History

[Carthaginian]

The Confederate states of America

1802 Following the takeover of the Norman homeland by the Empire of France, Norman North America is split between two factions regarding its' future. The southern colonies, long-used to independence from the King, demand that they retain this status and rule themselves democratically. The northern parts of the territory, however, remain intensely loyal to the King and invite him to rule from their capital, Haroldton.
1804 The Royalist capital is surrounded. A relief column, led by General Grant, is repelled at the battle of Gettysburg. The city surrenders on the last Sunday of March. Confederate troops surround the ports of Philadelphia and New York, effectively cutting them off from supply. New York is taken in July, whilst French forces from Quebec move down the Hudson River. After a dramatic battle at Ticonderoga and the capture of Albany, French and Confederate forces link up in the Catskill Mountains west of the Hudson. Late in the year, the besieged city of Philadelphia is finally taken by Confederate forces, reinforced by French soldiers.
1805 The last stand of the Union – the Battle of Boston – is fought in May, with the Royalist ironclads being overwhelmed by both the open ocean and the French fleet, freeing up the port for the Franco-Confederate forces to occupy the city from within. The Royalists concedes defeat in June, permitting the Southern colonies.
1806 The Confederacy blames Anahuac bandits for the loss of one of the three ironclad ships in Confederate service; this leads to the Anahuac War in which the CSA occupies a significant fraction of the Anahuac Empire. Although Confederate troops reached as far south as Guadalajara, only the northern tier of provinces becomes Confederate territory.
1807 The Confederate State of Missouri is the first member of the CSA to outlaw slavery. Other states of the Western CSA follow suit, as their economies are less dependent on the black workforce.
1874 The Confederate States Navy lays down its' first modern ironclads, carrying two 11" smoothbore guns in a revolving turret in addition to the broadside battery. This comes at a time when the CSN is receiving increased funding from the limited Federal government.
1875 The Federal government of the CSA rules to outlaw the slave trade; although slavery is not banned in itself, significant sums of compensation offered to those slave-owners who do free their slaves encourage many to do so.
1880 King Harold VI is assassinated; although John Wilkes Booth, the assassin, claimed to support the South, the Confederacy denies knowledge of him.
1888 The Confederate Coast-to-Coast Railway is opened, in competition to the Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads in the Union. The railway is expected to boost the level of settlement in the states of Arizona and Sonora, and also enables the development of a coaling station on the West Coast.
1889 War scares in the Eastern Confederacy lead to the introduction of conscription in many of the states of the CSA. The few remaining slave-owners are quick to volunteer soldiers for the reserves, believing that they will be able to confiscate the slaves' earnings.
1894 The Confederate ironclad Virginia blows up in harbour at Jacksonville. A board of investigation is set up into the loss, but soon becomes redundant as a civil rights organisation – the 'Black Widows' – claims responsibility. Although dismissed by senators in the east as harmless, those in the west believe that if the remaining slaves are not freed then the CSA will have a civil war on its' hands.
1895 The assassination of President Samuels at the hands of a Black Widow agent – who was shot himself shortly afterwards – leads to demands in Congress for the emancipation of the slaves. The Emancipation Act is passed in an emergency session during June.