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Empress Charlotte I was the fifth sovereign of the First American Empire and Queen of Bavaria from 1891 to 1948 and the first of three female sovereigns. She ascended to the throne at a very young age, being only ten months old when her father, Emperor John Jasper, unexpectedly died, she led the nation through the Great War, and through many years of established peace. Her marriage in 1920 to Prince Heinrich of Bavaria sealed a bond and alliance with Germany which co-exists to this day. Her actions during her reign led America to comfortable, relaxed, yet unapparent domination over the world. She is widely revered in America and is commonly called, yet not officially, Charlotte the Great, or Charlotte the Magnificent. However, she died early and untimely in 1948, and her death brought one of the worst tyrants in American, and in some cases, world history to power.
Photo of Charlotte on her throne in 1904. This was the first photograph of an American monarch since the invention of the camera. This photograph, later regulated through press and media was the first actual idea the American people had of their monarch's appearance. Before this they had only portraits.
Early Life[]
Charlotte was born in the Imperial Palace on December 27, 1886, to the current Emperor John Jasper and Queen Arlene. As a toddler, she was a fast learner and enjoyed theater more than most other things. It was not pressed for her to learn royal duties as it was expected she would not ascend to the throne, if she ascended at all, for many years. She quickly developed and surprised both her parents with the outcome of her genetics. She developed a luscious head of chestnut brown hair and had sharp brown eyes. Though it was suspected that the Queen Mother Jane had an affair, it was deemed in 1889 that this wasn't the case, and that the princess's physical appearance was the cause of genetic malfunction in her genes.
Charlotte didn't have any siblings, so she often spent time alone, studying with her tutors and playing with her vast collection of dolls and other toys. The princesses' room now would be shared by all heir's of the throne until Josephine the Great sealed it off for good in 1976, ninety years later.
Death of the Emperor[]
Her father contracted a brutal case of tuberculosis in 1891 and the illness was deemed as terminal, or untreatable. Charlotte was far to young to comprehend what was happening, though she knew her father was sick and she spent her days making 'get well cards' and bringing him treats. At one point when the emperor was so bedridden that he could barely move, Charlotte would read him 'stories' like he had done in her infancy. The emperor always adored his daughter, and once he was diagnosed, he had the succession law altered. He knew he wouldn't be able to have another heir, or male heir to be precise, and so Charlotte would be the only possible choice without letting the throne fall to the other branch of the family tree, which the main branch holding the Imperial throne, detested.
This change allowed Charlotte to ascend the throne in the case of his inevitable death, though a regent would be provided until she was fifteen. Charlotte was given almost no time to prepare for the throne when her father died in his sleep on November 12, 1891. The girl would always remark how guilty she felt as the last words she spoke to him were: "See you tomorrow... dad,"
Charlotte was crowned at the age of six on January 1st, 1892.
Rise of Charlottian America[]
Naturally she was too young to take the reigns of the largest and most powerful nation on earth. America had territory in the Pacific, China, India, West Africa, Madagascar ,and of course America. So she chose her uncle, Vincent, as her regent until she was fifteen, at the turn of the century in 1901.
Charlotte continued her education throughout this time, serving as the ceremonial head of state while her uncle handled political and domestic issues. She learned of the heated rivalry she would be inheriting with the First French Empire, founded by Napoleon in 1804. How she would lead the Ameroeuroasiatic Coalition, the global alliance led by the First American Empire. She excelled in history and language but famously struggled with mathematics. She was emotionally withdrawn and followed in her great-great-grandfather, founder of the First American Empire's footsteps and studied military tactics and became the first modern female military genius.
On May 17, 1900, on her fourteenth birthday, she surprised the court by dismissing her uncle's regency and taking full control of the nation. The reasoning for this is debated. Vincent, her uncle and regent was growing old and ill, and Charlotte could have decided to relieve him of his duties before he killed himself due to the stressful workload. Her first major act was the abolition of the dwindling slavery of Native Americans. The law passed with little to no resistance as slavery had become needless and many slaves had been promoted to servants for the richest of rich Americans. She pressed for the equality of all Americans and rapidly improved the quality of ships to prevent the spread of disease. In August she founded the Imperial Air Force, after the invention of the aircraft in 1894. She was wildly popular among all the people, she fought racism actively, and desired equality for all people, a radically liberal viewpoint for the era. She didn't dare try and uproot the normally extremely conservative and anti-progressive American society, even if her own personal beliefs would interfere.
She was shockingly intelligent for her age, able to answer complex mathematical equations in a moment, once she got over her childhood stumbles with the subject. In a famous example, the King of Greece asked her a variety of difficult questions to test her. She answered each question quickly and correctly, impressing not only the Greeks but those others present. Her quick thinking and calm, collected nature dissolved her allies' belief that she would lead the world into war.
Charlotte was also a staunch absolutist and conservative and sought to preserve Americanism, the style of American governance in the nation and spread it to other nations.
Great War[]
However, this didn't stop her enemies from taking advantage of her. A conspiracy by the members of the Quadruple Entente began to form to finally gain the upper hand over the Americans and their allies. As such, on June 28, 1901, a false flag operation was launched in the French colony of Senegal, without anyone, even the colonial garrisons knowing. French ships launched a bombardment of the port of Dakar, flying American flags. In the thirty minutes of carnage that followed, eleven French warships were sunk, four capsized and two more were later scuttled. 1400 locals in Dakar were killed, 1100 more were seriously wounded, 600 French naval officers and sailors were killed. Using the false flag operation to accuse the Americans of warmongering and provoking a conflict with the Napoleonic Empire and her allies.
The French Empire, followed by Portugal, Russia, and the British Republic declared war on America on July 1st, 1901, unprovoked and to simply destroy the Empire.
Charlotte instantly called for 600,000 volunteers, though almost 3 million young men joined the Imperial Army, as it was quickly realized the situation was fictionalized to cause a war. She ordered that the economy be shifted to a war based one, in order to put down the French menace once and for all. Machine guns, rifles, support equipment, and aircraft were produced en mass. She called her allies into the conflict, The German Confederation, Austria, Sweden, and the Ottoman Empire declared war on the Entente, starting the Great War, or as its more commonly called, World War 3.
Japan, Mexico and Haiti, and Brazil remained neutral, as there are no regional gains for them. In August of 1901, she planned a quick invasion of the Azores, which would limit Entente naval activity in the open Atlantic. She also designed a revolutionary ship that sailed under the waves, which she called a 'submarine'.
On October 1, 500 American special forces, dropping out of aircraft seized control of the Azores in their first engagement of the war. Colonial forces in West Africa attacked the French fort of Bamako in Mali. The Alaska Brigade landed and captured Vladivostok in Russia, this crippled Russian activity in the East. The Russian Eastern Fleet quickly departed to drive them out. This prompted Admiral Ernest Somsen to quickly set sail from his headquarters in San Francisco.
The thing is, the Entente was hoping to quickly overrun Germany and Austria before America could start operations because her sheer manpower would overrun them in time. If Germany and Austria were subdued then they could focus on America and defeating it.
To support America and gain land in the Far East and Mongolia, Japan promised to invade from their holdings in Manchukuo in the spring of 1902, which Charlotte was glad to see.
She then planned an invasion to knock out Portugal which was executed on November 13. Portugal was overwhelmed and capitulated two days later. This quickly worried the Entente, as the invasion had used 800 aircraft, which they had no counter for. The war however paused as one of the worst winters in European history ravaged Iberia, France and Germany. Over 200,000 Americans froze to death in the worst winter since Valley Force in 1777.
When conflict resumed in March, the Japanese invaded as promised and occupied Yakutsk. Admiral Somsen's fleet, which had anchored in Japan for the winter arrived in the Sea of Japan to crush the Russian fleet which was bombarding and raiding coastal cities. It's presence also prevented the Alaska Brigade from moving north. On April 1st, 1902, the American fleet, joined by a small Japanese counterpart encountered the Russian fleet off the coast of Korea. In the Battle Hungnam the allied forces defeated the Russian fleet, which lost 3/4 of its ships and manpower. What was left fled to the north and Somsen gave chase.
The Americans actively supported the Ottomans with arms to assist in invading the Caucasus from Russia. The Russian Black Sea Fleet hampered Ottoman operations in the region.
French Raids[]
The French army carried out a raid on Saint Augustine on April 2. The city was pillaged and raped. A raid was executed on Houston, Tejas a week later. Charlotte declared this a genocide and ordered bombing raids on French cities. The French declared this illegal and raided Boston on May 3. This triggered Charlotte to personally take command of the 4 million-strong American Army and ship out to France to destroy them. Miami was raided and pillaged on May 24. The worst raid was launched on June 16, on New York, the Imperial Capital. 800,000 people were slaughtered and cause 5 billion in property damage. This forced Britain to switch sides.
Somsen's Chase[]
The Russian Eastern Fleet sailed north into the Sea of Okhotsk and Admiral Somsen, assisted by a squadron of Japanese warships pursued for months. They encountered the Russians at Okha but failed to destroy them completely. The Russians retreated further north, but had no idea that Russia had surrendered already. By September, another encounter came at Korf in Kamchatka, where the Russians resupplied. The Russians escaped, but lost another ship, bringing their numbers down to six. The chase became sensationalized in American media. In October the Russians moved into the Chukchi Sea and Somsen anchored at Nome for the winter.
Empress Charlotte by now ordered these Russian bandits hunted down and destroyed and throughout the winter, Somsen was reinforced with six battleships and four more destroyers, bringing his force up to 22 ships. The Russians had anchored at Wrangel Island, the locals resupplied them here. It was here that the Russians chose to sail back through, hoping that they could slip back to Russia unscathed. So they did, as 1903 dawned Somsen had lost the Russians who appeared in June, raiding Barrow on the northern Alaska coast.
They sailed past Somsen's fleet under the cover of darkness, but they were spotted. A Russian ship was sunk and another was forced to be scuttled, though the Russians pressed on. Sailing down through the exclusion zone set by the Japanese, they escaped into the Sea of Okhotsk where they sailed to Zaliv Melkovodnny, or Shallow Bay. Somsen arrived in September and laid siege. When realizing from the locals that Russia had surrender 14 months prior, the Russians were confused, but eventually surrendered to Admiral Somsen.
The chase had taken 18 months, and the Americans and Russians had sailed over 12,000 miles in the chase of a lifetime.
End of War[]
1 million American soldiers, 500,000 Germans, and 340,000 Austrians and 160,000 British soldiers launched an invasion of France on July 4, 1902 as Russia had capitulated the previous week. French lines dissolved and Paris fell on July 20. When Charlotte met a distraught Napoleon V, she asks if he ordered the raids on American soil. He confirms this. Charlotte draws her sword and skewers Napoleon in the stomach, killing him. She later dissolved the French Empire. The remaining troops fighting for France, now a military junta surrendered by July 28.
Coming of Age[]
After the end of the Great War, Charlotte was sixteen, unmarried, and obviously with no heir in sight. This was unnormal. Though she had no intention of accomplishing any of these things in the near future. She was uninterested in marriage and motherhood and sought to focus more on establishing and securing her New Order.
America had gained vast new colonial adventures in Africa and Siberia, which Charlotte seeked to industrialize, urbanize and most importantly, Americanize. She also seeked to further secure her control over her allies, but remain more of a shadowed puppetier. In the Americas this would be easy. Haiti, Mexico and Brazil were practically propped up by the Empress and her predecessors. Austria and Germany were slowly falling into her sphere of influence, feeling threatened by the new Russian Republic and French Republic.
But these new republics were weak and fragile. Charlotte had made sure to organize the new governments herself, along with her advisors. She put the most corrupt, greedy and selfish politicians and generals in Russia and France in control of the nation, who she essentially controlled like puppets.
But her reign did not achieve much until 1909 when the automobile was invented. This brought her ease though, knowing that her reign was stable and melancholy.
Continent Crossed Lovers[]
Nobles were trying to match her up with various princes vying for her hand. But it was obvious it was only for power and riches. She wasn't considering who was the best for her, but for America. This made her more popular among the American people. She made several state, both looking for suitors, but also to establish new allies or at least,cordial powers.
These visits including becoming the first sovereign to visit the Russian Republic in 1910 and to Britain in 1911 to build bridges. In this latter case, the two nations had been bitter rivals since America became independent. They had fought in multiple wars, and in 1813, the Americans even acquired Canada from the British. By 1911 the British Republic was going strong and had no intentions on reclaiming these lost territories, but rather maintaining its colonial empire in Ceylon, Australia and parts of Africa. Also In 1911, she negotiated a squabble between the Empire of Japan and Qing China, in which China regained control over Beijing again, but Japan got to officially annex Manchuria, Korea, and Taiwan, which had been client states. This improved her standing with both of these nations, though Japan felt cheated out of losing the prized city of Beijing and it swore to retake it one day.
During these visits, many men caught her eye, but none impressed her. The nobility grew more and more antsy that Charlotte wouldn't produce an heir to the throne, and some began planning a coup to replace her with a more suitable sovereign. Some nobles remained loyal to Charlotte and informed her of this threat to her power. As a result a paranoid Charlotte exiled the disloyal nobles to rule of distant fiefdoms and colonies, such as Madagascar, South Africa and Hawaii.
Marriage to Heinrich and Heir Presumptive[]
While at a ball in Berlin, Germany in 1919, Charlotte met and fell in love with Prince Heinrich of Bavaria. Heinrich was different then other suitors because he felt a special connection to the thousands of German-Americans in both countries. He believed this melted a bloodline bond between them. The prince was dashing, charming and handsome. He respected her every accomplishment and viewed Charlotte as his equal. This convinced her to marry Heinrich, which she did in 1920 when she was 34. The nobility took a heavy sigh of relief, but now bit their tongues, hoping Charlotte could still produce an heir to the imperial throne.
Prince Heinrich of Bavaria in 1914, upon his 30th birthday. He was 36 when he met Charlotte and 37 when he married her.
A year later, she gave birth to a girl, whom the couple named Leah, and she became the heir presumptive. She was a bubbly and unpredictable girl, often getting into trouble. This concerned Charlotte and Heinrich to the point where they considered having another child and making him or her the heir presumptive. As she grew older, Leah became more stable and respectful to the order, relaxing their tensions.
The Other Children[]
However, Charlotte became pregnant in 1924, when she was 38. The pregnancy was far rougher on Charlotte than the one with Leah had been. When she finally gave birth in October of 1924, it was twin boys named John Paul and Victor Charles. Victor Charles became the heir to the throne of Bavaria, but John Paul was merely a prince.
Again she became pregnant a year later, and in early 1926 she gave birth to her second daughter, Claudette. After this excruciating birth, Charlotte and Heinrich were advised to not have children, as if she tried again she may not live through childbirth. This fear struck Charlotte heavily and she almost refused to sleep with Heinrich again, fearing she may fall pregnant again.
But this didn't mean she didn't love her children, no, she adored them. She played with them in the little off time she had, she made sure to eat dinner and breakfast with them, and even help them with their studies if they required it.
Death of Heinrich[]
In late 1931, Heinrich began experiencing off and on fever, stomach flu, and stiffness in his back and neck. His doctor diagnosed him with polio in early 1932. He held out, and Charlotte remained by his bedside for three months before he died from complications from the disease. Charlotte was so distraught, so depressed afterwards that she secluded herself for three years, making no public appearances. She swore to never marry again, as she loved Heinrich and nobody else.
However there were other consequences for this: Victor Charles, now seven, was ripped away from Charlotte and whisked away to Bavaria to become Prince of the Princedom of Bavaria. This depressed Charlotte more, and sent her into a tailspin.
Late Reign[]
In the last 13 years of her reign, she bounced back, making speeches, attending ceremonies, and returned to her older bubbly self. But she had physically aged and the demands at this time began to negatively toll on her health.
France was united in 1940 as a republic, much to Charlotte's protests. She became so anti-French after the Great War, she wanted the nation divided for 'As long as the Sun shines in the Sky'. But the unification went about anyway. Leah was actively prepped to take the reigns in secret as Charlotte became older and more sickly. Though she remained bubbly and happy, it was obvious she was barely hanging on. She noticed over time that Leah became more and more sadistic and began becoming paranoid of her daughter, set to take the throne.
Death[]
One day in 1948 was busier than most, with Charlotte signing papers, documents, making difficult decisions and such. This day was May 19, 1948, just two days after her 62nd birthday. She became notably wired out and exhausted, with a violent migraine holding onto her. Leah described weakness fill her face throughout the day. At dinner she became confused and a bit temperamental, before at 6:24 p.m, she fell out of her seat after suffering a fatal stroke. She was pronounced dead on the spot.
Funeral[]
Charlotte's funeral and burial occurred a day later with almost 80,000 in attendance. World Leaders each gave a eulogy, some sharing their predecessors, from when Charlotte was a teenager. It was here declared that she wasn't just an ordinary empress, that she was Charlotte the Magnificent of America. But Charlotte's death would wreak a terrible price on America, and the world as a whole... As it brought one of the worst tyrants to the imperial throne...