Union and Liberty: An American TL
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Part Forty-Five: The Bell Tolls for Benjamin
The update is finished. 
It turned out to be much longer than I expected.
Part Forty-Five: The Bell Tolls for Benjamin
The Walls Close In:
The turn of the new year brought a new vigor into the offensives by the Union against the remnants of the Confederacy. Joseph Hooker led the Army of the Wabash out of Chattanooga and into Georgia on January 10th. Almost constantly fighting roadside raids by local militias, the Army of the Wabash was only able to move ten miles a day in the march. Several bands of untrained militiamen loyal to the Confederacy had set up camps in the mountains on both sides of the path the army was traveling on. On the 22nd of January, the Army of the Wabash neared Atlanta. Not wanting to allow the Union to capture Atlanta, Forrest and the Army of Georgia stood their ground in the hill near Cartersville northwest of Atlanta. Luring the army in between two sets of hills just east of Cartersville, Forrest and his men fought for five days in a last stand agaubst the Union army, using the hills to support artillery positions and the area in between to block Hooker from advancing. While Forrest ultimately lost the Battle of Cartersville, the battle took a large toll on the Army of the Wabash and forced Hooker to delay in the final capture of Atlanta.
Seguin and Hancock advancing from the Mississippi River had much better luck in their movements in the autumn of 1865 than Hooker did. Seguin and the First Texas Corps began marching east from Memphis along the border of Chickasaw and Mississippi in mid-December. Seguin reached Corinth, Mississippi on December 30th and stayed in the town for a week while sending out scouting parties to search for bands of Confederate militiamen. Having cleared much of the surrounding area by January 9th, the First Texas Corps headed north to Savannah on the Tennessee River. Reaching the river on the 14th of January, the First Texas Corps split into smaller divisions and patrolled the line Seguin had carved for the next month to cut Chickasaw off from the rest of the Confederacy.
Hancock, meanwhile, began to move in on southern Mississippi. One by one during the remainder of December and the beginning days of January, Hancock and the Army of Missouri captured the Confederate forts along the east bank of the Mississippi River. Notable among these was the capture of the fort and city of Natchez, Mississippi. The Roman Catholic bishop of Natchez, George Aloysius Carrell[1], convinced the citizens of Natchez as well as the soldiers at the fort to lay down their arms and surrender to Hancock. The town of Natchez was spared from fighting and the fort commander was not imprisoned by the Union. Hancock continued on in Mississippi and entered the capital of Jackson on January 20th, 1866.
"Last Chance" Jackson and the Miracle of Montgomery:
Further east along the Gulf of Mexico, Francis Lubbock and the Second Texas Corps went on an offensive in Alabama. Satisfied with the ability of the Jackson militia to defend itself on the eastern border of the state, Lubbock struck northward into Alabama in early January. Lubbock had not received any information on the whereabouts of the Confederate Army of Mississippi in a month, and assumed that it had been disbanded or that many of the soldiers had deserted after the loss at New Orleans. Charging the army north, Lubbock and the Second Texas Corps reached Fort Deposit in two weeks. After setting up camp in Fort Deposit for three days to ensure the capture of the fort, the Second Texas Corps resumed its path north toward Montgomery.
Shortly after leaving the fort, the Second Texas Corps found the Army of Mississippi, now led by Thomas "Last Chance" Jackson[2], who was quick to assume leadership of the Army of Mississippi after Forrest left for the Army of Georgia. Jackson turned out to be a very gifted commander and under his lead, the Army of Mississippi managed to continually hold off the Second Texas Corps in the hills near Fort Deposit for the remainder of the war. At one point, Jackson was even able to coordinate a sneak attack around the Corps and captured Fort Deposit for a few days. Because of "Last Chance" Jackson, the city of Montgomery was never captured during the war and remained one of the few cities in the former Confederacy untouched by fighting.
The March on Augusta:
Buell and McClellan remained in North Carolina for the remainder of 1865, cleaning up the rebel fighters in the rural areas of the state. The Union navy blockaded further down the Atlantic coast making patrols all the way to Charleston and Savannah. After the new year, the Union armies in North Carolina began preparations to move south further into Confederate territory. McClellan and the Army of the Potomac went to Fayetteville and down to the coast at which point they entered South Carolina. McClellan reached Myrtle Beach on January 16th, 1866. As McClellan kept pushing toward Charleston, the Union Atlantic Squadron attempted to enter the port. They were rebuffed by the cannons at Fort Sumter, but the Army of the Potomac set up camp at Mount Pleasant across the harbor from Charleston on the 27th of January. McClellan set up a patrol and a palisade to try and cut the peninsula of Charleston off from supplies.
While McClellan was driving down the South Carolina coast, Buell was advancing further inland toward the Confederate capital. After leaving Charlotte, North Carolina in early January, the Army of the Ohio crossed the border into South Carolina near the eastern bank of Wylie Lake. On January 7th, the Army of the Ohio encountered the demoralized remnants of the Army of the Carolinas at the small town of Lancaster, South Carolina. The battle began in the valley to the north of the town with scattered Confederates in the hills causing minor casualties to the Union army. Over the next few days, the fighting moved south through the town and west toward the Catawba River. As Buell continued to drive back the Army of the Carolinas, Longstreet organized a silent retreat to the hills in the north on the night of January 8th, and inflicted more damage on the Army of the Ohio through raids and ambushes. By the 11th, Longstreet snuck the Army of the Carolinas across the Catawba and retreated as fast as they could toward Columbia, the capital of South Carolina.
Buell chased after the Army of the Carolinas as it crossed the Catawba River and advanced south. With Longstreet's forces diminished and able to move at a faster pace, the Confederate force made it to Columbia while the Army of the Ohio was two days away. Buell's army continued south after Longstreet and after a week of skirmishing around Columbia, the capital of South Carolina fell to the Union on January 24th. Up until now, the Confederate legislature had been obstructing any attempts by Benjamin to organize a peaceful surrender to the Union. As the Army of the Carolinas fled Columbia, Longstreet sent a messenger to ride to Augusta and warn the Confederate government that the Union army was closing in.
[1] OTL Bishop of Covington, Kentucky
[2] Ole' Stonewall's got a new nickname
It turned out to be much longer than I expected.Part Forty-Five: The Bell Tolls for Benjamin
The Walls Close In:
The turn of the new year brought a new vigor into the offensives by the Union against the remnants of the Confederacy. Joseph Hooker led the Army of the Wabash out of Chattanooga and into Georgia on January 10th. Almost constantly fighting roadside raids by local militias, the Army of the Wabash was only able to move ten miles a day in the march. Several bands of untrained militiamen loyal to the Confederacy had set up camps in the mountains on both sides of the path the army was traveling on. On the 22nd of January, the Army of the Wabash neared Atlanta. Not wanting to allow the Union to capture Atlanta, Forrest and the Army of Georgia stood their ground in the hill near Cartersville northwest of Atlanta. Luring the army in between two sets of hills just east of Cartersville, Forrest and his men fought for five days in a last stand agaubst the Union army, using the hills to support artillery positions and the area in between to block Hooker from advancing. While Forrest ultimately lost the Battle of Cartersville, the battle took a large toll on the Army of the Wabash and forced Hooker to delay in the final capture of Atlanta.
Seguin and Hancock advancing from the Mississippi River had much better luck in their movements in the autumn of 1865 than Hooker did. Seguin and the First Texas Corps began marching east from Memphis along the border of Chickasaw and Mississippi in mid-December. Seguin reached Corinth, Mississippi on December 30th and stayed in the town for a week while sending out scouting parties to search for bands of Confederate militiamen. Having cleared much of the surrounding area by January 9th, the First Texas Corps headed north to Savannah on the Tennessee River. Reaching the river on the 14th of January, the First Texas Corps split into smaller divisions and patrolled the line Seguin had carved for the next month to cut Chickasaw off from the rest of the Confederacy.
Hancock, meanwhile, began to move in on southern Mississippi. One by one during the remainder of December and the beginning days of January, Hancock and the Army of Missouri captured the Confederate forts along the east bank of the Mississippi River. Notable among these was the capture of the fort and city of Natchez, Mississippi. The Roman Catholic bishop of Natchez, George Aloysius Carrell[1], convinced the citizens of Natchez as well as the soldiers at the fort to lay down their arms and surrender to Hancock. The town of Natchez was spared from fighting and the fort commander was not imprisoned by the Union. Hancock continued on in Mississippi and entered the capital of Jackson on January 20th, 1866.
"Last Chance" Jackson and the Miracle of Montgomery:
Further east along the Gulf of Mexico, Francis Lubbock and the Second Texas Corps went on an offensive in Alabama. Satisfied with the ability of the Jackson militia to defend itself on the eastern border of the state, Lubbock struck northward into Alabama in early January. Lubbock had not received any information on the whereabouts of the Confederate Army of Mississippi in a month, and assumed that it had been disbanded or that many of the soldiers had deserted after the loss at New Orleans. Charging the army north, Lubbock and the Second Texas Corps reached Fort Deposit in two weeks. After setting up camp in Fort Deposit for three days to ensure the capture of the fort, the Second Texas Corps resumed its path north toward Montgomery.
Shortly after leaving the fort, the Second Texas Corps found the Army of Mississippi, now led by Thomas "Last Chance" Jackson[2], who was quick to assume leadership of the Army of Mississippi after Forrest left for the Army of Georgia. Jackson turned out to be a very gifted commander and under his lead, the Army of Mississippi managed to continually hold off the Second Texas Corps in the hills near Fort Deposit for the remainder of the war. At one point, Jackson was even able to coordinate a sneak attack around the Corps and captured Fort Deposit for a few days. Because of "Last Chance" Jackson, the city of Montgomery was never captured during the war and remained one of the few cities in the former Confederacy untouched by fighting.
The March on Augusta:
Buell and McClellan remained in North Carolina for the remainder of 1865, cleaning up the rebel fighters in the rural areas of the state. The Union navy blockaded further down the Atlantic coast making patrols all the way to Charleston and Savannah. After the new year, the Union armies in North Carolina began preparations to move south further into Confederate territory. McClellan and the Army of the Potomac went to Fayetteville and down to the coast at which point they entered South Carolina. McClellan reached Myrtle Beach on January 16th, 1866. As McClellan kept pushing toward Charleston, the Union Atlantic Squadron attempted to enter the port. They were rebuffed by the cannons at Fort Sumter, but the Army of the Potomac set up camp at Mount Pleasant across the harbor from Charleston on the 27th of January. McClellan set up a patrol and a palisade to try and cut the peninsula of Charleston off from supplies.
While McClellan was driving down the South Carolina coast, Buell was advancing further inland toward the Confederate capital. After leaving Charlotte, North Carolina in early January, the Army of the Ohio crossed the border into South Carolina near the eastern bank of Wylie Lake. On January 7th, the Army of the Ohio encountered the demoralized remnants of the Army of the Carolinas at the small town of Lancaster, South Carolina. The battle began in the valley to the north of the town with scattered Confederates in the hills causing minor casualties to the Union army. Over the next few days, the fighting moved south through the town and west toward the Catawba River. As Buell continued to drive back the Army of the Carolinas, Longstreet organized a silent retreat to the hills in the north on the night of January 8th, and inflicted more damage on the Army of the Ohio through raids and ambushes. By the 11th, Longstreet snuck the Army of the Carolinas across the Catawba and retreated as fast as they could toward Columbia, the capital of South Carolina.
Buell chased after the Army of the Carolinas as it crossed the Catawba River and advanced south. With Longstreet's forces diminished and able to move at a faster pace, the Confederate force made it to Columbia while the Army of the Ohio was two days away. Buell's army continued south after Longstreet and after a week of skirmishing around Columbia, the capital of South Carolina fell to the Union on January 24th. Up until now, the Confederate legislature had been obstructing any attempts by Benjamin to organize a peaceful surrender to the Union. As the Army of the Carolinas fled Columbia, Longstreet sent a messenger to ride to Augusta and warn the Confederate government that the Union army was closing in.
[1] OTL Bishop of Covington, Kentucky
[2] Ole' Stonewall's got a new nickname
Thanks. I'm kinda glad that the war is going to be over as well.
Getting through the war took a lot more updates than I thought it would.Thanks. I'm kinda glad that the war is going to be over as well.
I'm very curious about the aftermath. As for the conclusion, I guess Benjamin might get his chance to conclude the rest peacefully. Though I think some of the generals might make a few last stands or fight on as guerrillas, who knows though, its all up to you of course.
Thanks. I'm kinda glad that the war is going to be over as well.
It has taken preaty much all the school year. But you kept us all avidly reading to see what was going to happen. And made it interactive! If anything this is the most detailed well thought out war in the forum.
Kudos on that!
Once you are done I'd suggest that you make a giff with all the maps you made of the war's progress. It be really cool to see the war in motion and since you already have the maps done it won't be that hard to put them together.
I've got some interesting postwar plans, including some guerrillas. Still not sure what to do with Chickasaw though. Merge it back with Kentucky and Tennessee, guerrilla haven, or join the Union as its own state?
Thanks! Wow, it did take all school year! I probably will make a gif of all the war maps. It would be cool to see the front progressing throughout the war.
Perhaps you could do all three?
For example, as a way to please Kentucky and Tennessee, perhaps the Federal governmen allows both States to occupy Chickasaw with their own militias. Still, due to the fact that most of the remaining Confederate guerrillas are hiding out in Chickasaw, Kentucky and Tennessee lose control of the situation. Eventually, the federal government is forced to take over Chickasaw as a military province, and finally gives it statehood in the 1880s after the locals cool down.
Do you think that could work?
That could work. Having it as occupation zones by Kentucky and Tennessee instead of full integration into the states would make it so there's no issues with the Congressional rules for creating new states out of old ones, right?
Probably, but your safest bet might be having the governments of Kentucky and Tennessee give the federal government Chickasaw after giving up on trying to reintergrate the region.
If that's the case, then the Supreme Court could probably strike down any attempt by Tennessee or Kentucky to reclaim their lost land once things stabilize.
Maybe. The biggest problem I see with it is getting Tennessee to give up Memphis.
True, but a few years of having it's state militia shot at by some crazy holdouts might convince Tennessee to reevaluate the importance of Memphis, especially if the crazies are from Memphis.
Now that I think about it, that might work. Memphis was the capital of Chickasaw, correct? If so, it might be expected to have the highest levels of Anti-Tennessee feelings, and try to give Tennessee its biggest hassle.
Aha! Thanks. I had forgotten whether the capital of Chickasaw was at Memphis or Paducah, but looking at previous updates it is Memphis. So yeah, that will work! Hooray!
Part Forty-Six: The End of the Confederacy
Update time!
Part Forty-Six: The End of the Confederacy
End of the National War: The last gasp of the Confederacy in the National War came as Buell continued marching southwest toward the Confederate capital. While the message was being rushed to President Benjamin, McClellan continued blockading and shelling Charleston and Atlanta fell to Hooker. The message reached Augusta and Benjamin on January 27th and Benjamin called for an emergency meeting of the present members of the Confederate legislature. The legislature members held a heated debate over the next two days while Buell inched closer to Augusta and Forrest did as much as he could to delay the final attack on the capital. On the last day of January, the legislature finally voted after much urging from Benjamin to send a plea for an armistice to Fremont and Buell. After pushing the Army of Georgia back to the Savannah River just across the bridge from Augusta, Buell agreed to a ceasefire while the letter reached Fremont.
The letter reached the end of the Union telegraph lines in Columbia and was telegraphed to Washington, DC where Fremont received the message. After deliberation with his cabinet and both houses of Congress, an armistice was arranged between the United States and the Confederacy. Two weeks later om February 18th, 1866, Fremont and Benjamin met in Augusta and Benjamin officially signed the surrender of the Confederate States of America. A meeting later that day with the Confederate legislature officially dissolved the country and surrendered all territories within to the United States[1]. All the Confederate armies that had not yet submitted to the Union did so in the next few weeks.
Old States and New States: After the final surrender of the Confederacy, the states that had been part of the former Confederacy were turned into Union military districts until a plan for reincorporating them as states could be determined by Congress. Each district was given one observing member in Congress but what not allowed to vote on any bills. The discussion of how to handle the former Confederate states dominated much of Congress's proceedings in 1866. The more radical members of the Republican party including President Fremont wanted a strict policy to ensure the loyalty of the states and to punish them for seceding in the first place. Democrats and more moderate Republicans, taking a pragmatic approach, desired more leniency in order to readmit the states into the Union as soon as possible.
One thing that both sides could agree on was that the abolition of slavery was required for a state to be readmitted into the United States. For these former Confederate states, this meant drafting new state constitutions. The method of having Congress approve a new state constitution for each military district was eventually adopted by the United States government as the official policy for the Reconstruction era in mid-1866. In this way, the former states were treated like territories but with expedited rules for admission. New state constitutions were drafted in a few states as early as that year, with the states of Jackson, Cuba, and Calhoun being readmitted later in 1866.
Two exceptions to the territorial rule were the Confederate states of Chickasaw and Virginia. The area of the state of Chickasaw was assigned as military districts of Kentucky and Tennessee, the states that Chickasaw had seceded from when it joined the Confederacy. The two states attempted to police the area and destroy any lingering rebel groups in the rural areas, but the local support for these groups was just too strong for Kentucky and Tennessee to want to deal with. While most of the guerrilla organizations were based in the hills in central Chickasaw, rebel sentiment was especially strong in cities on the Mississippi River such as Paducah and Memphis which had a large presence of the state militias. The groups and rebel sympathizers raided towns and wreaked havoc in the larger cities with guerrilla tactics. The occupation of Chickasaw took a big drain on the post-war economies of Kentucky and Tennessee, and with the Great Fire of Memphis breaking out in 1868 the two states finally petitioned Congress to take control over the area. Congress passed the Chickasaw District Act in early 1869 and the area became the state of Chickasaw in the spring of 1870.
The events that occurred in the Virginia military district were very much different from what happened in Chickasaw following the National War. Robert E. Lee, the man behind the secession of Vandalia during the war, encouraged ardent freesoilers to move into the area of Virginia to expedite the state's readmission to the Union[2]. Meanwhile, Thaddeus Stevens, a Pennsylvania Representative and one of the more radical members of the Republican party at the time, called for the punishment of the former Confederate states and proposed that the state of Virginia be divided into two states upon admission. Stevens was successful in attaining support for his bill in Congress and within northern Virginia where most settlers in Virginia from New England and the Mid-Atlantic states ended up. In 1868, a majority of citizens in the region voted on a constitution separate from that which was established in the southern part of the state. Later that year, the state of Winfield was carved out of northern Virginia and admitted to the United States while the rest of Virginia took until 1869 to be readmitted.
[1] The Confederate Constitution and the official surrender now form the principal documents of the Confederate History Museum in Augusta, Georgia.
[2] Lee later becomes a representative for Winfield. Lee went along with the division because he was bitter about not being selected as Virginia's territorial observer in Congress.
Part Forty-Six: The End of the Confederacy
End of the National War: The last gasp of the Confederacy in the National War came as Buell continued marching southwest toward the Confederate capital. While the message was being rushed to President Benjamin, McClellan continued blockading and shelling Charleston and Atlanta fell to Hooker. The message reached Augusta and Benjamin on January 27th and Benjamin called for an emergency meeting of the present members of the Confederate legislature. The legislature members held a heated debate over the next two days while Buell inched closer to Augusta and Forrest did as much as he could to delay the final attack on the capital. On the last day of January, the legislature finally voted after much urging from Benjamin to send a plea for an armistice to Fremont and Buell. After pushing the Army of Georgia back to the Savannah River just across the bridge from Augusta, Buell agreed to a ceasefire while the letter reached Fremont.
The letter reached the end of the Union telegraph lines in Columbia and was telegraphed to Washington, DC where Fremont received the message. After deliberation with his cabinet and both houses of Congress, an armistice was arranged between the United States and the Confederacy. Two weeks later om February 18th, 1866, Fremont and Benjamin met in Augusta and Benjamin officially signed the surrender of the Confederate States of America. A meeting later that day with the Confederate legislature officially dissolved the country and surrendered all territories within to the United States[1]. All the Confederate armies that had not yet submitted to the Union did so in the next few weeks.
Old States and New States: After the final surrender of the Confederacy, the states that had been part of the former Confederacy were turned into Union military districts until a plan for reincorporating them as states could be determined by Congress. Each district was given one observing member in Congress but what not allowed to vote on any bills. The discussion of how to handle the former Confederate states dominated much of Congress's proceedings in 1866. The more radical members of the Republican party including President Fremont wanted a strict policy to ensure the loyalty of the states and to punish them for seceding in the first place. Democrats and more moderate Republicans, taking a pragmatic approach, desired more leniency in order to readmit the states into the Union as soon as possible.
One thing that both sides could agree on was that the abolition of slavery was required for a state to be readmitted into the United States. For these former Confederate states, this meant drafting new state constitutions. The method of having Congress approve a new state constitution for each military district was eventually adopted by the United States government as the official policy for the Reconstruction era in mid-1866. In this way, the former states were treated like territories but with expedited rules for admission. New state constitutions were drafted in a few states as early as that year, with the states of Jackson, Cuba, and Calhoun being readmitted later in 1866.
Two exceptions to the territorial rule were the Confederate states of Chickasaw and Virginia. The area of the state of Chickasaw was assigned as military districts of Kentucky and Tennessee, the states that Chickasaw had seceded from when it joined the Confederacy. The two states attempted to police the area and destroy any lingering rebel groups in the rural areas, but the local support for these groups was just too strong for Kentucky and Tennessee to want to deal with. While most of the guerrilla organizations were based in the hills in central Chickasaw, rebel sentiment was especially strong in cities on the Mississippi River such as Paducah and Memphis which had a large presence of the state militias. The groups and rebel sympathizers raided towns and wreaked havoc in the larger cities with guerrilla tactics. The occupation of Chickasaw took a big drain on the post-war economies of Kentucky and Tennessee, and with the Great Fire of Memphis breaking out in 1868 the two states finally petitioned Congress to take control over the area. Congress passed the Chickasaw District Act in early 1869 and the area became the state of Chickasaw in the spring of 1870.
The events that occurred in the Virginia military district were very much different from what happened in Chickasaw following the National War. Robert E. Lee, the man behind the secession of Vandalia during the war, encouraged ardent freesoilers to move into the area of Virginia to expedite the state's readmission to the Union[2]. Meanwhile, Thaddeus Stevens, a Pennsylvania Representative and one of the more radical members of the Republican party at the time, called for the punishment of the former Confederate states and proposed that the state of Virginia be divided into two states upon admission. Stevens was successful in attaining support for his bill in Congress and within northern Virginia where most settlers in Virginia from New England and the Mid-Atlantic states ended up. In 1868, a majority of citizens in the region voted on a constitution separate from that which was established in the southern part of the state. Later that year, the state of Winfield was carved out of northern Virginia and admitted to the United States while the rest of Virginia took until 1869 to be readmitted.
[1] The Confederate Constitution and the official surrender now form the principal documents of the Confederate History Museum in Augusta, Georgia.
[2] Lee later becomes a representative for Winfield. Lee went along with the division because he was bitter about not being selected as Virginia's territorial observer in Congress.
nice end to the war, like how you still made a West Virginia like state.
And now we have the joys of reconstruction to look forward too
And now we have the joys of reconstruction to look forward too
Next up is the economic and such effects of the National War, then we're off to some updates on foreign lands. Particularly California, Europe, and maybe Latin America.
Map will be ready tonight or tomorrow.
Virginia's been split into 3: Vandalia, Winfield, and the rest.
EDIT: I've got two maps done, but I want to get it to the next page so they don't get lost at the bottom.
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Good stuff.
EDIT: I've got two maps done, but I want to get it to the next page so they don't get lost at the bottom.
Oh, so do you want us loyal readers to make a few more comments about how great this TL is?