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The tension between the United Kingdom and the American settlers went back centuries, with historians showing the cultures diverging as early as the English Civil War. This tension came to the forefront following the French and Indian War, when Parliament imposed a series of taxes on the colonists to help Great Britain out of massive debt, and King George III issued a proclamation forbidding the colonists from settling past the Appalachian Mountains. This, along with a number of other grievances, led to an armed rebellion in 1775. After the revolt was put down in 1778, Parliament agreed to grant the colonies more autonomy, which worked for the most part. However, they could not entirely bridge the gap, and many smaller rebellions did break out in the following decades.
To escape what many percieved as foreign rule, American settlers moved west, further away from British authority on the coast. In the north, they moved into the Charlotina Colony. Charlotina was originally meant to be an Indian protectorate, but Great Britain gave greater priority to the colonists' satisfaction, and whites soon came to outnumber natives in the region. By 1820, both Upper Canada and Charlotina were under the control of a conservative, religiously-minded oligarchy. In the south, they moved across the Appalachian mountains and into the newly aquired Louisiana territory. Some even moved to Spanish Texas. The southerners tended to have more friction with the British Empire due to the British disapproval of slavery. As Parliament slowly tried to chip away at the institution, the southerners became more and more defiant, which led to the British being less lenient, creating a cycle of distrust.
In 1835, Parliament officially passed the Slavery Abolition Act, making slavery illegal across the empire. This was the spark that drove slaveowners to declare independence, leading to the second major American rebellion. However, this rebellion was different in that the North alligned with the British. The war was a slog, and in 1839, the UK and its loyal North American possessions were forced to come to a ceasefire with the pro-slavery rebels. While most of the rebels had been defeated east of the Mississippi, the loyalists failed in the isolated and heavily-armed West, and this newly independent territory called itself "New Virginia" after the first American colony. It became a destination for slaveowners who refused to let go of their assets, as well as those who simply rejected British rule. By 1850, the nation's population had doubled; and it only continued to grow.
In 1844, Texas (settled by Americans as early as 1805) threw off Mexican rule and joined New Virginia, giving the once landlocked country access to the sea. At the same time, pioneers from New Virginia began migrating to California, leading to that nation's independence in 1851. The UK, knowing that the colonies were still a political minefield, were reluctant to take any action.
As the Industrial Revolution came from across the water, Charlotina became the economic powerhouse of British North America. This worked in Britain's favor, as the colony had always been one of the most friendly toward London. Parliament felt comfortable letting Charlotina act like a proxy, and in 1865, all of Britain's North American holdings were consolidated into a confederation, with Detroit acting as a de facto capital.
In the early 1870's, as New Virginia began to take a more revanchist perspective toward their eastern neighbors. Louisiana, West Florida, and Tennessee had been brutally repressed since the end of the last rebellion, and many impoverished and marginalized folk felt that it was time for another rebellion -- one that might succeed in kicking out the British once and for all. The president of New Virginia at the time, John Hill Coke, couldn't have agreed more. However, he had missed his window. Under Charlotinian hegemony, the north of the BNA had become unified, wealthy, and accepting of British rule. The Deep South was now the only region where talk of secession was taken seriously. Nonetheless, Coke was determined to liberate this territory, and that would mean fighting the northern "traitors" as well. New Virginia militarized itself, conscripting en masse and stockpiling armaments from Germany.
In response, Parliament decided that New Virginia was an existential threat, and needed to be wiped off the continent. War had become a certainty.
In 1876, rebels in Louisiana attacked a British infantry regiment in Baton Rouge, marking the start of the Great American War...
The tension between the United Kingdom and the American settlers went back centuries, with historians showing the cultures diverging as early as the English Civil War. This tension came to the forefront following the French and Indian War, when Parliament imposed a series of taxes on the colonists to help Great Britain out of massive debt, and King George III issued a proclamation forbidding the colonists from settling past the Appalachian Mountains. This, along with a number of other grievances, led to an armed rebellion in 1775. After the revolt was put down in 1778, Parliament agreed to grant the colonies more autonomy, which worked for the most part. However, they could not entirely bridge the gap, and many smaller rebellions did break out in the following decades.
To escape what many percieved as foreign rule, American settlers moved west, further away from British authority on the coast. In the north, they moved into the Charlotina Colony. Charlotina was originally meant to be an Indian protectorate, but Great Britain gave greater priority to the colonists' satisfaction, and whites soon came to outnumber natives in the region. By 1820, both Upper Canada and Charlotina were under the control of a conservative, religiously-minded oligarchy. In the south, they moved across the Appalachian mountains and into the newly aquired Louisiana territory. Some even moved to Spanish Texas. The southerners tended to have more friction with the British Empire due to the British disapproval of slavery. As Parliament slowly tried to chip away at the institution, the southerners became more and more defiant, which led to the British being less lenient, creating a cycle of distrust.
In 1835, Parliament officially passed the Slavery Abolition Act, making slavery illegal across the empire. This was the spark that drove slaveowners to declare independence, leading to the second major American rebellion. However, this rebellion was different in that the North alligned with the British. The war was a slog, and in 1839, the UK and its loyal North American possessions were forced to come to a ceasefire with the pro-slavery rebels. While most of the rebels had been defeated east of the Mississippi, the loyalists failed in the isolated and heavily-armed West, and this newly independent territory called itself "New Virginia" after the first American colony. It became a destination for slaveowners who refused to let go of their assets, as well as those who simply rejected British rule. By 1850, the nation's population had doubled; and it only continued to grow.
In 1844, Texas (settled by Americans as early as 1805) threw off Mexican rule and joined New Virginia, giving the once landlocked country access to the sea. At the same time, pioneers from New Virginia began migrating to California, leading to that nation's independence in 1851. The UK, knowing that the colonies were still a political minefield, were reluctant to take any action.
As the Industrial Revolution came from across the water, Charlotina became the economic powerhouse of British North America. This worked in Britain's favor, as the colony had always been one of the most friendly toward London. Parliament felt comfortable letting Charlotina act like a proxy, and in 1865, all of Britain's North American holdings were consolidated into a confederation, with Detroit acting as a de facto capital.
In the early 1870's, as New Virginia began to take a more revanchist perspective toward their eastern neighbors. Louisiana, West Florida, and Tennessee had been brutally repressed since the end of the last rebellion, and many impoverished and marginalized folk felt that it was time for another rebellion -- one that might succeed in kicking out the British once and for all. The president of New Virginia at the time, John Hill Coke, couldn't have agreed more. However, he had missed his window. Under Charlotinian hegemony, the north of the BNA had become unified, wealthy, and accepting of British rule. The Deep South was now the only region where talk of secession was taken seriously. Nonetheless, Coke was determined to liberate this territory, and that would mean fighting the northern "traitors" as well. New Virginia militarized itself, conscripting en masse and stockpiling armaments from Germany.
In response, Parliament decided that New Virginia was an existential threat, and needed to be wiped off the continent. War had become a certainty.
In 1876, rebels in Louisiana attacked a British infantry regiment in Baton Rouge, marking the start of the Great American War...