Louisiana (Steel and Bridle)
Kingdom of Louisiana Royaume de la Louisiane (Louisianais) | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Coat of Arms
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 Placeholder image | |
| Capital |
New Orléans |
| Largest city | Saint Louis des Illinois |
| Official languages | |
| National language | Spanish (de facto) |
| Ethnic groups (2022) | |
| Religion (2022) |
|
| Demonym(s) | Louisianais |
| Government |
Unitary parliamentary executive monarchy |
• Monarch | Bernard II |
| Jean-Charles de Samblançay-Tsitsipas | |
• Deputy | Jean-de-Dieu Ouasiataouïn Moisant |
| Thierry-Antoine Henry | |
| Patricia Théodérade Nguyen | |
| Legislature | Parliament |
| Senate | |
| Chamber of Deputies | |
| Independence from France | |
| 4 April 1801 | |
| 27 December 1803 | |
| 5 September 1848 | |
| 19 June 1865 | |
| 4 July 1901 | |
| 12 June 1943 | |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,795,637 km2 (1,079,401 sq mi) |
• Water (%) | 1.82 (as of 2015) |
| Population | |
• 2023 estimate | 109,361,222 (18th) |
• 2015 census | 100,550,125 |
• Density | 39.11/km2 (101.3/sq mi) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2022 estimate |
• Total |
 3.419 trillion ₧ (14th) |
• Per capita |
31,266 ₧ (52nd) |
| Gini (2018) |
 23.9low |
| HDI (2021) |
0.906 very high |
| Currency | Franc (FRF, ₣) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 to -5 (See Time in Mexico) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−6 to −4 (varies) |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +50 |
| Internet TLD | .lo |
Louisiana (French: Louisiane; Louisiana Creole: Lwizyàn), officially known as the Kingdom of Louisiana (French: Royaume de la Louisiane; Louisiana Creole: Rwayom de Lalwizyàn) is a sovereign country located in the central portion of North America. It is bordered by Mejico and Oregon to the west; Keshtockewan to the north; the Ohio Country to the northeast; Carolina and the Atlantic Ocean to the east; Florida to the southeast; and by the Gulf of Mejico to the south. It is the country that shares the most borders with the British Empire, bordering four different constituent countries. Its 20 regions and one Indian Autonomous Region span a combined area of over 2.79 million km2, making Louisiana the 5th-largest country in North America by total area and the 11th-largest in the world. Louisiana has an estimated population of 106.6 million people, making it the most populous French-speaking country in the world.
The Kingdom of Louisiana is a parliamentary executive monarchy, where King Bernard II of Habsburg-Lorraine rules in conjunction with a tricameral Parlement, consisting of a Chamber of Tribunes, a Senate, and a Chamber of Censors. King Bernard II's ascension to the throne was not without controversy, as he assumed the crown after the sudden and tragic murder of his father in 2007. Bernard's family connections extend beyond Louisiana's borders, as he is the child of a Brazilian Imperial princess, and his wife is the sister of Agustín VI, the reigning monarch of Mejico. The current Prime Minister is Jean-Charles de Samblançay. The royal capital is located in the culturally rich city of Nouvelle Orléans, which serves as the political center of the country, while the largest city is Saint Louis. Other important metropolises include Pécanouil, Saint-Esprit, Saint-Eusèbe, Tereblanche, Aubusson, Nouvelle Lyon, and Villefranche.
The country's rich history begins with the Indigenous people who originally inhabited the region. The land was home to many Native American groups, including the Chactas, Chicachas, Salagois, Mouscocquiennes, Caddoanes, Ouichitas, Quioannes, Osages, Cheyennes, Absaroques, Arapahos, Illinois, and the Aaiouez. The colonial history of French North America begins in the early 16th century, as King Francis I commissioned the voyages of explorer Jacques Cartier, who arrived in the New World in 1534. However, the early history of New France was primarily focused on the lands that are currently part of British Cabeck, which were lost during the Anglo-French War of 1627-1629. French colonial presence in the actual territory of Louisiana begins with the expedition of Admiral Gaspard II de Coligny in 1562, which resulted in the founding of Charlesfort by Jean Ribault; the settlement ultimately failed, and the settlers returned to France the next year. A second attempt was made by explorer René Goulaine de Laudonnière, but his colony of Fort Caroline was destroyed, located too close to the core of Spanish Florida. The third and final colonization attempt came in 1631, shortly after the loss of the colony of Québec, when King Louis XIII authorized a new colonial expedition led by Admiral Pierre Thomas de Baculard, leading to the establishment of Rochelle.
The early colonization of Louisiana was marked by a period of adaptation, as the French settlers established relationships with the Native groups of the region, which were sometimes hostile. This period saw the exploration of nearby rivers, the establishment of new settlements and religious missions, mainly by the Jesuit Order, and the beginning of the institution of slavery, as Nouvelle Rochelle became an epicenter for the French transatlantic slave trade. The flow of enslaved Africans into the region significantly impacted the social, economic, and cultural landscape of Louisiana, where plantation agriculture and the cultivation of cash crops such as tobacco, sugarcane, and indigo became pillars of the economy. The French Crown sponsored the migration of unmarried women, known as filles-du-roi, to balance the male-to-female population ratio, and also encouraged the migration of the Huguenots, contributing to a relatively high level of immigration from France.
In 1673, French explorers Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette explored the Holy Spirit River (French: Saint-Esprit), and founded a network of forts and settlements as the river ascended, starting with Nouvelle Orléans and culminating in Saint Louis. The Holy Spirit River soon became the main artery of trade and communication in the region, facilitating the movement of goods and people between the interior of North America and the Gulf of Mejico. The establishment of forts along the river, such as Fort Saint-Loup and Fort Pontchartrain, provided military protection for the settlers as well as strategic positions with both Indigenous tribes and other European colonial powers. The 18th century saw the normalization of relationships with Indigenous tribes in the south, exploration of the Sabine River near the border of Spanish North America, the issuing of the Code Noir, as well as the French and Indian War. The latter conflict, part of the greater Seven Years' War, saw the permanent cession of the Ohio Country and Acadia to the British. This caused a large migration of the Acadiens, who settled across Louisiana, significantly shaping its cultural and demographic landscape, and bringing balance to the White-African population, which troubled Louisianan elites.
As news of the French Revolution reached Louisiana in the late 18th century, the political landscape began to shape dramatically. In 1794, inspired by the events across the Atlantic, the Great Slave Revolt erupted, as a 13,000-strong slave army led by Béatrice la Prophetésse and Romain Prosser. The marauding slave army caused many whites and gens de couleur to flee to the piedmont, as the revolt led to widespread chaos and destruction in urban centers such as Nouvelle Orléans. The war also led to the creation of the Société de la Croix de Feu (SCF), a notorious white supremacist organization. The French dispatched General Joseph-Ignace de La Cépède to restore order in the territory, together with an army of 40,000 soldiers, who defeated the rebels at the Battle of Trois-Rivières in 1802. During the war, acts of brutality were carried out by both sides of the conflict, with massacres, executions, and other forms of mass violence. The successful crushing of the revolt led to heightened fears among the white population regarding potential future uprisings, prompting stricter enforcement of laws governing slavery and increasing the militarization of local militias. The SCF grew in power and influence, prioritizing the preservation of the racial hierarchy in the country, although the Nouveau Code Noir was typified in 1806 and allowed greater freedoms for the free gens de couleur.
After Napoleon Bonaparte fell in France, aristocrats in Louisiana began to push for the creation of an independent republic, feeling disillusioned by the political turmoil in Europe and inspired by the revolutionary fervor of their time. In 1815, after King Louis XVIII restored the monarchy in France, Fabien Alexandre Lemoyne and Émile-François de Grondin organized a revolt that culminated in the establishment of the Republic of Louisiana. The new republic declared its independence on September 16, 1815, and drafted the Constitution of 1815, which enshrined liberalism as the cornerstone of governance, emphasizing civil liberties, the separation of powers, and the protection of property rights. The Republic adopted a parliamentary system and established a bicameral legislature. Throughout the 1820s and 1830s, it experienced significant economic growth, centered around agriculture, trade, and the burgeoning sugar industry. The fertile lands along the Holy Spirit River became increasingly important for the export of cash crops to markets in Europe and the Caribbean. Explorers and colonists also moved up-river, reaching the regions of Contreforts, Eau-Platte, Fontainebleu, Rocailleux, and Menissouté, where they encountered Indigenous tribes, such as the Sioux.
Slavery was gradually outlawed, beginning in 1827, through a series of legislative acts aimed at reforming labor practices and addressing the growing abolitionist sentiment within the Republic. The changes were initially met with resistance from plantation owners and other influential stakeholders who relied on the enslaved labor force for their agricultural enterprises. However, the desire for international legitimacy and favorable trade relations with abolitionist nations incentivized the government to pursue these reforms. By 1838, outright slavery was fully abolished in Louisiana, leading to the development of a system of wage labor and sharecropping, which allowed some degree of economic autonomy for formerly enslaved individuals. Together with this and imitating the Back to Africa Movement popular in the United American Dominions, the Société des Amis pour le Rapatriement, led by Sylvain Thibault and Walthier Lacordeyre, was established to facilitate the colonization efforts of the Republic in Africa, where thousands of individuals would migrate to create the country of Gabon-Bethléem in 1841. The widespread cultivation of cinchona trees in Haiti allowed for the production of quinine, a vital anti-malarial drug that became crucial for the colonization efforts in Africa. By 1850, more than 30,000 Louisianans had emigrated to Gabon-Bethléem, and the number would continue to grow in the coming decades.
From 1858 to 1864, the liberal and conservative factions of the republic fought a civil war known as The Cockfight. The conflict arose from deep-seated ideological differences regarding governance, economic policy, religion, and the societal structure within the republic. The civil war began in earnest when liberal factions attempted to oust the conservative government of President Lucien Caron in 1858. Hostilities escalated quickly, particularly after a controversial electoral cycle characterized by widespread voter fraud. Militias mobilized, and liberals from upriver marched down towards Nouvelle Orléans, while conservative plantation owners and the SCF staked their claim to the piedmont and the eastern coastal plain. The war was marked by fierce battles such as the Battle of Bâton Rouge and the Battle of Pécanouil. In 1863, the liberal faction was split into the Terrebonnards and the Valléens, with the former led by influential moderate general Alain-Maxime Le Pontois, who compromised with the conservatives and sought to end the war through negotiated peace. The Valléens, on the other hand, were led by the more radical jacobin Jacques-Philippe Gentil, who advocated for a complete overhaul of the social order.
In the Battle of Beaumont, the Terrebonnards defeated the Valléens decisively, and formed the Amphictyonic League (AL) together with the Conservatives. Upon its victory, the League set up a commission in search for a potential monarch to lead as a unifying figure. The Commission was tasked with evaluating candidates who could restore stability and legitimacy to the nation, while appealing to both factions of the former conflict. Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg-Lorraine was ultimately elected as the candidate for the throne, and was offered the crown of Louisiana in 1865, being crowned as Maximilien I. The new king, known for his moderate views, was seen as a compromise choice between the previously opposing factions. Louisiana established new connections with its neighbors and further expanded its economy, with new investments in infrastructure, such as railroads and telegraphs, linking remote regions to the coastal cities. Agriculture thrived, international relations were cultivated, and Louisiana drew new immigrants from Europe and the Caribbean. The influx of capital and labor contributed to the rapid development of key industries, particularly sugar, tobacco, and cotton, as well as emerging sectors like textiles and shipbuilding.
The discovery of oil in Beaumont in 1897 marked a dramatic shift for Louisiana. This oil boom, fueled by the rise of the Compagnie Pétrolière Sabine du Golfe, transformed Louisiana from a primarily agricultural state into an industrial powerhouse. The newfound wealth, however, was concentrated in the hands of the elite, and workers suffered from exploitation, low wages, and harsh working conditions, which sparked a wave of strikes, particularly the 1903 general strike, when dockworkers, oilfield laborers, and railway workers organized mass protests. King Maximilien II responded with repression, sending in the army to quell demonstrations, in an event known as the Black Friday. This confrontation ocurred on July 15, 1903, when thousands of workers gathered in Nouvelle Orleáns to demand better wages, improved working conditions, and the right to unionize, before a bloody clash that left more than 200 dead, including the influential Communist leader, Jérôme Grobglas.
By 1919, this growing social unrest culminated in the Louisianan Revolution, a full-scale uprsiing led by revolutionary leaders Isidore Eichthal, Louis-Lucien Bonfils, and Georges Cazeneuve. Bonfils was the main leader of the revolutionaries and mobilized a coalition of radical unions and disaffected soldiers. On July 17, 1919, the revolutionaries stormed the Royal Palace of Mirabeau in Nouvelle Orléans, capturing the king and his family. King Maximilien II was forced into exile in France, and the heir apparent, Antoine, the Dauphin, was killed during the incident. Bonfils, Eichthal, and Cazeneuve declared the birth of the Communard Republic of North America, and moved to implement sweeping changes. Bonfils, alongside the Comité de Salut Public (Committee of Public Safety), assumed de facto control of the government. One of the first acts was the nationalization of key industries, including oil, which became the backbone of the state's new socialist economy. The Soviet system, modelled on the Russian example, was implemented throughout the country, as local workers' councils took over factories, oil fields, and farms, redistributing wealth and resources. The aristocracy was stripped of lands, titles, and privileges, many were exiled or imprisoned, and the cities were forcibly desegregated.
Tensions emerged among the diverse peoples of the Communard Republic, as large-scale forced migrations and resettlements were initiated to promote a homogeneous socialist society. Many individuals were compelled to abandon their historical homelands for designated areas that were seen as more ideologically aligned with the new regime's goals. Tens of thousands of Indigenous peoples from different tribes, especially those that were considered loyalists to the former monarchy, were resettled in the northernmost province of Rocailleux, renamed the Autochthonous Region, while white, métis, creole, and black Louisianans were organized into labor collectives and settled into newly designated areas across the republic. The radical restructuring of society faced significant resistance from various sectors of the population, leading to civil unrest and sporadic uprisings, particularly among displaced groups who felt their cultural identities were threatened. The different faiths of the republic were also persecuted, especially those belonging to the Catholic Church and the Huguenot community, as they were seen as an obstacle to the agenda of the Comité.
Externally, Louisiana's new communist government was viewed with a mix of suspicion and hostility by its neighbors. Tensions with Mejico escalated over territorial disputes, with both nations laying claim to resource-rich regions along their border. On May 13, 1941, Mejico declared war on the Communard Republic, giving way to the Great North American War. Despite early enthusiasm and propaganda, Louisiana's military, poorly equipped due to years of internal purges, was overrun by Mejican forces. The Republic was first invaded through Padoucas and the Holy Spirit River, as the Mejican Army intended to reach both Saint Louis and Nouvelle Orléans. Throughout the war, the Communards fought important battles such as Terreblanche, Cansezville (where, once occupied, Maximilien II established his government), Cozumel, and Tampico. The Republic received aid from international brigades, Central America, and the Soviet Union, while Mejico was supported by Florida, Cuba, and Spain.
The tide of the war shifted after the defeat of Central America in June 1942. Mejican forces and their allies expelled the Communards from the Yucatán, Florida occupied the Valdosta Strip, and Mejico redoubled its efforts to take Nouvelle Orléans after its first failed attempt on May, where Jean, Prince Royal, the heir of Maximilien II, was killed. The Proyecto Uranio was developed by Mejico, and threatened the Communard Republic with a nuclear strike; the first successful test occurred on September 15, 1942. Prior to this, Mejican forces had taken Mobile, Pascagoula, Biloxi, Saint Louis -where Maximilien II settled his itinerant capital-, and Nouvelle Orléans had been placed on its second siege. The urban combat wore out the militaries of both nations, and the Communards enacted a mass conscription policy, which led to public disobedience, youth riots, and small-scale uprisings. A series of defections crippled the command of the Communard military, most importantly that of Guillaume Beaugendre, who deserted to Mejican forces, and shortly after, on November 6, 1943, the city finally fell. The Communard Republic was forced to cede some territory, pay reparations, and accept stringent limitations to its military capabilities.
The crushing defeat sparked a political crisis, and Bonfils and Eichthal were apprehended, tried, and executed. The were succeeded by Ludovic Frossard, but on January 19, 1944, a coalition of army officers threatened to rebel if he did not step down. The monarchy was nominally restored under King Maximilien III, the third son of Maximilien II, who pursued closer ties with American and European countries through the diplomatic marriages of his children. From 1943 to 1965, Louisiana experienced a period of relative political moderation, as successive governments moved towards democratization and the liberalization of the economy. Economic recovery was slow but steady, and Maximilien III urged the international community to invest with pro-business reforms. This period saw the introduction of a mixed economy, where both private enterprise and state ownership coexisted, aiming to stimulate growth and attract foreign investment. Land reforms were carried out to rectify some of the inequalities that had emerged during the Communard era, granting parcels of land back to their original owners or their descendants while promoting cooperative farming initiatives.
In 1965, racial tensions flared once again in Louisiana, particularly as the legacy of the previous regime's social engineering policies remained a source of deep-seated grievances. In Saint-Domingue, specifically in Cap Français and Port au Prince, demonstrations calling for reparations for slavery intensified, leading to a wave of protests that echoed across Louisiana. The unrest was further fueled by the election of Aurélien Duplessis, a member of the Société de la Croix de Feu, as the governor of Missouri. Together with this, the assassination of prominent black leader, Eugène du Bois, triggered a wave of race riots across the nation, rocking multiple urban centers, notably Nouvelle Orléans, Saint Louis, and Terreblanche. In a desperate attempt to restore order, the king declared a state of emergency and imposed martial law on July 12, 1966. The group Les Corbeaux, a radical black-creole supremacist paramilitary organization, was formed in the wake of the unrest, with the goal of protecting black- and creole-owned property.
The situation escalated even more after a group of SCF militiamen organized the destruction of Vodou shrines and disrupted the practice of Vodou rituals. In response, Les Corbeaux undertook organized efforts to defend Vodou practitioners from targeted violence, and members vandalized Catholic and Huguenot parishes, leading to a series of skirmishes with SCF members. The confrontations often turned deadly, with casualties reported on both sides, and they spread to major urban centers, where large-scale street battles erupted in Nouvelle Orléans, Pécanouil, Aubusson, and Nouveau Lyon. This also included clashes between Les Corbeaux and Indigenous tribes, many of whom were staunch supporters of the monarchy. On October 27, 1967, the Sainte Marie Madeleine Catholic parish in Mobile, a majority-Indigenous parish, was burned to the ground, resulting in heightened tensions between Indigenous groups and the black-and-creole community. The government struggled to maintain control, and even moderate voices were consdering a "national divorce" along ethnic and cultural lines. The Saint-Domingue Proposal, raised in the Senate, argued for the independence of Saint-Domingue and a population exchange between the island and the mainland.
As a vote on the proposal was being held on November 20, 1967, General Jean-Michel Harinordoquy, with the support of King Maximilien III, mounted a coup d'état, seizing control of the government. Harinordoquy, a controversial figure with a reputation as a staunch nationalist, justified his actions by argumenting that the government was unable to address the spiraling ethnic violence and social discontent. The coup was met with mixed reactions; some constituencies welcomed the return to strong leadership, while others decried the military takeover as a threat to democratic processes and civil liberties. Upon taking power, Harinordoquy declared a suspension of the constitution and dissolved the legislature. He garnered support from factions of the military and nationalist groups, and criminalized all speech that was deemed "contrary to national union and racial harmony", affecting not only political dissenters, but also cultural groups that he viewed as "divisive". Les Corbeaux and the Société de la Croix de Feu were both banned and their leaders were jailed, as were all other separatist movements.
Harinordoquy stepped down from power willingly in 1974, and the country transitioned back to civilian rule. The period known as Reconciliation ran from 1974 to 2018, and was centered on the establishment of a multi-ethnic society in Louisiana. This era sought to heal the wounds of the previous decades marked by violence and division through national dialogues and policies aimed at fostering unity among Louisiana's diverse populations. The affirmative action policies undertaken by the government, however, would give rise to white populist politics in the late 2010s, as detractors argued that these policies perpetuated a cycle of division. In 2018, the political landscape shifted significantly when the general election saw the rise of the right-wing One Louisiana Party (PUSL), led by former military officer Étienne Giraud. The PUSL capitalized on economic discontent, rising crime rates, and public dissatisfaction with the status quo. The populist wave has continued under the premiership of Jean-Charles de Samblançay, who was victorious in the 2022 general election and has furthered the ambitions of the party.