Alexander conquers Arabia

[sumwhereinCA]

Suppose Alexander's buddy (probally gay buddy) Hephaistion dosen't die from a smashing drink binge. As a result Alexander dosen't drink as much and successfully invades Arabia. How would the influence of Greek Culture influence the reigon? Also assume that Alexander dies before he can have a heir and before he invades North Africa.

[ninebucks]

There isn't really much of an incentive in conquering Arabia, its all scarcely-populated desert with little or no natural resources and with a group of natives whose beating would not deliver much glory.

Besides, Arabia became quite Hellenised as it is. It became surrounded by nominally Hellenic states, and the religion, the culture, the philosophy, etc. all kind of disappated into the desert via the trade routes.

[sumwhereinCA]

Originally Posted by ninebucks

There isn't really much of an incentive in conquering Arabia, its all scarcely-populated desert with little or no natural resources and with a group of natives whose beating would not deliver much glory.

Besides, Arabia became quite Hellenised as it is. It became surrounded by nominally Hellenic states, and the religion, the culture, the philosophy, etc. all kind of disappated into the desert via the trade routes.

true but most Empires conquer waste land anyways. German East Africa anyone?

[Faeelin]

Originally Posted by ninebucks

There isn't really much of an incentive in conquering Arabia, its all scarcely-populated desert with little or no natural resources and with a group of natives whose beating would not deliver much glory.

Oman and Yemen were pretty valuable; the frankincense trade ran through there.

[Abdul Hadi Pasha]

Originally Posted by ninebucks

There isn't really much of an incentive in conquering Arabia, its all scarcely-populated desert with little or no natural resources and with a group of natives whose beating would not deliver much glory.

Besides, Arabia became quite Hellenised as it is. It became surrounded by nominally Hellenic states, and the religion, the culture, the philosophy, etc. all kind of disappated into the desert via the trade routes.

Not this early - it was not quite as barren and Yemen was a rich and prosperous country.

[Abdul Hadi Pasha]

Originally Posted by sumwhereinCA

Suppose Alexander's buddy (probally gay buddy) Hephaistion dosen't die from a smashing drink binge. As a result Alexander dosen't drink as much and successfully invades Arabia. How would the influence of Greek Culture influence the reigon? Also assume that Alexander dies before he can have a heir and before he invades North Africa.

Hephaistion died of typhus, not alcohol poisoning. I don't think any conquest of Arabia would last longer than his army was there, for the same reasons everyone else has always had. But if it did, I don't think Yemen would Hellenize as it would be under the influence of the East - no Suez Canal makes Arabia pretty freakin' hard to get to from Greece!

[sumwhereinCA]

Originally Posted by Abdul Hadi Pasha

Hephaistion died of typhus, not alcohol poisoning. I don't think any conquest of Arabia would last longer than his army was there, for the same reasons everyone else has always had. But if it did, I don't think Yemen would Hellenize as it would be under the influence of the East - no Suez Canal makes Arabia pretty freakin' hard to get to from Greece!

o rly i read he died during a bout of drinking. eh watever he somehow survives

[Archdevil]

Originally Posted by Abdul Hadi Pasha

Hephaistion died of typhus, not alcohol poisoning. I don't think any conquest of Arabia would last longer than his army was there, for the same reasons everyone else has always had. But if it did, I don't think Yemen would Hellenize as it would be under the influence of the East - no Suez Canal makes Arabia pretty freakin' hard to get to from Greece!

There was the canal between the Nile and the Red Sea that the Ptolemies restored.

[Analytical Engine]

Originally Posted by sumwhereinCA

o rly i read he died during a bout of drinking. eh watever he somehow survives

Drinking, yes... but not alcohol. More like contaminated water in India (it's even in the film).

[sumwhereinCA]

Originally Posted by Analytical Engine

Drinking, yes... but not alcohol. More like contaminated water in India (it's even in the film).

ah never saw the film

[Faeelin]

Originally Posted by Abdul Hadi Pasha

But if it did, I don't think Yemen would Hellenize as it would be under the influence of the East - no Suez Canal makes Arabia pretty freakin' hard to get to from Greece!

Counter exampe: Bactria. It's out in the middle of nowhere, yet it had thriving Hellenistic cities into the 2nd century BCE. (And weird stuff afterwards, but that's a different story).

I could see Arabia prospering, as the Indian Ocean is even better known than OTL.

[Analytical Engine]

Originally Posted by Faeelin

Counter exampe: Bactria. It's out in the middle of nowhere, yet it had thriving Hellenistic cities into the 2nd century BCE. (And weird stuff afterwards, but that's a different story).

I could see Arabia prospering, as the Indian Ocean is even better known than OTL.

Yes, but Bactria is next to Persia. Besides, trade routes go through there.

Arabia would really need Red Sea Ports to sustain it. The Persian Gulf wouldn't be too hard (it was subject to the Sassanids), since the Persian navy could support that effort, but most of Arabia is just desert.

[Don_Giorgio]

Well Arabia was in Alexander's plans... But he had turned his eyes to the West...
Just before he died he was thinking of campaigning to the West in Italy and against the newly founded Roman Republic...
Just imagine the butterfly impact of that!!!
Conquering the Roman Republic!!!!

[Max Sinister]

If Alexander founded a few cities in Arabia (which he'd do, given enough time) Greek influence is inevitable. Mohammed will be butterflied away. Arabia may become part of either the Seleucid or Ptolemid empire, and later the Roman and Byzantine empire.

[Hecatee]

The best scenario would not be a total conquest by Alexander but only a conquest of the coastal areas by his naval commander which he had entrusted with the commandment of a large fleet which sailed from Pakistan to the persian gulf : here it would sail up to egypt, put one colony or two into southern arabia ( Aden probably for it is a great port ) and it would indeed make islam a no go, the whole east would remain either jewish ( for arabia became a jewish sanctuary during the roman period ) or simply christian but maybe of an unorthodox variant ( nestorian for example, like other oriental churches, or adopt coptic christianity from Egypt through trade ). In any case it would improve contacts between the Mediterranean Sea area and India thanks to better ship trade.

[Faeelin]

Originally Posted by Analytical Engine

Yes, but Bactria is next to Persia. Besides, trade routes go through there.

They went through Arabia too, though.