The Britannia's Fist Trilogy

The Britannia's Fist Trilogy is a series by Peter G. Tsouras AbOUT an Anglo-French intervention into the American Civil War in 1863 and the global repercussions of such a conflict. In order, the volumes are:

Britannia's Fist: From Civil War to World War
A Rainbow of Blood: the Union in Peril
Bayonets, Balloons & Ironclads: Britain and France take sides with the South

Point of Divergence

The United States and the United Kingdom had already been on the verge of conflict in 1862 over the Trent Affair in which Confederate diplomats were seized on a British ship in international waters, but cooler heads had managed to prevail and the diplomats were returned. However, the unofficial British funding of the Confederacy through purchases of blockaded cotton and the construction and crewing of commerce raiders like the CSS Alabama put a major strain on the relations between The Two nations. The Laird Brothers were in the process of constructing two more Confederate commerce raiders in the summer of 1863, CSS Mississippi and CSS North Carolina, when American ambassador Charles Francis Adams informed the British that in the event the British did not seize them as contraband, war between the United States and the United Kingdom was inevitable. In the actual timeline, the British seized both ships and the matter was largely settled between the two nations.

In the Britannia's Fist timeline, President Lincoln ordered the USS Gettysburg to intercept the Confederate raiders before they could be armed and crewed. Simultaneously, while the British slowly sent orders to stop the escape of the ships, a Confederate sympathizer alerted the ships, and the completed ship, CSS North Carolina, slipped berth for Wales to pick up a crew. The USS Gettysburg caught the CSS North Carolina in British Waters and captured the Confederate captain. Nearby British ships, frigate HMS Liverpool and sloop HMS Goshawk, arrived to dispute the seizure and neither side would back down - the Americans argued that the ship was obviously a commerce raider and had Confederate papers and flags, while the British argued that regardless of nationality, the CSS North Carolina was in British waters and could not be seized. Events escalated and the two ships fired on one another. The British were gaining the upper hand when the USS Kearsarge arrived to assist the USS Gettysburg in seizing the Confederate ship and stumbled into the ongoing battle. With a lucky shot into Liverpool's powder magazine, the USS Gettysburg sunk Liverpool and crippled the Goshawk with a loss of 600 British lives. An outraged British cabinet was swept up in war fever and declared war on the United States in retaliation. This began the "Great War" of 1863.

Britannia's Fist: From Civil War to World War

The events in Britannia's Fist take place from July - October 1863.

Anglo-American Diplomatic Failure

The Battle of Moelfre Bay

Lieutenant Roswell Lamson had captured the British-built Confederate blockade runner SS Margaret and Jesse with the USS Nansemond on August 1, 1863, and had it renamed the USS Gettysburg. As it was able to achieve 16 knots, President Lincoln ordered Lamson to shadow the Confederate commerce raiders CSS Mississippi and CSS North Carolina being built in Liverpool and to destroy or capture them if they escaped. Lamson arrived in Liverpool, England on September 1, 1863, but due to British law, was only allowed 48 hours in port before ejection. American Consul in Liverpool Thomas Dudley informed Lamson that the raiders were under feverish construction to flee the British orders to seize them and the USS Gettysburg. In London, Ambassador Charles Francis Adams informed Lamson and Dudley that he had ordered the USS Kearsarge to assist the USS Gettysburg, and he ordered his son Henry Adams to accompany Lamson as a political and diplomatic observer.

Lamson left Liverpool harbor on September 3 to patiently wait for the CSS North Carolina to come into striking range, but the British ships HMS Liverpool and HMS Goshawk shielded the American ship away. Captain James Bulloch of the CSS North Carolina escaped during the night of September 4 for her full crew at Moelfre Bay off Anglesey Isle in Wales. Lamson didn't realize that his quarry had escaped until 8 AM, and ordered full haste after Bulloch with both the HMS Liverpool and HMS Goshawk on his tail. Three hours later, the USS Gettysburg caught up with the Confederate ship still flying British colors, and immediately attacked. Without a full crew and with few guns installed, the CSS North Carolina stood no chance, but Captain Bulloch still had the stubborn tenacity to not surrender until he had Confederate flags flying and his ship was completely destroyed. Lamson obliged Bulloch, and pounded the CSS North Carolina from short range until the latter was forced to strike. Captain Bulloch was taken aboard the USS Gettysburg as a prisoner and Henry Adams grabbed all of the Confederate papers he could find on the CSS North Carolina.

Shortly thereafter, the HMS Liverpool and HMS Goshawk arrived on scene to find the aftermath of the exchange between the Gettysburg and North Carolina. Captain Rowley Lambert of the HMS Liverpool ordered his guns at the ready, and took a boat over to the Gettysburg to demand explanation. With both Confederate papers and Confederate captain ahand, Lamson was very confident in his argument that the ship was contraband. However, Lambert had seen the North Carolina leave Liverpool that morning flying British colors, and objected to the American statement. Lambert then demanded the surrender of the American ship, to which Lamson refused. Lambert returned to his ship and both sides prepared for battle. Using the bulk of the CSS North Carolina as a shield, Lamson was able to negate the HMS Liverpool's fifteen 8-inch rifles and 32-pounder guns, and his four XI-inch Dahlgren guns were far more powerful than HMS Goshawk's two 20-pounder guns, one 32-pounder gun, and one 68-pounder gun and HMS Liverpool's remaining armament, eight 40-pounder Armstrong guns and a 110-pounder Armstrong pivot gun. The British ships were both wooden and suffered horrendous casualties with the HMS Goshawk set ablaze with the initial cannonade. However, the side paddle-wheels of the USS Gettysburg were also vulnerable, and the HMS Liverpool maneuvered to broadside the USS Gettysburg and destroyed the port-side paddle-wheel, sending the American ship into a slow loop.

Unbeknownst to the dueling ships, the CSS North Carolina sank because Lamson's engineer had opened the seacocks as ordered when the HMS Liverpool arrived. While the USS Gettysburg was hulled in several places and taking on water, the USS Kearsarge arrived to duel the HMS Liverpool, and Lambert shifted targets to the new adversary. Before abandoning ship, Lamson's Dahlgren pivot-gun fired a final shot at the HMS Liverpool which hit amidships in the powder magazine, to catastrophic effect. Captain John Winslow of the USS Kearsarge collected the American survivors of USS Gettysburg including Captain Lamson and Henry Adams as well as whatever survivors from the wreckage that could be found.

The Battle of Upper Bay

Captain Winslow steamed southeast until out of sight of land to confuse pursuit before doubling back north through the Irish Sea and then west to home. The USS Kearsarge was flying French colors as it exited the Irish Sea, but a passing Liverpool steamer saw the battle damage and passed the information on to a vengeful British Navy, which flew to destroy the American ship. On September 12, the HMS Undaunted caught up with the Kearsarge, but it was not until the 15 of September that the HMS Undaunted came into firing range. Winslow turned hard to rake the Undaunted, but the Undaunted matched the action, firing two mildly ineffective broadsides before the Kearsarge began to fire at 900 yards. Winslow's XI-inch Dahlgren guns wreacked havoc on the lower decks of the Undaunted, [...] the captain and allowing the USS Kearsarge to continue its flight. Unfortunately for the Americans, a British battle group followed close behind the HMS Undaunted, made up of the frigates HMS Topaze and HMS Dauntless and the sloops HMS Alert and HMS Gannet led by the captain of the Topaze, John Welbore Sunderland Spencer. The British attempted to hem the Kearsarge into a net, but Winslow ducked into a storm and sailed south, managing to evade his pursuers. On September 21, the USS Kearsarge unexpectedly met the Russian screw frigates IRN Aleksandr Nevksy and IRN Peresvet led by Rear Admiral Stepan Lisovsky. Winslow quickly filled in the curious Russians as to the Battle of Moelfre Bay and asked for their assistance. Lisovsky, on Imperial orders to help the Americans if attacked by a European power, took up the American plea and sailed behind the wounded Kearsarge to escort her to New York City, assuming that the British would not fire upon the Russian ships.

Lisovsky underestimated the British demand for vengeance, and the two sides fought a running battle up until the 24 of September, when the Americans and Russians arrived outside of New York City. The British took heavy casualties from the American forts but steamed on regardless into the Upper Bay. The British sloops HMS Alert and HMS Gannet drew the Russian frigates away from the Kearsarge for the HMS Topaze and HMS Dauntless to broadside the American ship. The British frigates achieved brutal damage on the Kearsarge, destroying many of the guns, [...] so many of the Kearsarge's crew that the wounded from the USS Gettysburg stepped in to fill the gaps, and [...] Captain Winslow, leaving command to Lamson. Spencer demanded the Kearsarge strike her colors, but Lamson refused, destroying a boarding party from the Dauntless with double cannister. The Nevsky returned to the Kearsarge's aid after leaving the Gannet burning, sweeping across the Topaze's bow to deliver broadsides. With a stream of harbor defense gunboats and the Russian fleet in New York led by the IRN Oslyabya steaming towards him, Spencer saw that time was not on his side, and considered his mission complete after leaving the Kearsarge a sinking wreck. The HMS Alert and HMS Topaze left at maximum speed to dodge to fort guns, but the damaged HMS Dauntless was caught by the fort guns and slowed further, allowing the IRN Oslyabya to steam alongside for the kill. The battle now over, the heavily damaged Kearsarge was towed to the New York docks while the Russians announced their willingness to seek an alliance with the United States.

During this time, both American North and South clamored with joy for the British entry into the war, as the North felt that war had already been on for some time and seethed with anger at the British co-belligerence, while the South desired an end to the blockade that was choking it to death and a reverse of the terrible events of the summer of 1863. On September 19-20, the titanic Battle of Chickamauga occupied Northern attention as the right flank of General Rosecrans' Army of the Cumberland was overrun, but General George H. Thomas held the line with the remaining troops, organizing a fighting retreat back to Chattanooga. A relief force was made by detaching two corps from the Army of the Potomac, the XI corps and the XII corps, to be led by the shamed but experienced Joseph Hooker.

The First Battle of Portland

The Defense of Hudson Valley

Confederate Responses

Copperhead Schemes and Rebellion

The Third Battle of Charleston

Union Response

A Rainbow of Blood: the Union in Peril

The events of A Rainbow of Blood take place October - November 1863.

The Copperhead Rising

French Military Intervention

New Technology

Russian-American Diplomatic Overtures

The Siege of Portland

The Battle of Kennebunk

Anglo-Confederate Assault on Washington D.C.

The Battle of Claverack

British responses to the ongoing conflict

Bayonets, Balloons & Ironclads: Britain and France take sides with the South

The events of Bayonets, Balloons & Ironclads take place March - June 1864.

The Chazy Campaign First Phase

The Chazy Campaign Second Phase

The Joint American-Russian-Irish Raid on the British Isles

The Fall of Fortress Portland

The Siege of Norfolk

The Battle for Port Hudson and the French defeat in Louisiana

British Capture of California

The Battles of Biddeford and Saco

The Battle of Hannover Junction

The Battle of the Chesapeake

The Fall of the Irish Republic

Ending the American portion of the Great War

Major Characters

Union-Russian Aligned

George H. SharpE: General in the United States Army, leader of the Bureau of Military Information and later the even larger Central Information Bureau, or the CIB. Able military commander during the Anglo-Confederate Assault on Washington and the Chazy Campaign, with a mind for sharing intelligence between the rival army and navy. Importantly, he reestablished the Balloon service that languished, and personally commands the 120th Regiment NY Volunteers and 3rd Indiana Cavalry Regiment.
Ulysses S. Grant: General in the United States Army and later General-in-Chief of all armies of the United States. A gifted strategist, Grant managed to save besieged Chattanooga after the Union tactical defeat of Chickamauga with fewer divisions as in the true timeline because of the Copperhead Rising and the British invasion of New England. He later arrives to assist in the Second Phase of the Chazy Campaign, then returned to the Eastern Theater to trap Robert E. Lee in the Battle of Hannover Junction, capturing Richmond and effectively ending the Confederacy.
Abraham Lincoln: 16th President of the United States. Lincoln was an avid fan of the new military technology introduced in the conflict, although not much came of it until the Army Ordinance Bureau chief, Brigadier General James Ripley, was relieved. Stubbornly remained in Washington D.C. during the Anglo-Confederate assault on the city. During the assault, Lincoln's bodyguard, secret Copperhead James "Big Jim" Smoke, attempted to shoot him, but only managed to graze his head. Lincoln's son, Tad, and Sergeant Michael Wilmoth fought Smoke to PReVENT him from harming the President any further, but Smoke overpowered both. President Lincoln unexpectedly then returned to fight Smoke and defend his family, easily wrestled the pistol out of Smoke's hand, and beat Smoke's head to death. The only other threat to Lincoln's life came from John Wilkes Booth during a play shortly after the defeat of the Confederacy, but General Grant and George Sharpe threw the President down and the audience nearly beat Booth to death. Lincoln followed the difficult tack of reconciliation with the war-ravaged South and made peace with the United Kingdom separate of the Russian Empire, much to the latter's anger.
George Gordon Meade: General in the United States Army and victor of the major Battle of Gettysburg. Meade retained control of the large Union Army of the Potomac, but is continuously out-foxed by General Lee on multiple occasions. The Anglo-Confederate Assault on Washington took place while J.E.B. Stuart held Meade's army at length from Washington, but Meade managed to break through and end the battle. At General Grant's insistence, Meade tried to be more aggressive against Lee, but suffered larger casualties for no real net gain. Meade's Army of the Potomac managed to surprise General Lee by sealing the trap around Hannover Junction quicker than expected, successfully capturing the majority of the Army of Northern Virginia.
William Tecumseh Sherman:
Phillip Sheridan:
Joseph Hooker: General in the United States Army, formerly disgraced by poor performance as Commander of the Army of the Potomac, but given another opportunity when the British invaded New York. Commanded the Army of the Hudson, and won the decisive Battle of Claverack. However, his overconfidence cost him during the initial phases of the Chazy Campaign, as his army was still strung-out. Killed during the Second Phase of the Chazy Campaign.
George Custer: Impatient and Aggressive cavalry general. Fought with the Army of the Hudson during the Battle of Claverack and later through the next several New England campaigns, including the Chazy Campaign and the Battles of Biddeford and Saco.
John Dahlgren: Admiral in the United States Navy and inventor of the Dahlgren guns, a muzzle-loaded cannon series scientifically designed to not blow up the gunners and deliver a powerful, heavy shot. Lead the United States South Atlantic Bloackading Squadron and was wounded in the major naval conflict of the Third Battle of Charleston, a significant tactical victory but ultimately a strategic defeat.
Ulric Dahlgren: Son of famed Admiral and inventor John Dahlgren, and United States Army colonel. Took part in the Third Battle of Charleston and accepted the surrender of the British ironclad HMS Black Prince. Later lead a portion of the Joint American-Russian Raid on the British Isles, but was too late to retreat on the ship he arrived on. With a massive bounty placed on his head, Dahlgren and two other companions managed to steal a boat and were rescued by a passing Swedish ship. Given the Order of St. George by the Russian Monarchy and joined the Russian Army as an observer as it went south to liberate Istanbul.
Thaddeus Lowe: Scientist and later leader of the revitalized Union Army Balloon Corps. First person to achieve a Air-to-Sea kill with a bomb dropped on the British sloop HMS Racer during the Anglo-Confederate Assault on Washington. Designed a series of Hydrogen rigid airships, two of which resupplied Portland during the Siege of Portland and four of which took part in the Battle of the Chesapeake.

Confederate-Anglo-French Aligned

Garnet J. Wolsely: British Commander who took part in the majority of the battles in the New England theater. Masterminded the British attack on Portland to secure Halifax, and fought in the Battles of Kennebunk, Claverack, Chazy Campaign, Biddeford, and Saco. Intelligent and resourceful counterpoint to George H. Sharpe, Wolsely often was field promoted due to his commanders either being killed, going missing, or being incompetent.
James Hope Grant:
Robert E. Lee: Confederate General and mastermind tactician in the Eastern Theater.
James Longstreet:
J.E.B. Stuart:
Braxton Bragg:
Nathan Bedford Forrest:

Neutral Parties

Karl Marx: Journalist and Provocateur, Marx saw the British entrance into the American Civil War as the Bourgois element coming to crush the nascent workers and farmers of the United States. Wrote articles for the New York Tribune.
Ferdinand von Zeppelin: Captain in the Prussian Army and observer in the Union Army. He was enamored by Lowe's balloons and assisted him on several occasions; the pair became lifelong friends. They later designed the joint German-American Von-Steuben class bomber airship, which had great success in the air raids on London during World War Two in 1890.