WI: Frances Settles the Louisiana Territory

matteo,
I don't disagree at all with your first point. It's just that I almost always hear the reasoning of why he wanted to part with it paired it with the loss of Haiti. I don't see the connection. Holding Louisiana is completely independent of Haiti, and a completely different beast.

Haiti was the closest French base to Louisiana. Napoleon planned to ship French troops to Louisiana to defend it against the encroaching Americans. Haiti was to support the planned French garrisons in Louisiana. Louisiana by itself was (and is) a wasteland and could not support the garrisons. Losing Haiti makes it almost impossible for the French to defend Louisiana against the Americans or British because of logistics.


My own, simple, explanation is that he initially dreamed up a wank and came to his senses a couple years later when he realized the logistics. sure, his failure in Haiti was a factor, but I don't think it was THE factor, other than waking him from his dreamy gaze at a map and imagining all the pretty French borders.

I disagree. It was THE factor in Napoleon's decision to give up on Louisiana for reasons I already mentioned.
 
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