CountZingo
Well-known member
What if Constantinople and its surrounding area came under the control of the Eastern Orthodox Church, just as Rome had come under control of the Catholic Church? Here's a potential scenario, that I may want to flesh out in the future.
1. The Crusades are successful. Maybe the Crusaders just hold onto their gains from the First Crusade, or they manage to take it back during the Third Crusade. This has a two-fold effect that will help us - no fourth Crusade (i.e. no sack of Constantinople), and the weakening of the presence of Islam in the Mediterranean. However, this also means that the Holy Land is now controlled by Catholics.
2. The planned Crusader-Mongol alliance is carried out. These two groups manage to weaken Islam enough so that it isn't a threat to the Byzantines.
3. With Catholics on both the south and west, and the Mongols in the east and north, the Orthodox Church is threatened. Over the 14th and 15th century, the religion slowly centralizes. Meanwhile, however, the Byzantine Empire is in a slow decline - the Catholic European powers prefer to conduct trade with the Mongols and Asia in general through the Crusader states, meaning that the once-rich Empire is in decline. Constantinople begins to lose its importance as a trading city, and it becomes more and more known as the center of the Orthodox faith. Meanwhile, as the Mongol Empire collapses, some Mongols conduct raids on the Byzantine Empire. Although the Byzantines defeat any unorganized raids, this further weakens them (parallels with Rome at this point).
4. The Renaissance and the Age of Exploration by Western Europe still happen (perhaps a half century or so later than in OTL), and they mark the true beginning of the end of the Byzantine Empire, as Imperial authorities refuse to adapt to the changing times, and the state is finally beginning to collapse around its own weight. The various states in the Empire begin to slowly break away from the Byzantine Empire in the mid-to-late 16th century. Finally, the Byzantine Empire formally collapses around 1600. The Eastern Orthodox Church is the only order left in Constantinople itself, and it quickly takes control over the city.
So that's how the general timeline goes. However, there are some questions that pop up.
- Does the Reformation still happen ITTL? If so, is it more or less successful than OTL?
- How do the surviving Crusader States and Byzantium effect the Renaissance? I can personally see a few Shakespeare plays set in the eastern Mediterranean.
- As Western Europe takes the path to modernization, what will the Byzantine remnant states do? What will the Crusader Kingdoms do?
- How does Islam evolve ITTL? What will be the fate of Iberia, North Africa, and Egypt? Will Islam attempt to spread eastwards even more with the collapse of the Mongol Empire, or will it try to reassert its influence in what remains of the Byzantine Empire? How will this work out?
As always, questions, comments, concerns, and suggestions are welcome.
1. The Crusades are successful. Maybe the Crusaders just hold onto their gains from the First Crusade, or they manage to take it back during the Third Crusade. This has a two-fold effect that will help us - no fourth Crusade (i.e. no sack of Constantinople), and the weakening of the presence of Islam in the Mediterranean. However, this also means that the Holy Land is now controlled by Catholics.
2. The planned Crusader-Mongol alliance is carried out. These two groups manage to weaken Islam enough so that it isn't a threat to the Byzantines.
3. With Catholics on both the south and west, and the Mongols in the east and north, the Orthodox Church is threatened. Over the 14th and 15th century, the religion slowly centralizes. Meanwhile, however, the Byzantine Empire is in a slow decline - the Catholic European powers prefer to conduct trade with the Mongols and Asia in general through the Crusader states, meaning that the once-rich Empire is in decline. Constantinople begins to lose its importance as a trading city, and it becomes more and more known as the center of the Orthodox faith. Meanwhile, as the Mongol Empire collapses, some Mongols conduct raids on the Byzantine Empire. Although the Byzantines defeat any unorganized raids, this further weakens them (parallels with Rome at this point).
4. The Renaissance and the Age of Exploration by Western Europe still happen (perhaps a half century or so later than in OTL), and they mark the true beginning of the end of the Byzantine Empire, as Imperial authorities refuse to adapt to the changing times, and the state is finally beginning to collapse around its own weight. The various states in the Empire begin to slowly break away from the Byzantine Empire in the mid-to-late 16th century. Finally, the Byzantine Empire formally collapses around 1600. The Eastern Orthodox Church is the only order left in Constantinople itself, and it quickly takes control over the city.
So that's how the general timeline goes. However, there are some questions that pop up.
- Does the Reformation still happen ITTL? If so, is it more or less successful than OTL?
- How do the surviving Crusader States and Byzantium effect the Renaissance? I can personally see a few Shakespeare plays set in the eastern Mediterranean.
- As Western Europe takes the path to modernization, what will the Byzantine remnant states do? What will the Crusader Kingdoms do?
- How does Islam evolve ITTL? What will be the fate of Iberia, North Africa, and Egypt? Will Islam attempt to spread eastwards even more with the collapse of the Mongol Empire, or will it try to reassert its influence in what remains of the Byzantine Empire? How will this work out?
As always, questions, comments, concerns, and suggestions are welcome.