The 12th President of the Union of American States and the first president to rule during the period of the Military Coups. Clarke, Jr. self-declared himself President upon the execution at Arlington House of the previous President John Calhoun Clemson.
Originally a Colonel in the Army of the Union, Clarke, Jr. promoted himself to General upon his elevation to President, the first of the three President-Generals who ruled the Union from 1899 to 1957.
The Early Life of Barnaby Alloicious Clarke, Jr. & the Lead-Up to the 1899 Coup
Early Life & Military Career
Barnaby Alloicious Clarke, Jr. was born in 1853 in Charleston, South Carolina, into a family of minor aristocratic standing but with deep ties to the military. His father, Barnaby Alloicious Clarke, Sr., was a decorated officer who had fought in the War of the Seven Nations, narrowly escaping capture during the disastrous campaign.
From an early age, Clarke was immersed in military discipline, strategy, and a deeply ingrained sense of resentment. Unlike many aristocrats who viewed the military as a secondary concern to plantation wealth, Clarke’s father had instilled in him the belief that the Union had been weakened not by its enemies, but by the corruption and incompetence of the ruling class.
- Educated at the Charleston Military Institute, Clarke was known for his sharp mind, discipline, and unrelenting cruelty in training exercises.
- As a young officer, he distinguished himself in brutal suppression campaigns against runaway slave communities in the swamps of Florida—earning both the fear and respect of his superiors.
- By the age of 30, Clarke had already attained the rank of Colonel, assigned to overseeing Union fortifications and military operations in Havana, where he developed deep connections within the officer corps.
Though fiercely loyal to the Union itself, Clarke grew to despise the aristocracy, seeing it as a decaying institution that had lost its right to rule.
Disillusionment & Political Radicalization
By the 1880s, Clarke had witnessed firsthand the failure of aristocratic leadership. The military had been underfunded, mismanaged, and increasingly used as a tool for internal suppression rather than national strength.
- He viewed Thomas Green Clemson’s later years as a period of stagnation, where the Union had become militarily weak, reliant on black-market trade, and politically unstable.
- When John Calhoun Clemson took power in 1888, Clarke initially held out hope that the young ruler would bring strength back to the Union.
- Instead, he watched as Clemson drained the national treasury, allowed infrastructure to decay, and drowned himself in excess.
By 1895, Clarke and a circle of like-minded officers had begun discussing the possibility of removing the aristocracy altogether.
- Many believed that the military was the only institution strong enough to restore order.
- The Planter Council was in shambles, weakened by infighting and economic collapse.
- The military, though fractured, remained the last functioning power in the Union.
The Plot to Overthrow the Aristocracy
By 1898, Clarke had solidified his control over key military units in Jacksonville, Havana, and Charleston.
- His network of loyal officers began making preparations for a coordinated strike against John Calhoun Clemson.
- The Planter Council, weakened and divided, had no ability to resist—and many aristocrats had resigned themselves to an inevitable military takeover.
The final straw came in March 1899, when Clarke visited Havana and personally witnessed Clemson’s debauchery and incompetence.
“Major Harding, I have just returned from Havana, where I spent the last week observing—no, enduring—the company of our so-called President. What I witnessed there has made my course of action clear. John Calhoun Clemson is not merely unfit to rule; he is an active threat to the survival of the Union itself.”
“On the second night of my stay, he had me summoned to the Governor’s Palace, though ‘palace’ is far too grand a word for the brothel it has become under his tenure. I found him sprawled on a silk divan, half-dressed, his shirt stained with rum, his face slack with opium. Around him lounged a half-dozen women, some barely more than girls, procured from the slave markets for his pleasure. He was not alone—several of his hangers-on, men of the worst kind, joined him in their revelry. The room reeked of sweat and liquor, and the air was thick with the acrid smoke of Cuban cigars.”
“Clemson greeted me with a slurred challenge, waving a half-empty bottle of Madeira and demanding to know why I wore my uniform ‘so stiffly,’ as if discipline were an affront to him. When I attempted to discuss the escalating riots in Jacksonville—riots that have left entire quarters of the city in ashes—he dismissed them with a belch and a wave of his hand, insisting that ‘the rabble will sort itself out’ and that he had ‘more pressing affairs’ to attend to. Moments later, he lurched to his feet and attempted to duel a man over some slight about his virility. He was too drunk to draw his pistol, fumbling at his belt like a child while his opponent, one of his own sycophants, humored him until he collapsed onto the floor in a heap of sweat and idiocy.”
“The man who calls himself President of the Union has no loyalty but to his own debauchery. He has no vision, no will to govern, no understanding of the state crumbling beneath him. The Planter Council has abandoned him. The Army despises him. The cities riot. The fields smolder. The Union festers while he gorges himself on the last of its wealth like a bloated corpse-feeder.”
“I have seen enough. It is no longer a question of if he must be removed, but how quickly it can be done. The time for patience has passed. We must act.”
“Prepare your men, Harding. When I give the order, there will be no hesitation, no delays. The era of Clemson ends now.”
–Excerpt from a Letter by Colonel Barnaby Alloicious Clarke, Jr. to Major Elias P. Harding, March 17, 1899
The Presidency of Barnaby Alloicious Clarke, Jr. (1899-1916): The Rise of Military Rule
From Coup to Totalitarianism to a Suspicious Death in the Mountains of West Carolina
1899-1905: Consolidation of Military Rule & the Purge of the Aristocracy
Upon seizing power in April 1899, Clarke moved swiftly to eliminate all remnants of aristocratic rule.
- Dissolved the Planter Council, officially ending centuries of aristocratic civilian governance.
- Declared martial law, placing all political and economic power under direct military control.
- Ordered the mass execution of former aristocrats, eliminating rival claimants to power.
- Transformed the economy to prioritize military expansion, industrialization, and self-sufficiency.
- Shifted plantation ownership to military-controlled state entities, maintaining the slave-driven economy while diverting profits to war production.
By 1902, Clarke had reshaped the Union into a true military state, where the officer class replaced the aristocracy as the ruling elite.
1905-1910: Militarization & Isolation of the Union
With the aristocracy completely destroyed as a political force, Clarke turned his focus to military expansion and securing the Union’s borders.
- Increased military spending, turning the economy into a war-driven machine.
- Built massive arms factories and warship yards, preparing for potential conflict with Louisiana or New England.
- Strengthened border fortifications, placing permanent garrisons along the Mississippi River and the 37th parallel.
- Established secret police and surveillance networks, eliminating suspected dissenters within the military and civilian populations.
During this period, the Union became more isolated than ever.
- New England, Louisiana, and Cascadia officially closed trade relations, enacting economic embargos.
- The Union relied on black-market trade through Havana and the Aro Confederacy to sustain its economy.
- The practice of slave raids on foreign soil increased, targeting India, China, and Africa to replace a dwindling enslaved workforce.
By 1910, Clarke had cemented the Union’s position as a heavily militarized rogue state, completely cut off from the broader world.
1910-1916: Internal Paranoia, Military Rivalries & the Fall of Clarke
As Clarke aged, his paranoia intensified, leading to internal purges of his own officer ranks.
- Suspecting his generals of conspiring against him, Clarke ordered mass executions of military officers deemed “disloyal.”
- His inner circle became fractured, as competing factions maneuvered for power behind the scenes.
- A growing divide emerged within the military junta—between those who wanted to expand the Union militarily and those who wanted to focus on internal stability.
In 1916, Clarke traveled to the mountains of West Carolina for a hunting expedition with his most trusted officers.
- On the morning of October 4th, Clarke’s hunting party was ambushed deep in the mountains.
- His guards were found dead, and his body was discovered three days later at the base of a ravine, with a bullet wound to the chest.
- Official reports called it a “hunting accident,” but few believed this explanation.
His death was widely seen as an internal assassination, orchestrated by ambitious officers who saw Clarke’s paranoia as a liability.
Legacy of Clarke’s Rule (1899-1916)
- Ended aristocratic rule permanently, replacing it with a totalitarian military dictatorship.
- Turned the Union into a completely militarized state, with the economy focused entirely on war production.
- Deepened international isolation, making the Union a pariah state.
- Increased internal instability through purges, assassinations, and factional infighting within the military junta.
- Died in a suspicious “hunting accident,” likely assassinated by his own officers.
His brutal reign ensured that no civilian government would ever rule the Union again, but it also created a fragile dictatorship dependent on force and fear. His death left a power vacuum, setting the stage for yet another coup.