Stars and Stripes trilogy

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The Stars and Stripes Trilogy is a collection of three alternate history novels written by Harry Harrison. All three books work around the POD (Point of Divergence) of British involvement in the American Civil War after the Trent Affair. This happens when Prince Albert dies prematurely rather than playing his historic role in resolving the crisis. The Queen blames the Americans and authorizes her ministers to do anything necessary to ensure that they pay for it.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The series has been heavily criticised mainly for errors found throughout the story and its heavy favoritism to America. Others consider action occurring in the story to be unrealistic with the Royal Navy acting as chronically bad navigators, Mexican guerillas defeating Gurkhas in close combat, the United States and Confederate States easily making peace, characters adopting late twentieth century attitudes towards race, to the United States being able to easily taking the war to the British Isles.

Factual errors include Texas being described as having no slaves while it was a major proponent for slavery. And misquoting General Lee about his famous quote about war being terrible. William Tecumseh Sherman is also shown as being a staunch abolitionist when in fact Sherman was racist and had no problems with slavery.

The books have shown considerable research in historical matters but lacking information on Naval Warfare.