Second Mexican War
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| Second Mexican War | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States of America |
 Confederate States of America United Kingdom FranceMormon Rebels Kiowa Indians Apache Indians |
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| Commanders | |||||||
| James G. Blaine William Rosecrans John Pope Theodore Roosevelt George A. Custer Orlando B. Willcox |
James Longstreet Stonewall Jackson Jeb Stuart † E. Porter Alexander Satanta Geronimo |
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In Harry Turtledove's fictional alternate history book How Few Remain, The Second Mexican War is the second conflict between the United States of America and the Confederate States of America. It is based on the Franco-Prussian War.
[edit] The Second Mexican War
The war began in 1881 when the CSA purchased the two northern Mexican provinces of Sonora and Chihuahua. Not only do these additions to the CSA extend the border with the USA several hundred miles, but they also give the Confederates a Pacific port (Guaymas). The events early in the war include the capture of a large quantity of gold and silver ore from a Union mining town by the Confederates occupying newly purchased Sonora and Chihuahua, the successful use of the new Gatling Gun against Kiowa Indians and Confederate cavalry in Kansas, and the declaration of a blockade and subsequent bombarding of U.S. ports by Great Britain and France.
During the middle of the war, Mormons in Utah rebel by severing trans-continental communication and transportation in and out of Salt Lake City. This revolt is put down to some extent by the appointment of John Pope as military governor, the suspension of certain constitutional rights by the aforementioned governor, the classification of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a political organization, and the execution of the leaders of Mormonism.
The Unites States' attempt to invade Virginia is easily thrown back by the brilliant strategy of General Stonewall Jackson as the United States struggles to find a man his equal. A key reason for the Confederate success in the war (apart from its powerful foreign allies, France and Great Britain, and the advantage of fighting a defensive war) is that the Confederate armies continue to be led by excellent generals like Jackson, while the United States's military, despite possessing a massive advantage in numbers and resources, suffers from woefully incompetent leadership. William Rosecrans, the commander of the entire U.S. army, casually reveals at one point that the United States has no overall strategy for winning the war whatsoever. He envisions a vague idea of the opposing armies making counteroffensives back and forth against each other, which he feels the United States would assuredly win. This lack of planning leaves German military observers, such as Alfred von Schlieffen, aghast.
The United States next attempts to launch a massive invasion of Louisville to knock the Confederates out of Kentucky but it soon becomes a bloody stalemate for a number of reasons, including the appointment of Stonewall Jackson as the commander of the defense, the negligence of U.S. commanders, and most of all, the use of breech-loading artillery and repeating rifles making taking a position very difficult. The Confederate army under Jackson never tries to invade more United States territory than it possessed before the war, for two reasons. First, it does not have the resources for an offensive into hostile lands. Second, the Confederacy's success hinges on the support of Britain and France, who feel they are aiding a smaller nation wrongfully attacked by a larger one, and launching attacks into the United States would be seen as aggression for which they might lose foreign support. Galled by orders to wage a purely defensive war, Jackson takes them to the extreme, pioneering tactics of full-scale trench warfare which devastates Louisville (in scenes reminiscent of the World War I of reality). The Louisville campaign quickly bogs down for the United States, and results in a bloodbath with little territory gained. Great Britain and France continue to shell the Great Lakes ports; France also shells Los Angeles, while the British bombard San Francisco and then raid the mint.
The United States receives some good news when young volunteer cavalry colonel Theodore Roosevelt, and still-surviving George Armstrong Custer rout a British army invading Montana from Canada. However, the British also invade northern Maine and annex it into New Brunswick.
Finally, facing defeat on almost all fronts, Republican president James G. Blaine is forced to capitulate. A Republican is never again elected to the White House. The United States, bitter in defeat, seeks an alliance with the powerful German Empire. The alliance sets up events for the next three series.
