WI: We lose the Revolution

This is more than likely discussed often but it kinda popped into my head. What if the American Patriots lost the Revolution?
 
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Zeldar155

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By the way, you can change the thread title by double-clicking near the thread title on the sub-forum (but not on it, of course).
 
This thread is so vague I don't know what country you are talking about.

He said the Patriots. Also, there is only one group of people on the internet that uses "we" without any kind of explanation when speaking in English.

Now, as for the OP's question. If we lost the Revolution, it would have some very interesting effects on the world. Assuming that France still got involved, it's likely that Britain would take the Louisiana Territory. In the long run, the British Empire would probably become global hegemon, especially when you consider that it would control North America, Australia, and India. It would be a dark, evil world, where football and baseball never came into existence, and we all drink tea and play cricket. :eek:
 
He said the Patriots. Also, there is only one group of people on the internet that uses "we" without any kind of explanation when speaking in English.

Now, as for the OP's question. If we lost the Revolution, it would have some very interesting effects on the world. Assuming that France still got involved, it's likely that Britain would take the Louisiana Territory. In the long run, the British Empire would probably become global hegemon, especially when you consider that it would control North America, Australia, and India. It would be a dark, evil world, where football and baseball never came into existence, and we all drink tea and play cricket. :eek:

Which raises a question: When do the Patriots lose the revolution?

This is relevant because if France is never involved, that's a different scenario geopolitically than if somehow things fail after they get involved - not to mention likely a much quicker war.
 
It depends on Great Britain's management of British America. If the revolution is fairly brief and suppressed very early on, many of the American colonies might get to keep their democratically elected assemblies and this might well evolve into the kind of constitutional workaround where British America might not rebel again. But if it's suppressed fairly late in the game (which was still perfectly possible), that is to say at a time when most of the colonies have rebelled, Great Britain might introduce direct rule instead of trusting colonial assemblies that have already rebelled once—and if so, that's just a recipe for a second American revolution later on, and if that one fails a third, and if that one fails a fourth, et cetera.

The problem for Great Britain is that the success of the American Revolution IOTL destroyed a British world hegemony that had lasted since the Seven Years' War. As long as that hegemony lasts, Great Britain is likely to face hostile coalitions of other European great powers. Great Britain was so powerful in that time that without such a huge distraction in North America it stood a genuine chance of defeating such a coalition, but if that happens there will only be another coalition in the future. Sometime, sooner or later, Great Britain will surely lose to one such coalition—and when that happens, that will be the Americans' chance for independence, and if they're not content with British rule they will take it.

Personally, I lean towards American independence being very likely even with a Patriots-lose PoD, because if the revolution is crushed very early before it gathers much steam then it will (probably) not be regarded as especially significant so the British will probably not reform to address the Americans' concerns, whereas if it is crushed later then it's likely (though not certain) that Great Britain will respond by abolishing the colonial assemblies that rebelled against British rule. For Great Britain to retain British America, the revolution has to be major enough to make the British take serious notice of the deficiencies of their current system but not major enough to make the British decide that the Americans can't be trusted with any self-government or else they'll rebel.

I (very briefly) wrote a little TL with this kind of PoD, once.
 
Football would still be here just not that strange version of Rugby:)
What's wrong with Tea and Cricket?

Nothing's wrong with tea, as long it's got ice, lemon, and tons of sugar.

Objectively, there's nothing wrong with Cricket, either. It just feels like I'm watching a cruel mockery of baseball (which is ironic, since baseball was derived from cricket).
 
Now, as for the OP's question. If we lost the Revolution, it would have some very interesting effects on the world. Assuming that France still got involved, it's likely that Britain would take the Louisiana Territory. In the long run, the British Empire would probably become global hegemon, especially when you consider that it would control North America, Australia, and India. It would be a dark, evil world, where football and baseball never came into existence, and we all drink tea and play cricket. :eek:

Louisiana had been given to Spain by France in 1763 (although Spain did eventually declare war, on the side of France, so I suppose Britain could have invaded it).
 
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