Dixie Victorious: Chapter 1, War with Britain

SYNOPSIS | Just for the fun of it, we're going through the scenarios in Stackpole's new offering, Dixie Victorious: An Alternate History of the Civil War (Peter G. Tsouras, ed.). Any comments will be posted separately and I'll post an opinion about "counterfactual" history at the end of the week. (The title of this post is a link to the book description on Amazon.)

Chapter 1. "Hell on Earth"

Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, is killed in an accident. (Prince Albert had been a moderating influence in the Trent affair.) Britain retaliates for its Trent embarassment by recognizing the CSA. Britain then demands both sides submit to mediation. Rebel instigators launch cross-border raids, using Canada as a base. Union troops follow Rebels into Canada. War is declared Jan. 20 1862.

France "immediately" follows Britain into the war and sends 10,000 men to Richmond. The Armies of the Niagra and the Hudson are formed from the AoP and invade Canada led by Halleck and Pope. Additional forces are scattered on the seaboard to defend against invasion. McClellan leads a rump force in an overland campaign against Richmond. California is occupied and declared, like Mexico, to be an independent empire. Grant struggles to conquer the occupied Pacific Northwest.

McClellan is defeated and replaced by Franklin. The capital is relocated to New York City. McClellan stages a coup. Russia and Prussia organize a peace conference and the country is permanently divided by August 1863.

Tomorrow: The Rebel Navy wins the CSA's independence.