Deleted member 161069
In the year 639 CE, the Arab armies invaded the Byzantine province of Egypt, after overrunning the provinces of Syria and Palestine. Hence, the Byzantine Empire lost the richest province which was also a breadbasket.
But, they had retained Anatolia and though the Eastern parts were conquered, initially, they were reconquered, in a way Syria and Egypt could never be.
In an Alternate timeline, get the Byzantine Anatolia become as rich as or richer than the (Umayyad) Egypt, using its many rivers, plains and the Sunny climate (useful to grow food crops and spices), establishing more irrigated plains, agro-pastoral settlements (to feed a growing population and also earn trade through growing exotic crops that grow in the Sunny climates), and new cities named after the lost Egyptian and Syrio-Palestinian cities, which would together, eventually bring the much needed stability to the unstable Byzantine Empire. Keep the borders stable after that and have the Modern Byzantine borders stretch from Albania to Armenia. Maybe you could include Antioch but that's optional.
But, they had retained Anatolia and though the Eastern parts were conquered, initially, they were reconquered, in a way Syria and Egypt could never be.
In an Alternate timeline, get the Byzantine Anatolia become as rich as or richer than the (Umayyad) Egypt, using its many rivers, plains and the Sunny climate (useful to grow food crops and spices), establishing more irrigated plains, agro-pastoral settlements (to feed a growing population and also earn trade through growing exotic crops that grow in the Sunny climates), and new cities named after the lost Egyptian and Syrio-Palestinian cities, which would together, eventually bring the much needed stability to the unstable Byzantine Empire. Keep the borders stable after that and have the Modern Byzantine borders stretch from Albania to Armenia. Maybe you could include Antioch but that's optional.