1754The Seven Years' War began well before official hostilities broke out in Europe. As early as 1754, tensions were rising in North America. Since the end of the War of the Austrian Succession, France and Great Britain had struggled to share the vast North American territory. Each tried to block the other's expansion, and skirmishes became increasingly frequent.
That year, a clash between two detachments resulted in the death of Captain Joseph Coulon de Villiers de Jumonville, who was killed despite having surrendered. The incident caused a scandal: it crystallized the rising tensions and foreshadowed the coming conflagration.
Meanwhile, in Acadia (present-day Nova Scotia), the British were growing impatient. The French colonists, who had been British subjects since 1713, still refused to swear allegiance to the Crown.
The atmosphere was tense.
1755
The following year, skirmishes escalated into full battles. The British launched a large-scale campaign: while Forts Niagara and Duquesne held out, the English claimed victory at the Battle of Lake George.The conflict continued to escalate. The Royal Navy began attacking French ships in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, whether military or merchant. The war was now effectively underway, even if not yet officially declared.This year also marked the beginning of a tragedy: the deportation of the Acadians, who were expelled from their lands to make way for settlers deemed more loyal to the British Crown.
1756
In Europe, alliances were shifting. Prussia aligned itself with Great Britain in preparation for war.
Taken by surprise, France turned to its former enemies: Austria and Saxony. This major realignment of alliances is known as the Diplomatic Revolution.
On the other side of the world, in India, the Nawab of Bengal, Siraj ud-Daulah, feared British expansion. An ally of the French, he attacked British trading posts, notably Calcutta on June 20, 1756.
France and Britain officially entered war after the French attack on the island of Minorca in the Mediterranean. Marshal Duke de Richelieu earned his nickname "Minorcain" for this victory on June 29, 1756.
In North America, Montcalm arrived with reinforcements and achieved a resounding first victory at Oswego in August.
Meanwhile, on September 9, in the heart of Europe, Frederick II of Prussia invaded Saxony and captured its capital, Dresden. Austria sent an army to counter him, which he defeated at heavy cost at the Battle of Lobositz on October 1.
France, bound by its alliance with Austria and Saxony, was compelled to declare war on Prussia.
1757
British Admiral Byng was executed on March 14 for failing to do enough to save Minorca. The event shocked public opinion well beyond Britain.
In India, the French lost Chandernagore in the spring. Worse still, at the Battle of Plassey on June 23, Robert Clive defeated the Nawab's forces with the help of Mir Jafar's betrayal. Bengal fell under British influence.
But in Europe, the tide shifted rapidly.
In the spring, Frederick II of Prussia launched a campaign into Silesia, a wealthy Austrian province.
He laid siege to Prague but was forced to retreat after a devastating defeat at Kolin on June 18.Things worsened for Frederick and his army. Austria, France, and Russia were advancing on all fronts.
The French pushed back the Duke of Cumberland at Hastenbeck (July 26), driving him to the North Sea, where he signed the Convention of Kloster-Zeven on September 9. Hanover was occupied. Austria won at Moys (September 7) and Breslau (November 22).
The situation changed dramatically with the Battle of Rossbach (November 5), a decisive Prussian victory over a massive allied army composed of Imperial, French, and Austrian troops.
Frederick II quickly moved and secured another victory at the Battle of Leuthen in December.
In this fiction, I gave special importance to the Prince of Soubise, the Reichsarmee, and the Battle of Rossbach, as this is the key point of divergence. That divergence allows France to refocus its efforts on the colonies. The war in Europe does not drag on, and the fate of North America is profoundly altered.
In both reality and fiction, the British did everything in their power to keep the war going in Europe in order to have free rein in the colonies.
1758
The following year was no better for Frederick II. He narrowly saved Berlin by halting the Russians at Zorndorf, and he also had to contend with the Swedes. Although they lost the Battle of Tarnow (September 26), it was a costly victory for the Prussian king.
The situation worsened even more after his defeat at Hochkirch on October 14. Fortunately, he was able to retreat due to the opposing general's hesitation.
He also benefited from British support. In Hanover, Richelieu was on the defensive and was eventually pushed out of the region, giving Frederick II some breathing room.
In parallel, the British are launching attacks on the French coasts to tie down Louis XV's troops: Cancale and Saint-Malo (June 5–10), Cherbourg (August 7–16), and Saint-Malo again, which turns into a disaster at Saint-Cast (September 3).
I haven't changed anything on that front in this story.
In America, things are going badly for the French, even though they managed to repel Abercromby's massive army. They lose Louisbourg, which immediately puts Quebec in great danger. They also lose Fort Frontenac (August 27) and Fort Duquesne (September 13).
So we are very far from what is portrayed in this fiction: Prussia, without Frederick II and already weakened, can only be devoured. And it is. A quick end to the European conflict turned out to be a blessing for France, which could then focus on its old rival. I also had Spain enter the war much earlier than in our reality.
1759
For Frederick II, the year remains deeply troubling. He even contemplates suicide, cornered by enemies who surround him on all sides. Fortunately for him, his adversaries lack coordination.
In Germany, the French return in force to Hanover with a massive army of 80,000 men, far superior in number to Ferdinand of Brunswick-Lüneburg's forces. Minden falls into French hands in July, before being retaken by Ferdinand on August 1. The Prussian king's desperate situation forces him to send reinforcements, which prevents him from continuing his own operations against the French.
At sea, the British consolidate their naval superiority. On August 19, they win a brilliant victory at the Battle of Lagos against the Toulon fleet. On November 20, it's the Brest fleet that is annihilated at the Battle of Quiberon Bay. This latter victory forces France to abandon its planned invasion of England. Control of the seas is now clearly in British hands.
In the East Indies, the French fail to take Madras, contrary to what I imagine in my fiction.
But the most dramatic events for Louis XV unfold in North America. Fort Carillon falls on July 27 after being partly destroyed by retreating French forces. Then Quebec is attacked. James Wolfe dies on September 13, followed by Montcalm on the 14th. The city surrenders on September 18.
In the Caribbean, France also loses Guadeloupe, taken by the British on May 1.
The gap between reality and my fiction grows significantly. In fact, British naval power is a decisive advantage. One may then wonder whether it is truly historically plausible to imagine France sending major reinforcements to America. In my version, I explore this hypothesis by banking on France's one true asset: the size of its army.
1760In Europe, the war drags on. It ruins national finances and wears down the morale of all involved powers.
Frederick II remains in serious trouble. He loses several towns in Silesia but also wins victories: against the Austrians at Liegnitz (August 15) and against the Russians at Kolberg (September).
However, Berlin falls on October 9 and is looted for four days — without bringing the conflict to an end.
In North America, the situation becomes unmanageable for France. On April 29, it wins a victory at the Battle of Sainte-Foy (or the second Battle of the Plains of Abraham), but cannot capitalize on it: Quebec remains in British hands.
France is also defeated at the Battle of Restigouche. The British advance down the Saint Lawrence Valley continues relentlessly. Montreal surrenders on September 8, marking the end of New France.
Certainly, the King of Great Britain now inherits a French-speaking population and Indigenous allies, which complicates matters for him, but he can now fully turn toward the Caribbean, where France still holds several highly lucrative islands.
In my fiction, I deliberately elevated the value of New France in the eyes of Louis XV. In reality, this vast but underdeveloped territory carried little weight compared to the much more profitable sugar islands. So it is not surprising that Louis XV preferred to abandon Canada in exchange for reclaiming his Indian trading posts and Caribbean possessions.
1761
Starting this year, general exhaustion becomes clear. Perhaps Frederick II suffers even more than the others.
Faced with the attrition of his army, he adopts a more defensive strategy. He tries to preserve what remains of his territory in Silesia and Saxony while harassing enemy lines through guerrilla operations behind the Russian front.
In India, France loses its strategic outpost of Pondicherry on January 15. It is thus expelled from the subcontinent.
In my fiction, the momentum also shifts in favor of the British. Even when France wins brilliant victories on land, British naval supremacy remains unbroken. This allows Britain to enforce blockades, cut off reinforcements, and isolate French colonies — leading to the fall of Fort Bourbon, as it did Fort Carillon, only two years later than in reality.
As for negotiations, I draw inspiration from what was actually imposed on France, but I imagine variants: the ministers might have accepted other compromises, notably by sacrificing more islands to retain positions in India.
1762
The year 1762 brings unexpected upheavals.
Spain enters the war alongside France, while Portugal joins the British alliance. But most importantly, Russia suddenly exits the war… just as it is on the verge of crushing Prussia.
The reason is simple: Tsarina Elizabeth dies, and her successor, Peter III, is a fervent admirer of Frederick II. On May 5, he signs peace with Prussia without demanding any concessions. He even proposes a military alliance against Austria! It's a spectacular reversal, a genuine miracle for the Prussian king.
Austria, already close to bankruptcy, realizes it can no longer hope for victory. It too enters negotiations. Sweden follows suit: armistice on April 7, peace on May 22.
Meanwhile, the French troops, exhausted and pinned down by the Anglo-Hanoverians, finally withdraw from Hesse-Kassel.
The preliminary peace agreements between France and Great Britain are signed on November 3.
After so many years of defeats and losses, the conditions are extremely unfavorable for Louis XV.
In the Caribbean, France loses Martinique between January and February, along with several other islands.
Spain suffers a humiliation: Havana, one of its greatest ports in the New World, falls on August 10 after a long siege. However, the British lose more men to disease than to bullets. Manila, in the Philippines, is also captured.
1763
The Treaty of Paris, signed on February 10, ends the Seven Years' War for France.
Louis XV chooses to cede Canada and its surrounding territories in order to retain his precious sugar islands, such as Martinique and Guadeloupe. In North America, he keeps only Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. East of the Mississippi, all is lost.
In India, France recovers its trading posts, but it is no longer allowed to fortify them, marking the end of its military influence in the region.
In Africa, France loses Senegal, but regains the island of Gorée.
It must also cede Minorca.
Spain, for its part, loses Florida but recovers Manila. As compensation for its losses, France cedes Louisiana to Spain — a territory Spain will not regain until 1803, only to sell it immediately to the United States under Napoleon.
Austria signs an agreement with Prussia on February 15. It gives up Silesia to Frederick II, who in return restores Saxony.
The British emerge as the great victors of this war — at least on paper. For as soon as peace is restored, a revolt breaks out in Canada: Pontiac's Rebellion (1763–1766). Several Great Lakes tribes, enraged by British policies and the massive influx of settlers, take up arms.
To ease tensions, London issues the Royal Proclamation of 1763, establishing a vast Indian reserve west of the Appalachians, closed to colonization. While this measure calms some tribes, it deeply frustrates British settlers, who are denied western expansion.
Britain is also heavily in debt: 133 million pounds.
In my alternate history, though the war ends a year earlier, that debt reaches 145 million pounds.
In my fiction, these changes have lasting consequences. British colonies still exist, but are more restricted. The resentment of the settlers, their anger at the Crown's decisions, will only grow more intense. The future promises to be brutal.
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Here's a little bonus — not really a chapter, but something that gives a sense of just how wide the gap is between reality and fiction.
With this, Volume One is complete.
Once again, I'm truly happy to have been able to share it with you.
For now, I'm going to take a break from writing. It's been an intense effort, and I've neglected quite a few things at home.
I can't give any dates for now, but seeing your reactions has encouraged me to give it my all.
To rest a bit, I might publish chapters from other stories that don't require as much research.
I can already tell — Volume Two is going to be a heavy one.
I hope to see you all again soon!