America - Albion's Orphan - A history of the conquest of Britain - 1760

1792

Moscow

Having been forced to flee his own capital, Paul I of Russia would spend much of 1791 and 1792 eliminating any threats to his dynasty. As his eldest son was still only 14, the Czar knew that his own demise may spell a surge of rebellion against the Romanov heir whom would no doubt be poorly prepared at the moment for the task. Paul responded by great acts of repression against those deemed disloyal to the new regime.

In Paul's mind, he would see conspiracies everywhere. Thousands of Boyar officers were dismissed, many ordered away from Moscow. His new system of officer training would emphasize talent over nobility. Oddly, this was not Paul's intent but he was so convinced of the aristocratic class' disloyalty that he saw men raised from nothing to higher office more likely to be loyal. He would command General Suvorov and other faithful officers to teach the new breed of military men to act with chivalry, something the Czar found necessary in all court officials.

Suvorov, by now wondering if he made the right choice in siding with the Czar, would ignore this nonsense and just taught the junior officers the best method to wage war. The Czar's orders regarding uniforms, weapons and martial drilling were held in widespread contempt by the establishment.

Most importantly, Suvorov and his generals would attempt to rectify the most grievous of Russia's martial shortcomings: the logistical system...or lack of one. While the topography of Russia - with its harsh weather, great distances and poor infrastructure - was and would continue to be challenging for generations, the Russian inability to even plan for logistics prior to a campaign plainly needed to be resolved. While Suvorov hated to admit it, the old Prussian Kings had the right idea in forming profession supply legions to support their armies. Had he not been terribly outnumbered in the previous war, Frederick II of the new defunct Kingdom of Prussia (well, the Hohenzollern one, anyway), may have managed to defeat Russia, Austria and France with ease partially due to this rarely considered military strategy.

In the meantime, while many nobles grumbled, there had been adequate object lessons in the last rebellion. No one wanted to challenge the paranoid Czar.

Yet.


Vienna

The past year had been a disaster for the Habsburg Realms. Rebellions continued apace in Bohemia, Serbia and Hungary (most notably). The former two regions had provided a disproportionate share of the Habsburg military power in past wars, thus creating a significant demographic problem. Had a neighboring power...say, Russia...invaded at this point, the Habsburg realms would have been helpless.

Fortunately, Russia was intent upon her own problems and France was very, very far away.

As it was, the rapidly assembly "loyal" Habsburg forces (largely German, Slovene and Croat) would be busily organizing for a counterstrike into Hungary when the unthinkable happened.

Another Habsburg Archduke fell, this time only weeks after being named the new Holy Roman Emperor. Though some suggested he was poisoned, Leopold II died of the aftereffects of a minor illness. His blood was poisoned by an infection and he expired of "dropsy".

Yet another inexperienced monarch would ascend to the throne. This time it was Francis II, barely twenty-three.

The confusion by Leopold's death would slow the Habsburg counterattack planned in spring of 1792 against the Hungarian nobles. It would only commence in June against Budapest. The portions of Bohemia and Serbia under rebel control (about 50% and 70% of those Kingdoms, respectively) would see little aggression until fall.



Manhattan

While portions of Europe fell apart, the Kingdom of British North America would see a double period of rejoicing. King Frederick I of North America was crowned and would, just a week later, marry the beautiful sixteen-year-old Princess Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. While the Queen-mother, Charlotte of Saxe-Meinegan would have preferred one of the many Saxon Princesses available (she also retained a certain distant rivalry with William IV's wife, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz in her own mind), she was soon won over by the good nature of the German girl.

Intelligent, amiable and obedient, Louise would prove an even more popular Queen than her mother-in-law.

1792

Iberia and Northern Italian Peninsula

The events of 1791-1792 were sprawling out of control.

1. France was intervening openly in the Holy Roman Empire Principality of Liege as the Swiss Canton of Vaud.
2. Two Emperors had died in less than two years, one by assassination. The Habsburg realms, riven with rebellion, were now ruled by a youth barely out of his teens.
3. Russia's Czar continued to crack down upon the nobility after yet another attempted coup.

King Victor of Corsica-Piedmont would look at the situation and wonder if this may be the last chance for the second-tier power gain enough territory to challenge the great powers of Europe. It was becoming obvious that France, Spain, Austria and Russia were ascending with perhaps only a loose confederation of northern German Protestant states with much of a chance to join this elite group.

Victor saw that the King of Spain had little interest in the region...assuming the feeble-minded King Carlos IV was interested in ANYTHING. While his father King Carlos III was something of a "hands-off" King whom allowed his Ministers to run his respective nations, at least he could be counted upon to pay attention and choose good Ministers. Carlos III allowed his chosen men to reform the army, navy, imperial policy, industry, etc but his Ministers never forgot just whom they worked for.

Carlos IV, on the other hand, was just an idiot whom was dominated by his ugly wife and his Ministers. He did not give direction and allow his government to enact his wishes. Carlos IV meekly signed whatever was put before him.

Spain's gradual modernization had come to an abrupt halt.

Normally this would have mattered little to King Victor as his nation shared no border with any of Carlos IV's domains. However, this also meant that Spain was unlikely to intervene in Italy.

Just as Austria was somewhat busy to intervene in Italy due to the rebellions convulsing throughout much of the assembled Kingdoms of the Habsburg Empire.

And France was somewhat busy to intervene in Italy as it faced the task of occupying Vaud and Liege, dealing with another failed harvest and determining what to do with the English and Habsburg Civil Wars.

King Victor, imagining that he would have no other chance to expand his realms, would act without hesitation. His modest-sized but well drilled army would strike downward towards the Republic of Genoa, which sat upon the long-desired coastal waters just south of his Kingdom. Once a power, Genoa had slowly collapsed into obscurity over the years. The little Republic barely put up a fight as it, like most tertiary powers of Europe, assumed that the greater nations would intervene with such blatant aggression.

Victor may have been allowed to consume the Republic if that was where he stopped. However, his forced marched eastward into the Republic of Lucca. By summer, both the Republic of Venice and the Papal States were paying a great deal of attention indeed, wondering if Corsica-Piedmont intended to stop there. Neither nation possessed much of an army any more. Though Corsica-Piedmont's resources were limited, the well-drilled Piedmontese Army was drastically superior to either Venice or the Papal States. Possibly both.

1792

Republic of Lucca

The Corsican-born General Raphael Casabianca commanded the Corsican division of King Victor of Corsica-Piedmont's army. As Corsica itself was an impoverished island, a disproportionate amount of the Royal Army would come from the island which had been acquired by the House of Savoy a generation earlier. In order to secure the loyalty of the Corsican gentry, the King of Corsica had enticed many of the aristocrats to the army.

Among these was Raphael Casabianca, by now a skilled soldier of advancing years. He had been able to fill the Corsican division with a number of his countrymen including his nephew Major Louis Casabianca (now thirty) and skilled younger soldiers like Captain Bacciochi and Napoleon Bonaparte. The latter three had graduated from the King's military in Turin where their inability to speak the local Italian had initially been a hindrance but most Corsican-speakers would quickly learn the northern dialect. Some, like Bonaparte, would never quite master Italian but would make himself understood.

Since the conquest of Genoa, the King of Corsica-Piedmont had set his sights upon Lucca. Both Republics fell quickly but the true prize in the north was Venice. Once a great naval power, the Republic had quietly decayed. By the late 18th century, the wealthy inland valleys were the true source of power in Venice...which brought covetous gazes by neighbors like an ambitious Savoyard monarch.

Neither Genoa or Lucca had would put up much of a fight. But Venice, with its greater population, may do so.

Brazil

While the ascension of Carlos IV of Spain, the Spanish colony of Brazil would see little short-term changes. Carlos III had opened up a measure of trade and made other administration changes which benefited the colonies.

Perhaps most importantly, Carlos III had encouraged Spanish and Italian (and other Catholic peoples) immigration to Brazil to balance out the Portuguese majority. By 1792, nearly a quarter of the population was European-born and did not speak Portuguese as a first language.

The African population, which had spoken a mix of Portuguese and assorted African languages, would be most enthusiastic about the Spanish administration as it had been Carlos III whom had supported their liberation. The black and mulatto population made up a third of Brazil's population by the end of the 18th century (it had been nearly half at conquest in the 1770's).

The Portuguese majority had shrunk to less than half the colony's souls in 1792, at perhaps 40% by most estimates.

The language of Brazil would quickly shift from nearly 100% Portuguese in 1770 to a mix of Spanish, Portuguese, African dialects and a bizarre creole contemptuously called "Spanguese". Still, seeing the Portuguese culture as a threat, any shift towards Spanish, even a bastardized version, would be preferred.

Thus, "Spanguese" was informally encouraged by the Spanish governors. Among the first whom converted to this new language were the slaves and non-Spanish migrants like the Italians, Silesians, Germans and others whom desired to converse in a language most would understand. Thus Spanguese grew faster than Spanish in Brazil and even spread south to lands along the northern coast of the Rio Plata region.

Vienna

King Francis II was over his head and he knew it. A young man with no heirs, the Archduke (he had not yet been elected Emperor yet) would listen to his advisors for good or ill. Ignoring the problems in Italy, Poland and Russia, he would concentrate upon regaining his patrimony in Hungary, Bohemia and Serbia.

By 1792, the German, Slovene and Croat dominated Habsburg army was marching towards Budapest, the heartland of the rebellion against the policies of Francis' Uncle and Father.

Francis was willing to negotiate and back down on certain odious laws but would not being willing to do so under threat. He offered a blanket amnesty if the rebels laid down their arms. Most refused and the war continued. Eventually, the institutional advantages of the Habsburg armies would prove telling and the Hungarian irregular forces were pushed back. The longer the rebellion continued, the harsher Francis was inclined to be.

By summer, the Hungarians were in full retreat and most of the larger urban areas had fallen to the King of Hungary. More Habsburg forces would march into the mountains of Bohemia where they would face a different topography as on the Hungarian plain.

Relatively few troops would be directed into Serbia. However, the Habsburgs would be unexpectedly aided by Balkan regional minorities such as Bosniak and Albanian Muslims hoping for greater protection from the Habsburgs than the Orthodox Serbs, Croat and Albanian Catholics and assorted Serbian political factions. Many still feared an Ottoman resurgence (though most considered this unlikely) in the Balkans. Others were political enemies of the Serbian rebels thus making them, by association, allies of the Habsburgs.

England

The 2nd English Civil War was degenerating into a free for all that was slowly threatening to drag into the other nations of Britain. The governments of Scotland, Cornwall and Wales would each gage which group, if any, was least likely to act with aggression. In truth, the competing governments - that of William IV, the Parliamentary Cavaliers and the English Republican Army - were all promising the people of England to "restore Britain's glory".

In most eyes, this meant reconquering Wales, Cornwall and Scotland. King William IV had spent decades under French thumb and dared not even insinuate that he desired to do so. With the withdrawal of French troops in 1791, the King was inclined to act with aggression. Perhaps only the commencement of the Civil War prevented this from occurring.

Just as various factions in England found supporters in some of these nations, assorted persons even in the Scottish/Cornish/Welsh governments would quietly arrange for the provision of war materials to their favored factions.

All three nations called out to the new King of France and the King of Ireland for aid...or at least the guarantee of their own borders. The Comte de Vergennes would sympathize but was unwilling to guarantee anything at that point.

News of minor invasions into Welsh territory would, however, spur King James of Ireland to dispatch several thousand professional soldiers to Wales to protect the borders. It would not stop a full army but would slow the gangs of robbers pillaging throughout the entire island from ravaging eastern Wales.

1792 - Summer

Republic of Venice

While no one in Europe would pay attention to the pathetic pretexts King Victor utilized for his aggression in northern Italy, the monarch still made the effort of publishing them. Genoa's invasion was justified by claims that Genoa had not allowed certain trade privileges for the Piedmont heartland to the sea. Crossing the border into Venice was explained away that some of the lands promised to Piedmont when Austria gave up Milan and Modena a generation prior were "occupied" by Venice. When these small contested regions were easily occupied by the King of Corsica-Piedmont, the Savoyard Army continued east because "Venice had resisted this reclamation".

By the summer of 1792, half the Po valley was occupied by the forces of King Victor all the way to the city of Verona.

Leading the charge north from the Po River towards the City of Venice itself was General Casabianca and his Corsican Division.

Budapest

The Diet of Hungary would flee the capital city before the Habsburg armies entering Budapest. While most of Hungary remained in rebellion, the major cities would all fall by the end of the year. The last thing the Hungarian nobles wanted was to see their country plantations as the battleground against invading German and Croat troops. In remarkably rapidity, the Hungarians rushed to the negotiation table. Francis and his Ministers would act with unexpected firmness in refusing any demands that would effectively give the Hungarian Diet veto power over laws promulgated by the Emperor (Francis had been selected as Holy Roman Emperor in July). This slowed negotiations and the rebellion continued.

By fall, both sides were more willing to talk as the rebellion in Bohemia continued as Prague was besieged and Serbia had yet to be significantly addressed as well.

Puerto Rico

Of all the islands of the Spanish West Indies, the highest slave population was held on Puerto Rico. Unlike the French or former British islands, slaves almost never made up the majority on any Spanish island. Part of this was the lack of competency among the Spanish government over the centuries in acquiring them, not a lack of demand or the Spanish islands being more unsuitable for intensive sugar cultivation.

This would be a good thing in 1792 when the slave rebellion on Puerto Rico would be easily enough put down. However, the King of Spain's ministers were already tired of slave rebellions in the Americas. They had already emancipated in Brazil due to the need for a local demographic base and even banned the slave trade from Africa. But Spain had not specifically manumitted elsewhere in the Spanish Empire.

Hearing of the Puerto Rico troubles, the Ministers of Spain would finally manumit the slaves of all Spanish America over a five year period akin to the French manumission of the French West Indies.

1792 - Fall

Western and Central England (now commonly referred to as "Mercia") - ERA stronghold

The ERA had finally managed to recover from the shambolic attempt to regain Liverpool from the retreating Irish in 1791 (which resulted in the burning of the city as well as the crippling of the ERA army). Had the ERA marched south in full force at the time, it is possible that they may have stolen a march on the Parliamentary forces of Yorkshire and seized London before the King could properly form his own forces. Instead, a bizarre three-way war would soon emerge destined to drag in the rest of Britain and, possibly, beyond.

The Republicans had done much damage to their own cause by the ill-fated attack on Liverpool. Perhaps worse, the constant infighting among the ERA factions would prove the government was not yet prepared to lead. While espousing universal suffrage, the fact was that no real votes had ever taken place. Factions of the ERA Parliament fought violently, often executing their foes when they gained the upper hand.

So chaotic was the Republican government that different juntas assumed control over military units. One would bizarrely raid west into Wales in hopes of finding support in the borderlands. This would be repulsed by the Duchy of Wales' troops allied with Irish regulars.

Faced with hunger after another failed harvest (and their greatest port city, Liverpool, in ashes) and no money to pay for it, the chaos continued.

Duchy of Wales

The Duke of Wales, German-born like the Duke of Cornwall, had arrived in the western Britain region with little expectation of remaining long. The French Government demanded monarchies and many expected that, one way or another, the Germans would be evicted. However, a generation later, both Wales and Cornwall retained their Germanic Dukes.

Unlike much of the rest of Britain, both Wales and Cornwall retained vestiges of the old Kingdom of Great Britain by possessing monarchs and Parliaments. In contrast, the Scottish "Republic", really just an oligarchy of powerful men, would never get around to selecting a King and allowed the ruling junta to continue in command. England, prior to the rebellion which broke it to pieces, had been dominated by the government of William IV whom ruled without Parliamentary approval.

Much had changed over the years in Wales. Throughout its long associated with England, Wales had come to be dominated by its larger, more populous neighbor culturally and politically. English became the language of the upper class and, increasingly, the border areas.

Among the first alterations made by the new Duke were the institution of Welsh as the language of government and education. This proved popular with the commoners whom would see a net increase in power due to the Welsh Parliament possessing no House of Lords (the nobles being seen as the true threat to the Duke). As education was expanded further and further throughout the realm, the Welsh language flowered culturally with new waves of poetry and Welsh identity-building. For the first time in two centuries, the majority of the middle and upper classes began to speak Welsh in large quantities rather than dismiss it as a "peasant's tongue".

The Celtic language would flower throughout the late 18th century and become the symbol of the independent people. When Britain fell to France in the previous war, most Welsh were dismayed to be informed that they were now independent. No one wanted to be dictated to by a foreign power. However, seeing the King of England dominating politically in contrast to the inclusive government of Wales (over 20% of adult males had the vote), this would lead to a growing level of popularity of the new Duke and of Wales as an independent nation.

Cornwall

The Duchy of Cornwall, like Wales, would slowly grow accustomed to independence. Unlike Wales, the Cornish language had been effectively dead for decades, known more among scholars than by commoners. Lightly populated Cornwall, bearing a mix of nobles and commoners in their unique Parliament, would approach France with requests for a guarantee of their sovereignty.

Grudgingly, King Louis XVI's ministers would agree to dispatch 2000 soldiers to Cornwall. This was not enough to protect the region from an encroaching army...but it did guarantee than any attack on Cornwall would be an attack on France. Too many Englishmen remembered the long decades of French occupation. Given their own problems, there would be few calls for England to invade Cornwall throughout the early 1790's.

Republic of Scotland

Having managed to gain independence for the first time in over a century, the nobles of Scotland formed a pseudo-Parliament...in which all the real power devolved to a handful of powerful men. In many ways, Scotland was no less authoritarian than England in 1792. Like in England, revolutionary fervor reached high levels as riots occurred in the major cities.

Northumbria, northern England

Charles Fox had spent years as Consul to America. Unexpectedly popular among the Americans despite representing William IV, the diplomat had been recalled by order of the King. At the time, Fox assumed that he would be granted a higher post in government. Instead, he returned to England to find his father, Henry Fox, dead and the new puppet-master in London to be Joseph Wall. Wall found the younger Fox dangerous and would send him north with the younger son of William IV, to serve as the Prince's "advisor" in his post as Governor of Northumbria. Eventually, Fox's elder brother, a General, would be posted north as well.

This would prove to be Wall's greatest error as the rebellion would cut off Northumbria, Prince George and his "Foxite" advisors. Northumbria was a conservative region of England, located just south of Scotland. The ERA's radical propaganda was not received well here. However, that did not mean the independent region cared much for King William IV.

When the Parliamentary Armies in Yorkshire and the ERA armies in the mid-land would cut off Northumbria from London, the Foxes would begin plotting with Prince George to increase their own power. Word of this leaked south and whatever Fox property existed in southern England was confiscated. Irate, the Foxes and Prince George would pronounce that Northumbria had seceded from England as the new Kingdom of Northumbria.

In truth, George utterly hated his father whom doted upon his elder brother. A more dysfunctional family could not be imagined than the House of Hanover and George was no different. Taking advantage of this was Scotland's oligarchy, whom deemed George the least threatening to their own power. It had long been feared among the Scots that, bereft of French occupation forces, that William IV would invade Scotland to regain his patrimony.

Scottish money, munitions and advisors flocked southward to Northumbria to aid the young King in forming his forces. The northerners held the advantage of being peaceful enough to gather the harvest (no matter how poor) and even collect taxes (something the rest of England's rival factions could not claim).

Outraged, King William IV would contemptuously refer to George as the "King of the North" and predicted Northumbria would collapse within months.

1792 - Winter

Newstead Abbey, Nottinghamshire, Seat of the Barons Byron

William Byron, 5th Baron Bryon, was known as the "Wicked Baron". He'd killed one of his neighbors in an argument and barely received a slap on the wrist. When the regime of William IV took over, the Baron, though bemoaning the loss of his seat in the House of Lords, would place his lands and property above his pride and threw his support behind the Usurper. While the nobility retained their titles, they had lost most political power. Byron's younger brother John, a talented sailor whom lost his livelihood with the death of the Royal Navy, had sailed for India to serve the BEIC. Unfortunately, John Byron would expire of tropical disease, leaving his seven children in the care of his elder brother at Newstead Abbey.

Now seventy years old, the old Baron was estranged from his only son (the 43-year-old William) whom his father had dictated to seek out a profitable marriage...only to find that William had eloped with his cousin with whom he'd grown up. Outraged, Baron Byron ordered his son out of his house. The younger William (and later his own son William) would gravitate towards radical politics and join the ERA.

At the withdrawal of French forces in 1791, the ERA commenced an immediate attack on the old guard. The Byrons would personally lead a small force towards the periphery of the ERA's power base in Nottingham with the intent of seeking revenge upon the old Baron and claiming their birthright.

However, the wily old "Wicked Baron" had organized a coalition of local leading men into determining their own fate. Seeing William IV's troubles in the south, they sought aid from the north where the young "King" George of Northumberland was across a very short border. Backed by "northern" troops, the ERA forces were slaughtered in Nottinghamshire. Among the casualties were the son and grandson of William Byron, 5th Baron (his namesakes). This didn't bother the Baron much. However, it did mean that his Barony would eventually go to his brother's line. His nephew Jack, an officer in William IV's service, had died the previous year.

As of Christmas, 1792, the heir to Newstead Abbey was his five year old great nephew George, whom lived upon the great estate with several other members of the clan under William Byron's thumb. The old man thought little of the club-footed boy whose short, fat mother doted upon him. Already seventy, the Baron knew his own mortality. At least he ruled his little corner of the world as he saw fit.

Tejas / Southern New Russia / The Mississippi Headwaters

Northern New Spain remained lightly populated as did the scattered Russian settlements south of Alyeska. For years, the Bourbons had feared a British expansion from their 13 colonies. However, the defeat and occupation of Britain by the French had removed any immediate impetus to further colonize the lands north of San Diego or Monterey. This had allowed for increasing Russian settlement.

In 1791, George Vancouver had reached the Pacific and were given an unexpectedly warm reception by the small Russian settlement at the mouth of the Rodina River. They hadn't seen a Russian ship in over a year and were happy to receive any visitors. Conversing in French (there were several educated among the Russian settlers), they explained that the major harbors and potential ports along the northwestern coast of North America now possessed at least nominal settlements.

Vancouver had harbored hopes that the headwaters of the Mississippi would lead to perhaps another channel west but the American exploration party was forced to cross mountains and deserts before finding the Rodina River. The Russians already traded with the local Indians and had established a firm claim.

The English-born sailor had desired to find a patch of land which would link the bulk of America's lands to the east to the Pacific.

Short of a purchase or war, this did not seem likely.

As it was, the Americans were also expanding west of the Mississippi for the first time. Though low in numbers, by the end of the century American Explorers would encounter at random the Spanish mission at San Antonio de Bexar.