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American Guerillas by Zach Timmons
 Author
says: what if General Robert E. Lee had taken the Army of Northern
Virginia into the hills? Please note that the opinions expressed in this
post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
On April 9th, 1865:
on this day Confederate General Robert E. Lee issued the
fateful order for the Army of Northern Virginia to disband and to take to
the wilderness to act as guerilla fighters. His aide Walter Taylor
apparently suggested the idea to him, and Lee, grief-stricken by the recent
death of his wife Mary, and of the death of his son William as a Union
prisoner, approved it.
For the next 5 years, a reign of terror ruled the South
as shootings, lynchings, and bombings became the norm. Anyone suspected of
Union sympathies or those who collaborated with the occupation forces were
frequently killed as an example to others, and the Union Army gradually laid
a heavier and heavier hand on the South, taking civilians as hostages and
conducting frequent reprisals.
After the assassination of President Andrew Johnson in 1868, Democrat
Horatio Seymour defeated former general Ulysses S. Grant for the Presidency.
Seymour immediately opened talks with the rebel leaders, most notably Nathan
B. Forrest and John Mosby. A deal was struck with the rebels that the South
would recieve limited autonomy, with the ability to opt out of trade deals
and tariffs, but in return, slavery would be phased out over 20 years, with
slaveowners receiving compensation. On January 1st, 1870, the agreement (now
referred to as the Washington Agreement) officially took effect, and is now
regarded in the South as a quasi-Independence Day.
Author
says this story was originally posted on
Zach's Blog. To
view guest historian's comments on this post please visit the Today in
Alternate History web site for
American Guerillas.
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Other Stories by
Zach Timmons |
Zach Timmons, Guest Historian of
Today in Alternate History, a Daily Updating Blog of Important Events In
History That Never Occurred Today. Follow us on
Facebook, Myspace and
Twitter.
Imagine what would be, if history had occurred a bit
differently. Who says it didn't, somewhere? These fictional news items
explore that possibility. Possibilities such as America becoming a Marxist
superpower, aliens influencing human history in the 18th century and Teddy
Roosevelt winning his 3rd term as president abound in this interesting
fictional blog.
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