Odyssey of Fritz, the Turncoat Prince

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 370

June, 1828

Central Granada

Bolivar would not make his mistakes of the previous campaign. He spent months gathering up supplies, training the army given to him by President Boves and soliciting intelligence and support from the west. This time, he would be ready.

The initial assaults upon the hills of Central Granada went poorly despite his precautions. Santa Anna, the Western Granadan General, had caught him by surprise with a quick counter-attack that scattered much of his forces, including his desperately needed baggage train. Almost irreplaceable cannon, powder, arms and pack animals were lost.

Still, Bolivar was not prepared to halt his attack. He reorganized his forces and struck west again. This time, he would not be willing to let Santa Anna surprise him. He ordered his subordinate Antonia Jose de Sucre to flank Santa Anna with 1000 men. That was enough to turn the tide of the battle.

However, it was not a decisive victory as Santa Anna (recalling the accusations of cowardice the previous year) managed to rally his forces 20 miles west and this time sought to guard the passes toward Maracaibo and Bogota.

Concepcion

Juan Martinez de Rozas was a man with an odd past. Known as an effective attorney and a longtime proponent to democratic change, he was also accused of corruption on various occasions. Worse, by rivaling with the patriarch of the Carrera family for years, he made an enemy of the four Carrera brothers in Santiago.

De Rozas was grateful to have them a long ways away but his estrangement from the Carreras would ensure that Concepcion stood alone when the Spanish troops arrive. De Rozas ordered his friend Bernardo O'Higgans to repulse the Spanish. Unfortunately, Royalist support provided thousands of volunteers to the 1500 Spanish regulars.

This was enough to push O'Higgans' army to the countryside. De Rozas was killed and hundreds of Concepcion Republicans were arrested and dispatched to islands hundreds of miles to the west.

The Spanish and Royalists now prepared to march north.

Santiago

Though the Carreras were happy to see the end of de Rozas' regime, that also meant that they would not doubt look towards Santiago next. They happily accepted the help of the Peruvians. With the Spanish fleet already off the coast of Valparaiso, any hope of an easy independence were gone.

However, the Peruvians, bearing the promise of aid arrived in force, would prove less than neighborly. Once situated throughout the cities of Valparaiso and Santiago, the 5000 strong Peruvian forces would disarm the Chilean forces and arrest virtually all the members of the Junta. Unlike the Spanish, the Peruvians wouldn't waste any time with exiling the Chilean gentry. The Carreras and several other key supporters were put up against the wall and shot.

Now, it was a matter of Peru versus Spain.

Rio Plata

Eduard Konitz, Baron von Holmberg, was an Austrian army officer of impoverished aristocratic background. Now fiftyish, the man's career had stagnated for years in the Austrian peacetime army. He even got so tired of the boredom and lack of advancement that he offered to join the Russian Army in Anatolia. This was forbidden by the Emperor and Von Holmberg was forced to sail across the sea in glory and honor.

He found an employer in Rio Plata where the Republican government was seeking independence from Spain. Von Holmberg would be granted a commission to Brigadier and placed in command of training the Rio Platan Army.

He would need to be ready as the Spanish were already preparing to ship additional soldiers across the Ocean to the Americas.

Manuel Bertrano, the leader of Buenos Aires, would sign off on Konitz as Supreme Commander, as would Jose Artigas of Montevideo. Neither side of the Rio Plata trusted the other and Konitz was a reasonable compromise as martial leader. They feared one another more than the Spanish and refused to allow a soldier with potential political motives to assume command.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 371

August, 1828

Granada

General Simon Bolivar of East Granada would pursue Santa Anna relentlessly. Eventually, the Aztlani officer would retreat north towards Maracaibo, forcing Bolivar to make a choice. Did he follow Santa Anna north or march west again on Bogota. Knowing he could not have an army at his back capable of cutting off his supply line, Bolivar determined to destroy Santa Anna's army first and seize Maracaibo, which would also give him a convenient port closer to his targets.

Santa Anna would make a fighting retreat north to the isolated city, hoping that he would give Miranda time in Bogota to assemble another army.

Ireland

After several years of attempts on Arthur Wellesley's life by the Catholic rebels, the old Irishman would finally suffer a stroke, incapacitating him for several months. As the "strongman" of the Irish government, there was no real succession in place if he were to die, resign or other. The Irish Parliament was basically an Anglican aristocrat club which acted entirely in their own best interests. Lower class Anglicans, all Presbyterians and natural all Catholics were excluded from Parliament and the franchise. Presbyterians were allowed in most professions but not Parliament.

With Wellesley helpless, the Irish Parliament would fall upon one another as egos collided. Some wanted the Queen in Berlin to determine a new Prime Minister to break the deadlock while others feared that this would set a bad precedent that she was anything more than a figurehead.

For years, the Prime Ministers / Regents like Robert Clive, Richard Wellesley and Arthur Wellesley had maintained power through repression and fear. As a wave of Republicanism swept through Europe, the Irish had failed to make any gains. Instead, the Emerald Isle remained an armed camp as the minority dominated the majority. Resistance was common and widespread...but rarely decisive as the efficient secret police and brutal tactics prevented any true organization.

This time, however, the mass uprising was so widespread that the normal tactics didn't work. With no foreign intervention, the Irish had started their own war.

Nubia

The Mahdi was enjoying the peace. The Ethiopian Christians to the east had agreed not to bother his Kingdom if he only reciprocated, which was something the Mahdi was willing to accept. The damned Egyptians, however....

This was a different story. It had gone down into Islamic legend when the Egyptian Mahdi had been struck by lightning shortly before the commencement of a major battle between Egypt and Nubia. All involved took this as a sign from God. A precarious peace with Egypt had followed as that nation fell into ruin. Still, Egypt recalled literally millennia of domination over Nubia and plainly wanted this to resume after decades of civil war, political and religious repression, famine and disease.

Exactly why Egypt even wanted Nubia was a bit of a mystery. Nubia's reputation as a gold source over the ages was accurate but hardly enough to matter to Egypt in this day and age.

Still, whoever was in charge of Egypt this week was plainly intent upon conquest. The Mahdi determined to be ready. He would solicit help from perhaps the most unlikely of sources: Ethiopia.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 372

October, 1828

Paris

King James of France would return periodically to Paris despite his occasional misgivings that the city had far too much Republican sentiment. However, "France" was also the most populated region of "Gaul" as it was now known, and he could not simply abandon his people over fears of assassination. It would turn out that he would be correct in his concerns as, just hours after he returned to his urban home in Paris (not nearly large enough for his court though James seldom brought many adjutants to Paris and kept his retinue and visits short), a riot broke out over the high unemployment rate in Paris. While accused by several high office holders throughout the Seven Gallic Countries, in truth, there was only modest political content to the violence.

The King did not even pretend to intervene. That was what Ministers were for. The people elected them. Let them deal with the people.

Prime Minister Tallyrand would eventually call out the army from the countryside and restore order. However, this was not before the mob severely damaged and half-burned the last Palace in Paris, the Luxembourg Palace, which was the seat of the Parliament of France.



Throughout the Revolutionary period, the Paris mob was feared by the government as it held sway over the homes and lives of the actual Revolutionary leaders. Often resented by the provinces for their power, the city earned a reputation for radicalism vastly out of proportion to the general feelings of the French population. Now divided into seven countries, Paris was held in open contempt and seen as the source of problems the "Nation" of Gaul did not need.

As Prime Minister of France, Tallyrand would set up a temporary capital in Tours until the situation in Paris was resolved. In the years to come, the temporary capital would become permanent. The other Gallic Countries would applaud this move as it shifted the center of power in France nearer to southern border with Occitania and Vendee-Bretagne.

Province of Santiago, "Andean Republic"

After the Spanish conquest of Concepcion, General Bernardo O'Higgans would spent months attacking isolated Spanish garrisons around the city but would accomplish little. So negligible did the Spanish consider his assaults that the commander wouldn't even halt his campaign against Santiago. He simply marched north with 3000 men, ignoring the increasingly desperate attempts to harass his supply lines by O'Higgans.

Despite possessing control over the sea (there was a small Spanish fleet of 6 warships present, more than enough against the fledgling Peruvian Navy), the Spanish commander actively desired to march by land in order to gain support in the countryside. This had proven successful in the conquest of Concepcion as several thousand volunteers had flocked to the King's colors.

However, this would prove a mistake as O'Higgans doggedly harried the Spanish almost to the gates of Santiago, where the Peruvians had their own problems with the local Chilean population. Having arrived as liberators, the Peruvians promptly turned the tables on the local Junta and took control of Valparaiso and Santiago. The Chileans were less than happy about this but were also less than happy about the Spanish/Royalist army rampaging through the countryside.

In an odd turn of events, the distraction caused by Bernardo O'Higgans would allow the Peruvian Army to surprise the Spanish on an open plain and route the forward columns, throwing the invaders back southwards towards Concepcion. Entering the Southern summer, the campaign was only beginning. In retaliation, the Spanish would commence bombarding Valparaiso harbor.

Ireland

Throughout the fall of 1826, the Irish rebellion only gained momentum as the Protestant Ascendancy seemed paralyzed after decades of supremacy. The Anglican leadership lacked a focal point and even the lower class Anglicans and Presbyterians were turning against the government. The yeomanry were called out but the rebellions became so widespread that it proved impossible to contain. Many of the militia, tired over years of suppression (only about a fifth of the Anglicans had the franchise, which amounted to about 2% the male population), would join the rebels. While the Anglican and Presbyterians would generally support the government, the fact that even a minority of them supported the Catholics and Radical reformers would prove incredibly troublesome.

For the past half century, Robert Clive, Richard Wellesley and Arthur Wellesley had pressed Parliament for reforms to allow greater access to the franchise, softer laws regarding the Catholic Majority and an end to the corruption endemic to the oligarchy. Many would consider it belated, but the time for punishment seemed near.

London

Prime Minister Robert Peel was uncertain what, if anything, to do about the Irish situation. The people hated the idea of a Catholic government in Ireland, a near certainty if the rebellion succeeded. However, Britain could hardly support the nominally Royalist Irish Parliament whom gave token recognition to the Hanover-Hohenzollern Dynasty in Berlin where the claimant to the throne no doubt awaited her return to power in Britain.

Peel was not an ideologue and knew damned well that the Crown influence prior to the British revolution was more symbolic than real. The actual power lay in the Oligarchy of the British Parliament, where corrupt and unfair laws kept certain men in power. In an ironic twist, the Irish Parliament had followed the same path and now may face the same future albeit with a religious connotation not so defined in the British Revolution of the 1790's.

Did Britain support the Republicans? Or did Britain support their co-religionists?

Neither seemed overly appealing but Peel did not want to appear weak or indecisive.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 373

December, 1828

Dublin

It had taken months for the full scale of the rebellion to reach a critical mass. With a lack of capable administrators, the haphazard revolt spread more rapidly than anyone, including the Catholics, expected. They were assisted in no small amount by reformist Protestants.

The "Royalists", really the Protestant Ascendancy, would manage to retain control over Belfast and Dublin but swiftly lost the countryside. Even Cork fell to the Revolutionaries. Facing the greatest threat since the French and Spanish invasion of generations before, the Protestants began begging for help from wherever they could get it. They called to Queen Louisa of Ireland (and Hanover-Prussia) for assistance. This proved to be a mistake as the Queen's other subjects were less than thrilled about the idea of aiding Ireland.

Worse, while the King and Queen of Prussia dithered, the mere fact that the Protestant Ascendancy were soliciting help from the House of Hanover's heiress forced the hand of the Republic of Great Britain.

London

Prime Minister Robert Peel and his predecessors in the Republic would not tolerate the House of Hanover reestablishing direct control over Ireland. It was bad enough when Ireland was run by those nominally supporting the exiled British claimant to Britain's empty throne. That was even more unacceptable than a Catholic-dominated Ireland.

Peel considered the alternatives and opted for the one that was least offensive: he would order the British Republican Navy to blockade Ireland's approaches from foreign intervention.

The Irish would have to settle this among themselves.

Concepcion

The Peruvian Army would, by no means deliberately, receive the aid of the Chilean resistance fighter Bernardo O'Higgans whom had successfully cut off the Spanish and Royalists marching on Santiago from their base in Concepcion. The Spanish retreated, being pursued by the Peruvians from the north and continually assaulted by insurgents under O'Higgans. Though they possessed numbers, the Spanish were particularly poorly armed and the Spanish Peninsulars were exhausted after a near six month voyage at sea followed by a campaign in the southern hemisphere's summer through unfamiliar terrain.

The "Royalist" supporters proved less dedicated than originally thought, especially when they determined that the Spanish were not so invincible as they had thought. Many hundreds would desert the King's colors.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 374

February, 1829

Concepcion

The Peruvian commander would strive to make an alliance with the Concepcion Army's Patriot Commander, Bernardo O'Higgans. O'Higgans wouldn't trust the Peruvians any further than he could throw them but the Chilean knew he could not expel the Spanish on his own. He had agreed to a loose alliance out of necessity. His army was melting away and O'Higgans would have no way to gather new supplies beyond the Peruvians. He would continue to harass the Spanish at the outskirts of Concepcion while the Peruvians sought battle with the main Spanish force.

This would prove a poor idea as even the poorly trained, exhausted and ill Spanish forces (and Royalists) would be more than a match for the army assembled and forcibly marched south from Santiago. Many of this force were natives of Concepcion and Santiago whom had been impressed into the Army at the point of Peruvian bayonets. The Peruvians were sent running back to Santiago, leaving O'Higgans to fight on alone.

Rio Plata

Already overextended with this latest rebellion, the Spanish were unable to properly react to the new threat emerging from Rio Plata. General Holmberg, the Austrian mercenary assuming command of the joint forces of the north and south of the Rio Plata, would drill his men relentlessly. If some of the Spanish colonials proved incapable of learning fast enough or refused his strict discipline...then they were dismissed in a public and humiliating manner. Eventually, the militias of Montevideo and Buenos Aires were molded into something resembling a real army.

Ireland

Throughout the winter of 1828/29, the Irish rebellion would continue dampened only by weather. The Protestant Ascendancy would be unable to forge a campaign to conquer the hinterlands. Similarly, the frigid temperatures would prove yet another barrier to the chaotic jumble of Catholic/Rebel leaders to attempt to regain the cities.

With British ships offshore, the Irish were utterly isolated.

Anatolia

After years of brutal suppression, the spark of resistance had been beaten out of the Turks. No semblance of government had existed among the Turks for years above outlaw gangs or rebel bands struggling vainly in the hills.

By 1829, the mass slaughter and forced exodus of the Turks (Sunnis) as well as the Turkish retaliation against the Muslim or non-Muslim minorities of Anatolia had reduced the population of Anatolia province (west of Alevistan) to a fraction of its former healthy numbers.

Over 80% of the previous population was dead or in some form of exile. The Czar's command that large numbers of more trustworthy peoples - Russians, Alevis, Greeks, etc - repopulate the shattered peninsula would only be partially fulfilled at this point. The Czar demanded that the Sunni Turks be "crushed once and for all". Even his Georgian General, Prince David, was exhausted with the war and the slaughter. He begged to be relieved, a request refused by the Czar. He ordered Prince David to complete the task no matter the cost.

The General would send his men into the hills, only to accomplish very little. More and more Turks would be forced onto ships at the Black Sea and sent to Central Asia.

An entire culture had been effectively destroyed.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 375

April, 1829

Madrid

The Prince Regent would only begin to realize the scale of the rebellion by spring 1829. He assumed that the rebels based in Lima and maybe Santiago would be put down easily enough. Now, it was apparent that the rebellion had spread from Concepcion to Quito along the Pacific coast of South America as well as parts of the east coast. While the Prince-Regent knew that Buenos Aires had risen up before, he thought the modest reforms mixed with retribution had been enough to forestall any further insurgency over the near term.

The Prince-Regent's father, the "retired" King, had lost half the Spanish Empire over the past quarter century and now the Prince feared losing the other half under his own watch. Like his father, the Prince had sought to moderate some of the most objectionable economic hindrances upon the colonies, including opening up ports to limited foreign trade. He softened the legal system of the most draconian of measures and encouraged development in a way no Spanish monarch had done in centuries.

Apparently, it was not enough.

The problem was that fighting a war in South America was even more difficult than the Caribbean. With every additional mile of distance, the costs of a campaign rose exponentially even as the amount of resources actually dispatched dropped precipitously. When it takes four to six months for soldiers to even REACH these regions by sea, an Empire could only be sustained by the agreement of the governed. Apparently, the governed were unhappy with the government.

Of course, the Prince knew that the leaders of these rebellions tended to be the Criollo elites jealous over the power of the Peninsulars. Indeed, the Spanish Kings had kept the Peninsulars in command for so many years largely in an attempt to keep the Criollos from oppressing the lower classes, Mestizos and Indians in a manner appalling even to the harshest Imperialist.

Did not the people see that the King PROTECTED them from oppression, not instilled it?

Look what was happening in Aztlan, Nicaragua and Granada. Who benefitted from a long war of Independence now?

The Prince would craft yet another carefully worded letter to the Cortes of Portugal. Portugal remained fearful of Spanish domination since the union of the two nations under the same crown and fought every attempt at forging a single government, even to the degree of a customs union which would benefit all. The Portuguese were particularly protective of Brazil, which was by the 19th century more wealthy and, quite frankly, more important than Portugal itself. Even with declining sugar, diamond, gold and coffee production, Brazil was a brighter jewel than stagnant Portugal and the mother country provided nothing in return. Lisbon feared that Spain may take direct control over Brazil someday, permanently relegating Portugal to the backwater it already was.

Of course, the Prince also realized that the Portuguese feared that Brazil would rebel itself. If Spain had difficulty in maintaining hold over her colonies, Portugal would have no chance whatsoever. And the elites of the Portuguese colony, long more accustomed to "hands-off" autonomy than the remnant of the Spanish Empire, were more open about keeping that option in their back pocket. The Cortes feared the wrong command from the mother country would lead to a spontaneous rebellion, one that could have only one outcome.

Thus, the Portuguese Cortes politely but firmly stated that the Spanish Empire was Spain's problem and the Prince's request that Portugal order several divisions of Brazilian soldiers be raised to help Spain reconquer Rio Plata was not even passed along to Brazil, much less acted upon.

Naples and Sicily would prove no more sympathetic. Also in co-dominion with Spain and Portugal, the Italians were less than interested in the Spanish or Portuguese Empires especially given than the Portuguese and Spanish refused trading or immigration privileges to their own people.

Spain was on its own. The Prince would order as many soldiers as he could to this ships, somehow trying to find the money for them to sail. Many of these regulars were summarily dismissed at the docks for lack of fitness and unlikely to reach America alive. Over a third of the initial warships and transports would prove unseaworthy and similarly be withdrawn from the mission. By mid-1829, barely 3500 soldiers and 2500 sailors aboard eight warships, twenty transports and ten cargo ships loaded with supplies set sail for America.

It was a pathetic and meek response for an Empire seeking to control its colonies and still thinking of itself as a global power.

Chesapeake Bay, off coast of Delaware

President Henry Clay lowered his head over the side of the "USS Henry Clay" and vomited for the third time.

The new steam ship was among the first on earth to set sail on open water, most being used on rivers before now. However, the belching, lurching engines made the President sick within an hour of boarding her for a short cruise in honor of her namesake.

Finally, the President would order the ship back to port. The embarrassed admirals and designers would assure the President that the next version would be more efficient and less rank than this dismal monstrosity.

Still, the voyage was hailed a new era. Though the ship had sails, they were only to be used when truly favorable winds rose up. Most of the time, the ship would do without. The President would be supportive of the new era provided the Secretary of the Navy never invited him to sail again.

 

[Knightmare]

Did not the people see that the King PROTECTED them from oppression, not instilled it?

[Citation Required]

 

[Alt History Buff]

[Citation Required]

Better to have one tyrant a thousand miles away than a thousand tyrants one mile away.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 376

June 1829

Lima, Peru

Jose Aguero was an aristocrat born in Lima, the capital of Peru. Though by nature, the aristocrats were conservative and leaned towards Royalism, the apparent weakness of the Spanish crown lent more than evident proof that the old Empire was dying if not already dead. Long irritated that they had been excluded from political power, the aristocrats would make the almost absurd political position that they were "reformers" stick with the majority of the urban people. With such vast distances from the metropolis, the Peruvians even dared assume control over Quito and Santiago.

Aguero was elected President of the Peruvian Congress and leader of their Constitutional Convention. The Convention would not actually deliver the promised Constitution but that was not considered important at the time. Instead, an army was raised, paid for by Peruvian gold, and dispatched to Santiago and Concepcion under the command of Aguero's supporter, Andres de Santa Cruz, a Peruvian-born Spanish soldier and one of the few true experienced soldiers in Peru.

Santa Cruz had been defeated before Concepcion but Bernardo O'Higgans was able to so thoroughly destroy the Spanish supply line that the Spanish commander, the French-born Jose de Canterac, would be forced to retreat into Concepcion, ceding the hills to O'Higgans. Eventually, the Peruvians under Santa Cruz were able to gather themselves and march south yet again after the spring rains of October.

Buenos Aires

The first Spanish ships arrived at Buenos Aires without a clear idea of what would await them. Indeed, the leaders of the expedition suspected the local troubles in Rio Plata would die down before they even arrived. Rio Plata would serve as a supply base and springboard towards Peru, a far more important prize. However, they would be surprised to find the expected "mild uprising" actually possessed their own army led by an Austrian officer.

Rather than continuing on to Chile and Peru, the commander of the army, a Basque named Tomas de Zumalacorregui, would decide to act against his orders and secure Rio Plata before he sailed on to Peru. Zumalacorregui was a talented officer known for bringing order to ill-disciplined and untrustworthy regiments in Spain...which unfortunately were the majority. The Basgue felt the supply line from Spain to Peru would be far too long to sustain without a good stopping point like Rio Plata. He had been informed not to expect much of anything from Portugal or Brazil.

Determining that Buenos Aires was more vital than Montevideo, the would choose to seize the Banda Occidental of Rio Plata first.

Here he would face the fresh army of the Rio Platans.

Ireland

With the summer in the northern hemisphere came the return of violence. The British blockade was not totally effective. Aid trickled in here or there for one group or another. But, in the end, the Irish were on their own. The long winter allowed the Irish Catholics to organize with their Protestant allies and, by spring, the cities of Belfast and Dublin were besieged. With control over the countryside, the rebels were able to use the manpower and resources of Ireland to their advantage while suppressing their enemies.

It would be a long summer for the besieged Protestant Ascendancy.

 

[Knightmare]

Better to have one tyrant a thousand miles away than a thousand tyrants one mile away.

Which only works when the one tyrant actually proves to be somewhat accomadating and good at their job.

 

[Alt History Buff]

View attachment 413762 View attachment 413759

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 377

September, 1829

Concepcion

After months of uncomfortable alliance with the Peruvians, General Bernardo O'Higgans would witness the fall of Concepcion after one last major Spanish-Royalist attempt to break the siege. The Spanish fled to the harbors to take refuge on ships while the Royalists, by and large, were willing to accept Republican offers of clemency. To O'Higgans' surprise, the Peruvians did grant amnesty to virtually anyone who asked for it. Of course, he would learn the Peruvian true intentions swiftly. Even as the Spanish ships sailed away from Concepcion harbor, General Santa Cruz was already moving against O'Higgans. However, rather than pitch his exhausted army against O'Higgans, Santa Cruz merely took the expedience to bribe O'Higgans' key subordinates with Peruvian gold. Within days, most of the Chilean Republican Army had been dispanded or swore loyalty to the Andean Republic. O'Higgans was warned too late and he would flee inland with less than 100 followers, most of whom would eventually abandon him. Seeing the writing on the wall, O'Higgans marched in September for the Rio Plata in hopes of finding help.

Maracaibo, Western Granada

General Simon Bolivar would issue his famous "death warrant" to any who opposed his army as it marched north to Maracaibo, pursuing Santa Anna's forces. There would be no prisoners, no civilians, nothing left to oppose.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 378

November, 1829

Dublin

Though the Protestant Ascendancy would violently repress any Catholics in Dublin...or expel them...it was impossible to eliminate the entire Catholic population. Throughout the fall, several dozen Catholics within Dublin would secretly aid the insurgents outside to break through the walls at key moments. Finally, in November, they succeeded and the bulk of the Catholic Army would enter the city, burning and looting with abandon. Vicious street to street fighting occurred as the city was torched to embers. Eventually, the Protestant forces broke and retreated back into a handful of strongholds, though this meant leaving the bulk of even the protestant population behind. Within days, the beautiful city was in ruins and the Protestants barricaded themselves in the fortresses of the city in hopes of relief coming...from someone.

Trinity College, long limited only to the Protestants, would be torched as would the houses of worship of the Anglican priesthood. While past Prime Ministers like Clive and the Wellesley brothers would attempt to alleviate the repression of Catholics in many ways, the Irish Parliament would not allow overly ambitious reforms like allowing Catholics into Universities or even into certain professions.

It had taken over a hundred years since the most egregious of the penal laws to be overturned...but overturned they appeared to be.

Only Belfast, the sole major city comprised of Protestants, would remain defiant. The confused and disorganized rebels (both Catholic and Protestant) would take time to halt the destruction and march northwards. Indeed, it would not be done in force until spring.

Buenos Aires

General Holmberg, with several months to put together his army, would launch himself upon the Spanish forces under Zumalacorregui and, with a pair of lightning strikes , would defeat the Spanish in detail as the exhausted and seasick Spanish attempted to regain their health after the long voyage. Though raw themselves, the Rio Platan rebels would managed to route and throw back to the ships the remnant of the Spanish forces.

Even as the Rio Platans celebrated, the divisions between the Banda Occidental and Banda Oriental, plus the inland regions up to Paraguay, would begin grappling for power.

The Spanish troops would retreat towards Brazil and the commander was mortified to write to the Prince-Regent that he had failed in his mission. Only with great reinforcements could Spain expect to even regain Rio Plata...much less anything else.

With remarkable rapidity, the Empire Spain spent over three centuries building was tearing itself apart.

The Maratha Empire

Though it had been nearly a generation since the Peshwa had truly reigned over the subcontinent, mostly the various Maratha Princes had kept the peace. However, a minor succession dispute in a tiny southern Kingdom would bring more powerful figures forward. In the past, the Peshwa had been able to resolve such disputes.

No more.

Nippon

It had taken a great deal of time but the United East India Company would assemble a large enough fleet to punish the Nipponese for their transgressions in the old Dutch trading station. While the very definition of a insular nation, Nippon did possess a navy which the UEIC would smash with little trouble. Then, three port cities would come under bombardment as retribution for the Nipponese arrogance.

Lacking the resources for a land invasion, the UEIC commanders would look for alternative methods to achieve their goals.

 

[Alt History Buff]

View attachment 413929 Map of Africa, 1830View attachment 413925

 

[jocay]

My guess is that the United East India Company will end up supporting the restoration of the Emperor. In exchange, Japan becomes a captive market for the UEIC?

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 379

January, 1830

Belfast

The first Irish rebels finally arrived from the siege of Dublin to aid their northern neighbors seize Belfast. However, the rebels of Ulster were dominated by the Presbyterians whom had been appalled by the orgy of violence after Dublin's fall. They would not welcome the riotous and drunken Catholics whom had arrived from the south and often called for ALL Protestants, including the similarly disenfranchised Presbyterians and lower class Anglicans whom were the modest majority in Ulster. Tensions rose even as the temperatures plummeted over the winter.

As it was, the besieged Protestant Ascendancy would receive perhaps their only ray of hope in nearly two years. The Queen of Prussia, Louisa, would finally convince her German subjects to offer to "loan" a few Regiments to Ireland. This had not been a possibility before due to two reasons: 1. the Prussians didn't want to and, 2., the British had initiated a blockade.

As it was, the blockade would end over the winter of 1829/1830 as Great Britain had another problem.

Having attempted to form a new pseudo-colony near the southern tip of Africa, the United East India Company would react with surprising vigor...and violence against the European interlopers.

Goa

The United East India Company did not enjoy the 1820's. They were facing numerous challenges, not least of which was the collapse of central authority in the Maratha Empire. Then came the challenge of the government of Nippon to their long-held trading privileges.

Perhaps the greatest factor in the Company's prosperity over the past 50 years was the fact that the great trading Empires of Europe immolated themselves with civil war. Great Britain and France both conveniently destroyed themselves in civil wars just after defeating the old trading powers of Spain, Portugal and the Dutch Republic for the Asian trade. Without this vacuum of power, it was almost impossible to think that the UEIC would become a pseudo-sovereign state and dominate trader across southern Asia.

Still, the Company directors and their native allies had spent two generations fearing the return of European naval superiority and frequently invested heavily in their own navies, both UEIC and Maratha. The Marathas had let their own Navy dissolve as the Empire disintegrated from within. Now, most Maratha powers hired UEIC ships for their service.

While Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Sweden and the Dutch Republic were no longer military threats, this was not true for other nations. With Britain slowly recovering from their Revolutionary War and France perhaps finally reassembling as the Gallic Kingdom (or whatever they called it this week), it was possible that the UEIC could be challenged at some future point.

Therefore the Directors authorized their shipyards in Goa, Madras, Zanzibar, Batavia and other regions to not only build new ships but experiment with new technologies like steam. The Indian Ocean was a perilous place to sail due to the propensity for typhoons. To be able to sail contrary to winds in such dangerous waters would be a massive advantage for both military and commercial fleets. The first steam ships, often designed originally by European shipwrights and then adapted for Asia, would sail under the UEIC colors for Nippon, where they would be the first substantial steam-powered ships used for war.

Nagasaki

The Shogun would manage to organize the bulk of his fleet into one armada in hopes of ejecting the foreign devils. The Shogun's faction had been warring with the Emperor's loyalists for power and the Shogun was beginning to realize he was losing. Of course, the Shogun was a puppet himself, controlled by others. In order to maintain power, a great victory over the barbarians must be made and the Shogun's faction had staked their positions upon this. A defeat would be disastrous for Nippon...and more so for the Shogun's faction.

The fleet was something of a confused affair and would consist of dozens of diverse ships armed for war.

They would run directly into the traditional sailing ships of the UEIC which had defeated their predecessors...as well as some oddly belching beasts that moved contrary to the winds.

 

[Alt History Buff]

My guess is that the United East India Company will end up supporting the restoration of the Emperor. In exchange, Japan becomes a captive market for the UEIC?

Pretty close.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 380

March, 1830

Manhattan

President Henry Clay could not believe that five and a half years had nearly passed since his election and was surprised to find that he was actually looking forward to retirement. Nearly a full term as President and he was simply tired of dealing with the Philip Hamiltons, John Quincy Adams and Martin Van Burens of the world. The electioneering was already beginning among the Provincial and National Parties for President in the November, 1830 election. Van Buren was considered the presumptive candidate for the Provincials while the Nationals remained somewhat in disarray after their back to back disastrous Congressional elections.

Adams and Hamilton were the favorites but both were considered to be men of the past. Hamilton had lost badly to Clay while Adams was not personally popular. However, the next generation of leaders had yet to put themselves into the public eye.

In the meantime, Clay would authorize the expansion of American military aid to the Western Granada government. The actions of the Eastern Granadans in Maracaibo were utterly unacceptable in a civilized world.

Maracaibo, Western Granada

Following through on his threat to slaughter all who stood against his forces, General Simon Bolivar would allow his troops free reign to pillage Maracaibo. Thousands of civilians would die in the massacre and many of the soldiers of Santa Anna's broken Army were summarily executed.

Santa Anna himself would flee to the ships in the harbor, one of which was bound for America. Like his alliance with the Royalists in Aztlan many years before, he had apparently chosen the wrong side.

Zulu Kingdom

The rise of the Zulu in the south was quietly ignored by both the Ethiopian Empire, now crawling ever further south, and the UEIC settlement along the southern tip of Africa.

Soon enough, the entire region would know the name Zulu.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 381

May, 1830

Western Granada

President Francisco Miranda had been horrified, if not surprised, that Santa Anna had lost and then fled the battlefield, abandoning his army to its fate in Maracaibo. The flower of the Western Granadan Army had been lost and Miranda struggled to find replacements. Fortunately, he was able to purchase (on credit) some arms, cannon, powder, etc, from the United American Provinces. Without money, only patriotic volunteers could be requested and there was a limit to those. Yet, Miranda refused to bow to the pressure of forcible impressment. He would be no better than Boves if he resourced to that.

He hurriedly put together every bit of manpower he could find and placed them along the roads to Cartagena and Bogota.

Simon Bolivar was coming.

Spain

The Prince Regent would nearly weep in shame. He had assumed control over the Spanish Empire (and Portuguese and Neapolitan, etc) after popular discontent with his aged father had led to the broken old man into effective retirement. Father had lost half the Spanish Empire. It appeared that the son would lose the other half.

Desperate, the Prince Regent would appeal to the Spanish, Portuguese, Neapolitan and Sicilian Cortes, begging them to save the Spanish Empire.

The response he received was less than heartening.

Cape Town

The British Republic had controlled the western ports of Africa even in the dark days of their Civil War(s). Even as Western Europe immolated itself in war, destroying their own Empires in the process, the port towns of Africa remained important trading center though the "colonies" (really glorified trading posts and anchorages largely descended from the old slaving ports) would stagnate during the worst of the British wars. None of the other European powers considered conquering them during Britain's darkest days, something which spoke as much to their perceived values as it did to the poor state of other nations at the time (France, the Dutch Republic, Portugal and Spain to name the major ones).

Finally recovering from their self-destruction, the British Republic would steadily build up their colonies again. Primarily, the interest was possessing strategic ports for the Asian trade. Having convenient provisioning and repair stations were vital to maintaining a global navy. However, local trade grew a great deal as well, including dyes (vital for the struggling British textile industry), nuts, a bit of gold, hides, ivory, sugar, etc, etc and western Africa was no longer merely a stepping stone to more important places.

Britain would build up their system of alliances, usually trading arms with friendly inland Empires (which Africa, oddly, appeared to prefer over coastal Empires). A secondary consequence to this was the spread of Christianity along the coasts which spread quickly throughout the west Coasts, central regions and southwest. Islam was long established by the swarthy Arabs, Egypians, Berbers and Taureg to the Hausa, Mande and other tribes of the northern Black regions. Some Empires in Black Africa dated back nearly a thousand years.

But the Animists of the south would soon face a new threat in the second millennium in Christian missionaries. Catholics, Protestants and Ethiopian Orthodox (along the east coast) would soon end the Islamic expansion southwards and within a few centuries, there would be a clear dividing line in Africa between Christians and Muslims.

Those Empires gaining access to Europeans weapons would largely convert to Christianity first and then use their contacts with Europe to help them expand inward, further expanding the faith.

While Great Britain in 1830 was still struggling to recover their position in European and global society and commerce, there was a renewal of trade with Africa. Robert Peel, the Prime Minister, would encourage further expansion and the United East India Company colonies along the southern coast would be looked upon with jealousy as the Company dominated trade with Asia. Only by "agreement" could European traders sail the Indian Ocean and the British exporters were tired of this. They wanted their own convenient port to Asia and found a likely spot along the Cape.

That the undeveloped land was claimed by the Company didn't matter much.

An expedition was launched with full military guard to set up a colony.

The Company would not be happy.

 

[Alt History Buff]

Chapter 382

July, 1830

Manhattan

President Henry Clay still could not believe that his tenure in office was almost over. The people would go to the polls in November, less than four months away, and then four months after that a new President would swear the oath of office. Clay looked back at his own tenure and had to admit that he could find few actions which would be recalled a hundred years from now. Other Presidents had fought (and largely won) wars or expanded the nation greatly. Some would be remembered for dying in office, if nothing else.

But how would Clay be recalled?

Lowering tariffs a bit? Not something future historians would glamourize in books. If anything, this concession to his electorate hindered his opportunity to expand the nation's infrastructure. When First Legislator Van Buren ascended to primacy in Congress, Clay had been forced to lower them even more.

President Fernandez had fought the last war against the Spanish. Clay had been left to pay for it and the burden (along with lowered tariffs) would reduce his ability to finance great projects. America was a lightly taxed nation and tariffs were the greatest source of income. Dropping them increased the spending power of the people but severely constrained the government. Like his predecessors, Clay was intent on keeping up the army and navy in order to protect America's gains...but this did little for Clay if no further wars were fought.

There hadn't even been any territories ascending to Provincial Status in his tenure. After half a century of rapid growth, there had not been a new Province represented in Congress since Oregon six years earlier. Yes, there were other potential territories soon to request recognition: Darien, Saint Dominic, Jamaica, for instance. But these brought their own problems as the islands had not yet been capable of setting up a functional territorial government much less be ready to cast off the appointed military governors. Maybe Minnesota or Arkansaw may be ready for Provincehood soon...but that wouldn't happen in Clay's tenure.

Oddly, the one piece of infrastructure which would likely be most associated with Clay's Presidency was the Darien Railroad / Canal along the coast of Panama (or the American Main, "Panama" over time becoming the preferred term for the six territories which used to comprise Costa Rica and Panama akin to the regional designation of "New England". The "American Main" would eventually return to circulation as well in common usage despite "on the Main" being a bit of a mouthful due to the region's increasing population, expansion and strategic importance). He was still uncertain if the railroad would actually WORK (most of the engines in service in America, Britain and the rest of the world, frequently failed) nor was he certain the Canal itself was viable without an easy way to cut through the mountains of Darien. Even Clay admitted that this was more a personal project of President Fernandez (another President whom had the dignity to die in office).

Having spent his life coveting power, Clay came away somehow disappointed. His administration had few major achievements beyond keeping the nation on an even keel, recovering fairly well economically from the war and the odd piece of legislation (historians would hold his term in high regard for the anti-Spoils legislation and reforming the national bank). Perhaps more embarrassingly, he had, only two years into his administration, been put at the mercy of a hostile Congress under Van Buren. For the first time in history, the President and First Legislator were not at least moderately on the same side. To get anything accomplished, Clay had been forced to turn to his rivals Philip Hamilton and John Quincy Adams for support. How humiliating.

Still, Clay, Adams and Hamilton were able to put aside their differences and select a candidate for their new National Party that at least had a shot at defeating Van Buren.

Nicaragua

General Zebulon Pike, bitterly impotent in his little coastal enclave in Nicaragua, would watch the experiment in Democracy fail utterly. By 1830, there was no rebellion against Royalists, no Conservative or Liberal Civil War, not even a private feud between the elites of the cities of Granada and Leon. In 1830, the theoretical nation of Nicaragua had been reduced to a lawless land run by local warlords and gangs, nothing more. Lacking soldiers of any note, the best Pike could do was take in refugees and protect them until ships could be summoned to sail them to Panama, Aztlan or wherever they could take them.

Later historians would estimate at least a 60% population loss due to war, famine, disease and emigration in Nicaragua over the wars of 1820 to 1835, when the violence mercifully died down. The towns of Leon and Granada had been effectively destroyed and Nicaragua reduced to poverty. Many of the Indians would flee north to the Mayan Republic while most of the Mestizo emigrants would end up in Aztlan or Panama.

Bogota, Western Granada

President Miranda would face the assault of Bolivar's army with courage, if not particular skill. Miranda had been an officer prior to the Revolution but not a terribly distinguished one and the President would not show any particular aptitude for controlling the mob in battle. Bolivar's army of conscripts were more experienced and would soundly defeat the defenders whose determination was not matched by their skill.

Miranda's army was pushed into the hills while Bolivar marched into Bogota. Within hours, he'd lost control over his army and city was sacked mercilessly by the brutally treated conscripts eager to vent their pent up aggression.

Bolivar would send for President Boves in this moment of victory to witness the fall of the capital of Western Granada.