Would there have been a way for Alexander to wind up as Emperor of China? Presumably he would have had to take care of India along the way, but I'm not as up on Alex as I ought to be. Anyone have any ideas?
WilyBadger said:Would there have been a way for Alexander to wind up as Emperor of China? Presumably he would have had to take care of India along the way, but I'm not as up on Alex as I ought to be. Anyone have any ideas?
Wendell said:What impact might Alexander, and his presumably Heleno-Persian court have on China and Chinese culture?
WilyBadger said:Hellenic China... there's an interesting image. I'm imagining they'd have quite a HUGE impact, though I can't begin to guess what.
WilyBadger said:Hellenic China... there's an interesting image. I'm imagining they'd have quite a HUGE impact, though I can't begin to guess what.
WhatIsAUserName said:Maybe it may be more successful if you look way back. Maybe Greece continues its scientific discoveries uninterrupted, and an extremely advanced Macedonian army and fleet succeed in conquering China, which is at the time, less advanced.
Remember the old adage : "United We Stand." And the Warring States period was a snakeden of shifting alliances. It would be a lot easier for Alexander if he picks them off one at a time, till the rest learn to either ally with him or against him.
WilyBadger said:Hellenic China... there's an interesting image. I'm imagining they'd have quite a HUGE impact, though I can't begin to guess what.
WhatIsAUserName said:Maybe it may be more successful if you look way back. Maybe Greece continues its scientific discoveries uninterrupted, and an extremely advanced Macedonian army and fleet succeed in conquering China, which is at the time, less advanced.
Remember the old adage : "United We Stand." And the Warring States period was a snakeden of shifting alliances. It would be a lot easier for Alexander if he picks them off one at a time, till the rest learn to either ally with him or against him.
Smaug said:What about the Asiatic rebound? Wouldn't knowledge of China's Religion, Philosophy, Science, and Organiztion(OK I was looking for 4 things), also be disseminated in Europe?
That would be interesting, an early cultural exchange. Hell, throw Japan in there too.
But the Ainu would be quickly evicted to the northern Islands.NFR said:Japan was literally stone age at that point.
Smaug said:But the Ainu would be quickly evicted to the northern Islands.
NFR said:Hardly less advanced. Chinese bronze was the best in the world, superior in some ways to the iron weapons in use both there and in Europe. They also had an efficient army logistics system (For the ancient world), crossbows, and through contact with northern nomads, good cavalry. There is comparable ship-building, engineer, practical (though not theoretical) mathematics; superior architecture and farming.
The Warring States Chinese were not stupid barbarians. You cannot pick them off one at a time that easily, especially if you are an outsider. As happened in that period, if one power rose too high, the others band against it. It was only until later that that mould was broken, and it took decades.
WhatIsAUserName said:Would it have been easier had Alexander won against an internally weakened Zhou state (which was de jure in control of the country), and worked its way down from there?
A POD needs to go way back. If you can possibly unify all of Greece and Macedonia, give it advanced technology, and succeed in immersing a complete foreigner in Chinese politics, I guess it could work. But then, it's in the realm of the ASB.