An Age of Miracles Continues: The Empire of Rhomania

[Cryostorm]

Ooh, that's going to hurt. Major battle fleet, at least for the east, just appearing is never a good thing for the other side.

 

[Curtain Jerker]

Good update, looking forward to seeing the rest of the story unfold. The Romans are in serious trouble - this Pereira knows what he's doing.

 

[Evilprodigy]

I made some comment a while back about me considering an alt-Imjin War to be inevitable. You sent me some comments about Korea that got me thinking and I eventually came up with this arc.

I found your comment about the imjin war but couldn't find mine. Did I PM you or something?

 

[HanEmpire]

Southern Ocean doesn’t work for me as a name for the Pacific. There’s an awful lot of it north of the equator.

Why not just call it the Great Ocean, or the Grand Ocean? It's certainly large enough to warrant such a name. Hell you can even call it the Oceanic Ocean, the most ocean of all oceans.

Also I'm curious what the Spanish are trying to achieve here. Their warships are powerful enough to reduce opposition, not destroy Roman outposts. As I see it they'll just attrit away their strength until they die away. What are they going to do, pirate Roman shipping with Ships-of-the-Line?

 

[Cryostorm]

Why not just call it the Great Ocean, or the Grand Ocean? It's certainly large enough to warrant such a name. Hell you can even call it the Oceanic Ocean, the most ocean of all oceans.

Also I'm curious what the Spanish are trying to achieve here. Their warships are powerful enough to reduce opposition, not destroy Roman outposts. As I see it they'll just attrit away their strength until they die away. What are they going to do, pirate Roman shipping with Ships-of-the-Line?

Sounds a lot like they will be using the fleet to weigh in on the local wars to strengthen their allies such as Sunda.

 

[Basileus_of_the_Hellenes]

@Basileus444 Based on the way I read the update, it sounded like Brazil was located in West Africa? I know in previous updates, the Portuguese seem to be hugging Africa a lot (sounds like OTL, but not sure). Did anyone else notice this? Also, whoever said the Hephaestian Ocean, I approve. 😀

 

[Frame]

Aye we made it to 300 pages!!!-

 

[ImperatorAlexander]

Furthermore all of the warships are new, the oldest just three years old, and three of the battle-line ships are of the Flor de la Mar class 70-gunners. These fine and beautiful vessels are considered by Spanish, Triune, Lotharingian, and Roman contemporaries, in a rare fit of agreement, to be overall the best warships on the sea in their day.

Looks like the Spainish have everyone out east severely outgunned. But how crazy would it be if during this war one of these 70-gunners gets captured by say......Leo Kalomeros and it becomes his new ship.

 

[E_x_c_u_b_i_t_o_r_e]

Looks like the Spainish have everyone out east severely outgunned. But how crazy would it be if during this war one of these 70-gunners gets captured by say......Leo Kalomeros and it becomes his new ship.

They'd be goners. Time to teach this perfidous latin a lesson that for all their power in the east. Once Leo Kalomeros comes back he'll wiped them so hard that they'll never ever think about attacking Rome ever again in these waters. And basing that it will probably only last a year (due to the 1 yr roman credit crisis) , i'd say the chances of that happening is pretty big.

 

[Stark]

Now to jump out-of-context. This is going to be a nasty ugly bit of history ITTL, and considering possible OTL implications, I really do not want to imply this is at all a good thing. Having this horrific deed carried out and then have it turn out well for the Romans frankly feels too much like an endorsement, and I feel dirty enough already just having it happen. I do not want this to turn out happy for the Romans. They may be able to call it peace, but the prize is still a desert.

I hope sensibilities will not affect the realism of the story. Of course, Romans are the star of the show and they had many breaks fall their way, but I hope you won't artificially lower the value of Levantine provinces due to the way they were acquired and pacified. Sad as it may be, life doesn't work that way and it would affect the realism/plausibility.

This is of course your story so I hope I don't sound whiny, just want to state my opinion.

 

[Stark]

Looks like the Spainish have everyone out east severely outgunned. But how crazy would it be if during this war one of these 70-gunners gets captured by say......Leo Kalomeros and it becomes his new ship.

Is he senior enough for this? I have no idea what are Roman prize rules , but I think British prizes would be taken over by the government and captain and his crew would only get money. Then again, I'm sure extraordinary conditions during this war would make this possible.

 

[MasochismTango1]

Is he senior enough for this? I have no idea what are Roman prize rules , but I think British prizes would be taken over by the government and captain and his crew would only get money. Then again, I'm sure extraordinary conditions during this war would make this possible.

I don't know the rules either but it'd be very in character for the Romans to mock their enemies by letting their star admiral galavant in their ship.

 

[ImperatorAlexander]

Is he senior enough for this? I have no idea what are Roman prize rules , but I think British prizes would be taken over by the government and captain and his crew would only get money. Then again, I'm sure extraordinary conditions during this war would make this possible.

Well OTL Napoleon became a general at the age of 24 then began his Italian campaign at 26.

If Leo is anything like this OTL name sake leading a daring attack to seize a Spanish 70 gunner to turn the tide of the war is entirely within the realm of feasibility.

 

[Aristomenes]

A good introduction. The Romans are outgunned but I hope they will use that kind of ship to reduce the Spanish superiority https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_ship

 

[Bronze]

I wonder if the Romans will be minded to greatly expand the shipyards of Taprobane and Pyrgos and build some third-raters in the east after the recent unpleasantness with the Spaniards.

 

[Guardonion]

Spoiler: We all know how it's going to end...

Burn it!

 

[Babyrage]

Sounds like the Spanish are prepared to intervene militarily in Europe if the Romans push too far. And given Odysseus‘s recent actions in Rome....that’s not unlikely.
But Roman martial prestige and sheer intimidation should be at a high unseen since Andreas Niketas. Being able to decisively win a three front War should give anyone pause no?

 

[Βοανηργές]

Can I just express my joy and delight that we have updates regularly. Not just filler updates, but full length updates chock full of detail and written with much care after proper research. I still remember the dark days a couple years back when I this TL was on hold indefinitely. Not that B444 having a break was a bad thing but there was a deep despair. AAOM meant a lot to me and that I realized life without it would suck. I know that even if it reaches an end one day, this world of Andreas Niketas and Leo Kalomeros will continue to live on inside of us. I thank B444 and all of you for just being here and hope we'll be able to continue to enjoy this masterpiece of a TL for years to come.

 

[Βοανηργές]

And what of the Maronites? To what extent are they persecuted and what branch of the catholic church do they follow?

Of these groups the Maronites rank highest in Roman eyes, followed by Druzes, as they produce the best militias. The excellent and valorous service of the Maronite militias has dispelled a residual undercurrent of Roman mistrust for them. During the Crusade era, the Maronites were affiliated with the Catholic Church, a connection the Romans forced them to break when Lebanon was conquered by Roman arms. The Maronites resented that, unsurprisingly considering it was forced at the barrel of a gun, and maintained under-the-table connections for a time. But gradually those dwindled away, particularly after the Roman Papacy had to relocate to Mainz, and by 1635 those are distant and unlamented memories.

^^

It means 'Wheel-turner', in the context of the Dharmachakra, the Wheel of Law... which was a Buddhist thing AFAIK.

The wheel of Dharma is a common element of most religions originating from the Indian subcontinent like Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and includes Hinduism. It is not so much a Buddhist concept as much as it is an Indian concept. Exchange of ideas includes usages of symbols and concepts like how the Ottomans got the crescent symbol from Constantinople IOTL. Even today, Dharmachakra are commonplace in both Hindu and Buddhist temples.

An urge to re-create the empire of Alexander is not off the table for the Rhoman far-right.

Some may feel Rhomaion can do better than Alexander and achieve what he failed to do.

“Now in the Malaccan-Java War, westerners, the Spanish and the Romans, were the main characters. However the main cast also included Sunda and Mataram with the key guest star of Vijayanagar, without whose contributions the story is impossible to tell.”

Thus far Latin vessels have almost always swung up the east coast of Africa to head for southern India,

Hmm, I infer that India isn't really Spain's desired trophy for now. I remember Taprobane has better relations with them there so maybe Spain intends to leave them intact so the Triunes don't walk right over them. But even if the conflict is restricted to Island Asia, the Rhomans are going to have the fight of their lives. I think Mataram hegemony on Java will come under serious threat until Venkata Raya sweeps in as benevolent protector of kindred Hindu rashtras (pay no attention to accusations of him seeking to increase his influence and geopolitical position). Maybe they decide to set up shop in all the major islands there to make sure everything is safe, just in case.

It is comprised of eight battle-line ships, two fregatai, a sloop, and three auxiliaries

How many ships did Spain already have in island Asia and India? I think they would hold parity or have a slight numerical advantage against ~ 20 Rhomania in the East battle line ships. Vijaynagar by now should have more than everyone else in Island Asia and India combined.

 

[Cryostorm]

Sounds a lot like they will be using the fleet to weigh in on the local wars to strengthen their allies such as Sunda.

To go further with this, with the name being the Malaccan-Javan war it isn't outside of possibility that it ends with Malacca completely in Rhoman hands but with Spain ascendant in Java with the battle lines of influence being drawn in Borneo and Sumatra.