Union and Liberty: An American TL
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Would probably depend on how much territory the French held in the African colonies of Britain…. obviously they can leverage their wins in Europe, but did they take the British colonies, or were they mostly left alone or held out? I could see the French wanting more of British Cameroon if they occupied the extent of it for example.
On the other hand as otherwise posted, given the degree of French control over the continent, it isn't a huge issue.
On the other hand as otherwise posted, given the degree of French control over the continent, it isn't a huge issue.
You should have used the colour for Danish territories which looks like the UCS colour for British dominions for Canada and vice versa.
My problem here is that the British stance on this issue was not covered at all despite the fact that the land was under British sovereignty and not an independent British ally.
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Started work on the next text update today, so it should be done by the weekend! I decided not to do an Asia-Pacific post war map since there isn't any major territory changing hands there except for the Philippines and Hawaii becoming independent.
Yay! New update.
It interests me as to what will happen to annexed California. Will it be granted statehood (likely, imo)? If so, how many states? What kind of regional culture(s) will develop? What kind of effect will the ethnic make up of California have on the U.S.?
Also, has the independence of California and the fact that it attracted most of the Immigrants from Asia butterflyed away the Chinese exclusion act?
It will be fascinating to see what future updates have in store!
Part One Hundred Thirty-One: A Matter of Territory
Next update is here!
Part One Hundred Thirty-One: A Matter of Territory
The Weltkongress's First Steps:
Almost immediately after the charter forming the Weltkongress was passed, the international organization dove into debate over its first crises. While the Great War was over, the aftermath of the war in many places around the world were still unresolved. The most pressing concern for the powers attending the Vienna Peace Conference was the situation with the civil war in Spain. After the French invasion, the Cantonalist insurrection in Andalucia made quick advances north and as of the armistice were nearing the capital. The Cantonalists had already reached as north as Toledo by the end of 1911, and were preparing to cross the Tajo River. Days after the Spanish delegation signed the Schönbrunn Treaty, an uprising against the king and the Cortes broke out in Madrid. The Cantonalist forces launched an offensive north from Toledo to reinforce the rebels in the capital. King Alfonso XIII was in the Escorial palace at the time, but with the uprising growing stronger every day he fled to the more royalist city of Valladolid. The Madrid uprising led to the Zarzuela Declaration[1] by failed mayoral candidate Alvaro de Figueroa[2] and the brief tenure of the Madrid Commune. Alvaro de Figueroa led the Commune for nearly two months before the Weltkongress mediation of the Spanish Civil War concluded.
As the Weltkongress met to call an end to the conflict in the Spanish Civil War and mediate a peace treaty between the two factions, the Cantonalists were permitted to send a small diplomatic delegation to the proceedings in Vienna. The Cantonalists used this opportunity to make a bold statement, and sent Isabel Oyarzabal Smith, a 34 year old activist and a Federal Deputy from Malaga[3], as the lead delegate. She became the first woman to officially speak at he Weltkongress during the ceasefire negotiations. On May 1, 1912, the Weltkongress announced that a ceasefire had been agreed to, and a permanent peace process for Spain would begin. Neither the conservative Spanish delegation or the radical Cantonalists could agree to a copmromise that would allow for a return to a united Spain. The resulting agreement, signed on June 14, set the border between the Kingdom of Spain and the now internationally recognized Spanish Federative Republic. The Tajo River, as it was close to the de facto border at the ceasefire, was designated the border between the two states for much of its course, though near the headwaters the border followed the Guadiela tributary. The designation of the Tajo as the border still caused contention among both sides, as the Federative Republic was giving up control of not just Madrid but Toledo as well. After the war, Toledo became a heavily militarized city. The city's famed Alcazar became a fortification once again, overlooking the Tajo to the south, and during the Third Carlist War following King Alfonso XIII's assassination, there were constant fears that the Federative Republic would cross the river and occupy Toledo, sparking another widespread conflict.
While the Spanish Civil War was the Weltkongress's major concern during its first meeting, other smaller issues were also discussed. The United States, while not yet a chartered member due to the ratification of the charter in Congress, still brought one of the first cases in front of the Weltkongress. The US delegation, with Oliver Wendell Holmes as the main representative in the case, agreed to settle a longstanding maritime dispute with Acadia-Tirnanog[4]. Since the Peace of Madrid ended the Oregon War, a dispute over the fisheries in the Gulf of Maine and over the ownership of the Grand Manan Archipelago and Machias Seal Island had remained unresolved[5]. Holmes was selected as head of the American side due to his extensive experience with admiralty law. Under Dutch and French arbiters, the American and Acadian sides eventually came to a workable agreement. The United States would gain sovereignty over the entire Grand Manan Archipelago and Machias Seal Island, but Acadia-Tirnanog would receive fishing rights over a wider range of the Gulf of Maine. In particular, Acadia-Tirannaog was granted sovereignty of over half of the lucrative Georges Bank and the cod and halibut grounds on its eastern shelf. Additionally, fish products were granted duty free entry for going between the American and Acadian borders. This was one of the first modern instances of the establishment of a maritime boundary between two nations. The boundary establishment only temporarily solved the fisheries dispute, however, as industrial fishing methods over the next decades quickly depleted the Gulf of Maine fishing stocks for many species.
The Insular Cases:
The United States gained nearly two thirds is previous territory with its annexations after the Great War. However, the matter of taking a swath of land this large became a matter of some contention among the existing states as to what to do with the new territory. For areas such as California, the main question was how to divide the former Californio Republic into territories and how soon to transfer the lands from military governance to being organized territories. While California in total had a substantial population, many people especially in Congress were concerned over the creation of more Catholic-majority states. THis was a reflection of a growing Nativist sentiment in many parts of the country, especially the rural areas of the Old Northwest and the South. The proposed 1912 Organic Act as originally proposed by Senator Tomás E. Palma[6] split the California Military District into territories based on combinations of the former Californio states. However, it faced such opposition and amendments that by the time the bill passed, only Trujillo and Espejo became territories, while the rest of the lands remained part of the military district.
Outside of California, the matter of the newly annexed lands was not as controversial in whether they should get statehood. Instead, the disputes arose between states over certain acquisitions and which state should gain the new lands. The first case to erupt following the Vienna Peace Conference was, naturally it seems, between Michigan and Ohio[7]. The United States took Pelee Island and the nearby islands in Lake Erie as part of its gains. The state government in Michigan assumed that as they received Essex County, Pelee Island and the surrounding waters would obviously become part of Michigan. However, governor Mark Hanna claimed that as Pelee Island was closer to the Ohio coast, it should become part of Ohio. The dispute was only verbal at first, but in June 1912 it escalated. Led by Arthur Schlessinger[8], a student at Ohio State University, a small group of students out to Pelee Island and planted the flags of Ohio and Ohio State on the highest point on the island. Two days later, a group of people from Michigan replaced the flags with that of Michigan. John Bricker, a freshman at Ohio State from the first flag planting, went out again the next day with a group of five others. However, the Michigan group was still there and a brawl ensued. Three were injured in the brawl, including Bricker receiving a broken nose. The dispute was taken to the courts where, based on the Staten Island precedent, it was decided by the Supreme Court. In the case of Ohio vs. Michigan, the area surrounding Pelee Island was granted to Ohio in October of 1912.
Meanwhile, the Bahamas in the Caribbean remained a source of tension between the southeastern states and among the population of the islands. The military occupation of the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands was originally planned for a year in order to establish a naval base in the archipelago then organize the islands into a singular territory. However, the proposed Organic Act caused protests among the Turks and Caicos islanders. When America annexed them, the Turks and Caicos had been administered by Jamaica after petitioning a transfer out of Bahamaian governance in the 1840s[9], and few islanders wanted to go back to being governed by Nassau. Additionally, the proposal to make the Bahamas itself a state was met with heavy opposition from mainlanders due to the islands' majority black population. A possible solution was to make the Bahamian Archipelago part of Florida or Cuba, but this was also met with opposition, particularly in Florida. Democratic Governor Sidney Johnston Catts opposed the incorporation of the Bahamas to Florida, with racist comments denouncing the black population and comparing the Bahamians to "the undignified revolutionaries of Haiti who want to export their society to America." In 1913, the Turks and Caicos were incorporated into the state of Cuba, but the issue of the Bahamas remained unresolved. In 1915, after Catts lost reelection, an act was again proposed to make the Bahamas part of Florida, but it was still rejected by the state legislature in Florida. The reluctance to grant the islands to Cuba or to make them their own territory put the status of the Bahamas in limbo for a long time. The Department of the Interior continued to administrate the islands through the end of the decade. The status of the islands made it a boon for naval development with the construction of Port Lucayan Naval Base on Grand Bahama, but it led to unrest among the 40,000 people living on the archipelago[10] and contributed to the unrest in Florida in the 1910s as Bahamians moved to Jacksonville and Gadsden.
[1] The declaration is named after the Zarzuela Palace in Madrid where it was made.
[2] Alvaro de Figueroa was in OTL mayor of Madrid in the 1890s, Prime Minister of Spain in the 1910s, and given the title Count of Romanones. ITTL his political rise is cut off early and so he takes a different opportunity for advancement.
[3] Isabel Oyarzabal Smith was a writer and feminist activist in Spain. Incidentally she's one of the few early 20th century Spanish feminists I could find who weren't Basque or Catalan.
[4] Naming conventions for Acadia got weird after independence with arguments over English or Gaelic names, so by now the formal name of independent Acadia is the Republic of Acadia-Tirnanog but the short form is either Acadia or Tirnanog.
[5] In OTL Grand Manan and Machias Seal Island are still disputed between the US and Canada.
[6] Tomás Estrada Palma is a Progressive Senator from Cuba ITTL.
[7] Like snakes and mongooses, Ohioans and Michiganders seem to be natural enemies.
[8] This is Arthur Schlessinger Sr., who was an Ohio State alum.
[9] The transfer of the Turks and Caicos from the Bahamas to Jamaica happened in OTL and is a major reason why the Turks and Caicos are still British.
[10] OTL's population of the Bahamas at the time was about 55,000. The stagnation of the Bahamas' economy in the later 19th century is more visible with the new opportunity to move to the mainland or Cuba.
Part One Hundred Thirty-One: A Matter of Territory
The Weltkongress's First Steps:
Almost immediately after the charter forming the Weltkongress was passed, the international organization dove into debate over its first crises. While the Great War was over, the aftermath of the war in many places around the world were still unresolved. The most pressing concern for the powers attending the Vienna Peace Conference was the situation with the civil war in Spain. After the French invasion, the Cantonalist insurrection in Andalucia made quick advances north and as of the armistice were nearing the capital. The Cantonalists had already reached as north as Toledo by the end of 1911, and were preparing to cross the Tajo River. Days after the Spanish delegation signed the Schönbrunn Treaty, an uprising against the king and the Cortes broke out in Madrid. The Cantonalist forces launched an offensive north from Toledo to reinforce the rebels in the capital. King Alfonso XIII was in the Escorial palace at the time, but with the uprising growing stronger every day he fled to the more royalist city of Valladolid. The Madrid uprising led to the Zarzuela Declaration[1] by failed mayoral candidate Alvaro de Figueroa[2] and the brief tenure of the Madrid Commune. Alvaro de Figueroa led the Commune for nearly two months before the Weltkongress mediation of the Spanish Civil War concluded.
As the Weltkongress met to call an end to the conflict in the Spanish Civil War and mediate a peace treaty between the two factions, the Cantonalists were permitted to send a small diplomatic delegation to the proceedings in Vienna. The Cantonalists used this opportunity to make a bold statement, and sent Isabel Oyarzabal Smith, a 34 year old activist and a Federal Deputy from Malaga[3], as the lead delegate. She became the first woman to officially speak at he Weltkongress during the ceasefire negotiations. On May 1, 1912, the Weltkongress announced that a ceasefire had been agreed to, and a permanent peace process for Spain would begin. Neither the conservative Spanish delegation or the radical Cantonalists could agree to a copmromise that would allow for a return to a united Spain. The resulting agreement, signed on June 14, set the border between the Kingdom of Spain and the now internationally recognized Spanish Federative Republic. The Tajo River, as it was close to the de facto border at the ceasefire, was designated the border between the two states for much of its course, though near the headwaters the border followed the Guadiela tributary. The designation of the Tajo as the border still caused contention among both sides, as the Federative Republic was giving up control of not just Madrid but Toledo as well. After the war, Toledo became a heavily militarized city. The city's famed Alcazar became a fortification once again, overlooking the Tajo to the south, and during the Third Carlist War following King Alfonso XIII's assassination, there were constant fears that the Federative Republic would cross the river and occupy Toledo, sparking another widespread conflict.
While the Spanish Civil War was the Weltkongress's major concern during its first meeting, other smaller issues were also discussed. The United States, while not yet a chartered member due to the ratification of the charter in Congress, still brought one of the first cases in front of the Weltkongress. The US delegation, with Oliver Wendell Holmes as the main representative in the case, agreed to settle a longstanding maritime dispute with Acadia-Tirnanog[4]. Since the Peace of Madrid ended the Oregon War, a dispute over the fisheries in the Gulf of Maine and over the ownership of the Grand Manan Archipelago and Machias Seal Island had remained unresolved[5]. Holmes was selected as head of the American side due to his extensive experience with admiralty law. Under Dutch and French arbiters, the American and Acadian sides eventually came to a workable agreement. The United States would gain sovereignty over the entire Grand Manan Archipelago and Machias Seal Island, but Acadia-Tirnanog would receive fishing rights over a wider range of the Gulf of Maine. In particular, Acadia-Tirannaog was granted sovereignty of over half of the lucrative Georges Bank and the cod and halibut grounds on its eastern shelf. Additionally, fish products were granted duty free entry for going between the American and Acadian borders. This was one of the first modern instances of the establishment of a maritime boundary between two nations. The boundary establishment only temporarily solved the fisheries dispute, however, as industrial fishing methods over the next decades quickly depleted the Gulf of Maine fishing stocks for many species.
The Insular Cases:
The United States gained nearly two thirds is previous territory with its annexations after the Great War. However, the matter of taking a swath of land this large became a matter of some contention among the existing states as to what to do with the new territory. For areas such as California, the main question was how to divide the former Californio Republic into territories and how soon to transfer the lands from military governance to being organized territories. While California in total had a substantial population, many people especially in Congress were concerned over the creation of more Catholic-majority states. THis was a reflection of a growing Nativist sentiment in many parts of the country, especially the rural areas of the Old Northwest and the South. The proposed 1912 Organic Act as originally proposed by Senator Tomás E. Palma[6] split the California Military District into territories based on combinations of the former Californio states. However, it faced such opposition and amendments that by the time the bill passed, only Trujillo and Espejo became territories, while the rest of the lands remained part of the military district.
Outside of California, the matter of the newly annexed lands was not as controversial in whether they should get statehood. Instead, the disputes arose between states over certain acquisitions and which state should gain the new lands. The first case to erupt following the Vienna Peace Conference was, naturally it seems, between Michigan and Ohio[7]. The United States took Pelee Island and the nearby islands in Lake Erie as part of its gains. The state government in Michigan assumed that as they received Essex County, Pelee Island and the surrounding waters would obviously become part of Michigan. However, governor Mark Hanna claimed that as Pelee Island was closer to the Ohio coast, it should become part of Ohio. The dispute was only verbal at first, but in June 1912 it escalated. Led by Arthur Schlessinger[8], a student at Ohio State University, a small group of students out to Pelee Island and planted the flags of Ohio and Ohio State on the highest point on the island. Two days later, a group of people from Michigan replaced the flags with that of Michigan. John Bricker, a freshman at Ohio State from the first flag planting, went out again the next day with a group of five others. However, the Michigan group was still there and a brawl ensued. Three were injured in the brawl, including Bricker receiving a broken nose. The dispute was taken to the courts where, based on the Staten Island precedent, it was decided by the Supreme Court. In the case of Ohio vs. Michigan, the area surrounding Pelee Island was granted to Ohio in October of 1912.
Meanwhile, the Bahamas in the Caribbean remained a source of tension between the southeastern states and among the population of the islands. The military occupation of the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands was originally planned for a year in order to establish a naval base in the archipelago then organize the islands into a singular territory. However, the proposed Organic Act caused protests among the Turks and Caicos islanders. When America annexed them, the Turks and Caicos had been administered by Jamaica after petitioning a transfer out of Bahamaian governance in the 1840s[9], and few islanders wanted to go back to being governed by Nassau. Additionally, the proposal to make the Bahamas itself a state was met with heavy opposition from mainlanders due to the islands' majority black population. A possible solution was to make the Bahamian Archipelago part of Florida or Cuba, but this was also met with opposition, particularly in Florida. Democratic Governor Sidney Johnston Catts opposed the incorporation of the Bahamas to Florida, with racist comments denouncing the black population and comparing the Bahamians to "the undignified revolutionaries of Haiti who want to export their society to America." In 1913, the Turks and Caicos were incorporated into the state of Cuba, but the issue of the Bahamas remained unresolved. In 1915, after Catts lost reelection, an act was again proposed to make the Bahamas part of Florida, but it was still rejected by the state legislature in Florida. The reluctance to grant the islands to Cuba or to make them their own territory put the status of the Bahamas in limbo for a long time. The Department of the Interior continued to administrate the islands through the end of the decade. The status of the islands made it a boon for naval development with the construction of Port Lucayan Naval Base on Grand Bahama, but it led to unrest among the 40,000 people living on the archipelago[10] and contributed to the unrest in Florida in the 1910s as Bahamians moved to Jacksonville and Gadsden.
[1] The declaration is named after the Zarzuela Palace in Madrid where it was made.
[2] Alvaro de Figueroa was in OTL mayor of Madrid in the 1890s, Prime Minister of Spain in the 1910s, and given the title Count of Romanones. ITTL his political rise is cut off early and so he takes a different opportunity for advancement.
[3] Isabel Oyarzabal Smith was a writer and feminist activist in Spain. Incidentally she's one of the few early 20th century Spanish feminists I could find who weren't Basque or Catalan.
[4] Naming conventions for Acadia got weird after independence with arguments over English or Gaelic names, so by now the formal name of independent Acadia is the Republic of Acadia-Tirnanog but the short form is either Acadia or Tirnanog.
[5] In OTL Grand Manan and Machias Seal Island are still disputed between the US and Canada.
[6] Tomás Estrada Palma is a Progressive Senator from Cuba ITTL.
[7] Like snakes and mongooses, Ohioans and Michiganders seem to be natural enemies.
[8] This is Arthur Schlessinger Sr., who was an Ohio State alum.
[9] The transfer of the Turks and Caicos from the Bahamas to Jamaica happened in OTL and is a major reason why the Turks and Caicos are still British.
[10] OTL's population of the Bahamas at the time was about 55,000. The stagnation of the Bahamas' economy in the later 19th century is more visible with the new opportunity to move to the mainland or Cuba.
Still not really happy with how the Bahamas turned out. I originally intended them to go to Florida, but I kept realizing that Florida's government plausibly wouldn't want it because of the race reason, and I have no idea what the constitutional implications of an existing state rejecting Congress adding territory to it would be and couldn't find any resources on it. I was considering having the Supreme Court rule that Florida had to take the Bahamas but that would have wide ranging implications that I wasn't entirely sure about so decided to drop it.
Good to see another update. The situation in the Bahamas is interesting, especially with the nearest state not wanting anything to do with the area because of racial politics. I could see the Department of the Interior running the Bahamas as a sort of autonomous region, maybe with the locals running their own affairs but needing the approval of the Department of the Interior.
Great update, can we get a map illustrating the US's new territories and their divisions?
Do you mean pluralism in terms of how many parties are in the system and if any parties are banned? If so, most monarchist parties of both the Alfonsine and Carlist variety have been forced underground, but besides that there is a pretty broad ideological spectrum in the Federative Republic. Politics generally skews to the left with parties supporting decentralization and power in municipalities being the most popular, but some of the rural agrarian towns send a decent number of conservative deputies to the Assembly.Could you remind us how are the internal politics of the Cantonalists in terms of political pluralism?
For the time being. Not really sure if it will end up in a perpetual territorial status or if it would become its own state or join an existing state once racial attitudes change.
Yeah, that sounds most likely. Something like how the governor of Puerto Rico was an appointed position until 1948.
Yep, that's definitely something I've been wanting to get around to for a while. I still need to do a map of the US with capitals and largest cities so those will probably be in the same map. Not sure when I'll have time to do it though.
Also, I've found a nice architectural change from OTL. The New York World Building, demolished in OTL in the 60s to make room for a larger ramp to the Brooklyn Bridge, gets saved ITTL. It was owned by Joseph Pulitzer, so ITTL would be the New York Herald Building. It's the building with the golden dome in this picture. In the foreground is City Hall and behind that is the New York Municipal Building, which I think will also be around ITTL. I really should do more of the Great Cities bits that I had planned once upon a time.
http://vintagetravelpostcards.blogspot.com/2010/04/new-york-city-new-york_28.html
I'm surprised that the USA wasn't able to carve more initial territories out of California. Especially given I expect there to be a boom in Anglo settlers.
Spotlight on the City #2: Paris, France
I finally have another city focus update for you all. Here's the link to the first one in case you want to go back and read that one. I probably won't have a map to go with this one unfortunately, but this map is a good overview of the OTL renovations of the street layout done by Baron Haussmann.
Spotlight on the City #2: Paris, France
The presidency of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte brought about many changes to France during the late 19th century. His thirty-one years as president transformed the country from a nation in decline wracked by wave after wave of instability and upheaval to one of Europe’s leading powers with a military, economic, and cultural presence felt around the world. Louis Napoleon brought a much needed extended period of stability and prosperity to France. One of the most striking effects of Louis Napoleon’s presidency can be seen and felt in the French capital itself. Louis Napoleon continued the legacy of the French Revolution in throwing out the old system, modernizing and elevating Paris to a global cultural center.
In the early 19th century, Paris was still much the same as it was during the French Revolution. The neighborhoods at the center of the city on the Ile de la Cite and north of the Louvre were still densely populated and camped. In many areas of the city, the narrow, winding streets that had been laid out in medieval times remained. King Louis Philippe began some public works projects to improve the city during his reign. The Place de la Concorde was constructed in 1836, along with the final completion of the Arc du Triomphe de L’Etoile. The Comte de Rambuteau, Prefect of the Seine[1], laid out what is now the Rue Rambuteau between the Palais Royal and the Marais district. The widening of this avenue served as a precursor to the later planning for the city under Louis Napoleon. Additionally under Louis Philippe, the July column was erected in the Place de la Bastille where the fortress and prison had once stood in the east of the city center.
However, much of the city still had problems. Riots occurred almost yearly during the reign of King Louis Philippe, culminating in the destruction of the monarchy in the Mid-Century Revolutions. During the first half of the 19th century, the population of Paris more than doubled from 500,000 to over a million people, and the city strained to accommodate such growth. The central arrondissements were packed tight with people. The sewers emptied directly into the Seine, making outbreaks of cholera and other diseases increasingly frequent. Cholera outbreaks in the Ile de la Cite and nearby neighborhoods in 1830, 1848, and 1852 killed over twenty thousand people in each epidemic. These issues in Paris and other urbanizing cities throughout France were a major spark in the ousting of Louis Philippe.
When Louis Napoleon was elected president of France, he consulted with the Comte de Rambuteau and other architects and planners from throughout France on renovation plans for Paris. After many applications and personal input by president Bonaparte, George Eugene Haussmann was chosen as the Prefect of the Seine to replace Rambuteau. The Prefect of the Seine position held authority over Paris, and Haussmann’s renovations began soon after his appointment in 1851. The first phase implemented by Haussmann was the consolidation of east-west and north-south axes through the center of Paris. The main east-west axis already largely existed as the Champs-Élysées stretching from the Arc du Triomphe de L’Etoile to the Louvre. Under Haussman’s direction, the axis was extended east as the completed Rue de Rivoli between the Louvre and the Hotel de Ville, and a widening of the Rue de Saint Antoine to the Place de la Bastille and the Place Bonaparte[2]. The north-south axis went along the Boulevard de Saint-Denis through the Ile de la Cite and on the Rue de Saint Michel south of the Seine. These two paths through the city created a cross along which traffic from all directions could flow more easily into, out of, and through Paris. However, this was only the start of the renovation that Haussmann would have planned for Paris.
Haussmann continued to wash away the older sections of Paris by widening more streets, destroying the old city walls from before the Revolution to create new treelined boulevards, and constructing railway stations on the outskirts of the city center to connect Paris with outer cities. The most important of these became the Gare d’Arsenal located between the Place de la Bastile and the Seine and the Gare du Nord where the Rue Saint Denis met the Boulevard du Lafayette[3]. Both stations served as vital arteries to the city. To facilitate the construction of tracks outward from these locations and other projects put forth by Haussmann, Louis Napoleon and Haussmann also officially annexed several suburbs surrounding Paris. In 1855, the suburbs of Montmarte, Belleville, and Bercy were annexed into the city of Paris. By Louis Napoleon’s death in 1881, Paris had further expanded to all the area within the outer ring of fortifications and more.
Haussmann’s renovations also included the construction of many parks and monuments throughout Paris. The parks were envisioned by Louis Napoleon during his exile in London and his fascination with that city’s Hyde Park. When he was elected president of Paris, Louis Napoleon turned the two former royal hunting grounds on either side of the city into large park areas as large as some of the arrondissements, far larger than any public park in Paris before. These became the Bois du Boulogne on the west, south of the Champs-Elysees and the Bois du Vincennes on the east, along the extension of the Rue Saint Antoine. The Bois du Vincennes also features the Chateau de Vincennes, renamed the Chateau Daumesnil after the park’s creation, with the keep and much of the castle restored during this period.
Other monuments constructed in Paris during the late 19th century were primarily dedicated to the French Revolution or to the major wars of the era. Following in his uncle’s footsteps, Louis Napoleon wanted to construct a triumphal arch similar to the Arc du L’Etoile and the Arc du Carousel in the Neoclassical style following the European Wars. From 1872 to 1875, workers built the Arc de Triomphe de Bonaparte in the center of the Place Bonaparte in eastern Paris. Unlike either of Emperor Napoleon’s arches, the Arc de Triomphe de Bonaparte was built of a red sandstone brick from the Vosges. The monumental construction continued after the era of Louis Napoleon and Haussmann as well. On the centennial of the French Revolution in 1889, a grand statue was unveiled on the western promontory of the Ile de la Cite dedicated to the revolution. The statue is a bronze recreation of Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People. A young woman, the personification of Liberty waves a flag above her head in one hand while clutching a rifle in the other. The base of the statue depicts a group of people following Liberty as in the painting. The statue’s ingenious construction comes from a collaboration between Isidore Bonheur and Gustave Eiffel. Eiffel, who later designed the Jefferson Tower in Saint Louis, Missouri, designed a hollow iron lattice similar to that of the Jefferson Tower in order to support a statue as large as that of Liberty Leading the People. The statue’s location required the movement of an older statue of King Henri IV of France, which is now located nearby in the Place Dauphine.
The final piece of the grand Parisian monuments was completed in the years following the Alliance victory in the Great War. President Paul Déroulède, who succeeded Leon Gambetta after the latter’s death in 1913, gathered support nationwide for a large memorial to be built in Paris dedicated to those soldiers lost in the Great War. Architect Hector Guimard[4] won the extensive design contest with his blending of the older themes of Parisian architecture with more modern 20th century architectural innovations. Guimard proposed a triumphal arch similar to the ones previously built in Paris, but massively scaled up. With the planned site for the memorial on the Champs de Mars, it had to be large and grand enough to be a suitable memorial. Guimard scaled the arch’s design up to be 125 meters wide at its base, and 140 meters in height[5]. This made the arch over twice as large as the Arc de L’Etoile. To make sure the Arc de Triomphe d’Alliance was structurally sound, Guimard incorporated cast iron bars on both the interior, as well as partially decorative cast iron columns around the outside of the legs of the arch. The Arc d’Alliance was the largest undertaking of modern Parisian construction yet, taking six years to complete. Guimard also added an additional functional aspect to the Arc d’Alliance. The interior of the arch above the ceiling included several spaces for offices. Since the opening of the Arc d’Alliance in 1917, this office space has mostly these have been occupied by government ministries.
[1] As far as I can tell, the Prefect of the Seine was essentially mayor of Paris.
[2] OTL Place de la Nation, formerly the Place de Trone.
[3] ITTL the Rue de Lafayette goes west all the way to the Madeleine.
[4] Guimard is one of the most renowned art nouveau architects, and is known for designing among other things the Paris metro entrances.
[5] For the Arc d’Alliance I basically scaled up the dimensions of the Arc de Triomphe to the base of the Eiffel Tower.
Spotlight on the City #2: Paris, France
The presidency of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte brought about many changes to France during the late 19th century. His thirty-one years as president transformed the country from a nation in decline wracked by wave after wave of instability and upheaval to one of Europe’s leading powers with a military, economic, and cultural presence felt around the world. Louis Napoleon brought a much needed extended period of stability and prosperity to France. One of the most striking effects of Louis Napoleon’s presidency can be seen and felt in the French capital itself. Louis Napoleon continued the legacy of the French Revolution in throwing out the old system, modernizing and elevating Paris to a global cultural center.
In the early 19th century, Paris was still much the same as it was during the French Revolution. The neighborhoods at the center of the city on the Ile de la Cite and north of the Louvre were still densely populated and camped. In many areas of the city, the narrow, winding streets that had been laid out in medieval times remained. King Louis Philippe began some public works projects to improve the city during his reign. The Place de la Concorde was constructed in 1836, along with the final completion of the Arc du Triomphe de L’Etoile. The Comte de Rambuteau, Prefect of the Seine[1], laid out what is now the Rue Rambuteau between the Palais Royal and the Marais district. The widening of this avenue served as a precursor to the later planning for the city under Louis Napoleon. Additionally under Louis Philippe, the July column was erected in the Place de la Bastille where the fortress and prison had once stood in the east of the city center.
However, much of the city still had problems. Riots occurred almost yearly during the reign of King Louis Philippe, culminating in the destruction of the monarchy in the Mid-Century Revolutions. During the first half of the 19th century, the population of Paris more than doubled from 500,000 to over a million people, and the city strained to accommodate such growth. The central arrondissements were packed tight with people. The sewers emptied directly into the Seine, making outbreaks of cholera and other diseases increasingly frequent. Cholera outbreaks in the Ile de la Cite and nearby neighborhoods in 1830, 1848, and 1852 killed over twenty thousand people in each epidemic. These issues in Paris and other urbanizing cities throughout France were a major spark in the ousting of Louis Philippe.
When Louis Napoleon was elected president of France, he consulted with the Comte de Rambuteau and other architects and planners from throughout France on renovation plans for Paris. After many applications and personal input by president Bonaparte, George Eugene Haussmann was chosen as the Prefect of the Seine to replace Rambuteau. The Prefect of the Seine position held authority over Paris, and Haussmann’s renovations began soon after his appointment in 1851. The first phase implemented by Haussmann was the consolidation of east-west and north-south axes through the center of Paris. The main east-west axis already largely existed as the Champs-Élysées stretching from the Arc du Triomphe de L’Etoile to the Louvre. Under Haussman’s direction, the axis was extended east as the completed Rue de Rivoli between the Louvre and the Hotel de Ville, and a widening of the Rue de Saint Antoine to the Place de la Bastille and the Place Bonaparte[2]. The north-south axis went along the Boulevard de Saint-Denis through the Ile de la Cite and on the Rue de Saint Michel south of the Seine. These two paths through the city created a cross along which traffic from all directions could flow more easily into, out of, and through Paris. However, this was only the start of the renovation that Haussmann would have planned for Paris.
Haussmann continued to wash away the older sections of Paris by widening more streets, destroying the old city walls from before the Revolution to create new treelined boulevards, and constructing railway stations on the outskirts of the city center to connect Paris with outer cities. The most important of these became the Gare d’Arsenal located between the Place de la Bastile and the Seine and the Gare du Nord where the Rue Saint Denis met the Boulevard du Lafayette[3]. Both stations served as vital arteries to the city. To facilitate the construction of tracks outward from these locations and other projects put forth by Haussmann, Louis Napoleon and Haussmann also officially annexed several suburbs surrounding Paris. In 1855, the suburbs of Montmarte, Belleville, and Bercy were annexed into the city of Paris. By Louis Napoleon’s death in 1881, Paris had further expanded to all the area within the outer ring of fortifications and more.
Haussmann’s renovations also included the construction of many parks and monuments throughout Paris. The parks were envisioned by Louis Napoleon during his exile in London and his fascination with that city’s Hyde Park. When he was elected president of Paris, Louis Napoleon turned the two former royal hunting grounds on either side of the city into large park areas as large as some of the arrondissements, far larger than any public park in Paris before. These became the Bois du Boulogne on the west, south of the Champs-Elysees and the Bois du Vincennes on the east, along the extension of the Rue Saint Antoine. The Bois du Vincennes also features the Chateau de Vincennes, renamed the Chateau Daumesnil after the park’s creation, with the keep and much of the castle restored during this period.
Other monuments constructed in Paris during the late 19th century were primarily dedicated to the French Revolution or to the major wars of the era. Following in his uncle’s footsteps, Louis Napoleon wanted to construct a triumphal arch similar to the Arc du L’Etoile and the Arc du Carousel in the Neoclassical style following the European Wars. From 1872 to 1875, workers built the Arc de Triomphe de Bonaparte in the center of the Place Bonaparte in eastern Paris. Unlike either of Emperor Napoleon’s arches, the Arc de Triomphe de Bonaparte was built of a red sandstone brick from the Vosges. The monumental construction continued after the era of Louis Napoleon and Haussmann as well. On the centennial of the French Revolution in 1889, a grand statue was unveiled on the western promontory of the Ile de la Cite dedicated to the revolution. The statue is a bronze recreation of Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People. A young woman, the personification of Liberty waves a flag above her head in one hand while clutching a rifle in the other. The base of the statue depicts a group of people following Liberty as in the painting. The statue’s ingenious construction comes from a collaboration between Isidore Bonheur and Gustave Eiffel. Eiffel, who later designed the Jefferson Tower in Saint Louis, Missouri, designed a hollow iron lattice similar to that of the Jefferson Tower in order to support a statue as large as that of Liberty Leading the People. The statue’s location required the movement of an older statue of King Henri IV of France, which is now located nearby in the Place Dauphine.
The final piece of the grand Parisian monuments was completed in the years following the Alliance victory in the Great War. President Paul Déroulède, who succeeded Leon Gambetta after the latter’s death in 1913, gathered support nationwide for a large memorial to be built in Paris dedicated to those soldiers lost in the Great War. Architect Hector Guimard[4] won the extensive design contest with his blending of the older themes of Parisian architecture with more modern 20th century architectural innovations. Guimard proposed a triumphal arch similar to the ones previously built in Paris, but massively scaled up. With the planned site for the memorial on the Champs de Mars, it had to be large and grand enough to be a suitable memorial. Guimard scaled the arch’s design up to be 125 meters wide at its base, and 140 meters in height[5]. This made the arch over twice as large as the Arc de L’Etoile. To make sure the Arc de Triomphe d’Alliance was structurally sound, Guimard incorporated cast iron bars on both the interior, as well as partially decorative cast iron columns around the outside of the legs of the arch. The Arc d’Alliance was the largest undertaking of modern Parisian construction yet, taking six years to complete. Guimard also added an additional functional aspect to the Arc d’Alliance. The interior of the arch above the ceiling included several spaces for offices. Since the opening of the Arc d’Alliance in 1917, this office space has mostly these have been occupied by government ministries.
[1] As far as I can tell, the Prefect of the Seine was essentially mayor of Paris.
[2] OTL Place de la Nation, formerly the Place de Trone.
[3] ITTL the Rue de Lafayette goes west all the way to the Madeleine.
[4] Guimard is one of the most renowned art nouveau architects, and is known for designing among other things the Paris metro entrances.
[5] For the Arc d’Alliance I basically scaled up the dimensions of the Arc de Triomphe to the base of the Eiffel Tower.
The prefect of the Seine was the head of the local administration for the Seine department, which covered Paris and most of its suburbs (it was split in four in 1968, forming the department-equivalent city of Paris and most of the territory of the modern petite couronne departments). Paris had a mayor underneath the prefect, but this official would likely have been relatively weak, seeing as how the department clearly had power over most public works.
Right. I just wasn't sure if the position of mayor of Paris still existed during the Second Republic and Second Empire, since all the sources I looked at just mentioned the Prefect of the Seine and the list of mayors of Paris on Wikipedia has a gap between 1848 and 1877.
Also if anyone notices any mistakes with the grammar or accents on the French wording, please point them out.
The french wiki page seems to indicate the post of Paris Mayor was suppressed between 1798 - 1848 and 1848 -1870.Right. I just wasn't sure if the position of mayor of Paris still existed during the Second Republic and Second Empire, since all the sources I looked at just mentioned the Prefect of the Seine and the list of mayors of Paris on Wikipedia has a gap between 1848 and 1877.
Also if anyone notices any mistakes with the grammar or accents on the French wording, please point them out.
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_des_maires_de_Paris
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