The Grand Ascent

[Nagisaki]

Alright, hello AH.com! I have been on this sight for a little over half a year now, and thought it time to contribute a timeline that isn't in the ASB category. I wrote this story as a challenge for my eighth grade writing class, but managed to flush it out completely for the rest of the year. It is now ready, I hope you all enjoy the prologue/teaser! If anyone here comes from the previous version, then I should warn them that it will be mostly copy and paste from there, with a few changes here and there. Especially the prologue and first part. If anyone asks if this is an Ameriwank... then yeah, sort of, though it won't stay Americentric for TOO long, otherwise it gets boring.

The Grand Ascent;
Prologue:​

The United States of America. Not always the most popular nation in international politics, but it does always seem to find it's place in the sun with the others. The Prime Minister of Poland-Lithuania visited last year and gave his thanks for helping his nation out of the economic turmoil it encountered in the early 2000's. How and when the US began this path many wonder. However, if traced back, it comes from the lengthy American revolution, as the British refused to surrender[1] for quite a long time, the Americans became intent on taking as much land as they could. After finally losing all of the 13 colonies and the land up to the Mississippi, they finally agreed to surrender in 1788, 12 years after they declared independence. They were given the land they had taken in the war[2], though France and Spain also mediated the peace. The French Revolution showed the Americans just how the ideals of republicanism can be corrupted and used in a horrible way.

However, during the "Quasi-war" of the early 1800s, the US was unofficially allied with the British against French and Spanish ships attacking their trade in the Caribbean[3]. The Barbary wars proved that the Americans could fight long distances from home, sacking the pirate outposts. The French sold Louisiana to the Americans in order to gain more money coming up for the Third Napoleonic war(War of the Third Coalition). The near outbreak of war in 1812[4] with Britain convinced the Americans that they needed to focus their expansionist desires elsewhere. It also led the British to stop taking of American sailors and boats.

This convinced the Americans that they needed to keep their heads down until they could truly shine and take more land that they could actually control. Many believe that the best example of this was the annexation of the Republic of Texas in 1845, which led to war with Mexico about three years later. The war was an overwhelming American victory, with almost half of Mexico being annexed. More land was bought from them in 1853, and several nations started to pay attention. Sardinia-Piedmont, a small Kingdom in northwestern Italy, definitely would have supported the US, had it not been at war with Austria, and receiving heavy American support, just shy of actually sending troops in. While they lost, it did establish a friendship between the two. This, I believe, is where this 'story' of modern history begins. One of our old sayings, coming from when we invaded Mexico, undemocratic at the time, came from this: "We are the fire of freedom, and that fire must light and warm up other places that are dark and cold in this world."



[1] Main Point of Divergence, the British refuse to surrender and convince the Americans that they must take as much land as they can to be relevant, though the radicals are quickly put down.

[2] It's the same as they got in OTL, no divergences here.

[3] First Minor POD, the Quasi-war went a bit hotter than OTL, but barely, so still no D.O.W. by the US, but it did cool the relations between France and the US a tiny bit more than OTL.

[4] Second Main POD, there is no war of 1812, so the US loses their victory disease through Native American Wars rather than against the British. Now, they do still prevail in the early 1800s here, but it is enough to teach them that they can't win everything.
​

 

[rjd1997]

Will be watching this with interest.

 

[Nagisaki]

Part 1

Here we go, the timeline truly begins here!

The Grand Ascent;
Part 1:

In 1853, the United States of America knew it was time to cast off their old isolationist cloak that they had worn for so long to avoid too much attention. However, the annexation of Liberia in 1845 had proven costly, as the Southerners had been furious about the fact that there was now a territory south of Missouri that had slavery banned. Congress argued that they had to ban slavery there as it was on the coast of Africa, and it would not due to have African slaves in Africa. The isolationists were in outrage, though they were quickly silenced. The British and Americans agreed to a proper border between them(OTL US-Canada border), the border between Sierra Leone and Liberia was also confirmed with this treaty, however, it was later revised after a small peninsula[1] was noticed by observers from Vancouver Island that would be part of the US. After this discovery, the border was changed to avoid the peninsula.

The US knew that they needed to seek out allies on the European Stage. Russia they were friendly enough with, though their relation varied from Tsar to Tsar, the current Tsar, Alexander II, was pretty pro-democracy and very liberal for his time. However, they also wanted allies who could last. The Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont was their first choice. They signed a secret defense treaty where the US promised to support them in the event of another war with Austria, which was almost certain. However, the chance of allying with Russia was lost in 1854, with the outbreak of the Crimean War. While the Tsar was away, they gave the US an ultimatum, to choose between Russia and Sardinia, as Sardinia was against Russia. This was a very hard decision for the US to make. They didn't want Russia to become an undisputed world hegemon, but they also didn't want France to become the Protector of the Eastern Christians. However, in the end, it was voted to support Sardinia over Russia. The Russians were outraged. However, the US had a plan to gain more territory.

The American Colonial Society was nationalized and reorganized into a department, the American Colonial Department. There were several suggestions on where they could expand. All suggestions in Africa were immediately dismissed, as the environment was extremely hostile and Liberia was considered enough for them. A suggestion that had not come up before was a Chinese Island in the northern pacific. This would give them the capability to sail out to larger regions of the Pacific, and would give them a decent stick to wave at Russia if they ever wanted to. The Manchus called it sahaliyan ula angga hada(meaning "peak/craggy rock at the mouth of the Amur River" in Manchu), however, most called it by a borrowed term of the first word, Sakhalin.

However, in order to even reach the island, they would need to use one of 3 routes: They could go by Russian Alaska and sail down the coast of Siberia, however, Russia also wants the island and the route is hard in the winter, so it was decided against. They could sail up the coast of China, but they are taking the island from them in the first place, so it is also a no-go. However, the final option posed some potential, if it was done correctly, it avoided the problems posed by winter and the issue of China and/or Russia. The option was to use the island nation of Japan.

[1] Point Roberts, a small town that only has a border with Canada, I wanted to avoid that fiasco in this timeline WITHOUT the annexation of Canada cliche.​

 

[Nagisaki]

Map! Sorry about all the different shades of yellow, my colour scheme seems to like yellows.

 

[rjd1997]

Looking good so far, a more Asian focused US will be interesting.

No offense meant, but please fix that color scheme. Too much Yellow!

 

[jahenders]

Two things that I have a little trouble accepting:
1) That we'd go for a treaty with Sardinia vs Russia

2) That if we wanted land we wouldn't go for Russian Alaska before considering the logistically more difficult Sakhalin

 

[Nagisaki]

Two things that I have a little trouble accepting:
1) That we'd go for a treaty with Sardinia vs Russia

2) That if we wanted land we wouldn't go for Russian Alaska before considering the logistically more difficult Sakhalin

Both of those questions were considered by me before starting here. The Americans didn't go for Russian Alaska as it is 3rd(well, fourth actually, but 3rd and second are kind of intertwined) in the hierarchy of lands they want to acquire. Now, the first question is more for common sense. However, this doesn't kill the US-Russia relationship, they just decided that they didn't want to be friends with Russia if Russia was saying to either choose them or Sardinia as a friend.

 

[jahenders]

Interesting, though I can see few reasons that the US would want Sakhalin more than Alaska. A forward base against Russia is interesting, but a base close to your enemy is FAR more difficult to support than a base close to you, even more so since we didn't have Hawaii at the time. From San Francisco to Tokyo would be about a 3-4 month round trip, plus some time from Tokyo to Sakhalin.

Both of those questions were considered by me before starting here. The Americans didn't go for Russian Alaska as it is 3rd(well, fourth actually, but 3rd and second are kind of intertwined) in the hierarchy of lands they want to acquire. Now, the first question is more for common sense. However, this doesn't kill the US-Russia relationship, they just decided that they didn't want to be friends with Russia if Russia was saying to either choose them or Sardinia as a friend.

 

[Nagisaki]

Interesting, though I can see few reasons that the US would want Sakhalin more than Alaska. A forward base against Russia is interesting, but a base close to your enemy is FAR more difficult to support than a base close to you, even more so since we didn't have Hawaii at the time. From San Francisco to Tokyo would be about a 3-4 month round trip, plus some time from Tokyo to Sakhalin.

You know what, since I need to extend the second update anyway, I will address the question directly in the update. May that answer your final question .

 

[Nagisaki]

Alright! Part 2! I changed this one not too much from the original, just took out some info that was already stated. Hope you enjoy.

The Grand Ascent;
Part 2:

​

While the Europeans were entertaining themselves in Africa, the US had turned their sights to the Pacific, where they believed their chance at expansion lied. Most of the Colonial Department's suggestions for expansion were in West Africa, which were rejected due to the fact that Liberia was all that they planned on doing in Africa unless the situation was optimal for them. Most of them weren't. Because of this, many islands in the Pacific were targeted as refueling stations, since paying for passage was not all that optimal for them, due to the fact that British Hong Kong and Portuguese Macau were great spots for trade. The main trade route they used to get there was to sail from areas like San Francisco to the Spanish Pacific Islands, then to the cities themselves. Since this was the case, the Philippines, as well as the Mariana Islands, were marked off by the Colonial Department. This was agreed to be a good idea, but since Spain was a little uncooperative, they would need a casus belli to go to war with Spain. However, soon a suggestion came before the table that would change their thoughts, taking control of Sakhalin island.

Many wondered why the US had taken chosen Sakhalin over territories like the Philippines or Russian Alaska. The answer was complicated. Russian Alaska the Americans knew they could acquire without war, it would just take a while. And since they were already working on a plan to take the Philippines, it put Sakhalin next on the list of spots of land that would be ideal to control. Since they planned on acquiring many territories far from the American Continent, it was wondered how they would govern them properly. After a close vote on the issue, it was decided that they would be run by a combination of how the run their continental territories, and how the Roman Empire managed their newly conquered territories. The 'Overseas Territories,' called this to avoid using the word 'colony,' would be directly managed by the American Colonial Department, with observers meeting the locals to help make important decisions. If hostile, they would slowly be pacified. Once pacified, general elections would be held for positions like governors and such. It was not decided whether the overseas territories would be allowed to become proper states, which many wanted to know, but it was decided to be dealt with later. The people of the territories run directly by the Colonial Department would not be American Citizens, but instead would be American "Nationals", meaning that they could live and work in the states, but wouldn't be allowed to vote in elections unless they went through the immigration process like any foreigner would. This was not worried about too much as they didn't plan on acquiring any hostile territories anytime soon, and any nationals living in a pacified territory would be able to become a citizen by presenting their ID once their home territory was pacified.

Liberia was the first to be organized as an overseas territory. It was deemed pacified within a month. The US government decided that Japan was their best option to grab Sakhalin, and sent a naval expedition under Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry to open Japan to them. This was to be done discreetly, as to avoid the attention of the European Powers, and let Japan avoid getting the 'China Treatment,' as it was called, immediately after coming out of isolation. After sailing up to the Japanese Capital, Edo, in July 1853, and being refused access to the city, they gave the Japanese 2 white flags, and showed them to raise them when they wanted the shooting to stop. They then proceeded to shoot several buildings around the bay, showing off their firepower. the Japanese finally agreed to negotiate terms.

Commodore Perry returned to the US, and a meeting of the cabinet was called by the President to decide what to do with this opportunity. There were reports that some people actually wanted to annex Japan. Others were hoping to simply open it up and let it modernize itself, while being allowed some provisions while it does so. However, it was decided on what they would do soon after. They would force them to allow trade with the Americans, but to still reject everyone else except for the Dutch who occasionally traded in Nagasaki. At the same time, for the first time in over a century, the Shogun of Japan requested consultation with the Emperor on what to do about the encroachment of foreign powers. In response, against practically everyone's wishes, the Emperor himself went to the negotiations, taking place in September 1855. This was unknown to the outside world, and kept a strict secret in the US until the task was done. With tensions between the West and China heating up again, the US, who didn't want to help manage another nation on the other side of the ocean from them, hoped to try and get a limited amount of concessions from the Japanese. They got more than they bargained for.

The small island chain northeast of Japan that they controlled[1] was given to the US, and the US was given the right to trade in Japan, except for opium, which the US was happy to agree not to sell. It was also agreed that United States ships could refuel in Japanese harbours. In a move unprecedented, the US delegation had both the Shogun and the Emperor sign the treaty. The negotiator had done this as he thought it would make an interesting statement toward tyhe Japanese. The treaty also guaranteed the protection of Japan by the US against any incursions by the European powers, which was done in hopes of getting the Japanese to like them more. It also established financial and diplomatic ties between the nations, and a few cities were opened to US citizens to openly trade and live in, and a consulate was opened in a city not far southwest from Edo. Extraterritoriality was granted to Americans living in Japan, allowing them to be charged by the laws of the US rather than the laws of Japan. The signing of the Treaty was announced in several newspapers around the country. The Europeans were somewhat confused, as they could not access Japan to confirm if the rumors were true or not. The US government also had no official comment on the story. The fact that they now had, essentially, a vassal state on the other side of the Pacific in a great location would prove to be useful in the future...



[1] Today's disputed Kuril Islands.

 

[Nagisaki]

OK, made a few changes to the map, made Abyssinia's colour white, made China the Ming dynasty colour, and made America its non-expanisionist colour, and have also shown Japan as essentially an American vassal state in all but name.

 

[Nagisaki]

Question

OK, so if anyone remembers the original version, I had the Spanish-American war in the same update as the Second Opium War. Would anyone object to me keeping it that way, or should I split it into two updates?

 

[Nagisaki]

After reading the last update, I realized it kinda doesn't go along the same tune as the others did, so I am going to rewrite it once I get my computer hooked back up... In about 5 minutes.

 

[Nagisaki]

Part 4

Well, since I didn't get an answer to my question I am going to keep them as part of the same update. Here you go, part 3.
​

The Grand Ascent;
Part 3:​

With a route through the Pacific now mostly secure, the Americans decided to make their move when the Chinese seemed weakest. This opportunity came when a medium-sized naval party refueling in Hong Kong saw several warships head out of the harbour in October 1856. The head of the convoy ordered his ships to follow at a distance. When the ships stopped, the party was shocked to see that they started bombarding Canton. The Naval Party sent a merchant vessel they had been escorting back with instructions to telegraph the authorities from there. The telegraph contained a question on what to do about the situation.
​

Eight days later, the boat returned, and the naval officer sent with them came back with the order to join the British, and now the French as well, in bombarding the Chinese coast. The Americans did this to convince the British to help them in grabbing Sakhalin Island before Russia could get to it. This was agreed to, and the Americans began to seize the rest of the Kuril Islands to act as a base when the invasion would begin. However, they were also focused on a much bigger prize in the Pacific.

The American government knew they had to do something about the Southern Radicals that seemed to be getting into power. Once the Ostend Manifesto was issued in 1854, the island of Cuba was considered a decent option for getting the South to calm down. In 1857, despite the annoyance that China was causing, the US government decided to take the initiative and get a casus belli for war against Spain. They had been prepared to fabricate evidence of an attack, but an unprecedented opportunity came someone suggested to use a "false flag attack." This means that they do something on purpose, but blame it on the Spanish. They did this by having a large naval vessel, armed with explosives, explode off of the Cuban coast[1]. The government used this to whip up the public into supporting war with Spain. After several provocations to make it look like they were the ones being attacked, Spain declared war on the US. It was hoped by the Spanish that they could launch a naval attack from the Philippines while they did a land invasion from Cuba to Florida. However, the Americans knew this was the obvious action. The Americans thus planned to have a decent-sized defense force waiting in Florida for the Spanish until their plan could be executed. Their plan called for using some of the Bonin Islands as a base to invade the Philippines. However, the Bonin Islands were some of the first islands to be occupied by the Spanish to secure themselves before the war, so the Americans decided to take advantage of their treaty with Japan for the time being.

The Spanish thought that the Americans could never launch an invasion of the Pacific Islands. They were wrong. Since there had been a massive build-up in the area of the Japanese Islands anyway in preparation for the invasion of Sakhalin, once the invasion was successful, they could redirect their troops to Southern Japan to capture the Mariana and Bonin Islands. However, in return for their help, the Japanese wanted the Bonin Islands. The Americans agreed happily, since the islands would be a Japanese problem and not theirs.

The invasion of Sakhalin was a long, drawn out battle. The Americans pincered the defenders by first invading from Hokkaido, then invading with the larger force on the Kuril Islands. From March of 1854 until July of 1855, the Americans fought the Chinese and Ainu defenders of the Southern portion. After winter of 1855 ended, the Americans invaded the Northern part of the island, which was completely taken in May, and officially annexed in July. After celebrating the victory, an reinforcement battalion arrived and around 5,000 men were left to garrison the island. From their, the Americans, alongside the Japanese forces that had agreed to help, gathered in Southern Kyushu to invade the Bonin Islands.

The invasion force was met with a token amount of small, and shocked, Spanish troops[2]. The combined American-Japanese invasion force was nominally under the command of both, though it was de facto under the command of the US military, who had given them significant upgrades to their weaponry to take down the defending force.

After securing the islands, the US forces gathered on the island of Iwo Jima to prepare for the invasion of the Philippines. A token invasion force took the Mariana Islands, the only one completely secured at first was Guam, which took very little time to capture and was under American control indefinitely from then on. At the same time, after the defeat of the Spanish task force in Florida, the Americans also prepared to seize Spain's Caribbean possessions. The island of Puerto Rico was taken by a token task force, since the islanders mostly didn't care who ruled them. Cuba itself wasn't the hardest job in the world, though the defenders were mostly obliterated after the Battle of Havana, which ended any hopes of a Spanish victory in the Caribbean. After Cuba was secured, the US war council gave the approval for an invasion of the Philippines. The initial invasion was successful, and most Luzon itself was captured fairly quickly.

The Battle of Manilla was the first big defeat of the Americans in the war, although it was a Pyrrhic victory for the Spaniards, as the Americans retreated to better ground, and had not suffered that many casualties. This allowed the next American offensive to easily take control of most of the Philippines. In order to achieve a better strategic position, the islands controlled by the Sultanate of Sulu were occupied by the Americans. With this, the Americans told the Spanish to either surrender or they would take the Canary Islands as well. Now, the Americans obviously had no capability to do this. However, the Spanish government was terrified by the stories that they had heard that said the Americans had risen out of the water with Asians and attacked them on the Bonin Islands. With the public in a fear frenzy, and a confused government, Spain agreed to surrender.

The Philippines, Mariana Islands, Cuba, and Puerto Rico were surrender to the US. Since it had humiliated itself, and no longer could defend them, Spain sold Palau and their controlled part of the South Pacific Islands to Prussia, who thought it might be fun to have a small colonial venture anyhow. The Mariana Islands were separated from the Philippines and made part of the new overseas territory of Pacifica. The Philippines was made into an overseas territory as well, and the US continued to occupy the Sulu Islands. Cuba was given statehood about a month after the war ended. Puerto Rico was deemed close enough to the US to be a normal territory, and so was given the status of an "organized, unincorporated territory."

In return, the US paid a large sum of money to the Spanish in partial compensation for annexing their colonies. The US officially annexed the remainder of the Kuril Islands in March 1858. Sakhalin was finally organized as an overseas territory since the US could focus on it, and it was to be managed alongside the Kuril Islands as "Sakhalin." Since Cuba was annexed as a slave state, many thought this would calm the South down. In fact, it did the exact opposite, it annoyed them even more, as they had added a non-white, non-English speaking, and mostly catholic state to the US. They would come to get over it in a few months, but it soured congress against each other for a while. The US also recognized the annexation of the Bonin Islands by Japan. The US then focused their efforts in China to help the British and French in the 'Arrow War,' or Second Opium War.

US forces crossed over from Japan and landed on Jejudo[3], before occupying the Southern part of the Korean Peninsula. From there, the Americans took control of the Shanghai area. During this time, there was a brief skirmish between US forces and forces of the rebelling 'Taiping Heavenly Kingdom' in the area. The US forces quickly pulled back to Shanghai after the Skirmish. In mid-1860, forces captured Beijing/Peking, and forced the Qing government to sign a treaty.


​

Treaty of Peking:
​

• The US was to be given full sovereignty over the Island of Sakhalin and China was required to renounce all claims to the island.
• The UK was to be ceded the Southern part of the Kowloon Peninsula as an extension of the Hong Kong colony.
• Treaty of Teintsin, signed 1858, ratified by the Emperor of China.
• Outer Manchuria, a term coined by the American Negotiators, was ceded to Russia, blocking China direct access to the Sea of Japan.
• The US was to be ceded Shanghai as a port to trade their goods in, and secretly agreed to not allow Opium to be sold there.
• US forces withdraw from Southern Korea, and are given joint sovereignty over the Liancourt rocks with Japan.
• Official recognition by China of the full independence of Japan, and recognition of Japan being in the United States' sphere of influence by China.

With the victory in the wars, the US hoped this would cause everyone to calm down. Though, the South was actually more annoyed than it had been as the government had added a non-white, and catholic state to the US. US forces continued to occupy Southern Korea despite promising China that they would withdraw from the land. On the Apennine Peninsula[4], things were starting to look interesting as Sardinia was about to complete what many had long hoped for, Risorgimento Italiano.





[1] I am not alluding to OTL at all with this. Nah, I am, but I am not suggesting anything.
[2] Someone could only imagine their faces as the Japanese and Americans walked out of the water.
[3] Jeju Island.
[4] The Italian Peninsula.

 

[Nagisaki]

Map after the wars:

 

[rjd1997]

Nice!

Here's hoping for a radically different world map, including other countries than the U.S.

 

[Nagisaki]

And just to water your appetites, here is what is technically part 4, and part 5 will be up after I finish an update for my other timeline.

The Grand Ascent;
Part 4:

The war against Austria, fought by the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont and the Second French Empire, was dubbed the "Second Italian War of Independence" by the Americans. This was the focus of American foreign policy for this small period. Many supplies, arms, and other materials were shipped to Sardinia-Piedmont by the US. The war was over by mid-1860, with Austria ceding Lombardy to France. The French and Sardinians signed a treaty known as the "Treaty of Turin," to which the US purposefully observed. The treaty formally ceded Lombardy to Sardinia, and in return, Sardinia had to allow for plebiscites in Nice and Savoy. This is the reason the US attended. The US offered oversee the plebiscite as a third party in the negotiation.

The French agreed, believing that they would get a landslide victory in the plebiscite. Secretly though, the US began funding separatist groups in Corsica, to try and weaken France in that department. They also began funding independence movements in Malta. The Duchies of Parma, Tuscany, Modena, and the Papal State of Romanga united to form the United Provinces of Central Italy. According to the US observers, the vote in Nice was 87% to stay with Sardinia-Piedmont. The vote in Savoy is much closer, but it ended up being 54% voting to stay. The Americans announced the results a few days later.

The French were not all that shocked about Nice, but were very shocked about Savoy. The Americans were accused by Napoleon III of rigging the referendum, obviously not revealing that he would have rigged it anyway. He then demands that France be allowed to annex Nice and Savoy anyway. The Americans declare that they will not tolerate any incursions into Piedmont. Prussia, under the advice of First Minister Otto von Bismark, also declares its protection of Sardinia.

It is now that the Corsicans and Maltese choose to revolt. Corsica annexed itself to the United Provinces of Central Italy, and Malta was allowed to be annexed to Sardinia provided the UK was allowed to lease the port as a naval base. This state of affairs with the US messing around in Europe was not to be for much longer.

With the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, many of the Southern slave holding states seceded from the United States. Kentucky, Missouri, Maryland, Delaware, and the Western Parts of Virginia declared that they would not leave after some nasty politicking, suspension of some civil liberties, and some arrests of members of the state legislator. Alabama, Texas, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Cuba, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Arkansas declared their independence and began to fight when they attacked a US fort off of the coast of South Carolina in mid 1861.

The Europeans at this point, through the Netherlands trading post in Nagasaki and the Treaty of Peking, figured out the obvious US heavy influence on the Japanese. France, Russia, Austria, and a few minor powers were not all that thrilled about this, and began looking for an excuse to kick them out of the monopoly. Meanwhile, the British saw the American Civil War as a hindrance to their interests in North America. They knew they would have to get involved in order to keep their honour and keep their own enemies' hostilities pointed elsewhere. The only dilemma was: which side should they intervene on?​

 

[Nagisaki]

Alright, after several delays, here is the next part! map to come soon.

The Grand Ascent;
Part 5:

As the American Civil War raged, the British continued to try to decide which side to join in on, as they needed to make a move to keep stability on the continent, since many troops who were loyal to the North were still in Asia, especially in Sakhalin. Their decision was made for them in December of 1861, when a Confederate navy vessel from Cuba fired on a British Convoy exchanging goods on Puerto Rico. This was essentially the death sentence of the Confederate States of America. The British government was furious, and sent a large naval fleet to patrol the Caribbean, and to capture or destroy any CSA naval vessels they encounter. The US asked the British if they could assist them by bombarding New Orleans while a force came down the Mississippi river and took the city. The British were more than happy to oblige.

Five weeks later, the Royal Navy began to bombard New Orleans, and about 3 weeks later, a force attacked the city from behind and raised the US flag over the city, effectively cutting the continental CSA in half. Japan looked to be almost splitting into two factions ever since the death of the childless Shogun Tokugawa Iesada, and the Daimyo lords of Japan seemed split between two successors. When the new shogun, Tokugawa Iemochi, came to power, it was very controversial, causing a rift between the different Daimyo lords.

In 1861, the United Provinces of Central Italy were annexed by Sardinia. Sardinia had then given supplies to the volunteer army under Giuseppe Garibaldi, allowing him to conquer all of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, except Gaeta, which held out. The rest of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was annexed to Sardinia-Piedmont. In Turin, on March 17, 1861, Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia-Piedmont had been declared to be the Italian King by his new Parliament, made up of representatives from the entirety of the land that Sardinia had controlled. Unfortunately, only three months later the First Minister of Italy, count Camillo Cavour, died. He died seeing his life's work nearly complete. As this was before the American Civil War had fully begun, there was a large US delegation at the celebration ceremony.

The US continued to attempt to put down the CSA, but with revolts in Sakhalin and some fighting between locals in Liberia, several thousand soldiers were unavailable for service in the mainland. With the British now effectively helping the US in the Civil War, it was becoming more apparent that Cuba would be lost soon. This was to be the case, when several Royal navy ships bombarded Guantanamo Bay in February 1862, and the US army landed on the shores and worked their ways around the shores of the island, before finally securing the rest of it in September 1862. On the 1st of January, 1863, with a drastic shortage of manpower, and the encouragement of the British, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all slaves in the lands still controlled by the CSA government. West Virginia was officially split off shortly after, and admitted as a state.

On the 11th of March, 1863, Emperor Komei of Japan issued his "Order to expel the barbarians," with a deadline for the expulsion being the 11th of May that same year. The Shogun obviously had no intention of following the order, as this would likely lead to an intervention by US forces in Japan, so he didn't refuse, but he didn't obey either. However, intervention came anyway, with US troops protecting their port cities and also occupying Edo and Nagasaki, tying down yet another 1500 troops. The British, after being annoyed enough by the CSA, sent a large supply convoy up the Mississippi to St. Louis, where it was put to good use helping the US armies. This had included food, ammunition, and weapons. A large invasion pushed the CSA armies all the way to central Virginia as the haphazardness and chaos of their retreat led to their forces getting decimated. In 1864, as the US was now drastically short on manpower, the US decided it had no other choice, and initiated conscription in the country for the remainder of the war. 15,000 men were drafted within the remainder of the war.

With the increase in manpower, the US army was able to continue pushing south. As the CSA's will to fight collapsed, more and more men just surrendered at the sight of USA soldiers. The embargo and the US issue of the emancipation proclamation had broken almost any and all will to continue fighting. Meanwhile, the French, hoping to drive the US out of Japan, hoped to assassinate the Emperor of Japan, and then use the rest of the imperial court to drive the Americans out. However, unfortunately for the French assassins, they happened to attempt the assassination when a group of US army officers were meeting with him. The assassin missed and shot a US army officer when he had pulled the Emperor aside to discuss a place of meeting to negotiate some new terms. The assassin was grabbed by the Emperor's bodyguards and sent away. After being tortured, he revealed that it had been the French who had hired him, however, only certain members of the imperial court were made aware of this. He was then sent to the US and hanged for attempted murder of an army officer.

​

 

[Nagisaki]

So, I am still going to put up a world map, but would you guys like to see me throw a big map up? I mean, it could make the wars a bit easier to visualize being so close zoomed in. So would you guys like me to use them for the wars?

 

[Nagisaki]

And map! With all the fixes I needed!