How a bunch of fat guys falling off horses wrecked the British Empire

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 128

July, 1810

Santiago, American Cuba

For the past year, Arthur Wesley would slowly ground down the minor Cuban resistance against the Anglo-American invasion force. He utilized a policy of emancipating slaves (more common in American east Cuba than British west) in order for their service and loyalty. American volunteers were short in pestilential Cuba and the freedmen were instrumental in hunting down resistance and building up the defenses of Santiago and Guantanamo Bay. By Fall of 1810, Congress was formally reviewing a bill to abolish slavery throughout American Cuba. There was some mild resistance in South Carolina against the violation of States' Rights. However, the fact that Cuba was not a state but a territory dealt with that soon enough and, on Christmas of 1810, all slaves were manumitted in American Cuba, securing a strong base of support in the less populated eastern 2/3rds of the Island.

It would be just in time as the Spanish would finally, after years of internal warfare in Iberia, return to the colonies in force.


Russia

Though no one would accuse the man of being a planner, the failed rebellion of several years prior had taught the Czar a few lessons. As the armies of Paul I slowly filtered back into Russia, he quietly ordered several sympathetic Generals to the idea of reform to assume command. His eldest sons, Konstantine and Alexander would also be given senior commands. By the summer, some one hundred thousand Russian soldiers were spread out across the country at strategic points, notionally to be decommissioned.

Instead, they were ordered to wait as the Czar formally proclaimed manumission of the serfs (all while behind the protective guard of 10,000 soldiers in Moscow under the command of loyal officers).

The nobility protested loudly. The shrillest were immediately arrested. The remainder calculated their odds of victory and, for the most part, remained silent. The army was in fully control of the country.

The Czar's manumission was read in every church in Russia by the end of summer. While never every peasant in the country was a serf bound to the land, the proclamation was welcomed among the lower classes. The Czar set maximum rents for the peasants and allowed them to depart without permission for where they desired.

Here and there, a powerful noble sought rebellion against "tyranny". However, more than one would be murdered by the recently freed serfs before his rebellion could even get started. As the majority of armies, even rebel armies, consisted of serfs, they didn't have much in the way of leverage to fight.

By the winter, every significant area of unrest was back under control.

10,000,000 people had effectively been liberated.

Of course, this would not end Russia's problems. The peasants still lacked land and their new "rental" agreements left very few differences to their former lives. However, they could depart for the cities and even abroad. The Czar offered free land in the rich (but frigid) lands of Siberia to any settlers along with stipends.

While loathed by the nobility, the Czar was cheered as "the liberator" among the peasants and was well-respected among the Orthodox and Slavic peoples of eastern Europe for defending their rights in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Ruthenia, the Kingdom of Moldavia and Wallachia, Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece (his own Kingdom) and the Levant.

Brazil

The British envoys signed a series of agreements with Revolutionaries in southern Brazil's coast granting a Protectorate status to the various colonies. In the end, British trade was infinitely more valuable than the Portuguese and Spanish economy combined. With taxes promised to be lower, reduced tariffs than with the former mother country and no percentage of the dwindling gold and silver production going to the crown, the Portuguese colonists of the south were happy to make a change.

To the north, in the land of the sugar plantations, it was a different story. The ban of the slave trade had hit them hard and did not endear the British to them. Worse, they suspected this was a conspiracy to ensure British domination of the sugar trade. Indeed, a massive recession in northern Brazil occurred over 1808-1810 as a result of this ban and the subsequent lack of trade when Britain blockaded various northern ports in reprisal (the price of sugar from Jamaica and Barbados did, indeed, go up). But the British could not afford to keep an entire fleet floating off of the northern portions of Brazil. The Royal Navy, though well commanded and crewed, was smaller than in 1770. And the Spanish-Portuguese crown would soon be fighting back.

Against every expectation, a new contender soon showed up in northern Brazil in order to seize power, one the British never would have seen coming.

 

[DracoLazarus]

To the north, in the land of the sugar plantations, it was a different story. The ban of the slave trade had hit them hard and did not endear the British to them. Worse, they suspected this was a conspiracy to ensure British domination of the sugar trade. Indeed, a massive recession in northern Brazil occurred over 1808-1810 as a result of this ban and the subsequent lack of trade when Britain blockaded various northern ports in reprisal (the price of sugar from Jamaica and Barbados did, indeed, go up). But the British could not afford to keep an entire fleet floating off of the northern portions of Brazil. The Royal Navy, though well commanded and crewed, was smaller than in 1770. And the Spanish-Portuguese crown would soon be fighting back.

Against every expectation, a new contender soon showed up in northern Brazil in order to seize power, one the British never would have seen coming.

The French or the Dutch ?
After all, they could well try and attack from the Guyanas...

 

[Alt History Buff]

The French or the Dutch ?
After all, they could well try and attack from the Guyanas...

Neither.

The British aren't the only ones which can play power games with an ally.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 129

September, 1810

North of Havana, between Cuba and Florida

Captain Anthony Gates commanded a small flotilla of three frigates and a pair of sloops. For the most part, his orders were to raid Spanish shipping, such as it was. There weren't too many friendly ports left to Spain (and Portugal) in the West Indies.

Seeing a flock of sails on the horizon, the British ships came about to investigate. As they approached, they realized the scale of the armada.

The Spanish had finally....FINALLY....summoned the nerve to respond.

Eight ships-of-the-line, four frigates and thirty-four cargo and passenger vessels ferried 5000 soldiers through the Caribbean. Obviously outgunned, Gates ordered his flotilla back to Havana. Unfortunately, much of the British fleet had been dispersed to Brazil, Veracruz, Jamaica and Barbados. Only a few weeks earlier, there had been a rumor that a Spanish force had been spotted near Barbados and Admiral Nelson had been forced to dispatch ships to investigate. It had been a false alarm but this would not be known for several weeks.

Only four warships awaited Gates in Havana, as the Americans, in a huff, had ordered their own ships and soldiers to "American Cuba". Now all the major ports were defended....but not strongly enough to resist the Spanish fleet. A Spanish reconquest of Cuba was feared. Nelson, Gates and the rest of the fleet huddled in Havana's harbor with land-based artillery focused out to sea, just as the Spanish did the previous year in their failed defense against the Anglo-American armada.

Only the attack never came. A light rain obscured the horizon for days. Nelson waited and waited and finally realized that no attack was imminent. He ordered is ships back out to sea after a few more days. For lack of any idea what to do, the Admiral ordered some to Veracruz.

He was half right.

Cartagena, new Granada

The ruling rebel Junta of New Granada had failed to consolidate its hold over much of the countryside. Monarchist resistance, lower class resentment and personal rivalries among the elites maintained a constant base of discontent.

The Spanish would take advantage of this disharmony to reassert control. Have the fleet, including 3000 soldiers, would turn southwards after Cuba and sail onward to New Granada.

The remainder would sail into Veracruz, where a small flotilla of British and American vessels protected the greatest port in New Spain.

Veracruz

From the fortress of San Juan de Ulua, General Napoleon Bonaparte gazed on at the arrival of the Spanish fleet.

With 3000 Americans under his command, the fortress was powerful. but not impossible to reduce given the firepower of the Spanish ships. Only two American and two British warships, all frigates or smaller, helped guard the port. Obviously outgunned by the concentrated Spanish forces, the allied ships fled to the cover of the mighty fortress.

The land surrounding Veracruz was not as mountainous as other parts of New Spain and did not provide a great defensive high ground. The fortress was the allies' only hope for maintaining their position.

General Bonaparte saw this and felt confident. However, he was forced to admit that the 2000 or so English soldiers in the city must also have access to the fortification, something he had adamantly refused prior. This concession was painful but not nearly as painful as their commander.

The Duke of Ancaster had been a pompous prick. But his second-in-command...oh, dear god, what were the odds.

Decades before, at the military academy, the young, talented Bonaparte had met an upper classman, Antoine Phelippeaux. They hated one another at first sight. Eventually, the Revolution came and Phelippeaux sided with the Bourbonists. When Louis XVI was finally cast out, the talented artillery officer fled to Britain with him. As the Bourbonist cause was lost to the Orleanists, the King retreated to New France but Phelippeaux stayed in Britain, serving the Protestant King George III in his "Foreign Corps". While typically Catholics may not serve in Britain, exceptions were made for foreign hirelings whom usually served in colonial settings where they may cause less trouble. Britain continued to have trouble finding anyone to serve in their army.

After years in Gibraltar, the Channel Islands and Barbados, Philippeaux was placed third-in-command of the British expedition to Veracruz. Finding America had beaten them to the punch, Ancaster settled in the city under the watch of American guns in San Juan de Ulua, effectively doing nothing with this 2000 troops. Eventually, his second-in-command died of some fever or another and the Duke returned to Britain for "consultations". The Frenchman was left in command of the British garrison.

Now the ancient enemies at academy were allies against a superior foe. Make that FOES.

The rebels of New Spain finally organized the cities of Mexico and Puebla into the largest government currently operating in the colony (or Republic, whatever). With the dissolution of the Spanish army, the rebels realized that the safe return of Veracruz was vital to restart their economy.

A mob of thousands of rebels approached the port even as a Spanish invasion fleet sailed in from the east.

San Juan de Ulua

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 130

November, 1810

Dresdon, Electorate of Saxony

Maximilian, only a few months into his reign as Elector of Saxony, would astound both his people and his family with the "November Pronouncement".

Years of war had finally forced the Habsburgs and Wettins to concede that Saxony and the Commonwealth could not be joined together with the Habsburg lands. Poland would go to the second son, Ferdinand, and Saxony would go to the third son, Maximilian. Only twenty-one years old, the young Elector had never expected to ascend to a throne. He was prepared for a military life with the probability of governing one of his eldest brother Joseph's provinces.

Instead, he was unexpectedly thrust into full duties as a monarch barely into his majority.

The young Elector would shock the Holy Roman Empire when he formally pronounced his engagement to Adelaide of Saxe-Meinigan....a Protestant. Seeing the sincere (and violent) desire of his people to be governed by a Protestant, he agreed that the children of his marriage would be raised in the predominant Lutheran religion though he would personally "live and die a Catholic".

His parents were horrified, his subjects elated. Indeed, much of Protestant Germany was thrilled as it seemed that this would break Saxony away from the Habsburg Catholic dynasty. Some feared that the Empress would invade Saxony to ensure a Catholic succession. However, this did not occur. Many, however, imagined the histrionics of the Empress' letters to her son, whom appeared indifferent to his mother's moods. There was a reason why his father, Maximilian, had stopped sleeping with the woman.

Philadelphia

The first voters headed or the polls. This was likely to be the first truly competitive election in American history.

In 1780 and 1785, the venerable Ben Franklin was effectively unopposed and General George Washington, in 1790 and 1795, faced only token opposition.

The 1800 election was expected to be the first true election between a pair of candidates from established rival parties (the Centralists and Federationists). However, that vote was marred by scandalous accusations (largely true) against the Federationist Candidate, Thomas Jefferson, which held he fathered half a dozen children with his slave, Sally Hemmings. Revealing that Sally Hemmings was, in fact, the bastard half-sister of his late wife and was far more white than black effectively ended that campaign. It was a sordid tale that ended Jefferson's career and put the Federationist party in chaos for a decade.

However, the party had recovered and now fielded a stronger team. The opposition had done well in mid-term elections and President Jay was looking weak after years of expense. There was a political philosophy that sometimes years in high office will result in a general desire for change.

With nearly half of Congress, the opposition was feeling confident.

Veracruz

The Spanish commander knew he did not have the firepower in his fleet to seize Veracruz from the Anglo-American forces directly. The heavy guns of the fortification and stout walls would ensure that bombardment from his limited fleet would reduce the mighty fort to rubble before his ships were wiped from the seas.

He had adequate opportunity to land and besiege the fort from inland. That had been his plan until a mob of armed colonials arrived at the shore. At first, he was elated, thinking these were monarchists. A few shots at his ships from a land-based cannon proved otherwise.

Then, a small British feet arrived off the horizon. He knew his own ships could overcome it but his problems were escalating. He would have to 1. defeat the Royal Navy, 2. push through the local rebels and 3. take the fortress via a prolonged siege.

In the end, he didn't have the time, resources or confidence to do that. Fortunately, his orders were flexible enough to allow him to sail on Cartagena, where he hoped for easier pickings. Much of his fleet had already sailed south, anyway.

He left the Colonials and their Anglo-American would-be conquerors to settle their dispute between themselves and expected to return and crush the survivor of that conflict.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 131

December, 1810

Philadelphia

The final results were in. President James Madison and Vice-President Aaron Burr would succeed President Jay by a not entirely massive margin of 54% to 46% in the popular vote and by 44 electoral votes. The Federationist Party was also to have slim majorities in both Upper and Lower Houses.

There were some whom feared some sort of military coup but Jay dismissed the idea, publicly accepting that he had lost the election and formally congratulated "President-Elect" Madison.

Jay knew both Madison and Burr and doubted that their administration would stray overly far from the Centralist Platform. Thomas Jefferson may have been Madison's mentor but that didn't mean the younger man would blindly follow in his erratic boots. No, Madison had publicly supported the national bank and the war, though he criticized the handling of both. Indeed, the whole Federatinist Party had moved from Jefferson's ill-advised and bizarre political platform. Otherwise, they would not have won by spouting Jefferson's "tyranny of the southern aristocracy" platform.

Well, whoever was in charge would make their own mark on the nation even if it only served to prove he was there. In a way, Jay was just happy to finally retire.

As it was, Jay had six months left before Madison took over (there was talk of shifting the new administration's term of office closer to the end of the election, maybe in March rather than May). Jay intended to use this time to improve his nation's standing for the impending peace (which Jay believed was imminent) talks.

He was right that his actions would assist his nation's bargaining position in the peace.

He was wrong when he thought it was imminent.

San Dominigue

The planter gentry of the French colony had successfully spent the past few years playing Orleanist France and Bourbonist New France against one another in hopes of retaining defacto independence and low taxation. For a while, this worked. Until the British and Americans started seizing slave ships bound for the French colonies. The colonial government appealed to both Kings, Louis XVI and King Philippe, and got thin responses. France had formally approved the end of the slave trade from Africa (though they made no attempt to enforce it) and saw no reason to wreck their relations with Britain and America in order to help a pseudo-colony that didn't bring in much revenue these days. New France couldn't force Britain to do anything and remained largely indifferent.

While not every slaving ship was seized, enough were to make the entire practice unprofitable for the slavers. Even at the high profits per voyage (estimated at 20% on average), if your ship, crew and cargo were seized once out of five voyages, then the enterprise was impossible to maintain. And the British and Americans, with ships prowling both the West Indies and along Africa's coast, were stopping more than that.

Plus, the war had disrupted the traditional Portuguese slaving stations that supplied the Spanish, Portuguese and French colonies these days. It was difficult to find a safe port anywhere. Even with prices of slaves low from chieftains desperate to sell, there just was no easy way to get them out of Africa.

Indeed, by 1811, the majority of the slaves arriving in the West Indies were from America, not Africa (the export of American slaves was allowed under international agreement). And as the number of slaves being exported from America's rapidly declining number of slave states (the export being directly linked to imminent dates for manumission) had slowed to a trickle, this meant that demand remained utterly unsatisfied. Most West Indian colonies had negative growth rates due to disease, war, violent suppression of rebellions, brutal overwork and demographic imbalances among the slaves genders (most African slaves were men, sometimes at a 5 to 1 ratio). As the gender balance stabilized, this reduced but did not stop the decline. At one point, San Dominigue boasted 400,000 slaves, 60,000 free blacks and mulattos and 25,000 whites.

By 1811, it was down to 80,000 slaves, 45,000 free blacks and mulattos and 15,000 whites. And declining by 3% a year despite all efforts to replace the population of chattel with new purchases.

The gentry knew something must be done. Sugar, due to the war, was at a high price without Brazil's production making it to markets. They worked their slaves mercilessly (which didn't help the death rate) and were hindered by yet another Yellow Fever epidemic followed by a breakout of smallpox, measles and typhus.

Unfortunately, making the remaining slaves work from dawn to dusk did nothing to prevent the "Great Rebellion of 1811". Once again, a slave revolt rocked the island, ending any and all exports. Lacking an army to back them up, the landowners struggled to suppress the violence.

By summer of 1811, the gentry were begging the mother country for aid in putting it down. King Philippe's response was cold and stark. The colony would give up pretensions of autonomy and do what they were told. Lacking any particular alternative, the colony agreed. However, meaningful help from France would be slow to arrive and the violence would expand to Martinique and Guadeloupe (the only other two French islands with significant slave populations) by summer of 1811.

For the first time in years, French ships and soldiers would venture from French soil. In an understated way, it represented the nation's first, hesitant steps to returning to international affairs after years of silent healing and introverted foreign policy. With a devastated economy, the nation could not think of intervening in the Austro-Russian war or even the Portuguese Succession but sending a few thousand regulars to put down a slave rebellion would be a quiet start to regaining their former status. By 1812, France's control over the French West Indies was properly reestablished, at least over the gentry. The slaves continued to resist.

Recife, Brazil

Captain William Brown was an Irish-born immigrant to Pennsylvania as a child. When his father died young, he engaged upon a naval career, eventually giving up commerce to command a patrol ship in the American Navy based in New York. When the small American navy started to expand beyond a handful of revenue cutters and light frigates, he was swiftly promoted to the USS Savannah and served in the Barbary Wars. Unfortunately, as the "Iberian War" (as it was being referred to in some quarters) emerged, the gains against the Muslim pirate states would evaporate as they nullified the hard-won treaties. Still, Brown believed the pirates could be defeated again once the current conflict ended.

As it was, Brown was given command of a small fleet and ordered to an unexpected venture to Brazil where most of the colonies had revolted to one degree or another for one reason or another. Some were offended by the union with Spain, others "inspired" by America's Republic, others were dealing with slave revolts, others had governors and generals whom merely were taking advantage of the situation to set themselves up as Emperors, Kings, Presidents, Governors, etc.

In short, the one wealthy Portuguese colony of Brazil was a steaming mess. With demand down for their products due to British blockades (which did not endear America's ally to the Brazilians) and the supply of slaves cut off (Brazil was the largest customer in the 19th century for African slaves), the economy had collapsed.

The Royal navy was not what it had been forty years ago. With the loss of 40% of King Frederick's population (Ireland and America), the nation could not expect to support such a large navy. It remained the class of the seas but was not numerically dominant to the point that it could wipe all others from the waters on a whim. Only the destruction of the French navy in the revolution kept the withered Royal Navy in its dominant position (it would taken another generation for the French navy to fully recover). The Dutch continued to wither to a mere prosperous little nation and the Portuguese Navy was effectively non-existent after that civil war.

Only Spain really challenged Britain in 1811 and her heyday was in the past as well.

Still, Britain could not be everywhere at once. With responsibilities from Veracruz to Havana to Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, not to mention her own colonies, the Royal Navy was stretched tight.

As such, the northern Brazil colonies were virtually open to American trade and, it would turn out, interference.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 132

January, 1811

Recife

Captain Brown of the American navy was uncertain what to expect in Brazil. Armed resistance from the colonials? An eagerness for trade? The Spanish Navy? The Royal navy demanded his absence?

He was not expecting a hero's welcome in Recife. Brazil, like America, was a land of contrast. In the north, the traditional sugar plantation system resembled more the old American southern tobacco plantations or the rice and cotton plantations still existing in South Carolina. In the south, the old standby of gold mining was in decline as coffee plantations now ruled the highlands and less-precious metal mining and ranching now dominated the inlands. Britain now aggressively patrolled the coastline of Rio and Sao Paulo, believing them the key to controlling Brazil. The sugar production lands of the north were less important to Britain as they had their own supplies in Jamaica and Barbados.

What Brown did not know was that there had been a rebellion among the black slaves, free blacks, mulattos, the clergy and reformers in the northern colonies against the established government dominated by the plantation gentry. By 1811, a massive anti-slavery movement had cut through the weak colonial government and effectively taken over. Without regular troops and divided internally, the landed gentry were driven out of the coastal towns of Recife and Salvador.

Brown's appearance was welcomed as these rebels were anti-monarchy, which was seen as supportive of slavery, and inspired by the American Revolution. The American Warships and traders were greets enthusiastically by the natives whom were happy to sell off excess sugar and other local crops (much of it was confiscated or stolen anyway).

The natives had learned that America had liberated all the slaves in their portion of Cuba and assumed that America intended to liberate them as well. In truth, Brown had no such orders beyond some ill-defined instructions to "ensure freedom of trade" which was aimed more towards their British allies in the first place.

With his unexpectedly warm welcome, Brown handed over the terms that Cuba had been granted by Congress, establishing their colonial status with guarantees to property, abolition of slavery, local governance controlling taxation, separation of church and state, impartial courts under the constitution and low to no existent tariffs and barriers to foreign trade.

It was everything that the rebels could have dreamed over. What they didn't realize was that Brown was merely attempting to explain what was happening to Cuba, not seeking to make portion of Brazil an American colony. He was flattered when several leaders of the local Junta asked him for advice on how to properly put down the resistance by the Monarchists, conservative priesthood and plantation owners.

In exchanged for free trade privileges, the American commander quietly provided advice and even some troops to wipe out some local resistance. This stretched his orders beyond the breaking point.

Eventually, with most of the gentry being considered the enemies of the fractious mob, the Brazilian rebels of Recife and Salvador formally dispatched a note "approving" the Constitutional governance of Cuba. Confused, Brown asked what that meant and only belatedly realized that several of the northern Brazilian colonies wanted to transfer their alliance to the United States.

Brown had no idea how he would explain this to his superiors.

New York

Vice-President Elect walked down the streets of New York, passing amiable words to any whom knew him and was stopped dead when he witnessed several dozen oddly dressed men and women shuffling around as if confused. Indeed, these were among the dirtiest specimens he'd ever seen in New York and that was saying something.

Burr stopped the proprietor of a nearby tavern and inquired who these people were. The man sneered. "It is the damned Little Rus!"

"The what?" Burr asked blankly.

"Little Rus, southern part of the Russias. They just showed up last week. When the Czar manumitted the serfs, they started showing up," the man complained. He spat on the ground. "It is the Empresse' fault. She manumitted the serfs in the Commonwealth and then Poles, Jews and Lithuanians started showing up. Now the Czar does the same and, within a year, Orthodox heathens arrive in New York."

The man wandered off as if disgusted.

Burr indeed had heard of small populations of Poles, Jews, Great Russians, "White Russians" (whatever the difference between White Russians, Great Russians and Little Russians may be) and others from lands so obscure that he could not even identify them. What was a "Lithuanian", anyway?

Indeed, the variety of immigrants to America had diversified much from the days that English, Scot and the occasional Dutchman wandered off the ships. Now Germans, Irish, French, some Italians, etc, had joined American society. Burr was not a prude and largely welcomed them. But he knew nothing about these new arrivals from Eastern Europe. What was next? Turks? Chinamen? Atlanteans?

America was changing and some would not like it.

Santiago, Cuba

Relations with Britain may have thawed a bit but General Arthur Wesley was still uncertain of this alliance. Still he did his duty and attempted to bring order to chaos in eastern Cuba.

He received a letter from his family plantation in Georgia. The mulberry trees were growing well and his brother's silk business had taken off. This had been tried in America for over a century and the industry never truly expanded despite ideal conditions in some areas (silkworms were not really that difficult to raise). The main problem had been the lack of skilled silk weavers. American weavers would waste far too much product and would usually demand far too much money to compete with skilled and cheap Italian and Chinese imports. Labor was expensive in America, even bad labor. Still, attempts were made to rectify this as America imported millions of dollars of silk every year and that trade imbalance hurt the quantity of hard cash in America's system. Bounties continued to be paid to form an industry. His brother successfully raised silkworms and found a new source of labor. Large numbers of French and Neapolitans were being recruited to the southern colonies and some were skilled at weaving. This was enough to try America's hand again at the trade. The Wesley plantation had dozens of workers and a few skilled weavers more than used up the plantation's main silk supply. His brother bought up all the local silk production and sought to manufacture the thread himself.

While the men worked the fields, the women worked the looms and trained local American girls how to do the job right.

The Wesley's may be rich someday after all.

 

[Alias]

Atlanteans? Who are they?

 

[Alt History Buff]

Atlanteans? Who are they?

Just an inside joke.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 133

March, 1811

Philadelphia

James Madison, President-elect, was quietly putting together his cabinet. Some offices had been agreed internally at the Federationist Convention but Madison attempted to keep his options open.

He would make one rather astounding move when he quietly agreed to maintain Henry Laurens at Secretary of State for the duration of the war, or until his political differences with the Centralist South Carolinian became too stark. Madison and Laurens knew each other for years and held one another in great regard, thus making the atypical arrangement reasonable.

Burr was the Vice-President. Madison wanted his friend James Monroe for Secretary of State when Laurens eventually left the administration but Monroe did not feel he had much to offer another position and would remain governor of Virginia until the President called.

Crawford served as Secretary of War and Pinkney as Attorney General. William Jones, a moderate respected by both parties, too the Treasury.

On the whole, Madison trusted most of these men, with the possibly exception of Burr, whom always seemed self-aggrandizing.

As it was, Madison and Jay had met several times. The outgoing President had handled his defeat with grace yet plainly did not intend to give up a moment of his Presidency until the clock struck midnight.

Veracruz

General Napoleon Bonaparte abhorred the very sight of Antoine Phelippeaux. But he needed the man to hold the fortress of San Juan de Ulua from the besieging Spanish colonials. Evidently, there was more than one faction. He learned via informers and deserters that the first group were Republicans. This assortment wandered off in the night back in December only to be replaced by another mob in January, which apparently were Monarchists of some faction. Then they disappeared and in February, a larger group arrived which was apparently some sort of coalition of rival groups. This was also the first army with actual siege machinery.

Then, in the night, the Spanish colonials started shooting...at each other. Whatever truce led them against the Anglo-American forces had evidently rather spectacularly fallen apart.

For the third time, the besieging forces withered away. Out of impatience, Bonaparte led a sortie out of the city and put the rest to flight, then carried the abandoned artillery back with the walls of Veracruz's fortress. He was short on powder and they may not be useful to him but at least they would be used AGAINST him. For all he knew, these were the only siege guns in New Spain.

Bonaparte was getting bored. He had heard third hand that the American Army had consolidated much of northeastern New Spain from Caddo down to the Panuco River, guarded by his two forts. However, that was the extent of America's projective power. The distances were too great to push on into Puebla and Mexico City. He was getting tired of looking at Phelippeaux.

But he didn't want to march out of Veracruz and leave the fortress in British hands either. The American ruling class was soft but not so soft that he wouldn't be executed for abandoning his post, even to an "ally".

As it turned out Phelippeaux was equally unsettled. Rumors of more civil war to the west lent a belief that New Spain may be vulnerable, even to a small force.

Bonaparte and Phelippeaux reached an agreement. Both would march out of Veracruz with 2000 men. That would leave 1500 more Americans and 500 British to guard Veracruz and San Juan de Ulua.

The pair of forces would each march west: Bonaparte would march on Puebla and Phelippeaux upon the Yucatan.

Neither had any authorization to march. Neither cared. They couldn't look upon one another for another moment.

Moscow

Czar Paul witnessed the execution of the conspirators with open contempt. It was bad enough to offend God by plotting to overthrow their appointed Czar. The sheer stupidity of how they did it was another matter.

Though hardly an advance planner, Paul had arranged for two divisions of his most loyal officers to billet in the environs of Moscow. Having selected these officers not only for their personal loyalty but their agreement with the cause of reform, the Czar's dissidents should have realized a blatant attempt at formenting rebellion in the middle of Moscow as a bad idea.

His son Alexander commanded St. Petersburg. Konstantine was in Minsk. Subarov and Kutusov guarded the Czar's person in the Kremlin.

Young and ambitious officers controlled vital formations in the hinterlands. Suspect officers were "transferred" to Greece and the Levant, where their opinions wouldn't matter much.

Paul's emancipation deadline had passed and more and more Russians sought a new life in the cities, in Siberia and even abroad. The Czar was astounded by this last but decided to let them leave if they so desired. It was probably only a radical few.

Why in God's name would anyone want to travel an ocean?

 

[SavoyTruffle]

I kinda hope the US doesn't annex everything. Becoming too Ameriwank-y for my tastes.

 

[Driftless]

Finally caught up after several evening reading blitz. Love this timeline!

 

[r1ncewind]

I hope they do annex what they now control.. They will need the room for the extra population considering no civil war (and more immigration?) less former slaves though..

 

[ShortsBelfast]

Britain is relatively weak now and, no doubt, its industrial revolution was slowed a bit by the lack of West Indies capital TTL as it has fewer W Indian islands and an earlier end to slave trade (though this may be counteracted to some extent by earlier introduction of sugar beet (East Anglia extremely suitable for growing thereof) to counterbalance end to slave trade. Militarily, their armies are probably stronger as Alt History Buff has confirmed Patrick Fergusson survives TTL. Repeating rifles should have replaced Brown Bess muskets by now. And, though they will lack Wellington, they still have John Moore and John Andre -and Isaac Brock should be making his presence felt soon. Doesn't get the recognition he deserves- best commander of irregular troops in the first half of the C19th. And what about Edward Packenham and Robert Ross? In British or American service?
Agricultural and transportation revolutions seem to be going ahead as per OTL. Macadam, Telford, Trevithick, Priestley, Stephenson, Davy et al all still around and Joseph Black presumably left Ireland and nearer to the centres of capital and academe than OTL. And lack of West Indian capital probably counterbalanced to some extent by lack of Continental system. So industrial revolution is likely to seriously take off any time now. That will be interesting as Britain has a lot less real estate to defend than OTL. So an immensely rich manufacturing and trading power without a substantial colonial Empire to dilute its forces and a lot fewer foreign policy constraints (no land border with USA except a small and eminently defensible one in Cuba, no borders or overlapping spheres of influence with Russian Asia). By the 1850s TTL Britain will be quite the wild card in foreign affairs. Though to counteract that, a France incorporating Belgium will be more industrialised (though may experience stronger Flemish separatism than Belgium did, the Flemings likely to feel they are much more outnumbered. And if Flemings more militant, this may effect Basques, Bretons and Corsicans also).
Possibly the 2-3 generation earlier Eastern European immigration will have demographic displacement affects (OTL the Poles would work for less than the Irish in late C19th, presume this may also be more or less the case a few generations further back). Future Irish migration may be to France and Latin America rather than to Britain and North America as OTL. Scandinavian, Swiss and North German migration may be increasingly to the Dutch Cape and Australasia rather than to North America as OTL.

 

[Nyvis]

I hope they do annex what they now control.. They will need the room for the extra population considering no civil war (and more immigration?) less former slaves though..

The US has space for a lot more than it's OTL population without pushing their borders.
It's probably a good idea to contain expansion to places where the local population is favorable or the land is empty to avoid internal trouble down the line.

 

[r1ncewind]

Or the population can be ***** in extremis

 

[Alt History Buff]

I kinda hope the US doesn't annex everything. Becoming too Ameriwank-y for my tastes.

yeah, I tend to do that. However, I'm thinking in this TL at have the US expand SOUTH instead of West and become more of an imperialist power than was not possible in OTL due to internal divisions on the slavery issue (solved here) and general American introversion.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Finally caught up after several evening reading blitz. Love this timeline!

Thanks.

 

[Alt History Buff]

I hope they do annex what they now control.. They will need the room for the extra population considering no civil war (and more immigration?) less former slaves though..

As I mentioned in my last post, I think that the US might have been an imperialist power had it not been for the internal division of slavery which utterly dominated politics for probably 50 years and kept America's attention internal. That is solved here.

With a weakened Britain, France and Spain's continued decline, I think the US may become an Imperialist as well with a reasonable chance of success. The question is what happens when America tries controlling Latin America?

I don't see why America couldn't have been as successful or more than OTL France in Mexico in the 1850's-60's.

I'm not sure how this would go so I'll let it evolve organically.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Britain is relatively weak now and, no doubt, its industrial revolution was slowed a bit by the lack of West Indies capital TTL as it has fewer W Indian islands and an earlier end to slave trade (though this may be counteracted to some extent by earlier introduction of sugar beet (East Anglia extremely suitable for growing thereof) to counterbalance end to slave trade. Militarily, their armies are probably stronger as Alt History Buff has confirmed Patrick Fergusson survives TTL. Repeating rifles should have replaced Brown Bess muskets by now. And, though they will lack Wellington, they still have John Moore and John Andre -and Isaac Brock should be making his presence felt soon. Doesn't get the recognition he deserves- best commander of irregular troops in the first half of the C19th. And what about Edward Packenham and Robert Ross? In British or American service?
Agricultural and transportation revolutions seem to be going ahead as per OTL. Macadam, Telford, Trevithick, Priestley, Stephenson, Davy et al all still around and Joseph Black presumably left Ireland and nearer to the centres of capital and academe than OTL. And lack of West Indian capital probably counterbalanced to some extent by lack of Continental system. So industrial revolution is likely to seriously take off any time now. That will be interesting as Britain has a lot less real estate to defend than OTL. So an immensely rich manufacturing and trading power without a substantial colonial Empire to dilute its forces and a lot fewer foreign policy constraints (no land border with USA except a small and eminently defensible one in Cuba, no borders or overlapping spheres of influence with Russian Asia). By the 1850s TTL Britain will be quite the wild card in foreign affairs. Though to counteract that, a France incorporating Belgium will be more industrialised (though may experience stronger Flemish separatism than Belgium did, the Flemings likely to feel they are much more outnumbered. And if Flemings more militant, this may effect Basques, Bretons and Corsicans also).
Possibly the 2-3 generation earlier Eastern European immigration will have demographic displacement affects (OTL the Poles would work for less than the Irish in late C19th, presume this may also be more or less the case a few generations further back). Future Irish migration may be to France and Latin America rather than to Britain and North America as OTL. Scandinavian, Swiss and North German migration may be increasingly to the Dutch Cape and Australasia rather than to North America as OTL.

Good points about the repeating rifles, I'll incorporate that.

The British Generals whom I'll be using most are John Andre, Edward Pakenham, Antoine Phelippeaux and John Whitelocke. I hadn't thought of Brock. I think I may have used him in a previous TL.

My main American Generals are Arthur Wesley, Napoleon Bonaparte, Benedict Arnold Junior, Hugh Jackson and a few more. Young officers like Jonathan Swift, Robert Peel and eventually young officers like Alexander Macomb and Winfield Scott will be included. I might throw in Philip Hamilton and Alexander Hamilton Junior.