Purple Phoenix Reborn (Constantinople ISOT)
- Thread starter Skywalker_T-65
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I'm still confused on why Constantinople is Orthodox. When it fell to the Ottomans, the Hagia Sophia was a Uniate cathedral. I mean, I could see tensions with Spain causing tensions with Rome. The most sensible explanation would be that with the Turks gone, all of the Uniate clergy decided that Union wasn't really worth it, but that is just, odd to me. I mean, if anything the Relocation would have supported the case for Union with Rome.
I mean, yes, Constantinople was heavily divided, and we know it had a fair amount of people opposed to Union, as evidenced by how many people were upset at the Uniate services in the Hagia Sophia. I'm still of the belief that the Relocation would have boosted the cause for Union.
@Skywalker_T-65 why did you choose Constantinople to be anti-Union?
I mean, yes, Constantinople was heavily divided, and we know it had a fair amount of people opposed to Union, as evidenced by how many people were upset at the Uniate services in the Hagia Sophia. I'm still of the belief that the Relocation would have boosted the cause for Union.
@Skywalker_T-65 why did you choose Constantinople to be anti-Union?
- Location
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Thank you for the update!
My favorite parts of this story is the prefaces or footnotes about more recent historians detailing things or the short stories about what happened with XYZ. Like with the Sword of Constantinople surviving to the modern day, proudly shown in museums. Gets the imagination flowing about what other stories there could be. Like a very similar situation but with one of those few Roman armors from deceased soldiers passed onto a fitting Purépecha warrior. What an heirloom and honor! Passed on from father to son then kept for display. Literally irreplaceable for years(?) decades(?) until their own metalurgy skills get brought up.
While a previous chapter had a blurb about Demetrios' return to Constantinople, I have a feeling he didn't stay long and that his descendants are outside the capital
Stay well and you keep whatever pace you need to.
My favorite parts of this story is the prefaces or footnotes about more recent historians detailing things or the short stories about what happened with XYZ. Like with the Sword of Constantinople surviving to the modern day, proudly shown in museums. Gets the imagination flowing about what other stories there could be. Like a very similar situation but with one of those few Roman armors from deceased soldiers passed onto a fitting Purépecha warrior. What an heirloom and honor! Passed on from father to son then kept for display. Literally irreplaceable for years(?) decades(?) until their own metalurgy skills get brought up.
While a previous chapter had a blurb about Demetrios' return to Constantinople, I have a feeling he didn't stay long and that his descendants are outside the capital
Stay well and you keep whatever pace you need to.
Aztez Fan
Self-Requested Ban
- Location
- California
I like how the weapons of the mexica and other mesoamricas where shown to be more then just blades, for thet were just as much heavy clubs as they were swords. Not even the greatest helment or armor can resist the danger of weight and momentum. Its also sombering to know that, if the Azyecs could feild their largest and most diverse of armies, which numbers in the tens of thousonds. They could have beaten the romans and their alies with no effort on numbers alone as they nearly did cortez and his alies.
Some with the maya and inca, numbers really did just crush spanish armies dispite their guns steel and germs. But its was the disunity that lead to them being taken over.
At least i can take knlowge that without being worked to death or familys not wishing to bring childern into a spanish ruled state the population boom is going to be insane.
Some with the maya and inca, numbers really did just crush spanish armies dispite their guns steel and germs. But its was the disunity that lead to them being taken over.
At least i can take knlowge that without being worked to death or familys not wishing to bring childern into a spanish ruled state the population boom is going to be insane.
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^ Going on Aztez Fan's last point, I too look forward to the differences this new timeline will have compared to our own.
A Mesoamerica with a bit of experience/headstart with Western ideas in the ways of craftmanship, farming, architecture, religion, state unity etc. What will the future be like with a Purépecha state with a strong ally in the region? What will the 1700's and beyond look like when all of that gold stayed local instead of being shipped to Spain, the people not under the boot of the conquistadors - presumably putting up more of a resistance to complete takeover.
Who knows! Just one more thing to look forward to.
A Mesoamerica with a bit of experience/headstart with Western ideas in the ways of craftmanship, farming, architecture, religion, state unity etc. What will the future be like with a Purépecha state with a strong ally in the region? What will the 1700's and beyond look like when all of that gold stayed local instead of being shipped to Spain, the people not under the boot of the conquistadors - presumably putting up more of a resistance to complete takeover.
Who knows! Just one more thing to look forward to.
- Location
- Pacific NW
Heck, how about all the platinum that the Spanish literally thought was garbage and they just dumped into the sea after using it as ballast?
I could see Constantinople trade for that to use instead of silver in silverware and table settings. Plus it wouldn't tarnish like silver, making it easy to take care of.
I could see Constantinople trade for that to use instead of silver in silverware and table settings. Plus it wouldn't tarnish like silver, making it easy to take care of.
Skywalker_T-65
Writer with too many ideas.
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To answer stuff without spaghetti posting:
1. Good to know that worked out. Big battles have never really been my strong suit. I'm much more fond of smaller-scale character pieces, honestly. Toss in rustiness in general and...yeah, glad that worked.
2. There's a possibly apocryphal story of Aztec warriors using their 'sword' (it's more of a club with sharp bits, but sword works) to decapitate horses in one blow. While I'm somewhat doubtful of this- though it could have happened, I guess -the thing is still not to be underestimated. Between the sheer weight and the cutting power of obsidian, it's a very effective anti-cavalry weapon. Aiming for the legs of a charging horse would quickly lead to a not-charging horse. And they could certainly decapitate a horse with it, even if not in one blow.
Ergo, Demetrios did an oopsie, and I wanted to subvert expectations on the cavalry charge a little there.
(though it is very much an understandable one, as he wouldn't have thought about the Aztec being that effective against horses. Very few native tribes in Arcadia would be able to do the same.)
3. I like the little snippets for future historians, or little side stories (there's a reason one of my favorite bits is still the 'Early Explorers of Rome' bit). That allows me to flesh out the world and history in a way that doesn't require bloating chapters, and lets me hint at future things. Plus it allows for things that are important- such as the Sword of Constantine legacy -being put in without forcing them into a proper chapter. I'm a very big fan of worldbuilding, but moreso if it doesn't interrupt the flow of the story.
4. Aztec (or, rather, Mexica but this is written from a Roman perspective so the technically inaccurate name is used) weapons are an...interesting subject. Developed as much to maim as to kill, but that does not mean they aren't still deadly. The Romans and their buddies are lucky in that a shield wall is something no one in Mesoamerica (or, I suppose, Mesoarcadia here) really uses. It is telling that the Aztec only used spears with their greenest and most inexperienced troops, and moved up to the swords for the better troops. That said, the Aztec were starting to adapt.
And it is important to note that while the Romans and friends could probably still force a stalemate (it isn't as if the Purépecha hadn't done the same) they needed a big victory. Even with disease and the unruly vassals, the Aztec have a population that outnumbers the Purépecha by a factor of about 5-to-6 (ie, a million Purépecha to about 5-6 million Aztec). Aztec forces in their final war are generally accepted to number in the hundreds of thousands in total.
I won't comment to much on European colonial adventures, other than to say I'm going to have fun with the Inca. After all, Pizzaro would have died horribly if he hadn't shown up in the middle of a massive civil war and disease die off. Spanish colonialism is an adventure in pure luck on the Spanish side, and literally everything that could possibly go wrong...going wrong for the Natives.
5. Right, now for the touchy bit.
From what I've read on the Unionist stuff, this was at very very best a hotly contested thing. More honestly, it was hated and loathed by basically the entire population of the rump Empire. There was no love for the Latins in Constantinople, and even if Constantine had managed to stick the Union, I struggle to imagine it lasting for long. He had no authority over the hundreds of thousands-to-millions of Greek Orthodox in Turkish lands, who would not convert. Nor was there any authority on the Morea or Trebizond. Why is this relevant, when Constantinople has moved? Well, just as a preface to how badly this choice was taken.
Honestly, my perspective on it is that the Union was a pragmatic attempt to woo Catholic support to survive. Something it...didn't really do, and only served to piss off the populace. It is difficult to say what Constantine's real thoughts were, as so little contemporary documentation exists. It is notable that he didn't push for being crowned by a Unionist Patriarch, because he understood it would just flame tensions. He knew that his people were, at very best, not happy about the whole idea. This is important, because you need to look at things in-universe. This is, after all, an unprecedented event.
Constantinople- notably, not including Galata -was teleported to a virtual Eden on Earth. It was not saved by Latins, indeed, the 'Latin Quarter' (if you will) was very notably left behind. God clearly chose to save the City from the heathens at the gates. This would create an utterly unprecedented religious revival among the populace. The populace that, we must remember, was (charitably) unhappy with being forced into Union. Now, there are no Catholics. No Pope. Not that they can make contact with, anyway. Just the Greeks and their own beliefs and practices. That, to me, screams 'Orthodox revival' not 'the Union was the right idea, even though the only ones in Eden are us Greeks and a few mercenaries'. Regardless of how wedded Constantine was (or was not, we can't say) to the Union...I see him looking at his people and deciding that Orthodoxy is the proper path.
Constantine himself is not immune to the religious mania this would create, as I showed earlier with his bits.
Furthermore, with the Romans now in a position where there is not even any pressure to be unionist (why would there be? There's no Turks, no Pope, no Latins) why would they continue? It was an unpopular choice, and one that seems to have borne no real fruit. After all, the Greeks were the only ones (save a few Italians and Turks) to be given this chance. I, personally, don't see this leading to a 'Union was right' movement, so much as a 'God chose us as his chosen people' movement. Orthodox revival.
This is all, of course, the in-universe justification. Out-of-universe, I find the idea of a Unionist Rome to be...fairly boring? Catholics- which is fundamentally what being Unionist entails -being in charge of the New World is nothing new. By having the Romans stay Orthodox (if a strange one, with some Native bleedthrough) allows for more fun from a storytelling perspective. You have the Spanish show up and be bamboozled by Orthodox natives seemingly out of nowhere. You have a sectarian divide in the New World, as much as a political one. It gives the Natives cause to convert their religion.
'We can accept the Roman faith and their support for our independence, instead of accepting the Spanish faith and domination of our lands' sort of situation.
And when the Reformation rolls along, you have 'God favored the Orthodox' throwing a spanner into the works, which is FUN AND ENGAGING times for Europe. Instead of Protestants arguing uphill against a (more or less Catholic-with-Greek-trappings) Empire in the New World.
Which, generally, comes down to 'I'm telling a story, and to some extent, I want to use the more interesting storytelling beats with it'.
Phew.
1. Good to know that worked out. Big battles have never really been my strong suit. I'm much more fond of smaller-scale character pieces, honestly. Toss in rustiness in general and...yeah, glad that worked.
2. There's a possibly apocryphal story of Aztec warriors using their 'sword' (it's more of a club with sharp bits, but sword works) to decapitate horses in one blow. While I'm somewhat doubtful of this- though it could have happened, I guess -the thing is still not to be underestimated. Between the sheer weight and the cutting power of obsidian, it's a very effective anti-cavalry weapon. Aiming for the legs of a charging horse would quickly lead to a not-charging horse. And they could certainly decapitate a horse with it, even if not in one blow.
Ergo, Demetrios did an oopsie, and I wanted to subvert expectations on the cavalry charge a little there.
(though it is very much an understandable one, as he wouldn't have thought about the Aztec being that effective against horses. Very few native tribes in Arcadia would be able to do the same.)
3. I like the little snippets for future historians, or little side stories (there's a reason one of my favorite bits is still the 'Early Explorers of Rome' bit). That allows me to flesh out the world and history in a way that doesn't require bloating chapters, and lets me hint at future things. Plus it allows for things that are important- such as the Sword of Constantine legacy -being put in without forcing them into a proper chapter. I'm a very big fan of worldbuilding, but moreso if it doesn't interrupt the flow of the story.
4. Aztec (or, rather, Mexica but this is written from a Roman perspective so the technically inaccurate name is used) weapons are an...interesting subject. Developed as much to maim as to kill, but that does not mean they aren't still deadly. The Romans and their buddies are lucky in that a shield wall is something no one in Mesoamerica (or, I suppose, Mesoarcadia here) really uses. It is telling that the Aztec only used spears with their greenest and most inexperienced troops, and moved up to the swords for the better troops. That said, the Aztec were starting to adapt.
And it is important to note that while the Romans and friends could probably still force a stalemate (it isn't as if the Purépecha hadn't done the same) they needed a big victory. Even with disease and the unruly vassals, the Aztec have a population that outnumbers the Purépecha by a factor of about 5-to-6 (ie, a million Purépecha to about 5-6 million Aztec). Aztec forces in their final war are generally accepted to number in the hundreds of thousands in total.
I won't comment to much on European colonial adventures, other than to say I'm going to have fun with the Inca. After all, Pizzaro would have died horribly if he hadn't shown up in the middle of a massive civil war and disease die off. Spanish colonialism is an adventure in pure luck on the Spanish side, and literally everything that could possibly go wrong...going wrong for the Natives.
5. Right, now for the touchy bit.
From what I've read on the Unionist stuff, this was at very very best a hotly contested thing. More honestly, it was hated and loathed by basically the entire population of the rump Empire. There was no love for the Latins in Constantinople, and even if Constantine had managed to stick the Union, I struggle to imagine it lasting for long. He had no authority over the hundreds of thousands-to-millions of Greek Orthodox in Turkish lands, who would not convert. Nor was there any authority on the Morea or Trebizond. Why is this relevant, when Constantinople has moved? Well, just as a preface to how badly this choice was taken.
Honestly, my perspective on it is that the Union was a pragmatic attempt to woo Catholic support to survive. Something it...didn't really do, and only served to piss off the populace. It is difficult to say what Constantine's real thoughts were, as so little contemporary documentation exists. It is notable that he didn't push for being crowned by a Unionist Patriarch, because he understood it would just flame tensions. He knew that his people were, at very best, not happy about the whole idea. This is important, because you need to look at things in-universe. This is, after all, an unprecedented event.
Constantinople- notably, not including Galata -was teleported to a virtual Eden on Earth. It was not saved by Latins, indeed, the 'Latin Quarter' (if you will) was very notably left behind. God clearly chose to save the City from the heathens at the gates. This would create an utterly unprecedented religious revival among the populace. The populace that, we must remember, was (charitably) unhappy with being forced into Union. Now, there are no Catholics. No Pope. Not that they can make contact with, anyway. Just the Greeks and their own beliefs and practices. That, to me, screams 'Orthodox revival' not 'the Union was the right idea, even though the only ones in Eden are us Greeks and a few mercenaries'. Regardless of how wedded Constantine was (or was not, we can't say) to the Union...I see him looking at his people and deciding that Orthodoxy is the proper path.
Constantine himself is not immune to the religious mania this would create, as I showed earlier with his bits.
Furthermore, with the Romans now in a position where there is not even any pressure to be unionist (why would there be? There's no Turks, no Pope, no Latins) why would they continue? It was an unpopular choice, and one that seems to have borne no real fruit. After all, the Greeks were the only ones (save a few Italians and Turks) to be given this chance. I, personally, don't see this leading to a 'Union was right' movement, so much as a 'God chose us as his chosen people' movement. Orthodox revival.
This is all, of course, the in-universe justification. Out-of-universe, I find the idea of a Unionist Rome to be...fairly boring? Catholics- which is fundamentally what being Unionist entails -being in charge of the New World is nothing new. By having the Romans stay Orthodox (if a strange one, with some Native bleedthrough) allows for more fun from a storytelling perspective. You have the Spanish show up and be bamboozled by Orthodox natives seemingly out of nowhere. You have a sectarian divide in the New World, as much as a political one. It gives the Natives cause to convert their religion.
'We can accept the Roman faith and their support for our independence, instead of accepting the Spanish faith and domination of our lands' sort of situation.
And when the Reformation rolls along, you have 'God favored the Orthodox' throwing a spanner into the works, which is FUN AND ENGAGING times for Europe. Instead of Protestants arguing uphill against a (more or less Catholic-with-Greek-trappings) Empire in the New World.
Which, generally, comes down to 'I'm telling a story, and to some extent, I want to use the more interesting storytelling beats with it'.
Phew.
Roadie
A plate full of blins and a cat nearby.
To emphasize this point, current estimates are that potentially up to ninety percent of the entire native population in some areas died from European diseases. This happened across both continents well in advance of actual European visitors, as native trading networks (which did collectively reach transcontinentally) accidentally spread various diseases.
A whole lot of people are still going to die from diseases spread from Constantinople... but, the early exposure and the single geographic source instead of multiple bands of explorers means the death rate may stabilize far earlier than it did OTL, reducing the impact of later plagues and making it harder for European settlers to just move in on top of cultivated land vacated by local mass deaths.
TheDanishLord
Viking Warlord
- Location
- Denmark
Dead people make great fertilizer. Just saying
Thanks for responding! I certainly forgot about Galata, that is an excellent point! It's not that big, but Constantinople still appointed bishops outside of the Byzantine Empire(within its canonical jurisdiction, of course). That appointing is what caused the Council of Jerusalem of 1443 when the Metropolitan of Caesarea of Cappadocia complained to the Patriarch of Jerusalem about the Uniate suffragan bishops being appointed in his See, who then invited the Patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch to Jerusalem to condemn the Council of Florence. Other than that, your explanation make quite a bit of sense.
Thank you!
Edit: Fixed a major typo that said the exact opposite of what I wanted to say
Last edited:
Roadie
A plate full of blins and a cat nearby.
What I mean is that in some regions, so many people died recently enough that settlers could literally reuse the same overland trails, cleared fields for farming, and housing plots without even needing to get into any conflicts with the locals to claim them.
In Otumba battle Aztec flee,when Cortez killed their general and felled main standart.When they still outnumbered spaniards at least 20:1.
If Demetrios killed commander,others should flee.
And yes, Aztecs made commanders dudes who catched more enemies.Everybody would defeat them.
If Demetrios killed commander,others should flee.
And yes, Aztecs made commanders dudes who catched more enemies.Everybody would defeat them.
Arimai
Curmudgeon
@Skywalker_T-65 technically the Romans of this era already utilized lances for their cavalry units for a few centuries. They would not be using the short spears of earlier era cavalry.
UlyssesR
Me
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- He/Him
Lovely one, it's going to be nice when they start the inevitable rapid expansion.
I'm especially curious on the naming conventions of established cities that have counterparts OTL.
I'm sure a city around where Phoenix, Arizona is will be around. The city was established on ancient Native American canals created well before the PoD, so with that already existing resource infrastructure to adapt and modernize, I wonder if they're going to call it "Phoenicia" or anything strange like that.
I'm especially curious on the naming conventions of established cities that have counterparts OTL.
I'm sure a city around where Phoenix, Arizona is will be around. The city was established on ancient Native American canals created well before the PoD, so with that already existing resource infrastructure to adapt and modernize, I wonder if they're going to call it "Phoenicia" or anything strange like that.
HolyDragoon
Call Gespenst!
- Location
- Portugal
That would imply he was standing still and not making any effort to defend himself. IIRC the macuahuitl had a main body of wood, so he could bat aside lunges.
Even that,Prince had big advantage.Fight with Sword which could thrust vs sword capable only of cutting things should end quickly.
- Location
- United States
Armor is also a factor. The majority of armor is much better at blocking slashes than thrust. They tend to be worse against blunt force, while thrusts can target weak points.
Chapter 14
Skywalker_T-65
Writer with too many ideas.
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Chapter 14
Roman-Aztec War: Aftermath
Roman-Aztec War: Aftermath
It is generally accepted in historical circles that the Aztec were bloodied, but not yet broken, by the first War. They had suffered disproportionate losses compared to the Purépecha. Yet those losses were balanced by a larger population base to build from, disease or no disease. Given time to rebuild, the Aztec always had that advantage over their eternal foe. The Romans could certainly not have moved enough men to the lands of the Mexica to truly make a difference. The institutional advantages of both sides remained much the same. The Purépecha remained more technologically advanced, with a more stable and developed system of governance. The Aztec remained a much larger Empire with more bodies to spend in warfare. This had not changed, nor would a single lost war change it. Both Constantinople and Tzintzuntzan saw this quite clearly.
And yet, they accepted the 'treaty' to end the War. The Purépechan military was exhausted by the conflict and the Aztec were facing revolts from their vassals. If the War had bloodied but not broken the Aztec, it had certainly left them in a bad enough condition that the allies considered it prudent to spend time rebuilding instead of fighting. Neither side could have known, of course, that in a few short years...everything would change once more.
-Speech by Nicholaos Giustiniani, Roman Imperial Military Academy, 2016
'After the battle, there were times I thought I would die. That I had already died. Everything is a fog, a mist of broken memories. I vaguely recall being carried off the field by my surviving men, surrounded by the corpses of friend and foe alike. I remember Irepani standing guard while I rested. Beyond that, nothing more than flashes. I would have been convinced I had perished in that battle, were it not for Shanarani. She never once left my side upon arrival in Tzintzuntzan. She nursed my broken body back to health and told me tales of the end of the War. Of how the Aztec pulled back from the conquered land, and refused further battles. It was not a proper peace, so much as a break in the conflict. My ploy, foolish though it may have been, had worked. It was a salve for the pains I felt. A relief that I had not lead my men to pointless deaths...'
Demetrios had proven his worth as a military commander during the course of the War with the Aztec, many times over. His procession into the capital of the Purépecha had been that of a hero being welcomed home, even if he had not been conscious for the occasion. Few were the people who came out that cared if the hero was a Roman instead of a native. As Demetrios considered himself one of them, so too did the people consider him as near-enough their own Prince. Word of his glorious victory had preceded the arrival of the wounded Prince and spread like wildfire through the populace of Tzintzuntzan.
Had Demetrios been awake for the moment, he likely would have felt a wave of pride in his men. In later years, he would always maintain that it had been his men- and he made no distinction between Roman and Purépecha -that had won the war. He had merely led them into battle.
As it was, he would only properly awaken much later, when the Aztec had finally accepted defeat. The new border, pushed many mílion [1] back from the old, was garrisoned by Purépecha forces and already being filled with migrants from various tribes under the Empire. Those few Aztec citizens that remained were often bitter, yet resigned to their fate. At the least they had no need to worry about being sacrificed. It is debatable how serious the Purépecha were about the Roman requests to convert in the early days, yet they most certainly were clear about keeping sacrifices to an absolute minimum. If for no other reason than to thank those who had defeated the Aztec by their side.
And what a defeat it had been! While impossible to truly gauge how many Aztec had died on that field, nor how it had impacted their troop numbers, there is no denying that many thousands of elite warriors had fallen in the war with the Purépecha and Romans. Scant are the records that survived the later sacks of Aztec cities, yet it is clear enough that the War was vastly more destructive to internal stability than any previous war with the Purépecha. Revolts, notably by the powerful Tlaxcala, were straining the Empire to the breaking point. Men and finances were needed putting down revolts by the vassals, not fighting an eternal war against a peer power.
So it had been little surprise when the Aztec called for, what amounted to, a cease-fire. Neither side had a true concept of a peace treaty in the European sense, of course. What resulted was a vocal understanding between both sides that no true conflict would continue. Raids would not stop, nor could any one hope to enforce such a thing. It was merely understood that raids would be dealt with as needed. No true offenses into either territory would be allowed on pain of continuing a war that neither side could truly afford. A fragile kind of peace that would never, could never, have lasted forever. Yet it was needed nonetheless. Any peace was needed.
For while the Aztec were suffering vassal revolts, the Purépecha were faced with a need to rebuild their conquered territories. Many cities had been taken in ruin, Roman cannon having done more damage than traditional sieges would ever have managed. Even more pressing was the need to populate cities that had been depopulated, voluntarily or otherwise. This would normally be done with both Purépecha and vassal tribes, yet there was a rather large issue that the Empire had never faced prior to this.
Disease.
While none would deny the aid the Romans had given, nor the utility of it, the simple fact remained that where Romans went...disease and death followed. It is true that trade from Arcadia-proper [2] had long-since spread disease into the Central portion of the continent. Yet the worst to come was when Demetrios and his soldiers had arrived. Through no fault of their own, these men spread many diseases among the Purépecha populace. Diseases that the people were ill-equipped to deal with. In those early days, understanding of disease transmission and cures was limited. The Romans understood it better, especially after seeing it ravage the Ohlone and other natives in Elysium.
The problem, however, was that understanding how deadly a disease was, did little to truly cure it. Demetrios did what he could to advise the Purépecha on means of staunching the flow of death. He brought the knowledge that his people had from Elysium, and did what he could to provide aid. This had begun before he went on his campaign against the Aztec, and would continue upon his return. When he awoke from his wounds and saw that the War was over, he threw himself into helping with the suffering of his adopted home. Demetrios knew that he was not needed in the process of fortifying the frontier, nor in training the troops. His men could handle that.
Moreover, he felt he owed Shanarani and Irepani his support in alleviating the lingering suffering of their people.
Bearing this in mind, it should come as little surprise that the immediate aftermath of the War was focused on internal development. [3] The Purépecha were, on many levels, far more concerned with consolidation than with further bloodshed. They had won a glorious victory and could afford to focus on consolidating that victory, more than on pushing for more. As was typical with their wars with the Aztec, they had never truly expected a full and complete victory. Had the hope been there, with Roman steel and Roman support? Yes. It had been in the hopes and dreams of many, from the Cazonci on down. Even so, it had always been the kind of hope that kept men going, not the kind of hope they truly expected to see fulfilled. Merely pushing the Aztec back further than ever before was enough of a victory.
It had yet to end their endless wars, but it had given them hope. If it required forts built along the frontier, they would gladly listen to the Romans teaching them how to build castles and walls in the European style. If it meant they had to focus on curbing the damage of disease before it had crippled the populace beyond recovery, well, that was a small price to pay. After all, the Aztec surely had to be suffering from the same, yes? And where the Purépecha could rely on the Romans to provide what limited knowledge and aid they could, the Aztec had no such benefit. They would suffer and die with no aid in sight.
If the Romans had known of the amount of death in the Aztec civilization, from disease and sacrifices to appease their clearly angry gods, they might have felt pity. As it were, they had no true knowledge of how bad it had gotten.
Regardless, the aftermath of the war- for both Aztec and Purépecha -would continue in much the same way for years after it had ended. Romans would come and go, men returning home to teach the lessons of the War, and priests and others coming to settle in the Purépecha lands. The port of Alexiopolis [4] would quickly grow into a thriving trade settlement between the Romans and their native allies. This growth would help to counterbalance the losses from disease suffered in the green lands of Mesoarcadia. Further aided by the fact that many of the original expedition would elect to stay behind, or to come back after training their comrades in Constantinople.
First among them all was Demetrios himself. The Roman prince had fallen in love with his adopted home, and contented himself with letters to his father- and eventually, his elder brother -to keep them up to date. He would only return to Constantinople one time in his lifetime. To perform a second ceremony with Shanarani, to celebrate the bonding of the Palaiologos dynasty to the Purépecha Imperial line...
1. A Roman mile, roughly equivalent to the English mile.
2. Trade between the Northern tribes and the Central tribes was not as extensive as equivalent trade between, say, Italy and Germany. Yet it did exist, and disease had followed it. Disease spread by the Romans reached many far corners of Arcadia, leaving death and devastation in its wake. And yet, it may have proven a benefit in the long run. For it, at the least, prepared the survivors for when other- less friendly -Europeans arrived.
3. Internal development of the conquered territories would take many years to complete. The lands taken from the Aztec were not often prime land, and as well as this, there was a strong need to fortify in the European style. Demetrios had demonstrated how vulnerable cities were to sieges. Who was to say the Aztec could not learn from his example? This required more development than would normally be given to conquered land in earlier wars.
4. The land that Demetrios had secured during his adventures along the coast, named in honor of his father in classical Roman tradition.
AN: Not quite as long as I would have liked, but I wanted to get something done before I start properly working again. Hopefully it still works out well enough. After this, we'll probably have a map+state of the Empire(s) post or two, before THE SPANISH
ExNihilo
SPACE!
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Hernan Cortez: Go and tell your master that we have been charged by God with a sacred quest. If he will give us control over this fort he can join us in the most holy covenant of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
GUARD: Well, I'll ask him, but I don't think he'll be very keen. Uh, he's already got that, you see?
Hernan Cortez: What?
Pedro de Alvarado: He says they've already got that!
Hernan Cortez: Are you sure he's got that?
GUARD: Oh, yes, it's very nice-a (I told him we already got that)
ConfusedCanuck
Where did it all go wrong?
- Location
- Neverland
Another great update!
- Location
- United States of America
I can't wait for a native to ask the Spanish conquistadors, in Latin, if they are Romans too.
Noroboro
Consistency is key and I’m consistently tired :)
- Location
- Canada
I'm quite eager to see the Spanish reaction to Constantinople still standing tall in California. Also, I just had a random thought where I imagine the Byzantine Empire colonizing Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, The Philippines and other places in Asia.
DocMatoi
Theoretical Lover of Girls
- Location
- within 2 hours of the White House
- Pronouns
- They/Them
hypehypehypehypehypehypehypehypehypehype
Eastern-ish Aztec "Oh, not you motherfuckers again!"
- Location
- United States of America
Instead of them thinking Cortes is Quetzalcoatl they assume he's just another dirty Roman and they kill him and his entire crew on sight.