Theft, Rhetoric, and Fixed Bayonets: The Lone StAAR Empire

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Part 3: Prince John and the Texan Jingoes

The Hearst estate, San Francisco.
Butler. The esteemed sir seems to have received several letters from the War Department today.
George Hearst. Good, I hope. That boy hasn't written in a month of sundays. If Magruder got him harmed in any way, I'm making sure the old Virginian coot is found floating in the Aegean.
Hearst opens up one of the letters.
George Hearst. Jan. 18 1870, Iownia. Dear Father: I am told by Mr. Magruder that I should write home more. I think Mr. Magruder smells funny and drinks far too much, and all of the soldiers hate him. They call him Prince John and say that he confiscates their clothes and forces them not to drink or smoke. While I think their marihuana smells awful I get awful thirsty sometimes and I couldn't live without water. The men must be very brave. I asked if I could be general instead and Mr. Houston said no. I am angry at Lieutenant Houston but I don't know if I'm allowed to punch him because he was the hero of the War. The Greeks are happy to have us here but they all speak strange. I think that Mr. Sandon didn't really teach me Greek because when I tried to talk like a Greek to them they were all either confused or laughed at me.
I am enjoying the War, Father, and I hope that soon we will have another battle, because there has been a lot of waiting and marching and both of those are powerful dull next to battle.
Signed, Billy.
George Hearst. Feb. 11 1870, Iownia. Dear Father: Not much has changed and we are still guarding northern Ionia from the King of Greece. But I have had Mr. Malanore make me a map of recent battles. I have heard the French are doing a good job of beating up Austria, who declared war on us after we attacked the King. I wish I were with the French instead of Mr. Magruder or maybe in Russia, because there haven't been any battles yet. I wonder why the Rebels are in Russia, though, because the Czar doesn't have any slaves and that seems to be why the Rebels are around.
Signed, Billy.

George Hearst. Mar. 19 1870, Aygea. Dear Father: Mr. Magruder is hopping mad about the Anticonfederates and he has mentioned you a lot. He seems to hold a low opinion of you and said something impolite about Grandma. It is probably because of the Manumission Bill. When I asked Mr. Houston why Mr. Magruder is angry he said that it was because Mr. Magruder is from Virginia and the Virginians are very conservative and the Anticonfederates are liberal and they don't like slavery and Mr. Magruder has slaves he bought himself and got no money for them when they went free. The soldiers all said they voted Anticonfederate because they were the only party who weren't bomb-throwing anarchists and still didn't want to treat injuns like they were darkies. Igahai said that his brother lost a foot in Sicily and the Texas Party took away his rights because he wouldn't fight any more. Igahai is very smart and very friendly and if I could be the general instead of mean old Mr. Magruder I'd make him a corporal or an admiral or a congressman or whatever rank is below general.
I don't much like the transport ships, they're too small and they rock a lot and make me ill. Plus all of the men's horses poo too much and it really stinks, even after we chuck it overboard.
I got Mr. Houston to draw me another map for you, because you probably liked the other one. He looks very young for being nearly eighty years old.
Signed, Billy.

George Hearst. Aug 10, 1870, Patria. Dear father: Good news! In a battle with the King's army, Mr. Magruder was shot three times and died. I hated the old Virginian and I'm glad he's not the general any more. When I asked if I could pay to be general, everyone laughed. I don't see what's so funny, but they called me Million Dollar Bill, which is funny, because there's no such thing as a million dollar bill...

A distant crash rings through the Hearst mansion. Phoebe calls out, muffled by several walls but quite flummoxed.
Phoebe Hearst. God damn it, George, Martina's been drinking ag--
A voice can be heard to shout something muffled and Spanish, and there's another distant crash. George looks up briefly, shrugs, and goes back to reading his son's letter.

George Hearst. Corporal Houston has told me that he's not the old general but his son or grandson, I forget which. The Greeks have not put up much of a fight and each day...

Increasingly heavy footfalls, and the sound of a heavy-set person with relatively small feet stomping unstably up two flights of stairs.

George Hearst. Igahai was promoted to Sergeant because he captured five Greek soldiers by himself...

The door swings open, and there is Martina Rodriguez, one of the Hearsts' maids. George pays her no mind at first. She stares daggers at him and, when she finally finds her English, shrieks at the top of her lungs:

Martina Rodriguez: You killed my husband!

George Hearst starts to stand, but instead takes a round of buckshot to the chest. The letter he was holding is torn to shreds and he is thrown back into his chair, whose back legs give out under the sudden strain. The small chandelier hanging from the drawing room's ceiling, now at the center of his vision, seems to him to glow as brightly as the sun for the brief few moments before the world goes cold and black.

Next Time: The Populist Era

 

[ComteDeMeighan]

This AAR is Awesome I'm gonna download VIP now after reading your cool AAR keep up the good work!

 

[Henry v. Keiper]

Texans in Greece?

That's why I love AARs

 

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The Populist Era

Texan history in the 1870s was a confused mess: while the populist and secular Anticonfederates took power in great force, wars would shape the political landscape and Texas's role in the world.

On March 3, 1870, the Manumission Declaration went under debate in Congress. A faction in the House disfavored any emancipation, and another faction would not support any kind except complete and uncompensated emancipation. It was a battle between the industrial worker and the small farmer -- who resented the slaveowning aristocracy and feared the slave's economic influence -- and the Church and the ruling aristocracy were the giant in the other corner.

The underdog scored a knockout in the first round, and the Manumission Declaration was approved 5 to 4. It had been written mostly by Governor Canby's hand; the President wavered heavily on the issue, and toyed with dismissing the Declaration. Canby managed to convince Archer that the Manumission Declaration was the strongest weapon Texas could ever bring to bear against the 'wicked tide of anti-Republican secessionism', and on the seventh, President Archer declared all law-abiding men, women, and children in Texas's borders to be 'completely and irreversibly free'.

Vice-President Canby

The Texas Party proceeded to explode. In an election the next year, the Anticonfederates would sweep the government and bring the Populist Era into true force. The dynamic government would, by the end of the 1880s, turn Texas from the child of the Americas to the puppeteer of the world -- from the state with one of the democratic world's weakest social governments to the world's first welfare state -- and bring the Lone Star Empire into a global hegemony that would last for two generations.

And now for the wars in Europe.

The war against the Greek monarchy went well for Texas and France, with an invasion of the Peninsula itself after the unfortunate death of General Magruder.

The state of things after Magruder's death

From there, unfortunately, everything went terribly wrong. It was then Prussia chose to escalate hostilities with France to open war, dragging Texas into a greater continental conflict.

Prussia and Belgium combined forces to pounce hard on France. French forces in the north were vanishingly few due to the 'hungry front' in Austria -- which would have to be abandoned soon lest the forces of the North sweep France.

The war of the frontier -- nearly ending in French defeat in the first few months

The Texan navy, meanwhile, weighed in at sea: the Alamo and the Goliad, two large steamships with some iron armor, were attacked by the North German fleet on a patrol of the North Sea. At first the matchup looked bad for the Texans: they were outnumbered two to one and in hostile waters, after all.

First contact off the coast of Hamburg

Then the Germans quickly realized that the Texans were so maneuverable that they could hardly score any hits at all; to add insult to injury, many blows bounced off of the ships' light iron plating.

Things go pear-shaped

The engagement had clearly ended about a month after it began; two ships destroyed three and would leave one out of commission for the rest of the war. They suffered no permanent damage themselves, and the spirits of Texas and France were greatly lifted.

The peninsular campaign came to a close with a final combined-arms maneuver seizing Athens and with it the royal government of Greece.

Texan forces land at Athens to seize the royal government

The French, after taking a long, hard beating for want of forces in the area, finally rebounded in the North in January 1871, smashing the Belgians and the Germans at Amiens, Laon, and Melun -- leaving Louis Napoleon's government in Paris shaken but unharmed by the invasion.

The Counteroffensive -- the massive winter counterattack that saved France

Shaken by the sudden defeat, Baden ducked out of the war -- leaving the large advances by Prussia and her allies undefended from the south! The Prussians, who had nearly taken Paris in the war's first half year, now found themselves in a steady retreat. Austria, meanwhile, found itself fighting both France and the Germans; eventually, they called a stalemate with the French to better fight the Prussian hordes.

The withdrawal of Baden and the general collapse of the Prussian advance

Texan cavalry invaded Austria by sea in July 1871 (the Adriatic had been in Texan hands without much dispute since the war began) to ensure 'swift and humane' victory in the bogged-down Greek campaign...

The invasion moves on too slowly

...and fresh French forces, finally freed from the Florentine front, felled Flanders in a fearsome fight.

Okay, I promise never to do that again

Maneuver and countermaneuver in Austria proved less successful than originally hoped, and when General Hood, now in command of Magruder's old corps, realized he was outnumbered, he pressed the government at Houston to offer a relatively lenient peace to Greece: the Aegean surrendered, Ionia and the Peninsula retained.

The peace of Messina

Two wars now dominated the Texan political landscape: The Kaiser's War in Europe...

...and the War of Restoration in America.

After the initiation of hostilities against the CSA, the USA sought out help from the now-Anticonfederate-ruled Texans. The Texans agreed to an 'equal alliance' -- the only such alliance forged with the US before the turn of the century.

The Americans would not quite rectify the 'Shame of Lincoln' in the 1871 war -- the eventual peace gave up most of the CSA, but left them with the southern coast.

The Confederacy: Damaged, but still standing

Hood's corps, instead of heading south and out of Austria by sea, instead went north -- and attacked Gotha, the last South German minor state. The government, already weak from years of Prussian dominance, put up no objection to a treaty legally tying their affairs to Houston.

France had overrun Belgium entirely, and now advanced over the Rhineland as an unstoppable horde...

The French Army bringing the well-crafted ambitions of the Chancellor to naught

Hood's corps did not rest after Gotha had fallen: they rode hard through the Prussian countryside. Hood knew his weapons were far inferior to those of the Germans, but correctly deduced that the Germans' reliance on infantry would leave strategic areas undefended.

Such as Berlin.

Texan forces take Berlin -- and the Prussian government.

To the harried Bismarck, the 'perfect plan' to unify Germany under Prussia had become one long, drawn-out nightmare. Defeat at the hands of France was thinkable -- but seeing the Lone Star flag waving gently over the Reichstag made him believe he had gone mad. He was aghast to discover Wilhelm I was willing to accept the 'peace of domination' Texas had seemingly become enamored of -- and so spent a week arguing Texan representatives down to a steep treaty of war indemnities. He still fought the treaty bitterly -- until news of the Belgian surrender reached him. Fighting France into a white peace alone was an impossible task... and all the more impossible with the railroads and government in chaos as a result of the occupation.

On the 26th, the Prussians surrendered to Texas -- war indemnities, recognition of rule over Gotha, and a five-year treaty of nonaggression not to be violated for any reason. The war with France would continue for more than a year, with the only term being the release of Prussian dominance over the North German Federation.

Before 1873 was out, Bismarck had died of an initially unsuccessful suicide attempt, and Prussia and North Germany had initiated, in the words of Disraeli, 'a living monument to the craven jackal that is Greater Germany' -- the Prusso-Dutch War.

Next Time: Victory through Righteousness

 

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Awesome. Magic. Bravo. (wasted time thinking of praising words)..... Great one.....great one.......claps non-stop from me....haha.

Great AAR..... eager to read what you'll be doing next.

 

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Part 5: Victory through Righteousness

As the European Wars faded into memory, the Texan people found themselves ready for more and bigger fights. First came the 'war against poverty and ill health' which had been a central plank of the Anticonfederate platform: reforms would guarantee all Texan subjects free and high-quality health care, 'fair wage for good labor', and extended a living subsidy to all Texan subjects in search of employment. Later bills would increase the stipend, add a generous pension for retirees, and heavily subsidize businesses that took losses to operate as safely as possible.

While the costs of enacting these bills were quite heavy, most of those costs were a single-shot deal -- setting up agencies, training employees, writing standard codes, and so on. Most of these initial costs were, in fact, paid by Prussia.

The other peaceful acquisition of the 1870s: Guatemala, long ruled by the United States, fell without incident under Texan control. Surprisingly, little ill will remained from the 1859 sacking.

The new Texan state of Guatemala

Meanwhile, one of Texas's most brilliant military-political maneuvers was swiftly unfolding. A brief revolt broke out in the far north, and was quickly suppressed by the combined efforts of Canada and the UK. The rebels were in actuality a small group of farmers who seemed to attack the Ottawa garrison entirely at random, but Texas and their US allies immediately blew up the incident, turning it into a 'democratic revolt' in 'Occupied Canada' against 'British oppression'. The congresses of the US and Texas very narrowly approved a declaration of war against the Anglo-Canadian government.

The state of things shortly before the declaration of war

The Texan forces crossed the border and attacked the Canadians at Ottawa, where, backed by huge masses of US regulars, they broke through with little effort and seized the Canadian government. The crisis could have ended there if the Texans had not suddenly grown ambitious.
In the words of Sammy Houston -- direct descendant of the famous general and himself now commander of the Texan Expeditionary Force, "Through this war we will destroy the entire corrupt British Empire... but for Britain herself, where men a year ago flew the Union Jack they shall now fly the Lone Star..."

Early progress in Canada

As it turns out, Houston's predictions would be proven hyperbolic -- but in 1876, peace would be concluded with the United Kingdom -- in exchange for recognition of Canada as a Texan satellite, and the UK forfeiting most of her colonial claims in Africa. For Britain, an unmitigated disaster -- but for Texas, a true turning point. They had taken on the biggest and best, and they had won.

Gains in West Africa: much of the southern coast

Canada under Texas's heel

The Lone Star Empire settled into a gentle torpor that lasted some time, focusing on internal growth and development rather than conquest. California had at last ceased any signs of revolt, and now grew steadily into the most powerful state within the Empire, blessed with a huge territory and a huger population.

California -- at last a Texan state

After a brief period of diplomatic crisis, colonial clamancy of Algeria, in which both French Algeria and Lamar's Land had a direct interest, would default to Texas, with full clamancy taking place in April 1879.

Texan clamancy fulfilled

The peace of the late decade, unfortunately, was not to last.

The beginning of the Indochinese War

Next Time: Houston in Indonesia

 

[Von Lippe]

Fantastic read

I nearly fell out of my chair laughing at the "furious fusillade of French F's". :rofl:

How on earth did you manage to get such favorable peace terms from England? Did you Neville?

 

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Nah, used abusive trickery. Declared war on Canada, took the capital and most of the more important provinces with heavy US help, and then occupied all of the UK's claims that were blocking my mastery of West Africa. Satellite/indemnities-peace with Canada was possible, after which the UK was out of the running.

 

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Part 6: Houston in Indonesia

February 19, 1879. Finally acquired letter of official sanction. Caperworth continues to irritate -- just because of past affinity to Father, believes he has the right to order me around. Some day, he'll learn who's in charge of California.

March 1, 1879. Received second set of official papers. Officially joined Army at the rank of Master Sergeant. Have received complaints; responded that I have been in the Army longer than plenty of officers. So far no overt ill will. Caperworth apparently has attempted to intervene. If he weren't doing the work that I'd otherwise be stuck with, I'd be far more wont to ruin him.

March 12, 1879. Sudden declaration of war from the Dutch Indochinese colonial government. Dutch civil government seems to deny involvement and yet at the same time show a willingness to provide troops. Houston confident we'll crush them, I'm inclined to agree. Restationing organinzation in progress -- ought to be in California by April, and Indochina by May.

...

May 1, 1879. Apparently, we've run into a brick wall: we have no martial transports and our attempts to use civilian steamers have been unsuccessful. Ships made to cross the Pacific will remain unready until February! The Dutch shall almost certainly take advantage of this. They're already amassing forces in their half of New Guinea, for instance.

...

September 9, 1879. Obtained transfer from Houston's command to Carson's. Forces mostly Sicilian volunteers -- an odd lot, really, but not as bloody-minded as I'm told their parents were. Roughly 22,000 men in four divisions now control Acheen, at the north point of the superior island -- nearest enemy forces under an unknown commander in a defensive stance at Deli, some miles south and east, numbering 12,000 in one division. Indochinese island terrain is rough and easily defensible, so no attacks planned before arrival of large numbers of reinforcements.
Naval maneuvers looking interesting.

September 20, 1879. Big naval clash today -- Corpus Christi damaged heavily, but otherwise Texan fleet has emerged victorious. Six full flotillas of military transports bottomed, reportedly with all hands. The Liberty, in spite of her incredible age -- really, it's a tad strange to have an armed sailboat on the water in this day and age, but apparently no one has told Bonham -- has evidently scored at least one kill. The navy is on the gain.

September 28, 1879. Last of the ships to make a stand in the Straits now bottomed. The fearsome Rear-Admiral Vroom almost certainly is gone with them.

October 5, 1879. Another transport fleet, another six full flotillas in size, intercepted near the Equator -- without escort. The Cameroon and Colorado are in their element in these engagements -- while it's far too hot for them to work comfortably, the transports try to hit the coast and that's where the monitors work best... they're thrown back into deep waters, where the quicker Corsair class beats them ragged. The Dutch incompetence for going up against Bonham's fleet without equal weapons is immeasurable...

October 19, 1879. Gave Italian card-sharp the San Francisco Examiner as collateral. Caperworth will probably have a fit.

November 1, 1879. Forces at Acheen now surrounded -- numbers of Dutch drastically superior, but offensive maneuver remains suicidal. If they attack, we estimate that for every one of ours, we'll send eight down...

November 14, 1879. Second Italian force arrives in Minto chain. Island fortresses taken with little struggle -- of the island's roughly 20,000 man garrison, most were on off-shore vacation...

November 24, 1879. Dutch forces attempt counterattack at Minto -- efforts clearly foredoomed to failure.

November 28, 1879. Participated with great relish in the theft of a she-goat. Haven't had fresh milk in weeks, and happen to be fond of goat-cheese.

December 10, 1879. At Caperworth's unrelenting behest, traded the she-goat for the Examiner. The card-sharp is happy, Caperworth is happy, and I am wrathful. Cannot wait for March, when Houston's command is expected to arrive...

...

May 10, 1880. Received word that the transport fleet has rounded the cape. About goddamn time; the Dutch siege is intensifying and we need men something fierce. The numbers we have been promised seem absurdly high, though -- 80,000 are more men than it would seem could fit in Indonesia.

May 15, 1880. Dutch now own a three-to-one advantage. Commanders worried; several Italians now dead against about a thousand Dutch.

May 20, 1880. Recovered Eleanor from the card-sharp's tent upon hearing news of his unfortunate departure. Continues to give good milk.

May 27, 1880. Expeditionary force arrives -- fully 80,000, as promised. Dutch enjoy a roughly twenty-to-one discrepancy in firepower due to rough terrain and fortifications, so they have not taken well to being outnumbered nearly two to one.

...

July 18, 1880. The rumors are true -- Sammy Houston is here! We'll soon have the Dutch evicted from the Indies entirely. His San Diego command remains behind, but will probably not be needed -- Dutch divisional strength estimated no less than five, no more than eight; his current command alone numbers 14 divisions.

On the arrival of Houston and his Sicilian command, the ability to keep a journal became much more loose -- and so the diary is effectively concluded at that point. While Dutch incompetence guaranteed Texas would not face defeat, victory remained out of our grasp until the arrival of Houston.
W.R. Hearst, 'Memoirs of a Soldier: The Indochinese War (Appendix A)'

Next time: The Sick Man of Asia

 

[unmerged(24031)]

Great.

 

[unmerged(25591)]

Very nice.

EM

 

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Part 7: The Sick Man of Asia

As 1880 wore to a close, the Dutch Colonial Government found itself in an uncomfortable situation: while the supply system for the Dutch forces was far better, their weapons more advanced, and the terrain better-known to them, their numbers were just so much fewer -- and their naval power so lacking -- that the Texans could pick them off at their leisure.

The assault begins in earnest with the arrival of General Houston

In fact, the naval control in particular gave Texas an unassailable advantage: it was an island war, and the Dutch could not coordinate their forces from island to island. Even before Sumatra had fully fallen, Texan forces moved on to Borneo, on which the Texans and Dutch had held conflicting claims for years.

The war in Indonesia continues -- and the Dutch come out clear losers

Meanwhile, the Dutch command in New Guinea maintained their position -- in spite of the Texan parts of the island being unguarded. The incompetence of the Dutch command continued to gall Texan leaders, and to a greater extent, the Dutch people.

Dutch inactivity in New Guinea;

National comparison during the War.

By 1882, it was over: the Texans had overrun Borneo, established a decisive presence on Celebes, and had begun a nearly-unopposed siege of Batavia...

Maneuvering in the late war

...and on Sumatra, Houston, supreme commander of the Texan expeditionary force, and van der Heijden, supreme commander of all Dutch forces in Asia, squared off in what was possibly the most intensely disturbing battle in Texan history.

No. No! That's not true! That's impossible!

The peace which followed would knock a Holland already humiliated by defeat at the hands of Germany -- a defeat many still blamed on Texas for failing to cripple Prussia as they had many other countries -- out of the ranks of the colonial masters. Texas had only gained colonial possessions by conquest once before -- by war with England, and that was more a filibuster by the military authorities of Lamar's Land than anything else. But this -- this was a war for dominance, and Texas had emerged victorious.

The Sick Man of Asia held a tenuous grasp of three colonies: the Dutch East Indies, the Dutch West Indies, and Dutch Guyana. On January 19, 1883, he lost the West Indies and most of the East Indies.

And for the first time in its history, the Lone Star Empire would advance into the colonial world behind fixed bayonets.

END OF CHAPTER 2

Next time: Chapter 3

 

[Henry v. Keiper]

All I got to say is:

Sweet.

 

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Sweet indeed.

EM

 

[coz1]

Just looking around for a new AAR to pick up, I stumble upon this little gem. I am amazed at the amount of colonization you were able to do early, but it has certainly paid off. And you took on the Brits...and won. Wow. Tiny little Texas has turned into a grand empire. Keep it up!

 

[Rey]

Go Texas!

 

[Rensslaer]

Very impressive, el Presidente! Very impressive indeed.

A Texas sized empire!

Rensslaer

 

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You'd better be making that flag change soon!

 

[unmerged(32548)]

All in good time, my friend. All in good time.

(Would you believe I had the entire western US to work with and I couldn't find one decent Minister of Military Intelligence? Not important yet, but...)

 

[Von Lippe]

Military Spook circa 1880's-90's

Hmm...

Pershing is too young (just starting military career)-Missouri
Alfred Mahan started teaching at Academy in mid-1880's-New Yorker
Teddy too young and not intellectual-New Yorker
most of the civil-war era leaders are too old...
except maybe Sheridan? He served in Texas in the 1880's, before retiring.

Best bet would probably be to "invent" someone, or perhaps "adjust" the timeline a bit & bring in someone from either earlier or later in history.