The American Monarchy

[Lief 🗽]

Unfortunately, I'm incredibly busy this weekend. Hopefully within the next few days.

As for the west, none of the two sides are really focusing on California or Nevada, and King Robert's forces in California are unorganized and without any real leadership. King William's supporters are slowly moving north through California and Nevada.

[Person Man]

Bump! I want to see a really fat and slovenly king!

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Bump! I want to see a really fat and slovenly king!

Then wait another century for King Elvis!

[True Democrat]

Update please.

Pretty please with sugar on top?

[CultureKing]

Update please.

Pretty please with sugar on top?

Please? We are getting desperate.

[Lief 🗽]

Tomorrow, definitely. I've been juggling college apps, homework, and an exchange student living with me for the past 2 weeks.

[Lief 🗽]

The American Monarchy: 1876

In January of 1876, Southern Prime Minister Jefferson Davis and King William met in the capital at Washington, were they were briefed by the Secretary of War George Goldthwaite (C-AL), leaders of Congress, and General Thomas Jackson, who left the front in Pennsylvania to brief the King and Prime Minister. Goldthwaite warned Davis and William that General Frost’s position in Iowa was weak, and that superior Northern forces led by Frémont would eventually overwhelm the trench lines cutting across the state. But Davis and the King were focused on taking Philadelphia, believing that the conquest of the city would effectively end the war. King William also called for a more rapid advance into California, before British troops from Oregon could invade the state.

Meanwhile, the Northern government had fled from Scranton, relocating to Toronto. With the fall of Pittsburgh, things in Pennsylvania looked bleak. Northern Prime Minister John Bingham pushed the Second Revenue Act through the Northern Senate, calling for higher revenue tariffs and a slight increase in income taxes. Conscripts and new recruits in New York and New England were just becoming battle ready, and King Robert II ordered them to Pennsylvania as soon as possible. Meanwhile, militias were being hurriedly raised in Ontario and Quebec, as a British invasion seemed imminent. The only real successes were happening in the Midwest, where Ulysses Grant had successfully invaded Missouri and a combined Northern-Plains Indian force led by General Custer and Sitting Bull had pushed back into Nebraska. The front in Indiana and Ohio had turn into a bloody, trench-war stalemate, with horrendous casualties on both sides.

General Grant struck further into Missouri during the spring of 1876, routing unprepared Southern forces. The vast majority of trained and equipped Southern troops had been sent to the trenches in Iowa, leaving Missouri defended by raw, ill-equipped recruits. Pro-Robert guerillas in Missouri were also spread throughout the state; they launched a number of attacks on Southern troops and by April of 1876 had, with Grant’s support, secured St. Louis. By May, Grant had taken Jefferson City, the state capital, and installed a pro-Robert government. The government’s first action was to abolish slavery, angering many pro-slavery Missourians, and leading to renewed guerilla warfare, this time between pro-Robert and pro-William factions. Fresh off success, Grant then marched his army to Kansas City, where he was halted by what was left of Southern forces in the state, reinforced by guerillas, militias and troops retreating from Kansas and Nebraska. In the Battle of Westport, Grant assaulted the Southern army’s makeshift fortifications over a period of two days, finally taking the city of Westport on the second day of the battle. Southern forces by this point were tired, hungry and out of supplies and ammunition, and thousands of soldiers surrendered to Northern forces. Unfortunately, Grant had been badly wounded in the battle and died a week later, on June 14th, 1876. Southern General G.T. Beauregard had arrived in southern Missouri five days earlier, and reinforced New Madrid, as he waited for reinforcements from the Deep Southern states.

During this same time, the South had made slow advances in Pennsylvania, nearly completely encircling the city of Philadelphia. But Northern General John Pope had made a maneuver that would have taken mere weeks take six months, as his troops regularly sallied outside the city, offering Southern General Jackson’s troops bitter resistance. But by June, Generals Jackson and McClellan had managed to completely surround Philadelphia, and, despite heavy casualties, Jackson and McClellan prepared themselves to take the city. British and Southern ships had blockaded much of the New England and New York, and Southern commanders were confident that they would be able to take Philadelphia before reinforcements from New England were even equipped for battle. Things fared somewhat better for the North in the plains though, as General Custer retook the Nebraskan capital of Lancaster in April of 1876. His largely cavalry forces had moved quickly against ill-prepared and overly-stretched Southern troops, forcing them to retreat into Iowa and Kansas. At the same time, the Southern commander in Iowa, Daniel M. Frost, was losing the war of attrition against General Frémont, as Frémont’s trenches were protected by Gatling guns and newly introduced barbed wire, a battlefield innovation that had happened largely by accident during a skirmish at a cattle ranch. Frost’s position was precarious, and with the loss of Missouri and Nebraska, he had become nearly surrounded.


State of the War: June 1876

Custer continued his rapid advance into Kansas, taking the north of the state by the end of July and linking up with Northern forces (now commanded by once again re-assigned Gen. William Sherman) in Kansas City. With Southern General Daniel M. Frost completely surrounded, Sherman, Frémont, Custer and Sitting Bull met in Lancaster in August and drew up plans for a final assault against Frost’s by-now heavily fortified trench lines, spanning nearly the entire width of the state. In September they advanced, Sherman from the South, Custer and Sitting Bull from the West, and Frémont from the North. The fighting was especially bloody in the North, Frémont’s troops constantly slowed by dug-in Southern resistance. Custer and Sitting Bull used their cavalry to cut Southern supply lines and burn and pillage the sympathetic ranches and farms that had been supporting them with food. Sherman also employed scorched earth tactics, though his army also fought numerous bloody battles to break Frost’s trenches. By the beginning of October, however, after nearly a month of battle and 95,000 casualties total, Frost’s remaining forces, by this point reduced to primarily melee combat due to a lack of ammunition, surrendered. Further Northern successes came later that October, when reinforcements from New York and New England finally arrived in Pennsylvania. Jackson and McClellan, realizing they were outnumbered, broke the siege of Philadelphia, allowing General Pope’s garrison in the city to be reinforced by new recruits. Rather than go on the offensive, however, Pope stayed in the city, confident that his trenches and fortifications would prevent Southern conquest.

By this point, what King William had believed would be a quick and effortless war was turning into one of the bloodiest conflicts in world history. Trenches had cut across Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, with neither side able to gain the upper-hand, despite mounting casualties. The capture of Pittsburgh had not knocked the North out of the war, and in fact seemed to have done more damage to over-stretched Southern armies in Pennsylvania. King William demanded that Jefferson Davis call for nationwide conscription and told the Prime Minister that, if need be, the black population would need to be drafted as well. Northern advantages in industry and population were beginning to prevail in this war of attrition.

In the North, the mood was slightly more positive, though the bloody war was exacting a toll on the nation’s spirit. Nonetheless, in a speech before the Senate on October 17th, 1876, King Robert II called on people of the North to not waver in their pursuit of victory. Privately, before Prime Minister Bingham’s cabinet (comprising only of a Secretary of State, Treasury and War due to reasons of practicality), Robert concluded that unless the British invaded soon, victory would be won by Christmas of 1877. He also confided that at the next Northern victory, he would issue a royal proclamation abolishing slavery, which would hopefully end Britain’s alliance with King William. Unfortunately, during this very meeting, British troops began their invasion; British cavalry invaded from Oregon into Dakota Territory, as British militias spilled over the border south into California. At the same time, a British army 30,000 strong landed in northern Quebec, quickly advancing into New Brunswick and Maine as well.


State of the War: December 1876

[Robespierre's Jaw]

Once again, a great update. I really hope that the Northerners will be able to pull off a victory in this War. But not now, thanks to the British. They drive me Barmy!

[Person Man]

It would be neat if the invasion reunited the country... I hope the war ends soon..it would also be cool if the British conquered the country and an insurgency through out the U.S., and America broke out.

[Lief 🗽]

The American Monarchy: 1877

The British advance into the Dakota Territory was rapid, and it forced King Robert to divert his forces in Missouri to the north. General Custer was ordered to return to the Dakota Territory, while John C. Frémont led his troops that had claimed victory in Iowa north to the Mississippi River border of Wisconsin. Unfortunately for King Robert, both Custer and Frémont were not able to move fast, as there was still considerable guerilla activity in Kansas and Missouri that needed to be dealt with. With almost no resistance, British forces were able to move quickly, their only hindrance arriving in the form of the harsh winter weather. By March, guerilla activity had been brought somewhat under control, and Custer and Frémont moved north. In April, with Missouri relatively defenseless, General G.T. Beauregard led reinforcements from Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas further north, against General Sherman’s fortified army. Sherman, realizing that Beauregard’s army was nearly twice the size of his own, refused to meet the Southern general in battle, instead retreating across the state, leaving scorched earth in his path. This strategy managed to delay Beauregard’s advance and sap the morale of his forces. Despite this, Beauregard knew that reinforcements were on the way, due to the recent passage of the conscription acts in the South.

In California, British troops proved to be completely inept and poorly trained, and the scrappy Californian defenders won numerous battles against them. By May, the British had been pushed back into Oregon, but the British invasion had allowed Southern troops to quickly move north through California, and by the summer of 1877, California and Nevada had been nearly completely conquered by Southern troops. At sea, the British aided the South in blockading most of the Californian coast. Meanwhile, in the Dakota Territory, Custer proved unable to decisively defeat the invading British, and their advance continued largely unchecked. By the summer, British forces had beaten Custer to the Mississippi, where Frémont was ill-prepared to defend Minnesota. In Quebec, King Robert II had quickly levied militias and soldiers to defend against the British advance. Luckily for King Robert, the winter slowed down the British considerably, and with superior knowledge of the terrain, British forces were slowly pushed back. Further, with the threat of British conquest, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick relented, and voted to join the United States as crown dependencies in March. The Northern Senate approved the entry during that same month, though a furious Jefferson Davis passed a resolution condemning and rebuking the two nations and supporting Britain. The Battle of Fort Fairfield in early May proved to be the deciding battle of the British campaign. The British had taken Fort Fairfield with little fight months earlier, but a combined force of militia from Maine, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and New Hampshire, backed up by an army detachment commanded by Lt. Col. Joshua Chamberlain, besieged the fort and captured and killed nearly 5,000 British soldiers by the time the fort had been taken in mid-May. With a full sixth of their invading army claimed by casualties in the one battle alone, the British retreated and regrouped into upper Maine and Quebec.

As summer approached, with the Northern army pre-occupied with defending against the British, King William ordered a massive offensive along the Ohio River Front. Southern military leaders realized that military training was unnecessary when assaulting the Northern trench lines in frontal assaults, and as such, the huge number of Southern conscripts arrived with little training and poor equipment. To further boost numbers, William had ordered a draft of all black men aged 18 to 40, compensating slave owners for their drafted slaves with hastily printed bank notes backed up by a shrinking gold reserve. The 1877 Ohio River Offensive began during the early morning of May 3rd, 1877. Southern generals employed massive frontal wave assaults at key points along the over five-hundred mile long front¹. While the Northern trenches held the first assaults, as they always did, masses of soldiers eventually overwhelmed Northern defenses, and for the first time in two years, the stalemate along the Ohio River front was broken.  By the end of June, Southern forces had advanced nearly one-hundred miles north into Indiana, with additional advances in Ohio and Illinois, though they had incurred staggering casualties, with about 19% of fighting soldiers killed, and casualty rates at nearly 60%.


State of the War: July 1877

The Southern government realized that these high casualty rates would eventually destroy the army, but King William had many more reinforcement conscripts, and if it was needed, he was more than willing to draft every last slave in the county to preserve his government. In Missouri, during July and August, Sherman continued to slowly retreat, delaying Beauregard’s advance into northern Missouri and Iowa. On the other side of the Missouri, the Southern advance continued undeterred, human wave tactics overwhelming Northern trenches and fortifications. General James Garfield, commander of the forces on the Ohio River Front found himself overwhelmed, as assault after assault kept coming against his lines. By September, he was forced to order a general retreat, hoping that if his forces could regroup further north they would be able to stem the Southern onslaught. A number of bloody battles closed out the 1877 Ohio River Offensive. At the Battle of Peoria in central Illinois, Northern forces held off Southern assaults for 48 straight hours before finally succumbing, though the Southern forces in the battle suffered casualties seven times higher than their northern adversaries. The Battle of Wabash in Indiana unfolded similarly, once again resulting in a Southern victory, but at a devastating price. Finally, General Jackson, reinforced with recruits who had actually been trained and equipped for battle, moved north from Pittsburgh in September, breaking through the Northern trenches and met up with the army in Ohio. By November, after two months of bloody, slow advances, Jackson reached Lake Erie, successfully splitting the north in two.

Though all seemed lost in Pennsylvania and on the Ohio River front, in Dakota, General Custer was able to push back the British, with the help of Sioux and Lakota tribes that had cut their supply lines. Finally, at the Battle of Little Bighorn on September 3rd, General Custer and Sitting Bull surrounded the retreating British force. In the bloody massacre that ensued, the British fought to the last man, taking the Indian war chief Sitting Bull with them. After the battle had been won, George Custer ordered Sitting Bull’s body returned to his tribe, and wrote King Robert II, requesting a funeral in the capital in remembrance of the Indian chief, a companion and friend that Custer had grown incredibly close to. Despite the loss of a valued ally, the battle was a clear strategic victory for the North, as it forced the British out of the Dakota Territory. Custer immediately turned his forces south, speeding back to Missouri. The British were also defeated in Quebec during September, though delaying actions by the British allowed most of the British invasion force to escape the mainland and sail back to Newfoundland. Quebecois militia prepared themselves to follow the British north, but King Robert II specifically forbade it. With Southern forces on the verge of victory in Pennsylvania, within miles of Chicago, and in nearly full control of California and Nevada, Robert understood that he would need the British to be at the very least neutral if he was to succeed. He also needed new allies. In the winter of 1877, with the enemy at the gates, King Robert II sent envoys into Utah territory, further south into Mexico, and across the sea to Prince Edward Island.


State of the War: December 1877

¹Added to the sickening display of death that characterized the 1877 Ohio River Offensive was the tendency of Southern generals to use their black soldiers in the first assaults, effectively using them as cannon fodder, saving the white soldiers for the later, safer assaults.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

More map quibbles, I'm afraid.  Unless there is a Colorado Territory, the western border of Nebraska makes no sense.  Even with a Colorado Territory, I'd imagine that given the cession of Oregon to the British, the northern border of Colorado would be 42N instead of 41N.  Lastly, there was an unofficial Jefferson Territory in much the same area, so perhaps naming the territory after Jefferson or Hamilton in this time line would prove of interest.

[Хahar 🤔]

Sitting Bull and Custer best friends? How ironic.

[Reignman]

I doubt the South can maintain this kind of war effort for long. If the South is going to win, I'm guessing that they win sooner rather than later.

[Person Man]

HOPE THIS WAR IS DECIDED SOON... I want to see more expansion...and the modern age.

[Person Man]

Bump!

[Lief 🗽]

I'll update this weekend, and hopefully get to the end of the Civil War.

[CultureKing]

cool beans

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

It needs a cooler name than the Civil War.  The War of the American Succession would be much better.  Why let the Spanish and Austrians have all the fun?

[Verily]

It needs a cooler name than the Civil War.  The War of the American Succession would be much better.  Why let the Spanish and Austrians have all the fun?

It's not a succession war, though. At least, the succession was never in doubt.

[Lief 🗽]

The American Monarchy: 1878

King Robert II’s envoys first arrived in Utah Territory, which had remained loyal to King William. The diplomatic mission was led by Robert Todd Lincoln, the son of the former Prime Minister. The Governor of the territory, Samuel Beach Axtell (a Constitution Party loyalist), would not be turned to King Robert’s side, so Lincoln instead met with John Taylor, leader of the LDS Church. While initially apprehensive, Lincoln convinced Taylor to lead his fellow Mormons in open rebellion against King William’s government. The Northern government would offer them support and, following victory in the war, would give the LDS church greater autonomy over Utah Territory. In early March, Mormons rose up in open revolt, killing Governor Axtell and taking control of the territory. With General George Custer’s arrival in early April, Mormon and Northern forces managed to take control of Utah territory, as well as push into Nevada. The conquest of Utah allowed Northern forces to once again use the Transcontinental Railroad, allowing much needed troops and supplies to finally arrive in California. By the summer, Californian forces had begun to retake much of the state.

Diplomats meeting with Porfirio Díaz in Mexico and British representatives in Prince Edward Island were less successful. Mexico refused to join King Robert II while the British were still at war, and Díaz himself did not want to join what he saw as the losing side in the struggle. The British, while no longer enthused about invading once again, were still wary about supporting what was in their eyes a revolutionary government. King Robert II reasoned that he needed a crushing victory to prove to Mexico that victory was attainable and so that he could issue the royal proclamation he had been meaning to issue for over a year now, one that would end Britain’s involvement and convince Mexico to join the war on his side.

The situation on the Ohio River Front was precarious, for both sides. Southern forces were within miles of Chicago, Indiana and Ohio had been nearly completely conquered, and Beauregard was crossing the Missouri border into Iowa. But the 1877 offensive had left the Southern army in miserable shape. Most of the soldiers serving had been injured before in battle. Food was scarce, and disease ran rampant. Death rates were astronomical and the Southern economy was suffering. The Senate in Washington was bitterly divided, and elections had not occurred since 1868. Many Senators began calling for new leadership, and King William regularly threatened to dissolve the Senate if more money was not appropriated. Marshall Law prevailed in many Southern cities as draft riots broke out throughout the country. Nevertheless, King William believed that victory was close at hand. Reports from the front were positive, and he had little idea of the bloodshed occurring, only that his forces were coming out victorious.

But by April, when the South began its march on Chicago, it had become apparent that their own tactics had sapped their very own strength and morale. At the Battle of Des Plaines, Southern wave tactics failed for the first time since the offensive had begun. Northern defensive positions on the north side of the river easily cut down the first waves of advancing Southern troops as they tried to ford the shallow river crossings. As the day continued, Southern forces began to break, refusing to charge ahead, many units too under-manned to operate effectively. A charge by emboldened Northern troops late in the day finally broke the Southern line, and Chicago remained in Northern hands. The Southern advance in Indiana was also halted at a number of crucial skirmishes. Exhausted Southern troops in many cases refused to fight or retreated at the beginning of battle, and in a few isolated incidents they even mutinied. Near Philadelphia, reinforcements from New England that had been fighting the British in Quebec and Maine finally arrived, and pushed back Southern forces after three weeks of bloody trench warfare. In Pennsylvania, General James Garfield regained the Erie Coast at the Battle of Ashtabula River. With support from ships on Lake Erie and a coastal invasion of troops from Ontario and Michigan, Garfield soundly defeated the worn-out forces of Southern General Jackson. Jackson’s army, the largest and best-trained army in the entire Southern military, was reduced to a shell of itself by the end of the three-day battle, running low on ammunition, suffering low morale, under-manned and having lost its artillery in the retreat.

Most importantly, Garfield’s heroic victory had significant repercussions: a week after the victory, on May 1st, 1878, King Robert II issued the Royal Proclamation of Emancipation, a royal decree signed by every single Senator. The Proclamation permanently abolished slavery in the United States. The Proclamation was immediately positively received in Britain, where the British parliament agreed to recognize King Robert II as the true king of the United States and cease all hostilities. In Mexico, word of the Proclamation and Britain’s neutrality, as well as the numerous Northern victories that year, convinced the government to declare war on the Southern United States, to help instate King Robert II (and win the good-will of the United States). Mexican troops began spilling over the border in early June 1878.


State of the War: June 1878

Reinforcements and ammunition arrived in California in the early fall, and with aid from General Custer, the Southern troops in the state were quickly pushed back. Southern General Edmund Kirby Smith, Commander of the Western Theater, called for reinforcements from the states of Sonora and Hamilton, but the governors of those states were unable to send help, as their own states were quickly falling to Mexican forces. Southern forces in Hamilton regrouped in the state’s capital of Hamilton City, determined to hold the capital against Mexican forces. President Porfirio Díaz had appointed Manuel González as commander of Mexican forces invading Hamilton and Sonora. While the Mexican army was nowhere near as technologically advanced as Southern forces, González’s troops outnumbered the defenders of Hamilton City nearly 3 to 1, and were better prepared than the Southern defenders, who were mostly militia and conscripts. Hamilton City fell in early October, and with its fall, Southern resistance in the state effectively ceased. Hermosillo, the capital of Sonora, held out longer than Hamilton City, but by the end of October, and weeks of bloody fighting, it had fallen. Southern resistance in the Southwest was effectively over by the beginning of November, when Custer’s forces moved into northern Sonora and South California Territory.

In Texas, the situation was just as bad for King William. The border between Mexico and Texas had been left largely undefended, and the state’s government was poorly prepared to repulse a Mexican invasion. King William was unable to divert troops from the Ohio River or Pennsylvania, and the hastily-raised Texan militias were unable to effectively fight Mexican forces. Elsewhere west of the Mississippi, abolitionist guerillas in Kansas and Missouri raided Southern positions and government installations, taking back northern Kansas by the end of the year. General Sherman, after nearly a year of delaying Southern General Beauregard’s advance, struck back. Due to the extensive use of scorched earth tactics by Sherman and constant harassment by guerillas, Beauregard’s army was in terrible shape. At the Battle of Platte River, General William Sherman prevailed in a three-day battle against Beauregard’s troops. While Beauregard had assumed a strong defensive position, turning back the first day’s Northern assault, Sherman managed to outflank Beauregard’s position on the second day, and partially surrounded a large detachment of Southern forces. On the third day, with heavy losses the day before, Beauregard’s defensive line was easily broken. With the loss at Platte River, Beauregard was forced to retreat, with Sherman on his heels.

Along with losses in the Southwest and Missouri, King William saw perhaps his greatest setback in the Ohio River Theater. General James Garfield led a huge offensive against Southern forces beginning in August. He had been reinforced with nearly 100,000 recruits from New England, New York and the Canadian states. Garfield’s offensive shifted the entire front faster than had ever been seen in the entire war. Southern armies were undermanned and undersupplied. Mutinies increased dramatically. There were many incidents of Southern officers surrendering to Northern forces without a fight. By the end of the year, Ohio and Indiana had been completely liberated, with only a few remaining pockets in southern Illinois. Garfield began to prepare his armies for an invasion of Kentucky and Virginia, at King Robert II’s request.


State of the War: December 1878

[Kevinstat]

Who controls Pittsburgh now?  Based on a quick view of your latest map I'm not sure, but I imagine you (Leif) would have indicated it if the north had liberated it.  My guess is that will happen in your next update.

[Lief 🗽]

Pittsburgh is still under Southern control, though Northern forces are just outside the city.

[Lief 🗽]

The American Monarchy: 1879

In January of 1879, with such rapid, wide-ranging losses throughout the country, there was a sense of confusion and despair in the Southern capital of Washington. Jefferson Davis, threatened by both National and Constitution party Senators, stepped down. The Senate hadn’t seen elections in a decade, and through resignations and deaths its makeup had changed considerably. Before the war began, the national party had held more seats than their coalition partner, the Constitution party. But in the early stages of the war, with support largely behind Breckenridge and then Davis, the Constitution party had slowly increased its lead by winning a vast majority of by elections, eventually claiming a majority in the Senate. The Constitution party put up John H. Reagan of Texas for Prime Minister, confident that their superior numbers would elect him over the National candidate, but moderates in the party unexpectedly broke with the leadership, and helped Thomas F. Bayard (N-DE) become Prime Minister. Bayard was a moderate, and campaigned before his fellow Senators on a platform of ending the war, recognizing the Royal Proclamation of Emancipation, and recognizing King Robert II as rightful King. Bayard served as Prime Minister for only a week; an enraged King William labeled him a traitor and ordered the Senate dissolved. Bayard and his supporters (and even many in the opposition), arrived at the Senate regardless, calling the dissolution illegal. King William’s personal guard broke into the Senate chamber and arrested Bayard and all other Senators.

The collapse of the Southern government went hand in hand with the collapse of their armed forces. Southern troops were finally defeated in Illinois in February of 1879. Guerilla forces, backed up with Northern arms and artillery, pushed the South out of Kansas by the end of March. Mexican forces continued to advance rapidly. King William had ordered the conscription of Texan forces in the state and sent Brig. General Simon Buckner to command troops in the state. However, King William had lost nearly all of his authority by the spring of 1879, and Buckner refused to leave his home state of Kentucky as Northern forces were about to invade. With Texan forces unorganized and demoralized, Mexican and Northern troops marched into the capital of Jackson and Houston by the summer. The Prince of Texas, King William’s brother-in-law, had resigned his position and left the state when the Mexican army invaded, leaving the Speaker of the Texas Parliament, Richard B. Hubbard in charge of the state. Hubbard reluctantly surrendered to Mexican-Northern forces, and led the Parliament in taking an oath of allegiance to Robert II. Nathaniel Banks, commander of Northern troops in Texas, also forced the Texan Parliament to abolish slavery, in compliance with the Royal Proclamation of Emancipation. General George Custer also arrived in the state in May, with news that he and his men, with Mormon support, had liberated the entirety of Sonora, Hamilton, California and Nevada and the territories of Lower California, Arizona, Utah and Colorado.

In the East, Garfield’s crossing of the Ohio River proved to be incredibly successful, with Southern forces continuing to fall back in disarray. General Sherman had retaken Missouri entirely by the spring, with Beauregard finally surrendering in Northern Arkansas. In May, Garfield was relocated to Ohio, where he led a successful invasion of Virginia. Western Virginians welcomed Garfield with open arms, and resistance was initially weak. In Washington, King William was still determined to win the war, and he had ordered all forces in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the southern states that had not yet been invaded to regroup in central Virginia, where they were placed under the command of immensely popular General McClellan. William hoped that McClellan’s popularity with the troops would help the morale problems that Southern armies had been suffering across the country. General Jackson was told to abandon Pittsburgh and regroup in Maryland (Delaware had already fallen in February), where he was told to dig in and prevent Northern General John Pope from advancing further.

In August, Sherman took New Orleans without a fight, and then marched west to Lafayette, meeting up with Mexican forces and Generals Custer and Banks. After a few weeks of rest, Sherman and his troops crossed the Mississippi River into the state of Mississippi. Meanwhile, McClellan threw all his remaining forces against General Cleveland, in a last ditch effort to turn the war around. The Three Weeks Campaign was the result. In a return to the tactics of maneuver that had begun the war, for three weeks McClellan and Garfield battled across the state of Virginia. McClellan initially claimed the upper-hand, pushing Garfield back into western Virginia. But despite early successes, Garfield won the critical Battle of Lynchburg, and the next two weeks of the campaign consisted of a number of skirmishes, culminating in the Battle of  Petersburg on September 3rd, 1879, where Garfield forced McClellan to surrender. Garfield then took his army north, taking Richmond. When General Jackson heard that Richmond had fallen, he sent an emissary across the trench-lines to Northern General Pope, offering his surrender. Thomas Jackson surrendered on September 17th, 1879, and on October 10th, General John Pope from the north and General James Garfield from the south marched into Washington. Thomas Bayard was released from jail, along with his fellow Senators. They famously walked from their jail cells through the city into the Senate, where they re-convened, many still in prisoner’s uniforms. Thomas Bayard was again elected Prime Minister by the Senate, and Garfield, Pope and Bayard signed a treaty of unconditional surrender. A week later, the bodies of King William, his wife, Queen Consort Rebbecca, and their new-born son William were found in Arlington Palace.

In the North, there was rejoicing. A war that had seemed unwinnable at its outset had now, five years later, been won. King Robert II was inaugurated in the capital on Christmas Day, 1879, surrounded by generals, politicians, and soldiers. He paraded through the streets, as a jubilant crowd of onlookers cheered. The nation was weary of war, and in a speech in front of the capital, King Robert II promised healing, rebuilding, and peace. The political situation of the country still needed to be sorted out (the question of Mormon and Indian autonomy, reconstruction, the insurance of the rights of ex-slaves, and new elections were all pressing issues), but for a few weeks at the end of 1879, the United States, once again united, was able to celebrate the end of bloodshed. The American War of Succession was over.

[True Democrat]

And awesome profile picture.

[Kevinstat]

Awesome update Lief.  Looking forward to renewed elections and whatever equivilient of OTL recontruction threre is, but by all means take a break.  Not too long a one though please.  I really enjoy reading this thread.