This Mighty Scourge of War: A Reconstruction-Era Quest
- Thread starter Kirook
- Start date
- Alt. History
LuxemburgLover69
There are more things between Heaven and Earth...
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Hold a mass treason trial.
Vote closed
Well, at least the option I wanted won.
Chapter 11: The Wages of Sin
- Location
- SF Bay Area
[X] Hold a mass treason trial.
January 1, 1867
The mass trial of the "heroes" of the Confederacy was the clearest and most public symbol of America's reckoning with the Slave Power, and it was treated with all the gravitas that such a thing demanded.
The defendants were tried in a military tribunal presided over by Major General David Hunter, with a wide cross-section of the American political sphere—and even some foreign observers—in attendance. Over the months that followed, the true scope of not just the White Camelia Conspiracy but the whole secessionist movement became clear as generals, assassins, and statesmen were brought forward to answer for their crimes.
Their reactions to this were varied and manifold. Robert E. Lee strenuously (and, the tribunal determined, truthfully) denied any knowledge of the conspiracy, but the countless battles he had waged against the Union and the cause of emancipation were still enough to condemn him to a life behind bars. Jefferson Davis was subdued as he gave his testimony, knowing his final gambit to protect slavery had failed and nothing now could prevent him from being hanged. John Wilkes Booth, ever the dramatist, ranted and raved on the stand about miscegenation, the demise of the white race, and the fall of the West…to no avail.
Few of the defendants got off lightly—and none of the White Camelia Conspirators escaped the noose. The message was clear, sent out publicly to all who would bear witness: the chaos and violence that had gripped America since 1861, unleashed in the name of slavery, would never be repeated. But as the prison doors were shut and the bodies were carted away, the question for many Americans remained: "How can we be sure?" What could be done to help the nation emerge from this crucible stronger and more free? With Reconstruction now truly beginning, Black men for the first time could vote en masse for their own leaders. The elections they cast those ballots in would be referenda on the nation's racist past and its undefined future.
But for the time being, with the trials over, the government turned to more pressing concerns. The Union Army had never been truly demobilized even after the Confederacy's surrender, being dispatched first to root out the holdouts in the Southeast, then to reduce the redoubt of Texas, and finally to restore order during the Bloody Winter. The soldiers, though driven to fight for their cause and avenge their fallen leaders, could not fight forever. All factions of the National Union Party agreed that a force would still have to be left behind to oversee Reconstruction, but the troop numbers in the South as 1867 began were still far in excess of that requirement, especially with the white supremacist militias crushed. And so, the issue on the table at the start of the year was how to "send the boys home".
In a relative rarity in these politically polarized times, the debate cut across factional lines. Different facets of the issue appealed to different parts of the coalition Lincoln had forged: minimizing the simmering resentment in the South from the heavy-handed actions of the military and the spectacle made of the trials, ensuring that the nascent institutions of Reconstruction could not be sabotaged, strengthening or weakening the Wide Awakes and other Radical militias, making room for the transformation of the Southern economy. But the final decision lay with President Sumner, the Union Army's commander in chief…
National stability is recovering.
The government's legitimacy is growing.
The capital is safe.
The mood of the War Democrats is calm.
The mood of the Liberal Republicans is calm.
The mood of the Radical Republicans is calm.
There are no major Confederate armies remaining in the field.
The status of Reconstruction is hampered by economic devastation.
The intensity of conflict on the frontier is dropping.
Of the assassins of Lincoln and his trusted subordinates, two have been killed in the field, five have been executed, and the status of the last one is unknown.
January 1, 1867
The mass trial of the "heroes" of the Confederacy was the clearest and most public symbol of America's reckoning with the Slave Power, and it was treated with all the gravitas that such a thing demanded.
The defendants were tried in a military tribunal presided over by Major General David Hunter, with a wide cross-section of the American political sphere—and even some foreign observers—in attendance. Over the months that followed, the true scope of not just the White Camelia Conspiracy but the whole secessionist movement became clear as generals, assassins, and statesmen were brought forward to answer for their crimes.
Their reactions to this were varied and manifold. Robert E. Lee strenuously (and, the tribunal determined, truthfully) denied any knowledge of the conspiracy, but the countless battles he had waged against the Union and the cause of emancipation were still enough to condemn him to a life behind bars. Jefferson Davis was subdued as he gave his testimony, knowing his final gambit to protect slavery had failed and nothing now could prevent him from being hanged. John Wilkes Booth, ever the dramatist, ranted and raved on the stand about miscegenation, the demise of the white race, and the fall of the West…to no avail.
Few of the defendants got off lightly—and none of the White Camelia Conspirators escaped the noose. The message was clear, sent out publicly to all who would bear witness: the chaos and violence that had gripped America since 1861, unleashed in the name of slavery, would never be repeated. But as the prison doors were shut and the bodies were carted away, the question for many Americans remained: "How can we be sure?" What could be done to help the nation emerge from this crucible stronger and more free? With Reconstruction now truly beginning, Black men for the first time could vote en masse for their own leaders. The elections they cast those ballots in would be referenda on the nation's racist past and its undefined future.
But for the time being, with the trials over, the government turned to more pressing concerns. The Union Army had never been truly demobilized even after the Confederacy's surrender, being dispatched first to root out the holdouts in the Southeast, then to reduce the redoubt of Texas, and finally to restore order during the Bloody Winter. The soldiers, though driven to fight for their cause and avenge their fallen leaders, could not fight forever. All factions of the National Union Party agreed that a force would still have to be left behind to oversee Reconstruction, but the troop numbers in the South as 1867 began were still far in excess of that requirement, especially with the white supremacist militias crushed. And so, the issue on the table at the start of the year was how to "send the boys home".
In a relative rarity in these politically polarized times, the debate cut across factional lines. Different facets of the issue appealed to different parts of the coalition Lincoln had forged: minimizing the simmering resentment in the South from the heavy-handed actions of the military and the spectacle made of the trials, ensuring that the nascent institutions of Reconstruction could not be sabotaged, strengthening or weakening the Wide Awakes and other Radical militias, making room for the transformation of the Southern economy. But the final decision lay with President Sumner, the Union Army's commander in chief…
National stability is recovering.
The government's legitimacy is growing.
The capital is safe.
The mood of the War Democrats is calm.
The mood of the Liberal Republicans is calm.
The mood of the Radical Republicans is calm.
There are no major Confederate armies remaining in the field.
The status of Reconstruction is hampered by economic devastation.
The intensity of conflict on the frontier is dropping.
Of the assassins of Lincoln and his trusted subordinates, two have been killed in the field, five have been executed, and the status of the last one is unknown.
| Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal. | Demobilize the Union Army immediately. |
| This will result in a slow but managed start to Reconstruction, taking longer but allowing more government control over policy. It will also reduce general militancy as soldiers reintegrate into everyday life. | This will result in a swift but hands-off start to Reconstruction, allowing for a more rapid recovery in a manner determined by local material conditions. It will also increase general militancy as large numbers of soldiers return home all at once. |
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PrognosticHannya
Far Too Enthusiastic About Etymology
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X]Demobilize the Union Army immediately.
Alright, I'm not really seeing any downsides to a piecemeal demobilization, aside from the timescale, and honestly, the increased stability makes up for that
@TheArcanist convinced me that having reconstruction be top-down will only bring further problems (and the introduction of veterans to the civ population produces some interesting opportunities).
@TheArcanist convinced me that having reconstruction be top-down will only bring further problems (and the introduction of veterans to the civ population produces some interesting opportunities).
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- Location
- Te Ika-a-Māui
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] Demobilize the Union Army immediately.
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- Location
- Raleigh, NC
[X] Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal.
- Location
- somewhere on this dying planet
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Demobilize the Union Army immediately.
Edit: I decided to change my vote after seeing the arguments in favor of letting local loyalists set the agenda and bringing all those radicalized veterans home.
Edit: I decided to change my vote after seeing the arguments in favor of letting local loyalists set the agenda and bringing all those radicalized veterans home.
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- Location
- Washington State, USA
[X]Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal.
I think we should put out a very large bounty on the last member of the conspiracy, one that will make even family members turn on him. Accounting for inflation, we should offer some where between $50,000 and $500,000. Or ~$1,000,000 and ~$10,000,000 today respectively. Hell we could offer much more if we really want to.
I think we should put out a very large bounty on the last member of the conspiracy, one that will make even family members turn on him. Accounting for inflation, we should offer some where between $50,000 and $500,000. Or ~$1,000,000 and ~$10,000,000 today respectively. Hell we could offer much more if we really want to.
[X] Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal.
- Location
- Somewhere in the area
- Pronouns
- He/She/They
[X] Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal.
- Location
- an unseen void
- Pronouns
- Any
[X] Demobilize the Union Army immediately.
Our absolute worst indicator right now is the economic status of Reconstruction, and this helps that factor more while also maintaining our general militancy (which we need to keep Reconstruction from being watered down). Win-win. We're going to need to assemble new tools for enforcement anyway.
I have maybe never felt more confident about a choice in this quest. Control is an illusion. We have to keep the flame burning.
Our absolute worst indicator right now is the economic status of Reconstruction, and this helps that factor more while also maintaining our general militancy (which we need to keep Reconstruction from being watered down). Win-win. We're going to need to assemble new tools for enforcement anyway.
I have maybe never felt more confident about a choice in this quest. Control is an illusion. We have to keep the flame burning.
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- Location
- New York
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X]Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal.
The last assassin has probably escaped the country at this point.
The last assassin has probably escaped the country at this point.
- Pronouns
- He/They/She
[X] Demobilize the Union Army piecemeal.
This should also give us some time to put together some civilian infrastructure with which to rebuild the South's economy in a non-slaveocratic fashion, which were already doing, but I could see in a future vote evolving into some kind of Paleo New Deal with federal backing.
This should also give us some time to put together some civilian infrastructure with which to rebuild the South's economy in a non-slaveocratic fashion, which were already doing, but I could see in a future vote evolving into some kind of Paleo New Deal with federal backing.
Astra Myst
Do you want a wish?
- Location
- Milky Way Galaxy
[X] Demobilize the Union Army immediately.
