Chapter 217: Chapter 193: The Trial of the Decade

St. Augustine, Florida, the United States of America

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July 1st, 1835

Louis XVII, the former Emperor of the French Empire, trudged into the large courtroom within the Floridian city of St. Augustine (one of the few major cities in Florida that remained relatively untouched throughout the war). The two Marines by his side frowned as they watched him drag his feet toward the center of the room but remained silent as all eyes turned towards "Emperor" Louis. From far away, no one would've suspected that he was a former monarch, with his very plain clothing and unkempt greying hair. Yet, nearly every man and woman in America knew his face, as he led one of America's most hated enemies during the war. His face had been plastered on the front page of hundreds of newspapers across the United States, and the former monarch was certain he was facing a certain doom as he took his place next to his lawyer. His hands remained bound by a pair of handcuffs as he awkwardly sat in a wooden chair behind the defendant's table. Behind him, members of the press gathered in the public box to record the High Court's ruling and Louis' reaction.

His lawyer, a private American lawyer named Jeremiah Kagan, looked at the former monarch and wordlessly nodded as they waited for the final part of the trial to begin. The case had gone on for two weeks in front of the High Court of the League of American Nations, a judiciary body that consisted the top judges of the LAN. The High Court handled the people that committed the worst atrocities during the Anglo-American War, and Louis' former position as the head of state of the French Empire placed him directly in the High Court's jurisdiction. Despite the obvious bias present among the judges, Louis believed that the trial was legitimate. The judges allowed both sides to discuss Louis' case, a dozen witnesses were called in to testify for and against Louis, and both sides presented numerous pieces of evidence to make their case. Louis had to admit that even though Jeremiah was a Jew, he created a convincing defense for his client. Jeremiah claimed that Louis was "out of the loop" and was unaware of the atrocities happening in the United States. He stressed that the French monarch had treated the prisoners of war on Hispaniola extremely well and personally dealt with a pair of officers who took part in the concentration camps after the truth had been exposed to the world. And there wasn't any proof that Louis ordered for the creation and establishment of the concentration camps. In fact, he ordered his troops to avoid massacring civilians. As such, he couldn't and shouldn't be charged for crimes against humanity.

The American lawyer certainly looked uncomfortable around Louis, but he remained professional throughout the whole ordeal.

Personally, Louis was tired and just wanted this trial to end. He was crowned as the "Emperor" of the French Empire after his father passed away in 1825, leaving him to recapture France from the Republicans. Yet, he never aspired to retake the French mainland in Europe. Instead, he sought to build the French Empire as a stable power in the Caribbean and purchase colonies to expand his small fiefdom. He managed to negotiate with the British for Guiana but was unable to make any further gains due to Britain's interest in its Caribbean colonies. Even so, he built up the French Empire to be a respectable power for its size, creating a prospering economy from slavery and sugar plantations, along with a loyal group of French citizens (both white and black). He passed political reforms to place more power into the hands of the General Estate (which was an appointed parliament filled with nobles and wealthy landowners), as he desired to lived out his days without any more politics.

When the British government offered some of its own colonies in the Caribbean, along with potential gains of territory and wealth from the United States (specifically, Jamaica), in exchange for the French Empire's participation in the war, Louis subtly rejected the offer (using the little remaining executive power he had). He believed that the French Empire was fine on its own, and sought to avoid any confrontation with the gigantic beast of the north (Yankeeland). Ironically, it was his reforms that led to the French Empire's involvement in the war, as his ministers were able to overrule his initial decision and accepted Britain's offer. The ministers sought to crush Haiti, which proved to be a hindrance to the French Empire as slaves fled into the small nation for freedom and the United States maintained bases in the region. The additional colonies in the Caribbean, along with loot and territory from the United States, were just extra cherries on the top. And all of them were absolutely certain that with the British Royal Navy and the Spanish Navy, they would have an absolute naval advantage and force America to bow to their terms. And so, since his nation was at war, Louis did his best to help his nation win and even managed to correspond with an American agent to give his nation an upper hand in the conflict.

Of course, within a few short years, it became evident that the war was a disaster for all the nations fighting the United States and her allies. The past several years had been stressful for Louis, as he witnessed his carefully built "Empire" crumble around him. And now, he wanted this whole farce to end. While he hoped to avoid execution, he knew it was inevitable due to his status. But as long as his family was exiled or banished instead of being executed, he was willing to welcome death.

The nine judges of the High Court of the League of American Nations walked into the courtroom and took their seats in the tall podiums in front of the others. The Clerk and Court Reporter also took their seats to record the events of the trial, while the attorney for the case, a United States Attorney of the Department of Justice, sat in his seat just moments before the judges entered. The Chief Justice of the High Court, Associate Chief Justice Elijah Glasgow of the United States, banged his gavel and spoke, " We will now resume the proceedings of the trial against the defendant, Mr. Louis-Charles de France. As mentioned in yesterday's session, the High Court of the League of American Nations, representing every member of the League, has settled on a unanimous decision."

Louis looked up to meet the American judge's eyes. The eyes gave nothing away and remained calm as the owner of said eyes recited the court's decision, "Without a doubt, the soldiers of the French Empire carried out heinous acts against the people of the League of American Nations. From murder to taking hostages, thousands of soldiers employed under the French Empire willingly carried out these actions during their invasion of the United States. As such, those found guilty of violating the Mexico City Convention will be prosecuted and dealt with without mercy."

The Mexico City Convention, an entire set of rules for warfare. Louis had mixed feelings about the Convention, as it would be laughably difficult to enforce. But, maybe it was necessary considering some of the things that he was (forced) to see due to the aftermath of the war between the Alliance and the United States.

"However," Justice Glasgow sighed, "That is not to say that we will throw away justice in pursuit for vengeance. The evidence has shown that despite Mr. Louis-Charles de France's status as the Emperor of the French Empire, he held minimal power in his own government and was overruled by his own ministers. With the provided physical evidence at hand, the judges of this court were able to infer that Mr. Louis-Charles was not an advocate for the concentration camps, nor was he fully aware of the implications of said camps. As Mr. Kagan mentioned in earlier sessions, the defendant made every effort to treat prisoners of war fairly and privately denounced the use of the camps after they were revealed to the public. However, the fact that he was the head of state of the French Empire and engaged in a conspiracy with an American traitor, is not to be ignored."

"As such, the High Court of the League of American Nations finds the defendant, Mr. Louis-Charles, guilty of Conspiracy against the entire League of American Nations, Espionage, Negligent Homicide, Sabotage, and War Crimes. For the crimes you have committed against the League of American Nations, all of your assets will be seized by the League of American Nations and redistributed to compensate those that were directly affected by the war."

Louis nodded. It wasn't as if he was going to get his estates and belongings returned to him. He knew they were probably being sold off already.

"You and your family will be permanently forbidden from living or visiting the Americas: North, Central, and South."

That was also fair. And if anything, Louis wanted to stay as far away from the Americas as possible.

"You will serve a three-year sentence in an American federal prison. Your family will be kept under house arrest during your time in prison. After your sentence is finished, you and your family will be deported to stand for another trial in France."

The final words of Justice Glasgow turned Louis into a pale mess. He was to return to France and stand trial. A place where not even the most extreme monarchists held a sliver of empathy for him. A place that was more than willing to hang him, as the French Republic was... different than the United States.

He almost wished the League of American Nations executed him instead. It would've been quick, and painless. But now, he was returning to France for the first time in decades to face trial for the crimes that his father committed...

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