Alternative History Or What Changed the World

Gráinne · 01-28-2017, 06:36 AM

I know this is 19th century, but I read a book about what might have happened if the Confederacy had won the Civil War, and described several turning points that if the South had won, could have changed the course of the war. For instance, the Confederates crush the Union army at Shiloh, retaking all of Tennessee and poising for a decisive invasion of Kentucky. Or, Gettysburg is a crushing Southern victory (it looked that way after day 1), menacing Philadelphia, Washington, and the railroads, and forcing negotiations.

The "what happens after", I don't remember completely. There would be two nations, something like the two Koreas but without communism. Slavery would have died out on its own as it was already horrifically expensive. But, the Industrial Revolution would have left the South behind (which it already was in 1860), and gradually, the two halves of the country would come back together but way behind technology-wise and in terms of world power than we are now.

01-28-2017, 06:36 AM	#7
Gráinne Senior Member How Do You Identify?: Neither, nada, out of the box Preferred Pronoun?: My name always works Relationship Status: Happy whatever happens Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Little Rock Posts: 1,864 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 2,113 Thanked 7,386 Times in 1,457 Posts Rep Power: 21474852	I know this is 19th century, but I read a book about what might have happened if the Confederacy had won the Civil War, and described several turning points that if the South had won, could have changed the course of the war. For instance, the Confederates crush the Union army at Shiloh, retaking all of Tennessee and poising for a decisive invasion of Kentucky. Or, Gettysburg is a crushing Southern victory (it looked that way after day 1), menacing Philadelphia, Washington, and the railroads, and forcing negotiations. The "what happens after", I don't remember completely. There would be two nations, something like the two Koreas but without communism. Slavery would have died out on its own as it was already horrifically expensive. But, the Industrial Revolution would have left the South behind (which it already was in 1860), and gradually, the two halves of the country would come back together but way behind technology-wise and in terms of world power than we are now. __________________ The odds of going to the store for a loaf of bread and coming out with only a loaf of bread are three billion to one. ~Erma Bombeck