Welcome. This TL, titled The Butterfly Century, will explore a Confederate States of America that “won” the Civil War. However, and before we go any farther, I would like to say that this will not be a TL-191 CSA-becomes-a-world-power story. However, the outcome might surprise you, as the butterflies from this war will spread around the globe. In the first part of TL, we will mainly deal with North and Central America, with glimpses of the outside world starting in the 1880’s. With WW1, we will shift our focus away from just North America to cover events all around the globe. The Century part of the title is so because this TL will roughly cover the years 1860-1960, with glimpses into the later years to present day. But first, let’s take a look at how this whole thing started:
The 1860 presidential election was perhaps one of the most predictable elections in the history of the United States. William Seward, an old Senator with a favorable reputation and lots of experience, was deemed best able to handle the pressing problems facing the nation. Thanks to the backing of the influential Thurlow Weed, Seward handily won the Republican presidential nomination against his rivals, men such as Salmon Chase and an little-known Illinois lawyer, Abraham Lincoln. The Southern States, weary of his anti-slavery rhetoric, finally decided to secede from the Union on April 4, 1861, with the capture of Fort Sumter in South Carolina. Besides South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas eventually withdrew from the Union. The war dragged on for two years, as the ineffective McLellan was constantly humiliated in battle by the ingenious Robert E. Lee. Lee, realizing that the Union would win in a prolonged war and that he had won a nearly uncontested string of victories in the East, pushed up in a final attack upon Union soil. As Confederate troops approached Gettysburg, Seward panicked, forcing a Surrender of all Union Troops on June 30, 1863. Davis, president of the Confederacy, met with Seward in Washington to discuss the peace treaty, which can only be described as draconian. The US was to surrender Kansas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Arizona and New Mexico to the CSA. Seward, feeling trapped, signed the agreement. The American Civil War was over.
The 1860 presidential election was perhaps one of the most predictable elections in the history of the United States. William Seward, an old Senator with a favorable reputation and lots of experience, was deemed best able to handle the pressing problems facing the nation. Thanks to the backing of the influential Thurlow Weed, Seward handily won the Republican presidential nomination against his rivals, men such as Salmon Chase and an little-known Illinois lawyer, Abraham Lincoln. The Southern States, weary of his anti-slavery rhetoric, finally decided to secede from the Union on April 4, 1861, with the capture of Fort Sumter in South Carolina. Besides South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas eventually withdrew from the Union. The war dragged on for two years, as the ineffective McLellan was constantly humiliated in battle by the ingenious Robert E. Lee. Lee, realizing that the Union would win in a prolonged war and that he had won a nearly uncontested string of victories in the East, pushed up in a final attack upon Union soil. As Confederate troops approached Gettysburg, Seward panicked, forcing a Surrender of all Union Troops on June 30, 1863. Davis, president of the Confederacy, met with Seward in Washington to discuss the peace treaty, which can only be described as draconian. The US was to surrender Kansas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Arizona and New Mexico to the CSA. Seward, feeling trapped, signed the agreement. The American Civil War was over.
. And I will cover the whole world, but the first few chapters will focus on North America, as the rest of the world will continue on much as OTL.