Wrapped in Flames: The Great American War and Beyond
- Thread starter EnglishCanuck
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I was browsing about the Internet in the throes of my usual nigh-addictive fascination for Trivia (most often triggered by an ongoing quest to bolster whichever novel I happen to be reading with pictures to illustrate what the author happens to have alluded to or otherwise mentioned without describing) and stumbled across something very interesting on the Website of those industrious and expert modellers The Perry Twins.
https://www.perry-miniatures.com/index.php?cPath=23_81&osCsid=ef2eagbrgapj5edtan4m9v5i87
What I found seemed so appropriate to the content of this thread that I simply could not resist linking to it; I hope that it proves as much of a windfall to those who (like myself) would dearly love to be able to whistle up an Osprey Publications sourcebook (or other beautifully-Illustrated textbook) on whichever Alternate History timeline they happen to be reading about at present.
The fact that Messrs Alan and Michael Perry also seem to have made some excellent Confederate and Union figurines to compliment their "British Intervention Force" selection can only be described as the icing on the cake!
Please enjoy with my compliments to both yourselves and to the original sculptors.
https://www.perry-miniatures.com/index.php?cPath=23_81&osCsid=ef2eagbrgapj5edtan4m9v5i87
What I found seemed so appropriate to the content of this thread that I simply could not resist linking to it; I hope that it proves as much of a windfall to those who (like myself) would dearly love to be able to whistle up an Osprey Publications sourcebook (or other beautifully-Illustrated textbook) on whichever Alternate History timeline they happen to be reading about at present.
The fact that Messrs Alan and Michael Perry also seem to have made some excellent Confederate and Union figurines to compliment their "British Intervention Force" selection can only be described as the icing on the cake!
Please enjoy with my compliments to both yourselves and to the original sculptors.
Those are beautiful models! Brings me back to my wargaming days! I love the detail put into them, and I really like the paint job that got the militia cavalry jackets right
If I could make an alternate-history Osprey Book I tell you I would be a very happy man! Thanks for the link and the compliments
Chapter 13: Turncoats and Patriots All
Chapter 13: Turncoats and Patriots All
Richmond, Virginia, Confederate States of America, February 1862
Inauguration Day, and not coincidentally, George Washington’s Birthday, was cold and wet in Richmond. A gray sky delivered a great deluge upon the assembled masses who huddled in Capitol Square to watch a historic day. The number of umbrellas present gave the look of a massive field of toadstools, but many more simply had old carpets and strips of canvas held above their heads to remain some semblance of dry in the great storm that engulfed them.
There on the canopied platform which had been erected for the occasion, stood an assemblage of notables from across the Confederate States. The whole of the cabinet was gathered on stage, flag officers and generals stood next to the politicians, and newspaper reporters were much in evidence. For all the fine suits and gold braid on display all eyes were on two figures near the head of the platform, the Right Reverend John Johns, Episcopal Bishop of Virginia in his dark satin vestments, and President-elect of the Confederate States, Jefferson Davis. Davis stood in a dark black suit seemingly oblivious to the weather around him, cutting an imposing, but painful, figure to look upon. Hawkish and with eyes that seemed to sink into his head, he seemed ill, or at the very least looked a man who was walking towards his own execution.
However, as Davis received the blessing from the Reverend he stepped forward to address his constituents:
“Fellow citizens, on this the birthday of the man most identified with the establishment of American independence, and beneath the monument erected to commemorate his heroic virtues and those of his compatriots, we have assembled to usher into existence the Permanent Government of the Confederate States. Through this instrumentality, under the favor of Divine Providence, we hope to perpetuate the principles of our revolutionary fathers. The day, the memory, and the purpose seem fitly associated.
It is with mingled feelings of humility and pride that I appear to take, in the presence of the people and before high Heaven, the oath prescribed as a qualification for the exalted station to which the unanimous voice of the people has called me. Deeply sensible of all that is implied by this manifestation of the people's confidence, I am yet more profoundly impressed by the vast responsibility of the office, and humbly feel my own unworthiness.
In return for their kindness I can offer assurances of the gratitude with which it is received; and can but pledge a zealous devotion of every faculty to the service of those who have chosen me as their Chief Magistrate.”
He continued on with his speech outlining the reasons for the war, the “malignity and barbarity of the Northern States” their use of “bastiles filled with prisoners, arrested without civil process or indictment duly found” the tyranny enabled by the suspension of habeas corpus by executive mandate and the imprisonment of an entire State Legislature “whose avowed principles suggested to the Federal Executive that there might be another added to the list of seceded States”. He proclaimed that:
“True to our traditions of peace and our love of justice, we sent commissioners to the United States to propose a fair and amicable settlement of all questions of public debt or property which might be in dispute. But the Government at Washington, denying our right to self-government, refused even to listen to any proposals for a peaceful separation. Nothing was then left to do but to prepare for war.”
As to the great contest itself he continued in a different vein:
“The first year in our history has been the most eventful in the annals of this continent. A new Government has been established, and its machinery put in operation over an area exceeding seven hundred thousand square miles. The great principles upon which we have been willing to hazard everything that is dear to man have made conquests for us which could never have been achieved by the sword. Our Confederacy has grown from six to thirteen States; and Maryland, already united to us by hallowed memories and material interests, will, I believe, when able to speak with unstifled voice, connect her destiny with the South. Our people have rallied with unexampled unanimity to the support of the great principles of constitutional government, with firm resolve to perpetuate by arms the right which they could not peacefully secure. Battles have been fought, sieges have been conducted, and, although the contest is not ended, the final result in our favor is not in doubt.
The day is near at hand when our foes must sink under the immense load of debt which they have incurred, a debt which in their effort to subjugate us has already attained such fearful dimensions as will subject them to burdens which must continue to oppress them for generations to come.
That day has come ever nearer with the news from across the seas, where in their unspeakable arrogance the Northern States have sought to twist the tail of the lion, only to discover they have taken the lion by the ear! The Empire of Great Britain has declared war on the North! Now the false Union finds itself with enemies on all sides, and must not just look now to subjugating the fair states of the South, but with trepidation to the North where the subjects of the Queen now stand ready to repel the armies mustered by Washington for the purposes of conquest.
The power arrayed against the tyrants in Washington is almost too great to comprehend. Can the illegal blockade we have suffered under be maintained in the face of the mighty British fleet? Will the legions from the Northern States be so bold in their assaults when the armies of Britain are loosed upon them and the cities of the Atlantic seaboard are opened to devastation? I think not. For all the strength of our Northern foe they have not the resources or courage to match the men of the South and those of Great Britain! They have not ships enough to harass our shores and repel the might of the Royal Navy.
We may take solace now in the welcome news that we no longer fight alone. The powers of Europe have seen our peril and the plight the Northern States have placed the world under with their tyrannical offenses against our sovereign rights has brought the wrath of Heaven upon them! The world knows the value of these Southern States, and we may rest assured that with the powers of Europe now looking on at our contest that we will have vindication for our cause and independence for our children!
With confidence in the wisdom and virtue of those who will share with me the responsibility and aid me in the conduct of public affairs; securely relying on the patriotism and courage of the people, of which the present war has furnished so many examples, I deeply feel the weight of the responsibilities I now, with unaffected diffidence, am about to assume; and, fully realizing the inequality of human power to guide and to sustain, my hope is reverently fixed on Him whose favor is ever vouchsafed to the cause which is just. With humble gratitude and adoration, acknowledging the Providence which has so visibly protected the Confederacy during its brief but eventful career, to thee, O God, I trustingly commit myself, and prayerfully invoke thy blessing on my country and its cause.”
The crowd erupted in applause as Davis finished his speech. Despite the chill and damp many found themselves feeling warm. Deep down most knew they were witnessing something historic, for it was a lucky man indeed who was able to witness the birth of a nation.
Fort Lennox, Canada East, February 1862
The snow clung thick to the ground on the banks of the Richelieu River, and thick ice stopped up its flow giving the land a quaint winter look one might find in a painting. Spoiling this picture was the sound of continuous work emanating from the walls of the fort placed on Île aux Noix and the continuous flow of sled traffic which churned up the snowy roads leading north into the interior of the Province of Canada. Men, guns, ammunition, foodstuffs, all were flowing south with commendable speed to help establish this redoubt on the frontier with the United States.
The original fortifications had been constructed by the French in 1759 to give the British advance on Montreal pause in the Seven Years War. From there the island had been fortified numerous times for varying reasons, but always with an eye towards the southern frontier. A new fort built in 1778 was used by the British to supply their campaigns on Lake Champlain in the War of 1812, and in 1819 those older fortifications were completely demolished to make way for the present fortifications which were expanded to cover the river and its banks and prevent any uncontested advance up the Richelieu. Those fortifications completed in 1829 it served as a posting for British troops in North America throughout many crisis following 1815.
Though it had not served its military purpose for two years it had rapidly been reoccupied at the end of December as the crisis winter had deepened. First with a battery of garrison artillery, then a company of the Royal Canadian Rifles, and finally in late January a new Volunteer battalion, the 23rd “Richelieu Light Infantry” Battalion of Volunteers under Lt. Col. Frederic Marchand.
The current commandant of the post though was Bvt. Lt. Col. Charles F. T. Daniell, commanding the troops and being charged with the overseeing of the fortifications. He had served as a brigade major in the 3rd Division in the Russian War, seeing action in the battles of Alma and Inkerman, and at the siege of Sevastopol. He had been assigned to particular service in North America in December and had crossed the Atlantic with the other cadre of officers charged with organizing the Canadian militia and had received the local rank of Lt. Col to avoid trouble with ranking in the militia.
Daniell currently sat in his office in the fort barracks going over what seemed an endless amount of paperwork related to the preparing of the fortifications and the militia expenses. He sighed and rubbed his eyes in the mid afternoon light, he was at the very least warm and ensconced in a comfortable office, far different from how he had conducted his field work in the Crimea. A knock on the door interrupted his revelry on a hatred of clerks and a sergeant from the Volunteers entered and saluted smartly, if somewhat clumsily.
“Sir, sentries have picked up four men who presented themselves on the shore.”
“Spies you believe?” Daniell asked.
“They claim to be deserters from the Northern army, sir. Canadian born and raised they say.”
“Very good, send them in. We shall see what they know.” Daniell said waving the man away. The militiaman offered another clumsy salute and withdrew. These would not be the first Canadians crossing the frontier for home. A steady trickle had been arriving since the end of January with the departure of the British legation from Washington, most had seen the writing on the wall and sensed that war was imminent. They had been forced to make a moral choice of honoring their enlistment to a foreign nation, or of honoring their native country and homes and leaving an enemy army. Some had presented themselves here to enlist in the Volunteers, but you couldn’t be sure how many had simply fled for home to sit the current fighting out and avoid the moral dilemma. He had little sympathy for men like that.
The sergeant returned accompanied by an armed private of the Volunteers leading a group of bedraggled looking men into the office. Swathed in thick coats and with snowshoes on their backs they looked as though they had been roughing it in the woods for weeks. The eldest couldn’t have been more than twenty or so, while the youngest looked barely sixteen. The eldest, marked by a thick, full, moustache stepped forward.
“Sir,” he began gravely “my name is Alfred Wolverton and these are my brothers, Alonzo, Jasper, and Newton. We were formerly in the service of the Federal armies in the United States, but when Lord Lyons departed from Washington, we knew war was coming. We made our choice and so have defected from the service of the United States to return to our home country. We offer ourselves to your custody and protection.”
Daniell eyed the four brothers levelly for a moment.
“In what capacity did you serve in the Federal armies?” he inquired.
“My brothers and I were all serving as teamsters in the Army of the Potomac outside of Washington sir.” Alfred said “We ferried supplies between the city and the camps. I never held a rifle my entire time there.”
“Fairly said lad.” Daniell said nodding. “Would you be willing to take up a rifle against the enemies of the Queen and in defence of your home?” Without even a moments hesitation the eldest brother answered.
“Sir it would be my honor to take arms alongside the men of my country. I do not doubt that my brothers would be glad to take up arms as well, but I would ask one boon of you sir.” Alfred said.
“Ask away.”
“I would request that you send my brother Newton home. He is not of age to enlist, and besides our sisters, we are the only children my father has. I could not in good conscience allow my family line to be extinguished.” The youngest, Newton evidently, shot the eldest brother a dirty look. The other two merely stood and watched for the officers’ reaction.
Daniell nodded. The other three would be good additions to the Volunteers, the other son would most likely enlist in time, but for now it would be of no consequence to let him return home for a while to help his family.
“Where do you boys come from? I can arrange for you to be sent out, working mind you, on a shipment.”
“We’re from Wolverton, in Canada West sir.” Alfred said. Daniell didn’t even blink at the distance from home they were. In his career as a soldier he had gone much farther afield. Instead he merely nodded.
“I can send you on with a letter of introduction and a recommendation that your brother work a shipment heading out to Kingston. I can’t guarantee him an unmolested trip all the way home, but I can get him started.”
“That would be much appreciated sir.” Alfred said, gratitude plain in his voice.
“It is the least I can do as an officer and a Christian gentleman. Now you lads will spend the night here, but I’ll have you working the next shipment back to Montreal. There you can find employment or enlist as you see fit.”
“Thank you sir.” Alfred said smiling.
“Godspeed gentlemen. Now find yourselves a hot meal and the sergeant will put you to work for the night.”
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A new chapter at last
Things have taken a while but I'm back on track for writing. The next two chapters will deal with the war in the West, followed by the war at sea in February - March 1862 and we will re-examine the match up between the Royal Navy and the USN as the ball gets rolling.
Things have taken a while but I'm back on track for writing. The next two chapters will deal with the war in the West, followed by the war at sea in February - March 1862 and we will re-examine the match up between the Royal Navy and the USN as the ball gets rolling.
And not a single word about their God's given right of having slaves I see. Hypocrisy, thy name is you
Damn straight. Save for the parts about war with Britain this is all snipped from Davis second inaugural address. Lots of flowery language, little about all the real reasons they were looking for independence.
Saphroneth
Banned
In order to be completely fair, I should note that slavery was the primary but not sole reason they were after independence. It's rare people are motivated by a single cause, and secondary ones (like the belief that Washington was overstepping bounds, or the tariff, or simply belief that it was legal) appear in internal discussion too often for it to be merely a smokescreen.
The world's complicated.
There are few single issue things, but slavery was the driving factor behind secession. Every seceding state explicitly mentions it in their reasons for secession. Slavery was the only issue which could have caused a war like this.
Saphroneth
Banned
Though you should also realize that, since every state did mention it, then Davis shouldn't have had a reason to ignore it in his speeches if it was the driving factor. (That is, if the argument is that it was important because everyone talked about it, then because Davis talked about other things then those other things should be important too).
One reason the tariff was considered important to the people of the South, by the way, is that it was seen as punishing them and rewarding industry-focused Northerners (the South was proud of their - slave based - cash crops producing much of the forex the US had, and was not much pleased with the idea they would have to use that on more expensive Northern industry protected by a tariff wall).
Not enough by itself to cause a war - but enough to feed into a narrative of the North being "after" the South.
Which was all dependent on having slaves! So, yeah, it was slavery at it's core with every other branching off from it at the core. Davis not mentioning it was because it was pretty much a none issue.
I'm not one of those who would claim every man, woman, and child who supported the CSA in their hearts was also a rabid proponent of slavery by extension. Certainly the nuances of why individual men fight are almost impossible to pin down in every case. However, for the reasons the CSA came into existence I have said this before and it is the most simple way I can put it; the civil war was caused by a myriad of political, social, and economic issues, but those issues all just happened to neatly dovetail back into the issue of slavery.
Saphroneth
Banned
I think that, if I could sum up my point, it would be that slavery is undoubtedly the ultimate cause - but that if writing about the period it is important to realize that people of the time saw multiple issues (much like "racism" is the ultimate cause of several different societal ills in the modern day, such as - say - police brutality) and that they saw themselves as being persecuted by the North both in the future and right then (i.e. the tariff).
Oh, I get what you're trying to say.
Your view is that while thanks to hindsight we can simply sum up the whole secession to have been rooted to the Slavery issue, the Peoples of the period would instead see many indignities imposed upon them by their Northern Countryman as the major cause of the war.
Saphroneth
Banned
Indeed - which is something it's important to remember not only when trying to work out how they think, but also when trying to understand why they said what they did.
but yet, 150 years later, I still can't get my inlaws (who aren't even from the South) to see that major point
sigh
although a lot of Northerners wanted to execute Jeff Davis for treason postwar, I think Lincoln had the right idea when he hoped Davis would just flee the country
So, did Davis really start his speech by heaping praises upon George Washington and then proceed to refer to the Union government as "the tyrants in Washington"? I know that the context makes it clear that he`s referring to the city, but it does makes the speech seem a bit internally inconsistent.
Man, Davis is probably on cloud 9 giving that speech. British intervention is almost as good as good as the second coming.
Of course, that ignores the fact that it comes with.... conditions.