History Literature / ForWantOfANail

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: Dozens of characters come in and out of focus, which is [[JustifiedTrope understandable]] considering it covers approximately two centuries of history.

* OneBookAuthor: Of a sort, as Robert Sobel never revisited this world or the AlternateHistory genre in his career as an economic historian before [[AuthorExistenceFailure he died in 1999]].

* EverythingIsBigInTexas: Texas, here called Jefferson, is the place where the American Revolutionaries sojourn after their uprising is crushed.

The PointOfDivergence is the arrival of reinforcements for British General Horatio Gates during the Battle of Saratoga, which turns the tide of the American Revolutionary War to the favor of the United Kingdom, which then stamps out the rebellion. Afterward, the colonies are reorganized into the more centralized and autonomous Confederation of North America (CNA), while thousands of revolutionaries that weren't executed or imprisoned sojourn westward, founding the nation of Jefferson in the place Texas would have been. Under the charismatic yet steady leadership of UsefulNotes/AndrewJackson, it unifies with the neighboring Republic of Mexico to create the United States of Mexico (USM) in 1820. The new republic is soon embroiled in a continental power struggle with the Confederation of North America.

* OppressiveStatesOfAmerica: [[spoiler: The United States of Mexico]] gains a PoliceState.

* PoliceState: A type of governance that [[spoiler: the USM]] finds it hard to shake away.

* UnreliableNarrator: Frank Dana, in his InUniverse critique of the book, implies that Robert Sobel may be one.

* AllohistoricalAllusion: [[spoiler: Benito Hermíon, the first Mexican dictator, share a first name with Benito Mussolini.]]

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: InUniverse the American "rebels", George Washington especially, who has his character and competency lambasted by the unsympathetic (alternate persona) of the author.

* AmericaSavesTheDay: Subverted. Neither the Confederation of North America or the United States of Mexico does anything akin to the United States of America's entry into UsefulNotes/WorldWarI or UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, as the former mostly stays neutral and the latter is merely prone to opportunistic land grabs.

* AnyOneCanDie: And not just because it covers so much history. [[spoiler: Among them Governor of the North Confederation Daniel Webster, Indianan Grand Council member Dudley Graves, and two Mexican presidents: Pedro Hermión and Omar Kinkaid.]]

* {{Climax}}: The Rocky Mountain War is one of sorts, as it occurs about midway in the book and is the only time in the story where [[spoiler: the CNA and USM are in an actual shooting war between each other.]]

* CommieLand: {{Averted}} entirely as far as we know, which implies that in our timeline, the United States indirectly contributed to the creation of [[CreateYourOwnVillain the Soviet Union.]]

* {{Dystopia}}: The United States of Mexico has shades of it. For instance, slavery doesn't get abolished there until 1920 and [[spoiler: it was a PoliceState with the backing of a MegaCorp in the intervening years.]]

* CultOfPersonality: One springs up around [[spoiler: Pedro Hermíon following his death.]]

* EqualOpportunityEvil: It's subtle, but [[spoiler: the Mexican dictatorship is led by Benito Hermíon, a part of the Hispano minority, and Bernard Kramer, a German immigrant.]]

* FlyoverCountry: In the CNA, the Confederations of Indiana, Northern and Southern Vandalia ([[AndZoidberg and Manitoba]]) all qualify as this.

* FromNobodyToNightmare: Bernard Kramer went from an immigrant miner to a CorruptCorporateExecutive who is responsible for [[spoiler: installing a dictator in Mexico.]]

* [[Creator/KarlMarx Karl Marx]]: Appears with a largely identical worldview, but with less influence in comparison to other philosophers.

* ManBehindTheMan: Bernard Kramer, who [[spoiler: set up Benito Hermíon as dictator.]] and his successor, Diego Cortez y Catalán, who [[spoiler: has the real power during Benito Hermíon's reign, and later ousts him.]]
* MeaningfulName: [[spoiler: [[UsefulNotes/BenitoMussolini ''Benito'']] Hermíon.]]

* SlidingScaleofAlternateHistoryPlausibility: A Type 1, with no obvious AlternateHistoryWank or clear instances of AlienSpaceBats.

Although historical figures factor heavily in the beginning, such as ThomasEdison essentially inventing most modern technology, there are also new faces in the CNA and the USM, such as the idealistic automobile mogul Owen Galloway and the histrionic liberal governor Richard Mason, the nepotistic narcissist Benito Hermíon, as well as the [[MagnificentBastard bastardy]] CorruptCorporateExecutive Bernard Kramer who leads his company Kramer Associates in attaining dizzying heights of power. Throughout this entire book, one finds that two hundred years of history becomes a lot more interesting when you don't know what happens next.

* ThomasEdison: A more prolific inventor in this universe.

* InsistentTerminology: It's the "North American Rebellion", not the AmericanRevolution.

* FictionalPoliticalParty: For the CNA there was or is the (Unified) Liberals, the (National) Conservatives, and the People's Coalition. Meanwhile the USM has the Continentalist, Liberty, United Mexican and Progressive parties, with divergent periods of mainstream establishment due to the chaotic politics of the country.

The PointOfDivergence is the arrival of reinforcements for British General Horatio Gates during the Battle of Saratoga, which turns the tide of the American Revolutionary War to the favor of the United Kingdom, which then stamps out the rebellion. Afterward, the colonies are reorganized into the more centralized and autonomous Confederation of North America (CNA), while thousands of revolutionaries that weren't executed or imprisoned sojourn westward, founding the nation of Jefferson in the place Texas would have been. Under the charismatic yet steady leadership of AndrewJackson, it unifies with the neighboring Republic of Mexico to create the United States of Mexico (USM) in 1820. The new republic is soon embroiled in a continental power struggle with the Confederation of North America.

* AndrewJackson: The first president of the United States of Mexico.

''For Want of a Nail: If Burgoyne Had Won at Saratoga'' by economic historian Robert Sobel is a 1973 AlternateHistory textbook that details the counterfactual trials and tribulations of the North American continent from 1763 to 1971. It's considered a TropeCodifier, if not the TropeMaker, of more hard-nosed approaches to alternate history that move away from the outlandish geopolitical shenanigans in works like ''Literature/TheManInTheHighCastle'' [[note]]where Nazi Germany has filled in the Mediterranean and split the United States with Japan[[/note]] or ''Literature/BringTheJubilee'' [[note]]a book that features a Confederate States of America that took over all of the nations south of it[[/note]]. The book eschews any conventional fictional story, and embraces alternate history for its own sake, serving as an inspiration for writing communities like AlternateHistoryDotCom (which is especially evident from the [[http://web.archive.org/web/20010312172615/http://www.alternatehistory.com/gateway/reviews/FWOAN-review.html glowing review]] it received from Ian the Admin, the site's founder.) The book also won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History (Special Achievement category) in 1997.

* QueenVicky: Shows up in the timeline briefly.

''For Want of a Nail: If Burgoyne Had Won at Saratoga'' by economic historian Robert Sobel is a 1973 AlternateHistory textbook that details the counterfactual trials and tribulations of the North American continent from 1763 to 1971. It's considered a TropeCodifier, if not the TropeMaker, of more hard-nosed approaches to alternate history that move away from the outlandish geopolitical shenanigans in works like TheManInTheHighCastle [[note]]where Nazi Germany has filled in the Mediterranean and split the United States with Japan[[/note]] or ''Literature/BringTheJubilee'' [[note]]a book that features a Confederate States of America that took over all of the nations south of it[[/note]]. The book eschews any conventional fictional story, and embraces alternate history for its own sake, serving as an inspiration for writing communities like AlternateHistoryDotCom (which is especially evident from the [[http://web.archive.org/web/20010312172615/http://www.alternatehistory.com/gateway/reviews/FWOAN-review.html glowing review]] it received from Ian the Admin, the site's founder.) The book also won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History (Special Achievement category) in 1997.

''For Want of a Nail: If Burgoyne Had Won at Saratoga'' by economic historian Robert Sobel is a 1973 AlternateHistory textbook that details the counterfactual trials and tribulations of the North American continent from 1763 to 1971. It's considered a TropeCodifinier, if not the TropeMaker, of more hard-nosed approaches to alternate history that move away from the outlandish geopolitical shenanigans in works like TheManInTheHighCastle [[note]]where Nazi Germany has filled in the Mediterranean and split the United States with Japan[[/note]] or ''Literature/BringTheJubilee'' [[note]]a book that features a Confederate States of America that took over all of the nations south of it[[/note]]. The book eschews any conventional fictional story, and embraces alternate history for its own sake, serving as an inspiration for writing communities like AlternateHistoryDotCom (which is especially evident from the [[http://web.archive.org/web/20010312172615/http://www.alternatehistory.com/gateway/reviews/FWOAN-review.html glowing review]] it received from Ian the Admin, the site's founder.) The book also won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History (Special Achievement category) in 1997.

''For Want of a Nail: If Burgoyne Had Won at Saratoga'' by economic historian Robert Sobel is a 1973 AlternateHistory textbook that details the counterfactual trials and tribulations of the North American continent from 1763 to 1971. It's considered a TropeCodifier, if not the TropeMaker, of more hard-nosed approaches to alternate history that move away from the outlandish geopolitical shenanigans in works like TheManInTheHighCastle [[note]]where Nazi Germany has filled in the Mediterranean and split the United States with Japan[[/note]] or ''Literature/BringTheJubilee'' [[note]]a book that features a Confederate States of America that took over all of the nations south of it[[/note]]. The book eschews any conventional fictional story, and embraces alternate history for its own sake, serving as an inspiration for writing communities like AlternateHistoryDotCom (which is especially evident from the [[http://web.archive.org/web/20010312172615/http://www.alternatehistory.com/gateway/reviews/FWOAN-review.html glowing review]] it received from Ian the Admin, the site's founder.) The book also won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History (Special Achievement category) in 1997.

* FictionalCounterpart: The United Workers of the World, compared to the RealLife International Workers of the World. The same also applies to the Confederation Bureau of Investigation.

* FantasyWorldMap: There's a map in the frontispiece of the book, which makes it reminiscent in purpose and placement of this trope. (Seen here: [[http://static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130208010529/fwoan/images/b/b3/Sobel.jpg]].) Some fans regard it as dubious because a few details contradict those in the the book; at least one fan has gone to the trouble of making their own version ([[http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_OU9Nfqi6PdA/TPOsNYQRlxI/AAAAAAAAAPY/OQprzu_8eL0/s1600/FWOAN.png]].

* MeaningfulName: [[spoiler: [[BenitoMussolini ''Benito'']] Hermíon.]]

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: InUniverse accusations are lodged at the author for making the leaders of the United States of Mexico slightly more incompetent and immoral in comparison to the Confederation of North America.

* AmericaSavesTheDay: Subverted. Neither the Confederation of North America or the United States of Mexico does anything akin to the United States of America's entry into WorldWarI or WorldWarII, as the former mostly stays neutral and the latter is merely prone to opportunistic land grabs.
* AmericaTakesOverTheWorld: Although the book is centered on this region, it seems as though the equivalent of the ColdWar for this timeline takes place between two superpowers on the North American continent, perhaps even three if one counts [[MegaCorp Kramer Associates]] due to their Mexican origins.

* ColdWar: Has an analog in the "War Without War", which pits the CNA against the USM.

* FantasyConflictCounterpart: The Global War for WorldWarII and conditions similar to the Cold War are present in the rivalry between the CNA and the USM.

* RebelLeader: GeorgeWashington is chief among them.

[[caption-width-right:335:The Confederacy of North America versus the United States of Mexico]]

The PointOfDivergence is the arrival of reinforcements for British General Horatio Gates during the Battle of Saratoga, which turns the tide of the American Revolutionary War to the favor of the United Kingdom, which then stamps out the rebellion. Afterward, the colonies are reorganized into the more centralized and autonomous Confederacy of North America (CNA), while thousands of revolutionaries that weren't executed or imprisoned sojourn westward, founding the nation of Jefferson in the place Texas would have been. Under the charismatic yet steady leadership of AndrewJackson, it unifies with the neighboring Republic of Mexico to create the United States of Mexico (USM) in 1820. The new republic is soon embroiled in a continental power struggle with the Confederacy of North America.

* AmericaSavesTheDay: Subverted. Neither the Confederacy of North America or the United States of Mexico does anything akin to the United States of America's entry into WorldWarI or WorldWarII, as the former mostly stays neutral and the latter is merely prone to opportunistic land grabs.

* DividedStatesOfAmerica: The continental United States of America never comes to be, and thus what would have been its territory is divided between the Confederacy of North America and the United States of Mexico.

* {{Eagleland}}: The Confederacy of North America is mostly a Type 1, while the United States of Mexico falls hard into a Type 2.

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: InUniverse accusations are lodged at the author for making the leaders of the United States of Mexico slightly more incompetent and immoral in comparison to the Confederacy of North America.

* LiteraryAllusionTitle: In addition to the title of the RealLife book, the InUniverse name for it (''Scorpions in a Bottle'') is a reference to a speech made by Pedro Hermión about the continental rivalry between the Confederacy of North America and the United States of Mexico.

* OneFederationLimit: ''The Confederacy'' of North America and the ''United States'' of Mexico.

* PerfectPacifistPeople: {{Downplayed}}, but the Confederacy of North America only fights one notable war in the two centuries of its existence.
* PleaseSelectNewCityName: Fort Pitt (and possibly all of Pittsburgh) is renamed Burgoyne, and becomes the capital of the Confederacy of North America.

* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: When they aren't being overly idealistic, the leaders of the Confederacy of North America tend to be this.

* TheFederation: The British Empire, primarily through the Confederacy of North America, is portrayed like this. It becomes only more so with the 1906 foundation of the United British Commonwealth of Nations.

* WrittenByTheWinners: The Confederacy of North America, as noted above, doesn't see the United States' founding fathers in a particularly favorable light.

* FalseFlagOperation: Features into many of the political machinations in the book.

* FantasyWorldMap: There's a map at the front of the book, which makes it reminiscent in purpose of this trope. (Seen here: [[http://static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130208010529/fwoan/images/b/b3/Sobel.jpg]].)

* FantasyWorldMap: There's a map at the front of the book, which makes it reminiscent in purpose of this trope. (Seen here: [[http://static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130208010529/fwoan/images/b/b3/Sobel.jpg]].

* FantasyWorldMap: There's a map at the front of the book, which makes it reminiscent in purpose of this trope. (Seen here: http://static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130208010529/fwoan/images/b/b3/Sobel.jpg .