The Union Forever: A TL

[rick007]

Harriet Tubman (Born Araminta Ross c.1822-1913)

Born into slavery in Maryland, Tubman changed her first name to Harriet when she married John Tubman around 1844. After suffering a head injury in 1849, Tubman escaped. However, she went back to rescue slaves starting the underground railroad. During the Civil War she provided intelligence to Union troops heading south. After the war she took up Suffrage and the cause of African American civil rights becoming a leading member of the E Pluribus Unum Society. Harriet Tubman died on March 10th, 1913 at the age of 91.

 

[Mac Gregor]

Okay, well, here it is. I chose a sienna color to represent the earth, a light yellow for the sand dunes, and I left the blue alone, pretty much. I realize it might be a tad tacky but I hope you're interested.

Pretty flags on this page, yes...

I love it! Consider it canon.

 

[Mac Gregor]

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As others have said, I am glad to see more African nations gain independence (hopefully Congo is on its way) and also glad that the war on drugs hasn't gotten too out of control. And its great to see that finally Peru and Bolivia have been allowed into the LAR (I thought they should have been members since they first elected a democratic government, but better late than never).

I am intrigued however about these protests in Spain. How much popular support do they have and what is the government's response? Hopefully the Carlists will be replaced with a stable democratic government that can rebound after years under a repressive monarchy.

The protests had considerable support especially from the younger generations. The response from the Carlist monarchy was predictably heavy handed and violent. While the protests were eventually dispersed some believe that the fissures in Spain's closed political system are poised to burst open.

 

[Mac Gregor]

Western Sahara has phosphate mining (which either the rest of Spain doesn't, or isn't in huge supply).

It is worth noting that in 1970 OTL, Western Sahara was 32% European (granted there weren't many people there, but still). The borders are a bit different (notably including Cape Juby), so the percentage might not be as high here. Still, Spain would probably be able to keep Western Sahara and Ifni (as the Berbers there were pro-Spanish)

Good points Reagent. I didn't know that Western Sahara in OTL was 32% European which probably isn't that much more than the TL. ITTL Spain has managed to keep a firm grip on the Western Sahara despite tensions with the natives.

 

[Mac Gregor]

Harriet Tubman (Born Araminta Ross c.1822-1913)

Born into slavery in Maryland, Tubman changed her first name to Harriet when she married John Tubman around 1844. After suffering a head injury in 1849, Tubman escaped. However, she went back to rescue slaves starting the underground railroad. During the Civil War she provided intelligence to Union troops heading south. After the war she took up Suffrage and the cause of African American civil rights becoming a leading member of the E Pluribus Unum Society. Harriet Tubman died on March 10th, 1913 at the age of 91.

Awesome as usual, keep them coming. I am going to have to find a good modern use for the E Pluribus Unum Society.

 

[Utgard96]

Awesome as usual, keep them coming. I am going to have to find a good modern use for the E Pluribus Unum Society.

Left-wing pressure group, perhaps?

 

[rick007]

Jefferson Davis (1807/1808-1873)

Born in Kentucky in 1807 or 1808 (not even Davis himself was sure) Jefferson Davis is a controversial figure in American history. After his family moved to Mississippi in 1811, they set up a plantation and owned slaves. Davis went to West Point in 1824 and graduated 23rd in a class of 33. Then he married Zachary Taylor's daughter Sarah in 1835 although she sadly died three months later.
In 1844 Davis married again this time to 17 year Varina Howell. In 1846, Davis raised a regiment of volunteers to fight in the Mexican-American War of which he was the colonel. He served under his former father in law Zachary Taylor. When the war ended he returned to Mississippi and was appointed to the Senate. Serving until 1853 when he was made Secretary of War by President Franklin Pierce. In 1857 Davis returned to the Senate. On January 21st, 1861, "The saddest day of my life" he would later recall Davis left the Senate.
Shortly thereafter he was elected first president of the Confederate States of America. Though he tried to win the war as best he could Davis was unable to bring his country together and he was deposed on July 3rd, 1863. After being imprisoned for two months Davis, with his wife Varina, went into exile. When asked shortly before his death about why the Confederacy lost he said "The Confederacy is dead and on it's tombstone reads 'died of a theory'". Jefferson Davis died January 15th, 1873 in exile in London, roundly despised by the people he was supposed to govern.

 

[Mac Gregor]

Jefferson Davis (1807/1808-1873)

Born in Kentucky in 1807 or 1808 (not even Davis himself was sure) Jefferson Davis is a controversial figure in American history. After his family moved to Mississippi in 1811, they set up a plantation and owned slaves. Davis went to West Point in 1824 and graduated 23rd in a class of 33. Then he married Zachary Taylor's daughter Sarah in 1835 although she sadly died three months later.
In 1844 Davis married again this time to 17 year Varina Howell. In 1846, Davis raised a regiment of volunteers to fight in the Mexican-American War of which he was the colonel. He served under his former father in law Zachary Taylor. When the war ended he returned to Mississippi and was appointed to the Senate. Serving until 1853 when he was made Secretary of War by President Franklin Pierce. In 1857 Davis returned to the Senate. On January 21st, 1861, "The saddest day of my life" he would later recall Davis left the Senate.
Shortly thereafter he was elected first president of the Confederate States of America. Though he tried to win the war as best he could Davis was unable to bring his country together and he was deposed on July 3rd, 1863. After being imprisoned for two months Davis, with his wife Varina, went into exile. When asked shortly before his death about why the Confederacy lost he said "The Confederacy is dead and on it's tombstone reads 'died of a theory'". Jefferson Davis died January 15th, 1873 in exile in London, roundly despised by the people he was supposed to govern.

Loving it. What is his OTL quote of "died of a theory" referring to?

 

[Mac Gregor]

Southeast Asia and the Pacific

January-June, 1979

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Vietnamese civilians flee the Allied advance​

May, 1979​

Indochina

After the fall of Hue in December, the fate of the Indochina campaign was never seriously in doubt. The Allies captured the Kampuchean capital of Phnom Penh after a brief siege on February 16. The Japanese and their remaining Vietnamese allies fought a bitter regard action as Technate and Siamese troops advanced on the southern city of Saigon. The Emperor and what remained of the Vietnamese government fled the country as the last Compact troops were hastily evacuated on April 27. The Japanese had no choice but to leave behind large amounts of heavy equipment which was quickly repurposed by the Allies. Disturbingly, there were several reports of mass executions of Vietnamese officers and officials as the Chinese wished to eliminate any potential resistance to the post war order.

Papua

With Borneo secure, the Commonwealth turned east to finish the job on Papua. General Sir Peter Carter had been fighting for well over two years to drive the Japanese off the island and now finally had the resources to do it. On March 9, the Commonwealth launched an offensive at four different sectors along the front. Years of jungle fighting had hardened both sides, but months of Allied submarine attacks on Compact shipping had left the Japanese bereft of supplies. After weeks of savage fighting, often a pointblank range due to the thick vegetation, the Japanese decided that their position had become untenable. The last major actions of the campaign occurred in early June, when Allied soldiers, mostly British, Australian, and New Zealanders, captured Wewak and Port Edward on the northern shore. Unwilling to be evacuated to the nearby island of New Britain, the Japanese commander General Noboru Fujimoto committed seppuku, as his predecessor had, before Allied troops overran his position. When Papua was finally deemed cleared on June 11, Australian Prime Minister Mason Duffy ordered church bells rung throughout the country optimistically stating “the beginning of the end is at hand.”

Hainan

Having finally cleared Indochina of Compact soldiers, the Chinese Technate redirected their efforts towards seizing the island of Hainan. Lost to the Japanese in 1954, Hainan had been extensively fortified over the years. On June 9, an invasion force of 169,000 men, almost exclusively Chinese, hurled itself against the beaches. While Allied bombers had battered the island for months, the Japanese defenses were still formidable. On one beach, code named gōngjī “rooster”, Technate soldiers were evacuated after a series of Japanese redoubts slaughtered them upon landing. In such bitter fighting, heroism was ever present. A Chinese unit that earned special distinction during this campaign was the innoxiously titled Detachment 298 a special forces outfit that fought for weeks behind enemy lines despite suffering 65% casualties. Despite losing the island’s capital of Haikou, the Japanese still held the southern half of the island by the end of the month. As both sides poured more munitions and men into the conflict one Japanese commander remarked that the once lush island resembled photos of the barren lunar landscape and was “just as hostile to life.”
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An Australian soldier using a flamethrower on an enemy foxhole
Papua
April, 1979​

 

[rick007]

Loving it. What is his OTL quote of "died of a theory" referring to?

I think it was from his book The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government. I think he was referring to States' Rights and how it killed the Confederacy. Now I'm wondering what's happening in the Americas.

 

[Beedok]

Hainan sounds horrible. Surely Japan realises they've lost by now?

 

[jeckl]

Looks like the war has turned a corner.

Still doesn't look good for south EAST Asia with China the new top dog. Almost hoping UK and Portugal back out of giving HK and Macau to them.

 

[metastasis_d]

Looks like the war has turned a corner.

Still doesn't look good for south EAST Asia with China the new top dog. Almost hoping UK and Portugal back out of giving HK and Macau to them.

I think the war turned the corner when the Chinese joined the Allies, but I do think it's in its final stretch. The line about the Technate's preparation for the post-war was ominous, though.

 

[Alternity9497]

I think the war turned the corner when the Chinese joined the Allies, but I do think it's in its final stretch. The line about the Technate's preparation for the post-war was ominous, though.

I'm beginning to think that the UK allying itself with the Technate is going to be one of those 'deal with the devil' kind of things. Like in OTL, with the WWII Allies accepting the USSR into their fold in order to defeat Nazi Germany and then having Stalin's army gobble up half of Europe in the process. Maybe there's going to be a kind of Cold War analogue b/w the UK and the Technate?

 

[Lalli]

I'm beginning to think that the UK allying itself with the Technate is going to be one of those 'deal with the devil' kind of things. Like in OTL, with the WWII Allies accepting the USSR into their fold in order to defeat Nazi Germany and then having Stalin's army gobble up half of Europe in the process. Maybe there's going to be a kind of Cold War analogue b/w the UK and the Technate?

Some kind of local cold war is possible. But it hardly is similar compared OTL Cold War. And USA might be ally of UK on this scenario. And it is possible that Brits turn Japanese as friend. And hardly Siam just allow China taking whole Indochina. Vietnam might turn as equivalement of Korean war and North Vietnam is Technocratic state and South is monarchy/republic.

 

[Archangel]

I'm worried about the fate of TTL Indochina.

 

[Alternity9497]

Some kind of local cold war is possible. But it hardly is similar compared OTL Cold War. And USA might be ally of UK on this scenario. And it is possible that Brits turn Japanese as friend. And hardly Siam just allow China taking whole Indochina. Vietnam might turn as equivalement of Korean war and North Vietnam is Technocratic state and South is monarchy/republic.

Okay. So similar in effect, just on a far smaller, localized scale than OTL.

 

[Mac Gregor]

I think it was from his book The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government. I think he was referring to States' Rights and how it killed the Confederacy. Now I'm wondering what's happening in the Americas.

States' Rights, that makes sense. The Americas will be covered soon. Cheers!

 

[Mac Gregor]

Hainan sounds horrible. Surely Japan realises they've lost by now?

The battle for Hainan is brutal. Many in the Japanese government are starting to view the war as unwinnable. The problem is that the terms for peace are to high. Most Japanese policy makers couldn't stomach giving up Formosa, much less Korea. So the war will drag on unless a compromise can be reached.

 

[Mac Gregor]

Looks like the war has turned a corner.

Still doesn't look good for south EAST Asia with China the new top dog. Almost hoping UK and Portugal back out of giving HK and Macau to them.

I think the war turned the corner when the Chinese joined the Allies, but I do think it's in its final stretch. The line about the Technate's preparation for the post-war was ominous, though.

I'm beginning to think that the UK allying itself with the Technate is going to be one of those 'deal with the devil' kind of things. Like in OTL, with the WWII Allies accepting the USSR into their fold in order to defeat Nazi Germany and then having Stalin's army gobble up half of Europe in the process. Maybe there's going to be a kind of Cold War analogue b/w the UK and the Technate?

Some kind of local cold war is possible. But it hardly is similar compared OTL Cold War. And USA might be ally of UK on this scenario. And it is possible that Brits turn Japanese as friend. And hardly Siam just allow China taking whole Indochina. Vietnam might turn as equivalement of Korean war and North Vietnam is Technocratic state and South is monarchy/republic.

I'm worried about the fate of TTL Indochina.

Okay. So similar in effect, just on a far smaller, localized scale than OTL.

All good observations. We will have to wait and see what the postwar world will look like.