Gettysburg · 10:50pm Jun 30th, 2013
To my Friends, Watchers, and People Who Stumbled Upon My Page,
While I am not back yet to Texas I have left Gettysburg and is preparing to do a "Grand Tour" of the battlefields in Virgina and Maryland. At Gettysburg I got to meet that master of the written word, The Descendant. He is far more awesome than we think, and is very much into the hobby of reenacting. We talked as much as we could between battles. We talked of the hobby, of life, and of course of ponies.
Which brings me to something that has been on my mind for a while. Why does a lot of the NLR/SE fanart depict the NLR as the Confederacy? Don't people read the history of the Civil War anymore? You know the whole slavery issue, and the problems of holding back progress, social stagnation, etc. Everything that the SE (and by extension Celestia) have been accused of the NLR would be the side that would have those things. Yes the South broke away because they felt that the Federal government was encroaching on their rights, which included slavery, but they also forced their will upon the North prior to the war with the fugitive slave laws and Dread Scott. If that is the basis you will use for the NLR then like hell I will side with them. Union, Now and Forever.
Because of the event I started to put together notes on the War of Eternal Night, what better place to think about the Equestriani Civil War than at Gettysburg. I'm not sure if it will get off the ground but this is something that has been floating in my head ever since I joined the fandom. The War of the Rebellion (the official name for the Civil War) will act as some basis for the WEN, but not completely.
Sincerely,
Celestia's Paladin
(Not an American, so I can't speak as if it's my country and I know it like the back of my palm)
Hmm... if we think about it, we must not deny the fact that the Northern states had a far less manpower-intensive economy. It was the center of industrial might and these states were the ones that held the keys.
To translate into civil war terms, you'll be looking at splitting up the pony tribes and arbitrarily state that the Earth Pony-based municipalities were unevenly taxed and were being stretched in terms of hoofpower.
It is a valid scenario to consider... if we were to assume that Equestria was going through of an industrial revolution that was replacing an agrarian economy with a less intensive form of economy. We will also have to see these municipalities having sway in the governance of Equestria... as they find themselves being ever-so threatened by the Pegasi and the Unicorns in Canterlot and Cloudsdale.
1179225
(What country would that be?)
The Road to Civil War is a whole lot more complex than what I said or you as well. It's valid but there is always more to the history.
1179236
I am a Canadian.
The reasons really would be out of my understanding in full... I didn't major in this. Frankly, we're talking an era that started with the Napoleonic wars that spilled out to the Americas in the form of the war of 1812, and it gave a renewal in the American sense of exceptionalism.
We saw the United States enter into a competition against Great Britain in bridging itself from coast to coast to coast. We saw the beginning of this with Louisiana purchase, the establishment of the 49th Parallel, the birth of the Monroe Doctrine, the incursion into Mexico (with the annex of Texas,) and US failing to really come to agreement with the south on negro issues...
All of this expansionary work had radically changed the political makeup and it shifted the balance of power significantly.
It was during this uneasy period that the various crown colonies of British North America began to collectively organize themselves. The merger of Upper and Lower Canada, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia happened in 1867, one year after the US civil war had ended. By 1871, the massive swath of land known as Rupert's land was in Canadian jurisdiction, and British Columbia (leftover results of Oregon and Columbia boundary dispute) joined up in 1873... leaving two North American entities that bridge two oceans.
A way to build this world view that might make sense is if you see various Griffon city-states, microstates and colonies beginning to form into a confederation of Griffonia just to offset the ascendance of Equestria, while Equestria spreads itself and solidifies its holdings to suit her geopolitical interests.
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Ah... 'fraid I don't know much about Canadian history, though I do know a bit about Mexican at least where is ties into Texas history. But again History is complex, and at times it takes centuries to truly understand it without bias.
1179267
It's expected. Voltaire called Canada a couple of acres of snow for good reasons. It's dull comparing to the excitement beneath the 49th parallel.
A way to build this world view that might make sense is if you see various Griffon city-states, microstates and colonies beginning to form into a confederation of Griffonia just to offset the ascendance of Equestria, while Equestria spreads itself and solidifies its holdings to suit her geopolitical interests. However, I have to say that we might not be looking so much at the American Revolution as opposed to the post Napoleonic era... where we the the rise of nationalism and old ethnic issues tearing apart whole empires.
1179278
There are a few fics that do that, I'll probably won't with the WEN.
Ironically, I'm watching Lincoln right now.
I would prefer to stay away from politics, but if you put the SE and NLR at the same setting as the Civil War, I do feel this may be a bit extreme.
The Civil War was a horribly muddy mess in politics as much as any battlefield. The Union wasn't flawless; it declared hostilities against the South first and only did the Emancipation Proclamation as a desperate measure to end the war. That said, I do not favor the South even though I live in Florida, as deep South as it gets, having the last lynching on record.
I'm glad you enjoyed yourself, though.
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Well, one thing that I know for sure is that Political fics will get downvotes much faster than upvotes. My fic on Madokaverse and TCB was in hot water the moment it made contact... and the ponies and Celestia aren't monsters!
Writing about Gettysburg would be an emotional ride. It marks the definitely beginning of the end... similar to what Midway had meant.
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I don't think the Union was flawless, but declaring hostilities first? Lincoln tried diplomacy first then came Ft. Sumter. I don't favor the South event though I live in Texas. I'm only second generation and my family came from Chicago, and I have an ancestor that fought in the 13th Ohio at Shiloh and Vicksburg.
1179293
I won't do much of politics, and generally I don't like TCB fics since they bastardized... well everyone and everypony.
1179295
Well, I actually don't think that the Confederates declaring hostility first was that terrible.
Reason being is that this was immediately after the Crimean war, and the world was looking at the United States to see how it would have reacted to the secessionists. The funny thing was that the Chinese went into a conflict under the hawkish Lord Palmerston administration in UK just in the eves of the Civil war... they sunk an opium boat.
The Union wouldn't have ignored the British exercise in imperialistic expansion across the world... it couldn't afford to.
China basically got carved a good one by US, UK and France. As a major power, the Union had to put the foot down on the South so as to show the world that it was the master of its own domain.
The Southern confederates had little choice but to strike first really, so as to force the Union's hand.
(Sorry, I am just dragging you along. It's inconsiderate of me.)
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C.P. It's funny you're a second generation from Chicago, because so am I.
As you mentioned, planet, Celestia and the Royal Guard are not monsters. While I do not doubt the Guard will take up arms in dire straits, I firmly believe that Luna and Celestia would never allow Equestria to dissolve into the state the US was in that fostered Gettysburg. No matter the situation or tension between the sisters, they both will not allow a civil war between the NLR and the SE.
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My father's family came in through the Port of Chicago from Belfast and have stayed there since the 1920s.
The WET unfortunately wasn't between Celestia and Luna, but between Celestia and Nightmare Moon.
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Oboy... I'd think that Celestia's a better tactician than Nightmare Moon actually.
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My big thing is that Celestia had one thing that NMM didn't, gun powder
1179388
That's nuts. If Twilight had managed to figure out Minié ball and perfected rifling and breech loading... and Gatling... and percussion cap...
1179393
This was back a 1000 years ago, but Twilight wouldn't need to figure it out. Equestria has bolt-action rifles and brass cartridges.
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That's nuts. If Twilight had managed to figure out Minié ball and perfected rifling and breech loading... and Gatling... and percussion cap...
Make the Royal guards do the British Mad Minute then!
1179407
Equestriani gun development is odd when compared to ours since you have to take in account that ponies don't have hands and are quadrupedal.
1179414
Miniaturization would be a major hurdle. The unicorns would be the only ones that would have actually used it...
bombards to field guns wouldn't be a problem, but when we go to muskets...
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Equestria would have to skip the muzzle-loading step and go directly to breech-loading. Without fingers it would hard to manipulate a ramrod without magic. One of my biggest problems with fics that have guns is that the writer doesn't take account that ponies can't use a standard trigger.
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They will be stuck with muzzle-loaded field guns for some time, which can be six pounders or just 4 pounder. These field guns would have been very mobile, given the fact that an earth pony could have easily pushed such guns around. Any pony can use these guns. Quite lethal when coupled with smokeless gunpowder.
Breechloaders would have happened. The mechanical tolerances and metallurgical improvements would have made it happen. Breech isn't anything new to bombards come to think of it.
1179439
I was talking about muskets and rifles. One thing I like to use is how an Earth Pony's innate magic would allow them to "feel" the metal and know it's properties.
1179453
Jeez. Earth Ponies making Damascus Steel and doing folded steel Katana style... and then cast metals...
1179461
Why should Unicorns have all the cool powers. I for one get tired of people saying that Earth Ponies have no magic of their own
Dear Celestia's Paladin,
I read your blog post but I'm too tired to understand a damn word of it.
Your faithful whatever,
RoadrunneR.