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alternatehistory.com
This is a timeline I have been working on for a while now. This timeline follows the history of the United States and the rest of the world following a US victory in the War of 1812 and the annexation of the entire Oregon territory. The POD for this timeline is the American occupation of Montreal is successful, which they use as a platform for further expansion into Upper Canada.
Only events that are important to the timeline are listed.
1812 - The US push into Montreal is successful, and the Americans secure control over the St Lawrence river.
1813 - With the St Lawrence under US control, the campaigns into Upper Canada are far more successful.
1814 - The British attempts to retake Montreal fail, but they score major strategic victories over the American navy in the Atlantic.
1815 - France is defeated, bringing an end to the Napoleonic War. The United States agrees to a peace treaty with the British, fearing the British will be able to focus more on North America with the defeat of France. The Americans withdraw from Lower and Upper Canada, but the Americans gain complete control over all British territory west of the continental divide and parts of Rupert's land. This results in a long-term shift in American policy, favouring a more militaristic outlook on the world. It also feeds American expansionism.
1820s - Relations between the British Empire and the United States improve, but the trade relation between the two nations is forever changed. America is forced to industrialise early to compensate for the lack of British manufactured goods while Britain searches for alternative sources of raw resource and cotton. Early transition from cash crops to food crops in the United States leads to far earlier development of agricultural practices and technology, leading to increased populations in the western world.
1825 - Negotiations between the US and Russia result in Russia granting the United States the Alaska panhandle and giving up all claims on the North American continent east of the 141st meridian west in exchange for a small sum of money.
1836 - Texas declares independence from Mexico.
1838 - US establishes a settlement in the Strait of Magellan to prevent the British from preventing US access to the Pacific. This territory was organised into the US South Atlantic Territory, with claims extending from the 51st parallel south to the South Pole.
1841 - The South American portion of the US South Atlantic Territory ceded to Argentina, with the US receiving permanent basing rights and free travel through the Strait of Magellan. The Antarctic portion of this territory remains American.
1844 - An expedition into the Yukon territory results in the creation of a first American port in the Arctic. This is seen as the beginning of America's Arctic policy.
1845 - Texas is admitted to the Union.
1846 - The Mexican-American war begins.
1848 - The Mexican-American war ends. With America in control of the Oregon territory, which is slave-free territory, they are less hesitant to admit more slave states into the Union. As a result, the demands from the South for a larger Mexican succession are met. The slavery question itself is far less divisive than it was in OTL, due to the South no longer having as large of a market for their cotton, making slavery far less profitable.
1850s - Disputes arise between the Americans and the European powers of Britain and France arise over accusations of forming economic monopolies over the economies of Latin American and using predatory loaning to secure influence in the Americas. Without British Columbia to increase land travel from Canada to the Pacific, the Prairie areas are neglected and underpopulated by British North America. American immigrants begin to secure dominance over the area. Mexicans in the US territory of Rio Grande launch a series of attacks against the American armed forces, forcing the government to maintain a larger standing army.
1860 - Riots break out across the South after Abraham Lincoln is elected on the platform of gradually ending slavery in all states of the Union. However, without the motivation of huge profits, these riots do not result in any states leaving the Union.
1861 - With the US army busy quelling riots in the South and their Mexican territories, the French increase their influence in Mexico and begins supporting the efforts of Mexican separatists in the United States in an attempt to distract and weaken one of their rival and secure support from the Mexican public.
1863 - Britain recognises French hegemony over Mexico.
1865 - Riots and protests in the South finally die down with the federal government agreeing to allow the Southern states special rights and to impose nation-wide Jim Crow laws. This results in freed or escaped slaves often choosing to travel further north into Canada or south into Latin America (especially Haiti). Toronto and Montreal gain a sizable African-American community.
1867- The expansionist attitude of the United States results in the formation of the Canadian Confederation.
1868 - Cross border raids begin between Mexico, supported by the French, against the United States. The US arms pro-American rebels in Cuba with the intention of annexing the island as a state. Spain grants the British and French power over Cuba in order to suppress rebellion. In retaliation, the US arms the Americans in the Canadian West against the British.
1870 (1)- World War 1 begins with the sinking of an American warship in Cuba by the French navy. Britain provides limited support to the French. Mexico launches an invasion of the American South while the American navy battles with the French navy in the Gulf.
1870 (2)- Russia and Prussia join the war on the side of the Americans by declaring war on the British and French. The Russian navy is stationed in the American Northeast while the Prussians invade the French homeland.
1870 (3)- The Americans make gains in Canada and Mexico, pushing the latter to pre-war borders. Plans for a naval invasion of Cuba are drafted by American high command. The Russian and American navies face heavy losses against the British navy on the Canadian coast but secure naval superiority over the Gulf.
1871 - France surrenders to the Russo-American-Prussian axis after Prussia succeeds in taking their capital. Britain, not wanting to fight 3 great powers at once, surrenders early under favourable conditions. Prussia gains Alsace-Lorraine and forms the German Empire. Britain recognises American hegemony over Central America and Russian hegemony over Central Asia, along with agreements to stop British funding of Polish rebels. Disputes over the Guyana border are also resolved in Venezuela's favour. Britain and France recognise Cuba as under American influence. The Republic of Zacatecas and the Republic of Yucatan are granted independence from Mexico as American protectorates. Liberia and Sierra Leone become official American colonies. Italian re-unification is completed.
1872 - Slavery is officially abandoned in all American states and territories. The US government opens a program to encourage African American migration into Liberia and Sierra Leone in attempts to create a pro-American republic. Hispanic rebels in the South and Cuba flee from the United States fearing retribution for fighting against the American government. The Central American Alliance is formed by Mexico to combat American imperialism in the Caribbean.
1873 - Congress approves the Dominican Republic's requests to become a protectorate of the United States.
1879 - America supports Chile in the War of the Pacific.
1884 - The United States takes part in the Berlin conference, resulting in the creation of American West Africa, out of the territories of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. This area already has significant American presence in the form of freed slaves, which outnumber native Africans in many areas.
1880s - Russia's trade relationship with the United States leads to further development of the Russian Far East and an increased focus on developing infrastructure through Siberia. These improvements allow Russia to modernize early.
1889 - A marriage between Princess Isabel, the daughter of Brazilian Emperor Pedro II and Edward VII, the son of Queen Victoria solidifies the British-Brazilian treaty of friendship. Fearing his daughter not wanting to become Queen, Pedro names Edward heir to the Brazilian throne, making Brazil an official dominion of the British Empire.
1891 - Russia enters an alliance with France as a result of German hostility in the east. This hurts their relationship with the United States.
1898 - The Spanish-American War. All Spanish holdings in North America are transferred to the United States, with Spain's Pacific holdings being partitioned between Germany and the United States by the equator.
1902 - Colombia joins the Central American Alliance.
1903 - US Invasion of Haiti. American troops stage an invasion of Haiti from Cuba, making Haiti a protectorate of the United States. Colombia is forced to withdraw from Panama by the British Empire, which seeks to build a canal to link the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
1905 - The Russo-Japanese war ends in Russian victory. Russia gains increased influence in Manchuria. Japan is forced to recognise Korea as independent but still keeps a lot of influence over the region.
1907 - The Caribbean Crisis. The United States invades Nicaragua, a member of the Central American Alliance, in order to build their own canal linking the Atlantic to the Pacific. Porfirio Diaz, the president of Mexico, promised Nicaragua that Mexico would come to their aid. However, because Britain and France were both busy with increasing tensions in Europe, so Diaz was unable to receive any guarantees of support and was thus forced to withdraw. This shattered confidence in the Central American Alliance, causing many nations to seek alternative sources of protection. Costa Rica, which was already considered to be the most pro-American nation of the Central American Alliance, sought improved relations with the US while Colombia pursued defense agreements with Brazil and Britain.
1912 - Robert Scott becomes the first man to reach the South Pole, beating his American rivals by a few days. He is later knighted by King George.