Confederate States of America Estados Confederados de América (Spanish) Timeline: DifferentlyÉtats Confédérés d'Amérique (French) | ||||||
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Motto: Deo Vindice (Latin) "Under God, our Vindicator" |
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Anthem: "Dixie" |
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Location of the CSA in North America
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Capital | Richmond | |||||
Largest city | Houston | |||||
Official languages | None (federal level) | |||||
State languages | English (nationwide), French (Louisiana), Spanish (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Florida, Texas), Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, Creek (Sequoyah) | |||||
Ethnic groups (2011 census) | 55.2% White 25.4% African American 16.1% Hispanic (all races) - note that the numbers were disputed 2.3% Native American 1% Others |
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Religion | 2011 census 93.5% Christian -68.6% Protestant -23.3% Catholic -1.6% Other Christian 6.5% Other/none |
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Demonym(s) | Confederate | |||||
Government | Federal presidential constitutional republic | |||||
- | President | Nikki Haley | ||||
- | Vice President | Ben Affleck | ||||
Legislature | Confederate States Congress | |||||
- | Upper house | Senate | ||||
- | Lower house | House of Representatives | ||||
Establishment | ||||||
- | Secession from the United States | April 12, 1861 | ||||
- | Treaty of Alexandria | March 5, 1863 | ||||
- | Formation of the CASS | June 16, 1943 | ||||
- | Fall of the CASS | April 26, 1978 | ||||
Area | ||||||
- | Total | 2,287,800 km2 883,325 sq mi |
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Population | ||||||
- | Estimate | 114,291,021 (2021 census) (13th) |
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Currency | Confederate States dollar ($) (CSD) | |||||
Drives on the | right | |||||
Internet TLD | .cs, .csa |
The Confederate States of America (CSA; Spanish: Estados Confederados de América; French: États Confédérés d'Amérique), commonly known as the Confederate States (CS), the Confederacy, or by its nickname, Dixie or Dixieland, is a country in North America. It borders the United States to the north and west, Mexico to the southwest and is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the east and by the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea on the south. It also shares maritime borders with the Bahamas, Jamaica, and Haiti.
At 883,325 sq mi (or 2,287,800 km²), it is the fourth-largest country in North America and the 15th-largest in the world. With over 114 million inhabitants distributed through its fourteen states, the Confederacy is the world's 13th-most populous country, ranking third in North America. The capital is Richmond, Virginia and the largest city is Houston, Texas. Other large cities include San Antonio, Dallas, Austin, Miami, and Jacksonville. In 2021 the CS had a fertility rate of 2.04.
Although no language is official at the federal level, English is the most predominantly spoken, followed by Spanish and then French. Indigenous languages are also present in the nation, particularly in Sequoyah, and have been historically important.
The country was formed by 11 states that seceded from the United States during the War for Southern Independence, which consolidated their independence as a single entity after their victory. The Confederacy established the states of Arizona and Sequoyah from other territories won in the war. Later the Confederacy took control over Cuba and Puerto Rico in a war against Spain in 1898 - which led to the CSA having a total of 15 states by 1910. A period of civil war from 1935 to 1943 resulted in the country becoming a socialist state officially called the Confederation of American Socialist States, which played a major role in the Cold War alongside the Soviet Union, until the regime was defeated in the American War in 1978. Since then, Post-Cold War Confederacy has been recovering from the conflict and experiencing rapid economic growth.
The nation is known for its distinguishable customs, musical styles, and cuisine. It is also a racially diverse country populated by European, African, Hispanic, and Native American ethnic groups.
The Confederacy is a member of the League of Nations and the BRAC.
History[]
Pre-colonization[]
![Chromesun mississippian priest digital painting-1-](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/8/89/Chromesun_mississippian_priest_digital_painting-1-.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/240?cb=20121223010139)
A Mississipian priest
The first well-dated evidence of human occupation in the region occurs around 9500 BC with the appearance of the earliest documented Americans, who are now referred to as Paleo-Americans. Paleo-Americans were hunter-gatherers that roamed in bands and frequently hunted megafauna. Several cultural stages, such as Archaic (ca. 8000–1000 BC) and the Woodland (ca. 1000 BC – AD 1000), preceded what the Europeans found at the end of the 15th century — the Mississippian culture.
The Mississippian culture was a complex, mound-building Native American culture that flourished in what is now the Confederate States from approximately 800 AD to 1500 AD. Natives had elaborate and lengthy trading routes connecting their main residential and ceremonial centers extending through the river valleys and from the East Coast to the Great Lakes. Some noted explorers who encountered and described the Mississippian culture, by then in decline, included Pánfilo de Narváez (1528), Hernando de Soto (1540), and Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville (1699).
Native American descendants of the mound-builders include Alabama, Apalachee, Caddo, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, Guale, Hitchiti, Houma, and Seminole peoples, all of whom still reside in the South. Other peoples whose ancestral links to the Mississippian culture are less clear but were clearly in the region before the European incursion include the Catawba and the Powhatan. Although the Mississippians were also influenced by the descendants of the Vinlanders, who introduced runes and horseback riding to North America in the 11th century, these technologies were never fully incorporated into Mississippian culture.
Colonial period[]
![Benjamin Hawkins and the Creek Indians](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/d/dd/Benjamin_Hawkins_and_the_Creek_Indians.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/300?cb=20200223051559)
Benjamin Hawkins, seen here on his plantation, teaching Creek Native Americans how to use European technology
European immigration caused a die-off of Native Americans, whose immune systems could not protect them from the diseases the Europeans unwittingly introduced.
The predominant culture of the original Southern states was British. In the 17th century, most voluntary immigrants were of English origin, and settled chiefly along the eastern coast but had pushed as far inland as the Appalachian Mountains by the 18th century. The majority of early English settlers were indentured servants, who gained freedom after working off their passage. The wealthier men who paid their way received land grants known as headrights, to encourage settlement.
The Spanish and French established settlements in Florida, Texas, and Louisiana. The Spanish settled Florida in the 16th century, reaching a peak in the late 17th century, but the population was small because the Spaniards were relatively uninterested in agriculture, and Florida had no mineral resources.
In the British colonies, immigration began in 1607 and continued until the outbreak of the Revolution in 1775. Settlers cleared land, built houses and outbuildings, and on their own farms. The Southern rich owned large plantations that dominated export agriculture and used slaves. Many were involved in the labor-intensive cultivation of tobacco, the first cash crop of Virginia. Tobacco exhausted the soil quickly, requiring that farmers regularly clear new fields. They used old fields as pasture, and for crops such as corn wheat, or allowed them to grow into woodlots.
In the mid-to-late-18th century, large groups of Ulster Scots (later called the Scotch-Irish) and people from the Anglo-Scottish border region migrated and settled in the backcountry of Appalachia and the Piedmont. They were the largest group of non-English immigrants from the British Isles before the American Revolution.
The oldest university in the country, the College of William & Mary, was founded in 1693 in Virginia; it pioneered in the teaching of political economy and educated future U.S. Presidents Jefferson, Monroe and Tyler, all from Virginia. Indeed, the entire region dominated politics in the First Party System era: for example, four of the first five Presidents — Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe — were from Virginia. The two oldest public universities are also in the South: the University of North Carolina (1789) and the University of Georgia (1785).
American Revolution[]
![Battle of Guiliford Courthouse](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/4/4f/Battle_of_Guiliford_Courthouse.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/300?cb=20121203002522)
The Battle of Guilford Courthouse, fought on March 15, 1781 in present-day Greensboro, North Carolina
With Virginia in the lead, the Southern colonies embraced the American Revolution, providing such leaders as commander-in-chief George Washington, and the author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson.
In 1780 and 1781, the British largely halted reconquest of the northern states, and concentrated on the south, where they were told there was a large Loyalist population ready to leap to arms once the royal forces arrived. The British took control of Savannah and Charleston, capturing a large American army in the process, and set up a network of bases inland. There were many more Loyalists in the South than in the North, but they were concentrated in larger coastal cities and were not great enough in number to overcome the revolutionaries. Large numbers of loyalists from South Carolina fought for the British in the Battle of Camden.
The British forces at the Battle of Monck's Corner and the Battle of Lenud's Ferry consisted entirely of Loyalists with the exception of the commanding officer (Banastre Tarleton). Both white and black Loyalists fought for the British at the Battle of Kemp's Landing in Virginia. Led by Nathanael Greene and other generals, the Americans engaged in Fabian tactics designed to wear down the British invasion force, and to neutralize its strong points one by one. There were numerous battles large and small, with each side claiming some victories. By 1781, however, British General Cornwallis moved north to Virginia, where an approaching army forced him to fortify and await rescue by the British Navy. The British Navy did arrive, but so did a stronger French fleet, and Cornwallis was trapped. American and French armies, led by Washington, forced Cornwallis to surrender his entire army in Yorktown, Virginia in October 1781, effectively winning the North American part of the war.
The Revolution provided a shock to slavery in the South. Thousands of slaves took advantage of wartime disruption to find their own freedom, catalyzed by the British Governor Dunmore of Virginia's promise of freedom for service. Many others were removed by Loyalist owners and became slaves elsewhere in the Empire. Between 1770 and 1790, there was a sharp decline in the percentage of blacks – from 61% percent to 44% in South Carolina and from 45% to 36% in Georgia.
In addition, some slaveholders were inspired to free their slaves after the Revolution. They were moved by the principles of the Revolution, and Quaker and Methodist preachers worked to encourage slaveholders to free their slaves. Planters such as George Washington often freed slaves by their wills. In the upper South, more than 10 percent of all blacks were free by 1810, a significant expansion from pre-war proportions of less than 1 percent free.
Antebellum[]
![Race Alabama 1840](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/3/31/Race_Alabama_1840.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/300?cb=20200223050826)
Horse racing at Jacksonville, Alabama, 1841
Cotton became dominant in the lower South after 1800. After the invention of the cotton gin, short staple cotton could be grown more widely. This led to an explosion of cotton cultivation, especially in the frontier uplands of Georgia, Alabama and other parts of the Deep South, as well as riverfront areas of the Mississippi Delta. Migrants poured into those areas in the early decades of the 19th century, when county population figures rose and fell as swells of people kept moving west. The expansion of cotton cultivation required more slave labor, and the institution became even more deeply an integral part of the South's economy.
With the opening up of frontier lands after the government forced most Native Americans to move west of the Mississippi, there was a major migration of both whites and blacks to those territories. From the 1820s through the 1850s, more than one million enslaved Africans were transported to the Deep South in forced migration, two-thirds of them by slave traders and the others by masters who moved there. Planters in the Upper South sold slaves excess to their needs as they shifted from tobacco to mixed agriculture. Many enslaved families were broken up, as planters preferred mostly strong males for field work.
Two major political issues that festered in the first half of the 19th century caused political alignment along sectional lines, strengthened the identities of North and South as distinct regions with certain strongly opposed interests, and fed the arguments over states' rights that culminated in secession and the War for Southern Independence. One of these issues concerned the protective tariffs enacted to assist the growth of the manufacturing sector, primarily in the North. In 1832, in resistance to federal legislation increasing tariffs, South Carolina passed an ordinance of nullification, a procedure in which a state would, in effect, repeal a Federal law. Soon a naval flotilla was sent to Charleston harbor, and the threat of landing ground troops was used to compel the collection of tariffs. A compromise was reached by which the tariffs would be gradually reduced, but the underlying argument over states' rights continued to escalate in the following decades.
The second issue concerned slavery, primarily the question of whether slavery would be permitted in newly admitted states. The issue was initially finessed by political compromises designed to balance the number of "free" and "slave" states. The issue resurfaced in more virulent form, however, around the time of the Mexican–American War, which raised the stakes by adding new territories primarily on the Southern side of the imaginary geographic divide. Congress opposed allowing slavery in these territories.
Before the War, the number of immigrants arriving at Southern ports began to increase, although the North continued to receive the most immigrants. Hugenots were among the first settlers in Charleston, along with the largest number of Orthodox Jews outside of New York City. Numerous Irish immigrants settled in New Orleans, establishing a distinct ethnic enclave now known as the Irish Channel. Germans also went to New Orleans and its environs, resulting in a large area north of the city (along the Mississippi) becoming known as the German Coast. Still greater numbers immigrated to Texas (especially after 1848), where many bought land and were farmers. Many more German immigrants arrived in Texas after the War, where they created the brewing industry in Houston and elsewhere, became grocers in numerous cities, and also established wide areas of farming.
By 1840, New Orleans was the wealthiest city in the country and the third largest in population. The success of the city was based on the growth of international trade associated with products being shipped to and from the interior of the country down the Mississippi River. New Orleans also had the largest slave market in the country, as traders brought slaves by ship and overland to sell to planters across the Deep South. The city was a cosmopolitan port with a variety of jobs that attracted more immigrants than other areas of the South. Because of lack of investment, however, construction of railroads to span the region lagged behind the North. People relied most heavily on river traffic for getting their crops to market and for transportation.
War of Southern Independence[]
![Battle of gettysburg](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/3/37/Battle_of_gettysburg.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/300?cb=20170120060923)
A battle between the Confederacy and the Union
The initial Confederacy was established at the Montgomery Convention in February 1861 by seven states (South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Louisiana, with Texas joining in March, before Lincoln's inauguration) and expanded in May–July 1861 (with Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina). It was formed by delegations from seven states of the Lower South that had proclaimed their secession from the Union. After the fighting began in April, four additional states seceded and were admitted. Later, two states (Missouri and Kentucky) and two territories (Arizona, and the Indian Territory) were given seats in the Confederate Congress. Southern California, although having some pro-Confederate sentiment, was never organized as a territory.
Many Southern whites considered themselves more citizens of their state than of the Union and were prepared to fight for the independence of the larger nation. That regionalism became a Southern nationalism. Its first two years, the Confederacy underwent trial by war.
The first major action of the war was in July 1861 and was a Confederate victory, but the CS was unable to press the advantage.
The following spring, the Union's Army of the Potomac, commanded by General George McClellan, was dispatched to the Virginia Peninsula to move against the CSA capital of Richmond. McClellan was hesitant, believing he was outnumbered by the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. With McClellan halting the advance, Confederate General Robert E. Lee forced the Army of the Potomac to retreat.
The following summer, Lee defeated the Union Army of Virginia under John Pope at a Second Battle of Bull Run.
In the fall of 1862, Confederate fortunes were riding extremely high, with Britain and France considering granting the CS diplomatic recognition. That fall, Lee launched an ambitious invasion of Maryland and Pennsylvania. General McClellan was slow to respond to Lee's invasion and the Union's intelligence failed to realize that the Army of Northern Virginia had adopted a high-risk marching order in which each division of James Longstreet's and Thomas Jackson's two corps were all marching alone. McClellan made the foolish decision to offer Lee battle at Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, where the Army of the Potomac was destroyed on October 1, 1862.
Lee advanced on the city of Philadelphia and took possession of it. Shortly after, Britain and France extended diplomatic recognition to the Confederate States. US President Abraham Lincoln and CS President Jefferson Davis agreed to a ceasefire on November 27, 1862. Davis recalled Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia the day after.
Peace negotiations began January 8, 1863 and were held in Alexandria, Virginia. British Foreign Secretary Lord Russell served as mediator between the Confederacy and the United States. Lord Russell was joined by Royal Navy Admiral Sir Sydney Colpoys Dacres, British Ambassador to the United States 1st Viscount Richard Lyons, and French Ambassador to the United States Henri Mercier. The United States was represented by President Lincoln and newly appointed US Secretary of State Elihu B. Washburne (William H. Seward had resigned from the office of Secretary of State shortly after the ceasefire), and Admiral David Farragut. The Confederacy was represented by President Jefferson Davis, CS Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin, General Robert E. Lee, and newly appointed Confederate ambassador to the United Kingdom James Murray Mason.
The key points of the treaty of Alexandria:
- The United States acknowledges the Confederate States of America to be free, sovereign, and independent states, and that the United States relinquishes all claims to the government, property, and territorial rights of the Confederacy.
- The United States will relinquish all claims in Virginia, the Indian Territory, and the Arizona Territory.
- The Confederacy will relinquish all claims in Kentucky, Missouri, and the New Mexico Territory.
- The United States will remove all armed forces from the Confederate States, and the Confederate States will remove all armed forces from the United States.
- The Congress of the Confederate States will recognize the rightful owners of all confiscated lands and "provide for the restitution of all estates, rights, and properties, which have been confiscated belonging to those who supported the Union".
- The Confederate States will prevent future confiscations of the property of Unionists. The United States shall do likewise with those of Confederates, with the exception of freeing slaves who escape to the United States from the Confederate States.
- Prisoners of war on both sides are to be released; all property of the United States army unable to be removed by the end of the year 1863 in the Confederate States will remain and be forfeited, and vice versa.
- Slaves that escaped to the United States during the war, along with those who escape after the the signing of this treaty will be considered freed, and not be returned to their former masters without any compensation whatsoever.
- The Confederate States and the United States are each to be given perpetual access to the Mississippi River;
- Territories captured by either side subsequent to the treaty will be returned without compensation.
The treaty was signed by both presidents on February 15, 1863, ending the War for Southern Independence.
Era of Construction[]
Following the Treaty of Alexandria, the Confederacy's focus turned from independence to establishing itself on the world stage. The work of Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin and Ambassador James Murray Mason would be instrumental in reestablishing the cotton trade with Britain and France, and then many other European nations. Cotton, followed by tobacco, became the Confederacy's biggest exports.
During these years many, migrations happened between the newly establish Confederacy and the United States, creating growth in urban cities along the border states. To the United States came pro-Unionists, abolitionists, and even some slaves hoping to escape to freedom. To the Confederacy came opportunists who hoped to find their fortune in the young nation. Among one of these citizens was future governor of North Carolina John Wilkes Booth, who would open Booth Theatre in Raleigh, North Carolina. In 1864, only months following recognition, the Confederate States launched an invasion of northern Mexico to aid France in securing their interests, acquiring multiple territories.
In the Appalachian Mountains, border skirmishes between the citizens of the USA states of Kentucky and Ohio and the citizens of the CSA states of Virginia and Tennessee were not uncommon throughout the 19th century. The most famed conflict was the Hatfield-McCoy feud from 1863-1891. In the election of 1867, Vice President Alexander Stephens succeeded Jefferson Davis as President. Stephens changed the Confederacy focus from international affairs to internal affairs. Under his presidency, the Confederacy would work on establishing more railroads, and begin construction on the much needed industries that the new nation desperately lacked.
In 1867, the Confederate's Indian Territory was turned into the state of Sequoyah to reward the five civilized tribes for their alliance with the Confederacy during the war. Unlike other states of the Confederacy, Sequoyah is controlled by the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole tribes, respectively. These tribes' elders serve as their state government and they also appoint their own congressmen to the Confederate House of Representatives. The only elected position in the state are the two C.S. Senators.
During the latter half of Stephens' administration, the issue of slavery became once more in the forefront of politics. Slavery had been a major factor in the start of the civil war, and the topic of abolition was seen by the majority of the public as a topic of pro-Unionists and enemies of the nation. Yet Northern support for the cause of abolitionism still had a following and in 1870 the movement in the South found an unexpected leader in war hero Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson.
![Stonewall Jackson](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/8/82/Stonewall_Jackson.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/180?cb=20121209171408)
Stonewall Jackson in Uniform
Before 1868, Stonewall Jackson had been an owner of six slaves and remained as far as he could to be out of politics. Yet following an assassination attempt in 1868, his entire life would change. The attempt was made by Solomon Brown in the city of Petersburg, Virginia, and was foiled by Joseph P. Evans, a black man who bought his freedom the year before the war began. Jackson, a highly religious man, took it as a sign from his Creator, and formed a quick friendship with Evens. That same year, he freed his own slaves and the following year went to the United States and met with many abolitionist leaders, including Frederick Douglass. Jackson pushed that slavery was an immoral practice and it needed to end in the Confederacy. Jackson would fall victim to much criticism at home, but his actions would spark the debate of ending slavery in the nation. Joining "Jackson's Crusade" was fellow war hero and Ambassador James Longstreet who used more logical arguments for the ending of slavery instead of Jackson's moral ones.
I gain a sense that the South as a whole would fair better if she would remove the negro population from her shores. They will be a cause of serious trouble in our attempts to hold them. - James Longstreet.
Those in favor of slave included President Stephens and many members of his administration and the congress who were wealth slave owners. Yet many of them preferred to keep away from the topic in hopes of not losing their trade partnerships with the European nations. Those who did not care about confronting Jackson and joining the debate was Senator Albert G. Brown, who had been an anti-administration official during Davis presidency. He had joined Stephen's supporters shortly after his election. (This was common during the early years of the Confederacy) Senator Brown saw the practice of slavery as a right with a historical and biblical precedent.
In the spring of 1871, Senator Brown and General Jackson had seven public debates against each other on the issue of slavery. They had a total of nine debates in the cities of New Orleans, Jackson, Selma, Macon, Columbia, Raleigh, Petersburg, Richmond, and finally one in Washington, D.C. These debates are now commonly known as the Jackson-Brown Debates or the Great Debates of 1871.
Another famed leader who arose from the pro-slave movement was actor John Wilkes Booth. A highly trained stage actor, Booth was able to use his name recognition to travel the nation and participate in plays. After the performances, he would give pro-slavery speeches often attacking the abolitionists by name.
We have always known that the honorable General Jackson was a secret emancipationist. However, this noble Christian soldier knows far more on military matters then he does in civil affairs. Dear friends, the colored people are not ready for freedom. To free him would make him an orphan. Liberty would be a great curse to the entire lot of them. – John Wilkes Booth
The Election of 1872 would have multiple candidates but every state in the nation would be cared by Vice President Judah Benjamin. Benjamin became the first Jewish President of the Confederacy. When Benjamin was serving under Stephens, he had grown concerned of the sitting president's focus on internal affairs instead of international affairs. This and the United States' completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad made Benjamin believe that Europe would begin rebuilding ties with the United States.
Other than President Benjamin's focus on keeping the Confederacy close with its European allies, he wanted to build ties with the nation of Brazil. President Benjamin, with Secretary of State John Henninger Reagan and Ambassador to Brazil William Hutchinson Norris, would establish close ties to Emperor Pedro II of Brazil, and together the two nations hoped from dual cooperation to expand their nations' economy, industry, and influence in international affairs (see also Brazil–Confederate States relations).
On May 17, 1875 Vice President John C. Breckinridge died at approximately 5:45 p.m. at the age of 54. He had been suffering health problems for two years before which he was forced to spend most of his vice presidency in the Virginian Mountains as he hoped the cooler conditions would improve his worsening condition. Breckinridge was the only man to serve as both Vice President to the United States (1857-1861) and to the Confederate States. (1873-1875).
Under Benjamin, the Supreme Court of the Confederacy was formed in the winter of 1875. Unlike the US Supreme Court, the Confederacy's justices are appointed by each state's supreme court to represent it on the national level, instead of by the president. Among the first rulings of the court was that of the issue of slavery. The court ruled that the issue of slavery was a state issue. In 1876, the Tennessee General Assembly controlled by the political alliances know as the New Americans abolished slavery, becoming the first state to do so.
In the Election of 1878, President Benjamin pressured the Pro-Administration (now known commonly as the Dixiecrats) to nominate Governor P.G.T. Beauregard. Other members of the Pro-Administation (including former President Alexander Stephens) wanted the more conservative Senator Albert G. Brown of Mississippi. Concerned that the Pro-Administration would split their vote and an anti-administration candidate (such as the popular Senator Augustus Hill Garland of Arkansas) would be able to take advantage, Benjamin nominated Secretary of State John Reagan, who was a good compromise candidate. Reagan won the presidency, yet unlike his three predecessors he was unable to take every state of the nation. Arkansas, Tennessee, and Virginia would go to the Non-Administration candidate of Senator Garland.
In hopes of making compromises with the different factions of the Pro-Administration, Reagan had picked Beauregard as his running-mate, and had appointed many members of the conservative faction into his cabinet, including Senator Brown as his Secretary of State.
President Reagan and Secretary Brown soon began to clash over the Confederacy's position on international affairs which they often disagreed. As soon as Brown had been approved for the post of Secretary of State, he began writing up his proposal of war with Mexico. Secretary Brown hoped that a quick and divisive invasion of the poorer Southern nation would force Mexican President Porfirio Díaz to sue for peace with little opposition. The goal of the proposed war was the annexation of the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Nuevo León, and Coahuila. Brown hoped that with the taking of these states it would give the Confederacy a foothold in Central America. He believed that this would allow the nation to expand its interest and slavery into the region as a whole and in turn giving the CSA a hold on the sugar and tropical fruit trade into Europe and the United States.
Although Reagan saw the potential economic advantages of the invasion, he feared that such a war would lead to disapproval of their European allies and the possibility of President Blaine and the United States joining the Mexicans in the conflict. Brown would get General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate States J.E.B. Stuart to argue in favor of the war to President Reagan. Stuart felt that if the Confederacy could strike secretly, quickly and efficiently, they could force Mexico to an early peace. Yet to Brown's disapproval, the general also expressed that he had a concern that if Mexico would learn of the attack or have a single successful victory, the United States would join them in this hypothetical war, which he stated as being an "undesirable task". After this meeting, Reagan informed Brown that the Confederacy would not enter a war with Mexico under his administration.
After this slight by his President, Secretary Brown began to work around him in hopes of getting his plans completed. In February of 1880, Secretary Brown would meet in secret with Spanish Ambassador to the Confederacy Felipe Mendes de Vigo Y Oserio, about the possible purchase of Cuba by the Confederacy, which Secretary Brown gave the price negation over to the Kingdom of Spain to handle. The Ambassador supported it, and immediately wrote to Prime Minister Antonio Cánovas del Castillo to get approval to continue the process. Many historians believe that Brown's Deal (known commonly to day as Brown's Folly) would have succeeded if it had not been for Ambassador Oserio telling French Ambassador Théodore Roustan about the deal following Sunday Mass. Latter that week Ambassador Roustan commented on the deal to Vice President Beauregard. (During his time in Richmond, Beauregard would often spend his evenings with the French Ambassador and his embassy staff so he could have someone he could speak with in his first language of French.) Beauregard immediately went to President Reagan, who in turn informed Brown that the Cuban deal was over and that he was ordering Brown to resign from his post as Secretary of State.
In 1879, the State of Arkansas, thanks to the political alliance of the Hornets and liberal members of the Pro-Administration, abolished slavery. Two years later thanks to the behind closed doors works of Vice President Beauregard of Louisiana abolished slavery.
In the winter of 1883 as the presidential election began to get closer. President Reagan began to express his plans to choose Vice President Beauregard as is successor, against the wishes of the Pro-Slavery faction of the Dixiecrats. Many of the Conservatives of the Pro-Administration were angered by Reagan's dismissal of Albert G. Brown from Secretary of State and refused to back the notoriously moderate Beauregard. December 3, 1883 following the start of Congressional Session, a delegation lead by Senator Laurence M. Keitt of South Carolina meet with President Reagan demanding him to nominate Senator Zebulon Baird Vance of North Carolina.
Reagan met with both Senator Vance and Vice President Beauregard hoping to find a possible compromise, but both candidates refused to step aside at the request of their president. When June came along for the annual successor meeting President Reagan tried again to work out a compromise with the Pro-Administration leadership, but neither side presented a deal seen as acceptable by all parties. Beauregard would make an impassioned speech about his service to the nation both in the military and in public life, and that he would stand by the Supreme Courts ruling that Slavery was a state's issue. Yet despite the Beauregard's pleading the Dixiecrats leadership decided to go with the safer candidate of Zebulon Baird Vance instead. After this decision the Vice President told Reagan he was going to seek the presidency with or without the Pro-Administration's endorsement. After Reagan wrote the former President Jefferson Davis to tell him of the events which took place to nominate Vance. Davis responds was that of disappointment and concern.
Don't you ever forget sir, that the tyrant Lincoln was elected because we could not find a compromise at the Charleston Convention. – Jefferson Davis in a letter to John Reagan
Post-Construction Era[]
![MLK and Graham](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/a/a4/MLK_and_Graham.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/180?cb=20181019042755)
Martin Luther King Jr. and Billy Graham. Both men shaped the Confederacy's moral compass in the 20th and 21st centuries.
In the late 19th century, the Confederacy helped Cuba in its struggle for independence from Spain. It culminated in the Spanish-Confederate War in 1898, after which the islands of Cuba and Puerto Rico opted to join the Confederate States instead of full independence. They were convinced that joining the Confederacy would be more beneficial to them economically than becoming fully independent nations.
The act of slavery continued until 1899, when President Tyler abolished it formally as a first measure to accommodate the two new insular territories, which had already abolished slavery prior to the conflict. Afterwards, Tyler concentrated on sending Spanish-speaking government representatives to Cuba and Puerto Rico to welcome the new governances and provide them with everything they needed and help them in the path to statehood. This was to avoid early revolts and maintain the integrity of the Confederate States. Cuba would become a state in 1903 and Puerto Rico in 1905. Tyler's efforts proved successful as both island states became fully integrated into Confederate culture and an inseparable part of Confederate cultural identity.
Although slavery was ended, racial tensions were still high and would became a major factor in the coming Confederate Civil War, whose effects can still be felt to this day.
From 1935 to 1943, the country fell into a period of civil war, which resulted in the Confederate government being forced into exile in the United States as the communist government of the Confederation of American Socialist States took control over the country.
The Confederacy was also the location of the American War (1961–1978), the largest conflict in the history of the New World. The war resulted in the reestablishment of the Confederacy's authority in the region and the dissolution of the communist regime. The United States took the state of Arizona and part of the state of Virginia from the Confederacy, which were added to the US's union. This and other policies over the last 40 years have led to political tension between the two American nations.
Re-established Confederacy (1978–present)[]
Jimmy Carter presidency and Carternomics[]
Economic growth (1980–2006)[]
Since the American War, the Confederacy has made strides in returning its infrastructure from the devastation of war, with the adoption of conservative political and economical reforms to attract international businesses. Since 2000, the Confederacy's economic growth rate has been among the highest in the world. These factors have made the Confederacy a prosperous local power with hopes of becoming major player in world politics in the coming future.
Another result since the destruction of the CASS was the ending of their state atheism. This has led to evangelical Christians such as Billy Graham and Martin Luther King Jr. gaining a major footing in the nation. The Confederacy regained its status of a religious country, with high church attendance and membership.
Politics and administration[]
![Virginia State Capital](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/7/74/Virginia_State_Capital.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/180?cb=20190725002751)
The Confederate State Capital Building in Richmond, Virginia.
The Confederate States are a federal presidential republic composed of 14 states. The government is divided into three distinct branches: legislative, executive and judicial, whose powers are vested by the C.S. Constitution in the Congress, the president and the federal courts, respectively. The powers and duties of these branches are further defined by acts of Congress, including the creation of executive departments and courts inferior to the Supreme Court.
Executive: The executive power in the federal government is vested in the president of the Confederacy, although power is often delegated to the Cabinet members and other officials. The president and vice president are elected as running mates by the Electoral College, for which each state, is allocated a number of seats based on its representation in both houses of Congress. The president is limited to a single six year term. The president is both the head of state and government, as well as the military commander-in-chief and chief diplomat.
Judicial: The Supreme Court of the Confederacy was established in 1875, and consists of 15 judges one appointed by each state's supreme court to represent it on the national level. The final judge is appointed by the President of the Confederacy. Each state's judge has no term limit, but serves at the "pleasure" of either his state's Supreme Court or the president that appointed them. The C.S. Supreme Court decides "cases and controversies"—matters pertaining to the federal government, disputes between states, and interpretation of the Confederate States Constitution, and, in general, can declare legislation or executive action made at any level of the government as unconstitutional, nullifying the law and creating precedent for future law and decisions.
Legislative: Branch consists of two chambers: the House of Representatives and the Senate. The Congress meets in the Confederate States Capitol in Richmond Virginia. Both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election, though vacancies in the Senate may be filled by a gubernatorial appointment. Congress has 193 voting members: 165 Representatives and 28 Senators. The Congress makes federal law, declares war, approves treaties, has the power of the purse, and has the power of impeachment, by which it can remove sitting members of the government.
The Senate of the Confederate States (2018), Dixiecrat in Blue (7 Seats), Readjusters in Gray (12 Seats), Booth in Green (8 seats), CPC in Red (1 seat)
Senate of the Confederate States of America[]
Congress of the Confederate States (2018), CPC in Red (14 seats), Dixiecrat in Blue (47 seats), Readjusters in Gray (60 seats), Booth in Green (39 seats)
Political parties[]
When it was founded, the Confederate government did not have formal parties, and candidates ran individual campaigns. Nonetheless, some voters cast their ballots according to past party affiliations such as Democrat or Whig. The lack of parties was popularly believed to be a source of strength. However, the lack of such organizations also had some negative affects on the young nation during its early years. Despite this, over the years politicians of the Confederacy formed factions or proto-parties. One was largely supportive of President policies which became known as the Pro-Administration, and the other was largely opposed to President's policies, known as the Anti-Administration. The Anti-Administration faction consisted of former Whigs and Democrats not satisfied with the decisions made by the president and his government – as well as Fire-Eaters a group hoping to dissolve the Confederacy's central government and allow each independent state to serve as its own nation.
In spring 1866 President Davis, his cabinet, and the leadership of the congress that were Pro-Administration would have a private meet to nominate a candidate to be their nominee for the election of that year. Now commonly know as the "Convention of 1866" this would lead to the nomination of Vice President Alexander Stephens and also the establishment of the future cabinet and leadership in the Congress in the coming session. Although Stephen had multiple opponents in the election of 66, he cared every state which historians credit to the endorsements, financial, and political support of those members of the Convention.
In 1872 A second "Convention" would take place with nomination of Vice President Judah P. Benjamin, along with establishment of the leadership for the coming session. Those not supporting the Administration would public criticize these private "Conventions", which Mississippi newspaper mogul William Barksdale coined the term the "Dixiecrat Party" a joke on the nation's nickname of Dixie, the old Democratic Party, and the fact of a group of aristocrat were dominating the government. He would also make the claim that this political party was far worst then even the former Republican Party of the United States. Yet even with this criticism, Vice President Benjamin would care ever state of the Confederacy. (although Texas almost went to their state's Senator Louis Wigfall.)
As the Pro-Administration dominated nation politics, as a political party in all but name. Local and State level were having a rise of Anti-Administration political alliances across the nation. Often being made up of politicians from across the political spectrum their common bond was their non-support for the leadership on the nation level. (Among these were the Hornets of Arkansas, the Revolutionaries of Louisiana, Americans of Tennessee and parts of North Carolina, New Republicans of Texas, and the Readjusters of Virginia)
The election of 1878 would result in the Pro-Administration's nominee of John Reagan being elected president, but unlike he's predecessors Reagan had not taken ever state of Confederacy, as Arkansas, Tennessee, and Virginia would go to a non-Administration candidate Senator Augustus Hill Garland.
The Pro-Administration now commonly known as the Dixiecrats would make a controversial nomination of Senator Zebulon Baird Vance over the expected candidate of Vice President P.G.T. Beauregard in the election of 1884. Senator Vance was popular in his home state of North Carolina, and was very influential in the Senate, but his greatest strength over Vice President Beauregard was that the Vice President had shown support of ending slavery. (By 1880 Arkansas, and Tennessee had passed laws ending the practice of slavery in there states.) Beauregard trying to earn the support of the leadership of the Pro-Administration arguing that Slavery was a state issue, and that he would not bring it into national politics. Yet the Dixiecrats leadership decided to go with the safer candidate of Zebulon Baird Vance instead. Vance's was expected to win without much challenge having the support of the majority of the nation top politic machines, but he was ill prepared for his main opponent fellow CS Senator William Mahone. Mahone was a leader of Virginia's Readjuster and also was a railroad executive. Mahone launched a new kind of campaign using the railroads to actually campaign on a faster and larger scale then in elections prior. He also picked war hero James Longstreet as his vice presidential candidate. The election of 1884 was the closet in the nation history at that time with Mahone winning by a slim margin. (Beauregard also took his home state of Louisiana) During the election Mahone used Readjuster lecture and flags on his trains and campaign stops. So it soon became a name commonly associated with members of the Anti-Administration.
By the turn of the century the political alliance of the Dixiecrats (Pro-Administration) and the Readjusters (Anti-Administration) had become the equivalent of political parties. Although they were rarely separated by political stances, but by social status.
Dixiecrats was the establishment often associated with career politicians and the upper classes. They dominated politics in the Confederacy, but they're membership political stances was diverse having hardline Conservatives to the most radical liberals. Its leadership structure was far stronger then that of political parties of the United States, having a hierocracy from the leadership in Richmond all the way down to the political bosses on the state and local level. Not having conventions allowed for those in power to pick their successors and nominees with the endorsement of the Administration.
The Readjusters were quite the opposite of the Dixiecrats. Following the election of President Mahone, all the major Anti-Administration political alliances put their support behind the president, not because of his political stances, but for the hope he'll be able to weaken the Dixiecrat's hold over the government. This lack of a central established leadership Readjusters would make the alliance lack the Pro-Administration's strict nomination ruling allow for almost anyone could announce themselves as a candidate for the Readjusters. This would create a period of local and states elections with multiple candidates claiming to be Readjuster's choice. By 1908 many Readjuster state's leaderships either established local conventions or primaries to nominate their candidates. Readjusters were often popular in poor areas and among Blacks and Hispanics who were often not considered "qualified" candidates for the Dixiecrats.
In 1919, the Communist Party of the Confederacy was founded. In its early years the CPC struggled with attacks by the pre-established Dixiecrats and Readjusters. Also the CPC had trouble getting support among voters who were untrusting of the new party from the propaganda against and the fear of facing a civil war similar to that happening in Russia. The CPC also had trouble finding candidates, many of their earliest were not really Communist, but were candidates who hadn't won the endorsement of the Readjusters and was looking at an alternative. This would change in the 1930s.
1929 the Great Depression begins. Confederate President Reece of the Readjusters was ill-prepared for such a crisis. Which resulted with many Confederates lost faith in the Readjuster which showed in the Dixiecrat dominance in the election of 1930. Although they did not gain any seats in the election of 1930 the CPC membership had a massive jump.
The Confederacy knew that the election of 32 was going to be among the most important in the nation's history. The Dixiecrat Convention expected nominee was going to be Speaker of the C.S. House of Representatives, but he was going to face the challenge of the 39-year-old upstart Huey Long the Radical Governor of Louisiana. The establishment of the Dixiecrat leadership were behind Speaker Garner, who was going to campaign on a platform based around conservative and pro-business policies. Governor Long held the liberal wing of the party and was campaigning with a platform known as Share Our Wealth, which included many radical liberal policies. Before the Convention and even during it Long threatened to still run even without the Dixiecrat's endorsement. More trouble was made against Garner's forces when Senate Majority leader Joe T. Robinson pulled his support behind Governor Long. The Establishment leadership of the Dixiecrats (lead by former President Owen) would create a deal with Long that they'll support his candidacy for president in return that Garner will serve as the Vice President, and that they'll appoint his cabinet and the Congressional leadership in the coming session. Long agreed with added stipulation that they will support his Share Our Wealth policies that he was going to campaign on, which Owen agreed to. The election of 1932 would end in a landslide with the Long/Garner ticket caring every state of the Confederacy expect Puerto Rico.
Fallowing the assassination of President Long, the Confederacy fell into political turmoil. As valence became more come and spread throughout the nation elections were cancelled, which in turned strengthened the support for the anti-government forces, which would become the C.A.S.S. In May of 1939 the Independent Convention of Confederation was established in Baton Rouge. The convention was established by the CPC leadership with fellow delegates made up of different anti-government forces (Representatives at the Convention included, among others, limited to the Communist Party of the Confederacy, Worker's Army, the Framer's Alliance, The Black American League, the Free Cuba Party, the Communist Worker's Party of Puerto Rico, the Government of Louisiana, and the remnants of the Share Our Wealthers and the Longnites.). Eventually these factions realizing that none of them would have any kind of majorities, which lead to many on the left to form the Popular Front under lawyer Clifford Durr.
Following the fall of Richmond in 1943, President Carter Glass would form the Confederate Government in-Exile in the city of Louisville, Kentucky. During its time, the "government" would be controlled by the Dixiecrats who were not only the party of President Glass, but also had controlled over the C.S. Legislative government at the time of the Civil War (although Former President Reece and Minority Leader of the C.S. Congress Howard Baker Sr. did hold attain some influence in the government).
During and following the American War, the Confederate States adopted many of the United States' partisan policies adopting primaries and U.S. styled Conventions with delegates instead of the Close door Conventions held by the state party bosses. Throughout the 70s to 90s, the Dixiecrats dominated Confederate politics winning five out of six of the presidential elections and controlling both the Senate and Congress.
The Dixiecrats would eventually lose that strength in the government with the conflicts between its conservative and liberal members for control over the party. This would eventually come to ahead at the Dixiecrat Convention of 1992 with the nomination of Governor Bill Clinton over expected conservative nominee Governor George Wallace Jr. This would lead to the Conservative Wing either joining the Readjusters (which had been adopting a more Conservative policies over those years) or would go and form the Booth Party.
Currently the CSA is split between four major political parties.
- The Dixiecrats, whose policies normally fall in central to central left on the Political spectrum. Their strength is often held in urban areas, its current leadership includes Dixiecrat Caucus Chair of the Senate Joe Manchin of Virginia, and Minority Leader of the C.S. House of Representatives Henry Cuellar of Texas. Other prominent members of the Dixiecrats are former Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Al Gore along with legislators such as Beto O'Rourke and Perrell Laquarius Brown.
- The Readjusters, who currently have control of both houses of the C.S. Congress and the Presidency. Although originally more of an umbrella party for different political beliefs, following the end of the American War, the leadership adopted more conservative policies and isolated its more liberal members. Their policies currently normally fall in central to central right on the political spectrum. its current leadership includes President Marco Rubio, President pro tempore of the Senate Mitch McConnell of Alabama, and Speaker of the House Daniel Webster of Florida. Other prominent members include former president Condoleezza Rice.
- The Booth Party (named after former President John W. Booth) was formed in 1995 by former members of the Dixiecrats unsatisfied by the policies that their party had been adopting. Although it struggled during its early years, it began to gain ground with the people of the CSA following the turn of the century with its push for more economy growth, and Christian Values. Still a young party which values often find its polices falling in the Right to far right of the Political spectrum. Its members can range from populists to libertarians. Some have criticized the party for comments made by some members for being prejudiced to minorities and for trying to stir up another conflict with the United States. its current leadership includes Senate Minority Leader Jeff Sessions of Alabama, and head of the Booth Conference Steve Scalise of Louisiana. Other prominent members include former President Mike Huckabee.
- The Communist Party of the Confederacy was reformed in 1992 following 14 years of being banned following the American Civil War, a minor party which has struggled to regain its footing among the Confederate Citizens who feared they may bring the nation back into another bloody conflict. Yet over time, the CPC has begun to regain a footing in state and national politics. Its policies mostly fall on the left to far left of the Political spectrum. Its current leadership includes Senator Mariela Castro of Cuba, and Chairmen of the Communist Delegation Jim Clyburn of South Carolina. Other prominent members of the CPC include Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of Puerto Rico and Civil Rights activist Jesse Jackson.
Subdivision[]
![Map of the Confederate States Differently](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/0/01/Map_of_the_Confederate_States_Differently.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/300?cb=20221027091155)
Subdivision of the Confederate States
The Confederate States is divided into fourteen federal units, most of which are subsequently divided into counties (exceptions are Cuba and Puerto Rico, which are split into provinces, Louisiana, which is split into parishes, Sequoyah, which is split into nations, and Virginia, which along with counties also has Independent Cities.) Most of the federal units are officially called states, but Virginia and Puerto Rico are commonwealths (mancomunidad), Texas is a republic (república), Cuba is a Free State (Estado Libre), and Sequoyah is a Union (ᏗᏌᏊ ᎤᎾᎵᎪᎯ, Disaquu Unaligohi). These names do not indicate any sort of differences in autonomy or government, as they are equal for all intents and purposes with each other and regular states.
State | Population | Area (sq mi) | Area (km²) | Capital | Largest city | Governor | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4,874,747 | 52,420 | 135,765 | Montgomery | Birmingham | Kay Ivey | ||
3,004,279 | 53,178 | 137,732 | Little Rock | Asa Hutchinson | |||
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3,741,869 | 42,426 | 109,884 | Havana | Albio Sires | ||
20,984,400 | 65,757 | 170,312 | Tallahassee | Jacksonville | Ron DeSantis | ||
![]() |
10,429,379 | 59,425 | 153,910 | Atlanta | Stacey Abrams | ||
4,684,333 | 52,378 | 135,659 | Baton Rouge | New Orleans | John Bel Edwards | ||
2,984,100 | 48,431 | 125,438 | Jackson | Tate Reeves | |||
10,273,419 | 53,819 | 139,391 | Raleigh | Charlotte | Pat McCrory | ||
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3,195,153 | 5,324 | 13,791 | San Juan | Alexandra Lúgaro | ||
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1,930,864 | 62,191 | 161,074 | None | Oklahoma | Bill Anoatubby | |
5,024,369 | 32,020 | 82,933 | Columbia | Charleston | Vincent Sheheen | ||
6,715,984 | 42,144 | 109,153 | Nashville | Bill Lee | |||
30,204,596 | 274,304 | 710,444 | Austin | Houston | Greg Abbott | ||
8,470,020 | 42,774 | 110,787 | Richmond | Virginia Beach | Mark Herring |
Defunct states[]
State | Area (sq mi) | Area (km²) | Capital | Largest city | Last Governor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
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105,498 | 273,239 | Mesilla | Phoenix | Raúl Héctor Castro |
Economy[]
Following the rebuilding of the nation after the American War, the economy of the modern Confederate States of America has become quite different than that of its predecessor, the Confederation of American Socialist States. Since the turn of the century, there has been a growth in the service economy, manufacturing base, high technology industries, and the financial sector. Texas in particular enjoyed a growth in its energy industry. Tourism has also grown steadily since the end of the war in the states of Florida, Cuba and Puerto Rico.
Numerous automobile production plants have been brought to or re-established in the nation, giving much needed jobs to the nation's citizens.
In medicine, the Texas Medical Center in Houston has achieved international recognition in education, research, and patient care, especially in the fields of heart disease, cancer, and rehabilitation. In 1994, the Texas Medical Center was the largest medical center in the world including fourteen hospitals, two medical schools, four colleges of nursing, and six university systems.
Many worldwide corporations are headquartered in the Confederacy, such as Walmart Inc., Phillips 66, the Coca-Cola Company, PepsiCo, Delta Air Lines, Claxson Interactive Group and Carnival Cruise Lines.
This economic expansion and its traditional industries of agriculture, mining, and oil have enabled the nation to rebuild itself since the war.
Demographics[]
Ethnic groups[]
The Confederate States of America, much like the United States, has a racially and ethnically diverse population. Though White Confederates are the majority, there are still plenty of ethnic minorities.
Age structure[]
![CSAP](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/2/23/CSAP.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/205?cb=20231008123400)
Age pyramid of the Confederate States in 2020
In 2020 the median age in CS was 32.8. Around 24.7% if the population was under 15 years old, 61.8% was between 15 and 65 and 13.6% was over 65 years old.
Religion[]
![Highlands UMC Birmingham Dec 2012 2](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/3/36/Highlands_UMC_Birmingham_Dec_2012_2.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/240?cb=20221114214212)
Highlands United Methodist Church in Birmingham, Alabama
Protestantism dominates the continental Confederate States, with several Protestant denominations such as Evangelicals, Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians and Anglicans. In the southern insular states of Cuba and Puerto Rico, Roman Catholicism is predominant due to Spanish heritage. The socialist times have also produced a considerable irreligious population; although encouraging atheism, the Socialist Confederacy never explicitly enforced it like other regimes of the Cold War era. Eventually Christianity came back after the fall of socialism, increasing from 67% in 1981 to 77% in 1993 and eventually to 88% in 2004. About 36% of Confederate Christians of all religious denominations attend church weekly.
Sports[]
Confederate Football[]
![Huey Long Football](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/9/90/Huey_Long_Football.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/180?cb=20201105233721)
Governor Huey Long with two football referees during the first game using his set of rules for the game
Confederate Football, officially called President Long's Rules Football, but also more commonly known as Confederate Gridiron and Southern Football, is by far the most popular team sport in most areas of the Confederacy especially at the college and high school level.
The rules used in Confederate Football were proposed in 1930 by Huey Long, then Governor of Louisiana and an avid football fan, and later adopted by all Confederate College Conferences that took place in 1934. President Long's Rules Football has many similarities to Notre Dame's Rules Football (commonly known as American Football). Some major differences are that Confederate Football is played on a wider field, there are no field goal attempts (even though there are still extra point attempts following touchdowns), and forward passes are not allowed to be thrown beyond the line of scrimmage.
The nation has numerous college programs dedicated to the sport and is home to multiple college level conferences. The sport is also highly competitive and has a spectator following at the high school level, particularly in rural areas where high school football games often serve as prominent community gatherings.
Though not as popular on a wider basis as the collegiate game, the Confederacy is home to its own professional league for the sport, known as the Confederate States Football League (CSFL). Formed in 1983 with only 8 teams, it expanded to eventually reach 16 teams by 1995. The CSFL is the most watched sports league in the Confederate States.
Golf[]
![Condoleezza Rice and Arnold Palmer](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/5/51/Condoleezza_Rice_and_Arnold_Palmer.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/180?cb=20201107020244)
C.S. President Rice and U.S. Golf Legend Arnold Palmer at the Masters (2014)
Golf is a popular recreational sport in most areas of the Confederacy, with the region's warm climate allowing it to host many professional tournaments and numerous destination golf resorts, particularly in the state of Florida and Cuba. The nation is home to The Masters, an elite invitational competition played at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, which has become one of the professional game's most important tournaments.
Soccer[]
In recent decades association football, known in the Confederacy as "soccer", has become a popular sport at youth and collegiate levels throughout the nation especially in Puerto Rico and Cuba. The game has been historically widespread throughout the Caribbean states, which contain many of the nation's most successful college soccer programs.
The establishment of the Confederate Soccer League in 1996, has led to professional soccer clubs in the cities of Atlanta, Austin, Birmingham, Charleston, Charlotte, Dallas, Havana, Houston, Matanzas, Miami, Nashville, New Orleans, Oklahoma, Orlando, Petersburg, Raleigh, Richmond, San Juan, Santiago, and Virginia Beach. The CSL would be influential in the Confederacy hosting the 2020 FIFA World Cup, which they shockingly won after beating England in the final.
Horse racing[]
![Secretariat, Kentucky Derby](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/1/15/Secretariat%2C_Kentucky_Derby.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/180?cb=20201105235327)
Confederate born horse Secretariat at the Kentucky Derby.
Horse racing in the Americas dates back to 1665, with establishment of the New Market course in Salisbury, New York, a section of what is now known as the Hempstead Plains of Long Island, New York.
In the Confederacy during the 19th and early 20th century horse racing was popular and often associated with the rich and upper class. Many of the nation's elite especially in the states of Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee would often attend the US races of the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and use the event as a way to show their social standing in the nation's elite. During this time their were main Confederate Thoroughbred horse breeders which set up as a hobby for well off plantation owners.
Horseback racing industry as a whole would struggle during and following the Anglo-American War, and the sport in the Confederacy would all but die out during the nation's Civil War. Many of tracks were destroyed during the conflict and many horses were used by both sides during the war, weakening the breeding stock.
During the years of the Confederation of American Socialist States, horse race popularity was replaced with the stock car racing which was seen as a sport for the common man.
Following the American War and the restoration of the Confederacy, horse racing has been on the rise, but its popularity has yet to return to its former glory among the nation's population.
Stock Car racing[]
![Stock car champ Chase Elliott](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/althistory/images/5/55/Stock_car_champ_Chase_Elliott.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/180?cb=20210710004802)
The 2020 CASCAR champion Chase Elliott
In 1948, Bill France Sr. started CASCAR, also known as the Confederate Association for Stock Car Auto Racing. It was started as an alternative to horse racing during the Confederation of American Socialist States era because it was seen as a sport for the common man. Major teams in CASCAR include Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Allison-Yates Racing, and Tom Landry Motorsports. The sport's superstars today include Chase Elliott, Bubba Wallace, and Dale Earnhardt Jr., to name a few.
International sports[]
The Confederacy has hosted two major international sporting events. The 1996 Summer Olympic Games were held in Atlanta, while the 2020 FIFA World Cup was held in several of the largest Confederate cities.
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