When would you prefer the "Fun Maps" to be set.

  • When the timeline ends.

    Votes: 8 25.8%
  • The present day.

    Votes: 20 64.5%
  • I don't care.

    Votes: 3 9.7%

  • Total voters
    31
  • Poll closed .
I finally have enough to start posting my revised timeline!

Most of the majors changes are not going to occur until Part IV. But there are a few minor ones before that.

The revised timeline is following the same format. Footnotes (marked with lower case letters) will be written in ATL as will the timeline itself. Endnotes (marked with numbers) will be written in OTL. Any images that I create will be made from the perspective of present day ATL.

Two discussion threads greatly helped with my decision to revise and restart the timeline. These are: What if New France was more heavily populated? and WI: Parlements not restored after death of Louis XV. Thank-you to everyone who participated in those threads.

And for anyone interested here is the link to the original: Children of the Plains of Abraham.

Thank-you!
 
N: Introduction

N: Introduction​

“It made of them great nations.”
Children of the Plains of Abraham[1]
1638319192372.png

A View on the Assault of Quebec[2]

The 13th of September AD 1759, New France, the night before a British army crossed the Saint Lawrence River and landed at L’Anse-au-Foulon. Thrice the British landing party tempted fate, and thrice fate allowed them to continue. When they were spotted by the French sentry the British were able to impersonate supply ships that were unexpectedly delayed. When a French officer left for his patrol of the shore, he found that his horse had been stolen. And when a messenger from a captured camp arrived to warn the French, the general’s aide turned him away thinking he was mad. The British were free to fortify their position just outside of the city of Québec.

The next morning, the Marquis of Montcalm was shocked at this news, especially since the Marquis of Vaudreuil had pointed out that L’Anse-au-Foulon was vulnerable, even though the Marquis of Montcalm assured him that it was impossible for the British to take the cove. The Marquis of Montcalm had two options before him, he could engage the British before they had a chance to fully fortify their position, or wait until the Count of Bougainville arrived with another column of French troops. The Marquis of Montcalm readied himself to give the order to attack as soon as possible.


Endnotes​

1. The timeline share’s its name with an ATL historiography book​
2. OTL A View on the Taking of Quebec​
i. (Smith, 1797)​
Smith, Hervey. A view of the taking of Quebec. 1797. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PlainsOfAbraham2007.jpg. Accessed 7 August 2021.​
 
I-1: The Battle of the Plains of Abraham

Part I: The French and Indian War​

Chapter 1: The Battle of the Plains of Abraham​

“We do, sir, we give way everywhere.”
A British soldier answering General Wolfe’s Lasts Words
1638329988591.png

Death of General Montcalm[ii]

Despite making all the preparations to attack the British immediately, the Marquis of Montcalm hesitated until late morning[3]. When he finally did order his troops to engage, the British had finished entrenching themselves. The French militia and Amerindian warriors stayed in the trees harassing the British flanks. While the Marquis of Montcalm led his French regulars towards the center of the British line. Initially, both sides held their fire for a few minutes. The French were the first to fire, letting off two volleys, but both were too early and they made little impact. Then the British fired their volley and advanced. As they advanced the British fired a second volley shaking French morale as they struggled to return fire. During the British advance General Wolfe, who had positioned himself behind the 28th Foot Regiment, he was struck by two musket balls, the second mortally wounded him. The British troops’ hearts sank as they saw their general fall, but it did not cause them to break. But as soon as they collected themselves, the Count of Bougainville and his column arrived and engaged the British in the rear of their lines. Despite the Marquis of Montcalm’s troops wavering, fire from two angles in the front and rear caused the weakened leadership of the shaken British troops to withdraw to L’Anse-au-Foulon as they were outflanked. During the withdraw, various portions of the British army began to flee. As the British routed, a canister shot struck the Marquis of Montcalm from his horse. With the battle won, the Marquis of Montcalm was carried back to Québec where he would die the next morning.

Winter was soon to come; a thick ice pack forced the British fleet from the Saint Lawrence River and a they would not be able to mount another offensive to try and take Québec until spring. The Duke of Lévis was appointed the Marquis of Montcalm’s replacement as commander-in-chief, and General Murray was tasked with continue the British offensive. The Duke of Lévis was much more open to suggestions from the Marquis of Vaudreuil. And he attempted to incorporate the strengths of the New French militia and Amerindian warriors into his plans making them much more adaptable to the combat needs of North America than his predecessor’s.

The winter had been particularly harsh especially on the British, this forced them to fall back from enemy territory to winter their troops. In late April, Gen. Murray led another invasion force to the city of Québec, he set his forces to blockade the city as he did not have enough men for a full-scale assault. The city’s reserves had also been depleted because of the winter so it did not take long for Duke of Lévis to attack Gen. Murray’s blockade. The Battle of Sainte-Foy was the bloodiest battle in the American theatre. As the Duke of Lévis had left a significant portion of his troops in the city to guard it the British eventually pushed the French back and won the battle. However, the British lost too many men in the battle to maintain the blockade and left before the French could re-organize and begin a second battle.

While the British army was forced withdraw, the navy was able to maintain their blockade of the St. Lawrence River. Captain Vauquelin led a task force to break the blockade. Capt. Vauquelin met the blockade near the village of Neuville, he commanded more vessels than the British, but he lacked a ship of the line to counter the HMS Vanguard. Most of the French vessels were lost, the few that managed to escape would later be scuttled as they were too damaged to be repaired. But Capt. Vauquelin succeed in weakening the blockade enough for a few supply ships to run the blockade before the British were able to reinforce it.

After the Battle of Sainte-Foy, the French began to refortify their position by constructing a new fort to protect the city of Québec from further attacks. Work began on Fort Montcalm[a] on Isle d’Orléans to prevent further invasions over the St. Lawrence River. However, before the fort could be completed the British attacked. The French held off the British for several days but with support from the British navy the fort was destroyed. Many feared another attack on the city but it did not come. The British forces hoped to mount a surprise attack on the fort and did not have the supplies for a third battle at Québec.



Footnotes

a. The Marquis of Vaudreuil protested this name, however the Duke of Lévis attempted to use the Marquis of Montcalm’s death as a rallying cry for the defense of Québec​
b. Fort Montcalm was almost completed it only needs a few minor additions: more cannons, and more men etc.

Endnotes

3. The timeline's POD​
ii. (de Foy Suzor-Coté, 1902)​
de Foy Suzor-Coté, Marc Aurèle. Death of Montcalm. 1902. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sketch_for_The_Death_of_Montcalm.jpg. Accessed 14 August 2021.​
 
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Wow, great narrative! I'm working on a 7 Years War POD TL as well. Great fun!
It was actually your TL that got me thinking I have enough to restart start now.

I remember seeing the original but never read it. I'm glad you picked it back up because I now I'm ready yours instead.
Keep em coming.
I have 12 or so more that will come semi-often after that it will slow down as I catch up to my notes.
 
It was actually your TL that got me thinking I have enough to restart start now.

I remember seeing the original but never read it. I'm glad you picked it back up because I now I'm ready yours instead.

Awesome. I love the high level of detail you've put into your POD. I don't have the specific knowledge to go quite that deep. Really impressive work!
 
I-2: The Ohio Front

Chapter 2: The Ohio Front​

“The friend of my enemy is my friend.”
Children of the Plains of Abraham
1638372613109.png

Chief Pontiac in 1763 Taking up the War Hatchet in the French and Indian War [iii]

While France did manage to send some supplies and regular troops to New France, it was not enough. Not only did the British navy make sending large amounts of supplies difficult but the French war plan placed more importance upon the European theatre. It was clear to the Duke of Lévis and the Marquis of Vaudreuil that they could not maintain the status quo. They had to knock the British off balance and focus their attention away from Québec. The two men formulated a plan, the Duke of Lévis would maintain the French regulars and most of the militia and continue to fortify and defend their position. While the Marquis of Vaundreuil would take the rest of the militia and the allied Amerindian warriors secretly into the occupied Ohio County and attempt to convince the Amerindians there that attacking British supply lines were in their best interest. The goal of this plan was not to gain victory in the American theatre but to force a perpetual stalemate until the European theatre ended.

Once in the Ohio Country, the Marquis of Vaundreuil met with an Odawa chief named Pontiac[a] who was already attempting to rally men to fight against the British. Pontiac was not overly enthusiastic about working with Europeans, but the French had always been the lesser of two evils. The alternative was uncontested British control in the region, Pontiac, and the Marquis of Vaundreuil easily reached an agreement to work together. There was, however, one issue. The Marquis of Vaundreuil promised French aid and supplies to those who helped them, the catch was that to get the aid the participating tribes had to work together as an organized force. The Marquis of Vaudreuil knew that this condition would be contentious and difficult as it was not how the Amerindians were used to conducting warfare. But he also knew that a disorganized force had little chance of succeeding any goal against the British.

Luckily, the Amerindian tribes did not want financial support, France did not have the monetary resources to give them. Manufactured goods, weapons, and a promise of protection was enough for most. At first, most tribes would not agree to follow a central organization, but eventually most came to follow Pontiac as war chief with the Marquis of Vaudreuil working as an adviser and liaison to the French. It would be the small initial successes that Pontiac’s warriors would have in their raids that would draw more tribes under his leadership. Communication between the tribes was difficult and led to several problems with organizing battles and ambushes.

The raids did little physical damage to the British force; however, they would be considered a success. Attacks on the supply routes meant that British forces had to maintain almost constant access to the navy when operating in New France. And because many raids were conducted behind the front line the British colonials demanded more protection. Shortly after Pontiac and the Marquis of Vaundreuil began their raids on British behind the lines, Major General Baron of Amherst decided that the British were no longer going to negotiate with “Indian Terms”. The periodic gifts that the Amerindians saw as integral to treaties ceased, even those given to the Iroquois. Maj. Gen Amherst also made use of a plan intended to attack the Amerindian population through use of disease. Under his orders blankets were taken from a small pox hospital and were traded to Delaware and Shawnee villages. As a result, a small pox epidemic broke out in those two tribes decimating their population.

While the Iroquois were officially allied with the British, many Seneca fought separately for the French. These Seneca did not join Pontiac’s forces as they were already fighting the British and it was feared that if members of one of the Iroquois nations did join it would keep other tribes from joining. The Marquis of Vaudreuil would work on a separate deal with these Seneca; war chief Cornplanter[c] would lead any warriors from the Iroquois against the British coordinating with Pontiac indirectly through the Marquis of Vaudreuil and his aids. Meanwhile, Cornplanter’s uncle, Guyasuta[d] would travel between the different Iroquois nations recruiting more warriors for their cause. The six nations would officially stay allied to the British despite Guyasuta’s attempts to sway them, most fear retribution from the British if they did change sides. But there were many individuals from each nation willing to join. Many felt that when the Baron of Amherst ceased the gifts, he ended the alliance, yet he still expected the Iroquois to still supply warriors to the war. They were also insulted by the British’s apparent lack of being able to distinguish between members of the Iroquois and other Amerindians.

The Marquis of Vaudreuil, Pontiac, and Cornplanter’s actions did succeed in placing Québec out of reach, but it did not ensure that New France was safe. British forces still traveled in the occupied zones, and there was still the threat of the British navy. The Duke of Lévis tried to focus his efforts on defense but he could not avoid all engagements so he tried to spread the British thin making them fight everywhere from Newfoundland to Ohio. When the French did engage the British in skirmishes it was usually a loss.



Footnotes

a. Obwandiyag
b. Meaning that they would treat the Amerindian tribes as European countries when negotiating (more so than they already did i.e., no more gift-giving, treaty renewals, etc.)​
c. gaiänt’wakê, John Abeel III​
d. kayahsotaˀ
iii. (Unknown, 19th Century)​
Unknown. Chief Pontiac in 1763 Taking up the War Hatchet in the French and Indian War. 19th Century. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pontiac_in_1763.jpg. Accessed 15 August 2021.​
 
I-3: The Tragedy of the House of Hannover

Chapter 3: The Tragedy of the House of Hanover​

"It was the darkest hour for the House of Hanover"
Biographical Collection of the
Hanoverians
1638486543097.png

William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham[iv]

William Pitt the Elder[a], the prime minister of Great Britain, had developed a war plan. The first part of his plan was to divert as many troops and resources as possible to the North American theatre. With the focus of the British war effort focused there they would be able to finally capture all New France and close the theatre for good. Then the British would be free to focus solely on the European continent. While the British were focusing on North America Britain’s capable German allies would hold the line against the French forces keeping them from gaining any more ground but not taking any ground for themselves.

Up until now, William Pitt the Elder’s plan had not been implemented. The fear of losing Hanover to the French again was too great to allow the diversion on troops the plan required. But with the loss of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, continual New French and Amerindian raids into British America, and the belief that the French army on the continent had spent itself began to change some minds. William Pitt was allowed to conduct his plan and British forces were taken from the European continent and diverted to North America.

Even though the diversion of troops was unknown to the French, the Prince of Soubise launched a last-ditch effort to capture the city of Hanover. The redirection of British troops and supplies weakened the allied lines on continental Europe and the German allied forces had not been able to reorganize yet. At the Battle of Wilhelmsthal, the French were able to open the way towards Hanover and scatter the armies of the allied German states. After a lengthy and costly siege, the French were able to retake Hanover and immediate began to refortify the city.

As soon as the German armies reformed, they placed the city back under siege. By that time though the city’s defenses had been rebuilt. French diplomats immediately began to trying to engage diplomacy with the British and Prussians. While Britain sent word to recall the troops that had just left.


Footnotes​

a. The Earl of Chatham​
iv. (Brompton, 1772)​
Brompton, Richard. William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham. 1772. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:...of_Chatham_after_Richard_Brompton_cropped.jpg. Accessed 15 August 2021.​
 
I-4: The Treaty of Paris

Chapter 4: The Treaty of Paris​

“Pourquoi, pour les quelques arpents de neige ?”[a]
Voltaire
1638899328575.png

Portrait of Charles de Rohan, Prince of Soubise[v]

It was not hard to get the countries to the negotiating table; no nation had the financial capacity to continue the war for too much longer. Britain, France, Spain, and Portugal would meet in Paris, in 1763 to discuss terms. Agreeing on terms though was another matter. France would not agree to anything that did not involve trading Hannover for their captured India territory. The British would try to stall the treaty until Hanover could be retaken but that was proving to take too long. In the end, the treaty did close with the trade. Several other nations would discuss their own terms at separate treaties.

The main goal of the Treaty of Paris was to return Europe to its balance of power. Outside of Europe was a separate story, Britain made large territorial gains in North America. The main terms of the Treaty of Paris outside of Europe can be summarized as:
  • Re-organization of the possession of several Caribbean Islands,
  • Britain would gain Florida, eastern Louisiana, and the Ohio Country,
  • Britain would demilitarize British Honduras and allow the practice of Roman Catholicism,
  • France regains lost territory in India.
British colonists in the thirteen North American colonies would see the treaty differently than their European counterparts. For them the war was about removing the French and Amerindian threats. With France maintaining control of Canada and western Louisiana, their threat was still present. Also, as the colonists moved into the newly incorporated eastern Louisianan territory, they displaced the Amerindians. In response, Amerindians increased their unorganized raids on civilian targets.

The Duke of Lévis and the Marquis of Vaudreuil had held on to Canada by a string. Many Canadians were just glad the war had ended, fears of an invasion from the south would continue but the people would be able to sleep for now. Amerindians still within French controlled territory were compelled to stop raids on British territory or lose the protection promised by the Marquis of Vaudreuil. Those in the newly gained British territory would still lose French protection. Chief Pontiac would continue to resist the British, but his resistance would be disorganized and much less effective.
***​

Seven Years War​

Date:May 17, AD 1756–February 15, AD 1763
Location:Europe, North America, South America, Asia
Results:Anglo-Prusso-Portugues victory
Treaty of Saint Petersburg​
Treaty of Hamburg​
13th Treaty of Paris​
Treaty of Hubertusberg​
Territorial changes:Europe status quo ante bellum
Transferer of colonial possessions between Great Britain, France & Spain
France ceded its continental possessions east of the Mississippi River, except Canada, New Orleans to Great Britain​
Spain ceded Florida to Great Britain​
Caribbean islands divided between Great Britain (St. Vincent, Tobago & Dominica) & France (St. Luce)​
Great Britain ceded the Circars to France​
Belligerents
Great Britain
Ireland​
British North America​
British East India Company​
Hannover
Iroquois
Prussia
Portugal (from 1762)
Brazil
Portuguese India
Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
Hesse-Kessel
Schaumburg-Lippe
France
New France​
French India​
Abenaki
Holy Roman Empire
Austria​
Saxony​
Russia (until AD 1762)
Spain
New Spain​
Peru​
Sweden
Mughal
Bengal
Commanders & Leaders
George II of Great Britain (until 1760)
George III of Great Britain (from 1760)
William Pitt the Elder, 1st Earl of Chatham
Frederick II of Prussia
Louis XV of France
Duke of Choiseul
Marquis of Vaudreuil
Maria Theresa of Austria
Wenzel Anton von Kauitz
Elizabeth of Russia (until AD 1763)
Peter III of Russia (AD 1762)
Charles III of Spain
Alam II of the Mughal

Figures​

Figure 1: Treaty of Paris AD 1763[vi]
1638899878601.png

Footnotes​

a. fra: "Why, for a few acres of snow?"​

v. (Anonymous, 18th Century)

vi. (Modified from source: Hadaril, 2018)

Anonymous. Portrait of Charles de Rohan, Prince of Soubise. 18th Century. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/...e,_Marshal_of_France_-_Versailles_MV_1098.jpg. Accessed 14 August 2021.​
Hadaril. 1776 The American Revolution. “The NextGen OTL Worlda Series.” alternatehistory.com, XenForo Ltd., 22 February 2018. https://www.alternatehistory.com/forum/threads/the-nextgen-otl-worlda-series.436046/page-49. Accessed 8 August 2021.​
 
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Great TL! My only nitpick is that it seems a little bit strange for france to hand over the west territory to britain since that was the area, with its rivers and lakes, is what connected quebec to louisiana. Idk to me it seems more like that britian take everything south of the ohio and east of the mississippi, but you do you. still great otherwise!
 
Great TL! My only nitpick is that it seems a little bit strange for france to hand over the west territory to britain since that was the area, with its rivers and lakes, is what connected quebec to louisiana. Idk to me it seems more like that britian take everything south of the ohio and east of the mississippi, but you do you. still great otherwise!
They certainly didn't want to, but they had to make some concession in the New World as they did technically still loose in the American theatre just not as bad as in OTL. And given their other options that seemed to be the least detrimental. (I also have plans for the area later storywise.)
 
Hmm, yes, the French managed to keep Canada but barely. I wonder, could they have exchanged Ohio Territory for entire Louisiana?
The thing was the 13 Colonies started the French and Indian War over the Ohio valley so while possible I don't think Britain would be very happy with the trade, especial since they (as far as they were concerned) already conquered the region before the POD.
 
II: An Armed Truce

Part II: An Armed Truce[4]​

"The king had many 'secrets' spread a crossed the globe."
Louis the Beloved
1638982310647.png

Siege of Fort Detroit[vii]

Even though France had lost the Ohio Territory and had to inform the Amerindians there it could not provide protection for them anymore, it did not lose contact with those Amerindians. Louis XV would send an agent of the Secret du Roi[a] (French secret service) to continue dialogue with the Amerindians, especially Pontiac and Cornplanter in hopes that they would continue to raid the British colonies. As the French could no longer promise protection many of the Amerindians stopped supporting the raids. Those who did continue did mostly out of animosity towards the British, which there was no shortage of due to Maj. Gen. Amherst’s policies.

Pontiac’s raiders were more disorganized than during the Seven Years’ War. As these raids often target more civilian targets, men swarmed to the British colonial militias, and new groups form with the exclusive goal of terrorizing and enacting vigilantism upon the Amerindians regardless of their affiliation. To make matters in the British North American colonies worse, the colonials knew the French were supplying Pontiac and his war bands but there was never enough contemporary evidence. The colonists continued to request more troops to protect from a French invasion. A request the British ignored in the short term as they knew the French could not afford another war so soon. This, of course, led many colonials to distrust the government in Britain. Some even went as far as to blame the British government for ended the war too early and not conquering all French America.

Amerindian raids were not the only source of unrest in the British colonies. The war cost the Kingdom of Great Britain a great deal of financial strain. To help pay for the war debt the British Parliament agreed to levy taxes on certain goods in the North American colonies. The colonies, who had long been left alone in these matters, were incensed, and claim that their rights have been violated. To reduce Amerindian raids George III issued a proclamation restricting the settlement of British colonists beyond the Appalachian Mountains. The proclamation did work. With less incursions on their land by British colonists many Amerindians felt they had no longer need to attack. The colonists, however, were not happy. Many felt that expanding to Mississippi River was their right.

North America was not the only area that the French supported proxy conflicts against the British. Support of the Mughal Empire continued as another agent of the Secret du Roi was sent to India, but with much less success. France was not the only nation to try proxy conflicts. Britain attempted to incite revolts in French America. However, British attempts mostly failed. Some historians blame this on the natives having more autonomy in French controlled territory and so had less reason to revolt. More likely though is, the British treated the natives more subservient to the British “vassals” while the French at least pretended to treated them as allies when in negotiations.
§​
While New France had been severely weakened by the war, it still held two important trade commodities. The fur trade continued much as it did before the war. While the loss of the Ohio Valley did limit the area in which French fur trappers could operate there was still plenty of furs left to gather in the Louisiana Territory. The other major commodity was cod. The area around Newfoundland was rich in cod fishing, and while France lost its territorial holdings on the island it still maintained fishing rights from Cape Bonavista to Point Riche, known as the French Shore.

French fishermen, especially Bretons, would set up temporary fishing settlements on the mainland in New France. The island of St. Pierre and Miquelon were closer but they were too small to support the often-competitive settlements and already inhabited. Overtime these fishing settlements grew and began to host year-round populations becoming permanent villages. While the cod did sell well in European markets the destination for most of the catch was the French Caribbean where it was used to fuel the sugar plantations there.
§​
Louis XV died in AD 1774, his grandson Louis XVI took the throne of France. Some thought that Louis XVI would restore the parliaments to gain public favor. However, this never happened. While he expressed his desire to do so early in his reign it seems as though the many the problems in New France distracted his attention.



Footnotes

a. fra: King's Secret​
b. Regional judicial bodies in France​

Endnotes

4. ATL vocabulary: “Armed Truce” (plural: armed truces) noun. cold war​
vii. (Remington)​
Remington, Frederic. The Siege of the Fort at Detroit. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Siege_of_Fort_Detroit.jpg. Accessed 14 August 2021.​
 
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Part II: An Armed Truce[4]​

"The king had many 'secrets' spread a crossed the globe."
Louis the Beloved
View attachment 701430
Siege of Fort Detroit[vii]

Even though France had lost the Ohio Territory and had to inform the Amerindians there it could not provide protection for them anymore, it did not lose contact with those Amerindians. Louis XV would send an agent of the Secret du Roi[a] (French secret service) to continue dialogue with the Amerindians, especially Pontiac and Cornplanter in hopes that they would continue to raid the British colonies. As the French could no longer promise protection many of the Amerindians stopped supporting the raids. Those who did continue did mostly out of animosity towards the British, which there was no shortage of due to Maj. Gen. Amherst’s policies.

Pontiac’s raiders were more disorganized than during the Seven Years’ War. As these raids often target more civilian targets, men swarmed to the British colonial militias, and new groups form with the exclusive goal of terrorizing and enacting vigilantism upon the Amerindians regardless of their affiliation. To make matters in the British North American colonies worse, the colonials knew the French were supplying Pontiac and his war bands but there was never enough contemporary evidence. The colonists continued to request more troops to protect from a French invasion. A request the British ignored in the short term as they knew the French could not afford another war so soon. This, of course, led many colonials to distrust the government in Britain. Some even went as far as to blame the British government for ended the war too early and not conquering all French America.

Amerindian raids were not the only source of unrest in the British colonies. The war cost the Kingdom of Great Britain a great deal of financial strain. To help pay for the war debt the British Parliament agreed to levy taxes on certain goods in the North American colonies. The colonies, who had long been left alone in these matters, were incensed, and claim that their rights have been violated. To reduce Amerindian raids George III issued a proclamation restricting the settlement of British colonists beyond the Appalachian Mountains. The proclamation did work. With less incursions on their land by British colonists many Amerindians felt they had no longer need to attack. The colonists, however, were not happy. Many felt that expanding to Mississippi River was their right.

North America was not the only area that the French supported proxy conflicts against the British. Support of the Mughal Empire continued as another agent of the Secret du Roi was sent to India, but with much less success. France was not the only nation to try proxy conflicts. Britain attempted to incite revolts in French America. However, British attempts mostly failed. Some historians blame this on the natives having more autonomy in French controlled territory and so had less reason to revolt. More likely though is, the British treated the natives more subservient to the British “vassals” while the French at least pretended to treated them as allies when in negotiations.
§​
While New France had been severely weakened by the war, it still held two important trade commodities. The fur trade continued much as it did before the war. While the loss of the Ohio Valley did limit the area in which French fur trappers could operate there was still plenty of furs left to gather in the Louisiana Territory. The other major commodity was cod. The area around Newfoundland was rich in cod fishing, and while France lost its territorial holdings on the island it still maintained fishing rights from Cape Bonavista to Point Riche, known as the French Shore.

French fishermen, especially Bretons, would set up temporary fishing settlements on the mainland in New France. The island of St. Pierre and Miquelon were closer but they were too small to support the often-competitive settlements and already inhabited. Overtime these fishing settlements grew and began to host year-round populations becoming permanent villages. While the cod did sell well in European markets the destination for most of the catch was the French Caribbean where it was used to fuel the sugar plantations there.
§​
Louis XV died in AD 1774, his son Louis XVI took the throne of France. Some thought that Louis XVI would restore the parliaments to gain public favor. However, this never happened. While he expressed his desire to do so early in his reign it seems as though the many the problems in New France distracted his attention.



Footnotes

a. fra: King's Secret​
b. Regional judicial bodies in France​

Endnotes

4. ATL vocabulary: “Armed Truce” (plural: armed truces) noun. cold war​
vii. (Remington)​
Remington, Frederic. The Siege of the Fort at Detroit. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Siege_of_Fort_Detroit.jpg. Accessed 14 August 2021.​
His "son" Louis XVI? Does this mean that his son that died historically and thus was never king lives in this TL? Or do you mean the historical Louis XVI who was Louis XV grand-son?
 
III-1: The Sons of Liberty

Part III: The Five Years' War​

Chapter 1: The Sons of Liberty​

"Taxes for Security"
Loyalist Propaganda
1639006317615.png

The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill[viii]

To add to the unrest caused by the new taxes and the Royal Proclamation of 1763, Enlightenment philosophies on governance had taken root in colonies particularly in the New England region. As they feared retribution the Enlightenment thinkers often met in secret societies to hold discussions, one such society was known as the Sons of Liberty which frequently found itself discussing full independence from the British Crown. Shortly after its founding, the Sons of Liberty began organizing protests the British taxes. The Sons of Liberty also excelled at spreading anti-loyalist propaganda, employing their own printing presses, and actively threatening those that willing published pro-loyalist material. In December of AD 1773, the Sons of Liberty organized the Boston Tea Party to protest new taxes. In response to this and several other incidents the British Parliament passed the Coercive Acts. By this time the Sons of Liberty were preparing for the possibility of a violent conflict with the British government. Something that they would get as colonial militia and British regulars would find themselves fighting several skirmishes.

While they were the most vocal group, the Sons of Liberty were not the only faction that disagreed with the British Parliament’s tax policies. Many of the colonials still wanted to stay a part of the British Crown whether it was out of loyalty or the belief that they needed British protection, still others wanted to do their part in paying taxes as a British citizen. Representatives from thirteen British colonies met in Philadelphia to discuss possible solutions. The First Continental Congress did very little, just attempted to counter the Coercive Acts with a boycott. Tensions continued to rise as colonial militia continued to skirmish with British regulars. It would become clear that a simple boycott would not de-escalate the situation, and a Second Continental Congress was called in AD 1775 to discuss an actual solution for the problems. Many members of the Sons of Liberty were present and all pushed for war and Independence from Great Britain. While the Sons of Liberty’s zeal made independence attractive to many until one flaw was presented. The colonies were surrounded by the French territory, French territory that only a few decades earlier they had attempted to conquer. Fear that the French would try to enact revenge upon the colonies was rampant especially if Britain was no longer able to protect them. Things could get worse if Britain would decide to reclaim the colonies after or during a French attack. The congress’s final decision was to draft the Olive Branch Petition to the King of Great Britain. The petition was a plea to the king to allow the colonies some self-governance and keep the empire together. The Sons of Liberty caused no small uproar at this decision, enough of an uproar that the congress drafted a secret contingency plan if the George III refused the Olive Branch Petition. The plan included a declaration of intended independence and drafting a frame work for the creation of a continental army.

At first George III had very little interest in the Olive Branch Petition, he was too occupied with his power struggle with Parliament and considered the problems in the American colonies to be a distraction. However, he took note of the fact that the petition was addressed directly to him, he began to wonder if he could use this in his struggle against Parliament. With an intent only to use the negotiations to gain publicity George III replied that he was open to negotiations. The Continental Congress chose a moderate Joseph Galloway to lead the diplomatic envoy. The Sons of Liberty became incensed at this, they believed that there was no way the king would consider the petition. In the few months before the arrival of the king’s reply, the Sons of Liberty had been slowly building up the Continental Army against the wishes of the Continental Congress. The Sons of Liberty then take matters into their own hands hoping to sabotage the negotiations. Declaring independence, a militia Captain Benedict Arnold led as much of the Continental Army he could in a surprise raid. Knowing that he could not take the British regulars in open combat he led his force towards the wilderness to survive long enough for the British Parliament to declare open war. After promoting himself to colonel, Col. Arnold met up with the Green Mountain Boys to take Fort Ticonderoga to serve as a temporary base of operations. Col. Arnold was not the only member of the Sons of Liberty to declare independence, numerous merchant ships flew the Sons of Liberty flag and began pirating other ships.

Fearing that this declaration would jeopardize any agreement with the king, the Continental Congress immediately called an emergency meeting. Many members did not attend, and it was assumed that they were members of the Sons of Liberty. Hoping to save the negotiations congress declared all of those still in rebellion to be traitors and organized as much of the militias they could to fight the patriots. The militias were placed under the command of Colonel Oliver De Lancey Sr[a]. While some in British Parliament wanted to exact revenge upon the colonies, the majority maintained the diplomatic talks. Without British Parliament escalating to full scale war Col. Arnold’s plan had failed despite taking fort Ticonderoga. When a combined force of loyalists and British regulars marched on the fort, Col. Arnold and most of his forces fled to New France. France eager to always counter the plans of the British offered them asylum.
***​

Flags of British North America​

Originally, the only official flag the British North America had was the Red Ensign. However, two distinct flags would come into use in colonies as unofficial flags. The first of these was the Grand Union Flag. The Grand Union Flag (Figure 1) was recognized by the Continental Congress and was first used by everyone in the North American Colonies regardless of politics. But when Colonel Benedict Arnold began his own rebellion, the patriots adopted the Rebellious Stripes Flag (Figure 3) of the Sons of Liberty.

The Grand Union Flag had a problem though. It looked almost identical to the most common version of the flag use by the East India Company. Several high-profile people in the East India Company protested the American use of the Grand Union Flag because of this. But as the East India Company flag did have variants individual sea captains solved the problem for them. The flag that they began to use differed from the Grand Union Flag in three main ways. The use of a rectangle canton, a reduction to nine stripes, and switching the order of the stripes to be white on red (Figure 2). The leadership in the East India Company was not happy with this fix, but since it was no longer an issue and the British Government had bigger problems nothing else was done.

Figure 1: Grand Union Flag[ix]

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Figure 2: Standardized East India Company Flag[x]​

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Figure 3: Sons of Liberty Flag "Rebellious Stripes"[xi]

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Footnotes​

a. Command of the militia force was first offered to George Washington, as he was originally selected to lead the Continental Army if it was ever formed. However, he ultimately turned the position down. Col. De Lancey was not the original second choice for the army, but congress did not want to spend time finding another candidate so they offered it to someone they knew would accept the nomination​
viii. (Trumbell, 1786)​
ix. (Hoshie and Yaddah, 2006)​
x. (Modified from source: Wdflak, 2006), (Modified from source: Yaddah, 2006)​
xi. (Sarang, 2015)​
Hoshie, and Yaddah. 13 February 2006. Flag of the United States (1776–1777). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_the_United_States_(1776–1777).svg. Accessed 19 August 2021.​
Sarang. US Sons OfLiberty 9Stripes Flag. 11 June 2015. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Sons_OfLiberty_9Stripes_Flag.svg. Accessed 1 December 2021.​
Trumbell, John. The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill. 1786. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Death_of_General_Warren_at_the_Battle_of_Bunker's_Hill.jpg. Accessed 15 August 2021.​
Wdflak. British East India Company Flag. 3 December 2006. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:British_East_India_Company_flag.svg. Accessed 19 August 2021.​
Yaddah. Flag of the British East India Company (1707). 4 June 2006. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_the_British_East_India_Company_(1707).svg. Accessed 19 August 2021​
 
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