Babylon

JHPier

There'd still be a great city at the "waist" of Mesopotamia. I can't see it'll make much difference.
 

Xen

Banned
It could have more significance than we realize. Lets look at Babylon remaining somewhat powerful through the rise of Christianity and Islam. How it interacts with Persia and the Byzantine Empire. They could ally themselves to Persia, helping the Persians to not be defeated by the Romans, and thus remaining stronger when the Muslims come later. They could even halt the Islamic advance. It might seem like nothing but butterflies can change everything.

Or the city could be overrun by Muslims and become one of the holy cities of the religion.
 

Hermanubis

^I don’t mean WI Babylon remains a Political entity, but rather if the city itself survived (the POD for this would be somewhat after the Death of Alexander the Great).
 
Thande

Thande

Donor
Hmm...well it would make the Biblical prophecies of a resurgent Babylon ruling over the Earth seem more urgent and local (whereas in OTL there have obviously been speculations that Babylon was just a metaphorical name for some future superpower).
 

Leo Caesius

Banned
After its fall to Cyrus the Great, it was almost inevitable that Babylon would decline. Its importance was tied directly to the Neo-Babylonian empire in this period and once the center of power shifted, it began to slowly decline in importance. Glorious history or not, an imperial capital like Babylon could not maintain even a shadow of its former importance without the empire to which it was attached. Look at what happened to Athens during the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Either it becomes another provincial city in the middle of nowhere or, as we saw in our timeline, a pawn to be captured repeatedly until it is depopulated. So, your POD requires that Babylon remain the capital of a state or at the very least it is kept safe from the interminable skirmishes and transfers of power that it experienced in OTL.
 

DuQuense

It remains a City along a River {Port}, but loses it political importance.

It is Taken by the Romans, and retaken by the Medes several times
in ??? It falls to the Muslims, and in 1420 a Crusade is launched to Reclaim
it. Instead of attacking Byzantium, the Roman force as part of the Crusade the Forth Crusade takes Jerusalem, and strikes east to retake Babylon, The Combined Holy/Eastern Roman forces are defeated, But this takes the pressure off Byzantium. In 1485 as the Arab/Ottomans are preparing another try, Spain sends Aid to help as part of the Reconquetia. As Spain is now involved in Asia Minor and North Africa. No Columbus, In 1520 John Cabot discovers the new World.
 

DuQuense

Given the fact that Christianity was originally one of the Anti Modernity/establishment Cults [Back to Nature] thrown out by Judaism [Which itself was a Anti establishment Cult] Something a lot like Christianity is very Possible, and a reaction to it's becoming the establishment is also possible. Ie Christianity , & Islam, are as likely as any thing else.

the butterflies don't always zig out, sometimes they zag back in.
 

Paul Spring

Was Babylon completely abandoned just because it was no longer a political center, or were there other reasons, like perhaps the river that it was built along shifting course away from the city or flooding it?
 

Hermanubis

It seems that Babylon lost a lot of its population to the city being fought over by Alexandrian successor states, and most of the rest were forced out to populate Seleucia…

One thing that might help is if Alexander’s empire lasts, or failing that, if one of the successor states can hold more of the old Persian Empire(at least all of Iraq)
 

cow defender

hahahahaha, i didnt get the cpr (drunk sorry) for like two seconds. great ideas int his tl, nothing to add, just wanted to say that i read it and will continue to.
 
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