Amerika: The History of the Amerikaners

[CatoMinor]

Amerika
Introduction

July 30, 1652
      With the power of the States General behind him, Adriaen van der Donck landed back in the city of New Amsterdam ready to usher in a new era for the Dutch settlers. Having left the new world in 1649 to make his case before the States General, Adriaen had finally returned with orders for the recall of Peter Stuyvesant to the Netherlands and with the intention of forming a more liberal government in the colony.  Deciding to invest more in the growth of a permanent Dutch presence in North America to truly rival the English and French, the States General trusted Van Der Donck to shape the New Netherlands colony into something more encouraging for growth in settlers. Taking some authority from the West India Company away, the States General abolished the office of Director-General and appointed van der Donck to the newly created role of Stadtholder of New Netherland.

August 27, 1664

   With the goal in mind of seizing control of New Amsterdam and the entire New Netherland colony for England, Richard Nicolls moved his frigates in on the city ready to demand surrender. Unbeknownst to Nicolls, Stadtholder Jeremias van Rensselaer was prepared. Having assembled reinforcements from Rensselaerswyk and Fort Orange, van Rensselaer met Nicolls’ demand with canon fire and the beginnings of another Anglo-Dutch War. This defiance against English aggression would be remembered for generations of Amerikaners who would see this as when their ancestors firmly established their dominance over the region.

[CatoMinor]

Part 1: Birth of a Republic

The 12 provinces of New Netherlands colony in 1809

August 14, 1809

The Council of 36, a deliberative body consisting of 3 delegates from each province, had been called into emergency session by Stadtholder Henry Kruger to discuss the future of the colony in the wake of the British occupation of the Netherlands. Half of Europe had been embroiled off and on in war for the past decade as Oliver Cromwell IV, Lord Protector of Great Britain and Ireland fought campaign after campaign to put down the typically French led coalitions. The Dutch Republic had been an early of the British after their revolution deposed the monarchy and made Parliament supreme, but as Cromwell rose to power he felt the Dutch were too much of a liability and decided to occupy low countries to create a buffer in Europe between them and their enemies.

The following excerpt has been translated from the original Amerikaans Declaration of Independence, passed by the Council of 36 on August 14, 1809.
Therefore be it resolved, that the political bonds which had tied this colony to our mother country, the Dutch Republic, be now and forever severed. From this day we commit our allegiance the Amerikaans Republic, may the Lord almighty keep up us under His protection.

The coming months would see a written constitution created for the new Republic. The Council of 36 would evolve into the Volksraad with councilors elected from districts and the Stadtholder would transition into Staatpresident. Initially suffrage was limited to males over the age of 30 who owned property. The principle challenges to the new republic were reforming the patroonships that many were beginning to complain about and asserting their independence to the British who would surely make an attempt at absorbing them without the protection of the Dutch fleet.

The 1st Volksraad elected would be the last without major parties competing. Political factions began to emerge early on however as reformists and conservatives would clash. The reformists factions would eventually be led by the younger statesman Johan van der Donck as the conservatives fell in line behind Staatpresident Kruger.

Up next: The First Boer War

[CatoMinor]

So Dutch for now, probably mostly German immigrants in the future, alongside Flemish and maybe Wallonian.

Yeah mainly Dutch with large amounts of English, French, and people of the low countries settling. Making New Amsterdam a fairly diverse city, and helping to further make the Amerikaners and the Amkerikaans dialect of Dutch more unique from the traditional Dutch people and language.

[CatoMinor]

Part 2: The First Boer War

Prelude to War

April 1718,
Eager to prove himself and to redeem the family name, Peter Stuyvesant, grandson of the last Director-General whom he was named after, looked to expand the colony. Newly appointed as Stadtholder, gave the order to seize control of Maryland. Then on April 15, 1718 a handful of frigates with a ship of the line sailed up the Chesapeake and into port at Annapolis demanding the city surrender. Thus began the 4th Anglo-Dutch War. Bitterly fought over the the course of the next 3 years, the war ended with the decisive defeat of the British fleet at the Battle of the Thames.

Following the British formal surrender of all claims to Maryland, Stuyvesant issued what would become his most infamous act while in power, the "Orde de Verdrijving" which began the process of removing most of the English settlers from Maryland. Many Marylanders either moved to Virginia or returned to Great Britain, however close to a third of them banded together and decided to venture farther inland and resettle in Sylvania. Sylvania had been founded years prior by William Penn who had led an exodus of Quakers from England and other religious minorities from Europe to the New World where they could exercise their faiths freely and experiment with Penn's vision of republicanism. In the years to come Sylvania would change to Pennsylvania in honor of it's founder and would be a near constant thorn in the side of New Netherlands as Pennsylvanian farmers would settle in land disputed by both sides leading to border skirmishes. By the end of the century Maryland would be largely resettled with large amounts of Flemish, Frisian, and German immigrants.

May, 1812
After 3 years of an interim government organizing the early Amerikaans Republic it was finally time for the first election. The current Staatpresident Henry Kruger, a decedent of German immigrants a century prior, was determined to continue his presidency with a popular mandate behind him. His appeal to the public was of western expansion, annexing Pennsylvania, and belief that it was the manifest destiny of the Amerikaners to do so. Opposing Kruger, as always, was the young Johan van der Donck, leader of the opposition in the Volksraad. Van Der Donck ran on a promise to expand suffrage to all men above the age of 20, abolishing slavery, and establishing a peaceful relationship with the Pennsylvanians. The writings of William Penn being a large influence in Johan's worldview, he had no desire for war with Penn's legacy.

The Election of Staatpresident, May 20, 1812

Kruger (VP) - 56%
Van Der Donck (DP) - 44%

Kruger and his Volks Partij won a decisive first test of the nation's democracy. Though defeated, Van Der Donck vowed to continue his efforts from inside the Volksraad as a voice for reform through his Demokratiese Partij. With the popular vote of his people behind him, Kruger set his eyes to Pennsylvania.

To be continued.

[CatoMinor]

The First Boer War Continued

August, 1812
In a excerpt from a statement issued to the public shortly after his first full elected term in office began, Henry Kruger wrote:
For far too long have the Pennsylvanians encroached on our land. Financially struggling and lacking in central authority in Pennsylvania, I believe it to be the will of the Lord almighty that we Amerikaners take our place in destiny and establish order in Pennsylvania. Knowing that our Heavenly Father is with us then, I shall sign into effect the Pennsylvania Act passed by the Volksraad, establishing the annexation of Pennsylania into our republic. Any resistance shall be dealt with swiftly and met with even greater force. 

Initially expecting only light resistance, the Amerikaner soldiers entering Pennsylvania were surprised to be met with hundreds of farmers banding together in militias that ambushed them at the battle of Derry on the border forcing the Amerikaners back. In a counter attack over the coming weeks however the Pennsylvanians were driven out of the east and fell back towards their capital Bellefonte. Amerikaner newspapers immediately began calling this The Boer War, dismissing the Pennsylvanian soldiers as merely "boeren" or farmers. The Amerikaners achieved their greatest victory of the war in March 1813 under General Klaas Visser's Lake Campaign where he smashed through Pennsylvanian defenses and routed them, leaving the Boeren landlocked.

The war was decided at the Battle of the West Branch on September 3, 1813. Not wanting General Visser to have all of the glory, General Francois van Dijk decided to launch one final assault from the north and capture Bellefonte. Seeing himself as a potential successor to Staatpresident Kruger someday, Van Dijk believed that crushing the Boeren in one final victory in their capital would cement him as an Amerikaner hero. However Van Dijk's decision to set camp on the south shore of the West Branch Susquehanna River would prove a fatal mistake. At 4:00am on the morning of Sept 3 a little over 800 Boer soldiers attacked the sleeping camp of over 15,000. Within an hour over 1000 Amerikaners were slain, including Van Dijk, with twice as many injured and the rest captured. After what Pennsylvanians hailed as "The Miracle on the West Branch" agreed to negotiate a peace.

Campaigns of the First Boer War 

* - Battle
--> - Amerikaners
--> - Boers

Following the setback of West Branch, the Amerikaans Republic and Pennsylvania agreed to a peace  so long as the Amerikaners recognized Pennsylvania's sovereignty and that Pennsylvania ceded its western territory along with it's access to Lake Erie. While Kruger declared the war a success with territorial gains, no one could deny that the public opinion of him had taken a serious hit. This was an opportunity that Van Der Donck's Democrats would not let slip in the next elections.

Up Next: The Rise of the Democrats

[CatoMinor]

Part 3: Rise of the Democrats

1814-18

The remainder of Kruger's term would be focused on what historians consider his most significant achievement, the purchase of Ohio Country from France. By the early 18th century a series of wars with Comwellian Britain had taken a large toll on France's finances. Determined to keep pushing westward, Kruger authorized the ambassador to France to make an offer of 100,000 guilders for a large strip of land along the southern shore of lake Erie and down to the Ohio River. French Prime Minister, Charles-Maurice de Tallyrand, with the permission of King Louis XVII, made a counter offer of all Ohio Country for 2 million guilders. Eagerly accepting the deal, the Amerikaans Republic was more than doubled overnight with the purchase that would give them all the land between the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers and south of the Great Lakes. The Volksraag divided the territory into smaller subdivisions and created the framework for how future territory would be organized and eventually made into provinces under the Ohio Act of 1815.

The Volksraag, consisting of 150 delegates representing districts in each province, was elected to 4 year terms with the next election to be held in May, 1816. The previous election saw a decisive win for the Volks Partij, winning 101 out of 150 seats. Opposing the VP were the 43 members of the Demokratiese Party and a handful of independent delegates. Going into the election of 1816, the VP faced a steep challenge of trying to win back public opinion after failing to decisively defeat Pennsylvania. They had hoped with Kruger's purchase of the Ohio Country the people would be won back over, however opinion was mixed as some were concerned it would be a waste of money and inviting more conflict with the natives.

Campaigning hard on a platform of expanding suffrage and ending slavery, the DP surged past the VP on election day to win control of the Volksraag.
The final results were:
Demokratiese Partij: 94
Volks Partij: 52
Independent: 4

Taking control of the Volksraag as the new Chancellor, Johan van der Donck was ready to begin a new era in Amerikaner politics and continue the work of his ancestor. Representing a small district on the Hudson River just a few miles north of New Amsterdam since the Volksraag was founded in 1809, Van Der Donck was viewed by many in the area as a giant among statesmen and among the greatest debaters of his time. The coming years would set the stage for a clash of giants when Van Der Donck and Kruger would face off once more for the office of Staatpresident in 1818.

The Amerikaans Republic in 1817

Pennsylvania has been split between The Pennsylvanian Republic and The Allegheny Free State.

To be Continued

[CatoMinor]

2 Questions:
At what point will we see Amerika make a push for potentially the lower portion of Ontario?
Will the agreement with Pennsylvania be broken, given that Amerika almost completely surrounds it?

Great TL so far!

Well for the points in time covered thus far the French and Amerikaners have decent relationships so a move on Ontario wouldn't be too likely in the near future. As for Pennsylvania it is very likely that they will be the source of future conflict.

[CatoMinor]

Rise of the Democrats Continued

By 1818 the Volks Partij was a mere shadow of what it had been only a handful of years prior. Since the DP had taken control of the Volksraag in the previous election, the VP which still clung on to power at the provincial level held what became known as the infamous Schenectady Convention. At this convention party representatives discussed future of their party and country in the face of what seemed a guaranteed victory in the coming weeks of Van Der Donck in the election for Staatpresident. At one point in the convention a bloc of delegates, mainly those opposed to the emancipation of slaves, began to seriously push for a plan that would have the military seize control of the Volksraag, and declare Staatpresident Kruger as the King of a new Amerikaner Kingdom with power divided between the King and the provincial Governors. While this plan never gained much traction, once news of it being discussed was leaked the VP suffered the final blow to their chances of recovering lost ground. In May 1818 Johan van der Donck would go on to defeat Kruger 60%-34% with minor independent candidates gaining a few points.

Van Der Donck's terms as Staatpresident would see the near total domination of the Demokratiese Partij at every level of government. By 1824 he would win re-election without any major party opposition, winning over 87% of the vote. During his two terms the gradual abolition of slavery would be set in motion with the any person born to slaves would be born a free citizen of the Amerikaans Republic. In 1825 the Volksraag voted to allow any male citizen over the age of 20 the right to vote. Another significant achievement was the Shawnee Compromise, avoiding a war with the natives organized under Tecumseh. The compromise was an agreement that in return for a Shawnee province being created where their language and culture would be majority, Tecumseh and his confederacy would lay down their arms, swear an oath of loyalty to the Amerikaans Republic and allow settlers to pass through peacefully as the population began to move westward into the Ohio Country. The Amerikaners had hoped that the Shawnee and other Algonquin people in the region would eventually become like the Iroquois who had similarly carved out their own province in the northern parts of the New Netherlands colony and had by now mostly melded into Amerikaner culture. The influence of the Iroquois is seen by many as one of the subtle differences in the Amerikaans language from original early modern Dutch.

Without the theater of major parties clashing, or even much actual warfare for that matter, many would look back and label Van Der Donck's terms as "The Era of Good Feelings" in Amerikaner politics. The good feelings would be put to the test however in the coming years when an Amerikaner preacher of English decent, Jozef Smit, began organizing a radical new sect of Christianity and challenging the established Reform Church's hold on society.

Up Next, Part 4: Deus Vult!

[CatoMinor]

Europe around 1820, following the Cromwellian Wars

[CatoMinor]

Is Switzerland part of the Holy Roman Empire?

The successor, the German Confederation. Formed following the Cromwellian Wars more a loose alliance of predominantly German kingdoms and principalities that are essentially autonomous. It is the beginning of what will eventually lead to a unified German state. The HRE was shattered during the wars and at some point the Swiss got dragged into it, so the confederation was established for mutual protection. I may need to do a longer aside over the conflict later on in the timeline.

Some other things to note:
Sweden had won the Great Northern War.
The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth is still hanging on.

[CatoMinor]

Part 4: Deus Vault!

By September, 1829 the Amerikaans Republic had seen a decade of growth and relative peace. Much of the Ohio Country had been organized and populated enough to establish new provinces. In the years prior the Volks Partij had disbanded leaving Van Der Donck's Democrats with near total power, an arrangement that couldn't last forever. Nearing the end of his second term, Staatpresident Van Der Donck surprised many with his announcement that he would not seek re-election, believing that for a healthy democracy power couldn't stay with one man for too long. The race to succeed him would prove eventful as the DP began to fracture into factions, setting the stage for 4 candidates running all under the DP label.

Meanwhile in the Province of Iroquois, in Palmyra a young man by the name of Jozef Smit had begun preaching a message of a restored Church of Christ, that all other denominations had lost their way from the gospel and that God had given him access to another Testament of Jesus Christ in the New World. After years of visions and translating, Smit began to publish his Book of Mormon, translated into Amerikaans from "reformed Egyptian." While gaining some followers, the idea that the indigenous peoples were those who fell away from the chosen people and killed off the faithful tribes was needless to say taken with extreme offense by the Iroquois. Facing more and more hostility, Jozef and his followers moved to other cities. The Mormons, as they were soon to be called, grew in number but faced harsher resistance with every move being labeled as heretics by the established Reformed Church communities. Sensing the growing threat to their safety, Smit decided to move his followers into Pennsylvania. Luckily for Jozef he was fluent in English his family was of English ancestry and had only changed their family name to fit in. Being founded as refuge for religious minorities by William Penn, the Pennsylvanians welcomed the Mormons into their country and allowed them to practice their faith freely.

May 1830
The election for Staatpresident saw four formidable opponents seek the office. Representing the historic reformist core of the DP and seen as a protege of Van Der Donck was the young Volksraag Delegate Herman Jansen from the Province of Rensselaer. Representing many former Volks Partij  members who had assimilated into the Democrats was Hans van Hudson, Governor New Amsterdam Province. The loudest voice of western expansion and Delegate from Ohio Province was Fritz Bakker. Finally was the candidate seen by many as the favorite was General Erik Béliveau from the province of New Holland.


Bakker - 31.6%
Béliveau - 31.4%
Jansen - 24%
Van Hudson - 13%

Following this close race many of Béliveau's supports cried foul as Van Hudson had publicly stated that his supporters should vote for Bakker to stop Béliveau and Jansen in the week preceding the election. Friedrich "Fritz" Bakker swore into office the following month and Béliveau vowed he would be back. He would use the coming years to organize his support and create a political movement all his own, the Justitie Partij, devoted to being a voice for the common people.

Meanwhile during the Bakker administration the Mormons would continue to thrive in Pennsylvania. Now going by Joseph Smith as he began reaching a more English audience, and restoring his old family name, Smith established Mormon Temples across the Pennsylvanian Republic and the Allegheny Free State, converting thousands. By 1835 it was estimated that nearly half of the Pennsylvanian Republic and close to 60% of the Allegheny Free State had converted, adding tens of thousands into the fold. This caught the attention of the Amerikaners who became concerned that the heretics they thought they had driven away were now seemingly growing exponentially. While Joseph was preaching of establishing a New Zion that would change the world, leaders in New Amsterdam began planning how to deal with him once and for all.

Up next, Part 5: The Second Boer War  

[CatoMinor]

Originally mainly Flemish, Frisians, people from the Dutch Republic, etc. This current era has a large amount of German and French immigration following the Cromwellian Wars. Canada, along with Upper and Lower Louisiana are still French colonies. Spain is still holding onto New Spain, but barely as republicanism continues to spread. Following the defeat of Oliver Cromwell IV, New England became the Republic of Plymouth and Virginia and South Carolina moved towards independence as well. South Carolina moved forward as the Carolina Republic and Virginia as The Commonwealth of Virginia. Florida is divided between Carolina, Spain, and a couple small unrecognized states that are havens for piracy.

[CatoMinor]

Part 5: The Second Boer War

The term of Staatpresident Fritz Bakker was seen by many as generally successful, however noted for his failed attempt at purchasing Upper Louisiana from France in the hopes of fulfilling his dream of expanding to the Pacific Ocean one day. By this time steam powered locomotives were beginning to connect the western frontier provinces back to the east, improving communication and commerce. Meanwhile from his home in New Holland, still resentful for being cheated out of power, had been spending his time organizing his Justitie Partij and salivating for his chance to deny Bakker a second term in office. In the Volksraag election of 1832 the VP managed to carve out a solid presence. Adjusting for population growth and the new provinces from the Ohio Purchase, the Volksraag was now at 180 delegates.

By 1835 the composition of the Volksraag was:
Demokratiese Partij - 94
Justitie Partij - 63
Antimormon Partij - 15
Native Alliance - 8


A growing concern for religious leaders among the Amerikaners was the rise of Mormonism in the neighboring Pennsylvanian countries. Spreading like wild fire through the predominantly English communities, Joseph Smith was seen by his followers as a living prophet who gave hope to the struggling Pennsylvanians and a new sense of purpose. By early 1836 both Bakker and Béliveau had began stating their intentions of pushing anti-Mormon legislation. Béliveau, being Roman Catholic, had a built in disadvantage, so in an attempt to build in-roads into the the Reformed Church community he declared "If Jozef Smit ever sets foot in Amerikaans land again, I will hang him from the highest tree!" Wanting to be prepared for the worst, Smith began organizing militias in the chance that his followers would be threatened.

Staatpresidential Election of 1836:
Friedrich 'Fritz' Bakker  - 48.2%
Erik Béliveau - 48.7%
Others - 3.1%

Upon taking office Staatpresident Béliveau and his new Justitie majority in the Volksraag passed legislation effectively banning the practice of Mormonsim within the country and declaring Smith a criminal, demanding that the Pennsylvanian Republic extradite Smith to face trial. Refusing to accept the Amerikaner's ultimatum, the Amerikaans Republic issued a declaration of war, prompting the Pennsylvanian Republic and Allegheny Free State to do likewise. Not wanting a repeat of the previous conflict the Pennsylvanian and Alleghenian forces went on the offensive early, seizing several cities near the border and then digging in in preparation to hold them. Amerikaner newspapers were quick to label this the Second Boer War as Smith and his followers would call it the Great Holy War.

To be continued...

[CatoMinor]

Demographic info as of 1836.

Population: 10.6 million

Ethnic Backgrounds:
Dutch - 68%
German - 16%
French - 6%
Native - 5%
English - 3%
Other - <2%

Religious Demographics:
Amerikaans Reformed Church: 64%
Roman Catholic: 20%
Lutheran: 9%
Anglican: 2%
Other Christian Denominations: <2%
Native Religions: 3%



The Antimormon Partij is largely irrelevant with all major parties adopting anti-Mormon stances, but when it was more active in the previous election cycle it was largely made up of Reformed Church followers in the North East where Mormonism got it's start.

While in the First Party System the Volks Partij won the lion's share of ancestrally Dutch voters, most of them were eventually folded into the Demokratiese Partij. Erik Béliveau's creation is initially  a vehicle for challenging Bakker, and evolves into a sort of populist movement. Many people of French and Catholic background form the core of his support along with poor average citizens who seen him as an Amerikaner hero. That both French and Dutch Amerikaners can claim him as one of their own is a sign of the growing separation between Amerikaners and their Dutch ancestors.

The Native Alliance is for the most part located in the the provinces of Iroquois and Shawnee, winning a bloc of native voters.

The Demokratiese Partij is in a bit of an weird soul searching phase as they are historically the inclusive party who fought for the "common man", however the Justitie Partij is moving into that slot and whats left of their party has a growing elitist faction of mainly Dutch and German ancestry Amerikaners.

[CatoMinor]

And now another great TL is getting sticked.

[CatoMinor]

The Second Boer War Continued

August, 1836


By mid August 1836 the Amerikaners were struggling to push the Pennsylvanians out of their territory, fighting largely in communities that viewed the Pennsylvanian soldiers as liberators. The first phase of the war would be more or less a stalemate as Staatpresident Béliveau set out to create his vision for a "Grand Army of the Republic." While Béliveau oversaw the formation of his Grand Army he focused primarily of containing the Mormon threat and pushing them out of Amerikaans Republic territory. Soldiers under the command of Brigham Young tried piercing through to lake Erie, cutting the Amerikaners in half, however was turned back at the Battle of Erie. Young's failed campaign would be the high water mark for the Mormon's in the war. The winter would see a lull in fighting with skirmishes here and there, testing each others defenses. As March came Béliveau was ready to unleash his creation, The Grand Army of the Republic. The first phase of the war had been characterized as containment, the next would be extermination.

Without any hint of slowing down and with no mercy the Grand Army struck through the Pennsylvanian lines on multiple fronts, shattering the Mormon and Boer militias before them. Inside of a month the capitals of both the Pennsylvanian Republic and the Allegheny Free State had fallen. With little option left and refusing to surrender, Smith organized a guerilla resistance from the wooded mountains of Appalachia. To put pressure on the Mormon resistance to surrender the Amerikaners began rounding up entire communities and placing them in prison camps to starve. It wasn't until February 27, 1838 when in a skirmish a bullet found it's way into Joseph Smith's abdomen and Brigham Young took over as leader that Mormon's agreed to surrender.

Pennsylvania at Brigham Young's surrender.


Following the surrender the Amerikaans Republic formally annexed the region and exiled the survivors. Those who chose to remain faithful the to Mormon movement joined with Young and began a long journey out west to where Young declared God had promised them their paradise on Earth where they could start over. In all 7,059 men, 142 women, and 86 children left to journey out west where they would settle on the east bank of the Missouri River, founding the city of New Jerusalem. What was left behind was a poor and depopulated shadow of what Pennsylvania had been.

To be continued...

[CatoMinor]

The Trail of Tears

The Second Boer War left what was once William Penn's great legacy in ashes. Either by combat, starvation, or disease the war left over 285,000 dead. Many of the non-Mormon Pennsylvanian survivors left to seek refuge in Virginia. Many Mormons lost the faith during the war, but for those who remain loyal under Brigham young choose to follow him out west as they sought to distance themselves as much as they could from the devastation they had endured. By late September 1838, Young and his followers set out for the west.

Desiring to avoid Amerikaner and Native lands on their journey, Young took his followers south through Virginia. Among those on the journey were the six year old Joseph Smith III and his mother Emma Hale Smith. Originally anticipating 2-3 months of a journey, inclement weather and issues with Virginian authorities arose that would slow things down. As harassment and acts of violence against the Mormons grew, Young organized the Nashville Legion in order to protect the travelers. Finally reaching the Mississippi river on December 23, the Mormons set camp and began building small boats and barges to ferry them across into Upper Louisiana. On January 8, 1839 as the Mormons were half finished crossing, a mob of 200 anti-Mormon Virginians had organized into a militia and launched an attack hoping to drive the Mormons into the river. The Nashville legion, at half strength as the other 250 had crossed the river first to protect the travelers on the other side, sprung into action. After an hour of shooting the Virginians fell back having taken 86 casualties compared to 8 for the Mormons. Proclaiming that "God is with us!" Young moved the party onward.

By March the Mormons finally ended their Journey on the east bank of the Missouri River near what Young believed to be the sight of the Garden of Eden. The city of New Jerusalem was established as the capital for what he hoped to grow into a nation. The Mormon's called the land they settled Deseret, after what they believed to be a Jaredite term from their Book of Mormon meaning "honeybee". Separated from the major powers, Deseret would grow in isolation over the coming years as nominal subjects of France.
 

[CatoMinor]

Aftermath of the Second Boer War

Feeling invincible politically following the surrender of the Mormon's, Staatpresident Béliveau began to implement sweeping changes. First was to reorganize the remains of the new territory acquired in the war into the new provinces of Sylvania and Allegheny. The Mormons had been been evicted and following the occupation a large portions of the remaining population chose self exile in Virginia. Those few who remained became isolated in small rural communities that would cling on to their English heritage for generations to come, known to the Afrikaners as "die Pennsylvanian-Engels." Many from the more crowded coastal cities took the opportunity to start over and moved to the new provinces, where they could claim abandoned farms and resettle the now ghost towns.

Lacking a unified vision or sense of direction the Demokratiese Partij formally disbanded in August 1839. Herman Jansen and his followers would create the Liberaal Partij, focused on promoting free markets and decentralized power. The wing of the Democrats who were ideologically the heirs of the Volks Partij, at least those who hadn't joined the Justitie Partij, reformed under the new Nationaal Party. The adoption of the "party" spelling over "partij" was a sign of their message of distancing themselves from their Dutch heritage, and that the Amerikaners had become not only superior to the Dutch, but different altogether. The Nationaals viewed Amerikaners more in terms of  the indigenous people than as decedents of European immigrants, going as far as to publicly denounce new immigration into the country and labeling themselves as "natives." In New Amsterdam in particular the Nationaals would promote violence against immigrants and Catholics, at one point prompting Béliveau to send in infantry and order martial law as rival gangs fought over neighborhoods.

Volksraag election of 1840: 192 seats
Justitie Partij - 111
Nationaal Party - 32
Liberaal Partij - 30
Native Alliance - 15
Independent - 4
 
The results of the Volksraag elections reflected both the changing times in Amerika and the popularity that Béliveau still possessed among the public. the Liberaals attacked the Staatpresident for going too far in the Second Boer War while the Nationaals branded him as a "papist" being under the control of the Pope. Neither argument seemed to stick however as Béliveau easily won re-election to another term in 1842.

Staatpresidential Election of 1842:
Erik Béliveau (JP)- 43%
Herman Jansen (LP) - 29%
Henrik van der Plaats (NP) - 25%
Paul Tenskatawa (NA) - 3%

[CatoMinor]

Part 6: I AM THE STATE

1843
Re-elected and having a his party still in control of the Volksraag, the first half of Béliveau's second term went relatively smooth. Relations with Virginia and Plymouth were improved, and off the coast of West Africa a small colony had been established for the decedents of freed slaves who wished to return. The experiment that was the colony of Liberia would be short lived however as most freed slaves and their decedents preferred to remain and of those who wanted to leave, many already had for French Canada in the years prior. The colony would eventually be sold to the Virginians who would have greater use for it. By early 1844 was confident that his Justitie Partij would keep control in the upcoming Volksraag elections.

Volksraag Election of 1844: 194 Seats
Justitie Partij - 110
Liberaal Partij - 36
Nationaal Party - 34
Native Alliance - 11
Independent - 3

By the late 1830's Europe's colonial hold in the New World had already been in decline. Mexico successfully won independence from Spain by 1836 and established the Mexican Empire. Carolina had been eating away at Spanish Florida for years, shifting their border farther south. Then in 1841 France was put to the test as French Canada began calling for independence. Reluctant at first, and even preparing to send soldiers to keep it by force, France agreed to a compromise that would allow for near complete autonomy and that would keep the French King as ceremonial head of state while a National Assembly would effectively run the country. In Louisiana the situation was less pleasant. Around the same time as Canada, Lower Louisiana declared their independence as a republic and seized control of French armories ready to defend themselves. The French force sent to retake New Orleans was decimated by the unfortunate timing of a hurricane that made landfall just as they were arriving. Without any reasonable way of maintaining control or even access to at this point, Upper Louisiana was abandoned as France had more pressing matters at home for focus on such as rising republicanism.

It wasn't long before Upper Louisiana became carved out. The Mormon's in the central region claimed a large swath as the nation of Deseret. Further north the Lakota peoples managed to fight back against claims from Canada and asserted their independence. On the western side of the northern Mississippi, Amerikaner settlers proclaimed the Republic of the Transmississippi. Virginians moved into the south and effectively doubled the size of their country.

By 1845 Transmississippi was annexed into the Amerikaans Republic. Crisis came in 1846 however when electing a provincial government two sides both claimed victory in an election full of fraud where more ballots were cast than people actually living in Transmississippi. One government under a Nationaal-Justitie alliance ruled from Dubuque  while a Liberaal government established Bettendorf as their capital further down the river. The coming months would see a series of bloody skirmishes that wouldn't end until Staatpresident Béliveau decided to act.

To be continued...

[CatoMinor]

I AM THE STATE, continued

For months following the start of the Transmississippi crisis the Volksraag refused to recognize either provincial government until an agreement could be reached. During this period however the crisis escalated when supporters of the Dubuque government burned a farm and murdered 11 people in the ensuing shootout. In retaliation, on March 27, 1847 Bettendorf supporters waiting in the trees along a small country road outside of Dubuque ambushed and assassinated the governor of the rival government. Among those killed in the attack were the governor's wife and young son. Finally having enough the next month Staatpresident Béliveau marched into the province with 15,000 soldiers and declared Transmississippi to be under martial law. Wanting a swift end to the confusion, Béliveau declared the Dubuque government to be the legitimate one and any who opposed them to be guilty of treason. Upon returning to New Amsterdam Béliveau was summoned before the Volksraag to explain his actions as many belied he overstepped his authority by unilaterally choosing which provincial government to support and installing his own acting military governor until martial law would be lifted.

Entering the Volksraag to the cries of "tyrant!" and "dictator!" Béliveau calmly addressed the delegates and said:
The actions I made were a result of the inaction of this body. I will apologize for nothing. Twice now the people have seen fit to make me their Staatpresident. By the will of both God and the people I have been chosen to lead this nation of Amerikaners. Some of you here, even those who I believed to be my allies, have charged that I have overstepped my role within the state, but let me assure you I AM THE STATE.
Béliveau proceeded to walk out of the chamber that remained dead silent. This event would go on to give the Liberaals all they needed to campaign against Béliveau and the JP over the next year.

By early 1848 Béliveau decided against seeking a third term opting instead to allow his close ally Erwin Roemer, who had served as military governor and then eventualy elected governor of Sylvania, to be his successor. The Nationaals again nominated Henrik van der Plaats who promised a purer Amerika free from the immigrant "invasion." Despite his best efforts, Herman Jansen failed to be selected by the Liberaals, who instead chose to go with Maarten van Buren. Van Buren had been a member of the JP and delegate to the Volksraag representing his community around his home in Kinderhoek, however out of frustration with the Staatpresident's abuse of power he switched to the Liberaals.

The Elections of 1848

Volksraag: 200 seats
Liberal Partij - 79
Justitie Partij - 68
Nationaal Party - 42
Native Alliance - 8
Independent - 2

Staatpresident:


Maarten van Buren (LP) - 34%
Erwin Roemer (JP) - 31%
Henrik van der Plaats (NP) - 30%
John Catahecassa (NA) - 5%

Up next, Part 7: The Calm Before the Storm

[CatoMinor]

Part 7: The Calm Before the Storm

The time in office of Maarten van Buren could be characterized as being of being extremely hands off. Staatpresident Van Buren led with the philosophy that the less the state did the better and devoted more time to trying to block the Volksraag from passing what he considered bad law than actually pushing an agenda. Van Buren and many other Liberaals believed that most governing should be done from the provincial and local levels. Despite winning the largest bloc of seats in the Volksraag the Liberaal Partij would ultimately come in second as the Justitie and Nationaal parties formed a coalition to elect their own Chancellor, Gregory Vermeulen of the Justitie Partij. Vermeulen had hoped to achieve passing electoral reform such run-off elections should no-candidate for Staatpresident claim at least 50% of the vote.

Van Buren's first test came a year into his term in 1849 when his attempt at avoiding foreign entanglements was challenged by North African pirates attacking Amerikaner trade vessels when the Amerikaans Republic refused to pay tribute. Under pressure from the Volksraag and coastal Liberaals with ties to trade, Van Buren authorized a small fleet to eliminate the pirate threat in what would be known at the Barbary War. Aided by a coalition of French and Swedish ships, the fighting would bring about the collapse of the nominally independent Barbary states along the North-West African coast and would see the last of the Ottoman Empire's presence driven from the region.

By 1852 the alliance of the Justitie and Nationaals was proving to hurt the JP as the anti-catholic and anti-immigrant rhetoric of the NP began casting a negative shadow over Justitie whose coalition had traditionally included many Catholics. By this time the writings of Karl Marx had begun to spread among the working class and university students. The Liberaals had been making in-roads out west with their message of greater provincial autonomy as the western provinces felt little connection to the New Amsterdam government. In New Amsterdam, which had been a hot bed for nativist sentiment, was growing in population by the day with new waves of immigration from Germany and Irish fleeing the Great Famine. Most Irish migrants started moving to English speaking Plymouth and Virginia, however Plymouth soon placed a ban on Irish immigration forcing them to seek refuge in the Amerikaans Republic. While the Province of New Amsterdam was still largely dominated by the Nationaal Party, the city itself was beginning to see a shift in power as political machines began taking advantage in the shifting winds and organizing.

Volksraag Election of 1852: 200 Seats
Liberaal Partij - 89
Nationaal Party - 70
Justitie Partij - 33
Native Alliance - 7
Independent - 1  

Despite winning no seats, the various workers and labor movements which were beginning to organize won close to 1.5% of the vote. In New Amsterdam they came close to 20% in a couple districts. The Liberaals once again came just shy of a majority. The Justitie in the Volksraag began to split into two factions, those who would back a Liberaal government and those who wanted to keep their alliance with the Nationaals. When the time came to elect a new Chancellor the Liberaals had created a coalition of themselves, the Native Alliance, and 12 members of the Justitie Partij, giving them 108 votes and control of the Volksraag.

To be continued....

[CatoMinor]

Sorry, my lap top was broken for a while. Will update soon.

[CatoMinor]

Sorry for the long break. Had a ton of things come up over the summer but hopefully can get this going again. Anywho, here is a short aside.

Europe by 1850.

 
The Ottomans are receding back out of the Balkans. The Venetians had been leading coalitions of Greeks, Serbs, and Bulgarians in a series of wars against the Ottomans with the ultimate goal of taking back Constantinople eventually. For most it is about the Orthodox Christians winning their lands back, while the Venetians are motivated by the desire to remove the Ottomans as their main economic rivals. To the east The Russian Tsardom was also in decline with a series of defeats at the hand of the Swedes, who had in the most recent triumph under King Charles XV united the crowns of Norway and Denmark, creating the United Kingdom of Scandinavia. Taking advantage of Russia's losses the Cossacks rose in revolt, creating their own Cossack-Ukrainian state in 1843.

In central Europe the confederation of German states broke apart as power centralized around Vienna and Berlin. The protestant Prussian Kingdom is working to consolidate its power in the region while the catholic Austrians are determined to prevent a Prussian hegemony amongst the Germans. If neither side will back down war is on the horizon.

In the west the largest change was the beginning of labor movements that were mixing with the already radicalized republican. The Late 1840's saw a wave of anti-monarchy revolutionary sentiment that the powers of Europe were beginning to fear.

[CatoMinor]

Part 7 Continued

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As the election of 1854 came closer the Liberaals were confident that among divided opposition they would come out on top once more. However in late 1853 a financial panic had set in, causing economic hardship throughout much of the country. Capitalizing on this chance, the Nationaals struck hard against  Van Buren's apparent lack of leadership and against the Justitie Volksraag members propping up the Liberaal government. Seeing this as his best chance yet at victory yet, Henrik van der Plaats mounted another campaign for Staatpresident, with the Nationaals selecting him to challenge Van Buren at their New Amsterdam convention. As the election drew closer Van Buren seemed more and more like dead man. Feeling it was beneath him, he did little to no campaigning, while Van Der Plaats was setting the bar for how campaigning should be done, going town to town and church to church getting people riled up. The Liberaals finally saw a sliver of hope when the Native Alliance announced that in order to hopefully block the Nationaals, their party would throw its support behind Van Buren this once instead of fielding their own candidate. After this both the Nationaals and the Liberaals began courting the Justitie Partij, hoping they would do the same. After days of heated debate the Justitie Partij decided to go ahead and field their own candidate. Roemer was selected once
again, creating essentially a repeat of the previous election.

Staatpresident Election 1854

Maarten van Buren (LP)(i) 42.8%
Henrik van der Plaats (NP)41.9
Erwin Roemer (JP) 15.3%

Convinced that the system was rigged and that he should have won, while the Liberaals began planning their celebration festivities Van Der Plaats began assembling militias and preparing to march on New Amsterdam. The coming years would be some of the bloodiest in the history of North American, nearly dragging the entire continent into war.

[CatoMinor]

Part 8: The Amerikaner Civil War

May 29, 1854

In the days following the election Henrik van der Plaats set out to enact a contingency plan created in the weeks prior should he have the election stolen from him as he believed it had. In the early morning hours before dawn, Van Der Plaats had assembled a militia of nearly 7,000 men, 400 cavalry, and 2,000 regular army soldiers who supported the Nationaals. A little after five in the morning Van Der Plaats led this force across the Kruger Bridge into New Amsterdam. By sunrise nearly all government buildings in the city had been seized and officials not willing to swear allegiance were arrested. Outside the capital the commander of Fort Rensselaer, outside the nearby city of Breuckelen, declared his allegiance to Van Der Plaats and the Nationaals, turning over his garrison. Likewise across the country cities, ports, and important rail centers were being seized Nationaal supporting militias and regulars. The Provinces of Iroquois and Shawnee were largely untouched as their large native populations had little support for the Nationaals. Likewise those loyal to the elected government were able to fend off the Nationaals and kept control of Rensselaerwyk, New Sweden, large swaths of Ohio, and much of the north country near the Canadian border.

Van Buren was able to avoid capture by choosing to spend the week at his home in Kinderhoek. When the coup started Van Buren's personal guard as well as near by soldiers who were loyal were able to fend off the Nationaal militia sent to arrest the Staatpresident. Swearing to defend the republic from the Nationaals Van Buren set out to organize what was left of the military that was loyal and prepare for what was shaping up to be civil war.


The Nationaal Government
The Liberaal Government