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If Constantinople held out for another generation, and fell to the Turks in 1476, exactly a thousand years after the fall of the western empire, what impact might that have on the historiography of Rome/Byzantium?

Assume the following: - Caesar survives his assassination or avoids it, and lives to die of natural causes around age 75, in 24 BC. A long life, yes, but no longer than Augustus, who was never the picture of health. - He does not want anyone to be able to easily accumulate the same power he has...

The vast majority of the problems faced by/caused by the 4th Crusade can be traced back to the inability of the Crusaders to pay the agreed payments to the Venetians, leading to the renogations that delayed departure, led them to attack Zara, and, ultimately, Constantinople. What if, through...

Erring on the conservative side, how can Byzantine authority be maintained in Venice?

The Roman Republic was uninterested in accepting the gift in Ptolemy XI's will of the entire kingdom of Egypt. It was too valuable to be entrusted to any one Roman Senator. Could the Republic have accepted it, but divided, perhaps along lines similar to the divisions in the eventual Diocese of...

One of the many problems the Roman Republic faced was that there was absolutely no differentiation between the civilian government and military commands. When the politically ambitious were also generals, it invited all sorts of trouble, as the first century BC proved. Could the Republic have...

As we know, Roman power was spread throughout Italy theough a series of alliances with the other cities of the peninsula. Nominally, these other cities were independent, and only owed to Rome mutual obligations of defense (yes, there were more details). This is, on the surface, no different than...

Your challenge is for the Holy Roman Empire as a whole (or at least, a very large portion thereof) to form a government similar to the Swiss. Basically, if we could recognize it as a sort of federal republic on a broad level, it counts. That should provide enough leeway, I think. Your only...

Posit a Roman Empire that has survived with its typical borders long enough that they have a modern level of technology, comparable to ours in all respects. With such resources as an empire would have, and with fewer likely political constraints (not as many borders), what projects might they...

I had couple disjointed thoughts floating in my head: - The commonly accepted notion that, if England were to win the HYW, they'd just become an apendage of France, due to demographics. The 'tail wagging the dog' scenario. - The idea of a Baltic/North Sea Mare Nostrum had always intrigued me. -...

What if the Four Great Inventions (magnetic compass, paper, printing, and gunpowder) were invented in the West, instead of (or in addition to) China? Lets work with a time frame of anywhere between the death of Alexander and fall of the WRE.

Let us imagine that Lincoln is not assassinated; either he survives the attempt or no attempt is made. He then is appointed to the Supreme Court (historically, the next opening was in 1870). What might happen?

Doing some research, I found that, strictly speaking, the Catholics and Orthodox Churches never declared the Miaphysite position as heretical. So, if all five of the major Patriarchates were kept in communion with each other without disruption, and the Pentarchal organization maintained, what...

If the same state were to control both major canals, how might that influence geopolitics and world trade? Throw in other maritime chokepoints, too, if you think of anything compelling about them.

Set aside whether or not it would be a good idea. Assume elections based on your taxes paid, similar to corporate shares (each dollar paid in taxes gets you one vote). These would be elections for a legislature. How would it be composed? Would it be based on geographical districts? Would there...

I've been fascinated by Brazil's approach to the racial divide in their country, particularly in the end of the 19th century. Essentially, while most other countries of European origin pursued some policy of segregation in order to maintain the racial order, the Brazilians took the scientific...

Could Egypt have begun the commercial production of cotton earlier in its history? If so, what might be the consequences?

Short version: What are some foods and drinks that could arise in an alternate history? Long version: Given that many of our foods and drinks are combinations of various ingredients, and, further, many are 'acquired tastes,' (particularly true with drinks and delicacies), there is no reason to...

I'm curious if there were any specific reasons why there was not a greater Norse presence in Northern Germany. Its right next door, and maps of Viking settlement do show ag least some settlement in the region. Was it simply that the HRE was potent enough to prevent the area from falling into the...

Your challenge is to create an empire that ends up governing the vast stretches of northern asia as Russia does in the present day, centered on Constantinople. This must be the de jure and de facto capital (so no 'Russia conquers Ottomans, sets up a ceremonial capital'). It must also not govern...