out their lines and redoubts of heavy guns with interlocking fields of fire. By 2000h hours the attack is called off and the French start deploying for a siege. However both the Duke of Normandie and Marshall Lafayette knew that for a siege to be successful the French Navy would have to blockade the port and hold the British Royal Navy at bay, only time would tell if it was up to the task.

 

[Virginia Liberal]

Merry Christmas to all

 

[Gentleman Johnny]

Merry Christmas to all

Merry Christmas to you too! I love how the current king of GB is Richard IV. Reminds me of DoD and the Richard IV in that TL. Here's hoping this Richard IV's reign ends a bit better for him. Looking forward to how things shake out!

 

[Virginia Liberal]

Merry Christmas to you too! I love how the current king of GB is Richard IV. Reminds me of DoD and the Richard IV in that TL. Here's hoping this Richard IV's reign ends a bit better for him. Looking forward to how things shake out!

DoD?

 

[Sunstone77]

DoD?

Decades of Darkness

 

[Virginia Liberal]

The holiday that is modern Christmas can be traced back to a couple of events that occurred in the mid 19th Century. Prior to these events Christmas was a hit and miss religious holy day in most of the various Christian churches,and even then it was overshadowed by other holy days.

These events were the publication of the poem Santa Clause Comes to Town, published in 1823 in New York. This popular poem would spread across north America and even cross the Atlantic to Europe by the time the wars began. However its biggest impact would be in the FRA where it would bring the Christmas holiday to an unofficial prominence. Well before the wars of the Bloody Decade. The second was the publication of drawings of Duchess Victoria and her family exchanging gifts on Christmas Morning around a decorated Pine Tree, this would popularize Christmas in the British Empire as the rest of the royal family and upper class mimicked this trend.

However the largest push toward our modern commercial Christmas occurred in 1843 when several states in the C.A.S. started encouraging families to send their loved ones at the Front Christmas presents as away to boost both frontline and Homefront morale. This would prove successful and be repeated in December of 1844 and 1845. This so engraved the Christmas holiday into the fabric of the C.A.S. that following the war the Commonwealth Congress would establish Christmas Eve, Christmas, and Service Day (1) as the First National Holidays in the C.A.S. with the Holidays Act of 1850.

Christmas trees also evolved from this point with Duchess Victoria setting the trend for much of the world. However this comtept that the American Republics had for the Crown Republic of New England would see the FRA and C.A.S. swing away from pine trees and adopt Holly trees instead, a division that separates the American Republics from the rest of the world still today.

Santa Clause would also evolve with the political world. In the poem Santa Clause Comes to town Santa Clause is described as a plump man with rosy cheeks and and a white beard, dressed all in furs as white as the snow with a Silver bell on the end of his cap. Who brings toys and treats to good little boys and girls and brings Bundles of switches to bad children. He visit children the night before Christmas in his Slay pulled by eight raindeer who flight though the night. This is the common version of Santa in both the FRA and C.A.S. Western Europe and the British Empire Santa Clause is closer to the Dutch Sinterklaas, a version who was popularized by Queen Louise wife of George IV and Dowager Queen to Richard IV. who brought the Dutch traditions with her to Britain. This version of Santa Clause is dressed in all in Red fur and Rides a white horse as he delivers presents to good children and plays pranks on bad children.

1. The Saturday after Christmas when people do good works for their community as a day of thanks for all they have received.
2. I'm not going into Germany and eastern Europe with this cause what I've found is very different from American Santa Clause and I'm not familiar enough with it to change it so east of the Rhine is gonna be OTL.

 

[Virginia Liberal]

Happy new year real update in the works. Moving and getting ready to transfer to another facility at work.

 

[Gentleman Johnny]

Happy new year real update in the works. Moving and getting ready to transfer to another facility at work.

Happy New Year to you too! Looking forward to where you plan to take this TL next!

 

[PGSBHurricane]

Happy New Year to you too! Looking forward to where you plan to take this TL next!

Same here. I hope the next update brings some good old fashioned twists and turns along the way.

 

[Virginia Liberal]

Fall of Caracas

June 21st in Bolivia was the start of winter however General Tyler was ready to finish his Campaign against the city of Caracas. Over the summer and fall he had forced the Colombians back towards their final line of defenses one hill at a time. Now one the Colombians were back to their last line south of the city if they lost it they would have to choose fight house to house or give up. That evening General Tyler sent a man under white flag to ask his counter part to surrender and save the needless spilled blood to come. To his disappointment the Colombian general refused. So Tyler began to plan the final battle of this god forsaken campaign.

Because of the lack of reinforcements from the Commonwealth he had been forced to lean on the Bolivians who where now made up about half of his 190,000 men. When properly trained and equipped they made decent soldiers. However Tyler knew that this would come back on him as the Bolivian Government would most likely want more say in any treaty and the establishment of the state of Bolivia and other South American territories after the war.

General Jose Martinez commander of the Eastern Imperial Army looked at the maps on the wall of his headquarters. Since the Americans cut off supplies his men had been slowly beaten back battle by battle. Still he had refused to surrender. His men had enough ammo and spirit for one more battle at least they could bleed the Americans and maybe kill enough of them to allow the army coming up from the south to drive them back once more.

Two hours before dawn on June 23rd the Commonwealth Artillery opened up on the Colombian defenses in Caracas. The bombardment would go in for six eight hours. Then at 1300h the Infantry attack began. That bombardment had not killed all the Colombians who began firing back as soon as the Infantry left their trenches. The Colombian artillery which had also been silent also joined the battle pummeling the advancing Infantry with shot and shell then canister as they drew close to the defenses. Once the C.A.S. soldiers made it into the Colombian defenses the battle turned into a hand to hand melee fought with the Knife, Bayonet and for the Bolivians the Machete. The Colombians with their backs against the wall fought for every inch of ground. Yet by the end of the second day of battle they're moral was being to break as more and more Colombians surrendered to the advancing Commonwealth forces. By the end of June 26th General Jose Martinez accepted the reality that it was over. End the early morning hours of June 27,1844 he asked Tyler for a ceasefire and offered his surrender. At dawn on June 28,1844 the Colombian Eastern Imperial Army marched out of the battered city stacked arms and colors and marched into captivity under the guard of Bolivian troops and officers.

The Fall of Caracas marked a turning point in the war with its primary Army in the East taken off the board Bogota lost its will to continue and risk the loss of further territory. The army that was just starting to arrive in the east was rebrand the 2and Imperial Eastern Army; however it was placed on a defensive footing. While Emperor Christobal reached out to the United Portuguese Empire to mediate a peace treaty with the C.A.S.

To say that the Harrison administration was thrilled to recieve the news that the Colombians wanted peace. Harrison would send Foreign Secretary Franklin Lincoln (CMDP-Va) and Stephen R. Laine (CCP-NC) and Secretary of State Daniel Cameron (CMDP-MD) as the C.A.S. negotiating team. The Colombians would send Foreign Minister Fernando Calderon and Defense Minister Emmanuel Lopez. The two would meet in Rio de Jenro the Capital of the Kingdom of Brazil. Over the next month they would hammer out a peace deal the border between Colombia and Bolivia would start at the Junction of the Meta and Orinoco Rivers it would go straight north to the coast. It would follow the Orinoco east to where the Rio Caroni joined it. The border would follow that river till it reached the border with Brazil.

 

[Virginia Liberal]

The Siamese Invasion of Mayla

The Siamese Imperial Army at the start of the Anglo Siamese War.

The Siamese had been watching the events of the Second War of Spanish Succession closely. However,it was not till after the Second Irish Revolution that they decided to join. On June 28,1844 the Siamese officially declared war on Britain and sent an army of 65,000 men under General Tiwat Keacham down the Malayan peninsula, while the Royal Siamese Navy sailed south to cut off the British East India company base at Singapore.

The British East Indian Army was still mostly deployed in India and there were only 20,000 men to defend Malaysia from the Siamese. Commanded by Major General Bernard Smith the British Army of Malaysia would fight a series delaying actions meant to slow down and bleed the Siamese Army before it reached Singapore.

It would take the Siamese six months to battle their way down the peninsula. With the British fighting battles at Terengganu on July 2,1844, Perak July 7th , Shah on July 11th, Alam on July 10th, Kuala Dungun on August 4th, Pekan Melayu on August 28th. The British had never really believed that the Siamese had modernized their Army. This view proved to be wrong much to the grief of the British soldiers after the first few battles when Siamese troops armed with Rifled Muskets with Wolf Shot easily drove off the Redcoats and their smooth bore Brown Bess muskets. Over the course of the summer of 1844 the British traded space for time hoping that reinforcements would arrive from India. However, on September 20th the battered British army crossed to the island of Singapore where they hoped to hold out as long as possible. On September 23rd the Siamese Army occupied the shores north of the island and a Siamese French Fleet started blockading the island, so began the siege of Singapore

 

[Virginia Liberal]

The Division of the Repulbic of Bolivia post Treaty of Rio

 

[Virginia Liberal]

The Rhone Campaign

During the winter and spring of 1844 Marshal Sacco and General Lombardi had been pouring over maps planning their invasion of southern France whale at the same time amassing an army to carry out that invasion. The army was the largest army that the Italian empire had fielded to date. They had assembled 450,000 men and 85 batteries of artillery (390,000 Infantry (39 divisions), 60,000 Cavalry (six divisions) 68 batteries of field artillery, 12 batteries of Horse Artillery, and 5 batteries of heavy artillery.). This Grand Army was divided up into three columns Northern, Central, and Southern. Each column would be made up of 13 divisions of infantry, two divisions of Cavalry 23 batteries of Field artillery, and 4 batteries of Horse Artillery; the southern army would also have the 5 batteries of heavy artillery.

The Southern Column would be commanded by General Ramiro Summa. This column would be the first to engage the enemy. In late June General Summa and his men headed east to attack Nice. This was to be the first phase in the Rhone Campaign. On July 1st Summa’s men slammed into the unexpecting French Garrison in the hills north and east of Nice. The city was defended by 75,000 French Infantry supported by 36 batteries of field artillery and 8 batteries of heavy artillery all of which fortified in a rig on masonry and earthen forts and by mountains that surrounded the city. Because the French lacked any sizable cavalry contingent they had been caught off guard. Summa would use this to his advantage by having hsi men envelope the French defenders cutting them off form resupply by land before french reinforcements could arrive. Summa had the manpower to over wealm the french defenders but he didn’t that was not the plan; so instead he brought up his artillery and began a siege of the city.

Meanwhile the other two columns began to march the Central Column commanded by General Eusebio Bava fromaly of the Royal Sardinian army who swore loyalty to UnNapoleon II after he married Esmeralda queen of Sardinia. He was not the only one seven of his thirteen infantry divisions and one of this two cavalry divisions were formed up by a majority of former Sardinian soldiers. Bava’s column began moving on July 1st the same day that Summa’s column began the siege of Niece. They were not the only ones marching that day to the north Lombardi’s Northern Column was also starting its march. Bava’s column marched through Gap then down the Rhone River and on Marseilles. Whale Lombardi’s column would march to Gernobel then strike north toward Loyns. Marshall Sacco’s intent with this plan was to keep the French off balance and reacting to the Italian moves.

The Italian offensive didn’t happen in a vacuum to the west as Toulouse General Henri Bovian was gathering his army together after the long trip from Spain. Boivin was an elder general who had never gained much fame nor had he ever sought any. Now he started receiving disturbing reports on July 8th the first reports of the Italians besieging Nice. To respond to this he had two veteran divisions from the Spanish campaign as well as four freshly raised divisions that gave him 90,000 Infantry, he also had 15,000 cavalry, 20 batteries of field artillery 10 of which were veterans of the Spanish campaign and 2 batteries of horse artillery. On July 9th Bovian ordered his army to march to Marseilles where he hoped to pick up at least one more division of infantry.

His army arrived just at Nimes just a days March west of Marseilles only to find the east bank of the Rhone river patrolled by Italian soldiers and survivors of the French Garrison from Marseilles who had escaped the fall of the city told Bovian that an Army of 13 Italian divisions had stormed into the city just days before. Unable to challenge this force Bovian deployed his army into a defensive position and sent word to Paris.

 

[Virginia Liberal]

The Invasion of Newfoundland or not.

On July 12,the last part of the Swedish invasion force left Scandinavia heading for Iceland this was the main battle force of the Swedish Royal Navy consisting of 23 ships of the line, 33 Frigates, and 40 smaller ships. This didn't go unnoticed and with in a day a British fleet that was just slightly larger was sailing to intercept.

The two fleets would meet just west of the Faroe Islands. The British had the advantage of a faster line due to them having more frigates than liners but that same factor meant that the Swedes brought more firepower to the fight. It was the British Admiral Thomas C. Hood that was the deciding factor in the battle. A young admiral at just 31 years old he was know for "odd" thinking. As his line met the Swedish line in a classic line dual he detached a good number of his frigates and smaller ships and sent them racing west ahead of the battle.

As the fighting progresses Admiral Maximilian Ekholm was enjoying this fight he could feel the blood of his Viking ancestors flowing though him,and he was winning. His shops had already forced two of the British liners to fall out of line, they had sunk two more and set a third ablaze. He was beginning to believe that he and his men were going to humble the mighty British Royal Navy. It was then that his men in the fighting tops started crying ships on the horizon. When he looked he saw a wall of British ships blocking his path. As if on cue the British fleet started pulling away from his just as the fleet that as crossing his T erupted in fire and smoke.

Admiral Hood watched in Glee as his frigates started dumping enveloping fire on the Swedes. But he wasn't done yet; no he started issuing orders for shops to break off and swing in line behind the Swedes, while others continued to fire on them from their current position. The battle wasn't over yet but Hood knew the day was his.

For Admiral Ekholm the battle had gone to Hell. He had ordered his fleet to turn but that only exposed them to the english off their port. Then after about two house the a third British Column appeared to his east. By this point though Ekholm wasn't concerned anymore a huge splinter from this ship's main mast had punched though his abdomen and he was fast on his way to the afterlife. "At least he thought It was a violent death worthy of the old ways" as darkness enveloped him. With the Admiral dead it was Captain Josef Sjöberg who ordered the colors struck and the guns silenced. Slowly as the Swedish ships still inaction saw the flag ship's colors go down and followed suit. The Battle of the Faroe islands was a complete British victory, one of the few in this war. Hood and his men would be hailed as heroes throughout the Empire and the Swedish plans for Newfoundland died still born.

 

[Virginia Liberal]

There is a budding cultural movement hidden in that last chapter I wonder if anyone found it.