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Naturally I'm not suggesting an aggressive war, but if USA covet its old cores back, and knowing Vicky 2 the US will likely do a France and declare war every fifth year, it would be a prime oppurtunity to either make Cali and Nevada-Utah nations of their own or return them to a Royalist Mexico.
Or perhaps Spain are too embroiled in their old colonial empire and should instead create a new one? Let it be to extend their influence to Morrocco to counter French influence or even look to what is OTL Malaysia and Indonesia - risking pissing off the British and the Dutch.
Or perhaps Spain are too embroiled in their old colonial empire and should instead create a new one? Let it be to extend their influence to Morrocco to counter French influence or even look to what is OTL Malaysia and Indonesia - risking pissing off the British and the Dutch.
That area is too settled by those powers. But, the base that the Philipines provide might prove an exelent location for adventures in Vietnam and South China
Very interesting update! Anarcho-Libs in the CSA is an amusing thought going by European definitions of those terms 
The US electoral map underscores just how greatly the USA has suffered so far in this game.
It will be interesting to see how these two Americas interact with Spain moving forward. It has to be said the initial impression of Cameron is far from favourable.
It will be interesting to see how these two Americas interact with Spain moving forward. It has to be said the initial impression of Cameron is far from favourable.
And with that, John C. Breckinridge becomes the first man to serve as an executive in two separate governments -- Vice President of the United States, and now President of the Confederate States.
Judging by both the narrative and author commentary, it seems as though the USA and CSA have been reduced to effectively (if reluctantly) serving as proxies for the American interests of Britain and Spain, respectively. The Monroe Doctrine is now basically a dead letter.
Judging by both the narrative and author commentary, it seems as though the USA and CSA have been reduced to effectively (if reluctantly) serving as proxies for the American interests of Britain and Spain, respectively. The Monroe Doctrine is now basically a dead letter.
My thoughts exactly. I will also fix the bordergore to an extent. California and Deseret should be free one way or another!
Cool update, great to see the political systems of the two North American republics developing and evolving. I wonder if the USA will end up being republican dominated in this playthrough, as with L’Empereur est mort.
CSA election was definitely enjoyable and a realistic portrayal, very happy with it. I like the idea of the Populists as a party, usually with CSA survives timelines it’s usually just Whigs vs Democrats, so adding the Populists into the mix provides an interesting and necessary liberal party alongside the liberal/conservative Whigs and the Conservative Democrats.
CSA election was definitely enjoyable and a realistic portrayal, very happy with it. I like the idea of the Populists as a party, usually with CSA survives timelines it’s usually just Whigs vs Democrats, so adding the Populists into the mix provides an interesting and necessary liberal party alongside the liberal/conservative Whigs and the Conservative Democrats.
The situation of a divided America like it is now, cannot last. Too indefensible borders for the US. It's make it or go bust, I'd say.
I like so much as SUA and CSA were under influence of Britain and Spain, one of best alternative history moments for me. Viva Hispania!
, one of best alternative history moments for me. Viva Hispania!
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I like so much as SUA and CSA were under influence of Britain and Spain
"Viva Hispania" please.
Hmm.
I read up .
Good chapters.
You manage to keep it intriguing in every chapter !!!
I read up .
Good chapters.
You manage to keep it intriguing in every chapter !!!
Chapter Fifteen: The European Dimension
Spheres of Influence in Europe, January 1865.
Chapter Fifteen: The European Dimension
In January 1863, even as war still raged across North America the Spanish electorate had gone to the polls. The result had been a triumph for the centre-right in the Cortes and the retention of Don Casimiro Vigodet as President of the Council of Ministers but it had also seen movement in Spain's hitherto solid political consensus. The Unión Liberal party, formed by General Leopoldo O'Donnell out of those disastified with the extremely conservative administration of the Moderates had won more than a quarter of the seats in the Cortes, to the chagrin of the Progressives who now found themselves pushed into third place. It would be this strong showing in the election that gave General O'Donnell a strong hand in negotiating with the government, and, as we have seen the War Ministry.
By any measure both the Moderates and the Unión Liberal were conservative parties. Very broadly the Moderates primarily appealed to rural conservatives and traditionalists, including those who but for their personal loyalty to the Queen might almost have been Carlists such as the Marqués de Viluma who openly pined for the enlightened absolutism of the Royal Statute of 1834. The Unión Liberal party was more modern and urban in approach, with a stronger presence among Spain's thin middle class and (ironically for a 'broad church' party) was more "muscular" in appropriating high quality land from the ownership of the Roman Catholic Church to sell off. Even so it would be impossible to call the Unión Liberal party anti-clericalist in any meaningful sense and they were certainly royalist (anti-clericalism and republicanism were policies of the furthest fringes of the Progressives and the tiny - and in 1863 new - Partido Socialista.)
The Unión Liberal party was if anything even more of an advocate for foreign adventures than the Moderates. Inevitably their attention was firmly on the Americas and between 1862 and 1865 the Spanish government was only a haphazard and reactive observer of concerns in Europe and elsewhere. In early 1863 while eyes in Madrid were focused on Mexico City and Richmond the Great Powers of Europe had been brought to the brink of all out war by a crisis in Russian Poland. Of the Great Revolt of Warsaw and the quixotic gallantry of Count Andrzej Artur Zamoyski Spain was only dimly aware but by May 1863 it was becoming obvious even in the shadows of the El Escorial that Europe was on the brink of immolation over 'the Polish Question'. Only adroit diplomacy by Lord Stanley, the British Foreign Secretary at the Congress of Amsterdam in May saved Europe from war, created a limited independent Poland and a humiliated Russia.
Madrid was very much in two minds over the strange rebirth of Poland. On the one hand there was some sympathy for the fellow Catholic Poles. Queen Isabella in particular wished to send a telegram of congratulations to the Polish people. Most of the government were much more uneasy. Not only was this yet another display of British interference in European affairs uncomfortably reminiscent of Prussia's championing of Venice two decades before it posed grave possibilities for Spain. Separatism in the Spanish regions had generally found itself subsumed with Carlism but the thought of the Great Powers deciding for their own reasons to champion an independent Basque 'Kingdom of Navarre' or a Catalan 'Kingdom of Aragon' sent shivers down numerous spines in Madrid.
Queen Isabella II in the early 1860s - the Spanish monarch exercised a strong (if fickle) opinion on foreign affairs, often to the dismay of her government.
The negotiations over which monarch should be appointed in Warsaw did not, directly, concern Spain, with perhaps the only potential candidate linked with the Spanish royal family (Isabella's brother-in-law Don Antonio de Orleans, the Duc de Montpensier) vetoed by the French Republic. Paris had been nervous about the prospect of a son of Louis-Philippe gaining a throne, even in small and distant Poland. The Austrian and Prussian nominees of Archduke Maximillian von Hapsburg and Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern were likewise vetoed by the other powers for what must be obvious reasons. In the end the young Infante Augusto, Duque de Coimbra and brother of King Luis of Portugal took the Polish throne with the backing of the British and with some personal reluctance.
The Polish affair had ended peacefully, even if some predicted it would store worse troubles for the future, but it did suggest there was a price to be paid by looking away from Europe. Indeed by June 1863 and the Congress of Amsterdam the Spanish had already begun to consider how to end the Mexican war swiftly, though as as been shown that was a goal that would take time to accomplish.
Unfortunately for the Spanish government it was far from clear what direction their foreign policy should take. The terms of the Congress of Amsterdam had revealed what the Crimean War had previously hinted at; Russia was a stagnant power, especially in the face of Britain. A Spanish alliance with the Tsar did not seem promising, especially as it had a high possibility of leading to conflict with Britain, something Madrid feared almost above any diplomatic outcome. The one thing that they feared more, the consistent cornerstone of Spanish foreign policy in Europe was avoiding a war with France.
There were some pragmatists in Madrid who believed Spain should try and build an alliance with France. Don Luis González Bravo, who had spent much time in Paris during the days of the Citizen King still maintained links with more conservative elements of the current republican regime. Though he of all people knew that an alliance with royalist France had proved elusive he still felt that Spanish interests demanded an accord with Paris. Even Tsarist Russia, a state more conservative and monarchist even than Spain had sought alliance with the French, driven by their mutual fear of Britain.
However the Francophile faction in Spain was dwarfed by the far larger faction from the Queen on down who regarded the republican state beyond the Pyrenees with distaste laced with fear. While attitudes towards Isabella herself varied there was simply little appetite in the country for the kind of radical reform the French had undergone. In many circles there was considerable sympathy for the family of the fallen Louis-Philippe (who had enjoyed rather more popularity since his overthrow and subsequent death than he had as a reigning king.) France was a economic rival in North Africa where Spain struggled to retain influence in the palaces of Morocco and Algeria and frequently found her envoys barred by the whim of the local commissaire résident général. There was also the fact that France had proven herself almost as aggressive in Europe as Britain had everywhere else, and a succession of militaristic presidents had seen little issue with intervening in Italy in support of the Sardinians - and perhaps might do so again.
Piedmont-Sardinia herself had seemed poised to unify the rest of Italy in the early years of the decade but by 1865 she was in an alliance with her rival the Two Sicilies, to the deep disappointment of Italian nationalists. The Franco-Austrian War of 1860 had given the Sardinians regional leadership in her peninsula and if her population was only slightly higher than the Two Sicilies her economy was far more robust. For a brief period Piedmont-Sardinia would even be ranked among the great powers, though the recovery of the United States (at least financially) would leave the government at Turin merely one of the second rank states. In early 1864 the Sardinian prime minister the Conte di Menabrea had approached the Spanish about a possible alliance.
The Sardinians were less ideologically difficult state for conservative Spain. The structure of government in Turin was not terribly different from that in Madrid even if King Victor Emmanuel II struck a rather different figure than Queen Isabella II. However they came with concerns of their own. Piedmont-Sardinia was in opposition to the Austrian Empire and if Austria was not currently a military ally of Spain, the Hapsburg state was still the most sympathetic major power in Europe. Siding with the Sardinians, even without the prospect of war provoked some feelings of guilt in the Spanish government. A more serious problem was that the Spanish royal family and more conservative Spanish leaders were much more connected to the regime in Naples than the one in Turin. King Francis II of the Two Sicilies was Isabella's first cousin. The Spanish monarch was aghast at the idea of allying with her cousin's great rival and it was only with great reluctance (and the promise that Madrid should not involve herself in a war with Naples) that she was persuaded by Vigodet, O'Donnell and Bravo to agree to a treaty with Victor Emmanuel.
By the beginning of 1865 Spain would have her ally in Europe but remained detached from the power blocs that dominated the continent [1]. In some respects this was a blessing as it allowed Madrid a chance to stand aside from any great war on the Continent and General O'Donnell advocated exactly such an isolationist stance with a Spanish focus overseas. Napoleon's taunt that 'Europe ends at the Pyrenees' infuriated many in Spain but the truth was that the Spanish state, poor, weak in industry and underpopulated (compared with Britain, France and Austria at least) had few options if she wished to exert her authority at home. A minnow like Belgium, blessed with natural resources, the friendship of Britain and canny leadership had managed to parlay her position into a voice in European affairs but short of becoming France or Austria's lackey that was not something Spain could accomplish - and perhaps was too proud to accomplish [2].
The Baile de Capellanes by Ricardo Balaca - a depiction of a masqued ball in Madrid.
Madrid was not one of the largest cities in Europe in 1865. This was not necessarily an indication of modernity; King Francis II ruled the poorest, most backward state in Europe and Naples was still fourth behind London, Paris and Prague. Still well into the middle of the 19th Century Madrid remained a city of the previous era. The Spanish middle class was small and self contained; a clique dominated by clergymen, bureaucrats, military officers and artisans rather than the clerks that so dominated urban life in Paris and New York. Industrialisation had occurred slowly but there were vanishingly few educated and skilled workers in the factories. While this prevented the kind of great and rapid expansion experienced by other global cities it gave Madrid a more stable character.
There was a certain diversity and glamour to be found in the Spanish capital, challenging the staid image Spain could hold abroad. The early 1860s had seen the city linked to the rest of the peninsula by extensive railways and the transformative effects of widespread gas lighting had made Madrid safer and more attractive to well heeled foreigners. With Paris trapped in republican austerity and London held in disdain by much of the Continent many European aristocrats had decamped to Madrid. The Comte de Paris maintained a court in exile in the city. In 1864 he had married Queen Isabella's niece the Infanta María Isabel and by the following year Spain had unofficially become the home of Orléanists (to the discomfort of Don Luis González Bravo and the official French embassy.) A glittering constellation of French notables led an elite international coterie that also included a strong Brazilian presence from Spain's close ally across the seas and increasingly visitors from the Confederate States of America. And then there were those from the Spanish colonial empire. The Philippines and the dashes of land in Africa. The street life, cafés and ballrooms of Madrid were heady and lively centres during this period.
Much of the character of the Spanish capital was due to her monarch. Queen Isabella was neither a great beauty or blessed with effortless charisma but despite her otherwise conservative views she enjoyed fine living and the appearance or unexpected of some handsome blue blood in Madrid sent waves of delighted gossip around the wider social set. The knowledge that the King was impotent was the second worst kept secret in Europe and a popular social past time was attempting to guess the true parentage of the Queen's children. Isabella's fickleness and favouritism did not please everyone in Spain of course, but with a consistently conservative and monarchist Cortes it was hard to see what the malcontents could do. Having reigned for over three decades the Queen was still only in her mid-thirties and could expect to reign thirty more.
Madrid in the 1860s enjoyed a new sense of wealth, glamour and sophistication.
Footnotes:
[1] As of 1866 Spain's allies are the Confederate States of America, the Empire of Brazil and Sardinia with the first two also in her Sphere of Influence.
[2] Belgium is one of the Great Powers with the Dutch (!) and Ottomans (!!) in their sphere. King Leopold I of Belgium is evidently every bit as much the canny statesman and ruler in this timeline as he was in ours.
Happy Christmas readers!
J_Master: I think so but I'll have to check.
ThaHoward: Unfortunately the French seem very entrenched in Morocco - every embassy of mine gets discredited and banned in short order. Still there may be opportunites elsewhere.
AvatarOfKhaine: Hmm, I didn't know that!
Riotkiller: True! In American terms though i see them as strong libertarian states rights types.
stnylan: Very true. I did think that given the two recent defeats the hawks in the Union would be (temporarily) discredited. Cameron seemed a plausible (if slimy) alternative.
Specialist290: Indeed. It is certainly different from my previous AAR where the Americans were stronger than in our time line!
Viden: Yeesh, no mercy for the Yankees eh?
Andreios II: Thanks! Yes the CSA in particular has interesting politics. If they survive I might check in on them again at some point.
Nikolai: That is probably true.
Arnulf Floyd: Technically the US is not under British influence but I know what you mean!
lad: Thank you, I'm glad you enjoy it!
J_Master: I think so but I'll have to check.
ThaHoward: Unfortunately the French seem very entrenched in Morocco - every embassy of mine gets discredited and banned in short order. Still there may be opportunites elsewhere.
AvatarOfKhaine: Hmm, I didn't know that!
Riotkiller: True!
In American terms though i see them as strong libertarian states rights types. stnylan: Very true. I did think that given the two recent defeats the hawks in the Union would be (temporarily) discredited. Cameron seemed a plausible (if slimy) alternative.
Specialist290: Indeed. It is certainly different from my previous AAR where the Americans were stronger than in our time line!
Viden: Yeesh, no mercy for the Yankees eh?
Andreios II: Thanks! Yes the CSA in particular has interesting politics. If they survive I might check in on them again at some point.
Nikolai: That is probably true.
Arnulf Floyd: Technically the US is not under British influence but I know what you mean!
lad: Thank you, I'm glad you enjoy it!
Another good and interesting chapter. I have a trouble with glamour, sophistication and decadence of 19th Century nobility of Europe, what grim and sad reality
. I have a trouble with glamour, sophistication and decadence of 19th Century nobility of Europe, what grim and sad reality
Madrid certainly seems to be entering into its own -- perhaps not as a global city on par with London or Paris, but at least as a "swinging city" (to use a slightly anachronistic term) that has a certain charm and splendor of its own for those who want something a little off the beaten path.
An independent Poland is going to present a wrinkle for the Central European powers -- it weakens Russia's position in the region and may serve as a useful buffer, but at the same time I imagine Berlin and Vienna are going to have quite a bit of work ahead of them dealing with irredentist movements among their own Polish minority populations.
And, of course, Merry Christmas!
An independent Poland is going to present a wrinkle for the Central European powers -- it weakens Russia's position in the region and may serve as a useful buffer, but at the same time I imagine Berlin and Vienna are going to have quite a bit of work ahead of them dealing with irredentist movements among their own Polish minority populations.
And, of course, Merry Christmas!
An excellent Christmas update . The Spanish-Sardinian Alliance is certainly interesting... Between them they should be able to control the Med at least, though strategically that doesn't seem to be a current priority for Spain
. The Spanish-Sardinian Alliance is certainly interesting... Between them they should be able to control the Med at least, though strategically that doesn't seem to be a current priority for Spain
Very Merry Christmas
It is a tricky situation for Spain geo-politically. I note that Spain's previous alliances with France have not resulted in a benefit to Spain. If friendly relations can be retained with England, then this situation of wider European neutrality is probably their best course.
It is a tricky situation for Spain geo-politically. I note that Spain's previous alliances with France have not resulted in a benefit to Spain. If friendly relations can be retained with England, then this situation of wider European neutrality is probably their best course.
I can't decide if it would be good or bad for Piedmont to fulfill its destiny and form Italy. On the one hand, you will have a much more powerful ally in Italy; on the other you are all but certain to be drawn into war with Austria.
I suppose it fits Spain to be in so uncertain a position when facing future trends and ideals.
I suppose it fits Spain to be in so uncertain a position when facing future trends and ideals.