Confederate States of America (Royal Prerogative)

The Confederate States of America was a nation consisting of the southern states of the United States of America from 1861 until 1934, when it was reconstituted back into the Union. The Confederacy came into existence in 1861, when southern, slave-holding states rebelled against the northern-dominated government, in order to preserve slavery and economic control of key resources. The resulting civil war lasted until 1866, when a stalemate situation had developed and both parties pursued a peace plan. The Treaty of New Orleans established the Confederacy as a separate nation, and the government of the North, led by President Hannibal Hamlin, who succeeded Abraham Lincoln in 1865, recognised the South as a legal entity. The two nations remained at odds for a decade. However, by 1880, tensions had cooled, and despite the difference between the nations in terms of slavery, the two countries established firmer ties. Relations grew warmer throughout the 1880s, helped by a series of reforms in the South, by which the slavery practice was slowly abolished. By 1891, only two states, Alabama and South Carolina, still practiced slavery. Recent economic and technological advances had made the practice unpractical and unprofitable, and many nations had held back from establishing strong economic ties until the country reformed its economic system. In 1895, the Confederate Congress passed the Emancipation Act, which effectively ended slavery. The CSA, having now abolished the thingt at had caused its secession, began to move economically and politically closer to the United States. In 1907, President Alton Parker of the North made a state visit to his Southern counterpart, Newton Blanchard, in Richmond, marking the first time this had ever happened. The visit was reciprocated the following year. In 1930, the question of reunification had grown so common that a bilateral summit was convened to assess the options. The U.S. President, Warren Harding, and Confederate President Huey Long met in Washington and agreed in principle to the question of re-uniting the country. In 1932, the question was put to the people in nation-wide referenda in both nations. The voters of both narrowly supported reunification, though the margin in the North was much greater than in the South. On February 4, 1934, the 63rd anniversary of the seccession of the South, the United States of America was reconstituted into a single nation. Many Southerners rejected the idea of retaining the name "United States"; however, this did not become a significant issue. The spirit of the Confederacy lives on in many places. Despite having been reunified with the North 73 years ago, many Southerners still proudly fly the Confederate flag. The states of Arkansas, Kansas and Virginia still refer to themselves as "Confederacy" rather than "state", and a Southerner has been present on almost every presidential ticket since 1936. The current President, Warren Beatty, and Vice President, Bob Graham, are both from Southern states.

See also: List of Presidents of the Confederate States of America