New Albion: A Different Division of North America

[galanx]

Part 15; Journey to the West: Reaching New Zion- 1807-1812

Walter Butler takes over, and does marry the three women suggested. He later adds a fourth, a mixed-blood descendant of a Canadian voyageur and a Kaskaskia woman.

The greatest challenge comes a few years later, when Colonel Tye’s son by his first wife asks to marry Walter Butler’s daughter by his first wife. While blacks have married Indians and mixed-bloods, this is the first union between a black man and a white woman, and causes great tension in the community. Walter however blesses the marriage, denouncing any form of colour prejudice as a betrayal of The Prophet Joseph’s (as Brant has become after his death) message.

Meanwhile Tecumseh’s Rebellion has been defeated in 1809, and the Indians are once again pushed back- with Tenskwatwa blaming the Loyalists for their defeat, as white men violating the purity of Indian ground. Ft. Resolution is attacked, but holds firm.

Word has gradually spread to the East both through fur traders in Montreal, and now from settlers in Indiana, that the “Butcher of Cherry Creek” not only is alive, but is running a polygamous race-mixing cult intending to bring the Indians down on the United States while inciting insurrection among the slaves.

Tales are told of settlers being murdered, and their wives and daughters being kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages, not only with white Loyalists, but also Indians, and, even worse, escaped Negro slaves. The stories are (mostly) not true. In their clashes with settlers in the area, the menfolk are sometimes killed, and the women are given the choice of either being left in alone in a wilderness of hostile Indians, or returning with the Butlerites, as they are beginning to be called by their enemies.

Theoretically, no woman is forced to marry against her wishes, though social and spiritual pressure can be pretty strong. In fact, under the influence of the strong-willed Catherine and Christine, extending the doctrine of equality of the races, equality of the sexes is established too, and women are given a vote.

Walter Butler, the new leader, hearing these stories, knows it’s only a matter of time before the Americans- settlers, soldiers, or both- attack again.

He has asked the Spanish for permission to settle across the Mississippi and has been refused, as has his request for permission to travel down the river and seek transport from New Orleans. With the East and South cut off, and unable to stay where they are, that only leaves West or North. Some argue for heading north to seek refuge in Rupert’s Land, just across the 49th parallel, but Walter argues against it- he doesn’t trust the Hudson’s Bay Company to have the strength to keep out the Americans pouring west. He holds the only solution is to follow Joseph Brant’s advice, and head west.

As a result, the community splits. Some choose to remain in Ft. Resolution; others choose to head north into the Red River country, still under British sovereignty. The majority decide to follow the Young Prophet.

And so, after two years of scouting and preparation, four thousand Butlerites set off, in groups and in stages. The crossing is horrendous, and takes up to three years. It’s estimated that a third die on the trip or before the new settlement is established- but in the end, in 1812, they see the Union flag flying over a small fort on the Serpentine, whose fur trading factors from the North-West Company view in mingled astonishment and apprehension this mighty migration. The Loyalists have reached the Promised Land, and, swearing allegiance to King George and Britain, establish the Loyal Commonwealth of British Montana: capital, New Zion.

 

[galanx]

Part 16 –Peaceful Expansions, For Now: Around the Cape(s); Loyalists to New Albion 1785-1815

With the defeat of Britain in the American Revolution, and the subsequent Persecution of the Loyalists after the assassination of George Washington, approximately 60 thousands Loyalists flee the United States. Some go the Caribbean; most go to Britain, where the fortunate are given property seized from fleeing British Catholics after the Gordon Rebellion. Still, tens of thousands take the long voyage around Cape Horn or the even longer voyage around the Cape of Good Hope to the British territories of new Albion on the West Coast of North America.

Most settle in

-Western Columbia [OTL southern British Columbia and northern Washington State ] at:
- the south-east coast of Anson Island [Vancouver Island],
- the Cook River [Fraser R.], where they found New London[OTL New Westminster] and Squamish [original name of Seattle] further south.

-Ouragan [southern Washington, and Oregon] moving in from the mouth of the Norris River [Columbia] to the fertile William Valley inland [Williamette], where they establish the town of Williamsport [Portland].

-Many southern Loyalists prefer the warmer climates of British California, settling in Francistown [San Francisco] and the Central California valley, often bringing their slaves. They rename the colony New Carolina.

Since most of the area is heavily wooded, from the redwoods of New Carolina to the Banks’ Firs of Western Columbia, a constant complaint of the colonists is the need for labour to do the heavy work of clearing the land. This leads to the idea of using convict workers, transporting those formerly shipped to the southern colonies of the United States to new Albion. The idea proves semi-successful, with tens of thousands of convicts sent between 1785 and 1835, when it is abandoned. One problem is the ease with which the convicts can escape into the hinterlands, often marrying Indian women. It is felt that they might be inclined to support the Americans, always viewed as the threat encroaching from the East.

Though there is never any indication of disloyalty, there is a rebellion against harsh conditions at the convict lumber camp of Ft. Columbia [Vancouver]. With the convicts seizing the Narrows to prevent access by ship, newly-appointed Governor William Bligh lands at New London instead, and, recruiting a militia of free settlers, puts down the rebellion. Though an inquiry questions the severity of Bligh’s actions, the grateful settlers change the name of Ft Columbia to Blighton in his honour.

Meanwhile, Back in the States: USNA- 1781-1815

The North-East had long been an area of unsettled boundaries, and it takes a few years to settle. Because the former Acadia (Sunbury County) has been settled largely by Loyalists, it is thought best to keep it within Nova Scotia. The area east of the Penobscot River was included in Nova Scotia, with the western part of the region known as “Maine” remaining part of Massachusetts, which thus remains the only non-contiguous state. In honour of “The Liberator” Benedict Arnold, the name of the new State is changed to Benedictia (pronounced ‘Ben-uh-dee-shia’ by the locals)
[OTL Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI and eastern Maine.]

In spite of the wishes of Ethan Allen, the area known as the Green Mountains is divided up between New Hampshire and New York. With the “Colossus of the North” (Canada) seeming to loom above, it is felt that other states should be fairly large in counter-balance. [good-bye Vermont]. In disgust Allen returns to Canada with some of his green Mountain Boys, and settles in the Niagara Peninsula.

Flag of the United States of North America: There were two competing versions of the earliest flag used by the Rebels; the Navy version with horizontal red and white stripes, and the version flown by Robert Rogers with red, white, and blue stripes- both with the Union flag in the canton, later replaced by white stars on a blue background. As this was the flag flown over Quebec in the first great victory of the Revolution, it was adopted by George Washington, though both banners were flown. The ‘tricolor’ was officially adopted with the recognition of the ‘Fifteen Founding States’ including Canada and Benedictia (the alternative of white and red stripes was characterized as ‘looking like a barber’s pole [sign of a brothel]' by Ben Franklin).


Canada: 1784-1815
In the years after the Revolution Quebec City remains dominated by the alliance of Seigneury and Church- while Montreal undergoes dynamic growth. American traders and money flood into the city, and the fur trade into the west blossoms. More importantly in the long run, so does Montreal as an entry for immigrants heading to the interior- a waterborne passage through Lake Erie and Lake Ontario directly into Upper Canada, western New York and Pennsylvania and the Northwest Territories and, a few years later, Indiana.

Another group of immigrants were the various Enlightenment philosophes, lawyers, liberal clerics, and Protestants driven out of France by Louis XVI’s ‘Resurgence’ (see below). Finding the atmosphere of Quebec City uncongenial, dominated as it is by conservative land-owners and a reactionary Catholic hierarchy , they mostly end up in Montreal. While less numerous, they fulfill an important role in revitalizing the French language, preventing the total Anglicization of Montreal and establishing it as a great centre of French culture.

Michel Chartiere, serves two six-year terms as governor (1784-1796), having been somewhat reconciled with his son Alain. After his release from comfortable house arrest in Boston (for supporting the British) Alain returns to Canada- but not to sit behind the stuffy walls of Quebec City with his father and a bunch of reactionary landowners. He moves to Montreal, where between fur-trading, selling supplies to would-be settlers, and land speculation, he becomes exceedingly wealthy. On the death of his father (apparently preparing to run for a third term) he easily succeeds him. Old differences are long-forgotten; his daughter marries the son of a prominent Patriot he met while in captivity [as in OTL]


A man of drive, his main concern is to oversee the growth of Montreal and the opening of the West. To this end, he puts his energies to the development of the canal around the Lachine rapids in Montreal (first attempted in 1689), and a set of canals linking Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The Chartiere Canal [Lachine Canal] is opened in 1810, and the Ontario Canal [Welland canal] in 1814. The effects are great; with a water route deep into the heart of the Northwest, almost to the Mississippi (well, for half the year anyway) Montreal undergoes enormous growth.

The inevitable happens. The growth in settlement in the area of Upper Canada between the Great Lakes, almost entirely by English-speaking Americans and immigrants from England, Ireland, and Scotland, leads to demand for separation from the French-dominated government of Canada. Congress grants it, Chartiere bows to the inevitable with the quip that it’s better to be ‘en famille’ than among ‘Amis’, referring to La Famille, the compact group of French and Anglican families that still dominated Canadian politics, and ‘Les Amis’, the still-slightly derogatory term for English-speaking American-Canadians. The new state of Niagara establishes its capital at its largest city, formerly known as York [Toronto], but whose name had been changed to Rogerstown to honour the great Ranger (and English-American) who conquered Canada for America.

Retcon:New York takes time to recover after having been burned by George Washington during his retreat, leading to bitter partisan fighting between Patriots and Loyalists in the rest of the state. Still, its location is enough to assure its rebuilding; by 1800 it has reached its original size, and then starts to increase rapidly. By 1820 a decision is reached to build the Erie canal, which is finished in 1837, and New York starts to overtake Montreal in size and prominence.

The Rest of the U.S.1785-1815

This is time of peaceful development for the U.S., apart from the inevitable Indian Wars on the frontiers, and some conflict with Spain in the south. With the collapse of the Appalachian Line, American settlement extends to the Mississippi. The beginning of this period sees a lull in growth as immigration from England, Lowland Scotland, and Ulster is depressed by the anti-Loyalist riots. This is somewhat made up by immigration of English, Irish, and Highland Scots Catholics- many of whom settle in Canada, due to lingering anti-Catholicism elsewhere. Still, the attractions of, and ease of passage to, the new Republic lead to an increase in growth beginning near the end of the time-span.

By 1815 much of the newly-opened land east of the Mississippi is beginning to fill in- and the vacant lands beyond are beginning to look tempting.

 

[galanx]

Part 17:The Rest of the World:

France 1780-1815

Like British PM Rockingham, Louis XVI’s carriage is mobbed in his own capital city- but in this case by adulatory supporters of the great victor against the British. Louis has always wanted to be liked, and now he’s found the way- not through conciliation or compromise, but through conquest. He now begins to see himself as the heir to his grandfather. Times have changed of course, and Sun Kings are no longer in fashion. Louis instead chooses to emulate the epitome of enlightened despotism and martial power, Frederick II of Prussia.
He takes to appearing in military dress and spends a good deal of time (and money) on his army and navy.

Aid to the Americans has been expensive, though the war was only four years long; thanks to the reforms introduced in 1760s by Dupleix of India, plus increased revenues from the French East India Company [hat-tip again to “Cliveless World”], France was able to finance the campaign without undue overspending. Victory has not only brought in the promise of new colonial revenues from India and the Caribbean, but also a huge indemnity from Britain enabling France to achieve a more favorable balancing of the books.

Though there was much grumbling against the Finance Minister, Turgot, his management as Minister of the Navy is held to be responsible for the great French victories. Louis therefore trusts him enough to support further reforms, which involve liberalizing the economy, putting in place tax reforms which shift some of the burden to the aristocracy, and curbing the power of local guilds.

The nobility is infuriated, not only at these actions, but at Louis’ curbings of the extravagances of Versailles. The frivolities of the court are greatly curtailed, and a more somber manner is put in place- “the bourgeois King”, he is mocked- behind his back.

Both in civil and military administration he relies on the lower ranks of the aristocracy. He caustically notes that many of the great victories had been won by those of lesser lineages, and that quality as well as quarterings should be taken into account. Officers are expected to take their duties more seriously, and are held accountable for the state of the men under them.

Victory on the battlefield leads to victory in the bedroom. Though it was reported that he had not consummated his marriage until 1777, leading to mocking chants- “Can the King do it? Can’t the King do it?”[OTL]- Marie Antoinette had given a birth to a girl in 1778. Now, in 1781 she produces an heir- as it is almost exactly nine months after the signing of the Treaty of Antwerp, he is hailed as the “Victory Dauphin”- but this time the raillery is supportive and admiring.

Louis is seeking to establish himself on a Roman model- not the Republicans so admired by the Enlightenment, or Imperial Rome at its height, but that of the founder of Empire, Augustus Caesar. Personal modesty, public splendor as manifested in building projects- and public piety as well.

Helped by the shock of the anti-Catholic riots in England, which led some British Catholics to flee to France, Louis publicly extols the Church, and with them finds a common enemy- not French Protestants, to whom he extends his protection (though not yet full tolerance) but the skeptics, scoffers, mockers of monarchy, Church, France, even the sacred bonds between husband and wife -things are going well in the bedchamber: the Enlightenment philosophes, and their more numerous hangers-on.

In vain they protest their past support of the King’s policy in the American War- he knows it is because they, too, wish to get rid of their monarch and set up a republic. Plus, their open support and admiration of British institutions over the last fifty years and more is well-known. And what has that led to? Decent, loyal British Catholics being murdered in the streets of English cities by deranged mobs.

The tide of public thought has shifted. While only a few of the most extreme Anglophiles are charged with treason, considerably more are exiled to the colonies- especially the new one established in Australie in 1789, with the king remarking that he is giving them their opportunity to build their new world.

More biting is the censorship imposed on publications, the use of local authorities to dismiss dissenters from public positions, and the occasional use of conservative mobs to harass liberal thinkers.

Many of the more progressive choose to flee to the United States, where most end up in the booming city of Montreal, where they form a literate Francophone cultural renaissance, making the city a center of liberal French literature and thought. Though, being devoted followers of Adam Smith, many follow the opportunites open to an educated man and devote themselves to the fur trade and land speculation.

The Church soon finds the King’s support is not an unmixed blessing. In exchange for tax exemptions, he expects the Church to make reforms of its own, cutting indulgence by high-ranking clerics, and focusing its attention on his new call for sacrifice and service.

In this he finds support from lower-ranking and younger religious, who have grown up under the sting of the mockery of the Enlightenment skeptics, often embarrassed by the corruption and sloth of their superiors. A movement for reform arises, less concerned with protection of Church privilege and more concerned with its mission.

Another center of support for the King is among the bourgeois, still shut out from power but making gains in business and lower levels of government- where positions are opened for them by both the promotion of the lower nobility and the replacement of aristocratic sympathisers of the Enlightenment with good patriotic Catholic Frenchman, loyal to nation, Church- and King. The simpler style and promotion of family values and motherhood as evinced in the modest fashions of Marie Antoinette also bring approval from the more serious Third Estate.

(Not to go overboard- this is still Paris, not Geneva.)

 

[galanx]

France:Talk Like a Pirate

With Britain withdrawn to lick her wounds, there is peace among the Atlantic nations.There is another sore spot where Louis can spread his wings, however.

For centuries the corsairs of the Barbary Coast had attacked Christian shipping, enslaving tens of thousands and extorting ransoms. The technological and organizational advances of European navies had enabled them to outstrip the Muslims; however the continual state of war among them had allowed the Corsair leaders to play them against each other. With England rebuilding, and Spain now in possession of Gibraltar, the new Christian champion Louis XVI decides it is time to put an end to this…nuisance. Uniting with the Spanish fleet, in 1786 the French attack the ports of Morocco and Algeria, pounding them into temporary submission. The next year the Corsairs strike back, combining to produce a huge fleet to drive off the Christian navies (by this time the Dutch, Sicilians and even Swedish and Danish have sent ships). The Muslims hope to keep inshore to nullify the European’s sailing capability; however the superior gunnery of the Western fleets enable them to destroy the Barbary Armada.

The next year the Spanish destroy the power of Sale on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, while the French do the same to Tunis and Tripoli, in each leaving behind strong points guarding the harbours and enforcing agreements for their own shipping and trade.

These areas are nominally subject to the Ottoman Empire, so the Sultan objects. Since he is presently losing a disastrous war against Austria and Russia, there’s not much he can do about it. Louis sends a joint French-Neapolitan flotilla to face off to the Ottomans off Crete; after a few exchanges both sides withdraw, though Louis reaps a small amount of gratitude from his Italian allies.

Retcon (thanks to Stratego's Risk's comments below) : since the Barbary Coast is nominally part of the Ottoman Empire, though de facto independent, Louis acknowledges the suzerainty of the Sultan, even sending him his traditional tribute, which the Sultans haven't received for a century.

Louis is hailed as the hero of (Western) Christendom; Charles III having died during the war. He is honoured by the Pope as the Liberator; thousands of Christian slaves are freed. Prints of their chains being stricken off, and their grateful return to Christendom, flood Europe.

(A side effect is the popularity of stage shows all over Europe featuring young women claiming to have been freed from the lustful Arab. Usually starting with a primly-dressed young schoolgirl or bride-to-be who defies her parents to seek adventure/join her unapproved choice of husband, it proceeds through her capture at sea, being stripped (suitably discreetly) and put on the auction block with her wailing companions; her display in more and more diaphanous “Arab” costumes, her being forced to perform erotic “Oriental” dances for her master; her resistance to his advances, a nicely sadistic interlude in the dungeons with whips, chains, and other tortures, followed by…a veil drawn over her Fate Worse Than Death- then on to the rescue (by Danes or Swedes in the British versions), and her restoration, covered in shame, to her parents (or a convent in Catholic countries.) After an evening of titillation, a suitably moral climax follows, with the young woman, now modestly dressed, hanging her head in shame and giving a lecture about the dangers of disobedience to other young women. The women involved are usually local actresses/prostitutes who have been no closer to the Barbary Coast than their audiences; a sideline employment is provided for some Black Loyalists in Britain in playing the part of cruel African eunuchs.)

 

[galanx]

The Estates-General 1788-1789

The reforms introduced by Turgot (d. 1781), and the renewed strength of the monarchy, cause Louis to recall his old advisor Maupeou in 1786 in order to pass what he felt are the necessary changes in the administration; specially in taxation. This was waving a red rag to the nobility and especially the Parlements, who move to block every avenue of reform. Frustrated, he follows Maupeou’s advice to pull an end run around the Parlements by recalling the Estates-General in1789, for the first time since 1614.

The King supports Maupeou’s attempt to double the representation of the Third Estate, but this is rejected by the other two. With the bourgeoisie supporting his reforms- including his support for suppressing the guilds- and the nobility resolutely opposed, Louis needs the support of the First Estate; the clergy. Most of the higher Churchmen are members of the aristocracy, often younger brothers, and are inclined to support their families; the lower orders are supportive of the reforms. The Vatican supports the King- not that that influences the French hierarchy much- but in the end royal promises of protection for Church lands, renewed support for Catholic antidisestablishmentarianism [yes, that’s put in just to be able to use that word] plus veiled threats of royal wrath, pull the trick—the First Estate joins the Third in supporting the reforms, including taxation of the nobles.

Then the leaders of the nobles make their fatal mistake. Regarding themselves still as the representatives of martial France, they call for the French officers to lead the Army to their side, as well as rallying their own local supporters in the countryside. While some generals and other higher-ups follow their class affiliations, the majority of the officers- especially of the younger and lower-ranked ones- stay loyal to the King, inspired by his victory over the hated English. An attempt by some of the more reckless aristocrats to seize the Bastille as a symbol of overweening Royal absolutism fails; regiments of the Army, backed by a crowd of the citizens of Paris, march on the prison and arrest the rebels, and the “Fall of the Bastille” becomes a triumph for the monarchy.

Other nobles return to their estates to rally their supporters and revolts break out in various parts of the country. They are for the most part quickly suppressed, though some persist into 1792. The so-called Third Fronde fails ignobly.

The Second Estate is reformed, with the replacement of any nobles who have revolted with more compliant members of their family- usually accompanied by a heavy payment to express their gratitude and show their loyalty. The Estates-General is reconstituted as a more permanent legislature, with the Third Estate having two votes to the others’ one each- with the King given the role of tie-breaker. This is greatly advantageous to the monarchy- for the immediate future.

 

[galanx]

The Polish War (1792-1796) and War of the Austrian Netherlands: (1792-1796)

Catherine the Great had been impressed enough by Louis’ strengthening of the monarchy to allow something similar in Poland, hoping to make it a more worthwhile buffer state. The attempt met strong resistance from the Polish nobles who in consequence shifted their support to Prussia. However, when the Prussians unwisely press the Poles for territorial concessions, King Stanislaw refuses, prompting Prussia to move its army into the disputed area in 1792

Prussia at this time assumes that the Russians and Austrians will join in the dismemberment of Poland, but is mistaken. Russia prefers a weak Poland as a buffer against Prussia, and Austria is intent on regaining its claim as the pre-eminent German state by taking Bavaria; its goal since the War of Bavarian Succession (1778-1779). The new Holy Roman Emperor, Francis II, follows the desire of his uncle Joseph II to exchange the Austrian Netherlands with somebody, anybody, in exchange for help in acquiring Bavaria. Now he has found a willing customer, in his uncle by marriage, the awesome Louis XVI.

Thus Catherine rushes in not to partition Poland but save it, and the Austrians jump at this chance to regain position against Prussia. Frederick the Great’s feckless successor, Frederick William II, should have cut his losses, but anxious to refute his father’s disparaging opinion of him, and pushed by his generals, he is determined to show the dominance of Prussian arms. The result is a disaster: the Prussian armies, crushed by the combined weight of Russia and Austria, are smashingly defeated.

The Prussians lose West Prussia, leaving a “Polish Corridor” to Danzig; Russia compensates itself by “shifting Poland westward”, taking a slice of the Ukraine, while Austria actually returns some Polish territory in Galicia in return for taking Silesia back from Prussia. Austria also takes Bavaria, her main objective. More devastatingly, Brandenburg and the Kingdom of Prussia are divided between branches of the Hohernzollens, leaving Prussia itself to sink to an insignificant stretch of “sand and potatoes”.

Saxony, which had originally supported Prussia, is rewarded for dropping out of the war by “rationalization”- absorbing enclaves within its borders and micro-principalities on its frontiers, thus clearing up a good deal of the map of the eastern Holy Roman Empire; the same thing happened with Bavaria, the loser being Salzburg, now surrounded by Austrian territories. This is to set the pattern of the next few years as the tiny fragments of the HRE are gradually absorbed into larger neighbors .

[Gee, I wish I could make maps]

 

[galanx]

The War in the West 1792-1796

Austria has been trying to get rid of its possessions in the Netherlands in exchange for help annexing Bavaria since Leopold II tried to start the War of Bavarian Succession in 1788. Now is the chance to hand them over to Louis XVI, under the guise of passing them to a new ruler, Ferdinand, Duke of Parma. A previous attempt to install Ferdinand’s father in 1785 had failed due to British and Dutch opposition. The whole reason these Netherlands are Austrian was to keep them out of French hands, and since Ferdinand is the nephew of Louis XVI and is married to Marie Antoinette’s sister, grave suspicions about his independence are raised.

Still, at this time Louis feels he is strong enough to defy both the British and Dutch, and French troops march in to support the new ruler, created Prince by his wife’s nephew, the newly-crowned Holy Roman Emperor Francis II.


There is some scattered resistance by local patriots who had resisted the Enlightenment reforms of Joseph II and established the United States of Belgium (1790 to…1790), but most of the leadership had come from the Catholic Church, who though wary of the French are satisfied with Louis’ Counter-Enlightenment tendencies, so resistance fizzles out.

As well, Louis scoops up Liege, where the local population has risen up against their unpopular reactionary Prince-Bishop, nicknamed “the red butcher”. From here he fufills his offer to help against Prussia by attacking the Prussian possessions of Cleve and Mark in the Rhineland.

Neither Britain nor Holland is able to do much on land, though the Dutch are able to defend themselves by the usual expedient of threatening to blow up the dykes; Louis has no interest in conquering the Dutch anyway, and is anxious to placate them.

However, the prospect of France controlling Belgium, as it is beginning to be called, is out of the question for both Britain and the Dutch Netherlands. Unable to fight on land, they attack the French at sea.

Britain:1781-1796: Recovery and War at Sea

Britain has undergone a tremendous shock, with the loss of the Atlantic colonies, the Invasion, the Gordon Riots, the Irish Uprising, and the influx of Loyalist refugees from America.

The North government was thoroughly discredited, and at first so is George III. However, given the recent upheavals, the monarch becomes a rallying post- especially for his anti-Catholic anti-reform views. The Shelburne ministry staggers from crisis to crisis, but manages to hang on despite the deep unpopularity of Shelburne himself. No-one can agree on a replacement. Finally in 1785 it collapses and Shelburne is replaced by William Pitt the Younger.

He leads a thorough reorganizing of finances and especially starts strengthening the navy. When French soldiers march into the southern Netherlands in 1792, there is not much Britain can do, particularly with the collapse of their Prussian ally. They form an alliance with Holland, and proceed to battle the French at sea.

Retcon: France presses Spain to join the war; under the influence of Queen Maria Luisa and the newly-appointed 25-year-old Prime Minister, Manuel Godoy, rumored to be the Queen's lover, King Charles IV does so.

Spain suffers several defeats at sea; the British even threaten Cuba and briefly retake Tangiers and threaten Gibraltar. The war is expensive and unpopular, as is the Prime Minister; in 1794 Spain drops out of the conflict, and Godoy drops out of favour. One reason appears to be the Queen has a new interest (see below).

At first France makes gains, most notably seizing the Cape of Good Hope in 1793 to maintain her vital connections with her Indian Empire. Though the Dutch try to retake it, they are defeated. As well, France establishes control over the island of Ceylon.



As the war drags on, however, the French begin to suffer losses. Britain retakes several of her Caribbean possessions, and makes good her claim to New Zeeland- as far as the Europeans are concerned; the locals have other ideas.

 

[galanx]

The Northern League:1796-1800

While at first everything seems to be going the way of France, Austria, and Russia, opposition begins to strengthen. The quip “Prussia is an army with a country” is changed to “Prussia is an army without a country”- but the army is still there. (In Brandenburg; Prussia having been spun off to a cadet branch of the Hohenzollerns). Alarmed by the growing appetite of Austria for further gains in southern Germany, an alliance is formed; the leading members are Brandenburg, Hanover, Saxony and Hesse. It is sometimes referred to as the “Protestant League”: though this is disliked as bringing back memories of the Thirty Years War, though it was close enough that the Elector of Saxony changed from his family’s Catholicism to his subjects Lutheranism.

Meanwhile, with the death of Catherine in 1796 Russia drops out, refusing to get in any fights on Austria’s behalf- with the destruction of the power of Prussia its ambitions have been achieved.

The war is fought mainly in the south against Austria and in the Rhinelands against France. The Alliance is backed by the two most financially stable nations in the world; in 1798 Britain even begins to put in some troops from its newly-expanded army, fighting on the Rhine.

The result is basically a draw. In the Treaty of Aachen/Aix-la-Chapelle (1800) Austria agrees to make no more territorial claims in the south of Germany; France withdraws its armies from what now becomes the Principality of the Southern Netherlands (later the Kingdom of Belgium); and as the Northern Alliance refuses to remain under even the suzerainty of an Austrian Emperor, after a millenium of existence from the crowning of Charlemagne, the Holy Roman Empire is laid to rest in its birthplace.


One result of the war is that many of the smaller units have been swept away as the war chases their micro-rulers into the protective arms of one of the larger German powers, and no-one seems anxious to restore their independence

 

[Sior]

NEW ALBION- An alternative division of North America; POD: 1740
(A revision- hopefully improvement – of an ATL I posted a long time ago)
[Foreword- one of my complaints with some of threads here is they often go deep into the woods. The author has done a lot of research in a particular time and place, but non-experts (like me ) can quickly find themselves lost. As well, AH being a branch of H, it’s nice to know what is OTL and what is ATL, especially for slowly-unfolding timelines which expand to cover other areas. Did the Great Muck-a-Muck actually defeat the Droogle Confederation OTL, or is that a result of the butterfly’s wings?

I will be posting notes in square brackets [ ] showing when something is OTL; also a reference [OTL] which applies only to the immediately preceding statement:

“Hitler’s strategy of firing Goering and appointing a more competent leader of the Luftwaffe had paid off. After his surprisingly quick victory over France due to pushing through the Ardennes [OTL] he was thus able to proceed with operation Sea-Lion and conquer Britain.”

Since this is set in the age of exploration, with a lot of places being differently named, references to OTL place-names will often be repeated- I get mixed up myself at times.]



Background-OTL
In 1738 Master Mariner Robert Jenkins appears before the House of Commons and produces an ear in a bottle, which he claims was cut off by the Spanish.



Winston Churchill: History of the English-Speaking People.

Though Prime Minister Robert Walpole is reluctant (“They’re ringing the bells now, they’ll be wringing their hands soon”), the clamour for war, stirred up by a group of opposition politicians who call themselves the Patriots, is so great that he gives in.

As part of the war effort, Commodore George Anson is commissioned to attack the cities on the west coast of Spanish America, and to intercept the annual Treasure Galleon sailing from Acapulco to Manila.

Not being enthusiastic to start with, the Government tries to do it on the cheap. Anson is given a load of decrepit Chelsea Pensioners for his fighting force (not one of whom is to survive), and a gang of raw recruits for his Marines. Lack of resources causes delays; he finally sets sail in September and rounds Cape Horn in stormy weather in January. Two of his six ships mutiny and turn back to Brazil, the “Wager”, with midshipman John Byron on board, is shipwrecked off the coast of Chile, and when his surviving three ships rendezvous at Juan Fernandez Island in June 1741 he has lost two-thirds of his crew, and is forced to abandon two of his vessels.

Still, he manages to raid Paita in Peru in November, then proceeds to Acapulco, missing the inbound galleon by three weeks. His bad luck continues when the Spaniards spot him and decide to keep the galleon 'Pilar' in port. After fruitless months he gives up, sails to Tinian Island (Saipan), then Macao, and –finally!- gets lucky in June 1743, capturing the ' Nuestra Senora Covadongo' with 1.3 million silver pieces of eight. He returns to England, is greeted with great acclaim, is made a Baron, and ends up as First Lord of the Admiralty

FYI

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...pwreck-mutiny-murder-scandalised-Britain.html

 

[galanx]

Yeah, I've read some of what happened- for anybody who says AH is ASB, that's a story!

 

[AussieHawker]

Wow. Pretty good so far. You even have a better Mormonism.

But sad that Prussia is crushed. Hopefully Austria can unify Germany.

 

[altwere]

I've been enjoying this.

 

[Strategos' Risk]

Definitely loving what you're doing with the alternate Loyalist-sparked hybrid society. I was previously trying to create such a timeline myself based on the State of Muskogee- maybe some of the historical figures I mentioned could play a role? [https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=292269&page=2]

William August Bowles just seems like too cool a character to not be included. Could he and some of his followers have led another a southern mixed band of Loyalists, Seminoles, and escaped slaves that join Butler's New Zion? Or does he fight on from the south, until the Americans bloodily take Florida?

And as I mention in that thread, he's not even the only historical Loyalist with Indian sympathies. There's also John "Hellfire Jack" Rogers, of the Cherokee:
http://dickdfox.tripod.com/index-rogers.html
http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=dpanther&id=I06629

It's really weird how historically there were a bunch of white dudes preenacting Dances with Wolves IRL.

And now, rereading that thread, it seems like I have predicted your "Utah is settled by multiethnic refugee state" idea, too.

Funny how alternate history repeats just like the real thing!

 

[galanx]

Wow. Pretty good so far. You even have a better Mormonism.

Thanks- yea, I'm not even sure how that happened- they started out as straight political refugees. It's like Deseret is some mystical AH lodestone, bending all relevant ATLs towards it.

But sad that Prussia is crushed.

First time I think I've heard that sentiment .

It's probably going to end up a North/South German split.

 

[galanx]

Definitely loving what you're doing with the alternate Loyalist-sparked hybrid society. I was previously trying to create such a timeline myself based on the State of Muskogee- maybe some of the historical figures I mentioned could play a role? [https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=292269&page=2]

William August Bowles just seems like too cool a character to not be included. Could he and some of his followers have led another a southern mixed band of Loyalists, Seminoles, and escaped slaves that join Butler's New Zion? Or does he fight on from the south, until the Americans bloodily take Florida?

And as I mention in that thread, he's not even the only historical Loyalist with Indian sympathies. There's also John "Hellfire Jack" Rogers, of the Cherokee:
http://dickdfox.tripod.com/index-rogers.html
http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=dpanther&id=I06629

It's really weird how historically there were a bunch of white dudes preenacting Dances with Wolves IRL.

And now, rereading that thread, it seems like I have predicted your "Utah is settled by multiethnic refugee state" idea, too.

Funny how alternate history repeats just like the real thing!

Good stuff!- wish I'd known about these guys earlier. I'll try and work them in. It's especially interesting that this was in the panhandle part of eastern Florida

It's a long way from Florida to Utah, but, hey, if my guys can get there from New York....

And in reality in 1803 we already have tribes from the Atlantic pushed to Illinois.

 

[galanx]

Plus the link to BarkBeetle's Mormon timeline (especially as I have a very close friend who's a prospector/ geologist in Salmon, Idaho). I kinda dropped away from AH for a couple of years and missed these.

 

[Strategos' Risk]

At the very least, the State of Muskogee could provide a neat flag, and more misfits:

On 5 January 1802, Bowles led a large force of Seminoles (Miccosukees), Black Seminoles, fugitive slaves, white pirates, and Spanish deserters from Pensacola, and laid siege to San Marcos, but was forced to retreat after the arrival of several Spanish ships.

Digging back at the old links I had accumulated, it should be noted that Bowles' earlier political rival was Alexander McGillivray, a chief of the Creek and another Loyalist, and of white ancestry.

Here's an account of the Creeks, mentioning both Bowles and McGillivray: http://www.loyno.edu/~history/journal/1999-2000/Oliver.htm

My takeaway from all of this is that there will always be some sympathetic white people living on the frontier who are willing to live with, even fight alongside native peoples. And Loyalists would probably be the most likely to group in with them, as at this point they are renegades despised by the rest of white America. In either case, if any of these figures get involved with New Zion, this could very much affect the Five "Civilized" Tribes, Andrew Jackson, and the shape of the south in general... if you were so inclined.

Different topic: so the French attacking the vassals of their once now-and-again allies, the Ottomans- is that part of the societal heel face turn caused by averting the French Revolution? That is, because France experiences a religious revival, they decide to stop being tacitly allied to the Ottomans, and instead adopts a neo-crusader pose?

 

[galanx]

At the very least, the State of Muskogee could provide a neat flag, and more misfits:



Digging back at the old links I had accumulated, it should be noted that Bowles' earlier political rival was Alexander McGillivray, a chief of the Creek and another Loyalist, and of white ancestry.

Here's an account of the Creeks, mentioning both Bowles and McGillivray: http://www.loyno.edu/~history/journal/1999-2000/Oliver.htm

My takeaway from all of this is that there will always be some sympathetic white people living on the frontier who are willing to live with, even fight alongside native peoples. And Loyalists would probably be the most likely to group in with them, as at this point they are renegades despised by the rest of white America. In either case, if any of these figures get involved with New Zion, this could very much affect the Five "Civilized" Tribes, Andrew Jackson, and the shape of the south in general... if you were so inclined.

Thanks for the info- before this everything I knew about Muskogee came form Merle Haggard.

I think that distances have pushed the two groups too far apart for any current involvement- the Butlerites have already moved across the Rockies by 1805- if I'd known about this earlier I would like to have brought them in; maybe delayed the move to New Zion- which is kind of precipitate- might have to retcon Muskogee in.

At least they can set up an Arkansas Republic- one problem I've had with this timeline is finding a way to slow American expansion enough to give time for New Albion to build a population base- and from there get pushed west again after the American-Spanish/ Louisiana War

 

[galanx]

Different topic: so the French attacking the vassals of their once now-and-again allies, the Ottomans- is that part of the societal heel face turn caused by averting the French Revolution? That is, because France experiences a religious revival, they decide to stop being tacitly allied to the Ottomans, and instead adopts a neo-crusader pose?

A little bit, but more in a spirit of one-upmanship by Louis: "Hey, you Prods couldn't do anything, so I'm the guy that saved the persecuted Christians."

As I'm sure you know, the Barbary Coast had been effectively independent for a couple of centuries. The European navies had gradually improved in technology and organisation enough to outstrip the Corsairs; but the states of Christendom being in a state of perpetual war, they found it more convenient to cut deals with the various cities to attack their enemies and leave their own shipping alone.

With Britain temporarily set back and pushed out of the Med, Spain and France were able to lead a coalition of navies to cleanse the seas of these pests without having to worry about them forming alliances with the British.

I just tossed the attack on the Ottomans in without doing sufficient research on Ottoman-French relations. If I go back I may have to retcon this to have the French re-establish Ottoman suzerainity without giving up actual power (which, ironically, was what I had written in the first place).

Since I'm having a struggle to round up Spanish settlers for Louisiana and New Mexico, I did wonder about offering land there to freed Christian slaves who didn't wish to return home (or their descendants willing to give up Islam). Or maybe in Terre Australie for those freed by the French

 

[galanx]

The Cape Colony

In spite of the naval battles over eight years, little has changed. In 1795 France takes the Cape of Good Hope, and keeps it to protect its sea-route to India; later Britain regains Bermuda and the Bahamas, and affirms its claim to New Zeeland.

The Dutch population of the Cape is about 27,000, mostly farmers. Some- the trekboers- have moved beyond the control of the authorities and settled in the Eastern Cape. In the period from 1782 to 1792, there is further immigration to the Cape from French (and later Belgian) Protestants. After the anti-Catholic crackdowns in Britain and Ireland, refugees poured into France, happily used by the Church to attack the Enlightenment figures who had praised the British for religious tolerance. The Church had forced the King to abandon plans for religious tolerance, and there was some increase in both anti-Protestant feelings and incidents. Some Protestants began to feel uneasy, with many fleeing to the United States; some others, stirred by old Huguenot memories, head to the Cape Colony; a larger number of Southern Netherlands Protestants, fleeing Louis XVI’s conquering armies, join them. Though not more than a few thousand in number, they stir up old fears of Catholic domination- fear that seems justified when the French claim the Cape.

Though the new overlords announce religious toleration, a strong backlash develops, and militias spring up to resist. The fighting is fierce, but short-lived- in the main settlements. In the areas beyond, the Trekboers put up a continued resistance; French troops become heavy-handed occupiers. Many Dutch farmers from the Cape try to pull up roots and move further inland, but the French are alarmed at the possibility of them establishing anti-French settlements, possibly allying with the powerful African kingdoms lying beyond. They try to curtail these attempts to launch a ‘Great Trek’. A condition of the peace of Aachen is that those unhappy with French rule are given a choice of “westzeetrek” to America or “oostzeetrek” to New Holland.


(Though France claims the western half as ‘Australie’, it doesn’t fear any clashes, given stories of the uninhabitable desert in the center.)


About 5,000 choose New Holland, while 3,000 choose to settle in the southwest part of the USNA [OTL western Tennessee] some taking their Malay, Khoi, or other African slaves with them.