Chapter I
American Civil War, part 1 : 1861 - 1862

In late April of 1861, the town of Baltimore rose up after some riots against Union troops transit spiraled out of control. General Butler quickly retook control of eastern Maryland and by early May stormed Baltimore barricades, causing a bloodbath. The bloodbath achieved to convince most of the border states such as Tennesee, Arkansas and North Carolina to secede. In Virginia, the referendum on the Ordinance of Secession was ratified with a greater majority even than IOTL. The shockwave caused by the Baltimore had more distinct consequences on Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri than historically.
A rump government in exile made up of Maryland secessionists declared secession and was admitted into the CSA.
In Missouri, Governor Jackson precipitated his plans of coup and the State Militia supported by Southerner paramilitaries overwhelmed the local Union garrison, but couldn't avoid Captain Lyon to empty the Federal Arsenal, sacrifying his own life. In northern Missouri however, local Unionists assisted by Unionists of Kansas rose up under Sigel leadership. Frémont assaulted Saint-Louis in June and with support of Sigel, took control of the Missouri River valley and central Missouri, but the State Militia kept control of the Ozark Plateau. As the situation in Kentucky worsened and made necessary vast redeployments, Union troops in Missouri now under Grant command conquered the Ozarks only during the late winter.
In Kentucky, the Baltimore bloodbath further enraged secessionist sympathisers and caused a gridlock in the works of the Committee of Arbitration set up to specify Kentucky stance, giving de facto Governor Magoffin the last word, enabling to unilaterally proclaiming armed neutrality. With the State Militia under Buckner full of sympathisers of the CSA, incidents with Union troops which built up in Illinois to invade Missouri were unavoidable and incidentally led Kentucky Unionists to enter in armed dissidence, plunging the state into a mini civil war, prompting Union invasion in June.
McClellan advanced down the Louisville and Nashville Railroad but preferred to bypass Confederate entrenchments set up by Buckner at Munfordville and invade East Tennesee in July, and went up to Chattanooga before making a logistical pause during which he was called to Washington DC. His successor, Rosecrans, was besieged for some weeks by Bragg and had to withdraw during August as he didn't receive enough reinforcements, troops being needed in West Virginia, central Kentucky and Missouri, retreating further north into East Tennessee, but keeping the Confederates at bay and allowing establishment of a provisional Unionist government of Tennessee in Knoxville.
In East, the claimed secession of Maryland put pressure onto Confederate generals to take action and free Maryland: Potomac would be crossed. In June, Johnston and Beauregard crossed the river with plans aiming to capture of Baltimore which would force the Federal Government to evacuate Washington DC and force Lincoln to negociate peace, but Beauregard's liberal interpretation of his orders caused him to engage McDowell near the federal capital. Johnston was forced to deviate from his original way to save Beauregard from disaster and both finally came to attack Washington DC but failed and finally retreated beyind the Monocacy River after having routed a pursuing Union Army of the Shenandoah as it leader, Patterson, had been killed in the fight.
As President Lincoln called McClellan to take command of the Union forces in Maryland and relieved McDowell in July, the campaigning season ended. McClellan didn't undertake any offensive action, only reorganising the Union troops and creating the Army of the Potomac. In August, Johnston withdrew most of his troops from Maryland, too exposed, to the safety of Manassas Junction, leaving behind General Jackson with some troops to keep the Federals at bay and protect the Confederate government of Maryland which had returned to the state. The autumn and winter did see some fighting between Jackson and the Union Army of the Shenandoah, first under the command of General George Thomas who had taken the temporary command after Patterson death, then under Banks, and against Butler's Army of Eastern Maryland. Confronted to a pincer maneuver, north from Pennsylvania towards Hagerstown and east from Maryland towards Frederick, both armies being only separated by the South Mountain. Jakson managed to hold them off for the autumn but by early winter had to withdraw into Virginia to avoid being trapped in Maryland.
As the autumn 1861 began, McClellan, replacing Scott as Commander in chief, appointed Halleck in overall command of West, relieving the too much radical Frémont. The offensive was launched against the Quadrilatere, or rather Triangle as Colombus had already been taken by Union navy during summer. The winter was past to attack, besiege and capture Paducah, Fort Henry and Fort Donelson. Meanwhile, Bragg had left Zollicoffer at Chattanooga to keep Rosecrans' Army of East Tennessee at bay and took most of his troops to rescue Buckner and Polk. In early spring 1862, the Union Army of the Tennessee under Sherman was surprised and routed by Bragg at Pittsburg Landing with Sherman mortally wounded in the battle. With the reinforcements of the Army of the Ohio under Buell, Halleck personally assumed command of an offensive against Corinth but he showed excessive caution and was lured into believing most of Confederates were near Corinth while Bragg headed to Nashville after crossing the Tennessee river further east near Decatur. The time Halleck realized, it was too late and Bragg won the race to Nashville where he defeated the Federals and then pursued them up to Paducah he burnt before withdrawing. The fights then moved to central Kentucky after Rosecrans, abandonning the siege of Chattanooga he had set up in late spring, came to rescue the Armies of the Ohio and Tennessee, finding Bragg having marched to encounter him to prevent junction of the armies. Finally, this junction took place during autumn, after Frémont was returned to overall command of the Western theatre and McPherson was appointed to command the Army of the Tennessee.
Further south, New Orleans welcomed in the midst of autumn 1861 General Beauregard as commander of the city's defenses, a result of his behaviour during the Maryland Campaign that many in Richmond claimed to the reason for the failure of the campaign and that made him a scapegoat. During the remainder of autumn and winter, he significatively reinforced the defenses of the town, especially after the Union Navy took control of the mouth of the Mississippi river. In early spring, the fortifications he set up at Chalmette Plantation were essential in repulsing the Union warships which had bypassed the besieged Fort Jackson and St Philipps. Although the forts finally fell, the way between them and New Orleans became a deathtrap for the Union warships as Beauregard had increased number of redoubts and artillery positions. By the summer, the attempts against New Orleans were abandonned after an ultimate failure at crossing into Lake Ponchartrain and the Union occupation was reduced to Fort Jackson and St-Philips which were to be the headway for eventual future offensives. This was a clear setback for the Anaconda Plan that General Scott had envisioned but not a total one as in North, General Grant continued his way south. After conquering the Ozarks during the winter, Grant descended in the valley to support the Union riverine fleet, allowing the capture of New Madrid and Island Number Ten, Fort Pillow and Memphis which could very well have been retaken by Confederates had it not been for Bragg decision to attack north into Kentucky. Grant then moved into eastern Arkansas and took Little Rock, but by late summer, his progression stalled before Vicksburg where General AS Johnston, entrusted with stopping Grant conquest of the Mississippi valley, had set up impressive fortifications. After several attempts at crossing the bayoux, digging canals, Grant attempted in late autumn to gamble on a crossing south of Vicksburg but it ended in a defeat and the river had to be crossed back. The riverine fleet attempted to make its way back to north but suffered huge losses to Vicksburg's guns. Thereafter, Grant was relieved and replaced by one of his seconds, General McClernand, who had successfully intrigued to have Grant blamed although himself had a great part of the responsibility for the failure against Vicksburg.
In Far West, the Confederates under Colonel Baylor took control of Arizona but had to face the California Column, hired in California to retake the region. Meanwhile, the Confederates under General Sibley began in late 1861 a campaign aimed at Colorado to eventually cut Federals from the West Coast. Sibley, not misled by fake guns, quickly stormed Fort Craig and won the battle of Glorietta Pass in spring 1862. By summer 1862, the Confederate progression went as far north as the San Luis Valley in Colorado, a saliant formed in the north of the Rio Grande Rift by the San Juan and Sangre de Cristo Mountains. However, the stiffening resistance of Coloradoans and the increasing threat of the California Column on Arizona forced Sibley to abandon his offensive on Denver and come to the defense of the Mesilla river valley. Although the San Luis Valley was reconquered by Union forces during autumn, the Confederates continued to hold as far as Tucson and Santa Fe. Meanwhile, most of the Indian Territory had fallen by late 1861 under control of Confederates and their Native allies and their domination remained relatively undisputed throughout 1862.
In East, under pressure of President Lincoln to take action, General McClellan launched his offensive against Richmond during spring. He landed at Urbanna but the time lost at besieging West Point on the York River allowed General Johnston to get the Confederate Army of the Potomac between Federals and Richmond in time. Struck between Chicahominy and Pamunkey River by the Confederates, McClellan decided to withdraw beyond the Pamunkey river. In June, President Lincoln attempted to send reinforcements under Butler, but they were intercepted at Bowling Green by General Lee, previously military adviser to President Davis, and General Jackson who had brought with him the Army of the Shenandoah after having inflicted significative setbacks to Banks in the Valley Campaign. These reinforcements nevertheless managed to make their way to the camp of the Army of the Potomac through another way, along the Rappahannock.
McClellan resumed his efforts against Richmond the following month. By a quick move, he transported the Army of the Potomac to Gloucester from where he crossed the York river to Yorktown. which was quickly captured along Willimasburg. Although the overcautious behaviour of McClellan allowed Johnston to take defensive positions ahead of Richmond and Petersburg, he failed to check McClellan who had learned from his previous errors at the Second Battle of the Chicahominy. Effective earthworks set up by Johnston protected Richmond and Petersburg that McClellan attempted to outflank during August and September but failed. The fightings then calmed down while the siege continued, largely because of Lee's northern expedition.
As the siege of Richmond and Petersburg stalemated, General JE Johnston agreed to an offensive on Washington DC proposed by General Lee and supported by President Davis. Lee and 35,000 soldiers of the newly formed Army of Northern Virginia, including Jackson and Longstreet as corps commanders, marched in late september to the Shenandoah Valley, surprising Banks. The Union Army of the Shenandoah nevertheless managed to win by a stand at Monocacy Junction the time to rally the defensive perimeter of the federal capital. McClellan dispatched Generals Hooker and Kearny but they couldn't prevent the tragedy: in mid October, while Lee attacked Washington DC's outer ring of fortifications, a shell mortally wounded President Lincoln who was visiting the frontline during a seeming lull. Lee ended the attack on the federal capital and withdrew to western Maryland once he learned of Hooker and Kearny were near Fredericksburg and was marching north. President Hamlin entrusted the command of a new Army of Virginia to General Hooker with the addition of a third corps made up of the former Army of the Shenandoah now back under General Thomas command, making this army almost twice as big as Lee's forces. The pursuit began as soon Hooker arrived in Maryland. He prevented a flanking maneuver of Jackson at South Mountain but failed to prevent Lee from crossing into Virginia near Sharpsburg in late October. In the Shenandoah valley, Confederates regained the upper hand at Woodstock, striking the divided Federals who nonetheless managed to escape after Kearny's stand at Front Royal allowed the Army of Virginia to go through the Manassas Gap.
Lee's offensive on Washington DC and death of Lincoln had a catastrophic effect on the Republican Party at the midterm elections where the Democrats won control of the House. Hamlin, despite being close to Radicals was forced by pragmatism to make compromise with conservative Republicans and War democrats. The news of Grant failure last attack on Vicksburg added to defeatism but Hamlin was able to convince his allies of convenience that nothing was lost despite what he presented as a raid of Lee: McClellan was threatening the confederate capital, Frémont had pushed Bragg out of Kentucky, Rosecrans still threatened Chattanooga and the Army of the Missouri now under McClernand was still deep into Confederate territory, threatening to cut the CSA in two halves, the blockade was still effective and foreign powers hadn't reacted or offered help to the Confederates. Still, the Potomac Campaign of Lee had severly weakened the pro-war sentiment in northern public opinion and the pro-war coalition in the House was a fragile one as the calls for peace negociations were growing even among War Democrats and conservative Republicans, whom many subjected their support to results, but 1863 was going to be a bloody year.