Tweet
Second World War: Das Grenadiers
World at War: Das Grenadiers
Lessons in Pre-Modern Warfare
Scenario I: When the Time is Right
Timespan: January 1938
Facts and Figures
An Overview
Version 1.0
This project began some months ago as a mere glimmer of thought, and was eventually shaped from idea into reality by a corps of dedicated developers whose influence has been more pofound than they know. The observation of several games concerning the time period - some of which include "The World War II SD", the "1938 SD", "Age of Imperialism", and "Seas of Steel" would eventually influence both the system and its presentation. I would be thoughtless not to include those mentions. Fenris, Solo, Posbi, Scott Fluhr, and General Melechtt have been more help than they realize, and I thank them for their contribution - however unknowingly. 99% of the Confederate idea, however, is from the 'Great War' novels created by Harry Turtledove, a brilliant author whose works are to be much admired.
'World at War: Das Grenadiers' is an interactive study of alternate military, economic, and political avenues open to the world on the eve of the Great War. Players shall assume the roles of national leaders in an attempt to achieve specific goals stipulated by the Moderator, and dictated by history. They shall be free to achieve this aims through a variety of means.
The world of 'Das Grenadiers' is signifigantly different from our own. All players shall begin by selecting a nation circa 1928. A feasible and well-documented alternate history shall then be produced covering the decade remaining until 1938, when the story debate is to begin. Alternate histories may include limited conquests and minor territorial wars, but may not involve a larger conflict between the Great Powers, or a complete revision of likely territories, mindsets, economies, or militaries. While it may be possible for Argentina to become an agressive force in South America, for instance, she would not reasonably be any sort of long-term threat to the United States. It should be within these alternate histories that several national goals, perrogatives, and Great Power allies are established and set down. Players shall then submit said alternate histories to Desert Journeymen before they are approved to begin.
All nations shall possess three (3) advantages and disadvantages each. The United States might, for example, have fostered a second substantial era of industrialization during the 1930s, and would therefore possess an advantage in that respect. Likewise, she might have placed very little emphasis on producing newer technologies for her armed forces. Therefore, while probably retaining a military of signifigant or even superior size, she might still be signifigantly behind Germany and Japan in the development of a modern airforce and submersible navy.
The following weapons are banned (prohibited) in gameplay: guided missiles, directed rockets, satillites of any fashion, assault rifles of a modern design or influence, radar of modern design or influence, jet technology, long-range rockets, spacecraft of any nature, atomic or nuclear devices of any type, technology superior to conventional models obtained in 1944. New models based on modifications or redesigns of existing hardware are, of course, permitted.
The following weapons may or may not have remained influential on the battlefield during the decade since the First World War: poison gas, quick-firing light artillery, mounted cavalry, armored locomotives and rolling stock, dreadnaught- or battlecruiser-type vessels, zeppelins, seaplane carriers, rigid airship carriers.
The one major difference in the world at large is the existance of a Confederate States of America, whose general timeline shall be posted shortly after gameplay begins. The Confederacy aquired victory during the Civil War in 1862, and again rose to defend her independance during the 1880s. An inconclusive series of devestating campaigns across the Roanoke Valley, much of Kentucky, and a great deal of Arkansas, Texas, and Sonora, devestated both nations, and quickened the onset of severe depression - which developed first in the later days of 1919. The Treaty of Versailles merely served to end hostilities, but did not establish a clear victor on the North American continent. The North remains closely associated with the Axis powers, while Richmond maintains firm ties with both Britain and France. Other than this deviation, the remaining nations in the world at large continue to operate according to the norm. Because of the question of their timelines and alternate histories, Desert Journeyman shall independantly develop the advantages/disadvantages, and full alternate history of both the United and Confederate States of America.
As Moderator of the game, I will scale back on alternate histories that generally provide nations with thier goals beforehand. For that reason, Japan would not, for example, be permitted to have recieved the Dutch East Indies before the game began, nor would they necessarily be in a position to easily do so immediately.
Considerable research and prior knowledge shall be required for this game, and it is suggested that all players locate online resources. Preference shall be given to those best prepared and most knowledgeable. As usual, atlases, encycolepedias, and text pertaining to the subject is quite useful. The following texts are quite informative and shall prove a great deal of help:
• A World At Arms, Weinberg
• Weapons of World War II, Barnes & Noble
• Atlas of the Second World War, The Times
• The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, Kennedy
• The World War One Sourcebook, Hawthornthwaitte
• War At Sea: 1897-1997, Jane's
• The Great War in Africa, Farwell
• Atlas of World History, Dorsling Kindersly
1962
September:
General Robert E. Lee conducts his invasion of Maryland, forcing a way across the Patomac to struggle with McClellan. The "text-book" Naploen, fearful of being outflanked by reserves the Confederates could never muster, withdraws his corps from the ridges above Antietam creek, and in doing so, is thoroughly routed. Thousands of Federal troops fall during a vain attempt to stave off inevitable defeat, and victory is at hand for Jefferson Davis' fledgling nation. London and Paris recognize Richmond's government almost immediately following news of the battle, whose implications suggest that Washington will now fall under siege. Lincoln is presented with a European ultimatum - surrender, or the British shall choke the American shipping lanes and destroyer the northern economy. Both England and France promise to support their Confederate allies reguardless of Federal protest. In the face of such opposition, "Old Abe" crumbles and acceedes that he has lost the war. Republican leadership ends, and the Democrats are set to dominate - on appeasement platforms - until 1880.
October:
Generals Rosecrans and Buell flee Kentucky, Braxton Bragg at their heels. Perryville has fallen to the Confederates, and the North has been thrown from its vital 'border state' so precious to stategic control of the Ohio River Valley. A Confederate invasion of the New Mexico Territory begins with similar aims, although overextended supply lines and insufficient numbers preclude a general retreat by the middle of December.
November:
Attaining victory along every front, Richmond begins preparations for the rise of a Confederate state. A General Legislature is formed, binding the Southern states to one another in fortune and intent. The Democratic-Republican and Whig parties shall become Richmond's largest and most influential political parties. The Confederate Senate votes a series of industrialization plans into effect, based on 'five year plans.' The first shall not be complete when it is declared ended in 1969.
December:
The Treaty of Paris ends the War Between the States on a bitter note, as the United States now finds a hostile nation at her abreviated frontiers. A series of border skirmishes escalates shortly after the accords, although French and British intervention have clearly turned the tide in favor the Confederacy, which now begins its own painstaking reconstruction.
1865
January:
Western expansion begins in both the North and South. Almost 500,000 leave the East in a mass exodus, determined to carve the wilderness to their liking. Skirmishes between government troops and native tribes are common, although nearly always one-sided. The government in Richmond promotes raids into Federal territory, promising Indian leaders safe passage through Confederate territory, and large sums of money or promises of land. They make good on their deal - some say hardly - by permitting the Unorganized Territory to form under what is generally recognized as native influence.
1869
April:
Confederate ironclad warships appear off Santiado de Cuba and demand the Spanish surrender of the tropical island. Within two weeks, Richmond occupies Habana, much to Federal consternation.
The U.S. only now begins to emerge from economic recession after having closed herself off from English trade, a humiliation she must now face not only at the negotiating table, but on the competative market, where Confederate industry has grown to permit a limited capacity after the war, generally founded on the textile industry. A handful of iron works do exist.
May:
Union-Pacific completes Trans-Continental Railroad at Promentary Point, Utah.
1872:
February:
President Alexander Stephens urges the Legislature to begin the second of the South's ill-fated industrial perrogratives, although this lasts out only two years before collapsing due to concerns of the budget. A number of states such as Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and Mississippi never offer their conscent.
Federal President Edwin McMasters Stanton gathers 30,000 Federal troops on the border of Virginia and Maryland to 'prosecute concerns of arbitration' and regain that portion of the Virginian state across the Chesapeke Bay from the mainland. During the 'Valentine's Turkeyshoot', 3,000 Union soldiers fall storming two well-defended Confederate forts. Stanton is not reelected and remains unpopular throughout his term. Richmond makes little reply, although again, the Northern markets falter during a period of uncertainty and political upheval.
1881:
June:
Having arranged the purchase of the Mexican territories of Chihuahua and Sonora for some $3,000,000.00, the government in Richmond sets about garrisoning the same, only to be confronted by protest from the United States administration, who declares the transaction void in that the Mexican leadership has faulted in selling its own land out of duress. Heated tensions are lit ablaze when Federal cavalrymen encounter a Confederate patrol during an 'Indian raid' into the Unorganized Territory. Following a short-lived battle in which Gatling Guns provide for the wholesale slaughter of a Confederate horse squadron, Richmond issues a proclimation of war, quickly followed by the arrival of Southern troops in the newest of Confederate territories.
July:
A Federal Army 120,000 strong lays siege to Louisville, Kentucky. In the first instances of trench warfare, General "Stonewall" Jackson halts the Federal advance upon the city, throwing back Washington's troops in bloody disarray. Robert Rosecrans, commander of the Army of the Ohio persists, however, and a bloody stalemate ensues that shall extend to last out the war. Similar fronts appear along the border between Maryland and Virginia, although there is little progress made by either side.
August:
Mormon uprisings in Utah and Nevada quickly immobilize Salt Lake City and those regions west of the rebellion. Federal troops are pulled from Rosecran's command and quickly sent to help quell the dissident, a matter which shall eventually require several months and considerable numbers of able-bodied men.
Jeb Stuart II, Southern commander of the Trans-Miississippi Department begins raids against Federal outposts in the New Mexico Territory, raiding Contention City and siezing that town and her large garrison without firing a shot. Richmond becomes the recipiant of several tonnes of pressed silver.
October:
Fighting continues to intensify as the Louisville campaign gains more attention from Washington. Despite obvious concerns of possible encroachment by British troops from Canada, Federal officers regulate precious supplies of ammunition and equippage to Rosecrans, often with no tangible result.
During the Battle of Two Passes, Confederate troops successfully rout Federal milita with the aid of Indian allies eager to cast away the Federal government. The New Mexico Territory lies nominally undefended.
November:
Tombstone, Arizona burned to the ground by Jeb Stuart II. Confederate 5th Cavalry returns to Sonora in order to quell local troubles, as Southern commanders begin to fear possible shortages of supply.
Federal steamer Pelican siezed by Confederate commerce raider Semmes in Bermuda; the arrival of U.S. warships two days later provokes a series of protests in London that result in Elizabeth's desire to support further, England's Confederate allies.
1882:
January:
The Mormon riots are concluded only after considerable bloodshed, prompting further Northern outrage against the war. Draft riots in New York City, Chicago, and Baltimore hamper a frusterated war effort even as Rosecrans continues to feed his army into Jackson's prepared defenses outside of Louisville.
President Longstreet, against the advice of his close advisors, negotiates British and French entry into the Second Mexican War, in return for promised manumission of slaves at its close. Critized harshly by a number of his generals, Longstreet stands by his agreement even as the United States seems prepared to capitulate and demand a cease-fire.
February:
British marines land in San Franscisco and burn the U.S. Mint therein following a naval bombardment that ends the career of one Colonel William T. Sherman, whose inept defenses are quickly overrun. Similar incidents are recorded in Los Angeles and San Diego. Alaska is claimed in its entirety by the Moscuvites, despite Washington's claims to that region. The Federal government remains in possession only of Juneau.
March:
British troops in Canada enter northern Maine virtually unopposed. The British bombard Buffalo from the Great Lakes, and later shell Chigago and Columbus. President Blaine negotiates a cease-fire with his Confederate counterpart Longstreet, ending a most humiliating war. On 30 March, 1882, slaves are manumitted across the South - unconditionally. Aparthied begins three days later.
April:
Theodore Roosevelt, commander of the 'Rough Riders' regiment in Montana repulses a British invasion led by General Gordon. Key to this victory is the Federal cavalry under George Custer and a battery of Gatling Guns whose worth remained until-then unproven. Varying accounts of roles during the battle shall result in a fierce rivalry.
On 22 April, 1881, the Second Mexican War ends with a cease fire. No treaty of peace is ever signed. Hostilities end a war that has cost 83,000 Federal and 56,000 Southern lives. Immediately, Republican leadership fragments. Led by Abraham Lincoln, a socialist party forms from the ashes of Blaine's constituents, and progressive populists rise to power in Congress. Democractic leadership shall again hold over until Republican Theodore Roosevelt assumes the Presidency.
December:
Oil is found in moderate abundance in Texas, and the Confederacy immediately begins construction of an extended railway line to promote the export and exploitation of the 'black gold'.
1886
August:
Berthed in San Juan, Puerto Rico during a routine coaling stop, the U.S. Battleship 'Brookyln' explodes during what appears an act of sabotage, war, or both. 'Yellow journalism' rises throughout the North, and the Post and Times quickly propell the nation and its leadership towards war with Spain. Commodore Dewey, commander of the Pacific Squadron in the West Indies, meauvers to the Phillipines, scoring a decisive victory in Manilla harbor. Similar battles occur off Puerto Rico, where the Spanish navy is thoroughly routed. Spain ceedes Puerto Rico to the United States for $2,000,000. The Phillipines remain in Spanish hands.
1887
March:
Markets in both the U.S. and C.S. come under strain during the outset of the 1887 fiscal year, driving tens of thousands from work and bankrupting many profitable endeavors. Industrialists across the world withdraw their investment from a failing economy, provoking the 'Scare of 1887', and beginning a mild recession that leads the North to promote isolationist policies and the South to rely more heavily on European trade.
May:
A third and final Confederate initiative to industrialize is voted down by the General Legislature, increasing the South's reliance upon a weak cotton crop and a small wealth of mineral resources, including silver.
June:
Trans-Continental railroad completed in the Confederacy, linking Guaymas, Sonora - the South's only Pacific port - with Richmond, Virginia and major cities in between. A vast majority of the labor has been that of freed slaves still indentured to Confederate landowners.
1902
April:
Confederate prospectors locate oil in Arkansas and Sonora, rejuvenating the Confederacy's fractured economic policies by lending foreign speculation to Richmond's exchequers. The South declares itself a chief exporter of oils, even as silver begins to flow from Chihuahua and Sonora.
1904
January:
Federal envoys negotiate treaties of provision with Chilé and the Peru, ensuring a South American supply of patroleum for the North, and increasing those nations' reliance upon Federal commodity flows. Richmond and Britain protest strongly, although neither takes action directly against the United States. For a short while, Britain reinforces her Sandwich Islands squadrons.
September:
Confederate President Jeb Stuart III, acting on statements left by former Secretary of the Navy, Stephen Mallory, agressively pursues the construction of a canal across the Isthmus of Panama. Despite limited protest by the Panamanians, Richmond enlists Columbian support and quickly begins its project. Confederate naval units shall be stationed in Panama until 1908, when protest filed by the United States precipitates their removal. Richmond's influence, however, continues to remain considerable in all matters political and economic.
1905
September:
Theodore Roosevelt negotiates the Treaty of Portsmouth, ending the Russo-Japanese Conflict. Intending to gain an ally, Roosevelt permits Japanese occupation of Manchuria as a condition of the peace. Tokyo's supposed gratitude to the United States is never to materialize.
1910
September:
The Confederate States of America becomes a signatory to the Quadruple Ententé, a formal alliance between the British, French, Russian, and Southern governments.
November:
The United States of America becomes a signatory of the Quadruple Alliance, a formal alliance between the German, Austrian, Italian, and Northern governments.
1919
September:
World War One draws to a close following the Treaty of Versailles, and troops return home to war-ravaged nations the world-over following a disasterous war for all parties involved. The Quadruple Ententé has achieved victory in Europe, though at terrible cost, leaving a bitter Germany to rebuild in the Great War's bloody wake.
December:
The Great Depression formally begins with the crash of stock markets first in New York, then in Richmond. Within five weeks, the entire world has become mired in unemployment and an industrial standstill
[This message has been edited by Desert Journeyman (edited April 23, 2001).]
Lessons in Pre-Modern Warfare
Scenario I: When the Time is Right
Timespan: January 1938
Facts and Figures
An Overview
Version 1.0
This project began some months ago as a mere glimmer of thought, and was eventually shaped from idea into reality by a corps of dedicated developers whose influence has been more pofound than they know. The observation of several games concerning the time period - some of which include "The World War II SD", the "1938 SD", "Age of Imperialism", and "Seas of Steel" would eventually influence both the system and its presentation. I would be thoughtless not to include those mentions. Fenris, Solo, Posbi, Scott Fluhr, and General Melechtt have been more help than they realize, and I thank them for their contribution - however unknowingly. 99% of the Confederate idea, however, is from the 'Great War' novels created by Harry Turtledove, a brilliant author whose works are to be much admired.
'World at War: Das Grenadiers' is an interactive study of alternate military, economic, and political avenues open to the world on the eve of the Great War. Players shall assume the roles of national leaders in an attempt to achieve specific goals stipulated by the Moderator, and dictated by history. They shall be free to achieve this aims through a variety of means.
The world of 'Das Grenadiers' is signifigantly different from our own. All players shall begin by selecting a nation circa 1928. A feasible and well-documented alternate history shall then be produced covering the decade remaining until 1938, when the story debate is to begin. Alternate histories may include limited conquests and minor territorial wars, but may not involve a larger conflict between the Great Powers, or a complete revision of likely territories, mindsets, economies, or militaries. While it may be possible for Argentina to become an agressive force in South America, for instance, she would not reasonably be any sort of long-term threat to the United States. It should be within these alternate histories that several national goals, perrogatives, and Great Power allies are established and set down. Players shall then submit said alternate histories to Desert Journeymen before they are approved to begin.
All nations shall possess three (3) advantages and disadvantages each. The United States might, for example, have fostered a second substantial era of industrialization during the 1930s, and would therefore possess an advantage in that respect. Likewise, she might have placed very little emphasis on producing newer technologies for her armed forces. Therefore, while probably retaining a military of signifigant or even superior size, she might still be signifigantly behind Germany and Japan in the development of a modern airforce and submersible navy.
The following weapons are banned (prohibited) in gameplay: guided missiles, directed rockets, satillites of any fashion, assault rifles of a modern design or influence, radar of modern design or influence, jet technology, long-range rockets, spacecraft of any nature, atomic or nuclear devices of any type, technology superior to conventional models obtained in 1944. New models based on modifications or redesigns of existing hardware are, of course, permitted.
The following weapons may or may not have remained influential on the battlefield during the decade since the First World War: poison gas, quick-firing light artillery, mounted cavalry, armored locomotives and rolling stock, dreadnaught- or battlecruiser-type vessels, zeppelins, seaplane carriers, rigid airship carriers.
The one major difference in the world at large is the existance of a Confederate States of America, whose general timeline shall be posted shortly after gameplay begins. The Confederacy aquired victory during the Civil War in 1862, and again rose to defend her independance during the 1880s. An inconclusive series of devestating campaigns across the Roanoke Valley, much of Kentucky, and a great deal of Arkansas, Texas, and Sonora, devestated both nations, and quickened the onset of severe depression - which developed first in the later days of 1919. The Treaty of Versailles merely served to end hostilities, but did not establish a clear victor on the North American continent. The North remains closely associated with the Axis powers, while Richmond maintains firm ties with both Britain and France. Other than this deviation, the remaining nations in the world at large continue to operate according to the norm. Because of the question of their timelines and alternate histories, Desert Journeyman shall independantly develop the advantages/disadvantages, and full alternate history of both the United and Confederate States of America.
As Moderator of the game, I will scale back on alternate histories that generally provide nations with thier goals beforehand. For that reason, Japan would not, for example, be permitted to have recieved the Dutch East Indies before the game began, nor would they necessarily be in a position to easily do so immediately.
Considerable research and prior knowledge shall be required for this game, and it is suggested that all players locate online resources. Preference shall be given to those best prepared and most knowledgeable. As usual, atlases, encycolepedias, and text pertaining to the subject is quite useful. The following texts are quite informative and shall prove a great deal of help:
• A World At Arms, Weinberg
• Weapons of World War II, Barnes & Noble
• Atlas of the Second World War, The Times
• The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, Kennedy
• The World War One Sourcebook, Hawthornthwaitte
• War At Sea: 1897-1997, Jane's
• The Great War in Africa, Farwell
• Atlas of World History, Dorsling Kindersly
1962
September:
General Robert E. Lee conducts his invasion of Maryland, forcing a way across the Patomac to struggle with McClellan. The "text-book" Naploen, fearful of being outflanked by reserves the Confederates could never muster, withdraws his corps from the ridges above Antietam creek, and in doing so, is thoroughly routed. Thousands of Federal troops fall during a vain attempt to stave off inevitable defeat, and victory is at hand for Jefferson Davis' fledgling nation. London and Paris recognize Richmond's government almost immediately following news of the battle, whose implications suggest that Washington will now fall under siege. Lincoln is presented with a European ultimatum - surrender, or the British shall choke the American shipping lanes and destroyer the northern economy. Both England and France promise to support their Confederate allies reguardless of Federal protest. In the face of such opposition, "Old Abe" crumbles and acceedes that he has lost the war. Republican leadership ends, and the Democrats are set to dominate - on appeasement platforms - until 1880.
October:
Generals Rosecrans and Buell flee Kentucky, Braxton Bragg at their heels. Perryville has fallen to the Confederates, and the North has been thrown from its vital 'border state' so precious to stategic control of the Ohio River Valley. A Confederate invasion of the New Mexico Territory begins with similar aims, although overextended supply lines and insufficient numbers preclude a general retreat by the middle of December.
November:
Attaining victory along every front, Richmond begins preparations for the rise of a Confederate state. A General Legislature is formed, binding the Southern states to one another in fortune and intent. The Democratic-Republican and Whig parties shall become Richmond's largest and most influential political parties. The Confederate Senate votes a series of industrialization plans into effect, based on 'five year plans.' The first shall not be complete when it is declared ended in 1969.
December:
The Treaty of Paris ends the War Between the States on a bitter note, as the United States now finds a hostile nation at her abreviated frontiers. A series of border skirmishes escalates shortly after the accords, although French and British intervention have clearly turned the tide in favor the Confederacy, which now begins its own painstaking reconstruction.
1865
January:
Western expansion begins in both the North and South. Almost 500,000 leave the East in a mass exodus, determined to carve the wilderness to their liking. Skirmishes between government troops and native tribes are common, although nearly always one-sided. The government in Richmond promotes raids into Federal territory, promising Indian leaders safe passage through Confederate territory, and large sums of money or promises of land. They make good on their deal - some say hardly - by permitting the Unorganized Territory to form under what is generally recognized as native influence.
1869
April:
Confederate ironclad warships appear off Santiado de Cuba and demand the Spanish surrender of the tropical island. Within two weeks, Richmond occupies Habana, much to Federal consternation.
The U.S. only now begins to emerge from economic recession after having closed herself off from English trade, a humiliation she must now face not only at the negotiating table, but on the competative market, where Confederate industry has grown to permit a limited capacity after the war, generally founded on the textile industry. A handful of iron works do exist.
May:
Union-Pacific completes Trans-Continental Railroad at Promentary Point, Utah.
1872:
February:
President Alexander Stephens urges the Legislature to begin the second of the South's ill-fated industrial perrogratives, although this lasts out only two years before collapsing due to concerns of the budget. A number of states such as Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and Mississippi never offer their conscent.
Federal President Edwin McMasters Stanton gathers 30,000 Federal troops on the border of Virginia and Maryland to 'prosecute concerns of arbitration' and regain that portion of the Virginian state across the Chesapeke Bay from the mainland. During the 'Valentine's Turkeyshoot', 3,000 Union soldiers fall storming two well-defended Confederate forts. Stanton is not reelected and remains unpopular throughout his term. Richmond makes little reply, although again, the Northern markets falter during a period of uncertainty and political upheval.
1881:
June:
Having arranged the purchase of the Mexican territories of Chihuahua and Sonora for some $3,000,000.00, the government in Richmond sets about garrisoning the same, only to be confronted by protest from the United States administration, who declares the transaction void in that the Mexican leadership has faulted in selling its own land out of duress. Heated tensions are lit ablaze when Federal cavalrymen encounter a Confederate patrol during an 'Indian raid' into the Unorganized Territory. Following a short-lived battle in which Gatling Guns provide for the wholesale slaughter of a Confederate horse squadron, Richmond issues a proclimation of war, quickly followed by the arrival of Southern troops in the newest of Confederate territories.
July:
A Federal Army 120,000 strong lays siege to Louisville, Kentucky. In the first instances of trench warfare, General "Stonewall" Jackson halts the Federal advance upon the city, throwing back Washington's troops in bloody disarray. Robert Rosecrans, commander of the Army of the Ohio persists, however, and a bloody stalemate ensues that shall extend to last out the war. Similar fronts appear along the border between Maryland and Virginia, although there is little progress made by either side.
August:
Mormon uprisings in Utah and Nevada quickly immobilize Salt Lake City and those regions west of the rebellion. Federal troops are pulled from Rosecran's command and quickly sent to help quell the dissident, a matter which shall eventually require several months and considerable numbers of able-bodied men.
Jeb Stuart II, Southern commander of the Trans-Miississippi Department begins raids against Federal outposts in the New Mexico Territory, raiding Contention City and siezing that town and her large garrison without firing a shot. Richmond becomes the recipiant of several tonnes of pressed silver.
October:
Fighting continues to intensify as the Louisville campaign gains more attention from Washington. Despite obvious concerns of possible encroachment by British troops from Canada, Federal officers regulate precious supplies of ammunition and equippage to Rosecrans, often with no tangible result.
During the Battle of Two Passes, Confederate troops successfully rout Federal milita with the aid of Indian allies eager to cast away the Federal government. The New Mexico Territory lies nominally undefended.
November:
Tombstone, Arizona burned to the ground by Jeb Stuart II. Confederate 5th Cavalry returns to Sonora in order to quell local troubles, as Southern commanders begin to fear possible shortages of supply.
Federal steamer Pelican siezed by Confederate commerce raider Semmes in Bermuda; the arrival of U.S. warships two days later provokes a series of protests in London that result in Elizabeth's desire to support further, England's Confederate allies.
1882:
January:
The Mormon riots are concluded only after considerable bloodshed, prompting further Northern outrage against the war. Draft riots in New York City, Chicago, and Baltimore hamper a frusterated war effort even as Rosecrans continues to feed his army into Jackson's prepared defenses outside of Louisville.
President Longstreet, against the advice of his close advisors, negotiates British and French entry into the Second Mexican War, in return for promised manumission of slaves at its close. Critized harshly by a number of his generals, Longstreet stands by his agreement even as the United States seems prepared to capitulate and demand a cease-fire.
February:
British marines land in San Franscisco and burn the U.S. Mint therein following a naval bombardment that ends the career of one Colonel William T. Sherman, whose inept defenses are quickly overrun. Similar incidents are recorded in Los Angeles and San Diego. Alaska is claimed in its entirety by the Moscuvites, despite Washington's claims to that region. The Federal government remains in possession only of Juneau.
March:
British troops in Canada enter northern Maine virtually unopposed. The British bombard Buffalo from the Great Lakes, and later shell Chigago and Columbus. President Blaine negotiates a cease-fire with his Confederate counterpart Longstreet, ending a most humiliating war. On 30 March, 1882, slaves are manumitted across the South - unconditionally. Aparthied begins three days later.
April:
Theodore Roosevelt, commander of the 'Rough Riders' regiment in Montana repulses a British invasion led by General Gordon. Key to this victory is the Federal cavalry under George Custer and a battery of Gatling Guns whose worth remained until-then unproven. Varying accounts of roles during the battle shall result in a fierce rivalry.
On 22 April, 1881, the Second Mexican War ends with a cease fire. No treaty of peace is ever signed. Hostilities end a war that has cost 83,000 Federal and 56,000 Southern lives. Immediately, Republican leadership fragments. Led by Abraham Lincoln, a socialist party forms from the ashes of Blaine's constituents, and progressive populists rise to power in Congress. Democractic leadership shall again hold over until Republican Theodore Roosevelt assumes the Presidency.
December:
Oil is found in moderate abundance in Texas, and the Confederacy immediately begins construction of an extended railway line to promote the export and exploitation of the 'black gold'.
1886
August:
Berthed in San Juan, Puerto Rico during a routine coaling stop, the U.S. Battleship 'Brookyln' explodes during what appears an act of sabotage, war, or both. 'Yellow journalism' rises throughout the North, and the Post and Times quickly propell the nation and its leadership towards war with Spain. Commodore Dewey, commander of the Pacific Squadron in the West Indies, meauvers to the Phillipines, scoring a decisive victory in Manilla harbor. Similar battles occur off Puerto Rico, where the Spanish navy is thoroughly routed. Spain ceedes Puerto Rico to the United States for $2,000,000. The Phillipines remain in Spanish hands.
1887
March:
Markets in both the U.S. and C.S. come under strain during the outset of the 1887 fiscal year, driving tens of thousands from work and bankrupting many profitable endeavors. Industrialists across the world withdraw their investment from a failing economy, provoking the 'Scare of 1887', and beginning a mild recession that leads the North to promote isolationist policies and the South to rely more heavily on European trade.
May:
A third and final Confederate initiative to industrialize is voted down by the General Legislature, increasing the South's reliance upon a weak cotton crop and a small wealth of mineral resources, including silver.
June:
Trans-Continental railroad completed in the Confederacy, linking Guaymas, Sonora - the South's only Pacific port - with Richmond, Virginia and major cities in between. A vast majority of the labor has been that of freed slaves still indentured to Confederate landowners.
1902
April:
Confederate prospectors locate oil in Arkansas and Sonora, rejuvenating the Confederacy's fractured economic policies by lending foreign speculation to Richmond's exchequers. The South declares itself a chief exporter of oils, even as silver begins to flow from Chihuahua and Sonora.
1904
January:
Federal envoys negotiate treaties of provision with Chilé and the Peru, ensuring a South American supply of patroleum for the North, and increasing those nations' reliance upon Federal commodity flows. Richmond and Britain protest strongly, although neither takes action directly against the United States. For a short while, Britain reinforces her Sandwich Islands squadrons.
September:
Confederate President Jeb Stuart III, acting on statements left by former Secretary of the Navy, Stephen Mallory, agressively pursues the construction of a canal across the Isthmus of Panama. Despite limited protest by the Panamanians, Richmond enlists Columbian support and quickly begins its project. Confederate naval units shall be stationed in Panama until 1908, when protest filed by the United States precipitates their removal. Richmond's influence, however, continues to remain considerable in all matters political and economic.
1905
September:
Theodore Roosevelt negotiates the Treaty of Portsmouth, ending the Russo-Japanese Conflict. Intending to gain an ally, Roosevelt permits Japanese occupation of Manchuria as a condition of the peace. Tokyo's supposed gratitude to the United States is never to materialize.
1910
September:
The Confederate States of America becomes a signatory to the Quadruple Ententé, a formal alliance between the British, French, Russian, and Southern governments.
November:
The United States of America becomes a signatory of the Quadruple Alliance, a formal alliance between the German, Austrian, Italian, and Northern governments.
1919
September:
World War One draws to a close following the Treaty of Versailles, and troops return home to war-ravaged nations the world-over following a disasterous war for all parties involved. The Quadruple Ententé has achieved victory in Europe, though at terrible cost, leaving a bitter Germany to rebuild in the Great War's bloody wake.
December:
The Great Depression formally begins with the crash of stock markets first in New York, then in Richmond. Within five weeks, the entire world has become mired in unemployment and an industrial standstill
[This message has been edited by Desert Journeyman (edited April 23, 2001).]
Comment