Part 4: Two Empires rising
1845-Brazil conquers surinam, guyana and cayenne.
-Ceylon taken by british and liberated from Drakans. The locals revolt when they hear of british troops coming.
1846-the USA begins to raise Indian regiments again to fight in the harsh southwest deserts against other Indian tribes.
-Large-scale immigration of Irish and Germans begins in America.
- Southern attempts to sponsor anti-Catholic and anti-Spanish (language) motions in congress fail. Some Irish immigrants moving away from the Democratic party for its perceived anti-catholic positions. The Know-Nothing Party in the US is developing as a serious party.
1847-Congress passes the Negro and Chinese Homestead Act that gives free land to freed slaves and Chinese railroad workers to get them out of the cities where their presence causes animosity.
-Taumalipas(slave),Coahuila(slave), Cape breton(free) and Labrador(free) given statehood.
1848-Year of revolutions. Europe is thrown into temporary chaos but order is restored. Democratic revolutions sweep latin america the sucess of these revolutions cause a massive flood of immigration to latin america.
-The first black representatives are inaugerated into the house from Bermuda,Napoleona,Jamaica, Bahamas and Haiti.
-founding of Deseret terretory by various immigrants looking west for a new life. no rise of Mormons in the US, as Smith is sidetracked into abolitionism. The society of this world's Utah will look more like OTL's nevada than Utah.
-a meetign between the brazillian ambassador and the american ambassador leads to certain pond flower being brought into the USA decades earleir than OTL. The water hyacinth first spreads in florida and Mexico but eventually raches california by the time of the slaver exodus.
-Coahuila, nuevo leon and taumalipas begin 10 year compensated emancipation programs. These programs include resettling the slaves in empty lands in the staes.
1849-Drakan free female suffrage granted, voluntary enlistment of female Citizens for non-combat positions, Women's Military Auxiliary disbanded. F.J. Gatling settles in Diskarapur, develops improved seed drills and later first practical machine gun by using multiple barrels. First transcontinental railway between Shahnapur and Luanda (capital of Angola). Exploitation of
Katanga copper begins (present-day Lubumbashi in Democratic Republic of the Congo) as Drakans enter the Kongo basin in greater numbers.
-Elmira Naldorssen, an anthropologist and philosopher in the Education Directorate, proposes a state religion for the FRD. It has modified Hinduism for serfs, with a caste system and simplified pantheon, emphasis on karma, and advancement in this life and reincarnations only through proper behavior. The Citizens are offered a modified Norse mythology, with emphasis on
proper service to the state (in the person of Odin-Father) and gaining glory in battle. The Hindu portion for serfs is heavily encouraged by the Brotherhood of the Lash to ease serf control, but only a militant fringe of Citizens supports the neo-Norse portion.
-Captain Claude Etienne Minié of France refines the Nicholson ball and it gains worldwide
acceptance.
Austrians try unmanned paper balloons to drop 30-pound fused bombs on the Venetians. Little damage is done.
1850–60- Continuing difficulties in settlement of central Africa, despite great research efforts, and the social drive to ownership of plantations, combine to support various Drakan military expeditions and adventures in the rest of Africa. FRD surrounds central Africa and conquers Sudan and the outer reaches of Ethiopia. Incidents involving Spanish and Portuguese holdings within reach are condemned as adventurism by eager young prospective landholders, apologized for profusely, and paid for handsomely in reparation or acquisition. Portugal sells off all remaining African possessions to the FRD, and Spain does much the same.
-Large numbers of missionaries from the U.S. come to Mexico to spread the Christian faith among the Native Americans. Although some are Protestant, drawing the ire of the local Catholic community, many Catholics are encouraged by the U.S. government to convert them.
-beginning of cotton depression in the slave states south of the rio grande as poor harvests and the boll weevil lead to more landowners opting for taking the compensated emancipation route.
1850-1858-the USA annexes leeward antilles,OTL's pacific terretories that gained independence IOTL,haiti,santo domingo, melanesia,the phillipines,Cuba,hawai,guam,polynesia,samoa,windward antilles,the marianas,puerto rico and micronesia.
-Tropical fruits become widspread as plants from all over the world begin to be cultivated in the tropical and subtropical areas of the united states and Draka.
-Several of the larger Draka cities installed mains systems delivering metered compressed air via understreet tubes
-To help with the conquests of the area the American governemnt offers veterans of the ongoing taiping rebellion in china a home in the USA and being able to bring thier families to homestead in the west if they join the US army. By decade's end the union army has 250,000+ chinese soldiers in the army. due to the lower white population of the west there is less animosity and chinese begin to homestead in the west once their year of service is up. As a further incentive, the federal governemtn forces the western terretories to remove laws forbidding chinese to own land.
1851-Perry opens japan as OTL
-Beginning of mexican influences on the catholic church as bishops from former mexico being conferring with their conhorts of the rest of the USA.
- Eastern Shore counties(WORCESTER,TALBOT,SOMERSET,QUEEN ANNES,KENT,DORCHESTER,CECIL,Northhampton,Accomack and CAROLINE) split off into the state of Chesapeake as a compromise to the south for the senate. The other parts of the deal include admitting the western nonslave counties of virginia as the state of appalachia.
1852-the US government establsihes a Slave Worker's Emancipation bill. The Government will buy slaves from their owners,
and set them to work on internal improvements. Afterwards, they shall be given a homestead in either haiti, central
america, the southern terretories of former mexico and the free terretories. Republicans support it because of its lessening of Slavery and dispersing the black population, while Democrats support it because it helps to partially resolve the issue of slavery in a favorable manner.
-Panama railroad is finished and becomes the first interoceanic railroad. This allows a more speedy path from the Atlantic to the Pacific
1855-Britain begins to deport "trouble makers and criminals" to Australia , but the British subjects already there
threaten armed resistance to this policy. Popular opinion prohibits mass executions, so Great Britain coaxes the USA into signing the Halifax Accords.
Britain may deport a number of persons to the United States over a period of twenty years. The total number of which is not to exceed 2,500,000
The said persons may be from any region of the British Empire regardless of race, religion, or political following.
The U.S. may choose the ports of entry for these persons.
The U.S. government is to provide each male adult with $350 ($150 of which will be provided by her majesties government and $50 of which will be provided by the British Deportation Society) and or the option to purchase up to 50 acres of land at a price not to exceed 1.50/acre.
The U.S. government may reject one person for every ten due to poor health or criminal record.
1856- New terretories of USA organized as terretories and annexed.
- Immediate Heavy Southern investment and settlement, secure it for the South as a productive state. Cuba becomes unique among southern states for letting free blacks and other nonwhites vote.
-The first boatload of British deportees arrives in New York. Philadelphia, Boston, and Portland are also chosen as official ports of entry for all deportees.
-Kansas Civil War ends was Slave faction retreats (many going South or to Cuba). Kansas petitions for admission as
free state.
1857-A massive wave of immigration begins into the USA, because along with the British deportees, hundreds of thousands of Germans and Irish flee to America.
-The US Government (with funds from a higher tarriff) will voluntarily purchase slaves and resettle them in Haiti, southern mexican terretories, central america and in the far northwest. Free black leaders protest (Frederick Douglas makes his famous NYC "Here I stand Speech") but by years end the Government is buying slaves.
-The severe depression in cotton prices (world wide glut) has produced a large surplus of slaves. Many Southern lantation owners (now the basis of the Whig Party) are saved from bankruptcy only by Federal Purchases. During the first full year almost 200,000 slaves (at an average of $500 per slave) are purchased.
-Cuba(slave) and Belize(free) recieve statehood.
1858- British Crown assumes all governmental responsibilities and administrative functions held by the East India Company, in the wake of the Sepoy Mutiny. The British establish Council of Rajahs as an advisory body to the Viceroy to avoid losing "the jewel in the Crown.
-Coahuila, nuevo leon and taumalipas abolish slavery. These states are merely a few years ahead of the national trend against slavery.
-Economic crash destroys Southern Economy.
1859-John Brown�s raid occurs, but this time, the casualties are greater due to the presence of eight Mexican followers of the radical abolitionist. Still, the attackers are defeated by Colonel Robert E. Lee, recently reassigned from a successful tour of duty in Mexico as an assistant military administrator for Mexico City.
-The paraguayan government begins major reforms in its military and other areas. A poicy of encouraging industrialization and encouraging immigration is begun. Conscription is established.
1858–63: The Slaver Exodus. So far, the Great Compromise whereby
"slave" and "free" states are admitted in equal proportion has held for almost 40 years, but it's rapidly become untenable for the future. The free states are more heavily populated with voters than the slave states, so the Senate and House are usually at odds. To continue the compromise would force Central america and Mexico into revolt if they became slave states. The alternative has denied several western territories statehood, in some cases for decades. So far, the solution has been to keep territories from becoming free states until paired with a new slave state, but that is starting to wear on everyone. When militia units exchange shots across state lines in several locations, the Army is ordered to maintain order impartially and all the governors are ordered by Congress to demobilize. It nearly becomes a civil war, but everyone is too evenly matched in arms and training to see a clear advantage in fighting, at least for the moment. The solution comes in the form of two transcontinental railroads to northern and southern Alta California Territory: sell part of the right-of-way to the railroad companies, some to settlers, and then compensate the slave owners and free the slaves. The gold and silver in Alta California and Nevada are starting to tail off, but the prospects for opening up the west and Mexico, especially if statehood occurs, sounds good to almost everyone. Everyone, that is, except the die-hard slave owners. And into this breach creeps the Free Republic of Draka. The deal is proposed in late 1858, and the details emerge in 1859. First, the railroad property will be auctioned off, starting in 1860 with parcels at both ends, and continuing towards the middle as the railroad construction advances. Compensation will be paid in 1862, so that there is no partial solution — all the slave states will be emancipated at the same time. Getting news of this prospective windfall, Drakans begin circulating through the slave-owning planter aristocracy of the South, and offer new plantations and fresh slaves in Draka, if the slave owners will immigrate with their money. Abolitionists and bankers, fearing that the slave owners will remove a large amount of money from the country, and impoverish the US, put some additional conditions on the compensation. First, inspectors will rate the slaves during January 1862 for their ability to work, and give compensation accordingly, so mistreated slaves and infants won't count for much. Second, the compensation will not be all cash, but partially in "land bonds" redeemable for territory along the transcontinental railroads. (1/5 goes to the railroad companies at a very low price, 1/5 will be auctioned to settlers, 1/5 is for "land bonds", and the remaining 2/5 is for government use and Indian territories.) Third, if the slave owners leave the country they forfeit the land bonds to the freed slaves.What's unforeseen is that two kinds of investment companies are set up. One buys land out west long before the railroad reaches it, and sells it once the railroad arrives for a profit. The second type bets on being able to buy whole plantations cheaply, so the owners can flee to Draka with more liquid assets, and later sell parts of the plantation to the freed slaves, and make a profit from the land bonds too. These ruin the forfeiture scheme, and absorb a lot of available credit from the economy. Unrest caused by poor whites as the rich ones are leaving causes anarchy in the southern states for months. Manipulations by embezzlers, banks and the Draka nearly stop the transcontinental railroads and cause a financial panic outside the slave states. The Slaver Exodus produces a financially devastated USA and physically devastated southern states.
1860-The transcontinental railroad construction, already started in the state of Alta California and on the west bank of the Mississippi, is of worldwide interest. Investment companies are set up that speculate on the value of land being auctioned, and they have wild price swings on various pieces of news. Those who run plantations strictly as a business mostly plan to take the money and go into other business within the USA. A few even sell out early to other investment companies, which continue to manage the plantations while eagerly awaiting the government deadline for compensation (and ignoring the fact that they've just become corporate slave owners). But most, looking on a plantation as a family legacy, resent being forced out of their way of life, and would rather consider fighting than leaving the US for Draka. The politicians on both sides (especially those in slave states who aren't slave owners themselves) hail this as a great solution, but most of the people (for various reasons) disagree with spending all that money. But with a wedge driven between the poor whites of the slave states and the rich slave owners, the cards are stacked against the planter aristocracy. Once the first prominent families announce their intentions to sell out, the die is cast, and soon many are signing up to go to Draka as whole regions and clans. The problems will now be getting all that money out of the US.
The FRD begins building a fleet of armed luxury steamers to carry the expected flood of immigrants from southern US ports in early 1862. Armed because of fears of piracy, or US or even British naval intervention, luxury because some passengers will be wealthy even by Drakan standards. These ships will also carry small detachments of Drakan soldiers and teachers, to attempt to train and teach the immigrants in the ways of their new home while on the way to Africa. The FRD follows the twists and turns of the compensation legislation with great interest. Their hired lawyers find ways to help immigrants maximize their booty. They induce greedy men of the "free" states into setting up investment companies that will buy out the plantations early at a discount, and then sell off the land to the freed slaves and the land bonds as well.
-the united states postal service establishes a savings account program.
1860–70- Germany united. Dominion of Australia unites Australia,indonesia and New Zealand; aborigines are legally protected from exploitation. Electric generators and lighting.
-Mosquito vector of malaria established at Shahnapur Institute of Tropical Medicine, and large-scale efforts to combat the tsetse fly in central Africa finally begin to achieve real success. Expansion of Drakan settlement northward begins to catch up with military conquests. Immigrants from the US slave states spread through the Drakan frontier and infuse a massive amount of wealth into the economy, catalyzing a massive expansion in the service and industrial sectors. Drakan dialect takes on a pronounced "southern" twang/drawl from the latest influx on top of the earlier Loyalists. FRD has the lead in high-pressure steam and air technology, including storage of compressed air in underground concrete tanks.
1861-Unrest rises among the poor whites of the slave states, as they see the top and bottom of southern society
planning to get rewards while they will receive nothing. The most dangerous ones begin collecting weapons or subverting the local militia, and plan to kill the slave owners and/or the slaves during the transition period after January 1862. Several such plans are exposed, but southern governors refuse to act with unity. Abolitionists, representatives of investment companies and other "carpetbaggers" flood the slave states, pursuing their own agendas. Some abolitionists see opportunities to gain votes for northern political parties among the freed men, others are there to distribute guns or facilitate last-minute escapes (they're still slaves down there, even if slavery will end soon), and a few are humanitarians hoping to aid in the worst situations. The investment companies are there to sign contracts for land bonds. There are even a few fortune-seekers claiming to be long lost relatives of a planter, so they can get a share. The railroad companies don't have enough workers, and importing Filipino labor only works for the Pacific end of the tracks. Mexico turns out to be a good source of workers for hire, as some of the pre-war peasants turned post-war small farmers are willing to try something else. A few railroad company agents enter the mix in the southern states, offering to buy strong slaves and even whole families, and employ them as free men on the westbound track building effort. Those sold before January 1862, and the owners that can pack up and leave early, are the lucky ones. Interest rates begin to rise, as the banks notice a demand for loans to generate the cash to pay off slave owners now, or buy land on speculation. The large sums of money being thrown about give a giddy impression of high finance, but the industrial expansion of the early "robber barons" is being sidetracked. It takes special guarantees by the US Treasury to ensure that the railroad companies get the credit they need to keep building, as they won't show a good return until the lines meet. Towards the end of the year, slave inspection teams composed of Army engineers and hired accountants and former slave traders, begin spreading throughout the slave states so they can get the job done quickly in early 1862. This volatile mix of people in the slave states, and the wild swings in value of "railroad land", will soon explode.
-The major leglislation is the creation of Freeman and Peon Bureau (including a subsidized school system) in much of old Mexico. The Carpetbaggers in Mexico have effective control over most of central and Western Mexico.
1862-Although the slave inspection teams try to do their jobs properly, they are often forced to intervene in the tense situations on plantations. Soon, havoc reigns with poor whites in militia-like bands attacking plantations, the slave owners and inspection teams and freed slaves defending themselves, some freed slaves taking revenge, and the recently compensated slave owners leaving a vacuum as they depart for the nearest port with whatever they can carry. Roving bands of freed slaves, radical abolitionists, and poor whites all seem willing to chase down rich former slave owners, and in most cases are willing to fight each other too. The plantations, highways, rivers and railways of the slave states become the settings for numerous robberies, small battles and atrocities. Congress finally authorizes mobilization of militia from free states to enter the slave states to try to keep the peace, but even they get bogged down and heavily involved with only slight progress. Some drakan ships have to fight their way out of southern ports against angry mobs, and then defend against pirates sallying from parts unknown. While not a civil war, the unrest in the slave states is close to anarchy until the last departing slave owners are generally known to have left. All told, over 350,000 planters and family members leave for Draka, taking a vast amount of wealth and leaving tremendous bitterness and bloodshed behind. another 100,000 people leave for brazil and 50,000 more leave for other lands. By the 1930's century over 17 million people have left the USA for draka in a slow exodus from the south.The financial system of the rest of the USA teeters dangerously close to collapse. There is negative economic growth going on, and the credit needed to keep the railroads going while the investment companies wait is getting harder to come by. Extended deployment by northern militia units is also very unpopular at home, and hurting the economy even further. Martial law declared in Virginia and several other southern states during the Slaver Exodus. Minnesota admitted as a state, star in white bar .
-States of aguascalientes, mexico,Azlatan(OTl's mexican federal district), colima, Baja California Norte and baja california sur admitted as states to placate the mexicans(and make sure they dont dominate the house of represenatives by admitting alot of big populated states). Mexico city in the state of Azlatan renamed to Tenochtitlan for a new flavor. Emergence of neo-aztec style of architecture in mexico.
- The Farmstead Act is distributing land to farmers in the West and Mexico. Few Rail Road grants are being made at the current time other than the transcontinental route.
-Gran Chaco war as Paraguay declares war on bolivia and argentina. Due to lopez's militarization and industrialization it takes several years but resistance is crushed, immigration begun and development begun. As part of the deal for remaining nuetral, urugay goes to brazil.
1863-Exhaustion keeps the warring factions in the southeastern US from more than sporadic local outbursts of violence. virginia remains under martial law due to continued unrest. More Mexican militia and Army units are brought in, and finally a semblance of law and order is established in the South. However, in late 1863 a large amount of land bonds once controlled by the emigrants are suddenly all dumped on the market (the Drakans wrote some interesting provisions into the contracts). And most of the funds not paid out in compensation are lost to an embezzler who flees to Sicily. These events cause a financial panic in the northern states, but the South is past caring. The only good news is the steady progress and completion of the two transcontinental railroads; the railroads have taken to promising the workers some of the railroad land as incentives. All told, the railroads will give out nearly all their extra land beyond the immediate right-of-way, just to keep workers and creditors happy.
-In Mexico Juarez is using the Peon and Freeman bureau to reshape Mexican society. Decidedly anti-Church he is using funds to buy up Church property in forced sales to redistribute to small farmers. Cleverly he is cloaking much of this in Jeffersonian rhetoric about 'yeoman farmers' as the backbone of the republic. Late in the Year he is elected Senator from Azlatan. He also effectively controls the political machine in most of what was Mexico.
-Brazil opens up immigration this leads the rest of south america to do so. The immigrants increase the amount of possible industry and make south america prosperous.