User.Insy/sandbox 1
| Catherinese Civil War | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Allen's Charge, Battle of Moorehead Knobb, by Ernst Ericsson | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Catharinese Republic |
Provinces in Rebellion (1857)
 Commonwealth of Fremonte (1857-1863) | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
John A. St. Ledger GenArm. James Abraham Sutton Lt. Gen. Slaughson Dashell Cole Adm. Louise T. Blaecwell |
James Augustus Claiborne Gen. Fairclough Diezsler Houellebecq Lt. Gen. Penance Zyller MajGen. Alphonse Mackenzie Mallard | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| ~1,100,000 | ~750,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 230,000 KIA | 110,00 KIA | ||||||
| 750,000 | |||||||
The Catharinese Civil War (June 2, 1857 – April 13, 1863) was a civil war in the Catharinese Republic between the Republican Government in the South, and several seceding Provinces who eventually coalesced into the Commonwealth of Fremonte. The conflict war born out of several socio-political issues which affected the Catharinese Republic, primarily the political disagreements between the National Whigs and Federalist over issues such as universal manhood suffrage, power of the federal government, and slavery. Industrialisation, New religious revivalism, and animosity towards Federalist political dominance were key social factors that contributed to the outbreak of hostilities. These political controversies led to the 1857 Catharinese Election in which Whig merchant and Governor of Stanporth Province John A. St. Ledger defeated the Federalist former Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces James Augustus Claiborne.
St. Ledger's platform of universal male suffrage and the promise to pass the Goodjohn-Littleman Compromise were seen as precursors to the eventual abolition of slavery. Coupled with a deep distrust of continued centralization of the military under Federal authority ultimately instigated the Electors Crisis, which saw several northern states, the traditional power base of the Federalist, move to disqualify elected Whigs officials at the state and federal level. Purging of electoral rolls, and the refusal to send national assembly delegations to Ithome, thus forcing the Assembly out of quorum. Efforts by St. Ledger and the National Whigs to establish order were met with resistance, with the Fort Massen Revolt occurring after attempts by the Federal Army to force the local militia garrison into rank were resisted by forces commanded by Sullivan G. Caunteton. Army forces led by General James Abraham Sutton were sent to quell the rebellion but met armed resistance, considered the first shots of the civil war. shortly after the Provinces of Forchele, Sorevy, Aberlough, Finwick, Wealdina, Willamette, and Charlesland would issue declarations of succession. Ultimately forming the Commonwealth of Fremonte months later in the city of Bexeter. The Commonwealth Council of State would elect Claiborne as President, with the commonwealth coming to control roughly 1/3rd of the nations population and roughly half of the nations total economic output by land usage.
The conflict was split between the Gulf Theater and the Intermountainous Theater (later becoming the Western Theater). Commonwealth forces under the command of Penance Zyller saw early success on in the Rum theater with victories at the battles of Mallory Ridge, Calderhead Field, and Beausire Bridge. While Republican forces saw initially success in the Intermountainous theater with the battles of Eglisebourg, Huxberg and Limby, and the Commonwealth Evacuation of the Shallows. Chancellor St. Ledger and members of the War Cabinet would put forth the New Federalist Model, which established the framework for the nation, ending slavery, proclaiming universal suffrage, establishing a new and equal judicial system, and a new political system meant to create a new an egalitarian democracy. This was made in opposition to the principles and political culture that had been dominate in the slave holding north. Conflicts between general Zyllar and President Claiborne resulted in Zyllers demotion and all commonwealth armies being reorganized and placed under the command of General Fairclough Diezsler Houellebecq, meanwhile the Gang of Eight, Comprising generals Sutton, Slaughson Dashell Cole, T.S. Faughy, and Peter Yokitch, Brevet Generals D.C Colquitt and Zebulon Dorsey, and Admirals Louis T. Blaecwell, and Brimage Prioleau would consolidate and form a unified command body within the newly established Continental Army. Cole's forces would establish the Western Theater and make headway in dividing the Commonwealth into two halves along the north-south Rail networks in the Black Prairies, while Suttons Tidewater Campaign would cut off most of the Commonwealth from important logistical and economic hubs along the coast of the Rum Gulf. This led to the Capture of Shannonsberg and the Siege of Orangeborough Bay. Coles forces would make connect with beleaguered forces along the Demontean Frontier after the Battle of Petersboro and would press towards Bexeter along the Bexeter-Holden Rail line. Suttons forces would approach from the south thus starting the Siege of Bexeter, after three months of fighting, General Houellebecq would surrender to Cole at the Sanford Army Barracks, two week later President Claiborne would formally surrender to General Sutton at Broken Hill.
While Claibornes surrender at Broken Hill is considered the formal end of the war, and the news of his surrender led to many Commonwealth commanders surrendering to Republican forces, actions continued along the front for months after. It was not until 4 months later that the last remaining Commonwealth formation formally surrendered at Fort Lesueur. The New Federalist Model would be put into effect during the Era of Reconciliation which sought to rebuilt the north and gradually reincorporate it back into the Republic with a progression of military and then federally administered civilian governments working towards the goals of emancipation and abolition.
The war remain a prominent fixture in Catharinese political and historical discourse and has been one of the most intensely studied period of Catharinese History, it has been subject to conflicting historiographies, including the writings of revisionist historians like Robert G. Pulps and Henri Skaife which formed the basis for the Unwilling Revolution Myth. An early progenitor to Industrial Warfare, the war saw the implementation of several knew and novel technological developments, and is still the deadliest conflict in catharinese history by total number of casualties, while King Clements War remains the deadliest by percentage of population killed by war.
Background
Federalism
Provincial Autonomy
Enfranchisement
Slavery
Protectionism
Outbreak of the War
Electors Crisis
With the Victory of St. Ledger's National Whig party in the 1857 election, many northern provinces under Federalist control passed laws which forbaide elected officer holders from holding anti-slavery views, others like the Doogle Act passed in Finwick stated that "no man who holds elected office shall hold to views that drastically curtails the political liberty of the Province, the economic interest of the provincial citizenry, or more generally wish to extinguish the centuries old way of live which has allowed said citizens their prosperity" Many other so-called Gag Act were passed throughout the north. Aimed at preventing Whigs from taking up their rightfully elected positions. Some like Ezekiel Vimont, National Whig elected to represent the Cordon-Abbyville Department of Sorevy would disregard the order and arrive to take their seat in the National Assembly, only to be impeached by the Provincial Assembly upon news of his arrival.
The National Assembly would narrowly pass the Willowman Act, which decreed that all elected officials to national bodies could not be subject to Provincial interference, demanding that members prevented from sitting in the national assembly be allowed to take their seat. The Province of Willamette would react by passing a so called Nullifier Law, stating that the National Assembly had acted in bad faith and against the principles of the constitution it was vested to serve, thus Provinces had a right to disobey unjust laws that were to come down from the National Assembly. Many others followed suit, these provinces would declare themselves in rebellion, although at that point armed resistance was not considered, and remain a legal and political issue. Members of the Yellow Dog Caucus of the National Whigs would put forth the Sharidan-Mullany-Goodjohn Compromise, aimed at attempting to mend the political conflict by giving into select Federalist demands, however Federalist rejected the motion outright, deeming that it did not go far enough to prevent unconstitutional activity, and the Radical Democracy Caucus of the National Whigs rejected the offer because of its conditionally pro-slavery nature. Chancellor St. Ledger would also reject the compromise, fearing that giving into Federalist demands would ultimately embolden them and make future policy actions untenable. After the failure of the Compromise many federalist returned to their homes, thus rejecting the assembly of its quorum, a move intended to force the Whigs into greater compromise.
The Crisis would come to an end after the events of the Fort Massen Revolt and the subsequent succession of several northern provinces. While the majority of Federalist assemblymen abandoning their seats, remaining Federalist from succeeding provinces would be subject to vacation votes by the assembly. Henri G. Loew was the last Northern Federalist to sit in the National Assembly, Prior to being evicted from the Assembly he gave a speech declaring the evils of unfettered federal supremacy, the unjust nature of southern anti-slavers, before giving the floor back to the speaker, Loew proclaimed that the South had brought war upon the nation through its tyrannical and uncompromising nature, hen then fired a concealed pistol into the ceiling of the assembly.
Fort Massen Revolt
Shortly after his Election, Chancellor St. Ledger would begin organizing the National Army into standing, previous the National Guard was the federal military, although this only applied to land forces, naval forces were always under federal command since the establishment of the Department of the Navy in 1827. The national guard up until this point was made up of Provincial Units volunteered for federal service upon request and as needed. The national Army was intended to bring in most of the Provincial Units, leaving some for continued use by the Provinces. Initially General Samuel Plauché was tasked with organizing the new military force. Almost all southern provinces submitted to the request of the government, with only Presque Province withholding units, later exempted due to low number of eligible military aged men. Subsaquently most northern states refused to turn over their units, in total only 27 of the expected 217 northern units were enrolled, the majority coming from the Valgris Region of lower Tidewater region, which held mix sympathies prior to the formal outbreak of war.