WI: Commonwealth Of America

Before the American colonies decided to fight for their independence against Great Britain,they actually tried peacefull means. Including a offering to be a self dominion in the British Empire,Britain said no to this..but what if they agreed? The fight for independence would have never happened,and America might go along the lines of Canadian history.

One other notion is that I once spoke with a group of friends about the topic of the Revolution lasting for centuries. Much like the 100 years war,the American Revolution had it's fair share of draw backs and dissapointments...like both nations locked in a struggle for power and freedom,a endless struggle.

Does either seem possible? To me,both do..what would the possible long term effects of either possibility be to North America..or the world as a whole?
 

perfectgeneral

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I don't think America would stay small enough to remain a part of the commonwealth, unless the dominions had (at least) equal say. We would get an Anglo-centric world order sooner and with a wider franchise (UK, India, Canada, Australia, Nigeria, etc.).
 
Well by the 1880s, there was widespread support for an Imperial Federation, and a few years later a law was passed making each Dominion Parliament have an equal authority in law to the British Parliament.
 
This is just a wild guess, but if the question of American independence lingered indecisively for a century or more (and if there was still a greater American identity and organization rather than just individual colonies/states) maybe from the on and off blockades and mutual privateering (and the reliance of America as an unrecognized nation on private trade since it can't borrow money on a national level or engage in trade on that scale) America would sink it's resources into an armed trade fleet something akin to the Dutch?

I also imagine lasting bad blood between the Canadians and the Americans if Britain never really commits to putting an army to stop the Lower 13, since likely periodic border skirmishes between the militia of the two would be encouraged instead. I can also see the Amerindians profiting somewhat (for a while at least) from being used as allies and buffers by and between the two.

A wealthy privateer haven Libertatia-lite US that hasn't expanded beyond Tennessee and Kentucky (with Louisiana and Florida being unofficial parts of the overall collection of freeports) would be neat.

Also given enough time, lack of further American expansion into upper Louisiana, and generations of training/trade/cultural-exchange/arming from the Americans maybe you'd wind up with "Inland Pirates" of Eastern Amerind fortresses deep in the Ozarks (their sustainable holdout against the White Man, where they go when they're not circulating throughout the colony/states fighting as Renaissance style merc forces or serving as ship mates on Louisiana vessels or guides for the trickle of Canadian settlers going West of their unofficial holdings in Ohio).


Alright alright. Not realistic. But don't call it Alien Space Bats. Let's just call it Romantic Unhistory.
 
Well,one way of looking at it..if America never become Independent,it would remain loyal to Britain. So,there would be no need for the upper Britsh American colonies. It would all be put together to form a single country,to avoid headaches. With this in mind,I can imagine there might be another war over the Louisinana land..because France would not want to give it to the British. The same thing might happen with New Spain..
 
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