I guess it wouldn't leave us much of a story if the world finally wised up and decided it is best to leave the Romans alone would it?
An Age of Miracles Continues: The Empire of Rhomania
- Thread starter Basileus444
- Start date
Never Trust a Greek Bearing Gifts, Roman Revenge. Yeeesh. Stereotypes are gonna be uuuuugly.
Honestly I would still thoroughly enjoy reading about the economic, diplomatic, scientific, theological, and cultural development of a Rome at peace for the next 5 decades.
Not to mention that just because Rhomania is at peace that doesn't mean the rest of the world is static. A Rhomania that is withdrawn from Europe and at peace/rebuilding simply means someone else/elses has to enter that power vacuum and that's an interesting story as well.
Or heck, best of both, lets see the Despotates shine, or the Exarchate in the East.
I'd love to see the Carthaginian Despotate shine, alongside Sicily and (Spain?)
Also, almost forgot about the promised naval campaign in the western Med. So they can't be fully quiet just yet. I'd love to see our favorite naval commander come up with a scheme to sacrifice the green ships in order to capture vessels from the Marinids.
The Strategikon would have a brand new chapter on what to do with bad fighting infrastructure and how to improve it.
"One must remember that the difference between a fleet commander and a privateer is simply who owns the ship. As a result, it doesn't hurt to learn from the tactics of the pirate or privateer - if you can use your wits and guile to replace your ship with your enemies more powerful ship, then do so. If it costs you your lesser ship, that is a tragedy, but if you've succeeded in an upgrade, it is unlikely that the owner of the old ship is going to complain when you replace it with one twice its size and cannon" - Me
Property damage is comparable. While Baghdad has been sacked before so it doesn’t have the ‘stockpile of a thousand years’ like 1204 Constantinople, it was a large and prosperous city. While not as bad as the 1258 Mongol sack (TTL and OTL are extremely similar here), this is #2.
Loot is doing a little, but not very much. Most real wealth at this time is agricultural, with most of the rest in artisanal production, and the bulk of that isn’t conducive to being carted off. Grabbing all the silks and gold in Baghdad can certainly be a big payday for the lucky Roman soldier or, more likely, the crafty merchant following the army and buying up deals, but compared to the Roman treasury and economy it’s not that significant.
I’ve always been struck by Napoleon’s dictum about morale is to the material as three to one. When it comes to warfare I would assume he knows what he is talking about. And I think the general idea still holds true in the industrial era, not just the pre-industrial. If shiny tech-tech were a guaranteed war-winner, the Soviets would’ve won in Afghanistan and the US would’ve won in Vietnam.
Tech-tech and material resources are important; it doesn’t matter how enthusiastic you are if your ladders are 10 feet shorter than the city wall. But I think people focus on them too much because that sort of thing can be quantifiable, and so it’s easier to understand and compare as opposed to doctrine or morale.
East-1642: Something New
East-1642: Something New
1642 continued: It is practically a cliché that appears in all histories of the Great Expedition, the War of Wrath, or the Modern Odyssey, or whatever one wishes to call the events, that the march into Persia marked a turning point, the start of something new. Before had been ugly carnage, with the key events two grinding sieges and two bloody battles which left both sides damaged and scarred, with heavy losses for both victor and vanquished. And yet for all the blood, it was also common. Although more intense, it was war as had been waged between Rome and Persia for 1500 years in this part of the world, and as had been waged by empires earlier than them. But what comes afterward is presented as something different, nobler, more heroic, and epic, new and extraordinary-the former attributes are possibly awarded because of the latter.
A lot of that is, to use the technical term, hogwash. History is supposed to be a presentation of the past but by inevitability it is an incomplete presentation. Part of that is because not all of the past survives to be presented. Part of that is simply a matter of practicality; a complete presentation would be as elaborate, and long, as the past itself. And another part is that what is used in the presentation is filtered through both those presenting and those receiving the presentation, through their interests and biases, desires and agendas, keeping some parts and discarding others.
Like Herakleios’ exploits against the Persians in the early 600s, the exploits east of the Zagros in the early 1600s are often presented as a great epic. People like stories, and both cases make great stories, and so it is unsurprising that they are turned into epics. But it is important to remember that the epic is a presentation, an incomplete presentation made by leaving out the parts that are not epic. Having a bullet perforate your intestines so that you die by your own excrement slowly poisoning you is a horrible death, whether it happens west or east of the Zagros.
Yet having said all that, there is something to the idea of epic here. In reading soldiers’ accounts, on both sides of the turning point there are the usual complaints and gripes, but there is a sensation among many that they are engaged in something new, and that is exciting. Fighting in Mesopotamia was nothing special, but what they were doing now was something that hadn’t been seen perhaps for two thousand years. If so, epic seems an appropriate word.
(It should be noted that such an attitude applies only to the winners. The Trojan women certainly didn’t appreciate the epic quality of the war that had just concluded as they were carried off into slavery.)
Odysseus’ and Iskandar’s initial goal for the rest of 1642 is moderate, to establish a bridgehead in the Zagros Mountains or beyond. More than that prior to the onset of winter does not seem feasible and winter campaigning in the Iranian plateau, as opposed to the plains of Mesopotamia, is not to be undertaken lightly. In addition, the Roman soldiers are weary and could use an off-season. However neither leader wants to wait until after winter 1642-43 passes before attacking Persia proper; that would give Ibrahim an entire year after the battle of Baghdad to rebuild his army and consolidate his position.
Ibrahim’s position, while battered, is still intact and holding. While his credibility has been damaged by the loss of Mesopotamia and the defeats on the battlefield, he still has several strengths. Persia had backed Ibrahim in the war against Osman at the beginning of his reign, and Ibrahim has been on the throne since late 1624 so he has had plenty of time to secure loyalists to key positions. He is a son of Iskandar the Great, and notably the son who was with the Shahanshah when he died and was his desired successor.
Also there is no whiff about Ibrahim of him being a Roman/Christian puppet, which cannot be said for Iskandar the Younger. Ibrahim’s defeats and Iskandar’s questionable position thus have the effect of canceling each other out. Notably those Persians who defect to Iskandar do so only after being convinced that he is not a puppet, and do so after having direct experience with Iskandar or with others who have had direct experience. Without those factors, it is easy for those in Persia to believe the rumors, which Ibrahim makes sure circulate widely. Once Iskandar is personally in Persia those factors will start to be in play, but in short neither Ibrahim nor Iskandar have a clear advantage over the other in terms of legitimacy in the Persians’ eyes.
The initial skirmishes along the Zagros do not involve large numbers, but they are significant in that they mark the first time Iskandar’s forces actually fight for him. That they do so, and do so well, is a great relief to both Odysseus and Iskandar. While hopeful, they’d both realized that it was possible that the Persian troops had only done so at the promise of better treatment. Who knows how they might behave once back in the field? But they are loyal to Iskandar now.
The reason for that is they have no doubt in their minds that Iskandar is not a Roman puppet. Their good treatment and seeing Iskandar’s continued insistence that they are treated as allies, not subjects, has done much to dispel doubts. In terms of pageantry and symbolism, Odysseus and Iskandar are presented as monarchs, and monarchs of equal rank, with identical number of guards, heights of banners, and the like. This is as it should be, for Shahanshahs of the Persians and Emperors of the Romans have recognized each other as equals since the offices existed.
Defending a mountain chain such as the Zagros is not as easy as it might seem. While they provide awesome defensive advantages, there is a dangerous catch. If the passes can be held, all is well, but if somehow they can be outflanked, the defenders can be easily trapped and destroyed. The Hellenes’ experience at Thermopylae fighting against Xerxes is the most famous example of this. Ibrahim is aware of this, and it is one of the reasons for why he does not contest the mountains nearly as vigorously as might be expected. It is not the only reason though.
The short of it is that Ibrahim has not had nearly enough time to prepare for this as he had hoped for. He needed time for his troops to recover and restore their morale, to recruit new soldiers, and to drill and equip them, and as Odysseus and Iskandar approach he is not nearly as far along as he would like. Rushing his army as it is into battle will certainly guarantee a defeat and probably make it impossible to constitute a new one afterwards.
Defending mountain passes would be good work to bloody new troops, but the first-mentioned factor comes into play here. Ibrahim’s new recruits are coming in from all over Persia, but their recruitment is heavily dependent on Ibrahim’s pre-existing pool of veterans. Those veterans and their local contacts are crucial in encouraging potential recruits to enlist and also to buoy their morale in their early green days. Like the Roman tourmai, Ottoman troops serve in units based on their region of origin and having men that are personally and locally noted for being tough and brave and skilled soldiers is a tonic to new soldiers about to see the elephant.
However by a twist of tactical arrangements, many of the soldiers now serving Iskandar are from regional units recruited along the Zagros. Without those veterans, Ibrahim has a harder time drawing new recruits from the area. When those two factors are combined, it means that Iskandar’s forces are more aware of the local topography than Ibrahim’s, in which case the specter of Leonidas looms alarmingly.
So Ibrahim just skirmishes and harasses some, using a portion of the forces actually available to him. The forces attack when and where they expect success, but don’t press very far because at this stage Ibrahim needs to avoid a defeat, even a small one. With such caution, Ibrahim’s forces cause only minimal delay and damage, but his goal here is more to provide inspiration and an example for his new recruits than to harm the enemy. In that he does succeed.
The duo’s first target is Khorramabad, for the reason that Suleiman Pasha is from the region and his relations are major figures there. Given the lack of legitimacy advantage of either Ibrahim or Iskandar vis-à-vis each other, personal connections will be of extreme importance in winning Persians to either side. In this case it pays off very well for Iskandar. Suleiman Pasha’s support wins over his family, who then suborns much of the local notables. Ibrahim’s loyalists, despairing of holding their position, flee, and Iskandar is able to march into the city with his troops without bloodshed.
The army will winter here. Roman and Persian troops are barracked in various areas with supplies drawn from the region, with the troops kept on very strict discipline to ensure that there are no incidents. Local logistical support will be vital for the maintaining of Odysseus’s and Iskandar’s army from this point onwards; transporting food overland from Rhomania is not possible.
Iskandar takes up residence in the Shapur-Khast Fortress, a citadel dating back to the Sassanid Empire, acting ceremonially entirely like a Shahanshah who is choosing to winter in this particular city of the Empire. Odysseus and his senior staff also take up residence in the fortress, but it is emphasized that they are staying in the guest quarters. In any formal ritual, Iskandar and Odysseus are of equal rank, with Iskandar having precedence as the resident monarch welcoming a visiting ally. Many Persians, it must be said, view this as cynical window-dressing to hide reality, but the presentation does also allay the concerns of many who are concerned about Iskandar’s Persian credentials.
* * *
Shapur-Khast Fortress, Khorramabad, December 22, 1642:
Iskandar looked out over the city as it prepared for sunset which would be soon arriving. He was out on a corner of the battlements, along with Odysseus and Michael Pirokolos. The guards, both the castle and the personal monarchial ones, had retired a bit, giving the trio some space and much desired privacy.
They looked out in silence for a time, and this time it was Michael who broke the stillness. “Three men stood atop a tower, a Basileus, a Shah, and a nobody.”
Odysseus took up the next line of this version of their impromptu recitation. “For once, the world stepped back and let them be, these three men on a tower.”
Iskandar followed. “Rare and beautiful the moment was, for the three against the world.”
Michael: “Yet it could not endure.”
Odysseus: “For the world does not understand.”
Iskandar: “And the malice of the world is great, and requires beauty to be fleeting.”
Michael: “Like raindrops shining in the sunlight.”
Odysseus: “Or a flower on the pyre.”
Iskandar: “Or a comet in the heavens.”
Michael: “Three men stood atop a tower, a Basileus, a Shah, and a nobody.”
Odysseus: “The world stood aside and let them be, at least for now.”
Iskandar: “And the three said, at least for a little longer.”
The sun set as Iskandar finished, the last rays clipping over the horizon to dazzle the lands to the east.
Rhomaoi: Let's not forget about Venice and Constantinople.
Well yeah. Though once industry fully caught up in the later 19th Century, the French doctrine of "Elan!" didn't count for much against the Prussians.
@Basileus444
Do you have any advice about writing battle for tl's? I greatly enjoy reading about the battles in your tl's but I find myself somewhat struggling when it comes to that aspect of writing a tl.
Pirokolos...who is that man? Jokes aside i think that man is a great lover of spicy food otherwise his last name does not make any sense 🤣
Strategically, it also offers them options about where to strike once spring arrives - they can swing southeast towards Isfahan or northeast towards Qom and Tehran. I didn't expect them to march this far north from Basra, but if the politics are favorable the politics are favorable.
Another fantastic update. The presentation as an epic certainly feels apropos. The conversation at the end gives the feel of a fantasy epic a la Brandon Sanderson.
They are certainly in a good position for the beginning of next year's campaign. They have a decent sized force, a strong ability to recruit more, and a solid entrance onto the plateau. I'm sure we'll find out eventually, but I am still curious about the status of the status of the Georgians and the Egyptians. I assume things are going well for them given Ibrahim's inability to focus on those fronts.
I feel like the main problem next spring will be logistics. Being so far from Roman supplies they are going to have to rely on small portions of Persia and the devastated Mesopotamia to feed and equip their armies. It'll take a heavy toll on the regions I'm sure. They'll look to capture supply depots where ever possible I suppose. Captured grain and powder should work just fine, but I wonder if there will be issues with ammunition. Seems unlikely that Rome and Persia landed on the same caliber at this point in history.
They are certainly in a good position for the beginning of next year's campaign. They have a decent sized force, a strong ability to recruit more, and a solid entrance onto the plateau. I'm sure we'll find out eventually, but I am still curious about the status of the status of the Georgians and the Egyptians. I assume things are going well for them given Ibrahim's inability to focus on those fronts.
I feel like the main problem next spring will be logistics. Being so far from Roman supplies they are going to have to rely on small portions of Persia and the devastated Mesopotamia to feed and equip their armies. It'll take a heavy toll on the regions I'm sure. They'll look to capture supply depots where ever possible I suppose. Captured grain and powder should work just fine, but I wonder if there will be issues with ammunition. Seems unlikely that Rome and Persia landed on the same caliber at this point in history.
I'm certainly no B444 but I found that when writing battles in my timeline it helped to draw out (crudely mind you, I'm certainly no artist) what I'm trying to have happen. If I could see it on a map, however poorly drawn, it was that much easier to put what I'm looking at into words. Now, the battles in my TL are far smaller than the ones here - one man getting the drop on two men and two ships flinging broadsides and then a boarding action are it so far- but the premise still worked a lot for me. Hopefully it helps you too if you choose to use it.
One guy ambushing two guys is technically a fight scene not a battle scene but I digress