Hetalia OC: Louisiana

This is a visual timeline for Louisiana from her discovery, up until the War of 1812. I made her blond with blue eyes because France 'found her first', and her state colors are blue, gold, and white. She has three ahoges on her head that represent her three barrier islands, and a crescent shaped birth mark to represent New Orleans since it's also known as the 'Crescent City'. She wears a wild Louisiana iris flower in her hair because it's her favorite wildflower. (I almost made it a magnolia since that's her state flower, but it also happens to be Mississippi's state flower too...)
Personality:
Louisiana has a deep love for her people, and welcomes everyone who comes to her with open arms. She believes that variety is the spice of life, and that if everyone were the same, life would be boring. She encourages individuality and uniqueness, and has a real passion for the arts and good food. She has the ability to turn even the smallest occasion into a reason to party, and isn't afraid to get a little loud and crazy. She also has deep spiritual roots in Catholicism from France and Spain's influence, but she is respectful of other religions, and embraces them. Although she can be a bit naive, Louisiana isn't a pushover. In times of crisis, she always pulls through for her people, and has the courage and strength to stand back up again and rebuild herself, even after events like Katrina. She's usually pretty forgiving, but if you incur her wrath, beware––she just might work a little voodoo magic on you for revenge.

Background:
Since 'Louisiana' originally referred to a huge area of land that comprised the Louisiana Purchase that France sold to America, her hair starts out super long, but since the state of Louisiana is much smaller, her hair is shorter because of the land she lost. She has also matured into an 'adult' since she has been officially recognized by someone instead of just being their territory.

Louisiana was being taken care of by her local Native American tribes in the beginning, but then Spain started exploring the Mississippi and its tributaries, but Louisiana managed to escape his notice. (She was a little shy since he was her first visitor.)

Although England had managed to win over the young America, and France was competing with England for custody over different parts of Canada, France immediately knew that he had to have Louisiana for himself, so he claimed her for himself, and started colonizing her. Louisiana is a very charming, sweet, and hospitable girl that likes to play and is also a bit naive... France soon learned that she wasn't that easy to tame. The land around New Orleans (the best spot for a port city for trade on the Mississippi) was mostly swampland, and France was constantly being bitten by mosquitoes that carried yellow fever, and he sometimes got into fights with the Native Americans over land. Louisiana managed to help them get along better once she persuaded the Indians to let France smoke their peace pipe with them, and France liked it so much, that he became much more open to signing peace treaties with them, and they taught him how to drain swamps and use mosquito netting around his bed so he wouldn't be bitten by mosquitoes in his sleep. For awhile, everything was going pretty well despite the hardships that sometimes popped up, but Louisiana smiled through it all, and helped encourage her people to keep their spirits up, until they finally managed to set up a proper city.

Louisiana adored France, despite his odd... quirks, and looked up to him as a father figure. France was very attached to Louisiana, and for once tried not to act like a pedo-bear to her. However, when France ended up on the losing side of the Seven Years War, he had to give England his share of Canada, and leave him. France, realizing that he would lose, had decided to make sure that at least Louisiana would be safe from England, and secretly gave New Orleans to Spain, whom he had a much better relationship with, and this helped him be able to give the rest of her to Spain as well. (Since Spain just happened to be on the same side as England this time, England didn't object too much.)

Louisiana, who did not know that France had secretly given part of her to Spain already, resented her new guardian for separating her from France, and rebelled against him. As a result, Spain was strict with her, and even passed a law enforcing a dress code on creole women who had a certain percentage of African blood in them, because they would sometimes be confused for white women. Since Louisiana loved all of her people, and thought Spain was annoying, she insisted on following the dress code too, saying that her people were a part of her, so she would suffer with them. She and the women were very resourceful and found loopholes in the law. They made their 'plain' dresses out of colorful madras fabrics, and they made the scarves they had to wear to hid their hair very ornamental. Together, they stuck it to Spain in style. Although they didn't always get along, he was better at managing her, so under Spain's supervision, Louisiana grew more.

After some time, Louisiana got used to Spain, and didn't fight with him as much, but she still missed France. France also missed Louisiana, so he had Napoleon pressure them into signing a secret treaty that would make Louisiana his again. However, not long after he got her back, France was forced to sell her to America in order for Napoleon to fund his war against England since they had run out of money. Louisiana felt betrayed when she found out, and her trust in France was broken since she he threw her under the bus to save his own neck. However, she was slightly relieved after she met America. Because she told him she was tired of being left by people she cared about, he promised her that she was part of his 'family' now, and that he wouldn't let anyone else take her away.

Louisiana was also very pleased that America was a democratic republic because she had been looking forward to having that kind of government ever since France had become one after his own revolution. She was disappointed when America told her she couldn't become a state right away, but with the help of her new boss, and her people, she finally managed to convince America and his boss to let her become an official state in 1812.

Unfortunately, not even more that a few months had passed since she became a state, before America declared war on England. Most of the war was fought in Canada or eastern America, but eventually, England turned his sights on Louisiana. If England could control the port of New Orleans, then he could basically split America in half, and keep him from being able to use the Mississippi River. When America realized this, he sent General Andrew Jackson to help her. In 1814, with the help of General Jackson, as well as Captain Jean Laffite and his crew, Louisiana was able to fend off England's troops, despite being outnumbered.

England had underestimated Louisiana, and it proved to be his downfall. Not only was her swampy terrain difficult to travel without an experienced guide, but she had blocked him from sailing up the Mississippi too. He had also expected the Indians and slaves to join him in the fight if he promised them freedom and land, but they had refused, and some of them had already agreed to fight for Louisiana, since they didn't want to see her sad again after finally being happy with America. Although the Indians didn't always get along with the American and European settlers of Louisiana, they still had a decent relationship, and the slaves didn't like being slaves, but Louisiana tried to make sure her boss passed laws that kept their families from being sold to separate owners and that they were treated well (unfortunately, there were still abusive slave owners, but Louisiana kept trying to convince her boss to make more laws against it.) Louisiana's love for her people was mutual, and England did not find the allies he had hoped for in them. At the end of the day, the British had 2,042 casualties: 291 killed, 1,267 wounded and 484 captured or missing. The Americans had 71 casualties: 13 dead; 39 wounded and 19 missing. Because no one had really expected Louisiana to do so well, it is sometimes attributed to being a miracle (even by herself), because the whole time she was fighting, the Ursuline Nuns in New Orleans had been praying to Mary, Our Lady of Prompt Succor, for the American forces to defeat England, and to save Louisiana. They even offered up a mass, and just as they were giving communion, a messenger ran into the church to announce that America and Louisiana had won.

Although the war had technically already ended, Louisiana's victory helped prove that America's early victory over England wasn't just a fluke. Some historians say that if Louisiana hadn't won, and England had been able to capture New Orleans, he probably wouldn't have had much of a problem going back on his peace treaty with America once they had finished dealing with Napoleon, because he had already done that to France's boss before. But since Louisiana drove him away once already, it made England feel like it might not be worth the trouble...