I have always wondered under what conditions could we get the largest Roman empire possible ( not divided) that survives until the present day and is the superpower or one of the superpowers in the world. Now, I would post a timeline, I've thought about one for a while, but I have a VERY general knowledge of Roman history and I don't think that any TL I could do would be very good or detailed, and probably wouldn't be very realistic. Some ideas I have come up with:
1. Julius Caesar admired Alexander the Great, so what if he had not been killed (either he learns of the plot to kill him and brutally punishes those responsible or maybe pardons them (not likely) or just happens to avoid it and then the conspirators chicken out and accept Caesar's power) and went on to try to out do Alexander or at least equal him in sheer conquests. Maybe conquering Britain, Germany up to at least the Elbe, Dacia and then going after Persia all teh way to the Ganges just to prove he is as great as Alexander. Maybe if he realizes he barely escaped assassination, he will decide to limit his own power and allow the Senate more power to quite the senators and assure his rule, perhaps he could institute some good civics while he's at it.
2. The above scenario affects Augustus becaseu he may or may not become emperor. What if a more militaristic, but just leader becomes emperor instead, will Rome expand further and add to Caesar's conquests, given that the above scenario happened and what would these conquests be?
3. If Rome did conquer the areas mentioned above and successfully assimilate the population, could they then invade into what is now Denmark, Sarmatia (western Russia and Ukraine), or Arabia?
4. Would Rome expand further down the coast of west Africa or round the tip of Africa and start colonies in south Africa? What about Meroe or Axum, would Rome invade these empires (can't remember if they invaded either)?
Could Rome discover gun powder and modify their navy for open ocean travel? If so could they discover America and start colonies and could they be supplied and protected? When is the earliest date for this?
5. If Rome could conquer Sarmatia, could it continue to the Urals, since the tribes in that area were more sparse and unorganized than in western Europe ( I think, don't even know their names actually)? If they did reach the Urals, it would be a great natural defense that any Roman emperor would probably like to put forts on so that the Easter border in the north would not have to be worried about as much or as heavily manned. With all this land in Eastern Europe could we have some type of Roman lebensraum where the Roman government gives incentives to families who are willing to go out and start small Roman towns in Sarmatia and further east with the idea of eventually having a large Roman population? Also a river called the Intysh ( I think)that runs below the Urals which could further act as a natural border with forts that could run straight into the Persian conquests made by Caesar if that happened). Could they have stopped the Mongolian invasions or eventually won with these borders and defenses?
6. Finally would Rome ever take on China or India? What woudl a war be like with either? Could Rome win? How far could Rome eventually expand?
Here is a map to show you what I had in mind, don't know the year, but maybe someone could help, and give ideas, modify the map, whatever you want to do. Maybe after I get some ideas I could do a timeline.
1. Julius Caesar admired Alexander the Great, so what if he had not been killed (either he learns of the plot to kill him and brutally punishes those responsible or maybe pardons them (not likely) or just happens to avoid it and then the conspirators chicken out and accept Caesar's power) and went on to try to out do Alexander or at least equal him in sheer conquests. Maybe conquering Britain, Germany up to at least the Elbe, Dacia and then going after Persia all teh way to the Ganges just to prove he is as great as Alexander. Maybe if he realizes he barely escaped assassination, he will decide to limit his own power and allow the Senate more power to quite the senators and assure his rule, perhaps he could institute some good civics while he's at it.
2. The above scenario affects Augustus becaseu he may or may not become emperor. What if a more militaristic, but just leader becomes emperor instead, will Rome expand further and add to Caesar's conquests, given that the above scenario happened and what would these conquests be?
3. If Rome did conquer the areas mentioned above and successfully assimilate the population, could they then invade into what is now Denmark, Sarmatia (western Russia and Ukraine), or Arabia?
4. Would Rome expand further down the coast of west Africa or round the tip of Africa and start colonies in south Africa? What about Meroe or Axum, would Rome invade these empires (can't remember if they invaded either)?
Could Rome discover gun powder and modify their navy for open ocean travel? If so could they discover America and start colonies and could they be supplied and protected? When is the earliest date for this?
5. If Rome could conquer Sarmatia, could it continue to the Urals, since the tribes in that area were more sparse and unorganized than in western Europe ( I think, don't even know their names actually)? If they did reach the Urals, it would be a great natural defense that any Roman emperor would probably like to put forts on so that the Easter border in the north would not have to be worried about as much or as heavily manned. With all this land in Eastern Europe could we have some type of Roman lebensraum where the Roman government gives incentives to families who are willing to go out and start small Roman towns in Sarmatia and further east with the idea of eventually having a large Roman population? Also a river called the Intysh ( I think)that runs below the Urals which could further act as a natural border with forts that could run straight into the Persian conquests made by Caesar if that happened). Could they have stopped the Mongolian invasions or eventually won with these borders and defenses?
6. Finally would Rome ever take on China or India? What woudl a war be like with either? Could Rome win? How far could Rome eventually expand?
Here is a map to show you what I had in mind, don't know the year, but maybe someone could help, and give ideas, modify the map, whatever you want to do. Maybe after I get some ideas I could do a timeline.