The Lily Will Reflower

[da Racontor]

Greetings everyone, I will soon be starting my first timeline!
I have just a few things I wanted to say about it first:

• The POD will be the Catholic and Royal Army deciding to march directly for Paris after the Battle of Saumur during the War of the First Coalition.
  
• There will be a bit of OTL information in the first few updates for the benefit of those unfamiliar with these events, and for my own creative process.
• The timeline is written in universe with a flawed narrator.
  
• And I enjoy OTL cameos and allusions in alternate histories, this timeline will purposely contain both. If this will hamper your enjoyment sorry, but this may not be the timeline for you then.

I look forward posting my first update and see your feedback so I can improve my writing skills.
Thanks.

 

[da Racontor]

N. Introduction

“The Revolution threatened to change what it meant to be ‘French’,”
(from New Great Chronicles of France)​

France was in crisis. Years of financial mismanagement combined with radical ideas culminated in French Revolution. The revolutionaries had executed Louis XVI, King of France, and had begun a campaign to de-Christianize France, and spread the revolution to the other nations of Europe. The revolutionary government instituted the Constitution of civile du clergé[*], to control the Church in France, and the levée en mass[†], to maintain the size of the revolutionary army. For many the idea of being forced to fight for the same government that was persecuting and killing their priests was too much. This was the case in the Vendée region, a counterrevolution began in the area calling itself the Catholic and Royal Army.

***​

[*] Civil Constitution of Clergy

[†] mass levy

 

[The Tai-Pan]

Curious to see where it goes. Lots of cool stuff that can be done here!

 

[da Racontor]

I. The Road to Paris

“The Vendée did not birth the Counterrevolution, but it was its soul.”
(from New Great Chronicles of France)​

The Catholic and Royal Army had just captured the town of Saumur, which provided the army with a large cache of supplies. The leadership of the army now faced a fateful decision, do they march towards Nantes or Paris? Taking Nantes would allow Great Britain land troop, and then they could do most of the fighting. Marching on Paris would put the Vendéans at the forefront of ending the revolution. After much deliberation, the leaders of army decided that the British could come if they wanted regardless, it should be by French blood that the revolution be stopped. The road to Paris would be long and hard, many of soldiers were peasants they had no wish to defeat the revolutionaries, they just wanted the revolutionaries to leave them alone. But the Vendéan leaders knew that the revolutionary government would never let anyone in France return to the life they used to have. This would have to be a problem that would be addressed continuously throughout their campaign.

The next step for the army would be to fight its way out of the Vendée region, the taking city of Angers would be that step, opening the road to the rest of France. Generalissimo Jacques Cathelineau, “le Saint de l’Anjou[*]” would personally lead the troops into the battle, his presence bolstering the morale of his soldiers, their most potent weapon. Gas.[†] Cathelineau began the battle with an initial assault that failed to accomplish anything concrete, but it was not designed to. The assault’s purpose was to identify strengths and weaknesses in the revolutionary’s defenses, and while costly worked perfectly. The next step was an artillery bombardment to soften the revolutionary’s positions even more. With a second longer assault the revolutionary defenses were overrun. With their defenses failing many of the revolutionary troops lost their heart and surrendered. As he had done before Gas. Cathelineau gave the prisoners two choices. They could join the counterrevolutionaries or be released and never take up arms against royalist troops again. Those that joined were welcomed with open arms, those that did not had their heads shaven so they could be identified and warned that if they were captured again they would be executed.

The counterrevolutionaries slowly worked their way east, their progress only pausing for the death of Gas. Cathelineau. Louis d’Elbée would become the next generalissimo and led the army north into Brittany and Normandy to gather new troops, which they desperately needed. As the army moved through Brittany and Normandy, it grew in size and prestige. To deal with this threat the National Convention tried two solutions. One was to create the Army of the West to engage the counterrevolutionary army, and the other was to create the Infernal Columns to make an example out of the Vendée.

Up until the arrival of the Army of the West, the counterrevolutionaries had only reality fought militia. The Army of the West was composed of regulars. The counterrevolutionaries were dealt a large defeat at the first battle the two armies fought. While the counterrevolutionary army was having trouble with the new revolutionary army, the Infernal Columns arrived in the Vendée. Only those who had a direct connection to the republic were spared by the Infernal Columns. Infrastructural destruction missed most of the cities, any villages the columns came a crossed were burned to the ground. Those who survived the initial pillaging were round up and executed, usually by “republican baptism[‡]”, and some were give the special execution of a “republican marriage[§]”.

***​

[*] the Saint of Anjou
[†] used as an abbreviation for generalissimo in lieu of an actual one
[‡] lashing people to a barge and then sinking it
[§] lashing a male and female together naked and then drowning them

 

[Alex Zetsu]

A flawed narrator makes any story hard to follow...

 

[da Racontor]

II. Army of Martyrs

“He [William Pitt the Younger] saw promise in that rabble...”
(from The Historiography of Great Britain)​

After withdrawing a large distance, Gas. d’Elbée continued to try to rally his men, but their spirit was broken, and the men wished to return to their farms. Before the army dissolved completely, he gave one last speech, but the men still would not listen many dropped their weapons where they stood and turned way. Woman from the nearby village were listening to the speech and saw the reaction. The women picked up the weapons off the ground shouting, “la religion, le roi ou la mort ![*]”. Embarrassed, the men chased after the woman to reclaim their weapons. While morale would continue to be an issue for the army, it would never again face the threat of disintegrating.

In the Vendée, a guerrilla resistance began to form against the Infernal Columns. Many men had left to fight in the Catholic and Royal Army so the guerrilla force consisted of those few men who had stayed, the old, and women. They never fought the columns in open combat but continued to harass them and lead them away from vulnerable villages. Tens of thousands of people would still die and the country side would still be devastated.

Gas. d’Elbée would be killed by the revolutionaries in 1794, Henri de la Rochejaquelein, despite his young age, would become the third Generalissimo. He would try to use only guerrilla tactics to control the Army of the West, but soon after he took command he too would die in combat. Command would then pass to François de Charette, but as lieutenant general not generalissimo.

Great Britain had begun to take great intertest of the stories of the Catholic and Royal Army and now felt like supporting the army would be worth the resources. The British sent Colonel Joseph de Puisaye a former revolutionary to make contact and negotiate with the counterrevolutionary army. After the counterrevolutionary army agreed to support the British landing Col. de Puisaye attempted to get himself appointed commander of the joint forces. This did not happen, Camp Marshal Louis d’Hervilly would command the landing operation under the direction of Lt. Gen. de Charette and afterwards the two forces would coöperate but remain independent. The counterrevolutionaries withdrew to secure Quiberon long enough for British troops to land. Once the British landed and were fully deployed the British and counterrevolutionaries engaged the Army of the West. With the two forces combined, the revolutionaries went on the defensive. A new permanent front was then established in the west dividing the revolutionary forces even more.

***​

[*] the religion, the king or death!

 

[da Racontor]

Sorry for the short update, but it is the busy season at work right now...

 

[da Racontor]

III. That’s the Way the Fronts Crumble

“Capturing Paris guaranteed victory, but not an end…”
(from New Great Chronicles of France)​

As the British forces and Catholic and Royal Army slowly advanced they began to create a more stable front. The revolutionaries sent more troops to join the Army of the West and renamed them the Army of the Channel Coast, but these new divisions did not make the giant break though the revolutionaries had hoped for as the British had also sent more troops once their position was stable. Instead the majority of the fighting drew to a net stalemate. The counterrevolutionaries only gaining significant ground through uprisings in revolutionary controlled territory. The British continued to land supplies and reinforcement at Quiberon as the area was firmly held by the counterrevolutionaries.

Spain had been considering surrender as they had been losing ground in the Pyrenees. However, the western campaign drew supplies that the revolutionaries would have sent elsewhere weakening all their positions. As the Spain commanders saw the revolutionary forces weaken their hopes began to rise again, and with new determination managed to keep the country fighting just a little longer.

In 1796, fighting five major campaigns finally put too much strain on the revolutionary supply lines, and they collapsed. The almost all the revolutionary armies began a slow but steady retreat. Desertion rate among the revolutionary armies skyrocketed with the lack of supplies and the changing of the tides of war. Even as the National Convention gave orders to recall troops to defend Paris, many of the revolutionary leaders secretly fled the city. Most of the troops either attempted to follow the order to return or defected, some, however, especially those under the command of a General Bonaparte, severed ties with the National Convention to continue fighting for the revolution on their own.

Armies of Austria, Britain, and the counterrevolutionaries all advanced to striking distance of Paris. With Paris in sight Lt. Gen. de Charette order the Catholic and Royal Army to hang behind the British forces and look as unthreatening as possible. Meanwhile, the British and Austrians began to coördinate their plans. Lt. Gen. de Charette went to great lengths to avoid letting his troops become involved in any of the skirmishes that took place. The revolutionary commanders occupied themselves with the more apparent threats of Austria and Britain. Once the revolutionaries had committed to a large-scale battle with the Austrians and British the Catholic and Royal Army charged directly for Paris, fighting only one small battle along the way.

Paris itself was not left undefended as many troops and militia were left behind. At first, the revolutionary forces were enough to hold the counterrevolutionaries at bay. But the tide was turned when men from inside Paris began to revolt opening the way for the counterrevolutionary army to fully enter the city. On the second of February 1797, Paris was captured by the Catholic and Royal Army. With Paris finally captured, the Austrians and British cleaned up all the revolutionary troops that would not surrender. Scattered fighting continued until the Treaty of Reventin-Vaugris in October of the same year.

***​

 

[da Racontor]

IV. The most Disadvantage Peace…

“Steps must be taken to unsure a peaceful balance of power among the nations.”
(from Treaty of Reventin-Vaugris)​

The treaty delegates chose to meet in the French town of Reventin-Vaugris because it was near the site were the last revolutionary forces surrendered. No revolutionary delegates were invited to the treaty as none powers recognized the French Republic as a legitimate government, a delegate representing the Kingdom of France did attend though. The treaty had two goals: restore a legitimate government, and create a better balance of power. The need for a legitimate government was obvious and easily accomplished, the treaty declared that the monarchy was to be restored, and the Count of Province would be crowned King Louis XVIII of France. Secondly the powers did not want one country in Europe to be able to threaten all others at once, France must be weakened for the safety of the other nations. Though not all delegates felt this was a good idea.

Some felt that if France was punished it would cause resentment that would lead to another war. But it was clear to their opponents that the reason the revolutionaries lost was because of internal revolts. If the peoples of France fully supported a war then the nation might defeat all the other nations of Europe. The two ideas compromise on series of small territory concessions to the various nations. French Flanders would be combined with Austrian Netherlands, and the Duchy of Lorraine would be returned to the House of Habsburg. The Papal States would regain all lost territory. Spain would unwillingly receive French Catalonia and French Navarre. And lastly, Corsica would become an independent country in union with Britain. As the French delegate was only invited as a formality these protests were ignored and the treaty was approved.

The revolutionaries that had survived the war, la terreur[*], and angry mobs now feared for their lives. Those who supported the revolution but did not have a direct connection to the republican government were able to stay or hide in rural France depending on their connection. Military officers were mostly pardoned if they swore allegiance to the crown, as Louis XVIII did not want to weaken said military. But many others though were forced to flee. The Dutch Netherlands had fought against the revolutionary government, but many there were sympathetic to the revolutionary cause. Switzerland had, unsurprisingly, stayed neutral during the war and there would be little trouble there. And in the United States the Democratic-Republican party had expressed favorable relations, states where they were the majority party also made for a suitable refuge.

***
​

Map of France in 1797

[*] the Reign of Terror

 

[da Racontor]

V. A Bid for Prestige

“They descended on the [Ottoman] empire like vultures.”
(from Prologue to the Ottomans)​

Louis XVIII was crowned king, and the government was mostly stable from a legal standpoint. Unfortunately, the country, as a whole, felt sick. Debt still plagued the nation, and many people needed to be shown that the monarchy could still protect them. The king’s advisors developed a plan they thought would solve both those issues. France needed to conquer a new colony preferably one that could create an eastern trade route. While conquering a section of inland Africa would be the easiest, but it would take too long to established infrastructure and get a monetary return.

Back in 1777, François Baron de Tott submitted a report that suggested that France could defeat the Ottoman Empire in a war and the empire did have regions that would fulfill France’s needs. Egypt would be the most obvious target, but the British also had interest in Egypt as a trade hub and may not be too kind to the idea of a change in government. The Levant was the second choice, as it could still grow crops, most importantly cotton, and it provided access to the east through Persia.

In order to pull the invasion off the French commanders wanted to ensure the supply line was stable, one of the ways to do this was to use the island of Malta as a supply stop. While many of the Knights of Malta were eager at the prospect of an invasion of the Ottoman Empire, Grand Master Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim was uneasy with allying with the French as the French Army still had commanders who fought for the revolution. The quick-thinking envoys, rephrased their stance to make it sound like the king was interest in reigniting a fever for the crusades and restoring the crusader states. Both the king and the government had no intention of doing either of these things, but it was enough to gain the G. Mstr. von Hompesch zu Bolheim’s approval.

On 1789 on the 19th of May, fifty-five armed vessels and over five times that many unarmed vessels set sail from Toulon, France for the Levant. War had been declared the official the cāsus bellī[*] was to protect Christian inhabitants and travelers of the Levant, though while this was an actual consideration it had very little to do with the final decision. The Ottomans did launch ships to stop the French, however the only thing they managed to do is change the landing site as the French ships pursued the Ottomans to Acre instead of following their plan. Because no one was planing on an attack on Acre, most of the Ottoman army was elsewhere and the French hesitated to begin their assault. But when the French did siege Acre it easily fell, thought civilian resistance would continue for some time after. The French Army split into two, on section stayed in Acre as a defense, and to engage any Ottoman movements. The second part marched south, first to Jaffa, then to Jerusalem. While religion has little actual influence in the French Commands decisions, taking Jerusalem was considered too great of a moral boost for the troops to pass up.

Now that France was moving against the Ottomans, Austria, Britain, and Russia all decided to carve their own piece of the empire. Austria and Russia both attacked from the north pushing through the Balkans. For the British the most profitable place for them would, of course, be Egypt. With the Ottoman besieged on all sides the British Command decided to go for a direct assault. British troops captured Alexandria and began pushing back the Mameluke forces.

***​

[*] cause of war

 

[da Racontor]

VI. Revolution Take Two

“Trouble is always brewing in here at home…”
(from a letter to a French soldier in the Levant)​

When the revolutionaries fled France, they did not leave behind their ideals. Most of the revolutionaries left with the plan to rebuild their dream in another country someday. Or at the least strike take revenge on the counterrevolutionaries, they just had to wait until they again had the strength to impose the revolution on all of Europe. Using their connection from before the revolution, many quickly worked their way up into positions of influence in their country of refuge. In Switzerland, the French revolutionaries were joined by several influential Swiss that supported their ideas and in 1798 they organized a small coup. They had hoped that the powers of Europe would overlook Switzerland, especially with the ongoing wars against the Ottomans, and they would be free to reorganized. They were wrong.

The monarchs of Europe had been worried about the revolutionary refugees since they left France, but they did not want to bring attention to them hoping that their spirit and zeal would die out on its own. So as soon as it was clear that the revolutionaries were making a grab for power the monarchs set forth creating a second coalition to prevent their influence from spreading. Austria, Britain, France, Russia, and others all joined the coalition and invaded Switzerland. With war coming to the revolutionaries in Switzerland, those who had managed to hide elsewhere in Europe rebelled once again creating revolutionary legions within the coaligned countries. And the Dutch Republic would also fall to a successful revolutionary coup.

Surrounded and outnumbered the revolutionaries settled in for a war of attrition. The one thing that did go for the revolutionaries is that much the European monarchs’ armies were in the near east carving out Ottoman territory. But it was not enough, revolutionary Netherlands, Switzerland, and allied legions could not weather the tide. Many revolutionary leaders again fled before the invading armies took the respective capitals. This time the revolution was over, but the fear would still live on. For the next hundred years radical, republican revolutionaries would be the boogeymen of Europe rumored to hide in every secret society waiting and plotting for the downfall of Europe and of civilization.

War in the Middle East did not favor the Ottomans any better, the army suffered a complete collapse as a result of its inability to adapt to modern warfare and combat, especially against so many opponents at once. With the military collapse the Ottomans were at the mercy of the Europeans. Fighting did continue by the local populaces though, most notably by the Mamelukes against the British. The Ottoman’s surrender did not end the trouble though. The Ottomans had been pushed out of Europe and the question of who would now control the Balkans and Greece. became a very pressing issue.

Russian emperor, Paul I, wanted to institute the Catherine the Great’s Greek Plan. Most of the plan was fine with only minor changes, but no one outside of Russia was in favor of the part that made a Russo-Byzantine union possible in the future. The Council of Moscow was filled argument as no one was willing to allow the new realm to fall under the sway of another power. Eventually a compromise was made, Paul I’s second son, Grand Duke Constantine, was allowed to become king of the Greeks[*]. While a member of the House of Romanov was on the throne, the other powers were able to design the laws of succession to absolutely ensure there would never be a personal union between Byzantium and Russia, and if Constantine XII’s line ever failed a new house would be elected.

***​

[*] “Autocrat of the Romans” was the intended official title, but Russia and Byzantium were the only ones who ever used the term, and it fell out of use by everyone after Constantine XII’s death

Map of the Ottoman Empire after 1802

Flag and Arms of the Restored Byzantine Empire


I know there is only a few people that read this timeline, but do you guys have an questions, comments, concerns, et cetera?

 

[Mccarthypaddy1216]

So far so good Keep it up mate

 

[da Racontor]

VII. That which Simmers,

“A restored Rome heralds a hope for a new peace.”
(from a Byzantine propaganda pamphlet)​

With the arrival of the year 1802, Europe was at peace for the first time in over ten years. Austria, Britain, and Russia all emerged looking forward to a bright new decade, and continued growth in power and trade. There was of course unrest in the newly restored Byzantium as the Islamic residence were very unhappy with the current arrangement, as the Greek Orthodox Church became the official religion. Normally, the Islamic dissidents would not be a problem as the Russians would send support troops to help keep order. But Paul I was assassinated and Alexander I became Emperor of Russia, the two brothers could not see eye-to-eye, and a rift formed between them.

France was in an interesting position. The Invasion of the Levant was more successful than one could have hoped for. The problem was the country was still trying to reform its political systems to be faithful to French tradition but prevent another revolution. Also with the conquest of the Levant and the War of the Second Coalitions had restored pride in the French military from both commoners and nobility alike. This new-found pride invigorated the people to work to solve the countries problem, but it also created a feeling of resentment at other nations for forcing the concession of territories in the Treaty of Reventin-Vaugris. Talks began to take place in France about reclaiming the territories that other nations stole.

The revolution made all European monarchs fear for their lives, and as a result many passed restrictive laws against certain groups and speech, as well as consolidated their power in an attempt to prevent another revolution. Charles IV of Spain was one of these monarchs, much of his fear stemming from almost having to surrender to the Revolutionaries during the War of First Coalition. In Spain, the reaction to Charles IV’s reforms did not affect the stability to any significant degree. Spanish power, however, had been waning in the colonies for many years now. The colonies did not take too well to the changes and some began to talk about following in the footsteps of the former British colonies.

***​

Meanwhile, in the United States the two political parties had been vying for power. The Federalists were consistent on their stance against the European revolutionaries. Originally, the Democratic-Republicans favored the European revolutionaries, and when many of the revolutionaries looked for a refuge the Democratic-Republicans welcomed them as allies against the Federalists. Those revolutionaries that did manage to sneak into the United States were more than happy rally against the Federalists. The Democratic-Republicans had always been very outspoken and hostile towards the Federalist, but the revolutionaries bought things to a new level. They organized riots and advocated a for a second American revolution but this time following the example the French Revolution. Only the most radical Democratic-Republicans could support these action, dividing the party.

As the two factions within the Democratic-Republicans continued to polarize many of the Federalists’ actions that at first seemed too strict, like the Alien and Sedition Acts, suddenly did not seem so unnecessary. Fear of an American Reign of Terror allowed John Adams to win his second term during the election of 1800. President Adams continued to strengthen his policies from his first term, even though he only barely won the election.

***​

 

[da Racontor]

VIII. Can Boil Over

“What the weather has saved, the weather can abandon.”
(from The Historiography of Great Britain)​

Security and economics were President Adams’ primary concerns. Believing that the American people were in support of his policies he turned most of his attention to the massive amount of debt the country had accrued from the war of independence. In addition to tax, trade with Britain and France made an important part of the new country’s income. Pirate states from the Barbary Coast continually demanded large amounts of tribute to prevent raids on United States shipping. Many influential members of the Federalist Party wanted to prove the war of independence was not just a fluke, that they were a military power. To do this they wanted to use federal navy to project their power. President Adams wanted to wait until the navy was better built up and the country is more financially stable. But his party continued to pressure him to take action against the Barbary pirates, tribute stopped and naval vessels were sent with the merchant ships to protect them.

***
​

In Europe, Britain had been bulling French trade since the end of the War of the First Coalition and the recent French withdrawal from Haiti did not help at all. Tension between the two countries rose. Louis XVIII of France called for a massive rearmament to protect French interests. It was clear that there was no British colony, nor country on the continent that France could attack to deter British medaling in their affairs; no, the only option was to break Britain’s spirit. So, work began on a new invasion plan, one of the British Isles. While there was no direct reference to Britain being at threat, the British Parliament began to keep a close eye on French actions.

Spain had always been opposed to the annexation of French territory that occurred in the Treaty of Reventin-Vaugris. Wanting to rectify this Charles IV of Spain and Louis XVIII signed a new agreement to return the parts of France that was given to Spain. Britain accused France and Spain of threating peace in Europe by upsetting the balance of power, and threatened to intervene if the agreement continued. France responded with a declaration of war in May of 1803. Britain had noticed France’s buildup of forces along the English Channel. Their main plan would be to have the British Royal Navy blockade the English Channel to prevent an invasion, while the troops would bolster allied armies on the continent keep French focus there.

The amount of resource France was devoting to the invasion plan began to worry the British leadership, and terrify the British populace. The one assurance was the French navy, even with Spanish support, could not break the British blockade. The French main plan for the invasion was for a Franco-Spanish armada to draw off the British ships giving the transports time make the crossing, the armada just needed time to assemble safely. This continued to be the plan until December 28th, 1803 when a storm blew the blockade further down the channel and damaged a few of the British ships and forced them to take shelter. At first, the French Naval Command was hesitant cross, yes, they could land the troops, but those troops would be cut off from supply lines in a few days when the blockade reformed. But Louis XVIII gave the order to sail, France would take the gamble. French troops landed just west of Chatham, unfortunately on the return trip the French Navy was caught by the recovering British blockade, capturing several vessels. The French had landed further north than the British expected bypassing most of the defenses that were built. From the south British troops rushed from their defenses to rally with the rest of the army. George III of Britain, against all advice, personally led troops to Dartford to fight the French.

***​

 

[da Racontor]

IX. A League to Protect Balance

“We don’t need another Godwinson!”
(from parliament’s protests to George III leading the army)​

The victory in the First Barbary War brought some much-needed popularity to the Federalist Party. With the passing of the Federal Voting Rights Act in an attempt to quell paranoia about revolutionary influence. The definitions cemented a minimum landownership as a requirement for voting on a federal level[*]. As a result of the Federalist domestic policies resentment among the lower class had only grown since the election of 1800. With the election of 1804, Charles Pinckney won the presidency and the country settled in for another four years of Federalist leadership. Democratic-Republicans accused the Federalist of stifling the democratic process by using Alien and Sedition Acts to silence opposition, the Federalists retorted by saying the acts were necessary for federal security. After the election, attention turned to what to do with Tripolitania. The territory would be treated as a dependent state as no one wanted to declare it a territory and take on the responsibility of governing it.

***​

As soon as French troops landed on Britain bands of militia and skirmishers began raiding the French camps and lines. These raids proved to be a great distraction and were very successful as the British to French losses were very limited. The problem was they could not make the raids frequent enough. Most of the available British regulars were being assembled at Dartford, and the militia was not large enough nor organized enough to keep constant pressure on the French. Also, as soon as word spread that the French had landed another Irish rebellion broke out. This caused the British army to divide even more, it was already bad enough that a significant portion of the army was still occupying Egypt, another portion was on the continent because the original war plan was to attack France directly with help from allies, but now a segment had to break away to handle the Irish, albeit a small segment.

The British plan was to continue to harass the French until they could amass the largest force possible. Then in one pitched battle defeat army before they could cause any serious damage. If they were defeated, then they would retreat to the midlands and hold the line until reinforcements could arrive in the north and be organized to retake the south. The French plan was to march directly for London, and then to take and hold the city. For the rest of the war the goal would be to prevent Britain from creating a large enough force to be a threat, as well as destroying several important military targets, mostly shipyards.

The invasion of Britain had taken Austria by surprise, they had been nominally allied with Britain since the beginning of the war, but with France spending all of their attention on the invasion plan, which Austria did not believe was possible, they figured a white peace would follow soon and they could sit this one out. But with French troops on British soil, Austria and several other smaller countries quickly formed the First League and rushed their army to the French border. France was not alone though, waiting at the border were both French and Spanish troops. Maximilian IV of Bavaria was tired of Habsburg hegemony and when the call to supply troops for the imperial army Maximilian IV led several other smaller like-minded states to rebel. The Netherlands was also tired of Britain competing with their colonial ambitions, and Venice as worried that a victorious Austria would try to project their influence into Venice next, so both allied with France. And finally, there was Russia, after the French Revolution Russia had cordial relations with France, something French diplomats were trying to strengthen. But war came before this could happen, Alexander I was much more interested in keeping things in statu quō[†], and therefore joined the First League.

***​

[*] state voting requirements for state matters remained unaffected
[†] status quo



I just want to say thanks to everyone for helping this little timeline reach 1,000 views!

 

[da Racontor]

X. At least there Are no Arrows

“For the King! Huzzah!”
(British battle cry during the French Invasion)​

The French army marched straight for London, they knew that most of the British regulars were not on the island and wanted to accomplish as much as they could before the reinforcements could arrive. On the road to London was city of Dartford, the rally point for the British army. Because of this the British only had two days to amass their troops from the time the French ships were sighted. Just outside of Dartford the two armies formed up, and the French commanders were shocked to see George III’s personal banners among the British ranks. The entire French battle strategy then transformed from simply routing the British and move on to London, to focusing on the king. Artillery opened up from both sides, the French focused their fire away from the king, it would be better to make him a prisoner than a martyr. After the artillery, the French sent their cuirassiers in to harass and find weak points in the British lines. Again, to the French commander’s surprise the British did not rush to strength their defenses in front of the king. When the cuirassiers returned the French line infantry advanced twice on the middle and the flank opposite the king, and the British strengthened their lines both time. What had happened was George III had given an explicit order to his troops to behave as though he was not there. This was so that the troops would get distracted from the orders their commanders gave them, it worked too well. Once the British infantry was fully committed to defend against the third French advance, every available French mounted soldier charged for the king. When the royal standard fell to the ground, so did the morale of the British soldiers. The British militia broke and fled and while the regulars would not flee they were disheartened beyond the point of effectiveness and an orderly withdraw began. George III was not dead as the British troops feared, he was surrounded by French cavalry and surrendered to spare the lives of his retinue.

News of the loss at Dartford and the capture of the king spread throughout Britain like a wildfire. Many citizens had fled southern England when they heard the French were landing. Now the exodus of people increased so much that most cities, other than London, would have seemed like a ghost town in just the several hours it took the French army to arrive. At their arrival, the French began to siege the city, and a small detachment broke off to chase the remainder of the British army further away. It had been well over a hundred years since the people had face an army at their door. Most could not properly comprehend what was happening, and the default reaction was to either flee or hide. It would still be another half a day before the first messenger ship would reach the continent with orders to return home.

Reinforcements did arrive from the European continent, but it was not all the troops stationed in Europe. The messengers left as soon as possible, before any actual fighting occurred they were still operating under the impression that the main war plan was to aid Austria in attacking France directly ending the war before an invasion could do any permanent damage. Luckily, the reinforcements did land in the midlands, as that was the worst-case scenario fall back point. Once there the reinforcements easily chased off the French pursuers, and went to work rebuilding the rest of the broken British army.

The siege of London was under constant raids by militia forces, and it would only a matter of time before the British regulars returned. Thus, the cannons were soon brought out to hasten the siege. London’s walls held the best that could be expected. But no walls could last long against a modern artillery bombardment. In the morning on the second day, French troops poured into the city to meet a wall of bayonets. Street fighting soon ensued, around every corner was a Brit ready to fight, some armed only with a pointed stick fashioned into a spear. A fire broke out during the battle, though no one knows how it started, and as the flames jumped a crossed the tightly spaced buildings everyone knew the city had fallen.

As a prisoner George III was treated as well as could be expected, the invasion force was designed to be quick and mobile, so it did not contain many amenities. They had not planned on capturing the king, they expected him to be evacuated to Edinburgh, York, or another northern city when they landed.

***​

 

[Mccarthypaddy1216]

Liking it so far

 

[da Racontor]

Liking it so far

Thanks, I'm glad! I was a little worried that the French Invasion of Britain wouldn't be well excepted.

 

[da Racontor]

XI. Britannia Humilem[*]

“The War of the First League was the most significant event in British history since 1066.”
(from The Historiography of Great Britain)​

With London burned holding it was no longer a viable option for the French, and they had to develop a new strategy. The invasion army split into four smaller armies each with their own task to complete. The first, and largest army was designed to destroy and any British forces before they could become large enough to be a threat. The second army was bait, it was large enough to be a threat but small enough to seem like a good target, it would be used to lure British force out and keep them occupied long enough for the first army to engage them. The third army was designed to destroy military ports, shipyards and weapons depots. The last army was the smallest and quickest, its sole mission was to play keep-away with George III, as there was no way for the French to transport their prisoner a crossed the channel the fourth army would continually move position all over southern England.

British regulars quickly became a valuable and rare commodity. With fresh territory in Egypt and the other troops with the First League to Protect the Balance of Power finally mobilized, all fronts needed British regulars. As the regulars were, for the most part, already stationed elsewhere the British home army became increasingly made of militia. Of which there was plenty of volunteers for. With the French supply lines cut off because of the blockade, the French soldiers raided the countryside for supplies.

The French diversionary tactic failed. When the British army was large enough it ignored the first and second armies and ambushed the third army destroying them before they caused any real damage. They then led the second army into another ambush forcing them to regroup with the first army. These victories were enough to permanently stall French momentum, but they were not large enough to push the French all the way back to the channel. Instead they prevented the French from advancing any further than the midlands, while warret[†] action broke out in the south.

On the continent, the First League was fairing no better. While most of the reforms the French Republic had created were thrown out, one that stayed was performance based military advancement, which the French passed on to their allies. While the British saw the advantages of that type of system, the other countries in the First League had not. This did not help the already rushed together armies of Austria and Russia. What was supposed to be an aggressive war on French soil quickly proved only to drain Austrian resources. One of the tactics that Austria tried was to hire mercenaries to bolster their forces. The most successful of these mercenaries was General Napoleon di Buonaparte[‡]. Gen. di Buonaparte used to be a general in the French Revolutionary Army, but left to become a mercenary when the Bourbons were restored.

For two more years, the French troops fought like cornered animals, as that is what they were. Finally, the British commanders realized that the only way they were going to remove the French was to recall all British regulars from all over the world. If they did that there would be no one to keep order in the colonies, native rebellions and outside influence would rob them of all their colonies, instead of just some of them. They had to choose between winning and keeping the empire, they could not do both. It was with a broken spirit that the British commanders sued for peace, French terms would be harsh, but they could not take everything.

Britain had been a major supporter of the Treaty of Reventin-Vaugris something the French diplomats did not overlook at the negotiating table in Dublin. The major terms of the Treaty of Dublin were:

• The safe return of King George III,
• King George III will drop the pretense to any and all French titles (King of France, Duke of Normandy),
• The Kingdom of Corsica would be dissolved,
• The colonies of Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent, as well as parts of French India would be returned to France,
• The Acts of Union shall be repealed, and the Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland shall be dissolved into three separate kingdoms (England, Scotland, Ireland),
• Irish Catholics will be emancipated.

***​

[*] Humble Britain

[†] guerilla war (diminutive of “war”, coined during the French Invasion)

[‡] also known as Napoleon Bonaparte

 

[Kirook]

So does the King of England retain a personal union over Scotland and Ireland?