If you are contining the collaspe then the Axums wouldn't be trading much with Europe, So the Canal would like OTL, fall into disrepair. But without the Muslims cutting them off from the Ocean, they would have continued trading with India, and Indonesia. Acting as a Bridge between Africa and South Asia.
They would have also sent missionaries south into africa. this probally would have lead to a Distintly Africa Christianity, to go with the Roman and Orthodox ones.
You are correct in that they would not be trading very much with Barbarian Europe, but what about the Eastern Roman Empire? The merchant class there is still very active despite the Empire’s loss of its Western territories (and good leadership). Possibly that alone would lead to continued maintenance of the canal. Good ideas with the distinct African Christianity, I will take that into consideration. Is anyone else interested?
Here is the update on the Rusuns (also posted on the website), which is the last update for this time period in Europe (after this I will be moving on to the period extending from A.D. 818 to ,A.D. 1226. This period will stretch from the absolute decay of civilization to its lowest point, to the first conquests of the Großer Glaube (Great Faith). Once again, feel free to ask questions, offer improvements, read, or just skim, whatever suits you the best. Enjoy:
Early Rusun Slavs
The Rise of the Rusuns:
Far to the East and North of the Mediterranean World inhabited by the Romans and their Germanic successors and hidden amongst the frozen swamps and towering forests, dense woodlands and grassy clearings, windswept plains and craggy steppes, the Rusuns, a large multitude of Slavic tribes made their homes. While those in the northern region, which was unsuitable for agriculture, survived as simple hunters and trappers, those living in the woodlands further south existed as farmers raising a variety of crops and supporting themselves with both foods gathered from the forests and fields as well as the products of their domesticated animals. Here they clustered in small villages for protection from the fierce wandering nomads inhabiting the plains to the south. Little else is known about these early Slavs, for writing was utterly unknown and all known knowledge had to be passed down through the generations orally. For many centuries this lifestyle remained unchanged until the eruption of the super-volcano in A.D. 518 and the resulting climactic change added a new element to this diverse region, as many thousands of different peoples fled the freezing north for new homes further south. At first this small trickle of migrating peoples was felt only along the major rivers, which they made use of to travel and was quickly assimilated into the general Slavic population. As time passed, however, and more and more peoples began to migrate to the region, conquering large swaths of land and subjugating the native Slavs, the land of the Rusuns began to take on a distinct Scandinavian character.
In the years following the eruption, the Norse raiders settled down, founded cities and towns and became the masters of the larger native Slavic population; governing their cities, towns and villages, protecting them from attack and developing a sophisticated code of law, the origins of which may be traced to many of the nearby civilizations. With the growth of cities and towns a lively trade sprang up and the region became loosely bound into a thriving commercial and political empire. The regions wide navigable rivers became widely traversed by both traders and merchants and were soon linked by a network of canals and roadways. The surplus of furs, honey, wax, amber, slaves, timber and foodstuffs found its way to a number of markets from Toledo and Carthage in the West to Küiev and the Hindu cities of India in the East. With such a profits procured from trade, the land of the Rusuns began to grow wealthy and soon a dozen centers of commerce, the most important being Aldeigjuborg, Holmgard, Ladoga, Liubech, Murom, Palteskja, Rostov, Smolensk, Turaŭ and Vitebsk rose to prominence. Though united linguistically and culturally as well as through trade, the land of the Rusuns was in actuality balkanized into a number of small princedoms and city states. Order, however, would come in the name of the Swedish prince Stígandr who, as the fourth son of the king, would not inherit the throne. He therefore made his way South and East with two companions to the land of the Rusuns and landing at Ladoga, proceeded to carve out a new state. This new state, legendarily founded in A.D. 554, was still weak and divided, but under the competent leadership of Stígandr and his successors, would gradually grow in power and influence. In A.D. 648, the upper classes accepted Christianity and gradually, the Rusuns were transformed from a pagan collection of primitive tribes to a modern state basking in the orbit of Rome.
