The Second Civil War & Central American Communism: 1897-1901
During the late spring of 1897 the PRA was in complete disarray. In the Midwest, the newly formed Free States of America was campaigning in surrounding states for them to join their new nation, all the while fending off the PRA military. The FSA planned to hold a conference where states can decide to join them for early June, known as the second Springfield conference. However, many feared that the PRA would overrun the FSA by that point. Luckily for the FSA, the PRA had its hands full, with more and more states seceding.
Rally held by the FSA in Lexington Kentucky, May 1897
On May 4th, New York seceded. By far the most populous state on the continent, this was a devastating loss for the PRA. The PRA's initial military campaign designed to drive into the heart of the FSA was put on hold, and the communists spend most of May and early June reorganizing the army. The idea of mobilizing reserve troops was put on the table, but the communists decided to hold off, thinking they could still win the war without relying on mobilized reserves. Between the time of New York's secession and the Springfield conference, New Jersey and Nebraska would also secede.
The secession of New York and the deteriorating situation in the Midwest
The second Springfield Conference was held between June 10th and June 13th, and the FSA had received much better results than they had previously. Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kentucky, Kansas, and Oklahoma all joined the FSA. Georgia, Oregon Country, New York, and New Jersey did not join. They all felt that they were too distant from the landlocked FSA, and that it would be difficult to be a member of that union with the hostile PRA in the way. Instead, the FSA, Oregon Country, Georgia, New Jersey, and New York all formed a military alliance in order to win independence against the PRA. The next day, the communists mobilized their reserves and called for its allies to join the war. Initially, Indiana had remained a part of the communist republic, but after the second Springfield Conference there was a large movement within the state to join the FSA. In early July the state rebelled against the PRA, and officially joined the FSA on July 6th, 1897.
The Geopolitical landscape of the PRA, July 1897
The PRA military moved in swiftly and harshly, and the first free nation to fall to the PRA was Oregon Country. Half of Oregon had already been occupied by the PRA at the time of the Springfield conference, and on August 3rd they surrendered. Throughout July and August the seceded states found themselves completely on the defensive, and the PRA had managed penetrate deep into enemy territory. A quarter of the FSA had been occupied, as well as north eastern New York state. The New York army had fortified New York City and decided to hold out there, and in mid July the PRA began an assault on the city with an army composed entirely of mobilized reserves. The assault was disastrous, with PRA casualties outnumbering New York's five to one. On August 22nd, the assault was called off.
Results of the Battle of New York
In the Midwest, the PRA's fortunes were much better. The PRA received victory after victory, and by early October over half of the FSA was occupied by communist troops. The largest battle of the Midwestern theater occurred at South Bend, Indiana. It was a decisive victory for the PRA, and the FSA situation became desperate.
Results of the Battle of South Bend
By January 1898, all but Chicago was occupied, where the remnants of the FSA made their final stand. On January 7th the battle was decided, when what was left of the FSA surrendered. Two weeks later the FSA's surrender was made complete, and was annexed by the PRA.
Results of the Battle of Chicago, the final battle on the Midwestern front
After the defeat at New York, the PRA brought in their professional soldiers, complete with cavalry and large amounts of artillery, for a second offensive on New York. The second battle of New York began in late September 1897, and would go on for several months. During this time the PRA was able to defeat and occupy New Jersey, who were unable to put up much of a fight. New Jersey formally surrendered in November.During the war, the PRA felt it's biggest threats were the FSA in the midwest and New York / New Jersey in the north east. As such, only a small amount of personnel was sent to the south, to deal with Georgia. Georgian resistance was fierce, which caused the PRA's campaign to be slow going. It was not until early February 1898 that the Georgia was completely occupied, and forced to surrender.
The second battle of New York raged on into the winter, raining destruction over the largest city on the continent. The devastation was immense, as artillery barrages were a daily occurrence. With the aid of their ally Brazil, the PRA eventually broke the New York army and the battle ended in early February 1898. New York was largely in ruins, and over one hundred thousand men had lost their lives, making it by far the deadliest battle of the war. The victorious PRA spent the next month gaining full control of the ruined city, and by March the New York surrender was complete, restoring peace to the republic.
Results of the second Battle of New York, and peace restored to the PRA
The war had cost the most American lives since the first civil war, and the people had become exhausted. The PRA was quick to blame the Sons of Liberty, the enigmatic group who had chapters across the nation, constantly pushing for revolution, and an end to the communist state. Public opinion quickly turned against them, and for the time being, they faded into obscurity. Unemployment was high in many of the cities affected by the war, and it would take years to rebuild.
With the home front secured, and the rebellious liberals largely under control, the communists were able to look beyond their own borders. The PRA had long planned to spread communism throughout the world, and their target was Central America. Mexico and Yucatan had already become communist, and it time to expand communism beyond those countries. The first to fall would be Guatemala in the summer of 1899. The PRA took a largely hands off approach, and left most of the dirty work to their Mexican ally. The tiny nation of Guatemala stood no chance, and they quickly fell, and their neighbours too succumbed to the forces of communism. By the turn of the century, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador had all become communist.
Invasion of Honduras by Mexican and Brazilian forces
The 20th century began on favourable terms for the PRA. Communism was spreading quickly, and at the end of March the Panama canal was finally complete. The Panaman government had previously rebelled against the PRA, and up until now the PRA had maintained a shaky peace in the region, in order to keep the construction of the canal from being compromised. Now that the canal was complete, the time was ripe to install a communist government.
Completion of the Panama Canal
Colombia, while not communist, was previously an ally of the PRA. However, they did not support and even feared how quickly communism spread throughout their neighbours to the north. When the PRA asked for help in the central American wars, Colombia refused and broke off their alliance. Outraged, the PRA used the betrayal as a reason to declare war on Colombia, and they too would fall to communism. Colombia was a much stronger foe than any of the central American countries, and the PRA feared that their allies would not be able to handle the job. The PRA sent in its own troops, and decimated the Colombians with ease.
Colombia surrenders
It was now Fall of 1901, and communist states stretched from the PRA all the way south to Colombia. The PRA's Navy was unmatched, and while their army was not the largest in the world, their technological superiority made them arguably the world's best. Finally at long last, the generals of the PRA were able to shift their gaze to their northern neighbour.
Ledger showing communists states as of August 1901