AWWA Part 2-The Second Thirty Years War(IC)

[Shrillland]

Letterkenny, Donegal, Ulster
January 3, 1838

The British losses were heavy with another 2,500 dead on their side. Even so, they pressed onward, ready the hoist the union flag over Ireland once again. Even so, the navy was having a hard time back at Lough Swilly, with four more ships sunk at the hands of the rebels.

[Ruridova]

January 12, 1838
Constantinople

"Biz saldırı altında demektir!" shouted one military officer as the military barricade came under fire by cannons from rooftops. The city of Constantinople had been submerged into chaos as thousands of leftists rose up in demonstration against the authoritarian government of the Ottoman Empire. On the outskirts of the city, the "Red Guards of Thrace" had issued their "Theses of the Revolution":

1. The immediate dissolution of the current government, and its immediate apprehension and trial for crimes against the people of the Sublime Porte.
2. The establishment of a National Constitution, that limits the power of the Sultan.
3. Establishment of Absolute Cognatic succession, permitting women and their daughters to inherit freely.
4. Creation of labor unions to provide for the safety of the workers.
5. Immediate establishment of Thema systems to allow each ethnic part of the Empire to have their own regulations and systems, even in contrast to the Government in Constantinople.
6. Guarantees of religious and ethnic freedom for all non-Moslems, and the abolition of Jizya taxes.

At the same time, popular revolution in Serbia had stirred up to achieve independence. Supported by most of the South Slavs, save for Southern Rumelia and Macedonia, the massive uprisings were headed under Serbians and Bulgarians. Albanians, Macedonians and Rumelian Bulgarians fought against the rebellion. However, the Sultan immediately called for a peace between the South Slavs and the Turks, who were already facing internal strife as it was.

On January 14, 1838, the Union of South Slavs was proclaimed in Belgrade, with a popular referendum to be held immediately on the question: Monarchy or Republic?

At the same time, the Macedonians and Rumelians refused to join into the Union, and chose to stay independent. Similarly, the Turks retained control of Ragusa, and the South Slavs agreed to protect the rights of Bosnian Muslims, establishing Bosnia as a special ethnic zone within the Union.

Beograd, Union of South Slavs

With the near-utter collapse of Ottoman authority, the powerful Serbs and Montenegrins quickly claimed Serbia, Vojvodina, Kosovo, Montenegro, Bosnia, and Herzegovina as what would be called, for the time being, the Union of South Slavs. A temporary capital had been established in Beograd(Belgrade), and now a consensus was in: the Southern Slavs did not want a republic like the ragtag Americans, but a proud and dignified monarchy bound by the will of a National Assembly. The man selected to rule the country was a Serb noble named Konstantin Milošević, who would be crowned Tsar of the new country. He was also proclaimed King of Serbia, Bosnia, and Montenegro, and Prince of Herzegovina, Vojvodina, and Kosovo.

However, the name of the country itself proved to be a tougher point. It would be ludicrous, it was decided, to name the country after one of its constituent countries. They would not call themselves the Balkans, or Rumelijia, or Transcroatia, or Dinarica, or Illyria, or Dalmatia. Finally, someone had the bright idea of simply combining the Serbo-Croat word for south(jug) and Slavs(Sloveni), creating a wholly new name for the country, yet one that had been staring it in the face: Jugoslavija, or Yugoslavia.

The nation more quickly had possible military targets: the liberation of their Slavic brothers in Italian Croatia.

[Luziyca]

Letterkenny, Donegal, Ulster
January 3, 1838

The British losses were heavy with another 2,500 dead on their side. Even so, they pressed onward, ready the hoist the union flag over Ireland once again. Even so, the navy was having a hard time back at Lough Swilly, with four more ships sunk at the hands of the rebels.

January 3, 1838

The reduced Irish forced continued firing at the ships and the soldiers, while some soldiers were debating whether to take the inhabitants of Letterkenny to Belfast and burn the town, while burning other towns on the way to lure them to Belfast where they plan to regroup. However, Eoghan chose to fight on. O'Berach was killed in battle, while protecting some Irish children from British gunfire.

[Shrillland]

Letterkenny, Donegal, Ulster
January 4, 1838

The British now moved into the town limits, though their numbers continued to drop, albeit not as many as before with 350 killed. The British flag now stood in the town as the Irish continued their assault. Already Maxton was preparing to move eastward.

[Luziyca]

Letterkenny, Donegal, Ulster
January 4, 1838

The British now moved into the town limits, though their numbers continued to drop, albeit not as many as before with 350 killed. The British flag now stood in the town as the Irish continued their assault. Already Maxton was preparing to move eastward.

Finally, the Irish began fighting and setting up barricades. The guns and cannons kept firing, and some Irish soldiers began to behead British soldiers. Some more Irish soldiers headed to the flagpole, lowered the British flag, raised the Irish tricolor, and then burnt the British flag.

[Ruridova]

Ville du Quebec. Independent Republic of Quebec
January 4, 1838

Quebec, in a move that provokes only moderate controversy within the country but that is likely to create more of a storm abroad, universalizes suffrage and forever abolishes slavery in the country.

[Shrillland]

Letterkenny, Donegal, Ulster
January 5, 1838

After the first attempts to take the town failed, the British decided to starve the Irish rebels out. So the ships in Lough Swilly remained to blockade the town, while the Anglo-Japanese force encircled the city. This could take the British some time.

[Luziyca]

Letterkenny, Donegal, Ulster
January 5, 1838

After the first attempts to take the town failed, the British decided to starve the Irish rebels out. So the ships in Lough Swilly remained to blockade the town, while the Anglo-Japanese force encircled the city. This could take the British some time.

With the British starting a siege, they decided to just take the local's fishing boats, and the locals, before burning the town. Thus, the locals were loaded onto their own boats, while some Irish rebels set fire to Letterkenny. Then they started to sail away from Lough Swilly, towards a safe place to land, with their next move being to burn Irish towns and fields to ensure the Anglo-Japanese force would starve in Belfast.

[Shrillland]

Letterkenny, Donegal, Ulster
January 7, 1838

The British force was now down to 29,000 after the battle, and Maxton decided to begin the next phase of the campaign. He now divided the force between himself and his Japanese counterpart. Both forces would now march east to the river Foyle, but he would take the northern road to Londonderry in Londonderry County, while the Japanese commander would march on the southern road to Donegal's capital of Lifford, and then cross the river to take the town of Strabane in County Tyrone. This would only take a day's journey and, if successful, would allow the British to keep their fleet in Lough Foyle, giving them assurance as to supplies.

The British fleet headed for America was still two weeks from their targets.

[Unicario]

Japanese military camp, Ulster
January 1838

"Drill! Go!" shouted General Kasumi Mashita, another one of Japan's brightest martial minds, another woman. The men and women assembled together and shouted, "For the Emperor! For Queen and Country!" and performed various military drills to prepare for future battles.

Later that night, the Japanese belted out their homesickness through song.

"If I die for the Emperor, it shall not be a regret to me!"

[Shrillland]

Londonderry, County Londonderry, Ulster
January 8, 1838

Maxton's force had just reached the Foyle on the west side of Londonderry, and now moved to cross over it, destroying all resistance on his way to Belfast, now knowing how many soldiers awaited him here.

Outside Lifford, Donegal, Ulster

General Mashita and her force had also arrived at their targets of Lifford and Strabane and began marching towards them, also with orders to eliminate all resistance.

[Shrillland]

Halifax, Nova Scotia
January 22, 1838

Three fleets of ships arrived in Halifax today. One contained 36,500 men to assist Ishikawa in finishing off the United States of America. These men would sail down to Portland and arrive in two days. Another group of 36,500 men would be sent to Keane at what is now Thunder Bay, Ontario, at the moment the abandoned Hudson's Bay Company's Fort William. They would arrive at the end of February to assist Keane in the destruction of Deseret. And a third, small fleet arrived with Lord Durham, who was sent to investigate to causes of the rebellion and suggest possible remedies. He would stay for several months and talk to the common people.

Ireland

In the meantime the Irish advance had been forced to halt due to supply shortages. Now, however a convoy was finally able to make it across the rough seas and feed the armies, so an assault on the Foyle was finally possible.

[Shrillland]

Portland, Maine
January 24, 1838

The British forces had arrived in Maine, and would now be marching south to take Boston, and thence to New York and Philadelphia, to put an end to the United States of America. They would cross into Massachusetts in 2 days.

[Unicario]

January 25, 1838
Merchant Row, Edo, Japan

The head merchant was sitting at his post, counting the till from the day. The snow-storm had clogged up the bay, as visibility remained horribly low. The Japanese Imperial Navy ship, the Jimmu, was docked in port. The ship was being loaded with various gunpowder explosives and other things, before it would sail off to re-enforce supplies in Vietnam.

In the snow-covered morning, the sounds of screaming emerged, as a large wooden ship flying the banner of the Qing Empire, slammed through several wooden docks before crashing into the Jimmu. The ships exploded, leveling everything nearby. The head merchant was incinerated almost immediately by the fireball, and so were several dozen people. Infrastructures and buildings for about 2 miles around were ripped apart and collapsed in.

Rescue crews and firefighters worked to rescue Merchant Row, but it was all for naught. On the eve of January 27, they managed to finish searching the area, and the government ordered a reconstruction of the Row. Until then, Japan's trade would have to come out of Osaka.

[Ruridova]

Portland, Maine
January 24, 1838

The British forces had arrived in Maine, and would now be marching south to take Boston, and thence to New York and Philadelphia, to put an end to the United States of America. They would cross into Massachusetts in 2 days.

The Union forces began to prepare to defend the great cities of the North.

[Luziyca]

January 27th, 1838
Beijing, Empire of China
When news of the explosion in Merchant Row reached Beijing, the Chinese Diet proposed the Japan Act, 1838, that would promise three million yuan in aid to rebuild the Merchant Row, as well to pay for the damage and have enough left over to rebuild the Merchant Row in Edo, with Chinese supplies. It also created the Silk, Tea and Rice Board (絲綢茶葉和大米局) to help raise the money by decreeing that 1/10th of tea, silk and rice be given to the Silk, Tea and Rice Board to be sold internationally. It is to be put under the jurisdiction of the Royal Bank of China, which will set prices for Chinese silk, tea and rice.

The act was passed with only the two MPs from the Manzu Liameng opposing the Japan Act (mainly since they felt the production was too low) and was passed to the Daoguang Emperor to sign the Japan Act. He ratified it later in the day, and gave orders to the Royal Bank of China to procure the three million yuan, of which it had only two million yuan, most of it earmarked for domestic circulation. They decided to print a million yuans worth of notes, while ordering prices of Chinese rice to be sold at a minimum of five British pounds per pound of rice, ten British pounds for a gallon of Chinese tea, and fifty British pounds for each item of clothing made with silk. Their assumption was that by the end of 1838, the Silk, Tea and Rice Board will have raised one billion yuan, based on typical trade patterns in China from 1837.

---

February 1, 1838
Belfast, Ireland
At the Cathedral, the Falangists realized how desperate the situation was. Despite some skirmishes, many villages in Ireland surrendered to the British, and to make it worse, O'Berach had been killed in battle. Now, Aodh Eoghan had to make a decision for Ireland and those who were still loyal to his cause.

Thus, he made a speech, at St. Anne's Cathedral: where he began the uprising just several months ago. It was in Irish now (I'll just use English for convenience).

"Soldiers of Ireland, I have gathered here to tell of our status. A few months prior, we were making strong gains. We were on the verge of capturing Dublin. We were on the verge of kicking the British swine out of the Emerald Isle!"

He paused. He was worried, and he knew that it was over. He tried to debate whether to relocate the Falangists and start elsewhere, or to fight until the bitter end.

He continued, "Now, we are at a crossroads. We are almost trapped in Belfast. Our only way out is the sea. Common sense dictates that we depart Ireland and regroup elsewhere, like say, the Falkland Islands or Tristan da Cunha. However, we cannot betray our Fatherland in its time of need."

"If we are to relocate to Tristan da Cunha, we can survive for decades, centuries even without the British Empire noticing. Our language can survive, our religion shall thrive, we shall prosper as a nation, yearning to return to our forgotten land. With its strategic shipping connections from Port Stanley to Cape Town, we can prosper and grow rich."

He paused, gauging the reaction of the men.

"But if we choose to fight until the bitter end, we will die knowing that our children and grandchildren will fight against the British, for they will suffer worse than what we have suffered. And when they hear of our heroic deeds and our sacrifices for Father Ireland, they shall rise up and succeed. And if they fail, their children and grandchildren shall rise again and succeed!"

He then asked the soldiers, "Today, this decision rests within you, lads. Should we fight to the bitter end for our fatherland, or relocate to Tristan da Cunha and retake Ireland later?"

[Shrillland]

Outside Boston, Massachusetts
February 1, 1838

Bad weather had slowed down the march, but today the British now passed the southern edge of Rumney Marsh, just 10 miles north of the city. The first goal was to take Chelsea and the shores of the River Mystic, and so the British began their bombardment of the Americaner defences.

Ulster

The Anglo-Japanese force had meanwhile made considerable progress. Maxton's northern army had now reached Antrim town and was within 15 miles of Belfast, but here as well, bad weather postponed the assault. Mashita meanwhile, had arrived in Portadown in Armagh after taking the eponymous city.

London

A ship left East London harbour on its way to Sydney today. On the ship was a dispatch from War and Colonial Secretary Lord Glenelg to Sir George Gipps, Governor of New South Wales, offering a solution to the problems that the colonists and convicts faced with the Aboriginal population. The House report on Aborigines states that the New South Wales Government create so-called "protectors:, who would learn the Aboriginal languages and protect them from encroachment and cruelty by white settlers. When this letter arrived in early March, quick action would be taken.

[Unicario]

The ship was roughly tossed about on the seas. On board the ship, Yusei Kamakura gripped the side of the ship and heaved up another meal into the water. He swore, "This is not how the son of a Shogun should be treated!" The ship was the Morikuni, named after the last Shogun. They had recently gathered up in secrecy and left Japan after assassinating Emperor George. They had done their job, to purge an obvious Anglophile from the Empire, but their situation was now too unfavorable to stay. So they sailed off hoping to reach either the Philippines or the Dutch East Indies and continue the fight from there.

They had overshot their trajectory. Storms had carried them further south than anticipated.

On the dawn of February 2, 1838, Yusei Kamakura spotted land.

They had reached OTL Darwin, Australia, but he stamped the flag of the Old Shogunate down and declared the foundation of the Shin Kyōto (New Kyoto), of the new Kamakura Shogunate, divine ruler of all corners of the Earth by grace of the Kami. And now, he plotted revenge to unseat Emperor Alexander and destroy those that had wronged the old order...

[Ruridova]

Outside Boston, Massachusetts
February 1, 1838

Bad weather had slowed down the march, but today the British now passed the southern edge of Rumney Marsh, just 10 miles north of the city. The first goal was to take Chelsea and the shores of the River Mystic, and so the British began their bombardment of the Americaner defences.

About 17,000 Americaners held Chelsea and the defenses, and they returned fire as able.

[Shrillland]

Chelsea, Massachusetts
February 4, 1838

After three days of artillery fire, in which 450 British soldiers were killed, the Infantry advanced upon the Americaner positions.

Shores of the River Tugela, Natal

Retief and the Voortrekkers had found their new home, free of British influence and oppression. Piet Retief admired this place so much, that is was here that he decided to establish the new Natalia Republic, a country where all Boers could prosper. It was here at this spot that Retie and King Dingaan of the Zulus met on this very day, and signed a treaty ceding Zulu lands to the Voortrekkers. In time, they would also take Port Natal from the British.

But Dingaan did not trust the Boers, and was already prepared to go back on his agreement...

[Ruridova]

Chelsea, Massachusetts
February 4, 1838

After three days of artillery fire, in which 450 British soldiers were killed, the Infantry advanced upon the Americaner positions.

The Americaner lines stood and returned fire.

[Shrillland]

The British advance was halted with another 300 dead, and the battle devolved into hand-to-hand combat, until the cavalry could arrive.

[Ruridova]

The British advance was halted with another 300 dead, and the battle devolved into hand-to-hand combat, until the cavalry could arrive.

The Americaners, wary of cavalry intervention, decided to attempt to repeat Washington's first victory in Maryland, using the strategy originally devised at Marathon.

[Shrillland]

Chelsea, Massachusetts

By the time the Cavalry realised what was happening, they had already suffered losses of nearly 350 men. They withdrew from the battle and were given new orders to attack and hold East Boston, just southeast of the Chelsea position. Artillery was sent as well, so that both Chelsea and Boston itself could be shelled if successful.

Herat, Afghanistan

Since October the Persians, with Russian support, had tried to encircle this city and eliminate a potential British outpost in the Great Game. Now the Persians, led by their Shah, Mohammed Shah Qajar, had over 40,000 men, yet they still did not encircle the city. This battle would drag on into the spring, at which time Britain would be forced to react.

[Ruridova]

Chelsea, Massachusetts

By the time the Cavalry realised what was happening, they had already suffered losses of nearly 350 men. They withdrew from the battle and were given new orders to attack and hold East Boston, just southeast of the Chelsea position. Artillery was sent as well, so that both Chelsea and Boston itself could be shelled if successful.

The Americaners now attempted to counter this change in strategy.