Liberty or Despair mk.II

[HueyLong]

William Henry Harrison (1773-1845), 9th President of the United States (1837-1845)


Pt. I, 1836-1839​

William Henry Harrison was an American military leader and statesman. Popular throughout the Midwest for his term as territorial governor and for his military exploits, "Old Tippecanoe" was nominated by the Whig Party in 1836 after a fierce debate between the diverse party's leaders. William Henry Harrison was decided upon as a compromise between the many favorite sons vying for the nomination, and he ran as a United Whig (with the Anti-Mason endorsement). His running mate in 1836 was Hugh Lawson White, the respected Southern lawyer and Senator, the "Cato of the United States".

William Henry Harrison's 1836 campaign is considered to be the first popular campaign in the history of the Republic. Harrison supporters coined popular tunes, erected log cabins for their candidate, handed out hard cider and whiskey and organized church revivals, all for Tippecanoe. Supporters in Kentucky assembled a large ball of wood and rolled it all the way to D.C., saying "Let's keep the ball rolling." [1] Van Buren and the Albany Regency tried to fight back, but failed to project a popular image of the "pantiwaist", as Harrison styled him. And Willie P. Mangum stole his Southern support, splitting some states to allow a Harrison victory.

"Hard Cider Has Won the Presidency!" declared one New York paper headline.

But Tippecanoe was not to have it easy. A Panic struck the nation in March, after the collapse of a prominent British bank. Riots gripped the nation, from New York to Charleston, as grain prices skyrocketed and local currencies hyperinflated. The most famous of these riots would affect Harrison's presidency greatly. It occurred in Georgetown, DC.

The John Brown[2] Riot was started by an Ohio man named John Brown who was standard among the spoils-seeker filled flophouses of Georgetown. (He is the John Brown of John Brown's Body, the famous DC drinking song.) He was in Georgetown on his last few dollars, ready to plead for a position as postmaster of Portage County, Ohio. John Brown shot a Georgetown shopkeep after he ran out of money for bread and he soon riled up a crowd of similiar spoils-seekers, and inspired them to assault the warehouses in the city. (Many also say he made anti-Negro comments which led to the sacking of the auction blocks and the beating of freemen during the riot.) The riot burned several blocks of Washington and Georgetown, destroyed the auction blocks and lynched several negroes, and robbed warehouses and taverns before it was put down by the Maryland and Virginia state militias. John Brown himself was killed by a fellow rioter in a warehouse on the Potomac.

President Harrison was quite shaken by the experience, as some of the rioters made it as far as the White House lawn. He pushed through an emergency session of Congress an authorization bill, allowing the creation of America's first gendarme: the Washington District Constabulary. But most importantly, it opened Harrison's eyes to the disaster that the Panic was. His presidency was shaped by the John Brown Riot and other similiar incidents. He came to view the Panic as a conspiracy against him and against America, and viewed any solution as justifiable.

Secretary of State Daniel Webster was told to ignore British demands of debt payment. Webster remained aloof during the meeting and by a popular account, thumbed his nose at the British ambassador, spawning the jingle:

Yankee Doodle borrows cash
Yankee Doodle spends it
Then he thumbs his nose at
The Silly gent who lent it

The Debtor's Resolution of 1837 stated that British firms could not sue for debts owed to them by Americans, and caused a second collapse among British banks and even drew calls for war, which only hardened American resolve.

Harrison pushed for a Third Bank of the United States, but found that too many Democrats were still in the House and Senate. He allowed Henry Clay and others to campaign for it and moved on to less controversial relief efforts. He pushed through the Turnpike Law in 1838, which allowed more investment in roads and canals by the Federal Government. (It also set aside funds for the first federally funded railroads)

He revoked the Specie Circular in 1838 and, with the consent of Congress, formed the Bureau of Land Sales to oversee settlement of the west. His Homestead Order allowed anyone growing foodstuffs to earn their farm, for only five years of continuous cultivation and settlement. (Modern scholars say it discouraged slavery in parts of the West, by stipulating that foodstuffs had to be grown) Large-scale speculation still continued, but it did not turn a profit in sales due to the payment in soft money.

The Caroline Massacre [3] in late 1837 drew calls for war from both sides, and led to the offers of sanctuary extended to William Lyons Mackenzie and his Canadian rebels (Which were accepted by many, and Buffalo soon became home to a number of Canadian rebels). Colonel Sir Allan McNabb and other British soldiers involved in the Massacre were given warrants and bounties in upstate New York, and many bounty hunters crossed the border to capture them. Benjamin Lett became famous for his supposed killing of McNabb in 1838, but never did earn the bounty. The New York militia itself seized a (passenger) steamer and tried all of the men aboard for the crimes of the Caroline Massacre. [4] When the Aroostook War broke out in 1838, neither side seemed likely to back down. President Harrison dispatched Winfield Scott to control the settlers in Maine, drew up Zachary Taylor to drill the Midwest's militias and began to ask Congress for a standing army. War was on the horizon.....

[1] Happened in 1840 in OTL
[2] Yes, OTL's John Brown dies early.
[3] More men than Amos Durfee die here....
[4] Something similiar happened in OTL​

 

[Nicomacheus]

I'm glad to see this back! And it seems in a new format. Eight full years for Harrison, interesting. Interesting POD, an early and long-serving WHH.

One little question that I'm honor-bound to ask: how's the Texas Revolution proceeding?

 

[HueyLong]

The Texas Revolution is proceeding mostly on schedule (which, as the Canadian War goes on, greatly annoys the South.) Its a post-Canadian War issue in the States, mostly and will be dealt with in the next president's update.

Coming Up:
Pt. II William H. Harrison and the Canadian War
Heroes of the Canadian War, pt. I
Election of 1844
Zachary Taylor and the Nothing War

 

[HueyLong]

The Canadian War
(1839-1840)

It was clear that war between Britain and the United States was edging close. One (Democratic) New York newspaper predicted it in early 1837, after the passage of the Debtor's Resolution. Many more newspapers predicted it following the Caroline Massacre and especially the immigration of Canadian rebels into the United States. Only William Henry Harrison seemed oblivious to the chance, even into 1839. He told one reporter in June, "I don't think such a thing can happen."

Harrison belatedly requested the raising of a federal army in August of 1839. It was to consist of three "grand divisions" [1] numbering 25,000 each (The Army of Maine, The Army of New York and the Army of Detroit), one grand division numbering 10,000 (The Army of the Potomac) and two "wings" numbering 5000 each (The Army of the West and the Canadian Legion) These armies were to work in "fair conjunction with and superiority to the state's respective militias". [2] Of these, only the "wings" and the Army of the Potomac were at their commissioned strength in November, when the declaration of war was signed. Lewis Cass' Army of New York was the furthest from its commissioned strength, with only 5,400 soldiers reporting in November (although it should be noted that New York's militia numbered some 10,000, having been mobilized and drilling almost continuously since 1837). Winfield Scott, General of the Army of Maine, took it upon himself to recruit from the local settlers, forming his own "wing" which numbered some 5000 in addition to his "grand division" of 15,000. The Army of Detroit under Taylor only gathered somewhere around 11,000 (with 5,000 committed by Indiana and Michigan Territory) and took on the hiring of its own Canadian force, the Hunter-Killers, who numbered about 5000 by January.

Congress, after passing the declaration of war against Britain, quickly expanded upon the original troop number. They expanded the "grand division" size to 30,000. They authorized an "Army of the South" numbering 20,000, for a proposed Bahamas campaign that never came to fruition. They quickly raised volunteer bounties to nearly $500 per head, with other state bounties applied [3] They began the construction of the forts now ringing Washington D.C. (One political controversy was the naming. One named Fort Jackson was actually never built. The Whig War Department kept pushing its construction back.) They authorized letters of marque to a number of merchants, with a large bounty (depending on ship size) and free rein on any non-military supplies. This is considered the last major action of privateers in the 19th century.

The War Department's plan was clear, having been mostly drafted by Winfield Scott in the years leading up to the War. (He had spent the time of Harrison's presidency completing Napoleonic manual translation and drafting his Anaconda plan.) [4] "The life-blood of the British in Canada is the St. Lawrence River.... constrict this river with our forces and watch as all of Canada chokes." The Anaconda Plan called for offensive operations to begin while the St. Lawrence was still frozen, an indication to later scholars that Scott had planned the war to begin when it did. An Army was to strike north from New York and tie down British forces there. The Army in Detroit was supposed to seize Windsor and sit out the winter. Addendums to the plan called on the Canadian Legion to stir up rebellion, and much the same responsibility to the Hunter-Killers.

Winfield Scott reached the St. Lawrence, seizing several unprepared forts on the river by March 1840. (Winfield Scott's meticulous preparation and his propensity for seizing Canadian's property are considered to be the keys to his seemingly impossible march as a "flying division". Robert E. Lee, the Hero of St. Louis, is also greatly credited for his engineering skill). "Great Scott " re-christened his army the Army of the St. Lawrence. The Army of Detroit, meanwhile, seized Windsor in April, to light Hunter-Killer losses. The Army of New York, however, failed to advance and was pushed back to Plattsburgh by late March, where he managed to stall the British advance.

The British response was ill-coordinated and undermanned. Although most of the provinces had raised their own militias (which suffered from high levels of desertion to the Canadian rebels), there were only 30,000 regulars in all of Canada, and more than half of these were now cut off in Ontario. The advance into New York was handled primarily by Ontario's militia (and large bounties to Canadian deserters paid by the state of New York are considered to have helped Lewis Cass push back in mid-1840) The regulars stationed in Halifax didn't even move to stop Winfield Scott's march, instead relying on (false) reports that 50,000 regulars were being sent. That number ended up being only 25,000 and one of the ships carrying 5000 was sunk by a privateer vessel in June.

American support was almost unanimous. Many had come to believe that the Panic was a British plot. Events such as the Caroline Massacre and the fabricated "Rape of Belinda", where New Brunswick militia were accused of raping a Maine businessman's daughter, only hardened their resolve. Most opposition came only from the upper class and some involved in international commerce. While shipping magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt originally opposed the Debtor's Resolution and other similar actions, he soon negotiated with members of Congress for shipping rights in the St. Lawrence and possibly any Caribbean acquisitions, and financed nearly 400 privateers in the course of the war and even donated two steamships to the US Navy. He even began investing in the railroads that Congress was using the opportunity of war to forge.

Canadian support, meanwhile, was outright treasonous. Most Canadians supported the invasion, having been through the effects of the Panic (which tightened credit in Canada) as well as embargoes imposed on certain US trades (Valuable naval stores sat unused in many St. Lawrence ports, because they could not trade them to the US) Hunter's Lodges and Republican Assemblies proliferated, and encouraged men to desert and join with the US Army. Only in New Brunswick and the Maritimes was there resistance to the United States and support for the British, but those areas were the first captured. Even the Quebeckers supported the invasion, albeit more lukewarmly, instead seeking a more independent path. Blue patriote sashes became a common sight, and resistance to British authority became commonplace.

Winfield Scott tried to wait along the St. Lawrence till his forces could be further supplemented, but reports of the British regulars landing in Halifax spurred him to rash action. He sent Robert E. Lee to take up a fortified position on the still being constructed Halifax road, with 5,000 Americans and a force of some 5,000 Maine volunteers and Canadians in May. Fort Scott, as it was named, was still under construction when Robert E. Lee managed to defeat a force of 10,000 regulars and 5,000 militia under Sir John Harvey in August.

Lewis Cass tried another push into Canada in June and managed to reach the south shore of the St. Lawrence by August, assisted greatly by Canadian deserters and volunteers. He would winter in there, in a small fort overlooking the river. He managed to quash the temporary threat to New York.

Zachary Taylor, refusing his War Department orders to stay put, advanced into London, fighting more regulars than either Scott or Cass. He refused to negotiate for prisoners with the British as long as they refused to negotiate prisoners with the Hunter-Killers, and most prisoners captured by him were sent back to Detroit in something later called "The Long March". Many were handed over to the Hunter-Killers for execution or humiliation, although militia members were offered a place in the Lodge. He ended his march in London, Ontario in late August, and would winter there.

Stephen Watts Kearney, meanwhile, received his first orders in July, and began the long, slow campaign into Western Canada and his target was Fort Garry. He recruited Lakota Sioux scouts into his army, bought enough horses for his men, and further drilled his cavalry-men and dragoons, whom he considered key to his campaign. The Army of the West soon had the highest ratio of men to horses, even if it did cost Kearney many of his food supplies.

Congress passed the Annexation Act in late 1840, laying out some of the groundwork for Canadian conquest. Provided for immediate admission were the states of Ontario (pensinsular Ontario), Madawasca (a vaguely defined hodgepodge of New Brunswick and pieces of Quebec) and Halifax (the Maritimes). The rest were to be admitted first as territories. Congress also passed a great expenditure bill, allowing for the creation of railroads and telegraph lines. (The telegraph lines were to be governed jointly by the US Post Office and the US Army)

Congress also formed the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, to appoint Congressional Officers and issue orders directly to the War Department. Congressional Officers were to observe in the field the three armies and make reports and evaluations back to Congress. It was a measure the President opposed, believing those to be the sole duty of the executive branch.

The year ended with much of Canada in American hands, although it was clear that there were frays in the threads of victory. Scott was strapped of manpower, Halifax was still open to the British, Cass was the subject of humiliation, and Taylor was condemned as reckless. However, new things lay ahead in the next year, with the strengthening of US forces and a most intriguing set of occurrences in Oregon......

[1] The term corps had not yet come into common use.
[2] Numbers.... ahh.... my sources place the US Army at 30,000 in 1840, with most of these deployed in the West (which is why the Army of the West is at full strength).... 10,000 in Maine at the time of conflict, many of which are pushed into Scott's own army.... 50,000 were authorized in the Aroostook war in OTL so more than that for a wider conflict..... so I think this is a good amount to start off with
[3] Due to the US's weak financial standing, less than you'd think even then
[4] In case you're saying "too much parallelism", Scott likened even his invasion of Mexico to a snake.
​

 

[wkwillis]

I read someplace (or other) that New York had 40% of the cannon in the US, after having been a battlefield once too many times in the past. Figure on New York being the key state. The canals connecting and providing logistic support even in the winter, after they freeze. The main canal connect Lake Erie and the middle Great Lakes, the Champlain canal connected to the St. Lawrence river, and the Osego canal connected to Lake Ontario. All were built between 1817 and 1828.
Because of the canals the farms were more developed, the population was higher, there were horses and farriers available, etc. Very different from the war of 1812.

 

[HueyLong]

It all depends on where the British concentrate their forces. In this case, they concentrate on New York. And note that the logistic advantage works both ways (as does the fortification note)

They do push back the British eventually and advance pretty well, but it is the first front to see a failure. (Part of the problem in recruitment is that many would rather join the state militia- it initially pays a higher bounty. So, Cass remains well below his mandated strength)

The reason Maine does so well is volunteers and the mobilized Maine militia, as well as the relative lack of fortifications. The same to Windsor for Taylor- it was a small village at the time, with no regulars stationed there.

I think breakthroughs would come first where it is a "soft" front.

 

[Nicomacheus]

Just to confirm / clarify: you've had the rebellions in 1837-8 in Canada fester on and to a greater degree than it appears they did OTL. Is the primary difference the American response to the Panic? This leads to butterflies which exacerbate the Caroline massacre and the Arostook war?
Plus Harrison's administration simply taking much better "advantage" of the events / handling the situation more poorly than van Buren did? Plausible I suppose. What's the response in the US? Who opposes the war? I have visions of John Quincy Adams making speeches from his seat in the House of Representatives.

Interesting tactics in the North! And I was wondering what you'd do with Oregon.

 

[HueyLong]

Just to confirm / clarify: you've had the rebellions in 1837-8 in Canada fester on and to a greater degree than it appears they did OTL. Is the primary difference the American response to the Panic? This leads to butterflies which exacerbate the Caroline massacre and the Arostook war?
Plus Harrison's administration simply taking much better "advantage" of the events / handling the situation more poorly than van Buren did? Plausible I suppose. What's the response in the US? Who opposes the war? I have visions of John Quincy Adams making speeches from his seat in the House of Representatives.

Interesting tactics in the North! And I was wondering what you'd do with Oregon.

Weaker British finances in the 1830s lead to a different handling of various colonial affairs- including a more inflammatory response to the Canadian troubles. (And elsewhere, a weaker response to the Boers in S. Africa) It also leads to a mildly worse Panic of 1837.

Political effects are diverse. John Greenleaf Whittier takes the seat he wanted in Congress for example. Van Buren breaks with the Regency on the War. Some Democrats oppose it at first, especially in the south, but such lions as Thomas Hart Benton come out in support of it. The eventual pairing of abolitionism with the British helps to temper the Democrat's concern.

As for the Whigs, Daniel Webster, for example, hates the war and Henry Clay is lukewarm on the prospect. Abraham Lincoln loses his political career over a disagreement with the state party.

As for Oregon, the eventual capital of Washington is Carson City.

 

[Nicomacheus]

Weaker British finances in the 1830s lead to a different handling of various colonial affairs- including a more inflammatory response to the Canadian troubles. (And elsewhere, a weaker response to the Boers in S. Africa) It also leads to a mildly worse Panic of 1837.

Political effects are diverse. John Greenleaf Whittier takes the seat he wanted in Congress for example. Van Buren breaks with the Regency on the War. Some Democrats oppose it at first, especially in the south, but such lions as Thomas Hart Benton come out in support of it. The eventual pairing of abolitionism with the British helps to temper the Democrat's concern.

As for the Whigs, Daniel Webster, for example, hates the war and Henry Clay is lukewarm on the prospect. Abraham Lincoln loses his political career over a disagreement with the state party.

As for Oregon, the eventual capital of Washington is Carson City.

Ah, I presume Lincoln the poet will make an appearance in this version? I quite liked that part of the original. What do RW Emerson and HD Thoreau do? Does the former oppose this war as he did the Mexican War OTL, leading to his imprisonment for not paying his taxes?

Kit Carson! Always an interesting character. And is this Washington actually OTL British Columbia or are the British going to get to kep something?

 

[HueyLong]

Ah, I presume Lincoln the poet will make an appearance in this version? I quite liked that part of the original. What do RW Emerson and HD Thoreau do? Does the former oppose this war as he did the Mexican War OTL, leading to his imprisonment for not paying his taxes?

Yes, Lincoln the poet will be in this (although he gets more riled up over another war, and it spawns his most famous poem)

Emerson and Thoreau do not get as tied up in the Canadian War as OTL's Mexican War. Walden becomes an account of a Fourierite phalanx ITTL (A cultural update is in the works, after I finish up the war and the election, but these are minor details)

On another note, Garrison falls from grace after the Charleston Raid (referenced in the other version) and his supposed associations with the North Star Society. He does not become even the nuisance he became in OTL.

Kit Carson! Always an interesting character. And is this Washington actually OTL British Columbia or are the British going to get to kep something?

That is up to a later update, isn't it? But I'll leave you to guess about the possibility of that for now.

 

[Nicomacheus]

Yes, Lincoln the poet will be in this (although he gets more riled up over another war, and it spawns his most famous poem)

Emerson and Thoreau do not get as tied up in the Canadian War as OTL's Mexican War. Walden becomes an account of a Fourierite phalanx ITTL (A cultural update is in the works, after I finish up the war and the election, but these are minor details)

On another note, Garrison falls from grace after the Charleston Raid (referenced in the other version) and his supposed associations with the North Star Society. He does not become even the nuisance he became in OTL.

That is up to a later update, isn't it? But I'll leave you to guess about the possibility of that for now.

Thanks for the answers! I eagerly await the next update.

 

[Hnau]

I'd like to see this to continue, HueyLong, I see as yet no flaws in your research or delivery. Good job!

In my own area of expertise, I believe that there will be some interesting butterflies in Mormon history. In late 1839 the Mormons were relocating to Nauvoo at the edge of Illinois, and they had a population of about 16,500. The Illinois government welcomed them into the area because both parties hoped to gain Mormon votes. The fun part is that the 9 of the 12 Apostles including Brigham Young left to convert several thousands of people in the British Isles, arriving in spring 1840 OTL. Now, instead, they will probably remain in Nauvoo. Furthermore, the Mormons remaining in the British Isles had begun to emigrate to the USA to join the rest of the Church by 1840. Here, the Mormons won't get the extra British emigrant boost, and the British section of the LDS Church might be left very weak after years of isolation.

Definitely a lot of knock-on effects, so... looking forward to another update!

 

[Nicomacheus]

I agree. I'm still waiting to see the tri-partite presidential races promised in Mk. 1.

 

[Nicomacheus]

On Behalf of Huey, an Update

Because Huey has been kicked, he can't post. However, he's pounding away at this TL, so I've offered to post this update for him on the History of Oregon in TTL. Onwards to the Canadian War, methinks:


Liberty or Despair Update

A Quick History of Oregon
(black is OTL, red is different/never happened OTL)​

1808: A Northwest Company enters through the Athabasca Pass
1810: John Jacob Astor founds the Pacific Fur Company
1811: Astoria founded by the Pacific Fur Company
1818: Anglo-American Convention of 1818 convenes, agrees to “joint occupancy” of the Oregon Country
1821: The Northwest Company merged with the Hudson Bay Company
1824: John McCloughlin appointed Chief Factor of Oregon by the Hudson Bay and Northwest Company. He would later be seen to have American leanings.
1834: Jason Lee settles in the Willamette (near Salem, Oregon), founding a mission school for Indians. He found about a dozen Canadian settlers with native wives, who had previously been employed by the Hudson's Bay Company.
1837: Jason Lee participates in the Willamette Cattle Company venture, with the express intent of breaking the Hudson Bay Company's monopoly on cattle. The venture succeeded, bringing cattle and horses into the Willamette.
1837: The Hudson Bay Company is dissolved and its territories put under direct British management. John McLoughlin is removed from his position.
1838: The Salem Accords, drawn up by John Jacob Astor, John McLoughlin, Jason Lee, and Nathaniel Wyeth) set down the model for a territorial government as authorized by Congress. It has an elected three person executive and a unicameral legislature. [1]

1839: The British fortify Astoria in force, seize Oregon City, demand the dissolution of the Territorial Government and declare the treaties subjecting Oregon to “joint occupancy” null and void. This action was taken before the declaration of war reached Oregon. [2] Congress authorizes an expedition under John C. Fremont to survey Oregon.
1839: The Triumvirate (Wyeth, McLoughlin and Astor) [3] refuses to accept the British demands and declares independence as “The Country of Oregon) They begin forming a militia and draw broad support from the mostly American populace of the lower territories. Their “Country of Oregon”, however, retreats to the easternmost edge of forts)
1840: While in Iowa, John C. Fremont meets Kit Carson, whom he quickly hires. John C. Fremont and Kit Carson reach Oregon (Fort Hall, as yet unseized, welcomes their 30 odd men) by August. [4] They are surprised to find that Oregon is entering war. Carson begins drilling his own men, Carson's Company, chosen from the militia-men, regular soldiers and Carson's own tagalongs. Carson quickly becomes an ally to John Jacob Astor, while Fremont tries to align himself with McCloughlin
1840: In November, Carson's Company fights its first engagement near Champoeg, Oregon. The men are blooded and defeat a British militia with nearly twice as many men. Carson is given a brevet rank of Lieutenant. Fremont demands the same, and begins drilling his own Fremont's Free-Riders following Champoeg
1841: Fremont commissions the cheap canvas uniforms of his men, using his own personal funds and a slip of credit from Thomas Hart Benton. The “tent-men” or the “Tans” become a term of fear and of political association later, due to Fremont's personal plan of terror against collaborators and British agents. Both the Free-Riders and Carson's Company conduct raids up and down the Willamette, finally assaulting Oregon City in June. Militia recruitment swells after the “Daring Raid of Oregon City.”[5] An assault on Astoria in July is repelled, with heavy regular losses after both Carson and Fremont ordered a retreat of their companies. Fremont contracts with the Willamette Cattle Company for horses, of which there are few in Oregon Country.
1842: Astoria (Fort George) is seized in March. The entire British garrison is taken prisoner. Fremont's Free-Riders were put forth to terrorize the prisoners and executed nearly 50 of them. McLoughlin calls for an assault on Vancouver [6], but cooler heads prevail and call off such an attack. Instead, Fremont's Free Riders and Carson's Company are set loose on the Columbia, extending their raids all along the river after the seizure of Fort Colville in June [7] Kearney is given his Orders to March in July, after seizing Fort Garry and the surrounding areas.


[1] Actual form of government proposed IOTL

[2] And is used as a cause for war, though Washington didn't know of it until after their own declaration.
[3] Lee declines, note that McCoughlin and Astor have had a rivalry
[4] Slight fuddling of times for their first meeting and arrival IOTL. They did meet in 1840, although Fremont would not call on Carson till 1842

[5] The title and subject of a later book by Fremont
[6] Fortified IOTL under his direction, not fortified ITTL due to strained British funds and mismanagement
[7] OTL's Spokane, more or less. On the Columbia River however, so its seizure lets them venture further north easier.​

 

[HueyLong]

Thanks, Nico.

Hnau, are there any sources or suggestions you could give me for the Mormons?

 

[Hnau]

Alright, check out this source.

What this means is that the 5000 British converts that moved to Nauvoo from 1840-1846 won't be because there'll be no British mission (with no transportation between US and Britain in a time of war).

Another source about the British LDS.

This deprives the LDS of a lot of their membership, which will slow down their push west and their colonization of the west. I need more information of what happens after the war, though, to figure out how fast the British LDS community grows. Without the connection from the leadership, the Mormon branch there might whither away.

As it is, without this kind of demographic growth, the anti-Mormons feel less pressure, and react more slowly to the Mormon Illinois presence. I don't think it delays it significantly... Joseph Smith is martyred about 6 months later ITTL, which delays everything a good deal. Its all butterflies after that.

But, yeah, really, just expect the Mormons to be building up Nauvoo during the current point in your timeline. They won't be doing anything interesting until 1845.

 

[Grimm Reaper]

Since the US refused to establish a regular army close to this size during the actual war of 1812 or the Mexican War and only grudgingly fielded 16,000 men in 1860 just how does this gigantic military get justified?

And there is no possible way a single privateer could take out 5000 men on a single ship. For that matter, I doubt there are any ships capable of such a load individually.

Since I don't see any changes in naval production the average American along the coast has yet to become unhappy, though they may believe otherwise. And once the British see Mexico as the natural ally to block US expansion...

 

[HueyLong]

Since the US refused to establish a regular army close to this size during the actual war of 1812 or the Mexican War and only grudgingly fielded 16,000 men in 1860 just how does this gigantic military get justified?

And there is no possible way a single privateer could take out 5000 men on a single ship. For that matter, I doubt there are any ships capable of such a load individually.

Since I don't see any changes in naval production the average American along the coast has yet to become unhappy, though they may believe otherwise. And once the British see Mexico as the natural ally to block US expansion...

1. Mexican-American War- 78,000 soldiers. And thats without established state militias in the area, without a great national or regional simmering for war and without great antipathy to the power (Mexico) in question. 80,000 on paper is none too far off.

Also note that for the Aroostok War alone, without a much bigger threat or any rage militaire, Congress called for 40,000 men. 80,000 for a larger conflict is none too far off. In fact, lets look at the numbers as they actually worked out (and not what Congress asked for.) Please note that all numbers include not just federal troops but state militias and paramilitaries and may not even reflect the numbers at camp.

Cass: 15,400 (if you count the state militia all over the state)
Scott: ~20,000 (a bit more than was actually raised IOTL- one account puts those numbers at 17,000 for the Aroostok War)
Taylor: ~16,000
Kearney: ~1500
Potomac: ~2500 (counting the Washington District Constabulary)

Add that up and you get a grand total of: 55,400. Note that all numbers are approximate and recruitment and reporting numbers dipped shortly after the Armies actually saw combat (especially in New York)

2. That 5000 men was actually a mistake, meant to be ~500. My Mexican American war sources have ships capable of holding ~500 men. Not sure about British capabilities, which I assume would be better. And note that privateers don't necessarily work separately. (Vanderbilt in particular invests in some privateer companies.)

While shipping magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt originally opposed the Debtor's Resolution and other similar actions, he soon negotiated with members of Congress for shipping rights in the St. Lawrence and possibly any Caribbean acquisitions, and financed nearly 400 privateers in the course of the war and even donated two steamships to the US Navy.

I may retcon that part out, as it was poorly thought out. I'll admit that, even if 500 men was the intent.

3. Gee, I wonder if the naval balance will be addressed soon. The South will get the worst of it, once Halifax falls, that is for sure. But the other version marked such events as their land based raids failing (Charleston Raid in particular) which were cited as a reason to end the war.

Some Northern ports will see a blockade soon. Boston first, as is likely, it being a center of privateer activity. But right now, the Royal Navy is trying to secure the St. Lawrence, at least for 1840.

Actually, the blockades spur railroads and canals for transportation and encourage an earlier shift in manufacturing and commerce west. So, it isn't all bad or all forlorn for the Americans.

Consider this to be the Whale and the Wolf. Neither side will get off easy. Its not just an Ameriwank, I assure you. America will experience problems, believe me.

As for your other point about Mexico, this United States has not become involved in the affairs of Texas just yet and the Mexicans aren't quite itching for a war. Which isn't to say your idea isn't an eventuality, but it hasn't hit the table during the Canadian War.

 

[HueyLong]

For these Aroostook Lands

We are marching on to Madawask,
To fight the trespassers;
We’ll teach the British how to walk
And come off conquerors.


We’ll have our land, right good and clear,
For all the English say;
They shall not cut another log,
Nor stay another day.

They need not think to have our land,
We Yankees can fight well;
We’ve whipped them twice most manfully,
As every child can tell.

And if the tyrants say one word,
A third time we will show,
How high the Yankee spirit runs,
And what our guns can do.

They better much all stay at home,
And mind their business there;
The way we treated them before,
Made all the nations stare.

Come on! Brace fellows, one and all!
The Red-Coats ne’er shall say,
We Yankees, feared to meet them armed,
So gave our land away.

We’ll feed them well with ball and shot.
We’ll cut these red-coats down,
Before we yield to them an inch
Or title of our ground.

Ye husbands, fathers, brothers, sons,
From every quarter come!
March, to the bugle and the fife!
March, to the beating drum!

Onward! My lads so brave and true
Our country’s right demands
With justice, and with glory fight,
For these Aroostook lands!

 

[HueyLong]

THE SIX POINTS OF THE CHARTER
1. A vote for every man twenty one years of age, of sound mind, and not undergoing punishment for crime.
2. The ballot —To protect the elector in the exercise of his vote.
3. No property qualification for members of Parliament—thus enabling the constituencies to return the man of their choice, be he rich or poor.
4. Payment of members, thus enabling an honest tradesman, working man, or other person, to serve a constituency, when taken from his business to attend to the interests of the country.
5. Equal constituencies securing the same amount of representation for the same number of electors,--instead of allowing small constituencies to swamp the votes of larger ones.
6. Annual Parliaments, thus presenting the most effectual check to bribery and intimidation, since though a constituency might be bought once in seven years (even with the ballot), no purse could buy a constituency (under a system of universal suffrage) in each ensuing twelvemonth; and since members, when elected for a year only, would not be able to defy and betray their constituents as now.

The Troubles
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"The free men of England have a choice: a sword in their hand or a rope around their neck."- John Frost

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The Troubles began with the Six Points of the People's Charter. Such a simple, succinct document would stand behind all the tumultuous events of the 1840s in Britain. The Wars in America and South Africa, the simmering rebellion in Ireland, the wheat mold from Canada, the unemployment in the mills, [1] all of these only fanned the Chartist flame.

The Chartists started out as a simple political movement, calling only for their Six Points. However, when their cries for reform fell on unsympathetic ears, they became much more. The initial leadership was ambivalent towards violence, the following leadership exultant in it. The initial leadership held no strong opinion on the monarchy, the following leadership was bitterly opposed (and some say explicitly involved in the death of Queen Victoria). The Chartists expanded their demands as the situation deteriorated, with so-called "Leveller" measures such as their seizure of mills late in the Troubles. In any case, the rejection of their demands and the volatile domestic climate produced the first true strands of British radicalism seen since the English Civil War, radicalism which would not be seen till the Spartacists of the late 19th century. While their wave of revolution would be met with a wave of reaction, they undoubtedly changed England- and most say for the worst.

The first major incident of violence, led by John Frost, occurred in the Westgate Hotel in Newport, Monmouthshire. On March 3 1839, John Frost led a group of marchers through South Wales to take the hotel and the town, to demand the release of various Chartist prisoners (and to release the untainted grain from the granaries). The hotel was occupied by the prominent merchant class of the town and the local squirearchy, people whom John Frost had had numerous rivalries with. [2] The Chartists seized the town for two days, shutting down the mails in the hopes of spreading the insurrection, before they were defeated in the "Battle of Monmouth", a name meant to conjure up images of the American Revolutionary War. Sporadic violence occurred in major towns after Newport was seized and the Chartist movement banked their hopes on a full rebellion that never came.

The losses at Newport and elsewhere temporarily hampered the movement, with the nationwide crackdown on Chartists, but at the same time, their popularity and numbers soared, calling for blood to be paid in kind for the "Martyrs of Monmouth". The wheat shortages and hoarding among many merchants did not hurt their cause either. The declaration of war by the United States, however, would see the Chartists in an odd position.

The Chartists had always held pro-American sympathies, calling for peace before war was evident. They were quickly labeled as "defeatist" and temporarily disavowed violence after the declaration. However, when cotton ran out in October 1840 and mills closed all over the country, the Chartists came to the fore to demand "peace with honour" and a "return to normality". When news of American victories came to the British shores, they threw further criticisms upon the British government and their ranks swelled. Pamphlets printed in 1840 and 1841 actively called for desertion from the Army and Navy. The mutinies which ended the Boston Blockade in 1842 are largely pinned on Chartist agitation (although American agents and poor conditions are also cited as causes)

In 1841, mill workers in Edinburgh seized some of the mills which lay closed. They tried to spin flax and even filled an Army contract for uniforms (of flax) before they were ousted by the owners and a private militia. The use of flax in the mill seizures is said to have led to the adoption of the flax flower as a symbol for later Republican movements, although the earliest recorded use of such a flag occurred in the 1860s. Mill seizures occurred everywhere, but most of them were quickly put down and England's working poor were left out in the dirt.

With desertion at a high in the Home Isles and abroad, mill seizures and fights in the streets of industrial towns, sporadic riots over the Charter or the price of bread, the nation seemed to be marching for Revolution. That march would be reversed to Reaction, with the actions of one lone man on May 29, 1842- a day that would see a Queen and her Prince-Consort shot down.


[1] 1838: First Boer War, 1839: Third British-American War, Irish Rebellion is only a thin simmering until 1845, Wheat mold occurred in OTL but did not leave America and Canada, mills shut down due to lack of cotton
[2] There are no soldiers stationed here ITTL, this event happened IOTL.

A Queen In Her Grave, 1842

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Queen Victoria (24 May 1819 - 30 May 1842), Her Majesty the Queen (20 June 1837 - 30 May 1842)

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