In 1854, British settlers in California demanded secession from Spain and annexation to Britain. After some reconciliations, the Republic of California was established in 1856, and then asked for protectorate status to Britain. In 1868, Russia was selling Alaska and Britain was the higher bidder. In 1872, a civil war started in California, and Britain was directly involved in a peace-keeping mission. In 1873, the Republic of California was offically dismissed. In 1898, the autonomy of Cascadia was given independence status as a commonwealth nation. Cascadia was formed as a parliamentary republic.